A Couple Firsts This Week.

I know you are probably thinking I'm going to post a couple firsts about Charlie. Sure, he is up on all fours doing the skoot skoot and getting ready to crawl but Buddy had a couple firsts this week that are worth mentioning.

First first was yesterday. It was the first time he got barfed on. I was holding Charlie and heard a splat (this usually means barf on the floor). I looked down and poor Buddy got it on his back - his tail down not knowing what just happened.

Then this morning my mom text'd me this picture:

I didn't get it - I knew he looked wet. She said she was outside with Charlie because he was a little fussy - I think this happened around 8:00 am. She heard a big splash, looked over and Buddy is in the pool. This is a first. She wasn't sure if he jumped in or fell. I'm guessing he fell. My mom quickly put Charlie on the floor inside and came back out to see if she would need to perform a doggy rescue. Luckily he found his way to the step and got out of the pool. He then ran into the house and shook off the water onto Charlie - maybe getting him back for yesterday's barf?

All this before 8:30 am. Poor Mimi!

First Father's Day.

The Dads.

This year was Rob's first Father's Day. Charlie and I went to a paint your own pottery place in town but they messed up and didn't get the "art" in the oven in time for Father's Day. They missed it - I was not a happy camper. For Mother's Day, Rob got me this...


It's a Tanzanite (Charlie's birthstone) and Diamond ring. He set the bar pretty high - we both agreed being first time parents was a big deal and a big year for us so we went big for our first "parents' days. So, I saw his Tanzanite ring and raised him this...


Rob: "What is it? A rock?"
Alyssa: "No, it's not a rock"
Rob: "What the..?"
Alyssa: "It's a pebble."
Rob: "Was I right?!"

Rob had guessed the present a few weeks ago but I pretended I didn't know what he was talking about. His gift is a round of golf at Pebble Beach. He's always wanted to play and his parents even gave him a gift card once but he instead used it so we could stay the weekend there. I spoke to someone at PB and they told me you only get to reserve your tee time 24 hours in advance (lame!) unless you stay there for two nights. If you stay for two nights, you can get two people on the greens. I had told Jen my idea about PB and she wanted to get her husband Brad a round there, too. So.....Rob and I HAVE to stay there for two nights (DARN) and he and Brad are playing on his birthday next month. I think it all worked out well...a nice gift for Rob and a little vacation for mama!

Sassy Pants.

My mom got me the Sunken Ship necklace from Anthropologie for my birthday. I liked it, but I didn't know if it was too sassy for me. I decided to try it out and see what kind of feedback I got. Since the necklace is a little wild, I paired it with a very simple Ann Taylor t-shirt, dark blue Citizen jeans and some brown wedge sandals. I think it turned out really cute!

I got 3 compliments so the necklace is here to stay. One of the ladies said "I'm surprised your mom got that for you - sounds like she is pretty hip!" I think so. Thanks, Mom!

30 While 30.

I turned 30 a couple weeks ago and finally finished my list:

1. Learn how to make a Thanksgiving turkey
2. Sew something
3. Swim with Charlie
4. Take Charlie to the zoo
5. Make biscotti from scratch
6. Have Dorothy watch Charlie while I go on a date with Rob (she came up with this one!)
7. Take Charlie to Sleepy Hollow
8. Take Charlie to Gizdich Ranch
9. Feed geese at Vasona Park
10. Show Charlie snow – I’m kind of nervous about this one. I’m not convinced we’ll have the opportunity or be up for traveling far enough to see snow. I might have to have a back up “thing” to do in case this doesn’t work out
11. Use the ice cream maker
12. Start and complete interior painting (hallway, guests bathrooms, etc.)
13. Go to the Mystery Spot in Santa Cruz
14. Get clam chowder at Phil’s in Moss Landing
15. Pay for the order of the person behind me in the Starbucks drive thru
16. Take Charlie to a class like Gymboree or The Little Gym
17. Take Charlie to story time at the library
18. Get my palm read/go to psychic
19. Ride a cable car (I’ve lived in the San Francisco Bay Area almost all of my life and I have never done this)
20. Make a first year photo book for Charlie
21. Take Charlie to the Monterey Bay Aquarium
22. Use my sno cone machine
23. Take Charlie to a national park
24. Learn how to make gnocchi - are you up for it, Nonni?
25. Take a cake decorating class
26. Lose 10 pounds
27. Get family pictures taken
28. Introduce Charlie to Santa
29. Buy the Groupon offered on Charlie’s birthday, December 29
30. Take a family road trip, somewhere 60+ miles away

Bag 'O Crap.

