Birthday

I used to love my birthday. Having a birthday smack dab in the middle of the month, I have always enjoyed the entire month of August...preparing for and then enjoying the newness of my new age.

This year is different though. I have realized how quickly my life is passing by without much time to slow down and just enjoy everything I have. I have also made that transition to the "late 20s" which doesn't sound old or anything but just signifies that the 30s are right around the corner, only to be followed by the 40s and so on and so forth. And, as i get older and the time just flies faster and faster, I realize before I know it, I will be old.

This year, with so many other life events pending, I am planning on a very low key birthday. I have asked Tom to skip my present this year since we are saving for our impending move. I am happy to just get a card and go to dinner (lobster of course!!). From others I have suggested gift cards. I don't see the need to get more stuff to move and since I know we will be buying things when we are in our new place, gift cards would make the buying process a lot more fun and guilt free (American Express or Target if you want ideas!!)!

We are planning lunch...me and the girls in the office. This is my first birthday I have ever worked. We are going to Cheesecake Factory for cheesecake and coffee...maybe appetizers, but skip the real food. Sounds like a good celebration to me...as long as no singing waiters make their way towards my table.

Martha's Vineyard

We are taking Ben to Martha's Vineyard for the day. Last time he was on the island, he was tucked soundly in my belly. We decided against Nantucket as a day trip because it was very expensive to take the ferry and it is a very long ride, which did not seem reasonable for a casual day.

It is supposed to be a beautiful sunny 80 degree day so I am looking forward to our relaxing ferry ride and a day of walking the island, stopping only for some sightseeing, food and ice cream!

First Word!!!.......and other developments

I feel like we should call the Boston Globe and have them announce it publicly....For the first time, Ben deliberately called out to get my attention. He called for his mama. He has made the dadadada sounds for a while now, but never to call Tom. He was just using his voice. But, based on the sound, I thought for sure he would be calling daddy before me.

A couple of weeks ago when Tom and I were on our way out for the day, Tom was holding Ben walking behind me and we heard a husky little voice say "mama". When I looked at him all excited he smiled and then went about with his typical baby babble. I half-doubted that's what he said, though the mommy in me really wanted to believe that was what I heard. But, this week, he definitely started to say mama....and not in the baby talk way, but in the "hey lady, I am calling you" way. Monday while working from home, I was in the kitchen out of Ben's sight and he called out Mama. Not mamamamama.....that would just be baby babble, but a very deliberate Mama. The next night, he was in his high chair and Tom was standing between Ben and me and again, the little voice called out Mama. Since then, it is like the flood gates have opened. Sometimes he reverts to the babble of mamamamamama (which only a few weeks ago he could not even make the mmmm sound). But, now it seems to just be very normal for him to call out Mama.

Other developments....
Tooth number 2 has arrived, right alongside #1

Ben stands anytime he can get a solid grip on anything. Ben now STANDS at his play table. He needs a bit of help, but generally plays by himself while holding on. (Check out his video!)

Starting to get mobile....not crawling, but he flounders around on his belly to get where he wants to be.

Trip to the beach

So I have been slacking off a bit. No post in over a week. My objective is twice a week, though things are rarely entertaining enough to necessitate that.

Anyway, we took Ben to the beach for the first time on Sunday. We went to Old Silver in N Falmouth and the water was so warm. It was so much fun. We took Alicia with us to help entertain Ben a bit. She was so great with him (as usual). She has endless energy and was a big help in keeping him happy. Ben loved having his feet covered in the sand and seemed to really like the water (not a surprise since he LOVES the bath). It was really fun. I remember back in the day, we would pack a cooler and towels and go to the beach. It was very easy and relaxed. This trip definitely required more stuff....umbrella, chairs (got a good sale on "end of summer" clearance chairs!), diaper bag, cooler, camera (can't miss out on a scrapbook page!)but we still had a great time. Just more of a mess at the end of the day.

I will get some pictures up soon.

Can I love College Sports??

Since we are moving to a place were college sports are a hige part of the culture, Tom is teaching me the basics of the teams in NC. Do transplants need to pick a team to fit in to the culture? If I have to choose, I think I have narrowed it down to NC State and Wake Forest, since Todd likes Duke and UNC. This is what I learned so far...

