The Marriage Bed: 7 Years late

I posted it on Instagram yesterday evening, but something exciting happened in our household yesterday.

For the first time in seven years of marriage, we have a headboard and a footboard.

A few months ago, I told David I already knew what I wanted for  a Mother's Day/Anniversary gift....I wanted a certain bed frame from Ikea for our bed. 

And I had to have it before Amelia came!!!

Every other bed in our house has a bed frame but ours and it has been driving me crazy for years now.

I've decided that married couples are one way or the other.  Either they take care of the Master bedroom first thing after the wedding day or they wait ten years and three kids later.  Obviously we were in the later group...minus a kid and a few years.

My advice is to any young couple is to take care of it before kids, if not, I promise you will always find others things to spend the money on.

The truth is that we actually have had a bed frame on a few occasions throughout our marriage. When we first got married, we slept on a queen sized bed from David's childhood.  Only problem was...it was a queen sized bed.  On our one year anniversary we bought ourselves a king sized mattress, but we could only afford the mattress.  So the bed rested on bed rails.  Over the years, I've pinned for a fancy frame, but we either never had the money or when we did, it always went to something more important.  Every so often, we'd move the queen sized bed back into our room, so I could have a legit bed frame, but we just couldn't sleep well on a queen sized bed and after a short time, move the king sized back in.  Plus, add in the fact we at least a couple nights a week have a little person crawling into bed with us at night, we need the space of a king sized bed.

If the bed looks familiar to some, yes, we also own the full sized version of this particular bed frame.  Last year we bought the full sized version for Olivia's big girl bed, I'm in love with it, but she doesn't like it.  After months of going back and forth, she's sleeping on a daybed we got from her Nana.  The full sized version is currently in the nursery serving as a guest bed/middle of the night feeding bed. When Olivia was first born, I slept in our guest room for the first few months so her multiple wakes during the night wouldn't bother Dave who had to be up at 5am to get to be at work.  I've always said that if we ever had another newborn, I would put a bed along with a crib in there to make things easier so I don't have to get up and walk across the house five times a night.

So, there is a little sneak peek of Amelia's nursery.  Which can we talk about for a second???  I have a friend who has been hounding me for months now about her nursery and can I be honest, I've had no motivation to do anything about it.  Which is completely opposite from baby #1. By this far along with Olivia, her nursery was completed and waiting ready for her to come home to.  This go round...."Ummm.....I'll get to it one day." It's funny how you learn that the baby won't hate you for life if don't have a completely decked out nursery when they walk in/carried in from the hospital.  In fact, three years later, I think Olivia could still really care less.

And poor Amelia....I'm being extremely frugal. I've so far spent a whopping $40 on her nursery.  Pretty much everything in her room is from another room in our house.  I have a few other things I need to get and we have some furniture to paint, but when its all said and done, her nursery will be done for under $75.  Yes, I may have told David I'd rather spend the money on our bedroom than hers.

 I promise though we love you my second child.

Back to our bed.....I decided that since Olivia wasn't going to love the bed I picked out for her, I was going to get one of my own to love.  Even though its a little girlie, the husband agreed.  He is going to be in a house full of females, so he might as well get used to it. 

Last night crawling into bed, I was honestly giddy.  I told Dave that "two kids and mortgage didn't do it for me, but I now officially feel grown up." 

Side note: A few people have asked about my instagram and you can find me at anmabrey.  I am set to private, but just send me a request and I'll approve you if you don't look too crazy.

This week.

My week has been thrown off and it's all Dave's fault.  Instead of being off his usual Monday/Tusday, Dave was off Tuesday/Wednesday, so I'm totally thrown.  I'm a creature of habit.

I seriously woke up this morning thinking about what we had to get done today and thinking it was gymnastics night, when we just went to gymnastics a mere eleven hours before. 

Maybe that's more of a result of sleeping on the couch. 

I've been sleeping so well lately and then last night the streak was over.  We went to bed around 11 and I woke up at 11:30 wide awake.  After laying there till 1am, I moved to the couch and watched Golden Girls on the Hallmark channel.  At some point I fell asleep and when Dave left for work at 5am, he woke me up to move me to our bed.  I'm partly placing blame on my MIL because she asked yesterday "how have you've been sleeping?"  Or maybe it's partly to blame for that 1/2 price frappe the husband went and got us at 5pm.  Yeah, that was a smart idea.

