VA Heppdings 4th of July Visit

If you asked anyone who knows me well, they would tell you that my favorite part of living in Destin is having friends and family visit year round.  I absolutely love having a house full of company-as often and as many people as possible.  Phil certainly fills my love tank, but the love tank overfloweth when I have a house full of company.  I love that I can cook, clean, and play tour guide for my friends.  I enjoy that many of my friends come down often enough that they feel like they can just relax and have down time at our house.  Maybe I should have opened a bed and breakfast as a career. 

This summer, we had the best company ever - the VA Heppdings.  Phil's oldest brother, Fred, Heather (not only my SIL, but one of my closest friends), and their 3 kids-Will, Jackson, and Ava came for a week long visit.  They drove all the way from Forest VA, and it was constant fun and go from the moment they arrived.

We got to show off our fun little town by going to see fireworks at Harborwalk on their first night here.  No trip to our house would be complete without multiple trips to the beach.  The boys loved playing in the sand and riding the waves.  Will got to experience The Track and ride tons of exciting rides-all for free!  We also enjoyed yogurt, playing at the house, and enjoying the air conditioned house during the blistering hot summer afternoons.

The most fun part was watching Nolan and Ava play together.  They are exactly 1 month apart in age and play so well together.  There is a precious connection they share and they interact so well together.  They spent hours and hours playing on the living room floor together.  The cutest thing ever was putting them in the toy box, with just their diapers on and some 4th of July headbands, and snapping picture after picture of them.  See below.  They also splashed around in the bathtub together playing with their toys and getting clean.

After the house was quiet and the kids were asleep, Heather and I enjoyed SOOO many laughs and giggles over countless stories about our husbands.  We share so much in common.  She isn't only a sister, she is one of my nearest and dearest friends.  We always talk about trying to find a way to live closer to each other.  Our evenings were spent on the front porch blabbing about anything and everything or in the back room playing with the Cricut machine and scrapbooking. 

It was a sad day when they left, but we have November to look forward to, and many, many more visits after that.  We are starting to line them up-one after another.

VA Heppdings, we LOVE y'all so much!  Can't wait for y'all to come back, but next time, come in the Fall.

Summertime!

Some are wondering why I haven't posted in awhile and I have a great reason!  Nolan and I have been too busy enjoying the summer, and I have been trying to figure out what I am going to do now that I am a SAHM.  At first, I was a little taken back, but now I'm in love with the idea of staying home for a year.  Trusting God to provide, as I know He will, but in the meantime, I am going to soak up every second with Nolan. 

At 8 & 9 months old, Nolan has become quite inquisitive.  Here are just a few of the things you've done the past couple of months:

*Gone swimming (and gone all the way under water) a lot this summer.
*Cut your bottom teeth and getting your 2 top teeth.
*Taking your bath in mommy and daddy's tub.
*Eating lots of peas and pears.
*Opening drawers in the kitchen.
*Got dedicated at church in June.
*Tried mango for the first time.
*Started to have a little separation anxiety around 8 months, but it only last a few weeks.
*Had LOTS of summer company come visit and play with you.
*You are VERY social.  You love interacting with anyone and everyone.
*You started CRAWLING on July 4th, right before being 9 months old.

You are adorable, handsome, precious, and our little (or big) bundle of joy.  Nothing makes me happier than waking up to your smile everday.

Ging & Pop

Ging and Pop are so very young at heart and LOVE to play with Nolan. Ging got to come down to Destin for 5 days during Spring Break and spend lots of time loving on Nolan. Pop joined a few days later. They enjoyed walks around the block, lunch at the Hilton, and lots of toy & snuggle time at the house. We are so thankful that Ging & Pop are a part of Nolan's life. Besides spoiling him with clothes and toys, the best thing they give him is their love.

Enjoying an afternoon at the Hilton for lunch at Barefoots and dipping Nolan's feet in the pool.

Ging & Pop

7 Months and Loving Life!

You are our everything Mr. Nolan Douglass.  You take our breath away, bring endless smiles to our face, and entertain us in so many ways.  Not a day goes by where we don't thank God for you.  You are 7 months and full of life.  Here is what you are up to these days:

*Say dada.  Not so sure you know what it means, but you do know it is important.
*Learning the signs milk, more, mama, dada.
*Waving hello to people.
*Rolling over on your tummy in your sleep and will often stay that way.
*Have a new toy, Scout.  We play with him every morning.
*Finally went swimming for the first time, and loved it!
*Eating solids almost everyday.  Your newest tastes are sweet potatoes and pears mixed together.
*Have cut your 2 bottom teeth.
*Still prefer nursing over a bottle, but will willingly take either.
*Love when there are lots of people around.  The more the merrier with you, kiddo.
*Aren't showing any signs of crawling, but I know that won't last much longer.
*Still sleeping through the night (minus that week of craziness when you started cutting your bottom teeth).
*Can't get enough of peek-a-boo

You're growing too fast!  I want this to slow down.  Every month is bittersweet.  I love seeing you do new things, but I hate that it is going by too fast.  Hopefully, we will have a little brother or sister for you to play with soon.  Mommy and daddy pray everyday that the Lord will grant us the desires of our heart and add to our family of 3!  You will be a great big brother one day, Nolan.  But for now, we are thankful for YOU.

