Embrace the Camera: June 30th



Here we go again, linking up with Emily...

Here's a shot of me and Haeden from our pool time on Sunday. I'm absolutely loving the fact that he'll be learning to swim in the same pool that I did. It's pretty fun having four generations all together each Sunday for "pool day"! I feel truly blessed!

Chillin' in the floatie.

Jumping off the edge of the slide.

P.S.

I cannot believe I'm posting pictures of myself in a bathing suit and looking like a total hot  wet mess (again). Internet, I clearly have no shame...

PEECTURES!

Normally when I whip out the camera (or phone) to snap a picture of my adorable little dude, he stops whatever he is doing, whips his head around and sticks his hand in the general direction of me and said camera. "NOOOOO, Mommy, NOOOOO!" You'd think it was some sort of torture device.

Imagine my surprise when on the way to dinner last night he grabbed his hat on the back seat, stuck it on his head (backwards, of course) and said, "Take my peecture, Mommy! My peecture!!" It took me a minute to even understand his toddler speak, but I definitely obliged him.

Excuse the tinted teeth. He was drinking a "Squeeze It" when I picked him up. Remember those?!

This is what he gave me for "funny face". I went with it...

Distraction! He's alerting us that a "JEEP" is driving by.

I heart this one. Cuteness overload.

Those eyes! Those eyelashes! SIGH!

The Weekend in Photos

Today, I want to tell you about my weekend. More specifically, Sunday, because Saturday was spent watching movies, sweating my butt off at a zumba class and driving all over NE Florida looking for a place to eat dinner (we settled for Hooters, go figure). I'm feeling a little lazy today though, so I'm going to go ahead and let the pictures tell the story...

Boys vs. Girls

Haeden's daycare is short a few kids right now and his teacher asked if it would be alright if she started working with him on potty training. She explained to me the reward system she used and said that even though he was still a bit young, she thought that he was smart enough to "get it". Even though he hasn't shown a whole lot of interest in sitting on the pot at home, I have absolutely no qualms with her giving it a shot. I told her that we'd follow her lead if she had any success.

I know that she rewards them when they use the potty and that she doesn't punish them in any way, shape or form when they don't. I have been in the room after one of the other kids used the potty and really got a kick out of the reactions I witnessed. A little boy went poo on the potty and when he came out (after washing his hands, of course) the teacher announced what he had done and all the kids cheered and clapped for him. Then I watched as my son, the cuddle bug that he is, ran over to give him a hug. It was ridiculously adorable.

Yesterday, on the way home, I was talking to Haeden about all the things we were going to do that night (eat pizza, go for a walk, go pee on the potty, take a bath, etc.). The following conversation took place:

Me: And you'll go pee on the potty!?

Haeden: Yeah! I'm a GOOD BOY!

Me: (laughter) Yes, you are!

Haeden: And Mommy a good boy, too!

Me: Well, Mommy's not a boy, Haeden. Mommy is a girl! Daddy, Daniel and Patrick are boys. Mommy, Nina, Nanny and Grandma Ellie are all girls.

Haeden: Girls?

Me: Yes.

Haeden: Ohhhhh. Mommy not a good boy. Mommy a good GIRL!

Later that night, he made sure to explain to everyone at the dinner table that Mommy was, in fact, not a boy. Oh, no! She was a GIRL!

That's my BOY!

Embrace the Camera: June 23rd

Emily's blog is up and running again, which means she's back to embracing the camera. Hopefully she is feeling much, much better these days. Or, at the very least, feeling human again. Sometimes making beautiful babies is hard work, you guys!

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There is a tiny little community center in our neighborhood. It was built in the early 1960's and had been increasingly neglected over the past 10-20 years. Luckily, it seems that recently the neighborhood has had a renewed interest and the community center has been undergoing some sort of beautification process. The center includes a swimming pool, tennis courts and picnic area and is located right next to a boat dock and park. Oh, and it overlooks the St. John's river. It could be quite beautiful and I'm so glad that the neighborhood is putting for the effort to make it that way.

