holiday cheers

to christmas card
or not to christmas card
that was the question

to christmas card was the answer

and this little diddy was the result

thank you to my lovely cheri for kicking ass and making these for us

note: this image is not the best quality because i am not computer savvy and have no clue how to load a pdf image to blogger....so i had to go old school and use the 'Paint' program on our computer

just know that in person it.is.the.shiz!

 

 

happy christmas!



better late than never

the problem with me and a digital camera is
i take pictures and then they sit (gathering dust?) in my camera
like for instance the photos of mr. henry on halloween
he was the littlest garden gnome
or would he be the biggest garden gnome since they tend to be about 12 inches tall?
either way.....
he rocked it

he trick or treats in my sister's neighborhood

they give the good stuff:  ring pops, king size candy bars, vampire fangs, etc.

you know, since all two year olds need a king size candy bar and vampire fangs.

 



oh tannenbaum!

i'm not sure what it is about our christmas tree this year
it's the same old tree as the last 6 years
but something about it has me all misty eyed
maybe it's that i'm am loving our 'parlor' where it stands more and more
maybe it's that henry stares at it with wide eyed amazement
whatever it is
i'm loving our cozy christmas decor this year
here is a peek......

our tree in all it's glory

(including vintage coke bottles containing 'the original coke forumla'....thank you katie jean!)

i did a brown paper bag theme with a touch of sparkle for our gifts this year

thank you anthro for having boxes that go so perfectly with my theme that i didn't even need to wrap them!  a sparkly ribbon was wrapping enough

mr. nat king cole has been spinning on our record player almost non-stop this december....well him and bing

 thank you hershey kisses for being sweet enough to decorate with

 

i had a little craft morning the other day, using henry's foam bath time alphabet for stencils, and made this 'joy to the world' banner

introducing henry's elf on the shelf 'albus'

(yes, as in albus dumbledore from harry potter.....and yes, my child loves harry potter....and yes, i know it is not age appropriate....and yes, i am totally pumped he loves it)

 



a couple of quirks

(popping bubbly on our 5yr wedding anniversary...thank you lisa!)

 

every couple has those little quirks that make them 'them'

i'm 92% sure that stone and i are a real pair of wackos........but i kind of love it
here are a few quirks that make us 'stone and court'

*every night we fall asleep on the couch together....even though it is so uncomfortable and we both have back aches, without fail every night after all is said and done we will take a 'nap' on the couch before going up to bed

*if one of us is being moody we'll say things to each other like, "ever since you went to the grocery store, you've changed" or "ever since you put those pj pants on you've changed" or "ever since you ate that snickers ice cream bar you've changed"

*our goal most days is to catch the other with their hands full and politely give a kidney jab (and by 'kidney jab' i mean simply tickle in the general area of the ol kidneys....it's a real doozy!)

*in an attempt to delude ourselves into thinking we are kind of healthy, at restaurants one of us will order water and the other will order a diet coke.  the reality is that both of us end up drinking the diet coke the entire meal.  maybe that one makes us cheapos???

*some nights stone will make a sandwich to take to work the next day for lunch.  if i happen to find it in the fridge before he leaves for work, i'll take a quick bite out of it and then put it back in the fridge.  i usually forget all about it until my phone chirps with a text from stone: "you dirty dog!!!"

oh love.  ain't it grand?

to or not to.....

 

 

not to toot our own horn but....

 

the christmas card we sent out last year was pretty awesome

 

(photos by hrw and card design by silly me baby and design....i don't have a scanner so the photo is the proof she sent us last year.  hence the word 'proof' written across the card)

 

part of me sees no point in sending out a christmas card

ever again

why bother

we can't top last year's card

 

but the other part of me

(the part who's inner monologue is mi madre's voice)

thinks that is lame and not very festive

 

alas.....

a card shall be sent

after all....'tis the season'

we won't even attempt to top last year

it will be simple

sweet

and star this handsome fellow

 

 

 

PS: i had originally thought about sending a christmas postcard, but then i got nervous someones card would arrive starring henry with a scribbled on mustache and monocle...so i opted for a regular 'in an envelope' kind of card

 



i took a chance

 

 

the other day i spritzed my wrist with a little

 

of chanel's chance eau tendre

 

i'm in the market for a new scent and thought maybe this could be it

 

i stretched my arm out to let mi madre get a whiff

 

what followed was her making the stink face and then informing me

 

'it kind of smells like a scented maxi pad.....'

