bare feet on the dashboard

The Battle of the Baby Weight

2012-02-28T11:55:00.000-06:00

I have always struggled with my weight. I remember my pediatrician telling my mom to make me drink 2% milk in elementary school to curb my weight gain. I remember feeling fat in the 5th grade. There have been periods of dramatic weight loss in 9th grade, summer after freshmen year in college, and when I moved to Asheville. There have also been periods of dramatic weight gain 5-6th grade, freshmen year in college, junior year in college, post breakups, after moving to Dallas, and most recently during my 1st pregnancy. I was about 20 pounds over my happy weight when I got pregnant. Then I proceeded to gain 42 pounds during the 40 weeks of pregnancy. Yikes. Did I mention I'm 5'3"? Yes, that does mean I was about as wide as I am tall. The pic below was at 37 weeks. It only got worse, promise.

Dear First Time Mamas,

Congratulations on your first pregnancy! If you have struggled with your weight in the past you are now feeling the freedom of being able to eat whatever you want and blame it on the baby. Enjoy this to an extent, but consider yourself warned. When that sweet bundle of joy arrives, the weight will not magically go with it. You might lose 12 pounds instantly with a big baby plus water, etc, but the rest will stay and you will have to fight tooth and nail for every. single. pound. So, eat that ice cream for sure, but maybe not every night. Trust me, I learned the hard way.

Love, Becca

Here I am at 38 weeks with my sweet and skinny friend, Whitney. I in no way realized exactly how big I had become until I saw these pictures. I was hoping it would magically disappear after the birth. Not so much.

I started off strong dropping 12 right after birth (just baby/water/etc), then another 10 from breastfeeding in the first few months. Then it stalled out. The Bear was born on May 31, and by October I still looked like this (below).

I gave up sweets in the month of November, joined a gym and Weight Watchers, and started the Couch to 5K program. I lost about a pound a week taking me to Christmas when I looked like this (below). I gained a few pounds back over the holiday which was so frustrating. Jed and I looked at this picture and decided we didn't want to be the fat family any more. We want to be fit and fun for our kids and our quality of life. The day after Christmas we downloaded My Fitness Pal free app on our phones and I dropped Weight Watchers. My Fitness Pal is basically the same as the WW app, but FREE! So great.

Since Christmas I have lost 14 pounds (for a total of 38) and Jed has lost 20. This is the one downfall to losing weight with your man. They will always lose it faster. Jerks. But seriously, I am so proud of Jed. He has worked so hard to get healthy, and it has been fun to partner with him. We still have a long way to go, but we are on our way. I have 4 more pounds of baby weight and then 20 more pounds of pre-baby weight to lose before I reach my goal. I hope to hit my goal of 62 pounds lost by the end of July. That is slow and steady, a pound a week. Jed only has 15 pounds to go, so he should be there by June.

Hopefully next pregnancy I can gain weight at a healthy pace and not put myself in such a tough position. Our hope is to stay active as a family so that Bear grows up with parents who are fun and love to play and teach him the value of a healthy lifestyle. Our goals this year are to lose weight, but to do that by changing our eating habits and portion sizes, and increasing our fitness level. We set a goal of 210 minutes of exercise each week, which is 30 minutes a day. We hope that Bear will grow up without having to struggle with his weight because he has been taught a healthy lifestyle.

What are your weight loss, fitness, or healthy lifestyle goals this year? How are you doing with them so far?

Let's Make an Easter Wreath

2012-02-27T07:20:00.001-06:00

Easter is my favorite holiday.

Spring is my favorite season.

I really love the joy of Jesus risen and all of the bloom of new life.

I searched Pinterest for spring and Easter decorating inspiration and found this and this and decided to combine them using my interchangeable burlap wreath that I made here.

Here's how it came about:

I stripped the Valentine's Day stuff off the burlap wreath and wrapped the bottom of it in haute fur yarn, pinning the ends of it into the wreath with straight pins. Then I cut individual daisies off the daisy chain ribbon and pinned them into the "grass" using coordinating straight pins. I arranged a few plastic Easter eggs in the grass using the straight pins and moved them until I was happy with their placement.

