Friday Five - Christmas wishlist, beer edition

I still love doing gratitude posts but after doing up TIGF pretty big for the month of November I'm giving myself a little break and have decided to be greedy today instead and talk about my Christmas Wishlist.  I found five items I wouldn't mind seeing under the tree (psst, hey Nate) and somehow they all ended up beer related.  I think maybe it has something to do with the fact that we're doing a Beer Advent this December (thanks to Alice from Dining With Alice for the invite!) so maybe I just have beer on the brain or something.  Here are five beer related items I think are pretty nifty:

I actually saw this shirt at the I Like You booth at the State Fair this summer and have been kicking myself for not getting one.  I noticed the I Like You store in Minneapolis has these, so if Santa doesn't bring me one perhaps I need to go down there!

This shirt from the Beer Dabbler store in St. Paul is pretty cute and kind of funny.  There's another one that talks about designated drivers, but I think the "another round, that's what she said" is a little more fun.

These bottlecap necklaces, again from I Like You, are super cute as well.  From what I was reading, each one is a little different.  I love my home state and my city, so I'd love to sport one of these!

This plaid sweatshirt from the local beer publication "The Growler" is too fun.  And it's plaid.  You all know how much I love plaid.  This looks like it would be super warm too.

And finally, from one of my favorite MN breweries, I have been telling Nate for months now that I'd love a sweatshirt from Indeed Brewing - not only do we love their beer, but we also both tend to say "indeed" a lot, so it just feels appropriate.  Not to mention, Nate has a t-shirt from there, Ollie has a onesie from there, I think it's time for me to match!
I gain nothing from promoting these local businesses, I just really think these items are super fun.  I could think of a few other things I wouldn't mind having, but we'll just keep this to a Friday Five list this week.  What's on your wishlist?

Thursday Mishmash

So first a bit of housekeeping - the Thrift Style Thursday gals are taking December off, we decided it's too hectic with the holiday season and that sometimes it's enough to just keep up with blogging at all, let alone a weekly thrifted outfit post.  We'll be back fresh in January with some new ideas and new fun, so make sure to watch for that!  And now on to today's post!

Today's post is a bit of a mishmash of things - a recap of Ollie's birthday yesterday and an outfit of the day.  Cause it's my blog and I'll share a million pictures and multiple subjects if I want to!

Yesterday Nate and I were lucky enough to have the day off so we could spend the entire day as our little family of three for Ollie's first birthday.  We took him to Macy's 8th Floor in Downtown Minneapolis so he could see Santa (when I was growing up, that was THE Santa, so I just really wanted to bring him to this one) and the Day in the Life of an Elf display.  We went in the morning after Ollie's nap and it wasn't too busy which was nice.

He isn't tired in the above picture, the flash made him squinty.  Anyway, here we are in line for Santa. It was really hard to get good pictures, it was kind of dark lighting, so we did the best we could.

A nice lady offered to take a picture of all three of us which was really nice.  We only had to wait about three minutes for our turn with Santa.  I'll have to scan in the picture we got of Ollie with Santa, it turned out pretty good I have to say.  He wasn't afraid of him at all, he sat nice and only cried after the pictures were done because he wanted to get down.

I let him crawl around a little bit while Nate paid for the pictures and then we had to do my favorite part - stop and get a gingerbread cookie.  They used to make them fresh on this floor and you'd smell them the minute you got off the elevator, but now they make them downstairs and bring them up. They're still delicious though!  Ollie enjoyed it too!

We made a quick stop in the gift shop on our way out and picked out a book for Ollie to open up later so he could have one present on his actual birthday.  We'll give him his other presents at the party on Sunday.  While Nate was checking out we got a mommy/Ollie selfie.  I should see how many of those I have from the last year and make a collage of those, ha!

I realized I hadn't gotten many good Ollie/daddy pictures so we stopped before we got on the elevator in front of some pretty trees so I could get one.  Ollie's patience was wearing a bit as he was hungry for lunch, but he humored me for one more picture!

After we left Macy's we took Oliver to a restaurant we enjoy called India Palace.  They do a lunch buffet which is great, we could make a plate of food and share all of it with Ollie and it gave him a chance to try lots of different things.  He pretty much loved it all.

We finished that up and headed home to put him down for his afternoon nap which he thankfully took - fingers crossed the nap strike is over - and during that time I ran and got a quick haircut and then set out to put up and decorate my tree finally and I guess it was a good thing I did...I moved the tree box and saw water on the floor around our water heater.  Guess what else Ollie is now getting as a birthday present?  A new water heater!  Hope you enjoy it kid!  Seriously though, we knew this would be happening soon given the age of the heater we had.  So today I get to work from home for the afternoon while our plumber installs a new one!

We didn't let that little incident put a damper on our day though.  When Ollie got up from his nap we gave him his present.  He wasn't sure what to do with the wrapping paper but he tried!

