News from The Woods

Well, this has been a long time coming. I am going to try to squeeze this blog in before Sleeping Beauty wakes up from her golden slumbers. I am starting rather late into her napping time slot. Sooooo, I'll just type until I hear her start to whisper her sweet nothings through the monitor. Usually by me just thinking that wakes her up. You moms know what I mean. Your thoughts jinx your peace and quiet. So I will wait for a second............................................................okay. I'm still good.



So, what's new in life in the Woods? Well, as you can see from the above picture. I am now the proud honorary mommy of 5 precious baby birdies. They live out on our front porch. I just love having them there. I love seeing them all nestled in tight during a rain storm. I love hearing them tweet away while I am on the computer. They looked like they were about to jump out of the nest yesterday. I wasn't ready for it! So I kept knocking on the window so they would hunch back down. I am so nervous for them! At night, the mommy sleeps in the nest with all of the babies, and daddy sleeps on the other column. I was thinking maybe he got the "couch" that night. Five kids though. He's smart for sleeping on the couch.

Ava has a couple of news stories. First and foremost: We have pig tails. Yes, all you "my child could be in a Pantene ad" mommies. I know. These aren't pig tails. But I have waited for 19 months for this child to grow hair. At our house, they are pig tails.

Ava also is finally getting two new bottom teeth. I was starting to think she was going to be a little hillbilly for life. Those teeth were never going to come in! I scared the living day lights out of her last night. I took a peek and screamed "Ava! There they are!" Poor thing started balling.

This isn't new. Ava has always played her own version of dress up. And yes, she has underwear around her neck. About 10 pairs of 'em. And she leaves them on. I call them her "mink wrap." Ava keeps her mink wrap on until it has to come off for her bath. It's just what happens. If I have to go in the closet for something, my little shadow is right behind me ready to open drawers. Getting her out temper tantrum free requires her to exit with a full ensemble of her mink wrap, Ugg boots, a few bracelets, and sometimes a headband or two. What can I say? I pick my battles. And I am also fully aware that someday soon, my child will be the one in Walmart dressed just like this. And I will hold my head up high. I might be wearing sunglasses, a hat, and a trenchcoat, but my head will be held high.

Ava's new tent was moved from our guestroom to the living room for a couple of days. Ohhhhh I had to just suck it up and ignore the voices in my head saying "Emily, owner of the cleanest, most organized, most labled house on the block....your living room has a TENT in it!" I had to get the voices to stop so Ava could enjoy herself, so I cleaned the kitchen. I'm really not that bad. Most of the time. Sometimes. Every once in awhile.

And here is the Naughty Chair. This baby is new....ish. This darling little chair was a yellow potty chair that my dad used when he was little. Then it became a red potty chair that my brother and I used. And now, it is a green naughty no-longer-to-be-pottied-in chair that Ava will use daily I am sure. Here, Ava's books are taking a time out. Lots of things visit the naughty chair. Elmo Live has had a visit. Daddy's shoes have had a visit. Ava has had many voluntary visits (just because this chair is so cool.) I introduced it to Ava weeks ago.

Then yesterday, it happened.

Ava was throwing toys over her head. There seems to be something incredibly fascinating about throwing something and having it end up on the floor behind you. Farm animals, okay. But when she started to reach for her grocery cart, I thought I would nip it in the bud. So Keith and I both told her multiple times to stop throwing her toys. She gave us the look and did it again. I very casually asked her, not really thinking she was going to know what I was talking about, "Ava? Do you need to go to the naughty chair?" What did the little know-it-all do? She walked over to that naughty chair and sat herself down. I wanted to just buy her a pony.

Happy belated Mother's Day to all you mommies. A special one to those who are first-time Mother's Day mommies.

Thanks for reading.

Well, there you have it...

Do you know him?

Be sure to mute the music on my blog....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=upGCMl_b0n4

The Table.

Hold on to your seats! This is a story about triumph, completing the ol' 180 degree turn, and arising out of the rubble. Imagine yourself feeling hopeless....all is lost. You need to be saved. You are beaten down and feeling like life is worthless. You are practically trash waiting to be picked up and thrown into a pile of life's sad, worn down rejections. Now...if you can even come close to imagining this dark place with no hope for light at the end of the tunnel...then you can get a mere glimpse of how it felt.

