another first for the books.

Weekend Wrap-up huh? Does anyone still do these anymore? Probably not. Oh well. Today I am.

This weekend was awesome. Absolutely positively so much fun.

A few months ago, my very football crazy aunt bought tickets for the Charlotte Panthers/New York Giants game. She was stoked at the chance to come see her beloved Eli Manning play so she snatched up tickets basically the minute we moved to the Charlotte area. My brother and sister in law made plans to come up for the weekend and we've all been so excited for this weekend.

But plans change. And when kiddos are involved, they change quickly.

The day before my S & Kiki were supposed to come down, their little one came down with the chicken pox. Which quickly put a kibosh on the weekend plans.

My aunt and granddad still came down though so Saturday we took them with us to the littles' ballet practice and then headed over to Southpark to do a bit of shopping. My Papa and Mr. P did most of the entertaining of the little one (who is finally at the age where these excursions are mostly fun) while my aunt and I hit basically every store in the entire mall. True story.

BG hit a few stores with us and as she exclaimed "look! isn't this so cute!" over and over as she showed us stuff, I was hit with a memory so hard it took my breath away. I remember spending Saturdays growing up shopping with my Grandma and aunt and now here I am, with the same aunt and my little girl shopping away on a Saturday. Some traditions are too awesome to not keep.

Since we now had two extra tickets, we decided to just take E to the game with us instead of leaving her behind. I figured if she got super bored, we would just walk the concourse for a bit. I honestly wasn't too worried about it.

And I truly shouldn't have been.

We dropped the three of them off at the stadium while Mr. P and I went and parked. We then walked the mile back to the stadium and met back up with them. We went on through security and checked in at the guest counter where BG was gifted a certificate to commemorate her first Panthers game.

We found our seats, then found some overpriced hotdogs and drink to consume. BG ate and kept her eyes on the beginning of the game. She was being so good!

She lost interest for a bit but just sat down in front of her chair and played on the stadium floor (no judgement!) for a bit. After a quick rest on her Mama's lap, BG was ready to finish out the game. And finish the game she did.

In no time she was high fiving those around us, dancing with the cheerleaders, and having a blast watching the Panther dance around the end zone. I'm not sure she watched a bit of football, but it didn't matter. She clearly had a blast. And so did the rest of us.

The weather was perfection. The city is perfection. And though the Giants basically didn't show up to play at all, it was still worth it to go. It was an absolutely perfect day.
We ended the day with wings and ice-cream before collapsing in the bed pretty early. It's safe to say my girl enjoyed her first NFL game. And so did her parents. Such a good day.

(almost) wordless wednesday

When Mom sleeps in on a Sunday morning and it's up to the Dad to handle breakfast, the Dad and the kid will sneak off only to return with a dozen doughnuts. And it is so good...

31.

Today I turn 31. Which is kind of crazy because I can distinctly remember turning 30 and it JUST happened so I have no idea how I got here. But here I am.

I've heard that women are getting to the point where they are just now "finding" themselves on into their thirties and I so get that. At thirty, I thought I would have it all figured out. But somehow I woke up that morning just as clueless about so much as I'd been at twenty nine. Guess I got that one wrong.

A lot has changed in 365 days. We moved. Again. I changed jobs. Again. My personal life has both flourished and suffered greatly this past year in ways that I won't ever write about but they have shaped me greatly. It's been a year, that's for sure.

I've done a lot of growing and changing over the last couple of months. I'm no where near where I want to be, but I'm getting there and that's okay. It's okay to be a constant work in progress. I fully intend on still being in the process of figuring things out when I slide into the grave. It's just who I am.

While I am a work in progress, there are a few things that I've found to be undeniably true about who I am. Things that are me to the core. Things that maybe at one time I tried to hide, or deny, but now? now that I'm on the other side of 30? I've realized it's too exhausting to not just be me. To not let my "freak flag" fly. It may have cost me a few friendships and a few hard life lessons, but it's also deepened relationships that mean the world to me.

So for my thirty first birthday, thirty one things that make me, me. Tied in with the lessons that finally got me to be okay with who I am. Actually, that's not true. I am MORE than okay with who I am. And here's who you are today girl. Happy 31st Birthday.