We gave him a soft sided book about a lion who helps his friends.  It's pretty cute.  And then we pretty much just played with him, ate dinner and put him to bed.  It was a full and wonderful day.  I look forward to his party this weekend too, but I'm glad we took a day for just us.

Today as I said I'm at work for a half day, but I liked the outfit I put together so I wanted to share it since I haven't done an outfit post in a while!

 Sweater - Mossimo (Target), Pants and boots - Old Navy

Cami - Gap, Necklace - Zulily

As usual I'm following along with some Instagram fashion challenges and one of the ones for today was "Gingerbread Neutrals" - I thought that this look kind of fit that theme a little bit!  It's comfy and warm too which is also always nice!  That's all for today, kind of a long post, if you made it this far, well, thanks for reading!

Oliver - One YEAR Update

Holy cow, my baby is one year old today.  ONE YEAR OLD!  We survived the first year, lol!  And more importantly, so did he!  I just can't believe how fast the time went by, it's so true it goes so fast. At any rate, while I do miss that little baby at times, I absolutely love the little boy he is becoming. Let's look at the last month!

Height - Around 30 inches.  This kid is getting tall!  

Weight - We haven't checked lately, we'll find that out at his doctor appointment on Monday.

Nicknames - Ollie, Ollie-boy, Ollie-man, Little Man, Pretzel Boy, Monster, Monkey, Kiddo, Squirmy Worm, Little Guy, Smiles

Sleep - I wrote a post about that this month and was overwhelmed by the support - thank you all.  He still isn't sleeping through the night but I am kind of at peace with where we're at.  He's doing better after a week of not sleeping great at night, he had a cold and was cutting a molar we think so that affected him a bit.  Now he's on a bit of a nap strike, but he's sleeping better at night.  It's a work in progress, we just keep at it!

Eating - Everything we eat pretty much!  We still make some veggie purees and what not, but he is eating more and more regular food and there is very little he does not like.  His favorite is going to restaurants with us and getting bits of what we're having.  And he loved all the Thanksgiving food! We are starting the transition to cow's milk.  I'd nurse him forever if I could, but I'm so over pumping. We're not rushing the process though, we're doing it gradual and so far so good!

Diapers - SAME!  We haven't had to size up for quite some time and I'm so happy about it.  Love that we're staying in size 4!

Clothes - Also the same!  18-24 and holding!  I'd be happy if that didn't change for quite some time to come!

Mood - Other than the week of the cold and teething from hell, he's still been a super happy little guy!

Says - Mama, mom, dada (sometimes, not as much as daddy would like!), up, and well, he's kind of been saying a naughty word that starts with "Sh" and we're trying to encourage him to change it to shoe or shirt instead.  We're not perfect, lol.

Loves - Mommy, daddy, the kitties, anything that isn't a toy, crawling everywhere, climbing stairs, bath time, Curious George cartoons, fun music, dancing in the living room with mommy, mealtime

Dislikes - Diaper changes and clothing changes, getting bundled up to go outside, when things are taken away from him

For fun, I made a collage of all his monthly pictures from the last year.  It's so fun to see all the changes!

Milestones/Things I want to remember - He has been saying more words or testing out sounds, he claps when he likes something, walking at the mall, family photos with Erin, celebrating his first Thanksgiving, visiting the Children's Museum, finding things to do to entertain ourselves when we can't be outside.

Dear Oliver,

A year ago today I went to work but wasn't sure if I should or not because I thought there was a chance you might be trying to tell me you were ready to come out and play.  I made it through half the day and realized you definitely were ready.  I went home and daddy came home soon after and we waited for a bit to go to the hospital and then when we did, you were just about ready to meet us! You came out in a nice warm bathtub and we spent the rest of the night cuddling you.  I always laugh at the fact that you decided to have your first poop on daddy's bare skin!  We were so happy you were finally with us and you have been the light of our lives, the moon and the stars and everything we could have possibly wished for in a little boy.  We love you more than we can ever say.  Happy birthday sweet boy!

Love,

Mama

Currently in December

The Currently link up is tomorrow, but I'll have a special post for a special boy's first birthday, so instead I'm doing my Currently post today instead!  Make sure you check out Anne or Jenna's blogs tomorrow for other Currently posts as well.
--Currently I am--
Making - My menu for Ollie's birthday party on Sunday.  We are having a Dr. Seuss theme to match his room.  So far my menu is: Cat in the Hat Cupcakes, Green Eggs and Ham mini quiche, One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Goldfish crackers, and something with roast beef to represent Roast Beast from the Grinch.  I'm not the most creative or crafty mom, so I do what I can! Pinterest is my friend!
Listening - Ollie loves music and I started a Pandora channel the other day based on Raffi and I have to say, it's been on heavy rotation at our house, we're getting a great variety, lots of Raffi music yes, but also Muppets, oldies from the Beatles and did you know the Barenaked Ladies have a children's album?  I love everything about this station.  And now that it's December, I'm also starting to rotate Christmas music into my own mix during the work day.  I haven't taken Idina Menzel's new album for a spin yet, but I'm hoping to find it on Spotify later.  I also love, love, LOVE Sufjan Stevens Christmas music.  And in the car I still have my new Cities 97 Sampler, I've really been enjoying it!

