I have been a Bad, Bad Blogger

I need to do my usual disclaimer:This blog in particular is long.  It's detailed and I was tired when I wrote it after traveling on a 5:45 am flight.  Grab your cup of Joe and take a load off.  If your busy, read it in segments.  Just know, that tomorrow I promise to give you a much sweeter, shorter and cuter post.  And best of all, one that includes Reese.

Did you think the state of Iowa had taken me hostage?  

Perhaps, I drown in one of their torrential floods?

Oh wait, Dallas could no longer go on without me this season and insisted I never leave.  (this one, I know to be true, I just needed to get home to our baby girl)

Sadly, I am just a bad, bad blogger.  Although, I love my blogging (which is why I added it to the mix alongside our family site in February) I deserved a good break, people. After all, you always appreciate things more when you have a little time away right?  I sure hope that's how you feel about me.  Did absence make your heart grow fonder of reesiepieciepoo?

I'll tell you what it did for me...it made me want to throw up everyday.  I am very torn.  I'm with Dallas, loving our alone time, silliness, the fact that my hair actually gets styled, oh, and my teeth brushed too.  Yet, I miss Reese.  Then, I am here with my babygirl and I get nauseated, I miss Dallas so much.  Torn between two loves, truly.

Dallas and I had so much fun.  I, understandably, had concerns about a weekend in Iowa, however, the opportunity arose and we like to not go more than two weeks apart, so I headed to the Atlanta airport. (sorry for the overabundance of commas)  Lucky for me, sad for them, a few people missed their connection so I easily got on my flight.  Thank goodness for Ms. Martain & those buddy passes!  I got there in time for the game. It was a great stadium, friendly people, etc.  I even met wives on the other team.  Really, Des Moines will not go down on my "never, ever will I go there again" list.  There was great shopping, good restaurants, no traffic, no Jenn getting lost for hours...what else can you ask for?  However, there was one big negative.  The hotel.  It was very questionable indeed.  I think even Rookie would have snubbed it.  Let's just say I didn't spend any time relaxing in the hotel.  Nope, when we got up, I got out.

I know I said no baseball talk (this is not dallasbaseballpoo.blogspot), but everyone got so excited, I should mention that it may not be me, but a mountain dew to blame.  He tied the PCL record with 7 straight homeruns in consecutive games.  Here's how it went down:

Going into Thursday he had 5.  I got to the game in the 8th inning when I landed and he had hit #6.  (I would like to note that I was technically in the state of Iowa, even in the city of Des Moines when he hit #6, just not at the park) 

Then, I was running a tad bit late (it was a doubleheader and a 5:00 game, can you blame me? If you're a wife, you get it) I listened to his walk on the radio.  Parked the car, went inside the Chick-fil-A to grab dinner, came out, wouldn't cha know...#7.  Once again, I was in the city, people.  Just not "technically" in the park.  This tied the record.  I brought it to Dallas' attention that I have yet to be in the ballpark when he hit one.  After weighing our odds, we made a sound, marital decision...Jenn needs to stay away from the park for the next game.  So sad.  How are you bad luck when your husband hits 7 homers in a row and is leading all of the minors in homers with 28?  Turns out, you can be.  You're looking, scratch that, reading the writings of the woman who slaughtered the record. I'll own it.  Well, half own it.  He text me a little before the game asking for a mountain dew (a pregame ritual, if you will) because someone had been a little thirsty and drank his.  I informed him that this would mean I would actually have to set foot in the stadium.  He chanced it.  Needed it 30 minutes before game time and in the form of a can, not bottle, specifically.  I was actually nervous for him the whole game.  It was another double header, so you only get 3 at bats instead of the usual 4.  He went 1-3 with a triple (that I'm convinced could have been an in the park homer if he had  ran a little faster, evidently, my screaming from the stands did not add up to induced speed around the bases).  No complaints.  I was actually nervous, which I do not get anymore.  After your husband has two major surgeries, you're just glad he's out there.  So, was it my presence or merely the fact that he didn't have his regular mountain dew available?  We'll never know.  For now, we share this honor with Claude Westmoreland who set it in 1977.  Do you think Claude's family was watching the game rooting against us so we would not break the record? Hhmmm...something to ponder.  Hey, the world did it to Maris, therefore, it could happen to McPherson.

