The Clayton Family Chronicles

It's Been a While...

2011-11-05T15:33:00.000-05:00

I haven't exactly had much extra time to blog lately but wanted to post an entry to update before things get even crazier. We are about to be home owners again! We are so excited and looking forward to getting settled. The townhouse we've been renting the past year has been great for our "in between" situation but I cannot tell you how excited I am to have a fenced back yard again! It's the little things! We should close at the end of the month and are hoping after a little TLC to be in by the beginning of the year.

I've also been crazy busy teaching my classes lately. My normal schedule is 3 classes on Monday and 1 on Wednesday night but I've had several opportunities to sub so my weeks have been filling up.

Hannah LOVES going to her school (MDO) two days a week. She wakes up every morning asking if we get to go. She has learned so much since starting including the Pledge of Allegiance!! What? She's not even two and a half! I'm pretty sure I learned the POA in kindergarten. She currently knows her ABC's and recognizes several letters, counts to 15, all colors, shapes, and loves to sing! She is really into Bubble Guppies, 25 Favorite Sunday School Songs DVD we have, and The Wonder Pets.

Ryleigh LOVES running after her sister, babbling, books, peek a boo, dancing and recently singing...so cute! She knows several body parts and recognizes many words including book, bear, paci, diaper, milk, juice, ball, block, baby and knows all family members. She is such a joy and loves making new friends. You can ask her to give you "love" and she lays her head on your shoulder. She and Hannah are beginning to play together...yay!

I completed my first 5k last weekend with my best friend, Amanda. I. LOVED. IT. I know exactly why people say you are hooked after your first race. I can't wait for our next race in a few weeks. I couldn't think of anyone else I'd rather be doing this with! Happy Day Before Your Birthday, Amanda! What a blessing you are to my life!

Our House!

Great Room

Kitchen

Backyard (yay!)

Hannah, 2 years, 4 months

Ryleigh, 13.5 months

Hannah with her friend, Addie Jo at Fall Festival Party

Life Without Limits, 5k

My Pooh and Piglet

Toddling, Two and too Tough!

2011-06-28T22:41:00.000-05:00

I haven't completely abandoned this blog but I'll admit it hasn't been on the priority list lately. Whew, where do I begin?! The month of June has flown by and we have kept the roads hot traveling every weekend. We are in contract with our house right now and should close within the first few weeks of July so we've been working there for the past few weekends to get it ready. We are excited to finally have only one set of bills however, it is somewhat bittersweet. We've brought both girls home to 142 Cottonwood and have made many memories there but we are also looking forward to moving on with our lives here in Nashville.

So much is going on with the girls. For starters, Ryleigh is toddling...toddling at 9.5 months! It has been a bit more difficult to keep up with her during the day needless to say. She can take about 10 steps now before falling and is improving every day. She is such a joy and is always so happy. She still only has 2 bottom teeth and recently started babbling, "dada, bubba, papa, baba (bottle)." No love for "mama" yet. She can sign "more" and loves to clap. She also loves table food and will eat
anything!

Hannah will be 2 tomorrow! Crazy! I really cannot believe how big she is getting. She doesn't even look like a baby anymore:( She's just like a sponge and soaks up everything...the good and the bad:) Her new favorite phrase to say is "Oh My Goodness!" She says this all the time no matter if there is something to be excited about or not...so cute! She still loves Barney but has begun to show more interest in The Wonder Pets, Olivia, and Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. She LOVES Beauty and the Beast and I bet she asks me 10 times a day to watch it. She's every memorized some of the lines! Brett plays softball a couple of times each week and we've been going to some of his earlier games. She loves watching her Daddy play softball and yells, "Let's Go, Daddy" each time he's up to bat. She is FEARLESS. We went to Jack's birthday party on Saturday at Jump Zone in Madison and she was right up there with the bigger kids going down the biggest slide they had unassisted. I love that she's so adventurous and hope she continues to be. We went to her first cousin, Laramy's birthday party on Sunday also. I walked out of the playroom for literally 10 seconds and I hear her crying. When I see her, she has blood all in her mouth and I start freaking out. She apparently fell and her tooth went completely through her lip and out the front! She cried maybe 1 minute...so tough! She has used the potty several times but I'm not pushing it. I'm gonna save that task for when we are home more next month.

We had her birthday party a few weeks early at The Little Gym in Hunstville. It was the perfect place for Hannah's age and boy did she have a ball! She was eating up all the attention and couldn't stop talking about her Barney cake. We had a great turnout of family and friends. I am a big fan of having the party at a facility where they do all of the work for you...I actually was able to enjoy the party!

I started teaching Zumba at a friend's dance studio a couple of weeks ago...love it! I teach Wednesday and Thursday nights while Brett stays home with the girls. I also found out yesterday that I'll be teaching a Body Sculpt class at Dell beginning July 11th! This summer is shaping up to be a busy one for sure!

We are traveling again this weekend to the river to celebrate the 4th with our families. I'm really looking forward to playing on the river and relaxing a bit.

Ryleigh, 9 months

At Dado's River

Hannah's Barney Cake

Collier and Ryleigh at The Little Gym

A little excited about her cake!

Elly and Hannah at Jack's Birthday Party

Easter and Naples

2011-05-06T00:29:00.000-05:00

April was a busy month for our clan. We went to Gadsden to spend Easter with Mimi and Dado since we haven't found a church home yet. Hannah had a blast hunting Easter eggs and even found the first place egg...well, she had a little help from her super-competitive Mommy:) Ryleigh was mesmorized by the Easter Bunny. She watched her every move.

