Thirty, Flirty, and Fabulous

So someone turned 30 last month. Oh yeah, it was me. Btw, Greg saw the post title and was like, "Ooo... thirty, flirty, and fabulous? How about that." Clearly thinking I came up with this all on my own. I was like, "No Greg, it's from 13 going on 30."

Blank stare. 

"You know, that movie with Jennifer Garner?" 

More blank stare. 

"You know, the one were she's turning 30 but wakes up one day and she's 13 years old again?"

Nevermind.

Ok, so this was a much-anticipated birthday for me. Mostly because about 6 weeks before my birthday Greg told me he had a big surprise for me! Seriously, 6 weeks out. He gave me all these random hints. I guess now most of them make more sense, but at the time they were seriously so random that I thought he was just making stuff up to throw me off the trail. More to that in a second. 

On my actual birthday, the day was pretty normal. Just busy doing mom stuff but there was a SMU tailgate party that evening. Free dinner? Yes please! 

At the tailgate with my babies

So how does it feel to turn 30? I'll admit, it's been years since I've had a birthday where it felt weird to be getting older. Thirty is kind of a significant year, I guess. It seems like now that I'm 30, I need to be a grown up. I don't really feel like a grown up, but that might have a lot to do with still living the law school life. Aimee asked me how old I was on the morning of my birthday and it was weird to say "Thirty." Maybe even a teensy bit of a bummer. I tried to get over feeling like that and really did enjoy my day. My visiting teacher came by and brought me an entire bundt cake. It was deeelish.

The day after my birthday was when the real fun began! I thought it was a bit strange that Greg couldn't give me my surprise on my actual birthday - and that he had to pick it up. He told me that it was something "relatively" small, but something that I've enjoyed before. He also told me that I would want to keep my weekend schedule free, because I would want to use my surprise the whole time. 

Very weird, right?

So Friday morning I was just cleaning my house, Greg had left to pick up my surprise around 9:45 and came  back before 11. He came to the door and told me stand in front of it with my eyes closed. When I opened them, guess what I saw?

My MOM!!!

WHAT?!?! I think I said, "Oh! HI!" 

Best surprise EVER. 

(So now those weird clues make a little more sense)

So what do you do when your mom comes to see you for a surprise weekend visit? 

You eat out.

And hang out.

Ok, So not only did Greg surprise me with a visit from my mom - but he told me he had another surprise in store. He was running errands all Friday afternoon. In between trips out he would tell me to not go in the kids' room and then to not look in the fridge. There were some serious plans in the works. At around 7 he told me that my mom and I should go shopping at the mall.

Like I would ever say no to that!

We took Bridget and Greg said he'd put the other two kids to bed. (Bonus!)

So we were gone for just over an hour when Greg calls me, asking when I am coming home. I was like, we just got here - it's gonna be a while. He told me that he made some caramel popcorn and that it was going to get cold, so I should hurry. We were waiting in a pretty long line at one store and I still wanted to visit another one... when I told him that he just said, "Fine." Like his feelings were hurt!

A few minutes later he sent me a text that said, "I am going to bed. Happy Birthday."

I started to freak out! We texted back and forth a bit and each time he wrote something that sounded sad. I told my mom that we needed to hurry, that Greg never gets really upset over things but he seemed so upset now. Then I started to get mad too. Like if he wanted me home by a certain time, why didn't he tell me? And why on earth would he text me after being at the mall for only an hour? Does he not know me well enough by now? Come on!

I was practically running back to the car. 

As I walk through the door, Greg starts taking my picture: 

At first I don't notice...

But then, Oh MAN!!!! 

You guys got me!! 

IT was SOOO sneaky! So of course my mom was in on it! I had NO idea. It was surprise enough that my mom was here. This was crazy, sneaky, and so awesome! Greg went through my phone at some point and either text, emailed, or called the names he recognized and invited a bunch of my friends over. 

And set up this tasty spread!

Cacti planters with out of cigar boxes? Of course!

Snacks and yummy drinks! 

