The Adventures of a Super Baby & a Super Dog

This is called a lazy post...

2010-04-10T20:20:00.001-07:00

How to perform a lazy post...

Step 1: Go to a friend's blog.

Step 2: Rip off the cute pictures of your kid with their kid.

Step 3: Post them on your blog.

I at least put them in a different order...

Jake and Mattie looking cute.

Mattie making sure Jake knows who is in control. Notice who is driving! :)

All photography credit goes to the photographer of the year, Miss Ginny Vietti. Check out her blog, Vietti-Ville.

Easter Sunday and Thanks!

2010-04-05T09:15:00.001-07:00

Thanks for all the kind words coming from my last post. I hope it wasn't too depressing...I really feel that way and I feel like most of the females I know struggle with this so I thought it was time to talk about it. (Men don't seem to suffer in this realm as much as women, but I know there are some that do. My husband is just NOT one of those people. Thank God for him!)

So on a happier note, here are pics from the Easter egg hunt at church on Sunday...too cute! Jacob was a pro at hunting for eggs, putting them in the basket and then opening them to find his suprise. He was ALL about the surprise inside! :) How did he know there should be a surprise inside? Because we hunted eggs on Friday with some older kids and he witnessed them doing this and realized the goodness he should be looking for!

It begins NOW

2010-04-04T11:34:00.000-07:00

Friday night I went out with some friends and we began talking about how we hate ourselves on some level. Most women I know tend to do this...we are never pretty enough or skinny enough, etc. Why do we do this to oursleves? As for the women I was with on Friday night...we all resolved it was part of our upbringing and how we have learned to view ourselves, but we want to know HOW we undo these thoughts/things...how do we begin to unwire these thoughts. All I can conclude is that it BEGINS NOW! This thought came after I began looking at the pictures of myself from Easter with my son. I started hating on myself and thinking how horrible that I look. And suddenly all I could think was...IT BEGINS NOW!!! STOP, STOP, STOP!!!! Don't I have something more to offer then just how I look? Don't I have a soul that is worth getting to know? I am worth something and bring something to the table so if my hair looks bad and my face looks fat does it REALLY MATTER???? NO IT DOESN'T MATTER! Today I have won the battle...tomorrow is a new day...we shall see...can I really unwire all this mess in my mind?

My Favorite View

2010-04-01T20:27:00.000-07:00

Hat Day

2010-03-27T10:16:00.001-07:00

The other day we tried on hats in Michaels.

Here is Jacob being adorable in his...

Here is mommy wearing a donkey hat making her best donkey face. Honestly, this picture still makes me crack up! I really do think I look like a donkey...

The Adventures of Jacob and the Dust Buster

2010-03-23T19:35:00.000-07:00

Jacob loves to vacuum so much that we decided to give him the dust buster so that he could actually move around with it. (The vacuum cleaner is big and cumbersome and he works very hard to try to vacuum with it.) Here is the result of us giving him the dust buster. This video is about a minute long, but he really did this for about 10 minutes.

This is what happens when the dust buster battery goes dead...Jacob gets very, very sad. Turn down your volume before watching. You have been warned! (And for all you judgemental parents out there, yes, I did try to distract him with a million other things...he was NOT having it so I decided to video him instead.)

Snow in Dallas

2010-02-22T19:49:00.001-08:00

You won't believe it because we couldn't believe it...Dallas got 12 inches of snow a few weeks back. Below are the pics of it in all of its glory.

Jacob walking in the snow...

Our house after the beautiful snow.

Jake looking out the front door window at the snow.

Jake putting on his dad's shoes. Wait, what does this have to do with snow? Absolutely nothing...I just loved this picture and it got dropped into the mix.

Jake walking in the snow and my annoying "mom voice" in the background.

Jacob LOVED the snow so much so that every time we took him in to warm up he had a complete meltdown and would cry. It was cute.

Good Idea or Not?

2010-02-08T13:27:00.001-08:00

Finger painting...good idea or not? It was listed as a good activity for 16 months old...or so I thought. Hmmmm...we will wait until he is a bit older to try this one again!

