Christmas in July!

Merry Christmas to you! Here is a post - I think it's my 100th (serious blogger over here), so its a gift to you. Cherish this one, guys. 

Life has been busy lately - filled with little J, wedding planning, and work. Really exotic going-ons over here. oh I wish you could see my eyes roll.

Just kidding, things have been great. James and I finally tied the knot. wahoo. It was such a fun day that flew by, just as everyone had told me it would. It was definitely a party and i was reminded that I definitely know a lot (LOT) of PARTY PEOPLE. Our wedding was at my family's church in South Minneapolis and it was just as hot and sweaty as every summer wedding i've been to there, before. We then piled into an over-the-top Hummer super-limo and tok some fab pics at Loring Park, then rushed the veranda and Clubhouse at Brit's Pub. Oh man, the night was just on fire! :) Dancing, drinks, dancing, people losing their clothes, drinks... and I woke up a married woman. Who needs vegas!?

Baby J was a superstar, of course, and due to the craziness of the day and his super cute 3 piece suit, he was kind of an emotional mess and stole the show - as we all knew he would. He was not super pumped to walk down the aisle, so my dad ended up carrying little J in one arm and escorting me with the other. Not ideal, but makes for a fun story. :) I will post a funny pic of the little affair. please forgive my creepy smile and just look at how cute my dad and BBJ are!!! awwwwe!!

James and I went to Maine for a 4 day honeymoon and had a fab time. Of course we had to be back in Mpls so he could work on Friday (so dumb!!) so I therefore think I am entitled to a REAL honeymoon this winter. :) that's fair, right?

I could go into more details, but I will just throw down some pics from the last 6 months and let the images do the talking. enjoy!

pool day!

pool day with Ashley

kids being kids 

hanging with Pa-Pa in Lakeville

at the Walch wedding, Rochester MN

last smooch before the altar!

James and Olivia in the limo, party animals!

the bridesmaids' ceremony and party dresses

James, Dad, and me making our way down the aisle

 party on!

the truth is, I NEVER left you!

don't call it a comeback! I never really left - I just....ran out of time! here are a few pics to bring us into 2015. please know that I searched my photo library (on my phone) and tried to not only post amazing pics of my wonderful baby child, however it was quite the challenge! not surprisingly the vast majority of my pics are focused (or not) on that round face of my little sweet bbj. :D and no, i'm not apologizing. It's my civil DUTY to record and disclose this irresistible face to the general public! He may not be the cure to cancer (debatable) but he certainly is the cure to the common blues. or grays. or... overall dumpiness. 

New Year's Day night...these are like, LED balloons or something cool. he loved it!

red light district... a whole new meaning.

he's all like, "peace, I'm outtie!" 

then he realized it was 0 degrees outside and hung around.

I'm flying!

family pic, minus Nashy. 

This was snapped outside L.L. Bean in Mall of America.

Merry Christmas from the Weller Girls!

made some pumpkin bread pudding for Thanksgiving. 

Yes, that would be way back in November.

mmmm it was delicious! and healthy!

hahahahaha JK! NOT HEALTHY.

Let's get the party started with White Castle stuffing!

shred the sliders!

add some veggies...

et, voila! perfection! this was also super delicious.

and healthy.

nope, I'm a liar. not healthy.

Work has been suppppps busy lately and so has life at home. No real surprise there. The weather is warming up this weekend, finally!! we have an unheard of, forecasted 40 degrees for Saturday! Minneapolis might break!! I don't even know what people are going to do...i am definitely looking forward to the warm up though! last week it was like, FREEZING degrees outside with a high temp of "don't even go outside with exposed skin." needless to say (but i will say it), i think it's a fair assessment in stating that we are all dying to get OUTSIDE for a while this weekend!!! yay! I didn't even wear a jacket to work today...high of 34 degrees. What's up now, B!TCHES! I felt unstoppable this morning, riding 'round town (commuting to work) with no jacket. I contemplated opening my sunroof, but since i was behind a stinky school bus I decided to keep it closed. 

can't believe it's already January 15. do you realize that means we have about 2 months left of winter weather, 'only'!? that's totally doable! March is the snowiest month of the year (a surprise, I know!) but we can plow through it. haha, pun intended. oh look at me. so funny. 

we are also busy at home planning to plan our wedding! we have a July date set...we best be stickin' to that date because we already put the deposit down! damn, these things cost a pretty penny! all of these little things sure add up quickly. we have less than six months to the BIG DAY, and a long, long list of things to do. one nibble at a time, i guess. yeeecckkkk. (<--- what is that word!?)

so, that's all i've got right now. I could probably drone on and on about wedding planning, but how cliche is that! 

so, here's to the weather - thank you Mother Nature for the mid-winter warm up! wahoo!

the lost photos

so. just ran through my photo album and tripped on a couple pics that  have failed to get posted. so, in no particular order...here they are. I have also included a little mystery at the end of my pictorial review of my recent weeks (aside from the first pic which was taken in spring 2014). see if you can help J figure out the mystery!

this gem was taken a few months ago...

not sure when, my guess is 7-8 months old? 

just look at that magnificently adorable face!

these.

these delicious little fatty bullets are amazing

 and I might be able to live off of them 

for the rest of my natural life.

yah, they are THAT good.

cute tee.

speaks the truth, my friend.

funny.

little man LOVES looking out the window. 

