One!

This little busy-body turned ONE today. Time flies when you're having fun. He was having too much fun to pose for his mama and daddy, but don't these pictures just put a smile on your face?

1st Birthday Party

I can't believe we had Trent's FIRST birthday party already - how has it already been a whole year since my baby got here? We had such a great time, and I've uploaded a ton of pictures...bear with me while I glow with motherly love. {grin}

Trent's cake!!

Food...YUM!
The birthday boy and his Nana (I never got a family picture...oh well...I guess we'll try for that on his actual birthday). My sister made his t-shirt, isn't he adorable?

Ready for cake!

Singing (he seems really interested, huh?)

Checking it out

Taking a taste

'This is fun!'

Trent didn't seem to want to eat his cake, so we gave him a little cupcake...he threw it on the floor.

I'm not sure who this kid belongs to, but he can't be mine. I certainly wouldn't have not taken a SINGLE bite of my birthday cake. Oh well, at least it looked pretty.

Presents!!!

Water fun with new presents!

Miss Macey enjoying the water tableMiles enjoying the squirt pad

What did my son want to do? Not play with any of his toys!! He wanted to peek through the fence into the neighbor's yard. HA!

We had such a wonderful party and are so thankful to the people who came to the party as well as supported us over this past year. I'll save the sentimental stuff for a later day. ;)

Book Review: Southern Varmpires series (aka True Blood)

I am a little late to the party, but I'm so happy to have been invited! I am EATING UP the True Blood books. I have to admit I wasn't sold after reading the first book 'Dead Until Dark' - these are not your Twilight vampires. And I love my Twilight vampires. But I kept with the series based on my sister's recommendation. Well, in less than 2 weeks I've read 4 1/2 of the books - they are so fun and I'm loving every minute of them. Sookie is a great heroine and there are too many attractive Supes (supernatural creatures) vying for affections (Okay, who am I kidding? Is it possible to have too many hotties liking you?) - just overall great books! Grade: A++

Weekly Weigh-In

Making progress! I'll take anything the scale is willing to give me.

P.S. Don't worry, I got a pedicure just after this picture, so you, my lovely reader, won't be subjected to such ugly feet again. {grin}

Party Projects II

I am a terrible mother. Not really...just a terrible (meaning lazy) decorator. I FINALLY finished Trent's nursery and will post pictures of the finished room after this weekend of party madness. But the below project was the one that was holding up the show, and I finally finished!!

There is 1 wall in Trent's room that is very large and I had no idea what to do. Enter: Parents magazine! They had a suggestion of using pages from your favorite books. I took pages out of some of the books that Trent and I read together and used frames I've had for years. I added some different fabrics from his bedding and voila!!!

Getting Excited!

White Trash Wagon

Riding in style while everyone else does yard work (for Party Project II)! My kid isn't spoiled AT ALL! {grin}

Weekly Weigh-In

This is from Friday, I'm a little behind in posting. I didn't think it was going to be as good as the Friday before (which I still think was a fluke), but I'm still extremely pleased with this number... We'll see how this changes after Trent's party, 4th of July and 2 family vacations in July {grin}!

Happy Father's Day!

Car Envy

We went swimming at Aunt Patty's house and discovered the Little Tikes car. Trent had a fit when I took him out.

Just a few days later, Dena gave us her kids' car. So Miles returned the favor by taking a spin in ours.

Our friend, Kinsey, patiently waited her turn. Who knew all kids were crazy over this car?!?!

What is even cuter is that Trent likes to get behind it and push it!

Boat Cruise

Big step - this weekend we went out on a party boat on Lake Austin and got a baby sitter (my parents) for Trent. Dez put the trip together for the 2nd year, but this was our first year to go (38 weeks pregnant + hot TX heat + boat = NO GO). We had such a great time!

Girls in the water

Me and my sweetie (Yes, I'm wearing a 'Mom' tankini)
Our entire group before dinner at Hula Hut (yum!)

Can't wait for next year!

Party Projects I

Doesn't it seem like you always wait until you have a party looming to do all your projects? Is that just me? Brent and I have a L.O.N.G. list of stuff we're trying to accomplish before Trent's party, some of it is stuff we've been discussing for months. Today some progress was made! Behold - Project 1!

I still have to get MATERNITY and NEWBORN pictures printed for some of the frames (see what I mean about taking forever on projects???), but at least they're hung!

Until Next Time...

I'm retiring the pump!!! I still have several hundred ounces of frozen milk, so I think we'll safely make it until Trent is 1. {grin} It's been a pleasure knowing you, Mr. Pump, but I'm so happy to be able to put you in the BACK of the closet!!

Review: SATC 2

I also recently saw 'Sex and the City 2' with Dena. I absolutely loved the TV series and the first movie. I thoroughly enjoyed SATC 2, but it definitely wasn't in the same league as the show and first movie. It was still very witty and heart-warming (I love the bond those girls have), but the storyline was just silly. I think if it was 30 minutes shorter, it would have been much better - there were several times I was thinking 'Why are they showing this?' I don't think I'll buy it or watch it EVERY time it's on HBO (like I do with the first movie), but it was a fun time. Rating: B/B+

P.S. - I've had several people say they want to borrow my copy of Bree Tanner. BUT if you just click her name, it's an ONLINE book that you can read for FREE!!!! Enjoy (but it's only online until July 5)!

