Happy Birthday Jesus

I don't know about you, but I am so thankful for Jesus, who took on flesh, so that we can have eternal life with our Father. Thank you for the best gift of all!!!

The past two days have been long, but I wouldn't trade them for the world. Dylan has his first Christmas under his belt, and he did great.  We started the holiday yesterday afternoon at my parents. We ate, opened presents and watched Fred Claus. Dylan racked up quite a few presents from Nana and Pepaw.  Right before we left at 7:00pm, Dylan fell asleep for 20 mintues, so the whole way home, he was wide awake. I put him to bed at 9:15 and he played until 9:45.  Apparently, he was so excited for Christmas to be here!

This morning we woke up and let him open his gifts. Then, we prepared for Christmas at my Grandmother's, where I ate entirely too much and officially am big enough to be Santa. I do this every year and yet, I stuff my face at the next holiday. UGH! 

Here are a few pics from Dylan's first Christmas.

sleeping in his Christmas PJ

The loot (minus his red wagon that Nana and Pepaw got him)

Thank you God for all my gifts....amen

The Letter T

Holly reminded me this morning that I have yet to do my tag...I forgot...oops. She assigned me the letter T. 

Here's how it works: You leave a comment on this post, and I'll assign you a letter. You write about ten things you love that begin with your assigned letter and you post it on your blog. When people comment on your post you assign them a letter and the fun continues.

Here we go!

1. Tennessee - I have lived in Tennessee my whole life, and I couldn't imagine living any where else. The seasons here are beautiful. (I could do without the humidity in the summer). The fall leaves and the crisp air....ahhh. Not to mention that I am close to all my family. 

2. Tacos, Tortillas, Taquitos....you get the picture. I love Mexican food. When we went to Mexico for our honeymoon, I was in heaven at the buffets. I love me some cilantro. Yum. I could eat Mexican food everyday. 

3. Tennis Shoes - My favorite thing to wear is sweaters, jeans and tennis shoes. They are so comfortable. The ironic thing is that in college, I hardly ever wore tennis shoes. My roommate joked that I didn't even own a pair, so now, I wear them all the time to make up for that period in my life. (To explain why I never wore them in college....I worked at a law firm, so after school, I went straight to work.)

4. Tricking people - I am quite the prankster. I definitely take after my Mom (see earlier post this week). I think the best trick I played was on my mom, when we told her I was in labor while she was out of town...she cried, but we laughed hysterically.

5. Tide - Not the laundry detergent, but the Alabama football team. They had a great season this year, undefeated on their regular schedule, but lost to Florida in the SEC championship. Nick Saban has brought the program a long way in two short years. Roll Tide.

6. Tickling Damien - that is until he gets mad and gives me Indian burn on my arm, which I hate. He hates to be tickled and for some reason, I find joy in making him jump. He's says it puts him on edge, and I say that it's hysterical.

7. The Shack - By far, it is one of my favorite books. If you haven't read it, I highly recommend it. It will give you a fresh perspective on the trinity (God, Jesus and Holy Spirit). There is some controversy around it, like the way some things are explained, but don't take it at face value. Really dig into the actual word as well. 

8. Trips - There is nothing like a nice vacation, and I am so looking forward to the one we have coming up on Sunday. We are going to San Diego and I am so excited. Some of my favorite trips have been to London with my friend Margaret on New Years Eve, Costa Rica with Damien, Aruba with my Family, Playa Del Carmen with Damien, NYC with family and Damien and San Fran with friends Steve and Lindsay. The next place I want to go is Malawi. If all goes well, I will be hitting up my readers to help me with expenses for this mission trip.

9. Turbo - I love Turbo so much. He has been in my life for 10 years, and I couldn't imagine not having him. One time, we tried giving him away while I was in college. I cried the whole way home. Once I got back to Chattanooga, I called my mom to see if she knew Turbo was doing well. She said, oh yea, he's doing great. He's right beside me. The lady couldn't deal with him. He was an indoor dog and she had put him outside in a run. He was digging and barking non stop. I am so grateful that my parents took care of Turbo until I got out of college. Thank you!

