Chelsea Salomone: June 2013

Sunday, June 30, 2013

Six!

On Saturday my mom watched Logan, and Nick and I celebrated our SIX year anniversary. Six years! That makes us sound like such an old couple... somehow six years sounds so much longer than say, four years. Originally we had planned to go stay at The Crescent Hotel and spend our anniversary in Dallas, but the more we started talking about it the more we decided nothing sounded better than a little staycation at home. And not packing a bag! Here's how we celebrated anniversary number six.

First up... the spaaaah!!!

We got a 90 minute couples' massage and reflexology. Best case scenario right there!

Next we went to a little slice of heaven, Eatzi's, and ate lunch on the patio. Second best case scenario.

We came home and right about that time I looked over and realized that Nick and I had been walking around all morning in matching workout clothes!!! SO CHEESY!!! I was in such a hurry to get Logan packed and fed and meet my mom on time that I didn't even notice when we left the house. I guess it's true when they say after a while you start looking like your partner.

Ghost edition--> no one will ever know we matched. What do you think Nick is doing in this picture? Bull fighting? Strumming an invisible guitar? Standing on a paddle board, perhaps?

And while we're on the subject of cheesy...

These towel fit the bill. Nothing says anniversary like his and hers beach towels. These were a wedding present, and trust me- we don't show up to pool parties in our matching monogrammed towels or anything. Just matching workout clothes.

So anyway, we used our matching beach towels and spent the rest of the afternoon lounging around our pool. I got a couple of interrupted hours to read, which was fab! Nick swam for a while and then took a nap on the couch.

That night we went to dinner at Bonnell's in Ft. Worth. We had never been. It was different than we expected, but we both liked what we ordered a lot! Very Texas-y and a great place to take an out of towner.

Nothing like a blurry iPhone pic at Flying Saucer to commemorate six years

We came home early and snuggled up in the media room to watch our wedding video, and I was reminded of two facts. 1) What a WONDERFUL, JOYFUL day our wedding was. And 2) The fact that we were like... 12 when we got married.

Watching our wedding video is an annual tradition we have that is totally Nick's fave. I'm always rolling my eyes and like, "Are you suuure we have to watch this again? We were there, we know what happened." But Nick, of course, is a sucker for sentiment and always just insists. ;)

I am so lucky to be married to my best friend, my partner in crime, and a guy with a heart as big as Nick's. He is, legit, the best person I know. You won't find anybody out there more hardworking, more honest, or with more integrity. He takes the cake and I adore him!

But here's the thing-- our marriage is good because we put in the work. We try and keep God at the center. We love each other no matter what, we both have to forgive one another (a lot) and we are committed to doing the work. We are not that kid that just sits down at the piano and plays Mozart symphonies effortlessly without any practice. That's not us.

We have found, unfortunately, that it's easy to sometimes slip into a routine of getting everything done that needs doing and taking care of Logan and then collapsing in bed at the end of the day without taking the time to really connect. That's something that has challenged us over the last year and half, and something we are always having to be mindful of since having a kid.

In keeping with my cheesy piano analogy-- we have to sit down and play our scales and practice our music, sometimes over and over again until we get it right, even when we don't feel much like practicing.

But we do and that, I think, is what makes us great. We have a wonderful life, we have lots of fun and all kinds of adventures together, and we have created something together over the past six years that I'm deeply proud of. Six down, sixty more to go!

And even though this post is about Nick and I... I can't resist one picture of Logan in his new "tah" pajamas having the time of his life at Mimi's.

My mom texted us this picture, and I loved it! We missed that guy SO much and spent the entire day quoting him and laughing at his antics, like he's some kind of movie or something. He's so cute and cuddly in this picture!!!

Friday, June 28, 2013

Flowers Make Mobsters Look Soft (And Salt!)

We have had a nice week at home. Nothing too exciting, but it's been great to be back in town and back to our normal routine! I kept meaning to sit down and blog all week, but I swear- I looked up and it was Friday. The weeks just go too fast sometimes! I can't believe it's practically July already. How is that even possible?? Here are some pictures from our week.

After New Orleans, Pops and Rho Rho were visiting. Pops volunteered to give Logan his bath, and this is what I found waiting for me afterwards!

Watch Dog!

Nothing like a new apron to get you inspired to cook-- I've tried out a few new recipes this week, which is always fun (I think)!

My very favorite was the quinoa masala burger I found HERE and a big salad with homemade dressing.

I have to admit, that was the first time I ever made salad dressing and I felt very accomplished. You mean to tell me you can just make that stuff in the bottle? Just like that? =) It was surprisingly simple! This meal is proof we have come a long way in our eating over the past few months.

