The Birthday Girl and Her Special Day!

Yesterday my sweet baby girl turned one!  We started off the day with a few gifts from her Daddy and I.  She's super into books these days and since she loves to chew on them we've been playing a lot with bath books.  So I picked up a few at Target and she loves them.  She reads them to herself and it's pretty much the cutest thing ever.

See what I mean about the chewing?

Along with a small bead maze, we also got her this Laugh and Learn Puppy which seems really cute.  Hopefully she'll be more into it soon...but she liked playing with packaging more than the puppy yesterday. 

source

But my favorite gift we gave her was this little Chicago Bears skirt and football leggings!  Too bad they didn't even make the playoffs.  Oh well.  She can support her team in the off season.

 

We sang "Happy Birthday" to Natalie at breakfast with a blueberry pancake!

We had a pretty low key day just the three of us since her party is next weekend, but we did take her out to a special lunch at Moe's.  Girl chowed the heck down on some meat.  And she fed herself for the first time with a fork and was very pleased.

As an aside, I picked Moe's because it's pretty much my favorite thing when you walk in and everyone yells, "Welcome to Moe's!"  I know.  It's the little things.  I also love it because Matt loathes when the employees do that.  Makes it that much more enjoyable, you know?  Especially when I can spend the entire ride over yelling, "Welcome to Moe's!"  Unfortunately the B-squad was working and I didn't get welcomed at all.  Uber disappointed.

Anyways...

I have a toddler, not a baby and I'm a little blown away by how quickly this year has flown.  I feel like...she's under my care for 18 years and one of those years is already gone.  I know.  Dramatic much?  But seriously, fastest year ever.  

Looking forward to many, many more birthdays with Miss Natalie.  Oh I just love her!

Today My Sweet Baby Turns One

One year ago today...

At 3:0-freaking-2 in the morning...

We welcomed the most beautiful little girl into the world.

She stole our heart from the moment we saw her sweet little face.

 

And she went on to make it the most exciting, nerve racking, unbelievable year we've ever had.

 

Happy Birthday Natalie!  We are so proud to be your parents and forever grateful God has blessed us with you.  We love you more every single day.  

Love,

Mama and Dada

The Fastest, Bestest Year of My Life

Y’all.  My sweet baby girl is turning one on Sunday. 

One.

As in she’s been here in this world for 365 days.

I feel like it was just yesterday she was a squishy little newborn.  But on the other hand, it seems like so long ago.  Some days I can hardly remember her being this small.

Now she’s a toddler.  Long gone is my baby who would contently lie on the floor in one spot.  In her place is a babbling, wannabe walker who wants nothing more than the walk around the house ALL.DAY.LONG.  

 

Needless to say, a lot has changed in one short year. 

I became a mom.  Something I still can’t believe.  The fact that I have a child and have been entrusted to raise her still floors me.  The responsibility of it all overwhelms me at times, but I know in my heart God gave her to me specifically because we were a perfect fit.  She was my missing piece.  And now my heart is fuller than I ever thought possible.

You know the totally overused line of “I never knew I could love anyone so much!”?  Well, crap.  It’s true.  Through all of the frustrations and moments of lost patience on my part…I still find myself thinking about her and smiling.  Or missing her when she’s sleeping.  Or wanting to snuggle her up into a little ball and keep her this size forever.

But she’s growing up.  And I truly am excited to she her learn more and more each day.  It’s just sometimes a little bittersweet watching her become more and more independent.  But I’m proud of the sweetie she is becoming.  And gosh darn it, the girl is a hoot!

I’m in serious party planning mode over here.  All of my immediate family is coming and staying with us so it is going to be a lot of fun…and a lot of work.  But I want to make sure we focus on the reason for the party.  The celebration of my sweet baby girl who has brought so much joy into all of our lives.

Can’t wait to share more with you all!

Another Year In the Books

Today is my birthday.  The big 2-8. 

It's weird, but it's kind of snuck up on me this year.  I'm usually all about my 'birthday week' because, you know, a day is not nearly enough time to fully celebrate me!  But not this year.

I guess that happens when you have a child.  Your life is no longer all about you.  My days are filled with caring for an infant, not thinking about what presents I want, where I want to go to dinner, or which one of my friends will or will not call me.

I have more important things to worry about now.  And I couldn't be happier to be spending the day with this little munchkin!

I do still worry about if my husband will remember or not...

To My Special Someone

Today is a very special day. 

