Redneck Paradise

Nana and Pop came up this weekend, so we went to the new Bass Pro Shop to check it out. It was insane, almost an amusement park.

Exploring some bass boat options. "Check me out Cousin Hank!"

Inspecting the fish tank

"Ish! Ish!"

Trying out one of the ATVs. He was very much in awe of all the tractors and trucks. A little boy's dream world.

Bye Bye Game

Jonathan and Josiah's game right now is Bye Bye. It's one of Josiah's favorite words and whenever he says it to Dada when he's home, Jonathan wrestles and tickles him. So Josiah keeps saying it so that he'll get "attacked."

I love the laughs his Dad gets from him. If I could bottle that stuff, I'd make a fortune.

Valentine's Outtakes

Will You Be My Valentine?

Sorry I'm a little late asking...

Trip to the Zoo

My Dad came to see us because Mom was out of town. We made Josiah's first trip to the zoo and had his first train ride.

Josiah was in quiet observation pretty much the whole time. Stunned at riding on a "real" train, stunned at seeing animals that were huge and really moved. He wasn't scared, just taking it all in.

This was pretty much his face the whole time looking at the animals.

We saw zebras, ostriches, giraffes, lions, a white tiger, kangaroos, monkey and other primates, toucans and camels. Some of the animals couldn't come out because it was too cold, but we were excited at all we got to see.

He was the most animated when he found something familiar at the Australian themed kangaroo exhibit.

Here's some video from the train ride. Dad got us a new camcorder that makes videos really easy to post, so you may be seeing more!

A little camel noise at the end, and me trying to explain camels.

Bamboo Boys

We enjoyed the beautiful spring-like weather on Sunday by visiting the botanical gardens with our friends/neighbors Lisa and her little boy Silas, who is just a few months younger than Josiah.

There is some unspoken rule in Birmingham that when you're at the gardens with children, you must take pictures. So I obliged. It is a popular spot for portraits, but I've never seen any in the bamboo section.

Cutie Silas. He's not walking yet, so the bamboo was perfect for pulling up.

Hey handsome.

He really liked exploring nature. Like father, like son.

Off to conquer the world.

A Few Good Recipes

I've made some new recipes and some favorites lately, so I thought I'd do a big yummy post for you all.

I made Brown Sugar Glazed Pork for dinner tonight along with Honey Roasted Sweet Potatoes.

Paula Deen's Chicken Noodle Soup was the best I've ever had, although I can't recall ever having homemade chicken soup. I actually made it with a leftover turkey breast, frozen from Christmas.

I love making homemade granola, even though it's a bit time consuming. This is a quick recipe though. I love it with soy milk or yogurt especially.

I haven't made this To-Die-For Pot Roast recently, but it's easy and delicious. I bring it as a baby meal a lot, and people think I've slaved away making them pot roast. Not the case.

And finally, I made this cake as cupcakes for Erin's baby shower. She deemed them "stupid good," which, if you know her, is a compliment. They were indeed the best cupcakes I've ever made, and I'm actually not a huge cake fan (more of a frosting fan). I highly recommend. It'd be great for Valentine's Day. I was worried the dark chocolate would be overwhelming, but it was very smooth. Now I just need Carrie-Anne to post the recipe of the sugar cookies she made, because they were the best sugar cookies I've ever had. It was not a diet-friendly shower!

Dark Chocolate Layer Cake
1 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup dark brown sugar (I used light and some molasses)
2 eggs
2 oz. sweet dark chocolate, melted and cooled (I used Hershey's Special Dark)
1 T vanilla
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa
1 1/2 t baking soda
1/2 t salt
1 1/2 cups buttermilk

Beat butter and sugars at medium speed with an electric mixer until fluffy. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating until blended after each addition. Add cooled chocolate and vanilla, beating until blended.
Combine flour and next 3 ingredients; add to butter mixture alternately with buttermilk, beginning and end with flour ixture. Beat at low speed after each addition. Pour batter into 2 greased parchment lined 9" round cakepans.
Bake at 350 for 22 minutes or until a wooden pick comes out clean. Cool in pans on wire rocks 10 minutes; remove from pans, and cool completely on wire racks.

