Happy Monday!
D gets back from the field this evening and we are so excited to have him home. Our girls weekend was fab, but completely exhausting. Nothing ever goes as planned with a little one, does it? Making a plan is just like tempting the babe not to cooperate. Needless to say, there was no wall painting- but I did get primer and pick out a color! I'm going to try to prime tonight and paint Tuesday or Wednesday, so look out for that update.
As for pictures, let's just say that Miss Grace has a hardcore case of "Stranger Danger"...turning our seemingly quick and easy ghetto photo sesh into 2 hours of pure torture and tears that resulted in 1 photo that turned out semi-decent. Oh, and that was out of 5 that the photographer took. The rest showcase her frozen in terror or clinging to me like a baby koala. It was sad. I'll give it to G, the photographer was not too easy on the eyes...maybe that was it? Ha! I did buy the semi-decent shot...I'm sure we will look back and laugh one day. We had driven an hour to get pics done and had other errands planned, but after that experience, I decided to throw in the towel and just head home. Grace had fallen asleep in my arms and started screaming the moment I tried to get her in her stroller or the car seat, so we were in need of naps and the comfort of our own, safe, stranger-free home. In other news, her second tooth on the bottom is definitely coming in. It may have cut this morning, so that could also add to the clingy-ness that was yesterday.
We skyped with Nana for a little bit and that's about the extent of our Sunday. I ended the evening too tired to even put in the effort to pour a glass of wine. I may or may not have even shed a few tears thinking about having to go to work this week and end our weekend time. As long a day as it is when it is just G and I, I would do it every day if I could. Love is a strange thing, huh? I'd rather wipe poopy butts and clean spit up off of our couch then sit quietly at my desk with a big old Starbucks coffee keeping me company. My goal is to be a work-at-home mom. Hopefully someday I will be able to balance both and figure out how to have Grace and her future siblings at home without missing a deadline or daily conference calls. There is just no way to do it right now. Grace demands all of my attention when we are both home and it wouldn't be fair to work for me to do a half-assed job. Quitting isn't an option. A. I really enjoy what I do and B. We aren't willing to make the financial sacrifice. We'd like to have a nice down payment for a house in a couple years and comfy savings accounts. One day, right?
I need to do an exercise update...just thinking aloud here. I'll get to that at some point this week. We have my dad coming into town this weekend to visit with us and are looking forward to that. Let's hope Grace doesn't go all stranger ballistic on him too. Eeek! That's about it for now...except wait! let's make this post even more random...
Would you be super offended if your husband got a wedding invitation in the mail from a girl he went to college with, never dated, but was kind of like a little sister to him...and addressed the card to "D and Guest"?!?! Umm...hello? I am his wife who you know exists and am the one that is pretty much responsible for making sure a wedding gift gets sent to you on our behalf. (Let's face it...if you want to rely on my husband to get you a gift to an event he is not going to attend, it will either not be done or be some sort of random thing he found to be hilarious on your registry. Wait. Scratch that...there is no way he'd take the time to look at a registry.)
Back to the point.
Even if someone else helped with the invites- they had the return address of the groom's parents and said the "Groom's parents request the pleasure of your company"- it's still weird that she didn't include my name on some sort of guest list to them, right?!?! I was livid when I opened the mail. And yes. I opened the mail addressed to D. It was all lovey looking and I found that to be awkward and had to follow through to see who was sending my hubby inappropriate mail. Haha! Anyways, guess I've beat this story into a pulp. Just wanted to throw it out there and make sure I'm not a crazy person. D seemed to think that there was a valid explanation. I disagree and think it is not only extremely rude, but in poor taste. What do you say? I won't be mad if you disagree with me. Promise!
Alright, have a good week everyone!
xo,
H
Monday, March 28, 2011
Friday, March 25, 2011
T.G.I.F...is it really though?!
Well ladies and any gents in hiding (you know you're out there), it's just about time for another weekend to begin. My weekend usually begins when the weekly email from J.Crew Factory Online pops in the inbox, taunting me with it's pretty summer goodies.
You can go look at them too if you want:
For anyone still remaining on this blog, I'll let you in on a little secret.
D's out of town again.
Quick stalker disclaimer- I am housed with two very loud and obnoxious dogs who would drool at the chance to attack someone. Even out of love. We also own multiple handguns and various other weapons (my husband is crazy), so don't try me.