10. Time with family and friends - Time is the most important thing that you can give someone. It's worth more than any gift. I love the time that I get to spend with Damien and Dylan as our little family. As well as the time, I get to spend with my parents and my brother's family. Also, we have the best friends that anyone can ask for and we enjoy the time we get to spend with them. 

A New Conquest

I was in the kitchen starting dinner, and Dylan was in the living room playing. All got quiet as a mouse...this is a red flag. I went to look for Dylan and found him on the 2nd stair making his way to the 3rd.  I let him continue to see how far he would go. He made it half way up before he got tired and had to sit. I hope Santa is bringing us some baby gates. We need them!

Obviously I didn't get a pic of him on the stairs, that would have been bad parenting, but here are the stairs.

Weekend Challenge

This weekend, Dylan got to stay with his grandparents, while Damien and I did a makeover on the bonus room and hallway upstairs. We have lived here for almost 4 years and have only painted the office and Dylan's room.  We had someone come in and stretch our carpet, so Damien had the idea that we should paint while the furniture was out of the room.  I picked out a color, Golden Straw from Waverly and after putting the sample up, I wasn't sure if I could live with it. Damien and I went back to Lowe's to find a new color. We decided on the color, Spun Sugar from Martha Stewart and took the swatch to Farrell-Calhoun to match it. I love it.  

Before (notice the two colors...the top was the color I couldn't live with)

After (farewell pale yellow)

Santa visits Dylan again

Since Dylan was sick the last time he saw Santa (aka PePaw), we decided to give it another try, so Santa came to our house this time. Well, he still wasn't happy to see Santa. 

We tried to inch closer and closer, and we were very patient with him.

Finally, we were able to hand him off from my lap to Santa's lap. He wasn't crying and we were able to get a decent pic.  (Other than the fact that Santa's beard was a little jacked up.)

Mama Mia

Anita's blog, Mud and Coffee, recently had a post that reminded me of some child hood memories, and as I recalled those childhood memories, I began laughing so I thought I would share them with my readers.

My Mom is quite the prankster, and my poor Dad is often the victim of her jokes.  One that I recall, that we talk about still to this day, is the time she pushed my Dad in the coat closet.  I think I was probably around 4 years old and my brother was about 9.  My Dad had bent over, digging around in the bottom of the closet, and my mom just kicked him in the butt...and in he went. She shut the door behind him, and if memory serves me correctly reeled in my brother to be her accomplice. Billy helped her push the couch in front of the door.  Can you believe she left him there for an hour?  I might have a case of kid memory (you know where everything is bigger, seems longer, etc) but I think it was an hour. Then she finally moved the couch and opened the door, and he was just sitting there on the floor with his arms crossed. I wished we had a picture of it. 

The next memory, which triggered this post, wasn't necessarily a prank, but an accident that ended in a bunch of laughter and a black eye. Every weekend, our family would get together with the Scott family. They lived right down the road and had children the same age as Billy and me. The adults played cards while the kids played dolls, video games, watched movies, etc. We usually stayed pretty late, like midnight, there were times that I fell asleep...that's another post. One night, my Dad was driving and he began backing out of the driveway.  At the time, we had a car that had power windows with the control panel in the center between the bucket seats. My mom "got cold" so she rolled my dad's window up without consulting him. Little did she know, that his head was hanging out of it in order to navigate as he backed out of the driveway.  (It was late and we live in the country, no street lights) I don't recall exactly what my Dad said, but he was not happy. The next day, he went to church with a black eye.

Ah....Memories

Merry Christmas

Christmas is exactly a week away. It has snuck up on us so fast. I can't wait to watch Dylan open his presents, and then try to eat the paper of course.  We hope that you and your family have a blessed Christmas week. Remember the reason we celebrate...the birth of our Saviour Jesus Christ!

Wrestling Alligators

How many of us can say that we have wrestled an alligator?  I don't know about you, but I can. I know, you are thinking this is in humane, but hang with me. 