Yes, I'm slowly adding caffeine in the form of coffee back into my life. I think it makes me a nicer person and let's be honest, I'm in the third trimester, so I deserve some kind of vice considering my first vice of choice is still off limits.

I know, I'm so exciting this week.

(her pose of choice)

However, tonight is not gymnastics, it's dance night.  Next week is our last week of dance till fall and I'm kinda sad about it.  She loves it and for a three year old, actually kinda good.  I promise I'm not being one of those annoying moms, those who know me in non internet life will tell you I'll be the first to claim that Olivia was not the prettiest baby.  So, I promise I am not one of those parents, but after a couple of parent watch nights, I can confidently say my three year old is one of the best in the class.  Keeping in mind this is three year old ballet....I'm not talking best as in the Russian Ballet will be calling us soon.  The mere fact she can follow the teachers instructions and stand on her star shoots her to the top of the class.  And for the record...because I pray that none of those moms read my blog....some of those kids in there are straight up weird.  Weird as in Dave and I were scared by them.  Some of those parents should be concerned...seriously.

Side note: I cleaned out the pantry last night and my child just opened the pantry door and exclaimed "What happened to our food! We need some food!!!"  The sad part is we have plenty of food in there for us to eat, we just had that much old food that needed to be thrown away.  I might or might not have thrown away a bag of powdered sugar that I bought to use at Olivia's first birthday.  I might have also thrown away a few bottles of different spices that had an expiration date from 2010 on them.  Obviously, I should clean out the pantry more than once every three years.

Speaking of cleaning...the nesting bug has officially hit.  Last night at 9:30pm I felt the need to spray paint a few items that I've had sitting around for years.  I may have got a few odd looks from my neighbor who was taking her dog out one last time for the evening.  I was also hanging pictures in Olivia's room at 10pm.  She may have been up helping me.  Mom of the year, right here.

Oh, and did I mention that we have friends whom we haven't seen in almost two years and who have never been to our home coming over Saturday to hang out....that may have a little something to do with my nesting kicking in also.  Nothing like new company coming over to get your butt in gear to actually do something with your home....kinda like clean it.

Now that I think about it, my husband may have invited them over just because he knew it would get me to clean the house. 

He's a cleaver one that Dave. 

No wonder his employees call him a ninja.

The parenting moments I live for.

The past few weeks have been rough parenting weeks.

I'll be the first to admit that it's been my fault.

I've been tired, kinda depressed, and just over everything in general.  To be completely honest, I was just not really feeling like being a parent.  Yeah, I said it.  

Please tell me I'm not the only one who has woken up and had days that they just didn't feel like putting forth the effort parenting wise.

Someone? Anyone?

However, it was all starting to catch up with us and last week seemed to be the one in which it all came to head.  As the only way I could describe it on Instagram "the s**t hit the fan" one night.  To sum things up, at one point during the week, Olivia was screaming how she "hated Amelia and would never love her," while I sat there bawling and my poor husband just sat there looking like he was about to be in tears too.

As I said last week, it hurts to hear your three year old say those kinds of things and hurts worse to know you're the cause of them.

And yes, I knew she'd have this kind of reaction at some point and time.  However, I at least thought it would be after Amelia showed her face.

After that night, I was determined to not let our last few weeks of "just us"continue down this path.  I was trying to get my own attitude under control and trying to rein hers back in, but honestly, I was just feeling defeated.

But then, a new week dawns and with it comes moment after moment in which my child steals my heart all over again. 

And shows me that I'm not totally screwing her up...just yet at least. 

  

The moments that remind me that I can do this parenting thing and we're going to make another day. 

Moments that remind me it's not going to be easy, but so worth the wild.

A busy weekend, but a quiet Monday.

We had a busy weekend that was filled with graduation festivities. 

My cousin Kyndall was graduating from a college in south Georgia, so on Friday afternoon, the family headed three hours south to watch her walk across the stage.

We headed down there with my dad (David had to work of course) and  when we walked into our fourth floor hotel room, Olivia ran to the window and exclaimed "I can see the whole world from here and palm trees!!!"  Seriously the cutest moment of the weekend.

However, the weekend was about this girl...

 (stolen fb pic)

I cannot tell you how proud we are of this girl. She has busted her butt over the past four years.  She was on the deans list for four straight years and Saturday she graduated magna cum laude from the Speech Language Pathology program. She walked across the stage on Saturday with her bachelor's degree and seriously starts her masters program this Thursday.  On top of being a smart girl, she's also one of the sweetest.  At her graduation party on Sunday, she thanked all of us at least twenty times for dedicating our whole weekend to her.  Needless to say, we were all happy to dedicate our whole weekend to her.  No one else deserved it more. 

