Ebony and Ivory

Time for an update

2012-01-17T23:44:00.000-08:00

Well, I am officially "over due."

So not fun.

This little one is just soaking up time in mommy's belly. I wouldn't mind so much if it didn't mean I continue to gain weight and grow increasingly larger by the day. The skin on my abdomen feels like it is stretched to the max and will rip any day now.

My doctor won't let me go a week past my due date so if this little one doesn't come soon, she will be forced out! There is something about being induced that makes me slightly anxious. The main reason I believe is that your given a date on the calender where your life is about to completely change. There is nothing spontaneous or relaxing about that. I remember being on bedrest with Makayla on a Saturday and knowing that on the next Monday we would be parents...I went through so many emotions...happy to sad, excited to bummed, confident to anxious, etc, etc. I remember watching a movie with Cornell and I kept looking at him, thinking, "this is the last weekend it will EVER just be me and him!" It was kind of an overwhelming feeling. Our world had revolved around ourselves for so long. But now when I look back at that stage in our life, I realize how God's timing is always perfect. To the outside world, it probably didn't seem like the best time to bring a baby in the world(i.e finances, busy schedules, no family near us, etc) but it was such a gift from God to give us Makayla. Our lives have so much more joy in them with her here, and sometime this week, it is about to double! I feel so blessed! But also have the moments of feeling sad for Makayla...I want her to continue to feel so loved and special. I have fully enjoyed this past one and a half years of us being the three musketeers.

She is going to be such a great big sister. She has been so great with her baby doll lately...rocks her, pushes her in the stroller, gives her a bottle, and wraps her in her blankie. It's fun to watch how she is naturally very motherly.

I know I say this often, but I really enjoy this stage Makayla is at(21 months now). She has gotten so vocal and is able to express herself so well to us. She loves to run around the house, dance with her daddy, eat chocolate, and just laugh. One of my favorite things she is doing now is her "routine" with expressing love to us...we can never just hug or kiss...it has to be a hug, a kiss, a high-five, and then a fist bump(which she says, "pound it."). All of those at once! She also got transitioned into her big girl bed this month. We had to do it before baby came so that way she didn't get a new sister AND her bed taken away. She has done great, we've had no issues so far, she continues to sleep through the night and in the morning I can hear her saying..."MOM-eeeeeeee or Daaaaddy!" She seems to not have figured out that she could get out of bed herself if she wanted :) But I'm okay with that!

One other update on our life is that Cornell graduated with his Master's in Christian Leadership last month! I am so proud of him and still have to remind him that he now has 3 degrees!

Here's Grandma Wick with Makayla at the graduation ceremony...

And Cornell grabbing his degree...

Just a couple pics from our days at home...

Watching Dora and eating "num-nums"(aka M&Ms)

And taking a break from her "bouncy-bouncy."

More of Makayla(18 months)

2011-10-28T00:55:00.000-07:00

Get excited.
I got real creative and did another post with bullets and facts about my beautiful daughter. But hey, at least this time there are pictures included! My time is limited and the weeks(aka life) continues to fly by, so I just have to do what I can with this blog!

I wrote last time that she is great at saying "tank two" for thank you...yeah, that went out the door randomly. She used to say it after everything...now says it only after I ask her to and if she feels like it.

Tantrums. Where in the world did these come from?? She doesn't go to daycare and therefore hasn't witnessed it from other children. We don't have cable and she only watches a kids show once a day(Dora the explorer, Sesame Street, Care Bears, etc), which means I can't blame it on tv. So? I have no idea. But she does the whole whine/cry, throw herself on the floor, and flap her arms and legs thing. Does this mean it's time for more discipline? Where's my parents manual when I need it!

Good thing she is cute :)

(Daddy and Kayla on the boat at the cabin this summer)

~~More~~ LOTS of teeth coming in. She had 4 teeth on the top and 4 on the bottom for the longest time. Now she is practically getting all her molars and other teeth at the same time. Handling it well so far though. I just never realized how LONG the "tooth coming in" process really is.

Has had a runny nose this week...not sure if it's a sickness coming on or just from her teeth but her nose drips like a faucet. She actually started to "blow" when I put the tissue up to her nose yesterday. Today when I was getting ready for work in the bathroom, she was in there playing too...and I looked down at her at one point, she had pulled toilet paper off the roll and was putting it on her nose and just blowing away. So cute and funny. Snot was everywhere but like any mom, I was so impressed how smart she is!! Only a mom would overlook boogers everywhere to get excited at their child.

This is from last month sometime-when it was still nice enough to wear a romper and sunhat!

Goes down the slide at the park all by herself now! She used to only go down if mom or dad was helping(holding) her. But Cornell sent me a little video last night of them at the park and she went down, and then did her cute little "i'm excited" dance at the bottom.
Is still a major mommas girl. Always wants me to hold/carry/hug her. I'm just soaking it in. I'm sure when January hits and her little sibling pops out, daddy will be her favorite.
Still a great eater. Her favorites include oatmeal, cereal, any kind of soup, spaghetti, and fruit smoothies. Oh yes, and EVERYtime she sees a McDonalds, she does the "choo choo" motion with one arm but says "Shake, shake" while doing it. LOL. Maybe I did go through a chocolate shake phase this pregnancy but it wasn't THAT bad?! ( so I thought). I gave in yesterday and stopped to get her one just because it's so cute when she does it!
Here signature dance move is the "gitty up." (as Cornell would say). She dances around like she's riding a horse.
Loves to grab Charlotte by the collar and lead her around the house while giving commands. haha. Poor Charley, looks at me with sad eyes everytime Makayla starts grabbing her collar but she's a good sport and goes along with it.

And a little pregnancy update: I'm huge, everyone at work stops me and says "when are you due again?" or "are you sure there aren't twins in there?" I feel like saying "only a couple weeks left!"
("a couple" can mean 10, right?)
But baby is doing great and that's all that matters! So active in my belly...I do enjoy this stage in pregnancy, when you can practically feel them doing somersaults in there. Much better than at the end when you feel like an alien is shifting around.

Hopefully more of an update on life next time...moving, Cornell's new job, recipes, baking, etc!!

17 months

2011-10-07T16:46:00.000-07:00

As I mentioned a couple posts ago, I am totally loving this stage that Makayla is in. She's so fun to hang around(unless it's around nap time!) and makes me laugh all the time. She's my little sidekick.
Some updates to her world...

Obviously is walking. I'm a horrible mom and didn't document the exact date she started but it was between 14 and 15 months. She still gets a little out of control if she tries the fast toddler walk/run but only has had a few wipe outs.
Is a total girly girl! Likes necklaces and bracelets. Does not like to get dirty. She comes up to me if she has even a piece of lint or a crumb on her hand and says "duuurty, duuurty" with a sad face and waits for me to wipe her hand off. She also does not like bugs...the other day she was sitting in her high chair and a fly was buzzing around her. She was fine just pointing at it but then it randomly landed on her nose...I flicked it off quickly and said, "oops Makayla, you had a fly on your nose." She says, "BUG? Nooooose." and starts BAWLING!! It was very tramatic as you can imagine :) Today we were outside and saw a very small spider, she ran and latched onto my legs and in her saddest voice said, "bug, bug!"
So smart. I know every parent says this about their child but it is just amazing to see them process things on their own and think for themselves. I am constantly amazed at the tasks she watches me do and then trys to imitate me. She loves to carry around her shirts or pants and try to fold them after watching me fold our laundry. I can ask her to go throw something away for me and she will toddle over to the garbage can and throw it in there. And when I say, "momma has to go potty" she heads to the bathroom with me, pulls tiolet paper off the roll, proceeds to wipe the side of my leg with it, and then flushes the tiolet, all while saying "Butt, Butt." All I can say is, "Well, thank you so much Makayla!"
Along with imitating our actions, she is great at mimicing our words. She will say just about anything you ask her too. Today I had to chuckle at her..I saw a friend at Walmart and I must have said "I'll see ya later" because Makayla then begins yelling down the aisle "SEE YA!" She also makes me smile everytime she says "AAAA-mean" for "amen" after we pray, even yells it outloud at church :)
Great at saying thank you, although it comes out like "tank two."
Shy some days around strangers, other days she finds it necessary to say "HI" to every.single.person we see.
Continues to be a great sleeper. Goes to bed around 8:30 and wakes up between 8:30 and 9. Then takes a 2-3 hour nap around noon.

I love watching her laugh. I love watching her turn in circles when she's trying to dance. I love when she lays her head on my shoulder and just wants to be held. I love hearing her say "mommy" and "luv you."

I've been a little emotional the past week, not sure if it's pregnancy hormones or just mommy hormones, about her. I cry because I just love her so much, I cry because I just don't want to miss anything she does, I cry because I feel so lucky that God gave me the chance to be HER mommy-this beautiful, perfect little girl. Sometimes at the end of my day, when I'm laying in bed, I get mad at myself for trying to get her to entertain herself while I do laundry and the dishes quick. Why didn't I just put the housework aside and spend that time with her? How do you balance enjoying your child, being a wife, working full time, spending time with the Lord, running a household, and also fit in taking care of myself?
Good question right?! :)
The life of a mom...it's a hard job, but the best job.

*sorry for no pictures! I have some cute ones on my computer but no internet yet since we have moved! :) Soon hopefully!

2011-09-14T22:34:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, Makayla and I were hanging out at home and I asked her to smile for Grandma since I was going to send a quick picture of her to my mom. This is the result...

She loves to say "CHEEEEESE!" and make that face when asked to smile. It's hilarious and makes me smile along with her.

Right after that, I was brushing my hair and she said "momma's hair?" and I said "yes, momma is brushing her hair." Then she replied, "PRETTY!"

My heart melted. I am constantly amazed at how much I just love her. She is so sweet and quite smart if I do say so myself ;)

Our exciting news...

2011-09-02T21:50:00.000-07:00

Labor day weekend seems like an appropriate time to finally announce that Thomas Baby #2 is on its way!!

We are so very excited! It happened a bit quicker than expected, but I remind myself that Gods timing is always perfect.

I'm just a bit over 5 months pregnant and time is flying by so fast. When I was pregnant with Makayla, I knew exactly how far along I was the whole time, this pregnancy I seem to forget from week to week. I think having a busy 17 month old has something to do with it :)

.Makayla is excited too...

How about that hair?! LOL...I'm working on a post now too about all the new things she has been up to. I absolutely LOVE this stage she is at. So fun!

Here's a quick picture from our time in Minnesota. So fun to hang with cousins :)

More to come soon...

SUmMeR 2011

2011-07-30T02:00:00.000-07:00

I've been MIA once again from my blog( feels like I say that alot, sorry).

Here is a little update on our life through random pictures on my IPhone.

This actually goes back to May...I got to go to Seattle for my job and went down to the market that is always on the movies. Here is where you normally see them throwing the huge fish around and people catching them. I waited for awhile but no one bought any when I was there, the guys working did sing a song or two. Kinda a smelly place ;)

There were barrels and barrels of fresh, gorgegous, HUGE, tulips. My favorite flower of course. I think a dozen was like $5.00 or something crazy. If I lived there, I would have them in my house constantly!

My little Makayla. It's been so hot down here, one day I filled her little plastic kiddie pool so she could sit and play in it. Wasn't too interested...kept venturing over to play with the rocks.

Another hot day, we stopped at Sonic to get a slushie before heading to our friend's pool. My best friend, Anne, got her that little bikini for her birthday :) So cute. Hard to hide the swim diapers underneath though!

I have created a monster. She LOOOOVES to hold her own popsicle, ice cream cone, push-up, etc. But doesn't quite understand that they melt and she can't just carry them around forever. So this is the end result...very upset little girl at the mean mommy for taking her melted ice cream cone.

I got to see my long lost friend, Ashley, when she came to Nashville in June. Glad she got to meet Makayla finally too :)

I bought organic sunscreen for Makayla. It turns her white for a little while until it soaks in( you can see it on her arm). It's an interesting task putting on a one year old...they don't sit still long, at all!

Then the exciting birth of my new nephew, Isaiah Alan Wick. He's so cute and has a pretty awesome big brother :)

Love this picture of her! I finally can fit her hair in pigtails and she lets me do it too :)

Spaghetti for dinner with daddy. This little girl LOVES to eat!

Noah hanging out with Grandma Wick. I believe they were watching someone mow the lawn. LOL. And I don't think that was Grandma's idea ;) Noah is such little boy!

Makayla looking for the "DOG-eeeee"

I was nice enough to make Cornell's eye exam along with mine, so they had us in the room together. This is how he repays me...taking mean pictures and video while I found out how blind I really am. :)

Just figuring out the water bill. Very interesting apparently :)

More later...

13 months old

2011-07-29T19:48:00.000-07:00

(fyi...i wrote this post 2 months ago but forgot to publish, so just a little late!)

Before I became a mother, I never understood the whole saying your childs age in the number of months thing. I understand before they are one years old, you have to say 6 months, or 8 months, etc. But after that? If your child is 18 months, say "she's a year and a half." That makes it just easier right? None of this, "oh, my child just turned 37 months."

BUT, now that Makayla has past the one year mark, I can see myself totally doing it! Lots can change in a months time. They grow so fast, it's just the way our mom brain keeps track. Although if I start going past lets say, 24 months, someone please say something to me! lol.

