Your fave?

I was at my parents house this afternoon and Food Network was on because, well, who doesn't love to watching cooking shows?!

My dad made the comment that he really likes Ina Garten (Barefoot Contessa), and I agreed. We can all guess that Chris' favorite chef is Paula Deen (anyone who fries that much food and cooks with that much butter is like kin to him!).

So who is your fave?

Rachel Ray? She's a tad peppy for me!
Paula? Love her gooey butter cakes, but I can't cook too much of her food! It's like a heart attack on a plate!

Ina? My fave. I would LOVE to meet her!

Giada? I cook a lot of her food, and I always liked her until she was a guest judge on Who Wants to be the Next FN Star. She was so mean to the contestants! It really changes my opinion on her.

Who's your favorite chef?

And for all those who asked, my mom got B's chair through Pottery Barn Kids - and it is the infant one. She said they are also available for toddlers!

Something for you...

My Dad shared this video with me and I want you to check it out too. You may have heard the "Revelation Song" before but I bet you've not heard or seen it like this.

This church is personifying worship to me. The #1 reason for going to church is to worship God. Everything else I believe to be secondary.

Check it out...

Big Boy Seat - And results!

Whoa, I take it you all like the monkey costume?! I guess I'll be ordering it today! Though I was secretly hoping someone would suggest that Chris and I dress up as Padme and Anakin and have B be Luke...ha!

So my mom has been on a monogrammed buying frenzy lately - which I love because anything monogrammed is up my alley.

Her latest purchase? A chair for B for our family room!

How cute is this?

He loves it!

You Vote - Costume 2009

A few weeks ago I got a magazine called "Wish Craft" from the Chasing Fireflies company. They have some super cute clothes and now some even cuter costumes.

We have yet to decide on a costume though I've picked out 3 that I like.

So tell me, what one is your favorite?

(And I should add that Chris thinks that we should find B a koala bear costume, and then find a tree costume for him and a zoo keeper costume for me. Um. No.)

My little lambie...I thought this was adorable. He's God's little lamb, it's in blue so it's boyish and this is probably the only Halloween I can get away with dressing him in this.

Yes, I know you're shocked to see a monkey costume. But I think B would love it.

And if Chris would permit my inner geek to come out, I'd be all over this Yoda costume.

So what's your vote?

I Just Realized...

That it's Wednesday. Which meant I Don't Wednesday. Opps.

I guess "I Don't" do I don't Wednesday when I wake up thinking it's Thursday.

I just have to share that it's now 3pm and I laid B down for a nap an hour and a half ago and he's still asleep. Yahoo!

For those who live locally...have you noticed some sort of knat infestation? Because every night when we take our walk I get attacked by swarms of knats. So either there is an infestation or they follow me wherever I go.

I might do a real post tonight if I can think of something to write about. Suggestions?

Doing the guy thing

Looking for the Q and A? It's one post down!


Brayden loves hanging out in the backyard with daddy. Ok, maybe with me too but you know, the grill is the guys territory and all.

Hanging out by the man machine aka the grill...


Cute little feeties.

His favorite backyard toy...the bench. He's fascinated with it! And for some reason he calls it Dada too.

Freshair + lots of exploring = one tired baby who will sleep in in the morning! That equals a grateful momma!

You Ask, I Answer PART 2

I thought I'd do another edition of you asked, I answer. So I picked several of the most asked questions and here are your answers!

- Can you give those of us who didn't know about Brayden's story an overview? I'll do my best. Brayden is our miracle baby for more reasons than one. First, it took us two years to have him, following 1 year of infertility treatments (9 cycles of clomid, 3 or 4 of femara, 4 IUIs with injectibles, HSG, Laparoscopy surgery etc...) and we were told that IVF was our only option. Well...as you can see they were wrong.



So I had a fairly rough pregnancy, then an induction then a c-sec. Brayden was taken immediately up to the nursery - I think I saw him for 5 seconds or less. I was taken to recovery. By the time I got up there he was under this thing that looks like a clear helmet that circulates oxygen. The next morning the pediatrician came in and said that he thought something was wrong with B's lungs and wanted to send him to a hospital 25 mins away that has a NICU. Keep in mind that I haven't so much as held him. They sent him by ambulance. B's oxygen numbers started to drop...a normal person's oxygen number is 99 or 100. B's got down into the 40's which is VERY bad. He was maxed out on a ventilator and they couldn't do more for him. Then did an echo cardiogram on his heart and found that B had PPHN - meaning he was circulating blood like he was still in the womb and not converting it from blue to red.



