Fresh Look from Fresh Produce

Doesn't it seem like your social calender kicks into high gear when it starts warming up? We've had showers, birthdays, weddings, and plain 'ol good times the last few months. But what I was lacking was a fun new spring or summer dress.

Luckily, some friends at Fresh Produce Clothes, a maker of made-in-the-USA comfortable clothing known for its original prints, vibrant color and style, hooked me up. I was able to try out their Fiji Impromptu Dress in Cool Breeze (seen below in truffle).

And let me tell you, I really loved it. The dress is an unusual cut, with tapered sides longer than the front and back. It also had wide straps, so I didn't have to find any uncomfortable "fancy" undergarments. I got a large, and it fit perfectly in the bust (which I have plenty to go around, unfortunately), so it was a bit fuller in the body. But, with the style, I think it still worked out quite well. I went out on the town to celebrate Joe's sister's b-day at the hoity-toity Galleria here in Dallas, and I felt perfectly cool and at ease in my comfy, funky cotton dress.

So if you're searching for something new and different for your next occasion, vacation or just around town, check out Fresh Produce!

Here's a quick link to their super cute sun dresses where I found mine - Sun Dresses.  I am also in love with this Natcho Dress - just screams summer to me.

Or if you just want something a bit more "caj," check out these styles here - Casual Clothes. Super cute tank, anyone?

Thanks again, Fresh Produce, for setting my summer off in style!

::Note::  I saw two retail stores for Fresh Produce during my recent vacation to South Carolina! Maybe they'll make it to Texas soon!

Is Your Computer a Tool?

Do you view your computer as a tool? Is it just something you use for fun?

I've been paying a lot more bills online lately. I'm not sure how I feel about this.

Everyone always talks about the ease of online bill pay. On one hand, I totally get this. One click and your giant credit card is paid in full. On the other hand, ohhhhh the passwords. On the other foot, the dilemma of privacy and hijacked accounts.I have a system to keep all my passwords in check. This is a great help, except for when I forget to write them down, or I forget how to access my help, or I enter it in and the system locks me out. I have also FORGOTTEN to pay bills because I signed up for the 'environmentally friendly' no paper statements and I get one, it gets lost in my emails, I forget to pay, and then I get a late fee.

So, do you view your computer as a tool to help organize your financial matters, or just another THING that makes life complicated?

A Vacationing we will go.

In the next few week our family will be taking a well deserved vacation to Kiawah Island outside of Charleston, SC. I cannot wait.

Being a mom to a little one is stressful. Being a dad to a little one is stressful. Working is stressful. School is stressful. Driving in DFW is super stressful. Being stressed is stressful.

So guess what? I am ready to be stress-free. Me, the sun, some sand, lots of laughs, a little history.

BRING IT ON!

If you have ever been to the Charleston area and have any ideas or thoughts on where to go and what to see and eat, let's hear them!

Happy Summer!

Sharing...

Owen and I are lucky to have friends to share our lives with. 

We were introduced to Kathleen and Asher through a mutual friend when the boys were just wee little things a few weeks old (they are 4 days apart). Over the last almost two years now, we've gotten to cultivate a friendship on many levels. Owen and Asher get to learn valuable lessons about sharing toys, taking turns, and being silly together. Some days it is so fun to watch, others, well, I'm sure you can imagine. I am so glad we get to count Asher and his mommy and daddy as some of our great friends now.

Today we took the boys to the Grapevine Botanical Gardens to get a few pictures. Little known fact: When kids get mobile, they're harder to photograph. And it turns out neither of us had any great photos of the boys at their current age.

So, here's a little bit of Frick and Frack...

Did I mention...

Did I mention we bought a new car? Oh, well, we bought a new car.

We were at a sad little crossroads in our car life. Joe's truck was old. My trusty black Civic from college, Rufus, was getting there. So, we made the decision and sold off Joe's beloved truck.