Lets see, what's going on in Makayla's world?

She's still not walking. And no real interest in it. She'll hold onto our hands and take some steps, or even push around her toys, but I still don't see your being independent anytime soon. Everyone continues to ask "is she walking yet?" Sometimes I get tired of saying "no," because for some reason, then I feel like something is wrong with her if she's not yet. I think maybe I'll just start saying "yep."

Here she is yesterday in her little wagon from Grandma Wick. The ~~first~~ second thing my mom said when she saw this was, "doesn't she have the seatbelt on?" LOL. So just in case anyone else has that thought in their mind...no children were injured in the photographing of this picture.

haha :)

Once a mother, ALWAYS a mother.

(just teasing ya mom)

Makayla says a few more words now too, but it's kind of sporatic. Some days she will mimic lots of things I say, and other days hardly any at all. She will say fish now (comes out "ish"), "hot", and some form of "juice." She also started doing the sign for "eat." It's funny how I would do that sign over and over, but she seemed to pay no attention to me. I stopped doing it for a week or so and then all of a sudden the other day, she did it for every meal. I was so excited. There is nothing like seeing how incredibly smart your child is! :)

She also goes "ooooooooooh" and makes this face...

(I was letting her feed herself yogurt for lunch)

Also, the past couple weeks she has been so clingy. ( I don't mean that in a bad way at all). If she's playing, she would rather play while sitting on my lap. If I am doing anything in the house, she wants to be right by myside. I can forget going into another room quick without her because she becomes absolutely hysterical if she can't see me. So, we bake together, clean together, fold laundry together, sweep together, all of it together. My little sidekick.

BUT, I am not complaining because I know there will be a day when I wish she wasn't so independent.

My little sweetie

2011-05-04T22:25:00.000-07:00

Just a quick couple pictures...Makayla's hair is growing and growing, I'm thinking we will be able to do pigtails soon! I've never been a huge fan of them, but I understand now that it's a mom thing. It can be very exciting to think about styling your daughters hair. :)

Can you see the third tooth on the bottom? The top 2 are STILL coming in... I think we are going on a month now!

*jamie

trip to minnesota

2011-04-18T23:29:00.000-07:00

So, a couple weeks ago, Makayla and I headed up to Minnesota to celebrate her cousin/my nephew(Noah) turning 2 and her turning 1. Sadly, Cornell didn't get to join us :( The price of a plane tickets is just too expensive these days!

Flying with a 1 year old...I knew it wasn't going to be a relaxing flight, but she did pretty darn good on the way there(the way home is another story). Beside the guy in the seat across the aisle from us huffing and puffing whenever she cried a little, we made it to Minneapolis in one piece. But- ended up landing late and missing our connecting flight to Duluth. Mom didn't want us to have to wait 6 hours in the airport so she hopped in her car to just come pick us up :)

While waiting, we found a wonderful area for kids to play in...Makayla had a great time...

That little red package she is holding in all the pictures is a pack of airline cookies. She likes to carry stuff around, not any of her toys, but things that are much more interesting.
Socks.
Combs.
Keys.
Packs of cookies.
....you get the picture.
So we made it up to Duluth that night safe and sound. It always feels so good to just be home and around my family. Oh how I miss them.

Makayla sure had fun with this little guy...

Noah seriously could not get any cuter! He is going to be the best big brother. My heart just melts when he goes up real close to her and says, "HI Kayla...hi!" So sweet.

I think they took a bath everyday together...hehe.

We headed up to the Aquarium one day...fun for the kids. Here's Makayla with Auntie Kelly...

Me and my 2 favorite little ones(Makayla wouldn't give up the keys)!

Grandma and Makayla...

Practicing walking with a little help :)

One way to Makayla's heart is with food. The girl loves to eat!! So grandpa and grandma were all over that! Here she is feeling like a big girl at the counter.

Doing "soooo big!"

Then it was time for BiRThDay PaRTy day! Wonderful to have our family and friends there!

My mom got Makayla her birthday girl outfit...it was so adorable! Ruffle butt cupcake bloomers...seriously!!

The paparazzi was even there taking pics...

jk Jord :)

Time for cake.

Makayla wasn't really sure about it at first but she ended up digging in...

More family, and my girlfriends came the next day too. Here's our awesome soon-to-be cousin in law, Cassie...

My wonderful girlfriends...

Auntie Cathy made the long trip from Wisconsin to spend the night with us :)

Auntie Lu and Cassie...

And then a little time outside with Grandpa.

Sad to leave, but we will be back soon(August) plus we were missing Daddy! The flight home was HORRIBLE, or maybe I should say horrendous. Makayla had a tantrum while we were taxing on the runway before take-off. Which means I couldn't move or do anything. She was screaming, thrashing her body all around, sweating, etc. It was great. She has NEVER done anything like that before? The flight attendant even got out of her seat and came over to say, "is there anything I can do to help?" haha...um, no. She just didn't want to sit still.

Then after I got her calmed down...just to add a little more excitement, she peed all over my lap. Diaper must have gotten out of place with all the thrashing around during her episode. Good thing I had black pants on because I just ignored it and pretended like it never happened.

Calm baby or sitting in pee pants? I went with not disturbing the calm baby.

MOM of THE YEAR award

2011-04-18T00:06:00.000-07:00

And just like that, it's been over a month since I blogged!
I have lots to catch up on...our trip to MN, Makayla's birthday parties, Cornell preaching...but, I need to update on Makayla first! I fear that I will blink and we will be on to the next stage with her :(

So, all you moms know how busy busy busy a 1 year old is. She isn't walking yet, BUT, she is pushing things, pulling herself up on everything, crawling as fast as she can to her new destination, etc. Here she is today pushing her baby stroller from Grandpa...

{thanks Kim B. for the cute dress and jeans!}

After today, I now know why God has children go through each mobility stage...not for the child to slowly gain independance, but for the PARENT to prepare for the chaos their life is about to turn into! Take today for example...it went down in the books for me and my mothering skills.

First, Makayla almost rolls off the bench at church(I caught her mid-air). Second, she trys to stand in her stroller WHILE we are crossing one of the busiest streets in town. Third, we get to the ice cream shop and I take her out of her stroller...only to find her chewing on a old cigarette butt 3 seconds later. Eew, I still want to vomit thinking about that. Lastly, she falls off the couch(with me sitting right there by her) and hits her head on the walker and then the floor.
Seriously!
All in one day! Nominate me for mother of the year please...

And to think I want more kids...yikes!! I can barely handle one! How do moms do it?

All that to say....Makayla is SUCH a joy in our lives. I love her little giggle. Her kisses. The way she hugs me, Cornell, or any of her stuffed animals and says "ohhhhhhh" while laying her head on our shoulder. She is so loving.
She says BALL, HI, BYE, and of course KEEEEY. She loves keys. Not fake plastic keys, only the real thing. Also enjoys carrying socks around(?). I have found her numeorus times during the day crawling around with just one sock in her hand.
Yesterday she was touching my feet and saying some type of baby gibberish. I realized after a couple times of her doing it that she was trying to say "tickle tickle." Her daddy is always tickling her...so cute to see her try and re-enact it with me :)

Here she is a few days ago playing peek-a-boo with me...

And....PEEK!!

Hehe :) Silly girl.

Makayla and some green living tips

2011-03-08T00:03:00.000-08:00

Do you think this is how Makayla feels?

LOL.

Oh well...since I don't write in a baby book for her, this is the next best thing :) Yesterday Makayla turned 11 months old, yikes! She is growing and growing. This past week, her morning naps were 3-4 hours long and then late afternoon naps were about 2 hours. Can't complain! We also started giving her finger foods to feed herself. I'm sure if I read the baby book, I could have done this a couple months ago...but, ya know, she only has 2 teeth and I just thought she needed more to be able to eat stuff? She proved me wrong. This morning she had a whole wheat pancake with blueberries and didn't skip a beat trying to get the pieces in her mouth. Now mommy on the other hand is having a hard time with it. I watch her like a hawk thinking with every bite she is going to start choking and I will need to do the heimlach on her. It makes me a nervous wreck?! Why can't i just puree her food until she's like 13 and has all her permanent teeth? Oh i'm a fun mom aren't I?

Last year at this time, I was looking like this....

HUGE!!! lol...look at that belly!

The size large mens tshirts were getting a bit short towards the end there(don't mind the picture back ground...obviously was at the doctors for a check up!)

So I'm on this organic/all natural kick...and I've been meaning to blog about some of the changes we are doing in the Thomas household to live a little greener. I have to give Cornell credit, he's been pretty open and supportive of my thoughts and ideas so far. Although tonight when I told him I wasn't going to wear deodarant anymore, just a little baking soda rubbed on my armpits, he looked at me weird. haha. More on that later.

So the first change we have made is the easiest. RECYCLE. Unlike in some states(ie MN) we don't have a recycle truck that comes to collect our recyclables every week. Here, you actually have to choose to recycle on your own and then bring it somewhere that can take it for you. We found that just bringing it to Walmart and doing it ourselves works best.

Next change was our laundry detergent. I had been buying dreft for Makayla and Tide for us. Well I found an earth friendly detergent online that is safe for us(no toxic chemicals) and the environment, and ordered it. So far so good. It keeps our clothes clean and soft(don't have to use fabric softener), smells pretty good, affordable, and it works for all 3 of us. I got it on Amazon for $24.00(4 bottles total) but it looks like it went up in price for right now...

Next change is switching to Organic whole milk from 1 percent milk. I don't drink glasses of milk during the day...I put some in my cereal in the morning and then have maybe a small cup with lunch or dinner. So I figure, why not have the most nutrient rich form? I've read about all the hormones they inject in milk-producing cows to get them to produce more milk faster, and it disturbs me to think about ingesting those hormones into my body. Plus Makayla will be drinking milk next month and I want her to have what's best. I really, truely still think that the chemicals(from the fertilizier in the grass the cows eat) and hormones in our milk are contributing to young girls getting their periods at 7, 8, 9 years old. That's SO young! I've also heard great things about almond milk, anybody ever try it?

The fourth change...buying organic berries. I found a local berry farm that took their extra berries from last season and frozen them all. They were thrilled to have me interested in buying a few. I ended up getting HUGE freezer size ziploc bags of strawberries, blueberries and blackberries. Yummmm. Super great for making Makaylas baby food.

There are more changes that include homemade lotion and cleaner but we haven't used them long enough to give a good review...I will keep you updated(if your even interested)! :)

Mommy advice

2011-02-28T21:46:00.000-08:00

One of the best pieces of advice that I can give to moms/moms to be is...

buy your diapers from Amazon!

Seriously.

Let me show you...

Take a package of newborn diapers. I started using pampers because thats what was given to us in the hospital and they seemed to work the best. I remember the first couple weeks, Makayla went through about, hmmmmm...10-13 diapers a day I think. Thats a lot. Cornell and Grandma Wick spent many days driving to and from Walmart for us. I think we own stock in Pampers now.

Pampers Swaddlers Dry Max Diapers, Size N, 84 Count

So at Walmart...this pack of Pampers swaddlers newborn is about $19 or $20 dollars(last time I bought that size). Now at Amazon it is listed for $18.76. But here is the catch...if you sign up for "subscribe and save" and "amazon mom," you get 15% off for each program for a total of 30% off. Plus free 2 day shipping! So for this box of diapers, it comes to $13.15 plus tax...That's way better than any coupon.

It.is.great.

The free 2 day shipping also applys to everything else you buy that is fulfulled by Amazon. So if I order a book or DVD from amazon, I don't pay shipping and I get it in 2 days. Could it get better?! Lol.
I also order our baby wipes the same way...

Sidenote: I've been researching baby wipes and am slightly scared by my findings... so I think I'm going to try making our own wipes(as soon as I get all the ingredients). More on that later. Anyways, tell your friends, sister, coworkers, etc. It really is a good deal and can save you quite a bit of money over time!

And I am all about saving money!

In other news, Makayla has been really stressed out lately.. as you can tell from this picture...

Just chillin. Watching a little Baby Einstein. In her walker.

Life is rough :)

2011-02-27T01:27:00.000-08:00

Makayla's new trick...

Can you tell what they are? Oh yes...teeth marks. On her crib.

She has started to get her second tooth(on the bottom too) and decided one day after a nap that she would just chew on her crib railing!? I came in the room when I heard that she was awake and found brown stuff all over her mouth. Yes, gross! I washed out her mouth immediately, obviously freaked out that she would ingest some of the paint and become sick. She is fine but now the crib is wrecked.

Any other moms ever experience this?

Lil stinker :)

Have you seen these necklaces all over blog world? I finally made one the other night...just did it baby sized :) So easy. Only problem is that I only had black felt which you can see coming from behind the rosettes. Makayla actually kept it on while I took a few pictures of her. Usually she rips off anything I put on her that is not a shirt and pants!

And I saved the best for last...

Makayla and I get to come home next month to Minnesota! My parents are having a double birthday party for Noah(turning 2) and Makayla(turning 1). I'm so excited! Maybe it will warm up a little bit for us. :)

Walker movement

2011-02-15T08:48:00.000-08:00

Short video but it shows how Makayla figured out her walker today :)

And here's one per Grandma's request...

Happy happy love day

2011-02-14T08:04:00.000-08:00

I can't say it enough...I love Valentine's day.

