Lately...

So Grey is just over 2 months old now! He weights close to 12 pounds and is growing so fast! He changes or does something new every week and we are having so much fun with him!

I have been booking photo sessions still and if anyone wants some good Christmas gifts, a family portrait would be great! Contact me if you'd like to book a session! I have also been making onsies (see the picture of Grey with the owl) If you need onsies for a baby...let me know! :)

So I said I would update about the church and the financial situation there...well the roof will be paid for! That is something that is definitely needed! So yay! Unfortunately there is still a huge need for many other things, but God will provide when He sees fit! :) Please continue to pray for the church in every way: spiritual growth of the people there, financial burdens, a way to put more people on staff, patience during this period of growth and change, etc.

9 pounds and a prayer!

So Grey's one month doctor appointmentwent well! He weighed in at 8 pounds 15ouncesputting him at a gain of a little over 2 pounds! Yay! He is definitely filling out and changing every day!He had to get ashot...which he handled with a scream, but surprisingly was not effected by it after theinitial shock. Whewww!!! Ihave received an awesome owl candle holder from HollyBenham...so cute and unique! It goes great with the decor for Grey's room!

In other news it would be awesome if everyone would pray that Seth could be hired on at SWCC soon. Please pray that the church body continues growing (in every way!) and that Seth's passion to lead worship and help meet a need at the church would be fullfilled! Seth's dad is meeting with the district office people in the next few days to discuss needs at the church...new roof, sound/media (you name it, the church needs it!) Pray that the needs would be met because SWCC is such a diverse place for people to meet together! That's about all for now! I will post updates on Grey and the church as they come!

Grey is 1 month old....already?!?

Well today Grey is 1 month old! The past 4 weeks have consisted of A LOT of change for Seth and I...but we would not trade it for anything! We are so blessed to have such a sweet little baby! He is eating well and sleeping pretty well too. He is so stinkin' cute and acts so great! I wasn't sure how well I would adjust to being a mom...especially the first bit of time home with him. Needless to say, I was exhausted the first week. I was so worried I would just be a big hormonal mess, but my emotions have remained under control and I've not had any meltdowns (thank goodness!) And fortunately I have been blessed with an incredible husband!!! Seth has been the BEST and takes the late shifts at night so I can rest which is fantastic. Each week has gotten a little easier and I've been a little less tired. Seth is an amazing dad and just thinks Grey is the coolest thing ever and I must agree! We have been on several outings with Grey...out to eat, target, kroger and church. (most of the time he never even knows he's been anywhere because he just snoozes the whole time!) My body feels almost normal again and this week I actually did a senior photo shoot. Tuesday we go to the doctor for Grey's 1 month check up. I am anxious to see how much weight he has gained! He is changing everyday!

GREY HAS ARRIVED!

So on Friday the 27th our little boy made his arrival! The day started out normal enough for me...the only thing that seemed a little different was that my stomach was a teeny bit upset. I went about my day as usual...had to make a run to hobby lobby for some supplies to finish up a painting and then I when home to do just that. About 3 or so Seth came home and I started to feel a little crampy, no big deal because I thought you usually have contractions several days before and this was no contraction, just a crampiness. However, about 3o minutes later I began to notice a pattern and a stronger feel to what I though were "cramps." Seth and I needed to make a run to the bank so off we went! My "cramps" were closer together on our trip to the bank so I decided to call the medical exchange because my doc was out of town for the weekend. Seth was ready to take me to the Baptist as soon as we got back but I was NOT about to go to that hospital just for them to say "you are no where near ready to have this baby so go back home!" After talking to the nurse on call, I sort of knew what to look for...I guess. I didn't think this was really going to happen so I started a load of laundry when we got home. Mistake. Not long after I did that we left the house and where at the hospital at 5:30. I knew this was the real thing because I was hurting pretty bad. Apparently everyone and their dog were having babies at the same time because they sent me and another woman in labor to wait in the WAITING ROOM! I was there for a good 30 minutes. Just after 6 I was put in a room, told to pee in a cup, but my water broke before I got the chance so they just let me get in the bed. Well Grey's timing was fantastic because it was a SHIFT CHANGE! So Seth and I are freaking out ALONE in this labor room. Finally the nurse (thank you nurse Lezley you were so sweet!) came in and checked me...I was at 5 cm... I got my epidural around 8:20 or so because the anesthesiologist was swamped giving drugs to all the other women in labor. The nurse checked me again right after they laid me back down and got this big-eyed look on her face and said "go get the doctor because she's already at a 10!" (No wonder I felt like something was going to come out of me when they set me up for my epidural! Ha! Ha!) So about 15-20 minutes later Grey was here! The only part that wasn't so great was because Grey came SOOO fast, my epidural BARELY had time to catch up...felt everything until the last 2 or three pushes...ouch. But I wouldn't change it because I'd prefer a quick delivery over a long drawn out one! Seth was a champ the whole time...he kept me fanned off and even watched! (He had to sit down right after Grey came out but only for a minute!) Needless to say we are so proud and love our little Grey so much! He is such a sweet baby!

