Wonderful Weekend!

We had such a fun weekend! I'm so sad that it is just about over. The weather was awesome all weekend. I think that made it all the better!

Friday afternoon, Hudson and I went and hung out at the pool with Cameron. Hudson took a fabulous nap while Cameron and I got some sun...well, we probably talked more than we got sun, but it was so nice to have some adult time! It was very relaxing. I did put Hudson's feet in the pool and he seemed to like it a little bit once he got over the initial cold shock...I can't wait to try again at the beach this weekend!

Friday night, we went to Buffalo's for dinner with some friends. Buffalo's has such a fun atmosphere. We had a great time hanging out with everyone and listening to the band, and the food was not too shabby either. The babies did great too! Jennifer and Wes came along with their baby girl Cooper...Cooper is about 4 months older than Hudson and they are just about the same size! I think we determined that Hudson outweighs her! She is so cute and dainty though, and has the most beautiful eyes you have ever seen! It was so fun to see them. Kristen, Cameron, Caroline, and Joel's brother Jordan also joined us. It was a fun group! We definitely need to do it more often!

I was so glad to have a non-stressful dinner out for a change. I haven't had one of those in a while. Joel and I went to Brio with my mom and grandmother last week and Hudson was terrible! After all of us taking turns swaying with him away from the table, giving him a bottle, and 2 diaper changes, we concluded that he had a tummy ache. Poor little buddy! It's a good thing Brio was a loud restaurant because he screamed the whole entire time! I doubt we will be invited back to dinner with them again! Needless to say, we weren't able to enjoy dinner very much. He hated being at Mitchell's in SanDestin last week too. We were so glad when he was the perfect angel at dinner on Friday night! I was starting to wonder if we were going to have to stop going out...I thought that wouldn't happen until Hudson turned 2! I really think that he sees us eating and has a fit because he wants to eat too! Who knows, but that's what Joel and I think anyway! He does it every night when we try to eat dinner at home too. He will be so happy and we sit down and eat, and he starts screaming! What can I say...the boy loves to eat if you can't tell!!!

Sorry, I went off on a tangent! Saturday morning was great too! Hudson slept in until 8:30! We woke up to a beautiful morning, and so we decided we would go for a walk with the dogs. It was great. We then had to take my grandmother to the dentist...she had a little emergency and my parents were out of town. We love seeing Mama Jean and she does so much for us that we didn't mind helping her out at all! I'm glad we were available! We then cooked out Saturday night. It was a lot of fun and Joel and I decided that we were going to have a big cookout soon...so friends, get ready. We will be inviting you all over very soon! We are so glad to have our grill back. We have been grill-less for about 6 months now. It has been terrible! I'm not a good cook so when we don't have a grill, it's not good. I really don't know how we've made it this long!

Today has been a bittersweet day. I can't stop thinking about what Tuesday has in store for me. I'm so emotional about it! I just keep thinking about how I am going to react when I drop Hudson off at daycare. I don't know if I'm going to cry (probably will), or be ok and content knowing that he is in good hands. We will see! I will be sure to let you all know how it goes.

Tomorrow we are having Hudson's 3 month pictures done. I can't wait to see how they turn out! It is unbelievable to me that he will be 3 months tomorrow. It feels like just yesterday that he was the tiny 7 pounder in my arms. Now he's a chunky 15 pounder! They sure do grow fast!

P.S. I don't know what is wrong with the spacing on this post! It is bothering the heck out of me, but it won't let me fix it! I hate computers!

First Trip to the Beach...Rain, Rain, and More Rain

We made our first trip down to the beach as a family of 3 this past weekend. Unfortunately, Tropical Depression #1 went down there with us! It was a wet weekend to say the least! We knew that rain was predicted before we went, but the optimist in me kept thinking that they were going to be wrong. There have been several times that we have gone down there where there was rain predicted, and we didn't see a drop, so I was hoping that this was the case. It was not, however, but we still got some much needed rest.

