Noe News is Good News: the everyday stuff

June 30, 2010

Adam is SO excited.

When my mom, Joselyn and I went to Fayette Mall for the first time in AGES last week, we discovered a new store coming...

No more having to drive all the way to Louisville to have the Apple store experience!

Posted on June 30, 2010 at 12:12 AM in the everyday stuff | Permalink | Comments (0)

May 26, 2010

I have always been a "Lists" kind of a person. I love making lists of all sorts of things... to-do lists, wish lists, shopping lists, goal lists, you name it. I would almost be embarrassed to admit this but I know that there are many others out there just like me. I had a missionary companion in Thailand who also loved lists and I remember making them with her. It was so much fun! Adam and I even started a list while I was on my mission of things we wanted to do together when I got back. A few years ago I also started a list on this blog of things I wanted to accomplish. Things got busy though and accomplishing those lists got put on the back burner.

But THEN! A fellow photographer here in Lexington, who also happens to be a super really nice guy who has helped me out with a few things here and there came out with a kind of cool contest. Part of the contest included registering at a website called the Day Zero Project and creating a list of 101 things to accomplish in 1001 days. It's a pretty cool site for list lovers! I thought it was a great time frame to work with- not a year, not a week, not 10 years but 1001 days. Just right to accomplish many of the things I want to accomplish. So I did it! And I am going to really work hard to accomplish these things- print it out in some cool way and display it in my office so I don't forget to work on the things. It took a lot of time and effort, but I think it was worth it.

So if you're NOT a list lover like me you may think this is a little silly, but I dare you to try it. It's fun :) Here's my list of 101 things to do in 1001 days!

1. Buy Joselyn a big girl bed

2. Wean Joselyn and Landen off their pacifiers

3. Finish Potty training Joselyn and Landen (have to re-train Joselyn!)

4. Plan and decorate the kids' new rooms

5. Re-visit Thailand

6. Plan a huge 7 year wedding anniversary party- renew vows

7. Print out personal/family blog into books

8. Make a book out of Love letters between Adam and me

9. Balloon Fest in New Mexico

10. Buy a small pool for kids

11. Make a list of fun things I want to do with the kids

12. Finish my OTHER to-do list: http://missnoeitall.typepad.com/noe_baby_news/my-evergrowing-todo-list.html

13. Throw at least 6 parties- other than birthdays

14. Make up my mind about Photography business branding

15. At least once a month, have an outing with each of the kids by themselves

16. Weigh 130 pounds- been there before, can do it again! Let Adam (a former personal trainer) help me!

17. Complete a personal photography project about people

18. 40 day love dare on Adam

19. Make a budget- business & personal

20. Take a ride in a limo

21. Go to Chicago for at least a weekend

22. see Wicked

23. Have a garage sale

24. Put on the cutest garage sale you have ever seen

25. Do something with all my dried roses that Adam gave me

26. Buy new table settings

27. Make an inspiration board in my office using all the inspiration I've collected over the years

28. Family picture every fall

29. Re-connect with old friends

30. Complete portfolio site

31. Re-make daily schedule

32. FLY LADY

33. Buy canvases of family pictures for our new house

34. Collage art project with kids

35. Complete family tree and have it made into artwork

36. Go location scouting at least once a month

37. Buy a porch swing

38. Finish reading the books I've started- namely 7 habits, 8th habit, How to Win Friends and Influence People, Between Parent & Child, First things first

