Our Great Adventure

Happy Valentines Day

2012-02-14T22:24:00.001-06:00

Here are some scenes from our 2012 Valentine's celebrations:

Heart shaped waffles & pink and white straws in milk (or caramel frappes) for breakfast. Next year I will make the waffles and milk pink.

Chocolate chip sandwich cookies for Michael to take to work.


A Valentine craft Isabella made at Heather's yesterday. I love it!

Balloons for Isabella

So, I saw these adorable heart shaped balloons on this blog I read, so I ordered some for Iz for Valentines day. I took them to get them blown up, and realized how tiny they were. The lady at the store said, "Um, these will not float". The other guy working there said if she put two on a ribbon they would float, but they didn't. I told her it really didn't matter, they were for my little girl and she wouldn't care if they were floating or not. Telling her they were for my little girl seemed to make it a challenge for her. She said, "They are for your little girl?! Well, I'm going to make these balloons float for her". I reiterated that she really wouldn't care. But she kept working at it and eventually had four of the heart balloons tied together and they still wouldn't float, which discouraged her. So she got a large balloon and tied it all together and was very pleased. I got out my wallet to pay, and she told me not to worry about it that it was on her. Why am I telling this long story? I was just really touched by her determination and kindness. She spent extra time in her day trying to do something that she thought would make someone else happy, got it done, and wouldn't let me pay for it. Although I'm sure it was just a few dollars, it was really nice. Being caught off guard by the kindness and generosity of stranger made my day and made me want to do something kind. And how much better would our world be if we all went around doing kind things for each other?! (Stepping off my soap box). Just now as I'm typing this I got a text from my sister that she left a surprise on my front porch! Kindness people- it makes a difference! :)

Valentines ~~Isabella~~ and I sent out to our family.

My sweet owl card- hoo la la!

My valentine girl

We had breakfast at home together this morning and then a busy day. Isabella hung with me running around doing several errands for us getting ready to go out of town and some other last minute things. Michael brought home dinner from one of my favorite places 501 Cafe. Its been a good day. I am so grateful for the family I have to love and that love me! Happy Valentines Day!

2012-02-13T10:27:00.002-06:00

We headed out to Fort Worth Saturday to an OC roadshow Michael had. Isabella had her first ride in her big girl car seat. She is still rear facing for now, but it sits up higher than her infant seat so she can see a bit more. {Thanks Mimi!}
The road show was at a families' house we have stayed with before. I really look up to Krista, she is a great mother and baker and really funny. She knows how to throw a party!

Her dessert table that she spent hours baking for.

She changes out the candy in these jars seasonally. We were there last in the fall, and Isabella wasn't walking and couldn't really see them and didn't really know what candy was. She has been a little spoiled since then, as soon as we walked in the kitchen she started pointing, signing please, and enthusiastically saying PLEEEZE PLEEZE! She loves sweets.

Isabella got dressed in her OC gear and ran wildly around in a house with 100 people with no fear, making friends with everyone.

She did well on the 3.5 hour car rides, which I'm hoping she will follow suit for our 3 hour plane ride this week. In the first picture in her car seat, she looks so much like a little girl, and I love in this one when she's asleep, I still see my baby.

We got some snow last night! Not enough to cancel our day or anything, but still exciting. Michael's work did start 2 hours late, so it was nice to have him home longer. When it snows I feel we must have cinnamon rolls for breakfast, so we had the last of the pioneer woman cinnamon rolls I had in the freezer.


Watching Daddy clear off his car.

I'm grateful for a quiet morning. Today I've got a meeting with our accountant, clients to see, errands to run for our family valentines celebration tomorrow, phone calls to return...but I'm not going to stress. ;) Isabella and I leave Wednesday morning for a trip to New Jersey, so at some point I need to think about packing. Happy Monday! Have a great one!

(I loved this post today! I am only a mother of one so far, and I would like to say Amen! Most parents I know are trying their best, but parenting can be hard. I've picked my screaming child off the floor in barnes and noble and carried her out, wrestled her in restaurants, and I can't imagine wrangling 4 children, in public, on my own. I'm also trying to train my child up well and sometimes there are just those moments in public when its really tough! I'm hoping to be surrounded by gracious people on planes this week, and that my child does well!)

A little bit of our friday

2012-02-10T22:09:00.004-06:00

Snuggling in bed this morning before getting started on our day. This was our "Have a great day Daddy" picture that we I text to him.

Playing with Milo

Ready for date night

Key lime pie with fresh pineapple, strawberries, and kiwi

I'm glad we really enjoyed the warmer days over the past few weeks, because it is FREEZING now! I'm off to finish packing for a quick trip to Dallas tomorrow for Michael's work, time to get ready for a whirlwind weekend!

Science Museum

2012-02-09T14:53:00.001-06:00

We went to the science museum today with our friends that have a pass and love it. I hadn't been since 3 or so years ago when I took my nephews. There have been a lot of updates and changes since then. I wasn't sure if things there would be too old for Isabella's age, but there was a lot for her to see and do.

Checking out the trains

Painting

The gymnastics area

Practicing her balance beam skills


Astronaut Isabella Mitchell!!

We had a fun time and there was still a lot we didn't see. There are lots of open areas also, so it seems like a great place for winter play and when it gets to be 110 degrees again!

4 Generations

2012-02-07T07:57:00.003-06:00

We went to visit my Nanny yesterday, who is my great grandmother, and Isabella's great great grandmother. She just had her 103rd birthday! She still lives in her own home with my great aunt. When I left she said "I know that you lived in Australia when you were little and your birthday is December 27th". Good memory!

Four generations on my mom's side of the family, 103 to 16 months old!

2012-02-06T08:16:00.006-06:00

We had a low key family day on Saturday until I had to leave that evening for book club.

We all wore pajamas for a good portion of the day, and Isabella thought it was hilarious to wear these pants on her head.

Isabella watched her first movie. Well about 10 minutes of it, then she was over it and up and bounding around again.

Sunday night Heather and David came over to watch the Superbowl. I made these brownies from a recipe my sister gave me.

One thing I love about them is you melt the butter on the stove, and then just mix everything else in the pot. So you don't have to worry about your butter having to be at room temperature, or over melting it, and you just have one pot to clean.

I put down half of the batter, layered chocolate chips, and then the rest of the batter.

They are very good!

We didn't want to get toooo crazy with food, although I realize that is the best part of the Superbowl. We had sausage balls, pizza squares, veggies, chips and queso, brownies, chocolate chip cookies, and black cherry cream soda.

Of course Isabella's favorite was the c-o-o-k-i-e. I try to spell it instead of saying it, because if she hears that word she repeats it about 100 times.

I love the weekends with our little family. They go so fast!
Happy Monday!

our day in instagrams

2012-02-03T16:16:00.007-06:00

A morning bath not because she needed it, but she loves to play in the bath. I got out a new toy from Christmas for her to break in.

It was a rainy-trip-to-the-cupcake-shop kind of day

Perfect for stomping in puddles

Hanging out with buddy Milo in the evening

Goodnight Moon

Thankful Thursday

2012-02-02T22:11:00.007-06:00

At the beginning of this year, I had a talk with a friend late at night in a sketchy McDonald's parking lot. (Where else would you want to have a great conversation?) Basically the ending theme was that our lives are really great right now, but sometimes we find things to be unhappy about and focus on those things. The talk has really stuck with me over the last month. I don't claim my life is perfect, because its not. My life has had seasons of loss, grief, and struggle. But for now, things are good. And life has taught me that can change with one hour, one phone call, or one statement. What I walked away from that conversation thinking was that, I know hard seasons and trials will come again, and I don't want to regret that I didn't enjoy the good times as much as possible. It was a good perspective check for me. I hope as I continue journaling my gratitudes that gratitude will become an even greater part of my character, and I will always be able to find things to be grateful for and happy about, regardless of my circumstances.

Some from this week:
*new beginnings
*family meals at our dinner table
*sunshine
*playing at the zoo
*watching isabella's delight when chasing bubbles
*hot chocolate chip cookies and ice cold milk
*my mom
*Michael graciously eating part of our dinner I charred and acting like it was still good. :)

We had a last minute diversion from our dinner at home to chilis for dinner and dessert. A fun mid-week change up!

I love hooded towels!

Slow down

2012-01-31T15:56:00.009-06:00

How is it really the last day of January? This month has flown by!
And all the time Isabella seems a little more little girl rather than baby. I think if she could say the phrase "I can do it myself" she would be saying that more and more.

I caught her in this juggling act the other day. Balancing her purse, drink, and trying to get her baby in the stroller. (Where has she seen that?)

Finally baby is in, bag is secured on her arm...

Time for baby to have a drink.

Slow down, baby girl. She will have years to balance a juggling act of kids, bags, snacks, home, relationships, work, school, etc. Isn't that what we women do? Sometimes I feel like my balls are juggling well, and other times they are dropping everywhere. I've done pretty well at accomplishing the goals I wanted to in January, and I enjoyed some down time too.
I will continue juggling through February, with 9 days of travel scheduled so far for our family!! A fun trip for me, and some work trips for Michael. I can get overwhelmed sometime looking too far ahead. So today I have tried to focus just on today.

We enjoyed a quiet breakfast at panera, followed by reading our favorite books and morning nap.

And it has been such a gorgeous day.

We headed to the zoo this afternoon. I forgot the stroller was in Michael's car.

So we walked

and walked

and walked... on the slowest trek to the giraffes ever. :) She had a great time exploring along the way. I was hoping to see the baby giraffe, but he wasn't out. We did see the new baby okapi.

Isabella said "Hi!! HI!!" to everyone we saw. She was saying hi to someone when I took this picture.

We ended the night eating dinner up at Michael's work with his office.

I love our small college campus by night.

She is growing up, but we still haven't given up the pacifier for sleeping. We will cross that bridge another night.
Goodnight January.

In the kitchen

2012-01-29T12:16:00.009-06:00

I've been cooking and baking some this week, which is fun for me. Remember when I had a cooking blog? That's clearly gone by the way, and so has trying lots of new recipes. It seems for the last year I mostly do quick and old standbys unless I know I'm going to have extra time. I hope to get back into trying new and involved recipes some day, but that's not realistic on a day to day basis for this season of my life. But, that being said, I enjoy cooking, and think it is important to make time for the relationships you had (marriage, friendships) and things you enjoyed doing prior to becoming a parent.

So, here some things I made this week:

The last time I made these cookies from Annie Eats, I just cooked a few and then rolled the rest into balls, and placed them on a cookie sheet in the freezer. When they were frozen I put them in a ziplock and back in the freezer. Its great to have the homemade dough on hand to just cook a few when needed or more if people are coming over. This week I pulled some out and made heart shaped cookies.

I made a batch of pumpkin chocolate chip muffins. Isabella LOVES these. This time I used half whole wheat flour and half regular and cut down the amount of chocolate chips. They freeze beautifully so they are nice to have on hand for breakfast or snacks.

Heather and I got together for a quick freezer cooking session on Friday.

We made up a batch of high protein pumpkin pancakes to freeze and have on hand for the girl's breakfasts. We adapted the recipe from this blog. We used greek yogurt instead of cottage cheese and whole wheat flour instead of dry oats.

