• Yesterday was Cody’s and my 11th anniversary. I got him something that plugs into the TV and does something neat, he got me a handheld Dyson. He didn’t get me a card, want to know why? “The place I stopped at didn’t have Hallmark cards, I knew better than to get you a non-Hallmark card..” That is love. This is also love…Cody wrote about our wedding day and dude, I did good.

• When I wrote about my marriage almost ending, the response was overwhelming. Cody wrote his own version about the 11 mistakes he made that nearly brought us to the end.

• Remember that time Cody made us sit at different tables so we could get our meals for free with coupons? Yeah, I try not to. It’s only starting to get funny 10 years later. Here’s his side of the story.

• So apparently there was a moment Cody considered abandoning a tiny baby Addie and me. I had no idea. This blogging thing, it’s fascinating.

 

First of all, this:

Paul is five months old in this photo, Vivi? Four.

Needless to say Vivi got stuck in her Bumbo a lot more often.

Second, I promise to shooshy about my blurb book after a short “AWW!” about my blurb book:

Okay, I’m done. (Seriously, you need to make one of these.)

Third, in case you haven’t noticed, over there in the sidebar is a link to my shiny! new! Babble Voices blog, which means instead of writing 10 days a week I now write 4 times a month. (Did you hear that? It was an enormous sigh of relief for my sou and sanity.) I still have page view requirements (have to make money from the advertisers somehow!) but I still refuse to go controversial and I don’t really want to have to do slideshows if I don’t have to. Pinky swear.

That being said, here’s my first two posts:

Princess Pantyhose Lover – Wherein I discuss the fact that I am 30 and rely on nude pantyhose to keep my legs looking non-cadaver like. Turns out the comments may be more entertaining than the actual post. It’s also comforting to know that if everything else falls apart, I have nice arches and a future as a stocking model for strangers on the Internet.

We’re all a Little Lumpy, We’re all a Little Strange – This one was supposed to be written wisdom to Addie and Vivi about how Hollywood lies and kissing underwater is a complete joke that should never be attempted. It still turned out to be full of useful advice, but I had to take out the “parental wisdom” bit when things turned to seashells in your rear and celebrity mucous plugs.

I can’t believe I spent so many years driving alone in the car with just Addie.

She must have been so bored back there for the first seven years of her life. (I’d say six and half but Vivi didn’t get interesting back there until recently and let’s be honest, little babies in the back of the car can be downright stressful, especially for their big sister sitting right next to them.)

I can remember one particular drive on I-70 East when Vivi was only a few weeks old. We had to drive to the ENTIRE other side of town to pick up a medication from the only compounding pharmacy in Indianapolis. We’re talking more than an hour each way in the dead heat of summer with a tiny new baby. None of us had life figured out at that point. I can remember Vivi screaming and screaming, Addie’s eyes getting wider and wider and my blood pressure getting higher and higher. I kept telling Addie “She can’t scream forever, we’ve done all we can, we just have to get home.” I also remember thinking “Huh, I should totally borrow a newborn and have Addie drive across the city with it in the back when she’s 16, that will teach her about celibacy in a way no PSA ever could.”

Addie wanted to play with Vivi so badly in those early weeks but Vivi just wasn’t that fun, she was also really loud which put Addie off even more.

Once Vivi could laugh and be slightly more engaging everything changed. Our drives went from terror rides to entertainment rides. Vivi began to crane her neck so she could see her sister and Addie began planning more and more elaborate ways to make her sister laugh.

Sundays after church are the best. Both girls are tired of being still and quiet for three hours so they sit in the back singing, spitting and squawking back and forth at each other the whole way home. Lately they’ve taken to playing games of peek-a-boo and chucking toys back and forth at each other.

Addie proclaims “I like having a baby sister.” most often when we’re either in the car or just as we get out of the car.

I think it’s her way of saying “I sure do like not being alone in the back of the car anymore, and the person you put back there with me is awfully funny, thanks for that.”

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I’ll be joining the Disney Baby blogging team next month and look forward to sharing these kinds of stories and experiences with you here several more times throughout the month before beginning over there full time in early July. This post is sponsored by Disney Baby.

10. Now that Vivi can walk she spends her afternoons wandering aimlessly around the lower level of our house. Sometimes she carries stuff around with her while other times she sings as she meanders. I’m curious what her new interest will be once walking around in pointless circles gets boring.

9. Vivi watches Addie for everything. Addie sticks raspberries on her fingers? Vivi sticks raspberries on her fingers. I’m grateful Addie’s a fairly well behaved child because Vivi is her shadow in everything these days.

