Happy Father's Day!

I spent the better part of last week home on the couch, resting my eyes after Lasek surgery. (More on the later, but the good news is I can sort of see to type this blog post.)

Anyway, all my favorite friends from the Today Show were running a special series called "Modern Dads" in advance of Father's Day. It was all very cool and hip--with Willie, Al, Carson and Matt going fishing and drinking beers, talking all mushy about their dads, what they've done differently and what it's like to be a "Modern Dad."

They reminisced about how their fathers did not change diapers. Or clean. Or do dishes. Or show affection. Or pretty much do ANYTHING other than work and "be the man" of the household.

Let me just say right here and now that I hope this "Modern Dad" thing is a trend and that all women can experience the awesomeness that is a true and equal partner in every sense of the word. I can promise you that if Joe didn't change diapers Harper would be sitting in a lot of pee. And if he didn't do dishes we'd use paper plates. And if he didn't hug and kiss our children, they would not be the happy little clams that they are.

In every sense of the word. Joe is the glue that holds my shit together. That is very real, and although I'm probably not very great at showing it all the time, it is my truth...and I cherish him for it.

I have what some consider that rare gem of a "Modern Dad." He cooks. He cleans. He changes diapers. He romances me. He cuddles our babies. Basically, he does All The Things. In stark contrast, I order pizza, pay someone else to clean and 90% of the time lovingly convince him it's "his turn" for the poopy diapers. I'm chaotic, moody, messy and a little bit crazy, but he doesn't seem to mind.

What I'm trying to say ever so eloquently is that today is Joey Day. He's a wonderful father and husband who is "in it to win it" with me. In every sense of the word, we are partners and I'm so thankful.

I'd also be remiss today to not mention the wonderful man that is my OWN father. In an era where the "Modern Dad" was probably not as prevalent, I had the privilege having a Dad who didn't flinch when I asked him to carry a tampon in his coat jacket for me, or to hug and kiss me goodbye as I went off to school. To this day, he's very much the bar I hold all other men to...and that's a relatively high achievement for anyone!

So, cheers to you, Modern Dads everywhere! Thanks for rolling into the 20th Century. We appreciate you!

Where it all began.

In honor of Throwback Thursday, I thought I'd share a glimpse into how it all began with Alex and Harper's Mommy and Daddy.

We're that couple. We met at work. It was awkward and secret and totally not how any relationship should probably start, but it makes for some great stories and even better memories.

Our first actual conversation was totally staged. And recorded. The company we both worked for was filming and photographing a product for an upcoming ad campaign, and instead of hiring models, they used real employees as "background people."

I knew he was going. He knew I was going. We both knew everyone wanted to set us up. AWKWARD.

Then, to make matters worse (better?), the photographer randomly "posed" us together as a couple chatting in the background "because we looked right together." So there's that. We probably should add him to our Christmas card distribution.

Totally normal first date, right?

They very definition of self control.

Joey's been craving a burger lately. He's rather like a woman on a PMS rage when he gets on a kick for something--and it's usually in the form of meat or chocolate. See? PMS, totally. And since "happy husband, happy life" is also a thing, we went to Red Robin last night for dinner.

I've eaten my body weight and then some in soups and salads lately, so I knew what I didn't want off the menu. Be good, Kristi. Be good. Noticing they had a lettuce wrap option instead of a bun, I went for that with the turkey burger patty. To push myself to the absolute limits, I also ordered bottomless....broccoli. Thrilling.

If you've known me for a minute, you know how serious of a situation this is. No bun. No fries. NO CARBOHYDRATES FOR THE LOVE OF ALL THINGS GLUTEN. By its very definition, this is self-control to the nth degree.

I would like to go on the record to say that lettuce wraps were invented by idiots. Lettuce ≠ hamburger bun. Lettuce = salad. Hamburger > salad.

I'm probably going to be grumpy for awhile. You've been warned. But at least I'm funny when I'm grumpy, right?

Happy birthday, my love!

Happiest of days to my one and only, my love. To the man who has the voodoo magic to make Harper poop, the zest for life to teach Alex the joy of the wet willy and the patience of Job to be married to me.

