Wedding Weekend

It's here! We're heading to the hometown today to kick off Anna and Frankie's happily ever after. We can't wait to celebrate, share with, congratulate, and support the joining of these two as husband and wife. Praying God's blessings on the entire wedding weekend and their marriage to come!

Everyday Life Lately

*Everyday life lately has been LOUD. Everyone always told me that a house full of boys would be above anything loud... and now we're experiencing it firsthand. My boys LOVE to play together. They are best buds. And I'm so grateful for their friendship and the fun they have together and the joy they bring to each other when they play. This is such an answered prayer for me and one that I keep right on praying about. Their friendship and bond is priceless to me. However, because they play together constantly, they get LOUD quickly. They talk to each other loudly, they play loudly, and they push each other's buttons loudly. Ahhh. Sometimes all the loudness is music to my ears. Pure bliss. I'm overcome with thanksgiving. And sometimes the loudness is cause for a headache. And Terrell and I trying to be heard over them (which sometimes means yelling). And loud fighting (they are still brothers afterall). And me wanting to bang my head against the wall because we're all in the same room but the boys are talking/communicating/playing SO loudly. I wonder if there's a tip or trick to preventing the loudness. I'm sure there is. There's gotta be.

*Last Thursday before we left to go to B'ville for the day, my baby took a hard fall. He was standing on a small stool I keep in the kitchen and somehow it slipped out from under him causing him to fall and hit his mouth and head on the stool. Poor thing was beat up pretty bad and bleeding everywhere. He busted his lip and his head. I didn't think I was going to get his head to stop bleeding. And I don't handle these situations in the most calm manner. Thankfully he survived with 2 booboo's and nothing more serious. He fell asleep shortly after we got on the road.

 

*While we were at Anna's shower at school my mom gave Austin her phone to help keep him entertained... later she discovered he'd made a picture of Curious George. He's really getting good at taking pictures with a phone! He gave George multiple hugs during the shower so I'm not surprised he decided he needed a picture for sentimental reasons.

*On Saturday we spent the morning shopping for wedding outfits for the boys. We went to the mall and Terrell let the boys play while I shopped. And here's where I need to vent just for sec. Why is it SO hard to find super dressy, nice boy clothes?? WHY????? I am seriously sooooo tired of not being able to find anything (unless it's a Christmas outfit of course) nice, cute, and dressy for boys. It is so frustrating. BEYOND frustrating. I searched high and low at every store I could think of for wedding attire and struck out everywhere. (The boys are going to be in a few wedding pictures and needed matching outfits that would look "Sunday best" but not like they're going to a Christmas church service.) Finally my mom and sister found something in both their sizes that I think should work great. Fingers crossed! At least the boys weren't totured while I shopped. They had fun and were totally oblivious to their mama's frustration.

 

*On Monday afternoon Terrell and I got down all of our Christams stuff! This is the earliest we've ever done it. This year Thanksgiving comes so late it's practically in December. And at our house we like to enjoy a full month of Christmas decor and fun. Plus, every single year we have a hard time getting everything done the weekend after Thanksgiving. We're exhausted from traveling, we're overwhelmed with trying to get our tree decorated, we're trying not to neglect the kiddos. It's just crazy. So this year we've decided to decorate a little at a time and have everything done but the tree before Thanksgiving. Then we can focus on the tree and the tree alone after Thanksgiving. Much more managable and easy. At this point I haven't decorated anything. It still feels a tad too early and I've never been one to make the jump from Halloween to Christmas... but I do love this time of year and the anticipation of Christmas and celebrating the birth of Jesus.

 

*For 2 days in a row the boys have played "swimming" outside and worn goggles on their heads and jumped in the water (the grass). I think they came across the goggles while we were under the garage getting down Christmas stuff. They've had a ball. Even if they are in the wrong season. Haha.

*Tonight we're off to pick up my dress and Terrell's tux for the wedding. Just a few more days to go!! I'm starting to get just a little nervous. I haven't been in a wedding since my own and this time I'm going to be big and heavy and wearing 3 inch heels! I can't lock my knees, I must keep my balance, and I have to remember to breathe. Ha! Counting down and so excited!

