Are we there yet…

It’s twenty minutes past midnight and I am wired! For the last several hours, I have been anxiously awaiting the latest post to the Atlanta Daily Candy Kids homepage. I’m a little compulsive when it comes to things that I am excited about. And for good reason! I got a call late Friday afternoon that the good folks at the Daily Candy were interested in doing a write up on Petey Pie’s. I cannot tell you what an honor it is to get recognition for your hard work! Take a minute and head on over to the Atlanta Daily Candy and be sure to also check out the changes to the Petey Pie’s website. As always, thank you all so much for your continued support and for allowing me to do something that I love!

Head on over to the Pregnancy and Newborn blog for your chance to win a Petey Pie’s shirt for your little one! But hurry, contest ends Sunday June 28 at midnight!

Fall 2009 Pretty as a Peacock

This little girl loves her family as much as I do. She speaks of each and every relative no less than a dozen times a day. We visited with Gran C and Big Daddy last weekend and are anxiously awaiting Papa Joe and Mimi’s arrival on Friday. Thank you God for blessing us with such an abundance of love!

This little girl loves to pick flowers. Thank you God for Your creation and for allowing even the smallest of your children to recognize its magnificence!

This mama loves having her niece and nephew so close. Thank you God for bringing the Boucek’s back to Georgia!

This mama also loves having a date night out with her sweet husband! Thank you God for blessing me with such a loving and caring partner! And also for such great friends! Thank you Julie for loving MR as if she were your own and for opening up your house to her. I pray that MR will be as a good of a big sister as you are to me!

On Tuesday night, MR spent the night at Ju-Ju Bea’s so G and I could cheer on the Braves v Yankees!

Thank you God for all your many blessings! And for teaching me to count them on a daily basis!!!

In the last couple of days, we have:

seen a lot of these guys and spent a lot of time outdoors,

successfully completed a week of swimming lessons,

scored a new summer wardrobe thanks to my sweet and generous friend, Kristi,

eaten our weight (times 2) in “Meme Crackers”,

jumped on Cousin’s big-girl bed,

and giggled every step of the way!

When I was younger, the summer was full of activities. The grill became the kitchen; the pool replaced the television; and longer days meant later bedtimes. Last week, I made every effort to revisit those care-free days. On Tuesday, we cheered on the Braves at Turner Field. On Wednesday, I joined a group of ladies for a jewelry party and a much needed glass of wine. And on Saturday, we danced with some of our favorite friends (and scores of squealing tweens) at the Taylor Swift/Keith Urban concert. Thank the good Lord above for fun-filled summer days!

A big thank you to Ju-Ju Bea for taking such good care of MR and for allowing us to have a night out on the town!

And a big thank you to G for being such a good daddy and for letting me enjoy a quiet Sunday afternoon on the couch!

I’ve heard it said that a rainy day at the beach is better than a sunny day back home. While I’m not 100% on board with this statement, I do know that a rainy day at the beach means lots of cuddling, snacking, and afternoon cat naps. It also means one rested mama, which makes for one happy family!

We got in about two hours of beach time each morning before the rain set in. Much of our time was spent trying to keep this little one entertained.

Beach time!

Looking for “sheshells”.

Sometimes I hold off on writing about our day simply because I cannot think of a good title. Other times, I hold off because I am too lazy or too invested in the latest episode of the Bachelorette or New Jersey Housewives. Before I come to my senses, I am yet another week behind. Worse than that, is narrowing down the 400+ pictures that I take a week. And trying to come up with another way of saying, “on Monday we did this” and “on Tuesday, we did this”…

The best solution to this problem comes from my mom, who frequently reminds me that most people would rather see pictures than read a play by play of the day. I’d have to agree. Maybe that’s why the majority of my “reading material” consists of trash/gossip magazines. And, why I spend so much time “friendly stalking” the other blogs that are out there. Don’t get me wrong, I love to read short updates, but I what I enjoy even more is seeing what you’re wearing, what you’re kids are wearing, what your house looks like, and what you’re eating… Not to judge. But simply because I am a visual person.

So, for you all other “visual readers out there”, here is a week in pictures…

Stella and Dot jewelry party hosted by my friends Kristi and Lori.

A spend the night visit from Gran C and Hendley.

After a month of overcast skies and rain, the sun finally returned for the weekend!

The sun is not the only thing we are smiling about; this weekend marked the return of the Boucek’s (my sister and her family)! They will be living 4 miles from us for the next year while Bill completes an internship at Home Depot. On Sunday, we fired up the grill to celebrate their arrival!

Boss (9 months); Hendley (27 months); Mary Reese (20 months)

Big Daddy and the Grandkids

Even MR cant resist the Boss man’s cheeks!

A new summertime favorite; homemade chocolate chip cookies sandwiched between a scoop of Vanilla ice cream. Roll the edges of the icecream in chopped chocolate, toffee chips, and nuts.

Hendley came over on Monday for the first of many cousin play-dates.

Three words: Mexican, grilling, and beer…

On Saturday, we joined the Williamson family for a Mexican fiesta at a nearby restaurant.

Their son, Big Papa, is quite the ladies man.

On Sunday, G and MR cheered on the Braves at Turner Field.

And on Monday, we invited a few friends over to grill out.

Sweet T (Taylor)

1) When G or anyone else in my family complains about taking pictures, I often say in my best Paula Deen voice, “pictures is memories“. And I truly believe that pictures are in fact memories. That’s why I take so many! Last week, as I was uploading new pictures, I accidentally deleted my memory card before copying the pictures to my computer. Before I could hit “cancel”, the pictures were gone. Thank the good lord above for CardProgram. The software allows you to recover deleted photos from your digital camera’s memory card. It can be downloaded online and costs $40 for unlimited use.

2) Why is it that the older you get, the harder that it is to bounce back from a weekend of travel and fun? Our trip to Waycross was amazing! MR got to swim, eat m&m’s for breakfast, and spend time with her grandparents.

This sweet little girl earned the #1 traveler award! She was perfect on our four and a half hour journey down south!

MR’s great grandmother

Jonathan Steven and MR

Dueling piano’s

Papa and MR

Swimming at Meme and Papa Joe’s

Meme and MR

Riding the Kubato with Papa Joe

Church on Sunday with Danny and Papa

Saying goodbye to Jonathan Steven

3) This set of pictures was taken yesterday morning. This is how I found MR when I got out of the shower. The next five minutes were dedicated to singing and dancing to the lyrics of Greece’s Beauty School Dropout.

4) She’s published…Check out MR’s picture from the Georgia v Georgia Tech baseball game on  GeorgiaDogs.com.

5) Little Miss Independence. Meet the newest addition to Petey Pie’s. Perfect for the 4th of July and summer bbq’s. This shirt would be precious with navy or red shorts and a big bow!

For the last several years, Turner Field has hosted a rivalry baseball game between the Georgia Bulldogs and the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets. This year, thanks to Aunt B, we got to sit on the very first row behind home plate. These excellent seats also meant that we would be on tv the majority of the game.

For four whole hours, I sat up straight, sucked in my gut, and prayed that the tickle in my nose was not indicative of something that shouldn’t be there. I also made a mental note not to scold my child for fear that child protective services would be at my doorstep the following morning. And then I kicked myself for not taking a shower, wearing a ratty t-shirt, and for leaving my trusty pair of Spanx at home. This here is yet another life lesson that I will take to the grave….

We’re off to Waycross for the weekend and will return on Sunday with more tales and many more pictures from our travels! In the meantime, be sure to check out a few new additions to the Petey Pie’s site.

Aunt B and MR