Saturday, June 26, 2010

Last Swim Class

In typical "Brooke Fashion," I got a little confused this morning.  Whenever we got to Perry's last swim class, I realized that apparently, last week was his last swim class for this session.  Not only was I bummed because I didn't take the time to be all sentimental about it last week, but we had just driven nearly an hour into town, at 8:00am for nothing.  Thankfully, I had my camera in my purse and Mom had a pretty cute "play outfit" for Perry in her car, so instead of the trip to Birmingham going totally wasted, we decided to head over to the Botanical Gardens for a practice photo shoot.















Wednesday, June 23, 2010

Later 'Gator!

Yesterday, we celebrated Perry's 13th month birthday by doing what he loves best....Riding the Gator with his Grandaddy!!

We don't need a map, Grandaddy.
Just go where I point.



This is a vine that Perry stops to play with every time 
him and Grandaddy go on a gator ride.
Grandmommy and Grandaddy lovingly have named it
"Perry's Vine."


I picked flowers for Grandmommy!



Giving my flowers 
(in the form of the only leaf left)
to my Grandmommy!!


A few odd and ends in our world:

  • Yesterday, Perry also ate a flower, then gagged on it.... all before I could get to him.
  • He had pizza for breakfast and Poppy Seed Chicken for Dinner.
  • We took Otis on a long walk, just the three of us, for the first time....Otis is our big, STRONG rescue dog.  It was challenging, definitely a workout.... a neighbor actually laughed at us and questioned who was walking whom, but very fun walk nonetheless.
  • Perry and I went to the local farmer's market yesterday afternoon and bought some beautiful flowers to plant.  Then, we went home and played in the dirt.
  • Yesterday, I literally turned my back for thirty seconds to say something to Justin, then turned back around and Perry was ON TOP of our kitchen table!!
  • On that same note, tonight, while I was in the bathroom upstairs, Perry was right beside me in his room playing with his hippo chair.  When I realized he was really quiet, I peeked in expecting to see him snuggling with his hippo like he typically does.  However, I didn't see him, but I DID see an open bedroom door which leads DIRECTLY to the stairs, and I needless to say, I PANICKED!!!  I screamed "PERRY!!!!" and ran through the door to see him lying on his tummy, scooting halfway down the stairs, peering up at me with the sweetest little smile like he was so proud that he knew how to safely scoot down the stairs.  Seriously??!!! CAN I SAY HEART ATTACK???!!! And yes- Perry had gotten the "not so well latched, that Daddy will have to fix ASAP" door opened by himself!
  • I have officially learned not to let my eyes of off my child even for a split second...and I've warned everyone we know to watch him like a hawk.  Our little bitty went from crawling to cirque de soleil in a matter of days it seems!
  • I'm not sure if I have a baby boy or a monkey in my house.
  • Today we went to eat at Hamburger Heaven with Justin for lunch.  It was lots of fun and of course, Perry had to get in on some of the french fry action.
  • We also went shopping today and Perry picked out several new outfits from Lullabies... appropriately enough, one with smocked monkeys on it.
I feel the need to steal the slogan from the popular series, "Kate Plus Eight".... It might be a crazy life, but it's OUR life!  :)  

Saturday, June 19, 2010

Water Baby!

Perry is by far a true water baby!  He started "swimming" when he was still in his Mommy's tummy.  This morning, we started the day with Perry's typical swim lesson.  However, I really wanted to try out the new camera, so Justin swam with him solo.  It was so much fun watching Perry and his Daddy interact and play around.

Mommy's sweet boys



Ummm- this doesn't exactly look like swim practice to Mommy

Then, after swim class, we darted over to a friend's house for our monthly water-babies play date.  Unlike our typical play dates, each friend brought a yummy treat to eat,  Perry's friend, Tighe's dad, grilled hotdogs and veggies, and we decided to let the daddies in on all the fun.  


A pool full of friends




Playing on the noodle...looking a wee bit sleepy



Mommy's boys



Liam eating a noodle



Harrison eating a veggie puff...
 and making sure he doesn't run out anytime soon!



Miss Eva Kate intently watching Harrison eat his veggie puffs



Miss Sophia being her little princess self!! 



Miss Curran sportin' her sun hat



Miss Abby Pate rockin' her bikini!



Perry and Daddy doing what they do best!
Who am I kidding?  What I do best too! :)
Perry especially loved the watermelon with fruit dip.



An attempt at a group shot.
This is right before the major meltdown, 
led by none other than yours truly! 




And this is when the four foot separation anxiety hit full force.


