I'm A Cowboy, Baby!

Ok, sorry, but ever since we decided that we were going to do a cowboy theme for Steven's birthday that Kid Rock song has been playing in my head. It's totally inappropriate for a kid's birthday party and he really gives me the creeps, but I guess it's because the words "baby" and "cowboy" are both in the chorus. I'm a dork...so moving on....

These pictures were my favorites and runners-up to making the invitation. In other Steven news:

• His naps are going very well and he is still taking two naps (one morn and one afternoon); we have just pushed them a little later.
  
• We have successfully made the switch from formula to whole milk. There were a few rough times but it wasn't too bad. He actually drinks the milk better than he did the formula; however, we've learned the hard way that he only wants it warm and in his bottle. With the party coming up, I decided that we'll keep the bottle for now and try again to switch over to all sippy cup at a later time. He was VERY upset that someone put formula/milk in his sippy cup...because EVERYONE knows sippy cups are only for water.


• He is getting two more teeth in- numbers 6 and 7. He hasn't had two teeth come in at the same time since his first two at 6 months. And they're coming in the week of the party...lucky us!
• Steven got a haircut Saturday. We think it looks cute long but when it starts getting in his eyes, it starts to really bother him. This was his fourth haircut!


• Three days until Steven's turns one year old...but only two days until his party!

The Invitation

This is Steven's first birthday invitation. I promised Charlton to keep the party as small as possible so we only invited family and friends that Steven plays with on a weekly basis. I would have liked to have been able to invite everyone but I kept my promise. I still want everyone to be able to share in the celebration though. Please excuse the simple way I'm posting this and blocking out our address and phone number. =) Isn't his invitation adorable?! Aunt Cheryl made them.

Update: Steven was sleeping while I was posting yesterday. Yea!! He slept at least an hour and a half yesterday afternoon so that plan seem to work well. I'm keeping him up longer to make sure he's really tired (good advice, moms). I've also decided to do better at posting responses to comments so you can look for those now as well.

Adventures in Mommyhood

This pic is from this week when Steven and his buddy Jackson were playing. It has nothing to do with this post but I figured you wouldn't read my story if it didn't have a pic. Aren't they cute?! They're only serious once the camera comes out.

In the last month or so, everything about Steven has changed and that includes his naps. He is a good napper and has been going down at 9am for about 2 hours and again at 1pm for another 2 hours for a while. I knew enough from friends and books to really enjoy this since I know that we are going to be dropping to one nap soon. And I think that time has come. Lately he's been taking super long naps in the morning, but then, of course is not tired enough to nap again in the afternoons. I started waking him up after two hours the last couple of days to try to protect the afternoon nap and that worked a few days until YESTERDAY.

I put him down about 1pm as usual because he was acting tired. He was quiet for 15 min or so and then talked and played for an hour in his crib. I've been leaving him because he's not crying and usually falls asleep and although I feel a little bad leaving him in there I know it's for his best interest if eventually he falls asleep. After the hour of playing, he got quiet for another 20 min and but then started making noise again. He does this off and on for a while before he starts to get fussy, but then he only fusses for a few min. It's now been an hour and a half since I put him down and I'm watching the clock. Then he starts crying hard. It's been a while since this has happened so I'm a little panicked if I should go in and get him (my first instinct) or give him a little while (thinking maybe this is the last show before he falls asleep).

So what do I do? I give him a few minutes (that's all I could muster after him being in there for so long and not asleep) and go in to get him. I walk in to him standing in his crib fussy but not hysterical. I reach in to pick him up and noticed a huge wet ring (about a foot in circumference) in the corner of his crib. My first response is horror..."No wonder he's being crying. My poor Baby!" But then I start thinking..."what caused that ring? It's not from tears, drool, or snot, so it must be pee." I share this because I think that this is a regular thought process for a mom. Then I think that his diaper must have leaked (that's been happening lately too) until I notice that there's another ring in the other front corner of the crib. And I realize that there's no way his diaper could have leaked that much. Puzzled, I pick him up and realized he doesn't have a diaper on!!!!! OH MY GOODNESS!!!!!

He took his diaper off, chucked it out of the crib with his stuffed animals, and then peed in both front corners of his crib. Thankfully, the bumper (which was also soaked) saved the carpet. Maybe I should write Pottery Barn and let them know that they left off a key selling point for their bumpers. I can just read the catalog line now: Shields your carpet from pee when your baby takes his diaper off! Oh well, it was time to wash his crib sheet anyway.

So I'm open to any advice moms might have on making the transition from two naps to one. Our next plan of action, I'm trying right now as I type: For his morning nap, I kept him up longer this morning until 9:30am and let him sleep an hour to hour and half before waking him. Then I put him in his crib about 1:15pm when I noticed him getting tired. He has being making noise playing in his crib but is now quiet, so we'll see. He could be taking an awesome nap...or he could be putting off his diaper so that mom has to wash his entire bedding set again.

Happy Birthday to Pappaw who will no doubt find this story very funny!

Moments At Home I Love

So as it turns out, Hurricane Dean is not going to hit Houston. We did go get gas and groceries on Saturday and when we got to Wal-Mart, the aisles with bottled water, bread, etc. were cleared out. We did get alot of things "just in case"- better safe than sorry I always say.

Steven and I have been having a good time playing at home. Here are some pics from this morning (the above pics are from last week). The older he gets, the more fun it is, and I realize just how blessed I am to be able to stay home with him and share moments like this.

Dean

"Hurricane forming near Gulf. Keep your gas tanks full."

