Sunday, July 13, 2008

Hangover


It might seem kinda odd that I'd have a hangover this morning - you know with me being almost 38 weeks pregnant and all. But I woke up and my head is spinning.

You see, last night, my card girls threw us the most perfect baby shower. They were all so kind to me and they all realize how I just don't do well in the 'all eyes on me' type of situations. Somehow they managed to make the most fun afternoon and evening EVER and I can honestly say that I never once felt like I was gonna puke.

The afternoon started with me being picked up by the 'prom'-mobile. I say that because our dear Ruth was the group driver and she even had her car completely cleaned out and washed prior to the festivities! I walked out to the perfectly air conditioned and immaculate car, sat down and took a big ol' sip of the Route 44 Coke that was waiting for me. We could have just driven around the neighborhood and I would have been perfectly happy! :)



Once we picked up the other friends, we made our way to the Oasis Day Spa in Circle C to have our group pedicure. Yep, that's right - all six of us in a line of chairs with our bubbly and being treated like queens. You know all of the other ladies in that place were wondering just who in the world we were. :)

Since I don't get a pedicure very often, it was a HUGE treat. A couple of the girls got a silver polish and were recommending it to me saying how nicely it would go with the stirrups.

After the great time at the spa, we headed back to Liz's house for food and fun. Everything was so so SO delicious that I am pretty sure that is why I feel hungover this morning. Joanie manned the stove and prepared everyone hot and fresh pork sandwiches, Sara had an outstanding fruit tray with a yummy whipped fruit dip, Liz was in charge of the fresh salsa that was perfect for everyone - even the non-spicy folks like me and Ruth, and Jenny - well you know that Jenny had to go on and bring her world famous mac-and-cheese casserole. I was outta control with the food, but I am pretty sure the mac-and-cheese is what pushed me over the edge.

After the feast, we decided that it would be a good idea for a walk. The weather was perfect, not too hot - so we walked on down to Liz's neighborhood park and just had a nice visit. Besides being puffed up like the Pillsbury dough boy when we got back, it was nice just to get out, breathe the fresh air and relax.

We made it back to the house and it was decided that it was present time. These girlfriends had already done way to much and you know I could just hardly stand having to open up presents. I did really well keeping my shit together while opening the gifts - which is saying a lot because all of these gifts are very special and each given with a lot of thought and even more heart. Ruth and Joanie gave us a complete bath set with the CUTEST hooded towel, washcloths, soap, and the sweetest little tiny knitted baby booties you have ever seen. Sweet Sara made us a 'I've got more than one kid diaper holder' that is absolutely perfect for us! You know, since this isn't my first, I don't (or won't) feel the need to pack the whole house every time we walk out the door. This perfect little holder holds a few diapers, wipes and baby needs and rolls up to fit perfectly in my purse or backpack. And Liz, well just like the others, she was far too generous and gave us the perfect little coat that is ultra-hip and stylin' and carries a lot of sentimental value, a BEAUTIFUL handmade quilt that I'll need to take a picture of for you to see how sweet it is and a box of much needed and appreciated thank you cards. And Jenny gave us the cutest pair of baby mis-matched socks - you know so that this kid can fit in with the family the moment he pops out and she and Andy outdid themselves and made the baby the funniest and cutest onsies you have ever seen! And then to top it off, they gave us a group gift of a gift certificate for a free house cleaning. It was at this point that I started to feel very overwhelmed and undeserving and I could have easily lost all self control and started to cry uncontrollably or start saying things that made no sense. Lucky for me, the card table was waiting and the ladies had vodka calling their names, so I was off the hook!

After a few hours filled with exciting cards, tons of laughter and a few cocktails for the friends, it was cake time. I was totally cracking up because they were all so excited and SO secretive about the cake. I decided to go ahead and excuse myself while the were getting things ready and I came back into the room to the CUTEST, SWEETEST, most delicious cake ever.

It says...'What do you call 5 Carrs? Traffic jam...full of love'. It has playing cards on the top with all of our photos and five of the cutest little car shaped candles. It was so moist and the frosting was SO yummy. And sweet Ruth even had to go back to the bakery to have them correct the spelling of the word car.

