picture overload

here are a few pics from alan and lynne's wedding (one of james' best friends from ecuador). it was one of the best wedding weekends we've enjoyed together.

new bff, jen. we had a wonderful 4 hour car ride together. i'm convinced that if i ride for a car with anyone for 4 hours they will be my new bff.
the boys at the rehearsal dinner: james, eric, alan, ben, bryan.

jen and me with our husbands (thank you $10 walmart dress. i would wear you every day if i could).
parker laying out at the hotel pool (in the shade).

jen and me at a fun little sandwich shop we found, "which wich?"

wedding cake. i love wedding cakes!!

the boys posing before the ceremony.

parker in his wedding getup. not exactly a tux, but still cute.

my handsome husband. love you babe!

the happy couple opening their balloon-filled car. james tried to chase a balloon and ended up face planting on the cement. it was pretty funny until he realized a huge rip in his tux pants. luckily i was able to smooth talk men's wearhouse and we did not have to pay for it. if there are two things in life i am good at they are 4 hour car rides with strangers and smooth talking customer service reps.

best friends all grown up and married. crazy.

love yall!!

swimmin' fool

parker,
yesterday marked our second trip to the neighborhood swimming pool. we went two weeks ago, but the water was too cold, you were crying for hunger before we even got in (mom forgot to bring your bottle), you didn't have a hat, sunscreen, etc . dad was skeptical to try again yesterday because you still don't fit in the smallest size of little swimmers, but he obliged to mom's demands (mom loves the pool more than she should). i think you actually liked it! you didn't really cry as mom bounced you around in the water and seemed content kicking your little legs under water. we had to cut the adventure short because mom forgot the new hat she bought you at target and didn't want you to get sunburned. she also forgot a towel, change of clothes, etc.

it is tough to remember everything you need on outings! today i am making a pool bag so we are prepared. in the bag: sunscreen, baby towel, blanket, dry onesie, diapers (one regular and one lil' swimmers), wipes, burp towel, pacifier, and a hat. on the day of each trip i will add a bottle and the camera. that's just for you! forget all of the items mom needs for herself. leaving the house will never be the same again, parks.

our family has been pretty busy lately (shalini, our neighbor, told me yesterday that we are the busiest people she's ever met! ha). dad looked oh so handsome in his tux last weekend and we really enjoyed time with mom's family in lawrence. more pics to come. love you little guy! i'm so proud of you for going in the swimming pool with a good attitude! :)

love,
momma

baby cards

Parks,
I just took down your collection of cards. It pained me a little to pile them together, but our living room looks much cleaner. Love you,
momma

Which brings me to the question of the day:
What did you do with all of your baby cards? (put them in a scrapbook, put them in a box, throw them away, etc?) Or what did you do with your wedding cards? I have a nice stack of them in our guest bedroom that needs a more permanent home. I never know what to do with birthday, anniversary, etc. cards. It is a shame to throw them away, but being a pack rat is not much better. Hmph.

James and I are in Kansas for the week and don't have internet access at my dad's house (hence the lack of blogposts). Tomorrow I am going to Springfield for one of James' high school friend's wedding and am picking up another groomsman's wife in Olathe for a 4 hour car ride (our husbands are already there for the bachelor party). I've never said a word to the other wife IRL even though we both attended each other's weddings. She seems nice enough from a lil' healthy facebook stalking (thank you for letting me know she went to Ecuador *note to self: good conversation topic*). Oh man, I never dreamed I would marry a MK from South America.

In other news, I got the newlyweds-to-be a cooler filled with beer as a wedding gift. It might be the most white trash present ever, but hopefully they'll actually use it. (Hey the cooler was on their registry and I bought it the same day I returned a fondue pot from our wedding that has been sitting in our closet for over a year. BTW, everyone always gripes about Target's return policies, but I've never had any trouble with it and actually love Target registries).

Love!!! and happiness!! and marriage!!! :)

baby sleep

dear parker,
you are taking a sweet nap on the couch next to me as i write this. i am amazed at how well you are sleeping already and hope it continues. after returning from wisconsin, dad and i decided to try and give you a 10pm bedtime (you were staying up until around midnight). even though mom is very much a laissez faire parent, she thought a bedtime would help you naturally get into a routine. it worked! for the past 5 nights you've fallen asleep between 10-10:15pm. 3 of the 5 nights you woke up at 6am (8 straight hours of sleep, baby!) and the other two you woke up at 4am to feed (6 hours, not bad) and then fell back asleep. i really hope this continues because i am getting used to 0-1 feedings during the night.

who knows if you are just a great sleeper or if anything i've done helped you develop good sleep patterns. i don't wake you up for feedings during the day or night unless absolutely necessary. one night during the first week of your life you slept from midnight-7am. when i woke up and realized you had not eaten for 7 hours, i thought "crap, maybe i should've set my alarm for 4am." then i concluded that you and i both needed sleep and it was healthy for us.

at the hospital you always wanted to sleep instead of eat (i.e. after you were circumcised, when you received an iv for extra blood work, etc.). long story, but it was then that i decided to let you eat and sleep whenever you want, at least for the first few months of your life. it is working well for us so i plan to continue our relaxing lifestyle until something changes. why waste time and energy tracking your sleep and wake times when i could be doing much more exciting things like blogging, ha.

anyway, it's friday. dad and i are barbecuing some brats and hamburgers tonight. can't wait. love you little guy!!!
love,
momma

p.s. this is your new favorite place to sleep: your arms reach co-sleeper (actually i think you still like sleeping next to me in our king size bed better, but we're putting you to sleep in the cosleeper to help you get ready for your crib).
this is your favorite place to nap while dad and i are hanging out in the living room: the boppy. coming in a close second, the swing.you've never slept in your actual crib yet so this picture is a little deceptive. however, you LOVE your miracle blanket. after mom got over her fear that she would stunt your growth by wrapping you up in the little straight jacket, she's put you in it nearly every night. thank you "happiest baby on the block" for emphasizing the beauty of a good swaddle.
hope everyone has a great weekend and gets lots of sleep!!! love!

prime outlets

even though james and i are blessed to have wonderful families, our in-laws are still in-laws. as much as i love james' family (even though they throw away my mothers day flowers and would rather watch the mentalist and ncis over american idol and the biggest loser season finale, what??), i will never feel as comfortable around them as i do with my family. recognizing this was an important step for both of us. enjoying in-law visits. the first few times i brought james to kansas, i scheduled too much to do and all of the small talk with people he barely knew exhausted him. so, to help him look forward to kansas trips, we make it a priority for him to have an afternoon all to himself. he takes the car with no schedule or to do list. usually he ends up going to a boyish movie and comes home rejuvenated and relaxed.

this past week in wisconsin, i finally discovered my escape from the in-laws: kenosha's prime outlets. ahhh this made my trip. from now on, i'm making it a priority to spend one afternoon shopping at the beautiful j.crew, banana, white/black, etc. outlets. hallelujah! oh and i did i mention that i just discovered a chipotle in wisconsin?!? my trips to the in-laws are forever changed for the better. i highly encourage everyone to find one activity they enjoy in their in-laws hometowns to give them something to look forward to on the road trips.

and what did i buy? this 3/4 sleeve blue sweater that i wore to lake michigan with parker. $23.this classy necklace from white house black market. $10.
comfy springy tank from j. crew. perfect for stroller walks. $8
and while we're on the topic of shopping, i found this summery dress that i wore for parker's one month family pics at wal-mart. $10!

love yall!!!