Pitch Black Monday

Yeah soooooo driving to work in the pitch black this morning was not awesome. I knew it was coming but I much prefer driving to work watching the sun come up. I felt (and feel) like I should still be doing this...

It was hard to get up because this weekend was just too good. We had a dinner party, went on 2 lunch dates, watched movies, and basically did none of the stuff on our to do list...aka perfect. As much energy as I have during my 2nd trimester, I have also mellowed out a LOT. Pre pregnancy I would have a list a mile long of things to do over the weekend and just knock em out one after the other whereas Jon would be begging me to sit down and relax for 2 seconds...which I am more than happy to do now. Our little man is moving around like crazy and I love it! It also makes mama moving around a little tough haha.
We watched 2 movies this weekend... Friends with Kids and Jeff, Who Lives at Home (both Netflix instant watch). We really liked both but were just annoyed at how Friends With Kids pretty much said your life is over when you have kids. Maybe that is how it is in Manhattan? I know things will change but in our eyes, it will be for the better. It was a funny movie though. A little too raunchy but a good laugh. 
Will you still love me the mostest??

Speaking of babies...we totally have a toddler on our hands with Ernie. Love this munchkin to pieces but boy can he be moody and a pistol. He turned 2 in November and I see many similarities with him and human 2 year olds. Everytime we tell him to take a break from his ball, he goes and pouts. He makes it a point to face away from us like we are going to beg him to come back so we can throw his slime-y tennis ball. 

I know this week is spring break for lots of schools and it makes me ask myself, why didn't I become a teacher? (oh wait I ask myself that every spring break, Christmas break, and summer break). No break for us...although next week I get to go out of town for a training so that is kind of a break from the norm, eh?
Anyone doing anything for spring break? 

Week in review

You know what makes Monday mornings bearable and actually enjoyable? Baby flutter kicks!! I wasn't sure if this was the real thing last week but baby Hart has for sure moving and shaking the past few days and it couldn't be more precious. Yesterday at church I kept grabbing Jon's hands to put on my tummy to see if he could feel it but for now, it is something little man and I will share together until he gets bigger. 
The past week has been full of random fun...craft night, game night with our community group, date night, baby registry, more community group nights and surprisingly lots of energy for this prego. You know who hasn't had much energy?
To give you a hint he has a giant head and a is less than a foot tall...

The other day Jon and I were talking about Ernie and how things may change when the baby comes. Please don't comment about how he is being naive or "just wait" but Jon is sure that he will still give Ernie just as much attention and love... which makes me so happy. It makes me sad that he won't be my #1 baby anymore but I know it is natural...luckily Ernie will still sleep with me in bed...unlike baby so we will for sure get lots of cuddle time! Jon said that I still need to post lots of pictures of him when the baby comes since he has so many fans ;-)
I think he is getting antsy for the baby to come so I will stop dressing him up in baby clothes/accessories. Just imagine if we were having a girl...Ernie would be a bow and headband model for sure. 

He is funny about all the baby stuff we are accumulating...he wants to be right there in all the action. Or I should say ON the action. I was showing Jon some baby clothes I got and Ernie perched himself right on top of the stack, despite the wide open floor. 

Friday I attending the Verge Conference, a disciple making Christian conference, in downtown Austin. I had the pleasure of hearing incredible talks from David Platt and Francis Chan, surrounded by 2,500 other believers. Another highlight of my week was purchasing my ticket to the Hope Spoken Conference (and being one of the first 20 tickets woot woot). Let the year long countdown begin.

I highly recommend the book and sermon series Real Marriage by Marc Driscoll (and his wife Grace) from Mars Hill Church. Jon and I love being married and often say we feel like we are good at it but nothing humbles you more then realizing your own sin and downfalls in marriage, especially when it comes to thriving for a Christ centered one. The sermons can all be found online here. 

Like I've said before, I like hoarding my husband on the weekends since his weeks involve lots of travel. We did an at home date night with dessert out but also spent time with friends this weekend. Jon saw Django for the 2nd time and we basically spent the rest of the weekend listening to the soundtrack which I must say, kicks butt.

Saturday night the guys in our community group celebrated Texas Independence Day with a Texas Hold Em tournament and a few Texas themed beverages...