We also made 2 batches of meatballs, Maui chicken, and honey pork chops. All of these recipes are from the book "Don't panic dinner's in the freezer". I own these books now, but they can also be borrowed from the library. I don't have a huge freezer, so part of what I liked about the books is that it details ways to freeze the meals so that they take up as little space as possible. I love having meals on hand that are ready to go or just need some sides added to them. I'd like to try to add in a couple hours of freezer cooking each week to make dinner prep go smoother. I'd had "host a meal exchange" on my 30 list, but didn't get around to it. But I hope to do that in the next month or so.

We had a family gathering to go to and I made my mom's Sunday Rolls. They are so good!

And I had a bit of dough left from the rolls, so I made it into cinnamon rolls for us to have for breakfast this weekend.
This week I hope to make our friend's amazing homemade spaghetti sauce and some delicious brownies.

Tuesday

2012-01-25T17:13:00.007-06:00

Most Tuesdays Isabella and I go to lunch with my friends Heather and Katie. We all worked together for a couple of years.

After lunch I took Isabella to play at the park.

I can't get over how mild this winter has been so far!

I love spending the day with her.

I had read about some restaurants participating in downtown week. Here is the explanation from the website: "each participating restaurant will create special prix-fixe menus, featuring limited-time, 3-course dinners". I thought it sounded like a good chance to try a new place AND we had just received our first disbursement of the earnings from the ads on Michael's blog so we decided to use that to go out on a nice date. It's not like he will be quitting his job over it, it was just enough to cover our meal, but it was fun to have the meal paid for. I don't think either of us could have ever predicted that his blog would become what it has, but I'm proud of him for creating something he is passionate about. He receives an email almost every day from someone thanking him, sharing their experiences with their dad, or telling him how its made a difference in their life.

Heather and David came over to stay with Isabella and we headed out to dinner as it began to rain. We enjoyed a great dinner, were able to completely finish all our sentences, and we only had to worry about feeding ourselves. Sometimes its the little things... :)

My chocolate and salted caramel tart with a sugar haystack

Big thanks to the Roberts for staying with Iz and getting her ready for bed so we could have a dinner out together and come home to a clean baby all ready for bed! Weekend dates are better sometimes because you don't have as many responsibilities the next day, but week night dates are fun because they are a different change of pace in the middle of the week.
I loved the rain last night and hearing it fall on our home as we went to sleep! Happy Wednesday!

16 Months

2012-01-24T10:56:00.004-06:00

Isabella's 16th month birthday was yesterday, and I actually remembered to do her chair picture on the day!!

Look at that face! "Mom my nose is running, and these pictures are really starting to get old..but I'll oblige you anyway."

This past month has been full of Christmas, time with family, a runny nose, nice weather and cutting teeth. I'm hoping the 6 new teeth are just about in and settled until the next round. Isabella's new word from this weekend is "awesome", that she picked up from her Dad. Some other words she says are: all done, bye bye, hi, Mama, Dada, Nana, Mimi, Milo, Ava, Papa, flower, shoes, socks, orange, tweet tweet, chair, NO!, OK, seat, hold you, baby, book, night night, car, woof, outside, and sunshine. New foods she's been into are cutie oranges and edamame. But her most favorite food is chocolate chip cookies. She can say cookie now, and has woken up from naps saying cookie, cookie, or at other random times in the day.

So after our grocery run yesterday we popped into Pei Wei, because they have good chocolate chip cookies, and shared one for her birthday.

Happy 16 months sweet girl!

Saturday in Dallas

2012-01-22T16:54:00.006-06:00

Saturday morning we ate breakfast in the hotel, then Michael left for work for a few hours. Isabella had her morning nap, and when Michael got back we headed out to NorthPark mall. It is one of my favorite malls! So many great stores. We will have to go back again soon when we have more time.

There are also lots of neat design and flower displays. Isabella had fun checking things out.

This is one of my favorites. There is a fountain on one side, and then turtles and ducks swimming on the other.

And since Isabella wasn't eating solids last time, I had to introduce her to Sprinkles Cupcakes this time around.

I'd say she was a fan. (Have I mentioned I love the instagram app on my phone?!)

Waiting for our table at Babes Chicken Dinner House.
We had been hearing the legend of Babes leading up to this trip from Michael's coworkers, and it was definitely an experience to be had. No menus, you just pick which meat you want from the list the waitress recites then sides are brought to your table family style.

After dinner we hung out at the conference for a while then Isabella and I went back to the hotel for her to go to bed. And after a wild and long bed time, she *finally* went to sleep. And then I took a million pictures of her sleeping trying out different settings on my new camera. But this was just on my phone, again using instagram. Sleeping babies are so sweet, especially when you've had to work hard to get them that way!

It's good to be home. I'm ready to get our home organized and ready for a new week. We are gearing up for a busy, but good week for our family.

Friday

2012-01-20T23:07:00.003-06:00

I'm hanging out in a hotel room in Dallas with a sleeping baby while Michael is working. I had a chance to upload some pictures from my camera from this week.

We had some glo sticks that we thought would be fun to let Isabella use in the bath.

It freaked her out having the light out...Maybe we'll try again in a few years.

Totally not sure about all of that...

I was looking for some pictures to put in a 'who loves baby' picture book, Isabella has and realized I don't have many picture of Isabella with her Grandparents. I want to take more.

I got this one of Isabella reading with her Papa on Tuesday night when we were at my parents' house.

We still keep Ava at our house on Wednesdays. It is still amazing to me how much the girls have changed in a year. When we first started Ava was crawling and Isabella still wasn't even rolling over. Now they walk, talk, play, imitate, eat different food, and every week it seems they are doing something new!

Sweet friends

At one point they both wanted to get in the chair in Isabella's room. Then they wanted a blanket, and then books.

And then they jabbered on to each other with a bunch of unintelligible words, pointing at the pages in the books. I wondered if they knew what the other's babbling meant. :)

I'm glad we could join Michael for this weekend, even though he is working some, so we can still be together. Glad the weekend is here! Happy Friday!

2012-01-17T23:04:00.003-06:00

Michael was out of town yesterday until late so Isabella and I hung out at my parents house in the evening. My mom got stuff for us to make a valentines banner. (My love for all things holiday came from her.) You need paper, wooden letters, glue, and tinsel or string.

Trace your letters on the paper you want to use and cut them out. Then glue the paper on top of the letters.
Be careful if the paper has a pattern that you reverse your letters so they go the correct way. I messed this up a few times.

Hot glue letters to your string.

And hang! Thanks Mom!

high & low

2012-01-16T21:22:00.003-06:00

high- Michael was off work today!!

low- shortly after waking up Isabella threw up on the floor in our bedroom

high- we ate a yummy breakfast together

low- Isabella threw up on herself at the table

high- I went to target alone during nap time, browsed quietly with no one (ahem) trying to stand up in the shopping cart or saying "ALL DONE, ALL DONE!"

low- Michael text me Isabella had woken up and thrown up all over her bed

high- Starbucks in target still has the mix to make caramel brulee latte from their holiday drink line and I still had a gift card from Christmas. (Its always a sad day when they run out until next season.)

high- We had lunch together, I went to work for a few hours, work was good, Michael made dinner while I was gone, we ate dinner together.

low- Went out to run errands and Isabella (wait for it...) threw up all in her car seat.

high- Rented a movie to watch as Isabella was really tired and would be ready to go to bed early.

low- Got Isabella to sleep...she woke up 10 minutes later crying...because (you'll never guess), she threw up in her bed again...

low- so much laundry!

high- YAY! For my super cheap new homemade laundry soap!

high- Yay for such nice weather today that we can have the windows open to blow out the smell of vomit.

Ugh. So tired of throw up. She just has so much mucus that she keeps choking on which is causing the gagging---->throwing up. Michael goes to Dallas tomorrow for the day and evening, so let's hope tomorrow goes better. And I'd say that's enough talk about throw up for one day. The end.

Some scenes from our week

2012-01-14T16:44:00.001-06:00

Monday:

She's learning how to use a spoon to feed herself.

It's a work in progress. :)

Tuesday:

Picking up some things at Whole Foods.

Loving bath time

Thursday:

Isabella's Christmas tree was the first decoration to go up, and the last to go down. I hated to take it down, but was ready to have the space back on her dresser. During her nap I strung these valentine heart lights my Mom got her last year. She was impressed when she woke up!

It snowed Wednesday night, so Thursday Isabella saw her first snow of the season- what was left of it anyway.

Friday:

Holding hands on our way home from dinner at Smashburger

Friday night movie. Some day we hope to have a sectional, but its just not possible in our current house. So we pushed our couch and love seat together to watch our movie because we are fun like that.

Saturday:

Appetizers at my girls lunch at Victoria's pasta in Norman. YUM!

Playing at home Saturday afternoon.

January Project

2012-01-12T06:49:00.000-06:00

For January I decided my project was going to be to make laundry soap. I've wanted to do this all year, since a book I read last January, so I wanted to do this first. (This is my year to not put off things that I should do or am interested in doing. Today I took a dress to the cleaners that Isabella outgrew last MARCH!! that has been sitting in a corner of my living room, waiting to go to the dry cleaner so I can pack it away. But, I'm on it this year!!) There are a bazillion recipes online for laundry soap. I decided to make a powdered soap instead of liquid, because the process seemed a bit simpler and some of the reviewers liked it better.

I ended up using this recipe: 1 C borax, 1 C washing soda, 1 bar of ivory soap, and a few drops of lavender essential oil. And I got a jar to store it in when I bought the supplies.
You grate the soap and mix it together with the other powders and oil. I didn't think my soap grated fine enough so I put it in the food processor for a spin.

I ended up tripling the recipe and it all fit in the jar.

You just use 1-2 tablespoons per load. This batch will last me a long time, and I still had plenty of supplies left to make more. Next time I might try some soaps other than ivory that are a little more natural. I was a little skeptical about the small amount to use to wash, but I tried it today and my running clothes, that I ran 5 miles in, and trust me- did not smell pretty, came out with no smell. So I figure that was a good test!

And for those of you who don't really care about these kinds of things, I included these pictures for you! :)

What's cooking?

2012-01-11T16:28:00.006-06:00

My happy spirited girl!

Isabella got a kitchen for Christmas from Michael's parents. They came over last night to put it together for her.

She was very interested in the process.

Almost ready!

She also got a cupcake apron, just like mine, for Christmas for my sister. So now she can be cooking in her kitchen, just like Mama... :)

2012-01-07T22:08:00.003-06:00

We have enjoyed hanging out with my friends that came to town this weekend. We stayed up waaaay too late catching up and laughing.

We played at the zoo playground

Isabella went on a Saturday morning donut run with daddy this morning.

But as for the best part of our weekend, I think Isabella's been pretty happy to have dad home...

And I hope she knows:

that he adores her too...

Happy Weekend!

2012-01-05T16:42:00.003-06:00

My goals for 2012 are:
1. Hang my clothes up every night
2. Read my Jesus Calling book every day and the verses included
3. Write in my gratitude journal every day
4. Read at least 24 books this year
5. Do one DIY craft/cooking/creating project each month
6. Run a half marathon in the memorial run.

