Thanksgiving2014

we had a full weekend of festivities this Thanksgiving

that involved lots of lots...overflowing with blessings.

Jake, Jamie, Beau, Luke, Josh, Jonathan, Jenn, Lillian and James Everett were all in on Wednesday, so there was constant kid action somewhere

mostly on the gator or running around outside

thursday lunch was at my parents house with the whole crew

and some food-prep help from the littles

our newest family member, sweet Harper

Judson and Luke are never far apart

and the things we find them doing always entertains

after lunch and a bit of lounging, a family-friendly game of football commenced

i'm pretty sure the team i was on won.

i missed the end because a rather hungry 4 month old summoned.

but, it doesn't matter who won...we all had fun. 

ha!

i love these ladies of mine

(missing a few)

and this little guy's first Turkey day 

that evening we celebrated our sweet wittle Wukey turning 2!!!!

he is quite the character

with his silly smile, quirky mannerisms and awesome hair

i love how he loves us, especially Judson.

he's a good little buddy

and i am incredibly proud to be his aunt!

this tough guy, too

how did he get to be 4, anyhow?

Friday, my Mamaw Jo cooked a delicious lunch of gumbo and mexican cornbread

just so we wouldn't go a meal without being with our family

she's the best

that night, us Kirby siblings saw Mockingjay....yeeep!

Saturday morning, my Mamaw Lou cooked breakfast at her house

what a wonderful treat!

then we took family pictures, which went as well as you can expect 

but the photographer did bring her miniature pig

'

so, that was fun... 

the older i get and the more people that i get to know, i realize just how rare it is to have such a large family living in close proximity to one another.

it is a rare thing.

and it is not something i take for granted. 

i soak up every single second with my family

and thank God repeatedly throughout the day for the goodness He has shown to me.

all of this family is wonderful, but without sharing the hope of heaven with them, the joy would be missing.

i am incredibly thankful that i was born into such loving, welcoming, joyful family that taught me about Jesus. 

because of the gospel of Jesus i will share eternity with my earthly family.

and that is something to be thankful for.

5 months with Townesy

another month has flown by 

and little Townesy, you have got me 

you are just about the sweetest thing i ever did see

you really are a good baby 

meaning, you are happy

you sleep good

you eat good

and you are a definite charmer

and you put up with your big brothers silly antics

you seem to have a calmer personality than your brother

you are pretty content to hang out in my lap and watch whatever he is doing 

you always smile a big smile when you see yourself or whoever is holding you in the mirror

you can sit up if you're hanging on tight to something

like my leg

you don't like to sit against anything though

you arch your back until you work yourself to your stomach or laying on your back

you are a big snuggler

and will lay your face against mine (or your Mamaw Jo, she gets a lot of snuggles) for the longest time

it might be my favorite thing

and sometimes you hum a little tune of contentment

we do this often throughout our day

you seem to make fast friends, as everyone gets a smile from you

you are easy to make laugh

and squint your eyes tight and let out a little chuckle

and you are much better about riding in the car!!! hooray! 

although, you'd prefer to take over the steering wheel

you keep your pointer and middle fingers in your mouth all of the time

and can take your own pacifier in and out of your mouth

you love your exersaucer and seem quite entertained by the animals and noises

sometimes i will walk through the room and catch you grinning at me 

if someone else is holding you, you are probably staring me down

we're kind of inseparable, you and me.

i'd like to keep it that way, knowing it won't last forever.

i am so excited about celebrating your first Christmas with you

although you won't have any idea what's going on

your presence in our lives brings incredible joy

your smile brings cheer

your snuggles bring comfort

your curiosity brings excitement

your dependence brings purpose

your sleep brings peace

we love you, little Rooskie 

you are a source of great delight!

friends weekend

our besties from Texas, the Waldrons and Lovetts, planned on staying at our house on their way through La to a football game in Alabama. 

well, the football game was predicted to be pretty rough, so they decided to forego their plans of long travel and likely disappointment in the outcome of the game...and just stay the weekend with us!

hooray!

we had the best weekend.

it was an unexpected little staycation for us and the 4 of them got a great little vacation kids-free.