Wrestling an alligator can be very tricky, but you have to be able to outwit this creature.  First you look them in their big eyes, and you say to yourself I can do this in no time, I know I can. Then you say a little prayer and you jump right in.  Often times, you grab their little legs first. They are feisty creatures...kicking and squirming. Then the dreaded death roll. Be ready for this one because if you aren't prepared, they will take you with them. You feel the sweat beads trickling down  your face at this point and you bite your bottom lip to prevent from yelling any kind of profanity...whether from your aggravation or any injuries that you may have sustained during the roll. You grab the creature by it's bottom half and try to flip it over to make sure it's heading in the right direction.  Then once you have gotten control of the creature again, it may try to do the death roll. Be strong and you will perservere my friend...once you have the creature rigtht where you want him, then you grab the diaper really fast and fasten it as quick as you can. That my friend is how you change the diaper of a 7 month old. 

It's Beginning to Look A Lot Like Christmas

In Damien's words..."call Al Gore and tell him Global Warming is in hold." We got snow! I don't know if this is the earliest snow fall or not. Last year, it's was the first of March when we got snow. I was so excited to get Dylan bundled up for his first snow. Luckily, we had a snow suit that was a hand me down. We went next door early in the morning before the snow melted. The kids were sledding down the hill. Last year, since I was preggers, I didn't get to sled, so this year, I did. It was so much fun. I got the furthest distance out of all the kids...I attribute that to my weight. Might I add, the dogs were especially frisky in the snow. Turbo has been outside now for 3 hours and won't come in. He's snow in his element. (hehehe)

snow fall last night

Dylan (aka Michelin Man)

Snow Angels anyone?

Sophie and Dylan

Turbo

Tag

I was tagged by Misty. For the tag, you go to the 4th folder, select the 4th picture and tell about it. Then, tag 4 other people. I tag Holly, Ashley, Lori and Kelley.

This was Dylan's birthday, May 10. He was quite the screamer and a big boy weighing in at 8lbs 2 oz. (not a good pic of me)

7 months

Today, Dylan is 7 months. Where has the time gone? 

My sweet little baby had another first this week. His first fever. He woke up Sunday morning a little warm, and I assumed it was teething as he had his hand in his mouth the day before. Then Sunday, when we went to my parents house, he wasn't his normal self...he was very sleepy and still.  I took his temp on Monday and it was 100.8. I thought I am going to go ahead and take him just in case. I am glad I did. His fever...104.3! I couldn't believe it. I felt so bad. They ended up checking everything, and when I say everything, I mean everything. First, they gave him motrin for the fever, and he puked every where as I had just fed him. Then they did a catheter on him to make sure the infection wasn't hiding in his kidneys. Then they pricked his finger to check his counts. I was a big ole' ninny and was boo hooing. The doctor (whom I love) was comforting me. The nurse said, I can't look at you or I will start crying.  They ruled it as a viral infection and said it had to run it's course. He puked a few more times, but I think it was because we were trying to keep him hydrated and shoving fluids on him even though he would tell us he didn't want them.  Lesson learned.  I think he's back to normal today, but we are still going to keep away from other kids for another day. I don't wish this on anyone. 

Hangin' with Santa

Dylan sat on PePaw's...uh-hmm...I mean Santa's lap yesterday. He didn't know what to think, so he cried.  Well to take his side a little, he's running a fever and not feeling well. I think he's working on some more teeth.

pre-tears

Turbo and Sophie with Santa

My Mom and her dogs Bandit and Brandy with Santa

Christmas Photo Shoot

Dylan and I took a few moments on Monday for a photo shoot.  My hope was that we could get a picture that would work for this year's Christmas card.  We like to do family pictures on our cards, previous years, it was just us and the dogs, but this year, we didn't have time to do a family picture. Therefore, it's all about Dylan this year, seeing that everyone has seen our favorite family photo on my blog and elsewhere.

This task was a challenge seeing that I had to entertain him, keep him still and try to get him to smile.  I even put him on a stool in front of the tree (otherwise there was no tree behind him just the skirt) and he leaned forward and fell off. Luckily I snagged him by his sweater before he smacked the floor.  whew...no more pics on the stool.  Here are a few of our out takes from that photo shoot. 

Turbo got in on the action too

Walk this Way

Dylan has now somewhat mastered walking with the walker. He still falls over and is a little wobbly and maybe doesn't know exactly how to turn and so forth, but it's his new favorite past time. He could do this all day long. 

Family Visit

Damien's sister and her daughters came to visit us this past week. It was so nice to get to see them, as it has been 6 months since we last saw them. The last time we saw them was right after Dylan's birth, so I wasn't much of a host then as I barely felt like getting out of bed.

