BIrthday Shoes/Love

In July, I celebrated my 25th birthday. I feel great about 25. I think it's the last birthday a girl is allowed to have. So I always say, " 25 forever!" 

But all kidding aside I had a wonderful birthday. We went to  IOWA to visit mom and dad the last week of June, and they came back with us.. So I was able to enjoy having everyone here for my birthday! We usually go to the lake but, we didn't this year. We went to the country, and did dinner and a few hours of fire works. Great time!

Yesterday, Jan, My mother in law, gave me a box that had come to her house. It was a belated birthday gift. I opened the box to find in it, the most gorgeous shoes i've ever put my foot in! I saw a picture of these shoes, but seeing them in real life makes them completely diferent! I got several pairs of shoes (my faves!) for my birthday this year. But this was icing on the birthday cake!


I'm so so so thankful to have such a wonderful family all around! 

Girl time!

As a mother of a small child, I'm find myself lucky to get free time, but very lucky to get some GIRL time!

Girl time, is not "alone" time..... it's very much the opposite! Its a non stop chatty time! I have some friends who I run with that have introduced me to some of their running friends! (( VERY ELITE runners I should say!)) And they like to get together every couple of weeks for a few hours of girl time!!

This is a time when  I am allowed to be me. I can be me with pretty fixed hair, heels, make up and a fabulous flower! - - I don't have anyone demanding my attention, or needing something done.

We got together at a friend's house a couple of weeks ago, and I realized home important this is to a women! We are talkers, and socializers by nature.. We don't sit and watch the game together, and occasionally say something in reference to the game... We talk JUST to talk...  Things that are of very little importance to anyone else *especially men* are the hot topics in a room full of girls!

So we dedicated this girls night to Jeanean. It was a early birthday party for her. She just got her ears pierced a couple of months ago, and needed a "stock the ear ring party!" So, we gave it to her. She walked out with many fabulous sets of jewels for her ears!!

This is the birthday girl showing off some gorgeous Jimmy Choo shoes! Look at those legs!! I'm not gonna tell on her or anything, but let me just say her daughters are close to my age! Amazing!

We decided that since Chera had a room full of (very fancy!) shoes that most of us wear, we should try them on!  Even those of us who have never worn heels before, had to dabble in the shoes.

Of course I happened to have a "few" extra flowers laying around in my car. I showed up wearing a flower (as always) and had one for the birthday girl, and by the end of the night everyone needed one! - - To go with their fancy shoes of course!

Chera likes flowers!

We then thought we should take pics of this flower and shoe party. Lots of laughs and flashes later, we called it a night. What a blast!!

Thanks Chera for letting us play in your shoes!

Some times its great to just remember... I'm me.. and while I'm Mommy, Wife, Sister, Daughter..... I'm still me. And that's ok.

couch potato babies

   

I get so many emails about the development of Anisten at each age she is at. So this week, I recieved an email from PAMPERS that has the mile markers and things we should do, or things that might be going on with her at each stage..

This particular article had several things in it that I  could relate to. Things we are dealing with, and some ways to deal with them.

One thing that caught my attention was a link to an article called "Empty Calories" I clicked on it thinking it was probably something related to healthy eating for toddlers or something. I read part of the article, and a few things really hit home with me.

This article talks about the effects of "eating meals while watching TV" 

Watching television during mealtimes is strongly related to obesity in both children and adults. So turn off the TV while you eat, and nip a potential bad habit in the bud. Meals are times for chatter, messy eating, and being part of a family. 

I couldn't agree more. It is part of being a family. It's something that has been taken away from our society all together. It's VERY important. It's their first experience with acceptance. Being part of a great family, and being surrounded by people who love them.

FYI: Not only do children who watch a lot of TV have a higher rate of obesity but they're also at risk for being in poor physical condition and having fewer friends. Now's the time to set things on a different path — no baby couch potatoes! 

Why would we want to increase their, already soaring high, chances of obesity, but also increase the chance that it may effect their social skills?

