Einstein

One day a few months ago while we were all hanging out in my bed Disney's Little Einsteins came on TV. Ryan was instantly silent and mesmerized. After that we occasionally would find episodes on TV in the mornings. I could tell this show was becoming a favorite for Ryan. At the same time Ryan also found that he really enjoys Disney's Handy Manny. If either show comes on, you can be sure Ryan will be semi-quiet, and that allows me to get some stuff done around the house.

For Christmas, not only did Ryan get a Handy Manny fix it telephone, but he also got a Little Einsteins DVD. He loves to play with the toy phone and tell you that "Ha Ma" is on the phone. That is how Ryan says Handy Manny. While that is cute, it is even more adorable to watch Ryan watching Little Einsteins. He totally interacts with the TV. I've even noticed his vocabulary increasing watching the show. I had once been worried about his speech, but the pediatrician (my good one) assured me he is right on track and there is nothing to worry about. Whenever Ryan wants to watch Little Einsteins (which is currently all the time), he says "Ein-nein". Although it isn't 100% correct, it is very clear what he wants. I would consider Ryan obsessed with the show. It is almost like he thinks the little kids on TV are his friends. He asked for it so often that a few days after Christmas we headed out to Toys R Us with Ryan and his Christmas money to buy more Einstein DVDs.

Pat and I are becoming very sick of the Little Einsteins. Even though it is watching TV, I'm glad that Ryan found something that is intelligent and educational that he likes so much. If it is helping his vocabulary and keeping him entertained in these cold winter days, I'm happy.

Goals for the New Year

I wanted to set aside some goals for the new year. There is a lot I want to promise that I'll do. I'm not so sure I'll be follow through with it all though.

~Cook More and Meal Plan~I want to try new recipes and cook different things more often. With Pat being away so much this coming year, I think planning out my meals in advance will be a great help.

~Meet More People/Friends~I want to try to put myself out there to meet more people/friends. I know that it will be stepping outside my comfort zone, but I think that is what I need to do.

~Get Back into Scrapbooking~I haven't done any of the photos in a very long time (as in years). I have all the photos set aside, but just haven't had time to make the pages and put them in the books.

~Take Better Care of Myself~I want to start taking care of my body and mind like I know I should. I want to read more books when I have some time to relax. I want to try to use moisturizer morning and night. I want to remember to take my vitamin. I want to exercise more.

~Communicate with My Husband Better~I hope to communicate with Pat better. Often times we don't share our ideas or feelings enough so we sometimes step on each other's toes. I feel with more communication we could avoid little tiffs.

~Be a Better Mommy~This is my most important goal. It will require me to use more patience. Sometimes when I'm worn out, I lack the patience I need to be a good mom. Also to be a better Mommy I need to plan more activities for Ryan because he gets bored so easily. Hopefully when I find friends, they'll have kids for Ryan to play with.

So those are some of my goals for the new year. What are yours?

New Year...New Kitchen

Happy New Year! I hope everyone had a great celebration last night and is very blessed in 2010.

I promised to post pictures of all the new stuff in the kitchen. The "new kitchen" all started when we decided to replace the vinyl floor and ended up picking the wood floors that eventually spanned the entire main area of the house. After the floors were installed in the kitchen, we had granite countertops put in. They were such a good deal; it was the same price as laminate would have been. With the countertops came the undermount sink and the new faucet. The last thing we needed to complete the kitchen was to install a backsplash. We planned on doing this ourselves, so it took a while to find the right tile and also the motivation to get it done. It is finally done though. Pat did most of the work. I think he did an amazing job. I am very proud of him. And most of all I LOVE the kitchen now!