1. UNC - Tarheels, Light Blue & White
2. NC State - Wolfpack, Red & White
3. Duke - Blue Devils, Royal Blue & White
4. Wake Forest - Demon Deacons - Black & Gold

Perhaps I will lean towards Wake Forest. They sound the toughest....how can you beat Demons? Sounds tough and scary to me and since I have nothing else to base my decision on, I think I need to go with what sounds like it could kick every other teams butt.

The end of an era (The Age of Accounting)

I have never considered myself an accountant, though I suppose many people have for the past 8 years or so I have worked in accounting departments. I do not have an accounting degree (thankfully) and therefore can never be an accountant. My degree is in Finance and Management Information Systems. And, with only 6 more business days in Accounting, I am really looking forward to making the transition to the information world of reporting and project management. Sounds exciting, no?

All I can think about at this point is getting through the earnings release on Wednesday of next week. My reward?? A trip to the beach (see my to do list below). I want nothing more than to just sit on the beach with a cold one in hand (a cold IBC root beer is our usual beach bev)and chill out. No phone, no computer, nothing except me, sunblock and the beach (and Ben, Tom and Alicia!) I need to get some sort of tent/cabana for Ben. Otherwise, we are good to go.

Let me know if you have seen any good "end of summer" sales on beach chairs. We have not purchased any so far and have gone back and forth on whether or not they make sense since we will be hours from the beach next summer and they will probably not get much use. But, since I am seeing the summer clearance already, I may break down if there is a good deal. I love the chairs that are low to the ground so you are almost in the sand, but get a little back support so you don't have to just lay on the ground.

I cannot wait to see what Ben does at the beach. Thinking he might eat sand. He really loves his bathtime and loved the swimming pool, so I bet he will really like the water. And, since he adores Alicia, I am sure it will be a great trip for him. Another first for the list and page for the scrapbook.

aaaaaaaaaahhhhhh summer! I can taste the root beer already.

Summer To Do List

7 weekends until the official end of summer. SO here is the remainder of our summer to do list.... If you have any suggestions for our final Massachusetts summer, let us know!

1. Read 2 non-baby-related books
2. Go to Nantucket for the first time!
3. Check out WaterFire in Providence.
4. Get LOBSTER at Woodman's or revisit Barnacle Billy's
5. Turn 27
6. Take Ben for his first day at the beach
7. Go for my SPA SPLURGE (a Christmas gift from Tom)
8. Visit Raleigh, NC (which requires its own to do list!)

In a word.....IKEA

The Swedish sensation. This past weekend marked my first visit to IKEA. Much to Tom's dismay, I am hooked. He only has himself to blame. I mean, it is not often dear husband suggests we go to a store just to browse. And browse we did for nearly 2 1/2 hours. It was fantastic. "Why did you love IKEA so much?" he asks whenever I speak of this new love...well, I cannot really answer. First, I love furniture and even more, furniture stores. And, I love accessories for our house. No matter how fat I get, I can always enjoy shopping for household items. With our upcoming move, I found myself eyeing all sorts of wonderful odds and ends that I will gladly get for our new home when the time is right. One item I really enjoyed were the Vurm wineracks. I want to hang three of them (stacked) in our new kitchen. While we found most of the furniture to be a bit less than "high quality" (mostly plastic/inexpensive wood, Tom and I both agreed that the Fagelbo sofa bed with storage is the ideal relationship between functionality and form that we need for what will eventually be our guestroom/office. I could have ordered the sofa bed the moment I saw it....but then I realized we should probably find a place to live before we buy the furniture! We also really loved a table and chairs set that is sure to eventually make its way into our playroom. To be honest, I was mostly struck by the accessories. I loved the assortment of lamps and lamp shades. I really LOVED the curtains that they had on display and I found that many of the art pieces were quite attractive. And, to top it off, the prices just cannot be beat. I know we have spent well over $100 to have a print framed. At IKEA, there were endless possibilities in clsoer to about $20. We have very simple lamps that were about $60 each. At IKEA, similar lamps (including the shade) would run you around $10. I was also shocked to see the area rugs they were selling for about $15 compared to my $150. You can even get a kitchen mat for less than $2!!