Meet.....

The Table.

Yes, friends...I, Emily Wood, went dumpster diving. Actually, it wasn't really dumpster diving per se....it was more trash tip-toeing, pile picking, or even better -- curb consigning. And you should have seen me doing it. You probably would have laughed. Here's the dramatic low-down.

I have been on the hunt for a new table/desk for my new little impromptu craft area that is nestled cozily in our guest bedroom. Up until the birth of my new table, I have had a huge, heavy, monster of a table. You know, the ones that have the fold down legs. You usually see them displaying garage sale items on someone's driveway. Well, I made it work. I covered it with fabric and dressed it up a bit. Blah blah blah. It was still ugly. But, getting a new table for that space was on our priority list...okay, my priority list...right above organizing the garage, which falls at #216. It just wasn't something that was going to happen very soon. So, one early evening, it was a Tuesday to be exact. The sun was setting into a horizon that was filled with shades of lavender and mauve, the temperature sat at a pleasant 62 degrees (I don't know, I just made that up), and the house was filled with a screaming hungry 18 month old sassy pants -- that's why I decided to take her out in her stroller for a walk. And it was the walk that changed the fate of The Table. I'm walking, walking, walking, and as I near the end of the street, there is was. It was lifeless and hidden among the rest of the trash. It was one of those moments when you see someone you think you might know and you want to stare until you can figure it out but you don't want to get caught staring. Yeah. I stared at that table and looked away. Stared, looked away. I didn't want anyone to see that I was checking out this person's pile of rubbish. So, I did a U-ey and checked it out again. It was covered in dust, stains, it was missing a leg...it was gonna to be a project. I didn't get a close look at it but I saw enough that I walked a little bit faster to get home so I could tell Keith about my life changing event.


Long story longer. I slept on it. I would wake up frequently in a panicked night sweat imagining my table out in the cold night air. It was all alone. Should I go get it now? It's 2am..hm....but please, I didn't want to seem obsessive! So I laid back down and continued to imagine what things would be like with The Table in my life.

The next morning, Ava and I went on another leisurely walk. I suddenly felt the urge to get in touch with nature, visit with the birds, soak in the early morning sun if you will. And I managed to find myself back in front of the same pile of trash. I don't know how I got there, seriously. I just followed Ava as she rode in the stroller. The table was still there. It was like it had been untouched. It had made it though the night only looked upon by the angels. But, ladies and gentlemen, I had no time to contemplate any further. Not only could I hear the faint rumble of our garbage truck friends, I saw in the distance a white pick up truck coming in my direction. I turned away pretending to enjoy the breeze on my face but it didn't help the truck disappear. He pulled up right behind me! If I were Hercules-woman, I would have thrown The Table over my shoulder and ran. But I couldn't. Somehow, I had to get back to my car and back down the the curb before my white pickup corner consigner stole my treasure. I had no time to think. I turned that stroller around and ran like my pants were on fire. I ran in my flip flops with a jogging stroller as Ava screamed out "yee-haw!" It was a sight. I threw Ava in the carseat (that is an exaggeration, people), started the car, and drove without looking back. I may have peeled out in the middle of the street, I don't know. Maybe there are tire marks. I popped the back gate up on my SUV, ran over to the table, picked it up, and slid it in. This all happened in about 45 seconds. That man in the white pickup didn't know what hit him! That was because he was also not in his truck. I think he lived next door. But that is beside the point now! He could have been telling all of his friends about this awesome table on his next door neighbor's curb.

So, as I am driving 2.7 mph down the street with a highly confused toddler, I see it....was I dreaming? In another person's trash pile, probably 6 more houses down the street was the FOURTH LEG. The FOURTH LEG TO MY TABLE. The choirs were singing, I'm telling you. So, I pull up my driveway, turn off the car, and ran like the fire in my pants was still raging. I grabbed the leg and made it back to base. I pulled the table out and put it in the garage where I could protect it from the rummaging world. And then I logged in all of my running time on our Wii Fit so I wouldn't get in trouble for missing a day to re-construct my table. Now, take a breath. And if you have a Wii Fit, you can now log in your time for reading this blog. Good work!


So...it is done. Thanks to my wonderful hubby, a few sheets of sand paper, a couple of blocks of wood, 2 coats of paint that nearly stained my hands black, and a layer of clear coat glaze, I have me a dandy craft table. You wanna know what it cost me? $3.50. The cost of my clear coat that was on clearance. Yeah. I'm psyched.

