Birthday Musings

Today is my birthday. My thirtieth birthday. It's strange how when you get older birthdays become less of a thing. I'm just excited to enjoy my free birthday Starbucks, Red Robin, Culver's, etc. Yesterday I was able to sleep in and woke to two very excited school aged children that had created special birthday cards just for me.
Gabriel's was so typical Kindergartener. There were phonetically spelled words, backwards numbers. Seriously y'all swoon town.

Julian was a little more serious with a drawing of Angry Birds in a heart. (Can you tell what he's into these days?)

Barry brought me one of my favorite Christmas/winter treats, Panettone in bed with a diet pepsi. He knows me or something.

I've been thinking all week on the whole age of 30. It feels so big. So accomplished. Like such a milestone. I feel like I haven't accomplished a whole lot. (Before you say it, I know. I have 4 amazing kids. They are wonderful. I love them more than pecan pie.) I could write you a laundry list of things that I haven't accomplished by age 30, and it would seriously probably take years to read and write. However that would be pessimistic and frankly extremely depressing so I'm going to go another way with it.

I'm going to write a list of 30 things that I hope to accomplish by the time I'm 31.

1. Be kind. (I realize this isn't something measurable but it's something I want to do every day, all day, my entire life.)
2. Create.
3. Run or workout at least 3 days a week.
4. Wear a bikini and not feel ashamed of my stretch marks.
5. Really & truly love myself.
6. Read more.
7. Publish my novel.
8. Blog more. Because Facebook isn't the same.
9. Run a half marathon. (I'm giving myself some leeway here. I want to be able to run 13.1 miles. I understand that I might not be able to participate in an organized half due to Barry's crappy schedule.)
10. Get a tattoo.
11. See Justin Timberlake in concert on July 30th with Nicole!
12. Go on vacation.
13. Learn to bake a pecan pie. Baking pies scares the bejesus out of me.
14. Be present.
15. Read the entire Harry Potter Series. Again.
16. Read the entire Twilight Series. Again.
17. Wear red lipstick more.
18. CC&J
19. Bloom.
20. Take more pictures.
21. Bathroom reno.
22. Hallway photo display/arrangement?
23. Sew my Harry Potter quilt for sofa.
24. NaNoWriMo 2014.
25. Visit Washington.
26. Learn how to take care of my skin. Hey I'm 30 now it's no time to slack.
27. Do something amazing for my husband.
28. Go to a game- football, baseball, soccer? Whatevs.
29. DIY my bathroom.
30. Stop biting my nails.

I don't think that accomplishing this list will make 31 seem like less of a big number. I'm not delusional. I feel like accomplishing this list will make me feel like I've done something. SOME. THING.

I'm surprised that turning 30 isn't causing as much of an emotional freakout as I was anticipating. Be prepared to see this list-hopefully with lines crossed out- as I accomplish my 30 things at the age of 30.

Happy Birthday Julian!

My first born son is now FIVE. The big oh-five. CRAZY. It seems like yesterday that I was walking around the SuperMall in hopes of walking him out. It worked, and he was born at 6:26 on his due date.

Like I said, it seems like only yesterday I was 40 weeks pregnant, and waiting, waiting, waiting. And in others, it seems like he's been a part of my family forever, always here, always laughing, always smiling.

Recently, I went back and read Julian's birth story. It was strange to remember the gamut of emotions I was feeling after he was born. And to remember how seamlessly he fit into our lives.

Julian's forever been in love with puzzles, building things, creating. If you ask him now, he says he wants to be a builder, just like Grandpa Bob. I can see that. He's an expert Lego constructor. He can follow those directions better than I can! He's a master of all things puzzles, and is so cute when he tries to help Gabe do them. J always asks us to help him do puzzles, and then he ends up helping us! Smarty pants.

We had Julian's birthday party on Saturday. We invited his whole class, but not many could come because of spring break. We leave for Washington on Friday (the 18th) so we needed to have it before! It was SO fun! It was at a place called Backyard Adventures! After having the mess and clean up from Gabe's party less than 2 weeks before, I wanted something easy, especially before our trip! This was the definition of easy!

Like I said before, Julian looooves to build. My friend Jackie showed me a Lego cake a long time ago, and I asked if she would make it. She did and it totally exceeded all of our expectations! Julian was in LOVE! And it was DELICIOUS!

