Robbie & Courtney Get Married!

They did it! 2017 must have been the hot year to get married, because after Ted & Kyra tied the knot in February, Robbie & Courtney followed suit in June! 

This spectacular event was hosted at my parent's lovely home in the Northern Neck of Virginia. Their property was transformed by a year's worth of planning, weeding, trimming, planting and sweating, but WOW - it was worth every single detailed task. 

Courtney has been in Robbie's life for a few years, but we first met my future sister-in-law and her lovely daughter in 2015 when they visited us for Thanksgiving. She is a lovely, calm, friendly person and has raised the most perfect cousin for Gretchen. They were kind enough to include me, Gretchen and Alex in their wedding party. 

Setup at a private resident wedding is a bit complicated. The coordination between the vendors, my parents and the wishes of the bride and groom were made a bit tougher due to the very small town they live in, and the lack of resources to shop from. Through the lead-up to the big day, everyone did a great job of keeping calm and getting things done. 

And then it was the big day! These most handsome beautiful little people were ready to make their debut as ring bearer and flower girls. I'm not sure they could look any more excited. 

And they could not have executed their duties more perfectly.

It was a beautiful ceremony at the point overlooking the water that leads to the Chesapeake Bay. The weather cooperated, the backdrop arch was masterfully decorated, and Jon power-washed the pool deck to a sparkling shine. Alex created a moment of extreme levity when he took the pastor literally and repeated all of the vows from the front row. 

And the most important thing, Robbie and Courtney were married.

Then it was time to party! Another thing that my parent's house is perfect for, hosting a great party. There was dancing, food was plentiful, and we even got the lights to work and power to the DJ. 

It was lots of fun to get all dressed up and celebrate our family. It's ideal to do it all, and then have a vacation. Congratulations Robbie, Courtney and Peityn. You are sure to have a beautiful life together. 

Oh So He Grows!

Graham does many things, what he does not do is slow down. He went from a squishy newborn to a full-fledged baby with wants, desires and abilities in a blink. These beautiful blue eyes command the room and light up our hearts. 

By month three he was a smiley, giggly, hand-loving little guy. He has head and neck control and is built as tough as they come!

Down to his tailfeather, he enjoys being "worn" by mom and holding up his head. 

Graham wasted no time getting enough neck strength that he could use all of the fancy toys that we have for him. He enjoys a different bouncer in each room and a pack and play placed in the family room so that he doesn't miss a moment of the action.  

That face!!

There are such opposing forces happening as I watch our children grow, and it seems most apparent as I spend this quiet time with our third, and last, little baby. It is difficult for me to sit and enjoy the quiet - I want to be accomplishing something, working on "the list" for that day, or preparing something that I know I need to do later. The kind reminder of "cherish this moment, because it's gone before you realize" is true, but I never found it particularly helpful. When you are in the moment of having that little one that just wants to sleep on you all the time it's wonderful - and then an hour passes and the anxiety of not getting anything else done and you've got to pickup Alex from pre-school and then get home for the bus so you can get the big kids to swimming while Graham screams the whole way there and back - takes over, and it's really hard to cherish that moment of anxiety. 

So, I find that I'm constantly trying to remember to enjoy the moment, while simultaneously trying to remember everything else that needs to be done, while also counting the minutes until I can close my eyes and get some sleep. Pictures are such a treasure in this way. They help preserve the moment exactly as it was, and the tasks of the day don't attach to a picture, so I'm left with this beautiful sleeping baby clutching his elephant and losing grip on his ticker. And this is the moment I want to cherish.

And also this one, where the big kids enjoy having a baby brother, and share in the accomplishment of him sitting up on his own and rolling over and giving them smiles. 

Sitting up is yesterday's news. Now he focuses on leg strength.

Life is long and short all at once, and nothing brings that home like seeing your first baby feed your last baby with the same bottle you fed her with. Especially since feeding her feels like it took place last week. 

Blue Bonnets 2017

I have lived a lot of places in my life, however this is my first time living in Texas. Texas is a place all it's own, with all kinds of traditions and routines that are completely foreign to a non-native Texan. Did you know Texas has its own pledge? And that children say it along with the US Pledge of Allegiance every day to start school? Did you know that the world's tallest war hero statue is of Sam Houston (or even more basic, who Sam Houston is)? I knew none of those things. Nor did I know about the blue bonnets. 

These lovely little flowers pop out of the ground in brilliant fields every April. There are areas of parks that are preserved specifically for blue bonnets, no mowing, picking or walking on these areas in hope that the beautiful purple/blue flowers will grow. Chances are, if you're looking at a stock image, serene photo of a Texas landscape, you're looking at blue bonnets. 

The littlest member of our family is juuuuuust starting to sit up on his own. So this picture has a cautious mom-hand coming in case he tips over, and the remainder of his photo shoot is taken in the safety of laying down.

Blue bonnets aren't the only fun thing about spring - there's also building leg strength:

learning new skills:

and hanging out with friends:

The blue bonnets also remind us that there is a beauty to the Texas landscape and that we had better get out and enjoy it before the inevitable heat stomps in.

Brazos Bend State Park

It's exciting that our big kids are now getting old enough that we can plan a day that includes a bit of walking, so we decided to venture outside of our normal spots and enjoy one of Texas's many state parks. 

Brazos Bend State Park is approximately 50 miles southwest of the city of Houston. This makes it an hour and a half drive from us - this hour and a half is so packed full of mega-highways that you can barely believe that the trip will end in a park. But it does. And it's awesome!

There are miles and miles of hiking trails to explore, we opted to stay on the paved path for the sake of our stroller. The park is jam packed with wildlife; birds, deer, woodland animals and...... alligators!! We saw some in the water at a distance, but we were able to get up close and personal at the nature center. The people working in the nature center were knowledgeable and patient, and there were all kinds of nature exhibit items. Both Gretchen and Alex got to hold a baby alligator! 

We saw a hummingbird nest, the bones of alligators from the park, all kinds of plant and vegetation information and a big ol' snake! These brave chicos had lots of hands-on experience with reptiles during this visit!

This was a great day trip for a beautiful spring day in Houston. Someday we'll come back with bikes and and tent to experience the full glory of Brazos Bend!

Ted & Kyra Get Married!

We waited years and years for Ted to marry the woman of his dreams - and when it happened, once again, we had a little baby. This time, we were not traveling from an international location, but we were headed to an international location. Graham enjoyed his first trip outside of the US to Cancun, Mexico to watch his uncle get married. 

The destination didn't disappoint! This lovely resort was all for wedding VIPs, and we were given a cabana all our own. Graham didn't hesitate to sleep in his own crib, though he didn't do it often. He was much more interested in hanging out with family on the beach than sleeping through the night - or any of that baby stuff.

But what a sweet little non-sleeper he is

The wedding was executed to perfection, we were made to feel like royalty and fed like kings. The tuna ceviche from this resort was one of the most memorable dishes of my life.

I had not one, but TWO handsome wedding dates. Both dapper, blue eyed hunks who could party all night long.

The couple of honor - who made it all possible - Mr. & Mrs. Ted Gill

Weddings should happen all the time - they are so much fun!