the little things

month 10.

 

Dear Grayson,

Holy wow. 10 months. Really?

Can we pleeeease slow this growing thing down, baby boy? Pretty please?

This has been such a FUN past month with you!  You are doing sooo many new things, including walking ALL over the place! You walk over half the time now and daddy and I are so very proud of you.

You started saying, "hi!" "papaw" and "ball" this month!

(a grainy cell phone photo, but one of my favorites!)

You really enjoy watching Poppy Cat and Super Why! with daddy and I. You also recognize the Thomas theme song (I think it's because I sing it to you all the time!) We're big Thomas fans around here!

You are such a social baby and you're adjusting to other babies and kids with time. You are super great with adults, but aren't always a fan of little kids.

You're totally best friends with daddy. You LOVE Hot Wheels, too!

You still dislike diaper changes, getting your clothes changed and loud noises. You also dislike getting out of the bath, being bundled up and being told "no!" Haha.

You started high-fiving a few weeks ago and it's so funny!

Another latest favorite of yours is picking a book (or five) from the shelf in the dining room, sitting down and "reading" through them!  It's precious watching your little fingers whisp through the pages. You treat books very well. Way to go, little man!

Towards the end of this month you figured out how to open the toilet lid (yikes!), remove your fish faucet cover and really enjoy filling your cup with water in the tub from the faucet, taking a sip and then dumping it out...then repeating.

I love how fast you catch on to things. Well, most things. ;) I really wish you wouldn't have caught on to opening the toilet lid so fast!

You also take no time for safety these days. This past Friday while I was at work and you were at home with daddy and had been taking a nap...daddy went to check on you and you were sitting on your bedroom floor!  You had climbed out of your crib! Unreal!  Daddy was so scared you had hurt yourself, but thankfully you had no bumps, bruises, cuts or broken bones!  Our little Spiderman! 

You are such a funny baby. You make us and everyone around you laugh all. the. time. You love to ham it up! I have no idea where you get it! ;) Haha! You really make me laugh when I ask you to "shake it!" or "dance baby!"-you have no hesitations about gettin' down and shakin' your behind, especially when you hear a good beat! It's too cute!

You have made many trips to the store, grandma and grandpa's and around town this month. Oh, and you also got to go out and briefly play in your first snow!  You didn't hate it, but you didn't love it either. You just didn't know what to think! You're so my kid! haha.

You have two teeth on the lower gum, side by side. And wear a size 9-13 month shirt and mostly 6 months pants, some 9 months size (you're a shorty!) and wear a size 4 diaper b/c it's more comfy now.

You now sit in your big carseat and love traveling. It often soothes you so much you end up falling asleep!

You got your first haircut this month too!  Great gram Phipps cut it for ya and you did SO good! Proud of you!

You are such a joy, Grayson-pants. We love you more than you will ever know. I am so honored to be your mama. SO blessed.

Here's to another fun and exciting next month ahead!

We love you incredibly so!

Love,

Mama and Daddy

a little self honesty

I wish I could say it's just lately that I have been feeling overwhelmed, but that wouldn't be honest.

It's more like the last few months. I think with having a very active 7/8/9 month old, working part-time, being pregnant and trying to manage our home it's just wearing me out.

For some silly reason I thought I could "do it all." You know-balance the family, my health, our schedules, work...all with a big smile on my face.

I have spent many days and nights in prayer. Just asking the Lord to show me what He would like me to do.

I couldn't understand it.

I've felt so guilty about this, because I am SO very blessed. I have a loving, kind, helpful and supportive husband. A beautiful, smart, silly little boy who is the best gift ever. I have another sweet boy on the way, when we never thought the first one could even happen! I have a job. Nate has a job and is continuing to grow and do good things with it. We have a home and clothes and food in our bellies. We have a loving bunch of family and friends, as well as a great church home. We are truly BLESSED.

So, why was I feeling all these things? Like, the feeling of knowing and WANTING to enjoy ever thing, good and bad-but just holding out. Not wanting to fully BE in anything for fear of failure or stress or being too tired.

Tis true, I AM tired.

