It's Friday night and we're staying in. Because it's this Belly's BIRTHDAY. You guys, how is she already nine years old? NINE. This is our last year before double-digits and I can't even begin to wrap my mind around that {Also, how am I old enough to have a 9 year old. I'm only 20... right?!}. We did all of our big celebrating a few weekends ago, so tonight it's just family night dinner with my three favorites. Of course, the birthday girl requested Zaxby's and mint chocolate chip ice cream, so it's looking like a picnic in mama's room.And because what's a birthday post without a letter to my biggest girl, I'm sharing some of my favorite words again. I wrote much of this post on a previous birthday, but it says all the things I need to share with my beautiful girl on her day. My ...
letters
Lucky Number Thirteen
Dearest Husband, I am the luckiest of the lucky. I might not have given you a second glance eighteen years ago when you first said my name, but it didn't take me long to figure out that you're pretty much perfect. Sometimes I can't even begin to wrap my head around the fact that we've been together for more than half my life. Thank you for sticking with me every single day, no matter how many times I talk too loud or forget to give the dog her medicine or leave the watermelon in front of the water pitcher in the fridge. Thank you for tolerating me, even when I watch terrible television (ahem, The Bachelorette) and insist that you stay in the room. Thank you for being patient when I don't want to listen or when I need you to proofread text messages and blog posts so I don't offend all the ...
dear husband,
somewhere between the Grand Canyon + Arches National Park, summer of 2000 I've spent the better part of this week unfolding love notes we wrote one another eighteen years ago. I found ticket stubs and happy meal stickers, gumball machine diamonds and cell phone numbers from another lifetime. Some days I look at you and think we've only just gotten started. It's hard to fathom that I've loved you more than half my life. I have laughed and teared up and blushed at those letters. The vast majority of them are so silly and so quintessentially teenage, but then I run across a sentence that takes my breath away. A tiny peek at the crazy love we had already found at seventeen. You know how wonderfully awkward it is the first time you brush your teeth next to someone? Crammed next to each other ...
Dear Tazzie,
How are you already five years old?! Right now, at this moment, you are FIVE years old. Five years ago today, your daddy and I got up while it was still dark. I started the dishwasher, changed everybody's sheets and we ran through the drive-thru at the bank. We checked into the hospital and they put us in a room full of other mothers to wait. I remember thinking after they started my epidural that I wasn't going to feel you move in my belly anymore. I was so sad that I didn't savor that last kick just a little longer. They wheeled us into the operating room at 7 o'clock in the morning and your daddy and I were grinning from ear to ear. Your sister was just down the hall, in a room full of people who couldn't wait to meet you. True to your character, you were awfully stubborn that first ...
Letters from Ella
Can we talk about how cute notes and letters from your children are? I love when Sophie asks me to transcribe something for her, because there is always a laugh to be found. Since Ella is old enough to write on her own, reading her words is always a great surprise. I know I've shared some of these on Instagram earlier in the year, but as a part of her writing time in class (she's in second grade), Ella has been writing letters to her family. I look forward to the day when her spiral bound notebook comes home in her backpack each week, even when the letters aren't meant for me. I asked her if it was okay for me to share these here. Eight year olds are funny like that -- they are either super embarrassed by their efforts or they want to share the most inappropriate of stories (I'm saving a ...
Hung the Moon
Dear Husband, I'm tempted to write you a mushy, gushy letter to celebrate your birthday (because I know how much you adore the perfectly written sonnet), but since we speak in musical lyrics most of the time anyway I figured this was far more appropriate. It's hard to believe we've been celebrating your birthday together for 18 years. We officially span half of your life together, old man. I have never been more thankful for you than I am today. Happy Birthday (tomorrow). As far as your three girls are concerned, you hung the moon. xoxo, Margarita My boy in my favorite button down and a beanie? Yes, please. I like the way you hung the moon, uh huh. Well, I just like being close to you, uh huh. When you're gone I feel so blue, uh huh. Yeah, I like the way you hung the moon uh ...
Dear Taylor Swift,
You make all little {and big} girls' dreams come true. xoxo, one super excited mama I've made no secret of the fact that in our house, we love music. My daddy was teaching us Beatles' tunes before elementary school and I was introduced to the awesomeness of The Grateful Dead my freshman year of high school. I've seen some pretty amazing shows in my lifetime (Hello, Lenny Kravitz in his heyday) and still have plenty left on the bucket list to conquer. I have a vast collection of concert tees and I don't care how expensive or unnecessary they are -- if we go, I will buy. Even while my girls were babes in arms, I thought about how fun it would be to take them to their first concert. It might sound silly, but I wanted to be sure their first concert experience was one to be ...
Dear 2015,
Where did you even come from? I know everyone says this in the days leading up to the start of a new year, but you completely snuck up on me. One minute I was lamenting our lack of a summer vacation and the next minute we were bundled up in scarves and coats and tucking wrapped gifts under our tree. Last year certainly held some wonderful memories, but I'm predicting you will be even better. I'm not sure you'll remember our "theme" for last year, but we far surpassed our goal to be more intentional lazy! When I told Josh that I was blogging about the new year today, he just rolled his eyes and begged for me not to include anything about our diet or exercise routine. He pleaded with me not to be "those people." Let's just agree those goals are pretty much understood and cover all of the ...