Train up a child in the way he should go, even when he is old he will not depart from it. -Proverbs 22:6

Sorry to leave you hanging..geez, that wasn't nice now was it?  

Lots going on here...  Both exciting and scary all at the same time.

So, what's first?

Oh..tomorrow is my last day of work!  

I got a promotion.  And yes, it does have something to do with the photo below. (He found a new toy, BTW...ha!)

I am going to be a stay at home mom.  And I could not be more excited.  I have always known being there for my children is my calling.  I remember so vividly going back to work the first day when Winslow was 12 weeks old.  It was one of the hardest days of my life. (Especially since he wouldn't take a bottle)  But  I am incredibly thankful that I did go back to work and that my mother-in-law graciously volunteered her time and energy to watch my son.  I enjoyed the adult interaction and the I think it's healthy to spend some time away from your children every once in a while.  

I am glad I went back, but I also know it's my time to be with my babies.  (Well, baby)  I know there will be days where I miss work, where I want adult conversation, and where I wish things were "easier", but I also know this is the truest calling in my life and I have never felt so sure about this decision.  I am so blessed my husband has allowed me to do this and yes, it will be a sacrifice financially right now, but the benefits for me and my children will be great.




"Today I will be thankful for all the little socks and the grass stained jeans and the endless piles of laundry.  For there will come a day when the laundry basket is empty and these days will be profoundly missed."



So here I am.  My hubby graduates with his Master's Degree in 8 weeks, PRAISE the Lord, and then we will be heading to wherever he gets a job.

Which is why our house is for sale.

 






































Our lovely home, which we LOVE, will be home to hopefully another nice and caring family soon.  Know anyone looking for a house in the Raleigh area? Send them our way! 

So lots of things happening here!  All of them are very exciting, but they also can be very frightening if I don't keep my mind in the right place.  Meaning, I need Jesus.   I need him to fully believe we will be okay..even though we are living on one salary. Even though we might possibly be moving across the country.  Even though our house needs to be sold by August.  Yep.  I need Jesus.  And the best part?  He's ALWAYS taken care of us.  We've been through 3 (this will be four 4th) moves in 4 years, a handful of jobs, law schoool, graduate school, LSAT tests, deaths of animals, and a slew of other things that we probably stressed out too much over.  But He provides.  He is good.  

 So come Monday, I will get to sleep in until noon, sit on the couch and eat cookie dough, and paint my fingernails while watching DateLine...right? 

Ha!  

I am so excited and grateful for this next step in my Motherhood Journey. I hope Winslow will one day be as thankful as I am that my mom got to spend her days with me growing up.  I never truly understood how special it is to be a stay at home mom until I became a mother of my own.  

Cheers to this new adventure!

"You will come to know that what appears today  to be a sacrifice will prove instead to be the greatest investment that you will ever make."  

"If you want your children to turn out well, spend twice as much time with them, and half as much money." 

"Motherhood is a choice you make everyday to put someone else's happiness and well-being ahead of your own, to teach the hard lessons, to do the right thing even when you're not sure what the right thing is...and to forgive yourself over and over again for doing everything wrong." 

For him.

This is only two weeks late but we have been super duper busy over here...
LOTS of stuff to catch up on... shall we start with I am quitting my job ? Or that we are selling our house?  Or that I wrote a lovely father's day post and never clicked publish?  Let's do father's day first.

Seth's first father day was wonderful.  He is really such a wonderful daddy to our boy.  We did our best to make him feel like the special daddy that he is.  
I love you, babe.  And could not ask for a better dad for our son.  You love me and Winslow with all you have.  

I love watching you love on our boy.  He is the perfect mix of you and me.  He's got his momma's stubbornness and his daddy's laid back personality.  He's got my eyes and your nose.

I can't wait to watch y'all grow up and become best friends.  What a lucky girl I am to have you as my husband.  I love you. 

Winslow is 10 months!

Every day gets better and better!  I just blinked, and BAM! He's ten months old.  I am planning his first birthday party as I type! 

