The table behind our couch needed a little…something. Some change. Some summer. Something new. So I splurged on some good Pottery Barn candles and grabbed their catalog too to steal some decorating ideas. A few cheapy sea shells and voila! Instant summer decorating! Check out Scottsdale Moms Blog today to see the results!
Tag: moms
Practice Makes Perfect
Yesterday Baylor and I babysat baby Mason for a few hours while Ali got her hair did. I wanted to help out because A. nothing says fun like trying to calm a baby while someone is putting foil in your hair and B. I secretly wanted a little practice. I wanted to see what it would be like to have two of them and get a few things done.
After a bottle, change, car seat move and a packed diaper bag, we ventured out to pick up coffee at our favorite roastery and grab a few things at the grocery. Bold, yes. But none of it was essential so there was plenty of time to abort the mission. But thankfully, M was the perfect gentleman and sat happily in his car seat the entire time. B was a golden child. Like the kind you think your kid is going to be when you have a second child. She listened, she helped, she even climbed in the same door as Mason’s car seat, shimmyed into her seat and was 90% strapped in when I got to her side. I’m sure it was the novelty of having her cousin around, but I’m going to pretend that this will still happen (at least for a little while) when it’s her brother.
The one thing I didn’t think about was me. Well the belly anyway. Mason is about 7 weeks old and I look more like I ate a really big burrito and am allergic to sit ups more than pregnant so everyone (naturally) assumed he was mine. I don’t know why, but I was a little unwilling to accept the chubby momma role (since his actual mother is back into her pre pregnancy jeans. bitch.). Thankfully my assistant was happy to tell anyone that looked her way that this was her cousin Mason and that she was babysitting and that her brother was in mommy’s belly. So I’ve got that going for me. Which is nice.
All in all, it was a positive experience. Although I plan to really enjoy my current one munchkin schedule.
Mother’s Day Love
We had such a nice Mother’s Day weekend! It kicked off with a celebration at Baylor’s school where her whole class sang and presented us with presents. They made plates (the melamine kind that they draw on and then cook), flowers in hand painted pots and a beautiful poem with her little hand print. It was stinking adorable. Any attendee would have been hard pressed not to smile at the level of cuteness going on.
My little gardener.
Guess who gets to eat off the plate the most? Thanks for the pictures Grandma!
We spent Saturday organizing the garage which is always a challenge, but makes me so happy not to trip over crap AND when I can get a roll of paper towels without unpacking an entire shelf.
Finally we enjoyed Sunday brunch with Grandma and Grandpa where they showered us with gifts – me, Bay and the baby too! My favorite part though is the card. PW said that Bay screamed “WE HAVE TO GET THE ONE WITH THE PUPPY FOR MOMMY!!!” so loud that people two aisle over were laughing. It cracks me up – exactly what an almost 3 year old would pick out. The gnome stickers are the perfect touch!
Even It Up
It’s official. Come October the girl to guy score at our house will be all evened up – or advantage boys if you count Mr. Bear – it’s confirmed that #2 is a mister. Stubborn in his unwillingness to uncurl or roll over, yet obvious that he was a he. I’m excited to get the room plans rolling and update my Pinterest board with boy / girl room ideas and scratch all the girl / girl stuff. While putting Baylor down today, I had another epiphany of layout, decor, etc. Get ready for a fun weekend of measuring and listening to me spout off ideas PW!
For Rent
My step sister Sarah texted me this pic Saturday night:
My response: “It must have been VERY nice and VERY expensive!”
Peter’s response: “Seriously. 1 Beth is PLENTY.”
It’s nice to know you’re loved….
T-Town Bound
We made a quick trip to Tucson this weekend and had a ball. Normally I am opposed to overnight trips – they’re just too much work. Packing up the kiddo’s stuff, bedding and “just in case” supplies is a pain in itself, but I have to find someone to check in on the BearMeister, pack myself and PW…it’s just a lot of work for 24 hours. Not to mention that this weekend we had stuff scheduled on both Saturday and Sunday so we were litterally zipping in and out of town. But to my big surprise, it all went very smooth and was a ton of fun!
We arrived with enough time before dinner to walk around campus. It was so much fun to see The Phi, Peter’s fraternity house (which is currently being occupied by another fraternity and caused PW to hold back a few swear words), buildings that we each attended classes in, our favorite resturants, our respective dorms…the list goes on. It was amazing to think back and realized how much life has changed in the last *cough* eight years since we graduated. The campus has changed so much, yet all the amazing memories are still there. It’s even more fun that PW and I were there together so it wasn’t me showing him, but rather getting to tell each other our favorite memories. At one point Baylor sighed and asked when we were going back to the “HO-teeeellll”. Apparently memory lane was not as exciting for her.
