Yep, I'm here

Here's an update about our month, and then I swear I'll get better about blogging.

• My little genius somehow knows how to spell BATH, or at least knows what spells B-A-T-H. Everytime we try to spell it out so Joel can go get ready for work in peace, she takes off for the bathroom, saying "Bath. Bath. Bath. Bath. Bath. Bath," and trying to climb in the bathtub. Luckily it's a deep tub or she'd be in it with the water on.
• Joel is still working plenty of overtime every week, which limits our time as a family. 
• Tessa is obsessed with her baby. At least 15 times per day we wrap her baby in a blanket, she gives it hugs and kisses, and puts it "night night". But she doesn't like her baby sleeping for long, because sooner or later she's back with the blanket and the baby, asking for it wrapped again.
• We've been having a sleep regression the last few weeks. Every night between midnight and 1, she wakes up crying. I'll let her cry a few minutes but usually end up going to get her. She falls back asleep easily in bed with me/us, and will sleep on top of the comforter at the end of the bed until morning. I realize I should let her cry, but mama needs to sleep and get up for work so this works best for everyone, at least for now. 
• I'm harboring a clean freak. Every time she sees trash or empties a package, she obsessively needs to find a garbage and put it in the "trash." Every time she sees crumbs she tries to get the broom out of the closet and sweep it towards the central vac. 
• We've been in our house for 2 months now and there is still nothing hanging on the walls. We'll have to change that.
• We got a new kitchen table! Joel's parents bought us one for Christmas and it finally came last week. It's bigger than our last one and seats more people, but looks smaller and fits in the small dining room so much better.
• Tessa is a monkey. Seriously. She loves to climb onto the couch and sit like a big girl. She loves to sit at the table and sit in adult chairs. 
• She passed her 15 months appointment. She was 21 pounds, 12 oz (just under 25th percentile) and 30.5 inches long (60th percentile) Her iron levels were back to normal so we can just do regular flinstone vitamins instead of that yucky poly-vi-sol crap.
• My stomach is still bothering me, and with no solid answers, it's frustrating. Oh well.

Live and Learn

I tried a new recipe tonight. By recipe, I mean I threw some random crap on top of some stuff and cooked it to see what would happen. I'm a mad scientist in the making.

I had gotten some free boneless ribs thanks to couponing ($2 off any ribs, wait for a sale=4 pounds of free ribs!) I've never eaten ribs in my life, and Joel has only had them on the bone, but he certainly had never been a part of the cooking process.

So, I grabbed some spices, a couple random sauces, and the ribs and I threw it all in the crockpot. When I say random, I mean random. Adobo, garlic powder, ketchup, chili paste, worcestershire sauce, soy sauce, and teriyaki sauce. Oh, and a pound of carrots I'd frozen earlier in the year. Threw it all together, and turned the crockpot on low. 5 hours later, I had cooked ribs that smelled delicious. I took a bite. The flavor was ok, but it was so.farking.salty. Wow. I guess that what happens.

I took a few bites, then faked a stomach ache and excused myself. Joel was a trooper, and either didn't want to say anything negative, or actually liked them. I'm not sure which. Tessa wouldn't eat it, so she got a hot dog and some cheese cracker sandwiches. I'm now eating Mike & Ikes. Next time, we'll try a different recipe, maybe one that someone else has had success with.

Here's to a new year!

We had a very busy Christmas week with so many different families (6 different Christmas celebrations I think!) By Christmas day, we were down to our last one, and were kind of relieved that the whirlwind week was coming to an end. Tessa, of course, got spoiled rotten. What I wasn't expecting was for us to get spoiled as well! We had so much fun with everyone, especially my brother and his family from Denver. We've already booked a flight in March to go visit. It'll be Tessa's first airplane ride!