So What! Wednesday

I'm linking up with Shannon today for So What! Wednesday...I almost forgot about it! This week I am saying SO WHAT if...

• it has taken me 2 weeks to decorate our house for Christmas & it's still not finished? Decorating with a 2  month old was so much easier than decorating with a 14 month old.
• I have 8 bottles of spray paint sitting in my garage from all my Christmas crafting? Spray paint makes things look better...especially glitter spray paint!
• I make Grayson play in his crib until about 6:15? The child wakes up at the crack of dawn and I would not be a nice mama if I went in there at 5:30.
• I bought a ton of deco mesh but suck at using it? Not as easy as it looks, people.
• I am making my own ornament wreath when I could have spent less & just purchased the already made one at Target?
• I really don't understand why some blogs are so popular?
• The Hunger Games make me kind of nauseous? Don't get me wrong, I am hooked, but it is SO gory!
• my child is dragging a bag of Christmas lights around while I type this post? Whatever makes him happy, right?

 And, I'm done.

What are you saying SO WHAT to??

my grown-up Christmas list

I don't need anything for Christmas this year, but it's fun to make a list of things that would be nice to have! It's funny how a Christmas list changes as you get older. Practical things become a lot more attractive! 

An immersion blender. Lots of soup recipes call for this & it would make my life easier instead of pouring things into my blender/food processor. Plus, I would feel kind of like an Iron Chef while using it. 

Le Creuset dutch oven. I registered for one of these when we got married & never got it. I still want one over 3 years later! 1. They cook evenly. 2. I've always heard great things about the quality & 3. They come on fun colors!

Some infinity scarves to add a little fun to my wardrobe. This one is from Old Navy and has sequins.

These Fossil leopard print flats. Because every girl needs some leopard in her life, right?

Some Organic Bloom picture frames. Have y'all seen these? I am OBSESSED with them & h ave been wanting some ever since I saw them on Pinterest last summer. They would make a great whimsical gallery wall in our bonus room!

I hope you guys have been taking advantage of the Cyber Monday deals today! My PayPal acctount needs to be frozen after all the Christmas shopping I did today. Happy shopping & wishlist making, friends!

thankful.

 I can't believe Thanksgiving has already come and gone! I brought my computer along with me to Georgia & Alabama with every intention to post, but alas, never got around to it. Between sickness, a needy toddler, & an addiction to The Hunger Games, I didn't get much free time:)

 

My heart felt so full this Thanksgiving. Of course, I try & realized how blessed I am all throughout the year. There is just something about this time of year that makes you feel extra thankful..for the big things & the small things. I am thankful for...

• a happy & healthy little boy that I love so much it makes my heart feel like it will burst. 
• a husband who is also my best friend & a great daddy.
• a wonderful family
• 3 dogs that keep my on my toes and always show me unconditional love
• leggings. elastic waistbands make life post-eating better!
• portable dvd players
• Sonic diet cokes
• my "Paris" Tyler candle
• video monitors...lifesavers!
• our front porch swing
• Starbucks Via iced coffee
• a great church family
• Christmas trees
• living in a beautiful town full of character

I hope y'all had a wonderful Thanksgiving!

14 months

Grayson is 14 months old today!

Don't mind the toy hammer.

Stats:

Weight: 20.5lbs

Height: 30in

Clothes: depending on brand, 12 month & 18 month clothes. He is SO skinny that he wears mostly longalls & overalls because his pants won't stay up!