31 years ago on this very day, God created my husband.  My handsome, caring, fan-freaking-tabulous husband.  The man with whom I am diving into this adventure of parenthood. The man who is my entire world and surrounds me with so much love and joy I wonder how I ever got this lucky.

I love you to the moon and back my sweet.  And I will thank God everyday for the rest of my life for bringing you into my world.  Muah!

And on an exciting baby note:  at my 35 week appointment on Friday...the doctor checked me and it turns out that I am already 3 cm!  She was VERY surprised but everything looks good to go.  So perhaps this baby will come a little earlier than expected?  Or maybe not?  Isn't God's timing perfectly unpredictable?   

The Big 2-7!

Morning ladies!

So sorry I've been missing.  I've been sickly. 

But I'm back at work today...and it's a very special day.  Know why?

It's my birthday!

The big 2-7.  Whoa.

We're traveling to Texas for a wedding tomorrow so no real big plans to celebrate tonight.  I think a nice quiet evening in will suite me just fine.

Forgive me if I go missing again for a few days.  I'll be back just as soon as I can when I return from my trip!

XOXO

Tobogganing!

Last year for Matt's birthday I did a complete day of surprises. From the presents, to the food, to the activities...he didn't know anything. This year, I thought I would ask him what he wanted to do! He said one thing: tobogganing.

Cleveland has some beautiful Metroparks, one of which has a Chalet and two tobogganing chutes. Check it out!


We just got our first snow of the season the night before, and even though it was only about an inch or so, it was just so perfect and beautiful.

Here we are just as we arrived. Please notice the building to the left of Matt...yeah...that's the building we walked to. Do you also notice the almost completely empty parking lot? Yep. My husband always parks the furthest away. And he's one of THOSE people who takes up like two spots because they don't want anyone to hit their car when they open their doors. Annoying! But it was his birthday...



Now let's get this party started!! Oh wait. I have to carry my own toboggan?? Up steps?? Hm.


That sucker was heavy! We definitely got a workout in. But it was totally worth it to see this little face!






We did take a few much needed breaks by the fire.


They even had a concession stand where we enjoyed hot chocolate, popcorn, and a corn dog. In all seriousness...best. corn dog. ever.

After a few hours, we started making the 30 minute drive home. On the way, I spotted this!


It was just like Prancer!!! We drove by this restaurant and I happened to look over and I shouted, "A reindeer!! A reindeer!!" Yes, I am a child. But Matt was the one who suggested we go back for a picture.




30 seconds later...he started to pee. The reindeer, not Matt.


Merry Christmas!! And Happy Birthday!!

Two Cakes and a Birthday!

Last week was insane for me. I had two cakes due over the weekend...and as a girl who works full time and was attempting to plan a spectacular birthday weekend for her husband...this was a bit of a challenge. But, my lucky stars were shining on me and I finished both cakes on time with happy customers!

The first cake was for a little girl's 2nd birthday. She is obsessed with Jack's Big Music Show from Nickelodeon. Have you heard of it? Neither had I. I spent some time on the Internet researching Jack and came up with this:



Her parents LOVED it! And when I was leaving, Kennedy finally noticed her cake on the counter and said, "Jack!?!" It was so cute! She knew who it was!


The next cake I made for a woman at my work. Her granddaughter was turning 2 and they requested a "winter" themed cake with Frosty on top. We decided on this:





It's a two-tiered cake with the winter snowflakes all around the tiers. Frosty is on top with Karen riding him as a sled. I sculpted Karen and Frosty out of Rice Krispie Treats and covered them in fondant. They were the first large figures I have made out of fondant and I think they turned out really well! And as I heard this morning...the ice cream cone trees were a big hit!


After I delivered the final cake on Saturday afternoon, I could fully concentrate on give my honey the most fabulous birthday weekend ever! He had a weekend full of everything and anything he wanted to do. We had lunch at Smokey Bones. Seriously delicious wings, pulled pork, Texas toast...awesome!


We relaxed around the house for the afternoon and then enjoyed a dinner out! We went to a place called Henry's at the Barn. The restaurant is in an actual barn which was fixed up into a pretty fancy restaurant. They served authentic low country Carolina food which I knew my Southern boy would just love.



They did get a strike right off the bat for not having sweet tea (really??), and their fried green tomatoes left something to be desired...but Matt's shrimp and grits with andouille sausage was a winner! I had walleye on top of a sweet potato waffle which was also quite good. Overall restaurant rating=B.

