Long Time No Blog

It's been a long time. I shouldn't have left you...without a dope beat to step to...step to....step to....

Throwback.  Aaliyah Y2K.

Well guys, I'm here.  It was touch and go there for awhile, but I think I'm going to make it.  I made our (not so) little announcement and then disappeared, but it was really for the best.  You all would have been bored to tears with the details of my daily doings these last couple of months.  I've been struggling with the yucky, pukey part of this baby journey for quite some time now, so if I wasn't at work, I was on the couch or in the bed.  No glamour here.  But I am now 17 weeks along, and things are starting to look up in terms of overall general healthy feelings.  Seeing a light at the end of the tunnel, and hoping to be feeling nice & snazzy again soon!

So although we were working through some yuck, we did pepper in some fun bright spots this fall!

A visit to Baltimore to spend time with some besties...

Can never get enough QT with these precious friends and their sweet, sweet babes!

Austin enjoyed a camping man-cation with some of his dearest dudes...

My parents came over for a weekend for a surprise visit, and they also came to spend Thanksgiving with us because Austin was on call... Unfortunately, we don't have any fun photos from their visits, but we loved having them here!!

We had a visit from my cousin Mendy, her husband Clint, & their sweet 1-year old boys!

And most recently (aka: this weekend) my mother-in-law, aunt-in-law, and sweet sisterlys made the trek over for a girls weekend! Loved every single second!

Now we are all geared up for Christmas and ready to enjoy one of our favorite times of the year!  My dear friend Allison wrote some sweet words on her blog, so I wanted to link it up and echo her sentiments.  She has a better way with words than I.  So much to celebrate this season!

You and Me

And baby makes three!

Coming May 2013.  Stay tuned.

Extra Bits of Summer

Due to my lack of blogging this summer, I have failed to document a few fun things that went on around these parts!

First, a visit from Ma and Pa Bell in June.  We had such a fun time hanging out and eating our way through town! (<-- our favorite activity when we have visitors!)

The highlight of the weekend was our dining experience at Bleu.  Amy & Owen know the chef at this fabulous restaurant, and he gave our whole crew the five-star treatment!  We enjoyed tons of sampling plates, fabulous entrees, and then some yummy dessert.  I truly felt like we got to taste every single thing on the menu, and every morsel was absolutely delish.  And it was such a fun experience! So handy to have family with friends in high places.

This is how we felt when we got back to Amy & Owen's place...

Food: 1. Bells: 0.

And as if one summer visit from the Bells wasn't enough, we got another one last weekend!  But this time...Alex, Lauren, and baby Rooney joined them!  Of course we did a lot more chatting & eating, but this time we got to love on sweet baby girl!

Isn't she an absolute doll?!

Sleeping is her favorite.  Cuddling is our favorite.

Hanging at A & O's, just staring at Rooney girl.

It was so fun having this crew here. Loved every minute.

And speaking of visitors, Amber and Megan (two of my dear, dear friends from college) also made the trek over this summer!  It was so fun having them here and getting to catch up.  Having my old friends come here to our new home does my heart good.  Love these girls so much!

And last but not least, my mom also made a little visit this summer...unfortunately we didn't take a single photo while she was here. But let it be known that she spoiled us rotten.  Cleaned our house, sewed new pillows, stocked our pantry, and treated us to some yummy food.  She is the best.  And not just because of those things...also because when we are together, we do things like this...

Love that lady something fierce.

Finally, the most random thing that happened to us this summer was our little newspaper feature.  Yup, that's right...our home was featured in the local paper.  Our realtor asked if we would mind doing a little interview for the real estate section, and happy to help out, we obliged.  Before we knew it, there was a writer and a photographer headed over.  We were a little shocked when they mentioned a photographer, but we spruced up the house and made ourselves presentable.  Then a few weeks later, we got a bigger surprise.  It wasn't a "little interview"....we were on the front page.  And the centerfold.  Large picture of yours truly and several from inside of our home.  So funny to see ourselves & our little place in the paper.

And that brings us to today... Summer is winding down, and you know what that means-- fall and Razorback season are just around the corner!  We are headed up for the season opener next weekend, and we can't wait.  Woo pig sooie!

Our New Kitchen!

This post is a little late, but I definitely wanted to document some before and after shots of our kitchen remodel.  All in all, the kitchen remodel was completed in under 3 weeks.  We were pleasantly surprised with how quickly the process went, and we are so so pleased with how everything turned out.  Without adding any square footage to our small kitchen, I feel like we have doubled our work space and at least quadrupled our storage space.  Cooking is fun again because I just love being in there!

Here is the original real estate listing photo of the kitchen...

Certain things are clear-- the laundry is in the kitchen, there are very few cabinets, the stove is just sitting there awkwardly by itself, etc.  One other very important detail is less obvious-- only 1 of those drawers actually opens.  We knew something had to be done.

One year later, here is our new kitchen...

I'm in love.

