Find Your Happiness

Week 37: September 10th to September 16th 253  It's been awhile since I worked as a registered nurse but I'm pretty sure this is not how you check someone's blood pressure. 254  Napping with Daddy . 255  Ratatouille on Mushroom and Lemon Couscous. Loosely followed this recipe . 256  The day before, I found Nathaniel pantless. That morning, I found him like this . 257  Hubby graduated first in his class so we celebrated by eating out for breakfast as soon as the ceremony was over. 258  Nathaniel's latest favorite book: Captain Flinn and the Pirate Dinosaurs . My husband loves reading this book too because he really gets into each of the characters. 259  A big cotton candy-cloud over the barracks/base. Linking up to: Inspire Me Photography: Be Inspired Project NapTimeMomTog: Project 365 The Mom Creative: Project Life

Here are my top five favorite photos of Nathaniel from July to September in no particular order: " 1-Mile Bulldog Run "  Nathaniel ran his first 1-mile run with Daddy; not even two-years old and already a runner! " Twisted and Tangled " I am picking the photo on the left for the Top 5 but feel that I need to show both for you to truly understand: The morning before, Nathaniel was pantless when I picked him up in his crib. That morning, I found him like this. Earthly Treasures My most loved and priced blessings " Swimming Lessons " We enrolled Nathaniel to a swimming class for the month of August. By the end of the month, he was kicking, paddling and even went through that slide in the photo by himself several times, which ends in the 8+ feet deep water. " Napping with Daddy " There is just something so peaceful and heart strings-tugging about watching these two nap together. It also gives me a c...

After the 1 Mile Bulldog run , we stayed and partook of the activities. Nathaniel played golf. Although, he treated it more like hockey.   He also watched the recruits do their pull-ups. And of course, he had to show them how it's really done!   There was also face painting but since Nathaniel has uber sensitive skin, we opted to have it done on his hand just in case. He is obsessed with "py-er" (spider) right now so we thought this would be appropriate. There was also a military dog demonstration show but I was too busy clinging tight to my toddler to take pictures. All in all, it was a great day and Nathaniel took an especially long nap that afternoon and slept really well that evening :)

This past Saturday, Nathaniel ran his first run! He ran the 1-mile Kids Run at the USMC Bulldog Run event. As you can tell with the photos below, he was so excited to get started! We had to remind him several times to stay behind the starting line while we listened to the instructions but he was just ready to go, go, go! Nathaniel really enjoyed the run. He loved the wind blowing through his hair, running faster than the other kids and "chasing"/catching up with the ones in front of him. I think my husband just found a marathon-buddy :) But he eventually got tired (especially after going up-hill) near the turn-around point and Dean had to carry him the rest of the way through. But Nathaniel was such a motivator! He kept cheering his Daddy to run/jog. We did put him down near the finish line so he could finish the race himself. And of course, running a mile can be exhausting and makes you ravenous...

I love that my husband and son nap together during the weekends. Nathaniel gets the sleep he needs and Dean gets the rest he deserves after working so hard during the week. But this also gives me a few hours all by myself. I occasionally join them but mostly I use this time to either prepare dinner, pick up the house, fold the laundry while watching TV, edit pictures or catch up on my reading. It's really up to what my heart desires to do that day---and that is such a heavenly luxury for this stay-at-home mama.

Week 36: September 3rd to September 9th 246  We spent the Labor Day weekend with my husband's friend Mac and his family in Pearland, TX. Their neighbor has a horse and Nathaniel was perfectly happy just admiring it from a safe distance. He also thinks horses are called "neigh." 247  We had the pleasure of meeting this adorable little girl and her family . Gabby at Just Another Day in Paradise : a fellow mommy-blogger, lover of baking, photographer, Filipino, and married to a former Marine. 248  Sunset during our drive back to San Angelo. 249  Sopapilla Cheesecake Pie; We had dinner with friends and I was in charge of the dessert. We were having tacos so I figured I'd stay with the Mexican theme. Recipe found here . 250  Penne with Eggplant Puree; another meatless meal. Recipe found here . 251  Pork Meatball Bánh Mì with homemade French Baguette; sooooo delicious. Recipe found here . 252  Nathaniel just seems s...

Week 35: August 27th to September 2nd 239  Nathaniel kept grabbing his Daddy's face to give him kisses. 240  Nathaniel's reaction after eating a pickle . 241  Enjoying a delicious oven-roasted corn. 242  Blowing bubbles 243  Tofu Stir-Fry 244  Hubby's promotion ceremony (to Corporal) 245  Corporal

Yesterday morning, Nathaniel was pantless when I picked him up in his crib. Today, I found him like this. Never a dull moment when you have a toddler, I tell ya.

This past weekend, we got orders for our next and permanent duty station. At the end of the year, we are hopefully settling and making our final move for this enlistment in Fort Gordon, Georgia ! It really came as a shock because for years, they told us not to even consider going there; Because as a Marine, being assigned to Georgia is like a one in a millionth chance. ( image credit ) But one in the millionth chance it is! After getting over the initial shock and mourning the fact that we're not going to North Carolina, I am now super excited. It is the closest permanent duty station to our hometown. It is still an 11-hour drive but it beats 13-hours from Camp Lejeune or 33 -hours from Camp Pendleton. Fort Gordon is also just hours away from the beautiful beaches of South Carolina and a little bit more to Disney World! There's also Savannah, GA, Charleston, SC, Gatlinburg, TN, New Orleans, LA, St. Augustine, FL. I can seriously keep going on about the places I hope t...

We went to Houston over the Labor Day weekend and spent the holiday with Dean's friend MacAskie and his family. We have met his family several times back when we lived in California and they visited Mac in Monterey. But this truly gave us the opportunity to get to know his family. We all had such a wonderful time and we really felt at home. Rose, Mac's madre (that's what he calls her), cooked everything from scratch and the food was ohmygoodness-delicious. She really inspired me to cook everything from scratch more often/always. Little One loves washing his hands While we were there, we also had the pleasure of meeting Gabby (at Just Another Day in Paradise ) and her precious family in person. After a quick lunch, we all headed to the Children's Museum of Houston where the kids played for hours. I have been following her blog for almost two years now. We have so many things in common, which makes me feel like I can relate to her when I read her bl...