DotMom...recap!

Last weekend was INCREDIBLE (caps totally needed).  

My friend and former co-worker (wah), Adrienne and I decided to head to Nashville, TN for a girls trip/Mommy conference.  Last year one of the bloggers we both stalk follow posted about a conference called DotMom that was a Christian based conference that focused on marriage & motherhood.  Not sure why it is called "DotMom"...it has nothing to do with computers or blogging.  But the decor is all dots & all sorts of cute, so I guess I get it now.  Anyway, we registered months ago and have been counting down the days for weeks.  Both of us were Nashville rookies...now how or why is still unknown.  Nashville is the Los Angeles of the South.  Being that both of us are obsessed with all things celebrity, it was the perfect location for our weekend away.

We kissed our babies & daddies goodbye & headed out Thursday morning.  Only 1.5 hours behind, but I call that winning.  We loaded up, grabbed Starbucks & got on the road.  Who doesn't love 5+ hours in a car with your best of friends?  We listened to our favorite tunes, caught up on life, made sure we were headed in the right direction & had a lot of snacks.  Like a lot of snacks.

Almost 6 hours later we pulled into our hotel & unloaded.  Our hotel was in Franklin, which apparently is the most visited town in Tennessee (even over Nashville).  Just picture the nicest place you have ever visited...and then multiply by 100.  That's Franklin.

We might have left the kids at home, but we brought their snacks.  

Thursday night we were pretty exhausted & decided not to venture out too much.  But, the conference didn't start until Friday morning, so we wanted to do something around the area before the next day.  We tried to make it to the Grand 'Ol Opry, but the traffic was bad & we don't like traffic or lines so we passed.  And we went to Target instead.  Hey - you can take the girls out of Indiana, but you can't take the Target away...or something like that.  Multiple dollar bin purchases later, we headed back to the hotel to change for dinner.

Adrienne found an adorable restaurant in downtown Franklin that we wanted to try.  Brick walls, live band, kid-free, & bottomless drinks.  Ok, not bottomless - but wouldn't that be nice?  Taylor Swift recently had dined at this restaurant & we were pretty sure we sat at her table.  So basically she should have given us free tickets to her concert (that was in Nashville that weekend...what are the chances?!)  The best part of Thursday night was our dessert.  It was indescribable.  We are still talking about.  It was made by a local pie company called "Papa C's" & we had the waiter surprise us on what flavor to choose from.  And he did a dang good job.  He brought the Ghirardelli Chocolate Fudge Pie & we were both sure we haven't tasted anything better.  But lucky for us Papa C ships his pies across the country, so we hope Santa is reading this post.  We walked through Franklin a little bit after dinner, and headed back to our hotel for the evening.  Both asleep in less than 10 minutes.

Friday morning we woke up early, showered & grabbed Starbucks to go shopping before the conference started at noon.  Again downtown Franklin was calling our name.  The whole town is very faith based & everywhere we went we heard "Have a blessed day" and saw signs of Jesus-loving people on every corner.  So refreshing.  Our favorite store was called "Philanthropy" and was just the most adorable boutique.  One whole wall in the boutique was a dedicated "prayer wall" covered in candles and soft music.  You could choose a ticket to write a prayer request on & then take someone else's to pray for.  Some were even written by children.  I chose one written by a sweet person asked for prayer in starting her family either biologically or through adoption.  Such a neat, neat idea.  We left Philanthropy with matching shirts which didn't surprise us because we left Chicago with matching Hunter boots when we were there a few years ago. #justcallusMaryKateandAshley

We ventured into a precious toy store next to grab something for the kiddos.  We ended up talking to the store owner for a good 30 minutes about the celebrities she has come in her store.  Faith Hill? Yes.  Carrie Underood?  Saw her at Whole Foods last week.  Eric Church?  Just in a few days ago.  But the best story was about the local locksmith who was recently called to hurry and unlock a rental car that was locked in the parking garage (that we were in!).  The rental car was being driven by none other than Johnny Depp.  Oh my.   Like I said - the L.A. of the South.

