Walkin After Midnight.

Apparently this little blog won't write itself so here I am again. One in the morning and I can't sleep. Crazy back pain has kept me awake for the past 3 nights. I get up and wander the house for a bit, check on Jack several times throughout the night. His legs almost always hanging off the side of the bed, batman sheets and covers twisted around his little feet, his nighttime snack of crackers strewn around his pillow, and Teddy (bear) abandoned to one side of the bed on the floor. I pull the covers back, pick him up, lay his head on the cold side of the pillow (he loves a cold pillow), gather the crackers and wipe away the crumbs, rescue Teddy and place him back in Jack's little arms, tuck him in tight and kiss him on the cheek. I whisper "I love you. Sweet dreams." Sometimes he even sleeptalks back and says "Wuv you, Momma."

Four o'clock on Sunday morning. Wake up to the sound of thunder and heavy rain. Wait- what is that other sound? It sounds like rain but much louder than the rain outside. Husband and I sit up in bed at the same time before racing down the hall and around the corner to the living room. Yes, it's raining- in our living room. Water is pouring from the ceiling and pouring down the back wall. I start thanking the heavens that I had moved a gigantic original painting (by my dad) to a different wall. Long story short - Sunday morning and the rest of the day pretty much sucked. We were in the middle of having our roof replaced when the storm came through but the roofing company has agreed to take care of all the damage so it will be fine. And really, it was (and is still) a big hassle but there are worse things that could happen so it's really not a big deal. 

My best friend left on Monday for Jonesboro, Arkansas. I will so very much miss her and her little family. Thank goodness it's just the next state over though! Can't wait to visit them and I wish them all the luck and happiness in the world. 

If there's anyone out there reading any of this, I'll try and be around here a little more. We'll see.

xoxo

♥ jp

Haircut, No Bald Spots, Please.

I cannot begin to fill you in on everything that's happened since my last post. (Sorry- I'm not a very good mommy blogger.) So let's pretend you've heard about every Jack tantrum, all the Jack sayings, and, of course, the tornados. All of that is much too exhausting to write about at the moment. It was still chilly outside the last time I wrote and now it's hot as hell, y'all.

Let's start over.

At the moment, I'm having a glass of wine.  That awful rom-com movie, Because I Said So, is on the tv but I'm not even watching it. It's just on because (for unexplained reasons) if I come across that movie on tv, I just leave it on. Do you ever do that with a particular movie? Don't try and tell me you don't stop what you're doing and watch You've Got Mail if it's on because I know you're lying.  

This week I've been on Mommy Vacation. Jack is home and I take him to school as usual, entertain him as I always do, and cook him breakfast, lunch, and dinner. But! Laundry Mountain has had to wait until it possibly can't wait any longer (which, sadly, was today) and the dishes are piled a little higher than usual. The days Jack doesn't have school, we lay in bed and watch cartoons and eat graham crackers, which he refers to as "teddy graham crackers" even though they're just plain, generic brand graham crackers. It's been lovely and stress-free. 

Giving Jack a haircut starts at least a week before I actually cut any hair at all. His hair starts looking ragged around his ears and combing it into a neat little gentleman hair-do becomes frustrating thanks to the natural pattern of swirls his hair grows in- right at his hairline. "Jack, we need to cut your hair soon." And then he protests, "One more day! Please, Mommy. Tomorrow we will cut it." That goes on for a week at least. He doesn't like to be itchy from the tiny hairs that fall onto his neck and ears.

So I cut his hair all the while threatening a bald spot if he won't stop moving. There has been a bald spot before. I'm a mom, not a barber. Thankfully, 4 year olds are not easily embarrassed. 

The best part of a fresh haircut is throwing him in the shower and then dressing him up for a quick photoshoot and he's usually up for any clothes or costume I want to put him in. This time was different. I put the shirt on him, rolled up the sleeves, buttoned it all the way up. He chose the shorts and just HAD to wear his cowboy belt. "Alright, sure. Why not." We grabbed his guitar and away we went. 