But what I really really love is this guy...

Yes I am cheesy and put that heart around our faces :)

So we did our Valentines stuff this weekend since Mondays are such a busy day for us both.

My wonderful husband surprised me with a great gift...

Toms shoes.

Have you ever heard of them? They are awesome. Comfy and cute, but the best part is for every one pair that you buy, they give a free pair to a child in need! Doesn't get much better than that! Cornell got a black pair for Christmas and he loves them. I also surprised him and got him a cream colored pair.

Great minds think alike.

+ Two become one.

=getting each other the same gift for Valentines day.

We had a super yummy breakfast yesterday. Ate it so fast I didn't even get to take a picture to put up.

It's called "strawberry stuffed french toast" and it is awesome. If you like all things french toast-cream cheese-strawberries-powdered sugar...than you will love this. Here's the recipe.

I also did some cupcake baking but will write on that later :)

Here is my other valentine...

Yeah, mom. Your crazy if you think I'm gonna wear this thing.

Happy Valentine's Day!

TEN mOnTHs

2011-02-13T13:49:00.000-08:00

Makayla turned 10 months old on February 6th! Few things that are going on in her little adventurous world...

Busy little bee. She goes none stop. Crawling and pulling herself up on everything. Favorite things are mommy and daddy's cellphones, remote control, pulling dvd's out of the cases, picking up miscellanous lint/loose particles on the carpet, ripping up kleenex/paper towel/toilet paper to shreds. Fun stuff right? :)
Waving bye. Well not really a wave, but a hand up in the air.
Gives some nice, slobbery, wet kisses. If we say "Makayla, give mommy a kiss," she will turn and give us a smooch, open mouthed. Haha. Only something parents would get a kick out of.
She loves Charlotte. Charlotte does not love her. Seems to find her a bit annoying at this stage. Charlotte is constantly getting up to move if Makayla comes near her. I think she got her ears pulled one too many times. Luckily, we never have to worry about her nipping at Makayla or anything.
Has reached the 20lbs mark. Which means time for a new car seat!
Plays her own game of peek-a-boo by turning her head to the side and then back to you real fast, laughing at the same time. Adorable.
Laughs at herself while she's playing. It makes me laugh too.
Still just that one tooth on the bottom :)

Winner

2011-02-05T11:06:00.000-08:00

Hi gals!

The winner of the BAGGU bags and coookies is....

Random Integer Generator

Here are your random numbers:

3

Timestamp: 2011-02-05 18:59:35 UTC

Which is Kim! Yay! You will love your bag(I got one too)!

I know I said I would mail out this morning, but that didn't work out...so Monday it will be :)

Thanks for comments/tips/entries girls! Fun!

GiveAWAy

2011-01-31T09:16:00.000-08:00

So I am trying to turn over a new leaf and be "greener" for the environment. One of my biggest pet peeves is how many plastic bags they give me at Walmart for a shopping trip. I even sometimes say, "you can put more things in that bag" or "I don't need a bag for my milk." But I still end up with about 100 plastic bags every month(we do bring them to the store to recycle). Anyway, I love the reusable grocery bags and I came across this really cute site the other night. BAGGU. They say using one BAGGU for one year replaces 300 to 700 disposable bags! Wow, awesome and pretty cute. So I'm thinking it's time for a giveaway...

Included is this bag...

How cute is this print??

Our best selling reusable bag is not just for the grocery store. Carry in your hand or over your shoulder. Holds the contents of 2-3 plastic grocery bags. 15” Wide / 25” high / 6” deep. Folds into a flat 5” by 5” pouch. Holds 50 lbs. 100% Ripstop nylon. Machine washable

Also...

Holds and stores fresh produce from the grocery store or the farmers market. Large size (12” x 16”) is just right for a head of lettuce, a dozen apples, a bunch of bananas or some kale. 100% nylon mesh. Machine washable.

My problem is, I have the bags but I forget to bring them with to the store. Maybe if it's really cute like this elephant print, I will remember more often? Doesn't hurt to try though right?!

I will also include in the giveaway a batch of homemade chocolate chip cookies...

Leave a comment and tell your favorite baked goody to be entered in the giveaway.

Ends on Friday night at 11:59 pm. I'll mail it out on Saturday morning :)

Welcome to our world...

2011-01-30T21:59:00.000-08:00

of STANDING up!!

Besides crawling, Makayla now loves to pull herself up on everything! She'll stand for awhile, and then slowly lower herself back down. It's pretty darn cute to watch her think it through and try to be careful. And no, I don't keep her caged in this pack and play(thanks again Allysa!!), but if I have to do something important like shower, she needs somewhere to be safe for 10 minutes. It's this or the baby walker(she hasn't figured out that she walk in that thing yet)! :)

Crawling has been interesting but fun. :) Gone are the days of me just setting her down on a blanket and letting her play for awhile. We now have to watch closely because the first thing she does is speed-crawl over to the entertainment stand and try pulling herself up. All I can picture is our big flat screen wobbling off the stand and falling right on her head. Why do they bypass all the toys and head for the "no-no" items?

Here's Makayla today after church. We were close to naptime and I could not get a smile out of her! Oh well... I love love love dressing her like a little girly girl :)

Reading a book with daddy. She love these books(that we got as gifts) because they have pictures of baby's faces in them. I say, "oh Makayla, look at the BABY!" And she gets a huge one-tooth-grin. She loves other little kids!

I bought this little cradle for her baby doll last week, it's so pottery-barn-ish cute!

PS...did I mention we are almost sickness free now? I still have a little cough, Makayla has a little ear infection still, and Cornell is at the end of the sick bug! But praise God we are all functioning again!

Yum

2011-01-25T08:00:00.000-08:00

You can never go wrong with chocolate and peanut butter.

One of the desserts I made for Cornell's graduation party was this Reeses peanut butter cup cheesecake. I've made it before and posted it on my blog but I think I need to tell you again that it.is.yummy. I actually had a request from our friends for me to make it for their holiday party! So fun! It's perfect for these chilly months too...

Here's the recipe if your interested...

Feel bad for us

2011-01-23T21:15:00.000-08:00

This is just a little glimpse into our life right now...

I don't think I've been this sick in years? I guess working at a hospital helps build up your immunities. So what is worse than feeling like crap?

Having a baby that feels like crap too.

Makayla's little snotty nose and cough turned into a fever, ear ache, small appetite, and wheezing when breathing. I called the doctor on Thursday and got the earliest appointment on Friday to see our pediatrician. She was literally a little noodle all day on Thursday, she didn't want to play or be put down at all. She just wanted to be held and rocked. I had to bring her in the shower that day so the steam could help with her congested chest...she fell asleep in my arms in the shower. Poor little baby

Cornell brought her to the doctor's appt on Friday morning since I'm also sick, and I got a call from our pediatrician about 30 minutes after the appt time. She said, "Jamie, I think your husband is a little overwhelmed so I just wanted to give you a call and tell you what's going on." Makayla had an ear infection, her lungs were very wheezy, and she needed a chest xray at the hospital to rule out pneumonia. Plus she needed treatments from this....

A nebulizer. That little mask with the eyes is supposed to be a fish head. Apparently that is supposed to make little kids want to have a loud machine with smelly air strapped onto their face for 10 minutes. Ha. Makayla didn't fall for it one bit. She's not a huge fan.

But the good news is that her x-ray was negative and she doesn't have RSV.

Just sick.

Here's her when she came home after the doctor.

Still wanted to do patty cake with momma. :)

So now it's Sunday night and neither one of us is better. I even called off of work on Thursday and Friday hoping that I would be ready to go on Monday. But the germs are still here. Although my body aches are gone so that's a bonus. And I had a corn dog for dinner, another bonus.

Blahhhhh.

Make sure you are washing your hands everywhere! You don't want this sick bug!

2011-01-19T19:22:00.000-08:00

Hi. I am sick.

My poor little baby. Just not feeling good. Although we did have a period of a few hours that were promising, she was smiling and playing for quite some time with no complaints!

I had to laugh today at Makayla and I hanging out...she was having a hard time napping due to this illness. Her cough seems to flare up when she lays flat, but I could tell she was pretty sleepy. I brought her in our room and we laid down on our bed together. My hope was to have her doze off and then I would lay her back down in her crib. So we played for a few minutes, she laid her head down, and I rubbed her back until I knew she was sleeping. Well of course, I started coughing as she is dozing off and immediately wake her back up. So I closed my eyes pretending that I was asleep, hoping she would just try and fall back asleep(so tricky right?). Haha. Well she lays her head down but then all of a sudden I feel these little hands, gently, touching my eyelids, then my nose, and then my lips. So sweet right...yeah, that's what I thought until I felt a big...
SMACK
on my forehead. She decided I needed to wake up I guess. haha. It startled me.
We got up and played some more. :)

Hope everyone is having a good week! Wednesday already!

9 months and counting...

2011-01-18T00:59:00.000-08:00

Look who takes a bath in the big tub now! This is from last month sometime...Makayla is changing so fast! I say that often but it's so true.

So we are going through our first baby sickness(and mommy is sick too). Makayla developed a yucky chest cough a few days ago and has a nose that is seriously like a dripping faucet. Just a low grade fever so far, which is good. I find myself forgetting EVERYTHING I learned in nursing school when it comes to my child and deciding to just call my mom for guidance. She always has the answers! Last night, we put a humidifier in Makayla's room hoping that would help the hacking cough. I think it did, she slept for a longer period of time than the night before. Mom said to try Vick's vapor rub, gotta grab that tomorrow. So we will see...

Makayla is also getting her first tooth AND starting to crawl! Lots of fun stuff all at once! I was starting to worry on the tooth thing, I know babies that sprouted teeth at 4 months?!? Holy cow! So here we are, at 9 months, getting the first one. And boy does it take it's sweet old time. I think it's been about a week and a half and it's still not all the way in! I thought once you feel it in their gums, the next day it would be a whole tooth exposed? Nope.
Crawling-she's just army crawling so far, but it gets her where she needs to go :) Fun to watch her figure out how to be mobile.

I still need to catch up on all the exciting times in December. Geesh, where are the days going?

New year...

2011-01-02T22:44:00.000-08:00

means a new blog look...

which I hate!

Haha!

I had great intentions of catching up on blogging tonight. Instead, I just spent the last 1.5 hours fixing a new template for my blog, and it's not turning out how I envisioned. Oh what a waste of time! Now its 1230 am, Makayla will be up in 5-6 hours and I am tired.

So all this catching up will have to wait til tomorrow!

And just because posts are boring with no pictures...here is one of Makayla's favorite faces these days...

Ho Ho Ho

2010-12-24T21:38:00.000-08:00

Merry CHRISTmas!

love,

Cornell, Jamie, and Makayla

Ruffle butt

2010-11-15T22:52:00.000-08:00

Makayla's new favorite form of entertainment...sitting in the kitchen with mommy, a tupperware container, and a large plastic spoon.

Oh boy is it fun :)

Alright, don't judge me...but I just learned how to make ruffles while sewing. Yes, I'm a pretty immature "sewer"(is that a word?) but I'm trying. But now I want to put ruffles on EV-ER-Y-thing! haha...hand towels, shower curtain, bags, sweaters, etc. Ruffles make everything cuter. But for now, I'm just putting them on Makayla's onesies. I love her little diaper butt with them!

My new favorite thing...

2010-11-14T22:50:00.000-08:00

Has anyone tried these before?? I bought them a few months ago while browsing at our one and only store, Walmart. Last weekend I decided to finally use them while trying to organize Makayla's closet. She's wearing 6-9 month old clothes now and I still hadn't cleaned out all the newborn and 0-6 month clothing. And it was ALOT. I was gonna give some away, but we're going to have more kids so I decided I better keep it. Plus I don't think I can part with alot of the really cute outfits, is that weird? I feel some sort of attachment to them. Does that mean I'm a hoarder? Oh well...

Anyway, here's the finished product.

I was SO amazed at how much space these things save!! WOW! I had 3 bags packed to the max with baby clothes, and then sucked out the air with our vacuum cleaner and the bag shriveled down to a flat package. So instead of having 3 large totes of clothes stacked in a closet, I have 2.5 flat bags that I could neatly put under Makaylas crib. I was pretty excited.

In fact, I'm gonna get more for our summer clothes and extra bedding. They are reusable so you can open and close them as often as needed.

Oh the simple joys of organization.

Laughing(and shreeking) at dad!

2010-11-02T07:38:00.000-07:00

Our little pumpkin!

2010-10-31T22:42:00.000-07:00

This is the extent of our Halloween celebration. I baked cupcakes in Halloween colors! Oh yeah, and we have a pumpkin...but we didn't carve it. I've never really been a big Halloween person, I thought it was fun when i was younger I guess. Still remember the halloween snow storm of 199?, Minnesota got TONS of snow and school was cancelled for days and days!

I do admit though, Iwas feeling like an un-fun mom today, lots of our friends on facebook posted pictures of their little babies in super cute costumes! All Makayla got to do is sit by a pumpkin! Haha. Next year right!?

And I thought maybe I could get my baking skills back by making BOXED cupcakes and using PREMADE frosting?

oooooh, but don't be fooled.

I didn't realize until after I had baked, frosted, decorated, and ate a cupcake that the box mix was expired which resulted in disgusting cupcakes. Now really, I think my baking days are over.

