I am definitely old enough that birthdays are not as big of a deal,
but this time, for my 28th birthday, I feel like I hit the jackpot! My
birthday is March 13th, which fell on a Wednesday this year, so I wasn't
planning on having a huge party or anything, or even a small party.
BUT my day turned into a week-long experience, thanks to Robert, my mom,
Starbucks and Ooh La La!
On Tuesday, I went over to my
parents for a small party, partly for my birthday and partly because my
dad was leaving for Azerbaijan the next day. My sister, Amanda was
also home from College Station, which was great to see her! My mom made
a delicious strawberry cake (my request), we had ice cream, sang "Happy
Birthday" and I opened some presents. Colby had cake for the third
time in his life. He was sitting in my dad's lap while Dad gave him
cake, and he was SO cuddly! I don't know if it was his love of Grandpa
or his love of cake that made him so affectionate that night...It was a
great way to send my dad off for his second hitch and just the right
intimate family setting.
Wednesday was my actual
birthday, but it was a work night, so Robert made me a nice meal of
Cornish Game Hens at home and we celebrated with sparkling apple cider.
Another very small affair and just perfect to make me feel loved.
Thursday
I had my 30 week appointment and was told everything was perfect with
me and baby! So I stopped off at Ooh La La and claimed my free birthday
cupcake - mint chocolate! mmmm! That night after Colby went to bed, I
watched my favorite show, Smash, and ate my birthday cupcake
T
Friday,
we finally got into our mailbox (it was too full to open Tues-Thurs so
Robert stalked the mailman and waited at the mail kiosk until he arrived
so that we could get our mail) and I received four birthday cards!
Hooray!
Saturday was a very special day that Robert
planned. He arranged for my mom to watch Colby all day. So at 10:30 we
drove to a state park, had a picnic, Robert got his first experience
shelling pecans and they were so good, even though they're a bit late in
the season...Then he took me to a "surprise" destination - a jewelry
store where I got to pick out diamond earrings! I'm such a lucky girl!
Then we went to see Oz: The Great and Powerful at the theatre and
afterwards had a nice dinner at a restaurant of my choosing.
I
felt like such a lucky girl to have a whole week of celebrating my
birthday! But it wasn't over yet - today, during Colby's nap, I went to
Starbucks to read magazines and claim my free birthday drink! I stayed
for about an hour, and it was great just to have some "me" time.
I
am so blessed to have such a loving family and husband, and son! This
has been the perfect birthday. I can't wait to see what this new year
of my life brings!
Sunday, March 17, 2013
Wednesday, March 6, 2013
Pre-Nesting
I know most women around this time in their pregnancy go through a
"nesting" phase, where they clean their house and prepare for the baby
that's coming. I am, however, doing a version of pre-nesting...getting
the REST of the house in order in preparation for preparing for the new
baby.
Two weekends ago, we finished up the garden - I had posted in November about round 1 of the garden landscaping. Well, over the winter, a few things died and had to be replaced, and a few fillers were needed. Also, we needed to mix the horrible clay-soil with some real dirt so the plants would be happy. So when I say "we," Robert removed all the plants from the garden, and tilled the soil to mix it in the clay, then replanted the plants that were still alive. We went to the nursery and picked up the plants I needed, and planted them. Now we just have to wait for them to grow!
The next thing we did was FINALLY finish decorating our bedroom! This post has been a long time coming and I'm happy to say the bedroom is FINISHED! It literally took months, and here's the breakdown:
August 2012: Created the ombre-lime-green-spoon circle (ultimately was not a mirror)
September 2012: Picked out the material for the curtains (carousel.com), and the curtain rods (JC Penney)
October 2012: Picked out flowers and vase (Hobby Lobby). My mom did the flower arrangement for me. After I picked out the paint, Robert painted the bedroom and painted the dresser (Lowes). Picked out the pillows for the ledge (Garden Ridge). I also bought a sewing machine to make the curtains (Walmart). Wow! I didn't realize how much was done in October!
November 2012: Picked out the king size bed (Rooms to Go), sheets and comforter (Target). Somewhere between October and November I must have sewn the curtains, but I don't remember exactly when. I just know it took a WHILE and I finished them before Christmas.
