Meet Lucy...

...or Clementine, Charlotte, Lulu....

She doesn't officially have a name yet, but she will. (Daniel voted for naming her "Supper" which is just ridiculous as she will never be anyone's "supper." I vetoed his choice).

I suppose I should explain why I am naming a cow.

Well, as previously noted, Daniel and I recently celebrated our 5th wedding anniversary. I spent most of the summer trying to come up with a creative and unique gift to give Daniel to celebrate this milestone. But, what do you give someone who already has everything (i.e. me and Carver)?

Well, the obvious answer is a cow, of course.

Random, I know.

Since I couldn't exactly tie a bow around her neck and drag her up to us (she resides in Bartow)-- I had to create a card that would explain it all:

She is the "gift that keeps on giving." A little extra income every now and then.

You see, she will have babies which will then be sold and sent to nice pastures where they will live out their days happy, and healthy, and whole. (OK, this might not be true but it is what I choose to believe). And, Lucy/Charlotte/Clementine/Lulu will also be living out her life in a nice pasture, with plenty to eat and room to roam around, with no antibiotics or hormones, etc.

And, if some of the sweet babies (when they are all grown up) are sent to one of those places I am sure that Daniel will make sure that it is nice and humane. Maybe a few will even stick around to grow old and give their mama (Lucy/Charlotte/Clementine/Lulu) grandbabies at "our" pasture in Bartow. (Or rather my parent's property there).

Special thanks to Lyle for helping me through the whole cow-buying process.

Hope this made for a memorable 5th anniversary gift :)

Old Friends

I'm playing catch up today-- this blog should have been posted back in July, sorry!

Towards the end of July I had the pleasure of attending a bridal shower for Krystal at the Black Mountain Bistro in Black Mountain, NC. The shower was perfect, and fun, and creative and was hosted by Beth-- who can also be described using those same adjectives :)

The shower was fun, but the exceptional part of it to me is just taking a step back and realizing that these girls (including Ashley who was also a guest), are still so important to me, and have been a huge factor in my life-- and all because God called us to attend/work at the same summer camp. It is amazing to me, how spending summers together can lead to long-lasting and binding friendships. I respect these women, I love them, I cherish them, and I miss them. They have each, in different ways, seen me through some of my best and worst times. They have seen me be a leader and a follower, they have seen me hurt and seen me heal, they have seen me in control and struggling. They have been friends, mentors, counselors, and held me accountable in so many ways.

Each one of them was at my wedding and I was at both Beth's and Ashley's and I cannot wait to attend Krystal's also. Krystal is loyal, compassionate, trustworthy and kind-- Dan is a lucky guy :)

I have been so very blessed throughout my life to not only have the honor and privilege of working with so many incredible girls through Crestridge, but also to still be able to call them my closest friends. Some of my closest and most-meaningful friendships originated in that place.

So, congrats to Krystal-- can't wait until November!

Melts my heart.

I love walking in to see this at the end of naptime :)
(He is standing up in case you can't tell in the picture)

Eight Months

Carver is officially 8 months old and my feelings about it are sort of contradictory. I feel like these last eight months have flown by, but I also feel like it was so long ago that I was pregnant and anxiously awaiting his safe arrival. And, I can barely remember what it was like to hold him when he was a "tiny" newborn. I mean, I have hundreds of pictures to document it of course, but it still seems like a long time ago. Maybe because now I can't really picture a world before he was in it.

Regardless, I am still amazed that he is already eight months old. And let me just say, I am loving this age. I've loved them all for different reasons, but watching him crawl and sit up and even stand up is so.much.fun. I just love it.

Here are some happenings from the 8-month mark:

1) Crawling in perfect formation now. He only drops to his tummy if he needs to free up his hands to hold something. And, he crawls at lightning speed. Usually straight back to whatever I just moved him away from.

2) Sitting up easily and really enjoys his new view from shopping carts and high chairs.

3) Pulling himself up into a standing position. (While I cringe waiting for him to fall over and hit his head or some other body part). As a side note, I am amazed that children consistently outgrow this baby phase without brain damage. Carver bumps into things or falls over, etc ALL DAY LONG. Luckily he is very tough and usually only cries for a few seconds before heading on his way.

