Fabulous in the STL

2011-09-11T08:57:00.004-05:00

God Bless America,
Land that I love.
Stand beside her, and guide her
Thru the night with a light from above.
From the mountains, to the prairies,
To the oceans, white with foam
God bless America, My home sweet home.

Today, I pause to think about the lives lost and heroes made. This day, 10 years ago, I was standing in the gym of a local elementary school getting ready for school picture day. A teacher walked in and shouted that America had been attacked. Then... we photographed 300 bright-eyed, and smiley little children. The feeling was unimaginable to think that their future will forever be changed.

Please take a moment today to reflect.

If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land.

2 Chronicles 7:14

God Bless America.

2 on Tuesdays! Fall

2011-09-05T20:57:00.006-05:00

Happy Tuesday, friends! I hope you had a wonderful holiday weekend. Ours was great...I think I'll discuss in another post. But for today, I am linking up with the darling Andrea over at My Chihuahua Bites blog for 2 on Tuesdays!

This weeks topic is Fall! So, her are my two favorite things about fall:

Cozy Sweaters

There is NOTHING I love more than getting cozy in a fashionable and fabulous sweater! With a nip in the air, it is the best feeling to be cuddled up in soft layers.

Thanksgiving!
When I think about the arrival of fall, I get really excited for my favorite holiday: Thanksgiving! Ever since I was a child, Thanksgiving has been my favorite time of year. Maybe it's being with family, maybe it's the, um, food, ha ha! Anyway you put it, when I think of fall, I think....it's getting close to Thanksgiving!!!

So, now it's your turn! Tell us about your 2 favorite things about fall and link up!

Have a great week! xoxo

Leaving a Legacy

2011-09-01T20:50:00.003-05:00

..don't worry, I'm not doing another vlog! (at least not for the time being!)

So, happy almost Friday friends! Tonight I was doing some work around the house while listening to the radio. And I got to thinking.... You guys probably don't know this about me, but I almost exclusively only listen to contemporary Christian music. It wasn't a big decision that I had to ponder about, it just gradually happened because I really liked it...the encouragement, the uplifting nature. And here I am now.

The really amazing thing about the music is that there are songs that come on the radio exactly when I need to hear them. It's weird. Actually, it's God. Not to get all "preachy, preachy" on you, but it's a higher power. And it speaks to me. Like, seriously. Anyway, the past few weeks, I've been thinking a lot about my little Tate. My "new" baby. Yes, he's 8 months old, but I feel like I just had him last month. Crazy how time flies. When he was born, I was going through one of the worst times of my life. Without telling you "my sad story", it was just rough. That baby got me through it. A few months after his birth was really blurry. And then the tornado. More blur. I don't think anyone who hasn't gone through something like that can truly understand the emotional distress that a natural disaster can put on oneself.

Then the fog lifted. I now feel horrendous guilt that I didn't do what I should have done as a mother to honor his birth. I have so few pictures of him. No Christmas card was sent out the month he was born. I have an empty baby book. And I have four albums for Trey. FOUR.

For the past few weeks, I've been thinking about some different things that I can do for Tate besides a traditional baby book. I've considered a video. Which I will probably do. And will also do one for both of the boys. A video set to music. I've also thought about making his baby book into a professional album (think high-end wedding album). But in any event, back to that video.

So, I'm in the car last week and this song came on. OMG- I am the crazy lady balling her eyes out driving down the interstate! The lyrics were about leaving a legacy. Of course you could interpret this in different ways, but I immediately thought of my little boys. And what kind of legacy I am leaving for them. How will they remember their childhood? Their parents? What will they think about their faith? Did I truly do the best I could to raise them?

I just love this song. It's so soothing. And also comes complete with a powerful message!

Here's the Official Video... (they don't allow embedding, I guess)

http://youtu.be/Mz_q5A9-gaE

When I was pregnant with Tate, I heard the following song one day. It had the PERFECT lyrics. Just what I wanted to say to my children.

The lyrics read:

Be strong in the Lord and never give up hope,

You're going to do great things, I already know,

God's got His hand on you so,

Don't live life in fear, Forgive and forget,

But don't forget why you're here,

Take your time and pray,

These are the words I would say

I will definitely put those words in Tate's baby book. Take a listen if you want...

That's all I've got tonight. Happy weekend!

Accent Vlog

2011-08-31T21:44:00.002-05:00

What better way to dive back into blogging than to truly embarrass the heck out of yourself!!!

I saw this fun vlog on several blogs lately so I thought I'd join in!

Directions are as follows:
The instructions are to say these words:
Aunt, Route, Wash, Oil, Theater, Iron, Salmon, Caramel, Fire, Water, Sure, Data, Ruin, Crayon, Toilet, New Orleans, Pecan, Both, Again, Probably, Spitting image, Alabama, Lawyer, Coupon, Mayonnaise, Syrup, Pajamas, Caught

And answer these questions:
What is it called when you throw toilet paper on a house?
What is the bug that when you touch it, it curls into a ball?
What is the bubbly carbonated drink called?
What do you call gym shoes?
What do you say to address a group of people?
What do you call the kind of spider that has an oval-shaped body and extremely long legs?
What do you call your grandparents?
What do you call the wheeled contraption in which you carry groceries at the supermarket?
What do you call it when rain falls while the sun is shining?
What is the thing you use to change the TV channel?

I hope I have followers after this... :)

2011-07-28T19:51:00.002-05:00

In an effort to show you the good, bad and the ugly, I present to you my very badwork day...

An employee who is now no longer with us seems to keep coming back to haunt me. Leaving her position with a path of destruction. It seems like almost every day, I find something that she did wrong, that has now caused a problem, thus now affecting the final product and the customer.

Last week, I was cleaning up a mess that she had made with an order. I received an email from the customer with ten yards of bull and of course, sighting the "horrifying mistake" that had been made. (Horrifying? Lady, I'll give you horrifying. Your order? Not so horrifying. Wrong choice of words there).

I immediately emailed her back with a really nice email...aknowledging the mistake but most importantly, HOW we were going to FIX it. Isn't that the biggest deal with customer service? If a mistake is made, isn't it nice to know that someone is going to MAKE IT RIGHT??? Anyway... in the email, I told her that I would email her back by 5pm with a status. The day got away from me and I was still sitting at my desk finishing up with her order and hadn't pressed send to the email as of 5:42pm. And then the email came. She sent me the nastiest email I had ever read. All about how I didn't "bother" to take care of her. And all I had done was put out fires of this former craphole employee had made and busted my ass and she wants to call me out on being 42 minutes late.

I immediately emailed her back. I might have been a bit defensive, but still a nice email. Maybe I am emotional today, but she really got to me. And I don't let snitchy customers get to me. Thick skin is something I definitely have.

But I guess not today. Hmph... Life isn't fair. People are human. The world doesn't run soley on a machine. Errors will be made. But the important thing is acknowledging it and FIXING IT.

Can I hear an Amen?!?!?

2011-07-20T20:25:00.003-05:00

Surprise! I bet you weren't expecting me to pop up on your Reader!

Well, I'm about as surprised as you are. I've been meaning to get back on here but, let's face it, life happens and it gets busy. And OMG, has life happened.

...so where did I leave off? Oh, yes. That little storm that came over Easter weekend. The "T" word. Yeah. That was no fun.

So basically, work is going really well. Survival has become recovery. Recovery has become a fresh start. Our building still looks much like it did weeks after the storm. We own another building across town so we moved back while we reconstruct. That honestly has been my home for 3 years so i was glad to go "back". That's my building. I am happy to be back in my old neighborhood.

This summer has kept me really busy because it's the busiest time of year for my department. I can hardly believe that it is almost August. Like seriously. What the heck happened to March to now? Oh yeah, I remember what has taken up my time.... (the T word)

Life on the home front has been really well too. Speaking of time, can someone please explain to me how the heck I have a 7 MONTH OLD BABY? Did I not just birth that little boy? Time sure does fly. It seriously boggles my mind! Little Tate is doing really well. He is such a happy boy, always smiling. In late May, after months and months of ear infections, we finally had tubes put in his ears. He has been doing really well since then. He is such a blessing. I love that squishy little boy!

My other love...Trey is active as ever. We finally found a wonderful preschool that he now goes to every day. He really likes it and I LOVE the fact that he is now in a "school" environment learning to be part of a group, to play together and to meet new friends. I want to cry when he brings home his silly little projects. They just melt my heart. I want to keep every single one of them!

Our summer has been filled with swimming, playing at the park, visiting Grandparents, chasing lightening bugs and spending lots of time with my besties. There is just nothing better, and more important, than family and your closest friends.

I'm looking forward to August. Mr. Fabulous and I are going to get away to The Lake for a little R&R. It's not our usual summer vacation, but honestly, this is how I want it now. The boys are small, this is the hardest time in our life when it comes to child-rearing. Next summer, bigger plans. For now, I'm good. I'm right where I want to be.

So tell me, friends, how are you?

2011-04-28T12:36:00.002-05:00

Just stopping in...

THANK YOU so much for all of the tweets, emails and Facebook posts wondering how our family is doing.

WE ARE FINE!!! Thank you Jesus.

If you don't know me IRL (Facebook) or follow me on Twitter... our family business was destroyed by a tornado that struck Friday night. It was absolutely disasterous. But we are blessed. It was our business...not our home. We've been sifting through rubble yet we get to go home to our warm bed.

And today, my heart goes out, not only to our community but now all those affected in the South. Ya'll get on your knees and pray a prayer of thanksgiving that you are alright.

I'll post more about the aftermath soon. But we're okay. And our business survived.

Praise the Lord.

He is Risen!

2011-04-24T09:09:00.000-05:00

Wednesday Ramblings

2011-04-20T08:17:00.003-05:00

Thought I'd squeeze in a few little ramblings before the boys wake up....

I took the day off work today to attend to my ~~messy house~~ take the boys to their well baby doctors appointments. Unfortunately, the "well baby" appointments are turning into not-so-well. Both boys have a cough and Trey has a little wheezing sound kickin' too. I try to keep everyone germ free...but that is hard with a toddler that coughs into his hands and then wipes it on his mother! Enter my terrible sore throat today. Ugh.

Anyway, glad to go to the pediatrician to nip all these issues in the bud. Later this afternoon, I'll be visiting a church preschool that I am 95% sure that I am going to enroll Trey in. I'm trying to go back to work a few more days so I need to find a better alternative for childcare than we have had in the last few months. I'm actually excited about having him in more of a classroom environment since he's always been one-on-one with our nanny since birth. He doesn't have many "friends" yet but that is mainly because I don't participate in play dates and MOPS like other stay at home moms.

So, we're looking forward to that and prepping for a busy weekend of Easter festivities. We'll be heading to my parents country house to celebrate Easter for my side of the family Saturday. Trey is really excited about running all over the farm and Paw Paw promised to take him fishing in the canoe. I'm going to let my boy be a boy and pack some old clothes to do all of these boy activities! I'm sure a bath will be in order Saturday evening!

Sunday, we'll go to church and then to Mr. Fab's parents house here in STL. I LOVE Easter (of course for it's amazing meaning) but I REALLY love to dress up. It's like the first opportunity to wear your Spring clothes. I've been debating on what I should wear for church and dinner afterwards, but I think I will go with my white pants, a green and white tunic (think Tory Burch) and my new McKims.

I better jump off and get the babies ready to head out the door. Have a great Wednesday!

Prayers

2011-04-19T22:00:00.002-05:00

Please say a prayer for my dear friend and sorority sister's four month old baby boy. Baby Blake will be undergoing heart surgery in the morning. Pray for a successful surgery and peace for Mommy.

Thank you friends. xoxo

Sunday Song

2011-04-16T21:53:00.001-05:00

Have you noticed my songs that I've been posting on Sunday mornings? Have you clicked on it to listen? Well, you should be! :-)

These are a few of my favorite praise songs that I really love. Unfortunately, many Christian songs don't have "real" videos, so many of these are just lyric videos, but still, listen. Fo' real. They're good.

After all, we all need a little Jesus in our life.

Attack of the 5'10 Soccer Mom

2011-04-16T13:51:00.003-05:00

For the past few weeks, I have been researching preschools for Trey. I was originally going to send him in the fall, but because of my work schedule, I am looking to enroll him in the next few weeks. If you have never researched preschools, let me tell you, it. is. intense. The amount of information online now is baffling. I came across information about a preschool that I was not really interested in sending Trey in the first place. But, oh goodness, did it have some information to tell online. It was all kinds of ramblings from several mothers about what family "really runs the school".

Oh great.

Just what I want...school politics. This seemingly nice little Christian preschool being "run" by the overly dramatic, take no crap from anyone, room mothers. Or whatever. All I know is that is NOT what I am interested in. I absolutely HATE confrontation, drama, catty women, etc. I am SO not looking forward to things like this as my children grow up to become school age.

Fast forward to last Wednesday. My dad (aka my boss- for any new readers) asked me if I would mind delivering a few important packages to a few of our clients. The clients are elementary schools. I didn't have to perform any type of service, etc. so I could run in looking casual, give them the package and leave. Oh, and I'd have the boys with me. No big deal.

I headed out early so I could get the boys back home in time for Tate's mid morning nap. My big mistake, though, was that for the first school, I got caught up in the bus and drop off line. My plan was to get to the school, park in front right by the entrance, put my flashers on, and run in to drop off the package. I had been to these schools many times. They all are laid out the same. The office is immediately in the entrance of the school and I would be away from the car for probably 20 seconds.

So, I pull into the car pool drop off line and was devising my plan on how to do this. There was a teacher at the front of the line directing traffic. I thought that once I got up to the front, I'd roll down my window and announce that I had a delivery and politely ask to pull over off the single file drop off line and put on my flashers. When I got to the front, the car in front of me stopped and the driver got out of the car, dilly-dallied around while walking over to the other side of her car to help her child out of the car. Apparently, that REALLY irritated the mini-van driving soccer mom behind me. She started to pull around me when the lady in front of me hopped in her car and took off. So, I moved forward (as I should be doing) and stopped to talk to the teacher directing traffic. Right as I pulled up, the mini-van driving, diva soccer mom swerved right next to me, looked right at me and started shouting and waving her hands and mouthing "WTF are you doing!".

Seriously.

I was like Huh? It was insane. It was like her head was going to explode off of her body. I just shook my head and started talking to the teacher directing traffic. He laughed. She drove off in leaving a cloud of dust behind her.

After I dropped off the package and was back in the car, I started thinking of what the deal was with her. I had not done ANYTHING wrong. I was simply waiting for the lady in front of me. Was she taking a long time? Yes. Should she have probably not gotten out of her car? Yes. Was that my fault? NO.

It just reminded me again what seriously crazy moms of elementary students are. Well, some of them, I guess. Not uplifting, always blaming others, their viewpoint is always the "right" one.

Let me tell you again. I am NOT looking forward to this. AT. ALL. I guess I will have to homeschool. HA!

Show Us Your Life- What book are you reading?

2011-04-15T06:00:00.000-05:00

Today I am participating in Kelly's Korner Show Us your Life series. This week is about what books you are reading.

...this kind of makes me laugh because sometimes the only books that I feel like I read are board books! You know... Good Night Moon, Velveteen Rabbit are a few of our favorites. :)

For real though, I have started reading at night before I go to bed. The first book I decided to read was Decision Points by George W. Bush

I really like it so far. I LOVE things about U.S. History and government "inside" information so this is right up my alley. And yes, I also like W. so that's a plus too. My only problem right now is that I can't read very much at night. Once I get settled in bed and open the book, I want to immediately fall asleep! One night, I read a paragraph and that was enough for me. Oh, the life of a mother. Now I know what my mom meant when she told me that when she was a young mom, she would crawl to bed at night, exhausted. Hello, like mother, like daughter! But seriously, if I can EVER get finished with this book, the next one I want to read is Pioneer Woman. I'm really excited about that one!

I hope you all have a great weekend! YEAH Friday! WOOT!

xoxo

3 year old's conversation Vol. 2305859

2011-04-11T13:02:00.004-05:00

I've had some new traffic on my blog so HELLO! to all new visitors.

For the newbies, this is my 3 year old Trey...

Trey LOOOVES to talk on the phone. We give him old cordless phones and our old cell phones and he makes up the craziest conversations with himself.

Today, he was playing on the pretend phone and told me that he was going to call Daddy. (Daddy was home, mind you, but outside doing yardwork). Then I proceed to hear the following conversation:

"Daddy, why you keep callin' me? Is it because you love me? Okay, bye!"

I almost fell out of my chair!

As Trey grows, I always say that I love "this" age that he's in. But every year, or as the months go by, it gets better and better! (And the 3 year old tantrums get fewer and fewer)

I hope you all have a great week!

xoxo

Sunday Song

2011-04-10T07:58:00.000-05:00

Saturday Morning Scene

2011-04-09T14:14:00.013-05:00

I've been wanting to link up with Katie over at Loves of Life for "Saturday Morning Scene" for a few weeks now...what better of a day to do it than today!

This morning, my dear friend Sarah and her *adorable* baby Danny came over to play. Danny is about a month older than Tate. We laugh and laugh about it because Tate absolutely towers over sweet little Danny!

Example 1: Tate on left, Danny on right

Roley Poley Tater weighs about 17 or 18 lbs. Danny weighs 13lbs (is that right Sarah?)...something close to it at least! Can you tell who is smashin' on the donuts? Oh yes, my child!

Sarah and I are so happy that they are close in age because they will be best friends! We just know it! :)

Here they're holding hands...

Keepin' it real...

BFF's forever...just like their mommies!

We can't forget Mr. Fabulous and big brother Trey...

(yes, that's the smile of a 3 year old! You take what you can get!)

Trey was so funny...when Sarah arrived, he said, "Look, it's two Baby Taters!" From the mouths of babes.

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend. We'll be watching the Masters and enjoying the nice weather.

xoxo

Tate's Announcement

2011-04-06T06:00:00.001-05:00

Here is the announcement that I had made for Tate. I think it turned out really nice, despite the fact that he had been sick and had zero smiles for us. His eyes were also in really bad shape. Because of the ear infection, his eyes were really "goopy" and red. Even though I wanted him in his natural state, I opted to fully retouch the "goop" and swelling.

The pictures done were similar to that of Trey's newborn pictures. I wanted them to match especially to display in our home. Here is Trey's announcement below. I was going to link it from where I had posted it 3 years ago, but I don't think I ever put his announcement on my blog. In any event, here is is...

I thought you'd enjoy seeing the final product! Have a great week! xoxo

Day 1

2011-04-04T09:46:00.002-05:00

Tate is 3 months

2011-04-04T06:00:00.003-05:00

He's so cute, I could just eat him up! I'm not biased... ;)

We've been battling more ear infections, yet again. But through it all, he's stayed in great spirits. It's Mommy that is upset about that! If this is the last one, we won't have to further entertain tubes or things of that nature.

