Babies Babies Babies

As the newest addition to the family, Graham has gotten most of the attention lately, but Anne & Mark are definitely not the only ones with a little sump'n sump'n going on in baby-land.

Mike & Laura's little girl is going to be here in no time flat --- like the next couple weeks!! Since they live in Bermuda, I really haven't seen Laura's baby bump grow, so it doesn't quite seem as real (I know she'd say otherwise), but the big day is going to be here so soon and I'm going to have my first niece! There are just way too many tutus and tiaras and pink sparkly things in this world for her not to be spoiled rotten, so that's just going to be a fact of life. Tough, right? Laura posted some pics of the nursery last week and it's (of course) so cute. Sweet and baby but modern and Mike & Laura-esque all at the same time. And what about Laura? She's going to deliver a baby in no time and she looks like that. I want those genes!

 

A little closer to home there's even more baby news. Double the fun. Twice as nice. Two times the par-tay. Get it? Get it? Okay, so, about six(ish) weeks ago, Pat and Stacy made a big announcement - they're pregnant again. With twins!!! They headed to Midland this weekend for a gender reveal party and what color were the cakes? BLUE! Both of them. Two more precious little boys on the way. How fun is it going to be for them to have 3 little monkeys running around? The Doak brothers. Again. Watch out world. How sweet is this pic of their little (growing) family? I love Jack's "big brother" shirt.

Which brings me to Jack. Decidedly not the baby of the family anymore, but the first baby of them all, and the one who's at that perfect wanna-eat-your-face-you're-so-deliciously-cute stage. (That was weird, I know.) These pics are of him a few weeks ago when we got together to celebrate Lizzi's b-day. Look at his curly locks! The first one is cute and precious, and the second one cracks me up because it's what he does when Stacy or Pat says, "Jack, do your silly face!"

My family rocks. xx

I Luv Summer

Since it's officially fall, now seems like a good time to catch-up on all of the fun stuff that happened this summer. Or at least some of the highlights...

Horseshoe Bay Trip #1
High: Cops breaking up Matt's 4am dance lesson
Low: Finding out leeches had invaded the lake

Lundy's Neon-themed 8th 21st BDay
High: everything up until the low
Low: the bus ride home and everything after

Emily's 2nd Annual B-day Tubing Trip
High: Emily's bus dance on the ride home (why, oh WHY, do I not have a picture or video of that?)
Low: Realizing we missed the 1st exit and had 4 more hours to go

Random Austin Trips
High: Too many to pick, really, but I'll go with the 1st trip to Barton Springs
Low: Leaving

Girls' Weekend @ Lake Conroe
High: Jumbo Slip n' slide. Hands down. No question.
Low: Not having Juli or Erica with us this time

Las Vegas 
High: this one's tough, so I'm going with several: 1) Dancing at HOB with our friends from the Hoodie awards (don't ask), 2) Matt's late night sleepwalking debacle, 3) dinner (and amazing dessert) at Nobu, and 4) WHEEL (dramatic pause) OF (dramatic pause) FORTUNE!!!!!
Low: Accidentally sleeping through an entire Cirque du Soleil show

ACL

High: Finally going

Low: Trying to meet up with people... not. easy.

The Survival Race

For the past couple years, I've heard about and seen pictures of various mud runs and always think they look pretty fun. So when a Living Social deal came through for one in Dallas, I was on it. Not everyone thought it sounded so amazing (cough cough, Sarai, cough), but Lizzi agreed to do it with me. The race was at some random paintball field in the middle of nowhere and had 8 obstacles over the course of a 5K. Here's the rundown...

1. A football training-camp-esque tire run. Turns out we were supposed to run on top of the tires vs. doing high knees through their centers. Live and learn.

2. Crossing a mud pit...via a tree branch.

3. Climbing up a muddy incline, while some A-hole sprays a hose at your face.

4. Trudging through a muddy creek where Lizzi ate it, I made fun of her, and then God laughed in my face as he struck me down too.

5. A rope thingy-ma-bopper that you climb up and over. This was definitely the scariest one. Don't let the look on my face fool you; I was smiling so I wouldn't cry. Lizzi, on the other hand, looks pretty confident.