Now, I don't think there is anything wrong with a kid watching a movie with a healthy/portioned snack. But I think it's important to keep dinner time, family time.

I also think aside from that, it will create healthier eating habits. If we sit down and veg out, we are likely to eat more than we "need" since we are zoned out.

Something I've been trying to work on a little bit, is keeping food in the kitchen. We eat all of our meals at the table ( and in her high chair) and I try to keep snacks and drinks in the kitchen as well. Really so I wont have a huge mess to clean up. But I also don't want her walking around eating. I want her to have the discipline to sit down long enough to eat, and relax.

What are your thoughts on this article? Do you think it's still important to have dinner/family time with out the interuptions of the world? (( NO matter the size of your family, whether it be a single mother, or a family of 10)) Or is this a thing of the past, and it's "just not how things are done" anymore.

Thoughts......

Vacation does a marriage good.

About a week or so ago, my husband and I decided to take a vacay!.... with out our child.

We've done several small vacations, to Louisiana, Branson, Iowa, Kansas.. But we've taken the kiddo with us. We have had so many changes and loops in the past few weeks, that we took advantage of the opportunity to get away for a few days. Alone.  And did we EVER make the best of it!
We decided to do things that we wouldn't normally do, since we usually have the baby.

So. We did.
We had a BLAST! -- On a budget none the less --

We took of Thursday early morning and headed to Branson. We got a great deal with 2 nights stay, show tickets, and a nifty coupon book. We utilized that coupon book like no ones business! There were TONS of great deals in it. Along with great ideas for what to do.

We started out with a great lunch at a cute little cafe. And still had some time before check in, so we decided to stop by the winery for a tour and free tasting. This was a great experience. Just to see how all the wine is made.

We got some souvenir wine glasses from the Stone Hill Winery to take home. Had a lot of fun learning about the different kinds of wine.

We decided that same day that we wanted to go kayaking. We checked in our hotel, changed in to our swim suits and off we went. We got a double kayak and had a few hours out on the lake. It was so quiet and peaceful!

The next day we went for a VERY HILLY run! But again, it was a change of scenery and very peaceful.

We decided to dedicate this day to shopping, and relaxing by the pool...

We hit the outlets... and hit them hard! With our coupons we got tons of stuff for a great price!! With Scott starting a new job, he needed some new clothes. And since there was a nike outlet there, we decided to stock up on that stuff too. Especially winter running stuff. We found some things for the baby as well! We were sucessful at the shoe stores, Gap, Nike, Old Navy, Disney store, Rue 21, Reebok.... But not the coach store...I was a little dis-appointed at the selection. Of course all the things they have are gorgeous, but I didn't see anything I just absolutely LOVED for me. Except a diaper bag. Which I obviously do not need now! So I decided that it was worth it to just move on to another store and wait to get some coach things when there is something I really want!

We never made it to the pool. We literally shopped ALL day! When we got back to the hotel, we had to get ready for our show (and date!) that night. The Shanghai circus was amazing. We had great seats right in the front! But dinner first!!

Very entertaining acrobats... Very un-natural biologically... And our dinner at WASABI was wonderful of course.

Waiting for the show to start.

On our final day of Branson, we wanted to hit the Ripley's believe it or Not museum. That was awesome, I think I could walk through there a million times and see something new and interesting each time!

This was my favorite.

But before we did that... we HAD to go to the DUNKIN DONUTS coffee shop!!! MMMM...
It was pretty much as amazing as I thought it would be. It was big enough to hold 20 people. And packed full, to where we had to wait outside in line. But we had some yummy donuts and fabulous coffee!!

When we got ready to leave, we were truly ready to come home. We had a very fun filled vacation, but we were ready to come home to our princess! She skyped us while we were there. But it sounds like she had a wonderful and spoiled rotten time with grandma. Thanks to my mom who came down for 3 days to stay at the house and watch her!

Of course she missed us too!
She had fun digging through the disney store bag, and trying on her new NIKE gear!!

A few RANDOM (scott )pics...

