my husband, the television star.

words cannot express how proud i am of my husband!

here are his two television commercials that will begin to run sometime soon. when i watched them the first time, i cried. this should come as no surprise.

we had so many things happening in september of last year. pratt's birth. our move to a new town, a new house. clint opening up a new office.

for any of you who have started from scratch with something...you know how frightening this can be. clint is so great at his job. and very little makes me happier than seeing how well he has done...how blessed we have been.

so if you happen to see the commercials one day soon on tv, know that somewhere, i'm at home screaming...turning up the tv...trying to record them on a video tape...because, that's right...we still don't have dvr or tivo :)

these will honestly never get old to me! and the people giving testimonials are our friends whitney and lindsay! thanks you guys!

funny faces.

pratt has gone from a typical, normal smile...to this really scrunched up smile. i have no idea why he does this. but it is so stinking funny. it's almost seems like a fake smile. almost too much of a smile. but i'm pretty sure he's just that happy. oh, to be that happy :) bliss, i tell you...bliss.

last night, he was making his many faces...and i had to get the camera out.

i apologize for the slobber all over his face and outfit. he pretty much slobbers all the time. i had taken off a bib that was soaking wet and hadn't put anything else back on him yet. unreal how well hydrated this kid is.

one more thing...this child may look exactly like his daddy...but who gave him his chin? that's right :) and sorry for the bridal photo...but it was the only one where i have a big smile and that um..."defined" chin of mine is sooo evident. let's hope he doesn't have my forehead...but it doesn't look like things are going to work out for him...sorry, pratt. my fault...



also, jenny singleton made a wonderful blanket for us. it's the cutest blanket with all the continents. it really great fabric. and it's usually our go-to mat when we get on the floor. oh, and in that second picture...yes, he is totally checking out africa. that's right, pratt...you and mommy will for sure be going there to adopt your next brother or sister :)

also, we celebrated aunt christie's 18th birthday on monday! we went to her favorite place...benihanas! yummy, yummy! i know that pratt will love sushi and fried rice just like his mom and dad! and his aunt christie :) we love you christie!

random thoughts.

i grew up never worrying about anything. i mean that.

i never, ever, ever knew if my parents were having trouble paying for things. it never occured to me that they might not make it to the next payday. i never worried about food. i never worried about having a place to sleep, a warm bath. clothes or shoes to wear to school.

instead, i worried about what clothes i would have. it hurts me to type this...but i can remember not wanting to be seen buying palmetto jeans. they were the jeans that had an upside down triangle. or maybe right side up. i don't remember. i just remember that it was the opposite of the guess jeans. my mom wasn't going to buy us the guess jeans. probably because she had already bought us several pair. and we didn't need to spend that much on some silly jeans. (now...let me say that currently, i do spend a silly amount of money on jeans. but that is because of what they do for my booty. seriously...there is a reason jeans are so expensive. it's because they can make your hinny look a.mazing.)

as i was thumbing through my "at home in arkansas" magazine today, and admiring the cool dining room furniture, the neat, new trendy wallpaper...and wishing i could make my house as pretty as tobi fairley made a house in the magazine, an oprah commercial came on. i know i'm not supposed to watch oprah. because she doesn't believe in god (or something like that...) but i think that some of her shows are worth watching. i think that she does bring attention to some important issues. and tomorrow is one of those shows.

it's on what is happening in our nation to families that have lost jobs...lost homes. lost what they owned. lost everything. and there was a little boy. sitting next to lisa ling. and she said, "your birthday is tomorrow. you'll be eleven. if you could have anything for your birthday, what would you ask for?"

and his response. "a cake with icing...and lots of love."

i would HATE to know what i asked for when i was eleven. i know...without calling my mother to ask...that it was way more than "a cake with icing and lots of love".

as humiliated as i am about the palmetto jean incident...i can say that i try sooo hard to not be that way now.

i know that my parents worked their butts off for me and spencer to have what we did. i was constantly reminded of what i had. constantly reminded that not everyone had what i had. and as a parent, i can totally appreciate what they did for us.

my mother and father allowed us to be children. innocent kids. kids who slept soundly at night not worrying about anything. well, nothing important.

