graham's first birthday party

There were a ton of photos taken (which I'll probably post over on Facebook). Videos too. But this one photo? This sums up the party for me perfectly. A happy baby eating more cake than any baby ever should. And completely unbothered by the many loving faces that watched him make this mess. I've finally figured out how not to stress during birthday parties. Hint: Don't try to make everything. And don't try to make it look perfectly Pinterest-worthy. Also? Hire your friend to make the cakes.

Saturday was perfection. Graham received a few small gifts and he loves them all. And after a few sugar meltdowns on everyone's part, we all relaxed the rest of the day and enjoyed each other's company.

Tomorrow this baby officially turns one. Which is just completely unbelievable.

spring break, twenty fifteen.

We aren't typically go-somewhere-for-spring-break-ers. But this year? This year we were. We spent almost a solid week (Fri-Thurs) in Panama City Beach. And before anyone says something about us going to PCB, we were on the quiet end of the beach... not so quiet that we didn't hear the sirens in the middle of the night when we arrived, but we were never in harms way (that we know of), and the beach was perfect. Small crowds. Mostly quiet college kids. We really couldn't have asked for a better week. The only downfall was the temperature the first couple of days, but even then we made the most of the heated pool and waited for the sun to warm everything up in the afternoon to make our way to the beach. And please note? That the gulf has the prettiest water and beaches anywhere. Period. The end.




At the beginning of the week it seemed like Graham was going to have an aversion to the sand, but by the end of the week, he was sitting/crawling/playing in it like a pro. We seriously had the best time. We stayed in a two bedroom/one bathroom home... and short of needing one more bathroom, we feel like should we need to move into a smaller home, we could totally do that. But this mama is going to insist on having her own bathroom should that be the case. (I lost count of how many times I asked for the toilet to be flushed or the seat to be put down. They'll learn one day, right?)

easter, twenty fifteen.

We actually had to wake the older boys this morning in order for them to see that the Easter bunny had visited last night. Um, having to wake the older boys is completely unheard of around these parts. Perhaps it was the wild night we had last night enjoying our friends after an early evening of worship. Or perhaps they somehow knew we needed to get up early, so naturally they would sleep in. Either way, they were delighted to see that some small goodies had been left for them before we headed off to church.

I suppose we have a tradition starting on Easter Sunday of a big lunch at my parents' house followed by an Easter egg hunt that must be louder than most others. Five grandsons and one granddaughter makes it super loud. But also super fun. Eggs were found by all and we enjoyed counting the loot afterward.

And each year I'm going to try to get a shot of the cousins (as long as they'll play along) to see how they've grown in the past year. Also, please note that Graham was born the day after Easter last year. Like, less than 24 hours later. And yes, that was a surprise to all of us.