The Everyday Life of a Southern Housewife

New Address!!

2010-09-08T09:03:00.002-05:00

The link to my permanent blog is listed below. Like I said in an earlier post, I will leave this blog open to visitors :) See you guys on the new blog!

www.thesouthernhousewife.com

New Blog Update!

2010-09-07T08:35:00.003-05:00

I am so excited to announce that the new blog will be up and running tomorrow!! Be sure and check back for the link! I'm so excited to finally open it up!! I will still leave this blog open to view. There will be a link in the sidebar of the new blog that will redirect you to the old blog (this one). I thought about going back and uploading all the post from this blog to the new one, but it is more of a job than I have time for. So, I'm leaving it open so that those who want to go back can :) Can't wait for tomorrow!!

Opps.

2010-09-02T16:05:00.003-05:00

Please forgive me for my absence. I know the grandparents are looking for pics of Deke and I'm sorry I haven't uploaded any. I've had a head cold for the last two days and I've been doing some photo editing for a few sessions I just recently did. So, between chasing Deke all over the house and tending to business, I haven't had much time to sit and blog :( Also, I'm in the process of upgrading my blog, so I've been weighing the pros and cons of that decision. If I do "upgrade", the address should be the similar to this one, so don't worry. I'm not going to disappear on you :) This blog gets a lot of traffic from all over the United States......... and Brazil (?) and I wouldn't dream of leaving without telling where I'm going :) So, hopefully I can kick this head cold, finish editing pics and make a decision about this site and then I'll get back to blogging more regularly!

Deke's First Haircut.

2010-08-28T20:03:00.009-05:00

Today was such a big day for The Little Monkey! We finally gave in and took him to get his first haircut. I wasn't quite sure how it was all going to go, but he totally surprised me with how good he acted! He didn't cry at all during the haircut. It wasn't until after we had paid and were getting ready to leave that he cried and started acting out. Apparently he's a huge fan of the airplane he was playing in :) Here are pics from our trip.

All smiles

He wasn't too sure about it at first.

My Big Boy

They had a television that was playing at his station. He loved watching the girls on the screen :)

Daddy and his boy

I know this pic is blurry. However, I do love me some kissy pictures with my baby :)

Asking for more kisses

Being denied monkey kisses :( That's ok, I got more later!!

My Big Boy and his new do'

Walkin' in Style.

2010-08-25T17:33:00.007-05:00

This afternoon, my Mom came to visit me and The Little Monkey! We ended up at the mall, shopping (who would have thought :). I've been debating on whether or not to go ahead and purchase Deke some fall/winter shoes. I've been concerned that if I buy them now, he'll grow out of them before he ever wears them. So, I decided that we would head to the Stride Rite store and get him measured and just see if they had anything that appealed to me. Of course, they would be having an awesome sale that would make it super hard for me to pass up on. So, here are his new fall/winter shoes :) Ha!

Here's his casual shoes. Deke was measured as a size 5 1/2 and we got these in a 6 1/2 (should be plenty of room to grow). If you've ever owned shoes from Stride Rite, you know that most of their shoes are not machine washable and you need a protective spray to keep stains and moisture from ruining them. Well, these are washable and I'm so in love!!

Here's his dress shoes. He has a bad habit of taking his shoes off and throwing them down (and then I can't find them). I'm hoping these hefty-Velcro shoes will eliminate our current problem :)

I could have bought several more shoes, but I needed to stop while I was ahead :) If I'm not careful, Deke will wind up having more shoes than his Mommy. HA!!

It's a Monday.

2010-08-23T15:40:00.006-05:00

Can you tell I have no mental energy left to come up with a good title for this post? Ha! Our weekend was so crazy! We always love going back to our home towns to visit with our families, but sometimes it's just exhausting. The Little Monkey of course loves going back home, where he is spoiled rotten for two straight days and is never without a playmate :) Gotta love family :)

Anyway, if you know me at all, you know I'm in love with Etsy.com. So last night, I was shopping around and found this adorable and clever little contraption.

It's a crayon roll-up that fits in your diaper bag.

So cute!

The Little Monkey loves to color and I think this little roll-up is perfect for his traveling crayons! I can't wait to get it in!!

For a pregnancy update, I am 19 weeks today and feeling better every day. This pregnancy has been completely different from Deke's and I'm slowly feeling my energy coming back to me. I must be entering the nesting phase, because I suddenly feel the need to organize/clean/organize/clean again. However, now a days it's becoming more of a challenge to bend over so this puts a damper on all my organization and cleaning plans :( BOOO!! We are suppose to go on September 8th for our "official" gender sonogram here in town, but the Hubby is thinking he will be in the Marshall Islands for work during that time, so we may be moving that appointment. I'm looking forward to this appointment because of the pictures. I remember the 20 week pics of Deke were so clear and bright and I can't wait to get a really good look at our new son!

Feeling Their Pain

2010-08-19T13:17:00.007-05:00

Today, has been a day of deep thinking and a lot of tears. Some of you that follow my blog may not agree with this post and that's fine. We are all entitled to our own opinions and here is where I speak mine. I have prayed, prayed and prayed for our country over the years! I was a senior in high school when September 11, 2001 happened. I can remember every little detail like it was yesterday. I remember what class I was in, what I felt the moment I saw that second plane hit the WTC, I can remember grabbing my phone and sitting in the back of a dark classroom talking to my mom and I remember wishing so hard that what was unfolding in front of me on a 20 inch t.v screen wasn't real. I also remember feeling the same heartache when I signed my name to the September 11, 2001 Memorial Wall at Ground Zero on April 3, 2002. Still being able to look up into the nearby trees and see articles of clothing and window blinds twisted and broken in the branches really got to me and I began to cry right there. Unfortunately, it was all real and I feel like so many Americans have forgotten how it felt that day to see innocent Americans killed. This mosque potentially being built in NYC has really hit a sore spot with me. It's all I can think about and it has brought me to tears throughout the day thinking about how disrespectful and inconsiderate this project is to America and the victims families! Everyone in this country has the right to worship where and how they want. However, building a Muslim mosque ANYWHERE near Ground Zero is despicable!!!! My heart is aching for the family members of the September 11th victims and I am praying for them. I'm also praying that our country will soon wake up! If we continue down the road we are going down now, this country won't be fit to live in, in the next 20 years. I wanted to include a video that I found a few years ago. I can't watch this without crying and I want to share it with you.

Please pray with me for our country. We needed change, but not the change we've gotten. We need to change our hearts, minds and attitudes and pray for this country that we love.

18 Weeks

2010-08-17T08:44:00.004-05:00

Sweet Summertime.

2010-08-13T13:01:00.002-05:00

I am falling behind on my poor ole' blog :( Hopefully, I can pick up next week and get some stuff done. I have tons of pictures and videos I need to upload, but just can't seem to find the extra time :) We are heading out of town today to spend the weekend at the cabin with the Hubby's family. I sure hope the storms don't ruin our lake time, but we'll still have fun regardless. I hope everyone tries to stay cool and has a fabulous weekend!

Welcome Connor!

2010-08-11T13:15:00.005-05:00

Yesterday, Dusty's cousin gave birth to a healthy 9 lb 2 oz baby boy and he is so adorable! We were so excited to finally meet him and hold him last night. I can already tell he's going to be one spoiled little boy :)

The Hubby and I with Connor

Sweet Baby

After we visited with the family, we went downstairs to visit Aunt Nay in the Ultrasound Department. The Little Monkey enjoyed his time visiting with Nay :)

Cute :)

Spoiled Rotten

2010-08-05T14:12:00.010-05:00

Well, if you're wondering how the potty training is going, it's not. The Little Monkey had an accident the day before yesterday where I'm pretty sure he was asking to go to the potty, but didn't quite make it (my fault) and got scared. I've tried putting him on his potty multiple times, but he really has no interest. However, he shows tremendous interest in washing his hands and playing in the water. Silly kid!!

Here he is not using it like he should :) Some of you might think this picture is strange to post, but I like to blog for me and this is worth remembering :)

Today, my Mom came up to visit and hang out with us, which was fun. We haven't been back home in several weeks, so I'm sure she was missing Deke :) We ended up at Toys R'Us where she bought him this fun toy.....

So far, he loves it! Thanks Granny :)

I decided the Little Monkey needed something to let loose and have fun with. So, I bought him these........

I really hope I don't live to regret this decision :)

and for those of you who want to see a belly pic.......

16 wks 3 days pregnant

I've been feeling good. I had a few days last week where I felt just horrible, but this week hasn't been bad. The heat is about to kill me, but I have a feeling people who aren't pregnant could say the same :) We are going for a scan tomorrow to see our little man. I'm hoping he cooperates so we can get a good picture of him that I can upload here.

I hope everyone has a Fabulous Friday and an awesome weekend!!

Potty Training.

2010-08-02T13:02:00.011-05:00

This past weekend, we went to a friend's house to have dinner and watch to Deke and their little boy, J play together. While I was there, I noticed that J had his own potty in the restroom. I was intrigued and wondered to myself if it actually was working for them. Jessica told me that Little J had yet to "do his business" in the toilet, but it sounded like they were on the right track to potty training him. It got my curiosity stirring, so I decided to start doing some in depth research on the internet and discovered that you can start potty training at around 18 months. Also, if they show signs of being ready then that's a good indication it's time to give it a try (which Deke has shown signs here and there). So, last night we made a trip to Target and got Deke all ready for his potty training experience.

Here's the new potty. It's a BabyBjorn Potty Chair and it got outstanding reviews on both Amazon.com and Target.com. Everything I read basically said this was the best one on the market and to not waste money on anything else. To be honest, I really don't see what so great about it. It's very standard and nothing special about it, but the good reviews were overwhelming.

We also bought him this step stool to help him reach the sink. I thought since we'll be "using the potty", that would also be a good time to teach him to wash his hands after every visit to the bathroom :) So far, he understands how to put the soap on, it's the rinsing off part that he's not getting. Instead, he likes to take his soapy little hands and rub them on the mirror :) Gotta love boys!!

So, I wasn't going to attempt potty training today. I needed to locate his cloth diapers and I was still doing some research. My plan was to start tomorrow. However, Deke had a different plan. Right after his nap, I went into the bathroom and Deke came walking in and pointed to his potty and said "Whas dat"? I told him it was his potty and ask if he wanted to sit on it. He walked right over and sat down by himself. Feeling like he wanted to go, I took his diaper off and would you believe it if I told you he did a #1 all by himself, the very first time?? Well, he did!!! I was so excited :) Since I didn't have a treat on hand, his reward was one of my Oreo's ( I may have messed up here but oh well). I'm also pretty bummed that I didn't get a picture of it, but I hadn't planned for him to actually "go". There was a lot of praising and hugs this morning and I'm hoping that he continues to take interest in his potty :) Tomorrow starts full on Potty Training Round 1. Wish us luck!!!

The Little Gym.

2010-07-29T14:48:00.018-05:00

Today, was the Little Monkey's Introductory Class at The Little Gym here in town. I was so excited that the Hubby was able to slip out of a meeting to join the fun!! Deke had no problem fitting right in with the other children there. In fact, the minute we took his shoes off, he was gone. Playing and running around the waiting area. They warned us that he might be clingy during the activities and to not worry that it was completely normal for them to be shy. Well, not Deke. The second the instructor opened the door, he ran in and that was just about the end of him needing us. He ran all over the gym, tried out just about every gymnastics toy, tried playing with other children and had himself a good ole' time :) My little boy is growing up....

Playing with the shakers. He loved this activity.

