Charlie's 1st Birthday Whobilation!

On Christmas morning around 3:00am I woke up out of the blue and was completely unable to fall back to sleep. After admitting defeat, I decided to relocate to our living room and lay on our couch beneath the glow of our Christmas tree. It was the same thing I did exactly a year before when my water broke at 2:00am Christmas day and I excitedly waited for my contractions to pick up.

I laid there, in a quiet house and just reminisced about the year prior. Although I would have never picked a Christmas birthday for my baby, it somehow wound up making sense. I have always been a big believer in Christmas magic, so it seemed only fitting that this little boy who was destined to steal my heart would be born on the most magical day of the year.

I could go on and on with all kinds of Mommy mush about how thankful I am for this little bugger and how it feels like he was always meant to be a part of our family, but I'll save that for another day. To commemorate our sweet boy's first trip around the sun, we threw a Grinch-themed Whobilation in his honor! Prepare yourself for a massive photo dump:

Charlie's birthday menu consisted of:

"Roast Beast" sandwiches (A Kroger deli platter)

Whoville Hummus and Veggie Wraps (Spinach wraps filled with hummus and finely chopped bell peppers, spinach and cucumbers)

Grinch Kebobs (Mini marshmallows, strawberries and grapes on a toothpick- made to look like the Grinch in his Santa hat)

Who Pudding (aka: Worms in Dirt- Green vanilla pudding, Oreo crumbs, and red/green gummy bears)

Mt Crumpit Carrot Cake (I used this Baby's First Birthday Carrot Cake recipe for the cake and this Cream Cheese Frosting recipe)

I got all of our festive, Grinch-themed shirts on Etsy:

Charlie's "The Baby Who Stole Christmas" onesie

My "Fahoo Fores" jersey shirt

Chuck's "Max" t-shirt

My Mom and sister can't resist a good theme.

Charlie's cousins are 8, 5, 2 and 10 months, so I tried to think of an activity that they could all enjoy. I spent $20 on ball pit balls from the Oriental Trading Company and threw them into a baby pool. Best $20 I've ever spent- the kiddos loved it!

Despite the fact that I know Charlie will never remember his first birthday, I will, and it was a beautiful day. I know it's so easy for a child's birthday to be overshadowed by the holiday season, but I've made a promise to myself that I will always make Charlie's birthday as unique and special as he is. 

Happy Birthday, Charlie Davis! 

You've made my heart grow three sizes.

All photo credit goes to my amazing sister-in-law!

Winter 2015 Book Challenge: November Check-In

My hopes for this reading challenge haven't been high, because I've been taking an unintentional blogging and reading break. Not because I've been watching HGTV all day, e'ry day (#fixerupper!), but because sometimes I just get burnt out with using my brain and decide to take a little mental vacation. All this considered, I didn't do terrible for the first month of the Semi-Charmed Winter 2015 Book Challenge!

Here's where I'm at with my Preliminary List:

5 points: Read a book that has between 100 and 200 pages | The Giver by Lois Lowry (November 23, 2015)

10 points: Read a debut book by any author | Modern Romance by Aziz Ansari (November 22, 2015)

10 points: Read a book that does not take place in your current country of residence | After You by Jojo Moyes 

10 points: Read a book that someone else has already used for the challenge. | The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows (Chosen by Jenna @ Hello Sweet Sunbeams)

15 points: Read a book published under a pseudonym | Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte 

15 points: Read a book with “boy,” “girl,” “man” or “woman” in the title | A Year of Biblical Womanhood by Rachel Held Evans or Running Like a Girl by Alexandra Heminsley

15 points: Read a book with a one-word title | Sold by Patricia McCormick 

20 points: Read a book with a person's first and last name in the title | The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry by Gabrielle Zevin (November 19, 2015)

20 points: Read a food-themed book | Bittersweet: Thoughts on Change, Grace, and Learning the Hard Way by Shauna Niequist