I created the words using dollar store pipe cleaners and ribbon leftover from the nursery decorating.

You can find the pipecleaner letter directions found here.

I couldn't decide where to put my lil birdie. I moved him around and took him off and put him back on. He sticks in with yet another straight pin, so it was super easy to move him. What do you think- bird or no bird?

He ended up here.

I'm super happy with the way it turned out.

The letters were WAY more difficult than I thought they would be.

Pipecleaner molding is not my best skill, apparently.

I also had a bit of a fiasco with the ribbon. I ran out on the happy and had to go back and make it super tight so it would cover the whole thing. In between I went to Hobby Lobby to find another spool of ribbon. They were out. They had just received a huge shipment of literally every other type of ribbon except the one I needed. A craftastrophe! Oh well. It all worked out in the end.

Does the Easter Bunny visit your house?

I'm sharing this project at some great blog parties. See them listed on my right sidebar.

Frugal Friday: Earning Free Stuff and Giving

2012-02-24T13:36:00.000-06:00

I just started using crowdtap, and am loving it so far.

What is it?

Crowdtap partners internet users with brands for marketing surveys, product sampling and promotion, and charitable giving. You sign up (use the box or links above) and start answering questions, earning points, and joining in discussions. Doing so earns you points, which you can use to get giftcards for yourself from Amazon and other online shopping sites, or you can give to your favorite charity. Pretty cool, right?

Currently they are working with Old Navy, and if you sign up you can get 2 free Old Navy dresses. Yes, please. I need some spring dresses up in here. This application process for this promotion ends tomorrow, so you need to jump on it if you want in. It is totally painless, promise.

What sites do you use to earn free stuff online? What about charitable giving? I want in, so share por favor.

Spring?

2012-02-23T11:00:00.002-06:00

We are playing outside nonstop right now.

The weather in Dallas is ridiculous this week and we find ourselves asking, "Is this spring?" Dare we hope that winter has passed us by completely? Spring is my favorite. Spring brings the trees budding, flowers blooming, birds singing, the discipline of Lent, the joy of Easter, our anniversary, Jed & Fisher's birthdays, dining on patios, and SO MUCH playing outside.

Look at this big, almost 9 month old boy! He is standing and cruising around the edges of furniture like a champ. Neighbors of friends of ours gave us these Little Tikes playsets, and I know we are going to be playing like crazy all spring and summer. Don't you just love hand-me-downs?

Trying to Escape

2012-02-18T07:29:00.002-06:00

The Bear is on the move.

He has been scooting backwards since Christmas, but this week he started legitimately crawling. Translation - He can go anywhere he wants. We are terrified. Here he is trying to escape through the screen door (which is unbelievably dirty, btw). Yikes. Must babyproof ASAP. And clean screen door. And clean front door while I'm at it.

Frugal Friday - A Burlap Wreath for All Seasons

2012-02-17T11:29:00.001-06:00

Thanks to Pinterest, an interchangeable burlap wreath has been on my crafty to-do list for quite a while. It seemed like the perfect solution to my insatiable need to decorate for holidays but stay within our teeny tiny budget. I finally got around to it last week and dolled it up for Valentine's Day without spending as extra dime.

I bought a straw wreath form at Hobby Lobby using their eternal 40% one item coupons. I had a ton of burlap left over from other projects, so I cut it into 4-5 inch wide strips. I kept the plastic on the wreath form after searching all over for tutorials. I started gluing and wrapping the burlap strips, pulling them super tight to keep the wreath looking neat. Every time I work with burlap I forget that it is super messy. Seriously, consider yourself forewarned. You will have burlap dust EVERYWHERE. It is itchy and insidious. Bring out the vacuum.

After letting the burlap dry, I went through my scrap ribbon and pulled out all the reds and whites. The big white poof in the middle was the bow on a Christmas gift I received. I used straight pins to attach the poof to the wreath, then started pinning the looped ribbon to the wreath around the poof.

