KAYE | TEN MONTHS

Friday, August 30, 2013
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when the heck did i get a 10 month old?

seriously...as i cuddled her i  can not believe that her legs dangle over the side of the chair.

it was quite literally just a few months ago i could hold her for hours and my arms wouldn't get tired.

now? bahahaha. she's a chunk and a half. girlfriend has the cheeks, gut, and thighs to prove it. she's lucky she's walking, because she's too heavy to carry.

and that's the truth.

girlfriend is moving and grooving like nobody's bizz.

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she went from crawling slowly to tentative stepping to practically running in a matter of weeks. i guess that's how it usually goes...right?

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and you know what i've concluded?

it's a really great idea to not let your children walk until they have a stronger sense of balance.

nine month olds have no business being on two feet. they fall all. the. time.

and they aren't just little falls on to their booties.

it's always one of the following:
  • dramatic fall on the front of the face.
  • dramatic fall on the side of the face.
  • sideways fall onto the ear.
  • find any piece of furniture and slam into it with your face.
among other various injuries...you're still thriving.

i can't lie...i'm pretty proud of you. i'm convinced that you're walking at nine months is a tell that you're going to love running with your mama. 

speaking of mama...you still yell "mama" when you're tired or irritated, but i think the other day you started saying dadadadada. and let me tell you, when you have dada mastered...it's going to rain. 
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rain presents and love and WHATEVER YOU WANT. i can't wait to see what we can get out of him.  i've even started a little wish list. 

the day you say, "dada," i'm going to ask him if we can buy you this:

because little girls from idaho need their patagonia, fleece vests. then you and i can dress like twinsies...i'm not-so-secretly very excited for us to start dressing in matching outfits. no judgement. 

do you want to know what you do better than anything these days? sleep. you are amazing. i'll give you a cuddle cuddle before each nap or night time and you practically stiff arm me and dive into your crib. how did this happen? 

and ps. your 6:30 pm bedtime is ridiculous. sometimes around 8:30 pm your farmer and i talk about waking you up because we miss you. we never do, but we think about it.

your favorites:

1. you love your farm machinery. you push around a little tractor that brody "gifted" to you and also show some attention to a combine your dad got for you. but if you drop that metal combine on the top of my foot one more time i'm going to throw it in the trash.  no mercy.


2. hide and go seek/getting chased - first you find us and then you want us to chase you. it's the very best game and can suck up an hour in a flash. to hear you squeal and giggle and pant because you're out of breath from being chased is hysterical. your farmer and i may enjoy the game more than you.
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3. tomatoes - you're just like me, sweets! you love tomatoes. we had a box of them sitting in the laundry room and it was awfully quiet. i peaked around the corner and you had thrown several on the ground, but the one in your hand had a giant bite out of it. good for you.

4. your pink blanket - what's with that? as we're playing on the floor i'll toss it in front of you and you can't help it. without fail...every single time...you'll dive forward and rub your face on it. sometimes you grab it and shove it in your mouth and give it a little chew. and if ever we want a little cuddle, all we have to do is drape it over our shoulder and you'll lay your head down. that pink blanket is a godsend. thank you pink blanket. thank you.


dislikes: sitting still, keeping your bib on, getting your diaper changed

nicknames: turtle, sweets, sweety-bear, baby

oh turtle, did you know we call you turtle because of your little lips? you kind of curl them under and snap like a snapping turtle. 

you are pretty easy-breezy these days. you are an excellent communicator of your needs, and when those simple needs are met you're good to go. 

you still demand quite a lot of attention, but you are only 10 months old...so we'll give you a break. 

i would like you to work on a few things between now and your first birthday:

1. your walking. you need to find your center of gravity asap. the falling on your head is really making me nervous.

2. the mama-clinginess. 

3. a later bedtime. i know this sounds crazy, but do you think 8 pm is unheard of? your current 6:30 pm bedtime is KILLING our already pathetic social life.

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we love you, turtle. turtle-bear.


lou lou made: GIVEAWAY

Wednesday, August 28, 2013
hey you fine folk.

i have a special something something for you today...brought to you by the daaaaahling olivia who is behind the adorable goodies at lou lou made.

you see...this gal here makes the cutest of the cute baby bedding and other baby goodies. and by "cute" i mean "modern" and "hip." just what you need to put those unique touches on the most precious room in your home.

olivia is quite the whiz at the sewing machine. girlfriend can make you a custom anything, such as:

fitted crib sheet:





contoured changing pad cover:


crib bumper:


quilt:


pillows:



you name it, she'll probably do it! AND she'll take the guesswork out of having to find the perfect fabric. seriously...i'm in love with the colors and patterns she works with.

her inspiration - i'll have to double check, but i'm pretty sure it's her main man.


wouldn't  her mister and my gal make the cutest couple? i'll have to work on her drooling.

