Movie Reviews!

So, I NEVER get to go to the movies and I took full advantage of getting to see a few over the holidays.  While at my parents for Christmas we have a tradition of going to the movies on Christmas Eve.  This year me, Dylan and my Dad went to see The Fighter.
The Fighter
The Fighter is a true story about a boxer from Massachusetts who's brother is a crack addict but also his trainer.  It stars Mark Walburg, Christian Bale and Amy Adams.  It was really good!!  Now, keep in mind you will be hearing the F-word ALOT but the acting is so great.  Watching Mark Walburg train made me seriously want to get back in shape.  Amy Adams is such a tough chick and her accent was awesome.  If you enjoy boxing I would recommend the movie.
Black Swan
I was so happy to get to see Black Swan yesterday.  We were sent home from work at 1pm so Dylan and I raced to see the 1:55pm showing while Isaac was still at school.  Black Swan is beautiful!  Natalie Portman was amazing.  Natalie Portman plays a disciplined ballerina that wants to earn the role of Swan Queen in Swan Lake.  Her relationship with her mother and with the director are so twisted that it's good.  I jumped a few times and was thrilled by the beautiful music.  There are a few sex scenes so don't say I didn't warn you.
Hopefully you'll get to go to the movies since there are so many good ones out right now.

Christmas Vacation!

We had an awesome time visiting my parents in Lancaster, PA.  We did so many fun things that it felt like we were only there for 2 days.  Since so many different things happen I'll try and share our time together day by day.
Wednesday - We flew from San Antonio, TX through Atlanta finally landing in Baltimore, MD.  We didn't get to my parents house until around 1 am.  It was a long day.
Thursday - We hit the ground running by going to one of my childhood favorite places.  The Hands On House!  Back in the days, this was literally a house where a kid can be a kid.  Each room has a theme and fun things to play and learn with.  Now it's a perfect size kid museum with one "room" leading into another.  The whole time kids are learning too!  Here is Isaac loving every minute of it.

Isaac putting cars together and racing them down a track

Isaac with Grandpa in the snowball cave

Fishing with Grandma

Building block towers and knocking them down!

In the machine area, he was outfitted with an apron and safety goggles.  The goggles didn't last long.

Hitting the assembly line

Ok, I could post probably 30 more pictures but I'll stop for now. :)

Thursday - Christmas Eve.  We went as a family to the Central Market.  Here, many locals, bring homemade goods to sell.  I stocked up on some Whoopie Pies.  Isaac had fun people watching and listening to some musicians play Christmas music.

Friday - Christmas!!!  We had fun enjoying our last year not having to open presents at the crack of dawn.  Around 10 am we hit the presents.  It was so fun to watch Isaac tear into them.

Wearing his adorable Grinch PJ's I got from Zuilily

Opening his stocking with Daddy

We then had an amazing lunch with everyone.

Sunday - We had a great time at church and spent the rest of the day relaxing.  It also started snowing!!  There ended up not being enough snow to sled and it was also way too windy for Isaac.

Monday - We had a great time eating lunch with everyone at the local Mexican restaurant.  Actually it's like the only one there which was a big change from Austin.

Tuesday - We woke up at 3am, headed to the airport and back to Austin.

We are definitely looking forward to the next time we can come back and visit!

Babies are like fruitcakes...

I saw this in my Parenting magazine this month and I thought it was too cute not to share.
Babies are like fruitcakes..
1. The minute they enter the room, they start getting passed around from person to person. 
2. They're incredibly sweet-- and consider yourself warned, also can be slightly sticky. 
3. Eighteen years later, they're often still found just sitting around your house. 
4. Everyone compliments everybody elses but secretly thinks they made the best one. 

- Deborah Skolnik

Celebrating Christmas - Cyber style

Today was really fun!  We opened Christmas presents with Dylan's family over Skype.  Seriously, I don't know what I would do without Skype!  Isaac received an awesome Leap Frog Dog, Scout.  We programmed it so it says, "I love you Isaac".  He also got an alphabet Elmo from Granny Lola and a super soft pillow pet from Aunt Gina and Uncle Wade.  He just loved ripping the paper and helped Dylan and I open ours.

I was super excited about my presents.  I got an adorable, monogrammed bag from Gina and Wade from thirtyonegifts.com, some great slippers and a wonderful peppermint candle.  I also got the Reebok EasyTone shoes!! I'm hoping any walking I do from now on will be more productive.  :)  Also, in my cyber stocking (email) I had a Groupon gift card waiting for me!!!  I love Groupon and I can't wait to see what amazing deal I can put this towards.  I can guarantee it will be massage/spa related.

I'm feeling so blessed and happy to have such a great, giving family.  Only a few more days until we travel to PA!!!!

Isaac with his Elmo.  He saw an airplane at the same time too.

