Quinn's new ride for the summer

I was at Babies R Us last Sunday to get the kid some squeeze pouches (about the only way I can get veggies in him right now), new sippies (our 5 oz ones just aren't big enough any more), and a larger bib (seriously kid, how did you get food there?). I was just walking the aisles enjoying my shopping-completely-alone time when I saw the wagon aisle. I just couldn't resist. I had a 20% off coupon so I wrangled the huge box into my cart all on my own.

When I got home the hubs gave me a bit of the side eye as I declared "I can put it together after he goes to bed...all by myself!" HA! Of course that didn't happen.

After watching me struggle for a couple of minutes (and taking my picture to post to Facebook), the hubs came to my rescue and helped me put it all together.

Isn't it cute?

Quinn loves it! He can climb in and out all on his own if the side is open. So that's what he does, in and out, in and out. He even ate dinner in it tonight.

I have to be careful now though. It's just too easy to spoil my baby boy when I see how happy he gets over new things to play with.


Follow my blog with Bloglovin

carrie underwood

As part of my birthday present this year, the hubs got us tickets to see Carrie Underwood in her Blown Away Tour. This is the second time we've seen Carrie and she was just as fantastic as the first go 'round. The girl can belt out some songs.

I was skeptical of our seats at first (I mean who can really tell from those layouts on the website?), but ended up being very pleasantly surprised. Her set was pretty neat looking.

I brought my little point and shoot camera and actually ended up with some halfway decent pictures. I still felt a little disconnected from the show since I couldn't *really* see her and mainly watched the big screens.

Carrie had some phenomenal costume changes. Even though I'm not a fan of the high-low hemline trend going on, girlfriend has some rocking legs and deserves to show those bad boys off!

This picture cracks me up, ha! During parts of her show the lights got a bit out of control for us old folks. It was so bright in there that Danny put his sunglasses on.

The first concert we went to, Carrie got into the back of a pick-up truck and was flown around the coliseum. This concert, she climbed into a fenced in part of the stage that lifted up and went across the crowd.

The opening act for her tour was Hunter Hayes so they did a song together towards the end of the show. Now Hunter Hayes isn't exactly my jam. He's cute but a little too throat-y for me. Well I was clearly in the minority based on the girl screams when he came out on stage haha!

It was a great birthday present!

Follow my blog with Bloglovin

mish-mash

I haven't been so good at keeping up with blogging lately so it's time for the good ole bulleted list and iPhone picture dump. Do you ever find that the longer since your last post, the harder it is to get going again?

• The hubs went to Asheville to work on a press there and he stopped at one of my favorite stores, Bloomfield's. They carry one of our china patterns. {Yes that means we might possibly have more than one...maybe five} This is the pretty he brought home.

• Quinn has been sleeping in his crib for a little while now and I always get so tickled at the different positions I find him in.

• When you announce you're in the mood to bake something, this is what you'll come home to ha!

• We moved Quinn into a big boy car seat. He loves it! It's a little more challenging when he falls asleep, but so far I like it. 

• I was unpacking some more boxes and came across my grandparents' china. This was their everyday stuff. Lucky for me my married name starts with the same initial as theirs!

• Our friends Jessica and Bryan had their beautiful baby girl Parker on October 4th. We went to visit while they were still in the hospital. I'm itching to visit again soon!

• On our way into Clemson, the hubs and I decided to order a pizza from Papa Johns. I found it so funny that when I went to give them my phone number for the order they still had it stored in their computer under my maiden name. I definitely had my fair share of pizzas at college.

• For the Clemson vs Georgia Tech game, the bestie and her beau came to town. It was such a great game! We decided to skip tailgating and instead ate at TD's downtown and did a little shopping. It was the perfect decision.

• The Sunday after the game, we ran errands as a little family. I love days like that. We had breakfast at Denny's and picked up pumpkins. Quinn loved riding in the race car cart.

• I'm so happy it's soup weather! I've been bringing soup to lunch almost every day and my mom even made a batch of chicken noodle that's in my freezer. Yum.

• Some cuteness of my baby boy.

• This weekend we decided to make a trip to Ikea. It all started because the hubs saw this sink. I've always wanted a farmhouse sink in the kitchen but not for the price they normally cost. Ikea's version is much more reasonable!

• We ended up leaving with a red table for the breakfast room, a rug for the den, and some toys for the kiddo. We picked out chairs to put on our wish list and save for plus I'm inspired to make a version of this circus top to hang in Quinn's room

• The new rug for the den led to this remodeling project last night. 

• My little Sophia snuggling in bed with me.

• And one last picture of the kiddo to wrap it up. He loved bouncing while I worked on unpacking in the breakfast room.

what's the 411?