6. Some stupid cement spindle that you're supposed to climb over. The guy working at that stop (and Lizzi) had fun watching me run and try to jump over to no avail not once, but twice. Then the two-part grand finale of...

7. A crazy high* blazing fire pit you have to jump over *crazy high = 4 to 6 inches off the ground

8. A big sloshy mud pit with barbed wire down low that you have to crawl under on your stomach. This was clearly my favorite one...hands down. I can't promise that Lizzi and I quite went for it like this lovely gentleman in the picture – I'm just assuming that's a man – but you've got to appreciate his effort.

Lizzi was hungover for the entire thing and forgot her inhaler, so it was more of a mud stroll than run, but we had fun and got some good pics. Hardcore, right?

46 Days of Baby G

Here I am, back again, from a little blogging hiatus. There's definitely no better place to pick up than with all the gooshy details about my newest nephew, Graham.

Before we get to the big day, I should rewind even further to the baby shower we threw Anne back in May (I'm so late, I know). We had Jill design cute invites to coordinate with Graham's bedding and used them as inspiration for circus themed decorations. All in all, I think it was a success, and it was really cool to see all of Anne's friends so excited to celebrate with her.

Then, after much anticipation, Graham made his debut on July 1st. I know I'm biased, but he was seriously the cutest newborn I've ever seen. Maybe the only time being a chunker is a good thing is as a newborn, and he knocked this one out of the park. At 9 lbs, 5 ounces he was the cutest little tub 'o love you've ever seen, with little round and delicious cheeks. The timing was perfect, too, because everyone was able to visit a bunch over the long weekend.

Anne and Mark's house is just down Northwest Highway from my office, so it's been awesome to be able to sneak away during lunch every now and then for visits (and to give Anne a chance to shower!). This pic was taken a couple weeks ago, when he was about 4 weeks old. He's the cutest, right? I love you, Graham! (And your awesome momma and daddy too!)

Facebook Fail

One of my clients is Blue Plate Mayonnaise and they have a new FB page which I was asked to "like" this week. I just looked at my profile.

Such unfortunate – yet ironically insightful – timing.

The Jimmy

Due to popular demand, I’m going to try to get back on the blog train. I haven’t posted in eons (I know…I KNOW), but I have made a few notes along the way of blog-worthy topics, so I’ll start there and see what happens. Here goes…

This first one begins with me needing to bring my car to the shop but not wanting to feel the usual credit card sucker punch that tends to come alongside such visits. To sidestep the sucker punch situation, I brought my car to a little local shop that a bunch of people at work use and recommend. Great, let’s do this.

When I show up the guy asks if I want a loaner. I didn’t even know they had loaners, but they do and they’re free, so all good. There were two options: a truck or a Jimmy. I didn’t know what a Jimmy was but I knew I didn’t do trucks, so I opted for the Jimmy. The – come to find out – 200,000+ miles, sputtering AC, no automatic windows or lights Jimmaroo. Not a dream car, right, but whatever. I was getting my car fixed and it was going to be really reasonable, so no biggie, I can roll the windows down  for a day. 

But, of course, things are never quite that simple.

The next morning – still the proud driver of one white hot mess of a Jimmy – I had a little run in. It wasn’t a bad run in, or at least that’s what I thought at first, but it was a run in nonetheless, and it involved the Jimster. My history with cement pillars (any permanent structures in garages, really) isn’t the cleanest out there, and that morning didn’t help my record. As I was backing out of my spot in the garage (the spot, mind you that I had hand-selected so as not to have to back out of my usual kinda-tight-fit-might-not-wanna-risk-it parking spot), I sort of completely ripped off the driver’s side mirror and put some pretty hefty scratches and dents in poor Jimmy's side. Not excellent.

It was early morning, and I still had to be at work, so I went on my way. The mirror was hanging on by wires and kept banging into the car as I drove down the highway, so I just pulled it into the car and let the window (automatically rolled up and down, remember) hold it in place. Good morning to me! But that was just incident #1. Incident #2 was me getting back in the Jimster at lunchtime only to find that after all of the morning’s excitement I’d left the lights on (automatic, remember) and had completely run down the battery. Jimmy: 2 Amy: 0.

