1st Memorial Day...

Memorial Day 2011 was kind of special for us this year 1) because it was our sweet boy's first one and 2) because Grandpa & Grammy came to visit!

This was their first time back to visit since Deacon was born so they were super-excited to get here.  Of course, they'd seen him since he was born (when we'd go to Lexington to visit) but any time they can get with him...well, they get super-excited about it.  :)

So we kind of had a jam-packed weekend in store.  Mom & Dad took Friday off and headed this way that morning.  They got here by lunchtime.  Since I'm able to work from home on Fridays, that worked out great.

Saturday, we just chillaxed around the house (Mom and I started the day off with a walk around the neighborhood) and put Deacon in a pool for the first time!  Yeah, Grandpa & Grammy brought him one that was big enough for all of us to get in!  So we did.  :)  And Deacon did great.  I don't think he was real sure of it at first -- not a whole lot of expression on his face.  I think he was trying to figure out this thing that had lots of warm water in it but he wasn't naked so it wasn't a bath...but we were playing in it like we do in the bath...but Mommy & Daddy were in it with him...this is different...

But he didn't cry.

That's a plus.  :)

That evening, we did some shopping -- the guys dropped me and Momma off to do some clothes shopping and they took Deacon and ran some errands.  Then we got some dinner out.  It was a nice time.  My mom and I hardly ever get to do any shopping together so we had a BLAST!  And we were both successful so that's always a bonus.  :)

Sunday morning was busy as usual, just because of our responsibilities at church but we were able to relax for the rest of the day after church.  At one point, we were all out on our front porch, ceiling fan just a whirrin', hanging out.  Momma was reading, Daddy was playing on his new iPad, Jeff was getting the grass watered with the sprinkler, Deacon was just chillin'...and I was snapping photos.  :)

[um, LOVE this photo.]

[Daddy, aka "the spoiler", bought Deacon his OWN chair...]

Monday was another beautiful sunny day and we put Deacon back in the pool again.  This time he was a little familiar and showed a little more expressions/excitement.  He likes the water, whether it's pool or bath, and I'm so glad.

Monday evening we had a cookout with our Sunday School friends from church and then a friendly co-ed softball game.  Lots of kiddos playing on the playground, lots of good food and lots of fun.  That's the way to celebrate Memorial Day!

We had to say goodbye to Mom & Dad Tuesday morning as we went back to work and they headed back to Lexington but we made lots of memories that weekend and have TONS of photos to prove it.  :)

1st Mother's Day...

Can I just brag a little bit?  Ya'll, I am SO proud of my husband and how he planned to make this mother's day -- my very first mother's day -- such a special event.  One I'll never forget.  Outstanding job, babe!

This past weekend was so nice.  Saturday we spent around the house for part of the day, getting some things checked off the to-do list.  Then after lunch, and naps all around, we headed into Wilmington to do some shopping and check off more things on the to-do list.  :)

While we were in town, Jeff (and Deacon :) took me to a local place downtown, The Front Street Brewery, for dinner as a Mother's Day dinner.  This was the 2nd time we'd been there and both times the food has been phenomenal.  LOVE it.  And the atmosphere is pretty neat-o, too.  It was loud enough that Deacon's squealing part-way through the meal didn't really disturb too many.  We were seated beside a table of 4 young girls who all thought Deacon was "the cutest thing" so I don't think we could have disturbed them anyway.  :)

Sunday was sooo special.  I went to get Deacon up to get ready for church and found a card in the corner of his crib addressed to "mommy".  There was a sticky note on the card that said "wake up daddy".  :)  Fortunately, I'd already done that before I went to get Deacon so Daddy had followed me into the nursery.  I opened my card and found 2 photos, one of which was THIS:

The other one is just.as.cute.

I had NO IDEA that Jeff was going to do this so I got pretty emotional over the photos.  Then I had to read the card from my baby boy, through my tears.  So precious.  Also inside the card was a gift card for a 1 hour massage!  Way to go, Dadd--er, I mean, Deacon!  :)

We all got ready for church and Jeff pulled out a beautiful corsage for me to wear -- what a really thoughtful thing to do.  It made me feel so special.  When we got home from church, Jeff had gotten sushi for lunch so I didn't have to cook.  Awesome!

The rest of the day was spent just relaxing and doing whatever.  We all took a nap after lunch.  We went for a walk.  We were able to skype with both my parents and Jeff's parents so that was nice.  We grilled out for dinner that night.

It was a perfect 1st Mother's Day -- my boys made my day and I love them both to pieces!

