My Life As A Mommy and Wife

These deserve a post of their own!!

2009-05-18T15:37:00.000-07:00

This one is for all the ladies...ENJOY!!!

Kenny Chesney pictures from the front row!!

Month of May.....

2009-05-18T15:21:00.000-07:00

While April was a busy month for us May has proved to be even more eventful so far! The first weekend of May we had the first annual crawfish boil at the camp house. If you know my husband you know he is an over achiever and starts planning for things several weeks in advance so this was no different. It took weeks to plan but it turned out great and the crawfish were DELICIOUS! (and spicy!!) The entire week after the boil Gavin and I were on a honeymoon sort of. My parents kept monkey for the week so Gavin and I took advantage of being able to go to bed early, sleep late and eat as much junk food as possible! It was nice but I am still paying for it two weeks later. If we didn’t have monkey we would be worthless, broke and the size of a small car!!! The next weekend was Mother’s Day and we headed back to Ga to get my monkey and spend the weekend at the lake, which was very relaxing and much needed. Last week was Monkey’s last week of Mother’s Day Out until June 16th so that was non-stop chaos with all the “end of the year” special snacks and making sure everything was taken care of before the end of the school year!! On Thursday night, another night that we have been planning for, for several months now….the KENNY CHESNEY CONCERT!!! The tickets have been a “big secret” from me but no one in my family can keep secrets so I got wind several times but I didn’t believe it until I was sitting in my seat. FRONT ROW, CENTER STAGE!!! It was the BEST concert experience EVER!! We saw Lady Antebellum, Miranda Lambert with Blake Shelton and of course Kenny Chesney!!! I touched his leg and Gavin gave him a “tator”. We had a blast! THANKS GIGI!!! This past weekend was the first real weekend of down time we’ve had this month and we took full advantage of it. We didn’t get out of our jammies all day on Saturday and Sunday we got dressed just long enough for church and lunch but we were back in our jammies shortly there after!! Of course we have something planned for the next two weekends so May will end just the way it started. BUSY!! I hope everyone is enjoying this spring so far and I look forward to what the rest of the year holds!

Picture Updates from April

2009-05-18T14:28:00.000-07:00

Lots of pictures from Easter at the lake as well as a playdate with Cooper.

Sorry it took me so long Marg!!

Playdate with Cooper..

2009-04-17 playdate2

Easter at the Lake...

easter at the lake

down on the farm....

2009-03-30T15:32:00.000-07:00

this weekend we headed to nashville to visit gavin's cousin tottie and her precious family. unfortunatly it took a terrible tragedy to get us to nashville again but i promise we will not wait that long for the next trip. tottie and her family including her parents live on this wonderful farm near nashville that is absolutley adorable. there is so much open space for the kids to play as well as a goat named maggie who thinks she's a child and a miny horse named TP i could have brought home with me! oh yeah and the crazy dog and two cats with the addition of two kittens while we were there! it was a very sad time for the entire family but the farm was the best place for everyone to be together. especially the kids, things seemed a little brighter when all those babies were running around the farm enjoying the simples things in life, it was very theraputic for all. i am so very much looking forward to going back this summer and as if the farm couldn't get any better they are putting in a pool...i may never leave!!

in closing this blog entry i ask that you keep tottie, landon, alan elizabeth, nane, uncle butch, mark's sweet parents and anyone who was touched by Mark Word in his short life time in your thoughts and prayers. they've lost their husband, father and son, God will heal their hearts and lead them through this tragic event and every prayer will help fill up what seems so empty right now.

Thank You for all the thoughts and prayers for this special family.

below are a few pictures from the weekend....enjoy!

nashville2

pictures of my kitchen...

2009-03-30T15:27:00.000-07:00

finally a few pictures from our painting experience. i am very happy with the kitchen and it really looks great now that it's put back together....
the next part of the process will be picking out fabric for my window treatments in the kitchen and doing a painting for my living room...stay tuned!

enjoy!

2009-03-06 pillows

progress....

2009-03-21T19:25:00.000-07:00

so i am still making progress on redoing my house....my kitchen walls are done...

two weeks ago i went to lowes and bought 4 cans of sample paint (something lowes is doing now instead of those little cards) because i couldn't decide on the color so i thought if i put the 4 colors on the wall in a small area and look at it for several days i could decide. WRONG!! my parents came in this weekend with rollers in hand ready to paint my kitchen and i was still undecided. my dad and i took a trip back to lowes friday morning with me thinking ok just walk in there and pick one jennifer!! well i ended up getting a color totally different from any of the 4 samples on my wall. go figure!
so friday we tapped off and got the first coat on. we decided to let that coat dry over night and painted the second coat this morning. after we finished painting we spent the rest of the afternoon outside playing with my monkey. the weather was beautiful, my monkey ran around most of the day half naked and loved every minute of it. he even got a little sun kissed on his cheeks and shoulders.

so Tree Moss it is for the walls....I LOVE IT!!! next is back to finish a painting for the living room and then finding fabric for the window treatment in my kitchen...

stayed tuned....

sick baby....

2009-03-08T18:40:00.000-07:00

we have a very sick baby on our hands! i think we have a little stomach bug because it has been UGLY around here since about 4:30 am!!! thank goodness for beautiful weather so we can open all the windows to air out the smell!!! every towel and sheet set i own is in the laundry room either in the wash, in the dryer or waiting to be washed!! every blanket we own is draped over a chair in the backyard....we've resorted to covering up with clean towels as they come out of the dryer! fun stuff!

i will keep everyone posted on how our monkey is feeling tomorrow

pictures...lots of pictures...enjoy!!

2009-03-06T10:03:00.000-08:00

here are a few of my favorite pictures from random days in 2009.....

fav2009

these are a few from our trip to Dave and Busters for my dad's birthday last weekend. my camera battery finally died (after 1767 pictures no kidding) so i only got a few.....

dave&buster

on sunday the snow came....we were in GA at my parents to celebrate my dad's birthday and we got snowed in! we didn't get to leave until monday afternoon because there was so much snow and ice! it was beautiful, this was monkey's second snow but he still didn't get to play for long....he is very sick prone!! bless him.

snow

my progress on the house.....

2009-03-06 pillows

it's been a while....