After a quick lunch in Franklin, we were on our way to Brentwood Baptist for the start of DotMom!  After checking in, we headed in to the worship opener and the first speaker.  After the keynote speaker, we had both signed up for the same two sessions: Kids & Emotions and Wild Things: The Art of Nurturing Boys.  Both were AMAZING and so informative.  The leader of the breakout, David Thomas, is a Christian Family and Child counselor & author.  He was just incredible to hear.  We could have heard him speak all day.  We both were furiously taking notes & trying to take it all in.  David spoke about kids & their emotions and how we, as Moms, can handle the different emotions that arise in different stages of their development.  We also learned so much about the development of boys and what they need from us.  A lot of the ideas and advice he spoke about really resonated with me & I am already changing some things I do and say with Dane.  Even something as simple as giving directions needs to be different with boys than girls.  If you ever have the chance to hear David speak, DO IT.  And tell me when you are going.

The conference broke for dinner that evening & we ended up making our way to downtown Nashville on the "strip."  Otherwise known as Nash-Vegas.  Talk about fun.  We ate at a local bbq joint that was highly recommended by several friends & it was good.  Not good was me throwing away my credit card in the trash.  I blame the newspaper and paper towels covering my tray.  After digging through  the trash for about 2 seconds, we threw in the towel & Adrienne said she had my back the rest of the night.  We tried a few other places & ended up at a fun place on the corner where the band played everything from Garth Brooks to Gretchen Wilson.  We headed back to our hotel around 1am and dropped.  Such a fun, but long day.

Saturday we woke up super early, packed everything and headed out to the last morning of the conference.  But, we forgot to pack the 100 boxes of Kleenex we would need when hearing the keynote speaker.  Karen Kingsbury is a New York Times best-selling author of Christian fiction, and I had heard of her but hadn't read anything of hers.  Well, that is about to change.  Karen spoke for almost 1.5 hours and there was not a dry eye in the house.  She is a story-teller, so naturally would be an excelled speaker as well.  She spoke about our "lasts" with our children, and how we need to hold on and cherish those little moments.  The last bottle your baby takes, the last time they sit on their daddy's shoulders, the last high school game they will play, the last cuddle in their bed.  I couldn't handle it.  Her speech was focused around creating our own best-selling novel.  The characters in our story are our family and the hero is God.  What a wonderful best-seller that would be.  We could barely see straight to make it to the first session after Karen was finished.

Adrienne and I split up for the next session and she attended one on raising girls, while I went to one on Mothering From a Place of Rest...or slowing down.  We might not all be able to stay home with our children, but what are some areas that CAN slow down so that we can spend more quality time with these precious little people?  She definitely had some great ideas and advice to share.

The conference ended later that afternoon & we were back in the car.  The weekend was almost over. We spent the next hour or so just debriefing everything we had learned over the weekend.  Who else is better to talk to than another sweet mama?  No one.  We promised we would come back next year because there were so many other sessions we wanted to attend.

This blog post would be about 1,000 pages long if I listed everything we learned about motherhood &  marriage.  But something that David Thomas said has really stuck with me, and I keep thinking about it.  I love analogies so it is simply perfect.

Raising children is like shooting a bow and arrow.  If you do not have precision and focus, when you release that arrow it will go all over the place...perhaps even causing major damage.  But, if you release it with strength and are pointing it in the right direction, it will hit that bullseye every time.  Dane is my arrow.  God is our strength & I plan on hitting the bullseye & offering him the best little life possible on Earth.  

Thank you to Lifeway Christian for offering such an incredible conference.  Thanks to Nashville for being...well, Nashville.  We weren't prepared for all of the fun you had to offer.  Thank you to our hubbies who didn't complain (to our faces, at least) for leaving them with the littles all weekend.

And thanks to Adrienne for just being you.  An incredible wife, mommy & friend.
Just 359 days until next year.  ;)

Show & Tell Tuesday....High School

A few of my favorite blogger moms, Andrea,  Shay & Erika, always do a Tuesday series called "Show & Tell" and they have a different topic to discuss every week.  Anyone can join and post the topic on their blog.  I have never done it until today, but thought this week's topic looked fun...and hilarious too!

What were you like in HIGH SCHOOL?

Classic over-the-shoulder Senior pic.  Devin calls my bangs "wings" 

 I graduated from Danville High School in 2000.  I grew up in Danville (a small town in the west side of Indianapolis) and attended school there Kindergarten-High School.  My mom was a Special Education teacher in the district, and Danville is the type of town where everyone knew everyone.  I graduated with about 130 students - so pretty small!  I loved high school & still keep in contact with friends through Facebook & even went to college with my best friend from high school, which was pretty neat!

