Feliz Aniversario!

For some reason, Sean and I don't ever do anything! I mean, we are so lame! Our own birthdays, eh...New Year's Eve, in bed before the ball drops...Friday and Saturday nights, no different than the rest...maybe it's because we always seem to have some other obligation, or more likely, we're just lazy. But this weekend, on September 11th, we will celebrate our 10th wedding anniversary. The milestone, coupled with the realization that by no. 11 we'll hopefully have a new baby attached to our hearts and my bosom. A big vacation reminiscent of our honeymoon seemed like kind of a now or (practically) never opportunity.

So I spontaneously texted Sean from my office last month, suggesting that we take a trip to Mexico then come home and have another baby. He liked the idea - so I booked both the trip and my doctor's appointment that day.

We arrived into Cancun on Wednesday afternoon and were shuttled to our beautiful hotel in fabulous Playa del Carmen. We checked in, ordered ceviche and a cerveza and a margarita from the thatched-roof bar on the beach. After our snack, we walked up one block to 5th Avenue and strolled among the little shops, open-air restaurants, gelato bars, and quaint downtown hotels.

The next day, Sean delivered a Starbucks latte to my bedside and then we enjoyed a complimentary breakfast on the beach. After that, we claimed one of the cozy mattresses in the sand, and slept and read and people-watched for the entire day. Except for that hour I was getting a $35 full body massage. On. The. Beach.

The following 3 days went pretty much the same way. Tempura-battered fish tacos. Chips and fresh lime, pico de gallo, and curry-coconut milk-pineapple salsa. Pina Coladas. Guacamole. Sun. Sleep. Souvenir shopping. My completion of the first Sookie Stackhouse novel. And a chance meeting of Sean's old flame in the airport bathroom. ;-)

A decade later, and ten times the size, Playa del Carmen is still the perfect match for me. I'm pretty sure Sean thoroughly enjoyed himself, as well. We will be going back...and taking friends, family, and our kid(s)...and it won't be ten years this time. Mark those words.

The Chicken Dance

With Oktoberfest fast approaching, I thought it best that we dust off the dirndl, make sure it still fits, and practice a few traditional dance steps that every German girl needs to know. Aside from her refusal to flap her wings, Willa has the Chicken Dance down pat. It's just in her blood! I CAN NOT WAIT until October 3rd!

***Dad: before you hit play, make sure you have a tissue handy. :-)

The List

ShopAcrossTexas.com posted its TOP 45, and guess who made the list...Root! The site scoured the state, from big cities to small towns, and covered all types of retail, including gift, home, and apparel stores. Ballots were emailed to 45,000 homes and the list was officially revealed on ShopAcrossTexas.com in August. Wait! There's more...5 of the 45 are located in Fredericksburg (Red, Homestead, Beulah's, Something Different II, and your's truly) and our perfect little town won the prestigious award for Best Shopping in a Small Town! With the help and encouragement of ShopAcrossTexas, we entered a float in the Gillespie County Fair Parade. We gathered merchandise from all five shops and piled it high on Sean's vintage pickup for a Sanford & Son Goes Cruisin' Main theme. Nothing fell off, the goods all made it back to their respective storefronts, and we, hard-working, hardly-rewarded retailers pulled off a little shameless self-promotion.

Other highlights from the parade included mini ponies, a bright turquoise tractor, the cheerleaders (especially Alli), this precious pooch, the Sit-And Be Fit Ladies, a 3-day old DiCuffa snuggled in a sling and his visibly sleep deprived big brothers, and Willa doing the Roll-It-Up to the blaring music.

Family and the Texas Coast

We made our annual family excursion to Port Aransas mid August. Unanimously, we decided to forgo our usual digs at the rundown Sea Isle Village and try something new. In search of that something new-er and cleaner, and more comfortable in the mattress department, we googled, compared and finally decided on a 3 bedroom condo at Twin Palms Condominiums. I think we have all since concluded that the Sea Isle tradition was over-rated. The new place was great. In fact, if Seed Pod Properties ever finds itself in the position to invest in another piece of real estate, my mom and I have it planned, picked out, and of course, decorated from floor to ceiling.

Not surprisingly, Willa took to the ocean like a little fish, and when we weren't at the beach, she was wielding the garden hose in the courtyard of the condo. And when we took her down to the pool, she learned to hold her nose and go under the water, and did it over and over again, pausing only for applause, until she had inadvertently taken in so much water that she spit up a little. To which she politely covered her mouth and said, "excuse me." (Thank you, Gigi.) Yes, she is getting so big, and so smart, and so polite and sweet. It seems like we are in a constant state of pleasant disbelief and beaming pride.

