hello spring! please stay a while...

Well if you live in East Texas than you know just how GORGEOUS it's been lately. Mid to upper 70s, sunny, and not a cloud in the sky! Oh what a difference a beautiful day can make...

Yesterday, I sent Knox to school in shorts and James and I drove around and even found a few new neighborhoods. Hopefully getting out soon to view some more homes. I must share some PRAISES though, because as frustrated as I was with our whole house hunt situation last week, God has granted me such a renewed sense of peace about it this week! Not even sure why because we still have a few snares to work out with the mortgage company. Some of the recently passed laws make it extra difficult for small business owners to get approved for loans. So basically no matter how much $$$ we have in the bank or how good our credit scores are (Which I'm proud to say both of ours are excellent!) the government says the bank can only look at a certain percentage of our income. So to the bank underwriter, it looks like we make a lot less than we do... Frustrating, but like I said I have a peace about me and I'm sure God will reveal his plan and all the "details" to us very soon..

Well anyway, we also stopped by Kohl's yesterday so I could pick up a few longer-waisted spring t's and camis that better cover this growing belly! (I'm hoping to get some cute blouses and dresses this weekend at the outlets!) And when we got home we went on a wagon ride, did some swinging on the front porch, and then I just propped the back door open and let Knox run in and out all his little heart desired. He was so excited to feel so free! He's got a little playhouse that was handed down from his cousins and I'm hoping once we move we can go ahead and get him some more outdoor play equipment - maybe a swingset and sandbox - because I have a feeling he's gonna be spending most of the spring and summer outdoors.

Oh and it is officially spring in our house because we [James] grilled out our first batch of kabobs* of the season. Paired with corn on the cob and Ranch Style beans - one of my favorite summertime meals! Makes me wish I was at the lake...

And speaking of lake - I'm excited to say we've already got several fun trips planned for this year...

- Tennessee for Easter, of course. We'll stay at least a week, depending on James' work sched.

- Possibly home again in mid-May for my sister's high school graduation. That'll be a last minute decision because we're already gonna be out of town 2 weeks in late-May/early-June.

- Panama City Beach with James' family May 20-27. SOO excited to be able to see Knox on the beach this year. I just gotta figure out if we're gonna fly or not, because that's a loooong drive from here!

- Straight to Memphis from the beach - probably for another week - to visit and celebrate Knox's 2nd birthday.

- Lake trip in Arkansas with my Dad and siblings in late June... EXCITED!

- Back to Memphis in late July to through James & Kristine's couples shower. Yes, I'll be 8 months pregnant but I figure I've already had 1 baby in TN, know plenty of OBs and pedi's from work, and all of our family is there so it wouldn't be a total disaster if I went in to labor... Ha!

- Home for the better part of August and September for obvious reasons.

- TN again to be in James & Kristine's wedding in early October. This will probably be baby #2's BIG DEBUT to our extended family and friends :)

James is also wanting to plan a Spring marketing trip to Austin and San Antonio to meet up with some clients, and Knox and I will for sure tag along for that! I love the outlets around Austin and have been itching to get to San Antonio :)

So yes, we are going to have a BUSY busy traveling season but I figure we might as well because it's only gonna get harder to do the more kids we have and the older they get, so let's live it up!

Looking forward to my mom flying in tomorrow, a fun weekend, and hopefully more gorgeous days ahead ;)

*Our Kabobs

1. Marinate the meat (chicken, steak, and/or raw jumbo shrimp) and veggies (red and green bell peppers, vidallia onions, fresh pineapple chunks) in two seperate bowl with a combination of Teriyaki Grillling Sauce (by Archer Farms at Target, a grilling stapel around here!), pineapple juice, Italian dressing, and a little honey. Let marinade for at least 30 minutes.

2. Meanwhile soak wooden skewers in olive oil. (Or use metal ones.) Arrange meat and veggies on skewers.

3. Cook on a preheated grill lined with foil until done, basting frequently with leftover marinade from the veggie bowl.

4. Remove foil and let kabobs sit on grill until they are charred to your liking.

wishful wednesday : wedding gowns

I wish I could wear MY DRESS again on my wedding day.



Seriously. It is the Casablanca 1881 and I still love it.



It is made of silky taffeta and has a pleated champagne bodice with just the right amount of beading along the bottom of a sweetheart neckline. The skirt pleats and gathers at the sides and back to make a full chapel train with buttons top to bottom.



It's way more beautiful in person, and with the way the skirt falls, it almost looks even more stunning bustled!



I loved the back of the bodice! Even though it wasn't as dramatic of a drop on me because I had to have it altered so much. (More on that below...)



Funny story about that dress though... Due to James' job and a few other details I only had TWO months to plan our wedding. So as you can imagine when I walked in to the dress shop and told them how soon I'd be needing a gown they informed me that even if I found a dress that day, it'd take at least 4 months to order it from the designer, so I just might as well head on over to David's Bridal...

