promised cake pictures

Last Saturday was one of my sister Sarah's baby showers. She has about 4 more weeks before Baby Jack will enter this world, thus changing her life forever. We are more than excited about meeting this little bit of preciousness. And I will be posting pictures.

But until then, you'll have to enjoy these pictures of the shower. She has most of them on her camera, but I did manage to take a few.

Here's the cake I made for my sweet sister. It was an almond-flavored poundcake with real buttercream icing. And it was yum.

The redhead helps Aunt Sarah open one of her gifts.

I tried to get a sweet mother/son picture, but the redhead wouldn't cooperate. At least its a decent picture of me!

Sarah, the redhead, my mom/"Nano", and me

We had a lot of fun - I got to see friends from college I haven't seen in a while, some family that I haven't seen in a few months, and chow down on some yummy food, all while celebrating my sister! I love you Sarah and I'm so excited for you and LeGrande to enter into parenthood!

do you mind if i ask what you were smoking at the time?

Dear Jessica Alba,

While I don't consider myself big fan of yours, I've seen some of your work and I'll give you your props. I mean, acting isn't just a walk in the park I hear. And being in the media spotlight can't be all that fun either, what with cameras stuck in your face, rumors being spread about you, and kamikaze paparazzi stalking your every move.

You may not think you have a lot in common with me, but actually you do. For starters, we're both married and we both have cash - only yours is in the form of your real husband and millions in your bank account, and mine, well, let's just say I'm hard up to scrape together 4 quarters for the Sunday paper.

We are also both mothers and have both birthed children without surgical intervention. I know that each woman has her own birthing story special to her - some go without drugs, other choose them, some don't push for long, some push for hours, etc. However, most women do get to experience contractions, whether pitocin induced (like mine) or natural and this is wherein my issue with you lies.

I have already outed myself as a celebrity gossip devotee so that's neither here nor there. As I was reading People.com this morning, I saw a statement that intrigued me...

"What wasn't so tough for the Fantastic Four star? Surprisingly, childbirth itself." "Contractions aren't that bad," she (Alba) says. "If you've ever had bad cramps? That's what they're like. But that moment when they put the baby on your chest – that's deep. It's a deep experience."


Dear heart, I have had some bad cramps. Some really bad cramps. The "curl up in a ball I have taken seven million alleve and they didn't work so shoot me right now" kind of cramps. Lemme tell ya', they in no way touched childbirth contractions - and mine were pitocin induced with no drugs. My back was wracked with a mind-numbing pain and with each contraction I couldn't move. I felt nauseous, I got chills, I wanted to quit and I have an extremely high pain tolerance. I am no quitter.


Bad cramps my a**!


But you, you had to have been on something to say that contractions weren't that bad. Yep. That's the conclusion I'm coming to. But in the end, we both had the same result. We both had healthy babies and got to experience that deep moment where we looked into our babies eyes and knew that we were made for motherhood.



Best wishes with little Honor Marie. I'm sure you're a wonderful mother.


Sincerely,
Caroline

mountains, wine, and a cop with no couth

This past weekend, two of my girlfriends and I went to the mountains of Virginia, home state to two of my bloggy sistas (hi Debbie and Lula!).

We stayed up late, we slept in. We ate junk food, we drank wine (at a winery!). We hiked, we napped, we talked, and we laughed. It was great and the weather couldn't have been more beautiful. The scenery was pretty good too...

view from Lover's Leap overlook




Mabry Mill




Katie, Jennifer, and me looking a little squinty at Philpott Lake



Chateau Morrisette Winery

Lovely.

On the way to the mountains, we stopped at an ABC store in Greensboro because Katie wanted to make some daiquiris on Saturday night. As we walked in a cop sauntered over and asked to see our id's. We joked about how flattering it is to get carded even though we look over 21. Jennifer said something about her mother and clearly the cop had selective hearing because he then turns to me and says...

"Are you her mother?"

Its really hard to describe the look that came over his face immediately after the words escaped his lips. I thought he might pass out. Then, I thought I might grab his nine and pop him with it. The shocked look on my face told him the real answer and he skulked away.

