William Lately...

William is changing everyday right before my very own eyes. I love watching him grow into a little person with the sweetest, funniest, most loving personality. I wish I could record every moment of every single day so I will forever have these precious moments engrained in my memory.

He's getting on a better schedule at night. Grant usually takes the first feeding "shift" which falls anywhere from 8pm - 12am. Then he'll usually wake up again between 2-3 and then again between 5-6. Occasionally he'll have a 4 hour stretch but he's usually up every 3 hrs. at night to eat. We give him 4oz. of breast milk with a scoop of formula to thicken it up. We did call the pediatrician this past week because he's been spitting up more than usual so now he takes Zantac twice a day. He is easy to put back down after night feedings, and I usually bring him to bed with me after the 5-6am feeding for some quality cuddle time. At night we swaddle him but keep his arms out because he doesn't like to be that restrained :)

He has really started smiling intentionally and it just melts my heart. The best smiles I get are in the middle of the night when I go get him out of his crib for a feeding or in the morning when we play on his activity mat. The majority of the smiles I catch are on my iPhone so I'll have to upload some of those later. 

 I definitely think he knows who his mommy is which is quite possibly the best feeling ever ;)

 William had a lunch date with his beautiful Aunt Lee Lee yesterday. 

 His favorite sleep position

Some other milestones the past couple weeks are finding his hands and really tracking things with his eyes. Whenever he's hungry his hands are practically down his throat and he makes the funniest panting noise while shaking his head ferociously back and forth. It is hilarious!!! He has a rather dramatic sneeze and cough that usually follows with a long "oooohhhhh" in a high pitched squeaky voice. We call it his girly noise.

I'm thinking the one trait he's going to have of mine are my eyes, but I have yet to capture his baby blues on camera. His eyes are always so dark in the pictures! Maybe I need a photography lesson?!

My peanut butter pie :)

Everyone that meets him is surprised that he's only 7 weeks old because he's quite the little chunker, and I LOVE me a fat baby. He gets so excited about eating!

A Dalbey, Derby Wedding

This past weekend, Grant and I headed to Lexington, KY for Megan and Jason's wedding. That's right....JUST Grant and I! My parents came up to Birmingham and graciously gave of their time, energy, and sleep to keep lil' William. Tears were shed by this mommy on Friday morning when we left Birmingham, but once we got a couple of hours outside of town, I finally got it together! Enough about me...on to the beautiful bride and handsome groom. The detail and thought that went into this wedding was like none that I've ever seen. Megan's amazing creative talents were apparent at every turn. It was phenomenal.

The weekend started with a tour at the Woodford Reserve distillery, followed by a fabulous dinner with incredible decor which was all designed by the bride herself!

Me and the beautiful, glowing bride

The beginning of bourbon!

Bourbon barrels

Adorable table decorations. Megan made the glasses. Shout out to Dishique! She and her mother-in-law sewed the precious seer sucker napkins that held the menu for the evening. 

Glasses made by Meg that we got to keep as a souvenir 

Each table was named after a past Kentucky Derby winner. 

The guests of honor. 

Place cards.

This was taken at the after rehearsal cocktail party hosted by the Dothan crew. It was at a bar called Hugo's. So much fun!

On Saturday morning, we all met in the bridal suite around 10 for hair and make-up before loading the bus at the hotel around 2pm to take pictures around Lexington. One of the stops included the Keeneland horse track, which was really neat to see. I can't wait to see the photographer's pictures. 

 Virginia and Meg

 I forgot to slip on my shoes before the picture...typical.

 Some of Meg's college friends

 You'll notice a very special YaYa is missing in this picture. Ragan's grandfather, Daddy Hall, passed away on Wednesday and his funeral was Saturday. I had the privilege of knowing her grandfather and he was an amazing family man that all fathers/grandfathers should aspire to be like. Ragan's cheerful, witty, fun spirit was certainly missed at the wedding, but she was right where she needed to be in Dothan with her family remembering her precious grandfather. 

 Delicious pistachio cake

 Megan wrote EVERY SINGLE GUEST a personalized note that was on the back of their name card. She is one of the most thoughtful, sincere people I know. What other bride would take the time and energy to do something like that?!?

