The weekend with no end!

Sports and Fitness

Play Workout - Shape Magazine

In a recent post I mentioned my new fave magazine for spring, SHAPE; well not only was i surprised but delighted to find out they went web wide, and their is a SHAPE.com! It could just be the new IT website for mom's on a mission of health, and daily fitness! I mean this website is the bees knees! I have already tested out the workout generator, above link, which I have to say kicked my butt; it was also really fun, something different, and something I can do at home with Joshua in a short time period! This IS for moms who know how difficult it can be to make it to the gym! Cool workouts aside, their are healthy living articles, detox smoothies, i mean really the list goes on. Just reason after reason to fall in love with with this body building, body cleansing, mind blowing site! It's a gotta have ladies and gentleman and maaan do I want it! I even spied a little muscle popping up in the old biceps area of my body that I thought the health department had condemned a long time ago ::smirk::

To Jam-Pack is to fill or pack as tightly or fully as possible. It is a verb, and I can honestly say that this past weekend got verbed! or JAM-PACKED in all that that word entails! :D Each day was wonderfully filled to the brim with activity, and almost spilling over with enjoyment! I have decided there is just no other state in which to spend your weekends! Allow me to recount my Saturday in particular; Ahem I say to you in a strongly affected English accent: 

There I am!

"Happy Hunger Games, and may the odds be ever in your favor!" What a perfect day, why so perfect you ask? I was given the gift of a day off! Even the all mighty Joshua was up for a little free time for mommy! Or was it from mommy hmmm...little stinker! Do I think he and Grams could have been in cahoots....yeesssh. Do I think he partook in shenanigans of some sort with auntie Ryann....undoubtedly so! Do I care heelll noo! 

I left everything he could possibly need to the point of overkill with grams, as she chuckled at my efforts to teach her something new (impossible), gave me a hug, and made me promise not to call in the movie theater! With a nervous nod I scooped up the twins, threw my mommy hat off with abandon, and dashed to the door...to freedom! We hit the road! This was a new feeling, how do I exist without Joshua?? What's the survival guide for circumstances like these?? Do they make a kit for your first day out? ok I can do this....Gas! and movie candy! and I have no idea where we are! Hahaha ok, so it wasn't that serious; Justin and James were perfect companions to have; sharing wackey stories of their own misadventures. They got me safely to a gas station, then to the theater, and then they calmed my nerves with sugary movie candy! What good kids. The Hunger Games was phenominal! Woody Harrelson made Haymitch come to life, the entire cast really honored the books...I just pray to God they make two more movies. And excuse me Titanic 3D...I don't even...I can't even...

Girl on fire! 

 Another highlight of my weekend were the walks I took with Joshua. The sun filled days here seem to draw me to the great outdoors, and with a camera in my hand! Here, take a look at some amateur photography from our walk-a-do's! Brought to you courtesy Apple I phone ::smile:: 

 

 

Tired of looking at my crummy photography already?? Me too let's move on ::wink:: Dad took us all to new May-he-con this weekend, a place called Amigos mmm muy delicioso! Oh, ::I touch my hand to my mouth:: it seems my lips have curled into a tiny smile, and my tummy has started to rumble at the thought of: fish tacos! FINALLY, The Amigos have gained a friend in me! Little Joshua had beans and apple juice, a combination that might as well have been menu'd as "Montezuma's Revenge!" 

And look he's in his highchair!

There he is in his Texas Longhorns! 

I accidentally mistook it for Texas A and M, and I thought Jackie was going to shoot me, my own family! Boy never make that mistake around a bunch of die hard Texas Longhorn fans! You would have thought i'd walked outside and said "I'm voting for Obama!" 

Highchairs are magical :)...they really transform your restaurant experience, :sigh: I guess Joshua is one of the big kids now, doing his own thing. Look at him go with that straw! He was playing the Gotta Grab It. You remember that one Josh! The object of this game is to grab as many objects as possible off the table before someone else intercepts the grab. Extra points are earned if the object has some kind of liquid in it, and you make it to the bonus round if you can drop the object on the floor. It's a very fun game, usually everyone gets involved, but Joshua still holds the highest score! He's played in arenas across Tennessee too, let's see, he's played a home game, scored big at Jason's deli with a salad plate, and here at amigos! 