[6 mos]

Deacon -- week 2...

Yep, still behind.  I have a feeling that will be the story of my life from here on out... :)

Just wanted to post the highlights of Deacon's 2nd week in our lives; again, it may be random:

We took Deacon on his first "outing" at 8 days old.  We went to Jacksonville to Target and to Mongolian BBQ for lunch.  Then Jeff dropped me & Deacon off at his office so I could feed him and Jeff and my mom & dad hit Babies R Us and Sam's.  Deacon did really well -- he slept through Target and lunch.

I mentioned my mom & dad -- we were blessed to have them here with us for 2 weeks, from just a couple of days before Deacon was born until he was 10 days old.  They were a HUGE help to me & Jeff, doing laundry, cooking meals, taking the trash out, cleaning off the porch, etc.  It was wonderful to have them here with us to help, but they also were able to enjoy some quality time with their brand new grandson, too, and I know they loved that.

[10 days old, with Grammy & Grandpa]

At 10 days old, Jeff and I left Deacon with some friends while we went out to eat.  We had read in a book that it was important to get out without our child sometime in the first 2 weeks for the sake of our marriage and staying connected  and it was surprisingly easy to do.  The book suggested we talk about anything BUT Deacon and we did pretty well with that.  Deacon did great at Chase & Hayley's -- incidentally, they are expecting their first child, a boy, mid-December so this was great practice for them.  And I think Deacon initiated Hayley right off the bat by peeing on her.  Welcome to my world.  :)

[10 days old, headed to Chase & Hayley's]

I gotta tell you, that dinner out with my husband did wonders for me.  I was really starting to feel disconnected from him, almost mourning the life we'd had and what our marriage had been like just a week and a half before.  Of course, all your attention is focused on this little one for awhile -- it's the way it has to be until you get the hang of it and get more comfortable at this parenting thing -- so I was starting to feel so far removed from the life that we'd had for the past 12 years.  Just sharing a meal with him and talking about other stuff was just what I needed.  And we plan to take advantage of all the others who've been saying, "Hey, anytime you guys need a sitter..."  It's the best thing we can do for our son...keeping our marriage strong.

[11 days old]

Deacon's cord stump came off at 11 days old.  Jeff changed his diaper and noticed that it was gone -- he looked around and found it in his onesie that morning.  Since that thing's gone and his circumcision is healed up (no more A&D ointment!), diaper changes are so much quicker & easier!  Which is a good thing cuz he HATES having his diaper changed...

We took Deacon to church for the first time at 12 days old.  His little outfit was the cutest thing -- one that Grammy had picked up for him a few days before at BRU.  Everyone at church just fell in love with him, of course.  And he did great as long as someone was holding him -- which everyone wanted to do.  :)

[12 days old, ready for church]

He took his first trip to Lowe's at 12 days old.  Jeff was so excited to show him around his fave store but he pretty much just slept right through it.  Oh, well.  One of these days, Deacon will be begging for Daddy to take him to Lowe's with him.  :)

After we hit Lowe's, we went down to our local mexican restaurant in Surf City.  Jeff and I both love us some mexican food so this kid is bound to like it, too.  He's at least going to eat it a lot.  :)

[12 days old, at Camino Real in Surf City]

[13 days old]

Our baby boy slept in his crib all night at 13 days old.  He obviously didn't sleep through the night -- we have a while before that starts happening -- but he slept in there the whole night between me getting him up to feed him a couple of times.  He's also sleeping in there for some naps, too.  Jeff is so thrilled that Deacon likes the crib Daddy made for him.  :)

[13 days old]

[14 days old]

shopping for mommy...

Saturday, I met my mom & dad in Raleigh for some shopping at Triangle Town Center.  We had a great time!  My dad tagged along for a little bit but was able to wander off at will to go to some other stores that he was more interested than, say, Motherhood Maternity.  Which was our first stop.  :)

My mom & I had a ball in that store!  We probably spent a good 2 hours in that store because they were having such a great sale and I was trying on all kinds of stuff.  And my mom kept coming back with more stuff for me to try on.  :)

I had actually made a list of some things that would be important in the future -- things like nursing bras, a nightgown/robe for the hospital, underwear (aka "draws"), etc.  I was able to get all of that and lots more at the MM store.  I picked up some more tops and a couple of comfy capri pants & lounge pants, in addition to the other things.

Our next stop was the food court -- time for LUNCH!  Mom and I had yummy meals from a place called Villa Pizza and Daddy got chinese.  That's the beauty of the food court, you know?