Shoe: 4 1/2

Diaper: 4

Here are a few things G has been up to this month:

• He finally realized that milk isn't too bad! Regular whole milk still isn't sitting well with his tummy so I got him vanilla soy milk this week. He's been drinking strawberry milk every night!
• We are transitioning to 1 nap a day and it is t e r r i b l e. If Grayson takes a morning nap then he only sleeps for roughly 40 minutes in the afternoon. 40 minute nap = cranky baby. Trying to skip that morning nap is hard, but when he does, he sleeps great later in the day!
• G is still a finicky eater...but he is slowly getting better! He still loves my morning coffee (strange), really likes roasted garlic hummus (stranger), and thoroughly enjoyed some pickled okra yesterday (strangest). He even liked Ben's bbq chicken sandwich yesterday at lunch! We are branching out, people!
• Grayson has learned to drive his 4 wheeler. You heard that right. DRIVE. It is a mini Power Wheels and he figured it out this week. Smart kid, scary thought.
• G got 2 more teeth this month! We have a grand total of 14! 
• Separation anxiety is SO much better! G only cries for a few minutes when he is dropped off somewhere. Makes leaving a lot easier on mama!
• G can now shake his head "no." Welcome to the world of opinions.

Here are some of G's current favorite activities:

• dragging the basket of dog toys all over the house & then throwing the tennis balls to Jack.
• Playing outside! He would play outside all day. every day. G loves throwing balls all over our yard, riding in his cars, & walking next door to see the dogs.
• Lining up all of his toys on the TV stand in the bonus room. Rain Man!
• CLIMBING! This new hobby will give me gray hairs. He can climb all the stairs in about 30 seconds flat and he thinks it's really fun to climb on the train table.
• Feeding himself using a spoon! He loves eating his yogurt, oatmeal, and applesauce all by himself. It's a messy hobby, but the proud look on his face is worth it!

I can't believe it has been 2 months since Grayson turned 1! He is definitely a lot more independent & is communicating so much more. Our little boy is growing up so fast! I say it every time, but I love this stage. It just keeps getting better!

Happy 14 months, G!

Weight Watchers & a few recipes

I've been doing Weight Watchers for about 2 weeks now. According to my wonky scale, I've lost right at 3lbs. So far, so good! It's actually not as bad as I thought it would be. I'm still eating yummy food, I am just really paying attention to portion size. I was really hungry at first (guess that means I was snacking too much before??) but that has gotten better.

The WW app on my iPhone is a lifesaver. I also downloaded Dottie's app thanks to Kristy. It has TONS of menus from restaurants & it has made my desire to eat out dwindle. I looked up all of my favorite restaurant meals and most of them are worth a full day of points! yuck. I'm trying to make smarter choices about eating out...it's hard since I would LOVE a big bowl of queso & some cheese enchiladas right now! or always. whatever.

I've been trying lots of new recipes that are WW friendly so I wanted to pass them on! (click on the pinterest ones for the recipe) I love, love, love Skinny Taste. The first few recipes are from her blog!

Source: skinnytaste.com via Laura on Pinterest

Baked Potato Soup. Y'all, this is SO good! I ate this for lunch all week & never got tired of it. It took like 20 minutes to make...even better! I made Ben, pickiest eater ever, try it & he liked it. 2 thumbs up all around!

Source: skinnytaste.com via Laura on Pinterest

Skinny buttermilk mashed potatoes. These were so good that Ben didn't even know they were healthy. (hey, hubs!) These will be my new go-to mashed potatoes!

Source: skinnytaste.com via Laura on Pinterest

This spinach salad is SO good and perfect for the fall. It has roasted butternut squash, dried cherries (I used craisins because they were on sale), pumpkin seeds, and gorgonzola with a homemade balsamic/dijon dressing. I also ate on this for a week!

Mexican Chicken and Bean Pizza from WW
I'll type this one out because I'm just nice like that. The things in bold are what I tweaked a bit. If you read my answers from earlier this week, you know that LOVE mexican food. I could eat it every single day. My guilty pleasure food is the mexican pizza from Taco Bell. No judgement please. I got really excited when I saw this recipe on the Weight Watchers website. mexican + pizza?! Can't go wrong! This was yummy & guess what? I ate it for dinner all week! Notice a trend yet?


