carolina in my mind

Clay and I checked off one of our "to dos" in life tonight. We saw James Taylor in concert outdoors! It was awesome. Although it was 58 degrees, it was amazing to hear him sing "Carolina in My Mind"in the town he wrote it about! The Carolinians were going nuts. I guess that is us now :) A great first date in our new city! Thanks babe!

Daddy Dodgeball

This is the game that Daddy and I play when he gets home from work. We call it Daddy Dodgeball. You can see that I love it! Also notice that I stop every now and then to wave to the camera. Uncle Ryan, we knew you would enjoy this the most!!

Memorial Day

We had a great Memorial Day weekend. We hosted a bbq with some friends at our house on Saturday. It was fun to entertain even though no one was allowed upstairs b/c that is still a mess with boxes :) Mom and I spent a lot of time at the pool- Dad had to work. Yesterday we went to visit Dad at work. He was wearing this hat and I stole it from him:

I love the stairs in our new house. Our old house had stairs so Mom doesn't know why I am so infatuated with these stairs but I am. I like to take my snacks and sit on the stairs. Random, huh?

Bringing Home a Baby Bumblebee

This is my new fave song. If you aren't familiar with it, first you are bringing home a baby bumblebee, then you are squishing up the baby bumblebee. That's all I know so far. Sure there is more. In the video I am looking toward my Dad, Mimi and Gerry to get them to do it with me. I like everyone to look silly like mom!

The Naked Chef

After a swim in my baby pool, I helped Dad grill dinner.

We had a yummy dinner and then fresh strawberries, homemade whipped cream and poundcake for dessert!!

Moving in and Hail

Can someone please play with me??

Blueberries on the floor. Where is my chair??
We got welcomed to the neighborhood with a tornado and hail storm.

These are pieces of hail from our backyard!!
All is well now. Mimi and Gerry came to help and they unpacked the whole kitchen and dining room yesterday! Today we are on to the den, study and bedrooms.

18 months!

Here I am just chilling on the stairs in our new house while Mom talks to the painter. Everyone says I look like my dad. Do you agree? Come on, give my mom some credit.

Pottery Barn for Kids

My mom bought some great new balls at Pottery Barn. They were for me, right?

In other news, I turned 18 months last week. It kind of got overshadowed by mom's trip to the ER and the move but I reached the milestone and have the boo boo on my leg from the shots to show for it. But I was a champ! Got the shot, winced a little and then daddy gave me a high five and I was good to go. I weighed in at 25lbs and 15 oz (77%) and was 34" tall (90%).

We closed on our new house today and our stuff will arrive on Monday. Mimi and her friend Gerry are coming to help us next week. So excited for that! Mom is busy mulling paint colors, wallpaper and fabric. I just can't wait to see my toys again!

Moving Day

The movers came today. God bless them! They packed every single thing in our house! Here is the truck that will take it to Raleigh.

Jack's room- at least we can find his crib!

By the numbers

The last week by the numbers:
1 last day of work at a place I went to for 9 years
6 days of not keeping food down b/c of undiagnosed virus
3 doctors visits
1 trip to the emergency room for fluids
2 great friends who helped with Jack
1 even greater friend who accompanied me to the er (betsy:)
10 hours- from the time I called Clay to say "come home now" to when his plane landed in Atlanta- YEAH!!!
4 trips to the playground- Clay and Jack quality time so Mommy could rest
18 months- how long I have been a mom to the cutest little boy ever
1 pair of Tory Burch shoes for Mother's Day from the best husband and son ever! I am sure Jack picked them out!
Many friends who came to say goodbye
0 hours spent packing
72 boxes of our stuff
4 fabulous men who packed it all for us
1 large truck it will all go in tomorrow and meet us in Raleigh!!

Goodbye Party

It is our last weekend in Atlanta and the Vonderahes hosted a goodbye bbq for us. Lots of our wonderful friends came and we were so blessed to be able to spend time with them before the movers come tomorrow.

The girls- Cathy, me, Betsy and Ashley

After growing up together in Knoxville, Ashley and I moved to Atlanta 10 years ago after college. Betsy joined us 2 years later and we all lived together for another 3 years. I met Cathy at work 8 years ago and she was a great addition to our little group! We have been single together, shared in heartbreak and joyous times of engagements and weddings and welcomed babies too! They are my best friends and I will miss them dearly.

Here are the Councills and the Austins. Julie and I met through Young Life my first year in Atlanta. She got me my job in Community Affairs at Home Depot where we got to work together for 6 years. Not only has Julie been a wonderful friend, she also introduced me to Clay!!! She is an amazing role model of a wife and mom. Truckin loves ya Jules!

Jack and me with Emily and Will Mathews. Emily and I met at Ann Taylor Loft last year. Doesn't everyone pick up people at ATL? We became fast friends and she has helped me tremendously with Jack while I was working and Clay was living in NC. I will miss her sweet spirit and kind heart.
Clay, me, Jack, Ashley and Annie
I don't have pictures of all of our friends who came tonight but they are all special to us and we will miss them dearly. Austins, Couchs, Vonderahes, Aldridges, Mathews, Koprivas, Campas, Richards- we can only pray we will make wonderful friends like these in Raleigh.

Weekend in Knoxville

Mom and I spent the weekend in Knoxville with Mimi, Shan, Maeve, Cory and Ryan. Lots of fun! I am not one to go looking for trouble but I couldn't resist the paper shredder :

Then Maeve joined me and we had a paper party.

Mimi bought us a baby pool so we wouldn't be tempted to go in the real pool (right!) and we played in it alot this weekend. We loved splashing each other and filling our pails with water and dumping it out again (and again and again).

Weekend in Knoxville (part2 )

I know what you are thinking- seriously, can this kid be any cuter?

Aunt Shannon tried to get some good shots of Maeve and me holding hands- this was the best!

Really? Another picture? I am done smiling.
We also went to the Knoxville Zoo. It is a great zoo! My favorite animals were the camels and the zebras.

Congrats Stephanie and Ron!

My mom's friend Stephanie (from Furman) is now Mrs. Hoffman! We are so excited for her and Ron. Check out these cool pics from their wedding in Beaufort, SC. They had a choir at the wedding- so amazing!