Utah Baby Shower

So I've been a little M.I.A. lately. Busy life, out of town a few times, and visitors. So I'll start with April and work my way forward. I had my first baby shower at my parents house in Salt Lake. A special thanks to everyone that helped out! It was bird theme, which I loved, and turned out really cute.

Lets just start with a good one for L. This is her 'Dumb and Dumber' impression. She made these adorable birds to hang on a twig mobile for the baby. She's as crafty as they come.

She also painted these little bird houses to go with the dish clothes for party favors.

Love the toasted coconut bird nest cupcakes. . . I've been addicted to coconut ever since.

This salad belongs in a restaurant. My sister, Angie, found it on a blog. . . but I have pregnancy brain so I'll have to get back to you on that one. . . just know it was F.A.N.T.A.S.T.I.C.

My momsie getting the food ready. It was a FEAST.

Some of the gang getting ready to play games.

Me with my pom-poms. I was pretty excited about the shower or something.

Jenny getting her famous memory game ready.

And the head honcho of the planning, L. If anyone ever needs a party planned, call her. She's professional.

Thanks for the great time, Ladies! It was perfect!

F+U+N=?

These are just the sort of cool scraps of papers I find laying around the house. Don't ask.

But if you insist, I believe Taft is trying to calculate the distance to the sun.

For F-U-N. . .

O.M.G.

Right now I'm thanking my lucky stars I'm having a boy.

Foster

After 3 years of marriage, and almost one baby later, I finalized the deal and changed my last name. Thanks baby, you were my real motivation. With only ten weeks to go, I would prefer your birth certificate look like your parents were actually married.

I thought about scanning it and featuring the picture on Friday Faces, but for my dignity, I refrained. Let me just say, I look like a blob. I was hoping it was just a bad picture- that I really wasn't walking around looking like I belonged on 'The Biggest Loser,' but after seeing my baby shower pictures, this was no fluke. My face looks more pregnant than my belly.

That being said, baby shower pictures to come. . . After I photo shop half of my face out of them.

Easter Song

Let me start by explaining this link. Last Easter, Taft and Austin spent about 6 hours goofing around on the guitar, and ended up with this. It's a good thing Easter only comes around once a year, because I needed those 365 days before I could listen to it again. So think 'Flight of the Conchords' with Taft as the lead singer, and Austin in the background.

http://music.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=music.popupplayer&songid=45783032&artid=3696793&albid=-1

I'm pretty sure Taft would want me to emphasis the part about them joking around- this is definitely not one of his serious songs.

Girls Trip

This post is insanely late/long, but I'm just now getting pictures from my sister.

To make this seem shorter, I'm going to attempt to post in one total sentence.

These ladies started their trip with some spa treatments,

hit up my first ever boat tour,

thanked Mother Nature for decent weather,

let them experience true deep dish,

won these 2 'Wicked' tickets,

watched Jenny's 'Baby Mama' victory dance after her name was called,

explored this secret garden next to the Lincoln Park Zoo,

tried to use the swan shaped paddle boats, but they were closed,

and did a lot of SHOPPING.

And for you 'Friday Faces' viewing pleasure, a picture of Jenny and I that probably wouldn't normally make the cut.

Have a good weekend!

Friday Faces

just because we are hot like that.

(believe it or not, we didn't take this picture ourselves)

St. Patty's

My sister Angie called yesterday to remind me that I should probably post something in between my Friday faces posts. Good point. These pictures will be a lot more exciting for those of you that don't live in Chicago. I'm pretty sure this city celebrates bigger and better than most. This year we ventured out to the river dying- quite the event. Lets just say, when we first got there, the river was green enough that I asked if we had missed the boats. Was I ever wrong. You KNOW when the river has been dyed.

Friday Faces

I've been thinking about doing this for a while now, and after a stimulating conversation about blogs at our weekly brunch, I decided Fridays are going to be special.

Blogs can be deceiving. Perfect pictures, perfect lives. Only about 1/10 of the pictures we take are even considered for the blog. And I think, that is so sad, because if we had the guts to take the picture, we should have the guts to let everyone see. My solution? Every Friday, I am going to put up a picture that normally wouldn't make the cut, for all of you to enjoy.

Now go ahead and feast on these beauts from my when my sister Lauren was here last October.

Calling all Chicagoans

I'm just a little bit EXCITED about this post. But I need your help. My sister, her husband, and 3 kids are interning here this summer and I need to find them a place to sublease! I'm thinking a 2 bedroom un/furnished. . . as inexpensive as possible (since they will still be paying for their other apartment). I'm looking for anything from Wrigleyville, Lakeview, Lincoln Park, to Downtown. So PLEASE keep your ears open!!!

New post to come. . . with pictures other than these 3. . .

Friday

This is Livvy. Livvy is wearing a homemade oatmeal mask. She is the only person I have given a facial to since graduating.

That is what I am doing right now- a facial. On myself. Because it's Friday. And I can. And Denna Carter's 'Strawberry Wine' is playing, and that just makes me want to pamper myself. Someday I will take a before and after picture.

So pamper yourself. I give you permission. Let your kids watch the tube for an hour and scrub your skin off (just please don't use apricot scrub or you will be taking that 'off' literally).

Christmas

I know, it's almost March. I have been taking it really easy and I don't have much to show for myself.

We are going to play a game my blog knows well, catch up.

Christmas Catch Up, to be exact.

And a note to the fam, Taft and I didn't take any pictures over Christmas, so if you gave me photos, you're blogged, if you didn't, don't go saying I'm playing favorites- it's your fault.
(These are in no particular order and I'm too lazy to rearrange them)

'Diary of a Mad 3 Year Old'
Elise found a baby snowsuit and decided to run around the house like a crazy, but she didn't want anyone taking her pictures. Lauren jumped out and stole one, and I think Elise is going to eat her for it. The snowsuit looks like it could have been mine, but that is how we roll at our house.

