Memorial Weekend in Florida

It was time for our annual Memorial weekend trip to Florida with our friends Rylee and Jesse, and we were so ready! Last year we had to take Crew, and while we love our children dearly, we also love a good vacation with no kid responsibility. It was a little change of events than previous years, because this time Rylee and Jesse had their little boy Cash. He was a dream and we were more than happy to have him!

We were a little worried about this year's trip because we had seen the weather reports and we were destined to be rained out. But much to our pleasant surprise, every day we wanted to be at the beach we had beautiful weather!

We were a little worried about this year's trip because we had seen the weather reports and we were destined to be rained out. But much to our pleasant surprise, every day we wanted to be at the beach we had beautiful weather!

Because I still have a broken elbow, I was essentially banned from water activities, mostly because the rip current was super strong, and if I were to get taken out, I wouldn't really be able to swim back in. So I stayed ankle to knee deep and enjoyed myself just fine. Ethan and Jesse spent some quality time hanging out in the water, while Rylee and I enjoyed hanging out with Cash in his little blowup pool they brought and filled with a little water.

The weekend was filled with beach time, naps, lots of snacks, Barbara Jean's (a restaurant right on the river, the food is amazing!), TPC Sawgrass for brunch (the French toast was fantastic), Settlers of Catan, Marvel movies, and so many awesome conversations! We always love our trip to Florida, and feel so grateful this has become our tradition with some of our favorite people!

Crew's First Haircut

This haircut was a long time coming. With Nixon it was so much easier because he hair was just kind of straight and thin. But Crew has thicker curly hair, and I swear it matches so much of his personality!

But after the worker at Costco asked if "she" wanted a treat, I knew it was time. It still took a couple weeks to get it done, but it happened. 

It was so stinking long! But look at him now. Thankfully he kept some of his curl!

Crew's first snow

I think it went really well....

And by well, I mean this was what his face looked like for a good 10-15 minutes, even after we came inside. I'm pretty sure he blamed by mom for the rest of the day. Good news is, a couple days after the initial freak out, he touched it on his terms, and he seemed to be ok with it. Maybe next year we'll try again.

Snow day

North Carolina isn't known for its snow during the winter, but for some reason, this year it dumped on us. By the time it was done we got about 4-5 inches. That meant everything in the city basically shut down, and we were able to have Ethan home from work!

Crew was not interested, but these two boys were living it up! They would have stayed out there all day if we actually had snow gear, but living in the south, we don't have any of that. 

So instead, they stayed out and played as long as they could, got soaking wet, came inside to dry their clothes and warm up a little bit, and then head right back out to play some more. I think that happened three or four times.

I even went and spent some time outside (mostly to take pictures of them). I will say, it was fun to see Nixon enjoy something that was so fun to me when I was little. I'll take snow once a year, as long as it's gone in a couple days!

I'm so glad Ethan is such a fun dad and spends time doing things with the boys that I would prefer to avoid, and I know Nixon loved having him home to play with.

Our little Sunbeam

In our church, the year a child turns 4, they graduate from nursery into Sunbeams (based off the song Jesus wants me for a sunbeam). Nixon has been so ready, and I'm pretty sure these pictures show just how proud he was to be a Sunbeam.

We love you Nixon.

Halloween- Take 2

We dressed up as Greasers for our ward trunk-or-treat. I had full intention on dressing up again on the actual night of Halloween. The problem was that it was going to be colder than it was previously which would mean the boys would need to be in long sleeves. Unfortunately we didn't have leather jackets or I would have run with it, so I decided (after seeing how miserable Nixon was at the fact that all the other kids were super heroes and he wasn't at the trunk-or-treat) to let him choose what he wanted to be for trick-or-treating. We settled on a stormtrooper because we have the mask, and his cousin Owen had the outfit to match. 

 Emmett was the Tin Man, Owen was Thor, and of course Nixon was a stormtrooper.  With Nixon dressing up as something else, I had to pull other costumes together.

Say hello to Mr. Smee.

And of course, we couldn't skip out on the fun. I whipped up our signs in illustrator about 5 minutes before we left. 

We had such a fun time trick-or-treating down in Fort Mill with all of the family, and all the kids loved going with their cousins. I love being around so many cousins, it makes holidays just a little more special. 

Happy Halloween!

We hope your Halloween was as "hoppin" as ours!

52 Weeks

Oh. My. Word. We made it! We got 52 pictures in 52 weeks. I can't tell you how time consuming it is, but it is so worth it to look back and have those pictures! We'll be having his birthday next weekend and I'm so excited to see it all put together. Let's just say we're going to have a little bit of a fiesta! Thanks for mostly cooperating Crew, I couldn't have done it without you! We love this guy (and those curls!).