39. Start writing in journals for kids again

40. Start and Finish Landen's baby book

41. Learn to cook a turkey and host Thanksgiving dinner at my house

42. Design a playroom for Landen and Joselyn

43. Get a makeover

44. Explore downtown Lexington shops with Adam

45. Watch a movie at the Kentucky theater

46. Find an antique baby scale for cheap

47. Buy a cool antique chair

48. Buy a Gary Fisher bike to replace the one I sold

49. Buy a double jogging stroller/bike trailer

50. Weekend getaway with Adam

51. Get published in Kentucky Bride magazine

52. Get published on a well-known blog

53. Las Vegas

54.Trip to Nashville during Christmas with the family

55. Visit New York City during Christmas season

56. Take Joselyn to the dentist

57. Frame wedding photos

58. More meaningful gifts- handmade if possible

59. Watch "Babies" the documentary

60. Enroll Joselyn in Dance

61. Buy a sewing machine and learn to sew

62. Finish the quilts that I started

63. Get Landen's memory quilt made by Andrea

64. Make a big memory quilt for family to snuggle under

65. Have custom bracelet made with kids names on them

66. Get my eyes checked

67. Go through all my magazines/catalogs and tear out the pages I want to keep and file them

68. Convince Adam that board games are fun

69. Spend a day/weekend at the spa with girlfriends/sisters

70. Learn different ways to do my hair

71. Learn how to make my favorite Thai dishes (Somtam, Mussaman Curry)

72. Enroll Joselyn in Pre-school

73. Take the kids to the zoo as a family

74. Take Melanie to the Science Museum

75. Help organize a family reunion

76. Visit Grandma Jennirose in California

77. Visit Mesa, AZ relatives

78. Start a creative journal

79. Go through Google Reader and delete any feeds I really don't read anymore

80. Participate in a photo challenge

81. Start a quote book

82. Participate in a Talent Show

83. Go back to Longboat Key with family

84. Find a field of yellow wild flowers

85. See Jack Johnson in concert

86. Write a song with Adam, have him teach me how to play it on guitar and record with him

87. Go horse back riding with Adam at his family's farm in corbin

88. 4 Wheeling in Adam's Rubicon

89. Buy a new camera and CS5

90. Go Ice skating with Adam, eat at Applebees and watch "Remember the Titans"- like we did on our first date

91. Have Adam take me to New Jersey and show me all his favorite spots

92. Buy a Kereoke Machine/Game

93. Buy a Wii

94. Ride an Elephant (again)

95. Send a mystery package to someone

96. Write a list of creative date ideas

97. Make activity books for kids

98. Read a book/take a class on running a photography business

99. Read "Jesus the Christ" again

100. Enroll Landen in soccer when he turns 3

101. When this list is complete, make another 101 in 1001 list!

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I made this list yesterday and I already accomplished one of them and that was #11 (Make a list of fun things I want to do with the kids). What the heck- I was in a list making mood yesterday and today and have been thinking about a lot of fun things to do this summer. I went back and read the post about what to do with a 1 and 2 year old where so many people had some great suggestions, and started my list. What a perfect time to start- new house with more space and a yard of our own- and the long summer days :) I thought it might give some of you out there some ideas too, so I will post that here too.

It's LONG.

