The Story of Us

Home Sweet Home!

April 27, 2018 by erinqmcgee · Leave a Comment

There are few things in life that leave you feeling more nostalgic than an anniversary, regardless if it’s an anniversary of a wedding, an anniversary of a goodbye, or the anniversary of a fond memory. This week is the one year anniversary of our new (to us) home and I’m flooded with memories of the last 365 days! For some people, this is just a real estate transaction and a series of paperwork, but for Denny and I, our home is so much more!

I can’t believe that it’s been an entire year since we spent countless weeks packing our first home. There were sleepless nights, there were major feelings of doubt and nervousness, and there were some serious snot sobbing sessions. But now that we’ve been here a year we couldn’t imagine calling any other place Our Home!

Ironically Makenzie brought these pictures home this week of how she views our House (ignore the dirty windows).

Although my blog posts have been nonexistent (I promise I haven’t forgotten about my blog!), the past year has been a whirlwind of making memories, managing meltdowns and tackling projects!

As for the house itself, we’re slowly making it our own. We’ve painted walls and shutters, we’ve hung lights fixtures and pictures, and we’ve undoubtedly made Home Depot shareholders very happy. But beyond shingles and shades of paint, we’ve turned these empty four walls that once housed a bounce house (how else do you keep the kids entertained on moving day?) into a cozy place where we eat pizza, run late (some things never change), have dance parties, and welcome the people we love most!! Our much-needed extra bedroom has welcomed 18 different guests, and there are more to come in the next 52 weekends!

Moving Day – April 2017! The bounce house was the first item to move to the new home.

Moving Day pizza party – Mitchell’s crib box doubled as a table.

Midway through one of the many house projects – Hello new cabinet color, goodbye oak!

And along with the changes in the house, come the nonstop changes and fun with the kids! We’ve met new neighbors and found new adventures taking bike rides around the block. In these four walls, we watched Makenzie prepare for her first day of kindergarten (insert more snot sobbing) and we watched Mitchell start to put together words and now sentences. In these four walls, we’ve had our first round of holidays, we’ve sipped 365 morning coffees and we’ve had just as many bedtime stories.

My baby boy getting so big!

Ready for Kindergarten!!

Makenzie Ruth, age 4 – September 2017

(Listen closely, you can hear the snot sobbing)

1st Halloween in the new neighborhood with Poppy & Cookie Monster! So many kids. 🙂

Buddies – Christmas 2017

Christmas morning 2017!

Mitchell’s 3rd birthday weekend!

CAKE!!!

Neighborhood exploring!

As the first year of being in this house comes and goes, I’m reminded of how important it is to focus more on the people in the house than on the countless messes created by them. Denny and I believe that our job as parents is to give the kids roots and wings, and we couldn’t be more grateful that this home is where M&M will develop their roots!

I mentioned messes, right?

Bedtime giggles. 🙂

Who knew that four little letters – SOLD – could have such a great impact on our lives. Here’s to having the courage to make changes and here’s to the people who helped us make this decision! Here’s to (hopefully) more than one blog post per year. Here’s to another trip around the sun in the place you love most!

With Love,

Erin

PS The unexpected surprise of all of this is that our first home is now the first home to a sweet young couple who kindly keep us updated on the memories they are now making in those four walls just a few miles away.

Filed Under: Uncategorized · Tagged With: About Mommy McBlog, Adventures in Parenthood, Home is where the projects are, Life Lately, Makenzie Ruth, McGee Journeys, Mitchell Dennis, The Story of Us

Eight is Great!

August 16, 2016 by erinqmcgee · Leave a Comment

Wasn’t is just yesterday that we were worried about the seating chart and the intro songs? Wasn’t it just yesterday that we traveled to Athens, Ohio to get married? Wasn’t it just yesterday that we met at the end of the aisle, said I Do and sealed it with a kiss? Wasn’t it just yesterday that we started our life together as husband and wife and waited for our Someday to begin?

A rocking party if I say so myself!