Honestly, I was insulted, but I did think it was funny. I'm not ashamed to admit I'm 31, and in my opinion, don't think I look older than 31. My friend Jennifer is 25 and yes, she does look young, but dude..., didn't you just look at our id's for crying out loud? Do you think I would have been capable of birthing such a child at the tender age of 5? I think not. I had to wonder if he hadn't been taking a few shots during a lull in customers.

So, now I'm over it, and I'm enjoying a glass of Sweet Mountain Laurel whilst updating you on my fun and girly weekend. Hope your weekend was sweet and without run-ins with idiot police who should have just kept their mouths shut.

seven

I found this little meme over at Out on a Limb and I think she got it from Melissa at Stretch Marks. So now I'm jacking it for my blog.

Seven things I can't do:

• yodle
• dance (I live vicariously through the phenoms on So You Think You Can Dance)
  
• a round-off back handspring with a full twisting layout
  
• can vegetables
  
• make anything from scratch (this is bad)
  
• make myself throw up (ewww, gross)
• run marathons...yet (maybe one day I will)
  

Seven things I do well:

• cook
• sing
• play guitar and piano
  
• remember little things like people's birthdays (I may remember the birthday, but I forget to send the card)
  
• blogging
• various sound effects
• sleep

Seven things you might hear me say:

• "Just a minute..." - to the redhead when he's whining and telling me something over and over and over and over.
  
• "Do you have a stinky?" - also to the redhead...for obvious reasons.
  
• "I don't understand whining, use your big boy voice."
• "What did I miss?" - this would be what I say when I've fallen asleep during a tv show or movie (which is all the time)
• Lijah, hush! - Lijah is our dog.
  
• water with no lemon, please
• turn over, Mr. Baseball, you're snoring.

Seven celebrity crushes (I even added pictures for your viewing pleasure):

• Mike Rowe - Dirty Jobs

• Curtis Stone - TLC's Take Home Chef

• Chris Daughtry

• Ty Penington

• Daniel Craig (the newest James Bond)

• Christian Bale (I have loved him since his days as a Newsie)
  

• Mr. Baseball (yes ladies, this is a picture of him as he's seeing me come down the aisle at our wedding)
  

Seven things that made me love my husband:

• his dashing good looks
  
• his dedication to see something through
• he isn't afraid to take risks and try something new
  
• his intelligence
• he is a faithful friend
  
• he loves Jesus
  
• he loves me

...and then i woke up

Last night I had the craziest dream. Its not the first of its kind and it most likely won't be the last. You see, it was a pregnancy dream. But not just any pregnancy dream because in this dream I had...

TWINS!!

I thought to myself, "That might be okay."

Then I remembered there'd be days like this...

and my dream turned into a nightmare! Not really, I just thought I'd add that part to be dramatic cause that's how I roll.

You have to understand, many people around me are either pregnant or have just given birth, so this dream didn't come out of nowhere. However, it did scare me enough for me to do this (please excuse the picture, the quality is awful)...

It was negative.

So it won't be twins this time, but a girl can dream can't she? (*wink*)

all in a day's work

**Update: Mr. Baseball got the camera to work finally, so I've added pics of what I scored on my shopping excursion. Enjoy**

AAAAAAHHHHHH. I'm so frustrated! I have some pictures I want to post from my big day on Wednesday, but my stupid camera won't download them to my computer. The whole point of doing this post was so I would have pictures.
Since I don't know when/if my camera will choose to cooperate, I guess I'll just have to tell you what transpired. Maybe I'll try one more time to get the pictures to download...

Nope. That didn't work either. I hope we don't need a new camera.

I guess I'll just have to tell you and you can picture it in your head.

You know my birthday was July 4th right? That's really nothing of consequence, I'm just setting up the story. Prior to my birthday, I wrote an urgent plea to Ann Taylor to ask if she would be willing to lower some of her prices so I could shop there again. Well, as luck would have it, I received these babies for my birthday...


