Spring/Summer Preview

North Carolina weather is always a little weird in the winter months. One day it'll be 80, then the next, it's snowing. Over the weekend, we got an awesome spring/summer preview. It was warm enough for short sleeves, popsicles, and water fun.

Seriously, it was heaven.

We also celebrated a few birthdays at my grandparents' house (it's a monthly thing for us). My Granddaddy turned 83 this month, and he really hasn't slowed down all that much. He still enjoys playing golf, working in his garage, and spending time with all of us.

How many Duck Dynasty shirts can you spot in one picture? lol. We're so country. And not in the poser way like everyone suddenly want to grow a beard and be country. Remember the Johnny Cash craze? He died and all of a sudden everyone "was always a die hard fan". lol. People are funny. No, my family is redneck enough to where my parents have tried for the majority of their life NOT to be a redneck. My grandmother (who we call MamMaw) grew up eating squirrel. She says it's pretty good. I'm just going to take her word for it. So yeah. Good times. But that's another post for another day.

Anyway, the weather was AWESOME.
We spent a good four hours outside on Saturday, just chilling in the back yard. It was amazing.

 

Y'all know how I said last week that I was all worried because Noah's diet was sucking lately?

Look who decided he wanted healthy popsicles again?! YAY!

playing catch-up.

Life has been a bit of a whirlwind lately. We're coming into that busy season where we go-go-go for 2 months straight. It's actually my favorite kind of season. People are (mostly) happy and filled with excitement.
For me, I also have to factor in Noah's therapy appointments, Brad's crazy retail schedule, work, pregnancy, and all the stuff in between.
Frankly, I already have issues keeping up with blogging as it is. I can't imagine what things will look like around here in the next few weeks.
Bear with me, this may turn into a long post. Sorry 'bout that.

However, part of my blogging issue was that our laptop (we thought) had died. It wasn't charging anymore. So if I wanted to blog or do anything computer-related, I had to do it on the monster in the corner room upstairs. No more blogging while Noah played right in front of me. But, we tested out the laptop with my dad's charger, and it was indeed just the charger. So I have my laptop back. Woohoo!

Anyways, this is a catch-up post of sorts.
Just stuff we've been doing the last couple of weeks that I've been meaning to blog.

My Birthday.
It was actually a little pathetic. Life just got so busy, and I couldn't decide what I wanted to do. So I messaged a bunch of friends to see if they wanted to join us for dinner. It was kind of a last minute thing, so my feelings weren't going to be too hurt if it didn't work out.
And well... those who said they could come? Almost all had to cancel at the last minute, due to various reasons (mostly babysitter and sick kid issues). However, one of my lifelong best friends was so loyal that he and his fiance drove 2 hours from his granddad's 90th bday party to celebrate with me. It was going to be them and one other couple. And since both couples lived on opposite sides of town (and frankly, I was worried they wouldn't quite mesh well, personality wise)... we decided to keep it small. Which turns out? Is exactly how I like it.
We opted for a Japanese steakhouse (haven't had it in foreeever. shrimp sauce, how I missed you...), and we had an absolute blast. Afterwards, Brad and I picked up Noah and we all headed back to our place to hang out and play games.
It was low key. And it was wonderful.

More Birthdays.
Noah's cousin, Easton, turned two last week. To celebrate, his momma planned a little party at our grandparents' house for Easton's friends and family. Easton's daddy was actually in a very serious car accident last year. So bad in fact, that he is the only survivor. He recently started being able to walk on his own again, and it was so awesome to see him there. His progress is amazing, and I'm sure his parents are thanking God every single day for sparing their son.

We learned that Noah isn't exactly the best birthday party guest. Obviously, this is an area we need to work on a little more. Poor kid.
I wasn't able to get many pictures of the party, because a certain little boy decided to get into a massive mud puddle. He was originally heading for a big pile of dirt (my family has always been in construction, so random dirt piles are normal), but got sidetracked by a quick-sand type mud swamp. He stepped one foot in it, slipped, and was covered in mud. And of course you know I didn't pack an extra pair of pants. So the kid attended the rest of the party without pants, while his were washing.
I had to actually hose him off outside before we took his shoes and pants off. He thought that was so fun that he got mad when I wouldn't let him play with the hose himself.
He also doesn't understand that the entire gallon of ice cream is not for him.
Nor are the birthday boy's presents.
Or that you can't just walk up to kids and take their balloons, then proceed to let them go.
And while Noah is most definitely not the tantrum-thrower type, he certainly had a few fall-on-the-floor and whine moments because of our constant intervening. Apparently, we don't get invited to enough parties. haha.
But it wasn't all bad. My cousin had borrowed a bouncy house, which Noah loved. They also painted pumpkins (which Noah entertained for about 5 minutes). We also got to see one of mine and Brad's childhood buddies (he grew up down the street from us) who was there with his wife and little girls.