All over his arms:

ALL in his hair:

Fun little moments with Dad and Jacob

2010-02-01T18:45:00.000-08:00

Just love these and wanted to share them!

So I just got done with my monthly cry...

2010-01-26T18:25:00.000-08:00

Don't be alarmed I wasn't crying because something serious happened...it was because of a sad story on American Idol. Yep, that is right, American Idol made me cry. Don't knock it...there was a really touching story during the LA tryouts. Can anyone guess which story touched me?

Oh yea...and for good measure here is the man. This is his alter-ego, He-Man. Well, really what happened was that we were at his 15 month doc appt and they always have me strip him down to just his diaper. So while we were waiting for the doc to come in I wrapped a scarf around him to keep him warm. I thought it was hilarious and demanded a photo!

For more recent pics of Jacob go to Vietti-Ville and check out our pajama play date! Thanks Viettis for a great time!

What is so funny?

2010-01-13T18:24:00.000-08:00

New Product...Jake in a basket

2010-01-10T20:22:00.001-08:00

Jake in a basket is now available in both English and Spanish.

Deep Freeze in Texas

2010-01-10T20:13:00.000-08:00

Blog postings stalled due to the deep freeze in Texas. Okay, not really, I have just been lazy. But to kick us off for 2010 I wanted to give a tribute to my sweet parents. Check out my beautiful mom in her wedding dress and my cool dad in front of his car (I think he was in high school). I love old photos...ahem....I mean photos of my parents from a past time.

God Made Dirt and Dirt Don't Hurt

2009-11-10T11:39:00.000-08:00

Are you wondering what we have been up to?

2009-10-21T20:24:00.000-07:00

Well...here are just a few of the things we have been up to...

Feeding Zorro.

Climbing in the dryer. (Please note no babies were harmed or dried.)

Going to see my friends.

Picking out my Christmas gifts.

Stealing a ride from baby John.

Chasing my train.

Playing with the doggy door. (For those of you that have kids and don't have one you should seriously consider investing in one. They will keep your kids entertained for hours.)

All these photos and videos are compliments of my new iPhone. Love my iPhone...it has changed my life, seriously! Don't believe me...go get one. (Dawne, yes, I am talking to you. Holla!)

Happy First Birthday!

2009-10-07T19:15:00.001-07:00

Jacob turned 1 this past weekend. He LOVED his cake.

Happy Birthday Jacob!

Formal Announcement

2009-09-25T19:57:00.000-07:00

I am about 3 weeks late in announcing this, but Jacob is walking. Here is a video from this morning documenting some of his skills. He LOVES to carry things while walking.

GO SARAH, GO!

2009-09-10T23:09:00.000-07:00

I can't help but brag about a Cheetah named Sarah. I mean, after all we do share the same name. Check out the video below of the record breaking fastest mammal on earth, Sarah the Cheetah.

Does it make anyone else uncomfortable with how the handlers are just hanging out with a wild animal that could bite their faces off at any moment? Or is that just me?

Oh yea...and this is at the Cinci Zoo in O-H-I-O...so HOLLA my Ohio peeps!

Another day in the high chair

2009-09-06T19:29:00.000-07:00

A little cheese to the hair never hurt anyone. And, yes, I do brush his hair (well sometimes), but this hair due was "a la Jacob"

Daily Workout

2009-08-31T17:27:00.000-07:00

Everyday I wake up and hit the weights. Here I am just pumping some iron.

How else did you expect me to keep this swimsuit ready physique?

That's right...still too sexy for my shirt.

Zorro is still super

2009-08-26T09:36:00.000-07:00

For those of you that keep up with Zorro's adventures...

As an FYI for any newbies - "Chester" is the squirrel in our backyard that makes Zorro crazy!

Who is Cuter?

2009-08-18T12:32:00.001-07:00

Which is cuter?

This sweet rescued baby seal?

This blue bull running wild through my house.

Jake and Mattie sittin' in a tree

2009-08-09T18:47:00.000-07:00

Jacob and Matelyn sitting in a tree.

First comes love.

Then comes marriage.

Then comes Jacob Jr. in the baby carriage.