All in all, IKEA strikes me as a fantastic place to go and pick up odds and ends. Maybe a table for a spare room or an entry way. It also gives you the option to mix things up a bit since the prices are so reasonable. I know when we spend a lot of money on an item, I want to get all the use out of it that I can. With the IKEA products, I think you could almost get away with changing your decor with the seasons. Or at least annually or however often you get bored with your surroundings. I think, in general, the quality is good enough that you would be proud to have it in your house. The true test will be to see how often their product lines change. I can see IKEA as the type of place I could visit monthly (this is a HUGE store....it takes at least 2 hours to really evaluate the selection). If I get through my second visit with the same stars in my eyes I had the first time, I will be personally signing the petition going around the NC area to get an IKEA built in our new neighborhood. Until then, I will be dragging everyone up to Maryland or down to Atlanta for my IKEA fix.

Netflix

So, by now, I think everyone knows what Netflix is...the deliver to your home video service. Tom and I started up on Netflix this past winter. We have been really happy with it so far. We have watched a couple of series we missed while they were actually on TV (we are half way through season 3 of Sex and the City, which I had started to watch, but then stopped when I was too cheap for HBO!)Totally loving it. We have basically seen 1 movie and 1 TV series disc a week since we started out.

Every time I watch SATC, I can see why people get these bizarre ideas on relationships and life. While I am really loving the show, I find myself saying, so thats why XXXX (fill in name here) doesn't wear a bra when she goes out. And that's why XXXX thinks I was so young to get married. At least I get it now. While the show is fantastic, I think people need to understand this is far from reality. Sure it is fine to not be married when you are 24 like I was, but women in the mid-late 30s with no serious relationship....that just seems like a setup for a really lonely existance...with or without a cosmopolitan. And the whole lack of a bra thing...I guess if you are Sarah Jessica Parker, floating through NYC and writing a sex column, it is acceptable. But for anyone else bigger than an A cup...please, PLEASE, wear a bra when we go out together.

Ben's First Tooth!!

Such a big day. We check every day when he wakes up to see if he has cut a tooth and we check again at night. I was so excited tonight when I was giving Ben a post-dinner fruit puff and I saw the little tooth that had appeared. Right there on the bottom, the right-middle tooth has arrived!

So, I tried to get a picture, but it is too small to really come out and Ben is just way more interested in sucking my finger to let me get a good shot. So, the silly cartoon will just have to do until we see more of those chompers!

He is so much fun. It seems like every day brings with it something new that Ben has accomplished. He is not crawling yet, but he turns himself in circles when he is playing on his belly (especially when trying to get to Phoebe!). He has learned to roll himself back and forth in his crib so we never know what we will see when we get him up in the morning (though I must say, he generally sleeps in the same position as I do...on his side, hugging his blanket with his leg flamingo style). He has also discovered that he can use his hands to lift his upper body onto things. He is not pulling himself to his feet yet, but with the way he is moving lately, that could definitely be soon.

If I get some good teeth pictures, I will add them for you all to drool over. I have tried to get pictures of him and his new found "mobility", but obviuosly that is tough with a still camera. If I get some video that is fun, I will post it.

Updated Pics of Ben

Check out our Online Photo Gallery (you can click on the link at the right of this post) for updated pictures of Ben. We got a little behind when our hard drive died in May, but we are back on track now. Enjoy!

Stuff for Ben

So, Ben has a ton of toys from Christmas he still has yet to play with. He is just too little. And, he is so happy with his current set of toys, there seems little need to open anything else up at this point anyway. So, we are waiting. Probably waiting until we move because we really don't have the space for the new toys at this point. And, when we move, we will likely have a play room so we will be able to bring out all the good stuff then.

Even his closet is jam packed. I am mostly to blame for this. We got a good amount of clothes for him for the summer months in the late winter/early spring this year. Mostly clearance stuff at Filenes. Then, I had some coupons at Gymboree that we used to "finish up" his summer attire. Well, little did I know that I would be unstoppable when it comes to buying baby clothes. I love it. I just buy anything I see on sale basically. I always have a reason....extra clothes for sweaty (or just messy) days, extra clothes for daycare. He needs them, for the most part, but it just makes you laugh when you open his closet and it is full. It has actually gotten to the point where I struggle to decide what to dress him in each day because there are so many cute options waiting to be chosen.

