Celebrating Baby Boy

I was so very excited when Justin's mom and sister offered to host a shower for baby boy Stinson, or Tiny Tim as we affectionately call him (thanks to Hadley). I thoroughly appreciated taking some time just to focus on this sweet new life.  And getting "blue" presents, as opposed to the pink that I've been so accustomed to for the past couple of years, was so much fun!

Jill and Cathy's diaper tricycle.  Is this not too cute?  They said the handle bars were definitely the trickiest part.  I think a lot of laughter was involved when they were putting this together.  Love this!

Jill and Cathy hosted the brunch at Hall Place Bed and Breakfast, here in Glasgow.  It is a beautiful, historical building built in 1852.  We were able to tour the downstairs of the B & B, oohing and aahing over the antiques and collectibles.  Justin and I love our current home and how it meets the needs of our family, but we do miss the character of the 1902 home we lived in.  That's something I really appreciate.  

 Although the food was delicious, the time itself was so very special to me.  Six weeks exactly to D-Day.  A pause in these loooong 7 1/2 months thus far, to celebrate baby boy and anticipate his arrival.  We had been telling Hadley that I would be leaving for a little while to celebrate baby brother.  She said, "you gonna sell baby brother?"  Whoa, sweetie...no black market here. We practiced the word "celebrate" for awhile;

The beautiful quilt Justin's grandmother, Ma, made.  Notice it even won a blue ribbon at a quilt show!  Little man is already a winner!  Actually, the quilt she made for Hadley before she was born also won a blue ribbon.  Oh how I love handmade gifts.  The time and effort people put in to them is so very special.

After gift-opening, we enjoyed a delicious cake from Glasgow's finest:  Sweetheart Bakery.  It was heavenly.

So thankful for these sweet ladies taking the time to celebrate Tiny Tim.  Words cannot begin to express how blessed I feel when I think about being a mommy to these two little lives.  So thankful for God's faithfulness!

³ Lo, children are an heritage of the Lord: and the fruit of the womb is his reward.

Psalm 127:3 (KJV)

Hadley's Big Girl Room

Getting baby boy's nursery ready has pretty much monopolized our time around the house recently.  However, I want to always remember Hadley's first big girl room.  When we moved in to our new house, late last October, we went ahead and transitioned Hadley to her big girl room.  After all, she would be turning 2 in just a few short weeks.  It was sad letting go of her baby bedding and decor, but exciting to plan for that next chapter of her little life, too.  And while we were still owning two homes, "design on a dime" became my mantra.  But I love a good challenge when it comes to decorating, so this was right up my alley!

I loved all of the bedding sets out of Pottery Barn Kids, but not the price tags.  I actually found this quilt online at JCPenney and loved it!  I found the full-sized bed and dresser at a local consignment shop. 

The two pieces did not even match one another and were a light wood color that I just didn't care for.  After having them painted a crisp white, I love how they stand out against the purple walls. 

 Hadley's Easter basket doubles as a book holder on her dresser. The lampshade that couldn't match the bedding any better came from consignment.  I painted the canvas above the dresser and the Art teacher, at my school, was kind enough to write the verse from Psalms for me.  The antique silver cup was actually a bridesmaid's gift to me from my precious college friend, Brittany.   

On this wall, I framed scrapbook paper that coordinated with the bedding and cut out daisies, which cover the quilt.  I put a button in the middle of each daisy.  Simple, cheap, and adds color!

I found this end table at another consignment store and loved that its top was in the shape of the flowers on her quilt.  I spray painted an old oil lamp the hot pink color from her bedding.  Love how the shelf underneath provides just enough storage. 

A homemade message board.  I bought a set of twin sheets, from Target, that actually match the ones on Hadley's bed.

 I covered the message board and made her curtain from the sheet set.  I think it helps tie the room together, too.  Still want to jazz the curtains up a bit, but that's a project for another day.   

I found this rug at consignment and Granna and Grandad got Hadley the bean bag for her 2nd birthday.  She will sit on it and read her books for a really long time, when the mood strikes her. 

I purchased this old wooden crate from an antique store and spray painted it hot pink, like the lantern.  With it being at the foot of her bed, she has great access to the books.

A pink, green, and white paper lantern hanging in one corner of the room.

Sweet girl, post-bath, blankey in hand and ready for our nightime stories.  We have added to her room's decor, little by little, over the past few months.  I still have a couple of furniture pieces that I will be on the prowl for at consignment and yard sales, but overall I am really pleased with our progress and feel like it captures Hadley's personality.  I certainly want to remember this sweet stage of her life!