What you need:
4 small corn tortilla(s) -- obviously I used one per serving
8 oz raw lean ground chicken -- I cooked it all and ate off of it all week
1 tsp minced garlic
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/4 tsp table salt
1/2 cup(s) canned pinto beans, rinsed and drained -- I just mashed a whole can and put it in tupperware to use all week
1/3 cup(s) salsa, verde -- I actually used fresh red salsa
1/2 cup(s) cilantro, fresh, chopped, divided -- fun fact: a HUGE bunch of cilantro is only 99 cents at Publix!
1/4 cup(s) low-fat shredded cheddar cheese, sharp-variety
8 tsp reduced-fat sour cream
1 medium plum tomato(es), diced
1/2 medium avocado, diced
1 tsp fresh lime juice -- I forgot this & it was fine


Here's how you make it:
Preheat oven to 425°F. Coat a baking sheet with cooking spray.

Place tortillas on prepared pan; bake until crisp, about 6 to 8 minutes.

Meanwhile, coat a large nonstick skillet with cooking spray; heat over medium-high heat. Add chicken, garlic, cumin and salt; cook, breaking up chunks of chicken with a wooden spoon, until cooked through, about 4 to 5 minutes.

Next, in a bowl, mash beans and salsa with a fork until well-blended and most of the beans are mashed; stir in 1/4 cup cilantro.  (I didn't add the salsa or cilantro; just mashed up the beans)

To assemble pizzas, spread 1/4 bean mixture over each tortilla (slightly less than 1/4 cup); I added the salsa & cilantro next; top each with about 1/3 cup chicken mixture and sprinkle each with 1 tablespoon cheese. Bake until cheese melts and topping is hot, about 3 minutes. (Broil pizzas to brown cheese even more, if desired.)

Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, toss together tomato, avocado, remaining 1/4 cup cilantro and lime juice.

Remove pizzas from oven and top each with 2 teaspoons reduced-fat sour cream and about 1/4 cup avocado mixture. Yields 1 pizza per serving.

This was an awesome dinner all week & is really filling. The kicker? It's worth 6 points with the new WW system.

Okay, go ahead and add these to your weekly menu! They are all great!

So What! Wednesday



It's time to say SO WHAT with Shannon again! Go link up with Life After I Dew so that you can play along..you know you want to! This week I'm saying SO WHAT if...

• I bought my 4th Christmas tree last night at Hobby Lobby? You can never have too much Christmas cheer. PLUS it was only $25. no big deal.
• I splurged and got a spicy chicken sandwich at Chick Fil A last night? I have been doing so great with sticking to my points but I needed a fountain diet coke and spicy sandwich!!
• I have already addressed most of our Christmas cards and it's not even Thanksgiving? For once in my life I am ahead of the game!
• I keep trying on tunics, thinking they would look great with leggings, & then get home and they are too short? Apparently I have bad dressing room judgement.
• G still sleeps in a sleep sack? Apparently they make very few large (12-18mon) sleep sacks. We need new ones & it has been like finding a needle in a hay stack. Nowhere to be found.
• Grayson and I have been listening to the Biebs Christmas album every time we ride in the car? don't judge. It is that good.
• I did a little happy dance over the fact that Teen Mom #2 starts in a few weeks? That show makes me feel good about my life. I can't wait to hear "JENNNNNEEEELLLLLLEEEEEEE" on a weekly basis. (That's not as good as BEEEEEEEEEEENTLEY)
• I have been mentally obsessing over BlissDom for the past month? It's so convenient and all my favorite bloggers are going. Well, almost. Obviously I stand up well against adult peer pressure. C'mon, JEN!!! Let's get on it!

Okay, that's all yours truly she wrote. What are you saying SO WHAT to?!

You asked, I answered (part 2)

Here are the rest of the answers from my q & a post. Again, thanks for asking a girl some questions and not making me feel like a loser!

Jen asked...

You seem to be such a go with the flow momma-what are your secrets for "not sweating the small stuff"? This made me laugh because I don't feel like a "go with the flow" type person. I have to tell myself to relax over silly things all the time! (see also: my child throws food all over the floor and it stresses me out to the max..ha!) One thing I really didn't do is read a ton of parenting books before I had Grayson. I actually didn't read any. I only read Jenny McCarthy's "Belly Laughs"...mature, right? All of the parenting books contradict one another. I'm more of a "stick to your gut" mama. I just try to do what feels right & not worry about milestones/what other parents & kids are doing. Does that even answer that question?