Pretty much half the ladies in our group are pregnant so we enjoyed dinner at La Madeline, typical girl conversation, and crashed the guy party later that night. I am proud at how much I've late night rallied during my 2nd trimester!
Yesterday was pretty much the most beautiful day ever and after church and Greek food out, I talked Jon into outside chores around the house. Again... I rallied and helped Jon wash and wax both cars, pull weeds, and dilly dally outside. We have hopes of getting a deck built before summer time so it was fun to plan out. 

I feel bad for Jon today, he was up at 4am to drive to Houston for a 1 hour meeting so we have a home date night...5pm...jammies and most likely some froyo. 

Follow me on Instagram here. 

 

Leader of the pack

If you've read my blog for more than 2 seconds, you'd know that Jon and I are crazy about our first born fur-child, Ernie, the French bulldog. If you've met him before than you'd know that a great phrase to describe him is "Ernie, party of 1". He is so much fun yet so darn stubborn. He is a great listener and very obedient when he wants to be, but then knows exactly how to push our buttons. I take full responsibility for being the mushy, forgiving one out of me and Jon because you can tell he definitely respects Jon more, and tends to obey him way more than he does me. 

Lately, we've been having issues with Mr. Ernie when people come into our home. He will absolutely flip out and bark and the second they walk in, he is bouncing off the walls, jumping up on their legs and occasionally giving them the slightest nip, usually on the leg. It is incredibly embarrassing for me because it is a new change in his behavior. We finally put our foot down last weekend when he nipped our friend's leg when she came over. I hate blaming it on anything but him but Jon thinks it's because he is traveling so much that Ernie feels the need to be the dominant one in his absence. It's weird because it takes Ernie a few minutes to calm down and then he is good with our guests...it's just the very beginning that makes him go wild. Bulldogs also have the inborn desire for dominance that Jon and I felt like we did a good job of nipping in the bud early on.

I mean, you can't get any cuter than this...but I am so annoyed by his behavior. 

In the past few weeks I have tried locking him away in his crate (that we only use for time out) when I know people are coming over and giving him time to cool off but I don't want to have to do this forever. Jon's mother has always owned her own dog training and grooming business so Jon grew up around all sorts of dogs and situations. He has been doing lots of research and we are taking lots of recommendations from Cesar Milan on how to be the 'leader of the pack'. Ernie absolutely loves walks but he pulls and pulls, again- a sign of dominance. Since we've been doing some dominance exercises at home, I took him on a walk yesterday and already noticed a huge difference! He stayed by my side and only pulled 1-2 times. BIG improvement. He is starting to learn who's boss :-).

So anyone have advice for me? Ernie is such a delight and I love almost everything about him, I just know this needs to change ASAP. 

Recovery

Sorry for the lack of meat this week on the blog...man has the flu or whatever I had kicked my butt (and every other human on the face of the earth's too). I wish I had tons of pretty pictures to show you but I am not one to really plan blog posts in advance so if you wanted to see what has been going on in my life this week, you'd see pictures of empty tissue boxes, Mucinex (life saver), rain on my windows, and lots of Ernie cuddles. I hate complaining because honestly I hate going to blogs that just complain about being sick all the time... that's why I tried to stay off social media because my tweets would have been me saying goodbye forever since I was basically on my death bed haha. But I am feeling GOOD and back at work, the sun is shining, Jon comes back from business this afternoon. I couldn't be more excited to do a whole lot of nothing this weekend (I mean that is what our weekends normally consist of but hey).

Last weekend, well Thursday-Tuesday Jon went home to Cleveland to visit family and I had a huge list of stuff to get done. Nothing major but just piddle paddly stuff around the house, different crafts, stuff I had been putting off. My husband travels for work during the week but I am never alone on the weekends so I wanted to jam pack the days so I wasn't bored. Luckily I had Friday night and Saturday during the day before the sickness of 2013 hit. I had a hot date with my favorite munchkin and we took advantage of free movie channels for the time being. 

