Swimming!

James had his first experience swimming in the baby pool outside today!  He and I went to my girlfriend Erin's house this morning to hang out, and he, Claire, and Sofia had fun playing in the water.  My friends Steph and Matt from Lexington gave James this little pool....actually, it's his bathtub, and he absolutely loves it!  He did really well today for about 10-15 minutes, but then the fun was over.  I can't decide if he got too hot or if the sun was too bright?  He definitely wasn't cold, it was like 85 by 11:00 this morning.  I love Tennessee!  Anyway, we'll keep trying, I'm sure he'll be a fish before too long, and once he can sit up on his own things will be easier too. 

Claire was helping James get his hat and sunscreen on.  how sweet are they!

And here the fun ends....oh well, maybe tomorrow will be better! 

Sofia (left) and Claire (right), such pretty little girls! 

Just Chillin'

We had a short but nice weekend with Steven.  He got home late on Friday night, after James was already in bed and had to leave on Sunday afternoon at 2:00 to get back to Knox to finish some work.  But we had a super productive Saturday together.  We planted six new shrubs in the front and back yards, mowed, edged, mulched, weeded the garden, did laundry, cooked and watched Avatar!  It was quite busy, but we always have fun working together.  James even played outside in his exersaucer while we worked!  Here are a few pictures from Saturday night just hanging out together.  We all are really looking forward to this long weekend together, Steven has Friday through Monday off, so he'll be home Thurs. night!  Yay! 

My two favs on the couch, just hanging out.  James is trying hard to sit up by himself...he doesn't have it just yet, but we're working on it.  He needs to build some abs...we've been doing sit-ups together.  :-)

Mesmerized by the TV...it starts so young!  I rarely have it on during the days at home, because he'll just stare like this...don't they say babies who watch too young have ADD or autism or something?  who knows, I don't want to risk it!  :-) 

This face cracks me up.  I have no idea what he was doing...maybe sneezing.  Funny!

Napping on Mom and Dad's bed.  so sweet. 

Fun With Grandma Sue

James and I spent a week and a half in Fort Wayne and these are the only pictures i came home with...how pathetic is that!!??  I'll tell you what, being a mom is more than a full time job, and having an extra hand to take pictures is not working for me very well!  In fact, I don't think I took one picture at Anna's wedding!  However, her photographer gives her all the rights to the pictures, so I'll post some when they arrive. 

Anna and Scott's wedding was amazing, and Anna looked so beautiful.  It was a perfect day and the newlyweds are so happy!  More to come on that later!

Socks, Shower, Stephenson's

We have had a very fun week, James is doing something different every day it seems.  Recently he's been squealing super loud, then acting surprised that such a loud noise came from his mouth!  He's also been turning over in his bed from tummy to back so often that it's interfered with his sleep!  He instantly rolls over when I put him down on his stomach, but then cries because he can't fall asleep on his back...very frustrating!  However, when we put him on his play mat outside of his crib, he acts like he doesn't know how to roll over and instead just does the superman/swim and cry!  ugh!  hopefully he'll correlate the two soon.  :-)

James was so excited to see his daddy on Friday and has been all smiles all weekend.  He can't keep his eyes off of him, and squeals and smiles when daddy gives him kisses!  It's seriously adorable!  Here are some pics from this week. 

Thanks to Grandma Sue for these cute socks!  Mommy put me in this adorable outfit and I had so much fun...good thing Daddy was away at school because he thinks this looks silly.  I, however, love to show off my chubby legs! 

My friend Jenny (left) is having a baby in August and Nicole (right) threw her an awesome baby shower today.  Jenny and her husband are moving back home to California next month, and I will miss her so much.  She and I met at church and have been in the Military Wives Bible Study for the past two years together, she has such a strong faith and is such a joy to be around, I'm selfishly sad to see her go.  However, her husband got a great job as Active Duty National Guard and they will be an hour and a half or less from all their family....so it's a good move for them and their new baby girl! 

Another great friend from church, Theresa (right) is moving away too.  Her husband got this crazy amazing job as a helicopter tour pilot on Maui, Hawaii...that's right.  How wonderful is that??!!  She has been such a great friend and mentor, I'm sad to see her go too!  But again, all of their family lives in Hawaii, so it's a great move for them...plus, who wouldn't want to live there?  right!  Arianna, their daughter (left) is staying in TN to finish school, so at least we'll have some of the Gerry-Hamp family still around!  :-)

He is such a joy.  Love Love Love

The Stephenson's came over for dinner tonight.  It had been way too long since we've gotten together.  Dinner was delicious and the kids were a delight.  James and Shane are so stinkin cute...look how much they have changed in just a couple months (see pics below)! 

Shane-5mos, James 4.5mos (above)

Shane - 9weeks, James 8 weeks (below)

Check out the cheeks on my boy!  he's trimmed down a little in the last few months. 

I know this isn't the best picture, but look at those blue eyes!  wow!  Thanks to Grandma Sue and Grandpa Steve for those baby blues. 

Big Boy

James is getting so big!  He is full of smiles and loves to laugh and stand up...with assistance.  He also just discovered the excitement of the exer-saucer this weekend and can't get enough...he is completely mesmerized by all the toys on that thing and turns himself around to play with them all.  So fun!  I wish i could catch him smiling more often, but that will come.  Also, thanks to Regan for taking some cute ones of James and I...hers are the professional looking ones! 

He is just barely tall enough, his feet are just grazing the floor! 

Do you think James looks like me?  Everyone says no, and I guess I would agree.  The one thing that I notice is our eyes...I have one eye that is smaller than the other and so does James...but mine is the right and his is the left, so I don't know.  does that count? 

so stinkin' cute!

Wedding Flowers

Most people know that I absolutely love flowers, all kinds, colors, and fragrances. They make me smile, warm up a room, and can even say "I love you."  My wedding flowers were so beautiful, every day I wish I would've been able to keep some alive and vibrant for my kitchen table...but no such luck.

Making pretty bouquets is one of my hobbies, although I don't splurge on fresh flowers often enough.  Anyway, my brother and sister know how much I love to make flowers, and they both asked me to make the flowers for their weddings.  My brother's wedding was in 2008, and my sister's is in 14 days! 
Two weeks ago when I was in Ft. Wayne, I spent two whole days working on Anna's.  Thank God my mom was there to help me, and James had all sorts of grandparents to play with him while we worked. 
1 bridal bouquet
7 bridesmaids
1 flower girl
1 altar flower arrangement
18 boutonnieres
6 corsages

It was a busy few days!  Here's a quick tutorial on how to make a boutonniere.  It's really quite simple, and will save you tons of cash...it just takes time and patience. 

1.  (above)   Start by purchasing a few flowers, silk or fresh.

2.  Strip down the stems, cut off all extra leaves, thorns, etc.

3.  Hold them tightly in the order you want them arranged, and begin to wind floral tape tightly around the stems.  You want to stretch the floral tape a bit so that it will stick together for you.

4.  Cover the stem completely with floral tape so there are no loose parts hanging out!

5.  Twist the stem around a pen to finish it. 

6.  Trim off the excess stem.  You're done! 

Attach a bow if you wish. 

Corsages

Here they are....finished!  I wish i had a close-up of the bridal bouquet, but that will just have to come later! 

Greg and Sarah's flowers in 2008.