Rub a dub dub...

...there's a cutie in my tub!

And here are a couple of photos of my Halloween decor...

Wordless Wednesday

This post has no pictures. You're welcome.

Tonight has been quite an eventful one in the Butchino home. Congratulations are in order...Steven got his very first deer this evening! I am very proud of him. What I am not so fond of is the fact that it is hanging in my garage overnight before he can get the meat. We have pictures, but I am not putting them anywhere on the internet because they are absolutely disgusting! (Please refrain from leaving any of those "What did Bambi ever do to you?" comments. We're from the country...we shoot things, eat them, and use their body parts to decorate our homes.)

Carter and I had another fun night vegging on the couch. Minus the explosive poopy diaper, the night was perfect! I am amazed at how much I can accomplish without leaving the couch! Its a good thing, because Steven's excitement has pretty much shot any plans I had for tonight. Its fine though...this is a big achievement for him. So...way to go babe! What a wonderful provider you are!! I love you!

Also...happy 11 month birthday to my sweet boy! Its hard to believe that he will be a year old in just 1 short month. It went by so fast...but I loved every minute of it!

I zerbert you!

I don't know why I haven't brought this up yet, but Carter loves to zerbert. For those of you who have never seen the Cosby Show, a zerbert is when you blow on someone's cheek, resulting in a "fart" sound. Some people call them raspberries. Anyway, he is so cute...he will grab my face in his little hands and smoosh his lips to my cheeks. When he blows, he drools all down the side of my face. When a successful zerbert has been achieved, he looks at me with a huge grin on his face, then latches back on for round 2, 3, 4...or until I have to put him down to dry my face and neck with my sleeve.

I have yet to get the zerbert on video, but its so stinking cute, I had to blog about it.

Yesterday, Steven went hunting and I had Carter by myself from 3pm until 8pm. It went pretty good. I changed his diaper and clothes, made bottles, fed him his dinner, got him down for a short nap, played with him, watched Yo Gabba Gabba for what seemed like forever, and we shared a juice box which I was surprised he handled very well! I got a little frustrated changing diapers because he is such a wiggle worm, but after a short prayer and a few deep breaths, I was good.  It was an empowering day for me! To all of you mommies out there in blogland...never take caring for your child for granted! I know I thank God every day for the abilities I do have. We are all very blessed.

Birthday Photos

I decided to take Carter's 1 year pictures a month early, so I could add them to the slideshow's final cut before the party. I took 264 photos...this is what I came up with.

 

Grab a box of tissues!

I have been working on a slideshow for Carter's 1st birthday party.  As I was making it, I realized how truly blessed I am to be watching this beautiful boy grow up right in front of my eyes. It is hard to believe that he is almost 1 year old. It went by so fast, yet I cannot even remember life before him. I am waiting until his party to show our family, but I consider you all to be family also, and wanted to share. I hope you enjoy watching it as much as I enjoyed living it!

Home, Sweet Home

We are home! Woo! We pulled in the driveway at 12:15 am. Just as I suspected, Mr man didn't want to go to bed peacefully upon arrival. So, he finally fell asleep around 1 am and slept until 10...thank God!! To be honest, Steven and I did not really solve any of our problems. We just kind of agreed to disagree...which is fine with me. In the end, we respect and love each other, so we're good.

Today has been a crazy one! After I woke up, I got Carter his breakfast, got him changed and cleaned up, called a realtor about possibly looking at a house in NY, emailed a woman that is selling Photography Backdrops 3 for $50 on CraigsList, called RCA (aka "the devil"), unpacked, threw in laundry, got Carter down for a nap, took a shower, ate lunch, got Carter his lunch, took him outside for a mini-photo shoot (hey...I needed a fun break!), washed the car seat, edited a few photos, and now Carter and I are hanging waiting for Steven to get home. Ugh! My head is spinning!!

Here are a few pics from our trip...

 Jammin' at a rest stop in NY.

 

 Carter and Grandma

 

Steven and I leaving the casino.