Oh and this post will be the Ernie show since Jon has been gone, I just take pics of Ernie all day haha

Ever since we took Christmas down on New Years, the house has seemed naked to me. I have been dying to get some Valentine's Day decor up and was excited to get my craft on. I really love February because we got married in February (5th), got Ernie in February, Valentine's Day... and to add some cheese, our last name is Hart so there are hearts everywhere. I don't go overboard with decor but I want to feel the love. A girlfriend came over for craft day and we made these adorable wreaths. I saw them while searching on Pinterest (duh) and when I clicked on the site, it was in a language I couldn't decipher, so sorry for the lack of credit. My door is naked without a themed holiday wreath and I am trying to think of what I could do after Valentine's Day? Is it too soon for Easter?

I barely moved a muscle after the sickness hit, except to get snacks, take baths, and let Ernie out. I tweeted about it earlier this week but seriously I don't know what I would do without my little man. It's like he knew I was sick and never begged to play ball (which if you know him is HUGE) and stayed cuddled by my side for days. I cried many tears this weekend both of pure sickness frustration and realizing how much I love Mr. Ernie. Hey if Jon couldn't be there to take care of me, Ernie was my next best thing. I assumed I was nearing my death so I slept at my parents house one night so I didn't have to die alone...luckily the good Lord had different plans for me. I took 2 days off of work and slept, ate more snacks, used another box of tissues, and ate Mucinex like it was Reeses Pieces. And on Tuesday morning, I was so wrecked that I sobbed when I woke up knowing Jon was coming home. Why am I so lame?! Luckily it rained all day so when he got home, we ate Chick Fila, showered and went back to bed. I know I am not helpless without Jonny but I missed him so stinkin' much. 

Oh and the rain... Ernie was such a weenie and didn't want to go out there to pee. I had to shove his cute little tail-less booty and he was so sad coming in soaking wet. 

My dear dear husband chose to leave at 5am on Thursday morning for a business trip to spend time with his desperate wife instead of going the night before. So unfortunately last night I was hubby-less but kind of fortunate because I got to catch up on Pretty Little Liars (because it would be wrong to make Jon watch it, right?). And on that note, I am SO confused by last night's episode. I can't keep track of everything that has happened! Cliff notes anyone? But here I am, on the road to recovery... feels weird to be wearing makeup.

Can you tell this is my, I can finally breathe and am pissed off I already had this funk 8 weeks ago face? With awesome rain soaked hair!

We are dog sitting Miss Daisy (white Scottie) for the weekend... I was having fun making them turn their heads from side to side, "do you wannaaaaaa?"

I told ya, Ernie is a cuddle monster and can't get close enough to me, especially in the cold. I am convinced he is part gorilla in this pic. Those little lips kill me!

In other Hart family randoms...

• I am having the hardest time coming up with a 2 year wedding anniversary gift for Jon. The traditional theme is cotton and I don't want to do something big, just cute. I did buy him some Nike workout shorts but I doubt there is 1% of cotton in those shiny things. Last year for paper, I had boudoir pictures taken and made into a gorgeous leather bound book for him... never will I be able to top that!
• Jon and a buddy are doing a healthy weight loss competition and I am nervous that I have to start cooking super healthy. I don't cook like Paula Deen but if something calls for cream cheese, I will use it (I am just smart about it). Jon requires meat at every meal (protein king)... so do y'all have any good healthy recipes to share?

Owning a Frenchie

First things first...

Frenchie= French bulldog

(just didn't want you to be confused throughout this whole post!)

and this is Ernie, our 2 year old Frenchie...

Owning a Frenchie is one of the most rewarding things in my life, second only to my faith and marrying my husband. They aren't a common dog but have been in the media quite a bit lately (Modern Family, Sketchers commercials), making them a hot dog, no pun intended. I actually had never seen a Frenchie in person until we went to pick up our bundle of chunk from the breeder. For those of you unfamiliar with the breed, interested in getting one, or just want to see cute pictures of Ernie, I am going to give you some info on owning one of these cuties.

Size: this is what attracted me to Frenchies. Ernie is an average sized Frenchie standing about a foot tall and weighing 24lbs. He is really muscular and lacks rolls which is not the Frenchie norm. Larger Frenchies are 30-32lbs and smaller ones, like Ernie's parents, are 19-20lbs. Seriously Ernie's neck is so thick and he is super barrel chested.