They flew him to Little Rock (Arkansas Children's Hospital or ACH) and I checked out of the hospital (24 hrs after delivery) and we drove down there. He was there for 33 days (total of 35 in the hospital). My parents, Chris and I moved into a hotel and we were there everyday with him. Long story short, the amazing doctors were able to help him and Brayden broke records down there for his fast recovery. God works in amazing ways and we were so blessed to be there. I think God used us in a mighty way to spread His Word down at ACH. Chris and I even got to speak on the radio and share B's testimony which was awesome.


- Why did Brayden have PPHN? In Brayden's case there was no cause. PPHN strikes 1% of babies, primarily white males. In some cases they have linked it to moms who take anti-depressants while pregnant (I've never taken them). In our case, there was no cause.

- How old is Chris/aka did you rob the cradle? Ha! This cracks me up. I am 3 months older than Chris, so if that's robbing the cradle, then yes!

- When/how did you meet Chris and get married? I actually knew Chris in high school - we were in the same math class. We started dating 2 years after I graduated and we were married in October of 2005.

- What convertible carseat did you get? Well, I think I've changed my mind so right now the answer is TBD.



- Does Brayden smile 24/7? Because he always has a smile in all of his pics! NO! He doesn't! BUT he is a ham! A total ham who sees a camera and knows what to do. I am in trouble...



- What kind of paci does B use? I can't seem to find one like it anywhere! At ACH they gave him the "gumdrop" paci and now he refuses to take anything else! I have to order them from Hawaii! No worries though, it's not expensive. They are so neat, you can see inside their mouth while they are sucking.



- The most asked question by far is what does Chris do for a living? Wow, I had no idea so many of you were interested in that! But for now, I'm keeping that one personal! Sometime in the future I may tell ya though!

Thanks for emailing me your questions!

2nd Trip to the NICU

Chris and I have gone back twice in the last two weeks to the first hospital Brayden was taken to after I had him. We really wanted to show Dr. W how good Brayden is doing! We just can't seem to get ahold of him!

This time we did take his number so that we can track him down before we drive back there.

Here's a couple of snapshots from the waiting area - the door to the NICU is back behind this wall.

You can see the door on the right side of this pic...

This is the waiting room we sat in right after I checked out of the hospital and the Angel One flight crew was prepping Brayden for the helicopter ride.

I'll be sure to post a pic when we finally get one of Brayden and Dr. W!

And because I'm paranoid, I took Brayden into see his pediatrician today. He hasn't be eating well and has dropped from 17.3 lbs to 16.4 lbs. Of course I'm scared that this will earn him a ticket straight back to Little Rock. It turns out he's fine, he's just going through a phase where everything is way more interesting to him than food. Better safe than sorry!

Oh, and it was his lucky day - he ended up getting a flu shot while we were there! But my big boy didn't even cry!

Oh, and I'm going to do another "You Asked, I Answer" so email me your questions! JennasJourneyBlog@yahoo.com

Weekend Getaway

This weekend we went to Tulsa to visit Chris' mom and StepDad. I was really excited because they have an aquarium in Tulsa that I wanted to take B to.

So Saturday we all piled in the car and drove to the aquarium. B looked a little hesitant ...

Because this is the first stop we made...notice the shark in the background? For those of you who know me you know I HATE sharks. With a passion. Ugh.

On our honeymoon in Maui we went snorkeling and just as I jumped in the instructor decided to tell us to stay to one side of the boat because there were SHARKS on the other side...I panicked, had a full on hyperventilation attack and they had to pull me out of the water! I did eventually get back in though.

B loved looking at the fishies...

Posing...

Family pic..

We had such a great trip. We arrived Friday night and ate at Macaroni Grill (YAY!). Then we went back to my inlaws house and hung out for awhile. Saturday was at the aquarium, and then we headed to BRU to check out the convertible carseats. I think we've finally settled on one!

Then we went home, made kabobs and had dinner. It was SO much fun! I hope everyone had a great weekend!

Future Picasso

Tonight we went to one of those restaurants that has paper on the table so that you can keep yourself entertained while you wait for your meal.