i want this for pratt. i never want him to worry about where his next meal is coming from. i want him to be confident that he will always have a warm house and warm food. and a warm bath. with a fresh, warm towel right out of the dryer after the bath. (is there anything better...i don't think so.)

i hope that our family will always be able to provide these things. and let's say that we will. how do i teach pratt to appreciate these things? how do you teach that money doesn't grow on trees?

clint and i talked last night about having birthday parties in the future where kids brought gifts for donations. instead of gifts for pratt. we'd still give him gifts, of course. but how great would it be for him to want this. for him to request this!?

my parents stressed the importance of charity. the importance of giving. be that with service. or money. or time.

this was all random, i know. it's just that i keep hearing that the next ten years are going to be so hard. economically. with the recession. and i'm embarrassed that i'm reading silly magazines. and watching silly shows like top chef where they're making silly food and buying expensive wine.

i'm just bothered. bothered that i don't know what this world will look like in ten years. when pratt can really look around and see it.

bothered that i feel inept about changing it.

bothered that i'm bothered...

butternut squash = yum-o!

we had a busy, busy sunday! and pratt loved every.single.minute. of it!

first, one of my best friends from college, emily merryman and her husband and son stopped by. they were headed back home and came out to meet pratt. he loved her. and thought she was as funny as i think she is. one day he'll really appreciate her love of music. and he'll ask if he can go and stay with her. she'll teach him big words. and the meaning of songs. and he'll want to go back because the entire weekend will be spent laughing at her and jon. it's true. for some reason, i got no pictures. sorry emily. next time, i promise. again, thanks for coming out to see us. i miss you so much it hurts.

then our friends tanna and brandon stopped by with their sweet little girl, brylee who is 3 months old. and let me just say, pratt was mesmerized by her. here are a few pictures. he honestly didn't take his eyes off of her for pretty much the entire time they were here. i don't think brylee was all that impressed with him. she's just kind of like, "mom, who is this boy who keeps winking at me?" it was great getting to visit with them again. and especially for the kiddos to get to visit. it'll be so much fun to watch them grow up together so close in age.





our friends shonna and chandler showed up soon after. we always love visiting with them. chandler loves clint. she walked right up to him and stuck her little arms up for him to hold her. too cute. and her outfits are always the best. i mean, look at these cute silver shoes! and tights! and the little dress that crosses in the back! precious. i think she is just beautiful.

i made butternut squash for pratt's dinner. it was super simple. roasted in the over for about an hour. and then just scooped out the flesh and pureed it. it tasted really good. i'm not sure i've ever had butternut squash before. it was sweet, kind of like a sweet potato. yummy. you can tell pratt loved it. i had enough for last night. it will keep two days in the fridge...so i have two servings there. and then i have five servings in the freezer. so, that's eight total servings. pretty good for how cheap the squash was. i think i'm going to love making his food. the brightness of the vegetable made me so happy. dorky...probably. but if the shoe fits..right?

pratt loved it. as you can tell from the pictures above.

after all the visitors, and a full belly of squash, someone was exhausted.



pratt woke three times last night. we put him down at 630. he woke at 745, 830 and 10. at first, i thought he was having a tummy ache because of the new food. but at 10, he was really upset. like crying, really hard. and didn't want to lay down. didn't want to stand up. didn't want to do anything. he felt hot. so i gave him a teething tablet and some tylenol. he was asleep within five minutes. and slept through the night until 730 this morning. i'm pretty sure he's teething and his little mouth was hurting. this is the first time the pain has been noticeable. just want to document that.

enjoy your weeks!

a certain little boy...

loves his tag blanket...thanks kdj!

dear pratt.

dear pratt,

we spent almost two hours in target this afternoon. it's official, you love it there. that's good, because i love target more than any other place in the world. well, no...i love that hotel where we stayed on our honeymoon in the dominican republic...and then target. yes, target is second. but i mean, come on. second to the beach. i think the target people would say that's pretty good.

i bought a cd with lullabies on it. with no words. i can't sleep to words. i'm pretty sure your brain would continue working, trying to figure out what the words mean (like when the tv is on)...so bought the one that is purely instrumental.

