If I Watched TV...

If I watched TV I would have missed out on playing the "Garbage man letter block game" with Aiden this morning.
I would have not finished the amazing novel,  The Help this month and gained the new perspective and wisdom this book brought to me.
I would not have taken the time to write this blog.
I would not have the pleasure of knowing it was I who taught my son to sing the "A B C's" perfectly because it may have been Elmo who taught him. 
I probably would never take the time to teach myself new songs on the piano. I'd probably just stick with the old ones because they are safe and easy. 
I would spend less time outdoors at night with my family and watching my son ride his bike.
I would most likely be less social because it would be much easier to turn on the TV than to persuade my friend to run out to the store with me at 8pm for some much needed girl time.
I wouldn't have discovered all the inspirational, amazing and talented blogs that I keep up with which give me new ideas for fun art projects and outings to do with my son while we are at home together.
I would be less motivated to attend my mother's group events and church events.
I would read less to my son at night and he probably wouldn't be able to pronounce, "Constitution" as well as he can. :)
I would probably consume more salt and vinegar kettle chips, (yumo!) than I should.
Speaking of food, I would probably be heavily influenced by all the junk food ads on TV like Jack N the Box and take up eating fast food again like I didn't know any better. 
Consequently, I would eat less healthier than I do.
I would cook less and get takeout more.
I would then need to loose 25lbs instead of the 15lbs I need to drop.
I might get caught up in all the petty, meaningless drama of a show and it would swallow me whole.
I'd probably not listen to music as much or get lost in it as I do sometimes.
I may end up like a robot, programmed each night to watch this show, then that one, without ever creating anything in my own life.
I would be more numb and less alive.
I'd start actually taking the Pull-Up's commercials seriously and end up with a three year old who is still in diapers! Oh wait! They're Pull-Ups! RIGHT. (My excellent potty-training karma is probably ruined for saying that out loud now but I couldn't resist!) :)
I would be teaching my son that there's nothing better to do than to watch TV.
I would spend less time talking with my husband.
If you think I'm bad at calling you on the phone now, sheesh! Imagine if I watched TV regularly! HA!
I wouldn't have time for all that Netflix has to offer :)

Things I'll Miss When He Grows Up...

cutest diapers in the world!

handpainted by Aiden himself

baby mohawk!

the art wall

TP mountains

tiny hands decorating

Whoops!

toothbrushes that look at you :)

  

smiley faces and fun hiding places!

Fun Photo Shoot

"Hand over the cookies mom, and I'll sport the hat for about 12.5 seconds...

"Mmmmmm Egg nog cookies are the best mama!"

"Ok are we done here yet!?"

"Because I'm getting sleepy and I want another cookie!"- Aiden

A Classic Christmas Greeting

Now that hubby is home for the weekend, I can start thinking about our 2010 Christmas card! I have always used Shutterfly because their designs are just simple, classy and beautiful which goes right along with my personal style of Christmas decor and well, Christmas in general. Classic, not plastic is my motto when it comes to anything Christmas related. :) I don't want to give anything away, but I'm loving this lovely design and oh...OHHHHHH and  this elegant little number! Oh so many to choose from! How ever will I decide? The ONE annual family card that captures the essence of your whole existence! It's a HUGE decision! :)
I've used Shutterfly in the past for photo books, holiday cards ect. One of the reasons I love using Shutterfly is because it is very easy to use, (no program to download) and the quality of how the pictures turn out is great! They also have the best prices around and GREAT promotions!
If you are still looking for gift ideas, you can't go wrong with a personalized calendar because you'd practically have to be without a soul to not want to look at THIS FACE every day for the upcoming year! :)

And while we're on the subject of our family stationary needs, let's not forget that in only 4 SHORT MONTHS my little baby boy will be turning TWO years old! EXCUSE me, didn't we JUST have his first year birthday! How in the world is this flying by so fast!? Well, now that I've practically almost choked on my toast with this new realization, it's time to think about birthday party themes, activities and the invitation of course! Cute CUTE options from Shutterfly! I'm off to get lost for a while in design heaven :) Ta Ta!

