end of an era.

Goodbye, Michael Scott.

I cried during The Office tonight. My heart is sad.

Happy Easter!

In Christ alone my hope is found
He is my light, my strength, my song
This Cornerstone, this solid ground
Firm through the fiercest drought and storm

What heights of love, what depths of peace
When fears are stilled, when strivings cease
My comforter, my all in all
Here in the love of Christ I stand

In Christ alone, who took on flesh
Fullness of God in helpless Babe
This gift of love and righteousness
Scorned by the ones He came to save

Til on that cross as Jesus died
The wrath of God was satisfied
For every sin on Him was laid
Here in the death of Christ I live

For in the ground, his body lay
Light of the world by darkness slain
Then bursting forth in glorious day
Up from the grave He rose again!

And as he stands in victory
Sins curse has lost its grip on me
For I am His and He is mine
Bought with the precious blood of Christ

No guilt in life, no fear in death
This is the power of Christ in me
From life's first cry to final breath
Jesus commands my destiny

No power of hell, no scheme of man
Can ever pluck me from His hand
Til He returns or calls me home
Here in the power of Christ I stand!

We had a great first Easter with G and I hope you did too!!

Baby Products I Heart: not-so-newborn edition

I did a post on this when Grayson was just a tiny baby. Now that he is over half a year old {omg. how can that be??} I thought I would do a new post on the things we love now.

This Fisher Price booster seat. When Grayson & I went to Hotlanta for spring break I had just started feeding him solids. Well, feeding him solids without a highchair was a nightmare. A really messy nightmare. I bought this at Babies-R-Us on sale for $19.99...can you beat that?? We took it to Oxford with us and it made a HUGE difference! It folds up so it is easy to take with you; it straps on to a chair or you can just sit it on a table; it has toys that he can play with. Duh, winning.

Now that I am all crunchy-granola-organicy {I realize that "organicy" is not a word} and making G's food, I love these baby food storage containers from Babies-R-Us. I bought 2 packs of the BRU brand containers & that gives me storage for 32 baby meals! These are BPA Free (no idea what that means), microwaveable, freezable, and dishwasher safe. They stack on top of each other so they don't take up tons of space in the freezer. Love them!

We have entered in to the world of "throwing things off of my highchair on purpose is really fun" phase. Let me tell you, it is not fun. I am smarter than my 7 month old & bought a toy with a suction cup! HA! This toy is from Target & made by Sassy. We use it at home and bring it to restaurants when we decide to be brave & take our screeching monkey out in public.

Mesh bumpers from Target. Call me paranoid, but I did not like when G starting rolling all over his crib and wedging himself up against his old bumpers. It freaked me out. I bought these and am no longer paranoid. They have a little bit of padding so if his head is against the crib, it won't hurt. Are they cute? no. Do I miss his adorable matching bumper? absolutely. Do I sleep better with these? yep.

Sophie the Giraffe. Our $22 chew toy is amazing. This french toy is awesome because G could hold it really easily when he was only 3 months old. I don't know why babies love her, but they do. Sophie is like the Baby Whisperer. You can buy her on Amazon & get a better deal!

The Sassy mesh feeder. I just bought this and think it is so cool! It is a safe way to give your baby fresh fruit. They gnaw on the mesh part and break down the fruit so they can eat it. I actually put small pieces of Grayson's frozen mango in it for him to chew on. He loves it. I warn you though...it makes for a messy treat!

Last but not least, the Halo Sleepsack. We have always used these & we love them! Grayson never liked to be swaddled so this is what we used instead. It keeps him warm and he can't kick covers off. They make swaddle ones too for newborns. Genius!

What do you love? Is there anything that me & G are missing out on??

If you really knew me...

you would know...

• that I bit my nails for my entire life and quit for good when I was pregnant.ouch.

• that now I chew on the skin around my nails. even more ouch.

• that I have big feet. size 9 1/2. I've always wanted to be the size of the display shoes.

