OMG

So, my 40th birthday came and went with a blown tire, a rapid pickup of the children and a broken air conditioner. Oh well, that’s life.  **shrugs**   The next day I shifted focus to Girl 2’s 4th birthday party in 9 days and another mini- vacation with all the extended family and all the hostessing that includes. Somewhere in that time frame dr soc had a nose job (okay, it was sinus surgery. But calling it a nose job is better for teasing because I love him), we set up a new big girl bed for girl 2, and somehow had to clean the house for all the company coming in because omg there are going to be 11 people in my house at the same time. 

Friday before the party I text dr soc with the last minute party/grocery shopping and come home to a clean house too. God I love that man. But something was slightly off. No one was downstairs like usual when I come home from work, and the sofa tables are cleaned off with the exception of a purse I didn’t recognize.

me: I’m home! Hey who’s here?
dr soc: What do you mean?

me: Whose purse is this? (I’m not too concerned, and if even if it was his mistress if she cleans my house she can stay)

dr soc: - realizes the jig is up - Oh. As for who’s here…

My bestest buddie from when we were 11 and lives in Portland and haven’t seen in 6 years runs down the stairs.

MY BESTEST BUDDIE FROM WHEN WE WERE 11 AND LIVES IN PORTLAND AND HAVEN'T SEEN IN 6 YEARS RUNS DOWN THE STAIRS.

OMFG.

I’m in shock to say the least. I'm in disbelief and hugging her so tight because all the feels! I mean now I have to figure out dinner but that’s okay because omg my bestest buddie who I haven’t seen in 6 years has flown across the country to surprise me for my/our 40th birthday! 

But wait, there’s more! Dr soc has ordered food for tonight too so I don’t need to worry about dinner either. And speak of the devil, the doorbell rings. I open the door and it's sorta food but not really because  

It’s 4 of my best friends from college who live in 4 different parts of the country and haven’t seen in at least 2 years because of the pandemic standing on my front porch (to take me out for dinner).

IT’S 4 OF MY BEST FRIENDS FROM COLLEGE WHO LIVE IN 4 DIFFERENT PARTS OF THE COUNTRY AND HAVENT SEEN IN AT LEAST 2 YEARS BECAUSE OF THE PANDEMIC STANDING ON MY FRONT PORCH (TO TAKE ME TO DINNER).

Well now I'm crying tears of joy, my friends are crying tears of joy too and dr soc is welling up as well because he arranged for all of them to surprise me for my birthday on this particular weekend. That night we went out for Mexican food with margaritas college style but better because we're all 40 now and have disposable income.

And Saturday they came to girl 2's birthday party and then we had a night on the town. I had a girls' weekend and it was the absolute best.  

clockwise from bottom left: Jeanne - Cleveland, me -Charlotte, Priya -Portland, Nancy - NYC, Michele - DC/Maryland and LB - Orlando

SO MANY MILES 

Some of my favorite ladies

And my shoe exploded. It didn't just break, it exploded and ceased to function

Funtimes is an understatement. Amazing isn't a strong enough word to describe my friends. I was completely surprised and overwhelmed at how much I am loved.  A huge thank you to dr soc for making it happen, and another billion thank yous to my best friends for all the miles traveled!    

Fall Game

So we upped our fall game this year.
We took the kid to a pumpkin patch:

Yeah, I leashed her. She loves the monkey backpack
and oh yeah she's my kid so your opinion is invalid

We did a group costume including the dog for Halloween:

Our Peanuts Gang from L to R: Snoopy, Peppermint Patty,
Charlie Brown, Lucy and Linus (Jules!) VanPelt trick-or-treating

And the pumpkin from the pumpkin patch was carved in the group costume theme:

Totally squelched a F-bomb when the head fell in.
Next year I'm just carving a face.
Or whatever the almost 3 year old tells me

But what really upped the fall game from last year: it was all documented on Instagram, so it really happened.
Happy Autumn!

Music to My Ears

For valentines day dr soc gave me tickets to for "Music of the Beatles with the Charlotte Symphony." The event was on Saint Patrick's Day and it was amazing! It was so much fun, so entertaining, people were dancing in their seats (and waving their phones like lighters) and so many songs gave me the feels/goosebumps. I spent the entire song "Good Night" clutching my heart knowing I need to learn that for the baby (and her hopefully one day sibling).  If this amazing group comes back in the area I would buy tickets in a heartbeat

You know, I'd forgotten how much I love live music. I've said before I'm not really a "music person," but that's not really true. I was in choir from fifth grade until high school graduation. I was in color guard/marching band for 3 years of high school, and in elementary school I played the (bigger than me) cello and the clarinet (that was also too big for me since my hands weren't big enough to reach the bottom holes) a year each. I could sight read sheet music. I loved going to the philharmonic with my parents and have a true appreciation for the skill and dedication professional musicians have. I recognize classical pieces and can sometimes give you the name of the composer. I mostly listen to NPR in my car now, but I sing along to the radio if I know the song.

