One's trash is another's treasure

This is the most unbelievable thing to happen to me since I was on THE VIEW last year and got hooked up with a million awesome baby prizes.
Last night our friend Jason called. He was so excited that he was out of breath. The conversation went a little like this:
JJ (his initials): JEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEN! Our neighbors just threw away a bunch of baby stuff!
ME: Oh, cool!
JJ: No, you don't understand, it's a BUNCH of baby stuff!
ME: Oh?
JJ: We just brought up 6 bags for Kate (their daughter) and we aren't going to have to buy clothes for her for 2 years! We pulled out about 60 outfits for Dean. I'm bringing them over!
ME: Holy cow!
JJ: There are also 2 car seats, 2 swings, a diaper genie, a BRAND NEW Graco high chair and some toys!
ME: WHAT!!? They didn't want Salvation Army to come get them? They'll pick it up!
JJ: I KNOW! I asked and they were throwing it out with their trash! I'm coming over!
ME: Why aren't you here yet!??!

Well, it was better than he said. We have over 50 new outfits that Dean can either wear now or grow into. We have like-new stuff in newborn sizes that I can pass along to my friends TJ and Amy who are expecting a girl baby (eeeeek!) in May. We have a NEW GRACO HIGHCHAIR! I mean, look at this:



















My bed is covered with baby clothes! (Please do not judge ugly bedspread---we are waiting for the really cool comforter we like to go on sale...)
And some of these have designer labels on them! I didn't know people bought designer clothes for their children! There is a Polo shirt for a 12 month old! Look!



















It's the Polo horsey! (No idea why this picture will not be right-side up.)
There were also shoes:














Spit rags (and who couldn't use more of those, right?)














This cool swaddling blanket, which will go to TJ and Amy's baby (lotsa luck figuring out how to use this, y'all!)




















And even 3 Halloween costumes of the Elmo, Pumpkin and Tigger variety.
(No idea why Elmo insists on only posting upside down. My pictures have a mind of their own today...espcially the ones of red items...)





















But the best part? THE EXTENDER PACK FOR OUR PLAYARD! We had already planned on buying this next month when the money tree blooms again and were making-do with the playard as a hexagon. ("Playard" still looks misspelled, doesn't it?) We dreamed of a square playard and only needed the two-piece extender pack to make it happend. Jason walked in and said "Here's two weird looking baby gates." And I almost passed out. I screamed for Marcus, who was burning pancakes in the kitchen. He came down and went "Is that the extender pack?" Then we did a little happy dance and now Jason probably thinks we're nuts. (or did until we explained. Then he was totally excited, too. He didn't dance though.)
Behold square baby jail:














Dean is very excited about his new, expanded play space. Perhaps that is why he refused to go down for his nap until 11:19. ELEVEN NINETEEN, PEOPLE! He better sleep for 3 hours...

Anyway, yesterday was certainly an unexpected blessing. It was like Christmas around here. I spent the morning washing all the new baby duds, so the house smells like Dreft. (not a bad thing...better than burned pancakes.)
Hope everyone's having a good Monday!

Happy Happy, Joy Joy

My cousin Heather "tagged" me on her blog to write about six things that make me happy. That will not be hard and feels like a good thing to do on a Sunday morning.

1. Dean. He's better than I could have ever expected my child to be. I love him in a way I never understood was possible until he was here. He's nine months old today and it's hard to remember what my heart felt like before he was here. He amazes us every day with his new skills and bright smile. Good things do, indeed, come in small packages.














2. Marcus. I could not have picked a better life-partner, father for my child, or best friend. He is the perfect blend of goofiness and sensibility. He's practical and patient. And he makes really good tacos.














3. Weekends. Working in the theatre, weekends are usually the busiest time of your week, since you usually have two shows on Saturday and a matinee on Sundays. (Our day off is usually Monday) I had honestly forgotten how good it felt to have two whole days to just do what you wanted to do. Since moving to Montevallo, we've enjoyed our weekends SO much. We get up early (thank you, Dean) and visit garage sales, parks or community events. We watch football and eat good food. On Sundays, we read the paper, clip coupons, eat donuts and do our shopping. Today, we'll be planting an herb garden. I do love this slow, southern life.

