Sidekick's First Carrots

It's been a while, and I have a lot to catch up on... but this is just too funny and needs to go up now.

I hope your Holidays were better than carrots!

Brutal Honesty

We all know children are the truest form of honesty.  Unfiltered, honest to goodness TRUTH.  Gotta love them for it! 

Here's my story.  It won't be long... because I can't bare to talk about it much.  My niece, Kira, shared this conversation with me last night after dinner, before I had dessert:

Kira: Auntie, are you pregnant?

Me: Nope

Kira: Well it sure does look like it.




The end.
I'm going to the gym now.  I did not have dessert.

Crouching Tiger hidden Pumpkin

Little people are so much fun.  You can tell them your secrets and they won't tell anyone.  You can wear hideous clothes around the house and they won't criticize.  You can eat sweet treats and totally blow your diet and they won't make you feel guilty. 

Best of all... you can dress them up and they don't care!  

Maybe they'll care one day, but that day isn't today!

Thanks to Sidekick and his tiger (not Tigger) buddy for supplying us with some sweet entertainment and lots of orange memories.

LUVS!

Feelin' Funky

Sometimes we all have those days when we're just feeling a little funky.  Well, our sidekick recently had that day, or shall I say two days.

It started out like this on Tuesday evening:

Then on Wednesday morning, we had this:

Yes, I did stop and take pictures after he puked all over himself.  DO NOT JUDGE ME!  I had to.

We then ended like this:

MUCH BETTER!  :)

Cutest Pumpkin in the Patch!

Over the weekend we went to the Verdi Pumpkin Patch.

And we found this cute little guy!

 We decided to keep him! 

I think it was a GREAT choice!  

BEST pumpkin I've ever picked!

The statment of the YEAR!

I had a baby shower* to attend this weekend, among ninety other things.  However, going into the weekend, I had this baby shower flipped with another baby shower I have later in the month.  Needless to say, I was prepared.... for the OTHER shower!  Seems to be the story of my life.

So, on Saturday, I went into a tizzy wondering what the heck I was going to do about a gift.  There had been mass confusion all around about the gift and I definitely did not help the situation by completely confusing the two showers.  Needless to say, I knew Sunday, the day of the shower, was going to be a circus, three ring circus nonetheless.  To ward off as much stress as possible, I called around to the local boutiques to see who was open on SUNDAY.  About four phone calls in... JACKPOT!  There was actually a boutique open on a Sunday!  WAHOO!  "This is going to be easy-cheesy", I thought to myself.  I will keep the boutique nameless to save them from any ill mannered folk who read this (I know there's only 2 of you, but still).

Sunday morning, my alarm clock... ha ha... I mean child went off.  I'm up!  I'm up!  Let's tackle this day!  We zipped through our morning and we were out the door promptly at 9:50am so we could get to the specified boutique by 10am when they supposedly opened.  YAY!!!  "We're the first people here" I told my little baby sidekick.  "OH.  Wait. We're the ONLY people here".  Hmmm.... let's look at the hours.... on... the... door......

M-Th: 10-6
Fri-Sat: 10-5

Key words missing from the door... SUNDAY 10-5

PISS IT!  "You've gotta be kidding", I exclaimed and slammed my head onto the steering wheel.  UGH!  My plan had been foiled!   Their ever so fantastical voice mail said they were open on SUNDAY and they ARE NOT!!!  NOT NOT NOT!  Grrrr!

Onto Plan B.  Wait... there was no Plan B.  Um, ok... call Jenn.  OK, now call Jess.  PLAN B established!  Put vehicle in drive and start heading toward the location of Plan B, hope sidekick doesn't get hungry in the meantime.  Arrive at Plan B... Plan B doesn't open until 11am... key information... shower starts at 11:30am.  OK, call Jess back and establish Plan C.  Re-route vehicle and go to GOOD 'OL TARGET!!!!

TARGET HERE WE COME!  Pull into Target, feed my sidekick in the backseat (don't judge me) and watch the time tick away. Tick-toc. TICK-TOC.  So, I unload my sidekick after his gourmet meal and we zip in.  Me, him, the stroller, and my feet that were BURNING in pain because I decided to wear brand new 4" heels during our Sunday adventure.