Long story short, the "reasonable" Volvo fix became pricier (just as I originally feared) once the rest was added in (accident #1 was hard to hide, but I didn’t feel like #2 was necessary to share with "management"). Moral of the story? I don’t even know. Maybe pick the truck next time?

Sweet, Sweet, Multi Vites

Are you guys vitamin takers? Until about three months ago I was not. I had good intentions – and a One A Day bottle sitting on my desk for probably two years – but there's nothing fun about taking a (G-I-A-N-T) pill every day. Or so I thought.

After my annual check-up this year I found out that my Vitamin D levels were low. Two things to note here: 1) I had recently read a book that had me on a semi-vegetarian kick, which was likely a contributing factor and fluke now that I'm back to my carnivorous self 2) that Vitamin D test, alone, cost me $336. In total, one visit to the doctor for a good 'ol checkup and routine bloodwork put me in the hole $850. Yes, I have insurance. No, it doesn't cover preventative care. So ridiculous. But that's a completely different post. Back to the vitamins...

Based on the (flukey but still cost me $336 to find out) news of my Vitamin D deficiency, I decided that I really should start taking a multivitamin vs. just having the bottle on my desk. Flashforward to me strolling through Target and passing an end-cap with gummy multivitamins. Wait a minute. Gummies that are vitamins. This could be something. And it was/is. Taking them every day is not a problem. In fact, the real issue is reminding myself that these aren't Haribo gummy bears and eating more than 2 per day is actually not okay. When I need a little munchy, oh how yummy they are. If any of you find yourself in a similar situation, give it a go. I'm onto my second bottle (told you I take them every day), and this one is super reasonable from Costco. Yumm!

Hello Sunshine!

*Disclaimer: If you are reading this and live in, say, Chicago...you might want to skip this post.*

Now for the rest of you...helllooooo spring! I actually started writing this on Saturday – enveloped in pure JOY – having just come inside from a couple glorious hours out by the pool with Lizzi. I, for one, am someone who can 100% get behind being able to lay out by the pool in March. Oh how I love what the next several months have in store!

Happy Place

I love the beach. Love, love, love. So when I had the chance to go to LA a day before I had to start working, I was on it. And it was awesome. I saw my HS friend, Elizabeth, on Sunday, then spent all of Monday roaming. I drove to Malibu in the morning (I've always wanted to see it although I had no idea what to do once I got there); went to the Getty Villa (the Getty Center in LA was closed, but the Villa was still pretty awesome); checked into the Viceroy (baller hotel in Santa Monica); walked/shopped the streets of Santa Monica (including a trip to H&M where I found what I'm hoping will be my go-to white jeans for the season); got a manicure and pedicure (and perhaps a staph infection b/c the place turned out to be ghetto); walked along the beach and watched guys swing like crazy men on the rings at "muscle beach"; decided I should have the purse I left at Bloomingdales and walked back downtown to get it (I would now like to return it but am not sure how that's going to work out); had a glass of wine tried to get a glass of wine by the pool as I was reading before realizing that b/c of the time difference The Bachelor season finale was almost going to begin (another major event my day had been planned around); rushed out to find dinner (ended up being grapes & nuts from the grocery store...fail); then rushed back to watch Brad and Emily get engaged. Whew. Then Tuesday morning I got in a nice early morning run along the beach. Happiness, people. Happiness.

A little shopping center in Malibu, where I had breakfast in the morning. 

Getty Villa

Seriously? So awesome.

More...

Just your typical garden

Room at the Viceroy
(I've always been a sucker for fun hotels...they've just gotten more expensive
with time. The Embassy Suites used to really do it for me.)

Monkey Men

What is there not to be happy about here?

Well, $h!T

Today is the first day of my multi-city (Charlotte, Austin & LA) focus group jaunt and so far things are going awesome.

When we arrived at the focus group facility they said that they'd been having some plumbing problems but that the plumber had just left and everything was okay. Flash forward to me using the restroom and then washing my hands when out comes what I can only believe to be sewage – all over my hands.