4) I'm fairly certain that, as of today, he is saying "Mama." Which I adore hearing though in no way is he associating the word with me. (Daniel heard it too if you need proof). However, the sooner he learns that the word is actually associated with me the sooner I lose any and all hope of denying him anything he wants. (You know..."Just say Mama and you can have ______.")

5) Carver stayed in the nursery (at church) for the first time this week. I know, I know, I waited quite awhile. But, it was even hard for me to do it at this age. Leave your child with strangers?? Gasp. But, it worked out fine. We both survived.

6) We had our first vacation as a family to Savannah.

7) Met his new friend, Whitney Allison.

8) CUT HIS FIRST TOOTH!!! On the bottom of course. No pictures of it yet as it is only clearly visible when he yawns but as soon as I get one you will be the first to see it. (And, it appeared on his cousin Julia's thirteenth birthday!)

9) Still breastfeeding (gag) but Carver has been weaning himself for the last month or so (hooray). We are down to nursing only overnight. I am SO glad that I made the decision to breastfeed though, I've made no secret of the fact that I am not a fan of the practice. Still, it was the right decision (for us) and it really worked out quite well. I'm not sad that it is coming to an end. I made it much, much longer than I ever thought possible.

10) Still not sleeping through the night. Oh no, my son likes to wake up 2,3, sometimes 4 times a night. Yes, we've tried "crying it out;" no, he is not hungry, cold, etc. I know I am probably doing something wrong but I don't know what it is...

11) Carver is a rather light eater. He eats about four 6 oz bottles a day (plus whatever he eats overnight when nursing). Then he eats 2 meals a day of solids. Sometimes he eats a lot but usually it is, what I would consider, a rather small amount for his size/age. BUT, he weighs 20 lbs so I wouldn't say he is malnourished. Short of force feeding him I'm not sure what else to do.

12) Carver had his first run-in with Delia. He brushed up against her and she whipped around and nipped at him...twice. At which point Daniel spanked her, yelled at her, and dragged her to her crate for a "Time Out." Carver merely kept heading toward the toy he was aiming for and was never even aware of the exchange. Delia spent the next two days attached to Daniel, trying to get him to forgive her. We're keeping an eye on the situation. But, I admit, my feelings were hurt. Delia should know better.

13) Carver likes to make a clicking sound with his tongue. Sometimes he does it all.day.long. And he thinks it is so funny if you make the sound back to him.

14) Carver is very noisy when he eats. He repeatedly makes a humming-type sound that sounds sort of like "Mmmmmmm..."


As always I am looking forward to what the next months bring. Having a child really makes each day have endless possibilities. I have so many things to be thankful for. At the top of that list is this child that I adore, who is perfect, and precious, and healthy. He has given my life a meaning and a purpose that it had lacked for so long. Being a parent is scary business. Every night, when I am sitting in the rocking chair in his nursery, with the lights out, and his music playing, giving him his last bottle, I pray fervently that God will protect him, use him, love him, and guide him. I pray that Daniel and I will always be all that he needs us to be, that we will not let him down or fail in this huge job we have been called to do. Most of all I pray that I will not have a spirit of fear. That I will not allow my worrying and over-protectiveness to take away from his life or the beauty of each day I get to spend with him. He is a gift and a blessing and at the end of the day I just have to lift him up to God, and let go-- knowing that I have done my best for him that day (or at least tried), and that the rest is out of my hands.

Good Friends

Over our weekend in Savannah we had the good fortune (and pleasure!) of meeting Courtney and Darin in Jacksonville for lunch. While I loved seeing both of them, the highlight of the visit was meeting their sweet daughter, Whitney.

Whitney is four months old and absolutely precious. She seems so tiny and delicate at 12 lbs. compared to Carver's 20 lbs. She was adorable in her dress and hair bow and I could have cuddled her and loved on her all day :) I was thrilled to finally get to meet her and get to love on her a little. Though the visit was much too short.

