Harper and Harrison

These kids could do their own E*TRADE commercial. Don't ya think?

He Said She Said

Five years ago today, I married the man of my dreams. And five years later, I still like him. Go figure.

This morning, I was thinking about how we met. It was 10 years ago and we were in college. We inadvertently sat next to each other in music theory 101. I remember noticing him because he was pretty cute. He says that he noticed me because he asked me to play in a string quartet with him and I said no.

circa 2004

circa 2007

All these years later, I still think he's pretty cute and he still likes it when I give him a hard time.

circa 2008

Before and After

This is what our tiger lilies looked like right before we went to Cincinnati.

This is what they looked like when we got home.

We actually had these planted in our back yard in Cincinnati. Rob dug them up and brought them with us when we moved 2 years ago. They're not helping the curb appeal at the house we're trying to sell, but I'm glad we have them with us.

Pool Party

One of the things that I really regret about not living in Cincinnati anymore is that Harper doesn't get to grow up with my friends' kids. Harrison, Lincoln, Ava, and Finn are pretty awesome kids and I feel like Harper is missing out by not getting to hang out with them.

I think this video is pretty funny. It shows what real love looks like between cousins, two cute (and rather ginormous) babies, and Harper being oblivious to everything that's going on around her. I love these kids. All of them.

Photo Shoot

As is tradition when we go back to Cincinnati, Harper had a photo shoot with our awesome friend, Andrea. It was great! Andrea and Harper both did a fantastic job. See for yourself. And then check out Andrea's photography blog. If you need some pictures taken, she's the girl for the job!

These were taken at Fernbank Park.

And these were taken on the side of the road. Seriously. We saw this patch of daisies on the side of the road, pulled into the nearest driveway, jumped out, got the shots, and jumped back in the car.

Andrea rocks! We got so many great pictures that day. Harper is growing up so fast that I am truly grateful to have these images to remember this time in our lives. Thanks again, my friend.

The Queen City

Harper and I just got back from a quick trip to Cincinnati. Counting my time at Miami University, I spent about 10 years in the greater Cincinnati area. That's one third of my life. Every time I go back, I have this weird deja vu feeling - like I'm home, but I'm totally not home. It messes with my head. I can't say that I loved Cincinnati while I lived there. But now, I find myself really missing the little things about the Queen City that I took for granted. Here are a couple I thought about on the drive home today.

• 90.9 WGUC, Cincinnati's classical public radio station. I really miss listening to classical music on the radio. Nashville, Music City, does not have a dedicated classical music station. That's sad.
• The older established neighborhoods on the west side that have huge perfectly manicured lawns to go with the huge perfectly manicured houses. They're really beautiful and there's some cool history in that part of town.
• Great Lakes Beer. Yes it's from Cleveland not Cincinnati. But, you can get it in Cincinnati and not in Nashville. I brought some back with me.
• My friends. I have a couple awesome friends that I miss dearly. We don't call each other nearly as much as we should, but when we see each other, it's as if nothing has changed.
• My friends' kids. They're pretty awesome. It makes me sad that Harper isn't growing up with them. It's just not right. But, such is life.

Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde

I took Harper to the park after baby school yesterday. We played on the playground and had a picnic dinner. As we ate and played, I kept thinking about how 2 year olds can switch effortlessly between being totally content, being in total meltdown mode, and then back to totally content again. It's amazing.

For example... as we were eating, a squirrel came over to our picnic table. I threw him a piece of bread and Harper thought that was the best thing in the world. Then she started throwing him little pieces of her bread. Once he started eating it, she became infuriated that he was eating her bread. She wanted it back - even the pieces that he had already eaten. There were tears and stomping of feet. I went over and picked up the pieces that he hadn't eaten yet and gave them to her. I told her not to eat them because they had been on the ground. She looked at the bread in her hand, looked at me, and then said "yes eat it" and shoved them all in her mouth. Then she smiled and all was right with the world again.

I took these pictures with my cell phone - my very old cell phone. You may be asking yourself why am I using my very old cell phone to take pictures. Well, it's because I dropped my very new phone in the toilet and ruined it. Awesome. So, instead of paying a ton of money to get another new phone I reactivated my old phone.