(Don't you just love that it's Dec.19 and we aren't wearing jackets outside and it's sunny!)

Kitchen Sink.

Over a year ago now I was in HEB and they had wine samples.  I actually ran into my friend Judy and we both thought the wine was super good!  Since then it's almost the only wine I buy.  It's called Kitchen Sink.  Now there is another wine that's called Everything But the Kitchen Sink but my wine is not this wine.  Mine is around $8 a bottle, the other one is $39, totally not in my price range.

Anyway, this past Friday I wanted some Kitchen Sink, BAD!  So we all packed up to go to HEB.  The HEB on Pecan St. was completely out.  Naturally at first I was totally annoyed but then thought, "Hmmp, see it is good wine, I have fabulous taste." :)  So Saturday Dylan ran to the other HEB, Gattis School Rd for other items, not the wine.  When he came back he said they were completely out too and said there must have been a wedding or something and they bought out all the stock.
Now I was totally feeling like I had to find this wine.  I actually went all the way over the the HEB on Greenlawn.  Totally out too!!!  The good thing is at this HEB they actually have a "wine guy".  I asked him about it and his first statement was, "it's a sad story".  WHAT?!  Don't tell me that!!!  He proceeded to tell me that all the HEB's and the HEB distribution center were completely out.  They had submitted two orders to the supplier and didn't receive any of their requests.  They have no idea when they'll get more or what has happened.
I'll be checking back and hoping that my Kitchen Sink is not gone forever.

Keeping up with the Peeples...

So yeah, that doesn't really have the same ring as the Kardashians, oh well.

I just thought I'd give a little update on other things we've been up to.

Dylan and I are both still working away.  Dylan's schedule is about to get really consistent.  He'll be working the same times every day and then 1 weekend every 5 weekends.  I'll be glad because he gets so annoyed when I can't remember his wacky work times.

Isaac is growing up so fast.  He says "ut oh" a lot but 96% of the time it's totally out of context and for no apparent reason.  He has almost all his teeth.  For not getting his first tooth until he was 9 mths old, he's making up for lost time.  His last molars are coming in now.  He's completely obsessed with birds.  He's always looking in the sky for them and finds them in all his books.  He points and says "bur" all the time even if there isn't a bird around.  It will be interesting to see how this obsession/love of birds will develop.

Here is a delicious cookies recipe that I'm making for my co-workers tomorrow.  WARNING!  After you make the dough it has to sit in the fridge for an hour. :(  So, my thought of mixing them up, throwing them in the oven and being done all in an hour was sorely wrong.  I guess the hour is a good time to un-wrap all of the hershey kisses and sip some wine.  I've made these before and they are super good.

Hidden Kisses

Recipe courtesy Paula Deen

Prep Time:

20 min

Inactive Prep Time:

1 hr 0 min

Cook Time:

10 min

Level:

Easy

Serves:

3 1/2 to 4 1/2 dozen cookies

Ingredients

• 1 cup (2 sticks) butter, at room temperature
• 2/3 cup sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon pure almond extract
• 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup finely chopped pecans
• 1 (9-ounce) package chocolate candy kisses (recommended: Hershey's Kisses)
• 1 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar

Directions

In a large bowl, cream the butter, sugar, and vanilla and almond extracts. Stir in the flour and blend well. Add the pecans and blend well. Cover the bowl and refrigerate the dough for 1 hour.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Unwrap the candy kisses. Press a scant tablespoon of dough around each kiss, covering it completely; shape into balls.

Place the cookies on ungreased cookie sheets and bake for 10 minutes. Cool slightly, then transfer to a rack to cool completely. Roll the cookies in confectioners' sugar.

Christmas comes early...

We received a very exciting package Saturday morning.  Isaac's great grandmother sent him an early Christmas present.  I didn't know who it was from so I sent out many texts and finally found out who it was from.  Isaac could barely stand seeing the huge box in the living room and finally Dylan got a moment to put it together.  I was very thankful he was willing to put it together.  It's an ATV vehicle!  Isaac has had a blast playing with it!

Wearing his coon skin cap too!

Serious driving face

Santa

This past Monday Dylan brought Isaac to Barton Creek Mall and I met them at lunch.  The goal was to get Isaac's picture with Santa.  The line was fairly long and ended up taking my entire lunch break.  Isaac was fine playing with the toys by Santa's feet until I picked him up and put him in his lap.  This was his reaction.

Poor baby!  It makes me sad to even look at this.  However, I was able to calm him down for a second shot.

I was happy he didn't feel completely tortured and calmed down.  Hopefully next year he'll be better about it.

Is it really Christmas time?