One morning we made breakfast cookies. Logan loves helping me in the kitchen!

Later that same morning I stripped him down and he painted out on the back porch. Afterwards he collapsed in his chair like, "Whew! Painting and baking wears a man out!"

After that point I didn't even bother with clothes [on him]. We like to keep it classy like that.

At the splash park with Pip and Hayley!

Last night we went to watch Nick's softball game. It was the first time I've been able to take Logan because the games are always so late. Logan had a blast watching "Dada soffbawwwwl!"

And walking Lexi around the softball fields. (So big!)

And playing with his buddy Vinny! Two Italian Mobsters-- don't tell Logan but I think the flower softens his look a little bit.

You guys may roll your eyes at this stuff I'm always sharing-- oils and what not-- but I love writing about little tidbits I pick up here and there.

One simple thing I've read a lot about and recently started using is pink himalayan sea salt. Have you heard of it?

You use this just like you would regular white table salt or sea salt. It's so much better for you because it contains a ton of minerals. You can even put a little sprinkle in your water and supposedly it helps your cells absorb the water better as well as the minerals in the sea salt. HERE is a short article about it. I bought a bag of it at Sprouts, but I've seen it other places in a jar right there on the aisle with salts.

Have a great weekend, ere'budy!

Tuesday, June 25, 2013

Eighteen Months

Not to worry. Despite appearances, Logan does not have a broken shoulder.

This is one of the many new tricks in his repertoire called: spontaneously pretending to fall asleep. He often pulls it out at the most unsuspecting places, including {but not limited to} The Chicago Airport.

All of a sudden his head will hang limply to the side and he'll close his eyes and pretend to snore. Just when you really start to think, "Oh man... he's asleep." He will snap his eyes open, straighten his head, and announce, "HE'S AWAKE!" at a deafening volume. Eighteen months old is a riot!!!

Yesterday was Logan's 18 month check up! Except for his one ear infection visit (that we treated with essential oils =D) he hasn't been to the doctor since his 12 month well check. I was curious to find out his height and weight. We have a slim + trim little friend on our hands: 23.6 lbs (43%) and 32 inches (34%).

He was so good during his appointment.

At 18 months old he...

-Amazes us with how much he talks. I know every parent thinks their kid is a genius, but I'm telling you, this boy can TALK. He strings words together to make short sentences and repeats pretty much everything we say. My favorites right now are how he says our last name "Sam-amome" and all the little nuances he's picked up. Like he'll walk into a room and go "O-TAY!" or set something down and say "Therrrre." He also started singing (in his own words) Jesus Loves Me with us at night and it melts my heart!!! ("Yesss...love me...yesssss love me...") It's also Aunt Andrea's birthday every day in our house. He walks around singing "Ha buh day Deeeeed" and there's no convincing him it's someone else's birthday.

-Loves tuks, tahs and any type of vehicle. He points out Jeeps everywhere we go ("Sheep! Sheep!") and loves talking about "tool tahs" [cool cars] and spotting "WOAH! Big tuks!" on the road. He carries around his monster trucks or matchbox cars 24/7. Car aficionado, this guy!

-Likes "ani-nuls" (animals) and making animal sounds

-Thinks Daddy is just the most funny person on the planet. Everything Nick does is just hilarious to him.

-He says his name like nin-nin, which has led us to his latest nickname: NIN. He likes to say "Nin Nin Sam-amome. Mama Sam-amome. Dada Sam-amomone." And whoever else is around gets Salomone thrown on their name as well. It's quite funny, and he knows it.

-Likes to tell us who everything belongs to ("Dada chair. Mama chair." "Mama shoezzz. Nin nin shoezzz.")

-Very shy when he first meets someone and has to warm up to them, but once he's comfortable he loves making everybody laugh and being the center of attention. He will say all sorts of things and pull every trick out of his bag to make people laugh.

-Still loves books (YAY!)

-LOVES doing puzzles on the iPad (BOO!) and is none too happy when we tell him no, he can't play on it. He would sit and do these puzzles for hours if we would let him, I think. He also likes watching Baby Einstein and Barney.

-Still a pretty good eater (and finally drinking milk better) but he is very opinionated about his food. If it looks different or if he's not in the mood for it, there's no convincing him otherwise. He's very adamant with his, "NOOO!!! NOOO!!!" He will go an entire meal without eating rather than try a bite of something he doesn't want.

-Super affectionate with people he loves, giving hugs and kisses and hugging their legs, and also with his stuffed animals. His favorite stuffed animal right now is puh-pay he got at Parker's birthday. Puppy gets about a gazillion hugs and kisses a day.

