Life's Little Adventures

So my dad is a man of few words. He usually takes everything in and doesn't say a lot.  This makes bonding hard to do with Big Wayne. Last weekend when he asked if I wanted to go to an auction with him, I jumped at the chance.  A little father-daughter bonding time never hurts.  My mom agreed to babysit so off we went on a Saturday morning. Riding in a truck with my dad is exciting -  I talk about everything and he usually just agrees or disagrees. We I talked about land, trailers, his upcoming business venture, Daniel, the weather, dogs, and food.  I ran out of topics so we just rode in silence for awhile.  I was worried what I had gotten myself into. When we got there, I saw a different side to my dad. Gone was the solemn, quiet man.  His eyes lit up. He talked about everything. He told me how the auctions worked, we compared notes on items up for bid, prices, people at the auction, and food served. He opened up to me about work, family, his dogs,...

My title is a little dramatic, but since today is Daniel's first birthday, it's my theme. I found out I was pregnant on March 20, 2010.  I remember wondering if I would even make it through the pregnancy and deliver a healthy son or daughter.  After a few scares along the way, I delivered a bouncing baby boy on December 1, 2010.   Of course he had to make a dramatic entrance with low heart rate in a room full of strangers because Mommy was under anesthesia and they wouldn't let Daddy in the operating room. (We never do anything in a normal way, lol) The first night of his life, as Stephen slept, I sat awake and wondered how I would raise him for 18 years.  I couldn't even imagine one moment without him, but I was scared to death of what to do with him.  What if he got sick? What if he cried uncontrollably?  What if I didn't know what he wanted or how to take care of him?  Steve and I encountered each of these and guess what? We made it. We survived...

When people told me time would fly, I never thought it would go by this fast! My little man is already 10 months old and growing so big.  He took his first steps, concentrates on things to figure out how they work, and can "converse" with me. When I ask him a question, he makes noises in response.  I think he's figured out that "ba-ba" is "bottle" and I'm "ma-ma" and his daddy is "da-da".  He loves to see his dad on the computer while Steve's at work and I think Skype is one of the coolest things ever invented. Time is flying by for me, too.  Somedays I realize that 29 is not really "young" anymore.  Last weekend we had a Girls Night to see Miranda Lambert in concert in Baton Rouge.  I dropped Daniel off and kissed him goodbye and hopped in with my friends to get on the road.  By the time we got to Baton Rouge, I had to say goodbye to the Spanx (too much constriction), pop some headache medicine, and was wishing ...

About two weeks ago, I got a little surprise.  I woke up when I could hear Daniel chattering on the baby monitor from his bedroom.  I went to his bedroom to find him standing up in his baby bed checking out everything in his room. When I turned on the light, he looked at me and said "Ma-ma!" with a big ole' smile.  My heart was so full!  He looked at me, recognized that it was me, and called for me! I phoned Steve immediately and told him that I'm sorry that I had won the "first word" category and it would be ok...he would say "Da-da" eventually.  I was very smug with this assumption.  I told everyone. Grandparents, friends, aunts, and uncles would all hear the story.  One proud "Ma-Ma" was me.  The very next day I was in the living room with D and Lucy (the cat) ran into the room.  He looked at her, smiled, reached out his hand to pet her, and said "Ma-Ma!"  I guess I was wrong.

It's been a really long time since I had a cold.  Usually when I have one, it turns into a sinus infection, and I'm really sick.  This past weekend, we decided to visit Stephen on the rig so he could see Daniel (and so Daniel could see him).  My throat started to get a weird feeling Friday night, but I just wrote it off as an allergy to some of the chemicals in the "riggy" air.  Saturday I woke up feeling like I had been hit by a bus.  I became a foul human to be around. I was grumpy. I complained. I wanted to sleep and be left alone.  When we got back home, Daniel started to get sick. Oh no.  A sick baby is so sad.  After my doctor's visit complete with an awesome shot (to treat the sinus infection from my cold), Daniel started to get worse.  Off we go to the ER to find out he had a cold and "the croup".  I've never had first hand dealings with "the croup" before, but it is a horrible cough.  My baby was miserable and th...

I'm having camera malfunctions, but I had to show the new and improved scary closet. I am so proud of it now I want to show it to everyone that comes to our house.  Before: That is some kinda scary! And after working on it for a few days (pardon the not-so-great pic quality): Sweet, sweet organization :) So if you come to our house and need toilet paper?  Top shelf in the middle - I've got you covered in less than 5 seconds ;)

As I put Daniel to bed for the night, my heart was heavy for another mother. Please keep this family in your thoughts and prayers - " EB"ing a Mommy ".  They also have a Facebook group, " Prayers for Tripp " that you should join.  Tripp is definitely an angel that needs our prayers. Tripp reminds me of the important things in life -  trusting in our Lord, loving those close to you, and living each day to it's fullest.  I think I'm going to go kiss my little guy goodnight again.

To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven. - Ecclesiastes 3:1 Endings are always tough for me.  I have a hard time saying good-bye, and I find that it only gets harder and harder as I get older. As of yesterday, I'm now a stay-at-home mom.  I'm really excited about beginning this journey with Daniel. I will get to see all of his exciting milestones and I'll be the one in charge of raising him.  I will be the one who knows his routine and feeds him his lunch. I'll put him down for naps and plays with him during the day. I feel it's very empowering as a mother and I realize how blessed I am to have this opportunity.  As excited as I am, I'm also really nervous.  I've been part of the working world for 11 years now - it's part of who I am and my identity. What do people do during normal working hours?  Will I become a morning Wal-Mart shopper?  I'm ready for daytime trips to the library, park, and outside pl...