We ended the night with more cards and laughs and fun. Jenny got to go out with the help of her friend Tom Petty. And we all got to have some nice visiting time.

I got up in the middle of the night last night to look at the gifts and the pictures again. I am overwhelmed by the love that these friends show me on a daily basis. I am so thankful. I know that I can make it through this next few months with the help of my girlfriends. They'll be here waiting to help with the kids, throw some cards when I need distraction and hand me the first cold cocktail when I need a little escape. How could I have ever guessed that I would find this incredible group of women (true friends) while sitting on the sidelines of a soccer field. I am so so so thankful.

And how 'bout 10 hours together and it only felt like 10 minutes. Gotta love this kind of friendship!

Oh, and P.S. to Curt and Cade - thanks for letting us use your house ALL day and night and for the AWESOME shower mix of tunes. :)

Welcome to the World



Baby Janik arrived this past Thursday, July 10. We are all so thankful to welcome a new camper to the bunch. Mom and Dad are doing very well and are getting into a routine at home. The kids couldn't keep their hands off of him and I think his arrival has made them even more excited for our baby to arrive.

Tuesday, July 8, 2008

July 8

JC took off of work today and we took the kids to Splashtown in San Antonio. We typically choose Splashtown over Schlitterbahn because all four kids can ride all of the rides, there usually aren't long lines, and they always seem to have great coupons.
Of course we get there and the sky looks like it is going to fall out. We went ahead and paid to go in and made our way to the big wave pool.
At this point it is already raining and lots of people are leaving.

They have made an announcement that the big water slides are closed, but we notice that there are still a few that are letting people go down. So JC and the kids race to get their tubes and head to the top.
The first two down are J and E.

Followed by S.

And here comes M on his very first big water slide by himself.

And last but not least, here comes JC.

They all grab their tubes and race back to the top - at this point it is pouring.

Shortly after heading back to the top of the slide, the park closes and gives free tickets to all of the folks that are left. SCORE for us! We get to come back again!

On the way home, we decided to stop in San Marcos and check out the San Marcos river. As you can tell, it was really flowin'! Looks like the hard rain must've hit San Marcos too because the tube rental places were all closed down and most people were standing on the river banks watching the water.

And how odd that I want to put a picture of myself in a swimsuit on the blog...but there are two reason for this pic...1. I love the swimsuit that JC bought me for Mother's Day. and 2. Good Lord - I didn't realize that my baby belly is that big. Holy cow.

Then my sweet JC treated us to a yummy yummy lunch at Herbert's Taco Hut. One of my very favorite Mexican food places. We ate there a lot when we lived in San Marcos and have made trips back to eat there during all three of the Austin pregnancies. What a yummy delicious treat!

Once we left Herbert's, we stopped by the Paper Bear to do some browsing. This store is without question one of my very favorites. Jeff and the kids went to the toy room and I got to wonder around the store for a good hour by myself. What a special treat. And on top of it, we walked out without spending a dime!

On our way home, we saw another rainbow.

We got home just in time to take E and her friend M to their sewing class at the South Austin Rec. Center. They made really cool pillows tonight. I am super proud of how far they have come with their sewing and I know that she is really enjoying the class and learning the hobby with a friend.

Another busy day. I am wiped out and gonna hit the hay.

July 7

A few notable things...

1. Ice Cream for breakfast. Everyone is a winner when mom is 37 weeks pregnant and hungry for ice cream before noon. Thank goodness for Baskin Robbins and our good friend Jay who always takes good care of us!

2. Round Rock $1 theatre. Half price Monday's. Two movies, 5 people, $5.00. You can't beat it. Today we saw Nim's Island and College Road Trip. Nim's was awesome, I slept through the College Road Trip. AJ got to join us cause she didn't have that baby yet - so it was like a double bonus! :)

3. Thunderstorms on a hot summer day. We saw FIVE different rainbows today. Yes, that's right, five!

4. Late night reading. I LOVE the summer. Jeff has been reading chapters to the kids every single night late into the night. They are getting close to the end of the 6th Harry Potter book. I know they will never forget family reading time.

J and M almost always fall asleep while he is reading. He will summarize what they missed tomorrow. E is crazy finger knitter while he reads. And S - well, he just lays there with his dog and soaks it all in.

