The Dunstons

MOVED TO TYPEPAD

2010-03-08T23:10:00.001-07:00

Blogger sucks.
Bookmark my new blog here:

Rachel Blogs It

Hmmmm....

2010-01-20T11:30:00.007-07:00

2555

Hey, we will take any form of entertainment when stuck in the house this winter.
Even a box of tampons...
It was all Ronan's idea.
Please ignore my horrible hair and early morning sexiness.
He got me up at 5:00 am again.
I am saving this one under "blackmail".

We Went....

2010-01-19T12:07:00.001-07:00

here on vacation.

Ronan Works it for the Ladies in Cancun

2010-01-17T22:39:00.004-07:00

Ronan made a LOT of friends at the resort. Patrons knew his name, and they were always talking to him. Here is a quick video of him working it for the ladies.

In Cancun we went to Ronan and John's first aquarium. They both loved it. We got to pet sharks, sea turtles and sting rays.

Ronan also saw some alligators. It made me think of his favorite song...

Ronan loved his sunglasses so much that he even wore them to bed.
Goodbye Cancun.

Cancun

2010-01-17T21:14:00.010-07:00

Cancun was amazing. It was the best fun I have had in any given January of my life.
Ronan had a great time.
I am so glad we took him with us.
I love having Ronan. It makes everything so much better.
It was an all inclusive trip. That is the only way to go! We could eat at the mini bar, order room service, and eat at 5 resturants any time for free. It was the life.

This was the back door of our hotel room. Just a hop skip from the Caribbean.
Ronan liked to get up at 6:00 am so we went on a lot of walks along this ocean side path.

Ronan also got his first taste of sand. Literally. We found a lot of it in his diaper.

He needed a hat.
Toddler hats were too small.
We had to settle for a large child size hat.
He had a great time with his bucket and shovels.
The sand was so white and fine, it looked and felt like baking flour.

Ronan was not a big fan of the ocean.
Each time a wave touched his toes he cried, "Noooooo!" and climbed higher in our arms.
It was quite funny.
By the end of our trip he was enjoying the water.

Ronan and I spent a lot of time sitting on the back poorch of our hotel room, watching the pelicans dive for fish.

The pelicans were very friendly. This one sat by us on the beach for quite a while.

We visited the ruins of Chitchen Itza and Ek Bolam.
Ronan enjoyed running around.

It was amazing.
I was in history heaven.
Gosh, I love history.
I wanted to be a female Indianan Jones when I grew up.
I guess I do some excavations, in diapers.

Ronan got a little grumpy.

I really wanted to buy one of these red devil guys.
But we didn't have time to haggle.
We were off to swim in a sing hole and have lunch.

The sink hole was so beautiful.
But scary.
I did not swim in it.
But John jumped right in.
It was a couple of hundred feet deep, fresh water, and swimming with who knows what kind of creatures.

Then it was off to Ek Bolam.
This ruin site was way better than Chitchen Itza.
We could actually climb the ruins and explore.

The next day we spent the day on the beach again.

We found a crab.

After a few hours on the beach we brought Ronan back to the room.
He rinsed off, but zonked out during the towel dry.
He was so tired.

We let him sleep out the entire nap time on the bed just wrapped in his towel.

Oh, and I celebrated my 27th birthday while we were in Cancun. Hooray.

Here FISHY FISHY FISHY!

2010-01-10T12:36:00.003-07:00

Ronan thinks this is hilarious. I never prompted him to laugh at it. He just watched it and stared laughing uncontrollably.
Here is his approx. 6th viewing of the clip.

{View the clip of what he is watching here.}

Bad Blogger!

2010-01-10T12:23:00.007-07:00

Wow, we have been out of town for some time. Three weeks with the family in California. When I am away from home I am not the best blogger.
Come to think of it, I am not the best blogger even when I am home.
So here is an update.
Ronan and I flew out to California on the 21st.
I was so afraid that he would be one of those terror babies in the air.

{Waiting for the plane, Ronan picking his nose.}

He did great. He said, "Whee!" during take off, then fell asleep. Nice!

He woke up for the last 20 min. of the flight and played on Auntie's lap top. Thank goodness for Auntie!

My mom gave up her saaa-weet bed so that John, Ronan and I could room together. She has one of those memory foam beds from Costco. I call it "the cloud". Boy do I miss that thing! My bed sucks comparatively.

{Ronan in his Christmas PJ's hugging a Dog from Great Grandma Merrill.}

We went to the tide pools with Ronan. I tried to steal an abalone shell but my Mother threatened to turn me in to the park ranger.
Dang it.
I know it is wrong to take a shell but I live in Utah for heavens sake.

I managed to get a few photo shoots done while at home.
Ronan came along to enjoy the outdoors.
Ahh, January in California. My kind of winter.

We will be going to Cancun tomorrow so there should be some warm beach shots up here soon.

Happy New Year

2010-01-01T13:09:00.001-07:00

Goodbye diet coke and sugar. Hello headaches and sluggishness for a week or two. Worth it? Yes.

Random Ronan

2009-12-18T20:15:00.001-07:00

I took pictures of my friends Missy's kids the other day. Ronan came along and I got some quick snaps of him too. He had a great time with friends to play with. It was also warm enough to play outside a little. He was in heaven.

Sweet Napper

2009-12-16T15:36:00.003-07:00

Now that Ronan is older I take less pictures. I find myself watching over his sleeping form less often, not because I grow tired of him but because I have grown accustomed to him.
But he still leaves me in awe.
Today I crept into his room to cover him with his blanket during nap time.
He was so beautiful.
I had to snap some pictures. It has been a while since I took photos of him sleeping.

My Perspective on Things

2009-12-14T20:41:00.002-07:00

Bliss.

Dance Baby!

2009-12-12T14:57:00.001-07:00

What We Have Been Up To...

2009-12-08T14:42:00.008-07:00

Nana was here for Thanksgiving. Ronan loves his Nana. He says "Nana?" all day
.

Ronan discovered that he loves it when daddy gives him a bath. I guess it is a lot more fun that when Mommy does. The entire time I am bathing him I am saying, "Sit down Ronan, the bath is not a good place to stand up. You will fall."
Dads are a lot more chill.

Daddy turned 30. Rona had a great time with all the balloons, or "balloo" as he calls them.
John had his 30th birthday dinner at the Bombay House with a lot of friends and family.
I made him that cake. Looks like a drum, right? Crafty.

Ronan and I embraced our inner nerd with Auntie's glasses. Ronan encourages you to take a little time with your inner nerd too.

Ronan also learned that pens are fun with Daddy.
What have you been up to?

Giving Thanks & Turkeys

2009-12-02T23:17:00.004-07:00

I know, I know. I have been sucking at the blog thing lately. Okay, I give. I am sorry. So here are some way late Thanksgiving pictures.

In my little family I have started a bit of a tradition known as the "Thanksgiving Day Turkey Hat".

I know I am weird but Thanksgiving needed a little spice and I had construction paper.

This year my turkey had a little accident on my nose. Here we are posing in our Turkey Day best.

Max refused the hat, but was cool with a clip on tie.

Daddy and Ronan did not choose to have hats. Maybe it is a women only tradition?

Stink's boyfriend came over for some sweet Mario cart. He and I took a "cool people wear glasses" picture. We are cool, just look at us.

Ronan was licked to death by the dog post turkey so he needed a bath.

We ended the day with a little snuggle time on the couch. Ronan was in heaven with all of the attention lavished on him by Nana and Auntie Stink.

It was a good day.

Especially for the dogs. John gave them ALL the leftover turkey. They ate it right off the bones. Gross.

**If you noticed all the outfit changes that happened for various people during this "one day" you are smart. These pictures actually sum up three or four days surrounding Thanksgiving....
Just trying to tell a little cohesie story here on the 'ol blog...

A Boy's Best Friend

2009-11-19T11:03:00.003-07:00

Ronan adores Max. Or Maaaa, as Ronan calls him.

Max is not sure about Ronan.

Max would like to sleep.

Ronan wants to cuddle.

And drool on his best friend.

Even hold hands.

We put up our Christmas tree. Ronan liked it, but he is still more interested in Max.

Ronan likes to give Max presents. Even his prized kitchen finds.
Every boy needs a dog.
And ever dog (even Max, like it or not ) needs a boy.

Shoes

2009-11-03T15:15:00.003-07:00

Ronan loves shoes. Shoes was one of his first words. He especially likes to wear his Daddy's shoes. He is so proud when he puts them on and shuffles around the house.

Please ignore the messy face. He was enjoying a snack as well as the shoes.

TMI Warning...