December 2012: Robert made the lampstands for the bedside lamps, and got me the lampshades for Christmas!
January 2013: I painted the chevron pattern on the lampshades and the room is FINISHED!
Hours of browsing Pinterest and hours of DIY projects that Pinterest made look so easy. Phew! All that's left now is to get nightstands (right now we're using a flimsy table and a file cabinet for my and Robert's side of the bed, respecitively). And maybe get some free-floating shelves for above the dresser. Here are some pictures!
Two weekends ago, we finished up the garden - I had posted in November about round 1 of the garden landscaping. Well, over the winter, a few things died and had to be replaced, and a few fillers were needed. Also, we needed to mix the horrible clay-soil with some real dirt so the plants would be happy. So when I say "we," Robert removed all the plants from the garden, and tilled the soil to mix it in the clay, then replanted the plants that were still alive. We went to the nursery and picked up the plants I needed, and planted them. Now we just have to wait for them to grow!
The next thing we did was FINALLY finish decorating our bedroom! This post has been a long time coming and I'm happy to say the bedroom is FINISHED! It literally took months, and here's the breakdown:
August 2012: Created the ombre-lime-green-spoon circle (ultimately was not a mirror)
September 2012: Picked out the material for the curtains (carousel.com), and the curtain rods (JC Penney)
October 2012: Picked out flowers and vase (Hobby Lobby). My mom did the flower arrangement for me. After I picked out the paint, Robert painted the bedroom and painted the dresser (Lowes). Picked out the pillows for the ledge (Garden Ridge). I also bought a sewing machine to make the curtains (Walmart). Wow! I didn't realize how much was done in October!
November 2012: Picked out the king size bed (Rooms to Go), sheets and comforter (Target). Somewhere between October and November I must have sewn the curtains, but I don't remember exactly when. I just know it took a WHILE and I finished them before Christmas.
December 2012: Robert made the lampstands for the bedside lamps, and got me the lampshades for Christmas!
January 2013: I painted the chevron pattern on the lampshades and the room is FINISHED!
Hours of browsing Pinterest and hours of DIY projects that Pinterest made look so easy. Phew! All that's left now is to get nightstands (right now we're using a flimsy table and a file cabinet for my and Robert's side of the bed, respecitively). And maybe get some free-floating shelves for above the dresser. Here are some pictures!
 |
| Robert's craftsmanship in the lampstand, my DIY-ness in the lampshade |
 |
| The room from the door |
 |
| The dresser |
 |
| The ledge with curtains and pillows |
 |
| The bed and bedside lamps |
 |
| Close-up of ombre-spoons |
 |
| Bedside |
 |
| The flower arrangement |
Saturday, March 2, 2013
One Massive Update
So I realize I've been a bit lax in updating this blog with details of our lives. The last REAL post was around Christmas time, so there are several subjects to cover:
Christmas:
The night before Christmas, we all went to mass and then everyone came over to our house "for drinks" but what my dad didn't realize was that was when we were giving him his outdoor bar that Robert made him. Robert spent a LOT of time on this thing - pictures below, and I have to say that was probably the highlight of Christmas. Apart from being Colby's first, of course. Since it was Colby's first Christmas, although the rest of my family was in town, Robert, Colby and I had our own Christmas and THEN went over to my parents to open gifts. This was a big deal for me because this was the first time that I was in town, but I didn't participate in the 7 am ritual of gift-opening! So ultimately a very good Christmas. The day after Christmas, we all went down to the "party house" at the Frio River and stayed with all of my aunts, uncles and cousins - and Mema and Great Uncle Harold! We had a game tournament of bocci ball, scattergories and washers which Robert and my cousin Casey tied for first place! It was great to be outside and playing, but this was the first time I realized this pregnancy has been giving me sleep anxiety...more on that later.
Front of the bar
Back of the bar
Playing a game on Christmas
Colby's moose hat and Christmas outfit - thanks Aunt Angela and Amanda!
After mass on Christmas
At the party house
Colby's playing washers!
