Judging...

Everyone does it. If you say you don't, then you're lying.
It's human.
But that doesn't make it nice.
Especially when you are the one being judged.

When you willingly sign up to be judged, then you're crazy.

Mr. T and I are currently in the process of completing our "Life Book" for the adoption process. This book is a simple 20 page picture book that is supposed to get your whole life story from: children, hobbies, education, interests, family, occupation, talents, and preference in toothpaste down in a neat and orderly manner without using too many words. You include pictures of yourself, your family and everything that might get your family story across.

Then you hand it over to be judged.

The adoptive birth mothers look at your life book and decide if they would be interested in meeting you for an interview to adopt the child that is inside of them.

Seriously.

It's a tad nerve racking to put yourself and your family "out there". Talk about millions of insecurities that begin to flood your brain and make you feel like you're not good enough at just the wrong time. Vulnerability is not my strong suit, but what I have learned through this entire process is that I am constantly having to get out of my comfort zone.
Because that's what faith's about, right?


So... here's to fair judging.

So What!

This week I am linking up with Shannon for a little So What! Wednesday.
This week I am saying So What:

That I am officially the old grouchy lady that talks about how terrible the weather is all the time. It was 95 degrees on Monday and 90 degrees on Tuesday. I'm sick of the heat people. Sick of it!

That I begged my daughter to not be a princess for Halloween. Yes, she told me that's what she wanted to dress like but later she decided against it. I may or may not have made ugly faces while showing her the "Princess" dresses, but either way she decided on something else. I'm sorry but I don't know why Princesses have to dress like little strippers. I don't see Kate Middleton dressed like that.

That Mr. T and I are going to Paris (yes France!) in less than a month and I can hardly wait! The most exciting part? Planning my fall, french wardrobe. I have no idea how that's going to happen, but I bet Target will help me out.

That I seriously did a little happy dance when I found out that The New Girl was back on last night. It's still hilarious.

That I love everything about Fall, except Starbucks pumpkin drinks. Don't get me wrong, they are delicious. However, they (for some reason) hate me and my body always rejects them.

That I think it's weird that people take pictures of their Starbucks cups. I know what the cups look like, I promise. What's more weird? When people 'tag' outfits on Pinterest and it includes a Starbucks cup like it's a little accessory. First world problems I tell ya.

Thanks for listening to me vent! I feel better and Mr. T enjoys when I complain to someone other than him.

A weekend hangover...

 

But not the cool kid.

The nerdy, parent kind. I am hungover from a milestone haircut (no, I didn't shed tears...that's embarrassing.), an 18 mile run, a craft fair, a 7 year olds' soccer game (while screaming on the inside while my daughter CHASED the big, creepy, black crickets trying to squish them with a stick), college football watching and hosting my mom's birthday party.

 

 

 

Sister will ride a horse with a smile when she is promised a sucker afterwards. 

Who brings their baby into a bar? This lady. They had a million TVs to watch lots of games and chicken wings were screaming my name after my 18 mile run.

Don't judge me yet. It was Buffalo Wild Wings and we went at 5:00 so we were a tad less inappropriate.

See, she's happy about it. 

You also read that correctly. We got rid of Isabelle's mullet. Of course it was a little sad. That hair was the hair that she had in my belly. Now it's gone, but she does look a lot "cleaner" without looking too much older. We picked a kids salon to ease her nerves and that seemed to do the trick. Sure, she went number 2 in her pants as soon as we walked in the door (potty training boot camp failed us there), but we blamed it on the nerves and just kept moving after a little clean up. The salon had free games to play and adorable different little seats to sit in and get a haircut while watching a little movie.

I don't know why this type of salon doesn't exist for adults. I would have a lot less split ends if I didn't have to do small talk at the salon and could just sit there with a sucker and enjoy a good episode of The Real Housewives.

 

 

 Look how long that mullet was getting! The sun bleached out the ends of her hair and she had a natural little ombre look. She's so trendy.