The Wednesday after Easter we flew to Naples, FL for Brett's cousin's wedding. I had really been dreading the flight since we booked it. It wasn't the easiest thing I've ever done but wasn't as bad as I had anticipated either. We really enjoyed spending time with family we don't see often. Hannah LOVED being with her cousins...makes me wish we lived closer to family.

I've been so amazed at how fast our girls are growing. Here are a few updates on each:

Hannah

Still LOVES Barney but also watches Sesame Street, Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, and The Wonder Pets

Sings her ABC's and can count to 10

When asked "who is the President of the United States?" she replies, "Obama, boooooo!" So cute!

Would eat yogurt for every meal if given a choice

Thinks that Robert (a Latino kid from Barney) is her best friend...she talks about him all the time

LOVES to Dance

Ryleigh

Began army crawling at 6.5 months...she has yet to crawl on all fours

Began pulling up on furniture this week...yikes!

Holds her arms up when she wants to be picked up

LOVES to watch her sister

Has 2 bottom teeth with a third coming through

Babbles and squeals constantly but still no clear "mama" or "dada"

Attempts to way bye-bye

What a Difference 6 Months Make!

2011-03-14T14:37:00.000-05:00

I cannot believe Ryleigh is six months old! She's is such a delight to be around, always smiling and squealing. She loves watching her big sister run crazy and lights up every time she sees her Daddy. She is sitting for long stretches by herself and making an attempt at crawling. Although she surprised us, I cannot imagine our little family without our Ryleigh-Bug! Happy Half Birthday, sweet girl!

Sunday, V-Day, and a Job, Potentially

2011-02-17T14:23:00.000-06:00

Sunday we visited Grace Community Church and really enjoyed it, well, what we observed we enjoyed. I was paged just as the message began because Hannah was hysterically crying in her classroom. She played for a solid thirty minutes they said and then looked around and I guess realized she didn't know anyone in there. I can't blame her for being upset so I pretty much stayed with her the rest of the service. The pieces I caught were great. We LOVED their worship. I didn't see/meet Angie for those of you who read my previous post. After Brett and I settled down waiting on the service to begin, a woman who I could've sworn was Angie sat behind us and I started freaking out a little. What are the chances! Well, she left after a few minutes and when I went out to get Hannah after being paged, she was holding her...I was a nervous wreck. Silly, I know, but I mean what are the chances! Well, turns out it wasn't her but I met this really sweet girl named Melissa...spitting image of Angie...if I didn't mention that:) We will definitely be visiting again hopefully to enjoy the full service.

My Aunt and Uncle offered to keep the girls for a few nights so I met them in Columbia Sunday afternoon. I had lunch with Brett at Dell on Monday and was really blown away with the place. They really do cater to their employees there. After I left Dell, I went to some local gyms hoping to land a spot on their schedule teaching classes. I spoke with 3 different gyms and got an email (the same day) from the Harding YMCA about a potential opening...in Step Aerobics. Yep, Step. I have um, zero experience in Step other than attending classes here and there. I told the lady that I would put together a routine to present for next week so needless to say I will be working on a Step routine this weekend. I am going to observe the class tonight to get some ideas/seeing how advanced my routine needs to be. Wish me luck!

Brett and I celebrated Valentines Day with dinner at Goten and then drove around downtown and Vandy's campus...it was nice just being out of the house past 8pm.

Waiting on Sunday

2011-02-11T08:31:00.000-06:00

Last Sunday, Brett and I visited our first church in Nashville since making this our residence. His parents were here and stayed with the girls so we could go by ourselves. We enjoyed the church we attended but are excited to check out what all Nashville/the Lord has to offer. I was talking with my best friend, Amanda, about churches and what we were looking for and she mentioned that I should check out this blog she follows "Bring the Rain" and see where the author goes to church because it sounded similar to what we were looking for. Well, little did I know what I was getting myself into. I realize that many of you already read/follow this blog and I am so far behind in discovering it but let me just say what a BLESSING her writing and unfailing love and devotion for the Lord has been to my life just since Monday. Oh my goodness...I cannot stop reading and want to know more and more about her. Amanda has shared so much about the blog with me and I have enjoyed hearing about it but never took the plunge...boy, am I glad I did. If you have followed Angie's writing, then you know how captivating her words are and how you just want to sit down and have a cup of coffee with her. I found out that she attends Grace Community Church here in Nashville and I cannot wait to visit there. It may not be the church for us and I'm trying not to be "star struck" by her but cannot tell you how excited I am for Sunday to visit. The other crazy part of the story was that my other sweet friend, Leah, recommend we visit there also after having a conversation with her on Sunday...isn't that crazy? Even before I read the blog/talked with Amanda!
Lord, if we don't belong at this church then I completely understand but I know without a doubt we are supposed to be there this Sunday.
If you are not familiar with the blog, then I strongly encourage you to check it out. I began reading on Monday and I'm still in her 2008 posts and cannot wait to read more. Warning: After the first 3 posts, I had already laughed, cried, and felt the Lord breaking down walls of selfishness and pride. Here is the link:

http://audreycaroline.blogspot.com/

Be sure to start at the beginning and don't feel too guilty for neglecting your children for a day or 3:) Don't judge, at least it is something that's feeding my soul and not "Real Housewives..."

Thanks, Amanda for introducing me and thank you, Lord for using vessels here on earth to reach us.