The moral of the story? Don't wear flip flops while your running with a 23lb. toddler. AND, don't ever pass up an opportunity like this one! You'll wish you hadn't!

Now...I wish I was crafty, then I could actually use this table. KIDDING! I have already hot glued egg shakers on this thing! And it didn't collapse. Now that's impressive.

Thanks for reading. Now go to your own local curb consignment sale. It may even be right next door.

I'm such a Mommy...

"You know you are a Mommy when...."

By Emily K. Wood, Inspired by Ava Claire Wood

You know you are a Mommy when...

- you put your coffee mug in the microwave at 8am. At 5pm, your husband comes home and says to the beeping microwave "Honey, your coffee is ready."

- after the dog barks you say "Baby, you're okay."

- you contemplate not putting your sweet tumbling toddler in the church nursery because you know they will call CPS when they see her little bruised legs.

- you go to the store by yourself and tell the empty shopping cart to "hold on, Mommy just needs to grab something off of the shelf."

- you get back home from the store and just realize that you enjoyed an entire episode of Elmo in the car all by yourself.

- you get up at 7:00am to leave the house to go somewhere by 9:00am only to pull down the driveway at 10:00am.

- you want to declare April 8th a national holiday because the Costco down the road finally opened.

- you take your shirt off at the end of the day and find 3 goldfish crackers in your bra.

- you open the Goldfish cracker bag and find in it a strategically placed pink bracelet, plastic sheep, and a broken crayon.

- you determine how good your day was based on the number of temper tantrums your spirited child had (or how many you had...).

You know you are a Mommy when...

- you feel like you might need to go to the ER after laughing so hard.

- you stop in the middle of the mall and cry because for no reason known to you, your sweet baby gave you a hug.

- you melt because your little lamb said her first "Amen" after a nightly prayer.

- you stare at the baby monitor about to go to sleep and wait until you see a foot twitch, a belly move, or a finger budge...when you see something...anything...then you can go to bed.

- you can't stop staring at God's amazing creation and wonder "How on earth did He do that?"

------------------------------------------

"Come on, Bubba..."

"I SAID come ON, Bubba!"

"Fine. I will take my other puppy for a walk then."

"Okaaaaay...let's go!"

So Ava has started to break dance. Yes, friends. Break dance. She will start out my doing her signature tap routine as she says "Duz, duz, duz" (that is Ava-nese for "Dance"). Then she will proceed to sit down on the floor and spin in circles. She will roll, she will flail her arms, she will belly flop. She does it all. And she thinks she is just the greatest at it, too.

Taking a break.

Thanks for reading.

Emmy K and her 5K...

So when I was in Jr. High School, I joined the track team. I have no idea why. Maybe it was because all of my friends did it. Or, maybe it was because I wanted the privilege of wearing shorts and a tank top at school. Or, maybe it was because on meet days, we got out of school early. It certainly wasn't because I enjoyed any aspect of getting the exercise. You see, I played soccer, and to me, that was enough physical exertion for one week. I remember being a nervous wreck before each meet. I would get sick to my stomach and nearly have a panic attack. It had gotten so bad once that I had to call my dad to come pick me up -- I never ran that race. I never "placed" in any of my races. And mind you, I ran the 800m. That's twice around the track, friends. Twice. 1-2-done. Then something happened to me in college. I had an epiphany. What? Exercise is good for you? Now, at times I did take it a little too far. But little by little, I actually began to enjoy getting my pulse up. I always did it on my own time though. The "Bear Trail" at Baylor became my best friend. And low and behold, Jillian from The Biggest Loser did make daily appearances on my TV in my living room after Ava was born. So although fitness began to play a bigger part in my life, as well as Keith's, I never had any interest in running a "race." Flashback again to Jr. High -- I had no interest in losing my lunch over a couple of laps.

This weekend, I overcame that. And now I want more. I rarely brag on myself (on purpose). But for the first time in a long time, I am truly proud of what I accomplished. Yes, I'm proud of running my first 5K, yes I am proud of myself for working up to the point of being able to run it at a good time, and yes I am proud that I am digging out "garage sale" clothes because I never thought I would wear them again. But I am mostly proud because I did something that always made me scared, I did it well, and I want to do it again and again and again. And instead of calling my Dad beforehand because I just couldn't bear to run it, I called him afterwards, to tell him I finished. So, stay tuned. There will be more.

