Party Animal!

On Saturday, we had Nate's 3rd birthday party! It was at the same place as last year - a greenway trailhead with a playground and shelter. I was DREADING it for the weeks leading up to it...wondering why I was even attempting to a party outside when it's been so frickin' hot. Actually, I almost cancelled the party on Friday and called around at a few indoor places, but of course, everything was booked. With that being said, the party went off without a hitch (at the playground as planned) AND the weather actually cooperated! It was overcast and breezy the whole time, so the kids actually got to enjoy themselves and run around without getting heat exhaustion. I was so happy! And though it was monsooning on the other side of town, we had NO rain - just a little thunder and lightning. We really lucked out!!

Nate had a great time with his friends, despite one minor setback at the beginning of the party as the guests were arriving. He was standing on one of the picnic tables, reaching for a balloon, when he lost his balance and fell forward....as in, he faceplanted on the cement. We were lucky he only ended up with a big bruise on his eye/cheek (that didn't show up till a few hours later). Poor little guy! Luckily, his BFF Mal Mal was arriving just as this happened, so she helped to ease his pain! :)

Nate is SO loved by so many people and this was evident at the party. He had lots of friends and their mommys come, as well as many family members that traveled long distances. His Mum-Mum and Granddaddy came from Johnson City, TN; Nanny & Poppy came from Clemmons, NC; Aunt Becky & Uncle Mike came from Charlotte, NC. (And to the rest of our family members - we missed you!) A big thanks to all of you for traveling so far, AND for helping so much with set-up, etc.

Aunt Bebe (who is getting married in TWO WEEKS!!)

Cool Man Grant showed up early b/c he had to leave early (BOOOO!)

Attempt at more family pics

The sweet birthday boy with little sis

Off in his own world with Mal Mal

Some of the Mommys...Ashley (due with baby #2 in a few DAYS!), Kim, me, Hallie

The 3 plaid musketeers - Grant, Will, Nate

Cutie pie Roman

Our favorite neighbors - Mal Mal & Miss Amy

Sweet Tessa, better late than never :)

Thank goodness for Nanny (and Mum Mum) who kept Abby entertained!

Givens fam!

Blowing out 2 of his 3 candles...the wind was so strong we couldn't get all 3 lit!

Chowing down

Noah, showing off his best "cheese"

Wild man Will

Abs sliding down on her belly. She LOVED this!

More Mommys...Ashley, Casey, me, Allyson, Kim

Too much partying

Excited with Aunt Bebe

Nate with his Bebe & Uncle Mike

*Priceless* reaction when he opened his scooter from Mum Mum & Granddaddy

Chillin' on his sleeping bag from Bebe & Mike

Gliding on his "choota" in his new Toy Story pjs (Can you tell he's OBSESSED with Toy Story?!)

Family Pictures

We attempted to get family pictures, Abby's 9 month pictures, and Nate's 3 yr pictures all done last Saturday. Despite some spit-up near the end on Abby's monogrammed outfit (which is why my hand is SPREAD across her belly), and some moaning & groaning on Greg's part, it went surprisingly well overall!

It was so funny though...and SO typical of our kids' personalities. Abby was up first for her individual shots, and would NOT smile. So her. S-T-U-B-B-O-R-N. We finally got a few out of her but we basically had to stand on our heads and act like clowns. Then, Nate sits for his individual shots and immediately says "Cheese!" with the biggest grin ever. The photographer just started dying laughing.

Here were our four favorites, and ones we ended up buying prints of:





And then some of our other favorites:







I love these next two shots b/c they were not posed at all. Nate just naturally grabbed Abby's hand as soon as they sat down. Such a sweet big brother!

And then here, some adoring looks from Abby

9 Months Old

Hard to believe Baby Girl is 9 months old today! Her past month can be summed up in one word: WILD. Now that she's starting to get mobile, she never stops! She is a wild woman in her crib during nap & at night, and I love watching her on the video monitor. Not so much when she gets stuck in an odd position and needs rescuing early in the AM, but still, it's funny. And though she's not technically crawling, she's getting closer each day. The ways she gets around:
1. Laying on her back, arching, and scooting backwards
2. Laying on her tummy, and sliding/pushing backwards on the hardwoods
3. Getting on all fours and rocking back and forth, with the occasional hop
4. Rolling from one end of the room to another
5. Sitting up and "scooting" on her bottom


Abby's new trick this month has been shaking her head back & forth. I swear, you ask her a question, and she shakes it like she's saying "NO!" That girl has attitude already. See, WILD.

