And we're TWO!

Sophie is TWO, and she knows it. Such a big girl. We had a simple little party complete with mini ham sandwiches, spinach dip, snowman sugar cookies, juice boxes and a build-your-own-cupcake table. Sophie loved everything about the day which began with a visit from some Charlotte friends. Helen and Adam stopped in and brought her an adorable Hadley Pottery cupcake plate for her birthday sweets. She was thrilled about her new blue dress, and every time someone new came in the front door (with presents, I might add), she would shout, "Party!" I even caught a glimpse of her in the basement running around with two napkins - a'la pompoms - shouting "Party Party Party!"

Baby brother Tucker slept through the whole thing. Sweet little man.

Baby Birth Day

Well, we left off at 4am on baby's birth day with my big bottle of water and two granola bars. I tried to keep really busy before we were to report to Labor and Delivery. We took Sophie to school and came home to (finally) pack my hospital bag. 

Fast forward to 12:30pm and we were checking into the hospital. Insurance, bracelets, medical history, monitors, an IV and one last ultra sound. Oh, and a few spontaneous tears. Originally scheduled for a 2:30pm procedure, my physician was called into two emergency Cesareans and two other mothers were ready to push before my elective surgery took priority. So, now we're talking more than 12 hours with no food and not a drop of water. And, I was actually in labor.

Although the baby was breech and hiding up in my ribcage, I was banging out contractions every minute and a half. We called in the anesthesiologist to see if I had any pain management options. I could have gotten an epidural, but he said that it in no way would block the pain for surgery like the spinal would - and I had to wait until in the OR for the spinal.

Finally we were up. I thought I might vomit I was so nervous, anxious, excited, scared. The absolute worst part of the day was walking into that OR without my husband and dragging my little IV stand behind me. There were a lot of tears at this point, I won't pretend otherwise. I am a big baby.

"And curl over around your baby, hold my shoulders and we're going to stick a giant needle in your back." At least, this is how I remember it. In all seriousness, I had the best nurses caring for me, calming me and reassuring me. After the "bee sting" needle in my spine, I felt something drip all the way down my back and I became acutely aware of how cold it was in the OR.

Everything happened really fast after the spinal was done. I kept my eyes on my L&D nurse as they prepped me, put up the drape and called in my baby daddy. From the first incision to the last stitch closed, it was a total of 21 minutes and we had ourselves a little baby BOY! 

7lb 13oz, 20in, 4:49pm on November 16, 2011. He didn't have a name until we were in the recovery room and had a few minutes to process BOY. I could not have been more thrilled with our decision to wait on finding out the sex. I'll never ever forget watching Bryan and waiting for him to announce the sex as he watched Dr. Case deliver baby Barber. The name Tucker was on our short list of favorites and James is both our father's first names, so we introduced our immediate family to Tucker James Barber about an hour after he was born.

We were transferred to our Mother Child room where I swear it was 95 degrees (they keep it warm to give baby first bath) and it almost made me sick to be that hot. And the morphine was wearing off - let me tell you how that itches. I am getting itchy thinking about it, literally, just had to stop and scratch my arms! My hunger pangs were gone, I just wanted to snuggle on my sweet baby boy. I was already so smitten.

Here are a few pictures of Tucker's first few days.

My smile in no way reflects my real attitude at this point.
Apparently I have a really good "fake smile."
And, that big bump is the fetal monitor (as if I needed anything to make me look bigger!).

Proud Papa ready to meet baby.

And it's a BOY! Dr. Case - love her.

Blissful first mommy moment.

Daddy and Baby Tucker.

Sweet sleepy snuggles.

Getting to know you... getting to know all about you.

Sophie meeting "Baby Brudder Tucker."
She kisses him all on her own, we didn't even have to ask.

G-Daddy having a celebratory bourbon with his first grandson.

Bryan and his boy.

Grandpa and Tucker getting some vitamin D.

True love.

Birthday and pre birth day

Hello 31. Today I felt young, energetic, full of life (quite literally and figuratively), and ready to flip a baby at my second appointment with the chiropractor. That is, until the chiropractor called to cancel my appointment due to strep throat. I begged him to just wear a surgical mask and to see me anyway, but then decided that I was grasping for straws. This baby isn't going anywhere. I took a deep breath and decided I had to let it go.

I went about my merry way - at times choking back tears and at others responding to birthday well wishes. At least I had dinner with the hubs to look forward to! Darra (or Dora as Sophie likes to call her) watched Soso and put her to bed while Bryan and I went out for sushi and icecream. Pregnancy cravings, anyone?