Zipping, dashing and dodging in and out of the isles...we were like a tornado.  Anyhow, we found the CUTEST baby girl stuff.  People, I'm talking CUTE baby girl stuff.  We may have thrown in a thing or two for my sidekick as well, but who's keeping track.  He had worked hard up until then and needed a little "somethin' somethin'" for his patience.

We race & hobble like mad people up to the checkout and of course... NINE people, and only two checkout lines open!  ARGH!  This can't be happening.  Then... an angel appeared and said "I can help someone over here in checkout #9".  I shouted out, "oh oh... pick me!" and continued my frantic zippiness on over to lucky #9.

It was there that the whole story unraveled... and I looked at my clock to see that it was 11:20am and I was in dyer need of some extra time, deodorant and a foot rub.  Most importantly, some extra time. Then, this woman behind me commented on my cute sidekick.  "Thanks" I said.  She then asked "how old is he", and I replied "11 weeks".  She replied....

Wait for it...


Wait for it......

"WOW, you've really got it together"

*Baby shower was amazing, gifts were a hit.  Me and my sidekick had a great time.

Love...

As the weather starts to change, and the leaves start to turn their magnificent colors of gold, red and orange.... I have realized that one thing never changes.  LOVE.

You see, my brother is getting married next weekend, and in the hustle bustle of getting everything and everyone ready, I can't help but marvel in the LOVE.  The love my brother and his marvelous bride have for each other.  The love we all have for them.  The love the bride has for her dress.  The love my brother has for his specially made, personalized shoes.  The love they have for their families.  The love we all have for the cake (I'm so excited for the cake I can't stand it!).

Love in all of its magnificent ways... is always constant.  It may morph into different forms, like my love for oranges during my pregnancy, or my love of a squishy little baby neck, but it always... always is there.

Here are some of my loves (no particular order):
my family (ALL OF THEM!)
my husband
my precious little baby boy
cookies
snuggly blankets
Holiday Inn pillows (I've mentioned it before, and you may think I'm nuts, but I'm so RIGHT!)
diesel parts (if you know me, you know why)
wine
Florence, Italy (part of my heart is there)
sunset
sunrise (I've seen many of those lately)
baby breath
baby giggles
my husbands scruffy face
my doggies
cookies
the thought of not being so flappy, floppy, and flabby all over
my cowboy boot slippers
a nice tan
a martini
olives from a martini
birthdays
my husband holding our baby
sushi
pictures from Bliss Studio
a good laugh with an old friend
Italian food.. REAL Italian food

a phone call from a friend you haven't talked to in faaaaaar toooo looooong
a good joke (I will forever love a good corny joke)
autumn
hot chocolate



OK, OK - I'll stop.  I could go on and on... ahhhh.... LOVE.

I wish you all much LOVE and happiness.  Never forget to tell someone how much you love them every time you see them.  Now go give someone a big HUG.

xoxoxo

Have you ever?

****Disclaimer:  No babies were actually harmed or lost... ever.

Have you ever.... talked in your sleep?  Walked in your sleep?  Laughed in your sleep? Carried on a conversation in your sleep?  Completely gone into a frantic fit and thought you lost your child in your bed, got on your hands and knees feeling and patting down every square inch of your bed, stripping yourself and your husband of all sheets and blankets, thrown your husbands legs across the bed and rolled him over and RIPPED away his pillows because he’s “suffocating the baby!”....  (insert heavy, gasping, panicked breaths)?

Well... I have!  It’s happened THREE ... yes THREE times now!  It’s awful!  I can laugh now, but when it happens, it’s absolutely awful.  I’m actually cracking up right now as I write this, because if there were a video camera in our room, it would be the FUNNIEST thing to watch.. I’m convinced. 

The worst part about the whole thing, is that the precious little munchkin doesn’t even sleep in our room, let alone our bed, so there’s no logical reason for me to ever think he’s in bed with us, let alone lost in our bed.

It all starts when I’m sleeping... soundly soundly sleeping.  ZZZZ  zzzz  ZZZZ... a peaceful slumber that I CHERISH with all my heart.  Dreaming of sweet things like, sleeping. 

Then SUDDENLY...

I sit up. 

I start feeling around and wildly patting every inch of bed that I can reach, “where’s the baby... where’s the baby”? 

No baby.... AHHH! 

So I fly onto my hands and knees and start the wild search, throwing sheets, pillows, comforters... my husband... you name it...if it’s in the way of me and my baby... it’s OUTTA HERE!  I’m like the Tasmanian Devil zipping through a few square feet of bedding uncontrollably. 