2009-11-03T14:55:00.002-07:00

This morning I went to get Ronan out of his crib. I looked at his hands and thought, "That is funny, I don't remember giving you chocolate before bed. And if I did, I would have wiped you off after."
Somebody had their hands down the back of a dirty diaper shortly after waking up.
Nice.
On a less disgusting note:
My cozy friend Amber took these photos of my friends and I at a pumpkin carving party she hosted. They are too fun! Thanks Amber!

Happy Halloween!

2009-10-31T19:33:00.005-07:00

For Halloween Ronan was a bit of a play on words. He was Ro-Nan the Barbarian. You know, like Conan the Barbarian? Even though we pronounce it Ronan. For today it was Ro-Nan. I made his entire costume myself. It was an almost all no sew project. I came out great and it was super warm.
John was an evil goat man, thing....
I was a gypsy.

Madonna and Child.

Spencer and Chris came by to check out the Barbarian baby. Chris was a vampire 80's rocker and Spence was Batman.

Embarrassed.

Thrilled.

Stoic.

Over it.

Rhiannon came by a few days ago in costume with her new man Austin. Austin was Speed Racer and Rhiannon was a nerd. Though she did not need to dress up much.

I let Ronan have a few candy bars. He was covered in chocolate. He also had a great time just sorting through the candy.

It was a great year.

Cookie Monster

2009-10-24T16:40:00.009-07:00

I decided to make a big fat batch of pumpkin cookies for the hundredth time this season. This group of cookies is for some of my cozy neighbors.

I was in the living room and the first dozen were cooking. SuddenlyI heard Ronan's forlorn cry coming from the kitchen. I couldn't imagine why he was so upset. I came around the corner to find this tragedy.

These cookies are almost worth that kind of a tantrum. Find the recipe here. I add chocolate chips to the batter becasue we can always use more chocolate, right?

And yes, Ronan got a cookie.

Eat that Anthropology!

2009-10-22T12:55:00.009-07:00

I want this cardigan from Anthropology.

But who in the blasted hell has $98.00 to spend on a sweater? I don't.
If you do, you can mail me one too.

Solution?

Go to Target and look for this $19.00 cardigan. They seem to be running out online but I saw plenty in the stores.

I headed over to Joanne Fabrics and scores some supplies.

Double sided iron on tape in 5/8" for $2.32

Super cute ribbon in 5/8" for $3.95

12 Washable buttons $2.00

I got home, and got side tracked making dinner for this cute Muppet. He enjoyed playing in the refrigerator.

He likes to take all of the jars and bottles out of the door, inspect them, then stack them in doorway of the fridge. Whatever keeps him busy.

When he was eating I got down to business.

First, pop off all of the buttons.

Place your ribbon to get an idea of home much you will need.

Then iron your fusible web to the back of the ribbon.

Next cut and iron the pieces on. Use a little of that fray stopper gunk on the raw ribbon edges. My ribbon came with stitching on it.

I did not stitch that on myself. It just looks like I did.

Lastly, sew your buttons on.

Done.

Anthropology knock off for $28.26 plus tax and about a half hour of work.

Love it.

Ronan Got a Flu Shot

2009-10-22T11:26:00.002-07:00

Ronan got his flu shot. He was not happy about it. But he was happy about the sticker.

PS- That is dirt and water on his knee. It looks gross but it really isn't.

Maytag Man?

2009-10-21T14:05:00.006-07:00

I turned from doing dishes to put some away. This is what I found when I looked back.

Good thing he didn't bust it.

Look at my Cute Kid!

2009-10-19T17:08:00.008-07:00

We had a little spur of the moment photo shoot in some downtown Provo neighborhood today. The old parts of town have the best fall trees. I am determined to put a maple in my yard next spring.

The leaves were perfect and John is a pretty good photographer too!

Now, behold the cute-ness of our baby! We should make another one just like him!
Halloween shirt provided by Nana. Thanks Nana!

Less is More?

2009-10-17T20:01:00.005-07:00

My stylist told me that less is more. The shorter the hair, the thicker it looks. So we went shorter. It may look like the same old thing to you guys but it looks better and more fun to me. My hair girl is really good.

It is so dang hard to take a picture of myself. I hate doing it.

I am a 26 year old Momma. I guess I am not really old, but I am hardly a hip teen anymore either.

Question 1:

Can I pull of this hip trend?

Question 2:

Can I pull it off without looking like I am trying to be 19?

I feel a little aerobic. 1980's aerobic.

Thoughts? Vote on the poll at the top of the column to your right, or leave me a comment....

Pity Party

2009-10-17T11:16:00.005-07:00

I am having a pity party for myself.
For my hair.
My lack of hair.
I have super fine hair.
The kind that blows away in the wind.
The kind that you put in a pony tail and it disappears.
I hate my hair.
I hate my hair so much.
I am going to be bald by the time that I am 30. (That is only a couple years away...)
I want to be have hair like this:

The girl or even that guy. He has way better hair than me.
My sisters both have thick mountains of hair from my Mother.
I do not.
I want to be able to do cute things with masses of my own hair. But I can't.
The most creative I can get is a freaking headband.
A jankie plastic one.
I am not even really allowed to wear a ponytail because my hair breaks so easily.
I can't have long hair because it looks nasty.
I can't put in extensions because it pulls out the hair I have.
The only time I have had good hair was when I was pregnant.
So I have to become Mrs. Duggar if I want to have good hair...

Dear Elton John,
What the heck did you do, and how much did it cost?

PS-
Does this girl's hair look dumb? I have similar hair and tried this. John said it looked dumb.
But he is a dude...
Could I pull this off? Or am I too old?
Opinions for the sad hair girl, please.

Anger, Cookies, then Babies

2009-10-16T19:48:00.006-07:00

1. ANGER

I have been trying to upload a video for two days!

That's is right, TWO DAYS!

I have let it load over night and in the morning, nothing.

Blogger is temperamental.

It is driving me nuts.

I am thinking about moving to type pad.

I would gladly pay $15.00 a month to have an easier time posting.

::growl::

2. COOKIES

Ronan and I made Martha Stewart's Pumpkin Cookies. They were so good that John's buddies ate them all up and I didn't get to take a picture of them. Make some. They kick the store bought cookies little cookie behinds.

I added chocolate chips to the batter, and mine were better than Martha's originals. Get the details here.

( Lovin' the chocolate crumbs around his little mouth.)

3. BABIES

Does this picture make you baby hungry? That sounds so wrong, baby hungry. I makes me think of eating babies.

Anyhoo...

I need another little baby. They are so fun. I just don't think I want to have morning sickness or fat ankles. Let's also skip the "reflux" and the whole feeling like a whale part too.

Man, now that I think about it, my pregnancy seems brutal. Once I sat up in bed and coughed which made me barf and pee a little on myself at the same time. Seriously. Who does that? Oh yeah, all pregnant ladies.

Aunt Flo

2009-10-13T19:19:00.003-07:00

Dear Aunt Flo,

I really do not have time for you to drop by right now. I wish I had a more polite way to decline your visit but I cannot thing of a way.

To be blunt you are a pain. Literally. In my lower abdomen to be exact.

I don't have time to act like a jerk. It takes to much reconcilliantion time, but there is just something about you that makes me want to bite off every head except for Ronan's.

You make me so tired. I just want to sleep.

Since you stopped visiting me a couple of years ago I have had very little sleep. Remember?

Hold the phone....

On second thought, you are welcome. Only once a month. Please make your stay a short as possible and bring me chocolate and pain killer.

Actually, I guess I should thank you for easing up on me a bit since that baby was born.

Oh who am I kidding. You may be an annoying house guest but you better keep coming for a while.

More Random Ronan

2009-10-11T16:51:00.002-07:00

Some Random Ronan

2009-10-11T14:05:00.002-07:00

Grandpa & Grandma Merrill

2009-10-10T19:05:00.003-07:00

My Grandparents came to town. They took us to dinner and we had a great time. Ronan loved it. We all loved it.
Grandma and Grandpa are the best. I can't wait to see them again soon.

Catching Up

2009-10-09T10:09:00.005-07:00

My computer just got put back together, and I am blogging first thing.

We have been working on our house for about a week. During the renovations we stayed with John's parents. Ronan had a blast.

He had a great time shopping at Lowe's. We went about 100 times...

He enjoyed eating his meals in his Daddy's old high chair at Grandma's house.

And he was very into all the power tools hanging around our place.

Here is a peak at what we have done so far....

We still need to paint the vintage dresser and install all of the TV stuff so it doesn't show. We love our floors and brighter paint.

More to come...

Computer Down

2009-10-06T13:24:00.002-07:00

Well my dear readers, I have been working hard on my office and living room. I seem to update my house in one way or another every fall.
Nesting.
Getting ready for winter.
My computer is gutted and in another room of the house so I have not been able to blog.
Sorry.
I will be back very soon!

We Have a Winner!

