Not all who wander are lost

Text from Patty from the Red: Wanna get some breakfast in the morning?
Me: I'm in Virginia
Patty: You spend more time wandering around than Moses.  I'm a bit jealous.

Upcycled to Smile

My ever-so-talented and entrepreneurial-minded cousin, Katherine, has yet again used her skill and savvy to make the world a better place. She has opened an Etsy shop named after her popular blog: Rhymes With Smile. You can visit the Etsy Shop RWS by clicking here.

With respect to blogs/shops/websites/etc, you have to have a schtick. RWS is all about upcycling: Recycling - and upcycling - means keeping materials in use and saving the planet instead of consuming and tossing. This strategy keeps her shop sustainable and committed to zero waste.

What's more is that she's offering a Grand Opening giveaway... Check out the blog or Etsy shop and "like" or comment on the shop and you'll get a chance to win a gift card and upcycled prize from her new shop!

Photo proof that Katherine is going to be the best mom everrrrrr

This family was made for loving each other:

She's got a fantastic group of women (missing: Mimi, Shirley, Ashley, Erica, & Ruthie) in her family to help her out:

She's joyful and loves to jump for special occasions like birthdays, graduations, baby showers, Tuesdays:

She's smart and supportive:

This guy is pretty great... and he's the other half:

She sees all, knows all:
She has excellent taste in shoulder pads:
She'll raise her babies to be Tar Heels!
Perhaps you have not seen rhymeswithsmile.blogspot.com? And she's a published cookbook author:

She's not afraid of a stinky diaper:

Picky eating doesn't run in her genes (yes, that's a French snail):

Hygiene is a priority:
She has EVERYTHING in her purse... and I mean everything:
She can put up with me:
Katherine's going to be a great mom, but I obviously already knew that from 25 years of cousin love.

New Year's Day in review

New babies born into my family: 1

Baby Gonzo has a Name: Ellis Ann

Time she was born: 7:43 AM

Pounds she weighs: 8 lb 9.5 oz

Inches she is long: 22

Status of mommy/my favorite girl cousin: faaaaaaaaabulous

Number of times I've thought about carrying her on my back in a kanga: 23,304

Congratulations Katherine & Jesse! We'll be bloggin from Bburg in a few weeks when I come to play with my new favorite nugget!

One A Day: 50 days of daily humor by Cousin Katherine

Katherine is my favorite girl cousin and she is one of the most special people in this world. I told you that she made me a One-a-day note for me while I was in Tanzania and it made my day to read her quips every day. She dated the front of the card and wrote a saying, a verse, a past time, or a joke on the back. The days were numbered in the corner so I could know exactly how long I'd been gone. It certainly got me through some of the more difficult times and seemed to be right on track with exactly what I was thinking! I wanted to share some of the best ones with you:

October 25: YAY! The grand-Becky-"I'm spending seven weeks in Tanzania with five pairs of panties"-adventure begins! I love you! (Oh yea... save some babies too!)
October 27: Two silkworms were in a race. The result: a tie. Two antennas met on a roof, fell in love, and got married. The wedding wasn't much, but the reception was excellent.
October 28: Think of all of us here-- family & friends-- who love you so much and wish you the best of times. Now, enjoy your day! You are loved! SIDE NOTE: This was taped to my mirror in my room for the next six weeks. I looked at it every day and smiled.
November 2: Psalm 24:1
November 6: Flying is learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss. Fly high Becky!
November 7: You've been gone two weeks. Biggest adventure so far? (The answer is YES!)
November 13: Happy, happy, happy, happy birthday, dear sweet cousin Becky! I love you so much! Enjoy celebrating--this will most definitely be a birthday to remember, and a year to remember! For your birthday, you'll have to wait a few weeks but I decided to get you a nephew or neice. I thought you might like it--only it won't be ready until the end of December...
November 22: Some cosmic questions for you to ponder: If the elderly are called "old people" how come children aren't called "new people"? If it's true that we're here to help others, then what are the others here for? How come when asked what things they'd bring to a desert island, no one ever says "a boat"?
November 27: Ten things you can do with a coconut...
November 28: According to statistics, approximately 40,000 Americans are injured by toilets every year. My imagination runs wild...
December 7: Q: What's brown and on the ground and sticky? A: A stick. Eww. Where did your mind go? Clean yourself up. I mean really. SIDE NOTE: I laughed out loud and wrote what I had been thinking on the bottom of the card. You can tell where my mind was: "I was totally thinking it was a cinnamon bun that fell off the table. Guess I was wrong, but now I really want a cinnamon bun."
December 9: Hard work never killed anybody, but why take a chance? SIDE NOTE: You have no idea how true that statement is in Africa.
December 10: Psalm 23:1-3, I pray that your time in Africa has been a time of fullness, of rest, and of quiet restoration (on top of being an adventure).
December 13: Welcome home! Yay! Feel LOVED! SIDE NOTE: I do!

Baby Lile rhymes with smile

A little background: My cousin Katherine is pregnant with her first baby and they're keeping the gender a surprise. Without knowing whether it's a boy or girl it's hard to refer to "it" as anything but "it". So it seemed only fitting that when I showed the Liles how to swaddle their new baby using a stuffed animal Gonzo (from the muppets)... and the baby received its first nickname.

Katherine's boss & dear friend, Chantry, threw her a baby shower in Blacksburg, Va last weekend and I happily attended as the Carson representative. My Aunt Janet & Jesse's mom were also there-- complete with night time nuzzles, banana grams, and lots of food.

Up in the hills of Virginia, Katherine's closest friends and family gathered to impart wishes, wisdom, and wipes (baby wipes that is!) to the new mom and dad. I think my favorite part was the Prayer Tree that Chantry made. She wrote her prayers for Katherine on little cards and placed them on the tree so that each guest could take one and be praying for Katherine, Jesse, and baby Gonzo. I took two.

This baby will have 25% Carson genes-- hopefully the best ones! While our relationship is technically second-cousin-once-removed or something ridiculous like that, we decided that it would be more fitting to call me Aunt b.

I was so excited to get to see a very pregnant Katherine since we have grown up together and this is a very far stretch from the events of our past (read: Kitty cat nightgowns, thrifting, sun bathing in Barcelona). It seemed like she was sad to say good-bye and send me off to Africa but I reminded her, "I won't be gone that long. Think about it. You'll be pregnant when I leave and you'll still be pregnant when I get back."

Can't wait to meet baby Gonzo!