A Lot Lately....but Little Time to Blog

We really have been quite busy lately....with our latest adventure William and a few other things in life.  I will sort of try and play catch up for y'all and then try and be better about updating more often....like in the "old days"!

William joined us on August 10th at 11:43 in the morning....we knew he would make a dramatic entrance in some capacity...his version of drama was not coming on his own, still not wanting to make an appearance after an induction....and then causing a little bit of worry with some heart decels....after all this his dramatic entrance was achieved via c-section!

 It is so funny now to have him on the outside...he does things all the time that makes me wonder if that was what I was feeling in my tummy...his movements are very similar and speaking of movements - he still moves ALL THE TIME....this boy may have been lazy about his arrival and lazy in those first few days but he is all about moving now!

I was really lucky to have lots of help when William was born....tons of family was here to celebrate his arrival and some special friends too.  My mom and Orie's mom were both able to come and stay with us for a while.....this really spoiled us:) Then Orie was able to take a nice bit of time off of work to stay home with us too....I have to admit I was a little nervous about what would happen when they all went away and it was just me and William....I can happily report that we are alive and well!

Since his arrival we have had lots of fun happening....

We welcomed August Elizabeth into the world....William's newest cousin....while we have not seen her sweet face in person yet....we stay updated via pics and text messages...William is so excited to meet her and we are all excited that Kat and Josh finally gave this M family another Princess!

We have had a fantastic date night....at Alma...it was delish and so fun to get out and socialize!

We have watched several Saints games and LSU games.....some with William and one without....
We were both able to attend the LSU vs. Oregon game and it was SO MUCH FUN! We paid for the long day and late night the next day when no one was around to take care of our baby anymore...we quickly learned why most parents don't stay out late when they have little ones at home!

We have had several check ups at the doctor's office....some for well visits, some for weight checks....William seems to be on track so far so we are super happy about that!  He is still a big boy....super super long....when he stretches out I feel like we have a toddler!

We have had Grace's one year check up at the ophthalmologist and I can report that her eyes look FANTASTIC....I can hardly believe it has been a year since she had her cataract surgery....our sweet girl....I don't know what she would do if she couldn't chase squirrels and play in the yard all day long!

I helped a friend with her Orient Expressed show again this season and loved getting out of the house to look at precious children's clothing...it was so fun and I even got a little adult interaction!

We have had several sweet friends bring dinner to our house....an amazing treat when you have had a baby! We are so thankful for this...I don't think Orie would have had many home cooked meals without this treat!

I just asked Orie to help me remember what all we have been up to since William was born and his response was...hmmm...fed him, changed him.....that pretty much sums it up! HA!

We have also celebrated his one month birthday, complete with a cupcake celebration while we joined some friends for lunch.  It was a fun Saturday outing on a special day!

I feel like we have done some other exciting things but I can't quite think of them at the moment....blame it on sleep deprivation or crazy mommy brain!

We hope your last month and a half has been full of fun and lots of great adventures.....we will do better about keeping you up to date with ours. Enjoy some highlights....in absolutely no order whatsoever...that would take more time:)

sweet william

he loved his coming home outfit....bonnet and all!

his champagne and popcorn coming home party

cheers to william

his mommy and daddy

the V family with those sweet big boy cousins

Nana and William

sweet William

William and his mommy in the hospital

Daddy's first day back at work :(

Carie came to visit

and Frannie too

a precious Daddy and William moment

our first family photo

Lee comes to visit in the hospital

3, 4, 5

Daddy and William

Daddy showing William how to use the computer

his first visit to the pedicatrician's office

Papa with his boys

the boy cousins....just waiting on Miss August to join

Grumpus, Nana and William

Papa, Tess and William

photo shoot....

we were trying:)

mommy and daddy's date night

bye bye sweet william...have fun with Tess

Tess and William....on her last day:(

Lee-Taylor came to visit

Tess and Papa in town for the LSU game and they stopped by to visit

our first family stroll

Nana came to take care of me while mommy and daddy went to the LSU game....thanks Nana

my one month birthday cupcake celebration....

lunch date with Daddy

Daddy and William trying out the baby bjorn....William just smiles at his daddy:)

and smiles some more!