Here's Makayla earlier this week. Getting so big, and major losing her hair! I'm curious what it will grow back like? Since she was born, it has been soft like mine which I secretly hope it stays like :) I don't know how I will style it if it's more like Cornells texture! Oh and plus, since she doesn't look anything like me, at least let her have my hair please Lord?! LOL. Today I showed a few pictures of Makayla to Cornell because in some of them I feel like I see something of myself in her facial features. Not sure what, but something. I asked what he thought, and he responds by saying..."Um not really in the face, but definitely the shoulders."

OMG? What? The shoulders?

I got a good laugh out of that one!

He thinks that Makayla will look more like him and if we have a little boy, he will like more like me. Who knows!?

I have to bring Makayla to the doctor tomorrow for a well baby check-up. Last time we went she was 13.5 pounds. She has definitely gained weight since then! I have a hard time carrying her car seat now! She's getting those cute chubby baby thighs!

These pictures are from today after church. Sorry for all the posing with the pumpkin, but it makes for a cute prop this time of year :) Plus she loves it!

SMILE!

Don't mind my super white skin. I don't really have time to care until I see a picture of myself!

And finally, Makayla and her DA-DA-DA-DA-DA

So cute when she says it. But I can't help and try hard for Ma-Ma-Ma-Ma!

Daddy's little honey

2010-10-27T22:43:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I had The Little Mermaid on while playing with Makayla. Cornell came in and watched a little bit of it. After about 10 minutes, he goes "wow, watching this movie just makes me REALLY want to color." hehe!

Our neighbor Wendy took a few photos of Makayla a couple weeks ago. Once again, she wasn't very smiley. She just kind of stares when I try and try to get her to smile. She did smile a little bit though when she saw Wendy's son, Aiden. She is just loving other little kids recently...it's pretty cute to watch her try and interact with them by talking and making her little noises.

One thing that can get Makayla to smile at a drop of a hat is her daddy. She is SUCH a daddy's girl! The other day, I was playing on the floor with her and Cornell came home. As soon as he walked in the door, her arms started flapping, legs were kicking, and she snorted while breathing so fast because she was so excited! He didn't pick her up immediately, and she started whining/crying! HA! A little excited? One new thing she is doing is reaching her arms out for the person she wants. It melts my heart when she does it to come TO ME, but if she has a choice between mommy and daddy...guess who she reaches those little arms for? Daddy!

It's pretty darn cute to watch them together, he does goofy noises or tickles her and she just laughs and laughs. If he smiles at her, she gives her BIG gummy smile right back to him. Well one day, he kept tickling her and making her laugh but then had to leave for class. So after he left, I decided to tickle her and play with her how he was, because, you know, I want her to laugh at me too. I got no laughs. No smiles. Just a look like, "Mom, what are you doing? Your not funny."

My parents tell me how when I was little, I would refer to myself as "Daddy's little honey." Looks like we now have the 2nd generation daddy's little honey...

2010-10-14T19:05:00.000-07:00

Makayla is almost sitting up. She is like the leaning tower of pisa(as you can tell in this picture)! I couldn't help but take a few pictures of her in this beautiful fall weather we are having!

I feel like a different woman today. Cornell is on fall break this week, so he was home this morning and could be with Makayla when she woke up, which means this mommy got to sleep from 3 am to 9:30 am! Wow, I felt so refreshed getting up today! It was WON-DER-FUL(it also helped that Cornell made us a nice huge, yummy breakfast). Amazing what a little sleep can do!

This shrieking/squealing stuff that Makayla is doing...has-to-stop, PLEASE! It was kinda funny and cute the first couple times, but now it happens on a more consistent basis and it's driving mommy and daddy crazy. I try putting her pacifier in her mouth, but she just pushes it out after a minute and continues on with the ~~death~~ shriek. This stage passes quickly? Right?

I had to laugh last night at Cornell. He and Makayla went to the Wednesday night service at church and I texted him from work to see how it was going...his response was "being naughty in church." Now usually Makayla is great in church. She is quiet, just likes to look around, and usually just cuddles up on your chest/shoulder. So I thought now what in the world can a 6 month old do in church to be naughty, especially Makayla? He said "she's bouncing and talking, and punching me too." LOL(she loves to jump up and down if you hold her waist and stand her on your lap, it's pretty cute cause she gets so excited and smiley). Then he texts and says "she's trying to eat my lips and farting uncontrollably."
She always picks the best places to have gas.
hahaha.
He ended up having to go out of the sanctuary and just watch the sermon from one of the televisions. That's what he gets for saying the day before, "I can't wait for her to be a toddler." LOL, don't think we are ready for that yet!

Good thing this little stinky butt is so cute.

So my other interesting topic of the week is my horrible baking skills. LOL. You all know my LOVE for baking. So I found this fun new recipe online for these chocolate-peanut butter-marshmellow-crispy-brownie bars. Yum right? To make a long story short, I wrecked the brownie part of the bar and got so upset that I started crying.
What?
Yes, crying from messed up brownies. Maybe it had something to do with the fact that I also messed up 2 loaves of pumpkin bread the week before. It is really like I've never baked before in my life!? I'm not sure what's going on with that. Cornell suggested maybe our oven is the problem(what a great husband to find other things to blame except my skills). Or maybe it's because I have been talking alot about trying to do some holiday baking for others this season and this is the Lord's way of telling me "it's not my plan for you right now Jamie." Who knows? But thank goodness for Cornell, he still acts real excited to eat my baked goods and makes me feel better. :)

Minnesota trip pictures next time, I promise!!

Thank you Baby Einstein...

2010-10-08T18:39:00.000-07:00

...for entertaining my baby while I make dinner.

This picture makes me giggle. She's so relaxed.

I sure love that little girl.

October ALreAdY??

2010-10-06T19:03:00.000-07:00

Makayla is 6 months old today.
Which makes her closer to turning 1.
That means I've been a mom for half a year already...

So does this mean I have to put away my maternity pants?
*sniffle sniffle*
boo
When does it really get too long to be wearing your maternity clothes? I only wear the pants just because I can't fit into my old jeans still. I mean, I can at least pull them on now over my thighs and butt... and button the waist! yesssss! But I still have quite a few pounds to lose before they will look like jeans and not jean-spandex. Why is losing weight not fun and not fast?

So anyway, back to Makayla...6 months old! Yay! We are now giving her rice/oatmeal cereal and she is loving it. Next week she can start baby food, I can't wait, she will LOVE it! She is a wonderful eater. Although all the good eating, has given me a little constipated baby. But that's a whole other post.

Here's a few new things I'm noticing from her: lots of adorable smiles when she notices people she knows(especially mommy and daddy), caution around new places/faces, LOTS of fun playing for longer periods of time in her Baby Einstein toys, wants to grab ev-er-y-thing that is near, does this stomach pump thing like she is trying to dance, can hold herself up by herself in her toys too(no more blanket wrapped around her waist), likes to screech and very loudly when excited or wants someone to pay attention, continues to LOVE her changing table, drinking 8 oz at a time, good sleeper, trys to jump/bounce with her legs, very good at rolling over and then back.

Makayla and I just got back home from a trip to Minnesota. It was wonderful of course and got to spend time with friends and family. I will blog about that trip next time. Here are a few pictures that Kim, my wedding photographer and good friend of my cousin Meg, was so nice to take while we were home. I think these are the only 2 smiley shots from the whole session...

Don't let that cute face fool ya, she was not in a good mood that night! But I love these! Kim is so so so talented and always has gorgeous pictures!

Okay, more on the trip and wedding next time!

2010-09-05T21:20:00.000-07:00

This is Makayla yesterday after her first college football game!

Lindsey Wilson College has a football team this year. We wanted to be supportive so we went with our neighbors, and it was such a fun afternoon! Only problem was I got so so so sunburnt! I'm talking the lobster look, seriously, it's painful and embarrassing...this Minnesota girl didn't even think twice to put sunscreen on in September!? And I hate not being able to put it on Makayla(doctor says no sunscreen until she is 6 months old). Good thing she doesn't have my skin!

Cornell is off of school on Monday, so we decided to take a little trip to BG, aka the nearest "real" city for us, aka Bowling Green. It has a Target, a mall, and a TJ Maxx! Doesn't get much better! Although the real reason for going was to pick up my dress for Sarah Herricks' wedding! Yay!

But let me tell you, I have never felt so much like a mom as I did today....

First, I am in TJ Maxx trying to browse around but keep Makayla entertained at the same time. To do this,of course, I have to make silly noises and faces so she laughs. It's amazing how you really don't care what you do in public anymore, just as long as your baby isn't crying and is happy.
Next was lunch at Panera bread. I am still not all the way comfortable breastfeeding in public, but who knows if I ever will be. Makayla loves to eat so once she is in the cradle position with me, she gets really excited and starts kicking her legs and waving her arms cause she knows what is about to happen. So try having a "hooter hider"(thanks Kari Shak) on, a wild baby flapping their arms and legs underneath it, lifting up your shirt, un-clasping your nursing bra, and all while trying to NOT show the world your enire boob. I don't think anyone saw anything. So after she's done eating, I'm burping her and she burps, but up came ALL the milk she just ate too...ALL OVER ME! All over my arm, shirt, and skirt. Plus all over her outfit too. Normally I would just wipe her up and keep it moving but she was like saturated in spit up. Of course no extra outfit in my diaper bag today, just a zip up hoodie. So I took off her little dress, and she left Panera wearing her little white tights and a hoodie.
Then we head to the mall, and Makayla and I go to Gymboree. (FYI... We had given her an UNopened bag of chips from lunch to play with since they make so much noise and are great entertainment for a baby..anything that isn't a toy is). Makayla decides that Gymboree is a great place to just let loose and pass some gas. Not just a little gas...sounded like there were firecrackers in her car seat. Loud enough for the moms standing around us, to all stop, and look over at me and stare. I didn't know what to do, so I smile and say "oh my MAA-kayla, excuse you!" One mom must have felt bad for me because she said, "don't worry, I understand, I have a baby too."

Time to go home.

We leave and I see my reflection in the glass...my hair is pulled back in a claw clip but hair has fallen out all over and is hanging in my face, I have big white patches of dry baby spit up on my chest and down my black skirt, I smell like vomit, no purse because our stroller and diaper bag now carry my belongings too, I'm the color of a tomato except for my snow white colored legs, and my baby has no pants on, holding a bag of chips? Is this what I have become?

haha. Wow.

Of course, Cornell is at our side looking handsome as ever!

haha.

But I wouldn't change any of it for the world.

Smiley Makayla

2010-08-23T10:18:00.000-07:00

Hey, hey you!

What are you doing?

I just can't hold it in any longer....

I think I'm about to show you my gums...

...aka, SMILE!!!

Can being a mommy seriously get any better than this? There is nothing like a big old gummy smile from your baby! Just makes your heart melt!

Makayla is just so fun to be around, she's a pretty happy baby all around. I find myself thinking, "Can I just stop time at this stage, I don't want to miss something." She laughs, giggles, talks jibberish, makes noise just to make noise, recognizes our voices, rolls over and holds her head up so strong, and loves to try and grab our food/drink as we eat thinking that she wants some. Also, she wants to grab or touch everything in her reach whether it be a toy, a face, a hand, or whatever! Yesterday I was holding her and standing in her closet trying to pick out her outfit...well she look her long little arm and was grabbing the door and pulling it in so it was bumping me in the back! I mean, how fun can a door be? LOL, she's just so curious! Cornell and I like to think we have her cries figured out too...the hungry cry, the sleepy cry, the I just want to be held cry, the wet diaper cry, etc.

Next week she'll be 5 months. I'm getting really excited to start feeding her some baby food because I think she'll really enjoy it! The girl loves to eat! Breastfeeding is continuing to go well. I remember when I first started breastfeeding, and different moms would tell me what a great bonding experience it is and how much they enjoyed spending that time with their baby. Well, I'll be honest...I didn't find it very fun for the first couple months! I felt like I would spend about 90% of my day breastfeeding and it's just exhausting. Especially since Makayla was one of those, "my mom makes a great pacifier" babies. She would just take her sweet old time, maybe take a little nap if she felt like it...haha. Much better the past month or so....she gets right to the point and finishes in no time! And it really is a great bonding experience for us both, I love spendng that time with her. :)

Cornell started school last week...where did the summer go? I'm so excited for him though, this is his last semester and will graduate December 11. Yay!! But now that means he is busy busy busy with basketball too. I started a new job...i'm working as a nurse at Amazon.com. There is a fulfillment center about 15 minutes from us and its an evening/night shift. I love it so far, much better than my last job in the OR. And I was just freaking out about putting Makayla in daycare for such a long part of the day, 5 days a week. So this way, i am home during the day with her, and then when i'm leaving, Cornell is coming home to be with her all evening. We will need a little help when Cornell has bb practice but I like 2 hours of someone watching Makayla versus 9-10 hours. God just continues to be so faithful to us...

We have a computer now again so I will be updating more :)

2010-08-21T15:53:00.000-07:00

Just my two favorite people...

Enjoying family time today! Happy saturday!

Our sweetie

2010-07-18T12:51:00.000-07:00

Here's a few of my favorite pictures from my phone over the last month....