I love you a million billion zillion.We are so lucky you are ours!

Photo from Harper's baptism day, Dec. 22, 2013.

#ThingsMyHusbandSays

While hanging multiple things on the wall over the weekend in Harper's room (tour later this week!), I was getting nervous that we were putting lots of holes in the wall.

Says Joey, "It's ok. There's going to be 'One Direction' posters covering all the holes in a few years, anyway."

Six.

Six years ago, I was filled with more nerves and anticipation than every 30 year old in the world on Sunday night, waiting to see if N'SYNC was really going to reunite at the VMAs.

But, unlike N'SYNC's disappointing 30-second performance, my anticipation six years ago has lead to so much more.

Vacations. Alex. Adventures. Babies. Unfathomable loss. A new home. Heartbreak. #VW3040. Laughter. Tears. Partnership. Harper.

And yet, through all of that, nothing has really changed. I still look at him the same way I did six years ago from the other end of the church aisle. Sure, there might be a few more pounds, wrinkles and sparkles of grey hair (on both our parts), but we've traveled our journey together--the best way.

If there's one thing that marriage and these last six years has taught me, it's that lots and lots of things change, and you actually have control over very little of what actually happens in your story. The one constant? The characters you choose to be a part of your story. And I'm so glad I chose THIS leading man for my story.

Happy Anniversary, my love. Damn, we look good.

Hump Day, Bump Day!

bV's the size of a cauliflower! 
During month six, the average fetus measures about 13.6 inches to 14.8 inches and weighs about 1.5 to 2.5 pounds.

bV at 25 weeks:
- She's enjoying her new sense of equilibrium -- she now knows which way is up and which is down.
- She's growing more fat and more hair too!
via thebump.com

In other news, you'll be happy to know that my normal and sweet Alex returned in all his glory last night. We built Lego cars (he put a star on it "special for Mom") and we got Dairy Queen and all around enjoyed each other's company. What is it all those non-hormonal and normal people say? This too shall pass? Yeah, that.

And in other somewhat related news, you guys are good guessers! Some got it from my pin hints on Pinterest, and some got it right here. bV's name is Harper Lee. Unintentionally the same as the author of "To Kill A Mockingbird." 'Harper' is because we just love it. 'Lee' is because it's my middle name and also my grandfather's middle name. Harper won't get to know her "GG" in this life, but he'll always be a part of her!

And in very related news, here's a ridiculous conversation I had with my dear husband last night:

Joey: "What are you now, like 28 weeks?"
Me: "25 actually, but thanks for paying attention, douchebag."
Joey: "Any chance you can hurry that girl up?"

And then I kicked him in the nads.

Fishy, fishy.

For Father's Day, Joey wanted to take Alex on his first fishing trip - so we packed up the gear and a little picnic and headed to a small local lake where they allow catch and release shore fishing.

Days and memories like this will stick in my mind forever. There is nothing, and I mean nothing, that compares to the joy of watching Joey share his love of fishing and the water with Alex.

As far as imparting the empirical knowledge to our son of HOW to actually CATCH fish...well, we'll just leave that to Mom. Because who caught the only two fish we caught that day? Oh, hi. That'd be me.

P.S. - I know Alex looks 100 feet tall and about 12 years old in these pictures and I'm just going with "bad camera angles" as the source of the optical illusion. Because he's still my baby, and he's not really up to my boobs in height. Ok, maybe he is and I just can't handle it.

P.P.S - What makes it better is that those are 18Mo pants that I just cuff on him because I think they are adorable toddler capris. It's fine.

Oh boy do I have news for you!

So our morning started out with a splash...literally. With water mysteriously leaking FROM the chandelier in our dining area. The ceiling was soaked. This is just how the VeeDubs roll. We can't do anything easily.

So after a call to our builder who's there right now fixing the only water breakage I want to see between now and October 18, we headed out for the big appointment!

I got many really nice and thoughtful texts and calls on the way--so thank you for those, my friends. I really needed to hear the reality that today was an exciting day and I needed to be HAPPY about it! For whatever reason, I've just had a sinking feeling that it was going to be another day of bad news. Really wish I could shake that constant fear, but it's coming with time.