It was a great trip.  We had a date night Sunday (that included Baker, Barnwell & Nestor) who are all great guys.  Have I mentioned that this is my favorite team Dallas has ever been a part of?  I think it helps you understand why, when your husband is hitting over .300 with a ton of homers and can't sniff a callup with the florida marlins.  (when you read that last sentence be sure to emphasize florida marlins that's how it's meant to be read.) He's on a great team.  The guys all are personable, loyal to their wives, they have fun.  The kind of people you want your husband surrounded by. 

 The Lord is good.  He places us where we will flourish if we allow him. And we are sitting back and allowing him to take the wheel even if it's not in the car we sometimes wish we were driving.  

This weekend it was in a rented Cobalt. But, I had my honey (and who ever rode home with us each night crammed in the backseat) right next to me.  

What a sweet ride it was.  

Reese Loves #8

Is there really much else to add to this post? I think not. By the way, I've ordered one in my size I'm thinking about sporting at a game.

Where in the world is Jenn McPherson?  I.O.W.A.  Got here last night.  I hopped on a standby flight and arrived in time for the game.  All weekend with my hubby.  I'll fill you in more tomorrow.  (Not that there will be much to say, I am in IOWA after all) Reesie is with Meme loving life. The Braddy's babysat her this morning and she loved it!  I am truly blessed with the people around me.  What would I do without them?  I'm off to the game where I will have little laughs at the on field, between innings entertainment, sit back and enjoy my solitude and of course, check out that good looking third baseman.  Man is he cute.

Ever wonder what a butterly looks like...

Cracking up? 

Here's your answer...

These are the outakes from her Birthday invitation photo shoot this week. The invites will hopefully be better technically (photography wise) speaking, but I doubt they'll be this entertaining. That's all the sneak peek you're getting for now. Don't cha love those wings???? I've got more props than a traveling circus.

Oprah copied Jenn (not the reverse)

Oprah, girl, quit copying me. Seriously. I buy something one day and by week's end it is on the Oprah show. If only this were true. I fear that the show today was a rerun. (Pretty positive it was. If you know this to be true keep it to yourself.) However, this is proof that if it is good enough for the Oprah show, it gets clearance for a post here on reesiepieciepoo. We only go high end baby. So without any further adieu our latest promotion or "Reese approved" product: flip video.

I can not take credit for discovering this. I first saw the one-time-use version of it at my cousin's wedding last weekend, then, days later the Braddy's were sporting one. I was mesmerized. It is the coolest thing ever. I did my research before buying and yes, the quality is not as great as an expensive camera, but it isn't too bad either. To put it clearly, it serves it's purpose. It's lightweight, fits in your purse, diaper bag, pocket and I swear Rookie could operate it (in case your not a dedicated followee to this blog, Rookie is our 3 1/2 year old bull mastiff and while he is very smart to us and has graduated from doggie school 3 times to be exact, I'm clearly stating that the device is that simple). Whew, that was a lot. By the way, not sure followee is a word, but in my world it is. I have been a terrible videographer since Reese was born (mainly b/c I feel this is a man's job. Jenn's rules: woman=photo gal, man=video guy) It makes sense to me. And once I determined this is the way it works, I left it up to Dallas. Turns out its hard to video from New Mexico. Well, unless you count Skype, he's not holding up his end of the bargain.

The flip has turned me into the paparazzi. Truly, I'm like the crazy camera woman(as if I didn't claim this title a long time ago). Reese isn't sure if she's being filmed or photographed..or both at the same time. This thing is just cool. There's a newer slimmer version (that has the same pixels,etc) that's $179. This one is $149 at best buy, target, but Sam's had it for $125. Cha-Ching. It runs on 2 AA batts. Also, it has 60 min. of recording time (believe it or not it takes forever to fill up 60 min.) It plugs right into your computer and you can upload them to you tube, blogger or burn to a cd. Here's a clip of Reese in action. Aunt Mhari came by to visit us at Meme's house. Something I must add before viewing...if you are a southerner (even one who spent 2 years in Arizona) your accent becomes stronger the minute you use a video camera. Just to forewarn you.