Here are some pictures from the party:
The 'backyard' lunch


Chocolate cupcakes with buttercream icing and a candy lego on top! (Julian's favorite colors are red and black, which is why he picked out black candles)


The birthday boy


Swinging


Gabe about to slide!


The AWESOME Lego cake!


Singing Happy Birthday


Table full o' kids!


So much fun! Happy birthday Julian! You are very, very loved.

Photo Shoot Fails

Gabriel's birthday is coming up shortly! We're having his party on the 26th, so I needed to get a photo for his invite, ASAP! Stacy designed it, and it is SO, SO, SO cute! The theme of his party is Circus, and it's going to be FUN!

So you'd think it would be easy peasy lemon squeezy to get just ONE picture of an almost 3 year old for his invitation, right? Not so much. It was an EPIC fail. Epic. The pictures are cute, most of them, but wow so not what I needed for the invite.


Then, if Gabe's pictures weren't enough, Julian tried to show him how it's done.
This

Is not how it's done.

This is how it's done.


In the end, despite mucho frustration on my part, we got a stellar picture that works perfectly for the invite! So I can't really complain. And here it is! The moment you've all been waiting for. The Invite.


If you are at all interested in a circus party pack for your very own ringmaster's party, check out Stacy's Etsy Shop. Dandy You

Happy Birthday to ME!

Yesterday was my *gulp* 27th birthday. It was also, Mr. Owen's 2 week birthday! We celebrated with a party at the pediatrician's office. No seriously. It was like a party. Julian, Gabe, Owen, me, the doctor and the doctor's medical student. Like I said, a party! A week ago, we went for a weight check and Owen was still weighing in at 8lbs 3 oz, which was his discharge weight. The doctor said he hoped Owen would be at his birth weight by next week, aka yesterday, and guess what? He was! He was 8 lbs 15 oz! Chunky monkey! He has also grown almost an inch, 22 1/2" already! Holy smokes. No wonder those newborn clothes haven't ever quite fit him right!

So, in honor of my many, many, many blessings, that's what this post is going to be.

27 things that I'm thankful for. One for each year I've been alive.

1. My health. Seriously I feel wonderful for being 2 weeks post-partum. Healing great, sleeping as well as can be expected. I'm just blessed to be extra healthy this time.

2. Barry. I'm not quite sure how I would survive this crazy journey without him.


(The following three are in birth order...)
3. Julian. He is such a sweet and kind kid. I'm so lucky to be his mom. While he does frustrate the bejeezus out of me sometimes, in the next second, he's warmed my heart to the max!


4. Gabriel. Seriously. He made me cry at preschool the other day. It was mommy day, and his teachers had asked him what he likes to do to help mommy. His answer? "Help with baby Owen." I cried. He is the most generous, kind, and sharing 2 year old I've ever met.


5. Owen. Nothing like snuggling a baby fresh from heaven. He is the sweetest little guy ever. I am so smitten. And I'm such a baby hog.
(2 weeks ago, while we were still at the hospital)


6. Cake. It was my birthday, so it only stands to reason I had cake last night! Yum! It was even pink.


7. My house. I know we're only renting, but I love having a feeling of permanence.

8. The Army National Guard.
(and men in uniform...)



9. My family. I've been so blessed to have such wonderful and caring parents. My mom came and stayed with me for 2 1/2 weeks. And my dad came to visit for the weekend. So wonderful to be able to spend time with them, and that they were able to meet and snuggle Owen.
(seriously, how cute is this?)


10. Knitting. It's so nice to have finally found something, some way to channel my creativity. I've tried SO many things, and failed. I'm glad there's something I'm kinda good at. I also love being able to make things for my kids. How cool is that? (Even though Julian refuses to wear anything I make him...grumble, grumble)

11. My sewing machine. Again, I can't SEW, but I can applique. It's fun. And it lets me be creative without too much risk.

12. The Internet, and my online friends. I seriously have been so blessed, online. I'm so lucky to have met such wonderful people on numerous message boards. If you're reading this, you know who you are :D

13. My camera. I'm so happy to have a way to capture life's little moments. It helps I have some cute little subjects to take pictures of.

14. Books. How else could I visit Sweden, or Hogwarts, or The Arena. Seriously. I'm thankful for books and authors, and that I can read whatever I want, whenever I want, as long as my little dictators say it's OK.