White Chocolate Frosting
1 1/2 (8 oz) packages cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup butter, softened
2 (4 oz.) white chocolate baking bars, melted and cooled
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
2 t vanilla extract
2 t fresh lemon juice

Beach cream cheese and butter at medium speed with an electric mixer until fluffy. Add cooled chocolate, beating until blended. Gradually add powdered sugar, beating until smooth. Add vanilla and lemon juice beating until blended. Cover and chill 45 minues or ntil spreading consistency.

Valentine's Moms and Tots

We had a great play date with JCRMA's Moms and Tots yesterday at Jennifer's house (aka a child's dream world). I posted more group pics on the JCRMA website. These are more Josiah-focused pictures.

Conquering the slide. I think being around older kids makes him more daring.

Scaling the climbing wall

Callin' his peeps

"This play date rocks. You should totally crash this party."

They had these two AWESOME trucks. Needless to say, Josiah spent a lot of time with these.

"Ba"

Josiah is tearing tissue paper for the fun craft. Mommy "helped" him stick it to laminating paper and then cut it in the shape of a heart. It turned out really cute.

Checking out Carter, who is enjoying some of the yummy snacks

The Musical Gene

We stopped by Great-Granddaddy Olive and Mama Jo's place today, and Josiah got his first piano lesson from Mama Jo. It was a good follow-up from his practice on the Moseleys' piano. Mama Jo is very musically talented, specializing in the cello, so I'm glad he was getting some expert instruction, as opposed to my off-key singing.

Then he showed off his new skills for Granddaddy.

The video is sweet, but not too exciting, but I knew the Moseleys would want to see it.

Hiding the Word in His Heart

Josiah received this Bible, a tiny New Testament, from our church for his dedication. The text is microscopic and it has no pictures, so I figured he wouldn't be interested in it for a long time. But to my surprise, he really likes it. He goes and finds it almost everyday and says "Biba." We tell him that we love the Bible and give it a hug to show that. We tell him that the Bible is where we learn how much God loves us and who God is, and the Bible where we learn about Jesus.

As for the following pictures, I'm sure he was just taking these Bible verses literally.

Psalm 119:103
How sweet are your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth!

Matthew 4:4
Jesus answered, "It is written: 'Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.' "

Deuteronomy 30:14
No, the word is very near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart so you may obey it

Deuteronomy 11:18
Fix these words of mine in your hearts and minds; tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your forehead

If you are looking for a less literal way to get the Word of God into your children, I recommend this resource.

We got one of Steve Green's Hide 'Em in Your Heart DVD/CD sets for Christmas. The attire and hairstyles are dated, but the songs are straight Scripture and very catchy. Josiah generally doesn't watch TV, but he sat down and watched this. I've already used one of the songs about complaining in to train/teach Josiah.
POST UPDATE: As you'll see in the comments on this post, my friend, bridesmaid, graphic designer extraordinaire Megan Miller designed that album cover. Isn't that the coolest?

Pass the Ketchup

The other night Erin and I were hanging out while our hubbies were on call. It's the second month they've had matching call schedules, and it's a blessing to have someone to spend time with. We ran errands and then stopped by Five Guys to share a burger and fries. Josiah observed us dipping out fries in ketchup and decided to give it a try. He ended dipping and dipping, with the same fry over and over, and just licking the ketchup off the end. We'll have to teach him about double-dipping etiquette or get him his own ketchup!

Erin was sweet to endure Josiah's bad manners. Josiah thinks she's pretty great. Did I mention that her job is as a nanny for a little boy about Josiah's age? Yet she still spends some of her free time with us.

Then he went for the whole shebang.

My apologies for pictures of my son's runny nose, but it has been a constant in our lives lately. That does explain a little bit of my blogging slowness lately. Even as this picture was being taken, I had just been in the bathroom battling the beginning of a stomach bug (just a virus, not pregnancy or peanut-butter-dwelling bacteria, for those who might be wondering). Germs stink! I was really glad to have Erin with me that night to drive us home and help with Josiah.

And I'll be anticipating my mother's phone call soon: "I didn't know you were sick!"