26 Weeks!

Layton and I are at 26 weeks today which means we have 14 weeks or less to go. Crazy! Things have been going great with the pregnancy and I'm so thankful for my health and his. This week I've really been thinking about his delivery a lot. Since I have big babies, if he doesn't come early I've got to accept that a c-section may be the best way to go. Either option (vaginal or c-section) is having a baby, so either one will be tough. All I can do is pray about it and trust that God will give us wisdom and peace when decision time comes. For now there's no reason to worry since it's months away. Anyway, here's an update on mama and baby boy... 

 

Pregnancy Highlights

 

How Far Along: 26 Weeks

Size of Baby: 12-14 inches long and about 2 pounds... the size of an eggplant.

Total Weight Gained/Lost: 15 pounds... at least. I'm guessing I'm getting closer and closer to 20. But I'm hoping I'm not there yet!

Maternity Clothes: I'm wearing almost all maternity pants and mostly maternity tops. However, I'm such a weird size I've also found some cute non-maternity tops that fit.

Gender: Baby Boy #3!

Movement: He is really active and likes to move all over the place. I can feel him up high sometimes and I can feel him down low sometimes. I am really trying to soak up and enjoy all these movements I'm feeling since this is more than likely my last pregnancy.

Food Cravings: Halloween candy? Haha. Having candy in the house has been irresistable. Yum. I'm also still loving yogurt. Any anything else sweet.

What I Miss: Being able to get up or bend over without a struggle.

Sleep: I'm still sleeping pretty good but have started waking up to roll over or change positions. This has happened with all of my pregnancies. As long as I can go right back to sleep, I don't mind.

Symptons: Feeling heavy, frequent trips to the bathroom, being hungry around the clock, and my hips being sore when I wake up in the mornings... clearly they aren't used to the extra weight laying on them all night.

Best Moment This Week: Garrison feeling Layton kick and both boys kissing my belly and talking to Layton. So sweet.

What I'm Looking Forward To: My sister's wedding! We have an exciting weekend coming up!!

 

*Austin's update at 26 weeks

Showers of Blessings

The boys and I helped my sister celebrate with her last bridal shower yesterday. It was a lot of fun but a lot of work! I was spent by the time we got home.

(Which may or may not have had something to do with the fact that my littlest man... or should I call him my middle man... took a hard, serious fall before we left the house and just about busted his head open. Then we had a bit of a wild time getting haircuts. Then my middle guy had a couple of meltdowns that included being forced into his carseat...twice. Then we had a spilled drink and dumped plate of food at the shower. Whew! What a workout.)

I am glad they got to go to a shower though. Garrison had been really curious about what I was up to all those times they got left at home with daddy. However, one was plenty. No more showers for them for a while. Ha!

Despite the craziness of yesterday, I have loved sharing each shower with Anna and seeing all the fun things she's gotten for their home and future. They have been blessed with some great gifts. It's been so exciting and fun.

A few Friday nights ago, she had her lingerie/bachelorette party. It was super fun. We had a paint party and yummy food and she got some special gifts. Sharing it with her closest friends was the best part. We laughed so much! And if you can't tell, we have an artist in the group. Ahem, Emily.

 

A couple of Sundays ago she had her shower at our church. FBC Barnesville is GOOD to our family. This shower was huge and she literally opened presents for 2 hours straight I think.

 

This was the present table when I arrived... as in before the shower even started. Talk about an overflow of generosity.

 

Anna with sweet baby Cayler. Can't believe I'm about to have another little man! So excited!! 

The shower yesterday was held at her school in the library. The boys loved everything about it and were fascinated with everything this "big school" had to offer. She got lots of great gifts and I'm sure by now she's overwhelmed at the amount of 'Thank You' cards that have to be written!

 

Garrison was AnAn's special assistant. He was in charge of trash, bows, and putting presents away. He loved his job and was pretty proud of himself. 

 

Austin was just a handful but kept some of the other teachers entertained.

We are on the final countdown to the wedding day one week from Saturday! (Maybe Austin's booboo will be just about healed by then.)

