a very fine texas weekend, indeed

i take alot of pictures.

i know this

sometimes i like to blog with few and sometimes i like to blog with a lot

this is one of those "a lot" times

once again, we had an awesome weekend at the Taylors

it's always great. always.

GT and I both know that when we go to his parents that we will get to rest and just relax.

we also get to do a good bit of chattin'

it's the good stuff

the weekend was full of sleeping in (thanks JR), home-cooked breakfast, walks with the fam, bare-back horse riding by Kimmy, golfing for the boys, dinner with friends, backyard wiffle ball, making Judson laugh, front-porch sittin', guitar playing and enjoying being together

 

let's just enjoy the smorgasbord of photos, shall we?

i think i will

 

 

 

 

 

completely normal

WNRE: today

Want

any of these adorbs dolls 

i just can't justify dropping 56 bones on a toy

but ain't it cute?

and i just love their names

Need

sweet Judson to sleep again

(and maybe a hair washin' for me?)

we were going along just great...sleeping like a champ and then i don't know...

perhaps he's teething, perhaps it's learning to sit up, perhaps it's the tide

poor little guy is having a hard time staying asleep

Read

as previously mentioned, most of my reading consists of pharmacology and pathophysiology for health care providers. real leisure reading stuff here

but i do love me some blog reading

i don't have to commit to finishing anything

i can catch up anywhere, anytime (nursing) on my phone

usally can find something light hearted or heart wrenching

mostly i love a good story (send me a link if you got one!)

i'm thankful for this not-so-little blog world

Eat:

and let me tell you one more thing

it's crawfish season booooyyyysss!

we had our first batch at our house the other night and it just got me geared up fo mo!

Wordless Wednesday: cups by cousins

nothing like a little in-house entertainment

we have a large family and we get together often

the cousins are most often happy to oblige and entertain us with singing, dancing, magic tricks, etc

this is my favorite so far

i appreciate john lukes involvement...ha!

monday morning melting

I read an article on refinery29.com this morning about Dax Shepards blog. His language can be rather crude and his comments crass....but he has a way with words. He writes about his fathers battle with and eventual loss to cancer and does so beautifully and hilariously at times. In case you don't know who he is, he's an actor and married to the ridiculously cute -and expecting- actress, Kristen Bell.

Here is the paragraph in his most recent post where i might have grabbed a tissue.

"At one point, and unbeknownst to both of us, my wife walked into the room. She had flown in from LA without any warning. It was a surprise. It was an amazing, incredible, perfectly timed surprise. She lifted her shirt up and he put his hand on her swollen stomach. He left it there for the better part of an hour. He was smiling from ear to ear, sitting contently, unable to put together a sentence, but still capable of connecting to the new family member we were creating. He wasn’t going to make it to the birth, but that didn’t get in the way of him meeting the new baby. It was an emotional and triumphant moment. One I will never forget. If I live to be a thousand, I will still be in debt to my wife for giving him that one last thrill"

faces

good morning!

if you can figure out what is happening in photos 2-4, i will give you 10 points and a friendship bracelet

happy weekend

i am super excited to spend another weekend with my favorite guys

we have had some great weekends lately and for that, i'm grateful

here's to hoping for another great one!

some things to look at:

i haven't mentioned these guys in a while. I love Touch a Life.

 catch up with their work here

need a good read???

these shoes are the ultimate beauty for feet, not the pocketbook

craving a return trip to this dreamy location

a song to put me in the weekend kinda mood

that's all

hope you can find some relaxation in the days ahead...

...or busyness..whatever your soul needs

wonderful weekend

last weekend was perfect

we celebrated moms birthday

my BIL, Ty, and MIL, Del, came in town

GT smoked brisket all day long

Jake, Jamie, Beau and Luke came in town

the weather was lovely

progress was made on mom and dads house

overall...it was wonderful

it's a tough job watching the smoker all day

GT hated it

babies, babies and big boys

Saturday morning Cracker Barrel

we are there every saturday morning at 9 if you ever want to join us

Beau + Trigger

the best little guys

writing scripture (and choo-choo trains) on the door frames (and walls) of Honey and Pa's house

i love this family so, so, so very much

Judson was happy to have his Grammy at our house

we were too

Beau is pretty obsessed with Bella

the cutest thing to watch

mom ringing in her 61st year with a little party at our house

i love this sweet Beau laying on GT

typical reaction to a sweet gift from my dad

"hey Beau, give me two thumbs up!"

close.

it was a two thumbs (or pointer fingers) kinda weekend around here

wordless wednesday: bedtimes hymns

We started a bedtime routine with Judson around 3 months

since then, I have tweaked the songs that we sing to him everynight

some nights, we just sing random hymns

but, for the most part...it's the same songs

we start out with a few lullabies

i don't know the name of this one, but we always sang it at camp every summer

"i love you Judson. oh, yes I do.

 i love you Judson. and I'll be true.

when you're not with me, i'm blue.

oh Judson Ray, i love you".

then the beloved and standard

"you are my sunshine"

it's always sweet

i'm sure we'll change up our hymns at night, but these are my favorite for now

Jesus Keep Me Near The Cross

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 Alan and Susan Cain - Boundless Love

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Hank Williams - At the Cross

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Matt Redman - 10000 Reasons (Bless the Lord)

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i can not get enough of this song
it's beautiful


i would love to add this sweet song to the repotoire once i learn it
perhaps GT or I could learn it on the guitar
Dolly Parton, Kris Kristofferson and Jeremy Jordan - From Here To The Moon And Back

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i loved having a singing routine with my parents growing up

when i hear certain songs, it brings back such sweet memories of singing with them

do you have certain bedtime songs you remember from childhood?

or songs you sing to your children now?

a few things (on motherhood)

1. before i had Judson I told GT that I would most definitely work after having kids.

