Memorial Day Weekend

Nanny & Poppy took advantage of the long holiday weekend, and came for a visit! They arrived early Friday morning so that I could head to a doctor's appt. Nate showed off his puzzle skills, and played with new bubble toys. We attempted to take both kids down to a neighbors house to swing, but WOW we got caught in a monsoon. Abby did NOT like racing back to the house in her stroller!! Nate's highlight of the day was taking a big boy bath downstairs, with his new Handy Manny boat! In fact, when he & Nanny were putting it together at 9 am, he said "I ready for a bath now!"

Yes, I know he looks a bit...scary here, but he loves his new goggles! We are ready for the beach!

Abby jammin' on the drums

Poppy & his girl!

I know she doesn't look that comfy, but I swear, she liked it! This was taken pre-monsoon, of course.

Settling down before bedtime, with Hanny Manny boat in hand. I love my sweet boy!!

Saturday we left a napping Abby at home with Greg (who was MORE than happy to have the house quiet for awhile so he could enjoy his coffee & newspaper :), and we headed to Lowes to find some flowers to plant! Nate & Poppy explored all over the store while me & Nanny picked out the plants. We got some impatiens, indian carpet, and knockout roses. Fingers crossed I don't kill them! We finished off the morning with lunch at Chic-fil-A and came home to get the planting done before Nate's nap. He was a BIG helper with digging the holes and using the watering can.

And once Poppy brought out the Spiderman water blaster, it was all downhill from there. I bet he loaded & squirted this thing about 1000 times that day. I am not kidding. Check out his stance! He means business!!

Abby's first guitar, courtesy of Deedee. Yes, we are starting her on Hannah Montana a little early! It's so cute though....just the perfect size for her.

We got MORE rain that afternoon (boooooo) but still managed to have fun outside/in the garage with new toys. Again, mostly the water blaster...

Nanny & Poppy took the kids for a stroll after our gourmet cheeseburger dinner, courtesy of Greg:

Sunday morning we had a special treat planned for breakfast...we all went to the Pfunky Griddle in Nashville to make our own pancakes! Surprisingly, Poppy liked it best. It was the first time he'd ever cooked his own pancakes, and he could not get enough. (Gibbs family: whoever draws his name for Xmas...get him a griddle!!) His pancakes didnt always look the best though...see the one at the top of this picture:

Nate eading a book with Nanny while everyone finished up (it's "all-you-can-eat" so we were there for awhile!)

Nanny & I went shopping after breakfast and let the 2 men handle the kids. As usual, we bought waaaaay too many clothes for Abby. In our defense though, she really did need new clothes. She is growing too fast and needs 9M size clothes! And she literally had 3 things in that size. I'm super excited about one purchase I made: a lavendar silk A-line dress for Abby to wear at Becky's wedding! It's got a puffy/tulle skirt too. Too precious! You'll have to wait until August for those pictures :) And I managed to find Abby some newborn size crocs too! LOVE THEM! And the best part...they actually stay on her teeny tiny feet.

Puzzle man, hard at work

Greg & I went on a date night last night to celebrate our 6 year anniversary (a little early - it's June 5th) at the Parthenon. It was so nice to have some QT with my handsome hubbie! And the kids enjoyed a trip to Baskin Robbins after dinner. They said Nate KEPT singing "Happy birthday to Nate" since he was eating birthday cake flavored ice cream!


It was a great long weekend with my parents and I'm so grateful they got to come visit. I always get a good break from entertaining Nate, answering his 100 questions, blowing bubbles with him, putting both kids down for naps, and feeding Abby bottles & cereal & fruit/veggies (since WOW she is not into cereal these days. Or peaches....not a big fan at all). Next up: the beach in less than 3 weeks!!

Tidbits

Don't let this face fool you....Baby Girl LOVES her some pears!!! We have ventured into many new baby foods these past two weeks: carrots, sweet potatoes, squash, pears, and prunes! So far all of them have been a hit. This girl is an EATER (takes after her Momma) and I love it!!

Showing off her new trick

Now that she's sitting up, we removed the ramp/incline from her baby tub! She looks like such a big girl!!

It's like a whole new world has opened up for us, now that she's (mostly) able to sit up. Here she is getting ready for a spin in the stroller - first time without the infant carrier!

Our little chunky monkey. LOVE those thighs!

And what post would be complete without a picture of the cutest 2.5 yr old ever!? His new fave - "chocolate popsicles" - aka Mom's lowfat fudgsicles that she'd prefer not to share but how can I resist this face!?

Summer is here

School is out and summer is here! Our big boy Nate finished his first year of "school" on Wednesday and it was a bittersweet day. I was so proud of him and all he has accomplished this year....I feel like he has really blossomed in so many ways, and I think a BIG reason why is school & his 2 awesome teachers. He told me he will miss his "teachies" and friends, but is excited to hang out with his girlfriend Mal Mal every day :) Of course, I will miss the 5 hr "break" two days a week, but I am excited for the summer and all it has to offer...I am envisioning lots of fun playdates with my playgroup!!

