October...

Here's a recap of our October...in pictures!

We spent lots of time outside.  Watson loves exploring...cautiously exploring, at least :)  He is still VERY observant and very cautious with most everything in life. 

He is all about hats and t-shirts these days when we are hanging around the house

I'm including this picture so I can remember the mess that has been my house with two babies.  It gets cleaned up twice a day...nap time and bed time.  Any other time is fair game for a huge mess :)

Our little artist.  He LOVES drawing on notepads with pens.  We said one time that only big boys use pens.  He stuck to that!

Enjoying a night out with my stylish little boy.

We celebrated sweet Abby's 4th birthday.  She had a princess party where Snow White even made an appearance :)

Watson is WAY ATTACHED to the paci these days.  I mean all day everyday MUST have the paci.  We will work on this soon.  Very soon.

Anything that 'big boys' do, this sweet one wants to do.  So he has mastered the big boy slides at the park!

Watson is a great helper with Emma, and she adores him so it works out great.  Note the paci in his mouth and one in his hand...

We celebrated Graham's 32nd birthday!

The birthday boy and Watson enjoying some cake and ice cream.  These two have a sweet tooth like no one I've ever known!

Having a baby in the house means not being able to go outside as much as we would like.  Watson makes the most of it though...and ends up jumping from chair to chair.  Boys will be boys...

Our true little SuperMan.  This boy has truly been Super Man his whole life.  Beyond proud of and in love with this precious one!

Watson has been obsessed....and I really mean obsessed...with Larry..or as he calls him, "Laawy," for months now.  So naturally, he had to be Larry for Halloween.  His costume was way too big so we had to do some improvising, but he looked cute regardless!

These four...the best of friends :)

6 Months...

I am WAY behind on my blogging.  Although I have not been posting, I have been writing posts..just not actually adding pictures and posting the finished products!  Anyways...here's to playing catch up...

It is so hard to believe that our baby girl is 6 months old!  Half way to one year old?  Wow!  It has truly flown by.. There are days that I just want to freeze time and keep her and Watson this age forever.  But let's be honest...there are definitely days that I have to remind myself to live in and enjoy this season of life and not always be looking to the future...

Emma is such a sweet, tender, precious little baby.  It is so fun watching her personality grow and see her coming in to her own little self.

Weight: 16lbs 7oz
Length: 27"
Size clothes: 6 months
Size diaper: 2
Eating: Nurses every 3-4 hours during the day (typically 4-6 nursing times in the day), and sometimes once at night.  She is loving her oatmeal cereal.  I mean LOVING it!  We did try just a couple of baby foods right before she turned 6 months.  Her favorite seems to be sweet potatoes.
Sleeping: Naps two times a day in her crib (if we are home), and then a cat nap in the evening either in the swing or nap nanny.  Her afternoon nap (during Watson's nap time) is often on the couch with me...I don't always sleep, but I treasure those sweet, sweet moments with her!  As far as sleeping through the night...it's still not happening as much as I would like :)  We usually have a couple of nights a week that she will make it until 5 or 6, but the majority of nights she wakes at least one time.  Sometimes a paci and rocking her will be enough to get her back down, but other times I have to nurse her.



She is sitting up by herself!  It is pretty wobbly, but she's doing great with it for having just turned 6 months!

BIG NEWS and HUGE BREAKTHROUGH for this nursing mama...Emma FINALLY latched without the shield!  I did not think this day would ever come...I was thrilled!  If you have ever been a nursing mama and had to use a shield, then you know the freedom that comes with the day that the shield is no longer necessary!

Emma is a squealer!  I mean...high pitched, ear-piercing squeals that will make your ears ring!  She does it when shes excited, fussy, and sometimes just out of the blue.  Pretty sure all of Alabama hears her.

She has been drooling a lot and her two bottom teeth look like they may be about to pop through.  Watson did not get his first tooth until he was almost one, so it's hard for me to imagine such a little baby with teeth, but I'm pretty sure we are getting some in!

Another hint of teething is the fact that she chews on anything and everything she can get her hands on.  I don't mean just put it in her mouth...I mean all out gnawing :)

Sweet baby loves her paci.  I am thankful for this because it comes in handy when she is sleepy and fussy!



She is not crawling yet, but is very mobile and able to get around just by rolling and reaching.  She is really trying to get up on all fours, but right now just gets her knees up with her torso still on the ground.



I am going to do a whole post on this, but we did drive to Oklahoma this month.. again, this deserves a whole post :)  But, Emma did great!  We were so proud of her (and Watson) for being such troopers.  We are incredibly thankful that little miss sleeps in the car!

Emma loves to be held.  Absolutely loves it.  I can tell that the more mobile she is getting the more she wants to be on the ground, but as of right now she still prefers to be held than to be in any of her chairs or on the ground.

This precious smile will just melt anyone's heart.  Especially her daddy's :)  She can really turn up that charm when Graham walks in the room...and it is absolutely precious!



Loves playing peek-a-boo, singing "It's Freezing," watching Watson do anything (she thinks he's hilarious!), hearing us do animal sounds, playing with books, and is particularly drawn to phones and remotes...