Finally got my own hair cut and lightened just a little. It was time. It was starting to get brassy and reddish, as it does every summer. The color in the "before" pic below is a little exaggerated but you get the idea. 

Seriously, those little sunglasses kill me. He likes to wear them everyday and with everything lately. Too cool. Too cute.



Signing off but hopefully I'll be back here soon to report more mommy things.

♥

jp

Girl Talk.

If I were not sick, I would definitely drink champagne and dance on tables. Just kidding, I would do laundry. Laundry Mountain is growing.

I get asked about my incredibly long and luxurious eyelashes and winged eyeliner all the time. Lashes = fake. Eyeliner = 17 years of practice. I can put liquid eyeliner on without a mirror and out of all the expensive and cheap brands I've tried, I still love NYC liquid liner the best! And it's like $2 at Wal-Mart. I don't wear lashes everyday- just occasionally on the weekends. I love the Katy Perry "Cool Kitty" lashes from Ulta as well as Ardell "Glamour" lashes from pretty much any drugstore. I always cut them just a tiny bit but it really depends on the shape and size of your eyes. It's probably time for me to change up my make up routine but I don't look like myself without eyeliner. That's probably why you don't recognize me in the aisles of Target and Homeland- I disguise myself as a regular mommy/housewife. Minimal make up, hair pulled up in a bun, workout clothes and nikes or sometimes even VS pants and hoodie and uggs. Don't knock it until you try it. I promise, the moment you put on velour or fleece anything, you won't want to wear anything else ever again. I really want this and especially this in green.

Here are two of my current obsessions, since you asked and everything.

Bliss Triple Oxygen Instant Energizing Mask

Neutrogena Rapid Tone Repair Moisturizer Night

Last night we went to dinner at Upper Crust in OKC. Anna and Marina joined us and it was nice catching up. Lots of laughs. I almost cancelled because I wasn't feeling well but I'm glad I didn't. 

I love Anna. Former roomies, forever crime partners. This is a screen shot of a pic Marina took because I was seriously too lazy to mess with taking my own pictures. That's pretty lazy. This is also a picture of Anna before she slapped a stranger in the face for no reason at all. She's like a mogwai. She is cute and little bitty tiny but she is fierce. I warned them not to feed her after midnight...

Oh Sunday, you are lazy. Husband is on one couch, watching golf. I am on the other couch, curled up in one of Jack's baby blankets, trying to find the energy to get up to take my medicine. Jack is in his bed, looking like the sweetest baby chicken and taking a nap. 

xo

♥

jp

You Give Me Fever.

It's late. I'm awake. My right ear hurts.Can't breathe through my nose. Sinus pressure. Snuck out of bed to clean up Jack's toys in the living room and start the dishwasher. See? Productive even with a fever. Glancing occasionally at Sixteen Candles on TV in between browsing blogs and online shopping sites. Waiting for this week to pass so this sickness will pass. Jack has been home from school all week- he is the little monster who got me sick. But I don't mind. In the middle of the night, when your baby is coughing and crying for you, you hold him. You let him cough and breathe in your face. You don't even care when he sneezes on you. You repeatedly wipe a stream of snot away with something called a "boogie wipe." (i didn't think i would ever buy those things but i swear, they're pretty handy when you have sick babies.) Things that sound disgusting before you have kids are things you don't even think twice about once you have them. 

Jack started on medicine yesterday and today seems to be an improvement. Even though Jack is my best buddy, I think we both need to see a little sunshine and get out of the house. Maybe spend a little time apart even. We need adventure.

Jack was happy when Aunt Hannah came to town! 

We took Jack to Local for the first time a few weeks ago and he loved it. We checked him into "Localville" and it was a HUGE hit. Local is one of our favorite places to eat and/or drink here in Norman, Oklahoma. Localville is a fun place the kids can play and eat (supervised of course!) while you enjoy dinner with friends or a date night or whatever. It's the most brilliant idea. 