 

 

 Climbing up Baby's cage.

 

Carter's new toy. Big boy!!

And here are a few from our mini photo shoot today. I saw this hat at the Fall Festival this weekend and I just could not resist! Surprisingly, Carter keeps all his hats on. I didn't even have to torture him by making him wear something he didn't like...much like his sunglasses, LOL!

Bring on the Rain

Today is just one of those days where you feel like there's a black cloud following you wherever you go. First of all, I accidentally deleted iPhoto from my new computer. I have the Restore CD at home...if I ever get home. We are still sitting here at my mother-in-law's because Steven left his hunting stuff in his mom's trunk. Now, we have to stay here until 5 o' clock. I was hoping to get home early enough to get our car unpacked and get Carter fed and in bed at a decent hour. In my opinion, 11 pm is not a decent hour. On top of the delay, it seems like Steven and I have been at each other's throats all day. Of course I think he's being an insensitive jerk...and he thinks I'm being childish and dramatic...among other things. I was so ready to take Carter and leave Steven in NY to find his own way home. I even Googled "is it illegal to have a rear-facing car seat in the front of your vehicle?" Sad that I even thought about it...even more sad, it is not illegal in New York as long as your air-bag is disabled!! For the record, I would never personally choose to do it. That's just how mad I was.

I never expected my marriage to be perfect. I just hate fighting...especially when we use words and say things that we do not mean. In the end, neither of us feel better about ourselves. Rarely does anything get solved when we fight. Its not until we are saying our apologies and making up that we can fix whatever it was that made us fight to begin with. Sometimes we are so exhausted from fighting, that we don't even try to talk it out...we just kiss, make up, and get on with it. Every once in awhile, its better that way...maybe our issue wasn't important enough to bring up again.

OK...I am done complaining! I love my husband very much and I am so thankful to God for putting him in my life. Right now, I think he's being a giant butt, but I wouldn't trade him for the world. I'm sure once we are on the road and have time to talk, we'll work it out as we always do. That's what marriage is all about!

Fun Days and Vay-cays!

We are on day 2 of our mini-vacation in NY. Last night, Steven and I met with a friend of mine from high school and her husband for dinner. We ended up meeting at Turning Stone Casino and ate at a restaurant there. Then we hit the blackjack tables for a bit. Guess who won $100...me! I am the bomb at blackjack!! LOL...yeah right.

Today we had a great day at the Sterling, NY Fall Festival. We listened to a cute little country band, ate some picnic food, and shopped. I got Carter a personalized football wall hanging and an adorable cowboy hat, which I will add pics of later. Until then, enjoy a few others that I took today. Have a great weekend!

Wordless Wednesday

A lot on my plate...

I must admit that I am feeling a little overwhelmed. Between being a stay-at-home mom, keeping my house in order, paying bills, making sure I keep up with readings and homework, planning 2 birthday parties (1 in Ohio, 1 in NY), preparing for our NY trip this weekend, the mountain of sorted laundry on my bedroom floor, making sure my fantasy football team is in good shape, trying to get the TV fixed (for 3 weeks now...RCA is the devil), and countless other things, I am surprised I can even see straight.

I try not to complain, because 2 years ago, I was desperate to have a family...I longed to be overwhelmed by the needs of a husband, home, and baby. Don't get me wrong, I love being a wife and mother...its the other things I could do without! For one thing, school is next to impossible. Tonight I had to read a 34 page chapter on programming strategies, write a 2-3 page paper on the 5 elements of programming, and then discuss what effect the Digital Must Carry will have on media. Really?? To be honest, I don't care...and none of those things will help me in my career of being a radio dj. The end result of me not giving a crap about these things is a paper that barely makes sense to me...and I wrote it! This particular class has me writing pieces that I am almost embarrassed of. Its not like me to half-ass any assignment, especially since I love to write. I dunno...I guess I'll just have to trudge on through. There's only 2 more months in this semester. Breathe, Candi.