Focus groups: 1
Amy: 0

Starbuck's Gold

I was doing some work at Starbuck's yesterday (because what fun is Sunday without work?), and overheard some pretty awesome exchanges between two old men (mid-80s). "Friend 1" was particularly entertaining. Here are a few highlights I jotted down so I wouldn't forget:

Friend 1: "She didn't have a mean bone in her body. I mean she was so sweet. If you could just overlook her looking like a basketball. And she really did." 

Friend 2: "I woke up, decided I didn't want to get up so went back to bed, woke up again, and had an english muffin and marmalade."

Friend 1: "Oh boy, now that is great. I love a breakfast like that." 

Friend 1: "If I lose 40 pounds before I turn 86 – that's only a pound and a half per day for the next month, people do that you know – will you still think I'm as charming?"

Friend 1: "You ever freeze your grapes? I tell you – they are so darn good. Oh boy. You just put them in the freezer a couple hours. Man, they are so darn good. Like frozen candy or something."

Sometimes it's the little things. Hug a friend today!

The "Real Food" Challenge

Mardi Gras is officially upon us, which means Fat Tuesday and Ash Wednesday are just around the corner. I’ve been thinking about what to give up for Lent this year and have decided to do something I want to do anyway but could use a little motivation/Catholic guilt to push me through!

Here’s the challenge: for the 40 days of Lent I’m going to cut out processed food and only eat “real food.” For me, the link to Lent is twofold: 1) real food = the food God put here, and 2) if I think about the Big Man every time I want to cheat (probably going to be pretty often), there’s something good in there too.

I just got back from dinner with Sarai and Michael and confirmed that having some input before Wednesday to “firm up” the rules would be a good thing. So, the rules. There are a ton of blogs out there on this very subject (which I'm sure will be awesome later when I need some fresh ideas – wink wink), but I found one, in particular, that is right on par with what I have in mind – 100 Days of Real Food. The author outlines the rules as such:

1. Whole foods that are more a product of nature than a product of industry
2. Lots of fruits and vegetables 
3. Dairy products like milk, unsweetened yogurt, eggs, and cheese
4. 100% whole-wheat and whole-grains
5. Seafood (wild caught is the optimal choice over farm-raised)
6. Only locally raised meats such as pork, beef, and chicken (preferably in moderation)
7. Beverages limited to water, milk, all natural juices, naturally sweetened coffee & tea, and, to help the adults keep their sanity, wine and beer!
8. Snacks like dried fruit, seeds, nuts and popcorn
9. All natural sweeteners including honey, 100% maple syrup, and fruit juice concentrates are acceptable in moderation

All of that makes sense, I’m just trying to think ahead to what I’m going to have questions about later/be tempted to cheat on. So here are some questions for you, my loyal readers, to weigh in on. ;-) 

• Cheese is on the “approved list” but I can see that turning into a problem without some stricter rules. I'm thinking limiting this to reduced-fat cheeses only might be a good way to put the kibosh on eating brie in front of the TV and convincing myself that it's okay because it's "real food." Thoughts?
• When it comes to seafood and meat, I’ll do my best to buy organic and local if possible, but that might be one that has to give a bit. 
• Salad dressing – obviously olive oil, vinegar, balsamic are all okay. What about something like Annie’s Naturals Goddess Dressing? It has a pretty clean ingredient label. I’m thinking that’s okay? 
• Soy sauce – I’m seeing brown rice sushi in the future and am wondering if it's kosher to dunk it in delicious soy sauce. I'm afraid this might be a no go, although I was reading another "real food" blog earlier about someone using low-sodium soy sauce (let's be honest, that stuff is just not as good). Still, could that be a happy medium? Or better to avoid altogether?
• Dried fruit & popcorn – I'm surprised about dried fruit because most have lots of sugar added. Maybe someplace (like Central Market) has the straight-up fruit? Guess I’ll have to check the ingredient labels on the bins. And what about popcorn? Is that like homemade popcorn or from a bag? Again - might have to check the ingredient label for that one.
• Green beans in a can – I know fresh is better and that canned have added salt, but nothing else is in there. So is that OK? What about other beans (e.g., black beans or kidney beans)? I'm sure fresh is better but in a time crunch you think these would be okay?
• Wine and beer – no real question here, just wanted to acknowledge how lovely it is that they're on the list without me having to secretly add them. Fermented grapes...as real as it gets. Mmmmhmmm!