She is definitely still teething b/c she has been running a mild fever & been fussy on & off for 2 wks now. Not fun. Nate was an awesome teether so this is a new thing for me. She only has those 2 bottom ones that have popped thru, so we check her everyday for new ones making an appearance.

New favorite thing to do is making NOISE. Like banging any 2 objects together...balls, cups, blocks, etc. Or just banging on the highchair tray 900x while I feed her. Again, WILD.

Also, not really interested in eating these days. Bottletime and mealtimes are all becoming very difficult. I've stopped fighting her and just letting her get by on what she wants. It's hard though when that's just 3 oz from a bottle and 3 bites of food! Nate didn't enter that stage till we got to table food. I know it's just a phase, but it's still hard!!

My favorite new thing she's doing is trying to stand! She loves to play on her musical table like a big girl. I usually sit behind her b/c she can only do it for a few seconds tops on her own.

Loving all these new 12M pjs. Here is some major bedhead!!

Pucker up!

1st wagon ride! Loved it (and chewing on the buckle/strap!)

Can't forget crazy Big Brother

Aka "Hamper Man"

The J.C.

Nate spent Monday-Friday of this week in Johnson City with Mum-Mum and Granddad! He had a BALL and it was a great help to us....considering we had workmen in & out of our house all week (countertop guys, plumber, and A/C men TWICE - oh the joys of 150 degree weather)!

It was soooo good to have him back yesterday. I swear he grew an inch and his voice sounds different to me! He might have even grown some armpit hair; I'll have to check. We all really missed him - including Abby. That girl is F-U-S-S-Y when her BFF is not around. Lord help me when Nate starts back to school later this month!!

Our biggest worry about Nate being away from home for that long was, of course, going potty. Poor Mum-Mum, on the drive to JC, he made her stop 6x and didn't pee once. He held it for 6 HOURS and peed as soon as they got to the house!! On a positive note - at least he didn't have an accident. He did great all week though and even managed to pee in public once - a big feat for being away from Mom! And he decided to go once on the way home too. Whew, our big boy had his first successful trip as a potty-trainer.

According to Mum-Mum, they spent a LOT of time at fast food restaurant playgrounds...b/c of the air conditioning of course. Oh, and did I mention that the A/C at their house died one day as well??? That's summer for you.

Nate swam at the pool (and made friends with an 8 yr old boy in the process), played at the park, golfed with Granddad, enjoyed ice cream cones on the front porch, saw Toy Story 3 in the theatre again, and visited Granddad's office.

And to top it off, he came home with 2 more Mr. Potato Heads (don't ask), so now he has a grand total of 3! Just what every (almost) 3-yr-old needs.

Thank you again Joyce & Stan for getting Nate out of our hair this week! He had so much fun with you guys and I know you enjoyed him as well. I'm sure it's MUCH quieter around your house today without Mr. Chatty Cathy :)

Please

PLEASE look at how cute these monkey pjs are!!! (And yes, I know she looks like she hates her life here. I think she's just self-conscious b/c she has officially moved into 12M sized stuff...FATTY)! We had a mini-photoshoot before bed tonight, which would usually not be possible with Nate running around. But, he is in Johnson City for the week at "Camp MumMum & Granddad!!" :) It sure is quiet around here without him, but at least Abby is getting some good alone time with us for once...

Just Because

Just because I haven't posted in a few days, thought I'd upload a few new pics. Nothing too exciting, but neither is our life these days! :) Lots of staying inside b/c the weather is so.frickin.hot. I am ready for Fall (and for MDO to be back in session!!)

Here's our BFF Mal Mal, who is out of town for 2 wks. Sadness.

First time at Publix in the buggy together. They had a ball (though Abby doesn't show it here!)

Happy-go-lucky girl