One and done?

We're not....but same days I think we could be.  I struggle with this concept on an almost daily basis....I feel like things are perfect right now...Addie is happy and healthy....the budget is balanced...our house is the perfect size...we have our schedules down....life is good.  I know having all of those things make us incredibly lucky...my pregnancy with Addie was perfect other than some annoying spotting that went on during my entire pregnancy....are we tempting fate with baby #2...upsetting the apple cart?!

Who knows...right?!  God has a plan for all of us and I certainly can't say as I sit here today what mine is but there is one thing that constantly nags at me....Addie needs a sibling (at least one - not knocking only children here either)....I have a brother and I'm so thankful for that.  Someone to confide in...laugh with...cry with...share holidays with...make fun of your parents with.  And...I want her to be close in age to her sibling...I always wish I was closer in age to my brother...I also wish I had another sibling (not a knock to my parents either)....so is my desire to have 3 children just a reflection of what I wanted as a child....confused at my train of thought yet, i am?!

I also worry...alot....worry about my ability to care for another child and still give Addie everything I have...worry about surviving those first 6 weeks...or really 6 months....worry about Addie not understanding that she's not the only one in the house...worry about our house being too small and needing to upsize (moving is not my thing)....worry about everything and nothing.

As you can imagine this subject comes up alot in my house....and I know me...the worrying...the going back and forth between whether or not to take that leap of faith...I was the SAME way before I got pregnant with Addie...I didn't know if it was the right time.  Even after getting the positive result on the pee stick...I felt an overwhelming sense of..."are you really ready?"  And I was...and about 4 months into my pregnancy I was wishing we already had a baby.  So I know...this is me....my way of not rushing into what one should consider "one of the biggest decisions of their life"...because I'm spontaneous and impulsive...and I want 3 kids...maybe.

Almost Wordless Wednesday....

I'm a super proud gardener right now....strawberries from my garden!!

Weekend Rewind

I'm joining in on the fun with my friend Tami at Little Moments Like This to give a quick re-cap of my weekend...head on over to her blog and link-up to share yours...or just take a sneak peak at her adorable blog!!!

To say this weekend was special would be a total understatement.  My brother graduated from college this weekend...and not just any college....but MY college...my alma mater.  I always hoped he'd go there so you can imagine my delight when he told he me was headed that way but to be there this weekend brought back so many amazing memories and made me so proud...not just to be his sister but also to a James Madison University graduate (sorry, I know it may be too early to be all sappy).  Despite the rain (which was pretty heavy at times)...and yes, I of course, was totally unprepared and had no umbrella, the ceremony was well, a graduation ceremony - special thoughts and speaking points that evoke emotions by speakers and moments of "oh my goodness, is this ever going to end." Here it is in color:

Opening Ceremony - before the rain

Addie was pretty much over it at this point - Uncle B trying to cheer her up

the best shot we got of him graduating...holy people

my favorite shot of the day - my bro and dad post graduation

I'm very sad to admit that we did not get any family pictures....crazy, i know. I blame it on the rain (hahaha...yes, that is an 80s or maybe 90s song) and no wanting to do camera damage. Sunday we spent shopping for tile for our kitchen blackspash (which fingers crossed I think we were successful with) and flowers for all 8 zillion of my containers that I foolishly purchased 2 years ago when we finished our deck. So that's it...my weekend on rewind. Happy Monday!!!

Friday funnies...

Because it's Friday...the weather makes me think its summertime...and I'm going back to my alma matter to see my brother graduate from college...I've got a little humor to share...Happy Friday!!

Source: flickr.com via the workaholic momma on Pinterest

Source: facebook.com via the workaholic momma on Pinterest

Source: ifiwereabluebird.tumblr.com via the workaholic momma on Pinterest

Source: Uploaded by user via the workaholic momma on Pinterest

Addie's 19 month update

Wow...19 months, really?!

Wordless Wednesday...almost

An evening to remember....Addie's second Tides baseball game at Harbor Park (addie's first game was blogged about here...

checking out the field and game-day conditions...