Here he is on the first day of MDO, back on August 19th:


And then a picture from his last day of MDO, on May 19th:

Is it just me, or does he look like he is 2 years older now!?

Shocker

Who would have guessed that my little Miss Priss would be in the 90th percentile, ever!? But she is....and for HEIGHT, of all things. We had her 6 month check-up today and she was 27 inches long!! No wonder I've started needing 9M size clothes for her. She has definitely gone thru a growth spurt! And she weighs 16 lbs 1 oz (the 50th percentile, not too shabby!)

A big thanks to Joyce & Stan for coming this past weekend to help Greg with the kids, while I was at the beach for Becky's bachelorette party (SO FUN)! Here are some cute pics with Granddad:



And Baby Girl has finally realized that she can sit up...and she likes it! She can't do it for longer than maybe 30 seconds, but wow, she looks like such a big girl!!

Lady Luck

Lady Luck has not been on my side the past few days, as I've been trying to get Abby's 6 month pictures taken.

Attempt #1: Saturday @ 4 pm.
When I walked into Portrait Innovations and saw that it was a ZOO, I should have turned around and gone right back home. But no, I proceeded to stay there - like an idiot - and wait for close to an hour. Yes, I had an appt. But no, it didn't seem to matter. Everyone and their sister and cousin and 2nd cousin were in there getting Mother's Day photos taken at the last minute. Don't people know how to plan ahead!? So, after almost an hour of holding Abby straight out in front of me (as not to get her dress wrinkled), I decided to reschedule.

Attempt #2: Wednesday @ 12.
This time I was smart and didn't put Abby in her dress until the last minute, so as not to worry about wrinkles or spit-up. Nonetheless, we still had to wait 45 min. This time, it was b/c they were understaffed. Awesome. So, instead of starting our appt at 12 when Abby is happiest (b/c she has a full belly and a good nap under her belt), we started at 12:45 which is right before her nap at 1. Read: grumpy! Homegirl hardly smiled at all. And ya'll know from the 1000+ pics I take everyday that this girl is a smiler!!! And to boot, after 3 poses, she decided to barf sweet potatoes all over her dress. Nice. So we switched into outfit #2, some cute monogrammed bloomers that I have been dying for her to fit into (thanks H)! Again, hardly any smiling. And b/c she was on her tummy, at one point she just laid her head down and tried to take a nap. Again, awesome. I said let's call it a day and try to look at the pics you got real quick before meltdown time. I picked out 2 poses that are decent, but seriously, I think I have taken better pictures myself at home! Majorly disappointed. (And sorry ML, the bow did not make the cut this time. It kept falling out of her mohawk.)

I will post the 2 pics once I get them back. B/c, oh yes, the printer was down...

Halfway to ONE

I had NO idea Abby Reece's first 6 months would go by SO fast! And here we are...Miss Priss is 6 months old already. She really has made our family feel "complete" and I feel so blessed to have a sweet baby girl. Not to mention Nate, who is lucky to have a built-in BFF, playmate, and partner-in-crime.

We started veggies this past week, and so far, they are a hit!! We started with carrots and Baby Girl cannot get enough! She smacks her lips after each bite and opens her mouth wide for more. Hopefully this will continue! We've also tried sweet potatoes, with the same reaction.



Abby is super ticklish under her earlobes, and loves to be kissed there now. And how can we resist this face?


She also LOVES to grab our faces now, especially her Mommy's! :) She loves to pull you near and cuddle. But wow, watch out if you have dangly earrings or hoops on....ouch! She has gotten a death grip on my hair a few times too. The girl is strong!!

According to her Aunt Becky, little Abby Reece needs a spray tan. (Bec - Greg says you need to a few Hail Marys for that comment!)


Love those baby blues!


Abby is trying soooo hard to roll over from her back to her belly. Poor thing, we keep her swaddled at nap/bedtime, so she hasn't had much time to practice. Anyways, she is almost getting the hang of it! Check it out - she looks like a little contortionist!


For all my (10) faithful readers out there, I want to warn you...this will be my last "weekly" post. It's just getting too overwhelming to do every week, upload pics, etc. From now on, I'm just going to post every month. But rest assured, I will post pics from time to time with funny stories of my kiddos! They're too cute not to! :)

Early Mother's Day Present

Nate's MDO hosted a "Mother's Day Brunch" this morning! Greg was sweet enough to stay home with Abby so I could have some quality alone time with Nate. He was so happy to see me, and showed off lots of different areas & "projects" in his classroom, as well as pointing out his girlfriend/partner in crime, Bailee. Then we moved to the auditorium for a pancake breakfast! Nate made me a card with a poem, picture, and handprint, as well as "heart/hug necklace." Of course, he didn't let me wear the necklace - he wanted to!

I love my sweet boy!! I hardly ever get to spend any alone time with him anymore, so when we do, it's that much more precious to me!

Worst. Trip. Ever.