I had a few fabric roses made from vintage fabrics lying around, so I pinned them on the wreath as well. I cut scrap ribbon into workable lengths and looped each piece 3 times before pinning it to the wreath. I kept pinning ribbon loops onto the wreath until it felt right. I was inspired by lots of burlap wreaths and ribbon wreaths that I've seen around the internet on Tatertots and Jello, Pinterest, and other fabulous sites.

You can see one of the pins I used in the photo above. My plan is to remove all the ribbon and switch to a springy wreath this weekend. I'll toss the scrap ribbon back into my pile and start over.

I couldn't decide if I liked it better without the felt heart hanging in the middle (3 for .30 at Target after Christmas). I took it down and liked it much better.

I tied a loop of ribbon to the top so that I could change that out easily as well. The whole thing will change to a new season with very little effort.

Are you on Pinterest yet? Let me know if you need an invite.

What's on your crafty to-do list?

I'm sharing this project at some fabulous parties. Check them out on my right sidebar.

Thankful Thursday - Valentine's Edition

2012-02-16T06:22:00.003-06:00

This week I'm thankful for:

fresh tulips from my love

a crawler(!) in my house

sick days

good naps for my little Bear

sunshine in February

screen doors letting in warm air (in February!)

Chinese food delivery

front porch sitting

weekends with extended family

What are you thankful for this week?

My Mama

2012-02-15T15:46:00.000-06:00

Today is my Mama's birthday.

I am so blessed to have her in my life.

She is my biggest fan,

prayer warrior,

and encourager.

She is a great listener,

wonderful grandmother,

and the perfect shopping buddy.

I am so thankful she gave my grandmom the surprise of her life all those years ago and became a sweet Valentine's gift for my grandparents. My grandmother had 2 teenagers and thought she had hit menopause. Surprise, a baby was on the way. What a gift she was to them and to all of her children, and of course to my Daddy. Thanks for loving us all so well, Mama. Happy birthday.

Make It Happen - A Family Photo Shoot

2012-02-15T15:34:00.000-06:00

A big family photo shoot is one of those things that I've wanted to do for a while, but is nearly impossible to actually make happen. Obstacles were stacked against me. My family is large and spread out, four siblings, 3 spouses, 3 states, 4 cities. We hadn't posed all together in any organized fashion since before Chris left for Afghanistan and any of us were married. It was time. Over Christmas break there was a 12 hour window when we were all in the same place at the same time, so it was go time. As the oldest kid and natural born bossypants, I basically forced everyone into it, but most thanked me later. Just kidding, but maybe they will someday. I told everyone to wear any shade of grey, white, black, or red, and put a brush through their hair. Somehow my daddy managed to sneak in a baseball cap, but you can't win 'em all. We called our friends the Filipeks and had them send down a photographer or two. We had three cameras going to get lots of pics. I marched the group down the street to the other side of the lake behind my parents' house for a scenic backdrop. It was like herding cats. Finally we got to posing, and the results are pretty great.

Nice and normal, grouped close together.

Each little family group separate, looking at each other.

Surprised!

You're a tiger! Roar!

Big thanks to the Filipek family for snapping our pics.

The silly ones are probably my favorites. After the group shots we took a couple of the grandkids with Dede and Poppy. My goal was to get these printed on canvas for my mama's birthday, which is today. Over the weekend we sat down and edited them using Picnik and ordered a few canvas prints. I can't wait to see the results. All in all it was totally worth the hassle and cat herding to get pictures we will treasure for years to come.

What tasks are on your "Make It Happen" list this year?

My Harry Potter Adventure

2012-02-07T07:06:00.005-06:00

Welcome to Hogsmeade.

Harry Potter Nerd Alert

Warning... Warning...

I've read all the Harry Potter books three times.

When I finished the last one I was distraught and didn't know how to go on, so I gave it an hour and then read the last few chapters again for closure. So good.