So I unrolled my windows and jammed to this tune on repeat, knowing that whatever news we heard today, we would hear it together and make it through.



The ultrasound was first, and she did all the measurements and such before we could see "the goods." To our extreme relief, bV is perfectly healthy and measuring on target in all the right places. Might I also mention that this is the appointment where you have to have a full bladder while they're poking around down there. Torture, I tell you, torture!

In a hysterical moment, bV was also very shy--positioned breech with the feet tucked in covering the genital area. The ultrasound tech (who we've grown to know and love), laughed with us that we would be the first people in her entire 25 year career that she would have to send away without knowing the gender of their baby. Of course that would be our luck, of course.

So she fished around for awhile and took some other measurements, hoping bV would shift a little. And shift, she did.

That's right, SHE! bV is a girl! Here she is laughing about it:

And here's a sweet shot of her perfect face:

And, for the final shot of the day, a very ironic pageant wave (in perfect form, might I add) for all her people:

It's all still sinking in and we are very excited, but my favorite part of the whole morning was when Joey was sitting thoughtfully while we were waiting for the doctor and exploded into a smile and said, "Guess what I just realized?" I said, "What, babe?"

"I get to walk her down the aisle someday!"

And that, my friends, is what life is all about. Happy Monday!

Evil is my middle name.

It might come as a surprise to some of you that Joey is real, real superstitious. Not about everything--it's mostly just sports related.

For instance, if the Tigers were on a winning streak during the World Series last year, he would have to wear the same shirt, sit in the same spot, eat the same food, etc. as he did in the previous winning game. No exceptions. Boy be crazy. 

At times, I use this to my very evil advantage. Like, he knows it's ridiculous but he HAS to do these things. So last night when the Ducks scored against the Wings, he turned off the TV in a huff and said, "They're gonna lose this one. I'm going to bed."

Seeing a GOLDEN opportunity to manipulate my superfan/superstitious husband, I said, "They WON'T lose if you spin around in a circle counterclockwise three times while tapping your nose and making honking noises like a goose."

The funny thing is, he knew it was ridiculous. But his inner OCD knew he HAD to do it, otherwise the Wings' impending loss was to fall squarely on his shoulders. He couldn't have that on his conscience.

I laughed the entire time. Wish I would've gotten it on camera.

And you know what? The Wings won in a stunning overtime. So tonight I'll get to see the goose honk circle dance allllll over again. This time? Cameras rolling.

Moments.

Like anyone else, my days are made up of little moments all strung together to make a bigger picture. Sometimes, I think we all look past the little and ordinary things, expecting greatness to come only from the biggest, loudest moments.

Lately, I've been trying really hard to quietly be more appreciative of the little things. More specifically, how they collectively fit into the bigger picture and shape my life, my moments, my memories. Like these:

"Here, Poppi. I will help you with your zippers."

I've become quite the Mommy expert in GeoTrax building, thankyouverymuch.

"Two dudes, doin' dude teeth brushing."

Evening snuggles are the best!

He was telling Aunt Jane about pudding on Monday, so on the way home he asked if we could make some that night. How do you tell this face no? So of COURSE we made pudding and it was YUM.

Gift card Monday.

Joey and I played hooky from work yesterday to have a date day. We decided to put a fun spin on the day and start using up some of the gift cards we have collected over the last few years and have "Gift Card Monday." Basically, we could do anything we wanted all day, but we had to use a gift card. Fun, right?

We started with coffee from Starbucks--the perfect start to any morning! We didn't have any gift cards for "brakfasty" places, so we went home and Joey made breakfast for us. Toad in the hole on sourdough. Mmmmm. Also? Next time you make bacon, do it in the oven and sprinkle a little bit o' cinnamon sugar on each piece. Thank me later.

Then we used up some movie gift cards and saw "Silver Linings Playbook." As an aside, I thought the movie was terrible. I do not get all the hype it's gotten--especially related to Jennifer Lawrence. She's annoying. And yes, I'm already preparing myself for the hate mail.

