52 Week Photo Project: Week 26

You Gotta Get Back on the Horse

BB loves his rocking/rolling horse.  I have not gotten a picture yet, but a lot of times I will find him in his room petting his Horsey on the nose.  It's adorable. 

We have taken several rides on Horsey around the house, and BB appears to be quite the horseman. 

But, even the best get bucked off sometimes.  Last week, Horsey apparently got a little wild, and down went BB.  His dad was quick to the rescue, picking up the cowboy, helping him dust himself off, and giving him the speech every country kid has heard from their father...."Now son, you have to get back on that horse.  I know he bucked you off but that's life and you always get back on."

And so, BB crawled back on Horsey and off they went, with dad watching proudly in the background.  I love watching The Boy from Texas be a dad and I can't wait to see what other important lessons he has up his sleeve.

Oh, here is a little video so you can see the horse and rider in action. 

52 Week Photo Challenge: Week 26

52 Week Photo Project: Week 25

No one here ate Oreos on the way home...

Aunt Edith's Turn

My Great Aunt Edith was the last of a generation for our side of the family.  She buried her husband and his four siblings and their spouses.  Theirs was a generation that knew hard times and sacrifice and faith.  A generation who traveled by covered wagon and read by oil lamp and pulled together to win a World War against hatred and intolerance.  People who understood what it meant to love this country and watched the first man walk on the moon and drove the first wave of Model T cars. A generation so full of the hope and perseverance, lessons we all so badly need today.

Aunt Edith was, first and foremost, a lady.  Growing up, I was surrounded by a number of strong women.  And while she was no exception with regard to strength, she was quite different than my mother, grandmother, and other aunts.  She was quiet.  If you know my family, you understand why that stood out.  While my Gran frequently barked "Jody, you hush now, it's my turn to talk" while talking to my great uncle on the phone, I never heard Aunt Edith raise her voice.  She usually sat quietly, smiling, while all the talkers around her carried on.  She had no need to be the center of attention.

She had a calm presence, she always smiled, sat with her long legs perfectly crossed, and held a handkerchief in her hand. She wore polyester pants, always had her hair fixed, and made sure that no one in her presence ever went hungry.  I never heard her utter a curse word, but did hear her threaten to fix her son Craig's attitude a time or two.

She loved my Great Uncle Jody.  Which was probably quite a job given that he was the baby of the family and horribly spoiled by his mama and my grandma. They were married for over 60 years, after getting engaged at the Love Tree, on the ranch where they lived.  They raised two children. They held their great grandbabies and great, great nieces and nephews. They took every kid in the family fishing for cat fish at the tank in their yard. They danced at weddings and celebrated 100 years of the ranch being in our family, and enjoyed camping at the lake.

Hers was a life that set an example for us all, and leaves her remaining family members with shoes that cannot possibly be filled. 

And although we mourn today, I can just picture her sitting there quietly smiling as Gran and Uncle Jody argue over whose turn it is to talk now that she's arrived in Heaven.  Maybe this time, she'll join in and tell them, "Hush! It's my turn now."

Summer Fun

Over Father's Day Weekend, The Boy from Texas' family had a little get together at his Nana's house.  When we arrived, the front yard was all set up for a little fun in the sun.  And I'm here to tell you, I know one little guy who sure enjoyed it!

#KeepinItReal

A month or so ago, one of my friends tagged me in an Instagram challenge called "Keepin' It Real."  The idea was to share a real life photo every day for a week.  None of the photo-shop, highlight reel kind of photos we usually see on social media were allowed.  I loved this idea....I think being honest about what real life looks like and not acting like we all live in perfectly clean houses eating perfectly balanced meals whilst wearing adorable rompers with newly washed hair all the time is important.

So....here were my 7 photos.

Day 1

Some days, my lunch break is a run around the lake and a healthy salad.  Today, it was microwave mac and cheese and jello.  Real life, people!

Day 2

Sometimes, mom puts your pants on and forgets to snap the onesie first.  And she is just too lazy to take the pants off and start over.  At least he's wearing clothes!

Day 3

See that clean floor?  I didn't do it.  Shortly after BB was born, we hired someone to help clean. Best money we spend. There is just only so much I can do.

Day 4

My usually happy kid had a meltdown in the car today.  I just kept right on driving and he just kept right on screaming.  Some days, you just do what you gotta do to get home.

Day 5

After a day of dirty dishes, a teething baby, an argument over nothing with my husband, 3 loads of laundry, being behind on a work project, and a storm knocking out power for 4 hours, I just needed a shower and some cookie dough.

Day 6

I really thought we'd remain organized and neat despite adding a little fella.  Instead, we dump out the whole toy basket and play with prenatal vitamin jars.  That's life.

Day 7

This working mom thing is tough.  I love my job and honestly I am quite sure I am not wired to be a stay-at-home mom.  But when I drop him off to go stay with his grandparents for a few days while I'm on a work trip, I wonder...

52 Week Photo Project: Week 24

BB Seven, Eight and Nine Months

Well, the title of this blog post tells you how well these monthly updates have been going.  How in the world am I three months behind already??  I'm going to do an abbreviated version of these posts just to be sure I have some record of how incredibly fast this kiddo is growing!

Seven Months
Despite a rough start, the transition from his bassinet to his crib has gone swimmingly well.  He usually sleeps all night from about 9:30 - 7:00.  If he does wake up, usually all it takes is a binky and some pats on the tummy and he goes right back to sleep.  He officially has two little bottom teeth!

My Favorite Shots

Monthly Check In

Weight: 18.4 pounds

Height:  27.25 inches

Likes:  Touching other people's teeth, sitting up.

Dislikes:  Someone touching his teeth, laying down.

Eight Months

At 8 months, he had finally gotten the hang of true crawling and no longer needed his army crawl method.  He had three bottom teeth and was chewing on everything in sight.  He got his first black eye (two, actually) as a result of going 110 miles an hour and not having the best balance.  He has started on puffs and, like all food, thinks they are great.

My Favorite Shots

Monthly Check In:

I have no stats because our scale was broken.

Likes:  Crawling everywhere, his "car," being outside, Dad's sprinkler.

Dislikes:  Hitting his head.

Nine Months

I think that every stage just gets more fun.  At 9 months, BB is into absolutely everything.  It's been amazing to watch him learn things right before our eyes.  He figured out quickly how to let go of something while standing up and fall on his butt instead of his head.  He's currently eating finger foods and doing much better about making his little fingers cooperate with his mouth. He crawls like a champ, pulls up on anything he can get his hands on, has 7, yes SEVEN, teeth, walks as long as he is holding onto something, and loves to eat anything we will give him.

My Favorite Shots

Monthly Check In

Weight:  19 pounds, 8 ounces.

Height:  28.5 inches.

Head:  90th percentile.

Likes:  Standing up, opening drawers, table food, swimming.

Dislikes:  Laying on his back, being still, getting stuck in the play pen while mom takes a shower.

52 Week Photo Challenge: Week 23