Please tell me how it is possible that daddy and I went to a Parent's Night for your school this week?
Oh it's such a great big world...and you seem so very small.
Tell me you'll be ok.
Tell me I'll be ok.

You're going to have so much fun. I'm so proud that you're mine.
Noon.
That's when I'll be there to get you.

right now...

three things i love about you, Jack Thomas...
1. the way you always smell like milk. You smell like home to me.
2. the way you are beginning to laugh. It is a sweet, yet all boy laugh. Your voice sounds a little raspy and it melts my heart. A chip off the old raspy block.
3. your eyes. oh those dark eyes. beautiful boy.

three things i love about you, isabella...
1. the way you call all toiletries "pee-chew." This came from you trying to pronounce the word "perfume" many months ago. You love all things "pee-chew"...be it lotion or chapstick or perfume or shampoo or makeup.... When I ask you if you want "pee-chew" you will gently pucker up your lips for me to apply the pee-chew (with the cap on). I make over you and say how wonderful you look and you smile. Then I ask if you want some on your eyes. Of course you do! You try hard to keep them shut so I can apply it to your lids (again, cap on) and you get so excited when I exclaim how beautiful you are.
2. the way you have been carrying around the shirt that unky and "yibby" got you can calling it "Jus."
3. the way you say "hold-chew" when you want to be picked up. This came from us saying "Do you want me to hold you?"

My friend Erin did this on her blog and challenged her readers to do it, too. It was fun and interesting to read hers so I thought I'd give it a whirl. If you read my blog and you have a spare second...you do it, too! I'd love to read yours!

I am....
Zebra print. Dark chocolate m&m's. A mother to my babies. A lover of the ocean. A bath taker. Never in flats. A worrier. Crazy in love with my husband. Sunglasses on my head. A Fall girl. A homebody. Loyal. Out to dinner. New bedding. Addicted to houses. Supportive. A disliker of waiting rooms. Attached to my blackberry. Laughing often. A writer. Always painted toenails. A sister to a brother. A smart mouth. Jcrew. Lime sherbet with sprinkles. A photographer. Afraid of doctors. Candlelight. Coffee drinker September through February. My father's daughter. Never enough shopping. A dreamer. Bookstores. Winks. Holding hands. A teacher. Black pants. Caffeine free diet cokes. A believer. A milk maker. Short nails. A saver. A reader of blogs. No brass. A rememberer. Long hair. Music over television. My mother's best friend. Lounge pants. Expensive champagne. A graduate. Not a napper. Appetizers. A singer of lullabies. An easy crier. Outdoor eateries. Diaper bags. Quote lover. The only person not on facebook. A Bjorn wearer. Lipstick. A gift giver. Nikon. Beach chairs. Mail getter. A grandchild. A birth giver. Blessed. A night owl. A lover of surprises. Turkey burgers. A decorator. A1 sauce. Summer thunderstorms. Not an "alone time" person. Ponytails. A strawberry eater. Magazines. Spa visits. A pray-er. Sun hats. Football afternoons. A multitasker. A holiday shopper. Scared of sadness. A lover of company for dinner or for the weekend. A bath giver. A bargain hunter. A necklace wearer. A sister in law. An enjoyer of pregnancy. Slow to trust. A goal setter. A king size bed. A traveler. Always cold in restaurants. Soft jeans. Too cheap for the theatre. A boutique lover. Creative. A party planner. Fridays. Chic Fil A. Diet Sierra Mist Ruby Splash. A walker. A stroller pusher. A thinker. A list maker. A leg crosser. A mascara needer. Annoyed by telemarketers. A card sender. An ironer. A maker of things. Porch swings. Sweet tea. Butterflies in my stomach. A condiment lover. Fireplace sitter. A texter. A jokester. A paci finder. Not a thrill seeker. Confused by rude people who work for tips. Hydrangeas and roses. Aveda. Married. Loved. Usually late. Always dressed in some shade of black or white. A picky eater. Nervous about fine print. A lover of my city. A wine taster. Bad at directions. A non smoker. A dancer at home. A robe wearer. Not a fan of bare feet in the grass. A lake lover. A sunset watcher. No whip cream. UK fan. A hair straightner and thereby a default Chi lover. Somewhat stubborn. Somewhat emotional. A scaredy cat. An aunt. More productive under a deadline. A dog owner. A day at the horse races. An ouchless brush. A neighbor. A passenger.

