the blogivers

Friday fodder

2012-01-27T05:00:00.000-06:00

A couple of days ago, Emily was kind enough to "tag" me in a post. The rules of the tag were a little intense for me, but ~~I am a 28 year old with the maturity of a 14 year old so~~ I can never resist these things, so I am just responding with an abbreviated version by answering the very random questions she posed for me. Here goes nothin'...

1. How old were you when you had your first kiss? 14

2. Do you remember his name? If so, what is it? Yep! Blake Krause

3. Where's the furthest you've traveled? Spain (Amanda and I spent a summer studying abroad there in 2004)

4. Where's your favorite place to get away? The mountains

5. What's your favorite ice cream flavor? Dreyer's Chocolate Peanut Butter Cup... and now I'm starving

6. Do you prefer a wood fireplace or gas fireplace? and why? I've never had a fireplace (at least not in my adult life), so I guess I'd say whichever one is most user friendly and requires the least amount of maintenance

7. What was your very first car? A fire engine red Jeep Grand Cherokee handed down to Amanda and me from our mom - I have big plans to never own one again

8. If you were forced to choose between a chapstick, toothbrush, or hairbrush to go with you on a desert island, which one would you pick? This is tough... my inclination would be toothbrush, but it doesn't look like I'm allowed to bring toothpaste, so that would be kind of worthless. So I guess I'll go with chapstick!

9. What past time period would you live in? The 50s... before cell phones and computers to a time when people weren't afraid to let their kids walk down the block alone

10. Which food could you not live without? Chips and queso (can that count as one?)

11. Which food do you believe is of the devil (figuratively speaking)? Puppy chow (the snack mix for humans, not the actual dog food... just to be clear)

And just in case you found this post to be incredibly boring, here is a picture of my favorite little guy to make up for it:

It would be awesome if...

2012-01-26T05:00:00.000-06:00

... people didn't feel the need to declare their political beliefs to the world via facebook statuses

... the tree in my backyard grew money instead of dumb ol' leaves

... fruit snacks constituted an actual serving of fruit

... my twin sister lived in Austin

... I had a live-in barista who worked for free and made me frappuccinos whenever I wanted them

... my meals and grocery lists were prepared by someone else for the rest of my life

... a weekly date night would fit in our current budget

... I could make money on this blog (with little to no effort, and without selling out)

... Davis enjoyed my company for the rest of his life (teenage years included) as much as he does right now

Your turn to fill in the blank! What do you think would be awesome?

Way back when-sday

2012-01-25T05:00:00.000-06:00

Some of you may think Davis is our first baby, others may think Rocky is our first baby- but all of you are wrong. Our first baby was a goldfish named Gizmo. In September of 2007, just over a year after we got married, we welcomed him into our home.

This picture is a joke, in case that wasn't clear. We don't generally like to take pictures of ourselves looking longingly at our pets.

Amanda, aka: Gizmo's godmother, holding him on the way home from Petco

Swimming happily in his new home

Doing our best Gizmo imitations

Gizmo died 6 days later. We bought 2 more fish, thinking they would keep each other company (just in case Gizmo died from loneliness, I guess?), but they both died within a few days. Basically the whole experience left us feeling super confident in our abilities as parents. So glad Rocky, Tucker, and Davis have fared better under our supervision than those fishies did! (Also, a word to the wise: when selecting fish, do not buy from the "feeder fish" tank, even if you are lured in by their 12 cent price tags.)

Feel free to grab a button and join the WBW fun!

(I got tired of setting up the link-up party each week since there wasn't a big turnout, but feel free to comment on this post with a link to your WBW post if you want!)

Advice

2012-01-24T05:00:00.000-06:00

My one little piece of advice to those of you who haven't yet found "the one": make sure you choose someone with whom you can always laugh...

P.S. Yes, he is in my phone as "Wadieface", though I have never actually called him that. I put him in my phone with that name back in college shortly after we started dating, and I've just never changed it.

Whew

2012-01-23T05:00:00.000-06:00

So, on Tuesday morning I noticed Davis was coming down with a cough. On Wednesday morning, I noticed his nose was running. Normally I wouldn't have thought much of it ('tis the season for that stuff, right?), but then it occurred to me that 2 babies in our play group had been diagnosed with RSV (basically like a bad cold), so I made an appointment to have him checked out that afternoon. Before the appointment, I found out a 3rd baby in our play group had gotten it as well, so things weren't looking good.