Look: Frenchies are known as "frog dogs" and have a very distinct look about them. They have Brachycephalic syndrome meaning flat faced (along with pugs, Pekingese, etc). I love his squishy little nose and die for his batty ears that always stick up! Because of their flat faces, Frenchies often have breathing problems and bad gas due to inhaling their food without chewing it. Ernie is definitely an offender! Frenchies come in many different coats and Ernie is a reverse brindle- black with blonde highlights. They also come in fawn, cream, and fully black. All Frenchies have a white spot on their chest varying in size, Ernie's is really small. They also have nubs for tails!

Personality: Frenchies (and most bulldogs) are really stubborn. We tried to break this from the beginning with training but Ernie is still pretty stubborn. He is such a happy guy but knows how to push our buttons. For example, we will take up his ball so he will eat and he runs right up stairs and finds another ball that he has stashed away. He wants to do things on his time. Ernie is such a ham and literally stares and poses at the camera when I pull it out. He loves licking babies and is quite the party animal at parties. 

Activity: since Frenchies are normally chunky and sometimes overweight, most of the time they are pretty lazy...but not Ernie! He spends lots of time sleeping and cuddling during the day but that boy has more energy than any 2 year old  I know! His favorite toy is a tennis ball and he could spend hours playing fetch. He also loves playing with other dogs, wading in the water and "hunting leaves", going for walks, and chewing on empty water bottles. When we tell people how active he is, they are amazed! We thought it was a phase but man he has got some energy! He loves when my husband chases him around the house too.

Health: Frenchies have a 10-12 year lifespan but we are hoping to extend Ernie's by feeding him a holistic, grain free diet. Frenchies have lots of nasal/breathing problems because of their squished nose so we make sure Ernie gets lots of rest and water after he plays. They also have hip problems because they are so top heavy. Something interesting is that Frenchies have to be artificially inseminated because most of them are too top heavy to mount and they have to be born via C section.

Cost: because they take so many resources to conceive/birth, Frenchies are expensive, running between $1,500-upwards of $3,000 for AKC show dog parents. Healthcare can be an added cost but prevention is the best medicine!

If you are looking for a sweet, loveable dog to become a not only a pet but a true family member, I highly recommend Frenchies. Ernie can be a major toot and definitely isn't as obedient as his lab retriever cousin, but we love him so much. And he loves us. He gets so excited when he sees his mom and dad and gives us unconditional love, support, and cuteness with his big ol' smiley face. He will make a wonderful big brother to our human babies one day, but for now, he is our chunky first born fur baby!

Check out more Ernie posts here!

Soft peanut butter puppy treats

We have chosen to keep Ernie on an all natural, holistic, mostly grain free diet. I could go on and on about how terrible most pet foods are for your pets but I will save my rant for another day (email me if you have questions though!). We feed him Pinnacle, bought at an organic pet food store in Austin and we home make his treats. I normally make these treats for Ernie but was excited to come across another yummy looking recipe to try out. Ernie loved these new treats and my only drawback was they don't stay good for more than a week. I froze half and pop them in the fridge every few days when we are running low.

Ingredients

1 egg
1/3 cup chunky peanut butter, preferably organic or natural
1 overly ripe banana, mashed
2 tbsp honey
1 cup old fashioned oats
1/2 cup flour

1. Mix together egg, peanut butter, banana and honey
2. Stir in the oats and flour and mix well
3. Scoop 1 inch balls onto a greased baking sheet (I used a cookie scoop)
4. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes or until golden brown
5. Immediately smash the cookie flat with a fork or spoon to make it easier for your pup to eat

6. Let fully cool before giving to your dog
7. Store in an airtight container or bag
8. Enjoy up to a week after you make them

2

Today is a special day...our little Ernie is no longer a baby but a big bad 2 year old. If you think about dogs in human years, Ernie is now in the years of 14-21...so no longer a toddler/teeny bopper (let's see if he grows out of his stubborn-ness hehe). Ernie wasn't a fan of his birthday bandana from his Mimi but will definitely enjoy a nice piece of cheese this evening. Happy birthday chunky! 