Practicing his forward roll :)

Making sure Daddy doesn't go far

Playing with Mommy

So sweet

He literally ran around the gym back and forth. He loved having the gym to help release all the wild child energy.

Attempting the balance beam on his own

Walking on the balance beam with Mommy

He got a little scared

Now, it's Daddy's turn!!

He sure does love his Daddy

Helping put the balls away

Catching some bubbles

I think he thoroughly enjoyed his time at The Little Gym today. I know I enjoyed watching him have a good time and playing well with the other children. That will always make a Mommy proud :)

King of the Chair.

2010-07-28T08:43:00.018-05:00

The Little Monkey's new chair from Pottery Barn Kids arrived yesterday! I immediately opened the box and couldn't wait to get it put together. I think Deke was more excited than I was about his new chair. He kept climbing all over it while I was trying to put it together and playing peek-a-boo :) I'm thinking this purchase was a smart one. He seems to have fallen in love with his chair. Score!!

Watching some late afternoon Super Why

Oscar (the elephant) has to be included in all activities around our house and I do mean all :)

This has to be one of the funniest faces he's ever made. I have no idea what caused this reaction, but I'm so thrilled that I got a picture of it :P

Things are looking up for me in the chair department. Now, maybe I can finally leave the room without my chair being confiscated by a sneaky little boy and his partner in crime :)

Tomorrow is going to be a big day for our little guy. We have enrolled him in the introductory class at The Little Gym here in town. I'm going be honest, I'm pretty stoked about this. Gymnastics is a favorite past time of mine. I took gymnastics when I was a little girl and was a cheerleader in high school. After I graduated, I was a gymnastics instructor for two years and loved every single minute of it. Of course, I never taught a class younger than three years old, so I'm pretty curious as to what all they have in store for my wild child. Whatever they have planned, I'm sure the little guy will have a blast. I'm hoping that he is on his best behavior tomorrow and that he interacts well with the other children there :) Those two things will make our decision about enrolling him in the Fall so much easier. Wish us luck! HA!!

10 Years.

2010-07-27T08:06:00.024-05:00

My Sweetest Husband,

A decade ago today, I accepted an invitation by a friend to attend revival together, in hopes of maybe meeting a nice guy at church. Completely unaware that the"nice guy" I was looking for, would be you. The first time we met, I remember thinking your eyes were the clearest shade of blue I had ever seen. So clear, that I could look deep into your eyes and see what a kind, loving and compassionate soul you had. You were everything I didn't realize I was looking for. I especially didn't think I would have found the man I would one day marry over the internet (always a fun story to tell people). These last ten years, we've seen good times and bad. We've gone through situations and trials just like any other couple, but our love for each other and commitment is what keeps us strong. Without you in my life, I wouldn't be who I am today. Without you in my life, I wouldn't know what true love felt like. Without you in my life, I would be incomplete. You are what pushes me to go forward and what keeps me from looking back. I look forward to the years we still have left. The years of raising our children to become God fearing Christians, the years of accomplishing goals we set for our family when we were younger, the years of us growing older and falling in love with each other all over again. There is no way I can begin to explain to you how lucky I really am to have you in my life. I could continue to type on this screen all day and the words still wouldn't be enough. I feel like the best is still yet to come and I can't wait to see what God has in store for our family. I can only pray that the Lord above allows us to spend many, many more decades together.

I love you....

2002

Coming back from the beach. Summer 2002

Skiing with his family in Colorado. Spring 2003

My high school graduation. May 2002

Giving my man kisses :) 2003

Smiles and Giggles.

2010-07-26T14:32:00.015-05:00

The Little Monkey has been in the best mood today! I am so happy to finally see him acting like himself again and feeling much better. Since he was all smiles and giggles today, I decided we needed to do a little photoshoot of my almost 18 month old little boy :) He's growing up too fast.

He thinks Mommy is so funny

I love this boy!

Looking all grown up :(

My Mom and Hubby said the Little Monkey looked quite goofy in this picture. I think it captures the true personality of my child. My comical, goofy, mischievous, wiggly, happy, can't sit still, bright eyed boy :)

Splash Pad Fun.

2010-07-25T17:53:00.013-05:00

Today, we decided to take the Little Monkey to the splash pad downtown. He's not too fond of water, especially really cold water, but we thought he would enjoy playing and splashing around. It took him about five minutes of watching the other children playing and having fun before he was interested. Since this was his first time at the splash pad, I expected him to be hanging on to us the entire time, but he surprised me! He seemed excited and appeared to have fun! I think we might be making another trip sometime soon :)

My two favorite boys :)

Not too sure of the water just yet

Ohhh, that was cold!!

Daddy trying to get him to play in the water

He spotted a ball that was rolling around the splash pad. Next time, we'll have to bring our own

Splashing in the water

The water splashed in his face and he got scared :( Awww... :)

Anticipating when the water will shoot up. He is too cute :)

For those of you who are interested in a pregnancy update, I am currently 15 weeks pregnant and feeling much better now that I'm in my second trimester :) However, I did have a little scare last night and had to call the on-call doctor, but thankfully I didn't have to go in and everything is fine. You can never be too safe :) My last doctors appointment went great and the baby's heartbeat was 178. I am starting to feel little twitches and what feels like punches inside my tummy. I started feeling Deke move around at 17 weeks and they say it happens earlier with the second one. It's so amazing to feel life growing inside of you. I'm loving every punch and kick I receive from my little guy :)

Coming Alive

2010-07-22T15:15:00.010-05:00

The Little Monkey has been feeling much better the last couple of days. Today, I took him outside, just to give him a change of scenery. He didn't enjoy it as much as he thought he would ( maybe cause it's like 200 degrees outside), but I'm pretty sure he enjoyed finding old tree limbs and pulling the bark off.

He's 100% boy!! HA!!

and here's what I bought the Little Monkey today!

The Boy's Striped Anywhere Chair from Pottery Barn Kids

I've been eyeing it for months and today it finally went on sale!!! I was so happy to buy it for my little man. He's constantly standing in front of the tv to watch his movies and I felt like a comfy chair was just what he needed.I can't wait for it to come in!! I have a feeling he's going to love it :) Plus, I'm hoping this will put an end to him stealing my recliner every time I turn around. Ha! He's so sneaky!!

I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend.

Baby #2 is........

2010-07-21T20:12:00.005-05:00

A Boy!!!!!!

My sister in law scanned us last weekend and at first, we couldn't see anything that indicated a boy. However, with some moving around and some squirming from our little guy, Denay could see everything she needed to determine it was a boy. I have no degree in sonography and I could even tell it was a boy :) I'm so excited about having another little Dusty running around the house. The idea of two boys, under the ago of two, running around in diapers, does make me want to cry (JK). It's going to be so much fun and I'm so excited that God has chosen me to be the Mommy of yet another precious little boy. Several people have ask about a name for our little guy and we have tossed a few around, but nothing we want make definite at the moment. We still have lots of time. I'm currently about 14 1/2 weeks along, which is about the time we found out the Little Monkey was a boy. I am working on some more pregnancy pics, but with the Little Monkey being sick the last two weeks, my blogging has come last. Hopefully, I will get some pics up soon of my belly and the Little Monkey ;)

Sick Again.

2010-07-20T16:25:00.003-05:00

Well, guess what? The Little Monkey is sick again! Long story short, he has the croup and a middle ear infection. Where he got this from remains a mystery to me. How long he will have this junk? His pediatrican told us it could be around ten days before we start seeing the cough, runny nose, etc fade away. Poor kid can't seem to catch a break! Of course, we are worn out. Two ER visit within ten days is too much, but we are thankful for the nurses and doctors that helped him when he was so sick. My time since Saturday has been spent in this house, trying to keep him away from anyone so he doesn't spread this around. The Little Monkey is on antibiotics, a steriod, and cough medicine. You would think all that would cause him to be so sleepy, but it hasn't. Instead, my child has been into EVERYTHING all day and I'm so happy to see him being himself again. Please say a prayer that he kicks this quickly :) Also, I just remembered today that I haven't posted what the sex of our second child is. I will have a post ready tomorrow to reveal to those who don't know yet what it is. Now, I must go chase Speedy Gonzales out of the kitchen where he is currently pulling out pots and pans and banging on them :)

"It's the Dad Life"

2010-07-14T17:07:00.001-05:00

So, today the Hubby emailed me this hilarious video one of his friends sent him. I thought it was too cute not to share. Enjoy :)

Happy Anniversary, Sweetheart!

2010-07-10T18:26:00.018-05:00

Today is mine and the Hubby's 6th Wedding Anniversary!! I can't believe it's already been six years!! Happy Anniversary, Sweetheart!! I fall in love with you more each day that I have you. I love you, Baby :)

I thought it would be cute to post some pictures from our wedding. So, I scanned just a few to share with you :)

Bridal Portraits

Bridals

My Mom and Hubby

Our Wedding

I love this picture, I just wish he could have gotten a picture like this after we said "I do". Instead, he snapped this right after we walked down the aisle. I still love it though :)

Me with the Hubby, Mom, Aunt L and Uncle N.

It was blazing hot on this day. I was so ready for these outside pics to be finished :)

Us with our friend from Scotland, Calum. He was an usher in our wedding and actually wore his kilt :) I thought that was so neat!

It's Been a Day

2010-07-08T16:51:00.011-05:00

**Blackberry pictures to follow**

First trip to the Pediatric ER and first IV (which didn't take the first time). Not a fun experience.

The Little Monkey apparently contracted the Roseola virus over the weekend :( It's an airborne virus that causes an extremely high fever followed by a rash. I can already predict the next week is going to be so much fun around our house :(

Cuddles from Daddy makes everything better :)

His 104.1 temperature finally started going down :)

There's nothing a bag of IV fluid, Motrin and his favorite sunglasses can't fix :)

I'm beyond tired this afternoon. Please say a little prayer for our family, that we can make it through the next week without having to make another trip to the ER and that this virus goes away....quickly!!

Sweet Summertime.

2010-07-02T13:38:00.010-05:00

This morning, I decided to get the Little Monkey out of the house early to play outside. We usually go outside for a little bit every afternoon, but our time is usually cut short due in part to the blazing heat! I love mornings like today. It was cool, breezy and we were playing in the shade. The Little Monkey has never played with sidewalk chalk before, so this was something new to him. I was really surprised how fast he picked up on how to use it. Usually something new goes straight to his mouth, but he was such a big boy and colored the driveway a rainbow of colors.

We spent about 45 minutes playing and getting dirty. By the time we were finished, he was covered in chalk and had pink all over his face :)

Tools of destruction

The broken pieces on the bottom really bothered him. Silly kid :)

Here's the heart Deke helped me make. He was in charge of handing me the colors :) (I might also note that I didn't tell him what color to give me, he would just hand me a random color)

We are heading out of town this afternoon to spend the entire weekend with our families. I'm pretty excited about going to the cabin this year, because I feel Deke will enjoy it more now that he is a little older. As for me, I plan to do a lot of eating and playing cards :) HA! I hope everyone has a safe and wonderful weekend!!!

Happy 4th of July!!!

Day of Blog Silence for Cohen

2010-07-01T08:35:00.007-05:00

Send Love to Cohen

Blue Baby

2010-06-23T17:15:00.004-05:00

Today, was a pretty lazy day. The Little Monkey and I decided we would venture out of the house and go eat lunch with the Hubby at Red Robin (Yum). It was so nice to get out of the house for a bit. I haven't been getting out too much, mostly because it's been 100 degrees here for the last few weeks and the heat just makes me sick. However, we had a good day while we were out, even though we just about burned up :) When we got back home, I immediately prepared myself for a late afternoon bidding war on E-bay. Here's what I won...