We went to our appointment, and the diagnosis was... beginning stages of RSV. It's definitely never fun to have a sick baby; it's infinitely less fun when you have to take the sick baby to Dallas (3 hours away from home for us) for a long weekend while you are going to be gone all day every day and other family members are going to be watching him! But unfortunately I haven't figured out how to convince the rest of the world to revolve around me, so off to Dallas we went.

The trip went as well as it could have, but I am exhausted. Davis actually sounds worse now than he did before we left, but I am confident he still enjoyed himself 100% while we were there - hard not to when he was getting constant attention and snacks from his relatives! I am just grateful to be back home and to get back to our usual routine. To make up for my short absence in the blogosphere while I was gone, here are a few shots taken with the handy dandy iPhone from our drive home yesterday (I hung out with Davis in the backseat while my parents were up front... just didn't want anyone thinking I was an irresponsible driver taking pictures of myself while cruising down I-35).

Happy Monday!

iAwesome

2012-01-18T19:30:00.000-06:00

So, I got an iPhone on Tuesday, and it is amazing. Now that I have a smart phone, I feel like I have finally joined the human race!

Thanks to free iPhone-to-iPhone texts, I have been able to have lots of ~~offensive to the general public~~ meaningful conversations with Amanda throughout the day.

Earlier today, something funny happened at Starbucks and I was immediately able to share it with the world on facebook. (For those that missed it, the barista complimented my sweater - instead of smiling and saying "thank you", I responded with, "It's actually a maternity sweater... and I'm not pregnant." Because she really needed to know that information.)

I was at a Junior League meeting last night, and when someone inquired about my availability next week, I was able to physically look at my calendar rather than scouring through the mental one I usually use.

It fell out of my hands onto the hard floor at one point, and instead of breaking into several pieces like my non-smart (stupid?) phone did, it stayed in tact (thanks in part to the silicone cover, I'm sure).

I even jumped on the Instagram bandwagon (only once so far, don't get too excited):

YAY!

Way back when-sday

2012-01-18T05:00:00.000-06:00

I'm a neat freak. I hate messes. I get upset when there are water droplets on the edge of the sink or streaks on the faucet. It bothers me when my glasses case isn't perfectly aligned with the edges of my bedside table. I won't allow my husband to help me fold our towels because he doesn't fold them the "right" way. I used to feed Davis his solids in only a diaper (him, not me... just to clarify) because I was worried about getting food on a bib (you know, that piece of cloth that was created to keep food from getting on your clothes).

Keeping these things in mind... WHY did I agree to attend a mixer in college where the purpose of the party was to throw small cups of paint on each other?!

It was pretty freeing though, I must say. Perhaps I will suggest this activity to my playgroup!

Feel free to grab a button and join the WBW fun!

And don't forget to link up, too!

Couldn't love him more if I tried

2012-01-17T05:00:00.000-06:00

Dear MLK, Jr.,

2012-01-16T05:00:00.000-06:00

Thanks for being born today!

And for allowing my husband to have the day off.

But mostly for the being born thing and for promoting equal rights and stuff.

Love,

Allison

Ridiculous (& awesome)

2012-01-13T05:00:00.000-06:00

First, a little background: most days, Wade gets home from work about 4:40pm. This means around 4:00pm, I start getting antsy for him to be home so I can be off duty from Davis and the dogs for a little while. On days when he is running late, I am not very awesome at pretending I am fine with it. However, I AM awesome at being a huge brat and making him feel bad for it. (I'm not proud of this.)

So last night I got a text message around 4:15pm saying he was stuck on a long phone call and wouldn't be home on time. I was particularly aggravated with this revelation because this was the 3rd time in 4 days that he was going to be home late. Since it has been mostly cold and rainy this week, I have also spent a wee bit too much time at home alone with my child, so I have been extra ready for him to get home at night so I can be off duty. Basically, I knew it wasn't going to be pretty when he got home (regardless of the fact that it was totally not his fault he was running late).

When he finally arrived, he immediately apologized and presented me with some chips & queso {my weakness} that he had picked up at the store. I knew it was a sweet gesture, but I was too busy being angry that he had wasted time stopping by the store to acknowledge it. After giving him the silent treatment for a little while, I finally decided to make amends by explaining to him why I was so frustrated (as if he didn't already know).

A: I realize it's not your fault that you have had to work late so many days this week, but I am just really ready for you to be home at night to help me, and when you're late, I get pushed over the edge and it puts me in a bad mood...

W: I know, I'm sorry.