Watching baby Einstein for the first time...

So smiley on the 4th of July...

And blowing some spit bubbles! :)

Just hanging in her stroller...

Three months old and a video

2010-07-17T14:22:00.001-07:00

Hello my friends! A little Makayla update...
She is changing on a daily basis. It continues to amaze both Cornell and I how fast she grows! She went to the doctor on July 7th....weighed 12.04 pounds and was 25.5 inches long( off the charts in length for her age)! She has blessed us with the gift of sleeping through the night for the past few weeks(since fathers day weekend) and it is WONDERFUL!! Sleep is a beautiful thing!
Makayla has also discovered that she has hands WITH fingers, wow so cool right?! She'll make a fist and just told her hands out in front of her and stare and stare, while really concentrating. It's adorable. Last week she started trying to roll over. She gets her legs and hips flipped over but gets stuck with her shoulders. Not strong enough yet :)
Things she loves right now....going for walks in her stroller, pacifier, getting swaddled at night, fisher price projector, sleeping on daddys chest, bath time, mommy or daddy holding her, and last but not least....breastfeeding!!! Definitely her favorite activity :)
Here's a little video of Cornell and Makayla...

Happy Birthday dad!

2010-06-26T08:08:00.000-07:00

Makayla Grace Thomas

2010-05-07T18:24:00.000-07:00

Alright, prepare to be baby overloaded!
I'm finally putting up pictures of Makayla...yesterday was her one month "birthday!" Seriously, where does the time go? I have always heard other mommys say how fast children grow up, but it isn't realistic until you have one of your own...she changes DAILY! I'm already dreading going back to work because I don't want to miss a thing!
Today was Makayla's one month check up...the stats are(just so I don't forget), 9 pounds 3.7 ounces and 21 and 3/4 inches long. Growing little girl. Now to the pictures(mom, dad, meg, and kel...don't get excited, you've seen all of these!)

1. This is right after she was born, she was maybe 1 hour old...

(I couldn't stop saying, "Look at her hair!!!")

2. One day old in the hospital

3. Home

4. I have sooo wanted a picture of our black and white hands holding her since I found out I was pregnant...didn't really turn out how I imagined but how do you seriously pose a newborn?!

5. Next to daddy's shoe...

6. First bath(was not a big fan!)

7. I think she's a little over 2 weeks old here...

8. Just checking things out, getting more alert last week...

9. How about that belly? ;)

10. And today after our bath time and before the doctors...

She seriously has the most perfect skin! I will look like a fluorescent light bulb in our family for the rest of my life! LOL...

Happy Mothers Day to all the mommys! I feel so blessed to be celebrating my first! :)

Catching up...

2010-04-19T21:01:00.000-07:00

Wow! Where do I even begin? How do you recap the past 6-7 months of life when so much has changed?!

I really wish I would have been better about blogging during my pregnancy, that would be fun to go back and read now! Heres a few belly pics that I took to be sending Cornell while he was in Kentucky for school....

14 weeks

16 weeks

21 weeks

This was sometime in November(18-20 weeks) at my old job with my friend Erin....

22 weeks

23 weeks(Christmas time)

Then after Christmas, I finally got to move to be with Cornell in Kentucky. It was so so so hard the months before this to be pregnant and away from him. I drove to see him pretty frequently but the 8 hour drive got old, quick! To make a long story short...I got a job in an operating room in a nearby city, we found an apartment to rent, moved only the necessary items out here, and rented out our home(sniffle). We both miss Charlotte so much but will go back after this "season" in Kentucky! :)
These next photos are from my parents visit here in February. They came to watch a few of Cornells games and also helped set up the baby nursery!

31 weeks

"Pregnant" Cornell

After these photos I didn't allow anymore pictures to be taken of me! LOL...I got sooooo big I hardly recognized myself in the mirror! Especially at the end because I developed preeclampsia and was so swollen everywhere. I ended up being put on bedrest at the end of March(with only about 2 weeks to go til my due date)to help with the swelling. A few days later my doctor decided I needed to be induced. So on April 6th, after about 13 hours of labor, our sweet little girl was born. She is the most precious thing I have ever seen and I love being a mommy! I will post pictures of her next time!

Baby Baby Baby

2009-10-14T15:51:00.000-07:00

Cornell and I are finally ready to announce that we are expecting!!

It comes as a surprise, but a WONDERFUL surprise! We both can't wait to be parents!

We found out the week after I dropped Cornell off at school. I thought I was feeling nauseated because I was so stressed with Cornell being gone but it just wouldn't go away, no matter what I did. And then I started feeling like I had triple D size boobs and they really hurt so I knew something wasn't right! LOL.. So 4 pregnancy tests later(just to make sure one of them wasn't wrong) my weird symptoms had a reason. :)

So right now I am about 14 weeks, due April 15. Finally out of my first trimester, thank the Lord. I was sick for about 7 weeks I think and it was not fun. Just a constant car-sickness feeling, all day long. No such thing as "morning sickness" for me. I only threw up once but that didn't help any. So I am excited now to be able to eat semi-normal again.

I've had 2 ultrasounds so far and there sure is nothing more amazing than seeing your baby on that monitor and hearing the heartbeat. I cried the first one. The second ultrasound was for some abnormal bleeding I was having and scaring me. Turned out to just be a random blood clot behind my placenta and everything was fine. :) I can't wait til Cornell gets to see an ultrasound.

We aren't sure if it's a boy or girl yet, too early to find out! Cornell is positive it's a boy though and I know it's a girl!

Hello? Are you still there?

2009-08-19T13:52:00.000-07:00

Remember me? Jamie? I'm baaaack...

It's been almost 2 months since I last wrote a new post...not even sure if my mom still checks this blog! :) We have had a pretty busy summer with some big decisions that were getting prayed for(and continue to be!)

I guess I'll start at the beginning for those that don't know the "whole" story...so Cornell and I originally moved down here from MN because he had a basketball scholarship for a D2 school here(JCSU). Well, we have been here for 2 years and he still has never played an actual game, only practiced. Every semester, for a total of 4, there was some "new reason" for his ineligibility. We both felt that for this coming year, it would be best to not continue at JCSU and that the "door had shut." And then within two months, the Lord answered our prayers on the what the heck do we do now? question. Cornell got a super random, and I mean RANDOM, offer from a college in Kentucky...the coach came here to watch him play...we went to visit...major praying....thinking...and about 3 weeks ago he was doing this...

Signing the papers for a full athletic scholarship to Lindsey Wilson College in Columbia, KY. He decided to major in Christian Ministries, which is so so so perfect for him, and will be done in 2 years. Cornell and I did lots of seeking the Lord on this decision since obviously it affects a few, um I mean NUMEROUS, aspects of our life. For one....us...for two...our brand new house...for three...my job that I love...for four...our awesome friends here...for five...the best church ever...for six...me wanting a baby(like right now)...for seven...paying bills with only one income...for eight, okay I will stop. But you can imagine my mind trying to figure it all out. I am such a "planner" and have a hard time "just going with the flow" and fully trusting the Lord. And you can imagine how much worse it got with him signing the papers July 27th, me leaving for MN July 29th, I am gone til Aug 11th, come back and move him to KY on Aug 15th! Crazy? Yes. Not much time to PLAN.

So now that leaves us to our current situation. I am going to stay here until we can figure out how to pay our mortage here and rent there all on one income. So for now, Cornell is living in a dorm room with 4 other basketball players and realizing how it stinks to have a roommate that snores. LOL :)

The friday night before we left for Kentucky, our friends had a little going-away get together for Cornell. So nice to fellowship and pray with people we love....here are some of the guys...

The beautiful women... (can anyone even tell that Kari (right front) is like 8 months pregnant?!)

Guys again...

Goofy boy picture...

Goofy girl picture...

And then the next morning was off to Kentucky. Jake and Jenna were angels and came with us. I can't thank them enough. Here's a picture of setting up Cornell's dorm room.

And then last day good-byes... :(

Lots of texting and talking on the phone are helping us through this transition. I've never been so excited to check my phone through-out the day to see his messages! And i've already sent a care-package! LOL...I miss him so much.

Keep us in your prayers! :)

Just a few thoughts...

2009-06-23T19:08:00.000-07:00

It's time to whip out the good old bullets....

first of all, did anyone else watch Jon and Kate Plus 8 last night? I am just so sad for them! I feel like I know their family and can't believe they would really split up!? It kind of seems as though Jon just doesn't care about anything anymore(except those cool new EARRINGS? What the heck?) and Kate is truely sad about it all. I know marriage is hard work, and not to mention having 8 children together...can't they just try a little harder?
it is hot, and I mean HOT down here. Mid 90's all week and it's only June! You can fry eggs on the pavement in July and August. Anyway, the pool in our little new community is finally open...I took this picture 2 weeks ago BEFORE it had opened...
--------> the blue and yellow domes now have water flowing from them like a litte water fall area and there are lounging chairs all around the pool. Oh yeah, and get this...we have lifeguards!! LOL. It is a waste of money if ya ask me! There is maybe like 5 people at the pool during the week and 2 of them are the lifeguards. I can understand the weekends tho, with all the kids there. :)
My nephew Noah is getting cuter and cuter every week. He is now laughing, grabbing his toys, and trying to roll over! Every week, I look forward to Kellys picture messages and new blog posts with little cute videos of Noah. Check them out here.
Speaking of babies, remember my friend Landi from the Tripp's Triplets post? She ended up having an emergency C-section on friday. Which means she delivered at 28 weeks and 4 days...the 3 little boys and mom are doing well so far! Please keep them all in your prayers as they spend time in the NICU now.
Megan is in MN right now and I'm pretty jealous.
There are some big decisions to be made over the next month or so in Cornell and I's life. The Lord never seems to follow along with the things I have planned for our lives. LOL. Please pray for us. Pray that we seek the Lords direction and not our own. God is good.
Congrats to my brother Joshua for FINALLY getting called back to work.
And since it's Fathers Day this week and my dads birthday coming up, a picture of him fertilizing our lawn when he was here in April(after i had already done it *wink wink*)...

Target Girls

2009-06-13T15:43:00.000-07:00

So every other Wednesday night, a group of us women from church gather at my house to do our "Living on Target" bible study. We have been going strong for the past few months and I have grown to LOVE these beautiful women SO much. We have laughed together, cried together, encouraged one another, but most importantly prayed for each other. Last night, we had a farewell dinner for Jenny and Megan. Both girls are leaving this month to be missionaries (as teachers) overseas for the next few years.

Here is our little group at dinner...

Everyone(except for 2 of us that didn't get the message, thanks Kim *hehe*) gave each girl a journal and wrote a sweet note in it. Here is Megan with hers...

Katie and Ria...

I love this picture of Kim, Cindy, and Joshua(Cindy's little boy). He was the only "man" allowed on our wednesday nights and knows all of our secrets! :)

Kim and Jenny...

Megan and I...(oh yeah, and don't mind my outfit of nursing scrubs. I came straight from work!)

After dinner we headed over to Starbucks to finish chatting...

Megan and Jenny...

Thanks again for the wonderful times over the past few months gals! We will all be praying for this next journey the Lord is leading you on!

"Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor:

If they fall down, they can help each other up."

Ecclesiastes 4:9-10

Tripp's Triplets

2009-06-10T20:30:00.000-07:00

This past weekend was my friend Landi's baby shower! She is also a nurse at Presbyterian.
The soon-to-be mom is so cute...and don't let me forget to say that she is pregnant with

TRIPLETS!!

It was probably one of the biggest baby showers I have been to...

And that meant LOTS of presents to open!

Here's she is again...

And as you can imagine, preparing LIFE for three BOYS is a big job! But I think Landi and her hubby have it under control.

Check out the adorable nursery....

Landi did all the decorating herself! I didn't believe her at first, it is just so darn cute!

So the first room holds all the cribs and then the adjoining room has the comfy chairs and diaper changing station...

And yes, that is a Toronto Maple Leaf in the middle of the wall!

Mom and Dad are Canadians! (Aye!)
Here is Me, Landi, and Ashli! I love these girls!

Congrats again to the Tripps! So excited for you both!

Project #1

2009-05-27T09:49:00.000-07:00

Some of you may know that over the past few weeks, Cornell has been working SO hard at putting in our hardwood floors in the kitchen. Well, he is finally finished and I am so excited to show you the final product! Alot, and I mean ALOT, of time and energy went into these floors.

The before picture shows the vinyl floors that tried to look like tile(many people didn't realize it was fake until we told them)....

(Don't mind Charlotte, it's the only pic I could find of our floors)

And then after going to MN for a couple days at the beginning of May, I came home to a house where the living room looked like this...

As you can imagine, I had numerous flashbacks of my childhood-growing up in a constant construction zone. I think I had a few nightmares that week.

But Cornell worked hard everyday on those floors...

And here they are now...

(Don't mind the air compressor, it was borrowed and going back to the owner soon!) :)

I love them!! It just makes the whole room so much better...and we still have a whole bunch leftover so Cornell is going to do another area, we just haven't decided what yet.

I also took a few pictures of our living room(I promise Meg, one of these days I will take pics of the whole house for you to see!)

We are still not sure how to decorate this room. It was supposed to be a dining room/living room but we chose to do just one big living room. So there is this random chandelier and the chair railing that only goes halfway around the room? I need HGTV to come and redo our room! hehe :) And we would like furniture that doesn't match the carpet...if only money grew on trees!