Still... no baby...

So what’s the next logical thing to do when you’re completely hallucinating in your sleep? 

Get up OUT OF BED, frantically walk the perimeter of the bed and feel around with every appendage, continuously repeating “oh... oh... where are you, buddy... where are you?”. 

Then, once I arrive at the other side of the bed, I again move poor Josh and RIP the pillows out from under him - BECAUSE he MIGHT be squishing the baby! 
A few moments later... after trying to ignore this wild fit of hysteria, Josh wakes up and says “WHAT are you doing?”. 

I stop.
 
Take a breath. 

Wake up a little...

Reply...
“I’m dreaming and I can’t stop”. 


Then, I wake up (really wake up) and hear the noise of the baby monitor and know that my sweet precious baby angel is sleeping soundly in his room, in his crib, and best of all... he’s not in our bed and he’s not lost.

And then I return to my peaceful slumber.  That is, after I get my heart rate back down to a normal speed, and not that of a race horse.

Sweet dreams :)

TWO MONTHS!

Our little man is growing fast and ferocious!  He's a WHOLE 2 months old now!  WOWZA!

Just look at that HAPPY HAPPY Face!  He's so stinking cute!  We are loving every moment with him and he seems to be enjoying us as well.  (WHEW!)

He even goes out to the garage and works hard with his Daddy.

We're planning a few adventures soon, so stay tuned!!

7th Heaven

Today the little man is officially 7 weeks old.  Seven heavenly weeks old.  I think it's absolutely mind boggling that we've only had him for 7 weeks.... what on earth did I do before him?  I honestly can't remember life before him.

I know I'm WAYYYYYY behind on posts, so for now, I'm just going to throw a hodge-podge of pics at you.  This whole thing might not make much sense, but I've gotta post SOMETHING!

Every morning, I wake up to this darling little face!  AHH!  Eat him up!  (Note: he was about 3 weeks old in this photo)

We've had quite the eventful 7 weeks.  We've had a lot of "firsts" - they are so much fun!  We just got back from Dallas (that will be a whole post on its own),  and now we're trying to get back into the swing of life....


Speaking of "Swing"... he loves his swing.  He was about 4 weeks in this photo.

If you cant' tell, his hair STICKS STRAIGHT UP!  Because it has a mind of its own, we often put it in a mohawk because if it's gonna stick up, he might as well look stylish.  Well, my mom one day asked me "why don't you comb his hair like a little boy"?  I replied, because no matter what we do, it'll start lying down when it's wet, then PING, straight up once it dries.  So... here's a pic of him with "little boy hair", all combed over to the side right after we got him out of the bath.  (Note: 20 minutes later it looked like the photo above).

About 5 1/2 weeks old.

Here's a picture of the little man stretching and smiling away in our hotel last week... he's such a HAPPY BOY!  6 weeks old.

The LOVE of our LIVES has arrived...

Hello World!  On Monday, June 21st at 5:12am we welcomed the LOVE of our LIVES into this world!  He is absolutely perfect, precious and more than we EVER could have dreamed of. 

To make things even better... our friend Whitney (who is also the world's most amazing photographer) came and took pics of the whole thing just about 4 hours after he was born!  How amazing!  We have the beginning of life as we know it captured... perfection.

We have loved every minute with our new little bundle... he's just the best.  People say you can't explain it... the INSTANT LOVE you feel... and I must say, words aren't enough... it shouldn't even be allowed to be explained, that's why it's a feeling - the most wonderful, overwhelming feeling.

If you want to see more pics, go to Whitney's blog at www.blissstudio.net/blog

My Niece

Josh and I are blessed with a new little niece.... she's furry and has some really sharp teeth, but MAN O MAN is she cute!!!  We babysat for a few hours yesterday and for a 10 week old, she sure did keep us all on our toes.  By "all", I mean myself, Josh and our 3 dogs....

It was my goal to wipe out out little Bella and have her be completely pooped by the time her mommy came to get her.  I think I accomplished my goal....  here's a recap of the evening.

 First of all... Bella is a toy whore.  She went around and gathered (stole) all the toys (no matter if they were hers or not) and then kept them in her "area".  Note: not all toys are visible as she is laying on a few them as well.