A site I often check out is The Frisky and they recently had an article entitled " A Lazy Girl's Guide To Housework ".  I'm not admitting to being lazy (even though I have my moments) but I think I have too much stuff to do to worry about organizing.  Anyone who knows me knows that this is so Anti-Gena, in fact I'm a little OCD. In college, I always lined the napkins, salt and pepper shakers, and sugar containers up on the table at perfect 90 degree angles.  Nothing excited me more.  Having a baby in the household has definitely changed that for me. As I'm reading, Number 5 of the 8 things listed made me cringe..."Maintain a concealed and inaccessible corner." Oh no, that's definitely me. I am the queen of shoving something in my closets. "Quick, someone's here...put this in the hall closet so no one can see it!"  Over time, it's gotten worse. So I am going to do something that is so liberating.  I'm going to let you see...

As a mother, I've found myself doing things I would have never thought I would do.  I'm regularly getting a boogie out of a nose, digging in an ear, smelling the booty area for a dirty diaper, etc.  The last one comes in handy sometimes.  The other morning I went to Daniel's bedroom at 7 am because I heard him on the monitor talking and singing to his mobile.  He is usually such a sweet baby in the morning and it's one of my favorite times with him.  We were playing with his toys and I decided to change his wet diaper while I had him distracted.  New diaper? Check.  Wipe? Check.  Cooperating son? Check.  This was going to be easy.  I decided to make a game of it with him.  I pulled off one diaper tab - he laughed.  I pulled off the second diaper tab - he laughed even harder.  With one swift move, I quickly pulled the diaper off of him completely.  It turns out that Daniel had a surprise that he obviously knew about wh...

So I'm thinking I should never go out of town again.   Since the concert, Daniel's sleep patterns have been so off.  Gone are the days of a little boy who goes to bed at 7:30 and wakes up at 6:30, with a possible bottle break around 2:00 am.  Daniel wakes up with his dad every morning at 3:30 to play for hours. Sometimes he's just up for the day.  And I've tried to be a cry-it-out mom - I really did. The score was Daniel - 1, Mommy - 0. I didn't make it through one night.  I just decided to be one of those moms that walked around like a zombie for days while dreaming of a nap.  And then one magical morning, I woke up to a snoozing Daniel.  I thought worrying about sleepless nights was only a memory. Oh well...I love my little guy and if he wants to play really early in the morning, we'll play. My coffee pot is about to go into overdrive.

Every once in awhile, I like to pretend I'm not 28 years young and I get a wild hair.  My latest adventure was the NKOTBSB concert in Lafayette last night.  I was a big fan of the NKOTB when I was little and I was determined to marry Jordan Knight. I was lucky enough to finally see them in concert back in 2008.  I went thinking that it had been 20 years so it may not be the greatest. Boy was I wrong.  I found myself geeking out like a little school girl, singing all the songs, and having a blast with my friends. I was a little sad that my friends were going this year without me.  I didn't get tickets with them because of Steve's work schedule.   Steve is home right now, so when I had an opportunity to win two tickets on the radio station, I was took it. Thanks to the most awesome DJ ever, Nancy, I had some tickets and was on my way to the concert. With two tickets, who would I take? My Very Cooperative Husband (He's earning brownie points in this ver...

It's hard to believe that I just scheduled Daniel's 6 month photo session for Saturday.  That's right...he's now 6 months old, almost 7 months, actually.  At his latest checkup, he was 29 inches tall and weighed in at 24 pounds. I'm preparing for a future football player and dreading my grocery bill when he's 15.  Daniel is definitely a character.  Before I was a mom, I didn't realize how much I could love one human being and how much one little person could change my life (I also didn't realize I could survive on such little sleep).  He loves to wave at everyone, but only on his own terms. He's a terror to all of the animals when he's in his walker.  He's serious sometimes, and silly sometimes.  He watches TV and gets "TV face" just like his daddy, and riding on the 4 wheeler gets him so excited. An avid fan of food, he will grunt until you give him his next bite of sweet potatoes, peas, or whatever he is having for that ...

There is a big ole' soft spot in my heart for needy animals.  I've restricted myself from visiting PetSmart on dog adoption days because their sweet little faces get me everytime. I would literally own 60 dogs if I had a) the time b) the funds c) the help to care for all of them. Which leads me to my topic for today - my sweet dog, Roadie.  I found Roadie on the side in the middle of the road (hence the creative name) while I was on my way home from work. He was a tiny puppy and was clearly confused about why he was there, or so I thought.  After trying to find Roadie's owner to no avail, I packed him in my car and brought home the newest member of the Foreman family. I've learned that Roadie thinks he belongs in the middle of the highway.  I often get calls or text messages to let me know that Roadie is in the road doing his favorite activity - chasing cars.  We've learned that Roadie can run up to 35 miles per hour and that he's a pretty sturdy mutt....

So lately I have been obsessed with signing up with companies to receive free samples. It's a daily addiction that I have.  I have always enjoyed getting mail, but now it's like my birthday everyday.  Free shampoo and conditioner, lotion, energy pills, incontinence underwear, deodorant - do I need all of this stuff? No.  Is it fun to see what I get everyday in my mail? Yes.  I always find some use for it, even if it's just giving it away.  The other day I had four little packages waiting on me after work.  I just sat in my car at the mailbox and opened them all like a little kid at the tree on Christmas morning. But please don't schedule an intervention yet - I'm currently waiting on peanut butter, toothpaste, perfume, and dog food.  :) All You Magazine Hey It's Free! Shop 4 Freebies Sweet Free Stuff