2009-10-02T14:46:00.004-07:00

First of all, I want to say that I wish I could give an apron to everybody. You all had amazing reasons. Luckily I didn't have to be the one to choose. I plugged all of our entries into my account at Random.org and came up with our winner.

Drum roll please.......

Amy Noorlander!

Whoopee!

Amy, we are going to need to get shipping info and the apron of your choice picked out.

E-mail me at r_dunston@hotmail.com.

This was so freaking wonderful and fun that we have to do it again! Any takers? If nobody wants to offer a promo, I will just do what I do best. Surf Etsy and pick something I love. Buy some for me and then give some to you!

I love you, blog friends, so much!

I am currently getting my wood floors re-finished and my computer is all unplugged and gutted at the moment so you will have to hang on a day or two for another blog.

Thanks again for reading.
Congrats to Amy!

Dear Living Room-

2009-09-29T12:55:00.008-07:00

You are boring me. You are too dark. You are old news.

It's not me, it's you. I am breaking up with you.

I am trading you in for something fresh.

Starting with this:

And this:

Thanks for everything. Now it's time to kiss you goodbye.

Love,

Rach

Dear Blog Readers-

Dying to see what the heck I am up to? Maybe not but I am going to pretend you are elated about my new living room decor.

Do you want to redo your living room? Or another space? Let me help you do it on the cheap, and with major style.

The trick is re purposing vintage furniture. See that dresser up there? $60.00 on my local classified ads web page. A little sand paper and paint and I will have a rocking one of a kind piece that is built better than most things you can buy these days for triple the price!

It's green and it's crafty. You just have to be patient. It can day a week or two to find what you are looking for but the planet and your pocket book will thank you.

Stay tuned.

PS- Ronan says "Hi!"

What Baby?

2009-09-26T22:13:00.005-07:00

This has been a Ronan dominated blog for close to two years (if you include me whining about the pregnancy) and he has been excluded from the last batch of posts.

No, I did not give him away.

This is Ronan last late September. Doesn't it make you baby hungry? Me too.

Now if we can only convince Daddy.

What do you think?

Hey, I love this giveaway party we are having. I want to do more. If you have a business to promote and want us to feature you next, let me know. Donated prizes are always welcome. I want to promote handmade and homegrown, women owned businesses.

Don't forget to enter here.

More Grease!

2009-09-25T20:50:00.010-07:00

Wow, everybody! I am so loving the give away!

You are all so fun!

If you have not entered, don't be silly. Enter the dang contest. Yeah, I am talking to you.

CLICK HERE TO ENTER NOW!

So I asked for Greasy on the last post, and I left out one of my greasiest moments. What the heck!?

I am a garbage can overfill-er. My street garbage can if brimming with stuff every week. We are talking overflowing. Before you go green on me let me just say that 80% of it is grass clippings or tree branches. My yard is sick. I have a 70 year old house and the yard has been neglected for about that long. I am too lazy to order a green waste bin from the city. So I am the jerk with the garbage piled super high every trash day.

The garbage man HATES me. I mean it. I really don't blame him. If I happen to see him I get dirty looks. He is not careful about my overflowing can either and leaves a ton of crap on the street. I know if he like me the can would empty into his truck a little easier.

So a few months ago I pulled the ultimate grease. Shame. Horrible. Greasy.

The garbage man was pulling up and dumping my can with the usual hatred when some fell on the street. Because I was standing there, putting my kid in the car he felt like he should hop out and attend to his mess. Here is where the grease comes in.

"Oh, thank you sooooo much for picking that up. She is really old and has trouble cleaning up her garbage off the street. " I said as I thumbed in the direction of my house. "Bless your heart!"

Yes. I lied. I implied that a little old lady, probably my decrepit grandmother lived in what is really my house. So shameful. Yet, effective.

I try to make my garbage easy to dump, but from that day forward there hasn't been a problem.

Karma is going to whoop my butt! Unless karma chooses to see that I sort of saved my neighbors from litter blowing in their yards?

Oh, and can I just send a big hug to Boojiboo? I let them know about our little giveaway and the darlings said they would donate the prize! Such kind, cozy, talented, people!

If you don't win, you simply must go pick up an apron anyway. I couldn't wait for the contest to end so I ordered mine today. I picked this one:

I love me some skulls. Gotta keep my edge even through the baby drool, right? I mean I am married to a rock drummer. Gotta look the part.

I am addicted you know, and Boojiboo seems like they know how to make an apron flatter a slime covered momma's hot bod better than anybody else!

Visit them here. And maybe if you pick one up you could tell them you read about their hot aprons on my little 'ol blog? Yes?

Oh you readers are so kind.

Maybe this give away will make up for my bad trash can lie. Maybe.

Greasy Confessions

2009-09-24T12:34:00.009-07:00

Dont forget to enter the giveaway on the entry below this one. That's right, FREE STUFF from me becasue I love you. Enter, if you wanna.

First of all, I need to thank you guys for being the funniest blog readers ever. Everybody is saying the best things to win that apron.

I was laughing my butt off as I read them all. Well, just figuratively speaking. If I could laugh my butt (and muffin tops*) off I would be the hottest chick in town.

On to some greasy confessions.

1. I have a greasy secret hide out.
It's the bathroom. The one place where nobody will follow me (if I lock the door.) Claim you are "going" and everybody backs off. 9 times out of 10 I am just taking a break in there. Reading a book, breathing, enjoying the sensation of my legs not being clawed at by a fussy toddler. It is my own little oasis. If it is a mess, I just shut my eyes. Perfect.

2. I am greasy enough that I use my baby to get out of things.
One perk of motherhood is the endless supply of excuse possibilities. "Oh, I wish I could but the baby is (enter anything here)".

3. I wash clean laundry and clean dishes. Greasy.
Sometimes I am too lazy to empty the dishwasher when I want a clean kitchen so I just chuck dirty dishes in with the clean ones and run the dishwasher again. Same with laundry.

4. I love video games.
When Ronan goes to bed, the one and only thing on my mind is getting in some video game time before I have to go to bed and start over again tomorrow. I often dream about killing aliens as a result of my late night video game sprees. I get mad at John when he plays too much, but then do it myself. Grease ball.

5.I rob John of food.
John will ask me if I want him to make me any (enter food here). I always say no, but then steal his food. I can't help it. Sometimes he will buy himself a candy bar, and I will eat it when he isn't looking, hoping that he will forget about it. Yup, I can be a Grease.

6. I am a greasy little "price optimist".
Go ahead, ask me how much I bought that one thing for. I can't help but round down. If it was $29.00, I will go with $25.00 even though technically I should round up. When John asks, the rounding gets even more creative and "optimistic". I can't help it. Well, I guess I could but I just don't want to. My way sounds better.

Since you all are so stinkin' funny, let me know what YOU do that is greasy**?

* Muffin Tops : A nicer sounding description for what are more commonly refered to as love handles. The chub that sticks out over the top of jeans.

** Greasy : A word I used to describe underhanded tactics. Think of the stereotypical used car salesman's greasy slicked back hair.

WIN A FREE APRON HERE! Yay for 20!

2009-09-23T15:03:00.006-07:00

We did it! We got to 20. Now I am supposed to give up the goods. Well my giveaway is kinda selfish. I thought about my favorite things. What would I want?

An apron of course. I love them. Can't get enough of them. They are great for everything.

I started wearing them everyday when Ronan decided to use me as a human napkin. I kept going to stores then realizing I was covered in some slime or another.

Aprons are good for cooking, cleaning, baby slime, crafts, and getting some (that is if you wear only the apron.)

What you do with it is up to you. However,this blogger will not be held liable for anything you make (treats or babies) in said apron.

Because we all have different taste, the winner will get to pick any apron $28.75 or less from this fine etsy crafter. Yay for handmade and homemade!

How do you enter?

For one entry: Be a Follower. Then comment on this post. Leave your name and why you should win.

For two entries: Get a friend to sign up as a new follower. Comment on this post again and let me know who your friend is.

Easy right?

Even family can win, because lets face it, they make up about 10 of the 20.

Thanks everybody.
-Rach

Fine print:

Our winner will be selected by random.org.

You have until Wednesday September 30 at 12:00am PST to enter.

The winner will be announced Friday October 2nd!

Pumpkins & Harleys

2009-09-22T14:39:00.007-07:00

Today we went of to the Harley Davidson shop where we drooled over Choppers. We would love a bike. Ronan is all about giving loves to everybody and everything lately. He give loves to his Daddy and even to pumpkins.

We filled a wagon with pumpkins to take home. Ronan had a lot of fun and looked festive in his skeleton hoodie.
Here is a video of nothing much. Just a cute baby.

