Home SWEET home!

We've been going full speed since we pulled into Whispering Wind Dr. (I love that name, it's heavenly & so fitting for Spring!) Driving here felt like going to Disney World, we were like two little kids(plus one real one) who couldn't wait on any longer to ride Splash Mountain. When we hit Kentucky it was like the gates of heaven opened up! The sun shone brighter, the air felt crisper and man I didn't even know it was possible to fall in love with grass till then but I did;it's just so green or blue since it's Kentucky after all! I love Spring! I can't say that enough and realize I have a few times already! :) North Carolina is my home. I think that might be the first real time I've said that, made it real, official, because deep down I've always longed for Florida's sunny weather...but I don't belong there anymore, my world, my life and more importantly my heart resides in a little place called Pffaftown and after what felt like an eternity in nowhere ville I am so happy to be home!

It saddens me to report there are no men in tights living in this neighborhood(at least in public!) :)

We went and visited AnMamma yesterday where Lily taught her to play the pick up game!

And there it goes!

:) She loves that game!

They also looked through baby books because A: Lily loves babies and I'm convinced she thinks she's a grownup! and B: So we could all gaze in amazement once again how much Lily and Chad look alike!

Mostly we just basked in the great-grandchild love our baby received and realized that Dorothy was right there really is no place like home! (even if your only there for a week!) :)

All that and a little bit of hair touch up by my awesomely amazing Sista in law! The BLONDE is BACK in TOWN!

This picture is for Julie who's Alien hair experiment I put online awhile back! LOVE YOU!!

Oh and you Floridians don't you fret!! TAMPA is and always will be in my heart!! I am so excited to get back and see each and every one of you...and go too the beach! ;)

Light at the end..

                                         We are packed!! Can I get a WOOHOO!!
 Now I don't want to give Omaha a bad rap because it has it's charms and maybe if we had been here during the Summer we might have found them...but for us it has been nothing but dead trees, LOTS of snow, freezing temperatures and well the reminder that we're just a tad bit spoiled(we've spent the last two Winters in SUNNY Florida!) On the plus side Omaha has great food!  Well except for Mexican which is my FAVORITE so I'm a little disappointed in that area BUT I would like to point out Grisanti's because they serve the best Italian food I've ever eaten and considering that I'm a bonafide expert on the stuff(having both Italian & Sicilian in my blood) I'd say that's pretty damn good! Chad is still convinced that my family only eats pasta! :) Omaha does have a fantastic Zoo that Lily really loved and has both an indoor Desert and Rain forest which is super cool! The Zoo also has an awesome Aquarium center with a really cool tunnel that well I'll let the pictures speak for themselves.....

These pictures don't really do it justice, the indoor Rain forest was really beautiful!

One of my favorite pictures of those two EVER!

                                            Um Daddy where'd ya go?

    Here fishy fishy...

I have a serious obsession with Meerkats!! I think this little guy wanted to come home with me! :)


We leave on Saturday and it can not get here quick enough! I'm so ready to see flowers,leaves on trees, and hear birds chirping..I'm even looking forward to hearing that pesky woodpecker doing his thing at 6am cause it's a sign of life and I miss life! lol Spring is one of my favorite seasons, especially now that I've experienced a REAL Spring(Florida's Spring means it's just not as hot as Summer yet)  I can't wait to see Lily decked out in her Easter best! I can't wait to eat lots of Easter candy, wear frilly dresses and break out my strappy sandals..I can't wait to be BLONDE again!I can't wait for beach days, cookouts, the sweet smell of hamburger sizzling on the grill, and ice cold beer(now that I can drink it again)I can't wait for lake days and being out on the boat with the fresh air flowing through my hair! I look forward to a very much anticipated Wine festival cause Momma is getting her groove back ya'll! haha I can't wait to break out all my tank tops and shorty shorts, FLIP FLOPS I have missed you! I can't wait to see Cherry Blossoms and tulips which are becoming favorites of mine...although no flower tops my LILY! :) I'm so excited for all the things coming up this season including one phenomenal cake smashing photo shoot and my sweet dolls first birthday!! Yeah Spring is gonna be good...See ya later Omaha because I need more of this:

and this too...

and a whole lot less of this:

Spring is nature's way of saying, "Let's party!"  ~Robin Williams (I always liked that guy)

                                

Shh...I'm not wearing green!

We just got home from dinner where I wore a bright yellow shirt...on St. Patty's Day! GASP! You would think by the way people were staring at me as I walked through the restaurant that I ran over they're dog or something...I say pish posh to you once a year Irishmen/women drinking your green beer today, a REAL Irishman would never ruin a perfectly good beer with that crap! ;)   Anyways here is my wee little Irish Lass all decked out in her green holiday best (one of us had to be)!!