Ah-hem...back to your regularly scheduled post:
I know it happens once a month, which should have me used to it by now, but it is SO boring when he is gone over a weekend. I love that I have Grace to hang out with, but we live for family time and her 7pm bedtime comes early and leaves lots of lonely time on my hands until I fall asleep (with said ferocious pups by my side). I literally try to keep her up longer so we have more time together (especially on week nights after work), but the kid conks out at 7pm every night with out fail. Rough life, right?! This weekend I've tried to keep us busy by making plans throughout Saturday and Sunday.
On Saturday, we'll do the usual morning routine which involves us waking up for a bottle and watching Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, while I chug my coffee like I've been stranded in the desert for several weeks and finally found a water source. Then we move on to breakfast foods and playing on our play mat and eventually getting sleepy-eyed and going down for a morning nap. This is when I can get myself ready for the day or take out the dogs who've been crossing their legs or watch an hour of TV that doesn't involve a Mouse or Toodles.
After nap time we have a hot date at the grocery store and probably Lowe's after that ("and then Bed, Bath, and Beyond if we have time" - name that movie). Next comes lunch, which will be followed by some playing outside. It is supposed to be 85 and gorgeous here! Lastly, we have a play group with some other moms and kids whose daddies are out with D this weekend later in the afternoon that should take us right up to Miss G's bed time. I'll spend my free time wall painting after the little lady is in bed. :)
On Sunday it is supposed to be stormy and gross, but guess who has an appointment to get pictures taken?! ME! Kidding. Grace does, obviously. We haven't done anything staged or inside at a "studio" type setting with her yet, so 6 months seemed like a good milestone to document through some pics. I'm not even going to tell you where we are getting them done because it is so ghetto I am embarrassed. ::Sigh:: Thus is life in the good 'ol country. We'll see how they turn out and maybe I'll spill the beans then. :) Since we have to get ready, pack up, and drive a good hour to the picture location that will take up the bulk of our day. I'll probably spend the evening getting ourselves ready to start everything over on Monday. The good news is, Daddy gets home Monday too, so morale in La Casa de M should increase immensely.
That's it folks. Glamorous, right? Truth is, we will have a blast playing all day and making up for the missed time during the week. As much as I love working, there is a lot of mom guilt associated with having to leave G at daycare Monday through Friday. I have a post on this coming soon!
Any body have super fun plans they wanna share? I hope everyone has a fab weekend. Check back next week for some posts (look at me planning ahead!) and some G pics. :)
xo,
H
You can go look at them too if you want:
For anyone still remaining on this blog, I'll let you in on a little secret.
D's out of town again.
Quick stalker disclaimer- I am housed with two very loud and obnoxious dogs who would drool at the chance to attack someone. Even out of love. We also own multiple handguns and various other weapons (my husband is crazy), so don't try me.
Ah-hem...back to your regularly scheduled post:
I know it happens once a month, which should have me used to it by now, but it is SO boring when he is gone over a weekend. I love that I have Grace to hang out with, but we live for family time and her 7pm bedtime comes early and leaves lots of lonely time on my hands until I fall asleep (with said ferocious pups by my side). I literally try to keep her up longer so we have more time together (especially on week nights after work), but the kid conks out at 7pm every night with out fail. Rough life, right?! This weekend I've tried to keep us busy by making plans throughout Saturday and Sunday.
On Saturday, we'll do the usual morning routine which involves us waking up for a bottle and watching Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, while I chug my coffee like I've been stranded in the desert for several weeks and finally found a water source. Then we move on to breakfast foods and playing on our play mat and eventually getting sleepy-eyed and going down for a morning nap. This is when I can get myself ready for the day or take out the dogs who've been crossing their legs or watch an hour of TV that doesn't involve a Mouse or Toodles.
After nap time we have a hot date at the grocery store and probably Lowe's after that ("and then Bed, Bath, and Beyond if we have time" - name that movie). Next comes lunch, which will be followed by some playing outside. It is supposed to be 85 and gorgeous here! Lastly, we have a play group with some other moms and kids whose daddies are out with D this weekend later in the afternoon that should take us right up to Miss G's bed time. I'll spend my free time wall painting after the little lady is in bed. :)
On Sunday it is supposed to be stormy and gross, but guess who has an appointment to get pictures taken?! ME! Kidding. Grace does, obviously. We haven't done anything staged or inside at a "studio" type setting with her yet, so 6 months seemed like a good milestone to document through some pics. I'm not even going to tell you where we are getting them done because it is so ghetto I am embarrassed. ::Sigh:: Thus is life in the good 'ol country. We'll see how they turn out and maybe I'll spill the beans then. :) Since we have to get ready, pack up, and drive a good hour to the picture location that will take up the bulk of our day. I'll probably spend the evening getting ourselves ready to start everything over on Monday. The good news is, Daddy gets home Monday too, so morale in La Casa de M should increase immensely.