Goodbye Morning Nap

2009-09-22T14:08:00.002-07:00

My baby has been waking up at 5:45 for what seems like forever. He wakes up angry and starving. I try to pack him full of food right before bed time. Something hearty that will stick to his ribs like glue. I have been feeding him as much thick oatmeal with bananas right before bed as possible. It moved wakeing up to 6:30
.
Not good enough for me. I am lazy. I want to sleep until 8:00. Even 7:30 would be amazing. Wait, that is not lazy! Right?

When John got home he suggested we try lactose free whole milk to go in his bedtime bottle.

Guess what. This morning Ronan slept until 8:30.

It was amazing.

I woke up because my body reached "full" on it's sleep tank. Not because a baby screamed.

I was truly done sleeping.

Instead of being thrilled, I freaked out.

My baby must be passed out or dead.

I looked at the monitor. Everything looked okay.

I slowly cracked open his door. His back was going up and down in a normal breathing pattern. I checked his forehead. No fever.

Hmmm.

Puzzled, I ventured to at least start a shower before my luck ran out. I fully expected to be interrupted just as my hair was all soapy by a baby tantrum.

Not a peep.

I took a shower. Alone. No audience. (Don't think I am creepy. I have to keep to door open to see what Ronan is up to. Doesn't everybody? I mean unless you want to find your kid dead when you come out of the bathroom? Plus, who's kid actually lets them go anywere alone without a tantrum?)

Holy crap. What did I do to deserve such glory?

Thank you Daddy. Thank you Lactaid for making lactose free whole milk. Thank you Ronan for letting me take a shower without you banging on the glass doors.

There is no longer a need for a morning nap. I will gladly trade. This routine feels much better.
Oh please let it continue. Pretty please.

** Hey I still need two more followers. Come on. Don't make me call out names (Meagan, Missy, Cassie, Becky, Cathy, Angie.) Sure love you. :)
Dying to do a giveaway.
Click Follow at the top of the right hand column. Please?

Dog Food, Not for Toddler Consuption

2009-09-20T12:59:00.004-07:00

Dear Readers,

I don't want you to turn me into CPS for this story. If I share, do you promise not to call us in? Thanks.

Yesterday I returned from a few hours taking photos and decided to take Ronan and Auntie Stink over to Target for a new Ronan toothbrush, among other things.

Ronan was quite fussy during our visit. That is unusual for him.

We were sulking around the jewelry when all of a sudden Ronan started to "recycle" his bottle. All over himself, the cart and the carpet. You know what I mean when I say "recycle".

I immediately took up my position at Momma barf central command. That means I cupped one hand under his little chin and used to other one to gently tilt him forward. He has a tendency to lean back which leads to the potential of chocking on his recyclables.

My sister dutifully grabbed wet wipes and the plastic bag out of my purse. The handy "just in case of barf" shopping bag that I learned to keep around a few weeks ago in the car.

People just kept shopping around us. Practically pushing us out of their way. I was stunned. Here we were catching barf and several unconcerned ladies were shoving past us to get to the earrings. If it were me, I would give the Momma a sympathetic smile, then run the other way, but whatever.

As the Momma I get the prized chore of checking out the recycled food to see what caused the problem. New food allergy? No.

What at first looked like pinto beans became obviously dog kibble upon further inspection. Lots of dog kibble. Lots of swallowed whole, dog kibble.

Momma doesn't leave dog food out when Ronan is around for fear of this very situation.

Apparently Daddy did.

When we got home Ronan and I smelled horrible. We smelled like barf. Dog food sour milk barf. We were both covered. I had to strip Ronan down to his onesie in Target and bag it. All the barfy wet wipes and clothes rode home with us.

Daddy penitently filled the tub. Ronan peed on Mommies already barfy outfit.
And Ronan had no toothbrush for his post barf breath because we had to leave before getting one.

It was a real treat for us. Not to mention the Target employees.

Note to Daddy: Don't leave to dog food out. I don't deserve that. Neither does Target.

Love,
Rach

***Hey Mom. You need to figure out how to be a follower. 5 more and there is a give away.
Come on Mom, set a good example.
And the rest of you better get us to twenty becasue I really want to give away something fun.
Click FOLLOW at the top of the right hand column.
You know you want to. All the cool kids are doing it.

Seven More

2009-09-19T10:18:00.003-07:00

What a sweet morning. I woke up and checked my computer like it was Christmas. I found a ton of comments AND followers. Oh the joy.
Only seven more and free stuff!
Gosh, I sure love all of you for bein' so swell to me.
John wants to know why I am in such a good mood. He would never understand if I told him it was because of my blog friends. But I assure you he thanks you too for his silly wife's much improved mood.

Click follow over there ---------------------------------------------------------------------->

Is this thing on?

2009-09-18T19:48:00.004-07:00

I am not going to lie. I blog because I like the thought of people reading it. Why else would I blog? Not so I can read it myself, that would just be silly.

Granted, I do try an publish my blogs into a book yearly but that is just a bonus. Extra credit. A big "yes" check mark next to journaling.

But mostly I want to make other people laugh and keep friends and family updated on my kid, oh and John and I for those who still care. We don't blame you if you don't. We are all about the kid too.

This is partially selfish because I don't want to have to promise pictures and letters to a bunch of Ronan fans. I just post it here and if you want it, you can come and get it (rings farmhouse dinner bell).

But I do get kind of sad faced when I don't get any comments. I know it is lame of me. But comments make me feel like I didn't just send my photos and cheesy stories into a vast black blog hole.

So, I am going to copy my blog friend Marcy who copied her blog friend. I am going to offer a give away. Yes, free stuff. Don't tell John. He doesn't get it. But you dear blog reader, I know you get it.

There is a catch. Nothing is really free. You have to help me out.

I will do a give away when my followers list reaches 20. Just click on that little follow button at the top of the right hand column. When we get twenty people on there I will give up some free goods. And I don't give away crap. I like to think of myself as a good giver of things. Giving things to people has to be one of my all time favorite things to do.

So, pretty please click and be an outed blog follower. It will turn my frown up side down.

Love,
Rach

Hanging Around Town

2009-09-18T14:45:00.016-07:00

Look how cute Ronan and I are! Not to toot my own horn. It is just that I have just felt like a big ugly sow ever since I had him a year ago and I am finally starting to feel cute-ish again.

I keep finding myself subconsciously dressing Ronan and I alike. If I wear baby blue somehow Ronan is wearing it too. Look at today, his shirt matches the color in the checkers on my shirt. Today wasn't so bad but some days I look at us and imagine people throwing up in their mouths a little at the cute matchy matchy look they must think I do intentionally.

Anyhoo**. We have been having lots of fun since Daddy came home. Ronan is talking up a storm because he is hearing more adult conversation. He loves to participate with a big loud mouth full of gibberish. He goes on and on.

We went to Gardener Village to see the witch display. This picture on the left is not staged. Those are true looks of horror on those boys faces. They were in hell having their pictures taken.

Ronan found a cool magnification glass. It was so fun. He laughed hysterically when I did the same.

Ronan had a really fun time, and then zonked out in the car with his Gandalf.

John and Ronan had a great time at the music store. Ronan loves to copy every thing that his Daddy does. Here he is shopping in the Heavy Metal section.

He has about 15 real words in his vocabulary. I am just glad that so far he hasn't picked up anything embarrassing. I am sure he will eventually, but for now here is a list of his favorite words.

Ball

Light

Fish

Cat

Dog

Max (the dog)

That

Is (for Isabeau, the other dog)

Please (yes, the l is an adorable w sound ::swoon::)

Baba

Wow

Dude

Dada

Clap

Yeah

and best of all, a heart melting MAMA!

Ronan has a sound for all the things he sees. This is his sound for the scary Halloween monster hanging is on the back door. He comes up with this stuff on his own. I swear.

**My Mother hates it when I say "Anyhoo". She says it is a Utah thing. I say, "Boo!" I like the word anyhoo.

A Word from Our Sponsor

2009-09-15T17:46:00.002-07:00

What does the dragon say?

Ball

Good relations with Wookies, I have.

Oldies but Goodies

2009-09-15T17:43:00.001-07:00

Ronan love black beans and rice.

Ronan loves summer time and his Momma.

Ronan loves Aunt Hillary. He does not love the Orem Owls creepy mascot.

Ronan loves the Bean animal museum.

It is time.

2009-09-14T21:49:00.005-07:00

Nobody told me my parents were this crazy.

Halloween in September?

I am going in before the neighbors see me.

What's that you say? It looks like I hired a troop of spiders this year? Yeah, none of that bagged stretch cotton crap for us. We hired our spiders on ebay.

Daddy Is Home!

2009-09-07T13:15:00.004-07:00

John and I decided on Saturday that he had been gone too long. So, on the spur of the moment, we booked him a ticket and he was home Saturday night. Ronan knew exactly who Daddy was, and he was so excited.