How can you not fall in love with this little man?  Daddy and I can't wait to watch him discover, grow, and learn.  Hopefully, though, it won't go too fast-one can wish, right? 

Sleeping Woes and Easter Fun!

I've been so busy the past few days! Mommy and daddy have had me all over the place. I must admit, I haven't been sleeping that well. Mommy and daddy thought it was because of my teething, but it is really because they had me in hotels, pack-n-plays, and really, I just wanted my own bed. See, I have gotten into this habit of spitting my passy out at night and daddy will come put it back in my mouth. I've been playing this game for about 1 1/2 weeks now. I overheard mommy talking to my Aunt Heather getting some tips and ideas about how to help me sleep through the night again. THEN, I heard mommy tell Ging that this game is now over. I had mommy fooled-she thought it was because of teething, but I was just playing games with them. But, I heard mommy say the game is over. She and daddy will check on me at night, but I have to relearn sleeping all by myself again. Aunt Heather warned mommy that this will probably happen again as I start pulling myself up in the bed. What the heck does that mean? I know mommy will be on the lookout. But I also know she loves me SO much and wants me to be a happy and healthy growing boy-and for that to happen, I know I must sleep well and obey (I don't know what that means yet, but I hear mommy say that word a lot) my parents. Gee, I love them. Now, onto the fun stuff. Here are some pictures from my Easter trip.


Daddy took some fancy pictures of me with my eggs.


I got to meet my cousin Gabe and Aunt Ally & Uncle Chris.


My first family Easter picture.


I got my first Easter basket and daddy help me play with my new toys.


Mommy & Aunt Heather love to be silly together.


I love playing with cousin Ava, we are only 1 month apart. I'm bigger, but she is older.


I love my family!

6 Months Old!

I can't believe it has been 6 months since Nolan entered our world. As everyone has warned me, it has gone by way too fast! In some respects, it seems like my maternity leave was another lifetime ago. However, I also find myself wondering, "how did Nolan already get to be 6 months?" It really has gone by in a blink of an eye.

At 6 months, I'm still nursing and pumping everyday. I'm growing very tired of the pumping. It is going to take a lot of willpower to continue pumping in the summer, but I think the pump is going in the garbage can on August 1st. We are definitely in our groove. I really appreciate routine and Nolan has jumped on board with the family routine.

Speaking of routine. We start everyday with our devotions, followed by work and tutoring. With no breaks in the day, I go from tutoring to getting dinner ready and moving towards spending the evening with Phil and Nolan. We don't do too much. Eat, play, bathe, and watched limited amounts of t.v. But there isn't a minute that Nolan is not being played with. Repeat Monday-Friday (afternoon). Sounds monotonous, but I love my life, my family, and my career.

As I begin to ease up on the nursing and pumping, I hope to devote those precious minutes to running. I'm ready to add about 3 runs a week to my "plate" but right now, I'm trying to find those minutes. Having purchased a jogging stroller should get me motivated!

Nolan, you are our (not so) little man and you bring joy and laughter to us everyday. At 6 months you:

*are sitting up.
*rolling over and pushing up.
*eating sweet potatoes and avocados.
*love being outside.
*sleeping about 9 hours a night.
*still have very dry skin and scratch your head all over.
*are learning the signs for more milk, please, and thank you.
*wearing 9-12 month clothing.
*love your new workbench and crawl ball toys.
*hate when we remove boogers from your nose and become quite wiggly while doing so.
*respond when you hear your name.
*will spend a lot of time in your jumperoo.
*are very unhappy when you have to ride in your car seat.
*sleep half swaddled from your waist down.
*go with the flow.
*are developing a distinct personality: laid back and very social
*are the apple of mommy and daddy's eyes.

Over and Over and Over!

That is what Nolan is up to these days. He rolls from his back to his tummy-over and over and over again. He stays there for a minute or so and then does one of two things: rolls back over to his back or starts crying because he wants someone to do the work for him. He, like most babies, have started this new little game: let me see how many times I can roll over and get mommy or daddy to roll me back over. Yes, I would say he likes this game. While he plays this never ending game, he will stay on his tummy for a few minutes and has learned to push up on his arms. Nowhere near crawling, but he is so cute to watch as he pushes up. I really enjoy grabbing one of his favorite toys and placing it just far enough away from him that he has no other choice but to roll over to get to it.





I am sure it won't be too long until my life goes upside down. The days of sitting and playing are going to be a thing in the past very soon. He continues to amaze me at every developmental stage, and while I don't want to wish the time by, I can't wait to see what tricks he has up his sleeves next.

We love you Nolan Douglass!