Here's Tate's 2 month picture. He's grown a lot! He wears Size 2-3 or 3 diapers. 3-6 month clothes are getting pretty tight. 6 months fits well, maybe a tad long. His Grandma and Grandpa B (Dan's parents) keep him looking sharp in all things from Nordstrom! He'll have a bad Nordstrom habit like his Grandpa B and Daddy! :)

After 3 months, I finally got his baby announcement finished. I'm going to wait to post it, as I'd like to make sure everyone has received it. His formal pictures weren't the best because I could see in his eyes that he was still sick but that is what he was going through and it's best to document reality, right? Hopefully our next set of studio pics will include LOTS of smiles!!

Here's a picture Dan took last night. I just love it so much. My two boys! Trey has a great smile...and if you have a small child in the 3 year old range you know how hard it is to get a "real" smile. I just can't get enough of them! ...Sorry, I'm gushing.

Sunday Song

2011-04-03T06:00:00.000-05:00

Bright Sunshiney Day

2011-04-02T15:09:00.004-05:00

Hey friends! Look at me, Look at me.... I'm posting! :)

It's a pretty Spring day here in St. Louis. A little chilly but the sun is out and that 's good for me!

We had a nice relaxing Saturday morning. Baby Tate and I relaxed on the couch with the laptop and Trey played outside while Dan did a little yard work. They took a quick trip up to Home Depot (which is next to Sonic, so I got a Rt 44 Diet Coke thankyouverymuch) and then I mopped the kitchen floor. And I also vacuumed the living room and dusted. Isn't life sooooo exciting at the Fabulous house? We really do earn our name Fabulous! HA!

Dan left this afternoon to drive to Hannibal, Missouri for a work event. Of course, I wish he didn't have to leave on a beautiful day, but that's okay. These weekend work days are numbered. Which brings me to the next subject...

I am so happy to share our excitement that Dan got a wonderful job offer this week. He accepted yesterday and upon a positive background check (Ha ha), he'll be official! I keep telling him that he better study up so that he passes! :) Anyway, it's for a company that does logistics for international exports. I am really happy for him for several reasons but the biggest reason is that he will be on a more normal schedule. Right now, he is working insane hours, up and out the door at 5:30, back home at 7, working lots of weekends....it's just really hard. Our family needs a more consistent schedule and this job will provide one. He is just so happy to be challenging himself in a different industry. It will be exciting.

So, besides that, everything else here is going well. Baby Tate is doing well, still nursing an ear infection but hopefully it is on it's way out the door. Trey is just bouncing off the walls with excitement for life and anything fun that comes his way.

I'm really looking forward to the next few weeks. I can't wait to start planting flowers and I think I might grow a few tomato plants for Trey. He LOVES tomatoes!

Hope you all have a great weekend! xoxo

This is how I roll.

2011-03-21T20:58:00.004-05:00

This was supposed to be my "Tate is 3 months old" post on March 13th.

This was supposed to be my "Trey is 3 years old today" post on March 19th.

This was supposed to be my "We went to the St. Patrick's Day Parade" post on March 14th.

This was supposed to be "Trey's birthday Day in review" post on March 21st

..but it's not. Because I can only do so much. Boy, this poor blog sure is starting to get cobwebs!

I'm also having major space issues with my laptop (like, um, I'm out of it!) so I can't upload my pictures. So, I'll just type.

We're finally starting to get in a good routine. Our routine is tantrums. Or as my mom says, "Oh, looks like Trey is playing another game of 'Who's in Charge!' ". Yes. The terrible 3's are still going strong. Lord help me, I've got to get through this. I have to pad in extra time in the morning to fit in our "morning meltdown". It's just how it goes. That's the way we roll. But this Mommy is not giving in. Or up. Because I don't make hellion children. One day he'll wake up and decide to behave. But I still love this hellion 3 year old. More than myself. I cry inside when he's in time out. That's like 439,504 times a day. I kid!

Moving along. Did I tell you about how I accidentally put the wrong self tanner on my face? Oh, yeah. That's right I didn't. BECAUSE I HAVEN'T BLOGGED. Well, a few weeks ago, I accidentally put regular gel self tanner on my face instead of the oil free lotion. It looked great for the first few days. Then I started breaking out like a 14 year old. It was BAD. Like REAL BAD. So, I've been spending the last week nursing my face back to a normal 33 year old. I still have some, um, zits. But it is definitely better. I hope you learned a lesson from my mistake here.

Today, it was 82 degrees. I wore capri pants and a short sleeved shirt. And I'm soooo white. Because I haven't been using self tanner because of the issue above. Gah, I looked like crap. Oh well.

I really have a bone to pick with good television on at 7pm. My children go to bed at 8pm. 7pm equals craziness. I cannot concentrate on Glee when I'm wrangling a 3 year old. I know, I know, tell me about dvring. We don't have that service. THAT is a post for another day.

And why is the Real Housewives not on OnDemand? Or maybe I just can't find them. ??? Hmm...

And I'm like SOOO far behind on my tv shows. I probably won't ever catch up. When I was growing up, my mom watched like zero tv. I think I know why now.

I'm not ending this post by saying that "I'll try to post more". Because I don't want to aim too high. If you miss me enough, you can follow me on twitter! :) That's a little less of a commitment! :)

Friday in Bullets

2011-02-25T10:21:00.003-06:00

...because it's just easier

- Is it really Friday? Thank you Jesus!

- I'm pretty much done with Winter. I LOVE snow, but.. I'm done. Really.

- I'm looking forward to a fun evening with blogger/twitter friends tomorrow night. That also means I get to go somewhere without children on my hip! (...but I do love my children!)

- I've heard many people on twitter talk about buying clothing on ebay. So, I took the plunge.

- I love Ralph Lauren green label so my first purchase was a RL camel colored Cashmere sweater. It's divine.

- I thought it would look fabulous with my strand of chunky pearls. I tried to put the pearls on this morning...and the clasp broke.

- It's okay because they were like $10 from the asian jewelry store. I'll just grab another set in the near future.

- I'm back to my pre-baby weight. ...and my clothes are getting loose. Problem is, I'm quite a bit more "jiggly" in my tummy. Imagine that.

- Bless the Lord for Spanx. And Jenny Craig. Which I will be starting back on next week.

- Baby Tate is now 16.5 lbs. He is so freaking large. I think he's smashing on donuts when I'm not looking.

- Big Brother Trey is going to be 3 this month. He is a bean pole. He obviously doesn't get that from me.

- Speaking of Trey, I think we've hit the "terrible 3's". We are having a very rough time with tantrums, not obeying, talking back, etc. Please, please, PLEASE tell me this will pass. I love this boy dearly, but I can hardly handle another public tantrum!

- On a sweeter note, he tells me about 3,495 times that he loves me every day. I tell him that I love him right back 3,495 times.

- I think we are going to go low key on the 3rd birthday this year. I don't want our family to buy gifts (we're already blessed with enough clothes and toys). I'm thinking just a fun evening out with just Mommy, Daddy and Trey (no baby...so he gets full attention) and do maybe dinner at Red Robin or Pizza Street. We'll see...

-Pizza Street is totally disgusting. But kids love it.

Have a wonderful weekend!

2 months- February 13th

2011-02-14T20:06:00.014-06:00

Baby Tate, you are 2 months old! (ok, fine, 2 months and 1 days!)

Whew! You have kept us very busy this month! Even though you are thriving, this month, we've taken two scary trips to the hospital.

After a tip from the pediatrician to watch for signs of an ear infection (extreme fussiness and refusal to feed), we took you to the ER in the middle of January. Because you were only 5 weeks old, the doctors wanted to be extra careful to rule out any illness because you were running a fever. After many hours, and many tests, you were diagnosed with a bacterial infection. They said you had to stay in the hospital for 48 hours. We arrived at the hospital on Friday night and you were released Sunday night. All the nurses said you were the BEST baby and they loved you so much!

The fever went away and we were so happy things were better. Unfortunately, the good health didn't last very long. At the beginning of February, in the middle of the day, I started hearing you wheeze. I called the doctor again, just to see what we should do, and we were told to take you to the ER, yet again. I prayed and prayed the whole way there that you would be alright. Luckily, we did not have to admit you again. You were diagnosed with broncilitis, given a nebulizer for treatment. Two days later, when we went to the pediatrician for a follow up, she found that you had a double ear infection. She said it was very common when having broncilitis. You are currently on antibiotics, but are doing really well.

Other than our two trips to the hospital, you continue to be our "perfect" baby. You are eating REALLY well. So well, in fact, that I am having trouble keeping you in clothes that fit you. Newborn and 0-3 month clothes are too small. 3-6 month is too big. So, basically you only fit in clothes that are 3 month only. You mainly wear footed pajamas all the time because it keeps you warm and is comfortable. We don't venture out a lot since you are so small, so we don't get you too dressed up right now. (But don't worry, Mommy has some CUTE outfits waiting on deck for you!!)

Your big brother Trey loves you so much. He always tells you that "When you get bigger, I will teach you how to play soccer!" Trey loves to call you "Tater Totter" which basically sounds like "Tate-oh Tot-oh". It is hilarious! I know you both will be best friends.

You are also a very good sleeper. You sleep for 4-5 hours at a time during the night. During the day, you sleep in 2-3 hour blocks. You always make sure to get up just in time to eat! :)

Your Mommy (me!) and you spend a LOT of time together. Mostly because I chose to exclusively nurse you (which has become easier and easier every week) but also because I have started back to work and you go with me! I carry you around in the Baby Bjorn sling and everyone LOVES to see you every day! Your Paw-Paw comes to visit you about 20 times a day and sometimes takes you out to parade around the office. He is a very proud Grandpa! He loves his boys!

Here's Mommy trying to take a few pictures of the two of us.

Ok, someone is done being photographed!

As we close out the month, you have now started to smile! You can tell when I talk to you and you smile a lot when you hear my voice. You've also starting cooing. It is so sweet, I can just eat you up! I just can't wait to see what happens in the months ahead!

Baby Tate Conrad, Mommy, Daddy and Big Brother Trey love you so much!

Belly Laughs

2011-01-18T13:57:00.002-06:00

I've taken on the task of organizing all the gazillion digital pictures on my computer. OMG- that's all I have to say! What a daunting task!

I ran across this video I took of Trey when he was much younger. This is bad...I have no idea how old he is. I need to do some research to match it up with pictures. I'm thinking maybe 9-10 months old?

Anyway, I LOVE this video because he is laughing SO hard!

...and please excuse our dog getting in the way... (and my filthy kitchen!)

Tate's One Month Birthday

2011-01-13T22:11:00.003-06:00

Baby Tate, you are one month old today!

You are the sweetest baby. You are a great sleeper, maybe sleeping for 3-4 hours during the night. You LOVE to eat! So much that you demand Mommy to nurse you every 2 hours during the day. But we're working on that. Mommy gives you a big high-five when you can last 3 hours between feedings during the day!

You are growing so much! You can still fit into your newborn jumpsuits, but there is not much wiggle room left! Mommy will be happy when you grow a liiiiitttle bit more so you can start wearing all of the daring outfits that we have for you! But until then, onesies and jumpsuits are the fashions around here.

You are starting to pick your head up and hold it up to look around. It seems like you like to look at bright lights. I think it's pretty advanced to be holding your head up so well at your age. There is no doubt that this is what is yet to come...an over-achiever! :)

The party definitely starts at home around 8pm and lasts until midnight. You LOVE to be WIDE awake during this time and sleeping is not an option! It was hard for Mommy and Daddy to adjust to this because we are ready to wind down, but now we're used to the schedule.

Tater, Mommy and Daddy love you SO much and can't wait to see what you'll do in the months to come!

Where we've been and where we are going.

2011-01-09T14:10:00.003-06:00

If I don't start typing, I will never get this post out.

So, here we go. I haven't spent a lot of time carefully planning the words to say, so this might all sound a bit jumbled. But, alas, I'm putting pen to paper (ok, fingers to keys!) so that's all that matters, right?

The year 2010. Looking back to the year 2009 previously, I really thought we had fought our battles, passed the tests and struggles that God placed in our path. Boy was I wrong. I definitely believe that God does not give us more than we can handle. I just didn't realize he had so much faith in me to carry a load this heavy! 2010 proved to be, as of right now, the hardest months I have ever had to endure. ...and throw in being pregnant and terribly sick and whoooo-eeee, what a ride that was!!

I'll spare you the details, because we all have our own battles, but it was more difficult that I had imagined. I honestly thought that the stress that I was under was going to, or had already affected my pregnancy. Thankfully, that was all in my head, so the most difficult year of my life, ended on a high note of delivering a beautiful, and extremely healthy baby boy that we named Tate Conrad.

So, where am I now? Well, I am going to head in the year 2011 with a calm faith. I have no idea what is going to take place for me (and my family) in the next week. Or next month. We're taking one day at a time. Literally. Here's what I do know. In order to bring some calm, order and a more stable schedule to our household, Mr. Fabulous is beginning to search for new employment. We are hopefully optimistic that in this difficult economy, he will be able to find employment that can bring a more stable, less stressful (oh, and more money! :) ) to our family.

The other big change for us is that we tearfully parted ways with our nanny of over 2 years. It is, and was, one of the most emotional situations that I have been in. She has played such an enormous part in raising Trey. She joined our family when Trey was 5 months old and has been with us ever since. I wish things could have been different in the end, but I'll leave it as it came down to nothing more than a financial business decision. I really hope that I'll never have to endure such emotion with any other "business" decision I have to make in the future!

After being at home for 4 weeks on maternity leave, it looks like that I am going to be going back to work part time. Right now, it's looking like I will be going into the office a few days a week and then staying home with the boys the other days. Mr. Fab's parents have jumped in to help with childcare with Trey when I have to go to the office. Thankfully, I am still able to take the baby to work with me just like I did when Trey was an infant.

I definitely don't mean to make this post so "Debbie Downer", but this is what's going on in my life, so why not give you a full, honest, update, right?

I would be lying if I said everything was Fabulous, but I sure do have faith and hope in our future.

From all of us in the Fabulous Household, we wish you a hope and good faith for 2011!

For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. ~Jeremiah 29:11

Bog Sale Markdowns!

2010-12-27T21:31:00.003-06:00

Last call before I put everything on eBay. Click here for the Blog Sale!

Introducing...

2010-12-26T19:24:00.007-06:00

Tate Conrad

Born December 13 at 11:35am

8 lbs. 3 oz. 21 in. long

...and I'm in love.

Blog Sale

2010-11-28T13:52:00.044-06:00

Update as of 12-27-10 **Last call before these go up on eBay!**

Welcome to Cyber-Sunday!

Blog Sale Rules: Serious inquiries only. First come, first served. If you want to purchase, simply email me at mukdlady at hotmail dot com. I will email you instructions on how to pay. You have 24 hours to pay or I will sell to the next person in line. Shipping will vary but most likely will be $7 unless I email you otherwise. All sales are final. Shipping only within US (unless I know you, then we can work something out)

1. BCBG Max Azria Plum (Dark Purple) Dress Size XL New, with tags ~~$40.00~~ NOW $30

2. Stuart Weitzman Flats-

Gold Pair- Size 8.5- ~~$35.00~~ NOW $25.00
Worn 2-3 times gently.

Red Pair- Size 8.5- ~~$50.00~~ NOW $38.00
Brand new, never worn.

3. Lilly Pulitzer Pink Slides- Size 8.5 ~~$85.00~~ NOW $65.00

These darling shoes have never been worn. Comes with box and dust bag. The bottom of the shoes show a teeeennny bit of wear...I think I probably walked around the house in them to try them out. Sadly, they were too small.

4. Brand new, in box Cute Opened Toe Stilettos Size 8.5 ~~$20.00~~ NOW $13.00

5. Authentic Coach Holiday Patchwork Purse ~~$99~~ NOW $70
Used less than 3 times.

6. Authentic Coach Holiday Patchwork Tall Bag ~~$89~~ NOW $60.00
Used less than 3 times

7. SOLD- Authentic Coach Houndstooth Purse $85.00
Worn less than 5 times

8. Authentic Coach Houndstooth Wristlet ~~$35.00~~ NOW $20.00
Brand new, never worn

9. Authentic Coach Brown C's initial Wallet ~~$40.00~~ NOW $30.00
Minimal use, brand new condition

10. Birkin-inspired Preston & York Brown handbag ~~$10.00~~ NOW $5.00

11. Saks 5th Avenue Gift Card for $25.00- Selling for $15 & Free Shipping

Conversations from the Backseat

2010-10-08T14:43:00.006-05:00

One of my favorite bloggers (who sadly isn't blogging right now) would do a post every now and then on "Conversations from the Backseat". She would share the very entertaining conversations that she and her little boy would have. I just loved reading these little snippets and dreamed about when Trey and I would have some funny conversations of our own.

Well, folks, it has begun... the wild conversations between Mommy and a little 2 1/2 year old named Trey.

To give you a little background, we have now gradually moved into the schedule where Nanny keeps Trey at her house while I'm at work. While I don't exactly love driving him there and back, she is fairly close, lives within walking distance of probably 5 or so parks, and the best part... the mess stays OUT of my house!!! :) Did you hear me? That is BIG! The finger painting, playdoh, crayons, back yard dirt....stays at her house. Not mine. That's huge.

So anyway, driving him to and from her house has become a favorite time of mine where we share a few moments together chatting it up.

This was today's conversation:

Set up: Trey is staring blankly out the window.

Mommy: Trey, what are you thinking about?
Trey: Toys and Garage Doors.

A few more miles down the road...

Trey: Mommy, when I went to bed and was sleeping I dreamt about basketballs, baseballs, soccerballs and doggies.
Mommy: Well, that's nice.
Trey: Yep, Sure did.

Honestly, the convo's are MUCH more entertaining when you are actually there, but he just cracks me up while melting my heart at the same time!

One more...Everyday when I pick Trey up, I ask him on our ride home "What did you do today?" Every day he says "Played basketball". Every. Day. I'll ask if he did anything else? His reply: "Nope".

I just laugh. Because obviously, that is not what he does all day 5 days a week. Especially when I get the run down of everything that they do upon pick up. And usually that doesn't even include basketball!

I can't wait to share more Conversations from the Backseat with you. They truly are the best!

**These pictures really don't have any specific meaning with this post. I just wanted to start sharing more updated pics! (courtesy of my iPhone)

For Me

2010-09-20T11:52:00.002-05:00

Every weekend.

It's the same thing.

Rush, rush, rush. Grocery store, Target, odds and ends errands. (ok, maybe Sonic, too!) Laundry. House cleaning. Vacuuming, dusting, trash. Bills, organizing. All of this while "entertaining" a 2 year old.