He has got such a personality now and he is so fun to interact with.  I just love him to pieces and miss him when he sleeps.  I thank God for him daily, and I kiss him more times than I can count. 

Here's his ten month update!

Weight:22 pounds 6 ounces

Height:30 inches

Nicknames: W, little monkey, Win

Eating: This month food has been an adventure for us!  He will eat almost  anything I put in front of him!  We've had watermelon, mac and cheese, toast, rice cakes, blueberries, green beans, carrots, potatoes, orange chicken, broccolli, greek yogurt, and he had his first sip of sweet tea this month! ;)  No more sweet tea for W until a few (or several) more months though.  He nurses 5-6 times a day. He also drinks water from a sippy cup.  His favorite breakfast is oatmeal with banana or yogurt with bluberries.  For lunch, he loves sweet potatoes or carrots, and also have been eating tons of fruit..nectarines, plums, pears, bananas, blueberries, strawberries, canteloupe!  

Sleeping: Sleep...this has not been that great this month.  Teething?  Growth Spurt? Wonder Week?  All of the above?  Probably.  He goes to bed aroun 7:30 and wakes up at 2:12am EVERY SINGLE morning.  I don't know how his little body does it, but it does.  He wakes up at the exact same time every single morning.  I swear he has a little alarm clock in his crib telling him to wake up.  So, when he wakes up, I tried to just rock him back to sleep but that turned into a hysterical fit, I've tried letting hubby do it, and I've tried letting him cry...fail.  fail. fail.  (and yes, I am aware if I just left him, he would probably go back to sleep, but I'm not into the cry it out method.  to each his own. and yes, my child will turn out just fine)  Can you tell I've been given "advice" on this topic before? :/  So, we are just waiting it out until his teeth pop through, or we night wean him...  

As of last night, we are letting him cry it out in moderation.  He woke up at 2:18 (6 minutes late!) and I am determined to night wean him so I can get some sleep.  So I rocked him and he settled down and the minute I put him in his crib, he went hysterical.  So I left him...and he cried a while but finally fell asleep.  It was 2 hours of off and on crying.  Yikes.  But I am sticking with it because this momma needs SLEEP.  And he's old enough to sleep through the night.   


Naps:  Still napping twice a day. His morning nap is an hour to an hour and a half and his afternoon nap is usually 45 minutes.  This boy is too busy to sleep!  

Teething: Four top teeth and two bottom teeth.  I believe two more teeth are about to come through on the top! EIGHT TEETH at ten months? Geez kid! Grow up on me, why dontcha?


Clothing: 12 months and 12-18 month clothes.  He sleeps in a onesie and his sleepsack at night. He wears a size 3 shoe.  

Diapers: Cloth. We are heading to the beach and Texas for 11 days so we will probably take disposables for that trip and now that Target just started carrying Honest Brand diapers, we will grab a bunch of those.  They are so cute.

Social: This boy.  he loves everyone just about!  When we are at the grocery store, he will let out a huge squeal and everyone will laugh at him, then he will laugh right back and smile!  he is precious.  He does have a bit of stranger anxiety, but not for long.  He baba's and dada's all day long..no mama yet..maybe once or twice, but not yet.  He can kiss and wave bye bye and he can play peek a boo.  
 
Likes: Eating, being chased while crawling, pulling up on everything, going for walkes, "petting" Darla, crawling around naked, being thrown in the air, kisses on his little thighs, reading books, swimming, bathtime, standing up in the tub, throwing food on the floor

Dislikes:  Diaper changes, being told no, having toys taken away from him
 

Other: He now throws food on the floor intentionally, when I roll the ball under the table, he looks for it under the table.  He can throw the ball back to me, he crawls fast away from me when I chase him.  he can copy sounds i make, like tooting noises and baba noises.  it's so cute.  

Bascially, everything he does is precious.  

Look how big you've gotten!