4. Coffee. OH, how I love coffee. I totally lost my taste for it while I was pregnant, but am very much back on the bandwagon now. I wish I had back all the money I spent at Starbuck's while I worked at Lincoln Center, but oh, well.

5. The outdoors. I didn't grow up in a particularly "outdoorsy" family, but I have come to really appreciate the great outdoors. In New York, you are outside a lot by necessity, since you pretty much have to walk everywhere you go. Also, you apartment is so small that you will often do ANYTHING to just get out of there! I spent a lot of time in Central Park when I lived there. I would also sometimes get off the subway one stop early to walk and explore new neighborhoods. Now that we're in Alabama, we're enjoying the parks and downtown areas and are hoping to get out and hit some of the hiking trails this fall. And, of course, we like to spend time in outdoor football arenas. ;)

6. Christmas. This year's gonna be better than ever!!!!!!!!!!!

Remember me?

Wow. I can't believe it's been so long since I posted. This summer is kicking my tail, y'all. I love my job, but I'm struggling with parts of it this summer. Let me tell you a little about what I do. (Several people have asked--thanks for being interested!) I'm currently in my summer gig at Theatre West Virginia, where I am Production Stage Manager (PSM). In a nutshell, it's my job to make sure everything runs smoothly, both on and off stage. I am a mother-hen, disciplinarian, drill sergeant, confidante, teacher, leader, and many other things. I love my job. LOVE it. It's the only thing I've ever found that allows me to use all of my brain. I get to use my problem-solving skills, personality, people-skills, organization, trouble-shooting, creativity and so many other things. I get to dabble in all parts of the production, not just one. I get to be there from start to finish on a project. During rehearsal, the stage manager takes down blocking, which is every move the actors make. We track all the props, set pieces and costumes, then when we tech the show, all the light and sound cues and put them together in what's called a prompt book. The stage manager calls the show during performances, meaning nothing goes until the stage manager says GO. We sit on a headset in a booth with the sound and light board operators and call every cue in the show, including scenery shifts, etc. SO, it's a big job, but so much fun. I adore it. (most days) Part of being PSM is also dealing with the day-to-day issues that arise and supervising the technical staff. This summer has been a bit trying. Without going into specifics, I'll just tell you that there have been more issues than usual and we've added a fourth show to our season, so figuring out the Jenga-game that is scheduling has been rough on all of us. On top of all this, I'm juggling motherhood for the first time, and Dean is absolutely my top priority. I am emotionally and physically pretty drained right now. Cinderella (the third of our four shows) opened on Tuesday and the weekend leading up to opening was quite demanding. We did three dress runs on Monday, our last ending at 1:30am. I was so hyped up on coffee at the end of it that I stuck around the theatre and helped out in the costume shop for a while before heading home. I FINALLY learned to use a sewing machine! Fun times.

Cinderella opening was a good night, which I needed. It's easy to get discouraged when things get really hard, especially when you have so many balls in the air. I was about ready to throw in the towel, then something happened during the show that reminded me why I do what I do. There's a part in Cinderella where the Godmother makes the house disappear, turns two mice into a coachman and a footman, turns a pumpkin into a golden carriage and turns Cinderella into a beautiful princess. We use a body double so Cinderella's quick change is instantaneous. Well, when that golden carriage rolled onto the stage, about 300 little girls in princess costumes stood up and squealed and clapped and got the most amazed looks on their faces...and it was magical. It's so easy to get wrapped up in the little things and daily grind that you forget that magical feeling you once felt that made you want to do this for the rest of your life. I remembered why I do theatre and why I love it so much. I am so thankful to have had that moment to remind me.

Dean is doing wonderfully. He loves being the company baby and getting passed around all the time. When he's with us on show nights, the girls all line up to kiss him for luck before they go onstage. One day last week, he fell asleep with about 20 lipstick marks on his face. At his six-month checkup last week, he weighed in at a whopping 18 1/2 lbs! (no wonder our backs hurt all the time!) He started solids, which has been very entertaining. So far, we love everything except green beans. I'll post pictures of the horrid messes we have made very soon. Right now I have to go scrub sweet potato puree off the couch. ;)

Prepare to melt

Look who started smiling!

Have we told you lately that we love him?

Happiness is...

This little guy smiling at you at 6am. You don't even care that he won't let you go back to sleep and you just have to read him a story. :)