A Day at the Aquarium

Friday we spent the day at the Georgia Aquarium. Yay! This was our first trip there as a family of 4. Terrell and I had been once for our anniversary when Garrison was a tiny baby but Friday the whole fam got to go. Unfortunately Austin wasn't feeling his best... he's been fighting a double ear infection, but he's been on antibiotics since Tuesday and wasn't running a fever so we decided a little outing might do him good. I think he enjoyed himself for the most part.

We started the day with Dolphin Tales. We loved it! I want a pet dolphin now. They are the cutest, sweetest, most friendly animals. Garrison was totally fascinated the whole time. (And so was I!) Austin cried a little bit off and on because of the loud noises and the crazy lights but did okay overall. It was very theatrical... which was a surprise to us but definitely added to the show. If you go to the Aquarium you have to see it... and the best part is that it doesn't cost anything extra.



After Dolphin Tales we were off to see the rest of the Aquarium. Garrison's favorites were the River Scout section where he got to see alligators up close and personal and the cutest little otters. He loves otters because we have a book called Oscar Otter about an otter... so he calls all otters Oscar. =) He also really liked the Cold Water Quest section with the penguins and beluga whales.

Austin's favorite parts were lunch (ha!) and the Ocean Voyagers section where he was able to get out of the stroller and stretch his legs for a little bit. Garrison really loved all the Ocean animals too. I think we probably spent the most time there. We were so blessed that it wasn't very crowded since we got there pretty early on a Friday, and during the 1:30 showing of Dolphin Tales the rest of the place was almost empty... at least the Ocean section was. The boys had a ball!

One of the last things we did was see the 3D show and that was the only thing that didn't go so well. Austin was not impressed with the loud Nemo-looking fish or being lightly sprayed with water. So I ended up taking him out. Shortly after, Garrison lost interest....but thankfully daddy was able to talk him into finishing the show before meeting back up with me and Austin so we could go see a couple of our favorite things one more time. I think Garrison would have stayed at the Aquarium forever but he was so exhausted he finally gave us the go ahead to go back to the car. And both boys slept all the way home and went to bed early that night. I can't wait to take Austin back when he's older.

Our Fall Break has been a fun one. Even though some of us have been a little under the weather we've still enjoyed a trip to Barnesville for haircuts and lunch, play time at Chick-Fil-A, and the zoo and aquarium. It's just been nice to have a break from the regular routine of school and making lunches and soccer and having a place to be all the time. I'm getting a little nervous about school starting back because it's been a looooong time since I've had a break from school and then had to go back, but I know we'll all get back in the routine pretty fast and things will be fine. I just hope I can sleep tonight!

Revelation

Many are the plans in a man's heart, but it is the LORD's purpose that prevails. Proverbs 19:21

For quite some time now (translation: since the beginning of our marriage) we've been longing for and dreaming of the day we'll get to move home to Barnesville... when we won't have to pack up the house and spend the night away from our own home on holidays... when we'll be able to see/spend time with/visit family any day of the week.... when we'll be able to attend our church every Sunday... when a baby-sitter is 5 minutes away... when we won't have to spend so many of our weekends dividing our time between our families... when our children will be able to attend the schools we grew up in and have teachers and classmates we know. Sigh. Patience is a virtue. A difficult one.

We decided early on in our marriage that our goal for the future was to move back to our hometown eventually and raise our kids in a small town surrounded by family (which always makes me think of the whole "it takes a village" thing), and now, over 7 years later, it's coming down to the wire. At least when it comes to our time table. You see, we reeeally want our children going to school in Barnesville... where we grew up, my sister teaches, and where we'll know lots of their classmates and the majority of their teachers. Moving back home before Garrison starts kindergarten the year after next has always been our ultimate goal. And sometimes our little deadline feels right around the corner and like we better hurry up or we're gonna regret it and be stuck here forever! That sounds dramatic, but I guess I've been known to be dramatic on occasion.

Lately, our deadline/time table/goal for moving-whatever you want to call it- has been on my mind a lot. Probably too much. I've been praying about it a ton... and all about exactly what I want and what I think we need. Terrell and I have talked about it til we're blue in the face and pretty much tired of talking about it. This scenario, that scenario, worst case scenario. We've tried figuring out every single option for school for Garrison if we're here when he starts kindergarten, every single option for me working or not working and possibly having baby #3 here, every single option for selling the house. Ahhhh. We've mulled over endless questions and possibilities that just lead to more questions and possibilities. And it was starting to drive me crazy. And make me more impatient than ever. Ugh. It was frustrating and exhausting and disappointing every time we had a conversation about our goals and plans.