31. Music will ALWAYS be the way to your soul. Do not be ashamed when a song brings you to tears or makes you close your eyes and just sit and listen. It's okay to sing a little too loud and to spend a bit too much money on concert tickets. This is your release. Enjoy it.

30. You kind of hate running. Yet you keep doing it. I'm actually not so sure why I keep putting myself through it except that I've just always done it. But old injuries are starting to hurt more and more and the runs are becoming more excruciating. It's okay to throw in the towel girl.

29. You also know you won't do that. You aren't a quitter.

28. You HATE confrontation. When forced to deal with it, you will. And you will handle it with sarcasm and wit, but you will be a sweaty, nervous mess while doing it. Don't pretend to be a bad ass. Fights and drama are not your thing.

27. You are flaky. Like REAL flaky. At least five mornings a week you lose your keys or your purse or something. You keep buying things to help you get "organized" and you usually lose those. Thank God you married an organized man.

26. You're a procrastinator. BIG TIME. You usually have great intentions and big plans but then lack the follow through. We're working on this but see above.

25. You've spent a good deal of time barking up the wrong tree when it comes to friendships. You won't be everyone's best friend. You can't buy friendship. Some friendships just aren't worth the effort. You are still learning which ones are but you're getting better. It's not worth the energy to be the only one trying.

24. If your kid isn't important to someone; they shouldn't be important to you. Forgetting your kids birthday when it's not allowed to forget their kids? Unacceptable. You don't need these people.

23. You will always get to invested in certain tv shows. Glee, One Tree Hill? Yep. You love them. Pretty sure you always will. And it's okay to disappear into them for a few hours. Life is hard. Sometimes it's nice to escape.

22. Laughter is always the best medicine. You married a funny man and your friends are hilarious. Clearly you already know this. ;)

21. Life usually doesn't turn out the way we envision in high school. I NEVER thought things would be the way they are now. But they're better. WAY better. Enjoy the twists and turns of life. They aren't always fun but they have a point. It just may take a long time to get to that point.

20. Girls' Night Out is your sanity. Never stop making time for your friends. They are the place you can just be "Megan" instead of "Mom". It's a good thing. You need that time.

19. You will never be on time. Ever. Keep trying though. It's not fun being late.

18. Work is stressful and sometimes you hate it, but you are good at what you do. Though you never would have imagined you would be doing what you do, it's worked out perfect. You are good at it because you work hard. It's one of your better qualities.

17. You're funny. Which is kind of cool. Don't be ashamed of it. Humor gets you through the day. Rock it.

16. You cannot rock pastels, collared shirts, or clothes with animal prints. And truth? you don't want too.

15. You might be a bit of a hippie. But that's okay. Hippie's are cool. You do shower so that's a win.

14. Life isn't always easy. Some very important relationships in your life are not at all what you've dreamed of. But you know what? You have the chance to make better ones with the next generation. Let go of the past. Ella is your second chance.

13. You are fiercely competitive. Get prepared to be banished to the car should your daughter play sports. This will happen.

12. You have an extremely laid back take on parenting. And while sometimes you beat yourself up for it because it's not the "norm" it works for you and your daughter. Go your own way. She's happy and taken care of. And that's what matters.

11. You eat like crap. And the metabolism you used to have? It's long gone son. Shae that department up stat.

10. As much as you envy stay at home moms, you weren't meant to be one. And your kid? she thrives at school. The situation y'all are in now is the best one for the two of you. It didn't work out for y'all to be together all the time and that's okay. It doesn't mean you love each other less or anything like that. It's just who y'all are.

9. Your husband will always make you a bit crazy but that's because y'all are so different. And those differences? are fantastic. He levels you out in a way that you need daily. He's truly your best sidekick. You got a good one.

8. You're getting older but it's still okay to drive a little too fast sometimes. To play your music a bit too loud. To drink a bit too much. Life is good. Live it.

7. Love hard. You will always think that people are inherently good and that's a good thing. The world needs more people like that. Love people. It's the greatest commandment. It is that for a reason.