For those of you that are in the Austin area you probably feel the way I do.  It doesn't feel like Christmas time.  Stores are decorated but not very crowded.  The weather doesn't help at all, 78 degrees every afternoon is killing me.  It's nice, but weird.  It just doesn't feel like that magical time of year.  I'm sure I'm not helping myself by not decorating.  We decided that we're not going to decorate.  It's only 3 weeks until we leave for my parents house and the thought of having to take it down is what makes me not want to.  Dylan mentioned maybe just putting the tree up with lights but no ornaments which we might do.

Yesterday I did do some holiday shopping.  My family decided that we'll draw names.  I was able to buy a gift for Dylan's person as well as my SIL(sister in law).  Since there are hundreds of options I feel I can at least say where I bought the gifts.  My sweet neighbor (who drops of boxes of toys her son doesn't play with, awesome!) was hosting a thirtyonegifts.com party.  I've seen a lot of these lately online and since I feel somewhat obsessed with monogramming, this is the perfect thing for me.  My good friend Kristen came with me and we both behaved by not going too crazy with buying, even though we both seriously considered signing up to be consultants just for the discount. :)

While I was at the party Dylan took Isaac downtown to the UT Co-op to meet the real Bevo!  For a small donation, that goes to feeding and taking care of Bevo, you got to take a picture with him.  Here are some pictures for the meeting.

Seriously, a gorgeous animal!  So happy they were able to see him.

Happy Thanksgiving!!

This week has gone incredibly too fast!  Dylan's parents arrived last Saturday and this week with them has been so fun and gone so fast.  Isaac is having a fabulous time with his Granny and Papa.  We've heard the word "Paaapaa" several times and even though I missed it, he said "Gany".
We've eaten tons of delicious food too.  Cheesecake Factory, Roaring Fork (just me and Dylan for date night) and Mighty Fine.  Not to mention all the turkey and fixins we could dream of at Thanksgiving lunch.  My brother David was able to come and eat with us too.
I don't have many pictures but here are a few super cute ones.

David took this picture while he was enjoying his first real Thanksgiving lunch.

His first taste of Daddy's homemade dressing.  Not sure of it yet.

Playing at the playground at Mighty Fine with Daddy and Papa

Love this one!

Granny and Papa

Ooey Gooey Pumpkin Butter Cake!

'Tis the season!  I am making my first Ooey gooey pumpkin butter cake this evening.  I say first because since I made it the first time a couple of years ago, it's the only thing I'm allowed to make. :)  Tomorrow is my work Thanksgiving potluck so it was requested.  Also, in less than a week, I'll be making another one for the real day.  It's not just good for Thanksgiving, I make it for Christmas too.  Here's a link to the recipe:

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/paula-deen/pumpkin-gooey-butter-cakes-recipe/index.html

UT football game pictures

Dylan and Isaac in our seats

Cuddling in our seats, it was a little chilly

Family photo

Bevo

The band was awesome

UT football game! UT vs. OSU

We were able to take Isaac to his first ever UT football game!  It got a little cold yesterday so I was worried about that but we ended up having a fun time.  Isaac has a signature "doesn't matter to me" attitude, was fine with the whole thing, almost unimpressed. :)  He really liked the walk to the stadium, people watching perched on his daddy's shoulders.  Once in the stadium he just wanted to get down and run around which unfortunately for him, he couldn't.  Dylan and I spent the time passing him back and forth and cheering.  UT couldn't pull off a win and in the middle of the 3rd quarter we left.  All in all it was a fun experience.
Here is a video that Dylan took.  I'll post some pictures soon.

Veterans Day!

Happy Veterans Day!
I have to admit I can get pretty choked up thinking about Veterans Day.  I'm so happy we take a day to recognize and say THANK YOU to those you have made the sacrifice to defend our freedom and keep us safe.

I have hundreds of great stories about my Pop Pop (Grandpa Beirn) who fought in WWII.  My grandfather was a medic.  Seriously, I think it is one of, if not the hardest, emotional duties to be assigned to.  His time as a medic continued to affect him the rest of his life.

Pop Pop stormed the beaches of Normandy on D-Day.  He was the first medic on the beach and set up the first medic station.  It brings tears to my eyes thinking about the young men who were falling around him and how he fought to save their lives as they fought to preserve ours.  However, I don't want to go on about the trials of that day and the many days he spent in Europe freeing the Jewish camps.  This story is a good story...

Several years after my Pop Pop went to heaven my Grandma got a knock on her door.  It was the postman with her mail.  He asked her if she was related to George Beirn who fought on D-Day.  She said yes.  He said he was just filling in today for her normal postman and had never done this route before.  He said that he was also there on the beach in Normandy that day and was wounded.  He remembers laying there receiving aid from the medics.  He saw the name BEIRN on the front of the medic's uniform.  He memorized it, as well as the unit and ranking he saw.  He swore that he would find the man who had saved his life that day on the beach, and thank him.  Sadly, he never got to thank my Pop Pop in person but was able to thank my Grandma.  My Pop Pop had saved this man's life as well as many others and we were given the gift of a wonderful story confirming what we already knew, Pop Pop was a hero.