Today I decided to link up with From Mrs. to Mama for a little blogging 411. She came up with a list of fun questions for us to answer. Feel free to link up and play along!

1. How long have you been blogging? And what got you started on blogging? Has your blog changed?
I started blogging at the end of 2008. A friend of mine introduced me to a blog called Blue-Eyed Bride and I became hooked. I guess my blog has changed in the fact that I am now a mama so most would consider my blog a "mommy blog." Truthfully, I'm still trying to figure out what I want my blog to be. 

2. Did you go to college? If so where, and what did you study?
I went to Clemson and received a Bachelor of Science in Graphic Communications, which basically boils down to: I have a degree in printing. Clemson is where I met the hubs, first through Tiger Band and then later we realized we were both GC majors. I call him a print nerd because, well, he is one. He calls our degree smearing pretty chemicals on crushed trees. See - total nerd.

3. Where have you traveled?
The only time I went out of the country was on a spring break trip to Cabo with my girl friend Candie. Good Lord that was an adventure. Remind me to tell y'all the story some time. 


Otherwise my travel has all been in the states including: 
numerous trips to New Hampshire camping with my family {I miss Moose Hillock Campground} {possibly Vermont as well?}
Hershey Park in PA
different beaches in South Carolina
the mountains of NC as well as New Bern to visit the hubs' family
trips to Florida to visit my aunt and uncle along with a couple bowl trips for Tiger band
Kentucky for a bowl trip
Vegas for our honeymoon
a road trip {by myself} to Dallas for a summer internship
Lynchburg, VA to visit the hubs family
Fort Wayne, IN when the hubs {briefly} resided there {we were only dating at the time}
the bestie lives outside of Atlanta
Charlotte for a couple of trips to the airport and to watch my very first All Star Nascar race
{I'm sure they might be a couple places I'm missing, but that's enough of a list}

4. If you won the lottery, what would be the first thing you would buy?
Obviously I would plan to pay off all of our debt first, but the first thing I would buy would be a beach house on Isle of Palms. It's on my 30 before 30 list but if I won the lottery I'd definitely be picking something a bit fancier if you will.

5. What are your 3 biggest pet peeves?
Oh I like this one! One: leaving the toilet lid up! Not just the toilet seat, the actual cover. Hate. Two: When someone says 'cent' instead of 'cents'. It would be one cent or fifty cents, not fifty cent {he's a rapper} {cringe}. Three: The hubs' basket. Good gracious I wish I had never given him that thing in the first place. I let him have a basket to put his wallet, sunglasses, and keys. It is always overflowing with junk!  


6. What is your favorite movie?
Don't laugh but Pillow Talk with Dorris Day has to be one of my all time favorites. It's the original You've Got Mail. I also love White Christmas. I'm a sucker for old movies that include song and dance.

7. What is your drink of choice; wine, beer, or liquor. Or Water, Soda, Tea?
I would have to say wine, but I'm really only a social drinker. My everyday drink would be water.

8. What is something you enjoy to do when you have me time?
Gosh I haven't had me time is such a while. I love to do crafty things. I scrapbook, sew, and have an embroidery machine. It feels so rewarding to make it myself. 

9. If you could have a $10,000 shopping spree to one store, which store would it be?
This may seem silly, but I would have to say Belk. It's a department store but it's my favorite. Great cloths, pretty home goods, cute baby things. I would be able to get a little bit of everything!

10. Share with us an embarrassing moment of your past? Or present.
Oh my. I'll tell y'all one of my husband's favorites. 


We were driving from Columbia to Clemson for a football weekend I'm sure and we passed a gas station that had their pricing sign way up high in the air so you can see it from the interstate. I kept staring at it as it came closer and closer and then said out loud, "Gee they really can't decide which price to put up on their sign. The price keeps changing!" The hubs just looked at me in disbelieve. 


It was one of those signs that flashes back and forth for the cash price and the credit price. Oops. Now he loves to point out every flashing sign and declare, "Gee they can't make up their mind!"

11. What day would you love to relive again?
I would love to relive a certain day at band practice my senior year in high school. My coach was awful {he was later fired} and giving me a particularly hard time that day. I just wish I had told him where to shove it and left. We ended up having an awful season, not even qualifying for state, so I felt like it was a huge waste of time to be so miserable. 

12. If your life was turned into a movie... what actor would play you?
This one is tough. Can I say Emma Stone just because I think she's really pretty?

13. What are the jobs you had in high school/college/the early years?
In high school I worked at Food Lion as a cashier for about two weeks, in a sandwich shop called Jo-Jo's Deli, at a Blimpie/TCBY counter in a gas station, and at American Eagle in the mall. I was very fortunate that I never had to work during college except for my two mandatory internships.