Wrapping - Birthday gifts for my boy!  We're not going to talk about how I haven't even begun to think about Christmas shopping yet.  I need to get past the party and then it's on like Donkey Kong, but until then, it's Birthday Bonanza at our house.  We're giving him this pretty awesome Alphabet Riding Train that we found and some new books.

Anticipating - Well, this time of year is all about anticipation.  Right now I'm mostly anticipating seeing Oliver's face when he gets his birthday presents and I'm also anxious to see Christmas through his eyes this year since he was very much a newborn at Christmas last year.

Watching - We have finished Manhattan and are almost done with Masters of Sex.  We've started watching Covert Affairs again because it's on Amazon streaming for free and we've been re-watching It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia from the beginning again while waiting for the new season in addition to our usual faves, Modern Family and The Big Bang Theory.  I also just finished the season to date of Parenthood and uffda.  That was a doozy of a cliffhanger.  I'm anxious to start watching some Christmas movies and also to introduce Ollie to my favorites like Charlie Brown and Muppet Family Christmas.
So there you go!  What are you currently up to?

Ginormous Weekend Wrap Up

Well hello!  We're back to Monday!  I enjoyed a very nice long weekend with my family and some time away from the Internet a little bit and it was very refreshing.  I'm happy to be back at it today though, even if being back to work isn't my favorite thing ever!  It's going to be an exciting week at our house, someone has a very important birthday.  But before we look ahead, let's recap the weekend.  Picture heavy post ahead, you've been warned!

Wednesday night we celebrated Nate and my birthday with our families.  It was a nice low key celebration, a little cake and pizza, nothing crazy.  Thursday of course was Thanksgiving, I made a pie in the morning with my mom as that is our annual tradition and then we spent the afternoon and evening with Nate's parents and grandmother.  It was a fun day and Ollie enjoyed all of his first Thanksgiving meal, that boy sure loves his turkey!

Friday we slept in a little bit and then after Ollie's morning nap we had a little lunch out.  We otherwise kind of chilled around the house during the day and then headed back over to Nate's parents house for a Thanksgiving round two and to celebrate his dad's 65th birthday.  Oliver got a little practice for his own birthday with playing with some balloons and his grandpa was nice and sent one home with him too!

Saturday we decided to take Oliver to the Children's Museum for his first visit with us.  Nate's parents took him a week ago when they were babysitting and we found out the visit wasn't just to get Ollie out of the house, it was to get us a family membership as a birthday gift to us.  So we figured, what better time to go try it out than a long weekend.

Ollie loves it there.  We basically stayed in the same area it sounds like he stayed in the last time he was there, but it's just perfect for his age right now, there's tons of stuff to climb around on and in and explore.  I'm so happy we'll be able to go back anytime we want over the next year and not have to pay or anything.  Between this and our Science Museum membership I think we'll keep from missing the outdoors too much.  At least I hope so!

I got a treat on Saturday when I found out that Erin had our family photos finished.  They turned out amazing, I was so excited about them!  I would love to share them all here but I'll probably make you guys crazy, so here are my three favorites:

Spoiler alert, at least one or two of those pictures are on our Christmas card so if you are a friend or family member who is getting a card from us, well, sorry to ruin the surprise!  And huge thanks again to Erin, these are great!!

Sunday we ran a bunch of errands and dealt with a little boy who seems to think that because he's turning one this week means he shouldn't be napping anymore.  We beg to differ young man.  But anyway, we still got a bunch of things done and headed to our favorite restaurant in St. Paul, Cossettas, to celebrate my dad's birthday (which is actually today).  Lots of birthdays in our family over the last week or so here!  I also managed to get all my Christmas decorating done save for my big tree, hoping to get to that yet this week sometime.

That brings us to today, back to the grind and into what will be as I said a bit of an exciting week (and maybe a touch bittersweet) as we'll be celebrating Oliver's first birthday.  Nate and I have the day off on Wednesday to spend time as our sweet little family of three and then we'll have his party this coming weekend.  I'm looking forward to all of it.   It might be an Ollie heavy week on the blog here, sorry not sorry, my babe only turns one once!

And finally I thought I'd share my outfit today, this is a new outfit from my birthday, pretty much entirely from Old Navy, but I love it all.  I'm so addicted to their pixie pants it's not even funny.  I now have three pairs and I love them so much!

Sweater, shirt and pants - Old Navy

Scarf - DIY by me

Bag - Coach Outlet

Shoes - from friend

So how was your long weekend?  Did you all have nice Thanksgivings?  Are you ready for Christmas?  Tell me what's new, let's catch up!