I need a Hobby

Everyday I tell myself the same thing, I will do something productive today. I don't mean folding laundry, teaching Holt a new trick, or getting us out of the house. Something productive for the family, or myself, however you want to look at it. I'm inspired by so many ideas on Pinterest, I should just do them. Now that Holt is down to one nap a day, which lasts anywhere from 2-3 hours, how should I spend my time? Typically I spend some time doing pointless stuff online, and I mean pointless. Facebook, reading blogs, reading TMZ, MSN, or browsing for something I "need" to buy. Then I move onto the Social Media job I have for a couple of companies setting up Facebook articles and tweets. I have about an hour left at this point, maybe 2 depending on how long he sleeps. An entire hour to do something, anything besides sit in front of the computer. I don't watch much TV anymore and I typically do chores when Holt is awake. So how do I spend this hour? I have no idea! Before I know it Holt is awake and another day has gone by where I haven't done a darn thing that is productive.

Now I told myself when I became a stay at home mom that I would spend more time with God. I'm not entirely sure what that means, which is why I think I am not very good at it. I know He doesn't care how we do it, we should just do it. I am not good at reading anything during the day because my mind is all over the place. I cannot concentrate until right before bed, so reading anything is out of the question. How do you spend time with God? As much as God would appreciate me spending 3 hours with Him each day, I think I need more of a hobby. I should spend 30 minutes with God instead of reading all the online Gossip and what my 50 friends I barely know anymore on Facebook are doing at that given second. That I should do. So how?

Holt has recently become somewhat of a picky eater. I find myself making food that he doesn't eat day in and day out. I just purchased Deceptively Delicious and it is full of yummy recipes that I cannot wait to try. As I started reading through it I thought, "Where am I going to find time to make him this food?" Uhhh, Hello Shea, you have at least 2 hours every afternoon to make something, anything. So I think I will work on my cooking skills. I have always longed to be good at baking too. With all these recipes on Pinterest I am loving, I can surely cook for my family. I want to get really good at baking so my kids friends know me for my yummy treats. Yes, I totally copied Monica from friends, but it's true.

What about decorating? We are building a new house and I should be planning how I want everything to look in every room. Ugh, really? I am not a fan of decorating. My mom is an Interior Decorator, I'll give her a budget and let her do it. I don't even know where to look for decorating ideas because that's how much I dislike it. Kyle is actually better at decorating than me. But shouldn't I want to?

So everyday I tell myself this and another day ends and I haven't done anything. There is unfolded laundry in baskets still if you want to know the honest truth. How am I spending my time? I can't nap during the day due to the guilt I feel. I can't really do anything for myself during the day while he is napping due to the guilt. This is an entirely new blog post in itself really. So my question is, how do you spend your free time? How do you spend time with God? How are you finding time to decorate for Fall or plan the Holidays? How are you cooking your family dinner? Help me find a better use of my time, please!

Holt is 13 months!

I questioned whether or not I should continue these posts (hence it being 2 weeks late). We're kinda at the point where there is not a whole lot of "new" going on. I guess it will be a month to month decision, if I feel like sharing what my lil munchkin, booger, tooty tooty, boo bear is up to! I'm not sure I can classify him as a walker just yet, although he can take several steps alone, his prefered method is still crawling. I wouldn't even know what to put down as the date in his baby book for taking "first" steps. He has taken his "first" steps, but that has been going on for like 6 weeks now and he still isn't quite confident enough to just take off. But I am very proud of him and nothing in the world beats that big smile on his face when he reaches me after walking. He is just so darn proud of himself. At one point the pediatrician told us to watch for his hips when he started walking because apparently the peg leg crawl we thought was so funny, could actually be a hip issue. Luckily, it's still just a funny crawl and he doesn't appear to have any trouble with his steps.

Besides starting to walk, here are a few other things the Holtster enjoys doing these days.

-Giving Bentley his morning treat. We let Bentley out and Holt picks out his treat from the box then crawls over to give it Bentley directly into his mouth...with a giggle every time.
-Lots and lots of pointing going on! Anything and everything is just about the coolest thing he has ever seen. If only he could tell me how neato he thought it all was.
-I think he is a bit of a hoarder. He can't just have one thing around him, he must have several. He crawls to get more things for his pile and must be surrounded by stuffed animals when he sleeps.
-Will push anything to get him from point A to point B, including but not limited to the kitchen barstool (eek!) and and exercise ball
-He seems to understand almost everything I tell him, especially everyday commands. Ok, I'm bragging a little, he doesn't know everything but he really has picked up on a lot more of what I say in the past month. "Go put this book back." "Can I have it?" "Can Mommy have a bite?" are just a few...
-He loves to bring me books to read. Books are his favorite. He looks at them all by himself. He plays with them, he points at things in them, and he wants me to read to him all the time!
-He prefers that shoes are on your feet at all times. He tries to put Daddy's shoes on me if he deems it necessary that I need shoes on and the closest ones are Kyle's. He likes to try and put them on himself. If you take them off, you better believe he will bring them back to your feet within seconds.
-We have about 75% mastered the skill of putting our cup back on the tray or counter when eating. Most the time he does and it makes a sound to make sure I turn around and praise him. Others he still just feels like throwing it down on top of Bentley.
-He's learning different sports skills! Hit hits balls with his golf club, throws balls when asked, and kicks on command from both a standing and sitting position.
-Absolutely OBSESSED with balloons. He will point them out before you can even see it. Meme has been suckered into buying a $10 fish balloon because he wouldn't let it go at the grocery store.
-He is currently enjoying picking out a new hat to wear each morning from the closet and then making you wear it when he is done. I'm glad he loves hats!

I've seriously slacked in the picture department this month too. I took like 8 that were worthy of keeping. Pretty bad of me. I promise to do better this month!