I don't think we went tanning enough??

I was a good student and hardly remember having much homework.  All of us girls would meet in the cafeteria before school and do our homework together in the mornings, and I don't remember having to do a lot at night.  I loved to read (and still do) and would always have a book in my hand as well.

However, my life in high school was CONSUMED by this:  cheerleading.  I grew up participating in dance, gymnastics and cheerleading so was hopeful I would make the team my freshmen year.  I made Junior Varsity as a freshman and then cheered for Varsity Sophomore-Senior year.  I was super close to the girls I cheered with (one of their moms even made all of our uniforms...now that is talent!)  Cheerleading was the thing to do in my county, and competition cheerleading in the summer was even bigger.  The summer competition squad was another separate team to try-out for, and I made it my freshmen year.  #toetouch #herkie  We competed in numerous competitions all over the state, and even out of state as well.  But the big win for us was taking the county trophy that summer and beating out a squad that had won for years.  Of course now it seems trivial, but we thought we were on top of the WORLD when they announced us as winners!  My husband went to a rival high school just a few miles away (we didn't know each other though) & was actually at that competition watching his high school's squad perform.  #webeatthem #sorelosers  It is crazy to think he was in the audience that night!  

big winners.  

Cheerleading took up a ton of my time, and we would often have practice before school and after school as well.  My first cheerleading coach, Michelle, was the meanest toughest person I have ever met.  Like Jillian Michaels times 1,000 tough.  She was married to a Colts player and had been a Pro cheerleader herself.  You could always bet on about half of the squad either bleeding from falls, or crying by the end of every practice.  But, we were dang good.  Of course Friday nights were spent cheering on the sidelines of football and basketball games...although I still know very little about either sport.  I blame it on not being able to see over the players!  Our football team made it to state my Senior year, which was a huge deal.  I still remember my last high school football game, which was in the RCA Dome for the State title, and wondering if I would cheer for football ever again.  (I ended up cheering in college too - so yay!  Not my last game).  Unfortunately we were killed in the State game #catholicschoolsrecruit so we went home pretty sad.  

Top Right "flyer" 

On my way down.  

Our "before we lost State" smiles.  

Other than cheerleading, I was involved in FCA (Fellowship Of Christian Athletes) & Student Council.  My senior year Danville hosted the State Student Council Convention.  Otherwise known as  a ton of work.  Basically any student council in the state could register, and it was a weekend-long convention/retreat where councils learned about different types of school leadership, did team building activities and just had fun.  We had almost 1,000 students registered for the convention and the theme was "W.O.W."...or We Own The World.  I was in charge of host families for the convention, which meant I had to find hundreds of families in our community to each host several students for the weekend.    They had to be willing to pick their students up Friday night, feed them dinner and breakfast on Saturday and then transport them back to school on Saturday and repeat that night.  It was a TON of work and I remember being excused during numerous classes that Fall so I could work on organizing all of the host families.   Aaaaaaand, I may or may not have chosen the cute boys (each registration packet came with a school picture) to stay at my house.  OOPS!  

I wore my W.O.W shirt OUT.  Just ask Devin.  I just threw it out a few months ago.  

I didn't have much time for an after school job in high school, but I did work at a local car dealership on Saturdays.  I made coffee, answered phones, made appointments for salesmen, and processed new paperwork when vehicles were purchased on Saturdays.  I still can't believe they allowed a high school student to do paperwork like that, but oh well!  It was a great job and I loved the guys I worked with.  This was the time before cell phones, Facebook & texting, so all of us just talked and goofed off during the day.  Some of the salesmen even came to my wedding!  The best part of that job though, was choosing any car to go pick up lunch.  I always chose well.  ;)

Most likely the first & last time I will ever drive a BMW convertible.  

My sales buddies always made me stop by for prom pictures.  

I also worked several class periods during the school day as an office helper and then graded papers for my biology teacher.  I'm not sure how I was able to manage missing several class periods in order to do that, but no one seemed to mind?  The typewriter I used in my office job was pretty sweet too.  

The office workers.  