If you're still reading this excessively long post, let me know what you think. And Happy Mardi Gras!

World Banana Day 3

My younger sister, Lizzi, has really been ratcheting up the blog posting lately, which makes me realize how incredibly quiet this poor little blogspot has been. As usual, I blame it on this place. Sigh.

I am proud to say, though, that in my little free time out of the office I've been able to do some important stuff. You know – like "solving world hunger through the cunning use of banana suits." If you're unfamiliar with the concept, you don't need to go any further than worldbananaday.org to get up to speed. (Is that maybe just one two three too many links in one post?) If you think it's a joke, think again. Those exact words ("solving world hunger...") came out of my mouth this weekend as I was trotting from one bar to the next, and some sweet little lady pulled a $1 out of her purse for me to donate! A-mazing!

I will leave you all with a few pics and one final thought, as so eloquently noted on worldbananaday.org: 

"Anyone not dressed as a banana that night will just be a dumb old fruit."

Re-thinking Valentine's

Today has been a sad day. Not because it’s Valentine’s Day and I’m flying solo – that’s small potatoes today. Several months ago I blogged about Sarah, and I know several of you have been following her blog ever since. News came today – via her husband – that she’s most likely in the final days of her life. 

It’s hard for me to wrap my head around why this is happening to Sarah – someone who’s so young and such a good person and who should be enjoying her days as a newlywed, happy and healthy. Not saying goodbye. I am so sad for her, but also – so much – for her family. What it would be like to lose a sibling, I can’t even fathom. And though I can’t exactly relate, I know losing a child or spouse would be equally or even more devastating.

Without getting too sad (I know, I already went there), what I will say is this – Sarah has touched so many people with her life, and I know that she’s made a lot of us SRD Herders stop to think about what really matters in life. Maybe we could all be a little more patient. Less catty. More caring. Live each day to the fullest. Be thankful for what we’ve been given.

So, today on Valentine’s Day I want you to know that if you are a part of my family or one of my friends – I love you and I’m thankful for you being in my life. Take a minute today to slow down and recognize everything you have.

Love to you all.

And Baby Makes 3

There's big news in the Doak family these days. Actually in the Doak/Robinson family. Anne is pregnant! She and Mark are expecting their first little bundle of joy on June 30, and they just found out yesterday (Anne's 30th birthday) that it's a BOY!!

Anne is no doubt going to be supermom. I'm telling you – handmade mittens, birthday parties decked out to the nines, homemade cupcakes because it's Tuesday. It'll be nuts. Oh, and did I mention that this is going to be the most stylish little boy in town? You could say Anne has an addiction a passion for shopping, and this little goober is going to reap the rewards. Hey, there's nothing wrong with a haute baby!

As for Mark, he's definitely my favorite brother-in-law. True he's my only BIL at the moment, BUT, even if he werent, I'd still like him bunches and bunches. He's the perfect combination of hard-working, funny, kind, and all things good, and he'll be an amazing dad.

All in all, that's one lucky baby boy cooking in there. Come on June - get here already! 

1, 2, 3, To a Darker Me

Today marks my second spray tanning experience. In fact, I'm sitting in my living room in my skivvies at this very moment, letting my golden glow settle in. I know, I know – so vain, a waste of money, blah blah blah. I don't necessarily disagree, yet here I am – gradating before my very eyes and pretty okay with the whole thing. It's not a regular thing for me (hence it only being my second experience), but when it comes to wearing cocktail dresses in the middle of winter, it's really the safest option. 

The lady who beamed me up told me – as I was standing there in all my glorious splendor – that she remembered me (from the last time I went...about 8 months ago, mind you), and that I've lost weight since last time I was in. I have categorical evidence to the contrary, and I recognize that she probably says that to every single person who walks in that door, but yes, yes that did earn her another buck or two in tip.