 The beautiful couple

 Father of the bride...the one and only Pat Dalbey - love him!

 They danced to a slow Michael Buble song before breaking it DOWN to the tootsie roll. Hilarious and so Meg!

It was such a fun weekend, and I am so honored to have been a part of it! I missed my baby so much but I knew he was getting spoiled rotten in Birmingham by his Juju, Aunt Birdie, and Papa Steve :) I like to think he was excited when we were reunited Sunday afternoon, but I don't think he even realized his mama was gone. 

Weekend with my Boys

Grant, William, and I had a great weekend just hanging out as a little family of 3. Friday night we went to Newk's for dinner, and then came home and hunkered down for one of William's marathon eating episodes, which usually starts around 6pm and goes until about 1am. It's pretty bizarre because he will eat and eat and eat.... it's quite exhausting for mommy and daddy. He was such a big boy and slept in his crib for the first time on Friday night. To be completely honest, I was a little sad not having him in our room, but it's amazing how all of those little baby noises can keep you awake.

We slept-in Saturday morning before doing some serious cleaning around the apartment. I consider myself a neat freak, but it's crazy how quickly this place can look like a train wreck with a little one. It's so helpful to have an extra set of hands on the weekend. It's hard to get anything done during the week when it's just William and me, but I know eventually it will get easier.

We spent Saturday afternoon in the shade at the park. It was such a beautiful day, and William was very alert the entire time we were there. Saturday night we took it easy at home and braced ourselves for another night with our little night owl.

Our plan was to make it to church this morning but that did not happen! We didn't get moving until around 10. We ate lunch with Aunt Birdie, made a Target run, and then Skype'd with the Davis clan in Texas. We are soooo excited for their visit at the end of June. Here are a couple of pics from bath time this morning. This child LOVES a bath!

Grant and I are really excited about heading to Lexington, KY this weekend for my close friend Megan's wedding. My parents are coming up to Birmingham to keep William. I know it will be very difficult to leave him, but he will be loved and pampered all weekend by his grandparents and Aunt Birdie. I just hope they can survive the nights!

Beach Baby

We had a wonderful time at the beach for Memorial Day weekend. Obviously, William didn't get the full beach experience, but I think he enjoyed his time hanging out on the porch soaking in the salty air. My mom bought a pack & play for William to sleep in at the beach and he slept really great in it so we immediately set ours up when we got home but haven't had quite as much luck :) Grant and I are really trying to figure out what William "needs" to sleep longer stretches at night. I guess time will tell. Warning: this post will contain lots of pictures.

 Trying out his pack & play for the 1st time. Looks pretty comfy and content to me!

 Ready for a day in the sun even though he never left the screen porch.

 I could just eat him up!

Even though William didn't do any boating on this trip, Grant and I went out on the boat several times and even went to Shell Island for an afternoon swim with my dad. My mom pretty much babysat William for the majority of the trip which was a great break for me. But, I must say, I did miss him when I wasn't there :(

Uncle Quin hosted a fabulous Memorial Day party at his house on Saturday night, so we spent the evening at his condo and William met LOTS of people. He was the star of the night!

 Baby Grant 

 Juju takes such good care of her baby boy.

 1st family picture since leaving the hospital. I can only imagine these pics will get more and more challenging!

 This is what William does 95% of the time we are out and about, and I'm not complaining!

 Love those pursed lips. 

 Sitting with Douglas and his girlfriend, Kayla, at Quin's party

Sunday night, William got to experience Captain Anderson's, a Panama City restaurant, that our family has been frequenting since I was a baby.  My parents have memories of setting me under the table while they dined on delicious seafood. Some of the same waitresses are still there today. I didn't take any pictures because I didn't want to look like a tacky tourist but I wish I would have!

 Porch time with Juju

 Family picture before Captain Anderson's :)

This picture was NOT staged! My mom just happened to catch us :)

We are headed back to the beach for the 4th of July and hopefully William will get to go on his first boat ride then! My mom already bought an infant lifejacket for him to wear. It was a wonderful weekend, and one that I will never forget.