In a Texas State of Mind

Five and a half years ago, Matt and I moved to Kansas City to embark on our first adventure as a married couple. He was accepted into pharmacy school here, and through the years I have grown to love this city and what it has to offer. After pharmacy school graduation, we decided to stay here to grow our family and experience life as a new pharmacist and a new stay at home mom. I am grateful daily for the life we live here; but from time to time, I reminisce about a place I hold very dear to my heart. Just a tiny little place called Texas...have you heard of it?

Born and raised in the Texas Panhandle, then relocated to the Dallas/Ft. Worth area, I like my hair high, my belts sparkly and my music country. My roots have cowboy boots and my occasional curse words have a slight Texas twang. I don't miss the Dallas traffic, or the Panhandle cell phone reception....but the food and the fine people are constantly on my mind. Most importantly, a piece of my heart is in Mansfield, Texas, where my immediate family still lives today.

About a month ago, Tallan and I sneaked onto an airplane and headed to Texas to surprise Mimi (my mother) with a special visit. We had such a great time, and she was so shocked to see us! With family time in the works and good Tex-Mex in my belly, I had one more thing to check off my list during our stay.

From the moment I learned I was pregnant with Tallan, I hoped we would one day have the opportunity to take pictures in a field of bluebonnets: Texas springtime personified. Lucky for me, I have a friend that could make that happen, and I couldn't be happier with the results. Tamera Lewis, with Snap'd Photography, helped us capture sweet Tallan in one of the most beautiful settings: a Texas bluebonnet field at sunset.

We had such a great time visiting family and are so thankful for the relationships Tallan is building with her grandparents. My visits to Texas always have a funny way of  allowing memories of my past to meld with my present...and give me a glimpse of the future.

I think my kid might be a vampire!

My husband reads for knowledge. Doctor Jarvis stimulates his brain with non fictional tales of disease states, pharmaceutical studies and all sorts of medical intellectual mumbo jumbo. Me? I read for fun! A lover of fiction and fantasy, I enjoy transporting myself into other worlds of make-believe. I have come to realize however, that my flare for fiction has jinxed my child.

Harry Potter, Edward & Bella,  and Sookie Stackhouse have gotten together to punish me for my reading exploits. My child, Tallan Hope, just might be a vampire! Let's review the facts shall we?

Pale skin, light eyes - vampire. Sleeps all day, up all hours of the night biting people - vampire. Will NOT eat  people food - vampire. Has only 2 upper teeth that are NOT the front teeth but the scary side ones....OMG VAMPIRE!

All joking aside, I have noticed as Miss Tallan has been teething, that the order of which these little pearlies appear is not the norm! Terrified by my vampire-esque imagination, I did some research on the American Dental Association's web page.

Per chart above, the lower 2 front teeth should come in first...CHECK! 

Followed by the top 2 front teeth...umm nope! Tal has decided to sprout her upper lateral incisors (the two flanking your big front teeth) first, leaving her looking curiously like our famous vampire friends. 

I have been reassured by Tallan's mimi, a registered dental hygienist  that this could be normal, and that one day soon my baby doll will expose her two front teeth. Gosh, here's hoping! 

My life is not ready for a vampire baby! My husband might look a bit like Edward Cullen, (have you seen him?,) but we have no werewolf friends that I know of; and I really would like to get some sleep during the nighttime hours sometime in the near future. 

ER Plight & a Texas Flight

Well, I made it 8 months before having a scary mommy story to tell. Thank heavens this story does not involve sweet Miss Tallan, but yours truly.