But my music education fell by the wayside in college and "music" at that time became more along the lines of going to a rock concert. And I pretty much only went and to John Mayer before-he-became-a-total-douche concerts. In my 20's I stopped singing along with the radio because my ex would always ask if I was singing about him no matter the song or was an ass and changed the station in my car. (after I very pointedly said I didn't touch his radio he stopped that). And the only live shows we went to were in smokey bars where his heavy metal band was playing. So because I didn't like his music, I probably said I wasn't a "music person" to get him off my case at some point and believed that after a while. So I didn't go to any type of concert for a while and turns out I missed it.

So I'm so glad we went to this concert. We had babysitters so dr soc and I had date night and it was wonderful. We went to dinner, heard some of the best music ever written live and I remembered how much I enjoy live music. What a great night!    

You have died of dysentery

Dr soc and I went to something called Science On the Rocks at Discovery Place a while back. It's a themed after hours event at the (expensive) children's museum with stations for activities and trivia.
Anyway, the theme was back to school which I didn't really care about, but I got really excited when I found out you could play The Oregon Trail!
But once again, my young coworkers didn't understand my excitement.
What they said when they played:* What was the big deal about having to make the choice of paying the ferry or fording to river? Why would you hunt? What the hell is dysentery and cholera and get those sick people off the wagon because they are slowing you down! This game is boring!
What I heard: Blasphemy!
I tried to explain how it was one of the greatest treats in school if you were granted computer time, but these two young things also had computers throughout school so that was lost on them as well. I just couldn't get them to the same excitement/nostalgia level as me so I had to give up or else go crazy trying.  
But! Shortly after that another coworker arrived who is closer to me in age. In lieu of a greeting as soon as I saw him I said:
me: Josh! The Oregon Trail! Yes?
Josh: Yeah! If you got a half hour of computer time first thing you did was play Oregon Trail. 
me: Oh thank god. Ok, all is right with the world again.

*I played it the other day since I was bored. Yeah, I quit about 10 minutes into it after I lost 3 of my 6 oxen trying to cross the river and kept wasting bullets shooting trees rather than deer or buffalo. When Zelda (my ringleader) came down with dysentery I said never mind. Though I was pretty bummed that it didn't live up to my nostalgia.    

Unicorns

Conversation on the State of the Union in a post twitter world:
dr funtimes: Are all female lawmakers required to notify us about what's come out of their uteri at the beginning of every speech? #JoniErnst
me: yes. Otherwise we won't know how much of a woman she is and what ratio we can not take her seriously.
dr funtimes: how many of the male rebuttals to the #SOTU started out with "I am a father?" 0? Exactly.
me: -20% seriousness -15% dedication to job 1 child -5% for each addition child +2% adversity for non-white race -5% relatablity
dr funtimes: isn't that a lot of maths for a girl?
me: well yeah. why do you think there's an algorithm in the first place? girl + math = magical creature

2012 Recap

Ok, I know it's a cliche to do a best of/year in review, but I had some big life events (with pictures!) so i feel the need to share. The cliff notes version of my 2012:

Went to the Kentucky Derby:

best bachelorette party ever!

Married the love of my life

the date, the venue and the happiest couple in the world all in one picture

with the best bridal party possible

the people that mean the most to us

and the coolest groom's cake ever

it was the talk of the reception!

I turned 30

Yep. 30. 

 Then we went to Costa Rica on our honeymoon: 

my favorite honeymoon picture

I started graduate school:

My first 1st day of school photo. Look how adorable I am! 

Became an aunt

Look how beautiful she is!

Went to a Panthers' game

too bad the Panthers didn't show up that night

and started 2 new library jobs:

We mean it when we ask "please don't re-shelve the books." Seriously,  don't put them back.

All in all, a very big and happy year for me! It was definitely busy, but overall wonderful. Hopefully 2013 is just as wonderful!

Here's one last picture for the year: 

Happiest day of my life

Happy New Years!

At Auntie's House

Last Saturday my good friends from college stopped by on thier way home from thier family vaction at the beach. I was really excited to see them becasue they had never seen my house, but I also hadn't seen thier kids (in person) in over a year since their little dude's baptism when he was 3 months old and thier daughter was almost 2 and a half.  So lots of stuff had changed, except that the kids are just too adorable for words.

Anyway, we were showing them the house and we were looking for a spot for the three year old to maybe take a rest later. At some point the three year old, a crazy dog and I were sitting on the daybed we have in one of our rooms. I'm holding crazy dog back a little so she won't spazz the child off the bed, and N discovers that the day bed is a really good bouncy bed.

