I cannot believe how much life has passed since last updating!! We were about 6 weeks pre-Alianna, and now we are about 6 weeks post-Alianna... Also we're about 6 weeks away from summer vacation.
We welcomed our beautiful baby girl, Alianna Joy, on March 7 at 5:06am. She was 8 lbs 1 oz (just like Adaleigh was) and 22 inches! It was my first natural labor and it was a success! I was so glad I didn't have to be induced this time and I'm so glad it went so fast! We got to the hospital about 1am... So 4 hours and bam! 👍🏻👶🏼👏🏻
She's a beauty! Such a great baby. The first week was rough because I was on bed rest and suffered from horrible spinal headaches (or should I say one-long spinal headache that took a week to go away), but after that we got into a good groove! Alianna is also my first successful breastfeeder. Third times the charm right? Last night she slept for a whole 7 hours straight! Yesssss!! I may have another good sleeper.
So pretty much my life revolves around my girlies, but I wouldn't have it any other way. Life is so so good!! 💕
Well, it's been a long time since my last update. I've almost giving up on blogging again, but every once in a while, it's nice to jot down about where we are in life so I can look back when I'm old and forgetful and remember the good times. My last post I said "maybe next time I will be updating this blog from a new couch in a new home" and in fact, I am!
So we moved. We love our new town and our beautiful new home in our great neighborhood. I've already made several new friends and so have the girls. Our quality of life has increased tremendously and we are just... happy! Life is so good. We are blessed.
Baby girl #3 will be here in about 6 weeks. I cannot believe it. We are just now working on her room. I can't wait until it's done so I just relax and wait for her arrival. The girls are very excited about having a new baby girl around. They are already volunteering taking her for walks in the stroller, getting bottles ready, picking out outfits, rocking her to sleep. It's so sweet. This time around may be easier than I think since I'll have 2 big girl helpers instead of 1. :)
That's all for my quick little update on life. Until next time...
Time has slipped away from me these last few months, but in a good way. Life has been so busy yet so fun lately. We are having a wonderful summer... many days spent on the lake and in the pool. We've taken many little road trips and weekend getaways as well. Savannah, Tybee Island, Hilton Head Island, Nashville, Gulf Shores... and speaking of Gulf Shores, we've got exciting news to share...
Alex just accepted a job near the Alabama gulf coast in Spanish Fort, AL. He will officially be a General Manager for Cracker Barrel. I'm so proud of him! He deserves this and it's been a long time coming.
Sadly, we will be leaving our home in LaGrange within the next months. I will miss being down the street from my in-law's, I will miss my current job at the Museum and all the wonderful people that I work with, the girls will miss their friends, teachers and schools, I will miss the familiarity of a "hometown" that I've grown to call LaGrange.
We know it's going to be a transition for us, so we gladly accept all prayers you can send our way, but we are very excited for where God is leading us. We are excited about the Spanish Fort and Daphne area... much more to do, a great school system, many family friendly neighborhoods and communities, lots of history but a focus on the future, central location on the water and close to the beach, and much more. One of the most exciting things for me is I will be a stay-at-home mom once again which gives us a peace about maybe possibly expanding our family in the future!
It's funny how the Lord works. He sure has a sense of humor. I'll tell you what though, it's true what they say, "If you want to make God laugh, then tell Him your plans." I remember when Alex and were discussing which stores he could apply to. I specifically said "No Alabama and no farther south." I love fall and winter too much and I wasn't willing to give my seasons up yet. I had several areas that I had my eye on... North Atlanta, Nashville, Charlotte or Asheville, or even Charleston. I wasn't THAT picky, but God still laughed. Now, I laugh at my plans too. As soon as I visited the Spanish Fort and Daphne area, I immediately fell in love and just had a peace about the whole thing.
That's all for now, maybe next time I will be updating this blog from a new couch in a new home. :)
'
There are many, many things I could ramble on about that have been going on lately between putting our house on the market (praise God!) to Aubriella finally being potty trained (praise God some more!) to Alex getting promoted to Senior Associate Manager and now being eligible to start applying for his own store (you know what to do... praise Him!), but instead of going into detail on all these amazing blessings in our life right now, I'd like to focus on our fun Spring Break we had in the Caribbean.