Sunday nights roll around. I'm exhausted. What a glorious, relaxing weekend that was. To quote 1995... "NOT"!

I had a revelation this weekend. I'm not going to do it.

I'm finished.

I refuse to let my weekends go by like this.

Ok, so I still am going to clean my house. Yes, I'll still do laundry. I'll even go to the grocery store! But I REFUSE to be that "I have to do it all" Mom.

There's no point. Who am I trying to impress? The people that have no idea what goes on in my home every weekend? Am I trying to impress myself? So far, I've just pissed myself off!

So from now on. I'm doing a little at a time. When I can. When I feel good (aka: when my back doesn't hurt--thank you little baby!). I'm not going to be super-cleaning-house-mom when no one is even due to come over.

You want to come over unannounced? There's a new rule in my house. No judgment!

I'm opening my mouth more about when I need help. Instead of breaking my back hauling several items down to the basement, I stacked them all up at the top of the stairs and told Mr. Fabulous to please take them down. He hasn't done it yet. That pile might stay there until Thursday. I will not let it bother me.

I don't have to pay bills anymore. I handed it all over to Mr. Fab. (say a prayer on this one! HA). It's one less thing that I have to do.

I really don't know who implanted in my head that "I" must do everything.

For my sanity. For my family...so I am a happier mommy and wife.

And especially... For me.

The End.

Let's Be Honest

2010-09-17T10:17:00.003-05:00

- I don't have time to blog

- I'm tired 24/7

- I can't sleep

- My house is atrocious

- There are dishes sitting in the sink (eww...)

- Laundry still hasn't been put away

- I cut my bangs with kitchen shears this morning to avoid having to make an appointment and actually go to a salon for a haircut.

- My 2 1/2 year old has been in time out more times than I have been to the bathroom (that's a lot since I'm pregnant!)

So, there. Sorry there's no happy checkin, summary of what's been going on, pictures of fabulous things that I've bought, etc. etc.

It's just me. Although, I did have the energy to flat iron my hair today. Do I get a point for that??

Doing a little shopping

2010-08-27T14:26:00.010-05:00

As I proceed into my 24th week of pregnancy, it has become very apparent that I am, in fact, pregnant.

I know, know, shocking.

Things that come with this apparent pregnancy is a big belly. Stop! I know! I have now successfully grown out of almost all of my "fat girl" pants and tops. So, it is now that time again. Time to pull out the rubbermaid bins of all of my lovely and fashionable maternity clothes from 3 years ago.

While rummaging through everything, I got to thinking. Really, I'd like to know, What the heck WAS I thinking 3 years ago? I hate these clothes! They are terrible. Now, the pants I can live with. Since I work in an office environment every day, I bought several pair of trousers that would fit the bill. But the tops. OMG- What was I thinking. I hate almost EVERYTHING! I guess my style has indeed changed. Oh, and it's been 3 years.

So, now it's time for me to do a little shopping. Good thing I have my Gap 30% off coupon code for online. Here are a few of my purchases today:

Old Navy Cable-knit Cape. Loves it. And you don't have to be pregnant to wear it!

Old Navy Maternity Zip up Sweater.

Old Navy Low Rise Maternity Leggings

Gap Maternity Heathered Elbow Tee. (in white and black)

Gap Cowlneck Ponte Dress

They're just a few things that I hope will get me through the fall just in time for new Baby T in December.

Now, if they can just get here reaaallly fast! I'm dying to wear new clothes!!

Blogger Love

2010-08-18T07:00:00.000-05:00

Last Friday, I joined a group of St. Louis bloggers for dinner at 3 Monkeys in South City.

It was a great restaurant. Casual enough to tolerate our lighthearted laughter and loudness (at times)! I had not been there before so it was a nice treat to try something new.

They were known for great pizza so many of us tried it out. It was really good!

We couldn't find anyone to take a full group shot so we divided in half.
Here is Angie, Alyssa and me

Randall, Sarah and Aimee

There were several other ladies that had expressed interest but could not make it. I hope to meet them at some point. You can never have too many good girlfriends in your life, right??

If you are a STL blogger and would like to join us next time, leave me a comment with your email address or email me at mukdlady (at) hotmail (dot) com

Late Summer Check-in

2010-08-15T20:20:00.002-05:00

Well, lookey-here, it seems as though I've let over a month slide with silence here in blogland. I guess you could say I am a little reluctant to blog right now seeing as I just don't have anything exciting to share, but what the hey, I never promised award-winning commentary here, did I! So, here's what's been going on around the Fabulous household.

I finished an 8 week stunt at work being busier than I've EVER been before. And I did it with horrific morning sickness. Hang on, I think you all know about this. Whoops. I'm back tracking too much. Sorry.

Moving forward. The 48-hour stomach flu hit our house. It was more disgusting than I could have ever imagined. There is absolutely nothing like cleaning up your child's vomit and then vomiting yourself. And since you're the Mom, you get to clean up your own too. Awesome. Everyone recovered, even me after a jaunt over to labor and delivery to get pumped with 4 IV bags to replace my, um, lost hydration. Those 4 bags probably cost me about $800. Just waiting on that fabulous bill to arrive.

Trey is growing, growing and is funnier than ever. The things that come out of his mouth are beyond hilarious. Especially when he mocks me for saying "It's hot as balls outside"! I'm sure he thought I was talking about soccer balls. Or basket balls!

We had the big ultrasound. Gender alert! We're having another boy! I'm beyond excited because, you know, there's only room for one diva in this household! ... I kid! Anyway, since I am not a fan of surprises, you may all be privy to the news that we also chose a name. Little man's name will be Tate. Tate Conrad. Tate- I just like. Conrad- family name. (Grandpa, dad and brother's middle name.) I could tell my mom was a little confused about the name. You know, since it's not John. Or Dave. Or Joe. Then I realized that she had been walking around for about 3 days thinking his name was to be Pate. I quickly corrected her, rolled my eyes in a rage of "WTF" and went on about my merry way.

On another note, it is still unbearably hot here in the 'Lou. I can't handle it anymore. Seriously, I'm about to protest. Or move. But that would take effort, so I'll just whine! I decided today to light my pumpkin spice candle in protest of the one-millionth day of 95 degree temperatures. I swear, if I get any more worked up, I'm going to haul out my harvest decor and get down to business!

That's about all of the updates I can bear to share today. Hope you all have had a great wrap up of summer, stayed cool and God willing, we will all share a pumpkin spice latte soon. Sounds fantastic to me!

Sunday Afternoon

2010-07-18T13:27:00.005-05:00

Sunday afternoon. T is taking a nap. Mr. Fabulous is at Home Depot. Cardinals game is on mute in the living room while I clean up the house. Nice relaxing Sunday with nothing important on the schedule.

Last night, I went to my good friend Angie's house for a little blogger meet-up/get together. Maybe I shouldn't really say "blogger meet up" because we are all just plain ole, good friends now. Our common bond, though, is that we met through blogging.

We had a great time eating food and sitting around the table having some good girl talk. Nothing crazy, nothing fancy. Just how it should be. 4 good friends getting together.

Here we are with Angie's darling little boy

Randall, Angie, Alyssa and me.

You can see a little start of my growing belly. It would have helped if I didn't wear black. In real life, I guess, it seems MUCH bigger. I seem MUCH bigger. I definitely believe that your stomach gets bigger, earlier in your pregnancy with your second child.

I had a few minutes to hold Angie's sweet baby. He is just the sweetest. He SO reminds me of Trey when he was an infant. I think they look similar too. I just HAD to kiss on those sweet little cheeks!!

...sorry for my ridiculous face

I was looking at this same picture on Facebook. Trey was sitting right next to me and exclaimed, "Mommy and Baby Trey!!" He thought it was him! I said, "No, that's Mommy and Baby Nick". You should have seen Trey's face. He looked at me like, "Who is Nick and I don't think I approve of you kissing on him!" It was so funny!

By the way, did you catch my hair in these pictures? I'm trying really hard to grow it out. I thought since I am on prenatals, I might as well see what happens. So far, I really like the result. It definitely takes longer to do but I'm okay with that. It is definitely a possibility that I'll chop it off when the new baby arrives, but what the hey, I'll give it a shot right now!

Coming up in the Fabulous household, a week from tomorrow, we will find out the gender of Baby #2. I have been tempted to buy one of those gender tests from the drug store (it's a "pee on a stick" kind, much like a pregnancy test) but I thought it was a little expensive at $39.99 when I can just wait one more week. I saw on another blog the gender calendar that matches up your age and the month of conception. I couldn't help but peek. According to the calendar, I'm having a girl.

We shall see!

Wishing you all a great week ahead!

Praying to St. Anthony

2010-07-11T21:22:00.008-05:00

I still can't find my camera charger. Such a sad, sad deal. I MUST find it so I can take more pictures of Trey. Mr. Fab says that it doesn't matter, we can just buy a new camera. Such a thing spoken from the one that doesn't pay the bills in this household.

My in-laws were kind enough to tote their camera to a few of our family outings so I thought I'd share a few of my favorite pictures with you.

First of all, here is Trey last May 2009- he had just turned one. What a chunker he was! Grandpa is holding him.

These pictures are from the late winter (Jan, Feb) of this year at the National Museum of Transportation. Lots and lots of trains!

And now... my 2 year old...going on 12.

New haircut

Opening his eggs on Easter

And my absolute favorite...smelling his stinky feet! What a boy!

There you have it. A few updated pictures of my sweet little Trey for you!

Hope you all had a great weekend. I'm going back to work tomorrow after being on vacation. Back to the grind I go. Let's pray Monday is kind to me.

Weekend Update

2010-07-10T13:58:00.002-05:00

Well here we go.... welcome back to the most Boring-est Blog on the Block!

Yes, I admit, blogging has been put on the back burner. So, I thought I owed you an update especially after my "I'm Back" post almost 3 weeks ago! (Sorry, guess I wasn't really baaaack!)

And, what have we been up to? If you follow me on twitter, some of this will be a bit repetitive, as I find much more time to check in there and do my quick 140 character updates there.

The Fabulous Family has been on vacation all week. Well, actually a stay-cation. Mr. Fab and I took the week off of work and spent the week enjoying summertime as a family. We did many things like:

- went to Fair St. Louis for the airshow and lunch.
- Saw the 4th of July fireworks
- went to the park many, many times. Tilles Park was especially great
-Spent a few days at the Lodge at Des Peres swimming
-logged many, upon many hours in the backyard swinging on the swingset, playing soccer and lounging in the baby pool.

We had a great week being together and running all around the city. I must admit, this momma was SUUUUPPPPER tired after each day, but it was just such a joy to wake up, not have to put on makeup, and spend all day playing with your family.

This is the point in the post where I would post all the great pictures of our week. Unfortunately, there are no pictures. :( I have lost my camera charger, thus we've had a dead camera for weeks. I'm determined to find it this weekend.

As we gear up for the upcoming week, it's time to get things in order. I promised myself I wouldn't spend too much time doing housework during our vacation, so I really need to get cracking today so we're ready and organized for Monday.

So, here's to a busy Saturday of cleaning up, finishing laundry, cooking and having fond memories of my stress-free week at home!

What have you all been up to lately? Vacation this year or stay-cation?

The New Me

2010-06-23T20:20:00.002-05:00

...well, I guess not the new me...just the old me, back.

That's right folks, I'M BACK!!!

And OMG I feel SO. MUCH. BETTER!

I woke up on Sunday. And I didn't feel like a$$.

I had energy to get in the shower.

And blow-dry my hair (the right way...not the 1/2 a$$ way)

And straighten it.

And do my FULL make-up routine.

And pick out a decent outfit.

All without wanting to shoot myself in the eyeballs.

That's right. Being so utterly sick made every task seem like it was climbing Mt. Everest. I was getting ready for work this morning thinking, "Now, this is not so hard (putting on my makeup). Why did I think I couldn't do this?" Then I remembered, it's because I wanted to hurl all over everything and then go lie in bed. That's why!

Sorry, did I offend you with hurl?

So, now it's time to get back in control. And I need a plan.

My plan includes getting my house back in order. 8 weeks of hardly doing ANYTHING has totally contributed to the craphole that exists now. Back to the list-- house back in order, organizing my closet, buying more maternity clothes (darn the fact that it was winter the last time I was pregnant), going to the grocery store on a regular basis. And the biggest item on my list-- reconnecting with my family and friends.

I feel like I have been out of body for the last 8 weeks. I want to reconnect with my husband and our precious Trey. I'm hoping we can get out and go for a few walks, play at the park or just go have a few fun outings. Last week, Mr. Fab bought a new swing set for the back yard. That has been SO fun and we've enjoyed many fun afternoons swinging and sliding to our hearts content. It's been sweltering hot the last week or so, so we've had to ease up on playing outside.

The other part of that- I miss my friends. Terribly. I know that having a child changes a lot and hinders you from being able to get together frequently for a happy hour, or a monthly dinner, but really, I have been so out of it that I haven't even had a good phone conversation for weeks.

I miss my friends. If you're reading this and we're friends IRL, I miss you. And I'm sorry I've been MIA.

Ok, so also adding to my list, I am hoping to get back into blogging more often. The last time I was pregnant, I was not blogging (or even on Facebook! WTH?) so I really want to document my journey.

To end this post, I'm looking forward to many more weeks of feeling well, having more energy and being able to take on life as it comes at me.

I hope you all are doing well. I feel like I've missed out on a lot of what's going on in the blog world because I haven't been able to keep up with reading posts. Tonight I'm working at catching up!

Love you all!
-Mrs. Fabulous

If you don't have something nice to say, don't say it at all

2010-06-13T17:48:00.003-05:00

Well, hello there! It's been a while, eh?

I decided several weeks ago that since I didn't have anything good to say (read: terribly sick) then I'd better keep my mouth shut. So, that's exactly what I did.

We started a new program venture at work as well that has kept me up to my eyeballs, so that, too, played a part in my absence.

So, what have I been up to?

Well, I'm 13 weeks pregnant and hating every second of it. Don't take me wrong, I know it will be worth it in the end, but like I mentioned in a previous post, OMG I am freaking dying here. First it was nausea every second, now it's nausea every other second mixed with major exhaustion and then insomnia at night. This better better the freaking best baby in the world for me to put up with this! Kidding. Really.

Every day is a battle. But, I'm just waiting for the heavens to open up on week 14 or 15 and welcome me with open arms to the glories of the 2nd trimester. So far, no dice. I'm keeping my chin up, though!

Meanwhile, we've officially renamed our 2 year old Trey to chatter box! That child talks for days without taking a breath! Honestly, it's the cutest thing to hear. He says exactly what he thinks, feels, believes and it is hilarious to say the least. The best is in the car. We'll be driving down the road and he'll wave and say "Hi". I'll ask him who he's saying hi to and he'll reply "To the people on the bise-ta-tle (bicycle). Melts my heart.

Like I mentioned above, we began a new program venture at work. It officially kicked my ass. But, a week in, and it's been very successful. The only problem is that I've been working a ton. It has started to slowly take a tole on family life. When I got home at almost 6:30pm one night, I decided that was enough. Luckly, my problem was welcome with open arms and I am now going to start slowing down again. I hope that I'll go back to 10-5pm workdays. Hope. (Say a little prayer, will ya?)

Because I feel like total shitballs all the time, the laundry situation in my house is close to insane. Today I sucked it up and did approximately 8 loads of laundry and I hope everyone has something nice and clean to wear for the week. And by everyone, I mean me. I've used Fabreeze WAY too much lately!

Mr. Fabulous decided to go to Home Depot and buy a swing set this afternoon. He's currently out back putting it together. You can say another prayer for that one too, because it will be a miracle if it goes up looking like the display did at the store! Nevertheless, it's exciting and Trey is over the moon about his own swingset in the backyard.

Well, that about does it for what the Fabulous household has been up to. I can't promise I'm back to blogging weekly/bi weekly, but if I have something nice to say, I promise I will say it!

TGIF

2010-05-14T15:46:00.002-05:00

The picture above pretty much sums it up. And for the sake of you, my loyal reader, I hope my 24/7 sickies ends soon...so I'll have something more interesting/happy/encouraging to write about.

In a nutshell...

2010-05-10T17:14:00.003-05:00

I thought I'd pop in for a quick post. It seems that I can barely get a post in during the week, so I'm very sorry that I just can't keep up. I made a decision that I have to keep family first and blogging and twitter have to come last. You all understand, right?

So, what's up with me? Well, I'm almost finished with my first trimester of pregnancy and God love it, I am SO SICK! I can hardly handle it. I remember being super sick with Trey, but good Lord, this is brutal. And furthermore, my husband has taken about all he can handle of me complaining and saying "I don't feel good" and "I'm sick, I'm going to bed". Poor Man. One day, he'll get his wife back.

Basically, I try to pull it together everyday for work. I may not be as put together as I would hope, but a girl can only do so much, right? I may look like crap, but I look like it wearing my pearls! I find myself going to bed right after I put Trey to sleep. That would be at 7:30pm. Yep, I'm officially a Granny! No, I'm just pregnant HeeHee! The laundry piles up, the house needs dusting, but it can wait. You know, for the second trimester when I will miraculously get a wave of energy (so they say!).

I'm kind of excited to document my pregnancy on my blog because I wasn't blogging yet when I was pregnant with Trey. I kept a little journal, but I think this will be more fun! And, sorry if you don't like to hear about it all the time. I get it. But sorry, I'm still going to blog about my little peanut!

Hope you all are doing well. I'll leave you with a little cartoon that my best gal pa lfrom KC sent me this weekend. It's really me...in a nutshell.

Show Us Your Life- Baby Names

2010-05-07T19:45:00.004-05:00

Today is another Show Us Your Life topic from Kelly's Korner. The topic today is baby names.
If you are new to my blog, Welcome!

My two year old son's name is Trey. His given name is Patrick Daniel, III. We, obviously, named him Patrick Daniel to carry on the family name. Before he was born, I knew that I wanted to give him the family name, however, I wasn't sure what we were going to call him. My husband, who is Patrick Daniel, II (and not Jr, per his mother) goes by Dan. His dad also goes by Dan. As much as I love them both, I did NOT want to name my son Dan. Or Danny. Or Patrick. Or ...Pat.

After much consideration, Trey was chosen. I absolutely love it. And that boy is just definitely a Trey.

If you are a follower of my blog, you probably read in my last post that we are expecting our 2nd child this winter. We are SO excited and of course, have already been talking about names. I am about 99% positive that our names are set in stone. I REALLLLY want to tell you....but I just MUST keep something secret around here! I will give you a few little sneak peeks.

