Hodge Podge…

Here are some pictures of this and that which have been overlooked over the past few days.  Not much to report today but wanted to go ahead and get these uploaded – have a fantastic Thursday :)

This little girl is growing way too fast!

 

Blurry pic of Mallory “playing” w/ the dvds and our satellite receiver.  She likes to hang out around here lately…

 

  Ate at this place called Quatro’s before the game on Saturday – it was Delicious!

While we were still happy campers (aka before the game).  Mallory didn’t make this trip…

Daddy took this one of them the other night:

 

Mallory loves to drink out of cups.  Here she is playing w/ an empty water glass the other day – love the ones of her balancing on her knees – ha!

Superwoman…

Miss Mallory is now taking about five steps at a time – no video or still pics of this action because this little girl is a “daredevil” when it comes to learning how to walk.  If I see her headed towards me, there is NO time to reach for a camera.  She will take a few good steps and then just DIVE and I do mean DIVE (hence the nickname “Superwoman”) towards whatever she’s headed to – me, Daddy, another person, the ottoman, a chair, anything.  This is what makes me scared – it’s only a matter of time before she catches a table corner to the eye or meets our nice cold, hard tile face to face.  Until she is gracefully walking freely and smoothly, I probably won’t catch her in the act.  We are proud of her for her progress, but we are scared to death of what’s to come.  Although, it is precious the way she grins after she reaches her point of destination – she is soooo proud of herself.  I can only imagine how happy she’ll be to wobble around the house and attempt to keep up w/ big brother!

Speaking of Big Brother – it’s been a big week for Date already.  On Monday, he got a very special note from school – so special that he was the only one in his class that got one that day – it was a certificate rewarding him on being so great.  They said he had a “perfect” day – we were very proud parents to say the least – Daddy even took him to McDonald’s for a Star Wars happy meal that night ;)  Then, today, he had his very first field trip ever which entailed his very first school bus ride – how fun.  They went to Bonnie’s Barnyard and he thought it was awesome, but he was so warn out this evening when he got home.  But it didn’t keep him from playing golf w/ Daddy then going for a nice evening ride in the Charger.  He was exhausted and putting him to sleep was a breeze ;)

Birthday Wishes!!!

Happy Birthday to one of the cutest little guys around – Mr. WILL!!!  It’s your day so make it a great one.  Can’t wait to spend so many more years watching you grow.  Here is a special wish from a special someone who has a little crush on you and wanted to send you some wishes from one super-cute kiddo to another!!!!

    

HAPPY BIRTHAY TO YOU!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY DEAR WILL!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!

AND MANY MORE (FROM DAYTON)!

One Sick Family..

That’s right, seems like lately, we are one sick family.  NO – it’s not just from that ugly game on Saturday (even though that was enough to make anyone sick)!  We just can’t get it together lately.  If it’s not one thing, it’s another.  Brandon has been sick for about two weeks now with horrible cold/allergies/coughing/hacking nastiness.  Dayton can’t shake his cough either.  He’s also been having stomach issues since last Thursday.  Apparently there’s been a touch of something going around.  Mallory has picked up on her brother’s and Daddy’s snottiness so we are constantly chasing her around w/ a kleenex or boogie wipe.  And, as for me, I’ve been faced w/ migraines and vomiting and now stomach pains – not sure if I have a touch of a bug or what (NO – I am NOT pregnant!!!!).  The kids aren’t sleeping past 6:30 lately so I think we are just one run down group of sickos!

On a lighter note, Brandon purchased a trip at the Boys and Girls Club fundraiser last Thursday.  We’ll be going to VEGAS, baby!  We’re going the 14th – 17th and we’ll be staying at the Venetian.  I’m super excited to get away somewhere as a couple.  It’s been a LONG time!  We also got tickets to see the Blue Man Group so that should be fun.  Our weekends between now and Christmas are jammed packed and I can’t believe we decided to get away with such lack of down time lately, but I wouldn’t have it any other way.  Can’t wait!

So as soon as we are all back on our feet and feeling better (or atleast me), I’ll get a few new pictures uploaded!

Happy 10 Month Birthday, Mallory!!!

So hard to believe my little sweet baby Mallory is already 10 months – two short months away from turning the big O-N-E!  She is at such a fun age and she has the best temperament minus the occasional diva moments when she screams at the top of her lungs.

Here is what Mallory is up to at 10 months:

-Still eats 4 6 oz bottles a day

-Loves solid foods – especially ham and cheese and crackers

-Loves splashing in the bath tub

-Takes two to three steps to make it from point A to point B but not ready to take off just yet

-Waves bye-bye and gives high fives.  Working on blowing kisses

-Her favorite toys are books – she loves to read her peek-a-boo books more than anything else

-Likes to “talk on the phone”

-Sleeps through the night

-Takes 1-2 naps a day pretty regularly

-Wears 9-12 month size clothes

-Has extremely FAT feet

-Tries to throw her brother’s footballs

-Thinks it’s funny to drop her blankie or paci on the ground so you’ll let her down to get it – doesn’t like to be held all the time – Miss Independent!