i played it tonight while we rocked. up to this point, you haven't really ever let me rock you to sleep. you're way to worried about what's going on around you. but tonight, for whatever reason...you let me rock you to sleep. and i know that i'm probably not supposed to. i'm supposed to let you soothe yourself...but life's too short. i wanted to rock you. like a baby. because you don't seem all that much like a baby lately.

as you lay there in my arms, a song came on. i recognized it immediately. well, not the title...but it was a song that was played at some point during "father of the bride". this is a movie that one day you'll wonder why i watch over and over and over again. that and "sleepless in seattle" and "you've got mail". you'll probably never get it. your dad doesn't. he rolls his eyes when he comes in and i'm watching them. he laughs at me, because every.single.time they are on, i cry. like, big crocodile tears, cry.

anyway, the song came on. and suddenly your life flashed before my eyes. i realized that all too soon, you'd be grown. you'd be in high school. you'd have your first car. your first date. and you'd be too big for me to rock. you'd be too big for me to hold. but don't for a second think that i won't be like that old lady in "i love you forever." because i will drive over to your house and get you out of bed and rock you.

i don't want you to grow up. i really don't. i want you to stay this age forever. i cannot imagine what i'll do the first time someone hurts your feelings. oh, man...i'm nuts.

you're fast asleep now. even the tears that were pouring out of my eyes didn't wake you. it's a good thing. maybe you won't know how crazy your mom is. maybe you'll grow up thinking i'm normal.

a girl can always hope...right?

i love you.

our wednesday.

here are a few pictures from yesterday. we made cinnamon rolls for baby tucker and his family. i think pratt had a great time...as evidenced by his face in the first picture. hilarious.

oh, and yes, he has on a sleeveless outfit. but that's because it was nearly 80 degrees yesterday. beautiful beautiful outside. so it was appropriate attire, i promise.

five whole months. oh my...

my little pratt,

here are your five month pictures. i know i should put up just one...but i never can pick a favorite. i always have multiple favorites.

where did the time go? you have gone from being this little, bitty baby to a big, capable little boy.

you love to stand up. you love to sit up. you love to be on your belly and push yourself up to see everything around you. you refuse to sleep in stores or restaurants. there is just too much to see. you grin from ear to ear as soon as you see your daddy's face. you grin and your little eyes just close. it is the sweetest thing i have ever seen. i don't know how i will ever be able to love anything or anyone like i love you.

you are sleeping through the night. you hit the hay around 715. and you wake between 615 and 7. i'm a believer in routines, so you have a bath every night around 630. then you take a few more ounces and you're pretty sleepy around 7, 715. and we put you in your crib and you (usually) fall fast asleep. you really do enjoy being in your own bed. and that makes me feel so good.

you nap for about 2 hours in the morning. usually around 9. and then again at 1. and sometimes you nap for 30 to 45 minutes around 4. other times, you'd rather not. i think you like to stay up and watch ellen with me :)

you're eating 5 ounces every 3 hours. and between 6 to 8 ounces an hour before bedtime. with cereal. you have rice cereal at your last meal. you love cereal. if you think that's good...just wait until you can start to have real cereal. the good stuff. like lucky charms. yummy, yummy!

you still love your johnny jumper. you laugh and smile at pretty much everyone. you're such a happy baby. coco (whitney) actually asked yesterday if she could babysit you. this is a huge deal. coco doesn't babysit anyone. :)

you love your eric carle board books. especially "the quiet cricket" and "the very lonely firefly". i think it's because of the noises and the lights. with most any book, you try to reach out and hold it for yourself. you do the same thing with your bottle. you want so badly to hold it yourself. but you're still pretty wobbly with it. all in time...

you love ace. you laugh at him anytime he comes near you. the other day you watched me stick my hand out and have ace lick it, so you did the same. i almost fell off the chair. you really did. and when ace licked your hand, you cracked up laughing.

we've started sign language with you. "more" is the first word. once you pick up on it, we'll add other words. i know five months is early...but i've read that the earliest babies can pick up on it at six months. so, five months shouldn't be too early. i figure the sooner, the better.

you continue getting bigger and bigger. right before we give you a bath, you love being naked on your changing table. you are getting so tall. you're in 9 month clothing. but you don't fill it out with weight...it's more with your height. you can thank your uncle jim and uncle doug for that. the only chubby thing about you...your wrists. i love it. it looks like we've tied strings around them. and your skin just pooched over it. too cute.