My little fishy

My boy loves water.  He loves swimming and bath time.  Which is why after a long day of playing, he gets a good scrub in the tub.  He recently upgraded tubs from his blow up ducky to mommy's spa bath.  He loves it.  Now he can crawl around (and make momma's heart stop because I always think he is going to fall). 

and just like that, he is going to be 18 years old . Sheesh, time is slipping away from me.  Cue the tears.

That face.  He's not amused.

Stitch Fix #2

it's that time again! Stitch Fix time!

I got my box Wednesday and when I opened it, I literally squealed at all the beautiful color it had in it. 

Stitch Fix is an online personal stylist-  
You create an online profile.
You get five hand picked items.
Keep what you love, send back what you don't..

You sign up here and pay $20 a month to have someone pick out five pieces of clothing for you that gets mailed to your door!  The bonus is if you keep any items, you get to put the $20 styling fee towards your clothing.  

 
You can pick your price points (I chose "The cheapest option" and then they'll send you items for you to try on at home, and you return them in three days(in a prepaid envelope).  If you like all the items, you can get  25% your whole order!
I loved the first box my stylist sent and this box was NO exception.  I can't decide which one I loved most.

So let's see what I got in the second box:

1. Nannette Ombre Beaded Bib Necklace  $38.00

 I loved this necklace.  I love the ombre look and it was big and chunky.  My favorite.  The price was great too, and it is great quality.  However, when I walked around the house the strands would get tangled up.  I was so bummed because I kept finding myself trying to straighten it out, so I decided my OCD was too much for this necklace.  SENT BACK.  (And I'm really pretty sad about it)

2. Kahlo Racer Back Striped Maxi Dress $58

 

































I loved this dress too.  The color, the crocheted details on the top, the comfyness, the length.  It would be perfect for summertime.  BUT, the back was a little too small in the rear.  :(   I wanted to stretch it out like I usually do with my other clothes (ha!) but I think it would shrink in the wash, and I didn't want to not be able to fit in it.  SENT BACK (sadly)

3.  Jocelyn Ikat Print Rope Belt Dress  $48

This was my favorite item from my box!  This dress it lined, is a great summer dress and it has the adorable rope belt.  I can see myself wearing this a lot this summer.  The print is fun, the color is great, and it was a great price for a quality piece.

4.  Janae Sleevless Crochet Front Maxi Dress $78

This dress was confusing for me.  I loved it, but I didn't. It was a little too long, but I loved the back.  The cinch waist made me look frumpy, but the crochet front was so pretty.  Hmm...the price was too expensive too for the color.  Just wasn't me.  SENT BACK

5.Tobie Striped Sleeveless Swing Dress  $118

 

Loved the color.  Loved the fabric. Did not love the length or the flowyness.  Just not my style really.  I loved the stripes and the back of the dress...but I sent it back.  SENT BACK.

Overall, I loved this box, but the fit just wasn't that great for me this month.  I did keep the Blue Ikat dress, and I can't wait to wear it.  Too bad the necklace kept getting tangled, because I loved it.  Oh well..can't wait until the next box!  

If you want to sign up, go here!  (And i'll get a referral credit!)

Let me know what you think! Which piece was your favorite?   

To see what I got in my first box, go here.

"Children are made readers on the laps of their parents."

I love that quote.  It makes me smile.  Growing up, I LOVED reading.  I still do, actually.  I remember reading Where the Red Fern Grows in fourth grade on my bean bag with my mom laying beside me. Reading Chicken Soup for the Kid's Soul while in the Louvre in France when I was 10. Laying in bed at college reading The Hunger Games.  Reading has always been a part of my life.  

The same goes for my little man.  And I am SO proud of him.  He LOVES to read. 

 He would rather get a book than a toy most days.  I hope his love for books stays with him forever!

 He will crawl over to his book basket, pull out each one, and carefully pick his favorite.

 He loves Eric Carle, Dr. Seuss, and any "lift the flap" books.

Keep on reading, sweet sweet boy!

The more that you read,

the more things you will know,

the more that you learn, 

the more place you'll go!

-Dr Seuss