Almost and a Hair Tip

Are you sick of my blogs about my beach vacation yet?

Just a little over an hour and I'm officially on vacation. 

1st stop - mani/pedi!  Woot!  Woot!

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Also, I have a hair tip for anyone that wants a little curl/wave and an easy way to wear your hair that buys you two days (or a day and an evening out).  It's not my tip, it's my awesome hair dressers...anywhooooo...
After washing, apply a heavier conditioner or reconstructor and dry partially.  When your hair is still a little wet (looks best parted down the middle in my opinion) twist or roll your hair towards your head, starting at the top of your head, working your way to your neck, along the side of your head, doing one side at a time.  Tie with bobby pins as you go (open the pin and insert towards your hair, they stay put much better).  I only twisting to the base of my head/neck and then I tied my remaining hair in a knot at the base of my head, a little to the side and then tied up with more pins.  It was such an easy way to wear my hair, even for work, and it gives your hair a break from the hair dryer and gives more time for your conditioner/reconstructor to penetrate your hair.

So I wore it like that from about 6:30 am yesterday until about 10:00 pm, when I took it out it was super curly and wavy, very beachy.

So easy.  I will be doing that again.

Hubby said I looked like Princess Leia (fyi hubs I didn't have two buns coming out of my ears :)), I'm not sure that was a compliment, but I liked it :)

Have a great weekend!  Talk to you all soon...or maybe later :)

Wordless Wednesday

Yep, one more day of the grind and we're off for 9 full days of sun, sand, beach, ocean, pool, sleep, cocktails, food and most importantly friends and family. Not sure if I'll blog while on vacay or not. Trying to have a week of not much, no schedule, no expectations, just time to rest our brains and our bodies and our normal life routine.

Happy Father's Day (Belated)

So I'm totally late on this post, but I've had about - (yes, negative) 0.4567 seconds to do any blog fun lately.

My brain is officially on overload with so many to do's this week, but I wanted to take a brief moment to thank my Husband and my Dad for being the awesome men that they are and letting them know that I am so very thankful and blessed to have them in my life.

To my Hubby,

You are my rock and I love you with all of my heart.  I love you and appreciate you for every piece of who you are.  You drive me nuts sometimes, but I still love you just the same.  You, as a Dadda, melts my heart.  Mia is turning into quite the Daddy's girl and I love watching every second of your time together.  Without you, I would not be me.  Our life is crazy busy and it just keeps getting crazier, but remember that as much as life will never be as simple as it once was, I am here for you every step of the way.  We have been filled with many blessings in our careers, our beautiful girl and our wonderful home.  Thank you for working so hard for our family.  I love you, ATDIAK :)



To my Dad,
I love you.  I could not have been blessed with anyone better.  As I get older, I've grown to appreciate you even more than I have in the past.  I thank you for always being such a care giver to our family and taking such extra special care of our girl.  I love that she knows you and asks about you ALL the time.  That makes my heart happy.  The bond that we share is something I truly hope Mark and Mia will experience.  It's priceless and something I could never explain in words that could ever really help anyone understand, but it's appreciated.  I am who I am today because of you and your guidance, your support and your love.  Thank you for being the awesome you.  I'm a lucky girl.  I love you Dad.

Happy Father's Day to all the dad's out there.  I hope it was as special a weekend for you as it was for the special Dads in my life.

Hope everyone's week is off to a great start.

Countdown: 3 Days (technically at this time of the day 2 and a 1/2) Yippee!

Wordless Wednesday

Because who doesn't love a Dora sticker party?

Happy Wednesday!  Hope everyone is having a great week so far.

Countdown: 8 days

The Monkey That Is My Child...An Update

Well bloggie buddies, here's the situation.  As previously reported, my child, the climber, is officially climbing up, over and out of her crib daily.  This all started last Friday.  She climbed out in the morning, after her nap, and then wouldn't go down for bedtime (mind you she was at our cousins for the evening as we galavanted around town on a date celebrating our wedded bliss).  It took my cousin about 30 minutes to get her to "calm down" and go to sleep.  My child, has always been an excellent sleeper.  Since the very beginning, even while still in the hospital the nurses made mention of how great she was and how amazing it was that she just woke up when it was time to eat.  As we transitioned to our house and the bassinet, then to the crib and the nursery, she's continued to sleep well.  A very "scheduled" child she was.  It was important to me to keep her on a routine and I've always attributed that to a lot of our sleeping success up until this point.  It is like she literally just decided one day that she no longer wanted to go to bed and if you put her in her crib she would just keep climbing out and then once she did go to sleep...she would be sure to climb out in the morning.

For real?