Lauren and I worked all week to teach these two the 'Sisters' song from 'White Christmas' as a surprise present for their mom (it's her favorite). These gowns were created about 15 minutes before the surprise performance by your truly. . . L helped. It was such a hit! I couldn't have been more proud. They knew all the words and even had the coordinated dance moves to go with it!

P.S. If you make the picture big, you can check out the AWESOME present L made for our parents this year. It's the frame with all the of the grandkids silhouettes. She's pretty much the bomb, and made my giftcards look lame.

She acted like she didn't know any of the words until she got this magical ensemble on. Then she couldn't stop posing.

Sunday morning photo shoot. Claire feels really awkward smiling for pictures, so we tried putting marshmallows in her mouth to make it look like she was smiling. She hated it and we are cruel.

A lot of us went ice skating. This little lady is from L.A. and the only ice she knows is in her drink. Good thing she is so stubborn because every time she fell, she just kept getting back up and by the end, she was out on her own.


I know, I am a ghost. We went to see the Temple lights.

There were only a couple of families over on Christmas Eve, but we managed a nativity pretty well.

Christmas morning, Jenny's girls got these Sesame Streetish puppets. It was the highlight of my Christmas watching Livvy react to this monster. . . we are cruel.


This Christmas was probably my favorite. We kept things really simple and family oriented with the recession and economic situation. We really only did presents for the kids (and their favorites were my 3-d books from the dollar store!). It was so nice to sit home on Christmas Eve and wrap presents for the young ones while watching 'It's a wonderful life' with my dad. Usually the girls are running to the mall last minute to get presents.

After Utah, we got to spend some time with Taft's family in San Diego. Once again, no pictures, but it was so nice to go out and see everyone. It really made me miss the west coast. Insert tears here. Someday. . . Someday I will not be so cold.

Big Day

Today is my husband's birthday. Taft is 26. What did he get for his birthday? A comic book, work clothes, and. . .

a BOY!!

speechless

Who the H-E-Double hockey sticks thinks of this stuff? I don't think you could pay me enough to let you make a picture like this, let alone, pay for a picture like this. Unfortunately, I will be paying this company money to tell me the sex of my baby. . . So big post to come Sunday!

Am I crazy or fallin' in love?

This post is dedicated to MY MAMASITA, who had me calling 'American Idol' literally 75 times during the finale to vote for little Archie. . . Guess I should have voted 76 times.

It is just great to see that same enthusiasm from Austin!

Great to see Archuleta is still wearing those signature graphic tees.

The kid in the green shirt is hating Austin right now.

Is it just me, or is Austin tanner than David? And the kid is still hating Austin.

The Bed

We will chronicle this ride down memory lane from worst to best. Below, I give you the 'Living out of a Suitcase' phase of our life. We had 3 air mattresses before we finally gave in and got a bed. Nothing was worse than waking up at 2:30 in the morning on the hard wood floor due to a deflation.

Like the rug? NOT. This is what happens when I let Taft pick things out from Urban. I think my brother brought me home a backpack in the same pattern from his Guatemalan mission- at the ripe old age of 8 I had the sense to know it was fashion suicide but my mother made me use it for the next 2 years. That is what you get in a family of 7 kids.

Thank you Mom and Pop. They said if we let my sister use our car that was parked in their driveway, they would buy us a mattress. Once again, that is what you get in a family of 7 kids. We were in heaven!

I still want to paint the wrought iron a granny apple green, but I am satisfied for now. I also want to throw more pillows on there, just waiting for some fabric that I can't live without.

Where to Begin?!

It has been a fabulous start to February! After a fantastic shower for Shana, we met up with Erin and Dave to complete a life long dream for the guys... A wing fest. Taft and I discovered 'House of Wing' last year and have been loyal patrons ever since. We knew we had to introduce Dave and are we ever glad we did. Who else would have been up to this challenge?

The party platter. It was a little daunting when Erin and I opened it, but I think we fared pretty well.

This picture is disgusting and I obviously have no shame because I am posting it. This is the COMMUNITY bone plate. Don't go getting any ideas that my appetite is back with that kind of vengence. Even with our buffalo wing hangover we managed to make it to church on time.


Ahhh, Quiltology, how I love thee. A million thanks to Mo for introducing me to this mecca. It is the cutest little fabric shop and the owner, Collete, could not be nicer. After I took Erin and Alex here, we knew we needed to get involved.

So we signed up for the next quilting class and had our first one on Tuesday night! We were so excited and it was a blast. I'm so glad I have a friend to take it with me. There is just something about the first day of school, or class, that is a little intimidating!

Erin will have to post a picture of her quilt when she is done. Her fabric is GORGEOUS and her quilt is going to be awesome. Mine. . .well I went for a kid quilt, the fabrics are a little more loud and not as matchy, so until I can see the finished product, the verdict is still out.

Erin was a master cutter. She went for 2 at a time! She was the only brave soul in the class to try it and she did great. . . I was jealous. . .

For the most exciting part of my week. . .

This little lady just decided to have a baby! And that stinkin' baby couldn't be any stinkin' cuter if she tried. I'm serious. You all know in your head that sometimes newborns can come out a little funky looking, and you're like, 'oh yea, uh-huh, ummmm, she's really cute. . .' cricket, cricket. Not this one- she is straight angel.

Well tomorrow will be the big bed reveal. . . I know, I know, try to calm yourself. I'm determined to make my husband set up the bed frame that has been sitting on our floor for the past 5 nights. My toes are tired of being stubbed twice a night for my bathroom runs in the dark. And I don't feel bad at all when it makes a huge crashing noise and a bad word slips out and jolts Taft out of his sleep.