2009-03-06T09:17:00.001-08:00

so it's been a WHILE since i last posted a blog entry. my monkey and i were both sick for about two weeks so i got out of my daily routine and it's taking me a while to get back in it. oddly enough there hasn't been much to report on in the past month anyway. i've been trying to get my house redone so most of my free time is spent internet shopping for the house. i have not made much process since the last post because i want to make sure i do it right this time so i don't change my mind in 6 months and be back in the same place i am today. i did have a birthday last month, it was a quiet birthday but still great because i got to spend it with my favorite people. of course i got money so i could spend it on the house and my hubby is painting my kitchen for me as his birthday gift...couldn't be happier!! i did get my pillows done from my in-laws for my birthday, i guess that's a little progress. they turned out GREAT!! i must say things are going excellent right now, i did quit my job at the beginning of the year because i just was not happy there anymore and felt like God was telling me it wasn't the right place for me. i went to work for my husband, i was VERY hesitant about it at first because you know the old saying don't mix work with pleasure or family but it is working out great and i couldn't be more pleased. life seems a lot less stressful, i am certainly in a better mood when i get off everyday and of course the schedule is GREAT!!! my little monkey is growing up so fast. he is becoming so independent, entertaining himself and is making great progress with his speech! he's such a big boy and we finally got rid of the pappi! we have had a bit of an ordeal because my son was diagnosed with hand, foot and mouth when he was about a year old and shortly after the diagnosis he starting getting a terrible rash. for a year now i've been told the rash is a side effect of the virus and there is nothing we can do about it. i was never comfortable with that answer so finally after a year and no improvement i made him a dermatologist appt. even though it was not a good experience i still found out the true diagnosis of the skin rash and that it had nothing to do with the hand, foot and mouth but it was a virus all it's own. there is still really nothing we can do about it but at least we know what it is!! we are only a few months into 2009 but i must say this year is already an improvement from last year and i can not wait to see what the rest of the year holds....

p.s. i am so far behind on posting pictures so the next few post will be lots of pictures from our year so far.....enjoy!!!

forgot something!

2009-01-27T14:08:00.000-08:00

i also decided that my new years resolution (besides loosing the last 5 lbs of my pregnancy weight that i've been trying to loose for 2 years!!!) is to finish decorating my house! my husband, bless him, in the most opinionated man when it comes to decorating a house and unfortunately we can't agree on anything when it comes to decor. most men just keep their mouth shut and let the woman do it all but not him! for the most part he agrees with me about everything in life (food, movies, parenting, clothes ect.) but we can't seem to get it together when it comes to the house. so needless to say my house has gone pretty undone for the past year since we've moved in but it is time for a change!! i've decided to go all martha stewart and make my own stuff since i can't seem to find anything in the store that i like. plus i HATE shopping so this is a great way to avoid the endless hours of walking around home decor stores and leaving empty handed! wait let me back up...i said i would make, no i mean i will buy the material and pay someone else to make!!!! now that that is cleared up i finally bought my first pieces of fabric for my pillows in the living room this weekend and i feel like i have made a great start! oh yeah and i bought it without gavin which is another part of the resolution, i get what i want and if he doesn't like it he better pretend like he does!! he's doing good so far! now that i have the pillow fabric i hope everything else will come easy. i also bought some new hand towels for the kitchen. next will be curtains and of course all the little odds and ins to pull everything together. i also want to paint my kitchen and redo my bedroom...

stay tuned and i will keep everyone posted on the progress i am making!!

FIRST 27 DAYS.....

2009-01-27T13:05:00.000-08:00

stay with me because this will be a long one.....it's be a while!

let's see, the last place i left you guys hanging was my son not wanting to sleep in the big boy bed. well i am proud to announce that we have moved on and he is finally sleeping all the way through the night with no fight! he is still experiencing a little separation anxiety but in all he is much better!

gosh what an eventful 27 days so far! i have recently moved on to another great life experience that i am enjoying very much and that is certainly making my life a lot easier and less stressful. i am so thankful for this opportunity and i really hope it works out! we've had some pretty busy weekends as well, hunting season in winding down so gavin has done his best to make sure that he's in the woods every chance he gets. monkey and i have had to improvise and entertain ourselves a lot but i think we've done a pretty good job! speaking of my monkey he is certainly deep in the middle of the terrible twos!!! and now i am fully convinced that he will be a world renowned artist that will make mommy and daddy A LOT of money!!! let's see, about a month ago i found him in my bathroom painting his face with fingernail polish. Then about two weeks ago i found him painting my bedroom wall with his bright blue toothpaste! surprisingly the toothpaste cleaned up beautifully but last night i found him painting the same wall with black mascara which did not clean up quite as well...you would think we would have learned after the first two boo-boos! we actually have child locks on our draws and cabinets but apparently they are not "mack proof". the first two times were comical and i was snapping pictures instead of cleaning it up but this last time was a doozy so i was too pissed to take any pictures! one thing that i enjoyed in the first 27 days was attending MOPS with my good friend margie. MOPS stands for Mother Of Preschoolers and is just a great place for moms to meet, eat a great meal and talk about all the things going on with our kids. i actually won a cookbook written by jessica seinfeld (jerry's wife!) that is full of recipes that teach you how in integrate veggie and fruit purees in everyday meals to help kids get their daily servings without even knowing it!(brownies with carrot and spinach puree!!! no joke!!) I love It! THANKS margie for inviting me! we've also had a few fun play dates with our b.f.f cooper and even a warm day for play at the park! in all we've had a pretty eventful, comical, irritating, cold, warm, rainy, tiring, energizing and loving first 27 days of 2009!! i hope every one's 2009 is treating them just as well!

OK I GET IT!....WE WILL WAIT!

2009-01-13T12:53:00.000-08:00

so now that mack is two and fast becoming a big boy the thoughts of a second baby have been creeping in and out of my head...i always said i wanted an only child because i was an only but the older i get the less i like the idea. i LOVED being an only child growing up for all the obvious reasons but as i get older i hate the thought of never having nieces or nephews or a sister to share memories like getting married and having babies with! anyway back to the point....so the idea had been thrown around at our house but nothing serious yet...
lately i have noticed that monkey is becoming more and more jealous. if gavin and i are sitting on the couch together he has to climb right up in the middle but if i'm on my own couch he could care less. gavin will say "my momma" and monkey will say no! he also is having a big problem with wanting to be in the bed with us again! if we are in the bed for the night he wants to be right in the middle of it! it's even got to the point of having to let gavin put him to bed because he wants me to get in his bed if i go in there! i love that he is a momma's baby but i am becoming a little concerned about bringing another baby to the table. he also gets very jealous if i have anything to do with another baby. if i hold a friend's baby or even talk to a strangers baby he cries! bless his heart! i am convinced that he knows that the conversation of another baby is being passed around because he has only recently become very jealous also we are having an issue in the past week of mixing up his days and nights...he will sleep all day and be up all night just like an infant!! i am a walking zombie!! it all started when we took him out of his crib and put him in his big boy bed. i think this is his way of telling us he is not ready to be a "big boy", he wants to be the baby...he's reminding me of what it's like to have an infant with it's days and nights mixed up and what it feels like to be sleep deprived....ok son i get it! WE WILL WAIT!!!

