You've Got (random) Mail

we spent less than 24 hours in Dallas over the weekend for GT to run the Dallas Rock n Roll half-marathon.
more on that later, because that beast (race or GT? you decide) deserves it's own attention/post. 

but, as i sat in the car awaiting GT to make it to the mile marker at which i was waiting, i was scrolling through random bits of internet trivia...naturally.

did you know that You've Got Mail came out in 1998? 1998! almost 17 years ago! 

that blows my mind.
what a great movie!

---
moving on from internet trivia...here's some random thoughts for the day.

i love carpet and wallpaper.
hardwood floors (or stained concrete, in our case) are great, too.
but i really love carpet in bedrooms.
and wallpaper. i'd wallpaper our entire house if i could.
well, perhaps i can...stay tuned.
--- 

i killed my 1st copperhead of the year last night
that makes me sound pretty tough, huh?
actually, i just ran over it in my car...5 times.
forward, reverse, forward, reverse and one more for good measure.
i always hate spotting the 1st snake of the year....hate isn't even a strong enough word.
we have taught Judson that when he sees a snake to say, "daddy, daddy, snake, snake" and to run.
this is what i say and do when i see snakes. except for the one time i shot (mutilated) a snake with a shotgun

---

Judson is a roper. all day, every day. he ropes. 

"fixin' get in that radio (rodeo), mom"

---

i am hiring a personal assistant.
primary responsibilities are cleaning my house and completely our paper-in-lieu of thesis.
i say "our" because it is a group project.
group projects are tough.
 actually, i am in a great group...good, hard working people that i like to be with.
but, trying to coordinate 4 peoples schedules- who have kids, spouses, jobs and school- that's the tough part. there are a lot of late night/early morning emails, texts and meetings.
and nap-times dominated by edits and revisions.

last weekend, we had a slow saturday morning of waffles and eggs. then i started cleaning the house that was in complete disarray. Judson kept asking me to sit with him and watch "Dino Dan"... his absolute favorite. i told him that i had to clean the house because it had been neglected for the past few weeks. GT joked that i had probably neglected my kids, too... he said it in jest and completely did not mean it...but i knew what he meant. so i stopped and cuddled on the couch with my guys. the house is still a mess, but my boys are well loved and progress has been made on our thesis.

moms around the world... we're all in the same boat, huh? the "my house is a hot mess, but there are more important things" boat, huh?
p.s. i'm not really hiring a personal assistant. as if i needed to clarify.
how about this plan? i am just going to clean my house. hows 'bout them apples?
---
ok, one more random thing...

as the temperature rises outside and we all start shedding layers to enjoy the beauty that is Spring and Summer... Ladies, can we please just keep our clothes on when taking selfies for Instagram?
do yourself a favor.


that's enough for today.
back to life. back to reality

8 months with Townesy

8 months, little Rooskie!

who let that happen?

you are such a little love bug

but you like to stay very close to your mothership at all times

people always comment on how sweet and smiley you are

and it's true. you are....

 when i'm holding you.

so, while you sit perched on my hip, people walk by and you give them sweet eyes, a shy smile and lay your head on my chest. they ooh and ahhh over you. they try to hold you and.....no thanks.

it won't last forever, so i suppose i'll deal with it by giving you millions of kisses

you are learning to voice your opinion so much more and "talk" throughout the day

you sort of yell at us if you need our attention

you babble constantly and seem to think that making a little coughing noise is funny

you say "dadadada" to which Judson says "daddy's not home!" "mama, Townesy is calling daddy"

ha!

you are still a strong little army crawler

you get on your hands and knees, but plop down on your belly when you're ready to go anywhere.

and you can move, buddy.

if i go into another room than you in the house, you are under my feet quickly 

just the other day, you woke before Judson and kept crawling over to his door.

i'm not quite sure it was intentional, but it seemed like you just wanted to be with your brother. 

and i do know that's the truth.

you think he is just the best thing.

you really aren't interested in baby food, but prefer to eat what we are eating
so far, you have really seemed to like sweet potatoes, lima beans, tomatoes, avocado and bread.
you LOVE all bread and attack it with intensity 

you have yet to get a tooth

you are a champion night time sleeper (knock on wood) and are pretty good about naps, although they aren't always consistent

we can still count on you to catch a car nap if you don't get in a good nap at home

you are so responsive to those around you, especially if they are talking to you

particularly, your Honey and Pa

you light up when you hear or see them come in the room

and you love to snuggle 

you have been referred to as a koala, as you like to hang on tight and wrap your body around mine

sometimes i think you would crawl back in my womb if that were any kind of possibility... that's how close you try to get to me

we love you, little bitty!

you are such a sweet little spot in our life

a party for sisters

yesterday was my moms (sitting to my right) birthday

today is my aunt Chrys's (next to last one on the right) birthday

they are 1 year and 1 day apart

and that's my mamaw Jo, their mom, front and center

as she should be

we celebrated them with a girls-only (plus Townes) birthday lunch earlier this week

Grace, our dear friend, threw the party and did so perfectly...as always

if you were to place me in a family of inspiring, selfless, beautiful women...i'd land right where i am.

my mom and Aunt Chrys work tirelessly to serve their families and are always ready for anything...

hosting a party for 75

leading a womens conference

speaking on a radio show

watching a grandkids sporting event

you name it, they can do it and are probably prepared at any given minute

we celebrate them because they are something to celebrate

the way they take care of us should be rewarded and honored...every day, but we make sure of it on their birthdays!

also, this weekend when we have another party.

they learned how to live this way from their mom

isn't she just beautiful?

what you see on the outside is matched tenfold on the inside

now that i'm a mom of kids 20 months apart, i can not fathom having two girls 12 months apart.

i can't decide if i think she was crazy or brave. probably a combination of the two.

but i have no doubt that she handled it like a pro...as she does anything she does.

i love these women in my life

not just the 3 that i've mentioned, but every single one in that picture plus a large handful more

they have taught me how to love

love my God

love my man

love my children

and love my neighbors

and there is nothing more beautiful 

and nothing worth celebrating more

West MonSnow

we made it back to West Monroe just in time to catch the snow.

two weeks ago, when the actual snow (not just ice) started, we were at GTs parents house in Texas.

we decided to make the drive home on Wednesday morning, since the temperature was going to get above freezing and we figured the roads would be clear.

and they were.

 but they weren't perfect 

and i probably held my breath a few times over the bridges.

it snowed on us as we drove and it was just beautiful. 

almost like driving through Colorado, except not really.

(our road)

we made it home early afternoon and the snow was falling.

big, beautiful, soft snow flakes.

Judsons first snow.

he loved it more than we had thought he would

so, of course, i over-documented with the camera.

little Townesy's first snow

he watched watched from inside, then took a nap...perhaps it will snow again in the next ten years and he can play in it then.

Judson definitely was not the only one who had fun playing 

the quietness that accompanies a snow fall is magical, don't you think?

Judson wanted to go see the snow "in the woods"

so, GT and Garrett took him for a spin and quickly regretted that decision

driving under branches heavy with snow got the better of them

they quickly came inside for some coffee and sitting by the fire

day 2 wasn't quite as magical

as the snow turned to slush and patches of brown started interrupting the beautiful white blanket of snow

Judson did not care.

he couldn't get outside fast enough 

his fascination with eating the snow came to a halt when he began getting pieces of grass with the melting snow

only beautiful snow angels over here

ha!

we built a tiny little snowman (in the first picture, by JR's boot...look closely)

which he promptly destroyed with a swift kick

and was surprised by its destruction

a 2-year old, go figure

one day of snow was just the perfect amount of snow for us Louisianans

it sure was beautiful