Even though the showers were held for my sister I feel like I could write a few thank you notes myself just because of being so grateful for the blessings that have been poured out for her and Frankie. Their home and hearts are full. We can't wait to share their big day with them and lots of fun family memories in the future!

November So Far

Other than celebrating with birthday parties we've had a lot going on the month of November. It's only day 6 and we've packed these past several days full. With lots more to come!

So far this month we're all still adjusting to the time change, shorter days, and earlier wake-up calls. The boys and I are trying to get outside in the afternoons before supper and before it gets dark as much as we can. They're used to having lots of time outside with daddy on pretty days but he's been getting home at almost dark this week. An adjustment for all of us.

There is a part of me that does love the shorter days though. It just reminds me of the holiday season and everybody being cozy together inside. It's a nice change.

The boys are still doing great with bedtime in the same room. We separate them to read books to them (Austin still doesn't have the attention span needed for Garrison's books) and then meet in the big boy room to say prayers and settle down for the night. Austin sleeps on the bottom while Garrison is on the top. Austin still cries just a little but they are both doing great going to sleep by 8:30. Yaaaay! We are SO thankful for how well it's going so far.

Wake-up times are a different story. The time-change still has my big boy thrown off so he's been waking up before 7:00 and has woken up Austin a couple of times too. Sooo, we're still working on that. I'll take 6:47 over 6:03 any day though! And they don't get up and out of bed til 7:00... Selph family rule. =)

 This month we've started our Thanksgiving "project" of writing down the things we're thankful for every morning during breakfast. Garrison is really loving this little project and tells me multiple things he's thankful for each day. He'll definitely have a page full (much more than 30 things) by the end of the month.

I'm trying it out with Austin this year too and he's not totally ready for it but has been able to tell me a thing or two on his own and does great with help from me or Garrison.

Saturday we'll start our next "project" and prepare a shoebox full of Christmas goodies. I'm looking forward to experiencing this with Garrison again this year. Again, Austin isn't old enough to really understand it so it may just be Garrison's thing for one more year. Eventually all the boys will fill a shoebox for another boy in their age group.

 

So far this month we have made a LOT of progress with Christmas prep. We finally made a decision about our Christmas card and have passed along all needed info to our personal graphic designer, Megan. She is our go-to for all cards and invites (I highly recommed her!) and I am so excited to see her talent at work for us. =)

 

In addition to finalizing our Christmas card, we've made tons of progress on the boys' Christmas lists and gifts. We made the decision to cut back a little this year.... financial reasons, space reasons, etc all played a role in our decision. So, we researched high and low for the very best gift options for our babies and made a final list. Once we had the list ready we made decisions about who would give them what. Once we'd done that, we went ahead and ordered a whole bunch of it. Yay for not being last minute!

 

Also, on yesterday Austin and I had to make a quick run to Walmart for a few things so while I was there I grabbed some stocking stuffers from our list. Austin made this picture of me strolling him through the store. (Notice I stashed everything up front and tried to hide it with clothes... a gift for someone else... pink rarely makes it into my buggy) 

 

Terrell and I are working on finalizing our lists this week. Terrell's parents always go shopping early in November and request a list from all family members beforehand. I think getting to make a list as a grown-up is the best thing ever. =)

Besides Christmas prep we are on the final stretch of WEDDING prep! The boys and I are heading to Barnesville tomorrow for haircuts and one last shower for my sister before the big day. I'm also busy picking out outfits for the boys for the rehearsal and the wedding plus making sure Terrell and I are ready to perform our duties. It's almost here!!!

November is busy and full of fun!

*And something so sweet I had to share... Last night Garrison felt Layton kick really good, twice. The first time he's felt him and known for sure without a doubt it was his brother. His eyes lit up and he smiled a huge smile and then he started laughing. It made me SO happy. I almost cried. =) God's blessings continue to amaze us.

Party Weekend

The highlights of our weekend were two important birthday parties... our niece Shannon and my dad, aka Papa. The boys had so much fun at both parties celebrating special family members.

Shannon's party was held at a Monkey Joe's and the boys had such a good time bouncing and climbing and sliding that they totally wore themselves out. They both fell asleep in the car on the way home, which is becoming a kind of rare thing so we knew they were tired. I think the birthday girl had a great time at her party.