1. Make a collage on a large canvas with the kids and display it in our home as art
2. Play in Water Fountain at Fayette County court house
3. Plant a garden
4. Play with rolly pollies
5. Have a tea party
6. Build big block buildings and have fun knocking them down
7. Visit the Pet store
8. Treasure hunt in the house/back yard - complete with map!
9. Dance around to fun music
10. Create a fun reading corner with pillows and blankets and read books
11. Play hide and seek
12. Home made play dough
13. Make an obstacle course
14. Have singing time
15. Jump on our beds then make them!
16. Do chores together
17. Finger paint with pudding
18. Buy large legos
19. Newport Aquarium
20. Gymboree play and music open gym
21. Enroll Joselyn in dance class
22. Go for a walk and talk about what we see around us
23. Go for a walk with NO STROLLER (gasp!) and collect things we find- make something with everything.
24. Scavenger hunt
25. Play board games
26. Visit Toys R Us
27. Go to story time at the Library
28. Joseph Beth story time
29. Barnes and Noble story time then play with the train set!
30. Arboretum- find out about activities for toddlers
31. Kentucky Horse Park
32. Buy a bunch of helium balloons and tie notes to them- see if someone will get it by leaving contact info
33. Craft time with a big bucket of craft supplies
34. Start a play group
35. Puzzles
36. Use a prism to catch a rainbow
37. Wake up early to watch the sunrise in our PJs snuggled under a blanket
38. Dig in dirt and look for worms
39. Sidewalk chalk
40. Have a picnic in the backyard
41. Have a picnic in the kitchen when it's raining
42. Take a picnic to the park
43. For one day of a week, collect items in a certain color
44. Collect twigs and build something with them
45. Use rocks to build towers
46. blow bubbles
47. Make cookies
48. Look for different bugs
49. Lay in the grass and find shapes in the clouds
50. Play dress up
51. Build a little "town" and "roads" for little cars
52. Take Joselyn to get a manicure and pedicure
53. Buy and set up a hammock and lay in it with the kids- see if they will fall asleep?
54. Horse carriage ride
55. Ice Cream Store
56. Make home made ice cream
57. Bounce U
58. Chuck E Cheese
59. Use pots and pans, tupperware and wooden spoons to make a "band"
60. Bubble Wrap
61. Gatti Town
62. Every week get a picture made at a photo booth
63. Bake sugar cookies and decorate them
64. Bake a cake and decorate it
65. Visit a beach and look for shells
66. Sparklers
67. Make outlines of our shadows
68. Make noise makers
69. Sand art
70. Make macaroni necklaces
71. Make fruit salad and eat it
72. Disney World
73. Frisbee
74. Camping
75. Visit every Lexington "horse" and take a picture with it
76. Kereoke
77. Matinee movie
78. Put on a puppet show
79. Go to a play
80. See Yo Gabba Gabba live
81. Have a random Yo Gabba Gabba party
82. Have an Un-birthday party a la Alice in Wonderland- gift exchange

Anything else fun I didn't think of that I should add to this list?

I plan on taking pictures and documenting everything on the list- should be fun, huh?

If you decide to make a list on the Day Zero site, please share! I'm nosy that way. ;)

Posted on May 26, 2010 at 11:37 PM in activites, Challenges, just for fun, lists, the everyday stuff | Permalink | Comments (1)

April 22, 2009

Landen has croup.

There are some times when I honestly am ashamed of how I behave as a parent. I feel like most of the time I am really patient, loving and fun but in the middle of night when I've been awaken numerous times by my baby boy, my patience runs thin. On Monday night, Landen, who had just started sleeping longer stretches at night (6-8 hours) suddenly starting waking up every 30 minutes to an hour. No exaggeration there. Now if I hadn't been so darn tired, I probably would have been thinking straight and realized there was probably something wrong with him. But instead, I found myself getting really frustrated and annoyed that he wouldn't sleep! I basically thought he was waking up because his pacifier fell out or swaddle came undone- which was I'm sure part of it.

Tuesday morning when I picked my baby boy up to gently tease him about his sleep the night before, I noticed he was very hot. Oh no, I thought. So I searched for the thermometer and couldn't find it. So I got the kids ready and took them to Babies R Us to buy a new one and a few other things I've been needing from there. As soon as we got home, I took his temperature- 100.5.

Guilt set in. I called the doctor and set an appointment up right away. Joselyn had already gone to sleep so I called around looking for someone to stay with her at the house until I could be back- thankfully Solomon was up for it. I don't think he's ever had to babysit before, but I assured him Jos probably wouldn't wake up while I was gone. (and I was wrong because she really woke up 10 minutes after I left and he did GREAT with her!)

Dr B said Landen had croup. Funny I didn't remember him coughing too much, but he definitely has lost his voice and something is obviously causing him to feel terrible and feverish.

When I got home, I called Adam to tell him and cried. How many times do I have to learn that when my babies wake up numerous times during the night there is probably something wrong? All he probably wanted was to be held and comforted, and I just let him cry way too many times. I may be the only mother who would do such a thing. But I promise I love my little Landen too much to say, and he got LOTS of attention last night and today. Feel better soon sweet little guy!

