Mid Week Update

Man, where has the week gone? Last Friday while I was at my conference, I got a text for Aedan’s sitter saying she thought Aedan was coming down with a cold. Jon picked him up early and the poor guy was pretty miserable all day.  Then Saturday, Jon started to feel bad and sure enough on Sunday I started to feel sick. We are all just now starting to get over this cold.

We tried not to let being sick ruin our weekend. The weather was amazing and it has been too hot for way to long, so we took advantage of it. Saturday morning we went for a hike on the Greenbelt with some good friends. Then Sunday morning, Aedan and I meet my good friend Larissa and her son at the park for a breakfast play date. Other than that, we just relaxed around the house and all enjoyed long afternoon naps.

Oh and check out this expressive guy…

This is Aedan’s surprised face, which he does when he is legitimately surprised and on command, especially when it is to impress the ladies. What a mess!

And this is what he does when I ask him to say “cheese” and smile. Oh my.

-Lauren-

Labor Day Weekend Recap

M-kay, how did a whole week go bye without me posting anything?!?

We have had a pretty busy and I haven’t taken any pictures this week. I need to be better about that!

I guess should recap our Labor Day weekend.

Friday, after our eventful morning, we had a pretty uneventful afternoon/evening. We did a little shopping at the mall Friday night. I rarely go to the mall anymore, but we needed to find some new shoes for Aedan. I tried buying some from Old Navy and Gap but Aedan has wide feet so they didn’t fit well. I got him measured at Stride Rite and decided I didn’t like anything they had (I ended up ordering some from zappos.com, love the free shipping!). We decided to get dinner at California Pizza Kitchen. We had the Tostada Pizza and the Greek Pizza, both were delicious!

Saturday morning we went up to see my parents and grandmothers for brunch. Aedan had a blast being the center of attention! Jon and Aedan headed back for nap time and my mom, grandmother and I did a little shopping. We stopped by Bath and Body Works and my grandmother bought be some lotion. I am in love with the new Carried Away scent! Saturday evening my parents came over for dinner and we just relaxed at home.

Sunday we ran some errands and then had our friends Jason and Meredith over for dinner. We had a great time just hanging out.

Monday we headed to our favorite breakfast diner. I love that all the waitresses know us and don’t even bother giving us a menu. Aedan gets way too much attention from them and loves it!

It finally cooled down (read: it was below 100 degrees for the first time in 80 days!) on Monday so Jon and Aedan did some hiking with his friend Phillip and Hiro’s BBF Woodrow. I enjoyed a couple of hours home in a quiet house.

I realized that doesn’t happen much. There are plenty of times that I go somewhere and leave Aedan home with Jon, but rarely do I get to stay home without Aedan. It was nice, although, I wasn’t sure what to do with myself!

All in all we had a great weekend and I can’t believe it is Friday again (although I am pretty happy the weekend is here again!).

-Lauren-

Midweek Randomness

First, how it is only Wednesday? It should at least be Friday already.
Jon has been out of town since Monday (he got back this afternoon) and I am always more tired when he is out of town. You would think it’s because it I don’t have any extra help with Aedan, but really Aedan was great and pretty easy over the last few days. I am tried because somehow I managed to stay up until at least midnight both nights watching random shows on Hulu. I may or may not have actually watched an entire episode of The Secret Life of an American Teenager. Worst acting ever, yet I sat through the whole thing.
We are officially going to to pick up our new flooring on Friday and it will be installed on Monday! So excited. Now we just need to find a rug for the living room…where should we look?
We don’t have cable. We haven’t had cable for almost a year actually. If you know me, you should know that this is very impressive. I’ll admit it. I enjoy my TV time. Even so, I haven’t missed cable too much. We get all the local channels in HD thanks to our HD antenna and we have Netflix and Hulu Plus, so we have plenty to watch. However, I really miss TLC, HGTV and the Food Network. I may or may not be trying to convince Jon to order cable just so that I can watch this show. So far, he’s not buying.
Today marked day 70 of triple digit temperatures in Austin. And it hasn’t been 70 days of 101 highs, it has been 70 days off temperatures in the 104-107 range. And guess what…this weekend they are calling for highs of 108/109. Awesome. Oh and rain. Well, I have pretty much forgotten what that looks like.
I’m dreaming of this…

Until then, I guess I will just have to have a bowl of ice cream. :)
-Lauren-

Staycation Almost Over

I was right, our week off has flown by! How can it already be Friday?!?!