Addie with "bah-buh"

love this face...

my fave - Addie and her poppa enjoying fireworks after the game...

One man's trash...

It's true....one's man trash is another man's treasure...and there simply is no better way to prove that point than to participate in a yard sale (and I've been a buyer and a seller so no judgies here).  Recently our little neighborhood hosted a community yard sale and seeing as though I always have stuff I can get rid of - my mom and I decided we would hoist all of our goodies to the curb and maybe make a few bucks and unload stuff we were no longer needing.  Plus...you have to admit - it's free humor - it takes all kinds to make this world go round.  But I thought I'd share a few of my favorites (things and peeps)....

The ginormous glass blown clown - It's true - it's always those items that you just think no one would ever want that sell first. Two years ago it was the hat box that my mom dug out of her garage...but this year it was the creepy glass-blown clown that sold second that had me shaking my head.  First...i should admit that I think clowns are really creepy (my daughter doesn't - that pic above is of another music box - type clown that my mom also brought to sell but Addie hasn't let out of her sight.  Needless to say, it never made it to the yard sale and is now in our house...any ideas on how to get rid of this thing without a melt down?!?!)...so a 1 1/2 foot tall glass blown clown is not my idea of art but apparently at $5 it was steal.  So much so, that a gentleman arrived - examined it and then proclaimed that he must call his wife (who was a few houses down at another yard sale) so she could make the final decision.  She arrived and promptly declared it was.  SCORE....creepy clown sold.

The hoarder - There are always those that come to your yard sale looking for broken gold jewelry, coins, broken watches, etc. (I get it...you want my gold for pennies so you can melt it and make dollar bills) but when this man arrived he asked for the following: "padlocks, kitchen timers, rotary dial phones, or maybe even an old measuring tape out of my grandmother's sewing box."  I laughed...in his face...I honestly thought he was making a joke of the whole weirdness about yard sale shoppers.  But he wasn't...he was serious - told me he really liked old stuff.  I pointed him to the antique end tables at the end of the drive and he told me he was "furnitured-out"....but in need of old stuff to put in that furniture.  I sent him away without anything....but seriously, he's got to be on an upcoming episode of Hoarders.

The 60 year old thug - Now seriously...I thought guys grew out of sagging their pants by at least 35...but apparently not.  This guy couldn't have been a day under 60...sporting long gray hair with a trucker cap that he was wearing backwards and had been cut up the middle, zipper down (I think I threw up in my mouth a little) and walking with a "pimp-limp."  He inquired of nothing actually for sale but instead the 5 gallon buckets in my garage...which were at least 15 feet away from the yard sale items I was selling.  He offered me a $1 for each one...which I really didn't think was a bad deal...but unfortunately mine were still full of paint...but really, who does that?!

The liar - I felt bad (but, not really)....so I had this huge framed print of a lady holding a martini glass with some Italian wording around it.  I didn't know what any of it meant so when this old man came inquiring....I couldn't answer him.  He explained...on his second visit back to my little sale....that he had been in WWII and fought in Italy and this poster reminded him of his time there.  I had placed an $8 tag on it but he wanted to know what my bottom dollar was.  I told him $5 and he pulled out his wallet....as he rifled through 5 or 6 singles (not to mention the $5 bill in his wallet too) he proclaimed that he only had 4 singles and wanted to know if I would be willing to take that.  No, $5 is my bottom price I explained...and he folded his wallet shut and told me that it just had some sentimental value and walked off.  Of course...no one else saw the wallet....my hubs was in awe that I would not sell the poor man the print that meant so much to him over $1.  Sorry, I won't be hustled...and he had the money.

I really wish I had pictures of these characters to share but alas, all I have is the creepy clown that Addie has apparently taken a liking too...

Happy Monday....

you pick

This past Saturday...my momma and I decided to spend the morning picking the local strawberry field with Addie in tow.  We started her on her trike but after much protesting on her part...we let her run the rows and pick her own....she apparently likes the white ones....go figure.  The fields weren't nearly as full this year...as opposed to last year where we were literally swimming in them!

I just love this time of year....happy friday

Hi friends...