Here's a picture of Baby Girl, before we started off for Memphis Friday morning. Happy as a clam. Little did she know, we would have the worst weekend trip ever!! (Aunt Molly - this is meant as no offense to you, b/c we did have a great time at the party & visiting with you guys. But still...wow....we had NO idea it would be such an ordeal getting to/from Memphis!!)

Joyce & Stan stayed with us Thursday night, and then left Friday AM with Nate for Memphis. They wanted to take him a day early, to spend time with his great-grandma. Then, the plan was for Greg/me/Abby to follow on Saturday morning, to make it in time for the party at 3.pm (It was Greg's Uncle Shan's retirement/bday/derby party!)

Well...we made it all the way past Jackson, TN, and had about an hour left in our trip, when all of a sudden we were diverted off I-40. There were reports of a tornado 15 miles down the interstate and flooding as well. Of course where they diverted us off the road, there was NOTHING. One dumpy gas station and one hotel. So as you can imagine, the bathrooms were out of order and everyone was frantic trying to buy food, water & gas. Did I mention it was a monsoon and had been so for 3 hrs? Yes, fun times in the family van. We decided to backtrack to Jackson (about 15 minutes away) and then take some side roads to get around the 10 mile stretch of 40 that was closed and get back on. Not a good plan. Every back road we tried was flooded. All I will say is this...we were in a seriously bad spot at one point. Thank goodness for my prayer warriors - you helped to keep us safe! And my husband is an awesome driver (wow, never thought I'd mutter that sentence.)

We moved to plan B, which was to head north to Dyersburg and then down to Millington, and back onto 40 right before Memphis. It worked, but took a heck of a long time, and again, there were some really iffy spots. After we drove thru one town (Covington), they shut down all the roads behind us. That's how bad the flooding was. So, we arrived to the party just as it was starting, at 3 pm. It had been a long 7 hrs but luckily Abby was soooooooooo good. She had 3 catnaps, 2 big poops, and 1 mini-meltdown. Not bad for a 6 month old stuck in a van all day!

We were happy to see the rest of the family, and of course, NATE! The party was a big hit - lots of food, drinks, and fun. We all drew numbers to see which horse to root for, and ours got 7th! So we got to pick out a prize (which was a supercute Derby shirt for me). Abby flirted with all the men, Nate made us all laugh & ate his weight in sausage, and we all had fun celebrating with Uncle Shan. And Grandma Givens got to meet Abby Reece for the first time!

Mum Mum was happy to see us arrive safely

Greg & Nate (aka The Bobsey twins) grubbin'

Uncle Shan enjoying his retirement party!

Such a cute cake! Props to Aunt Molly's friend Cindy who made it

Showing off Baby Girl

After the party was over and the kids were in bed, of course the civil alert sirens starting going off, warning us of an impending tornado. Seriously!? Luckily the kids didn't wake up, and more importantly, there was no tornado...just more bad storms to add to the already bad flooding everywhere. Awesome.

We had a big family breakfast at Perkins on Sunday morning, and Grandma Givens finally got to really visit with us & the kids. They were on their best behavior, and Nate stole the show by making Abby laugh....over & over & over. He loves being a big brother (and showing off)!

Aunt Molly & Shan loving on Abby before we started the trek home

So after checking the TDOT website's road condition maps, and calling the highway patrol, it seemed as though I-40 was clear and we were ready to head home. It was smooth sailing for about 2 hrs (well, despite MORE rain!), until we came to a dead standstill on 40. Luckily, there was a state trooper a few cars up in the emergency lane, so Greg got out and tapped on the guy's window to get some info. Apparently, part of I-40 had just flooded and they were unable to divert traffic off in time. And since we were not allowed to turn around in the emergency lane and go backwards, we were stuck. Like, literally nowhere to go. Craziness!!!!!!!!!!!! After about 30 minutes, we heard on the radio that they were finally able to divert people off the highway, at Exit 172. And since we were at Exit 165, you'd think that'd be just a few minutes wait. Um, not so much. We went 3 miles in 2 hrs. Greg & I spent the next two hours hanging out in the van with Abby, and Greg made a few trips to the Givens' van behind us where Nate was. He was having a ball and of course, not napping at all. Just lots of snacks & dvds!

We let Abby get out of her carseat and have some playtime while we were stuck


Finally, as we were creeping along, we came to an "emergency vehicles only" road that was not TOO muddy/flooded. We took that and were able to crossover to the other side of 40. Finally - freedom!!! We backtracked to Exit 163 and found a gas station (with working bathrooms). We took a backroad into Dickson and then met an angel at gas station #2. He told us he'd just come from Murfreesboro, and told us the series of roads we could take to get there safely. So, we toured Dickson, Natchez Trace Parkway, Columbia, and Spring Hill, and then finally hit I-65. We made it home after 7.5 hrs. What a day.

Of course, it could have been worse...I realize this. We could have gotten carried off into the floodwaters, had damage to our car or house, or been seriously hurt. None of the above happened. We just had two days of VERY long & frustrating travel (15 hours!), with a 6 month old and a toddler. We feel lucky we made it home safely, and (sorry Aunt Molly!) will probably not be making a trip to Memphis anytime soon.