 After our walk, Bella was pooped and instead of napping somewhere convenient, she decided to lay in the middle of wherever I was... in this case, the kitchen, right below where I was prepping for dinner.

 Our "real" nieces and nephew came over to play with Bella as well, and this did her in!  She was so passed out that Josh got down on the floor, and put his nose to hers.... she didn't budge.  

Night Night Bella!!

I am proud to say we survived and I believe Bella's mama may have actually gotten some sleep last night too!  I'm so glad that babies don't come out as mobile as puppies or we'd be in a world of hurt!! 

Who knew studying could be so good looking....

So as we're on the final countdown to the arrival of the little guy (he's due tomorrow), my fabulous husband is in the midst of another huge transition in his life.  He's studying for yet another test because he's getting into solar.  Don't ask the details... just know that he's stoked and I'm thrilled for him. 

Anyhow... he's been studying the past week and this weekend was his "big" study time.  He ventured back and forth from the couch, to the table, and in the afternoon he meandered out to the backyard.  After gazing at him for a moment or ten, I tiptoed over to the window and snapped this photo with my phone (because the camera is packed in the hospital bag) and I thought it was just delicious.  I never knew studying could be so yummy...

Do you have the urge to go study now?  I do... well, not really, I have the urge to watch that lovely hunk of man study and I would like to give birth... but neither one of those things is happening right now - grrr.

I've swallowed a watermelon....

Sorry it's been so long!  So much has been happening, but it's all kind of been a blurrrrrrrrr.

Anyhow, I thought I should update you on my most recent happenings....
I've swallowed a HUGE watermelon:

There you have it folks.  Watermelon belly.  It's a new thing.  Oh, and per my husband, I'm also part Smurf (note: blue pajamas).  So, does that actually make me a Smurf that swallowed a watermelon?  Hmmm... definitely something to ponder. 

We're at the 37 week mark, I see the doc again today and then we'll keep plugging along!  Can't wait to meet you little buddy! 

34 weeks, 1 certified letter...

I don't know how many of you have been to the post office lately (main branch), but it *sucks.  Today, as I waddled into the post office with my little "you must come and sign your life away" notification in hand, I found myself in a line.

This wasn't any line, this was a line at the post office.  The post office where apparently NO ONE works.  I was lucky.  I was only the 7th person in line, after me came a slew of people that accounted for 32 total standing in line (yes, I counted).  The best part... there was one.... ONE..... ONE person working to help ALL OF US!  Seriously?  Can you imagine going anywhere else, having a line of 30+ people waiting around to be helped and only one person is there to help?  The best part is that when I first arrived, there were three people helping, but as the line got longer, they left.  REALLY!?!?!  The line gets longer and you leave?  I don't care if it was break time... or pee pee time.  Had I been at the end of the line, my child could have matured fully by the time I was finally helped by someone.  I'm pretty sure the person at the end of the line when I left is still standing there.

What is wrong with this picture?  SO MUCH.  I don't even know if I have the strength or patience to go into it all, but I ask LoUdLy and boistrously..... DEAR POST OFFICE, WHY ARE YOU SO UNHELPFUL? Have you stood in your line?

Oh, and here's a great kicker.  So, I finally get up to talk to a human and as she's helping me, she makes a mark on a tally sheet.  I thought it was odd, but I looked to see what it was and it was a sheet they were keeping track of the time, number of people helped and what they needed help with.  Can I make a suggestion?  Your sheet doesn't work!  Or how about this... put a surveillance camera up and check out how dang long your line is throughout the day!  How about simply having MORE THAN ONE person available to help your customers!

It's not the like post office has a niche clientele, they serve the PUBLIC!  Note: that is EVERYONE!  Last I checked, they aren't a boutique or specialty shop.  For crying in the night, they're the POST OFFICE!!

Heavy Sigh.... and they wonder why no one sends mail anymore, and why people prefer UPS or FedEx.  I don't think it has anything to with convenience of email or other forms of communication, I believe it's because the post office believes they are working with a population of 50.

PS - Dear my postal delivery person, I like you.  I actually like you a lot.   You're very kind and you do a great job.  Thank you for your work.  Can you please help the people in the main branch figure things out?


*Please note, I do not like this word, but sometimes it is necessary.

