8 months old

with my first baby, i was impatient.  i was ready for the next milestone.  i couldn't wait for him to sit up, talk, crawl, walk.  i was so anxious to find out his little personality.

with crosby, i pray for it to slow down.  i don't want him to get big and push my kisses away.  he could stay like this forever and i would be one perfectly happy momma.

 he smiles from the moment he wakes up to the second he goes to bed.  the only time he cries is during the thirty seconds between his baby food and his bottle.  he seems to think we are starving him to death.  as you can tell by the size of his cheeks, we clearly are not.

 he has two teeth with another well on it's way.  he pulls up to his knees and is damn proud of himself when he does.  he is almost crawling.  we are just waiting for that right leg to get with the program.

 he hasn't met a food he doesn't like.  the tongue is always going.  he drools constantly.  he says two words.  both first spoken on the same day: ma-ma-ma-ma-ma (me), and bub-bub-bub (ben).  chris is only a smidge jealous.

i am not bragging or sugar-coating.  this momma is just speaking the truth.  he is perfection.


p.s. i just realized that i already posted the last two pictures on a previous post....he's just so dang cute.

on the bandwagon

i know that it is waaaay too late in the season for a gift guide, but i have to share this little gem just in case you need a gift idea for valentine's day or upcoming birthdays.

have you heard of pinhole press?  i read about it all the time on blogs (cup of jo and nienie for example).  this little company has exploded, and for good reason.

last year, i ordered these notepads for mother's day gifts.  they are reasonably priced and the quality is by far better than other photo products i have ordered from other companies (other than ruby june, that is.)

the pictures don't do them justice.

this year i ordered desk calendars for christmas.  they printed promptly, shipped and arrived on my doorstep well before the big day.

the best part: they send a handwritten note with every order, plus special discounts for returning customers.  so using my discount, i ordered us our own personalized calendar for the fridge.  

it. is. awesome.

it makes my paper-nerdy heart flutter.

check them out and order something!  it is money well spent.

greatest hits

hello friends!  last weekend marked the third anniversary of marcy's thirtieth birthday.  and considering she loves her birthday more than any kid i know, we celebrated all weekend.  we have had a sleepy week around here recovering from all the fun.  here are some highlights:

 1) friday night marcy and i had plans to grab dinner and go see the comedian kathy griffin live.  little did marcy know (or did she?), i planned for us to be joined by robin, leigh, kelly and her sister anna (in town from okc).

 we spent the entire night laughing.  first, at kathy griffin.  and then at these two clowns laughing at themselves.  good times.

2) chris took ben to home depot for their monthly saturday morning FREE kids workshop.  if you haven't taken your kids before, i highly recommend it.  this month they made a piggy bank shaped like a house and last month they made a snowman napkin holder (which will grace my christmas table for years to come).  he got his face painted like a gorilla on saturday.  fierce.

 3) lunch with anna and marcy at the always delicious pecan lodge located in shed 2 of the dallas farmers market.  i switched my order up this time by ordering the "hot mess", which consists of a baked sweet potato, cheese, barbacoa, bacon, and creamy goodness.  i could only eat half of it, but man was that half delicious.

 this gorilla patiently awaits his order.

 the hot mess

 crosby thinks long and hard about ice cream.

 my pretty city.

4) a birthday brunch at a new-to-us restaurant in the charming bishop arts district, oddfellows.  i had a bloody mary and a smoked salmon goat cheese scramble.  enough said.

 5) did you know that a double bath-time is double the fun?  that's the word on the street.

 6) lazy mornings with the boys on my days off.  this particular morning, ben "fell" into crosby's crib while trying to kiss him good morning.  the crib is now referred to as the gorilla trap.  can you guess who named it that?