Doing your own dirty work...

I guess it was a week ago now when I went to get my oil changed.  Naturally, being a girl I go into that situation defensive.  You start with, "I just want an oil change, nothing else".  Then they come into the waiting room and say, "Can we just show you a few things?"  UGH!  So in a effort to not be "mean" I humor them and listen to them tell me all of the things I need to replace, how I need a tune up, etc, etc, etc. So he showed me both my interior cabin filter and my engine air filter.  I had to agree I could see they both needed to be changed but I said no thank you to spending $44 to get them changed.  Immediately after I paid and left I drove straight to Auto Zone.  For you locals, the one in Pflugerville on FM685 by Sonic.
At Auto Zone I told them what I needed: (1) interior cabin air filter and (1) engine air filter for a 2006 Toyota Matrix.  Two seconds later, they brought them up to the counter to check out.  Showed me 2 options for the engine one, I chose the better quality one which happened to be only $1 more.  I already knew how to change my interior cabin filter.  (mine is just behind the glove compartment, SO easy to get to)  So, I asked the guy to show me how to change the engine one.  I was a little shocked at how easy this one was to change too.  It was a compartment right on top, didn't even get dirty changing it.
All in all I spent $33, $10 less than the oil change place and now I know how to change them both!

Halloween Part 2

Well it's a little sad.  Halloween part 2 pictures are not available.  Our camera was dropped on Friday but continued to work.  However, Sunday night when I tried to take the trick or treat pictures off the camera it wouldn't work.  Dylan and I both tried the past two days but it wouldn't work.  Today Dylan kept trying and by a fluke all of the pictures were wiped off the card.  Perspective is, if I was completely honest I would have really only wanted about 3-4 pictures out of the 40 we took.  We have great memories.

Isaac had a blast trick or treating.  He rode in the wagon and Zada walked with us too.  He walked up to each door with one of us holding his hand (while the other took pictures).  He just stood there like a statue staring blankly at the person that came to the door.  Towards the end, as more and more kids came out, he really loosened up.  He loves being around older kids and seeing them run with their costumes made him smile.

We are looking foward to next year already.

Halloween Part 1

Starting on Friday Isaac's Halloween weekend began.  Today is actually Halloween and yet he's had so much fun already.

Friday was his school party.  Dylan was able to get off work that day and was with him at school.  They trick or treated from classroom to classroom and then got to enjoy many goodies including a big chocolate cupcake.

Here are some pictures from that day.

This picture says to me "Either get me out of this or let's get going"

This is the signature scowl.  He's just a little worried about where his friend got their cupcake from.

Love it!!

On Saturday night we went to my co-worker/friend Judy's house.  Her 6 year old daughter was hosting a Halloween party.  He was by far the youngest but had a super fun time spraying silly string, eating cupcakes, and flirting with the older women (aka 6 year old girls).  By 7 pm he was ready to crash.

Tonight is the real trick or treating.  I'm not sure how long will go but it will be so fun.

The past week's blessings.

Last Sunday was a stressful day financially for us but as the week progressed we had many wonderful blessings that really encouraged me.

I found out I had won a contest on my favorite blog, Couponing to Disney.  I had won the no eating out challenge which included $50 in my PayPal account to eat out anywhere. Kristin at CTD has been a real blessing to me.

I received a employee performance award for my work on the ACC RR Campus.  It was a gift card to a restaurant.  This will be so great that Dylan and I can have a even better date night because it won't be our money. :)

I also received an expense check.  I was totally expecting it but it lighten our burden and made purchasing Halloween goodies fun.

I feel better that we're more on track this week.  Thank you God for all the blessings.

Gorillaz and N.E.R.D!

Last night was awesome!  My great friend Meagan invited me to go see Gorillaz and N.E.R.D last night at the Frank Erwin Center.  I think this is the first time we've ever gotten to hang out just the two of us since we were 39 weeks pregnant. :)
I absolutely love Pharrell so I was almost more excited to see N.E.R.D than Gorillaz.  N.E.R.D only played for 20 min!  Most of that time was spent hearing him say, "What's up Austin?!"  Anyway Pharrell looked cute and it was fun despite the fact that they should have played for at least 30 more min.
Ok, Gorillaz.  Totally a.maz.ing!  I've always liked their songs on the radio but I had never heard any other ones.  They are like nothing else.  I could ramble on trying to attempt to communicate how unbelievable it was but I'll just say, I've been to many concerts and this was the best one I've ever been to.

The weekly update

In one weeks time some things have already changed.