Hope the neighbors don't mind! little Peeping Jimmy!! :)

halloween! terrorizing the backyard!

and THIS is what a successful Target trip looks like, sans baby.

not only was I more focused in the Land of Bullseye and Dollar Spot, 

but I was also more efficient with my list execution.

I love bringing J to Target so he can experience all the

wonder and amazement of the best store on earth (well, tied with Nordstrom), 

but man, was this a killer trip without him in tow!

oh. then I saw THESE. hi, cute cookies that are festive AND delicious?! 

how can I say no?

oh, yah...I can't.

look at this wet spot!

I have no diaper on!

I wonder what this wet spot is?

I will touch it.

let me ponder what may have caused this wet spot. 

is the biggest clue the fact that I am diaperless?

is another clue the fact that the wet spot is body temperature?

is the final clue the fact that momma is getting out the carpet cleaner?

could it be?

yes! it is pee!

and the beat goes on!

Happy Hulkoween!

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

The Irresistible Incredible Hulk!

yes, he is ONE now! ONE!!!

The Hunk and Hulk

me and my lovely :)

what is better than one baby james...? two!

ummm, is too much of a good thing, bad? I don't want to find out!

fall is here...so are the good times.

headed home - around Lake Calhoun, from the gym...

Saturday 7:15 AM Sunrise....lovely!

comin' to get ya!

ha, startled baby, playing with the garden hose/mud

halloween costume?

(future) BFFs. lovey.

the sheeples...participation awards...thank goodness there's BBJ to save us.

so, on a "mom blog" this morning I was reading some posts in regards to the original poster's question, "need suggestions for jeans! any input?" so this woman said she used to wear one brand and size of jeans but now a year after having her baby (all posters on this thread/board have a baby born in October 2013), she doesn't fit her old jeans very well. OK, i get it. so then I am reading what people say (thank goodness at least one person gave her great advice and said SEVENS!!! because duh, they are the best. ever. end of discussion!) and here is what one woman said after naming of her fave brand...ready? ...

"Another awesome thing (about this brand) - I wear a size 4 in their pants! 

That hasn't happened in years!"

UMMMMMMM. OK, this is so wrong!!! You shouldn't like a certain brand because their tag reads a smaller number than all of your other jeans tags! Are you serious? Lipstick on a pig, folks!! You are not suddenly smaller (or larger) based on what pants you put you arse into! it's still the same size!!!! the label is just lying to you! DUH!!! now, some people may come back and say, "oh, whatever makes you feel good, go for it...if the label lies, so be it." look, I get that, but guess what? you're gonna be the one who has the kid who goes home with the "participation ribbon" while I'll be the one who takes home the kid with the "1st place" ribbon. ZING. you are settling on a lie! on a temporary feel good fix that does not address the real issue, but rather masks it like a weak bandaid for a day. If you really want to achieve satisfaction from being a size 4, then REALLY be a size 4. don't just lie to yourself and temporarily feel happy because your jeans are size 4... get there. do the work. be a size 4 no matter what you wear! (or size 6, 8, 12, or whatever 'magic number' makes you feel bad azz!). really. it will be way more rewarding than just letting the label lie to you. 

so there is my unsolicited 2 cents.

now, here is another thing that drives me nuts ... because no one asked... this morning on my way to work I was headed north on lyndale avenue. there were a few of us stopped at the stop light on lyndale, intersecting lake street; the arrow for north and south facing cars to turn left (which would be west or east onto lake street) came on as green so a car turned left (which was correct), and then a car who was going straight, northbound, ALSO went...but he went forward! so even though he still had a red light and his oncoming traffic had a red light and oncoming traffic lefthand turners had a green arrow, he went through his red light! I cringed, afraid he was going to get plowed over by an oncoming left turner...but, he made it. WELL, then a STUPID SHEEPLE of a driver behind the lawbreaker (idiot) driver ALSO went through his red light!! What an idiot! luckily there were no cars in his way, however all i could think was how extra stupid this second driver must be! way to just follow the person ahead of you, right into danger's path! moron! and this person can VOTE for our elected officials!?!? YIKES! clearly he cannot think for himself (yeah, I am very unforgiving here, i know! but dude - people could have been killed!) as is...it was just a show, in my opinion, of how dumb and absent minded people can be and literally just follow someone else, quite possibly to their death. ugh. stupid. 

anyway, it's friday and I am happy about that. this week i have been very productive at work, which is always a huge plus, and home has been pretty fun as well. Baby James is walking everywhere now and is gaining confidence and coordination by the day!! i love seeing him develop and grow, albeit bittersweet! 

nice hat! "if i dressed like that, I'd kick my own A$$!" 

but really, this hat is adorable on him!

helping me grocery shop. what a little darling!

our kitchen is now known as "The Baby Spa"

"hi. i am the cutest being ever, of all time, 

past present and future. 

I win at being loved.

don't you adore my vest?"

annnnnnnd while searching my electronics for pics NOT of baby james, this is pretty much all i could come up with... LOVE this pic of Claudia Schiffer. seriously, i am obsessed with it. once day when i have my fancy closet, I will have this pic framed and hanging in it (probably by my undergarment section), as well as a pic of Anna Nicole Smith modeling for Guess (coincidentally). I LOVE all of these "old" photos from the early/mid 90s ad campaigns. love all these models!

finally, i love this little inspirational piece. it's a good reminder to us all to hang in there and keep our heads up. 

plus...it reminds me of THIS (below), which I LOVE! 

Anyone remember these little buddies?

(pic taken from here)

That is all for now... happy weekend!