Dress Up, Dine In

30 x 30: #30 Have Another Baby When I made my list of things I wanted to do by the time I hit 30 years old (refresh your memory -here- ) having another baby was one of those parts that seemed a little less in my control than others. Yet, here we are almost a month 'til that milestone and I'm getting to tell the story of Ezra. Early, early morning on Monday, October 7th I woke Seth up and told him he might need to be ready to take the day off. Then there was a whirlwind of timing contractions, getting sick, insisting on taking a shower, waking Eileen up, and running through the sprinklers in the yard. But we were pros at this. It was our second baby and Seth and Bean were just going to get me settled at the hospital and come back when it was closer to delivery and a decent hour that neighbors could watch her.  At 3 a.m. before we even got on the interstate my water broke. At 6th South I was pretty sure he was going to be born in the car. By the time we made it to LDS Ho

For better or worse, when you're expecting your second child there is a small feeling of comfort. I've got prior mama knowledge and all the gadgets that help make motherhood more manageable.  Nesting the second time around means pulling out the Ergo carrier and Petunia Pickle Bottom backpack. There were so many baby accessories I didn't know I needed until Eileen arrived and they're all making another appearance for Ezra.  That's why it was amusing to take Eileen (now 22 months) to our second Steals.com Warehouse Sale. There was a time when I hit up that website for all things baby. If you're not familiar with it, it's a daily deals website for babies, kids, ladies, and scrapbookers offering products at ridiculous discounts. They're local and incredibly helpful too which makes them incredibly dangerous for me (in a most wonderful way). Today we efficiently navigated our way into line in cold rain (it is Utah) to score some concise deals on outlet p

It's taken us five years but Utah is starting to feel like home more often than not. (Florida, you're still my first love.) We're also on the verge of fall, which is absolutely gorgeous here. Even so, one thing Utah doesn't have is our extended family. That's why I'm incredibly grateful that planes have been boarded both ways since we made our big move. Family is extra wine bottles in the fridge. It's picking up where you left off. Family is a full house. It's letting the candle burn down to the table because there are still things to talk about. Family is watching the youngest in ours discover what wonderful people she is related to. It's crying in the driveway when they leave. Family is quite simply this: ::listening to "come thou fount of every blessing" by sufjan stevens::

This is the first year I haven't had a back-to-school in somewhere around 24 years. I have been lucky enough to enjoy school supply shopping, the joy of fresh crayons, and agonize over first day outfits for far longer than I should have. True, the first day has taken on many forms...waiting for buses with labeled  backpacks, carpooling with friends, rounds of sorority recruitment, and remembering class lists and which fantastic small children I've already met at BTS night... Each of them were exhilarating in their own way. This year I've voluntarily given up that back-to-school experience and while it doesn't have to be permanent, it doesn't make it any less bittersweet. I'm so very grateful that I can try this stay-at-home-mama thing that I've been missing out on. It's been phenomenal to see all the little things Eileen does in a day. I feel like I've gotten to know her all over again. Y et that doesn't mean that every time someone tel

When I was Eileen's age I was already well obsessed with "My Little Ponies." At least that's what my baby book said. Despite Seth and I's best efforts to show Bean the wonder of Don Bluth classics, she just hasn't been a "watching things" kind of girl.  That is until a couple of weeks ago when Seth introduced her to Sofia the First while I was sneaking in a mid-afternoon pass-out session. She sat through the whole made-for-Disney-Channel movie and has since watched all 15 Disney Junior episodes.  We love it because we get to sneak in the ever illusive cuddle. She'll proclaim "I watch" before being so immersed in Sofia that she forgets she minds you snuggling with her. In fact, she only moves to wave when Sofia does in the opening song (Eileen's got a natural princess wave) or to dance. Otherwise she's yours. Sofia (or "Sopia"/"Pia" as Bean calls her) is everywhere in our house but I can't help

It's no secret that when we were house hunting, we preferred to live in Salt Lake City. We were young(er) and looking for a home that had character and was close to a park. Salt Lake was more "us" and it was kind of like admitting defeat when we ended up buying out in Murray. Sure, we heard how cute/central/desirable it was to people who liked that semi-suburban type of living. It was the responsible choice but not the one we wanted.  We've been in the Ranch for three years and it's still very much a "love/hate" relationship. Maybe that's the curse of eternal renovations and the general home-owning process. No matter how I may feel about our home (or where it's located) there is one day that I absolutely adore living here each year....the 4th of July. It's utterly wonderful to roll out of the Ranch and down the street to Murray Park for their morning parade. Bean especially enjoyed waving at everyone and clapping. She even met some dino

Tezzie overseeing bathroom renovations in August Tezzie, Loss is the drive down State St. to accept that we are now a two dog family. It's not having a puff to wake up from sleep so we can get to work. It's a silent house because no one is squeaking toys. It's a cup of food, instead of a cup and a half, at breakfast and dinner. Loss is an absence of groundhog sits, bugga rolls, and snoring. It is having to wake up each day to missing you. But I have to believe that the Rainbow Bridge has a magnificent view of our home in case you feel like telling Conor and Sake to shut up when they're being too wild. I'm sure you can sleep as long as you want. Or maybe you got your energy back...the kind we would see in short bursts down here. There's probably a box full of squeaky toys that you can hide in for days. Hippo fight with Tabitha for old time's sake; she's up there too. In fact you might meet a lot of puffs who remember us from different