Monday, August 9, 2010

Julian on stage

Julian had his first on-stage performance on Sunday with the kids at his school. Three songs, three costume changes, including the cutest little "Smooth Criminal" outfit you've ever seen.










In other news, my friend Jodi came over on Sunday and helped me set up the crib, which without a doubt makes this whole baby-having thing seem a whole lot more real.

Sunday, August 1, 2010

Modern Variety, an Aurora original

Modern Variety is one of the last of its kind.

Five and dime stores have been fading from their retail glory for decades, but somehow Modern Variety in Aurora has held on, without turning into a tourist trap. (Mainly because there aren't many tourists in small town Missouri.)


Modern Variety survived the first Wal-Mart that opened up on the opposite end of town about 25 years ago. Wal-Mart expanded and moved across the road, and Modern Variety held on, selling everything from stamps to fabric, kids toys and cooking equipment.



Just last year, the Aurora Wal-Mart doubled (or hell, maybe even tripled) in size to become a Supercenter (even though there's another Supercenter just 15 miles away and the entire town only has 7,000 people), but I guarantee you, Modern Variety would give them a run for their money in terms of the number of products they carry.



In every corner, you'll find the most random items displayed next to even more random items. Punch bowls, silly putty, quirky knick-knacks or gift cards. These cell phone pictures hardly do the place justice, but I hope you get a chance to shop at a store like this before Wal-Mart puts them under for good.

July 4th at the beach

A few more photos I found from our July 4th trip to the beach at Port Aransas.



(Props to CVS for having expectant mother parking! In my eight months of being pregnant, this is the first place I've found a spot reserved for waddling mamas like me.)






Oh, how we love Snoopy's! It's under the causeway between Mustang Island and Corpus Christi. Fried goodness and cold beer, right next to the water. What more could you ask for?

What Not to Wear, maternity style

Keeping up my "What Not to Wear" style while pregnant hasn't been easy, but it's actually been a really fun challenge. Yes, some days, I look like this:

Hippie skirt, dress or moo-moo that people who've known me for more than a few years will definitely recognize as "old Addie."

But on most work days, especially on the ones when I'm out and about in the community or really wanting to feel "on," I step it up:


I'll make sure Ian takes a few more photos of me on my stylish days as proof that I didn't totally drop the ball this time around.