We were practicing our wind swept model look..girl is gonna Vogue it up one day! :)



She is also in love with her new toy, why we didn't buy this for her a long time ago I have no clue...but my wee one is a speed racer! Move over Danica Patrick there is a new girl in town!

One more because well she's pretty freaking cute!!

Now that's what I call a good St. Patty's Day!

Eh..it's Monday!

We never made it to California Tacos and More, instead we ended up at Cantina La Redo..HELLO strong Margarita's! :)

Okay so technically that isn't the margarita I had but that is definitely where I would like to be drinking said Margarita! I'm a Florida girl born and raised and this Omaha weather is no bueno! What makes it worse is since January my girlfriends have been hitting the beach and laying out by the pool while I'm stuck bundled up in 0 degree weather. Only two more weeks though so to counteract the dreariness till then Lily and I have been dressing in what Chad calls our "Florida colors" the brighter the better baby!

She was just catching up on her reading! Oh and notice the bright yellow and pink, which might just be hints to her birthday colors...:)

Which by the way is 41 days away!! Planning is in full effect and even though I know I'm gonna be a sobbing mess that day I think I'm pretty excited as well! It really is true what they say about time flying fast...This time last year I was a super pregnant bridesmaid and now I'm the mother of this amazing lil being who is growing up more and more everyday while I cry out inside "stay little forever"...41 days..

The Rainbow

This week was rough, and for a second there I didn't think we were gonna make it! But just like every storm eventually the rain passes and sometimes if your lucky a rainbow appears; our rainbow is the weekend!

Friday started off with a lovely trip to BrewBurgers, our first stop on an adventure packed weekend we've labeled Diners Drive In and Dives(mostly because we're obsessed with that show and Brew has been on it). Chad had a Southwestern Texas burger which would be delish if you like jalapenos and onion strings both of which I do not so moving on...;) I had the Inside Out burger which was stuffed with cheddar cheese and chopped bacon with a healthy topping of bbq sauce on top...that burger and I had a moment!!  I would like to take a second now to talk about my food obsession, Chad jokes that food might be more important in my life than he is..I mean it is recommended for survival, just saying..but seriously I LOVE food!! I realize that I'll never be a skinny minnie because of that and I'm totally cool with it because those girls never have fun anyways! Then the little one and I were off to do some shopping and head to Barnes and Noble's which is slowly becoming our Friday ritual where we play with the trains, make friends and read books. We also went to Kohls(which rocks my socks, love that place!) and Once Upon A Child...UM anyone that knows me knows that I am super obsessed with that store, if I won the lottery I would buy my own store just to go there and shop. I never understood( though I've been guilty of it too) when parents go out and spend 60 bucks on an outfit that was literally made with a spool of thread; an outfit the child will probably only wear once! Again I love that place and if your in the market to buy Lily a birthday present we accept gift cards! ;) The night ended with movies and dinner in with a sweet, much needed glass(or two) of wine! So far so good!

Ahhh BLISS...Chad took Lily to work for a little while this morning which WOULD be the perfect time for me to catch up on all the sleep I missed but as luck would have it I was already awake! So I took an extra long shower where I got to shave my legs in peace and just bask in the heat whereas I'm usually trying to rush back out because that girl does not like when someone else takes a bath in her bathtub and she makes it known! I even got to read my magazine without having to cower into the bathroom in fear of her destructive behavior..Brad proposes to Chantal say it ain't so USWeekly I'm team Emily!! Oh and when they got home a few minutes ago I got the best hug, because my girl, well she's a bonafide hugging machine! After her morning nap we're off to eat at another Diner's place(there seem to be a lot in Omaha actually) called California Taco's and More and I can not wait because Mexican food and I have a deep appreciation for each other! Then...well we will figure that out as we go, that's the beauty and adventure of it which after this week is exactly what we need!


P.S. I do realize this weekend is not good for my waistline but as Julia Childs so dearly put it "The only time to eat diet food is while your waiting for the steak to cook"  A woman after my own heart I tell ya!

Punching the Tooth Fairy..

Somebody has to be blamed for this teething mess and I vote her! Today's post was going to be about the awesome Zoo we visited here in Omaha but the real world creeped in instead...