Dylan, Taryn and Taylor

We had so much fun during their visit. We played with play doh, played Blokus and Uno.  Dylan really enjoyed them being here, probably a little too much as he didn't want to miss out on anything, which meant short naps and short feedings. Not to mention, I didn't want to let him cry it out while they were here, so I ended up getting in bed with him in one of the guest rooms.

On top of the games and fun, Taylor and I made cookies and dinner the first night while the rest of the family went out to target and books a million. We had fun licking the bowl. Taylor said it was the most fun night ever. 

We even ventured out to Opryland Hotel to see the Christmas decorations.  Last year, when they were here, we did the same but it was at night and it was way crowded. It was nice to enjoy it without the crowd. 

We can't wait to see you all again!!!

Dylan's Baby Dedication

This past Sunday, we had Dylan dedicated at church. Dedications are commitments before the church and God to submit a child to His will and to raise that child according to God's Word and God's ways. In the bible, Hannah made a vow to God...."As surely as you live, my lord, I am the woman who stood here beside you praying to the LORD. I prayed for this child, and the LORD has granted me what I asked of him. So now I give him to the LORD. For his whole life he will be given over to the LORD." And he worshiped the LORD there. 1 Samuel 1:26-28.

Cathy, presented Dylan with a gift to commemorate the special day which include a certificate, a blessings book, a kid's worship CD, a stuffed lamb and a letter from our pastors for him to open the day that he accepts Jesus as his Lord and Saviour. How I long for that day. I pray that he will walk in the Light.

Unfortunately, it was really dark in the service, so the pics did not turn out so well, but here are a few.

Caving In

Damien has been on my back about blogging on an incident that occurred last week. He's all, "have you not blogged about it yet, it so blog worthy...if it were anyone else you would have blogged about it already", so here it is I am calling myself out. 

A few weeks ago, we cooked some pizzas for a friends surprise party.  There were 3 pizzas and they called for direct rack baking, so I didn't use my pizza stone.  These were some cheesy pizzas, so there was some spillage. Damien had asked me to clean the oven (another chore I don't like to do), so right before his family got in town (another post coming soon) I got this bright idea. I am going to try out the self cleaning oven....this should be easy peasy, it's self cleaning...I don't have to do anything. Now, I have never used this feature before, and if you haven't either and are considering using it, my advice to you, read the directions. I put it on self clean, set it for 3 hours and embark on cleaning the rest of the house in preparation for their arrival the following day.  Like 20 minutes, in to the self cleaning, I notice that it's is putting off some burnt smelling fumes. Time passes by and as I pass through the kitchen, I see that there is a fire in the oven. I begin freaking out and yelling for Damien. I am jerking at the oven door, and if you don't know this, the door locks until it has cooled off enough to open. I am in panic mode...apparently you have to wipe off any spillage before using the feature. To me, that defeats the whole self cleaning part of it. Anyway, Damien tells me to get the instructions.  I am going through our junk drawer were we keep all the appliance information and warranties, and I cannot find it. Finally, the fire fizzles out and all is well.  Damien said, now I know how you act in emergency situations. I said, yea, I panic. He said, I thought I was going to have to smack you.  Needless to say, it will be a while before I use the self cleaning again.

Gag City (warning not for weak stomachs)

How can something so sweet and innocent do this?

Luckily, I was warned that babies could do this or I would have been completely shocked and disgusted.  For some reason, while it is disgusting, it's not near as bad when it's your baby's poo.

So much to be Thankful for

As Thanksgiving day is upon us, I thought that I would take a moment to express my gratitude for all my blessings.

First and foremost, I am thankful for God's unending grace and love. We could never do anything to earn it, and yet, He gives it freely as a gift to all who are willing to accept this amazing gift. I am honored to be His child.

I am thankful for my parents who raised me in a loving, christian home. Who taught me the importance of being loyal, passionate and caring. They taught me a strong work ethic and how a loving family should be even if we don't express our love verbally as often as I would hope. I know they love me and I love them...in this, there is no doubt. They have always been there for me, and I know they always will.

