Pool Time

Friday night we took Maddox over to my parents' pool for his first time in the water. Since the temp. has been so high this summer it really was like a bath tub. Very warm! It's so funny b/c I expected him to have some kind of expression, but he didn't at all... no smiles, cries, anything! He just took it...

Blue Ridge Mountains Vacation

Last weekend my family took a vacation to the Blue Ridge Mountins in Georgia. It was soooo much fun and a great get-away trip! We left on Thursday and came back Sunday. I loved the cabin we stayed in and it was so relaxing!! Maddox fell in love with the back porch swing and spent most of his days there...

On Friday we went White Water Rafting which was a lot of fun. I had not been in over 10 years so it was a lot different than I remembered it. We rafted the Ocoee and I was a little nervous b/c this river was rougher than the one I rafted years ago. I was determined not to fall out and I am happy to say that I didn't!
The weekend was spent relaxing, cooking, playing in the HUGE game room, playing with the kiddos, and just having a great time! I can't wait to go back again soon! Here are some more pics from the weekend...

3 Months Old and Rolling Over

Yesterday Maddox turned 3 months old! Time sure is flying by! We took him to the doctor on Monday with some congestion issues (which turned out fine) and so we got to weigh him. I have been thinking he had gained a good bit of weight b/c he has gotten so much heavier to carry! Turns out I was right. He now weighs 13 lbs. and 3 ounces! He is such a big boy! He has gotten so much more interactive and is now full-fledged laughing! Daniel got the first "real laugh" out of him a couple of weeks ago but he has not done it since then until yesterday and today. It's really cute if I may say so myself. He is starting to grip toys now and really smile and "talk" a lot! We are enjoying him so much! Here he is at 3 months...

And today he rolled over! He did this before a while back, but I think it was just a fluke because it was way too early for him to be doing it consistently. Today he rolled over 3 times and I actually caught the 3rd time on video. You will have to excuse the crying... by time #3 he had had enough and was letting me know...

In other Maddox news, he is a pretty good sleeper which I am very thankful for! He is sleeping about 8 hours each night and goes to bed really well. We are still working on the napping thing but it is getting better each day! Right now for naps, when he starts acting sleepy we will swaddle him and put him in his swing and he goes to sleep usually within 5-10 minutes. For a couple of days there, he was napping in his crib, but that didn't last very long. The swing is what works today, but I have learned it might be something new tomorrow. Things are constantly changing these days!

Well, that's about all for now. Maddox had his first vacation last weekend so check back for a post on that! Happy Thursday everyone!! :)

Experiments in Scheduling

So now that Maddox is almost 2 1/2 months old, I would really like to try to get him on more of a schedule so that when I go back to work in August, things will be pretty predictable for my mom (who will be keeping him for us). He has always been on a predictable eating schedule... he now eats every 4 hours, and is drinking 6 ounces during his daytime feedings, 5 ounces at his early morning feeding, and 4 ounces at his bedtime feeding. He has been sleeping through the night for almost 2 weeks now which has been wonderful! But as far as daytime naps go, he is not very predictable. He has been known to nap for 2 hours at a time, and sometimes only 20 minutes. It makes it very hard to get anything done b/c I never know how long he will be sleeping for. He falls asleep very well if I am holding him, but I realize that I can't rely on this forever. He also naps in his swing, but my new goal is to put him down for a nap while awake in his crib. I have been wanting this for a while now but have not tried it very much for a couple of reasons. First of all, I am a very on-the-go type person. I have to get out of the house at least once a day or I can't stand it. So a lot of times I create errands for us to run just so we can get out. He sleeps great in his car seat but as soon as we get home, he wakes up. So, things just have not been very predictable for him in the napping category. He has been more of a cat-napper so far.

This morning I decided to give it a try for the first time. At around 10:00 he had fallen asleep on me and I wanted to transfer him to his crib. When I put him down he woke up immediately but did not start crying. I left the room but stuck my head in about every 5 minutes to check on him. He was laying there just cooing and looking all around... but not looking sleepy anymore. After about 20 minutes of this he had had enough. He started crying. So I went in after a few minutes and swaddled him and put him back in his crib. I had to go back in every few minutes to calm him and put his paci back in, but he finally fell asleep on his own after 45 minutes from the time I put him in to begin with. I guess that's decent for the first time. And at least now I know it is possible after all!

