Summer Lately

Now that we are almost in August (I can almost see you, Fall)... I figured I'd give a little late summer update. I'm not sure where you are, but it has been H-O-T and humid here in the South. Our sweet big boy would live outside if we let him- even in this heat. Everyday when Dustin gets home he runs up to him and points at the door and says "ah-hiiide??" His sweet way of asking to go outside. This is also usually the time of day when it's near 100 degrees outside. Thankful for a good daddy. We've spent a lot of time at the playground and some days at the zoo. We've also been spending some time at the pool to get a little relief from the heat. I love summer just as much as the next person, but I am ready for the cool, sunny days of Fall. For a little boy that loves being outdoors, mommy will love it even more when leaves are crunching under our feet.

Our sweet second child is just along for the ride. We hang out in the shade while daddy chases Finn around the pool. He likes to swim, but would much prefer to water all of the flowers and sweep up the trash.

Finn's favorite word- "baaaawwwl!"

We've had plenty of playdates with friends.

And when we're not at the pool, the hose and water table work just fine.

Finn went to his first Super K and got to see daddy play with big kids (3rd through 5th graders). He likes wearing his hat backwards like daddy.

Ryder went to his first birthday party when our sweet friend Teagan turned 3.

We made it to Chick-fil-A for Cow Appreciation Day 2015 for some free lunch.

We're still undecided on how we feel about the cows.

Despite what the picture says, I did not take five kids to the zoo.

A little post nap snack. And don't let the picture fool you. He will watch about 2 minutes of Daniel Tiger, before he's "all done".

Playgrounds for days.

 Everything's a golf club.

Four Months

Our sweet Ryder boy, you are now four months old! It is so hard to believe that you are 1/3 of the way through your very first year. Your little personality is really starting to make itself known. You are the happiest, smiley little guy- except when you big brother trips over something and falls on you or wakes you up by running in your room and yelling loudly with excitement. I just know that you will be best buddies. Finn knows it too, he just doesn't understand why he can't play with you yet. You are learning that your family is very loud. You mastered rolling by month three, but you are now rolling across the floor. If I leave the room, you are no longer in the same spot I left you. I am not ready for you to become mobile anytime soon, little man, but I feel like it is going to happen so much quicker this time around. You seem to be in a hurry to keep up with that fun big brother of yours. You've started sitting in your bumbo seat and have begun to reach for toys on your play mat (when you brother doesn't take them off). I feel like we will need to get a new highchair soon as you want to be involved in family dinner time. I don't plan to start solid foods for a while, but you no longer like sitting on the floor in your bouncy seat during dinner and would much prefer to sit in our laps and watch us talk.You still hate your carseat, so you now sit like a big boy in the stroller like your brother.

We don't go to the doctor until next week, so I'll post your stats then. My guess would be that you're well over 14 lbs and quite a bit longer. You're still fitting in 3 month clothes, but they're getting pretty snug and I feel like we'll be in 6 month in a couple weeks. You're still in size two diapers. You've started laughing regularly and we'll do just about anything to make you laugh! You are still sleeping like a champ. You sleep 12 hours at night and are more than ready for bed by 6:45 PM. In typical second child fashion, your morning nap is less than consistent as we're usually on the go somewhere. You catch up during afternoon nap by sleeping 3 hours like your brother! You love to eat and have been eating every three to four hours. We are so blessed to be your mommy and daddy and love you to pieces,  sweet boy!

Whole 30 Home Stretch

We (Dustin) has three more days left of the Whole 30. Like I wrote in a previous post, I had to drop out of it by default. I wasn't able to get enough calories and my milk supply was beginning to decline. With a happy, hungry three month old, that just wasn't working. I have still been cooking Whole 30 dinners and making sure we have plenty of fresh food around the house for the husband to eat. I haven't really made anything that we haven't enjoyed. While I fully intend to cook many of these recipes again after Dustin completes his Whole 30, I am very much looking forward to a break some evenings and throwing a Trader Joe's frozen pizza in the oven or making a nice big bowl of pasta.

Blackened Fish Tacos with Peach and Mango Salsa (originally from here)
- 3 Tilapia filets
- 2 tsp paprika
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1 tbsp cumin
- 1 tsp sea salt
- 1/4 tsp chipotle chili powder
- 2 tbsp coconut oil or oil of choice

Directions
1. Combine all spices and rub onto fish.

2. Heat oil in pan and cook fish about 5 minutes on each side. Once cooked, break into small pieces in the pan.

3. Top fish with salsa serve with fresh avocado and marinated broccoli slaw. I ate mine with organic hard shell corn tacos while Dustin wrapped his in lettuce leaves for the Whole 30 version.

For the Peach Mango Salsa
- 2 medium peaches, peeled and diced
- 1 mango, peeled and diced
- 1/2 red onion diced
-  juice of 2 limes
- handful of fresh cilantro chopped
- 1 tomato or 7-8 cherry tomatoes

Directions
Combine all ingredients and set aside.

Prosciutto, Arugula and Tomato Pizza on a Coconut Flour Crust

Coconut Flour Crust- originally from here
- 3 eggs
- 1 cup coconut milk
- ½ cup coconut flour
- 2 tsp. onion powder
- ½ tsp. baking soda
- 1 tsp. oregano
- 1 clove minced garlic

1.  Preheat oven to 375. In a medium bowl, beat the eggs. Add in the milk and mix well.

2. Add in the remaining ingredients and mix all the ingredients together, then spread the dough onto the pan. The crust will be very thin in consistency – not to the point of pancake batter, but still thin. It will be spreadable, but not runny.

3. Bake for 15 – 20 minutes, or until brown. Let it cool for a few minutes.

4. Add toppings and pop it back into the oven until toppings have cooked.

- 4-5 slices of prosciutto (make sure the only ingredients are pork and salt)
- handful of cherry tomatoes, sliced in half
- 2 cloves of garlic, minced
- 3 good handfuls of arugula
- 1/3 cup balsamic vinegar reduced
- EVOO

1. Cook your prosciutto in a pan until nice and crispy (about 8-10 min.)

2. Top your pizza crust with a few drizzles of EVOO and cooked prosciutto. Sprinkle tomatoes and garlic on top.

3. Bake for 10 minutes at 350. Top with arugula and balsamic glaze.

Enjoy!