 

 That night, the rest of the family came over to celebrate the October birthdays. Noah was doing a little better. At least he had pants on. Although at one point, we were all sitting around the table chatting. I see my brother jump up from the table... because Noah had reached onto the kitchen counter and was carrying an entire sheet cake to us. Because he wanted some, and he didn't know how else to tell us. Thank goodness we caught him before he had a chance to drop it.

That boy.

Photography Stuff.
I need a nanny. Or a husband with a regular work schedule. I currently have two photo sessions and a wedding I'm editing, and Noah doesn't quite understand that concept. Brad has a couple days off this week, so I'm taking advantage and getting as much done as I possibly can.

Oh yeah, the wedding.
Well, the night before, Noah was an angel and went to bed at 10:30. And wouldn't you know it, Brad and I were both too excited about the next day that we couldn't sleep. We both got a little over 3 hours that night, before driving 2.5 hours to the location and spending the next 6 hours documenting a wedding.
Honestly, though? It was a blast.
I realized how much I enjoyed doing weddings. At least the easy ones. I'm not skilled enough to handle crazy lighting situations yet.
The only issues we really ran into were mostly with people. Guests who didn't want their picture taken or an incredibly shy groom. :) That and the actual ceremony itself. It's really difficult trying to balance between getting good shots and not being totally obtrusive. But it all worked out. I just hope the bride will be happy with what we got.
Here are a couple of shots I already posted on my Facebook page. Oh, and if you love me, do me a favor and go "like" my page. I'm almost at 100 likes! ;)

My dad and stepmom came to watch Noah for us for the day. They were awesome and were at our door before the sun was up. While they waited for Noah to wake up, they proceeded to wash the dirty dishes in the sink, fix our dishwasher (we thought it died, but the timer just broke), and repair our front door handle that was a pain to open.
We told them just to take our car if they needed to go anywhere (to avoid switching out the car seat). And boy did they go.
I think they took Noah on a tour of Charlotte. They went to Khols, Target, the nursing home (to visit my grandmother), their house, my dad's apartment building where he works (he had to check on something), and lunch at a drive-in.
When they got back, they proceeded to play outside.
My parents are hilarious.

("Grandaddy is a sugar bear with teeth"... not even sure what that means, but it made me laugh)

("Mama D is a Honey Boo Boo")

Pregnancy Stuff.
Still feeling pretty good. I'm starting to get some of my energy back, which is nice. I'm 10 weeks today, so I'm hoping I'm almost beyond the queasy stage. I'm very fortunate in that I don't really get sick sick when I'm pregnant. Just the idea of certain foods makes me feel gross.
I bought myself a heart rate monitor. The Doc doesn't want my heart rate going over 140, which turns out isn't very high. I attempted a light jog last night, and within a minute, my heart rate was at 170. I went back to a power walk, and within 30 seconds, it was back below 140. So no running for me, darnit. I wanted to be the awesome pregnant girl running 5K's, but apparently, that's not allowed. Looks like lots of power walking and yoga for me.
Also, if anyone has any workout ideas, I'm open to suggestions. It actually takes a lot for me to get something out of a workout. I bought a prenatal yoga DVD last time, and it was a big snooze. I never felt a thing. I like to actually feel sore after a workout. I'd prefer to be the tone type of pregnant, not the flabby, give-me-more-cake type (like last time). Honestly, I think I've been spooked into taking better care of myself this time. For any new readers, I got pre-eclamptic towards the end with Noah, and I struggled with weight gain (which was a shock for a skinny girl) and severe swelling. I want to do everything I can to prevent it. The Doc said I'm less likely to get it this time, but I'm still being careful.
My jeans are already starting to get a little snug. I can still button them, but when I'm sitting in the car? Yeah, they're totally getting unbuttoned. I need to get a rubber band to fix the issue. The good news is that they still fit everywhere else, just not my tummy. I guess it's true that you show sooner the second time around.