Dylan is no longer working at Target.  I'm sure you're thinking, "didn't he just start?".  Answer: Yes.  However, I was hating it and he was running himself down.  He was scheduled to work 25 hours which was a little more than we thought he would.  Basically he was working 9-5 at his regular job and then 6:30-11pm at Target.  On top of that he was working on Saturday nights and Sunday afternoon when we normally have family time.  I greatly appreciate him working his tail off but I'd rather see him at least once a day. :)

My sister and her husband are back in the states!!  Some of you may not know that my sister and her husband moved to Cork, Ireland in May.  Nick got transferred with his job there and since they are young they went for it.  However, after a fun summer in Ireland they have moved back to the Baltimore area.  I am very happy that there is only a 1 hour time changed now and we can talk on our cell phones.  Another huge bonus about them moving to Baltimore is that they are only 1 hour from my parents so we'll see them at Christmas.  They are here visiting right now and Katie is soaking Isaac up.  We get fun play by play action from her as she is shocked at what he can do now since the last time she saw him he was 9 mths old.

Finally Fall!

It feels like it's finally Fall in Central Texas.  What Fall here means, the morning starts off chilly around 50 degrees then increases quickly to around 85 and stays that way until the sun sets.  I love it but since I refuse to buy a "fall" coat the mornings can be brisk.

Last Saturday Dylan and I took Isaac to the Elgin Christmas Tree Farm.  They have a Pumpkin Festival and I was dying to get some pictures of Isaac with pumpkins, etc.  Just as a warning to new parents.  This is definitely a great place to bring your children ages 3-11.  My little guy didn't have anything to do and since it costs $7 per adult we were a little bummed.  There was face painting and painting pumpkins, pony rides, train rides and jungle gyms.  Since Isaac is too young we just followed him around as he cautiously navigated around things.  We did take the hay ride and he got to climb on some old tractors so that was fun.
Here are some pictures from the day!

Isaac found a pumpkin but then found a huge wagon!  He had to pull it!

Taking a hayride

All boy, already pretending to drive it.

Too cute!

Such a big boy standing up on the ride back

I can't stand how much he looks like a little boy here.

It's been forever!

It's been too long since I've written.  We've been pretty busy with work and with fun.

Isaac tube surgery went great!  He did awesome.  The nurse said that all kids wake up from the surgery crying and it's normal but he just opened his eyes, sat up and looked around at everyone.  I love my chill kid!  We had the check up yesterday and everything is still good and for once he's been ear infection free.  His teachers at school said he talks all the time now.  He can say more, Joy (his teacher), Dada, and Bella (a girl in his class).

We've also had a blast hanging out with friends on the weekend which has also helped keep our house clean. :)  We had our friends Matt, Meagan and Livia over and cooked the pulled pork nachos and then the next weekend Dylan's co-worker Michelle and her husband Matt came over and we made homemade pizzas.

A new opportunity was given to Dylan.  In an effort to pay off some debt Dylan got a part time job at the Target just down the street.  They've been great working around his schedule.  It's been a little stressful with him gone all the time plus I know he's super tired but it's only temporary and will literally pay off in the long run.

Well, it's Austin City Limits this weekend so we're going to stay out in the suburbs to avoid the traffic and the additional 70,000 + people that have landed in Austin for the weekend.  I hope everyone has been great!

Another Saturday...

I'm so happy I made it through this week!  This was a tough one professionally.
So, some good news we found out our good friend does not have to go to Afghanistan!  We are relieved and happy for them.
Today I'm going to a baby shower for a good friend.  I love baby showers!  She's having a little girl but I resisted getting some super cute outfits and got some practical items.  I love seeing what people receive so hopefully she'll get everything she needs.
Isaac is getting tubes put in on Monday.  We have to arrive by 6 am.  Wow, it's going to be an early morning.  His surgery will then be at 7 am.  I wouldn't be surprised if we leave by 8:30 am to go home.  I have to be into work at 1 pm so I hope I'll have a few hours to hang out with him or better yet, take a nap.
Tonight one of Dylan's co-workers and her husband are coming over to watch football and hang out so that's something else fun to look forward to.
I hope everyone's week was great and have a relaxing weekend!

What a week!

