Girls! Girls! Girls!

YEA! I am so excited! Today one of my best friends K found out she is having a GIRL!!! Our little girls will just be 3 months apart....so they will HAVE to be best friends!
I was secretly REALLY HOPING she was going to tell me "It's A Girl!" but I didn't want to get my hopes up...so I kept saying "Boy". I am so glad that was WRONG!

Even the Happy Couple had it in their head that they were having a Boy....because that is what everyone kept telling them. So when they got the news this morning, she was immediately overjoyed with visions of pink dancing in her head, and his whole world was flipped upside down in an instant.
I know this has to be true because that is exactly what happened to Bobby & I a few months ago.

Since then it has totally sunk in for both of us and I can't even imagine preparing for a boy now. Girls are so much fun to shop for!!! Even Bobby is totally on board with having a little girl. He is already thinking of Daddy-Daughter days and fun things they can do together.

In fact, one of our favorite little girls stayed with us on Wednesday night for a few hours while her parents were busy. She and Bobby had a blast watching the Scooby Doo movie. She was standing on the couch and tumbling around with the pillows. Bobby got such a kick out of watching her laugh and giggle at Scooby Doo. I know he was seeing his future watching silly movies with his own little girl.
So Sweet!

It just so happens that K and I already had plans for a baby shopping excursion on Sunday. Well, now I know it's going to be an all-out PINK day!!! I am so excited!
Another good piece of news I found out today.... baby clothes and diapers are TAX-FREE this weekend!
http://www.window.state.tx.us/taxinfo/taxpubs/tx98_490/tx98_490.html
Sweet!

Happy Friday!!!
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Baby Registry...CHECK!

With the help of some awesome girlfriends, I can now mark one big item off of my Baby To-Do List.... REGISTERING!!! With my husband's blessing, the four of us descended upon Babies R Us and Target this past Saturday to get my registry done. I had done some preparation work so the event itself would not be painful in any way, and it worked. With a team effort we were able to get finished at Babies R Us in just 2 hours, and Target in less than 1 hour.
Our only hangup of the day was a ridiculously long lunch at BJ's. They tried to make up for it with a free dessert, and it did help. But the fact that we were in the lunch place longer than we were in BRU, was a bit absurd.
We topped off the day with some much deserved pedicures. I could not have asked for better friends!!! Thanks Ladies!!!


I do have to note that I took one item off the registry that my girls helped me pick out....the baby swing. I know G is gonna be bummed because she fell in love with the little owls....but her time is coming and she can have all the owls she wants. ;-)
After spending all day in baby world, one of my overwhelmed girlfriends sent me some swings she found on Craigs List. So that led me to start checking out what all was available...used.
Swings are one of those items that I keep hearing are hit or miss with babies. They either love them or they hate them. So many people end up selling them for way cheap on Craigs List after only using them a few times.
I found a cute one on Craigs List close to my neighborhood. I emailed back and forth with the seller several times last night and she told me that she already had 2 other people interested in it, but I could go by and look at it this morning (Monday) if I wanted to. Bobby & I decided it was worth the few extra minutes in the morning, so we made arrangements to be at her house at 7am.
Bobby was looking at her emails to find the address and directions to her house, and noticed her last name. He asked if I thought it could be the wife of a bar owner we know (who helped me throw Bobby's 40th B/D Party). I told him I doubted it....

HA! we were in her house this morning waiting for her to bring the swing downstairs and I saw a picture on the wall of her and the guy we know!!! Small World! :-)

ANYWHO.....We got the swing, excellent condition, and it is way cute!!! Even though I was really only looking at gender neutral ones, I really like this pink and brown one. I guess I'm ok getting non-neutral stuff at the right price!!!
I am glad, of all things, this is an item we could save some $$ on and get 2nd hand.
We are LOVING Craigs List for this baby stuff!!!
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I've found a new obsession....

OK, maybe it's not a new obsession...but its a new place to focus my fairly new obsession....
It's a Yahoo Group called BabyBags. Yep.....I'm still all about the diaper bags.

And yes, I have researched lots of other baby-related things. In fact, I pretty much have my registry list organized and ready to go register. (Which I am dragging a few of my girlfriends with me to do soon.) However, those things just don't hold my attention like the bags do. There are just so many options out there. I do realize that I won't know exactly what I like/want/need until I start using one all the time; but I can read other Mommy's reviews & rants and get some pretty good ideas. I never knew this whole diaper bag world/cult existed....but it does! The BabyBags group I just joined has been around for 6 years, currently has over 3,000 members, and it looks like their are over 700 new messages every week!

So what is so special about this Yahoo Group you ask?
Well, it's a place for all things Diaper Bags.....buy, sell, trade, review, discuss, ask questions......whatever. Everything, and I mean everything, in this group is all about diaper bags & Mommy bags. I am pretty sure I'll find much better deals in this group than on Craigs List or Ebay, but I can't confirm that for sure until I make my first purchase..... and of course I'll let you know when that happens!

