For the Love of FOUR!

I admit that I "lifted" this tag from Erin's blog, The Vintage Pearl. It seemed like a fun tag!

4 jobs I have had:
grocery clerk
front desk agent
finance dept. lead
admin assistant

4 films I could watch over and over:
Sweet Home Alabama
Tommy Boy
Father of the Bride
Serendipity

4 Places I have lived:
Frankfort (house)
Nashville (apt)
Murfreesboro (apt)
Murfreesboro (house)

4 Favorite TV shows:
Friends
Grey's Anatomy
Big Brother
General Hospital

4 Favorite Foods:
chocolate
spaghetti
sweet corn
bbq pork chops

4 Websites I visit everyday:
myspace
blogger
yahoo mail
celebrity baby blog

4 Places I would love to be:
St. Lucia
Cayman Islands
Savannah, GA
back home in Indiana

4 Favorite Colors:
pink
green
chocolate
periwinkle

4 Names I love but would/could not use for my children:
Grayson
Maggie
Rhett (our dog's name)
Luke (our dog's name)

Okay...I want to tag Lovelyn and Courtney! :)

Paula Deen Live!

A few months ago, Jon surprised me with tickets to see Paula Deen live in Nashville. It was this past Saturday at TPAC and it was so fun...I only wish our seats were better. I took a few pictures but they are kind of blurry and on Mom's camera. They wanted to come down and spent the weekend with us so they could keep Emma while we were out at the show. Mom's camera is smaller than mine so I took hers (in case they checked for cameras.)

She cooked fried pork chops, mac 'n cheese and collard greens. Jon was like...she sure didn't do a whole lot of cooking! It is her personality that carries it...her husband Michael was there too and they were so comical together. She talked about him getting new "chompers" on Thursday. LOL She talked about baby Jack...he cut his first tooth at 4 months and had them all by 7 months! It was a little bit of cooking, a little bit of visiting, and some Q & A...we weren't really sure what to expect but it was well worth it. I am reading her new book and did you know that she is a smoker? She tries to never be seen smoking and I don't know why but this interested me. I just can't see her as a smoker. Random I know but I am only on page 21. :) Anyways, I just wanted to post a little about what we were up to while I was away from my blog.

It was so nice having Mom & Dad down here again...Emma enjoys their visits so much. They took her on several wagon rides and waded in her baby pool together. It is always sad to see them leave...we are hopefully going to be up there again for Labor Day weekend though. I think we might go up to the lake with some family. We'll have to see how it goes with work and all!

I'll try to post some pics when I can get Mom to upload them. :)

Am I a bad mommy?

We have a Britax Marathon carseat for Emma in our car. I love it, she loves it...well, until lately. I think it is because of this independent streak that she has been on the last week or so. She screams and arches her back as you try to strap her in...people stare! So after telling her no, sternly and holding her little cheeks together (hard to explain but it usually works) several times as we were leaving Target this evening...I decide to turn the carseat around right there in the parking lot. She is now an officially a forward facing baby even though the carseat says it is best to stay rear facing until 33 pounds. Emma is only 22ish pounds and 30 1/2" long but she is now a happy baby. So why do I feel like a defeated mommy?

Is it best to be "more safe" or "more happy" therefore letting me drive easier and more safely? What if she fights me again in the morning even though she's still forward facing? Why must she scream and then giggle at me while I scold her? Do the "terrible two's" typically start at 13 months?! My oh my...

Here is the picture that I snapped on my camera phone as soon as we pulled into our driveway tonight. So sweet when she isn't screaming at me from her carseat!



Okay, I need to go to bed!

Look at the...duck?!

Emma thinks that this alligator is a duck. She kept pointing at it and saying "duck" which caused some giggling among the other kids at the Zoo. I will definitely have to teach her "gator" soon. Its funny since every time she sees something yellow it is a "duck" too. I am loving this stage with her. It is something new each and every day. She will point at your nose or her nose and say "ose" now. She even started saying "Eydon" for Peyton while we were at the Zoo! Speaking of the Zoo...it is quite the workout with a curious 3 1/2 year old, a sleepy 20 month old and an independent 13 month old who always wants down! It was impossible to get the three of them to all sit, smile and look at the camera!







It was such a hot and fun yet exhausting day...and we only accomplished about half of the Zoo! This was how Emma was most of the day...she finally tuckered out and was nearly falling asleep in the wagon on the way to the exit. Call me crazy but I can't wait to do it all again!



Well...maybe we can get my dream stroller before the next time. I have been drooling over it for two months...it is red, has tall handles, solid rubber wheels and UPPA rocks! :o)

Looking forward to church...

So we went to a new church last Sunday and I loved it. I cannot wait to go back this Sunday. I am hoping we can get there earlier though and not have to sit in the balcony. I have been wanting to check this church out for awhile because our church is in Nashville and we have not been attending regularly because it is kind off an all day thing. I want Emma to have a solid church family and this church truly seems to have it all. Several young families, a pastor that Jon already knows from his past church and his sermon was awesome, our doctor and even a few of our friends attend somewhat regularly there. I am hoping to meet some wonderful new people there and hopefully start attending a Bible group too. Anyways, I just wanted to say that I am so looking forward to Sunday!

I cannot believe that it is going to be August next week...our summer is flying by and I want to make the most of it! We are hoping to squeeze in a weekend away to Holiday World with my family next month. I know that Emma would love the kiddie rides, splash park area and the indoor pool at the hotel plus more time with Gramma & Grampa!

They are actually coming down here next weekend to keep Emma while Jon takes me on our only second "real" date since we had Emma. He surprised me a few months ago with tickets to see Paula Deen live. We are going to go somewhere nice for dinner before...so I won't be hungry watching her cook! I love her and Rachael Ray and I cannot wait...Gramma & Grampa cannot wait for their Emma time either! I am hoping that we can all go to church together that Sunday morning before they had back to Indiana too. Apparently the pastor had made a promise to preach from the roof if they were within their budget or something like that (Emma was fussing at the time...) and they did so on August 5th he will be preaching from the roof. They are also having a family cook out so I hope we can meet & visit with some other parents that day.

I am soooo going to get a picture up of Emma in the Vintage*Chic oufit we won from Chelsea's blog last month. Emma wore it to church last Sunday and was completely adorable! She also had a bit of a diaper blow out after church so it needed to be laundered prior to picture time but I promise to get a picture up soon!

So here are the random Emmacakes photos for the week...









Who knew the potty could be so fun? My parents bought her this potty for her birthday since she is so fascinated by everything in the bathroom. She loves to go in there and just sit on it. We haven't really been potty training or anything yet but we let her sit on it before she gets in the bath tub each night...and she actually "tinkled" in it last night for the first time! I know, I know too much info...I am such a Mommy!