well, except for ours. JR and Tdubs were here, but they didn't seem to mind. 

we mainly just hung around the house

eating food, talking, playing dominoes and watching football

and us gals did some shopping around town

my parents kept our boys friday night so we could go out to eat

i love our new restaurant in town, Nonna.

the perfect atmosphere for a long, relaxed dinner and good conversation 

JR might have  had the most fun of anyone, though.

he loves a party and the weekend felt like a non-stop shin-dig.

his kind of jam.

and he LOVES. i mean LOVES Tommy

"Tom-MEH" he yelled all weekend

they are quite the buds

of course, our time together was much too short

we have decided that these little weekends spent at one anothers homes is ideal.

although, we wouldn't mind a vacay in Hawaii

fortunately for us, we got to see Tommy, Brice and their kids last week, too!

we made a trip to Huntsville to see GTs folks and met up with the Waldrons for dinner one night.

i love watching JR and Tate play... or "Tape", as Judson calls him.

being intentional is the only way we will see each other 

and we want our kids to grow up knowing one another

plus, us adults have a purty good time together

i think we're off to a good start keeping the Waldron/Lovett/Taylor friendship alive and kickin'

in the spirit of Christmas, "there is no greater gift than friendship"- Polar Express Santa Claus

Wordless Wednesday: labor jams

we didn't have any kind of birth plan

many people have their entire day planned-creating an atmosphere, choosing who will be present during labor, adjusting the lighting, and preparing a music playlist.

we didn't.

so, no music was selected ahead of time

i love me some music, but i knew that our big-ole family would be there and that i would want to just visit with them and have their voices around me when the going got going.

i also knew that my musical selection would be the last thing on my mind

after we arrived that morning and 

once we got situated in our hospital room

i asked GT to play this song

it was about 7am and the day was getting started. 

You are not alone if you are lonely
When you feel afraid, you're not the only
We are all the same in need of mercy
To be forgiven and be free
It's all you got to lean on
But thank God it's all you need

And all the people said Amen
And all the people said Amen
Give thanks to the Lord for His love never ends
And all the people said Amen

then he played this little ditty

and we started tapping our feet

nodding our heads

and were ready to go.

then, things got real (in the labor department)

and i just wanted quiet.

at least we kicked it off in a fun and encouraging way!

how i feel about schedules (for now)

typically, i don't like routine or strict schedules.

they make me antsy

the thought of doing the same thing over and over again, day in and day out...no thanks.

but, I was very scheduled with Judson and it worked for us. 

also, i heard it would get him to sleep (so, obviously i did it).

He was my primary responsibility so we were able to be home for naps and bedtime and stay on our eat-every-3-hour schedule.

I was always so worried that if he didn't get his nap in, he would spontaneous combust. or worse, be really fussy! heaven forbid.

so, if we were doing anything not in line with our schedule i would silently worry about how he'd do at the event, that night and the day after. because if one thing got off, then the dominoes fell.

we have a schedule with Townes, but i am waaaayyyy less rigid with it. 

i do make sure he eats every 3-4 hours and if we are home, he goes down for naps at roughly the same time every day.

it works for us, he's happier that way. 

also, i typically know why he's fussy. 

typically, i said. he IS a baby, so there's always that reason for being fussy.

what i learned is this: the amount of time that i spent worrying about Judson getting off schedule was way worse than the actual repercussions of being off schedule.

yes, he might be fussy

yes, he might not sleep as well that night

and yes, he might not eat as well

BUT, we lived. he lived and was usually right back on track the next day.

and whatever event called for our schedule-derailing was always worth it.

i try not to talk/blog about baby schedules, developmental steps, etc too often because in the long run they aren't that important.

sure, at this point in my life...it is my life.

but, it isn't what i want my life to be about

i want my efforts in a day to be about loving God and loving others.

of course, there is the necessary going-ons of life and kids do have to eat and sleep (so demanding!)

but, i don't want to spend all of my time talking or thinking about it.

so, i am trying to not document them on this blog.

but every now and then, the ole mom-blogger in me creeps out and well....

here we are.