Three day weekends with family

One of the things I look forward to when I come back from the holiday break is the fact that just two weeks later, we get ANOTHER day off!  We got our 3-day weekend in observance of MLK, so Mike and I used those extra days to get a little quality time with the family.  My brother was in town for work this past week, and he stayed the weekend before continuing his tour of the East Coast airports.

We took the opportunity to have some late night sibling bonding time (after post-flu Mike went to bed early), to build a few "forts" with Winston on the couch, to take a road trip to Connecticut, to have a few go-kart races (not me of course, maybe after the baby comes!!!), to have an early birthday celebration for my bro-chacho, to take in some New York pizza, to show Garrett the new hood in Bronxville, and to catch up on the life that's happened since we last saw each other over Christmas.

Sunday was extremely dangerous outside with some daunting episodes of black ice all over the tri-state area.  So it was the perfect, rainy, dreary day to be inside with family.  We did have to hike it back to New York in the evening, but by then the weather had warmed up & the roads were a bit less treacherous.

 I love that my family can turn their occasional business trips into some family time - I'm extremely lucky that they come to New York more often then they need to be in Atlanta or say....Minneapolis.  I'll take as much time as I can get & can't wait until that time turns into more visits with our future little Miss.

My brother celebrated a very special birthday yesterday & even though we didn't get to be with him and the rest of the family in Texas on the actual day, we did get some special time with him.  Happy Birthday to my best buddy & the greatest brother ever.  We can't wait to hopefully have a REAL guest bedroom for you for your next visit (even though Winston likes to encroach on your little couch forts)!

We have some news!!!!

Finding out he's going to be a
grandpa for the first time ever!

Hello friends & family - by now, most of you have seen the Facebook or Instagram post we made earlier today.  If you haven't, we have some very exciting news to share with you all.  We've been holding this in for months, and we're so happy to finally spread the word that our little family will be growing by one this coming July!  Yes, we're having a baby!

I'd be lying if I said that the road to our little WeeMobs wasn't a long (well, longer than we'd hoped) and sometimes deflating one.  After 14 months, we were starting to lose patience as we waited for some positive results!  And finally...that little stick said "positive" for the first time ever!  We'll never forget the morning we found out - when I was plagued with insomnia worrying about what results this month would tell.  I quietly tip-toed to the bathroom at 4:00a and stared at a test for about 10 minutes before getting the courage to take it.  When that little test finally read the most precious words I had ever hoped for in my life, my eyes welled up with tears.

Baby Mobley already has her very own mini Menzies kilt straight from Scotland!

Baby's first ultrasound! 6 weeks!

I quickly scanned my mind to think of something creative to do for Mike to tell him.  But it was 4:15 in the morning, I was crying....and I would never be able to go back to sleep.  So I pounced on the bed, turned on all of the lights and well, scared the shit out of my husband.  He woke up in a panic, almost grabbed his tactical flashlight and sat straight up in bed.  When I put the test in his hand, he looked at it.....registered a second and then grabbed me into the biggest hug that ever happened in the world.   After that, even though it was impossible to fall asleep....we just laid there...in absolute bliss - but cautiously optimistic about the future of our tiny.  And then we did what any normal expecting couple would do....we celebrated by taking baby to the Alice Cooper/Motley Crue show - because...duh!

PJs on Thanksgiving  - this time with a little
extra "surprise"

The next few months were a series of fibs, mocktails disguised as cocktails, a little hiding out, and a gradual reveal to our family members and some close friends.  Because of the slightly rockier road we had on the way to WeeMobs, Mike and I had an ultrasound a little bit earlier than most...and at just 6 weeks we got to hear our little bean's HEARTBEAT!!!  I'm not sure what's more amazing...the advancements of modern technology to give you these unforgettable moments, or the moment itself - hearing the heartbeat of your first child for the first time.  It was difficult to decipher a little human from the rice-sized blog in the picture, but we had a healthy heartbeat, and a BABY!

Six weeks later, just a few days before Christmas, all of our guesses and speculations were correct when we found out we were having a GIRL!  Mike and I were obviously both absolutely elated and could barely contain ourselves from sharing the news with anyone we came into contact with!  And we were so lucky to be able to do a bit of a reveal to our parents &  my brother/SIL the day before Christmas!  Sure, I botched the reveal....when I couldn't keep myself from using the female pronouns "she" and "her" - but it was worth it for everyone to find out at the same time at the happiest time of year.  It was truly the greatest Christmas gift we could have ever received.  We've already started the shopping for our little sweetheart.

Already preparing for tons of "pony rides"

We've taken to calling her "America" these past few weeks, because it looks at though she'll be making her debut on or around 4th of July - which for a couple who thrives on festivity, was the greatest news ever.  I'm not sure if she's going to grow up to be a ballerina, or if she'll be a little soccer player.  She might like Taylor Swift (or whoever the next pop super star might be!) or take after her awesome parents and fall asleep at night to the voice of Jon Bon Jovi.  She may totally be into princesses, or she could want to watch football on the couch with her daddy.  Little girl Mobley might have a hundred boyfriends, or beat them all up on the playground (I think I know which one Mike would prefer).  And she might want to play dress up, or prefer to play wiffle ball in the front yard.

