I watched this:

Then I looked back at these:

Then I did the ugly cry because I KEPT WATCHING IT.

But I do have to wonder if those Olympic moms ever had to tell their kids not to stick toys in their baby sister’s butt cheeks when they were in the bathtub together.

P&G left that part out.

Vivi and I have a routine. Our routine involves naps, snuggles and a shared appreciation for the culinary delight that is the avocado.

I have the stamina necessary to pack a 25 pound baby everywhere and carry a massive camera around.

Athletic? Nope. Not so much.

Vivi and I? We enjoy our downtime.

Then there’s these other people we live with.

You know, that guy over there who ran a half marathon after training for…well. He didn’t train, he says he trained for four days but what that really means is he called me on Tuesday and said “Hey, what are we doing Saturday?” when I said nothing, he then said “I think I’m going to run the Mini.”

And then he did.

He finished in a totally average time and even more impressive? He didn’t die. Hooray! He mapped out a very detailed “Pre-Race Checklist” which included “Prevent bloody nipples.” Considering running a half marathon this weekend? Check out Cody’s four day couch to 13.1 mile training plan.

Then there’s this other kid, who obviously takes after her dad.

See that giant rope hanging from the ceiling in the middle of Addie’s giant gym?

THIS IS ADDIE CLIMBING IT (to the top) USING ONLY HER ARMS.

Seriously.

I’ve gotten at least 4 stars on every song in Just Dance 3, I dare say more than half are 5 stars. *bows*

I’m really proud of these two.

Cody’s recruiting people to run the Mini with him next year, when his secretary asked “Is Casey going to do it?” Cody replied “Casey doesn’t run.” to which I responded “I run away from bears.”

Cody then offered to dress in a full bear suit and chase me through the streets of Indianapolis so I’d run the Mini. He even offered to growl, he also said there was a very good chance we’d make it on TV.

I’m still considering his offer.

Whew! Two birthdays a bit of depression (I’m feeling much better!) can make a girl fall behind. Sorry about that. Cody’s still been chugging away at his new found blogging hobby and is out of his mind with worry and stress about pageviews! ZOMG THE PAGEVIEWS! I had to sit in a parking lot and talk him down from a ledge about the pageviews. THE PAGEVIEWS! Poor guy. (Curious about what’s with all the slideshows? WHY SO MANY SLIDESHOWS!? Here’s why.)

• “Dude, your husband. He’s not a very social guy, WHY IS HE BLOGGING?” I know, right? Turns out he has a few reasons and it’s really been a learning experience for him (blogging, NOT LIKE LAWYERING AT ALL.) Here’s a few reasons why he’s doing it (and despite one “helpful” commenter, it’s not for ‘egocentric motivations.’ Check out Cody’s response. HE’S ALL MINE PEOPLE.)

• Turns out I have the cross examination skills of a seasoned lawyer, all from motherhood. I’ve never seen Cody more impressed with my existence.

• When Cody found out I was pregnant with Vivi the first word out of his mouth was a very loud “No!” (Here’s why.)

• I’m very well aware that there are times Cody needs to chill the hell out and thankfully he’s got plenty of ways to do just that. (Two of them involve me, one of those two involve making out with me. *ehem*)

• The importance of pain, and also the importance of our girls participating in sports.

• Have you ever used your kids to bully another adult? Addie became a pawn in a gross neighborhood game of tattletale.

• Ever wonder what family vacations with a history major/nerd would be like? Here’s 20 historical places he’s determined to drag us to take us as a family no matter how much we kick, scream and demand the beach. (See also: Watching movies with history majors/nerds is truly awful sometimes.)

• Try not to be jealous of these delicious culinary treats that Cody prepares on occasion as he rounds up 15 meals any dude can make for his lady friend on Mother’s Day, maybe circle one and send it to your husband so you don’t end up with boxed mashed potatoes like I did one year? (His cheeseburgers really are quite delicious.)