Scott was very excited about this large gorilla...He says he's never seen it before! HOW DO YOU MISS THIS??

See the excitement?

had to make a pit stop by Michaels. Scott found this beautiful sun visor?--- And wanted me to take an "action" shot... He's looking at martha stewart stickers.. So much for action.

Look how happy a milky way can make this kid.

Anyways, I am grateful that we had the chance to do this! And it was perfect timing.

Catching up with the Campbells

Well, I've been informed that my daughter has been sitting on the washer for way too long. In other words.... I haven't updated enough this summer!

Mindi, you are correct!

Now, that it's 1 million degrees outside, I am forced to stay in and do things like clean, read and blog. Just as if it were winter. ( My best blogging months) Just a fair warning, when spring comes around - Well, you get my drift!

So what's new with us?

EVERYTHING!!


We have made some very significant changes to our life, and lifestyle. These have all been for the better of our future and family.


Scott has gotten a new job. This is such a blessing. There were too many things about his other job (and the people there) that we just needed to move away from. And not to mention it will be a HUGE raise for us. This is great, we are working on becoming debt free and will eventually be adding to our household. So more money is great! He will have a consistent schedule for the first 3 months (training) which is 8-5 Monday through Friday. and after that he will always ALWAYS have Sundays off. And the latest the building is open is 7, so even if he gets stuck with a stinker schedule, it would be like Sunday Monday's off, and he would work Tuesday-Saturday no later than 7. That is a DREAM for us!! Anyone who knows me personally, knows that this is a very very good thing for us!

So, having Sundays off together, were a thing of the past. While I was pregnant, Scott gave up Sundays for better hours, more pay, and a better position.... And ever since then it's been hard to have the genuine family time we have needed. We both agree that we want to raise our daughter in church just as we were. Not a question. We have visited several churches looking for a place big enough to reach out to our needs as a family... Such as a great nursery/childrens church program, womens ministry, mens ministry, and young married groups, and great music ministry. We have to have a place to fit.  We've been looking for something big enough to offer all of these things, but small enough to be involved in helping as well.  We still haven't found just the church yet. We have visited a church in Broken Arrow recently that we are interested in. Each time we've went we have been touched - So we are praying about it, and praying for direction in that area. We more than ever realize how important it is to not only have a family day, but to go to church and learn as a family. I'm very excited about this!!! And so is Scott.

Training. We have up'd our training  tremendously. We have decided to do our first half marathon (13.1 miles). Together. WE are training 3-4 days a week. Our marathon is in November. We have already started looking at other ones that we can travel and make little vacations out of. New Orleans mardi gras marathon is in February so we are considering that one, since I have so many resources for stay, babysitting, etc.. This will all depend on Scott's job  and vacation time/schedule. So in the next few weeks I will start blogging regularly on our training, really more so to be able to look back and see my progress. Right now we are up to 6.1 miles being the most we've run so far. This coming weekend we're doing the Route 66 Quarter marathon, which is to help raise money for the big one in November. Scott will continue is training through the winter months and run the OKC full marathon (26.2) in April!!!! So proud of him! Thanks to everyone who have been so supportive and encouraging to us though this major goal (soon to be accomplishment). So many people can be  critical and negative with the things they say and not even realize they are doing it! I would rather someone say nothing to me, than someone tell me running is bad for me, or I'm crazy for doing something. I am very good at listening to my body. If i'm tired, I sleep, if I'm hungry I eat, if I know that I need to slow down or drink something I do it. It takes a certain amount of discipline and respect for your self to do these things, and I have that. If I become injured (as I am now!) I wait....  So maybe that doesn't make me a true, and hardcore athlete, but I'm not a hurt one. Anyways, we love seeing you at the finish lines (especially in the bigger races) and commenting on our work outs and PR's that we post. It means more than you could know! We have started training with the Runner's World team. Right now, we are only doing the Saturday morning long runs with the group. It's broken up in to pace groups so we run with 20 other people who run the same pace we do. It's great to have that kind of support all around you. And we run down town which is always fun to see all the different things, parks and houses down there in detail. I encourage ANYONE who is looking to train for ANYTHING to check out this website, there is not a single reason you shouldn't join. It is FREE! They have other training runs during the week nights. I'm personally waiting for cooler weather before we hit those up!