Describe your favorite/ideal day-in detail. My favorite days are the ones in the middle of the week when Ben is off work. I love just having my whole little family in one place hanging out. Those are the days that we do fun things like the zoo, farmers markets, park, etc. Since Ben works a lot of weekends I cherish those days during the week that we have together! .....a spa day wouldn't be so bad either:)

What's your favorite food-the one thing you could eat every day and not get tired of? MEXICAN!I could literally eat mexican food every single day. Favorite meal: chips & queso, cheese enchiladas, and a diet coke. Makes my dieting mouth water just thinking about it!!

What's one thing you would do differently with a baby next time around? Jen asked this on HeyTell..that counts too, right? Grayson slept in his rock & play sleeper or pack-n-play in our bedroom for the first 6ish weeks. He was a LOUD sleeper and I would wake up every time he made a noise. We also have 3 dogs that will randomly shake and make noise that would wake him up. Baby Deux will go straight to the crib...thank the Lord for video monitors!

Marci asked...

If you could only drink one type of drink for a year, what would you pick? a route 44 Diet Coke from Sonic!

Do you have a favorite brand of pens? I love the sharpie pens...that's what I use in the Life Planner so you know I'm serious about them! The 1st grade teacher in me prefers Mr. Sketch markers though!

If you had a month to drive anywhere you wanted, where would you go? I would go see my best friend, Carly, in Los Angeles! She moved out to California after college and I still haven't gone to visit her. I'm dying to get out there, meet her man, and experience LA!

What made you start blogging? I started blogging in January 2009 when Ben & I were newlyweds. I had a Xanga in the early college years & liked the whole online journal thing. This blog started as a way to keep track of progress on the house we were bulding & to just record the things that were going on in our lives. We moved away from our families so this was a way for them to keep up with us! I had no idea that people I had never met would start reading this or that I would meet great friends!

Melissa asked...

If you go out for a drink, what do you order? either a Blue Moon on tap or a vodka tonic with lots of lime!

If you had $1 million to donate to charity, what charity would you choose?

the ASPCA. It makes me sick that people abuse and neglect animals. I would rescue every stray & abused dog if I could!

#1 celebrity crush? easy. Justin Timberlake. He's been my celeb love since 8th grade. He only gets better with age:)

What size shoe do you wear? 9.5...I've always wanted to wear a 6!

Were you in a sorority in college? I pledged Phi Mu during my freshman year at Ole Miss but I dropped out right before rush practice started during my sophomore year. It was so expensive & most of my friends were either Tri Delts or DGs. I didn't miss it when I dropped out!

Another Melissa asked...

Do you love living so close to Nashville? Absolutely! I love everything about living here. It's such a fun downtown area but then you drive 15 minutes out and you have beautiful Tennessee hills. That's actually my favorite part...I will never get used to the beautiful countryside!

What are some of your favorite stars you've run into in the area? Gah. I never see anybody. I saw Six from Blossom (remember her?!) at a bar in Franklin, I've seen Kimberly Paisley at a froyo place in downtown Franklin (you KNOW I love her!), and I've seen Kix Brooks at his winery. Don't get me wrong, I am always on the look out; I just never get lucky. My husband however? He's seen & talked to Faith Hill, Keith Urban, Dierks Bentley, blah blah blah. rude.

Y'all asked some great questions! Thanks for playing along!

You asked, I answered (part 1)

Y'all asked some good questions! Thanks for not making me feel lame...ha! I appreciate it! Alright, here you go!

Becca asked....

Why did you move away from Atlanta? Ben and I had originally planned to live in Atlanta. It was something we talked about right after got engaged. He looked into jobs around the Atlanta area but other cities offered more. We narrowed it down to Birmingham & Nashville but in the end decided we wanted to try Nashville! Financially it made sense for us to move here. I did the ugly cry when I realized Atlanta wouldn't work for us, but I have loved living in Tennessee. I'm so glad we ended up here!