I thought I would do a little recap of our week…

On Monday we headed down to Gruene to spend a couple of days with Jon’s parents. They rented a cute little condo for the entire week and it’s only about an hour drive from us, which is perfect.

We had a lot of fun, even though it was so so hot!

Oh and check out someone’s new hair cut! Jon and I decided to buzz it and we did not mean to do it that short! We used Jon’s beard trimmer and apparently a 4 on that is different from a 4 on hair clippers. Oh well, lesson learned, it already looks longer than it does in these pictures.

Oh and I don’t think I ever mentioned that I got a hair cut too. I chopped of 6 inches! It doesn’t look the greatest in this picture, but I LOVE it!

Okay, back to our week…

So Monday and Tuesday we hung out in Gruene. We spent some time at the pool, did some shopping, and played at a very fun park.

We are actually headed back down there for the day tomorrow.

On Wednesday my sister drove in and my parents and grandmother came over for dinner. It was fun to see everyone! My sister stayed with us until today and even babysat Aedan last night so Jon and I could have a date night. So fun!

Aedan has had a blast having an extra playmates everyday, he may go through withdrawals next week when it is just he and I during the day!

Looks like its going to be a quiet night at home for us since we are going to have busy days on Saturday and Sunday. Then it’s back to work on Monday, sigh.

-Lauren-

Vacation

Well more of a “staycation”…

For awhile now, I have known that Aedan’s sitter was going to be on out of town for the first week of August. I made sure not to plan on seeing clients for the week since I would need to be home with Aedan.

As the time came closer, I decided I should just take the week off for a staycation of sorts. It has been a busy summer and a very busy last month when it comes to work. I thought this would be a good chance to take a break before the school year starts up again.

Once I decided to take the week off, Jon decided he could take the week off also. He has lots of vacation time this year and has not touched it at all.

We are both excited to have the time off! We went out to breakfast this morning and were talking about how nice it is that we don’t have to work tomorrow.

We have some fun things planned for the week, including heading down to New Braunfels for a few days to hang out with Jon’s parents and spending some time with my sister and parents later in the week.

I know this week off is going to fly by but for now I am going to relax and enjoy the fact that we are on vacation staycation.

-Lauren-

Spending Diet–Update

So we have been at this little spending diet for 13 days (only 2 days to go). I have to be honest, we have cheated a time or two three. BUT I have not been to Target once in the last 13 days, which is pretty huge. I tend to get bored during the day and just go to Target. I usually never leave empty handed so while I don’t spend too much at each trip, the total adds up quickly.

So where have we cheated?

Well last Wednesday Jon found out he was going to have to go to LA to help with a Dell commercial over the weekend (it’s not for TV, but he totally got to be in it! If we get a copy of the commercial, I’ll post it!). So on Thursday night we decided to get veggie burgers from P.Terrys. BUT I had taken our jar of coins to the grocery store and got cash so we used that money (I will also be using some of that cash when I go to girl’s night tonight, yay for margaritas and girl chat!!). So it was kind of cheating and kind of not, right?

Then I totally found the perfect jacket online at Old Navy and it was on sale (no doubt due to the warm hot front that seems to be everywhere). I have been looking for a jacket like this for awhile now and I just knew it would be sold out if I waited to buy it. So I cashed in our Discover points for an Old Navy gift card and ordered it. It came yesterday and I love it. Too bad it is going to be like 4 months before it will actually be cold enough for me to wear it!

 

 

Cheat number three is all on Jon, but it was for me so I am not complaining. I was a little jealous that he got to go to LA for the weekend and I had to stay home. He did have to work, but he had all day Saturday to explore and he kept telling me about all the stores and restaurants he could walk to from his hotel. Lame. So I had mentioned awhile back that I wanted to get this wallet from Vera Bradley. It is just like my beloved fossil wallet that I used for years (I even bought a second one and used that for a long time, but sadly the zippers broke on both of them). Well when Jon got back on Sunday, he causally left a shopping back on the table. It was from a bookstore so I figured he had picked up a book for his trip back. But it was the wallet I have been wanting! I was super surprised. :)

And I guess I should admit I have used my business credit card at Starbucks a couple of times over the last two week when I was working or doing interviews. BUT since that is work, I don’t think it counts. :)

Now with only 2 days left, we are already planning another spending diet for the last part of August and who knows maybe I will hold off on going to Target for a whole month.