Mattie was showing her man Jake how to walk. Very typical that the girl is one step ahead of the boy! :)

Stuck

2009-08-05T19:21:00.000-07:00

I'm stuck...

No,...really,...I am stuck...

Please help me get out...

Jacob has a new friend [Fluffy enters stage right]

2009-08-03T09:40:00.000-07:00

Meet Fluffy - aka Michael Landon...you will understand when you see the front facing photo of him. Fluffy is my parent's dog and Jacob CAN'T get enough of him.

This is my attempt of photographing the two of them, but they are both on the move so much I couldn't get a good picture.

Finally I decided to take some footage documenting how much Jake LOVED him. Check it out.

Common Ground...FOOD!

2009-07-26T17:06:00.000-07:00

Jake and Zorro found a common ground this evening...FOOD!

Jake eating dinner

Zorro making himself present.

The handoff.

Shout Out

2009-07-20T09:38:00.000-07:00

I have to give a shout out to two blogs. Why you ask? Well, they have pics of Jake on them so it saves me the time! (And our camera is broken right now...don't get me started on that...I am so frustrated with Cannon right now...) So go check out Vietti-Ville for some recent pics of Jake and Mattie hanging out and A Guy, a Gal & a Yorkie. (This is the photographer's blog who took Jake's pics this weekend. They are adorable, thanks again Jocelyn! You did a GREAT job! We can't wait to see all of them!)

Jacob's Softer Side

2009-07-15T06:55:00.000-07:00

In an effort to show Jacob's softer side and to prove he isn't always just "hittin' the bottle" here are some pics of him discovering what is under his crib. See we do have child-safe activities in my house.

Step 1 - The Reach

Step 2 - Just go for it

Step 3 - Discovery! (Which includes pulling out what is under there and celebrating the victory.)

Wait for it....wait for it....

AND...this is what he found! (his old mobile)

"YEA ME!"

Hitting the Bottle

2009-07-02T11:49:00.001-07:00

Nothing like hitting the bottle before nap time. We are such proud parents.

Please note that no babies were harmed in this photo shoot. We only found it hysterical and took pictures...that was all.

Beep, beep

2009-06-28T11:02:00.000-07:00

All things cars...

Here is Jacob enjoying his car in Ohio.

Grandpa pushed him around everywhere and he LOVED IT!

Here is Jacob in a real car on the way to my sister's wedding cracking up to fake sneezes.

(Congrats Jenny & Patrick! - we are still waiting to get some photos of the wedding to post.)

Twinkle in our eye

2009-06-28T10:35:00.000-07:00

Here is a picture of Andy and I hanging with our nieces, Riley and Meghan, back in November of 2007 - Jacob was just a twinkle in our eye at that time.

Now here is Jacob playing with Meghan and Riley this past week (June of 2009) in their adorable matching bathing suits, compliments of Tina. (Thank you again Tina!)

Here they are again and Jacob is trying to hard to keep up.

Time flies!

Thank you Lord Stanley!

2009-06-15T18:49:00.000-07:00

Andy and Jacob have been sharing drinks out of the Cup since Pittsburgh's Game 7 victory over Detroit. With only six teeth, Jacob will fit right in with the rest of the Penguin players!

Andy was very proud to give his Mario Lemieux jersey to Jacob. Will Mutscheller fit on the back of a jersey? Skating lessons start at age two!

The Mutscheller household rejoices in the Pittsburgh Penguins great success winning the Stanley Cup! GO PITTSBURGH PENGUINS!!!!!!!

The Adventures of Zorro is back...

2009-06-09T13:31:00.000-07:00

SOOOOO...I got more calls and emails about why the blog had been changed away from the adventures of Zorro and Jacob so I am reverting back. Yes, that is a picture of Zorro in a red cape to the right. Here is Zorro hunting in the backyard. Enjoy!

What Kind of Mom are You?

2009-06-08T08:26:00.001-07:00

Since becoming a mom I have discovered that there are different "types" of moms...so I ask you...what type of mom are you? What type of mom do you see out there that annoys you? I have found that this is a hot topic and everyone likes to create categories for us to fit in. Here are just a few articles I found on the topic:

What kind of mom are you?