More importantly, I'm trying to do everything I can to keep the baby healthy. Since they're not sure what triggers autism, I'm doing my best to eat healthy, take my vitamins, and chill out when I'm exhausted. Basically just taking care of myself. That's all I know to do.
And if I still balloon up? Well, at least I know I did my best. :)

***

Alright I'll stop here. More later, hopefully.
Sorry for the random, all-over-the-place post. But it's a bit like my life at the moment, so there ya go. ;)

Happy Monday!


30.

It's legit, folks.

As of 11:55pm tonight, I will have officially left my 20's.

My thoughts on that later.

Today, I'm celebrating.

One of my oldest and favorite friends (known her since birth) treated me out to lunch today at a Mexican place. Complete with a birthday song sung by 10 Latin men (and included an awful lot of "mamasitas" for a birthday song), sombrero, and ice cream. 

As we were recuperating from the laughter of that, I saw in the corner of my eye out of the window... two clowns passing by.

No, she didn't order them. But it was still pretty darn hilarious to have the oldest clown in history tell his cute wife with a cheeseburger hat, "This is the wrong place!"

Yeah.

Birthdays are fun.

Hope you're having a great weekend!

Mine has been fantastic so far. ;)

Tuesday Bits

The DNC is in Charlotte this week. The city is about to bust with excitement. Y'all thought we made a big deal about snow flurries? You can just imagine what happens when the President comes to town. I swear our highways have never looked this good before.

The realistic, practical side of me wants to stay far, far away from the craziness. Just about every cop in town is busy with the convention. They even bussed horses from up North in for them. We have plenty of horses here... just not any for our officers. Certain roads are blocked, people have been forced to leave their homes... it's pretty crazy. So yeah, part of me wants to stay away from all of it.
But the other side? The fun, spontaneous side of me wants to go down there and see if I can spot any celebrities. Or at the very least, get a kick out of watching the protestors.
I mentioned on here before how I was a Sociology major. One of my favorite classes was Social Movements. It was fascinating, and I always wanted to witness something like that. So just to hang out and watch people get all worked up sounds like fun to me. :)

***

I love instagram. But see, I don't have a fancy phone. I have the little freebie phone you get when you renew your contract. Heck, I was excited when I finally got texting on my plan last Christmas. I know, it's sad.
To be on instagram, though, I was using Brad's old Droid, which was connected to our home internet. So basically, the majority of my pictures were taken at home. If there were any taken while out and about, then Brad was with us. He has the fancy phone for work. Anyway, his old phone got some sort of virus, so now my instagram presence has plummeted. It makes me sad. I miss seeing instant updates on what friends are doing, in the form of pictures. And sharing mine as well. Maybe I can convince the hubs I need a fancy phone for my photography business. Maybe.

***

I have a reader who, for months, has searched for my blog by typing in my full name and entire blog title. I'm assuming they know me. I hope they know me. I don't mind, but if my searcher happens to be reading this particular post... do you mind letting me know who you are? Y'know, just so I know I don't need to load my shotgun at night? :)

***

The photography business is still going really well. And check out the new logo my friend Jess designed for me! Isn't it pretty? She also does blog design (and photography and skin care... she's multi-talented).

I absolutely adore every second of every photo session I have. Lately, the shoots have included lots of sweet, cuddly newborns. And yes, I do take a few minutes during the session just to hold them. This is the best.job.ever.

Feel free to go here to check out more. :)

***

A couple months ago, I mentioned that my little cousin, his wife, and their baby would be leaving us soon to be missionaries. Well, last night we had our last family dinner with them before they depart.

These next two have nothing to do with them. I just thought they were sweet. :)

They'll be gone for a couple of years, which makes me sad. I mean, I'm excited to see how God will use them, but it's still sad to watch loved ones leave. We've spent a lot of time with my baby cousin, Nathan, over the years. He came to Kiawah with us almost every year as a kid, since he was close to my brother's age.
We celebrated little Landon's 1st birthday a tad early, since he won't be here for his actual big day.

We're really going to miss them.