FYI: that is not a yard sale stroller in the video.  It was mine when I was little.  Anyone remember My Child?  This was my My Child's stroller.  It was legit back in the day.  Today, not so much.  I'm thinking she needs more of a jogger stroller to be a cool mom these days.  Also, she's blowing you a kiss at the end of the clip.  Enjoy!

I just know, after I click publish on this blog, they are going to be sold out everywhere (or at least Sam's Club). Impossible to find. People will be bidding on ebay. All because of reesiepieciepoo.

Absolutely nothing to do with the Oprah show.

(my world=my beliefs)

/.
Sorry for the late night post. It's been a crazy day, loads of fun. Something is better than nothing, right? Her eyes cracked me up in this shot. Her personality is so funny.
I'll post better tomorrow. It's time for the insomniac to get some sleep. It's 11:30 and if I go to bed now, it will go down as a record for me this season. I just can't sleep good without Dallas. Sounds romantic and it is, however, it's becoming more of a medical need. Write me a prescription for a big league call up with a dose of a somewhat normal schedule. Hhmmm...with the internet these days, I know I can find a legitimate doctor to write this one up by the end of the day tomorrow.  Wish me luck...

Just a quick shot of my sunbathing chick.  She loves being outside.  Big brother does too, however, after about 5 minutes his tongue is laying flat on the concrete.  Such a trooper.

Can't believe I didn't post this, but Reese took her first steps on Thursday of last week.  So, let's see, 11 months and 12 days.  It was amazing!  We've been waiting on her to take off for what seems like forever.  She never really loved the whole crawling thing.  Before 8 months she was pulling herself up in her crib and right after that she was walking like a champ around the coffee table.  She hates to crawl and has scaled the walls for 3 months now.  I'm not sure if we should have been trying to promote this harder, but as soon as we tried she took 2 steps to mom.  I'll let you know when she's ready to enter her first 5k.  Please let me get her 1st year pictures done before she's running around!

On another note, what a fun Saturday night we had (thanks to one of my best friends Mhari). She stopped by to play with her favorite little girl and then we headed out for dinner.  It was wonderful.  If you ever need a reminder that you are part of the human race just go out with a girlfriend. After dinner, the braddy bunch were on our town square listening to a live band (a tradition I haven't done since I was in the 5th grade and the highlight was watching the cloggers.  remember clogging?  I actually did it for a year (mom made me finish the entire class) oh, thank goodness that went out with puff paint.  Back on track, Reese had so much fun. For me it was a scene out of Sweet Home Alabama (a classic).  I ran into friends I haven't seen in a long time. Something that is hard to do since my hometown is no longer small and is taken over with growth.  It was great.  Mhari, please send me your pic of the billboard.  After dinner, Mhari stops (when the light is green, I might add) to get a picture of the princess on the billboard.  (the guy behind us looovvved us as you might imagine).  I'll get one posted soon. Can't believe with all the fun we had Saturday, I did not get one picture.  When Dallas reads this he will have something smart to say about that, I'm sure. 

Thanks for all the sweet comments about Reese. At church yesterday everyone came up smiling "We saw Reese!"  She loves her fans.

Sorry, I got a little parenthesis happy today.

It's like finding money in an old purse

That feeling when you find something you forgot about and it makes you smile. No, makes you laugh out loud. I love when I bust out an old purse/bag/etc and find $10 or something I've been searching for endlessly (this happens to me a lot). That's what happened when I found these last night on my hard drive. This is a segment from one of her many performances. I overlooked these because I was working to get her perfect father's day pic last week. 

This is better than gold baby....

Whew...

Yesterday was exhausting. We spent the entire day house hunting. Not mommy's cup of tea, but we really needed to have a gameplan for when Daddy gets home on the all star break. In between lock boxes and new home packets we had time to meet papa for lunch. And after a long, hard day on the road, Meme, Reesie, Mommy & Papa all went out for dinner. Yesterday was tiring, but so much fun. Reese was so good and cracked us up. She said "ta ta" to Meme yesterday when Meme said " thank you." The things that are coming out of her mouth, they are getting entertaining. In and out all day long and the girl never complained a bit (a nice, welcome change from those colic days of the past...sure glad we hit the 6 month mark-smooth sailing baby). She has a king fu panda (courtesy of Ms. Joellen...thanks!) that decided to hi-ya all day in the car. Very pleasant. Reese loves to play at Papa's house. Some pics of my escapee (I'm positive she felt like she had come to paradise once she got to papa's house. All day in the car seat is hard!) Thanks for a fun night daddy...
By the way, we're rockin some serious car seat hair in these pics. It's the latest rave...haven't you heard?

