It's A Girl!

We are going to have a little girl! I would post a picture, but I didn't really get a good one today. She is weighing in at 9oz at 18 weeks. So, wow! We'll be having a girl the last week of April. Fun fun!

Addictions

My husband is addicted to Sudoku.

I am addicted to this...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wffwg7pA0t8

The Coffee Park

Today I went with my friend Katie to The Coffee Park in Marietta. It was amazing! It is your typical coffee shop that also sells smoothies, sandwiches, etc. BUT, it is also a place to drop off your kids to play while you drink your coffee. Yes! You walk in, drop off your kid in the play area, ($5 for 4 hours of supervised play), then you go relax with your friends or by yourself. Hats off! It's the perfect morning for a stay-at-home mom or a got-the-kids-for-the-day dad. Check out their website at www.thecoffeepark.com.

Thank you, Katie!

What do I love on a cold rainy day?

A giant cup of hot chocolate!

What do I hate on a cold rainy day?

The fake poinsettias that got wet and dripped red dye all over my porch.

Thanksgiving Traditions

For the last 5 years it's been a tradition of Eric and I to get away and get some alone time with each other around Thanksgiving, because our anniversary is the same time. This year we celebrated 5 years of marriage on Thanksgiving Day. As we ate lunch that day we were talking about what we wanted our family traditions to be for Thanksgiving and Christmas. I'm curious to know, what are some fun thanksgiving traditions that you have with your families? And, would you like to know where in Asheville, NC we ate our Thanksgiving lunch? See the pictures below for a hint...

Illusions

How many of you out there try to pretend that you're someone you're not? What do I mean? You know, you go home to your parents' for Thanksgiving and put on an act, or all of your friends at church think you have the perfect marriage, not because you do, but because you've put on that "show". I really believe we all do this at some point.

Do you have somewhere or someone with whom you can truly be yourself? Someone who knows the dirt and the grime and still hangs around? Do you have somewhere you can go where you feel free?

These are the things I'm thinking about today. Wanna know what got me on this track? Take 30 minutes and listen or watch Out of the Shadows on the following website.

www.buckheadchurch.org/messages

Stay-At-Home What?

I just completed my second week of being at home everyday with Parker. I didn't spend every moment everyday with him. In fact, I was sick part of the week, so my mom spent at least as much time with him as I did. Still, I feel like I have a pretty good idea of how not to be a stay at home mom. Seriously, I failed.

But, I guess it's in the failing moments that we learn most.

What have I learned thus far?

• I need people.
• I need to get out of the house.
• It is a bad day when the highlight of my day is seeing James Blunt sing about a triangle on Sesame Street.
• Parker needs people.
• Parker needs to get out of the house.
• Parker doesn't care if James Blunt is on Sesame Street.

Seriously, I think this is just like any other job change that I've had. The first day you come home excited because you have the BEST JOB EVER! The next few days you wonder how "they" can consider this a full time job and you're a little bored. Then all of a sudden it hits you that you were bored because you were ignorant, and you're the busiest you've ever been. I'm in the bored phase right now.

So, any other stay-at-home moms out there? What do you do all day with your kids, specifically a one year old? What do you do to stay connected with friends?

Precious Little P

Parker and I did not have a very good morning. Let's just say that the pregnancy hormones were raging and the sleep was lacking (for both of us). But, no matter how frustrated I get, it all goes away in those precious moments.

Lunchtime ended with P throwing his PBJ on the wall behind his highchair. It stuck. He then proceeded to walk into his room and pull out a whole basket of books. We sat on his chair for 45 minutes and read every book at least twice. When I told him it was time for his nap, he looked up at me and said, "Ieeeeeee You!" That's his way of saying, "I love you!" And, the PBJ on the wall no longer mattered.