That's it folks. Glamorous, right? Truth is, we will have a blast playing all day and making up for the missed time during the week. As much as I love working, there is a lot of mom guilt associated with having to leave G at daycare Monday through Friday. I have a post on this coming soon!
Any body have super fun plans they wanna share? I hope everyone has a fab weekend. Check back next week for some posts (look at me planning ahead!) and some G pics. :)
xo,
H
Thursday, March 24, 2011
On home decor
About a year ago, soon after we moved into our current rental...I got the itch. You know, the "OMG, if I have to walk past another boring, old, painted over 2,348,904 times, white wall I am going to FREAK out" itch.
So we painted accent walls. Our "dining room" (I use air quotes because calling that 5x8 section of an open space a dining room is a big, fat lie) became Cranberry. It was cold out still, red felt warm and the hubs was down to comply, so Cranberry was our logical choice. Not sure why we didn't take into account that we'd have to paint back over it before we move, but that is neither here nor there...
Confession time: I am hating cranberry with a burning, fiery passion.
Every time I walk into the house I roll my eyes or when I really feel like pissing off D, I'll let out an audible, "Uggghhhh". He's aware of my growing color resentment. But wait, it gets better.
I hate my living room too. Basically all of it. There is no style, nothing that screams "Come in, relax, this is your happy place." Instead, much like the wall, I get ticked off when I'm in the area. Maybe it involves the curtains that are also cranberry...or the fact that I let D pretty much do all of the decorating. Hmm?
Side bar - Y'all, I just stopped writing this to see if I had some iPhone pics, or maybe even something on the camera with either space in the background and started getting annoyed just looking for photographic evidence. It's not even worth posting for you to see.
To try and remedy the situation, I've asked myself..."What do I like or want in my home?" and since HGTV's Candace Olsen is not a practical answer, I guess I'm going to have to figure this one out myself. At least while we are renters. (Boo.)
I've gotten this far:
I am NOT a red person. Apologies if you are. It is just far too harsh a color for me to have to live in. Now warm beiges, breezy blues, pear green's and maybe even some creamy yellow. I could live in that. Spread through out the house of course. I think I need to make some cheap, easy fixes so that I don't make gagging sounds every time I open the front door.
Changing out the curtains, getting some new accent pillows, finding accessories are all on my to-do list. High on that list is also getting some pictures from our wedding and you know, our child, framed and hung as well. But wanna know what's Number 1?
Painting over that damn wall.
D's out this weekend and I see a Friday night project in my future. I'll post before and afters. :)
So we painted accent walls. Our "dining room" (I use air quotes because calling that 5x8 section of an open space a dining room is a big, fat lie) became Cranberry. It was cold out still, red felt warm and the hubs was down to comply, so Cranberry was our logical choice. Not sure why we didn't take into account that we'd have to paint back over it before we move, but that is neither here nor there...
Confession time: I am hating cranberry with a burning, fiery passion.
Every time I walk into the house I roll my eyes or when I really feel like pissing off D, I'll let out an audible, "Uggghhhh". He's aware of my growing color resentment. But wait, it gets better.
I hate my living room too. Basically all of it. There is no style, nothing that screams "Come in, relax, this is your happy place." Instead, much like the wall, I get ticked off when I'm in the area. Maybe it involves the curtains that are also cranberry...or the fact that I let D pretty much do all of the decorating. Hmm?
Side bar - Y'all, I just stopped writing this to see if I had some iPhone pics, or maybe even something on the camera with either space in the background and started getting annoyed just looking for photographic evidence. It's not even worth posting for you to see.
To try and remedy the situation, I've asked myself..."What do I like or want in my home?" and since HGTV's Candace Olsen is not a practical answer, I guess I'm going to have to figure this one out myself. At least while we are renters. (Boo.)
I've gotten this far:
I am NOT a red person. Apologies if you are. It is just far too harsh a color for me to have to live in. Now warm beiges, breezy blues, pear green's and maybe even some creamy yellow. I could live in that. Spread through out the house of course. I think I need to make some cheap, easy fixes so that I don't make gagging sounds every time I open the front door.
Changing out the curtains, getting some new accent pillows, finding accessories are all on my to-do list. High on that list is also getting some pictures from our wedding and you know, our child, framed and hung as well. But wanna know what's Number 1?
Painting over that damn wall.
D's out this weekend and I see a Friday night project in my future. I'll post before and afters. :)
Monday, March 21, 2011
Happy Half-Birthday, Grace! :)
6 months. Can you believe we are halfway to Gracie's first birthday?
