Joy Filled Fridays

A quick recap of a few things that brought a smile to my face this week. 

#1-2: Pip's 1st gyro. We had them for dinner on New Year's Eve and I figured she would take a bit or two, she ate over half of mine! The girl has good taste.

3. Cake Batter Smoothies. All the taste of cake without the guilt.

4-5. New Year Kisses and photo props

6. Unbridled joy, flying high on the swings.

7-8. Piper's 1st Abstract. She calls this one Sophie.

9. Our first time taking her on the carousel. I think we loved it as much as she did. 

#1-3: Bathtub painting with Pip. Shaving cream and food coloring resulted in a mess free evening of finger painting. She loved it.
4. We made it to Barnes and Noble story time. The book Press Here was a HUGE hit and we will soon be adding it to our library.
5. Pimento grilled cheese sandwiches and tomato soup. We ate them for lunch three days in a row.
6. We caught NPR's broadcast of the Capitol Steps.
7. Dunkin coffee makes me a better person.
8. Back to running, four run in four days! #mileadaychallenge
9. Organized my closet and paired down my clothes. It makes getting dressed SO much easier. 

Happy Birthday Grandmom Republican!

Today is Mama Republican's Birthday.

And we wanted to take a moment to tell her how much she is loved. Mama Republican raised Mr. R. and now that I am a mother I realize motherhood is no joke. Mama R. raised Mr. R. to be well spoken and well read. She instilled in him to love his family feircely. She taught him to be generous with his time and talent. She taught him to save his pennies and to evalutate his purchases. She taught him how to love. They say a Mother is a Son's first love and she prepared him to show love to his future wife and family. Mr. R. is kind, patient, and he loves Pip and me with his full heart. Mama R. is responsible for that.

Mama Republican taught her sons to give back. She spent years in cub scout and boy scout camps planning events, setting up camp sights, and sewing badges. Grandmom Republican dutifully took her son's to church each Sunday and she raised Mr. R. to love Jesus and want our daughter to know the unconditional love of Christ. I am so thankful she raised boys who want to accompany their wives to church on Sunday. Mama Republican we are so thankful and grateful for you. Happy Birthday!

This is the darkest timeline...

For you community fans out there, Mr. R. is joining forces with evil Abhed for the darkest timeline. He even has the goatee to prove it.

 In truth, Mr. R. took a couple of weeks off from shaving and was sporting a beard for the past 10 days or so. He shaved off his scratchy face on Saturday, but not before I snapped this picture.

And for those of you who don't watch Community, you are seriously missing out!

Thankful 10: Thankful for a date night!

On Thursday a sweet friend offered me symphony tickets. A quick email to Mr. R. to see if he was free followed by a call to Miss Rita to see if she could watch Pip and a date night was ours! I have blogged before about the importance of date night. We try to schedule a date night at least once a week, but since Pip has come along, most of our dates have been at home. 

A date night out of the house is reason for celebration. It's a chance for me to reconnect with heels, my little black dress, and my husband. Have I mentioned how amazing Mr. R. looks in a suit?

The Jacksonville Orchestra was wonderful. The program was titled Ravishing Rachmaninoff and while I know very little about this Russian composer, I loved his compositions. The orchestra was joined by the Jacksonville Chorus and they were fabulous as well. The symphony combined with dinner out and a little wine is the equivalent of date night amazingness around here. 

On a side note, Miss Pip is in love with the TV show Little Einsteins. The shows premise is to give toddlers an appreciation for fine art and music. They feature a new artist and composer each episode. The show also teaches music timing. You will often hear Pip mimicking the words Allegro, adagio, retardando. Last night as I was reading the symphony program those same words appeared next to each movement. It made me think of my girl and how someday we will take her to the symphony. 

I am so grateful to sweet friends, awesome baby-sitters, date nights, and the ability to take a night off from parenting, but still miss my girl at the same time. 

Happy Birthday Mr. R.!

Happy Birthday to my wonderful, loving, brilliant, funny, and amazing husband!

He turns the BIG 29 today! 

I have plans to celebrate him with birthday french toast followed by fun presents.

A few things that I love about Mr. R...

1. He can always make me laugh.

2. He is incredibly patient.

3. He tells corny dad jokes.

4. He loves comic books and super heroes. (And loves that I like them too!)

5. He is a scrabble master.

6. He researches EVERYTHING, but never worries about the decisions once they are made.

7. He loves our pups.

8. He is so excited to be a dad.

9. He grades papers with me at night.

10. He reads to me in bed.

11. He works incredibly hard to provide for our little family.

12. He backs me up and supports my goals, dreams, and desires.

13. He caught the travel bug and even though he hates to fly we have been to 4 countries and 9 states together. 

14. He gives the most amazing hugs.

15. He looks awesome in a suit.

16. He watches girlie movies willingly.

 17. He is a master at figuring out IKEA instructions.

18. He naps with me on lazy Sundays.

19. He thinks breakfast is the best meal of the day.

20. He loves me for me. 

 Happy Birthday Husband! 

I hope your 29th year is your BEST year yet!