Welcome to my world

Breastmilk-- Gross
Breastfeeding-- Really Gross
Regurgitated Breastmilk-- there are no words...

Milestones

Carver's first time wearing jeans! I l.o.v.e. jeans. They are definitely my favorite article of clothing. It's likely that Carver will be wearing them a lot :)

A few more pics...

Weekend Happenings

This weekend Carver had a visit from his Nana and Papa. They arrived on Wednesday and stayed until Sunday and he had such a good time getting loved on by his grandparents. And, we enjoyed having another set of hands to hold the baby!This visit was great because Carver is really starting to smile and laugh and scream and squeal when he is happy. His favorite times seem to be on his changing table, but he really likes laying in bed with me in the mornings too. This is one of my favorite times of the day also :)

Sunday was a full day also. Daniel, Carver, and I went down to Atlanta for a Strong Rock function and we were able to spend some quality time with good friends. It is so special to me that Carver is already so well loved by my friends.

(Deanne and Carver)

(Rebecca and Carver)

I am SO proud of how well Carver is doing. He is getting into a good routine and his behaviors are becoming slightly more predictable. Life is becoming more normal week by week. We're having a really good time :)

(Silly Boy!)

Sweet Jules

( I was pregnant in above picture, not just chubby...)

Last night I couldn't sleep. This happens a lot. I think it is because I am waiting around for Carver to wake up and need me. Hopefully I will eventually get over this. When I can't sleep my mind wanders to a variety of subjects, jumping from place to place with little rhyme or reason. On this particular night it landed on Julia, and I realized that Julia is the first baby that I ever loved. And, loving her taught me a different kind of love. That fierce protectiveness that comes from loving something younger and smaller than you. The kind of love that makes you realize that you could be completely selfless, surrender your wants and desires for those that are best for that child. Loving Jules showed me that I could be a parent. That I could survive that kind of terrifying love and protectiveness.

Julia has been, and always will be, one of the most precious parts of my life. It's simple, I adore her. So many moments over the last 12 years have come together to make up the story of our special relationship. These are just a few.

* Lyle and I sleeping in the hospital waiting room, anxious for Julia to enter the world. And when she did I thought she was the most beautiful baby I had ever seen.
* Lyle using baby Julia as a way to attract the attention of girls (mostly at the Youth Fair, he said it was "better than a puppy.")
* The first time baby Julia had a true "belly laugh."
* The first time she said my name. Then having to listen to her scream my name when I left her at day care, begging me to come back. About broke my heart.
* Early morning babysitting responsibilities my freshman year in college. Courtney would bring Jules over bright and early and put her in bed with me. Jules would usually only fall asleep if she was laying on my chest. I didn't care as long as she slept.
* Many other babysitting opportunities, usually involved eating out. Jules would pick McDonald's and I would veto and choose something better. Luckily, she LOVED mac and cheese from Outback.
* Watching Jules play soccer when she was 4 (I think), and trying not to laugh when she wanted to stomp off the field.
* Giving her caffeinated coke when she was super young. Just because I thought it was funny.
* Knowing that I was her favorite :)
* Hearing her use "perforated" correctly in a sentence when she was about 3 years old.
* Shopping at the mall when she had an "accident" on the floor in Bath and Body Works....no change of clothes. She left the mall with a whole new outfit, head to toes.
* Living with Court and Jules my last year at UF and decorating my bedroom door with Julia's artwork.
* Introducing Julia to Crestridge as a 5 year old.
* Playing in the snow in Asheville.* Making pumpkin muffins.

* Trip to Disney for her 8th birthday. They mistakenly gave us a room with one bed-- I had to line the center of the bed with pillows and forbid her from crossing it. She's a nightmare to sleep with, she's clingy :)
* Julia as my precious and beautiful flower girl.
* Julia visiting us in GA, and introducing her to Strong Rock Camp.
* Introducing Julia to Carver and watching her hold my precious son. They are two great loves of my life.

A Typical Day

Sometimes the normal, nothing special, days are the best.

Like watching Carver, during "tummy time," smiling and laughing and getting oh so strong.
Or, giving the girls a bath so when Carver is covered in dog hair at least it is clean dog hair (this one is for you el!)
And, being totally tuckered out after a long hard day...

Visiting Daddy at Work

Sometimes we just need to get out of the house. Luckily, visiting Daniel at work is usually a good option for us. He acts like he is so busy all the time, but I know he likes for us to visit :) So, on pretty days we head on out for a couple of hours-- a great way to pass the time.

I love it that Daniel's job allows for moments like this...

The Boppy

The "Boppy" has become a very popular commodity in this house...

Let it snow...

Growing up in Florida did not provide me with much experience with snow. Several trips to Washington state did allow us to see snow on the ground, but never falling snow. When I moved to Asheville in 2003 and finally saw actual snow falling and accumulating I was instantly in love with it. I adore snow. Not that I would want to live in a place with permanent snow for all winter months but Asheville had the perfect amount. During the winter every week or so we would get a good snow-- a couple of inches-- that would turn the world into a winter wonderland, last a day or two and then melt away. The process would be repeated over and over through the winter months. No big piles of dirty snow to contend with. Then there were snow days! Daniel would drive to our house in his gigantic truck and pick Ellen and me up and we would go for groceries at Ingles (mostly to get snow day snacks) and then to Blockbuster for movies. We would snuggle down in our cozy house and l.o.v.e every minute of the day. There are about 30 things (at least) that I could immediately list that I desperately miss from Asheville (our house at 25 Baird St, my roomie/BFF Ellen, fabulous restaurants, shopping downtown, Biltmore House, Grove Park Inn-- just to name a few). But at the top of my list are snow and snow days. Some of my most favorite memories.

Well, much to my disappointment there is not much snow in Northeast Georgia. Even though we live in the "mountains" (ha). We've had a number of snow flurries and maybe 3 times when snow actually accumulated. Well, folks, today was one of those days!!! We got about 3 or 4 inches and snow fell all day long, from the moment I woke up. The whole world was white and snowy. I opened all the blinds in the house so that no matter where I was I would be able to look out and see the falling snow. Too bad Carver is too young to be out in it, but the dogs did get to "enjoy" it for a bit. Well, Winston enjoyed it but the girls...not so much.