Before the race: So remember when I mentioned in my last blog that I wanted to bet a bubble for Ava? Well -- here it is! No more stomach bugs! There are slots in it for food and water. J/K! Like I had to say that! Of all mornings, the Lord in Heaven above decided to make this one a cold one. I actually think the wind at times helped me out. That's what He was up too. Tryin' to help his girl OUT!

The finish line. Not gonna lie...I was not wishing I had taken the 10K route. Maybe next time.

Next time I run, I'm gonna get me a hat like my friend in the green jacket here. I would be the coolest. Did I just say "coolest?" Aye, aye, aye.

Now here's some of my sweet pumpkin pie...

Ava has started to laugh at almost everything (and she has also gotten really good at throwing temper tantrums...Momma's making a time out chair. It will then be in stand-by mode.) But even if Keith or I just laugh, Ava will laugh, too. She doesn't want to be left out! Sometimes it is literally a "HA!" and then she's done. She's pretty hysterical. I can't wait to hear all of the funny things that come out of her mouth. She does call Elmo "Elbow." Yeah...that's pretty cute.

Daddy would be so proud. Look at how she has her cars all lined up so perfectly! I know! I did that!

Sassy LOVES her "joo joo." She has completely emptied out my jewelry box. If our closet door is open, she is in there, putting on her jewelry and high heels.

I showed Ava that she could put her "Super Friends" (as we call them) on the window sill. Now she is ALWAYS in her little corner playing with them. As soon as her feet touch the ground after breakfast, she goes over there and says "Hey!" and plays and plays and plays.

"What?"

Thanks for reading.

The Bug

Hold on. Give me a second to listen to this silence. *sigh* I just have to soak that in. Breeeeathe in the peace and quiet and allow it to become a part of me. Ooooooooooooom.

Now, why did I need to do that? Three words: Ava, stomach, and virus. Yeah. She got it. You know, I've gotten pretty good at blowing bubbles. I wonder if I could blow one big enough for Ava to live in. She would be just like a little hamster, running around in her ball protected from everything. I don't know where she got The Bug from. But it was almost a week ago and we are just starting to get over it. Yes, I said we. You mommas know, when baby is sick, Momma is sick. Let's recap! Okay!

So, last Tuesday, Adrian and I were on our way to a play date. We were already frustrated because we got lost. Much like us, my sweet baby was just not happy. I don't blame her. But not 30 seconds after I turned around to her in the back seat and gave her a very stern "Ava, that is enough" -- it started. My poor pumpkin's virus introduced itself into our lives. And it went on, and on, and on. From Tuesday to Saturday. And although her body is doing better, she is just not herself. I miss my sweet Sassy. So, now she is sleeping. But we spent the morning screaming (I screamed in my head only...don't worry). Poor thing even screamed as she ate her waffle. It is absolutely pitiful.

On the plus side, and through the tears, Ava now says, "Apple," "sticker," "ouchie," and "poopoo." Yes, friends, The Bug taught us many things.

So I say while a shake my head and smile, while we were uh, "cleaning up", my mom was cruising in her new BMW and my in-laws were in Italy. How is that for pay back? : )

Oh well....through it all we continue to be so blessed.

Thanks for reading and allowing me to wallow in my self pity.

Playing Catch-up

Suddenly I have Neil Diamond's voice in my head..."Hello, My Friend, Hellooooooo." Keith will be so excited! He is secretly his #1 fan. Not so much a secret anymore. Sorry, Honey. But all that to say, "Hello, again!" This message is being brought to you from my warm bed. I am snuggled in nice and cozy. It's rainy, it's cold, it's gloomy and dark (even though the sun is technically up). It's also garbage pick-up morning, which means I am constantly looking at the baby monitor screen waiting for the noise to disrupt my sleeping angel's sweet dreams. So far, so good.

So let's just give an overall update. Let's see...