I am thankful for my husband, Damien, who loves me despite my many flaws :) He works hard everyday and allows me to stay at home with Dylan. He is my best friend, my husband, my baby's daddy, my all. I am thankful that God brought us together. I could not imagine my life without him.

I am thankful for Dylan, who gives me unmeasurable joy and unending love.

I am thankful for my family, friends, church family and may mommies who strengthen me and give me support. Each of you have helped me develop more into the person that God designed me to be.

I am thankful for our country, leaders and the service men and women who fight for country, so that we can continue to have freedom.

I hope you take the time and reflect on what you are thankful for this holiday. Don't let it slip away as just another day with a big meal.

Standing Tall

Dylan thinks he's hot stuff since he has mastered pulling up. Now he tries to pull up on everything, including poor Sophie.

Story Time

Dylan's favorite book is Animal Sounds.  If he's fussy, we can start reciting the book from memory and he calms down. If we pull it out, he starts smiling, as he does in this video.  Watch for his smile when I show him the book. Then he books it to me :)   

(Don't forget to turn the music off at the bottom of the page)

2nd Annual Special Weekend with the Fallers

Our road trip to the Alabama/Mississippi State game, got the name "Special Weekend with the Fallers" from a comment that Daniel (Faller) made. Last year, for the first annual, Rachel's sister flew into Nashville to ride with them down to the game in Starkville, MS. Daniel thought Rachel should have asked us if it was okay as it was their special weekend with the Weavers. Now we have adopted that saying as a knock on Daniel.  (On a side note, this would be my first weekend away from Dylan. I was concerned that he wouldn't eat from a bottle, but luckily he did very well. He stayed with Nana and PePaw, and they loved having him. Overall, I think I did well. I only called to check on him like 6 times.)

Rachel and I

This year, we (Alabama) were the home team. Thankfully, Damien booked our hotel rooms as soon as the football schedule was announced. Otherwise, we would have been staying way out of the way. We left Nashville Friday around 5pm. I asked our friend, Mande, who lives in Birmingham, where we could eat for dinner. She suggested a few places and we ended up going to Cajun Steamers. I was so excited. I love New Orleans style food. I had been craving etouffe for some time. As we sat down, I looked at the menu....there were 2 other Cajun Steamers, one in Alabama and one in Franklin, TN. I was so excited. If I liked it, I knew where I could go from now on. I got the Tilapia and Shrimp Rockfeller. It was, of course, tilapia and shrimp with a bacon spinach topping over a bed of mashed potatoes. It was so yummy, and I got a side of crawfish etouffe. Next time, it will be my main dish. Damien got a steamed shrimp platter. I couldn't have eaten it.  See why...

My yummy dish

After dinner, we continued on to Tuscaloosa battling some hard rain. Saturday morning, we ate breakfast and headed to the campus. We took the Fallers on a tour and Damien was happy as a lark. He hadn't been to the Bear Bryant museum since none of his friends that we usually see would want to go, so he got to go to it. He showed us fraternity/sorority row, Denny Chimes, the Quad and more. Also, we hit up all the bookstores and shops as we needed to get some new Alabama gear. Damien had to hit up a lot since he's super picky, but we made out with 2 shirts for me, 5 for him, magnets, license plate for the car and a gift for a friend and our tailgate host. We tailgated with one of his fraternity brothers and good friend, Thomas. He was such a gracious host. He had a nice spread of appetizers and a big pot of chili to keep us warm. Not to mention a fire and a warm heated RV. 

Bryant Denny Stadium

Denny Chimes 

Damien in the Bear Bryant museum

Tailgating at Thomas' RV

For fun, we played corn hole and rode the segway.

Damien and Thomas playing cornhole

Me on the segway

Kick off was at 6:45pm, so it was a long day. We headed to the stadium to watch the #1 team take on MSU. Alabama hadn't scored a touchdown on MSU in 3 years and had lost to them the past 2 years. This was the year for that to change. Final Score Alabama 32 MSU 7.  Bama's still #1 in the nation.

Damien and I at the game

The Fallers

Sunday morning, after breakfast we made our way back home with a pit stop in Cullman, Alabama to visit Uncle Buddy and Aunt Nancy who treated us to lunch. 

I could barely contain myself as I wanted to get home and get my baby.  Once I got my arms around him, I didn't want to let him go. How can I resist him?