Moving onto Saturday evening...a totally normal Saturday for us, maybe a little bit of a later nap that normal, but that was about it.  About 7 (her normal "night night" time) I asked her if she was ready for bed.  "NO!"  Typically it is always "yes, night night Momma," as she proceeds to the gate to lead her upstairs to her room.  Since she was 3 months old and sleeping in her nursery, it's always been our time, just she and I, baths, jammies, books, singing and then I would lay her down and we'd be set for the night.  Not Saturday.  She was screaming bloody murder from the moment I set her down in that crib.  She's typically ready to go night night with her friends as soon as she goes down.  She'll cuddle up with all of her "things" and knock right out until morning.  She has three of her favorite "friends" in bed with her every night.  Her giraffe, her baby and her dolly.  She has her baby blankie and her big blankie.  Every night. 

Let the games begin...I started the trek up and down the stairs 2 or 3 times and then hubby joined in on the fun.  Who's jealous of this Saturday night?  After about 7-8 more attempts, she finally gave up.  The first couple of tries we talked to her, cuddled her and tried to calm her down, but after that we got serious.  All visions of those numerous Super Nanny episodes and her advice kicked in.  Quiet and consistent...until we win and she gives up.  Eventually she did. Yay us!

Sunday morning, I got a wake up call at 6:45 am from a lil tiny monkey all decked out in her Elmo jammies (and one Dora shoe on) calling out for me and eventually entering our room with a "Hi Momma!"  She clearly woke up and decided yet again to climb out and come for a visit.  A little early for my taste, but not a bad thing to wake up to.

Sunday night, she only climbed out once and then last night she didn't climb out at all.  She's smart.  I know she's my child and every parent thinks there kid is the best, amazing, super smart, etc., but seriously there is no doubt in my mind this kid knows exactly what she's doing.  Her daddy and I might be suckers for an extra cookie or another sticker, but when it comes to bed time we're serious.  That is not something we want to mess around with.  There's only so much quiet time in our lives at this time and that time is important to us.  Our time with her is important as well, but she also needs to know that when it's time for bed, it's time for bed.

Hopefully tonight will be another great night, but first we need to get thorugh this morning or should I say hubby needs to get through this morning.

My crazy toddler, decided to get out again this morning, but she had pooped and managed to get it all over herself and her room.  I've yet to have actually spoken with him yet today.  This was a news update as received to me this morning via my Dad who watches Mia on Tuesdays.

Wow...super fun start to the day for him!  This toddler stuff is awesome.  Kidding of course, I seriously wouldn't change a thing.  Poop and all.

Our Newest Addition

So pumped about my purchase this weekend and the best part....it only cost me $30 thanks to all the birthday gift contributions.  I've been wanting a netbook for a while.  A place for my blog and my pictures that I can cart around with me wherever I go and she's finally here.

She's compact, perfect and she's pink and so ready for her first vacation.  Please note I did not buy her just because she was pink, she had a larger hard drive than her competitors. The pink was just a bonus! My hubby was borderline convinced this is the reason I purchased the hp, but I would hope he would think I'm a wee bit smarter than that :)

I heart technology!

Happy Monday!  Hope it's a great week for all of you!

Announcement

Ummmmm....just a quick announcement.  I wish I could add the red exclamation point and High Priority like an email with this one.

Mia crawled out of her crib this morning.  I repeat, my daughter who is only 19 months old and the size of a 2 year old got out of her crib ON HER OWN this morning.

No comprende!  Actually I do comprende, but that doesn't mean I have to like it and I'm brushing up on my Espanol for vacay, not that you need it in American Mexico Cancun. Que?

Please Lord let this be a fluke.  I do understand that I am taking full advantage of the fluke ideal as this is now the second time already.  Let's ignore the fact that I also found out that she got out of her crib at her cousins after nap this past Monday (second time).  I'm not ready to be done with a crib.  She's still a baby.  I will need therapy if I have to put her in a big girl bed.  Please send help.

Amen.

My apologies for the two post day today, but this was very important information that I had to share.

Two Weeks From Today

I'm getting on one of these

To go here for 9 (scream it from the roof tops people, NINE!!!!) days

To drink a lot of these...our favorite...the calorie, sugar-free Banana Monkey

And most importantly, hang out and relax a ton with these awesome people!

That's all!  Happy Weekend (almost)!

Four

Four years ago today on the sunny, sandy beaches of Punta Cana, Dominican Republic I married my best friend, my soulmate and my life companion.  Here's to many, many, many more and hopefully a trip back to the DR :)

WARNING: Lots of kissy face!

NOT Cool

So this morning (or last night I guess) was interesting.  First, I woke up to Mia talking in her sleep at about 2:00 am.  "Bye, bye Momma."  Not sure what to think about what she may have been dreaming about.  A little guilt with that particular chosen phrase.  Hate to have to go to work every day sometimes, but the bills don't pay for themselves and neither do 5 swimsuits for a 19 month old.