Are you planning on staying home indefinitely? I would love to stay home while all of our kids are little! Obviously, if I have to go back before then, I will...but I love being a stay at home mama!

What is your favorite thing to splurge on? That's tough! I like hunting for bargains. However, before I had a baby and actually carried around a real big girl purse, I loved my Michael Kors & Coach bags. I still flock to them when I'm at the mall & then I sadly remember that my SkipHop bag is the only thing I carry. For now ;)

What is your all time favorite movie? Can I have more than one? okay. thanks.

Now and Then

Dazed and Confused

Closer

The Help

Elf

Man on Fire

Have you started Christmas shopping? Yes! I do most of it online thanks to Amazon & Zulily. I despise the mall & major shopping centers during November & December. ick.

What is Grayson's favorite thing to say right now? He says "bye" and blows kisses all.the.time. The mailman drove by? "Bye" *blows kiss* The construction workers in the neighborhood are working next door? "Bye" *blows kiss*

Any more children...? (Okay, I know this is totally inappropriate but I know you won't be mad at me for asking!) Not inappropriate! I ask it...ha! Or maybe I'm inappropriate? I have always wanted a big family. The only child in me yearns for a house full of kids. I've always said I wanted 4. Okay, that's a lie. I used to say I wanted 5. However, I came to my senses my husband said I was crazy and I settled on 4. He says 3. Whatever, minor details. But yes, definitely more kids! We made 1 cute one...why stop there?!

Natalie asked...

Yeah, I wanna know about baby #2, also! Plans? I would love to have kids close in age! I wouldn't mind having a 2012 baby!

I also wanna know your next baby boy name:) ...promise I won't steal... unless it's already on our list! We had Grayson's name picked out before we were even pregnant. We don't have another boy name picked out! I have a couple family names I would like to incorporate but nothing set in stone. I'll keep those in my brain just because that's part of the fun when announcing a new baby! Haha...sorry!

What kind of car are you toting G man around in? a 2006 navy blue Nissan Pathfinder

my very own swagger wagon.

What does Ben do for a livin'? He's a pharmacy manager for a Walgreens in Nashville. AND he works at a store that lots of country music stars frequent. I'll pretend I'm not extremely jealous.



How in the world do we know so many of the same people?! I have no idea how we're connected! Shoot girl. If we could figure out this whole email thing we could discuss this!  

Shelli asked...

What's your favorite ludacris song? This question cracks me up. I am partial to "Welcome to Atlanta" because I made sure to play it every time I went home from Ole Miss as soon as I saw the ATL skyline!

If G has a sister what would her name be? Very few know the answer to this. Again, I love the fun of announcing a name! I will say that it is a family name and not a common name:)

Where did you and your hubby go on your first date? We actually didn't got out on a date. We ordered take out (Chili's) and watched a movie (The Sweetest Thing) at his apartment! ...with Jack of course:)

I'll be back with the rest of the answers later this week!

brain dump

I got maybe 4 hours of sleep Thursday night due to a random throw up episode from le bebe. I had every intention of going to bed early last night, but the dogs changed that. You know when your dogs bark freakishly at nothing? Well, yeah. That happened in our backyard. While Ben was working late. I was skeered and couldn't sleep until he got home. (see also: I'm still 12) SO, I'm running low in the snooze department & all my brain can handle is bullet points.