I posted on Instagram that ironically, I was pregnant at her high school graduation with Olivia.

2009

2013

Okay, I'm about to admit that I had to do something totally vain and repost a pic of me on Sunday.  I got a couple of "you popped" comments over the weekend and I realized that this dress made me look much bigger than I am at the moment. 

This is a more accurate bump picture from Sunday before church in all non-maternity clothes.  

Obviously, maxi dresses are not necessarily a pregnant girls best friend. 

After a busy weekend, our Monday has been pretty quiet. 

 

David's car was having some trouble over the weekend and cannot be fixed till Tuesday, so he has my car for the day and we've been stuck at home car-less. Normally it's one of those little things that would bug me, however,  it has worked out well that we've been kinda stuck at home all day.  We've been having a "recovery" day from our busy weekend.

NPR has been on the radio all day, I've been planning and dreaming of our school year next year, while Olivia has alternated between playing with her babies and watching Sprout.  We also threw in a game of chutes & ladders, did some reading, and worked a little on Amelia's room this morning. 

It's four pm and it's safe to say I'm not getting dressed for the day.  For the record however, teeth have been brushed and faces washed. 

And the weather is helping with our "recovery" day. 

It seems like we've had the craziest weather lately.  It is never this "cool" in May and we're usually slowly venturing into the pool by this time a year.   I know we've needed it, but I'm ready for the rain to end and the warm weather to stay around.  I'm ready for swimming to take up most of our days. 

Although she seems content with washing windows. 

I can't sleep.

I'm going on four hours of sleep and since about 4am this morning, I've spent a good two hours typing a brutally honest post about some feelings I've been struggling with lately.

Most of it stems from my instagram picture on Wednesday morning.  Which by the way, I want to say thank you for those who sent encouragement my way that morning. 

However, after putting my feelings into words, I can't seem to hit the publish button.  The older and wiser (I hope at least) I get, I'm learning that somethings are better to keep private and at the moment, the feelings I've been struggling with are one of them. 

Or at least keep private between me and my two best friends.  Those ladies know who they are and as always, have loved me instead of judging me even after I've shared my heart. 

There once was a time I didn't cherish the girl friends in my life.  They always played second fiddle or heck, maybe even third or fourth....however, the older I get, the more and more I love them and cannot live without them.  I need them just as much (and some days even more) than I need David and Olivia. And I'm not talking about friends who are girls that you see on occasion when you have time or give a quick "how you doing?" on facebook, I'm talking about the girl friends who you talk to day in and day out.  Those who know more of whats going on in your life than your family really does.  Those who you sometimes call first before you even call your husband or your mom when the poop hits the fan...if you know what I mean.  These days, I honestly feel sorry (in a truly sympathetic way) for women who don't have at least one girlfriend like that of their own.  Seriously, if you do not have one....go find one...now.

Anyways, off my tangent....

One day I may share with the rest of the world what's been going on, but to be honest, I'm not quite ready for the judgement to come from it just yet.

Olivia and I are packing up this morning and heading down to South Georgia to attend my cousins college graduation.  She's worked so very hard these past four years and graduating with honors, so we are super proud of her and excited to spend the weekend celebrating her accomplishments. 

And we're excited to be staying in a hotel with an "inside pool!"  I'm sure it's already 80 degrees down there, but to a kid, there is something extra special about a "inside pool."  Thankfully Grandpa is traveling with us so I may be saved from pool duty.  Which reminds me, I need to call to remind him to bring a bathing suit.

This isn't really the post I had originally planned, so its now turned into just a "have a great weekend" kinda of one. 

So, have a great weekend! : )

First Day~May 2013

It's first day! 

I cannot believe its May already.  April flew by it feels like.  Our May is super busy, so I'm hoping it flies by just as fast.  Yes, I may be a little anxious to get these next few months over with.  

Here's a peek into our first day of May in crappy cell phone pics....

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Clean sheets day...can you tell purple is our color of the moment?

 

 

Nap time...aka Olivia in her room taking all the pictures off her walls! : )

 

 

 

Talking and pacing...our families will laugh at this one. 

At this point they headed to gymnastics and I went to walk with the MIL.  The husband didn't snap a pic at gymnastics....blogger husband fail.  After four and a half years, he should know better by now!