But finally, FINALLY, I had a revelation. God had been working on me for a while but it just wouldn't sink in and stick. Two of my recent devotions in my Jesus Calling book had really convicted me. One is about being content in all circumstances instead of dreaming of the day you'll finally be happy. Fantasizing about future happiness will never bring fulfillment, because fantasy is unreality. The other is about how you won't find peace trying to control the future and spending all your time planning. (And I am a big time planner. Ouch.) God didn't create us to know the future or be able to figure it out, so instead of devoting all our time to planning we need to bring Him our hopes and fears and commit everything into His care. Both of those devotions stood out to me but they didn't sink in because I didn't reflect on them or focus on them or pray about what I'd learned or could learn from them. I just moved on with my busy days and put them in the back of my mind for another, more convenient time.

Then, God intervened again. Monday afternoon while the boys napped I decided to enjoy some me time on my Fall Break and finished reading a book by Francine Rivers called The Scarlet Thread. And boy was my "me time" a God thing. The book is a little dated because it takes place in the 90s but I still really, really liked it. God revealed a lot to me through that book. He revealed selfishness and lack of trust and excessive planning, and even my tight grip on trying to be in control. At the end of the book I found myself reading things like~ 

Do we relinquish everything to the Lord, or do we make him strip us bare before we understand He's in control? 

and...

He's Sovereign... I've been turning things over and around inside out trying to fix things... figure out how to make them work... I'm not in control at all. God is.   

and...

We don't have to have everything worked out perfectly... We need to trust in His plan for us.

Hello?!!!

It was like God finally got through to me using the words of a fictional character in a Christian book. How long have I been consumed with trying to figure things out all by myself while steadily praying for God to works things out just like I want and steadily getting in His way? How long have I obsessed over our plans and grown impatient over them not coming to be? How long have I tried to control it all by talking things over with Terrell and analyzing possible future outcomes? Way too long.

Monday afternoon it finally sank in that I (we) need to let it go. Stop obsessing. Stop analyzing. Stop talking about it every other day. Stop trying to force things to happen. Instead, we need to trust God to handle everything in His way and in His time. We need to let go of the reins and give them back to God. Our hopes and fears, our goals and dreams, our future. It's way past time for us to let go and give them all to God, the One who is in control of it all anyway.

I'm not saying we give up. I'm not saying we won't still pursue the desires of our hearts and our goal of moving to Barnesville. I'm not saying we'll ignore what we believe God wants us to do. And I'm not saying we'll sit around and do nothing while we wait for God to drop something out of the sky. I'm saying we'll turn it all over to Him and while we wait and do what we feel to be "our part" we practice some patience and trust and peace. And instead of focusing our prayers on exactly what we want we focus on listening a little more (or a lot more!) and seeking what He wants for us.

If we're still here when Garrison starts kindergarten we'll look at our options, pray for wisdom, and trust God with where he should go to school. If we grow weary of all the traveling and packing and rushing around during the holidays we'll try our best to keep a good attitude and pray about how to handle all the busyness while keeping our sanity and doing what's best for our family. We'll make the best of being here (which I think we've done okay with so far) while seeking His will and waiting on His timing. God has got this. He's in control and He has it covered. Why are we trying so hard to figure it out and causing ourselves unnecessary stress and headaches? I could've asked myself about a thousand whys after my revelation. Thankfully I let that go too. And I feel better now. I have a peace about everything because I'm truly trusting God to figure it all out and make it all happen instead of us. It's like the pressure's off. And that's a relief. We don't have to have it all planned out or to even have every single detail of our future mapped out. It's okay to just wait. It may not necessarily be easy to wait but it is okay. God's timing is always perfect even though it's sometimes really hard to truly trust that it is.

I'm sure I will struggle with the whole control thing sooner or later. I'm sure I'll be tempted to try to take back the reins. I'm positive I'll get impatient at some point. But, I'll know in my heart there's no reason to fear or stress or figure out or obsess over what is or isn't happening with the whole moving by our deadline thing. I'll constantly remind myself God has it covered, He's in control. Things may not work out exactly like we want or hope or plan for, and they may take longer than we'd like if it was up to us, but they will work out. For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Jeremiah 29:11.

It's time for us to turn from the path of planning to the path of Peace. (Jesus Calling- Sept 17) A break from the planning feels sort of over due. I'm looking forward to not dwelling on it all so, so much. And I'm especially thankful to know that it's not up to us to make our "plans" happen because who knows if they ever would or how that would turn out!

Wild Weekend

This weekend was a little wild for us but I loved almost every minute. Almost. We definitely had some not so pleasant moments I could have lived without, but all in all our kick off to Fall Break was pretty great.