5 Types of Moms

And according to Dr. Poulter, there are only five types of mothers:

The Perfectionist Mother — whose family must look perfect in every way
The Unpredictable Mother- whose ups and downs can create lifelong anxiety and depression in her son or daughter
The "Me First" Mother — whose children come second or last
The "Best Friend" Mother — who's now in vogue but can wreak havoc
The Complete Mother- who provides guidance and shows compassion to her child (and of course this describes me! Oh wait...because I am self-proclaiming myself this mom am I now the "Perfectionist Mom"...)

I am curious to hear your feedback on the moms out there...please, do share! Tell me the kind of mom that REALLY annoys you or the type of mom you think you are...come on...do share...you can do it! And if you don't feel like commenting just submit an answer to the poll below.

Oh yea...and here is a pic of Jacob - look at those adorable miniature flip-flops! Does it get any cuter then that? He is the light of my life...seriously, he is...did that sound sarcastic? Does that make me "the obsessed mom?" oh no...just another thing for me to worry about...oh geez...am I now the "paranoid mom"...I could go on and on, but I think you get the point. :)

I love to stay at the Y-M-C-A!!!!!!

2009-05-24T16:49:00.001-07:00

Flash Back

2009-05-19T18:26:00.001-07:00

Can you believe Jacob was once this size? It boggles my mind. I need another baby. I now understand how people keep get getting knocked up over and over again.

Nothin' but love for Nana!!!

Light Reading

2009-05-15T19:37:00.001-07:00

Jake did a little light reading a few weeks ago. He said this book was especially good.

Did I mention that Jake is now sleeping through the night...a full 12 hours!?! Wooohoooo!

Do you remember the band Right Said Fred?

2009-05-05T21:10:00.000-07:00

Well, I didn't either, but I think they said it best when they said...

I'm too sexy for my shirt, too sexy for my shirt....

I'm a model, you know what I mean
And I do my little turn on the catwalk
Yeah, on the catwalk, on the catwalk, yeah
I do my little turn on the catwalk

And if you are lucky...now that song will be stuck in your head the rest of the day.

Holla!

2009-04-29T09:28:00.000-07:00

This is a shout out to Jacob's friends and family that he has seen over the last few weeks. As Jacob always says,..."Holla my peeps!"

Braden, word up dawg! We were so glad we got to meet you. We look forward to hanging with you in the hood again sometime in the future!

What up cousin Jack? Thanks for a great visit at your new crib! We loved seeing you!

Word up Ryan! You were super cool and I loved that you wanted to hold me.

Hey baby girl. Mattie, we got nothing but mad love for you!

Girl, you so fine we had to post two pictures of you!

Just hanging with the crew,...Lauren, Joshua, Sarah, and Jacob....rolling with our hommies.

Joshua's baby daddy and Jacob's baby daddy...sweet!

Jacob and Madison at lunch. Madison was getting fresh with Jake. I am not going to say that Jake didn't like it...

Jacob and Madison again. I had to include this one because Jake and his baby mama are just chilling in their shades.

To our hommies...we love you all! WORD!

Too big to care!

2009-04-27T12:03:00.000-07:00

For all of you moms out there I know you remember the final days of pregnancy...they are hard. All you want to do is wear the most comfortable clothes you can find and you really don't care about how you look. Below is a pic of me when I was already a WEEK past my due date! Yes, I really did get that huge. And for the record I was pregnant for another week after this picture was taken! I have sworn that for my next pregnancy I am going to have a t-shirt made that says "too big to care" and I am going to wear it for the entire 9th-10th month. (yes, that is right, women are actually pregnant for 10 months!)

I am writing this post in honor of my dear friend Kristen. She is due mid June and no longer feels adorable, but I assure you she is! This past weekend I saw her and she was talking about how she just wants to wear comfy clothes. It became obvious to me that she did not care about what she was wearing when I saw she had on her husbands Texas A&M shorts. Most of you are thinking, big deal? But this is huge, Kristen is a UT grad so for her to wear A&M shorts means she really is desperate to be comfy! The proof is below.

