Not Everything is What it Seems

I hate those days when I feel like everyone is staring at me, like I have food in my teeth or something on my face. It always makes it worse when you don't have a mirror handy, so you just smile & hope for the best. Well today I got some pretty crazy looks on our walk, the difference this time was that I knew exactly why. My day started off pretty normal, but once 12pm rolled around & Barrett still hadn't nap I knew it was a rough ride from there in. He finally went down for a nap around 3:30ish but I had to be somewhere by 4:30pm, so I let him sleep as long as possible. Next thing I knew, we were in a car & on our way out. The poor guy literally screamed the whole drive & I couldn't blame him. I had a good friend ask to borrow some of my decorative suitcases for a photo shoot & I was supposed to meet up with her after my 4:30pm shindig. Sadly I knew there was no way I was getting Barrett to calm down in the car. We rushed home in time to say bye to Ben before he headed out for the K9 trials in Las Vegas & then I loaded up my jogging stroller. Barrett loves going on our walks, so I knew that it would be no problem to walk down to Target to meet up. We had a little hiccup though... My suitcases were mondo huge for my stroller & it wouldn't fit in the underneath basket! No problem, I just decided to set the bad boy up on top of the stroller & go about my merry way. I was laughing & smiling the whole walk because people were just staring like they saw a ghost. People took a double take when they saw me going by & I even heard one woman ask her husband 'what was that about' LoL I could just image the crazy things people were thinking. Did I runaway? Was I carrying a chopped up dead body? I mean honestly, they could've been thinking up any story in their heads, but I'm 99% sure that they weren't thinking the truth.... My son was cranky, didn't want to go in his car seat & I had to meet up with a friend to get her these photo props for her to use tomorrow & this was the easiest way for me to meet her & to keep my son happy! I created extra entertainment for myself & a few people today. I was inspired today by my not so normal walk. I learned that no matter how crazy someone might look you never know exactly what's going on at that moment! A mama has to do what she has to do :)

Luckily I snapped a few photos of my fun walk! Don't mind the partial blanket over the suitcase, I had to make sure it wouldn't fall off the stroller.

The Great Escape

Today I got about an hour and half to myself, which is a super rare occasion. I honestly didn't have anything that I absolutely had to get done, but the hubster was home & Barrett was napping, so I thought I'd take advantage of the opportunity.
I ran a couple minor errands and then literally just sat in my car. I luckily had my ipad on me, so I decided to play some games, lurk around on the internet & do a little blogging :)
I honestly never get this quality alone time & partly feel guilty when I do. I feel like a bad mommy abandoning Barrett like that. I'm with him so much that I know I get separation anxiety when I'm gone, so I know the poor little booger does too. I'm never gone too long though because I miss him like crazy and plus, let's face it... Where do I really have to go?
The funny part is that as I sat in my car blogging away, I looked over to the car next to me & saw a mom with her kiddo passed out in the car seat. I couldn't help but smile. I totally know that lifestyle of sitting in the car for an hour just to let your little one get a nap in! I'm partly glad to know that I'm not the only crazy one that does that. Honestly it's probably a weekly occurrence for us. Driving around until he falls asleep & then park somewhere! Now if someone could only drive me around until I fall asleep then I'd be set LoL Mama needs a nap!

Here is a picture of me & my sweet little munchkin playing in his tent. I love that little stinker bug so much! Oh the life of a mom XOXO

Walk it Out

I'm so excited that the weather is finally cooling off a bit in the evening because we can go on our walks again! We've been going for the past three weeks now & both Barrett & me just love it :) It's so relaxing & peaceful! I've been trying to go atleast four times a week. I love walking because it's nice to get out of the house & get exercise on top of it. We can't really splurge on a gym membership, but honestly going on walks are so much better. Enjoying the fresh air, no over crowding & it's nice & quite. The doggies love it too, sadly I can't take all of them though. I've been taking the 3 little ones the past couple times & trust me those little chunkers need it :) Dee Dee usually just hangs out in the stroller with Barrett or in the basket underneath since she's too little to keep up.

