Sarasota Sunshine: Days 3 & 4...

[check out our first two days of vacation here]
so after the holiday party friday night - we woke up saturday morning feeling a liiiiiittttttle under the weather [ahem, hungover]. of course, Penny wanted nothing to do with it. she was WIDE AWAKE and ready to play...

we headed out to brunch with my mom and then from there walked around downtown Sarasota a bit, hit up the farmers market [which we LOVED, if you are ever in Sarasota on a Saturday morning definitely check it out!]

then we headed off to the beach for a bit and took in the beautiful sunset...

from there we headed to dinner and walked around St. Armands Circle (thanks Melissa for the recommendations!). we headed back to the hotel, put PJ down and hung out for a bit and then crashed. The next day we woke up and met our friends Mike & Carin for brunch and met their son Mason (aka Penny's future boyfriend). It was a blast to hangout with them for a bit, swap baby war stories and just catchup.

such a fun and relaxing weekend! we had a great (but exhausting) trip home and by the time we landed in ATL Ms. P was down for the count!

luckily she went down easily when we got home and wasn't thrown off too bad from the trip as far as her schedule, mood, eating, etc. Thanks Sarasota for the sunshine & relaxation! DJ has already been back since our trip and I'm looking forward to getting back there sometime in the Spring (more time on the beach, yes please!).

fingers crossed it's sooner rather than later! I would do anything to be in a warm sunny location rather than rainy cold and grey Atlanta right now! BRRRRR... is it Spring yet? anyways, happy almost last saturday night (sunday morning?) of 2012!

Sarasota Sunshine: Days 1 & 2...

earlier this month we took a fun family vaca to sunny Sarasota, FL! we went down for DJ's holiday party and to spend some time with my mom - it was win-win. My mom hadn't seen Penny since she was a week old so it was so fun to watch them together and for her to see how much P had grown/changed in six months. Also, since DJ works remotely it was great for him to spend some time in the "office" and for me to meet his co-workers!

here are the highlights of our trip - there are a LOT of pictures so I decided to break the posts up... get ready...

first up, the flights! yup, it was P's first flight and she was a little champ! she did great the first flight. I nursed during take-off and landing and she slept for the majority of the flight, the second flight was not bad - she wouldn't nurse during landing and cried for the last five minutes or so before we landed but hey, could be worse!

on the plane --

we had a quick lunch with DJ before he headed off to work...

I headed off and checked into the hotel... BEAUTIFUL. just what we needed!

then PJ and I headed to Target to pick-up the essentials (diapers, wipes, baby yogurt, etc.) that I didn't want to fly with. P was beat and she took a little siesta in her stroller (ermahgawd - her thighs)....

we had a relaxing dinner with some of DJ's coworkers that night and then put P down -- we got a little creative... bathroom, nursery? all the same!

the next day we met up with my mom and she was smitten from the start...

mom spent some QT with PJ while I got a much needed haircut...

and then, off we went to the holiday party - which was a blast! so fun to dress-up and have a fun night out on the town (thanks grandma for babysitting)!

so those were our first two nights in Sarasota - another post with our next day of vaca coming up soon!

one year ago.

it's crazy to think that one year ago... I made this fun little announcement on the blog. and now we have a six month old....

one year ago, I was three months pregnant with our beautiful baby girl.
one year ago, I was overwhelmed with the idea of becoming a mother.
one year ago, I had no idea what was coming my way.
one year ago, I only dreamed of the happiness and love that I feel right now.

today - I am the mother of a beautiful [two days shy of] six month old girl, the wife of the best daddy in the world and overwhelmed by love for the two people that I get to share my life with.

I just have to smile and think about where I was, where I am, and where I'm going. I can only imagine how I'll feel one year from today.

first day/night out...

super/duper overdue but believe it or not -- DJ and I have [both] in fact left PJ on her own [well with family] and had a date or two over the past few months... I just have been extremely slack and haven't shared them with you, oops. so for the sake of not forgetting myself and being able to look back on this for years to come [maybe? hah] here are our first "day" and "night" dates away from Ms. P.

first, we took our day trip at the end of July and went for a 8 mile hike at Fort Yargo... it was so nice to just "be" with one another, no distractions, no cell phones, just walked and talked - it was good for my soul... it might have also been good for my thighs [holy workout batman, I was sore for a few days!] - it definitely helped though I've probably lost another 10-15lbs since those pictures were taken!

then, at the end of august - we left PJ at home for the evening and headed to a wedding... it was a fun night with family and friends [pumping in the car in the parking lot, not so much - but you do what you have to do I suppose, hah].

so that's that - we're trying to balance this whole "new parent" thing with taking time for ourselves and each other - it's definitely challenging but I think as long as we continue to make it a priority we can make it happen.

what can I say, I love my silly man and sometimes I like to have him all to myself! speaking of loving DJ - I swear, we will finish "the story of us" at some point - if anything because I want to have it documented for Pen and if not then my SIL Summer will probably disown me [hi summer, I haven't forgotten!] -- but life [and work] are pretty swamped for DJ and I right now and it has just been put on the back burner a bit, yikes. soon enough my friends, soon enough.

