• toddler life,  travel

    The Screams Heard ‘Round the Parking Garage

    Aside from my amazingly uneventful trip to NYC in June with my bestie, weird things happen to us when we travel. Actually, who am I kidding? Weird things happen to us all the time, it is just infinitely funnier in another city. Like the Airport Bathroom Incident on my way to Utah a few weeks ago when – instead of waiting for me, my carry-on, and my purse to exit first – a lady brought her carry-on, her purse, and her entire self into the bathroom stall WITH me. We stood eye to eye for several beats, our bodies flush against each other, as she huffed impatiently at my complete incompetence. “Uh…excuse me? I guess?” I mumbled as I squeezed past her…

  • travel,  vacation

    Dear Vacation, You’re the Worst.

    [alternate title: Our Life, the Sitcom.] Oh, hey there. Just bloggin away from the comfort of our cozy little beach condo in Florida. It’s the last full day of our first vacation without kids in 7 1/2 years. You’d think I’d be on the beach instead of blogging, but I have a wicked heat rash and my husband is curled up in a feverish ball on the couch. True story. ‘Tis only the beginning, my friends. Only. the. beginning. Here’s how our week has gone: Saturday: Say goodbye to our boys, whistle the Hunger Games tune and salute my mom who is holding down the fort at home, board a flight, arrive in Florida,…

  • family,  sickness,  toddler life,  travel

    Kansas Extravangaza: 2 Parts Fantastic, 7 Parts Terrible

    If you ever need advice on how not to take a vacation, hit me up. I’m your girl. My family is really, really good at taking bad trips. A little over a year ago was the beach trip from hell. You might wonder what could go wrong at the beach with the ones you love. Apparently everything. Jogging into fishing lines, hitting deer on the way to church, strep throat, ear infections, stomach bugs…you name it. What better way to commemorate that special time than to replicate it a year later? Just trade in those sunny skies and sandy beaches for some crisp, fall weather and grandparents. Just me, my…

  • family,  JoJo,  Papa,  travel,  vacation

    Traumatic Travel, Shopping Carts, & Time in Pokey

    Whew. This past week or two was a doozy. A fun doozy, but a doozy nonetheless. We had 2 flights, 1 road trip, 1 wedding, 1 baby shower, 1 case of croup, and 1 ear infection. We’ll start with the slightly traumatic travel experience. Slightly Traumatic Travel Experience A few proclamations:  Proclamation #1: If you are the kind of person who takes up extra seats for your bags in the airport terminal leaving other travelers the option of sitting on the floor or standing, I’m sorry you’re such a lonely person. Surely that kind of behavior isn’t conducive for a happy life filled with friends and loved ones. Proclamation #2: Don’t be mean…

  • baby,  fail,  photo dump,  travel

    Southwest, Baby Socks, & Photoshoots

    Ahh, Christmas. You were good to us this year. It’s too bad you didn’t stay around for very long. Some noteworthiness first:1. It’s my anniversary. I can honestly say I didn’t know the depth of Taylor’s greatness when I married him (that sounds weird), but the past 3 years have made me incredibly grateful for my best friend/husband/dad of B. So a happy big one to us.2. Beckett is having a BOY COUSIN! We’re very excited. (You can follow Taylor’s sister and brother-in-law’s missions in Chile, as well as read up on the babe when he debuts here.) Continuing on. We spent Christmas Eve with Taylor’s family and Christmas day…

  • baby,  travel

    Planes, Trains, & Automobiles

    A post dedicated to the survival of mom and baby’s trek across America. Planes Last week, Beckett and I were shipped to Kansas while Taylor was at a work conference in San Diego. Side note: the hotel he stayed at was listed on a website for top 8 “sexiest hotel bathrooms”. Did I mention it was an accounting conference? I would expect accountants to pick a Thrifty Inn or something. Guess not. I’m not gonna lie – I was stressing out about this plane ride the entire week leading up to it. What if Beckett screams the whole flight and everyone on the plane keeps glaring daggers at us? What…

  • barf,  Black Friday,  family,  Papa,  travel

    Black Friday & Granny Mags

    It’s good to be alive. We’ve had a very eventful week that had the potential to be the death of me. Beckett had his first flight (post to follow…sometime) and first road trip (6+ hours). My favorite event of the week, however, had to do with the craziness of Black Friday. Black Friday As mentioned in the post about buckshot/birdshot (or whatever kind of shot we try to find in our Thanksgiving food), we spent turkey day this year in the thriving metropolis of Pocahontas, Arkansas. We kept seeing the ads for the deals at Walmart starting Thursday night at 10, so my aunt, uncle, cousins, mom, brother, and myself…

  • awkward,  Buford,  travel

    Goats, Yellowstone, & Cowbabies

    The past few weeks have been action-packed with countless calls and emails to insurance adjusters, a shower for Beckett, and a trip to Yellowstone National Park. As mentioned before, the Sparks family has a knack for getting in ridiculous situations. I think it’s really a mixture of our friendliness to strangers and our ability to find humor in almost all situations. People think I make up the stories I tell, but I guarantee funny stuff happens to you too – you just have to think about it. If you live with a humorous outlook on life and don’t take yourself too seriously, you too can have experiences like the Sparks…