I realized today while waiting in line at The Children's Place outlet at The Wrentham Outlets that he has no clothes for fall. We are waiting to buy fall clothes until later anyway because we don't want to add to the stuff we have to move (and our summer will be extended down south anyway). But, I was thinking, what a bummer it is that he has no fall clothes. Then I got so excited!! MORE SHOPPING FOR BEN. It is not like shopping for me. Getting depressed as things don't fit, thinking things are too expensive or that I won't get enough use out of it or feeling like last year's stuff will be fine. Ben actually needs to clothes...there are no clothes from last year. And, at this age, things don't fit year after year.

I admit it, I am a shopaholic. Doesn't matter what I am shopping for. I love it. Someone said to me once while I was pregnant that the mother buys the cheap clothes and everyone else can pick up a more expensive outfit every once in a while. Haven't seen that happen yet. Sure we get the outfits from others. But, this mom has not been the sensible shopper......and I never will be. Why should everyone else have all the fun?!

I am done shopping for summer things now. Ben has an extra supply of extras at this point. He is almost out of hangers (the same number of hangers that used to handle 2 sizes of clothes!) For the next few months, I guess I will just have to remind myself that fall is coming and with it comes the new styles of fall fashion.

The not long weekend....

Why is it that we could have had a 4 day weekend, yet it is interupted by working on Monday? Seems silly that the good ole US of A didn't declare July 3rd a holiday...a 4th of July Eve if you will, for these occasions where it falls on a Monday. I must prefer the "always on a Monday" holiday. We considered taking Monday off, but decided it was best to keep the days for later this summer when we could make more use of it. Plus, Monday is my most productive day for work. Sadly, my day working from home is the day I get most work done. Apparently, entertaining a 7 month old is less work than entertaining the 20 & 30 somethings crowd:)

We have plans for the day in Boston and a cookout. Would like a beach excursion, but doubt we will get to that this weekend. Depending on the weather, we may even take a trip to the zoo. Not sure Ben will get it quite yet, but it would still be fun.

Enjoy the long weekend if you get it!!

Convenient Pods

Pod....the new word that has so much meaning in my life. It has everything I like in a word...short,succinct, easy....Pod has come to mean convenient in my life.

PeaPod. You know, delivered groceries. What an awesome idea. You pay a small fee for this delightful service, but you save infinitely on the convenience. We have not started this service yet, but I plan to shortly. I figure if I save 90 minutes per week for 52 weeks in a year, that is almost 5,000 minutes a year I can do something else with my time (like spend time with Ben!) I will review this service soon (coming soon to a blog near you!) so if anyone is interested in Peapod, stay tuned.

For mother's day, Tom bought be an iPod and the related accessories. I LOVE MY IPOD!! Sometimes I call him on his way to work just to tell him. I have a 6 CD changer in the car and I always had my musical library with me on my ride (the shortlist of "all stars" in my musical repetoire). But now, I have the iPod, currently a musical collection of 2,415 songs which amounts to about 7 continuous days worth of music. No need for messy CD cases floating around the car. No more having to decide which CDs make the cut and are loved enough to be the top 10 that live in the dashboard holder. I have them all there, waiting to be played whenever I want. I love it. So clean, so easy.

PodCasts....On the same line as iPod, I have now discovered Podcasts.....mini-shows/headlines/moveis...you name it. These bits of information are automatically downloaded to my blessed iPod (based on my "subscriptions") and available for me to listen to whenever I want. Now I don't have to try and catch up on movie reviews. Ebert and Roper have a podcase. Miss your favorite show? There's a podcast for that. Want a funny tidbit for the morning commute, check out "The Onion". I don't have time at work these days to hop online and catch up on events. And, when I get home, I have higher priorities than sitting on the computer (Eventhis blog is only allowed to be written by a later afternoon nap for Ben). The podcast has already been a great addition to my ride home from work. Time to catch up on my hollywood gossip!

All these convenient Pods...what will they think of next? Diaper-Pod to change the baby or maid-pod to clean my house?? I guess those are both too much to ask for, but it is nice to dream.

Ben Swims!!...sort of

Check out our video from the weekend. This was Ben's first time in a pool. He LOVED it!! The first time he got splashed in the face, he got all squinty (and adorable!), but then he just kept splashing away. The more water the got in his face the better....more to lick off with his speedy little tongue!!

We are really excited to get him signed up for his infant swimming lessons that start on Saturday.