-Goes to bed between 7:30 and 8:00 every night and wakes up between 6:30 and 7:00 in the morning. Naps from 12:00-2:30ish every afternoon. Still a great sleeper and easy to put to bed.

Overall Logan is a super easy kid. He's laid back and doesn't get worked up about much. He's definitely rough and tumble, but he has a really gentle spirit about him too. I love that! He keeps us laughing CONSTANTLY with his antics and his silliness!

Here are a couple of short videos that capture him at 18 months pretty well:

He loves to talk about when my phone got ruined at Target. Not sure where he picked up "Oh dear" but I'm guessing I said it!

His and Nick's new favorite game: Nick will pretend to bump into things and hit his head on the wall. Logan dies over this!

Monday, June 24, 2013

Feed Our Kids

Last Tuesday I was fortunate enough to go with a group of girlfriends and deliver lunch to about 80 kids and their moms in Grapevine. These are kids who live in government subsidized housing and get free and reduced price lunches during the school year. Summer can be tough for these families to feed their kids when they're not getting help from the schools.

There is a program our church participates in (Feed Our Kids through GRACE Ministries) where you sign up for one day out of the summer, get a group together, and take lunch to their apartment complex. I emailed several of my girlfriends, and they were all so generous and excited to participate. Even the ones who had to work or were out of town contributed money or dropped off something at my house. We took pizza, fruit, water and juice. We also had plenty of toys, like chalk, bubbles and jump ropes to entertain them.

This is the food pantry where they shop for groceries. Each family is given a voucher based on how many kids they have. We served lunch outside the food pantry.

These two boys were hilarious! They were first on the scene about 20 minutes early. They enjoyed listing off for us every kind of fruit they've ever eaten and inquiring exactly how much pizza they would get to eat and where it was coming from. Then, when the pizzas arrived, they apparently knew the pizza guy. They started high fiving and slapping "Big Eddy" on the back. They were a hoot!!!

Jenna, Brittany, Hayley & Misty

Teri, me, PJ & Elyse {and my mom helped out by keeping Logan while we served}

It was such a rewarding experience! The families were so kind and appreciative. I have to admit, playing with the kids and talking to their moms really gave me a pang of sadness for my teaching days. My first two years I taught at a school in Richardson that was in Dallas City Limits. It was ROUGH. ROUGH ROUGH ROUGH. I was fresh out of college and young, and grew up in the suburbs in a family where my mom took us to the library every week and held our hands crossing the street.

Those first two years of teaching were a huge eye opener for me. It was really challenging, but it was also two of the most rewarding years I ever had in the classroom. Some of the stories you seriously would not believe! I feel like now that I'm not around that every day, it's easy to forget. As hard as I try to be thankful and mindful, it's easy to exist in your little bubble when you're not face to face with poverty and hunger that exists just a few miles down the road.

I loved getting a group of friends together and going and doing something to benefit others, no matter how small it was. I really hope to find more opportunities like this in the future!

Sunday, June 23, 2013

Connecticut & What Have You's

I have to admit, last week I was guilty- really guilty- of doing that thing I sometimes do where I say yes! to too many things and don't stop and think the logistics through.

We got home from New Orleans last Sunday. On Monday Nick left for St. Louis on a business trip. On Tuesday I headed up a service project with a group of friends I've been working on for a while, and Wednesday I got Logan and myself packed and out the door for a flight to Connecticut before 7 a.m.

I am glad I did every single one of those things, but I'm also really, really glad we are back home and things can slow down for a while. The three of us need to get back in our normal routine. We need to get back to eating well and sleeping in our own beds and just doing normal every day stuff like laundry and vacuuming the living room and swim lessons.

I want to blog about the service project because it was a really cool experience, but I think I'll save that for my next post and tonight, talk about our trip.

I know I've said this before but I really am the worst packer of all time. I don't like having to decide today what I'm going to feel like wearing three days from now. I like to give myself options. It was especially bad this trip because Nick wasn't at home loitering over my suitcase going, "Nope. Nope. Not necessary. Take that out." I hate to admit it but he really does help me out.

I was proud! I actually got this thing zipped all by myself! And to my defense-- it's five days worth of my stuff and Logan's stuff.

We took our handy sit 'n' stroll car seat that I blogged about HERE. Love this thing!!

We rode to the airport with Al & Teri and met Nick on our layover in Chicago. I was sure to find the children's play area Stacy had mentioned at DFW. Logan had a great time running and climbing before our flight.

