a few of my favorite things...

Just a few random "favorite things" these days...


Probably my #1 is this J.crew blazer in navy.  It is just so cute.  Cute with t-shirts, cute with tank tops, cute with dress shirts, cute with jeans, cute with skirts, cute not pregnant as well as pregnant... you get my drift.  And here's my little secret:  I got mine for WAYYY cheaper, AND on sale at the J.crew outlet!  Can't beat that!


Nars lip laquer in "Chelsea girls."  My favorite lip color.  It has a little bit of peachy pink in it.  It is the perfect wear-with-all color, and it is thick, like thicker than a lipstick, but it feels creamy and moisturizing on your lips.  It wears for a long time, and as it wears off, it doesnt get sticky or goupy or anything.  Only downfall- you need something to put it on with- I just use the sephora travel lip brush :)


Nars blush.  (I love nars...) And no, not in that (if you know what I mean...) color.  In "desire"- described as "cotton candy pink."  And it really is.  HOT pink.  So, if you like to go light on blush, this probably isn't for you, but I think it is just adorable. 


That's right, folks.  My minivan is one of my favorite things.  Judge all you want, and tell yourself you are too cool for a minivan.  I just feel so safe, and mom-ish driving it.  And let's be honest, I am a mom, so I'm not afraid to feel mom-ish.  We are leaving tomorrow for a 10 hour drive, and let me tell you, I am glad we aren't cramming into the 4Runner.



Double, tall, non-fat, no whip, 2 pump white mocha.  boom.  That's my drink folks, and there's no better time to get it than December when they have their beautiful holiday cups. 

And last, but not least, this little beauty.  This is a picture of favorites, clearly she is my favorite, and clearly pink hippo is her favorite.  :) 

ONE.

My baby is ONE! 

Since her birthday party was thwarted by the barf bug we all got, her celebrations have been sporadic- BB (Stephen's mom) came last week, Stephen was out of town for work on her actual birthday, my parents came in town this past weekend, etc.  Her main bday gift is her new Radio-Flyer red wagon from BB and grandpa Bob. 

Think she likes it? 

We had B's doc appt last week and it was TERRIBLE.  She's in the inbetween stage where she is old enough that shots are BAD, but not old enough that we can explain them to her.  She was VERY sad about them, and it broke my heart.  Good thing Stephen was the bad guy that had to hold her down, I couldn't watch. 

Due to family barf bug, B lost some weight so she dropped to 17lbs 15oz (I think...) which was 7th%, but she is 30inches tall- 60(something)%!  Maybe she's getting the Huff-height?

At ONE YEAR:

B is walking like a pro- I still can't believe how quick she got it.  There was no in between for her.  When she took her first steps in October- there was no crawling from then on.  She has great balance- except first thing in the morning- but who isn't a little stumbly then? 

She loves to carry things- in particular tripping hazzards: big blankets, dad's clothes, bed sheets, towels...pretty much anything that she can and WILL trip on.  She also likes to put said things over her face and walk- such a goober. 

She loves pillows.  She loves to pull them off the couch and go over to it and lay her head on it with her rear in the air- and she waits for you to say "AWWWWE!"  everytime. 

She gives hugs when you ask, and open mouth kisses. 

She knows where my nose is, but no one elses.  :) And she loves to pinch it. 

The only new word she has learned is "baby" but I don't think she really knows what it means.  Most everything is still "Barbara" and spending the weekend with her didn't help. 

She can go get things and bring them to you when you ask.  She knows where the bathroom is. 

She is drinking pretty much all whole milk, and eats most solids, but still eats babyfood.  She will not eat anything green.  She could eat a whole container of yogurt every day if I let her. 

She loves stacking things, and putting things in other things- like putting her paci inside a bowl.  And of course, getting it right back out.  :) 

She still dearly loves to empty things- purses, clothes baskets, drawers, etc. 