PURGING!!!....

2009-01-06T17:11:00.000-08:00

saturday was the day!! i finally got all my christmas stuff down and organized in tupperware!! two weeks after christmas! after the christmas was down it was onto monkey's room....gavin and i decided that after christmas we were going through monkey's room and PURGE! for every new toy he got for christmas we were getting rid of an old one...well he got A LOT so we had to get rid of a lot. we were on a roll and decided we were going to purge some of his clothes too since all the new clothes he got for birthday and christmas were folded on his changing table because there was no room in his closet....i went through and bagged up all his baby baby clothes(stuff he wore from birth to 1 year) and a few key pieces that i was emotionally attached to in large Ziploc bags....everything else was bagged up for hannah home! we ended up with over 100 outfits and 13 pair of shoes!! RIDICULOUS!!! we also got rid of his changing table and the rocker from his room to open up some more play space. so in all hannah home got three large trash bags of clothes, a box of shoes, a box of toys and a changing table...i felt like i lost 10 lbs getting rid of all that stuff....

another big event that happened this weekend was monkey getting his big boy bed!!! he got the bedding for christmas which is adorable so daddy sat his big boy bed up for him finally. the first night was rough....he would not sleep in it! for some reason he kept waking up and walking around the house....the next night(last night) he did a little better. he got up a few times fighting sleep but once he went to sleep he was down for the night and slept until 8:30!! my little monkey is growing up so quickly but i'm so proud of him!!

below are a few pictures of putting my house back together after christmas, doing monkey's room and monkey's big boy bed! enjoy!

purging

sugar sugar....

2009-01-06T14:10:00.000-08:00

on friday night we went over to our friend deann's house to have dinner before aunt dana and uncle nate headed back to ms. of course nate was hunting so he didn't make it but we did miss him!

first let me start our day with explaining my son's hair....we've moved monkey's new tool bench into his room so friday afternoon he disappeared into his room and i thought nothing of it because he loves to play with his tool bench. soon i realized he had been in there quiet a little longer than his attention span usually last. when i walked into his room he was standing there holding his hand up showing me that he got into the WHOLE jar of vicks vapor rub!!!! he had it all over him and the tool bench but the worst part was most of the jar was IN HIS HAIR!!! anyone who knows what vicks vapor rub is knows how greasy that stuff is...well after three washes with adult shampoo his hair was still so greasy. it looked like it hadn't been washed in weeks!!! i was a little embarrassed to go out in public but we had plans for dinner so he went anyway...greasy head and all...

ok back to dinner...we grilled out over at deann's with her family, our family, her sister dawn and her family and sister dana. the hamburgers and fries were delicious and my cupcakes were a hit too! we watched the Sugar bowl but unfortunately it was nothing to talk about so we headed home at half time!

deann gave me the idea to use Dawn dish liquid to wash the vick's out of monkey's hair so i tried it...it took a couple of washed but it finally looks much better!!

below are some pictures from friday...enjoy! notice the greasy hair!

yucky!

new years!....

2009-01-06T14:01:00.001-08:00

since having a child new years has certainly become more tamed for gavin and i. this year we decided to just stay home and have a date night. geryl kept monkey while gavin made a delicious surprise meal! first for the appetizer he made shrimp cocktail with homemade cocktail sauce....YUMMY! then he grilled a delicious bacon wrapped filet with twice baked sweet potatoes and a spinach salad with homemade salad dressing...yummy again! and for dessert....one of his favorite, chocolate covered strawberries....YUMMY!!! after a wonderful dinner we watched football, drank some red wine and he taught me how to play spades....when you get old and married you will appreciate this date more!! at midnight we popped a bottle of champagne and gave each other a new year smooch! it was a great date night and a wonderful start to the new year! (he even cleaned a kitchen after dinner!!!)

below are some photos of my man in the kitchen...

new years

these boots are made for walking....

2009-01-06T13:49:00.000-08:00

i know it's been a while but i can't seem to find the time to get anything done!! school started back today..YAYY!!! so we can finally get back to a routine....here are a few post i've been meaning to update!

below are a few picture of monkey in some of his new christmas duds, also a few pictures of my love playing with all my christmas bows...enjoy!

my love

this one is for you codie

2008-12-30T14:56:00.000-08:00

everyone who sees this pictures says "he looks like the little boy from a Christmas Story". i knew you could appreciate the truth in that statement....SO FUNNY!

I MISS YOU!!!

christmas in mississippi....our true red neck revived!

2008-12-30T13:47:00.000-08:00

after we finished doing ho ho with monkey, cleaned up the aftermath and let monkey play for a while we all showered and packed to head to the camp house in mississippi to have christmas with gavin's family. my parents headed back to GA and headed to "the woods". the camp house is basically a fancy deer camp outside of columbus, ms. that gavin's family owns and it's a place where the whole family can gather and enjoy each other! the men hunt, the women hang out and the kids run like wild banshees...it's a blast! i would consider myself a "city slicker" until i married into this family...you learn to relax, be muddy, wear camo and deal with the fact that you're fighting a loosing battle to keep a gun out of your precious child's hand...anyway back to christmas...we arrive at the camp house to complete chaos as usual but it's kind of fun because there no pressure to be polite, use fancy dinnerware, eat with the right utensils ect. everyone is just there and it's sort of survival of the fittest... we ate a BIG christmas dinner then everyone converged on the living room and opened gifts....monkey got a lot of gifts included his new bedding for his big boy bed. i got my dishes that i wanted from pottery barn and gavin got his new Browning bedding for our room that he's redoing at the camp house. after that it was pretty much a free for all the rest of the weekend. my son played in the mud, road every atv possible anything he wanted to do i let him because that's what happens at the camp house....he even went and shot guns with daddy!! HEART ATTACK!!! i'm learning to just pray very very hard because i know it is inevitable!! we stayed at the camp house through the weekend and everyone had a blast! this christmas was the best ever but i'm sure they will get better every year! i am looking forward to it!

this weekend i will have to take all my christmas stuff down put all monkey's new stuff in his room and purge the old....christmas is over for this year but it will be here again before we know it!

below are the pictures i took at the camp house on my new camera
*WARNING: THERE ARE A LOT OF PICTURES SO TAKE YOUR TIME!