Last week, I took Ava to the Children's Museum (why do I always have to spell check that word!?!) Our dear friends Adrian and Jenna joined us and I am SO glad they did. I lost my mind in that place and wouldn't have had them to help me find it! It was an absolute mad house. It didn't help that the event was free. Nor did it help that my little Sassy is so, shall we say, adventurous. If you put her down, she is off. She is an explorer. She is a natural born little Miss Independent. And when there are hundreds of other screaming children and their parents (sometimes screaming, too), it is hard to keep up! I got a work out. But as always, after it's all said and done, these experiences are so worth it. After all, when Ava gets out and does these things it wears her out! (translation in Em-glish: Sassy takes a long nap. Mommy gets an afternoon of peace). We missed Daddy and wished he could have joined us.

How about an update on Daddy? He deserves the spot light! He has just been working so hard for us. I tell you, when he comes home, Ava squeals like a little piggy and just charges at him. That is the best! She loves her Daddy so much. When I am finishing cooking dinner, the two of them cuddle and watch "Max and Ruby" together on Noggin. He is such a good Daddy. And a devoted Wii-er nonetheless! This guy is on something like day #71 on the Wii Fit. He has only taken a handful days off on that thing. I am on day....well let's just say my little "Mii" is sleeping when you pull up the main menu (which I do get a little offended by since I am in the treadmill when Keith is on the Wii. Why doesn't my Mii know that?!) Anyway, go Wii-Fitty Keith! There....if Keith ever becomes a rap star, that'll be his name. "Wii-Fitty."

So, I sent in Ava's picture into Regis and Kelly for the beautiful baby search. Would you know that they didn't choose my baby as a finalist? What?!?!? Yeah. I'm okay. Each day gets better and better and I continue to get stronger.That's why I am really in bed. I am depressed. Kidding! But I am watching waiting for them to flash her picture on the screen among the 300,000 others that were sent in. Next year, friends. It's ours! Confession. I did actually answer most of the "unavailable" or solicitor-ish phone calls just in case it was my friend Regis telling me that she had been chosen. I had a few less Sonic Happy Hour trips just in case they called while I was gone. I had all of my outfits planned out for NY. Bummer. Bubble busted.

Speaking of NY. You may have noticed that I have had a timeline counting us all down to my debut on The Price is Right. That trip for now, has been unfortunately postponed. Date to be determined. You know, honest truth, we have had to do a lot of prioritizing around here. And yes (*grumble*grumble*) my Butterfly Boogie has not been effected by this act of prioritizing. It's still on. But anyway, I digress. A dear dear friend of mine is getting married in October in New York City. So, bet your bottom dollar we are planning on going. Sooooooo, LA will have to wait. Please please please pray that California is still there later on down the road. And although I do prefer my Bob Barker, please please please pray that Drew and The Price is Right are still on the air. So hopefully we will be able to stay in NY for a few extra days and enjoy our time in the city. We were there for our first anniversary (*clearing throat and coughing* When I sang at Carnegie Hall with my college choir....*cough* featured as a soloist *cough* cough*...phew! excuse me!). So, I am pretty pumped about going again. And Keith, boy is he excited! I told him we could drive up to visit our friends at Orange County Choppers. We met Mikey when we went last time and saw Paul and Paul Jr. driving away (with a camera man in the front seat). Yeah, we were such groupies. But now they have a huge new shop/factory that you can walk through and watch the bikes get fabricated. So, he's all about going.

Well, my little turkey is starting to move around so I am anticipating that she might be ready to take on the day pretty soon. I mean, it's 9:30am! Something about the rain...I need to get a rain CD for her room and get her off of that lullaby music! The CD is starting to do funky things from going so much. But, then again, I suppose I do the same thing.

Enjoy the pictures!

Thanks for reading.

Ava LOVES to read! Here she was telling Daddy all about Moses.

She was actually quite comfortable apparently.

Ava and Jenna taking a refreshment break at the Children's Museum.

The Children's Museum is on the Texas State Fair grounds. I've actually been on that thing twice.

There must have been something good down there.

Partners in crime.

This afternoon I took Ava to the Galleria to play. She's started to say "Whoa" a lot. Sure enough, as soon as she grunted her way up onto this zebra, she was saying "Whoa!"

This is a fine example of Ava's signature response to "Ava, smile for the camera!" She always closes her eyes. I guess she anticipates the flash. Silly girl!

Although it's blurry, Ava is signing "All done." So, at that point I had to do as my boss told me and was all done taking pictures.