Wasn’t it just yesterday that we honeymooned in Aruba?

And then it did…

Our Someday began and it’s been good and it’s been fun. It’s been challenging and it’s been emotional and it’s been memorable. It’s been a Sold sign, a Masters thesis, a flooded basement. It’s been a few trips to the Caribbean, and a few trips to the ER. It’s been a lot of neighbor parties, and a lot of paint colors.

It’s been an I’m Pregnant! It’s been a broken heart. It’s been another I’m Pregnant, and a lot of pink to follow.

Party of three!

It’s been baby showers and dirty diapers. First cries, first smiles and first steps. It’s been breast pumps and postpartum emotions. It’s been so fun that we did it again. A little boy, and a little baseball mitt…

Late nights, lots of coffee. It’s been ear aches, blowouts, diaper rash, two screaming babies and too little sleep. It’s been juggling careers, and friends and bills. It’s been hard at times, so damn hard. And then just when meltdown seemed imminent, it’s been soft & sweet & real. It’s been cuddly naps with cuddly newborns. It’s been dance parties and baby hugs and family trips to the zoo. It’s been a glance in the midst of chaos. It’s been an occasional date night. It’s been Disney and the Polar Express and Lake George. It’s been all I thought it would be and more.

It’s been tough, but more important than that it’s been pretty awesome. It’s been us, and our two little sidekicks. It’s been us, growing older and growing wiser. And it’s been a walk through life that has long surpassed that walk down the aisle.

It’s been eight years and it’s been a pretty great start to our Someday. I can’t wait to see what the rest of the ride entails.

………………………………………….

Happy Anniversary Denny! There’s none else I’d rather hang out with during this crazy ride called marriage.

xoxo

Filed Under: Uncategorized · Tagged With: About Mommy McBlog, Anniversaries, Life Lately, McGee Journeys, My View on Life, The Story of Us

Vows 2.1

August 16, 2015 by erinqmcgee · Leave a Comment

With this ring, I thee wed…

Seven years ago today at 4:55 pm, Denny and I said these words to each other.

We kissed to make it official, and then we threw an awesome party to celebrate (and it was awesome if I say so myself)!

We were so young!

There are few, if any, things I would change about these seven years as husband and wife. I might take more opportunities to do something nice for Denny, and I might take less opportunities to take out my frustrations or tiredness on him. Perhaps we could have found time for more date nights and maybe another vacation or two, but otherwise, it’s been a great ride!

But if I could go back to those vows… if I could take what I know now and go back to those words we stood up and said to each other in front of all the people we love so much, here’s what I would add to them.

………………………………………………………………….

I, Erin, take you Denny, to be my husband…

I, Erin, also take you Denny, to be my fellow explorer when we toured Aruba on four wheelers on our honeymoon, my golf partner, my taste tester of new recipes (sorry honey!), my fellow house hunter, my co-swearer when the basement flooded on day 3 of home ownership, my painter, my grad school study buddy, my fellow flip cup teacher to the new neighborhood, my pizza orderer because you’re so much better at it than I am, my car buying companion, my personal masseuse while in labor, my co-diaper changer, my listener during hormonal meltdowns, my supporter when I just don’t know what the baby needs, my photographer when our daughter took her first steps, my voice of reason when we found out we were pregnant again, my rock when we had an unplanned c-section, my coffee getter when we were just so darn tired that only a cup of Timmy Ho’s will do, and my favorite co-tourist when we feel brave enough to take the kiddos out & about.

To have and to hold…

to listen and to respond, to screw up and to try harder next time, to challenge and to be challenged, to aggravate and to apologize, to pick up dinner and to share cleaning duties, to support and to appreciate…

from this day forward.

For better or for worse…

for wedding weight and for baby weight.

For richer, for poorer…

for times of savings and for times of broken water heaters, for cheap pasta dinners and for overly-expensive trips to the beach.

In sickness and in health…

in times of emergency appendectomy and in times of devastating miscarriage, in times of sunburn and in times of diaper rash.