• that I cringe and get sad whenever I see a dead animal in the road. Squirrel, raccoon, chipmunk....don't get me started on dogs.

• that a 6 year old in Batesville, Mississippi taught me the Soulja Boy "Crank Dat" dance. His name was Keydarius and he was awesome.

• that I loathe dog hair. HATE it. oh, and I have 3 dogs that shed. irony at its best.

• that I went through a short brunette period when I was 19.

• that I sang at a rodeo in high school. yeehaw!!

• that I absolutely hate confrontation. makes my tummy hurt. but, I also hate when people are passive aggressive. just say it & own it.

• that I want 3 more kids.

• that I think stick families on your car are lame. don't even get me started on the stick families with mickey mouse ears!

• that I bought Jack because I was all done with guys. I met Ben about 4 weeks later.

• that me and my friends have too many inside jokes, talk really fast, and overwhelm a lot of people.
  

• that I give nicknames to most kids at school.

• that I never forget a face. I graduated from high school with almost 900 people. I guarantee that I know 98% of those people just from looking at the yearbook.

• that I firmly believe if you have to shout about it...it probably isn't true.

7 months

Grayson is 7 months old today!!

Here are his monthly stats:
Height: approximately 28 inches long
Weight: 17lbs
Diaper: size 2
Clothes: I just packed away ALL the 6 month clothes:( G is in all 9 month clothes!

Our sock monkey picture was a little bit harder this month. Grayson never wants to sit still!! He was moving all over the place trying to get out of the glider.

This month Grayson has started eating lots of food! I'm still making his baby food & I'm pretty sure he would eat all day if I let him. G is taking 4 bottles a day & eating real food for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. He loves sitting in his high chair at our table and eating food while we eat our meals...he loves being included! So far his favorite foods are carrots, apples, pears, and mango. The only things he hasn't liked are broccoli and yellow squash. I even gave him puffs and cheerios this week...big boy loves them both!

Grayson has also been a teething maniac lately. As of today, he has 3 teeth! 2 on the bottom & 1 on top!

G is SO close to crawling! He has started diving forward from his sitting position and just rocking on all fours for a few seconds. Then he just belly flops...ha! He really wants to chase the dogs around. Instead of crawling, Grayson just rolls everywhere. He will literally go from one side of the room to the other just by rolling. It's pretty funny!

This month we also started letting Grayson bathe like a big kid! He now just gets to sit in the big tub and play with his toys. He loves it! Bath time is his favorite thing! He loves laying on his belly and kicking & flapping his arms. I can't wait to get this kid in a pool this summer!

Grayson is still just as happy as ever! He loves school and his teachers. They say that he just rolls around, plays with toys, and jumps in his horsie all day! He is so active & loves playing with all his toys on the floor. His favorite game is still playing tennis ball with Jack...he is obsessed with Jack & loves watching him run after the ball!

I can't believe it has been 7 months since I was in the hospital meeting this sweet boy for the first time! I love my little man so much & am having so much watching his grow and discover new things. The world is so different when you are showing it off to a baby! I have a feeling this next month will be a busy one with a more mobile baby! :)

Happy 7 months, little G!

just another manic monday.

Is it Monday again?

I don't like Mondays. That was my question of the day at school. 15 first graders also said they don't like Mondays.

Grayson woke up at 4am...ouch. His mouth hurts. I feel bad for him. He was SO cranky this morning and pretty much screamed until I dropped him off at daycare.

The kids were crazy today. Spring fever is in full force and I think they actually realize that it is getting very close to summer break. Hallelujah!

Picked up pictures at Wal-Mart after school. Was reminded of why I despise Wal-Mart. It is a cluster you know what. That store just makes me angry.

The gravy was lumpy at dinner. Boo hiss.

Oh, and our credit card was stolen. Someone purchased 4 rental cars in CANADA. Annoying, eh?

I'm ready for Tuesday.

Project: computer room.