I love goal setting and continuing to work on becoming the person I want to be. So I don't look at these as resolutions, but rather intentionally deciding things I want to accomplish this year. Basically the themes are taking care of myself physically, spiritually, and emotionally through exercise, quiet time, being grateful, reading, not having so much clutter laying around, and creating. And when I'm in a better place I am a better wife, friend, Mom, and so on! I am sure I will reassess as the year goes on to see if I have developed some good habits and need to add some more to work on, but for now I want to keep things very achievable. Michael and I also sat down and wrote down some family, couple, and financial goals we want to work toward this year. I'm excited!

I'm bringing back Thankful Thursday to remind myself of all the many blessings that happen over the week no matter how small. This weeks are as follows:
-Family breakfasts
-Michael's time off for the holidays
-More referrals than I need right now
-Great weather
-Running with Hayli
-Seeing Isabella make people smile
-The book club girls
-Facetime
-good health

We are faring alright with Michael being away, and we are half way through. But also ready for him to come home!

Here are some pictures from our day:

Wednesday and 15 Months

2012-01-04T16:59:00.002-06:00

Isabella turned 15 months on 12/23 and I forgot to post her pictures.

She changed so much in a year's time, it really has been amazing. She is trying to say new words all the time, walking so well, and developing lots of personality.

She has 8 teeth, and at least 5 more cutting in, that I can see. This has resulted in her being as pictured above or wild and cranky some over the past few weeks. Her bottom gums are hugely swollen where both of her molars are coming in, but still haven't cut through the top. Hurry up teeth!

Our Christmas break came to a screeching halt today with Michael leaving at 4:45AM on a business trip for the next three days. It was so wonderful being together as a family for the last two weeks. We went out and did fun things, stayed in in our pajamas, watched Christmas movies, and had lots of yummy breakfasts together. My one "regret" is that we never watched Home Alone. That being the case, I would have to say all in all it was a great break. :) It will be an adjustment getting used to being on my own again, but I'm really grateful for Michael's job, it's flexibility, and time off!

2011 Highlights

2012-01-01T11:46:00.000-06:00

2011 was a great year for our family. There were many highlights, but I picked just a few to remember.

January:

We took our first of many trips to the zoo. Look how little she is!! :)

February:

We enjoyed having Michael home for some snow days!

March:

We had a family picnic and loved the weather getting a little warmer.

And Isabella began trying food, and I enjoyed making them.

April:

We loved our first Easter with Isabella.

May:

We did swim lessons for the month of May.

We had a great annual beach trip with my family.

June:

I loved making peach Jam with a friend.

We went swimming a lot!

July:

We had a great time in Destin with Anderson's!

I loved that sunrise!

August:

We celebrated 9 years of marriage!

September:

Michael turned 30!

Isabella turned ONE!

October:

We went to New York City

We had a fun Halloween and Fall with Isabella!

November:

A wonderful Thanksgiving- so much to be thankful for!

Celebrated Hayli's 30th with a downtown getaway!

December:

I loved the holidays with Isabella this year and starting and continuing traditions.

What a great year we had!

Last day of 2011

2011-12-31T23:34:00.001-06:00

For our last day of the new year we relaxed at home in the morning and then headed out to the zoo in the early afternoon. The weather was gorgeous, so we had to take advantage of it. Michael's parents have given Isabella a zoo pass the last two years for Christmas- it is the best gift ever! They were able to join us at the zoo.

(Yes, shorts in December!) It was Isabella's first time to go since she has been walking. I think she saw more of the zoo than she ever has before and enjoyed exploring.

For New Years Eve, my mom graciously offered to stay in with Isabella if we wanted to go out, but no one seemed to be very set on going out. So we stayed in and brought in the new year with Heather and David in our home.

Our meal started with homemade tomato basil soup and a delicious barefoot contessa salad with homemade dressing.

The we each built our own pizzas.

Then a few hours later we enjoyed molten chocolate cakes with either peppermint ice cream or homemade raspberry sauce. And I just noticed there are no pictures of people...just food. Awesome. Well, we had a fun time together talking and laughing and ringing in 2012. Happy New Year!

Celebrating 30

2011-12-30T17:55:00.003-06:00

We celebrated our 30th birthdays while we were in NYC, but this week was my actual birthday and we celebrated it up!

Michael made the traditional number pancakes for breakfast.

I went to lunch at my favorite, 501, with the girls in my family.

For dinner we stayed in with take out fajitas from Mama Roja. Then Michael made my favorite chocolate cake for dessert.
It was a fun low key day with my favorite things: good breakfast, running with my cousin, yummy lunch with family, hanging out with my girl, napping, very fun presents, and great dinner and cake.

Thursday night I had a celebration with some girlfriends. I had joked a couple years ago when Michael asked how I wanted to celebrate my 30th birthday that I would like to get a limo and go look at Christmas lights. (To which he said, Oh, that's easy, I thought you might want to take a trip.) I had seen a deal on Seize the Deal for a Christmas light limo ride in early November, so we bought it. But it turned out to be a major ordeal, and a week before my birthday I still didn't have anything set up. The owner was impossible to get a hold of and not easy to work with. I ended up being able to get my money back because the deal was not able to offer what it was actually for, but then I had no plans. But Michael came through in the last minute and booked me one with another company. I had imagined making some really cute invitations, but instead I was sending out facebook messages at the last minute.
But in spite of the stress getting it scheduled, the night was how I wanted it to be, a fun time with my friends. Another example of how things may not always go along with my vision, but can still work out to be great.

Me with the two Heathers in my life.
Heather A came over early to fix my hair. It made me miss (just a tiny bit) those days of living in the dorms with girls to share clothes and jewelry with, and fix hair. My sister, the baking wizard, out did herself making delicious treats.

I just used things I had left over from Isabella's party.

For desert we had brownies, lemon bars, chocolate chip cookie sandwiches, peanut butter cupcakes with chocolate ganache filling, chocolate cupcakes with raspberry filling, and lemon blueberry cupcakes with lemon icing.

At the Yukon Christmas lights

Thank you Michael for making this night happen, my sister for all the baking you did, Heather for fixing my hair, and to everyone that came- I had so much fun talking and laughing with you all!
So here's to 30! I need to do an update on my 30 list. I didn't complete it all, but I still plan to do them all. I have been very contemplative this last week with turning 30, thinking about the past year, and what I hope to do and accomplish in the coming year. But there is no more time for this post, so that will all have to wait!

2011-12-28T07:33:00.006-06:00

(And yes, I made a wish)

In my twenties I:
-Graduated with my bachelors degree
-Got married
-Moved 6 times
-Bought a house
-Graduated with a masters
-Got my Marriage and Family Therapy license
-Traveled to: California, South Padre (many times), Chicago, Arizona, the Grand Canyon, Florida, Pennsylvania, NYC(x2), Belize, Mexico, Austria (x2), Czech Republic, London (x2), France (x2), Switzerland (X2), Germany, Italy (x3), and got to take Michael to Australia to see where I lived my childhood and meet many dear friends.
-had a baby
-started a private practice

Of course many other things happened- new friends I've made, old friends I've loved, I lost grandparents, read many books, learned how to cook, cried many times, laughed many times, but that is just a list of some of the major milestones. My twenties were full of many experiences and numerous blessings. I am so grateful to my Heavenly Father, family, and dear friends that make my life so rich. I'm excited to see what the next decade holds!

Merry Christmas

2011-12-26T08:34:00.005-06:00

Saturday night I set the table for our Christmas breakfast.

And then Santa came!
And at 12:05AM Michael and I decided since it was in fact Christmas now, we would exchange our stockings and gifts to each other. That might be a fun tradition we started to exchange with each other in the quiet of the night.

Isabella woke up, and came in the living room. Several people asked us if she "got it" this year. But she didn't. She had no idea it was Christmas, and didn't even pay attention to the tree at first.

But then she saw there was a stroller for her.

And she didn't really care to look at anything else after that.

Pink TOMS!

I love the look of concentration on her face!

Our family ready for church.

Playing in a box my serving piece came in. Aren't the boxes just more fun?!

Our best gift of all.

We enjoyed church with my parents Sunday morning and spent the day at their house.
We had a great Christmas this year, and got to spend time just hanging out at each of our families' homes. Michael and I spent some time last night talking about our year and goals for 2012. We have so much to be thankful for. We are so blessed by our families and friends and I feel so grateful. Merry Christmas!

scenes from our day

2011-12-24T22:08:00.008-06:00

Michael and Isabella cuddling up this morning before we started on our day.

We spent our Christmas eve with Michael's side of the family.
We had brunch then opened presents.

Isabella checking out her new laptop.

And ripping open her big gift.

I got an awesome new camera, that I'm very excited about!! I just need to learn how to use it now.

Isabella playing with Michael's toddler taxi from his first birthday.

Love this sweet pic of Iz and her great grandma.

We had a great day with family and delicious food!

Then we came home to unpack and get ready for tomorrow.

Merry Christmas eve to all, and to all a good night!

Creating

2011-12-21T18:10:00.004-06:00

Here is some of what I've been up to lately:

This past rainy Monday, Beth and I made paper snowflakes. It was my first time to make some. It seems like that should be an elementary school graduation requirement!

I strung them on some green ric rac.

I had a photo I wanted to make an ornament out of so I started looking online. But the ones I looked at online were $12-30 and I wanted several. So I thought I would try to make some. I found these clear ornaments at Michael's for .79. Then I just added some glitter, photo with cardstock on the back, and a string to hang!

I made a snow globe for a gift card that I'm giving. I'd seen this on a website and gave it a try.

I decided to make some more cinnamon rolls to give as gifts. Who doesn't like some ready to go cinnamon rolls in the freezer? (Except the ones that I baked a bit too long!)

And lastly, I'd seen some jars like these from Anthropologie for $25 or so. I saw someone had made some on pinterest and gave them a try. I still need to find a large mason jar to use and add a little more snow.

That's it. My next project needs to involve wrapping up our gifts. One step at a time!

Downtown adventures

2011-12-19T22:21:00.006-06:00

For a couple of years we have gone downtown with my dad to the Crystal Bridge. The admission is free on Sundays in December.

We got downtown a little early, so we walked around the canal.

Hi Papa!

There was a lot for Isabella to see inside with the lights, carolers, water falls, and plants.

My sister, the cooking wizard, brought me some of her homemade marshmallows. YUM!

Isabella checking out the lights with Uncle David.

Headed home.

And on our way out we came upon this great chair.

Isabella was much happier in it than with a scary Santa!

Merry Christmas!
I had a small list of Christmas adventures for us to go on this year, and we have done almost all of them.
One more day of work for Michael! I still have some gifts to buy, baking to do, presents to wrap, and lazy pajama family days to have.

Sunday

2011-12-18T14:41:00.007-06:00

Michael took these pictures of us after church this morning.
I love this little girl so much!
I can't believe there is just one week left until Christmas!

2011-12-17T23:15:00.002-06:00

I don't know what she's thinking here...but I love the expression on her face!

Corn makes me happy

YUM! Thank you Nowakowski corn farm for your great corn!

Thursday night, before Michael's wisdom tooth removal, we went out to celebrate National Cupcake Day.

How cute is this guy?!

Michael did great, and we were grateful to his dad for accompanying him so I didn't have to entertain Isabella in a small room for an hour and a half!

One thing about living in Oklahoma is the crazy weather. Although it is December, we had one day this past week when the temp was 68. So Isabella and I took advantage of the great weather and went on a walk at dusk. The sunset was amazing!

And lastly, we had our first of seven Christmas gatherings this weekend with my Dad's extended family. Isabella loved playing with the toys there and pushing this double stroller around.