• I like doing Weight Watchers so far. The app makes it SO easy. It's really making me not want to ever eat out because now I know just how bad my favorite restaurant meals are. My scale says I lost 2 pounds since joining. However, my scale sucks so I'm not sure how accurate that is. I'm going to base it more on how my clothes fit.
• I love leggings in the fall. What I don't love? That people are now wearing leggings as pants. I don't want to see your booty or your crotch. Leave something to the imagination. Also, if leggings are so in style, WHY are tunics SO HARD TO FIND???? I mean, I feel like I have spent months looking for shirts long enough to wear with my leggings and you would think I was searching for living dinosaurs. I'm convinced I just need to be a tunic designer.
• I'm convinced that Grayson is at the BEST age right now. He is so much fun! I'm also convinced I will say this on every single monthly post from here on out. It just gets better!
• I started wrapping Christmas presents this morning. There is nothing more relaxing to me than wrapping presents...I love it!
• I finally bought Beiber's Christmas cd and it is most definitely awesome. I think I will listen to it 24/7 until December 25th. Specifically the duet with The Band Perry AND his rapping version of Little Drummer Boy with Busta Rhymes. Can it get any better than that?!
• Speaking of music, did y'all watch the CMA Awards? Here are my thoughts: Carrie Underwood has the best legs & hair known to man, Brad Paisley is still awesome, Luke Bryan needs to refrain from wearing glittery jeans & "dancing" with strippers, I need to see the Zac Brown Band & The Band Perry live, Taylor Swift is a sore loser, AND I think I could be real life friends with Blake and Miranda.

Happy Saturday!

Pinnable Me - Jingle Bells edition

I'm linking up with Paw Prints & Pastry Bags today for Pinnable Me Friday! I've been pinning lots & lots of Christmas decor on Pinterest lately. I'm so excited to decorate our house! I don't start decorating until the day after Thanksgiving but I like to plan ahead. Last year we just did our basic decorations. I guess we were busy with a newborn. That's not the case this year! I have seen so many cute things that I want to do in our house. Let's just hope the toddler doesn't rip everything down!

Source: freshpoppydesign.blogspot.com via Laura on Pinterest

I still don't have curtains in our dining room & office so I think this would look pretty!

Source: bhg.com via Laura on Pinterest

I think 2 hanging wreaths would look great on my white china cabinet in our kitchen...I have never even thought to decorate it!



Source: bhg.com via Laura on Pinterest

Fresh greenery is my favorite...it smells so good! I think this would look so pretty on the short banister going up our stairs. You can get free greenery from the leftovers at Home Depot & Lowes!

Source: welcomesunshinehome.blogspot.com via Laura on Pinterest

I have been on the hunt for some rustic looking lanterns. Hobby Lobby had some but I refuse to pay full price there since they have so many 50% sales. You could use different fillers for different seasons/holidays. I love the ornaments in this lantern!

Source: cleverlyinspired.blogspot.com via Laura on Pinterest

I've got a few empty wine bottles that I am saving for this little project...one may or may not have exploded red wine all over my kitchen. Ick. That's a different story. I want to find branches to put in the bottles and hang small ornaments on them.

Can you believe it's already time to start talking about Christmas?!

12 month pictures {a boy and a stick}

We had Grayson's 12 month pictures taken in early October at a really pretty park nearby. I had every intention of getting lots of family pictures so that we could use them on our Christmas card. Well, my child wanted to be the superstar. He allowed NO posing with mama & daddy. Also? He found a stick. Lots of them, actually. And he proceeded to carry them around during the entire photoshoot. I'm not kidding. 98% of the pictures are of G with a stick in his hand. Every time I tried to take it away he would scream....so a stick it was! Seriously people, this Toddlerhood stuff is no joke. They are finicky little people!

So basically, this is just one of those posts where I show off lots of cute pictures of my kid. Sorry! I can't resist. Enjoy:)

All images were taken by Laurel Pankratz of  Eilas Photography. Thank you, Laurel, for capturing Grayson's first year!

So What! Wednesday



It's Wednesday. I think you all know what that means. Time to say SO WHAT! with Shannon over at Life After I Dew. This week I am saying SO WHAT if...