6. Show your daughter how important school is but also show her how important it is to get out of those doors and learn in the world. It has SO much to show her. Make sure you show her the world before someone else does. You'll show her the good parts. No telling what someone else might show her.

5. Get outside every day. You start to get sulky when you don't. This is a command.

4. Love your kid. Hard. You know how bad it hurts when you don't feel that. Smother her with love. And when she starts to fight back, do it harder. You have every intention of being the embarrassing mom. ;) Rock it.

3. Love your husband. Hard. He saved you in every way possible. He deserves to know how much you will always appreciate him.

2. Love your God. Hard. He's the only reason you've made it this far.

1. You're 31 girl, but you still have so much more to learn and do. So rock your aviators, play your music, wear flip flops daily, cry at sappy tv shows, laugh with your friends, love your family, hold your daughter, and thank God daily for your life. It sort of rocks.

k-3

So my baby started another year of school.

Why oh why does she insist on growing so incredibly fast?!?

My girl loves school. LOVES it. And prefers to go to school over much else. So drop off was easy. I didn't expect anything different.

She loves her friends, loves her teacher, loves learning. It's so good for her.

She doesn't love naps but it is what it is. While the other kids nap, she gets one on one time with her teacher working on other lessons. It works. She comes home absolutely flat exhausted, but, what are you gonna do?

I can't believe how much she's grown in a year. She's gotten so tall and has thinned out so much. And her hair is finally growing. It took forever, but was worth the wait.


I've been trying to get E to let me do an "interview" of sorts to post on here about what she likes at 3, but she's having none of that mess. So I wrote her answers down here. It's more for us to just look back at one day.

Interview With A Toddler:

Favorite color: pink and purple
Favorite sport: soccer
Best friend: Lacy
Favorite food: Pizza and applesauce (though I think that's just because that's what she was eating at the time. It's probably more like cheeseburger)
Favorite clothes: a dress
Favorite TV show: Dora (though this should probably be Dragon Tales
Favorite movie: The Dora & Diego movie
Favorite song: Call Me Maybe

Here's to another year. Let's do this kiddo.

tales from the road.

If you would have told me that one day I would be on the road every single day as a sales person, I would have laughed in your face. And if you would have added that I would be doing those sales for the construction industry? Ha. But here we are.

I actually love my job though. While it can get old being in the car 9 hours a day, it can actually be kind of fun.

I've managed to broaden my already extensive knowledge of music. I hear A LOT. I still love classic rock and I still hate Justin Beiber. That hasn't changed.

I've learned that you should ALWAYS pick a department store bathroom over a gas station bathroom. ALWAYS. Kohl's has great ones but they're all the way in the back nine times out of ten. Lowe's is my favorite and they're right up front.

Also, I now have an extensive knowledge of bathrooms.

You will learn to become a public p**per. That's all I'll say about that.

QT is the Holy Land of gas stations. If you pass one, stop. ALWAYS. Their coffee? I hear angels sing. And $1.72 is my jam. Much better priced than Starbucks. Plus? nicest cashiers you'll find at a gas station.

When in a new town, eat lunch at a local place. It's fun. And fast food is gross and gets old. And try new food. It's good.

You will gain weight. You better find a hobby that involves lots of calorie burning to counteract the flattening of the buttocks from being in the car all day. Truth.

While in new towns, check out local shops. I have found awesome new soaps, amazing clothes, and so many other cool things that I never would have found if I never ventured into the cool little boutiques small towns have to offer.

Never answer your phone if the boss should call while you're in those shops. ;)

I kid. I would NEVER. That's lunch hour.

Truth.

You will spend a ridiculous amount of time on the phone. Find some entertaining friends to tell you funny stories on those long, boring drives.

Gas is overpriced. It will piss you off every single time you fill up.

You will probably still hate salespeople. I still cannot stand when someone tries to sell me something. My best friend (and coworker) is always quick to defend saying ("they're ONE OF US MEGAN") but I'm not buying it. I'm not pushy. They are.

You have a lot of free time. Free time in which lists like this are born. It is what it is.