8. Vivi likes to rest her feet on things. Especially the table as she’s eating. Manners? What manners?

7. Vivi likes to cross her ankles when she’s interested in something. I call it ‘stacking her piggies.’

6. It’s official, Vivi’s thighs are one of the Internets five most favorite things.

5. Vivi loves her bunny. She will only hand bunny off to people she likes or trusts. If someone who is not in her circle of trust tries to handle bunny? She’ll see to it that nothing like that ever happens again.

4. Vivi likes to bodyslam things. Pillows, balls, balloons, cats…she’s also been known to sneak up on someone laying on the floor and bodyslam them. Surprise!

3. Vivi does a mean downward dog, only recently has she started modifying it. Proof that yoga isn’t just for skinny people.

2. Vivi got her first haircut two weeks ago and still looks like a shaggy little baby. We’re not quite sure what to do with all that hair up there, she rips out clips as soon as we get them in.

1. I am so, so happy with these two girls in my life. Addie is everything to Vivi and Vivi is everything to Addie. The love between them just makes my head twirl. (Also, this photo may just be one of my new all time favorites.)

I wonder how many of these little things I would have forgotten had I never photographed them or written them down…

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Vivi’s blue romper from Scout Kids via Zulily.

I’ll be joining the Disney Baby blogging team next month and look forward to sharing these kinds of stories and experiences with you here several more times throughout the month before beginning over there full time in early July. This post is sponsored by Disney Baby.

On Friday night I went to the Indianapolis Zoo’s annual black tie fundraiser, Zoobilation. I had it on my “Indy Bucket List” of things I wanted to do before I left (I’m not going anywhere anytime soon by the way) and it is now checked off. I was invited to be part of the twitter team for the event meaning I walked around in a very fancy dress tweeting all night. Cody put up with it, only because he had a lot to eat and my talent with the tweets is what got him there in the first place. I’m pretty sure there were some people watching us thinking “That girl needs to put her phone down and pay attention to her husband!” To those people I say “Have another cocktail, you obviously need it if you’re judging the actions of others at a party in the zoo.”

Speaking of cocktails, Cody and I had a heck of a time trying to get unleaded drinks. We finally had to give up and just carry around cups of ice as every bar we went to was out of water, Coke, Sprite and juice. (“Are you sure you don’t want rum punch? It’s free!” “Yes, we’re sure.” *crunch crunch crunch*)

If you’re in Indy I believe it is your duty to go at least once, it is a wild and enchanting experience that cannot fully be enjoyed vicariously. (Be sure to wear comfy shoes when you go.)

Zoobilation was a big fancy date night for us, since our anniversary is this week (ELEVEN YEARS) and we’ve never been to such a fancy party before I bought a new dress and shoes and I had my hair and makeup done, something I’ve never done before short of the cosmetics counter in a department store. I didn’t even get my hair done for my own wedding. I always figured that I was good enough at both to get by, surely I didn’t have to pay anyone.

Y’ALL I was wrong.

I have a very, very good hair girl. I’ve been seeing her for almost two years. I value my relationship with her as one of the most important in my professional/personal life. She does makeup as well and after two and half hours and 55 bobby pins? Dude, I didn’t even know I could look that good. If I ever become wildly famous she’s coming with me. She balanced out my squinky eye (which she renamed my ‘sultry eye‘) and made me GLOW.

When we got home I told Cody his job was to stare at me. I couldn’t fathom washing my face after only 7 hours which meant I sat in my pajamas for the rest of the night and watched Deadliest Catch with the fanciest hair and makeup ever.

I even wrapped my hair in a silk scarf and practically slept on my nose in an attempt to salvage my hair for another 24 hours. When I showed Addie she said “It doesn’t even really look that good.”

Kids, keeping me humble since 2004.

Finding a modest but lovely dress was a chore (A CHORE!) but totally worth it in the end and spending the night with Cody in a handsome suit, riding a roller coaster, eating far too much food, crunching way too much ice and goofing off in photo booths?

Best night ever.

Whoa, it’s kind of  been sponsored post whoop-tee-doo up in here for the last little while. Sorry about that. This transition into summer has been really weird and as usual it seems that when opportunities come, they come all at once only you don’t realize it until you’re sitting down recognizing that this strange feeling your experiencing is relaxation bordering on boredom. Thankfully my DVR has been hard at work recording So You Think You Can Dance (!!!) and Breaking Pointe (!!!) I may be 5’2″ with boobs for days and thighs that could sustain a lost hiking party, but in my head I am a lithe and slender ballet dancer.

My cruise is in 68 days meaning BlogHer is less than 68 days away and EVO, where I am an opening keynote Ignite speaker, is way less than 68 days away. This makes me crazy because A) it means I have to get on a plane with my baby who does not do planes well and B) opening keynote y’all, people tend to actually listen to opening keynotes, of which I am one.

