Eight Months and under the weather

Another whole month has flown by! We had our eight month mark last week but Hayes and I were both sick so I'm just now getting around to it. I did not care that I was sick but it's a terrible feeling to see your baby not feeling good. Runny nose and coughing are sad little symptoms for someone so little and innocent! Two trips to the pediatrician in the last 2 weeks and $50 later for them to say "it's just a cold," and "she is fine, she'll get over it!" is a little frustrating, but at least it's peace of mind for this mama to know it's not the flu or anything really bad! So sorry, the point of this post is to document my little growing baby at 8 months!

8 fun things about Hayes being 8 months old:

1. EXPLORING! She is very mobile! She is always on the go and notices everything. I love to watch her to see what she is looking at and what she is interested in. If she hears footsteps she will look at both doors to see who is coming in the room, then she gets really excited if it's Nathan. She also likes to help out in the kitchen:)


2. EATING! She is eating so much baby food now. I buy b/t 25-30 jars each week. She goes through them so fast and sometimes have to go back to the store early to buy more for the weekend. She loves to EAT! and so far is not at all picky-likes all fruits and vegetables-yeah!
3. PLAYING in her pack and play-this is fairly new for her-at first she was not having it, but now she will sit and play with her toys for 5 minutes or so and then climb the walls trying to get out. Her other favorite toys are her giraffe, piano, maracas, books, and the outside of the exersaucer (does NOT want to get inside anymore-standing up along the outside of it is okay though)
4. LOVES peek-a-boo-she laughs so loud at this-so funny!
5. Flapping her arms like a little penguin when she gets excited-I hope she always does this-it is precious.
6. She has a TOOTH! Her 1st bottom tooth is coming in-we had a few middle of the night wake-ups last week-hope it's just teething related-it felt like we had a newborn all over again.
7. She is doing really good in the nursery at church on Sundays- (or this is what they say), and I think she gets about a B or C for Mother's Day Out during the week-still learning to love that!
8. SLEEPING! She is still a good sleeper at night and takes a good afternoon nap every day. Thank you Lord!!



Hayes, you just amaze us more and more every day. We love you so much more than we could have possibly ever imagined before you were born. We talk ALOT about what you will be like when you are 2, 3, 5, 10 and 20 years old. What will you be when you grow up? Where will you go to college? (haha-hopefully Auburn:) It's so fun to think about all that, but most importantly we hope and pray that no matter what you are like or what you choose to do with your life that you will always honor the Lord, because your relationship with Him is the only thing that matters in this lifetime! Happy 8 months, Hayes! We love you!

Friends and Family

I love when a new baby is born. It doesn't matter who the baby or parents are or even if I don't know them. If I read about it, see a picture, watch the Baby Story, etc. I am going to CRY. It's just such a special, amazing miracle every time God gives a new life to a family! But especially if the new baby is someone we know and love and that our little one will grow up with, I am ALWAYS over-excited!
We visited our good friends Ryan and Marybeth and their new little baby boy, Wyatt, last week and he is such a precious baby. He is beautiful and we're SO happy for their new family and especially excited that he and Hayes will be raised in the same church. Hayes was really interested in looking at Wyatt and watching him drink his bottle. It's so funny now to see her notice babies and children. She will break her neck to turn around and watch them! We're looking forward to lots of playdates with you little man. Happy 6 weeks already!


We also had a yummy mexican play date with our friends Lindsay and baby Caroline last week (well mexican for the mamas!) Hayes had her maraca with her to show her love and support of mexican food too. She had quite a bit of it while in the womb. This little pink maraca shaker is one of her favorite toys now-thanks Aunt Alyssa. She will get in her carseat (usually) without a fuss only if she has her pink shaker.


We had a fun trip to Dothan this past weekend to visit our family! We did not have a very peaceful trip on the way down. Hayes only slept from Birmingham to Clanton and then fussed/screamed the rest of the way. But our trip back was much better! She slept most of the time and more importantly we had a safe trip and got back home safe and sound. Here are some pictures from the weekend!