Today we all went to Pirate Island. It is a super cool Pirate themed restaurant. They went all out on the atmosphere and props. But the food, well it was okay.
Ronan was terrified by the talking skeleton in waiting area. He buried his face in our shoulders and refused to look up. He grew braver as time went on and had a nice piece of pizza.

John and Ronan enjoyed their pirate hats. Ronan apparently wanted an eye patch but had to make due.

Ronan and Dad had a great time in the arcade.

It is so nice to have Daddy back. He is a lot of help and a lot of fun.

Ronan gets a Pumpkin

2009-09-04T19:30:00.006-07:00

I am obsessed. Can you tell?

I took Ronan to Cook's Farm and Greenhouse today to get a freaky gourd for my living room.

Ronan has recently decided he can walk. He has been able for a while but only just developed the confidence to after a major "Momma hold me all the time, I'm independant and I don't know if I like it..." phase. Now he wants to walk everywhere. I let him walk around a lot, it just takes a super long time to get anywhere. We have to stop and point at ants, inspect fences and touch weeds. I have to admit that it is fun to notice these small things that I take for granted from my considerably higher vantage point.

Ronan was thrilled to discover hay and gourds. As well as the sloping side walk and curb.

He is wearing shorts in these pictures, they look like flood pants but that is only because this kid has short legs. And yes, his fly is down.

A very proud Ronan, running to Momma. That is his proud face. I think it is so funny.

And yes, I bought Halloween jammies yesterday and let him wear them today. Scoff if you wish, but we like it. Sorry about the picture quality, it is hard to take a photo of one's self.

Halloween

2009-09-03T19:57:00.006-07:00

September is here, and at my house that means Halloween is going up in full force. This is my favorite holiday, so I like to drag it out as long as possible. I guess it is one of my creative hobbies.

This year we are doing a funeral home outside, so I brought the theme inside.I have almost no budget, so I worked with what I had.

I bought some cream light card stock and printed off vintage poison and pharmaceutical labels. Then stuck them on all the empty glass things around the house. I was going for the look of embalming and preservation materials.

I also gathered up some spooky 19th century photos on Google images, and put them in frames.

Inside the various jars I put water, apple juice, white grape juice and whatever else was in the fridge. I stayed away from food coloring in case something spills.I threw some spices in other containers. I went with cinnamon, nutmeg and pumpkin pie spices. It smells great!

Free copies of creepy photos and labels for free download for 7 days here:

https://www.yousendit.com/transfer.php?action=batch_download&batch_id=YkxLSkhURnc5eFZFQlE9PQ

Dear Universe,

2009-08-22T13:24:00.002-07:00

I am starting to see a trend, Universe. You seem to like dumping crap on me, my family and my friends. I was just wondering if you plan on being done any time soon. It is getting really old and I think your energy could be of better use.

Here is a list for you review of things that need to stop.

1. No more crazy bills that pop out of nowhere. You keep sending them to people I know, they are for sure showing up at my house. Can you forward them out into the void in future?

2. I don't want to be sick at the same time as my kid, and neither do other Moms. Can you work on some sort of rule where parents and kids can't be sick at the same time?

3. We decline any further car problems. I don't want throw up in my car, and I don't want any engines shutting down or exploding anymore. Please.

4. Stop stealing cash from my wallet when I am not looking. I don't know where you are putting it. I know this happens to all of us so can you fix that glitch too?

5. Send my husband home. I am over single parenting. And for those how can't get out of single parenting, please send them a large dose of help.

6. Laundry. Just make it stop.

Well Universe, I would really like you to fix these things as soon as possible. I know we would all be a lot happier.

Oh, and can you please start freezing time when I, and my friends, want to blog so that kids will stop screaming long enough for us to type about how wonderful they are? It would be nice if chores also did themselves during blog time.

I will let you know when the crazy unexpected bills stop popping into my mail box.

Thanks.

-Rach

Got the Car Detailed

2009-08-12T13:05:00.004-07:00

I threw up all over myself and my car on Monday.
There was a line of traffic behind me, the light turned green and I was barfing in a paper bag. The paper bag's bottom fell out and soggy paper bag and barf covered me, my seat, the passenger seat and the center console.
The sound of Mommy barfing freaked out the baby who started to bawl while cars honked at me for not going when the light was green.
I got my car detailed yesterday.
$90.00, but worth every penny.
Now I keep a plastic mixing bowl in the car. A barf bowl.
Always be prepared.

**No, I am not pregnant. That would be hard to explain with John out of town...

Mari's Wedding

2009-08-09T19:43:00.010-07:00

My cousin Mari, got Mari-ed (hahahaha) this weekend.
I don't have a ton of pictures of Mari and Keith because it is bad manners to step on the hired photographers toes like that.
I have some, but the narcissistic mother in me took mostly pictures of Ronan.
What?
Did you expect to see pictures of other people on here?

Haven't you noticed that this has turned into Ronan picture central?
Here we go...

I have been wondering where Ronan got his eye color and what color it is exactly. When I saw this picture, it was obvious that he has exactly the same eye color as his Nana.

Ronan took up position in his stroller next to the gift table so he could keep a wary eye on the card box inevitably stuffed with cash. He distracted any possible wedding robbers with his amazing cuteness.

Ronan looks just like me in these pictures. It is the smile, I think. The big cheeky grin that scrunches up little bags of chub under his eyes.

He also had a good view of the candy bar and beckoned for M&M's all night.

The food was beautiful and super yummy too. So yummy that Ronan decided to wear some of it.

Careful Cory and Cassie...too much of that equals one of these.

Ronan and I had a bit of a Tango.

Then he decided to crawl around and get dirty. Formal wear is just impractical for babies.

Ronan's new best friend and soon to be favorite relative gave him some slushy. He had a great time flicking it off his straw and on to Cassie, who just laughed.

Here he is getting high on sugar. He stayed up until 10:00pm, wiggling and chatting at one hundred miles an hour.

It was a great event. I love Keith, Cassie, and of course Cory, Hillary, Mari and Karl. Real cozy folks who I am glad belong to me as family.

Cousins

2009-08-09T19:29:00.003-07:00

This week I got the chance to hang out with my adorable little nieces and nephews. We had a lot of fun. Ronan was thrilled to have kids to play with and I managed to hold down the fort.

But I forgot to bring Ronan's "Sleepy Time Sesame Street" DVD. So, instead of have him freak out without his bedtime viewing of the DVD, we all piled into the van and went to grab it.

(Cute little Sara Kate peeking over her seat.)

Ronan was so happy to be sitting in between two cool dudes, and the girls we laughing at his silly noises of glee.

We picked up the DVD and some sippy cups. The boys had chicken nuggets and the girls wanted juice on the way home.

It was an adventure. I don't know how my dear Shannon does it with so many kids everyday. Huge pat on the back to Shannon. Whew.

Wearing Breakfast

2009-08-05T14:48:00.004-07:00

Today I let Ronan have a go at feeding himself after I had gotten as much food in him as he would let me.

I handed him the spoon and let him go for it.

He deserved it. He let me nap for three glorious hours this morning. This was my way of saying thanks. Plus it was bath day so he was destined for the tub after breakfast anyway.

To the Theater with Grandma

2009-08-04T20:35:00.004-07:00

Ronan, Grandma and I went to see some of our friends in the local production of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dream Coat.

My darling friend Christopher played the Elvis inspired Pharaoh and my gal Amber played a number of cute roles herself.

Ronan was thrilled to be outside, and up late. He actually stayed up until 10:00pm. He was pretty good about staying entertained and in his seat with little fuss.

He especially liked chewing on Twizzlers with Grandma.

I was hopeful that Ronan would sleep in because he was up so late. Boy was I wrong. In fact he was up more times than usual, needed a middle of the night bottle and was up at 6:00am. Oye.

Well at least I can check off the keeping him up late method of getting more sleep in the mornings.

I wish I had been better prepared to take pictures of my dear friends because they looked super amazing in their costumes. But, I didn't have a flash, or know where they would be on the stage and Ronan kept grabbing the camera so the pictures are all blurry. Then my battery died.

I am going to go back and get some good shots, but for now here are a couple of totally crappy ones.

Next time I will get a babysitter so no little monsters will be jogging my arm every time I take a shot.

J.W. Graves and Sons Funeral Home and Crematorium.

2009-08-04T13:14:00.004-07:00

Ahh, this years favorite project.

I made the print, bought the frame and then added the overgrown foliage using discounted silk floral items from Michael's and Robert's Craft. I only spent about $5.00 on the floral items. The frame is from Ikea and the Print was shipped in from Shutterfly after I created it in Adobe Photoshop CS3.

This will hang between the eves, over the porch all Halloween Season. The jewel of our yard display. I loved this project.