back to the matter at hand. as mentioned, lou lou made is sponsoring a little giveaway. a shop credit of $36 is all yours should you win!

are you having a baby?
know someone having a baby?
will you one day have a baby?

well...enter away because her stuff is stinkin' hip to this jive...or something like that.

and to sweeten the pot? the winner will also receive a one month ad spot on my this here blog. hip hip!

so get to it, word?

i've set up this super easy rafflecopter deal to get you going. please e-mail if you have any issues.

best of luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Q&A with my farmer

Tuesday, August 27, 2013

sooo...a few weeks ago i was tagged in the lovely laura's post. she basically answered some questions about herself and then passed it on to some others in blog land.

well...since i talk ALL about myself ALL the time...i figured talking about myself even more could get old real REAL fast. am i right? or am i right? i'm right.

so instead...i decided it would be fun to answer her questions from my farmer's perspective.

please note: these are not his answers...simply how i think he might answer.

so here we go.

1. favorite movie?


my farmer would normally smart-ass his answer and say something like a walk to remember or anything by nicholas sparks. but i happen to know the truth. his most favorite movie is forrest gump. i think it tugs at his heartstrings.

oh oh...we also really like shows we can watch together...such as: duck dynasty, top gear...and that's it.

2. favorite evening out drink?


my farmer's drink of choice would be any sort of dark beer. the darker the better. if it's a nitro stout...i think he would choose that every time.

however, when we're out with his college buddies he's known for ordering them any sort of drink that might arrive in a girly glass with decorations like fruit or umbrellas. he's generous that way

3. guilty pleasure?

yeah...he has guilty pleasures. they are called girly cocktails. i think he orders the girly cocktails for his buddies because he secretly wants to drink them. but let's face it...they are yummy.

4. what is your biggest pet peeve?

currently my farmer's biggest pet peeve is when i tell him to, "shhhhh!" you see...our little gal's room is RIGHT off our great room and our great room is all hardwood. and my farmer...well...he's a guy. and guys just don't know how to adjust their volume. and he always happens to come home when our gal is napping. and he stomps across our hardwood or slams the door or eats too loudly, or breathes. she's a light sleeper.

5. who inspires you?


my wife. she's amazing and beautiful.

actually...he probably inspires himself. he's pretty amazing and quite the go-getter. i know he inspires me most every day. awwww...

6. is this how you imagined your life to be?


drool-monster 5000
no...i don't think this is how he imagined his life to be. he probably thought he'd be married to someone slightly hotter, who was a little less naggy, who cooked a little more. he also probably never imagined having a little gals as beautiful as she is. and she is beautiful...at least we think so.

i think it is safe to say we're pretty happy. there are the crazy moments (mostly my crazy moments)...but it's all worth it in the end.

alrighty-roo. i guess i'm supposed to tag a few fellow bloggers now.




gal-faces, please answer six of the following questions:

1. is this how you imagined your life to be?
2. favorite evening out drink?
3. favorite movie, or tv show?
4. what is your guilty pleasure?
5. how long have you known your best friend?
6. what is a current dream you hope to achieve?
7. where was your best vacation and why?
8. what is your biggest pet peeve?
9. what is your top wedding memory?



five things - birthday edition

Friday, August 23, 2013
that's right. my birthday month is marching toward us.

last year during my birthday month all i could think about was getting a baby out of me.

this year for my birthday month all i can think about is my ridiculously growing wish list. 

and it seriously is ridiculous. 

why can't i be more like kaye and be excited about a $5 combine our farmer won for her on ebay?

instead...as i age...my heart's desire become more and more expensive. 

i mean...a couple of christmas's ago i received a treadmill. a nice one...with a tv on it and everything. very farm-fancy.

oh well...it's a wish list. WISH list. it certainly doesn't mean it's going to happen.

1. a new one of these:


i have quite literally dropped my current laptop on the ground at least four times. this last time it actually chipped a little piece off. plus it's six years old and that's like 339 years old in human years.

2. a vay-cay with my love love. (that means you, farmer.) just a little overnighter or two would be fantastic! let's explore some place in idaho we've not been. yes?

we could go here...


or here...


or we could just go camping...as long as we're together. awwwwww...


3. how about one of these fancy-schmancy cameras with a big fat lens? i could go for one of these. so with the new laptop AND the new camera...this blog here of mine...it would blow up. i just know it.

i probably couldn't tell you the first thing about this camera. i probably couldn't even tell you how to turn it on. but i know it's more than decent...and i promise i'm a semi-fast learner.

4. birthday come early - a set of these...


thanks lovey. this gift will come to fruition in about nine months.

and lastly...