Please respect the spell limits.

Enjoy the butterbeer.

I had two frozen, and they were delicious.

On a recent trip to Orlando for Young Life's All Staff Conference I had a few hours of free time and decided to embrace my nerdy obsessive side and venture over to Universal Studios Islands of Adventure to explore The Wizarding World of Harry Potter. It was all I had hoped for and more.

Jed does not share my Harry Potter obsession. It is an issue we are working through in our marriage. During our full day of free time we went to Epcot and the Magic Kingdom so that he could have fun, too. Thankfully my friend Jen shares my obsession and was willing to nerd out with me for a bit. We were like giddy schoolgirls. In wizard robes. Just kidding, we didn't have wizard robes. But I wish we did.

It was magical.

All aboard the Hogwarts Express.

The ride inside the castle rocked. Seriously, the scenery from the line was amazing. They really did a phenomenal job. There are only three rides, and the lines were short so we rode all of them. Hagrid's house was in the line for the Flight of the Hippogriff ride. Flight of the Hippogriff is more of a kiddie coaster, so I was thankful we only had to wait 10 minutes. The Dragon Challenge is a super fun double coaster with tons of flips and twists. It rocked. So did the 5 minute line.

The village of Hogsmeade is so cute and magical. The shops stay true to the Harry Potter books, and I had to buy some candy in Honeydukes. I wish we had time to eat at The Three Broomsticks or Hogshead Pub. We did go in and explore, and they were both so well done.

If you are a fellow Harry Potter nerd, The Wizarding World is a must do. It isn't cheap or in any way frugal, but it is a trip into the world of your imagination straight out of the books. If you aren't a Harry Potter nerd, you are missing out on so much and I can't help you. Read the books and join the fun. The movies are great, too, but the books are pure magic.

Medieval Times Dallas - Donating and Discounts

2012-02-06T21:00:00.000-06:00

Have you been to Medieval Times Dallas? I went once, back in college, on a spring break trip. It was hilarious and fun and ended with a dance party in the bar. It was also pretty pricey. If you've ever wanted to go, this Thursday you can get 50% off your admission by bringing a non perishable food item. The Dallas castle has a goal of donating 2000 pounds of food to Dallas Life and they are almost there. They have collected 1306 pounds so far and only have 694 to go. Discounts and good causes, gotta love it. Head to the Medieval Times Facebook page for more info.

A Bow Tie Onesie for Your Little Man

2012-02-05T21:39:00.000-06:00

As a dapper southern gentleman, Fisher rocks a bow tie on occasion. Being only 8 months old, said bow tie is best worn painted on a onesie. I've seen some really cute bowtie onesies on Pinterest and Etsy, and decided to try to make one for my little man. It was so super easy that I had to show you.

Here's what you need:

cardstock or magazine

disappearing ink pen

onesie

fabric paint & brush

or fabric paint pen

1) Stick your card stock or magazine inside your onesie to prevent bleed through.

2) Use your disappearing ink pen to draw a basic bow tie outline on your onesie, just below the collar. Keep redrawing until you are satisfied with your design.

3) Trace the outline of your bow tie with your paint and brush or paint pen.
I used a paint pen, so I had to dot it on to really fill it in. I will definitely use fabric paint and a brush in the future as it goes on much smoother.

4) Fill in the outline of your bow tie.

5) Let your little man rock that bow tie onesie.

So cute.

So easy.

So frugal.

This is his Zoolander Blue Steel Baby Model Pose.

This is his "Mama, how many pictures are you going to take?" pose.

I'm sharing this tutorial at some lovely link parties.

Check out their buttons on my right sidebar and join in the fun.

Did you pay attention to the Superbowl or were you crafting and blogging like me?

Love is...

2012-01-31T13:58:00.000-06:00

Do you read Ann Voskamp?

You should.

