The Mussatos

1 Month Checkup & Weekend with Family

2012-02-20T13:05:00.016-08:00

Ryder celebrated his 1 Month Birthday last week and also had his check-up. He weighed 8 lbs 9 oz (25th percentile) and is the most perfect little baby. I don't want to brag, but he really has been an angel baby and is a great sleeper during the night. He goes to bed around 10 or 11 and we have been doing only one bottle (around 4am) for over 2 weeks now. It broke my heart to see him get a shot in his thigh and I am really dreading his appt next month when they will give him several more.

My parents and brother's family came to visit over the weekend since school is out today for Presidents Day.

Bella checking out her new cousin

All the grandbabies

Cousins

Hayes was a little confused as to why Ryder can't walk and talk yet. At 4 years old he keeps us very entertained with all of his questions. Bella is a little princess and loves being a little mother to all of her baby dolls and teddy bears. Ryder slept through a lot of our weekend fun, but I know he will grow up so fast and he will be joining in the fun soon enough.

Our Weekend

2012-02-16T09:54:00.021-08:00

Little man had such a busy weekend! We took him on his first trip back to Alabama to meet some friends and family. There were so many people to see that I joked that I felt like his personal secretary booking his appearances.

On Saturday, we stopped in Oxford to surprise my grandmother on her birthday. We made great timing, only stopping once at the Georgia line for a bottle. I unfortunately didn't take any pictures while we were there, but he got to meet his great-grandmother Jean, Aunt Nancy, cousin Jeff, and of course see his Pammy and Paw Paw again.

After an afternoon visit, we made our way to Birmingham where we stayed 2 nights with Ryan's mother. Ryder got to meet his Aunt Molly for the first time who is already spoiling him rotten. That night, Ryder also got to meet our friends Robbie, Nicole, Jason, and Tiffany. They thought he was precious and I must say that I agree.

On Sunday, we had a big family lunch and Ryder met his grandfather (Ryan's Dad) Mike for the first time. It was so cold so we dressed him up like the kid from the Christmas Story.

"I can't put my arms down!!"

That afternoon, Ryder also met his Uncle Tim and Aunt Chris for the first time.

On the way back home to Charlotte on Monday, we stopped in Atlanta for a short visit with our friends Jai and Christie. Ryder had his first play date with his new friend Jackson (born only 3 days apart). Aren't they adorable!

I can't believe this little fella is already 1 month old. He goes for his 1 month checkup tomorrow so I will post more on that and our upcoming weekend.

Baby Wearing and a Few Tidbits

2012-02-08T10:56:00.001-08:00

Yay! I now have TWO hands to type with instead of just one thanks to my Moby wrap. At first I was hesitant to introduce it with Ryder being only 3 weeks old but we tried it today and he loves it.

He has been sleeping for longer periods of time when we hold him instead of when we put him down so this solves that problem. Plus I miss him when he's not in my arms so now he never has to leave my side :) I know he is thrilled...ha! Lately I am probably just the goofy lady who is in his face making smiley faces or taking his picture every time he opens those pretty, bright eyes.

Ryder made his first trips to Target and church over the weekend. The weather wasn't terribly cold so we decided to get out for a few hours. We are reading "Heaven is for Real" in Sunday School and it is the best book! A very short read but still highly recommended.

All ready for church

Napping on Daddy

So apparently pregnancy gave me a few gray hairs. I noticed one back in December but I was hoping it was just a really blonde hair. Nope, it is for sure gray and I have seen one or two more. Guess that's what having your first baby will do! Now I just need to decide if I want to be a Clairol or L'Oreal type of girl. I am not complaining at all though. This little man has made me so happy and I would take a head full of gray hairs if it means I get to experience the joy that he has brought to me.

2 Week Update

2012-01-30T07:58:00.000-08:00

For this child I prayed; and the Lord has given me my petition which I asked of him.
1 Samuel 1:27

What a great 2 weeks we have had! Lots of napping and reading books, but mostly staring in wonder at our new little man and getting lots of snuggles in before Ryan went back to work this morning.

I have taken so many pictures over the last 2 weeks. That's a good thing and I have set a goal to take at least one picture per day of Ryder over his first year of life and put them all in a photo album. Day 15 and going strong! I know that goal is very optimistic but it would mean a lot to have his first year documented in an album.

Messy hair

Getting ready for bed

We cleaned the house extra well yesterday in preparation for my first week home by myself with a newborn. Starting today we have dinner meals coming from friends at church so we didn't want the place to look like a complete disaster before company comes. I have my schedule mostly figured out but of course am still trying to figure out the best time of the day to get my shower and when to let Charlie out (it is cool outside so I don't want to take Ryder with me). Wouldn't be such an issue but our townhome is 3 floors so it's hard to find the best place for him to sleep comfortably while I get things done around the house.

Naptime is almost over & the little buddy is starting to stir so that's all for now. Will post more pics soon!

Meet Ryder

2012-01-18T10:14:00.000-08:00

Meet the newest addition to the Mussato crew!

Ryder Thomas Mussato was born on Sunday night at 6:01 pm. He weighed 6 lbs. 7 oz. and was 18 1/2 inches long. It was a LONG 17 hours of labor, but we are all healthy, happy, and enjoying every minute of our new life together.

He has a head FULL of brown hair, including a combover, small sideburns, and a baby-mullet. We think it is adorable.

I think it's safe to say that Pammy, Paw Paw, and Mimi approve...

Even big brother Charlie approves. Turns out they have much in common with the whole eat, sleep, poop routine.

We came home from the hospital yesterday around lunch and things are going great (so far)! We go to the pediatrician in the morning for his first appt.

Until then, we are snuggling with this little guy and enjoying our first days with a precious newborn. God is so good!

Highlights from the Week and Random Thoughts

2012-01-12T03:55:00.000-08:00

Being 39+ weeks pregnant is for the birds. I am too tired to get out and shop or run errands so I have mostly been at home all week just wondering what life is going to be like once Ryder arrives. We never had a 3D/4D ultrasound (for many reasons) so of course we are extra curious about what he will look like. Check out my baby picture from when I was born in 1984.

Wonder if Ryder will have a head full of hair or be a bald little baby?

Cute hair runs in the family, you know? Check out my niece Isabella on Monday night before the Alabama game. Her hair is long enough for a small ponytail now.

Other things this week...

I have watched several episodes of "I Didn't Know I Was Pregnant" which has left me to wonder what is wrong with those people?! These women are completely out of tune with their bodies and it is hilarious to hear their stories. I even made Ryan watch an episode last night and he was laughing also.

Charlie dog, bless his little heart, has finally realized that I am about to have a baby. He has never been the "brightest" dog, but he makes up for it in cuteness and sweetness. He has been super clingy since Monday morning and has started laying in my lap or by my side at all times which is different for him because he usually prefers his dog bed while he sleeps. His little world is about to be rocked, Forever.

I have also observed that I can see exactly 8 of his bottom teeth sticking out of his mouth when he is relaxed. People always comment about his teeth when we take him out and it's no wonder with the full set he has!

I plan to take Ryder on lots of walks around the neighborhood once the nice weather hits this spring. This is embarrassing, but I realized this week I am still wearing the same tennis shoes that I purchased during my freshman year of college in 2002. Is it normal for a pair of New Balance to last for 10 years? I clearly am not working out enough! I see shoe shopping in my future.

Been awake since 4am because I can't sleep comfortably, but I need to straighten up the house now while I still have energy. It comes in small doses these days.

38 Weeks

2012-01-04T07:30:00.000-08:00

Dear Ryder,

You obviously think you are quite comfortable and warm inside of your current home, but I promise it is even better out here. Your mama, daddy, and furry big brother are incredibly anxious to meet you. As such, you can make you appearance at anytime now.

Sincere thanks,
Mama

These days we are just playing the waiting game. Floors are mopped, fridge is stocked, and bags are packed. We went to the Dr. again today but were just told to come back next week or call if I go into labor or my water breaks.

In the meantime, I cannot get enough food into my stomach. I live a vicious cycle of eating, sleeping, potty-going, repeat, and it is getting out of control. I can't believe I have only gained 34 total pounds with my pregnancy because I swear I eat everything in sight. I am beginning to think my brain is officially gone. I washed my hair twice this morning instead of using conditioner and also purchased an entire bulk size can of coffee only to find we have an almost full can already. At least we'll be well-caffeinated when Ryder arrives.

I would LOVE for the next post to have pics of our little man but at this rate that's not going to happen. Keep us in your thoughts and prayers and also my friend Christie (our friend Jai Tucker's wife) who is due very soon.

Christmas Weekend 2011

2011-12-27T06:32:00.000-08:00

We had a lazy and fabulous Christmas weekend. Ryan was off work all weekend and also on Monday so we had three full days of doing whatever we want! That hasn't happened in a really long time. We played with our new gadgets and gifts from family, went to church services (twice), put together a new Auburn puzzle, cooked pot roast in the crock pot, watched our nephew and niece (Hayes and Bella) open their Christmas gifts via webcam, etc.

Check out what my sweet husband bought me!!

A new Canon Rebel digital camera...a much needed gift since we will soon have a sweet baby boy to photograph. I have an old camera but the picture quality is terrible and we desperately needed a new camera that will last for several years. Now I have to give myself a crash course in all of the features this week.

So I have spent the last several days stalking Charlie since I don't know what else to take pictures of. Isn't he a cutie?

But not quite as cute as my niece Isabella. She is 17 months old and getting cuter everyday.

The weekend was great and I tried my best to just relax and hangout. That was a success since I finished the last book of the Girl w/ Dragon Tattoo series. But now our house looks like it has been hit by Hurricane Mussato so I plan to spend all day today straightening up and doing laundry all while 37 weeks pregnant (I am 37 weeks tomorrow).

I will leave this post with a very frightening picture. Please don't look if you have a weak stomach.

I swear I don't feel this big (and probably shouldn't put this on the blog), but then I see pictures like this and kinda freak out. Ryder is almost ready to meet the world!

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-21T15:45:00.000-08:00

Create a digital greeting card

These Days

2011-12-21T05:00:00.000-08:00

Hello Blog world. It's been a while since I have posted. I have been busy...well, as busy as a "36 week pregnant stay at home mom-to-be" can possibly be. I have always been a list maker and that quality has been taken to the extreme over the past few weeks.

I have mostly been busy nailing down last minute preparations for Ryder's arrival. I've started packing the hospital bag, cooked and froze meals to eat on nights when we don't feel like cooking, written thank you notes for all of the baby gifts, vacuumed and shampooed all the carpets, worked on Ryder's baby book, ironed and put the new bedding on the crib, and so on. I have also made a list of items that we still need and have been working on shopping for them. We now have a Bumbo, video monitors, and a Moby wrap to use out and about to show off the baby boy. Next, I am looking for a diaper genie and maybe an Itzbeen timer if I can find one. Who knew of all the gadgets and gear they make for babies these days?!

We have also had two more baby showers since the last time I posted. We had a diaper shower given one Friday afternoon at Ryan's work and also had a ladies' shower one Sunday after church given by the sweet girls in my Sunday School class.

Meet Big Mama

I have also been "busy" at Ryan's work helping out with various projects going on for the holidays. Christmas at a retirement home can be very eventful and I am thankful that I have the time to help out this year because it can be so rewarding. I think he has such a tough job being the director of a retirement home and I don't know how he does it.

Charlie being a "helper" and testing out the Boppy for us.

I have also been thinking of gifts for Ryan since Christmas is this weekend and then he turns 32 on January 1st. He sure is hard to shop for because every time I ask him what he wants he says for Ryder to be born soon. I can't help him there :) He'll come when he is ready. I go tomorrow afternoon for my first real exam to see if the little man has started his grand plans to meet his Mama and Daddy. I sure hope he comes early and not late so wish us luck!