2008-12-29 christmas2008

HO HOS AND BLACK EYES.....

2008-12-29T09:33:00.000-08:00

well it's over....Christmas has come and gone another year! what a wonderful Christmas it was though! the best so far!!

i know it's been a while because i have been SUPER busy but finally some time to do mommy stuff!! first we started the 20th of Dec. with my dad's family in alabama...we ate lots of good food and played dirty santa. monkey enjoyed opening presents but unlike last year he actually enjoyed the gift instead of just the paper! then we had a few days off before it started all over again! wednesday morning we got up while daddy went to work and started cleaning like crazy!! my house smelled like lavender pine sol all day long!!! around three o'clock i started my adventure of cooking christmas eve dinner for the second year in a row (my new tradition as a housewife!) shortly after that i hear the pitter patter of little feet running through the living room..I say "monkey stop running and pick up your books before you fall"...as usual he ignores me and makes another lap around the kitchen and starts into the living room (he was hopped up on candy and other christmas goodies) the next sound i hear is that of a screaming 2 year old...i put the kitchen towel down and slowly walk around the corner bracing myself for what was laying in the floor! possibly a bloody forehead. to my surprise there was blood but very little...all he needed was a little love and he was fine. at 4:00 my parents and grandparents arrived and i finished my big meal while everyone sat around listening to christmas music and watching football. at 6:00 we sat down to a meal of ham, tenderloin, green bean casserole and potato casserole. the meal was delicious and everyone was stuffed!! next all the adults gathered in the living room to exchange gifts. gavin and i got our new rug from my parents as well as a great new set of knives and a new crock pot....stuff that we NEEDED and enjoy getting once you are married and old. gavin and i got my mom a new cell phone and my dad a fire pit for the back deck. next gavin and i exchanged our gifts from each other...i was SHOCKED to open my new camera!!! i asked for a new SLR digital camera last year so gavin would have a whole year to save but i had pretty much decided this year wouldn't be the year either since the cameras are about $600 and gavin kept saying "money is tight". he of course as usual being the MOST wonderful husband that he is surprised me and I GOT MY NEW CAMERA AND I LOVE IT!!! he wanted all new hunting stuff so that's what he got from me and was happy with every bit of it! BORING!!! anyway after all the commotion we put my monkey to bed and "helped" santa put together all of monkey's toys for the next morning....everyone was up by 7 am and monkey was surprised and thrilled to see that santa brought him a HOME DEPOT TOOL BENCH....plus a lot of other stuff that he was not interested in!!! you can never really appreciate Christmas until you experience Christmas morning with your own child! it gets better every year!!! I hope everyone's Christmas was as joyful as ours....

below are some pictures taken on my mom's camera of Christmas eve night and Santa...

Pictures

short and sweet...

2008-12-18T08:44:00.000-08:00

sick baby...no sleep!!!

ughhh!!!

mmm....mmmm......GOOD!

2008-12-10T16:09:00.000-08:00

well tonight my monkey and i are home alone again...it's hunting season!! my hubby headed towards mississippi to duck hunt for the rest of the week and weekend. i miss him when he goes but i do enjoy the one on one time with my monkey! we came home and took a long nap then i turned on nemo and we are on our second viewing of the afternoon. we got out ALL the books and read for a while then at 5:30 i decided i wanted to go ahead a eat an early dinner so i could get all my chores done and be in the bed as soon as my monkey goes down for the night. i have some cleaning to do as well as laundry and packing for my trip to ATL tomorrow to see the fam. anyway back to dinner, i decided that i wanted a big bowl of old fashion tomato soup. i had a can of Campbell's healthy request tomato soup in the pantry so i made my monkey and i a grilled cheese sandwich and we had the best time dipping our grilled cheese and crackers in a yummy warm bowl of tomato soup. i forgot how hearty and tasty tomato soup was! IT WAS DELICIOUS! i love that my monkey will eat anything you put in front of him! he is not picky at all, it's such a blessing that dinner time is never stressful at my house! i actually think that our dinner of grilled cheese and tomato soup was my second favorite thing about today besides our chick-fil-a breakfast this morning as a family before daddy headed out! life is good and i love that a big bowl of tomato soup and a grilled cheese sandwich can remind you of how truly blessed we are to have an amazing two year old!!

one more thing!

2008-12-09T08:31:00.001-08:00

i got all my christmas decorations up the sunday after thanksgiving and i am very pleased with all of it this year. i amaze myself every year with what my mind comes up with because i do not have a designer bone in my body! i like to be non-traditional as far as christmas is concerned because i never liked the idea of green and red together! this year i did my tree in lime green, turquoise, and brown with birds and peacock feathers as well as my gorgeous peacock perched on top of my tree! i also said i would not do a john deer tree for monkey because i hate the green and yellow but my boss gives monkey a john deer ornament every year for christmas so i sucked it up and tried it. i was actually please with how it turned out too! i had to downsize on his tree and put it way up high so he wouldn't destroy it! enjoy

click below to see the pictures of my decor and mack's tree! also the last two pictures are the ones we used on our christmas card this year..my wonderful friend came and took almost 200 pictures of us for me but these are the two i chose!

2008-12-09 thanksgiving

TIS' THE SEASON...FOR CRAZINESS!!