-Lauren-

Spending Diet

Jon and I have decided to try a little spending diet. We started yesterday and for the next two weeks we are only spending money on gas and groceries. Nothing else (well nothing other than our bills of course). I don’t think it will be too hard except it means no shopping here for me…

Target is my weakness. It also means no eating out, which is something we tend to do a lot on the weekends. Today we went to Costco and the grocery store to stock up. Jon made some homemade black bean burgers for dinner and they were delicious. So far so good. :)

I think this two week spending diet will be good for us. It will force us to find other things to do on the weekends besides shopping or eating out and stop me from going to Target when I really don’t need a thing.

We decided we would see how it goes and maybe even try to do it for the whole month of September (We have a mini vacation planned for August so we know we will be eating out and such then).

On a completely different topic, I watched this documentary yesterday. It was really good and totally made me want to go buy a juicer and try it for myself. BUT that would defeat the whole spending diet so I changed my mind. Plus we don’t eat very much meat in the first place. I probably cook chicken maybe once a week/two weeks and I don’t cook red meat at all. I do think I am going to try and make one of these smoothies tomorrow. I’ll let you know what I think. Definitely check out the movie too!

-Lauren-

Quick Update

Yeesh, where did the week, er and weekend go? How has it already been a week since my last post!
When we got back from our weekend in Plano last Monday, my throat started hurting. I figured it was just allergies or the cold that Jon and Aedan have had over the last week.
Then when I woke up Tuesday morning and still had a score throat I was a little bummed. It is never fun to be sick, but being sick when it is over 100 degrees outside just seems wrong.
As I was cleaning up breakfast I noticed a small red blister on my palm. Then about and hour later, I noticed a couple more. Ugh. Stupid hand food mouth disease.
Tuesday afternoon, Aedan had his 15 month check up (he is 24 lbs. (50%) and 32 in. tall (95%)). I asked the Dr. to confirm my suspicion about what I had. She did and when she looked in my throat she said it looked like it had turned into strep. Awesome. She was nice enough to give me a prescription.
Needless to day, all last week Aedan and I pretty much chilled at home. I have no idea where I caught it. Aedan never got it and none of the kids at the sitter’s house have had it. None of my clients have had it either, that I know of. Sigh.
By Thursday my throat felt much better but I still had blisters on my hands and feet. Jon was a little freaked out and wouldn’t even let me unload the dishwasher. He also kept saying I had the hoof mouth disease. Lame.
Thankfully, by the weekend I was pretty much all better and Jon and Aedan never got sick. We still took it easy this weekend and pretty much hung around the house or ran errands.
Oh and we finished Son’s of Anarchy – loved the season 3 finally!! We have to wait until November for season 4, but not to worry, I have a new obsession – Prison Break. Love it!
-Lauren-

Happy 4th of July!

I hope you all had a great long weekend! We definitely did!

Friday morning we loaded up the car and headed to my parents house in Plano. Aedan did so great in the car. He slept for about 45 minutes but he has had a bad cough for the last few days so that woke him up. But he was in a great mood and had fun reading books, eating snacks and pointing out the window.

We made it just in time for lunch and soon after Aedan crashed for his afternoon nap. Jon had to get some work done so while he worked (so great that he works from home and thus can work from anywhere), my mom and I went grocery shopping. Her grocery store has a Starbucks inside and I told her I would be in trouble if I shopped there every week. I am obsessed with their iced white chocolate mochas. When we got home, Aedan was up so we took him to Costco, which he loved. :)

Friday night Jon and I made Indian food for dinner. It was a big hit! We just hung out and watched a movie for the rest of the night.

Saturday after Aedan’s morning nap, we all (Jon, Aedan, my sister and parents and I) headed to the pool. It is the pool my sister an I both worked at through high school/college. My sister still works there a few days a week and still knows everyone on staff, which means we all got in for free. Love it!

Aedan wasn’t such a fan of the baby pool because it was super crowed and there was lots of splashing. As soon as the main pool opened up, we headed over there and he had a much better time. We all had a blast going down the slide and playing water volleyball.

That afternoon while Aedan and Jon took long naps, my mom and sister and I did a little shopping. I sometimes forget how much better the shopping in the Dallas area is compared to Austin. Sigh.

Saturday night we had delicious homemade fish tacos and mango salsa. After dinner we went out for some frozen yogurt (another thing I am obsessed with right now). We were out past Aedan’s bedtime and it was getting late so my Dad and Jon were supposed to take Aedan back home while my mom and sister and I did a little more shopping. BUT I got this picture in a text while we were headed home. Apparently they made a detour at Cabela’s and Aedan did a little shopping of his own. I’m not sure why, but that ore made it home with him. Sheesh.