To love and to cherish…

to make laugh and to barely tolerate, to share the remote and to share kids bed & bath duties, to share glances when we get a chance and to share nights out when we get a sitter, to enjoy our awesome kiddos, to learn, to grow, to try my absolute hardest every day to be better than the day before…

And I promise to be faithful to you until death parts us.

This part never changes.

This is my solemn vow.

………………………………………………………………….

Happy Seven Years Denny McGee! Looking forward to writing our next years together.

XOXO

Filed Under: Uncategorized · Tagged With: Anniversaries, People we Heart, The Story of Us

Get excited for Mother’s Day!

May 10, 2015 by erinqmcgee · Leave a Comment

Hey Mamas,

The day has come. Mother’s Day! For all you sleep-deprived, creators of tiny monsters, get excited! Tomorrow is the day of sleeping in, sipping champagne and being appreciated for the other 364 days of the year when you’re wiping butts, molding minds and juggling life. Nothing but pampering & relaxing for 24 hours, right? Well, not exactly but it is a day to appreciate your crazy, lovable and amazing kids, and to appreciate the lessons that come along with them. For me I realize that the more I know, the more I don’t know.

……………………………………..

Take a look four years ago. Denny and I were feeling pretty ready for kids. So we headed out during Mother’s Day on a celebratory done-with-grad-school / could-be-the-last-vacation-before-baby trip to the Caribbean. Ahh, we were relaxed and excited. Why wouldn’t we be? We knew kids were on the horizon and we also thought we knew it all. Our kids would never have fried foods. Our kids would always sleep in their own beds. They would never have meltdowns, and we would never walk around in public covered in bodily fluids. Nope, not us. We were gonna be awesome.

Living the dream… little did we know that we were about to get smacked with a wave of reality.

Then came three years ago. Mother’s Day 2012. We did it! We actually made a human being, which was shocking considering the fact that I can barely make a casserole. Baby McGee was yet to spend a day outside the womb, but we still felt pretty confident that we would be ahh-mazing parents. In fact, we even took advantage of Mother’s Day weekend to find out if we would be having a little boy or girl. I thought I was quite the mom of the year throwing a party while pregnant. Yep, you should have seen how tired I thought I was.

One of my favorite days in life. I bet Kenz was in my belly at that exact moment reading up on how to excel at being a colic-y baby.

Enter two years ago. And enter real tiredness. Our sweet girl had arrived 7 months prior and that year I finally got it. I understood what it meant to be humbled by a sweet and cuddly 8 lb, 3 oz baby with colic. Mayday, mayday! Our confidence was plunging rapidly toward the ground.

We took this busy little lady to a fancy brunch for Mother’s Day. We scarfed down food while bouncing her on our lap, and then got the heck out of dodge while we finished chewing. Clearly it was very relaxing.

Then there was last year. We were finally hitting our stride with this parenting thing. One kid didn’t seem so scary anymore. We successfully handled outings, vacations and dinners in restaurant. We were unstoppable… and then I took a test the Friday before Mother’s Day. A pregnancy test… and it was positive. Wow, we were going to have another baby!! Wow, we were going to have another baby??? What were we thinking?!? We were hoping for a new addition, but suddenly our confidence crashed and burned. Two. Two kids?!? Were we sure we could handle this? Our Mother’s Day was a mix of joy and how-in-the-hell-can-we-handle-this nervousness.

Big sis to be!

And now, our family is complete. We’ve had our crash and burn moments, but we’ve also had our life as a family of four is awesome moments. Our kids have constantly reminded us that as much as we look like we are the ones in charge, we’re not. But they also remind us that life is best when you slow down. They remind us that life is better as a family of four than it ever was as a family of two or three. And they remind us that even if we don’t always know what we’re doing, most issues can be solved with a big hug and fruit snacks.

……………………………………..

This year Happy Mother’s Day has more meaning than ever. But it’s really about the two little ones who made me a mommy and the tremendous support around us who make it possible to get through each day.