The trip down there was really long, and it was not due to Hudson! He did great. The problem had to do with road construction along 65! I don't know why they decide to close a lane on 65 on a holiday weekend. I think I might have to send a nasty letter to the AL Department of Transportation! It took us 3 hours to get to Montgomery, and 6 hours to get to the beach! We were hoping to make it to Greenville by lunch so we could feed Hudson and eat lunch. However, we only made it to Prattville before we had to stop! I was hoping to not have to pump the entire way either, but by the time we got to Prattville, I knew it was going to be way too long for me to wait. So...instead of just pumping while we were stopped for lunch, we decided to keep moving and I just pumped in the front seat of the car! Hopefully no one saw me! I tried to cover up the best that I could, but it's not easy being discreet with that thing! It's funny being a mom...after you've had a baby, you just do what you have to do and you really don't care about who sees it! I think it bothered Joel more than it did me! Oh well...it was something to laugh about! Anyway, we were hoping to be at the beach shortly after lunchtime on Thursday, but we didn't get there until 4:30, so that day was pretty much over. It was raining when we got there anyway. We cooked steaks on the grill at the condo and called it a night. It had been a long day of traveling!

We woke up Friday to a cloudy and overcast day. We managed to squeeze in a beach walk and a little time on the beach before the rain arrived for the day. Hudson made his appearance on the beach for the first time. I did put him in his cute bathing suit (thanks Cameron!), but he had to wear a shirt and socks, and his hat, because it was a bit chilly down there with all the wind. He didn't stay out very long! We didn't even put his little toes in the water because it was ice cold! And, the waves were huge! I didn't want to get him near it! When the rain arrived, we went out to the outlet stores to kill some time and then headed to dinner at Mitchell's. It was fabulous!

Saturday was another rainy morning. Hudson would sleep to around 6:30 or so, and then we would feed him, and then put him back in the bed with us and we wouldn't get up until around 9:30 every morning! It was awesome! I never thought I would be able to sleep until 9:30 ever again, but luckily the rain made Hudson want to go back to sleep too! We hung around the condo all morning and then Joel's friend Derrick and his little girl stopped by and hung out with us for a while. By the time they left, the sun was starting to come out! We knew we had to get out there fast because it was going to be shortlived, so we threw on our bathing suits and got out there. We just went to the pool this time. The water was still way too cold to get Hudson in it. There were some other kids in the pool with their dads and I told Joel that he was going to have to get in the ice cold pool starting next year! He was not too thrilled about that! Anyway, we got a couple of hours of good weather in before the weather started back up again.

We woke up Sunday morning to a very stormy start! We were hoping by Sunday that the weather was going to be improving, but it was the worst day yet. The thunder and lightning were terrible! We were both so frustrated. We had caught up on all our sleep and the last thing we wanted to do was to sit around in the condo all day. If anyone knows my husband, he is not one to sit around...he's just like his dad! He has to be doing something at all times. The rain had made him relax for 3 days, and he had had enough of it! He really wanted to go home, so we decided that instead of spending another day there that we would just go home early. Plus, we are going back in two weeks, so that made the decision a little easier!

We packed up and headed out. We stopped once in Clanton to feed Hudson, but that was all. He did scream the rest of the way home after Clanton, but that was only for about 45 minutes so it wasn't too bad. We can't complain. The kid didn't make a sound for three and a half hours! All in all, we had a great trip despite the rain. It was nice to spend time with each other away from home. The rain made us relax and made us sleep so that was great. We go back the weekend of June 5th with some friends and I am so excited about that. Hopefully we can get Hudson's little feet in the ocean and pool next time!

Below are some pictures from the weekend.

Something was REALLY funny! I love this picture!

This was our first family picture on the beach. Too bad the nice man taking the picture didn't tell us that Hudson's hat was covering his face! Oh well...it's about the best we could do with the weather. It was so windy...and you can see the dark clouds in the background! We quickly packed up and headed inside after this picture!

We took the bumbo down to the beach and put Hudson in it. He liked it for a few minutes, but the wind was so terrible that it kind of took his breath away...he didn't like that very much! He then took a nap on me. I think the waves made it easy for him to fall asleep! Next time, we are going to put him in something that is covered so that we won't have to worry so much about him getting sunburned!

Hope everyone had a great Memorial Day weekend!

First Overnight Trip!