I absolutely loved being pregnant at the same time as Courtney. For the last few years our lives have been very intertwined, following much of the same path. We had an instant connection when we met in our first French class at UF. And she is the only true friend that I ever made simply by having a class together in school. I never could have imagined how close we would end up-- but what a friend she became!

The following year after meeting Courtney, I moved into her apartment complex (with Court and Jules), and we took almost all of the same classes and drove together to campus most days. We socialized on the weekends and she was always there to help me through the drama of my life in those days. She is probably the friend I have the most in common with-- we have similar interests and views on life and the same taste in jewelry and handbags.

Possibly the best part of our friendship is how well our husbands get along also. This has been an enormous blessing-- they are, as a couple, our best friends. In January of 2009 we even traveled together for the first time, to Breckenridge, and had an incredible time.

I can't wait for our families to keep growing, both in size, and closeness. I am so excited to keep planning vacations with them and to keep scheduling visits whenever possible. Courtney is one of the very small handful of people in my life that I did not grow up with but who knows me about as well as those that I did grow up with. I love that when I talk about any situation or person from my past, or in my family, she knows exactly who it is because we have spent so many hours talking over the years that we just know almost everything about each other, past and present. She is a very special friend-- she's family.

On that note, here are some pictures from our visit. (I had to steal several from Courtney since mine did not turn out so well). And yes, we are in a department store. We were trying to get us and the kids out of the blazing Florida sun-- it was brutal that day.

Summer Fun

We finally put to use the inflatable swimming pool we purchased last May. Since it was the end of July before Carver was sitting up properly he was not able to use it all summer as I had hoped.

Too bad since he loves it.


The girls were very interested in the new pool, however, in typical baby Winston fashion, the pool proved to be much too scary. He hid himself behind the planter, which was in the very corner of the deck, behind the deck chair and the grill.



Apparently, he couldn't even stand to look at it.

Savannah

Last weekend we headed down to Savannah for our first family vacation and to celebrate our 5th anniversary. Despite the freakishly hot temperatures the vacation was a huge success. Carver was a fabulous traveler and getting to spend 5 straight days all together was much needed and very welcome. We (or I) had hoped to return to St. Lucia for our 5th anniversary but what I got instead (i.e. Carver) was SO much more special. Savannah (and Tybee Island) is special to us because that is where we got engaged-- so still symbolic and a great place to celebrate.

Here is our vacation in pictures:

Carver's very favorite activity was being pushed around outside in his stroller. He did NOT like to go indoors but would let us push him around outside indefinitely.

Carver's travel bathtub.

Day 1: Trolley tour (with several stops to wander around).
Carver took a little nap and seemed completely unaffected by the blazing hot temperatures.
Paula Deen's Restaurant: The Lady and Sons


"Poet's Lunch" at The Lady and Sons



The Lighthouse on Tybee Island


My favorite boys on the beach.


This was not Carver's first time seeing the beach, but it was his first time in the water and sand.


Ready to go to dinner....
Our very favorite Savannah restaurant. (Location of Courtney and Darin's rehearsal dinner, the same weekend we got engaged-- way back in 2004)


Fried chicken in pecan sauce: A.M.A.Z.I.N.G....and low-fat too (ha!).


Sorry this is blurry, but playing with these mirrors in our room was vastly entertaining to Carver. And yes, I cringe at seeing him playing on a hotel room floor, but what do you do?


Our last dinner in Savannah: Churchill's Pub

Love this...

Let me just say that I l.o.v.e. going in to get Carver up from his nap and find him sitting up in his crib waiting for me. It just makes me smile. I guess it is just that he hasn't been able to sit up like this for very long, so the novelty hasn't worn off yet. He is just getting so big. It's bittersweet.



Disclaimer: We are packing for our Savannah trip (we leave on Thursday) and we are at the bottom of the barrel as far as clean clothes that are not already packed for our trip. Love this Gator onesie but it is a little snug and then, of course, the random non-matching pants make the outfit complete... Don't judge me. I promise we do not leave the house like this.

The Inn Between Deli

I love any and all "lunch foods." Sandwiches, salads, soups, etc. It is my favorite meal of the day so a deli is perfect to me.