We broke the gift card rules only once, and that was our next stop. We've been putting off ordering the tile for our backsplash since, oh, August, and finally got around to it. It's amazing what you have time for when you're playing hooky!

After that, we lunched at P.F. Changs and I was again reminded of why we only go to Pei Wei. But, we used a gift card so no love lost.

Ater that it was time to pick up our little nugget and have a nice, relaxing family night. I could get used to days like yesterday!

Entertainment in your own back yard.

Like any 3 year old boy, Alex loves pretty much anything on wheels. And bigger is better with this boy, for sure.

On Sunday, his imagination was running wild about trains. Everything was a train. He wanted to watch train movies and play train games. And then he asked to see a train. A REAL train.

Joe came up with the brilliant idea to see when the Amtrak stopped in Royal Oak, a neighboring city. The coolest thing about the Royal Oak "station" is that it's not really a station at all. It's a sidewalk with a bench, and you just walk up and walk on. As a result, bystanders can get up close and personal to the trains.

He checked online and there was a stop at 6 p.m., so we bundled up and headed out. Sure enough, at 6 p.m. on the dot, the train stopped at the station. We stood on the sidewalk waving and the conductor actually opened the window and waved to Alex--talk about special! My smart little guy even knew it was a bullet train. Thank you, Choo Choo Soul. I kind of feel bad about secretly hating you. Only kind of, though.

It was a fun family memory at my favorite price - free!

Hippo birdie two ewe.

Happy birthday to the love of my life--the best hubby and friend in my world. Alex thinks so, too.

There are perks to working with your hubby, too...

Happy birthday, my love!

#VW3040.

Although you never, ever need an excuse to have a kickass party, sometimes it's nice to have one. Take, for instance, the #VW3040--otherwise known as the most epic event of 2013.

On Saturday we gathered 40 of our dearest friends and family and had the BEST time celebrating our entrance into two very distinguished decades. There were drinks, foods, prizes, shenanigans and best of all...a dollar store "photo booth."

I think we'll do this again for the #VW4050 (OMG it lierally hurt me to type that) but I think we'll be in Mexico. On the beach. Wearing a sombrero. Drinking tequila. The sombrero and tequila will carry over from the #VW3040.

Nerd alert.

Warning: this is a political post that has nothing to do with politics, I promise. Mostly because political rants and right/left soapboxes on the Internets make me want to punch a kitten in the face, but I digress.

But related to politics, Joe has commandeered a nerd fest amongst his group of homies called the "2012 Yard Sign Election." Basically, whenever anyone sees a sign, sticker or public display for (or against) any candidate, they email or text Joe. He keeps track of it in what I'm pretty certain is the nerdiest spreadsheet ever to exist.

Pie charts. Bar charts. Line graphs. Pivot tables. This thing has it all. It's nerddom at its finest. I get a wedgie and a swirly just looking at the thing. But the cool thing is, it's not really political at all--but it is cool to see which candidate has the most visible support on our local streets and roads.

This is real. And it hurts my brain.

Five.

Today is a great day of celebration: the VeeDubs are celebrating 5 crazy years of wedded bliss!

And while normally I am very tongue-in-cheek, not-so-seriously-sarcastic and adorably humorous about expressing the love I have in my heart and girlybits for my husband, I'm finding that today I just want to have a rare moment of genuine sincerity and hard core truths.

There is a love capable by humans that, quite frankly, I didn't know/believe existed until I met Joe. It's so deep and rare that it's almost unexplainable and unfathomable. And I'm not super sure that over the course of the last year(ish) that I've been all that great about truly expressing that. Because if I'm totally honest with myself and also the Internet at-large, this last year has contained far more than its fair share of suckage. It has been largely shitty, and he has carried me through all of it. All of it.

But then I slap myself right smack in the face and am reminded of all the good and all the love and all the memories and all the the moments. We laughed and traveled to new places. We held hands as our healthy, hilarious son blew the candles out on his 3rd birthday cake. We worked hard and built a home. We watched friends and family celebrate joyous occasions in their own lives. We lived.