If it's a boy, his middle name will most likely be Conrad. That is my dad's middle name. It's also my grandfather and my brother's middle name. (They are all Harold Conrads...Sr, Jr, and III). I would just love to honor my dad's legacy by passing his middle name to my second son. My husband and I pretty much made a deal that since Trey was named for his side of the family, our next child will have a name that is descendant from my side of the family. I know exactly what his first name will be. So he'll be _______ Conrad.

If it's a girl, I would like her first name to be Mary. That is my mom's name. The middle name is a secret. She'll go by her middle name, though. Think along the lines of Mary Claire, Mary Catherine, Mary Ellen. Mary will be honoring my mom, who goes by Mary Ellen. The middle name is a name that Mr. Fabulous and I have loved for a long time. I think it'll go over very well with his family because the name will sound totally Catholic and they are VERY Catholic. Little do they know, this Southern Baptist momma just made that a coincidence!

And just for fun... my name is Heidi Elizabeth. I was named after my very German grandfather who told my dad, "I would LOVE to have a little Heidi". And so I was. Elizabeth is a family name from my Dad's side.

And there you have it. The secrets in a name. So tell me, how did your name come to be?

Show Us your Life- How I Met My Husband

2010-04-23T12:59:00.011-05:00

Today, I am participating in Kelly's Korner Show Us Your Life series. This week is How I met my husband.

I wish I had a really romantic, super classy story for you. But, I don't. Instead, I have a "Klassy" story. You see, I met my husband at a frat house. Yep, that's what I get to tell my grandchildren!

But it is a nice story. Here goes...

Sorority Girl wants to stay at home and sleep. Sorority Girl's friend wants to go to the frat house to hang out. Friend nags Sorority Girl SO MUCH that she finally says that she'll go. ...But she's pissy. Perhaps, that time of the month??

So, Girl goes to frat house. Cute Frat Boy is playing pool. Girl doesn't care because she's pissy.
Boy sees girl. Boy thinks Girl is cute but has an attitude. Since Girl has attitude, Boy thinks he'll talk to Girl's friend.

One day, Boy decides to call Girl. Boy and Girl become BEST FRIENDS. Then Girl decides that she is sick of this "best friend" crap and corners boy to say that its either gonna be...or she's out!
Boy kisses Girl.

Boy falls in love with Girl. Vice Versa.

They get married.

And have a beautiful little boy...

And have another one on the way! Surprise!

The End!

Yard Sales, Air Conditioning and Flowers

2010-04-22T13:03:00.003-05:00

Well look-y here, it's been over 2 weeks since I've checked in. Wow. I wish I could say that "I'm so sorry" but really, I'm not. I have decided that family comes first and blogging must be last. Or close to last. As much as I LOVE it, and love my blogging community, I have to put family and real life first. Things are slowing down a little, so I'm hoping to ease back. Thanks for coming back to check up. The Fabulous Family is doing well!

Let's see what I've been up to, shall we?

We completed the move of my parents from their home of 42 years to their new, smaller abode in Wildwood. It is VERY nice not to have to deal with that anymore. The entire process helped me purge my house too. No junk! That's my rule!

With all the stuff they had, I decided to have a yard sale at my house to get rid. And by yard sale, I mean "garage sale", as that is what they're called 'round here in the 'Lou. Not only did I have 1 sale, but I had 2. Because for some reason, Wednesdays are a HUGE yard sale day. So, I took off work and had my own yard sale on Wednesday and Saturday of last week. And OMG, do I have stories for you! Let's just start out with the lady that pulled up at 6:40am to my driveway honking her horn. Because, folks, SHE was ready to shop! I opened the front door and gave her the stink eye! The day ended with a family from the 'country' who brought the ENTIRE family to the 'city' (um, yeah, I live in the burbs lady!) and proceeded to fill up the entire dual-ey wheel pickup truck with crap from yard sales. Their accent was so country and thick, I almost started laughing as the Mom was talking to me. I thought she was joking. No joke, it was real. They'd be the PERFECT family for Wife Swap. Or that show where Paris and Nicole live on a farm. It was awesome. End result was tons of crap gone, a nice amount of cash to equal a VERY nice handbag. And a big donation receipt from the Good Will.

Having all the yard sale junk banished from my house, I am now working on a good spring cleaning. I am SO happy to have things back to normal. It's great doing a normal weekend routine of laundry, grocery shopping, house cleaning, etc. I guess as I get older, I like routine. And I like to stay home with my family.

With Spring in the air, our air conditioner decided to die. The new one is being installed as we speak. And really I should consider a new career in HVAC because OMG air conditioners are expensive. Seriously.

Moving on. I planted all of my outside flowers. It's amazing how more lovely things can look with flowers. I have 2 hanging baskets and 2 pots on the porch, 4 planters in the front yard, more flowers below the mailbox, 2 pots on the back porch and 2 pots in the sunroom. Mr. Fabulous isn't really big on my flower planting (I guess because mid July, I start complaining about how I HATE watering flowers) but they really are a necessity. And because they camouflage the fact that we need new siding! HA!

This weekend Mr. Fab is working (it's a very busy time of year at work) and I will be frolicking in the flowers...and the grocery store.

How have you been? I missed my boos!

Easter in Review

2010-04-06T21:23:00.004-05:00

Sorry, Sorry, Sorry! I've had this post in my head for days, yet there never seems to be time to put my fingers to the keyboard!

I hope you all had a wonderful Easter! Ours was wonderful, yet busy and packed with activity. Since Mr. Fabulous, my daddy, brother and brother-in-law were heading to the Masters on Sunday morning, we celebrated Easter on Saturday.

We went over to the in-laws for Easter brunch in the morning. I wanted to dress up since it was Easter, after all. But I remembered that it would probably be me chasing after Trey for most of the day, so I settled on a polo and a khaki skirt. And the weather...absolutely gorgeous! We had an Easter egg hunt and Trey had a great time! He wasn't really understanding that he needed to pick up the eggs and put them in his basket, but we helped him and he finally got the hang of it!

Here's my little guy ready for the Easter egg hunt:

Mr. Fabulous dressed him. He INSISTED that double polos were absolutely necessary!

After the in-laws, we drove to Eureka to have Easter dinner with my family at one of my sisters' house. We had a wonderful time dining on lamb, roasted potatoes and fresh asparagus. The dinner was outstanding!

Mr. Fabulous stayed at my sisters house so he and my brother in law could leave early for Georgia. Trey and I got up on Easter Sunday morning and met my other sister at a new church for services. I missed our regular church but she wanted to go to a different service since she had gone to our church for Saturday Easter services. We tried out St. Louis Family Church. It was a nice service and Trey did pretty well in the nursery.

Because I was a single mother...and didn't really think about it, I forgot to take an Easter picture of Trey. Oops. I guess the picture above will have to do for this year!

I really enjoy dressing up for church. Even though we attend a church with a laid back, casual dress code (most these days do anyway), I still like to dress up for services. Because it was Easter, I definitely wanted to step it up a bit.

I settled on a champagne colored ruffled top from The Limited and a short black skirt. I lurrrrve the top and I can't wait to wear it again. Apparently, its not available for purchase online anymore, or I would have posted a picture. Oh well!

This week, back to work. Busy, busy. Mr. Fabulous will be home tomorrow night.

So, that's about it for me. How was your Easter? What are you up to this week?

Being Frugal IS Fabulous

2010-03-31T20:58:00.003-05:00

I've been thinking a lot lately about starting a weekly series of posts dedicated to a specific topic. After pondering a bit, I thought I'd tackle a subject that affects us all...and makes the world go 'round. Money. That's right.

We love having it. We hate giving it. We can't ever have enough of it.

I've always thought that if I wasn't in the career I am in now, I would really like to fall back on my 2nd degree from college, finance. I'd love to use my financial knowledge in counseling people about their finances. Whether it is debit recovery, or just learning the ABC's of investing, I guess you could say, one day, I'd love to help people in this field.

For my posts, I'd like to share some helpful and common tips to save money in your day to day living. It doesn't matter if you make $30,000 a year, or $150,000 a year, it is still wise to save money and be observant and conscience of your purchases. If anything else, save a few extra dollars and go buy that special dress or handbag that you've been drooling over!

So, here we go.

Tip #1- Become aware of how much commonly purchased items cost and know when a sale is a SALE.

Let's break this down a bit. Think about the grocery store. Do you know how much you pay for a case of soda? Can you honestly say that you know exactly what price a sale becomes really "on sale"?

This is a really good tip to start using. Break down your purchases by unit. If you normally buy a case of soda for $7/case, then the normal price you pay is about $.58 per can. If there is a sale on soda at another grocery store, you'll want to make sure that the sale beats your $.58/can sale price.

As much as I LOOVVE our beloved Target, they are the absolute WORST offenders of the "faux sale" (as I like to call it). They are forever advertising a sale on an item, and after doing some quick math, I've found it to be not a sale at all!

Other household items that would be easy to find a breakdown-unit price:
Laundry detergent-break down by ounce
Paper towels or toilet paper
Diapers--new Moms, this is a BIG ONE! You are going to want to know your price per diaper. I guarantee you'll save HUNDREDS of dollars a year buying smart!

Ok, so what do you think? Do you know how much you pay for your commonly purchased products? Do you know when a sale really IS a sale? Do you even look at prices when you shop? Really...I want to know!

Because after all, being frugal is fabulous! And being smart is empowering!

You asked, I answer.

2010-03-23T21:30:00.004-05:00

After my last post, I had several comments about what my weight loss/nutrition plan entailed. I love blog comments (I mean, who doesn't?) so I thought I'd answer your question and tell you a little about what works for me.

To start out, I have to tell you that I have a LOOONG way to go still. I may have lost 2 dress sizes, but my goal is to lose 2 more. Really.

So, back to the secret. Well, it's not a secret. It's Jenny Craig. Yep. That's it.

I started on their plan about 3 months before I found out that I was pregnant with my son, who is now 2 years old. I was the heaviest I had been in my life. It was pretty shameful personally, that I had let myself get to that point. So, I was willing to do whatever it takes to start getting back on track. (I will tell you that I'm proud to say that I've lost 35 lbs. since I started the program 2 years ago!)

I can't remember what I paid to join (probably a few hundred dollars...remember, I was a little desperate) but I joined as a lifetime member and the longer I am on the plan, the more of a discount I get on food. Today, I pay $39/year (yes, per Year!) and get 30% off my food. Unfortunately, I do not think this particular plan is available anymore.

This is what I like about Jenny Craig: The convenience. As a busy, working Mom, I don't have time to come home and leisurely prepare my nutritionally balanced dinner from Whole Foods. I'm realistic...that just doesn't happen. I am all about fast. It has to be fast. I have no time to time consuming food-prep. With Jenny Craig, you eat 1 pre-packaged meal for each mealtime and then add veggies, milks, fruit and fats.

I absolutely LOVE the pre-packaged food for my lifestyle right now. And kittens, I am not kidding when I say the food is DELICIOUS! It seriously is! (And I tried Nutri-System before and their food is disgusting. Really. I could hardly swallow some of it. Blech!) Anyway, the food program is a no-brainer. I eat quick things in the morning like oatmeal squares or honey oat bars and add a fat-free yogurt. For lunch, I eat anything from their Broccoli Cheese Baked Potato, to Chicken or Tuna Salad, or an Enchilada and then add steamed broccoli or frozen green beans and then a fruit cup. I might have more fruit during the afternoon. Dinner is another hot meal (maybe fajitas, mac and cheese or chicken fettucini) and again, add a veggie that's usually steamed.

I know that a lot of people don't like a plan where you can't eat your own food, but this really works for me. I will tell you that I NEVER buy 7 food items at the same time (one for each day of the week) EVER. I am realistic. I know that I might eat out one night. I also make my own dinner a few times a week. Usually it's baked fish and veggies. It helps give me more variety and also gives my wallet a little break.

So there you have it. What works for me. I haven't done it fast, but I've kept most of it off and am continuing to drop. My goals for the next few weeks is to add more exercise to the mix. That is my big problem right now...finding the time! We'll see how that goes.

If you have any specific questions, I'd be happy to answer them off the blog. You can leave me a comment with your e-mail address or you are welcome to e-mail me directly at mukdlady (at) hotmail (dot) com.

Bullet Points and Pictures

2010-03-22T15:39:00.011-05:00

So, what's been going on here:

-We had a birthday. And a party. And another party. And a trip to the zoo. And a dinner at Cheesecake Factory.And cupcakes. And more cupcakes. (Oops, the cupcakes...that was just me!)

-We're (as in me) back on a diet (see above re: cupcakes)

-My parents are still moving. It better be over soon. They close Friday and I've never seen so much stuff in my life. It makes me want to purge my house. ...and I'm pretty good about keeping things de-cluttered.

-I went to a bridal shower hosted by my BFF Sarah, for my sorority sister and former roommate of 4 years. It was so fun to see and catch up with other sorority sisters from college. Some people have changed. Some, unfortunately, haven't.

-We just found out that we're ticket lottery winners for the Masters coming up in a few weeks. Mr. Fab, my dad, brother and bro in law are heading to Augusta, Georgia. It really is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity so I'm so excited for the Fab boys! The only downside is that they are leaving on Easter Sunday morning. There was lots of hush-hush discussion that I would be upset that we couldn't do our Easter traditions for Trey, but I really am okay with it. I had a brief discussion with the Easter bunny and he's available to come to our house on Saturday! :)

-Surprisingly (again, see cupcakes above) I am back in my "skinnier than my regular skinny jeans" jeans. Aside from the birthday festivities, I have been rockin' my nutrition plan and am down almost 2 dress sizes. I wore jeans yesterday that haven't seen the light of day in a LONG time!! I now have only 1 pair of black trousers left that fit. Bad for my wallet that I need to shop, but great that I'm down a size!

I'll leave you with a few birthday pictures.

The "tablescape" and lunch for our party guests. Strangely, looks similar to last year.

The "ba-ba" cupcakes that I had made. Trey declared them a hit!

Close-up of more food...

My attempt to make balls look classy...mix with Waterford and Voila!

The Birthday Boy is ready for his party!

Singing Happy Birthday!

The mess after inhaling a cupcake!

Opening presents with Daddy. (btw, the invite said no gifts. apparently, no one read that!)

I really wish I had a weekend to recover from this, but alas, I'll just settle for going to work! Hopefully this week won't be so busy so I can check in a little more often! Hope everyone has a great week.

Happy Birthday Trey

2010-03-19T11:47:00.008-05:00

Dear Trey,
I cannot believe that you are already two! You are such a big boy now! Mommy and Daddy are so blessed to be your parents. You are such a fun little boy and we have so much love for you!

Here is what you are up to these days...

- You can count to 3! You say One-Due-Tree!

- Mommy has been teaching you to use your hands to count to 5. You say "1, 2, 3, 4, Hand!" Mommy and Daddy laugh and laugh!

- You can pick out a letter when Mommy says the letter.

- You're starting to say longer phrases like "Ready to go bye-bye", "Don't worry, be happy!", "Daddy is at work", "Miss Nanny pick me up"

- You can answer questions that Mommy asks. When Mommy asks you "What did you do today", you said "Play ba-ba hoop outside!" Mommy also says "Do you need help" and you said "No, Trey do it"!

- You love your teddy bear that you named "Na-Na Bear"

-You love to "Sit by Mommy" before bed. That really means we rock in the recliner.

- You LOVE to be outside! There is nothing you would rather do than play outside!

- You are getting better and better with sign language. You probably know about 20 signs. Mommy knows that it is helping you have a bigger vocabulary too! (And I'm sure you don't know what "vocabulary" means! HA)

Here you are the day you were born. March 19, 2008

1 year old- March 19, 2009

And here you are today, March 19, 2010

Ok, here is what you REALLY looked like today. You would not stop for Mommy to take a picture!

I love you more than yesterday but not as much as tomorrow!

Love,
Mommy and Daddy

(Here's Trey's first birthday post)

My Over 1 week Update Post (with my tail between my legs)

2010-03-14T10:26:00.005-05:00

I thought I'd pop out a quick post while I have the house to myself.

So, it's been over a week since my last post, and let's just say, things have been very busy around the Fabulous household.

Let's see what's going on...(and taking up all my time!)

My parents are moving. Out of their home that they've lived in for over 35 years. My childhood home. This moving process has been an undertaking for our entire family. My mom likes to keep LOTS of things (think organized hoarder). You MUST have at least 3 wedding gifts on hand in case someone would invite you to a wedding...tomorrow. It's essential to have 4 crock pots. You know, depending on how many people you are feeding. And the tupperware. I'm not even going there.

O.M.G folks. We've helped her clean out a idontknowhowmanysquarefoot home, 5 bedrooms, 4 bathrooms, an attic of 4 childrens toy memories of their 18 years at home. The move is in 2 weeks. We're on the home stretch. At this point, Mr. Fab and my brother have been meeting after work every night to help move a few more things. I really think we need to have a party when this whole deal is over. I wonder what I'll do with my time?!?!?

Moving on, work has been very busy. I had a huge project at work that has taken up too much time. It's complete now, was very successful and I think I need a vacation now. :)

This week, our beautiful son Trey will turn 2! Another OMG moment. Do I really have a 2 year old? Why, yes. Yes, I do! It seems like overnight I've gone from a wabbley toddler to a full-on little boy. He's growing so fast, talks SO much and is such a joy to be around. Except for yesterday when he decided as we were walking into the grocery store that he didn't want to be there. Enter toddler meltdown in the entrance of Dierbergs.

I have a party to plan on Saturday. We're just going low-key (because of the move) and having the family over to our house for lunch. No presents. Fantastic day, hopefully.

Mr. Fab took Trey to visit his parents house this morning. We were bad...opted out of church. Today, I'm going to go clean our Junior League cinnamon roll-making kitchen to fulfill my yearly requirement. If there's anything this chick can do well is clean a kitchen!

That about does it for me here. Pretty lame-o but life really can't get much better than this! Oh, and Happy Spring! ...and go get a pedicure.

Show Us your Life- My typical day

2010-03-04T23:01:00.003-06:00

Today, I am participating in Kelly's Korner "Show us your Life" series. This week's topic is to talk about your typical day routine.

If you are a follower of my blog, you probably know that I am a full-time career kickin' mom. I try hard to balance life with being a mommy to a very active 2 year old, and also working at our family business of nationwide volume photography. I love my life but sometimes I cannot muster up the energy to "do it all"!

So, Here we go! This is my typical day! (I have to laugh at "typical" because every day brings many surprises!)

6:30am- I get up and get ready for work. I try not to rush because I seem to rush SO much, that lately I've been trying to wake up a little earlier so I don't have to literally RUN around the house to get out the door.

7:30- Hair and make-up need to be done by now. Then I go to the kitchen, make and eat my breakfast, pack my lunch and prepare breakfast for my 2 year old Trey.

8am- Wake Trey up. (Sometimes it takes a few minutes for him to be "ready" to get up. ...the apple doesn't fall far from the tree!)