Breaking the law

Like everyone these days, Reese is trying to multi task while driving. Imagine if there was another lion crossing paths with her right now...All the while, she maintains her speed as she's texting and driving with 0ne hand on the wheel. I'm starting to see why some states are making this illegal. Funny how looking at things from a different perspective actually puts things into perspective, did you follow? Excuse the diaper that's about to fall off and missing pants. Poor thing, she just came in from the pool, hit the road trying to catch up on a few phone calls and her mommy throws it up on a blog.
This must be how Britney feels. At least she's not walking out of a public restroom, right?

Snapshots.

Today's pics come from Jenn the mommy, not Jenn the photographer. But you gotta throw those good ole' quick snapshots in sometimes. These pictures are not sharp, the colors are wonky and I think I was laughing so hard while I took them that I shook the camera a little. To sum up, technically they're all over the place, but man are they cute.


She literally walked around with the "breast cancer" awareness bracelet in her mouth for 20 minutes. She's such a philanthropist.

I told you these pictures are photographically sketchy, but don't cha love this face? The face that makes my heart melt. I get to look at that cheese all day long.
But this one is where I was cracking up. She was rolling. Not sure why. Turns out I'm hilarious. Gosh, I wish Dallas thought I was this funny.

These photos were shot in my upscale, chic studio...aka the bathroom. Yep, we played for a solid hour. In the tub, out of the tub. Dumped out some of Meme's hair products (sshhh...don't tell). We even counted bobby pins...Man I used to have a life. I guess next time if anyone asks, I should say we're "running numbers" or something more sophisticated.

This girl makes my day, everyday. Even when half of it is spent in the bathroom.

It's scary to think that I knew Chase (far right, for those of you who overlooked the obvious) since he was Reese's age.  And Chel, (middle chick and responsible party for the squirmiest, quickest little girl this side of the Mason Dixon) April and Arden were seven when I performed Britney Spears routines and dressed as Cinderella for her birthday party...look at them now. This is how fast it happens.  I am googling  "how to freeze time" as we speak.  I can't imagine it and yet I've watched them turn into teenagers over night.  

This group dropped by to hang out last night.  Reese was loving it.  Then we all headed out for a fun photo shoot and dinner.  You can refer back to my relentless posts on turning 30 if you need to be refreshed, but these princesses knew how to make Donna and I feel extra old. Picture this..we're driving to dinner and a guy in an SUV pulls up to the car.  All the girls do a quick 11 o'clock eye glance over and let out a terribly obvious squeal.  Mr. "We just boosted his confidence by a mile" looked back.  Just as Donna and I are assessing the situation at hand, one of them shouts "Ewe, he's too old, like 30 or something."  And suddenly my girls night out was shot to poop. Just do a u-turn and take me back to babies, bull mastiffs, baths, bottles and boop.  I mean poop, but I needed a b.  You get it.  Just as your feeling cool again, Mrs. Reality Check shows her ugly face.  

That's my life.

Wouldn't change a thing and I would love for Reese to turn out like any one of these chicks. Can't wait for their payback when they are Over. the. Hill. aka. 29 and 14 months.

I'm in love

of course, with Dallas. Of course, with Reese. But I'm also in love with this hat. This hat on my little peanut sends me into a whirlwind of happy. (If it doesn't do that for you, you need to check your happy-o-meter, it might be broken) How she puts up with my antics, I'll never know. I'm just glad she's not old enough to ask the obvious question..."Momma, is it not 95 degrees outside?" Instead, she joyfully places this handmade, winter warm hat on her scrumptious little head. If only Dallas would play into my ideas like she does. I fear she'll pick up his eye rolling and "only one more" speeches I get. For now, I savor the moments...
of sweetness...

the look of peacefulness because with you, all the world is right baby girl.....

and absolute happy on her face...

sheer excitement over Mommy...

and those rolls. Oh, those rolls. I love them. Isn't that how it's supposed to be? Well, until she grows up. Then it will be "Ooohhhh, those rolls." (Hence the different tone on the latter statement.)