In case you have kept up and were wondering about my little 30 in 30 book project, I was a miserable failure. But I think it's only fair to consider that I started a little side sewing business, we moved out of state, went on a two-week vacation, oh and I got pregnant which requires lots of napping when chasing a toddler around. I probably read 10 of the 30 books in their entirety, started five others which are still on my nightstand, and I threw in four others for fun and for child-rearing.

So, to 31 and beyond, I'll never have to ask for a book recommendation when I find myself with some free time (ha! free time!).

Sophie: a love story

A couple of tired balloons danced across our front porch this morning as we filled out a collective neighborhood police report. And for the record: it's still breaking and entering even if the door was unlocked. But that's another story because you are here to read about my little stink's first birthday! During which, I died and went to cheese heaven. Get ready to live.

These are the most adorable invites I had designed by this store at Etsy. There of course was a theme, and it, of course, was giraffes. Ever since Sophie got her little mitts on a Sophie the Giraffe, it's sort of been our mascot. I found that party planning is easier when you have a theme anyhow.

My alarm went off at 6:30am to start the oven schedule (first time for everything - I don't bake and I don't make lists). To back up a step, I realized Friday night that the drawer below my oven is... another oven. So I didn't have to walk food to the neighbor's house to bake!

With the exception of our missing family that all live miles away, we had great representation of our closest friends which we've adopted as our Charlotte family - and Sophie's extended family. Words cannot express our gratitude for these people taking time to come share a toast and a cupcake to celebrate one of Sophie's monumental 'firsts.' Let me just say that the mood inside was way more cheery than the weather outside. Right before we did the whole Happy Birthday routine, giant fluffy snowflakes began to fall. It was such a beautiful and perfect moment I'll never forget (click - sound of mental picture taking). So I've painted the atmosphere, right? Let's get down to business of photos. Here Sophie is with Aunt Heidi taking in her first snowfall.

Bryan made a short and sweet little toast (that I didn't know he was thinking of doing) and we lit one candle and sang Happy Birthday to our sweet baby (this is where I thought I might lose it). She did not cry one tear, so I decided I probably shouldn't either. She took everything in stride, typical Sophie fashion, and then poked at her cupcake for a few minutes. I fed her a bite and the game was on. I think she sucked every sugar morsel from her little fingers and then she and I shared a second cupcake a little later.

Happy Birthday, So-so!

I think she likes cupcakes.

I wanted to get a picture of Sophie and some of her friends that came to celebrate.

This was one of the funniest.

Sophie and Whitney - mutual adoration!

Let's talk about food. My sweet friend Cassie helped me plan the menu for the big day - she is good at this, I am not. I whipped up everything from scratch except for the rolls and the gingerbread. Phew. We had Parmesan thyme crackers, baked ham with rolls, macaroni and cheese, caramelized onion dip, gingerbread cookies with frosting, a champagne bar and some amazing cupcakes. The cupcake batter was from a box, but with the help of dear Helen, I made the icing from scratch.

The spread.

Off the hook cupcakes and toppers.

Champagne bar.

About to start on cupcake #2.

I was worried that I would tear up and cry all day (happy/sad tears) over my baby growing up, but I held it together. One of the sweetest moments for me was when Bryan brought Sophie down from her nap all dressed up for her party. She was wearing the dress I had made for her which I hadn't even tried on her yet. He even had the barrette in her hair that I had set aside for the day. What a proud Papa, he seriously melted my heart (for the thousandth time).

Birthday giraffe dress and table runner: Made with love by Sophie's mama.

Birthday giraffe hat: from this Etsy store.

Birthday invites: designed by this Etsy store and printed at Costco.

Giraffe 1st birthday cupcake toppers: from this Etsy store.

Damask napkins, pink plates, champagne flutes etc: Party City.

Cupcake icing recipe, courtesy Helen Mundy: whip 1 box of cream cheese until creamy, add 3 cups confectioner sugar and 1/4 cup granulated sugar and combine. add 2 tubs cool whip and keep mixing. add 1/2 of your favorite candy bar crushed, grated or pulsed in food processor (I used a Symphony bar) and use the other 1/2 to top cupcakes. It was seriously ridiculous.

Walkin', for your love, I'm walkin'

On the eve of her first birthday...

Sophie took two steps today in the kitchen. Was it the excitement of much anticipated access to the Tupperware cabinet? Was it watching her friend walk earlier this morning? Who knows. What I do know is that I'm the only witness, I didn't catch it on film and I couldn't get her to do it again all day.

Bryan and I just got home from dinner and drinks with our adopted Charlotte family, and I can't help but let the faucet of motherly emotions trickle a little here to our faithful followers.