Here are some pics from the last two days:

 

Here she is w/ her “birthday” gift.  She doesn’t have many new toys – poor girl, right?  She plays w/ all of Dayton’s hand-me-downs.  I got her this cute little lawn mower to encourage walking :)

And, here is a cute picture of the cutest big brother I know…

Wordless Wednesday???

No – of course not.  I always love Wordless Wednesdays on other people’s blogs where they just have this adorably cute picture of their kids and nothing else.  But, me being the control freak that I am can’t just leave it at showing you some pictures – I’ve got to give you my commentary to go along with it!  SO here are some pictures accompanied by my Wonderful Wednesday comments! ;)

Where did you get that adorable romper Mallory?  What?  Your Mommy made it?  Wow – she is getting good ;)

 

This thing is full of imperfections but guess that’s what makes it special.  Mommy worked very hard to make her little girl a special outfit and from the outside looking in, it turned out decent.  BUT – don’t look too close – the torso was too short and so were the legs.  I’ll do better next time!

 

I’ve never seen a baby love cantaloupe as much as this little girl!

I know what you’re thinking – is Mallory drinking a juice box – gasp?!?!?  Don’t worry – she IS drinking a juice box but it’s Mots for Tots – apple juice already combined w/ purified water so she isn’t getting that much sugar; she just thinks she is.  Anything Dayton does, she wants to do.  I have a lot of pics of her drinking her first juice box but I thought they were too cute!  Some of them are blurry but I have gotten lazy lately w/ my camera and have been using auto mode, so I’m back to trying hard on manual mode but w/ me being such a beginner, that sometimes leads to blurry pics…

Oh – look at that strong releve – this makes her dancing Mommy very happy ;)

Here she is today before the big Pioneer pep rally.  She loves to read books these days…

I love this one – rather than open the book a little more w/ her right hand, she’s just gonna lean over as far as she can to see the whole picture – ha!

Mallory is benefiting from me being home w/ her alone during the days – she is getting all of Mommy’s picture time – not many pics of this big boy lately.  Here he is today when I picked him up from school!

Fall is in the Air…

Why not take this opportunity to get your house smelling like the wonderful season of fall or any other fragrance you could ask for?!?!  I know, I am desperately using my children’s blog to promote my SCENTSY catalog/website party!  I am only doing this because I think the product is fabulous!  If you are at all interested in learning about it or you’re in need of some new scents for the Fall, please have a look.  You won’t regret it!  If you go to https://kaylababcock.scentsy.us/Home and click on my party on the right side, it’ll take you to a page where you can start to SHOP!  May I encourage you to go to the tool bar on the left side of the screen and scroll down to “Combine and Save”.  I think this is the way to go – it enables you to get warmers and scent bars all for one low discounted price.  These are fabulous and very kid friendly.  They are a wonderful alternative to candles and I literally use mine every day.  They are beautiful decorations and also very functional!  I got mine for Mother’s Day a few years ago from my mom – what a great gift! Weddings, Christmas (there’s a Christmas line out), birthday, anniversaries, new babies, graduation gifts (they have college ones), the list goes on and on!  SO, have a look.  Since I don’t see most of you a daily basis, I’ve made a list below of a few of my favorite scents.  They all smell as good as the name sounds!  These are just some of my favorites – a lot and to think I had to narrow this list down!  I really do encourage you to check them out, they will not disappoint!

My Favorite: Sticky Cinnamon Bun

Pumpkin Roll – Yes, Cass – this does smell good – not too strong!

Baked Apple Pie

Home Sweet Home

Snowberry

Cucumber Lime

Clean Breeze

Central Park Pralines

Skinny Dippin’

French Kiss

Spiced Grapefruit

Inner Peace

Cinnamon Bear

Cranberry Spice

Beach

Vanilla Suede

Autumn Sunset

Sentimental Cider

Hazelnut Latte

Mochadoodle

As you can see, I am into the “spicy” smells as opposed tot he “fruity” smells – they are all great!

Something Small for All You Moms…

Okay, I’ve been wanting to put this on here for quite some time and my list of items could be MUCH longer than this, but wanted to go ahead a give a quick post of all of my favorite baby items that I swear by and use on a daily basis.  Like I said, I could go on and on, but these odds and ends definently are at the top of my charts!!!

 

This one is my favorite and I’m so sad I didn’t discover it when Dayton was a baby.  Mallory has benefited from this thing soooo much.  You can buy it at Babies R Us and I’ve seen it at Target also – it’s called a “Boon” and it runs between $7-$8.  You unscrew the lid, pour your baby food in, screw the lid back on and the pink part (don’t worry Moms of boys – they come in other colors) is rubber so it squeezes the food out of a hole in the spoon to make for EASY feeding.  Works wonderful at a restaurant.  Also comes w/ a spoon lid so if the little one doesn’t finish and you have your ice pack on hand in your bag, you can save the rest for later – no germs or bacteria!  I am a sucker for gimmicky items so I was skeptical when I bought it thinking I had just been suckered out of 8 bucks, but I swear by this thing.  And, there is not a time that I eat in a restaurant and use it that I don’t get asked by a stranger where I purchased it!