Let me know if you have any decorating tips for us! And ps-notice how in almost every picture, you can see a piece of Charlotte? She is by my side at all times! So needy! LOL

"Who cares? We're on Vacation!"

2009-05-26T10:06:00.000-07:00

Happy Tuesday back to work everyone...hope you all had a wonderful 3 day Memorial weekend! I have been feeling kind of guilty lately about my blog, like I was neglecting it or something?! I haven't really been "too busy" to update it, just a bad blogger. I still need to post pics from my parents trip...forgive me!
So this past weekend Cornell and I went on VACATION! Yesssssss. If you know me at all, I absolutely love love love to travel. And any type of vacation has been on the back burner, since, hmmmm...I guess since I got married! There just never seems to be enough money for anything when you get marriend, and I can only imagine what happens when you have kids!! My travels include Austrailia, Mexico, Hawaii, etc and poor Cornell has never been anywhere except where he lives! Never even seen the ocean! I was talking to my girlfriend, Erin, at work and she told me that a great spot to vacation down here in the South is Charleston, SC. So that day we researched hotels and decided that this past wknd was a great time for us to head down there. I discussed it with Cornell and he agreed, so it was set.

Thursday, I worked and Cornell ran around Charlotte to do all the errands. One item that we knew we would purchase this summer,before our road trip home to MN, was a GPS(my parents got us hooked on their trip here.) So we decided that this weekend a GPS would come in handy(probably because one of our main sources of disagreements for our marriage is finding out directions and getting lost in the car.) So to avoid any arguments, Cornell ran and bought a GPS and to Charleston we headed!
We arrived on friday afternoon, and checked into our hotel(fyi, we brought Charlotte with us and stayed in a pet friendly hotel) and layed by the pool for a bit before heading downtown.

Here I am, just a little excited to be on vacation....

If you don't know anything about Charleston, it reminds me of "Gone with the Wind." It is exactly what you picture the "old south" to look like. The HUGE homes with the HUGE beautiful porches. The main street, King Street, has all the major stores for numerous blocks. I stopped in Louis Vuitton but didn't find much that I like. *wink wink* So friday evening, we just browsed around, stopped for ice cream, ate dinner, and headed back to the hotel.

Even on vacation, I couldn't escape the Cavaliers basketball game...

(we don't normally let Charlotte on the bed, but what the heck, she's on vacation too!)

Saturday morning, we decided to do the horse carriage ride around Charleston and learned alot about the history of the city.

The spikes on the fence of this home were so the slaves didn't try and escape back then.

This mansion, the Calhoun mansion, is open to the public for tours(even though a family really lives there.) We took the tour and saw only about 8 of the 35 rooms that it has.

Across the street to the Calhoun mansion was this home. Apparently it was the "wedding present" to the former Calhoun mansion owners daughter! And I thought our flat screen was a great gift from my parents! LOL (just kidding mom and dad)

Stopping for a little photograpy session...

Everything in the city is just beautiful. I mean, who has a driveway like this?

Also, all over the city you see these...

Guys that pull you around with a bike in a little buggy. We didn't do this, I don't think Cornell would have fit. :)

Here is a picture of us at the Harbor.

Picture for my grandma, she loves Rhett Butler.

Walking around all day makes me work up an appetite. We stopped for lunch at a little cute cafe with great food. Here is our appetizer of Fried Green tomatoes.

One of the most well known attractions in Charleston is Rainbow Row. It is a row of homes painted in pastel colors.

My favorite was the pink home of course.

More random pictures...

On Sunday we headed to the beach. Charleston is on the Atlantic Ocean, not the prettiest but at least Cornell could say he has been "to the ocean" now! Here are his and Charlotte's first encounter...

And they decided that was enough...
I laughed pretty hard. Charlotte wasn't a fan of the big, loud waves. And Cornell DID NOT like that he couldn't see his feet through the water. He swore a shark would bite him if he went any farther than his ankles.

It was a wonderful weekend. My photos' don't give the city enough credit on how gorgeous it is. We decided that when we win the lottery, we're going to buy one of the homes in Charleston. I laugh thinking about Cornell this wknd, everything I asked or said, his response would be "who cares, we're on vacation!" He had a blast "on vacation."

Twenty two

2009-05-24T19:36:00.000-07:00

Shoe model?

Nope.

It's just this guy on the rights' birthday

HAPPY BIRTHDAY BRYAN!!
just so cool.

And it makes me feel real old.

...as you would say, "Ham son."

It makes me proud to watch you work SO HARD in football and school.
"CHEA"

BFF

2009-05-15T09:17:00.000-07:00

Dear Abe,

It's me, Charlotte, your best friend. I sure wish you would come back and play with me. I had so much fun with you.

I swam for the first time ever because you encouraged me!

I know I was kind of annoying at times, but I was just so excited to have someone to play with.

Even your water tasted better than mine.

Thanks for the new toy you left me, I play with it everyday.

Love,

Charlotte

PS-you can even bring that guy with you when you come back. He was nice, always played with us and took us running everyday!

Noah Alan

2009-05-11T08:34:00.000-07:00

Could this little guy be any cuter!!
I went home to Minnesota for a few days last week to see my new nephew! And I couldn't get enough of him.

He gets so excited after he wakes up and you are there to talk to him. I think he already has grandpa wrapped around his fingers!

How about those blue eyes!?

Relaxed with his momma...

Smile!

Noah is still not sure what to think of bath time...he lays there quietly but sure doesn't enjoy getting out of the water and being chilly! :)

Mom and Dad after bath time!

And so precious sleeping...

I had the best time with the new Wick family. Thanks to Josh and Kel for letting me invade their home to get some special time with Noah. I had a blast!

<3 My Momma <3

2009-05-09T18:36:00.000-07:00

Happy Mother's Day Mom!

Dear Mom,

You are one of my BESTEST friends in the world and probably the best role model a girl could have. Thank you for always loving me unconditionally and always having a listening ear. I treasure your wonderful advice and love every minute that we get to spend together. You are a beautiful woman.

I love you!

Welcome to the Zoo

2009-04-22T08:06:00.000-07:00

Two weekends ago, or wait maybe 3 now, we went to the Zoo here in SC. It was a gorgeous day and a fun little road trip for Cornell and I. Neither one of us had been to the zoo in years.
We saw some pretty flamingos...

My favorite...the elephants....

Then a big ol' grizzly bear, taking a nap....

Plus many more but I don't want you to fall asleep reading this blog. But it did also have a botanical garden attached which was pretty. Not all the flowers were blooming yet but of course my favorite flower, tulips, were opening...

I also tried my photography skills on my husband all day...now I just need photoshop on my computer!

Okay, enough with the Zoo. Cornell said he was fine if we didn't go back til we had kids. haha.

Things around the Thomas household are coming along. The living room and half bathroom are now painted. Cornell did both all by himself...I'm not much of a painter. He didn't know that when he married me. Poor guy.

After painting, Cornell FINALLY got to mount his prized wedding gift...the flat screen television. We had a hard time deciding what to do for the shelf below the tv, we got this shelf from IKEA but not sure if we will end up keeping it there. So now we are working on the guest room because we have GUESTS COMING!!! YAY! We are so excited for my parents to come this weekend. I think Cornell is more excited than I am if that is possible! They are driving from Minnesota so please pray for their safe trip here. :)

A little paint...

2009-04-16T08:57:00.000-07:00

goes a long way.

I have been meaning to put these before and after photos of your front porch rocking chairs FOREVER. I think a few weeks ago, I mentioned how we were given our washer/dryer and 2 rocking chairs in need of some love. Here's the before picture...

Along with all the necessary tools(I'm missing the handy husband in this photo)...

And, Wa-LA....

They turned out great! Now I just need 2 cute outdoor pillows for them. I have my eye on some at Target, but just waiting for them to be on sale!

Birthday girls...

2009-04-13T18:19:00.000-07:00

Go Meg, it's your birthday!
It's my beautiful cousins birthday today...I love this pic from her wedding!

And tomorrow is one of my best friends, Sarah, birthday!

This is one my favs from my wedding day, just the girls hanging out before the ceremony.

So pretty!

I love you both SO much! Happy Birthday!
Hope to see you soon! XOXO

He is RISEN...

2009-04-12T19:46:00.000-07:00

Happy Easter!

We hope everyone had a blessed day and is reminded of the sacrifice that Jesus Christ made for each one of us. He DIED for OUR sins! Isn't that amazing!

Cornell and I went to church this morning and then headed to have a delicous breakfast at...um..IHOP. LOL...not your typical Easter meal, i know. I had searched for the perfect Easter brunch, but somehow all the resorts/restaurants thought that someone might actually pay $49.00 per person to eat there! We said a big no thanks and spent $25 at IHOP. Those pancakes are so dense huh Bry? :)

We then came home, I took a lovely nap and Cornell ran to Home Depot to get our hardwood floors. After that, we took Charlotte for walk around our neighborhood{I noticed there is still no water in our pool(what the heck?!)}, made dinner, and just relaxed. We definitely enjoyed our time together this weekend, it was much needed after a long week.

I got some pictures from my parents today...of course they involved the CuTesT baby ever...How about Noah's Easter basket from Grandpa and Grandma....

I LOVE this picture of Grandpa and Noah, he's smiling...

I didn't get emotional until I saw this picture of my mom and Noah, then the tears started coming...

Isn't it so precious?

Uncle Dubz even made it to Duluth for Easter day...Bry's biceps look bigger than Noah.

I just can't wait to meet that little guy! :)

Up and running...

2009-04-06T19:46:00.000-07:00

Okay so the Thomas family has been fighting a bad computer bug for the past week, and tonight finally got help from my bro Bryan. Thanks so much again Bry! Our computer is up and running again! We have been taking lots of pics with our new camera and LOVE it...too late tonight to post them all but here is one of my favs from last week...

Charlotte has a "tendency" to rip up any type of pillow that you put in her kennel...not sure why because she fully enjoys having a doggy bed to lay on? So anyway, all those cute dog-beds are a waste of money for us because they always get ripped to shreds. So a few weeks ago, we found a "Chew-resistent" pillow at Target in the doggy isle. We were so excited to bring this pillow home for Charlotte and think we solved the problem. She can play with it AND use it for her bed. Well, i guess i couldn't be too surprised to come home and find this scene...

Every single piece of stuffing out of that dang pillow! LOL. She must have had fun.

My new obsession...

2009-03-29T20:44:00.000-07:00

Okay, I'm not talking about my husband this time...

I'm talking about our new camera! We are both so excited as you can tell...

We've been talking about investing in a "nice" camera since we got married and finally, after some research by Cornell(aka the future Brad Wick), we bought the Nikon today!
I love it so far!

Charlotte got a major photoshoot today. Can't wait til tomorrow to venture outside.

Stay tuned for more pics! ;)

Smiling from ear to ear

2009-03-26T17:31:00.000-07:00

Looks like we have one proud Grandpa on our hands! :) I stole this picture from Kelly's facebook page today(sorry Kel)because I just love it. It's EXACTLY how I pictured my dad around his new grandson. I'm assuming this was the day Dad was "stopping by for 15 minutes" and ended up leaving 3 hours later!? :) Careful Kel, he may bring his sleeping bag next time! *wink wink*
Ps...stop by Kelly and Josh's blog to see Noah's first video! He is so observant of his surroundings! I just love him!

Right on time...March 21, 2009

2009-03-23T08:35:00.000-07:00

The Wick family had a very exciting weekend with the birth of Noah Alan Wick! Kelly did amazing and gave birth on Saturday afternoon. Noah came out weighing 7lbs 7 oz, and if you have ever met Kel you know this is pretty, um, HUGE, for her! Look how perfect he is...

We all can't help but say, "He is such a Wick baby." My mom says he looks exactly like his Daddy's baby pictures.

Uncle Dubz got to visit yesterday with the rest of my family. Noah looks like a little burrito in Bry's arms. :)I was working on Saturday and am so thankful for my mom and Josh because they texted me all day to keep me up to date with all the excitement! And the girls at my work were so sweet and supportive for my exciting news, thanks Ash and Amma! :)

I absolutely cannot wait to meet Noah, it still seems surreal to me at times. My little brother owns a home, has a beautiful fiance, and is now a DAD! Just amazing. I've been so emotional about all of this, God is so good! Congrats again Josh and Kelly!!

Sunday morning Cornell and I volunteered at our church to help sell our Pastor's new book, "Living on Target." Here is one of the other helpers, Gail. She is so sweet and hugs everyone she knows! :)

Then one of Cornell and I. We had lots of fun and can't wait to read the book! :)

Brown Mustard

2009-03-16T11:28:00.001-07:00

I've been a bad blogger lately, sorry! The new house stuff is keeping me busy/entertained. Cornell was in West Virginia this past weekend for a men's gathering so I did some much needed unpacking. But of course there is always more boxes, seems never ending!

Last wednesday we started to paint the kitchen/dining room. I was at work all day and wondering why everytime i talked to Cornell that day, he said "I'm still taping." I also noticed that he had to keep running to Lowe's for more blue tape. When i got home, I found my answer...