She's getting so big!

We had a second round of "picking a quilt" since we were all together. My grandmother had so many quilts.

I love how different they all are, each with a different story to tell.

This was the one I ended up choosing. I loved all the colors.

Merry Christmas!

My sunshine

2011-12-15T16:31:00.009-06:00

I have some friends who say people only tell the bad stories about their kids and it makes it very discouraging for those on the fence about having kids. So here is my favorite story from this week:

At one of my showers, my sister made advice cards for people to fill out and she put them in a book for me. One of my favorites said "Give her cuddles and sing the same song every night before bed. It will be SO amazing the first time she sings along with you". So every night I sing "You are my sunshine", as we rock before naps and bedtime. One day this week, I said "Isabella it is time to go night-night." And she went and picked up her blanket, came over and held up her arms to me, gave me a hug and started saying "shine-shine, my shine-shine." (Which is how she says sunshine). She is nowhere near singing the whole song with me, but it was very sweet.

Now, I wont tell you about what happened for the two hours following, because it would ruin this being a sweet story about how great having kids is! ;)

Even with the not-so-great-parts, I think being a parent is the best!

Santa Baby

2011-12-13T06:40:00.004-06:00

2010

2011

What a difference a year makes!
2010: This is a little weird, but who cares. 2011: GET ME OUTTA HERE!!!! But it seems the screaming Santa picture is always part of the line up in a child's history of Santa pictures.
And I love how Santa is still trying to smile like its going to be a good picture! :)

Lately...

2011-12-11T17:56:00.004-06:00

How lucky am I that I get to spend my days with this sweet girl?!

I came out of the bathroom one day this week to see Isabella doing this. The broom is huge and awkward for her, but she has been sweeping several times this week! I'm going to have to find her a kid size one. I am loving starting to see her in imitative play!

We went to Smashburger Friday night. It was delicious!

Isabella kept pointing at my ketchup and wanting to dip her fries in it. I love it, so I let her. Then she moved from dipping fries to dipping her fingers in it to eat it.

I can't blame the girl, we use lots of ketchup around here.

We hung out with our friends the Andersons.

Beth makes the best spaghetti!

Isabella enjoyed playing with Milo's felt Christmas tree.

I need to figure out how to make her one!

She loved trying my peppermint chocolate chip milkshake.

She finally let Michael get his finger in her mouth and he could feel molars coming in both sides on the top of her mouth. She woke up crying every 20-30 minutes last night. That was awesome. She is also so congested now she can't breathe well. This always seems to happen when she has teeth coming in. We were all tired and spent as much time as we could resting today.

A favorite Christmas decoration.
Michael's Mema made this Christmas tree 26 years ago. I put it in our room on the dresser every Christmas. It makes it feel cozy.

I had plans to run this afternoon with my cousin. But after terrible sleep last night, the cold, and light rain I was not feeling it.

So I indulged in the runner's drink of Champions right before heading out the door. Just a few sips to pump me up. Probably not the best choice, but I'm not the most serious runner...

the rest of our weekend...

2011-12-05T07:53:00.001-06:00

Saturday morning I was supposed to be in a race, but with a downpour of rain, opted out. So having some unexpected family time, Michael whipped up some waffles for us. He added some cinnamon to the batter, which gave them a really good flavor.

Isabella was a fan.

That night we drove to Yukon and ate at Alfredos.

(Proudly sporting OU gear regardless of the outcome!)

Then we headed to over to the Yukon Christmas lights for more December fun and to cross it off my 30 list. You should know there are three ways to enter the lights and each section shows a different part of them. It is worth it to see them all. Since we were driving about 5 miles per hour we let Isabella get out and ride on my lap so she could see better. She was very impressed! When she sees lights she says "ooooo".

Their lights were great. It's been a couple of years since I have been to the lights in Midwest City, but we will have to go to compare them. One thing that is better in MWC is you drive through the whole thing on one rode rather than going around to three different entrances.

After getting ready for bed Iz opened her 3rd of December book. She is getting better at opening the package each day.

Sunday was a bit crazy with Isabella unrolling a whole roll of toilet paper and breaking the toilet paper holder in the bathroom before we left for church. Then having some horrible diapers throughout the day, that shouldn't be mentioned- I've already said too much- and some fussiness. I think she might be starting to get some of her molars. Merry Christmas to us!

The end cap of our first weekend in December was going to the Canterbury Christmas Concert. I was nervous about how Isabella would do after her day and she was pretty tired. She was very wiggly, but mostly quiet.

Watching the show with my Mom.

They have the biggest Christmas tree at the Civic center. It must be quite impressive to someone that is 2 and 1/2 feet tall.
The weekends always go by so fast and I was kind of hoping for a snow day today so we could have another day at home together. Michael gets two weeks off for Christmas and we are looking forward to that. But there is no snow, and Monday is here. So I'm going to get geared up. Bring it Monday! Have a good week!

Friday adventures

2011-12-04T12:11:00.011-06:00

Friday Heather and I got together for our "2nd Annual pioneer woman cinnamon roll make and freeze fest". I just made that name up.

This year we decided to forgo the maple flavoring and use vanilla instead.

We now have delicious cinnamon rolls in our freezer ready to go for later this month. YUM!

The girls were a little wild during all of this.

But they looked cute in their matching pjs that we both picked up last year on clearance without knowing the other got them too.

Wild. "Don't take my picture mom! I'm in the middle of trying to do something you asked me not to do!" We went with it and had fun anyway. This is our season of life. :)

We also molded these birds out of clay to make these birds from a tutorial Heather had seen. We were both happy they actually look like birds as crafts I try many times don't work out.

Friday night we bundled up and headed out to dinner and the Orr Family Farm with Michael's parents.

Isabella checking out the goats with Daddy.

Isabella spots Santa.

Checking him out, but not sure.

I'd rather give him a high 5 than sit on his lap.

We went on a hay ride and a train ride around the farm.

They had the farm all decked out with lights for Christmas.

One thing to know is that the train & hay rides just run at certain times, so if you are particularly wanting to do one or the other go around that time, or you will have to wait. And your child will be VERY sleepy by the end. Thanks for a fun evening Nana and Cappy!

2011-12-01T22:41:00.006-06:00

Did anyone else see the sunrise this morning?

We almost bailed on the run this morning. Glad we didn't. It was totally worth it for this sunrise. Plus I never regret going, its just getting there that is hard sometimes.

It has been a fun week.

My baby is turning into a little girl!

Isabella's friend Elle is becoming a big sister soon and her Mama hosted a big sister cookie party for her one night this week.

Isabella loves sweets, just like me, and loved her cookie.

Her hand is blurry, but it has a wad of green icing in it. Danielle has done so many fun things to help prepare Elle for becoming a sister. I will have to remember them! Which, let me clarify, I'm not pregnant. I was talking to someone this week about wanting more kids, but enjoying Isabella and also actually sleeping now that we are out of the newborn stage. Someone else was listening in, but not completely, and asked if I had just said we were pregnant. That's how rumors get started people. Not pregnant. Moving on.

I've been watching the weather this week to see if it is going to interfere with some of our weekend fun, and noticed today was going to be warmer than any of the other days in the 10 day forecast, with colder weather coming tomorrow. So, after running several errands today that were no fun for Iz, we derailed from "straight home for nap" to the park.

It was a beautiful day, and I can't get enough of watching my little girl laugh, and bravely toddle around doing her Frankenstein walk.

We could have stayed much longer, but nap was calling. She was so sad to leave.

Tonight Isabella had her first build-a-bear experience with her Nana and cousin Ryan.

She was quite intrigued by the whole 'stuffing of the bear' part.

She came home with a penguin to match her Christmas penguin jammies.

We came home and got her ready for bed and had her unwrap a book now that it is December 1st. I am wrapping up Christmas books for her to open one each day until Christmas. She didn't really rip open many gifts at her birthday so I was interested to see what she would do. She didn't get it at first, but after Michael tore a piece of the paper, she took the package and made this face like she was the hulk and ripped it open. It was too cute, and I wish I'd had my camera ready.

I can't believe it is December 1st. I saw a facebook status today that said "alright! december 1st. we'll cram dozens of activities in this month all for a kid who will have no memory of any of them." And I had to laugh. So true. But we will be making memories and starting traditions!

I'm ready for the weekend! Happy Friday Eve!

Markers of the Christmas season

2011-11-28T10:56:00.006-06:00

The Sunday night after Thanksgiving we go to Michael's parents house and decorate their tree. I think this was my 11th year to participate. We always eat pizza, and the grandkids get new Christmas pajamas. We pick out our favorite Christmas songs and drink delicious hot drinks while listening to the songs.

Isabella "helping" April hang ornaments.

Cappy and the granddaughters.
(Isabella is digging her hand in a cup with her new found love- puppy chow.)

This year the Christmas pajama theme was penguins. Isabella got stocked up with Christmas pajamas for the season!
Hooray for another year of family traditions!

2011-11-27T21:43:00.004-06:00

This weekend my aunt and uncle treated my cousins, sister, and me to a night in a hotel downtown and dinner at the melting pot for Hayli's 30th birthday. We had a lot of fun, and this night also marked my first night away from Isabella. I ended up only being gone about 20 hours, so less than a full day, but it was a milestone, for sure. I felt good about it as she was at home, with her daddy, and I got several updates that things were going just fine.

Heather and Hayli had never been to the melting pot, so it was fun to get to experience it with them!

Something always happens to me when time for the chocolate comes. Its rather embarrassing, but I usually cannot stop laughing.

I love it when Hayli laughs really hard because she always cries, and it gets even more funny. The melting pot is great since you are there for so long and its more of an "experience" than just eating out.

Afterward we walked around downtown. It was pretty to see it all lit up for Christmas. We rode on one of the canal boats. (They are doing free rides in December Thursday through Sunday).

It was so fun to hang out just the four of us since we grew up together, and its been so long since we've been able to.
We walked back to our hotel afterward and stayed up late talking and laughing. Hayli and I have had these ugly red shoes that we have passed back and forth to each other since junior high. She originally gave them to me as a joke, and then I would hide them at her house when I went to visit in Australia, or a family member would pass them back and forth for us. The red shoes were joined by a tacky felt, red hat, and an equally ugly red bag. Anyway, I've had them since we graduated college 7 years ago, and she had forgot about them.

What could it be?!

I got her good, after all these years. (I also gave her a real present other than the red shoes). I better not be getting them back for my 30th birthday after keeping them so long!
It was a fun end to the holiday weekend!

Christmas time is here!

2011-11-26T10:22:00.003-06:00

Friday I put away our fall decorations and exchanged them for our Christmas decorations. Not as much as usual because there are only so many high surfaces that can't be reached by little hands. We put up the tree during Isabella's nap. She was quite impressed when she woke up!

It makes me laugh to see Michael's hand holding her back! I put all the soft, non-breakable ornaments on the bottom half of the tree. So far so good with the tree, she hasn't messed with it very much. I think it helped putting up the tree in her room first and practicing "don't touch- just look". But who knows, that could have nothing to do with it. Our tree fell on top of me once growing up and it was quite scary!

Our wild Santa Baby

She was so excited when I plugged in the lights this morning.

Isabella, you have brought magic to our holidays! I'm excited about old and new Christmas traditions she will get to participate in with each of our families and the traditions we are starting for our family!