getting you up in the morning is our favorite time. you are always on your belly. and as soon as you hear our voices, you raise your little head up, your eyes are barely open and you just grin as big as you can. it is the sweetest face ever. you've gotten to where no matter where you are, once you see our faces, you smile. tired, unhappy, hungry, whatever. it doesn't matter. you always seem happy to see us.

you've started doing this thing when you're upset. instead of just sticking out your bottom lip, you also stick your tongue out. it is hilarious. almost like you can't decide if you want to pout or stick your tongue out at me. i'll try to get a picture of it. it makes you so mad because everytime you do it, i laugh :)

your dad got you and him a rhino this weekend. you'll be able to ride in it with him. he claims he's going to put your carseat in it. i don't know about all that. but he already has big plans to take you fishing. after all, we are only a stones throw from the river. and thanks to andy, clara and baby anderson, you already have a fishing pole.

you love other kids. we had dinner with some friends the other night who have two little girls. they just ooed and aahed over you and you loved it. you would just smile at them.

you read me frighteningly well. when i'm on the phone, and raise my voice or laugh, you look at me to determine how you should react. this is completely overwhelming to me.

below is a video i took last night. you crack up laughing when i'm laughing. it's so stinkin' funny. it's like you know i'm laughing...so something must be pretty funny. so you laugh too. you're really starting to get when something is funny. like today in the car. the blanket was covering your face. so when i pulled it back, and laughed at you, you laughed right back at me. your dad noticed this first. when he was taking your clothes off for a bath two nights ago. when he pulled one of your socks off, he made a silly noise. you just fell out laughing. it's hard to believe you're growing up so fast.

in only five months, our lives have been completely turned upside down. and we could not be any happier. we are blessed beyond measure. we love you, pumpkin.

our valentines day

i've never been a big fan of valentine's day. my mom's dad had a heart attack on february fourteenth. so, valentine's day wasn't ever really celebrated at our house. i understood. and i didn't really mind.

then there was the year lindsey, whitney and i lived together in little rock. i won't go into detail here, but none of us were in successsful relationships that year on the fourteenth. nope. one boyfriend (i won't say which one) even commented after forgetting to get a card, flowers, etc, "i didn't know valentine's day was today." yes. he was a jewel. that was the year valentine's day became known as "vd". think...health class. and so...since 2001, lins, whit and i have all wished each other a "happy vd". i miss those two.

but today was different. here is why...

pratt slept from 705 pm to 745 am. he had to be woken up. i mean, the lamp in his room had to be turned on for him to wake.

i had a wonderful card from my valentine.

we drove to beebe to spend the day with clint's side of the family. they are very much my side too...but you get what i'm saying. we got to see mamaw who was doing so well. i just cannot express how good she looked. she recognized me. and this is the first time she's recognized me since the initial stroke. she got to hold pratt. and you could tell she loved every.single.second of it.

we visited with greatma and the greatest. and nana, misty and her baby boy. we got to meet anda. and had a wonderful lunch together. pratt received clint's blanket from greatma. it was his blanket when he was a little boy. she fixed the silk edge of the blanket for pratt. supposedly, clint nibbled it off. i LOVE that pratt now has this blanket. how great that greatma made it for clint...and now it belongs to his little boy.

before heading to dinner, we stopped at landers toyota. that's right. my valentine got me the best gift ever. a new car! i feel like the guy from "the price is right" ;) it's a silver toyota venza. and it is absolutely beautiful. it has some fancy things like a back-up camera. and keyless entry. and the smell...oh, the smell. heaven.

then we headed over to meet allie, tyler, sweet madeline (and i haven't forgotten about soon-to-arrive baby tucker) for dinner. it was a wonderful dinner of visiting and laughing. baby tucker will arrive monday...so this was a nice night for all of us.

a special thank you to my husband for making this the most wonderful valentine's day ever. pratt thanks you too. he loves the new vehicle. says he feels more safe now than ever before.

oh, and in the spirit of "stimulating the economy", clint received a lovely vd gift of his own. a twelve foot trailer and a rhino to go with it. i'll have to take pictures of this tomorrow. it's not a real rhino...it's a kawasaki. off road vehicle, thingy. you know, like a cross between a 4 wheeler and a jeep. anyway, he LOVES it as much as i love my new car. seriously...he really does. he's been saving up for one for quite some time.

we hope your valentine's day was special too. have wonderful weeks. can't wait till the 16th! we'll meet baby tucker! woohoo!

sesame street.

i'm not sure sesame street is still cool or not. i mean, to me...yes. it most certainly is. which means pratt will watch it. and we will together...that's right, together we will love it.

april first, pratt and i will be glued to sesame street. here is why...




and here is what he has said about it...

