Canaan Jude:18 Months

it's been awhile since I've done an update on Canaan, actually a whole 6 months. this turkey is 18 months old now and he's gained a whole 6 months worth of sass.

I took Canaan for his 18 month well check up this past week- see also "best reality show episodes" between the screaming and the germs this mama was beat and I had help! Kudos to the mamas who do it alone-SUPER grateful for my hubby and the flexibility we both have with our jobs.

I got ZIP. NADA. pictures at the appointment, because I was sweating and also trying to assure everyone around that my child indeed was not being murdered.

our big growing boy is currently weighing in at 29 pounds and 12oz (98th%), and 30 in.. wearing 18-24 month clothes and size 5 diapers.

Canaan Jude

you are the sweetest of the sweet. you give the sweetest sugars on demand. infact after the debacle in the doctors office you were blowing kisses to every one on the way out.
but this month you discovered what fun pretend play is with all the christmas gifts, you make us all kinds of goodies and make us eat them for hours.

you are fiercely independent and I can find you in any room of the house helping yourself to whatever you can get into.

your absolute favorite game right now is "where's canaan?" our version of peek-a-boo.

you are way too sweet for words, jude-ee.

you have a way about you that brings a smile to our face (and everyone else’s, too!)

..even when you are getting reprimanded.  I wish I could justly describe it with words. 

your pursed lips, head tilt, eyebrows raised. kills me.

you've finally caught on to praying and those chubby fingers pushed together all but make us melt.

your all about the wiggles and Pete the Cat, we read "Payte da" multiple times a day and thanks to Amazon prime we can watch ONE episode.

SIDE NOTE: Amazon, if you do not release the next 12 episodes soon, I will personally come to you and push production on them. Signed, a mom who is tired of Pete making New Years resolutions.

..it seems like you pick up a word or two every other day.
you are so incredibly smart!

new consistent words at 18 months: mama, dada, payte da, pup pup, buh bye, ball, wiggle, shoe, hi, bye, more, done, “uh-oh”, yea, bubba, pap pap, up, down,

YOU LOVE: books & trains &even have went to the library a few times with gamma.

You rocked your FIRST & SECOND haircut & your about to need a THIRD!

while you aren’t putting sentences together, you understand everything we say 100%.
..that includes things I’ve never shown you or said to you, you get it.
blows me away.
..every time.

you continue to love to help mom and dad.

..THE biggest helper ever.

you absolutely love to feed and water the dogs.  

place the dog bowl.  open the dog food tub.  fill the cup. dump the cup.

REPEAT.. 

every morning.

every evening. 

Favorite Foods: mac and cheese, goldfish crackers, eggs, oatmeal, toast with peanut butter, chicken nuggets,  granola bars.. yogurt, milk.  yogurt yogurt yogurt..and milk, applesauce, PASTA, hulless popcorn, PB&J
all day long. water is another ‘fav’, well it has to be, we only give you water or milk, we haven't given you juice yet, we may never give it to you.

you also take after your mama on the sleep front:

you are a rockstar sleeper.

..even when you don’t feel well or are cutting teeth.

you typically nap nearly 3 hours during the day and sleep 13-14 hours at night.

I am thankful for the ‘happy’ you are about 97% of the time.
everyone always compliments how very happy you are..
because you just beam, boyfriend.

12-18 month photo dump

Hello Fresh review

 GUYS!! Have you heard of Hello Fresh?! I've been wanting to try out a meal subscription service for awhile now and after researching a few we decided on Hello Fresh, it seemed to offer all the things we like in a meal, healthy, fresh(duh!), and flavorful! Others either seemed way too fancy for out taste or they were way out of our price range. We jumped in with a $30off coupon code and haven't looked back yet, in fact our box for this week just arrived about a half hour ago which prompted me to get this post done.

 Each box/meal comes with a recipe/ingredient card with all the instructions you need. David said, I love how it tells you what to do in the right steps to do it in. Spoken like a true man!

Everything you need to make your meal comes in a bag besides the meat or pasta it doesn't come in the bag its in your box separate for easy refrigeration.

This is the creamy dill chicken meal with green beans and potato, it was plenty of food for the two of us and Canaan was able to share too and none of us were left hungry. This meal was also the only meal I cooked out of the three. As you can see David made the rest. This is another reason we choose to use Hello Fresh, I work late most nights and coming home to prepare a meal was exhausting or even preparing and planning a meal for David to then make to be ready when I get home. This cuts out the stress and aggravation that doesn't need to be there. When I come home from work I want to spend time with my family not worry about what were going to eat and how long it will take to make.

This shrimp was my FAVORITE!!!

The cauliflower mash on this day was so YUMMY!

We have zero complaints about any of the meals and loved each one. 

If you want to try Hello Fresh, you are getting a better deal than what I got when I started, follow the link below for $40 off your first box!

I WANT 40 OFF OF HELLO FRESH!!

Easy chunky tomato sauce.

Who doesn't want ALLLLL the comfort food on a Sunday?!?! Our last garden tomato is long gone (insert crying emoji)!! We used this as a quick and easy recipe when we were in a hurry for some sauce. This was one of about three different kinds we made this Summer. Our favorite was a roasted tomato sauce recipe we found on pinterest via my sister-in-laws pinning, but this one we created on out own, when we didn't want to make a trip to the store.

1. Ingredients:
2. 2 pounds fresh tomatoes, peeled and cored if you prefer. I wanted texture so as you can see I only sliced them up.
3. 5 tablespoons unsalted butter
4. 1 medium yellow onion, peeled and halved
5. Salt, to taste
6. Basil (optional)

1. Directions: Place the tomatoes, butter, and halved onion in a medium saucepan.
2. Bring the sauce to a boil, then lower the heat to a simmer, and cook for 45 minutes, or until the butter droplets separate from the tomato juices. Remove the onions.
3. Using an immersion blender, pulse a few times to break up large chunks of tomato. Season to taste if necessary.