High School prom.  Ahhh those were the days.  Prom just isn't the same anymore, from what I hear, and like half of the juniors/seniors don't even go I guess!  I went twice my Junior year and once my Senior year.  My junior year I went with a friend, and then again with a guy I worked with who went to another school.  That was a disaster though, and I think I burned those pictures.  My senior year I went with another friend, but I had just started dating my most serious boyfriend (haha, serious boyfriend), Kyle.  I was head.over.heels for him.  Sadly, he had already told someone else he would go to prom with them, so I went with a close guy friend.  BUT, Kyle redeemed himself by calling me one night and telling me to put my prom dress on because he was at my front door.  We took his dad's convertible and went out that night.  Ummm, boyfriend points.  Too bad we broke up right before I left for college & I cried myself to sleep for days.  I remember my dad telling me to get a hold of myself, I was graduating soon, and would find "The One" while in college.  I guess he was right.  ;)  The highlight of my senior Prom was my corsage though.  It was the talk of the night.  It had tiny little lights in it & lit up the dance floor when the lights were off.  Too bad the battery pack it was attached to was so heavy & made me have carpal tunnel by the end of the night.  #beautyispain

I doodled his last name as mine daily.  

Can you see the twinkle lights?  

High School was a fun time for me, and I have a lot of great memories from those four years.  I tell Devin all the time that kids are just different now.  I don't remember kids being mean or bullying others like they do now.  I'm sure it definitely happened, but I wasn't a part of it.  I remember at graduation wondering how college could ever top High School.  Boy, was I wrong.  I loved high school, but not the same kind of love that was given to college.  Maybe that will be another Tuesday topic soon!

Class of 2000

What were you like in High School?!  I would love to hear your stories! 

  

Look For Littles

Once upon time, there was a girl who loved to shop.  She didn't care when, where, or with whom.  It was just fun.  Then, she adopted a baby and didn't shop for herself anymore.   She only shopped for her son.  It didn't matter if it was 2 degrees below zero & they didn't leave the house for days.  Her baby always looked cute.  What if a baby modeling agent came door-to-door looking for new clients?  He had to be ready.  The end.  

A few weeks ago I saw Wifessionals, a mama/blogger that I follow on instagram, announce that she was hosting a Look for Littles swap.  The rules were simple: sign up on her blog, indicating the gender/age of your child & you would be matched with another momma with the same age child.  Then, contact each other, decide how much you want to spend & put together a "look" for their little.  How FUN!  And fun is right up my alley.  Not only would I be able to shop for another precious baby, I would be excited to receive my own special package in the mail!  The "Look" had to consist of a top, bottom, and two accessories (shoes, socks, hat, etc).  I signed up right away & awaited my match!

A few days later I was given the information for my LFL (Look For Littles) match - a sweet mom from Texas!  She has two boys, one a baby close in age to Dane.  We emailed back and forth and discussed size, how much we wanted to spend, and exchanged home addresses.  It was fun chatting with another young mom, even though she was miles away.  We ended up talking about our kids, jobs & just giving advice & encouragement to each other.  @tjwest21 - if I'm ever in Texas, I'm going to look you up!  Maybe we can visit Southfork & pretend we are in Dallas?!

After emailing several times, we both set out to shop!  We mailed our packages the same week & this is what I sent her little guy.  I also included a note for her & some chocolate...because what mom doesn't like coming home to a big Reese Cup?!

The Look she sent Dane is precious!  She included a sweet note to both of us with plenty of y'alls...a true Texan!  I stuck it in Dane's baby book for him to read one day.  And those suspenders?!  No words.  A few days later I received another package from my new momma friend - how sweet!  I especially looooooove the boombox shirt.  Little did she know I am a 90s rapper at heart.

Overrall, the LFL swap was so fun & something I would love to do again!  I got to shop for another little, get something for Dane & make a new friend along the way.  I call that winning.

Where are some of your favorite places to shop for your littles?

When you wish upon a star...or a gold chain.

6:30 am...last Thursday.  My phone rings.  BFF on the other line.  Dream about to come true:

Abs: Hello?
BFF: What are you doing?
Abs: Driving to school.
BFF: What concert would we absolutely die to go to?!
Abs: Nelly. (doy)
BFF: BINGO!  He's going to be Indy this weekend & you and I are going!
Abs: (scream), OK!  Details?! When? Where? How? (trying to keep the car on the road)

Let's back up.  If you know me at all, then you know that I: don't ever put caps on water bottles, I could live off Dunkin' Donuts Iced Coffee & I was born a gangsta.