2008-12-09T07:53:00.000-08:00

hello all!
i know it's been a while! i've missed updating everyone because we've been so busy and had so much wonderful stuff going on! but with all that stuff comes craziness, sickness, insomnia, you get the point! first of all let me back track a few weeks to thanksgiving. we went to see Gavin's dad and his family in baton rouge. this is a new tradition we started with mack last year....we only get to see them once a year so that will be our standing thanksgiving plans for eternity!. we love going to the farm. mack gets to be a boy, daddy gets to hunt, and mommy gets to relax! it was a wonderful trip..thursday (thanksgiving day) gavin's sister vanessa her hubby mark and their precious son andrew came to the farm and the boys had a great time running papaw all over creation on any atv that would go! of course like with any holiday we ate way too much but the food was delicious! gavin's aunt anne is just wonderful and works so hard to make sure everything is perfect and she never fails us! gavin's cousin rosie was in town this year from new york and it was a pleasure to finally meet her!~the trip was just wonderful and i know papaw and mamay were thrilled to see mack and we can't wait to do it again next year!

another fun thing that happened while i was on hiatus was taking mack and cooper to see ho ho on the choo choo! margie and i decided to take the kids to ride the polar express to see santa instead of standing in a mall line for two hours and getting a bad picture! we went down to the train museum in calera in their jammies where we boarded the "polar express" an actual 1950s era passenger train, they listen to the story of the polar express while we rode through the winter wonderland(calera) to the north pole. santa and his elf boarded the train gave out milk, cookies, jingle bells, polar bears and took pictures! the trip was amazing! i thought when we first arrived and the kids were going crazy and then we had to stand in line in the cold to board the train that margie and i were actually the crazy ones but the look on those babies faces when that train pulled up was priceless and made the trip worth every penny, stressed nerve and runny nose!! margie and coop thanks again for joining us!!! i hope that this can be one tradition that will last a few years for the boys!!

sorry for the break but i think everyone is pretty much updated...

click below to see all the pictures from our thanksgiving trip as well as the polar express!

2008-12-01 thanksgiving

hunting season and party animals!

2008-11-21T08:56:00.000-08:00

well it's hunting season again so my monkey and i are home alone this weekend! although we will not have time to think about it! we have a busy weekend ahead! this morning we went to our usual friday morning cracker barrel breakfast before daddy headed to mississippi now we are back home resting before all the fun and games begin! today is mack's friend kinley's 2nd birthday and we will get to celebrate on sunday at her auburn/alabama tailgate party!! we are looking forward to it! tomorrow is mack's b.f.f cooper's 2nd birthday and we will get to go to his construction zone party tomorrow! we will be party animals this weekend!! tonight we will be going to help coop's mom margie set up for the party, make a cake and bake cupcakes!! maybe we can even sneak a cupcake a day early!! i will post pictures from our fun weekend next week! hope everyone has a wonderful safe weekend!

christmas card pictures

2008-11-20T17:15:00.000-08:00

last sunday one of my dear friends and college roommate came to our house to take family pictures for our christmas card this year. he does sports photography as a profession so i thought who better to take pictures of a moving two year old than someone who takes photos of moving athletes right?....so anyway T.G and his lovely wife came from tuscaloosa and we had a wonderful afternoon of taking pictures and dinner! i got the proofs today and i don't think i have laughed so hard in my life!! i have 127 to choose from and i wish i could pick all of them but i knew the right one as soon as i saw it! i'm going to wait and post the pictures until after i get the christmas cards in the mail so it will be a surprise but stay tuned to check them out and get a good laugh i hope!

2 year old mind!!....

2008-11-18T14:12:00.000-08:00

never underestimate the intelligence of a two year old's mind!! last night i had my check card out ordering christmas gifts on the computer. i laid it on the side table and monkey walked right up to the table and picked it up. well i didn't think anything else about it until we got ready to lay down and i said "oh i need to get my check card". by this time monkey was in his bed asleep but i figured the card was somewhere on the floor in my room since that's where he went after he picked it up. well i am terrible with keeping up with stuff anyway and letting a two year old play with my only source of money is probably not the best idea. needless to say the check card is nowhere to be found!!! gavin and i turned the house upside down trying to find it! my sweet hubby even went through the garbage because monkey is good at hiding things there! we looked until 11:00 for it but it was gone!!! we are both looking at each other like "ok what would a two year old do with a check card?" pretty open ended question!!! so we gave up for the night and i decided it would be easier to look today when the sun is out and bright in the house... so i went to my room because that is the last place and had it. luckily the first place i looked was in the dvd player!! he has an obsession with pressing the button to open and close the dvd slot. i turned on the dvd player and opened the slot and there laid my check card!!! the moral of this story is never underestimate what a two year old can do with a check card!!!! ahhhh motherhood!!

SCHOOL PICTURES!!

2008-11-17T10:25:00.000-08:00

are here and they are adorable this year!! yay my baby is so photogenic!!! i love him dearly!!!

also i'm putting christmas stuff up this week!! it's going to be a good week...or bad one depending on how long it takes me to make up my mind about decorations!

enjoy the pictures and stay tuned for updated decoration photos!!
click on the photo to view all three!

2008-11-17 SCHOOLPICTURES

bragging rights!

2008-11-16T15:55:00.000-08:00

well the weekend is almost over but it's been an intense one. as most people know my husband went to Mississippi State and is a huge fan. as you can imagine this weekend has been marked on the calendar for 365 days. msu has beat BAMA for the past two years so naturally he's had bragging rights...i could tell things would be different this year!! bama was 10-0 and on a roll...the game started out a little rocky but eventually busted wide open and BAMA came away with the victory this year!!! wooo hoo braggin' rights back to momma..at least for 365 days!!! daddy was pretty cordial about it, he's pouted a little but he's been a very good sport!! i have been so sick since thursday so i didn't really feel like cheering but i did the best i could from the couch and the victory was OUTSTANDING!! the weekend was topped off this afternoon with the most wonderful photo session with a great photographer and old friend! he drove all the way from tuscaloosa to do our family christmas card pictures. monkey actually cooperated very well for about an hour then he was DONE!! he is a wonderful photographer and i know he got some great shots! i can't wait to see how they turned out!! i will post the proofs just as soon as i get the christmas cards in the mail. after the photo session we went to an early dinner at our new Jim-n-Nicks which was delicious as usual. my wonderful hubby also got all of my christmas stuff down from the attic so i can decorate this week!! i can not wait to get all the decorations up!! i just have to worry about keeping a 2 yr old out of the tree this year!! should be lots of fun! hope every one's weekend treated them well!! check back for christmas card pictures!! smooches..

play date and dress up!

2008-11-13T08:54:00.000-08:00

here are a few more pictures from our play date with cooper and mack playing dress up in mommy's closet! his daddy was so proud!!

enjoy!

2008-11-13-1025-08

just a few pictures from fall....