Cornell had taped every inch of the trim. It looked like we had blue trim....LOL. Poor guy, it took him ALL day just to tape. I guess I should have mentioned that only the edges needed to be taped. Here is the other side after he realized the much easier way...

First coat of paint!

3 days of painting and many long hourse later...

We LOVE it! It makes the whole room feel so much warmer. We still have to put our paintings on the walls, but the IKEA chalkboard made it up right away!
Here is the other side of the room...my favorite. FYI-here's our refridgerator that we got at Sears outlet for only $550. Great deal!! It has a scratch on the handle and the bottom left door, but who cares!? Not us. Cornell hates my blue canisters, I love them but do agree that not the best color for the room now.

Charlotte loves the new color too. :)

We also painted the ceiling...apparently it'a the "new" thing to do. Wasn't sure how I would feel about it but it really brings the room altogether. This picture doesn't really do it justice but you get the idea.

We are taking a little break until next pay day to do the next room, the living room. It gets so expensive to buy 3 gallons of paint and all the supplies...plus a little overwhelming. Maybe next week.

Savin' some money.

2009-03-09T18:29:00.000-07:00

First, I just wanted to give a litte update on our saving money plan. I have to admit, because of all the chaos with moving, we have been eating out a bit more and I have not even thought about using a coupon. Just seems like too much work sometimes! But today when I did some grocery shopping, I tried to make an effort to buy items on sale for meals since i had NO coupons with me.

First stop was Target. I buy Target brand for alot of items we need. Here I saved only 6 dollars, and I got mad at myself for not using Cornells discount card for working at Target( fyi...his new job) which is 10% off. That could have been another $5. I will remember next time for sure!

Next stop was the grocery store near our new house. I needed a few dinner ideas and we just kept running into these great deals! We are so nerdy that we high-five each other in the store when someone finds a great price cut. Cornell and I were both pretty pumped about this money saver of....

yeah, that says $26.12. I couldn't believe it! And that was without hardly even trying and planning out this weeks meals! I can do alot with $26 these days! :)

We did get all moved in on Saturday, we ended up having so much help that it only took about 3 hours total to move out and then in to the new place. Such a blessing! And by the way, I absolutely LOOOOOVE our new home. I just want to be here all the time. The neighbors are great, it is quiet, close to our stores but not too close, and I can even hear crickets at night and see the moon(something you forget when living in the city). Charlotte loves it also, I got nervous because during our last move, she was depressed for awhile....not a problem this time. She is so tired at night from running around outside and constantly playing. God is good!

Oh and ps...sorry Meg and Kim...but it was so pretty down here this weekend! 75 degrees and even up to 83 today.

WARNING!

2009-03-06T18:04:00.000-08:00

We are EXtRemELy cheesy....

but very excited new homeOWNERS!

We finally closed today so it is official!

Here is Cornell sitting on our porch, on our "pretend" rocking chairs.

Me, FULLY, enjoying my new kitchen! yay!

Cornell, just passing by the kitchen, asking for a glass of water....told you we are cheezy.

And me starting to unpack a few kitchen items...

Tomorrow is the big move!

Wish us luck...more pics to come!

A little update...

2009-03-02T18:26:00.000-08:00

Well, it's March 2nd and we are not moved into our beautiful new townhome...we found out last friday from our loan officer that our paperwork is all approved but it takes a few extra days to "put it all together." He said for sure by friday we will close on the home. So now we just wait for the phone call this week...
We did stop by the townhouse last week to measure for your new refridgerator and found that they finally put in our stainless steel appliances...we were both SOOOO excited!! We were like little kids on Christmas day! Here is a picture Cornell took on his blackberry of the stove...

So we headed home to continue on the packing...but the packing turned into Cornell MAKING me get rid of clothes.
LOL...just kidding!
But, it needed to be done. I mean, why do I have clothes from 10th grade that 'I just might possibly wear" now? Not sure
Okay,hold on...watching the Bachelor and Jason just broke up with Melissa! BOOO....What the heck? I was just so excited that he picked her. This guy needs to figure himself out. WEIRD! And he crys alot.

Back to packing...I think maybe Cornell enjoyed it more than I did. He got to play dress-up...

My two main areas to weed through were my tank-tops and t-shirts. I had soooooo many tanks: red, blue, green, pink, white, workout style, dress-up tanks, strapless, etc. I think I got rid of over half...than my t-shirts. So I might wear a t-shirt once and awhile to bed or to work out(obviously very seldom)! But I had a HUGE drawer full. Cornell almost lost it when he saw I still had a DARE shirt in there. haha...This picture is me parting with my treasured tees.

We gave about 5 garbage bags full of clothes to the goodwill and a bag of jackets to Jackson Park Ministries. Hopefully they find good use with someone else!

We also spent a good portion of the weekend watching movies...ate some popcorn and just enjoyed being together. No real good movies to report. We also had a random snow storm last night. We went out to play with Charlotte and throw a few snowballs! It was that perfect snow that is wet, fluffy, with huge snowflakes! So fun! As you can predict, today was a "snow day" for all businesses and schools here in Charlotte, NC. :)

R.I.P Hans

2009-02-25T18:45:00.000-08:00

The Wick household has sad news this week...my dad's partner for about 10 years, Hans, has passed away. He was 13 years old. Hans put MANY "bad" guys behind bars for the City of Duluth and even won awards as a top dog among MN police dogs. As with most german shepards, his hips got bad and he developed other medical problems that made it hard for him to even walk any longer. :( Sad but I know he is happy in doggy heaven, eating all the chocolate chip cookies that he wants!

In other news, Cornell and I have been busy with townhouse stuff. Today we had our "walk through" were we went thru the home with the builder and found the nicks, scratches, etc to be fixed before we move in. We are still scheduled to close on Monday and we CAN'T WAIT! Cornell has been researching how to put in hardwood floors for the past few weeks, I think that will be our first big project. It is fun to watch my husband learning how to be a handy-man. :)

Last friday we went to the brand new Ikea here in Charlotte...it is HUUUUGe. I love it. It has a day care and a restaurant also, crazy! It is so fun to walk around and just get different ideas for home decorating.

I am off til Tuesday now! What will I do with myself you ask? Pack, Pack, and more packing. Not fun, but at least it is worth it in the end! :)

Baking blog

2009-02-16T19:32:00.001-08:00

I finally did it....
made my baking blog!
Well, it's still a work in progress but I'm excited. Go check it out here!

CuPiD's DAy

2009-02-14T12:19:00.000-08:00

Happy Valentines Day!

Hope you all are enjoying a

special day with your

loved ones!

XOXO

We love you!

And the winner is....

2009-02-10T17:54:00.000-08:00

I know all my blogging girls have been anxiously awaiting the winner of the giveaway....

So I numbered your comments, wrote them on paper, cut up the numbered squares and threw them all in a bowl....

Cornell did the honors in picking out the winner.....

Number 1 comment belonged to Kelly!!

Congrats Kel! You will have a fun "pink & red" package in the mail to you tomorrow! :)

Thanks to all that entered, I had tons of fun reading your reasons for loving valentines day! (Cornell even said, "wow i feel kinda bad that they don't all get a prize...we should at least send them a thank you card for entering the contest!) haha...I will definitely do another giveaway again soon!

XOXO

Coupon clipper, plus a little giveaway! :)

2009-02-09T07:30:00.000-08:00

I love Valentines Day!

It just might be my favorite holiday....I love how everything is pink and red, all the pretty flowers, all the candy, and how there is just love in the air! Okay that last reason might be a bit cheezy, but it is true!

I also love to get fun stuff in the mail so I decided this is the perfect time to do a little giveaway! I know I don't have a big following of readers but I don't care(I appreciate you mom, Meg, and Kel)! Go tell your friends!

To enter, just leave a comment at the end of this post(by 10 am tomorrow-have to have time to mail it!) telling me what your favorite part about Valentines Day is! The winner will then recieve a package from me that includes some sweets(ex...cupcake pops) and other cute pink and red items. Trust me, it will be exciting!!!

Okay, now on to more exciting news....like clipping coupons!

haha...

Seriously though...did anyone see the episode of Oprah last week about different ways to save money? Cornell and I watched it together and got some really good tips that we are going to try. One of them is unplugging items when not in use. This includes your television, lamps, toaster, etc. We don't think about it but these items are wasting your electricity by just sitting there, plugged in. After the show we went around the house to check...we had 3 phone chargers, hair dryer, microwave, 3 lamps, blender, and others all plugged in with none in use! I have to admit though, last night when I came home I went to turn on a lamp....nothing...had to plug it in. Then sat on the couch ready to watch the Grammy's....nothing...had to get back up to plug it in! It will take some getting used to, but hopefully we see a difference in our Duke Energy bill...will keep you updated!

The other money saver is grocery shopping. Oprah had a family of 4 eating big yummy looking dinners at only $4 a meal! What?? We only have 2 people in our household and I can't seem to do that!

Cornell started taking notes at this point.

Some of the ideas were to plan your meals according to what is on sale for that week, plus buy a sunday paper and clip your coupons(also print coupons from online). Coupon mom got a cart of grocerys that were around $110, after the coupons...$37! I was amazed! So we attempted this challenge last night. Got our sunday paper, and ads for the week from local grocery stores, and planned our meals,.

Now remember this is our first time....

Here's how we did...

Dinners:

1. Sloppy joes and fries

2. Chicken breasts, veggie, potatoe
3. Baked Ziti with italian sausage

4. Pork chops, veggie, flavored rice

5. Homemade pizza

6. Chicken stir fry(already have the chicken breasts)

Breakfast and lunch include oatmeal, ham & cheese omelets, turkey sandwich and soup, bananas, and a few other misc items.

Our grand total was $60 with a savings of $ 7.10 from our coupons.
So we will see how long these meals last this week, I have a pretty big and hungry husband. We are going to total our savings each month and keep track.

Just call us the coupon family.

Last but not least is my first item for our new home...I have wanted this picture for about 3 months. I first saw it at Target, but it was a much smaller size. Cornell spotted it yesterday at our favorite store, Marshalls, for a great deal. Half the price and 3 times the size...I think we are gonna put it in the guest bathroom!

Different but so very cool!

2009-02-08T14:44:00.000-08:00

It is a gorgeous weekend down here in North Carolina...75 degrees today! I didn't know what do...I had a sweater and jeans on for church and came home wanting to wear a tank-top and flip flops...in february? I know it's crazy! I am still programmed to MN weather, summer clothes don't come out til June. We had a great time just taking Charlotte out in the back of our apartment complex...

Cute picture of my husband and Charlotte...
I had to make sure to sit on a rock, the fire ants hide in the grass and I had a horrible experience with "ants in my pants" last year after sitting on that nice green grass. And don't mind my fluorescent white skin! :)

Friday we went to "our" townhouse to show the Tassys and then met them again at their sons' Steven's basketball game. Jake's dad treated us all to dinner afterwards, always a good time!

(Meg-Cornell is wearing the shirt you gave him for christmas under that sweatshirt...so cute on him!)

I also did some yummy baking this weekend...I am working on my baking blog now(should be finished soon) and will post the pictures there when it is done!

Grown-ups

2009-02-05T19:27:00.000-08:00

We are HOME-OWNERS!

well, townhome owners anyways...

It has been a stressful but very exciting few weeks as the Lord guided us to buy a home! I never in a million years thought this would be the next step in our lives but then again, i am always pleasantly surprised.

We signed lots of papers today but now have to wait as the paperwork gets processed and hopefully all goes well for a March 2nd closing date. I keep holding myself back from getting too excited until the keys are in our hands! Pray for us! :)

Everything tastes better with a little...piece of hair?

2009-01-25T14:04:00.000-08:00

Okay, so maybe not one of my proudest moments as a wife....

I made chilli the other night for dinner, it sounded so good to both Cornell and I. Turned out pretty delicious if I do say so myself. Cornell got seconds and was very excited to find the secret ingredient...a nice long piece of my hair! haha! I couldn't help but laugh out loud. Pretty gross if you can tell in the picture. And the first thing that came to mind...I'm turning into my mom! Growing up, every once and awhile there would be a hair here and there in dinner, and my brother Josh always seemed to be the lucky one that found it on his plate. And if you know anything about Josh, he doesn't do well with anything abnormal with food. He doesn't like anything that makes his hands messy while eating, or even anything on his plate to touch. So a piece of hair was the ultimate "grossness" for him. Not sure if he has out grown this yet? :)

I redeemed myself with a batch of cookies...I call them "Ebony and Ivory." White and milk chocolate chips are such a great combination, just like Cornell and I...they also happen to black and white, just like Cornell and I! haha...I'm cheezy I know!

Next blog I promise to not talk about eating!

Love to all!

The Thomas Bakery

2009-01-20T16:25:00.000-08:00

So I have to thank my parents again for giving me the best gift EVER for Christmas....my kitchen aid mixer.

I have been baking up a storm in our little kitchen down here in Charlotte! I've been trying new recipes to see what could become a favorite around the Thomas household, and what is not a fav. First up is the Peanut Butter Chocolate Mud Pie...

It has Nutter Butter cookies for the crust and is very yummy. My husband gives it an A+, even says he wants this for his birthday instead of his beloved banana pudding. That's big for him!
Next up is my cupcakes...the appearance isnt so great. They are supposed to be sunflowers but the frosting was the wrong consistency of what the recipe called for, it melted if it was out of the refrigerator for only five minutes and made my decor look like mush.

