it was totally worth it, probably...I think.

In retrospect, I suppose we should have seen it coming.

The alleged culprit on the day in question

It's not like we didn't notice her little runny nose and those sweet puffy baby eyes.
We saw 'em, and promptly blamed every bit of it on the pollen swirling around.


It was a convenient reaction as we trekked downtown to the Food Truck Festival(!) amid the swirling masses of humanity.  A perfectly logical conclusion to hold onto as she and I pretend-danced and she played with my eyes & nose & mouth with her sticky little fingers.


However, it has become clear to all who were with her on that fateful Saturday evening, that we were just fooling ourselves.


And now I'm sorry to report that I am, in fact, back on the DayQuil/Nyquil combo that I know so well.

...So here's where I'd like to say that I'm super thankful for quiet apartments and lots of tissues.

And DayQuil/NyQuil combos.

And precious baby girls with sticky fingers :)


XOXO

keep on the sunny side

So here's the thing.  Falling asleep at 4ish in the morning  apparently leaves me a bit...emotional.  Today I find myself doing things like you-tubing sweet little videos about daddies & Facebook postings by the siblings, which naturally(?) leads me to old Twila Paris videos and an ill-advised stroll down memory lane...leaving me somewhat verklempt.  I should get more sleep.  And eschew chips & salsa at 2:30 in the morn.

As if that weren't enough, it seemed only right to keep All the Feelings going by catching up on a little bloggy reading, rendering me a weepy mess.


(Work should be a blast tonight!)


Anyhoo, in light of all the very many feelings, I thought I'd lighten things up a bit
and share some of the happy.

Well.  There's this, of course

1.  Yesterday I ran some errands and met up for an impromptu lunch with Katie & Audrey.  I was particularly delighted out of my mind while driving with the windows wide open and the sky all blue and the radio loud.   Life, just the way I like it.

2.  I had a few minutes to kill so I wandered through Bath & Body Works.  I haven't been there since a quick trip the week before Christmas (!) and let's just say this was better.  I sniffed at least 42 candles and looked at a fair amount of random.  And! Not one overtly perky, subtly intrusive, sweet little thing asked me what I needed, and by the time I inhaled the honeysuckle candle for the fourth time I was longing, LONGING I tell you, for spring.  I would not be exaggerating one bit to say that store was spring in a jar.
 
3.  Noodle was beside herself with happy during our little excursion.  She was all girly, skipping along and giggly, and just thrilled to be with us.  She kept clasping my hand on her right & her mama's on the left, and swinging them together.  She was so happy! just to be with us.  If that's not swoony I don't know what is.

4.  I scored a bag of M&Ms on the 50% off-aisle at Target.   I went with the peanut butter variety this time. 
I know it's a stretch, but it seemed right.

5.  Today I read this.  Oh y'all...

Right now someone is (very loudly) working on a neighbor's car outside my window and people are shouting over the racing motor and I might have heard a bad word, and the feelings I'm current feeling are of a whole different variety.  See how that works?  Life.  What a blast :)


Y'all have a great Wednesday!

location, location, location

Peanut loves to draw,

especially on sidewalks or driveways!

But I'm pretty sure his very favorite canvas

is on the front porch.

Specifically?

Right at the front door, of course, where all who enter can admire his our handiwork.

....and then proceed to track the chalky goodness  all over his mama's living room floor :)

old and new, and a little old

The more I get out and about, the more I find that Winston is a fascinating city. 

It's a really strange and fun (and sometimes disconcerting) mix of old and new, with a little more old mixed in.

I've yet to run across a truly "fancy" neighborhood.  Driving down the street I will pass a few gorgeous brick colonials, an old-school A-frame or two intermixed with comfy family ranches, and then the occasional mobile home.

It's crazy, man! 

I'm not sure there are a lot of truly "bad" or upscale neighborhoods.  They're all jumbled together in a delightful hodgepodge full of random.


And y'all know how I love me some random.

There are trees galore, even right in the middle of town. 
Frankly, I can't get enough of them.

No matter where I seem to go it doesn't feel anything like city life, (except for traffic!) and I'm soaking up the history, and character, and occasional sunshine, like a sponge.


These photos were taken just minutes from downtown, literally along the side of the road near a shop we visited on a whim.  

It wasn't a park or advertised, set-aside space, just a random little spot we happened upon that sports some ancient-ish history.

I wouldn't say it feels like home yet, but I'm really liking what I see...


Of course, the crystal blue sky & balmy temperatures on this day didn't hurt one little bit :)

so, since we chatted last...

I did a little of this...

...and a whole lotta this.

Rain or shine, seaside is still one of the happiest places on earth :)

 

 

 

I suppose a strong work ethic has to start somewhere

 

Audrey Faith may be a mere four years old, but she has a job.

 

 

 

 
Self-imposed though it may be.

 

 

Immediately upon arrival, practically before hugs are dispensed, she hunts and gathers and puts things back in their rightful place.
 
 

 
 
....gathering every Willow Tree she can find and lining 'em up on the bookcase.
 
 

 
Sometimes they're tidy and sometimes they're practically lying on top of each other, but they are always, always right back where she left them.  She might proceed to play with them for half a minute or an hour, depending on her mood, and sometimes she makes quick work of things and moves straight to Mickey...but either way she gets the job done. 
 
 

 
 
After she goes home I scatter them back around, but not so much because of any sense of order.  Don't tell her but I mainly put 'em back so I can watch her march in next time and do it all over again.
 
 

 
  
It's a little game she doesn't know we play :)

 

"don't talk to any toy you don't know"

Behold Owo, in his preferred Woody-Buzz-viewing position.

Isn't he yummier every day?




