Are we there yet…

Another busy weekend. Another week without updating the blog. I’m going to do my best to get it together one of these days, but for now, I’ve traded in the Internet  for my sewing machine. If I would have known that having two kids in the house would have boosted my sales so much, I may have had # 2 a lot sooner!

We’ve got yet another exciting weekend ahead of us. This weekend will mark Hutson’s first trip to the Georgia coast. We will also be celebrating Big Daddy’s birthday. I’ve said it before, but I’ll say it again…few things in life excite me more than a weekend at the coast, boiled peanuts, and Georgia football!

We celebrated Reynolds third birthday last weekend in Griffin.

To escape the hot afternoon sun, his mommy came up with the idea for a morning, pajama party. Breakfast goodies like doughnuts, biscuits, and bagels were served while the kids jumped in the jumpy castle.  

Sweet Reynolds was a true sport about MR opening his gifts.

We also got in a weekend visit from Gran C and Big Daddy, which allowed us a date night to celebrate or 6th wedding anniversary.

On Sunday, the boys attended the Braves game and got to watch the Bravos make a huge comeback to win the game!

This was the homerun that Diaz hit to tie the game.  Thanks to our DVR, I got to capture Big Daddy and G enjoying the moment…

Monday marked MR’s first day of school. Not a single tear was shed as Gran C and I waived goodbye and headed to the liquor store. We were certainly a sight to be seen; arriving at the store before 10 am with a 6 week old baby. In our defense, we there not to drink our day away, but to score Julie a wine crate for her kitchen. After a few more errands, it was time to pick up sweet MR and head to Athens for an overnight stay. Our visit included lots of time with Gran C and Big Daddy and dinner with Uncle Brother and Cook.

The next few days are jam packed with activity; G returns late Friday night. On Saturday, we’re off to Griffin to celebrate a birthday; later that night, Gran C and Big Daddy return to watch the kids so G and I can go out and celebrate our 6th wedding anniversary. On Sunday, G and Big Daddy are going to Turner Field to cheer on the Braves. And on Sunday night, we’re planning to eat hamburgers and hotdogs with our supper club. Until then, I’m up to my knees withPetey Pie orders. Ive got two days to get 22 shirts done. Hoping and prayaing  that the Little Man will cooperate. He’s still eating A LOT; usually every 2-3 hours. And still loves to be held. And despite having very little time for myself , I still love every ounce of him!

I stayed up extra late on Saturday night to make a dress for MR’s first day of school. When she awoke the next morning, I asked her what she thought of it. She frowned and replied, “that’s not good mama. I wanted a dress with a banana”. 

We’ve never had a baby in the family with this much hair, so it was hard for me to get on to G for styling Huston’s hair in a mohawk after a bath. The look didn’t last long; after a few pictures, I promptly brushed it down and returned it to the classic sweep over.

Getting a frameable picture of these two has proved almost impossible.

One talks constantly and makes silly faces as soon as the camera comes out,

and the other is always looking for the next meal.

After 56 attempts to capture sibling bliss, I settled with this…

and was left with two crying babies; one with a sucker stuck in her hair and the other with a major diaper blowout.

These two monkeys certainly keep me busy these days…

I’m learning to juggle two precious kids, Petey Pie’s, and housework. And while the bags under my eyes seem to get bigger by the day, I wouldn’t have it any other way. We may lack a good nights sleep, but we make up for it with laughter; lots and lots of laughter!

We’ve got another busy week ahead of us. G leaves on Sunday for a week long business trip to New York and MR starts her first day of school. She will be going three days a week and is growing more and more excited by the day. Big Daddy is bringing Gran C over on Sunday afternoon so she can help out with MR and the little man. After school on Monday, we’ll head to Athens for the night so that the kids can get in even more grandparent time. We’ll return home on Tuesday and start the countdown until Daddy’s arrival back home!

MR met all of her classmates at “Make a Friends Day” on Tuesday. She is one of two girls in her class and loves all of the extra attention.