Apparently I set myself up for failure by putting in writing that I will update the blog more often. I then go on to forget about it entirely!
Anyway, this is a favorite photo from vacation. That's our sweet baby Jack keeping himself content by the big doors during one of Isabella's naps. Tommy and I would sit out on the balcony and chat, have drinks, work on laptops, etc. He's such a good baby...we are so blessed.
And that amazing water...I'm missing it today.
Friday night we went to a marriage conference at church where I proceeded to fall in love with my husband all over again. We are music lovers and they played all our faves by John Mayer. We picked up the kids at Tommy's parents and stayed there visiting until midnight. Then we got up early and headed off for a fun filled weekend at the lake with the kids and several other couples. It was lovely and we still have "boat legs" from spending our days out on the water. You'd think we'd be water logged...but we are planning to head to the pool when Tommy returns from work today. We're also planning to walk "downtown" for some rasberry-limon gelato. Upon tasting her first bite, Isabella will squeal, "yumm-may!"

School is starting this week and I am not. I have mixed feelings. But mostly...I'm feeling very content at home with my two babies and my growing business. All three are fairly hard to keep up with! I have signed up to sub here and there so that I can see all my old students, visit with my colleagues, and possibly even wear heels! Look out! Will my feet even tolerate such a change?

The big question lingering in my mind today....will Justin and Libby be having a baby boy or a baby girl? They find out today!

One of my most favorite parts of our annual vacation is hanging out with my brother and his wife. My brother is the funniest person I know and we spent a better part of the week laughing until our faces hurt. Seriously. I feel so blessed to have a sibling in this great big world. And he married someone completely wonderful. Together, we all have quite a time and coming home is sad for all of us. Isabella is still asking for "Unky and Ibby" in the mornings and Tommy and I are still telling and re-telling hilarious moments.
This year, we had the added excitement of their percolating baby! It's beautiful to watch their anticipation...especially since I know what love they are in store for.

I came across this picture tonight and couldn't resist playing around with it a bit. I truly love it. Hope you guys do too...pick a size and I'll order it for you.
So happy, so blessed. Excited for January when I'll get to hold him/her in my arms.

******
Will try to post lots of vacation photos this week. Jack and I finally made it into the header photo! Woot!

post vacation blues

ten things i miss about you, sweet florida..
1. your restaurants. like margaritaville and guy harvey's, and even pineapple sucky willy's.
2. your sand between my toes.
3. your sunrises that entertained me while i fed my baby boy early in the mornings.
4. your sunsets that found us still in our beach chairs.
5. your refreshing pools.
6. your scenic backdrops for my picture taking love.
7. your humid air that makes my husband such a quiet sleeper.
8. your pomegranate mojitos.
9. your palm trees.
10. the sound of you.

2 things I don't miss so much...
1. your not so tasty tap water
2. the way your air gives me a very bad perm.

back from vacation safe and sound. feeling so blessed for the opportunity. missing my family. lots of catching up with client work. STILL lots of unpacking here and getting settled.
summer is melting (quite literally) away!

five

Five years ago yesterday I celebrated five years with the love of my life. I love that we were married in July...it's a great summer month and it seems to fit us well. We have been so busy trying to get settled into our new home (which we also agreed would be our anniversary gift to each other along with new sunnies for each of us) that we weren't able to do a huge amount of celebrating but thanks to my mom, we were able to sneak out for a quiet, romantic dinner at our go-to dinner spot, Jeff Ruby's. The steak cannot even be described with words and the dinner conversation was lovely. We discussed favorite memories over the past five years, goals for the future, our babies, etc. So nice.
Currently, we are in a rented mini van heading south for a little vacation with my family. The trip has been prolonged due to many diaper changes, nack-nack (snack) stops,breastfeeding breaks, etc. but I was just looking in the rearview mirror at my beautiful husband and thinking I wouldn't rather be anywhere else in this world than smashed between these two carseats with two sleeping, sweaty babies at my sides....trading winks with my driver. Our marriage is my greatest blessing. The past five years have been wonderful and I look forward to so many more.
(I'm ashamed to admit that I could not find one recent photo of the two of us. We must take some this week!)

I love you more than life, Thomas. Zipdog, I do.