51 Weeks

This boy is 51 weeks!! One week before he turns one and we are in full party planning mode! His personality is getting cuter and cuter every day. We still have our hard moments, but I'm starting to see some light at the end of the tunnel. I'm finally getting an occasional "mama" out of him, but he's more interested in "dada", "ow", "wow", "wah" (I'm assuming this is his "what" because he usually says this while pointing). One week buddy!

50 Weeks

We are just weeks away from his first birthday, and I can't get this kid to say "mama" for the life of me!! I mean come on.. I'm with him all day, every day. Yet, the second Ethan walks in the door, "dadadadadadadada!" Daddy's boy much? Ok, I kind of love seeing them together, but I mean, would it be so hard to humor me with a "mama"? I think not.

49 Weeks

Another week, another TWO teeth. They popped through on the same day, and he's been in a slightly better mood since. Also, can we all just take a moment real quick to see this..

I'm pretty sure this is my new favorite picture of this guy. Look at the sass that fills his whole body. I love it! 

Some things that Crew loves:

-Being pushed in a swing

-Being pulled in a wagon

-His brother Nixon

-Walking around like a big boy

-Being pushed in the stroller

-His daddy

-Cords, phones, computers (basically anything that he shouldn't be touching

Also, this kid is QUICK! The second I look away from him, he's gone! It's probably a good thing we spend 99% of our time in the house because it's exhausting trying to keep up with him. 

48 Weeks

This kid is 11 months! I can't believe how fast it has gone! Not that I'm overly upset about that. It's been a little rough with this one, but I just have to keep reminding myself, "This too shall pass." He has to be teething. Or should I say, please let it be teething! I don't remember teething being as difficult as it has been for Crew. We love him regardless, but I'm ready for the crying to stop. Seriously.. Crew, can you give us a little break? Thanks.

47 Weeks

Crew has the best hair. It's not super thick, but it has some great curl! I mean look at this:

He's getting more smiley and I love it. His little teeth make the best smile. He says "dada" all the time, wow, ow, and a few other sounds here and there. Can I get a "mama" from him? Not a chance. Dang kid doesn't know what's good for him. Good thing he's so darn cute. And those lashes? I mean come on. He will be the envy of all teenage girls if those stay around.

46 Weeks

Wait, what's that? This kid is walking? Yes he is! He took three consecutive steps a few days ago, and today, he decided to take off. Obviously he's still very wobbly, but he's walking.. at 10.5 months. Not sure if I should be proud or scared.. both? Let's go with that. Both.

45 Weeks

I tell you, sometimes this kid is ornery! I wish that I knew what babies were thinking/saying because I feel like if we could communicate, things could maybe go a little bit more smooth. But instead, we'll just try to deal with the unknown of his angry elf-self, and soak up the giggles and happiness when we get it!

44 Weeks

Crew is 10 months now and is so close to walking! We had a doctor's appointment so we have some new numbers. 

Stats:

Height: 29.5 in (76th Percentile)

Weight: 18 lb 13 oz (25th Percentile)

Head Circumference: 46.5 cm (80th Percentile)

He's still so loud at the dinner table but he's a great eater. I suppose I'd rather have a vocal child than a mute? Still wondering about that. He also loves people. Doesn't always looks like he does, but he's a little flirt. He definitely loves attention! 

43 Weeks

Crew is 43 weeks and we successfully made it home! I was flying by myself with the two boys for the first time and I was nervous. Not for Nixon, but for this one. He's so busy, and now that he's so mobile, being held is the last thing he wants to do. I decided that this flight I was going to bring the Woombie.

It was a lifesaver.. for the 30 minutes he was asleep until Nixon decided to throw a fit and wake him up. Thankfully we survived.

Since being home, I swear he's become even more mobile. He's going to be walking anytime!

42 Weeks

Crew had his first horse ride and he loved it! He was completely content just sitting on the horse with Nixon, or his cousins. He wasn't thrilled to get off, but who is? He's still anti-speaking, but he started clapping and is pretty darn proud of himself! He climbs on everything he can reach, and he is into everything! He is so busy and a little mischievous, but we sure love him.

41 Weeks

I'm not sure if I've mentioned this before about Crew, but he is LOUD at the table. Not the, "Oh he's so cute, he's asking for food." It's the, "That kid makes the most obnoxious sounds when he sits down to eat and only shuts it off when you're shoveling food constantly into his mouth." More like that. He has a voice, and he's not afraid to use it!

40 Weeks

This guy is 40 weeks and loves hanging out with his grandma and grandpa. He likes to be where Grandpa is, which tends to cause a problem, especially when he's at the computer (he's obsessed with cords). his 3rd tooth popped through this week, which I'm sure means another coming it our not too distant future. I'm just hoping it goes a little more smoothly than these last three. Please!!