We decided to celebrate Blakely's birthday by taking our first weekend away!  And Blakely's birthday present was getting to spend two nights with her GiGi and grandpa!  I was SO nervous.  Like, had major anxiety about it starting when we booked it in September, getting progressively worse as it got closer...  But of course, she did great, and it was only emotionally hard on me.  No surprise, she didn't eat or sleep like normal, but that's what you are suppose to do with grandma and grandpa, right?  I forgot the camera, so I only got a couple of iphone pics.  We stayed at the Raphael Hotel on the Plaza for two nights and we just relaxed, shopped, ate awesome food, and tried our best not to talk too much about our baby!  We had so much fun.  I of course couldn't sleep in, and was ready to go to bed at 10 both nights, and kept telling Stephen to be quiet cause I just couldn't get it in my head that B wasn't there.  :)  But just having two full days where we only hung out with each other and did whatever we wanted was so refreshing.  We decided the Plaza in December is our marriage retreat place.  It is just perfect- cold weather, Christmas lights and music, fabulous shopping, and amazing places to eat.  What more could you ask for!? 

What kind of wife would I be if I didn't go to a sports bar with my husband to watch football?!  Plus I am a Tebow fan.

You can sortof see the Plaza lights in this one.

Some of my purchases- this is my Claire Heido inspired outfit.  I need her in my life to look cute.

That's all of my retreat pictures- terrible I know.  I wish I could show you our beautiful hotel, all the shops we went to, and EVERY meal we ate- they were all to die for. (well, maybe not die...)

And I will leave you with TWO pictures of our photo shoot with the INCREDIBLY talented Brett Heido that he is torturing me with. 

I die. 

15 weeks

I started thinking that our next baby might feel a little slighted when he or she realizes how well documented my pregnancy was with Blakely compared to this one!  By this time with Blakely I had taken a picture of my belly every week and filled up several journal pages of what was happening.  Who has time for that except someone who isn't a mom?!  Well, I decided I better get on the ball at least a little so this one knows he or she is JUST as important, and also so that I can remember how #2 was different from #1!

Here I am at 15 weeks.  I had a hard time figuring out how to take a picure of myself.  I know it shouldn't be that hard, but you have to get a good angle when you are pregnant!

Here I am at 16 weeks with Blakely.  And let me just admit right now, I really wanted to look pregnant back then (in the olden days...)  and I was probably pushing pretty hard on my belly, and I probably got the perfect angle to make me look as pregnant as possible. 

With current baby, I am trying not to look pregnant.  :)  I am definitely a little bit bigger this time around, but actually haven't gained as much weight this time- surprisingly.  Spin class, maybe? 

Luckily, no need for maternity clothes yet- though it probablly won't be long.  No cravings so far, just hungry a lot.  Also, very luckily, no aversions either.  Salads and other veggies don't sound completely disgusting like they did with B. 

I have started feeling movement.  Just little flutters here and there a week ago, then a definite kick yesterday. 

We are contemplating not finding out if this baby is a boy or girl.  Stephen and I are not on the same page, but I am trying to get him excited about waiting to find out.  I figure either way, we default to me, cause, well, I'm the pregnant one.  :)

We had our first family stomach bug- and boy is that overrated!  We are pretty sure B picked it up from the nursery last Sunday.  I'll spare you the details and just give you the overview.  There was lots of throwing up and other tummy troubles.  B passed it to both me and Stephen, and this bug wasn't just a 24hour thing, it lasted 5 days for all of us.  We had to cancel B's birthday party, which was a huge bummer since it was the only time we could do it.  :( 

Stephen's mom wasn't too scared of our bug, and just couldn't stay away from B!  So she came to visit- and we are so glad she did.  B already misses her.  They did LOTS of playing. 

Hopefully I will be posting in a couple of days some of our pictures from our super fun photoshoot (which was right in the middle of the bug) and stats on B's first birthday!!! 

BIG NEWS: rings, babies, and spray tans

Well, a lot has happened in the last week, so here's our update with pictures to follow:

Stephen and i finally got a date night! We don't go out much thanks to our diva daughter, but this week our roommate Robby stayed with her after she went to bed so me and Stephen could have dinner out. It was so fun. We ate food I didn't prepare, way too much of it... Didn't have to clean up- maybe the best part. And we just got to talk. We weren't in a hurry and it was wonderful.