We are so blessed to have amazing family. Alex's grandparents invited us to go on 7-night Caribbean Disney Cruise. Even though Alex could not get out of work because the store was short handed that week, the girls and I could not pass up such an amazing opportunity to spend sometime with the grandparents, aunt & uncle and the cousins on the Disney Fantasy ship in the middle of the ocean. We had a BLAST! I cannot begin to explain how much fun we had. Now, I did a lot of research once we decided we were going, so I knew about all the fun stuff that was available on and off the ship, but once I got there everything was actually way better than I'd imagined. I literally took over 1,000 pictures on the trip, then posted over 300 on facebook, but I'm going to try to narrow it down to about 15 on the blog. So here goes...
Minnie with our mustache pen.
Girls playing computer games in "Pixie Hollow" (Tinkerbell's home)
Aubrie in "Andy's Room" (Toy Story)
The girls loved meeting Rapunzel so much, we met her twice. Her she is admiring their matching sparkly Toms shoes. :)
Belle!
Coffee and the view of Cozumel from my room.
Aubrie ("Izzy") with Jake.
Sand angels at Castaway Cay
Can we stay here forever?
Nemo's Reef on the ship. Fun times!
Breakfast of champions. (and wearing the adorable shirt I made her <3)
Selfie with my Minnie pocket tee I made. <3
Donald loves our mustache pen too!
I found the sunken Mickey statue while snorkeling.
Adaleigh in Cozumel.
Some highlights from the cruise... the quality time with family, the food, the shows, the meet-and-greets with all the characters, the shopping at all the ports, the kids clubs, the snorkeling (my fave "me-time" moment), the beach at Castaway Cay, exploring the ship, the views, the 24/7 ice cream, the pools, the unlimited Disney movies (and more!) on demand in the room, the friendly (and very entertaining) staff, and so much more!
We are already planning to try to go on Disney cruise summer of 2015 and we'll let Alex tag along this time. ;)
So I know I'm way overdue for an update. Many days I came to this blog with every intention to type something, anything. Lots has happened since my last post, but there are just many reasons why I ended up not posting anything.
I've watched several of my friends and family members have their pictures and lives stolen off their blogs and facebook pages which quite frankly makes me sick and worries me. I have known for a long while that I post way too much on the internet about my life, my family, and my whereabouts. Having kids is the most concerning part in all of this (especially girls as beautiful as mine ;)). I've contemplated deleting many things, but really, once it's on the web, it stays on the web. So my goal is to start being a little more careful. As of now I'll still be posting pictures to document my life and share with family, but I may end up making this blog private if I start updating more often (if I have the time)...
That brings me to the other main reason why I haven't posted. My life has been so hectic and busy. For the most part, it's a good thing though. I definitely miss my sleep at night, having the luxury of being able to watch my favorite shows during the week, going out with friends, or just eating a decent meal without the constant rush of life. I love my job though, even on the crazy days. I've learned a lot about myself throughout this season and I've met many great people that I know God has brought into my life for a reason. I'm thankful for those that speak into my life with their encouraging and uplifting council, and then I'm thankful for those that God has brought into my life to challenge my character and discernment even when I have to bite my tongue when I want to scream "WHYYYY?". I'm still thankful.
The girls are growing up so fast and learning new things everyday as well. Adaleigh got her "report card" this week. She's excelling in most if not all areas. She's way over her accelerated reading goal and is such a good writer, reader, and math wiz. I feel bad most nights when we don't have time to read a book 3 times, or go over her sight words... she begs and begs every day, but some days we just don't have time. Aubriella is speaking very well these days. Now if only I could that little girl potty trained!!! Is it always more difficult for the second child? Ack! The teachers say she's talking a lot more, but really comes alive and participates in music. She loves to sing and dance. She's definitely my entertainer. Adaleigh's my introvert and Aubrie's the extrovert. They are two peas in a pod though. I love that they are able to play together even if it's when they are covering the floors and furniture with forts and palaces, or hanging up coloring pages and pictures all over the house, or just playing baby dolls.
