Meet Buster!

Alright, so he's not nearly as cute and "Princessy" as the adorable little girl in the photo above, but he's sweet and handsome nonetheless!! Ladies and Gentlemen, I am pleased to introduce the newest member of our family, Buster Brown:


We adopted Buster about a week ago from a rescue that took him in. Unfortunately, his last owners saw nothing wrong with allowing their much larger dog to beat up on him over and over again :( They also didn't see a problem with not feeding him regularly. And because of these two factors, poor Buster was extremely underweight and had a large, angry abscess forming on his rear leg where his previous "companion" tried to take off a chunk. But luckily for my little man, this rescue took him in, got him medical treatment and fattened him up a bit.

Now he's living the good life here with us. For being as neglected as he was, he sure is fitting in well. He's been great with Lauren, great with the cats and surprisingly, even great with Quin. He's quickly figured out the doggie door and only ventures outside when he has to go potty...the remaining part of his day is spent doing this:


Lounging! And no, he's not hiding... he's "nesting". He'll spend the better part of an hour scrunching up the blankets so that they're all cushy and comfy and then he'll proceed to snuggle up under the blankets. This dog loves the couch and the warmth and comfort it provides him.


He has alot of the same mannerisms that Ellie had, which is so much fun to see. He reminds me of her SO much and I can't tell you how nice it is to see a little black and white dog running around the house again, attacking the dog toys and terrorizing the cats :) He's not my "bunnies" but I like to think he carriers a bit of her personality in him!


I mean, c'mon...how can you resist that sweet little squishy face?!?

Valentine's Day!!

Ahh, Valentine's Day...a day where the whole purpose is to show love, recieve love and give affection. What's not to like about this romantic, sappy day?!?

So yesterday morning when I woke up, I walked out into the kitchen and notcied a very yummy Baskin Robbin's ice cream cake on the counter for me! You see, I have been talking about getting one of these cakes for the past few months because I have been craving them like crazy. But I never bought one because I simply couldn't justify buying a whole cake for myself, since Justin isn't too impressed by them. But there it was, a Valentine's Day cake with frosting, chocolate cake and Chocolate Chip Ice cream. It was delish!

Written on the box was a note from Justin, proclaiming his love for me :) So it wasn't a card but I could have cared less because he told me what he wanted to say...it just happened to be on the box. Can't blame the guy for being frugal, can ya??


And my Valentines gift for the Hubster was a V-Day picture of his adorable little girl, loads of candy and a card, complete with a Love Note that would make Dr. Laura proud..haha!


So Princess Diddle and I hung out all day until her daddy got home. We were planning on going to a local Teppan Restaraunt for our dinner because not only is the food sooo tasty, but they cook it in front of you which entertains our Busy Body. And an entertained little girl = a dinner her parents can actually enjoy :)

Unfortunately Lauren missed the memo that said we were planning on leaving at 4:30 pm and she napped until 6 pm. And 6 pm on Valentines Day means you'll have to wait a couple hours to finally eat. So we nixed that idea and headed to La Casita...cheap, tasty and very little wait!

After we arrived home from our Mexican feast, I snapped a few pics of Cupid herself, along with the Pink doggie that her Grammy bought her that day:


She enjoyed her Valentine's Day, as you can see below. It's probably because she wore pink ALL day (what Princess doesn't??) and she got a nibble of my ice cream cake :)


Oh, and here is Miss Lauren's very first Valentine! It's from 5 month old Ben, a friend of hers at Mommy and Me (notice the Reese's for mommy?!?):

And here are a few more pics of the Brown Famalia:


And let's not forget the newest member! Here's Baby Brownie at 5 months:



Such a fun day! I love my little clan :)

SOOO big!

This is one of Lauren's favorite things to do these days:


She lifts her arms really high above her head, and lets them fall to the ground. It's called the "SO big" game and every time I shout it, she gets this huge, smiley grin on her adorable lil' face.


But then of course she's done playing Mommy's silly game and she's off!

Next stop? The pantry where there are loads of items that are too irresistible for my Busy Body not to investigate:
Just another crazy day in the life with my Princess Piddle!

Too cute for words!

It's amazing what a little sleep will do for ya... Miss Lauren had a very nice, loooong nap this morning which was apparently just what she needed! When she woke up, she was chipper as ever, babbling, snuggling, dancing, etc... Who knew a few hours of rest could make such a difference when you're a cranky babe???