Sunday we had a low key morning of playing at the park, taking naps and relaxing. That afternoon we headed over to my parent’s friends house for our annual get together. This group has been getting together every forth of July for 30 years! How fun is that! We had fun catching up and enjoying good food. Unfortunately it was another late night and Aedan was done around 8pm so we headed home. I heard we missed a great game of catch phrase and gestures. haha.

This morning we headed back home (Aedan did great on the trip this time too!) and all crashed as soon as we got here. We had such a great weekend, it was great to spend time with family and friends!

-Lauren-

A Day in the Life Part 2

I usually see clients on Mondays and Thursdays, so those days typically look something like this. On Tuesdays and Wednesdays I work from home. I guess I work from home on Fridays too, but lets be honest, I don’t do a lot of work on Fridays so its more like a catch up day/fun day.

This is what Tuesday looked like:

7:30am: I didn’t set my alarm so I get up with Aedan. Jon is working from home today too so we all get to eat breakfast together. This time Aedan has fruit and an egg so no syrup in the hair.

8:30am: I load up the stroller so Aedan and I can head out to Town Lake. I usually meet up with a friend to walk the 3 mile loop at least once a week but she is in Hawaii right now (LUCKY!). I decided to start the couch to 5k running program again. I’m not sure why, but I apparently like to start this program in the middle of the summer. Not smart. Oh well, here’s hoping I keep it up!

9:30am: we are home from our walk/run and nice and sweaty! Aedan goes down for his nap shortly after we get home and I take a much needed shower and answer a few emails.

11:00am: Aedan is up and it’s time to go to the grocery store. We make is a quick trip and get home for lunch with Jon.

12:30-2:00pm: Aedan plays and I do some chores around the house. We go outside for a little while and play with sidewalk chalk but it is just too hot!

2:00pm: Aedan goes down for his nap. I have 5 phone interviews do to so I spend the two hours he sleeps on the phone. I conclude that I would be horrible with a job that required me to be on the phone all day, it is exhausting!

4:00pm: Aedan wakes up and we get a snack together and play while Jon finishes up with work.

4:30pm: we head to the park/pool. After swimming for about 5 minutes they make everyone get out for a break. Aedan is more interested in swinging and going down the slide so we dry off and play for a little while. Thank goodness this park is practically all shaded!

5:30pm: we are home and start getting dinner together.

6:00pm: Aedan eats dinner. Jon heads over to help out a friend and Aedan and I play until bath time.

7:00pm: bath time for Aedan. His hair is getting so long so I decide to try and give him a haircut. He was not a fan of getting it cut at the salon so neither one of us wants to go back.. I think I did an okay job.

7:30pm: Aedan goes to bed just as Jon gets home. We make dinner and sit down to watch some more Sons of Anarchy (have I mentioned that I am obsessed??).

8:30pm: Jon plays some Xbox and I catch up on some blogs and reality TV on Hulu.

9:30pm: I talk Jon into watching one more episodes of SOA and then it is off to bed for us.

So those are what my two types of weekdays typically look like.. What do your days look like?? Anyone else obsessed with Sons of Anarchy?

-Lauren-

A Day in the Life Part 1

I’ve seen a few other  blogs doing this and I thought it would be fun, you know since my life is so interesting. haha! I do think it will be fun to look back and see what a day looked like during this session of my life.

I have two types of weekdays; ones where I see clients and ones were I work from home. So I thought I would do two different posts. I’ll start with Monday…

7:00am: I set my alarm to get up, but around 6:50 I wake up and change my mind. I turn off my alarm and decide to wait until Aedan wakes up. Jon gets up and starts to get ready for work.

7:30am: okay Aedan’s up now so I get up too. I know, I know, 7:30 is a pretty great wake up time. I have had my share of early mornings for work, so I am going to enjoy it while I can. I get Aedan up and changed and give him his milk and then I make up the bed. I always make up the bed. It drives me nuts if it stays unmade for too long!

8:00am: breakfast. Aedan had fruit and waffles with syrup. Unfortunately he thought it would be a good idea to rub the syrup in his hair. Sigh, guess it will be time for a bath after breakfast.

9:30am: Aedan and I clean up all the toys we he got out over that last hour. We read a few books and then its time for his morning nap around 9:45.

While Aedan naps, I get ready for work, make Aedan’s lunch and straighten up the house.. I also post an ad on craigslist for a new therapist since I am losing one in just a few weeks. I’m so sad to see her go!!