I'll catch up to date on what started here: on being a mom.

Months eight and nine

Watching you watching me watching you... she changes and learns something new every day. Even though I don't want to drag myself out of bed in the mornings, she makes it easier. Her sweet smiling face and her expressions over her morning bottle just melt away the sleepiness. I love our morning walks through the neighborhood and they set the pace for the day (2 2-hour naps!). On her nine month mark, she noticed her shadow for the first time. Being a mom is patience, really good sleep and picking out really adorable summer outfits.

Months ten, eleven, twelve

Summer turned to fall turned to winter very quickly and Sophie is just as busy as can be. Trips to Florida and Kentucky, a few more colds, the croup, a tummy virus, standing up on her own, and her very first baby doll. The more things change, the more they stay the same; I still get sad to put Sophie to bed at night. She loves pointing out Christmas decorations every.where.we.go. Elf on the Shelf is swiftly found and pointed out each morning, too. One day prior to her first birthday she takes two steps to me in the kitchen... a whole new world. Being a mom is never the same two days in a row. One day we have needy baby, one day we have miss independent.

As far as what's to come, only the future can tell. I'm almost to my free Fitness Magazine subscription thanks to my Pampers Points and somewhere around Thanksgiving I realized that I fit in my regular clothes (11 months... really about time).

Happy almost birthday, sweet baby girl. xoxo

Celebrate!

Look at this little turkey making her best elephant sound. Happy 11months baby girl! She is on a food strike, sort of, after the croup, an ear infection and a tummy bug, so I don't have any new baby recipes to share but I'll soon be spelling out some of our old favorites. Her new tricks include letting go of things and standing, cruising like mad around the coffee table, crawling up the stairs by herself (supervised, of course), climbing on top of anything actually, and closing doors.

Well, mommy turned 30, baby turned 11 months, Maddox turned 5. If there is something we don't skimp on around here, it is birthdays. My new birthday camera has been hard at work, (new pictures above and below), and Bryan took me out for an amazing dinner over the weekend at Zebra which touts itself for carrying local sustainable food (obv the seafood isn't local). We had Blue Point Oysters, Lobster, Duck Duet, Creme Bruele and Chocolate Cake (oh, and it took me like four samples to pick out a bottle of wine - two weeks of not drinking from being sick and it was as if I had forgotten what wine we like!). We hired a legit babysitter for the evening who is really sweet! Once we hit the open road with baby under watchful eye at home, the conversation went a little like this:

Bryan: I kind of feel like we should paint the town tonight!

(silence)

Bryan: But that will fade as soon as I get food in my belly.

(laughter)

Amy: Um, I wore my standing shoes, not my walking shoes. And besides, I'm going to need a RedBull just to get through dinner.

Are we old as dirt, or what?! We did have a lot of laughter, reflected on our lives together, I shed a few tears (what's a 30th birthday without some sentimental tears), and really lovely conversation all evening. Believe it or not, we only talked about baby a few times!

Sophie's birthday invitations are in the mail, Christmas cards have been ordered, and I am almost done Christmas shopping this year thanks to my forward thinking and some really great websites like Etsy, Amazon, Zulily and The Mini Social. How can it be that another year is almost over? I just haven't bought much for baby girl because between her birthday and Christmas and her four grandparents that love her to pieces, I think she will spoiled enough.

A little photo update from my new camera!

30 in 30

My 30th birthday is right around the corner. I've recruited some really really special women in my life to help me come up with a reading list for part of my birthday challenge (first mentioned here if you haven't been keeping up). I am going to attempt to read 30 books to celebrate my 30th year and I'm really excited. here is a list of some of my future evening companions:

Good Morning, Merry Sunshine by Bob Greene, Sarah's Key by Tatiana De Rosnay, Water For Elephants, The Purpose Driven Life by Rick Warren, The Story of Edgar Sawtelle, Feel the Fear... and Do It Anyway... I know some of you wanted the full list and once it's compiled, I will share!

Bryan came home recently with my early birthday gift and I've put it to work already. The Canon Rebel T2i with a 18-135mm lens (came recommended by two of our favorite photographers, John Bentham and The Dottens (woop woop!)) has been shutter-bugging all around this house the last few weeks. As soon as I get the software and the photos downloaded just watch out - you thought I took a lot of pictures before?!

Picking out the camera was no easy fete. I went from once photo-excellent to more recently: housewife who wants a fancy camera to take pictures of birthday parties and pets. Sad face. I couldn't exactly explain to the sales guy who I used to be; how I used to get paid to take great pictures. Oh well, gives me more to prove ;)

30 is going to be lovely, I can feel it.

