Waiting on Spring

Well, it's official... we are OVER winter! The spring fever has kicked in big time in this house and we are itching to get outside. This weekend was warm with beautiful blue skies and gave us just a glimpse of what is to come.

Our computer got a NASTY virus and we had to completely destroy the hard drive and start all over. I use the term "we" loosely, because anyone who knows me, knows I struggle just to turn on a computer much less strip a hard drive and rebuild.

Luckily, there are very intelligent people in this world, one being our neighbor. Lee has spent many hours in our office using words I have no intention of ever understanding, but I'm happy to report, we are back in business.

Here are some pictures from the last few days...

Trace found my sunglasses the other day and exclaimed "Hollywood" as he put them on... I don't know where he learns these things.
You know who had to wear them next, poor dog.

Trace "helped" me make lasagna the other night for dinner. I snuck in spinach, because he has an adverse reaction to anything green. He's got the stirring down pat, if only I can teach him to wipe it off the cabinets, floor and ceiling when he's finished. ha!

We awoke the other morning to find EPB in our driveway. They used our front yard to uncoil the fiber optics line that then stretched all the way down our street. If you look closely, you can see all of the line wound around our yard.

Trace got into the spirit by putting on his hard hat and work vest. He would have totally been in that lift bucket if I had only unlocked the front door!


Found these two on the couch at 11:00 pm the other night watching TV. Trace had been in bed for hours when he apparently awoke needing a Franklin the Turtle fix.

Daddy was happy to oblige. (Yes, he still sleeps with a bobbie... don't judge)
Spring is right around the corner... and we are counting the days!

From Baby Wreaths to Pinatas...

OK, I promise this is my last "boo-hoo, my baby is now a big boy" post. But I just had to share with you what made me cry for hours last Saturday night.

(Seriously, to the point where my eyes were so swollen at church the next day, I looked like I'd been in a bar fight... like, when you can't put your eyeliner on because there is no top eyelid... like, the ugly cry when you're trying to tell someone why your crying and your face is making all these nasty contortions so you just stop talking all together... you get my point)

Crazy, isn't it?

I was on the verge of belting out the chorus of The Way We Were by Barbra Streisand when I pulled myself together before Jimmy came walking back in the room with that...

"Seriously, you're crying again" look.

Call me sentimental but this wreath has been hanging on Trace's bedroom door since February 9, 2007, the day we brought him home from the hospital. My mother-in-law's precious sisters, Sheila and Sandi, made it for him the day he was born. They are so special to me!

They drove in from Alabama that morning and made it just in time to see him rolled out of the delivery room, left the hospital, went to Hobby Lobby, made the wreath and brought it back to Erlanger to hang on our door before he was even 4 hours old. These women don't mess around! ha!



When he turned 2, I thought to myself...well, it's probably time to take the baby wreath down, but I just couldn't do it. He was still technically a baby... right?

This year, I knew I was really pushing it but the thought of it made my uterus hurt.

I couldn't stand looking at an empty hook. But after his birthday party last weekend I realized the pinata would make a good replacement. I figured he could recognize the number, count 10 times as high as it, name every color on it, and successfully beat it with a stick hard enough to extract every piece of candy in it... there's no denying it, he's not a "baby" anymore.

Excuse the bottom, it took a pretty brutal beating from the little party goers!

It honestly wouldn't have bothered me one bit to leave that baby wreath up until the day he left for college. Can't you just see it now... packing up his clothes, breaking apart his bed, boxing up his books, U-Haul parked in the driveway...

"Son, don't you want to take the wreath to hang on your dorm door? That way everyone will know your name." ha!

Ahhh, time marches on. Babies become big boys... and moms just become mush.

Memories
Like the corners of my mind
Misty water-colored memories
Of the way we were

Girls Just Wanna Have Fun

Last week was my first official Mom's Retreat Weekend. I nearly missed it, but God must have known how much I needed it, because He miraculously made it happen.