Second, I was awoken by a shaking bed, rattling windows, mirrors and a particular candle holder in my bedroom with a glass piece that was also rattling.  Initially, I thought it was just a dream, but come to find out we had a 4.2 earthquake this morning.  Not cool, not cool at all.

This also happened in 2008, however I didn't feel that one.  You see, we also live near the New Madrid Fault line which should let loose at any time and unfortunately will likely occur in my lifetime. 

Last time it "let loose" was 200 years ago (1811-12) with three large quakes of magnitude seven.  Also, please note that the Mississippi also flowed backwards.

Again, NOT cool.  Scary stuff.  I don't like earthquakes, not that anyone does really, except for maybe those weird storm chaser people that like to drive into tornadoes and such.

The End...Have a great Tuesday!

It's Monday and I Have a Few Random Questions

First of all, good morning, Happy Monday!

My hubby is somewhat notorious for picking on me, in jest of course.  Mostly due to our 7 year age difference, however, mostly involving food.  I'm picky.  Very, very picky.  I'm getting better for the mere fact that I do not want our daughter to be the same way, but I clearly have some quirks about some of my eating "styles."  This leads me to my two questions:

1. Do you cut up your food as you eat or do you cut it all up before you start eating?
I cut up all my food before I start eating.  Hubby picks fun at me about this all the time.  I never realized I actually did this until a few years ago when he made comment of it.

2. When eating spaghetti, do you cut it up and eat it or do you twirl it?
I cut it and then eat it, but supposedly that is so not ok and in reference to a comment on Modern Family last night this even further emphasized hubby's point.

That's all for today!  Curious to see the feedback on this.

Have a great week!

29 and Then Some

I can't believe it. Tomorrow I turn 33. Thir.ty.Three. Wow! I don't feel 33, but I'm not 100% sure I know what 33 is supposed to feel like. Birthdays don't bother me. I actually really like birthdays, not just mine, but everyone elses too. It's a celebration in my family and typically it lasts a weekend or sometimes a week! I'm still working on the hubby with this one. He's not a huge fan of birthdays and he turns the big 40 this year (Vegas baby, yeah!) so it's a work in progress. Who doesn't love a reason to celebrate?

I still feel like I'm in my 20's. It feels like it wasn't that long ago that I put my tall, lanky, tanned bones into a cap and gown and graduated from high school (on June 4 nonetheless), spent my waking hours in tshirts, tight spandex shorts, tall socks and sweaty sports bras playing collegiate volleyball and it feels like just last year I graduated from college. And Mia....there is no way I didn't just have her last week, yet she's been around for a year and a half already. Somehow I've been working at a "big people" job for almost 10+ years already. Wha? How is this happening?

I've been thinking a lot about the upcoming birthday this week and reflecting on 32 years of life so far. I talk often about how quickly time flies by and I think we can all agree that as you get older the time seems to speed up and go even faster. I'm blessed. I've said it a million times and will likely say it a million more. But things are great! I'm exactly where I want to be. Is it the same thing I wrote in my high school memory book, ummmm....no, but it's perfect to me. I have a wonderful life, a fantastic husband, an amazing daughter, and a beautiful and supportive family. What more could a girl ask for? So as I approach another year, I will keep trying to be a better person both in my personal and working life. I strive to be a good person. It's an important part of who I want to be. Both to the people I work with and to my family. To me, it's important to be supportive to the people that surround your life. It's important to me to be a role model to my nieces and the younger people both in and outside of work. I want to get more involved with charity, I want to keep up my work out regime and maintaining a healthy (most of the time) diet, I want to focus on taking more time to be together as a family, I want to take advantage of the great things this city has to offer (Grant's Farm, City Museum, Zoo, etc.), I want to enjoy life a little bit more, I want to stop worrying about whether or not we'll have another child and just embrace my time with the lil' lady I already do have, I want to do more and be less worried about having a clean house (oh geez, that's gonna be a toughy for me), I want to write more, I want to take more pictures (and organize them) and I'm going to try to be better about me as a whole and less worried about every one else all the time. I've been working on that one for a while and I am getting better.

And cheers to a Saturday birthday this year! Love when the bdays fall on a weekend! We have a bunch planned for this weekend, so I'll provide a recap next week!
So until then...Happy Weekend Everybody!

Wordless Wednesday (Well Now It's Thursday)

Because I didn't have time yesterday and today is crazy busy, but who doesn't need a few more pictures of the one and only Miss Mia to brighten your day? More pool time

Learning all about trees, leaves and bugs courtesy of Daddy. Rockin' her surfer girl suit

Hey tree...how are ya?

Happy Day before the day before the weekend starts :) (Wait?....is that right?, whatever...you get my point).