Jake-Dog, We Love You!

You were a best friend to Hubby.

You were always there for us when we needed a cuddle or felt the urge to give a belly rub.

You were Grace's very first friend.

You were a great companion to Katie (my MIL) in her lzst days.

You were the best dog.

Go run and play in Doggie Heaven.

We love you, Jake-Dog, and already miss you incredibly.

Home Again

I love productive work trips.

I didnt spend hours laying by the pool or hanging out downtown while I was in San Diego this week. There were a few short trips to the SD Zoo and the Maritime Museum and I had the best margarita ever but I worked the entire time I was there.

Sitting on my hotel room balcony overlooking the resort pool and palm trees with my laptop and 50,286 budget worksheets. That is what I spent my "free time" doing. But man, it is so much better to work that way than sitting in my office!!!

The best part of the trip..........walking in the front door of my house and hearing Grace run down the hall yelling "My Mommy! My Mommy! My Mommy!".

Just makes my heart melt.

FINALLY...It has come!

I passed the test!!!!

Now I can hand out business cards and sign work emails with............

Jaime B....., CMP

Months of studying, stressing out on a weekly basis at study group, and constantly worrying about not passing are over. My letter was simple and fantastic.

Congratulations! You have passed the Certified Meeting Professional examination. In the coming weeks, you will receive a certificate.

YEA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Madness!

My planner is full.

My Pal.m was stolen in the car incident earlier this month so I transferred all the stuff from Outlook to the good ol' planner. And there isnt a week that isnt covered in meetings, events, or to-dos. I love it.

I am one of those ridiculous crazy people who likes when there is a lot going on, as long as there is a break in sight.

This weekend I leave for San Diego. Its a tough job having to spend 3 days in San Diego at a gorgeous resort/convention center in a beautiful city. I am really looking forward to the fish tacos, margaritas, and even going to the zoo (a work trip---I swear!)

Turning the pages of the planner, it takes 3 weeks to find an empty date (and I am SURE that will only be true for a day or so).

The most exciting is that my break involves Girls Night!!! Yipee! A night out with all the girls and no husbands/fiances/boyfriends. And no kids. Just martinis and girl talk. April 6.....you cant come fast enough!!!!!

She is growing and growing and growing

Look how BIG Grace is! Granted, she is laying next to her newest friend, D, who is only 6 months old. But still......she is SO BIG.

She isnt a baby anymore. There is nothing baby about her (except the diapers but we are still working on that!). Grace has her own opinions, her own thoughts, and can hold a conversation with you. And every night she sits at the dinner table and asks Hubby and I how our days were. And then listens to the answer as if she really cares!

But when did all this happen? When did my baby turn into a kid!?

Her 3rd birthday is right around the corner and it has me thinking about all those memories of her first few weeks. How scared I was when the doctors told me I could leave the hospital with my baby but no, the nurses would not be at home with me to help me. I remember those moments where Grace and I would lay on the couch with her curled up on my chest. I could lay there for hours completely happy. And I remember the first night she slept for 6 hours straight. Ahh, sleep returned to my daily life.

I love having a kid. Most of the time. She is pretty independent and it is so much fun to see her learn new things every day. But man, I miss that newborn baby smell. I miss carrying her around in my arms for hours at a time. I miss our couch time.

Do I want another baby? I dont know. If you ask me today, the answer will be different tomorow. Right now, I am trying to hold on to the little bits of baby still left in Grace.

I am holding on for dear life!!!

Surprise!

Its Carnival Day at Crazy Hip Blog Mamas! The theme: It's A Surprise. The process: Click on the Random Site link on the CHBM link (its on my left sidebar so go there and check out all the other CHBMs out there!).

My random click brought me to A Mommy Story. Her header reads: Fairy Tales are Overrated....This is Real Life. Oh how true. I love it!

There was one paragraph in her post titled The War Against Mom Bloggers that really spoke to me. As a mom.