 7) dinner at stackhouse, another new-to-us burger joint on the cusp of deep ellum.  pretty tasty indeed. 

other things that made my week: a letter from my nieces and nephew, a family dinner at nan's, and a baby shower date confirmed and on the calendar.

looking forward to a sunday funday date with my handsome husband.

how was your week?  what are you looking forward to?

until next time,

xoxoxo

mood changer

my friend jessica blogged earlier today about waking up in a bad mood that she was determined to stay in.  that is until she heard a couple of songs that turned her bad mood right around.

i hate it when a good song ruins my bad mood :)

it got me thinking, what songs are your mood changers?

i love this one.  it's not particularly upbeat, but it will put a smile on my face even on my grumpiest of days.  this one's for you, jessica.

greatest hits

we are back to normal, folks.  out-of-town guests have returned back home, school started back up, my work schedule is back on.  while the holidays were fantastic, i am a sucker for a schedule and a routine.

therefore, momma is a happy girl.

here are a few things that made our week memorable:

1)  parenthood is back (thank the lord because i am all footballed out).  last night's episode made me cry (per usual), miss my grandparents, want to go on a roadtrip, and immediately look up songs on the internet.  this song was my favorite from last night's episode.  have i mentioned that i love this show?  o.k., i'll shut up now.

2) nana and papa's visit.  we ate (a lot), drank (a lot), went to the zoo, took nature walks, and played our hearts out.  here are nana and papa standing on a tree stump with ben.  yep, i don't know why either.

3) our annual new year's eve eve tradition of going to ft. worth to see our beloved robert earl keen perform at the beautiful bass hall.  this year was extra special because we were joined by some of our best friends.  we had a good dinner, listened to a fantastic show, caught up over beers with an old friend, spent the night in a hotel and ate a big mexican breakfast before coming home to our boys.  can't beat that with a stick.

4) checking out a new neighborhood park.  seriously, this baby is always happy.  he is a joy from the moment he wakes up until the moment he goes to sleep.  it is too good to be true.  i'm sure he'll make me pay during toddlerhood.  but for now, i am savoring this perfection.

 5) a belated christmas celebration with pa.

 6) new years eve celebration with my boys, a bottle of wine, spaghetti carbonara, and a movie.  we (chris and i) stayed up to kiss at midnight, then off to bed we went.

 7) veggie pizza from il cane rosso.  they park their mobile wood-fired pizza oven down the street from us every monday night.  so it was pizza for dinner.  delish.

8) eating black-eyed peas with my parents on new years day.

p.s. my friend chance welcomed her little girl right after christmas (8 weeks before her due date).  baby lenox is a tiny angel and has a lot of work ahead fattening up in the nicu.  check them out here and feel free to send them a happy thought or two.  thanks!

looking forward to see kathy griffin and marcy's birthday brunch.  how was your week?  what are you looking forward to?

until next time,

xoxoxo

ben lately

ben is three and a half and does not stop talking from the moment he opens his eyes in the morning until the moment he falls asleep at night.  and if you don't respond immediately, he repeats himself until you do.   sometimes, i think my ears can't listen any more.  but his vocabulary is huge and he comes up with some of the funniest things to say, unintentionally of course.  here is a taste of ben lately.

B: i have to go potty!

(once on potty) whew!  that's better.

B: (in the bathroom at a restaurant) i don't like the girls restroom.

i'm a MAN.

ben and his daddy went to run errands and came home with a dozen roses for me.  ben , on bended knee, handed them to me and said, "these are for you, princess gorilla."

ben is obsessed with marriage lately.  he is always asking me to marry him, and i have to explain every time that i am already taken.  just the other day he told me he can't wait to get married and have a beard.

 and for those of you on facebook, you may have already seen this goodie:

B: momma, i wish you could be a mermaid. all you are missing is water, a tail, and those boobie things.

he is a complete nut and truly the funniest kid i know.

my mom is a genius

since i was a little girl, a little girlie-girl mind you, my mom has always predicted that i would only have sons.  long before chris and i were even dating, she predicted we would get married.  she always said i would be a teacher.  check.  and that i would marry a coach.  check; when we were married, chris was a coach. she is a smart one, my momma.

and since my tomboy sister was a little girl (who never wanted to come inside, take baths, brush her hair or play with dolls), my mom always teased her that she would have daughters like me.

well, guess what?

my sister is pregs.

with a baby girl named addy.

and to say we are all excited is the understatement of the century.

via

so when my boys want private soccer lessons, i'll drop them off at aunt choo's house and head to the mall to buy things like these for my angel niece.

via

fingers crossed that addy will like glitter nail polish and let me braid her hair.

i'm psyched.