Friday, June 18, 2010

The Simple Truth

Yesterday, Perry and I met up with our good friend Betsy for a yummy lunch at Out Takes in Homewood. Though he slept for a solid eight hours the night before in his own Big-Boy-Bed (aka- his crib), he was still desperately ready for his morning nap by about 10am.  I tried for about fifteen minutes to rock him to sleep, knowing the whole time that it was not going to work.  Since we were not meeting Betsy until 12:30, I decided that I would just go ahead and put Perry in his car seat (since he typically goes right to sleep in it, if he's even remotely sleepy) and drive around until it was time to go in and eat, letting him take his nap in the car.  Well, my little turkey refused to go to sleep.  He rode in his car seat for a solid two hours looking like so:


Every ten minutes or so, whenever he would catch himself going to sleep, he would wave his arms in the air and scream and laugh to wake himself back up.  Then, it was right back to this precious little exhausted state.  Finally, 12:20 rolled around and we pulled up to Out Takes.  Fearing the tantrums that I felt sure were to be thrown given his exhausted self, I reluctantly put him in his stroller and went inside to eat.  We met Betsy, ordered our food, and I began to feed Mr. Perry.  He ate baby food peas and sweet potatoes, some of my fresh fruit, and some of my delicious Swiss Almond Chicken Salad... and of course he drank some sweet tea.  He was an absolutely cutie and got so many sweet compliments from several different strangers.  (I have to admit I could absolutely not believe how well behaved he was being, given how tired he was!)   

After about an hour we wrapped up lunch....and Perry wrapped up his good behavior.  I got him to the car and realized he was soaking wet, through pants and all.  (Yet another reason I can't believe he was behaving so well in the restaurant... and yes, at this point I felt like a bad mom.)  So I proceeded to change my little bitty.  And he proceeded to act like I had been fearing he might.  He threw such a fit, I literally could not get him changed.  My little dude's naked behind was flailing all about the cabin.  I reluctantly kept thinking about all of the passer by-ers looking our way and seeing Perry's little booty bouncing all around the car with me trying to catch and diaper it.  All I could think about was people looking in our car windows and thinking to themselves, "Wow.... "  Oh it was bad.  

Well, Perry finally got a dry booty and put in his car seat.  From then on out, he was pitiful/temper-tantrumy.  I gave him a bottle, which he threw across the car.  Not wanting to encourage this behavior, I turned around and gave him a very stern, "No Sir!"  Then, I picked up the bottle and did not give it back.  After getting in trouble, Perry poked out his little lip and gave a pathetic little, "boop, boop, boop, boop!"   with big crocodile tears rolling down his face.  Oh!  It broke my heart.  And the whole way home, Perry rode like so:



Even as extremely exhausted as he was by this point (approximately 1:30), he still refused to go to sleep on the hour long drive home.  Finally, we got to my Mom's house (I was so exhausted and frustrated with my parenting skills by this point) and I basically pleaded my case and said, "Please get the baby to go to sleep."  When after about another hour she also could not, we decided to try to put him in his stroller and walk the thirty minutes it would take to get to my Grandmommy's house.  Sadly, Mom and I ended up carrying Perry the whole way because he refused to sit in his stroller!  (Probably for fear of- gasp- falling asleep!!)  Needless to say, by the time we made it to my Grandmommy's house, I felt like the worst Mom on the planet.  No matter how hard I had tried, I could not get my baby to take a nap.  Seeing my desperation, my Grandmommy took Perry into the den with a bottle to rock.  And within two minutes flat Perry was asleep- at 4:30pm.  Inhale, Exhale.  Let it be said, that my Grandmommy is the best "baby/kid-person" I believe God has ever allowed to grace this planet, and without her, I would be so beyond lost.  

So in conclusion, I have learned a very simple truth.  Being a mom is at times difficult, scary, sad, bewildering, humbling, and sometimes even down right frustrating.  But being a Mommy is something I have dreamed of my entire life, and I could absolutely not imagine living life without my little bitty!!  I love him more than words can say .... And would you believe that after taking a three hour afternoon nap yesterday, Perry went back to sleep at 10:00 and slept all night long (until 8:45 this morning) in his Big-Boy-Bed!!!  Oh- the irony!!! :)

Wednesday, June 16, 2010

Super Size It!

In a world full of fast food, I am hooked.  Perry and I are friends with lots of different Mommies and their little ones.  When the topic turns to "what do you feed your baby?" I am always a little hesitant to speak up.  While everyone is talking about organic this and pureed that, these photographs are flashing through my mind.  My sweet little one enjoying his very first happy meal!  And yes- that is coke to drink!