2008-11-13T08:37:00.000-08:00

here are just a few pictures from fall so far! some of you have seen these but i hope the rest of you enjoy!!

the first pictures are from mine and gavin's date night, then mack ready for church on sunday, and the adorable pictures deann took on halloween!

enjoy and happy fall!

datehalloween

what a great day!

2008-11-12T14:57:00.000-08:00

so yesterday i was off of work because mack was out of school for veterans day. we had a pretty relaxing day...the usual...play a while, watch a little cartoons, swing a while, pitch a fit, watch some more cartoons...you get it! i even got a nap out of him which is very unusual!! yesterday was a special afternoon though, mack had his new friend from school over for a play date. coop arrived around 3 o'clock and the party began!! the boys ran wild around the living room for a while then they went and emptied out the toy box (they didn't play with any of the toys but they got them all out anyway!) next was a little outdoor time. they played on the swing set but mostly played in the dirt on the hill. mack did very well with his play date considering that he doesn't have to share his toys very often. he was a little possessive of his toys and me at first but he got over it when he realized how much fun they were having! the boys played outside until it got dark then we came inside and they played with some of the 500 toys they pulled out. cooper's sweet mommy margie got here around 6 and was kind enough to join us for dinner so the boy's play date lasted a little longer!!! it was a blast having two babies running around the house and margie is so sweet so it was a very pleasant afternoon and night! i hope we get to do it again soon! i will post the pictures from the play date tomorrow!!

thank you!!

2008-11-11T19:21:00.000-08:00

thank you to everyone who left sweet comments about my blog monday night!! i hope everyone took something from it as important as i did! i'm glad to know that people are enjoying my post and i am so thankful to be surrounded by such wonderful friends and family!! gavin, mack and i have come a long way in a short time but we could not do it without the support of positive loving people! SO THANK YOU!!!!

stay with me here....i've got a lot to say!!

2008-11-10T18:39:00.000-08:00

ok new moms (or old pros)...this is for you!! first of all church was awesome sunday!! i felt like God was speaking directly to me! the sermon was about our "american idols", a series that dr. les has been doing for about 5 weeks. this week was about our children and how we idolize them. i knew as soon as i saw the screen that this sermon was for me!! the first thing dr. les talked about was how important it is to raise our children in "God based homes" and i thought ok i want my son to believe in God but we are by no means a "religious" family we miss church some, we miss a bedtime prayer here or there. and then he goes on to say that a "God based home" is not necessarily run by a "religious family" (ok is he reading my mind?) he said the most important factor of raising a child in a "GBH" is the relationship between a husband and wife (ok i thought this was about the kids). he said people often believe that once a child comes along the main focus should be put on the child and often the relationship between husband and wife is put on the back burner. how do you expect to raise your child in a GBH when the sacredness of marriage and family is often over shadow by what is going on the child's life. children today are often glorified and praised instead of disciplined and made to face consequences for their actions. to make a long and wonderful sermon short...the best way to raise your child in a GBH is keep the focus on the marriage and make sure the child knows that he or she is very important and loved but there are boundaries and children need to be brought down to reality instead of coddled and pacified their whole lives!! wow! pretty awesome...take what you will from this but mommies remember that our children need our loving care but so do our husbands!!! one thing that gavin and i try to do is every few weeks let someone keep mack and we have a date night! the number one rule of date night is that we DO NOT talk about mack....we talk about everything going on in our husband/wife lives instead of what's going on in our mother/father lives...please don't get me wrong i love my son with all my heart and would do anything for him, being a mother is the most important and joyful thing a woman can experience but if you loose sight of your marriage and you own life how do you expect to teach your children the value of love, marriage, commitment and individuality??? food for thought! hope you are full!!

*two pictures from our recent date night!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU...

2008-11-08T17:56:00.000-08:00

ALSO HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM!!!

HOPE IT WAS A GREAT ONE!!!

LOVE YOU!!

WHEW!!

2008-11-08T17:51:00.000-08:00

ROLL TIDE!!!

10-0!!

hope everyone is having a great weekend!!!

check back monday for my blog about date night!!!

stuffed!!

2008-11-07T08:33:00.000-08:00

we're back from our weekly friday morning breakfast at cracker barrel with daddy! i usually try to eat a light breakfast because i'm not a big breakfast eater anyway plus if i eat to heavily i will be useless for the rest of the day!! to my surprise cracker barrel had a "new" breakfast menu this morning!! skillet meals!!! so of course i had to try one and it was DELICIOUS!!! it had breakfast potatoes, onions, peppers, smoked sausage, gravy, eggs and melted cheese!! jeez! i feel like i'm gaining weight just talking about it!! if i eat like that every friday i will be 500lbs! so needless to say we are back home and i'm feeling pretty worthless!! fridays are my house cleaning day but it's looking pretty grime on getting all of my chores done today!! maybe just the essentials like laundry and "straightening up". of course i was blessed to get the BEST house warming gift from my father and mother in law....a ROOMBA!! the little robot vacuum that vacuums all by itself so at least the hardwoods will be clean at the touch of a button!! it's a pretty yucky day outside so it looks like we might be stuck inside watching cartoons all day!! darn!! tonight gavin and i are taking gavin's sister out to dinner, tomorrow will be another day on the couch watching football!! big game tomorrow!! ROLL TIDE!!! well i leave you now because if i don't get up right now and get started my husband is not going to be very happy with the outcome!! hope everyone has a great weekend!!

sad day.....

2008-11-05T12:44:00.000-08:00

i did my part so i can sleep at night and now we just pray and hope for the best!

on a lighter note...here are a few pictures from halloween and the beautiful weekend in the back yard! mack went trick-or-treating with his good friends kinley and parker and a new friend colby...mack was a "bow hunter", colby was the most precious cow, kinley was a bunny rabbit and parker was a transformer....i didn't get any great pictures because it is hard to get good pictures of moving babies but i hope deann or margaret got some cute ones! enjoy!

trick-or-treat

IT'S UP TO YOU!!

2008-11-04T08:34:00.000-08:00

PLEASE GO VOTE!!!

IF YOU HAVE CHILDREN THEN YOU KNOW HOW IMPORTANT THIS ELECTION IS TO THEIR FUTURE! IT'S YOUR RESPONSIBILITY AS A PARENT TO MAKE THEIR VOICES HEARD!

2008-10-31T09:04:00.000-07:00

i hope everyone has a safe halloween!!

big trouble!