I'll leave you with a few pictures from Christmas...
I'm thankful for this beautiful manager scene that my mom and dad hand built and painted. One for each of their daughters, just like my grandpa did for his daughters. Sweetest Christmas moment and memory from 2013.
Adaleigh's favorite gifts this year were her swing set and American Girl doll. She also accepted Jesus as her Savior this past year so she had a new meaning to Christmas. So thankful for this little girl and her bedtime prayers and her questions and curiosity about faith, Heaven, and life. Hearing her tell Jesus she loves Him every night is such a blessing to me.
This fun day at the beach the week of Christmas was a nice change of climate compared to the cold winter we're having in Georgia.
Christmas Eve at the Merry-Go-Round in Valley, Alabama.
So much for posting every month. I tried last month several times, but every time I sat down to post, I just couldn't bring myself to type or organize my thoughts, for that matter. Life is constantly changing and it seems like every day something crazy is happening.
October had it's ups and downs. I enjoyed spending time with family in Asheville for my cousin's wedding. Might I add, Erika wore one of the prettiest, if not the prettiest, wedding dresses I've ever seen. The ceremony and reception was wonderful. Well thought out and organized.
I also turned 27 in October. I almost said 26 and literally had to calculate the years in my head. Sometimes I think people "lie" about their age as they get older because they literally can't keep up with it anymore. haha.
October was also the 1 year mark from when we lost our beautiful Bethany. I miss her and think of her every day. October is such a hard month for the family. My birthday is October 16, which is also the day Bethany had her heart transplant on my 13th birthday. My Aunt's birthday is October 22, which is also the day that Bethany joined the angels in Heaven. And October 30 is Bethany's birthday. So the last two weeks of October will always feel heavy on our hearts, but I find hope in knowing that she is healed and we will meet again. One of mine and Bethany's favorite worships songs at one point was "I Can Only Imagine" by Mercy Me (granted that was before it was over-played and everyone did human videos to it), but still... the song always touched our hearts. Now that song has a whole new meaning to me. I tear up every single time I hear it. It never gets old. I Can Only Imagine...
November has been a fresh start. Beautiful weather. Daylight savings time. And basically a new husband. Haha. I'm not kidding either. Can someone please tell me who this man is living in my house that is waiting on my beck and call and what he did to my husband? He has literally been so sweet and helpful the past week that it has worried me! I'm so thankful for him though. He has been so great since I've started working more. Also, my kids are hilarious and so smart. There is never a dull moment around this place. Adaleigh is learning to read. She probably knows 100 sight words and basically phonics. She's read several books on her own and I couldn't be more proud of my little kindergartener. Aubriella is such a smart cookie too.. counting and knowing her ABC's, as well as surprising us every day with new words and sayings.
Funny story, when I got home tonight, I found toddler pajama pants in the toilet! haha. Like I said, never a dull moment. I'm not sure how and when they got there considering everyone was asleep in the house and I had just come home from picking up my sister's dog in Newnan. The only logical explanation would be a sleep-walking Adaleigh, but I'm not sure how logical that is?
In other news, life is good. The holidays are upon us whether we like it or not. I love this time of year though because it's a more evident reminder of the importance of faith, family, and friends. In case I'm not back before the end of the month because I'll be busy planning Adaleigh's ART pARTy and feasting on some turkey, Happy Thanksgiving y'all.
Well, August came and went. I must say it was an exciting month with lots of unexpected things that came our way, good and bad. I wish I had more time in my days to keep up with this blog, but I'm tired and need to catch some sleep tonight before the week gets started tomorrow, so I'll try to make it short and sweet.
Adaleigh started Kindergarten and she loves it. We adore her school and teachers. Don't mind the scratch on her face... she hit the pavement a couple days before school started.
Other exciting things that have happened in the past month... we've reconnected with some old friends and have gotten back into church. I shouldn't be surprised, but I really am, at how much it has helped our day to day life. Getting plugged into a church and having friend that share our beliefs and are in the same stage in life really makes a difference and holds us accountable.