• I spank, Cody was spanked, we all spank naughty kids (of our own) when all the other options have been exhausted.

Go figure that the biggest event of the year, and I have no words.

I was going to post my favorite photos of Vivi.

Problem is I could only narrow it down to 103, that was after narrowing it down from 430.

I don’t care how much you like me or my baby, no one wants to wait for 103 photos to load.

So I put them into a video. You’re welcome, for Vivi’s birthday you get to wait for a video to load instead.

Cant’ see the video? Click here.

You guys? My baby is one.

Holy crap.

Here’s a few posts about Vivi’s first month, it’s been hard, but it’s been so worth it.

Here’s Vivi’s introduction to the world.

The one about my heart nearly exploding.

The one where a tiny miracle outdoes the biggest plans.

 

*psst!* Come close…I have a confession. (Also, did you catch the horrible pun in the title?)

But first you have to promise you won’t roll your eyes at me, we all have our things and this is mine.

Promise?

Good.

*deep breath* Here goes.

I don’t like having my picture taken, in fact, I kind of hate it. (HEY! You said you wouldn’t roll your eyes.)

(by Addie)

Oh, I know what you’re thinking “Join the club, lots of people don’t like having their picture taken.”

I know, I know. But I’m different!

I don’t trust anyone else to take my picture (except for her and sometimes her.) It’s not that I don’t think I’m lovely, yet it gives me heaps and gobs of anxiety when someone else takes my picture when I have no control over what happens next. I don’t like the idea of someone zoomed in on my face furiously trying to erase my rash. My face is uneven, my right eye is nicknamed my ‘squinky eye’ because it closes more than my left and it develops a big wrinkly puff under it when I do smile. I also have mottled teeth because of hyperflourosis, they’re straight as can be but boy are they spotty.

I’ve been burned – four different people have taken my picture and Photoshopped me to within an inch of my life. It really hurt my feelings all four times.

I know I’m not perfect, please don’t try and paint me that way.

Perhaps the reason I like photographing other people so much is because I want to show them how pretty they are even when they don’t believe it. I know how to make them feel comfortable (or at least I hope I do) and I know what humans are supposed to look like, and it’s not dolls.

This is the reason a majority of the photos you see of me are by me. It’s also the reason I don’t have a single family picture with all four of us in the same frame. I don’t trust anyone else. It’s sad really, here I am always claiming that any photo is better than none, but I know my family and I know what we’re like, if another photographer who didn’t know us took our photo and missed the complete essence of us? I’d be devastated.

(Hey Casey! YOU HAVE TRUST ISSUES!)

It’s really hard to pay someone else a lot of money to take your picture when you know what you’re doing. I wonder if that’s how dentists feel when they have to go in for an exam.

Oddly enough, this is one of my favorite pictures, everything about it says exactly what I was feeling when I took it. Pictures tell stories, and oh is there a story to this one.

There’s a lot more to photographing humans than owning a nice camera and knowing how to use it. It takes someone who understands people, which is why some photographers are SPECTACULAR at taking pictures of things, but blow at taking pictures of people. It’s also why I can’t take a decent landscape to save my life. Landscapes don’t laugh.

So there you go.

I don’t like having my picture taken.

But I do it anyway.

Because I want these little people to remember me always, no matter what I looked like.

Nothing makes me happier than seeing a photo I took of someone as a profile photo or avatar. I means I did something somebody liked, that I captured them. (I took hers, hers, hers, hers, hers, hers and hers just to name a few.)

I spent today with my shoulders jammed up into my ears and my jaw clenched.

Now that the sun has set and the two little bodies are tucked warm and safe in their beds I’m realizing just how sore I am from being tied up in a knot all day.

The last few minutes of sunlight were spent locked in the car in my garage on the phone with her, thankfully she was locked in her bedroom at the exact same moment so she completely understood what I meant when I told her where I was.

Today parenting got the best of me and turned me to my worst.

Today my house was not a home, it was a place of survival and laying down the law.