The taste was still yummy though...my dad's famous chocolate vinegar cake with ice cream frosting. I got the idea out of my new "Hello Cupcake" book.

My next dessert was just a plain cheesecake with choice of toppings...strawberry/rasberry, caramel sauce, or just homemade whipped cream. This was gone before I could take any pics tho! It was good, but not a cheesecake factory cheesecake, I would try a different recipe next time.

Tonight I made M&M bars...nice and ooey gooey...just what i was in the mood for.

Yummmmmmmmy!

Winter storm warning??

2009-01-20T07:20:00.000-08:00

So today Cornell and I were awakened to a phone call at 5:30 am....it was a generic message from his school, JCSU, saying that school was cancelled for today due to the weather. And me, being a MN girl, popped out of bed to see all the snow that we got! This is what I saw...

LOL...can you spot the snow?? So almost all the schools and businesses are closed today due to the storm. Our car has a very light dusting of snow on it...very funny how everyone overreacts down here! How would they ever survive in Minnesota?

Hi mom!

2009-01-12T18:16:00.000-08:00

I love you!

OUCH CHARLIE!

2009-01-09T11:48:00.000-08:00

haha...
this is adorable! I've watched it at least 25 times and still laugh! Enjoy!

Wake up and smell the roses...

2009-01-08T18:56:00.000-08:00

So Cornell picked me up at work last night when I was done...like he always does. We usually chit chat on the ride home, but I was feeling not so chatty...3 days in a row of 13 hour shifts at a crazy busy hospital was making me pretty sleepy and drained. Needless to say, I wasn't the funnest wife to be around.
We get home and I find the apartment super duper clean and these sitting on the counter with the sweetest little note....

So pretty! That was exactly what I needed at that exact moment. I think sometimes we may forget how just these little acts of thoughtfulness and kindness can make us feel so special and loved. And it doesn't need to be just a spouse...it can be friends, coworkers, family, etc. I think one of my goals for this new year, is to do this with people I interact with. A little love can go a long way.

Do you believe in Angels?

2009-01-05T17:42:00.000-08:00

I have been meaning to post this story for a few weeks...it's so amazing!

The hospital I work at down here in Charlotte, Presbyterian hospital, experienced a miracle! And since the middle of December, we have had numerous television stations here(local and national) for this angel story. We talked about it for days on my unit, and I still get chills when I read the story. I don't know how you can't believe in angels after hearing it....especially if you hear the nurses' side of the story! Read it here if the video doesn't work(or your computer is real slow like my parents!)...the story is only the first minute or two of this video! Enjoy!

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

It's a baby shower!

2009-01-03T21:37:00.000-08:00

So these pictures are a bit late...the shower for Kelly and Noah were last weekend but I have been pretty busy since then! It was a wonderfully fun day...my mom worked so hard to make everything perfect!

Here is Kelly's sister and mom, and Sarah L and Sarah H.

Noah's Ark was the theme...Here is the table and sweets. We had cupcakes in the cutest animal holders i have ever seen. They are called "cupcake cuppies" and can be found here. So adorable!

Here is the cute mommy opening her presents!

All the wonderful gifts...look at Dexter on the right side of the picture! :)

Anna, Megan, and Beth playing the baby food jar game...looks like buffalo sauce right Sheena? LOL

Me and Kel! I love her!

My mom, having a little punch! :)

The funny gals of the party, they both just make me laugh...Kris and Sheena!

Eating lunch!

And finally, Kelly holding the cupcakes! Can you even tell she's pregnant? She is so darn cute!

Hope everyone had fun! :)

Christmas day in Silver Bay

2009-01-03T09:14:00.000-08:00

So Cornell and I flew into MN on Christmas Eve last week(close call but we made it) and just relaxed at home with my family that night. I had the best night's sleep of my life that night...I was exhausted, and the brand new king sized bed helped I think! :)
Christmas day we headed up to Silver Bay to spend the day at the Sandstroms house. It was so wonderful to see Megan, I miss her so much...and also to finally meet Dexter! He is so cute and hilarious. Cornell and him hit it off right away.
We also decided to do ugly christmas sweaters this year. Meg, Kirst, and Kelly ended up looking cute in their Christmas gear, my mom looked like she was wearing a disco ball, and Bry said mine "looks like something you wear on a daily basis." Bryan ended up winning the contest...next year I am hitting up Ragstock for an ugly sweater.
We also do gag gifts, play games, open presents and decorate christmas cookies. Oh yeah, and I can't forget eat, eat, and more eating. It was so fun and I can't wait for next year!

8 days til MN

2008-12-16T08:56:00.000-08:00

So I had to post a picture for my brothers Josh and Bryan....to show that their homemade ornaments for us last year made it on the tree this year. This is the closet I could come with a decent picture of Charlotte next to the tree without her freakin out with excitement! I can't put any presents under the tree, I know she would somehow ruin them. :)

So 8 more days...Cornell and I are getting soooooo excited! I heard about the big snow storm up there, and I can honestly say them I am kind of jealous of the snow. The gloomyness down here does nothing for our Christmas midwest spirits!

I am almost done Christmas shopping also...just 1 or 2 more things! This is the earliest I have been done, I think EVER! I sent alot of gifts home, but I still have a lot here and need to start thinking how i will get them all on the plane without spending a fortune in baggage fees!

Also, have to thank my dad for saving our computer. No more virus!

Baby Shower

2008-12-15T07:01:00.000-08:00

Are you coming to Kelly's shower?

If you haven't RSVP'd, let me know today please so we can plan the food and dessert menu!

Love ya!

PS-I think my computer at home has a virus, so I haven't been able to post on my blog. I'm at work right now using the computer. Any suggestions for virus stuff from anyone? Thanks!

14 days and counting...

2008-12-10T07:55:00.000-08:00

We are officially 2 weeks from Minnesota! Can't wait...I'm pretty jealous of Meg flying home on saturday! :)
Today is supposed to be 68 degrees here in Charlotte. Yep, thats right...I said it. 68 degrees on December 10th. Beat that you Minnesotans!
haha!
jk...
I need snow for Christmas, it just feels weird without it.
I am Christmas shopping and holiday baking today! Have a wonderful day!

Shop til you drop

2008-12-08T18:26:00.000-08:00

I was talking to Meg tonight and telling her about one of my favorite places to shop on the internet. Click HERE for the link, it is a website for only things homemade and I love it. I have ordered a few items and have been very happy....my last purchase was our Christmas Cards that I am mailing out hopefully sooner than later!

Here are a couple of the cute randoms that I found today...

Christmas recipe cards

Decorative Wall stickers...i've been seeing these everywhere and think they are cute! :)

Our Christmas card site

Gift Tags

Puppy for SALE!

2008-12-07T18:50:00.000-08:00

Charlotte Anne Thomas. I am hoping this is just another "stage" that she is going through. She has decided over the last couple weeks to be naughty, not nice...this includes chewing on everything in sight...one day it was dad's chapstick, the next night she DUG in my purse and found my chapstick from Bath and Body Works and practically ate the whole thing! Maybe she just has chapped lips you say? No...and she also has plenty of toys to play with. Although I'm not sure that is any better. This past week, she tore her tennis ball toy into shreads and then chewed on the rubber and swallowed little pieces...that can't be healthy? Last night, she jumped up on the counter to grab my matches for lighting the candles, and chewed the box??? What the heck?

This picture is here new trick. She used to come in the bathroom while i took a shower...now, she decided it's alot more fun to jump on the bed, AND lay DIRECTLY on our pillows while I am showering. Um, no offense, but gross. I lay my head there. I took this picture as i exited the bathroom to find her here.

Cornell thinks we need to give her some tough love and not pay as much attention to her. She does believe that she is part human and doesn't need to go in a kennel.

Tonight I was trying to get into holiday spirit and put the reindeer antlers we bought for her on...she wasn't having it. The only way Cornell got a picture was if I physically held her head still. Charlotte was not harmed in the process. Maybe she is just acting out cause I treat her like my child. Who knows?

Christmas cookies

2008-12-04T17:56:00.000-08:00

So I'm back(if anyone noticed I was gone)! :) I haven't been very busy(just work), and not much to write about! No fun pictures to post...we are pretty boring people I guess!

Anyways...I am in full Christmas spirit down here in Charlotte, NC! Ready to start baking goodies, but I need your advice...what is your favorite Christmas treat? I'm not sure what mine is yet....maybe gingerbread cookies or just the cute sugar cookies that me, Meg, Mom, auntie Lu, and Kirst decorate on Christmas Eve every year? I want to make a few batches of different treats to give as gifts and need some ideas!

Tell me yours!!!

Happy Turkey Day!

2008-11-27T06:41:00.000-08:00

Just a few looks at what Meg and I are goin to miss today, along with the rolls! These are from 2 years ago!

Hi Brat..I mean Brad

2008-11-26T08:44:00.000-08:00

Okay, so as if Meg and I don't have a hard enough time being away from our families around the holidays...
On Thanksgiving, my dad is known for making these yummy, very delicious rolls to go with dinner. Well, we usually end up having about 5 rolls before dinner even begins. So my thoughtful father(and mother) sent me and Meg this email this morning to let me in on what we are missing down here in NC.

So nice aren't they? Yeah right...haha! They are just jealous they aren't having these like we are...

'cause Sheena made me

2008-11-24T15:27:00.001-08:00

i am: so excited to come home for Christmas
i know: how to save someone's life
i want: to have lots of babies, and sooner than later! :)
i have: a never-ending pile of laundry
i miss: my family
i feel: not excited for thanksgiving, i have to work
i hear: my gospel music and the dryer running
i smell: oatmeal raisins cookies i baked for Cornell
i crave: juice
i cry: randomly...hurt feelings, cute movies, and Extreme home makeover
i search: the internet for anything i need...recipes, directions, gifts, etc.
i wonder: what the future holds
i regret: ever getting a stupid credit card
i love: Cornell and my doggie
i worry: about everything! I'm working on this
i remember: when Kirstin was born on this day some years ago
i dance: in front of the mirror all the time(don't laugh at me)
i don't: work-out either Sheena, don't feel bad
i argue: when I AM right, cause i'm a stubborn Wick. Also working on this
i write: a budget and never seem to follow it
i win: millions of dollars according to my junk email folder
i lose: my keys about twice daily
i wish: money grew on trees
i listen: to gospel music all the time, but I do enjoy Beyonce's new songs
i can usually be found: baking something
i am scared: of growing old
i need: my hair to be dyed but can't afford it this week
i forget: to make my dentist appointments every 6 months, i hate the dentist

I tag Sarah Herrick because she doesn't post enough on her blog!

Black Friday

2008-11-21T13:04:00.000-08:00

I'm so happy its friday! I worked 40 hours in 3 days and am definitely taking today to rest and be lazy! :) Laying in bed, drinking hot chocolate, and watching television has never felt so good!
So, as you know, I'm all about saving money and finding a good deal. Must be the Wick side coming out in me, or this economy just stinks. Anyway, we've all heard of black friday right? The day after thanksgiving, mega shopping day with mega sales. I avoided this day like the plague for 24 years, but gave in last year and headed to Target for a good deal. I got Cornell a little video camera/camera for $79(i think) and 5-6 DVDs that were $5 each. I was pretty pumped on the money I saved...So I have been looking forward to going shopping this year on black friday for a few months now. I was going to get a good portion of Christmas shopping done. And too bad for me, I found out last week that I have to work 7am-7pm this year on that friday. Booooooo.
Anyway, I hope everyone else has the day off! And want to let you in on all the deals. Here's a good website that has all the major stores and their sales for the day. Click HERE.
These deals include DVDs, cameras, games, houseware, etc. I was hoping to find this...
I would love to have a big ol Kitchen Aid mixer so I can get serious about my baking! If anyone finds one on a good sale, tell me! :)
Happy Shopping!

life WITHOUT cable television

2008-11-18T18:40:00.000-08:00

So we have been about a month now without our cable television and we are surviving...well, I am anyways! :)
Poor Cornell has been talking the past few days about wishing he could "somehow" just get ESPN so he could watch football, college basketball, and now NBA. I secretly, sometimes, am thinking how grateful I am that I don't have to watch every football team play ALL weekend long...it's great! But I feel bad once and awhile for him.
I have wanted this plate for a long time, but not sure anymore, it doesn't really apply to us right now! :)

I love the site this is from, all really unique pottery, and funny! Our name is Mudd.
Now me on the otherhand...I only really miss cable on monday night when "The Hills" are on MTV. We have been renting alot more movies lately, and for pretty cheap. Anyone ever heard of RedBox? It's in our Walmart across the street and it only costs $1 to rent movies, including new releases! It's awesome! Check it out here.

2008-11-17T17:57:00.001-08:00

Next week is Thanksgiving! I am so ready to eat me some pumpkin pie, I've been craving it for awhile! This will be the first year Cornell and I are "in charge" of making the meal. My mother-in-law and bro-in-law are coming down from Ohio next week and we are getting excited...And I already told Cornell that I am making green bean casserole even if no one except me eats it! I have had it every year of my life(i think) for thanksgiving(thanks to Auntie Lu) and I'm not about to change that!
haha...
What is your favorite dish at Thanksgiving?