We are lucky enough that we get to borrow Joe's grandma's SUV, so we had that and Rufus. We have come to dislike Rufus. Not that he was a bad car, but it was awful getting Owen in and out. Joe would hit his head, I would hit Owen's head, I'd wrench my shoulder...it wasn't good.

After taking Rufus to get an oil change and other things, we were told he needed about $1300 worth of work for a busted rod and pinion. What? Well, when work needed amounts to as much as the car, it's time to go in my book. I loved you Rufus, but our journey together ends here.

So, we sent to looking and looking and looking. I decided I wanted a third row vehicle if we were going to keep adding to our family and carting our kid's friends around. We went to car max one dark, cold night and test drove at least 9 different models of third row. Joe and I decided we liked the GMC Acadia or Chevy Traverse in what we wanted to spend.

A few days later, we lucked into finding a pretty good deal on a purple Acadia. We drove across town to check it out, only to discover we were not the VIPs that requested a test drive and were in the midst of buying it. So, being me and not having driven the Acadia myself yet, asked if we could still take it out on a spin. While driving through Richardson, we got the call that it was sold. And, back to the dealership we went.

Boo. Guess we'll keep looking...

But wait...on the ride home we got a call from the sales guy we talked to. The other couple balked. It was ours for the taking if we wanted it. Well, as we were 5 minutes away from home at this point and had a baby boy needing to go to bed, we said we'd be back tomorrow.

And we were...and now that purple Acadia is mine - in all it's parent/adult car glory!

Lessons in Bad Parenting #247

We all strive to be the best parents we can be. Sometimes we fail. Sometimes in these failures, we must step back and laugh. Because heaven knows, God is.

Lesson #247 - When repeatedly asking your child and your dog to mind you and neither could give a flip. Calmly find video-recording phone, press play and record blackmail for later when your child actually might care that what he is doing is GROSS!!!

Please come back often for more enlightening lessons in bad parenting, I can assure you there is bound to be at least one more...

A Surprise for my Birthday

If you hadn't noticed by my blog post, FB posts, or my constant whining, I turned 30 this January. It's been a slightly hard mind transition checking the next age bracket box on things and just thinking how 30-year-olds always seemed so much more learned and far away from where ever I was in life. Seems as though I'm here now...humph. I'll be looking forward to gaining some company in March from my hubby and my pal, Lyd.

But this is about me!

My hubby knew what I needed.

A little bit of away time.

He planned it so that Grandma Holly and PopPop (as Owen now calls Jim) would watch O, and we'd go enjoy a weekend away. He surprised me after a family lunch and told me to get ready for a drive. After trying to get the directions to work, Joe be grudgingly asked me to help with directions, and really without meaning to I spied it and figured out one half!

We were off to Fossil Rim Wildlife Park in Glen Rose. I was sooo excited. I have wanted to go here for a long time. It is a animal park where you actually get to drive through and feed and see the animals from your car. Don't worry, they have the cheetahs caged...it's mostly different species of deer, antelope or rams. Well, unfortunately we left a little late to make it in for the last drive of the day. BUT, we headed up to the observatory and got to pet the goats. Gosh, I love me some goats. These however were huge! Not like the little ones I'm used to seeing.

So, after that little side trip, we were on to our second leg of the journey. A hotel and night out on the town in Granbury about 20 minutes away. We stayed in a lovely Hilton beside the lake and dined downtown at one of the local restaurants. It was a quaint little adventure. The town was a bit smaller than we thought, so there was not a lot of options. But we ate at a fabulous restaurant on the Sqaure in their back patio and had a great evening talking with one another.

On Sunday, we woke up and had breakfast at the local cafe and did a little antiquing. We then loaded up and went to find the animals.

We had a great time!!! If you go to Fossil Rim, you have to get a bag of feed -- it makes the adventure. After a while it kinda seemed like we were seeing the same animals, but part of the fun was deciding whether or not they were going to attack you or ram your car if you didn't give them food. No one died in the enjoyment of this adventure, but it was touch and go there a few times for the car! =)

Beware the ostriches. These birds do NOT mess around. This guy stuck his head into all the cars and came about an inch from Joe's eyeball. We didn't stop for the others.

