I Heart Costco... And Pictures That Don't Match....

I went to Costco today. 

This is a big deal....well, to me anyway.

I love Costco, like LOVE it! 

They print the best, cheapest pictures EVER. 

I mean, where else can you get a print for 13 cents and have it be excellent quality? I dare you to find a place...yup, dare you.

Now, I know that there are Costco's everywhere, but there wasn't one here in Augusta and let me tell you, I was NOT pleased about it. When I voiced my concern about this, Zach gave me the funniest look followed by an, "are you serious right now? This is a sticking point for you for living there?!" 

Ummm, yes it is, actually. And most other people would agree, thankyouverymuch.

Obviously, he convinced me to move here anyway...he had some good points... HE would be here, Aubrey... you get the idea.

But all this to say,

Costco is HERE now!!!

And I restrained myself from going the first 2 days, but couldn't hold out any longer. 

And a new Costco means new carts, shiny everything and super helpful, eager to keep their new found jobs, staff :)

I was in Heaven! 

(Bare in mind that I did live in New Jersey for 3 years and therefore was used to a pretty scuzzy store, so  pretty much anything would have been better than that)

Mix in a Churro and a hot dog, I was one happy pregnant lady.

Even Aubrey was in particularly good spirits there. 

I realize this whole post is about Costco and I know that's probably crazy, but I don't care!

It's the small things that make my day and this sure did.

And see? I was nice. If you were bored (although I don't know how you possibly could be) with my Costco-loving-ramblings, you had pretty pictures to look at instead ;)

****I've been getting my craft on these last few nights and I'll be posting some pictures from all that goodness in the next few days (So Tom, don't bother reading this blog for the next week ;) )****

Under The Weather....

This little girl got a bad case of something last night... meaning I was the lucky one to be up from 4am onward to deal with the "aftermath" (I figured I'd use a classy word like aftermath instead of something gross like, well, puke. That's because I am a classy gal.).

I'm so tired. I think my hair is tired. 

Yup, that's tired. 

The benefit of Zach working night shift is that he brought me a great-big (red-cupped!!) coffee from Starbucks on his way home... did you know coffee tastes even better in their red Christmas cups?? Well, it does. Or maybe it was the fact that I had been up for 4 hours by that point and dirt probably would have tasted good out of that fabulous red cup.

Did I mention I was tired?

Well I am.

Aubrey's currently sleeping off her lack-of-a-night (come to think of it, so is Zach) so the house is blessedly quiet. I should be sleeping, but I have a feeling Round 2 (or 62 to be honest) is going to happen when Sleeping Beauty awakes.

And lets face it, the contents of that red cup are in no way going to let me sleep anymore.

Having a sick girl sucks... for SO many reasons. Poor thing kept asking why, "sis cough sing won't go away?!?" all night, and proclaiming things like, "I DON'T like frowing up.".

Bless her. 

One of the cutest things she said randomly (pretty sure it was around 5:30am... but forgive me if I'm off a bit, my night is a bit hazy....), "Mama, I know who can heal me..." insert me waiting for the classic answer (Jesus) and she pipes in with  "MY daddy. He's a real doctor you know." 

Hahaha! Love her!

I wasn't in the mood to correct her (plus the random daddy love was so cute), so I just let it be. 

No need for a theological discussion at that time of night ;)

Now I'm going to go and watch the You Tube video I posted on here the other day because, quite frankly, I need a laugh right about now. And then I'm off to sew away my frustrations. 

Sometimes, it just plain ol' hard to be a mom.

Just What I Needed....

My oldest brother Ed sent me this today. 

And let me tell you, it's exactly what I needed on this Monday morning.

 Seeing as to how our family all grew up speaking German(and our parents still have a pretty thick accent), I'd say it's quite appropriate ;) 

But Ed and I...and Astrid...and Will....and Arv....pretty much everyone in my family... has a special love for the accent and when he sent me this titled, "Is this about you??" I just about died laughing! 

I'm not sure what this guy is/was on, but someone was smart to film it. Bravo!

Thanks Ed.

Enjoy...

Still Looking Back....

I grew up in an area of Canada called the Fraser Valley. It's so amazingly beautiful, it hurts my heart.....that is, when it's not raining ;) 

I know I took it for granted growing up here....

raspberry fields are everywhere (and are where I spent a good portion of my summers) .... 

as are barns and farms...

chicken farms are abounding....

and don't even get me started on the mountains! 

they're ALL around...hence it being a "valley"....yup, I'm smart.

and that, my friends, is Mt. Baker. 

It's technically in the US, but us Canadians have the pleasure of seeing it from all over the Fraser Valley.  

I'm not going to lie,  I got choked up every time I saw it on my last trip back. 

and if the weather permits, there are some amazing places you can go to check out the amazing views! 

Seriously, God is so amazing!

How someone can stand in the midst of all this beauty and not believe?!? 

I don't get it!

I have no clue who these women are...

but they were so stinking cute.

I can't get enough of the Oma's!

It makes it hard to come back to a very flat, mountain-less Georgia...

although the constant sunshine is a welcome change!

A Brick Wall and Some Spontaneity...