Top Pregnancy Products

2011-12-08T14:11:00.001-08:00

So I received an email the other day entitled the "top pregnancy products you can't live without". While I didn't agree with most of them (fancy schmancy body pillows, morning sickness relief), I decided to come up with my own list and file it for future use. Here goes...

1. Tums - I have always been prone to heartburn, but pregnancy takes it to a whole other level. These are kept on the nightstand at all times.

2. Carpel tunnel splints - I've needed these on both my hands when I sleep at night to keep the numbness and sharp pains from preganancy carpel tunnel from worsening. I had never heard of this until a few weeks ago but apparently it is quite common...and annoying.

3. cocoa butter stretch mark cream - this one is tricky. Everything I have read says that stretch marks are genetic and that the cream has never been proven to work on reducing stretch marks. I have been using it daily since week 12. A girl can hope, right?

4. houseshoes - with swollen feet, the last thing you feel like wearing in the third trimester is a pair of shoes or flats that are too tight for your puffers (I've named my feet "puffers" these days). I can't live without the houseshoes that my MIL Darcey gave me. The bottoms have rubber soles so I can take the dog outside or check the mail without changing into regular shoes. I'm sure I am quite a sight but at least I am comfortable and they make life so much easier.

5. back massager/heating pad - this was crucial beginning around week 14. I remember rushing to the drugstore after work one day with tears in my eyes because the pain from sitting in front of a computer for 8 hours straight was getting to me. Luckily I don't have that problem much anymore, but with the baby getting bigger and bigger I still have occasional back pain.

6. step ladder or stool - so I am really starting to miss my ninja skills. I used to either jump to reach things or climb the kitchen cabinets to get things off the shelves but now I am ground-bound and have to use a small stool all around the house for things like putting up laundry and reaching the cookie jar on top of the fridge. Life is tough when you can't reach the cookie jar.

7. DVR - this has been a lifesaver for nights of insomnia with nothing on TV except infomercials. Shark Vacuums, Magic Bullets, & Total Gyms just aren't my thing. I try to keep it stocked with programs to watch from bed in the middle of the night.

8. Bella Band - LOVE this product. I have only bought one pair of Old Navy maternity jeans because this band still fits over my regular pants which I love because they are the pants with the perfect length. It has saved me from either buying specialty jeans from a pricey maternity store or getting new jeans hemmed that I will only wear for 5 months.

9. Liz Lange maternity tanks at Target - on any given week, I am wearing these at least 4 or 5 days. I have them in every color and they look great under a cardigan. It has been another trick to expanding my winter wardrobe without buying a ton of new maternity tops.

If anyone has any other favorites that I am missing out on please let me know. I love tips and still have 6 (long) weeks to go!

Iron on Transfer Tutorial

2011-12-05T08:13:00.000-08:00

So I've had a few people ask how to do the iron-ons so I thought I would just share on the blog.

I bought some special paper made by the brand Avery from the office supplies section of Walmart. It's called fabric transfer paper and they make it for both light and dark fabrics. I believe I got 6 sheets of standard size paper for $7.

I copied the designs into Word after picking out some images that I liked online. I googled "free applique images" and found several that I loved from sites like embroidery-boutique.com. I also saw lots of Holiday images but I haven't done any of those yet since we are expecting a January baby.

The next part was the trickiest because you have to print the designs and most importantly any letters as a mirrored image or else it will be backwards after you iron it onto the fabric. To flip the images and letters, I used the Microsoft Paint program in my laptop. **All other instructions that I have read say that Word has this flipping feature also. While I am sure it does, Ryan and I both spent about 45 minutes trying to find it before giving up and using the Paint program.

After the images are printed on the paper, you just clip them out and iron them onto the clothing for about 2 minutes (kind of like a face tattoo!). Mine all worked out perfectly and I was expecting to ruin a few so it was a nice surprise. Since the paper is so pricey I made sure to fill up a complete 8 1/2 by 11 sheet of paper full of images and letters before printing. I did all of the onesies in the previous post with only 4 sheets of the paper.

If anyone makes any cute ones let me know! I was running out of ideas towards the end and I am sure I am going to want to do some more in a few months.

Iron Ons - Who Needs a Monogram Machine?

2011-11-29T10:24:00.000-08:00

Check out the additions I have made to Ryder's wardrobe supply! I have been trying to figure out how to jazz up some plain onesies and make them cute. All of these pieces were hand me downs so you can't beat spending only $7 on the iron-on paper instead of paying for custom monogramming. Plus he will only wear them for a few weeks or months so I didn't want to pay to have anything printed.

These are a few of my favorites.

We have been busy traveling for Thanksgiving and we were grateful to have a nice, long visit with my family before Ryder arrives in a few weeks.

We also had another baby shower at my grandmother's house and we got a ton of goodies and things that we will definitely need. We now have a new high chair, baby walker, Auburn clothes, and a ton of children's books to begin his collection. Each person gave a book and signed their name in the back cover so we will always know who gave him his first books.

Yesterday we "decorated" for Christmas. We switched out the fall colored Reese's Pieces from the candy bowl and replaced them with red and green M & M's. That counts right? That's about all I plan to do unless I find something for the front door. December is already just around the corner!

Thanksgiving Week

2011-11-22T05:22:00.000-08:00

I can't believe it is Thanksgiving week already. This month has gone by so fast. After this week I am not supposed to travel because I would be so far from my doctor, so we are making one final trip back to Alabama for Thanksgiving before the baby comes.

I'm such a slacker I haven't even updated on the last trip to Alabama. We went two weekends ago for our baby shower hosted by friends. It went so well and the decorations were so cute and creative. Here are a few pics...

The hostesses.

My friend Nicole also gave us this canvas portrait that she painted in honor of the newest Mussato. Isn't she so talented?! There is a story behind this because Ryan has been asking Nicole to paint this Auburn logo for him almost every time he sees her for the past several years. It had kind of become a joke between them so he was extra surprised when she gave it to us. I can't wait to hang it in the nursery because it matches the colors so well.

We also had a baby shower to attend in Centre on Sunday afternoon so we were super late getting back home to Charlotte on Sunday night. My feet were so swollen from the car ride and I am really hoping that doesn't happen again during our travels this week.

I spent last week washing all the new baby clothes, organizing the nursery, making a trip to Ikea, and going for my 31 week checkup.

8 weeks to go!

We had a fairly busy weekend but it was so much fun. We met friends for dinner on Friday night, spent all day Saturday in childbirth prep class at the hospital, attended our annual Holiday party with our Sunday School class on Saturday night, went to church on Sunday, and then spent the afternoon watching sports, napping, clipping coupons, and dealing with a flat tire.

I have a few more Christmas gifts to buy today before our travels and one more floor of the house to clean and then I will be mostly caught up here around the house. Note to self: I should no longer attempt to clean the entire 3 floors of our townhouse in one day. My feet just can't take it!...and neither can the poor pup who follows me from floor to floor.

Weekend

2011-11-07T11:01:00.000-08:00

We had a nice, sunny weekend at home here in Charlotte! The weather was gorgeous all weekend and we took lots of walks around our neighborhood. We also got some things done on our to-do list like changing air filters, cleaning ceiling fans, etc.

Tonight I am bringing dinner to another couple in our Sunday School class that just had a baby girl (that means we are the next couple in class to have our baby!). I have the most delicious recipe from my mother-in-law for Hash Brown Casserole and it has become one of my favorites for taking meals to our friends. Here is the recipe:

1 package frozen hash browns (square cubes, not the tots)
8 oz. sour cream
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 stick melted butter
1 package shredded sharp cheddar cheese

Preheat oven to 350. Spray large rectangular casserole dish w/ non-stick spray. Add potatoes to dish, breaking apart any large pieces. Pour melted butter over potatoes and stir. Combine soup & sour cream in a separate bowl and stir into the potato mixture. Top w/ cheese and bake covered 45 min - 1 hour.

It also works well as a breakfast dish. Ryan and I are actually having it tonight for supper along with pancakes. I'd better get started cooking soon because it takes me twice as long to do anything lately. I think my brain is starting to get a little fuzzy because of the pregnancy. I can't think of names for anything anymore so I have been calling everything "this" and "that". There are no more nouns in my vocabulary. I also caught myself trying to open the car door with my wallet instead of the car keys.

We have a short week ahead of us. We are leaving for Birmingham on Thursday night for a long weekend with family and friends. We are also stopping in Centre on Sunday afternoon for a baby shower for one of Ryan's best friends. He and his wife are due 2 days before we are and we are excited to have little Jackson and Ryder grow up together.

Happy Halloween!

2011-10-31T07:37:00.000-07:00

Happy Halloween from the Mussatos! Ryan dressed up for work today as Clark Kent from the Superman movie. He wore a Superman t-shirt underneath his regular work clothing and added the glasses…get it?

I took this picture early this morning as he was heading out the door for work so it’s not that great. Next year we will be dressing Ryder up for Halloween and I can’t wait! Babies in Halloween costumes are so cute.

We are looking forward to our first Halloween in our new neighborhood. We are honestly not sure what to expect. There were soooo many houses in our old neighborhood in Helena that it usually turned into a block party but we are not sure how they do it here. Either way, I have a basket of candy ready and I am ready to stand firm on my “two pieces of candy per kid” policy. Ryan thinks that is mean and embarrassing but I keep telling him I am pregnant and I have an excuse. Gotta have some leftover candy right?

I am getting bigger and bigger and love every minute of it. I honestly have loved being pregnant so far but ask me again in about 6 weeks and I may be singing a different tune. Either that or my child is going to be an absolute terror. I will be 29 weeks on Wednesday and I go tomorrow for my glucose test. I am also busy this week working on the hostess gifts for our baby shower and buying Christmas gifts for our family in Birmingham since we will not see them before Christmas after our trip to Alabama next weekend.

We had another fairly relaxing weekend. Ryan has to work ½ day Saturdays and Sundays every six weeks or so and this was his weekend to work. Luckily the Auburn game came on at night so he didn’t miss a bit of it. Did I mention I am currently reading Coach Gene Chizik’s book entitled “All In”? I am midway through it and it is great so far. He is a Godly man who incorporates his Christian faith into his work life.

This upcoming weekend is the last relaxing weekend we will have at home until December so the honey-do list has already begun. We’ve got some chores to do to get ready for the baby that I can’t do by myself (cleaning the ceiling fans, etc.) so that is the plan for Saturday. The next few weekends after that are packed with baby showers, Thanksgiving travels, an 8-hour Saturday baby-prep class, and our Holiday party with our Sunday School class. Before we blink it will be December and we will be getting anxious to welcome little Ryder to the world!

Nursery Update

2011-10-20T11:53:00.000-07:00

New prints above the changing table ordered from Etsy.com

Baby's first Polo. Can't wait to dress him in Polo similar to his Daddy.

The ever-expanding closet full of clothes. I would say 85% of these clothes were given to us as hand-me-downs and I am so grateful. It has definitely saved me from being tempted to go to Target and buy up with entire baby boy section.

The clothespin wreath got a makeover and a new home. I originally had the pins clipped to a wire hanger molded in the shape of a circle but I learned that an embroidery hoop and a little hot glue would do the trick instead. I may move it to the door of the laundry closet which would probably make more sense.

One of the perks to having a husband that works at a nursing home...handmade baby items from the residents! Someone crocheted this blanket for us this week. Now all I have to do is convince Charlie that it's not his new dog blanket.

Shelves hung above the chair and a re-purposed pillow that I covered in lime green fabric. I promise I do not put Charlie in these pics. He just likes to find the most comfy spot in the room.