We took our first overnight trip with Hudson this weekend. It was so much fun. Hudson is very adaptable. He just went with the flow and did fine. He was passed around a million times and was held all weekend. I think we are paying for that right now as I write this...he's screaming! Oh well, everyone enjoyed seeing him and that is all that matters! He never slept so well either. After Hudson slept through the night on Mother's Day, we seemed to regress. He woke up several nights in a row at 2:30 am and he had not done that in a while. I was so mad! But, starting Thursday night, we seemed to have turned the corner. The past three nights have been awesome! He has slept until almost 8 every morning and it is all we can do to keep him up until 9:30 at night. We are thrilled to finally be catching up on some much needed sleep!

We went up to Mentone Friday night and spent the night at my parent's cabin. They have purchased a new lot up there so they took us over to see it. The cabin that they have now has a great view, but the view from the new lot is spectacular. I don't know when they will start building on it, but Joel and I are hoping soon! It is amazing. We took a few pictures of it below.

After going up to see the lot, we went to dinner at the Wildflower Cafe. My parents go up to Mentone just about every weekend. They have made so many friends up there. Mentone is a very artistic little town, which is right up my dad's alley. He has gotten involved with the art council up there, and my mom has started making jewelry and is selling it in stores up there. They have really gotten to know everyone up there. We walked into the Wildflower Cafe on Friday night and they knew everyone in there! Joel and I quickly understood why they love to go to Mentone. There is just something about being in a small town where everyone knows everyone. It was great. They had a man playing the guitar and singing all the good songs that everyone knows...and the food, wow, the food was incredible. There is going to be an article in Southern Living soon about this restaurant. It was fabulous. We had such a fun time enjoying wine and the food (you have to take your own wine by the way...and you have to hide it under the table because it is not allowed!). Saturday, we woke up and went and ate breakfast at the Desoto State Park and then went to the Rhododendrum Festival in Mentone. It was interesting to say the least. There were a bunch of booths that people had set up and were selling things...all sorts of things (not really anything you would want to buy!). It was fun to see what all they had though.

We then left Mentone and headed for Weiss Lake to spend the rest of the weekend with Joel's family. Joel's grandfather Papa John was getting honored by the Boy Scouts Saturday night at a fund raiser held in Centre, Alabama. Gene Stallings was the guest speaker. Of course, being an Auburn fan, we weren't too excited about going to see Coach Stallings. But, let me tell you, his speech was great. He is a very interesting man and I'm so glad that I got the opportunity to hear him talk. Hudson did great during the dinner. He got a little fussy at the end, but we had been there for a long time so it was not a surprise. It was way past his bedtime! Below are a few pictures from the lake. The weather was pretty nasty up there all weekend, so we didn't take many pictures.

We are headed down to the beach on Thursday morning for some much needed rest and relaxation. We can't wait to put Hudson's little feet in the ocean for the first time!

It is Only Fitting That on Mother's Day...

Hudson gave me the best present ever...he SLEPT THROUGH THE NIGHT!!! We put him down Saturday night around 9:45 or so, and he didn't wake up until 6:15 the next morning! I kept waking up during the night thinking he would be stirring at any minute, but he just kept on sleeping. Hudson also surprised me with a beautiful diamond cross necklace. It was a wonderful first Mother's Day and a day I'll never forget!

I have to say though, of all the gifts I received yesterday, the best gift of all is being Hudson's mother. It sounds so cheesy, but it's so true! I never knew I could love someone so much. He is the light of my life and I'm so proud of him. He really is the best baby. I love showing him off to everyone. He is always such a trooper. He now gives smiles to just about anyone that will give him attention. And, his little laugh is so cute and it's impossible not to smile when he gets going! I am so blessed to be a mother. I feel like Joel and I waited a long time for this to happen, and it's so surreal to us that we are finally parents of this miracle baby! It is a feeling like no other and I can't wait to spend many more Mother's Days with him!

I also want to thank my mom for being such a great mom to me. We are getting closer and closer as I get older and especially now that I am a mother. I can now understand what all she went through all those years raising three kids! Wow, it's a hard job! So, thank you mom for being such a great influence and such a wonderful grandmother to my precious baby. Happy Mother's Day to you. I also want to wish Joel's mom a Happy Mother's Day! She did a wonderful job raising my husband and I am so thankful for the love that she gives Hudson every time she sees him. It is awesome to watch. That boy is going to really love his Mimi! We are so lucky, and so thankful to have such wonderful mothers in our lives!