Happy Mother’s Day to my awesome mom who showed me that life isn’t complete without lots of fun and some occasional confetti.

Happy Mother’s Day to my mother-in-law who always reminds me that there is no return policy on Denny. She raised a great son who turned out to be an even better husband and Dad .

Happy Mother’s Day to my amazing and courageous sister who is raising two adorable little boys and running a full marathon in one week! Can we say SuperMama??

Happy Mother’s Day to my sis-in-law Meg who is about to be Dr. and can rock out to Taylor Swift.

And Happy Mother’s Day to all the moms who stay up late wake up early scaring away monsters under the bed and rocking away sweet babies who aren’t tired. Happy Mother’s Day to the new mamas and the veteran mamas. Happy Mother’s Day to the moms trying to let go while yearning to hold on. Happy Mother’s Day to all the women near, far and in our hearts who raised us to know what it is to be great Moms.

……………………………………..

And now, bring on the champagne!

Filed Under: Uncategorized · Tagged With: Holidays, Makenzie Ruth, Mitchell Dennis, Super Mamas, The Story of Us

Mitchell’s Birth Story – Our little guy’s journey into the world

January 29, 2015 by erinqmcgee · 2 Comments

On Mother’s Day weekend 2014 we found out we were pregnant again! Fast forward about 39 weeks and we were anxious to meet our sweet baby boy.

For anyone who has ever been fortunate enough to experience a baby’s arrival into the world, you know exactly the emotions evoked during the experience. It is so difficult to capture these emotions into words, but I’ll try my best. Here is Mitchell’s Birth Story…

:: Thursday January 15, 2015, Four-ish AM ::

It was the morning of our baby boy’s induction. Aside from the hum of the baby monitor and Denny’s steady breathing next to me, the world was dark and asleep yet I was wide awake trying to wrap my mind around the fact that we might meet our son in a few short hours. Based on our baby check-up a few days prior, our wonderful OBGYN, Dr. Susan, felt that he was in a great spot to be induced, and we figured we would go for it so that my parents could be in town to watch Makenzie and also meet our baby boy.

:: Every new beginning comes from some other beginning’s end ::

I couldn’t sleep so I tried to just savor the last few hours of pregnancy. Denny and I feel fairly certain our family will be complete with 2 kiddos so I tried to remember every single movement and feeling involved with carrying a baby. It was a bittersweet morning for me trying to figure out how ten years with Denny went so fast. It seemed like we spent forever planning our Somedays of a house and babies, and now suddenly, our Somedays were happening in a blink.

:: Six o’ seven AM ::

Makenzie must have sensed the excitement of the day because she woke up bright and early! I was really glad because it gave me a few final minutes to snuggle with my first-born baby. She was thrilled to be spending the day with Nana and Papa and barely noticed as Denny and I headed off to the hospital.

Arriving at the hospital baby unit! I wish I could have bottled up the excitement I felt as we walked down the corridor.

:: Ten thirty-two AM ::

We were three and a half hours into being induced and the waiting game was in full force. I was showing enough progress that the nurses even broke my water. I was officially able to relax knowing that we would not be sent home to wait any longer. Our baby was going to be in our arms shortly!

The baby bed was ready and waiting!

:: The Name Game and a dinnertime baby ::

In order to pass the time we went back and forth on two topics – his name and his estimated arrival time. We brought the baby name book and started asking the nurses their feedback too. Ironically the wonderful OB resident who was taking care of us told us that her Dad’s name was Mitchell. That was one of the first signs that we would later decide on Mitchell as a name (more on that later).

As for the estimated arrival time, it was game on. Everyone had a guess. I was guessing about 8pm (but hoping it would be sooner). Denny guessed for a dinnertime baby and our nurses thought it was feasible to deliver this baby by 7 pm when their shifts ended.

:: Epidural, party of one ::

By noon, I was uncomfortable enough to go for the epidural. The contractions were still not consistent and I was not showing tremendous progress, but the nursing team felt an epidural might speed up the process so I went for it. We were cautiously optimistic thinking this would be the trick to get this little guy moving.