Anyways, in light of Miss Fancy Pants' new-found happiness, I took a few pictures of her because she was lookin' so dang cute! Here are a few of my faves:


Yeah, I should be doing something much more productive right now, but I thought a few Lauren pictures might brighten someone's day :)

Monday happenings..

Miss Fancy Pants has cut another tooth today and she is beyond cranky!! Therefore, my morning has consisted of entertaining her, consoling her when she gets frustrated with one of her toys, feeding her breakfast, keeping her entertained some more, consoling once again, and then again, etc...you get my point. I HATE teething....why, oh why, can't she remain toothless for the rest of her life? Surely we could use dentures one day instead of dealing with the extreme crankiness we've got goin' on over here...ugh!

And although it doesn't look like there's a whole lot of joy to be had today, we had a ton 'o joy yesterday!! Lauren was in a great mood (thank you long naps!) so we went went to the mall, had Miss Busy Body's 11 month pics taken, and then out to dinner when Justin got home. And because race season is quickly approaching, the Hubster went to "bang on the car" for a bit later that evening while I bathed and fed Lauren for bedtime. Anyways as I'm walking out of Lauren's room, in walks Justin. Mind you, he went to work on his race car in his dress slacks that he wears to work. So I'm thinkin' that he would do things that didn't involve grease, motor oil and filth. Boyyy, was I ever wrong because he sauntered into the house, looking like this:


Yep, that's his 'guilty' face in the first pic because he knew that once again, those pants weren't gonna come clean and I'd have another dust rag to add to my collection! But after a good shower, lots of soap and a few handfuls of degreaser, Justin joined me in the living room and we began researching double strollers (yep, we're that exciting these days!) You see, Lauren's travel system is nice and all, but it won't hold two kidlets, one of which will be in a infant seat. So after doing a whole lot of researching, we bought this one:


It's called a Sit N Stand Plus Travel System. Basically, it will hold 2 children, with or without the infant seat. Lauren can either sit in the "stadium" back seat or when she wants, she can stand on the platform in the rear section, as it easily converts. It's a one-hand fold system (which will be extremely convenient), and includes a 5 point harness, cup holders for mom and babies, a removable front child tray, 2 position reclining seat, removable and washable plush seat pad, extra large storage basket for the diaper bags (or for shopping purchases!) and it's ultra compact when folded. We also bought the infant seat that matches and it's wonderful as well because it included the base, has a 5-Point safety harness, head impact protection foam that exceeds federal requirements, one-hand base release lever that's located at the foot-end for easy access/balance and the best feature is that it can hold an infant up to 22 lbs rear facing, which is safest.

I am SO pumped that we bought it, although I did have to do a little pleading and begging because this puppy wasn't cheap! But with an infant and toddler in tow, this stoller will certainly come in handy. So babe, if you're reading this, thanks again for "allowing" me to splurge on this :)

More Princess Party plans...

So, less than a month before my baby girl turns one! ::sigh::

But the invites have all been sent out and the RSVP number is quickly rising!! There will be the entourage of family, pals of mine, buddies of the Hubsters, and diaper clad kidlets all in attendance and I am oh SO excited about that! I thought my home was a nice size, until I looked around and started trying to figure out where everyone was gonna sit!

We've decided to do a BBQ for Miss Princess Piddle's Birthday extravaganza. There will be burgers, hot dogs, potato/macaroni salad, chips and dip, drinks and of course, cake!! We've picked out the cake already and we're planning on getting a full sheet for our guests, as well a miniture version for my Fancy Pants, so that she can dip her fingers, face (and toes!) into it if she likes :)

Oh, and her Birthday dress is being purchased today! It is bee-you-tee-ful and totally fits her Princess persona, complete with pink bows, a frilly underskirt and a big #1 on the boddess to announce her new age. I looked at a few dresses and while there were certainly more affordable ones to pick from, they simply weren't as "Princess-y". But being the frugal Frannie that I am, I asked Justin which one he'd prefer to get her (the pretty but pricy dress or the more afforable but not as pretty dress) and he insisted on the more "foofy" pretty dress, despite the cost. He has such good taste...or rather, he knows what's good for him :)

Anyways, after addressing and stamping all the invites, I realized that I had just enough to send to local guests. This totally bummed me out because I wanted to send some to our extended family in Texas, Florida and Washington :( But being the computer whiz that he is, the Hubster edited the invite so that I could post it on here for everyone to see. It looks a little bare because the address and phone number have been deleted, but it will give you the jist of what it looks like:



Isn't it the cutest invite imaginable? Or, rather, is it the cute face in the invite that makes it so darn sweet?? :)

Lauren is starting to WALK!!!

