Have a Seat!

For a while now, Peanut has been attempting to sit unsupported, but she always came crashing down to the back or side or nose-dived forward. I've been putting her in the infant seat to help her sit up so she can play with her toys better (currently, her favorite thing to do is taking all of her toys out of the small box they are kept in and dropping them on the other side!). This past weekend, we ate in a couple resturants and tried putting her in the high chairs provided. This worked for about 5 minutes before she got tired and wanted to be held.

This week, however, she has begun sitting on her own for longer periods of time. She's not completely there yet, but has definitely come a long way! Hooray!

New Year Craziness

It's been a busy month for the Campbell Castle. Not only have we been traveling across the country to visit family, but we're also in the process of yet another move. This time, we're moving back to my hometown in Ohio to be near family. It will likely be our final move for the next 5-10 years. We're very much looking forward to settling down once and for all!

At the moment, we are in the middle of house-hunting. Needless to say that has taken up much of our free-time! Although this will be our first house, the process has actually gone much smoother than we anticipated, partly because we had already house-hunted before in the past. However, it does take a lot of time and can get stressful- I'm thankful I have a wonderful sister who works in real estate to help answer all the myriad of questions!

In anticipation of the big move, I have been decluttering our apartment like crazy. This is not your normal decluttering either - 6 large trash bags made their way to the goodwill donation drop off just last week and more have piled up near our front door waiting for their turn. I am going room by room and finally pitching many items I have been hanging on to for far too long. Nothing is exempt from my intense scrutinizing! Not even the cats! (Ok, well, at least not their toys...) It feels so much better already. I don't want to move needless boxes/weight/stuff/clutter into our new home. My plan is to eliminate future clutter buildup by being on the offense and embracing a more minimalist lifestyle. So far so good!

Homemade Baby Quilt

I finally finished Dallas' baby quilt! The one I began, oh, way back in 2000 of 9. That's 15 months if anyone is counting... 15 months of procrastination! I win an award for this one - I sewed the last seam on Christmas Eve evening, just in time to place it under the tree for the next day. I have to say, I have never been prouder of my sewing abilities! Of course, it is very much handmade, which you can tell by the sloppy edges (which, I did try really hard at getting straight, mind you!), but I love it.

All this sewing has got me dreaming up the next project I'll tackle - an infant car-seat cover! I will be sure to update on how it turns out!

And if anyone is interested, I followed these easy steps from the Life: Frugal and Simple how-to video.

Peanut's First Christmas

This Christmas was very special, seeing as it was Peanut's very first one. She even woke up earlier than usual in anticipation, I'm sure, of opening her gifts!

We spent a relaxing morning opening gifts and eating a late breakfast. Peanut received a doll baby from her great-grandparents and a rattle, book and homemade quilt from Daddy C and Mommy C. The week before, she visited our extended family and received tons of gifts then as well- meaning her toy bin is officially overflowing! But this just means more for her to throw, which she is really enjoying right now!

After breakfast, we lounged around and watched It's a Wonderful Life (afterwards, I discovered this was to be the last video ever played in our VCR, as it had eaten up the tape! Such is the bane of modern technology.). We ended the day with a delicious dinner of homemade noodles, grilled chicken, peas, corn and baked potatoes!

This weekend, we will be visiting more family, but will have to travel by plane to get there. It will be Peanut's first plane ride! Mommy C doesn't know whether to be excited, nervous, worried or terrified of the prospect of traveling in air with a 6-month old teething baby, but she guesses she'll soon find out!

Christmas Traditions

The other day, Daddy C and I were discussing all the different Christmas traditions we wanted to start doing for Peanut. Knowing that she will grow up and remember this time of year in connection with certain events and traditions, we wanted to make them as meaningful as possible. Here are a few of the things we plan on doing each Christmas season!

1. 3 gifts - In effort to prevent a materialist mindset for Christmas, we have set a limit of 3 gifts. We wanted to mimic the number of gifts Jesus received from the wisemen. I think this is a great tie-in to the Christmas story. However, it is proving difficult not to shower my little one with tons of gifts this year! But I am so happy with our decision to stick to this rule, as I think it will make a positive impression on her as she grows up and is older.


2. Reading of the Christmas Story - My favorite version is in Luke 2. We plan on reading this story on Christmas Eve together as a family.


3. Singing of favorite Christmas hymns - On Christmas day, I would love to have us sing our favorite Christmas songs. My favorite has always been 'O Holy Night' and Daddy C's is 'O Come, O Come Emmanuel'. Peanut hasn't had a chance to decide what her favorite is yet! Daddy C is incredibly gifted in vocals and guitar, so he will lead us in the family worship session.

That's all I have right now. I figure if we try to do too much at once it will be difficult to follow each year.

What are some of your Christmas traditions?

What's on Our Menu this Week?

I used to be pretty diligent about menu planning, but having a baby can really throw everything off kilter! However, I am so glad I did this week, since we are practically snowed in with the winter weather madness.

Menu Plan week of 12/14

Tuesday: Roasted chicken, frozen veggies
To do: soak oatmeal, prepare stock

Wednesday: Chicken salad
To do: finish stock

Thursday: Homemade Chicken noodle soup
To do: soak flour

Friday: Homemade pizza
To do: bake 2 loaves of banana bread, pack snacks

Saturday: meal w/ family
To do: nothing

Sunday: Leftover chicken noodle soup from freezer
To do: soak oatmeal

Monday: Homemade hamburger helper
To do: nothing - focus on unpacking, laundry

On Saturday, we visited our local winter farmer's market and picked up a pastured chicken that I can't wait to roast. We'll be reaping the benefits of that chicken for several meals! I finally roasted my first chicken last week, and I can't believe it's taken me this long to just do it. I don't think I'll ever go back to the boneless, skinless breasts at the store - it was just too good!

Oh Christmas Tree

We here at the Campbell Castle are constantly evaluating every item we own, least it take up more precious space than is necessary. For the first time in 3 years, we realized we simply would not be able to fit in a full-sized Fraser fir Christmas tree this year. But we were ok with that. In fact, I am so happy we decided to just do a mini tree this year - it feels more personal and intimate and looks so much better. Here is a pic of Peanut posing by her very first Christmas tree:

We have since actually finished decorating it, showcasing only those ornaments that mean something to us. We have a pickle ornament, two snowmen in love, a sparkling pink bootie, a first Christmas ornament and a few homemade ones given to us from family members. I love our tree, because it makes everything feel so much simpler! We were also able to use the extra lights on our mantle, which really adds a festive glow in our apartment on dark winter evenings.