14. Show us a picture from high school or college.
Our house is currently all packed ready for the move this Friday, so I don't have any high school photos available. Y'all will have to accept this picture from my freshman year in college instead.

15. If you could travel anywhere in the world, all expenses paid, where would you go?
As cliche as it sounds, Paris. It looks so dreamy in pictures.

16. Show us the most current picture of you or you and your family.

17. Where do you see your life 5 years from now?
I see us as a family of four living out our day to day. I really don't have any career goals so I'll be in the same job and we'll be in the same house. Nothing too exciting, just happy.

a little bit of yankee, a little bit of y'all

If you don't already know, I lived in Massachusetts until I was 14 when my parents moved my little brother and me down south to South Carolina. You could say it was a bit of a culture shock, but most things were a welcomed change. There's a lot I love about the southern way and there are still some yankee tendencies that I will never let go of I'm sure.

Yes ma'am, no ma'am
Yes sir, no sir
I was thoroughly confused by this one at first. I will always remember my first day at my new high school when a teacher asked me a question. I politely answered "yes" and was met with the most offended, glaring expression. She muttered, "excuse me??" and all I could do was blink. That was when I was given my first lesson of, "I don't know what you yankees do, but down here we show respect and say 'yes ma'am'.". Yes ma'am.

Now I say ma'am and sir on a regular basis. Doesn't matter how old you are or your relationship to me, I will always use it for fear of another mishap. The hubs and I are raising Quinn to say it as well. He will also call our friends Miss Jessica and Mr. Bryan.

Grits
I just...no. I can't do it. I cannot eat something that tastes just like it sounds. I'll forever and always be an oatmeal girl.

Dressing up for football games
Love it! I love any excuse to look cute but I'll be completely honest, I don't always follow through. The beginning of football season in the south {and sometimes the entire season} is just so dang hot. I will throw on a pair of shorts and Clemson tee and just call it a day.

Ketchup on eggs
The hubs *hates* when I do this. It totally grosses him out and he has started threatening that I better not teach Quinn "that disgusting habit" haha. Sorry I'm not sorry and I'll never ever stop. Eggs without ketchup gross me out.

Bubbles, john johns, longalls, rompers, etc.
Southern women know how to dress their babies!

Water bubbler
Y'all would call it a water fountain. I don't know how many confused looks I've received when I've mentioned a bubbler but I just can't seem to break the habit and switch to fountain.

Monogrammed everything
I purchased my own embroidery machine just so I could indulge in this southern habit. If I can add a monogram, oh you bet I will.

Aunt vs. Ant
There's a u in the word aunt for a reason ha! I just cannot call someone 'Ant Judy.' It really makes my skin crawl {because an ant is a bug!}.

The list of yankee likes is fairly small compared to my now southern tendencies. I love sweet tea and wearing pearls with jeans. I love seersucker and camo on guys. Clemson is a way of life and tailgating can be done for any event. So at what point would I be considered a southerner and not just a displaced yankee?

30 before 30

{I've been working on this post since February. Who knew it was so hard to think of thirty things I wanted to do?}

1. Have 2nd baby.
2. Get current with scrapbooking. I'm working on 2010 right now {and by working I mean that's where I stopped right before I had Quinn...}.
3. Get 2nd holes pierced in my ears. I want to be able to wear the diamond studs the hubs gave me everyday.
4. Establish a workout routine.
5. No credit card debt.
6. Visit five new places.
7. Read the Bible.
8. Own a beach house or have an awesome rental.
9. Join Junior League.
10. Maintain a size 8 figure {almost there already!}.
11. Sew ten projects for me.
12. Create the perfect craft room {I feel like this will be an always ongoing project..}.
13. Host a fancy dinner party using our wedding china.
14. Read 30 books.
15. Find a church we love.
16. Visit my great-grandfather's grave at Arlington.
17. Go out on the Sky Walk at the Grande Canyon.
18. Start a college savings account for Quinn.
19. Have a family portrait taken every year {we already have a session scheduled for this year with my fav girl, Erica!}.
20. Create five family traditions that we repeat yearly.
21. Start a prayer journal.
22. Start a vegetable garden.
23. Visit Yellow Stone.
24. Establish a yearly party {4th of July maybe?}.
25. Bake a cake from scratch.
26. Get my concealed weapons permit.
27. Catalog our Christmas ornaments.
28. Learn how to can the vegetables from our garden.
29. Learn how to crochet.
30. Find my signature drink.

What's on your list?

a random post

I am determined to catch up on posting since I last left off around Christmas time. I just can't right now because all of my pictures are on my laptop at home (and I'm at work posting during my lunch break). For the time being I'm going to do a random post about nothing that I saw on Beantown Prepster.