We talked about how we both feel so much better when people we admire admit to struggling on occasion with this parenting gig. We both agreed there’s a middle ground between constant complaining and putting on a face of false joy for the world.

All my parts are tired, but thankful for a fresh start come morning.

On Babble: Not Better, Not Worse.

For my birthday Cody and I spent the night at a swanky hotel where we didn’t have to worry about stepping on Legos on our way to the bathroom or shiny trails of baby snot being slimed down our pants.

We had a grownup dinner in a grownup restaurant, we even sat in the bar because that’s where grownups sit even if they only order water with a lemon and Coke. We ate grownup food at our own pace and we didn’t have to cut anyone else’s food into manageable pieces or worry about smashed peas being spit launched into our faces. We stayed up late, went to bed when we wanted to and woke up when we were both ready. No one came into the bathroom while I was showering demanding a snack and I spent 19 hours not having to deal with anyone’s crap, literally.

All in all, it was a wonderful night.

We went out to breakfast where we both ate embarrassing amounts of delicious food that we didn’t have to share and when we came home? We launched right back into real life, which included lots of balloons and a little less snot.

We talked about grownup things. About how 6 years ago today we first came to Indianapolis from Pittsburgh to look at law schools. About how 8 years ago today I found out I was pregnant with Addie. About how we’ve lived in Indiana for half of our married life and how we can’t believe we’ve been here for so long. I honestly couldn’t tell you if it was cold or not today because I spent so much of it next to Cody who puts out a warmth that calms me to my core. My favorite place in the world is right next to him.

Being this in love with someone is both exhilarating and dangerous, I am wholly confident in who I am because of him but at the same time the thought of ever having to be without him causes an ache deep within my chest. He’s loved me since I was 18, through my 20’s and right into 30. I’ve spent so much of my life hating myself. Hating my big nose, hating my thighs, knees and hips, I’ve hated my brain for not working right and I’ve hated myself for not doing more, whatever more is.

This morning I looked and the mirror and realized this body has been with me for 30 years. It’s gained and lost weight, carried two healthy babies and has hugged the people I love through really horrible times. It as danced for me, cooked for me, wrapped itself around my husband and loved him from the moment he became mine.

I came to peace with it.

I apologized for hating it so much and told it that it was doing a pretty bangin’ job of doing what a body is supposed to do.

I read a book once that said women’s’ bodies are like sand dunes. That they are supposed to curve and bend and that over the years they become more and more sculpted by life thus making every dip and arch more beautiful.

As I stared at myself in the mirror today I was finally able to admit out loud I am lovely, and that I have Cody to thank for taking such good care of me through everything.

“Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength, while loving someone deeply gives you courage.” -Lao Tzu

After a marvelous evening filled with friends, cupcakes and dancing…I feel more like myself and less like a slug.

I’m looking forward to thirty even though I still feel like I’m only 22.

It’s tradition around here that you wonderful people come out of hiding and make me a comment cake, telling me about the wonderful things going on in your life. Even if it’s just a nap or a really good sandwich last week. But if I may be a little selfish this year, since it’s kind of a big year, tell me something good, and then if you’ve been around for awhile (or just a little while), could you also tell me what your favorite post or photo of mine is?

I mean, I know what I like…but I’ve always been curious what you like, I’ve just been too bashful to ask.

I look forward to reading your lovely, it’s been a highlight of my birthday for the last five years.

xo

• Well hello. I’M IMPRESSIVE. (Also known as 10 things I can do that impress the pants off of my kid.)

• My ‘Before Addie Moves Out’ Bucket List. (#6 – Teach her to drive a stick.)

• 10 things we’ve successfully done from Pinterest. (Most of them involve butter.)

• Some parts of parenting stink, literally and figuratively. Here’s 10 specific things I don’t particularly enjoy about my job as a mom.

• What I learned from Addie and her fancy yellow dress. (I certainly wasn’t expecting it.)

• This one time, Addie took a horse by the balls, literally.