As I sit here drying, I can't help but wonder when it became acceptable to strip down in front of a perfect stranger and let them re-color your body. Or let an esthetician get up-close-and-personal and introduce you to Brazil. O-M-G! I just remembered another outrageous interesting thing this lady told me. She has a master's degree – A MASTER'S DEGREE – in tanning (TaNnInG)! That's right. I can't wait to see the edge that gives me this weekend. I just hope nobody found a tanner with a doctorate!

Yoga, Day 1 (Again)

Sarai and I mean well.

Every time we see a Groupon or Living Social deal for something that’s fitness related and in Uptown we turn into Pavlov’s dogs and can’t help ourselves. Something about the idea of becoming hot little yoga girls or hardcore bootcampers gets us every time. Unfortunately, our follow-through has not – historically – been stellar.

Over the summer we tried Bikram yoga, as documented here. That post marked our 3rd, and final, visit. This fall we hit up bootcamp. It was b-r-u-t-a-l. All 3 times we went. =) Anyone else seeing a trend here? In our defense, bootcamp started at 6pm, which was really hard to get to so soon after work. So what about today? Today marks the beginning of our latest trial – yoga, take two. Unlike the first studio, this place isn’t blazing hot inside, although it's still hot (I was unaware of this detail when we signed up). 

After class – and after a trip to Whole Foods where we, unsucessfully, searched for some miracle vitamin Sarai's read about online that’s apparently the answer to our all of our weight-loss woes – we made a plan. Like we do every time. Because Day 1 is all about the excitement and the energy and all that good stuff!!! Since our other plans haven't ever exactly come to fruition, though, we decided to lower the bar a bit (new year, new standards, people!). Instead of pretending we’re going to be little yogi warriors, we’re just going to aim for going twice per week. We'll see how that unfolds in the coming weeks...

We took a picture of our sweat-drenched bodies after class. Upon further consideration, I've decided that posting that here isn't going to be a good thing for anyone. So instead, I’ll leave you with this little video from several years ago. It is, in fact, much more representative of where things usually end up with the two us...late night and stomachs full of Taco C. Cheers!

In The Kitchen

I already professed my new found love for the MiracleWare Microwave Egg Poacher over what was obviously a rousing dinner conversation Saturday night, but for those of you who missed it – you need to know. I am a big fan of Eggs Benedict, but I don't like Hollandaise sauce and I can take or leave the ham, which essentially boils down to me just liking poached eggs. But for whatever reason, poaching eggs always seemed like a fancy cooking skill to me, so I never attempted it.

Last week, though, I decided to go to Bed Bath & Beyond to get whatever was necessary for this "egg poaching" business. There were a few options, so naturally I opted not only for the cheapest (just $3.99), but also the laziest option – a plastic concoction that you simply crack eggs into then pop in the microwave for one minute. Now that I've had this handy little device for a week, all I have to say is O. M. G. I've already used it (more than once), and it's awesome. Cheap, easy, and yummy. Perfection! 

My next kitchen miracle purchase is definitely going to be super size cupcake pans (like these) from Hobby Lobby. We went to Jack's b-day party this weekend, and Stacy's mom had made cupcakes that looked SO amazing. She said the trick was using bigger pans, which make the cupcakes look way fancier. Had the roads not been TREACHEROUS today from the inclement weather, I'd probably have them already. Regardless, they will soon be mine and ready for testing. Anne's 30th birthday might be just the occasion for their debut. Yum!

Jack Turns 1

Happy Birthday, little man. You are very loved!

Happy New Year!

{Fergie sings} I gotta feeling that this year's gonna be a good year...that this year's gonna be a good year...that this year's gonna be a good good year...

It's true, I have high hopes for 2011. Not just for me, but for all of my friends and especially for my family. I think it would be fair to say that 2010 was a pretty mixed bag, but there's a lot going on that I think is bound to be good/better/fun/exciting in 2011. Cheers to positive thinking! And happy 2011! (I'll see you all at the gym.)