I recently had an old friend move into a house a couple of streets over. She told me that she and her husband and their baby had been going to the pool every other night. It's open from 7-8pm for free swim. I'm sure it's also open during the day, but since we work, the 7-8 time frame is perfect for wearing our little one's out right before bedtime! Haeden has spent a lot of time in the pool the past few weeks and he really seems to be enjoying the water. He is a little apprehensive at times, but I'm sure that by the end of the season he will be completely comfortable. We're already working on teaching him how to swim, something I think is very important --- especially living in the state of Florida.

The only problem is that Haeden doesn't want to wear his bathing suit. Last night he kept telling me to take it off. This is new. He's never been the kind of kid who takes of his diaper or runs around the house nude. He actually prefers to pick out his clothes, and shoes... and hats. He's becoming quite opinionated on the subject, really. I know where the blame lies though... my mom. Or, my grandma, "Oma". Apparently he spent some nekkie baby time in the pool at grandma's house this weekend. Now he knows the joys of skinny dipping and isn't interested in wearing his swim diaper/trunks anymore.

Thanks, Mom!

On the way to the pool... I suck at taking pictures of myself with the phone.

Usually I cut people's heads off in the process...

 Case in point:

Vacation - Part Two

After the Hard Rock tour we decided to see a movie. That is one thing that I have missed since becoming a parent. It's such a big deal for me to go to the movie theatre these days. I had to do a little convincing to make it happen on our trip, but eventually I got my way. The compromise, of course, was that I had to see a boy movie. They chose The Green Lantern. I had no desire to see it, especially in the theatre, but I actually reallly enjoyed it. And not just because of the eye candy either (Ryan Reynolds = hot stuff!). The movie was actually pretty entertaining.

Oh, and before the movie, I purchased my "souvenir".

I have been wanting a pair of Tom's shoes for mooonths. There are only one or two places to get them locally and neither of them are convenient. I refuse to buy shoes without trying them on, so I 've been waiting for the opportunity to do so. I scooped these babies right up when I saw them at one of the surf shops at City Walk. Never has a person been so excited to buy a pair of shoes. I would be embarrassed to say that if it weren't for the fact that buying those shoes meant that someone in need would get a pair, too. Totally justifies my elation, I'd say!

We spent Monday morning and early afternoon at Universal Studios. I think everyone enjoyed that park a little more. Me for nostalgic reasons and the boys because the rides there are a little more tame. We also got to see a couple of shows, Fear Factor and BeetleJuice something or other. Monday was hotter than Sunday and it was almost unbearable. We were totally ready to hit the road by 3pm. I was so excited to get home to Haeden and so, of course, he was SLEEPING (at 7:30pm?!) when went to pick him up. I tried to wake him up and it just wasn't happening. And since I had to be at work the next morning at 7am, I didn't get to see his smiling face until Tuesday evening. Complete and utter torture.

Now, the trip was great, so don't get me wrong. Buuut, I missed my little man so incredibly much that sometimes it physically hurt. I know that sounds silly. It was just 2.5 days, but maaaaan, it's the truth. We would be in the middle of something, laughing and having a good time and I'd stop for a second and just say, "Gosh, I miss my Haeden!" And everyone would nod their heads in agreement and smile thinking about the trouble he'd be getting into if he actually had been with us. This is not to say that I wish we would have taken him to Universal with us. That would be crazy talk. I'm neither brave enough nor stupid enough to take a toddler to a theme park in the middle of summer! I think I would have just preferred to have him on the trip with us, but maybe also have someone there to hang with him while the rest of us went to the parks.

Give me a "mommy's night out" any day of the week, but a whole weekend?! No, I think I'll pass. There is just too much happiness and joy that needs to be soaked up with him right now. I can't stand to be away from those big, blue eyes for too long.

Thankful Tuesday - June 21st

I am thankful for VACATIONS! Even the mini ones.

Our weekend trip to Orlando was a blast. It was also hot and sticky and ohmigod HOT, but it was a great time. I expected that we would take a bazillion or so pictures, but I was so wrong. On the first day I was actually worried because I forgot to bring the camera charger, but that worry was for nothing (as usual) since we took probably less than twenty pictures over the three day trip. I blame the heat. It was just too hot (have I mentioned how hot it was?! Hotter than hot!) to stand out in the sun long enough to pose for pictures or to even bother with taking the camera in and out of my backpack. That was precious energy that I need to keep myself from passing out from the heat. Also, those pictures probably wouldn’t have been pretty anyway. I caught a glimpse of my reflection in a window and, uh, you guys don’t need to see what I saw anyway!