I’ve recently discovered these and I use them on Mallory and Dayton.  Let’s be honest Moms, there are some nights that baths just don’t fit in to the schedule – we call it spit bath night and we used to use a wet wash cloth w/ a small amount of soap mixed w/ warm water.  Now we use these.  They are little wipes and leave your little one smelling wonderfully and free of germs!    They are great for freshening up the kiddos before you leave to go somewhere, too.  I love the way they smell!  They run between $3-$4 for a package of 25 – a lot more pricey than regular wipes, but I don’t use them to change diapers or anything – they’re only used for “special” occasions – ha!

I’ve been using these since Dayton was small – Boogie Wipes.  These are great for crusty or snotty noses.  They run between $3 - $4.  They are made w/ natural saline which breaks down that yucky hard snot and is very gently on their little noses.  I’ve found a new scent recently w/ a gentle “Vicks” kinda smell that opens them up along w/ cleaning them up.  They are hard to find around here though.  They also come in a box of individual travel packs great to always have handy in your purse or diaper bag, but I do carry this whole package w/ me everywhere I go in my diaper bag…  Much more gentle on them than a regular tissue or a wipe…

Okay – this last item is stroller hooks.  If you shop like I do, you need these.  Now I couldn’t find a picture of my current set – they are Fisher Price and I bought them at Wal-Mart for like $8 and they are HEAVY DUTY and I LOVE them.  I put this picture on here to give you an idea of what they are.  I used to have these and I managed to break both of them – too heavy of bags, too much shopping –just joking – not sure how they broke but they didn’t hold up.  My new FP ones are great and really big! :)  They will last an entire mall’s worth of shopping.  They are made like a claw and they also open up so that you can attach one to the side of a changing table and hang your diaper bag from it while your changing the little one!  Caution:  If you have lots of bags hanging from them and you remove the child from the stroller, your stroller will become “back” heavy and fall over backwards.  Also be careful if your loot outways your little one, you could cause them to flip backwards – ha!  Not that I’ve experienced either of those events…

That’s all I’ve got for now – I’ll post another one of these eventually.  I always like to read other mom’s suggestions and as a mother of two now, I feel like my experiences are ligit ;)

Sorry for those of you who read the blog and could care less about the latest and greatest in baby products!  Guess you could use some for yourself – the Boon would be great for breakfast on the go – ha!  Just insert oatmeal and go – you can eat on the way to work! hahaha!

Mommy’s Little Stinker…

Well, this post is atleast about one of them – we all know there are TWO!  Here are a couple of pictures of Mallory – the littlest stinker at the Zabodyn household!

 

Here is what happens when she eats spaghetti – so lady like!

The other night, Mommy was posting pics on the computer and Mallory went crazy – she was screaming and pointing at every picture!  The computer is her favorite toy – I predict she will break it one day and force me to get an ipad – hahaha, sneaky Mommy… I could only be so lucky…

Football Frenzy!

In case you didn’t know, football season is a really big deal around the Zabodyn household.  Saturdays and Sundays and sometimes Friday nights are all reserved for football between the months of September and November.  And, I must say, most of the time, I don’t mind one bit.  On Fridays, we all gear up in red for Ricebirds – whether we make it to the game or not, we always show our Ricebird spirit – even though Dayton wears uniforms these days, he still wears his red polo shirt on Fridays.  On Saturday we are covered head to toe in burnt orange.  We got up on Saturday, got ourselves dressed and then got the kids dressed.  We were leaving to go into town, and I commented to Brandon “Don’t you think we look a little odd since we are ALL dressed alike in longhorn stuff?” Bad question!  He responds in his usual Brandon self for those of you who know my crazy husband “What? Are you kidding me?  It’s game day, baby!  We gotta wear the orange!”  Oh yeah, I forgot…  Even though at that point it was about 9:30 in the morning and the game wasn’t until 7:00 that night.  I’d rather not talk too much about the game – we won.  The end.  We’ve got our work cut out for us…  Today we dressed in football attire yet again – this time, Texans baby!  Brandon and Dayton already had Texans shirts but I bought Mallory one last weekend and I got myself one on Friday night at Academy so again we were all matching in our football attire.  A little cheesy, I know, but fun none the less.  We love football and we love to cheer on our favorite teams.  Dayton gets the biggest kick out of the whole experience and that makes it all worth it!  He said the other day that when he grows up he wants to be a football player tractor song singer.  Okay – I country singer who plays football, I can deal w/ that – ha!

I realized I didn’t get any good pictures of the kiddos yesterday – sorry!  We took out the box of tractors to distract the kids while we watched the game – our living room was a disaster, but they both had a blast!

Today:

On a side note, Dayton had his first little pre-school birthday party for a girl in his class at Mr. Gatti’s yesterday.  He had so much fun and I loved watching all the little ones interact.  The only thing he didn’t care for was the Strawberry Shortcake birthday cake – he said, “Mom, that is for girls!”  I said, “I know, Emma is a girl!  Eat it.  It tastes just like any boy cake you’ve ever had!”