Top Reasons I Love Fayetteville

1.  The Community.  Fayetteville is one of those towns that offers a lot of community events.  The Farmer's Market.  Summer concerts.  First Thursdays.  You will often recognize some of the same people if you become a regular at these events. 

This past Saturday was just one of those good days.  We went to the first farmer's market of the season and it was PACKED.  Colorful flowers.  Yummy produce.  Dogs in little "adopt me" vests.  Great music.  Good friends. 

2.  Events.  From sports to Broadway musicals, this town has a lot to offer in entertainment.  We just went to a gymnastics meet last weekend too.  There were schools from California to Maryland.  Not many towns have such a wide variety of sporting events. 

3.  Parks and Rec.  The parks in Fayetteville are superb.  There is a biking/running trail in Fayetteville that is 15 miles long, not to mention all the trails at the individual parks.  This town definitely promotes an active lifestyle amongst its residents. 

4.  Scenery.  Our house is nestled between a couple of small "mountains".  I used to love taking Caleb to work when we only had one car because on the way home, I came over a giant hill to look into this valley far off and you could see the fog settled in the lowest parts, since it was early in the morning.  We also have forests and hiking trails not far from home. 

5.  My Friends and Church.  Last but definitely not least.  We have such a great community and support system here.  We are so blessed to have the genuine friends we have.  Our church, also, has such solid, biblical teaching and provides such a fantastic community.  We are thankful to be a part of UBC.

We are glad we aren't going anywhere anytime soon :)  Fayetteville is my Favorite-ville.

Measuring Stick

It's about time I post another craft on here, yes?  I have to admit I haven't felt like much of the crafty type since Emerson was born, because I choose to rest or keep house when the boy is down.  But this was a simple, practical project that I will use for years to come. 

My mother-in-law showed me this idea on Pinterest to make a giant ruler to measure your kids as they grow.  It's nice because you can take this measuring stick with you wherever you go.  You know, if you move houses.  You probably don't want to take this giant ruler with you wherever you go.  My plan is to measure my children on each birthday.  It's simple and self-explanatory on how to make it, so I won't go into the deets (cut board, measure board, paint board... I don't want you to get board..ha.).  Ok, sorry, I'll just show you the pics.

I know I look like I'm almost 6 feet in the pic above, but don't be fooled.  We started the measurements at 6 inches in case we choose to hang it on a wall so it won't interfere with the floorboard.  

 

We measured the dog.  He is about 2 feet tall.  It depends on if you count ears or not.  He probably won't be growing much in the years to come though.  He's basically an adult, around 25 in dog years.

The finished product!  I'm excited about this because it will be in our family for years.  How fun to watch our babies grow each year.  Now that, folks, is how you measure a year. 

Play Date

So, I got to watch a friend's little boy recently and I was so excited for him to come over and play with Emerson.  When he got here, Emerson just kept smiling at him and I think he was excited to have a friend over.  Emerson was showing off his toys to Isaiah and both the boys loved the balls.  When I would hold Isaiah on my lap, Emerson would act a little more protective/clingy than usual.  Both the boys were all over and Isaiah was definitely a little explorer of the new territory.  When Isaiah left they both waved bye-bye to each other.  It was SO cute and I just love how the babies are getting old enough to interact with each other now!  We had a fun time and Emerson hopes we can do it again soon :)

The boys at 3 and 5 months.

The boys at 12 and 14 months.

My Library

Enjoying my new library Nana set up for me in my turtle

12 Month Update

I will try to give you an update on Emerson, though I feel like the more he does and learns the harder it will be for me to recall all he does!