2011-11-25T21:57:00.001-06:00

We finished our Thanksgiving trifecta this evening. Isabella enjoyed her first taste of thanksgiving foods. Her favorites seemed to be ham, stuffing, and pumpkin pie. She also got to taste the glory of the day after pie for breakfast. Reading through my gratitude journal from this year the common themes are family, fun experiences with Isabella, staying home with Isabella, sunsets, good friends, safety, Isabella's laugh, and good talks with Michael. We have been blessed so much by our faithful God, our families, and friends. Hope your Thanksgiving was wonderful!

14 Months & Happy Thanksgiving Eve

2011-11-23T21:56:00.003-06:00

We had a good Thanksgiving-eve-day. Michael headed out before the sun came up to trout fish with my brother in law, while Isabella and I went out to get donuts and stayed in our pajamas until mid day. Then we headed to my moms and made a of couple pies.

Apple-cranberry pie in a cinnamon-sugar-butter sauce.

Ready to bake!

I snapped this sweet picture of Isabella and my mom while Isabella was in a post-nap-still-sleepy phase.

And today Isabella is 14 months! She actually sat in the chair for the picture this time.

She is saying and trying to say lots of new words, trying to be brave and take more steps, and developing more and more personality each day.

I can smell the dough of my rolls rising and have clean sheets to slip into for the night. I'm looking forward to watching the Macy's Thanksgiving Parade in the morning and spending the day with our families.
Happy Thanksgiving to all, and to all a good night!

2011-11-20T21:58:00.001-06:00

The weekend is coming to a close, and it was a good one. I enjoyed a date night, chai latte with a friend, and lots of family time.

For dessert on our date night we had peppermint chocolate chip milkshakes at chick-fil-a. They are SO good! We enjoyed getting to eat without juggling feeding someone else at the same time and talking without any interruptions- always nice!

I am a wait-until-the-day-after-Thanksgiving for Christmas person, but this year I couldn't wait and went ahead and put up Isabella's Christmas tree a little early.

She was in awe of it. I put it up on her dresser this year so we don't have to worry about her eating the bulbs and knocking it over.

It turned really cold Sunday. After church it was a great day for napping,

reading books,

and being silly.

We also had family pictures taken by my talented brother in an effort to get a picture for our Christmas card. Here are some of the outtakes we won't be using.

I think she must be saying: "It's freezing!! You guys are crazy! Get me outta here!"

It is really difficult to get a picture with a baby where the baby is looking and smiling...too bad I ruined this one!

Merry Thanksgiving!
Looking forward to a short work week for Michael, time with our families, delicious food, and being mindful of the many things we are thankful for!

seasons come and go

2011-11-13T08:43:00.005-06:00

I spoke on a panel this past Friday to MFT students and recent graduates. I ended with encouraging them to remember the hard parts of right now, that feel so overwhelming and never-ending, are just for a season. Eventually you finish your hours, your courses, your thesis, get a job, begin licensure, pass the exam, get licensed- it does all actually happen. And, I reminded, in the midst of these difficult seasons you must try to glean as much as you can from them, knowing they will pass.

The ironic part is I was saying all this, coming off my own week of "overwhelming, tired, is-this-ever-going-to-pass?" Being out of school or out of whatever does not exempt us from tiring seasons.

Luckily this tiring season was nothing too serious. Isabella was sick this past week, and it was the longest amount of time that she has been sick. The first few days were not too bad when she was clinging and cuddly. But then another child took over that was crazy fussy, screaming, and at times inconsolable. A rash covered her body, and I tried to not think the worse. A trip to the doctor confirmed it was just the end of a virus and she should be getting well soon.

Hence the lack of posting. I spent most of my down time catching up on things, resting, or rocking a baby. And nobody really wants to hear about how tired we are, frustrated, or disappointed about missing a cooking class, lunch with friends, etc. So instead I'll tell about the good parts. Our families were awesome coming over several times to help with Isabella and to give us a break. A sweet friend stopped by with a happy present for me.

My sister came over one night to craft, and we made these felt banners. It is hard to see in the picture but they are adorned with the cutest little turkeys. It makes me happy. I didn't get my glitter pumpkins made this year, but I'm going to let it go. We are already listening to some Christmas music around here.

And over the last week or two it seems the trees have really started to show off.

Isabella discovered the joy of bubble wrap. So fun!

And finally after a week, my sweet, happy girl seems to be back!

We are bouncing back from a busy week of homecoming, a house guest, and a sick child.

Here's to a new week and new season!

2011-11-04T20:50:00.002-05:00

Not much to say tonight. Just hoping my baby feels better soon.

Here's a few pictures from this past week that I haven't posted:

On the hayride

Lollipops are so fun!

My dad likes to make crazy hair at bath time!

Ice cream! Mmmm!

Happy Weekend!

H-A-double L-O-W-double E-N Spells HALLOWEEN!

2011-11-01T07:53:00.005-05:00

As I turned the calendar to November this morning, I found it hard to believe! It is amazing how some days or weeks seem really long, but as a whole, life really moves very quickly!

Isabella and Ava hanging out in their Halloween jams.
We spent our Halloween morning visiting our friends at their new house.

I went to work briefly in the late afternoon. When I got home Isabella and Michael were on the porch passing out candy. Isabella had a blue mouth- the tell-tale sign of the M&M's her dad was slipping to her, each one followed with "Mo!" "Mo!". She's got telling us more down...we are working on please, but not there yet. She'll get there. :)

I had mixed up some sugar cookie mix during her nap, so it would be ready to make cookies when I got home. She helped me roll out and cut a few of them, in her costume and all.

I'm so excited to be starting our family traditions, to be making memories, and shaping her childhood with what I hope is a lot of love, fun, and warmth in our home.

My parents came over with hideaway, sonic drinks, and chocolate covered strawberries from Godiva (amen).
We passed out all of our candy and could have given away more. Now we know for next year.
After we put Isabella to bed, Michael and I watched Hocus Pocus. A silly Halloween movie that I used to watch with one of my friends growing up.

Happy Halloween!

I found a cupcake costume on sale for $6 in Isabella's size for next year, and pinned a very cute owl costume tutorial on pinterest. Oh, the options for dressing up!

October was really fun, but very busy. November is going to start off busy, but I hope to create some more room for still as the month goes on. I'm looking forward to Thanksgiving. It is one of my favorite holidays. (They are all my favorite, but some are a little more favorite).
Happy 11-1-11!

Fall Fun

2011-10-30T17:44:00.010-05:00

We packed in a lot of fall fun this weekend.
Friday we went to Storybook Forest with some friends. Isabella didn't know the stories and can't say trick or treat, but it was still fun.

At the entrance

In the forest.

Checking out the dish running away with the spoon.

Rapunzel, Rapunzel, let down your hair!

How awesome is that Waldo?!

(Watch out for those scary eyes!) They had campfires outside the forest to roast hot dogs and s'mores. Has anyone ever been to Storybook forest when there wasn't a line? I wonder when the least busy time to go is. They also had games and a hayride, but we passed on those this time.

Sunday afternoon we went to the Parkhurst Pumpkin Patch. It was a beautiful fall day!

Isabella flying with her Cappy.

Waiting to ride a pony.

This is the picture before the wailing and nashing of teeth. Riding the pony was apparently quite scary and she wanted to get off.

So we went on a hayride instead, which she liked much better!

She's a climber these days!

YAY for pumpkins!

Parkhurst is conveniently located close to POPS! So after the pumpkin patch we stopped in there for some desert and pop. It was a great afternoon! Thanks Mitchells!

13 Months

2011-10-28T06:33:00.003-05:00

Isabella had her 13month birthday this past week.

Some of the new things she is doing are: giving high fives, blowing kisses, climbing on top of everything, saying thank-you and OK. Of course she does these things whenever she wants, not when asked to show someone! ;) Her favorite books right now are Dear Zoo and Llama Llama Red Pajama.

Reading in her chair with her wild bedhead.

New foods she is enjoying are sweet peas and pumpkin chocolate chip muffins. And two days ago she took several steps on her own. She still isn't very steady and will be crawling for a while longer, but she is starting to try.

We were out Thursday while it was raining, and she seemed to notice the rain more than any time before. She kept holding her hand out and letting the water fall on it and looking at me with such wonder. I love seeing the world through her eyes!

Happy Friday, Happy Weekend, Happy Halloween, Happy time with friends and family!

Fall is here and winter is coming

2011-10-27T11:47:00.000-05:00

I've been watching the forecast this week and seeing the 30 degree temperature drop that was coming. I enjoy changing of the seasons, but love being able to be outside too. So we went downtown Tuesday night to check out the renovated Myriad Gardens, as it looked like it was going to be the last warm evening for a while. We gave Isabella her bath before we went and got her ready for bed, so she would be all ready when we got home.

I always come home from big cities wanting to get out and about more in our city. The renovation is really well done! There are a lot less trees, but it feels more open, there are a lot more places for seating for concerts and picnics, and the new splash area looked like lots of fun.

From the gardens we walked over to Pinkitzel.

We shared a coconut cream cupcake.

It was dark on our walk back, so we got to see the crystal bridge all lit up.

In December there are some nights that the crystal bridge is open for free with music and hot drinks. We usually go with my dad and it is a fun, free thing to do.

It is a cold, rainy, fall day today, and I'm loving it!

NYC Favorites: Isabella's favs

2011-10-26T17:26:00.000-05:00

Isabella was too little to really care that we were in New York. She would have been just as happy at home playing with her toys. She did a lot of this:

Napping at central park.

Napping on the plane.

Sleeping on plane 2.

And snuggling with Dad in the carrier.

In all seriousness, I think her favorite parts were the piano at FAO schwartz, the lights of Times Square, riding the ferry and feeling the wind, and seeing the bubble performance in central park. She also now makes a siren noise, after hearing so many she imitates it when she hears one.

But the best part for her was probably all of the birthday cupcake celebrations. The girl loves a cupcake! What's not to love?!

NYC Favorites: Where to eat

2011-10-25T15:51:00.005-05:00

1. The burger joint. The burger joint is a little burger place tucked behind a curtain in the lobby of the Le Parker Meridien hotel. Great burgers, great fries, with an insider feel to it. It was packed both times we've been there.

2. The tuck shop.

What is this a picture of? An authentic Australian meat pie- just like I remember from childhood, made by real Australians. (Don't knock it until you try it). There are three locations in NYC, this time we went to one in the Chelsea Markets. (I loved the Chelsea Markets, its totally worth checking out). The Tuck Shop also has a variety of pies, sausage rolls, AND lamingtons!

3. Jacques Torres. This is a chocolate shop that sells chocolates (obviously), hot drinks, and cookies. Their chocolate chip cookie was featured in the NY Times a few years ago and is acclaimed on blogs to be "the best in NYC". While I did not get to try every chocolate chip cookie in NYC, it was pretty amazing. There is a store in Rockefeller Center and also at the Chelsea Market.

I will be trying the recipe!

4. John's Pizzeria. Awesome NY style pizza in Times Square. So good!

5. 5 Napkin Burger. We went to 5 Napkin Burger in Hell's Kitchen. It was loud and busy with a fun atmosphere. Michael got a lamb burger, that surprisingly to me, was really good.