I could see it in her eyes first, the glossy pain stained baby blues that reached out to me as if she was saying fix me and broke my heart because in reality there wasn't much I could do. So I held her warm body against mine recalling the moment after she was born in the hospital when they layed her on my chest, both of us running fevers and just praying that it would pass. I'm pretty sure the Doctor thinks I'm crazy by the way considering that I've called her 3 times already "Are you sure teething can make her have such high fevers?" "Yes Ms. Philipsen I'm sure" Well what do you know Dr. who attended school for this!? My baby is dying, she told me so during her three hour cry fest last night. See that's the side of Motherhood not too many people tell you about the one that isn't just rainbows and giggles, it's more about lying motionless so that she doesn't wake back up and sleeping with one eye open just in case..It's praying that the next time she bites down on your nipple it won't hurt as bad and hoping that she doesn't throw it back up again..It's feeling guilty because as much as you wish love could make her feel better it just doesn't..it helps but doesn't take the pain away and as a mom that's the worse feeling! It's taking turns bouncing her in the dark, singing every song in your repertoire hoping you'll land on one that will calm her down(Smile is what works for us).

Smile though your heart is aching, well we're trying today to do just that...I did get a great big ol laugh when I stubbed my toe this morning maybe it was the recognition that we were now in pain together..that or me being in pain is funny! note to self: stub other toe...You know the kicker in this whole teething mess is that those cute little top teeth that we're waiting on haven't even showed their ugly heads yet(after two days of relentless pain and suffering and I'm just referring to myself! lol) So that brings me again to the idea of punching the tooth fairy..either that or I'm going to invest in baby dentures..no seriously...

My gypsy soul story.

I've been meaning to start this blog for awhile now and thanks to the encouragement of those around me including my best friend/cousin Julie(who campaigned for it often) and my sister no longer in law Brenna lol(who came up with the name) I've finally decided to take the plunge! I figured I would start off with a little back story first so here it is...


I remember the first time that I was bitten by the travel bug, I was watching Dirty Dancing and dreaming of going to a place just like the one in the movie; so that Patrick Swayze could fall in love with me too of course! My family didn't go on vacations often, to be honest I think I can count them all on one hand and they were never luxurious or fancy but they were enough to make me fall head over heels in love with traveling. The idea of being so far away from home, yet still having home with you was fascinating to me and I wanted MORE...I was 18 when I went on my first plane ride it was to Chicago for my cousin's wedding which was also my first real trip away from home, away from Florida. Soon after that came countless road trips with my girlfriends from one end of the state to the other, all of that leading up to the trip that changed my life...Greece!! The day that HCC posted the sign I put my name down without hesitation and took a loan out from the bank to cover the cost. I met my group for the first time at the airport which was nerve wracking because here I was 20 years old and going on a 10 day trip with people I had never met before,little did I know it would become such an important moment in my growth process!  Going to Greece was an amazing experience that I'll never forget and opened my eyes to new things, people and well..Canada..it's easy to fall in love in the Mediterranean with it's beautiful skies and ridiculous amounts of Ouzo I might add! Canada, Toronto especially, is still one of my favorite places and I say that despite getting my heartbroken there. Then came several trips to Tennessee(where I seem to get into the most trouble) one CRAZY Spring Break in the Bahamas with the equally crazy Bartle sisters(who I love more than words can express) and some very eventful nights in Miami. Then real life set in.. I traded vacations for work and home bound escapades and learned that sometimes beauty is right in your own backyard and you don't have to travel half way across the world to find love especially if it finds you first..

Chad and I met 2 1/2 years ago while he was in Tampa for a job and despite my most valiant efforts to not fall in love with him, it was kind of hard not too(he's REALLY cute!). He travels for work and when the time came around for him to leave we both decided to take a big leap of faith and go together. I believe that God has a plan and everything happens for a reason..I mean how perfect is falling in love with your best friend and getting to share a passion of yours with someone who you're passionate about? (I'll give you a hint, it's pretty perfect!) We've been all across the United States from California to Maine and seem some pretty incredible stuff, saying that we've had tons of fun is an understatement!! Plus I think it's truly allowed us to bond on such a deep level and I'm thankful for that! Our greatest adventure though was born 10months ago on April 25th 2010 Lily Anne Pope became our new travel partner and I can say that this journey, this beautiful journey is one I've waited my whole life to go on! I know there are a lot of "Mom" blogs out there great blogs, insightful blogs this just might not be one of them! lol I can't cook, or sew or even take brilliant photographs for that matter but I do LOVE life and my family and I hope that comes across on these pages(that's really all I hope for). For the moment we're in Omaha and in hibernation since it's unnaturally cold outside, and all I can say is prepare to get to know us real well! ;}

I do want to point out one mom blog in particular that truly inspired me on so many levels and honestly gave me the idea to write and that was Kelle Hampton's Enjoying the Small Things(if you haven't checked it out you should it'll rock your soul, she's amazing!!)

That's us in San Fran which was SUCH an awesome trip!!

And this is our sweet girl and love of our lives Ms. Lily Anne!!