:: Five frustrating hours ::

Shortly after the epidural, the birth journey took a frustrating turn. We spent five long hours making no progress. Our little guy seemed to be totally content where he was and I started to get anxious as to what would happen next. This was merely a foreshadowing of what was to come, but luckily my mom was at the hospital by then and told us all about Makenzie’s morning, which lightened up the mood.

:: “He’ll be here in an hour” ::

By six o’clock, Dr Susan had arrived to check on us. We finally got past the five-hour standstill and the nurse told Dr. Susan that our little guy could be here within an hour. We were feeling good again and we were confident that we were close to holding our little guy.

The hour came and went but shortly after, the nurse came in and said it was worthwhile to try pushing. We tried and we tried yet we failed. So frustrating. Our sweet baby boy was sunny side up and there was no way he would be arriving in his current position.

:: New Game Plan ::

Given Mitchell’s position, the decision was to wait it out a few more hours and see if he flipped over. We were back to the waiting game. This was one of the toughest times of the day. My epidural dwindled away. I was nauseous, and I was on the brink of tears, BUT we knew that the only important thing was that our little guy was still healthy and we would eventually meet him.

:: Take Two ::

It was now nine thirty at night. Despite the obvious signs leading to a C-section, Denny and I were both oblivious to this outcome. We were fourteen hours into labor and it was time to try pushing yet again. We were full of hope that this was it, but we were wrong. After another grueling attempt at getting our little guy to arrive, Dr. Susan came in and delivered the news.

:: This was NOT the plan ::

Our only option at that point was a C-section. Mitchell was in a spot that could potentially be harmful to both of us if something didn’t change, so we had to get him out in the next few hours. I was crushed. This was NOT the plan. A million thoughts went through my head… What if something is wrong with the little guy? What if they don’t hurry? How did this happen? Why couldn’t I make this work? How am I going to take care of Makenzie while dealing with surgery recovery?

I was way too emotional to get it together and call anyone but Denny quickly switched to Rockstar Husband mode. He told my families the updates, changed into scrubs and gave a valiant effort at trying to keep his basket case of a wife from having a massive meltdown.

:: It’s a Boy!! ::

The next hour was a blur. I remember waiting in tremendous pain for what felt like forever because the epidural wore off yet again. I remember being wheeled down a long hallway into an operating room. I remember asking over and over again for Denny because I kept thinking that they forgot to get him. I remember the reassurance of the medical team that they would take care of us. And I remember feeling really fuzzy.

Yet despite the confusion, the frustration, the exhaustion of the day and the sheer emotion, I won’t forget hearing the first cries of our son. He had arrived and he was perfectly healthy! At 11:06 PM, Mitchell Dennis McGee was welcomed into the world and he was perfectly healthy!

First breath of life. Welcome to the world Mitchell! It is our privilege to be your parents. We love you more than you’ll ever know.

He was beautiful! Denny showed him to me quickly and then he was off to be weighed and assessed. He was 8 pounds, 9 ounces and 21 1/2 inches long.

Ten fingers. Ten toes.

One sweet, amazing baby!

Handsome!

One of my favorite pictures of the proud daddy introducing his son to baseball!

The next few hours continued to be a blur but it was filled with sweet amazement of what just occurred. Mitchell’s birth wasn’t the journey we anticipated but we wouldn’t change a thing. Our baby boy had arrived and our family was complete.

By 2:30 am we were drifting to sleep – completely exhausted, completely thrilled and completely smitten.

:: The First Few Days of Life::

The next few days were just as busy. By Friday afternoon we decided on a name and then we welcomed some of our favorite people to meet Mitchell. Little M is a lucky little guy!

Big sis Makenzie meeting her little brother. She is smitten and so are we.

Our little slugger. I hope he someday finds a sport that makes him as happy as Denny when he played baseball.

My little snugly boy

Nana’s little loves!

This little guy is so lucky to have such a wonderful Aunt!

