Quiet mornings mean time to finally Blog!

Well, well, well - shame on me for not blogging in over a week. I told myself that if I started a blog, I would be extremely diligent about it and I have already slacked off. I will not do it again! What a busy time its been around here. My last day at Triangle Spine was yesterday. I am nervous but extremely excited about my new venture at Zip Realty. The training for that starts on Monday morning at 9am. I've got my fingers crossed that this is the direction that I need to take in life at this time. I am sure it will all work out perfectly. I am going to be lucky enough to be able to work from home so I am super pumped about spending more time with Grace. I will be able to volunteer at her preschool more in the fall, and that is great!

We had a great Fathers Day last Sunday, well all weekend really! On Saturday, we hung out at the pool until the sun was shaded by our too tall pine trees. Once that happened, we scooted to the driveway for a famous driveway party! I set up the hose so that it was shooting straight up in the air like a sprinkler and got out the dish soap. Grace absolutely loved it and I can't wait to do it again. It really was a lot of fun!



On Sunday, we went to a great dinner at 18 Seaboard with some wonderful Alderson's. We had so a nice time sitting on the rooftop, overlooking downtown. There was a beautiful sunset, the food was delicious and the company even better! If you need a nice place to go out to eat, I recommend this restaurant! I managed to get a few group pictures after a long of begging and pleading with the guys and it was worth it because I love the pictures!





What a fun evening it was! Thanks to Margie for organizing this Father's Day dinner!

All of this Alderson talk reminds me that I forgot to write about a couple of weeks ago, we went to Todd and Jeannie's house for a cookout. We got to meet the youngest Alderson's and they are so cute!!! We had a great time and it was so nice to see a lot of relatives we haven't seen in way too long!






Yesterday, Jackson Monsees turned 1! We went to his birthday party and had a great time. Grace didn't want to leave. She was having such a good time with her friends. The grill was going and the burgers were big and tasty! Kim and Lee did such a great job with the party and I think everyone had a blast. Thanks to Kim and Lee for letting us share in Jax's special 1st birthday!





This is going to be a FUN weekend - Aunt Heidi is coming for a visit and Grace and I are very excited. She will be here this afternoon and is staying with us all weekend. I am so ready for what I call HeidiTime! Yesterday, Grace had her fake phone and was pretending to talk on it. I asked her who she was calling and she said - "I am calling Aunt Heidi and telling her to hurry up and get here!" It was precious. My child is just one amazing kid. We are also going to a "Lawn and Garden Shower" for Rachel and Ramsey on Saturday night. Lots of good times to be had! I'm going to relax and have a good weekend and get ready for my new career that start on Monday!

Hot Summer Days!

Once again, my favorite day of the week has arrived. ITS FRIDAY! Grace and I are meeting friends at Shelley lake for a fun play date this morning and maybe hanging out at the pool. Its going to be H.O.T. today and I LOVE it. This is truly my favorite time of the year. We went to North Hills last night and it was great to see Murray, Danielle and Preston, but the band was not the best so we left early. I guess they can't all be fantastic, eh?

I am looking forward to a nice relaxing weekend. I plan on watching the U.S. Open and taking a few naps on the couch. Check back at the end of the weekend for a long blog with pictures!

A Weekend of FUN!

I am sad that today is Monday, but so very thankful for the amazing weekend we just had. On Friday, Grace and I went to the "splash ground" with our friends, Margie and Julia. We had such a nice time and Grace threw one heck of a temper tantrum when it was time to come home. We will be going back again for more fun in the sun there this summer! It is such a fun place for kids (and adults too!)

On Friday night, Pee Paw came to watch Grace for us so we could have an adult evening out! We went had a few drinks at the Fox and Hound and went to the movies to see The Hangover. It was a hilarious movie and I highly recommend it if you need to laugh for a couple of hours!

We had quite the adventure on Saturday morning. We want to start riding bike as a new hobby. Well, our first attempt was not a successful one. We had to put Grace's seat on the back of my bike and my bike is one clucker of a rusty mountain bike. We made it all the way to Chris and Margie's house before we realized that Grace and I could not go any farther in the condition our bike was in! She was basically sitting on the back tire the whole time which gave my legs quite the workout! We had to hangout at Chris and Margie's while Jay rode his bike back to our house at warp speed to get the car and come get us!

The rest of the day on Saturday was spent poolside and Grace decided that she is just like Daddy! She spent a good bit of time just "relaxing" in her float in the baby pool!


Sunday was a very eventful day for our family! We went to visit a farm, and a lady by the name of Farmer Mary. Grace was so excited and honestly, so was I! It was a day we will not forget anytime soon! If you want something fun to do, please go visit Farmer Mary at Winterpast Farm! She is such a nice lady and so good with kids. We even got to take a billy goat on a walk through the wood on a leash!







After such an exciting weekend, we are looking forward to a relaxing week!

I love Beach Music!

Last night we went to North Hills for the Thursday night Beach Music Series and it was a great time. Our favorite Beach Music band was playing, The Craig Woolard Band. They are fantastic! We got a chance to hangout with Uncle Lee and Uncle Zack, which was a treat! We also got to see Chris and Margie as well and Margie's brother! The rain held off until it was time to come home and it was hot and humid the whole time. My type of weather! Grace loves to dance on the kids mat right next to the stage, and she is quite the little dancer if I do say so myself! Check out some of the pictures from last night!









We had a visit this morning from Grandaddy! Having a cup of coffee with your Dad and catching up is a wonderful way to start the day! He is so awesome and the nicest person I know! I got a great shot of Grandaddy and "Grandaddy's Girl!"


We have lots of exciting plans this weekend, so check back soon for another update!

