My Little Bro is 28!

Garrett & I are not even 22 months apart.  Ever since that little dude was born, we were best buddies - even though as babies, we couldn't have been more opposite.  Garrett had a permanent drool spot on his shirts until he was about 2, while I barely ever had so much as an un-tucked shirt.  Garrett played with bugs and toads, I couldn't be bothered with a spec of dirt.  Little Garrett was known to have left-over food stuck in his sippy cup, and I had impeccable table manners.  Garrett was infatuated with all things sports before he was even a year old, I was busy reading the encyclopedia in my room.  Garrett was fearless and daring, while I was a little scaredy cat who did everything according to the rules.  And Garrett's hair was styled in all different directions, while I never had one little curl out of place.

Despite some of your typical sibling squabbles, Garrett and I grew up as best friends and he's one of the greatest guys I've ever known.  I was lucky to be able to spend Garrett's birthday with him last year when he was in New York for work, but this year the big guy's birthday fell on a Saturday - which means he got the whole weekend to celebrate in Dallas - which he very well did!

Happy Birthday Garrett - you may be 28 and 6 inches taller than me, but you'll always be "my little brother".  There is no one I'd rather laugh with when mom yells at us.  And no one else I'd rather conspire with to poke fun of my husband.  You are, and forever will be one of my favorite people to party with in the entire world.  I'll forgive you this once for all those times you tattled on me and then smiled at me behind mom's back while she disciplined me.

I hope this birthday was fantastic and I can't wait to see you to celebrate!  I know 28 is going to bring you some wonderful things. We love you brochacho!

This Wont Hurt a Bit....

As you may recall, part of my ambition for 2014 was to be more "zen" this year.  I know it's barely 20 days into 2014, but I've spent the past few weekends at massage and facial appointments.  But there was something NEW that I have never tried before....acupuncture!

My cozy heated treatment bed!

The only thing I knew about acupuncture is that it involved needles & that they put them in weird places, like in your ears or in your forehead.  I hadn't done much research and I didn't know what to expect, but I made an appointment and kept an open mind.  After doing a bit of searching online, I found a fantastic location right on 16th and 3rd that had wonderful reviews- 16th Street Acupuncture and Wellness Center.   I emailed one of the acupuncturists, Samantha, and she gave me a delightful little surprise - ACUPUNCTURE WAS COVERED BY MY INSURANCE!  I couldn't believe my eyes!

So before I even got there I felt relieved that I wasn't signing up for what could turn into a costly investment.  The staff was wonderful - I made an appointment with Samantha, who has very convenient hours on Saturdays. From the moment I walked into the suite to the moment I walked out, I immediately felt relaxed.  I talked to Samantha about my stressful career and how my reason for treatment was to have regular relaxation and to get some stress relief in my hectic life.  And in no time, I was laying on my back with needles all over my body.

I'm not sure HOW it works, or why having tiny needles in my body takes all the stressful energy out of my life, or if it was purely mental, but I felt like a new woman when I walked out of that wellness center.  I felt relieved, I felt "zen" and I felt like I could handle anything that may come my way.   I'm ABSOLUTELY going back, in fact now that I have coverage, I'm going to see how frequently I can visit my friends at 16th Street Wellness Center.  I'd highly recommend acupuncture for anyone who hasn't tried it before - I'm already a big fan!  YAY ZEN!

A new little buddy for the crew!

Little Guy in the onesie
 from the Mobleys!

It's that time in our adult lives where the beautiful miracle of babies has become a more frequent occurrence.  Not a week goes by when my newsfeed isn't flooded with photos of adorable new little ones, exciting announcements, or pictures from a baby shower.  And I love it.  But sometimes my friends and their tiny new additions are just too far away.

Tiniest little thing!