We headed down to see what GAP Maternity had but THAT was a wasted trip.  They had a little "closet" for their maternity clothes and everything was either black, white or beige, with a couple of dark purples or grays.  Ugh, booooring.  No, thank you.

Back out we went to check out some of the department stores (Dillards, Saks Fifth Ave, Belk) and Belk was the only one that even had a maternity section.  And I picked up a couple pairs of shorts in there.  YAY!  I've been looking for shorts for awhile.  Everything I've seen is way shorter than I want to wear -- these were like bermuda length.  Perfect.  I'll take 2 -- one in navy, one in khaki.

I think after that we decided that we needed some ice cream, having seen the DQ at the food court when we were there earlier.  Actually, they had a Chic-Fil-A at the food court, too, and I'd been telling my dad about their cookies & cream milkshake.  I think I talked him into that.  Mom and I got blizzards from DQ.  Mmmm.

After that, we ran over to Bath & Body Works because I needed to get some more travel size lotions plus I had a coupon.  :)  Our last stop was in Yankee Candle (it was on the way out) and I picked up some fall-scented tarts.  Can't wait to start burning/melting those.  :)

I would say it was a successful day filled with fun and good times with family, with lots of bargains thrown in.  :)  I am so grateful to my parents for doing this for me.  It was a wonderful day.

Here are some photos we took to document our day:

[me & Momma, photo credit: Daddy]

[looking away from the mall portion of the center]

[after a fun day shopping, 29 weeks pregnant;

photo credit: Daddy]

[after eating yummy ice cream :) -- LOVE these people]

[my loot!, photo credit: Daddy]

[us -- my fave photo of the day :)]

And yes...that was the FIRST attempt at a "self-portrait".  I've still got it.  :)

shower #3 (mini-shower)...

I have been remiss!  I should've posted this before now...

When we were in Lexington last (about 3 weeks ago), my mom and dad gave us a little mini-shower of sorts.  My mom has been stockpiling stuff since she found out we were pregnant, even more so once she found out it was a boy.  :)  So she had some "stuff" she wanted to just go ahead and give us.

It was fun -- a bag for each of us.  Jeff went first and then I opened mine...

Jeff got his own diaper bag!

...with denim diapers...

...and a cute little onesie!

I think he's ready, don't you?  :)

I got a bath-theme filled basket full of stuff (among other things).  :)

[26 weeks pregnant]

[photo credit goes to my Momma, with some editing by me]

We had a ball opening, unzipping and sifting through stuff to find our goodies.  Thanks, Momma & Daddy!  We love you both bunches and appreciate the goodies!

do we HAVE everything?

I got an article in my inbox today entitled "Diaper-Bag Essentials" (from whattoexpect.com) and I thought it had some pretty good information in it.

That cute diaper bag you got at your baby shower (or bought yourself!) probably wasn’t meant to be stuffed until bursting at the seams. Well, the good news is that there’s no need to overpack and lug around a bag that weighs a ton. The following items are pretty much all you need when you’re out and about with your baby. Just be sure to restock when you get home, so you’re never without these diaper-bag essentials.

Diapers. Obvious, yes, but how many you pack depends on how long you’re going to be out, how old your baby is, and how he’s feeling. (if you’re heading to the doctor because your baby has diarrhea, for instance, pack several so you’re prepared for a maximum number of changes.) And don’t forget to follow the plus-one rule: Always pack one more diaper than you think you’ll need.

Wipes. Tuck them in a reclosable plastic bag or case to use during diaper changes. But don’t just relegate them to tushy cleanup. Wipes are handy for cleaning your own hands before and after diaper duty and can be used to remove spit-up and baby-food stains from clothes and furniture.

Diaper cream or ointment. It’s a good idea to carry around a tube of ointment or cream to use as a layer of protection to help prevent a diaper rash from developing — or to soothe your baby’s bottom in case one develops.

Changing pad. Most diaper bags come with a pad, so don’t leave home without it — especially if you’re going somewhere that doesn’t have a changing table (like Grandma’s house). If your bag doesn’t come with a pad, add your own, but choose one with a washable or wipe-off cover. In a pinch, you can always use a towel or cloth diaper, but be careful — they aren’t waterproof and won’t be able to adequately protect carpets or furniture.