A: ...and it was really nice of you to bring home the chips and queso as a peace offering, but I'm annoyed that you made yourself even later by stopping at the store to get it...

W: Actually, I didn't actually stop by the store. I bought that stuff a few weeks ago to have on hand for emergencies like this! I've been storing it at work.

A: (wanting to stay angry, but failing with laughter) You're ridiculous.

Except we all know the truth, which is that I am ridiculous for losing my temper so easily, and for being the type of person who can be placated by food. Thank you, Lord, for giving me a husband who knew this about me and married me anyway!

Puppy love

2012-01-12T05:00:00.001-06:00

Last night, I did something really brave: I took Davis, Rocky, AND Tucker on a walk. ALL AT THE SAME TIME.

You see, a few weeks ago I was chatting with Wade as I observed our dogs lounging nearby, looking forlorn and depressed, and I asked him if he thought our dogs were happy. It was a rhetorical question, really, but he answered. "No, not really...", he said. I was taken aback, as I had just assumed he would say "yes" and move on. "Why not?", I asked. "I think they're probably unhappy because they don't get much attention anymore."

I knew he was right, and I resolved right then and there to make a better effort. Yes, my dogs annoy the crap out of me. Yes, there are several moments in our days when I ask myself why we ever thought having 2 dogs was a good idea. Yes, I fantasize about what life would be like without dog hair covering every inch of my house or paw prints scattered all over the floor. But we are their caretakers, and it isn't fair for us to neglect them.

So we are starting off with something small: taking them out for a walk once a day. Usually we just let them chase each other around in the backyard to get their exercise, but they really need to be walked. Last night, however, Wade was getting home late from work, and we weren't able to walk them on Monday or Tuesday, so I decided to try it on my own. Every time I passed someone, I had to surpress laughter, because I knew how ridiculous I must have looked. Let me try to paint the picture for you:

I'm walking down the street, pushing Davis in the stroller with both hands. I have one leash wrapped tightly around my right wrist, and Tucker is at the end of it - all 75 pounds of him are pulling full speed ahead, causing me to have to almost jog to keep up. I have another leash wrapped tightly around my left wrist, at the end of which is Rocky, whose attention span is approximately 2 seconds long, so he keeps putting on the brakes yanking his leash behind me to try and sniff everything he sees along the curb. So I am literally being pulled in opposite directions at differing speeds while trying to walk in a straight line, and Davis is bouncing around in the stroller as he watches the freak show.

I was feeling pretty proud of myself as I neared the end of our route, until we happened upon 2 other dogs, at which point Tucker totally lost his cool and started flailing and jumping around like an angry horse. So, I probably won't be attempting it alone ever again, but at least I can say I tried it once.

The end. (Yes, that's the best ending I could up with for this relatively pointless post.)

Way back when-sday

2012-01-11T05:00:00.000-06:00

In 1998, my parents took my sister and me to Quito, Ecuador. I admittedly didn't fully appreciate the coolness of getting to go there at the time because 1) I was 15, and 2) I was 15. I feel terrible confessing this, but I remember being bored as we traveled in and around the city, wishing I could be back home, chatting on AOL Instant Messenger with my friends.

BUT, there was one thing I thought was really cool, and that was going to the equator. Standing in the northern and southern hemispheres at the same time = AWESOME. Doing so wearing Abercrombie & Fitch clothing from head to toe + my sweet Dr. Martens sandals = AWESOMER.

You're welcome for posting this awesome picture, Amanda.

Feel free to grab a button and join the WBW fun!

And don't forget to link up, too!

The hidden costs

2012-01-10T05:00:00.000-06:00

There are a lot of things people don't tell you about having/taking care of a baby before you have one. But today I am here to break the silence and share just a few of those less significant things with you...

1. Somewhere around 3 months after having your baby, all of your hair will start falling out. And in its place will grow approximately 9 million baby hairs that will take over your forehead.

2. When your child is sleeping, any of the following are likely scenarios: you will be afraid to flush the toilet; you will get angry with your husband for sneezing; you will threaten to kill your dogs if they shake their heads and jingle their collars one more time; you will be frustrated with God for allowing a thunder storm in the middle of the night.

3. Every room in your house - not just the nursery - will become a storage unit for your child's stuff. (For example, this past weekend we gave in and turned our upstairs office/living area into a playroom of sorts.)

4. The details of another human's bodily functions will become a frequent topic of conversation between you and your spouse.

5. They will be so squishable that you just won't care.

Scentsy giveaway winner!