It was a very merry Christmas indeed....

I'm not sure what we are going to get from this little bundle of joy.  We have absolutely no idea - and I LOVE IT!  All I know is that we have waited for what seems like an eternity for this little miracle.  We know that we already love her so much and we know that Winston is totally prepared to wear tutus and have tea parties if he has to.  And we know that we absolutely can't wait to meet our sweet girl.

We are completely overwhelmed by the outpouring of support, love, well wishes, and welcome advice from all of our friends and family with this fantastic news.  Our little girl is going to love meeting each and every one of the amazing people who have made our lives so complete.  Thank you from the bottom of our hearts for all the kind words.  We can't wait to take you along for the journey to our little Miss.  All our love - the Mobleys

2015: The Year the Mobleys cut the clutter

This is going to be a good year - I just know it!  Especially with the progress we've been making on the house hunt! In the past, I've tried to have a theme for each of my goals to start the New Year. For the Mobleys, 2013 was all about being spontaneous and doing whatever we wanted.  2014 was the year of ZEN and finding peace and relaxation in a crazy New York advertising life.  2015 is the year the Mobleys focus on cutting the clutter...getting and staying ridiculously organized in our lives.  I don't just mean having a clean closet - I'm talking about cutting the clutter... from everywhere!

1.  Cut the clutter from our home - With the house hunt in full swing, and with the last of our days in our New York apartment upon us, I'm committed to getting organized before any move.  I don't want to move anything to our new home that's not necessary & I want to start our lives in a house with a fresh, organized start!  I'll de-clutter within reason though - I don't want to make any irrational decisions.  But a new house brings a blank slate - and I'd rather fill it with love and memories than clutter!

2.  Cut the clutter from our budgets - Being a homeowner requires that you take a closer look at your budget.  Would you rather have that cup of coffee, or put that money towards that new couch that is ridiculously expensive, but you can't imagine your life without it?  Are those shoes more important to you than the closing costs you're going to encounter pretty soon?  This year, I'm vowing to take this seriously.  We're going to go through our finances with a fine toothed comb and be smart about cutting costs where possible.  Looks like I'll have to sacrifice some of my shopping habits in favor of my dream home!

3.  Cut the clutter from our diets - Yep!  We're trimming the fat, literally.  If we end up moving out of the city that means no more access to the endless world of takeout.  No more late night pizza runs.  No more ordering a chicken parm because you can't figure out what else to eat.  We are going to have more planned meals, more home cooking, smaller portions, and more time chatting about each other's day at the dinner table. This goal should help the aforementioned cost cutting too!

When you can't be with some of your friends at midnight...
you FACE TIME them from the restaurant!

4.  Cut the clutter from my inbox - My goal in my inbox for 2015 is to never have a "scroll bar" at the end of every day.  For those of you who know what I'm talking about...it means that you have so many emails in your inbox, that you have to scroll through them.  If you have your inbox clean and clear, there is no scroll bar....because you don't have to sort through too many emails.  It's glorious.  I follow the RFDD model - reply, forward, delegate or delete.  This should keep things manageable & keep my inbox from giving me heartburn every time I sit down to my desk.

5.  Cut the clutter from our minds - This one is a lot less literal, and maybe more difficult.  One of the things that I'm most proud of from last year was the progress I made in my ability to handle stress.  Acupuncture played a role in this, lavender oil played a role in this, yoga might have played a role in this, and maybe turning 30 played a large role.  I still have my panic moments, I still will break down in tears when I just can't do everything, but I'm so much better at compartmentalizing and prioritizing than I was in prior years.  I think this will be key to continue to improve upon for 2015.  Being able to separate my different priorities will be essential for a healthy work/life balance that I want to achieve this year.  My family & my friends are the most important things in my life - and anything that interferes with those precious things is...well, clutter!

Mike and I rang in the New Year in our favorite New York manner - dressed to the nines, with reservations to a festive New York establishment, and among friends.  This has become a NYE staple for us.  We love getting dressed up and starting off the New Year in some snazzy clothes - surrounded by our friends who are such a special part of our lives (we even Face Timed with our favorite new Austinites at our midnight!).  We love when the restaurants bring out the pots and pans, complementary champagne, and noisemakers.  We love leaving the hosting and cleaning for someone else to worry about.  And we love being able to go home and snuggle in our own beds together to start the year.

This year's celebration had an air of peace & satisfaction.  Satisfaction at how gratifying this year has been for us, and peace that we'll be able to take on whatever challenges and excitement 2015 has for for the Mobleys.  We wish you a happy & healthy New Year to your and yours and hope you all were able to start 2015 off with a bang!