Well thankfully there was a seamtress at this particular shop (All About Weddings in Germantown, TN) and she swore to me that if I was able to find a "sample" dress in the shop that I liked, not only would I be able to get it for deal (Like 60% off! Your welcome, Mom and Dad...), but she would be able to alter it until it was the perfect fit.

Well I fell in love with the first dress I tried on - the Casablanca 1881 - at which the seamtress cringed because of course it was MOST difficult to alter because of all the pleating and the fact that there's no side seams. But I took a risk, bought the dress, and somehow she did it. She cut that thing down from a sample size 10 to a 0, and at the end of the day no one could tell otherwise. She's my hero. Ha!

And because it was so big she was able to leave some extra room in the back so that someday it could be let out for someone else (a daughter if she wanted to) to wear it. She just better be a shortie like her mama!

I'm still amazed at how all the little details were able to fall together for me to ACTUALLY pull off a wedding in 2 months. Crazy... And the only catastrophe was my mom locking my dress in her car 1 hour before the ceremony (that's when I connected with my inner Bridezilla) and my flowers being ruined by the intern girl who took my order behind her manager's back (I had no idea) because she thought she was just that good. And oh my, she was NOT. I would tell everybody and their mother not to use Holiday Flowers in Memphis if the owner had not been so VERY apologetic/embarassed about the whole situation. We got reimbursed in full, and I'm pretty sure intern girl was kindly told that flowers were not her calling... But it still can't change the fact that I have to look at pictures of bouquets that are not only the wrong color/flowers and half wilted, but look like I let a 10 year old put them together. I didn't even save a single rose petal because I knew it'd just make me cry!

tuesday's list : spring wish list

 
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I really only have 2 things on my Wish List right now... Oh who am I kidding? There's jewelry, vehicles, home wares, a house... Only 2 things on my immediate list, that is - so I'll just share those ;) So because Mother's Day is just a few short months away... (Hint, hint!)

#1 - MinoHD Flip



I've had my eye on this baby for months now. Mainly because the little video we have of Knox is sitting on mini cassettes waiting for the magic fairy to come and convert them to digital format. It's a huge pain and it's been on my to-do list for forever. I love the Flip for it's PORTABILITY! All our recent video of Knox is from our phones because it's just easier. I don't think we've drug out the camcorder since he started walking last July! Sad, because one of my most cherished possesions is the video my parents took of us growing up. (I don't know why I'm complaining, because their camera was like 15 lbs!) I want my kids to have that too.

So the Flip is on the top of my list! How great would it be to have an HD quaility camera that fits in your purse? I'd be whipping that thing out EVERYWHERE! And then to be able to just plug it straight in to your computer to store, write to a DVD, and share with family and friends... Priceless.

Now I've heard mixed reviews on the 'picture quality' (and I'm not sure if those people had the HD or the regular) but honestly portability and convenience is what I'm looking for. Not looking to make an award winning motion picture here ;) So hoping to get my Flip someday soon. Especially before number 2 arrives! We've got video of Knox when he was just minutes old and I cherish it!

#2 - Amazon Kindle



I was skeptical on these for a while. I mean there's something to be said for curling up in bed with a good ole fasioned book... But my mom recently got one, and after listening to her brag and reading up on them - I'm in love! She has an internet package that allows her to download books straight from the reader, but I think I'd probably just use the USB port to transfer books bought online. I definitely think I'd do A LOT more reading with one of these. Mainly because most of my reading is done at work (as non-stop CRAZY as some nights can be, others can just DRAG on), so it'd be much easier to throw this in my bag as oppossed to a couple of books to go along with my lunch, snacks, smocking, bible study, journal, and all the other must-haves for a night in the NICU.

Now I'm wondering if I could use it as a PDA as well? I'd love to be able to put the latest drug reference, pathophysiology, and health assessment books on there for work, and I'll be required to get one when I go back to finish my Nurse Practitioner's... Hmmm. May be worth looking in to ;) Also wondering how the Kindle compares to the Sony Reader. Any opinions on that out there?

Alrighty, that's it for me. What are you itching for???

untitled

 
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Just a head's up - I've gotten a little off track with the TL schedule, so I've done a little rearranging and tomorrow's topic is gonna be our Wish List's. May be a fun way to send out some 'subtle hints' on good birthday/Mother's Day/just-because presents ;)

And I never shared, but last week I made the very first "something" for our new baby...