11:15am: I get Aedan up and we head off to the sitter’s house. When we get there, Aedan walks to the door all by himself, such a little kid! I follow with his lunch and blanket (num num).

12:00pm: I arrive at my first client’s house. Today I am overlapping with another therapist. I check up on the programs and I only get scratched and pinched a couple of times, which means it’s a good day. :)

2:00pm: Done with the first overlap, so I head off to see my next client with a quick stop at sonic for a cherry limeade because it is too hot outside!

2:30: I meet up with my next client and his therapist at a park. We are working on social skills and following directions in community places. We play for about an hour and man it is HOT! I’m glad I don’t have a dress code for work and shorts and sandals are okay because it is 100 degrees out here!

3:30: We head to the grocery store because that is another problem location with this little guy. We actually have a pretty uneventful trip and he does really well!

4:30pm: Done with work for the day! I glance at my phone and realize I have already gotten 10 resumes about the new position. That’s a good sign, but I am not looking forward to going through them all!

4:45pm: I get to the sitter’s house to pick up Aedan. He starts dancing when he sees me, so cute! He had a fun day at the sitter’s house. Her daughter (who Aedan loves) sometimes babysits for us on the weekends and she was home all day so Aedan got lots of attention.

5:30pm: We finally get home, I hate traffic! Jon is already home so he helps me get all of our stuff out of the car. That is another thing I can’t stand; leaving things in my car. Jon thinks I ‘m a little OCD about how clean I like things, but I can’t help it!

6:00pm: Aedan gets dinner and Jon and I sit down with him and chat about the day.

6:30pm: Aedan is super tired because he didn’t nap very well at the sitter’s house. We give him a bath early and put him down around 6:45. I think he was asleep by 6:50!

7:00pm: Jon and I eat dinner and I glance through all the ad responses as well as catch up on Facebook and blogs.

7:30pm: I have a friend over to watch the Bachelorette. I haven’t really gotten in to this season, but I think want JP to win fall in love with Ashley. Don’t feel too bad for Jon, while we watched our girly show, he was attaching zombies on the Xbox.

10:00pm: Time for bed! Jon and I think about watching a Son’s of Anarchy episode (and by that I mean that I begged him to), but we he decides it’s too late. Which is a good choice because I am pretty tired too. Time for bed it is!

-Lauren-

Midweek Randomness

Goodness, where has the week gone? I can’t believe tomorrow will already be Thursday. I figured I should write a quick post so I don’t go a full week with nothing.
Highlights from the weekend:

• Jon got home late late late Friday night. Aedan was so happy to see him Saturday morning!
• Aedan and I helped my parents and grandmothers out with a garage sale on Saturday. Aedan had a blast running around rearranging things, pulling things out of boxes and playing with anything and everything covered in dust. We were both filthy when we left!
• After the garage sale we met up with Jon for a birthday party for Aedan’s BFF. I wasn’t sure how Aedan would do without his morning nap, but he did great (with a quick snooze in the car) and had lots of fun.

Random thoughts/highlights from the week:

• I upgraded my camera. Thanks Aaron! I have taken a few pictures, but I haven't had a chance have been too lazy to put them on my computer and edit them. Hopefully I’ll have a chance to play with it this weekend and have some good pictures to show soon.
• Jon and I like to find TV show series to watch on Netflix and such. We started watching Sons of Anarchy a few months ago. I wasn’t too into it, but we just finished episode 6 and I am hooked. I’m guessing we finish season one by the end of the weekend.
• Moms, when did you start giving your little ones a pillow to sleep with? I hadn’t really thought about it, but I just checked our video monitor and Aedan is using his stuffed animal as a pillow. Maybe he is trying to tell me something?
• It is supposed to be 103 here for the next 4 days. Ugh. It is only June, I am not looking forward to August at all!! Aedan and I checked out a wadding pool not too far from our house on Tuesday, I am guessing we will be spending lots of time there this summer!
• Today I finished up the progress report I have been working on for awhile. Now I just have to proof read it. I hate proof reading! I know some people love it, but I hate it. I just have no desire to reread everything I just wrote. Especially when it is 18 pages long. Sigh.

Looks like Jon has finished playing Xbox so hopefully I can talk him into another episode of Sons of Anarchy before bed!
-Lauren-

We’re Back!