Happy Wednesday (to infinity and beyond!)

baby's got a discerning palate

Do y'all remember way back sometime when I posted about these meatballs?

 I've made them a few times now and they never, ever disappoint. 

The last time I made them I got comments from my neighbors about the yummy smell floating downstairs.

And it's possible that Peyton might have allegedly eaten more than I did.

But I'll never tell  :)

 

 

 

maybe it was the facial

 
So I hate to even say it out loud for fear of some kind of additional backtracking, but I think maybe I'm beginning to feel a little better.  I've tried to mostly just keep all the suffering to myself because seriously who really wants to hear it, but now that I'm beginning to see hope for a future that includes breathing without paroxysms of drama-laced coughing, and speaking full sentences without gasping for air, I'm anxious to share! 

After yet another setback late last week and sleeping approximately 18 or maybe 19 hours Friday night/Saturday I dragged myself up from my sickbed at about three o'clock in the afternoon to attend Kari's Mary Kay party/facial. 
 

(insert melodramatic sigh here...)
 
(I KNOW, right?)

(But what's a mom to do?  Kari's new in town and doesn't know a lot of people yet and I had promised and couldn't let her have zero guests...)
 
 
(She had other guests anyway so whatever.)

 
ANYWAY, I've been feeling steadily better since getting up yesterday afternoon, like some kind of corner was turned, and I do believe I just might make it after all.
 
 

 
 
(Just in time for allergy season to hit, Ha!!)


(Sorry for all the parenthetical drama.  I'm giddy with hope.)
 
 
 
 
Y'all have a great Monday!

 
 

I hate to say she lied, but well, she did

So it is entirely possible that I only have about one minute to lollygag here on the worldwideweb before I'm summoned to refill Owo's sippy cup and/or help him lose his drawers so he can make another potty run...or in the off chance he actually passes out and falls asleep and gives me two minutes to myself I imagine our very feverish Audrey will awaken and pitifully declare her dire need for, well, me.  (Go figure.)
 
 
Be that as it may, I just had to hop on to say hey! and how are y'all doing? and I hope things are going okay in your respective neighborhoods.  We've had kind of a lot of hard around here over the last couple of weeks, and right now I have the littles for a few days while Katie & Jeremy are out of town.  To say the babies had different plans for this weekend would be an undestatement, but they're as sweet and funny and delightful as ever (excepting Audrey's feverish state, of course!)
 
 
 
Anyhoo, I-miss-you blah, blah, blahs aside, I mainly wanted to share something that's been weighing heavy, and it only feels right to use my personal platform here at AB! to share my deep resentment for the way Spring lied to me. 

There's just no other way to look at it.  She lied to my face.  (Kinda literally, what with all the sneezing and coughing and stuffy-headedness endured...)  Was it just last week I was waxing all thankful for things like headaches and runny noses because it was accompanying the glorious return of all things warm and delightful?
 
Whatever.
 
 
A driving rain for a sweet forever with the temp maxing out at 37 degrees is all I"m saying.
 
 
Well that and NO SNOW.


I don't want to be all bitter and unforgiving, but all I know is she has some serious damage control to do if she wants me to trust her again... 
 
 
 
Y'all stay warm out there!

 

these things

Flonase,
and Claritin,
and Excedrin

...and icy cold beverages(!)


whimsical gifts on my doorstep


a four-p.m. start time


the new Passion release


fajitas with my girl


averted crises


celebrating her life, lived oh-so beautifully


sibling hugs


homemade veggie-beef soup from the freezer


time for a quick nap


this long-awaited, warm, sunny day




Buh-bye winter drear.  I know you try, but you're just not for me ;)

(A Thousand Gifts 1229-1241)

best laid plans

In honor of my long-awaited vacation I thought I would share a few pictures...

...of where I am not.


sigh.

I would say something like dern hurricane!, but that would be an example of some ungrateful cussin.'


So I won't. 


Instead I'll just suggest we all make a great weekend wherever we find ourselves :)

carolina sunday

I can't remember if I told you or not, but last Sunday Kari, Peyton, and I made a quick trip to see Kate and the fam.  

It was a super-quick, one-day trip but still helped fill my baby-hug tank, so that was good.

Be still, my heart...

I took approximately seven pictures and approximately three of them are even edit-able.  sigh.  In the interest of posterity I share them below.

The patient waiter

Audrey was so excited to jump!  Apparently she did so last year about this time and she remembered exactly what to do.  She was so patient and cooperative as they got her hooked.


She also took a whirl on the carousel mainly because Naynay doesn't see her every day and therefore feels no obligation to deny the child good healthy fun.  



However, this doesn't mean I'm going with her around and around in circles because it's all fun and games until Naynay starts upchucking in the middle of the food court.  

For this reason Wiwi was drafted to join in on the circle-riding fun.

One of the purposes of our trip was so she could "get earrings."  Her Wiwi had promised to "get her earrings" for her birthday and she was beside herself from the waiting.

Before the ouch!

We might or might not have fully prepared her for the OUCH that accompanies getting said earrings.  She was SO MAD!  It was both adorable and a wee bit heartbreaking, bless her sweet little (I'm not little; I'm BIGGER!) heart.


Fortunately she forgave us after her Elmo cookie. 


It might appear that it was sort of an All-About-Audrey day, but that's only because it was kind've an All-About-Audrey day.  Sometimes things just happen that way...


Owen was busy napping for a large portion of our visit (boo!!) but we got some hugs and snuggles and adorableness in before we had to hit the road.  This picture is pretty much not that great, but it's the only one I got Sunday and oh how I love him ;)

Whose boy are you Owen?  Naynay's boy!

Y'all have a great night :)

p.s.  Tomorrow's FRIDAY!  Yaay!