Sometimes I am so thankful I have this blog to blow off steam. Although I don't get many comments, I am aware of all you lurkers out there! Your prayers are certainly worth just as much to me as any "atta girl" comments I receive.  I think it should be mandatory for every mother to have a blog...the therapy that posting here gives me is way better than any shrink...well, maybe other than Dr. Phil...love him! Speaking of Dr. Phil, the new season started today! Yesssss!! Lord, thank you for DVR. Amen. OK...I am off to switch the laundry, make dinner, load the dishwasher, then maybe sit down on the couch with my beautiful family and remember why all this is worth it.

Also, I am officially in the dreaded two week wait. Prayers needed!

GIVEAWAY Winner!

Carter picked a winner from a hat this afternoon and that person has won the frog necklace that I made especially for this contest! Congratulations Lisa! I will be emailing you requesting your info.

Thanks to everyone who entered. Keep checking back for more jewelery giveaways!

"Not Me" Monday

 

I always get such a kick out of reading these on other peoples' blogs...so I thought I would try it for myself. Don't judge me! It was a long, stressful week!

• I did not lose my child at my friends house after he crawled under the excersaucer when I wasn't looking. I am a very attentive parent and never take my eyes off my child.

• I did not make Carter's birthday invitations by myself because I am too cheap to do it the easy way and call a printer...I simply did it because of my affinity for Photoshop and my new Canon printer.
  

• I did not give Carter a tape measurer and a box of baby wipes to play with so I could get the dishes done. Those things are dirty and dangerous and only bad moms would let their children play with such things!

• I am not allowing my 10 month old to Swiffer the hallway in his walker at this very moment so I can participate in "Not Me" Monday. That would be very neglectful and its just not my parenting style. 

Are you ready for some football??

Its that time of year again! My family is donning their jerseys and exchanging four-letter words while eating pizza, wings, and chugging Coca-Cola...ahhh the NFL season has begun! Being that Steven is a Steelers fan and I am a Browns fan, Carter has jerseys/onsies for both teams. Since the Steelers played Thursday and the Browns played today, no problem arose in the dressing department. Next week, I assume that we will be setting our alarms to be the 1st to get to Carter in the morning so we can pick out our favorite clothes. Unless his Steelers shirts were accidentally not washed in time. Hmmm...how sad. Anyway, Brady Quinn is officially the Browns starting QB...although we lost, he played great and looked hot. Its safe to say, he has a tight grip on his position. My life is finally complete.

We took Carter outside for a little photo shoot today because he looked so cute in his "Quinn" jersey and the natural sunlight was just too perfect to pass up. I think they turned out great. They will make a great gift for Papa...who is also a die-hard Brownies fan. He bought our jerseys last Christmas.

I hope you all had a great weekend and enjoy your Monday.

The Snot Monster

Carter has been sick for a couple days. We took him to the doctor today because she wanted to check up on his development, considering he wasn't sitting up on his own at his 9 month well-visit. Obviously, everything is fine with that. She checked his lungs, ears and chest and said that its just a regular ole' cold and it'll run its course. Poor guy is dripping snot 24/7!

We hit another milestone today...Carter pulled himself up!! We are so proud of him!! Now the fun begins as he learns to walk! Pray for me!!

I finally got around to designing and printing Carter's birthday invitations. I have been working on them for quite some time. I even toyed with the idea of paying to have them done.  I am so glad I didn't. I'd have paid a couple hundred dollars for 60 invitations. Between ink, card stock, and envelopes, I paid less than $30. How's that for thrifty?! I guess I'm making up for the $4,000 I spent at Microcenter this week. Either way, there's one more thing checked off my list of things to do. Now I just have to stuff, address, stamp, and send. What do you think??

 

OK...I am going to watch a bit of the football game, although the 1 player from my fantasy team that plays tonight is injured. Just my luck!! Have a good night. Here are a few more photos I worked on today.

Our Princess, Bianca.

 

 

  

  

Guess who dressed him...