Extras. Depending on how long you’re planning to be out, be sure to pack a bib, burping cloth, a ziplock bag for dirty diapers, and a bottle of formula if you’re not breastfeeding. Consider packing a replacement outfit for your baby if he’s prone to spitting up or tends to produce diaper blowouts (lucky you!). And don’t forget a bottle of water and snack for you. (And if the diaper bag’s doing double-duty as your purse, toss in a small bag where you can stash your cash, keys, and cell — that way you won’t be rooting around for your essentials when you need ’em.)

I do actually already have my diaper bag.  I registered for one at Babies R Us when we were there but wasn't "gung-ho" on it -- it was just there and I liked it the best of all that I saw in the store.  I knew I needed one so I zapped had Jeff zap it with the gun.

Since registering for that one at BRU, I was in a Walmart when we last visited my family and they had one that was PERFECT.  It was cute, not too big and most importantly, was the right color scheme.  :)  

Some of you know how I like to coordinate.

Due to that personality flaw trait, I snatched that bag right up (and removed the one from the BRU registry -- before anyone could buy it)!  This is what it looks like:

And if you will recall this post and this one, you will totally see why THAT is the perfect color scheme.

Ready to start filling it with all the stuff they said I need!

baby registry: day 2

We are officially "registered at Target and Babies R Us".  This is kinda funny to me because this is always what I read on the baby shower invitations that we get in the mail, but this time it's for us!  I just think it's still a little surreal...

We went Saturday to Target to register for some more stuff and I gotta tell you -- it was an eye opening experience for me.  More so than trying to act like I knew what I was doing at Babies R Us Thursday night.  Here's the reason:  Target has always been my preferred store of choice when purchasing items for any baby shower I'm attending (which are VERY numerous).  I think their registry is a lot easier to read and the items are easier to find, and also because the Wilmington BRU is PAH-thetic.  It's not even a real store -- it's just a tiny baby section inside a gigantic Toys R Us (hence the reason we went to Jacksonville to register at BRU -- they have their own store).

However, after going to Target to actually register, I was SO disappointed!  I guess I never noticed before that you really only get about 3 aisles of stuff, a few endcaps and then CLOTHES (good gracious, the clothes!).  **Note: we decided not to register for outfits -- we do have onesies & socks, etc. on the registry -- because we figured people will buy those anyway.  :) **

So, wow.  That didn't take long, except that I kept walking up and down those 3 aisles thinking, "Did we miss something?  This cannot be it!  Where is...?  We didn't see..."  The other thing about Target is that all the baby care stuff, like soap, lotion, diapers, wipes, etc. is all over on the OTHER side of the store.  Oh, yeah.  We got what we could find and I'm sure I'll be back online "tweaking" here and there but you can only do so much with so little, you know?

We ran back over to BRU for a brief minute since 1) we were right across the street, 2) we closed the store down on Thursday with not.very.much. on the list, and 3) I felt a wee bit more comfortable when looking at their stuff again.  We scanned a few more things, but again, with my OCD organized personality, I'm sure I'll be tweaking that one a little bit more, too.

Jeff keeps saying, "We're done!"  Um, yeah.  You're done, sweetie.  But IT is far from done.  :)  He really was a good sport through the whole thing (it was tough on both of us) and I can't say how much I appreciate him being willing to go with me to register.  I know a lot of fellas don't participate in that part, and I'm glad mine did.  At least for 2 days.  :)

baby registry: day 1

So we went to register last night.  Finally.  I'm sure folks are much more on the ball about this than we have been, but honestly...it's been hard to just find a night that we could both go to either Wilmington or Jacksonville to get this done.

We decided to go to Jacksonville because they have a true Babies R Us, not just a small section inside a Toys R Us.  They also have a Target in Jax, which is the other place we want to register, so we figured we'd just knock out in one place, in one night.

Wrong.

Because Jax is roughly 45 min to an hour (depending on where you need to go) from our house, we obviously didn't get started as early as we would've since we both worked.  So we already had that against us.  Not to mention the fact that we've never done this before and we felt COMPLETELY out of our element.  It just doesn't matter what kind of prep you put into figuring out what to get ahead of time -- nothing can prepare you for all.the.options.  I mean, I've bought countless baby shower gifts for other folks from both BRU and Target so you would think I would be somewhat familiar with what's in the baby section.  Well, I guess I've never looked at all of this stuff through THESE eyes.

The eyes of a future mom.

So we checked in at the registry desk at BRU and got our scan gun and checklist.  **Note: earlier on Facebook, Jeff had posted a poll question asking folks to list one thing they absolutely would register for, so I had that (very extensive) list, too.  And it was helpful -- thanks to everyone who chimed in!**  And then it seems like we just wandered aimlessly through the store.