(note: When Landen is sick, he almost always is still very cheerful during the day so it's hard to tell - even the nurses found it hard to believe he was sick as he smiled and talked to them at the doctor's office!!)

Posted on April 22, 2009 at 03:09 PM in 4 months old, Challenges, Landen, sickness, the everyday stuff | Permalink | Comments (4)

March 08, 2009

A whirlwind weekend

Literally... TWICE we tried to enjoy the supposed "nice" weather only to be blown away by gusty winds. On top of that, we've had to deal with a possibly sick baby girl. Let's just say I was changing diapers and crib sheets quite a bit over the weekend.

Anyway, despite all this, we had a very enjoyable weekend as a family. On Friday night Adam brought home some bubbles for Joselyn. Like any other toddler, she has become fascinated by the floating popping balls. "Baboo" is what she calls them. Before bath time, Adam surprised her in her room and just started blowing them. It was fun to see the excitement on her face. No sound is sweeter than the laughter of a child.

On Saturday I got excited as we prepared for a picnic in the park. We've been dealing with winter like weather here lately and so when we heard about the 70 degree weather to come we (my parents, sister and brothers) were all determined to take advantage of it! Well, we spent the morning making sandwiches, pulled pork, cupcakes etc and loaded up the vehicles and headed to the park. We were there for about 5 minutes before we decided it just wasn't a good idea after all. The wind was blowing so hard all the babies were crying and I didn't even get the chance to take any pictures!

Joselyn's day didn't start out that great anyway... in fact, we were kind of worried about her. She's been having a really bad stinky case of diarrhea (sorry!) and just hasn't seemed like herself. In fact, when she woke up on Saturday she was awake for about 10 minutes and then I found her sound asleep on the couch cuddled up with her bottle.

She NEVER does this. She usually won't sleep anywhere but her crib. And yet, when she woke up again she was cheerful as can be so it may have been a fluke. She was so excited to go outside and play... but we ended up having our picnic inside at my parents.

Later on that evening, the wind had calmed down just a little bit so we took the babies outside to enjoy the fresh air.

We attempted to enjoy the weather again today... we stayed home from church just in case Joselyn had a contagious stomach virus and decided that the babies really could use some fresh air. Well, we were just about blown away again so we were there a grand total of about 5 minutes once again. And yet, I must say that we really enjoyed some good quality family time this weekend.

Posted on March 08, 2009 at 09:13 PM in Family Fun, just for fun, the everyday stuff | Permalink | Comments (4)

February 18, 2009

The new Marissa.

I finally did it. And I didn't do it myself, though I ALMOST did. Thank goodness everyone I knew talked me out of it. Joselyn was asleep and Landen was in the hands of his daddy, so I took a much needed "me" night and went to my friend Tressa's for a new look. Tressa is wonderful. She goes to church with me and I took pictures of her and her family a few months ago. She has 7 BEAUTIFUL kids and they are so well-behaved it's amazing. And they all play the violin! I love her family. Anyway, Tressa, I found out, has a little salon in her basement where she cuts hair a few nights a week. It's a passion of hers. She has a beautiful home too. I walked in and in her dining room on the left I saw a bunch of the pictures I took for her blown up and in frames on her wall. Seriously. What a compliment! Anyway... she led me down to her basement where she had made a cute little salon in one of her bathrooms. She had a little waiting area with magazines and a MASSAGE chair. I'm just trying to help you visualize things here, ok?

Anyway... we discussed hairstyles and looked at pictures. I told her I wanted a big change. I was sick of my hair... and that I definitely wanted bangs. We decided to play it safe at first and kept the bangs lengthy. So she started cutting my hair. And I mean there was a LOT OF HAIR on the floor it was kind of scary! While she was cutting my hair another client showed up... which goes to show that most stylists don't realize how long it takes to cut, dry and style my hair! So while she got the other client started on some color, I got to sit in the amazing massage chair. Talk about a relaxing evening!! Then it was my turn again to finish things off. After it was done, I decided I wanted a few small SHORTER bangs. So that's what I got!