But some of our best friends are just right around the corner or a quick cab ride away - and we are so excited to welcome the first baby to our New York crew!  Our best man Matty and his sweet wife Nadean welcomed Cash Novogratz into the world just one day after Christmas, and Mike and I love our new little best friend.  We are so excited for our friends and can't wait to spend more time with the new little family, even if that means spending a lot more time out in Brooklyn!

I think this was also the tiniest & youngest baby I'd ever met in my life.  Mike and I met little Cash when he was just 4 days old, and he was the most precious little gift..  He had the tiniest little fingers and the tiniest little toes, and the most microscopic little fingernails in the world.  He may not be able to talk yet, and he may not understand what we are saying to him, but we can't wait to tell him all about Van Halen & Motley Crue when he grows up!

We couldn't be happier for our friends and their sweet family.  Matt & Nadean are like family to us and we can't wait to see how our families grow together!  To baby Cash, your aunt & uncle Mobs are going so have so much fun with you & we love you already!

We love you Cash!  Welcome to the world!!!

A Warm Welcome to 2014....

A few years ago, we started a friend tradition of dressing to the nines and making reservations for a fancy restaurant in New York City.  It's a tradition we've honored the past two years, and has resulted in quite the festive NYE for us.  So this year, there was no anxiety about figuring out what we were going to do.  There was no uncertainty, no trying desperately to find a friend to throw a house party, no ambiguity over what is appropriate to wear - just the third annual NYE fancy dinner with some of our favorites from the New York crew!

This year, we selected a French restaurant in Tribeca called Cercle Rouge.  It was a little more quaint and less of a scene than what we had experienced in years past, but it was EXACTLY what we wanted.  Mike called weeks ahead of time to ensure that we could have the best table at the restaurant, which was a big red circular booth in the center of the dining room.  Not only did this prove to be a cozy locale for over 4 hours of martinis and rich french cuisine - but it turned out to be the best view for the surprise burlesque show that entertained us just after we finished some authentic appetizers.  The lovely ladies did a few more performances and joined us closer to midnight for a few pictures - of course!

After three festive hours of reflecting on the year as a group and reminiscing about our favorite friend moments, it was almost midnight.  Our favorite thing about a fancy restaurant NYE celebration is of course the myriad of accessories that are distributed prior to midnight - I'm a sucker for a noise maker....of any kind.  And who doesn't love a shiny gold 2014 top hat????  When the clock struck 12, and 2014 was upon us, I could NOT have been more happy about the way we rang in the New Year.  I got a nice sweet kiss from my handsome husband, and a big, cozy, group hug from the other three.  Mike and I agreed that it was our best New Year's yet.

As we kick off 2014, I've decided that my New Year's resolution is to make 2014 the year of "zen".  Last year, albeit exciting and spontaneous, was extremely stressful for the Mobleys.  We were traveling an unbelievable amount, we were gone on average two weekends per month, we were booked solid through almost every week, and we were both stretched BEYOND our limits at work.  There were many tears, too many plane journeys, a lot of nights spent apart, and not enough down time with each other...or at all.

This year, I vow to try whatever I need to do to be zen or more relaxed.  I'm not sure if that means I need monthly massages and facials, or if I should be spending more time reading books, or if I should do more yoga, or try acupuncture for the first time, drink more tea, get some aromatic candles, take more B Complex, or even buy another fish to stare at when I'm feeling overwhelmed - I'm open to anything (and welcome any suggestions from all of YOU!) and everything.  That's it....that's my only resolution this year, because for those of you who know me, that should prove to be a daunting task for the next 12 months.

Mike and I started off our zen 2014 with a stress-free dinner alongside some of our greatest friends, so I'm optimistic that we're off to fantastic start.  We hope that you all had a NYE full of love, friends, cocktails, confetti and of course a few surprises.  The Mobleys wish you a wonderful New Year and 12 months full of joy, prosperity and whatever your little heart desires for this year.  We can't wait for another adventure with my little family and are SO excited to see what the year has in store for us.  Here we go again!!!!  Happy New Year!!!!!!