 

fail

 

the search continues

 

 

 



well....he's 2

 

 

 

 

i'm not sure when it happened

 

but somewhere along the line a year passed

 

and my sweet boy is two

 

two i say!

 

can you believe it?

 

i sure as hell can't

 

sometimes i think i don't have what it takes to be the kind of mom i want to be

 

but then i look into this sweet boy's face and he gives me strength i didn't even know i had

 

 

photos by hrw



'you look wobbly'

(the bride and the 'indy' maids ((amber, sara, lisa, katie, court & amy))....i need a photo of everyone looking classy!  we are missing 3 ladies)
 

a couple of weeks ago,

i had the honor of standing next to one of my dearest friends as she married her love

 

it was beautiful

the wedding, the reception, the people

 

before the big day, i tried on my outfit for stone.

 

the dress, the heels....oh the heels, all 4.5 inches of them

 

he said, 'you look good.....wobbly, but good'

 

luckily, lisa is a kind soul and had us ladies walk down the aisle with our very own groomsman

 

que: me wiping the sweat off my brow

(me and lisa at the rehearsal dinner)

(the bride and the maids at the rehearsal dinner....post dinner and ((just a few)) drinks)
 

 

i am so happy for my friend

 





what if it's bad

harry potter rocked my world

 

in a good way

 

i've read the books multiple times....

 

.....and am not embarrassed to say it

 

i cannot wait until the day henry and i will read the series together

 

(don't even talk to me about what i am going to do if he doesn't love books the way i do)

 

j.k has written a new book

 

 

and i'm pumped to read it

 

but

 

what if it's bad

 

"i'm so excited!  i'm so excited!  i'm. so. scared!!!!"

 

 

(and yes, i call her just 'j.k')

 

 



the observer

 

"daddy mow gwass!"

 

henry could seriously spend an entire afternoon watching stone mow the backyard

 

after stone is done, henry pushes his mini toy lawn mower

 

(or shopping cart. or tiny suitcase)

 

around the house mimicking his dad

 

such an observer this one

 

fingers crossed he observes an awesome science fair project someday and grows up to be a cancer curing scientist

 

if not, he always has lawn care to fall back on......

(henry watching stone mow the back yard....clothing is optional per usual for the mr.)




messing around

 

sometimes i just let him make a mess

 

 

 

if for no other reason than to watch him stare at the 'sex and the city' movie dvd cover for 2-4 minutes with a seriously confused look on his face

 

oh geez this kid puts a smile on my face!

 



too cute to boot *wink wink*

the days are shorter

the air is crisp

the leaves are changing

fall is here

so naturally i am on a mission to find the mr. a pair (or two) of kick ass boots

 

here are some options that i have put into my 'cart'

 

 



the hunters....

 

the livie and lucas....

 

decisions. decisions. decisions.

 

i never thought i would say this

(seriously. NEVER)

but i think shopping for henry is more fun than shopping for myself

 

i just had a breakthrough.....

right then

you were witness to it

 

 

sunday funday

 

 

stone took me to the colts game on sunday

 

it was a gay old time

 

beer, a hot dog (for stone) and a soft pretzel with nacho cheese (for me)

 

what more could a girl ask for!

 

perhaps a win from the home team....but apparently that is in fact too much to ask for

 

 

i tried to make friends with the lady sitting next to me

 

epic fail

 

i'm 92% sure she hated me

 

i think i might have been too chipper for her liking

 

what can you do....you can't win them all

 

at least i got to spend the day with my love!

 

(and a fun pre-game tailgate with great friends!...you know who you are E Family)



i'm loving....

 

 

*cooler nights....

i love having the windows open.  the crisp air makes me snuggle up under the covers.  it's so cozy

 

*recent purchases for mr. henry at H&M kids



grandpa cardigan with elbow patches.  need i say more?

 

*the new vase i bought to go on top of the piano  (or as henry would say 'pee-an-NO!')

 

 

(purchased at anthro)

 

*henry and charlotte dancing and smooching at the french market festival on saturday

 

 

sweet blonde babies

 

"party! party! party!"

 

anytime my nieces chloe and laney watch henry he gets super juiced about it

 

"coco and lala come over!?!?!?"

 

except he pronounces lala: 'wawa'

 

as it should be, he is learning all sorts of things from his older cousins

 

i think my favorite thing he has learned so far is fist pumping

 

yup

 

my almost two year old son fist pumps whilst yelling

 

"party! party! party!"