Little man had his one month checkup on Tuesday. At 5 weeks, he weighs 10 pounds and 8 oz and is 21 inches long. He continues to be pretty laid back, sleeping most of the day and alert at night.

G and I have been so blessed by the love and support that we have received from our family and friends since Hutson’s arrival. Last week, we got a chance to visit with three sets of friends. Elaina and Garrett have been friends since kindergarten. Her and her husband AJ recently moved to Atlanta from California. We have been trying to get together for the last several months and finally made it work last Wednesday night. Not only did Elaina and AJ truck it over to our house in the middle of rush hour traffic, but they also brought dinner and a fabulous key lime pie for dessert. We barely finished the leftovers when my dear friend Kristi and her family stopped by on Saturday with bruschetta, baked ziti, salad, and cannolis. The kids played wonderfully together, allowing the grownups to reminisce and enjoy a few cold ones. On Sunday, we welcomed another set of friends and yet another great meal. We met Kelly and Anthony through Garrett’s sister. They have two precious little girls, so it’s always fun to get together with them.

A week of no cook meals has spoiled me absolutely rotten, but today it was back to reality. My first outing with both kids was a trip to Publix to stock up on our weekly needs. For the first time in 9 months, I was able to resist the buy one get one free sale on doritos…times are a changin’.

Kristi and the little man

These two were inseparable during the Williamson’s visit.

The Esposito’s

It’s hard to believe that sweet Hutson is three weeks old today.

His big sister cannot get enough of him.

I could eat this little fella with a spoon…he may not wear bows or pretty smocked dresses like his big sister, but he has definitely stolen his mama’s heart.

We had a photographer come out last week to capture a few pictures of the kids; here are some shots that we piggy-backed on. We cant wait to see how the professional pictures turned out! Hutson was 9 days old when these pictures were taken.

Because the little man is much easier to photograph than his big sister, he is on a constant, around the clock, photo shoot.

Here are a few pictures of Hutson at two and a half weeks old…

And finally, as promised, here are a few pictures of our trip to Athens last Saturday. We decided last minute to pack up the car and head to Gran C and Big Daddy’s to get in one last visit with Julie and the cousins before they moved to Virginia. The day couldn’t have been any better! We visited with my newly engaged cousin, sat poolside while the kids played in the swimming pool, and grilled hamburgers and fish with Gran C, Big Daddy, Julie, Bill, Nene, Boss, Anna Bea, and Uncle Brother and Cook.  

The “not so twins” strike again…

Minus the sleepless nights and 40 extra postpartum pounds that I am carrying, I am slowly but surley feeling like my old self again. G returned to work today and MR has gotten reacquainted with the house rules that were “bent” during our time of transition. Each of us continues to be smitten with the little man. He feeds every 2-3 hours and seems to be pretty laid back, although I know this could change at any time. The last two weeks have been busy with family, friends, neighbors, a trip to the polls, and a day spent with Gran C, Big Daddy, and the cousins in Athens. Life seems to be passing us by so fast; I pray that I can enjoy and not rush these late nights and early mornings with MR and Hutson.

A big thanks to Gran C and Big Daddy for being on call during Hutson’s arrival. After several days in the hospital, we were welcomed home with flowers, a blue bow on the mailbox, and a delicious Honeybaked ham.

Believe it or not, these sweet cousins are 11 days apart. Their size difference has earned them the nickname of the “not so twins”. Thankfully, our little man continues to grow. At his second pediatrician appointment, he had surpassed his birth weight and had gained a pound in a week.

Shortly after saying goodbye to Gran C and Big Daddy, we welcomed Meme and Papa Joe and Cook and Uncle Brother.

Once again, we were spoiled with home cooked meals and a few extra pairs of hands.

The last two weeks have also marked many firsts for our little guy.

First bath,

First trip to the pediatrician,

and a trip to the polls.

