6 Months old

Yes its true... Gideon is 6 months old today. It feels like just yesterday we welcomed him into the world, yet so much has happened since that day. It kind of feels like a lifetime ago. I try to image what life was like before Gideon came along, and it is so hard to remember what it was like. It seems like it has always just been the 3 of us. I do miss the time where it was just Jared and I.. we could come and go as we pleased and do whatever we wanted. But I would not trade Gideon for anything. He brings so much laughter and joy to our lives. I have experienced a depth of love that I never knew existed. God is teaching me so much through being a momma. I am so thankful for these past 6 months and the many years to come. 


At this point, Gideon has learned to roll over, sit up (although he still falls over at times), smile, laugh, get up on his hands and knees and rock, scoot backwards, reach for toys, hold on to toys, chew on everything, and has two teeth! He is getting so big! 

Momma loves you little buddy!

First tooth!

We have been having so much fun around the Lyda house lately. Gideon brings so much laughter to Jared and I. At night when Jared gets home from work, we often just sit and let Gideon entertain us! He is so funny. He makes the cutest faces at us and loves to laugh. He has such a sweet spirit. Its hard to believe that he will be 6 months old next week. The time is just flying by. I feel so blessed to be able to stay at home with him 


Poor little babes though, has been teething for quite some time. Looking back over the last month or so, his sleep has been way off and he has been much more cranky... all signs of teething. Im not sure why I didn't put the pieces of the puzzle together until AFTER he cut his first tooth on Tuesday this week!!!! I was feeling bad last week because I had given him Tylenol quite a bit because it was really the only thing that would calm him down at night so that he would go to bed. I was actually afraid I was over medicating him... its a fine line for sure. (I still don't think I'm super in tune with my "motherly instinct") It was kind of a relief to know that he actually was teething and in pain when I had given him the medicine instead of just wanting some to be held before bed or needing attention. I went to a local store here called Mother's Haven and picked up a homeopathic teething remedy. It has clove and chamomile in it so it soothes his gums and also helps him to relax. Two very good things for a cranky, uncomfortable, tired, teething baby! 


I have been super bad about taking pictures lately, but here is a bath time picture of Jared and Gideon. He is getting so big and looking like his daddy more and more every day!! 

Thanks for stopping by!

Time for an update

Wow- It really has been way too long since I have given a family update. This could be a long one, so please bear with me! 

For Christmas we were able to go visit my family in Boise. It was so wonderful to get to spend some great quality time with both of my parents as well as my brother, sister-in-law and oh so cute nephew! My nephew, Christopher, is 2 years old and loves "baby Gideon." Though I'm pretty sure that he was more excited to see Uncle Jared than any of us! 

We were home in time for New Years and had a fun evening out with our friends Ben and Bonnie. Thankfully both sets of Grandparents love to see their grandkids, so we were able to go out to dinner and see a movie. 

The new year has brought lots of change to our baby boy. He weened himself from a swaddle while we were visiting in Boise. Some of you might thing thats no big deal, however, I am thankful to have not lots a wink of sleep over it. Something I was sure dreading once he started to roll over. Speaking of rolling over... Gideon is now a roller. He can roll from his back to his stomach effortlessly and does so anytime I put him on the ground. Along with the rolling, he is getting up on his hands and knees. Crawling could be just right around the corner. For now though, he will be pushing himself backwards. 

Right before Christmas, we learned that Gideon could be allergic to milk. I was told to go on a strict dairy and soy free diet. It was painful to not be able to take full advantage of the yummy Christmas meals and treats. Although, my dad and I were able to bake some of my favorite spritz cookies dairy free. I was thankful to not gain any weight =) After getting back from Boise, the doctor confirmed that Gideon is indeed allergic to milk. I had the option to stop breast feeding and switch to formula, but I chose to stick with breast feeding and alter my diet. I love breast feeding and the bond that I have with Giddy because of it. I am not ready to give it up yet! So far, things are going well. It gets challenging when we go over to friend's houses for dinner and such, but to me its totally worth it. 