20 points: Read a book with a verb in the title | Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear by Elizabeth Gilbert (November 3, 2015)

30 points: Read two books with the same title (by different authors) | TBD (My back-up is Revolution by Russell Brand and Revolution by Deborah Wiles, but I want to see what other readers come up with) 

30 points: Read a nonfiction book and a fiction book about the same subject | Let It Snow by John Green and Being Santa Claus: What I Learned about the True Meaning of Christmas by Sal Lizard

PREVIOUS POINTS: 0

TOTAL POINTS: 55

MY REVIEWS:

The Giver by Lois Lowry (192 pages, ★★★★)

I've been meaning to read this book for some time because I feel like it's one of those books that everyone except me read in high school. Overall, I get why so many people rave about it. I think it's a terrific foray into dystopian YA literature, even for kids who may not be big readers. This was a solid four stars for me.

Modern Romance by Aziz Ansari (277 pages, ★★★★)

I was expecting this to be a more humor-genre book, and although it was funny, it wasn't what I anticipated. I give Ansari credit for the amount of research and thought that was put into this. He manages to intertwine fascinating sociological and anthropological studies with his unique sense of humor really well. I particularly enjoyed his chapter on modern romance across several different cultures. If he continues to write in the future, I will definitely read it!

The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry by Gabrielle Zevin (272 pages, ★★★★★)

Loved, loved, loved! When you read as much as I do, it's really hard for a book to stick with me. But I know for a fact that this one will. The fact that Zevin was able to write beautiful funny, light-hearted moments, as well as tragic, melancholy moments all with the same grace and precision was just plain skillful. I loved all the characters, even the warped, unlikeable ones, which I think is yet another testament to her writing. For my fellow book nerds, if you like books about books, this is a great one. I would definitely read more from her!

Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear by Elizabeth Gilbert (288 pages, ★★★★)

I totally plan to read this again when I'm in need of some writing inspiration. Gilbert's musings on "creative living beyond fear" are equally parts nurturing and encouraging, with some tough love thrown in for good measure. I felt like she was speaking directly to my fears, insecurities, and failings when it comes to expressing my own creativity and she challenged the way I write and set me on a path to fall more deeply in love with my craft. I dedicated a whole post to this one!

I'm Going Pants-Free for 31 Days

No, really. No jeans, no skirts. I'm going pants-free for the month of December. If you're wondering why the heck anyone would possibly do that- especially during these frigid winter days, well, I'll tell you! This year, two of my best friends and I, are participating in Dressember.

If you've stuck around here for any length of time, you might know that one of my biggest passions is supporting the anti-human trafficking movement. Specifically, the work of an anti-trafficking organization called International Justice Mission. In college, I co-led my campus chapter of IJM, and have attended their Global Prayer Gathering for two years. I have continued to follow them as they free young girls who have been forced into the sex industry, they have punished human traffickers and brothel owners, and have set the wheels of justice into motion in countries where human trafficking has largely gone on with no legal recourse in sight.

I have only ever known a consensual sexual relationship with a person that I love. There is a part of me that cannot stomach the thought that not every woman and girl can say that. There are children (CHILDREN!) in this world who will never know that. They have been stripped of their innocence and repeatedly abused simply because they are female. 

While most of the time I feel helpless, I do not want to stand idly by and allow for these types of injustices to continue.

I want to stand up for these girls who have been robbed of the ability to stand up for themselves.

So if wearing a dress for 31 days allows me to do that, bring it on!

Dressember is an initiative that embraces a traditionally feminine clothing item, to bring awareness to these women who have been exploited simply because of their femininity. So yes, at first glance it may seem silly (and chilly!), but Dressember is about so much more than just a dress. 

I'll be documenting my 31-Day Dressember challenge on Instagram. Today is Day #1, so click here to check out what I'm wearing! And if you're feeling generous, please check out my team fundraising page to donate to an amazing cause!

Happy First Day of December!