Husband had a birthday recently. We stayed in a suite at The Mayo in Tulsa. Can I live there, please?  My mom told me a sweet story about how my grandma and grandpa stayed there once when she was a child and they brought back stationary for her. She loved to look at it- there was a picture or drawing maybe? of the building on the paper. Thinking about my mom as a child (Baby Susan as I like to call her) is so adorable. I need to scan some pictures of Baby Susan so you can see what I mean. I swiped the notepad from our room to give to her but- there is no picture of the building. 

Also, I'm pretty sure that place is haunted. 

It's been a few weeks but I went on a little trip with my dad. We flew to LA to visit my brothers and sisters-in-law. We didn't rush around. Didn't stay out late. We didn't even get drunk once. We ate delicious food, went to a cemetery that smelled like dead people, took a tour of Paramount, drove to San Diego, and saw Django Unchained at Q. Tarantino's theatre. It was awesome. Of course I missed my boys- this was the first time I've been away from both of them at the same time for longer than a day. I will say- it was pretty relaxing not having to take care of anyone else though. I appreciate the little things, folks.

Ok, I think maybe I got a little buzz from drinking a flight of beer at this place.
(Pathetic, Brooke. Get your shit together, girl.)

This is my dad. His favorite things to talk about are art, traveling, history, and death. And his grandchildren.
And Facebook.

Ok. Time to raid the medicine cabinet for something that will make my fever go away.

Toodles.

♥ jp

talkin in my sleep about you...

This afternoon Jack heard the song "A Bushel and a Peck" on a commercial. He dropped his Ninja Turtles and appeared shocked and amazed as he stared at the TV. "Mommy! It's were song!" (he pronounces the word "our" like "were" and I have no idea why.) It was the song my mama sang to me every night (along with Over the Rainbow) and now it's the song I sing to Jack. Sometimes he sings it to me out of the blue. Very sweet.

As a parent (who isn't completely delusional) I often find myself wondering if my kid is really as cute and gorgeous as I think he is, or do I think that because I'm his mom? The answer is absolutely yes- he is the cutest and most gorgeous/handsome boy in the world. Do you know how I know? Because I have eyes and I can see him. Your kid is probably really cute too.

Sure, you can call me obsessed or whatever but the truth is, Jack is my best friend. He makes me happy when skies are gray. We have fun together. We pretend, we snuggle, we fight, we color and draw, we go on adventures, we eat snacks, we talk about everything, we make special plans, we have inside jokes.

While Jack definitely has qualities of my personality and my husband's personality, he is his own little person. He changes every week. His legs get longer, he can count higher, he wants to know how to spell everyone's name, he draws little pictures with a crayon in a little tiny blank notebook that he keeps in a very specific place. He has a great sense of humor- very advanced for a 4 year old. Thank goodness he's 4 and can't be embarrassed by this blog yet. 

Hey, Jack. I LOVE YOU SO MUCH!!!!!!

love,

Obsessive Mommy

Kevin Durant, Paula Abdul, and Michael Jordan walk into a bar...

So if you've ever met Jack or read anything I post about him on facebook, you already know he tells everyone his name is Jack Kevin Durant Brady. Sometimes it's Jack Brady Kevin Durant, depending on his mood. He loves the Thunder. He loves Rumble. All he's been talking about for the past 7 months is his Thunder birthday party. (no joke- 7 months.) Sometimes he simply calls it "my Kevin Durant party." This kid may be the biggest (little) Thunder fan there ever was. 

A. The picture above was taken the day after he attended his very first Thunder game. So proudly he wore his Rumble pullover and Thunder hat- for a week straight. He still sleeps with "Baby Rumble" every night and he takes his Rumble bag to school everyday and to his grandma's for overnight stays.

B. These are his "Westbrook glasses." He wears them on the reg even though he doesn't need glasses. Thunder fashion glasses, everyone. He is 3 years old.