Then Friday came. What a great day. My good friend Claire was about to get engaged on Saturday, so me and another friend convinced her that we needed spray tans and manis. She didn't have a clue. Since it was a secret there was no talking her out of her green nail polish choice, but at least I was the one that looked like an oompa loompa after the spray tan. I did lots of scrubbing. But the best part of Friday was my doctors appointment where we got to hear the HEARTBEAT of our SECOND baby! That's right people, Blakely is going to be a big sister! And I have searched for a big sister shirt, but apparently the retail world doesn't think you should have kids this close together so I might have to make my own.

I am almost 13 weeks which is SO crazy to me. Sooooo different from when I was preg with B. I haven't felt sick much at all, just tired (probably thanks to my busy-body daughter) and it has FLOWN by cause I don't even have time to remember I'm pregnant until I crawl into bed!

Anyway! Our friends Blake and Amanda came in town for the engagement so we hung out with them on Saturday and cooked for the big party. It was a big success. And then we rested all day today.

Whew!!! It has been a crazy week, and now we are just trying to get everyone well!- Stephen has a sore throat, B is getting over a bug, and I started feeling a little crummy today. We are excited for a little more time with daddy at home and a fun thanksgiving and some SHOPPiNG on Friday. Happy thanksgiving!!!

Date night!- I finally learned how to fishtail :)

yay!  Claire's engaged!!!

Friends!

I assure you, this is not a joke.  This is after I washed my face only a few hours after the tan.  I ended up showering two times and exfoliating my face three times to look semi-normal in the above pic with the Claires 

The most wonderful time of the year...

You know, lately I have been hearing a lot about Nordstrom's sign that says they will not be "decking their halls" till after Thanksgiving so as to celebrate one holiday at a time.  Most people that I have heard talk about this are really happy about it.  I have no problem with this, but I must also praise the establishments that want to celebrate the most wonderful time of the year for as long as possible.  :)

I LOVE that when I go peruse Old Navy, there is Christmas music playing.  I LOVE that Starbucks is using their Christmas cups.  I LOVE the TJ Maxx Christmas commercials- hilarious.  I love all Christmas commercials.  I love my December "Real Simple" issue that I have already read cover to cover.  I love that there are some radio stations that began playing Christmas music on November 1st.  I am not a hater on people who choose to wait until after Thanksgiving to indulge in all the Christmas festivities- that is totally fine, but what I don't understand is people who are so bothered by people who choose to start early.  People like...my grinch husband.  He whines and moans when I try to listen to Christmas music, buy Christmas candles, watch Christmas movies, and get out little holiday decorations.  I love Thanksgiving just as much as the next person, but one of the things I love about it is that we are in the season.  I still have my pumpkins and fall decorations out, but you better believe that before Thanksgiving we will be putting up our tree and Christmas wreath and other decorations (despite the protests of my husband...), because I just don't think one month is enough to celebrate Christmas. 

So, Nordstrom, that is totally fine that you are choosing not to "deck your halls" until after Thanksgiving, but I will be decking mine a little sooner.  And I'll start with my daughter, who has been wearing Christmas PJs for a few months now.  :)

Eleven.

Can you believe it? Me either. Here she is

She is pretty much exclusively walking and has been since about 5 days after her first steps. She's wobbly when she first wakes up and has taken several early morning falls. But once she's awake shes pretty good! She loves exploring. I have to close all the doors in the house, otherwise I can't find her!

She is having a rough time adjusting to daylight savings. She was getting up at 5 and taking virtually no naps. Today she slept till 6 and it was wonderful.

She has been eating good lately, but I'm wondering if it's too much. Crazy, I know. But she eats like 32 oz of formula a day plus baby food and table food. No big deal, but she pees a crazy amount. Just what you wanted to know. I mean, she went to bed at 7 two nights ago and had completely soaked through her pjs by 10:30. That's not normal. And every night if I don't change her in the middle of the night she will be soaked by our 5am wakeup call.