Yesterday I was reading one of the blogs I follow and the author took a picture of her bag and what was inside. Looking down in the bag, you can see it was very orderly. She layed everything out on the table and explained what all was in there. It made me laugh because if anyone looked in my bag, the would think "what the...?" Luckily I finally took out the spit up rag thats been in my bag for about a week now.

So I decided to go ahead and lay it all out on the table.

I was at the gas station this morning and killed some time taking a couple pictures of my bag.

I really like my bag. I typically change my bags out every 6 months or so but I've been using this one almost every day since I got it two years ago. Rob bought it for me in Vegas when we were there for my birthday. Its my first Gucci purse and I lovvvve it. We had had our townhouse on the market for many months and we had been saving our penny's so we would have more to put down on the next home. In Vegas Rob said "let's face it, it's not going to sell, lets go ahead and get the purse you've been wanting" (or something to that effect). So we bought it and the day we got home, our realtor told us we had an offer on the house, go figure!

Vertical shot of whats in there.

Laying it all out on the table.

So what is all that crap you ask?

1.) Envelope of receipts for Rob (if it weren't for the blown fuse at work yesterday, they wouldn't have been in a nice, contained envelope but rather all dumped randomly in my bag)

2.) Coupons

3.) Manicure set

4.) Keys

5.) Random cards in rubber band (subway, erik's deli, carters, my business cards, library card, etc)

6.) Gift certificate to a day spa Rob got me for Valentines Day

7.) Purell cleansing wipe

8.) Multiple lips glosses and chap stick

9.) Lotions and hand salve

10.) Tampon

11.) Mirror

12.) Hair tie

13.) Clutch wallet

14.) Gum

Not pictured...Ricola sore throat logenze (just one), safety pin, company badge, birth control prescription. The only other thing missing (besides some organization) is my sunglasses.

I have to say I'm not as embarassed as I thought I would be by exposing my bag mess. Its definately been worse, and better, but this is pretty typical.

Happy 1st Birthday, Annabelle!

Our friend's Mike and Sarah have a daughter, Annabelle, and she just turned one on Friday. Yesterday was her birthday party and it was a luau themed party because they are leaving for Hawaii in two weeks (lucky ducks!).

We happened to have two tropical outfits that we recently got at Janie and Jack (you have to have a back up when your child spit up episodes competes with the likes of the Bellagio fountain in Las Vegas). Here is Charlie and I before we left for the par-tay.

Look at those shoes. Go on. I'll wait.

The whole fam (Charlie trying to chew on who knows what).

Mike, Sarah & Annabelle.

Charlie recently started doing this..

I'm not sure what this is all about but my sister's friend Jamie has a daughter who used to do this too. Anyone know why kids do this?

Botox is not in my near future.

I've always had a baby face. I hated it growing up - I just wanted to look "older." Or - I guess I just wanted to look my age. I think thats all I want to look like now - not older, not younger. Apparently I still look pretty young. I've received a couple comments recently that I thought I would share. Apparently people think I'm a teen mom or something - not that I have anything wrong with that, I'm just far from a teen mom, like at least 10 years past having the possibility of being a teen mom.

So the first comment I got was at the store a couple months ago. I had Charlie in the cart with me and I was wearing a San Jose State University sweatshirt. The cashier guy was I'd guess around 20 years old. This is how our conversation went:

Cashier: SJSU, huh? Are you going to go there?
Me: Yeah, I went there.
Cashier. Cool. What did you major in?
Me: Business
Cashier: Are you going to make a career out of it?
Me: Yes, I have made a career out of it. I graduated.
Cashier: You graduated?
Me: Yes....seven years ago.
Cashier: Oh...I thought you just graduated high school. You look good!

Nice backpeddling, buster.

And the most recent episode happened this morning. A man rang our door bell wanting to wash our windows. I answered the door with Charlie on my hip and the man asks to speak with my mom. I told him I own the house - for some reason that was easier for me to say than "I'M the mom" - because lets face it, I still feel weird that I'm a mom. He apologized, was very nice, and then proceeded to try to sell me his window washing services.

I guess I should be happy that I look young but it is annoying sometimes. When I go to Target with my mom and Charlie, people look at me and probably assume I'm "16 and pregnant." Most of the time when I run errands I'm in yoga pants, don't have make up on and not wearing my wedding rings. Oh well, I guess there are bigger problems to have!