weekend | bryson turns five

We spent the weekend celebrating this sweet boy!

our boston babies

 

 

Happy 5th Birthday, Bryson

Happy 5th Birthday, Bryson!

You are so loved! I can't imagine life without you. You have become such a fun and sweet little boy! You are so active and you are always jumping and running. Your momma sure has her hands full with you!
 You love to help out with Avery and I love to watch you with her! You say things like "she is so cute!" and you love to tell me what Avery will be able to do when she gets bigger. And, you always remind us that you are bigger than her. You like to drive your monster trucks around her and dance and act goofy so that you can get a little smile from her. She already loves to look at you! We tell you all the time that before long she will be in the floor crawling around to try to play with you and you just smile. I am so happy that she will always have you to look out for her! 

I hope you have a wonderful 5th year!

I can't believe you are 5, TuRTle!

 

a letter to avery | 3 months old

 



3 months little bird?! Already? Where is the time going!

I hate to say it, but you may already know that you have mommy and daddy wrapped around your little finger! You love to be held and walked around to look at stuff. You are a nosy little thing! You start to cry if it's too dark and you can't see, so we have to ride with the lights on in the car for you. You love to be held facing out so you can check everyone out. You also really like to watch TV. You will strain your neck just to look at it!

You are so happy in the mornings. Your awake time starts around 8/9 & as soon as you get your breakfast you are so happy! I like to lay you in our bed after your morning feeding and you coo and kick and smile at us. You also turn your head from side to side because you want to look at the bathroom light and the sunlight. (You love lights) When we turn the lights out, your eyes get SO big! It's really cute! When your daddy works night shift and you haven't seen him in 13 hours, you love to talk to him. It's like you think seeing him again is the grandest thing in the world! You just talk and talk and talk to him and you get really loud! He loves it!

You are still in 3 month clothes and size one diapers, but some of your footed pj's are getting too small because of those long legs. I had to take you to the doctor this month to have you evaluated for reflux and you are 12 pounds and 14.5 ounces. A 1/2 ounce more and you would have officially doubled your birth weight! You are growing so much baby girl! I can't believe my little 6 pound 15 ounce baby is already 12 pounds (probably 13 as I write this!)

Your sleep smiles and laughs seriously are the cutest thing I've ever seen. Every single time you smile or laugh in your sleep I smile so big. I wonder what you are dreaming about?! You still are the best cuddler and you are the happiest when you are up against our chests. I think I could literally stay cuddled up with you like that forever and be completely content.

You smile so much! When you smile it's like your eyes just light up. I love that sweet smile of yours! All we have to do is say "hey" and you just start grinning. You are so happy!

You still love bath time. You always tend to spit up as soon as I get your PJs on though. I always have to wash your hair when you spend time with your cousin Bryson because he loves to give your chocolatey kisses on your head.

You are drooling so much! You pretty much have to wear a bib at all times or I end up changing your clothes at least 3 times a day. I thought you were teething, but I've read that around this time is when babies start making more saliva than they can swallow. You love to suck on your hand, but you still aren't a good paci sucker. You only take your paci if you are getting hungry or when it's time for you to sleep. You haven't rolled over yet, but you do get on your side pretty good. You have mastered getting your head over and your upper body over. I love to just talk to you about stuff and you "talk" right back to me. I love it. You are starting to grab onto things and of course you take them right to your mouth.

When you haven't had enough to eat, you start to squeal and me and your daddy think it is the funniest thing! As soon as we hear it, we know that you are still "starving!" You have slept one 7 hour stretch, but you mostly sleep 5 hour stretches at nighttime. After your feeding, you go right back to sleep which is wonderful.

We took our first family vacation with you to Gatlinburg. You got to go through North Carolina and visit Tennessee. You were an awesome car rider which I was pleasantly surprised about. I tell you all the time that you better go ahead and get used to your car seat because there will be lots of traveling in your future...you must have heard me!

You have started going to daycare two days a week. My 12 week maternity leave was up on February 6th. I will forever be grateful that I got to take 12 weeks to stay home with you and not miss anything of your first 3 months of life. What an incredible, life changing 3 months that was. It was honestly the best 3 months of my life. I hope that you make so many friends going to daycare and that you learn to share and how special and fun friends are. I know that I will learn that time spent with you is truly so precious and to not take a second with you for granted. I love being a nurse though, little bird, and it's what God wants me to do.  I will always hate leaving you and I will always think of you constantly while I am away. But, please always know that I love you more than anything and that I am doing what I have to do for you and our family. Your daddy and I want you to have the best life we can give you and that means that we have to leave you for a little while to go to work, but we will always be there to pick you up when our work day is done.

I am so full of joy these days all because of you. I feel so happy and fulfilled being your mom. I never knew that being a mother could be so wonderful. Your daddy and I love you so much and we will do anything in this world for you. You are so, so loved little bird! What did we all do without you?! I honestly cannot remember how I spent my time before you. You are the most incredible, amazing blessing to us baby!

2 months old

6 weeks old

3 weeks old

Vaughn Russell Candy Kitchen

My sister is the manager at Vaughn Russell Candy Kitchen and I took some pictures for them to show off their Valentine's day selection.

Their chocolate is absolutely delicious! They hand make and hand dip everything and their chocolate is wax free. They have dark chocolate, milk chocolate, white chocolate, and sugar free options. They also have hand dipped chocolate strawberries (yum!) and their trademark, green mint pecans...which they have in all sorts of colors!

My favorites: 

Milk Chocolate Covered Pecans, Milk Chocolate Covered Almonds, Milk Chocolate Peanut butter cream, Milk Chocolate Coffee Cream, Milk Chocolate Raspberry Cream and Milk Chocolate Caramel.

It's on Augusta road in Greenville. Go check it out! You will not be disappointed!

tyler + amber | a few years ago

Tyler asked me to be his wife 3 years ago today & his girlfriend 4 years ago tomorrow! I honestly cannot imagine life without him and I am so blessed that I get to be his wife.

These are some of our engagement pictures that are so special to me and I thought today would be appropriate to bring them back out.

I love you, Tyler!

 (Thank you for enduring a whole day of smiling for me!)

...and I officially miss Wilmington!

Photos by Rose Photography and Designs