Oh yeah! She go her first tooth and boy was it rough for the first week! I'm talking, fussy, clingy, didn't sleep, didn't eat, drool, etc. She also decided she no longer wanted to sleep in her bed. Like would SCREAM every time I put her in it even if she was asleep! So Stephen insisted we go back to letting her cry. It was hard, but she is better. Cries a little sometimes, but generally puts herself to sleep after a few minutes of deciding which binky she'd like to use that night. :)

She waves bye bye and sometimes says it. Says mama, dada, Barbara, bottle, dog, and we think she says Robby- our roommate.

She stands at the gate and cries when dad leaves and waits for him there when she hears him come home.

She has such a goofy little personality. She loves to imitate whatever noises we make, she loves peekaboo and hide and seek. She is sneaky too. I know she is doing something she isn't suppose to when she is quiet. She will also run if she hears me coming when she's gotten into something she isn't suppose to.

Only one more month and I'll have a ONE YEAR old!

Chicken

B has a tooth coming in (finally!!!) so she has had a rough couple of days. Fussy, clingy, not sleeping or eating well, diarrhea- which my mom swears is a symptom of teething. So needless to say, we didn't do much on Halloween, and would you believe our doorbell only rang once for trick- or- treaters? But I had a chicken costume so I at least had to put it on her for some pictures. Now that she can walk there is no being still and cooperating for photos. She's wayyyy to busy. So this is the only good one we got!

Walker

Well, we have a walker on our hands as of last week.  My parents came to town and my dad was bound and determined to teach her to walk.  She has had great balance for a while and stands alone all the time.  It has been clear for a while that she could walk, she just hadn't quite figured out that she was able to.  I was pretty sure that one day she would just realize she could do it, then there would be no turning back.  Stephen and I went out for lunch last Wednesday, and my parents and grandparents watched B.  I think the audience helped her out a little.  No surprise to us, she took her first 'step' with my dad while we were gone. 

The next day B and I drove to OKC with my parents.  That afternoon she took her first unprompted 'steps.'  She knew exactly what she was doing too.  She was in the dining room by herself (but I could see her) and she was walking from chair to chair, and you could just tell she was thinking about it.  She turned and was looking at me and my mom, smiling really big, and she took a few steps.  She was pretty proud of herself.  So of course after that, we were making her practice all the time.  Here are the first two videos: 

Once she realized she could do this, there was no stopping her.  In fact, I think she has forgotten that she can crawl to get somewhere a little quicker.  She isn't quite to walking exclusively, but I have a feeling it won't be long. 

She also added to her word list:  "Barbara."  It's my parents' dog's name.  And it is by far the clearest word she says.  She is a little obsessed. 

I am so excited that she finally started walking!

X

I thought I'd change things up and use a roman numeral X instead of boring old TEN.  :)  I'll spare you the "I can't believe my baby is ten months old..." business and cut to the chase!

She turned 10 months old last Saturday but had her check up a couple days ago.  We were very excited to learn that there weren't any shots this time.  I just assumed since we hadn't seen the doc in a few months that she would get shots today, but not til 1 year! 

She weighed in at 17lbs 7oz- 13%
She is 28in tall- 45%

I was really thinking that she was going to weigh more, cause she sure feels heavier than that! 

Doesn't she just look like a little person?  It is so crazy how she looks less and less like a baby, and more like a little girl.  I love it!

We spent Blakely's 10 month birthday celebrating my brother's 29th birthday in Kansas City.  We went and saw his apartment, went and ate on the Plaza and shopped around.  Then we all came back to our house to watch the hogs beat Auburn! 

Blakely is an expert crawler.  I thought she would be an early walker, but she has proved me wrong now that she has gotten so good at crawling.  She has recently discovered her inner explorer.  A few weeks ago she discovered that there are other rooms in our house, and she now has the freedom to go to them.  Her favorite spot is the bathroom- mainly because she knows she isn't suppose to go in there.  She is quick too, if she finds something on the floor, as soon as she sees you coming she will slip it into her mouth ASAP.  gross.  She can stand on her own- and she is super proud of it. She also pulls up and walks along anything and everything.  It makes Stephen pretty nervous.  She has taken some pretty hard falls, but I think she is finally mastering bending her knees and landing on her butt. 