2012-01-09T05:00:00.000-06:00

First of all, a big thanks to everyone who entered our Scentsy giveaway! I wish I could have entered myself, but I'm thinking people might have been suspicious had I won... so I didn't. Anyway, I'll cut to the chase. We had a whopping 60 entries, and after some random sorting, the winner selected was...

Congrats, Callie! Hope you enjoy your new Scentsy goodies!

As for the rest of you that didn't win, don't be sad - you can still join our online party ("Allison & Amanda") through the end of this month and buy some goodies for yourselves. Happy shopping!

Don't forget!

2012-01-07T05:00:00.000-06:00

Just a reminder that you have until midnight tonight to enter the Scentsy giveaway! The winner will be announced on Monday. (And remember that you will still be able to shop our online party through the end of the month!) Good luck!

Blogging it out

2012-01-06T05:00:00.000-06:00

Since before Davis was even born, I have been making a concerted effort to have a realistic approach to motherhood. I don't expect to be the best mom out there, and I certainly strive to not be the worst. I don't expect my child to be advanced and ahead of the curve, but I also try not to worry myself into a frenzy if he is seemingly "behind" in one way or another. But man, is it hard to try and have that outlook all the time!

All I have to do is log on facebook and read the status updates from other moms with kids around my age to have myself feeling inferior: "Wow, we have been so busy lately! Bobby just turned 8 months old and started walking, talking, and solving quadratic equations - I'm exhausted!" (Side note: just because you try to disguise it as a complaint about how tired you are from taking care of your genius baby doesn't mean it's not bragging.) All of a sudden my 8 month old sticking his tongue out at me earlier in the day doesn't seem quite as impressive.

Or I surf the web on over to the baby food website that tells me over and over again how much better it will be for me to make all of my baby's food instead of buying the processed jarred food... all of a sudden I'm paralyzed in the baby food aisle at the grocery store, ridden with guilt thinking about the jars I'm about to buy because the thought of peeling/chopping/steaming/pureeing one more batch of food is enough to make me want to jump out the window but I'm worried I'm going to poison my child or deprive him of what's "best" because I am lazy and selfish.

And then there's the blog posts written by my friends and strangers alike. Even the most innocent of posts can send me into a tailspin of second guessing... monthly updates about their babies leave me worrying that my baby isn't gaining weight quickly enough or eating the right amount of solids or wearing the right kind of diapers... moms' lists of favorite products have me worrying that my child isn't playing with the right toys or drinking out of the right kind of bottle, which then leads me down the road of feeling sorry for myself that our budget doesn't currently allow for me to go out and purchase those toys or those bottles.

Let me be clear: I'm not trying to blame others for making me feel like this sometimes - I am 100% aware that it is mostly my own doing, and that it's good that I want what's best for my baby. But comparing yourself (and/or your baby) to others sucks! It's a just a huge, joy-sucking, waste of energy. So take my advice and don't do it. (As if it's that easy, right?) And if there is something that you have been feeling inferior about lately, I challenge you to remind yourself of the truth, which is that we may all have areas where we need improvement, but that doesn't make us any less awesome.

The end.

Easily amused

2012-01-05T05:00:00.000-06:00

So glad to know Davis has a sense of humor...

Hope this made you smile today!

Way back when-sday

2012-01-04T05:00:00.000-06:00

At Texas A&M (where I went to college), getting your Aggie class ring is a big deal. It is typically earned your junior or senior year, and when you get it, tradition dictates that you are supposed to "dunk" the ring by putting it in the bottom of a pitcher of beer and then chugging the whole thing until you can retrieve your ring. While I appreciate a good tradition, I am pretty sure I had never even had so much as a sip of beer at that point in my life (yes, I'm serious!), so I figured chugging an entire pitcher of it wouldn't go over well.

Fortunately for me, one of the local ice cream shops provided an alternative to other ~~goody-goodies~~ responsible individuals like myself: dunking your ring in ice cream. Five scoops of it, to be exact. So that's exactly what I did - and with no hands, and in under 5 minutes! See for yourself:

Feel free to grab a button and join the WBW fun!

And don't forget to link up, too!