15. DMU. I'm so happy that Barry is able to follow his dream, and DMU has made it a reality.

16. Facebook. I know I already said the Internet, but because of facebook, I've been able to get back in touch with tons of friends that I've just lost touch with along the way.

17. Uggs. Best, most comfy shoes ever.

18. Hulu, Netflix Watch Instantly, and My DVR. I love being able to watch my favorite shows when I have time. Especially with a new baby, I can't always stay up late to watch them. Most days I'm ready to crash by 7.

19. My favorite shows. I don't like drama in my real life, but I sure do like it in my tv shows. And hot guys, and girls.

20. Clearance Racks. I'm a sucker for bargains. I love saving money, but don't know, or care to know how to coupon. I'm not into that. I just love clearance racks, and buying my kids cute clothes for little $$ :)

21. A garage. It's wintery. True, we haven't had snow, but I'm so thankful that I can pull my car into the garage, and that I don't have to get my kids piled into the explorer in the elemnts. (At least not while I'm at home.)

22. Cloth Diapers. I've not been so diligent in my cloth usage with Owen as I'd hoped. Partly because he was so squirmy and curly. Partly because Barry has no idea how to use prefolds, but I love not seeing our garbage full of disposable diapers. We've been using cloth exclusively for the past 3 days, and I love that my garbage isn't exploding! (OK I take that back, he did wear one disposable today, when I only left prefolds downstairs with Barry, and I went to take a nap)

23. The gospel. I love it. It fits me perfectly. I'm so thankful to know my Heavenly Father, and to know that he knows me, and loves me. Even though I'm far from perfect.

24. Music. Nothing can change or set a mood like music.

25. My Bed. We recently got a new mattress, and it's glorious. GLORIOUS. I love crawling in there, especially with the hint of winter, and just snuggling in. Love.

26. Wonderful friends. I talked about my online friends, now I'm giving a shout out to my BFFs IRL!
(Some of the besties right here!)



And last but not least...

27. My in-laws! So lucky to have married into such a wonderful family. &hearts

And just so you and I know. This, is what 27 looks like. (PS, why yes, yes I am quite tired.)



I promise my next post will be chock full of pictures of my new baby, and a birth story!

February, already?

It seems like just yesterday it was Christmas, but that was over a month ago. So begins February. So begins the month of my baby's birth, the year he will turn two. Really? It's nearly impossible for me to imagine that this summer, Gabriel will be the same age as Julian was, when we moved here. He's a darling sweet boy, who is talking more and more. He loves to run, jump, do circles, and bully his big brother. His favorite place to color? The wall. (Mommy's favorite tool for cleaning up his masterpieces? Magic Eraser.) He desperately wants to be big. He's not satisfied being a baby, and nightly points at Julian's bed and says, "There?" If only he would sleep there.

His curly hair in the morning is a mess. Matted with sleep, but still manages to bounce when he runs. He has THE cutest laugh, and smile. I just love that darling boy.

The boys' birthdays are a little more than two weeks apart. Gabriel is February 27, and Julian is March 16. Since we're moving March 1, and then leaving for Washington for 3 weeks, March 6th, we decided to take the boys to Build-A-Bear-Workshop for an early birthday present, before our lives get crazy! We took them Saturday night, and it was a really fun family date. Julian kept saying he was going to pick out Hello Kitty, which would have been fine with us. Whateves, his buddy, ya know? We were a little surprised that after two weeks of insisting he would pick out Hello Kitty, he picked this guy:


Gabriel, no surprise here, picked this guy:


Pushing all of the buttons at Build A Bear.


I didn't get a picture of Julian putting the heart in his frog, but here's Gabe doing the same



Here's how Gabe felt about the machine that fluffed up his puppy.


Cleaning his frog



The stylish outfit Julian picked out for "Frisbee" the frog


Gabe? HE didn't care about clothes for his Puppy, Peter. He just needed SHOES!


After dinner, we went to the play place, to get some wiggles out. A million other parents had that same idea, because the mall was BUSY!


Yeah, this is how Julian smiles now?


Here's Gabe telling us where his nose is.


And just one more of the cutie cute, birthday month boy!

New Moon

So I know. I know I'm 26. I know these books were written for girls ten years or so younger than me. But I am SO freaking excited for this movie. It's ridiculous really.

I'm seeing it tomorrow at 7:30 with my two best friends. What could be better, seriously?

I wanted to give a recap of my birthday, mostly for my own personal record, because it was quite...memorable.