It's even more entertaining when you let a 7 month old draw...

An artist in the making? Choosing his color...

A masterpiece...

You can only see the blue scribble ahem work of art in this pic, but for awhile he was going the two fisted route and there are some purple drawings on the other side.

We all say it about our kids, but I truly think I have a genius on my hands.

T minus 2 Months

In just a few short months it will be my FAVORITE time of the year!

Which includes this...

Most definitely this...

And of course this....minus the beachball and plus a Bman...

Can you sense my excitement?! I heart Nov and Dec! I cannot wait to spend Christmas with B! It's going to be great!

What's your fave time of the year?

Oh and did you know you can visit my blogfrog community and discuss amongst yourselves? Cause you can. Just click on the widget on my left sidebar to visit and discuss!

Where did you buy your...

China hutch?

I'm working on finishing our dining room and I need a china hutch. Where did you get yours, or if you don't have one, tell me about one you like.

I'd like something that is either brown wood or white that is oil rubbed...or a combo of both. My table is wood that looks like slats and my chairs are the white that is oil rubbed.

Any suggestions?

Tunnel

When B was in the hospital I didn't listen to a lot of music (obviously!). But there was a song that was in my head a LOT. I don't think I've shared that before, and if I have, pretend I didn't. ha.

I'm sure a lot of you know this song because from things you've said I take it your Third Day fans like I am. So anyway, this song was my personal anthem for BB!

Enjoy!

Tunnel by Third Day

Then:

And Now:

I Don't Wednesday

Time for I Don't Wedneday!



- I don't know if I'll be watching the new season of America idol. Not because of Paula...I'm just a little bored with the show.

- I don't give in order to receive.

- I don't like sharks. Or spiders. Or snakes. Eww.

- I don't like going to the doctors.

- I don't ever cook fish. Weird I know, but I don't eat it either. Chris orders it when we go out though.

- I don't watch The View. I think their mean! Well, except Elizabeth, I really like her.

So join in the fun! Make your own list, and add it into MckLinky! Link back to me so your friends and readers can participate too!

Brayden's Surgery

Brayden will be having a minor surgery on Sept 4th at 11am. It should be out patient, and very quick. We'll bring him home that afternoon if all goes well. The doctors say he should be back to himself the next day.

I don't wish to go into what the surgery is right now, but please remember him in your prayers on Sept 4th. I'll keep you updated on it.

I do want to say that he is healthy and doing great!

Thanks!

Houston we have a....

Tooth. Or a tooth in the making. A nameless someone woke his momma up at midnight screaming bloody murder. I rocked him for 45 mins and then put him back in bed, still wide awake. He didn't make another peep but drifted off to sleep.

Today he's been super fussy. I laid him in his crib while I was putting some things away in his room and he acted so drowsy. He rolled over and turned his little mobile on (by himself!) and went to sleep. He slept in his crib for two marvelous hours. I say that because my son never naps in his crib. Two whole, marvelous hours!

Now he's awake and not happy!

I peeked in his mouth and there, clear as day is a white spot that is soon to pop out as a tooth. Which explains a LOT. I gave him some tylenol. He hates baby oragel. He's got his teething rings - frozen and otherwise.

Any tips?!

Change of Plans

So we ended up not going bowling today after all. Instead, we decided to do some things around the house.

Chris spent hours this morning working on the garage. It looks so much better and so much more organized.

Then we went and got some paint made and did touch up painting in the house. We left so the paint could dry but when we came back it looks like it didn't totally match up! I'm not sure what we'll do!

Bubby is having a rough day. I don't know if he's (actually for real this time) teething or what. He spent most of the morning totally upset, crying and yelling. Finally he fell asleep for a nap and he's been better but still not himself. He's not running a temp or anything thankfully.

We're both exhausted! We found a park today that we might take B to tomorrow. We'll have to see!

Today and Yesterday

Please continue to pray for the Rowe's. Baby Reese went to be with Jesus last night. Please join me in praying for their sweet family.

Yesterday we spent over two hours at a doctor appt for Bman. Two hours. The kicker is we were waiting because the doctor wasn't even there! Thankfully we will only have to go back there one more time...

Today hasn't been overly exciting. Bubby and I went over to mom and dad's house for awhile and then came home. B's been VERY cranky today. Maybe he's finally getting teeth?! Ha.