New Year's Eve:
My three sisters and I left the "party house" early to head to NYC! Angela lives there now, so we went partly to visit her and partly to spend NYE in NYC! This was the first girl's trip we've taken all together, and it was the first time we could all drink (apart from me, of course, although I guess I could have, if I wanted to). This trip to NYC was a bit different because we had all been to NYC several times before, so we skipped a bunch of the tourist stuff (although, we did see a show on Broadway). Mostly, though, we just tooled around East Village, where Angela lives and visited shops and bars and restaurants near her home that she hadn't tried yet. It was great! Then on New Year's Eve, we had booked a comedy show at a club near Times Square. It was madness trying to get there and Angela had to sweet-talk/lawyer-argue some policemen into letting us through some barriers, but we ultimately made it! We had made the decision early on not to be in Times Square at midnight, because we would've had to be out there in the cold from 2 pm, with no food, no bathrooms and alcohol was not allowed. So we decided the comedy club NEAR Times Square at midnight was the next best thing. HOWEVER, the show ended at 11:45 pm, and then a guy stood up and said if you want to go out to Times Square just head up these stairs and take a right! So we did...and there we were! Before we knew it the countdown started, midnight was here, music played, confetti flew and we found ourselves in between barriers in Times Square and only had to wait 15 minutes out in the cold! That was one for the books - New Year's Eve in Times Square
Colby's Birthday:
Next up, on January 6, Colby turned 1 year old! We decided, based on the fact that I wanted to make a lion cake, that it would be safari-themed. We invited some family members that live in Houston, my parents, some friends of mine with kids around the same age, and our neighbors. Bonus: my godparents were in that weekend visiting my parents so they came too! We had lots of snacky type food set out and the kids had fun just playing with all of Colby's toys. For decorations, we hung streamers and balloons, I printed out some pictures of Colby at each month of his life, and hung it as a banner behind his high chair. We set out some of his animals on the table, and of course made a lion cake. I also order a shirt from etsy that had his name and a lion on the front of a big number one. It's super cute, and he still wears it now! On top of doing the usual ceremonial cake-eating and present-opening, I decided it would be a good time to reveal the gender of our next baby! So Colby opened the present and out popped...a BLUE balloon! We gave out bubbles as party favors to the little ones. I don't know much about throwing baby birthday parties, but all in all, I'd say it was a success!
Speaking of a blue balloon...
Here's a pregnancy update, too! I am now just over 28 weeks pregnant, and since I'll be having a scheduled c section this time around, we will meet this new little one in no more than 11 weeks! I can't believe how fast this pregnancy has gone! For the most part, it has been as easy as my pregnancy with Colby - no morning sickness, no cravings, no real symptoms at all, EXCEPT I seem to have trouble sleeping. At first it was sporadic, but these last four weeks I've averaged about 2 nights a week that I either haven't been able to fall asleep or if I fall asleep, if I wake up in the middle of the night and can't fall BACK asleep! My OB assures me that this is a pregnancy symptom, so ironically, I can't wait until this baby comes, so I can get some SLEEP (even if it is only in 2-3 hour increments)! Other than that, this baby is growing healthily and I've had a very uneventful pregnancy thus far. I hope this baby can stay cooking a little longer than Colby did, since he was born just over 37 weeks, but we will see... :) I've been a little better at taking bump pictures every other week, so I put together a little documentation of my growth (I definitely popped from 5 to 6 months, and that was two weeks ago...!):
Finally, I just wanted to boast a bit about how smart Colby is - he can say "Dada" in a meaningful way, and "Boom!" which means "please stack up my blocks so that I may knock them down". He also can make animal noises for elephant, snake and cow (although sometimes he makes an elephant sound for zebra as well...). He's walking very sturdily now and thinks turning lights on and off is the funniest thing in the world!
Christmas:
The night before Christmas, we all went to mass and then everyone came over to our house "for drinks" but what my dad didn't realize was that was when we were giving him his outdoor bar that Robert made him. Robert spent a LOT of time on this thing - pictures below, and I have to say that was probably the highlight of Christmas. Apart from being Colby's first, of course. Since it was Colby's first Christmas, although the rest of my family was in town, Robert, Colby and I had our own Christmas and THEN went over to my parents to open gifts. This was a big deal for me because this was the first time that I was in town, but I didn't participate in the 7 am ritual of gift-opening! So ultimately a very good Christmas. The day after Christmas, we all went down to the "party house" at the Frio River and stayed with all of my aunts, uncles and cousins - and Mema and Great Uncle Harold! We had a game tournament of bocci ball, scattergories and washers which Robert and my cousin Casey tied for first place! It was great to be outside and playing, but this was the first time I realized this pregnancy has been giving me sleep anxiety...more on that later.