Greg truly outdid himself! It was the best birthday ever. And one I will never forget! Greg, Mom - I love you! Thank you!!

Good Bye Big Tex

Look at me! I'm on a blogging roll. :)

It's not very often that a Saturday comes up when we have nothing going on. Greg was going to be home ALL day! And what do you know? We only live a few miles from the biggest State Fair in the country. (Or so I've been told)

So on a whim we said, why not? 

I've heard that you should take the DART (think - monorail! Hah) to the fair because parking is bad and you are surrounded by sketchy neighborhoods. So we loaded up the kids and got our tickets for the "train". 

They were so excited (at first)

Check our Mr. Posing -Train Man on the right

Little did we take into consideration that there was a MAJOR college football game about to start at the very time we decided to head towards the fair. We also did not realize that the stadium where the game was to be held is INSIDE the fairgrounds. Major "whoops" on our part. 

We squeezed on the train full of fans eager to get their drink on. (If they hadn't started already) We decided to hop on the "special events" rail because it was going to take us straight to the fair without any stops. For some reason there were major mechanical issues with some trains in front of us, so a ride that should have taken 15 minutes took over an hour. 

THANK goodness Bridget fell asleep in the Bjorn and slept the whole stop and go ride. Aimee and Jack were really good - but struggled towards the end. I was super unprepared packing snacks for them, in anticipation of all the fried goodness I thought we'd be eating. 

Oh yeah, and all that stop-and-going made the young lady sitting next to us vomit all over the place at the end of the ride. I felt bad for her, she was all made up for the game (short, loooow cut dress and cowboy boots - and in case you didn't know - that is normal attire for a football game in Texas) I mean, she tried to be discreet and keep it contained in her water-bottle, but it was just too much. (Sorry for the visual!) I had a plastic bag for dirty dipes/baby clothes that I gave to her so she could finish emptying her "eggs and kegs" as Greg so graciously put it. 

Well at last we made it to the fair! 

We were some of the last people to see Big Tex before he met his fiery demise. 

Here's some info on Big Tex, (thank you Wikipedia)

Big Tex was a 52-foot (16 m) tall statue and marketing icon of the annual State Fair of Texas held at Fair Park in Dallas, Texas. The figure has become a cultural icon of Dallas and Texas. Since 1952 Big Tex has served as a cultural ambassador to visitors, and the prime location in the fairgrounds serves as a traditional meeting point.

On October 19, 2012, the last weekend of the 2012 State Fair of Texas, Big Tex was destroyed by fire.

On the morning of October 19, 2012 (the final weekend of the 2012 State Fair of Texas, and on Big Tex's 60th birthday) a fire started inside the framework of Big Tex. The figure's clothing, face and hat were completely destroyed in minutes as onlookers watched. While an official investigation has not yet taken place, state fair officials believe that the fire was due to an electrical short.^[19][20]

No, we were not there when he actually caught on fire. But am I a totally awful person for thinking it was kind of a tiny bit funny? Was he still saying "Howdy Ya'll" and waving when he caught on fire? I keep hearing that Johnny Cash "Ring of Fire" song.. 

"I fell into a burnin' ring of fire! And it burns burns burns... the ring of fire. The ring of fire" (Seriously, doesn't this seem like something out of an episode of the Simpsons? )

I'm sorry. 

Ok, back to the fair! We sampled some fried goodness. I wish we had tried more things, but it was all I could do not to totally freak out and have a major meltdown at one point. The fair was PACKED. One team was totally killing the other team at that football game - so people got bored with the game and just left the stadium to hang out at the fair. Oh the lines for everything were soooo long. You literally could not move the pathways were so packed with people in a couple spots. 

We tried corn nuggets (surprisingly yummy), fried biscuits and gravy (nasty), funnel cake (deeelish), and the corny dogs. The dogs were our fav. 

The kids playing at some farmland thing - probably the highlight of the fair for them

See ya next year! 

Well... maybe.