We have been in our house for 2 years and although every room has furniture, I still feel like a few of the rooms just aren't "homey." "Homey" is not to be confused with "homie." Our computer room is the first room you see when you walk through the front door. It's terrible. Problems with our current computer room (btw, I refuse to call it a "home office" because that sounds too business-y):
1. It was the baby junk graveyard for a long time. All of G's things he grew out of ended up in there.
2. It has a desk that I am not fond of...and tends to be a major dust collector.
3. It's unorganized and not functional.
4. It doesn't have an overhead light. what in the world?? who builds a house with no light?

Basically, what we have is a big ol' blank canvas. A big ol' yellow canvas, that is. I do have some ideas...

I would love a table desk! This table desk is from Ballard's...which I think is the greatest catalog to browse ever. I like how much space it has on top. Room for mail, a laptop, an ipad, and other things one might use a desk for. Oh, and I love the pretty cork board in that background! The teacher in me LOVES a cork board to put fun push pins on!

I need shelves. We have a bare wall that I envision 3 ladder shelves. When you have shelves..you have a place to put fun things you can buy at other stores...it's a cycle-ha!

Don't even get me started on the chihuahua wall art from Ballard's!!

I already said I like cork boards. These are actually magnet boards from, take a wild guess, BALLARD'S! I want to make these using cork tiles. I've done this before for my classroom and it is SO easy & so cheap. I need more places to keep my little man's artwork!

I would also love to find a chair with a fun & bold print. I would like to have a "Loma" space where I can read books and blogs. I'm on the hunt. Any ideas?

weekend in Oxford

Oxford was SO much fun. I really needed to get away, spend time with my little fam, and see our friends! Grayson was a wonderful traveler and was in a good mood the whole weekend!

I am so happy Whit finally got to meet our little guy...it was love at first sight! :)

I had to get a picture of us in coordinated outfits. We went to the baseball game on Saturday. We sat out in the left field and as soon as I got there I was sweating. Mississippi in April...I totally forgot how hot is gets! G did not like the heat. Me, G, & the girls lasted about 30 minutes before we left and headed to the square to shop. I would rather stroll through the fun shops anyway...although it is quite different with a baby!

My friend is pretty.

....and she has a mini-horse, or goldendoodle, for a pet. Reuger is a giant.

Cathleen came down from Memphis on Saturday! We went to Oxford Floral to look at wedding registry stuff (she's getting married this July!) and I got to see her beautiful ring. I miss these girls so much!!

3 muskateers plus a baby...who would have thought?!

Thanks Whitney & Matt for letting crash at your house and spread our baby stuff ALL over your beautifully decorated home-ha!

Seriously, it was the perfect weekend. I may or may not have cried as we pulled away from South 17th Street. Oh well, guess that means I will have to go back soon!

hurry up, weekend!

This weekend we are heading back to our favorite little college town...Oxford! Eeeek! I get to see my best friend!!

She is more like my soulmate...well, friend soulmate I guess.

Seriously, she is like my other half. I can't wait for her to see G!

I would say we were going to relive our carefree glory days at the Library (nope, not the one with books) requesting songs for DJ Mario, and attempting to dance with football players. But no, we are officially grown-ups and I officially have a child. New fun will be had!

Oh, and I get to see her ridiculous dog Baxter. Jack is pretty pumped about that!

a birthday greeting.

Grayson has a special message for a special person. {please excuse the squash stained school clothes. we've established that we have a messy eater on our hands.}

Today is his Mimi's birthday!!

Grayson made a beautiful sign in honor of his Mimi! So what if he tried to eat it... :)

Happy Birthday, Mimi!!!

Grayson loves you & is so lucky to have you as a Grandma! We hope you had a wonderful 40th (hehe) birthday! :)

100% boy.

Food has really brought out the boy in Grayson.

He is, by far, the messiest eater ever.

He wants so badly to be able to feed himself. He tries to grab the spoon from me. He tries to grab the food off the spoon. He tries to grab the bowls. Baby-1 Mama-0

By the way, did you know that carrots stain? Hmph.

Can you tell we are enjoying food over here in the May household??