I highly recommend all you new Mommies and Mommies-to-be request membership and check out this little gem. I had a hard time finding it by just searching the Yahoo Groups. I finally found a link directly to the group through a different message board I check periodically.
So I am saving you the time and providing the link here: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/babybags/

Happy New Obsession to you too!!!!
~~~

CostCo Freaks and Good Luck at Stein Mart

I went to CostCo during my lunch break today to order a cake for my sister's upcoming birthday party....

I wasn't really wanting to make the trip if I could just call in and place my order. So this morning I looked all over CostCo's website looking for their decorated cake options. (I had stopped by the bakery once before so I knew the selection was very limited.)
I found nothing on the company website about their decorated bakery cakes. So I googled "CostCo Cakes" and this is how I found all the information I needed.

Can you believe there are blogs dedicated to all things "CostCo"? I found several blogs by people just crazy about CostCo. One of the blogs even had the CostCo Cake Order Form available, so I was able to print it out before my lunchtime trip. I was pretty happy about that.
So if you are curious to see if I am full of crap...here are a few of the ones I stumbled upon:
http://addictedtocostco.com/2009/02/03/costco-bakery-makes-an-excellent-cake/
http://costcocakes.blogspot.com/
http://www.costcob.com/

Anyway, since I was in & out of CostCo in a flash I stopped in next door at Stein Mart. I was wondering what my chances were of finding a little black sweater to wear over my sleeveless dress at dinner tonight. (Restaurants in Austin are always so freaking cold.)
I was hoping to find something thin like both G & K had during our outdoor lunch on Sunday. I know I wasn't really asking for much...a thin, plain, black sweater. But still, I never find what I'm looking for if it's something specific...
The retail gods were with me today!!! I found exactly what I was looking for and it's going to work perfectly for dinner with the girls tonight, as well as many more times in the future. YEA!
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Lubbock Tx in my rear-view mirror...

I spent the Thanksgiving weekend in Lubbock visiting my Dad's family. Since there just isn't much to Lubbock, I decided to make a list of my favorite Lubbock things...

* visiting my Dad and Amma (Dad's Mom). I only see my Dad about 2 times a year, and I only see my Amma 1 time a year (when I go to Lubbock because she hates to travel).

* Taco Villa! Why Oh Why do these only exist in the Lubbock area?!?!?
I even joined a Facebook Group titled "I Miss You Taco Villa!!!" It is compromised of 1,126 members. Description of the FB Group: To all of those who miss it so much. You could order with out looking at the menu. It's the first place you go when your back in town. You can't understand why your city doesn't have one. You belong here....

** Dixie Chick Natalie Maines hails from Lubbock where her family is still strong in the lively Lubbock music community.
She documented just how much she loves Lubbock in the Dixie Chicks Song "Lubbock or Leave It" Check it out! ;-)



* Rosa's Cafe - Again, why isn't there one in Austin!?!? There are several locations across Texas, but the closest ones are in College Station, Killeen & Waco. WHY???









* Buddy Holly -this guy has a statue, a street, and a museum in his honor. The biggest "buddy holly" glasses you've ever seen are sitting in front of the museum...pretty cool.




* South Plains Mall - it isn't the best mall...but it does serve the purpose. I spent many hours shopping and working in that mall. ...all good memories.






* and my favorite thing about Lubbock........seeing the city limit sign on my way out of town, and back to AUSTIN!!!


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Christmas Affair & Date Night

If you didn't make it to the Jr.League's Christmas Affair, you missed out and now you will have to wait until next year. My sister and I enjoyed the event Friday after work. We parked at the Barton Creek Mall, rode the shuttle to Palmer Event Center, and shopped until it closed at 9pm.
We found some great gifts as well as a few things for ourselves. We did not eat dinner before we went, but we kept our tummies happy by tasting all the samples of dips, soups, crackers, and chocolate. Since that was our 3rd year to attend, we have now officially named it our yearly tradition. :-)

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Upon advice of our interior decorator, we are now looking for an "accent piece" for our living room. On Saturday, we went to a furniture store that neither of us had ever been before....FourHands. We were both expecting a MUCH bigger place, with lots more to look at. Nope, obviously the time to hit up FourHands is when they do their warehouse sale (at a different location). I have been to that sale one time. One of my friends works the warehouse sales, so I am expecting her to let me know when the next one is!
After a quick look around FourHands, we decided to check out The Khanza. That is where we got our dining room furniture, which I LOVE! They were having a warehouse sale at their extra space off S.Lamar and Oltorf. So we made a run down there as well. We didn't find what we were looking for, but it was fun just browsing. Totally fine with me....now I get to keep shopping!!!

After furniture shopping, our date night began....
Earlier in the day Bobby asked me where I wanted to go for dinner, and I told him we should try the new restaurant Maria Maria (owned by Carlos Santana). He wanted to make reservations, but I told him not to since we would be getting there before the dinner crowd and I wanted to just sit in the bar for awhile and chat and drink while we wait for a table.
We walk in the door at Maria Maria about 6:30p, and it looked pretty empty. HA! There was a 2 hour wait due to being booked solid with reservations starting at 7pm. My bad. Sitting at the bar and people watching for about an hour is one thing....2 hours is something entirely different.
So we headed to one of Bobby's standby favorites - Fleming's. He called to see if they had availability. The chick on the phone put his name in the system and confirmed his information and seating preference....all of a sudden he was a VIP at Flemings ;-)
We both had the specials...everything was amazing!

After dinner we walked around the block for dessert at The Melting Pot. We ordered the Original with extra peanut butter. 1 Word: YUM!
I had a fabulous girlie martini there that I intend to try & duplicate for the Girls Christmas Party. ;-)

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ooooooo.......love me some Bobby Flay!

Austin Statesman reported this on Saturday, Nov 22:

Stars come out in Austin

Downtown Austin was the destination for three celebrities this week: chef Bobby Flay, actress Claire Danes and rocker Chris Martin.

The Food Network's Flay dropped by Cuba Libre then dallied at Lamberts. We hear that Flay is opening a restaurant near the Mean-Eyed Cat.

