Atlanta native

I'm an Atlanta native. I read this list on fb tonight and was startled at its accuracy on 1-18 (after that I started skimming... Also, whatever one that was about beer, I've got no experience with that) and wanted to share it here. Seriously, I have to explain things from that list allll the time.

30 Things People From Atlanta Have To Explain To Out-Of-Towners

And man, what I would give for some varsity right now. 

belated pictures from atl to dia and "fearless"

and here are pictures from this past friday's wonderful whirlwind that go along with that novel of a post i wrote. 

when baby girl decided she was done with us, she left our booth and spent at least five minutes with this nice man and his three kids.  two year olds are oblivious and except from social norms.  my dad took this picture with his blackberry and emailed it to me with the title "no fear."

this has got to be at the top of my list from favorite pictures from this trip.  ps- typical varsity that you get a full mix of customers.  us in the middle, the semi-ghetto lady to the left, and the ultra prep southern frat boy to the right.

how perfect that my shirt was the very color of a frosted orange!

precious.  she kept calling it ice cream.  and as i've mentioned, grandpa never says no.

they're an adorable pair.

i wonder what the poundage was that i was lugging through the airport.  baby girl weighs 23 lbs, that carseat  weighs 25 lbs, my suitcase weighed at least 40 and the duffle bag almost broke my back.  and because i can, i'm going to add my unborn child in utero to that list.  because, despite it being constant, i was carrying him too.

sleep deprived baby catching a power nap on the way from the airport to the game.  she seriously NEVER falls asleep in her carseat.  unless she's been awake for 11 hours i guess.

well hello there.

family photo!

not napping... just super tired and snuggly.

like snuggly enough to curl up with this stranger down the row.

and i mean, all the way down the row.

we convinced her to come back and snuggle with us though.  

honey caught one of the rockies t shirts they sling shotted out while we were waiting for fireworks. 

it's good to be back as our little family of three.

also, about the lack of stranger danger, here's an email about it that i wrote to my parents yesterday (titled "fearless part two")...

remember this picture from friday at the varsity when abigail left usto sit with the family nearby?  well, we went to a rockies game thatnight after our plane landed and part way through chris turned to meand said "ummm, the people down the row are holding our baby."  sureenough.  and she sat with them for a long time before chris finallywent down there to retrieve her. 

today we were at a playdate at the park.  abigail was crying while iwas away putting something in my car.  when i came back she wassitting on my friend's lap (we never hang out with these friends soabigail really didn't know who she was).  so i said "thanks forholding my crying child" to which my friend replied "oh no problem...i was just surprised that she actually came to me and let me holdher." 

ha.  you're surprised?  i'm not.

at what age are you supposed to teach your child about this sort of stuff?  currently, she calls everyone "friends" in any context that any adult would just use the word "people."  like yesterday when we were playing out on the driveway and she saw a woman walking her dog up the street (in the direction of our neighborhood playground) and she kept telling me that our friend was going to the playground.  if we're in the car and she sees two men jogging on the sidewalk, she'll tell me that she sees her friends running or that her friends are running fast.

oh baby girl, with that mentality, the world really is your oyster.

we made it to atlanta. with a carseat.

umm, why didn't i do this before?!  this really deserves a thorough explanation of a post but these three pictures will have to do.  since baby girl turned two, we had to pay for a ticket for her own seat.  also, i'm 25 weeks pregnant and i thought i might die if i had to lug a rolling bag, carry a duffle across my chest, hold a purse over my shoulder, and somehow keep a wiggly toddler in my arms from curbside through security all the way to my gate.

everything just seemed to add up and last night i rigged this little setup so that i could carry a duffle across my chest while rolling a bag that carried my baby buckled into her carseat.  it worked insanely well.  and it also was wonderful that i told baby girl "when the airplane goes in the air it means that we have to stay buckled like when we're in the car and we stay buckled while we're driving" and she didn't question it and stayed perfectly buckled for the entire three hours.  hallelujah!

baby bucked to carseat.  carseat buckled to rolling carryon, and purse looped on top.  so all i had on me was a duffle and baby in utero.  totally manageable.

if you're a stranger and you try to make conversation with baby girl... this is the face she'll give you.  while saying absolutely nothing.

check it out.  delta got me to pay full price for this little 23 lb bundle.  just half the weight of my typical carry on.  i'm still mildly bitter.