So there's N bouncing on the bed, her curls flying around and she says excitedly: this is a really good bouncing bed!
me: I bet you can't do that in your house can you?
N: No!
me: Ok. 

--And let her continue bouncing. Becasue I am an awesome auntie--

That is one smart cookie. She totally knew her limits in that she can't bounce on the bed at her house, but it's cool at my place.  Then later when both of them were upstairs and my husband went to check on them, she and her brother/partner in crime were bouncing again, having a great time.*

Fun times!

*We really didn't care. We probaly won't let Sharktopus and Dinocroc bounce on the beds at home, but that's becasue of it's thier home and there are rules. But that's ok becasue they can always bounce on the beds at thier auntie's houses!

Here Comes the Bride (ME!!)

So, I haven't even blogged about the wedding! After blogging about the bubble of tulle for a year, I have yet to show and tell about the happiest day of my life.  This will be a pretty heavy picture post (which for me, means something like, 5 photos), but I don't think any of you will mind!

The whole whole weekend was perfect, everything went smoothly, the weather was great (hot, but no rain) and everyone had a great time it seemed. The beginning of the reception was a bit sloppy from the dj and a few communication blips with our venue, but the day was still just perfect.

The day started with a Thriller dance lesson: 

Seriously. Flash mobs don't just happen on their own

Then onto the salon where we were the weirdest bridal party ever to them

Fun fact: Jeanne's grandma made my veil. It was beautiful and perfect and I hope to pass it down to my children and/or grandchildren one day. That and it was super fun to dance with like a cape! 

We headed back to my parents' house for lunch and to get ready until the limo arrived to take us off to the theater

We got held up in some graduation traffic on the way, and I wondered if I needed to call mike to let him know I was on my way. Then someone pointed out that the entire bride's side not there yet would probably be enough of a clue .

Waited excitedly in the dressing rooms for a few minutes before I got ready to walk down the aisle

My heart was racing a thousand miles a minute but it was a good racing!

Walked down the aisle and met my groom

He was up there waiting for me while I tried my hardest to not sprint up there and squeal out loud!

Got married 

the first 'official' kiss
(without thinking, we had kissed hello the second we met at the alter!)

Took lots and lots of pictures

 lots and lots of happy

And then partied down! Which included: 

Dances with our parents: 

Too Marvelous for Words for me and my dad, and The Man That You've Become for Mike and his mom. The dj played a different version of the song my mother-in-law picked out. I think this picture is when they figure that out, but obviously every one's too happy to really care

The coolest groom's cake ever

Everyone LOVED the shark cake. And the wedding cake was beautiful too!

The aforementioned flash mob: 

Thriller! My wedding present from my high school crew. Nothing says happily ever after like zombies! 

Cake cutting

We're both thinking: how do even cut the shark cake?!

And cake eating

They were both quite tasty in addition to being beautiful

More dancing: 

I just love this picture of my sister

And the happiest couple in the world: 

Best. Day. Ever!!!!!

Best Weekend

So, as promised yesterday, a recap of my awesome bachelorette and shower weekend!
Well, like I said, first, they were both awesome.  Not only did I have a great time I was with my bestest friends and family who traveled many many miles to throw these parties for me and share in the fun times with me.

pictured: 5 states gathered for a cinco de mayo lunch
not pictured: why Jeanne and LB should not be left unsupervised

Then, after we celebrated cinco de mayo properly, it was on to the main event: The Kentucky Derby!

The infield. Pre-drunk and disorderly. Though the mint juleps certainly expedited that process 

About an hour or two after we got into the infield I got a little over heated what with being in the direct sun and the only liquids in my system was a combination of tequila and bourbon.  But, lucky for me, I roll with my own personal EMS team, (Priya's a dr. A real one) and I was able to cool down.  Then we bought a program, placed our bets and eventually staked out a spot where we possibly could see the the race.

And we did!  I actually got to see 2, maybe even 3 seconds of the actual derby run by!  It was just a blur of horses and quick streaks of color from the jockey's silks, and the noise of the pounding hooves was almost drowned out by the throngs of screaming people (myself included), but it was so exhilarating!  Of course we had no idea who won and after waiting in the betting line for a while turns out 2 of us in my posse won money.  I didn't win anything, but that's ok because I fully expected that. I can't pick a horse for the life of me and I accept that. 

Of course, getting out of the infields is a long and crowded process, but you just take your time, keep up with the crowd and make your way back to the car without incident.  Though Jeanne has a good point that most people probably block out the exiting or else they wouldn't come back year after year.  The Derby and the infield are definitely an experience and I'm thrilled I got to go, but I think I'll stick to derby parties at people's houses from now on.   