This has been a big month for us. We spent a lot of time outside, enjoying the beautiful Louisiana weather. I went on my first work trip, sans-baby, and we all survived. We went out for frozen yogurt and little miss got her first taste of treats. Grace's first tooth made an appearance about a week ago and the second is not far behind. Lot's of exciting things in these parts. :)
Here are some other fun G facts:
-She waves! This is a new thing and it is only occasionally, although we are working on "hi" and "bye-bye".
-Smiles at everything. Taking pictures has gone to a whole new level of fun.
-Wears size 2 diapers
-Is in 6-9 month clothes
-Still loves Sophie, her favorite chew toy :)
-Weighs 17lbs 10oz, as of this morning. In the 90th percentile
-Is 27.5 inches tall, also 90th percentile
-Has started getting up on her hands and knees, no crawling yet! (But lots of pushing herself backwards...)
-Is really wobbly when sitting, hasn't quite mastered it. Gets too excited to focus on balancing herself with her hands!
-Loves her puppies. Has started interacting with the pups and reaches out to "pet" them all.the.time. Petting mostly involves trying to rip their hair out or poke them in the eyes. Lovely.
-Still looks so much like her daddy and lights up when she sees him walk into the room.
-LOVES music. We sing lots of "Row, row, row your boat" these days...
-Will open her mouth and lean forward to "kiss back" when she hears you go "Mmmmmuah!!!"
-Still drinks bottles like it's her job. Probably about 32-36 oz a day. More if she's teething. We are working on breakfast, lunch, and dinnertime baby food, but some days she's just not interested.
-Is so interested in everything outside. Loves walks or watching daddy throw the ball to the dogs.
I'm sure I'm forgetting tons of stuff, but that's a rough overview of life these days. Things around the M household are just so much fun. We all live for the weekends and lazy mornings where we can begin our days with family playtime, followed by group naps or a long walk. Grace is such a laid back little girl. So happy and content to just spend time being silly with us. I can't wait to see if that personality sticks with her as she grows. For now, she is welcome to slow down a little bit though! :)
xo,
H
This has been a big month for us. We spent a lot of time outside, enjoying the beautiful Louisiana weather. I went on my first work trip, sans-baby, and we all survived. We went out for frozen yogurt and little miss got her first taste of treats. Grace's first tooth made an appearance about a week ago and the second is not far behind. Lot's of exciting things in these parts. :)
Here are some other fun G facts:
-She waves! This is a new thing and it is only occasionally, although we are working on "hi" and "bye-bye".
-Smiles at everything. Taking pictures has gone to a whole new level of fun.
-Wears size 2 diapers
-Is in 6-9 month clothes
-Still loves Sophie, her favorite chew toy :)-Weighs 17lbs 10oz, as of this morning. In the 90th percentile
-Is 27.5 inches tall, also 90th percentile
-Has started getting up on her hands and knees, no crawling yet! (But lots of pushing herself backwards...)
-Is really wobbly when sitting, hasn't quite mastered it. Gets too excited to focus on balancing herself with her hands!
-Loves her puppies. Has started interacting with the pups and reaches out to "pet" them all.the.time. Petting mostly involves trying to rip their hair out or poke them in the eyes. Lovely.
-Still looks so much like her daddy and lights up when she sees him walk into the room.
-LOVES music. We sing lots of "Row, row, row your boat" these days...
-Will open her mouth and lean forward to "kiss back" when she hears you go "Mmmmmuah!!!"
-Still drinks bottles like it's her job. Probably about 32-36 oz a day. More if she's teething. We are working on breakfast, lunch, and dinnertime baby food, but some days she's just not interested.
-Is so interested in everything outside. Loves walks or watching daddy throw the ball to the dogs.
I'm sure I'm forgetting tons of stuff, but that's a rough overview of life these days. Things around the M household are just so much fun. We all live for the weekends and lazy mornings where we can begin our days with family playtime, followed by group naps or a long walk. Grace is such a laid back little girl. So happy and content to just spend time being silly with us. I can't wait to see if that personality sticks with her as she grows. For now, she is welcome to slow down a little bit though! :)
xo,
H
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
Friday, March 4, 2011
Video Upload Test
This is G's first taste of baby food, other than rice cereal. It's about a month old...I'll have some newer vid's here soon if this works!