Ronan Goes for a Walk

2009-08-02T20:19:00.006-07:00

Ronan is getting dang good at standing up alone. He is so close to walking without help. I decided it was time to buy him some functional shoes. The ones he has had up until now were mostly decorative. They just looked cute but were not built for actual walking.

We went to Target. And got these way cute little shoes.

Then Ronan went for his first walk outside. It was hard to help him and take pictures but I managed.

Look Mom, no hands!

He had a wonderful time. He even climbed the front steps (the crumbling steps, anybody know somebody who does concrete cheap?) and did a little "weeding".

After his adventures outside he was pretty dirty, so he had a bath. I realized the poor kid has never has bubbles in his bath so I chucked some in. He made this face:

You all know what that means.

"OOOhhhhhhhhh!!!"

Then he tried to eat the bubbles. That face was a lot different to say the least.

Haunted Blog

2009-08-02T19:41:00.008-07:00

This is the White House after Presdent Lincon's death. Draping you house in black crepe used quite common. I know that my grandmothers home was draped in black crepe during the war when a family member had died and been laid out in the home.

And so It begins. My first (well not really, but officially) Halloween project. Today I finished making funeral crepe for my house. This year my house will be outfitted as a funeral home to better blend into the graveyard that has been growing every year in our front lawn.

So if you are feeling scary, here is a project for you. And yes, it is okay to start this early if you are doing a pretty big show in your yard, or if you are just excited.

My Mom found this very light, almost sheer fabric for about $1.00 a yard at evil local business killing Wal-Mart. I had to get it because of the great price. Damn them.

Anyhow...
I cut out long strips of fabric to make some killer (no pun intended) funeral bunting.
You want the short sides of your fabric combined to equal the total space you want to fill. The length is up to you and how gathered of a bunt you want. Is it called a bunt? Oh well, to me it is...
For example if you want your "bunt" to hang from a 2 foot space, then your ends will need to be 12 inches each. You got me?

I did this the cheap way. Who wants to actually sew these things properly? Martha Stewart? Well, I am Rachel Dunston. And I am lazy. So I rigged these bad boys up with binder clips, safety pins and a grommet punch. Just screw the actual grommets. I didn't use any. I punched holes in the fabric. It is Halloween. If it starts to look ragged, great.

I gathered the fabric together accordion style, and punched a hole with the grommet punch. You will have to do it a bit at a time as the punch wont go through all your fabric in one shot.

Next, I strung the fabric accordion style on to ONE SIDE of a binder clip. Jam it all on one side without going over the hinge. Shut the clip, and flip it upside down. Your hinge will end up on top and the fabric will have a better space to spread out. Does that make sense?

I made a couple of little gathers with safety pins on the ends. This gives it more detail, and a place to hang the sides from.

I also got fancy and made a few gathered bits using black hair bands. Cheap and easy.

Toss up a couple of nails and ta-da! A house fit for a funeral.

My neighbors thought I was crazy. Well, let me rephrase that, my neighbors know for sure now that I am crazy. I wantedto make sure everything was working and fit so I did a test run on the house today. People driving by were confused to say the least.

Now, off you go. Make your own.

This project cost about $25.00 and will have a major impact on the look of this years yard haunt. Just don't tell anybody in my neighborhood these tricks. We seem to be in a friendly competition now. And I have to make sure I stay at the top of the game.

Way more projects to come.

Bragging Rights

2009-08-01T21:09:00.008-07:00

(Click to enlarge)

Many of you know that my husband is in a serious Progressive Metal band. He is an amazing drummer. I am not just saying that, he is one of the best out there. Really.

Anyway and his band released their third album this spring. Oblivious to the Obvious. Their style is an "acquired tasted" and their genre of music is not your typical stuff.

Over the last eight years my friend Lisa and I have been roadies, agents, talent scouts, publicists, and in band slaves in general.

Sometimes I tease John that he married me because I had a truck and he needed a roadie.

With the release of this last album I got to do the artwork and photography. And I never bragged about it on my blog.

I kind of hated the project at the time. It lasted during most of my pregnancy and for months after. Looking back, it was worth it. And hey, the best projects are often the ones that suck the most while working on them. No pain, no gain.

So here is the cover that I did in Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator CS3. This is a composit of images and then hand painted on my Waccom tablet. I am talking literally painting each hair on that girls head.

It took forever.

But I really like it.

If you don' already know, I do this kind of stuff for a living as well as photography. It is a great job sometimes, and other times it really blows. But I guess that is how all jobs are.

These are the disc faces. It was a double album. Each image reflects a song title on that particular disc.

http://www.hourglassband.com/

Head Wounds Bleed....A Lot.

2009-08-01T19:58:00.006-07:00

(This picture has nothing to do with the post. It was just cute.)

This evening Ronan was sitting in his rocking chair eating (yes, finally eating) chicken nuggets. I think he dropped one and leaned a little too far forward to get it. Enter the face plant. I heard the smack from the kitchen and started running.

I found my little guy spread eagle on the floor with his face in a toy barn. I picked him up as the reality of what happened hit him and the screaming started.

Then I saw it.

Blood.

What seemed like gallons of blood.

I felt sure I needed to rush to the emergency room, where I would be visited by a Child Services Agent. There was so much blood coming out of my Love's little mouth that I just knew he had knocked out 9 of his teeth on that plastic barn.

But I am very proud of the way I handle situations like this. Even though I was freaking out inside I was calmly telling Ronan that everything was okay.

He would not let me look in his mouth, and there was too much blood to see anything anyway. His top lip was swelling and discolored already.

I figured I would make him a cold bottle. It would solve a bunch of my problems at once. It would sooth him and stop his crying if his teeth were all still intact. If there were missing teeth I would know right away because I assume he would refuse the bottle because who wants soy milk flowing over an open tooth socket?

The cold of the bottle would also be my only way to get the little guy to let me put something cold on his swelling lip.

And drinking the bottle would clear the blood and slow the flow so I could get a better look at our problem.

Ronan took the bottle without flinching. All teeth still intact, check.

Ronan stopped crying and my sweater was saved from more bloody drool on the shoulder. Not that I cared about my sweater at the time.

When my boy was calm I got to check out the damage.

Guess what?

All that blood for a bitten top lip.

That's it? That's it!

Whew.

They were not kidding when they said head wounds bleed a lot. They really mean a LOT.

This picture is also not related to this post at all. But I found it and I like it. And it is not of JUST Ronan. This is my sister Meg, her now husband Jared, Ronan and me prepping food and looking smashing and domestic. I love me an apron!

Bad Mommy

2009-07-31T14:23:00.003-07:00

Ronan has spit out the following nutritional foods today:
Oatmeal
Blueberries
Turkey
Cheese
Apples
Bananas
Strawberries

List of food he will eat:
Ruffled Chips
Wheat Bread
Apple Juice
Soft Serve Ice Cream

We went to Jason's Deli for lunch and I was so desperate to get food into the child, as he has eaten almost nothing all day, that I gave in and let him have chips and bread for lunch. Followed by a bit of ice cream.

Bad Mommy.

It Worked!

2009-07-30T21:12:00.002-07:00

So I sent this off to my high chair company.
Guess what.
We are getting a band new high chair.
I guess a cute baby and a little creativity go a long way.
Woohoo!

A Little Research

2009-07-30T21:03:00.004-07:00

My sister, my baby and I went to a very old cemetery in Salt Lake this week. We happened upon it on our way through some historic neighborhoods we were checking out. It had to be at least two hundred years old.

As you can imagine, I nearly crapped my pants with glee when I saw it. It was huge and beautiful. I am talking huge. The biggest cemetery I have ever seen. It was like a movie.

We happened upon it around lunch time, so I pulled out a blanket and Ronan had a picnic lunch in a graveyard. Then he went for a crawl among the headstones.

I got loads of great ideas for my 2009 yard haunt while my sister cowered in the car.

I am so excited!

These are camera phone images so please forgive their low quality.

Gotta Change the Top Post

2009-07-29T14:16:00.004-07:00

I can't leave that terrible, scary picture at the top of the blog. So here is one from yesterday of Ronan and his Uncle Dave, Cousins Sarah and Ella.

Sarah and Ronan are a couple of months apart, Sarah being the eldest of the two. These girls are adorable.

You can't tell from his expression in this picture but Ronan was diggin' Uncle Dave. He likes to hang out with a dude once in a while.

I am still not sure why Ella and Ronan look like something shockingly serious was just said. Oh well at least Dave and Sarah look like they are having fun.

*Post Script.
This has got to be one of very few pictures on this blog that show people other than Ronan. Well, I guess it should happen once in a while right?

My Child is a Freak!

2009-07-29T12:25:00.005-07:00

My dear sister sent this photo in regards to the previous post. Thanks Rhiannon. Not. (So 90's to say Not. I love it.)