Up 'da rivah

There's nothing like coming home from a very relaxing trip and stepping in a new pile of dog doo-doo. Oh, wait. Not eating all day because you are flying with a 10 month old, realizing at 3pm that last week's cereal is about the only food in the house - then drowning it in sour milk. Home, sweet home!

We had a lovely visit to FL and to the family river house in AL over the weekend. It's an annual trip we take to celebrate my mom and my brother's birthdays. The food, the wine and the sunshine were copious. We had a perfect bonfire complete with s'mores, and there was plenty of football and fishing.

Sophie was toted around by Grandpa and Yaya, she had her first chocolate chip cookie and she woke Matt and Aarica up before sunrise every day. She played hard and slept like a rock!

A very happy birthday to Mom and Matthew!

Sophie and Grandpa at the bait shop/store.

Uncle Matt, Aarica and Sophie gettin' some smiles.

Playing in the grass, and loving it!

A trip down memory road - past river house weekends:

First annual river weekend, 2006!

River trip 2007.

River trip, October 2008.

**2009 not pictured because I was big as a house and

not able to fly. Sophie was on her way!**

Our annual family picture, October 2010.

What's been going on?

A lot of this (pulling up, standing):

And a little of that (getting some fresh air at the park):

And today is this kid's birthday
(but don't ask him how old, because he isn't sure).
I love you, Bryan!!

It's been a busy few weeks at the Barber household. Shawn (Bryan's youngest brother) came for a weekend before starting his Junior year of high school, and Yaya also came in town for a visit. We hosted our Ears 'N Beers party (with you guessed it, yummy corn dishes, homemade compound butters, cornbread, corn hole, and beer). I started working with a personal trainer who is ah-mazing. I am serving for the 3rd year on the Charlotte Seminole Club board and we hosted our 2010 season kickoff event uptown. Sophie and I switched to a new music class closer to home and we LOVE it, and she made it through an entire church service in the nursery (no small feat for her or me)! I've been whipping up some new dishes in the kitchen with all of our Absolute Organics produce which introduced eggplant and kale to my refrigerator for the first time. Sophie had a birthday pool party last weekend that was so much fun - it's got me planning her December party already (ok, ok, I started planning that a month ago). And finally, Sophie is now the proud bearer of two bottom teeth. I had no idea how sharp they would be... it hurts when she bites... can I file those things down?!

Next Wednesday will be a rough day for us. Please send up some doggy prayers for little Miss Maddox. The good news is that she doesn't have osteoarthitis as we thought. The bad news is that she has been limping around since winter because of what was a partially torn - now fully torn - ACL. So... I've done my research, chosen a procedure and the doctor, and 12 weeks from next Wednesday hopefully we'll have our old Maddox back. Anyone who knows me know that this canine is my first born and she means the world to me. All I can do is hope that the doctor has a successful surgery and that we are able to provide her with the comfort and rehab that she needs to gain back her puppy-like bounce. I love you, sweet Maddox!

Just numbers...

A little ditty on numbers for your reading pleasure today.

• Every single day I see the clock at 11:14 (which is my birthday).

• 30 30 30 30 30 30 30 30 30. There, I said it. I'm turning 30 this year.

• I took my 1000th camera phone pic on the BB this past weekend.

• Stink turned 8 months today.

• My number 1 favorite artist released a new cd today. Go out and get it: Ray LaMontagne, God Willin' & the Creek Don't Rise.

Big birthday plans this year! Planning is something I really enjoy and, boy, have I been planning for this one.

And maybe this is a surprise; maybe it's not: I'm not talking about a big blow-out expensive themed party. Nothing of the sort. I've been thinking a lot about the turn of three great decades, and ways I can challenge myself and/or give back to show appreciation and thanks for all that has been given to me over the past 29 years. In trying to identify some challenging tasks for myself to complete in my 30th year as a currently stay-at-home-mom, here were some of the ideas (that were tabled):


Give 30 pints of blood - well you can't do that in a year, because you wouldn't be, um, alive.

Have 30 kids - just call me Mrs. Duggar.

Run 30 races - I decided even I don't enjoy running that much.

Visit 30 states - not in the budget.

Sew 30 outfits for Sophie - she'll outgrow them in a matter of months, then they'll go in a storage box.

Sell 30 photographs and donate money to charity - haven't taken a sell-able photo in a lonnnng time.

So............ I know you are wondering. What is the big plan, then? STAY TUNED!

The 1000th picture taken with my camera phone.
Sophie shopping with Papa for some new scrubs.