Jill, Iris, Misty, Leslie, and I have had this trip to Atlanta planned for months. We were going to celebrate all of us turning 35 this year (except for Leslie, she's the young one of the bunch). We have all been friends since college and aside from the unspeakable Spring Break trips to PCB or a cruise when we were all still single and childless, we've never just "gotten away" and decided it was time.

But the morning we were to leave, Trace threw up an hour before they were supposed to pick me up. I called and told them I wasn't going... I was so sad.

But, then the great snow of 2010 began, closing the schools early, canceling Jill's sub, so she got stuck at school doing dismissal (ohhh, the job never ends!) The roads quickly became covered and traffic in our little Southern town came to a halt.

It turned out to be such a blessing. We were scheduled to leave at 11 and by 3 they still hadn't left Chattanooga. By then Trace had had a nap and had not thrown up anymore. My sweet husband assured me he could handle it and encouraged me to go on. So they drove all the way back across town in the blinding snow to pick me up and off we went!

We got 2 streets away from my house when I got the good news...
It's official... we are ALL mommies!! My dear friend, Iris, is 11 weeks pregnant and doing great. I waited to publish this post until she went back to the doctor and gave the OK to make it public. What a great way to start off the weekend! (Much better than vomit and a snowstorm)

We had planned to get to Atlanta early and shop Friday afternoon but the snow derailed that. (Our husbands all breathed a quiet sigh of relief!) We had dinner at Maggiano's Friday night and couldn't get reservations until 9:15.

Seriously, who eats that late?? We all tried to stay awake until dessert, boy you can tell we're getting old!

We knew we had a "pillow situation" when Iris and I laughed about having to sleep with a LEAST 3 pillows each and well... that left none for the other 3 girls! So, we called room service and asked for as many as they would give us. (And it still wasn't enough!) Are we high maintenance females or what? She's preggers, I have no excuse.
You can take the girl out of the office, but...
Saturday morning we all slept late... ahhhh! Love those hotel black out shades! Then got up and headed to the spa.

Misty spent HOURS coordinating this spa day for us. After researching spas in Atlanta, we decided to drive about 30 minutes away to a spa in McDonough that offered the "Georgia on my Mind" package at about half the price of the others. Let's just say we wanted to live the Real Housewives of Atlanta lifestyle for the weekend without having to donate our plasma to pay for it... some of us did that in college, I think.

Talk about a room full of giddy girls... we walked in to this beautiful Victorian house and were given robes, hot tea and heated neck wraps... heaven. The day started out perfectly...
Not a hint of hairspray or makeup in sight... a little scary at our age. ha!
Sadly, the spa day did not end as happily as it started. What began as a relaxing foot soak in rose petals, and lavender, became a 3 hour wait for some of us. We were all scheduled for a mani/pedi, massage and facial. After learning that they were understaffed and not really equipped to accommodate our little group of 5, we realized what was supposed to be a 3 1/2 hour day at the spa was actually scheduled for 7 hours.

After we had been there for 4 hours, Misty and Leslie had only had a 1 hour massage. The rest of their time had been spent waiting on the couch. One can only sip hot tea and eat cheese, crackers, and dainty mints for so long.

So... we decided to leave and go on with our weekend and dinner plans. (Ironically, we had planned on shopping after the spa and before dinner and we missed that too.) We were beginning to wonder if it was a conspiracy :)

That night we had dinner at Seasons 52 which was wonderful! Everything on the menu is 475 calories or less and very healthy. I'm usually the queen of the fried foods but I was pleasantly surprised. I'm pretty sure we eclipsed the 475 calorie mark after adding wine, salad, and dessert to our meal... though our intentions were good. We were celebrating Jill's 35th birthday, the cougar of the group!

Sunday morning we had a wonderful breakfast (thank you Embassy Suites) and headed home. We did manage to stop in Calhoun at the outlets for about an hour before real life beckoned us back.