He is't embarrassed to show off his skills when we go out...Justin however, did have one of those moments! As breastfeeding mom's know sometimes the inevitable happens, and your little "angel" pulls off a strategically placed burp cloth flashing an unsuspecting target, in this case Justin. He saw a boobie, hey it happens. He turned this lovely shade of habenero red as his eyes darted anywhere but where the burp cloth once was lol...we couldn't help but have a good laugh, and he'll deny what he saw to this day! Still I like to have a little fun with him and bring it up.

 On Sunday Joshua had his first bible lesson! He learned how to say "Praise Jesus!" and hold his hands up in exultation! Dad and the boys did their Sunday yard work, and the first day of "Spring Cleaning" was upon us girls. The boys also got a new b-ball hoop! Here's little Becca in action...

nothin' but net!

After a full mornings work load the girls decided it was time for some R & R so we packed up the gang and journeyed to cool springs! We ended up at Jasons Deli! What a gem! All organic, but with options from A-Z, and right next door there is a PinkBerry! Talk about your double hitters! Ahh PinkBerry, my Avalon, a place of legend alone, talked about amongst friends, and never traveled to. Tonight you are mine....BOY O BOY was it delish! I truely wasn't going to have anything more than a sample after the delish Soup/Salad combo I'd finished off at Jason's but okay....A picture says a thousand words!

Haha! That cup was a mini so my hand looks HUGE! Look at the waffle cone cookie it's bigger than the cup, ohh yeah mama likes. So PinkBerry is an organic healthy yogurt bar with funky toppings and six base flavors that change seasonally. You've got your original, Peach, Chocolate, Salted Caramel, Mango, and Lychee! I combined the Lychee, which was fragrant and refreshing, with Mochi (Japanese sweet rice balls), and coconut. Then I went one step over the top, and stuck that lighter than air waffle cookie smack dab in the middle...of my heart! Mom enjoyed the Salted Caramel, and Ryann indulged in chocolate with peanut butter crunch! We made a pact right then and there to try our damnedest to recreate girls night once a week in the summer time...I really love those ladies! 

Here babe http://www.pinkberry.com/ the website is pretty cool :D

The rest of the weekend was really just hangin out with Joshua, and the fam! Here allow me to give you a photo montage! 

 

 
 
 
 
 

Back to Back

As I am finishing up one post, i'm writting another! This a fast paced change for Joshua and I, one that we love!
Goodbyes are tough. You find yourself holding onto the little things to make your days brighter. "Hey baby, it's me...uhh love both of you. I'm gettin' on a plane, and I'll talk to you guys when I can. Thanks for everything. Love you. Bye." 3/15/12 The last message saved in my phone. The one I play everyday <3 I doubt Josh knew it would mean as much to me as it does, but I am glad to have it in moments where I need a pick me up! And Joshua is glad to hear daddy say I love you everyday! There is soo much of Joshua's father here; in this family, in paw paw, in this house too! You're presence is vivid in the memories we made in visits over the years Josh!  I find myself smiling often instead of crying :)
Along with looking fondly on past memories, comes the making of new exciting ones! One in particular, pretty big news, Ryann got her drivers license!! She's celebrating this Friday by driving Jackie and some friends to see the Hunger Games! I'm soo excited for her, now she gets to cart our butts around everywhere! lol Congratulations Ryann ;) I may get to go see a movie this weekend as well, a prospect that is thrilling! That would make my weekend! I read all the Hunger Games books in less than a week so it's safe to say that would be my pick!! I'll let you know how that goes! All of the kids are really hitting their coming of age milestones! With everything Joshua does though we have to make sure he isn't getting into trouble! Lol A weird mix of emotions ensue! Fear mixed with pride befell me when he sat himself up and then fell backwards towards the floor! Don't worry I was belly diving to catch him before Jackie even finished saying "Jessica!" THANK GOD Then there are the moments that are just pure joy; Joshua tasting a real orange from an actual slice, licking a sherbert push pop, and going crazy over the flavors, and my favorite he is saying mama!!! <3 Next up is walking! Videos and pictures coming soon!

Baby food and Birthdays

Target Product Page!

Who knew baby food came in a pouch?! I think every baby should come with a parent guidebook, and the table of content definitely needs to include:

Colored Poops

Things Baby's Fall Off Of 

Teething

How to navigate carseats

Food in a Pouch! (Josh you will LOVE these nifty little packages!)