I was going to have a burger, but saw someone else's mac and cheese, and decided to go for it. It was delicious with macaroni, cheddar, gruyere, parmesan cream, and crispy croutons. So good, but I couldn't finish it.

6. Serendipity 3. Depending on who helps you here, you may get the feel that they are doing you a favor by letting you be there. But, it is worth the visit for the frozen hot chocolate and their carrot cake is also amazing. We ate dinner there this time. I wasn't sure if their food would be good or if they were just well known for their desserts. But our dinner was good and everyone else at our table really liked theirs also.

We got the frozen mint hot chocolate.
Isabella loved it. :)

7. The lobster place. Also in the Chelsea Markets, Michael had a lobster roll from here and I had their lobster bisque. Both were excellent.

8. Bouchon Bakery. This place has taken over the Dean and Deluca store in Rockefeller Center. We didn't try any of their baked goods, which looked amazing, but their Mocha was one of the best we have ever had.

That's it for the places I would want to return to. Obviously we need to track down where the best salads are in NYC and track those down for some veggies to add to the mix. If you know of a good place let me know!

NYC favorites: things we did

2011-10-24T11:00:00.006-05:00

1. Riding the Staten Island Ferry.
We all enjoyed riding the Staten Island Ferry from Manhattan over to Staten Island and back. It was great because: 1. you can see great views of Manhattan, 2. great views of the Statue of Liberty, 3. it is free! Last time we went to New York we took the ferry that actually lets you off at the Statue of Liberty to walk around and get closer, but we got close enough to see it really well from the ferry.

Manhattan behind us.

Lady Liberty

From Battery Park looking out to the statue of liberty.

2. Exploring the city.
Last time I had a list of things I definitely wanted to do and see. I had a list this time, but wasn't going to be heart broken if we didn't get to them all. It was fun just being in the city, going out for coffee every morning, and seeing a completely different lifestyle than our own.

Greenwich Village was fun to explore and be in a quieter place.

3. Rockefeller center.

I'd rather hang out around here than Times Square. Times Square is a must see, but so busy and touristy. It is also very touristy here, but a little less. We sat out by the skating rink one night and had cupcakes from Magnolia. We didn't go up to Top of the Rock this time, but I highly recommend it if you go to NYC.

4. Cold Play at the Today Show.

The today show is pretty much the only thing I watch on TV, so I loved seeing it in person. I had seen that Cold Play was going to be in concert so we went on that day. Last time, we got up at 4:30 to go to Tim McGraw's concert, and there were tons of people there already. We opted to not do that this time, which meant not getting as close, but you could hear the band from several blocks away, and we could still see really well.

Here's a short clip:

5. FAO Schwartz
This toy store is amazing! Luckily Isabella is not old enough to ask us to buy her things! :) You could spend hours in there. She loved playing on the Big Piano.

She cried as Michael carried her away. :(

6. Dylan's Candy store.
Fun music, fun candy, and close to Serendipity if you have a wait there.

7. And, of course, Central Park.
The park is massive and is a haven away from the bustle of the city. You could probably spend a couple of days exploring and not see it all.

Isabella was fascinated by this man's bubble performance. I, luckily, did not see the man my sister saw performing in the park with a rat on each shoulder and one on his head *shudders*.

Love the boat house area. I would love to take a boat ride here someday- but not with a one year old.

This day we went to a grocery store by our hotel and got food for a picnic in the park. Michael was a trooper walking a long ways, as I scouted out the perfect spot for our picnic. As I told him, making dreams come true can be hard work. ;)

Loved all the changing leaves.

We did some other things too, but those were my favorites. It was a fun way to celebrate our 30th birthdays!

concrete jungle where dreams are made of...

2011-10-22T19:23:00.004-05:00

Our family in Times Square

An amazing pumpkin whoopie pie! (Happy 30th birthdays to us!)

Lady liberty

By our picnic spot in Central park

Our little Joey

The Mall in Central Park

By the boat house in Central Park.

We are home from our week in New York City. Whew! Much different than our last trip there, but still very good. Last time when we came home Michael was itching to move there. Now I think we understand why many people move out of the city after having kids.
We had one day of rain and the other days were beautiful, sunny, light jacket weather. Isabella traveled like a champ, especially today when we were traveling for 11 hours, and on the same plane-without getting off for 8! I was terrified a bad meltdown was coming and several points, but it never did.
Anyway, I am off to soak in the bath and then eat my last delicious pumpkin whoopie pie from the Magnolia Bakery before crawling into my glorious bed!
I will post about my favorite things we did later. Goodnight and BOOMER SOONER!

2011-10-20T21:53:00.000-05:00

We had breakfast at Penelope this morning. It was one of my favorite
meals when we came last time. We just got up and took Isabella in her
jammies. She got several important phone calls on her magnadoodle
while we were there. My pumpkin waffles with cinnamon apples, pecans,
dried cranberries, and cinnamon apple butter were delicious!
The rest of the day was really fun, but too much to tell for phone
blogging. Here are a few pictures for now...

We have arrived

2011-10-18T20:48:00.001-05:00

Our day started very early this morning, so early we saw the sun rise.
Isabella slept through the first flight and did well on the second. We
spent the afternoon wandering through Central Park and ended the day
with cupcakes from Crumbs bakery. I'm off to sleep to gear up for
another day of adventures.

10. Run a 5K

2011-10-17T10:14:00.003-05:00

I checked running a 5 K off the list this weekend. I had been preparing for several months for this run, and it was fun to have worked for something and enjoy it. The weather was great, and there were thousands of people there!

Here we are coming down the last hill toward the finish line! It was fun to see Michael and Isabella standing at the finish line! Now to train for a 10K!

Friday fun

2011-10-14T09:31:00.002-05:00

We met up with Michael for lunch yesterday. It is fun to get to hang out in the middle of the day! Isabella was so happy to see him when he got in the car.

I've been looking forward to this weekend for a while. We get to spend time with different friends all day today. Then we have a full weekend with my dear friends coming into town from New Jersey, the Race for the Cure, and a family birthday lunch. Running a 5K is on my 30 before 30 list, and I plan to knock it out Saturday morning.
Monday is my work day and then early Tuesday morning we leave for our New York trip! I'm bracing myself for a whirlwind weekend, and hoping to find time to pack somewhere in there.

Happy weekend friends! Hope you make the most of it with people you love!

Thankful Thursday

2011-10-13T20:57:00.004-05:00

Something I'm very thankful for is Isabella's health. Sure, she has had some mild colds, has thrown up, struggled with teething, but in the grand scheme of illness those things are small.

She had a hemoglobin test at her one year appointment and her iron count came back low. So low, that they said it could mean she needed a transfusion. To be sure it was accurate, I had to take her to a lab to get her blood drawn. No big deal, except that I HATE getting my own blood taken and become nauseous and panicked every time. Let alone, that this time I had to pin my child against my body while she screamed and writhed for me to let her go so they could get her blood. I felt like I was really brave because I held her tight so they could get their work done. I tried not to cry, but I just couldn't help it. Our super "caring" nurse made it even better when she looked at me and said "really?".
Um, yes, really...I'm crying. Thanks for pointing it out.
Long story short, they said they must not have got the sample correctly the first time from the finger prick and her level from the blood draw was in the normal range. At first I was angry that we had gone through the blood draw for nothing due to them not getting the test right in the first place, but later I was just grateful that she is OK.

Isabella as we were about to head home from the doctor.
(And if you feel like commenting on this picture as others did- Yes, I know that her chest clip is not high enough. I took this picture before I tightened straps and raised the clip- thankyouverymuch.)

Anyway, it was a terrible experience for both of us, and it left me thinking a lot. I thought about clients I have worked with that had a terminally ill child or children that were sick for a long time and died. My heart always broke for them, but even more now having my own child. I can't imagine a life where blood draws, doctors, and hospitals are a routine part of life. Seeing your child be in pain and terrified is a terrible experience. I am so thankful that our sicknesses so far have been limited to some runny noses and congestion.

She hasn't felt good over the past week or so and has been a bit of a crab some days. You can see it in her eyes in this picture. This day she just wanted to be held, so I held her a lot and wore her in the sling while I vacuumed and picked up the house. A new tooth has cut through so hopefully she will feel better soon.

And this day, she wasn't having it that daddy needed to cook dinner and couldn't hold her. So on she went and dinner got made.

Michael has had to work late this week and we have missed him.
I was thankful to his Dad for keeping Isabella on the night I had work. My mom hung out with us two other nights this week. We had fun and it made the time on our own go by faster. I don't know how single parents make it. They have my utmost respect.

I'm thankful for our families, my dear friends, and my life that is blessed in so many ways.

Happy hump day

2011-10-12T14:44:00.005-05:00

Have you seen the huge full moon this week? I love it.

Today is a big day as it was the grand opening of the OKC WHOLE FOODS! I told Isabella all about it on our way there. It wasn't as crazy busy as I had thought it might be. The parking lot was completely full. I strapped Isabella to me and started walking. Then a man on a golf cart came and shuttled us over. Kind of crazy! There were police to direct traffic and everything.

You can tell how much she was soaking in this unique experience! :)

Beautiful!

Loved these heirloom tomatoes! They would make a fabulous bruschetta.

I also loved their huge variety of pumpkins!

The white Cinderella pumpkins were my favorite.

The make and take salad bar looked great, as did the pizza. I didn't buy anything, just browsed and checked it all out. Which I think officially makes me old that checking out a new grocery store was enjoyable! I look forward to going back and picking up some fun things or trying dinner there.

I took the girls to the park before nap today. It was breezy, sunny, and perfect.

They are both getting so big and wanting to explore more!

My baby has some new teeth coming, fussed a good part of the day, and did not nap well. We were both happy for dad to be home!

The difference a year makes:

2011-10-11T10:35:00.005-05:00

2 months

3 months

4 months

5 months

6 months

7 months

8 months

9 months

10 months

11 months

12 months

Branson

2011-10-10T21:58:00.003-05:00

We spent this past weekend in Branson. That meant 5 hours in the car each way. For the most part Isabella did well, but it seemed like a bad sign when 30 minutes down the road she was signing "all done" and reaching her arms out for me to hold her. But we made it there and back without too many tears. Here are the highlights in pictures:

I would venture a guess that one of the highlights from Isabella's point of view was getting to share a hot fudge shake with Mama at Braums, on the road. She loves those shakes, just like me!

Friday night we decided to walk to dinner instead of drive. This meant a very hilly 20 minutes each way walk, but we got to see the "sights" of Branson, and get some exercise after being in the car.

We were tempted to stop and eat at this crazy chicken house, but we pressed on toward Fudruckers.

We went swimming that night, and Isabella was delighted! She splashed and splashed!

We watched the sun burst over the Ozarks Saturday morning from our hotel room.

After breakfast we headed out to Silver Dollar City. We were there for an event with Michael's work so the three of us were decked out in OC shirts. SDC was decked out for fall which I LOVED as I love all things holiday-ish! I've heard they go crazy decorating for Christmas too with a parade and everything- which would be fun.

Hanging out.
We borrowed this bjorn from our friends (*thanks*) which we both loved and probably need to scour craigslist for one of our own!

It was a beautiful fall day!

By the afternoon, our little eagle could take no more, and had a nap in the stroller.