She has a totally unique voice and daily challenges me to bust out of my normal and be revolutionarily thankful. Her book, "One Thousand Gifts" is phenomenal and her blog is a great read. I read it from my inbox, but sometimes skim and miss the point. A friend sent me today's entry and I took the time to really read it. The quote above stuck out to me so much that I made a little printable of it. I think it will go on my mantle. Feel free to print it, too. You can copy it from above or click on the free printables link at the top of the page.

Discovery

2012-01-23T11:16:00.001-06:00

We have been outside as much as possible because the temps have been in the 60-75 range. I am happiest when outside, and my son is the same. He recently discovered the wonders of grass. Touching it, ripping it out, trying to eat it, a world of possibilities.

Bargain Shopping at Serena and Lily

2012-01-21T13:51:00.000-06:00

I know that bargain shopping and Serena and Lily usually don't belong in the same sentence, but in this case it is true. They are having a sale where all items that are already on sale are an additional 40% off. Seriously. The Gypsy Tote has been an obsession of mine for a while now because it is the diaper bag that doesn't look like a diaper bag. It is normally $175. Um, no. Right now they have 2 designs marked down to $39.99, and temporarily and additional 40% off with the code EXTRA40. So I got the lovely Stinson Gypsy Tote for about $24. Then they have the matching changing pad which is normally $25 for $5.99, also 40% off. Heck yes. I bought them both. They also have a matching diaper clutch, but since we use cloth that won't work for me. I am in no way affiliated with Serena and Lily. I just love their designs AND a good deal. This would be a ridiculously cool baby shower gift or treat yourself mama gift for all you mamas out there. What is your favorite "way too expensive but I can still dream" brand?

Here is the link: Stinson Gypsy Tote | Serena and Lily.

PIPA and SOPA Break the Internet - Fight for It

2012-01-17T21:50:00.000-06:00

PROTECT IP / SOPA Breaks The Internet from Fight for the Future on Vimeo.

If I knew how to black out my site like the cool kids I would. Instead I posted this video. Watch it. Censorship is not what this nation is about and is worth fighting against. Take 2 minutes to go here and send a letter to Congress voicing your opinion.

Babywise Works for Us.

2012-01-11T06:38:00.002-06:00

Some parents love it, some hate it, but almost everyone who has heard of Babywise has an opinion. I've had a lot of people throw judgemental negativity at me when I say that I'm a fan. I think most of them probably haven't actually read the book. After a Twitter exchange that left me feeling judged I decided to take to the blog to defend our parenting choices, not that I have to.

I read about 18 parenting books before Fisher was born, among them "On Becoming Babywise", "Secrets of the Babywhisperer", and "The Baby Whisperer Solves all Your Problems." All three recommend parent led routines for babies. Babywise in particular is a little controversial, but I think a lot of folks judge the book by the misinformation that is out there. I was wary of it going in, but had noticed that many of my friends whose children seemed particularly content and well rested used the methods. I don't agree with 100% of any of the parenting books I read, Babywise included. We did not use the methods at first, but were pulling our hair out after 3 weeks of winging it with a baby who was having serious nursing issues and had his days and nights reversed. We decided it couldn't hurt to try, and it was like a miracle.

The nursing issues were resolved after his tongue tie was fixed, which you can read all about here. We used Babywise and The Baby Whisperer's advice to get Fisher's days and nights straightened out, and he almost immediately started doing a 5-6 hour stretch of sleep at night. We never forced anything, but guided him into a routine. He occasionally fusses as he winds down to sleep, but we don't let him "cry it out". As he grew he eventually dropped night feedings completely on his own. At about 7 weeks he stopped waking up for the 1 am feeding, then dropped the 4 am around 12 weeks. The first night he dropped each feeding I woke up freaking out that he hadn't woken up, but he slept right on through. Since then he has been sleeping from about 7 pm to 7 am with one feeding between 9-10 pm.