Daily Schedule

2011-02-04T12:58:00.000-06:00

We've been here a month now and I'll admit, this whole taking care of two children under 2 years old by myself thing has been a struggle:) I had help when I was living with my Aunt and Uncle...two extra set of hands to be exact so the past four weeks has been a challenge, physically and mentally. I've been kinda down, feeling defeated like all I'm doing is surviving and not getting ahead with anything...housework, laundry, "me" time, etc. I realize that this is just a phase but knew I needed to make an effort to do better managing my time so I created a Daily Schedule. It is very rigid and I know that each day isn't going to go the way I planned but I'll have to admit I've already gotten more done today than I have all week...guess I just needed a framework for my day. See below:

Daily Schedule

6:00 am CC Wake Up/Shower

6:30 am REC Wake up/Nurse/Dressed

7:30 am HRC Wake up/Barney while CC prepares breakfast

8:00 am REC Naptime/CC and HRC Breakfast, CC make bed

8:30 am HRC Dressed, Teeth Brushed/Playtime; CC Clean up from Breakfast and begin Laundry

9:00 am CC and HRC Playtime in Playroom

9:30 am CC switch Laundry/other chores

10:00 am REC Wake up/Nurse

10:30 am Playtime with both girls

11:00 am CC and HRC Lunch

11:30 am HRC Playtime/Barney; CC clean up kitchen from lunch; continue Laundry

12:00 pm REC Naptime, begin HRC Naptime Routine (milk, book, etc.)

12:30 pm HRC Naptime/Mommy Free Time (computer, TV, Magazine, Pilates video, etc.)

1:30 pm Dinner Preparation, straighten house

2:00 pm REC Wake up/Nurse

2:30 pm REC/Mommy playtime

3:00 pm Finish Laundry other chores

3:30 pm HRC Wake up and Snack

4:00 pm REC Naptime/CC Prepare Dinner/HRC Playtime

4:30 pm Tidy up House

5:00 pm Chores/Dinner

5:30 pm Dinner

6:00 pm REC Wake up/Cereal/Bottle; CC Clean up from Dinner; HRC Playtime with Daddy

6:30 pm Playtime with Daddy

7:00 pm Begin Bedtime Routine for Girls (baths, story time, etc.)

7:30 pm Continue Bedtime Routine

8:00 pm HRC Bedtime/Nurse REC then Bedtime

8:30 pm Time with Brett

10:00 pm CC Bedtime Routine

10:30 pm CC Lights Out

Schedule Appointments and Run errands between 10:00 am and 12:30 pm

BE FLEXIBLE…this is an ideal schedule! It is not always going to happen exactly as planned.

I'm obviously in my "free time" right now and probably should be napping since I got up at 6am and have been going since but so far I feel a huge sense of accomplishment...the house is relatively picked up, a weeks worth of laundry is done, girls are napping so I don't feel so guilty about watching TV and playing on the computer. We'll see how it goes...even if I can implement this schedule a few days a week I'll be pleased. If only I got paid by the hour:) Wish me luck!

The Girls: 4.5 months and 19 months

2011-02-02T21:17:00.000-06:00

I wanted to dedicate a post to what the girls are doing at this stage so I can remember down the road.

Ryleigh:
*She rolled over back to stomach for the first time yesterday at 20 weeks. She has yet to roll back to stomach which I believe is the easiest roll. We'll keep working on it...she's not a huge fan of tummy time.
*She's been on rice cereal for about 3 weeks now and is doing great...imagine that, she likes food:) I plan to introduce some veggies in the next few weeks.
*She has great hand/eye coordination and has been holding and reaching for objects for a while now.
*She is sleeping through the night (8pm-7am) and takes 3 2 hour naps and a 30-45 minute late evening catnap. Her waketime is around 1.5 hours after each feeding.
*I'm still nursing her but often she gets a bottle with some formula mixed in because my plan is to only bf another month or so.
*She has the cutest giggle and loves to watch her Big Sister and Buster
*I am swaddling her but with her arms out now since she started rolling over...hoping to drop swaddle completely in the next few weeks.

Hannah:
*She loves Barney or "Bar-Bar"...if the TV is on she expects "Bar-Bar" to be on too.
*She also loves to sing and dance. Her favorite songs are "Hot Dog Song", "Barney Song", "Itsy Bitsy Spider", "ABC's", "Twinkle, Twinkle" and pretty much anything that Barney sings.
*Her vocabulary has really taken off...she says a new word every day it seems and will repeat whatever you say. She's started putting word together and making phrases. Most popular words: no, Bar-Bar, Ry Ry (Ryleigh), holds you, kisses, I'm sawry, car, ray rays (raisins), juice, poopy, and all family members
*Her bedtime is 8pm and she usually sleeps until 7:30am with a morning and afternoon nap. I am hoping to transition to one afternoon nap in the next week or so. She still sleeps with a pacifier, her lion, a blanket, Pillow Pet and Womb Sounds Bear...yeah, it's a lot!
*Favorite Toys: Pink Princess Coupe, a scary kitty cat piano, purse, and all of her sippy cups. She likes to get them all out of the cabinet and set them up in a line.
*She has so much personality...too much sometimes. She is reprimanded often but seems to be "getting it".
*She loves to brush her teeth, "bath time, bath time", climbing the stairs, and chasing Bubba (Buster)

To Swaddle or Not to Swaddle...