Last shot of the entire fam together, minus cousin Nat and my stepsisters. And yes, it's very difficult to get a great shot of 20+ people. Noah with my dad and stepmom cracks me up. :)

***

Noah is currently obsessed with two of his Baby Einstein DVD's... the Baby Da Vinci one (that goes over facial features, hands, feet, etc) and the Baby Macdonald one. He's definitely retaining some of the info, because he keeps walking up to family members and sticking his fingers in their ears. He also will walk around crowing like a rooster.
Last night, when every one was singing Happy Birthday to Landon, Noah wanted to be included. Since he doesn't know the Happy Birthday song, he began doing the motions to "Head, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes". And because my family is awesome, they sang it for him, complete with cheering when he was finished.

***

Hope everyone had a fun, relaxing Labor Day weekend!

Noah's Birthday

Noah's birthday was a little... odd... this year.
The night before his actual birthday, he fell asleep around 9:30pm. At 11pm, he woke up. And not just for a few minutes, but for 6 hours. Yep. He was up until 5:30am on his birthday. Dude likes to party.
Thankfully, we got to sleep in, but it still made it weird for me. 
Last year, I started this birthday tradition for Noah, where I blow up a bunch of balloons and cover his bedroom floor with them. And frankly, it felt weird doing this at 12 o'clock in the afternoon. But whatever. He still was happy to wake up to them.

I wish I could take credit for the idea. But as one of my friends said the other day, I don't think I've had an original idea for months, thanks to Pinterest.

I have been frantically painting our kitchen for the last couple of weeks. Since Brad had to work, he wasn't able to help me much. We started this project back in April, I think. And because I'm a procrastinator, it didn't get finished until the day before the party. What can I say? I work better under pressure. So the first few hours of Noah's actual birthday was spent painting.
However, we made it a point to stop by a certain time to spend some decent time celebrating with our little guy.
We decided to go on and give him his gifts from us, and he ended up completely surprising me. For the first time in his little life, he opened his gifts! He hasn't gotten the concept until now, so to see him get excited about his presents? It honestly made my day.

After presents, that's when we ran down to grab a few "official" photos of him at the train.
That night, we went to dinner with his Granny and Granddad. Noah was exhausted from having a rough night, so I didn't get any great pictures there.

***

We had his little friend party on Wednesday. Brad has to work this weekend, and frankly, summer weekends seem to get busy for people. Turns out, most of our friends preferred the weeknight.
Brad actually got called to go out of town, so we almost didn't have Noah's party. Thankfully, it worked out, but not without plenty of stressing on my end. :)

We started out at Monkey Joe's, where our friends Kara, Eden, and Kadence met us.

For some reason, Noah was afraid to go down the slides by himself this time. He climbed to the top, and all these kids were waiting for him to go. He just sat there, waiting for kids to go around him. lol. We tried telling the girls behind him to nudge him, but they were too sweet and wouldn't do it.
Brad finally had to climb up there and help him.

He's so cute. I mean, I may be a little biased. But there are days when I just can't get over how adorable he is.

Noah's friend Kadence was a little nervous about the slides too. So it turned into a group effort getting them to go down. haha.

We decided to save some money and just have the rest of the party back at the house. Plus I like to decorate. This year, I went with the Thomas theme, for obvious reasons. :)

(it had just rained, so the tape wouldn't stick very well.) 

 My dad was sweet enough to provide the BBQ. We had already planned on having Bar-B-"Choo" sandwiches, and he had a bunch frozen that he let us use.

Noah has officially aged out of his Early Intervention program. While it's good, because it means we get services for free through the school system, it makes us really sad to say goodbye to people who have cheered him on for the last year.
His EI coordinator, Aimee, came to his birthday, even though she had an early morning the next day. I cannot recommend her enough. She has been so sweet to Noah and admits that he's one of her favorites. The good news is that she lives like 10 minutes away from us, so we plan to still get together and update her on Noah's progress.

My brother Harrison also still remains a favorite of Noah's. They were only 3 days away from sharing a birthday. His birthday was Thursday.

Noah got some great gifts, including a Thomas wooden railway set from my dad and stepmom. He hasn't stopped playing with it yet!

I think it's safe to say he had one of the best birthdays to date.
He had lots of fun, good friends to spend it with, and family there to love on him.