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Hello friends!

Just wanted to let you know that the lovely momma, Ashley, from Pencilled Daydream will be stopping by on the bloggie tomorrow to share a fun DIY and a little about herself!
Don't forget to check it out!

Also, they have reset the voting on Top Baby Blogs so I really really need your votes!
It takes like 4 seconds, seriously, I timed it.

vote here!

memorial weekend.

here at the Baker household we were thankful for the extra long weekend.
it's a funny thing though how we spent our extra day: grocery shopping and cooking extravaganza!
can't believe this momma didn't get any sunshine!
guess we're getting a little 'old'. ha.

Friday was spent doing yard work and hanging out with some friends and their two little ones. yes, I said two. and no, I don't know how they do it.

Saturday we got some shopping time at the outlet mall in the city with my mom and sis. after our retail therapy session was over, I was then forced into the grungy place that is Buffalo Wild Wings to give it another try. let's just say the honey BBQ wings are my new friends.

Sunday I missed half of the sermon at church due to baby boy falling asleep in my arms and me not wanting to put him down in his class because I just wanted to watch him sleep at the risk of waking him. 

Monday we did our huge monthly grocery shopping and cooking day. We like to buy almost everything we need for the whole month and start cooking and freezing a few meals right away. It really helps us save time and money. I also made my first batch of homemade baby food. More to come on that later!

p.s. we moved little man to his crib and he is doing awesome.

Hope you all had a great Memorial Weekend!

Here's a picture of my dad. It's an old pic and a new one blended together. In the old pic he's standing third from the left.

Thank you to all who have served and are still serving our country!

i'll love you forever.

i'll love you forever,

i'll like you for always,

as long as i'm living

my baby you'll be

These sweet words are from the book, Love You Forever. As I read them tonight, the night before you turn 5 months old, my eyes filled with tears. I'm not talking about just a few tears. No, more like a constant hot flow streaming down my face, only to be followed by more with every blink. 

Where these tears came from I'm not for certain. All I know is what I felt. I was overcome with emotion from a love for you that is impossible to describe. A love that I never want to change.

Your grandma (Gram) gave your daddy this book when you were born. She left a sweet note for him in the front cover: 

Sugar Man,

Today with the birth of your son- your blessings have just begun. You are now feeling what I felt 26 years ago with the birth of you. Now and forever you will feel and see so much joy and pride with every little (or big) thing Rylan does. Rylan is a wonderful blessing to you as you are to me.

Love you forever, 

Mom

A love between a mother and a son, impossible to describe and thankful to have.

love you forever baby boy,

momma

5 months with you.

sometimes i just look at you and can't believe you have come this far. growing and changing. you are becoming more of a little man. i see him growing in you every day, but you are still more baby than anything (which i kind of like :).

right now you are really bouncy. you love to jump in your jumper and getting your legs reps in is your favorite pastime. just recently you started rolling from your back to your tummy so now you are a full fledged roller. when i put you down for tummy time you turn into a rolling machine (by the way you just started laughing in your sleep as i was typing this-cutest.thing.ever). tummy. back. back. tummy. i can no longer leave you resting on the couch unattended because you took a dive to the floor the other day. don't worry you were fine.

you are grabbing anything and everything and it all goes straight to your mouth. i now have to be careful to make sure i don't put you near anything you can swallow.

you love eating your rice cereal and we will be starting veggies soon. i'm thinking sweet potatoes??!

lately daddy and i have been making fools of ourselves to get you to laugh. it's quite the show. you also think it's pretty funny when i'm exercising. jeez buddy, give your momma a break!

one of the sweetest things you do is feel our faces. it's like you are seeing us with your hands. i love it, until you get a good grip of my skin and start pulling!

we still haven't moved you to your crib. i know, i know. shame on us. we will get there. eventually.

i love spending my days with you, watching you grow, but please take it easy on me. don't grow up too fast little one.

love you,

momma

mouse in my house.

yep.
you read it right.
ugh.

we have a mouse and supposedly when there's one, there's not just one. a couple of days ago i noticed my dog start obsessively searching around the house. i have seen this behavior from him before. then it hit me. nooooooooooooo. we had mice one other time and this is exactly what he did. so i thought i'd look around myself for signs. sure enough there were droppings in the pantry. i still haven't found any food that has been gotten into, but the proper measures are about to be taken.

let's just say i'm not too thrilled about our evening plans. we will be hitting up target for food/pet food containers, mowing, cleaning behind/around the fridge, stove, washer and dryer, setting a live trap and filling any holes as we go.

i don't know what they are coming in my house for. i'm so OCD, i make sure all the kitchen counters are clean and all the dirty dishes are put away every night. the only thing i can think that might spark their interest is the dog food and water. stupid moochers. hopefully we end this quickly.

--makes me miss living in the country under the protection of outside cats!

any tips?

The gift of Motherhood

is a joy and a blessing.

something incredibly sacred and impossible to define.

it's crazy how being a mother has come so naturally for me. yes, there are still times when I feel like I don't have a clue what I'm doing, but for the most part I have just been sailing right along. never mind that you fell off the couch the night before our first Mother's Day together.

I'm pretty sure God knew what He was doing, creating us perfectly for one another, you for me and I for you, little one. You have already taught me so much about myself and have helped me find the real me. Momma.

I have loved getting to know you and figuring you out. I have loved learning your cries, the way you like to be put to sleep, things you like to do. It's so much fun when we get things right. Together. We fit. Like a glove. Perfect for me and perfect for you. 

May we continue to help each other grow.

"As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another."

Life is sweeter and brighter with you by my side little man.

Thank you God for the gift of motherhood.

Mother's Day

To celebrate our first Mother's Day together we took a little stroll out by the lighthouse and had dinner on the lake. I also got to eat at one of my favorite Chinese cafes and got a yummy caramel frappe with boba. I'm still waiting on my gift from little man. Mr. Baker says he ordered it on time, but it hasn't got here yet. Can't wait to see what it is!

Hope you mommas had a wonderful Mother's Day!