The rules:
1. Post the rules.
2. Write 11 fun facts about yourself.
3. Answer the questions the tagger set for you and then create 11 new questions to ask people you tag.
4. Tag 11 people and link them to your post.
5. Let them know you've tagged them!!

Eleven fun facts about me:

1. I was in dance classes for 15 years and now when I see a little girl shaking it in her tu-tu and sequins I get a little choked up. I miss it terribly! I pray we have a little girl next just so I can take her to dance classes. I really should bust out all of my recital tapes and have a little reminiscing session. 

2. I love that I have a southern accent even though I spent my first fourteen years of life living in Massachusetts. A southern twang is so much sweeter! The hubs got me a tshirt that says, "A little bit yankee and a little bit y'all."

3. My favorite color is pink. Always has been and always will be. If one of the options is pink, no matter what it might be, I will want it. Example: the hubs got me an iphone and a kindle for Christmas. For both items he made sure to get the cases in pink. He got extra points for getting a pink and sparkly iphone case. He knows me so well.

4. I love scrapbooking. After cleaning out my grandparents' house this past month and finding photo albums from the late 1800s (we think), I'm even more determined to get back on track. Currently I'm working on the album for 2010. It kills me that I'm that far off, but life happens. I want my great grandchildren to be able to look through my scrapbooks and feel like they know me.

5. I wish I was a runner. I daydream of running long distances, listening to music, and enjoying the country scenery. 

6. Some days I want a large family; four, five, even six kids. I picture Sunday dinners and backyard cookouts with everyone running around. 

7. I hate HATE the phrase "she gets it honest." To me it's the most absurd phrase ever. The hubs used it once and had to explain to me what it meant. Now he uses it every chance he gets just because he knows it makes my skin crawl.

8. Another thing that I hate is when things are out of place. Everything should have a spot and it needs to be logical. If something is moved, I will always put it back. I constantly put the hubs shoes back in the closet even if he is planning on putting them on five minutes from now. I can't handle them even being by the door.

9. I'm a list maker. I love being organized and keeping everything straight. This is why I make lists, lists, and more lists. I keep a running grocery list, to-do list, want list, present idea list, project list, and fix-it list. I believe this is also why I love Pinterest. It feeds my list addiction.


10. I recently became a mommy this past November. It's been an adjustment but I love the change. When my sweet baby smiles at me the world stops.


11. I don't do well with change but I like variety. Seems like an oxymoron, huh? An example would be the foods I eat. I always get oatmeal, nutrigrain bars, fruit, etc. but each time I change which flavor I want. 


Beantown Prepster's eleven questions:

1. If you could have a theme song to play when you walk down the street what would it be?
Ladies Love Country Boys by Trace Adkins


2. If you could only watch one TV Show for the rest of your life, what would you pick?
The Golden Girls. I used to watch it all the time with my grandmother and it brings back such happy, comforting memories.


3. French fries: Skinny and crispy or big and mushy?
skinny and crispy, especially the crinkle ones by Ore-Ida


4. What is your guilty pleasure outfit?
The hubs pajama pants and tshirt because it smells like him.


5. Soda: Fountain, bottle or can?
Diet coke from a glass bottle


6. Favorite thing to do at the gym?
A class of sorts so I don't have to think of the moves myself


7. If you could live anywhere, where would it be and why?
I love living in South Carolina


8. What was your first animal and do you remember its name?
My family had a black lab/newfoundland mix named Bob. He was the greatest dog and it was an extremely sad day when we had to say goodbye.


9. What is one thing that you carry in your purse that you absolutely cannot live without?
Chapstick


10. What is your most embarrassing habit?
I bite my cuticles. The hubs is constantly fussing at me for it.


11. If you could meet and be BFFs in real life with a blogger that you follow, who would it be and why?
I'd love to by friends with Erin from The Blue-Eyed Bride. She was the first blog I started regularly reading. She's local, a boy mom (me too!), and I feel like we have very similar values. Hope that doesn't seem stalkerish, ha!



My eleven questions for you:


1. Favorite cartoon character?
2. Dogs, cats, or neither?
3. Would you ever drive a mini van?
4. Favorite outdoor activity?
5. Would you ever go tent camping?
6. How many siblings do you have? Do you wish you had more, less, the same?
7. If you went to college, what did you major in and do you use your major in your current job?
8. Do you have a favorite team? 
9. How often do you vacuum?
10. What kind of phone do you have?
11. How long does it take you to get ready in the morning?

I'm supposed to tag 11 bloggers, but instead of doing that, let's have 11 Bloggers that perhaps read my blog but never comment play! I want to meet all of you new (or quiet) readers! If you are a lurker who blogs, leave a comment linking back to your blog so I can come read! Don't be shy people, COMMENT!