These airplane prints were given to Ryan in Christmas of 1991 from his grandfather (he inscribed the backs of the frames). Thomas Ryan served as a Lt. Col. in the Air Force and we are using Thomas as a middle name so these prints are extra special.

We have a name! Unless there is some sort of divine intervention that makes us change our minds we are naming him Ryder. I made these to hang above the crib and give some more color to the room. I used foam tubing from the hardware store and wrapped them in yarn. Took a while to do but much easier than trying to paint a perfect circle or order something online.

We still need a few more basics (cribbing still on backorder, maybe some bookshelves?) but mostly what we need is a baby! Not really...there are so many essentials that we need that I can't even begin. But he is moving more and more which just makes it more exciting and the anticipation grow. Only 12 weeks to go!

Mid October Update

2011-10-17T13:12:00.000-07:00

It's Monday and we are both back in Charlotte and back to a normal week. We have been traveling lately (Ryan to a conference in Winston-Salem and me to Centre to visit with the family) and it is good to be back to our normal schedule.

I start my third trimester this week and I am feeling pretty great. The baby is still lodging his feet under my right rib every night while I am trying to sleep and my hormones are out of control. I can cry over anything lately...during movies, the mention of the word "military", during prayers at church, etc. and I can't wait for that part to be over. Also, my friend Jenna warned me that "pregnancy brain" will come soon if it hasn't already so I am trying to wrap up some long-term financial planning that I have been working on while I am still sane so that I can just relax and enjoying my last few months. The past few weeks have been filled with grown-up terms such as 529 plans, life insurance, IRA rollovers, etc. and I can't wait to have it all settled and done.

I am off now to finish painting some wooden picture frames for the nursery. I found some prints from one of my old picture books with lots of blues and greens that will look great once framed. More pics coming soon!

Orange and Blue Weekend

2011-10-04T13:31:00.001-07:00

We drove down to Columbia, SC on Saturday morning to attend the SC/Auburn football game. We are lucky to live just a little over an hour drive from Columbia and so Baby M got to attend his first Auburn game. I feel like I look so big in this picture. I have seen women that are 9 months pregnant and look like this so I am confident that fairly soon I will be looking like a whale.

And it was a close one but a victory. The skies even turned orange and blue just as the game was ending. I've always known God is an Auburn fan.

I look forward to taking our son down to football games in Auburn in a few years so that he can see Aubie. He has to start behaving though or he is not going to be allowed to go :) He discovered my ribs over the weekend and has been obsessed with kicking them over the past few days. It's also getting harder and harder to sleep comfortably which is okay I guess. I will just be extra-prepared for those long nights come January. Good thing for the DVR because I can get all caught up on the Real Housewives at three in the morning when I can't sleep.

We've got a big weekend planned. Ryan's mom is coming to visit for a few days and on Sunday afternoon we are taking a tour of the maternity wing of the hospital to learn where to check in and what the birthing suites will be like. Time to start getting prepared over the next months!

Thursday Update

2011-09-22T05:36:00.000-07:00

It has been a week of randomness so here is a random post to continue the theme...

On Saturday we went to a sports bar in the Dilworth area of Charlotte to watch the Auburn game with the Charlotte Auburn Club. We had the most delicious Buffalo Chicken pizza that I have ever tasted and I plan to try and copy it for dinner tonight. Anyway back to football, let's just say I'm glad we decided against buying tickets for the Clemson game. While we still want to visit the campus one day (which is as you know, "Auburn with a lake") this just wasn't the year. We are visiting Columbia, SC next weekend to attend the AU/South Carolina game with some friends.

I also made a new wreath for the front door.

It has received some mixed reviews (mostly good ones from me and bad ones from Ryan) and I am still trying to decide whether I like it or whether it just looks dumb.

It is my first project that I have been suckered into thanks to the addicting website known as Pinterest.

I also finished up the curtains for the nursery this week. They were fairly easy to make once I got the hang of it. Charlie approves...

The colors in the nursery are blue and lime green with small pops of orange here and there. Check out the storage bins I picked up at the grocery store yesterday. Only $3 each! Charlie approves of these also.

Next, I am shopping for art for the walls and finishing up the registry. There are a few things on the registry must-haves checklist that I clueless about ("neck wings" for a car seat?) so I may have to google this evening.

This weekend we are staying home and catching up on some things. I am delivering food tomorrow night for a couple at church that just had a baby & I am terrified. Yes, my cooking is edible but it's not the best in the world. Let's hope they still consider us friends on Sunday!

Happy Friday

2011-09-16T06:11:00.000-07:00

Happy Friday everyone! It really feels like fall in Charlotte today and the nip in the air makes me want to pull out the fall decorations. I will wait a week or two though because today I am working on some things for the baby's room. On the agenda...adding fabric stripes to the solid curtains I bought at Target yesterday and also testing the paint on the wall to see if it is the right shade of blue.

My inspiration pic for the curtains...these rugby striped curtains.

How do I have time to do this? Well, I was planning on quitting my part-time job at the end of the year right before the baby comes but unfortunately the company I work for is not doing so well so my last day was the 9/15 corporate tax deadline. I plan to stay home for a while with the baby before looking for a full-time job that will help with day care costs more so than a part-time job. This is the first time I have been without a job so I am a little out of sorts this week. But there is such excitement about bringing home our baby boy in a few months that it's kind of hard to care about anything else.

On another note, we have been given lots of baby gifts this week. My office gave me a ton of baby stuff and one of Ryan's work colleagues gave us some baby blankets in a boy pattern (she is having a girl and didn't want anything blue). Ryan thanked her yesterday for giving us the "waddling cloth." Really? Maybe I ought to schedule those baby-prep classes sooner rather than later. I think we have a lot to learn, including learning how to "waddle" the baby :)

Week Twenty-Two

2011-09-13T05:54:00.000-07:00

We have crossed the half-way point on the countdown to Baby M's arrival. At this stage it is quite noticeable that I am pregnant and for that I am thankful - no more weird looks from people in the grocery store. I've got a feeling this is the "fun stage" of my pregnancy and that it's going to get a more challenging from now on. I have already started experiencing the nightly leg cramps, back pains, varicose veins, etc. and I can only imagine it gets worse. I like to laugh at the weekly email updates I get from BabyCenter.com This week's email said to not be surprised if you shed your hair in clumps after the baby is born. Really? Maybe I need to quit reading!

I finally decided on the bedding for Baby M's nursery. My mom was sweet enough to order it for him from Pottery Barn Kids.

It is pretty simple but that's more my style than the themed nursery bedding that you see everywhere. Did I mention my hatred for monkeys in a nursery? His nursery will be lime green with some other accents colors in the curtains and art that I am still looking into.

We also think we have a name...at least for now. We are calling him that anyway instead of just "baby". I want to wait until we decide for sure before we tell everyone. Choosing a name is such a big decision!

Anniversary Weekend Update

2011-09-08T15:12:00.000-07:00

We are celebrating 4 years of marriage today! Can't believe it's already been 4 years. We celebrated by having a little bit of a vacation down at the beach in Florida. We actually had a wedding of some close friends to attend on Saturday night but we made a long trip out of it and got to spend some time eating seafood and relaxing indoors thanks to Tropical Storm Lee :)

Saturday morning we had brunch with friends and then watched the Auburn game before getting ready for the wedding. This is the bride and groom. We have known Jason and Tiffany for several years now and it was so special to celebrate their big day with them.

Though the ceremony was indoors, the rain cleared up enough that night to get some pics outside near the beach.

This is the kind of picture we take when we behave like adults...

But this is more like reality...

We went to The Back Porch for a late lunch on Sunday. This is where we went the night we got engaged. Check out the cool chairs out front.

More posts soon to come! We have had another ultrasound, ordered nursery crib bedding, and passed our half-way mark on the countdown to baby M.

Nursery in Progress

2011-08-29T18:39:00.001-07:00

We finally started beginning to put some effort into Baby M's room this past weekend. For weeks it has been an empty room with stacks of hand-me-down clothes in the floor and a crib in the corner. We purchased the crib about 3 weeks ago from Walmart and we are very pleased. We are renting our townhome and aren't supposed to paint the walls so I definitely wanted dark wood that would stand out against the cream wall paint...but, since I can't resist colors I am planning to paint a horizontal stripe to match the room colors and just re-paint it back to cream whenever we move out.

I also have been thinking about what other pieces of furniture we will need for the room. I found this changing table/dresser combo on Craigslist on Friday and immediately knew it was perfect for the room. We bought it yesterday afternoon after church.

We actually had an old dresser in the nursery that served as the dresser for our spare guest bedroom, but it was a re-painted yard sale find and it wasn't too nice looking. I sold that dresser to buy the new and improved one & I am so glad we did. Can you believe Ryan got this thing to the 3rd floor of our townhome all by himself? I can't exactly help him lift furniture but he managed to move it all by himself.

We also purchased a new rocker so that I can rock Baby M to sleep. For now, I just have to practice with Charlie who jumps in my lap every time I sit in it. I believe I am going to to use an ottoman because it will make it easier to rock since I am so petite. Ignore the wrinkles in the pic - we just put it together tonight.

That's as far as we have gotten on the room. I have been searching for boy cribbing but the selection is horrible. Everything is either jungle-themed, frogs, elephants, etc. And if it doesn't have a crazy creature on it then it likely has polka dots. Still no name selections either...baby M remains nameless.

We are driving to the beach on Friday for a friend's wedding on Saturday at Seagrove Beach. We are staying four nights and can't wait to be off work for a while and have a nice, relaxing vacation. We haven't been to the beach in a really long time and we are looking forward to it & celebrating our 4 year anniversary.

It's a BOY!

2011-08-18T09:07:00.001-07:00

We found out on Tuesday afternoon that we are expecting a sweet little BOY.
Meet Baby Mussato.

The ultrasound tech knew he was a boy about 20 seconds into the ultrasound and we were so excited. I don't believe I've seen Ryan grin that big since Auburn won the National Championship.

The appt. went well but we do have to go back in 2 weeks because the baby's head & face were positioned in a way that he couldn't be measured. Note to self, when you are being weighed by a large nurse that Ryan has affectionately nicknamed "Big Mama", don't exclaim that being 123 lbs. is the most you have ever weighed in your entire life! It will get you some strange looks by the larger ladies.

Charlie is excited to be a big brother. We keep telling Charlie that his new nickname is "Dos" or "Deuce" since he is going to be the second favorite child instead of #1. We let him know his baby brother is now "Uno" and Charlie is not so thrilled. I am honestly worried about how he will behave when the baby is here but we'll just have to figure it out along with parenting.

Mid August Update

2011-08-15T09:30:00.000-07:00

We had an eventful weekend at the Mussato house. Our internet connection has been out since last week & still isn't completely fixed so I am blogging quickly.

We bought new plants for the front door entry. I have been looking for weeks for Rosemary bushes (since the movers killed the gorgeous one we had) and finally gave up on the hunt. Boxwoods will just have to do. I would love to buy something to hang on the front door but everything that I see for sale doesn't seem to be very outdoor-friendly and I need something that can hold up to the rain since our door isn't covered.

We also ordered a crib for the baby. I am 18 weeks along and we find out the sex tomorrow & we are so anxious. Once we know, we can actually start thinking of names and working on the nursery. I am also starting to show a little more. For several weeks I have been in the "is she fat or pregnant?" stage and I think I am starting to see the light at the end of the fat tunnel.

We (make that I) added new bathroom decor. I ordered an Auburn print last year but have just now taken the time to frame it. Custom matting and frame job courtesy of yours truly for less than $50...can't beat that! The print is a drawing from the original artist that created Aubie several decades ago. How cool is that? I will post pics when the Internet cooperates.