On Sunday we went to church in a outdoor amphitheater at SDC. It was another beautiful day. I could get used to having church outside, in great weather, with the breeze blowing, huge leaves falling slowing, singing my heart out! :)

The view from my seat.

And Isabella...well she fought the good fight, but ended up falling asleep during church in her daddy's arms.

After the service we walked around some more and took some pictures in the pumpkin patch before heading home.

And then Isabella decided it would be fun to eat the pumpkins, which was our cue to move on.

Awkward family photo material?

I love getting to spend lots of time as the three of us, so it was a good weekend, even with the stress that traveling can sometimes bring.

Happy fall, and have a good week!

One year

2011-10-04T07:24:00.004-05:00

My dear Isabella,
You are one year old now! How much we have both changed from that night a year ago in September when you made your entrance into the world, and I became your Mom. We have had some sad days in the last year, but way many more happy days. I have loved having you in my life this last year.

I love your smiles, cheerful spirit, and laugh. I love you on the sad days and on the happy days. I love you on the days when I don't know what it is you want or need and have to keep guessing. I love you on the days when things go great and we have lots of fun together. I love you on the days when I'm tired and frustrated. I love you when your teeth are coming in and when we are laughing at the park. I miss your tiny days when you could sleep curled up on my chest, and I love today how you are constantly learning and doing new things.

We went to the Dr. last week for your one year appointment. It is amazing how far we have come since our first visit there when you were tiny and I was scattered, exhausted, and unsure of myself. It is still strange to me when the nurse pops out and calls out "Isabella", and that means we are up, and I am the mom to Isabella. I love being your mom. I'm sorry for the days I haven't been patient enough or I could have been more playful. I hope to be growing all the time into this role as your mom and that God will continuously give me grace to serve our family well.

You weighed in at 19lbs 12 oz and were 28.5 inches tall. (Your bracelets also made their debut at the doctor). Quite a change from our first days at the doctor! He said you looked perfect. You are signing "all done" and sometimes "more". You say Hi, Bye, Dada, and Mama. You love music and feeling the wind in your hair. Some of your favorite foods are sweet potatoes, bananas, cheese, and avocados. You can walk along furniture or pushing your cart, but you mostly crawl. You are very fast!

This year has flown by, and I have loved sharing all of the holidays, birthdays, and seasons with you. I look forward to what this next year will bring and will try to soak in every fleeting moment.
I love you so much. Happy One Year Sweet Girl!

Our week in review

2011-10-03T07:39:00.008-05:00

Last week:
On Monday we read books and played at the library before I had to go to work.

There is a park right outside the library and for the first time, in the many times we have been the library, we stopped to play and swing there.

Another day we met up with friends for a walk, playing at the park, and cupcakes!

Michael had some busy evenings last week so I took over bath time those nights. Those bracelets from her party have been everywhere, even to the bath now.

My cousin and her daughter came over to play one day and brought Isabella a toy that Chelsea had loved. Isabella has played with it every day. She loves opening the window and peeking out at me. It makes me smile every time.

The weekend finally came, and Saturday we had Isabella's one year pictures with our friend Courtney Waugh. Here is a sneak peek at one. I love seeing her baby teeth in this one.

We went to dinner at Mama Roja, which we love. Isabella played with these red bracelets I was wearing through the whole dinner. She loved the guacamole.

One of my favorite things about being at lake hefner is enjoying the lake, but look how low it is! Those boats are completely out of water! We need some rain.

We came home, and after Isabella was in bed, I enjoyed all things fall. With the windows open and candles burning I finished putting out my fall decorations. I didn't get out as much as I usually do with having a baby around to check everything out- and put it in her mouth.
I baked my favorite pumpkin chocolate chip muffins and simmered some apple cider and mullings spice. It was glorious.

Sunday was gorgeous so after Isabella's nap we headed to the zoo. The grizzly bears were more active than I have ever seen them.

And I haven't been quite ready for her party to be over. So one of her banners is hanging in our house and I hung the tissue pom poms over her bed just for fun.

We have a busy week ahead and are traveling over the weekend, so I loved being home and enjoying our home this past weekend. Happy Monday!

Birthday week

2011-09-28T10:30:00.000-05:00

We spent our first night in TX with some OC alumni friends. Isabella enjoyed her bath in their large kitchen sink. The next day I enjoyed browsing at Nordstrom Rack and Central Market and a delicious lunch with Krista while Michael worked.

Krista made this super cute diaper cover for Isabella to wear with her birthday dress.

The next night we stayed at a hotel in downtown FT Worth. Isabella loved checking out the city lights on her birthday eve.

On her birthday morning, watching us get her present.

Checking out her gift with daddy.

We got home the day after her birthday and I tried to get her monthly picture. She was quite uncooperative, and this was the best one. :)

The worlds smallest #1 pancake. Isabella got her enjoy her first pancake, and first family tradition of birthday pancakes.

Despite her skeptical look in this picture, she really loved it! The highlight of breakfast was when I was pouring the syrup and she opened her mouth and leaned forward like she just wanted me to pour it in! YUM!

Fair people

2011-09-27T10:47:00.011-05:00

The state fair is not for everyone. But there is a strong "fair" influence in my family so I just can't help the fact that I'm a "fair person"- don't judge. Not the fair person type that gets the season pass or rides the scary rides that are packed up into a truck, or eats the latest food craze. But I enjoy going with my family, seeing a few animals, and having my corn dog for the year.

My dad grew up going to the fair with his family and 4H, he even "showed" animals. (Whatever that means). I remember one story of his parents losing him at the fair and not being able to find him anywhere. I can't imagine how terrifying this would be. He was found later, in the pen with his pig, hugging its neck, very sadly. Apparently his pig had lost the "showing" which meant the pig's days would suddenly be cut short to serve other purposes than being a show pig. Farm life is tough people!

Anyway, last Tuesday was $3 day at the fair, so we took advantage of the cheap entry.

My dad showed Isabella the ropes. They checked out the goats,

the baby chicks, the dog show, and

the pig races.

I love my dad's smile- eye wrinkles in this picture.

Cheering on the pigs. Go pigs go!

YAY!

Isabella was too busy talking on her ice cream cone cookie cutter phone to smile for this picture. Ah...a sign of the teen years to come!

Happy birthday Isabella!

2011-09-26T10:54:00.008-05:00

I'm behind on updating some of our adventures from last week, Isabella's actual birth-day, and her one year post, but today I wanted to post about her birthday party. Everything turned out how I had envisioned (which is always nice when that actually happens), and we had a fun day. Her party was at my Mom's so we would have more space, and my mom graciously let me move all of her furniture around to set up.

The invitation.

The table for cake, cupcakes, ice cream sundaes, etc.

Isabella's smash cake.

Cupcakes.
I got these cake stands in pink, yellow, and purple a few years ago for Christmas/birthday. I dreamed of using them some day at my (unborn) little girl's party. Isabella, you are my dream come true.

We had to wake her up from her nap, but once she was awake she was in good spirits for the party.

She loved getting ice cream bites from her Nana.

And playing with this push cart.

Time for cake!

She started out very dainty with her cake. Picking at the polka dots.

But she dug into it after a while.

I love her sweet baby hands in this shot.

Daddy gave her a spoon and she dug in a little more.

My favorite crinkle-nose smile.

After cake she had a bath in the sink to get her hands and hair clean.

Then it was time to open presents.

She loved these plastic bracelets and I keep finding them all over the house as she is dragging them around with her everywhere.

We just invited family and a few friends, as our family alone is several people. I loved being surrounded by the people we love and who love us, who have supported us and cared for us during this first year as a family of three. I am so grateful to my brother who captured so many beautiful pictures of this special day. I asked my brother to take pictures and my brother in law to video the cake eating, so I could just enjoy and be present. My mom and sister worked very hard to help making cookies, decorating, cleaning, setting up, cleaning up...I couldn't have got everything done without their help. Isabella was given so many fun toys, books, clothes, and fun things we are stocked up for quite some time.
It was a blessed happy day.

Isabella, I love your curiosity.

I love your determination and sweet spirit.

Each day you are becoming a little less baby, and a little more toddler. I have loved our first year together, baby girl and delighted in watching you change, take in your world, and grow.
Happy Birthday Baby!
Love you,
Mama.

Wednesday Ramblings

2011-09-21T10:03:00.009-05:00

Still trying to wrap my mind around this:

Today we lingered over our breakfast, stayed in our pajamas a little later, got caught in the rain at the park,

and rocked a little longer...

I know I'm stressed when I get in bed and my mind is racing over my "to-do's". I seem to have over committed myself this week. It's what we Hartman's do from time to time. The problem is it is all things I want to do. I want to go to Dallas for a conference, I want to make meals for people who have had babies, I want to be planning my baby's first birthday party, I want to spend time with my family, I want to tend to my private practice, I want to be a good friend, I want to do our ladies class Beth Moore study, I want to be a good mother, wife, cook, runner, house keeper and on and on...I did a study earlier this year, about living a simple life. It was excellent and thought provoking. But at times I still struggle at managing my commitments in a "balanced" and simple way.

Two blogs I read have recently talked about this topic of balance and trying to do it all. Many people commented on this post saying they have this same struggle, are also looking for answers, would like everything to be perfect, or schedule things as best as they can and then realize you have to let some things go. And I loved this post about juggling all of the balls and trying to prioritize them. As women it is easy to compare ourselves to others and feel bad about what we don't or "can't" do. I appreciated the author's sentiment, that we are all just doing the best we can, and that looks different for everyone. I hope to encourage the women in my life in their "doing the best they can", rather than getting sucked in to the comparing game.

I've thought this week about parents I have worked with who have talked about how much they give their children (materially) and how their children continue to want more and the parent feels like "its never enough". Those conversations always follow with discussions on what children really want- parents that are present with them and give them their time and attention. I've tried to focus on this over the past week when I've felt stressed about getting things done and with the details of Isabella's party coming together- a party that she is not going to remember. I love to celebrate and love a good party, but let's be honest the party is more about celebrating her and for us, as at this age she won't remember it!

So we took things slower today. I want to "do it all", but it is not worth the sacrifice of my family or my sanity. (I will probably have to revisit this thought again and again). I will work hard this week on the to-do's after Isabella's asleep and during her nap times, and otherwise try to focus on being present in the precious moments with my family. I want to give myself the grace to do my best, and that be enough- rather than striving perfection. I will let go of somethings and say no to some, and also know that for each crazy week there is usually a slower one behind it.

I feel more at peace today and will hopefully keep these things in mind again when my juggling ball act seems to overpower what is really important in life.

Fairtastic & Craftastic Friday

2011-09-17T10:41:00.008-05:00

Isabella had her first trip to the state fair yesterday.

State Fair 2010.
She did come to the fair with us last year, but was not out and about to take in all of the sights and sounds. Look how pregnant I am!

It was a lovely, RAINY, cool day, but we got out to enjoy anyway.

She must have just seen a jumbo turkey leg, awesome mullet, or something else glorious you might see at the state fair.

Meeting the baby chicks.
She seemed to like watching them.

One of mommy's favorite. The Wisconsin cheese! (She enjoyed an avocado while Heather and I shared some fried cheese). Daddy was sad to miss the fair with us, but we will be back for a family trip!

I spent the afternoon and evening crafting for Isabella's birthday with the two Heathers in my life.

Birthday hat in progress

The lighting is horrible here, but you get the idea.