We arrived in Orlando Saturday afternoon and after a delicious lunch of fresh, sliced mozzarella with tomatoes and roasted red peppers and NY style pizza decided to partake in a game of miniature golf. It’s kind of a tradition for us when we visit Orlando. The Hubs decided that since it was only $2 more, it would be a great idea to buy two games instead of just one (they had two different courses). I knew that it was a terrible idea, but since I kicked everyone’s bootay in the second game, I won’t complain now… except to lament that I got a serious sunburn on the back of my neck. I am usually really good about applying sunscreen, but I didn’t think we’d be out that long so I didn't bother. Husband blamed and lesson learned. Once we checked into the fabulous resort hotel (I feel classy just typing that!), we took a boat over to City Walk and had dinner at Margaritaville. The food was good, but that is definitely not my scene. I can safely say that I am way too cool for that place/ music. ha! We tried to hit up the pool when we got back to the (resort) hotel, but no less than 5 minutes into it, we had to get out due to the bad weather that was quickly approaching. That was no biggie though. We go swimming all the time anyway, and I had something more important to tend to... underwear. Yeah, I totally forgot to pack underwear. This is what happens when you're in Mom Mode and you have to worry about everyone else and whether or not they've packed underwear. I wasn't happy about the fact that I couldn't wash it first, but I made sure to buy the pre-packaged brand because I figured it had to be somewhat safer and wouldn't you know that they, of course, didn't have my size? I had to go a size up, which meant that I had a wedgie for the remainder of the trip. Awesome.

We spent Sunday at Islands of Adventure. We got up extra early to take advantage of the early access to the Harry Potter area. That and the fast pass are perks your receive when you stay at one of the on-site resorts. Worth every penny. The thing about getting there an hour before the general public is let in and then also having a fast pass for all of the rides is that you're basically done with the park in just a few hours. We had done and seen everything we had wanted by 1pm. Being that I had a headache from the heat and the boys wanted to cool off at the pool, we decided to head back. I elected to take a nap while everyone else went swimming. A NAP, you guys. It was glorious. Later we had dinner at the Hard Rock Cafe followed by a tour of the restaurant/ VIP area. Did you know they did that? We didn't. It was so cool! I would venture to say it was actually the highlight of the entire trip. Their "VIP" room is a replica of John Lennon's living room and they even have his favorite couch!!! If you ever go, you really should ask about it. It's free, but you'll definitely want to tip your guide. Ours spent an hour showing us around. He was amazing.

Okay, this is getting long and my attention span isn't that long today considering I am having to squint to see the computer screen at this point. It is still smokey as hell here in Jax and my head is starting to feel like a balloon. I'll be back tomorrow with the rest of the story...

Kick It!

 My friend, who shall remain nameless, had dinner at Cracker Barrel earlier this week. On her way out she realized she had a napkin stuck to her shoe (not as bad as toilet paper, but still embarrassing nonetheless). Rather than stop and remove said napkin, she decided to try and shake it off while she walked towards the exit. Bad idea. Can you guess what's about to happen here?

Yeah. She kicked her shoe off in the middle of the restaurant. And that's not the worst of it because the shoe went flying through the air and hit some guy in the leg and then fell down underneath his table.

I just wish I could have seen the look on her face. Or, his face for that matter.  I probably would have spit my food out laughing. I wonder how many people witnessed it. Did the place suddenly go quiet? Did people erupt in laughter? Luckily for her, the guy and his friend laughed it off and handed her shoe back. That had to have been a long walk to the door.

I guess she should just be glad the shoe didn't land in some one's food. Now, that would have been bad.

This may or may not be the culprit. Don't worry, girl, you're still remaining "nameless"!