Last weekend, back in Greenville, SC, I saw this random brick wall and I immediately grabbed my camera (and Aubrey) and wandered over.

I love me a good ol' broken down brink wall (seems most people into photography do).

Lucky for me, Zach was retrieving our car from one parking spot to switch to one close to this wall and Aubrey and I were waiting for him, giving me ample time with my little model! 

Now, photographing people is not really my thing. I usually like to work with things that don't move.... ie. NOT a 3 year old kid who thinks it's hilarious to make every funny face in the world while running around like a maniac. 

But, I had a blast this day!

Aubrey was being so funny and cute I couldn't get enough....

...as you can tell by the volume of pictures that are present in this post.

Just another example of my inability to narrow down pictures.

I'm loving that she's going through her I'm-about-to-hit-a-growth-spurt-so-I'm-getting-a-little-pudgy-in-the-cheek-region-in-preparation-for-it phase! 

Makes me think of the days of old when she practically weighed the same as she does now....at 11 months! 

Look at her! 

Stupid sun was in the total wrong position, making her squint like crazy, but I don't care. 

When you have a chance for a little photo shoot in front of a brick wall while your husband gets the car, you take it!

um...not sure about this pose....there are always a few of these head scratching poses with this kid.

Don't you just want to eat her in her skinny jeans?!? 

Ah, love a spontaneous brick wall photo shoot :)

Aw Shucks...

My little ol' Tree Art thingy...

was featured over at....

Go check it out HERE !!!!
I'm so pumped!
Ahhhhh!
Yay for being featured :)

Little Nuggets You Might Not Know....

 *I'm SUPER shy around new people...like I could vomit shy....like I have a panic attack before I know I'm going to meet someone new. Yup, awesome.

*I get anxious about a lot of things. 

-dentist(paralyzing fear)

-flying(I cry during take off....landing...turbulence... you get the picture)

-confrontation

-sometimes even just leaving the house. 

Let me tell you, it's not fun.

*I love love love McDonald's... As in, I still get a giddy feeling when I see those golden arches.

*I'm addicted to coffee....and water. I figure it's a good balance.

*I've always loved photography, but since my wonderful Pentax has come on the scene(one amazing Christmas in '08), I've been hooked!

*One of the other best things I've ever got/bought was my sewing machine. Zach just said, "buy it!" one day, no particular reason/occasion and I did...and haven't looked back! Love that guy.

*My life long dream was to be a mom. No career desires, no big plans...I just wanted to get married to a wonderful guy and have babies....

Check and check!

*I LOVE being pregnant. Even with all the crummy days in the beginning, being tired and nauseous...don't care. I could happily incubate babies for the rest of my life.

*Zach and I are officially "East Coast" people. I love how "harsh" and "to-the-point" the people are and generally just love the pace. Plus it helps that there are so many things within driving distance of where we lived (in New Jersey).

*I miss New Jersey like crazy. Even though I know this(Georgia) is where we need to be for now, I long to live back there one day.  

*I never thought of myself as an "ocean person"....until I met the Atlantic. I have fallen in LOVE with the Atlantic ocean!

*Zach and I have a wonderful dream to own a house on the Atlantic one day :)

*I hate bad hygiene. As in, I'm obsessed with good hygiene. This ties in with my crazy sense of smell. Zach calls me a bloodhound, but let me tell you NOTHING is worse then a smelly person....well, smelly anything really.

*Ever since my wonderful sister told me I have a "swimmer's back" when I was 13, I have not worn anything racer back or anything to that effect. Funny how one comment (that she claims she was just  saying to bug me...she is 4 years older than me and I may or may not have been an annoying little sister) can effect you for life, even if it was just to piss you off!

*I'm from Canada(and proud of it!), but I love living in the great U S of A! Seriously, I'm happy to stay here as long as I live.... well, as long as we have valid visas ;)

*My heart is in England. This might be confusing(seeing as to how I love the great U S of A), but my sister and her family live there and let me tell you, if I could live there??? I'd move in a heart beat. 

I heart everything about England...and my sister....and her family.

*Aubrey between the ages of 18 months and 3 years, was the hardest for me. Having a child who thought she knew it all and was SO hard headed, but still learning and not quite understanding the "why" was my greatest challenge. And mix in my most hated thing, potty training?!? Seriously, I love my kid, but that age is just rough. Just being honest.

 I know there are more wonderfully trying times to come(insert shudder for the teen aged years), but let's just say I'm glad that season of life is over....until the next one comes along.

*This is my wonderful husband(cheesy you say, yes. But SO true). He makes me laugh more than anyone else I know (sorry Astrid) and he's just my perfect fit. I met him when I was in the 12th grade and we've been together ever since! 

*I got married at 20 (insert gasp) 8 years and ZERO regrets! When you know, you know. And let me tell you, we knew.

*I've lived in 2 cities in Canada(west coast), in the country of Grenada(in the Caribbean), in New Jersey, and now in Georgia....and that's all in the last 8 years. That's quite the list folks.

*For as anxious a person I am, I love that we've moved around and seen a bunch of different places, and that is all thanks to Zach and his dream of being a doctor...yes, a doctor(and that's another post for another day).