Now that Im back in action, I hope to do better with my blog. I’ve got several pictures from our weekend in Athens and a  few of MR and Hutson at the Marietta Square to share. Catching up has never felt so good!

Unlike his sister, baby Hutson arrived a week earlier than his scheduled c-section date at 38 weeks and 3 days.  Big sister Mary Reese arrived 10 days after her due date and tipped the scales at 8 pounds and 15 ounces and 21 3/4 inches long. Little brother weighed in at 7 pounds and 6 ounces and 20 inches long. He’s a peanut, but a precious one at that! He’s got a head full of dark hair and is already stealing the hearts off all that come in contact with him.  He looks like his daddy and I pray that he will act like him too.

Because of previous complications with the vaginal birth of MR, we were advised to do a C-section with baby Hutson. This picture was taken right after the C-section. Breathing problems caused our little man to stay in a transitional nursery for 10 hours after the surgery. We were thrilled to have him in our arms again early the next morning.

Gran C and Big Daddy brought MR up to the hospital a few hours after Hutson’s arrival. And although they had to look at him through a glass window, they could tell that baby Hutson was the mirror image of his daddy (with his mama’s dark hair). Two days later, MR and Gran C got to meet the little man in person.

Hospital vistitors included big sister Mary Reese, Gran C, Big Daddy, Uncle B, Aunt B, Danny, and Uncle Bill.

Poor G has been working non-stop to satisfy my nesting needs. Over the last few weeks, he has assumed the role of a plumber, electrician, yard man, carpenter, designer, and husband to a very large and demanding wife. He rarely complains and always strives for perfection. God love my sweet, sweet husband! Here are a few of the projects we have been working on…

Hutson’s nursery is still a work in progress…We chose Top Sail by Sherwin Williams for the color on the walls; the pie-safe was a hand-me-down from my sister, and the flags were sewn from scraps of fabric in my sewing room.

Hutson will use the same crib and changing table from MR’s room; the rocking chair was handed down from my grandmother; the pelmet boxes are made from foam board, fabric, and bias tape (the tutorial can be found here). JuJu Bea has kindly offered to purchase a custom name print to go between the windows.

My wonderfully talented sister-in-law painted this mural for the nursery (we plan to hang it as soon as we find a side table for the room). G has his private pilots license, so as soon as I found out we were having a boy, I knew I wanted to incorporate aviation. We have also ordered this sweet airplane mobile to hang above the changing table. 

And while sweet Hutson had absolutely no say in the design of his room, MR had everything to do with hers…a few weeks ago, I took her to my favorite fabric store and let her pick out fabric for her new curtains. Much to my dismay, she stuck her nose up at the cost-effective lavender gingham that I had picked and instead chose a much more expensive pink floral design. We have yet to paint her big girl room, but hope to do so this fall.

A large blank wall in our breakfast room proved to be the perfect spot for a magnetic/chalk board. G taped off the area and painted several layers (6 or 7) of magnetic primer; followed by a few layers a chalkboard paint. Picture molding purchased from the hardware store completed the look.

Look closely…a bed full of weeds was no match for sweet G. He spent all day (yes, all day) on Saturday digging up weeds and laying down 50 bails of pine straw!

Before… 

After…

Before (side bed)…

After…

Finally….my ribbon is now in one place! G helped me transform an old shutter into the perfect ribbon holder for my sewing room.

The playroom is by far our favorite room in the house. Right off of the kitchen and living room, it stores all of MR’s toy’s. A few months ago, I had G transform an old filing cabinet into a reading cubby for MR and Hutson.

Believe it or not, this was me last August (a far cry from the 60 pounds I have gained over the last 11 months)…behind me sits the old filing cabinet. Wish I had taken a true “before” picture, but at least this picture is a reminder that one day I will be back into non-elastic jeans, fitted shirts,  and cowboy boots.

 G removed the drawers and the metal brackets, sanded the cabinet, and painted it. It was such a easy transformation and has proved to be a great storage solution for the playroom.