I finished reading The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo last week. It was ok and I plan to get the second book of the series as soon as it is available from the library. Ryan's mom gave him an autographed copy of Gene Chizik's book "All In" so I may read that in the meantime. I have heard from several people that it is really good.

Other notables from the past week:
-Ryan celebrated 5 years of work with Brookdale
-I think I am getting over my summer obsession w/ peaches...finally
-We watched Cam Newton's QB NFL debut on Saturday night. We're learning to be Panthers fans so wish us luck!

Fill In the Blank Friday - 8/5 Edition

2011-08-05T05:11:00.001-07:00

1. My go to outfit for a dress-up occasion like a wedding is...
my black and white halter dress from Francesca's boutique. It is the perfect length and looks great with just a pair of nice earrings and black heels.

2. This week has been...
Slow. I am so glad the weekend begins today. I was traveling last weekend and didn't get to hang out with Ryan very much so I am looking forward to spending time with him this weekend. We have a thrilling weekend of dress shoe shopping at Macy's scheduled. And a fun baby shower tomorrow night for two couples at church.

3. When it's dinnertime and I'm feeling lazy I'll usually eat...
Well, it used to be a bag of popcorn and a Diet Dr. Pepper. I could eat the whole bag while watching TV at night. On a side note, I could also eat a whole column of saltines for breakfast. I know, I know, both are weird but hereditary eating habits:) This week, I wanted so bad to pop a bag of popcorn for dinner on Wednesday but I am making a real effort to get better nutrition while I am pregnant. I had a salad, some garlic breadsticks, and a peach.

4. My favorite pair of shoes is...
anything that starts with Flip and ends with Flop. Lately, I am sporting the ones with a nice orange and blue AU on them. It's August right? That means football season is around the corner.

5. A random item that I own that is completely unnecessary, but that I could never part with is...
hmmm, that's a hard one. Maybe my vintage red cowboy boots that I bought from a boutique in Helena. Turns out red cowboy boots match about 2 things in my closet & they don't exactly get much wear. I also have a random collection of vintage Care Bear items from the 80's (sleeping bags, thermoses, etc.) that doesn't get any use but I could never part with those items.

6. My favorite person is...
my husband obviously, but Laura Bush is a pretty close second. I read her book this summer and am blown away by her. She is so poised and polite at all times and I want to be like her when I grow up :)

7. If I were going to write my own blank for others to answer it would say...
"If I could describe the Perfect Day, it would be blank". My answer is a work in progress but I am sure it would involve the beach and lots of good food.

Birthday Weekend

2011-08-02T14:18:00.000-07:00

I went to Centre this past weekend to celebrate the birthdays of my niece and nephew. I have no energy to blog much these past few days, so here are a few pics.

Hayes' birthday cake. The party had a Monster Truck theme.

Bella's birthday cake. Poor baby girl had a monster truck themed first birthday but at least she had a ladybug cake.

Hayes riding his tractor. My brother setup a race course in the backyard and all of the kids at the party brought their own power wheels from home to race. It was hilarious.

Bella in a Barbie Jeep that she "borrowed" from a friend. She saw all the kids playing in the yard and wanted to join in. Don't worry--she can't reach the pedals.

Birthday boy turns 4. He starts pre-K next week and is excited to finally go to school everyday with his Daddy who is a teacher.

What's better than a birthday baby stuffing their face with cake? Birthday babies sitting in their cake! She loved the attention.

Happy family (minus Hayes)

Fill in the Blank Friday 7/22 Edition

2011-07-22T04:22:00.000-07:00

Today is Fill in the Blank Friday over at "The Little Things We Do". I just found them on a recent blog stalk :) For some reason I can't for the life of me figure out how to link to other websites. I think I am doing it right but when I preview or post the blog it disappears. Anyway, today's topic is Summer.

1. One of my happiest moments ever was...
I guess I have several that I can't narrow down to just one so here is the list in no particular order...
The day I married Ryan
The day we bought our dog Charlie
The days my precious niece & nephew were born
The day I found out I passed the CPA exam
The day I found out we were expecting Baby Mussato

2. Summer is wedding season and weddings are...
Either great or horrible depending on the situation. Some are dreadfully boring and some are fantastic. I can't wait for the beach wedding of our friends Jason & Tiffany that we are attending in Seagrove, FL in September!

3. This summer...
is the best one I have had since the ones spent on the lovely plains of Auburn, AL. I can't believe how much my life has changed (for the much better) over the past few months. Here is my comparison:

Last summer, waking up at the crack of dawn for the long commute to my incredibly stressful job/This summer, having coffee in bed with my precious dog thanks to my new, unstressful part time job.

Last summer, wondering if our attempts to get pregnant are working/This summer, preparing for the love of our lives to join us this winter.

Last summer, no time for all the "extra" things in life that I want to make time to do/This summer, reading books for the first time since high school and enjoying exploring Charlotte.

For those still reading, you get the picture.

4. My summer food of choice has been...
yogurt, Twix bars, and my new favorite Lipton Diet Green Tea (bought by the gallon these days)

5. My summer uniform has been...
On my days off work, usually a T-shirt and my old "garbage bag" cheerleading shorts which are clearly telling me that I am pregnant. The elastic waist band used to ride higher and higher and I had to yank them down constantly but now they stay put if I wear them low.

6. If I could spend the entire summer in one location I would choose...
Maui if I could bring along Charlie. Unfortunately, he has never been on a plane so that would probably be a bad idea. Guess I choose a beach house in Florida.

7. My summer anthem is...
I'm not really into much new music, so maybe anything played on the neighborhood stereo on busy afternoons at the pool. The whole neighborhood enjoys it!

Wednesday Brain Dump

2011-07-20T14:39:00.000-07:00

Here are a few updates from Mussato world...

1) It's quite possible if I eat one more container of Great Value strawberry-banana yogurt I will pop. Or Wheat Thins. There are only certain things I care to eat these days but I sure eat a lot of them. I am 14 weeks now and Baby M is about the size of a lemon.

2) This is what it looks like to be a winner.

We won these tix playing Wheel of Fortune at Dave & Buster's last weekend in Atlanta. Our pile of tickets let us bring home a nice travel-size Bop-It that will likely never get used. Why can't arcades have better prizes than junk?

3) Hayes and Bella are up to their usual shenanigans. I can't wait for their birthday party next weekend. Hayes will be 4 and Bella will be 1.

4) Mama sent us a book of names this week. How stressful is it to come up with the perfect name for your child? It is such a big decision and of course there will be comments on whatever we decide. Can't please everyone...

5) I am planning a Great Mascara Hunt this weekend. I have been ordering my discontinued Maybelline mascara from Ebay for years now and I believe it's time to move on. Hope I can find something just as awesome.

6) I am so grateful that a few of my favorite shows are back on. There are only so many re-runs and Americas Got Talent episodes I can take before I just pickup a book. I am now watching 'Flipping Out' on Bravo and 'Giuliana and Bill' on the Style Network.

7) Speaking of books, I am on the last 50 pages of the first Harry Potter book. I have been reading it for over a month now and I still can't find out what the big deal is. Is that bad? I just keep reading hoping that it will get more intriguing.

Sorry you had to read my randomness. It's better than talking out loud to the dog, right?

Stroller Style

2011-07-12T15:02:00.000-07:00

Check out my latest Craiglist find...a Jeep jogging stroller so that Baby M can ride around the neighborhood in style. It was such a steal that I couldn't pass it up. I can plug my Ipod into it to play music while I walk and it also has a pedometer so that I can see how far I have jogged. How's that for fancy? We'll get plenty of use out of it on the trails here in Charlotte.

I know it's early to be buying too many baby items, but it occupies my time to search for baby gear and nursery furniture online. There are just so many options! Plus I am determined to begin picking out the nursery furniture (which I know will take me weeks) because we find out next month what we are having and then we can begin the nursery. Wish me luck!

Baby News!!

2011-07-09T04:50:00.000-07:00

Ryan and I are excited to announce that we are having our first baby in January! We are due January 18th. I am finishing up my 12th week this weekend and Monday begins Week 13.

We found out around early-mid May. It was a Thursday morning and I realized that I probably needed to take a home pregnancy test since I was a few days late. I was home that day from work and Ryan was at work all day. I had one test in the bathroom already (leftover from a two-pack previously opened) and it was positive. I was in shock to say the least...how do you even describe that feeling? Of course I was skeptical so I went to the drugstore across the street and bought three more tests. Yes, I said three. They were all positive but in my mind I still wasn't convinced until I heard it come out of a doctor's mouth. Plus the lines were faint, almost like they wanted desperately to be positive but couldn't quite get there. I called the doctor first thing on Friday morning for a confirmation appt. later that afternoon. When I arrived, I was greeted to "Are you the girl that took four positive pregnancy tests yesterday?" They thought it was Hilarious but apparently those things are more accurate than I realized. What do I know?? I have never been pregnant. The doctor even told me he wanted to buy stock in them because so many women waste their money buying them in multiples.

Anyway, it has honestly been a bit dull and boring so far. We had our first ultrasound at 7 1/2 weeks and got to hear the heartbeat for the first time which has been the coolest part. I was crying of course and I believe Ryan's jaw dropped a bit. The picture was a bit disappointing because the baby was only the size of a rice grain. (don't worry about baby M though, this week he/she is the size of a lime). We heard the heartbeat again yesterday on a Doppler and get to find out the sex at the next ultrasound appt. in mid-late August. It's not quite as fun when you don't know whether to buy girl or boy stuff, but only a few more weeks left to wonder! I am sure I will go spend-crazy after that so don't worry about me. We honestly want a boy, but we also realize that God decides that part :)

I also haven't been sick...at all. Other than the expanding belly line and tighter jeans, I don't feel pregnant. Actually that's a bit of a lie. I realized weeks ago that with pregnancy comes the need for frequent trips to the bathroom and our toilet paper stockpile from Costco is quickly dwindling.

One of my best friends Jenna is here visiting with me this weekend and she has a 15 month old little girl. It is great to have some good girl time, not to mention Jenna is full of useless knowledge and tips about babies which is something I definitely need to hear.

I will post again soon about the progress of Baby M! I go back in 3 weeks for another appt. so until then, we are just sitting tight and praying for a healthy baby!

Babies and Jewelry

2011-06-30T15:04:00.001-07:00

I have just a minute to post before heading to a Stella and Dot jewelry party at a new friend's house. Have you seen their cute jewelry? I could easily get addicted but it is kinda pricey so I try to limit how many pieces I own.

I also wanted to share a link to a post on my friend Ruthann. She gave birth to her baby boy Reid last week and the entire day was documented by a wonderful photographer/blogger based out of Chattanooga. Now she can share every minute of the day with those of us that weren't able to be there. What a blessing to her growing family!

Check it out at http://moncriefphotography.com/page/2/
Be sure to click on the story for Reid Anthony.

Last Weekend of June

2011-06-26T16:07:00.000-07:00

I don't know about y'all, but June has been a very quick month. I can't believe it is almost time to celebrate the fourth of July. Here are a few updates on what we've been up to...

My parents came to visit last weekend, our first visitors since we moved to Charlotte. It was so good to see them and I hope they come back again soon. Of course a trip to Charlotte is not complete without a trip to Ikea. Have you been to this place?? I have been several times now, but I honestly get so overwhelmed with how much stuff there is to look at that I end up leaving with only a few things. Ryan hasn't checked it out yet, but I keep suggesting/threatening that he just has to come with me one Saturday :) I did buy a lamp that is either cute or hideous, I just can't decide.