Photo Shoot

For a long time now (ok, so only 8 months) people keep telling me to do a pregnancy photo shoot or I'll regret it.  I know I'll have Whitney (the most fabulous photographer) take pics of the little guy when he arrives, but I wasn't too keen on someone taking pictures of my belly and me... I'm the size of a house.

Needless to say, I did it!  I trust Whitney very much and she had some fun ideas, so we went with it.  We almost went away in the wind while we were shooting, but that's another story!

If you want to see the sneak peek... go to www.blissstudio.net/blog.   OR  Take a look HERE!

By the way... isn't my child's father HOT!  (insert whistle noise)  Such a hot piece of man.

Anyhow... on to the pics!

It was a disaster...

People... it was a dinner time disaster last night.  Ugh, I get exhausted just thinking about it.  I got home from work, the gym and running errands, then started on dinner.  I was kind of excited to make this particular dinner because it was new.  Main course - stuffed shells.   See photo below (courtesy of Real Simple).

Let me digress for a moment and say  how much I LOVE Real Simple Magazine.  I L-O-V-E it.  My heart goes into a tizzy of excitement when it arrives each month.  It's so loved in our house that even Josh sneaks it away to find the recipes for the month.  We always try a few, if not ALL of the recipes they include.  I just love it.... LOVE it.  I hope you get the picture because I would hate for you to not understand my LOVE of Real Simple.  We clear yet?

Anyhow... all was going well.  Shells were made, stuffed and ready to go into the oven.  Here's where it all started.  I set the heavy dish filled with the dinner deliciousness into the oven (top rack), and AHHH the rack collapses on the right side.  Thank goodness I still had a hand on the dish or it would have been "bye bye".  Josh comes over, helps me get things back in order, places the dish on the rack himself (just to be sure), we close the oven, set the timer, and for approximately 17 minutes... life was good.  Dinner was in the oven, the house smelled delicious, and I was one step closer to heartburn for the night.

BEEP BEEP BEEP!  Timer goes off - DINNER IS READY!  I remove myself from the couch where I had been slumped, and waddle into the kitchen.  I grab my hot mitts and go in for the kill.  Open the oven, reach in....grab the bubbling deliciousness which I am about to devour... and then..... SLAM, sLiP, WHAM... "AHHH"... "SON OF A".... deep breath....."JOOOOOOOOSHHHHHHH"!!!!   The oven rack bailed on the left side, sending my entire dish on the slippery slope to spillage and slopping all over the oven, the floor, my left hot mitt.  You get the picture. 

In my haste to save some of the dish, I grabbed it and slapped it onto the stove top to sit while I assessed the damage (it also gave it time to cool before we ate the remains).   As I gazed at the mess in front of me, I could do nothing more than stare.  Have you had that moment?  Please say yes.  It's the moment where you just can't figure out the best way to tackle the mess ahead.  I sat and stared at the wreckage, this wasn't helping, but what was I going to do?  Not exactly easy to clean up a 400 degree oven!  Meanwhile, Josh comes bee-bopping in from the garage.  "What the...." he exclaimed as he saw me and the wreckage.  "I heard something, but figured you were OK", he said.  "Um, did you hear the crash and the battle cry for help" I asked.  He started laughing, he had only heard the crash.  We both laughed ... what else is there to do!  Laugh or cry... those are the options.  We laughed. 

Josh immediately dives in and starts cleaning up.  What a man.  What a MAN!  He's cleaning and I'm kind of helping, kind of pouting.  Then I exclaim loudly, as if it's the best idea EVER - "Let's just eat, and then we'll clean up".  So, we did.  We ate.  It was good.  Then we started cleaning up again.  It wasn't so good.

I tackled the dishes while Josh continued tackling the oven.  He had paper towels, toothpicks, Q-tips, Clorox wipes... you name it, he had it and he was determined to clean everything out.  GO JOSH!.  In the mean time, I get the leftovers packed up and ready for the fridge.  Josh decided his hard work deserved a beer, especially if he was going to finish the job.  So, he kneels down, reaches into the fridge to grab a beer and I ask nicely, "can you put this in there somewhere" (referring to the glass dish of leftovers).  As I so swiftly hand him the dish, I also WHACK him upside the head!  OH MY!  I start laughing hysterically... really, what a way to end things.

