31 weeks and the quintessence of pregnant...

It all started at the beginning of week 31 when I declared to our friends that the Moose Tracks ice cream in our freezer was FrOsT BiT and they might want to try another option. From then on it seems this week has been a series of events that confirm that we are at the height of this journey called pregnancy...impulse buys, less brains, more body, and many, many laughs!

Next came my first nesting purchase: the ExTenDaSauRuS:

This is the type of thing my husband usually brings home, and I roll my eyes and laugh,

but there was no stopping me when I saw this baby. I just couldn't help myself. Goodbye unreachable dust, cobwebs, etc.

This week also marked the first week of school. I have to say going to school with my sweet baby girl makes it so much more fun.

Thinking I had more than enough room to scooch by this poor boy in my class, I definitely underestimated my GiRtH. Before I knew it my belly was crashing into this poor boy. Of course all of the kids watching were giggling, and the whole class burst into laughter while I declared to said embarrassed fifth grader, "You've just been BeLliEd!"

Us on the first day of school.

Then there was the day I was grocery shopping at Caputo's and the chocolate covered CaNnoLiS just happened to be screaming at me from the bakery case. Needless to say I was done for:

Perhaps the most exemplary moment occurred at our dinner out at Chick-fil-A. Of course I was ravenous, but for some reason I couldn't seem to bring myself to get anything but those itsy, bitsy chicken nuggets. They're just too good to pass up so naturally when my dear husband left to go get a cup of water and Chick-fil-A sauce, I snuck a significant BiTe of his spicy chicken sandwich. Lucky for me my dear husband is often in some sort of dream land and suspected nothing when he returned. I thought I was in the clear until the end of our meal when this dear, sweet lady approached our table:

Dear, sweet lady: When are you due? You're just too cute.

Me: Aww, thanks. October 21st.

Dear, sweet lady: Yah, my husband and I were just sitting over there cracking up when he left, and you took a big bite of his sandwhich. I said to my husband, "Oh NO she DiDn"T"!

Dan: (very confused, not connecting the dots as to what dear, sweet lady is talking about)

Me: (cracking up at this point because clearly I've been caught)

Dan: (look of shock realizing the crime committed against him.)

Dear, sweet lady to Dan: Now you be nice to her and give her whatever she wants!

I still can't believe I got BuSteD. Unbelievable. Hysterical.

Basically Dan summed it up well when on the last day of week 31 he nonchalantly confessed, "I keep expecting the non-pregnant version of you to show up."

Thanks babe. I think it's going to be awhile until she returns. In fact, it's hard for me to believe she really ever existed. I guess we'll just have to keep laughing at the preggo version until the non-pregnant one decides to make a come back. : )

The Socks vs. Me...

I took this picture earlier this week in an attempt to EmPaThIzE with one of my Blogger/Facebook Buddies...You know who you are :)

I dedicate this post to you and anyone else who continually BaTtLeS the infamous sock BrIgAdE that is an ever present ThReaT to the organization and cleanliness of my home and many others throughout the world...

How is it that the SoCkS never cease to DeFeAt me and ObLiTeRaTe any sense of order I strive to maintain?....How is it that every week I throw up my hands in SuRrEnDer as the SoCkS overtake my life?...

Perhaps it is one of those MysTeRiEs in life too great for me to ever CoMpReHeNd...How is it that the socks AlwAyS win?...

Attention Husbands of the World...

So if you're a HuSbaNd, and you're leaving your wife for the weekend, and it just happens to be the end of an ExTrEmEly overwhelming week...you know, the kind that leaves the kitchen looking like this:







You might want to be PrOaCtiVe and SmArT about the situation.


For example, you might want to leave your wife a voice mail like this one so she's not surprised that you left her with the T.W.D. (this term was created by my dad: Toxic Waste Dump) you two have created over the course of the week:

"Hi Honey it's me. I just wanted to call before I leave to apologize for the mess that I'm leaving. I feel really sad about it. I can clean on Sunday when I get back and,
hopefully I can make it up to you with a date Sunday night."

Though acknowledging the situation in this way is good, you might not want to assume that a voice mail totally covers your tracks.
It does prepare her for what's to come, but let's be HoNeSt when she walks through the door and sees first hand the MeSs you and she have been trying to IgNoRe all week...and all she really wants to do is ReLaX... and she realizes that you are ReLaXiNg around some GoRgeOuS lake surrounded by trees turning their leaves into the BrIlliAnT shades of AuTuMn...and though the idea of you cleaning on Sunday sounds good, you know that in reality there's no way she could stand herself any longer if she left it until then...