It is so similar that is scares me and I may have a few horrible dreams. It would be worse if I was still nursing. Thank heaven I am not.

I think I just threw up in my mouth a little.

Oh Ronan, we still love you even if you are the lost bat child.

Ummm, Ok?

2009-07-29T07:27:00.001-07:00

For some odd reason this was the face of choice yesterday.

Ronan is such a ham.

Using the Cute One to Get My Way

2009-07-27T16:29:00.004-07:00

I am going to exploit my child. That's right, you heard me. Child exploitation.
My high chair is busted. I can't get the dang tray off and it is under warranty. The company wants a picture of my high chair sent in with the warranty request.

They didn't say my adorable baby couldn't be in it.

Do you think this cute face will help get me a new high chair? It certainly cant hurt my chances.

He was throwing a bit of a temper tantrum but as soon as he saw the camera he put on his poser face. What a ham.

Yum, bananas and grapes.

My Little Streaker

2009-07-26T19:06:00.005-07:00

Dear Ronan-

Please do not climb upstairs so I can't see you rip off your diaper. I know it is fun but you forgot it wasn't on and had a little accident on the carpet. Thanks goodness it was of the urine variety and not the other option. But it is still not as fun for me as it is for you. No matter how cute your buns are.

Love-

Momma

*Post Script

I forgot the best part. When I went upstairs to catch my streaking baby I found him standing with his back to the fan in his bedroom. Every time the fan would rotate to face his buns Ronan would laugh hysterically. Oh my.

Goodnight Sesame Street

2009-07-26T18:52:00.004-07:00

Bedtime rituals are all the rage. The parenting books and web sites are full of bedtime routine advice. And you know, they are right. As soon as we introduced a little routine for Ronan at a few months old, he started to get the idea of what was coming next and stayed asleep better during the night.

The bedtime deal has evolved over time. It started as a bath, bottle and story when he was very young. These days it is a bit more, unconventional?

Instead of reading, Ronan insists on watching Sleepy time Sesame Street. And I let him.

What? We live on the edge.

Whatever works, right? (The veteran Mommies are nodding in my imagination.)

So each night at 7:30 we turn on the disc. I really enjoyed it the first 200 times. I am a hard core Street fan. But now, well lets just stay if I have to hear Ernie sing "I Dance Myself to Sleep" again I hope those sheep come and carry me outside with Bert so I don't have to watch the rest.

Aside from the daily viewing of this DVD I quite enjoy the entire bedtime routine. And some parts of the DVD will never get old like "If Moon was Cookie".

Each night Ronan sits in his rocking chair like a little prince while I feed him thick oatmeal and blueberries. I like to pack him full of something hearty. He sleeps better.

Then he has a bottle, and cuddles me on the couch. After that I take my little man to his room and hand him his blankie, Silky Bear. As soon as it is in his hands he drops his sweet head to my shoulder and closes his eyes. Then he hums a little in happiness.

It is the best part of the day.

I love you Ronan, goodnight.

Dear Provo Blog Moms-

2009-07-25T21:44:00.005-07:00

It has come to my attention that there is a bit of a clique in the blogging world. Well, the small blogging community of the LDS blog Mom. Mostly the LDS blog Mom's of Provo.

I have been blogging for a few years, and my readership has expanded from 2 or 3 family members to a little more than that. But that is not why I blog. I blog for fun. I blog because it keeps me in touch with the people I love and gives me an outlet where I can be myself and have a little fun.

In my blog wanderings/stalkings (Come on, we all "blog stalk", you are doing it now if we have never met. But I don't mind at all. In fact it is perfectly normal. Thanks for reading.) I have noticed a trend. There seems to be a blog clique. A group of chicks who started off blogging for family and fun and gathered a number of readers. These chicks then became aware of their reader roster and morphed into something more unpleasant.

There seems to be a number of afflicted blog Mommas in Provo especially.

Ladies who were once cozy and cute have turned into self appointed Provo celebrities. These are the gals who avert their eyes when recognized by another "annoying reader" on the street, then blog about how hard it is to be noticed in public.

Oh please.

Just because you are crafty, have cute kids and make a few dollars on the side with ads on your blog (or maybe even more than a few dollars) doesn't make you a celebrity. And acting like one makes you tiresome. Blogging about it makes it even worse.

So to all you ladies, you know who you are, I hope I never act that childish. And I hope you girls have a glass of humility and get back to being the ladies your vast readership originally fell in love with. Or I fear your readers will look elsewhere for entertainment.

And remember, it's a big world out there. A lot bigger than the world of the Provo Blog Momma.

-Rachel

* Post Script.
This was not written about anyone I know personally. This person, and other bloggers like her openly brags about their coolness and "celebrity status" via their blog and they are not kidding. I would link you to these blogs but I don't want to add to their blog traffic so I won't.
To all of you sweet Momma and Non-Momma bloggers, if you are wondering if this was about you, it is not.
Love and kisses.
-Rach

Things I Should Have Blogged...

2009-07-25T15:24:00.005-07:00

Lets go back in time, shall we? Here are a few things I should have blogged, but I had fallen off the Blogger wagon.

Let's see, what have you missed?

Ah. Ronan's first ice cream cone. I got him a soft serve from McDonald's. It was going to be messy so we stripped him and chucked him and the ice cream in kiddie pool pre swimming.

He loved the ice cream. This is his famous "ooohhhh" face, reserved only very intensely cool things. No pun intended.

After the treat and swim, it was bath time. Post bath Ronan was being very serious. He would not break this face for anything.

What else?

Well, I got crafty and made this cozy cushion and pillow set for my classic Radio Flyer that now belongs to Ronan. He looks like a little Emperor lounging in it, snacks and all.

I got this wagon when I was about 12 to help me carry newspapers for my afternoon paper route. It had a squeaky wheel. I looked so nerdy squeaking down the streets of my neighborhood with my fluffy little dog and a wagon filled with newspapers.

We also went to my friend Angie's alpaca farm to see an alpaca give birth. It was sweet. We missed the actual birth but saw her deliver the placenta. Wow. It was intense.

If you ever need a sweet little alpaca, and don't we all, click the button on the right and check out Pine Haven. Alpacas are super cozy and make fun pets or great fiber investments.

Ronan was in hog heaven at the farm. He loves animals. This is his super cool babysitter, Suzy Q. She is a real natural with the kiddies.

The birth was quite the show. The entire herd was trying to get a peek.

And finally, I am working on the 2009 Halloween display. Yes, I started in June. Yes, I am a freak. I made this sign to be framed and hang outside. This year my house will be incorporated into the graveyard theme as a funeral home. Lots more Halloween posts to come. You know you love it.

Kisses

-Rach

Photog Blog

2009-07-25T09:32:00.004-07:00

Hey you guys. I have been paying for a web site and it is a rip off when I can blog my photos for free. So I have created a new blog. A photo blog. Check it for my latest projects. Today I posted a cute silhouette project.

This is my little Ronan's profile. I love to make these every six months or so, and watch him grow.

Click on the button to the right to visit my photography blog.

Ronan is One

2009-07-24T19:07:00.009-07:00

Ronan turned 1 on July 19th.

I cant believe that my wee little bebe is already a year old. It passed by so fast. He is moving on to bigger and better things all the time.

Ronan has several words. His first word was fish. He can tell you what a fish says. If you ask him what the fish says he will make a kissy face at you.

Ronan can tell you what the horse says too. He blows through his loose lips. You know that weird "pppprrr" noise they make? What is that called? Well, it was easier than a neigh.

His vocabulary also includes; Mama, Dada, That, Is (for Isabeau) and Max.

Ronan got his first haircut shortly before the big birthday. It was a moving haircut. I had to turn on Elmo to get him to hold still for small bits of time. Long enough for me to make a few snips here and there. He was getting kinda girly looking with his blonde curls. People were mistaking him for a girl. Not cool. So they had to go. And yes, I saved the dear little curls.

(you like this apron? i totally made that. heck yeah)

For his birthday there was not much of anything planned. I made a cute fabric banner for the occasion. It said, "Happy Birthday" of course.

I also got some balloons. Ronan loves balloons. I mean LOVES them, so I got a few and snuck them into the living room the night before his birthday. When he got up the next morning he was thrilled to see them. He made a tiny little "O" with his lips and sighed a big "ooohhhh" sound. He does that whenever he thinks something is really neat.

We had planned to go to my Aunt Hillary's house to work on my cousin Mari's wedding center pieces on Ronan's birthday. I made cupcakes and brought hats. The cozy Barksdales suprised us with a little party for Ronan. We had Nemo cupcakes and Nemo hats. And yes, I came up with the Nemo cupcakes all by myself. Go me. Getting crafty!