Ohhhh the month of August!

So lately I've been EXTREMELY busy! I have had so many photo shoots to squeeze in before baby Grey arrives and I have finally got them ALL done! I had a blast taking pictures of the Benton Cheerleaders, Natalie and David's engagements, baby Kale, baby Truly and Hillary Quinn! Not to mention in the middle of photo shoots and editing, I've been working on a few art pieces and designing announcements and business products for people too...and sewing baby bedding for Grey's room while Seth finished sanding and staining the baby bed and dresser!

This month we also celebrated our 4 year anniversary (I cannot believe that the time has flown by that fast! But it has truly been the BEST 4 years of my life!) Seth's birthday was the 13th, not to mention SEVERAL other family birthdays within the past week or two! Crazyness!!! Now that nearly all the photos/business products have been finished and delivered and baby Grey's room is complete, I can stop and relax! Yay! I do believe I will enjoy these last few weeks (if that long) that Grey is in my belly...I have absolutely LOVED being pregnant and cannot believe that it is already time for him to be here! Seth and I almost cannot stand the wait to see his little face! The whole experience is quite unreal, but so magical! I am going to post a few of my favorite pictures from the photo shoots from this month as well as baby Grey's room! Hope you enjoy! Hopefully I will have new photos of Grey by my next post!

This weekend we had a baby shower for Baby Grey! Mia put everything together and it was sooooo wonderful! Decor was great, food was great (especially the lemoncello cupcakes!), people were great and so were the gifts! Devin made an awesome baby cake and Mia had all the cute mason jars with pictures of me, Seth and the belly inside them. There was also a clothes line to hang all the cute outfits for Grey on! We just need to get started on completing Grey's room now! With the move, teaching summer school, photography etc. we have not had time to get his room finished! Now that we have actual baby things to put in it I guess we better get to work! Thank you to everyone who came and helped out! Dad- thanks for letting us use your house! We really appreciate it! Mia- thanks for hosting such and awesome shower! I had a blast!!!!

This weekend was somewhat eventful...we attempted to go to a movie with Mark and Mia Saturday night after church, and left because tickets were sold out... Seth and I got a few movies from RedBox which our selections proved more successful than last time! Kim came by on Sunday afternoon to check out the house and show me the baby shower invites. We put Roo and Domino outside while she was over, however someone decided to start shooting fireworks in the street while they were outside (Domino is TERRIFIED of noises and lets not forget we live in the "upperclass getto"...so naturally fireworks would be shot during the middle of a Sunday afternoon!) Well Seth kept hearing something at the door and after a while he went to check it out and low and behold, Domino was at the FRONT door! Poor dog wanted in so bad that she had managed to escape the 6 foot privacy fence because no one would let her in through the back door so she decided to march herself to the front until someone LET HER IN! If you know Domino, this is amazing that she did not just run off, especially since we are in a new place! Needless to say, Seth and I were cracking up that she had somehow managed to get out and knew to come scratch on the front door!

Later that afternoon I came up with a few ideas for pictures of me, Seth and the growing belly and I had Mia capture them for us....she did awesome! We went down to the River Market and had some fun goofing off but getting some good pics in of our little family! Ended the night at the movies with Mark and Mia, which were not crowed this time...saw Grown Ups, which was really funny!

Stuart Wedding!

So this weekend I had the opportunity to take pictures of Heather and Mickey's wedding and it was SO. MUCH. FUN!!!! Not only was I able to get some great pictures but the couple, family, wedding and reception was just so fun and awesome to get to capture! Mia was my backup photographer of course and our cheeks hurt from laughing so hard, especially at the reception! We set up a photo booth station with a ton of props for people to have fun with and man did they have fun! Heather especially! (I think she spent most of her time at the photo booth dressing up and dressing others up for photos instead of getting caught up in the hustle and bustle of the reception!) Needless to say it was so funny and great to see everyone having a good time! Thank you Heather and Mickey for letting me be a part of your special day and thanks to Mia for helping me out! You all are awesome!

Domino & Roo

This morning I played around with the dogs and decided to take some new pictures of them before I headed off to teach today! Seth and I just gave them haircuts 2 nights ago so Roo looks a little choppy, but give her a few weeks and she'll look normal! Ha! Ha!