2008-10-30T07:51:00.000-07:00

so i was laying on the couch last night watching tv and my son kept sneaking up behind me and nagging me! pulling my hair, touching my face, putting his hat on my head ect. this went on for a little while so i decided when he did it the next time i would scare him! so here he came and i grab his arm and started acting like i was going to bite it off...big mistake!!! we both laughed and i put him on the couch with me but he sat there for about a min. then he was gone again! so i hear him coming again and i'm waiting on him to pull my hair or put the hat back on my head but to my surprise...HE BIT ME!!! right on the arm and i mean hard!!! i was shocked! it was a delayed reaction but i popped him on his bottom and sent him to his room! i guess it's true what they say...babies will pick up on anything adults do!! i felt bad so i went and got him from his room and explained to him that biting is BAD!!! he just looked at me like...you did it first!! ooopsy!! BAD MOMMY!! these pictures were taken about 10 min after it happened and of course i have a big bruise today!!

2008-10-30 bite

tis the season for carvin' pumpkins and runny noses!!

2008-10-28T09:01:00.000-07:00

last night we decided to carve our pumpkins! being the neat freaks we are i insisted that it be done outside but of course it was freezing and mack's nose started running as soon as we walked outside! he was only interested in the pumpkins for about 5 min then he decided he had enough! daddy and I finished our pumpkins in the freezing cold but they turned out great! we took the pumpkins inside to try and get some pictures but no luck with that either because go go(go diego go) was on tv so it was like talking to a brick wall trying to get monkey to cooperate with pictures! here are the pictures we managed to get... enjoy! daddy carved the big daddy pumpkin and mommy did the little one...M for mack!

2008-10-28 pumpkin

2008-10-27T10:28:00.000-07:00

so i had this great idea this morning! i've decided that i want to do a photo collage somewhere in my house...i have several places in my house that need something! i could do it in my room since the walls are bare!! if so i would get blacks frames and use black and white pictures....here are the pictures i have picked out for the collage! enjoy!

collage wall for bedroom

up all night!!...

2008-10-26T07:09:00.000-07:00

well still no luck with the potty training!...i had to clean up tinkle out of my floor two more times!!! oh well it's a work in progress!! other than that we had a great day yesterday. we watched A LOT of football and finally got to play on the swing set and it was gorgeous outside!! after the GA game we got a shower and got our lucky shirt on and settled in to watch the BAMA game. my monkey was asleep by halftime so i watched the second half curled up in my bed by myself. BAMA WON! it was a great game! my monkey was awake by 1 am SICK! i got him up and got him cleaned up and calmed down. i put him in my bed and starting cleaning his room..i stripped his bed, started the laundry and lit candles to help with the smell. i went and climbed back in bed with my monkey and turned to tv on because i knew i had to wait on the laundry..by 2 am monkey was sick again!!! so i went through the same process again with my bed and put on another load of laundry got both of us cleaned up and made a pallet for monkey on the floor with old bedding!!! you guessed it by 3 am he was sick again!!! i went through the same process and started the third load of laundry..i was getting worried at this point but it was like a diff. baby after the third time. i made him another pallet and he fell right to sleep and i didn't hear another word out of him until 7:15 this morning and now he is running around the house like his old self...needless to say i was up until 5 am this morning doing laundry and deodorizing the house!!

it's just the first day...right?

2008-10-25T07:05:00.001-07:00

ok so we spent the better part of 1 hour sitting on the potty! me on mine and monkey on his! my book said show an example of pottying and "get acquainted" with the potty. so we sat on our potties reading books, putting puzzles together drinking our morning coffee and chocolate milk and....nothing! so we called it quites for a while but i left his diaper off just in case....from the time i got the bathroom cleared of our books and puzzles and walked into my bedroom monkey had pee'd in my floor!!! i know this is only the first day but seriously!?!?! i hope this is not a sign of things to come!!!

potty time!!

2008-10-24T19:20:00.000-07:00

well we've had a great start to our vegg session this weekend! it rained for the better part of the day so we spent most of the morning and afternoon inside but we still had a blast! monkey slept with me last night and got up pretty early to start our day. we started our day off with a wonderful breakfast and BIG cup of coffee for mommy. we watched a lot of cartoons, put the same puzzle together 20 times and read the same book over and over!! after all that monkey went down for a nap and i watched a sappy movie on lifetime!! after nap time monkey was energized and wanting outside but everything was so wet i had to keep him inside and entertain him by chasing him around the living room. it was all fun and games until he fell and hit is eye!! bless his heart he is the most CLUMSY boy i know!! he stays covered in bruises from head to toe!! oh well he is certainly all boy!! after that the rain subsided so we got our shower and headed out and about. our first stop was target to take some clothes back from the birthday. as usual i found so much stuff "i needed". i found a cute purse but no purse no matter how cute can replace my dooney. next was a great pair of sunglasses on sale but i already have two "great" pair of sunglasses, my favorite was the adorable leather gloves which apparently are a "must have" for fall along with a scarf! i had to get out of there quick!! but i have a feeling i will be back to get the gloves before the weather turns much colder!! next stop was a dinner date at our favorite mexican restaurant which was delicious then on to walmart....it's finally that time...POTTY TRAINING!!! monkey is finally a two year old and officially a big boy so we were on the hunt for a potty. of course he has to have the cadillac of potties so we settled on the potty the sings a "royal tune" when he tinkles in it!! I LOVE IT!!! we got home and put it together but he just looks at it trying to figure out how he can destroy this too...wish me luck that we will make more progress than that this weekend! i will post pictures of our new potty as soon as i get some new camera batteries and stay tuned for updates of our progress with POTTY TRAINING!

the weekend!

2008-10-23T10:44:00.000-07:00

well it's thursday which means it the weekend for me!!! i am so looking forward to picking my monkey up from MDO and heading home!!!! i plan on doing as little as possible this weekend! my hubby is headed to mississippi to hunt and play golf and whatever else boys do on "boys weekend"!! so my monkey and i are going to vegg for our "momma baby weekend" it's suppose to be cold and rainy all weekend...perfect weather to lay on the couch! i washed all my winter sweats and comfy socks last night so i am ready for it! i dvr'd a couple of shows and movies for monkey, bought lots of junk food, made a BIG pot of country potato soup and i don't plan on seeing the outdoors until monday!..well except for a little shing shing session with monkey in the afternoons if the weather permits!! sounds good huh? I CAN NOT WAIT!!! football will be on all weekend and it's a big game for BAMA so hopefully they will win and it will be the PERFECT weekend!!! ROLL TIDE!