Without a Bang

Well this past Saturday was Barrett's 1st birthday party & it didn't go off with a bang. I usually have all my ducks in a row & am the oober crazy lady who plans things five years in advance, not this time around! I had this whole vision of having this glorious party at the park & honestly not a single thing happened as I thought. I was going to make this awesome balloon caterpillar, have an adorable cupcake display & everyone would 'ooo' & 'aaa' at my amazing craftiness.
This is how the day went for me. I woke up around 8:30am (we usually get up at 7:30am) I did some dishes, straightened up the house, fed the dogs, made breakfast & ran to Target for a couple last minute things. Once I got back to the house I put Barrett down for a nap, so he would be rested for his party. As soon as he was asleep I started on the cupcakes, by this time is was already 10:30am & the party started at 12pm! I rushed around like a headless chicken trying to get everything ready to go. Ben loaded the coolers, tables & chairs in his truck then left the house about 11:15am so he could get ice on his way. My sister arrived to my house just as Barrett woke up & Ben was leaving. She found me in just my underwear in the closet trying to find something to wear, thank goodness she brought me a dress. I hurried & threw it on while she got Barrett dressed. We piled all the rest of the food in my car & took off. I was so behind I had to do my makeup in the car! We pulled up to the park 15 minutes before the party started, I originally planned on being there an hour before! This is when the crazy started. We rushed to get everything set out, thank goodness my parents were bringing the party sub because I probably would've completely forgot it. We barely got the table clothes on before the first guests arrived. My cousins helped put up a birthday banner, some streams & a couple balloons. By this time it was already too late & people were already there.
I felt more busy & rushed then I did at our wedding. Before we knew it we were doing cupcakes & gifts. The day honestly flew by so fast that I don't even think I had a chance to blink. The good part about it all was that everyone seemed to have a really good time. Barrett was non-stop smiling & loved all the play time. Despite is being 100 degrees out & me not having anything put together, I think everyone really enjoyed themselves. My sister luckily took a lot of video & my mom & mother-in-law snapped some pictures. If it wasn't for them I probably wouldn't have any!
I truly have never felt so unprepared for something before. I know I had all these wonderful things in my head but, when it came down to it they didn't matter. The kids laughed, played & everyone was smiling. In the end all the time consuming things didn't make the party, the people that came did! I'm sure nobody really noticed (or atleast I hoped they didn't) that I didn't have some elaborate thing going on. It was good people, with good food & all for a special little handsome 1 year old boy. We started out without a bang but, ended with a truly fun day!
I can't thank all our family & friends enough for helping us celebrate such a special occassion. We had so many people there & so much love for our little stinker bug. We're lucky to have such amazing people in our life! Thank you all for your help, gifts & for just being there to celebrate with us XOXO
Here are a few snap shots of the party. I sadly didn't even get a chance to take any photos with my good camera & my mom just took a few with my old point & shoot. I'm really broken hearted about not having amazing pictures but, my sister got some great video to make up for it.

Naked!

Our walls are naked! I decided that since Barrett's first birthday is over that I would start to slowly pack stuff up. I stared with all our decoration since we really don't need it for our household to function on a daily basis. It's weird how empty & cold the place feels now. This is the first time in 3yrs that this house hasn't really felt like home & I'm so sad. I know we have a couple months until we are supposed to move, but packing is so time consuming & I wanted to myself a head start. Everything feels so surreal now! I'm going to miss this house so much, but am overly excited to start a new journey in our new home :)

I plan on doing a future post on what our house looks like before we move, so keep an eye out for that!

For now, here are some 'before' & 'after' photos. I only found 2 'before' pictures where you can kind of see stuff in the background. Don't mind the mess right now, things are crazy from packing & the birthday party.

A Year of First

Today marks a huge event, Barrett's first birthday! He graced this wonderful world at 6:17am Sept 29, 2011 & he stole our hearts. I'm at a loss of words on what to even say about how incredibly fast time is going by. I can honestly remember his birth like it was yesterday & I will never forget the first moment I held him.
Today is super emotional for me because I really can't believe that a whole year has passed & my little baby is growing up. I wish I could freeze time! I am amazingly lucky to be able to experience a full year of firsts right along side of him & I wouldn't trade it for the world. We became parents for the first time, we knew what unconditional love was, we felt pure joy & also true fear. I never knew that I could love someone as much as I do my son & I also never knew I could be so afraid of everything. Afraid to mess up as a parent, afraid to let him down or afraid that something bad might happen to him. I did however learn that no matter what Barrett will be loved! He is with the people that love him the most in the world, us, & what more could we ask for? No one could ever love him & care for him more than we could.
This year has been so incredible & each day Barrett amazes us more & more. I am proud & so happy to have been able to be there for every single first of his. The first time he rolled over, crawled, talked, first steps & well everything! I was there every step of the way & will always be there. Our life is what we make of it & I'm unbelievable happy that I made the choice to be there to experience all these new fun achievements.
We will be having his first birthday party this weekend. It's still so crazy to think about. I'm usually the queen of hosting, but this time around I've been slacking. I know I keep putting stuff off because I just didn't want to admit that he was actually turning one! I am excited to be able to celebrate with all our family & friends though. I've been slowly working on a few DIY party decorations & will be making some super cute cupcakes & Barrett's own personal little cake. I will definitely be posting pictures of the party, so keep your eyes out.
So to end on a sweet note... Happy 1st Birthday Barrett! I love you to the moon & back. You will move mountains, but you will always be my little stinker bug XOXO