Citizens of Humanity Bootcut Maternity Jeans in "Kelly"

I can't wait to get these in the mail and start wearing them. My belly isn't going to make it much longer in my pre-pregnancy jeans :) I don't have too much blogging in me this evening. Hope everyone has a wonderful week!!

All About Baby.

2010-06-21T12:46:00.009-05:00

Today, was our first doctor's appointment. Everything went great and it was so good to see our little baby!! The heartbeat was 168 bpm and we could start to see the little hand and feet buds. I am measuring 9 weeks and 1 day. Which moves the due date up to January 23, 2011. Since I will be having another c-section, the baby will probably be here around January 14th. For those of you who don't know, I needed a c-section with Deacon because he was too big for me. At 38 weeks, he was 8 lbs 3 oz. Pretty sure my doctor would have been right about him being a 9 lb baby, if he'd stayed until 41 weeks!! I'm hoping, this one won't be that big, but I will be happy either way :) I have this link to old wives tales that I wanted to share. I used it when I was pregnant with Deke and there were 12 of these that were right about the sex!! So far, this time around it has been more girl myths that are true, but there have been some boy myths too. Hmmm... :)

Here's my little grape!! Awww, too cute!!

What's Happening This Week:

He/she is about the size of a grape. Nearly an inch long!!
It's little teeth start to form
The heart finished dividing into four chambers and now the valve is starting to form
The eyes are fully formed, but the eyelids are fused shut and will stay that way until around 27 weeks.
It's mouth, nose and earlobes are more distinct this week.

and here's my first belly pic....

They say you start showing earlier with your second one. I'm starting to believe it!

Sorry about the ugly shadow in the picture. This was a self portrait, using a broken tripod (thanks Delta Airlines!) and not good lighting in the room. Hopefully, the following pictures will look much better.

Ok, ok! I can't post to my blog without a picture of the one who made me a Mommy!!

So innocent while he sleeps :) HA!

Time to get up, buttercup!!

Wishing I would stop taking his picture :)

Baby Update

2010-06-15T13:22:00.002-05:00

I just wanted to let everyone know what has been going on over here lately. I am now 8 weeks pregnant and I'm feeling pretty good. I had a really bad day last week where all I wanted to do was go back to bed. I am on Zofran, which is the drug I had to take when pregnant with the Little Monkey. It's helping, but it definitely has it's side effects :( I go for my first doctor's appointment on the 21st of this month and we're pretty excited about that. Right now, I crave nothing but sweets! Which I've read, is a sign of a girl, but it's too early for that guessing game :) Sweets are numero uno on my list, with dill pickle chips right behind that. I'm trying to not indulge my cravings too much. I would like to keep my healthy weight if I can :) I have been trying to introduce the idea of another baby to the Little Monkey by pointing to my belly and saying "baby", but he's not getting it :) Might be too young for that yet. I'm sorry this is a pictureless post (grandparents), I know I'm in trouble for the lack of Deacon the last couple of weeks, but I promise my blogging will pick back up here soon. Right now, I can't seem to find the time at the end of the day. I know you all understand :)

Where I've Been....

2010-06-08T09:57:00.004-05:00

We're pregnant with #2!!!

That's right, we will welcome a new baby to our family in January 2011!! I am 7 weeks pregnant and we are very excited!! I know most of you think that our cruise in May was for this purpose, but that was not the case. We just had a really good time (TMI?). HEHEHEHE :) Anyway, I have been so exhausted the last few weeks and in turn my poor blog has suffered. I just haven't had the energy to upload pics, edit, upload, title, etc. Hopefully, I can get back on track here in the next couple of weeks :) As for how I'm feeling, I wake up in the mornings pretty nauseated and go to bed nauseated, but most of the afternoon I'm doing good. So far, my morning sickness has been nothing compared to what it was like with the Little Monkey, but it's still pretty early to assume I'm gonna have it easier. I guess we'll see :) Also, make sure you check back in the next few weeks because I plan on doing the weekly belly pic once I start showing :) So, please forgive my lack of blogging in the coming weeks! I promise not to be lazy for too much longer :)

What's the Little Monkey up to?

2010-05-31T16:33:00.000-05:00

8:45 a.m.- He finds a pen and decorates his face.

3:15 p.m.- Confiscating Mommy's recliner for a little afternoon cartoon watching with Oscar.

Missing.

2010-05-28T09:47:00.000-05:00

Sorry I haven't posted all week. I just felt like taking the week off and spend some quality time with the Little Monkey. So, you probably won't hear anything from me till Monday. Hope everyone has a wonderful Memorial Day weekend :)

Just a Fun Weekend

2010-05-24T18:16:00.001-05:00

This weekend, we went back to our home towns to hang out with our families. My Mom was sick all weekend, so the Little Monkey didn't get a chance to see his Granny, but he did have fun on his first boat ride with Dusty's family.

Morning Sunshine!!

He also got his first big "boo boo" from a xylophone.

Watching Papa and Daddy fix the boat

Ready to get in the boat with his fishing pool :)

My Big Boy :)

He wasn't quiet sure about the boat, but he came around to it!

Uncle Matt would hold he over the side and dip him in the water. Deke loved this :)

Whhheeeeee

Rainbow Cake and Bike Rides.

2010-05-20T15:23:00.003-05:00

This afternoon, I attempted to make a 12-layer rainbow cake that I've been drooling over for the last few months. After I got all the ingredients and was about to start, I realized I didn't have a platter that would be large/tall enough to hold a 12-layer cake :( So, I found another recipe online that consisted of me pouring all these colors together in the pan to make a beautiful rainbow of colors. Here are some pics.

Yum

I tried making orange icing, but for some reason it didn't turn out orange. It looks more like a light pink/peachy color.

Also, I'm pretty stoked about this purchase today. They Hubby is participating in a triathlon in August and he's working on getting in shape. He's been running alot, which I can't do with him cause someone has to watch Deke. So, we bought this bicycle seat, so the Little Monkey can go with us when we bike. I can't wait until it comes in so we can get to pedaling :)

One Day.

2010-05-19T20:30:00.003-05:00

I'm going to miss afternoons like this.....

Playinhg Peek-a-boo with Daddy

Looking at the airplane flying over

Is it safe to come out, Mommy?

Me and my boy

Thank you my sweet husband :)

Lullaboards + Coupon Code

2010-05-18T14:36:00.001-05:00

This morning, I was looking through my e-mails and found this e-mail talking about Lullaboards. I can remember when the Little Monkey was an infant and trying to keep track of his feedings, diaper changes, etc was harder than it looked. I would record the times of his feedings on a sheet of paper, but would either misplace it or throw it away ( if you know me, you know I probably threw it away). At times, I got frustrated trying to keep track of it all. That's why I think these little guys are such a good investment. They are magnetic, so they can go on your refrigerator and hopefully won't get thrown away! You can select the pattern you want and then you can add one of the four different layouts to suit your needs. Here are the layouts. Aren't these so cute?? I'm definitely going to be ordering me a few.

Since I live on Project Nursery's website, I am sharing my reader's discount code with you to use on your next order. Use the code PN25 from now until May 31, 2010 and get 25% off your next Lullaboards order.

It's Five O'clock Somewhere....

2010-05-17T15:38:00.002-05:00

Just for Fun.

2010-05-15T15:37:00.004-05:00

While we were on our cruise, the Little Monkey got to play with his big cousin Kayden. They played in one of those Little Tike play houses . Judging by the pictures she sent me, it looks like he thoroughly enjoyed playing "house" with Kayden. So, this morning we bought the Little Monkey his very own playhouse. Here are pictures from our Saturday. Also, I feel I must add that I know our grass looks horrible in these pictures. It has since been mowed :)

St. Croix, USVI

2010-05-14T08:02:00.005-05:00

Our last island stop was St. Croix. Once again, the Hubby and I rented a car to explore the island and learn a little bit more about it's history. We also stopped to do some shopping in Christiansted. I was very surprised when we arrived on this island, because it looked uninhabited. The first portion of our little road trip, I think we saw two houses and not one business. It's like one whole side of the island isn't in use. Overall, St. Croix was more laid back than all the other islands we visited. If you're wanting a quiet getaway from people and everything else, I would recommend a stay on this island :)

Christensted, St. Croix, USVI

Pretty :)

When we arrived in Christanstad, I was really hungry. The Hubby, knowing of my love affair with mexican food, saw this cute eatery while we were walking around. We ended up stopping and grabbing a bite to eat and I'm so glad we did. Best mexican food, ever!!

I'm wanting one right now! Yummy!! Hands down best burrito!!

This little guy was our lunch buddy. He played on our chairs for a bit, then had some fun in this tree. I enjoyed watching him intimidate the nearby chicken.

We're silly, I know :)

The Old Danish Customs House was built in 1734 and was a place where taxes were paid on imports and exports passing through the scale house right next door. Very cool!

Me playing around near the Safari Club

Before dinner our last night on the ship

The very first day on the ship, I noticed this girl standing on the balcony and the Hubby and I thought she looked just like Kristen Stewart from Twilight. So, the last night on the ship, I ask her for a picture. She was such a sweetie for humoring me. I told her who she reminded me of and she told me she got that, ALOT :)

St. Maarten.

2010-05-13T08:04:00.004-05:00

We enjoyed our time on this island. The water was just as pretty in St. Maarten as it was in Antigua, but Antigua is still the #1 pick :) We ended up renting a car, so we could sight see around the island and take our time. The roads in St. Maarten are soooo confusing and crowded, but the Hubby did an awesome job of navigating those crazy streets :) We ended up going to this beach I had read about on the internet called Maho Beach. This beach is located adjacent to a large airport runway. It was so cool watching the planes land and take off. After sightseeing around the island for a few hours, we were ready to go back to our ship. I liked St. Maarten, but don't see myself going back anytime soon :)

St. Maarten

Beautiful water

The sun was blinding us :)

He was so sweet to carry my big bag around :)

We stopped by this cute restaurant on the beach to enjoy some Caribbean hamburgers

So funny :)

That was so cool to me. I just love watching planes land and take-off :)

Maho Beach, St. Maarten

Here's a pic I took. Isn't that so cool?

Antigua (Best Place on Earth)

2010-05-12T08:12:00.002-05:00

We LOVED Antigua!! I didn't want to leave it was so gorgeous. There are truly no words to describe this island! We've been told that we didn't see the "real Antigua" because we never really saw the streets, but what we did see was breathtaking. While we were there, we took a catamaran tour of the island and snorkeled near a beautiful reef. After we finished snorkeling, they took us to Bird Island where we played in the turquoise waters and had a good time meeting new people. The water in Antigua is so clear you can see your feet!! Me and the Hubby would definitely like to go back and visit one day :)

Waiting for our excursion to start

I love this kind of music!! I wanted to pack these guys in my suitcase and take them home so I could hear them play whenever I wanted :)

The life! Ha!!

We drove right by Sandals Antigua. A place I would LOVE to visit one day ( hint, hint Hubby)

Snorkeling near a pretty reef

Beautiful Antigua water

Bird Island, Antigua

I thought the Hubby looked very handsome in his Bird Island Caribbean shirt :)

We hiked to the top of Bird Island to get a better view :)

I love this picture. Just wish it didn't have a big water spot over the Hubby's face. The only negative thing about our underwater camera.

The water was so warm :) I love Antigua!!

Not wanting to leave....