• I paint my nails a different color at least 3 times a week? A girl's gotta have variety in her life!
• I have ordered something off of Zulily 5 times in the last few weeks? Those sleep sacks? G needs them to keep him warm at night. That wreath stand-hook-thingy? Will look great on my buffet. Those 2 chef kits for kids in my family? Looked AWESOME. Fleece lined leggings? For real?? Who even knew they made such a thing!
• I refuse to decorate for Christmas until after Thanksgiving EXCEPT for Grayson's Little People nativity set? I don't like to rush through Thanksgiving but that nativity scene may be the cutest thing I've ever seen. It's hanging out beside some pumpkins in our dining room.
• I go to bed feeling a little bit hungry now that I've been doing Weight Watchers? Let's face it, nothing tastes as good as skinny feels. {repeat 10 times in my head so I can avoid the Halloween candy}
• I'm 26 years old and am looking forward to purchasing the new Biebs Christmas cd? He's the new version of Justin Timberlake and you know how I feel about him!
• Grayson's clean laundry has been sitting in the dryer for about 36 hours? Folding clean clothes & putting them away is my least favorite task. Add baby socks to that and you've got something I just plain hate to do. At least it's clean, right?

That's all I've got! What are you saying SO WHAT to??

Got a question?

I love reading Q & A posts from other bloggers. I think I'm nosy by nature and love to find out random things about people.

{Yep. I own footie pajamas WITH sock monkey feet.}

SO, today I am putting the ball in your court. You get to ask me any question you want...and I am 99% sure I will answer them all. Unless, you know, they are totally awkward or inappropriate.

Surely there is something that you want to know, right?! (I'll flatter myself and think that there is, anyway) And if you people don't ask me anything then I will just have to get my trusty pal Jen to ask me a bunch of questions so I don't feel like a loser. Deal? Deal.

Ready, set, GO!

THE pout.

Well folks, I feel like we have officially reached Toddlerhood. Toddlerhood is a little bit different than Babyhood. Babies may get upset when something is taken away, but usually they are easily distracted.

Toddlerhood is a whole new ball game.  A ball game full of arched backs, screaming, hitting, tantrums, and THE pout. Long gone are the days of easy distractions to prevent a meltdown. Instead we get the full-blown, head-flinging, body-to-the-ground tantrums over ridiculous things.

For example, we spend our mornings playing in the bonus room upstairs. G roams happily amongst his gazillion toys and I try and drink my coffee before it's cold. Well, my toddler thinks it is totally acceptable to drink coffee. The other morning when I wouldn't let him hold my mug and drink the whole dang cup, he fell to his bottom, flung his head back on purpose, and slammed into his metal xylophone. All over a cup of coffee. I mean, seriously.

These days we are also dealing with THE pout. Not just any pout, folks. I'm talking the most over-dramatic pout you have ever seen.

Allow me to introduce you to the pout that I am referring to:

Ben says Grayson gets his pout from me. Sadly, I can't take credit for that. THE pout is definitely from his daddy & I'm pretty sure Taylor from the RHOBH paid big bucks to make her pout look like that.

Just for fun, here is what happens in our house when we tell a certain someone "no."

And yes, we are those parents that capture these kind of moments. Don't judge. I seriously can't get over the emotion on this boy's face...his tantrums are serious business.

On that note, welcome to Toddlerhood.



Boo at the Zoo

While we were in Atlanta, we ventured over to Zoo Atlanta for Boo at the Zoo. I didn't make Grayson wear his gnome costume to the zoo but he sure loved looking at everyone else in their costumes! My child is such a people watcher--just like his mama. I'm not sure if he enjoyed the animals or the people more.



G and his Poppy checking out the flamingos.



Posing with Willie B. Willie B was the famous Atlanta gorilla when I was little!

I mean, he had a terrible time. Obviously.  By the way, we have gotten SO much wear out of his SheSheMade shirt! I will be so sad when it doesn't fit any more!

G had his first experience with a petting zoo (yuck!) and I'm almost positive he thought he was petting a bunch of weird looking dogs. The goats were so nasty..I would have been happier if it was a petting zoo of llamas and meerkats.

Grayson and his Nana

Thanks, mom, for the extreme close up. Just focus on my extremely adorbs adorable child!

feeling thankful

I've been feeling pretty nostalgic lately. I think it's because I can look back now at this exact time last year and remember how life was with my newborn. It's amazing how much can change in just one year. Last year for Halloween we were sitting on our front porch with a tiny boy dressed in pumpkin footies...this year we were chasing a running garden gnome! 