Ronan ate his cupcake like a champ. When he was done I had to strip him down to his onesie for the rest of the visit. He was covered in orange frosting.

It was hard because Daddy was out of town for the big day. We missed him, like we do everyday. He will be back soon, and I can't wait.

Ronan got a little wooden rocking chair from Momma and Daddy. He loves to sit in it and drink milk out of his big boy sippy cup. He got a ton of cozy things from his family. Lots of fun toys and clothes. Thanks to everybody!

Happy Birthday to my favorite guy in the entire world. I love you Ronan.

Facebook killed my Blog.

2009-06-25T14:37:00.002-07:00

For those wondering where the heck we have been, it is the fault of Facebook. I post there and then forget about the blog sometimes. I am sorry. Blogging is being resumed. Hopefully every other day if not daily.....
More to come today. It is part of my blog repentance. Two today.

My Sisters Wedding

2009-06-23T12:58:00.005-07:00

Meme and G finally tied the knot. It was wonderful. A true DIY project of a wedding. We have too many talented family members and friends to resist DIY-ing it.
The bride was beautiful. The cake was beautiful (before it toppled over mid cut) and there was one groomsman in particular who was super hot. Mr. Dunston.
Daddy came home to California for the wedding and Ronan flipped for happiness. He knew exactly who Daddy was even after missing him for 2 months. He snuggled his Daddy constantly which left my arms free to do wedding stuff.
Here are a few pictures of our little family.
Ronan is currently obsessed with hanging upside down. He is constantly tossing his head back, to let us know that he wants to be flipped over. He looks like a little head banging rocker dude when he does it.

Just like his Daddy.

I got to play wedding photographer and I had a great time with it. I am still editing stacks of pictures. If you want to see them hop on over to http://www.rdunston.shutterfly.com

Rock With You

2009-06-02T14:25:00.008-07:00

Ronan is a new Elmo fan. So am I.

I always wondered what the draw was until I had to play single Momma this summer.

Thank you to Elmo, and the Gods at Sesame Street. They have blessed me with up to 45 precious minuets fuss free.

I said I would never plop my kid in front of a TV, but sometimes you just gotta if you want to get anything done.

Plus after a study came out that said it didn't seem to harm or help kids to watch TV I figure a bit here and there would be worth the trade off. Sanity.
So I have joined the ranks of Elmo fans.

Here is Ronan dancing to Elmo. He LOVES it! But I might just love it more.

My Beego & Me.

2009-06-01T12:09:00.000-07:00

My Hot Date.

2009-05-30T21:40:00.003-07:00

Tonight my best Buddie from High School got married. Ronan was my date to the reception. I have to say he was a pretty hot date. I love to dress this kid up. Check out his smooth look.

He was so good looking that I had to take him downtown and get a couple of shots even tho I only had my pocket camera.

Ronan likes to grip things and head bang. He thinks it is very funny.

Me and my date.

And the event gave me a reason to by more heels. I love tall shoes!

FYI, I don't own any clear lucite heels....thank goodness, right?

Oh How Embarassing

2009-05-03T19:03:00.003-07:00

I really can't believe that I am posting this but it is too ridiculous to pass up even if it is at my own expense.

Mom and I were trying to encourage Ronan to crawl. He is overdue in my opinion. He has the ability but not the pacience. We spent the evening trying to entice him into some forward movement and got into a ridiculous mood. We realized how absurd we looked and had to record it for John. It is too strange not to share on the blog with everybody else. I haven't had any really weird blog gems in a while, so this one is for the fans. All three of them.

A Mothers Love..

2009-05-02T21:32:00.002-07:00

I am staying in California at my Mom's house for a few weeks. Mom has a big sliding glass door to the backyard. I have been looking out that door everyday off and on and noticed a blue bird that loves to have a seat on the back fence at least 10 times a day. Usually I see a Marmalade cat show up along with the bird. It seemed to happen so many times that I started to pay attention. At first I thought that the cat was chasing the bird. Then I considered that they might be friends. But after watching them I realized that the bird is chasing the cat.
That's right. This Momma blue bird has been stalking the cat all day everyday for almost a week. And the cat is afraid. Upon further investigation I have noticed that the cat is hiding from the bird. Trying to escape the bird. I saw the cat hide under a card, and the dang bird hopped down next to the car to try and get at the cat.
I think this cat glanced at the Momma birds nest and the bird has been fending him off ever since. I think that cat is sorry he ever even thought about getting to that nest because it has been stalked and I am betting pecked at and bullied by this bird ever since.
Just goes to show you what a Mother is willing to, and can do, for her baby. Imagine a fat Marmalade cat being pushed around by a little blue bird!
I love it. Yay for Mommas.

A Week Ago Today

2009-04-19T10:56:00.002-07:00

Ronan is terrified of this bubble maker. This is one of his braver faces. He buries his face in my shoulder every time he sees it. I hope he likes bubbles later or bath time is going to me a traumatic experience for life. The Easter Bunny was good to Ronan. He got a sweet yard chair that we hope he grows into this summer, and some sweet sand box/dirt toys. I love that look he is giving.

In this picture I think he is the spitting image of me as a baby.

Dear Tooth-

2009-04-18T11:52:00.002-07:00

You have been making our lives a living hell over the past few weeks. Waking us up at 5:00am and making nap time last only on short and sad hour.
You have been making us cranky from lack of sleep, and the house is a mess because Ronan needs to cuddle when his mouth hurts. Cuddling and chores don't mix.
But I am willing to forgive you because today you reared your white shiny head and finally came though.
You allowed us to sleep in until the blessed hour of 7:30am. You allowed for a nap stretching from 10:30-1:00pm. Such a nap allowed me to paint two doors, pot plants, do dishes, clean a bathroom and blog.
Just be sure to tell your toothy friends to ease up for the next round.
Love-
Rachel

Cooks Family Farm and Greenhouse.

2009-04-11T12:52:00.009-07:00

Ronan and I went to my favorite greenhouse today to stock up on Spring vegetable plants. We had a lot of fun and took a LOT of pictures. Ronan was so busy checking out all the new sights he didn't give me and my camera the time of day. Which is unusual for him. He loves to pose for the camera.

Ronan likes to read Batman comics in the car.

Ronan's paparazzi shot. No pictures please.

Ronan really enjoyed the screws in the little red wagon. He would not look away from them no matter what I did.

Eyeing the veggies. "Am I gonna have to eat that broccoli Mom?"

Ronan's dirty socks after our adventure.

In other news; Ronan got new shoes and he has mad scientist hair.

Dear Nana-

2009-04-06T20:22:00.004-07:00

I got the present for Easter in the mail from you today. I was so excited! Mom opened it up and I knew right away I loved it. A bubble blowing dog? Just for me? Oh thank you! Now if only Mom could get it to work. She is kinda special. I bet Dad can do it for me.

But while I wait, I am quite happy to play with this way fun box. It is the perfect size for me to climb right in and have some fun.

And of course, I HAD to put my foot up. It's just how I roll.

Love,
Ronan

The story of a sweater....

2009-04-05T13:02:00.006-07:00

When I was little my grandma would knit sweaters for my sister and I. We got them on holidays, birthdays, and for no reason at all. They were always the most creative and cozy sweaters. Not the kind you don't want to wear. The very cute and made with love kind.
She would send them all the way over from England for us. We had matching ones, and different ones made just for us. I particularly remember a Rainbow Bright one she made for me. If it fit, I would still be wearing it today.
My Grandma passed away shortly after Ronan was born. She never thought she would live to see Great Grandchildren, but happily I proved her wrong.
My Mom brought one of these sweet sweaters to me. She had saved it for her Grandchildren. I am a total sucker for that kind of history and meaning in items. I love to keep and give proper recognition to those kinds of things. I don't like to think of them in closets.
Ronan tried it on, and it fits like it was made just for him. Nobody makes such quality sweaters with such love in my opinion and it tickled me to death to see him in something I wore 26 years ago, that was hand made by my funny little Grandma. I love her so much. I miss her. But mostly I am so happy for her because I know she is in heaven with her husband and she won't ever be lonely again. I can't wait to see her again and I know I will.
I want to take a photo of each of my babies in that sweater and when I am through having sweet chubby little babies (a sad day to be sure) I will frame the little sweater with a photo of each of my cherubs wearing it.
Maybe it will make it to my children's children some day.

Oh so cute! Thanks Grandma Jones and Nana!

Thanks Lisa!

2009-04-04T18:47:00.003-07:00

Ronan got a bunch of fun presents from his great Aunt Lisa. She is so nice and has had a kid or two so she knows just what they like. He was in love with this great book. It opens into a cool folding panel. It is the best of reading a book and playing in a box. Two of Ronan's very favorite things to do! Check it out.

Thank you SO much Lisa. You are the coolest!