Motherhood is an isolating experience as well as a bonding experience. When you become a mom, you're automatically inducted into the motherhood club, and you'll notice right away the knowing smiles other moms give you, and find you can usually strike up a conversation with any other mom when out. But as part of your induction, you're given no instruction manual on how to be a mom, and you find yourself wondering if you're doing it right. Of course, it's hard to ask for help, because society thinks parenting is the easiest, least-valued experience a person can deal with, and so we watch other moms and compare ourselves to them, wondering if they've got it under control or if they're just pretending as well. We're scared to out ourselves as a pretender and admit we really have no idea what we're doing.

Go now and read her. I think I found a new daily read. And all with just one click of the Random button.

Moving In

Looks like Hubby and I are getting roommates.

The good kind. The kind that cooks. The kind that will help with Grace. The kind that gives a 2 year old drums for her birthday (no worries---payback will be hell later!) And even better, the kind that will watch American Idol every single night with us!

Two of our best friends put their townhouse on the market last week. Already there is an offer!! For the asking price. Very exciting.

But they will have to be out of the house by the end of April. Their new house isnt scheduled to be ready until July. They are moving in with us.

I am very excited.

Racked with Guilt

Mommy Guilt. It sucks. And there is no way around it.

Grace asks me every single morning why I am going to work. She will even tell me to stay home and play with her. Do you think she realizes that those questions and the answers are equivalent to ripping my heart out and stomping on it? Probably not. But thats what it feels like.

And then there is the "what about me" guilt! Oh that is the worst of them all for me. Becoming a mother makes you re-priortize life. No longer can you just decide on day that you are going out for drinks that night. Even working late at the office involves 12 phone calls to day care or Hubby or Grandma or someone to take over child duties for the evening. The "what about me" guilt creeps in when I decide that yes, Grace will have a babysitter because I need to be with Me. You know the me that goes out for happy hours or on fun holidays or even just to get my nails done. The Me that I forget about. What sucks is that I only realize that I forgot about Me when other people start forgetting that I am still Me, with a kid but still Me in need of friendship , fun, and sometimes just an ear to listen.

And apprently, the Mommy Guilt doesnt go away when you grow up. My mother is racked with it right now. Could be because I (gently I thought but maybe not) pointed out that there were no pics of me or Hubby on her fridge that is otherwise plastered with photos. That she takes my sister and her husband out all the time for movies, dinners, etc but has not once asked Hubby and I do go out with her and Dad. My sis and Mom spend hours every weekend shopping together (times when my sis spends $10 at Starbucks and comes home with $100 jeans purchased by Mom) but I have not been asked once to come along.

And why? "Jaime.....you have a kid and you cant get out." That infuriates me. A kid is a kid.....NOT a ball and chain. I can leave my house. Hell, she even has a daddy to take care of her once in awhile. Dont discard me cause I am a Mom! And my own mom should get that....you would think.

Well, Mom called last night to ask me on a Mom and Jaime date for my birthday(still 2 weeks away). Shopping, nails, and cocktails. I am thrilled just to be asked but man, that should be a good day.

And so, the Mommy Guilt isnt just about working in or out of the house. For me, its about trying to find a balance between my "Mom Life" and Me.

At the Good Ol' Hockey Game

The Washington Capitals are out of playoff contention but this weekend they were fantastic. Beating Tampa Bay 6-1! GO CAPS!


And this weekend marked Grace's first hockey game. She loved it all. The lights and music, the french fries, the fruit punch, the cheering, the cotton candy, and spending all day with her friend Grace. (yep, there are 2 of them and it gets very confusing when you are trying to get one of their attention!).


And here are some adorable pics of the event.


We are so proud to have a hockey fan as a daughter. :)

Hubby and the 2 Graces at the Meet and Greet with a former Caps player before the game.

How much fun-----running up and down a ramp near the player's auditorium.

2 little girls and 1 BIG bucket of cotton candy.

Yep, 5 goals for the Caps! Before we left, they scored again for a 6-1 final score!