I have to admit, being in church feels great after so many years, but it also brings back so many memories and emotions, good and bad, that I can totally understand why people that leave church don't go back. God's presence is everywhere, but there's something about being surrounded by a body of believers and getting fed a good word of God that you just can't get from reading the Bible on your own time or listening to podcasts or watching church on tv.
With that being said... God has been blessing us like crazy lately. I kind of stumbled into a job a couple weeks ago. I had finally given up actively pursuing a job because none of the job offers I've had in the past could meet my needs. But I suppose it's when you stop searching, sometimes you end up finding what you've been needing. My embroidery business was really starting to take off, so I was finally set on not finding another job until I got an email about my resume I had submitted to a local art museum. I honestly didn't even remember submitting it, but I set up an interview anyway. I went in and they hired me on the spot. I've already been there for 2 weeks now and I love it. It's definitely a God thing. I have the perfect schedule that meets my needs as a mom and wife (I always have Sat, Sun, and Mon off... woohoo!), I'm utilizing my skills and experience while I'm challenged to learn new ones, I'm active in the community, and the location of the museum is central to my home, and both of my girl's schools. Also, the daycare that usually has a waiting list, actually had an opening for Aubrie's age group and I got her in within a week. Total blessing!
So with all these blessings that have been flowing, I'm still struggling with the loss of my cousin Bethany. It's been almost a year since she went to be with Jesus and I'm still so heartbroken. My heart breaks especially for my cousins and my Aunt and Uncle. The loss they must feel is incomprehensible. I'm constantly praying for everyone that is still hurting and dealing with this grief. There is a comfort in knowing the Lord and knowing without a doubt that Bethany served God whole-heartily, but that doesn't make it easier, it only makes the world feel a little darker without her light and His light shining through her. I cling to the memories I shared with her and the hope that I will see her again.
I was going through old pictures and found this one of Bethany, gorgeous as ever, holding Adaleigh when she was newborn, Christmas 2007. Flash forward to last summer, July 2012, where Bethany was able to teach Adaleigh a little bit of her ballet techniques. :)
I'll leave you all with this song and pray for the blessings of God to flow in your lives.
"Cause what if Your blessings come through raindrops, what if Your healing comes through tears. What if a thousand sleepless nights are what it takes to know You're near."
First off, my apologies for never keeping up with a single blog I start. Mommy fail. Now that that's off my chest, this summer has been great. I cannot believe Adaleigh starts Kindergarten next week. What a crazy thought. We did a lot of staycationing instead of vacationing this summer. We spent many days on the lake with my parents, we rekindled old friendships that we lost touch with, we had lots of playdates with friends at the park, our house and friends houses, we had a big birthday party for Aubriella's 2nd bday, we had lemonade stands, fishing trips and picnics, crafting days, family get togethers, and Adaleigh even got to go to Panama City Beach with her grandma for 3 nights! Nonetheless, it was an eventful summer in this small town.
Not only did the girls keep me busy all summer, I also stumbled upon a new business. I've started embroidering and monogramming things. I cannot believe how quickly the business took off. I've constantly had orders since I started, and I'm barely advertising. It's actually been a little stressful because there is only one of me and some days I have to make more than 5 shirts and it gets overwhelming. I'm having fun with it though and excited to see where it leads. Check out what I've been doing at http://www.facebook.com/SouthernJoyBoutique :)
Before we left Florida, I promised Adaleigh a trip to the beach! We've been down to visit my family many many times without going 10 mins up the road to the beach. I know, that's crazy. So this time... the beach was a must! We went to Honeymoon Island one evening. Just my mom, the girls, and I. It was such a beautiful day out. The girls had so much fun!
Since we had beach time with my mom, we decided to have an outing with just my dad the next day while my mom was at work. So the girls, my dad, and I decided to take off to Tarpon Springs to visit the Sponge Docks. We ate lunch at one of the Greek restaurant's... I had a Gyro of course. Then we walked around, bought a sponge, and went for ice cream. Fun times.
I'd say, Adaleigh had a pretty awesome first officical "Spring Break" from school. :)