But the end is still not near.  Josh gets his beer, and goes back to cleaning the crevices of the deep dark abyss.  Suddenly... BLOOD!  The man somehow cut his finger right under the fingernail... YOWZA!!!  It was bleeding everywhere.  NEW MESS!  WAHOO!  I hand him a paper towel and although I felt awful, I started laughing again.  Let me explain... I get this from my mother.  Whenever there is an emergency, danger, injury, etc... LAUGH.... just burst out in LAUGHTER.  Preferably uncontrollable laughter.

Anyhow... after that, I told Josh we were DONE with the kitchen for the night.  I think you'd all agree, it was in the best interest of all parties involved.  We're just lucky a dog didn't hop in the oven or slip on the mess or something.

I'm tired and hungry now....

What a difference 4 weeks makes...

28 WEEKS! TWENTY EIGHT WEEKS! WOW!

Sorry it's late, I was trying to have one up every 3 weeks, but it just didn't happen.  Thinking about it, I made Josh snag this one real quick yesterday on our way to breakfast with family.  Sorry, my head was cut off again... what can I say, the man follows directions - "Love, please take a belly pic real quick".  Viola!  Belly pic is what you get!  This one is a little more head on than the last.  The last one he took standing up.  This one, he knelt down and was right level with the buddha...

It's a good thing I had him take it before breakfast!  Peg's Glorified Ham n' Eggs.... you are a marvelous place.  You filled my belly with deliciousness, but I am still sad I didn't order the French Toast. 

A Dog and his Outdoors

For most of you, you either have pets or you don't.  You either like cats or dogs.  And when it comes to dogs, you either like big dogs or small dogs.  In many cases, people think the only "Real" dogs are big dogs.  Too often the "little" dogs are seen as ankle biters, yippers, rats and lap dogs.  For those of you who feel that way, you have not met Tucker.

Tucker is my almost 5 year old Yorkshire Terrier.  He is the son of Oliver, my other Yorkshire Terrier.  They are most often referred to as "the boys".  Roxy, the lone female, German Shepard/Black Lab mix is their sister (through marriage - bless her heart).  As you can probably figure out... Roxy was Josh's dog prior to us meeting, and the two little guys were mine.  Now, I'd like to think they're all "ours", but let's face it, there are days when it is harder than usual for Josh to swallow that he has two "little dogs", rather than two more "real" dogs to go along with Roxy.

Although "the boys" do love Josh dearly, and I'm convinced he loves them as well, there are times when I wonder if they're "all there" in the head.  Tucker is truly an odd little dude.  I'm pretty sure he has no clue how big he is.  I'm pretty sure he has no clue he's NOT a hunting dog.  I'm pretty sure he has no clue that he's not meant to live in the wilderness.  These things, I am sure of. 

In my last post, you saw Tucker basking in the sun out on the patio.  Well, if Tucker could live outside, he would.  Unfortunately, when you're only about 7 lbs and you have hair, not fur, it's not in your best interest to LIVE outside.  Therefore, we must make him live inside and in turn, we suffer by constantly letting him out... it's a fun circus we've got going.  He is an anomaly of a little dog.  I believe he belongs in the wilderness.  Maybe he could be the new side kick on the show "Man vs. Wild" with Bear Grylls.... I think Bear could learn a thing or two from Tuck. 



To let you in on how deep his  love for the outdoors is... please glance below.  We were B-B-Qing and had the slider open to the back yard (ignore the snow shovel, it parks there for the whole winter and hasn't been moved yet).  Tucker, in his funny little way, perched himself out on the patio for a while, then as the sun started going down, he hopped up a level to get a better view(just barely inside), as to watch the majestic sunset take place in "his" backyard.  I'm pretty sure that if we crept into his mind, he was having thoughts like a lion "my kingdom is beautiful, and I will hunt just after the darkness".

The beginning...

Project "nursery" has begun!  We picked out paint, the bedding is in and we know the color of furniture!  Whew.  The little man is going to be SET!

The best thing of all is that Josh LOVES projects.  The man must have a project or he goes nutty.  This works out PERFECT because we've got lots and lots of projects ahead!

I'll keep you posted on the happenings as they keep happening.

Paint sample.... Don't worry, we toned it down :)

Josh's little helpers... they were very curious.  Roxy (the "big dog") could have cared less.

And then this was what I found one of the helpers doing later in the day... such loyalty.  Don't mind the photo through the window & screen.  I had to take it that way or his rest would have been disturbed.  Never interrupt the rest of a hard working dog.