 

It was a good one.

Head over to Nicole's to see what everyone else was up to yesterday!

Six weeks free.

Back in January, I made a "to do" list for the New Year.

I don't call them resolutions or put pressure on myself to have them all completed, but I like having some new direction for the new year. January can be kinda dull and boring to me, so this gives me something to get thru it.

Number three on the list was to drop the coke habit.  When I say coke, I mean coke cola...aka soda or pop.  Obviously, I don't have a drug problem.

Being that I was born and raised in the city that is home of Coke, it's been around my entire life.  Coke has pretty much always been in the fridge or  at family gatherings while growing up.  Personally though, my drink of choice would always be sweet tea but I usually don't turn down coke if offered. 

After I had Olivia, I cut back on the tea and instead replaced it with diet coke.  I thought I was saving calories that way, but I know better now and know that diet coke can even be worse for you.  However, I got addicted.  I would easily have 1-2 cokes a day at minimum.  Not extreme, but I knew they weren't good for me.

My dad has been on my case for years now about the cokes.  There are only two people who I listen to when it comes to food, him and a couple friend of ours who own an organic foods store.  They are honestly the only people in my life who practice what they preach on a daily basis.  It seems these days I see so many people constantly posting about the "organic way of life," but then I run into them at a restaurant with a coke in their hand, and you lose credibility with me.  If your going to constantly post and preach about it...then live it.

These guys are the ones who I see are continuously practicing what they preach, so when my dad starts to get onto me about the cokes....I feel guilty.

Well, I wrote that list at the beginning of January and to be honest, I only lasted 13 days before I had broke down and had a coke.  It only took one and I was hooked again.  That one goal remained in my head because I had in just a matter of weeks failed at it.

Six weeks ago, was when I started having issues with my fluid.  When they asked how my water intake had been, I sheepishly answered that it had been pretty sad over the weekend.  I had way too many cokes and tea.  They both greatly outnumbered my water intake.

I'm proud to say that I haven't had a coke since that weekend.  I'm now six weeks coke free.

Coming from a chronic coke drinker, this is a big deal for me to quit cold turkey.

The last six weeks I have greatly upped my water intake and let me tell you guys...when you drink the water you are supposed to, there is such a difference.

I'm currently drinking around 96 ounces a day.  Sometimes a little more, sometimes a little less.  I have learned that the more I drink during the day, the more I crave it.  However, there have been a few nights I've go to bed and feel like I'm drowning in water, so there could be a such a thing as a little too much.

Along with the cutting out the coke, I've cut the caffeine almost completely out.  I order decaf coffee now and only get it when I have tea once or twice a week.  However, I'm not quite sure this has been such a great idea....I can be kinda witchy to be honest.  In my defense, I have a three year old that does not sleep thru the night 3/4 nights a week, so caffeine is what has been getting me thru the past three and a half years.

I'm still allowing myself a glass or two of tea when we go out to chick-fil-a.  I'm a Southern girl and could never completely give up the sweet tea.  However, I no longer make it at home because I'm the only one who drinks it and I usually end up drinking the whole gallon by myself.

But overall, I'm feeling so much better sticking with the water.  Pretty much all the benefits that you constantly hear about water are all happening for me.  Clearer skin, not hungry all the time, etc.  I can see the benefits happening.  I'm pretty sure its also what has helped keep the weight down this go round pregnancy wise.  I won't go on about why you need to, it's one of those things that we all know we need to do but also a lot easier said than done I think.

 (via)

I'll be honest that its a little hard the first week or two, but like anything else, it gets easier and now it's starting to become natural.

And yes, I stick with straight up water.   I don't use any of those water enhancers because come to find out, majority of them have aspartame in them, which kinda defeats the purpose.

My only piece of advice is to find a cup that you know you'll drink out of.  Seriously, this is a big deal.  Find one the biggest size you can that you know you'll carry around outside the house.  I have a rotation of three cups that I know I'll drink out of, that range from 20oz. to 32oz.  For me personally, I like a bigger cup because it's a lot easier to think I only need three or four of these instead of eight glasses. Also, when you get up in the morning, drink the first one as fast as you can.  The faster I get the first cup out of the way, the rest seem to go by easier.  Don't wait till two pm to down your first cup. 

So find a cup you like drinking out of and start chugging. I promise its worth it.  If a former coke addict like me can give it up, anyone can.