Here is Kristen at her baby shower in Dallas. Come on people post a comment telling Kristen that she is adorable! If you are a mom you remember how uncute you felt at the end so give her some virtual love!

Thank you Nana!

2009-04-26T19:54:00.000-07:00

Nana bought Jacob a silver cup. The funny thing is he LOVES it. Tonight I couldn't take it away from him. Here is he saying, "I love my silver cup! Thanks Nana!" Well, okay, he didn't really say that, but if he was talking he would have said that.

Drum roll please...

2009-04-24T08:40:00.000-07:00

We are excited to announce that Jacob is officially crawling. He has been working on this for a few weeks and there were a few times I was tempted to call what he was doing crawling, but today it is official...he can crawl. (For all of those skeptics out there...see the video as proof.)

Now I know that all you experienced moms out there are laughing at me...I know that I will enjoy this moment of joy for only a second before I realize the added work that goes into a crawling baby! :0 So let me have my moment and next week I can cry because I am chasing him everywhere and have to baby proof my house.

Emily, notice the "Go Wonder Pets" book! HA!

First Birthday Party

2009-04-13T11:59:00.001-07:00

Maria took Jacob to his first neighborhood birthday party last week and he LOVED all the kids. Here is a picture of him enjoying himself. It was Emily's birthday (the older woman with her arm around Jake).

I don't know how to tell Mattie this, but Jake was pretty into Emily. I know Jacob likes an older woman (Mattie is 6 weeks older), but this may be too old...I mean she is able to feed herself. Mattie, we need to rekindle the love affair between you and Jacob!

Mr. Cool

2009-04-13T11:48:00.000-07:00

It is ridiculous...Jacob gets his first pair of sunglasses and it is all we can take pictures of. I can't help myself...his shades totally crack me up! Here are some shots of Mr. Cool...

Before I forget to mention it, Maria got these shades for Jacob. Thanks Maria! You are too good to us! :0

Jacob is the biggest kid on the block...no really, he is.

2009-04-06T10:54:00.001-07:00

Today was Jacob's 6 month check up and he is in the 99% percentile. If I understand this all correctly, that makes him bigger then 99% of the other kids his age. WOW, Jacob you are a big boy. Some would ask, why wasn't he in the 100% percentile, but I am not sure that is possible...can you be bigger then 100% of other kids your age? How would they prove that? Well, enough about that...

For those of you that know Andy, you know he is a proud dad of his big boy! We are hoping for some sports scholarship money...especially with this tough economy. Below are a few pics of the little man...ahem...I mean big man...in honor of his hugeness and his 6 month birthday.

Jake says: Just showing off my pearly whites while eating some rice cereal...if you look closely you can see my two bottom teeth. (Mom says: Did I mention those dientes made me bleed the other day...what,?...not a story for the public blog...yea,...I agree. Moving on...)

Dazed and confused, but still cute.

Loving my new hat. Maria, thanks for finding it!

Papa changes a diaper!

2009-03-31T07:14:00.000-07:00

For those of you that know my dad, he takes great pride in the fact that he has never changed a diaper. However, this past weekend he found joy in changing his grandson's diaper. It was so sweet. We were so happy that Sam was there to snap a picture of it.

Visiting Nana and Pappa

2009-03-23T07:33:00.001-07:00

Yesterday Jacob got to visit his Nana and Pappa. As usual he had a great time, didn't nap a wink, and passed out cold once he got home. Here is a picture of Jacob enjoying the view from Pappa's lap. Nana and Pappa, thanks for a great meal. We love you both mucho!

Kiss Me, I'm Cute

2009-03-17T13:46:00.000-07:00

After a long photo shoot of trying to show off Jacob's new shirt that says "Kiss Me I am Cute" (in honor of St. Patty's Day) this is what we ended up with. Jake and Z chilling on the couch. I guess this blog is the adventures of Jacob and Zorro...so here are some of their adventures.

Happy St Patty's Day

2009-03-17T11:49:00.000-07:00

Happy St. Patrick's Day World! We will post another picture shortly in my St. Patty's day t-shirt that Maria got for me! :)

My Favorite Thing

2009-03-16T12:50:00.000-07:00

Here are a few clips of Jake playing with his grandparents. I had to post these because Jake's giggle is my favorite thing to hear!

