The Big Reveal

As you know by now, I don't bring up work too often on the blog. I'm making an exception though because I figure we're entitled to show off the end result of our months and months of stress and hard work. The new office is officially open! (Actually, it's been open for a few weeks, and I'm just now getting around to this post. Shhh! )

Overall, I played a very small role in the project. All the real credit truly goes to Anh because I can't even quantify the amount of effort he put into it. He designed the whole office. I just got to decorate it! And, without further ado, here's a brief photo tour. Enjoy!

The Reception Area - Designed to Double as an Entertainment Area for Socials

Hallway to Offices and Exam RoomsStaff Workstation Consultation RoomExam Room 1Exam Room 2 -Used Primarily for Laser TreatmentsExam Room 3 - The Procedure RoomExam 4 - The Relaxation/Recovery RoomThe Storage Room

So, there you have it, a sneak peek at the new space. Consider yourselves special! The masses won't see it until next week when we host our open houses. It has been a long road, but we are beyond happy with the final result. If your in the market for a little nip or tuck, be sure to let me know. We're ready for you!

11 Months

His "baby" days are numbered! The Big One is only a month away. I can hardly believe it! Here's a little update on Baylor.

• If we were to judge Baylor by what he eats, then the baby days are long gone. He pretty much eats what we eat now. Baylor is not a big fan of rice, but he loves noodles. At least there's some evidence that he's part Asian. Last week, I introduced him to the strawberry, and I think it's safe to say that is his new favorite food. He could eat his weight in strawberries!


• Thankfully, Baylor is still an excellent sleeper. I can always count on him to sleep a minimum of 12 hours overnight, and he still takes at least 1 big nap during the day. The only downside to the nap is that he must be in his crib. He's not like Jax who could nap on the go, in his car seat or stroller. So, if we're out and about and Baylor wants to nap, he's pretty vocal about his desire to be in his bed. This can make outings kind of difficult, but it's getting better. Eventually, he'll either just give up and pass out or I bribe him with food to improve his mood. Nice, huh?


• Baylor is proving to be quite the budding athlete, just like big brother, Jax. He can already kick a ball, and he loves to steal his brother's baseball bat and golf clubs. Baylor can't actually swing them yet, but he sure loves to watch Jax throw a fit about sharing them. Little stinker!


• Lately, we've noticed that Baylor is starting to throw hissy fits of his own. He's quite opinionated and does not like to be corrected. Just more proof that he's my kid, I suppose.


• When it comes to personality, Baylor seems to display characteristics of both an introvert and extrovert. We're starting to see signs that he's going through a period of stranger anxiety. He's comfortable with relatives, but now he's not so quick to interact with strangers. Before, he would really put on show to any admirers willing to offer him attention, but now he'll cling to us when others approach him. It only takes a few minutes to butter him up though, even less if you have a treat to offer.


• The extrovert is on full display once we're at home though. He'll boss you around with baby talk. We have no clue what he's saying, but watching him stand there and authoritatively address you while waving his arms and pointing his finger in a scolding manner is quite entertaining. He must get this from Anh because I'm not the least bit bossy. ; )


• By far, the most amusing new skill is Baylor's dancing. It doesn't matter whether it's a commercial jingle or the music channel, if there's a beat, Baylor will dance. Dancing at this point consists of running around in circles while shaking his head from side to side and then pausing to bounce with the beat. It's pretty funny!

Yes, our baby is growing up fast. He's starting to look and act more like a toddler. It's exciting, but also a bit sad. Oh well, you know what moms say, "He'll always be my baby!"

Good Morning, Boys

Most mornings, I wake up to the sound of Jax "whispering" to Anh, "Dad...Dad, are you awake? Dad...Dad...Dad?" Sounds heavenly, doesn't it? Well, this morning, I woke up to the sound of Jax's voice, but he definitely wasn't in our room. After listening for a few minutes, I concluded that he was upstairs talking to Baylor who was obviously still in his crib. How sweet!

I didn't know whether Baylor had woken up on his own or whether Jax had woken him up, but regardless, it was sweet hearing them interact with one another. That is until a few minutes later when Jax yelled, "Dad...Dad...Baylor got out of his crib! Dad, Baylor fell out of his crib!"

There went my relaxed morning! I jumped out of bed and raced up the stairs. I didn't know what to expect because there was no screaming and crying. When I rounded the corner into Baylor's room, I was the only one panicked. Baylor was just standing in his room like it was no big deal that he had just climbed over the rail and fallen to the ground. Nope, no big deal! Jax pointed to the crib and said, "Mommy, Baylor climbed out and fell down."

I should have been prepared for this. This is about the age when Jax first started climbing out of his crib. I just assumed he was freakishly advanced and devious though. I didn't realize that these abilities or traits ran in the family, and that I would be "blessed" with another escape artist! Yeah, lucky me!

I'm not sure what exactly we plan to do about this. I'm not even really sure that Baylor realizes what he managed to do. He has been trying to climb onto things lately, like the ottoman and couch, but he's never been successful. Climbing up is not easy for him, but clearly climbing down is another thing all together!

