Happy Halloween!!!Con't...

Lisa just sent this and I couldn't resist posting it!


Any caption ideas?

Happy Halloween!!!

Don't worry, Batman found Batgirl...

Just like the Monkey found the Banana last year...

Only this year, they weren't so still and calm...




And in case you didn't see these from Jodie:

There's some kid in my house!

This has been a big week for what used to be the 'baby' in the family. I'm trying not to think about it too much!

1. Eliot has gone on the potty twice this week! Sorry, no pictures.

2. We moved Eliot's mattress to the floor as phase 1 of moving to the toddler bed. He's quite the active sleeper so a friend recommended starting w/ the mattress on the floor. We were also told to keep the crib available in case playing w/ toys becomes too much to handle. So far, this whole experience is entertaining to say the least. The first nap time on Monday he did great, not even getting up when he woke up but calling for me instead and then asking if he could get down. Then Monday night Russ and I were watching TV and heard a thud. By the time I got to his room and opened the door Eliot was in a confused daze on his knees searching for the bed but was across the room. As a very concerned mother I, of course, started laughing at his confused look. We put him back in bed and checked on him two more times throughout the night. At both times he was halfway out of bed again. Last night we heard another thud and when I went in, he was 100% asleep in a quilt cocoon on the floor. Good thing his mattress in only about 5 inches thick.


3. Eliot has started galloping. We're not sure where he picked it up but it's his new form of transportation. Also included in galloping: jazz hands. Hmmmm.

4. After months of trying to teach him to ride his tricycle more than one pedal rotation, something clicked yesterday! He's unstoppable now. It's also a new way to torture Daisy!

Ignore the 'old man track suit' as Russ calls it...

Once in a lifetime

As I sat on the beach by myself one evening in Cancun as Russ was off playing beach volleyball, I came to the realization that this vacation was a once-in-a-lifetime-trip. Then immediately I realized there's no reason we can't take this trip every year. I earned it by just doing my job. I worked hard and this was my payday. I've worked hard at almost every job I've had and never gotten anything like this in return. This realization humbled me.

(At the swim-up bar in the Infinity Pool)
A question I get a lot from people I haven't seen in awhile is "Still doing Arbonne?" I know it's rare that people stay in Network Marketing companies for this long and I know why. I've thought of quitting, I've asked myself 'What am I doing' more times than I'll admit, I've had to restart my business more than once and the whole thing can be exhaustive. I constantly have to put myself out there. But the benefits of plugging into this company are overwhelming at times. The cost of not doing this anymore is too much to even think about.

(On my left is Rita Davenport, the president of Arbonne and on the right, my National Vice President, Ann)

Starting this business was a means to an end. I needed a few extra hundred dollars a month to help pay for fertility stuff. And here I was, 3 years later, on the beach thanking God for my beautiful son and the road it took to get him. I know the success I've had is only on account of the Lord blessing the work my hands have done. I'm blessed to do this for a living, to be apart of a company that truly wants me to succeed and to realize my dreams as well as teach and train others to do the same.



Part of those dreams is having a healthy marriage. Most days, Russ and I burn the candle from both ends. We're not so good at disciplining ourselves to splurge on a babysitter and take a night out to reconnect. Not that we should only reconnect once a year, but this trip was perfect timing. Turns out, my husband is pretty funny, still thinks I'm hot and remains the champion at Putt Putt Golf. He still likes romantic walks on the beach and flirting with me in airports. Those things alone make the discipline of doing this business worth it.

(Amazing dinner buffet overlooking the ocean listening to a Mexican band singing "Tuuti Ruuti, Oh Fuuti")

ya know...in my spare time...

Not everyone took this sign seriously...oh my yikes. Other than that, amazing trip!

Cancun trip?

Details coming soon!

Confession

It's time. I've been living a secret life. I can hide it no longer. Here is the raw truth:

I'm in a hot-n-heavy relationship with a graphic designer. I have been for months.

If you hadn't figured it out after the long waiting period of teaser blogs, our big news is that Russ started a graphic design business. And I mean, graphic. (not really, but would that be weird for you? It would be for me.) It's called Art in Stereo.

Russ has been hired/contracted out, whatever, by several different people over the last year and especially in the last few months to service their graphic design needs. And he's good. I'd hire him.

He's been so busy with clients that he's not had much time to compile all he needs for his website. It's almost up and running and was much closer before the hard drive crashed. BUT the amazing news is that we found out yesterday that his hard drive is 100% recoverable! It will be returned to him by middle of next week. Can you even believe it? I couldn't, I'm so excited! It took a "donor" part of a different hard drive and a few days of file something-or-other and WA-LAH!

So, that's the big news, the news you've been so patient to hear. I was waiting on his website but I've made you wait too long. Once it's up and running I'll announce that and you can check out his amazing skillz that pay our billz.

Sneak Peak...

Jodi photo shoot yesterday: Click here and get ready to see Eliot like you've never seen him before...

While the rents were away...

...the Eliot played! Here's a few pics from his week with Aunt Manda, Poppa, Nana and Mammaw!

Note to spouse...

Some phrases don't directly translate from slang to toddlerhood. "Let's go kick it with Mom" turned out to be a little painful. Although I appreciate your offer to hang out with me, maybe we can phrase it differently next time.

The other half of our time

We're playing hide-n-seek. "We're" obsessed.



And just to complete my eliot-focused blogging lately, here's a few recent favorites, we're really hoping Eliot comes out of his shell sometime soon...




And yes, Eliot's wearing snow boots. They're our new shoe of choice.

Tickle Football

...not to be confused with tAckle football...






this is how "we" spend our days lately...

Full Weekend, post 3-ish

Monday morning doesn't really count for the weekend but it all runs together sometimes so we're going with it.

We started the day by picking up friend Toby to give his mom a little break for the morning and to give E some guy-time. I've been wanting to take him to this cool train place here and this was a great excuse. We practiced our train noises all the way to the closed train store! I became immediately thankful for two things: beautiful weather and the short memory of toddler boys!

All the sudden I changed the choo-choo's to "Who loves to swing?" "Who wants to slide?" and thankfully it worked!



A seriously intense soccer game

Please notice a few details on this pic: sweet Toby holding the soccer ball waiting for E. Notice E is running toward those little dots (squirrels). Apparently he needs more playdates with humans and not just Daisy.

Seriously? It's a shame they're not very cute...