But, over the past few days the Lord has laid on my heart why I am here. What my purpose today is.

It's to be ALL IN for Him.

Not perfect.

None of us are.

It's to be a good servant to Him. A good wife to Nate. A loving and patient mom to Grayson (and Liam :)). A respectful daughter. A good friend and hard worker.

Even when I don't necessarily want to be or feel I can be.

He's showing me everyday that life is not perfect and every situation cannot certainly always go my way.

But, to just trust. Have faith in His word. His desires.

He won't let me down.

 I am slowly learning to let go of so much worry and doubt of being "perfect." Instead I'm here to focus on making the most of what's truly important.

To enjoy life.

One of the first things I decided that needed to be worked on was getting in some time during the day for me or Nate and I. Grayson has always napped in his swing or in our arms. For nearly 10 months.

And it finally took it's toll on both of us. Especially with Liam coming ina  few short months, I was so overwhelmed with just the thought of having two little ones screaming and wanting to be held or rocked to sleep.

The time came to "cry it out"--for us both! ;)

I'm happy to say with many friends and family's encouragement (and many prayers!) we are having success with Grayson napping on his own, on more of a schedule and happily doing it.

I can't tell you how much goodness has come of this little change. I feel like I'm getting things done more, I have more pep in my step and I know Grayson is benefiting greatly from it all too, which is the most important thing.  Yesterday was only day 2 of our new routine and he didn't even cry when we put him down for naps. And no crying today either!

The Lord hears our cries and knows our needs before we do(and often when we don't even know what we need) and I am so thankful for His hand on this situation and me, as His child.

I knew things just didn't feel right within and am so happy I have vowed to challenge myself and work on ME.  That is, afterall, how I can be the best wife and mom to the ones I love.

Life is good. Even with a pile of laundry waiting to be folded, or a sink full of dishes needing to be washed, or dinner to be cooked, or a baby to be changed or bathed. Life is good.

project life. week two.

So, this week I had even more fun with this new format of scrapping! I loved including more "stuff" along with the photos and stories.

This week was one of a couple firsts for Grayson. first snow. first haircut. oh, and his latest word, "papaw!"

Awesome.

 I was 23 weeks pregnant with Liam and we even got to hear his sweet little heartbeat! *bliss*

This was the first week I used a little "extra" pocket for some more photos. It's a 4x6 protcetor and I just stapled it to the big page. Fun stuff!

Gramcracker cut Grayson's hair last week. It was his first chop and I had to work, but I am so thankful she thought to keep his locks in an envelope for me! (She knows me so well! hehe) I was able to reuse some scrapbooking packaging (Jenni Bowlin chipboard packet) to put his hair in after I cut it down to fit in the pocket. I sealed it with Tombo glue and Washi tape. I love how it can be seen in there, yet still be secure for years to come.

As usual, I'm pretty excited for the coming week. I'm using some new tags made by my best friend, Kristina!  They're absoutely adorable and I can't wait to incorporate them into our album!  Check them out here if you're interested for your own Project Life!

Oh, and how much did I melt when I Grayson came by while I was taking photos for this post the other day and showed genuine interest in my Project Life? VERY!

Proud and happy mama here! ;)

project life week one. complete!

Yahoo!  I did it!  I completed my first week of Project Life and can I just say I am LOVING it?!

Loving that even Nate is getting involved (on date night he was totally game for me using his iPhone & instagram for a couple quick shots of our day together!) and that I am able to take our precious photos and actually DO something with them that doesn't require too much time, thought or energy.

This preggo is too tired for all the extra hooplah right now. ;)

Here she is, folks! Complete with wonky dining room lighting, shadows and a glare...or three. ;)

But, I love it. Not for the embellishments or letter stickers. Not for the patterned paper or brads. But, for the photos. The story. Our life. It. Is. Good.

-left side-

-right side-

I am very excited for this week's spread! I purchased some new printable journaling cards from etsy and am itching to use them!

In other news-we got to hear sweet Liam at my doctor's appointment yesterday!  He had a heart rate of 140 bpm and the doctor said I am measuring right on track! Thanking the Lord for blessings!