We started our Saturday with soccer game #2 for our firstborn. He had a great practice Thursday night and we had talked up the game all week and how much fun he'd have just running around chasing the ball even if he didn't actually get to kick it a whole lot like he does at practice. Things were looking up. Garrison was motivated and ready to go. Or so we thought. He ran his little heart out chasing the ball the first play of the game... but didn't get close to touching/kicking it. A goal scored. Garrison dropped his head and came straight for the sidelines already over it. Already down and discouraged. Talk about a bummer. For everybody! My in-laws were there to watch and we all offered encouragement but it was sort of a lost cause. He had already "mentally" given up. Boo.

Terrell and I were in a sticky situation because we didn't know how far to take the whole youhavetoplay-yourteamneedsyou-youcan'tgiveup issue. He's three. How far is too far? Isn't he supposed to be having fun? Should he really have to be forced to play? Anyway, finally Terrell had had enough and told Garrison he had to play the 2nd half or we were leaving. He wasn't going to be able to sit and enjoy (which he was starting to do) watching his teammates play and do all the hard work while he just chilled on the sidelines. So we finally got him back out there and running around and he finally got to kick the ball and he finally scored a goal. I yelled and cheered and high fived him like a crazy, over-excited mama. I was just overjoyed that something positive finally happened! He still wasn't having tons of fun out there and we still had to do some major encouraging and a little threatening to leave to get him back out there after every goal was scored, BUT, we're taking away some positive from this game and hoping for more and more progress every week. (We still have 2 players on our team who have refused to play at all, so we've got to try to focus on the positive here. Baby steps.)

Whew. That game exhausted me.

After the game we had lunch at Chick-Fil-A with Nana and Pops and played on the playground and all was well in the world again.

Saturday night we had an early supper at home before going out to Scoops to enjoy ice cream outside. It was a delicious way to wrap up our day. =)

Sunday we had plans to go to the Zoo Atlanta. We checked out the DVD at the library and got our voucher for free tickets and we ready to go. We were all so excited because the weather was beautiful and this was going to be our first trip to the zoo with daddy!

Unfortunately, Garrison woke up yesterday morning telling me he got sick in bed. It wasn't bad, just a few wet spots on his sheet where he'd spit up but nothing major. So we changed the sheets and thought it was odd but assumed he was fine and it was no big deal...until he wouldn't eat breakfast and it happened again. Ugh. It wasn't a lot and it was clear with no color but he was still technically throwing up. However, he seemed fine afterwards and we felt pretty confident he was better after that and continued with our normal plans. We made it over half way to the zoo before he got sick in the car. Twice. Poor baby. He completely broke our hearts when we told him we had to turn around and go home. He cried and begged for us to take him to the zoo. It was terrible. So I got emotional and Terrell almost did. It made us feel awful having to take him back home.

At home we got him settled on the couch, gave him some pedialyte, put a trash can beside him, and put in a short movie. We waited over an hour with no throw up and talked to both our moms before deciding he was fine and that we still had time to make it the zoo for the afternoon. It was so strange and random but whatever he had went away fast (thank you Lord!) and we were able to make it to the zoo before 2:00 and stayed all afternoon. We had the best time!

The giraffes were one of our favorite animals!

 

My boys and Willie B

Garrison loved the playgrounds...

 

And the train ride

Austin enjoyed the train ride too

But he wasn't too fond of the carousel... Garrison had a ball though!

 

This last picture sums up the carousel ride experience for both of my children. Garrison had the time of his life while Austin held on for dear life. Ha!

I'm so thankful for the fun weekend we had and for my Fall Break and extra time with my babies this week! We're looking forward to another family outing later this week. =)

**********************************************

I just had to share this post today after my not so great experience in the grocery store this morning. It wasn't terrible just sort of crazy. And my 3 year old telling me when we got home I'm jus not in my best mood today said it all. Anyway, the post was a timely reminder for me that I wanted to share.

Austin News

Time for an update on what's been happening with my littlest man...

*He is loving riding around in his car outside. We usually just follow Garrison around in his car... I think he's fascinated with Garrison's big, loud car. Most of the time he sort of chills while he's riding but he also really likes blowing the horn and dancing to the music when we turn it on.

*A few weeks ago we bought Garrison a new car seat that will convert into a booster without the harness and moved Austin into Garrison's seat but turned it rear facing. You would think Austin would be waaay more comfortable in his new roomy seat, but for some reason ever since we changed his seat it's pretty much guaranteed that he's going to cry when we put him in it. He arches his back and stiffens up and lets out a pitiful, I'mabouttothrowafit cry to let us know he isn't happy. Then he's fine in approximately 15-30 seconds. Just like that. Crazy.