Now I don't have a fish-eye lens to get the full scale of the first photo, but I think we can all appreciate the difference.  More counterspace.  More cabinets.  More light, bright, and happy!!

 Let's do a little more before and after just for kicks.

As it belonged to previous owners.  Their paint colors.  Their stuff.

Wasted space. No storage.

Love our new pantry!

Where oh where has our laundry gone? I'm so glad you asked.  Follow me this way...

We are now the proud owners of an official laundry closet.  Love it.  And it makes way more sense.  No more folding clean shirts and piling them on the...stove? And the best part is that it looks like it has always been this way.  It all works with this charming, old house, and we are so pleased.

Lately

A little bit of this...

Austy boy is officially henceforth an ophthalmologist, so he's getting handy with his lenses.

And, of course, some of this...

It's so so so hot.  A steady supply of YoLo FroYo helps keep us cool.

And a whole lot of this...

Olympic gymnastics.  Love.  My 2-week summer break from work coincides perfectly with this Olympic goodness.  Couldn't be more pleased.

Also, my friend Kayleigh (with whom I get the joy of working daily!) and I were *slightly* hooked on American Idol this past season due to a shared favorite-- Phillip Phillips.  And, as luck would have it, the good ol' American Idol tour came close by while we were off work.  So, of course, we decided to take advantage of a chance to see Phil² live in living color.  Although we watched from nose-bleeding heights, he did not disappoint.  Plus it was a good excuse for a fun little road trip!

Fun fact: Phil²'s single "Home" is the theme song for the women's olympic gymnastics coverage.  I love when my happy things come together.

Go Team USA!

50 Shades of Gray

I'm sure by that title you thought this blog was about to take a turn for the interesting.  Trust me...it's not.

Our kitchen/laundry remodel is fully underway. Construction everywhere. Junk everywhere. Dust everywhere. People in my house everywhere-- including me! I'm on summer break, so I get to be present in this home for the madness.  This has turned out to be a blessing and a curse.  It's great for being able to answer questions, give immediate feedback, etc.  It's not so great for being comfortable in your own home amidst various worker bees and a huge mess.  However, all thing considered, things are going well.  So far, so smooth.

The only major hang-up right now is ME! Paint is my nemesis. I cannot choose a paint color. Cannot do it. I am wanting to go with a shade of gray.  Lucky me!! There are about 2.7 million different shades of gray.  

Grays that go to blue...to green...to purple... It's enough to make a person crazy.  What I'm really going for is a nice greige (gray-beige), but there are still TONS of greige options. And the worst part? They look crazy different in various light.  So I may think I like one in the morning, and by 3:00 p.m. it's in the garbage. Oy vey.

This is really the last choice I need to make, and then it's time to watch it all come together.  I'm nervous and excited.  Looking forward to some fun before & after comparisons!

Baby Rooney is Here!

I am an auntie again! Sweet Rooney Corrine Bell was born on Tuesday, June 19th!  She is beautiful, and she is the sweetest, snuggliest little gal.

Just after wrapping up the wedding weekend, I got word that Rooney was coming, and I headed up to NWA.  It was so fun and special to be there and get to hold baby girl when she was brand new to this world.

I ended up staying in NWA for the rest of the week and weekend, so I got lots of time to love on Rooney and take tons and tons of pictures!  Here are a few from the visit...

Proud parents!

Auntie Love

Video chatting with Austin, so he could see Rooney 

Showing Rooney her beautiful nursery 

Tiny peanut in that big crib!

Eskimo kisses with Auntie Em

Getting some Vitamin D  

Meeting Uncle Austin!

Snug as a bug! 

Bright eyes! 

Sweet baby girl!

Love, love, love this baby and her sweet parents. Already missing her, and can't wait to go back up and get my hands on her again!

Hitched!

Patty and Grace got married!  It was a whirlwind weekend of parties and celebrations, and it was all so perfect.

I could go on and on about every detail of the wedding weekend, but I think I'll just hit the highlights with a photo-recap of the events!

Thursday night was a fiesta...complete with mustaches and a mariachi band!

On Friday the gentlemen hit the links, and the ladies enjoyed the bridal luncheon.

On Friday evening we had the wedding rehearsal and rehearsal dinner.  The dinner was such a sweet event filled with friends and family sharing fun stories and tons of love with Grace and Patrick. We loved every minute.

And Saturday, June 16th was the wedding day!

Her dress was beautiful, and Patrick looked so handsome.  They really make quite the lovely couple.  Cannot wait to see the actual wedding photos!

Naturally, the reception was a blast!  It was full of fabulous food, a great band, and tons of dancing!  Although I didn't take any pictures, I do have one super special video.  Patrick and his college bandmates reunited for a 2-song wedding performance, and it was awesome!

Such a wonderful weekend! It was so sweet to see my big brother as the groom, and I am so excited to have a Fleeman-sister!  Looking forward to years of major family fun!