8:30am- Breakfast is over. Trey goes to his playroom or brings some toys in my bedroom. I iron my clothes (if necessary) and then put on my work outfit. Then I dress Trey.

8:45am- Depending on the day and activities going on, either Nanny comes to our house or I take Trey to her house. If we go to her house, I need to pack the car (bag for the day, my computer case and lunch) and be out the door by 8:50am.

9:15-9:30am- Arrive at work. Meet with my department staff. (This is code for me flying in and saying "Hi! Everything going ok??") . Then I get briefed on anything new or crazy going on.

9:30-5pm- Work Work Work. And I don't take a lunch. I eat at my desk. Ok, maybe I read a few blogs. Or tweet. Maybe.

5pm- Don't stop me because I'm going home to see my boy!!

5:45- Arrive home. Start making dinner. Kick off my heels and they proceed to pile up at the back door. (Ask Mr. Fab about that one...he LOVES my shoe at the door habit!!)

6pm- If dinner isn't ready, a 2 yr. old is usually tugging on me and whining.

6:30pm- Dinner is finished. Clean up dishes. Play with Trey.

7pm- Start the "winding down" process. Bath time, jammie time, story time, rocking time.

7:30-7:45- Bed time.

8pm- Trey in bed. Finish cleaning up dishes. Do a "5 min pickup" (take 5 min to walk around and pick up toys, shoes, etc.). Sometimes it takes 15 minutes. Sigh

Depending on the night and the amount of energy I have left....
-open mail, pay a few bills
-start a load of laundry
-hang up some laundry
-sit on the couch and watch TV while browsing the internet.

9:30ish- Mr. Fab and I go to bed. Usually we watch a little news, then lights out. (Yes, romantic, I know.)

The next day.... Let's do it again!!!

What is your day like? I'd LOVE to hear!

95 Candles

2010-02-28T20:44:00.005-06:00

Today we celebrated my Grandma Maude's 95th Birthday.

We call her Grandma "Maudy"

Isn't she beautiful?

She lives by herself in an independent living community just a few miles from us. Her health is so good, her mind is sharp as a tack and she just loves life!

We had a great time getting together to celebrate. Along with my immediate family, her 2 sons (my uncles) came in from out of town to see her too. We had lunch, cake and then watched a few home movies from when she was a young mother with my Grandpa.

She told me a story about when my mom was 3 months old and Grandpa was drafted for the war. Grandma was left with 3 young children to take care of while he was at war. She said they lived in an apartment in Chicago and had no car. Can you imagine?? I sure can't! I told her that I would think of her every time I complained about needing help, Mr. Fab working late, etc. etc. That story sure made me blessed for all that I have.

Here's a few pictures of my mom and Grandma (her mom). I think they look so much alike. I love my mom so much! She is such a beautiful and classy lady.

Happy Birthday Grandma Maude! We love you so much!

Pacis, Potties and Wine...Oh My!

2010-02-13T23:05:00.003-06:00

Thought I'd pop in to say hello. Hello!

Currently, I'm in the middle of a grand weekend. Sadly, Mr. Fabulous had to go out of town this weekend for work, but secretly, I am really enjoying having the house to myself. Whoops, guess my secret's out!

Well, let's see what's been going on around here.

While in New Orleans, I started feeling a tad bit embarrassed that my "almost" two year old (who looks like a 3 year old) was still sucking away on an infant pacifier. So when we got home, I put them all (all 3 we own) in a ziploc bag and away they went. No discussion. The crazy thing is that Trey did not even notice. He didn't ask for it. Didn't look for it. Nothing. It's been 2 weeks. Not a peep! Totally crazy! A few days ago, I had the baggie sitting on our planning center desk by the kitchen because I wanted to sterilize them before packing them away for future baby #2. Trey saw the bag, picked it up and said "Bye Bye Paci". That's right, Buh-Bye!

Last weekend, I went grocery shopping with T on a Saturday night (did I mention how exciting my weekends are??). We were strolling down the juice aisle minding our business. I reached out to the shelve, grabbed a bottle of V8 Fusion and placed it in the shopping cart next to Trey. Faster than I could even blink, that child grabbed the bottle and hurled it as hard as he could across the aisle. JUICE EVERYWHERE!! I was thanking my lucky stars we were alone in that aisle. I was absolutely mortified!! I hit the road pretty quickly to look for a clerk so I could let them know that "there's a cleanup in aisle 12". I couldn't find anyone but by the time I circled back to the aisle, a poor teenage worker was already there, mop in hand. What a humbling mom-moment!

I got pulled over the other day ON MY OWN STREET! Apparently, I cruised through a stop sign. Whoops. The best part? The cops ticket printing machine wouldn't work so he couldn't write me a ticket. Oh, poor, poor machine. And that snotty little coppie wanted to make sure that I knew that I was being let go "merely for technical difficulty". Yeah, whatever. Buh-bye!

Moving on...
I have a 2nd birthday party to plan. The theme: Balls. (Talk amongst yourselves)

Speaking of... we're the proud owner of a brand new Potty. In the shape of a Baseball. It's the ba-ba potteee. It has gotten no use yet. Apparently, it's just for show right now. 2yrs old for a boy is pretty early to get serious about the potty anyway. I distinctly remember my mom joking that she'd have to send my little brother to kindergarten in Pampers. Guess he wasn't a fan of a Ba-Ba Potty either.

Mr. Fab and I haven't been out for a date night in freaking for-evah! Last Wednesday, I had tickets for a Junior League Wine Tasting event at Flemings Steakhouse in Frontenac. We decided to make it our date night. We met Sarah and her husband there and had a great evening. They had great wine and a silent auction. Um, I freaking LOVE silent auctions. Mr. Fab ended up winning 2 auctions for me. One was for a bracelet and earring set. The other was a gift certificate to a lingerie boutique in Clayton. Sarah won a group tennis lesson. I asked her to please not invite me. I really don't like sports that involve balls flying in my face. :)

The evening was really nice. If I were smarter, I would have made dinner reservations afterwards. Unfortunately, we got home early. T was coming down with a fever and I didn't want to be the Mom who left her sick child at home to go out and drink.

Tomorrow is Sunday--Valentine's Day. I'll be spending it at home with my little Valentine. 11 years ago, I celebrated my first Valentine's Day with Mr. Fab. He sent a dozen roses to my sorority house with a card inviting me to dinner that he was cooking for me. It included the line--"Bring your beautiful eyes and smile". I don't know why, but I won't ever forget that. He made me veal that night. And sauteed yellow squash. I'm sure we had something else but that is what I remember.

...sap over...sorry if you threw up a little.

Ok, so that's about all I've got today. Hope you have a wonderful Valentine's Day. And if you don't have yourself a Valentine, well, then it's just another Sunday. Really, that's what it is for me anyhow. :)

Simplicity at its finest

2010-02-09T06:00:00.001-06:00

I love...

waking up at my leisure, pouring a cup of coffee, and sitting on the couch to watch the morning news

browsing through the Hallmark Store

the smile on Trey's face when I wake him up in the morning

a kind and cheerful cashier

falling asleep on freshly laundered sheets

when Trey runs over to me and hugs my leg

the first warm breeze signaling that Spring is coming

a sincere compliment

good friends

Chick fil A

sliding into a pair of pants that previously didn't fit

watching You've Got Mail...or The Sound of Music...or The American President

listening to Praise music in the car

getting dressed up

the smell of coffee beans

reading InStyle magazine...by myself...with no interruptions

enjoying a romantic dinner with Mr. Fab tucked in a quiet booth in a low lit restaurant enjoying a filet and a bottle of red wine

What are your simple pleasure loves?

Wordless Monday

2010-02-08T06:00:00.001-06:00

This is real life...aka Our Trip to NOLA

2010-02-04T22:34:00.005-06:00

And what a trip it was. About a month ago, I knew this trip was coming up. It was, most importantly, a business trip...notsomuch in the department of a leisure trip. I also knew that it was either Mr. Fab or me that would have to go. I wasn't so happy about the thought of Mr. Fab being gone for 8 days, but I was even more unhappy about if I had to go, it would be me that would be gone for 8 days...without Trey. That would not be fun.

Lucky for us, my dad (aka: the boss man) announced that we all (dad, mom, brother, sister, Mr. Fab) would be going...and Trey could come too! I was elated!! And then, I started thinking of how I was going to swing having a toddler out of town for a week...oh yeah, and I'd be in conferences all day.

Mr. Fab and I decided that we wanted to do this trip sans nanny since most of my family would be there. It was a great idea, in theory.

So this is how it went down...

2 Suburbans (yes we drove...that's how we roll), 6 1/2 people, 10 hours, 4 states, 2 "too small" hotel suites, 1 very cranky mommy along side an even crankier daddy, 1 a-hole valet dude and 2 meeting with the hotel manager due to a collapse of adequate customer service.

Trey was an absolute mess from St. Louis to Jackson, MS. He was so miserable, crying, throwing toys, not eating. Who WAS this child?? Definitely not mine...for mine does NOT act like this. By the time we arrived to our hotel in Jackson, I wanted to literally shoot myself. But instead, I put T to bed and I grabbed a bottle of wine (yes, I packed wine) and walked outside of our room, sat my a$$ down in the hallway and enjoyed a few moments of solitude. My sister joined me and that night will go down in history. Sitting in the hallway of the Hilton, drinking wine out of a coffee cup while being propositioned by an old Indian man wearing tight long johns, a wife beater and argyle socks who invited us both to his "big house" in Dehli. I swear I can't make this stuff up!

The next day T was even worse. He cried and cried. He refused to nap. It was terrible. That day will really go down in my mind as a day I would like to forget. For, I lost my motherly instinct and my attitude was something that I was not proud of. Instead of thinking something was really wrong, I just thought T was starting in with the "terrible 2's". I probably sat him in time out 5 times that day.

By Wednesday, my instinct returned and I took T to urgent care. Diagnosis for T: Double Ear Infection. Diagnosis for me: Double dose of extreme Mommy guilt.

I needed to turn in my badge. I couldn't believe I had turned my head to a child who was in so much pain and just thought he was being naughty. After bawling my eyes out from Gretna (the only city I could find with Urgent Care) to Meterie, I calmed down and joined our group back at the hotel.

Thursday, the amoxicillin had kicked in, T was feeling better and napped for 3 hours that afternoon. The next day, 4 1/2 hours. This kid needed his sleep! My mom watched him while I sat in meetings in the morning, when he napped, she stayed with him in the hotel and a few times Mr. Fab or I left the meetings to play.

Looking back on our trip, there are definitely things that I would have changed but when you're in the middle of crazy situations, you can't help but to be in survival mode.

We definitely had a good time. We ate at some very good restaurants (here, here and here just to name a few), saw an awesome parade and went on a great tour of the City of New Orleans.

I will tell you, I don't think I have ever been so happy to be home. Children are creatures of habit and routine and Trey totally thrives in routine. So we're glad to be home. Really glad to be home.

Up on tap this week...Super Bowl (GO Saints, of course!), and a few more bloggy surprises!

Gone Fishin'

2010-01-30T13:14:00.002-06:00

2010-01-20T10:01:00.002-06:00

All SOLD OUT! WHO-HOO
One gift card left! Reduced price! Talbots $105 balance for $85! Click Here

Wordless Wednesday

2010-01-20T09:52:00.005-06:00

1.18.10 22 mo.

Gift Cards for sale

2010-01-17T13:36:00.008-06:00

Update- everything has Sold! YEAH for my wallet! :)

I'm doing a little cleaning and I decided to post a few gift cards on Craigslist that I do not really want to use. Then, I thought that perhaps I'd offer them up to my readers!

This is what I have...

TJMaxx gift card with $22.31--selling for $13.00 (Also good at Marshalls) SOLD

Bath and Body Works gift card with $43.00--selling for $35.00 SOLD

Williams Sonoma gift card with $50.00--selling for $43..ok, fine REDUCED TO $39! SOLD

Talbots gift card with $105 balance--~~selling for $90~~ REDUCED TO $85-- SOLD

Add $3 shipping. Of course, if you're in STL, you could come pick up in St. Charles or Creve Coeur for free! I take cash (in STL) or Paypal if I'm shipping these. I have original receipts to validate the amount.

Email me if you are interested. mukdlady (at) hotmail (dot) com Do not leave a comment on this post. Please just email me. First come, first serve.

National Delurker Day

2010-01-14T12:34:00.003-06:00

This very, important day almost passed me up! January 14th is National Delurker Day here in blog land! So...

"Come out, Come out, wherever you are!!" I am very thankful for everyone that reads my daily nonsense. Sometimes it's good, sometimes...notsomuch. So, thanks for stickin' with me and leave me a comment to say hello! Tell me who u are, where you are from and how long you've been reading. Promise, it'll be fun!!

Then, read my post below. It's funny! :)

Green Bean GO!

2010-01-13T10:32:00.008-06:00

I am just LOVING the age that Trey is at right now. Not that we haven't been having a blast for the last 22 months...but OMG, this kid is hilarious!

In the last few months, it's like the switch has been turned on. He really is understanding everything you tell him, tries to say just about everything and has quite the opinion!

Here are a few snippets of funny things that he is saying/doing:

- I was teaching him "Green means GO, Red means STOP". He says "Green Bean GO!" I just die laughing! It is SO funny!!

- (Blast from the past...when my brother was little, he'd pronounce Macaroni "Mack-a-doo-doo". It kind of stuck as a funny thing we always say in my family.) Whenever I make macaroni and cheese for Trey, I call it "mack-a-doo-doo". Trey calls it "Mama-doo-doo"! ...I think we'll start calling it Macaroni again!!

- I didn't realize how much I say to Trey "Hi Honey". Every day when I come home, I say it. If he walks in the room unexpectedly, I say it. A few days ago, I was sitting on the couch and he was playing in his playroom. He came out, walked right up to me with a big smile and said "Hi Honey!!" He melteth my heart!

- Trey calls all food "num-num". I'm trying to teach him exact words so he can say things like "milk" or "cracker" instead of standing in the middle of the kitchen yelling "Num-Num". He LOVES Goldfish crackers. After working for a few days on saying Goldfish (which was nearly impossible) he now calls them "G-by-num-num". {enter puzzled face here}. Nevertheless, we know when he pulls on the door handle of the pantry shouting "G-by-num-num", he is indeed requesting Goldfish!

-As some of you know, Trey has a strange fascination with balls. Yes, folks, balls. Basketballs, baseballs, soccer balls, golf balls. If it's round, he's on it! It is really interesting because he would rather play with balls and his "ba-ba hoop" than anything else. You know where this is going, right?? :) So, he has a favorite ball. Coincidentally, it's blue. He can say very well and clearly "blue ball". Last night, we were in the car and he was, as usual, holding a ball in his had while we drove. It was the blue ball. I was talking to him about "Daddy being home and we were going to go home and see Daddy and play with Daddy. " Then I said, "Daddy will play ball with you." So, they Trey said "Daddy Blue Ball!" OH GEEZ! I could NOT handle it! I did not want to make him think what he said was bad....so, all the way home "Daddy Blue Ball" rung out from the back seat. Mr. Fab didn't think this story was as funny as I did!!

I'm sure this is the isn't even the tip of the iceberg either. I will probably be telling you many more funny stories as he grows and talks even more!

I'd love to hear something funny that your kids (or even you, as a child!) have said! Let's discuss...

It's Award Time

2010-01-08T22:13:00.011-06:00

My good bloggy friend, Kathryn over at Est. 3-31-07 honored me with the Happy 101 Award! Thanks so much, Kathryn! I am ALL about uplifting others, so I am very, ahem, *Happy* to play along.

So, here goes!

Rules:
1) List 10 things that make you happy
2) Tag 10 bloggers that brighten your day
3) If you are one of the 10 bloggers awarded, link back to my blog and continue brightening people's day!

10 Things that make me happy

1. The first smile of my baby Trey when he wakes up in the morning
2. Getting dressed up, feeling good in your pretty outfit and thinking you can conquer the world
3. When my dad tells me that he's proud of me
4. A greeting card from my husband
5. The first sip of a fountain Diet Coke
6. Finding money unexpectedly (like in a pocket of your winter coat or a purse you haven't used in awhile)
7. Friends that make you feel good about yourself
8. My family
9. Shopping at Nordstrom
10. Thinking about "old" times like my 'golden' years in college and working with my family before we expanded to different locations.

I know sometimes these little awards are cheesy, but the following ladies have been an encouragement to me personally IRL and/or thru my blog and twitter. Each one of them are genuinely uplifting and encouraging.

Click Clack Mom
Kelly's Korner
In the Trenches
Be Happy for this Moment
Dishy Decorator
Grosgrain Garage
The Seven Spot
Living Life
Wearing Mascara
Jillian, Inc.
DIY Diaries
My Brunette Reality
My Husband's Watching TV
Damask is Divine

Bloggy turned IRL friends

2010-01-08T21:39:00.002-06:00

A few days before Christmas, I had the pleasure of meeting up with two of my favorite blogger/twitter friends.

Julie, from Wearing Mascara; Jenn from Living Life and I met at Sub Zero Vodka Bar in St. Louis' Central West End for a few drinks and lots of fun girl chat. These ladies are the real deal! Just as fabulous in real life as I thought through blogging and twitter.

Julie was in town for Christmas visiting family. Jenn lives here in downtown St. Louis. We had a wonderful time! We talked and talked...it was great to cut the 'just met you' small talk because we already knew so much about each other from our blogs. We had fabulous drinks...Julie and Jenn had yummy champagne cocktails and I had to stand firm on my tride and true Grey Goose and tonic.

I felt like we could have stayed forever but sadly, we all had to get home to rest up for Christmas festivities. I am so glad that I have been blessed to meet and now be IRL friends with two wonderful ladies.

me, Julie and Jenn

Christmas Loot

2010-01-03T09:00:00.000-06:00

Even though we took this Christmas off this year of exchanging gifts with my family, I did end up with a little pile of goodies!!

Northface Aconcagua Coat- This is the warmest coat I've ever had. It is unbelievable!

A Keurig coffee maker- My new love! MMmmmm...

A Willow Tree Nativity Set-- This comes with a melt-your-heart story. I'll share soon!

Silpada Necklace and Earrings

But really, it was this little guy that cleaned house on Christmas morning!!

Santa brought Trey lots of little goodies (let's face it, uh Santa knew the big loot was at the Grandparents house, so he didn't go crazy on the gifts). Trey thought the most exciting presents were all the balls that were in his stocking!

At the inlaws house...

A new laptop!

Grandma helping with the new remote control car

Christmas day was wonderful...spending it with family and seeing the twinkle in Trey's eyes with all the new toys! Now, to figure out what I am going to store all of them...

Oh, happy day!