I think I'll save our adventures on Sunday, his actual birthday, for tomorrow. We went tobogganing and had a blast!

Hope everyone had a wonderful weekend!!!

A Birthday Wish

HAPPY BIRTHDAY HONEY!

I just want you to know that I thank God every day for bringing us together. You're my other half, the person who makes me feel whole. You'll forever be my partner, my very best friend, and my love. You have my whole heart and always will.

There are so many things I love about you, but the thing I think I love the most is the way you love me. It's that special kind of love that only I get to see. And it warms my heart to think of you sharing that kind of love with our future children.

Oh...and you look so gosh darn handsome in a suit.


This weekend we will celebrate all things you! 30 is a very important birthday and I want to treat it as such. I hope you're looking forward to a fun-filled but relaxing time of presents, food, and fun!

Love you to the moon and back!

**Matt's birthday is technically on Sunday...but I usually don't post on the weekends so I thought I'd better give him an early shout out**

Surprise!

Now that the weekend is over, I can finally let all of you in on the little secret I have been keeping!

For several months I have been elaborately planning a surprise 30th birthday party for my dear husband. It involved lies and deception like you have never seen from family, friends, and co-workers...and it was all totally and completely worth it.

My sister and her husband came in from Chicago for a "visit" and then...in a crazy coincidence, Matt's best friend Robert and his wife Laura came up from Indy to stay with us on Friday and Saturday night because Laura's cousin (who is from Cleveland) had a baby and the Christening was on Sunday. Ha! Genius!

Saturday...my sister, Laura, and I headed off to "the gym," which actually meant out to pick up the balloon bouquet and drop it off at a friend's house who was coming to the party. After that, we spent the rest of the day rocking out...ha! Our band was called OMFG. Yeah. I know you're jealous.


All of Matt's friends and co-workers were going to be at Buffalo Wild Wings at 6 p.m...so it took a little effort to get us to leave the house at the exact right time. I also had the dilemma of having to decorate and put out the cake once Matt was out of the house and still beat him to the restaurant. Well, a big huge thanks goes out to Laura...who faked eye troubles all freaking day to get Matt to take her to Walgreen's beforehand for eye drops. That gave my sister, her husband, and I enough time to decorate and get to B-dubs before Matt did! It was perfection!




The best part...he had no idea!







We had everyone over to our house afterward for cake, Oreo Truffles, and games. It was a blast and Matt was so appreciative of his friends for helping him celebrate. I made a cake that looked like his business card...which turned out fantastic! But I don't want to post a picture of his information for all of the world to see. Sorry!


I will, though, let you see the result of all of the baking I have been doing. Here is about 75% of it....getting ready to be assembled last night.


Holy sugar load people! Get this stuff out of my house!

A Lovely Weekend

This weekend turned out to be absolutely fantastic!

Saturday, the neighborhood next door to us was having a community yard sale. Matt and I headed over there first thing in the morning and we found some great deals! Here are some of the treasures we found among the junk:

Got these little babies for $1 each!



Christmas is June!



We (Matt) have a tiny obsession with Dogs Playing Poker. Framed picture=$2!

We headed to Barnes and Noble to spend the gift cards my parents got my for my B-day and then scooted over to the driving range! It was the one thing I asked to do for my birthday weekend. I love to golf, but I don't get to do it very often, therefore my consistency on the course...not so great. I do have my own clubs though, which makes me feel like a real golfer! Do real golfer wear flip flops? Hm.




Here's my hubby in action! He is really, really, really good. I'm learning from the best :)







He's so cute, I just can't help myself!




We did a little work on our putting and then headed home. The weather was beautiful so we grilled out! I had to run to the store to grab some buns for our spontaneous grill extravaganza...so I picked up some wine! Yummy! Happy Birthday to me! What a fabulous night!

Sunday we had to make up for our lack of grocery shopping so we hit the stores. The rest of the day I spent catching up on our mound of laundry while Matt washed my car! What a guy...I didn't even ask! Now it's sparkling like new....if a new car has a dent in the side, is missing an antenna, and only has one side mirror. But that's beside the point.

And now, a list of things I cannot do without feeling the intense soreness and pain from swinging a golf club (yes, I am sore from golf):

• drive
• put my hair in a pony tail
• hold anything of significant weight in either hand (and by significant weight, I mean the remote)
• write
• turn a door knob
• carry my purse
• do the elliptical
  

Judge all you want. Try it...see how you feel! Ouch, add typing to the list.