Mother's Day Reflections...

I'm not gonna lie...last Mother's Day was sure more fun than this year's. It was on Mother's Day that I announced to my extended family that we were expecting this little one:

I was supposed to be celebrating my first "real" Mother's Day this year. It kinda hurts not to be. Our pregnancy was a suprise, and we actually hadn't planned on starting our family until after Steve finished school, so I never was in that club of the ones longing to be moms on Mother's Day...it was more of a "can't wait until it's my turn" day. But once we were expecting, we were so excited, and we now long for a child that still has not come. It seems like more of a loss than it has before. Steve and I cannot wait to add to our family, and we know that God is going to bless our socks off with children, but man is it hard to see the timing of it all...especially on days like today.

However, even with my own dreams that have not yet been realized, I rejoice with my friends who are celebrating their first Mother's Day today. Jessica is the proud mommy of sweet little Ian, Starling is enjoying her precious Ethan, and Rebecca is finally getting to spend Mother's Day with Eli in her arms! God is so good!

And, of course, I have to thank the Lord for my own Mom.

I have been blessed with a Mom that took such interest in her three kids. She was always helping out at school functions, even homeschooled me for two years. My Mom was also "mom" to many of my friends who weren't as lucky as I was to have parents so involved. Thank you, Momma, for investing so much of yourself into us.

Not only did God bless me with a great Mother, I am also one of the lucky ones that has an amazing Mother-in-Law. I can't wait to make both of them proud Grandmas as well. Steve and I have such an awesome heritage that we will be honored to carry on. Thanks to both of my Moms (and Grandmas...and Aunts - hey, it takes a whole family). I love you!

A Day Brightener...

I got a new job at work (which is a blessing!) a couple weeks ago and have been so very busy and super exhausted (though in a good way). I will write about the new job another day. Anyhow...today -- and it's only Monday -- started to get pretty overwhelming. But, as I got home and logged on to Facebook, I saw this link...it made my day! Watch the whole thing -- it's only about a minute long -- and it is sure to brighten yours, too!

The Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN, has a piano in the atrium that people can play. Someone captured this sweet couple playing the piano. It is awesome.

Busy Weekend continued...Saturday!

Now that has been a week...I'd better get blogging! I have been so much better about documenting things, so I cannot get behind in my blogging, or my material will be outdated! Haha.

Last Saturday, Steve had to go on a field trip for his Hydrology class (not his ideal way to spend his Saturday...his group's assignment was to determine how fast the soil absorbed water...watching paint dry, anyone?). Anyhow, since I was sans-husband for the day, I took the opportunity to hang out with my friend Laurie. I met Laurie last summer during The Sound of Music, and I have to say, God blessed me so much by bringing her into my path. She, Siobhan, and I have had some fun times over this past year and I am so thankful for them!

Laurie and I started our day at the Medieval Fair at Reeves Park in Norman. If you ever want to see some very interesting folk, I'd say a Medieval Fair is probably your best bet. We saw people with pet dogs, as well as people with pet snakes, parrots...you name it. All walking from booth-to-booth at the park. We had a blast, though. Some highlights of our experience:

A mermaid

Camel Rides

A hilarious Acrobatic Danger Show (they were awesome)

There were also cute little girls doing Irish Dancing (think Riverdance), Random Jugglers, tons of windblown tents (did I mention the 800 mph wind?), and...of course, my favorite part: FAIR FOOD! Here is Laurie enjoying her very first Fried Twinkie. I was also able to partake. Delish.

Once we'd had our fill of the Medieval Fair, we walked around the shops in Downtown Norman (found a wonderful quaint little coffee shop that I will definitely be re-visiting!).

And, as if the day couldn't get any better...Laurie suggested we stop at Atwoods on the way home. It's a local "Fleet Farm" kind of store and they have chicks and bunnies around Easter time (not sure if they have them year-round or not). Oh my goodness, we had a blast there.

I held the sweetest little bunny:

One of the workers came up while I was oohing and awwwwing over this sweet bunny and I asked, "What do you do with a little bunny like this?" Mistake. Her response..."Oh, you can do lots of things...I have some great recipes for Rabbit Stew." ?!?!?!?!? Really? I think not. This is why I am not a farmer...I cannot put faces to the things I eat.