It's True

Have you heard the good news!? Forever 21 has a new maternity line! Mama's to be everywhere can now look a bit more stylish thanks to this trendy new affordable line of maternity clothing! I used to search high and low when I was preggers for cute maternity clothes with style to them but the choices were so lame I ended up looking like a schoolteacher most of them time. Not that there's anything wrong with looking like a schoolteacher, (especially since I used to be one!) but when your not at work, do you really want to look like you are? I don't!

Here I am at 27 weeks so excited to meet my baby!!! (Wearing a non-maternity Forever 21 shirt which actually stretched with my growing belli)
Happy shopping all you yummy mummies!!!

17 months

You are my precious Baby Bear, my little "Bubba," my Baby Aiden. Today, (9/3/10) marks your 17 month birthday my little love. You are such a big boy now and we are so amazed at how much you've grown and learned just in the past few months.
You climb on EVERYTHING. When it's 9:45am and mommy hasn't taken you to the park yet, you climb on your truck to try and reach the lock on the back door. You are a crafty little one. When you first wake up in the morning with your squishy little eyes and messy hair you look at me and say, "Nanna" which means you would like a banana and could I make it snappy? :) You eat almost anything I put in front of you. You are definitely not a picky eater, and hopefully this is one of your traits which is not just a passing stage. You are able to communicate so much more now with your baby signs, "water", "eat" and "more" are your favorites. You also remind me when it's time for a snack by saying, "nack", "apple" and "highchair." You also usually tell me when you've pooped by saying, "poo-poo" and start walking down the hallway towards your room so we can change you. Then you open your dresser cabinet and pick out a diaper. It's usually the yellow one with the little monsters all over it. :)
You love playing with your truck and riding it fast all around the family room, turning the corners with ease, and making your car noises. You also love playing with your shapes blender and you almost have all the shapes in their correct slots mastered. Some of your other favorite pastimes include: coloring with crayons, playing with your water table outside, climbing on the play-structures at the parks, using the slide all by yourself, putting together your animal puzzle, listening to a story book for about 59 seconds, (hey it's a start!), rolling around on the floor with your Daddy, and "helping" me stuff your cloth diapers. :) When I point to your head, nose, ears, eyes, mouth, belly, legs, feet and hands you expertly show me exactly where they are. When we put on music to sing and dance, you love playing the hand drum and dancing your adorable dance!
Another thing we just adore about you is your outgoing, "look at me" personality. When I take out the camera, you light up with a smile for me. 8 camera flashes later you are still smiling. 15 flashes later you've had enough and you are sure to show me! :) When we go to the store you love saying, "Hi!" to people in the same sing-songy voice that mommy uses. (Sorry, you'll eventually learn to say it in a more boyish way I'm sure but for now it's pretty flirty and cute!) All someone has to do is acknowledge you and you just give them the most beautiful grin that is sure to make someone's day! Once in the grocery check out line I told you to make your "tough guy" face for the checker and you did. She laughed and called over two others just to see it! The grocery lines got held up for a minute but you sure had everyone smiling with your tough guy face that day. :)
Everyday around 4:30pm you start saying, "Dada" and climbing on our couch so you can look out the window to see if your Daddy has come home yet. When you don't see him yet, you look for dogs and exclaim, "doggie!" followed by a high-pitched, "woof woof!" When your Daddy finally does come home, you know it as soon as you hear his car alarm lock and you look at me and say, "Dada" while running towards the door to greet him. The best part of your Daddy's day is, undoubtedly, when he first sees you standing at the door with your huge grin and you reach out with your chubby little arms to give him a big hug. I'm sure these moments, the look on your face, the smell of your baby-hair, and the cute sounds of your baby babbles will be etched in his heart forever. I know they will be in mine.
When you start getting sleepy you say, "night-night" which means you want to be nursed and go to sleep. You love our time together nursing and singing lullabys. Sometimes you stroke my arm or just look up at me with your big hazel eyes and show me that your world is at peace now that you are getting your milk. If I sigh, you give your little "content sigh" right back. I take one last sniff of your sweet baby smell, kiss your yummy lips and tell you how much I love you before laying you down in your crib. About 30 minutes later you are sleeping peacefully and lately, without fail one of your little legs is stuck in between the crib slats and you are holding your toy banana with the most content look on your face. and I have to take it out and put it back in bed with you :)
Baby Aiden, thank you for being the sweetest most precious little person we could ever hope for. You make your Daddy's and my world so complete, full of smiles and hugs that we will cherish forever. We love you so much and are so excited to take you on many adventures in our life together.