Well Aedan, Hiro and I are back home and Jon is on his way. He emailed me from Shanghai last night and told me that his flight to Chicago was delayed 6 hours. Since it would make him miss his connection to Austin, he got switched to a flight to LA. Hopefully he will get home tonight!

It is never fun when Jon has to travel for work, but I have to give a huge thank you to my mother-in-law who spend last weekend with us and to my parents who let Aedan, Hiro and I visit take over their house for a week. It made the week go by pretty fast.

We had a great time in Plano. I got to catch up with some good friends, spend time at a few pools and hang out with my family. Aedan was in heaven at my parent’s house. Their house basically has a circle type floor plan downstairs so he could run around and around with his favorite toy, Popper! They also have a fantastic backyard and a park just down the street. I think he wants to go back already. :)

My Dad had to come down to Austin for work on Tuesday so he took Hiro down a couple of days early and then yesterday my mom and I drove back into town. Tomorrow my parents and both of my grandmothers are having a big garage sale so Aedan and I are going up to Round Rock to help out. I know Jon is going to be exhausted and since Aedan’s favorite thing to do is run around with popper, I decided it would be best for us to spend the morning away from the house.

I hope everyone has a great weekend!!

-Lauren-

Traveling

Remember a couple of weeks ago when I mentioned Jon had just returned from Amsterdam? Well look where he is this week…

Yup he is spending the week in Malaysia and mere 5000+ miles away. He logged 22 hours in the air (not counting layovers) to get there. He is staying at a pretty nice resort like hotel.

He said I would really like the pool. Haha! I’m sure I would, but I will not be traveling that far away for any pool.

So while he is being a world traveler and getting lots of work done, Aedan and I are here…

We are visiting my parents and doing zero work. :) Today we went and hung out at the pool with my sister, my good friend Allison and her son Jackson. Aedan wasn’t too sure about all the kids running around the wadding pool, but he did pretty well. We all got some sun and came home for a relaxing afternoon.

Tonight I am going to meet my best friend, Amanda, for coffee. We have been best friends since 8th grade which means we are going on 14 years! We used to do everything together. She was pretty much part of my family and I was part of hers. Now that we are both married, working and living in different cities, we don’t get to spend as much time together. It is going to be nice to catch up tonight!

-Lauren-

Happy Mother’s Day!

I hope everyone had a wonderful Mother’s Day weekend!!

I have to start by wishing our mothers and grandmothers a very happy Mother’s Day. We love you all so much!!

We had a really nice weekend around here. I usually don’t see clients on Fridays (it’s a nice perk of working for yourself, I suppose). I generally try to get all my work done so Friday is just kinds of a catch-up day which is perfect. Jon usually tries to be done with work around 4 and we get to enjoy the evening as a family.

This last Friday, however, I did have a late afternoon team meeting. By the time I got home (and Jon and Aedan got home from a friends house) we were all kind of tired. We put Aedan to bed and just relaxed around the house.

A friend of mine may be moving to Austin soon, so she came down to look for apartments. She spend the night Friday night and Saturday morning she and I did a little apartment searching. Aedan was thrilled to have someone over when he woke up Saturday morning, he has become such a ham. :)

After lunch on Saturday, Jon, Aedan and I headed to our new favorite park. Aedan had a blast and we got home just in time for a long afternoon nap. Whenever we go to the park before his nap, Aedan will sleep 2.5-3 hours (he would probably sleep longer but I wake him up so he will go to sleep at bedtime). I foresee us spending lots of afternoons at the park this summer!

After his nice long nap, we decided to go out to dinner. We headed to Serrano’s down at South Park Meadows. It’s a new shopping center, and lots of the restaurants back to a big playground. We ate out on the patio and had the place to ourselves. Aedan was in heaven. After he ate, he got to run around to his hearts content.

When we were done eating, we took Aedan over to the playground. Two playgrounds in one day was too good to miss.

After we put Aedan to bed, Jon and I watched Black Swan. It was good. Weird, but good.

This morning, Jon took me out to breakfast for Mother’s Day. Then after Aedan’s nap we headed to the mall for some shopping. I picked up some new candles from Bath and Body Works (I love their big candles). I needed to get some summer scents and it was so hard to choose just two, but I decided on Mango Cilantro and Island Margarita.

I also got a new cross body purse. According to my sister they are “very in style”. It’s cute and I think having a hands free purse is a must with a active toddler.

This evening we went over to my friend Larissa’s house for some good BBQ. It was great to visit and enjoy time with friends.

I can’t believe the weekend is already over. I’m not ready for Monday, but I know the week will fly by.