The beautiful rainbow that welcomed us to Dothan, a sweet site after a LONG and rainy trip


new toys from Shug and G'daddy!


supper on the porch w/a messy but happy baby


checking out Miss Piggy


lunch w/our cousins at Mama Rosa's-mmmmmm! I would eat there too many times each week if I lived there!


playing in the grass and wagon




karaoke w/ cousins


It is always lots of fun going home but also LOTS of fun coming back too! We're home today with a sick baby-runny nose and coughing-yuck! But we did manage to get out and run a few errands. Hope you're all staying well and dry at your home!

First Day of School

Wednesday was Hayes' 1st day in her new class at MDO. Her teachers said she did great and played well. They sent a little note home in her bag about her day and commented on how "strong" she was when they tried to change her diaper. The girl does not like to be pinned down! It is really a challenge changing her and now I'm glad to know it's not just me!



All ready for school minus her hair being brushed-actually I think it had been brushed she just flips and squirms so fast and then it needs it again!



Treats for her teachers-hopefully they like sweets b/c we are stocked up here at home thanks to Publix!


Hayes and Mommmy all ready for the day!
I think we will like our new schedule-school one day and home the next. I just hope the little princess can adjust to no morning nap on her school days, which is fine with me, but will just be a LONG morning for her teachers!!

Playing in the Grass and Bathtime

We do lots of playing and crawling around here, and lately quite a bit of pulling up and standing. We played at the park again on Monday and had a big time in the grass! She didn't know what to think of it at first but enjoyed pulling at it. Later that night I found scratches all over her little legs, although they blend in pretty well w/the many mosquito bites that have eaten her sweet legs lately. Hayes is sporting some of her AU attire in these pics for the free Chick Fil A day last Monday!











She is still working on holding the sippy cup. She likes to drink out of it but doesn't know how to tip it up yet. We need more practice!



After 7 1/2 months of baths in the kitchen sink I decided it might be time to put Hayes in the big bath tub w/her toys. She did not know what to do at first and tried to scale the walls to get out. The running water was loud and I think it scared her. But then she was okay with it and played w/her toys until all the water drained out. However, I have since decided that I like my baby being a baby and I will continue to bathe her in the kitchen sink until she is too big. She's getting big way too fast and putting her in the big tub is just one step closer to her being a big girl-she is only this little ONE time and I love it!! I tell myself this daily about various things with her. I have loved every little stage of her life and it is passing too quickly. So back to the kitchen sink for baby bathtime, and I think she agrees with this for now!

Homewood Park

I'm finally big enough for the swing...yyyyyeeeeaaaaa!! She loved it. There will be lots of time at the playground in our future!

Wedding Weekend and School!!

We had a really fun wedding weekend this past weekend for two special friends, Jason and Emily. They had a super fun and yummy rehearsal dinner at the Verandah (we will definitely be going back there- at least for the dessert!) and the wedding and reception were beautiful-the wedding was at a really old presbyterian church downtown and the reception was at the historic Rucker house. We had such a fun time seeing friends that live out of town that we do not see very often. Nathan's parents were so generous to come to Bham for the weekend to keep Hayes for us both nights-I know they did not mind keeping her all to themselves for two nights! It was really wierd and fun being out late both nights and without Hayes and all the baby gear! On Sunday we met our good friends Dendy and Beth for lunch. They live in Troy and have a sweeeeeet, little baby boy a few weeks older than Hayes named Camden. He is so precious and SNUGGLY, such a cutie pie! He has the prettiest blue eyes and blondish hair. I am not used to a cuddly baby, Hayes squirms and wrestles to get out of your arms all the time-such a little monkey! Oh well maybe our next baby will be a cuddler like little Camden!! We had fun seeing you Beth and Dendy!! We'll come to visit you next time!



Pay no attention to the dirty bib, she is soooo hard to keep clean!

Also, next week is a big week for this baby! Hayes starts MDO on Wednesday, one week from today, and I will be teaching preschool 3 mornings each week. I think I'm looking forward to being on some sort of a schedule-we will see! Our days at home have been really nice but I know we will both love it. Hayes will be a little bunny at school. I'm already excited about spoiling her teachers and am planning lots of fun treats for them in hopes that they give Hayes a little extra TLC while she is with them! I am definitely not above that when it comes to extra loving for my baby girl at school!!!