Nelly encompasses my college career.  Getting ready to go out Friday night?  Blast Ride Wit Me.  In the car with 10 girls to hit up the $1 tanning bed in town?  Crank up Country Grammar.    Shoe shopping?  Air Force Ones for motivation.  I love my St. Louis boy.

Saturday came fast, along with two VIP tickets (thanks, Adrienne), aviator sunglasses & the most ghetto hat I could find.  He, along with Chingy & Murphy Lee put on a GREAT show and both us may or may not have shed some tears when Nelly came on.  Front row.  Gold chains.  Diamond watch.  Otherwise known as paying cash, first class, sittin' next to Vanna White.

The evening shenanigans involved getting stern looks from his HUGE bodyguard, an autographed poster from our St. Louis boys, a 3 am diner breakfast with some drag queens & a 911 call.  Turns out white vans with no windows parked next to you can be a tad scary.

A - thanks for being my rapper wing man...there is no one else I would rather wear a bullet proof vest to a concert with than you (kidding.  Only crossed our minds once.)  And Nelly...thanks for the memories.  I got to cross that off my Life List. (#24)  I'll be blaring your tunes in the car now for the next 10 years days. 

Happy almost weekend...go holla at your friends & make one of your dreams come true!

 

 

Details

Well wishes & big hugs from family & friends.
Mounds of tissue paper.
Buttery soft onesies & fuzzy blankets.
Frosted cupcakes & chocolate dipped Oreos.
Advice from seasoned mamas.
Smiles.  Love.
These details have filled my time the last two weekends.

My Step-Mom & future sister-in-law threw my first baby shower two weeks ago & it was perfect.  These amazing ladies went all out from trail mix-filled baby food jars, to a decorated diaper station.  The house was laced with baby pictures of my family growing up & included a very special of DC & I on the day we officially started the adoption process.  It's the little details that mean so much.  I came home with a car load of baby gifts & feelings of love for this little one who I haven't even met yet.

This past weekend I was once again blessed with another shower thrown by two of my closest college girlfriends.  Almost ten years since graduation (ugh, that is literally painful to type), and as we quoted through texts on Sunday, WE are each other's details.  Forget about fancy clothes, custom-made curtains or the newest electronic device....friendship trumps all of that.  I walked into a house & was surrounded with the smells of fresh coffee & blueberry muffins, gazed at brightly colored decor & peeked inside a Pack N' Play overflowing with gifts.  For my baby.  

Below are the highlights from these wonderful weekends of celebration.

Thank you to Tisha, Jenna, Jennifer & Blair for everything.  If I know anything, it is this.  

This baby is unbelievably loved by so many.  And, the rest...are the details.

If you want to be my BFF...

then you should know some random things about me first.

I never leave caps on water bottles. They are useless. It takes too much time to un-screw them when you want a drink, so they go in the trash as soon as I open a water. Devin just loves this random fact about me...especially when we are in the car and he hits a bump. Although he hardly ever hits bumps because he drives 20 miles UNDER the speed limit.

My wedding gown had a train that was 12 feet long. It came with a color coded map that took 3 people to read in order to bustle. I rocked that train like Princess Di though. I also rocked a major backache after lugging 10lbs+ of extra satin around all night.

This is one of my top favorite places to be. Ever. If I am watching tv, I would rather be laying here than on the couch. When I get up in the morning, I take a shower & then immediately get back under the covers to do my make-up.

I have a very repetitive personality. When I find a new song I love, I will listen to it for 2 weeks straight, on repeat. This thrills my passengers. Same goes for a new meal that I find. I am currently on day 12 of new oatmeal recipe for breakfast. College obsession? How To Lose A Guy in 10 Days in the VHS player 24/7.
I love you, Benny Boo Boo Bear.

This blog almost didn't exist. Because I almost didn't exist. When my mom was pregnant with me, she was driving her Camero at lunch (don't pregnant people & Cameros always go together?) when a semi turned ON TOP of her car and dragged her down the interstate...unknowingly. It shaved off the top of the camero & she somehow wedged herself under the steering wheel during the whole thing. No wonder why my heart starts beating fast when I see one of these bad boys on the road.