Check out the Hibiscus flowers we are growing! These are one of my favorite flowers, mostly because we got married in Hawaii and it reminds me of our wedding. Unfortunately, they bloom and fall to the ground in only a few days so they can be a mess to clean up. They do make for cute hair accessories.

I've gotten a lot more into couponing the past few weeks since we started subscribing to the Charlotte newspaper. It's honestly a bit confusing because I know you need to use your coupon when things are already on sale (otherwise it makes more sense to buy the off brand), but how do you remember which items you have coupons for? I have stacks and stacks of coupons & if I glance through the grocery store ad to see what's on sale I can't remember which items I have coupons for. I'm sure I'll figure it out but any tips would help.

Tonight, we stayed in and cooked one of our favorite Emeril recipes called Veal Piccata. We actually discovered it when our friend Nicole made it for us one weekend and we love the recipe. It's on the Food Network website if you want to check it out. This time didn't turn out quite as good as before because Ryan accidentally bought Green peppercorns instead of the capers that the recipe called for. Still edible though and of course Charlie approved...

We are heading to Birmingham on Friday to visit with family over the long holiday weekend. Charlie is super excited to see his cousin Chipper and visit with Ryan's grandfather Tom.

I hope this work week goes by fast because we definitely are ready for a long weekend.
Have a great week!

Enjoying June

2011-06-13T15:42:00.000-07:00

We had a fabulous weekend! Ryan had to work last Saturday and Sunday so he was able to take off work on Friday because he had already worked so many extra hours. We started out Friday morning by riding our bikes down a paved trail. In North Carolina, they call them Greenways for some reason. You may have heard that word before but it was new to this country girl. There are several Greenways near our house and we tried the 8 mile one first. We started early in order to beat the heat and it worked out well. We were done in only an hour so...much quicker than what I was expecting. It is 8 miles one way so we rode 16 total all before lunch.

Speaking of Ryan's work, someone donated a large wooden birdcage and seven parakeets to the home. They set the cage up in the lobby of the retirement home and the residents like to sit and watch the birds sing. There are also two cats (Brook and Dale) that call the place home and they have been mesmerized by the new birds. This is what they do for most of the day. Poor parakeets are probably scared to death.

The rest of the weekend consisted of quick trips to the neighborhood pool between thunderstorms and power outages, trying out a new Mexican restaurant, and a lovely Pentecost worship service on Sunday. We actually marinated steaks last night and tried to grill but we were rained out. So now we're about to have grilled steaks on a Monday night. I'm not complaining :)

Memorial Day Weekend

2011-06-01T14:28:00.000-07:00

We drove to Helen, Georgia on Saturday morning to spend the weekend with some close friends. We met our friends Robbie and Nicole (from Birmingham) and Logan and Abbie (from Asheville) so it was a happy middle for all of us. Ryan and I have never visited Helen either so it was a first for us.

We even got to bring the pups since we were renting a private cabin. Logan & Abbie brought their dog Ranger and he got along great with our dog Charlie. Ranger is a springer spaniel and behaves so well. Maybe Charlie took some notes...

We spent Saturday hanging out on the river outside our cabin and we even rented floats to float the creek on Sunday. Charlie even floated in my tube with me for a bit because we decided he would rather float in my lap than be left behind!

Nicole and I posing for the camera

It was so good to see some old friends again. Since moving to Charlotte, we haven't been able to see some of our close friends that we used to see every weekend. But at least we are meeting lots of new people in church and they are making us feel right at home!

Visit to Centre

2011-05-26T16:38:00.000-07:00

I went to Centre for a long weekend last week and got to visit with my family for several days. It was my Dad's birthday and I also had a baby shower to attend on Sunday for one of my best friends. Here are a fews pics from the weekend...

Bella being the cutest little fan at Kyle's jamboree football game.

Hayes had a great time at the ballgame. He loves to go watch his Daddy coach football and play with the other kids.

On Friday night, we took Hayes to watch his best friend's tee ball game. Hayes was a few months too young to play this spring so this year he can only watch. We thought he might get upset because he can't actually play, but he was so mesmerized by the game that he didn't mind. This was what he did most of the game.

On Sunday, we had a big birthday lunch for my Daddy at Kyle's house before going to the baby shower. Bella is beginning to eat small bites and I took this adorable photo of her in her high chair.

Kyle also has a huge garden out back. Doesn't it look great? I would never be able to do that!

We had a lovely time at the baby shower for my friend Ruthann. She makes a very cute pregnant lady and she is due in late June.

My other friend Avery also made this changing table for Ruthann's nursery. She makes furniture in her spare time, along with photography, professional pastry chef and Coast Guard Reserve among many others! She can do it all. Isn't the table beautiful? Check out her website at www.4-goodnesscakes.com

We are going to Helen, GA this weekend for a Memorial Day weekend trip with our friends. Even Charlie is invited! I will post pics as soon as I can.

A Few Monday Ramblings

2011-05-02T05:09:00.000-07:00

Ryan has been sooo busy at work lately. This new community takes up more of his time and attention than he was originally anticipating, but that's not a bad thing because he loves to be challenged. The residents here need more care than the other homes he has worked in. He also had two residents pass away last week. He tries not to let it affect him but I know it puts a damper on his week.

On a funnier note, one of the residents asked Ryan if he is married because she has a single, 40-year old daughter that needs a husband. The daughter has a 19-year old dog that just had a stroke and is in diapers. Ryan just politely laughed and declined her offer! I am going to visit the home one day this week because Ryan is going to buy them some vegetables to plant in a small garden and I am going to help plant them.

Ryan & I are officially allergic to something in the NC spring air (we think). He has been sneezing up a storm & using prescription eyedrops for allergies & I have woken up to some hideously puffy eyes twice in the past week. At first I thought it may be something I ate (which would be typical for me) but now we think it is just something in the air.

Thursday night we watched the beginning of the NFL draft & we were excited to see that Cam Newton will be playing for the Carolina Panthers. Let's just hope he doesn't get traded. We have been excited to live in a town that has an NFL team and the fact that Cam will be playing just makes it even more exciting. War Eagle!

After Sunday School yesterday, we braved a trip to Walmart to buy some bicycles. We have been looking at them online for weeks on Craiglist, etc. but finally just decided to get some cheap ones at Walmart. We went on a ride yesterday afternoon on a trail behind our neighborhood. We even biked across the street to the grocery store to get the missing ingredients for our dinner. It was so much fun but now we are sore today because the seats are fairly uncomfortable. We need to get softer covers for them. Mine is purple and his is red.

By the way, dinner was delicious. Best meal I've had in weeks. I am so lucky that my husband is a good cook. We had chili-rubbed tilapia fillets, grits, sauteed squash, and fresh green beans.

I had the strangest dream last night about red, white, & blue fireworks being shot above the cotton field behind my parent's house. I woke up this morning to find that Bin Laden was killed and the news showed celebrations across the country with people waving the US flag. Does anyone else think that is strange? It has certainly been an emotional few days for our country. It was nice to have good news & celebration after the devastating storms that hit the South last week. We have seen the pics and they are just horrible. Please continue to keep those affected by the storms in your prayers.

Happy Easter - Week in Recap

2011-04-24T17:55:00.000-07:00

Monday - Tax Deadline! We wrapped up all of our work and celebrated at Billy's Tavern. Got to catch up with some co-workers I haven't seen in a while and say some goodbyes.

Tuesday - Last Day of Work! Spent the day going to Pure Barre class in the morning, heading to the office for a while to catch up on some emails, got my haircut at 10am around the corner from the office, met my Uncle Tim and Aunt Chris for lunch at Jim N Nicks, then spent the afternoon cleaning out my cube and saying goodbye to my co-workers.

I also met some friends for dinner at Margarita Grille in Pelham and then headed back to my mother-in-law's (where I have been staying) to pack up my car and get ready to move.

Wednesday - drive to North Carolina! Charlie and I got up and finished packing the car for our 6 hour drive to NC (he is a good "supervisor" lately. He follows me everyhere!). It was raining pretty heavily in the am but it cleared up about an hour into the drive. I was very thankful.

Thursday - half the day spent unpacking and organizing our things. The other half was spent on the phone with potential job opportunities and recruiters in the Charlotte area who are helping me to find a new job. Wish me luck!

Friday - rained ALL DAY. I finally braved the rain in the afternoon (in my polka dot galoshes) to make a trip to Target and Home Goods. We are in need of a few things for the house and after a day & a half inside I was ready to get out and explore.

Saturday - we spent the morning at Ryan's work. He had to meet a family to give them a tour of the community and sign a contract with a new resident so we drove to the home so that Ryan could meet with them all. After that, we made a trip to Costco & Home Depot & then home to let Charlie out before heading out to dinner. We went to a Mexican restaurant around the corner from our house and it was great! It is so fun to explore new restaurants in the area and have new places to go.

Sunday - Happy Easter!! We got up and opened our Easter gifts (thanks Mama & Darcey) and then visited a church near our house.

Then we spent the entire afternoon organizing the garage. What a chore! We needed to put away our tools, holiday decorations, sports equipment, etc. in order to make room for me to park my car. We grilled out and relaxed for a bit before we had to move all of our outdoor items into the living room. The neighborhood is having the patio decks pressure-washed and stained this week so that means three days of having our plants, grill, and patio furniture in the middle of our living room because the decks are on the second floor and not the garage level.

Not so ideal for someone who is trying to get things settled!

We're Home!..Almost.

2011-04-02T06:55:00.000-07:00

We are in Charlotte this weekend to move into our new townhome that we are renting.

It is the white one in the middle. It really needs a wreath for the front door but I haven't picked one out yet.

Ryan starts his job in a new community next week & we are working today to make the place move-in ready. We are setting up utilities, lining shelf cabinets, etc, before the movers come soon to deliver our things.

Good thing we got to bring Charlie with us. He has been busy testing out his new grass and neighbor dogs.

I will post more pics soon but this place is a disaster at the moment. Not quite home sweet home yet but it will be soon.

NEWS!!

2011-03-16T18:50:00.001-07:00

God. is. good. That is all I can say these days.

In the past few weeks, a burden has been lifted off our shoulders and we are making some major, MAJOR, changes in our lives.

Where do I even begin? After many sleepless nights of worrying that Ryan's job (nursing home director) would relocate him before our house sells, we have officially sold our house! We close on the 31st & it has been quite hectic around here trying to coordinate the move. On top of that, Ryan has received a promotion at work and he will start his new job the week after we move. How is that for God's timing, huh?!

His job isn't necessatily "new". Same boss, same company, but a new town. That's right, we are moving to Charlotte! In two weeks. I have to say it out loud or I don't believe it myself! Ryan has been great at rehabilitating nursing homes that are not doing great and they need him at another home. We go to visit this weekend to find a place to live and we will move two weekends later. I don't have a new job yet but I am trying not to stress over that yet and am just taking it one day at a time.

Ryan would die knowing I posted this, but he has two quotes from this week that have had me rolling in the floor.

First, he came home one night to let me know the reaction that the residents had at the home where he works now when he announced his move. He delivered the sad news to them in an afternoon meeting and they all started chanting in elderly voices "We love Ryan, We love Ryan". So sweet and cute. They absolutely adore him and I understand why :)

Today, he had a co-worker ask him, "why would you want to leave Alabama?" His reply, "Well, the home is doing great and Auburn won a National Championship...guess my work in Alabama is done!"

Sounds about right...

Hayes & Bella at the Zoo

2011-03-16T18:28:00.000-07:00

Hayes and Bella visited the B'ham Zoo today for the first time. Kyle is on Spring Break this week (from teaching) and the whole fam loaded up to make the trip. Except me of course who was behind a computer screen all day while my family was 5 miles away (more on that to follow). They stopped by to visit me at work and give big hugs and it was so good to see them.