He is exclusively breastfed and has been since our nursing issues resolved. He is in the 95 percentile for weight and head size, and 75 for height. People often comment on how happy and content he seems. Are we really blessed with a sweet, easy baby? Yes, and we fully realize that. However, did we make choices that helped him become the sweet, growing boy that he is? Yes. We do not let him cry it out, but instead listen when he cries and try to meet whatever he needs. We do not keep him on a rigid schedule, but do use a flexible routine. It works for us, and for our child. We also babywear and cloth diaper and make our own baby food, but I'll talk more about those parenting choices at another time.

What people think Babywise is about:

rigidity

strict schedules

crying it out

not listening to your baby's needs

What Babywise is ACTUALLY about:

flexibility

routines - eat, play, sleep

interpreting your baby's cries

listening to your baby's needs and fulfilling them

If a particular parenting choice doesn't appeal to you, it is easy to judge that parent and think that they are wrong and you are right. I do it, you do it, and I did it a heck of a lot more before I had a baby. I think the key to getting rid of the judgement is realizing that there is no one right way. There are parenting choices that most can agree are universally bad, but after that we all have the freedom to choose to parent our children the way we see fit. I hope that your choices are working for you and I respect them, and hope that you can respect mine. If you want to learn more about Babywise and the Baby Whisperer, definitely read the books. You can also learn more at Babywise Mom and the Baby Whisperer Forums.

Have you read Babywise?

Do you love it/hate it?

Do you use it?

If not, what parenting books/methods do you prefer?

A Vintage Highchair Makeover with Tutorial

2012-01-08T21:30:00.005-06:00

Fisher is now 7 months old, and was in desperate need of a high chair. We looked all over to find one that we liked, but had no luck. We wanted a vintage wooden one, but all that we found were ridiculously expensive. Big plastic models were looming in our future when our friend Betsy spotted this metal gem at a vintage store for $20. She grabbed it for us. Jed was horrified.

The poor chair was all kinds of ugly, and Jed though there was no hope. As eternal optimists, Betsy and I saw lots of potential. I took the ugly duckling home and it sat in the garage for a while until we had time to get the project completed.

The tray has already been sanded in the above pic. It was originally the same color as the back below. Ick.

Ugly, oh yes she's ugly. On the other hand, she is very well made and easily folds to store flat against the wall. The tray also removes completely so that it can be easily cleaned. Awesome.

The tan seat and seat back had to go, immediately. My mama and I went to visit City Craft, a great Dallas fabric store. I wanted to find some oil cloth to recover the chair so that it would be durable and easily cleaned. City Craft has a great selection, and had a sale going on. I choose an oil cloth design in black and white that looks like Mexican papel picado decorated with birds, flowers, and calaveras (happy dancing skulls a la El Dia de Los Muertos).

We removed the cushions and Jed sanded the ugly bronze paint off of the seat, tray, and back. The legs and arms were already in pretty good shape.

I removed the vinyl covers off of the seat and back, and then laid them out on my oil cloth.

I cut a big square for each one.

Then I trimmed it down to size. I had to trim it even more so that it would fit well.

Meanwhile, Jed painted the tray, seat, and back with a lovely light turquoise. He had to do 3 coats to get it to look right.

To recover the seats, I had to carefully stuff the oil cloth behind and under the seat and the back. Then we hammered the seat and back in. This was the trickiest part of the whole project. I got a little frustrated, but persevered so that we could have this lovely creation.

What do you think?

I love it.

I love the black and white, the papel picado design, the paint color, everything. I'm a little obsessed with it, quite frankly.

Fisher loves it too.

The metal makes a great sound when he bangs his little hands on it, and an even better noise when he bangs his sippie cup.

I love using vintage pieces because they are often so much higher quality than plastic crap from Target. We love Target and have our share of plastic baby stuff, but are happy when we can have something a little more stylish and sturdy to go with the rest of our house.

If you've made it this far, thanks for putting up with the insane amount of pictures in this post. Like I said, I'm obsessed.

How have you used or repurposed vintage furniture or baby gear?

I'm sharing this project at some great blog parties. They are listed on my right sidebar. Be sure to check them out to see tons of awesome crafty ideas. Thanks for reading.