Love,

Mommy

Norah and A Surprising Turn of Events...

Originally titled, "The Beauty of the Kindness of Strangers" this story was posted on our family blog in June of 2008. I thought I would tell this lovely little story again as I am getting very excited to see Norah again in concert tomorrow night. 

It was the summer of '07 while we were living in Wyoming and my husband and I were lucky enough to attend Norah Jones concert at one of the most beautiful amphitheatres, (Red Rocks in Colorado) in the world! Not only is this place breathtaking-(carved out of red rocks, overlooking Denver) we were seeing Norah who makes my love for music come alive! It was going to be a fabulous night, I could just feel it!

When we arrived 2 hours early, we joined the tailgating crowd in eating, drinking, and listening to Norah. We chatted with the other Norah-lovers happily waiting for the concert to begin. One couple in particular who were a little younger than my parents, took a special interest in talking with Tim and I. The husband was an orthopaedic surgeon for the US army. He looked EXACTLY like Robert Dinero from the movie Meet the Parents and even had the same witty, humorous personality. It was really entertaining me. The wife also looked and acted so sweet like the mother on Meet the Parents. What a pair! They had a daughter who had just married and a son in college. They were Christians who seemed very active in their church. (The husband was giving a power-point presentaion on Medical Ethics from the Bible in the morning at their church.) They were not afraid to open up about their secret to a happy and lasting marriage as the conversation turned that way. (Tim and I often ask couples that have been married a long time AND have a healthy relationship their secret to making it last and being fufilled from their relationship) We truly value advice from these types of people who have gone before us. The husband and wife both had strong, passionate, and deep answers for our question. He said that his way of meeting his wife's needs was not just asking how her day was, but asking more specific questions like, " What was the most exciting part of your day" or " What was the most difficult part of your day?" These questions, he said, provided a deeper look into the mind of his wife and made her feel better understood which is an important need for us women as we all know. Another thing on the husband's end was what he called, " Servant-Leadership" where the husband is the strong leader, but in leading he is always serving the wife. (Sounds like my Tim-boy am I a lucky girl!) This couple had a deep connection, it was apparant within the first hour of meeting them. Time for the concert to begin, we all started hiking up the trail to the top of the theatre. " Meet us back at our cars after the concert for some more drinks", they said. " We'll party until traffic clears out!"
Norah was an angel! Her captivating, soothing voice transported me to a state of contentment, relaxation, and giddiness that most people can only achieve with a dose of Valium! I just love her classy, timeless melodies and sweet, humble demeanor.
As we hiked back down the huge slabs of red rocks to our car, we gazed out over Denver's city lights with the full moon overhead. Kissing passionately for that moment we felt like we were the two most lucky and in love people there ever were.
As we approached our car, we saw our new friends already partying it up next to us at theirs. They offered us their drinks and asked us what we planned to do the following day. They told us we should come explore CO Springs where they live. We thought that was a great idea, we had been wanting to visit there! As Tim and I were discussing our hotel plans for the night, the couple went off for a minute alone to discuss something themselves. When they returned, the husband said, "Now we understand if you decline, but we would like to invite you to stay at our place tonight." Their friends piped in, " Ooohhh you guys are lucky! They're place is HUGE!" Tim and I were pleasantly surprised with their generous offer. We looked at each other taking in the fact that neither of us had any doubts about the situation, and both agreed to go. We were fully aware of the fact that in most parts of the country, this would never happen or be safe. We knew that this could be a potentially harmful situation to go into with such trustful hearts, but we both strongly and instinctually knew that this wouldn't be the case with this particular couple.
We followed the couple home about an hour and a half south from Morrison to Co Springs. They had a beautiful home as their friends had said. It was on a hill overlooking all of Co Springs. When we walked in, I got the feeling of being right at home feeling like I was at one of my best friend's parents house for the night. Safe, cared for and lucky. We had our own huge room with attached bathroom and living area with a terrace overlooking the city. It was truly a blessing! They showed us a few pictures of their kids and said they would see us in the morning after making sure we had everything we needed for the night. We were both awestruck. I couldn't believe we were staying in this beautiful home for the night of people we had just met hours earlier.
The next morning they offered us breakfast and supplied us with a map for our day of exploration. We exchanged business cards and thanked them profusely. We chatted for a moment about how nice it was of them to trust us in their home that night. They said that we had presented ourselves well to them and they felt comfortable and happy to make our stay easier. The wife then said, "I just believe that people should just be nice to each other and pay it forward, like the movie." How simple yet profound! And, what a way to experience the beauty of God's love from His people, watching over us wherever we travel to.
Now I truly know the meaning of why they call it "God's country" out here, exclusively.