Here are a few pics...

Kyle and Hayes on the Carousel

Lindsey and Hayes on the camel ride

Fashionista Bella wearing her zebra pants to visit the zebras. Quite trendy.

Hayes with the birds. Hayes' favorite part of the day was the Tigers and the Train.

Brother and Sister

Plum Pooped. Bella had a BIG day at the Zoo and decided she needed a snooze.

Maui

2011-03-06T05:39:00.000-08:00

We have had a great weekend! We went yesterday afternoon to a wedding reception for Ryan's cousin Kelly and her new husband Jeremy. They just got married in Maui and we are so happy for them. We saw a lot of pictures from their trip and it made me want to pull out some of our photos from our own Maui wedding. That was one of the best times of our lives and we can't wait to go back one day.

September 8, 2007, Makena Cove Beach, Maui, Hawaii

One of the few pictures of us together. Turns out honeymoon pics are a lot of taking pics of each other.

Ryan clowning around on the Road to Hana adventure. The road was long, very long. We didn't make it all the way to Hana.

Just Married! Look how young, tan, and unstressed I look :)

Watching the sunset on Turtle Bay. He's so cute :)

I am so thankful to have him in my life and can't wait to share many more fun trips like this with him!

End of February

2011-02-27T07:41:00.000-08:00

Sorry I haven't posted in a while. I have been super busy with long weeks & weekends at work. This is Charlie every night as he watches the front door for me to come home. He also turned a milestone 5 years old this week!

On the plus side, Charlie has spent a lot of quality with his Daddy lately. Charlie had a very busy Friday traveling to work with Ryan to visit with the "old folks" and conduct very important business meetings at the nursing home. He is very popular with the residents and nurses at the home. He was so worn out by Saturday afternoon that he collapsed in the patio chair in our backyard. It's tough being Charlie...

We haven't been able to travel anywhere lately until this weekend. We came to Centre on Saturday night to visit with my family since we haven't seen them since Christmas. Fortunately, my mom emails me pics all the time of my neice and nephew. Bella has grown so much since Christmas! She can sit up all by herself now and shows off her smile every chance she gets. These are a few over the past few weeks.

Gotta love a cute baby girl in pink!
I promise to post more again soon. Until then, Happy Sunday!

Baby Shower

2011-01-30T15:38:00.000-08:00

We spent yesterday helping host a baby shower for our friends Amy and Tim who are having their first baby in April. They are some of our first close friends here in Birmingham to have a baby so it was definitely a change to throw a baby shower and not a wedding shower.

I was in charge of making the pink wreath for the front door. This is the first time I have done one with monogrammed letters but I think it turned out OK. I had a friend help paint the letters and they will match the colors in the nursery.

The cake was a strawberry cake from Edgar's and I had no idea it would be so cute. We got many compliments on it from all the guests.

We also had a diaper cake as the centerpiece for the food table. You can buy these online but one of the hostesses made it and she did a great job. She also made the paper birds hanging from the light which match the cribbing of the nursery.

Ryan helping with the balloons for the mailbox

Nicole and mother-to-be Amy

The Hostesses

Hayes and Bella - new pics

2011-01-25T05:27:00.001-08:00

Check out the latest pics that my brother sent me of my niece and nephew. They grow so fast! Can't wait to see them again soon.

Phoenix Trip

2011-01-17T17:39:00.001-08:00

We had a blast on our trip to Phoenix. We went to some great restaurants & loved taking in the beauty of Arizona along with the other Tiger fans. We had no flight problems and the weather was perfect. Here is a recap of the trip:

View from the Hotel Parking Lot when we arrived Saturday afternoon

Ryan anxiously awaiting to go to Scottsdale for the Auburn Pep Rally on Sunday

Abbie, Nicole, and I at the Pep Rally

Check out all the Auburn Fans lined up on the parking deck to get a view of the Pep Rally. This was time #457 (it seems!) during the trip where it was proven that Phoenix wasn't ready for the mass quantities of Auburn fans. Restaurants ran out of food, forks, etc. etc. The Pep Rally was "one in - one out" because we reached the fire marshall limit. Good thing we got there early.

The dancers in the streets of Scottsdale

Ryan and Robbie on Gameday morning in Glendale

Logan and Abbie on Gameday morning

Ryan and I on Gameday morning

Nicole and Ryan under the Under Armour tent outside the stadium

Ryan and I before the game

And finally inside the stadium after the game. War Eagle!

We spent Tuesday in Tempe in the Mill Avenue area exploring where the ASU students shop and hangout. It was a beautiful area but not very big so we saw everything we needed to see in only a couple of hours.

We flew home very early on Wednesday morning and arrived in Huntsville in the afternoon to bright green John Greene tractors plowing snow off the runway. Glad we missed the bad weather!

New Year

2011-01-05T15:56:00.000-08:00

Hello blog world...I have missed you :) The past week has been an absolute whirlwind. I made one last trip to Centre to visit with family and friends before tax season begins, celebrated the New Year and Ryan's 31st birthday, and have since been trying to play catch-up at work and also finalize our travel plans to Phoenix this weekend.

Charlie can hardly contain himself with all the excitement...

Last week, I met up with my friends Jenna and Ashley for lunch. I finally got to see my best friend Jenna's little girl for the first time in months. She is such a cutie and one of the most well-behaved children I have ever seen.

Jenna and Kopeland

Ashley and Kopeland. Kopeland was very fascinated with Ashley's gorgeous red hair.

Entertaining herself.

Ryan and I went over to his grandfather's on Sunday night to celebrate birthdays. Ryan and his Aunt Molly are both New Year's babies so they always celebrate together.

The Auburn Themed Birthday cake...Darcey can be so creative.

Molly, Charlie, and Ryan's grandfather, Tom.

Ryan's 94 year old grandfather with Charlie and Chipper. The pups absolutely adore him. Tom adores them as well until they decide to give kisses!

That's all I will post for now. We have so much to do tonight and tomorrow night before we leave for our trip Friday night. I have three loads of laundry to do tonight and also want to have time left to try out my new Shark Vac & Steam mop I bought today (yes, I am a dork)! & also check out the Southern Savers website. I watched an episode of Extreme Couponing last night on TLC and it has inspired me to look for ways to save on our grocery bills.

Hopefully the next post will have plenty on our trip to Phoenix!!

Garmon White Christmas

2010-12-26T18:57:00.001-08:00

Garmon Barn

Birdhouse

Cotton Fields

Hayes gets his toy four wheeler from Pammy and Paw Paw

Moose throwing snow balls

My brother Kyle and Moose

Hayes driving Pammy in the snow on his new four wheeler

Making Charlie come out in the snow for a family portrait

Enjoying a Centre White Christmas

Hayes was proud of his snowman

My brother's family

Lindsey being a trooper in Kyle's boots

Hayes enjoying the snow

Pammy and Paw Paw posing on the porch

My parent's home

My brother Kyle & family

Christmas Vacation - Thursday Edition

2010-12-23T14:53:00.000-08:00

We have been cooking all afternoon and finally have a finished product. We have made several batches of spicy pretzels and I plan to bag them in small treat bags to hand out at Christmas parties.

I got the recipe from my friend Nicole who made them for a few tailgates this year.

Nicole's Spicy Pretzels
16 oz. mini pretzels
1 cup vegetable oil
1 tablespoon garlic salt (or powder)
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 package dry ranch mix

In a large bowl, whisk spices and seasoning.
Add pretzels to bowl and mix until all pretzels are coated.
Bake on a cookie sheet 220 degrees on lower oven rack for 1 1/2 hours, turning pretzels halfway through baking.

Christmas Vacation - Wednesday Edition

2010-12-22T14:33:00.000-08:00

Since Thanksgiving, Ryan and I (mostly I :) have had a mission to transform our third bedroom in our house into something that makes a little more sense for the average family. Because our house is for sale, we are hoping that the people that come to view our home can imagine this room as either a home office or a bedroom/nursery. While it is not a nursery for us (& hopefully we will not still be in the house when we decide to have our first child!), we are hoping that buyers can see the potential that this room holds. Anybody know a home stager?

This photo was taken when we put our home on the market in May.

The layout of the room is so small & there isn't much that we could do with our existing furniture. The computer desk also had an open front so you could easily see our computer cords, printers, and office supplies (a.k.a junk). The plant in the corner is one that Ryan has had since he was in college at Auburn. It just keeps growing and growing and we don't know what to do with it! It has since been moved to another room.

Thankfully, we found the perfect piece of furniture at World Market to replace the old computer desk. The inside has several options for storage and the top drawer pulls out as a desk if needed. I am in love with it...

This is the second piece of furniture that we have purchased from World Market and I have been pleased with the quality of both pieces. I also purchased the curtain from there as well. I honestly am not a fan of curtains in general (due to the blinds that seem to serve that purpose) but they are slowly growing on me. This one has an orange print so it ties in with the framing of our Auburn pictures.

We also bought the brown futon, which was an unpleasant and major shipping ordeal from Walmart.com. It honestly took almost a month for the "Site to Store" option. Thankfully it was cheap and it serves its purpose for the time being. We didn't want to resort to buying a futon (since it obviously reminds us of a college dorm), but we don't really have many more options and it has actually turned out to look OK, maybe because the Pottery Barn bolster pillow seems to tie it all in.

Maybe we can sell the futon when we move & solve the problem? I am also on the search for a small side table and lamp to go beside the futon so the room is still not 100% complete.

The bookcase is also a hand-me-down and I am thinking about painting it. Unfortunately, I have no idea what color to paint it. There is enough brown in the room already. That will just have to be a project later on.

The door of the room serves as a place to hang our Christmas cards every year...one of my favorite parts about Christmas. I bought the metal Christmas tree-shaped piece from Pier One during an after-Christmas sale one year for around $5. Not too bad, right?

Christmas Vacation - Tuesday Edition

2010-12-21T06:01:00.000-08:00

Ryan and I bought a turkey fryer back in November and have been really excited about using it for the first time. We finally got our chance on Saturday night when our friends Tiffany and Jason invited us over for a Christmas party. We just love them and love hanging out with them. I work with Tiffany and used to work with Jason until he switched accounting jobs to be the CFO for a local company. And Ryan actually knew Jason while he was in school at Auburn through mutual friends. They just got engaged this fall and we couldn't be more happy for them and their cute little family (note Tito and Sadie below.)

Tiffany is such a dog lover like me. You can't tell from the pic, but she has matching mini-stockings hanging from the mantle for the two pups.

Back to the party, we were really nervous about our first "practice turkey" and ruining everyone's dinner. Fortunately, our friend Paul has fried several turkeys and was there to supervise the entire process.

Moose (in orange toboggan) and Paul putting the turkey in the fryer. That's me on hand with a fire extinguisher just in case!

from left, Jason, Paul, Robbie, and Moose with the finished product

Not too bad for our first try...

And the girls who did a fabulous job of making all the sides..homemade mashed potatoes, stuffing, green bean casserole, etc.

From left, me, Jill, Tiffany, and Nicole

Christmas Vacation - Monday Edition

2010-12-20T05:23:00.000-08:00

I have the week off work this week! I am really excited to get a lot of things done here at the house that have just been written down on a "honey-do" list for months. Unfortunately, Ryan has to work this week so the honey-do list is slowing turning into a to-do list for myself!

This morning I am going with a good friend to do some Christmas shopping at the new outlets in Leeds. There are still several people that I need to buy for and I am hoping I will be able to knock it out today. I have only bought Hayes some clothes and that's not the most exciting gift for a three year old so I am hoping to find some things for him at the Toys R Us outlet. The plan is to go early before the crowds get bad so wish us luck!