This was such a long week!
On Tuesday we took Isaac to see an ENT about his ears.  I am so glad we went.  Isaac had his ears looked at and then a hearing test.  We learned that even though 1 day earlier we had finished antibiotics getting over an ear infection, he already had infected fluid in his ears.  During the hearing test I could really tell all that he wasn't hearing because of the fluid.  Normally hearing should be able to hear between 0-20 decibels but Isaac couldn't hear anything below 35!  We scheduled his surgery for tubes on September 27.  I wish it was today!  Yesterday I picked him up from school, he had a fever and another infection.  Poor baby just needs a break and we're ready for the tubes.
Backing up, on Monday we found out that our very good friend Matt will be deployed to Afganistan in 18 days!  The emotions were overwhelming.  We share a very special bond with Matt and his wife Meagan.  We met them in birthing class and our sweet babies are 3 days apart.  The day I checked out of the hospital, Meagan checked in.  We spent my entire maternity leave hanging out.  Please pray for them.  We are hanging out with them tonight to enjoy some pulled pork nachos and watch the Texas game together.  Can't wait to see the babies together!
On another fun note my Herman Miller items came in!!  I've always wanted an Eames molded plastic armchair and Hang it all.  Right now Herman Miller has Limited Edition Walnut Hang it Alls.  This is perfect because it goes with my lounge chair and ottoman.  I got my plastic armchair in a new color Sparrow.  It's kind of a khaki color so it should go with any decor forever.  I'm hoping to find a really cute pillow to sit in the seat.

This is what my chair looks like, only Sparrow colored!

The weekend is over...

Well, we had a pretty good weekend.  Did a lot of hanging out but I think we needed it.  I actually just sat and read my new Marie Claire magazine today while Isaac napped.  We watched a LOT of football.
This week we take Isaac to the ENT for all of his ear infections.  I'm completely expecting them to say he needs tubes and at this point I'm ready for it.  He's had non stop infections since the beginning of May.
Today I went shopping for a baby shower gift.  I love shopping for baby gifts!!  I went to Target and got lots of goodies.  I really think that I could easily spend hours in Target and never get tired of it.

New Pictures

Resting on Bevo after a day of watching football

Best Buds!

September 11

It's such a odd thing to try and not think about September 11.  I try not to think about it a lot because it makes me so emotional.  Sometimes it feels like it's been more than 9 years.
I do feel it's important that everyone stop, remember where they were, how they felt and think of everyone who died that day.
Here is my story.
I was headed to Art History with my suite mate Lacey.  We were walking past the cafeteria, across the quad on our way to class.  Lacey loved NYC and her mom called her while we were walking.  She told Lacey that someone flew into a building in "her city".  We thought it was odd but pictured a tiny little one person plane.  We got to class to didn't think about it.
Right at the end of class our Art Dept Head, Dr. Miley, came into our class which was really odd.  He went to the front and immediately said, "There's been a terrorist attack on NYC.  They have flown planes into the World Trade Center."  I felt like I was in the movie The Matrix, slow motion.  I remember turning to my right.  My wonderful friend Kristin was bawling already.  Her father is a pilot for United so she started freaking about where he was.  Dr. Miley basically let us leave but I vaguely remember how and why I went to my next class.  In a daze I walked across campus to my English class.  In there the prof had already pulled in a TV and turned on the news.  Everyone sat in silence.  I was watching and saw the second plane crash into the second tower.  I couldn't believe it.  My immediate thought was of the people that just died instantly.  I started sobbing and ran to the bathroom.  I passed a girl on her cell phone screaming trying to get a hold of family.  I composed myself slightly, went back to the classroom and we were told to go to the chapel.  Like a bunch of zombies, the student body attempted to fit into the auditorium all at once.  There we were given the same information that we had just learned on TV.  Then we just all prayed.  Everyone holding each other, crying and praying.  After we left I went back to my room and turned on the TV.  I remember everyone describing the guilt we all felt.  We all couldn't bring ourselves to turn the TV off but it killed us to watch it.
The weeks, months and years following have always been hard when I think about that day and what happened.

No Eating Out Update

The idea of never eating is great but not very practical with my job.  On Wednesday I had to go to San Antonio for work.  I left the house at 5:45am.  I ended up buying breakfast and lunch.  It actually didn't feel good to purchase food at all but with the rain and the heat there was nothing I could bring since I went straight to a job site.  

I think the main point is that at least now I'm thinking before just eating out.  Any money I didn't spend during the first 8 days of the month is good.  I am still going to try and continue not eating out and see how it goes.

Labor Day

Thank goodness for 3 day weekends!!  It's been great and has actually felt like a long break.  My poor little guy has a double ear infection again.  We were able to get into the doctor at 4:15pm on Friday which has made for a much better weekend.
Last night I went to a gorgeous wedding at the Wildflower Center.  My friend Chloe and her husband were married and it was perfect.  I have to say, best wedding food!  A fajita bar!  Who doesn't love that?!  The toasts were perfect and the DJ was good.  I danced late and my feet still hurt a little today but it was worth it.
I was able to check 1 thing off my "to do" this today.  Dylan hung my birthday present in the living room.  I bought these great decorative wall frames and hung them above my TV center.

I'm really happy with the way they look and I finally feel like the room is coming together.  Now if only I could spend another $1,000 is could be done. :)

Are you ready?!