Again, horrible lighting, but this banner says "Isabella is 1". And we completed another banner. I'm trying to get everything put together for her party now, as we will be in Dallas for the three days prior to her party. YIKES!

We enjoyed a quiet morning at home this morning and a walk. Isabella wanted to take along the two purses she had been playing with.

So here she is, all ready for game day with her two purses.

Happy Weekend!

Thankful Thursday

2011-09-15T09:26:00.003-05:00

I saw this picture on etsy and love the quote! It is easy to always be wanting something other than what we have. I love the concept of taking care of the things and relationships we already do have and enjoying them rather than wanting what others have or what we think "need".

Wednesday Shenanigans

2011-09-14T16:23:00.006-05:00

I was glad I had a camera handy to capture this, this morning.

Hmmm, there's something in there I want.

Almost got it...

AH! I fell in!

oof!

"Oh, you're watching me Mom?"

We went for a walk today before nap. The breeze was blowing, birds were singing, and the crazy neighborhood dogs were barking.

And the sky.was.gorgeous!

And my favorite picture from the walk:

So sweet!
Happy Wednesday!

What she's been up to

2011-09-13T22:25:00.002-05:00

This afternoon we played with trains and read books at Full Circle bookstore. I love that bookstore!

She is getting better at standing without holding on to anything. Seems like she could take some steps at any time.

This makes me laugh. Recently she loves opening her drawers...

and dumping each thing out one by one.

She has also been "talking" on the phone a lot lately. I caught her on video today. Today the "phone" was one of my make up brushes.

Celebrating Michael

2011-09-12T10:17:00.006-05:00

Saturday morning (after our free breakfast at Chick-fil-a, thank you moneysavingmom.com!) I read about Septemberfest on the lawn of the governor's mansion. So at the last minute we decided to pack up a picnic and go check it out.

Isabella at our picnic.

Isabella and daddy taking in all the sights!
My favorite parts were: seeing a skunk up-close, seeing people in original colonial clothes, free watermelon, free boxes of girl scout cookies, seeing a dog the size of a pony, and being outside with my family.

Saturday night was Michael's 30th birthday party. Lots of friends and family came to celebrate him. He is so loved by many people!

My sister's chocolate cake is awesome!

Candy bags to fill up as party favors.

Michael got a gift of 30 sodas from the Roberts! He will enjoy each one!
It was a fun night and I'm so thankful for our families that helped make everything possible!

Michael's last birthday celebration (all good things must come to an end) was yesterday with my family for lunch.

He randomly wanted a pecan pie for his "cake". Happy Birthday!

Isabella entertained herself by chewing on a corn cobb for the whole last part of our meal and dessert! Love that kid!

I was sad for the weekend to be over last night and was already feeling a little case of the Mondays...But Monday has arrived so I'm going to try to bring it on and take care of some big things on my procrastinated to-do list! Bring it!

Shout out

2011-09-11T21:04:00.001-05:00

I want to give a shout out to my dear friend Callie's new blog!
Our prayers are with you always, Callie and we wait expectantly and with hope along with you!

Check her out here:
http://www.withenduringhope.blogspot.com

Its Friday-friidaaay and Thankful Thursday (Rolled into one)

2011-09-09T20:06:00.004-05:00

There are days and moments that being a parent is not easy. Like the day a couple of weeks ago I told a friend I was going to go INSANE if I didn't get some real sleep.

(Her crinkle-nose-smile this morning when we were playing)
Luckily, with the ebb and flow of things, sleep has returned. I know it will be gone another time again-but for now things are good. Even with difficult times, Isabella has brought so much joy to my life. I was missing her the other night after she went to bed. When she woke up crying in the morning for someone to get her out of bed, I went in, she stopped crying, and as clear as day she said "hi!" with a big smile on her face. So our new word is hi, and I've heard it a lot lately.

Lately I've been thankful for:
*Open windows and cool breezes in our home
*More time outside
*Watching the wonder on Isabella's face as she takes in the world at the park, grocery store, watching out our front windows...
*Running
*Family that's willing to keep Isabella
*New words
*Friends

Isabella and I enjoyed a bagel, latte, and yogurt at panera this morning. She was the star of a table with some old men having coffee, smiling and babbling to them. Then we were off to go by the office, the bank, and later to SAM's, party galaxy, and target. She was a trooper for *most* of the errands. After a while she gets tired of being in the stroller and will attempt to stand up in it. At that point, I switched her to a sling and she was content to just be close to me. We've been preparing for Michael's 30th birthday bash tomorrow night and are looking forward to celebrating with friends.

Isabella got a birthday present in the mail today from my best friend in New Jersey. It is a super cute grocery set with milk, veggies, and fruit. She loved it! My favorite one is a banana with velcro you can peel and repeel.

I've been feeling nostalgic thinking about this time last year how I was in my final weeks of pregnancy and also in preparing for her upcoming first birthday. Every time I think how I can't believe my baby is almost one, I am reminded of how quickly time passes and the importance of being present in each moment with her and soaking it all in.

After Daddy got home tonight we loaded up and ran by the Patty Wagon to grab a burger and fries to share and headed to the lake. (Their burgers and fries are delicious, so check them out!)
It was wonderful to be together outside.

Have a great weekend!

Wednesday Highchair Talk

2011-09-07T22:49:00.002-05:00

Please understand if during conversation I bust out phrases such as "MaMAA", "Dada", "Noooooo", or "baababa". Here is a glimpse into my Wednesday post lunch time:

Favorites from this week

2011-09-07T14:43:00.007-05:00

Here are some of our adventures this week:

More box fun.
Monday she played in the box while I unloaded and reloaded the dishwasher.

Then we enjoyed a picnic outside and amazing weather!

After our picnic we went to barnes and noble to read books. It was time for a new bedtime book. We got the Going to bed book. Which ends with "the moon is high, the sea is deep, they rock and rock and rock to sleep." So sweet! My new favorite.

Mimi brought by a cute costume for our sweet little lady.

I'm loving babies in jeans.

Wednesdays we keep Ava.
Notice their faces...who took a toy from who in this picture?

We played at the park today. I felt brave for venturing to the park with two little kiddos.

My favorite picture of the week so far!
Both girls had a good time at the park and no one was injured, so I feel it was a success!

Happy Wednesday!

2011-09-05T10:13:00.005-05:00

For many years my family has gone to the arts festival at OCCC labor day weekend. One evening the OKC philharmonic plays followed by fireworks. Typically it was on Saturday night, so after marrying Michael we missed some years depending on what time the OU game was. But the last two years it was moved to Sunday night. Last year I went with my mom and sister, when I was very pregnant.

We decided to go this year to cap off Michael's birthday night.

It was a little chilly in the shade, so Iz spent some time in Daddy's sweatshirt while we waited on our curly fries and shrimp basket.

Waiting for the music and playing with Mimi's phone.

I love her nose-crinkle-smiles.

Isabella had a wardrobe change into her jammies.

We didn't stay for the whole thing and missed the fireworks, but I'm glad we ending up going. I loved having Isabella there with us and getting to share that time with her. The philharmonic was great and they had a guest singer who had sang on Broadway in Phantom, as the phantom. I love that musical and he was excellent!

Isabella got to stay up extra late as special treat for Daddy's birthday. She apparently did not realize this was a special treat, was exhausted, and screamed most of the way home. We tried music, playing, singing, to get her to stop crying. The one song that she stopped crying for was 'Happy Birthday'. Too bad it is such a short song. I bet we sang happy birthday 40 times! :) Ah, the cost of making memories!

Weekending it

2011-09-04T16:13:00.011-05:00

With the anticipation of the weekend on Friday I usually kick it in to high gear and get our house clean and laundry done during Isabella's naps. But I wasn't feeling it this time. We didn't have any dates with friends or lunches set up. So we spent the day running errands, shopping, and playing at home. I even napped while Isabella napped for a little bit. I'm enjoying our messy home and the time we've spent together.

Isabella got a birthday gift in the mail Friday. The box it came in is pretty fun!

Love this shot!

This is what was actually in the box. Thanks so much Nana and Cappy!

-Saturday we had a family breakfast at Panera. We rolled right out of bed and went.

So don't judge...

Daddy is so happy OU football is back! BOOMER SOONER!

That afternoon we decided to check out a spray ground that turns out was only 2 miles from our house. Too bad the last day of the season is Monday, but now we know for next year.

We had one tired baby on the way home.

*While Michael was away at the OU game I began some 1st birthday decoration fun with my mom and sister.

Today is Michael's 30th birthday! (30, flirty, and thriving! Name that movie? One of my favs!)

*Our bandit out to lunch for Michael's birthday.

Happy Birthday Michael! We love you so much!! There will be more celebrations to come!
(And if your recipe calls for spraying your bundt pan do it...or you will have cake crumbles.)

I love our weekends together! It is great being together whether we are out around together or just at home. The weather has been gorgeous today. It was awesome running weather this morning and I was finally able to push harder and run faster.
We are off for some more fun to the OCCC arts festival!
Happy weekend!

Swing and be happy

2011-09-01T15:13:00.003-05:00

There have been some rough times this week, but my favorite part of today was watching my girl on her first swing ride. I loved seeing her smile!

2011-08-30T14:00:00.006-05:00

Here is a sneak peek of some pictures my friend took of isabella for her birthday invitation. I love how she captured her joyful spirit!

"I'm having a party! YAY!"

Saturday Snapshots

2011-08-28T20:34:00.008-05:00

Headed out for a run

Isabella had her yogurt with Daddy while I was gone

Then it was coffee and donuts for the grown ups in the house

Michael headed out to a meeting. While I was in the bathroom I heard Isabella in the laundry room...I found her like this. Surrounded by cupcake papers and eating one. She looked so cute and busted when I found her, I tried to not laugh too hard.

Afternoon "swim" time!

My MIL called and asked if I wanted to go out for a pedicure. Yes, Please! And Thank you!!

My family met up for dinner in El Reno at our fav onion burger place. Saturday would have been my grandad Hartman's 85th birthday. Hartman's have been eating at Johnnies for 5 generations now.

Our evening ended with the Roberts calling on us with cupcakes from cuppies and joe! (any time they come to visit in the evening they ask if they can come callin' or we call them and say "come callin' on us!").

That wasn't everything we did...just a few snapshots. There were naps, a mini photo shoot for Iz, laundry folded, and so on. It was a good day!

Thankful Thursday

2011-08-25T11:03:00.006-05:00

My girl was extra cuddly this morning and wanted to just be held and rocked, rather than play. (This was prior to our hour nap battle). She is not always cuddly for long periods of time these days so I was happy to soak in a 20 minute rocking. She wasn't going to sleep or wild with play, she was just happy to be held by me.

During this I was reminded of the many times I sat in her rocker before she was born. I would go in there during the night when I couldn't sleep, in the wee hours of the morning when my body was too uncomfortable to lay anymore, and when I got home from work...it was a frequent ritual. I would sit in there, my favorite place in the house, and "ponder things in my heart". I would stare at the crib graciously purchased for our baby by Michael's parents. I would stare at the bedding lovingly made by my Mom. I would dream of holding my baby and her sleeping in this room marked with love and gifts by so many people who already loved her before she was born. My heart felt so full and I was thankful for so many things.

A year later, looking around her room, while rocking the gift I prayed for, I still feel that fullness in my heart and even more.