I was planning on posting a giveaway today but after an awesome weekend of football (and remembering that today was Ernie's birthday haha), I am going to postpone that to next week. I know I may have confused you all if you follow me on Twitter or Instagram but I did not go to Baylor. I went to A&M but am actually a huge Baylor fan because Jon went there. We went to the Baylor/K State game on Saturday and expected a blowout but man we were wrong!! Y'all, it was the most fun game I've ever been to!!!!!!!!! Not only did Baylor beat the #1 team in the US (and make history), they kicked their booties! It was absolutely freezing and such a blast. I'm not really a huge football fan on my own (meaning I wouldn't watch without Jon) but to see Jon be so happy and go crazy wild...priceless!!

Before the game, we went to the Cameron Park Zoo in Waco which is surprisingly REALLY good. We try to go to a zoo or aquarium in every city we visit and back in August, I had an experience at the Salt Lake City Zoo that I didn't think I could top. But I did. The male lion came right up to the glass and started roaring literally inches from my face...it was amazing y'all. Literally once in a lifetime and will never happen again. If you are ever passing through Waco, go to the zoo...it's cheap and wonderful. 

(the hand sign in pictures is Sic Em Bears for the Baylor Bears, and yes, Baylor has a ping pong team and Jon played in college)

We drove straight to Dallas that night and fell into bed at my sister's after 1am. Jon stayed in Dallas to go to the Browns/Cowboys game while my sister, Embry and I headed back to Austin. I posted these pictures on Instagram and the comments were hilarious. Lot's of people (including Jon), thought the one on the right could be on Awkward Family Photos.com. Embry wasn't so sure about Jon's mask. And if you're wondering, Jon was born and grew up in Cleveland until he moved to Texas to go to Baylor in 2001. 

Ernie got to meet Embry for the first time yesterday at my parent's house. I was a little nervous for the first meeting because he has never really been around babies but he was funny. I would be holding her or she was laying on the floor and he'd come over, sniff and lick her, then walk away...looking for a ball. He moves too fast so I couldn't get a good picture but this is what I got. He looks so weird, almost mean because his eyes are partially closed. I think Ernie will love it when Embry starts walking because he loves little ones that are almost his size!

In other news (and photos)...

50 days until I meet John and Sherry from YHL! My sister met them this weekend in Dallas and I was giddy for her. Theirs was the first blog I ever read and is still my favorite!

My new wreath! And yes I made it :-)

We've been enjoying nighttime cold walks and doing hoodrat stuff in our suburbia neighborhood

Our mini Thanksgiving (thanks to Jon!). This was our 4th time to celebrate on our own, more on that Wednesday!

I woke up EXCITED today which is odd for a Monday haha. Tonight my mom is hosting a "Sip and See" for her friends to meet Embry and we have family coming in very soon! Short weeks make me so happy!

Am I the only one who doesn't mind it's Monday morning??

The vlog that made me prematurely gray

Okay so I actually already had the grays but seriously doing this vlog almost made me go off the deep--end. Normally I re videos with my FlipCam and edit them in Camtasia (amazing software and only $99 for Mac users, $300 for PCs boo) but I decided to use my Canon 60D since it is much better quality. Well...turns out it imports as a .mov file which is extremely hard to convert to an mp4 and Camtasia won't upload .mov files. Long story short....this took forever to put together, I used a sketchy service to convert the first half to mp4 and it left a water mark. Oh and you will notice 12 minutes in, we change clothes! That's because my nifty camera shut off after 12 minutes on the tripod. 

Wow that felt good...to vent about this dang thing. We had fun doing it though! Sorry if our answers are long and drag on, I would have trimmed stuff down in Camtasia but I don't even want to go there. I realized I am pretty long winded but hey...at least Ernie is cute (and yes we have tombstones in our formal living room).

Part 1

Part 2

If you made it to the end...I commend you! I should have made a huge announcement at the end or done a surprise giveaway to see how many people actually listened :). I sound like a little girl on camera. And Ernie sounds like a pig :-)

So a question for you bloggers....what is the best way to do a vlog? I don't like using the camera on my laptop and love the quality of my 60D but hate the mess it makes. I am on a PC too (and have no interest in switching to a mac). Thanks!!!