And that's really what love is about, isn't it? It's about buckling in, holding on for dear life and riding the highs and surviving the lows--and coming out the other end stronger and better for having done it together.

There is no one else I would rather do this life with. My God, I am lucky.

Next up? Curtains.

So the house is speeding along rather nicely. In fact, our Realtor told us yesterday that they are 5-7 days ahead of schedule. AHEAD. This means I need to get my rear in gear as far as home practicalities (see also: curtains, lighting, shower curtains) and remove myself from the weekly semi-obsessive trips to Home Goods for all things decorative (see also: cute vases, charming rugs, delightful side tables). Momma needs a functioning home. A cute one, too, but mostly functioning.

As you can see, we now have drywall and brick. Siding should be next. Also, since Joey is away on his man-cation for the next week (more on that tomorrow), I've been entrusted to solely select the bathroom tile and entire house of paint colors. Listen, if he comes back to the cutest little damask tile pattern and wall hues of dark turquoise, mustard yellow and rusty red, I CANNOT BE HELD RESPONSIBLE. 

In unrelated news, I have a strong desire to go antiquing this weekend. Any takers?

Happy 4th of July!

Get in my bell-ay.

So this 30 before 30 thing is really starting to have an impact on my waistline. For those new in town, I vowed in August of last year when I ate at my first EPIC food truck to eat at 29 more of them before I turned the dirty thirty. This happens on December 7 of this year, and I'm proud to say I've only got 10 more to go.

Minneapolis was a metropolis of food trucks. A mecca. A smorgasbord. However, when we discovered them downtown (literally parked 20 in a row down every street), we learned they are only downtown Monday-Friday for the business crowd. IT WAS FRIDAY. WE WERE LEAVING SUNDAY. Which meant my opportunity to consume all the goodness was slipping through my fingers.

So, we mustered up everything we had and went back to the hotel room to nap and prepare our innards for extreme consumption.

And then, two hours later, we did the impossible...

The sad thing is, looking back on those pictures just makes me hungry, when it should make me hurt. Hurt so good.

The next day was the wedding, and we got all fancy 'n stuff and had a DELIGHTFUL evening. I can't believe I didn't get a photo with the bride and groom, but whatever. We looked just as good.

In related news, I discovered a new and delicious drink that I implore you all to try. I call it "Tequila Ginger." It's tequila (duh), ginger ale (duh) and a splash of Sprite. I may or may not have had about 5 TGs by the time I took that last photo, which is why it may or may not look like I'm having a graaaaaaaaand time. Because I totally was.

And that, my friends, is Minneapolis in a nutshell. I promise we'll be back!

Where I get my inner artist on.

If my half-assed attempts at Pinterest crafts and my "oh-this-safety-pin-that-I-colored-with-a-black-Sharpie-is-totally-enough-to-conspicuously-fix-my-pants-because-I-can't-sew-worth-a-lick" attitude proves anything, it's that I'm not really all that right brained. Which is weird, because I think I am, but when push comes to shove, I'm really not.

Anyway, Joey got me a really cool present for Christmas/our new house--a painting class at a place called Painting With a Twist. Basically, you attend a teacher-led class of the painting of your choosing (from their pre-set calendar) and voilà! Instant art created by y-o-u!

What's even cooler is that he got us each a pass to a class. My problem was that I didn't want to attend the SAME class because I didn't want two of the same pictures for our house. Because that would be stupid. But I didn't want to go to separate classes, either. Because that would be no fun.

So I was DEEE-lighted when I saw a class for a monogram painting. PERFECT! We could go together, and I could do the V and he could do the W and when hung side-by-side, we would have our monogram! My own brilliance sometimes scares me, i.e. the safety pin trick.

So we packed up our wine and snacks (Yes, you can bring your own! Also? drinking wine while painting totally makes you feel more like a legit artist.) and trotted off to our class. Here's a look at my painting from blank canvas to finished product. I'm no Bob Ross, but I'm super proud of it!

They kinda look like scary Halloween paintings in the last picture but I assure you in person they look like etched stone. Or, if nothing else, they will be great Halloween decorations. Carry on.