Of all the highlights in my career, I don't know of one more sentimental than getting to walk through Sesame Street. Yes, there seems to be somebody always standing right below Elmo and his friends, mouthing along to everything they're saying, but somehow I'm too filled with wonder to ever look at them. When you make contact with those big beautiful eyes, you're done. Five years old again. Life is good.

More on the Sesame Street special later. It's an important show to catch. Airs April 1.

you are most welcome.

dear pratt.

let me just say here that i don't think i'm going to die anytime soon or anything...but a few things have been on my mind...and i need to jot them down. this is pratt's baby book, and so instead of writing them down on paper, i'll put them here. this will all be compiled into a nice book at the end of 2009. so bear with me, please. i'm sure some of you are not at all interested in this...and for that, i'm sorry.

pratt,

i talk to you often. i talk to you while we're driving. while i'm giving you a bath. while you're eating. i tell you so much. so many things. funny stories. sad stories. things that have happened to me over the years. pretty much, you've heard it all. well, not all of it...but lots of it. but there are a few things i want to put in writing. a few pieces of advice that i think maybe you'll appreciate one day. a few things that i've been told...and other things that i've discovered on my own. here goes...

go to college. and don't worry so much about what you're going to "be". more importantly, enjoy it. figure out who you are. don't take yourself too seriously. you'll be young. and you won't have everything figured out. don't expect to. it would be silly and sad if you did. make friends in college. good ones. ones that you can laugh with. and even....maybe cry with. this will be an opportunity for you to pick the friends you want. this is a good thing. many of my best friends are from college. don't worry so much about your grades. yes, they are important. but relax.

here's a funny story. my freshman year i was in zoology. i had studied and studied and studied for a test in there. and i was exhausted. the night before the test, i began to review, and realized that i didn't know anything. my mind was seriously going blank. i was frantic. i called my dad and told him the situation. he said (and i quote), "hannah, run yourself some bath water...and get a cold beer. get in the bath, drink the beer, and go to bed."

yes, he really said that. and no, i didn't do any of those things. he reminded me that "one silly zoology test grade" didn't matter that much. and that ten years from then, i wouldn't remember what i made. he was right, i don't remember. i should have taken his advice. he is a smart, smart man.

back to the list, always apologize. be the first to apologize. get right up in someone's face and say you're sorry. even if it's hard. it's totally worth it.

try to never judge someone based on their beliefs. this is a hard one. but such a good one. you don't want them judging you. hear what they have to say. don't be rude or critical. share what you believe and go from there. you catch more flies with honey. remember that.

on a lighter note, go to as many concerts as you can. support live music. even if this means going to smoke filled bars to see it. it will probably be worth it. one of the best concerts i've ever been to was a jay farrar concert in memphis. in this really seedy joint. it was smokey and the bathrooms were horrible and the bottoms of my jeans got incredibly dirty...but it was totally worth it. totally.

never allow yourself to feel as though you're superior to anyone else. having said that, never forget the uniqueness of yourself. you are the only you. this is important. this should make you feel incredibly special. it's all about balance. you'll figure it out. i still haven't...

don't stop loving because of a broken heart. this is all i want to say here. this could be a whole other blog...on a whole other day. and i'm sure one day it will be.

family will (hopefully) be the most important thing in your life. family will never leave you. no matter what you're going through, they are there. waiting on you to ask for help.

never be ashamed to admit that you're having a hard time with something. to me, being able to be honest...even when you're afraid of how the other person will react, is quite possibly one of the most cathartic experiences one can have. it will teach you so much about yourself...and even more about those that you are surrounded by. those you call your friends. true character is revealed with this.

