Chunky Monkey!

Chase is totally packing on the pounds these days. The rolls on his thighs are unbelievable! His arms, legs, cheeks, hands, and feet are pretty much as chubby as Austin's were when he was at this same stage. The only thing Chase hasn't caught up to him on is Austin's big 'ol noggin. I can't wait to take Chase to his 4-month checkup in a few weeks to get his stats and compare. My guess is that Chase, although 2 lbs. lighter at birth, has caught up to his bubba. :)

Showing him the ropes

I know I've said it before, but Austin is such a great big brother to Chase! He's so attentive to Chase and loves to interact with him. Shoot, he can't even go to bed without telling Chase night-night and giving him kisses. The other day I put Chase in the Baby Einstein jumperoo for the first time. With a blanket wrapped around him in the seat, he fits quite well and loves to look around. His toes barely touch the ground below, but he loves to bounce anyways. Austin likes to spin Chase's seat around to each of the different stations on the jumperoo so that he can show him how they work. It's adorable!

The Salesman & The Salad Bar

I'm not sure if Jordan is ready for me to go back to work and start slacking on my housewife duties that I have mastered while on maternity leave. One of his favorite tasks for me to do is to make his lunch. Yes, folks, I have been packing him lunches here and there. There are often times at his job where's not able to leave for lunch if the store is too busy, so it's easier if he brings it. At first, I was buying him pre-made salads from the grocery store, but wow, does that add up fast at the register! So, I made a few salads for him myself with just the basic lettuce, tomato, and grilled chicken. But my salad-making skills have evolved much further over the past few weeks. I have begun to make just bowls of greens and a smorgasbord of toppings in separate containers so that he can create a different salad each day. And please keep in mind that I don't even eat salad myself!! Take a peek at this week's traveling salad bar which includes: greens, tomatoes, red & green peppers, red onions, chopped eggs, ham, grilled chicken, chopped bacon, sliced avocado, and shredded cheese. And a whole bottle of dressing for my Ranch-lover! :) I'd like to keep helping him out by making his salads. It saves us a ton of money and is definitely healthier than the fast food alternatives. And of course, I have my little sous chef Austin who likes to help me as well. :)

I'm Inspired!

I'm always a sucker for pretty much any show on TLC. The newest one is 'Extreme Couponing' and it's ridiculous!!! How these women buy $1200 in groceries for $100 just baffles me. But I think there's some serious OCD going on. I mean seriously, who needs 60 bottles of mustard?! So I definitely think there is a happy medium where it doesn't consume your life and your 'stock pile' doesn't take over every inch of your house.

I've been cutting coupons for months now and always use them to save a few bucks. I've also found it great to combine store coupons and manufacturer's coupons for more savings. So, last night I scoured the ads and the internet and trying to get a gameplan. I don't expect to have 90% savings, but I need to be more organized and shop the sales. Usually I walk out of Wal-mart or Target after spending $150 and I have no idea what I bought and I'm back the next week doing the same thing. I definitely need to be more focused on what I'm buying and really try to save our family some money.

Last month I saved $32 with coupons at Target and the guy behind me was impressed and asked if I would do his shopping next time. :)

Not even candy or ice cream......

Could bribe Austin to sit on the Easter Bunny's lap yesterday. Seriously!? Usually, I can bribe him to do something I really need him too. But nope; not even seeing his little brother being brave sitting on the Easter Bunny's lap could entice him. I guess him not liking Santa at Christmas should have been a pre-cursor to what was going to happen. Hopefully he will grow out of it. So, I settled for a pic of Chase by himself, and then a pic of Austin (wearing bunny ears) holding the bunny he made at Build-a-Bear. :) But I'm sure in two weeks when it's time to hunt all those eggs, Austin will be into the spirit then.

Back to Life, Back to Reality......

Well, time's up. Tomorrow, I'm headed back to work. Although, it will be a short week, only going in on Monday and Thursday. The original plan was for me to return to work on May 2nd, but then I had Chase 3 weeks early. So, unless I wanted next 3 weeks to be unpaid, back to work I go. That brought me to April 18th, but then I got a request a few weeks ago to do the Q1 review for one of my clients. The manager that had taken over for me had scheduled a vacation, and since she had just worked her butt off in busy season, I was more than willing to return a week earlier to help out.

So, here I am at 10pm, trying to get myself pumped up to go back to work. I've got a 33 page presentation I'm supposed to read over tonight to prepare for my meeting with the client tomorrow afternoon; but let's be honest, loan loss reserves are not the most interesting things to read about. I have lunch plans with one of my favorite partners and senior tomorrow, so I'm kinda looking forward to that. Since I wasn't technically supposed to go back until next week, the partner was gracious enough to let me do most of my work remotely this week, where I can still soak up these last few days with Chase before jumping back in fully next week. And hey, I even bought myself a new outfit for my big debut. :)

I'm kind of excited to go back. I miss alot of my co-workers and the 'adult interaction' that you don't get when you're home with a baby all day by yourself. And settling into a permanent routine will be nice. I took a load of stuff up to the daycare on Friday for Chase, so that he would have all of the essentials tomorrow and I wouldn't be stressed about forgetting something. I may get teary-eyed when I drop the boys off at school and head into work, but it won't be a full emotional meltdown like when I went back after Austin. But I will definitely be ready to love on them as soon as I get home!

So, here we go; wish me luck!!

Playdate Pimpin'

It seems like all of my friends have little girls, not boys. This gives Austin lots of 'choices' as far as playing the field is concerned. Well, as much as you can play the field as a two year-old with your Mommies watching you every minute. :) I try to schedule a playdate for Austin about once a month with friends so that he doesn't get bored with just playing with Mommy on Saturday's. And since Daddy works on Saturday's, it's a win-win for me when he gets to play with a friend and I get to catch up on gossip with a friend. Here are the three front-runners:

Marleigh is such a sweetheart, but I think the odds are against the two of them. Since Marleigh's parents are Austin's godparents, it may be an inappropriate relationship. Not to mention that Uncle Weldon would be completely against it, for fear that Austin was too much like his Daddy. :)

Sydney seems like a great possible match. She seems like the quiet and reserved type, but would let loose when she gets comfortable. Today, Austin had her climb in his bed and hide under the covers, and they were screaming, laughing, and jumping on the bed. And then he convinced her to curl up in his Cars fold-out couch with him to watch a movie.

Finally, we have Aubrey. She's a feisty little thing, and quite bossy at times. When she was here last time, she had Austin doing everything for her. He even shared his four-wheeler with her and let her drive. But there's nothing wrong with a woman who knows what she wants and can get a man to do anything!

It seems like it's going to be a tough decision. So for now, he'll probably just continue to play the field and keep his options open. :)