5 on Friday

I don't know how to link up to someone else's blog, but I've seen this "5 on Friday" before. It's just 5 things on your mind today. 

1. Mississippi Pecan Factory

I've never been to the pecan festival before, but I've always been curious. And by "always" I mean, since I found out about it last year. Tomorrow I plan on taking the boys down to Richton to have a fun day. My in-laws will be in town so we should all have fun together. Hopefully, pictures to come from the day.

2. Kagan

I'm going to be helping teach our professional development day on Monday! It's pretty exciting and really nerve-wrecking. I've done two days of a Kagan seminar and it's AWESOME. I'm glad that others will learn some of the structures.

3. Peyton

My sweet, precious baby will be ONE next month! Tonight I picked him up to rock him and he put his little head on my shoulder. I really want to cherish those moments because I know that all too soon he'll be too big and won't want me to rock him anymore.

4. TV Premiers

Okay, we don't have cable, but we have Hulu so I still get to watch some of my shows (not "Big Bang" or TLC shows). This week is premier week. I'm sure this will make me sound like a tv-aholic, but I'm excited about "Grey's Anatomy," "Vampire Diaries," "Glee," "Parenthood," "Modern Family," "New Girl," and "Once Upon a Time" starting back.

5. The Book Thief

I've started reading The Book Thief because it got good recommendations. So far it's really good. I wish I wasn't so tired every night so I could read more than one chapter at a time. Eventually I'll have more time, right?

11 Month Comparison

Kaleb at 11 months. My little baldy.

Peyton at 11 months. My little chunk.

11 Month Update

How incredibly darling is this child?!

Age: 11 months
Weight: 21.6 lbs
Length: 29 inches
Sleep: Kid loves him some sleep. He takes a little nap when he gets home from preschool and goes to bed about 8:00 so there are some days when I only get to see him for an hour a day.     :(
Likes: His brother is still his favorite, but he also has become attached to me more. He's saying "mama" a lot now and kind of whimpers a little when I have to drop him off. It's sweet and pitiful at the same time. He really likes food and crawling around eating anything he finds on the floor...yeah, gross!
Dislikes: He has a rash on his little boy parts right now, so that's no good. He also cut a couple more teeth this month (up to 4) and it seems like he's cutting at least one more on the top. Still a very content child though.
News: My sweet, darling boy is standing up by himself. No steps yet, but I'm not in any hurry for them. I still like him dependent on me. He's eating baby food three times a day and has a bunch of Puffs or applesauce or other snacks. He's also started nibbling on fruit loops and other finger foods. At church Sunday they said he ate TWO donuts! My little heifer. Can't believe the next post will be his one year update!!

Fall To Do

I know that most people have long lists of things to do in the Fall since it IS the best season. However, I barely make time to cook supper so my list is mighty short. At least I know I will most likely do everything on it.

1. Go to Mitchell Farms -  There are a lot of fun memories to make at Mitchell Farms. They have a corn maze, pumpkin patch, hay ride, and playground. We didn't get to go last year because I was "great with child."

2. Make apple butter - I have never made apple butter before and don't really even know if I'd like it, but I know I'll love how it smells. I'll probably end up giving it to friends as Fall gifts. Thank you Pinterest!

3. Go to a USM game - Sure, they may not be on a winning streak, but they're still my team. At the end of October there is a night game and in November there is an afternoon game. Need to figure out which one to go to.

4. Make a new soup - I can make a pretty good potato soup and taco soup, but I'd like to try some kind of chowder. The plan is a corn chowder with cornbread and some friends. Hopefully some hot chocolate by a fire will also go along with that night.

5. Go to the fair - I didn't get to go last year due to the same child, but I freaking LOVE the fair. I can spend $40 on food alone. The grilled corn, turkey legs, ice cream, chocolate covered strawberries on a stick (yes, you read the correctly), cotton candy, root beer, etc. make me so happy.

6. Have Peyton's party - My little baby turns ONE on October 11! Hard to believe. We're going to have a nursery rhyme theme and it's going to be really low key and really cute.

7. Read a parenting book - I've never read a parenting book before. I know, terrible. But this fall I plan to read one. Suggestions welcome and appreciated.

So that's what's going on during my Fall. I may add some things later on, but it seems like a good place to start.

Book Review: The Spectacular Now

This book was also on the list of books I mentioned in my previous post. I knew that it won a bunch of awards at some film festival, so that led me to assume that either someone dies tragically or it ends up all being an illusion of someone's imagination. The Spectacular Now is about this high school kid, Sutter, who, in all honesty, has a drinking problem and parties too much. He meets an average, so-so girl, Aimee, one hungover morning and decides to help build her confidence by hanging out with her. The reviews say that she "changes his life" yada yada yada. Sounds like every other typical teen movie. I won't give it away, but the ending kind of makes you...wonder. Like I said, it's already a  movie and should be out at your local theater sometime later this year or maybe early next year. I'll definitely go see the movie just to compare the two. In fact, I've rewatched the preview three times since reading the book. Would I recommend it? Eh. It's a coming of age tale so if that's your thing, go for it. There is a lot of swearing so beware of that, but I really liked how the author writes. He writes how I would talk; that made it a quick read.

Book Review: The Fault in our Stars

I know it's been a while since I've blogged. I've just felt ick for the past couple of weeks and didn't really have anything to write about. During that time, however, I've had a chance to read a few books. I saw a list on Pinterest called something like 12 Books to Read Before Seeing the Movie. I had already read about 4 of them and was very uninterested in 4, but the third 4 sounded pretty good, so I added them to my Books to Read List. I've already read two of them: The Fault in Our Stars and The Spectacular Now.
 

 

This book as been highly recommended by several people I know, and it is very good. It's about a girl named Hazel and a boy named Augustus. All of the main characters have a terminal or chronic disease...cancer really. It's a very honest, real perspective about dealing with the fact that you know you're going to die and living each day without any regrets. It's a love story with a not-so-typical ending. I mean, everyone has cancer, so there you go. I definitely recommend you read it. There is a slight language warning so be on the lookout for that. It's going to be made into a movie sometime next year so you have until then to read it. Don't worry. It'll only take you a day or two to read it.