this may all seem overwhelming. difficult. even impossible. and doing these things may send you down the road less traveled...in the end, i think you'll see that this road truly will make all the difference. (props to mr. frost :)

why i heart john mayer.

i just cannot tell you how much i love this video. it's absolutely hysterical. my very favorite part is john mayer immitating cyndi lauper and josh groban. fab.u.lous.

thank you to laura :)

making pratt's babyfood.

one of my favorite memories as a kid was sitting down at the dinner table to eat. we sat as a family. all four of us. of course, we each had our very own assigned seat.

my mom cooked dinner nearly every night. yes. i'm not exaggerating. and i don't mean dinner for napoleon dynamite...dinner like i make...quesidillas (say it with an "l") and tots. no, i mean, dinner. like, something you'd see on top chef, dinner. a "colorful plate" is what she would always say. which meant that there'd be a green vegetable, usually rice or pasta, homeade rolls, some type of protein, and something red. or orange. i don't know how she did it. oh, and dessert. and she's one of those people who can literally just walk in the pantry, pull a couple of items off the shelf and voila...there is dessert. she is the invisible chef...as everyone in camden knows her. that was her restaurant.

i mean, i'm here all day and i can't do it. and she was teaching school and having it done by 6 pm every.single.night. who knows.

when pratt was just a little bitty thing...you know, like a month old or something. my aunt betty sent me an article on the importance of making your own baby food. i thought it would be a great idea. i mean, see the first sentence in the above paragraph..."i'm here all day". i should be growing a garden and sewing clothes...i really should. but i'm not that talented. or intelligent. i once thought i was doing andy a favor and re-potted his orchid in dirt. i think my exact quote to my husband about it was, "well, for whatever reason, andy's orchid was planted in bark and trash. so i re-potted it in dirt. you can thank me later."

yes, it's dead now. apparently, orchids don't need dirt. who knew?

anyway, my mom bought me a wonderful baby cooker/steamer/blender from williams-sonoma. or as i like to call it, heaven on earth. it's by beaba. and it's one of the coolest things i've ever seen. nancy bought me the matching trays and spoons. the trays are kind of like ice cube trays with lids. you use them to freeze the baby food. they are made of this bpa free, special rubber material that is pliable. silicone, i think.

here is the ad on http://www.williams-sonoma.com/

and here are the trays for freezing the food.



i have a cookbook and everything! i'm so excited about starting. i've tried to read about what the best thing is to start out giving babies. there are so many conflicting opinions out there. but i think i'm going to go with rice and butternut squash. the literature i found says to start with one food and try it for at least a week. and not to give anything else besides formula with that one food. makes sense.

here is the cookbook.



i'll let you know how it goes. i always swore that i wouldn't make him eat anything that i didn't try. i'm much more likely to eat what i make. weird, maybe. but hey, i've never claimed to be normal.

clint's box.

i have no reason for posting this. i mean, it's not a special date. or anything like that. it's not our anniversary. or the day we met.

it's just that i was cleaning out my closet. well, my shoes. i love organization. but i rarely accomplish it. i mean, i wish that i could hire my friend cari to come and organize my house, my closet...my entire life.

anyway, i was working on that. and came across a shoe box. when i opened it, i knew instantly what it was. it was clint's "box". if you don't know what i mean, go back to my archives. july 2008. the 29th to be exact. the entry is titled, "the box".

this is what i love about my husband. about our relationship. i knew that i could look through it, and not find anything that was upsetting to me. not find anything that i was surprised by. i mean, i did find a few pictures of him and his high school girlfriend. but...that's okay. i know what she meant to him...and i'm completely okay with that. it's really nice to say that and mean it. really, really nice. oh, and i did find some other pictures of him and some girls from ouachita. clint was a flirt. i'll just leave it at that. :) these weren't "girlfriends". at least, according to him, they weren't. i dunno...i'm pretty sure they were. but either way...the pictures are pretty funny looking back at them. clint looks so stinkin' young. and they bring back soo many memories. soo many good memories.

i came across two notes. both from me to him. (i'll say this, i'm sure there were others...but by now, he knows that i don't want to find them) the envelope to one said, "clint. box 3370". that was his ouachita po box number. if you were a student you just had to put the box number and the name. it was a letter. it began, "to my favorite freshman".