Aimee Jean, the Sassy Queen

Maybe you fellow moms can relate. Lots of our mornings start like this:

Aimee: "Mom, can I watch a show?"
Me: "No Aimee, you need to get ready for school and eat some breakfast."
A: "But I don't wanna eat any breakfast!" (whiniest voice ever)
Me: "Too bad. You need to eat before you go to school." (Yeah, I realize I could say this in a nicer way, but Bridget still wakes up 3-4 times at night. And I have this conversation with Aimee every. single. day.  Seriously, it's like Ground Hog day sometimes)
This can go back and forth a bit. Finally Aimee eats.
Then there is the getting dressed part.
Me: "Aimee, time to get dressed. Which pants do you want to wear?"
A: "I don't WANT to wear pants!"
Me: "It's cold today. You need to wear pants."
A: "I. want. to. wear. a. pretty. dress!"
Me: "You can't wear that dress to preschool. It's for church."
A: "But I wanna wear a pretty dress!" (whining again)
Me: "Too bad. You can wear pants or you can stay home from preschool."
A: "A skirt with leggings?"
Me: "Fine."

Back in September Aimee started preschool. She goes 5 days a week, 9-12. And even though our mornings almost always start out rough, she really does love it. I love picking her up and hearing about her day. (When she wants to talk about it) 

Recently she told me that she likes to play "wild girls" with her friend Grace. 

Um... wild girls?

I asked her what that was and she said, (exasperated) "Mom! It's when Grace and me are solving mysteries!" 

Okay!

She loves playing in the sandbox. I love finding sand in her shoes and throughout the house. 

I had hoped that she's reign in her sass a bit while at school. Not always so. At the beginning of the second week of school we had a little conversation like this:

"Aimee, how was school today?"

"Not good."

"Why? What happened?"

"I had to go to the office."

"What?! Why? What happened?"

"Um... I wouldn't turn around."

And that's all I got out of her. 

At the parent conference at her school, before classes even started - the director of the school said that if the kids are having a hard time listening that they can have a "cool down" session in her office. We were assured that if there were any real problems that we would be notified. My best guess is that Aimee was playing and when told it was time to do something else, (in true Aimee fashion) she probably ignored her teacher. I haven't got any calls... so I guess it wasn't a big deal!

You still here?

Why not a few more pictures?

Posing it up for the camera.

(I let her play with make up...)

Working the sass

She really is a good help with Bridget.

Even though Bridget doesn't always appreciate it.

 "Helping" Jack.

Hipster?

Cowgirl?

Bird enthusiast?

Oh my Aimee. You will be the gray to my hair, the worry lines to my forehead, and always the wrinkle to my smiles. 

Nanny and Poppy Came to Town

Greg's parents came to visit us last week! We were oh-so excited. They got to meet Baby Bridget, see the sights (aka - NorthPark Mall), go to a waaay too crowded SMU tailgate party, and spoil the kiddos! 

Poppy chatting with Bridget. She is quite the little gabber these days.

Aimee and Jack with Poppy. I promise we brush Jacks hair, in case you were wondering.

I took lots of pics of the kids with Nan and Pop, hoping for one where everyone is looking at the camera and everyone is smiling. 

Got a few and some were so funny, I couldn't decide... so you get to look at all of them. 

I think Aimee looks very "Brassfield" in this picture... must be the smile and the ears.

We took these after church. We blessed Bridget, only I have no blessing outfit pics to show for it. She was spitting up and I didn't want to risk the dress getting totally wrecked so I changed her while we were still at church. I tried to take some pics later that day but she was NOT having it! I'll have to stage some later before she gets too big. 

HI JACK!

LOVE Nanny and Jack in this one! 

 And now our turn... 

Poor Bridget... 

And a few more while the fam was in town. We spent a bit of time at Greg's aunt and uncle's in Coppell. Why I didn't take any pics with them? Or Greg's cousin and her fam? I don't know! I'm so lame. And seriously thinking with like 1/4 of my brain these days.  

Jack is Greg's little buddy. 

How about a nap on Nanny?

We are so glad that they could come! Can't wait to see them again at Christmas.