And Two Shall Become One...

It's official! Kolby and Meredith are MARRIED! It was an absolutely beautiful day and perfect ceremony. They were married in front of a gorgeous waterfall underneath an arbor Meredith's daddy built. Instead of the traditional bride and groom on top of the wedding cake, theirs had a bird's nest with two "love birds." Kolby's groom cake was a tree stump with a heart "carved" into it with their initials. So. absolutely. perfect. I got to dance with my sweet Daddy to "My Girl" and he out danced me once again! I kept thinking the whole night that I would never be able to soak up all the happiness that surrounded our family. So many memories. It truly was a picture perfect day. Parker was pumped to shreds over the whole thing. He was wound up! It was quite a task keeping him out of all the beautiful waterfalls and ponds that surrounded the wedding site. Joshua and I barely got to eat, much less take pictures...so I only have a few! Parker managed to break off one of the flower arrangements, squish a tomato all over Mamaw's dress, and catch himself on fire. Yes. Fire. They had small incense sticks in the ground around the tent to keep the bugs away. Joshua found Parker straddling one saying "Da-Da Hot!" I look over to see Joshua "putting Parker out" on the ground. He spent the rest of the evening with a lovely burnt hole in his suit pants...but it didn't slow him down! (He was fine by the way...no serious burns) Parker seemed to get more dances with the beautiful bride than anyone else and showed off some pretty sweet moves. Oh what a night!!! Can't wait to see more pictures and can't wait for the Byrds to get home from their honeymoon! We miss them already!!!

Our Reason to Relay

Spalding County hosts a Relay for Life event every year. Relay is designed to raise money for the American Cancer Society. It is always a HUGE event with lots of teams from the school system, churches, and local businesses. I served for 3 years as Team Captain for my school. This year I was simply a "team member" since I work part-time, but this year was far different than the past...the cause was extremely close to home. Every year they have a Survivor Lap to start the event where cancer survivors and their caregivers walk around the track being cheered on by everyone present. So many people affected by this horrible disease....suddenly they were all more than just faces passing by...

At dark, they turn the lights off at the track and the event is lit by hundreds of luminaries in honor and in memory of those who have battled cancer. Joshua and I sat by the bag we purchased in honor of Daddy during this ceremony. While we were sitting there, three ladies were walking by, stopping every few feet. When they got closer, we realized they were praying over each bag. As they lifted up my Daddy by name, I couldn't help but be overcome with emotion. They have never met him, never met me...they were complete strangers...yet they prayed for the three things that Daddy has asked us to pray: that he Glorify God and be strong in the Lord, that he would be a blessing to others, and finally for a miracle. As those sweet ladies moved on around the track, I just sat there and praised God for simple reminders that He is there. He is with us. He is in Control. Our Hope, our Joy, Our Everything is in HIM.

We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure.... Hebrews 6:19

Swinging, Strawberries, and Summer Coming Soon!

Hold on to your hats...this post is filled with lots of fun things! We've been pretty busy lately with school winding down, warm weather, and a growing belly! (on Mommy of course!)

First of all, Parker got his birthday present 4 months early!! (as if he even knows he has a birthday at this point in life...how long can we claim that one?) Anyway, he got a BIG BOY swing set! And he LOVES it! We paid the extra money for the company to come and assemble the massive structure. So worth it. I laughed out loud when they unpacked the truck and our yard was covered in pieces of wood, all in different sizes and shapes. Joshua and I would still be standing there looking at the pile. That extra money more than likely saved our marriage. We went to Connell Farms to pick strawberries. Granmamma and Grandaddy came to help too. Parker loved it! We now have a freezer full of yummy strawberries for the summer! Mother's Day. My last as a mommy of one! Best picture of Parker and Granmamma EVER!!!!

School is out for summer in less than 3 weeks...and we are excited to say the least! We have our sonogram the first week of June. Hopefully, Baby Todd will cooperate and we will know if Parker will have a brother or sister! Next weekend will be busy with Uncle Kolby and Aunt Meredith's Wedding! What a happy day that will be! Stay tuned for pics!

Happy Birthday Mamaw!

Today is Mamaw's birthday! We love her soooo much!

We surprised her and Papaw this week by "just showing up" in Rabun County. It was a quick trip, but so much fun!