Beautiful sand :)

I'm pretty sure I'm having way too much fun in this video. Look at the water!!!

We seriously saw this dude who for what ever reason, thought using a bicycle on his boat was a good idea. HA!

Our cruise ship

St. Lucia.

2010-05-11T09:15:00.001-05:00

We really enjoyed our time in St. Lucia. The Hubby and I booked a Bike/Hike/Waterfall excursion and it was exhausting! When we signed up for this thing, no one informed us that it would be around a four mile bike ride, uphill most of the way + rainforest hike + four miles back! Needless to say, we were both tired and out of shape. I haven't biked in years and I'm pretty sure the Hubby hasn't either, but we were both troopers and completed the excursion without giving up :)

St. Lucia

We're in St. Lucia!!

On the bike ride

At this point, we felt like we were going to melt!! It was so humid and hot!

After the bike ride

Posing before we head back to the ship

Elephant Rock, St. Lucia. This location was used during the filming of The Pirates of the Caribbean.

Leaving St. Lucia

The Hubby took this picture. I thought it was so beautiful how he captured such a pretty rainbow :)

Another picture :)

Eating dinner. Yum!!

Barbados.

2010-05-10T10:33:00.012-05:00

I decided that most of you could care less about the "Day at Sea" and are more interested in seeing pictures from all the different islands, etc. So, instead of posting the "Day at Sea", I'm starting with Day two of our cruise, Barbados! We had a blast on this island!! We booked a Turtle/Shipwreck/Beach Excusion while we were there. Since it didn't start until lunch, we ventured out early in the morning to sightsee around the island. We took a taxi to downtown Bridgetown and walked the hot streets and did some shopping. I loved seeing all the old buildings and seeing the people. It's so cool to go to a place like Barbados and learn about it's history. After we did all our sightseeing, we went back to the ship to get ready for our excursion. The boat ride out to the turtles was such a beautiful experience. The water was three shades of blue and you could see turtles swimming beside the boat. I would have to say that this excursion was probably my second favorite :) I just loved swimming in the crystal, clear water while playing with the turtles :)

Downtown Bridgetown, Barbados.

On the boat, heading to our excursion.

Playing in the pretty water :)

Swimming with the turtles and a shipwreck. Some people have already asked us where we got our underwater camera. We ended up getting a digital camera with a video recorder and it is awesome!! You can find it here.

After swimming with the turtles, they took us to a cute little beach where we got to hang out at for about 45 minutes. While we were there, we saw the famous Green Monkeys. They were so cute!!

Me and My Hubby

The Hubby rode a wave runner while we were on the beach.

This cute little monkey was so adorable running around and playing. I was so excited that we got an opportunity to see them.

Sunset in Barbados

My Mother's Day.

2010-05-09T19:08:00.003-05:00

We're back and we had so much fun! We got to my in-law's house around 12:30 this morning and we immediately crashed. The Little Monkey was sound asleep when we got there and we really had to control ourselves to keep from getting him out of the crib and giving him tons of kisses. It was so sweet to see his reaction to us when he finally woke up this morning. At first, he acted like he didn't recognize us, but it didn't take too long before he realized who we were and started loving all over us. I've never felt so missed :) HA! What a wonderful way to start Mother's Day!

Mother's Day picture before church

I had such a great day with my family and two favorite boys. Thank you Hubby, for making me feel like a princess all week and on my special day :) I sure do love you!

Also, tomorrow I am starting the daily post for our cruise. Be prepared for tons of pics and videos!!

Spring.

2010-04-29T15:37:00.002-05:00

Today, I decided to get the Little Monkey out of the house and enjoy this gorgeous spring day! My mom bought him this adorable pool for his birthday and I've been waiting for the perfect opportunity to get it out and have some fun :) I think the Little Monkey thoroughly enjoyed his time in the pool.

Wake up sleepy head!! It's time to play!

I decided to put his new hat on him to protect his little head......

Apparently, he is not a fan of hats. There's $6.00 wasted.

He thought it was hilarious that he'd soaked his new hat.

Now, it's his pool toy.

Enough pool time, Mommy.....

Let's play in the dirt!!

I couldn't figure out what he was looking for here...

I should've known :)

Well, this is my last post until May 9th. Tomorrow we are leaving for Atlanta, where we will spend the night and get up bright and early to catch our flight to San Juan, Puerto Rico on Saturday. I am so ready to cruise the Caribbean with the Hubby, but I am already missing my Little Monkey and we haven't even left yet. It's going to be hard saying goodbye for eight days :( I know he's in good hands, but it still makes me sad. I plan on taking tons of pictures on our cruise, so you need to make sure and check back for a post of what we did each day. I can't wait! Southern Caribbean, here we come!!!

Bedtime.

2010-04-28T20:03:00.003-05:00

Splashing the water in his face

After this shot, that cup full of water went all in the floor. Sigh..... :)

He LOVES to wrap up in his dinosaur towel and get warm

Posing for Mommy

If you give a Moose a Muffin, he'll probably......

His favorite book! Thanks Jackson :)

Good night, Monkey! Sweet Dreams :)

Just One More Breath.

2010-04-26T12:13:00.010-05:00

Have you ever had days when you wake up and you are just so thankful for everything? I mean, everyday I am thankful, but today I woke up and really counted my blessings. I'm in love with my life and the people in it. I'm so thankful that God has blessed me with such wonderful family and friends. Those people who truly care about me and want to best for me in everything I do. So, I've decided to make a list of everyone and everything I'm thankful for.

1.) My God. How great he is!! He has blessed me and I don't deserve any of it. None of us do. Thank you my Lord, for always being there for me and helping me learn to put all my trust in you.

2.) My faith. Though I may swerve off the road from time to time, God always has his way of bumping me back on course. My faith is stronger than it has ever been and NO ONE can take it away from me. I fear that our country is heading down a road that will one day lead to practicing Christianity as being a crime. I'll hold on then, like I'm holding on now.

3.) My husband. Sweetheart, I love you a little more, everyday that I have you. You have taught me so many things over the last ten years and I'm so thankful I waited for you and your unconditional love :) You are an extraordinary man and an awesome father. I love everything about you! I couldn't ask for more.

4.) My child. One of the greatest gifts God has ever blessed me with. He is my heart, my love, my life. I would die for him.

5.) My family. Though, it's far from the perfect family, I'm so grateful that God has blessed me with these people who enrich my life every day. I love my family and I'm so excited to see it growing!!

6.) Friends. It's true what they say, "As you get older, your friends will change". I used to think I couldn't live without some of my friends from high school, but we all went our separate ways and I met new friends. Over the last few years, I have gained friends and I've lost friends. Each one of you have come into my life for a reason. Even though I may not know what that reason is, I'm thankful. I've learned that you can't keep all the friends you meet along the way, but you can always remember what you learned from them. Some of them life lessons, others just learning to laugh at the stupid stuff life throws at you. I'm so thankful for all of you that I can truly call my friend. You are worth more to me than anything in this world and I love you!

These are the things money can't buy, people I can't live without and loved ones who when they're gone, I will miss. Today, I'm thanking God above for giving me just one more breath, to keep enjoying the life I'm so in love with.

Family.

2010-04-25T19:45:00.004-05:00

This weekend, we went back home to visit with our family and friends. We had so much fun hanging out with everyone! We especially enjoyed schooling Aunt Denay and Uncle Wez in a game of Rook :) Love you guys!! On our way back to our house, I started stressing out thinking about the packing and all the extra stuff my week has in store for me. We are flying to Puerto Rico on Saturday, leaving for our cruise and I haven't started packing anything (I'm such a procrastinator). Anyway, I don't have much blogging in me tonight, so here are some snapshots of our weekend :)

The Little Monkey with his Aunt Nay. I thought this was such an adorable pic :)

Silly Boy

At Levi's Baby Shower

Petting the horse with Uncle Greg

I don't think he liked the horse that much

Mini Me.

2010-04-23T18:50:00.006-05:00

At 14 months, the Little Monkey is using the computer like his Mommy. I'm not joking, he literally will move the mouse around on the screen and select icons :)

Trying to be like Mommy

How does this thing work?

He enjoyed his time on the computer :)

Trouble.

2010-04-22T14:28:00.018-05:00

First, I have to say Happy Birthday to my wonderful husband!

We can't wait to see you tomorrow :)

We had a pretty laid back day. The Little Monkey has played his little heart out all afternoon! He is a pretty good little walker these days. I wouldn't say he has mastered walking so good that he can run, but he's already trying. This afternoon, I decided I would start cleaning the kitchen while he played in the living room. I returned to see him going up the stairs. He's such a little stinker :)

Now, what do you think you're doing?

You know you're not suppose to be up there......

He knows how to charm his way out of trouble :)

Hanging Around.

2010-04-21T13:27:00.003-05:00

Well, my week has been off since Monday. The Hubby left yesterday morning, flying out to Denver where he will be until Friday. I always miss him so much when he's away :( So, the Little Monkey and I headed back to my home town to spend the day/night with my mom. It was so much fun spending time with her yesterday! Thanks Mom, for letting us crash at your house :)

Daddy's Helper

2010-04-17T17:57:00.005-05:00

This afternoon, The Little Monkey decided he would help his Daddy fix the lawn mower. He just looked so precious "working" with his Daddy that I had to snap some pics.

OK, so this one he isn't helping, but he sure does look cute :)

Our Day.

2010-04-15T09:38:00.014-05:00

I've wanted to do this for a while now, but haven't found the extra time to sit down and put together such a ginormous post. Sometime before the next baby gets here (no I'm not pregnant), I want to take this blog and turn it into a book for Deacon to have. I want it to be filled with sweet memories of our daily life, for him to enjoy when he gets older. So, I have dedicate a post to our daily schedule. My day will be completely different when we have all of our children, so I thought it would be neat to remember what it was like with just one :)

Our Day

Deacon usually wakes up around 7:00a.m. One of us will go get him out of his crib and bring him into our room for some morning snuggle time. What a sweet way to start each day. I just love watching him cuddle with his Daddy.
We get out of bed around 7:20 and I start getting the Hubby's clothes ready while Deacon plays with the telephones.
At 7:30, Deacon and I head downstairs where we spend the next 30 minutes getting him fed. For some reason, he really enjoys talking while I'm feeding him in the mornings. The rest of his meals don't take as long.
After breakfast, I get him cleaned up/change his diaper and we go into the living room. I will either put him in his jumperoo or let him play with this toys, while I eat my breakfast. During this time, he enjoys watching "SuperWhy".
After my breakfast, I clean the kitchen and then Deacon and I play in the floor or read a book.
We usually play for 30 minutes together, then I''m usually answering emails or checking my facebook.
While I'm on the computer, Deacon is usually playing in his toy box/bead maze. He does a really good job of entertaining himself during this time.
Around 9:30, it's time for a nap. I will change him, so that he is in a fresh diaper for naptime and then I usually start cleaning the house or editing pictures. He will sleep for about an hour to an hour and a half.
Around 11:00, he's ready for me to get him out of his crib. I will strip him down, put him in a new diaper and put his play clothes on.
He is ready for lunch around 11:45. This is the time I will let him sit in his highchair and feed himself, while I unload/load the dishwasher. By the time I'm through, he's made a whole new mess for me to clean up :)
After his lunch, we will get in the car and run errands or go see Daddy. Deacon loves to see Daddy during the day.
At 2:00, he's ready for his afternoon nap. I usually give him some juice and a small snack before I lay him down. He favorite afternoon snack is a handful of mild cheddar crunchies and cup of apple juice.
He will sleep for about 45 minutes. I take this time to do my daily bible devotional. I think it's important to spend some time, each day with the Lord. So, this is the time I usually do that :)
After Deacon wakes up, I get him in a fresh diaper and we go downstairs to eat his afternoon meal. He really enjoys the Lil' Graduates dinner plates, so this is what he usually eats during this feeding. Mac & Cheese with veggies to be exact :)
The rest of the afternoon is spent playing all over the house, while watching PBS. He loves to help me do my afternoon housework ( laundry, dishes, sweep, mop, etc).
Dusty usually comes home around 5:00 and yesterday Deacon gave the Hubby an applause when he walked in the door, while screaming "Hi". I know, kinda disgusting :) How come I never get an applause?
Dusty usually plays with Deacon for a few minutes. The Little Monkey really enjoys Daddy throwing him up in the air. After they play for a bit, the Hubby will take Deacon with him outside to do some "manly jobs". During this time, I am kickin' it in my recliner and either blogging/reading some of my other favorite blogs/ or getting dinner ready.
Around 7:00, we will give the little monkey a bath ( if he wants one). I usually let him splash around in the tub for about 15 minutes before I start cleaning him.
At 7:30, one of us will feed Deacon and get him ready for bed.
Deacon does not have a set bed time. We will let him play in the floor until we start seeing signs of him being sleepy. He will usually got to bed around 8:30 or 9:00.
After the Little Monkey is tucked away, safe and sound, the Hubby and I will clean up Deacon's mess, grab out Netflix movie and head up stairs.
We usually go to bed around 11:00 and then the whole process repeats itself :)

There you have it, friends. 850 words describing my day. I'm sure you all feel enlightened now :) HA!!

