Happy Anniversary!

When I was little, my parents say that I would often run to tell them about something I was happy about and then exclaim "Aren't I a lucky duck?" Well, tomorrow is Jason and I's third wedding anniversary and that is exactly the phrase that comes to mind when I think about having him as my husband. On one hand, it is so hard to believe that we have only been married three years, but then on the other these years have just flown by. We have had so much going on that I am sure most marriage counselors would cringe if they looked at us on paper...both of us have changed jobs and gone from two incomes to one, we have bought a house and moved to a new part of the city, we have had a new baby, we have stumbled through the illness and loss of Jason's dad, and we are now only six days shy of having our second child. So as you can see, it has been three years jam packed with stressors...both in and out of our control. Although there have definitely been times throughout our marriage when we have found ourselves going through the motions and just trying to maintain a little sanity, we thankfully continue to love and support each other with a fierceness that only comes with this lifelong commitment. There are so many things I love about this man of mine. He is still the cutest guy I have ever seen and there is no one I would rather spend my days around. I am so proud of the way he lives his life and the character he shows on a daily basis. His smile is contagious. He might not always understand where I am coming from, but he will always listen to my feelings and never makes me feel silly. He is that dad...the one who will make all the kids crack up, who can fix anything, and will teach our boys to honor and respect women. When he laughs, his eyes sparkle and crinkle up in just the right way. He enjoys being around my family and understands their importance to me. He can still make me feel like the most beautiful girl in the room (and I am saying this at nine months pregnant so believe me, he is that good). He is my biggest comfort in this world and it is an amazing feeling to know, without a doubt, that I made the best choice of my life when I picked him as my husband. So again, am I a lucky duck or what?

Officially Pampered!

My great friends Robin and Heidi threw me a "Diva Diaper Shower" this weekend! It was a great chance to have some girl time while getting "pampered" at a local nail salon. Aren't they so clever?? At first I was a little hesitant to have a shower, but it was so much fun and I'm so thankful to have such wonderful friends who will not take no for an answer. Not to mention, the tons of diapers and wipes that we received! We are definitely set up for pee-pee and poo-poo diapers galore! Thanks again to everyone for helping me celebrate Hayes' arrival and giving me the prettiest toes at Memorial Herman!

Jack's First Day!

So Jack might have had his first day of "school" today, but I am the one who learned a new word...ENMESHED! I have joked to Jason that my little sidekick and I were a bit enmeshed before, but after today I really can't deny it. I reluctantly signed Jack up for one day a week of "Mother's Day Out" at my mom's church for this fall. I knew it would probably be good for the little mama's boy and I felt better about it because Gigi would be right there and could check on him throughout the day. Plus, I was hoping he might get a little special treatment since he is the grandson of the church accountant. : ) We have built up going to school to Jack for months now and he has been very excited to play "trucks" and "choo-choos." I, on the other hand, was a bit nervous because I got pretty upset after his orientation a few weeks ago. I blame some of my tears on crazy hormones, but there are also some very real fears behind it all as well. It is very hard to give up the control of having the little monster in my sights most hours of the day. No matter how unrealistic, I want to protect him from all things mean or bad in this world so how in my right mind could I send him to a strange place where complete strangers are supposed to care for him?? I mean how can I just leave him with people who don't know how he likes to be covered up with his gigantic car pillow at nap time or how he likes to have a cracker or cookie for each hand or how his favorite color is orange or how his favorite song is "You are My Sunshine." Granted I wrote all of these idiosyncrasies down for the teachers, but how can I be sure that they actually read it? I mean seriously. : ) Despite all of my uncertainties, I was feeling pretty strong about conquering this inevitable milestone when we set out this morning. We had done all of the necessary preparations the night before...his outfit was layed out, lunch was made and cooling in the fridge, extra outfits packed, diapers labeled, family picture picked out, etc. We got to the church right on time and were met by Gigi. We took Jack to his class and did our best to try to get him interested in something before saying our goodbyes. This is about the time I realized this whole set up was not going to go well for me at least. As we started to leave, I found myself yelling over my shoulder "His favorite color is orange!" As we made it out to the hallway, I began to hear his cries for mommy and I could no longer hold in my own waterworks. Much to my dismay, several teachers happened to be walking by and stopped to console me as I sobbed "I am too pregnant for this!" I was finally able to regain my composure once I could no longer hear Jack's cries of abandonment and with Gigi's promise to check on him every fifteen minutes. I left the building bleary eyed and drove to Bed, Bath, and Beyond where I wandered around for an hour and a half, with an extremely red nose and puffy eyes, looking for the perfect towels. It seemed like forever until it was time to pick him up, but once I looked him over from head to toe and decided he didn't seem too emotionally traumatized...I figured we would probably give it another go next week. Then again, I also heard there is a virus going around so we might need to stay home just to be safe. : )

Scrub-a-dub-dub!

Well, things are slowly returning back to normal around here since Ike hit land a little over a week ago. We were only out of power for about 24 hours and although the past week has presented some minor inconveniences...all in all we realize we were very lucky and have much to be grateful about. I also decided a couple of good things do happen when you are faced with a natural disaster and days with no power, no internet, and/or no cable. First of all, you usually surround yourself with friends and family which is always a good thing. And secondly, everything in your life naturally just slows down. It actually can be pretty nice if you let yourself embrace it. In keeping with this slower pace...Jason, Jack, and I decided to wash our cars by hand today. I know, I know, what a novel idea! However, it was really great to get something done not exactly in the fastest or most efficient way, but definitely in the most fun and relaxing way. Although don't get me wrong, Jack took his washing very seriously and would hardly speak to either of us as he worked. : )

So Long Summer!

I am sure that the summer weather will continue on for another month or two here in Houston, but I also decided that since the leaves are beginning to change somewhere in America...it is the perfect time for me to do a little tribute to our fantastic summer. We had such a good time trying to keep cool and embracing all those things that make you miss the summer during those other not so fun seasons. Here are a few random pics to showcase our summetime fun!