I also was hoping that I could add the image of our Christmas Card to the blog, but the website that I ordered them from will only allow me to save the image as a PDF. I believe the blog only lets me upload picture files. So...I took a picture of the card with my camera.

Not the cutest thing, right? And yes, I am aware that my reflection is in it. Maybe I need to add taking a photography class to my to-do list!

Mid December Update

2010-12-14T17:32:00.000-08:00

I apologize but I have had absolutely no time to blog over the past few weeks. Since Thanksgiving week, we have traveled to Atlanta for a friend's wedding and the SEC game (we watched on TV). Aren't these boys handsome in their wedding attire?

This past weekend was spent having dinner with friends, Christmas shopping, watching Cam win the Heisman trophy with more friends, going to a family reunion, and cleaning for my parents who spent the night after the reunion.

In between full weeks at work, after-work birthday dinners, addressing 70+ Christmas cards, & my best efforts to go to the gym, we have spent any spare time doing one of two things. First, we have been making plans for our trip next month to Arizona. Thats right...Moose and I are going to see the Tigers Play!! We have plane tickets & a hotel room but we are still on the lookout for tickets. Have you seen how expensive they are??? We are holding out on buying online (so far)trying to find the best deal. Wish us luck!

We have also spent hours upon hours helping out with the Cullman County Schools coat drive. As the director of the nursing home in Cullman, Moose gets asked every year to help with the clothing drive by washing and drying the coats. This turns into boxes and boxes of coats that end up in our living room floor. We have been washing loads over a week and we are still not done.

Poor Charlie is attention-deprived and wishes we would sit down more often. I caught him last night in his Daddy's lap trying to look his cutest and get his belly rubbed. I think it worked.

Next post (hopefully) our 2010 Christmas Card and my decorating updates to our home office.

Boa Wreath

2010-11-27T16:30:00.000-08:00

I am a firm believer in waiting until December before I put up the Christmas tree. This is mostly due to my bah-humbug husband who complains about any and all things Christmas. This belief hasn't, however, stopped me from climbing into the attic storage this week on my days off from work and sorting through my ornaments and other misc. Christmas decorations.

One of my favorite items is this feather boa wreath. I spotted it in a boutique a few years ago and fell in love with the Grinch-green color. It originally came with a hot pink ornament suspended in the middle, but I traded it out for a more traditional red glitter ornament and also added the red ribbon so that it could hang. I couldn't help myself from hanging it this weekend in our foyer.

While I can't take credit for making my Grinch wreath, it has inspired me to use the similar style to make even more wreaths for special occasions. Check out this one that I made for my friend Jenna when she welcomed her baby girl Kopeland this past spring.

They are really simple to do and you just need a styofoam circle wreath, several boas (depends on their length) and some pins or hot glue to tack the ends in place. They are a little bit tacky and cute at the same time! I may even make some for my friends and family at Christmas if Hobby Lobby would hurry up and put their feather boas on sale.

Weekend in AU

2010-11-15T10:18:00.000-08:00

We headed down to Auburn on Friday night for the last home football game of the year. We actually had free tickets to the first basketball game in the new arena on Friday night, but we worked so late that we couldn't make it down to the game in time. But we did get to tailgate for a few hours on Saturday with some friends that we don't see that often.

Our usual tailgating buddies Robbie & Nicole

There was a big crowd of people gathered under a tent outside of the stadium so Moose & I went to see what all the fuss was about. This is what we found.

Moose getting his picture made with the Eagle.

Sweet Girl

2010-11-10T15:56:00.001-08:00

Isn't she the cutest three month old you have ever seen? I am not biased at all :)

Halloween Weekend

2010-11-01T09:28:00.000-07:00

We had a very eventful weekend. We went to Centre to visit with the fam and celebrate Halloween with Hayes and Isabella. I was really excited to see them so I came home from work on Friday afternoon and made cookies for the weekend. They turned out okay. The eyes are super-big but Publix was all out of the mini chocolate chips.

Hayes was his very favorite superhero Batman and Isabella was dressed as a ladybug. You can’t tell from the pictures but there are black wings on the back of her costume.

Isn’t she precious? She turned 3 months old on Saturday.

We can’t come home from Centre without a ton of my Dad’s tomatoes. His plants are still producing in November. They were so colorful that I thought they made a good picture.

Happy November!

Two Peas in a Pod

2010-10-28T14:02:00.001-07:00

She's getting so big!

Auburn vs. Arkansas

2010-10-24T17:09:00.001-07:00

This post is a week behind but that's just the life of a CPA for a busy accounting firm. Doin' the best I can...

So Little Miss Prepared (that would be me) made it all the way down to Auburn last weekend with everything you can think of. Air mattress, check. Extra pillows & blankets, check. I am talking bottled waters & the whole works. But unfortunately my camera battery died right as the eagle was making its' laps around the stadium. I was devastated. Needless to say, there are few acceptable pictures from our adventures last weekend.

During Tiger Walk, we have been lining up next to Coach Nell Fortner & the women's basketball team. She was gracious enough to pose for a pic with Moose before the Tigers made their way through Tiger Walk down to the stadium.

Check out the adorable golden retriever puppy at our tailgate. I was obsessed with her and followed her around for a good portion of the morning.

Moose anxiously awaiting kickoff. We were so excited to make it down to Auburn for the game and had a great weekend. Can't wait to go back soon!!

Happy Fall!

2010-10-13T08:36:00.000-07:00

No news around here, so I thought I would post a few pics of the house.
Thanks to Ryan for crawling into the attic to grab the bin of my fall decorations.

And thanks ahead of time for crawling yet again into the attic to retrieve my bin of winter clothing. What would I do without him?

Can you spot the Charlie?

Breakfast nook

View into the kitchen

China cabinet in the dining room

Check out my loot from CostCo. The two navy pots on the left were only $14.99 for the pair. We planted pansies and a huge Rosemary bush last weekend. The yellow mum is also from CostCo. Only $12.99 for the plant & pot.

Ryan has also been sick this week but he had Charlie with him at home to keep him company. I snapped this pic on the way to work yesterday morning. They were both asleep on the couch together.

We are headed to Auburn on Saturday for the Arkansas game this weekend so hopefully I will have some great pics to post.

Yard Sale/Fall Fest Weekend

2010-10-05T16:07:00.000-07:00

Moose and I went to Centre on Friday night to go see my brother Kyle coach his high school football game. It was a lot of fun, but I must say that I enjoyed watching my nephew Hayes play during the game the most of all. Every time there was a timeout and music was played on the loudspeaker, he would stop whatever he was doing to dance. He had the whole crowded laughing shaking his hips! His favorite part of the whole game is getting to run out onto the field with Kyle when the game is over. He finally snatches up one of the real footballs (not toy) that he has been eyeing over the fence for the past two hours and runs out onto the grass to play football. Did I mention he is only three?

We got up early on Saturday morning to participate in the yard sale at my mom's house. My parents live on Hwy. 411 and several times a year there is a huge yard sale along this stretch of road. We were out there from 7am until about 2:30 and only sold about $25 worth of stuff :( Oh well, it was still fun. My sister-in-law Lindsey and I took Hayes and Isabella to the Fall Festival around mid-morning. Hayes got to ride a train, watch the drums in the marching band, climb into a real John Deere tractor, and play in the blow up jumpy-thing. He had a big day.

Isabella also finally smiled big for us just before we were leaving to come back home. Uncle Moose got her to smile, but she cried when I held her. But that's okay--I know she has plenty of smiles for me later on.

A Few Centre Pics from Last Weekend

2010-09-29T09:47:00.000-07:00

Auburn/Clemson Game

2010-09-25T13:48:00.001-07:00

I left my camera card here in Birmingham last weekend when we went down to the Auburn game. I brought my brand new digital camera, fancy camera case, & even extra batteries...but left the card in my work computer. Therefore, we are limited to a few I-phone pics to document our experience. Lucky for all, they are priceless.

A few of the girls at the tailgate...

We are at a new tailgate spot this year in the lawn behind the baseball field. Our friend Van is the voice of one of the local radio stations and they always have a big tailgate with live bands and karaoke. Fortunate for us who like to people-watch, it is directly beside the Q-dog tailgate. For those who do not know, the Q-dogs are a fraternity at Auburn. They are the sort who like to do "step-shows and such." Here is a pic of Moose and Milo, who were so fascinated with the production that they declared themselves honorary Q-Dogs (for about 15 minutes). Can anyone spot them? They fit in just right.

It was quite classy...

Supposedly the one in the khaki shorts is a former Auburn basketball player who plays in the Europe NBA. He was large enough to make me believe it.

Our Weekend/This Week in Pics

2010-09-15T15:54:00.000-07:00

Anniversary Celebration continues on Wednesday night with red velvet cake.
Cheers to Three Years!

Charlie approved...

We bought the new I Phones on Friday night...our lives will NEVER be the same!

Charlie gets his snooze on in the backyard on Saturday.

Our cousin Alli's baby Shepard was baptized on Sunday. It was a beautiful service. Big brother Eli yelled out "I have a race car" right in the middle of it and made the whole congregation giggle.

Ryan has been traveling all week to Huntsville on business. He brought home a nice surprise for his tie rack, compliments of a co-worker whose husband was going to donate them. I though the colors made a nice pic.

Happy 9/15 deadline!
(in tax accounting world that means relax this evening--we did it!)

In Carrie world, it means time to paint my toenails.

Happy 3rd Anniversary

2010-09-08T09:59:00.000-07:00

Three years ago today, Ryan and I said "I do" one evening as the sun was setting on the Pacific shores of Wailea, Maui. It was one of the best days of my life.

Since it is a weekday today and we won't get home from work until late, we are celebrating with dinner on Friday night at Shula's Steakhouse (thanks Darcey!). In lieu of exchanging gifts ("leather" I believe it is for the 3rd?), we splurged by each buying I-Phones since it is time to upgrade our cell phone package.

On a funny note, it occurred to me over the weekend just how much I rely on my husband to get me through the week. He does so much for me these days that I actually started making a list of things I am incapable of doing on my own:

1) open & close patio umbrella--it's just too heavy to lift by myself
2) mow the grass--don't even know how to crank it. Is it called cranking if it's a lawnmower?
3) put featherbed inside duvet cover after washing it--this really does take two people
4) build a fire in our living room fireplace
5) marinate steaks--don't have a clue what's in it, never asked & never needed to
6) buy bottled water at Costco--again, it's just too heavy. Costco really shouldn't package them like that.

And of course the ever-growing list of things I can't do because I am too short:
1) open grill lid
2) reach in the spice cabinet above the oven
3) open the latch to the gates on our backyard fence
4) open the pull-down ladder that goes to our garage attic

What would I do without him? Thanks Ryan for all that you do.
Happy 3rd Anniversary!

War Eagle

2010-09-04T10:34:00.000-07:00

War Eagle from the Mussato house! For the first time since we were freshmen at Auburn, we are not physcially in Auburn, AL on opening day. We are, however, there in gameday spirit from Helena, AL. We are just home today enjoying each others' company, grilling out, watching the games, etc. (it's been too busy of a week to do much on the weekend these days!).

Here are some pics...

We have become quite the gardeners this summer.

He looks thrilled to be wearing his gameday jersey.

What A Week!--Part 2

2010-08-22T17:12:00.000-07:00

We got an offer on our house Monday night, after 3 months on the market. At first it sounded like great news, what we have been waiting for and praying for, but it just didn't work out. The buyers were a newlywed couple that just weren't able to compromise financially with our asking price. It has been a week of highs and lows and many hours on the cell phone with our realtor--but it just wasn't the right time.