Instagram has become my newest obsession. People & pictures are two of my favorite things, so it's a dream come true. I check it at least 100 20 times a day. Follow me at acarter402 & I will follow you!

Perfume is a basic necessity in my house. My job involves hugging people who pick their nose & eat it every day, so I smell like boogers & glue when I get home from school. Dousing myself in perfume is a must.

We adopted a 15 lb ball of fur 6 summers ago. Devin had a summer job that year & I was stuck at home giving up my precious pool time to let a puppy out every hour. Not conducive to my "sleep until noon in the summer" motto. I cried every day & wanted to get rid of her. I got over my post-puppy-pardum depression & like her now. Most of the time.

And, there you have it bloggers & blogettes.
I hope your lives are filled with randomness too!

Let's be BFF's 4ever.
And play MASH together.
My future husbands were always Jonathon Taylor Thomas, Mark Paul Gosselaar, & Jordan Knight.

TTYL. LYLAS.

livin' the dream by theme

I promised myself when I started this blog that I would only write about things that make me happy...nothing sad, depressing, or scary. We have enough of that lurking around in this world. Well...I might blog about scary movies sometime. I love scary movies. Scream, Halloween, Poltergeist - bring 'em all on. But no one will ever watch them with me. Especially this boy, who is currently doing his favorite activity next to me right now.

Good thing he's cute.

Hanover College made me/still makes me happy. I met Husband there, I met Best Friend there & I became Teacher because of this place. (Do you like my usage of "proper nouns" here?) I thought it sounded fun!

Because HC was SO small, there was nothing to do there. Except have theme parties. Just about every weekend. Thus started my enduring love for all things theme.

Probably no caption needed here. But, just in case...we were 80s work out girls & Barbies. I was Bridal Barbie, respectively. I thought it would be cool to run around campus in my mom's old wedding gown. It only caused me to become overheated. You win some, you lose some.

I never really thought about how much I love living in theme until my brother-in-law called me up last year to get some ideas for a 40th birthday party he wanted to have. His exact words were "Abs, I need help with a party. I thought of you because you are only person I know who lives their life by theme." Hey - I'll take it! It's much better than, "You are the only person I know who picks their nose (ew, I don't really!) or "You are the only person I know who never pumps their own gas" Ok, that one's true. I don't pump gas or mow grass, folks. That's what gas station attendants at Swifty (love them!) and Husband is for.

If you can't have fun in Life, what can you do? Not much. I love this quote by Dale Carnegie..."People rarely succeed unless they have fun in what they are doing." I agree. Here are some of my favorite themed parties/days/nights, etc.

80s party for DC's 30th birthday. I went all out 80s style, down to the Nintendo themed cupcakes. Yay Mario & Luigi.

90's rap party for my 30th birthday. 90s rap is a not-so-guilty pleasure of mine. I don't feel bad about loving Nelly, Jay-Z & Eminem...they can always put me in a good mood. Word to your motha.

Royal Wedding party. God save the queen. What better way to watch the Royal Wedding than to dig out your old prom dress (don't worry, I couldn't zip it up in the back), serve tea and crumpits & pretend to talk British all night? Just wait to see what I have in store when William and Kate announce they are expecting.

Twilight midnight showing party. I easily get obsessed with things. Like looking at my wedding photo album at least once a week, going to Kroger everyday, & Edward Cullen. I am fully anticipating a 2-week crying session when the final installment of the Twilight series hits theaters in November.

Heck - even my vacations are themed related. Last year DC & I went on a cruise with friends and we decided to have a white night, followed closely by "jersey day at the pool." I really wanted to wear my all-time favorite player's jersey...Anfernee Hardaway. But, I couldn't find Penny jerseys anywhere. I can only assume that he must be everyone's favorite player as well.

Should I have better things to do with my time than to make t-shirts, bake cakes for a wedding I'm not invited to, or dig out old prom dresses? Yes. DO I have better things to do with my time? Not really. So, go out there friends & soak up some FUN too.

I'll be back soon to talk about my latest obsession. It happens every year around this time...Fall. Oooh, just typing the word Fall makes me want to throw on my baggiest sweatshirt, make a cup of coffee & watch Hocus Pocus.

Have yourself a great day.