And the top rated brand is ::drumroll:: Ellas Sweet potato, Pumpkin, apples, and blueberry! Kid tested Mommy approved! I taste everything Joshua eats beforehand to ensure product quality and numminess, and I give each of these two thumbs up on flavor! The only downside for me is the added fiber because any of you who know me, know my baby doesn't need any help in the poop department. He has poops of a higher caliber; colored poop, big poops, spring loaded poops, poop bombs (THE WORST) lol Still I will just avoid the mango fruit pouch in future! The rest can come with me on any roadtrip! 

~SpRiNg FaVe'S~

A little bunny left me a chocolate egg!!

To Josh, with love :(

Perfectly Pink shades that always inspire a laugh from Joshua! 

 And of course SHAPE magazine for the workouts recipes, and interesting health articles! If you're not a subscriber become one! Or at least check it out online! Of course I only read the magazine, I really need to live that kind of lifestyle too! Don't worry it's in the works! The gruesome threesome (Jackie, myself, and Ryan!) are gonna start making our spring goals, and then spring into action! 
Last but not least, in fact it is my ULTIMATE favorite, Spring forward is dead in Tennessee, the time change is no more, and my internal clock is back to normal! Hehe

Now on to todays post! A special BiRtHdAy shout out to a special GiGi! "Here Here!" to the years that have been very kind to you! And "Many cheers!" in celebration of the wonderful woman you are! <3 I hope this one is filled with your friends and family wishing you well! Joshua and I send our love and big hugs!! 

Yesterday Jackie enlisted me to help her out at home, while she manned the bands butter braid fundraiser at Ryanns' school! I felt like a fellow member of the mom club...on try outs lol PRESSURE! I had to perform a family hat trick by 7:00, and the stakes were high! Jackie was entrusting me with Grocery shopping, dinner, AND her children (the most dangerous part of all!) Let's go to an instant replay!  We decided to get dinner fixin's before we picked James up from school, so Ryann and I scoured the grocery store for a Chiulli delicacy; roasted chicken, greasy potatoes, corn bread, and mixed veggie-tah-blays! Mmmmm simple, but gooood! And maaan was it! Ryann Carried Joshua while I shopped, and by check out she had suddenly and without warning, morphed, from helpful aunt into teen mom! It was scary, every onlooker was buzzing! Some people!! I left James at school for a Key lime pie! We thought we were making good time, but pie can be a powerful fo; A cool key lime pie with those pillows of lighter than air whipped cream lining the crust; tempted aren't you!? What an acceptable way to spend daily minutes! (James didn't think so hehehe) Jackie is picking him up today ::blush:: He was a good sport about it though! :).My mommy skills with more than one kid are questionable at best. Thank Goodness for my main man Joshua! You are enough...for now...*wink*

One thing I love about the Gardners is everyone pitches in! So dinner was a snap! And we all learned something: Justin found out that it is faster to peel a potato with a peeler not your fingers! That brought a round of laughter out for sure!  I wish I had gotten a picture when all was done, not to toot my own horn or anything, but the meal was Beautiful! Being able to give something from my heart to mom and dad after they've been so generous was stupendous! So Jackie and I are going to be trading recipes, and cooking together from now on! I'm glad for it because she makes a baked ravioli that is TO DIE! MmMm 

I feel closer to Jackie every day! We have been a team since the move! lol you've heard of Band of Brothers, well we've been Band of Mothers! She is an amazing allie in this deployment scenario! Being soo close to one mom is tugging on my heart strings for one Helen Chiullli!! Your recipe was amazing mommy, i'll need to come see you soon! Mohawkess (Joshua) misses you too!! 

Soo much more needs to be covered time for a back to back! 

BIG XOXO

Let's Catch up!

Good morning my love! It's sunny and beautiful here on Fitzroy Circle :) I doubt you are lacking for sunshine yourself at that five star resort you are staying at ;p...I love waking up here, where the air is always so crisp and fresh, song birds seem to get you out of bed at just the right time, and the grass always smells of morning dew; one thing I know summer is going to rock! So let us finish catching you up! Where were we....Ah yes Target; So I had a similar drool session as I ran towards the various brightly colored and brilliantly patterned sunglasses set out for spring; no doubt to drive women into a fashion crazed frenzy! I ended up with a perfectly pink pair reminiscent of Sylvia Weinstock (The Jesus of wedding cakes herself!) Needless to say my day was made! And Ryan scored a pair of white square rimmed "Ray-bans" with a floured border inlayed just so on the stems...From that moment on Mom declared "Gardner law" which stated we were not allowed to shop together anymore! TEHEE :D

BECKS FIRST TOOTH

While Joshua is just now getting baby teeth Becks is losing them! Her first loose tooth, what a momentously disgusting occasion! Josh, just for the record, I don't do teeth, right? RIGHT! You will be handling all of little Joshua's loose teeth and I will be getting him on camera!