I think we did make some pretty good choices last night but there are still so many things we didn't register for yet for various reasons -- need to think about it some more, can't remember what "so-n-so" said about that, have NO CLUE which one to get...

(excuse the quality -- it was taken with Jeff's iPhone)

We pretty much closed the place down and didn't even MAKE it over to Target.  By the time we left, I think we both had headaches and our feet were killing us!  But Jeff was such a good sport.  I think he did enjoy being there, but he was like me -- there was just SO MUCH to look at and think about.  And I'm such an organized person by nature, it was hard for me to make a decision on something without knowing how Target compared, or seeing if there were any more like that in the store, etc.  I kinda drove myself crazy.  And really, we were all over the store about 3 times.

I did get online today and "tweak" a couple of things so I feel better about that, but like I said, we have a long way to go before I feel like the registry will be complete.

Jeff said he "needs a break" tonight (which means he'll probably be out in the shop; not a true "break", just a break from registering :), so we may try to tackle Target on Saturday sometime.  I also feel like I need to make another trip to BRU after we go to Target.  I may feel more comfortable by then and maybe it won't take as long.

Maybe.  :)

decisions...

Jeff and I have been making some big decisions in the past few weeks.

The first decision was which travel system to get.  For those who aren't familiar with the terminology (times have changed!), a travel system is a stroller/car seat combo that includes a car seat base.  I'm a big fan of making purchases that will grow with my kids, instead of buying one thing at this stage, another at the next stage, yet another at the next stage.  A travel system gives me the infant car seat/carrier until they're 40-50 lbs and it fits inside the stroller until they're old enough to be able to sit in the stroller by themselves.  A twofer.  I like it.  :)

With that being said, I have to be honest here: I look at pattern/colors over anything else first.  Of course, the safety of my child is a close second, followed by how easy the thing is to  use/maneuver.  I have always wanted a turquoise/lime green/brown color combo for my boy.  Do you know how hard turquoise is to find on baby gear??  Pretty tough.  So I had to settle a little bit on the travel system, but we found one that we both like and perhaps, with a little "girly glitz", we can use it for the next one, even if she happens to be a pretty little girl.  :)

It's a Graco Passage Travel System in Lowery (the pattern) and this is what it looks like:

After making this decision, we found a matching pack 'n' play:

This is what Deacon will be sleeping in for awhile, in our bedroom, until he makes the big move to the nursery.  It comes with a changing station and a little napper.  Not sure how much we'll use that but it's there.  This is another twofer because he can sleep in it before he moves to the crib and then we have it for him to play in, nap in or just when we need to corral him for a little while.  :)

Another big decision (HUGE decision for ME) was the crib bedding/decor for the nursery.  Oh, my word -- I thought I would be looking at crib bedding until Jesus came back!  Remember how I said turquoise is just NOT a color they choose to use in baby gear?  Well, that was the case in trying to find crib bedding, etc.  I thought I was going to have to settle there, too, but then I found THIS:

Isn't it cute??!  It's called Paisley Splash in Lime by My Baby Sam.  It has my turquoise, my lime green and my brown in it and I think it will be perfect.  I had a list of about 5 different ones, this one being my top pick.  Jeff put the list in order of his preferences, and this one was #2 for him so he let me go with this one, bless his sweet heart.  :)  It makes me so very happy to have this decision made.

Now, as I said, these are decisions we've made -- we don't have any of this yet.  At our shower in IL last week, we received enough money for the travel system so I ordered that Friday.  It's not here yet but we do have it coming.  The pack 'n' play will go on our registry, I'm sure.  I'm still searching all over to find the best price on the bedding, etc. and I think my family may be planning to help with that.

It's such an exciting thing to be making these decisions and seeing plans fulfilled.  The best part is knowing it's all for our baby boy.  :)

One last decision we made was to have a doula attend our birth.  We have a precious friend, Kelley, who is about as passionate as one person can be about "all things baby".  And she's a doula.  Which makes for a great combination when you're having a baby.  :)  We met with her last week just to find out what her being our doula would mean for us, and with all the knowledge she has and how comfortable she is with the whole thing, we were sold almost immediately.  It will be wonderful to have someone there who has a great rapport with the doctors/nurses at the hospital where we'll give birth (we have several friends who've had Kelley with them) and who just knows what she's doing.  That's the bottom line.  She has 4 kids of her own and she's witnessed/worked tons of births since then.  The girl knows what she's doing.  I think we'll feel more comfortable & confident having her with us.