Happy One Month Birthday William

On Saturday, 9.10.2011, it was William's One Month Birthday....can you believe it? I am shocked that a month has past since we met that sweet little face in the operating room.

I guess the time really does fly by as people say....I'm so glad we have cherished every moment - even those ones in the middle of the night and the day time ones when you are so sleep deprived you can barely think.....!

We are so blessed with this little boy-he brings so much joy, fun and giggles each day....we can't wait for you to meet him and for him to be a part of your world....

slowly but surely....

I promise....i'm slowly getting it together and I do feel a blog post on the horizon....so many things to discuss....for now I will leave you with a few teasers....

Life is good:)

i love my dad...but i'm not so sure about bath time...

i flashed a smile (for a brief moment) and made my mom and dad so excited....

i also have a serious side....someone has to with these silly parents....

and apparently i love to shop with my mama:)

our newest adventure.....

Hotel Palomar

What a treat our weekend turned out to be.....

Friday after work Orie and I headed out to Hotel Palomar for a weekend of pool time, sunshine and relaxation. It was fantastic!

I was certain that as soon as we checked in to the hotel that William would decide to make his arrival....no such luck! We enjoyed dinner in the Central 214 restaurant....a fantastic hotel room with a bath tub so deep I could barely step out of it......fabulous amenities....an infinity pool that I don't think we got out of on Saturday....and just a fabulous weekend of relaxation! It was also a nice bonus to get a little last minute tan before summer ends....

We hope you enjoy some pics of our last minute getaway....hope your weekend was just as much fun wherever you were!

the awesome room at Hotel Palomar....i forgot to photograph the other side of the room which had a full sitting area with couch, chair and coffee table...

the bathroom and amazing bath tub.....don't cringe...it was clean.....

orie enjoying a little vino as we head down to check out the pool on friday evening....i'm pretty sure he enjoyed the last weekend of relaxation almost as much as i did.....

di and orie enjoying a little evening by the pool....we went back after dinner to swim and enjoy....

the infinity pool at Hotel Palomar....

those are the chairs we sat in the next day....

pretty much where i lived on saturday and sunday....it was perfection....i was at the pool by 9:30!

orie being silly with his feet and a photo of me....

Hotel Palomar is VERY pet friendly so we decided to bring Grace over on Saturday for the evening....when we returned with her she had her own bed brought up to the room, a dog bowl, fresh treats and bottled water.....they definitely spoiled her like a guest!

checking out the fresh treats.....


checking out the bed....she actually preferred the ginormous king bed with us....imagine that!

It was such a fun weekend....if you are ever in Dallas for anything - fun, business, shopping, whatever...you should check out Hotel Palomar....it is fantastic!

The Aveda Institute

ahh....what a little treat that I just discovered....the Aveda Institute....

This is basically a spa school where you can receive services from students undergoing supervision....this means it's much less expensive and they are trying super hard! It was a win win for me yesterday on my visit. I got almost an hour and a half service for $40....WOO HOO!

I basically called the salon and said that I was 40 weeks pregnant and I needed to be pampered...what did they have.....she said I have a 4:00 facial and I said - SOLD....

It was perfection...and felt like it went on forever and forever.....it even included a little hand/arm/neck/foot massage....oh wait...did I say foot massage....that's a mistake...they wouldn't give me the foot massage. The girl said that since I was pregnant she wouldn't mess with my feet and I said no it's fine....well when her instructor came by to review everything she let me know that they wouldn't be able to focus on the feet because I was 40 weeks pregnant and they didn't want to trigger labor....I let them know I was totally okay with triggering labor, I would sign a waiver, whatever I needed to do....NO GO...she assured me she would just focus on the other areas longer - BUMMER....i tried though....
When reviewing my skin needs and going over what facial treatment I would receive I just kept saying that I was there to feel like goo and completely be pampered! I am sure the girl thought I was a little wackadoo....