Jake's Poker Face

2009-03-10T09:54:00.000-07:00

Here is Andy teaching Jake how to play cards. (Otherwise known as "babysitting.")

However, we are worried about Jake's poker face. He completely gave away the fact that his dad had a good hand.

I Heart NY

2009-03-09T20:00:00.000-07:00

This is a picture of Jake saying, "Thank you Aunt Emily for my new onsie!"

And here I am in my city stroller warming up to hit the streets of NYC!

Matt, where is my Obama onsie? We need some representation down here in Texas!

Zorro's Cameo

2009-03-07T18:50:00.000-08:00

Here is Zorro in the nursery looking extra cute. Amidst Jacob getting his picture taken Uncle Jay pointed out to us that Zorro was ready for his close up as well!

Speaking of Uncle Jay, here he is with "the boys!" Thanks for coming by to see us today...we all enjoyed it! We LOVE YOU!

Happy 5 Month Birthday

2009-03-03T12:02:00.001-08:00

Jake turned 5 Months today. In celebration of his 5 month birthday he got his first tooth this past Saturday!

Grandpa and Grandma Visit

2009-03-02T11:57:00.000-08:00

Jacob loves his Grandparents and was so happy to meet them. Barb and Paul, thanks so much for traveling so far to come visit!

Jake and Mattie Sittin' in a Tree

2009-02-25T08:07:00.000-08:00

Jacob has his first (and hopefully last) girlfriend, Matelyn Vietti. She is very cute and sweet so mom and dad already like her.

In this photo Mattie is making a move, but Jake isn't ready to commit...typical man!

Naked Baby

2009-02-24T07:48:00.000-08:00

Who doesn't love a naked baby? Sorry Jake...I know this is embarrassing, but you have a cute toosh! (I wonder who you got that from?)

2009-02-16T19:18:00.000-08:00

Here is Jake waiting to eat in his high chair...

Yes, we are those first time parents!

2009-02-16T19:12:00.000-08:00

Jake ate rice cereal for the first time on 2/16. As all first time parents do, we documented the event with great enthusiasm.

He could hardly see over the table on the high chair. This picture says it all.

Jacob the Giggler

2009-02-16T07:07:00.000-08:00

Jacob loves to giggle! Sometimes he giggles at absolutely NOTHING. He has been cracking himself up since he was 2 months old. Check out this video and to answer Candace's question at the end of the video, no, he was not about to poop.

PS - A special thanks to Candace and Conan who came over on Saturday night and made us a Valentines dinner. IT WAS AMAZING!

WHAT?...he WAS the first baby!

2009-02-08T12:52:00.001-08:00

For those of you that don't know us (which is very few to zero people reading this blog)...Zorro was the first child in our family. It is true. You don't have to accept it if you don't like it. And if you don't believe me...his t-shirt proves it.

Insert Cynical Blogger Here

2009-02-08T12:48:00.000-08:00

Okay...I am that person that thought of blogs as one more way to indulge the American public into continuing to think that each person had something wonderful, special and important to say. Something that made them special. We are such an individualistic culture and value our differences and how we are each unique...blah, blah, blah. Blogs just add to this phenom. And trust me,...NOT everyone has something great to say! But alas,...now I get it. The cynical blogger has been transformed...blogs are a way to share information about what is going on in your lives with loved ones that aren't near by. Enter stage right...the Happy Blogger. And to share my bloggin joy with the world...her is another picture of Jacob.

Squeaker toys for babies...

2009-02-08T11:32:00.000-08:00

Andy was playing with Zorro, squeezing his toy and throwing it. As you will see Jacob loved it!

Ummm...how does this work?

2009-02-08T11:20:00.001-08:00

Yea, I am trying to jump on the blogging bandwagon that it seems every new mom does. The real reason is so that Jacob's Grandparents who live in Ohio can keep up with him a bit more. It makes us sad they don't get to see him more often, but they will be here in February! We are all very excited!