On Sunday we hosted my mom's birthday and half way through grilling hamburgers, our grill broke. We decided to bring the burgers in and we could put them on the griddle and even pop them in the oven. Great idea! The burgers tasted delicious and were so juicy.

That being said, I will not be eating burgers for a long time.

Somebody in this household (I won't name names, but it was not me. Or Isabelle) decided to put the burgers in the oven on a cookie sheet. Do you know what happens when grease gets all over your oven? Your house smells like an old burger shack.
Disgusting. I know.
So we have had the windows open and every candle, scentsy and piece of baking soda out to try and get rid of the smell.
Things are getting better, but several cows will continue living thanks to this household.

It's the freakin weekend....

So spend it hangin' with your buddy

 

Or be a good support system



 

 

Or make someone laugh. 

Either way, have a good freakin weekend.

Busy little bees.

It's fall which means that life starts getting crazy and won't slow down until after Christmas. The fall decorations are making our house look cozy even though we are spending NO time in our actual house because the weather is so amazing.

 

I didn't get to decorate our house last year because we put it on the market, so this year I am making up for lost times. I have learned that the best way to keep a toddler busy while you are trying to decorate your house is to have her practice counting with candy corns while you are quickly putting everything out. Best part? Don't tell her that they are delicious candies. One day she will figure it out, but for now we will continue to work on counting without too many trips to the dentist office.

I have also been working hard on the new Fall Noonday Launch  and I couldn't be more excited to show everyone all the pretties! Some of my new items will be on a local morning TV show and I will also be at a Grand Opening for a delicious bakery here in Tulsa. If you are interested in coming to shop for a GREAT cause, or just want to eat some yummy new pastries come out to the Goods & Goodies party hosted by Prairie Hive. It should be a good time.

I have some exciting news on the adoption front that I can't wait to share with you (we have not been placed with a child yet so don't get too excited) so I will catch up with you soon!

Weekend Warrior

Sorry the pictures are blurry, but it was rainy and I was jumping around trying to catch a semi cute picture of Isabelle and her cousin Elijah.
He stayed the night with us to go to a high school football game and hang out with Izzy while Mr. T and I ran a long run on Saturday.

I have jumped on the crazy train again.

I'm training for ANOTHER marathon. After what happened to me at the Boston Marathon, I thought I would take a bit of time off to recover.
Then my competitive side kicked in and I decided to sign up for a local marathon in November.
I may be an idiot, but I'm going to give this whole marathoning thing a try. I just can't quit running! Forrest Gump and I totally see eye to eye.

This weekend, Isabelle also went to stay with her Gram for a night. Mr. T and I enjoyed an early bed time, sleeping in and going to church without a toddler crying, "NO CHURCH!"
It's funny though, because she's at such a fun age that I don't feel like I need a "break" from her like I did when she was a baby. She can no go to the bathroom by herself, entertain herself and entertain me. It's awesome! The little break was nice, but we were ready to have her back at home.

And just like that...

She became a big girl.

It took her less than a week of mommy/daddy boot camp before she had potty training all figured out. Many kitty cat treats were given, and tons of potty dances occurred in our living room but it was all worth it.

I am really happy to not have to change dirty diapers, but at the same time it means that Isabelle is no longer a "baby". She is a fully trained pooper in the potty and she's not afraid to tell you just that.

Hopefully, she will not be our last "baby", so I am embracing this time of no diapers, yet I am still hoping that I will be able to buy tiny diapers again sometime soon.

Suddenly she looks and acts a lot older than she did a few weeks ago. She is picking out her own outfits, including cowgirl boots to look like her daddy (although Mr. T doesn't wear pink ones) and she is making a lot of witty comments. I am loving it.

This weekend we will be enjoying the new, cooler weather, I will be getting out all of my fall decorations (HALLLELUJAH! My favorite time of the year kicks off!) and we will be watching a ton of college football.
I couldn't be more excited.
Which, officially, makes me my mother.