5. i think one of these could look real real good in our kitchen, babe. REAL good.


have a super-swell weekend!

one thing

Wednesday, August 21, 2013
yeah. sure. let's talk about it.

i mean...my husband can't look at me without laughing for the past day.

insert jokes here and here and here.

but this happened people. i've reverted back to 7th grade with not being able to look people in the eye, pushing my lunch around a plate, and awkwardly smiling.

i may as well stop wearing makeup, stop plucking my eyebrows, and throw on a vest and a bodysuit.

i could rock a bodysuit. i really could...and i did. several.

you see...i was desperate to look younger. i don't feel like i'm aging very gracefully.

so i went and got a set of these...



before...


after


okay...i'll stop showing you oversized pictures of my scary teeth.

but people...i'm excited. i'm whipping these chiclet-like front teeth right into shape. 

i've been told it could take as little as nine months. nine months i can do. i've done it before. 

and so...as my farmer said last night when i got home:

"that sure is an expensive nine months of birth control."

ouch.

goals report

Monday, August 19, 2013
oh dear. bad news folks. i only hit one goal this week.

and that was the pushups.

and that's only because i did 75 girl-style in one day to make up for two days of not doing them. ridic.

however...i do feel pretty decent about my attempts on the others.


1. popcorn - okay. let me give you some background on my little "popcorn problem." i've had this little love affair with popcorn for years now. it all started when my sister would make the world's very very best popcorn. it was with crisco. on the stove. lightly salted. and she's pretty particular about the kernels. many people don't realize they come in white and yellow. well, kelli will only use white.

anyway, this popcorn on the stove with crisco is like...i don't know what. it's absolutely delish. but let's face it. i don't know many people that can afford to eat crisco every night...know what i'm sayin'?

so i adjusted her recipe and use a couple of tablespoons of olive oil, throw in the kernels, and voila! you have yourself some popcorn.

as of late...this popcorn popping has become a nightly ritual. finish dinner, do dishes, baby to bed, pop popcorn, devour popcorn, think about making more popcorn. seriously. it's worse than nutella.

i made it two nights without making my beloved this week. it was wednesday and the premier of duck dynasty was coming on. it was a special occasion...right? so farmer and i enjoyed our popcorn.

but for realzies - i didn't have popcorn the rest of the week and coincidentally lost two pounds.

right on.

2. i ran 14 miles this past week in three runs. so i came up one mile short. meh. not going to think twice about it.

3. well...as stated above, i totally made my pushup goal but came up with a giant fail on my crunches. however...it was still kind of a win. (i'm having a glass half full kind of night.)

for not having done any crunches since before i was pregnant, you know...18 months ago...i'd say 500 crunches this week wasn't so bad.

on another note...i can't get enough of this little gal.

those cheeks...





fiver up in here

Friday, August 16, 2013
it's friday again already. how time flies when you're playing endless games of hide and go seek with a nine month old who is flying around the house on two feet.

1. speaking of...yep. my little baby, my nine month old, started walking. and by walking i mean running. and she clearly has a method to her madness.

step 1 - both arms up for defense. that floor will jump up and smack you at any moment.
step 2 - angry/determined/confused face...because going from all fours to a completely different perspective can make you angry and confused.




2.  i dyed my hairz brown, y'all. you see...our farmhouse was built on a hill where we had to dig our own well. and well, this well leaves a lot to be desired. there is something funky in the water...i think its iron. it turns my naturally (dyed) blonde hair an ugly, brassy, orange-y color...and it's not great. it's unfortunate seeing as how the farmer really digs blonde hair.

ps. i have the world's worst hair...so i'm pretty surprised that with the bad water and all i even have hair in my head.


3. miss amy came over and took some stunner shots of miss kaye. and by stunner i mean she managed to capture some more of her natural beauty. natural. beauty.

why is she such a creeper?




4. i've discussed many-a-time my love affair with nutella. i do believe it's one of the finest gifts italy has mass produced. good for italy. 

well, my dear, sweet cathie (who was also my baby nurse and bridesmaid) texted me a picture from costco. apparently they are now selling tubs of nutella nearly large enough for me to swim in. and swim in it i shall.

if you know anything about costco nutella, you know that they sell it in a two pack and each of the tubs in the two pack are larger than anything you can get in a regular store. 

so now let me draw your eye to the left of the picture. 

and now back to the center. i do believe that is about 11 pounds of nutella. now, i can't see a price, but after a quick google search, they are selling these tubs on amazon for about $75.

worth it.


5. as you may know, my sister was married a few months ago now. (yay!) well...her photographer was pretty stellar and managed to capture this rock star shot (if i do say so myself) of my little family of three. and i can say completely genuinely...i love it. i love it so much i think i'm going to get it blown up huge canvas style. 

i also love that my plan to appear thinner worked. i'm pressed up against my farmer's back so hard he practically fell over. i also have my arm propped out from my body so it's not flared out in all its glory. camera tricks ladies. camera tricks.


alrighty-roo...let's have a great weekend. too early for a margarita?


@karlibellmeier