This was another really cool find from Target. Dry erase crayons!! Logan played with this forever while we were waiting for our planes.

This was Logan's fourth plane trip. He's an old pro by now. This picture cracks me up!

We went to Connecticut for Nick's cousin Lindsay's high school graduation. For years I've been hearing how beautiful their town and their house are, I was excited to finally get to visit in person!

The first day we were there the guys played golf, and Teri, Sue, Lindsay and I took Logan to the beach! Logan's first time at the beach!! He LOVED playing in the water and the sand!

Did you know Connecticut had beaches?? I had no idea!

Then Logan napped and the four of us hung out by their pool. I felt like I was at a resort!

This is what "watching Logan so I can shower" looks like after a tough day on the golf course. Ha!

The next day Sue, Teri and Lindsay took Logan to the children's museum. Nick & I took the train into New York City!!! They live an hour outside of the city. Lindsay is headed to NYU next year for school, too!

One day in New York City! What to do?? I made us a handy, dandy Google map, which we only ended up following about half the time.

We arrived at Grand Central Station and walked over to Rockafeller Plaza, St. Patrick's Cathedral and Saks.

Lit a candle at St. Pat's

At Saks, the entire eighth floor was women's shoes!!! I had so much fun browsing the shoe department and looking at jewelry and playing with make up. {And looking unabashedly touristy taking pictures!} Nick was a good sport!

Next, we headed to quite possibly the greatest place on the planet to eat: Eataly. This is going at the tip top of my NYC Must Do List. This is like Disneyland for Foodies. Fresh pastas and pizza being made before your eyes. A sandwich and salad line that goes on for miles. Dessert case upon dessert case. People standing at high tops drinking wine and eating hunks of warm bread with slices of prosciutto and cheese. Cookbooks! Cookware! Pastries! Jams! Gifts! I'm telling you... I had never seen anything like this place. I was too busy gawking (and eating) to take even a single picture. If you go to New York- GO TO EATALY!!!!!!!! We definitely were not on our diet in this place. We would have been fools to have passed that up. Saks is nice and all but Eataly is totally my love language!!!!

Next we walked around SoHo (where we saw Kendall Jenner, and proof 13F that I'm old-- I had no idea who she was and Nick's cousins had to tell us later) and stopped to rest our tired tootsies and listen to jazz music in Washington Square Park.

I also decided to have a boxing match with my iPhone apparently...

Very odd picture to find on my camera. Whatevs. But OMG that forehead wrinkle just screams BOTOX!

We ended our day with crepes while walking through Greenwich Village and a visit to the top of the Empire State Building.

We had made dinner reservations at a fancy Italian restaurant but we're old, as I mentioned, and so about 5:00 we decided we were tired and still full from lunch and really missing our little man. Instead we headed back to Grand Central Station and took a train to Connecticut. Such a fun, fun day in one of my favorite cities with my favorite person. Thank you, Teri and Sue for Logi sitting!!

The next day was Lindsay's graduation followed by the most spectacular dinner party ever on Sue and Steve's patio.

We raised this girl from a mere pup. Love you Lindsay!! She looked so pretty on her graduation day!

Sisters- can you tell?

Neighborly friends

Shrimp dip- to die for

Here are a few other random pictures from the trip:

The weather was perfect! Highs in the 80's. We ate every meal on their gorgeous patio.

We would sit around in the mornings in these comfee chairs and visit and eat breakfast with the doors wide open. Logan was such a ham and put on quite a show for his great aunt & uncle and second cousins the entire time!!

This was Logi's original graduation outfit, but I thought he might be too hot. You can really see his thick blonde hair in this picture! {Heart}

The Three Stooges strolling through the airport in Chicago

Sue & Teri bustling around the kitchen. That was one thing I didn't get to talk about-- Sue's cooking!! OMG! She is literally a gourmet chef. Every meal we ate was so elaborate and fresh and delicious!! I left feeling very impressed and very inspired!

Plane ride home today:

Don't worry, we peeled every single sticker off.

The water coloring book with q-tips-- another great idea Stacy!!

I think Logan was glad to be home! He walked around carrying armfuls of his trucks, even some tucked under his chin, for about an hour.

One more of Mr. Cool, Nick Salomone trying on sunglasses.

Today is actually our six year anniversary, although we're celebrating next Saturday! Happy anniv. Nick-o-lie. You are my best friend in the world, and I love you more than I did the day we got married. (Even if we both did forget today was our anniversary!! Oops!!) And PS I secretly wish we still had some of our cake topper in the freezer. We haven't been married THAT long. I'd totally eat it.

Chelsea Salomone

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