And I held a squirmy little duckling (love the webbed feet!):

But the highlight of the ENTIRE DAY was this little guy:

I named him Edward. He fell asleep in my hands as soon as I picked him up! He was precious, and quite a little runt. I even called Steve and begged him to let me keep him. He was not a fan. But seriously, how cute is Edward?!?! So fun.

We had such a fun day. Thanks for the adventures, Laurie, and I can't wait for the next one!

Busy Weekend!

Wow, did I have a busy weekend. So many fun things to blog about, and I was so proud of myself for actually bringing my camera to document the adventures. I will actually split this up into a few posts (gotta save the goods, ya know?)...starting with my Friday night date with the sweet boy who is the star of *this* blog. His mom gave me permission to post about our fun evening.

Look at him! Can you imagine a better Friday night?

I even captured some fun video. It's always embarrassing to hear myself talk in these, but hey, Ian had fun and that's all that counts, right?

And here he is right before enjoying a delicious dinner of baby food carrots. I think he digs the getting ready to eat routine, don't you?

Such concentration. He's basically a genius.

I worked in a daycare for 3 years and babysat for many years...I have taken care of a lot of kiddos in my day. This little man is seriously one of the easiest. I love my Oklahoma nephew. Thanks, Jessica and Justin, for letting me hang with your sweet boy!

Epic Winter Storm 2009...

I chuckle at my own title, because every time any kind of weather event happens in Oklahoma, the news stations are all over it with some catchy phrase...whether it ends up actually being a big deal or not is determined later, and usually it is determined that it was not really a big deal. Hehe. So although (here in the OKC metro, at least) this is really no winter storm as predicted (but I have to give a shout out to my weatherman husband, who was right on with his forecast...as is the case typically), it was still fun to see some big flakes coming down this morning! The Oklahoma Panhandle has some pretty huge drifts, actually, but we are missing out on all the fun. I say fun only because it's a weekend and I don't have to drive anywhere. I took a little video to share the moment with all of you...

*Disclaimer: Sorry about the bit with Norman relieving himself at the beginning of the video. I didn't really realize I had such a wide-angle until I watched it later. Oops!

Norman really does like the snow, as evidenced here in our trip to the mountains last year.

However, today's type of snow apparently is not his cup of tea. I believe this may be a more accurate picture of his day today.

*Disclaimer #2: We actually don't let him on this chair sans blanket...he has a different chair (i.e. throne) with complete blanket coverage :)

No Girls' Night For Us...

We have been so spoiled this winter here in Oklahoma...but for some reason, winter wanted to give us one last taste before allowing spring to arrive for good. Unfortunately, it was at the expense of my fun night planned with these lovely ladies:

Thanks, Jessica, for letting me swipe this pic! The four of us have gotten together a couple times over the last few months (and we were even adding one more to the mix tonight), and it sure is fun to have girlfriends to hang out with. I am blessed with the best husband in the world (sorry ladies, he's taken), but I am confident that God gives women girlfriends to help balance us out :)

Ladies, I'm sorry our evening did not work out as planned, but I am looking forward to our next get-together!

Meanwhile, I am going to make some Hot Chocolate (yum!) and settle in for some snuggling time with my boys and some OU Basketball. Go Sooners!

A Night at the Theatre...

Last night, my friend Andrea and I went to see one of our castmates from AGYG in Edmond North High School's production of The Wizard of Oz. It was so much fun and Leah was an amazing Dorothy. A talented--and very funny--cast, the elaborate sets, a fly wire to add a fun dimension to the tornado scene and Glinda's entrances/exits, and, of course, an adorable dog playing the role of Toto made it a fabulous show. It sure made me miss being on the stage, and it also brought back so many memories of my own experience as Dorothy almost 6 years ago (I would reprise that role in a second...hopefully I'll have the chance to someday!). Good times :) They have two more shows today to close out the run...2:00 pm (oops, it's 2 right now. Better hurry!) and 8:00 pm.

Go see it!