Giveaway clarification

2012-01-03T16:29:00.002-06:00

Just wanted to clarify in regards to the Scentsy giveaway that no purchase is necessary in order to enter the giveaway! You are welcome and encouraged to shop and buy goodies if you find something you like, but there is no obligation. (And in case you are worried, joining our online party also has no strings attached - you won't be getting spammed with emails or anything like that by joining.) Now, go forth and enter the giveaway! Who doesn't love FREE stuff? :)

Scentsy Online Party + Giveaway

2012-01-03T05:00:00.000-06:00

January can be a pretty depressing month. The holidays are over, the festive decor is put away, and the reality that next Christmas is so far away is starting to set in. In case you are feeling the post-holiday blues this week, Amanda and I have something to cheer you up...

Our friend Kimmie recently jumped on board the Scentsy train, and because we know everyone has Christmas money that they're itching to spend, we decided to co-host an online party for her! Go here to check out all of the fun stuff you can buy to help your home (and you) feel a little less blue, like this one that I've got my eye on:

via

But don't worry- the fun doesn't stop there - because Kimmie is so awesome, she has offered to give away one plug-in warmer & bar of the winner's choosing to one of our lucky readers! You have the opportunity to submit up to FOUR entries to win by doing the following:

Only Mandatory Entry:

Go here to join the "Allison & Amanda" online party, then leave a comment on this post letting us know which plug-in warmer and which bar you would choose if you were to win. (No purchase is necessary to enter!)

Additional Optional Entries:

Become a follower of (1) Allison's blog, (2) Amanda's blog, and/or (3) Kimmie's blog and leave a comment on this post letting us know that you did (or let us know if you are already following).

The giveaway ends this Saturday, January 7th at midnight (CST) and the winner will be announced on Monday, January 9th. (You are still free to shop in the online store through Tuesday, January 31st.) Remember: you don't have to enter the giveaway to shop at the online party or vice versa, but our professional advice would be to do both :) Good luck, and happy shopping!

NYE recap

2012-01-02T05:00:00.000-06:00

I know what you're thinking: such an original idea Allison had to recap her NYE weekend on the blog today! NOT. But my brain is a little dead after the hectic December we just had, so this is as good as it gets today. We welcomed the new year with the Joiners (as we do every year) and enjoyed a low key weekend at their house, which was perfect.

We kicked off the weekend with a play date for Davis with his pals Reid and Michael. The moms probably had more fun than the boys, but if we're being honest, aren't play dates more for us than the babies at this age anyway?

On New Year's Eve, we spent most of the day lounging around the house, cheering for the Aggies, and playing Wii sports (as you can see, Davis even got his very own Mii character).

All that lounging somehow helped us work up our appetites for the feast Amanda and Brian prepared that evening (chips & queso + strawberry margs + sliders + sweet potato fries = YES PLEASE). I would like to blame all the food for the fact that none of us were able to stay awake until midnight.

Oh, and I can't forget the Christmas crackers at dinner! My mom used to have them for us at Christmas dinner each year, but then she got tired of everyone acting like children whenever they came out and they got outlawed... bummer. Good thing Amanda had some on hand and saved the day for NYE!

Hope everyone else had fun ringing in 2012, however you spent the weekend!

Looking back

2011-12-31T14:20:00.001-06:00

Instead of waxing poetic about the ups and downs of 2011 for me, I'm going to take the easy way out and let my blog stats do the talking. So in case you don't have any exciting plans this New Year's Eve and need something to do, here are my top 10 posts (according to Google Analytics) from the past year for your reading pleasure...

10. I experienced the joys and frustrations of breastfeeding

9. I had a baby

8. I learned how to deal with new mom guilt

7. God gave me a little perspective in the midst of my selfish postpartum emotions

6. I prepared for Davis' arrival into the world

5. I did a recap of some of my more important posts

4. I started making food for Davis

3. I showed off my awesome new SAHM wardrobe

2. I hosted my very first giveaway

1. A prayer for my sister

Bring it, 2012.

Eight months!

2011-12-29T05:00:00.000-06:00

Happy 8 month birthday to my favorite little busybody!

"Chillin', chillin', mindin' my business..."

"Excellent, Smithers - I shall hatch a plan to take down that sign behind me!"

"Victory!"

Way back when-sday

2011-12-28T05:00:00.000-06:00

For those of you who have been with me on this blog adventure from the beginning... remember when I used to bake cupcakes? Today I'm giving you a look back at some of the ones I made during the holidays in 2008. Enjoy!

Nothing says, "Happy holidays!" quite like an angry snowman, right?

Feel free to grab a button and join the fun!

And don't forget link up, too!

See you next year, Santa

2011-12-26T05:00:00.000-06:00

Hope everyone's Christmas was as tasty as his was!