2011-02-01T08:40:00.000-06:00

First off, I love swaddling. I've swaddled both girls from birth with great success. I believe I stopped swaddling Hannah around 4 months because she was rolling around and breaking out. I am back and forth with Ryleigh. She sleeps so much better and goes to sleep so much faster if swaddled but breaks out within in minutes. Sometimes it makes her mad if both arms get out so I know she still enjoys it however, when I went to get her up this morning she was completely out...legs, arm and all. Guess that's a sign she's ready to stop just not sure I'm up for the short naps/restless nights until she gets used to it. She's been asleep for about 30 minutes now without it so we'll see how it goes.

FYI: The absolute BEST swaddle blanket is The Miracle Blanket. It wraps around them several times without the velcro. You can find it in baby
boutiques...great shower gift! http://www.miracleblanket.com/index.htm

Worst Blogger Ever

2011-01-31T15:53:00.000-06:00

I've been somewhat busy and took a blogging hiatus but I'm hoping to do better this time around...we shall see!

Brief recap of the past 6 months:

Brett got a job at Dell in Nashville and began August 30th. He lived with Avery and LaTonya during the week and then visited us on the weekends. Hannah and I stayed with my Aunt and Uncle in Athens since I was 8 months pregnant and trying to keep our house presentable for showings.
Ryleigh Elizabeth arrived, to our surprise, on Tuesday, September 14, 2010. I was scheduled for a c-section that following week but she had different plans. Thanks to my amazing friend, Amanda for getting me safely to Helen Keller while Brett made the commute from Nashville. She was born at 12:10 p.m. weighing in at a whopping 8lbs. 5 oz. and 20 inches long.
After staying in Athens with my family for 4 months, we moved into a townhouse in Nashville a few weeks ago. I am so excited to live with my husband again:)
The girls recently had their 18 month and 4 month checkups:

Hannah: 23lbs, 31 inches...average in height and little below in weight
Ryleigh 17lbs, 25 inches...BIG GIRL:)

Our house is still for sale and we are eagerly awaiting a buyer

So much more has happened since I blogged last but this will do for now...

The Latest

2010-07-30T10:27:00.000-05:00

Where did July go? This summer has flown by. We are about 7 weeks away from meeting baby Ryleigh...that's correct, we finally decided on a name for baby #2...Ryleigh Elizabeth. Elizabeth is my great-grandmother's name and Ryleigh, well, we just liked the name. I was beginning to get a little stressed out about the name since it was all up to Brett to make the final decision this time.
Our house is still for sale. We've had several calls and shown it multiple times but still looking for a buyer. I'm thankful that we are not in a hurry to sell just seeing what will happen right now.
Hannah's first birthday was a blast. We had a party at Gattman Park/Splashpad. It was BLAZING HOT! Probably will never attempt an June outside party again but we survived.

She has become so independent since she began walking. She wants to do everything herself...brush her teeth, feed herself, etc. Don't get me wrong, I know this is going to be super helpful once Ryleigh arrives but she gets so mad when you try to do these things for her. She has a bit of a temper as well. She's been super irritable for the past month or so. She has 3 teeth (2 bottom, 1 upper) and is cutting 4 more according to Dr. Melvin. As for the temper, she tries to bite, pinch, hit us when we tell her "no" or try to redirect her. I'm hoping this is just a phase and we disciple her everytime but it doesn't seem to be getting any better right now. Needless to say she's a mess! She can be very sweet though. She's learned how to kiss, blow kisses, and "be sweet" (lay her head on my stomach, Buster, etc.).
Here are some more things she's learned recently (13 months):
-recognizes several words/phrases such as: go, outside, baby sister (kisses or pats my belly), bellybutton, nose, eyes, mouth, brush teeth, diaper, books, Barney, bath, lion (her favorite toy that she sleeps with)
-can say the following words: Dada, Momma, Bubba (Buster), ball, Nana (also for banana), Papa, Mimi, juice, no no, thank you, kitty, doggie, pappy (for paci)
-she claps, dances, points at everything, drinks from a straw, feeds herself with hands (no utensils yet), rocks her babies, Tomahawk chops (for the Braves), signs "more"
She LOVES books and would spend hours letting me read to her. It seems like she picks up on something new everyday...such a fun time!

The Latest

2010-06-08T15:37:00.000-05:00

Wow! So much has happened since my last post so I'm going to try and remember it all. Probably would help if I would blog more than once every few months, huh?
We found out Monday, May 3 that we are having another girl, which is old news for most of you. I thought for sure we were going to have a boy this time but looks like I was wrong. Brett said he was going to be that guy with a house full of girls. Bless his heart, I know he wants a boy so bad and I do too. Guess that means we'll be trying for a third...but no time soon!!!! Brett has a somewhat hard time when it comes to committing...it took him awhile to agree to Hannah's name so I sort of promised him he could make the final decision on the name of baby #2. Big mistake, big (Pretty Woman quote). We've known the sex of baby #2 for a month now and still no name. I'm so ready to make a decision and he's in no hurry. I think he is partly dragging his feet to torture me. Hopefully, I will be blogging soon about baby #2's name!
My first Mother's Day was wonderful. We headed to Gadsden for the weekend. Brett and his dad played golf on Saturday while his mom, Hannah, and I went shopping. We went to our favorite childrens's store calle Black Eyes Susie's. Brett's mom is always so excited to buy Hannah an outfit so we found her a birthday jumper and some sandals. After shopping and golf, we grilled out and relaxed. Brett baked me a yellow cake with chocolate icing from him and Hannah for Mother's Day...so sweet. Sunday morning we went to church then headed back to Athens to see my Mom and my Aunt and Uncle. We didn't make it home until 9:30pm that night but was worth it.
We've also put our house up for sale. We need more space with baby #2 coming. We have three bedrooms but with both of our families living out of town we need an extra bedroom for guests. We are not in any hurry to get out so that takes some of the pressure off. We love our house and where we are located but simply need more space. We just didn't think we'd need more space so soon:)
Hannah is so close to walking. In fact, today she's been toddling from room to room instead of just taking a few steps here and there. It is so funny and painful to watch. She loves to brush her teeth. In fact, she cries when I take the toothbrush away from her. She is changing so much.
Although baby #2 doesn't have a name, she does have furniture and bedding ordered at least (pictures below). I'm really excited about her bedding and cannot wait to get her room set up.

