Four Things

I make a lot of lists and most of them consist of daily chores and errands, but there are always the fun lists made months in advance for my birthday, anniversary, Christmas, etc. Take your pick, Brandon, these are on the top of my list for April 5, 2011, hint, hint.

Love you, sweets!

My #1. I'm kind of in a book phase right now and this is THE perfect book. Our bookshelves would never be the same.

Another addition to my small, but growing, collection of beautifully made books that will inspire me daily. She is my absolute favorite.

This gorgeous necklace that I would probably wear every single day of my entire life.

And if you are feeling extra ambitious, hunt me down some gorgeous geometric vases like the ones pictured above. I can't get these out of my head!

Kelly's Birthday

I can't believe it. My little sister, Kelly, is now a whopping 19 years old. Where, oh, where has the time gone? She is all grown up and a college girl (doing FANTASTIC, might I add) and I am so proud of her. Happy Birthday Kel!

Mandy and I got her this little iphone case and it is so stinking cute. And yes, that is a Bieber cake that Brandon is cutting. What the birthday girl wants, the birthday girl gets.

Janie and Kelly

So happy she could be with us to celebrate!

Noni and Nay Nay tearing up the shops. More like tearing up Gap Kids. Emma is the only one that loaded up on their shopping trip!

Nay Nay and the Bug

Mom and Janie

The family around the table at Grotto.

Let me just say that dinner was DELICIOUS! So glad it was my idea to go there :)

Soccer Star

Discovery Green

We started this Saturday off with a can-do spirit, a few errands to run and a belly full of biscuits and bacon. A pretty great start to any morning, wouldn't you agree?

After making our returns at Ikea we decided to spend some time at Discovery Green to let Emma stretch her legs and play with some other kids. She was in playground heaven.



She was just running her little heart out and after a few trial runs with Daddy, she finally braved the slide all by herself, even making a friend along the way. She was so proud of herself when she finally got comfortable enough to navigate through the ramps on her own. It was just too cute.














We thought it was going to rain so we decided to do lunch at Grove. It was delicious and definitely a much needed break from our usual restaurant choices. Granted, my lamb burger was $15, so I think it will only be for extra special afternoons.

We got to squeeze in another hour of play time after lunch and even treated ourselves with some ice cream. I can't even describe how good push-pops are. I can't believe I had gone so long without having one!


It was a great Saturday and maybe the next time we make it out downtown we will be a family of four. I can't wait to strap on the old baby bjorn again.

Mary Poppins

So I came across this today and decided that if a brief, yet beautiful, poem from Mary Poppins could bring me to tears, that it was definitely worth sharing.

"You're a man of high position, esteemed by all your peers.
And when your little tikes are crying,
you haven't time to dry their tears.
And see their grateful little faces, smiling up at you.
Because their dad, he always knows just what to do.

You've got to grind, grind, grind at that grindstone.
Though childhood slips like sand through a sieve,
All too soon they've up and grown..
And then they've flown.
And it's too late for you to give."

That sure does hit a nerve down deep, doesn't it? As exciting it is to see Emma hit milestone after milestone with ease and flare, I can't help but miss my darling baby girl. I'm hoping Austin will fill the 'baby void" I have been feeling lately but at the same time I want to stop time and hold on to these last special days as a family of three. Pregnant lady hormones or not, I think I am going to spend the rest of my life missing my girl's adorable potbelly and all of those tiny fingers and toes.

Austin's Baby Shower

I'm going to post the detail shots and share how special the day was tomorrow but for now here are some borrowed pictures I snatched from my sister's facebook page. It was such a great shower and I am so thankful to have so many people that care about our family and our new little angel.

Now I am off to finish up all of my homework! Hope you had a good weekend!

A Bright Spot

I usually kind of roll my eyes when people go on about how fresh flowers make them so happy. As if somehow they are better than diamonds or a good steak dinner. That being said, having my favorite orange tulips in the kitchen make me incredibly happy. Now that spring is rolling around I think fresh flowers are going to be on every single grocery list for 2011.

First Day of School

This morning I was up at 5 am. packing and repacking Emma's lunch, washing her sheet for nap time, calling my Mom 100 times to go over Emma's outfit options, and charging every electronic device we have. All of this for my girl's first day of preschool!

We were lucky enough to get her into a program at our Church and she is now a happy student in a class of 14 little girls and only 3 boys! Brandon really likes this ratio. There are four sweet teachers that will be looking after her and she will spend her days playing with friends, learning about art, music and sitting through Bible lessons taught by my good friend Erin's mother. We are so relieved that she is finally going to get the interaction with kids that she has been missing and even though it hurt my heart to leave her, I knew she was in good hands. I only cried a little.

I hope one of her teachers reads our note to her!

We went to McDonald's as a breakfast treat for Emma and my Mom and Dad met us there to see her off on her big day. She looked like such a pumpkin and kept saying she was ready to go play with kids. The funniest part of breakfast was when my Mom asked her if she was a princess and she answered, "No, I not a princess. I a cowboy!" and started riding a pretend horse around the table. She is too much.

When we finally arrived at the Church and got her into the common area where the other kids gather from the car rider line she immediately jumped in front of a new friend and said, "Hi! Good morning!" and continued to do this for every other classmate that joined the group. When it was time for us to leave we kind of snuck out so she wouldn't see us. I decided to peek back in to find her sitting right in the middle of 5 little girls talking away and from what I could see, admiring some sparkly tennis shoes.

I can't wait to hear the stories she is going to have today and I am so proud to be the Mommy of such a friendly, independent and kind-hearted little girl. I guess she's not my little baby anymore, sniff sniff.

UPDATE:
I just received a call from her teacher, Mrs. Letty, telling me that she is doing great! She said she was loving and as sweet as can be. However, she did have to be corrected several times for taking toys from other kids and wandering around the classroom during lunch time. That's my girl!