July 5 - Second Party



Headed to Round Rock for a little bit of grown-up celebrating. Our good friend James turned the big 4-0 on Saturday.

So while the pregnant wives chewed the fat and the exhausted kids laid in front of the big screen, the two 40 year olds feasted on some DELICIOUS steak, bacon wrapped jalapenos stuffed dove and so many sweets you could barely stand it. They also enjoyed a few pints of Tommy's award winning beer.

Who could ask for a better birthday? If you need more details, you can find them on AJ's blog.

July 5

Boy-o-boy, this has been the month for birthday parties. In the last two weeks, we have been to 8! Not kidding, 8 parties in two weeks! Whew!

This past Saturday we had the pleasure of helping our good friends Kristin and Trey celebrate their son's 4th birthday. As always, it was a great great time. Good food, great visiting and a really cool water slide. Of course, our kids were the oldest in the bunch and I am afraid some 4 year olds might go home with a little bit of PTSD after the way ours tortured each other on the slide. I am wondering if in the next few years, Will might request that those crazy daredevil kids not be invited back. :)




P.S. Thanks again for having us KMc. We all had a blast.

July 4th

You might remember from my blog post last year, that July 4th is one of my VERY favorite days of the year.

This year was no different. We stayed up way past mid-night on the 3rd getting the bikes decorated for the neighborhood parade and tie-dying our family t-shirts. The kids were all up and ready by 7:30 that morning to get going to the parade!

JC rode his bike with them and I sat on the side and cheered as everyone went past.

Our friend Sara Hickman was the parade grand marshall. She was singing patriotic songs on the loud speaker. When her boat pasted me on the street, she announced over the load speak 'Hey look everybody, it's my friend Kathy Carr. She is expecting her 27th baby and she is only 22!' We all got a good laugh at that! :)

Here comes my family. Woo hoo. Yeah!

Our t-shirts didn't turn out too bad. It was so so so sad that the blue dye ran down the sink before we were able to use it. We were all a little bit disappointed.

Our family LOVES the boccie ball.

After our neighborhood festivities, we were invited to a pool party at the home of S's good friend. It was a ton of fun.
I chose this pic. of S cause it looks like he is walking across the water.

And look at all of my bathing beauties!

That evening, we went to our friend Tamara's house for hots dogs on the grill. We had a very very nice time just hanging out and catching up over some yummy 4th food! After we finished dinner, we headed back to the school to watch the fireworks. What a crummy idea. A few folks had told us that you could see them from the playground. Lots of people showed up there - but you could barely see anything. It's okay though, cause we all still had a great time.

Annual photo of me and kids on 4th.

Yearly pic. of dad and kids.

Back to Tamara's house for a little firework fun ourselves.

I was so frustrated at the lame firework viewing that I forgot to ask someone to take our family picture. Pretty cool that JC figured out how to work the timer on the camera. Now we can do it ourselves!

And one last popper for the kids before we all hit the hay.


I love America and I am so thankful everyday for our freedom. What a great great great place to live!

July 3

At the birthday party for one of M's very best buddies!

Who in the world could beat this perfect night...Limpy the Clown was there, hot dogs, the most yummy potato salad, ice cold lemonade, and swimming for hours and hours. We are so thankful that our kids are friends with such great kids that come from such great families. Our kids will not grow up remembering specific moments about this time of their lives, but they will grow up and remember how much fun we had, what great friends they had and they will have a true sense of belonging and love from these great moments in life. These are the days that I'll look back on and remember for years and years and be thankful for every single day.

Limpy the Clown remembers S from years of visiting him at the Luby's. As a result, he gets to help with one of the magic tricks.

All the gang hangin' with Limpy. Gotta love that their isn't a single kid crying!

Just had to include this picture cause she is so so pretty.

J and her good buddy O - the birthday boy's sister.

Crazy kids in the pool. Mostly put this pic. so that you could see the pre-pre-teenager in the boat playing with the 8 year old girls. I LOVE it that they all still play together.

And naturally, S has taken one of the birthday boy's new toys and turned it into some sort of extreme pool toy.


P.S. Thank you Ruth and Jamey - once again, we had a blast.