Visiting the car behind us. Yikes, not the time to be in a convertible.
These guys I felt like could never be trusted, especially with a head of horns like that. Also, please note their too-short bell bottom hairy legs. Cracked me up!


Gentle giant. We liked this guy.











My little buddy. He was so light and pretty.









Till he made this face! =)

Beautiful giraffes - they weren't in the hand-feeding mood.

We returned home to be greeted by a happy baby boy, some tired grandparents and a plate loaded with cupcakes.

I'd have to say this was a great birthday weekend. I'll overlook the 30 part for such a great time with my husband and fun celebrating with my family.

One of those days?

Do you ever have one of those days where nothing seems to go right?

Well, it seems I've been having one of those days for the last month or two solid. I just can't get it together. O just won't listen and mind (thanks, terrible two's). House is, we'll just say, less than stellar. Car problems. Dog problems. Hubby frustrated about something or other that just makes your day that much more of a fail.

I'm tired of it. I'm tired of being weighed down by the things of this world. I wish I knew how to fix it, but I don't.

I'm praying and trying.

I'm hoping this is just a season. A short, piddly season like Fall in Texas.

I'm almost certain you won't find me with my head buried in the back yard, but I make no guarantees.

2012...So, seems you're here.

To be honest, I'm not that excited about the new year.

**I'll tell you a secret.

2012 brings death to my 20s.**

(I'm not overjoyed by this factoid!)

However, I am resolved to make a resolution, none the less.

I resolve to get my passport!

If I'm going to be old, I'm going to travel! So there!

To the Zoo!

Last month we finally made it to the zoo. I had been wanting to go, but it was either too hot, we were too busy, or just too tired. But, this time, Owen, Grandma Holly and I made a plan and stuck with it.

We made our trek over to the Dallas Zoo, as I was excited to see the new Giants of the Savannah exhibit. I didn't really know what I was in for, because I had this line my dad said once upon a time running through my mind the whole time. He told me once, the best exhibit at the Dallas Zoo was the cockroaches when he was little. ICK!

I will be happy to tell you that that is NOT SO!  It was delightful! We had a great time. I think I probably enjoyed it the most. The Grandma was excited to be there with the grandson. The kiddo was excited about all the statue animals. Me? My animal loving self was in wart hog heaven!

Here's a few snap shots from the day. I can't wait to go back!

The elephants doing their tricks...see the trainer on the rocks on the left.

O says he approves of the Savannah. 

Well, hello there!

Parallel parking for giraffes!

Watching the lions from our lunch table.

Mom, these elephants are really my speed!

Teehee! Trunks are funny!

That guy's funny, Grandma!

One more time!

Of course, Grandma Holly had to take him on the Carousel! 

Yea! for the zoo!

A Trick-or-Treating We Will Go

I posted a little bit about O's first real trick or treat expedition over on the O'Baby Blog, but I wanted to share this little bit of video too!

I know he's my kid so that influences me on the cuteness factor, but seriously, this kid is cute. All dress up in his puppy-with-no-puppy-ears-because-I-won't-wear-them costume and his big blue eyes just make me melt!

Anniversary Trip to San Francisco!

This October I did two things I've never done before.
1. I visited California
2. Joe and I left the O'Bear!

Joe and I took a 3night/4day trip to San Francisco to celebrate our fifth year of marriage.

We had a great time. though I think this was the first vacation I can remember popping more pain pills than anything else. We walked EVERYWHERE!! And, little known fact, did you know there are hills in SF? They do, and not just small majestic hills. These are eat your lunch and kill your knees type of hills. But we walked them!!

The big city was kind of a shock for me since I haven't done that in a while (I know I live in Dallas, but it's the burbs!) But we had lots of fun. We rode the trolley, strolled the peirs...all 39+ of them, visited Alcatraz, walked the Golden Gate Bridge. We also visited a small town on the other side of the bay, Sausalito, and had a fun time just poking around there.