Front of the bar
Playing a game on Christmas
Colby's moose hat and Christmas outfit - thanks Aunt Angela and Amanda!
After mass on Christmas
At the party house
Colby's playing washers!
New Year's Eve:
My three sisters and I left the "party house" early to head to NYC! Angela lives there now, so we went partly to visit her and partly to spend NYE in NYC! This was the first girl's trip we've taken all together, and it was the first time we could all drink (apart from me, of course, although I guess I could have, if I wanted to). This trip to NYC was a bit different because we had all been to NYC several times before, so we skipped a bunch of the tourist stuff (although, we did see a show on Broadway). Mostly, though, we just tooled around East Village, where Angela lives and visited shops and bars and restaurants near her home that she hadn't tried yet. It was great! Then on New Year's Eve, we had booked a comedy show at a club near Times Square. It was madness trying to get there and Angela had to sweet-talk/lawyer-argue some policemen into letting us through some barriers, but we ultimately made it! We had made the decision early on not to be in Times Square at midnight, because we would've had to be out there in the cold from 2 pm, with no food, no bathrooms and alcohol was not allowed. So we decided the comedy club NEAR Times Square at midnight was the next best thing. HOWEVER, the show ended at 11:45 pm, and then a guy stood up and said if you want to go out to Times Square just head up these stairs and take a right! So we did...and there we were! Before we knew it the countdown started, midnight was here, music played, confetti flew and we found ourselves in between barriers in Times Square and only had to wait 15 minutes out in the cold! That was one for the books - New Year's Eve in Times Square
Colby's Birthday:
Next up, on January 6, Colby turned 1 year old! We decided, based on the fact that I wanted to make a lion cake, that it would be safari-themed. We invited some family members that live in Houston, my parents, some friends of mine with kids around the same age, and our neighbors. Bonus: my godparents were in that weekend visiting my parents so they came too! We had lots of snacky type food set out and the kids had fun just playing with all of Colby's toys. For decorations, we hung streamers and balloons, I printed out some pictures of Colby at each month of his life, and hung it as a banner behind his high chair. We set out some of his animals on the table, and of course made a lion cake. I also order a shirt from etsy that had his name and a lion on the front of a big number one. It's super cute, and he still wears it now! On top of doing the usual ceremonial cake-eating and present-opening, I decided it would be a good time to reveal the gender of our next baby! So Colby opened the present and out popped...a BLUE balloon! We gave out bubbles as party favors to the little ones. I don't know much about throwing baby birthday parties, but all in all, I'd say it was a success!
Speaking of a blue balloon...
Here's a pregnancy update, too! I am now just over 28 weeks pregnant, and since I'll be having a scheduled c section this time around, we will meet this new little one in no more than 11 weeks! I can't believe how fast this pregnancy has gone! For the most part, it has been as easy as my pregnancy with Colby - no morning sickness, no cravings, no real symptoms at all, EXCEPT I seem to have trouble sleeping. At first it was sporadic, but these last four weeks I've averaged about 2 nights a week that I either haven't been able to fall asleep or if I fall asleep, if I wake up in the middle of the night and can't fall BACK asleep! My OB assures me that this is a pregnancy symptom, so ironically, I can't wait until this baby comes, so I can get some SLEEP (even if it is only in 2-3 hour increments)! Other than that, this baby is growing healthily and I've had a very uneventful pregnancy thus far. I hope this baby can stay cooking a little longer than Colby did, since he was born just over 37 weeks, but we will see... :) I've been a little better at taking bump pictures every other week, so I put together a little documentation of my growth (I definitely popped from 5 to 6 months, and that was two weeks ago...!):
Finally, I just wanted to boast a bit about how smart Colby is - he can say "Dada" in a meaningful way, and "Boom!" which means "please stack up my blocks so that I may knock them down". He also can make animal noises for elephant, snake and cow (although sometimes he makes an elephant sound for zebra as well...). He's walking very sturdily now and thinks turning lights on and off is the funniest thing in the world!
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