The other night something reminded me of how I was feeling at this point last year. I was a mess. Not because of the whole new mom thing, but because I knew maternity leave was flying by faster than I could imagine. I remember that pit in my stomach I would get every single Monday morning...I was counting how many Mondays I had left with Grayson. I remember putting G down for a nap when he was about 8 weeks old & just sitting at the foot of my bed sobbing. Ben walked in & probably thought I was losing it. I remember crying to him that I wanted to be the one that put him down for his nap; I wanted to be the one that saw that sweet smile when he woke up.
 

Maybe it's because it's November & the season of Thanks or maybe it's just God pulling at my heart to make me realize how blessed I really I am. I don't know. I'm just SO thankful that I am now the one that does get to put Grayson down for his nap; thankful that I get to see that toothy grin when he wakes up.  It's not an easy job, by any means, but I wouldn't change it for the world. 

What are you thankful for?

So What! Wednesday

I'm back for some SO WHAT! Wednesday fun! This week I'm saying SO WHAT if...

• I completely blew off cleaning the house & changing sheets out on Monday because I had to catch up on blogging? I was WAY behind after a week with no computer. Priorities, people.
• I want Grayson to be a garden gnome every single day of his toddler life? It's so dang funny. He looks hysterical. 
• I will STILL be watching the next season of Keeping Up With The Kardashians and I will STILL follow all of the Kardashian clan on twitter after Kim filed for divorce? I love me some Kardashian drama! People are taking Kim's "breaking news" a little too personal.
• I'm not so much bothered by the whole fake-a-marriage-to-get-moolah thing as I am the fact that she chose a nobody-who-looks-like-a-caveman thing? If you are going to marry someone for publicity AND to get paid almost 18 million dollars, can't you at least pick someone people actually know? Poor Kris. His 5 minutes is up.
• I almost SCREAMED in Wal-Mart this week when I finally found my Starbucks caramel iced coffee vias? I was SO excited. I stocked up and used coupons (thanks, Aubrey!!). I'm all set for awhile when it comes to iced coffee. 
• I have an unhealthy obsession with dry shampoo? Best. discovery. ever. I want to kiss the person that invented dry shampoo because now I don't have to dry my hair every single day. And that my friends? Well, it saves me about 20 minutes a day. Holla!
• I joined Weight Watchers on a whim last night and have NO idea how to do it? The information overload kind of stressed me out.

Go link up with Shannon for So What! Wednesday! 

Grayson the Gnome

Halloween was so much fun this year but I've got to be honest...I'm glad it's over! We have been so busy with Halloween activities. Grayson and I are exhausted! Last night was a little different than last Halloween. Look at our little pumpkin a year ago:

G was so tiny! We sat on the porch and passed out candy. This year we got to go trick or treating! We live in a huge neighborhood but we decided to stick to our little street this year. 

This is the only picture I have of my gnome without ripping the beard off. How funny does he look?! Like a little old man. 

We had to make the garden gnome pose in the flowerbed. You know, because we're cool like that. 

Ben had this wonderful plan of pushing the gnome in his car so we didn't have to chase him up and down the sidewalk. We made it to our next door neighbor's house and then he jumped ship. typical. He was a gnome on the run! 

Grayson thought the phrase "trick or treat" was hilarious & this was the face we got every time he heard it. Ha! He is such a ham.

 Can you see why G wanted to jump ship?? He saw his buddy, Gray! Leslianna and Andy moved right next door to us last spring and their little girl, Gray, is 10 months older than Grayson. Gray taught Grayson (seriously...how easy are their names for each other?! haha) how to trick or treat.

He followed her to all of the houses on our street...they were so sweet!

Gray was Dorothy...how sweet does she look??

 

Grayson had  a lot of fun going to the houses on our street. He didn't quite understand the concept of grabbing the candy; he preferred to try and go inside their house-ha! He's friendly! He also remembered where all of the neighbor dogs lived and was looking for them when we got to the front door...this boy LOVES dogs! 

I hope everyone had a great Halloween!