Tuesday, March 1, 2011
Shred Check -In/Playlist exchange
Let's cut to the chase. Anyone looking for an exciting update to my stats at last week's kick-off are not in luck. I decided to forgo the scale and measuring tape until next Monday. This week I am bloaty, craving chocolate, and cursing myself for not pumping longer...if you catch my drift. Not an ideal week to measure/weigh in. Secondly- I am weird and want to do my exercise updates at the beginning of the week. It just seems like a more logical place to me and this whole Tuesday deal is throwing me off. That being said, here is how the last week has gone...
In terms of Shreding every day, I'm doing pretty well. I skipped yesterday. Oops. I had done 6 days straight and was really antsy to get some time in with my baby girl after work before I had to run out for a dinner with some Army wives. I haven't done a great job being active in that whole realm of our lives, so I'm trying to get out a little more. Excuses aside, I meant to get up early and do it before work and I just was lazy.
To get back on the wagon today I did the video (still on level 1) and got in a nice 4.5 mile run outside. When it came to getting in my 4 days of cardio a week aside from the Shred I was successful and had 5 days this week. Holler.
When it comes to eating better I do awesome during the week and shoot myself in the foot on the weekend. Pancake breakfast...yes please. Mexican- aka bottomless chips and a margarita the size of my face...absolutely. I know to see results I need to do better in this area so I'll try to be more conscious of that this coming weekend.
I am loving my outdoor runs these days. It is just gorgeous here- like the kind of days where you go outside and think "Omg, please don't make me sit in an office all day...whyyyy?!?" Trees are getting more green, flowers are blooming, I am sneezing endlessly and don't even care. One thing that makes running enjoyable for me is my iTunes playlist. I listen to all sorts of music- seriously, you can look at my iPod and find a track from Colbie Caillat followed by some Eminem followed by Jason Aldean wrapped up with some Glee. But my real guilty pleasure, when it comes to jamming out, getting pumped up, and needing some extra "oomph" to make it up that last hill is absolutely rap...the more gangster, the better. This is not a joke!
Here are my current top 5 workout must-haves:
1. You Be Killin Em - Fabulous
2. Right Above It - Lil Wayne & Drake
3. All of the Lights - Kanye (feat. Rihanna)
4. What's My Name - Rihanna (feat. Drake)...not so gangster, but I love it.
5. What You Know - TI...this one is so old, but it is always my go to song when I really need to push it!
Now that I've shown you mine, let's see yours! (That's what she said.) I'm always looking for things to add to my playlist. What do you listen to when you work out?
P.S. There are 4 or 5 of you out there that have personally told me you are joining in on the Shred or just working out in general. Don't be shy...it's fun to hear what other people are doing and get motivated! :)
In terms of Shreding every day, I'm doing pretty well. I skipped yesterday. Oops. I had done 6 days straight and was really antsy to get some time in with my baby girl after work before I had to run out for a dinner with some Army wives. I haven't done a great job being active in that whole realm of our lives, so I'm trying to get out a little more. Excuses aside, I meant to get up early and do it before work and I just was lazy.
To get back on the wagon today I did the video (still on level 1) and got in a nice 4.5 mile run outside. When it came to getting in my 4 days of cardio a week aside from the Shred I was successful and had 5 days this week. Holler.
When it comes to eating better I do awesome during the week and shoot myself in the foot on the weekend. Pancake breakfast...yes please. Mexican- aka bottomless chips and a margarita the size of my face...absolutely. I know to see results I need to do better in this area so I'll try to be more conscious of that this coming weekend.
I am loving my outdoor runs these days. It is just gorgeous here- like the kind of days where you go outside and think "Omg, please don't make me sit in an office all day...whyyyy?!?" Trees are getting more green, flowers are blooming, I am sneezing endlessly and don't even care. One thing that makes running enjoyable for me is my iTunes playlist. I listen to all sorts of music- seriously, you can look at my iPod and find a track from Colbie Caillat followed by some Eminem followed by Jason Aldean wrapped up with some Glee. But my real guilty pleasure, when it comes to jamming out, getting pumped up, and needing some extra "oomph" to make it up that last hill is absolutely rap...the more gangster, the better. This is not a joke!
Here are my current top 5 workout must-haves:
1. You Be Killin Em - Fabulous
2. Right Above It - Lil Wayne & Drake
3. All of the Lights - Kanye (feat. Rihanna)
4. What's My Name - Rihanna (feat. Drake)...not so gangster, but I love it.
5. What You Know - TI...this one is so old, but it is always my go to song when I really need to push it!
Now that I've shown you mine, let's see yours! (That's what she said.) I'm always looking for things to add to my playlist. What do you listen to when you work out?
P.S. There are 4 or 5 of you out there that have personally told me you are joining in on the Shred or just working out in general. Don't be shy...it's fun to hear what other people are doing and get motivated! :)
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