Along with the gift cards, I got an additional $125 in cold, hard, cash. Cha-ching! So, on Wednesday, my sister and I headed to an Ann Taylor Loft in undisclosed location to do our thang. Actually, Sprout had recently done some shopping, so she was just along for the ride. We started out with lunch at Q'doba, partaking in some tasty burritos, nacho chips, and diet Cokes. Nothing like a full belly prior to trying on clothes. Then, on to the LOFT to burn some cash. I do have to say that the reason I won't disclose the location is because this particular LOFT has some great, and I do mean great sales. Actually, all ATL's have the same sales at the same time, but because this particular store is not exceptionally busy, they have more fabulous items on sale (and in all sizes). I would share the store's location with you, but there are already several people, my sister included, who have discovered it, and in the event that I receive more gift cards to go shopping with in the near future, I wouldn't want to find the inventory lacking because some of you got there first. I mean, I want you to look nice and all, but some things just need to stay on the down-low. I'm just sayin'.

Okay, on to the loot that I scored there. Here's where the pictures would have been really handy. I'll try to download them again...




Nothing. *$&#!!!!


Okay, I found(now I can insert pictures thanks to Mr. Baseball):




I could have spent $244 (which was the original total, I think). Instead, the nice sales girl heard through the grapevine that I was birthday shopping and threw in a 20% discount on the entire purchase. BTW, thanks a ton girlfriend! With the discount, I saved $46.19! The equivalent of another shirt or pair of pants!

With my gift cards and extra cash, I didn't have to spend any of my money, and I left with $25 cash still in my pocket. CRAZY!!!!!

After my success at the LOFT, I was ready for more. Sarah had to go home, and our cousin Erin, who had also met us at the LOFT, had to return to work, so I headed over to JC Penney. Go there, cause they're having some crazy sales too. I found a shirt originally $18, marked down to $6.39 - BOO YA! And I found a white strappy top to wear under things - also originally $18, marked down to $10. My total spent - $17.49 (curse NC sales tax). My total saved - $19.62.

Wait, what? That's right, I saved more than I actually spent. I don't think I've ever done that before!

I was spent and my money was spent after that, so I headed home with 7 new shirts, two pair of pants, and a pair of shoes. It was a great day. Oh, I almost neglected to mention the best part about it. Mr. Baseball had the day off and stayed home with the redhead. Thanks baby!

I also feel the need to mention (particularly to Lula) that Talbot's is having a gi-normous sale (up to 60% off. High-tail it over there girls.

an urgent plea to ann taylor

Dear Ann,

Where do I even begin? Tuesday, I really needed you Ann. I needed your encouragement - how you always make me look good and feel good, no matter what size I am. Its therapy for me to be in your presence. Just to breathe in the smell of quality apparel, experience customer service at its best, and have outfits already placed together lovingly. When I'm with you, I don't have to worry if one red will match another, or if a certain jacket will match a pair of pants -you have done all the work for me. For that I am truly grateful. Ann- girl - you've always been there for me. Remember when we met for the first time. It was May 2002. I had just broken up with Blonde Guy and I felt so lost. He had burned a hole in my heart and at the same time, my income tax return was burning a hole in my pocket. A woman scorned + disposable income = major emotional spending spree. Oh Ann, the moment I walked in the doors I knew we would be BFF's. We spent hours (I can't even remember how long I was in there, but it was a long time) together. I couldn't decide what to get, but don't for one minute think it was because you lacked anything. You simply had so much to offer I couldn't decide. You should know by now that I'm just indecisive. You could never be anything less than perfect Ann Taylor. Don't let anyone ever tell you any differently either. You made spending $330 in one pop so easy I knew that we would be together forever. You do remember the time I was singing in Brian and Vicky's wedding and needed a dress don't you? Who did I run straight to for guidance? It was you Ann who showed me the perfect dress for the occasion. A hot little turquoise number and it was even a size smaller than I normally wore! You even had a pair of heels with turquoise accents that complimented the dress ever so delightfully. I just had to get them. A moment of weakness I guess. I'll never forget how much they cost. $75.00. The most I had ever spent on a pair of shoes. Remember, hubby (when he wasn't hubby yet) was with me and tried to talk me out of buying the shoes. What does he know? I am still a smidge disappointed that you sold my dress to that other girl at the wedding. She didn't look halfway as lovely as I. I told myself that everyone would see my dress first since I was singing and that that other girl was just making a concerted effort to steal my BFF for herself. Ann, I'm so glad you weren't deceived by her hijinks. I forgive you. You are such a faithful friend Ann. I'm afraid I have to ask your forgiveness for not coming to visit you. Its not because I don't love you - in fact, nothing could be further from the truth. Unfortunately, something is trying to compete for your BFF status. That something is (cue evil music)...Wal-Mart. Their plan is to launch an coup effort to overthrow the world and I can see straight through it. Kathie Lee may have been hypnotized by their oozing sentiments, but not me. No siree, not me.