You might also want to leave something like this:

Honey Love,

I miss you already. You are my love. I'm so sorry it's still a TrAsH PiT.
Please forgive me. I'll clean on Sunday. Think about our date on Sunday.

Love,
Grizz

...that way when she sees this:

...She'll MuSteR up a GrAciOuS attitude instead of FrUsTrAtiOn. SmIle and LaUgH instead of RoLl her EyEs and SiGh. She'll probably even forget the about the mess and MiSs you terribly...And who knows...maybe her just knowing that you recognize that she got the CrUmMy end of the deal this time might help her AtTaCk those dishes with GrAtiTuDe and LoVe as she thinks of her SmArT and PrOaCtiVe husband.

The other day Dan and I were at the StUpE having ice cream. For those of you who didn't go to WhEaToN, the Stupe is ThE place to go for IcE CrEaM. We decided to stop there and reminisce for a bit after ringing the tower bell (more on that later)...

We forgot that when you say one scoop at the Stupe, it's really the equivalent of three. Neither of us could finish our mound of ice cream, but as our cups were sitting there, Dan decided to use them as an IlLuStRaTiOn of us.

He grabbed the camera and started taking pictures of the cups. I thought he was documenting the ridiculous amount of ice cream left after we had eaten a good amount but, I was wrong. He remarked that looking at our ice cream cups said a lot about us and our differences. I then took a closer look at this:

I've marveled recently at how much easier it seems for Dan to lose weight than it is for myself. So naturally at first glance, I thought he was pointing out that I had ScARFfeD down more ice cream than him. Thus proving the point that I have far less WiLl PoWeR. All of this is true, but it wasn't his point. He directed me to look closer still...

HiS cup...

My cup...

I still can't figure out how this stuff seems to happen to me or better yet how I'm completely OblIvIouS to it, but I'm so grateful I have a perfectly CiViLiseD husband to point out that I'm a ComPleTe SloB!

It's a good thing he also shares in my ApPreCiaTioN for SiTuAtioNaL CoMeDy...Otherwise I don't know how he'd put up with his DiSaStEr of a wife!

On Blogging and Getting Over Myself...

Since I've started BlOgGiNg, things in life that at one time might have HoRriFieD or EmBaRRaSseD me have morphed into opportunities to LaUgH HyStEriCalLy, not take myself so SeRiouSly, and be GraTefuL to those in my life who make it far more InTeResTinG than I could ever manage on my own.

Allow me to explain by sharing a somewhat recent incident that occurred at our cousin David and Heather's wedding. It think it IlluStrAteS my point BeAutIfuLly...

The location was GoRgEOuS...

The BrIdE was RaDiAnT...

The company was DeLigHtFuL...

And to top it all off, I had my HaNdsOmE HusBaNd at my side and a NeW dress I had been saving for the PeRfeCt occasion...

The night was nearly MaGiCaL as we LaDiEs enjoyed TwIliGht in the garden...

Then suddenly, the UnThInKaBle happened, and my state of SeReNiTy quickly turned into this...

ReD, that's right, I said ReD wine SpLaTteReD all over my brand new dress! In great confusion, I turned to see my extremely apologetic brother BeN and his nearly EmPtY wine glass sitting on the table.

Now you see... at one time in my life, this incident would have HaD the potential to RuIn my entire evening, BuT this time, instead of being EmBaRrAsSeD and HoRriFiEd, I found myself enjoying the moment and taking advantage of this opportunity fully realizing its BloGgInG potential...See what I mean...

All I could do was LaUgH as my SwEeT sister tidied me up!

Having recently blogged about said sister, she did this dirty job with JoY realizing that doing so would most DeFiNitEly give her another appearance on yet another Blog Post... Thank you for your HuMbLe service dear sister...

In the end, it turns out a bit of SoDa WaTeR and SaLt does WoNdeRs on ReD WiNe dress disasters. I danced the night away without a care in the world...

And thanks to my place in the BloGoSpheRe, I can sincerely say words that at one time in my life would have been UnImaGinAbLe:

ThAnK YoU Ben for spilling red wine on my FaVoRitE, NeVeR BeFoRe WorN DrEsS.

I dedicate this post to you and consider myself forever InDeBteD to you for giving me a MeMoRaBle story to share instead of the standard slideshow of pictures I would have come up with on my own.