This is the message that now reads on the electronic signs on Houston freeways. I saw it at the beginning of the summer (which is the beginning of hurricane season) and then it has reappeared in the last few days. We have had some serious showers end of this week, but nothing too bad in our area. Please pray for safety as this hurricane gets closer. We are not too concerned right now since we live pretty far inland but we did decide that we are going to fill up our gas tanks and go buy more groceries today. After Rita, people down here start getting anxious so I have to admit that when I was driving through a rainstorm yesterday with Steven in the backseat and saw the above message flashing, I had a slight desire to pack up with my men and head for the hill country.

7 is the number of perfection

Today is our 7th wedding anniversary. Yes, you read that right...7! Yes, you are remembering right...I just turned 27 in July. Yes...we were young. It's been a wonderful seven years and I am constantly reminded even seven years later what a blessed woman I am to have such a wonderful husband. These are just a few of the reasons that I love him so much:

1 He thinks Legally Blonde (one of my favorites) is funny.
2 He’ll quote movie lines back and forth with me.
3 He introduced me to Patty Griffin (and all types of other music).
4 He brags on my cooking.
5 His mischievous chuckle when he knows he’s been caught at something.
6 He has introduced me to all sorts of things that I would have in no way found funny before we were married- for example: Stephen Colbert
7 He’ll help me put together a play list and glue Oprah faces on a stick for his sister’s bachorette party.
8 He consistently shows that Steven and I come first before his career.
9 He was as excited about Harry Potter Book 7 coming out as I was.
10 He has been diligently seeking how to create an environment of grace and family worship in our home.
11 He patiently waited in College Station, TX before moving ahead with his career so that I could finish my BA.
12 He offers to pick something up for dinner on his way home if he knows I’ve had a long, hard day with Steven.
13 He asks what needs to be done around the house and yard even after all the long hours he puts in at work.
14 He brainstorms ideas with me for Steven’s birthday and help me find the perfect (and easy) cake design online.
15 He encourages me to read more and suggests that I read books he enjoyed so that we can discuss them.
16 He notices everything…haircuts, new clothes, jewelry, even different make-up.
17 He tells me I look good and means it.
18 He tells me what a good mom I am and how impressed he is with the job I’m doing with Steven.
19 He points out when I’m being too critical and hard on myself- a constant struggle for me.
20 He asks me what I think about scripture, books, financial decisions, entertainment, and news and cares what I think.
21 He unfailing desire to learn about anything/everything.
22 He gets excited planning vacations and dates for us and is really good at it.
23 He can tell when I’m at my breaking point and says,” I’ll put Steven to bed, why don’t you get out for a while.”
24 He has stacks of books that he has yet to read, but he’ll order more anyway saying that he’ll read them one day when he has time. He’ll probably still have books in our study he hasn’t read when he retires and hopefully by then he’ll have time.
25 He loves Harry Potter as much as I do.
26 He loves God, Steven and I, his family, and friends in that order.
27 After seven years of marriage, Charlton knows me better than anyone else. He is my best friend, my most trusted advisor, and the love of my life.

Happy 7th Anniversary, Charlton!

Mom's Haircut

This post is for my sister who is dying to see pics of my new haircut. Well, maybe not dying....but she did ask for pics.

Overnight trip

Charlton is out-of-town for a few days on business so Steven and I went to spend last night at my parents house. We went to see Gama's new place which I must say is very swanky and beautiful (and right down the street from my parents), before we settled at Mammaw and Pappaw's house for the evening. Steven was very happy to have all the attention and new places to explore. It was a short trip since we are already home again but fun. Charlton gets in tonight and we're excited that we'll have him home again.

Reading a book with Pappaw

Mammaw teaching Steven a new home-made game (rolling a golf ball down the tube). He laughed when it came out the other side.

His favorite thing to do with Pappaw














Sitting with Gama

Everything's Changed at 11 Months

I know I keep saying this but I can't believe how old Steven has gotten. Man, time flies! The first six months of his life seem to creep by and now I can't believe that less than a year ago he was so little he couldn't even lift his own head. I find this crazy speed of development just one example of God's amazing creation. It is clear that Steven is learning and developing everyday which makes him a very busy little guy. He now has 4 teeth that you can see in this first picture- it has totally changed his look and I can't help but smile back when I see that big toothy grin. He's around 22 pounds and words I would use to describe Steven are active, fun, vibrant, determined; he's my man-on-a mission and we have a lot of fun together. I took these following pictures yesterday morning. He's in my favorite pjs and up to his usual activities. His favorite thing to do for the past month has been to push all the chairs out from under the table (breakfast and dining).

Several weeks ago he started to really lay down and peer under furniture as opposed to repeatedly head-butt it before giving up. This week he's discovered if he lays flat enough he can actually get under things and he attempted to get under a breakfast room chair in this pic- he got about halfway.

He also loves to push around his dump truck- Daddy picked it out and also showed him how he can put other toys in it the back. Tupperware is his favorite to haul right now- ironic isn't it? He's a full blown walker now that he walks across rooms and from one to another. And even at 11 months our boy is a climber. We really have to watch him if we put him on the couch- he's been known to climb over the arm rests onto the end tables and then stand straight up (no kidding). The other day I was washing dishes while Steven was playing in the living room (about 10 feet away) with his activity table. I got lost in my

thoughts since I figured that he was fine...right...wrong. He pulled his Bumbo (that was also in the living room) up to his activity table and in seconds used it to climb on top of the table. I looked up because he was suspiciously quiet and saw him squatting on the top of the table like a little frog looking around...hmm, so that's what it looks like from up here. The Bumbo is in the closet now that I know it's become a step ladder. And needless to say, I've been very busy lately too.