Alcatraz was neat, just because we've heard so much about it. It is crazy how close it feels to the main land, and as we learned on the tour, that was one of the hardest parts for prisoners. They said they could especially hear the laughter and partying by the yacht clubs on New Years and such. A lot of it has started to crumble, but it was neat and a little eerie to see that part of history.
On the home front, O stayed with his Grandparents' O'Brien and had a blast! I think the kid cried for 2 minutes and didn't slow down the whole time! Makes my heart happy knowing he's well taken care of and having fun. And wow, he's growing up!

So, not quite what I had thought of for my first trip to California, but it was special and fun a the same time! Thanks, Joe, for some great, though pain-filled, memories!

pumpkins and potatoes

Today we took a trip to the Arboretum with friends to visit their pumpkins. Then later this evening we went to the local church pumpkin patch with the Colvins, which has turned into quite the fun tradition. We also enjoyed a nice bowl of potato soup before we left tonight, and thought I'd share a few pics and the recipe.

Hearty Potato Soup
1/4 c. Butter
3 green onions, finely chopped
2 carrots, grated
1 10-oz. Can chicken broth (you can add more to thin out)
2 10-oz. Cans cream of potato soup

2 potatoes, mashed
2 c. Shredded cheddar cheese (medium or sharp)
1 c. Sour cream
Salt & pepper to taste
Milk (optional - to thin out)

Melt the butter in a 3 quart sauce pan or Dutch oven. Add the green onions and carrots, and sauté until tender. Add the chicken broth and simmer, covered, for 20 minutes.

Throw in your baked potatoes and mash to desired consistency. Then stir in the potato soup, cheddar cheese, and sour cream. Cook low over heat until the cheese melts, stirring to mix well. Season with salt and pepper. Add milk if needed for the desired consistency. Serves six.

Happy Fall!

Hits and Misses ::edited::

I've fallen in with the cool crowd and joined Pinterest. Is it still cool if EVERYONE is doing it? (I digress.)

If you haven't joined this site you should. It is a visual bookmark for all the cool stuff you find on the web. Looking to redesign your house? Start a "dream home" board. Love to sew? Start a "craft and sewing" board...

Well, one of my pin boards is food. And with a few recent shindigs, I tried out a recipe or two. One a hit. One a miss.

Big, Fat Hit #1: Chicken Enchilada Pasta
Yummy!!!
It was fairly easy to make, though it did call for quite a few ingredients. I made this for a friend who recently had a baby (Hi, Emily!), and still had some left for our family too! You can also decide on your designated spice level depending on what sauces you use and if you want to throw anything else in the mix.
I will definitely make again.

Big, Fat Hit #2: Sopapilla Cheesecake
I saw this on pinterest here, but the recipe I actually made was from my good buddy, Karen. This is a great recipe for a friendly gathering, nothing too fancy, nice, gooey and warm. A few things though: gotta watch out that the butter doesn't just pool on top. And, I mixed half the sugar and cinnamon with the butter to pour on top, then sprinkled the remaining over that. I feel that helped give it a little crunch on top.
Here's Karen's recipe:
Sopapilla Cheesecake...

2 cans crescent rolls

2 pkgs. cream cheese

1 1/2 c. sugar

1 tsp. vanilla

1 tsp. cinnamon

1 stick butter

Layer the first can of crescent rolls out flat in a 9x13 greased baking pan. Mix together softened cream cheese, 1 c. sugar, and vanilla. Spread over crescent rolls and then add the next can of rolls as the second layer. Melt the butter and mix with 1/2 c. sugar and 1 tsp. cinnamon. Drizzle over top. 

Bake for 30 minutes at 350. Enjoy!

Big. Sad Flop: Lemoncello Cake
Won't link up, due to dissapointment.
If you come across it, just say no. Now, barring I did not use the liquor they mentioned, the cake just turned out sad and heavy. I had such high hopes, but it got squashed.

Lesson: you just got to try! I look forward to more experiments and hopefully more success stories too! Sign up, start pinning and let me know if you come across something great!