I can't believe how much he has changed, but is still the same. He is still the cutest little boy in the world though :)

Here is the first picture we took of him right after he was born. The next picture is one of us yesterday evening after our walk & before bed, I wanted to make sure I took a photo of us before he was all grown up!

The Mom In Me

Our life has been a crazy whirl wind of... well... a little bit of everything! It seems like each day there is something new going on, some times exciting & some times not so much. I wish I had the time, and the words, to share it all.
Our house is slowly coming along. Not at the pace that we could hope for, but it's getting there (I'll be posting some photos in the next couple weeks). They extended our completion date by a whole month, which is a let down. I've actually been so busy that it really hasn't got me down too much. It's amazing how being a mom can really keep your mind occupied. I keep telling myself that I'll slowly start packing stuff up, but just never get a chance to. Part of me is sad to leave the house we're in now. We got engaged here, married here, & had our son here. This house means a lot to me. Ben thinks I'm crazy about that stuff, but the mom in me doesn't want to give it up. I feel like we have so many memories here & thankfully most of them are really great memories.
Talking about great memories, Barrett's 1st birthday is coming up next week & I still can't believe that this year is already gone! He's growing more every day & doing new things like crazy. I can't believe that it's been a whole year since he was born. I honestly never would've expected it to fly by so fast. I can't wait to celebrate, but I honestly get tears in my eyes just thinking about how things are flashing by.
It sure seems like things get so busy sometimes that I forget to slow down & actual enjoy being a mom. Not that I have never enjoyed it, but on most days it just seems like work. My son is just growing up too fast & the only way I can slow it down is savor every second of it.
I decided I would share a couple things I do & think about to help keep myself grounded.

1. Breathe
It seems so simple, but trust me it works. Telling yourself to just breathe can really make you think about the important things. When things seem overwhelming or extra stressful just breath! Go in another room, close the door & just take a minute to yourself. Moments like that can really help you see between right & wrong. They can also keep you sane! It'll be okay :)

2. Don't Sweat the Small Stuff
Everyone has a bad day & it doesn't make you a bad person. Things will happen if you want them to or not & there is no reason to stress about all the little things you can't change. Things like cleaning up dog poop baby foot prints isn't something you hope for, but it happens & you have to move on. Remember you're not the only one who has bad days, your kiddos do too. Take 2 seconds to give them a hug or kiss (even if they fight it) & let go of all the little things.

3. Be a Kid
Get down to your little one's level & try to see things through their eyes. It's amazing all the things you can miss out on when we don't take the time to look. Being a parent is hard work & sometimes being one of the kids can help remind you of what fun is & also
help you understand your own kids. So take the time to crawl around the floor & explore, see the world through your kids eyes. Experiencing new (or forgotten) things is fun & your kids will love that you are joining in.

4. Realize What's Important
I can't emphasize this one enough. It always amazes me of how fast people can overlook the most important things in life. Family & love! We live in such a materialistic world & we are taught to buy buy buy. I think if everyone just stopped to think about what really matters most then things would be less stressful. My son is the most important thing, every second I spend with him & every milestone I go through with him is the important thing in my life. Deciding what's important to you can really help you be happier & have less stress.

Here's a picture of Barrett chowing down on some yummy Paradise Bakery. I never get a chance to treat myself & at home everything is just so busy all the time. I decided I would have a special relaxing lunch date with my adorable son! I really loved it & I know he did too. Moments like that are what make being a stay-a-home mom extra special & worth it.