Rainy Day Fun

We are on Spring Break this week! Today was a rainy, cloudy, dreary day...so we headed to the Atlanta Children's Museum this morning for some family fun! Parker loved it! The very first thing he saw when we walked in was a life-size John Deere tractor. He was so excited! He would have stayed at that exhibit the entire time if we had let him. Then, it was on to the fishing pond where he put into practice all those skills Papaw's been teaching him!

You could crawl under the waterfall and peep up through the pond! How fun!
There was a tree house that you could climb in and then slide down. Daddy had to help Parker maneuver through this one. When it came to some of the tunnels, Daddy said he "wasn't as little as he used to be."
Who doesn't love digging in sand?! And this was "moon sand." You could pack it, sculpt it, and it didn't stick to your hands! (It is also non-toxic, I learned...since Parker ate a little.)
Making his Granmamma proud! Cultivating a garden.This exhibit was really for "big kids" but Parker stayed here the longest! It was like a giant Kinex set where you could put PVC pipe together and make things. Joshua and I watched in awe as Parker figured it out by himself and actually used all the pieces to make the pipes connect. The other kids just ran by this exhibit and Parker played for 30 minutes! Engineer maybe?!

The "Fundamentally Food" exhibit was like a kiddie size Farmer's Market. Parker loaded up his cart with various fruits, some vegetable oil, an eggplant and some Peanut Butter (which is funny since he's never had any!) And then he took off! He LOVED pushing the cart around.

They had a cool exhibit where you could put balls into different locations and move them with pulleys or watch them roll down a chute. Parker didn't seem to care where they went...he just wanted to get the balls!

Whataya Have?! Whataya Have?! Parker's first visit to the Varsity! And he ate EVERYTHING on his plate!
After a fun morning of play and a yummy lunch...we were all pretty tired!
*Notice the new Elmo doll Parker scored from the Museum gift shop. He saw it on the way out and starting yelling "Bell bow! Bell Bow please!" So, Daddy (big softie) caved in and bought the ridiculously expensive thing...but he said it was worth it when Parker gave him a hug, looked at him and said "Tane too Da Da." (which is Parker for Thank you, Daddy!)

What a fun Rainy Day! So thankful for my sweet, precious family!

French Fries are a Vegetable...right?

Just this week I am feeling "back among the living." The past month has been pretty rough. I've battled severe nausea, dead-dog tiredness, and several pity parties. But, the miracle week 12 has finally arrived and I'm starting to feel like a human again. So, please forgive me for my absence of updates. (and prepare for update overload below)

Since I've been feeling quite awful and cooking seemed to make it worse, we've been frequenting the drive-thru window lately. Yesterday, I pulled up to the bank window to cash a check and Parker begins yelling at the lady from the back seat "Fry Fry! Fry Fry!!!" (which is Parker talk for french fries). Hmmmm......they do count as a veggie.....right?

My fantastic hubby has been up to some awesome stuff lately! He was recently named STAR teacher for Spalding High school and then won at the district level as well! This is quite an honor as the STAR teacher is selected by a student. The student with the highest SAT score in the school selects the teacher that he/she feels has impacted them the most. The STAR student was Elizabeth Turner, who is absolutely precious. So, so, so proud!

Then, he completed the ING Half-Marathon in March beating his previous time. He and Uncle Tim ran together. Joshua finished in 2 hours and 26 mins. and Uncle Tim finished just after him at 2 hours and 28 mins.

I am about 12 weeks along now in this pregnancy. We had a sonogram at about 8 weeks and saw the heartbeat...which was 175....way faster than Parker's. And I wasn't this sick with him......hmmmmm.

Parker is talking up a storm now, repeating almost anything you say. AND...he is FINALLY saying Mamma! Oh, it is the most precious sound ever! He LOVES to be outside and would live out there if we let him. His personality is coming out and it is quite funny. The video below is him imitating Joshua's laugh. We were eating dinner and Joshua laughed and then Parker did too! It was too funny.

Hopefully, I will be updating more often now that I'm not spending all my time in the bathroom!

What You Looking At?

What are you looking at? My new shirt? Oh...yeah. Big News.

Surprise!!! We were SHOCKED to say the least! But, we know that this is a part of God's Sovereign Plan! Baby Todd is due to arrive around the end of October. Parker will turn TWO in August. Needless to say...we will be busy.