Sean was the early riser of the bunch and therefore, assumed the responsibility of the ice chest packer/lawn chair hauler/tent putter-upper (and taker-downer.) By the third day, we was a little grumpy over this. Willa mostly clung to her Mimi as if for dear life, to the point that all the rest us felt a bit rejected and annoyed. Of course not annoyed in a bad way. :-) Just a selfish kind of longing for our own personal dose of Willa's affection. Mimi enjoyed it though, and she deserved that. Chris and Sean shared in the evening food preparation and Wanda provided some spectacular breakfasts and homemade sweetness. (Iced brownies and her famous lemon pie.) Dean and River joined us, along with Ransom, Cole, Alli, and two of her friends. Crazy Johnny and family stuck with tradition and stayed up the road, but joined us on the beach. It was a great escape and everyone seemed to enjoy the time together in the sun. It was a vacation I certainly needed and appreciated!

Blogger Shame

There once was a time I had time to blog. Something has happened, but I haven't yet been able to put my finger on it. I'm finally at a loss for excuses...

I can't say that I'm necessarily busier at work, or that Willa is substantially any more active than a month ago, and I certainly haven't lost my desire to profess my innermost feelings across this blog. Oh, it's still there, wedged between the guilt of my blogging inadequacies and the fear of disappointing my dear-to-me following.

I honestly expected to catch up during our recent Mexican vacation, but technical difficulties made it, well, more difficult than worthy.

So many memories to recall and photos to upload...this will take some time. But I'm up for the challenge and the late nights. Please check back occasionally as I fill in the blanks of the past weeks.

Thanks! :-)

Summer Love

Settling into motherhood has been the most challenging, emotional, exhausting, fulfilling, and beautiful journey. One of the best things about the trip has been my renewed and deepened appreciation for the simplest joys in life...home-cooked family dinners, eskimo kisses, singing, dancing, and acting silly, ice cream, uncontrollable laughter, and playing in the sprinkler. This summer, I have tried to work less and focus more on family life and make the most of each moment spent with Willa. I hope to be teaching her that it doesn't take extravagant activities or pricey toys to enjoy each day to the fullest. She is growing and changing before my very eyes and every day learns something new. Her vocabulary and understanding of things amaze us. She is on the verge of speaking in complete sentences and uses many multi-word phrases, such as "Mommy, paci, please." "Where kitty cat go?" "Mommy, read story." C'mon, Mommy, get up!" and has taken fondly to repeating the word, "No" over and over and over again. She loves to play with her baby dolls and is so sweet and nurturing with them - swaddling, offering her lovie, rocking, patting, kissing. I hope she's so sweet with a sibling, because that, friends, is a 'project' we're about to embark on - it feels like the right time.

A New-ish Look

Having Willa's party at home gave me the extra push I needed to complete a bunch of lingering projects I abandoned around the time Willa mobilized. Once we had accumulated more baby gear than I was comfortable living with, and Willa's mess-making skills surpassed my tidying abilities, I hit my limit. I tore through the house, editing with haste, removing clutter and decoration without consideration. And since my budget hasn't allowed for any extra spending to replace the things I tossed, I've been living with bare walls and compromised personality. There are worse things, I know, but my uninspiring surroundings left me feeling bored and anxiety-ridden. Yeah, I'm super-sensitive to that sort of thing. I require order. And pretty things. And to Sean's chagrin, a periodical re-do.

With pressure mounting from the impending party, I enlisted some help. Billie Jean removed Willa from the premises for an entire day, and my mom came over to crack the whip, as she puts it. The whip is actually a metaphorical one, and she does a whole lot more than supervise. She got busy right away; I, on the other hand, was just so overwhelmed at the prospect of a child-free, productive day of cleaning, organizing, and decorating, I was paralyzed. At one point, my mom had to grab me by the shoulders, shake me, and say, "DO SOMETHING!" So I did, and once I started seeing my own progress, I got into it and we worked well past our bedtimes, hanging art, moving furniture, changing out pieces here and there, and dusting all those places that I so easily forget about.

Of course, I made a few small, necessary purchases to complete the look. I picked up the two pillar candles for my mantle from my favorite new local shop, Enid. And we replaced our smelly old jute rug with this new one from Ikea. I had some art framed, and got one new piece - the Gazelle print - from Enid as well. My favorite part, though, is this steal: The $5 a piece Hospice-thrifted metal tables. I have to give credit to my awesomely handy brother, Chris, for making me their new poplar tops. And to Sean, for doing my intended dirty work - grinding down the green paint and coating them with sealer. Ten dollars for two beautiful tables can't really be beat. But I wouldn't dare underestimate the value of a husbandly honey-do and a big-brother favor. (Thanks, guys.)