Today is one of my most favorite days all year.  College football begins!!!  I live for ESPN College Game Day coverage.  I love Kirk and Lee!  I also love the addition of Desmond.  I'm getting goosebumps thinking about being in DKR or in Oxford yelling Hotty Toddy at the top of my lungs.
Today Dylan is spoiling me ( I don't really believe it's all for me) by making pulled pork.  We are going to have delicious pulled pork sandwiches with our good friends Kristen (PIC) and Andy at lunch.  I'm really looking forward to our two boys playing together.  Eli is 5 mths younger than Isaac but pretty much the same size.  He's a rock star!
At the end of the day we'll eat the left over pulled pork over nachos.  It's an Oxford tradition that Corky's BBQ created.  The nachos are so good, almost too good.  I'm really hoping that Isaac will get a taste of the pulled pork and enjoy it with the rest of us.
Hotty Toddy!!  Hook 'em Horns!

No eating out...really?

So, my family is about to embark on a huge challenge.  Our challenge is to not eat out at all during the month of September.  Not lunch, not dinner, nothing.  The two exceptions to the rule is if we have a gift card to cover the entire amount or if it is paid for by someone else.  I got this idea from another website I follow, www.couponingtodisney.com.  I was introduced to this website by my money saving partner in crime, Kristen.  On the website they have challenged people to do this, even if they don't stop all together, just even eating out 30% less.  The goal is to save money and in turn I'm sure it will also help our waist lines.  Dylan and I don't eat out every day or anything but it definitely can be a few times a week for the both of us.  I'm really curious to see how this month will go because we love to go out, especially on Friday nights.
My hope is that football season is about to start and we will spend our money not going out but on having a great time grilling and watching football with friends.  Spending money on that will be way more fun than getting Subway twice a week.

El Roscondito

It is a sad time in my house.  We had to make the decision to give up our dog of 6 1/2 years.  Roscoe has had issues with our son Isaac since the day we brought him home from the hospital.  Since Roscoe has been in our lives since before we were married we've spent many years making exceptions for his behavior.  The final straw was Friday night.  I wasn't at home but Roscoe bit Isaac's hand.  He didn't break the skin but Isaac was scared and we were even more scared.  It's been months of Roscoe disliking the very presence of Isaac and us walking on egg shells trying to keep Isaac away from him.
We are extremely sad and going through a roller coaster of emotions.

Katrina...5 years

So, since it was exactly 5 years ago when Katrina came I thought I would share my story.  5 years ago Dylan and I took a 4 day weekend to Huntsville, AL to see his sister Gina and her husband Wade.  We had never been and we were so excited to hang out.  We spent the first two days hanging out and having fun.  Sunday morning we were woken up early by Dylan's dad calling his phone.  He told us we needed to come back to Jackson because the hurricane they were predicting was going to be a Category 5.  We had planned to get up, go to church and have a relaxing day in Huntsville but that all changed.  In less than 30 min we were in the truck heading south towards Jackson.  We had been through many hurricanes in Jackson so we were concerned but not really worried.  Mostly we knew we needed to get back to pick up our dog, Roscoe so he would free up a space for a dog that was fleeing from the storm.  I remember stopping at a gas station a few hours from home and seeing all the cars full of stuff with people from the coast.  We were going to opposite direction they were and I remember the eerie feeling being the only person driving on the south bound side.  I had already received a call from a good friend asking if she could stay with us but having to turn her down because we lived in a trailer and I knew we couldn't stay there either.
Sunday afternoon we were back, hanging out and watching the weather channel.  We went to bed Sunday night waiting for it to roll in.  Monday morning it was really dark out and you could tell the storm was coming.  We watched the TV a little longer hearing them saying over and over that people in mobile homes need to find somewhere else to stay.  On that note we decided to go to my sister's apartment.
Here is what we brought:
Dylan - playstation, computer hard drive and Roscoe on a leash
Amy - 3 t-shirts, 2 pairs of shorts and our wedding album

Of course we all know how Katrina turned out and the stupidity of what we thought we should bring has stuck with me.  Jackson was nothing like the coast but it felt like a post war environment.  Almost everyone didn't have power.  Trees were down everywhere and the shock of what happened to the coast made everyone somber. Going back to work felt wrong and thank goodness my employer was more than sympathetic.  I worked for the department store Belk.  I'll never forget the weird feeling of there being no gas at the gas stations.  When gas was available we were allowed to leave work immediately to wait in line and see if we could get some.

The whole experience will always be with me and I think about it a lot.  We were so blessed not to have lost our lives or everything we owned.

Swagbucks!

