Parker's Big Boy Day

Today was a big boy day for Parker.  First he started out with a big boy dinner.  He had pulled pork BBQ, roasted potatoes and blueberries for dinner.  He tried and liked everything!

After dinner, he took a big boy bath without mommy!  He layed and flipped around and chased toys.  He scooted himself to the plug, over and over again, so that he could pull it out and listen to the water.  What a fun, big boy night!

Dinner Tonight

Enjoying Cheerios while mom and dad have dinner

How many Cheerios can I fit into my mouth?

A job well done.  I'll clap for myself now.

Venturing into Finger Foods

Parker has really mastered baby food and seems to love just about anything with a mango or pear in it.  We've recently been giving him more finger foods as well.  He loves his Cheerios and is getting pretty good at actually getting them in his mouth.  Each time he successfully gets a cheerio in his mouth, Jared and I cheer.  Yesterday, at dinner, when he got his cheerio in his mouth, he clapped.  He has been eating some fruits with his fingers, peaches, cantaloupe and mango.  He even had some fish last week.  This morning he gobbled up some cheese toast for breakfast.  It's so fun to watch him grow and try new things. 

He is also sitting up pretty well now.  He can ride in a cart very well, sitting pretty.  At home, for the most part, he still prefers to lay down and roll around.  He has been pushing himself backwards at times.  Jared said that yesterday, he did a bit of an army crawl a couple of times.

He may be on his way to finally saying mama.  We'll see.  It seems as if he's tried a couple of times.

Jared's First Father's Day

We celebrated Jared's first father's day yesterday, because he works today.  His request for a special day - stay in and take it easy.  I was almost able to accommodate him.  After a hectic Friday at work, I wasn't able to pick up groceries for breakfast.  So, we headed to J. Christopher's for breakfast, and it was delish.  Parker was on great behavior and sat in the high chair like a big boy.  He tried some of mommy's grits (I think I am raising this one right b/c he seems to like them), mommy's strawberries and daddy's potatoes.  Jared had the Southwestern breakfast skillet, and I had the banana bread french toast.  Yummo!

Sitting up like a big boy

The rest of the day we lazed around the house (did a little cleaning).  We lit our citronella candles and faced the mosquitoes outside for 1/2 an hour.  Parker sat up on the blanket and took it all in.  He really enjoys being outside. I made Philly Firecracker wraps for lunch.  For dinner we had fish tacos, chipotle tartar sauce, Cilantro Slaw, refried black beans and corn on the cob.  Desert was a mango cream pie per Jared's request.  I also made some watermelon margaritas.  Parker tried some of our fish and really gobbled it up.  Yummy fish!  The day ended perfectly with a Braves win.

 Covered in a mound of toys...just like he likes

What a Wonderful Weekend!

The Purintons had a great weekend this past weekend.  Jared was off on both Saturday and Sunday, and that is always a treat.  As with all southern families, a good day, of course, includes good food.  Saturday, we woke up and walked to the local Smyrna Farmer's Market and returned home to make a fritatta for breakfast.  It was accompanied by fresh cantaloupe and zucchini bread (made from zucchini from GranBilly's farm.).  For lunch, we had a delish fried green tomato BLT.  We did a little cleaning and lazing around the house - always good to have a little time to do nothing.

Saturday night, I packed a picnic dinner of shrimp rolls, pita chips and hummus, fresh peaches and spiked lemonade to take to our community concert.  We had a great time running into friends and acquaintances at the concert and enjoyed the show that 7 Sharp 9 put on.  Parker had a great time rolling around on our blanket and listening to the tunes.  He was such a sport.  We didn't stay for the whole show, but we did stay out until 9:30 or so. 

Sunday was another day of good eating.  It always is when you visit the Corns.  The company is always great too!  We went to visit and relax on the new deck.  The extreme summer temperatures kept us inside quite a bit, but we were still able to enjoy dinner outside.

Me and My BFF

It began so many years ago.  Here is a young Nikki and an even younger Sandi.  I am amazed how much, in this picture, Eli looks like Nikki.  To think, we all thought he was a mini me of Jamie when he was born. 

How many people can say they have a picture with their best friend when they were 2 and 5?  I love it.