Yep, her achievement list is getting rather long these days! This is a new "trick" she learned today. Such a great big girl she is!

Splish Splash!!

Wanna know the best way to get your shower, tub, sink, toilet, walls, ceiling, and floor sparkling clean in a matter of minutes??

Borrow my child!


Within minutes, rather seconds, of being in the tub, I gaurantee you that Lauren will have splashed water into every single bathroom crevice...some you didn't even know existed! I found out this bit of info last night because after almost 11 months of bathing in her infant tub, Miss Princess Diddle got into the "big girl" bath last night!! And boy did she have a blast!


Who knew that such a small little thang could make such a soapy, wet mess???


And just to reminisce while I have a minute since her royalness is snoozing, this was back when Miss Princess Piddle Pot fit comfortably in her infant tub:


My goodness, where did that little ball of babyness go??? Someone bring her back!

Lauren's newest trick!

I'm happy to say that the entertainment portion of Lauren's Birthday party (music, dancing, etc) is covered now...and the best part is, it's gonna cost us nothing, nada, zip!! Why? Because Lauren has learned to DANCE!!!! She shall entertain us all :)

Ever since she was able to stand, I began singing that song "Shake, Rattle and Roll" to her. I would hold on to her arms and gently shake and rock her back and forth. She would always giggle when I did this, so it's been a daily occurence. But I never imagined it would "sink in" so soon!

Today, as I was getting out of the shower, I began singing that song to her and she started swaying back and forth!! So I did it again...same response. And because it was too darned cute, I have done it several times throughout the day and she continues to dance!!! My lil' girl...a dancer!! (Not the pole dancer kind though..haha!)

In other news, Miss Princess Lauren's Birthday invites are here! I will be addressing them tonight, so if you live close (and we like ya!), keep checking your mailbox! It will be a very fun pink, frilly party!!

And because these pics are too cute not to share, here's some love from Miss Princess Piddle (and take note of those chompers!):


Isn't she just the cutest thang?

Monday..blah

Today is Monday. Ugh.

Monday's aren't fun days for me for a couple reasons; first, it's the start of a new work week and I have to wait another 5 days before the weekend hits again and second, Monday is laundry day at our house. Yuck.

If there one chore I hate, it's laundry. Actually, let me add to that; it's laundry and mopping...I hate them both. If I don't set planned days to do certain chores, they simply won't get done because there are so many things I'd rather be doing...playing with Princess Piddle is high up on that list, followed by hanging out with my mommy pals and of course, shooping. But I know it needs to be done so I've forced myself to stay home today and complete the ten million loads of laundry that has been taking over my closet for the past week. In fact, I got up early this morning just to get a head start. And at 10 am, I've completed and put away 4 loads of laundry... I'll be finished with the rest by 1 am tomorrow hopefully. ...sigh...

But we started this oh-so-boring day with some breakfast and playing, which is always fun because we increase the mess and add to the cleaning I must add to my tasks for the day. Miss Piddle indulged in some scrambled eggs, peach chunks and a few cheerios, all in the comfort of her jam's:


She loved her grub but I'm afraid she's getting a bit of a temper these days (remind you of anyone??) because when I don't shovel the food into her mouth fast enough, she begins this lovely grunting noise, followed by this face:



Niiiiiice... just what I've always wanted: a soon-to-be-toddler who grunts and frowns and gets angry if you aren't doing what she wants when she wants it. Great...I can't wait for the terrible two stage! Ha!

In other news though, we have a new tooth! Yep, Miss Busy Body's third tooth (and the very first one on her top gums) has poked through!!! Actually, this is a bit of old news as this happened last Wednesday but when I woke this morning, the tooth next to it is showing signs of poking through too, so we may have a total of FOUR teeth soon! Woohoo!

And because the dumb dryer buzzer just sounded, I must go. But before I do, I wanted to let everyone know that Quin is doing great today!! He finally got to eat, which pleased him to no end, and he is back to his silly, goofy self!

Gotta run! Have a great day everyone!