Ok, enough of the sappy stuff (I'm so not a sappy person, but this year Mother's Day meant so much more to me so I felt like I needed to write about it!). We had a great weekend. We had a fun dinner on Friday night with Cameron and Caroline at Mafiazo's in Crestline Village. The pizzas literally took 45 minutes to come out, but the company was great and it was so nice to be out of the house! Hudson did great too despite the long wait! Saturday, we had a wedding reception to go at the BCC to so my parent's kept Hudson. It was a lot of fun to have a night out without the little guy (although we missed him terribly so we really weren't out all that long!)and it was so good to see everyone from high school. It has been a long time! I can't believe the 10 year reunion is coming up! Sunday, we hung out at home and then went over to the Reed's house to celebrate Mother's Day with them. We ended up going to Sweetbone's for dinner. It was really good...we had good company there too! The weekend went by way too fast! Sadly to say, I did not take any pictures of my first Mother's Day with Hudson! That is terrible. But, here are a couple of cute ones from the weekend anyway. There aren't too many days that we don't take pictures of Hudson!

This is the necklace that "Hudson" gave me! Isn't it absolutely beautiful?!?! I wore it to the wedding on Saturday night and it looked fabulous. My husband has excellent taste in jewelry. I am one lucky girl!!!

We have a busy next couple of weekends. I'm so excited about it. We are heading up to Mentone on Friday to spend the night with my parents at the cabin and go to one of the festivals up there on Saturday morning, and then are heading to Weiss Lake on Saturday to spend Saturday afternoon and Sunday with Joel's family at the lake. This will be our first overnight adventure with Hudson! I hope we have enough room in the car for all his stuff! We are then going to the beach for Memorial Day weekend. I can't wait! I have a lot to look forward to these next few weeks before I head back to work. I will be sure to keep the blog updated for all our happenings!

I Caved...Again

When my friends started doing Facebook, I laughed at them. I thought we were too old to do that and I vowed I would never get on it. Well, I got on it and it has been a great thing to be able to get back in touch with so many people. Then, I never thought I would have anything to talk about on a blog. I always read other blogs, but never imagined myself ever having one. Sometimes I feel like my life is so boring! Well, I caved on that too, and now all I can think about is what I'm going to say on the next blog...I write my blogs in my sleep! I have a ton of stuff to blog about! Who knew?!?! Now, I have caved again. I have entered the couponing world. All these other blogs that I read talk about their trips to the grocery store and how much they saved by clipping coupons. I always just kind of skipped over those posts because I thought, who in the world has time to do that? With work and raising a child, there's no way, right? I just thought some people have way too much time on their hands. Well, I mean to tell you, those people are smart and we are all stupid for not spending a few extra minutes each week doing it!

In my efforts to remain a part-time employee starting next month and with the economy the way that it is, I decided that maybe I could try it out while I'm still on my maternity leave and see just how hard it is, and see if I have the time to do it. I had no idea that it would become my most recent obsession and consume my life for right now (well, besides my little man!). I am a very competitive person. I competed all my life in sports and I suppose I am the way that I am because of that. I have gotten so into this that I can't wait to go to the grocery store next week to see if I save more than I did this week! It's actually really fun! I also can't wait to get the mail every day to see if there are coupons in it. I used to hate getting all that junk!!!

I got on the website www.grocerygame.com and signed up. That was the first step. I read all the rules that they say to do, got a Sunday paper, and I was off. I go to the grocery store on Sundays...my mom laughs at me because I go every Sunday afternoon. I have to do it that way. I plan out all my meals for the week and go to the store once a week. I can't think much further past that. Anyway, my first trip on Sunday was great! I am definitely still a novice at this, and I don't have a backlog of coupons like most people have that would have saved me even more on Sunday, but I spent around $90 before coupons, and ended up only paying $60. I saved $30! I thought that was really good for the first time out. My goal is to save more than what I actually pay for. We'll see if it happens!

Ok, enough rambling on my new hobby...here are some pics of the little guy.

This picture cracks me up. I came back from the grocery store on Sunday to find Hudson sacked out on the ottoman. Joel said that he couldn't get him to calm down so he just laid him on the ottoman and he fell asleep. It was hilarious! Don't worry, we were sitting there right next to him until he woke up!