you see, my husband is a year younger than me. i think i've talked about how we met. in dr. knight's zoology lab. i was the lab assistant. and i was so nervous that first day. i was standing at the desk by dr. knight. and clint came up. wearing cut-off camo shorts and a...wait for it...a wife beater. yes. the tank top. and he had sideburns. and he was oh, so tan. with dark, dark hair, and dark eyes.

he said, "what could i do to make a pretty girl like you smile?" i was so uncomfortable. i've never taken compliments well...and was a nervous wreck. i said something like, "well, you could go sit down."

yes, terrible. i know. dr. knight laughed and said, "that will be the man you marry".

i thought he was crazy.

apparently he wasn't.

back to the note. it was written thanking him for being so good to me. for being my friend. and there was a part in it that said, "after you came to my window".

this was so funny to me. i don't remember him coming to my window...i should ask emily if she does.

the note is old. it was originally written on white stationary. but it's turned dark. and there is a coffee stain on it. but he still has it.

and that's what was so surprising to me. i say this because he gives me a hard time for keeping everything. we were in organic chemistry together. one day during lab, i came back to my table to find a heart, cut out of lab napkins. you know, the paper towels in lab. i asked my lab partner who it was from. turns out it was from clint. i should have known.



i still have that heart. it hangs in pratt's room today. framed, of course. so that nothing ever happens to it. you may think it's silly to frame those things. i don't. i think it's those things that make a house, a home.

i need to frame more notes. i have one from whit that she gave me on my wedding day. it says, "i'm so happy with the choice i've made for you." because one day, i said to her, "i'm giving up. i'm not ever going to date anyone else. i'm going to be alone the rest of my life." this was about a week before clint called me and asked me to go to the dental school christmas party (our first real date...you see, he claims i took him parking in college. i didn't. i promise. he's got me confused with some other girl :)

anyway, she said, "i choose clint. ask clint out." and i promise you...that a week later, he asked me out to that party. the rest is history.

back to his box. i found some pictures in his shoebox. and thought they were hilarious. but they made me feel so old.

the first one is us at some bar off beale street. maybe "o'sullivans". is that even a bar? i'm so old. i can't remember anything. i think that's it. the owner became friends with clint and blaine. his name was silky. and he (ironically) lived in the same apartment complex as clint and brandon. i'll never forget pulling up to the apartment one day and seeing clint and ole silky outside visiting. silky was about 65 years old, and he was a ladies man, folks. he had on no shirt, and really short tennis shorts. you know, the ones that are cut up on the sides. and blue blockers...the sunglasses. yes. and he was about to head over to the pool to pick up some women.

the second one was the day he returned from his mission trip to brazil. i have never been more excited about seeing him. i think it's evident from my face. and he looks exhausted.

i love seeing how we've changed. apparently, i thought it was necessary to still bleach my hair beyond recognition. unreal. and clint looks like he's 12. especially in the black and white picture.

i hope pratt enjoys looking back at these pictures as much as we love looking back at pictures of our parents.

i'm going to get off here and go schedule botox or something. my forehead looks so fantastic in those pictures. what a shame...

a beautiful day!

what a wonderful day we've had!

clint and i are finally both starting to feel better. i spent last night in hot springs at the condo while clint stayed here. my intention was to get away before i got sick. didn't work. i got sick apparently in the few hours i spent with clint saturday morning.

so last night, i took some medicine and mom offered to get up and take care of pratt. thank you cookie! i just can't tell you how much better i am today!

clint is feeling better too. hopefully he will be completely better monday for work.

the weather today was beautiful! the entire family (minus yoda) walked down to the river.

here is a picture of pratt and his dad. getting ready for our walk.

happy thursday!

i had to post this picture for sugar. she gave him the onesie that says, "hug me, hold me, kiss me!"

how hilarious is his left eyebrow?! his facial expressions are one hundred percent hannah. finally...something from me! :)

and i'm pretty sure he's getting dimples. his daddy has dimples (which are currently hidden under his beard) and i think they have been passed on to little pratt. you can sort of see the one on the left side of his face in this picture. clint noticed them the other night...and said something to me. i had honestly never seen them. i'm not sure...it may be something i'm hoping happens. i guess time will tell.

have wonderful thursdays!