2010-01-01T21:42:00.003-06:00

She's baaaack!

2009- Looking back

2009-12-31T13:38:00.003-06:00

(I totally owe you all a Christmas review! We'll get to that this weekend, k? xoxo)

2009. Oh, 2009. I don't even know where to begin.

Last year at this time, I was getting ready to spend the evening out with my husband and a few other friends at Cafe Eau.

Little did I know what was about to happen 48 hours later to me and my family. I definitely don't want to say "2009 has been the worst year of my life". That is just not true. Things could have been much, MUCH worse. But, let me tell you, what I will remember from this past year is the year that God tested my faith, obedience and trust in Him.

I hope you all can bear with me as I keep typing this post. I really can't go in to detail about some things that occurred this year because most of it is dealing with our businesses. But our businesses ARE our family, so it is personal. Very, very personal. I blogged a little about it here.

But anyway, it has been a tough and traumatic year. But, the lessons that the Lord forced me to learn have made me a different person than I was this day last year. I am more forgiving. I am more giving to others. I got back to the "basics" of my faith by regularly attending church. I saw and BELIEVE in the power of prayer. All of this has helped me get through these very difficult months. We are definitely not out of the woods, but I know that I am not alone in this journey and the experiences that I am going through has and will make me a better person.

One thing that has helped my family cope is our precious son, Trey. He has, single-handedly, helped our family and mostly my dad get through this past year. To just see my Dad's eyes light up when he's around is just priceless. It is absolutely amazing that a little baby (now toddler) can help you forget the pain remember what matters most. I thank the Lord every day for blessing me with this precious child.

As I move into a new year as well as a new decade, I am very content with my ability to face life as God brings it on. I'm armed with some heavy duty gear now and I am seriously ready to take on the challenges that will continue to make me a better person. A few weeks ago, I read something very profound. "In your 20's, you focus on what others think about you. In your 30's, you focus on what God thinks of you." I can't remember where I saw that, but I believe that is so true. I am SO glad to be where I am right now. I wouldn't go back 3, 5 or 10 years. The life lessons I have learned are irreplaceable.

This year will bring many changes to our household. We (hopefully) will be welcoming another addition to our family. We'll be taking a year off from our annual vacation destinations and working on finding joy in the little things. We will not be moving like we originally had planned 2 years ago.

I am not resolving to do anything different this year, but staying on the right path as the Lord guides me.

May God bless each and every one of you this New Year.

Trust in the Lord with all of your heart and lean not on your own understanding. Proverbs 3:5

From our house to yours...

2009-12-26T11:03:00.002-06:00

May you have a Merry Christmas and best wishes for a fabulous New Year.

Family Christmas Card

2009-12-21T12:17:00.006-06:00

I've previously written about the fact that my family has taken a Christmas picture for our card ever year since 1972. Our cards went from one child to 4, many family pets who had been included have come and gone, and the outfits evolved from matching hand-made outfits to a just a coordinating and festive look.

We try every year to photograph the picture in a different place. We've done every possible nook and cranny in my parents home, at my sister P's house, at the studio, outside of the studio, at the Country Club...we've taken the darn picture EVERYWHERE!!

This year, we chose my other sister W's house. We wanted to have the picture outside, but unfortunately the weather wasn't cooperating. The picture ended up still being taken outside, but the fall colors that we wanted, was not possible.

Here is the completed picture card:

I had to blur out our company logo and name...(you know, for all the crazies out there!)

Back row (L to R): Mr. Fab, Trey, me, oldest sister W, her husband
Front row: youngest brother C, Dad, Mom, sister P, P's dog Natasha

In typical "busy mom" fashion, the card for Mr. Fab and my little family is late. I finished the design this morning and sent it to the lab. It will be completed this afternoon and by the grace of God, they will all go out in the mail tomorrow! After I know most everyone has received theirs, I will post it.

Getting back to our Christmas pictures we've taken throughout the years, I know I promised you all to post a few. I have actually been so excited to do so, except they are not in a digital format, so that means I get to scan my pretty little heart out! :) That might be something I'll be able to do over the Christmas break.

But, until then, I'll leave you with one. This is our picture taken in the living room of my parent's house (my childhood home) in December of 1978. I was less than 1 month old.

My mom made the dresses. Get a load of my dad's shoes!!! I think my mom is so freaking beautiful here. Ah, the memories!

Christmastime Fun

2009-12-19T20:55:00.014-06:00

Last weekend, the in-laws invited us to a local Christmas event in town. Unfortunately, MIL was not able to come at the last minute, so it was me, Trey, Mr. Fab and his dad.

The hall was decorated so beautifully

Beautiful train displays

Pretty Christmas trees

Trey and "Grandpa B"

They had live reindeer! (The smell was overwhelming!)

Trey and Mr. Fab

This is one of my favorites. I can't believe how grown up Trey is now!

Trey and me by one of the tree displays

Group shot. Grandpa, Trey, Mr. Fab and me.
*This is also a picture of the three "Patrick Daniels". Sr, II, and III. Pretty cool, eh?*

And the famous Santa shot. Not quite Trey's cup of tea. Maybe a teeny better then last year!

We had a great time. Hoping that next year, Trey will take a liking to the big man in red!

My Christmas Wish List- 2009 Edition

2009-12-17T13:34:00.012-06:00

With all the buzz that comes with the holidays, I just can't help myself to think about a few things that would make my Christmas a little more bright and cheery! Unfortunately, my list is definitely a wish, indeed. My family decided that we would take a year off from exchanging gifts. I actually thought it was a grand idea. As my brother, sisters and I are in our adult years, we tend to buy what we want, when we want it.

To add to that, Mr. Fabulous and I thought we'd take a year off too and focus our gifts more on Trey. All in all, it's really been a big weight off my shoulders. No running to the mall (which is nearly impossible with a toddler), no crowds, no gift receipts, no family member irritated because they didn't like their gift. I could go on and on.

So, without further adieu, here's my wish list. Perhaps, I'll buy a thing or two as the new year progresses. But I sure wouldn't mind opening them up on Christmas morning! wink, wink...

Mandoline I've been eyeing one of these babies for a long time. Wouldn't it totally cut down on the time it takes to chop up veggies? Think how fast I could whip up a stir-fry!

Chad Allison Cuff Oh lordy, lord. I had the honor to have this cuff on my arm a few weeks ago. Mr. Fab and I went to a private holiday jewelry showing and I couldn't take my eyes off of it. When I tried the cuff on, my heart skipped a beat! And then when I saw the price tag, it skipped another beat...knowing that it is totally out of the question to ask Santa for an $11,000 diamond cuff. Oh well, a girl can dream!

the matching pendant and while I'm dreaming, I'd sure like the matching pendant.

Nanette Lepore "Sweetheart" Pump My swoon shoe! I've been eyeing these babies for months...literally! The first time I saw them on my girlfriend's feet, I knew they needed to be off her feet and on mine! They are definitely a splurge and I've been waiting for them to go on sale. I checked last week, and Nordstrom had marked them down to 50% off! I almost died! Then I found out they only had them in a 9.5 . Boo! I'll still keep looking. Boy, I love that flower. *swoon*

momAgenda This is actually a present that I already bought for myself. I just couldn't pass up the 15% off markdown with an additional 10% off coupon code! I always have been a girl who must write her schedule (not type it in the computer or iPhone). There's been so much buzz on Twitter about the momAgenda, I thought I'd give it a whirl. I bought the desktop in fuschia with my name engraved at the bottom. (Side note: I received it on Tuesday...complete with a very noticeable scratch on the front. I called to see if they'd work with me to correct the defect. 24 hours later and no returned phone call. ugh...)

Drapery It is with much embarrassment to tell you that after living in my home for a certain number of years, I have yet to buy custom drapery for our dining room. Chalk it up to a busy career, then a new baby...yeah, just haven't had time. I promise to do it this year! I'm currently eyeing these Silk Taffeta Ribbon Striped drapes from Restoration Hardware.

There you have it. If anyone feels compelled to put a good in to Santa for me, it would be greatly appreciated! Until then, a girl can wish! What is on your wish list this year? Do you exchange with your family? Husband/sig-o? I'd love to hear!

A Christmas Meme

2009-12-14T21:17:00.009-06:00

I know, I know, you've seen this meme 3...4...5 times so far this holiday season! I always think it is great to learn a little bit more about my daily blog reads. So here goes, kittens. A little more about Mrs. Fabulous--Christmas Edition.

1. Wrapping paper or gift bags?
I definitely prefer to wrap gifts, spending countless hours tying big ribbon bows and whipping out the glue gun to make sure everything is intact. Unfortunately, I sometimes find myself pulling out a gift bag to use purely for convenience. Mostly, it is for immediate family members. You don't need to impress them, right?

2. Real tree or Artificial?
Artificial, thank Jesus. We had a HUGE real tree every. single. year. of my childhood. As an adult, I profusely refuse to vacuum up pine needles. Case closed, the end. I don't care how wonderful your real tree smells.

3. When do you put up the tree?
Always the weekend before Thanksgiving. This is only because we go out of town every Thanksgiving weekend. I love coming home from Thanksgiving, ready to kick off the Christmas season with all of my decor ready to go!

4. When do you take the tree down?
I try to take everything down the weekend after New Years. It ends up being a process. Maybe doing a little each day. It always is harder taking everything down. I do appreciate the house put back to the original state, though. I feel like it's cleaner and not so cluttered with nick-knacks, etc.

5. Do you like eggnog?
Yes, I do. But it's really sweet and filling. So when it's offered, I drink it in limited quantities. Unless, it has alcohol in it. Which then, I drink it in mass quantities and pass out at 6pm!

6. Favorite gift received as a child?
Two favs that I can remember is 1. any Barbie gift...furniture, the Ferrari, clothing, etc. 2. A chalkboard so I could "play school". I was OBSESSED with pretending to be a teacher. I loved that chalkboard so much. I was so serious about my play school...I would make lunch lists, grade papers and post daily announcements around our playroom. The chalkboard just enhanced my experience.

7. Hardest person to buy for?
that would probably be a certain someone in my family. I'll leave it at that.

8. Easiest person to buy for?
probably my sister P. We have a lot of the same sense of style and generally like the same things.

9. Do you have a nativity scene?
I do, but it is very big. I would love, love, LOVE a Willow Tree Nativity Scene.

10. Mail or email Christmas cards?
I've never heard of emailing Christmas cards, so obviously my answer would be to mail them. I wish to God that no one EVER sends me a Christmas card via email.

11. Worst Christmas gift you ever received?
Hmm...I can't recall a really bad gift. I tend to like and appreciate most gifts. I do remember one year I received a rectangular leopard purse with a chain-linked strap. It was horrendous. I think I gave it to Good Will....with the tags still on.

12. Favorite Christmas Movie?
Classics are Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer and Charlie Brown. I also enjoy other movies that aren't technically Christmas, but on during the holidays. Two of my favorites are The American President and You've Got Mail.

13. When do you start shopping for Christmas?
I try to start early, so I can space out my buying and budget without having to dip into another one of my accounts. Thankfully, this year my family is not exchanging gifts. We are donating money to charity. Easy shopping, eh?

14. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present?
Honestly, yes. But they're good presents. It was probably because I already had the same item.

15. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas?
oh geez, pretty much anything!

16. Lights on the tree?
um, yes? moving on...

17. Favorite Christmas song?
O Holy Night--Celine Dion rendition. Gives me goose bumps every time I hear it.

18. Travel at Christmas or stay home?
travel in the Metro area. We see both my family and the inlaws between Christmas eve and day.

19. Can you name all of Santa's reindeer?
Yes, because I know all the words to Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer.

20. Angel on the tree top or a star?
I prefer a huge bow, but my husband insisted on a star. I was picking my battles that day. I guess a star is more biblical anyway. Last time I checked, the three wise men followed the star to Bethlehem...not a bow in the sky!

21. Open the presents Christmas Eve or morning?
Christmas morning!

22. Most annoying thing about this time of the year?
not remembering the reason for the season. The birth of Jesus Christ.

23. Favorite ornament, theme, or color?
lots of fav ornaments. See previous post.

24. Favorite for Christmas Dinner?
we do a big Christmas eve dinner. As a child, we'd do Stone Crab as a special treat. Now, as adults (and extended families) we do seafood and everyone brings a side dish and dessert.

25. What do you want to do for Christmas this year?
We're all about new traditions for my little family so we will visit both families at some point and open gifts just the three of us on Christmas morning. Oh yeah, and we're taking Trey to a live nativity on Christmas Eve. That is going to be awesome!!

26. Favorite Christmas tradition growing up?
On Christmas morning, we could not go down to the living room to see what Santa brought us until my parents said so (the majority of our gifts were unwrapped). We'd have to line up in my parents master bedroom and then at the count of 3 run down the hall to the top of the stairs and then had to stop (at the top of the stairs, you could see the entire living room). When we ran down the hall and stopped at the stairs, we could see all of the presents and my Dad would take a picture of us. The pictures were hilarious because we were supposed to be smiling at the camera but really we were all looking at our toys and presents with our eyes bugged out and our jaw hanging to the floor!

27. Favorite tradition now?
we're trying to create some traditions for our family so stay tuned!

28. Favorite Christmas Memory?
A few years ago, my mom asked for a new remote lock for her car (a older model Mercedes). When she opened her little gift, it was indeed a new remote lock, as well as a new key...for her new silver E Class Big Pimpin' Mercedes sitting outside in the circle drive! It was so funny because she was SO confused and thought the car belonged to someone else. We were like, "Uh, Mom, that's YOUR car...because it has a BIG RED BOW on top!"

So, that's it. Christmas fun ala Mrs. Fabulous.

The Christmas Tour of Homes

2009-12-13T19:55:00.029-06:00

Welcome to my house! This year, I am participating in The Nester's Christmas Tour of Homes. I am so excited to take a look at everyone else's homes too. It will definitely give me some good ideas for me!

This year has been very interesting when it comes to Christmas decorating because we now have a full-fledged toddler on our hands! Instead of spending the entire Christmas season saying "No, No do not touch that", I figured that we better take it down a notch on decorating. I put out basic decor this year and kept many breakables and potential toddler-hazards in the basement. Maybe next year we can bring out more.

So, here we go!

This is our tree...

I am keeping it real here with the Super Yard peeking out on the side! Unfortunately, on a daily basis, our tree is corralled by a Super Yard toddler gate. It is practically the only way that our tree would stay standing up. Poor T just stands at the gate and stares at the tree and train. Too bad Momma knows the look of mischief in his eyes!!

The train below the tree is very special. It belongs to Mr. Fab and was given to him from his parents as a child. The train set is vintage Anheuser-Busch and is all collectors items. Mr. Fab's family has a long tradition of family members that worked at the brewery, so it is pretty special to them.

I love when trees are color coordinated or have a "theme", but it is just not conducive for us. I like to still display my childhood ornaments and I also want Trey's new ornaments out too. Here are some of my favorite ornaments...

The "big" ball ornaments. To the left of the ball is Santa you know, riding a bottle of Tabasco Sauce. Moving on...

Then, we have my Barbie ornaments. I love, love, LOVE Barbie, so these are very appropriate for me! I'll just show you one for now.

Here is an ornament that we received as a wedding gift. It was packaged in a beautiful Neiman Marcus box but when we opened it...well, it just looked odd. Mr. Fab always says that it is Elvis dancing with a bride!

Growing up, my mom would give me and my sisters a bread dough ornament every year. I just love them. I hope they keep for a very long time. My favorite one is the dancer ornament. It represents all those exciting high school years on the Dance Team.

Another bread dough ornament...

This was part of a Christmas dress that my mom made me and my sisters one year. I made it into an ornament. I love it because it brings back wonderful memories!

To end our mini-tour of the tree, I MUST show you one of my more comical ornaments. This coincidentally is a bread dough ornament, but I made it myself in Sunday School growing up in the Baptist Church.

Here it is... the country of Venezuela

I'm sure you're saying to yourself "What the heck, Venezuela?". We were learning about missionaries in Venezuela at the time. Don't ask me why the teacher thought it'd be a good idea to make an ornament to represent it!

Ok, enough with the tree and ornaments! Here is my Grandmother's antique china cabinet that we put our Christmas cards on. We have our tree up in the dining room because that is where our main front window is. I love to have the tree lit up and displayed out the front window of the house.

Here is our foyer. I love the gold decor in here. My mom purchased all of these decorations from a boutique in Naples. I just love them all!

Moving into the Great Room. Our mantle with my collection of Christmas houses.

Of course, my favorite house. Barbie's house!

Trey's stocking. It matches his Pottery Barn train motif in his room.

My fun holiday dishes displayed on the baker's rack.

Yummy smelling pine cones on an end table...

Trey LOVES the snowglobe!

A little wreath that Mr. Fab's grandma made me. I thought it added a festive touch to the hanging wine rack!

A little touch of the holiday in the guest bath. (and yes, I'm aware that we're out of tissues!) he he

That's about it! I hope you enjoyed a little peek into my house. Maybe in years to come, when children are growing up, we can add more decor. Until then, "Trey, do NOT throw the ball at the Christmas tree!!"

Happy Holidays to you!

Christmas Tour of Homes

2009-12-10T15:04:00.003-06:00

This coming Monday, December 14th, I will be participating in The Nesters Christmas Tour of Homes! I REALLY like her motto---"It doesn't have to be perfect to be beautiful" because that is the name of the game at my house. It certainly has been interesting decorating for Christmas with a toddler in mind!

Stay tuned...and join in too!

Christmas Traditions Festival

2009-12-06T19:47:00.009-06:00

This afternoon, I met my STL bloggy buddies Angie, Randall and Alyssa in historic downtown St. Charles, Missouri for their Christmas Traditions festival.

We all met next to the Big Christmas Tree by Lewis and Clark's Restaurant.

Here we are. Angie, me, Randall and Alyssa.

We had lunch at the Winery of the Little Hills. The food was really good, however, our table location *sucked* (it was next to a busy door going outside--brrr...) and the service was meh. Good thing the company was awesome! Love these ladies!

After lunch, the parade began on Main Street. It was really cool how relaxed it was. The historic Santas and other Christmas characters were really personable. If they saw you with a camera, they'd stop and pose! A few of them were a little too-personable so we decided to "not make eye contact". HA

The beginning of the parade...

Frontier Santa...

Father Christmas...

Pere Noel...

The Sugar Plum Fairy (who I was convinced was on crack)...

Carolers...

The Civil War Santa...

The traditional Santa Claus ended the parade in a horse drawn carriage. Unfortunately, he wouldn't look in our direction, so we didn't get a good pic.

Here is Alyssa, me (w/ the redic hair going on) and Randall waiting for the parade to begin...