My Boy.

2010-04-14T16:31:00.013-05:00

Oh, my sweet boy.

You get more adorable with each day that passes.

You're constantly changing and I continue to look for my features in your appearance.

There aren't many, but you did get one thing from your Mommy.......her naturally curly hair. She loves her curly hair and she hopes you grow up to love yours as well :)

Blah, Blah, Blah.

2010-04-12T16:17:00.004-05:00

Well, the Hubby is pretty sick. He's been up all night and is unable to sleep. I feel so bad for him :( My whole day has been "off" and you're probably laughing at my typing right now. That's ok, I don't have to mental energy to speak or type correct English today :)

This is how the Little Monkey feels about his Daddy being sick. Awwww :)

What We're Reading.

2010-04-08T20:20:00.004-05:00

If you know me at all, you know I love children's books! When I took Children's Lit. in college, I fell in love with a few authors and I can't get enough of their books. I started collecting books during my last year at ASU, preparing myself for the humongous library I would need when I started teaching. Since I never had a classroom, I've had these books tucked away for future use. So, the elementary teacher is coming out in me tonight and I want to recommend some excellent books for your little one.

Books for Babies:

Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? ~ Eric Carle
Where Is Baby's Bellybutton? ~ Kathy Katz (she has several more like this)
The Very Hungry Caterpillar ~ Eric Carle (love him)
Goodnight Moon~ Margaret Wise Brown
Where The Wild Things Are ~Maurice Sendak
The Giving Tree ~ Shel Silverstein (great author)
Sheep in a Jeep ~ Nancy Shaw
If You Give A Moose A Muffin ~Laura Numeroff
A Snowy Day ~ Ezra Jack Keats

Books for Toddlers:

Anything by Dr. Suess (love these books)
Anything by P.D. Eastman
Shoes From Grandpa ~ Mem Fox
Chicka Chicka Boom Boom ~ Bill Martin Jr.
Corduroy ~ Don Freeman
How I Became A Pirate ~ David Shannon ( love this author)
Five Little Ladybugs ~ Melanie Gerth
No David ~ David Shannon

Here are just a few of the authors and their books that I love. If you have a little one, or will one day, I would recommend these books for them. I have a ton more of authors and books, but I don't have the space to type it all :)

Sailing the Caribbean.

2010-04-07T15:04:00.015-05:00

I am so excited about what's happening in the next few weeks! Dusty and I are going on a romantic getaway, just the two of us. We will be sailing the beautiful, turquoise waters of the Southern Caribbean on May 1 - 8 !! I am beyond stoked!! We went on a Western Caribbean cruise a couple of years ago and we loved it!! I've been wanting to do another one, but couldn't stand the thought of leaving the Little Monkey behind. I've been thinking a while about it and I have come to the conclusion that I need to let go a bit. I love my son, but I also love my husband and it's good for us to take a trip, just the two of us every once in a while. I figure when the next baby gets here, our "just us" vacations will come to an end :) Anyway, we are flying out of Atlanta traveling to San Juan, Puerto Rico where our cruise ship leaves for Barbados, St. Lucia, Antigua, St. Maarten, St. Croix and then back to San Juan. This means I will be away from the Little Monkey for eight days!! Right now, we are planning on calling and doing web- cam chats with him daily. I figure if I can hear him and see him, I will be fine :) The only thing I'm nervous about, is if either connection is bad, which I've been assured by Royal Caribbean that all connections (Internet, cell tower) are "the best out there". We'll see :) Also, don't expect to see any posts on this blog from May 1-9. I will have Internet access, but I'm not going to blog. I remember trying to use the Internet the last time we went on a cruise and you had a time limit and there was always a long line waiting for the computers. I love blogging, but I think it will be more trouble than it's worth on this trip. However, I do promise to create a daily post, when I get back, of everything we did on each day. So, you'll still get to see the daily activities with pictures from each stop, just a week later :) I'm officially counting down the days!!

24 Days till Cruise Time

Ladies & Gentlemen.......

2010-04-06T19:30:00.012-05:00

We have a walker!!!

The Little Monkey has been taking a few steps here and there, but today I walked into the kitchen to turn around and see him following me!! He was going pretty fast too :) It was such an amazing thing to see :) I have a video, but my computer is pretty full right now so it might be a while before I can upload it. Here are some pictures I took of him today. He has been in the best mood all day.

He's been walking all over the house for most of the day :)

He let go of his bead maze and was clapping for himself. He's so proud :)

He has the most adorable laugh :) Right after this shot, he took off towards my camera!

My Big Boy

So pretty...

Easter.

2010-04-05T15:49:00.018-05:00

We had so much fun during our Easter weekend and we hope you did too. We traveled back home Saturday to spend the day with Dusty's family. We had a blast at the Easter Egg Hunt Saturday night. All the grandkids had such a good time. The Little Monkey didn't really know what to do with his basket and eggs, but he sure looked cute :)

Family picture on Easter morning. The Little Monkey had just woken up from his morning nap. You can tell he is excited :)

Kissing the Little Monkey

He looks so happy :)

Hunting Easter eggs with Uncle Matthew :)

My aunt bought him his own little tool set and it came with a hard hat. Look how precious! He loves his hat :)

Sitting Pretty.

2010-04-01T16:05:00.011-05:00

Here's a picture of the Little Monkey, sitting pretty in our grass that needs to be mowed ;) Even though he is being blinded by the hot afternoon sun, he still looks adorable with his little hands clasp together ( he knows when the camera is pointed at him). Silly boy :) We are leaving this weekend, going back home to visit with family and friends for Easter. I probably won't be posting anything this weekend, because we'll be doing quite a bit of traveling. Saturday night, my in-laws are having an Easter Egg Hunt at their house for all the grandchildren, so I should have some super cute pics to share with you all.

We hope everyone has a Happy Easter!

Wordless Wednesday.

2010-03-31T19:31:00.008-05:00

Playing in the Backhoe.

2010-03-30T17:21:00.014-05:00

Today the Little Monkey got to enjoy some fun time with Papa (Dusty's Dad). He came over to help level out our backyard and the Little Monkey thoroughly enjoyed his big boy toy, the backhoe. He was very curious about this machine and it was just precious to watch him explore all the gadgets in it. Here he is being a big boy, "driving" Papa's backhoe.

He thinks he's like Papa now :)

So excited!!

Getting ready to "drive"

Everybody watch out!

Look at me Mommy!!!

Playing with all the buttons :)

In Love.

2010-03-29T09:52:00.017-05:00

This weekend was such a great weekend. Friday night, we met up with another couple and had dinner at my favorite mexican restaurant, Rosie's. Yum! Saturday we went to yard sales with my sister in law and her husband. They were so nice to watch the Little Monkey while we went on a date Saturday night. We had so much fun guys, thanks for coming up here!! We rarely get dates anymore, so it nice to go to dinner and shop just the two of us :) However, I did miss the Little Monkey while I was gone :) Anyway, my canvas gallery wrap came in Friday afternoon and I'm in L.O.V.E. with it. However, I was pretty sad to see my clock go :) Because the wall above our fireplace is so large, the picture doesn't look that big. I just knew a 30 x 40 canvas would fill up a good deal of that wall, but it really didn't. Here it is :)

It turned out flawless! I was very nervous ordering such a huge picture, afraid of spending all that money and then something went wrong with it (not enough pixels, blur, etc). I've never ordered one of my prints that big before, but it turned out great!! I can't get enough of it :P I have a feeling I will be ordering some more in the future ( the Hubby is cringing right now , HA!) Anyway, enough talk about pictures. Here is Deacon's big Easter present ( he got it early).

An educational 4- sided bead maze cube. This thing is pretty awesome. Not only does it have 4 sides of different activites, but it's also a storage bin to hold toys. Since it's so large and wouldn't fit into an easter basket, the Little Monkey got it early.

He has really enjoyed these little toys :)

He likes this side too :)

I have him a little basket filled with Crayola Bath Dropz, Curious George/Cars bandaids and some of his favorite treats. However, I have a feeling he's not going to be phased by the little gifts. His main priority is the bead maze :)

Time to Upgrade.

2010-03-25T08:05:00.012-05:00

Since we moved into our house four years ago, we've always had a pretty cool looking clock that hung above our fireplace. I really have enjoyed this clock, cause I got it on sale at Target and it has been so convenient having it there. However, it quit working several months ago (hands won't turn) and we haven't taken it down yet. I'm just having a hard time parting with it. I really do love my big clock!! Anyway, I've been pondering what I could hang on such a large white wall (we have a very high ceiling in the living room) and a really good picture kept coming to my mind. So, what better way to add some cuteness to our living room than to take one, simple picture I made and blow it up to a 30 x 40 gallery wrap canvas and hang it in the clock's place. Since I have a professional print lab I print all my business and personal pictures from, I decided to order myself a professional, big hanging, black and white picture of my one year old baby boy. Here's the picture.

I am super excited and can't wait for it to arrive. I'm scared it's going to be so big that I won't be able to get it inside the house by myself, but I'll have to do the best I can. I will be sure to post a picture when it's hanging up :)

Frustration.

2010-03-24T19:18:00.004-05:00

I am opening my blog up against my better judgement. I am pretty frustrated at the moment. I have wiped out every code, started from scratch and STILL can't find the problem here. So, until I can grab a couple of hours of time to sit and really dig deep, my right-side bar will be without pictures and blog buttons :( It may stay that way if I can't figure this out :) Here are some pics of the Little Monkey from today's little photoshoot. EnJoY!

He didn't really cooperate and these were taken last minute at 4:00 in the afternoon, but I still think they are cute. Even if he is being blinded by the hot afternoon sun :) HA!

Houston, We Have a Problem.