My Very First Happy Meal!




This French Fry Is Yummy In My Tummy!




Good Ole' Coka Cola!  
Mommy Is Just Asking For Me To Bounce Off The Walls!

Monday, June 14, 2010

Morris Avenue Photo Shoot

Photography has always been an interest of mine, and lately, I’ve been trying to improve my shot.  For fun, this past Saturday after Perry's swim class, Justin let me take him and Perry to historical Morris Avenue in Birmingham to conduct my first "official photo shoot".  Although Justin was very adamant about not letting me climb on the train tracks to shoot, and I still need lots of practice, I still feel like I got some very cute and memorable shots.  













































Friday, June 11, 2010

And To All A Good Night

Perry in His Big Boy Bed!! (aka crib)

I know it's a bad picture, but it's a miracle picture.  It's a day... well, night I thought would never come.  This past Tuesday, I was able to rock Perry to sleep, put him in his crib, and he slept until 5am!!!  It was utterly amazing!  For the first time since we purchased it, I was able to truly enjoy the vastness of our King-sized bed.  Ahhhh- sleep is SO underrated!!!  Since then, I have been able to (persistently) get Perry to go to sleep in his own bed by rocking him approximately an hour to an hour and a half.  I'm hoping it will get easier to put him down and that he will slowly start to sleep all night in his own room.  

Tuesday, June 8, 2010

Happy Birthday Mr. Perry!! .... Again!


Happy Birthday Mr. Perry, again!  Today was such an exciting day for Perry and me.  We celebrated his first birthday (for the third time) with many of Perry’s sweet friends.  We had so much fun letting the babies play together, reminiscing about their younger months, and eating some yummy food and some pretty silly ‘monkey’ cupcakes that Mom and I decorated.

Waiting for My Friends to Arrive


To open up the party, we had a play area set up under one of the big trees in the front yard with Perry’s new lookout tree house, a picnic table, and lots of fun, little toys on several quilts.   While the babies played and checked each other out, all the Mommies were able to do some quick catching up.   Though the breeze felt really good in the shade, I think the bugs were starting to realize we had lots of little ‘sweeties’ outside and they decided to get in on the fun too.  So, we decided to move our party into the house.

Playing in My Lookout Treehouse



Enjoying the Pallet Mommy Made for Me and My Friends



Harrison and Me Chatting



My Friend Sophia and Her Mommy



Miss Curran Thought My Hammer Tasted Really Good!



Liam Was Content With His Thumb


Once inside, a few of the babies (but mostly my little Mr.) were getting a little fussy, so we decided it was time for cupcakes and lunch.  Perry wasn’t much for blowing out his candle, but he did reach for the flame, which momentarily scared me.  I quickly blew it out and Perry dove right in to his cupcake.  All the Mommies were glad to eat some delicious Chick-fil-A wraps, fruit, Edgar’s cheese straws, and chips and dip.  We also had ice cold water and lemonade to drink.  It really was what I would consider a fun, yummy, summer lunch. 

Yummy Food!



Yes- These are "monkey" cupcakes



"Blowing" Out My Candle


Perry enjoying his cupcake


After some yummy for his tummy, Perry was really excited to open up all of his birthday presents.  Once again, what sweet, sweet friends Perry has.  He got so many CUTE gifts, that he is going to LOVE playing with!!  They are all very, very special and fun!

Leo and Bella Were Wonderful Helping Perry Open His Gifts


Sadly, by this point it was time for everyone to go home and take naps.  Perry and I decided it would be fun to head up to Grammie and Grampie’s to go swimming.  However, by the time we got out of our subdivision, little bitty was sound asleep in his car seat. 

I feel so blessed that Perry and I have so many good, fun friends.  I can’t wait until our next play date in a few weeks so we can all have fun swimming together.

Our Best Attempt to Get a Picture of All the Little Ones
(Sweet Curran Had to Leave a Bit Early)



Mommy, Daddy, and Me After My Party

Our Adoption Timeline

  • June 19, 2011- We are officially "Paper Pregnant!" We have submitted our Waiting Child Application to Holt!
  • July 5, 2011- Submitted our formal Home Study Application to Villa Hope
  • September 6, 2011- Submitted all of our paperwork for our Home Study
  • October 8, 2011- Completed our First Home Visit
  • October 17, 2011- Completed our Second Home Visit
  • November 14, 2011- Home Study Approved
  • December 1, 2011- Filed our I600a
  • February 1, 2012- I600a Approval Letter
 
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