-Lauren-

A Visit to Great Grandmom’s Place

My grandmother recently moved to an apartment/independent living center. I have been meaning to take Aedan up for a visit for a few weeks now, and we finally arranged it for today.

When Aedan woke up for his morning nap, we headed up to Round Rock. We had a great visit and had lunch in her apartment. At first Aedan wasn’t too sure about the new place, but he quickly warmed up and was making himself at home (i.e.., moved the trashcan all around the kitchen, and opening/closing doors and cabinets) in no time.

After lunch Grandmom took us on a tour of the complex. Aedan had a blast. We walked through the courtyard, cafeteria, the main entry way and lots of hallways in between. Aedan smiled at everyone and made lots of new friends. For a baby that was so apprehensive of new people, he has turned into a social butterfly (as long a Mommy or Daddy are not too far away).

We had a great visit, and I would have taken more pictures, but I was busy following my busy busy toddler around as he made all his new friends. Haha.

-Lauren-

Tia

Last Sunday, Easter morning, my phone rang at 7am. I was still in bed, and when I saw my Dad’s name on the caller id, I paused. My stomach sank and I knew something was wrong. I knew my Dad wouldn’t call on a Sunday morning at 7am if it was just to say “hi”. A thought passed through my mind, for just a split second, I thought maybe I could just ignore the call. If I ignored the call, then I wouldn’t have to face the bad news.

I didn’t ignore the call. I answered and when my Dad said my name, I could hear the sadness in his voice. He told me my great aunt had passed away the night before in her sleep. My great aunt, who I have always known as Tia (pronounced “ta ah”, ever since my mom was little and couldn’t say tia) was 93. I know what you’re thinking, 93, wow! I know, she lived a long life. But she was Tia. She was healthy and still full of spunk. She was going to outlive all of us. We were not ready to say goodbye. We would never be ready to say goodbye..

This past week, we made the trip up to Plano to help with and attend her memorial service. On Thursday as I helped my parents scan old pictures for a slide show, I couldn’t help but remember the times we had shared. I could her her distinct voice (it never lacked for volume) and her unforgettable laugh (it was infectious).

See I grew up with three grandmothers. Tia had helped raise my mom from the day she was born so I had always seen her as more than a great aunt, as I know she was more than an aunt to my mom.

(my grandmother, my mom and Tia)

When I was little, I would spend the day with her when my family headed down to Galveston to visit my grandparents. She used to give me coffee with ice cream and I remember thinking it was the coolest thing ever. It was always made more special because she told me I couldn’t tell my parents. It was our secret.

She was a wonderful cook. She was famous for making everything from enchiladas to mincemeat cookies. She helped me make tortillas one day when I was little, and I ‘m pretty sure I made more of a mess than anything, but she and I both had fun.

When it comes down to it, it’s the little things that I remember the most.

How she would always say to carry an umbrella because “it’s better to have it and not need it, than to need it and not have it”.

When she told Jon at our wedding that he should probably start carrying antacids with him.

How she would call Hiro “chocolate” and then tell me he wasn’t a good listener. “Lauren, he doesn’t even listen to his name” she would say.

How she would yell “lefono” when the phone would ring, just incase we didn’t hear the ringer.

How she would wash and then hang  ziplock bags on hangers from the tree outside the kitchen to dry (effects of living through the Depression, I imagine).

How she always called Jon “palone” and Aedan “butterball” and had a nickname for just about everyone else too.

She was one of a kind and I could go on and on about witty remarks she has said and hilarious stories she has shared.

It was a hard week. but after seeing my grandfather’s both so sick before they died, I am thankful she passed away in her sleep. She was never one to sit still or have others care for her. She was one who lived life to it’s fullest everyday and she was able to do just that until the very end.

Both my Mom and Dad spoke at the memorial service and my Dad ended with this quote from Janis Joplin. I thought it was perfect,

“I’d trade all my tomorrow’s for a single yesterday”

because even though I know without a doubt I will be reunited with her someday, someday is just too far away.

I love you Tia.  We all love you and will miss you dearly, but your legacy will live on. We will talk about you, and continue to reminisce about your life and stories.

Aedan will grow up hearing your name and how just maybe, he gets that big personality of his straight from you.

-Lauren-

Our Weekend

This weekend my parents and sister came for a visit. We all had a blast!

Friday evening, we got hamburgers and headed to the park for a picnic. I learned an important lesson…if I want Aedan to actually eat dinner, I need to feed him before we go to the park. He was way to busy exploring the park, playing in the dogs water bowl and trying to steal everyone’s lemonade (he is obsessed with any drink with a straw).