And it Burns, Burns, Burns... the State of Florida

I think it's safe to say there aren't going to be any 4th of July fireworks around these parts (I feel really country when I say "these parts". Is that a country thing?). On Monday the governor declared a State of Emergency due to the numerous wildfires and drought conditions throughout the state of Florida. Check out this map of the area surrounding my city:

View Wildfire locations in a larger map

Wildfires are pretty common in Florida, but it has been out of control this year. Apparently there are currently over 116,000 acres burning right now. The stench of smoke has hung in the air for weeks now. It wasn't so bad at first. I enjoy the smell of a camp fire and heck, I was even craving some smores at one point. But now? Now it is so strong that you can't even escape it in the house. It's even worse at work. My eyes and nose are burning as I type this. My throat feels raw and I'm a little bit dizzy.

I'm totally considering throwing myself down the stairs, blaming it on the smoke and going home with some workman's comp benefits. hehehe. Ohhh, don't worry (mom), I'm only kidding. Mostly.

Seriously, though. The smoke is thick. And the ash that is blowing around like our very own summer snowfall? It's creeping me out.

I took these photos with my cell phone about thirty minutes ago from the parking garage at work. It seems to be getting worse as the day goes on. Like I said, wildfires are common around here, but it hasn't been this bad since probably 1998. That year they had to shut down I-95. I'll never forget that because my mom, sister and me were on our way to Orlando at the time. We were heading to Universal Studios for our little family vacation and obviously, nothing was going to stop us! We woke up super early and drove down I-75 (I think?). The visibility was incredibly low and at times we could see fire burning on either side of the road. We must have just made it through before the authorities started closing that road down, too. I remember joking that maybe it was already supposed to be closed because we never saw anybody else out there. I will always remember my mom hunched over the steering wheel and totally white knuckling it all the way down. It was scary AND funny!



Oddly enough the hubs, stepkids and I have a trip planned to Universal this weekend. Thems wildfires best be movin' on before then... our resort hotel is non-refundable!

Thankful Tuesday: June 14th

This week I'm especially thankful for all of the (great) grandma's in Haeden's life. This past weekend we spent Saturday afternoon with Dan's mom and Sunday afternoon with my mom and grandmother, also known as Oma. Both visits involved pool time and delicious food. My heart runneth over and my stomach...well, now it does spilleth over my jeans.

There is SO. MUCH. LOVE. that surrounds my little guy. I hope he knows just how lucky he is to have these women in his life. I am sure he will someday. It's one lesson I'll make sure he learns.

Embrace The Camera: June 9th

My stepson is starting highschool this summer. Every year, with each new milestone, I ask the hubs if it makes him feel old. He always says no. I don't get it. I didn't even give birth to the kid (that would be really weird and creepy considering the age difference) and it makes me feel old! Sheesh!

Daniel is excited to leave behind the rules and restrictions of Catholic school and join the more laid back atmosphere of public school. He applied, auditioned for and was accepted into a rather prestigious art school's visual arts program. Some notable alumni of the school include members from the bands Yellowcard and Limp Bizkit. We are all so excited for him to start this new journey!

Daniel has always danced to the beat of his own drum. It's my very favorite thing about him. Also, I totally want this kid's hair color.

Kind of looks like my kid, right? People always think I'm his Mom. I get a bit of a kick out of it.

Thankful Tuesday - June 7th, 2011

Woo hoo! Look at me doing this post on time. You're impressed, right?

This week I want to talk about my Mom. If there is anyone I'm crazy thankful for (besides my babe and my hubs, of course), it's my Ma. She is truly one of my best friends and I don't like to think I'm co-dependent or anything, but I don't like to let a day go by without talking to her on the phone at least once. That's just how we roll. And, yeah, I know that usually it's the parent who wants to brag on their kids, but this week I want to thank my Mom for being the wonderful, selfless person that she is. Let me count the ways:

1. She has always put me and my sister first. Always.
2. She is my number one supporter and has always encouraged to me to believe in myself.
3. She changed her shift when Haeden was an infant just so that she could help provide daycare while I was at work.
5. She's always willing to watch Haeden so that the hubs and I can have a night on the town. Sometimes even a weekend out of town!
6. She still takes care of me when I'm sick. I'm 27 and have a family of my own, but when I'm sick? I still want my Mommy!
7. She is beautiful, smart and fun(ny).
8. The woman knows how to shake her groove thang. And she taught me to shake mine, too.
9. She is always there for me. No matter how big or small (but still big to me!) my problems are, she will stop what she is doing and listen. And then she'll give me great advice that I probably won't take and even greater hugs when I realize I should have listened.
10. Not only is she a wonderful mother, she is an exceptional "Nanny", too. Haeden gives her two thumbs up and big, slobbery kiss to show his approval.