ordered this furniture in expresso

On Friday, May 20, Amanda, Whitney, and I loaded into the car with Melissa and headed down to Birmingham for our semi-annual Girls Weekend. We had a blast. We met up with Marianne, Geri and Liz at Cheesecake Factory for dinner then back to Mari's for a night of painting, where Kellie joined us. One of Mari's friends came to her home and set up so we could enjoy our own mini Sips n Strokes'. It was a blast! I was a little nervous because of my previous artistic skills but my painting turned out pretty good (picture below). I used the colors of baby #2's bedding so I could use painting in nursery. We painted, ate cheesecake, skyped with Sonia, and caught up on the latest news with everyone. So much fun!

For Memorial Day weekend, we headed to Centre, AL where Brett's family's lake house is located. We played on the river and enjoyed time with the family including Brett's sister, husband and their three kids. Hannah enjoyed her first SeaDoo ride and first time in the river. She's going to be quite the river rat:) On Tuesday night, Brett and I left Hannah with his sister and took our two nieces, Anna Claire and Lauren to the Braves game. We had a blast!

This week, I've been busy planning her first birthday party. It's hard to believe my baby is about to be one!

April Happenings and Family Beach Trip

2010-04-25T21:10:00.000-05:00

Looks like I'm good for about one post a month so here goes...
Easter was a little different for us this year. We are normally at the beach with the Clayton's but this year we were here in town. We were able to celebrate Easter with our church family which was great. It was kinda sad not having any family around after the service to lunch with especially watching everyone else hurry off to their loved ones. Instead, Brett, Hannah, and I enjoyed a yummy meal at my fave restaurant, Olive Garden came home and napped. It was a very relaxing day!

Easter Sunday

Monday, April 12 we set out on our first family vacation. We left about 9:30 a.m. that morning (Hannah's morning naptime) thinking she'd sleep the first leg of the trip:) Wow, were we in for a treat?!? She stayed awake until 1:30 p.m. then only slept for about 25 minutes. I guess she was as excited as we were about the beach. Needless to say the trip down to Fairhope was exhausting. We finally made it to my sis-in-laws about 3:30 that afternoon. We hung out with her and two of the kids and just ordered pizza in. I'm pretty sure I was asleep on the couch by 9:30.

The next morning, Kim and I got the kids ready and headed to downtown Fairhope for some shopping and lunch...I love that town! We lunched at Panini's Pete's (yummo) and strolled around Fairhope while Brett went to the coarse to hit balls. Vince (Kim's husband) was out of town but came back that evening to meet us for dinner at Ed's on the Bay. We enjoyed yummy seafood and live music then headed back to their house for dessert and American Idol.

We woke up then next morning and began packing up for the beach. Brett's parents were meeting us at the beach house that afternoon. We got into Gulf Shores about 3pm and got settled into the house which was beautiful! We each had our own bathroom and plenty of space. Brett's parents offered to keep Hannah in their room for the first few nights so we could catch up on some rest...so sweet! We got her pack-n-play settled in there and she was off to sleep. Well, about midnight she woke up hysterically crying. I wasn't able to calm her back down until about 3am...ugh! I finally put her in the bed with me and threw my leg across her to pin her down...she finally went to sleep until about 6:30 a.m. I haven't had a night like that since she was probably 3 months so I was struggling the next morning. Brett's mom kept her for me so I could go back to bed. Once I got up we all ate breakfast then headed out to the beach to hang out. Hannah wasn't so sure about the sand at first. She wouldn't move off the blanket then she began venturing out and next thing we know she's got a mouth full of sand...gross. She probably ingested 3 or 4 handfuls by the end of the day. The men did some fishing then headed off to play golf while us and the kids stayed at the house. We cooked Frogmore's Stew that night which is my fave! The next few days pretty much looked the same...wake up, breakfast, beach, dinner, bed then do it all over again. The men went out on a 6-hour fishing tour on Friday morning and caught several fish which we cooked for dinner that night...so neat! We had awesome weather...upper 70's, low 80's not a cloud in the sky. Luckily, Hannah slept great the other nights...she just had to get used to her surroundings I guess. I had so much help with her. Our nieces, Anna Claire (9) and Lauren (7) were so helpful with her. I hardly had to feed her all week! I wish I coudn't have brought them back with us:)

Sunday morning we packed up and headed out. We stopped for lunch at the Shrimp Basket, said our goodbyes then set out for the journey home. Hannah slept much better on the way back...thank goodness! Overall, it was a great trip.

Our Beach House (center)

Hannah with her cousins, Clayton, Lauren and Anna Claire

Ready for the beach!

Jamming out to some Jason Mraz oceanside!

Hannah now has two teeth and is standing independently every now and then. I don't think it will be much longer before she is taking steps. I cannot believe it is time for me to start thinking about her first birthday party...wow! Keeping up with her has definitely made this second pregnancy fly by. We find out the sex of baby #2 a week from tomorrow...still thinking blue. Guess we'll see soon.