other noteworthies:

the only real kid movie offered was the lorax movie and i wasn't going to pay $6 for it.  luckily my kid isn't old enough to really know how movies work.  so she happily watched the lorax trailer for longer than the duration of the actual movie.  i kid you not the trailer has to be less than three minutes long and she watched it for at least half of the flight.  90 minutes divided by 2.5 equals more times than any kid should ever watch the lorax trailer.  but it worked great.  and when she wasn't using the earbud (yes, just one, the other one makes no noise) i brought, i used it to listen to my three favorite adele songs on repeat.

at the end of the flight the quiet ethnic lady sitting next to me gave me a sincere "i just wanted to tell you that you're a really really great mother." and even though i never know how to take that (are you genuinely impressed with my incredible mothering skills or do i just look so pregnant and frazzled and exhausted with a toddler in tow that you wanted to throw me a bone and give me a nice little pick me up?!), it was much appreciated.  i take compliments very well.  i really appreciate people like that woman.

right after that exchange, i tapped the shoulder of the man sitting in front of abigail to profusely apologize for his bad luck in seating assignments.  "i just wanted to thank you for being so patient this flight.  i know it wasn't easy.  i tried the best i could but my child's carseat is so big that it leaves her feet sitting directly on the back of your chair and i know she was basically kicking your seatback non-stop for three straight hours.  i wish i could have traded seats with you because i know how much it sucks to sit in front of a kid that kicks your seat but it's just physically not possible when i don't have my husband traveling with me.  so thank you for being so patient, i really do appreciate it."  to which he replied, "honestly, i was pretty irritated at first.  but then i looked back and saw it was just a little kid and i understood."  i think that translates to "it really sucked but i couldn't justify yelling at you for it" but i don't even care.  i had so many positive interactions with people  (seriously at least 20) today at DIA and hartsfield jackson and on the plane that i just couldn't help but be overwhelmed with the kind comments and smiles of strangers.  what a happy world it was today!

ps- being pregnant is awesome.  seriously, people are soooo extra nice to you when you're pregnant it's incredible.  i love it.

pps- baby girl has taken an instant and intense love for my mom and sister.  tonight when she was crying she sobbed, "i want emmy" repeatedly and then was comforted by my sister instead of me!  and then when i put her down to sleep and was telling her goodnight i promised that we could play when she woke up and she made sure that i promised she could play with emmy AND grandma when she woke up.  "and grandma. i want grandma!"  yes, sweet girl, you can play with grandma in the morning too.  adorable.

and because i'm longwinded.  i've only been here one night and i have seen my entire family (including my brand new nephew!) and my friend lisa (who so conveniently was out and about at 10 30 tonight and able to drop by!) and had the varsity, and had milkway ice cream.  talk about a successful day.

back from the beach

we made it home.  late last night but better late than never.  yesterday we woke up early, packed, drove in the car for eight hours, got to the airport, ate at the airport varsity!, waiting around for a few more hours for our flight, endured three hours of flying, waited for our ride, made it back to parker, and rolled a sleeping baby in her crib after a very very long day.

and then i went to the store to get milk.  you do not want to be within ten miles of me if there is no milk in my fridge.

and then like zombies, honey and i passed out somewhere between 1:30 and 2am.

and then i had to wake up at a pleasant 5:57am this morning for ward council.  which is nothing when you think that honey had to wake up at 4:30 am to get meeting agendas and church stuff done.  all three of us reeeaaaallllyyy enjoyed that long nap time this afternoon.  i think i slept for at least three or three and a half hours.

ps- colorado is experiencing a heat wave and has hit record breaking highs.  i have girls camp later this week.  and might i remind you that we have no AC?  i put my kid to bed tonight in just a diaper.  hopefully she's still wearing it when she wakes up.

and pps- the beach was incredible.  family fun and games, pride and prejudice, hours upon hours reading and sleeping in the sun, listening to baby girl say "baby beach" about a hundred million times a day, eating great food all the time, kayaking with a pod of dolphins, and leaving behind the real world for an entire week.  i'm pretty addicted to my computer and even though i brought it with me, i only opened it the first night after we got there and then wednesday on my cooking day to find a recipe i needed.  and i kept my phone on silent and plugged into the wall for a full EIGHT days and neglected all calls and texts.  a technology cleanse so i could more fully enjoy my week at the beach with family?  absolutely necessary.  pictures and posts to come.

french toast bake, the varsity, and atlanta!