So yesterday morning, we woke up, and Julian told me Happy Birthday. Awww.

Then the boys and I lazed around the house until about 11 when I decided to go spend my birthday money from my mom, on a fancy new outfit for New Moon tomorrow. (Yes, I bought a new outfit to go to the movies. That's how I roll.)

Before we got ready and out the door, Gabriel had done the following:
1. Spilled his juice, on purpose, on the carpet.
2. Dumped his popcorn, on purpose, on the carpet.
3. Sewed. As in, turned on my sewing machine, and pressed the foot down, and sewed, while my project was on the sewing machine, waiting for me to finish.
4. Fought countless times with Julian, and vice versa.
5. Made the adorable "Cheese" face, pictured here:

no fewer than 900 times. He knows it makes me smile, which is helpful when he's being extra naughty.

There's more I'm sure. But these are just the things I remember.

The Target trip was successful. I got a super cute pair of jeans, some new cute $30 cowboy boots, not the $200 ones I've been lusting over for 2+ years, but they'll do. A cute top and a cute purse, all for $100! Nice job, I say.

We came home, and of course, of course, Julian fell asleep in the car. Gabriel remained steadfast, and only fell asleep about a minute before we got home. When Julian falls asleep in the car, that means no nap. Joy of Joys, let me tell ya!

So Julian and I watched General Hospital, and cleaned up the disaster that was my living room from the morning of dumping by G.

Barry got home at 4:30 and we got them dressed again, oh by the way, my kids? Nudists. Weirdos. And headed to Red Robin.

At Red Robin, the boys, were actually pretty good. They got restless though, as any 3 1/2 and 1 1/2 year old boy would, and they left to go play games with daddy. I ate my free birthday ice cream in peace, and then paid for my dinner, lol!

We went to Target, because I like looking at stuff, and I never get to go with Barry, because he's always studying, or at school, or cleaning, or...you get the picture. So we walked around Target. BAD idea. Julian threw the meltdown to end all meltdowns. Like full on kicking, screaming, and crying. I was mortified. Needless to say, he didn't get the $1 toy he was throwing said fit over. If you heard a boy screaming at West Glen Target last night? About 7, that was Julian. We came home, put Gabe to bed, who went to bed without a binki/binky/pacifier! And then I read stories to Julian, who passed out by 8.

Barry and I watched a pretty cheesy movie, The Accidental Husband, the saving graces were, Denny Duquette, and Mark Darcy. Uma does nothing for me.

Ollllld

Today is my birthday. Barry said I was an old lady, he was joking...I think. But I do feel old. Not old, old. Just like when did I hit late 20's? OY! I'm ok with getting older, I have a wonderful life, and I think it's just going to get better.

I'm not a really superstitious, or a horoscope reader, but my friend Jennie posted this site yesterday, on her birthday. It was crazy accurate for her life, and mine seems the same, or I can hope. http://www.cafeastrology.com/birthday/november1809.html According to that site? My 26th year will be super fab, and it did describe my 2009 year pretty accurately.

I'm going to New Moon on Friday, and I'm so excited. Like SO excited. I am trying to find a cute Twilight-y shirt to wear, because that is how I roll. Red Robin tonight for my free birthday dinner, cupcake in a jar for breakfast, so far 26, it's pretty good.

Gabe's Party Recap

Here are some pictures from Gabe's Birthday Party.

If you click on the picture, it will take you to a full-sized version (which you then can print...mom ;)) :

Gabe...before the party and sugar

From GabesParty

He's crying...hey it's his party, he can cry if he wants to!

From GabesParty

Gabe's Baby BFF, Benton

From GabesParty

The SUPER cute Luke! (It was his birthday too!)

From GabesParty

I think you'll recognize this rapscallion

From GabesParty

The ever sweet David! He loved to play with the balloons. (For the record, the key to a successful 1 year party is balloons, with helium!)

From GabesParty

Carter, Julian's BFF. He is Benton's older bro

From GabesParty

Wild men!

From GabesParty

Gabe ate some Cheetos...

From GabesParty

"Stick the tail on the horsey" That's what Julian called it
Luke

From GabesParty

Julian

From GabesParty

David

From GabesParty

Carter

From GabesParty

Gabba

From GabesParty

About to eat some cake! HOLLER!

From GabesParty

grub grub

From GabesParty

From GabesParty

And one of Julian...

Presents sans pants!

From GabesParty

Mya!

From GabesParty