New Toys

Snuggles has outgrown a lot of his toys (too babyish), so I raided a local consignment sale last week and bought several new (used) toys.

This one is made to look like a gumball machine.



This one is Snuggles' favorite!

DailyMom

Have you seen that Facebook app called DailyMile?  Basically DailyMile allows people to post on their Facebook page how many miles they ran and how they felt running those miles. It looks something like this:

Steve ran 2 miles and felt great.

OR  

Jill ran 3 miles and felt invigorated.

I'll be honest.  The first time I saw the DailyMile app used on Facebook, I chuckled. Why? Because I immediately thought of what my DailyMile post would say. Something like this:

Melinda ran to the mailbox and collapsed from cardiac arrest.

OR

Melinda bounded up the stairs and knocked herself out with her boobs.

I wish I had more time to exercise. I need it desperately. But the reality is, balancing a full-time job, motherhood and marriage brings to me to the brink of absolute exhaustion everyday. I struggle just to accomplish the basic tasks needed to keep the house running... Who has time to run 5 miles, let alone post it on Facebook?!

So, instead of DailyMile, I've decided to create my own Facebook app, one that is more representative of my reality.  I'll call it DailyMom.  My DailyMom status will say something like this:

Melinda got up at 6 a.m., got herself and her toddler ready for the day,
commuted to work, worked all day, commuted back home, fixed dinner,
bathed toddler, rocked toddler and put him to bed, did laundry, watched 

a little TV, crashed into bed and felt pooped.

OR, how about this one?

Melinda slept in until 6:30 a.m., showered, spent 10 minutes running around the house looking for a clean pair of underwear, tripped over discarded toys, fell on her face, and felt like a complete failure.

Yeah, that's definitely more like it.

Warm Weather

Warm weather is upon us! Those native to Nashville (like Guitarman) tell me it's fairly normal for things to warm up this early, although we may have more cold spurts. I won't complain because I know the sticky-hot humidity will hit soon enough. (Misery!)

Snuggles wore this season's first shorts and sandals today.

His shirt says "Hello. My name is TROUBLE" 
(If the t-shirt fits, wear it!)

This was his first time wearing the sandals, so he was fascinated with them...
and spent the morning commute trying to figure out how to take them off!

Be honest. You've never seen a cuter backside!

Kansas City

We had a wonderful weekend in Kansas City!  We went there because my college friend, Mike, got married on Saturday.  This was the first time we have been back to KC since we moved from there to Idaho in August 2006. Here are a few highlights:

• On Friday afternoon, we visited the new-to-us Nazarene General Ministry Center (GMC) where we got to see lots of friends that we hadn't seen in years.  The building is nice, but seeing our friends was definitely the best part for me.
• We attended the rehearsal dinner on Friday evening, where Guitarman savored every bite of the Kansas City barbecue.
• I met Steph's kids, Luke and Mila. I've been dying to meet them! I also met Dan and Jen's youngest son, Ben.
• It warmed my heart to watch Snuggles playing with Mila. (They are about 3 months apart in age.) I never thought I'd see my kid playing with my best-friend-from-college's kids. A little surreal, but oh-so-sweet.
• It was really fun to see all my college friends in shock and awe over the fact that I'm now a mother... not to mention that I haven't completely screwed Snuggles up by now.
• We visited Steph's house. It great to see her home, and I enjoyed hanging out with her husband. 
• Snuggles absolutely loved Steph's 90-pound dog, Jake, who is super docile. Jake rewarded Snuggles' squeals of delight with big, sloppy dog kisses.
• Mike's wedding was lovely and very meaningful. The homily (sermon) was a great reminder for me about the sanctity of marriage, and how marriage is a journey with God, together with one's spouse.
• Guitarman and I enjoyed driving around the city, seeing places that held so much significance in our life together.  "Look, Snuggles... This is where Mommy and Daddy went on our first date!" (Not that he cares.)
• After the wedding reception, a bunch of my college friends hung out at a restaurant (without kids!), just talking about old times and telling stories. We laughed until we cried! 
• Steph and I had time to chat just the two of us. Words can't express how dear she is to me. 
• After we left the restaurant, Guitarman and I hung out at Dan and Jen's house with Steve, and we laughed some more. 
• I can't remember the last time I had as much fun as I had this weekend.

Here are a few of my realizations from this weekend:

• The best kind of friends are the ones who you can be separated from for years, and then pick right back up as if you were never apart.
• Time changes everything and everyone... and I don't just mean by adding pounds, wrinkles and gray hair.
• Mutual love for God creates life-long bonds.
• Home is where your heart is... My heart is with my friends, spread out all over the country.
• Never travel long distances in a Nissan Xterra with a 16-month-old toddler. Xterras are made for off-road sports, not family travel.

One of the best things about the whole weekend is that Guitarman had fun, too! He didn't know me when I was in college, but he fit right in with my college friends as if he had been there the whole time. That makes me love him even more.

Plan B: A Beautiful Day at the Park

To capitalize on the beautiful weather last Saturday, we went to the Nashville Zoo.  Upon arriving at the zoo, we discovered half of Nashville had the same idea.  (The line was a mile long!)  So we decided to go with Plan B.  We left the zoo and went to Centennial Park, home of the famous Parthenon.

Centennial Park (which was almost as crowded as the zoo) has a lovely pond populated by resident ducks and geese. We brought crackers to feed the geese.  However, judging by the fact that there was enough bread floating in the water to supply Panera Bread for a month, I'm fairly certain the geese weren't hungry.

If you look closely, you can actually see this goose's cheeks puffed out. He's stuffed.  (No reference to taxidermy intended.)

Since the overfed geese weren't all that enthusiastic about our Ritz cracker offering, Snuggles showed them how it's done.

He enjoyed riding in the stroller, and as we passed tons of people walking their dogs, Snuggles said "Taco!" over and over.  ("Taco" is our dog's name.  Snuggles says "Taco" whenever he sees a dog or anything else with fur.)

We skipped Snuggles' nap in favor of an afternoon outing, which resulted in a VERY sleepy boy, who nearly fell asleep on his feet while exploring the flower garden.

Snuggles stopped briefly to fill his diaper with diarrhea (don't ask!) before we resumed our stroll in the garden.

Snuggles searched for a four-leaf clover...

Enjoyed a drink....

And gave Daddy some love...

 

before resuming his qwest to find the perfect rock.

  "Got me a rock"

Then he found the flowers.

 He climbed right in...

Picked a flower.

Showed it to Daddy.

And then shared the flower with Daddy....

who put the flower in Snuggles' hair.

But Snuggles wasn't worried about looking like a "girly man" because he still had his rock.

And he held onto that rock while taking time to smell the flowers.

 

What a beautiful day!

[Disclaimer: Although Snuggles pooped through two pairs of pants at the park,
no flowers were harmed during the making of this blog.]

In the Car

It's amazing what parents will do to keep a fussy child entertained in the car.

15 Months

It's 

 so

 hard

to believe

 this

smiley

 

boy

is

15 months old!

Snuggles saw the doctor yesterday for his 15-month well check-up and vaccinations.  [Technically, he turns 16 months next week, but mommy almost forgot to schedule the appointment!]  Snuggles now weighs 23 pounds, 8 ounces, and he is 30 1/4 inches long.  Although he behaved like a caged animal while we waited in the exam room (there were no toys?!), he charmed all the nurses and the pediatrician, who declared him to be in perfect health. 

We are blessed and so grateful to God for our Snuggle bug. His smile (which recently gained 2 more teeth) lights up the room!