-Emerson is all over.  I know I've been saying this for months, but now he is to the point of almost running.
-Emerson has been getting more rough lately.  All boy.  He keeps throwing toys, no matter how much I tell him we only throw balls.  He hurt a poor girl in playgroup when he threw a toy yesterday :(  He is not very gentle.
-He knows which toys are his new birthday toys and he chooses to play with them more than the others.
-We play outside everyday.
-He is finally drinking more milk.  He nurses 3 times a day and I'm going to try to cut out one of those this week.
-He's still a book kid and wants to sit and read books for long periods of time.  Books will entertain him longer than anything else, other than playing outside.
-His words are: dada, ball, bubble, bye-bye, Bible, dog, duck, book, and I think we can say he is finally saying ma these days.  I feel like he is learning words faster lately.
-On himself he can identify: tummy, toes, ears, hair, teeth.  On mommy: the same plus eyes and nose.  Oh, and he can identify Jesus in his books.  Makes mama proud.. lol.
-He follows simple commands.
-He is getting stronger willed... Hello, toddler years!
-He will obey sometimes, depending on his mood.  If he is tired or wanting your attention, he is less likely to obey.
-Even though he is a little rough these days, he is still a cuddler and love bug.  I'd still say overall he has a sweet personality.  People comment on how much he smiles. 

Emerson is still a joy and blessing to us and I am very grateful that God has let us have him this past year.  Everyday with him is a gift.

Birthday Boy

Friends, we have a one year old on our hands!  We had a wonderful weekend celebrating with friends and family and Emerson soaked up all the attention.  Before his birthday I had checked out a book from the library about birthdays.  We looked at the pictures and talked about cake and parties and presents.  So, the week of his birthday, if I talked about how he was about to have a birthday, he would hurry over to the books and find the birthday book.  He knew what we were talking about.

Caleb's parents and grandparents visited for the weekend.  Emerson loved his turtle sandbox from his grandparents and he kept climbing in and out. 

Saturday afternoon (his birthday), we installed his forward facing car seat.  I have been looking forward to this, as Emerson has become more resistant to being strapped into the infant car seat.  A few days into it, I have to say he loves it.  He and I were "making eyes" at each other in my mirror today while driving.

After Emerson's afternoon nap we had a birthday celebration for him at Wilson Park.  It was the perfect day.  Mid seventies and sunny.  Just about all his family and playgroup friends made it out for the party :)  It was a rubber ducky theme since Emerson LOVES bath time so much.  I had fun planning and decorating.

  

  

The theme almost turned into "It's my Party and I'll cry if I want to" when mom tried to put Emerson in the ball pit.  He never warmed up to it the whole party.

He was much more content to watch the other babies play in it.

Emerson is a loved kid.  He had a great group of family and friends there to celebrate his life.

Emerson knew just what to do when opening presents.  He made the funniest facial expressions.  He made a surprised look after every single gift.  I don't know where he gets it (please note sarcasm--see below).

This darn cute face. Over and over.

Concerning the cake, let's just say he inherited my sweet tooth. 

The most special gift was this rocking chair which was originally owned by Emerson's great-great-great aunt in 1890.  He loves it.  Imagine how many toddlers Emerson's size rocked in this little red chair throughout the past century. 

We are blessed to have Emerson's sweet life and pray that we can have many more years with him.  I think he felt pretty special this weekend.  I think I'll keep him :)

Bittersweet

So, I'm discovering that I'm "that mom" that gets all emotional and weepy when my baby turns one.  I am so happy and excited that God blessed us with a child who has lived to become a one year old.  He is now such a toddler and there is only a tiny bit of baby remaining.  Seriously, if I think about it very long at all, I get a little teary eyed.  Yesterday, I looked at this blog post.  It was the first post I wrote after he was born.  I cried when I watched the video. 

I can already tell he is gaining his independence from me!  He is quickly weaning from breastfeeding (faster than I thought).  I read that when you wean, you experience hormonal changes similar to the beginning of a pregnancy or postpartum.  So I am blaming my emotional instability on that!  His first birthday (Saturday), is a day of celebration and rejoicing.  A day of celebrating his life.  I know that inside I will feel a little emotional about it.  Hopefully I won't shed any tears at his party-- how embarrassing! 

The next post I write will be happy and celebratory.  We are having a rubber ducky birthday party for Emerson on Saturday.  He is going to love it!  For now I must go, because my list of to-dos is super long!  At the top of the list is to shower.  Then it's off to buy a "big boy" car seat for Emerson.  Good-bye baby car seat which carried my baby home from the hospital.  Tear.