One day...

He was this big...

Then THIS happened...

I thought I would have a baby for longer. But I was wrong. He was so small and delicate. Now he's a big tough guy who wears shoes and wants to walk in his own direction. Those newborn smells, squeaks, the swaddling, and the cooing is over. And I'll never get it back. :(

10 Things Mommy's REALLY Want for Mother's Day

1) A massage from YOU hubby. And no not a 5 minute, one-handed massage ending with you falling asleep.
2) A cute sterling silver necklace with MOM on it, maybe with baby's birthstone, maybe not.
3) Two blissful, uninterrupted hours to read my book while sunbathing in our backyard. An icy, fruity drink with the little paper umbrella earns major bonus points.
4) A day without poop. Dirty diaper? YOUR turn hubby!
5) A through cleaning of my plantation shutters, (which I have been meaning to clean since the day we moved in over a year ago) by someone who is NOT ME!
6) The classic, heart-melting homemade card by Aiden himself :) (More bonus points for a special message written by him too)
7) A hike by the ocean with my favorite lunch, again NOT packed by me :)
8) Time to go see the new Babies movie with the girls :)
9) Let me sleep in an extra hour while you take kid duty
10) A big, slobbery kiss from my beautiful baby

What are some things YOU want for Mother's DAy?

Organization Is the Key To Success :)

My old choir conductor in college always used to say this. He was an amazing artist, conductor and vocalist. He could make my voice come alive like I never knew it could with his vocal exercises. And he was meticulous about everything. How we sat, how our music was arranged in our folders, the order of the rehearsal, our posture, with his, "Leave your troubles at the door" attitude...and the list goes on. I'm getting off track, my point is, the guys had his stuff together. Someone who was very successful in his field of study and someone who you could always count on to show up and make magical music happen :)
So long ago I decided to follow his lead :)
Well actually I've always been a natural organizer and I too believe it makes for a more efficient, productive and motivating lifestyle. Clear the clutter, organize and prioritize! :)
So this weekend my parents came to babysit the little one so hubby and I could get some much needed house projects accomplished. We found some very cute dressers that we are using as night stands for all our  junk. Up until now we've been sharing ONE dresser. ONE. And many of my clothes are hanging in those clear, plastic organizers in our closet. Not fun when your trying to find your favorite shirt.
Here are pictures of a few drawers I organized and de-cluttered this weekend. MAJOR difference! Like a breath of fresh air!
Feel free to DROOL over my new, Victoria Secret-like lingerie drawer. Oh and my PJ drawer! I have a major addiction/obsession with CUTE PJ's. You know, in case the President decides to stop by for an evening dessert one night. :) They key to maximizing your space is to ROLL those shirts, pants, PJ's ect. Drawer organizers work wonders too.
It sure feels good to now have more of my clothes and bathroom supplies under organization's control. After almost 10 months of living in our new house, it was about time!