Hi friends....it feels so nice to be actually sitting down to post something on my little piece of the internet - I can honestly say that I've really missed reading everyone's blogs (although I've been trying to catch up little by little the last two weeks or so) and writing about everything going on in my little life too.  I thought it might be weird if I just started back with a random post about gardening or toddler tidbits so I figured I'd just give a brief overview of everything else I've been doing over the last few months (minus the blur of January and the first half of February).  It's probably easiest if I just break it down to a few general topics so here goes it....

My favorite topic - my girl.  I truly feel like Addie has really come into her own over the last few months...she's gone from my "baby girl" to my "big girl."  She's definitely her own person these days...I'm catching glimpses of the terrible twos and her attempts to repeat almost everything we say has me in tears some days.  Her favorite word and place is "ott-side"....which is perfect because outside season is upon us.  She also really likes to tell me "no" and she is constantly testing her boundaries.  She knows to get her own diaper when I ask her and when its bedtime she grabs her "be-bes"...says "nah-night" and scampers happily down the hall (its those moments that have me wondering what happened to my baby).  We've also entered a phase of what I really think might be night terrors and bad dreams - 2-3 times a week Addie will wake us in the middle of the night with piercing screams that go on for a bit.  It's just crazy to me how much she's changed just over the last few months...she's also been going full time to pre-school/day care and she just loves it.  She has a BFF...a boy she kisses (sshhhh...don't tell Daddy) and she just adores her teachers.  I've been soooo lacking on the pictures lately but here is one I managed to snap before leaving the house on Easter....

My distraction - our home.  We're basically a few weeks away from completing a whole home renovation.  We bought our home 5 years ago and have picked away at projects like renovating both bathrooms, reinventing our backyard, adding a deck....but this winter we basically gutted and re-did everything else.  We removed walls, moved plumbing and electrical to completely change the kitchen, had our floors re-finished and new carpet installed, added a pantry, converted to natural gas, and the list goes on....  It's been long overdue and one thing just pretty much led to the next.  It was much easier to just do it all at once so after 5 years of saving and dreaming our house has really become our home.  I have so many pictures and updates that I can't wait to share but we still have some ends that need to be tied up!!

Me - I'm loving everything spring/summer these days and am so excited for all of the dust to settle around here (literally).  We've been taking more family walks in the evenings and just enjoying our time together...it's been so nice to just be our little family of 3 without the distractions of the rest of the world.  Like I said before, I've totally missed blogging and and I'm anxious to get back into the swing of things...the new blogger was almost enough to scare me off;)

I think my blog should file for neglect...

**Be warned...delirious brain dump ahead...**

our first snow - 2.11.12

so...i guess you can say its been ages since I last posted anything and as much as I wish I had been off gallivanting in the Caribbean or doing something for the betterment of society...I've really just been at work.   Over the last month or so I've worked between 60 and 90 hour weeks, spent 10 days straight away from my family in the western part of Virginia, lost my cool a few times (cue the mad dash to the bathroom to let the tears fall in the privacy of a stall), started Addie in full time pre-school, been in a car accident (everyone was fine, but the car...not so much), and spent an insane amount of money at Starbucks (its my safe haven).  Crazy, right?!...I guess, but its my life during this time of year..and I'm not complaining because god knows I'm lucky to have everything I have.  It's funny to think back a year ago when I was talking to my favorite beach bum about starting a blog (which was born in none other than a Starbucks) and trying to figure out what I would call said blog.  And so...workaholic momma was born...which at times this summer when 40 hours was the norm seemed a bit silly but right now its right.  I feel like I've missed out on so much...of my own life, my friend's lives (blog and non-blog), and my time with my family.  And some days...I just feel like a hamster in cage running on the wheel as hard as I can but never going a.n.y.w.h.e.r.e.  So....I have no idea when I'll be back to a normal blogging schedule but I really really appreciate all of the sweet emails, tweets, and phone calls...y'all really don't know how much all of that means to me!!!!  I miss this blog world and all of the great and wonderful people I've met because of it...lots of love to you all and a very very happy valentines day!!

J