It was especially stressful because Ryan spent part of the week in Raleigh, NC for a business meeting. We spent the night with Ryan's mom, Darcey, (because she lives closer to the airport), on Tuesday night so that I could drive him to the airport at 4:30 am. That was not fun at all! Thank goodness for Darcey because she was gracious enough to let me go back to bed for an hour & get ready at her house before I had to be at work.

We have had a pretty awesome weekend. We went to dinner with our friends Robbie & Nicole on Friday night at Cafe Lazio for some pizza and then went to the "Stokin' the Fire" barbeque festival at Sloss Furnace on Saturday. We got to see our friends Scott and Tyler who were competing in the cooking competition. They live in Daphne now & we rarely get to see them, so it was a treat!

We went to church today at Riverchase United Methodist (where we have been attending)and have had a great afternoon enjoying each other's company here at the house. We are grilling steaks tonight and catching up on some loads of laundry before Ryan goes to Nashville tomorrow for another business meeting.

I can't end the blog without a few pictures of the nephew. I got to see him last weekend & it was such a treat. He got a new Batman mask at the toy store in Gadsden (which apparently trumps the $8 football I just bought him :) and had to wear it immediately on the car ride home.

So tired after an exciting day treating Pammy to birthday lunch...

What A Week!

2010-08-20T17:06:00.001-07:00

What. A. Week. Good and bad. I meant to post about my fabulous weekend I had last weekend but have had such a busy week I haven't had a chance. We are headed out the door to meet friends for dinner, so for now I will just post about the good.

The bad will just have to wait...

I went to Centre last weekend to visit with my mother for her birthday and see Isabella again on her two week birthday. Isn't she so precious?!

She was such a good girl on the car ride to Gadsden for birthday lunch. Didn't even cry once.
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Stylish in her baby Gap dress & matching bow.

She approves of her Aunt Carrie & can't wait to see her again. At least that's what I tell myself.

Another DC Pic

2010-08-10T10:27:00.000-07:00

Here is one more of the pics from our DC trip. The last night there, we took some portraits on the lawn of the Capitol. I promise we didn't photo-shop ourselves in. This one is my favorite...

In fact, it may even make the Christmas Card.

Bella's Birth

2010-08-08T07:38:00.000-07:00

My brother Kyle and his wife Lindsey welcomed their baby girl on Friday, July 30th. She weighed 7 lbs. 2 oz. and was 19 1/2 inches long. Her name is Isabella Claire Garmon. Hayes was such a proud big brother, but he didn't understand why he couldn't play with her yet. He settled for holding her and did such a good job.

We are just so blessed to have both a healthy and smart nephew and a perfect and healthy baby neice.

This weekend, we have just stayed here in Birmingham and did some catching up at home that we have been meaning to do. The house showed two times this week so we are constantly trying to keep the house spotless for the showings. There were some major thunderstorms in our area on Friday afternoon and our power was out for several hours. By dinnertime it had not come back on so Ryan, Charlie and I spent the night at Ryan's mom's house so that we could sleep with the a/c on. Thank goodness it was back on Saturday morning when we got home because I was worried about all the food in the fridge and meat in the freezer spoiling. Happy Birthday to Ryan's grandfather today. He is turning 93 years old!

Washington, DC

2010-07-28T16:52:00.000-07:00

Ryan and I just got back on Sunday night from a very exciting and much-awaited trip to Washington, DC with our friends. Our friend Robbie's big sister and her husband are both Auburn grads from Vet. School and they live in a fabulous townhouse that is right near the Capitol. I am jealous of their amazing views on their morning runs :) We spent several nights up there and got to do so many cool things. With the exception of the record-breaking heat wave that decided to strike this summer, it couldn't have been a more perfect vacation.

Robbie's brother-in-law Chris brought along his "professional" camera on Saturday night and we took several portraits on the lawn of the Capitol and at several other of the gorgeous monuments. I will post those when I get copies. Here are a few that I was able take with Darcey's camera that I had to borrow while mine is getting repaired...I go through digital cameras like candy:(

Moose and Robbie with the Wright Brothers plane. Can you tell how much they love getting their picture taken?

Moose and I in the Sculpture Garden

Fountain at Sculpture Garden

Nicole and I after dinner at Granville Moore's

Smithsonian Museum of Natural History

back lawn of White House

on steps of Lincoln Memorial w/ Washington Monument in background

With statue of FDR's dog at the FDR walking memorial. 100+ degrees & sweating miserabley...

At Cherry Tree walk with background of Washington monument

Hayes' Birthday

2010-07-13T17:31:00.000-07:00

Hayes turns three very soon and so Kyle and Lindsey had his birthday party on Saturday afternoon. Moose and I were unfortunately not able to stay the entire time because we had a wedding to get back to in Birmingham, but here are a few pictures that I was able to take.

Playing Hoops with Paw Paw

Playing Hoops with Aunt Nancy

With Uncle Moose...this boy sure loves basketball.

Playing on the Air Hockey table. This is what we Garmons do when we can't reach something, just climb.

Anna Grace (my cousin Amy's daughter) playing in the blow-up slides.

Hayes' One Last Hoorah

2010-07-06T17:52:00.001-07:00

We took our nephew Hayes to Whitewater in Atlanta this past weekend. It was his "one last hoorah" as an only child before Bella Claire arrives in 3 weeks. I can't wait until she is born! So far, Lindsey is scheduled for July 30th. Here are a few pictures that my mom emailed me today. I didn't take a camera so I am grateful that she was able to to take a few.

Splashing around Wiggles Park

Ignoring the whole family begging him to "cheese me"

With Mommy

With his new Toy Story 3 towel

He was so hungry by lunch time! He ate the fries so fast and had ketchup all over his face. He is definitely a Garmon!

Father's Day Weekend

2010-06-25T14:28:00.000-07:00

Moose and I went to Centre for a night last weekend to visit with my family for Father's Day weekend. Moose had some training for work at Jacksonville State all day on Friday, so Charlie and I drove up after I got off work and met him at my parents' house. We got to visit a lot with our nephew Hayes. He and Moose have their favorite pillow fight game that they have been playing lately. I captured this video on my camera.

He plays so hard that he works up a sweat!

He loves play dough too. So much that I am thinking of getting him more for his birthday next month. He plays with it on the kitchen counter at Pammy's house. I took this picture of him just before he told me "No More Cheese!" and I had to put the camera down. When he wants his picture taken, he says "Cheese Me!"

Moose's cousin Alli had her baby boy this week. His name is Samuel Shepard Nations and he is precious. He makes a nice addition to their beautiful family. I stole these pics from her & her sister Melissa's blogs because I don't have any of my own.

Alli, Korey, and Shepard Nations

Keep us in your prayers this weekend. We had another "second showing" on our house today from a buyer that came by yesterday and liked what they saw. We try not to get our hopes up, but we can't help hoping it will sell soon. Wish us luck!

June

2010-06-14T17:53:00.000-07:00

We haven't really been up to much lately. Ryan is in Nashville at the moment for a work conference and I am here taking care of the house and Charlie. We had a second home showing today from a potential buyer that came by on Friday & the home showings are happening a lot more often so things are looking promising. We can't wait to move closer to our family and friends.

I have been doing a little bit of decorating around here. This is the first summer where I haven't had to study for the CPA exam and I am actually somewhat bored. I need some books. Anyway, we were given a beautiful iron cross by my Aunt Nancy at one of our wedding showers and I have been adding to the collection over the years. I finally got around to hanging a cross mural in our guest bedroom. Not sure how it looks, but at least the wall isn't blank anymore.

We stayed in town for Memorial Day weekend. We spent Sunday night at Robbie and Nicole's house and got to see some old friends we haven't seen in a while.

Check out their wardbrobe...red, blue, red, blue, what is with these Auburn boys?

Nicole is one of the best cooks that I know. She always impresses me with her creations and has given me so many tips over the past few years. Check out the awesome cake that she made for everyone.

Moose also got to see his old bud Charlie. He lives in Montgomery now and we rarely get to see him so it was a treat.

Also congrats to Jess and Milo (navy guy in the pic)! They just got engaged over the weekend.

Beach Weekend

2010-05-21T14:46:00.000-07:00

Moose and I took the day off last Friday to head down to Orange Beach with our friends for the weekend. We are lucky enough to have a friend whose family has a beachhouse on the bay and it is so convenient. Thanks Nicole! We got down to the beach late Thursday night and had all day Friday and Saturday to enjoy our time with old friends. We went to the inaugural Hangout Festival on Friday afternoon and had such a blast. It was so cool to be able to see some of our favorite bands with our toes in the sand and a beautiful sunset.

Sand Carvings

Chris Robinson from The Black Crowes

It was such a fun weekend, but I woke up looking frightful on Sunday morning. I think I had an allergic reaction to some shrimp that I ate Saturday night because I woke up on both Sunday and Monday with my eyes almost swolen shut. As Moose would say, it looked like someone "dotted my eye." Nothing a few benadryl can't cure... Between that and a disgusting oven burn on my hand from Saturday try to cook asparagus for six, I was not a happy camper. I was feeling much better by mid-day on Monday--a good thing since I turned 26 that day. Moose and I celebrated by grilling out a home (my request since we had been gone for three nights and I missed my Charlie). We are looking forward to enjoying this weekend and heading to Centre to visit with family.

House 4 Sale

2010-05-06T18:12:00.000-07:00

After much back and forth and prayers, we have decided to put our house up for sale. The for-sale sign isn't in the yard yet, but as of Monday night it is on the market! We absolutely loved living in Helena when we first moved here two and a half years ago. I always said that it reminded me a little bit of Centre. With a creek in the middle of town and the Cahaba River running right by our neighborhood, it feels more like home than living in the cramped city.

We had only been living here about 9 months when Ryan got transferred from Hoover to be the director of the community up in Hanceville (Cullman County). His commute and the fact that all of our friends, family, and my job are at least a 25 minute drive have made us decide to try and move closer in. Please be praying for us over this decision. We have never sold a property before and don't have a clue what we are doing or where we will live once it sells. Here are a few of our favorite pics of our first home.

Shh...I might have let him jump on the bed when he came to visit.

Charlie is never one to miss a meal.

Ryan's costume for the old folks at work.

First Post

2010-04-29T18:43:00.001-07:00

So this is my first blog post. I have been following the blogs of some friends and family and have been officially inspired to start posting entries. Here is some history of us and an update on what is going on in the life of the Mussatos:

Ryan moved back to his hometown of Birmingham in May 2004 after graduating from Auburn. I joined him in December 2005 after finishing my undergrad in accounting at Auburn. I went to UAB for grad. school and we got married in Maui, HI in September of 2007. We moved to Helena, AL in January of 2009. I work as a CPA for a large public accounting firm in Birmingham and Ryan commutes everyday to Hanceville, AL where he is the Director of the retirement community.

We have one dog Charlie (the love of my life!..if you know ANYTHING about me at all) given to me from Ryan while I was in grad. school--great timing because I had time to train him while he was still a puppy. He is like sunshine to my life and knows how to cheer me up after a long day at the office. Yes, I just said that :)

My family lives in Centre, AL where I grew up but I try to see them as much as possible. My brother Kyle and his wife Lindsey have a two year old son named Hayes Baker Garmon. He is precious beyond words and it is such a blessing to our family to have him. He is such a fun and loving child that I can't imagine what it is going to be like having a niece in our lives. They are expecting again in late July!! Aunt Carrie and Uncle Moose love our family!

Ryan's family is here in Birmingham and it is so nice having them close by. We love having dinner nights with them as much as possible and Charlie really enjoys having his cousin Chipper to play around with.

We want to be able to keep everyone updated with what's going on in our lives. We miss getting to be involved in the little everyday moments of our friends and families, so we thought we would share a little bit of our everyday lives with you via this blog.