Oh Happy Day

It's Friday and I'm getting ready to pack up for a day at the beach with a dear friend from college who's here for a visit. Oh happy day! Today will be filled with babies, talking and fun. I'll be taking pics and relaxing this weekend and I hope you will too!

No post is complete without a picture ...

This has nothing to do with this post but I just love her little face!

Love the one you're with

I have a love/hate relationship with my house. I laughed out loud this morning because I started this post last week after reading this post. At the time I read it I was feeling all happy and content with our home. We have 2 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms- it's comfortable, it's home. Sure, we need a bigger house with more space for baby gear (and more babies!) but we live in a country of excess. Countless people across the world live with MUCH less than I do and I should be thankful. Also, in NYC people have multiple kids in 1,000 sq ft apartments - if they can do it and be "chic" about it, why can't I?

And then this weekend happened. On Friday night & Saturday I became a domestic goddess. I made dinner for a friend who had a baby, 2 banana puddings, and these cookies for uncommon husband's birthday (delicious!). As I rolled out cookie dough on my tiny counter space I cursed my kitchen and wished I had space for a MixMaster. As I cleaned up papers and mail I wished I had more storage space for filing and organization. And to top it all off, last night my husband started showing me what's on the market right now - dream houses! In our price range! In our ideal neighborhoods! Sometimes I hate being responsible and cautious. We are planning to buy next year but since we are going to keep our condo and have 2 mortgages we are being patient and saving, saving, saving. So, with all of that said I'll revisit my frame of mind from Friday and for today, love the house I'm in. Grrr ;)

Keeping it all to myself

At the beginning of this month we took a mini-vacation to my parents house. I blogged very little about it - partly because I was relaxing but I was also keeping it all to myself for a little while. The trip was so wonderful - relaxing, fun, special, that I've been savoring it for a few weeks. I think it's honestly the first time I have really relaxed for several days in a row since Addison was born. There was no laundry to do, no work, no errands, and plenty of people to help with the baby. It was heaven! We ate delicious meals, picked blueberries, took pictures, sat outside under the oak trees and played with Addison. My parents live in the country so Addison enjoyed long wagon rides with her Papa and picking fresh vegetables in their organic garden. I left feeling rested and refreshed. We are going back for an extended Labor day weekend and I can't wait!

One more thing - I can't keep this blog to myself, good things must be shared. My cousin Amanda is a Domestic Goddess and one of the best cooks in the South. She's sharing her receipes, crafting and entertaining ideas on her new blog and I love it! I can't stay out of the kitchen - her recipes are making me a rock star in my house! I think she could compete with my other favorite blogger/cook - The Pioneer Woman, and that's saying alot.

Sentimental Reasons

I love finding the perfect gift for someone. For the past couple of years, I have tried to focus less on spending a lot of $$ on gifts, and more on finding meaningful gifts that people will actually enjoy. I love sentimental gifts and special occasions. These gifts are often the hardest to find though.

Life is full of big events and this year I've had to find gifts for several - friends 30th b-days, a first Father's Day, etc. Each time I have struggled to find something meaningful and special. There are a million "gift" sites out there but very few that serve as a guide for meaningful gift giving - too much emphasis on "stuff" these days. Someone needs to start a blog that gives ideas for every occasion and price range! (not me, I need inspiration and time myself). If you have any fabulous gift ideas OR resources for such, please share in the comments!

All of that said, my 30th birthday is coming up soon (eeeek!!) and my problem is that everything I want is expensive ;) None of these gifts fall into the sentimental catagory but are they meaningful? Oh yes!

First of all, this bad mama jamma camera lens. Yes, it's outrageously expensive but (((swoon))!!! I need this for realz ya'll.

This awesome camera bag. Pioneer Woman has it in red and I would looove to have it in black.


A new point and shoot camera. I love my camera and having the above-mentioned bag would enable me to carry it more places but with a toddler in tow, a little point and shoot would be handy for those days when I can't take the big one.

And of course, no wish list would be complete without a little Louie. The Louis Vuitton Emilie wallet in blue is divine. Sigh. Louie, you complete me.


What's on your wish list?

Photography

I read something about photography last week that I absolutely LOVE. It perfectly captures how I feel about it. When I went to a photography workshop last year in Texas, this is what Cheryl told us - "you are every penny you charge and more, the photos you are taking for your clients are invaluable. It is a gift that families will cherish for the rest of their lives." It's very easy to forget this. Sometimes I feel extremely guilty for charging anything at all, other times I doubt my own talents. But then I read this and not only do I realize that photography is valuable, but I also want to run out and start taking more pictures of the people I love.

Words from Dana's blog post on this topic: "custom photography is a luxury and is not inexpensive. I also know that many people choose photographers based on their budget(and I know that to some degree, budget must be considered). Today I am writing this post to try and explain to you how different it is to book a photographer whose work makes your heart sing. Put aside your budget–the way you did when you booked that luxury holiday or bought those expensive shoes you knew you shouldn’t but made you feel so fabulous that you couldn’t resist. This is a luxury that will bring you joy for so many years that, in the end, you will realize it was priceless. Your research should be more about reviewing portfolios and reading people’s blogs than it should be about looking at pricelists. When you make this leap, I think you will shock yourself with the results. I am kicking myself…wishing I had done it more when my kids were smaller. Even though my children are two of the most photographed children on the planet. I wish I had let another artist capture them through their lens…and, more importantly, capture my family’s love and laughter and life in a way that brought a lump to my throat and a tear to my eye. I will never let another year pass. E.V.E.R."

Isn't that amazing?! I am so thankful to not only have the equipment and talent myself, but to be blessed with a professional photog/family member who will also take pictures for us and of us whenever we would like. Otherwise I would be spending a small fortune on photography!