 I wasn't sure that I would be fulfilled staying home with a baby all day long, every day.

 I told GT that I wouldn't feel like a contributing member of society as a stay-at-home mom. My existence would not suffice on diaper changes, naps and feedings alone. I needed to take care of people as a nurse and interact with adults.

Wowzas! shut the door. i was soooooooo wrong.

never before in my life (aside from being GT's wife) have i felt more fulfilled or more important (maybe not the right word) than i do when my days are filled with taking care of my boy.

thankfully, i can do both.

i'm working 1-2 days a week and in grad school and get to love on the little guy the rest of the time.

GT is a good man to make this happen.

so is my mom. well, not a good man. a good woman. with her taking care of JR, i can work without worry.

2. the times that i have looked at Pinterest since Judson was born, i can count on one hand.

 i read this blog post today via a friends Facebook page. i agree 1 trillion percent with her.

we already have so many options on how to raise and care for our children, that i simply can not look at Pinterest and see how many ways i can make my own organic wipes/dye an Easter egg/grow my own baby food/redecorate his nursery/cook a breakfast casserole/sew a onsie from an old pair of pantyhose/film a documentary of JRs birth. i can't do it. it's too much.

(says the girl who gets stressed walking into the overly-stocked with cheap/cute clothes Forever 21)

3. sometimes GT and I talk about discipline tactics for when our kid(s) get older.

his creativity never ceases to amaze me.

our children better follow the rules or they're in for some rough and odd days of discipline ahead.

i say that with all the love in my heart.

-happy thursday-

love,
a new mom overlfowing with new-mom wisdom and insight

p.s. i also love selfies with the baby and using (parentheses) inappropriately (and excessively)

thank you and good bye

Sunday Portrait series: another catch-up

well, this little series has gone to ka-pooie

mostly because we are racing to get to church on time

"I gotta be there in the mornin'
Spruced up and lookin' in me prime.
Girls, come and kiss me;
Show how you'll miss me.
But get me to the church on time!
get me to the church on time!"

 (name that movie)

then JR falls asleep afterwards in his carseat and stays that way for a few hours

by that time, GT and I are in our comfies and are the farthest thing away from picture taking mode.

here are the only photos snagged in our fancies over the last little while

yes, this does qualify as our fancies

this little closed-eyed smile gets me

and those toes!

daddy dressed him this day

a little fact: GT is waaaaaay better at dressing the little guy

he is now the official if-we-go-anywhere-that-requires-us-to-be-presentable Judson dresser

leave it up to me and we're in a onesie and comfy pants and socks that most likely don't match. or pjs. all day.

his mouth is running out of room for his tongue due to his plump lil' cheeks

p.s. that mothers day balloon is from last year. i can't bring myself to get rid of it.

chunksters

here's to hoping for more series pics in the future!

one can hope.



Birthday for 2

Happiest of birthdays to my mom (yesterday) and Aunt Chrys (today)!

now that they are both in their 60's (crazy! i know), they seem to be speeding up and getting more beautiful..

their plates are full and their schedules are tight, but they glow each step of the way.

they both delight in serving their families and sharing each second with a grandkid (or kid if they have to).

these sisters are out loud and on purpose about their mission to raise families who love the Lord and honor Him in all that they do.

they both have radio shows on the local christian station and share their gift of speaking/book writing with the world.

here's the links to their ministry pages: Chrys & mom

if ever there were a sister duo that could do it all...this is them.

they never tire

they always look gorgeous

they are ready to serve 

and always prepared to host a party, or a family, or a youth group, or a house church, or a teen church, or a ball team, or anyone and everyone

before i go any further about mom and her sister, i think i should give credit where it's due 

Mamaw Jo and Papaw Shack

aren't they something to see?

what a handsome couple!

my mom and aunt Chrys are 1 year and 1 day apart.

never before have i understood what this could have been like.

during the 1st year of Chrys' life, my papaw was overseas

my mamaw is something else!

(they also raised 4 more-including a set of twins!)

now, i get it. as a new mom...i get it. i have no idea how she did it.

but, she did it and she did it perfectly (i'm confident in that)

you don't produce such fine women without doing something right.

i'm truly grateful for the people that i call "mamaw" and "papaw".

they showed their kids what it meant to honor God, respect and love others and always be ready to serve.

because of this, their kids are living the same life.

and their grandkids

and many more generations to come.

so, a happy happy birthday to two of the best women I know!

you both have set the bar very high for me as a mom and wife....thanks, i think

a {great} afternoon in the life

last friday...

...i knew it was going to be a great day

GT left later than usual for work so we had a wonderful morning together

after some naps and feedings, we headed outside for the afternoon

it was a beautiful day 

progress on mom and dads house creates all-day activity around our house

we found Pa at the barn with our life-long friends, Donna and Rusty, who are helping make-over the barn and work on the new house

Pa  heads over (with dogs in tow) to check on his house progress

so we plan on bothering him later

Judson Ray is meserized by all of the work going on

Trigger supervises

making sure the workers stay on task

Judson stops to give Woodrow a face-lick

or the other way around

we interrupt Pa and Tony's house update meeting

they surely didn't mind

Judson makes some decisions regarding the fireplaces and Pa rewards him with a head kiss 

the rest of the afternoon is spent walking around the property and hanging out wtih the dogs

just waiting on daddio to get home