She has also recently learned to clap and wave!  She loves to applaud herself.  She also loves to share.  She will take a toy (any toy) and hug it or put it in her mouth then she will hold it out for you and wait for you to hug it or put it in your mouth- then she'd like you to return it.  :)

Here she is exploring.  I don't know why I think this is so funny.  She will also sometimes crouch down and make sure there isn't anything under the couch that she needs. 

She has finally started to love books!  She will pick one up and hand it to me to read to her.  It's so cute.  She will sometimes let me finish the whole book, as long as there aren't too many words.  She loves to turn the pages.

We always have some issue with her eating.  She recently decided that she LOVES her bottle.  She takes FOUR 8oz bottles a day.  However, this new found love has also started her dislike for baby food.  I have to bribe her to eat baby food veggies with a bit of big girl food.  She gets a bite of egg, or turkey or cheese, in exchange for a bite or two of veggies.  It usually only works for a short time before she is just done altogether.  She loves ANY big people food you give her.  It doesn't matter if she just ate, if she sees you eating, she wants some too.  Stephen says I have turned her into quite the begger cause I pretty much give her a little bit of whatever I eat. 

She got her first kiss the other day from her friend Hudson.  He is a little bit older than B, and she usually chases him at church or our playdates, and when she catches him and touches him, he freaks out.  It's pretty hilarious.  But after hanging out for a couple of hours last week, he warmed up to her a little bit and decided to give her a few smooches.  I was SO sad I didn't have my camera ready because it was hilarious.  She didn't even know what to do with the attention after all the rejection she had experienced. 

She is wearing 6-9 month clothes, except for jammies she wears a lot of 12month since we bundle her pretty good. 

She goes to bed between 7:30 and 8, and sleeps till 6:30 or 7.  She wakes up for a little playtime around 3am though.  I usually get up and change her diaper in hopes that she will sleep a little longer.  Sometimes it works.  She takes two 1hr (if I'm lucky) naps a day.  One at 9am and one at 1pm. 

I think her eyes are going to be green like mine.  They are more gray than blue, and they are starting to have little hints of green.  We will see! 

She is talking all the time.  Mostly "dada", and she certainly knows who that is.  She gets very excited when he comes home and goes and stands at the gate saying "dadadadada" until he walks in.  I think she says dog too.  It doesn't really sound like dog, but it's the same word each time she sees a dog, so I am pretty sure that's what she is going for. 

She loves to play hide and seek.  Loves to go on walks outside.  Loves to go to the grocery store.  Hates her carseat.  Hates going to bed.  Hates getting her diaper changed.  I let her crawl around naked every night before bath...and somehow we have never had an accident.  Well, I got a little too confident in her and I let her crawl around on our bed last night.  She stood up, and peed all over.  I think she was proud of herself, too. 

Fall, fashion, and craftiness

Two posts in one day!  I know! 

I LOVE fall!  The colors, the weather, the food.  Everything!  So now that I have been wasting lots of time on pinterest, I have been getting lots of great creative ideas.  I am not naturally creative on my own, but if I see someone else's creativity, sometimes I can recreate it.  So here is my new fall wreath! 

I haven't decided if it needs more or if I should just leave it.  I am open to thoughts.  I got all excited about these flowers and I made lots of headbands for Blakely.  They are SO easy. 

FASHION:  my good friend Claire has a gift for fashion.  I do not have this gift.  So she came over and looked through my closet and put outfits together.  I was so excited, because she pointed out LOTS of outfits that I didn't even know I had!  Here are a few!  

Maybe this seems super simple to everyone else, but I never would have put these things together!  Navy and black?  Apparently they go!  Leopard=neutral.  Who knew?  So it's almost like I got new clothes, but I didn't have to pay for any!  She also told me a few key items that I should consider adding to my wardrobe.  She even helped me find some of those things!  We got interrupted by our babies, so I am hoping she'll come back over and continue this super fun game of dress-up.  I also want her to purge my closet.  I know there are some things in there that I just need to let go of, I just need someone to tell me to kick it to the curb. 

