Oh, Hi. We Live in the Backyard. Not Literally, But Practically Literally.

We recently celebrated our tenth wedding anniversary.  Since nearly the day we were married, the plan for our tenth has been to throw a huge party so we could relive the festivities of our original nuptials.  Life had other plans though, and graced us with the good fortune of another pregnancy.  With the joy of the pending peanut has also come extreme nausea, hip pain, exhaustion, crankiness, and a myriad of other discomforts that have made me less than interested in spending the time and effort to put together a grand shebang.

Not to worry, though, because over the course of our anniversary week we were blessed with the company of wonderful family and friends.  And while it was more intimate than intended, it was also exactly what we needed.  From science experiments in the driveway, to cannon balls in the pool, kickball in the backyard, mudslinging (the literal kind), and of course grilling, the time spent with cousins, aunts, uncles, grandparents, great-grandparents, siblings, and friends was priceless.  And, naturally all outside.

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We spend a really really lot of time outside.  Which is exactly what I was hoping would happen when we moved from our postage stamp sized yard to the new mega-digs.  What I didn't consider is that with exponential yard growth comes a serious increase in the mosquito population.  Uhg. 

Thankfully the folks at Cutter love me (and my super-hero dudes. okay, probably mostly my super-hero dudes) and care deeply about my their delicate skin, so they sent us a care package full of anti-bloodsucking-bug gear. Yay!

My favorite right now is the Cutter Natural Insect Repellant (because I'm a little bit chemical paranoid while pregnant) - which, by-the-by smells SO good.  Also, in the "I love smells" category is their Lavender and Vanilla Scented Citronella Candle.  I would seriously burn this in my house.  Except, thankfully(!), the little flying vampires have yet to find their way indoors.  

I'd love if you could stop by and say hello to the Cutter crew on Facebook! And make sure to stay tuned with me later in the week when you'll have the chance to win your very own Cutter prize pack.

Here's a fun fact from Cutter!

Q: Are some people more attractive to mosquitoes than others?

A: Yes! Some people are more attractive to mosquitoes than others for a variety of reasons, including differences in glandular secretions, skin odors and activity levels. Mosquitoes are attracted to lactic acid and carbon dioxide, and larger people give off more of both, making them more attractive to mosquitoes. People with fair complexions are more attractive to mosquitoes than those with ruddy skin. Men tend to be more attractive to mosquitoes than women (with the exception of most pregnant women).

DISCLOSURE: This post was sponsored by Cutter and I was compensated for my time as well as provided products to try.  All opinions are my own.

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Tis the Season.

I recently took a very accurate and scientific poll wherein I asked when people think 'The Holidays' begin.  I will tell you all now, only one person got the answer right.  One!  I can't believe I'm having to explain this, but 'The Holidays' do in fact begin as soon as school starts.  Which in our case is the first week of August.  Happy Labor day, we're celebrating with jingle bells, pumpkin spice and some warbley Mariah Carey.  It's that time, baby.  Bring on the mistletoe.

Speaking of holidays, it's full blown Halloween up in these parts.  So don't assume my boys have gone all Metro when you see them looking like David Bowie circa 1987.  I mean, they probably are a little Metro, what with the nail painting and loafers. But still, the eye make-up they're sporting these days is just a little left-over pirate skeleton or maimed zombie. 

And about those seasons - it's officially birthday season 'round here, and we're kicking it off with Brodie.  Well, I guess technically we kicked it off with me a few weeks ago, but since I didn't have a par-tay this year, I'll pass the honor to the Bro-ster.  We had some tasty Mexican followed by a sweet treat of frozen yogurt (or as my sister likes to call it 'Fro-Yo') in his honor.  Happy Birthday, Kiddo, it knocks my socks off that you're already three.

And on a completely unrelated note.  I think my brain is leaking from my ears thanks to this house renovation.  Our beginning of October finish date is looking extremely unlikely.  But on the plus side, we got walls this week.  Hurrah.

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Whoever Decided 24 Hours in a Day Was Enough? Was WRONG.

Life is absolutely insane right now.  Between staging our house and selling it, getting situated in my parents' place, getting all the staged stuff out of the house and into storage at the new place, starting renovations on the next place, Casey starting school, adopting another dog (yeh, did I forget to mention that?) and, oh, work.  I just don't even have time to breath anymore.  But.  We're (supposed to be) closing on the old (but actually newer than our new) house Thursday.  And our (tentative) move-in date for the new (but really old) house is October first.  So there is (finally) a light at the end of the tunnel.  I figure by Thanksgiving (or possibly New Year's?) we should (sort of) have our shit together. (Hopefully).

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I've Always Wanted to Announce a Real Pregnancy on April Fools Day.

I have this habit of daring myself to do things. I don't know why it works, but it does. A little psychobabble in my own head and I'm off to the races. It started as early as elementary school, but possibly before that even. I don't really remember. I do clearly recall sitting in my fifth grade class daring myself to raise my hand and give an answer. I dared myself to move to Colorado after graduation. Later I would dare myself to apply for law school. And later still I would ask my (now) husband on a date.

I think Casey does this too. He spent the large majority of the neighborhood Spring Brunch staring at the face painting board and telling anyone who would listen that the green tiger was the very best option - but just not for him. Then, as the face painter was packing up to leave, Casey shouted "I AM going to get my face painted! The GREEN TIGER!" And so he did. And it was magical.

In fact, he's still wearing that face paint a day later.

Rawr, kiddo.

Rawr.

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