Emma, we love you so much sweet girl and are proud, honored, and delighted to be your parents!  Thank you for being such a bright light in our lives every single day!

Road Trip...

In October, we decided to take a trip to Oklahoma to visit Graham's family.  While we would usually fly, we decided (due to the amount of stuff we had to take with two babies...) that we would drive.  All "11" hours.

I had prepared as best as I knew how and felt good about keeping the kiddos entertained throughout the ride.  Thankfully Emma was still so young that she slept a good bit of it, but I knew Watson would need some major distractions in order to keep him calm!



We bought a dvd player for the car (something I never wanted to do, but knew this trip called for it!)  We drove in Graham's car, so Watson thinks the dvd player is just a special treat for when he rides in "Daddy's car."



I had also gone to the dollar store and bought random toys and books for Watson to have throughout the trip.  I had wrapped each of them in gift wrap, and every couple of hours Watson would get a present.  He LOVED this..and in turn, we did too!



Our plan was to make it all the way to Oklahoma in one day, but due to all of our pit stops for stretching, diaper changes, and nursing sessions...we made it to Van Buren, AR after 12 hours and had to stop for the night.  In other words, it took us 12 hours to drive what should have been 8 hours...



The kids did AMAZING, though.  We were SO incredibly proud of them!  Part of what took us so long on the way there was a detour we had to take in Arkansas due to road construction...which had us at a standstill for almost an hour...!

Stopping was definitely the right choice as we were all feeling much better the next morning and ready to drive the last few hours to OK!



Our time in Oklahoma was wonderful...as always!  The kids (especially Watson) loved time with their grandparents and the spoiling the comes along with that time :)



We spent one morning at the zoo, which was great!  I was so impressed with the OKC zoo!  This was the morning of the OU/OSU game, so of course Mike and Mary had Watson and Emma decked out in their OU attire :)   (They also received plenty of OSU attire from Mike and Jan the next day!)




Graham and I were able to have a date night, which was much needed and so wonderful!  We went to dinner and to see Captain Phillips...great movie!



Our drive home was much quicker, and better overall than the drive up there.  We were able to make it home all in one day and the kids were so worn out from our trip that they slept a good bit.



It was a wonderful trip...we look forward to going back in December!  This time, though...we will fly :) 

New beginnings...

The Lord is good.  Oh so good!  Graham and I have been feeling for about a year now that the Lord has really been stirring in our hearts and preparing us for a season of change and transition.  Throughout that time, we have been praying for the Lord to show us what exactly this looks like for our family and clear guidance on how to follow Him through this.  There have been several different opportunities come up.  Some we knew were not right for us immediately, but others we really spent time praying about and considering.  We were about one second away from accepting a job in College Station, Texas - we WANTED to do this, but we did not feel a peace from the Lord that this is where He wanted us.  That was hard...really hard...especially when it was an incredible opportunity for Graham and our family.

But, the Lord is ever faithful...

Graham was approached about a job at a church here in town and through many interviews, meetings, and most of all, prayers...the Lord made it oh so clear that this is where He desires us to be for this time in our lives.  We could not be more EXCITED for this new opportunity and step of faith for our family!

Graham is now serving as the Discipleship Pastor at Valleydale Church here in Birmingham.  It is truly a perfect fit for him and our family.  The church has been more than welcoming to us, and already made us feel right at home!  

It was a bittersweet time as Graham left Student Life.  He had served there for almost 10 years, and we have so many incredible memories from our time there.  We met each other and our best friends there, and are beyond thankful to the Lord for that season of our lives!

That being said, it was time for a change and praise God for bringing about this opportunity in His perfect timing.

If you are in Birmingham and are looking for a church home, please come visit Valleydale!  We would LOVE to welcome you there and walk alongside you in life! 

Destin...

Every September, my family takes a trip to the beach.  I look forward to this week every year because I think it is the best time to be at the beach.  The temperatures are great and school is back in session, so the beach is MUCH less crowded and perfect for our little kiddos!  This year we got a house in Destin..it was perfect for our ever-growing family!

Bathing beauty :)

Hampton would have stayed in the sand the ENTIRE time we were there had he been able to.  Sweet boy LOVED the beach.  It was so wonderful to see him having fun and feeling good!

Our set up for the week.  Perfect!

Watson had to warm up to the sand every day, but always adjusted and had fun playing!  He would not let me take him in the ocean, but would go with Graham as far as they wanted.

Toes in the water and sand...sweet girl wasn't so sure what to think at first!

Cutest baby on the beach!

Beach naps are the best! (They don't typically sleep together...this just happened one afternoon and it was precious)

Date night with my handsome man.

We spent one day in Seaside and had a blast.  This picture was taken right before we left so Watson was sweaty and tired, but despite how he looks in this picture he really did have fun!

Watson takes after his daddy in his love for ice cream!

Evening play time on the beach

My love bug!

We had so much fun spending the week together.  I am so thankful for my parents and the fact that they create memories like this for all of our family.