 

And I had to share a picture of Shannon's  fairy cake... the ULTIMATE homemade cookie cake. My sister-in-law made it herself and is way more brave (and talented!) than me. It was delicious.  

After the party on Saturday we arrived home just in time to watch the UGA/FL game. Oh my the suspense. Will one of our teams please, pleeease get it together soon?? Ahhhh. We survived with a victory thank goodness!

Then we decided that Saturday night would be the night to try the big "move in" again. Things hadn't been going so great with that and then Austin got sick with a bad cold and was coughing a lot at night so we just put it on hold... til he got better and we decided it's now or never and that they have got to learn how to sleep in the same room because it's going to be REQUIRED come February. And since neither one of us really want to deal with bedtime issues with the big boys once our baby boy arrives, we had to get going on it and be prepared to stick it out.

We've survived 2 nights and things with bedtime are going pretty good. Austin cries when I leave him but then settles down and talks to Garrison and plays a little (in bed) before Terrell goes in once or twice and they stop talking and go to sleep. So no major issues so far... with bedtime. Wake-up times however haven't been so great. Part of it is due to the time change and part of it is due to them waking each other up. We are hoping and praying they continue to adjust to it until it becomes natural and easy and that they remember not to wake up their brother!

Yesterday afternoon we met my parents for a delicious birthday lunch for my dad and then went back to their house to celebrate with presents, cake, and ice cream. The boys were so wound up and had the best time. Garrison wanted to know when we were going to be able to spend the whole weekend. I think they've missed all our spend the night trips to B'ville. I personally am enjoying the day trips but a full weekend is coming soon.... Anna and Frankie's wedding will be here in less than 2 weeks!!

We had a fun weekend celebrating with Shannon and Papa and loved getting to see lots of family. Now we're preparing to start our Monday/school day with my children going on less sleep than I would like due to an early wake-up call of around 6:00. Pray for us please. The last time that happened was one of my toughest parenting days ever. Happy Monday... I hope!!

Trick-or-Treat 2013

We had a great time trick-or-treating last night! Garrison was a total pro this year and loved every second and Austin only cried his eyes out immediately following having his costume put on. After that he was perfectly fine and had fun keeping up with Garrison. Success!!

Terrell got off work early so we could head to the hometown for a night of Halloween fun. My parents hosted a little get-together that was so festive! We had chili and hotdogs on Halloween plates plus festive, yummy desserts. Terrell's parents and Granny, along with my grandparents, sister and Frankie were all present.

The definition of adorable. =)

Freddie Freeman live and in person.

 

A cuddly lion minus the paws... he never did wear them. I tried to force it but decided to pick my battles.

Terrell had the brillant idea of them riding house to house in Garrison's jeep. It worked out perfect! Other than me getting a work out trying to keep up, it was the best thing ever. Granna and Nana came along with us while Papa, Pops, and the great-grandparents held down the fort and handed out candy back at the house.

My parents' street was quiet when we started but by the time we made our way all the way down and all the way back, we had plenty of candy and Garrison was ready to give some out... part of the reason we opted for traditional house-to-house trick-or-treating this year... we still had time to give out candy too. A win-win. The timing worked out great. We almost beat the dark and we got to see several other trick-or-treaters on our way back.

Garrison loved everything about this year's Halloween. By about the 3rd house, he was sprinting down drive-ways and having the time of his life. He even did a happy dance once or twice and declared Tootsie Roll! Tootsie Roll! Oh yeah!!! It was pretty hilarious. Apparently tootsie rolls are that exciting.

Austin just enjoyed riding in the jeep and getting candy in his bucket. He started tiring out about half-way through but was a total trooper. He never complained or cried or had costume drama once.

My heart...there it goes riding down the street in a little blue jeep. Precious.

We arrived home and got the boys in bed around 9ish last night. And I'm so thankful I took the day off today.

HUGE thanks to my parents for hosting Halloween and for Nana, Pops, Granny in Cartersville, Granny, and PawPaw for sharing our night of trick-or-treat fun with us.

That's a wrap. =)

(A look back... 2010, 2011, 2012 )