Happy dance

Today I am doing a little happy dance because I am on my way home from what is hopefully my last business trip of the year (in reality, I am probably drooling with an open mouth squished next to a burly, coughing man, on my United flight). I am ready for this whirlwind of a summer to be over, mostly because every couple of weeks I have had a weeklong trip for work. Yes it's been fun- Vegas, NYC, Toronto and San Francisco, but it is a lot less glamorous than it looks. Part of me feels like I missed out on a lot of the summer because I was preparing for one tradeshow after the next. I am so glad Jon and I got to get away last weekend and we will be at the lake until Labor Day totally unwinding. 

I am ready to focus on the fall...2 weddings, a trip to Mexico, a weekends in Dallas....a NIECE!!!!! We are on the cusp of my favorite time of the year. Jon and I were talking last week about when we should decorate for Halloween :-).  I have been trying to remove the phrase "super busy" from my vocabulary because friends, we are all busy! I've had a post I wanted to write for a while but need to find the time to write it about being overwhelmed. I am thanking the Lord that I do have things to keep me busy. Busy at work= I have an income, planning parties, showers, happy hours=  I have friends, vacations and getaways= we can afford to do those things. I am very thankful.

I am also very thankful for this chunky nug...

 admit it, he is the cutest thing you've ever seen

Play mama?

down dog?

and thankful for my big Mister. 

(fyi that is NOT my leg in the pic! haha)

The foot of one of Ernie's toys (I think it was a duck) fell off and he is now obsessed with it

"our pet's feet are falling off!"

My hubby rockin' his new shirt and swim trunks...party in the back!

Is there anything you are doing a happy dance for today?

Turning off the TV

When Jon and I met, we used to spent hours and hours just talking. I think most people can say that about the beginning of their relationship. You want to spend every minute soaking up the newness and getting to know someone's inner being. But for most people that eventually wears off. Call me an optimist but for me and Jon, it has not. We still spend hours talking about everything and nothing. Getting to know each other despite being married for a year and a half. Laughing fits and tickle fights. No we are not still in the honeymoon phase, we genuinely enjoy each others company. Now I am not saying there aren't argument and struggle and disconnect at times because we are human.

Jon and I chose not to have a TV in our bedroom when we moved into our little home after we got married. We wanted our bedroom to be a sacred place where we didn't have distractions. Don't get me wrong, there were times we fell asleep on the couch in front of the TV, just not in our bedroom. Moving into our new house I requested to have a TV in our room because when Jon travels, I like to catch up on the latest trashy episode of Real Housewives and doze off to reruns of Sex and the City. It's new for me and quite fun.

But Jon and I still make it a point to try not to go to bed with the TV on. Lately we haven't watched much TV at all, with the exception of the Olympics and 30 Rock on Netflix. Being so busy, throwing multiple parties and hosting overnight guests, we have begun to really savor the free nights we have together. And why would we want to spend those moments (that come few and far between) glued to the TV. Lately we've been laying on the family room floor, throwing the ball with Ernie, laughing our little hearts out, making up songs, and planning our next vacations. It's always been a rule that we eat at the dinner table without the TV on and it will be a rule for the rest of our lives. We talk about the rose and thorn of our day. We listen to Louis Armstrong on Pandora. We take time to read the bible and pray for our friends. Spending uninterrupted time with Jon is like medicine for my soul and my sanity. 

Jon is also loving my new camera lens...

and loving his feet photo bombing

We've kinda gotten into a routine of making sure we are in our bedroom around 10pm. We talk, cuddle, do what married people do...without TV.

It's sad to think how social media has taken over our lives. I will be the first to admit I usually check Twitter and Instagram when I take Ernie out first thing in the morning. So even though we are good about turning the TV off, I'd like to work on unplugging more often. I see a tweet light up on my phone and want to answer right away. And I hate not texting people back. Does anyone else feel the same??

Now before I share more of my husband's photography, I do want to say that there are nights Jon and I spend with our butts parked on the couch catching up on our DVR (in which I am usually multitasking with crafting or blogging and Jon is catching up on work). But we have made it a big priority to spend distraction-less time together. Being married to someone you enjoy spending time with is fun :-)

& yes, most days I come home from work and put on Jon's clothes...I'm sexy and I know it