Regardless of Aedan skipping dinner, we all had fun.

Saturday morning, Jon, my sister and I got up early and set up for our neighborhood garage sale. We were able to get rid of a bunch of stuff and made a good profit. Everything that was left when we closed up, got loaded into the car and taken to Goodwill.

Aedan enjoyed eating his breakfast and waving at everyone that stopped by. Oh and don’t worry, no one took us up on the free baby, even though he came with a walker, milk and breakfast bar. :)

Saturday afternoon I got to go shopping with my mom and sister while Pops babysat Aedan. We had a great time and I got some cute stuff for the house. I am redoing our guest bathroom. I’ll post some pictures once I get everything done. By the time we got home, we were all pretty tired so that evening we all relaxed with pizza and good beer.

Sunday morning, my sister and I went to boot camp before she headed up to Round Rock to see my grandmother.

Sunday afternoon, Jon, Aedan and I all took a long nap and then while I was getting everything ready for my Monday meetings, Jon cleaned the house. He did a great job, like on his hands and knees scrubbing the bathroom floors. There is nothing better than relaxing on Sunday evening in a clean house and work taken care of. :)

Happy Monday!

-Lauren-

A Couple of Issues

This little guy has decided that he no longer needs to take long naps. He has been doing GREAT at night and sleeping 10+ hours consistently. However during the day we are on an eat/play/sleep schedule and he eats about every 3 hours. He used to eat and then stay up for 1 to 1.5 hours. Then he would take a 1.5 to 2 hours nap. This week he has decided that a 45 minute nap is all he needs. Sigh. He is not hungry when he wakes up and clearly not grumpy (see above picture) so I guess he is getting enough sleep.

He has also decided that he doesn’t really like bottles anymore. We had been giving him a bottle at least once a day since he was about 2 weeks old and never had any problems. It was great because Jon could help out with the feedings (including the night ones). Well over the last few weeks Jon has been working a lot so I have been doing all the day feedings and Aedan hasn’t been getting up at night so we haven’t had to do any night feedings. :) Since it is harder for me to pump and then get a bottle ready, I have just been nursing him. Over the weekend we gave him a couple bottles and he just acted like he wasn’t hungry. I have been trying to give him a bottle everyday since and he will drink about half of what he normally would and then acts like he is not hungry. I know he is still hungry so then I nurse him afterward and sure enough he eats more.

Other than the nap and bottle issue he has been such a great baby lately. He is happy and all smiles most of the time. We are headed to my parent’s house for the weekend, so hopefully he will keep up the good mood.

-Lauren-

Update: I wrote this post yesterday and last night I tried giving Aedan a bottle before bed, and wouldn’t you know he took it like he had never had a problem. Sigh. Oh well, I guess I worried for nothing. I am hoping he keeps taking the bottle without a problem, especially this weekend. I know there will be a grandmother and an aunt that would love to feed him!

Weekend Recap (a little late)

Since Aedan had his check up and shots on Friday he was pretty sleepy most of the day. We decided to take it easy and just relax at home all afternoon/evening, which was perfect since it was a stormy day. I am happy to say that Aedan was fine after having a long afternoon nap. He slept great that night and was back to normal the next day.

On Saturday, Jon got up with Aedan and let me sleep in a little (so nice!). He pretty much took care of Aedan all day. One of my good friends from school was having a birthday/graduation celebration Saturday afternoon. Originally they were going to have it at their condo’s pool, but since it was supposed to rain they decided to have a late brunch at Z Tajas (yum!). The 3 of us were going to go to the pool party, but once it got moved we decided it probably won’t be the best idea to take Aedan to a nice restaurant with a large group of people. Jon stayed home with our little guy and I was able to have some time with my friends which was really nice.

Jon had to work for a few hours on Sunday morning and then he had a soccer game. Aedan and I were pretty lazy and just hung around the house. Sunday afternoon we headed over to Jon’s sister’s house for our nephew’s 5th birthday party. Jon was going to bring our Baby Bjorn carrier in with us so he could carry Aedan around, but I told him I was pretty sure we won’t have to carry Aedan around at all. Sure enough as soon as we walked in the door Jon’s dad was there wanting to hold Aedan. From there I think he went back and forth between Jon’s two sisters. :) The party was during Aedan’s nap time so we only stayed for about an hour, but it was great to see everyone.

-Lauren-