Saying goodbye to 2014...

I know it's redundant and it's cliche, but I CAN'T BELIEVE we are saying goodbye to 2014.  I just can't believe it.  This year brought us so many incredible memories between the two of us & with our families.  Every year, it's definitely bitter sweet to see a wonderful year come to an end - and I'm always skeptical about the next year being able to live up to the one prior.  As always, there were definitely some low days of 2014, but the high days were REALLY high.  I'm going to be a little nostalgic as I reflect on everything that we've experienced over 2014 - so thank you for coming along for the ride!

What better way to recap 2014, than...you guessed it!  A COUNTDOWN!  You've read all the blog entries, so I wont bore you all with too much rehashing of memories, but here is a look back at the crazy year The Mobleys had in 2014 (starting from 8, because 9 & 10 are just too high!):

8! years of girls trips - Wow!  Not only have we known each other for over 12 years now, we've been taking these trip since we graduated from college!  8 years!  St. Thomas was a gorgeous way to celebrate over a decade of friendship with some of my favorite ladies.  These girls trips are a mandatory of every one of my years, and this one was perfect.  Thank you so much to my sweet girlies for your commitment to keeping up this trip and our long-distance friendship every year.  You guys, and these girls weekends, mean the world to me.

Party of 7! in Key West - What a way to ring in your 30th birthday!   Key West was everything I could have wanted for my big 3-0. Being surrounded by great parents and great friends made me completely content and at peace with leaving my 20's behind me...because this great party of 7 was going to be around for the next decade!  Now if only we can figure out a way to have milestone birthday vacations every year, because this one was pretty epic!

6! Visits to places I've never been - Some of them near, some of them far, some of them little, some of them big, but all of them NEW!  Part of what makes life exciting is exploring the world - even if it's just in your backyard.  We've lived in New York for almost 5 years, and I had never made it out to Nantucket until this summer!  And if my cousin didn't get married in Providence, RI, I'm not sure I would have ever gone out there to spend a weekend.  This year every new city I saw this year was charming in different ways - but that might not be the case every time you see a new place...and that's ok!  But discovering new little destinations, good and bad, is really what life is about.  I'm so grateful to my husband for being the best international travel partner, and to our friends and family for also bringing us reasons to see the gems that our great country has to offer! 

5!  Years of Cape Christmas - FIVE YEARS with amazing friends and festive hosts.  Every year we start to plan this escape in like February...MONTHS before it's even close.  But it one of the weekends we look forward to most in the year, and we're looking forward to a 6th year in 2014!

4! Different countries visited - When I vowed to make 2014 a year of zen, I didn't say that would mean that we'd stay home and be hermits all year.  We were "zen" alright - but we were "zen" in different countries!  Instead of taking our typical itinerary-filled vacations chock full of reservations, sight-seeing & appointments, we took our travels abroad to RELAX!  We went to Turks & Caicos with no agenda.  We went to Greece with a stack of books and an endless supply of sunscreen.  And we went to England & Scotland to spend time with family in our cozy little Highland cottage.  This year, we proved that even with a jam packed agenda, and multiple exotic trips - you can still find a way to just wind down....even if you have to force yourself!

3! Meet & greets with our favorite bands - Mike & I love a summer concert series!  But not every year is this packed with the best shows. This year brought not only the LAST EVER tour with Motley Crue, but it also was our first time to see KISS together!  And let's not forget that we got to meet the legendary Def Leppard!  Def Leppard was one of the first concerts Mike & I went to together (Alkaline Trio was the REAL first!), so it was a life highlight to get to meet some of our favorite musicians ever.  In our early days of dating in LA, some of our friends so lovingly called Mike & I "Team Metal" - and we absolutely lived up to that this year.  I mean....did you SEE our Christmas card???

2! DuPont weddings - I've spoken about these two events quite a bit, but my brother & my cousin's weddings were the biggest news of the year.  Not only the actual special days themselves, but all that went into the exciting times for both of the gorgeous couples.  Weddings bring great parties, but they also bring showers, engagement parties, bachelorette parties, and in some cases, a SECOND reception!  So our year was pretty eventful and exciting between all of the fun surrounding the two DuPont weddings.  We're thrilled to have new family members join the DuPont side & can't wait to make more memories with the newlyweds!

1! Hunt to find the perfect home - I mentioned in my previous post that Mike & I have been moving full steam ahead with our house hunt.  We're so excited to end 2014 on this note, and hope to be able to share more exciting news with you early on next year.

2014, we're so sorry to see you go and we appreciate all the amazing memories that we've made over the past 365 days.  We're grateful for all the health, happiness, and ZEN you brought the Mobleys.  As we go into 2015, we look forward to more of the things that completed our year above.  More of the travel, more special moments with friends, more reason's to have big gatherings with our family - immediate AND extended, and more adventures with the love of my life.  So before we toast to 2015, cheers to YOU 2014, take a bow, you were fantastic.  What a year!