The next day was my bridal shower!  Of all the pre-wedding parties the knot tells you to have, the shower was the only one that I absolutely wanted.     
Pictured once again: my favorite ladies:

My favorite ladies and best. friends. EVER.
I also just realized this picture is the flipped image of the one above it

The shower went off with out a hitch, my mom (thank god) didn't freak out once (pre-shower she was putting herself through the ringer worrying about the number of possible guests) and I wasn't allowed to help at all. Mike showed up the beginning of the shower to drop off his mom and he met a few people. Then he, his dad and my dad took off for a few hours to do guy things, while I drank champagne and opened presents.  The food was yummy, the cake was wonderful, and everyone had a great time.  I think my future mother in law was a bit surprised at what the names of her future grandchildren are going to be, but I was quick to tell her that it was her son who picked out Sharktopus and Dinocroc.

Eventually everyone had to get on the road or to the airport with the many many miles traveled to get to Lexington, including Mike and I.  With all the excitement of the past few days, we decided to stop in Asheville that night instead of driving into the early morning.  I wrote my thank you notes almost as soon as I got home (though, I just got them in the mailbox today), and then realized I would be married in less than 3 weeks and may have freaked out a tiny bit.

It was a wonderful weekend full of funtimes, celebration and happiness, and I enjoyed every second of it. I'm so lucky to have all these people in my life. Thank you so much ladies!

Happy Derby Day!

It's the first Saturday in May. Which can only mean one thing to this born and bred Kentucky girl:
It's Derby Day!

The best part? This year, I'm going for the first time ever. Best bachelorette party ever!

Wild and Crazy

Dr soc is having his wild and crazy bachelor party this weekend. I read a coule "articles" about what really goes on at a bachelor party (lots of cheating with strippers/wh()res it out it seems), but why you should let him have one, (so you can get back at him by cheating on him at your bachelorette party, obviously) or how to cope with his party, ect. To which I just roll my eyes and think, if you are worried/insecure about your guy having a bachelor party/cheating on you, there are other issues to deal with. (if either of you are going to cheat on the other you were going to cheat regardless of the situation/party/excuse. Just saying....)

Anyway, yours truly over here, isn't worried in the slightest though.  For several reasons.

1. First: he's not the type of man that I need to worry about behaving badly in the first place. (Which really is the root of all of this and that we trust each other in the first place)
2. Second: His brother and friends aren't the kind of guys you worry about either, which is why for Mike's bachelor party they are: 
3. Going to a hockey game and bowling. Mike didn't want a stripper/strip club, because:  
4. He's a bit over cautious in general and thinks strippers/strip clubs are dirty and there isn't Lysol in the world to make him comfortable there. 
5. Also, his dad and uncle(s) will be there at the party.
6. And number 5: His mom will be there*.

Yep. Have fun honey!

*ok, the real reason she's there is because it's Easter weekend and she wants to be with her sons and extended family. She won't be at the actual bachelor party itself.  But it's still pretty funny to say his mom is going to the bachelor party as a means of keeping dr soc in line!

Party Planner

I am a party planner.  It's my dream job (that is after the head librarian for NPR and if that doesn't work out, the fallback is a dragon tamer (what?)).  And, I'm getting married in 4 months. (squeee!!!!) 

Anyway, my bridal posse/henchmen/entourage is in the midst of planning my shower and bachelorette party, which I'm just so excited and tickled pink about.  I'm just as excited for those as I am about the wedding.It is a party for me (and by some extension dr soc) and my lovely ladies are hosting. I'm doing my best to stay out of it, trust them (which I do, completely), and not suggest stuff. 

As a bride I'm excited and happy and just so thankful to have such wonderful people in my lives to do this for me. Though I have to admit, the party planner in me is going nuts!

Elves

Because I work retail, I had a feeling I wouldn't be able to get much time off for Christmas.  At least, enough time to travel to Kentucky.  So it's a quiet Christmas of just me and Mike and our girls this year.  Well, quiet enough when Mike isn't cursing at his video game.  However, I did get Christmas Eve off.  And that happened to be the last home game of my Carolina Panthers, so Mike got me tickets to the game for Christmas.

If you had told me 5 years ago, maybe even 3, that I would receive, let alone be the one asking for football tickets I would have laughed at you.  And had you told me that I would be so excited and have a blast at the game I would have laughed even harder.  And yes, Mike knows how lucky he is that he found a woman who likes football.  And to make the Christmas gift even better, he got us seats 9 rows from the field. I know! 

And, because what kind of holiday would it be if I didn't put my dogs in some sort of costume, I clearly ignored my rational side and made each of them wear the Santa suit. And snapped pictures. So without further ado, I give you my helper elves:   

Naughty list: Bailey still hates the Santa suit.
(and is way protective of her stocking)

And:

Nice list: Jules was much more willing to don the suit.
(there were treat bribes involved)

A grad school letter, a super duper fun football game, and my two elves.  Christmas 2011 has been pretty good!

Merry Christmas!