There had been talk of pulling the tooth all day, but speculation over when the pulling would take place. We needed Becca's approval first of course, what with it being her first tooth and all. The mystery of the unknown was weighing heavily on her mind leaving her with one looming question; to pull or not to pull! So we weighed our options together. Milk duds were offered up, and that was a no go. The old string around the tooth scenario was NOT appealing! HAha gotcha! Noooot yet :)...So we let it go and waited for the right moment to present itself. Wouldn't you know, that evening came and Becca wandered into my room complaining of tooth pain! The time had come, I quickly offered up the temptation of a funfetti cake, and quicker then she could say YES we were on our way to see Ryan! The tooth extractor! I'll let the video do tell the rest...

The Journey home!

Journey- A traveling of one place to another, usually taking a rather LONG time!

Long- Having considerable duration in time!

UNDERSTATEMENT- To represent as less than is the case!

Enough said. ::smirk::

How would you measure a day in your life? Would you take the literal approach; with hours...or would you measure time out in something more personal? I can't help but thinking of one of my favorite authors, T.S. Elliot, who wrote "I have measured out my life with coffee spoons." Simple, yet poignant.

I don't know if it's even POSSIBLE to even convey a proper image of the last two days but let me give it a shot...A little amateur hour poetry ::ahem::...I have measured out this day with espresso shots, with winding roads and mountain tops, with heartfelt talks shared with my mom, Joshua's crying two hours long, 3 pit stops; each woke the baby, thanks alot Jackie you crazy lady! My first cheerwine cherry and cool, after I peed out a swimming pool...YIKES! Eleven hours went flying by! We had some laughs we didn't die! I thought we might but we pushed through, Panera Bread dinner to the rescue! I counted a smile and hug from dad, and several SLOOOOW minutes of unpacking bags! Tennessee's my home at last, thank you Jackie I had a blast! 

I arrived at Chateau Gardner two days ago, and PASSED OUT lulled to sleep by the smell of the freshly laundered blankets that toppled over me in waves of down comfort! Ahhhh HEAVEN! Talk about rolling out the red carpet, just like i'm sure they did for you Josh ;) I like to think of your extended tour as a long business trip; somewhere tropical (AKA HOT) with white sandy beaches (AKA the dessert) and beautiful starry skies! You will obviously be having too much fun to be in constant contact, but looking at it that way I totally understand! Tennessee has quickly become my home lending so easily comfort and support in these first important hours where Joshua and I are adjusting to life without you Josh! Being just one of the gang seems effortless, Joshua has found PawPaw to be a slightly aged, slightly whiskered version of you! Looking at him with boyish curiosity as if to say "You remind me of someone!" He bounces off his chest the way he does with you! 


He's playful, and spirited slobbering all over the girls, biting Ryann's shoulders, smacking Jackie in the face, and kicking Justin in the balls! He hasn't had any problems adjusting! lol He and Rebbecca have been trading toys too, lol Seeing her cruise around in his walker is HILARIOUS! The baby has really become an expert with his crawling since being on hardwood is like an advanced training course for 8 month olds! It took a day or two of running in place so to speak, but that was just good fun for the rest of us! Lol

Hey Josh, it's Jackie, We were at Target yesterday and Joshua was already checking out "chicks". He is his father's son. HaHa By the way, Jessica and your dad are having a farting contest to see who can fart the most (Jessica is winning!!!) Jess and Joshua are settling in nicely. The weather is awesome!!! Hope everything is going well. Love you and miss you. Keep your head down.

It is true! Except he doesn't have that cool exterior yet, he just lunged out of the buggie screaming and slobbering, I guess he saw something he liked! lol Of course she was a hott little BLONDE like father like son! It was the cutest thing though! I heard him clear across the store and came running to find out he was fine, just a little girl crazy! He got a new walker that day, and there's plenty of room to grow in it, he also got the CoOlEsT baby food pouches, that can be very handy when we're on the go! Just watch out for mango! Or in Joshua's case mane-gotta-go! What a nightmare! lol He made a full load of laundry out of several outfits! There is soo much more to tell, pictures to post, and videos too! Joshua and I are pretty tuckered out but keep reading sweetie, there's alot more coming your way tomorrow!

BIG XOXO