I had to be gender neutral - so a Hook 'Em Horns burp clothe it was! Quite appropriate since the little dear will be here just in time to kick off the college football season. Daddy is so proud. To be fair though I think I'm gonna have to make a Vols one to represent our beloved SEC, and a Memphis one for basketball season! I'm working on another little something now, but need to hit up Joanne's today because Knox somehow got a hold of my rotary cutter and broke it. (I know - leaving your rotary cutter within reach of your toddler. Responsible parenting at it's finest...) Anyway it's more for mommy than for baby, but sure to be super cute :)

weekend in a nutshell

Sooo... I guess our weekend started with me planning on having to work Friday night. Well I got a call at about 4:30 that I would be put "on-call" for the night and I was thrilled! I usually always request "1st On-call" because most people don't like being cancelled because they have to use their PTO. Well I don't have PTO anyway, so for me it's just a nice little suprise ;)

Anyway, we decided to take advantage of my night off by grabbing some Mexican. But first we drove by a few more potential houses... And let me just say that I think this whole house hunt thing is gonna be the death of me. Just last week, we liked a house then found out it was 'contract pending'... Put an offer in on another only to find out that one was put in the day before and accepted... And then fell in love with yet ANOTHER house only to find out that a contract was put in on it THAT morning. I mean, really? Needless to say I had a minor melt-down/pity-party Thursday, that ended with us searching for a new realtor. (We haven't had a pleasent experience, for various reasons.) I think we've seen just about every home that meets our criteria in this town, and we're running out of options... And time!

Oh and then Friday I found another dream home and when we called to check on the status of it we were informed that it was taken off the market just that morning because the owner has decided to file bankrubtcy so she can keep her home. (Well it may be none of my business, but it just doesn't seem fair that some people get their debt wiped clean and still get to live in a gorgeous $400k home... With designer paint... But nope, none of my business.)

At this point I'm ready to just rent an apartment month-to-month until something works out. (Which we may actually end up having to do if something doesn't pop up this month.) But as much as I'm not in the mood to, we'll push on these next few weeks and see if something else magically pops up. I mean I know God has his plans for us and already knows the address of our new home, I'd just wish he'd let us in on it!

Moving on... Saturday James and some of the guys up at the church had a cook-out and fixed up a playground for the kids in a Section 8 housing project. It was a long day for them. Knox and I stopped by for moral support... And a burger. (Hey, pregnant girl's gotta eat!) I'm not much help when it comes to hauling wood and pounding things, so we only stayed for a bit and then it was off to the shoe store. Poor Knox has had a major growth spurt, and just this past week I've noticed all of his shirts and pants are too short and he hobbles around pointing to his shoes and saying "Ouchie!" I really wanted to hold off shopping until we went to the outlets next weekend with my mom, but bottom line is I might get reported if I send him to school in shoes that cut off his circulation...

So, although I do plan on getting the bulk of his spring/summer wardrobe next weekend, I stopped by Famous Footwear and picked him up some cute brown sandals for Easter and his first pair of big boy New Balances...


Just like mommy's :) I'm a huge fan of the classic NB's and have worn them since Jr. High. (I have crazy high arches and in-steps and they are the ONLY tennies that will work.) But in the past I've typically not been able to justify spending $40 on a pair of shoes my growing toddler would wear maybe 2 or 3 months. But now that he's hit a size 7 I'm hoping he'll be able to wear these throughout the summer. Especially since he'll be doing a lot more running around this year than he did last, I think it was $40 well spent.



He LOVED them and insisted that I put them on as soon as he woke up from his afternoon nap. (And yes - we really do sometimes put pants on him. He just prefers to take them OFF!)

And speaking of clothes, funny story: yesterday morning I got him up, and since we were just having a low-key day at home and running earrands, I put him in that t-shirt and a pair of gym shorts, and brushed his teeth. We were walking back towards the living room and he started having an absolute FIT and when I asked him what the heck was wrong, he ran in to his room and pointed to his shoes (his green "crocs" [PolyWogs] that look like actual crocs...), so we had to put those on. Once again, we made our way to the living room and this time he stopped at the bathroom and started throwing another fit. He wanted me to not only brush his hair, but wet the brush and use the spray gel to make it "handsome" like we do for church and school... Oh my! Do I have a 2 year old or what?!



So now it's Sunday. We had every intention of making service this morning, but were up for the better part of the night with a hurting baby, so when he went back down at 7am so did we! Poor thing has been not only battling an ear infection for the past month, but also his 2 year molars. Those things have been some sloooow little boogers. We usually dose him up with Motrin right before bed time, but when it wears off around 3 or 4am he wakes up hurting and feverish. And this has been going on for weeks now. Gah, I'm beginning to feel like the new baby is already here!

Well enough moanin and groanin... I'm looking forward to a MUCH better week ahead. I'm not scheduled to work for like 2 weeks (At least I don't think I am. Probably should double check that...), we should all be going on my great new insurance, my mom flies in for a long weekend visit Thursday night, and FRIDAY we get to see our sweet sweet baby again and know once and for all if we can buy pink or blue :) And I fully intend to. Remember I mentioned we're hitting the outlets next weekend? Woo hoo!