Weekly Weigh-In

I've decided I will weigh-in and post my weight on Fridays. Mondays are terrible days to weigh-in (in my book). However, as previously mentioned, my camera is at my sister's, so I have no proof for this (and quite honestly I'm not sure I believe it myself), but today's scale said 131.5!!! We'll see if this sticks around {grin}.

Books aka Library Dork

I am a huge nerd when it comes to books. Reading is my favorite pasttime. I would choose to read over (almost) anything. My friend, Allison, and I have dates to the libraries (yes, plural - with the TexShare program you can belong to any public library in the state of TX for FREE!!!!). Having a baby has not changed my love for books, it has just changed how much time I can devote to reading. And now I also spend a considerable amount of time reading mommy books/magazines. But here are a few gems I read recently that I wanted to pass long.

Dean Koontz: Velocity

I have been reading his books since middle school, and each book is so unique. Velocity was no different. It was SO creepy, I couldn't read too much of it while alone! I also love that no matter the turmoil, his stories always have a happy ending. The good guys always win! Rating: A

Sophie Kinsella: Twenties Girl

I loved the Shopaholic series and have loved all of Sophie's other novels. This one was no different. In fact, it might be my favorite of her books. Twenties Girl was so heartwarming and was just a fun, fun story! Rating: A+

Jane Green: Second Chance

I've only read a few Jane Green books but really look forward to picking up more of hers. Another book that tugged on my heart strings but was overall SO good! Rating: A

Rebooting Me

Brent is a wonderful husband and is SO the ying to my yang. I have a tendency to be overly dramatic, high-maintenance and a little crazy (it really should have been no surprise that I developed post-partum anxiety). Brent is a very calming influence on me who helps put the rational back into my day. Since becoming a mother, I've had a hard time balancing my time. My marriage and myself have taken a backseat to being a mom. Luckily, my husband has been so understanding throughout the last year. I'm working on that balance because everyone in my family will be much better off with a balanced mommy. With that said, and with a little nudge from the hubs, I'm hoping this blog becomes a little more balanced too. I love taking pictures of Trent and will continue to post them like crazy but want to share other sides of my life that are re-emerging. (It also helps that I left my camera at my sister's house, so no new pictures until I get it back.) Bear with me as I go through some growing pains. {grin}

Second Life

I started reading The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner tonight. 50 pages in, and I'm loving it! It's kind of like reading the draft of Midnight Sun - it's so neat to get a different perspective of a world most of know and love (and if you don't know the Twilight world, you should)! Go check it out. {grin}

Review: Babies

I finally saw Babies over Memorial Day weekend, and let me tell you guys - it was SO cute! I loved everything about it. I loved how unique the premise was, I loved that there was no narration (it really was as simple as just watching the babies grow), I loved the music, I loved how funny and sentimental it was, I loved how cute the babies were. All in all - I LOVED IT! I think it might have struck more of a chord with me because it's about the 4 babies first year of life, which is what I'm right in the middle of. There were parts I was laughing so hard (particularly one scene where the Japanese baby girl kept pitching a tantrum while playing with her toys) I was crying. It was really neat seeing how similar babies are no matter the environment but also seeing how DIFFERENT the environments could be. Overall, I'd give it an A+ and can't wait to see it again!

Has Mower, Will Travel

Brent told me I had to stop buying toys for Trent until I put away the ones he wasn't using. Then he comes home from Target with this. We are such suckers for this kid! At first, he wanted us to hold him and push the mower (not comfortable in case you were wondering), but he finally figured out it was fun to push it himself!

Guest Blogger!!

Shocking news! Brent said he'd be a guest on my blog!! When I started this blog, he wasn't so sure about it, but then little-by-little I realized he was reading it here-and-there. Then he admitted he reads it every day, which I can't help but feel so ecstatic about. But for him to say he'd guest blog...WHOA! So I need help from y'all, my fabulous readers. Either comment with a question for Brent, and we can do a Q&A post for Brent OR post a topic you'd like to hear Brent talk about. I don't normally beg for comments, but please, please, please post a comment for Brent! {grin}

Day 1

And so it begins... After 40 weeks (and 3 days) of pregnancy and 11 months of motherhood, it's time! I gained roughly 40 pounds with pregnancy (I refused to get on the scale the last 2 weeks, so I don't have a solid starting point - ha), and about 30 pounds came off rather easy (and by easy, I mean breast feeding is wonderful - I ate whatever I wanted and didn't work out). The last 10 have been sitting here...right around my belly, thighs and bootylicious behind. My work is doing a weight loss challenge across the nation for 10 weeks in teams of 2 encouraging each team member to lose 10 pounds. A co-worker and I are both celebrating milestone birthdays this year (and mine is in roughly 9 or so weeks). So we teamed up for the challenge. And you all get to witness the progress. Without further ado...my starting point! Wish me luck! And if anyone wants to join in and be encouragement to each other, let me know!!! I know I could use the help staying on the wagon.