*Austin Selph is LOVING table food. At every meal he eats like he hasn't eaten in days. He eats fast and with serious concentration. Baby boy is on a mission during meal times. He loves cheese, almost any type of fruit, potatoes, green beans, peas, spaghetti, tomatoes, bread, turkey meat, applesauce, cherrios, and any snack that Gerber offers. The good news is that so far he's a great eater and we've been through the whole is it possible we're over-feeding him? thing with Garrison and he turned out fine and never had any obesity issues. (Haha) The bad news is he eats a crazy amount of food and seems like a bottomless pit. We need a cost of living raise. 

*Something else Austin really loves is taking a bath in the big bathtub. (Things became a little unsafe in the small bathtub a while back. He could stand up, he could splash and kick and empty half the water on me and the rest of the bathroom. It just wasn't a good situation anymore.) As soon as I get him down to his diaper and turn on the water he's lifting up one of his little legs trying to climb in by himself. He loves the bathtub. Usually I give Austin a bath before Garrison because Austin goes to bed a little earlier and it just seems easier doing one at a time. Occasionally there might be 2 minutes of overlap when they're both in the tub together but usually we keep it separate. Garrison needs more water in the tub and enjoys bubble baths and lots of playtime, but with Austin I keep it short and sweet. And we can tag team because I do Austin's baths and Terrell does Garrison's baths and it works out good for everybody.

*Last week Austin and I went for his 1 year check-up and had the worst experience ever. Long story short, I got there way too early because it wasn't worth it for me to go home after dropping Garrison off at school and we had a looong wait plus it was naptime and by the time the nurse called for us, Austin was over it and sort of lost it. Which meant I almost lost it. It was just terrible. He scremed and cried and refused to be cooperative and was just DONE before the check up was even underway. And it was totally my fault for getting there too early. Anyway, since he was clinging to me like his life depended on it we had to get his weight by me standing on the scale while holding him and then the nurse prying him away so I could stand on the scale by myself. He was squimy and clingy and I was flustered and tense. We finally got it done but aren't sure how accurate it was because his weight ended up being a little over 19 pounds... putting him in the 10th percentile. If I wasn't in the middle of a nightmarish doctor appointment I would have questioned this (or let it freak me out) but instead I was focused on surviving the appointment and getting out of there ASAP. Austin has consistently remained in the 25th-50th percentile for height and weight since birth and we know he eats good and isn't starving and we know he has high metabolism, so we're just going to let it be until his 15 month appointment when I plan on arriving on time and not a minute sooner. Good gracious.

*Austin is still a big time mama's boy, however, he's becoming more and more excited to see daddy when he gets home from work. He loves on daddy for a minute and then comes right back to mama. And he is still the biggest cuddle bug ever. I'm going to enjoy it while it lasts! =)

I think I'm caught up on news and updates for both boys now. Next week is our Fall Break from school so I probably won't stay caught up for long. I can't wait for a week off and for lots of family time!!

Garrison News

I have lots of little updates to give about my boys and thought I'd split everything up into two different posts. Garrison is up first...

*My firstborn is LOVING school... so much so that he now goes every single day. He's always been in a 5 day a week class but since I'm only there 3 of those days we started the school year with him only going Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. We always considered sending him 4 or 5 days once he got adjusted to being back in school so I could still have some one on one time with Austin, but Garrison actually made the decision to go everyday all by himself. He eventually realized he was missing out on some cool stuff his class was doing when he wasn't there and told us he wanted to go every day that his class went. It's worked out really good so far for all of us. I am planning to start keeping him home with me one or two Thursdays out of the month but I'm not sure how he'll take it. Ha! I guess I'll have to plan something extra special so he won't beg to go to school!

*Speaking of school... Garrison has a few new best buds. Two of the boys are in his class and one of them is my co-teacher's son who is 4 and in the Pre-K class. All 3 of his new friends are also "staff kids" so they are there before and after school with us, which isn't always a good thing. Haha. I'm excited about him having close friends in his class, however, I think they may be getting a "group" reputation. Oh dear. As a teacher, this kind of terrifies me. I don't want my child to be that child. As a parent I'm working on the appropriate reaction to this developing news along with thinking and praying about appropriate consequences if further issues arise. On one hand, they're just doing what all friends do together at school- talking and playing and having fun together, on the other hand there is a line that we don't want to cross if that behavior becomes disruptive or disobedient or disrepectful. Okay, now my stomach is in a knot...

*Speaking of friends... Garrison also has a new favorite friend in one of our neighbor's. She's about a year younger than him but he loves when she's outside with her parents and wants to come over to play on our slide or practice tee ball or soccer with him. Even though they play really well together, because they're so young, her mom or dad (or both) come over with her. And that's how I know that play dates with someone I don't know that well would give me anxiety. I stink at small talk. But the kids have fun and we get to know the neighbors a little better so I guess it's a win win.