Thanks to Josh & Kalai for painting!!! 

Too much!

So I'm trying to focus and really decide what we do/don't need for the arrival of the little man.  After sorting through oodles and oodles of crap, I have decided that the whole baby industry is.... well overwhelming and filled with way to much CRAP!

I can't tell you how mind blowing it is to have 4,952 different types of strollers, car seats, bottles, blankets, diapers..... along with the do's and don'ts for each one... NUTS!!!  People have been having babies and raising them for millions of years without all this shenanigans.... do I really need it?  Isn't there some SANE website or book out there that simply says "YOU NEED THIS, YOU DO NOT NEED THIS"?  Or, is there someone I could pay to get me all set up with the necessities and nothing else?  I just can't seem to wrap my head around it all.

I try to think of all the things I do/don't use on a daily basis and I can't imagine that an infant would use twice as much.  Really though, that's what these "people" make you think.  They actually make you think that your brand new infant who can barely do more than poop, eat, sleep and cry will somehow be able to tell the difference if I wrap him in a swaddle I do on my own, or a swaddle with Velcro?  Lord help me on this journey... isn't a hooded towel a hooded towel?  Oh, and could we please come up with ONE MORE type of bottle?  Really people... this is just out of control.

The biggest thing of all... I do not want to end up with tons of unnecessary "stuff".  I don't want our home billowing with "stuff".  Heck, I have a hard enough time keeping Josh and I somewhat organized with all of our "stuff".

Deep breath... deep breath.... in with the good... out with the overwhelming baby industry shenanigans.....

Gogh'ing The Distance...

This post is for my dearest Susie.  Susie the Great.  Susie the Inspiring.  Susie the Talented.  Susie...

Susie is married to Ross.  Ross is one of my father-in-laws (people, please don't make me go into all the details... just take it for what it is - fabulous).  Anyhow... amongst other things, Susie is an artist.  I haven't seen Suz since Christmas time and had heard through the family grapevine that she was on some mission to paint her heart out and beat some record set by Van Gogh.  How fun is that!?!  I had no clue what was really happening, or how serious it was, or what she'd be painting... but I thought it sounded like a ton of fun for miss Susie and if she's happy, then I'm stoked.

Last night, Josh came home and said "Hey, some chick gave me her digits".  HA HA I laughed (and my belly laughed along with me).  Anyhow, he had seen Susie and she gave him the website to follow her project "Gogh'ing The Distance".  So, Josh and I ate dinner and then whipped out my laptop to see the whole thing and get a little more involved.

GASP..... the first painting took me to a place I never wanted to leave... Oh, I loved it... the orchids are beautiful.  Then the next, and the next.... each painting was just as wonderful as the previous, each with their own story and charm.  As we kept browsing, we came upon a little video of Suz on the site and it's her painting and expressing how much she loves it.  I cried.  Yep, tears were coming out of my eyes.  I guess you may need to know Susie in order to appreciate it, but I really don't think so.  She's so gentle, wonderful and insightful... she's a gem and I'll always have a HUGE spot in my heart for her. 

The thing is... we live in such a world of "right now" and "how much can I squeeze into one day".  We've all forgotten how it is to love and be passionate about one thing.  How to let ourselves become completely smothered with joy and delight over one thing... one thing we love, cherish and find complete joy in doing.  We've forgotten how to honor our talents, embrace them and let them flow free.  We've forgotten how to let one thing exhaust us with delight and over-stimulation.  We've simply forgotten how to LIVE.

Please please.. I encourage you to go to her website and see her work.  You can even go see her!  Heck, if you've got little children people, it'd be a WONDERFUL field trip and Susie would love it (she's just up in Truckee)  http://www.vangoghingthedistance.com

I know there's at least one thing on there that will make you say "ahhh" or maybe "awww".  I've stared at the site over and over again today just marveling in the fantasticness (it's my own word) of Susie, her love for her talent and her passion for stepping outside of this chaotic world and taking the time to do what she loves so emphatically. 

Susie.. WE LOVE YOU.  GOGH Get 'em!

24 weeks

Lenee, Kelley, Carissa... this is an update just for you.  If you look a few posts back, there's a post from 21 weeks as well.

Here is the pic of my belly at 24 weeks.  He's wiggling, kicking, and somersaulting all over the place!