Last week Carver and I went to meet Daniel in Gainesville for a quick lunch. Following someone's recommendation we decided to eat at the Inn Between Deli. When we pulled up I was slightly horrified. First, it is teeny tiny, and in a super nondescript building and location. But, no big deal-- it's just lunch, so I was sure it would be fine. As we were walking in, Daniel commented that they probably wouldn't have any high chairs for the little one to sit in. And, I thought that was ridiculous. Of course, they would have highchairs...

But, no. They did not.

What they did have was two plastic tables with plastic chairs; coolers with drinks, shelves with boxes of chips (i.e. storage), and a counter with one lady behind it.

That's it.

As soon as we walked in we had questions fired at us from the lady behind the counter:

"Do you want a drink?"

"Fountain or bottled?"

"Ham, Turkey, or Roast Beef?"

"White, wheat, or roll?"

"Chips?"

That was the entire exchange. Note that there are no other options. There is no menu. The sandwiches are pre-made and you get what you get.

So, I was not impressed. Not one little bit.

Until I ate the sandwich. (seated at the one free plastic table)

It was oh-my-gosh good. The funny thing is that I am not even sure why it was so good. It was turkey, mayo, mustard, and cheese on a white poppy seed roll. And that's it. But it was really good. Not just sort of good, but really, really, good.

It was probably the 1/2 cup of mayonnaise on the sandwich that made it particularly tasty. Partially because I hadn't had mayo in a really long time (because of the miserable dieting). But, since I had no choice, I had to eat it, right?

Daniel hates mayonnaise and was only able to choke down half of the sandwich after scraping as much mayo off as possible.

So, it just goes to show you that you shouldn't always make quick judgments. Because I will likely be back to get another sandwich. I may not ever take guests there, or make a special trip down to the "deli," but, I'll return, that I am sure of.

Oh, and they were certainly not hurting for business. There was a steady stream of traffic in and out for the entire 20 minutes we were eating. And, it was largely business types-- lawyers, etc.

Crazy but good.

The little things.

I've tried, lately, to take note of the little things in life. And to not get so absorbed in negative thinking or focusing on things that I might want to change in my life, etc.

So, last Saturday gave me a good opportunity to realize that sometimes it is merely the linking together of small good things that make up what is truly special in normal, day-to-day life.

Saturday was the first full day Daniel has had off since May. And no, this is not an exaggeration. I feel a little foolish, but I have to admit, I was beyond excited when Daniel called on Friday afternoon to let me know he would be off all day on Saturday. So, of course, I immediately started making plans for all of the things I wanted to do with Daniel around. Things are just SO much easier if Carver and I don't have to run around town just the two of us.

First up was Babies R' Us, which could entertain me for hours, possibly days. With Daniel there to entertain Carver I could peruse to my heart's content. The big news for the day was that organic baby food was on sale!

I might have gone a little overboard, especially considering I make a lot of his food too...
but it was a good sale.

The other very fun part of the Babies R' Us excursion was Carver's new seating option. No longer do we have to drag the baby carrier into stores with us (with the 20 lb child it was super heavy). He can now sit right in the shopping cart and seems pretty pleased with the new arrangement.




Lunch was the next stop and we ate at one of my very favorite places: Sweet Tomatoes. It's a salad bar restaurant and I l.o.v.e. it. I especially appreciate it because it is not Daniel's favorite place to eat.

And finally, saving the best for last...we finished out the day off at The Fresh Market. I love this place. In Asheville I shopped here regularly and I miss it terribly. I could spend an excessive amount of time just wandering around in there. I love the fresh flowers, the produce, the prepared foods, the bakery...ok, I love all of it. I really, really miss having places like The Fresh Market, Whole Foods, and Trader Joe's as a shopping option. One of the sad parts about living outside of civilization. But, Atlanta is close enough for occasional visits.

And what better way to end an already great day than a little bedtime story with daddy...

Carver has to have his own book to hold/chew on or he attacks his Bible story book.

I just love these simple, normal days. It makes me so appreciate the time we can spend together as a family, even doing seemingly mundane things. Every day is special, sometimes I just have to remind myself to actually look for the good parts of each day.