Ain't life grand?

Much to say about nothing

I feel like I have a million blog posts bouncing around in my head but can't stop and concentrate to get any one down. I basically have a lot to say about nothing in particular. Until I get my act together, a few random thoughts - and a picture from Addison's birthday photo shoot! I love profile shots of her. Oh wait, I love all shots of her ;)

1. When someone suggests you "like" something on Facebook, do you always accept? I have a "friend" on FB who I met through work. I honestly don't really like his business (it's nothing offensive, I just don't think he's good at what he does) but he's sent me the suggestion twice. This is where work and personal blur - do I "like" it to make him happy even when I don't like it?

2. I was thanking God recently that there is no such thing as mind reading. I went to a baby shower where every other gift was an article of not-so-cute (read TACKY) clothing and everyone just oooed and ahhhed over everything. The thoughts going through my head kept me amused but I am thankful no one else heard them. Apparently I have different taste than everyone else in that room.

3. Addison is ONE! My grandmother set up a tea party for her and it was the cutest thing I've ever seen. She loved talking to all of the dolls and animals.

I'll be back tomorrow with a normal post and regularly after that. I think I just needed to put some thoughts down to get rolling again.

Crash Landing

Last week I realized that my car needed an oil change on the day we were supposed to be leaving town. Usually my husband takes my car in for maintenance but I assured him I was perfectly able to handle this task, it's just an oil change! He was concerned that they would try to sell me on some unnecessary service but I think my exact words were "I am independent, I've done this before. Don't worry - I've got this." I pull into one of those express oil change places and they signal me to drive into one of the bays. As I am pulling onto the ramp my tires lost traction and spun a little and I guess I made a funny face because the mechanics were looking amused. I confidently went to step out of my car but I forgot one minor detail, I was parked on an elevated surface.

Yes ... I fell out of my car. Me in my high heels and pencil skirt went tumbling down. Luckily I caught myself so I didn't go completely sprawling and I have to say those guys were very polite (why did there have to be 3 of them standing there?!?) - not one of them cracked a smile and believe me, it was funny. They were very concerned and kept checking to see if I was okay. At first I was offended that none of them offered me a hand in getting up but in hindsight they were probably dirty so I'm guessing that was why. Normally I would have been embarrassed but honestly, I just thought it was funny. I barely made it into the waiting room before I started laughing and I couldn't stop. At least I can laugh at myself!

I'm Crazy Betty

My grandmother (aka Crazy Betty) loves to know everything about everyone. My siblings and I joke that telling her something is the equivalent of telling everyone in our entire extended family. She just loves to be "in the know" and enlighten others as well (isn't that a nice way of saying it?). Whenever we go anywhere she wants people to know who she is and she wants to know their story. She always starts off by exclaiming "I know you! I'm Crazy Betty" (she actually uses her real name). This is usually met with confusion or a blank stare to which she'll follow up with "Did you go to this school? Do you live on the Key? What is your mother's name? Is your father a Doctor?" - she will literally question them in this manner until she finds some common ground to justify how she knows them. In actuality, she almost never does. Sometimes it's cute and people play along, but other times it's downright embarrassing. I was telling my mother about this quirk the other day and she told me it's a family thing. Apparently my great-grandmother Lulu did the same thing and would ask "Now who are your people?" every time she met someone new. Does this mean I'll be a professional interrogator in the future? Oh Betty ...

Crazy Betty and the shoes

First of all, if you've never read my first post about who Crazy Betty is, start here. A couple of months ago I wrote about her obsession with buying proper shoes for my daughter. Let's just say that we've been "discussing" what kind of shoes she should have and when she should start wearing them for some time now. We finally came to an agreement on some white soft soled shoes (I won!) and Betty could not be happier that Addison is finally wearing shoes on a (somewhat/when I remember) regular basis. We were playing with a toy phone yesterday and I handed it to Addison and said "It's Gigi calling for you, she wants to know if you're wearing your shoes every day while you're on vacation." Everyone thought I was kidding until Crazy Betty called this morning and asked my mother that very same question. Oh Betty ...

I've got some more stories to share this week about Betty but if you're looking for a few laughs from the past, a few can be found here, and here, and here.

Red, White & Blueberries

We are visiting my parents this weekend and having a blast! We picked fresh blueberries yesterday and Addison loved it. She's basking in LOTS of extra attention this weekend. Not only did she get a new wagon for her birthday, my mother stocked her house with toys (a kitchen set, water table, books, and the list goes on) and there's no shortage of people willing to play with her. I am also taking just a few pictures here and there (ha ha). I am enjoying being "unplugged" this weekend and reading a great book. Happy 4th of July!

We're Gonna Party Like It's Her Birthday

Addison turns one next weekend! I seriously can't believe it. In some ways this year has flown by but in other ways it feels like we've lived a lifetime over the past 12 months. So many changes, phases, and new things have happened. I think I mentioned it before but we decided not to have a big party. No one has been more surprised by that decision than me, but I'm glad. We are attending two other birthday parties and a baby shower next weekend so it's already jam packed. We decided to do a family party this weekend at my parents house which will be perfect. Plus, not spending mega bucks on a party (because we all know I can't just have a simple party for my little girl) means we splurged on presents! I ordered a fabulous outfit for Addison (photo shoot coming soon!) and we started a Tiffany charm bracelet and got the pink cupcake charm for her 1st birthday. Several people have told me they think that's a silly idea but I don't care - Uncommon Husband and I love sentimental gifts so we're doing it. I have had to stop myself from buying loads of stuff, I've been on a Pottery Barn Kids kick lately and keep finding things I want to order (I'm really into personalized stuff these days). I am refraining for now but it's hard. Birthday pics coming soon, lots of celebrating going on this week!