*Speaking of playing outside... Garrison now gives Austin occassional rides in his car. And I have to say that seeing my 2 boys riding around together just makes my heart happy. Garrison is very careful and protective when he's driving Austin around and they just look too cute.

*Speaking of Austin... Garrison isn't always nice to his little brother. And that makes my heart sad. I'm not sure if he's just too rough or if he intentionally wants to be mean and bully him. It's probably a little of both. And most of the time Terrell and I are at a loss about how to prevent it from happening again. I know they're going to have scuffles and that they're not going to get along perfectly every second of the day, but I do expect them to be able to play together and share and get along most of the time... and Garrison has to take the lead on all this because he's 3 and a half and Austin has no idea how to.

Garrison really struggles with sharing with Austin. A lot of the time he's rough and mean to Austin when Austin starts playing with one of his toys (or is in pursuit of one of his toys). But sometimes there's not a good reason for him being rough with him. And I find myself so frustrated and discouraged because as they get older I just want them to be best friends and enjoy playing together and doing things together. I'm hoping some of it is Austin's age. He is into everything. He can't talk except for a few words. He can't keep up with Garrison. He does get into Garrison's toys all the time. He is still a baby. However, we can't tolerate Garrison being unkind and mean to his brother. There is no excuse that makes that okay.

Another thing that's frustrating is that Garrison is SO loving and sweet at times. He'll kiss Austin randomly and tell him he loves him. He asks about Austin first thing every morning. He looks out for him and tells us when he wants his milk or paci. He tries comforting him when he's upset. And he even willingly shares his toys with him, without any prompting from us, on occassion. I just don't get it. Ahhh.

I'm definitely going to be praying about it. It's so important to me that they are close, for like their entire lives, and these little rough patches we've had make me worry about their future relationship a little. It's probably crazy (at least I'm hoping!) but I'm going to cover it in prayer and try not to stress over it. Praying about it and seeking wisdom for how to handle each and every situation is all we can do. Garrison was the best big brother EVER when Austin was a "baby baby". Before Austin became mobile Garrison loved on him and was gentle and sweet and caring every second. He was as close to the perfect big brother as you can get. I guess the honeymoon's over now. And mama isn't liking it!

*And since I don't want to wrap up on a negative note, I have to brag on him for just a sec. The little man learned how to write his name! I've been wanting him to learn how for some time now but didn't want to push him too hard or make him frustrated to the point that he'd lose interest. He still does a sometimes backwards "G" and "s" and always does a capital "A" but he can write it and I'm oh so proud!

He has also memorized another Bible verse. Our verse this month at school to go along with our theme of the month, Dinosaurs, is In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Genesis 1:1. And Garrison can recite it! He also knows that dinosaurs are extinct and "no more" and that carnivores are meat eaters and herbivores are plant eaters. Yay for learning another Bible verse, new vocabulary, and all about dinosaurs!

That's about it for Garrison's news. Austin is up next. =)

1st Soccer Game & 1st Buggy Days

This weekend was busy and fun for the Selph household. I felt rough when my alarm went off this morning. The closer I get to 29 the more spending the weekend away takes out of me. Sad but true. It was a wild one, but it was worth it. =)

Garrison experienced his first soccer game Saturday morning bright and early and later in the day Austin experienced his first Buggy Days. We were all worn out Saturday night!

If I had to sum up Garrison's soccer game in one word, it would be emotional. Who knew a 3 year old soccer game could be so exciting, boring, traumatic, discourgaing, and devestating? Wow. If nothing else it was entertaining. But still a little disappointing for almost everyone involved. Our poor team had a tough time of it. The game started great but went downhill fast. Half of our team cried (translation: sobbed) off and on throughout the entire "2nd half", 1 of our players decided not to play at all, and another player decided to lay down in the middle of the field to rest during the middle of the game. Like I said, our team just had a tough time of it.

Garrison seemed to enjoy himself at first and ran after the ball and went with the "swarm" of other kids, but eventually he got overwhelmed and discouraged because he couldn't get to the ball. At practice he was used to running with the ball by himself and practicing dribbling and scoring and playing 2 on 2. At the game, there were 8 kids going for 1 ball and not everyone got a turn to kick. In fact, there were no taking turns at all, it was just survival of the fittest out there. He never started crying but did completely lose interest and sort of gave up. I don't think he made it on the field a single time during the 2nd half. But he did participate in Duck Duck Goose after the game to cool down. That's a positive! It made me sad to see him disappointed and discouraged but it was a lesson learned and hopefully things will be better as he gets more and more used to the games and what it means to be on a team. Only time will tell.