After the parade ended, we did a little shopping up and down Main Street. The have the neatest little shops. We went into many spice stores and others that sold little hand-made "nick-nacks". Randall showed us one of her favorite stores that sold all Amish made home decor. It was really neat. The furniture was beautiful. Probably not the style that I would decorate my home, but really solid, quality craftmanship. I bet those Amish folk have really nice horses and buggys because that shiz was expensive!!!

One of the reasons that I love to visit historic St. Charles is because of the beautiful buildings. They lined Main Street for many blocks.

While we were walking down the street, there was a pick-up truck parked in a busy area selling Yellow Lab puppies. They were SO cute. Part of me was a little ticked because I really don't think it's right to be increasing the dog population while there are so many dogs without homes. (I'm a big Stray Rescue supporter.) These folks were selling the puppies for $125 without papers. Ironically, they ended up being busted by the cops later on!

Here is Randall posing with one of the puppies. They really were darling. I think Mr. Fab would divorce me if I brought one of them home, though!!

All in all, it was a really fun afternoon. Although it was super cold out, we had a blast! These are 3 of my favorite new friends. I see many more fun outings and socializing in our future! Alyssa, thank you so much for coordinating this afternoon!

**Special thanks to Angie for being our photographer for the day!**

Pictures...because frankly, I'm tired.

2009-12-05T21:24:00.008-06:00

Mr. Fab and me at a Christmas Party last week

Mr. Fab being ridiculous...

My sister borrowed my camera a few weeks ago. I just downloaded the card and found this. Taken at her house one night she was babysitting T. I freaking LOL'd big-time! Pretty sure I sent him over there with pants!

T snuggling in the biscuit...

One for the road...

Christmas Traditions

2009-12-02T16:14:00.003-06:00

These days, I'm thinking about family traditions. When my mom and I were discussing Christmas family plans, she mentioned "Are you going to stay at home for Christmas morning and open presents with Trey?" That had me thinking. I need to start a few Christmas traditions for my new little family.

When I was growing up, my family had several fun traditions. First, my parents had a family friend from church dress up as Santa and come to our house on Christmas Eve. He would arrive towards the end of Christmas Eve dinner, and bring a black garbage bag of toys with him. The bag would contain 1 toy for each of us. (kind of like to "tie us over" until Christmas morning). The next Christmas tradition that I can remember as an older child (I'll have to ask my mom but I don't think we did this until we all were a bit older) is that we would have fresh steamed Stone Crab for Christmas Eve dinner. My dad takes an annual golf trip to Florida in November and he would bring back the Stone Crab. My mom would freeze it until Christmastime. Along the same lines of food, my mom would either buy or make those huge cinnemon rolls for Christmas morning breakfast.

Now, the last tradition worth mentioning is a biggun. I'm not even touching this one with a ten-foot pole! ...my mother made us all matching Christmas dresses/outfits! Yes, you heard me right. My mom, 2 sisters and I would wear completely identical dresses while my dad and younger brother had matching ties/bowties, etc. Dude, this was major. My mom is a fantastic seamstress. It wasn't like a plain dress in a cotton fabric. These were totally ornate. Large gold buttons, fur, sparkly satin material etc. Just think...1989 at it's finest! We wore our outfits in our annual Christmas card picture and also to Church. The last year that she made our dresses was 1996. For 2 years after that, we bought matching attire. Now, we just "coordinate". Thank goodness!!

So, with all of this being said, I need to figure out what traditions that I would like to have for my family. I think we might do the cinnemon rolls on Christmas morning (we actually did that last year) and open presents but after that, I am just not sure. What I do know is that I will NOT be shipping crab up to Missouri from Florida and I certainly will not be doing any sewing. This girl can't even sew a button on!

I would love if you would share a tradition or two that you have! I need some ideas!

Wrap-Up

2009-11-29T18:04:00.002-06:00

It's Sunday night and we're back from the Lake. A great time was had by all! I can tell you one thing, though. I am SO glad to get back to a normal routine which includes my regular nutritional plan. I didn't overdue it terribly this weekend, but I am really sick of such huge and heavy meals! Ugh.

Last week, Mr. Fab and I put up all of the Christmas decor. It was awesome coming home from our trip today with the house totally decorated. YEAH! Today, we returned home around noon and slowly unpacked, let T nap (for 3 hours!) and pittled around the house. I took the time to move the rest of my summer wardrobe out of my closet and into the guest room closet. YES, you heard me right. I still had not finished switching my wardrobe out. It got so bad that when I was putting clean laundry away, I could hardly fit anything else in my closet. I HAD to move the rest out!

So, out with the old, in with the new. And by new, I mean all the new duds that I scored at the outlets on Saturday. Mr. Fab and I decided that this would be part of our Christmas. We both really needed a wardrobe update. I ended up finding a TON of deals at Banana and JCrew. Mr. Fab did really well at Banana. The entire store was 50% off. I also bought a great pair of tall boots at Nine West.

All in all, we had a great Thanksgiving celebration with both of our families. Even though there are always ups and downs, I'm really thankful for two wonderful families to be a part of.

I hope you all had a great celebration too! And can we say it now? ...Merry Christmas!

Thanksgiving Day Plans

2009-11-25T14:35:00.003-06:00

So, here we are on Thanksgiving Eve.

For some reason, it just doesn't seem time yet. Oh well. I'm not complaining! Not at all!

This year, we are continuing our tradition that started a few years ago where my side of the family celebrates Thanksgiving on Friday. I am SO glad that we do this. Since we have 2 sides of the family to see, it almost ruined Thanksgiving to run from house to house and to eat 2 meals! Ugh. I can remember the feeling of being so full I wanted to die.

Now, for the last 3 (maybe 4?) years, we visit the in-laws on Thursday. They live about 40 minutes from us. Still in the "Metro" area. We arrive late morning, spend the day with them and eat around 3 or 4pm. Afterwards, we pack up and head West to Mid Missouri aka "The Lake". It is about a 3 hour drive from the in-laws house. We arrive at Porto Cima, the community that my parents have their golf condo, late Thursday.

Friday, the guys play golf. They call it the Turkey Scramble. Great name, huh?!? It's my dad and brother vs. my bro-in-law and Mr. Fab. My mom and sisters (and T, of course!) stay at the condo and start preparing our food for our Thanksgiving dinner. We love to cook so this is all so much fun for us!

Saturday, the guys usually play golf again and then we hit the Outlets! Oh man, I am SO ready to tear it up! I didn't find what I was looking for on my trip to the mall Sunday, so I have my little list of things that I am looking for. They also have a "Mega-Marshalls" there. I freaking LOVE that store. It is HUGE!

Late Sunday morning, we pack up and head home. I like to get home at a decent hour to put everything away, start laundry and relax before reality hits Monday morning.

I'm really excited to relax, get out of the house and be with family.

What are your plans for the big Turkey Day?

Being Thankful

2009-11-24T19:58:00.003-06:00

I am thankful for friends that are there for you. That are real. That let you call them at work to cry when you've only talked on the phone once ever. That let you vent (which usually doesn't make sense) and understands. That are honest. That give you great feedback.

You know who you are. You're the real deal. Thank you.

Birthday Loot

2009-11-21T22:47:00.003-06:00

I decided that I'm venturing out tomorrow. I'm gonna get out of this house if it kills me! Well, maybe not really if it kills me. But you know what I mean, right?

Since it's my Birthday weekend, I want to shop. Not in a Ihavesomuchmoneytoburnthatineedtodrownmysorrowsatthemall . But rather, I need a few things and frankly, haven't bought anything worth mentioning in quite a while.

So here goes:

-Nordstom: I need a couple pair of opaque tights. Only Spanx tights will do

-Talbots:I have a $100 gift card to use at Talbots. Why not use it for some bday loot?

-Old Navy: Return gone too long-Have a $40 credit...I'm liking their cute sweater dresses. Hope it works!

-Anywhere in between... I'd like to buy a cute new pair of jammies. We're going out of town next week to my parents condo and I'd really like to not pack college t-shirts and ratty lounge pants.

That's my list. Feel free to leave me a comment of some other things that you think I MUST have!

2009-11-20T13:59:00.002-06:00

So, I'm back. Kind of.

My head feels like it was hit by a bus. Or that someone punched me in both eyes. Since neither of these things have really happened to me, I cannot be for sure of the pain level. What I do know is that I would give my week off from work back in a second to feel normal again.

Every day is getting better, though. I can open my eyes all the way. (The whites are red, though. Thus staying home still). I've been trying to walk around and "act" somewhat normal. The new issue that comes about around day 4 is a crazy-bad case of motion sickness. Crazy? Yes. Unheard-of? Notsomuch. Since everything I see is pretty distorted, motion sickness is pretty normal.

I spent most of my week sleeping. I figured that if I can't see much, might as well put myself in a codine-induced coma and sleep my pain away. Come Thursday, I was getting pretty tired of this routine. I no longer felt that I needed all of my full doses of pain meds. I cut them in half, added a few Advil to the mix and hoped for the best.

I spent most of Thursday on the couch "listening" to the TV. I tried to keep my eyes open for a bit, but it really made me tired and I'd nap every so often. What I did realize is that the Food Network really has no meaning if you can't *see* it. It's kind of important. That's my thought for the day. ...moving on.

Today (Friday), I am feeling LOTS better. Still having motion sickness but not as bad as the last few days. My view is still distorted, but not as bad. I even tried to do a few "normal" activities. I started a load of laundry, emptied and reloaded the dishwasher and organized the mail. Of course, I had to take a nap afterward.

Tomorrow is my birthday. I was hoping to be up to going out for a celebratory dinner. That is definitely not going to happen. I definitely feel better, but I don't look well enough to go out in public and I have no real appetite (due to aforementioned motionsickness). And let's be honest, I do kind of walk around like I'm drunk. (Last night I bumped into the wall in the hallway. That was cool. )
So, tomorrow I'll be doing what I've been wanting to do all week. Spend time with Trey and Mr. Fab.

That will make everything better, right?

Weekend Review and what is yet to come

2009-11-15T12:55:00.002-06:00

What an extremely busy week I have had! Whew!

First off, my apologies for my lack of posts. It was obviously due to the aforementioned busy week. But before I go in to that, let me explain why this is going to be the last post for at least another week.

Tomorrow, I am going to be having surgery on my eyes. I'm not going to show you any graphic pictures or talk about the gory details (you're welcome Randall!), so don't worry. To put it very general, this will be the 3rd (and hopefully the last!) attempt to correct a genetic eye muscle disorder that I've had since birth. It will not have any affect on my sight, it will just attempt to realign some muscle issues.

So, for that reason, uh, seeing might be a bit of an issue this coming week. So, don't expect a bunch of posts. And, no, I won't take a picture of myself when it's done. Frankly, I'm going to hole myself up in my house until they heal enough to go out in public. I mean really, do you honestly think that I'd walk around looking like a crazy? Honestly, I don't know what I'm going to look like, but I am pretty sure that everything will heal up nicely by Thanksgiving. My last surgery was in January of 2004. It was only 5 years ago, but I cannot for the life of me remember my recovery, how long it took and how fast I bounced back. The only thing I remember is that it was hard to drive because it hurt to move my eyes from side to side. I had to resort to moving my entire head around when merging into traffic, for example.

For the days ahead, I took a week off of work, lined up Nanny to work extended and overnight hours and my husband, mom and inlaws will be here to help as well.

Oh, wait! I forgot to mention something... It is also my BIRTHDAY WEEK!!!! Yeah!!!! Won't this all be sooooo fun????? :) Ugh. Even though I'm a year older as each birthday comes and goes, I still LOVE celebrating birthdays. This year will be a doozie. Maybe I'll feel good enough to get out of bed on my birthday! Heck, maybe I'll go crazy and take a shower, I don't know!!! I'll be 31 on Saturday, so maybe with a little prayer, I'll be feeling much better by then.

Back to that busy week I just finished up. Busy week indeed because I was trying to get everything completed at work so that I could actually be gone for a week. I was working crazy hours, coming to work super early, leaving way late (with an armload of paperwork to take home to work on too!!) It sucked SO bad. I was exhausted!

Finally, by Friday, I was finished! YIPPEE!!! Mr. Fab went out of town for the weekend, so I celebrated Friday night with a glass of wine, catching up on some DVR'd shows and topped it off with an 8:30pm bedtime! It was truly fabulous!!!

Saturday, I went to a mandatory Junior League volunteer shift. It worked out great because whoever planned it, grossly miscalculated how long it would take 30 women to sort Christmas ornaments. Our 9am-12pm shift was actually 9am-9:30am. SCORE! My bff Sarah and I decided to head over to the mall since we had a few hours to kill. Of course she didn't breath a word of this to her husband and I had no husband Saturday. It was great! Trey was at his grandparents house so I had nothing to do. It was like being all dressed up and no where to be.

Sarah and I had a great morning being together. We tore up Nordstrom...they had a great sale going on! The best part of our morning was when we were coming out of Nordstrom, I looked over and who do I see? None other than Trey! ...and my inlaws! It was so funny. Imagine turning around and seeing your child. It was like "Hey, I know him!!!" So hilarious!!

Saturday night, Sarah's husband threw her a wonderful "Faux-30" birthday party. (She'll be 31..the day before me. This was to make up for no party last year, I guess). I had a great time, caught up with a few old friends that I hadn't seen in awhile. Overall, great evening!

This morning, I picked up Trey and was planning on heading to the grocery store and Target to stock up for the week since I'll be recovering. I was surprised to have picked up a very sick and VERY tired Trey! Poor guy has a bad cough developing, runny nose, a big canker sore on his lip and his face was breaking out really bad (like baby acne). I called the pediatrician exchange. The breakout could have been from anything. Most likely being in a different environment (the inlaws) or from rubbing up against something that gave him a bad reaction. He's sleeping now but dosed up on Motrin and Benedryl. Hopefully he'll be alright.

No grocery store for me right now. Hopefully Mr. Fab will be home in a few hours and I will be able to sneak out of the house.

Sorry this was a bit too long. Guess that is what happens when you haven't posted in a week!!!
Hope you all have a great week. Next week, we'll all be gearing up for Thanksgiving. I can't wait to hear what you all will be up too!

Weekend

2009-11-08T09:36:00.003-06:00

Mr. Fab and I had a wonderful evening last night at his cousins wedding. We ended up splitting up the day so we wouldn't have to leave T with someone all day long. Mr. Fab went to the ceremony while I stayed home and then my sister P watched Trey while we both went to the cocktail hour and reception.

My sister was borrowing my camera earlier in the day and I forgot to get it back. The only picture we managed to get is Mr. Fab taking a picture of a very tired me after the wedding.

I ended up wearing none of the dresses that I had originally picked out. I saw this dress when I was literally running thru Macy's a few days ago on my lunch hour. I LOVE matte jersey material! It looked SO cute and was a little out of the normal look that I go for. ...and the price was a total steal!

Mr. Fab and I attempted to have someone take a pic of the two of us with his iPhone. It didn't turn out at all so, unfortunately, no pics for us. Oh well!

Today, is a busy day of housework. Laundry, housecleaning, grocery shopping and many other things are on the list for today.

Hope you all had a FABULOUS weekend!

Friday, Friday!

2009-11-06T11:40:00.002-06:00

TGIF!

I'm going to update my blog roll this weekend. Wanna be on the list? Leave me a comment!

I like to follow bloggy etiquette so if I'm on your blog roll, it is only proper for you to be on mine!

Have a wonderful weekend, friends!

Let's give 'em something to talk about

2009-11-03T11:38:00.003-06:00

My little Trey is growing up SO fast. Gone are the days of having a "baby". Now we are embarking on straight up toddler-hood!

T has been talking for a few months now. And when I say "talk", I mean he says "Mama" (which comes out "Mom-Mom") and Da-da. He also says "Ba-dab-a-dab-a", "num-num" "baa-baa"(which means ball) and the famous "Baaaa-nan-ah"! You know what that means!!!

For the last week now, his words are getting a lot better and he is branching out with more letters. Mr. Fab and I have such a fun time playing "Can you say...." to him!

Here's a little run down of what we're talkin about at our house:

-"Bah-Bah" (meaning Ball) has not evolved to "Baww-ohl"

-his favorite yellow ball is "lelloooo baww-ohl"

-he loves to stick his finger is any little hole opening and says "ha-wl" in a MEGA southern accent. Say the word "hole" in your thickest southern accent. That is exactly what he sounds like!

-the word "mouse" is "mou--ffe" (breathing out of your nose when you say the F) That's probably the funniest one!

-Pineapple is "Pine-num-num"

I have a lot of this on our video camera. I hope to dig out the cord this weekend and get them on the computer so you can see my little guy in action.

Last night, I was trying to teach him to smile when i said "Smile". Somehow, his tongue kept popping out!!

Good times at our house!

Halloween Events

2009-11-01T12:07:00.013-06:00

We had a super busy day yesterday. We took our family Christmas Picture at my sisters house. Every year, we try to do a different look for our picture. After over 30 years of pictures, it's getting a tad bit difficult! So, this year, my sister W offered to have the picture taken at her home in Eureka.

The session did not go as well as we would have hoped. Trey has a really hard time sitting still. We managed to get a good shot of our entire family but the picture for Mr. Fab, me and Trey did not go well. Trey decided that he would not sit still at all! Usually, he loves for Mr. Fab to hold him, but during the photo session, he would only let me hold him. It was really difficult to hold him for so long! In the end, we will either have our graphic arts department do some mega work on the picture, or we can just try it again another day.

After the photo session, we headed down to the parkway for a Halloween parade. It was so fun! The parade was actually all of the neighborhood children marching down the street! The beginning of the parade was a Eureka firetruck and the end was a police car with its lights flashing. T had an awesome time because he got to run down the street!

Here are a few of my fav pics...

Trey and Dada getting into the golf cart to head down to the parkway.

I love this picture of Trey and Mr. Fab. His face is just so priceless looking at our cute Giraffe. And in true Mr. Fab fashion, he and my brother in law had to fix themselves a little toddie for the parade!

Riding on Dada's shoulders
And they're off!

This is a great picture with Mr. Fab, Trey, my bro in law (on the very left) , brother and 2 sisters. Everyone is having a great time!

The Giraffe and Lily, my parents dog

Sucked to be the traffic behind the parade!!

This little boy was so funny! He was Captain Hook. Mr. Fab, my brother and my bro in law kept calling him Captain Morgan!

Ok, so I kinda forgot to buy something for Trey to put his candy in! So, good thinking on my part to grab a sand bucket from the beach!!

Overall, we had a great time! Trey was so good...he is just at that age where he does not want to be confined. He wants to run and run! We ended up only trick-or-treating at only 2 houses. He was getting pretty tired by then! I definitely see another Halloween parade in our future!

Happy Halloween!