first off, before i forget...  i have to post this amazing and easy french toast bake recipe.  i pinned it to my pinterest forever ago and forgot about it until i was browsing my food board for some mealtime ideas.  since we had the derenthals in town saturday night to sunday and i had ward council sunday morning, i thought this recipe would be perfect because i could make it the night before and just throw it in the oven before i left for church.  and POOF!  i'm an amazing hostess.  anyways... christopher said it was a little too sweet for him but tracy said it was the most divine thing she's ever tasted.  and my goodness it was delightful.  and just for history's sake... and because i'll want to know for next time and surely not remember... i cooked mine for 52 mins and then left it in the warm oven for another minute or two (i think).

second... and more importantly... baby girl and i made it to atlanta!!!  the drive to the airport was kinda rough with baby girl being tired and whiny (i had to wake her up at 8 because we needed to leave at 8:15) and refusing to eat because it was too early in the morning... but the rest of the day was great.  she was an angel for all of the checking in, going through security, getting moved from gate to gate, and waiting for our delayed flight.  the actual flight was as good as it could possibly be with a 23 month old that was awake the entire time.  although i actually fell asleep several times so maybe she wasn't as well behaved as i think she was but i we survived without any tantrums.  and although no one directly complimented my child on her behavior, the guy sitting next to me commented to the guy next to him "they did really great"... referring to my child and the kid in the row behind us.

the best part of the day though was that my mom flew in from buffalo (she drove out there with my sister emmy who is ENGAGED to a wonderful guy from buffalo!!! - i've been meaning to do an official post on that but short story = i suck... i swear it'll happen eventually) 30 minutes before we got in so she could meet us at the gate!  and although i actually enjoyed the rare experience of flying into T (it's the closest to baggage claim since it goes: baggage claim - T - A - B - C - D - E - F, it was wasted because we actually hopped on the train and went all the way down to F to visit the new varsity that just opened up a few weeks ago!  it was amazing and delicious and even though it's more fun to go to the real thing, this was the perfect option for us because we were getting home by way of marta and my brother in law and it was either airport varsity or none at all.  and although the onion rings are always delicious... they were especially piping hot and perfectly crispy today.  oh my heavens!  perfection!

and then we hopped on marta, hopped off marta, drove home with jeff, ate and hung out til bedtime and then our day was complete.  i'm pretty sure this is the first day that baby girl has ever not taken a nap.  like the first day that she has woken up in the morning and then gone to bed that night without falling asleep in the middle.  although i'm not actually counting it as legit since we lost two hours and i would never in my right mind put her down for bed at 6pm.  but if it's 8pm east coast time... i'm all for it.  sooo, as i said, if we'd be in colorado she would have just gotten a late nap... but since we had the time zone change i just kept her up.  my mom can attest to the fact that by 7:15pm atlanta time, baby girl was begging me to go to sleep.  "naaaapppp.  i want naaaaapppp.  baby naaaaaaappppppp."  well, okay baby, you can have your nap (nap = naps and nighttime sleep)... in 45 minutes.  hang in there.

and on that note, i'm off to take a nap myself.

and my night

THE VARSITY!!!

lynell came to pick me up and we met diana at the varisty.  got our food, devoured it, and waited for the heart attack to ensue.

 

while waiting for our heart attacks we talked about a wide array of subjects and spent a very disproportionate amount of time loudly discussing random things relating to the temple.  i hope the people around us appreciated that.

and then i happened to look out the window to see my dear weed walking through the parking lot so we all ran to meet her and continue the love fest while she ordered.

it was a varsity hamburger and fries.  i have never in my life ever ordered a varsity hamburger or fries.  like never ever ever not even one single time out of the millions that i've eaten there.

and here it is in her mouth!

and her hand.  the fries are inside of the burger.  after being salted eight times and ketchupped and salted again.  i like to put fries on my fast food burgers but i have never pre ketchupped them.  this was new to me.

we parked in front of a sign that boldly stated the one hour parking limit.  i'm glad they do not enforce this because we were there for a solid four.  after arriving at 7:30 and ordering at the counter three separate times and sitting at three different booths, we were the last customers to leave.

and this is lynell pointing her her car... the only one left in the whole upper deck parking lot.