Photo Friday

Today is Photo Friday on Crazy Hip Blog Mamas. Theme: Once In A Lifetime events. Here is mine. Walking down the aisle at my sister's wedding in a Pepto-pink satin dress carrying the flower girl Grace. Only once in a lifetime will that dress be on me! :)

And just for your viewing pleasure......Mooooooooooooooo!

Now, how can Friday start any better than this!?

Adorable!

My Head Hurts

I am exhausted. Tired. Fed up. Annoyed. Irritated. And all those other related things.

And, this time it isnt because I cant say no. And it isnt just the working and mom stuff. That's a whole different story!

Toxic people wear me out. And they seem to be everywhere right now.

I have been here for an hour today. Nothing positive has been said. Everything is wrong. I am wrong. No matter what opinion you have, its wrong so dont bother even speaking. Cause you suck and are wrong and dont know anything.

And this, my friends, is how the day starts all the time. Every single day. It hurts my head.

Sure, I dont always agree with how things get done around here. And I dont know it all. Sometimes I have to ask for the history of things. Sometimes, honestly, I dont care. Most of the time, I think things are done for the wrong reasons or prematurely. But at the end of the day, the boss is the boss and what he wants or decides is what happens. Because, again, he is the boss.

Deal with it people. Or get a new job. Cause you are part of the reason business is down.

There. I am done with this rant now. BLAH!

Validation!

You Will Be a Cool Parent

You seem to naturally know a lot about parenting, and you know what kids need.You can tell when it's time to let kids off the hook, and when it's time to lay down the law.While your parenting is modern and hip, it's not over the top.You know that there's nothing cool about a parent who acts like a teenager... or a drill sergeant!

Would You Be a Cool Parent?

Okay, but now here is my question: Should a blog quiz really be assessing how "cool" a parent is based on those ridiculous questions!!! Probably not, but hey, I got a nice result so I am all for it today.

Bring It On

Okay, Grace has a problem and as her mother, its my job to help her fix it.


After 2 days, there is still no #2 in the diaper. And man, does she stink.....so I know its there. I mean, seriously, STINKS!!!!!

And so tonight, along with her daily vitamin, Mommy gets the honor of giving her child a laxative.


Who wants to take bets I will be up in the middle of the night cleaning dirty sheets!? I can hardly wait (total sarcasm there!). Well, only because I get to spend time right after work cleaning the carpet where she was sick the other day.

But this is what real moms do.

Real Moms. Nothing grosses us out!

This post brought to you by SoCalledSupermom, in response to Motherhood Uncensored new meme. Come on......join in the fun!!

Yada Yada Yada

All of the sudden, the work load hit me. Maybe cause I feel that once promoted, I should step up to the plate and work harder. Maybe not. But seriously, last week I could skate through a day. Now I am busy all day long and deadlines are approaching so quickly. Yesterday I realized that there are only 7 months until the conference. Amazing. I feel like it was yesterday that I was in Nashville at the 2006 conference. Time flies.

So what the heck have I been up to? Let's see:

1. I got glasses. And contacts. And I LOVE my glasses. A girl needs a little designer in her life every once in awhile so I splurged on Burberry frames. They rock.
2. Gracie decided last night that diapers are for babies. She wants to wear big girl pants! YEA! FINALLY! However, that is hard to do since she is afraid of the po.tty at daycare. We told her over and over last night and this morning that she has to use the day care potty and the Dora big girl pants are hers! Cross your fingers that this is the end of Pampers for us!
3. Hubby and I went to the International Food and Wine Expo in DC last weekend. What a blast! But I dont remember the food part of the Expo! Maybe too much wine?! Hehe, it was awesome!!!

Thats all for today. I know, could it be more boring! But stay tuned. I am sure that this calm in life will get shaken up soon enough!!!

Because I am That Good!

Today is my one year anniversary at the "out of the house" job. I made it a year and I am still as happy at this job as I was the first day here.

The best part of the day....................I walked into the office at the same time as the CEO. He called me into his office and handed me a piece of paper. On this paper, 2 boxes were checked......promotion and merit raise!

YEA ME!