I think tomorrow we are going to go bowling with B. We'll give the chest carrier a shot and take the stroller for backup!

And because no post is complete without a pic of the B man...

7 Months Old!

Momma's big boy is 7 months old today!

B is changing so much!
He weighs about 16 1/2 pounds and is 27 and 3/4 of an inch long.
He's still on prevacid and formula thickener.
He eats solids twice a day and takes 5 bottles per day.

This is what happens when you give him his sign to play with!

He is learning to crawl. Right now we call it the backwards scoot because he doesn't quite crawl and he only moves backwards!

We gave you your first teething biscuit a few days ago and you LOVED it!

You love it when Daddy holds you ... you always fall fast asleep!

You're still a great sleeper.

You talk CONSTANTLY. Sometimes actual words like "Hi" "Dada" or "Daddy." Most of the time you screetch very, very loudly!

You love your Grammy and GrandDaddy - especially when GrandDaddy whistles to you.

You love to stand - Mommy holds you little hands and you look so proud of yourself.

It scares you when other babies scream...in Wal-Mart, at the doctors office etc.

Momma had Star Wars on and you LOVED it.

Your favorite toy is your Cat in the Hat and your books. I think you'll be a reader like me!

Happy birthday B!

Please Pray and the winner is...

Please continue to pray for Katie's family and sweet baby Reese! You can visit her and leave them a comment here.

The winner of my ring giveaway (here) is...

Shanna

Congrats Shanna! Email me at JennasJourneyBlog@yahoo.com with your address and ring selection and I'll have it sent out!

If You Could Pick...

Before my new post, I want to address my last post.

One commenter left what I can only refer to is a hate comment (which I deleted). I just want to clarify something. My beliefs are my beliefs. I'm not saying you've got to agree with me and I wasn't putting anyone else's religion down. I was simply stating my beliefs. Feel free to make your own post, with your beliefs.

I Don't Wednesday is still open for those who want to participate.



OK. Now onto the fun stuff!


So, if you could pick the next lineup of Dancing with the Stars stars who would you pick?



I'd like to see...


- Candace Olsen from HGTV


- Chris Harrison from the Bachelor (the host)


- Rupert Grint (actor)


- Reese Witherspoon


- Tim Gunn


- Kirk Cameron




How about you?

I Don't Special Edition

Please pray for Katie and her family. What I know, I've learned from Twitter...she delivered baby Reese last night via emergency c-section and baby Reese is in a coma. Please pray for the Rowe family!

If you're wondering why I Don't wasn't up sooner...It's because I thought today was Tuesday!



So I thought I'd do a special edition of I Don't Wednesday. Today are things that I don't believe. You can either do a regular I Don't or the Special Edition, because I'm easy going like that.

- I don't believe that any amount of good works will get you into heaven.

- I don't believe in forever families, kolab or garments that protect you from harm.

- I don't believe that only 144,000 people will get into heaven.

- I don't believe that you can't pray directly to God.

- I don't believe that hell doesn't exist.

Now for a twist, here are some things that I DO believe...

- I believe you can go to heaven if you repent of your sins, and ask Jesus to dwell in your heart.

- I believe that anyone can do this.

- I believe that God loves every single person, no matter what they've done.

- I believe God hears our prayers. He may not answer in the way we think is best, but His will is always perfect and his timing, precise.

- I believe the Bible is the perfect, true, infallible word of God.

Ok, your turn. Just post you I Don't's and link to MckLinky. Feel free to put the button in your post and be sure to link back to me so others can join in the fun!

Easy Peasy

Sometimes I don't like spending a long time making a meal. Know what I mean?

When we were in Little Rock one place we found that we really liked to go eat at was Macaroni Grill. A couple of months ago, my mom spotted these MG meal kits at Wal-Mart. Of course I had to try them out...

They are so easy! And SO GOOD!

One pot to boil the noodles...and one to cook the chicken and sauce:

Dinner in 30 minutes or LESS!

We had Chicken Picatta, cresent rounds and salad. And I had time to make dessert! Yum.

Speaking of easy, I took your advise on the Chicken Fried Rice from hamburger helper. Wow. SOOO GOOD. Thanks for your tips!

Cause and Effect

We - and by we, I mean Brayden - have learned the the basic principals of cause and effect. And what might those be?