March Madness

2010-03-28T21:13:00.000-05:00

It seems like this month has flown by. I'm not complaining because that means that warmer weather is just around the corner. It seems like we have kept pretty busy this month. I'm really enjoying teaching classes at the YMCA. Right now, I'm teaching Muscle Works on T/TR at 10:10 a.m. and Kid's Yoga on T/TR at 5pm which makes for a busy Tuesday and Thursday. Hannah loves the Staff at the Y. She gets so excited each time we walk through the doors which makes it so easy to leave her in Child Watch.
She is everywhere these days, getting into everything. She is such a brave little girl. I've caught her standing independently a few times and I'm thinking to myself "slow down, you are supposed to be my little baby." She is such a little social butterfly too and isn't scared of anything. I really hope she continues to be that way.
Last Wednesday, I took her to the mall to have her picture made with the Easter Bunny. I wasn't sure how she would react but was hopeful she would sit still long enough for me to get a good picture. She did fine with Santa but she was much younger and less aware of her surroundings at that point. She did great...made me so proud! She sat there and posed and smiled for several minutes while I took pictures. She wasn't scared at all. After her session with the bunny, she kept looking back at him in awe...it was so cute (pictures below).
I'm really looking forward to the weekend festivities. Our church is having a Passover Meal on Friday night and I'm super excited. I feel so blessed to be a part of Redeemer. The Lord is working in so many ways there and I'm so grateful that he is letting our family be a part of it. Our church is helping out with the Underwood Baptist "Easter Eggstravaganza Hunt" on Saturday morning at McFarland Park. It's going to be a HUGE event...with over 10,000 eggs hidden for the kiddos to find. It's a free event open to the public so feel free to bring your families. For the past two years, we've been at the beach with Brett's family during Easter. We usually have a church service at the beach house and I've really enjoyed that tradition, however, I'm really looking forward to dressing up and celebrating Easter with our church family this year.
Speaking of the beach, we are taking Hannah for the first time in a couple of weeks. I absolutely love our beach trips with Brett's family. We rent a house on the beach (usually Fort Morgan) and typically do not leave the house but maybe once or twice. It is actually a vacation. We buy groceries and cook our meals there, play on the beach all day, and at night after the kiddos go to bed the adults (me, Brett, his parents, sister and her husband) have game night. For those of you who know me, this is right up my alley:) For the past three years, we, the women have dominated in Mad Gab so I'm looking forward to adding on another victory this year.
Last but not least, baby #2 is growing every day or shall I say, I am:) I'll be 14 weeks on Tuesday and have felt so much better the past few weeks. I hope I didn't just jinx myself. My energy level is up and no sign of nausea so hopefully the yuckiness is behind me. I'm really excited to be going through all of this pregnancy stuff with one of my best friends, Whitney. She is exactly 5 weeks behind me. Last pregnancy, I was pretty much on my own so it's nice to have a friend to experience it with this time. We'll find out the sex of the baby at the end of April. I'm going to be really surprised if it is a girl...I'm pretty much convinced it is a boy. I was convinced that Hannah was a girl so I guess we'll see if I'm 2 for 2.

Love this picture!

Looking back at the Easter Bunny...

February in Review

2010-02-26T22:07:00.000-06:00

Well, it's been about a month since my last post so I'm going to try and remember February's happenings. Hannah was sick for the first few weeks of this month. She had her first ear infection (actually double) and kept a runny nose for several days. So glad that's behind us (knock on wood.) She started crawling last weekend! She has been so close for a month or so but finally put it all together. It is so funny to watch how excited she gets moving about. She is into EVERYTHING! I have to watch her like a hawk. She's also pulling up on anything in sight...exersaucer, ottoman, us, crib. Putting her down for her naps has gotten very interesting. She sits up, pulls up, throws her paci out, pulls the video montior off the back of the crib...everytime. She will sometimes be in her crib for an hour or so before finally falling asleep. Oh well, at least she's entertaining herself. She's making the normal sounds, mama, dada, baba. She is making noise from the moment she gets up until the time she goes to bed and I love it! She is so much fun right now.
I will have to admit these past few weeks have been rough though. I've been extremely nauseous and had absolutely no energy which has made taking care of a 7.5 month old interesting. I started teaching classes at the YMCA a few weeks ago and it takes all I have to get up and get us both dressed and make it to class. Good thing I'm getting paid:) I remember my best friend, Amanda, telling me that everything happens faster the second time around and boy was she right. I'm almost 10 weeks and am really showing. I'm not in maternity clothes yet but could easily be in the next few weeks...yuck! Not excited about breaking those out.
I cannot wait for Spring and warmer weather! I'm so looking forward to taking Hannah to the park and getting outside more. Guess that's it for February...

Oops! We did it again.