And those eyes. I see such passion for life already. Only God could have created something so intense...

of course, the I'm about to leave if someone doesn't make me laugh...now.

And then, like puppets, we do. And the happiness is right back where it should be.

I'm taking them all in baby girl. Soaking you up with my camera, my heart. Each one. Even the one today where you boycotted both naps and tugged and pulled on me all day long. Oh, did I ruin it with that one? You know I had to bring you back to real life. Thank goodness for my camera. I load up my pictures of this face and the drama from the day is erased. Wonder if she'll be able to do that when she's a teenager?
Odds are in her favor.

Who says Mondays are boring?

Definitely not Reese. She could play peep-eye with her lion all day long. Come over she'll show you.

We're sure to keep Mondays just as hopping as our Fridays. After a fun day of books and playtime, Aunt Donna called and let us know she was swinging by for her Reese fix. This is how happy Reese was that she was coming...

Of course everyone has to stop and take time for a good meal. And mommy loves getting a good break...(by the way, this is her game face. not sure why she needs it at mealtime, but she's got it right now)

And then right back to playtime.

Pausing for moment before Aunt Donna and I play chase...

And then Mommy took me out for a few snaps. Didn't turn out so well. She would much rather be standing these days. I feel my days of the cute, still, posed portraits are of the past.

Hope everyone else had a fun Monday. See you tomorrow.

Daddy, it's your day!

Happy Father's Day! Such a great day. Dad's all over spending time soaking up their kids. Being recognized for their greatest achievement in life...fatherhood. That is unless your a dad's a guy who's career is spent on the diamond. One of the bad sides of being a diamond daughter is not seeing Daddy everyday, especially this one. Luckily, she has seen him a lot in the past two weeks, so it's ok. Dallas has waited to open his presents until today so they can be extra special. We've been sure to talk his ear off today too, sure he loved that. Mom and I are convinced she knows it's Daddy Day. She has been practically screaming dadedadedade all morning. Even more so than her usual dade song. I'll try and put some video up later.

By the way, believe it or not I am aware that it is June and really, really hot. I know your wondering why I've been busting out the baby legs recently. I get these visions. (You can refer to my insomniac posts see why I can't sleep) They keep me up at night until I actually make them real. The tutu on the bed was one and this is another. I bought her polka dot and skeleton baby legs forever ago in January in Charleston. Since we've been in such warm places, we've hardly wore them. In fact, she only wore these once in February (you can see on our fam site) so, it was time to bring them into a vision. Tattoos, skeletons, love it. She really is a girl of many different styles. Today, she's playing into her Rocker side. Last week country gal, what's next? Who knows.

I'll post more of these pics later. I had the best time in Huntsville with Erin and her kids. Hopefully, I can bring this whole photography dream of mine to life. Still pondering the name. I love hipchick photography, but she reminded me that it is easier for people to remember your business if your personal name is part of it. True. Hmmm. I'll get back to ya on my decision. I want to thank Donna for her support. I could not pursue this without your love and support. You have been there, believing in me since I was 21 (scary). I think you'd tell me I was great if I wanted to open up a lemonade stand. Maybe I should be questioning your sanity, but I'm not. I admire you as a mom, wife, friend and as a hard working, successful woman. You are amazing. Thank you for everything. Thank you for loving my child like your own. Mostly, thank you for always being there for me, always.

Okay, I just made Father's Day into friend Day, so here's a note to the most fabulous daddy I know:

Daddy,

I miss you lots today. I know you're gonna love the gift I picked out. I really have exceptional taste to be barely a year old. I know you are in stinky New Mexico right now, but if I saw you I would give you a big squeeze around the neck and a kiss (with a lick on the cheek included). You are the coolest guy and I am so lucky to have you as a dad. You really need to sleep in and enjoy hotels while you can, I have lots of stuff planned for the off season for us. I'm pretty much going to wear you slick. It will be great. We'll let mom kick back and relax. Rookie says hi too. He says please keep playing ball so he can have his good food and treats. He wonders if you get called up can he have bigger treats? You should really consider that. He's a good brother. Okay Daddy, gotta go.