:: Three Days later ::

By Sunday, it was time to head into the world as a family of four! We’re not pros by any means with handling two kids but I think we’re getting better each day. It’s pretty cool that our Someday is here. We can’t wait to see what else comes our way.

Heading home as a family of four!

Thanks for reading through my sappy post.

XOXO

Erin

PS Mitchell, this post is for you little guy. Once you get past the “Ew, gross” phase when you think of birth, I hope you see the beauty in the day you joined our family.

Filed Under: Uncategorized · Tagged With: Adventures in Parenthood, Baby McGee 2, Birth, Makenzie Ruth, Mitchell Dennis, The Story of Us

Baby prep and burnt pancakes

January 12, 2015 by erinqmcgee · Leave a Comment

This morning started like a normal Sunday morning, but it was a just little bit different. True, I was up by 5 because I just couldn’t get comfortable anymore but it was more than that. It was the feeling of being on the brink of something exciting and wonderful yet slightly scary and completely surreal. As I laid awake in the wee hours of the morning the question of Are we ready? kept dancing through my mind.

I went through all the lists and prep we’ve been doing for the past 39 weeks…

Are we ready for Nana and Papa to watch Makenzie for a few days – yes.

Are we ready to spend a few days in the hospital – yes.

Are we ready to bring home a newborn, swaddle him up and rock him to sleep – heck yes.

But are we ready to be parents of two kids – I just don’t know.

……………………………

By the time the sun came up the toddler Pandora station was blasting in the kitchen while my favorite little buddy was hard at work mixing pancake batter, yet I was still questioning our readiness.

Are we really ready for sleepless nights, endless diaper changes and countless cleanings of bottles?

Are we ready to teach two kids about all the good in the world yet make sure they can protect themselves from the not-so-good?

Are we able and ready to give them really amazing childhoods?

Chef Makenzie

Within 10 minutes I had my answer. My little chef had moved to her kitchen seat and was playing the alphabet game on her tablet when everything got crazy. A tidal wave of spilled milk on her new toy prompted an unforeseen meltdown. As I cleaned up her milk and sopped up her tears, the oven buzzer beeped reminding me that the sausage was overly done and that the pancakes needed flipped.

Just like that I went from Rockstar Mom with a burning desire to make a Sunday morning memory to a Rotten Mom with a burning skillet of pancakes. Just like that the entire day shifted. And just like that I realized that maybe being ready only means being ready to expect the unexpected.

Maybe being ready means knowing that we can’t foresee all the tears, falls and broken toys. Maybe being ready means being okay with the fact that we can’t prevent the long nights, the life lessons and the broken hearts. And maybe being ready means that despite all we do to be great parents to our kids, it’s inevitable that some morning will include spilled milk, tears and burnt pancakes.

Luckily it just took a few paper towels and a fresh batch of pancakes and all was good again in the world. Later today I found this quote and I’m starting to believe that maybe, just maybe, we are ready to be parents of two kids. It might require a few extra paper towels and an extra box of tissues on occasion but I think that the next week or so will bring more joy than we could have ever imagined.

And on a side note… If you’re listening little guy, come on out! We want to meet you and show you the world. Life is going to be unexpected and messy at times but we’re here to help you through it. You just show up and we’ll do the rest. We can’t wait for you to join in on the fun!

XOXO

Mom & Dad

Filed Under: Uncategorized · Tagged With: Baby McGee 2, Makenzie Ruth, Parenting Humor, The Story of Us

The truth behind Mother Nature’s cold front

November 22, 2014 by erinqmcgee · Leave a Comment

:: Buffalo, NY ::

Many of you are cringing right now thinking about the snow and blustery weather. I did the same thing about 9 years ago. That was before I moved here. I picked up and moved to the 716 area code because of a boy I loved. And fortunately that move turned out to be a good thing because that boy I love is now my husband I love. But enough of the mushy stuff, let me tell you about my city.