It was the perfect way to spend a hot afternoon too.....it also got my wheels rolling for how I was going to spend the next few days waiting on baby....I was thinking either a complete spa day or maybe a little something else that involves a swimming pool....we'll have to see what else is in store for us this weekend....I'm sure it will be fun!

Hope your weekend is grand....enjoy it....all 110 degrees of it!

Tick Tock

Well....we don't really have a full calendar this week as we wait and anticipate William's arrival. I am trying to stay busy....and have a few projects and running around I can do but not much.

Dallas this week is having an UNBELIEVABLE heat wave but we are not letting it knock us down....I figure if I just drink a ton more water and don't stay outside too long that it should be okay....so far so good! I rocked the roads today!

Here are our latest happenings.....

Last night Amy and Joe invited us over for a pre-baby dinner. It was such a fun evening....especially with their two boys....I think Orie quickly saw the entertainment our sweet William is about to bring to our lives!

I learned that Amy is a gourmet cook....I should have learned this sooner! My big sister asked why she wasn't serving Mexican but Amy assured her the chicken sliders were SPICY! They were spicy - but just the right amount of kick.....

We had chicken sliders, a pesto potato salad and corn with mango.....she also served a corn and black bean salsa...it was all amazing and I know Orie was thrilled to have such a delicious home cooked meal. Thanks Amy and Joe.....we will dine with you guys any time!

I was in charge of dessert.....I immediately had a craving for an ice cold lemon ice box pie....well you know that I am NOT A GOURMET...can't even pretend to be. So I had to dig deep to remember that someone I know had a super easy recipe for a lemon pie....so easy it should be in that cookbook that all college boys have - A Man A Can and A Plan....

It was 12 oz of cool whip, one can of fat free Eagle Brand milk, one small container of frozen lemonade concentrate.....mix all three together....pour over graham cracker pie crust....and then voila....you have pie! I put mine in the freezer and I think this consistency is better....however my sources say you just refrigerate it.....your call on that one....Maybe you should try this out during these last few weeks of summer vacation...it was the perfect hot summer night's treat! I think I even impressed Orie!!!

Today I met two of my girlfriends Frannie and Lee for lunch......we went to Kathleen's Sky Diner.....I have never heard of it but it was fantastic.....I never doubt a lunch destination when I am dining with a gourmet chef....I guess that's another perk of my friendship with Lee....They were both without babies....while sad that I didn't get a little squeeze I could tell they were enjoying their moments away from mommy land.....even though some of our main topics of conversation were mommy moments....it was the perfect lunch date!

It was so fun and I love catching up and having a good time with my girls....we are all Shreveporters away from our families and many of our friends.....Frannie reminded us today that it is so great we have each other....I couldn't agree more!

After my lunch date I hopped over to get my long anticipated mani and pedi......I received this gift certificate from a sweet friend after helping her with some child care....it wasn't really a hard job and definitely did not deserve such a nice sussy - if you know her sweet CWT then you know that it was a day at the beach taking care of him.....

As soon as I received it I knew I would save it for my final mani and pedi before William's arrival.....I was hoping it would be just the spark for William to enter the world. So today seemed like a good day to get it.....Well....it was an amazing relaxing experience and William danced the entire time.....but no labor yet......not quite sure this kid is getting the memo?

Walks - check....spicy foods - check....pedicure - check.....not sure what he is waiting on.....

After my mani/pedi I killed some time in Target....if you ever need something from Target just let me know...I can probably tell you the exact aisle and shelf location....I seem to kill a lot of time in there just walking around....such a fun store!

What are you doing with your week? Anything fun....who cleared their schedules so that they can come to Dallas if they get a phone call?