2009-10-31T12:16:00.003-05:00

Happy Halloween to all! I have to make this post quick. It's a busy day today at the Fab household. We have our family Christmas picture at 3pm, a parade afterwards and then of course, trick-or-treating! Trey is currently taking a nap (thank Jesus) so I have to get in the shower and give my hair a good blow out. Let's cross our fingers that it's a good hair day for Mama!

This is our first year to actually go house to house with Trey. Last year, he was 8 mo. old, so not big enough to go out.

This year, T is a giraffe. Hope you all have a great day. I'll fill you all in tomorrow with the weekend festivities!

Foghorn Leghorn Sandwich

2009-10-27T14:35:00.002-05:00

I don't intend on making my Fabulous blog into a recipe site, but I have been cooking a lot lately, so I thought I'd share!

My husband made me this sandwich a few weeks ago and it was un-freaking-believeable! While in college, he used to work at a very popular Columbia restaurant and bar called Harpo's. This sandwich was on the menu and he LOVED it. So, hence the creation of our at-home version of the Foghorn Leghorn Sandwich.

Here's the recipe:
(**note: since he made this up to simulate the sandwich on the menu, ingredients are not exact. Just change it to the amount of people that you are serving it for)

Boneless skinless chicken breast, cubed (1 per person)
Cream cheese block
Banana Peppers
Hot Sauce
Hoagie Rolls

Coat pan with a little Olive Oil. Cube chicken breast and cook in a pan over stove. Cook until almost done. Add a splash (maybe 1/3 cup or less of Banana Pepper juice from the jar. Add a handful of banana peppers to the pan (however many that suits your fancy). Continue to saute for another minute or so. Then add a block of cream cheese cubed. (for 2 pple, we added 1/2 block. 4 servings, i would use 1 whole block). Cook in pan until cream cheese is melted into a "sauce" like consistency. Add a few shakes of hot sauce. Stir to mix well.

Serve chicken mixture over toasted Hoagie Rolls.

And that is a Foghorn Leghorn. Not easy on the waistline, but yummy indeed!

Authentic Friendships

2009-10-26T11:38:00.003-05:00

Isn't it hard to "put it out there" with a new friend? I have come into contact with many new friends lately. I've often found myself wanting to hold back a little. The following really puts it into perspective. Read on...

I received this email today from the Purpose Driven Connection...Daily Hope with Rick Warren. I thought the devotional was very interesting, to say the least.

If you are interested in a daily devotional sent to your inbox, click here.

Healing Choices: Authentic Friendships

By Rick Warren | Thursday, October 22, 2009 | 2:12 PM EDT

In our Devotionals series, Pastor Rick Warren discusses the Bible passages that inspire him the most. Today's Devotional is based on this passage:

“But if we live in the light, as God is in the light, we can share fellowship with each other. Then the blood of Jesus, God’s Son, cleanses us from every sin. If we say we have no sin, we are fooling ourselves, and the truth is not in us” (1 John 1:7-8 NCV).

In Biblical fellowship, we should experience authenticity.

Authentic friendships are more than superficial, surface-level chit-chat. They involve genuine, heart-to-heart, sometimes gut-level, sharing.

These friendships develop when we get honest about who we are and what is happening in our lives. They develop when we share our hurts, reveal our feelings, confess our failures, disclose our doubts, admit our fears, acknowledge our weaknesses, and ask for help and prayer.

Unfortunately, this level of authenticity and intimacy is the exact opposite of what we find in many churches. Instead of an atmosphere of honesty and humility, we often become involved in pretending, role-playing, politicking, superficial politeness, and shallow conversation. We begin to wear masks, keep our guard up, and act as if everything is rosy in our lives. These attitudes are the death of real friendship.

It’s only as we become open about our lives that we experience authentic fellowship. The Bible says, “If we live in the light, as God is in the light, we can share fellowship with each other . . . If we say we have no sin, we are fooling ourselves” (1 John 1:7–8 NCV).

The world thinks intimacy occurs in the dark, but God says it happens in the light. We tend to use darkness to hide our hurts, faults, fears, failures, and flaws. But in God’s light, we can bring them all out into the open and admit who we really are.

Of course, being authentic requires both courage and humility. It means facing our fear of exposure, rejection, and being hurt again.

Why would anyone take such a risk?

Because it’s the only way to grow spiritually and be emotionally healthy. The Bible says, “Make this your common practice: Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you can live together whole and healed” (James 5:16 MSG).

Weekend Review

2009-10-25T21:31:00.003-05:00

This weekend came and went like many do...but tonight, I feel totally ready to take on the week (unlike some Sunday nights!)

Friday night, T went to sleep over at my in-laws. Originally, they were just going to watch him Saturday morning for me, but they thought it would be fun for him to sleep over. I went and got my hair cut. Hello, I have bangs now! I didn't really set out to do that but I needed to lighten the load of hair on my head so bangs really helped. Gah, I have a ton of hair. It is un-freaking-believable. I walked in for my appt, and my hairdresser said "Uh-huh (looking my hair over), I KNEW it was going to be bad. The last time you were here was June".

Um, thanks. So I look like crap. Thanks for pointing that out. Reason #18,293 that I need a new stylist. Wonder if she noticed my boxed color from a few weeks ago. I'm guessing yes. I still have to figure out how I want to style these bang-eys. Saturday, they probably looked ridiculous, but hey, I was up early and was in NO mood for hair experimentation!

Speaking of Saturday, I went to a Junior League event. I don't know if I am just used to chasing a toddler around all the time, or what, but I was about to fall asleep listening to any more talking or having to sit. I guess I'm just not used to that. It takes a lot to sit me in a chair for a long amount of time. Unless, of course I'm lying on the couch which is another story.

Overall, nice day and very informative. Sat night T and I hung out at home and watched Sesame Street. Really, that meant him ignoring the TV, me actually watching it and yelling out to him every time Elmo was on. Needless to say, we didn't make it thru the entire episode. T is not into TV..which is really good. I have heard a lot about those Baby Praise DVDs and I really want to buy one. Maybe when he's a little older and can comprehend the TV. After T went to bed, my sister P came over. We drank too much wine and made macaroni and cheese. I'm pretty sure the mac and cheese was due to the large amounts of wine. Oh well, they were both great! HA!

Sunday, Mr. Fab came home from his trip. It was nice having him home so we skipped church. I always hate that, but it was awesome to just sit on the couch, drink coffee together and chat. I went to the grocery store, came home and did a bunch of cooking for dinner and for the week.

Tonight, I'm finishing laundry and doing my "Sunday night dance" which includes packing his breakfast for the office tomorrow, getting clothes sorted for the week and giving myself a weekly microderm facial. ..oh yeah, and blogging.

That's it. Truly earth-shattering, eh? How was your weekend?

Hey good lookin'

2009-10-22T20:51:00.003-05:00

Here is the (long and overdue) recipe that I was mentioning earlier in the week.

I must give TOTAL credit to my dear friend Leslie who gave me the recipe. She definitely didn't give this meal the credit that it was due. We LOVED it (Mr. Fab and Trey included). It was SO delicious!

So, here goes...

Slow Cooker Salsa Chicken

4 froz chicken breasts
1 can cream of reduced fat mushroom soup
1 cup salsa
1/2 packet taco seasoning
1 green pepper, rough chopped (optional)
1/2 c reduced fat sour cream
salt & pepper
brown rice

Put everything in the crock pot minus the sour cream and rice and cook on low for 5-7 hours. Add the sour cream at the end and stir in. Serve over brown rice.

* My note: (This recipe also works great with fresh chicken. I had a package of skinless chicken thighs that I needed to get rid of before they went bad. I used them in the recipe and put the crock pot on high for 3 hours. It was so good!)

The Good, The Better...and the very, very ugly.

2009-10-21T21:38:00.006-05:00

Wow, what a fabulous week!

...and I'm being serious! ;) No complaints from this household! I finished a HUGE-O project at work. Oh my goodness, let me tell you, it was driving me insane that I could not get the last few parts of it tied up! But luckely, Tuesday..ahh, Tuesday the day that made my life, oh, so easier...well, let's just say, things started coming together so well. And today, I am FINISHED! YEAH! DONE!!! Can I get a What-What!!!

So, now I get to focus on a few non-work related items. Here's what is on my to-do list! (or was)

- We FINALLY set a date for our family Christmas picture. As you might have read in earlier posts, my family has taken a Christmas picture for our annual Christmas card since 1972. That was the year my sister was born. I debuted in 1978! ;) Anyway, with all of us siblings grown now, it is so much harder to get everyone together. We finally set the date of Nov 1st. And while we at it, let's just say that this is probably the earliest we've EVER taken a picture!! (I'll always remember the year...1993, maybe when we took the picture New Years Day. Uh, that was not the best of years!!)

-I FINALLY (I have a feeling all of these points will be started by 'finally') decided on a contractor to start some remodeling in our house. And when I say 'finally', it's because it's been a LONG time comin!!

-I need a haircut! More importantly, I need a new freaking stylist! Oh, to find the girl who cut my hair in college. She did SUCH a good job! (Columbia, Missouri circa 1999 at a salon where all the furniture was leopard print) Too bad I can't remember her name or the salon. I could drive you there, though!

-I decided to splurge and buy a new dress for an upcoming wedding. I have it down to 3. Wanna help me decide?

Great! Here they are! (What, you said no???)

#1- This dress is from the Limited. At first sight, it didn't do much for me. Well, actually it did NOTHING for me. But when it's on, it actually is really nice. I added several long strands of pearls to make it a bit more interesting on top. Thoughts??

2. This dress is from Nordstrom. My go-to store for pretty much anything and everything. I haven't actually seen this dress in person, but I like what I see online. Of course, this model in my opinion looks like her stomach is sticking out but that is neither here nor there. Frankly, I like the cut on top and the rosettes. I could wear a rosette on my head and think it looks fabulous, though!
3. J.Crew. Ok, now I know this may come as a shocker to you (being as I can hardly fit my body into anything J.Crew) but surprisingly, this dress actually looks really nice. The picture does not do itself or the color justice at all, but I already have it...I'm just not sure it's 'the one'.

So, what do you think?? Leave me a comment and tell me what you think! The wedding is Nov 7th so I have a little time still!

As we roll in to Thursday, a few thoughts:

-Thanks so much for all the sweet comments on my last post. I was not expecting that (usually I get only 3 comments or so!) HA. I get a little uncomfortable with all the nice things that are said but deep down, it truly is the best thing to hear. My bloggy friends are some of the neatest people that I know. So, thanks so much for stopping by when you can and putting in your two cents or saying something nice!

-Even though I had a great week, I do understand that there were a few shake-ups in the blogosphere this week. I took the liberty of spending some time reading some opinions about other blogs that are out there. What I read was pretty serious. And by serious, I mean totally not what I want to be a part of. In fact, it scared the living crap out of me that my blog would be the next to be commented upon in a negative way. I purposely left 2 comments in my name and linked back to my blog so whoever was going after the others, would see that I was there...and hopefully step back from leaving an anonymous negative comment about my blog. Frankly, I was hoping more people were going to do that so some of us could stand up for the kind women that were getting their names slung through the mud. Sadly, that really didn't happen. I was so irritated that I was defending my blog, my blog name...heaven forbid if someone REALLY thought I was "SO FABULOUS"! How pretentious of me! My only comment is to say that nothing EVER comes from putting someone down. It doesn't matter WHAT they talk about on their blog. If they want to talk about shopping all day, let them. If they want to talk about jogging every day, they can. It is our decision to read it, or move along. I will not deny that there are definitely some blogs that rub me the wrong way (I blogged about it just last week) but everyone reads things in their own way. If you would rather not read my blog, I completely understand. But the fact is, is that we can decide what we want to write about. It's our decision. Because this is our little piece of real estate in internet land.

So, that's my peace. End of story. By a longshot. Moving right along.

Tomorrow...would you like to see some family Christmas pictures from, say...1985?? Oh, tune in friends, tune in!!

Yes, honey, I TOTALLY saw that touchdown. AWESOME!!!

2009-10-18T20:08:00.002-05:00

We had a great weekend here at the Fab household.

Today we took T to visit the in-laws. The weather was really nice today (sunny and low 50's) so it was nice to get out of the house and it not be raining.

We were home by 1:30pm and I've done about 5 loads of laundry and filled 3 garbage bags full of old clothes for the Goodwill.

I even had time to throw dinner in the crockpot and OMG....it was SO good! I'll post the recipe tomorrow. (I need to ask permission first. It's not my recipe! ;) )

T just went to bed and Mr. Fab and I are enjoying an evening lounging in the Great Room watching football. (Well, he's watching football, I'm pretending like it but really catching up on reading blogs!)

From here, I need to pack T's bag to go to the office tomorrow. I bring him to my 8am management meeting every Monday. It is absolutely unnecessary but frankly, I do it so my family can see him. My dad, sister and brother will be there. Everyone else at the office loves to see him too. He just runs around and yells "Banana" and the like.

Tomorrow's weather is supposed to be pretty nice. I heard something about the 60's??? I'm excited that I won't have to wear a sweater or a coat. These days it is fun to figure out what to wear. Did I tell you I've lost 12 lbs? Well, it's not much but that's freaking 12 lbs that I haven't been able to get rid of since being pregnant. My clothes are getting really loose (a few things I can't even wear anymore) so it really is exciting not having to put something on and get all upset because it is too small! Haven't we all been there before?? ;( I am hoping to get in a run or 2 this week...who am I kidding...it's a run/walk mix but at least I'm moving in a forward direction!! ha ha

Hope you all have a great week. Boy, Monday's sure come too fast and like a ton of bricks!

Weekend Check in

2009-10-17T14:46:00.002-05:00

I have a couple of extra minutes today, so I thought I'd do a little update!

Even thought I am always glad the weekend comes, there is a little anxiety that also goes along with it. Since I work almost full time, there are many household activities that have to wait until the weekend. When the weekend finally arrives, I must get these things accomplished or else, we'll have a pretty difficult week ahead of us.

Saturdays are filled with these activities: laundry, mopping kitchen floor, dusting, vacuuming, more laundry, grocery shopping, and more laundry ;) It has become evident that little T is getting to that age where we MUST be engaging in some serious activity as well. I have been finding myself fighting with the need to get housework completed but also know that it is mega important to get T out and burn some energy so he doesn't get cabin fever!! There is definitely a part of me that still wants to pick up the phone and call our old cleaning lady from before T was born, but I just can't do it. It takes quite a financial commitment to keep our weekday nanny and I don't really want to start squeezing blood from a turnip, if you know what I mean. So for now, I'm the cleaning lady! ha ha!

This morning, my dad came over and offered to take T out so I could get a few chores finished at home. That was so unbelievably kind of him. I packed his bag and sent them both on their way. Since then, I have a clean kitchen (and floor. That's a BIG deal!!) , clean/dusted living room, vacuumed living room, dining room, T's room, hallway and stairs. I also am 1 load of laundry down. People, this is some serious progress!!

My dad will be bringing T home soon so I better get back to the large pile of laundry that sits in our laundry room. ;)

Hope everyone is having a great weekend. How do you balance your weekend relaxation with necessary chores?

Show us your life- Handmade Gifts and Buying Early for the Holidays

2009-10-15T15:53:00.005-05:00

Today I am participating in Kelly's Korner "Show us your Life" posts. Today's topic is about Showing everyone your Homemade/Handmade Gifts or if you make things to post on Etsy. Also included is shopping early for Christmas.

First of all.... *WHEW*-- I can't believe we're talking about Christmas! But I'm EXCITED!!!!

I do not make/sell anything homemade or handmade...but I BUY!!! I LOVE Etsy! So, if you make something, leave me a comment. Etsy does overwhelm me at times so if you comment with your link, I will visit and will probably BUY! I love monograms and toddler boy clothes. If you make cute 24mo or 2T monogrammed boy clothes, feel free to leave me a comment!! ;) I am also looking for a mother's bracelet under $100.

As far as early Christmas shopping...well, I really don't buy TOO early but this year, of course, my little T is #1 on my list! I would LOVE some suggestions on any educational toys or activities that we could do for Christmas. I'd love to hear comments from you!

Thanks for visiting! Happy "upcoming" Holiday Season! ;)

What REALLY has happened this week...

2009-10-14T16:35:00.002-05:00

Well, it's only Wednesday and the Menu has gotten all messed up! Oh well, that's life.

Here's how Mon-Wed went down...

Monday- Lean Cuisine and Gerber meal for T. (Forgot Mr. Fab has volleyball league. I'm assuming he ate McDonald's or something equally as nasty)

Tuesday- Last minute Happy Hour. Ate mussels and 3 grey goose's and tonic. Oh, and 3 wedges of lime.

Wednesday- Chicken in the crockpot (originally from Monday). Let's cross our fingers that it is yummy!

Forcast for Thursday and Friday...

Thursday- Mr. Fab is out of town. Maybe Lean Cuisine again or left-over Chicken in Crockpot

Friday- maybe order out or make Enchilades.

Hmmm... we'll see.

Let's also cross our fingers that my next post will be a *tad* bit more exciting than this one! HA

Happy Wednesday and *GLEE* night!

Menu Monday

2009-10-12T05:00:00.000-05:00

I've seen this on a few blogs and I thought it'd be fun to share our dinners for the upcoming week. Specifically, thanks to Kimba for letting me borrow her idea!!

Every Sunday, I figure out what I'm going to make for dinner for the rest of the week. Dinner at the Fab household has to be fast and easy. I usually get home from work around 6pm and I have approximately 5-10 minutes before little T starts going crazy wanting to eat! I try to prep as much as I can the night before or before I go to work in the morning.

I'm a big fan of the crock pot, so many dinners are made with it.

This is what I'm planning for this week:

Monday- Easy Chicken in the Crockpot. I use this recipe but add Roasted Garlic Cream of Mushroom Soup instead of regular CofM.

Tuesday- I'll bake Tilapia in the oven (takes about 7 min) and steam Asparagus.

Wednesday- Mr. Fab is out of town, so I'll probably have a Lean Cuisine and T will have a Gerber entree and fruit

Thursday- Smothered Buttermilk Chicken . I've been dying to try this Weight Watchers recipe from my gal pal Randall. I think it sounds awesome.

Friday- Chicken Enchiladas. This is the easiest recipe ever. Shhh...don't tell, I use canned chicken! I've made it for many people and they could never tell! I put chicken and cheese in soft tortillas, line them up in a casserole dish, pour a can of enchilada sauce all over, top with shredded cheese and bake for 20 min. EASY! Oh, yeah, and since it's Friday... I'll be drinking wine!

I made another loaf of Chocolate Chip Banana Bread for the week so Mr. Fab will have something easy to grab in the morning. I, will NOT be grabbing any. (Wish I could, though!) :( (Thanks again to E for the BEST recipe EVER!!)

What will you be making for dinner this week?