I was just telling Kelvin how when I was growing up I was such a traditional person that it used to really bother me to see change happening around me. I always wanted things to stay like I had always remembered, but then maybe that was because I hadn't lived enough to know that change was inevitable. Don't get me wrong, whenever I drive around Memphis or Southwest Little Rock I still sigh on the inside remembering how different those places are than what I knew growing up. Nevertheless, I was telling my husband how I feel like I might be addicted to change now. Good changes give me such an adrenaline rush these days...lol! So, I'll dedicate the majority of this posting to all the good changes that have been going on with us here recently! There's 4 to read up on:
Toddler Bed!!!
A few weeks ago, we inched our little one another step further in her "big-girl" hood. I know what some people might think looking at this picture...how do you keep her from falling out the bed??!! Not to worry- Brooklyn's daddy is pretty crafty when it comes to setting up a makeshift appparatus to serve great purpose for anything. He says it's because he graduated from an HBCU...lol. I will say that we really had to step up our game when it comes to baby-proofing the house though. We also have to keep parts of the house lit at night in case Brooklyn gets to roaming around so she can find her way to us. I will say that she really has done well. Surprisingly enough, she does not roam at all. In fact, when she gets up in the morning; she still just stands up in the bed and calls out for one of us to come to her room. When and only when we come into her bedroom does she get out of the bed. It's weird, but it's a blessing I'll gladly accept :-)
Tattoo Removal!!
For some reason, this seems to surprise a lot of my friends and family. Truth be told, I've been wanting to do this since not too long after I got it. Nothing against tattoos or people who have them but it just really is not for me. I was young and caught up in the moment when I got it and although it's a very nice tattoo the placing of it couldn't be more wrong. I foolishly got this thing on my upper arm. That means any time I'm wearing sleeveless dresses at church (including my wedding dress), I've actually not felt as comfortable as I would have without it. It also makes shorter sleeves on the job a no-no for me because it is so unprofessinal. I always heard that removal would be extrememly painful and extremely expensive so I didn't really pursue it agressively. That is until.....good ol' Groupon. I love that site! I have really gotten some great deals on that thing. I managed to snag some laser removal sessions at 1/3 of the regular price so it is now game on. I went for my first session last week and it went great! It'll probably take 4 or 5 more before I'm satisfied. It really wasn't all that painful either. The session took like all of 2 minutes so I'm pretty sure if I can handle having my abdomen cut open to pull a small child out of me, I can handle more of these little 2 minute sessions...lol! I'll keep posting my progress on this little project.
MY JOB!!!
I won't list company names specifically when I discuss this, but I will say that there's almost nothing that's more of a drag than going to school for 8 years; having good opportunities; but then getting to a place where you absolutely dread going to work everyday. About 4 months ago, that is the chair I was sitting in. I cried and I prayed and I whined and I sulked. I applied for other things and waited and waited. Then I came across a unique position with a pharmaceutical company that sounded intriguing but wasn't very well defined. With no real expectations, I applied and didn't really give much more thought to it. Then I got a call from the hiring manager who flew into town the next day to interview me. By the time I left that interview, I wanted that job sooooo bad. I actually had a good feeling about it that was so hard to ignore and let go. Finally after discussions with the hubby and praises to God, I took the position and shall we say the rest is history. My job is a totally diffrent niche than what I'm accustomed to but it is absolutely great! Because of the blessings that have come to fruition because of it, I truly feel that God had this waiting just for me. Boy, did I have to go through some conditioning before he blessed me with it but it made me that much more thankful for this AMAZING blessing He's given me and I truly can give Him all the glory for it!! The thing I'm loving the most-more time with my family. I'm home to feed, read to, and put my child to bed every night. I'm home every weekend with my family. You know- those are things that money just can't buy. I can never get these moments back. One drawback is that I do occasionally have to travel out of town and be gone for a few days at a time. The silver lining to that is that it makes me just that more thankful that I have a husband and Brooklyn has a father that can do it all around the house and still be supportive of his "little wife".
The Kitchen/Family Room Remodel!!
I can't believe we're actually doing this!! I am SOOOOO excited! One thing that has changed about me regarding our home is that I originally wanted each section of the house closed off to make a sharp definition between different spaces in the house. The way our house is really accomplished that. However, post-mommyhood I need to be able to see what's going on at all times...lol!! Plus, now that we've had our fair share of entertaining events at the house I now realize how nice it would be to be able to entertain from room to room without actually having to walk from room to room. We always thought this would be a massive undertaking financially, but we brought a few contractors out to estimate the expenses for us and it is surpisingly not as expensive as we thought it would be. So---game on! Happy Birthday, Merry Christmas, Happy Mother's Day, and Happy Anniversary to me...lol!!! The pictures you see here are my "before" pictures. This is what it looked like before they started this week. It doesn't look anything like this anymore but I'll hold off on posting more pictures of the transformation until after it's done. That'll give everyone who follows my blog something to look forward to :-)