Baby Laughter is Magical

2012-01-06T10:18:00.000-06:00

If you need a laugh today, enjoy this video of Fisher laughing like crazy at our dog Jackson. He did this for about ten minutes before I started filming. What was Jackson doing that was so funny? Most of the time he was just laying in his bed. I wish I could be so easily entertained.

Lone Star Ladies

2012-01-06T10:08:00.000-06:00

I'm so excited to be the Blog of the Month over at Lonestar Ladies of Dallas.

If you are a DFW girl, be sure to check out their blog.

Thanks ladies!

New Year Blessings

2012-01-01T22:30:00.001-06:00

May your 2012 be filled with joy, love, laughter, and family.

On the Move

2011-12-31T15:28:00.001-06:00

I guess it is time to baby proof. He is 7 months old today and scooting backwards all over the place. I'm sure he will get the forward motion figured out soon and then we will really be in trouble.

Austin, TX with a Baby

2011-12-09T11:14:00.005-06:00

For your viewing enjoyment, I present a photo collage via Instagram of our trip to Austin this week.

It was in the 30s and 40s, with a hazy shade of winter cast over the city. We stayed downtown at the Stephen F. Austin Intercontinental Hotel, because we were in town for a state teacher testing conference representing Jed's school. Fisher and I did a lot of lounging around in our room because of the cold both weather and illness affecting us. We shopped and ate and enjoyed ourselves, and would love to go back when the weather is nice. Downtown is very walkable, and the city has so much to explore. I would choose a different hotel next time. The Intercontinental was nice and had lots of architectural interest, but our room was tiny and expensive (paid for by the school) and the mandatory valet parking was very pricey.

Where did we eat?

The Mellow Mushroom near the University of Texas campus was our first dinner stop. We were headed out to Hula Hut at the lake, but traffic was horrendous so we decided to stay close. We love Mellow Mushroom in Asheville, so we went for what we know. We had the Funky Chicken pizza and the soft pretzels. The key at MM is to order a side of the Esperanza house dressing. That junk is so good.

The next day Jed had a long lunch break so we went to Mellow Johnny's, Lance Armstrong's bike shop. My husband is a cyclist and could entertain himself in a bike shop for hours. He showed Fisher all the cool bike stuff while I shopped for Christmas presents for him. If you are into bikes, the shop is a must see. Many of Lance's bikes are on display along with a well thought out selection of cycling gear and accessories. It also has a cafe called Juan Pelota's that serves breakfast burritos and coffee.

For lunch we headed to the Taco Shack. I had a chicken torta with bread that melted in my mouth. Delicioso.

At the Taco Shack, Fisher had a big first. He sat up in a high chair throughout the meal. Yay!! He loved playing with his toys and sitting up like a big boy while we ate.

Fisher and I did a little more exploring, driving around the state capitol and South Congress shops. We picked up a few cupcakes from Hey Cupcake, one of the famous food trucks on South Congress. I surprised Jed with them when he got back to the hotel.

Fisher and I did lots of snuggling on the big king sized bed in our room. A sniffly baby makes exploring in the cold not so much of an option.

Our last night in town we went to Magnolia Cafe on South Congress. It rocked my world. It was cheap and delicious with a laid back atmosphere and creative menu. I had baked acorn squash with the chef's special pecan pesto on top, with a side of curried shrimp and veggies. Oh my. I was in broccoli heaven.

We came back to Dallas and were greeted by gridlock. We loved the feel of Austin and hope to go back and explore more when the weather is nicer. Where would you like to explore?

Fisher at Five Months

2011-12-09T08:28:00.001-06:00

Here is our boy at five months.

His favorite activities right now:

bath time with Daddy

airplane

Mommy & Daddy serenading him

playing in his Johnny Jump Up and Exersaucer

walks around the neighborhood

being outside

He is so curious and aware of his surroundings. He tries to touch and grab everything, then stick it in his mouth. We've had a few messes caused by curious little fingers.

His eyes are still a gorgeous blue grey.

He smiles and laughs so many things.