Well, for example, say Mommy and Daddy bought you this cool new toy that they call the baby ipod:

You love the baby ipod. When Mommy put you in your highchair, you accidentally on purpose threw said ipod across the room. Mommy picked it up, cleaned it off and gave it back. Hmmm.

47 times later, you have figured out that anything you throw, Mommy will clean and retrieve. Mommy figured out, that one backache later, it was time to move on to a new activity.

Daytrip!

Yesterday Chris and I decided to take a daytrip up to Springfield, MO. Chris wanted to go to Bass Pro, and I wanted to go to both Babies R Us and Macaroni Grill!

When we got to Bass Pro we were really disappointed. The store is under a major remodel and a big part of why we were going there was to let BB see all the fish and waterfalls in the store. Everything was shut down except this one small aquarium:

He loves to watch the fishies!

Were going to Tulsa in a few weeks to see Chris' mom and stepdad and we'll be taking B to see the Jenks Aquarium. I can't wait!

At Babies R Us we got B a new, big boy bathtub!

He really liked it. I really like it too - I don't get totally drenched at bath time now!

We never made it to Macaroni Grill. Sadness. We'll have to do that during our trip to Tulsa!

Fun Friday Night Out

Tonight we had a FFNO (fun Friday night out) with my friend Julie and her hubby Blake. We met at Copelands (yummmm) where my favorite dish has been off the menu for years, but they'll still make it for me (or anyone else who orders it).

We ended up being there over two hours! We had such a great time. Julie, I can't wait to do it again! Don't you all think Julie should start a blog? I'm working on convincing her!

Julie with a sleepy Mr. B:
Tomorrow we might go bowling. Chris has this idea that if he puts B in the chest carrier he can still bowl. I'm not convinced. Anyone ever tried that?

Hope everyone's having as fabulous a Friday as I am!

Urgent...If you love MckLinky...

Edited...It seems to be fixed. I think poor Brent about had a heart attack!

Hi everyone,

Do you love MckLinky? I know I do. What would life be without a good list and some blog hopping fun?

Google thinks MckLinky is a robot, not a person. Can you join me in writing them at help@google.com and letting them know that Brent is a real live person and MckLinky is a legitimate service?

In fact, I'll make it easier. I'm giving y'all permission to copy my one line letter and send it yourself: Please release your ban on posts containing a MckLinky. MckLinky is a real person and this is a legitimate service!

Thanks!

Giveaway!

I just posted a fantabulous (I love my made up words) giveaway on my other blog!

Ever wanted to win a wedding band?! Seriously, you have got to check out this giveaway!

Almost There

B wants to crawl sooooo bad. As soon as he gets a leg up under himself, he flips over. He immediately flips back over and gives it another go! It's really cute.

Today we went to our first ever playgroup, hosted by Kelly. It was really fun, B loved seeing all the kids...it was like a real live Jon and Kate +8 minus all of the fighting for him. Ha! Thanks so much for the invite Kelly!

I'll leave you with a pic of B once he gave up attempting to crawl and decided to read a book...

Bedroom Makeover

As some of you have commented on, I rarely post pictures of my home. Mainly that is because my house isn't decorated the way I really want it because we were going to move. We still are going to move, but we've delayed our plans...we will probably be here another 2 years. Anyway, I've decided that certain things just can't wait!

One such thing? Our bedroom. It was all in gold, black and deep red. It was d-a-r-k. We decided to re-vamp it.

Made-over!

My best deal is the rug...I got it on clearance for $100 at Lowes of all places. I still need to find new lampshades (oh and the pink thing on my nightstand is a squirt bottle for my cats...).

I think our next big project will be the dining room. And when I get it finished I promise to post pictures!

I Don't Wednesday!

Yay! It's Wednesday! Time for some "I Don'ts"...


- I don't like the Arkansas humidity. I much prefer the dry heat of California.

- I don't like rabbits as pets. I had one once and she was terribly mean.

- I don't like to be put on the spot.

- I don't iron. Ok, maybe once in awhile. Chris is actually the ironer in our house...I know, I'm blessed.

- I don't look very good in white...probably because it matches my skin so well...I just look like a glowing ghost.

- I don't think I could go back to driving a car after having an SUV for so long. I'd feel really short!

Ok, it's your turn! Just make your own list, and link it up into MckLinky! You can snag my button for your post of for your blog if you'd like, and be sure to link back to me so your friends can participate! Have fun!