 

it's a real doozy

 

his only saving grace is that he doesn't have spikey gelled hair, a spray tan and terrible tribal tattoos 

 

 

fist pumping with chopsticks....

 

henry's a real fist pumping pioneer

 

(photo from the most recent hang out session with the girls)

 



a table....a yellow table at that!

 

i recently celebrated a birthday

 

(29 to be exact...i thought i was turning 28 when a friend was kind enough to remind me it was the ol 2-9.  thanks friend.  you know who you are....hurtful)

 

so back to the table

 

the yellow table

 

actually it's 'harvest gold', but that's neither here nor there

 

well it's there....on our back porch

 

 

isn't she a beauty!

 

custom made by my pops and uncle danny with a trough down the middle for ice & drinks

 

 

it's already been put to good use....many times

 

thank you dad (danny & ron too!) for making this little lady one seriously happy birthday girl

 

 



bloody sunday

 

 

(please forgive the mildly gross title)

 

 

yesterday was dubbed 'bloody sunday'

 

it was a day filled with an awesome bloody mary bar

 (provided by katie jean, babs & honey)

 

 

shrimp & grits, baked hush puppies and key lime pie

(provided by mi madre..and padre went to the grocery with her)

 

and hanging out in the 'parlor' in our bungalow

(we now refer to the front room in our home as the parlor...no electronics and a piano = a parlor)

 

somehow i managed to not take one photo after we cracked into the bloody mary bar

 

i shake my tipsy fist at you bloody mary!

 

my fall resolution...

 

(yes i am allowed to have a fall resolution)

 

 take more photos

 

 

 



3 things

i'm in the market for a notebook

 

it doesn't have to be leather or expensive

 

but it does have to feel right

 

it has to feel like an old friend who i tell my secrets to

 

i've never been a journal keeper, but recently i heard an idea that really rubbed me the right way

 

(i'm not sure i should ever use the phrase 'rubbed me the right away' ever again....)

 

each night before bed you write down 3 good things from that day

 

and 3 things you are looking forward to in the next day

 

they don't have to be big things, just things that bring you joy

 

i love it

 

but first i must find the right notebook

 

here are a few that have caught my eye:

 

 

from here

 

 

from here

 

 

from here

 

 

 



the day i (almost) single handedly drank an entire giant drink dispenser of homemade sangria by myself:

a couple of weekends ago i threw one of my best and dearest girlfriends a bridal shower

i was so excited for this day to be here

mi madre and i worked on the decor and the favors for weeks

and i couldn't wait to see lisa's reaction to what we had come up with:

a cozy backyard brunch with a retro girly look

 (with mimosas & sangria to bring it all together...and take the edge off the heat)

i asked my sister (you know, the one who takes those awesome photos) to come over and document the day for us

mi madre and i worked for a couple of weeks on the pom pom garland draped across my backyard.  i love it and can't wait to find any old reason to have stone string it across the yard again!

(so i may or may not have a sickness ((which i inherited from mi madre)) where i feel the need to own cute little tables and chairs)

the favors and 'prizes'....we didn't play any games (because honestly isn't that the least fun part of a shower?) so guests won prizes for things like 'first person to arrive', 'first guest who's gift lisa opened' etc.

brunch was made up of three different kinds of quiche, a summer salad, fresh fruit and individual monkey breads

(i kind of feel like cupcakes are EVERYWHERE right now so i wanted to do something different and mi madre came up with the mini monkey bread idea)

i chose zinnias as the flower for the day...i thought they were bright and cheery

i wrapped an 'L' and a 'K' (for lisa and kyle) in yarn

not only as a gift for lisa, but also to sort of bookend the buffet

as i said before, we had mimosas and sangria (which i really helped myself too!)

my dad was nice enough to print off little labels for all of the food and beverages

we decided on two favors

one: a vintage hankie for each guest

 'for happy tears'

 (mi madre and i embroidered each guests first initial and a flower on their hankie)

and two: a little spice jar full of matches

lisa + kyle

the perfect match

(from left: katie, sara, court, lisa (the bride) and amber)

the 'indy' bridesmaids and the bride

it was a wonderful day

i had such a great time planning and throwing this shower...i can only imagine how much fun the wedding will be in october.

but first things first.....

a bachelorette party in IU bloomington!!!!!

can't wait!