2010-02-02T10:09:00.000-06:00

That's the best title I could think of for this post. Wednesday, January 13th started out as a typical day. I woke up, got Hannah and myself ready and we headed to the YMCA for the 10:00 am Muscle Works class. We met Brett for lunch at Logan's then headed home. For some reason, I decided to stop at the Dollar General on Wilson Dam Road and pick up a pregnancy test. I knew it had been a while since my LP so I thought might as well. For those of you who don't know, I take pregnancy tests like I take showers so this wasn't unusual. Well, on this particular Wednesday the test looked a little different. There was a very, very faint line showing up on the DG brand pregnancy test. Well, I called Whitney (pregnancy test expert, in my opinion) because I didn't know if there was a line behind the test strip that could be showing through...I know, I know, but at this point I was grasping for any reason why there would be a second line showing up. She reassured me that the only reason a second line would be showing up was if the hormone had been detected. This scenario was all too familiar. On October 24, 2008 the EXACT same thing happened...a faint line plus a call/visit to Whitney's except this time she was in Birmingham:( She convinced me to go buy a digital test, once again exact same scenario as in October. I loaded Hannah back up and we headed to CVS to shop for digital tests. The whole time I was thinking that this was just a fluke that there is no way I could be pregnant. Well, you all know the end of the story by now. Sure enough, that digital test read "PREGNANT." I really didn't know how to feel. So many thoughts/emotions flooded my mind. After talking to Whitney, I collected my thoughts and called Brett. He was working late and wouldn't be home until after I had gone to bed so I just called him with the news. He was so reassuring, positive, and excited...something I desperately needed to hear!
We went to see Dr. Keith on January 23rd because I thought I was close to 7 weeks along. The LP I remember having was at the end of November however, I have been extremely irregular since having Hannah. Turns out, I was only a little over 4 weeks along. I felt bad for wasting their time since there wasn't much they could tell me at that point. We go back on Thursday for a followup appointment to make sure everything is progressing the way it should. At first, I was a bit concerned since I wasn't a far along as I estimated however, I have felt so pregnant since then. The nausea with this pregnancy has already been so much worse than with Hannah which makes taking care of her so much harder. I pretty much have to hold my breath every time I feed her mushy baby food...the smell/look makes me so sick.
I'll admit I'm still in shock and probably haven't fully processed what's about to happen...another baby, wow! Each time I start to freak out a little, I reassure myself that God doesn't make mistakes and this day was scheduled...His plan is perfect! We have to trust His provision for our life. He trusts Brett and I enough to bring another life into this world and for that, I am so thankful!

She's going to be the best big sister!

Mini-Getaway

2010-01-19T09:43:00.000-06:00

Sunday afternoon, Brett and I packed up and headed to Tunica for the night. My Aunt and Uncle came and stayed with Hannah so we could get away. They are leaving for a cruise on Wednesday and will not see her for almost two weeks so they were thrilled to keep her. We arrived in Tunica about 6:30pm, checked into hotel and hit the casino. I hadn't been to a casino since Vegas so I was pretty excited. Brett and I played Three Card Poker for a while and then I landed at the Roulette table (love it!) while he played Blackjack. We had a blast! I actually won money this time:) The next morning we got up and headed to Memphis for the Grizzlies vs. Suns game. We ate at BB Kings for lunch and saw Brian McKnight there. We didn't take a picture because he was already bombarded with people. He was in town to sing the National Anthem for the game. After lunch we headed to the FedEx Forum to get tickets. We bought tickets from this angry yet hilarious scalper and ended up with great seats! We sat on the 4th row behind the goal. Our section was beside the Suns locker room so we got to see all the players and Brian McKnight up close and personal. It was an awesome game and we had a blast! We got back home last night at about 10:30pm. I couldn't wait for Hannah to wake up this morning. I missed her like crazy! Thanks, Brett, for a great mini-getaway!

Grant Hill

Steve Nash

Pic from our awesome seats!

Don't Call it a Comeback...

2010-01-16T12:04:00.001-06:00

Well, it has been 7 months since my last post. My fear when I created this blog was that I wouldn't keep it updated...guess I was right. I finally got a cute background and changed the layout around a bit so hopefully this will motivate me to update every now and again.
As you can imagine, there have been lots of changes around our house. Instead of going back and trying to remember the past 7 months I'm just going to pick up with what's going on with us now:
Hannah will be 7 months old on the 29th of January...blows my mind. She had her 6 month checkup with Dr. Melvin a few weeks ago. She was in the 50th percentile of both weight and height (16.4 lbs. and 26 in). YAY! Brett and I are both hoping she at least passes me in the stats department:)
She has been a great baby! She's been sleeping through the night since she was about 12 weeks old. She doesn't have any teeth yet but seems like she's been teething for 3 months now! She started sitting up about a month ago and is trying so hard to crawl. She's getting to be such a big girl with such a fun personality!
Back in August, Brett and I made the decision for me to stay at home with Hannah. I loved my job at UNA but the hours/workload wasn't the most family-friendly. I do miss the students and my coworkers terribly but nothing can compare to watching my sweet baby grow daily. I recently became certified to teach a few classes at the YMCA. I am in the process of getting trained so I can begin teaching solo. Hannah loves staying with the Child Watch Staff. In fact, they call her "Happy Hannah" because they say she's the best baby they keep. Makes me proud!
Brett's adjusting to fatherhood wonderfully! Those first few weeks were trying on both of us. Even with her being a good baby, we really didn't know what to expect and really no one can prepare you for that time. He's so great with her and she absolutely adores him!
I guess that's all for now except for a few recent pics of our sweet baby:

Opening her gifts from Santa

Playing with her favorite Christmas gift, Giggles.

Nursery Pictures

2009-06-21T22:24:00.001-05:00

One Week and Counting...