2010-03-23T11:24:00.003-05:00

So, I've been blogging since March of 2008. I've been with blogger this entire time and have enjoyed the free use of their website. However, now I have a problem that I have no idea how to fix. I consider myself to be good with computer codes and manipulating a site to do what I want (just blogger), but I have no idea what's going on with my blog now. It's like it has decided it hates me and wants to be added to the "To Do" list (like I don't have enough to do right now). I've got pictures that show errors. I've got our picture thumbnails at the bottom of the page. My background is shifted. It's like someone hacked into my blog and rearranged the HTML codes!! Anyway, I won't be posting in the next couple of days so this website will be down as of midnight tonight. You won't be able to access it, but don't freak out just yet (grandparents). I will hopefully have it up and running by Thursday. So, you should be able to access it without any problems and hopefully the problems will be resolved. If I can't get this thing to work right, I might finally have to break down and spend the $10/year to domain and switch to a fancier website (gasp). Either way it will get fixed. Just hang in there :)

Determination.

2010-03-22T16:23:00.004-05:00

I am so excited. The Little Monkey is trying to walk!!

Look at you!!! Standing all by himself.

Opps, try again :)

Yay for Deacon!!

He took one, tiny step in this last picture and then fell down. The point is, he's doing it. Finally, he is showing some interest in walking.

Another Year Older.

2010-03-21T09:22:00.002-05:00

Me and my boys on my birthday. Thank you Lord, for allowing me to enjoy another wonderful year of life!

26.

2010-03-20T15:52:00.000-05:00

Happy Birthday to Me!! Thank you, my sweet husband :)

March 19, 1995

2010-03-19T08:00:00.030-05:00

Today is the day you died. I can't believe it's been 15 years. You've missed so much since you've been gone and it makes my heart hurt thinking about all you're missing out on. You have a son-in-law that is just as crazy about Alabama football as you were. You have a beautiful grandson, who I'm pretty sure would steal your heart like he did mine. You have a wife that misses you everyday and a daughter who as she has gotten older, has really felt the pain of losing you. It seems like just yesterday when I touched your hand for the last time, when you told me you would teach me how to play basketball, or when you promised me you would buy me "The Lion King" when it came out on video. My 26th birthday is tomorrow and you're not here to celebrate, again. Some days it feels like forever ago. Then there are other days, I can close my eyes and picture you sitting on our sofa, watching football and I'm a little girl again begging you to play Monopoly with me. Now looking back, I know you were probably more interested in the game, but you humored me and we played. I want you to know that I think about you all the time and miss you terribly. Sometimes, I wonder what my life would be like if you were still here with us, but I know God had a much bigger plan. I've had to let go of the "what ifs" and live life knowing that everything happens for a reason and He knew what He was doing. I want you to know that another fifteen years can come and go and I will still love you with all of my heart! I miss you and I wish you were still here. I know you are in a better place where there are no more doctors poking at you or hospital stays. A place, I pray everyday that I will go to and see you again. Until then, all I have of you are the sweet memories and I will cherish them for as long as I live. I love you Daddy.

Love you always,
Meg

Me and My Daddy

1985

1987

1991

1988

If tears could build a stairway,

And memories a lane,

I'd walk right up to Heaven

And bring you home again.

~Unknown

Argggg.......Ahoy Matey!!

2010-03-18T13:14:00.008-05:00

Did that header capture your attention? :) For years now, the Hubby and I have never really "decorated" our upstairs bathroom (master bath). Since no one hardly goes up there except us, I haven't really put much effort into making it look fun and cozy ( I know, I'm horrible). Since the Little Monkey shares the same bathroom with us, I decided it might be time to spruce it up and make it a fun place to make some memories. For months now, I have been lurking on the potterybarnkids website, looking at shower curtains, rugs and bathroom assessories. I've had my eye on a particular shower curtain for a while now, but soon found myself leaning towards a new one.

Here is the Little Monkey's new shower curtain! It's a Pirate Applique Shower Curtain. I just love the pretty colors and it looks so fun. I thought the theme went perfect with bath time.

Here's the rug that I'm not to sure of. I like it, but I am kinda leaning towards more of a solid apple green or navy blue.

This picture makes me sick! I have been spying on these little fellows for months and apparently they went on sale and SOLD OUT before I could get my hands on them :( Booooo...... I'm hoping they will replenish the stock soon!!

I haven't bought a new bath wrap yet, but I probably will in the next couple of months. The Little Monkey has just about grown out of his frog wrap that he has now. When the time comes (or when they go on sale), I think we'll be purchasing him the blue shark!!

I can't wait for the shower curtain to come in so I can start decorating. The Little Monkey is going to have a blast in his new Pirate Bathroom. On a side note, tomorrow's post is going to be a tough one to share. Not because I don't want to share this part of my life with you, but because it was hard to find the words to express my true feelings. I hope you'll come back and read it.

Vintage.

2010-03-17T21:07:00.000-05:00

I've been thinking a lot these last few days, about how toys are so different from what they used to be. I remember sitting in the floor as a young girl, playing with my Fisher Price toys and loving every minute. Although, Fisher Price makes some outstanding toys nowadays, I find myself constantly worrying about what hidden toxin could be hidden in them. With all the "recalls" and Fisher Price's recent "Lead & Magnet Class Action Settlement", I have found myself reminiscing about the old days, where they were no "scares" of lead poisoning from the toys we played with. So, with all this "thinking" that I've been doing, I decided to explore E-Bay and find some old, vintage Fisher Price toys like the ones I used to play with as a child. I've been making a checklist of the items I would like to put in the Little Monkey's Easter basket and some good toys is on the list! You might think I'm crazy for buying someone's old, used toys, and that's your opinion. I see it like this. I'm saving money, which is a biggie (these toys sell for $20- $40). Plus, I'm introducing some of the same old toys that I played with to my toddler child. Toys that have been around for years and are safe from lead and other harmful materials that we see far too often in toys today. After all, his safety is my #1 priority :)

This is on my E-Bay watch list. A 1974 Vintage Fisher Price Camera (talk about old school). I can remember playing with something very similar to this when I was little.

Since my little boy's room is decorated in planes, trains and automobiles, I decided that this plane would be a great addition to his "boy toy" collection :) He needs an airplane :)

Do any of you remember this? I do! I had one of these little wind-up telephones. Also on my watch list.

Most of you know that I graduated with a degree in Elementary Education back in 2008. I was so stoked about getting into the classroom, my classroom, and setting up centers and reading rugs, etc. When I found out I was pregnant a month after I graduated, it seemed pointless to find a job to only take maternity leave after the first 6 months, knowing I wouldn't want to go back to work. So, I never got the chance to put all these creative ideas to use, until now. The Little Monkey is getting old enough now to start doing fun, creative activites like reading and puzzle centers, coloring and painting in the following months. I have been slowly making a list of fun center ideas for him to play at. My first, is his reading center. Reading centers play a big part in a kids day. They go to school and spend a great deal of their time reading. Which is great! That's why I'm helping the Monkey get a head start in that department. Here is my win on E-Bay last night. A win most Elementary School teachers would drool over :)

16 Vintage Dr. Seuss, Mercer Mayer, P.D. Eastman and Robert Quakenbush books!! For a total of $4.28!! I don't know if any of you have priced Dr. Seuss books lately, but some go as much as $12.95! I basically got 16 books for $0.27 each! That's some mad savings! Ha!

Utah, Day 7

2010-03-16T11:17:00.008-05:00

UPDATE: I HAVE ADDED A FEW MORE GRAND CANYON PICTURES

We spent the last day of our trip driving through Colorado, Utah and Arizona back to catch our flight out of Denver. Along the way, we stopped by Arches National Park in Utah. It was rainy, cloudy and cold. Not a good time to visit such a beautiful place, but we managed. This is definitely a place I want to come back to in the future and hike the many trails. Here are a few pictures of the Arches. For those of you who are my Facebook friends, there are more pictures there.

We finally made it home last night around 11:30. We were so exhausted. We had so much fun on our trip out west and hope to be able to do it again in the future. I wished we'd had more time at some of these places :)

Las Vegas, Day 6

2010-03-13T21:25:00.003-06:00

We're having so much fun here in Vegas! Last night, we ventured out into the streets of Las Vegas and walked to the Bellagio to eat dinner. They had this awesome buffet that was huge! I was a big fan of the dessert bar. The desserts just kept coming!! As we were walking up to the Bellagio, we got to see the very end of one of the fountain shows that happens in front of the hotel. It was so gorgeous! I'm just bummed that I didn't have my tripod to capture such a beautiful scene :( After dinner, we came back to the MGM Grand and crashed. This morning, we got up and went to the Hoover Dam outside Vegas. We took the Plant Tour and it was so much fun. I learned some new facts about the Hoover Dam that I didn't know. We ended up staying at the Hoover Dam about two hours before we decided to come back to the hotel. We spent the rest of our afternoon at Caesar's Palace, chowing down at their buffet. It was delicious! If you're ever in Vegas, I would recommend Caesar's Palace over the Bellagio. It's cheaper, and better in my opinion. As you all know, I'm having some technical difficulties uploading pictures. So here's what I could upload.

At the Hoover Dam (the stuffed elephant goes everywhere with us. I have no idea why we're posing with it like that. Ha! )

We are leaving Vegas bright and early in the morning and driving seven hours to hopefully visit The Arches National Park in Utah. With the time change and all the extra stops, we're not sure we are going to make it in time to see before it closes. Hopefully, we will make it!

Grand Canyon/Las Vegas, Day 4-5

2010-03-12T18:48:00.007-06:00

Sorry I didn't get a chance to blog last night. We drove all day and finally stopped to stay inside the Grand Canyon last night (where there was no internet). We had a blast driving through Colorado and seeing all the beautiful, snow capped mountains. I took so many pictures while in Colorado, but I'm sad to say.............they accidentally got deleted. Yes, every. single. one! Right as we were entering Arizona, I was trying to figure out how to set the timer on the camera and ended up deleting every picture over a six hour period. I was horrified! However, we are driving back through Colorado on Monday, so I should get some pictures of the mountains again :) We woke up super early this morning and watched the sun rise at The Grand Canyon. It was beautiful! We spent most of the morning exploring the South Rim and it was so much more than I imagined. Breathtaking is the only word to describe it. We finished touring the canyon around lunch and hit the road for Vegas. We finally made it here and all I can say is WOW! This is one crazy town and I've only been here less than an hour ;) Right now, as I type this I am looking out over Las Vegas Boulevard marveling at all the beautiful buildings. We are staying at the MGM Grand and from what I've seen, it's a pretty nice place. Apparently, we picked an awesome time to come to Vegas considering there are Spring Breakers everywhere (sense the sarcasm :) ). Anyway, I can't wait for tonight to get here to see Vegas and all the pretty lights. I tried uploading several pictures, but for some reason this one is the only one that would load :( Enjoy! This picture doesn't do The Grand Canyon justice. I have a ton more gorgeous pictures :) I will post them sometime after we get back home, or if my internet connection speeds up :)

Denver, Day 3

2010-03-10T20:01:00.007-06:00

Well, tomorrow morning we are leaving bright and early for The Grand Canyon! I am super stoked about hitting the road and enjoying a road trip with my boys :) I thought driving for seven hours was going to be a challenge, but now since a huge boulder fell and is blocking part of the interstate, we had to find an alternate route. So, now our seven hour road trip is twelve. Yes, twelve! Please say a prayer that I keep my sanity. HA! Anyway, today was a pretty lazy day here in Colorado. The Hubby had meetings all day, so we just hung around the hotel room all day. We we going to visit Pike's Peak, but it closed right as the Hubby was getting off work :( Plus, it started snowing really hard and I really didn't want to get stuck on the interstate :) So, when the Hubby got back to the room, we decided to grab a bite to eat at this DELICIOUS Italian restaurant, Maggiano's. It. was. heavenly!! My favorite place to eat is Carrabbas, but Maggiano's blew them away. If you are ever near a Maggiano's, GO!! It's worth it! Anyway, here are pictures from our dinner.