We only got a couple of pictures because we got distracted trying to keep Garrison motivated...



My parents came over to see Garrison's first soccer game and kept things light for us. We probably would have been even more discouraged and disappointed if they hadn't been there. They were definitely entertained and laughed and laughed... and reminded us more than once that they're only 3. =) They also helped out a ton with Austin who wasn't thrilled to be at big brother's soccer game during naptime.

After the soccer game was over we rushed home to pack up and load up so we could head to Barnesville for Buggy Days. We finally made it to town right before the parade started... the current highlight of our Buggy Days experience.

Austin was all smiles but continued to keep a paci in his mouth since he was so tired from missing his naps.

The parade was good and the kids loved it but man was it HOT. We were so sweaty and disgusting afterwards. Yuck. Thankfully my mom had a cup full of ice that kept Austin entertained and cooled down. 

 

Here come AnAn and Frankie! Garrison was thrilled about seeing them in the parade. =)

The firetrucks, band, and horses and buggies were the other highlights for the kiddos. I was just so hot I couldn't make pictures of anything but the horses when it was finally wrapping up. Then we went straight to get fresh squeezed lemonade. Delish!

We spent the rest of the afternoon shopping around and walking the streets. Normally we always head home after the parade is over but this year we didn't arrive until the parade started so we did all our walking around and visiting booths afterwards. It was so crowded and hot that it wasn't the most enjoyable experience. I think Garrison loved every minute but Austin was out of it... so much so that I started worrying about him. The minute we got back to my parents' house I got him in the bath tub and cooled down. We ate take-out and got the boys to bed early since we'd had such a long day before going over to Terrell's parents house to visit and celebrate our brother-in-law's birthday. It was a fun ending to our day!

 

Sunday at church was wonderful and lunch was delicious. We are definitely spoiled with great food whenever we're in the hometown. Sunday afternoon we got home, got unpacked, got ready for school today, and then everybody crashed. We were pooped. 

 

Granna and Papa purchased both boys a toy of their choice at Buggy Days and they have been the biggest hits so far. Austin got a little wooden train and Garrison got a John Deere tow truck. =)

I'm excited both my boys got to experience the Buggy Days tradition this year. Maybe next year will be even more fun for Austin... and not quite as HOT!

Tuesday Afternoon Confessions...

*We had great weekend this past weekend. I'd say it was pretty close to perfect. We were productive yet found time to rest and relax. I love having Saturdays and Sundays with just enough planned so I don't feel bored and like I might go crazy but not so much planned that I feel tired and overwhelmed and wondering where my weekend went when it's over. Yay for fun and low key weekends with my family!

*I love so much about the Fall season. Just about everything really. It's without a doubt my absolute favorite season of the year. I love the weather and having relief from scorching hot temperatures. I love seeing the leaves change and fall from the trees. I love the candles and the pumpkins and my house being decorated for Fall. I love Halloween and Thanksgiving. And I love the return of football again... sort of....

*I love high school, college, and NFL football. The Selph household is all about some football... and baseball and basketball, but especially football this time of year. The TV remains on college football all day long on Saturdays and NFL football all day long on Sundays. (We love Game Day!) And we love our Lamar County Trojans and our Atlanta Falcons. However, over the years I've come to be less than enthused about our Alma Mater's football season.... the team my hubs cares about the most... the team I'm supposed to care about the most.... GEORGIA. Gasp! I know it's a shock. When I search for the root of my almost indifference (nobody freak out, I said almost) I think it started when I was pregnant with Garrison and it was time to go register for shower gifts. He was our first baby and we wanted both of our moms with us and it was just going to be a special day.... except my loving husband wanted it all to revolve around Georgia's schedule and who they were playing and what time they were playing. Oh my. It made me just a tad upset that registering for our first baby's shower gifts wasn't coming first. I think I was kind of shocked and a little appalled. Ha! (Plus when we were dating we didn't revolve our entire Saturday week after week around the Georgia games. I guess you could say I was kind of spoiled... and now I want our family to be spoiled too.) =)

Another "root cause" is the fact that my husband became less and less fun to watch the games with. Boo. When watching the game together isn't enjoyable and fun you sort of lose interest. However, he is really making an effort to be more pleasant during the games and has done GREAT so far this season. Love you Terrell!!

Yet another "root cause" is the fact that there appear to be tons of Georgia fans who are fans only because it's popular. Like it's the cool thing to do. Ugh. Sometimes I wonder if those particular fans know there's an awesome University behind their cool football team. Just a pet peeve of mine.