2009-06-21T22:01:00.000-05:00

It has been several weeks since my last post so here's a brief update.
-I've been home for about two weeks now. My last day at UNA was Friday, June 5th. It has been nice but I must admit I'm beginning to get at little stir crazy. I've been resting, soaking up the sun and finishing up the last minute details before the big day.
-Two weeks ago, Brett and I went in to let Dr. Keith try and turn Hannah as she is still breech. We got to the hospital at 8am and waited and waited and waited. We didn't see Dr. Keith until 11:30am which made for a long day. Especially because I had to lie in bed hooked up to the fetal monitors plus an IV...no fun! It felt like the real deal. The nurses kept coming in and telling me that I was having contractions about every 2-4 minutes but I didn't feel anything...guess I shouldn't complain. After about 5 minutes of trying to turn her with no luck, he decided we would just schedule a c-section. I wasn't really disappointed...I wasn't expecting her to turn but wanted to say we exhausted every effort. We went in last Monday for my weekly appointment and scheduled the c-section for Monday, June 29th!!! I am so excited and cannot believe we get to meet our little girl in one week!!! I really hope this week flies by.
-The nurseryis complete...pics to follow. I'm really excited with how it all came together.

"Big Girls Need Love Too"

2009-04-30T10:01:00.000-05:00

Last Wednesday, Brett and I headed to my biweekly doctor's appointment. Dr. Keith had scheduled an ultrasound at our last appointment but being new to all of this I didn't think to ask what for. I really didn't want to question it in fear that it was a mistake and they would cancel it. We hadn't had an ultrasound since my 18th week appointment when we found out the sex so I was excited about getting to see Hannah again. We found out that she is currently frank's breech, bottom first with her feet in front of her face. We got some great new pics of her profile and face though. The technician said she looked great, strong heartbeat and was a "healthy" girl. Dr. Keith had been called out to delivery so we saw the nurse practitioner. She informed us that Hannah is measuring in the 62 percentile of growth...great for a normal sized person. Unfortunately for my size, they are a little concerned with how big she is. I asked if there was anything I was doing to make her so big and the np said it was all about genetics. Well, we all know that doesn't come from my side of the family:) The NP said their was no reason to be alarmed they were just going to keep a close eye on her to make sure she has enough room. She said the good news is that I will definitely get another ultrasound. I am ready for next week's appointment to ask Dr. Keith what his plan is concerning her position.
After we left the doctor's office, Brett kept saying, "big girls need love too", referring to Hannah...hence the title of this post. He also likes to pat my belly and say, "it's the big girl!" It makes me laugh every time.

And Her Name Is...

2009-03-11T14:51:00.001-05:00

Sunday, Brett and I finally decided on a name for our little girl. Well, I should say Brett finally gave the "go ahead" as I have been ready for several weeks now:). We are naming her Hannah Reece Clayton. I wanted to use "ann" in some form or fashion as this is my Aunt's, Kim's (Brett's sister), Mimi's (Brett's mom) and my middle name. I know Hannah is a little bit of a stretch but it does have "ann" in there. We also love that Hannah is a biblical name and the meaning is "grace" which speaks so much to my heart. We both loved the name Reece and loved how it sounded with Hannah. It feels so official now that she has a name. We are headed to Hunstville on Friday afternoon to register because I have a few showers scheduled for April and not many available weekends between then and now.

Nursery Furniture and Bedding

2009-03-07T10:46:00.004-06:00

Brett and I went to Birmingham last weekend to look at furniture and bedding for the nursery. We found several things we liked but nothing that jumped out at us. On Sunday, I was looking online and came across a picture of bedding (top picture) that definitely jumped out at both of us. So yesterday I went to the Baby's Room and ordered a crib (bottom picture), combo, bookcase, bedding plus several nursery accessories and a rocker/glider. It feels great to have that decision out of the way. Now if we could only decide on a name! Stay tuned...

It's a Girl!

2009-02-07T09:05:00.002-06:00

The countdown is over, well, at least my most recent countdown. Thursday, Brett and I headed to Dr. Keith's office for our 2pm appointment. We got there and had to wait until 2:45 for our ultrasound. The nurse took all of the doctor's pictures she needed as Brett and I watched in amazement. We keep saying, "That's so weird" every time we saw a different angle of our precious gift. After about 10 minutes of pictures, she asked if we wanted to know the sex...I was about to burst at this point. I was thinking just tell us already. When she said we were having a girl, I couldn't help but tear up. I had a feeling it was a girl all along. Almost every dream I'd had was about a little girl and we had many girl names that we liked...it only made sense, right? So many thoughts rushed through my head...cute outfits, first boyfriend, menstrual cycles, drama, wedding planning, etc. The one thing that affected me the most...daddy's little girl. Just thinking about Brett loving, teaching, and protecting this little girl made my emotions soar. Knowing that this little girl will have this amazing man to call her father and look up to...wow! Then I looked over at Brett and he had tears in his eyes...it was one of the most precious moments we've shared. I feel so blessed that God has given us this opportunity and CANNOT wait to meet her!

16 Days and Counting...

2009-01-20T14:23:00.000-06:00

Whew! Where has January gone? I've been super busy with work and it has made this month fly by. I can't say I'm upset though because I'm officially on the countdown. We find out the sex of our baby on February 5th and I cannot wait! I've had a feeling all along that we are having a girl. This may be due to the fact that EVERYONE around me is having girls. Regardless of the sex, I cannot wait to find out. We haven't bought anything or seriously thought about names because we've been waiting to know...pink or blue? Stay tuned...

You Know What They Say About Peer Pressure...

2009-01-06T19:43:00.000-06:00

...it makes you join the blogging world! I would've took the plunge earlier but was afraid that I wouldn't have much to write about. Then my sweet husband reminded me that I didn't have to update it everyday (hello) so here I am. I hope it doesn't bore you too much:)