Hugs from Daddy

Eating his dinner at Maggiano's

This picture is too hilarious not to share. HA!

I have no idea what time we are stopping tomorrow and I definitely don't know if I will have a good internet connection to load road pics. I will post as soon as I can! I can't wait to share picturs of The Grand Canyon and then it's on to Vegas!!

Denver, Day 2

2010-03-09T17:01:00.018-06:00

Today, the Hubby picked us up around lunch and we went sightseeing around town. We drove up into the mountains to see the beautiful view from up top. The mountains here are just gorgeous! Some of them are covered with snow and others are not. It just looks stunning when the sun is shining on them. Tomorrow is our last full day here in Denver, before we take off on a seven hour road trip to the Grand Canyon early Thursday morning. I'm so excited to see the Grand Canyon, but dreading the seven hours in the car with a one year old :) He has been stretching out his vocal cords these days and sitting in the car seat for seven hours is not going to be fun for him. So, we're probably going to hear his displeasure about the situation :) Either way, it's going to be worth it! Here are some pics from our day.

Beautiful Colorado Mountains

Red Rocks of Colorado

Also, the Hubby and I are thinking about trying out the Skywalk at the Grand Canyon, see here. Have any of you tried this? The Hubby mentioned it today and the idea terrifies me! However, I'm willing to try it, if it's worth it. From what I can understand, the view is awesome while you're on it, but standing on a piece of glass over 3600 feet of nothing but air is a scary thought :)

Tonight, we went to one of my favorite restaurants, Bubba Gump Seafood. I have a really cute video to share of the Little Monkey dancing to the music, but I can't load it on the computer right now :( Here are a few pictures from our dinner.

His Silly Face

Daddy and his boy

I know he's mine, but has to be the cutest baby

Kisses!!!

Denver, Day 1

2010-03-08T21:22:00.009-06:00

We are here in Denver, CO and it's super cold! As you probably can imagine, we're exhausted. We haven't stopped since 4:00 this morning. We started off the trip forgetting the Little Monkey's food in our car (I know). We had two jars of baby food to last us for 7 hours. I felt just awful for forgetting his food, but we gave him some table food so I think he forgave us :) On our first flight, we ended up sitting on the tarmac for an hour before our plane took off. The Little Monkey did not enjoy that one bit ( neither did we). Luckily, we managed to arrive in Atlanta in time to grab a bit to eat before catching our flight to Denver. The rest of our day has been pretty boring. The Hubby went to his business meeting and the Little Monkey and I laid in bed and caught up on sleep. Here he is during bath time tonight.

My Big Boy

Such a Pretty Smile

Adorable

More pics tomorrow. Hopefully I will have some pretty Colorado pics to share with you all :) Good night :)

Colordo, Here We Come

2010-03-07T15:08:00.006-06:00

We're leaving town this afternoon heading to Nashville and then we're off to Denver early in the morning. Be sure and check back for the daily blog post and pics from our trip :)

We're Going Out West.

2010-03-05T11:13:00.020-06:00

The Hubby has a business trip in Denver, Colorado starting Monday and once again we are tagging along with him. Our plan was to go to Denver and then head back on Friday. However, after a long discussion, we decided we would take a little road trip while we're out there. So after the Hubby is finished with his meetings on Thursday, we are driving to the Grand Canyon and then we're off to Vegas for two days. I couldn't be more excited! I have always wanted to see the Grand Canyon and Hoover Dam. I'm just hoping I haven't built it up too much in my mind :) I'm sure it's going to be breathtaking. I'm also pretty stoked about spending two days in Las Vegas. I've never been before and I'm positive we're going to have a blast! Once again, my plan is to blog every day while we're out there (like I did in Hawaii). However, with all the traveling we are going to be doing I imagine it's going to be difficult to have an internet connection (at least a good one). Denver should be no problem, but once we hit the road I may not be able to obtain a connection strong enough to upload pictures. I promise I will try :)

I couldn't post and not put a picture of my adorable boy up. So, here's one for the grandparents :)

Can You Guess.......

2010-03-04T11:13:00.000-06:00

where we're heading to on Monday?

Pretty sure you'll have trouble guessing this one. Ha!

More tomorrow.

One Look.

2010-03-03T16:37:00.000-06:00

Tells it all. Sorry kid, this is the rest of your life :)

Taking It Easy.

2010-03-02T13:14:00.008-06:00

I'm still recovering from our weekend. I just about have my house back in order and that always feels good to have things where they belong. The Little Monkey had a quite day. Yesterday, he was very vocal and was blabbering out loud, but today he seemed more relaxed and peaceful. He enjoyed watching Veggie Tales for most of the morning while I caught up on some photography work. Here are a few pictures from our lazy day.

Is it me or is this kid changing in the face? I know they do that, but it seems like it happened overnight!

This sure is a crazy look, but I think he's as cute as a button :)

A place he shouldn't be

Busted :)

Party Pics (The Longest Post Ever)

2010-02-28T14:47:00.023-06:00

**Note: I've had no time to edit these pictures***

We had such a wonderful day yesterday. We loved spending the day with our families and appreciate everyone coming to Deacon's party. He got so many cute toys and we're so lucky to have such wonderful families. Here are some pictures. Thanks Matthew for taking these pics for me. I'm pretty sure I forgot to tell you that yesterday :)

One of the girls in my Sunday School class made this cake for the party. isn't it just so cute?!!

Deacon's destroy cake. She did such an amazing job!! Thanks again, Adell :)

Me & the Birthday Boy

In the middle of his presents

Opening Presents

Graycen really wanted to help Deacon unwrap his gifts. She's such a little cutie

She decided that Deacon needed a bow on his head. Hilarious :)

Ha!

I can't believe he's one

He thought it was so funny

Tickling the Birthday Boy

He didn't know what to think of the cake. Ha!

Trying to teach him how to eat his cake :)

He was showing us his cake. Too funny :)

So proud of himself

Happy Birthday Deacon

2010-02-26T08:51:00.003-06:00

My Sweetest Baby Boy,

A year ago today (February 27), I woke up at 3:30 a.m., got dressed and packed a few last minute items for our hospital stay. I was only a few hours away from meeting you and I was ecstatic. That morning, it was cold and rainy and your Daddy drove us to the hospital. The entire way there, I could feel you kicking and squirming in my belly. For days, you had been punching me in the stomach and you seemed quite determined to push your way out. I told your Daddy, just a few days earlier, that I was confident you were going to be a big boy. You were so strong and you felt so heavy. Once we arrived, we checked in and sat in the waiting room talking with family and friends. At 5:45 a.m. , my name was called to come back to a room and get prepped. During the next couple of hours, I experienced the painful/joyful journey to bring you into this world. An adventure that is still so fresh in my memory and that I hope stays with me forever.
At 7:17 a.m. on February 27, 2009, I heard you take your first breath. I heard you cry for the first time. I saw you and automatically let out a sigh of relief and began to quietly cry. You were a beautiful, healthy 8 lb 3 oz bundle of pure sweetness. I took one look at you and you stole my heart. I couldn't believe you were mine and when I kissed you for the first time, in that moment, I thanked God for choosing me to be your Mommy. What a privilege it has been.
The first year of your life has gone by too fast. I have watched you discover the world around you and I'm so thankful that I could stay at home with you to watch you grow. Although, some days are harder than others, I look at you and I'm appreciative of what God has given me. Happy 1st Birthday, My Sweet Angel. I love you.

Mommy

Mommy and Deacon February 27, 2009

Thank you Lord, for blessing me with this child. Thank you for believing in me, to raise him in a Christian home and give him the love and attention he deserves. Thank you for this beautiful gift. The gift of a child.

Holding my son for the first time

Daddy and Deacon

Pretty Baby

Monthly Pictures

***I will post birthday party pictures Sunday night***

Insanity.

2010-02-25T21:32:00.003-06:00

I feel like I've hit a brick wall. I spent all day getting the house prepared for 40 people and I'm beyond exhaustion. Not to mention I just spent the last hour and half redesigning our blog in honor of the Little Monkey's birthday. Thank goodness I had some good music to listen to while I worked (Akon's "Beautiful). Don't you just love it? I do! I just love bright and fun colors :) The Little Monkey and I really didn't have a good day today. He has stopped taking naps. Where he was taking three naps a day, he is now down to one! One! I know he's tired, but he won't give in and just go to bed. Instead, he prefers to roll around on the living room floor and whine, but will scream his head off if I stick him in his crib. He just loves me that much I guess. Ha!! So, the time I used to spend relaxing in my chair, cleaning house, blogging, etc is now no more :( Maybe this is just a phase he's going through :) Probably won't have time after tonight to blog until after the party. However, I do have a post timed to publish tomorrow that I think is so sweet. You will have to come back and check it out ( it has pics, I promise).

Not Enough Time

2010-02-24T19:09:00.002-06:00

Sorry I have been gone the last few days. Between planning the Little Monkey's party and doing some house hunting here and there, I haven't had enough time to sit down and write a post. I don't have a picture for this post. I know the grandparents are gonna be upset :) Hopefully, I can upload some pics I have taken tomorrow. The party planning is coming together. We are very excited about Deacon's party and can't wait to share pictures with you!

Blessed.

2010-02-20T21:09:00.002-06:00

Curiosity.

2010-02-18T16:32:00.014-06:00

Do you want to know one of the many reasons why I adore this child?

Because of....

his curiosity about everything......

it's absolutely adorable......

and watching him discover the world around him.......

is priceless.

I can't think of a better job, than the one I have now.

A Little Bit of Everything

2010-02-17T13:34:00.024-06:00

If you are grossed out by feet, then skip down to the next set of pictures. For those who don't care to look at a foot, here you go......

This is what I've been dealing with for two days now. A broke toe, thanks to the Little Monkey's Jumperoo. I haven't been to the doctor to confirm it's broke, I'm giving my Dr. Mom diagnoses. Judging by the stabbing pain I feel when I walk and the fact that I can't bend it, I think it's safe to say it's broke (goodbye heels for the next few weeks. I sure will miss you). Anyway, you're welcome. Guess you weren't expecting to see a pic of my foot on this post, huh? :)

On to our exciting day :) For months now, the Little Monkey has been very interested in the food we eat and always protests when we don't give him any. Well, last night we went out to eat with a friend from California and the Little Monkey got a taste of "big people food" :) Since he enjoyed it so much, I decided to save some of my food and serve it for lunch today.

Here's his lunch. Sugar Snap Peas with mashed potatoes. He LOVED it :)

After lunch, I gave him some Graduates Lil' Crunchies. He's a big fan of these little corn snacks :) Here are a few pictures of snack time today.

Practicing his lip curl :)

I gave him a handful of crunchies and he immediately took off and hid next to the Jumperoo. I guess he thought I was going to take them back :)

He has about four in his mouth right here. Little Stinker :)

What? No more crunchies??

During his afternoon nap, I went upstairs to check on him and he looked so precious laying there. So, I grabbed my camera and took pics of my sweet angel sleeping.

Look how precious. He's probably dreaming about how much he loves his Mommy. Ok. Ok. He's probably dreaming about Lil' Crunchies :)

I also wanted to share with you one of my new purchases. I have been looking for a smaller diaper bag for a few weeks now. We needed something more "airplane friendly" since we may be traveling to Denver/Vegas in a few weeks. I instantly fell in love with this bag when I saw it and I am so excited that I bought it. Not because it's new, but because I talked the guy into giving it to me for 50% off the original price + free monogramming. Aren't I awesome?