During our eight years here in Buffalo, we’ve come to call this town home. Buffalo, NY is a big city with an even bigger heart. Buffalo is a place where you celebrate when the skyline has a new crane (or five) because it means new opportunities and new jobs. Buffalo is a place where the owner of your favorite pizza not only knows your favorite toppings but also knows your daughter’s name. Buffalo is a place where you can rely on your neighbors as if they’re family. Buffalo is a place that is nice to call home.

Buffalo is also a place that gets some occasional snow and blustery weather. Okay, by occasional snow I mean a LOT of snow. In fact, this week we’ve made headlines because of the 84″ inches that fell in the suburbs of the city. One of the suburbs hit hardest is the place that we call home… cute little Lancaster, NY.

Lots of the white stuff!

Lancaster, NY, a good place to call home.

Thank you to all of our friends and family for your texts and messages but we’re doing okay. In fact we’re doing better than okay.

There’s no doubt that this storm has caused some very serious situations, but overall, this cold has made life quite warm and cozy. Here is how this natural disaster has affected our little family… We’ve had some unexpected weekdays of not setting our alarms. We’ve had lots of games of hide n seek. We’ve had story time, nap time and bed time together. We’ve had fun times with our neighbors. Sure, we’ve been trying to balance two careers from the confines of our house, and yes, we’ll probably have some long workdays to compensate for this BUT it’s hard to be upset with an unexpected little chance to just slow down and be with your family.

In this stressful world we live in, a four-day staycation rarely happens. Aside from some shoveling of snow, some juggling of schedules and some thawing of food from our freezer, we’ve been very grateful to make some memories that could have otherwise been lost in the shuffle.

Some snow day crafting

Perhaps Mother Nature isn’t really as cruel as she seems. She’s a mom after all, and it turns out that Moms are pretty smart ladies. And after this week I’m fairly certain that behind Mother Nature’s cold front is a warm heart.

Filed Under: Uncategorized · Tagged With: About Mommy McBlog, Buffalo, Holidays, NY, The Story of Us

It’s A….

October 7, 2014 by erinqmcgee · Leave a Comment

Blog post about a really memorable day!!!!

………………………………………

Just like that…

we have a TWO year old

AND

we’re having a BOY!

Needless to say, Makenzie’s Birthday was a SPECIAL day.

Saturday, October 4th was Makenzie’s official Birthday AND 1st tap class day, party day and gender reveal day. Phew, I still need a nap from all the fun.

………………………………………

Wake up Birthday Girl!

Our day started bright and early and included bagels, decorations and some presents.

Sleepy head Birthday girl

………………………………………

After breakfast Makenzie and I headed to her very first tap class! It’s a Mommy & Me class at a local dance center. She was shy in the beginning but warmed up in no time. This weekend was her third lesson and she’s really starting to get it. It’s amazing to watch her follow instructions so well. Stay tuned for June when we’re both in the recital (luckily the moms only have a small role). We dress in all black to hide from the spotlight.

Those leggies!!

Radio City Rockettes, here she comes!

………………………………………

Then came the party fun!!

We made it a Sweet Shop theme.

Our little sweetie is turning Two,

celebrate as we find out if her sibling will be Pink or Blue!

It wasn’t exactly Pinterest perfect but overall I think it turned out cute.

The sweet shop. I swear it was for the kids and not for my pregnant self.

Party decos!

Aaaaaand the most important gift of the day. 🙂

Dad Q got crafty with the pumpkins to make sure they were carved appropriately.

………………………………………

Then came cake time AND reveal time!

Yum!

She was excited and ready to go!

Make a Wish Makenzie!!

Aaaaaaaaand a look into her first present revealed that…

Makenzie will be getting a BROTHER!!!!!!!!

She was clearly very excited.

Denny and I both expected to see Pink in the box so it was an incredibly exciting and emotional moment for us! We can’t wait to see Makenzie love on her little brother. It’s going to be a fun experience to bring a little boy into this world. I’m sure we’ll get peed on plenty of times but we know this little guy will be the perfect way to complete our family.