If you really knew DJ...

so, last week I wrote a blog post "If you really knew me..." all about my little quirks, unknown facts and some things that you probably didn't know.

well, I thought I'd share a little more about my better half. DJ [along with Ollie and now, Penny] is frequently posted about here and I thought I'd give you a little more insight into my sweet soulmate...

{can you guess what we were for halloween that year?}

If you really knew DJ, you would know... 
DJ spent six months teaching english in South America [specifically, Peru].

DJ was on the debate team in high school, he's quite the debater - I am not. This makes for fun "disagreements" that usually escalate with me yelling saying "I don't want to debate with you!" FUN. [I hate whoever told him to join the debate team {sorry, back to him, oops}].

DJ does NOT like mayonnaise and he has a slight obsession with mustard [he eats it on EVERYTHING].

DJ wanted to be a marine biologist when he was growing up and he loves dolphins, a lot.

DJ was president of his fraternity [SAE] at the University of Florida, it was during his SAE days that he earned his college nickname "jigga" - special.

DJ enjoyed college so much he stayed for an extra year and a half [5.5 years total], he has a B.S. in Journalism and two minors in Anthropology and Business.

DJ is an extremely talented graphic and web-designer and loves all things design oriented.

DJ moved out to Wyoming after college without a job to be a ski bum. He ended up living in Jackson Hole for a year and spent the last three months out there living out of his truck.

DJ does not believe in deodorant [because of the aluminum], since we've been married I've told him he smells so often that he's caved and he's tried several natural deodorants - yup, I'm married to the stinky kid.

DJ is OBSESSED with reading the news.... it's the last thing he does before he goes to bed and the first thing he does when he wakes up in the morning. He probably spends over 2 hours a day reading the news.

DJ is quite possibly the most liberal person out there - we used to have a huge canvas painting of Obama hanging in our living room.

DJ spent summers when we were in high school in the Berkshires cooking for his uncles catering company; he has excellent knife skills. DJ later moved back to the Berkshires as an adult to open two cafes for the same company he worked for as a teenager.

DJ rarely does anything without listening to music [work, cook, drive, relax, run, etc.] -- always jamming out.

DJ has run numerous 5Ks, 10Ks, one half-marathon and completed a triathlon!

There are few things DJ loves more than beer and hockey - combine the two, he's in heaven.

DJ once ate a live lizard for $5.00. Yes, alcohol was involved. [barf?!]

Lastly, if you really knew DJ you'd know no one ever calls him DJ -- he's Danny to family and friends pre-college, Dan or Jigga to his college friends and Dan to everyone after college - to me, he'll always be my danny j.

so.

that's my special boy.

learn something new? 

I bet you did.

[I did - he ate a live lizard?! gross]

also, get excited...

DJ & I have finally started writing the story of us 

...and I'll be posting the first installment tomorrow! 

what are some quirky facts about your significant other?

[don't have one? talk shit about your ex - hah, no seriously]

back to work....

that's right...

I've gone back to work.

holy cow...

6 weeks flew by.

now, let's talk for a minute about how lucky I am -- I originally was planning on taking the full 12 weeks of maternity leave off but after conversations with work we came to a mutually beneficial agreement... I went back to work last week (after six weeks of leave) but I'm working from home for the next six weeks. that's right -- the best of both worlds... income/mental stimulation/not getting behind the 8-ball at work AND I get to work in sweatpants still get this quality time in with my Pen!

It's definitely challenging working from home, especially since Penny has decided that no place in the world is better than mommy's arms... so I'm not exactly working 9-5, I've taken to working at random hours (aka answering work emails during 4am feedings).

lucky for me, I have the following five things that make working from home a little easier...

first, the fisher-price rainforest bouncer... penny loves her bouncer, pair the bouncer with a paci and I can usually get a good 20-30 stretches of work without having to pick her up...

[bulldog babysitter not included...]

second, my carrier [Beco Butterfly 2 Baby Carrier - Niko] - this is my "go-to" [also, last-ditch-effort] on calming down a fussy Penny... it also lets me hold her and keep her close while having two free hands to type...

[check out that sleepy little smile, she's so freaking sweet...]

third & fourth -- gotta love those apple products - my iPad and [brand-spanking-new] MacBook Air make working while nursing so much easier thanks to being lightweight and easy to work with/type on/hold in my lap while holding and/or nursing Penny...

lastly and most importantly.... what makes my life so much easier? not just working at home but easier on so many levels... my sweet DJ. he's such an involved [and amazing] dad! he's working from home too and definitely pitches in when I need him too. I'm so lucky to have such a supportive husband and Penelope is so lucky to have such a loving dad! 