Its All Just A Blur To Me

After Grace was born, I realized that more changed with pregnancy than just my formerly okay waistline. My eyes were crap! So I went to the eye doctor and got glasses. And 2 1/2 years later, those glasses have been lost for at least a year and I havent been back to the eye doctor since.

I refused.

But today, I can no longer refuse. I cant see crap! Sersiously, I feel like an old lady squinting at my computer screen all day long. And god forbid I want to read small print on anything. Its just not worth all the squinting and rearrangement of my eyes to read that stuff anymore.

And so, this weekend, I will go to the eye doctor and on Monday morning, I will wear my new accessory (read: glasses) to the office.

Hubby laughs but seriosuly, how do I pick a pair out? A very important question I think. They say the figure out your face shape and then look for glasses that way. Okay, but I have never been able to figure that out. Heart? Oval? Square? I have no clue. Do you?

And then there is the question of style/color? Metal frames? Okay.......silver or gold or do I go rimless? Or what about the super-cute tortoise shell frames?

Seriously, this is really hard for me.

Any advice!?!?!?

The New Hot Mama Look when it comes to your Car

Saturday morning. Hubby went out early to get his car detailed. But when we walked by my car, he heard "crunch crunch crunch".

Hey! Where's my window?! It was there last night but now, nope, its gone!

OH! There it is! In my front passengeer seat and on the floor! But of course, where else would you put a window?!

That is how my weekend started. With bored teenagers who decided that breaking into my car was the best entertainment they could find. Oh, and my purse was their prize. A few hours after I found this, a police officer showed up at my door with my purse in his hands. Someone called in because they woke up to purses on their front yard. My purse wasnt good enough to keep, I guess. My cash and Palm Pilot though are gone.

And this my friends is what a Hot Mama car looks like, without a window. Who needs one of those!?

Yes, I drove my car around all weekend with a trashbag for a window. Except that I couldnt make left hand turns.......the trash bag blocked my view!!! So, this is really what it looked like from my point of view as I drove around.

Now, that is hot!

It Hurts Everywhere

Now I remember why I hated getting completely drunk.

The hangover.

Hubby and I are investors in a VA winery. Last night was the annual meeting full of fantastic food and the best wine ever! Bottles and bottles and bottles of it.

This morning, I am paying for it.

I just want to go home, crawl into my comfy bed, and sleep.

Here We Go Again!

Today is the day. I have 2 windows open and ready to go. There are several of us ready to click the "search for tickets" button. And the day is already marked off on my Out of the Office calendar and the grandparents are already on notice to babysit overnight. Its all planned out!

Jimmy Buffett tickets go on sale at 10 AM!

Now, everyone cross your fingers that I get tickets. These things are ridiculous----sold out last year in 5 1/2 minutes.

UPDATE: I HAVE 6 LAWN TICKETS!!!!!!!! SHOW SOLD OUT IN 4 MINUTES BUT MY COMPUTER ROCKS AND GOT ME THROUGH.

And the Perfect Post Award Goes To.............

There are certain blogs that I visit daily. Some of "real life" friends and some I consider Blog Buddies. And then there is Mary Poppins.

As a working mom, its nice to read her posts about her day as a day care provider........the gentle moments that Mom misses but she is there for, the frustarating moments that we all experience with children, and dealing with all those neurotic parents........I just dont know how she does it every day.

I guess the same way we all do.

But MaryP got me thinking this week. Its the new Mommy War I think...........Are you a good mommy or a strong mommy?

Hmmmmmm................................

Can I qualify myself as a Good-Mommy-who-is-really-trying-to-be-a-Strong-Mommy?

Curious what I am talking about?! Go visit MaryP at her blog, Its Not All Mary Poppins.


To her, I award my very first Perfect Post Award for her Good Mommies, Strong Mommies post. The post really made me stop and think about what kind of mommy I am. Am I spending too much time concerning myself whether other people see me as the "good mommy" when I should be showing my daughter my strength? Maybe being "ladylike" as MaryP describes is overrated.

More award winners are listed here and here. Go visit!