Hopefully I can get him doing this at least for the morning nap, and maybe I can do all of my errands in the afternoons. Who knows. This whole motherhood thing is all trial and error anyway, right?

Tomorrow may be a different story, but for today I am very happy to have a beautiful baby that fell asleep on his own. Maybe we are on our way to a more predictable routine after all...

*Please excuse the spit-up stained sheet... changing sheets is on my list of things to do today! :)

2 Months Old

Our little lovebug turned 2 months old on May 23rd and boy is he growing! We went to the doctor yesterday for his checkup and here are his stats:


-Weight: 11 pounds, 7 ounces

-Height: 23 inches

-Head Circumference: 16 inches


He was in the 50th percentile in all categories. He is growing like a little weed and has now moved out of newborn clothing into 0-3 months. He is also wearing a size 1 diaper now. He decided to spoil us right after he turned 8 weeks old and sleep through the night 4 nights in a row! Man, were we excited! He has not done it the last 2 nights, but we have been a little off schedule for a couple of reasons these last 2 days. Maybe he will pick back up with it tonight. That would be nice! Anyway, here is his 2 month picture...
Right when he turned 6 weeks old, we moved him out of his cradle in our room into his crib in the nursery. Every morning when I get him out of his crib, I usually go get into the recliner and he will sleep on me for another couple of hours. I love this special time with him and I am trying to treasure it because I know he won't want to do this forever. In the mornings I can get the sweetest smiles out of him... he's just too precious (if I may say so myself!). Here are a few pictures of our early morning cuddle-time...

This weekend he will be taking his first road trip. We are going to Nashville to see Daniel's family and we are so excited about going! I hope he will do well in the car for that long. We are usually in Nashville for Memorial Day but this year will be a little different since we have Maddox... but a good different. I will take lots of pictures of this visit and post them when we get back.

One of my very best friends, Kiera, and her husband and little boy were passing through town on Sunday night and got to stay with us. We had so much fun visiting with them and catching up on things. Kiera is 37 weeks pregnant with their 2nd little boy, Tucker. I can't wait until he arrives and we get to meet him! Thanks again, Kiera, for the nice visit! Love you!

Well, that's all for now. I am going to try to take advantage of Maddox napping and fold some laundry. Have a great week everyone! :)

An Eye Opener

I came across this on a friend's facebook page and I thought it was too powerful not to share. Some of you may have already read this, but even if you have, read it again. It is an awesome reminder of the tremendous job we have as moms. It makes me cry everytime!

A Newborn's Conversation With God:

A baby asked God, "They tell me you are sending me to Earth tomorrow, but how am I going to live there being so small and helpless?"

God said, "An angel will be waiting for you and will take care of you."

The child further inquired, "But tell me, here in heaven I don't have to do anything but sing and smile to be happy." God said, "Your angel will sing for you and will also smile for you. And you will feel your angel's love and be very happy."

Again the child asked, "And how am I going to be able to understand when people talk to me if I don't know the language?" God said, "Your angel will tell you the most beautiful and sweet words you will ever hear, and with much patience and care, your angel will teach you how to speak."

"And what am I going to do when I want to talk to you?" God said, "Your angel will place your hands together and teach you how to pray."

"Who will protect me?" God said, "Your angel will defend you even if it means risking its life."

"But I will always be sad because I will not see you anymore." God said, "Your angel will always talk to you about Me and will teach you the way to come back to Me, even though I will always be next to you."

At that moment there was much peace in heaven, but voices from Earth could be heard and the child hurriedly asked, "God, if I am to leave now, please tell me my angel's name."

God said, "You will simply call her 'Mom'."

Happy Mother's Day

This was my very first Mother's Day and boy, was it special! I feel so honored to be Maddox's momma, and I can't wait to see him grow and experience life. The past 7 weeks with him have been so wonderful (even on the hard days) and I know things will get even better from here. We spent the morning at church with my parents and then ate a yummy lunch with them. After lunch, some more of my family got together at my grandmother's house and we enjoyed visiting for a while up there. Daniel got me new curtains for our dining room and he hung them and I think they look great! We have needed some color in this room for a while now and I think these curtains did the trick! We found them at World Market and with 4 coupons, we ended up getting them for much cheaper than I could have made curtains for. So that was exciting! Here is the "new" dining room...

Our family of 3 on Mother's Day...

Me and the best mom in the world...

I hope all of you moms out there enjoyed your Mother's Day as much as I did. Being a mom is so hard, but it's the most rewarding job ever!