[yup, we have a daddy's girl in the making]

so as challenging as I'm sure it's going to be at times, I'm currently loving life at home with my girl -- especially when I get to cuddle like this on my breaks... seriously. so. freaking. sweet.

[in other news, Brooke Shields called and wants her eyebrows back... time to get me to a salon, stat]

anyone else have tips to working from home?

I'm welcome to any ideas on a more productive work environment/day!

our first father's day...

[father's day 2012 - june 17, 2012]

happy [first] father's day to my best friend, my love, and the best daddy in the world! 

happy father's day danny j! 

Penny and I love you so much and we're so lucky to have you in our lives! 

I'm so lucky to have someone as caring, giving and supportive as a husband and Penny is lucky to have such a hard-working, loving and dedicated daddy!

clearly, these two are quite smitten with each other...

I think we have a daddy's girl in the making on our hands...

[can you blame her?]

...and I think someone is going to be wrapped around his little girl's finger... 

[can you blame him?]

...and me? 

I just love them both so much!

[can you blame me?]

party-time...

...nope...

we haven't definitely have NOT been doing lots of partying these past few weeks 

[though we have had some almost sleepless nights, hah]

[and I did enjoy my first full glass of champagne in over nine months the other day -- it was glorious]

but back to the partying... 

Penny was channeling "Jigga" [Daddy's college persona] when she picked out this lovely ensemble...

special thanks to Whitney for the kegstand onesie - it's definitely one of our faves!

I'm working on a list of our hospital/first few weeks "must-have/lifesavers" -- and of course a post of all the adorable photos of Sweet P that have been taken over the past two weeks! Coming soon... 

...in other news, I had a baby two weeks ago?!?! what?! 

it still hasn't really set in.

[though I am happy to report my rings and shoes fit again! HOORAY!]

happy wednesday!

danny's 30th...

yes. a week overdue.

oops.

better late than never, right?

[that's what I tell myself at least]

so here are some snapshots from my lovie's 30th birthday....

it started out with a relaxed crawfish boil...

complete with shots, shots, and more shots [not for me clearly]

and dessert! [cookie cake and italian ice, yum!]

then the next day we headed to Athens for some yummy food and a fun day at the Terrapin Brewery...

good times all around.

crazy to think we met when DJ was 14... 

...and he's now my husband...

...and he's 30!?

[...and now we're less than 9 months away from my 30th birthday]
[...and less than a month away from being parents?!]

yikes.

such grownups.

anyways, a great weekend with family and friends celebrating my favorite person in the whole wide world! it was just like DJ - laid-back, close-knit and loads of fun!

birthday week.

happy birthday week!!! 

...to my favorite man on this planet...

hey hey. 

it's DJ's last week in this 20s!

I can't believe that DJ will be 30 this saturday.

I can't believe we met almost 16 years ago.

I can't believe we've almost been married for 2 years.

I can't believe he'll be a daddy in 5 weeks (or so).

I have lots to post about but this is what is is occupying my brain currently...

...trying to think of ways to celebrate my love and best friend.

you see, I'm quite the expert on 30th birthday parties 

[just ask my ex-boyfriend, his was amazing - no really, it was]

so I feel kinda guilty... it's almost like Big Daddy

...but I guess we're even because someone [aka DJ's ex-fiance] had a long-drawn-out-romantic proposal whereas I got - "hey, you want to stop by town hall on the way to work?"* 

....and my ex got the whole crazy surprise weekend 30th birthday bash and a girlfriend that wasn't 9 month pregnant and too tired/exhausted to focus on planning a party... 

[yeah, to say I've been distracted is an understatement]

so yes, we might have "wasted the good surprise" on someone else...

but in the end, we have each other.

....and I ordered 20lbs of crawfish.

so I guess that's pretty great, right?

ANYWAYS.....

happy birthday week to my danny j.

love you jiggs!

more birthday love coming soon.... :)

*yes, there's more to our proposal, and it was sweet in its own way.... and absolutely perfect and I wouldn't have it any other way... I'll tell you the whole story one day...

sweet pea's shower...

just thought I'd share a few more pictures from sweet pea's baby shower... it was a great, fun and relaxing afternoon with family and friends and we are so lucky to have such generous, sweet people in our lives!

fun, bright decor....

I made sugar cookies with royal icing as favors for our guests...

world's best strawberry cookies... 

yummy sangria for those who could partake [aka everyone but me...]

 opening gifts...

and yes -- men drinking beer out of baby bottles... amazing...

thanks to both of our moms, our sweet sister-in laws Summer & Julie, and the always amazing Lindi to making the day such a fun and special one! 

...so that's that - now onto planning the next big shindig in our house....

...that's right -- someone turns 30 next weekend!