random Thursday

• It is really hard to decorate for Christmas when you have a baby. I usually get everything knocked out in one day...but it has taken me a week! ...and I still haven't finished all of the outside lights! We will get to that tomorrow when Ben is off work. Our trees are up and decorated and Grayson in enamored with the lights. He just smiles and coos at the tree. He already loves Christmas!
• I go back to work in a little over a week. I can't talk about it or I will turn into a sobbing mess. Just ask my husband.
• Why did I not know about Cyber Monday last year?? I hopped on the whole online shopping bandwagon a little late...but now I am obsessed! SO MUCH EASIER! I bought 6 gifts off of Amazon on Cyber Monday for less than $100 and 5 of those presents had free shipping. Yes, please!!
• We got our Christmas cards in the mail yesterday. Love them. Thank you Shutterfly for my free cards! :)
• Growth spurts are no fun. I don't like them. G went from sleeping for 8 hours then another 4 hours to waking up every 3 hours! I think it is over...we are slowly stretching the nights back out. I need a full nights sleep like nobody's business!
• A couple of my biggest pet peeves have come out in the open now that the holidays are in full force: tacky gigantic blow up junk in your front yard (our neighbors have 7 of these ridiculous things) AND using white string Christmas lights on green bushes. Drives me batty! I fully admit to judging you if you do one of these 2 things...or even worse, both of them. For that, I am sorry.

a day of thanks!

I can't believe that Thanksgiving came & went and now it is time to start decorating for Christmas! We spent Thanksgiving this year in Atlanta with my family. It was a quick trip...we left Wednesday afternoon & had to come home on Friday morning--but it was fun while it lasted! I was worried about driving 3 1/2-4 hours with a baby...but Grayson did great! He slept the whole way there...and then slept that night!

We ate our Thanksgiving dinner at Papa & Carol's. They have a beautiful new mountain home and Carol is one of the greatest cooks you'll ever meet! Needless to say, we feasted...probably a little too much:) Grayson got to wear some "big boy" clothes & looked pretty handsome if I do say so myself!
twins? that is what everyone says...I still don't completely see it! His hair is getting dark like his daddy's though...

Having a coo-versation with his mama. Ha! I'm so clever.

Grayson loved getting to play with his Poppy & Nana!

After dinner, we headed over to see the rest of the family. I was so excited because I got to meet little Collin for the first time! He is so teeny & sweet! My cousin, Blakely, had Collin 2 months before Grayson was born. Here we are with our babies!

All the little cousins. I love this picture! Collin, Ashton, & Grayson will have so much fun playing together when they are older!

I think this is so sweet...love how Ashton has his arm around G & Grayson has his hand on Ashton!

the older cousins + new baby cousins

It was so fun seeing everyone & letting them meet and love on Grayson. We have lots to be thankful for this year! I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving!

thankful.

I love Thanksgiving. I love the family time, the gazillion gourds & pumpkins you see everywhere, and of course the ridiculous good food. My stomach is so excited!!

I am thankful for...

a roof over my head

a fabulous family

3 dogs that love me unconditionally

my very fun friends

and I think this year I am most thankful for this little guy...

I feel the need to pinch myself to make sure I'm not dreaming. He's real! And he's mine! And he's the cutest baby boy ever! Seriously...I am very thankful this year that my dream since I was about 3 years old has finally come true-I'm officially a mama. Can't wait to celebrate Thanksgiving with our newest addition!

Gobble Gobble!

I believe...

in trying to always find the good in people before the bad.

that dog greetings can always cheer you up.

in the power of prayer.

in the importance of spending quality time with your family.

that you can't live with regrets...you just need to learn from your mistakes.

that baby smiles and giggles are good for the soul.

that giving is better than receiving.

that God won't give you something that you can't handle.

in true love & working hard to make it last.

in always looking forward and never living in the past.

that having a child is the most rewarding job I will ever have.

in having fun nights with your girlfriends. they make your heart happy.

2 months

2 months ago {yesterday} our little Grayson decided he needed to vacate the womb! Can you believe it has already been 2 whole months?! This is flying by, people!

Here are the 2 month stats:

Weight: 11lbs 10oz

Height: 23 3/4 inches

He is long and skinny!

Poor guy had to get 6 vaccines. He didn't even notice the first shot...and then he gave the nurse a silent scream for the rest. He literally shrieked for 5 seconds and then was fine--what a champ!
At 2 months old Grayson is smiling a lot more. It is so fun to get him in the morning and see that big, gummy grin! He is also starting to laugh at us...he thinks his mama and daddy are pretty funny people. Smart kid:) Grayson is also holding his head up a lot more. He loves sitting in the bumbo and checking everything out. Pretty soon he will be ready for his jumperoo! Grayson has also discovered how much he loves his hands. They are constantly in his mouth...makes eating pretty difficult! :)
He's eating every 4 hours during the day now! Woohoo! We're still working on his nighttime schedule. I'm not pushing it...I figure we will get there eventually. I mean, I didn't have a baby so that I could catch up on lost sleep. I think my body is finally learning how to fully function on interrupted sleep-hooray!

We are having so much fun with this little guy! He is so much more alert & interested in what is going on around him now. Such a fun stage! It's hard imaginging what life was like just over 2 months ago. I wouldn't trade these sleepless nights for anything!

Happy 2 months, G!

i heart shutterfly.

...and Shutterfly hearts bloggers like you!

How cute are these Shutterfly Christmas cards?? They have so many cute & colorful designs this year! I've already started designing our 2010 Christmas card. :) I love sending out Christmas cards & one of my favorite things to do in December is check the mail! I love seeing pictures of my family & friends on their Christmas cards...I save them every year!

They also have my new favorite thing: photo books! I've seen some of my other mama friends use these as baby books...and since I've already taken 900 pictures of Grayson, I think he will need quite a few photo books. Ha!

Shutterfly is offering an awesome deal for bloggers and you can get **50** of your Christmas cards for FREE! Um, yes please! Go to this link, sign up, & wait for your email.




Ready, set, GO!

menu plan + new hair

I am really trying to get back on the ball with menu planning. I've learned that life gets a little more hectic with an 11ish pound bundle of love around. I feel like I am finally in a pretty regular routine with Grayson as far as eating, playing, & sleeping goes. **Sidenote--baby bootcamp is going well! He is eating every 4 hours now during the day & we are still trying to drop that second night time feeding. However, I've learned that the earlier he goes to bed, the longer he will sleep. He is now doing a 5 hour stretch for the first half of the night! I'll keep you updated..** Since I am feeling more organized and capable of getting a dinner on the table with a baby around...here is my menu:

Monday: Steak bites a la Pioneer Woman (so good!!), green beans, & mashed potatoes

Tuesday: White Bean Chicken Chili

Thursday: Chicken parmesan bites, roasted garlic cous cous, sauteed zucchini

Friday: Paula Deen's chicken stir-fry over white rice

Saturday: Steak fajitas with marinated corn salad

Sunday: Baked chicken & mashed or baked sweet potatoes

I got my hair did this week! Grayson had been ripping it out in handfuls & it was taking way too long to dry in the mornings. I decided to chop off about 4-5 inches! I'm hairexic so this is a big deal. Right now I love it...but I'm sure I will be missing my long hair in a few weeks:) That's how it usually goes! Does this mean that I now have a mom cut if I chopped it to make life easier?