A few examples:

me hiccuping

tickles

Jackson (our dog)

rubbing his belly with my face

when we smile or laugh

silly songs

This look may be a preview of the teenage years.

He does push ups like a champ, but still isn't rolling over.

I blame the giant noggin.

He babbles constantly, especially when wanting attention. His little voice is so sweet, but he can get LOUD.

He sits up pretty well, but can come crashing down at any time without warning. Most of the time the crashes don't bother him at all. I wish I could have posture like his.

He is super easy going, and sleeps really well most of the time. He sleeps from 7 pm to 7 am with only one feeding at 10 pm in between. We are still exclusively breastfeeding, but are excited to start solid food soon.

We fall more in love with him every day.

Frugal Friday - Buying a Used Car with CASH

2011-11-25T06:14:00.001-06:00

Meet Betty, our new-to-us ride.

Isn't she lovely?

Here is her story.

After much discussion, Jed and I decided it was time to purchase a car. We already have 2 cars, both completely free to us thanks to the generosity of Jesus/Young Life donors/family. Those cars are 10 and 20 years old respectively. We love them in their old age, and are so thankful for their faithful service. Big Red, Jed's 20 year old GMC pick up has developed some issues that are pretty serious, so we know her days of dependability are numbered. We thought about waiting until she died a natural death, but decided the wiser thing to do would be to start the search for our next car while we still had the flexibility of two working cars.

My 10 yr old XTerra has almost 150,000 miles on her, so we thought it would be good to make her our secondary car before the miles get too high. We also discussed going to one car, but our current living/working situations don't allow for that.

We set a budget of $10-12,000, knowing we could pay cash for that. We are FAR from wealthy by American standards, but we have worked hard to save most of my paycheck each month for over a year. We also have a 6 month emergency fund built up that we didn't touch for this purchase.

We started looking on Craigslist for lots of different models. We both like Tahoes, Outbacks, and other small SUVs and station wagons. We looked at mini vans, but just couldn't do it. Not that there is anything wrong with mini vans. They are great, I'm sure, just not for us right now. We test drove cars from dealers and individuals, including 2 Tahoes that I'm pretty sure were stolen or from police auctions. SOOO SKETCHY.

We looked at used car dealers in our area that were part of bigger dealerships with good reputations. At one dealer we found a 2005 Honda Pilot listed at $16,915. She was beautiful, but way out of our price range. We wanted around 80,000 miles or less, she had 81,000. She also came fully loaded with leather, a sunroof, DVD, 3rd row, rear air, and more cup holders than you could ever want or use. Right off the bat the salesman told us he could mark her down to $13,900, because she was a Honda on a Chevy lot. Still way out of our range. We drove her, and she was such a smooth ride. We went home, ate lunch and let Fisher take a nap. We checked the Kelly Blue Book and her Carfax. The Carfax came back saying that she was worth $330 more than the KBB value, which was $18,600. Whoa. So, she was offered to us at $5000 less than the KBB value. She was still over our budget by almost $2000. Not ok. Then we pulled up the dealer website to look over the details again, and noticed that the rock bottom internet only price they had listed was $12,500. Hmmm. That might be doable for a car that is far beyond anything we had hoped to find.

We went back to the dealer that afternoon and told our salesman about the internet price. He said he would have to honor it. We went for it, on the contingency that our trusted mechanic could take a look at it first. He asked us about financing, and we told him we were paying cash. That threw him off completely. He didn't really know what to do, and said no one had done that since he had been there.

They wouldn't let us use our debit card or write a check, so we had to wait until Monday morning when I could go to the bank and get a cashier's check. I handed the check to the dealer, they gave me the keys, and we were done. No car payments for us! We love our new ride and are so thankful to not have a big car payment every month.

Why pay cash? Interest my friends, interest. Let's do a little math. If we put down $1000 and financed $11,500, we would actually end up paying over $1000 extra for our car. Yikes. That's a lot of money.

Have you ever paid cash for a big purchase? How did you make it happen? Would you do it again?