I was introduced to Swagbucks.com by a good friend Kristen.  It works just like Google except you get swagbucks for certain searches.  You can also earn swagbucks by doing the daily polls or surveys.  You accumulate swagbucks and can then purchase items with them.  So, because you are never putting any money into it, you receive items for free!  I like to save up my swagbucks and purchase $5 amazon.com gift cards.  They are 450 swagbucks each but just by searching and doing the daily polls (only 1 swagbuck per poll) I earn around that per month with no effort.  I am hoping to save up my swagbucks and buy at least $50 worth of gift cards.  I'm trying to be good and keep saving to use them on Christmas presents.  However, I'm sure I won't be able to resist the $50 for amazon.com that long.  :) There are also lots of other items and gift cards that you purchase so go and check it out using the link below.


http://www.swagbucks.com/refer/BabyPeepsMama

Baby laughs are the best!

Photos from my life...

Our wedding!  Loved my bouquet!

Family vacation to San Diego

 

July 21, 2009  Michael Isaac Peeples was born!  Sweet love!

To shop or not to shop....

It's tax free weekend and there some amazing deals out there. However, the question is, are the deals really worth the hassle and time? Everybody and their brother will be out with kids in tow I'm sure. The stores will be a wreck and probably be out of the sizes I need, aka 18 mths.

I will probably venture out some just to see what's out there but try and stay clear of the moms on a mission because I know I'll be one of them one day.

To those who are venturing out, Good Luck and happy shopping!

Missing some good TV

I was thinking today about how there's not a lot on TV right now and I'm really looking forward to certain shows coming back.

• First Private Practice - Love it. I can't wait to see how everything unfolds this season.
• How I Met Your Mother - No words can describe how perfect this show is. Hilarious!
• The Biggest Loser - I've seen every single season but I have to honestly admit, I prefer Losing it with Jillian now. More about just losing weight and changing your life, than the drama. I will still tune in though.
• Flash Forward - I have never been into anything science fiction but this is so good.

There have been some shows on this summer that have been good but not as good as before but I will always watch.

• Entourage - It's soooo slow this season, almost boring. Ari is still the best character but the 30 min. time is just not enough this season to bring me in.
• Top Chef - I seriously love DC so I'm into the DC thing. The challenges have been good but I feel like the chefs are not as good as past season.
• Friday Night Lights - Sadly this season is already over and I really liked it but I can tell they are gearing up for the last season next year.

Some guilty pleasures that I love are The Kardashians and Kendra. As a new mom myself I can't help but crack up at Kendra.

Hopefully there will be some new cool shows this fall that I'll DVR and obsess over. :)

The famous Apple Dip!

So, I am constantly getting requests for parties to bring my apple dip. It's a super delicious dip and really easy to make, especially since it's even better if it sits over night.

(1) 8 oz. package of cream cheese (softened, not microwaved) I actually use the reduced fat.

(1) cup of powdered sugar

(1) cup of brown sugar ( I like to use dark brown)

(1) tbsp of vanilla (yum, Haitian vanilla is the best)

3/4 of a bag of toffee chips (the non chocolate kind) Add these last.

Mix it all together and it's so good. I've actually been buying the pre-cut apples because it's just plain easier.

Enjoy!

Umm..Yeah, not good at keeping up with this.

So, it's been forever since my first blog. My experiment to see if I could keep up with it has proven me right, I can't. :)

Lately my family has been trying to cut back on spending. I'm totally addicted to reading other people's blog about saving money. It's amazing what people can get with coupons. I love to use coupons so I'm always looking for ways to get them. One of my favorite sites right now is www.zulily.com. There's not anything I need to be spending money on, on the site but it's has some fabulous things. I did buy Isaac some cute new sneakers from there. They are Mooshu trainers. http://shop.MOOSHUTRAINERS.NET/Velcro-Canvas-Sneaker-Brown-VCSB.htm I haven't received them yet but I know they will be great for him now that he's beginning to walk.

Isaac starts a new class at day care this week which involved getting a sleep mat for nap time. I was able to get one for $6.99 at Target which I thought was a great deal. Now we'll just have to see if he actually sleeps on it.

Lastly, I was dying to get to get my good friend a bunch of adorable headbands and bows for her new baby girl. I found www.nalagrace.com. She had 50% off and I was able to get her a ton of bows, headbands and hats.

Hopefully I'll be able to post more often and share some more fun findings.

Starting a blog!

I know so many people that have great blogs about their family and life. I wanted to start one as an experiment to see if I'd really keep up with it and where it could take me. I am very passionate about finding new cool things and thought this would be a great way to share my findings. I'm almost 30 years old with an almost 1 year old and I have this extreme desire to find the best thing possible for my kiddo.

Here are some amazing products that every mom should have:

Sophie the giraffe

Inchbugs! These are so great for working moms!

These are just two products that we can't live without and I plan to update and have a running list of great products for moms and kiddos.