The Hunt Resumes

After an extended break, we've officially resumed our search for a home. We spent Wednesday afternoon touring a bunch of homes in our current neighborhood, and while we did like 2 of the houses, we've decided to keep looking. Nothing was perfect, but we've kind of given up on perfect at this point to be perfectly honest.

The good news is that our landlord doesn't even have a court date yet for the foreclosure thanks to the massive backlog. At least, that's what he tells us. Plus, he's supposedly working with the bank on a loan modification package. BUT, according to the reports I've read, he won't qualify because this house (along with the 29 other rental properties he owns) are investment properties. I guess we aren't really bailing out everyone. It just seems like it!

Anyway, what all this boils down to is that we've still got some time. There's no need to start frantically packing just yet. Who knows maybe we'll actually make it through the 12 month lease. I'm keeping my fingers crossed, and the landlord better be crossing his too because I've decided, if we aren't able to live here for the full 12 month term, I will sue him for fraud to recoup my moving expenses, security deposit, and utility connection fees. The attorney I consulted has convinced me that it's a slam dunk case too.

For now though, we'll focus on the positive. Round 4 of Florida house hunting is off to a good start!

Smarter Than They Look

Yesterday as I was cooking dinner, Jax asked, "Mommy, can I play my new skateboard game?" He was talking about his new Wii game from Grandfather. I agreed, but told him he would have to bring me the remote so I could change the tv's mode.

That's when we discovered that once again the remote was missing. You see, Baylor has learned that "hide the remote" is a fun new game that drives the family bonkers. Two days ago we spent about 45 minutes looking for the dang thing, eventually gave up, and then discovered it OUTSIDE when Anh opened the front door to take out some trash. I have no idea how Baylor managed to get it outside, but somehow he did.

Jax was growing frustrated that he couldn't find the remote, and then he was really frustrated because I couldn't help him while cooking. I told him, "It's okay, Jax. Daddy will help you look when he gets home in a little bit." The next thing I knew, Jax was standing next to me holding my cell phone and asking, "What's his number?"

At first, I said, "Buddy, go put Mommy's phone away." Then, I thought about it and remembered that we had just taught Jax Anh's cell number in case of an emergency. I said, "Why don't you tell me Daddy's number. You know it." Jax paused and tried to remember. Clearly, we need to go over the number again. Then, when he couldn't come up with the number, he said, "Why don't we text him instead!" Very smart, Jax. Except, you still need to know his number.

By this point, I was quite impressed with both boys' level of ingenuity. Of course, that's when Jax really took it to a new level. Out of the blue, he said rather emphatically, "Mommy you're the boss, right? Not Daddy!" My kid is so obviously a genius. That's right, son! Mommy's the boss!

Castillo

A while back, we spent the afternoon at our "little fort" and vowed to head to the "big fort" a few days later. Well, days turned into weeks, but we finally made it! The wait turned out to be for the best. Grandfather has since reached the magical age of 62 which qualifies him for a lifetime pass to National Parks. Since he's allowed to take 3 adult guests and an unlimited number of children in with him, we were actually able to explore the fort for free. Can't beat that!You enter the Castillo via a drawbridge, but the moat is now empty. Too bad, it would be pretty cool to see it filled and infested with alligators. Just a suggestion, in case any park rangers are reading. We wandered around for a few minutes, but quickly made our way to the Castillo's upper deck to stake out a spot to watch the historic weapons demonstration performed on weekends.The cannons were a big hit with Jax, especially when he learned that the soldiers were going to fire one!

Prior to the firing, a park ranger provided us with a little history lesson, and we were surprised to learn that a cannonball could travel up to 3 miles to it's target. Who knew?! The volunteer "soldiers" were dressed in historically accurate wool uniforms. Can you imagine how they must feel during the summer heat?! They even spoke Spanish during the reenactment.

The only disappointment was that there would be no actual cannonball involved. The park ranger explained that the home owners across the bay had vetoed that. I guess I can understand!

Beach Babes

Naturally, we had to spend at least 1 day at the beach during spring break. Luckily, Mother Nature finally gave us a break, at least when it came to the temperature, and we were able to have a little fun in the sun. Although, it was a bit windy. We made the best of it though. Jax was able to work on his kite flying skills.Baylor enjoyed watching the kite's tail dance around in the wind, but the beach toys were what really caught his attention. I thought I was prepared with 2 of everything so there would be no fights, but I only packed 1 "big" shovel. Of course, that would end up being the most popular toy! Next time, I'll bring 5!Jax and Uncle Al were the only 2 brave enough to actually go into the water. It seemed really cold to me, and I wasn't falling for Uncle Al's, "It gets warmer the farther you go out" argument. Yeah right! It gets warmer because you begin to lose sensation in your extremities!Nope, Baylor and I hung out on the beach with the toys. I think we made the right call too. Jax eventually made his way back onto the beach and spent the better part of an hour wrapped in a towel shivering. Poor kid!