Before I knew it I had been there 2 1/2 hours and it was time to get back to my husband (who was probably wondering where I was!) and Landen. Tressa wasn't able to straighten my hair and play with it more like she wanted, so I did a little last night when I got home. Since I have never had bangs I didn't know how they would behave. Well, I played a little with the straightener and my bangs stuck STRAIGHT OUT! I guess there wasn't enough weight to weigh them down on my face. So... this morning I pinned them down with some bobby pins.

I was kind of wondering what Joselyn would think when she saw me. First thing she said to me... SERIOUSLY (and I didn't even ask her!) was "Pretty!" Love it.

So I bet you are DYING to see my new haircut by now, huh? (I bet most of you looked at the picture anyway before reading the story- am I right?) It is drastically different and I am liking it so far. It is taking some getting used to as it is probably a style that will need more styling- but I can do a lot more with it and I love that. I will also probably be using styling products for the first time in my life. And I am ok with that. So... what do you think??

What I like about it:
-I lost an almost immediate 5 pounds. I'm sure of it.
-It's DIFFERENT than anything I've had before
-I can do a lot of different looks with it so it will be harder to get sick of
-I can actually wear cute hair accessories in my hair and it will look good
-It frames my face perfectly... a slimming effect for my face in my opinion

I'm sure you'll be seeing a few more different looks in the next few weeks as I figure out how to do things with it. Now all I need is a new wardrobe and my pre-pregnancy body back! (and I'm talking before my 2 year pregnancy before Joselyn)

(and yes, I know my eyebrows need some major work!)

Posted on February 18, 2009 at 10:37 AM in cute things, hairstyles, Joselyn, New!!, the everyday stuff, the picture says it all... | Permalink | Comments (23)

December 08, 2008

Library Envy

Well, I guess I can't really say I've ever BEEN to a Lexington Public Library story time, but I must say i was VERY impressed with our neighbor Jessamine County's Public Library story time today. My friend Sierra invited me to go with her and her little boy Caylor (4 months) to the story time for 0-2 year olds. We met in a big meeting room, sat in a circle on the floor, sang songs and read some cool books that Joselyn was really getting into. They called each of the children by name, the other moms there were super friendly and each 5 times you go to story time you get a free children's book!! After the book reading, they had play time and dance time and you can bet Joselyn was dancing and loving all the attention she was getting from it. She had so much fun! It's too bad I won't be able to return for a few months... but I WILL be going back as soon as humanly possible for sure with my TWO babies... even if it's all the way in Nicholasville!

Me and Jos

My cute friend Sierra with her sleepy baby Caylor

Joselyn playing with all the toys they dumped on the floor

Posted on December 08, 2008 at 08:37 PM in 1 year old, Family Fun, Firsts, friends, Joselyn, just for fun, the everyday stuff | Permalink | Comments (2)

December 03, 2008

I think this means she likes it...

Last night my sweet mother bought Joselyn a new car seat. She's getting too big for her carrier (although she could continue to use it for a few more months if we needed her to, our baby boy is going to need it in 2 weeks) and she is too small for the 2 car seats that my sister Chelsea donated to us... and she wouldn't fit those for at least 6 more months I'm guessing. So we had to go with a convertible car seat and my mom offered to buy it. So sweet. So we went to Babies R Us last night and picked out this car seat... it had very good safety ratings, really cool features and I liked the way it looked. I also had a 15% off coupon so I say we did pretty darn good on the purchase! Our next step was to test it out on Joselyn.

I had my second to last (YAY!) doctor's appointment this morning and so decided to install the car seat for her to use on the way there. I put her in it and she immediately beamed. She could see what was going on in the world and look at me too (I put it on the opposite side of the drivers seat in the back). She smiled the whole way there. When we got to the doctor's office I realized I had forgotten her beloved blankie... this meant trouble. She was cranky the whole time, and tired, and I knew I was going to have to listen to her cry the whole way home. Adam was there to help me during the actual visit but once we got her in her seat for the drive home I was on my own. This was a miracle... she NEVER falls asleep without her blanket and it took less than a minute for her to zonk out on the way home. That seat must be very comfortable! It was just so cute I had to take a picture.