I really do love Georgia. But I love the University of Georgia more... and rooting against Florida and Auburn. =)

*For the past couple of weeks things have really settled down with school. Yay! And I'm so thankful for this answered prayer. My co-teacher and I have found a good balance for sharing responsibilities and I don't feel like I'm constantly working around the clock anymore... those kind of days are becoming few and far between. I'm loving being a preschool teacher so much that I've decided I'd love to do this long term. It is more work than I expected, but it's also laid back and fun and rewarding. And it's rekindled my passion for teaching!

*Speaking of teaching... I sort of had a meltdown a little while back at the thought of having to work full time again. Terrell and I were talking about the future and it was mentioned and discussed and I kind of fell apart. I actually have a fear of working full time. I don't know what's wrong with me! The thought of going back to work full time and being away from my children all day and having the stress of a full time job makes me feel nauseous. Which isn't normal I know. I don't know what it is. I know I don't feel capable. And I have a fear of someone else taking care of my children all day. And I think I'll become a terrible wife and mom. Ahh. Deep down I know it's ridiculous but I still can't seem to control those crazy thoughts. All I've been doing is trying not to think about it or praying about it a whole lot. The only thing I know for sure right now is that I'm loving my 15 hours a week job teaching preschoolers their letters and days of the week and how to count past 10. And I cannot have another meltdown over the thought of working full time. Gracious.

Happy Tuesday afternoon! I'm off to spend some quality time with my firstborn since he's started going to school even on the days that mama doesn't have to! Little brother is napping and Garrison is resting on the couch while watching Mickey Mouse. I hear the Hot Dog dance... time to get ready to do whatever the little man comes up with. =)

Soccer!

Just call me soccer mom, cause I'm officially just that! Last night we kicked off our very first (of many) team sports with soccer practice. Soccer is actually the only thing offered around here for 3 year olds.... and it didn't come cheap, but we really wanted to get Garrison involved in a team sport because he loves sports but has never experienced the team aspect. We're hoping it's worth it! Anyway, we had to miss the first practice last week so our first practice and experience with a team sport was last night. And we didn't think we were going to make it out the door. Gracious.

Things were slightly rushed because of trying to get everyone fed and ready by 6:00 so we could leave shortly after 6:00 and arrive at practice a little before the start time of 6:30. Well, my sweet little soccer player decided he wasn't so fond of shin guards or extra long socks OR cleats. Drama, drama, drama. He cried and whined and acted like he couldn't walk and tried our patience but we finally made it out the door based on the fact that he loved his super cool Pinnacle Bank water bottle and we told him the rest of the family was going to soccer practice with or without him. Ha! Once we arrived and he warmed up to things he did great! Yay for a good first experience! (If you don't count the pre-practice drama.)

Terrell and I give huge props to our awesome coaches who just so happen to be the parents of one of my students at school. Coaching 3 year olds is no easy task. At one point one of the little boys took off and ran far away from our little field and the 2 girls on the team lost interest and started a game of Ring Around the Rosie. Hilarious. The practice was actually really organized and productive and Garrison did great following directions. Yaaaaay! I think Terrell was sweating it wondering if he'd be chasing Garrison down the whole practice. We were so proud of what a good job he did. =)

They even learned a trick to help them remember not to use their hands... by putting them behind their backs. So cute! This new trick really helped Garrison who had been picking up the ball quite a bit when it didn't go where he wanted it to after he kicked it.

Their little water breaks were adorable. I loved watching them all with their water bottles. Precious!

Little brother did really good until bedtime arrived and he wasn't in bed. He didn't have a meltdown or anything just became a little more high maintenance. Hopefully Terrell will manage okay when he has to go solo at the next practice because I've got a Premier training...

 

 

My little man in action. Be still my heart.

 

Yay for a great soccer practice!! We're so excited about the season and looking forward to Garrison learning a lot and having tons of fun!

12 Months Old

Okay, here's my last birthday related post... I think...

Baby boy is 12 months old. 1 whole year old!! I know when it happened and how it happened but it's still kind of hard to believe it's happened. Strange I know. Things are just different with baby #2. You don't rush the milestones or even count down to the first birthday...but it still happens, only much faster... and with an older sibling right there in the midst of it all.

This year went by lots faster than I expected or was prepared for but I still tried my best to soak up and enjoy our little adventures and experiences and new memories as much as possible. I've been remembering back a lot this week to the first few days and weeks of having Austin home and it's made me both glad and sad. I'm glad for the memories and for a healthy and happy baby boy who is continuing to grow and learn and change. But I'm sad that it's impossible to go back and hold that tiny baby one more time and it's impossible to soak up and remember even more than I already do. Which is why I'm so thankful for this little blog that holds so many of our memories. (I read the whole month of September from last year and loved it!)