2008-10-21T09:05:00.001-07:00

our monday adventures....

more pictures

2008-10-21T08:56:00.000-07:00

shing shing....

2008-10-21T08:31:00.000-07:00

well my son has officially been two years old for two days! i think he is handling it well! he LOVES his swing! that's the first place he ran yesterday when we got home from school!! he played on it about an hour then he was over it! he is two so that's about all the attention you can ask for! i started singing "swing swing" yesterday so now he goes around the house saying "shing shing" pretty funny!! after the shinging session we went in and opened ALL of the toys and puzzles and books and trucks he got and we got about an hour out of those too! next was trying on all the clothes which did not go so well because the kid HATES clothes but they all fit and are adorable! his favorite part of the night was trying on his new balance from nana II. he stomped around the house all night in them!!! here are a few more pictures from the birthday party as well as our adventures yesterday! enjoy!

ps...i forgot to mention my nana yesterday in the blog so...THANK YOU nana II for all your hard work and patience too!!

mack's 2nd birthday!!

2008-10-20T11:17:00.000-07:00

hello all! first let me thank everyone who helped make mack's 2nd birthday GREAT! it was wonderful and exhausting all rolled together in one weekend! A LOT of hard work went into planning the party and i couldn't have ask for anything better. the food was great, everyone came and the babies had a wonderful time!! i couldn't have pulled it off without the help and patience of my husband and parents so THANK YOU VERY MUCH! of course we took 1,000 pictures so mack will remember and appreciate every min. of it! of course he loved his swing so thank you mom, dad, tim, geryl, bob and ann! i know he will make many wonderful memories on the swing set! mack was such a trooper and hung in there until the last guest left but it didn't take him long to crash when they did! all his little friends got to come including his bffs kinley and cooper! they all had a blast! i am glad it is finally over but what a wonderful day! thanks again to everyone who helped make it happened as well as those who came and helped mack celebrate the BIG 2!!! (*i will post more pictures soon...)

2008-10-15T12:08:00.000-07:00

i hope you guys enjoy the new fall background!! fall means birthday parties, halloween, thanksgiving and best of all...FOOTBALL!! ROLL TIDE!

one week!

2008-10-13T07:06:00.000-07:00

wow! what a weekend!!! gavin checked everything off his hunnydo lists so now if i could find the time to finish mine we will be ready for the party!!! our fence is complete, our fall/halloween decor is out, my new picture is on the wall, mack's birthday cake and food is ordered, all party decor is bought, and the swing set has been in my garage for a week now..everything is coming together beautifully!! ONE WEEK!!! i'm not dealing with the thought of having a two year old very well!! you know your baby is growing up when you ask him is he loves momma and he shakes his head NO then laughs!! MR. INDEPENDENT!! church was great yesterday, then we had our weekly mexican lunch and off to publix to get our groceries for the week, which is always a pleasure because we undoubtedly end up with a little something extra in our buggy that mack decided he needed. i also always end up riding around with a deflating publix balloon in my car for a week since we can never get out of the store without getting one!!! here are a few pictures from the weekend...enjoy!!

whoa! holidays!!

2008-10-09T14:27:00.000-07:00

so we're watching yo gabba gabba..which my son loves although i must say it is a strange show!!! the fence is being built as we speak...thank goodness!! no more crazy woman chasing my son down the road in my robe!! gavin also booked our flight to louisiana for thanksgiving today and i am pumped i enjoy so much for my son to be able to see that side of the family because it is rare! being at the farm is so relaxing so it makes it a stress free holiday!! the flight last year was not bad but this year we have a two year old which is less likely to sit still the entire time like last year when he couldn't walk so he really didn't have a choice! i guess it's a good thing it's a short flight!! i am so excited for the holidays this year!!! last year seemed so stressful because i was so worried about making things perfect for mack's first real christmas and he could have cared less! i can promise that he doesn't even remember it! as long as he got to rip paper off something and wasn't force to take ridiculous amounts of pictures he is just peachy!! this year will be stress free! less travel and more going with the flow will work just fine for me!!! gosh it seems like the rest of the year is a celebration between 2nd birthday, halloween, thanksgiving and christmas! whoa!! maybe not so stress free! stayed tuned to see how stress free things really are!!

2008-10-09T06:59:00.000-07:00

good morning all! what a great morning...up and out the door on time...gavin and monkey got to spend the morning together doing boy stuff until it was time to take him to school...the fence guy is coming this afternoon to help cage in our little monkey because of course his favorite place to play is the street! between the swing set for his birthday and the fence we are hoping to eliminate his fascination...or should i say stubbornness of playing in the street!! i can't believe he is almost two! where does the time go? pretty soon it will be little league sports and GIRLS!!! speaking of girls mack is quickly making nice with miss kinley, aunt dana's niece, who's in his class at mdo. it's amazing to watch children their age bonding and forging friendships that could last a life time! here is a picture of the two of them at a bbq for july 4th...enjoy!

happy fall!

2008-10-08T19:09:00.000-07:00

i know it's the 4th of the day but it's so new and still so fun! just give me a few days and i will slack off! so it's 9:00 and i am sitting on my back porch enjoying the almost fall like weather...my mommy and wifey duties are over for this day...my son is asleep, the kitchen is clean and my hubby is content in front of the tv...MOMMY TIME!! i really hope this blog will allow everyone to keep in touch when a phone call or email just seems impossible. i will pretty much just keep everyone up to date on life...i have a two year old so of course life is different everyday which means more stuff to talk about!!! i will also be posting pictures for our family that doesn't get to see my monkey as much as everyone should have the pleasure of doing!! i'm off to bed but believe me i'm sure there will be something new to read about in the morning! Good Nite all!

my monkey..

2008-10-08T11:01:00.001-07:00

so i'm having fun learning about this blog phenomenon! here are a few of my favorite pictures of my monkey...

mack's bday!

2008-10-08T09:48:00.000-07:00

so if you know me then you know i am a planner and you also know that Mack will be 2 in 11 days so the party has been consuming my life since about...AUGUST!!! but the planning is done and the swing set is here so now we wait! i am really excited for the party but not about the turning two part! i wish we could just skip right over that part! i hope everyone enjoyed the invitations and we can't wait to see you!!!