Ruby's First Movie

This past weekend, Ruby went to see her very first movie! We went to the local Movie Tavern for a special showing of Winnie the Pooh - they show a kids movie every Saturday morning at 9am and serve breakfast. Genius!!! We went with a pretty large group - Ruby (and me and Nana), the triplets (and their mommy and DD), Ella (and her mommy and GG), and Hazel (and her mommy). Ruby was SOOOOOO excited to see Winnie the Pooh! She's always loved the movies (she has been watching old VHS movies that I grew up watching) and she's had a stuffed Winnie the Pooh doll for about a year now. The week leading up to the movie, she would have serious conversations with her Pooh, telling him that we were going to see his movie soon and we were really excited. So very serious, yet highly informative. :)

In anticipation of the movie, I got her a stuffed Piglet as well. She (obviously) brought both of them to the movie. A few days after the movie, Tigger was purchased as well. You're welcome, Disney Company.

Ruby wasn't quite sure what to think when the movie theater darkened and the previews started. We had to ask them to turn the volume down because most of the kiddos were holding their hands over their ears with panicked looks on their faces. Ruby kept asking if it was all done. She was ready to get the heck outta there. But once Winnie the Pooh started, she was enthralled. I'm sure that her big stack of pancakes had nothing to do with that either.....

Addie, Jack, and Carter were adorable - they were all dressed in red (just like Winnie the Pooh) and Addie had little bees on her dress. They were all SO good throughout the movie!

Ruby and Ella getting settled in their seats. Ruby wanted to make sure that Pooh was able to adequately see his own movie.

Ready to watch the movie!

Addie and Ruby after the movie

Hazel and Ruby playing on the steps in the theater

Ruby had a great time and has been asking when we can go back again! The movie was absolutely adorable - I wouldn't mind seeing it again! But next time, I think that Ruby will need an extra seat for all of the other stuffed animals that we will have purchased by then....

Ruby's First Haircut!

If you're a new reader to my blog, let me just say that my kid has curls. Crazy, soft, gorgeous, dreamy curls. That have never been cut in her 2-1/2 years of life. Until now.......

I've been reading a lot about the best products to use on her hair, the best tips and tricks to keep her hair looking amazing with her ringlets and not like she just stuck her finger in a light socket (speaking from experience, this is a very, very fine line). A recurring theme was that every mom said that they swore by regular haircuts. Not just a quick chop from one of the kid cut places on the corner, but they specifically recommended Aveda stylists that specialized in curly hair.

Well, Ruby hit the jackpot by having me as a mom. I was able to kill two birds with one stone, so to speak, because I also use an Aveda stylist that specializes in curly hair. So we went in last Friday for our appointments.

I got my hair cut first, while Nana and Ruby toured the salon and surrounding shops in the West 7th area. When it was Ruby's turn, she was none too pleased.

"NOOOOOO MOMMY! IT'S GOING TO HURT!!!!!! PWEEEESE NO!!!!"

Lauren, the stylist, was incredibly great with her and showed her with one quick snip that there wasn't any pain associated with it.

"See - did that hurt?" "Hmmmm........nope!"

With that, we were off and running with her haircut. She just got a quick trim to even out her ends (we haven't even remotely begun thinking about the concept of layers at this point - her hair is naturally layered pretty well right now).

She was all smiles after she was finished and made a point to turn in circles for everyone to see her new 'do. She's asked me a few times since then when her next haircut will be.

Success!!!

Girl's Trip

I just got home from one of my very favorite annual traditions - the Girl's Trip! There's really nothing like having the opportunity to get away from your day-to-day life, being around the people who always make you laugh so hard that you cry, and stocking up on some much-needed R&R.

The girls that I'm talking about are some of my best friends in the whole world. I love these girls to the moon and back. I have been friends with most of them since fourth-grade, with a few of the girls joining our group along the way. Even though we might not always have the opportunity to talk to each other on a weekly basis, when we do talk it is easy to pick up right where we left off.

We met at my house and loaded up my car on Friday afternoon. We were a car full of moms (5 moms with 8 kids between us and 2 more on the way!) leaving all of our cares behind. I had considered making a play list for the drive to Austin, but who was I kidding - we were going to be talking the whole time! We put on Willie Nelson playing in the background and hit the road.

We drove down to Austin to visit Allie and see her new (gorgeous) home. Allie was the most gracious hostess - ready with glasses of wine, snacks, and hugs for us all. Saturday was spent at Barton Creek Spa - getting massages, spending time in the steam room and sauna, resting in the tranquility room (note to self - I need my own tranquility room), and getting cabana service pool-side. Pure heaven.

After our afternoon naps, we went to dinner at a great little Mexican place on Lake Austin and then headed back to Allie's, where we ate birthday cake to celebrate Lindsay's upcoming birthday and watched episodes of that show about gypsy weddings (seriously, that sub-culture is just fascinating. I decided that if I ever get married again, I want a gypsy wedding - ha ha).

Sunday morning brunch was followed by goodbye tears and hugs, then the long drive back home. We were all anxious to see our sweet babies, but sad that the weekend had to end so quickly.

I hope that one day Ruby has a group of girlfriends like this. Girls that will make her laugh till her belly hurts, hold her hand while she ugly-cries, encourage her to be a better person, teach her new things, celebrate her accomplishments, pray with her, and make special memories like this. These girls are true blessings.