Before the Christmas holiday, Tal and I had planned a trip to Texas to see my family. A couple days before departing  however, I awoke feeling terrible nauseous. I spent the better part of a morning and an afternoon fighting the inevitable...and finally gave in a couple hours before hubbo got off work! It's one thing to worship the toilet gods by yourself; but leaving a screaming baby in her crib while you do so, is heart wrenching! With a very sour tummy, I set out on these very small, yet important daily tasks:

• Nurse Tallan all day - Success!
• Feed myself - FAIL (too nauseous)
• Google search "Pregnant with IUD" - which is waaaaay too common for my liking people!
• Puke again - SUCCESS!
• Push fluids - eh, somewhat successful

Hubs came home, and took over with Tallan (have I mentioned she won't take a bottle? Boob only? Well now ya know.) With Matt home, I could now focus on some quality toilet time. Noticing my hands were cramping after my most recent upchuck, I started to get worried. Hand cramps turned to arm cramps, turned to calf cramps. LOOOOOONG story short: Mama had to get to the hospital for some high quality muscle relaxers and fluids before the night was over. (No, the end to that story was not that simple, and YES the wait in the ER with total body cramps was horrible...but I'm tired of typing this story.)

Mucho thanks to my MIL & SIL who rushed to help with Tallan at home so Matt could be with me! Apparently nursing a baby all day literally sucks the life out of you. (Now, why not the fat? COME ON!)

Scary story accomplished, and still a bit weak tummied, Tal and I made it to Texas a day later! Cue happy music now! No melt down, fun new Picalo carrier used & no throwing up for either of us. We had such a great time in Texas with family. Tallan got to see her Mimi & Grumpy, Uncle Whiskey, & Great Gma. We were so thankful for the opportunity to visit!

A wonderful part about our Texas trip, was I got to catch up with an old friend; and was so excited for her to shoot pics of Tallan in the fall foliage. Local Texas peeps, Tamera with Snap'd Photography is flipping amazing, super speedy and affordable! I could not be happier with our photo's! Thanks Miss Tamera, for making our Texas trip not only great to see fam, but a wonderful time we marked with your photos. See a couple shots of Tallan Hope below, as well as a candid iphone shot of her and her Mimi. Adorbs!

All photos above courtesy of Snap'd Photography

Hope you all have a wonderful weekend!

Vegas Baby!

Last week was my 27th birthday. (I'll pause while you gasp in shock at how old I am!)
Well, happy birthday to me - my hubbo took me to Vegas for a long weekend! This however, was not the "SURPRISE! - I'm whisking you away for a romantic weekend," type of sitch. Oh no no no, mommy needed a few weeks to wrap her head around this.

Mid-October, after confirming my mother was available to stay with our dear Tallan, Matt had told me about this birthday trip. First of all, because we needed a game plan for bottle/sippy cups, neither of which Tallan had ever taken before. (Who could blame her, have you seen my boobs!?) Secondly, my sweet hubbo knew, though I love the romance of a getaway, that I would need to prepare myself for my first night away from baby. For his thoughtfulness, I am so grateful. Muuuuah!

After confirming with the pediatrician that my daughter would not starve, typing and notarizing a Medical Emergency Form, and creating a Mimi cheat sheet, we were off for Vegas baby!On the agenda - a fancy dinner out, some adult beverages, sight seeing, and a Cirque du Solei show all in 48 baby free hours.

We had a fantastic time! I am so grateful to make new memories with the man I have known for over a decade, and still find silly, funny and oh so charming. The adult beverages took the edge off the little pangs of homesickness felt throughout each day. How sweet it was to realize the hubs felt the same way when we both shared a couple tears over sushi on our last day there.

Headed to dinner @ Bobby Flay's MESA Grill

Reaching the milestone of "weekend away from baby," has sparked some reflection. Here goes:

• Yes, I can still look presentable and talk like a grown up!
• I am so excited to be able to get away with Matt. Thanks pharmacy school!
• The "pump n dump" concept is the most unnatural thing EVER.
• My mom is a saint. Tallan is now a sippy cup pro after ZERO meltdowns.
• Sending a man through airport security with a breast pump to explain to TSA is the best way to get a good chuckle. 
• Whoever said "home is where the heart is," must have had children.

Needless to say, my birthday trip was a total success! Husband and wife time will never, ever be overrated.