I write all this to say...Ann, for the love of a dear and faithful friend, please lower your prices so that I can hang out with you more. I've had to make friends with the likes of JCPenney, Sears, and New York & Co. - don't get me wrong, they are great girls - but they don't hold a candle to you. These girls let me down on Tuesday though Ann. As I strolled through Po-Dunk Mall looking at all the cheap imitations, I couldn't help but mourn your absence. Ann, I am dying a slow death.

With the price of gas and food on the rise, relief has to come from somewhere.

Please come through for me Ann Taylor. You're my only hope.

I

Yours truly,

Caroline

Good Assets and Answered Prayers

Saturday was a good day. We got up, got Adam off to work, ate breakfast, got ready and headed out the door to my sister's house. She and LeGrande were keeping Wesley basically all day while I went to a friend's baby shower in Durham. After having lunch with Sarah and LG, I decided I should better go to Target to get my gift. Nothing like last minute. At this point in my journey, I had not yet changed for the shower because I had a fashion plan in mind. I was already wearing my lovely salmon colored sweater I have previously purchased at Target and was going to pair it with some great pants I bought a couple of years ago at Ann Taylor Loft (said purchase was made prior to baby when I worked for money!) I know you're thinking how great it is that I can fit into pants I wore before having Wesley! Thanks! Anyway, these pants fit, but they are a little tight unless I have something like control top hose to harness the love handles and baby pooch I still have (but am trying to reduce). My plan was foolproof - I would go to Target, get the gift and get the secret weapon (that's not going to be so secret in a minute). My friend Emily recently posted about Spanx and Assets. Basically, for those who may not know, they are a glorified girdle that makes your lines looks smooth and cottage cheese free. Not to mention they do away with every single VPL (that's Visible Panty-Line). I bought my Assets, the gift, and a pack of gum for the road and headed back to the car. I was going to change in my car, but of course there was a hitch. The couple parked in front of me was loitering around their car wrapping a last minute present that they too had purchased. Not to worry - I just packed my pants, shoes, and Assets in my tote and went back into Target where I changed in the bathroom. I looked good, I felt good, and I proceeded to the shower.

Back on the road I glanced at my directions to the shower. I knew which exit to get off at, but the directions didn't say which direction to go at the top of the exit. Not being too familiar with the area, I called a friend who "knows" the area and she told me to take a right at the light off of the exit. Thinking I was pretty close to the shower and there would be gas stations nearby, I didn't worry that I only had 12 miles to empty. It was only when the road ended that I realized I had gone in the wrong direction. By this point I had 6 miles to empty. Unfortunately, 6 miles in a Jeep Grand Cherokee V8 doesn't actually mean 6 miles, its more like 1 mile to empty. I started to panic. Not a gas station in sight. While sitting at a red light I said a prayer - "Lord, I don't know where this shower is or where the nearest gas station is. Help me get to one or the other without running out of gas." The words had just escaped my lips when all of a sudden the display begins to read 6...10...13...and finally 15 miles to empty! I started to laugh. Hard. The light turned green and I was still laughing and thanking God for his goodness and his sense of humor at the situation. I passed through 2 red lights and came to a gas station. It was one of the most blessed sights my sore eyes had seen in a long time. I filled up and proceeded to the shower, arriving a fashionable 30 minutes behind schedule. No one really noticed that me and my Assets were late, and that's okay. I had a good time celebrating the impending arrival of my friend's precious baby boy who's going to have some fabulous stories of his own to tell one day.