Addie has taken to singing about EVERYTHING. Loudly. All this loud singing about everything has led to some pretty interesting songs, I had to stop her during her ‘Yeast Infection Hoedown‘ though, things just got too weird. (See also: Yeasty Beasty diaper rashes are NO JOKE PEOPLE.)

Vivi walks. Just yesterday she figured out how to stand up without holding onto a wall, chair, cat or Cody’s leg hairs. There’s all sorts of politically incorrect things I could say about her walking and most of them involve liquor. I’m not going to be the one writing about drunk babies, especially not drunk naked babies running through the house airing out their yeasty beasty rash.

Speaking of drunk, I’m headed to Zoobilation this Friday night with Cody in a fancy dress. I’m even getting my hair done and if I remember I’ll pluck my random chin, neck, chest and nipple hairs before we leave. I’ve asked Cody repeatedly to alert me to the appearance of these rogue whiskers but he swears he sees nothing but perfection in my existence. It is for this reason (along with several others) that I don’t change the locks on him. We’ll be keeping it classy and completely sober, unless one can get cupcake drunk, in that case all bets are off.

How’s summer treating you so far? Also, what’s your favorite mascara? I’m on the hunt for a new one, preferably one that doesn’t flake or smudge but also washes off when I ask it to.

Last Thursday night on the way home from shopping she finally said it.

“I wish we could give Vivi back.”

The left half of me shriveled with sadness while the right half of me shrugged and thought “Can’t blame you, kid.”

Addie and I were an inseparable team before Vivi came along, she had me all to herself and the only person or thing she really had to share me with was Cody on occasion. I realize that Vivi isn’t wholly to blame for Addie’s statement. I work a lot more, travel a lot more and make it a priority to spend more time with her dad. Yes, Vivi keeps us from going to movies, staying out late on weekend nights and spending all day at the pool, but I think we all realize that the joy Vivi brings us individually and as a family is worth the few years of baby inconvenience.

When Cody and I told Addie that I was pregnant she broke into tears and said “BUT I DON’T WANT A BABY!” She went to bed crying and I went to bed feeling horrible that I had wanted so badly to give her a baby sister and here I had gone and ruined her life. The next morning she ran to my side of the bed, threw back the covers and began asking “WHERE IS IT? CAN I FEEL IT? IS YOUR BELLY ANY BIGGER? WHEN IS IT GOING TO BE HERE? WHAT IS IT? CAN I TOUCH IT?” Any thoughts she had the night before about babies being horrible things were forgotten and replaced with outrageous excitement.

I hugged Addie extra hard when we got home and sent her to bed knowing I how much I loved her and that I was taking on less responsibility over the summer to make sure I was able to spend as much time possible with her during her summer vacation. Her words hung in the air all night “I wish we could give Vivi back.” They weren’t said out of anger or spite, and I could tell it hurt her to say them. She just wanted more time with me, and I assured her there was absolutely nothing wrong with that and that as we settled into a routine things would get better, we would find our new normal.

In the morning I woke up to shrieking giggles from the monitor, only it wasn’t just from Vivi, it was from the both of them greeting each other still warm from sleep with fuzzy bedhead. Addie pulled Vivi out of her crib and into the rocking chair where she began reading Dr. Seuss to her as I laid in bed listening.

 

These two, they’re going to be just fine.

We all will be.

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As I mentioned before, my responsibilities and obligations will be changing over the next month. I’ll be joining the Disney Baby blogging team next month and look forward to sharing these kinds of stories and experiences with you here several more times throughout the month before beginning over there full time at the end of June. This post is sponsored by Disney Baby.

Last night I was staying up WAY TOO LATE working on compiling Vivi’s first year in a photo book. 546 photos. You can’t really comprehend how many photos 546 is until you’re trying to fit them all into a book where you’re charged by page. (Currently on page 105. Hold me.) Suddenly a Barry White song about you know what filled my living room. Then Barry White went quiet and Richard Marx began crooning at me. (man I love Richard Marx.) Richard Marx was cut short then Celine Dion started singing about the power of love. Celine didn’t even make it four bars into her song when she was cut off and Norah Jones began asking me to come away with her.

It was then that I realized Cody was seducing me from bed with Pandora using his (early) Father’s Day Gift (which was actually something I was sent to review. It’s like the best regift ever, especially since I didn’t have to keep it a surprise at all, I can, do, will use it when he’s not home and now I don’t have to shop for Father’s Day!)

When I checked our Pandora stations this morning my suspicions were confirmed.

Continue reading “Sonos: or how to give your entire life a running soundtrack. (sponsored)”