My big Atlanta shopping spree consisted of a $6 fleece jacket for myself and a bag of $2.99 Monster Sale shirts and windpants for Trace at The Children's Place Outlet... not quite the "hurt" I'd planned on putting on Atlanta's economy! ha!

We got back home to snowy roads, dirty snowmen and our families. As we dropped each person off one by one we promised to do it again next year and the years after...

I came home to this...

and the biggest hug from Trace I've ever had. Between his Daddy, the snow, a sled, 4 grandparents, The Wizard of Oz, and a little Pedialyte... I don't think he even knew I was gone.

Girlfriends are so important and I cherish them so much! Thank you guys for "kidnapping" me. I can't wait to do it again next year... love you!

Yumm... who made that dip??

Oops... I was supposed to include this recipe from my mother-in-law with my birthday post. I must have had 4 different people come up and ask me who made the Reuben dip. Sadly, I couldn't take credit for it, nor did I ever get to taste it, but here goes...

Reuben Dip

1 pkg fresh sauerkraut (drained)
1 1/2 lbs pastrami (chopped)
2 cups shredded Swiss cheese

Dressing-
1 1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/4-1/2 cup dill relish
1/4 cup water
3-4 tbsp. thousand island dressing

In baking dish, layer 1/2 sauerkraut, 1/2 pastrami, 1/2 Swiss cheese, 1/2 dressing, then repeat
Bake at 325 degrees for 45 minutes
Serve with party ryes bread or bagel chips

Happy Birthday Trace

Dear Trace,

My hope is that someday you will look back at your "baby book blog" and enjoy all of the pictures and memories of your childhood that I tried to capture and share. But I couldn't let this day, your birthday, go by without telling you how I am feeling.

Three years ago today, my world changed forever. All my life, I had dreamed of having a baby, of being someone's mommy. The anticipation of waiting for you, planning for you, feeling you grow inside of me still couldn't prepare my heart for the love that I felt the minute Dr. Adams laid you in my arms for the first time. Everyday since then, has been a gift. You have brought more joy to your Daddy and I than you will ever know.

Sometimes at night, I still watch you while you sleep and I pray that Jesus keeps you safe and healthy, that he guides and directs us as we raise you, that you always know how very loved you are, and I pray for your heart. That it will come to know and love the Lord, because I believe, son, that is the only way to true peace and happiness.

You are growing much too fast for me. I sometimes ache to rewind the clock and start all over again. But I know I can't, so I will try my best to capture and enjoy every minute. As the sign says above your bedroom door, you are my dream come true...

Happy Birthday!
I love you,
Mommy

The Party

We celebrated Trace's 3rd birthday on Saturday with our family. Jimmy's parents kindly offered to host at their house, and it turned out to be the perfect party place. (I do not exaggerate when I say, I have the best in-laws in the world... they are SO good to me!)

Sylvia's family from Alabama couldn't come for health reasons and really busy schedules and we missed them terribly. No party is ever complete without the Alabama crew, but we will hopefully see them all soon.

Here are some pictures...


Getting a birthday smooch from Nanny
My dad's 60th birthday was this week also so we added his name to the cake but just opted for 6 candles! ha!

When I asked Trace what he wanted on his cake, he thought for a minute and then said, "Dorothy" (He LOVES the Wizard of Oz). I told my cousin Carrie, I just couldn't get my son a birthday cake with a girl in a white and blue gingham dress and ruby red slippers... we went with his second choice, Thomas.
Dad opening his new Uggs

The littlest party goer, Lucas... I could just eat him with a spoon!




Nana and Trace doing a birthday dance
Abram, Nalin and Trace singing Happy Birthday
Uncle Andy gets a sweet hug from Abram
Although there were only 4 kids there, I was worried they wouldn't have anything fun to do... no bouncy things, no pony rides, no Chuck E Cheese. Apparently, an empty hot tub and a candy filled pinata in the basement are all you need for hours of entertainment.




I hope he had a wonderful birthday party and a special thanks to Granddaddy and Sisty for letting us invade their home.