P.S. Could you please dye your hair blonde so then we look just alike? Then we could really make mom look like the odd man out.

I love you bunches,

Reesie Cup

This is my favorite guy in the whole world...

Date night

Nothing like a good date night, right? Especially when it's with a man who shows up on time, even early. Runs in the door to pick you up. Thinks everything you do is amazing. Watches the movies you want to watch. Prepares your dinner. He even loves your sloppy wet kisses. Sound too perfect? He is, and his name is Papa. This is how excited she gets when she sees him...

Meme, Boo & Mommy all had a wedding this evening, so Papa came down to babysit. Reese loves him and they had a great night. She has him wrapped around her 11 month old little finger.

The wedding was wonderful. It reminded me of ours (minus the gazillion cheerleaders performing any chance we got) because Chris played football at Alabama, so all these xxl players were there. Some of them were a tad bit larger than the ballplayers at ours. It was so fun. They are adorable and my cousin Lindsay is so in love. Two high School sweethearts who both left Georgia to go yell "Roll Tide." She's got her first nursing job and they are starting their fresh new life together. Doesn't that make you smile?

I'm broke

25 cents a pop sounds cheap, but when multiplied by the hundreds I get everyday, a girl can go broke. I'll go broke before I give up those sweet kisses, though. She loves to give them. All day, I get looked at with those enchanting eyes. It's a certain "warning" look she gives before her attack, I mean, kiss. She squeezes my neck soooo tight and plants, sometimes sweet & gentle, other times hard and teethy kisses. Regardless, they are priceless. I'll take em all day long. Here's her cheesy smile...

And this is the "please find another child to stalk with your camera" look.

She's a girl of many looks and I'm a mommy who tries to capture all of them. I took all the kisses I could on Thursday, because today I'm away from my kissing princess. I drove to Alabama last night (hotel all to myself) scary, I'll let you know how it went, to stay all day today with my Photographic Idol. I have been stalking her for a while and finally got in for some mentoring. It's like Christmas to me! I've been a woman on crack all day lead up to this. I am missing my side kick, though. She, unfortunately, will not miss me. She is with her BFF Meme. Her soulmate. The woman who does not follow her with a camera.

She's a star

(pictured above: Reesie Piecie Poo's Actual, Reallife, Huge, Amazing Billboard)
Is this not the coolest thing ever???? For the record, I am not boasting (well, maybe a little). If I was bragging I'd have sent out an all users email (which I considered) nationwide text (might still happen)and maybe tried to get a spot on TMZ (they won't return my calls). Instead, I chose to tell the story, here, on reesiepieciepoo.blogspot. I figure you wouldn't come here if you didn't love us. Boasting included. So forgive me in advance... Let me tell you, I saw it for the first time the other day and almost ran my car off the road. It's huge! So cool. I yelled "Reesie look, you're on the billboard." She's still not turned around facing forward (b/c it's the law) yet, so she tried, but couldn't get a good enough angle. I think she'll give us an "Oh" when she does realize. Possibly a wave, too. The hospital better generate a CON because with this new ad campaign there are going to be momma's waiting on the doorsteps trying to have their babies at HMC! Kidding, but if that does happen, we'll be sure to take the credit. I am so excited. So proud. My baby and my photography (that's a little added bonus) on a billboard. Two, actually. Also, she is on their new maternity brochures. Aren't they fabulous? I might be partial...



The second one is also going to be in H Magazine. I cracked up on the "22 pounds of nothing else matters" ad. It is so catchy. So cute. What made me laugh is that Reese is currently probably 23 pounds. Typical for a model. On her bio she took a pound off. She probably added a few inches to her height too. Hey, you gotta do what you gotta do to get hired in this business. This is the coolest thing ever to us. It is so funny to hear our neighbors and friends. We had not told anyone and weren't sure exactly when it was going up, so now everyone's calling flipping out. Running off the road. It's so funny. So, now you know. Grip your steering wheel while driving, you might see Reese.
I feel so deeply honored.
Proud.
My cup runneth over...