 On July 4th my puppy Suki got out of the yard. We believe she was scared of the fire works and jumped the fence. We haven't found her. :-(

This was a huge hole in our family. Our other pup, Jackson, was very sad and depressed with out her. With in a few days of Suki's disappearance I got a call from a great friend who had found a young boxer out at her mom's house and knew that he would need a great home. She called me first, knowing our given situation... I told her I'd keep him for a while to see how he did with the baby and Jackson, if nothing else I could foster him until we found him a great home. He's sleeping at my feet right now 3 weeks later. See how that worked out..... He's a great dog, very relaxed and calm. Just what we need for our family. We're high strung enough as it is! We decided to name him Brooks. (Yes like the running shoe) He's a great runner, and I like to take him with me sometimes on our shorter runs. He will have to build some stamina, he gets tired about mile 2! But over all a great companion and added member to our family.

•  New Job
• Church
• Training
• Puppy

Those are all pretty big changes! SO needless to say we are definitely trying to find our GROOVE.

What a fun age.

Anisten is almost 15 months. We are having a BLAST at this stage!! This doesn't mean that I am not super super super busy, but I'm taking it all in, and enjoying every second of it!

She is of course walking now. And practically talking! She is a little parrot at this stage. She can say appox. 20+ words, and is increasing by the day! She has learned to say Yes and No verbally and with her head. So it's funny to ask her questions like " are you a monkey?" and she will nod and say yes..

She has learned to shake her fist.
She loves to do summer saults.

She enjoys "helping" with house hold duties. Like putting the clothes in the washer and dryer. Wiping things up. Helping me unload the dishwasher.

She is quite the water bug.

She's becoming very interested in "girly" things like, putting on her make up, carrying a purse, clothes. It's cute to watch her put on her clothes. I bought her a Dora pajama set the other day and she found it in the bag, and brought it to me and made me put it on her. She still doesn't mind running around in her skivvy's though!

Well, all that talk about "helping" with house hold chores..... PAH! She makes more of them than she does helping!

Oopsy, someone left the door open. And Grammie got her toilet paper all rolled out!!

She enjoys being outside no matter what she is doing. Swinging is still one of her faves!

 

She has started going to day care regularly now and is doing WONDERFUL!!

 She doesn't cry when I leave her. She is napping with all the other kids. Playing well, and has adjusted so great. She's only going about 15 hours a week right now.

She doesn't have a shy bone in her body! I think that day care just helps to foster that, and allows her to be more out going and social. She has increased her vocabulary and began to walk after only a few days at daycare.

Just thought I'd give you a little update on my baby! She is growing and developing nicely. (Still a small little thing!) Eating great and Sleeping like a champ STILL!

I promise when summer flees us, I will keep things more updated!

Holy Corn Fields

Went to visit Mom and Dad in Prairie City, Iowa this past week. Culture shock. In a great way of course. It was such a small little town!

This is it.

The whole town right here!

THere really isn't much there. It's like a 2 mile long  town! There is a little ice cream shop, barber shop, convenient store, and industrial businesses. Oh yeah LOTS of corn!

These are FILLED with corn!!!

Anyways. To say the least, it's a great place to relax!

We had such a great time. We went in to Des Moines one evening, which was cool. It's like a mini Dallas. Not nearly as busy.

Got in some great runs. The weather was beautiful. We had to circle the town a few times and then found a trail  and a dirt road that led us in to the corn fields. That was fun!

Mama made us some sea food gumbo that was out of this world! There is nothing like going "home" and eating! 

They followed us home. We left Thursday and drove through the night to get home, mom and dad left Friday morning to come to Oklahoma for my birthday! (Tomorrow.)

Just thought I'd share a little about my vacay and time away in the beautiful (and cool) state of Iowa!