As for the doctor's visit, nothing to tell really. The only thing I got out of it progression wise was "Wow... you're baby is getting BIG!" So I'm gonna have a big baby... but he's probably not going to come early. BUt still... 2 MORE WEEKS. This time in two weeks he'll probably already be here!! Next week we will go over all the details. So exciting!

Posted on December 03, 2008 at 11:40 AM in 1 year old, blessings, Joselyn, Pregnancy 2, preparing for the big day, the everyday stuff | Permalink | Comments (8)

September 19, 2008

Martha Stewart Baby

Long before I had children... actually, long before I was even MARRIED, my obsession with Martha Stewart started. I started getting the Martha Stewart Living magazines, the Martha Stewart Wedding magazines, and yes, the Martha Stewart Kids and Martha Stewart Baby magazines. I LOVED the Kids and Baby issues. They had so many sweet ideas and were just beautiful to look at! Unfortunately, they have discontinued Martha Stewart Baby and more recently Martha Stewart Kids. I never had a chance to get them all, and so was really sad that I had missed out on such great issues... especially the baby ones, because there were only about 5 or 6 issues that ever came out. I'll even admit to searching for them on e-bay!!

Well... as I was reading through all my favorite blogs tonight, I came across something that made me SOOO excited on the Tangled and True blog!!! I don't know why I didn't think of this before, but there is a number you can call to order the back issues of ALL her magazines! So you know what I did... I called the number to see if they had some Martha Stewart Baby left! I know, I know... I am so obsessive. But guess what? They have them! Now I just need to save up some money so I can order the issues I don't have... (they are about $4.50-4.75 each)

If you are as obsessive as I am, here is the number to call: 1-800-274-6800

Posted on September 19, 2008 at 09:46 PM in Baby, cute things, Favorite things, just for fun, nursery ideas, the everyday stuff | Permalink | Comments (0)

September 06, 2008

Babies make people happy

Picture this: A sweet old lady, probably in her 90's, pushing her shopping cart slowly through a Kroger parking lot. As she gets closer to us, she sees Joselyn and lets go of her shopping cart to put her hands up to her face and say "Oh, what a sweet little baby!" Her shopping cart starts rolling away and I have to go chase after it as she admires my little girl, who is in the arms of her daddy. Joselyn is giving her usual big smile that she greets strangers with and the sweet little lady is just LOVING it. She acts like she's never seen such a sight and keeps on saying "Oh how sweet!" as she gently places a wrinkly hand on Joselyn's face. She has a hard time saying goodbye and seems hesitant to walk away, but finally takes back her cart and begins to slowly head to her vehicle... looking back occasionally to catch one more glimpse of Joselyn. I just love how babies make people so happy!

Posted on September 06, 2008 at 08:05 PM in 10 months old, cute things, the everyday stuff | Permalink | Comments (1)

September 02, 2008

I can't wait any longer!

I am SO SICK of spending all day inside because it's so dang hot outside!! It's September so isn't it about time for it to cool down? For me me to pull out the sweaters? To play in the falling leaves with Joselyn? To take a stroll in the park in the cool weather, in our sweaters, under the falling leaves? I am SO ready for Summer to be over. Maybe if I lived near the ocean or had my own nice sparkling pool it would be a different story, but I don't, so I want Fall to be here. (I am so whiny!) I just had to vent because right now it is over 90 degrees outside and I have no desire to go anywhere... so I am at home in my lounge clothes being lazy. I have yet to blow-dry my hair or pick up any messes. It's just so redundant. I can't help but feel if it were FALL, I would be ready to go enjoy a day outside with my daughter.

Posted on September 02, 2008 at 11:26 AM in the everyday stuff | Permalink | Comments (4)

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