Anyway, she is SO talented, so if you need a wardrobe makeover but don't have What Not to Wear $5000 credit card to do it, then you should hire Claire Heido! 

Somebody's old...

So, I turned 27 this weekend.  And I really feel old.  There's something about 27 that just sounds older.  It was a great birthday though.  Stephen got me coffee, donuts, let me sleep in, got me some goodies from J.crew, and took me shopping.  He's the best.  We then had a slumber party with my brother, Joe. 

Blakely didn't mind being tortured by Uncle Joey.  She got to have stuff put on her head, got turned upside down, got put in other awkward positions, and got to put strange things in her mouth. 

Unfortunately for us all, I didn't get a picture of him taunting her with his toe- which she did manage to get in her mouth at least once.  He is such a big brother...

Isn't she a cutie!?  I am so ready for fall.  I love dressing her for cool weather.  I will say, it's a little harder to keep a little crawler warm, but she is just so cute in her jacket and leg warmers. 

In other news, the neighbor across the street thinks her name is "Bailey" and I don't know what to do about it.  I feel I have missed my window for correcting her.  I think the first few times she said it she didn't say it loud and I thought maybe I misheard her...and now it's just too late.  What should I do?

visitors

This past weekend, Stephen's parents came to visit.  I always say I am going to take pictures for things like this, but I always forget!  Luckily, one afternoon Stephen reminded me to take a few.  They were here for a few days, but these are all I took!  Hopefully I will get better at this. 

Blakely had a great time having constant entertainment.  She not only had constant entertainment, but one of her favorite things, a constant audience.  This girl loves to show off.  She is a people person, and the more the merrier for her.  She might take a few minutes to come out of her shell, but once she's out, she's out.  She quickly learned that Grandma and Grandpa equals someone to always help her walk around, distract her when she is fussy, make goofy faces and noises at her, and praise her when she does pretty much anything. 

They also were a huge help for us!  Bob fixed our fence, watered our flowers- Blakely enjoyed helping, cleaned off our patio, and trimmed some trees!  Our yard always looks better after Stephen's parents visit.  :) 

Lucky for B, she will finally have a cousin to play with in March!  (well...it might be a little longer before any "playing" occurs.)  Stephen's sister, Anna, is pregnant.  We can't wait for little Moore to make his/her debut! 

Blakely also started for real crawling.  She was moving around just fine, but it wasn't exactly a conventional crawl.  It was actually surprising because she did next to no crawling while Grandma and Grandpa were here- it was all walking (with help, of course).  It was like, the knees and the arms finally clicked.  She just started doing it.  She is now much faster, much more efficient, and much happier!  She doesn't get frustrated when she wants to go somewhere else, she just goes!  It is pretty amazing how much faster she can get to the power cords than she can her own toys.  She is also enjoying finding all the tiny things on my floor for me to run over and swipe before she can stick it in her mouth...  I have already vacuumed 3 times this week.  I guess my house will be cleaner these days! 

4 years!

Yesterday was Blakely's 9 month birthday.  But more importantly, it was our 4 year anniversary!  Without the last 4 years of marriage, there would be no Blakely!  I can't believe we have been married that long.  For some reason, 4 sounds so mature to me.  :)  We left B home with the roommate after we put her to bed and we headed to Kansas City for some Jackstack BBQ.  It. Was. Awesome. 

This was our food after we already started!  I made Stephen run out to the car to get a camera.  Jackstack has the BEST brisket I have ever had.  The ribs were fall off the bone, and though I am not a baked beans fan normally, these beans were INCREDIBLE. 

Stephen is a really messy eater.  :)

We were holding hands (awe!) and Stephen made a comment about my engagement ring and the waitress thought we just got engaged.  I kinda wanted to pretend like we had.  :)  Sometimes it feels like we just got engaged! 

It was such a fun night!