Our Second Anniversary

So, our weekend was even better than expected. First off, anyone who told me I will never have a weekend away once I have kids, all I have to say to you is :P. This is pretty much what I wanted to tell you when you said it, but didn't...just in case. Ben has proven once again to be a perfect angel. While it was a tad difficult making him go to bed in our room with the TV and lights on, we managed to do so fairly easily. Other than that, we were out and about all day long both weekend days enjoying the beautiful 90 degree weather. We went to this fabulous restaurant for our anniversary dinner in Portland where we got to sit outside and enjoy martinis, appetizers, dinner, dessert and cappuccino. This is the restaurant we would have gone whether we had Ben or not. He woke up just in time for us to sit and eat, but it was really delicious and wonderful.

Two years of marriage. Hard to believe it has been two years already. But, we have been busy. So instead of blabbing on and on about the nice weather, the shopping, the pool, strolling along the beach in Ogunquit, fancy dinner, lobster for lunch, and all that good stuff, I would like to show you just how busy we have been.

June 2002 Graduated College
April 2003 Got ENGAGED!!!
June 2004 Got Married
September 2004 Moved
September 2004 Tom started new job
October 2004 Gretchen started new job
March 2005 Found out about our little peapod
June 2005 Moved again
August 2005 Tom lost his job :(
November 2005 Had BEN!!
December 2005 Tom got a job....and a big raise!!

I ask Tom what we do now. He says get settled, enjoy life. Sounds boring, huh? So, I guess once we move in October, buy a house and find Tom another new job, we will work on getting settled. Whatever that means.

Oh yeah, and be sure to oooh and aaaah over the beautiful yellow roses in the picture at the top of my post Tom sent to me Friday at work for our anniversary! Isn't he sweet :)

Weekend Getaway

My mother and father have given us the weekend away for our anniversary (2 years on Monday!!). We will be going to Portland, Freeport and Ogunquit to check out the sites. We are really excited. We plan on taking Ben in the pool for the first time which is kind of cool. If he likes it, we will be signing him up for infant swimming lessons at the YMCA which start up next weekend.

Stay tuned for our update on our first weekend away with Ben.

Getting your ducks in a row

There is this weird part of life where you suddenly realize you need to get everything in order and settled. I always thought this was something that happened to old people who were preparing to die. Hahaha....For the first time in my life, I was wrong.

Since having Ben (maybe even started when I was pregnant), I have felt this need for order. My brain never shuts off to this constant desire to get our life in order and settled so we can provide the best life possible for our family. Its exhausting. But, I think we are finally there. We have a plan, a budget and a baby. Can't really get much better, can it?? Well, until baby #2 (Yes, I know Ben is only 7 months old, but it does not hurt to plan).

Anyway, I guess the point of this all is that getting your ducks in a row is not just for old people before they "get rolled out feet first" (to quote my mom) it is for those of us who cannot turn their brains off.

Ben Rolls Over!

Ben is becoming mobile. He started by rolling from his tummy to his back. He did this a couple of times and was pretty proud of himself. Though, that might have had something to do with the fact that Tom and I gushed over this simple event.

Then on Sunday morning Tom stepped out and Ben decided to make his previously feable attempts at rolling from tummy to back (There's a lot of boy there to rollover!) a thing of the past. After a few attempts, he did it. And he was THRILLED!!! Until he realized he had more work ahead of him to rollover yet again so he could play.

We spent a lot of time watching him wiggle across the floor and roll around. He is not quite up for crawling, but he is starting to turn himself in circles and get to things we put just out of his reach.

All these events in his life are so exciting for us. But, if I can take a moment to be 100% mommy, my heart is totally broken with each accomplishment. My baby is turning into a little boy right before my eyes.

Back on track

I finally feel like we are up and running with this whole web idea. I have been trying to think of a way to get our most recent pictures out to everyone and also just keep everyone posted on our way too interesting lives. I think once we are in NC this fall, the web will be the best way to give people access to the goings on of our lives.

After toying with the idea of setting up a new website and adding pictures and videos and stories there, only to find it is way more work than I want to commit to, Tom has finally figured out what I need to do to accomplish this task with very little pain....behold the blog with links to other great stuff I want to share.

So, I am officially a blogger. I keep asking myself why I think I have the time in my life to maintain a website when I don't even have the time to file my nails, but somehow, I am excited to do this.