~~~

time to get into the Holiday spirit!

I am so glad its finally Friday!!! It's been a long couple of weeks! And BONUS: Next week is a short one!!!
I have big plans to get the house all decorated with Christmas stuff this weekend. It's actually kinda early for me, but since we are going to be traveling so much in the next month I have to get it done this weekend - our ONLY free weekend until next year! Honestly, I would have probably just skipped the Christmas decor this year, or at least opted for a scaled down version.... But since the Girls Christmas Party will be at my house, I'm going all out. It has to be even extra cute!
I am getting everything out and up this weekend, so that next weekend I can go shop the after Thanksgiving sales and get more for my $$$. This way I will have an idea what I already have so I don't end up buying a bunch of duplicate stuff.

Tonight my sister and I are planning to do some damage at the Jr.League's A Christmas Affair at the Palmer Event Center. I am sure I will complete my Christmas shopping there tonight!
This will be our 3rd year to go. I remember the 1st year we went....
She & I started out early on a Saturday morning with a plan to get all of our Christmas shopping done that day. We can always help each other out because we shop for some of the same people. After long hours on Brodie and at Barton Creek Mall, frustrated we gave up with very few check marks on our lists. We were done trying to find gifts for others, so we decided to go to the Jr.League event just for fun.
We grudgingly paid the $7 to park, and then the $10/person to enter....since we were already there. But when we walked in the door it was like the Christmas spirit hugged us both. We floated down the isles as we easily found items for everyone on our lists....plus way too much for ourselves. When we realized the event was about to close for the night, our pace quickened and and we back-tracked to purchase the items we had been "thinking about."
Obviously I am really looking forward to getting my shop on with my sis tonight.
If you have not been to this yearly event, I HIGHLY recommend it.

A Christmas Affair Hours:
11/21 Friday 10am-9pm
11/22 Saturday 10am-7pm
11/23 Sunday 11am-5pm
You can park at the Palmer Event Center for $7, or at Barton Creek Mall and ride the shuttles for $3 round-trip.
~~~

...for every you

Rather then being good and attending our regular Wednesday class at the gym after work yesterday, my friend S & I opted for something way more fun....SHOPPING of course.
Starting at DSW... S found some shoes to finish out her Halloween costume and I found some "work" shoes on the sale rack for $17...of course I had to get them.
We stopped at Babies R Us for a gift, and Jamba Juice...S & I love our Jamba Juice! ;-)
Amazingly, the highlight of the shopping trip was not the yummy berry JJ.....it was discovering a new store that will be taking lots of my $$$$$ in the future....and I promise it will be taking yours too!
After being in this awesome new place about 5 minutes, S & I decided that this store will be the death of our friend Madison. M- we want to be there to see your eyes light up when you walk in this place!!!
Ok, so I know you are waiting anxiously for me to tell you the name of this place........

CHARMING CHARLIE

Located in Sunset Valley at Brodie & Hwy 290. S said that she has been to one in Houston, but this is the 1st one in the Austin Area...and I promise you are going to love it!
They have an amazing selection of Jewelry, Handbags, cute & flirty Tops & Dresses, and fun & funky shoes. They also have some really fun girly stuff. Best of all....the prices are surprisingly affordable!
I considered keeping this one a secret so that only S & I would have this place to find our secret Christmas gifts....but I decided to share this hidden gem with my best girlfriends. It wouldn't be fair to not let the rest of the girls in on this with the Christmas shopping season now upon us.
GO FORTH AND SHOP MY FRIENDS...... enjoy!
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