Thanks, Mom, for being exactly who you are.

Rest In Peace, Lana

A while back I shared with you a great organization called Chemo Angels. They are a volunteer organization dedicated to providing encouragement to those undergoing IV chemo treatment. It doesn’t take much time or money to participate and according to Lana and countless other patients, it makes a huge difference in their lives. She once told me that my cards often seemed to come at a time when she needed some cheering up and that they always seemed to do the trick. That just makes my heart swell and my eyes tear up a little because it just plain feels good to know that you’re truly brightening someone’s day and especially at a time when that person needs it the most. If you’re interested in learning more, please go to the Chemo Angels website and sign up. It takes several weeks to get paired and you’re even able to request that your patient be within a certain age group or gender. You’ll have plenty of time to stock up on cards and/or little gifts depending on which type of “angel” you’d like to be.

I applied to be a “Chemo Card Angel” last August and they assigned me a wonderful woman named Lana. Unfortunately, she had recently been diagnosed with stage III/IV lung cancer. Shortly after I started writing her, we became Facebook friends and she started reading this blog, even commenting from time to time. I wrote to her once a week and mostly talked about Haeden. I sometimes sent pictures and even a gift from time to time. You might remember that she was the inspiration for this print:

I had not heard from her for a couple of months. The last bit of information I received about her said that she had started a combination of chemo and radiation therapy. Her posting on Facebook became very sparse and I knew that her health must have been declining rather quickly. I received an email this morning informing me that she had passed away. This is part of the note sent by her daughter:

"It is with a heavy heart that I inform you, and them, that she passed away on May 15th. She was comfortable and loved and surrounded by family and friends when she did. She is in a better place now though. Thank you for making her happy."

Lana loved her children so much. I remember that in the questionnaire she filled out she bragged a little about her son, James, as he was her main caretaker. He also shared his birthday with Haeden and so I know that I will always remember them both on this day. Her daughter, Brandi, was in college and planned to graduate on Mother’s Day this year. That was Lana’s focus. She wanted to live long enough to see her daughter graduate. It looks like she got her wish and I’m so happy for that.

Rest in peace, Lana. I know that you will be missed and memories of you will be cherished forever by those who love you.

Happiness and Seesters

Why is it that the people that drive you the craziest are the ones you love the most? My sister and I are, for the most part, polar opposites. We were always pretty close growing up, but we fought like cats and dogs. She screamed her head off if I even set foot in her room and I... well, lets just say that on occasion I gave her reason to do so. Sometimes when I watch the Kardashian shows I think we're a lot like them --- only Robyn and I are pale, much less annoying and/or rich and, oh, I have no ass. ha! What I mean is, we totally bicker and fight all the time. Of course, we also make up like ten minutes later.

Usually I only get to see my little sister about twice a year. Three times if I'm lucky. She lives a good 9 hours away and between every one's work and school schedules, it isn't always easy to plan around each other. Add a toddler and two step-kids into the mix and the chances of me actually visiting her have basically become non-existent. Would you believe that the hubs and I have been together for six years and he's never once been over to her neck of the woods? And me? I've only been there once during all of this time and only because I hitched a ride with my Mom. Pathetic, I know.

Family has always been incredibly important to me and yet I have let all of this time slip away. The distance between us sucks, and it's up to us not to let the physical distance become emotional as well. She has, year after year, done her part. I have always told myself that it's just easier for her to make the trips back and forth.  And to an extent, it is. But it's just not a good enough excuse and I've always known it. Each year I have promised to visit her and then subsequently broken that promise.

This year, however, will be different. I was originally planning a little weekend trip to Savannah for my birthday. That, however, has been scrapped in favor of taking the hubs and the H-monster to VA to see my sister and brother-in-law. I absolutely cannot wait. The drive is going to suck, yes. But the fun we'll have while there will be absolutely, positively worth it!
Two months to go, Robyn!