 

what a fantastic night.

we made it to atlanta!

i told myself i'd go to sleep early tonight since we're planning a day trip to the zoo tomorrow morning.  well, it's 1:30 and i just finished the yw emails i had to get done.  finally.  now i can read scriptures and pray and get some sleep!  like 6 hours of it.  which is what i've been running on for the past several nights.  darn that travel anxiety!  but thank goodness it's gone and although i'm missing my honey like crazy, i was finally able to eat food tonight and enjoy a pleasant moment of peace.

i'm in atlanta... life is good.

now get me some onion rings!  and a chili slaw dog please!

back home... in colorado

baby and i just got home tonight.  i was so sad to leave atlanta.  of course.  my visits always seem to be too short... even when they're weeks long.  my biggest struggle this time was getting the time to spend with everyone i wanted to spend it with.  i spent lots of time with friends but i still wanted more.  to hang out with more friends and more time with the ones i saw.  and my sister liza.  i totally thought i would get more time with her but things were so busy and hectic over christmas i feel like it just flew by without us ever getting a quiet moment.  same with my brother walter.  i thought that with him being at home i'd get to see him more.  but turns out, he's rarely home.  i got to spend tons of time with my mom though.  and of course that was amazing.  every moment spent with her is always amazing.

packing this morning was a feat.  i managed to spend two minutes each with buddy (walter), ms adams (my old piano teacher), and cory's sister sarah (my pen pal and in-real-life friend) before taking off.  and mom and dad and baby and will (my nephew) and i all had a lovely lunch at the varsity.

the flying experience was exhausting.  mostly because i was searching the atlanta airport for baby's missing pink boot.  she was wonderful on the plane though.  an angel for the first three hours.  and slightly difficult for the last 20 mins.  so that was a success.  she even slept for over an hour which was fabulous because when we flew a few weeks ago she did not.  and i don't think she's slept on about half of the flights we've taken in the past 6 or 7 months.  so i'm appreciative.

i am so cold right now.  colorado is cold.  my house is cold.  the water that comes out of my faucet when i wash my hands has bits of ice still in it from sliding down the rockies and into my pipes.  but really, i'm glad to be home.  in my own bed and with plenty of space to not live out of a suitcase and child proofed for baby.  i just need to not cry tomorrow morning when i'm lonely and miss my mother.

okay, i'm so tired.  i'll add pictures tomorrow... since there's no way i'm getting out of bed right now.  and really i just want to go to sleep because i've been exhausted for the past month.... every since i stepped foot in atlanta.

ps- baby girl is amazing.  like on our branson trip, in atlanta, she got a binky to go to sleep for every nap and night time.  but tonight we get home and honey puts her to bed (without a binky) in her own crib and there she peacefully falls asleep without even a squeak.  this girl loves her crib.  i wish they would invent a portable crib already.  non of this pack n play stuff.

so sad to be leaving.  and she must hate packing too.  like me.

i checked every drawer in the dresser and nightstand to make sure i had everything.  i did.  but i happened to stumble upon some shaving cream baby stole from the bathroom.

this is the giant stack of sweaters and shirts i borrowed from my mom this trip.  thanks mother!  i wish we could share clothes ALL the time!

they had so much fun together this trip.

we planned to have dad leave work around one and meet us at the varisty for lunch.  but then at 12:40 we found him on 400 as we were about to go through the toll booth.  so we drove to the varsity together.  this was taken somewhere on spring street.  (turns out he'd taken someone in the ward to a doctor's appointment.)

on the way, baby fell asleep.  whoops.

cousin will just hanging out.  with lightening mcqueen.

my parents have got to be the most excellent grandparents ever.

sneaking some onion rings.

still eyeing the onion rings of course.

my parents are hilarious.  i told them i wanted to take a picture and this is what they gave me.  although i may have mentioned it looking candid.  not sure though.

will had applesauce and meatballs

baby girl had a banana, a meatball, and a few bites of onion ring and chili slaw dog.  i learned she's not so much a fan of the slaw... just everything else.

oh, and frosted orange.  i'm sure craving one of those right now.

these two have a fiery love/hate cousin relationship and it's hilarious.

this afternoon though it was all about the love.

baby girl used to only love hoods.  but now she loves hats too.   and loves to put them on herself.

this is when we heard it rip.

this varsity had has been loved a little too much.

i have a good life.

baby girl learned "grandpa" the very first time we asked her to say it.  and she said "grandpa" a whole lot this trip.

i wish i'd noticed the missing boot when i took this shot.  or thought to look at this picture on my camera before backtracking through all of security and retracing my steps through the atlanta airport and getting on my hands and knees to look under cars and trucks parked outside of S3.

ps- when i told her to say bye to my mom she clung tightly and whined and didn't want to come to me.  can you say "uh oh!"