2011 is treating us well so far. We were incredibly blessed in 2010 and are praying for God's continued guidance and direction for this upcoming year. No matter what, we will continue to sing His praises! 

I hope that you all had a blessed Christmas and New Year. My goal is to update this weekly. Here is to hoping! Thanks for checking in!

Its been a while

I was just looking at my blog and realized that the last 3 posts are recipes. Dang it! I am totally falling down on the job. Actually, last week I was preparing what I thought would be a great post. I have started a new Bible study and the post was about something profound that God has been teaching me about my "image." I have a good portion of it written, but have all of a sudden totally lost all direction. I still want to post it, but am praying for a little more vision and insight. It is one of those complex things and I want my point to be very clear. I think you all will love it and I hope you are inspired by it. I will hopefully have some clarity and direction soon so that I can share it will you all.

Now, since it has been before Thanksgiving since I have updated you here is what is going on in our world... Its a lot, so take a deep breath....

Right before Thanksgiving, Gideon discovered his toes!!! He is getting so much bigger and much more alert. I seriously am in awe of how quickly kiddos change and grow. Jared and I have been also noticing that Gid is filling out in his cheeks and as of his 4 month check up weighed in at 15 lb 3 oz. He is such a good baby. Every morning when I get him out of his crib, I am greeted with the biggest smile and little coo, that if he could talk would say "Good morning mama, I love you so much!!" =) He just brings so much joy to our lives. A lot of nights, Jared and I lay on the floor with him and just giggle with him. It is so much fun!

My parents came up for Thanksgiving, which was so much fun! We had gotten a ton of snow right before they came and we thought that it might hider them from coming. But thank goodness the roads were clear and them came up anyway. Some of Jared's parent's friends also came up from Boise. We sure had a full house. We cooked a 20 lb. turkey at our house and my mother-in-law cooked a fresh ham at her house and then we all ate over there for sake of space. It was such a wonderful time spent with my parents. They even installed a new hot water heater for us.

For my birthday, Jared gave me some cash and three choices. 1. A new oven. 2 A new washer and dryer OR 3. New clothes. Some of you may think I'm crazy, but I chose number 1. I have been wanted a new oven for our house since the day we moved in. Our old oven was such a piece. The handle was dented and the bottom element was on its last leg. So I opted for the oven. Home Depot was having a really great sale so I got a really good deal. I was so proud of myself. It was delivered about a week ago. I love it. It came just in time for holiday baking.. my fav!!!!

This is probably the best picture of the old stove that I have... me lookin' real good. bahaha not. I am however 16 weeks prego in the pic. =) You can even see the dent in the handle. 

Brand new!!! I love it.

For the past year, Jared and I have been talking about inviting a bunch of people over to our house to have "Saturday Night Dinner." At first, Jared was the one who was super into it and couldn't wait to have people over. I was newly pregnant and had absolutely no energy. It was all I could do to work 40 hours a week at Starbucks. I was not interested in cooking for our friends let alone entertaining period. After a year of talking about it, we finally made it happen. With the help of social media, aka Facebook, we invited all of our friends who live close. We ended up having 19 adults and 7 babies (13 months to 3 weeks). We have a pretty small house, so it was funny to see that many people all crammed in here. I am bummed that I didn't get any pictures of the madness!!! We had so much fun connecting and sharing a meal together. I made 2 kinds of Chili and Texas Sheet Cake. Other people brought appetizers, salad, drinks, and some yummy pulled pork sandwiches! I cannot wait to do it again next month!!!

LIke I said above, I started a new Bible study with a great group of women. The study is called 5 aspects of Woman. I have really enjoyed it. The ladies that are doing it with me are a totally random mix, but it was such a God thing that we all came together like we did. I am looking forward to digging deep with all of them. I just can feel that God has great plans in it all.

Well, I think that is about all for now.