Happy Birthday, Joe!

Have I told you lately that I love you? Happy 32nd birthday, my love!

Birthday Celebration

Since Joe had to work on Jude’s actual birthday, we continued the birthday celebrations the next day by taking Jude to the Austin Children’s Museum and then having lunch downtown. It was rainy that day, so I am glad we had already decided on an indoor activity. Jude had a really fun time exploring the different rooms and activities. If you have 5 minutes with nothing to do, you can watch this video of clips from the Children’s Museum and Jude having a birthday “Cookie Monster” the night before.

19 and More

Whoa! This past weekend was full of activity and milestones. First of all, Jude turned 19 months old. I was talking to the art teacher at school whose son is exactly 6 months older than Jude. She was saying, once they turn 2, you tend to stop counting all those months. They just become “2 years old.” It’s crazy to think that is only a few month away. I love how much hair Jude has now. I remember thinking that his hair was so thin compared to other babies. But, now he’s got a head full of crazy hair.

On Saturday, we went to Houston to go to a birthday party for my friend, Cherry’s little boy (Payne). We got to meet Payne’s new little sister, Hayden. The party was at a gymnastics place, and Jude had a great time. He loved climbing, jumping, throwing balls, and running around. But, I think the thing he love the most was the chocolate dipped oreo on a stick. He was one of the only babies that polished that treat off. I think it only took him 5-6 bites. It was nice to visit with my friend, Cherry, but we didn’t get to stay as long as we wanted, so I promised her a longer visit next time.

Jude and Payne

Throwing a giant basketball.

Dismount. 10 out of 10!

Oreo on a stick!

The reason we didn’t stay too long in Houston is because Sunday morning Jude and I went to Waco. My sister had a conference in Dallas, so her and Kennedy drove in from Mississippi to visit with us. I haven’t seen my sister since Jude was born, but it didn’t feel like it has been than long. Kennedy was amazed at how big Jude was. They had a fun time playing together. Kennedy was cracking me up. Apparently she was very concerned about Jude’s hair and asked “if he had a brush or comb to use on his hair because it looks crazy!” We only got to stay a few days, but it was fun.

Mimi and her grandkids

Looking at pictures on the phone.

Silliness ensues!

6 Years

Six years ago, on January 31, 2004, Joe and I official sealed our deal to spend the rest of our lives, both earthly and eternal, together (yep, even in the spiritual world, Joe can’t get rid of me).

           

So, Joe had a surprise anniversary day for me. Funny enough, the weather was so similar to that day we got married. Sharply cold, overcast and gray, but not sad or dreary. Six years ago, we were celebrating our union in Rome and drinking in the Italian culure. Yesterday, we went to the equivalent of Italy in the Hill Country (Mandola’s Estate Winery) and drank some wine, even me. Can you believe it? I never drink but I sampled a nice wine with Joe.

Liam is 4!

Liam celebrated his 4th birthday on January 5th. We kept the celebration low key this year. We kept reminding Jude to be nice to Liam, since it is, afterall, his day. We gave Liam lots of treats and hugs and kisses. Jude even decided to share some goldfish with our number 1 dachshund. I think Liam enjoyed his birthday, overall. Joe and I always talk about how great it is to have Liam as our dog. We look forward to having a long life with him.

Happy Birthday Sarah

Happy Birthday to my friend Sarah! I started doing birthday shout-outs a year ago, and I certainly didn’t want to leave her out. Sarah is such a kind and funny person, who loves animals and is incredibly easy going. Aron better thank his lucky stars that girl is gonna marry him. I better thank my stars that she is still friends with us after she heard Joe sing karaoke in Vegas (I kid…sort of..).

Thanks for inviting us to your birthday dinner. It was definitely an interesting night of conversation and tasty sushi. I hope your birthday was great!

Catching Up

Sometimes it seems like the only time I can accomplish anything around here is when Jude is sleeping. So, here’s my one hour today to get some computer time in.

So, a few weeks back, I made homemade peach-mango ice cream in my Cuisinart ice cream maker. It was really easy and it came out pretty tasty. I really wanted waffle cones to go with my ice cream, but I lacked the necessary equipment (our waffle maker is too deep for waffle cones), so I made the next best thing…homemade ice cream cones and “cone bowls.” They were delicious.

This past Sunday was Joe’s 31st birthday. We had a really nice day to celebrate with him. We went to brunch at Moonshine with some friends. It was really delicious and worth the wait. Joe enjoyed some mimosas on the patio and Jude attempted to enjoy some mimosas.

Later that evening, we met up with Joe’s family for dinner at Cheddar’s. Joe’s aunts gave him such an awesome gift; copies of old photos, including some of Joe’s baby pictures. It was really fun to look at them, since these weren’t the same baby pictures that we already have. Dinner was really nice and calm and they even brought some cupcakes to celebrate. Here is a picture of Jude enjoying his cupcake.

Happy Birthday, Daddy!

We hope you have a great birthday today!

Love,

Jude & Liam

July is for Birthdays

It used to be that everyone we know (practically) has an April birthday. But, it looks like July is closing in on that spot. Two of my friends had babies within the last 10 days. In addition to Jude, Joe, and and one of Joe’s nephews, July is also the birth month of THE TIA SARA…number 1 commenter on House and Gnome.

Today is Tia Sara’s birthday. We hope that she has a fabulous day, that everything goes her way, and all her wildest dreams come true. We hope she doesn’t mind this old throwback picture to remind her of our trip to Vegas together eight years ago. That was a fun trip…if I only had pictures of that Elvis impersonator and the Rainforest Cafe…memories!

After Party

After everyone left and Jude woke up from his nap, he spent the next hour climbing in and out of his Cozy Coupe. In — shut the door — out — in — shut the door.  A WHOLE hour! He also played with all his toys and after his bath, he sat in the dog bed with his favorite dog and thought, “Man, that was a great party, right, Liam?”