    

C. He cried when he found out James Harden had been traded to the Rockets. He had just gotten his tonsils out and he was on pain meds so that may have had something to do with his highly emotional state but he seriously cried real tears. 

 OK. We made the major mistake of saying we were going to try and book Rumble to come to his party. Rumble has a prior commitment out of town that day and can't come. The next available day he has is in February. There's an out of town Thunder game so obviously Kevin Durant can't come either. We didn't want to upset Jack so we didn't say anything in hopes that he would be distracted at his party and not even think about Rumble or KD being there. 

     

My husband is out of town for the night so Jack and I were cruising the internet finding Thunder themed napkins and basketball candles and he started talking about how excited he was that Rumble was going to be there. I had to say something at that point because I would rather him be disappointed now than at the end of his party wondering when Rumble was going to be there. I broke the news Rumble would be out of town and I knew he would be sad but I didn't think he would react the way he did. He started crying. Balling. Devastated. 

So, I know he's only 3. I know there are many more serious disappointments in life. I know you don't always get what you want. I know we should be thankful for the things we have. I also remember how heartbroken I was when I had the flu the day of the Paula Abdul concert. My mom made me a special red lace, tiered mini-skirt and i hot glued red rhinestones on a black tank top and I wasn't going to get to wear it. You laugh because I loved Paula Abdul. Go ahead, i was little. But you know, I didn't just love her- I wanted to be like her when I grew up. It didn't happen and that's not the point but- I remember the feeling I had that day and the days after and straight up now tell me, I know it sucks.

After an hour of trying to console and reason with my son, i recorded a minute of it so i could send it to my husband, in hopes we could figure something else out. Move his party to a later date or something along those lines. I later posted it to my facebook wall because he is so cute and sincere and I just couldn't keep it to myself. 

This one is just sweet. He says he misses KD and Rumble. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gTwbZwdHLxc

The next video was about an hour into our talk. It is sad. Proceed with caution. Also, yes, he's holding a binky. He's too old for it, I know. The binky is put up unless there is an emergency and when he is distraught he likes to hold it. Sue me. 

Oh, I asked Jack if it was ok to post these videos and he encouraged it. He's only 3 (almost 4) but I would never want to make him feel embarrassed or anything like that.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IvcGNSY17y0

Jack had a long day and he fell asleep early. I decided to check my email because, well, i rarely do. This is what I found. 

Is it the real Michael Jordan? I don't know. Sure! I like to think so. Is it? Who knows. The real Michael Jordan would know. ANYWAY. I like it. It's awesome. When I show Jack tomorrow morning (not that he can read but whatever) he's going to be happy. I'm not getting his hopes up about anyone being at his party though. EVER AGAIN. (Poor little guy.) One the other hand, PLEASE COME TO JACK'S 4TH BIRTHDAY PARTY, MICHAEL JORDAN! How amazing would that be. Seriously.

Night night.

♥ jp

The Secret Gardent.

Jack told me an interesting story. A theory, really. He says we will plant a vegetable pot pie in a hole in the ground, cover it with dirt and "a beautiful gardent" will grow. (not a typo.) I appreciate his thought process. If you were 3, it would make complete sense. We discussed seeds and seasons and watering and growing. Already off to a good start on our "make a list of things to do" resolution. 1. Plant edible things. Watch them grow. Eat them.

And # 2 on that list: Make a pie. Jack decided on pumpkin, based off of numerous pictures of pies I showed him on the internet. He also suggested a "carrot pie." Trying to find a way to work out this whole "carrot pie" thing. He really loves carrots.

Went out in the big city of Oklahoma City for New Year's Eve with my big brother, Will, and my beloved sister-in-law, Hannah, as well as 3 of my dear friends. We didn't have a plan for after dinner so we hopped around a few bars and I just really enjoyed their company. Already made more plans with my friends.

Not doing so well on the "going to bed early thing." I should be sleeping now. Instead, I ramble.

♥ jp