Can you tell I love the color red? :)

Valentine's Dinner

2010-02-14T21:51:00.015-06:00

Even though we celebrated our Valentine's last weekend, I had planned to surprise the Hubby with a candlelit Valentine's Dinner. I knew it wasn't going to be a big surprise, cause I had to ask him to leave the house for a couple of hours. Not to mention, I asked him to take the Little Monkey with him so I could get everything ready without any distractions. I'm pretty sure he figured out what I was up to, but I didn't care :) So, the Hubby and Little Monkey went driving and shopping while I prepared our Valentine's Dinner.

A little bit ahead of schedule and a little bit bored :)

I know, we're cheesy. I love kissy pictures :)

Bahahahaha :) I thought we were taking a serious pic

There we go :) Happy Valentine's Baby!!

Our yummy dinner. Lemon-peppered chicken with red potatoes and green beans. Mmmmmm..... :)

Jeremy Camp Concert Pics

2010-02-12T08:58:00.013-06:00

Well, I was right. We didn't get in till around 11:00 and we finally went to bed at 11:45. I'm exhausted. I didn't realize how much work it was going to be, but we had a blast!! After my duties were completed, I grabbed my camera and started making my rounds. It was so cool to be allowed in the "restricted areas" :) Sadly, I didn't get a pic of us with Jeremy Camp, but I think the pics I did get turned out pretty good. However, I'm not a pro at taking pictures in the dark, so some came out really blurry :( For some reason, Jeremy Camp couldn't seem to be still and he was bouncing all over the stage. Ha! Here are my pics from the concert :)

I was told I could get right in front of the stage on the floor and get an up close shot, but there was a paid photographer there and I didn't want to step on her turf. So, this is the best I could do of a front stage shot.

Yay, Jeremy Camp!!

The audience

This was the Hubby's view all night

This one would have been a great pic, but it turned out blurry. I'm going to have to work on my picture taking in the dark :)

"Let this old life crumble, Let it Fade"

Cartoons & Coloring

2010-02-11T20:00:00.003-06:00

Today, was a pretty lazy day around here. The Little Monkey wore me out this morning traveling all over the house. I don't think there was a corner in this house he didn't investigate :) He took a 3 hour nap around lunch, which gave me a lot of time to catch up on laundry and organization projects. When he woke up from his nap, he had a quick lunch and then started on his coloring activity. I am so excited that he is entering the stage where he will start coloring and doing art activities. I can finally put this fantastic Elementary Education degree to work :)

This is the Little Monkey's first coloring sheet. He did a pretty good job for his first time. I really didn't expect him to catch on to holding the crayon, but he surprised me. Plus, I think we might a have lefty on our hands. He wanted to pick up the crayons with his left hand instead of his right. This is sweet to me, because my Dad started out being a lefty. His mom later made him switch to his right hand.

After he finished coloring, we went upstairs to relax in the bed and watch cartoons. He's a big fan of Mya & Miguel. He just dances when the intro starts. He's a cutie!!

Here's me and my little angel watching cartoons in bed (I desperately need a tan).

While you are reading this, I am working at the Jeremy Camp Concert!! I had this post timed because I have a feeling I'm not going to get in till really late. Check back tomorrow for concert pics (if I can get some).

ATTN: ALL MOMS

2010-02-10T08:12:00.009-06:00

I wish someone had told me this sooner..

This morning, I was just starting to wake up when I heard a loud boom come from the nursery, followed by screaming. I jumped out of bed and ran into the Little Monkey's room, only to see him laying flat on the floor with his head up against the leg of the crib. He had fallen out of his crib!! Which, is on the lowest level possible I might add. I immediately grabbed him and started looking him over, to see how badly he had been hurt. He has a small bruise on his forehead and a two knots on the top of his head. I am thanking God that a bruise and a couple of bumps is all that happened to him. I know how bad this situation could have been :( Anyway, I started wondering how he managed to pull this off and the only thing we can figure is he used the bumper pads in his crib as a step and then fell over the side. I had noticed him stepping on them the other day, but it never entered my mind that he was strong enough to pull himself up and over. Obviously, I felt like a horrible mother afterwards (still do). I wanted to share this story with all the mothers who read my blog and for those who will eventually have children. Bumper pads are great for up to about 9 months. Then, once you notice them starting to pull up in their crib, I would strongly advise removing them. I wish I had stopped and thought the very first time I noticed him stepping on them. Would have saved him from a 3 foot fall at 7:00 in the morning. Terrible way to start the day. So, with the events that happened this morning, I started looking for something to keep him from escaping. I found a forum that had several stories similar to mine and some moms claimed that removing the bumper didn't keep their son from climbing out. So, they recommended this little contraption.

I found it on onestepahead.com. It's a crib tent that is suppose to keep babies from climbing out. You might think I'm crazy for even considering buying a mesh tent to put on my son's crib, but I don't care :) After what I experienced this morning, I'm going to start taking the necessary precautions needed for his safety and in this case, it involves trapping him in his crib :) I know boys will be boys and I'm ok with him getting bruises and such, but not this way.

Take a lesson from my Mommy book and remove those bumper pads. Don't risk it :)

Big Boy Bed & Jeremy Camp Concert

2010-02-07T17:51:00.022-06:00

If you know me at all, you know that I love to shop sales and plan ahead. Maybe too far ahead :) Well, it dawned on me the other day while I was doing laundry, that the Little Monkey will be upgrading from his crib to a big boy bed this Christmas. When I was shopping for his crib bedding before he was born, I found a great deal on potterybarnkids.com. I think I ended up spending $125 for the entire Oscar collection (originally $365.00). That's some mad savings! So, I have decided to start looking now for a great deal for his "big boy bedding" set. Here are the three finalist:

This is the same bedding he has now, just in the full size. I love the Oscar collection, but the hubby wants something different.

The hubby likes this pattern. I have no idea why he was drawn to this one :)

I like this one! I think the train is just so cute :)

I'm going to have such a hard time decided which one of these I like the most!!!

I'm also super stoked about what happens later this week!! The hubby and I are getting the opportunity to work at the Jeremy Camp concert here in town. I love Jeremy Camp!! I hope to take pics of the event once my duties have been completed, but I can't promise anything. I may not get an opportunity to take pictures, but I sure hope I do :) Be sure and check back Friday. Here is a video of Jeremy Camp's "Let it Fade" ( my favorite Jeremy Camp song).

Cardboard Testimonies

2010-02-07T14:46:00.004-06:00

We had such a wonderful weekend! Our two nights away from the Little Monkey was hard, but we survived :) Sometimes, it's nice to take a break and enjoy the silence. Ha! The Little Monkey had a great weekend with his Grams and Papa and I was so happy to see him this morning for church. I sure did miss him :) I don't have much for this post, but I wanted to share this video I saw on Kelly's Blog earlier today. It's a little over 8 minutes long, but so worth watching.

A Valentine's Getaway & Birthday Invitations

2010-02-04T17:07:00.009-06:00

I am so excited tomorrow is Friday! The Hubby and I decided that we would celebrate our Valentine's this weekend and have a romantic getaway just the two of us. We are leaving the Little Monkey with the in-laws tomorrow afternoon and spending two nights relaxing at an amazing hotel here in town. I'm sure going to miss my sweet angel, but it's good to take a break every now and then. Especially after the crazy week we've had around here. So, I probably won't be blogging any this weekend ;)

Also, I am super stoked to finally post this. I mailed out the Little Monkey's birthday invitations and so excited to show you! I created this two-sided invitation from scratch. I have never done one with a front and back, so I was very nervous to see how they turned out. I just love them!!

Front of Card

Back of Card

Also, I wanted to give family and friends an update on the Little Monkey. He went all day without any medicine to control his fever. As of this afternoon, he no longer had a fever. Yay!

A Little Munchkin & A Sweet Husband

2010-02-03T12:55:00.009-06:00

The Little Monkey and I had pretty good day. He has been feeling much better and it appears that his fever is gone. I will be glad when he starts feeling like himself again. It's no fun having a sick baby :( Here are a couple of pictures from yesterday.

Pointing at Mommy's shoes

After his bath. His poor little nose was so red :(

Can I just say wow?! Today, my sweet husband surprised me with a beautiful bouquet of pink and red tulips. I think he's afraid I am losing my mind. Ha! Thank you, sweetheart. They are beautiful and I love you so much :)

Also, here's a video of my sister-in-law playing with Deacon on the couch. Judging by this video, you wouldn't think this child has a fever of 102. Note: I did clean up all the slobber later :)

So Sick

2010-02-01T21:04:00.003-06:00

I have taken a little blogging hiatus the last several days, trying to just relax and enjoy my time with the boys. Sadly, I don't have any pics for this post. It's been a little hectic around here these last couple of days. This morning, the little monkey woke me up at 3:30 a.m. screaming to the top of his lungs with a high fever. I'm truly sick of him being sick. I know he will catch colds and have fevers, but I do wish they wouldn't be so close together. The little dude just recovered from RSV/Ear Infection two weeks ago and now he is sick again. Thankfully, it's not RSV or the Flu. Just a virus he caught from being out and about. Right now, he's pretty miserable. His fever stays around 102 F and he won't eat. I feel so bad for him and all he really wants to do is cuddle. For now, I am giving up all household duties for the next few days, to give my little angel all the cuddles and attention he needs to help him get better. Please say a little prayer that he will kick this virus soon :) Hope everyone has a wonderful day!

11 Month Checkup

2010-01-28T10:19:00.012-06:00

Today, was Deacon's 11 month ear & weight checkup. Last month, he lost over a pound due to his RSV and was underweight for his age (Weighed 19.2 before, 17.12 after RSV) and he got a double ear infection after it was all over with. So, we have been working diligently this month, trying to get his weight back to where it should be and we succeeded. He weighs 20.4 lbs! Our pediatrician was very pleased with his weight gain and he is back in the normal weight percentile for his age (makes me feel better). While we were there, I remembered I didn't have any pictures of Deacon with his Pediatrician or the nurse that has been helping us the whole year. So, I decided to snap a few photos of them before we left.

Little Monkey and Dr. K

This is what we do every time we visit the doctor. Someone has to play with the water faucet :)

Little Monkey and Nurse R.

11 months

2010-01-27T14:00:00.005-06:00

**I know that sign looks horrible. He destroyed the original ***

We go for a weight check tomorrow, but I am guessing you weigh around 21 lbs.
It's getting harder and harder to take these monthly pics. You are getting real crafty at stealing the paper :)
You are in to everything.
You aren't walking yet, but you have been real brave these last few days. You try to walk from the coffee table to the couch, but you're not quit ready. I am hoping you walk before your 1st Birthday.
You still suck on your fingers and it's so adorable
You love to crawl around the house really fast and let us chase you
You discovered the stairs this month. We have to really keep an eye on you because you know when we turn our backs :)
You love to play Bouncy Baby
You love to play with your blue ball. You love for me to roll it to you.
You are now in a big boy car seat and you love it.
This month you had your first high fever (RSV).
You are starting to climb on stuff.
I can't believe the next monthly picture I post will be your 1 year photo. This year has flown by and I can't believe you are almost one.
We love you so much and couldn't imagine our lives without you.
You are my sweet angel and you will never know how much love I have for you, but I promise to show you every day what a blessing you are to me. I love you Monkey.