Watching the Rain

To start this off, I have to brag about our new camera. Our old digital camera was broken - we were using an eraser from a pencil, duct taped to the top in order to take a picture We have to have a camera with the nature of Jay's business, so after much research and after reading many reviews, we decided on the Canon Powershot 10.0. I've had it for about 24 hours now and I adore it. I took it to work today just so I could take it out every so often and just look at it! Other than using it for Jay's listings, I have been interested in getting into photography as a hobby for a while now. I am very excited to see where I end up on this new journey and I am sure our clients are going to be super happy with the fantastic pictures we get of their house when it goes on the market! We can even take "wide angle" pictures which will be a great way to showcase special features in a persons home!

It was raining when I left work today. When I got home, Grace was sitting in the carport, in her favorite stroller and just staring out into the yard. I got out of the car and questioned her. She simply said, "Mommy, I'm just watching the rain." I love the innocence that comes with being a child. I thought this would be the perfect chance to test out the new camera! See attached pictures~

The weekend is coming to an end

Sad to say that today is Sunday. The end of a great weekend. We had a great time at Kenny and Beth's "Stock the Bar Shower." last night. It was great to see a lot of friends that we do not see on a regular basis. We were tired this morning after staying up too late last night!

It was cloudy most of the weekend so we did not get any pool time. Grace went swimming a few times though. It blows my mind that she doesn't get how cold the water is. I guess that's a benefit of being a child! She can swim around pretty good with her life jacket on. She is quite the excellent doggie paddler!

I am not looking forward to a the work week. I am already counting down to Thursday afternoon at 4:30 (That's when I get off and don't have to go back for 3 .5 days!) I need to remember to be thankful that I have a job when so many others don't. I try to remind myself of this several times a day when I feel myself getting down about going to work.

It is time to curl up on the couch and read Twilight some more. (I'm on my 2nd round of reading the series).

Here's hoping to a quick, easy day at work tomorrow...and Tuesday..and Wednesday...and Thursday!

Good Morning!

Well I think I was tired! After Grace went to bed at 7:30 last night, I promptly fell asleep on the couch and slept there until 11. At 11, I got up and went straight to bed and slept until just about 7. Looks like my body really wanted some nice long sleep. That doesn't even count the nap I had on the couch with Grace yesterday afternoon! I think with all of the stress of the last week took its toll on me. I feel MUCH better today!

Today is going to be a day of fun! I'm at last going to see sweet Danielle to get my hair done. I'm going back on the dark side. I don't feel quite right to be this blond. The sun really did a number on these highlights! Then its time to cook up some stuff for an engagement party at Adam and Sarah's for Kenny and Beth. I am really looking forward to seeing everyone tonight and enjoying a night out!

I need to write about Grace's latest cute comment. We were on our way to Target yesterday afternoon for some retail therapy and there was another storm rolling in. Grace was looking out the window and I guess she saw a bolt of lighting. This really excited her and she exclaimed to me - "Mommy, look out your window! I saw sparks!."

I hope everyone enjoys their weekend as much as I plan on enjoying mine!

Sweetest girl I know

Grace is just amazing. I kid you not - the girl does something new and fantastic every day. We are going through the pains of potty training now and she seems to be getting a handle on it, esp. now that she got some chic new Dora panties! Yesterday afternoon I noticed that Grace was not right under me like she usually is when I am home, so I started to look for her. Low and behold the child was in the hall bathroom and had gone to pee pee in the big potty all by herself! The part that made me the proudest was when she realized that there was not any more toliet paper left on the roll, she got up and went to the linen closet in the bathroom and got out a new roll and start to unroll her a piece!

She also says - "Mommy, where you are?" instead of "Mommy, were are you?" Out of the mouths of babes! So stinking cute.

Yesterday, I was up before Jay and Grace and I of course peeked my head in Grace's room to see my sleeping beauty. She was so peaceful and beautiful that I could not resist taking a picture of her. Of course I woke her up, but it was worth the picture!

Summertime Fireflies

Last night we were at Gee's house and they had the great idea of catching fireflies at dusk. It was a lot of fun and I think it made all of us "adults" feel a bit like a child again. I know that the memories I have as a child of chasing fireflies around the yard and trying to put them in a canning jay are some of my all time favorite memories. It signifies a care free, easy going, relaxed summer evenings to a tee.

I got a few cute pictures, which I will post at the end of this blog, but they are not that great since I was using my IPhone. As I type this, I am looking at a jar full of grass and miserable fireflies that are just begging me to release them. Too bad for them, I don't want my little girl to wake up on the morning and want to see her "bugs" and me not be able to show them to her!

Boy, was it ever so hot today! When I got in my car after work the thermometer said 105! I know it wasn't that hot, but my goodness, it is only the 2nd day of June. I love it - I would rather be hot than cold any day. Hopefully we will get some good pool time in this upcoming weekend. Yes, it is only Tuesday and I am already planning my weekend.

Enjoy the few blurry pictures and I'll blog again tomorrow!

Monday, Monday

This day started out great - Jay, Grace and I went on a long walk around our neighborhood. The weather was perfect - it almost reminded me of a crisp fall day for some reason. Fast forward a few hours. I am at work and am told that most likely my job will not be there any longer unless I want to work 40 hours. This gives us some serious things to think about here at home. What to do, where to go from here, etc. Sometimes it feels like we just need to catch a lucky break!

On to a less stressful topic, we are heading over to "Gee's" for dinner. Gee is Jay's mom and she has been named Gee by her precious granddaughter, Grace. We go to Gee's every Monday for dinner and its a great time to get together and catch up with our family. I am looking forward to a well deserved glass of wine on her back deck. Maybe 2 glasses considering this day I have had.

Here's hoping that tomorrow flows a bit better than today and I am still thankful for all that I have and am proud of my family so a crappy day at work is not all that bad in the big scheme of things, is it?