………………………………………

The rest of the day flew by and we loved spending time with some of our favorite people!

Cousin Connor with Kenzie and Jack Jack

Kenzie loves PapPap

And we ended the day with some late night silliness… Jazz Hands for a little BOY!!

………………………………………

A HUGE Thank You to everyone who came over to make Makenzie’s Birthday really special!! It’s going to be a fun & blue-filled year!

And to Makenzie, thank you for sharing your Birthday excitement with your brother. I still can’t believe you are TWO (even though you’ve been telling people you are two for months now). I know you’re going to be a great Big Sis! Please don’t put make-up on our brother and we’ll make sure he doesn’t try to date your friends.

Love you to the moon & back Birthday girl!

xoxo,

Mom

Filed Under: Uncategorized · Tagged With: Baby McGee 2, Birthdays, ITSA Party, Makenzie Ruth, The Story of Us

Home-iversary! Our favorite projects – Part 1

February 20, 2014 by erinqmcgee · 1 Comment

On February 23, Denny and I will have our five year Home-iversary!

(This is where you throw confetti on us and sound your noisemakers – woo!)

Only 300 teeny tiny payments until complete & total financial freedom. Denny, pack your bags… Aruba awaits in 2039!

It’s really fun being homeowners, and over the past five years we’ve learned a thing or two about turning a house into a home. We’re not exactly the Property Brothers so before you go any further, please lower your expectations for the updates that you’re about to see, but we’ve added some sweat equity to our humble little abode and it’s fun to look at the changes over the years. So come in on, take off your shoes and try not to trip on the toys, it’s time to look back at some of our favorite projects:

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Fireplace – They say it’s the heart of the home so it better look good!

What we did – The fireplace renovation started over some wine with the neighbors (isn’t that where all great ideas begin?). We all agreed the green had to go… half a bottle later there were sledgehammers and demolition. Cue neutral tile and some white paint and it’s like a whole new fireplace!

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(Now we’ll hop the baby gate and move upstairs, we’ll go back down next week)

Master Bedroom – Where the magic happens (and by magic we mean sleeping through the night on occasion). We went from a green space to a cozy gray place to lay our head at night.

What we did: We changed out the carpeting from green to a soft beige, and we updated the ceiling fan, blinds and curtains. We painted the walls a calming gray and accented the trim in white (can you tell we LOVE white trim?). Check it out…

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Nursery – Land of an awesome little girl! Can you tell we’re kind of crazy about her?

This was my all-time FAVORITE project since moving into our home. We don’t have any before pictures of this room. But if you want to see where Kenzie calls home, check out our post from a few weeks before she was born. Going back to this post makes me teary. How is she getting so big so fast?

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Guest Room aka OU Room – This is our way of saying Come & Visit!

What we did – This room was a pretty simple makeover. It required some green paint for the walls and some white paint for the trim (yes, we love that white). It’s now our guest room/OU room but not just because of the green walls. We have a college-style guest bed aka mattress on the floor (don’t judge) and the wall is covered with our favorite poster of all time – Pubs of Athens. You’re welcome to visit, have a few drinks and pass out in here. You wouldn’t be the first.

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Thanks for stopping by!

See you next week when we tour the rest of the house.

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HGTV McBlog Style!

If you like what you saw, join the fun on Facebook

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Filed Under: Uncategorized · Tagged With: Home is where the projects are, The Story of Us

Cape May – the 1st official McGee Family Summer Vacation

September 8, 2013 by erinqmcgee · Leave a Comment

Today we went back to reality – back to alarm clocks, back to schedules and back to real shoes. It was the first day in about a week that I came home and didn’t find sand everywhere. But despite being sand-free, today wasn’t nearly as good as the past week and a half. Last week was the 1st official McGee Family Summer Vacation.

Beach, Sun, Sand, Strolls, Family Naps… the GOOD stuff of life!

We spent 5 days in Cape May, NJ, and we had a great time! I could ramble on about our visit, but I think the pictures tell a pretty accurate story…