This month has been fun and busy for Austin but also different from all the rest. Austin and I both have had to adjust to not being together every minute of the day. I think we're both still in the adjustment phase but getting the hang of things slowly but surely. My sweet littlest man has continued to melt my heart as he's made progress towards becoming a big boy... but still (and always) my baby!

He looked so handsome in blue for his lion pictures... but was still a wild man! I think he tried to dive off the couch a few times...

 

Garrison Cade at 12 months... such a cutie.

Stats and Happenings This Month:

 

*You weigh around 20 pounds but we'll know your exact weight and length next week at your 1 year check-up.

*You are still wearing size 4 diapers... I'm guessing we'll be using those until you're ready for potty training. And you wear mostly 12-18 months clothes.

*You started on whole milk this month and decided that now you actually do love your bottles. Just in time for us to take them away!

*You've been eating more and more table food this month. You're really loving bananas, Gerber bite-sized apples, cherrios, cheese, butterpeas, deli turkey meat, bread, and potatoes. We're slowly introducing a little bit of everything to you!

*You are still taking a morning nap... even at school! And you take a good afternoon nap everyday too. Since school started your bedtime is now closer to 7:15 and sometimes a few minutes sooner. You are tired in the evenings! And you sleep about 12 hours. =)

*You started WALKING this month! You still loose your balance on a regular basis but you walk all over the place and even prefer walking over crawling. I love watching you walk around because it's one of the cutest things ever!

*You've become even more of a cuddler this month. Even though you're busy all the time and rarely slow down, you love to rest your head on whoever is holding you. Your teachers at school love that. And so does mama. And your Granna and Nana. And your aunts. And daddy. I think everybody just loves it. I hope you are always loving and affectionate and full of hugs.

*You learned how to clap your hands this month. Yay! So sweet.

*You love to talk... but most of the time we don't know what you're saying. Ha! You can say ma-ma and da-da and bruba for brother but everything else is just a babble. I love watching you talk on your play phone. Another thing you do that's just the cutest thing ever!

*You and Garrison continue to play together more and more. Sometimes you have little scuffles but you both love each SO much. You are the first person Garrison asks about every morning if you aren't up yet. And you love watching your big brother and laughing at him and trying to keep up with him. I'm so thankful you'll always have a best friend in each other.

*We have enjoyed your first year so much and are so blessed to have you as part of our family. Happy Birthday again to our sweet and adorable littlest man!

 

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This post just wouldn't be complete without a flashback to his true birthday. That sweet baby boy who took his sweet time getting here yet was 2 weeks early is still a bundle of joy and one of our absolute greatest blessings.

Austin's 1st Birthday~ Part 2

Austin's party was a lot of fun.... for everyone! The birthday boy enjoyed his presents, cake, and lots of attention and love while the rest of the kiddos and grown-ups enjoyed entertainment out back and yummy food inside. And I think everybody was worn out when it was all said and done!

 

The big blow-up obstacle course and slides were a hit. I know my firstborn had the time of his life playing on it. I think all the cousins loved it just as much. It was great entertainment for all the kiddos before we ate and while we waited to open presents.

 

Austin wasn't as impressed as everyone else but still enjoyed one ride down the slide.

 

Even my father-in-law and Granny went down!

 

My dad, aka Papa, was the grill master for the party. And everything was delicious!

 

Sweet cousins cooling off inside. Garrison was drenched in sweat. Eww.

Things got crazy when it was time to open presents. Oh my. This was Garrison's first experience with a younger sibling's birthday. He still views Austin as a baby (which he technically is) and feels like he needs to take over and do everything for him, especially things like opening birthday presents. Sooo... baby boy had a little help from big brother with all his presents. Terrell only had to "remove" Garrison once for just a minute. Thankfully Austin was sort of oblivious to what was going on. He even escaped and walked away a couple of times. Ohhh the memories. (Garrison did get a special big brother gift from AnAn and Frankie so he wasn't completely left out... which he had no intentions of letting happen. Ha!)

After the excitement of presents (and me being forced to accept that things weren't perfect and peaceful during the opening of presents, haha) we moved right along to cake. Austin had no clue why 20 plus people were singing Happy Birthday to him but he did decide to clap for everyone right at the end. Too cute. He ate his cake just like Garrison did at his 1st birthday party... slowly while enjoying and savoring every bite. And just like with Garrison we ended up pushing his hand down into the cake to offer a little messiness and encouragement. It didn't change his approach. It was his party and his cake and he intended to enjoy it the way he wanted to.

 

Yay for a wonderful party celebrating our sweet baby boy's 1st birthday!!