Ah The Phi. I lived in the window right above the “Alpha Phi”
Next we were off to dinner with the family I babysat for while at UofA. It’s scary to think that Madi is now graduating high school and headed off to college herself! Amazing how she’s grown and I haven’t aged a day…to say that it’s wonderful to catch up with the L family is an understatement. They are truly amazing people and even when we haven’t seen each other in years, it’s like we just talked yesterday. Dinner was at one of our collective favorites: Rosa’s. I had forgotten how amazing the refried beans are and I said a little prayer of thanks that the morning sickness has passed so I could enjoy every stinking last bite of my enchilada and tacos!
After dinner it was the UofA baseball game – PW’s reason for planning the trip. The team has moved off campus to Hi Corbett Field which turned out to be awesome. The stadium was packed, they served beer and there was a jump house, what more could you ask for? Oh yeah, a win! We got that too.
Pretty sunset
We had to teach Baylor not to cheer for the other team. She broke out her signature “dirty look” instead.
PW and BW
The Super Moon! The camera phone didn’t do it justice.
We headed back to the “ho-teelll” after it was looking promising that the Cats would pull off the win. We were impressed with The Lodge on the Desert. It was close to the hotel and campus, full remodeled and a nice price. Bay was excited to try out her new Pea Pod sleep tent and it went swimmingly. If you have any traveling to do with a toddler soon (especially one that sleeps in a crib but has out grown a pack and play) then I highly recommend the tent. It has an air mattress, is one piece that folds flat and doubles as a play area. It was perfect way to divide a room for her and us so we could do crazy stuff like brush our teeth and watch TV without waking her up!
We’re already talking about another slightly longer trip later this summer to one of the resorts. Sure there are two world famous resort just down the street, but there’s something about getting out of town, visiting places you haven’t been to in years and a long drive that make a trip even better.
Ready for MNO?
Scottsdale Moms Blog Mom’s Night Out is this week! If you haven’t bought your ticket yet there’s still time – but hurry! This is shaping up to be another fun evening so quick quick! Get your tickets!
Chalk It Up
If you loooove chalkboard paint like I loooove chalkboard paint, then you want to read my Scottsdale Moms Blog post today. Three fun ways to use the stuff – and be sure to register for Mom’s Night Out next week!
http://www.scottsdalemomsblog.com/2012/05/04/chalk-it-up-3-ways-to-use-chalkboard-paint/
SignUpGenius.com
If you have kids at school, an overly excited social committee at work or one too many soccer tournaments to count, then you need Sign Up Genius.
I was introduced to this lovely website by the more experienced room moms at Baylor’s school. It’s a virtual sign up sheet – you can add not only items, but dates and times of what you would like people to bring . Or dates, times and activities to volunteer for. The best part (in my book) is when you sign up for something, it emails you a confirmation and then a reminder 2 days before the event. In the world of constant snack days, parties, teacher appreciation week and ice cream socials, this is a life saver. Not to mention neat, easy to use an accessible at all times of the day rather than just at the craziness that is pick up and drop off.
So next time you’re in charge of an event (or even if you’re not in charge, make whoever is use this!) check out the site and see how quickly those much needed items get checked off your list!
Suggestive Literature
I have a problem. I am very totally and completely influenced by Baylor’s book Curious George Visits the Chocolate Factory. I can’t read it without craving a big box of chocolates. I can feel myself starting to drool when reading the descriptions of each type of chocolate. I can smell the sweet smell when George sneaks into the candy room. Nothing else will stop the craving, it has to be a box of chocolates. Particularly See’s Candies…which is why I stood in their store last week and happily hand-picked each one of these little beauties…what? I can’t drink the bottle of wine I really really want, why not substitute with candy?
I wish I was as influenced by the tales of George’s other adventures….but unfortunatly despite reading and rereading and reading again Curious George and the Hot Air Balloon Race and Curious George and the Dinosaur Dig I have no desire to become an archaeologist nor hop in a balloon. Maybe if George wrote Curious George Finally Writes the Whitty Memior He’s been Dreaming About Despite Having Two Kids, Running a Business and Trying to Stay on the Acceptable Side of Sanity it would have the same effect as the damn chocolate factory story. AND my butt wouldn’t get so fat so that would be nice too.
The Goon Room 