A Whale of a Time

On Saturday, we headed to Auburn to celebrate my nephew, Levi's, first birthday.  My creative sis-in-law, Angie, has been planning his super-cute "preppy whale" party for months and it lived up to ALL the hype! 

A house full of people gathered at my parent's house to celebrate the little guy's first year.  He is definitely loved!  Hadley and Levi sporting their whale outfits.  Hadley is just glad that Levi can walk without the assistance of a walker, now.  She was scared to death of him when he'd get in it and take off after her.  It was hysterical to watch, though!  She was so traumatized that she already asks me if Little Brother will use a walker, as well.

The inflatable was a huge hit with the kiddos.  They bounced and rolled all over the place for the longest time. 

Hailey, Addison, and Hadley pushing their baby dolls in the double stroller.  Hadley is obsessed with her babies right now.  It amazes us to watch and listen to her as she talks with her babies.  She says so many things that I say to her and just mimics the mommy role so much.  Truly a priceless stage!

The rain was kind enough to subside just in time for the party.  It had literally rained all day, but after the drought we have had, we can't wish the rain away!  Hadley likes to say the blessing before our meals and now she even adds "Let us thank him for the food AND THE RAIN" to her prayer. 

Addison and Hadley sitting on the pool's edge.  They had a ball getting in and out, in and out.  I think there was more grass in the pool than water, by the end of the night.

Uncle Bradley gave Hadley a big push down the slip-n-slide. 

What a fabulous time we had celebrating little LeLe's sweet life.  To date, I have 3 nieces and one nephew; all of whom I adore.  Levi has added so much to our family already and we are so thankful for him!  Happy Birthday, Levi Wayne!!

Habegger's Amish Market

For several years, now, I have been quite intrigued with the lifestyle of the Amish.  It started when I got in to various Christian-fiction Amish series, but in our region of Kentucky, Amish are moving to our area at rapid rates.  We have great farm land, which the self-sufficient, peaceful people need.  One thing we love to do during the summer is take our annual field trip to Habegger's Amish Market.  And now that the heat wave has finally broken, we took full advantage of the milder temps, and did just that.   

We had prepared Hadley to see some horse and buggies on the roads in this area.  Unfortunately, "buggies" became "boogies" to her, so we had to really enunciate b-u-g-g-i-e-s. 

A play version of a horse and buggy....

A real horse and buggy.  The open air carts must be so much cooler this time of year.  Kinda like a convertible, maybe?  Oh, I'm such an Englisher;)

 I love all the old-fashioned candies and specialty items they have in their store.  I always feel like I'm back in Little House on the Prairie time.  I go back and forth, if I was supposed to live during that time or in the 1950's.  Only an 80 or so year time difference.  No big deal, right? 

We always make sure we make it to Habegger's in time for lunch.  Their fresh deli sandwiches are out of this world.  Was my barbecue ham sandwich thick or what?   The homemade peach ice cream isn't so bad either.

After lunch we headed down some country roads surrounding the market, where so many of the Amish family farms are located.  Many families have businesses selling produce or hand-made furniture.  I love to watch them working/preparing their fields.  My grandfather says it's just exactly like he farmed as a small boy in the 30's and 40's, with their equipment pulled by horses.  This church doubles as a school house.  The hitching post to the left in the picture was one of many around the building.  I would have loved to have taught in a one room school house.

A simple way of life that is so fascinating to me.  Sadly, I would probably only make it about 24 hours before needing electricity!  But in this ever-changing world, the traditionalist in me does admire their desire to hold on to to the way things used to be.  All in all, a perfect day in Amish Country!

Happy Birthday, America!

Our July 4th tradition for the past few years has been to go to Justin's Uncle Jonathan (Jon Jon as he is affectionately called) and Aunt Lorie's house.  Their home is surrounded by gorgeous farm land and you can actually see fireworks, from miles away, in their backyard.  They graciously invite the entire Stinson crew over to swim in their pool, grill out, and watch fireworks.  We look forward to it every year! 

In this record-breaking weather that we are having, the pool is the place to be.  Our little swimmer was so parched that she just had to have a "pri sun" as she calls them. 

 

 Justin looks for any excuse he can get to get Hadley with a ball in her hand.  I know he would love a little basketball player, but we're not so sure about her ball-playing future just yet. 

Due to the major drought and oppressive heat we have had here, there were fireworks bans all around us.  But the kids still got to enjoy sparklers and some other smaller fireworks.  We had one to malfunction, sending everyone scurrying in different directions to avoid a direct hit.  In one area, a small fire actually started.  But brave Logan came to the rescue stomping it out before it spread!

Cousin Kaylin (KK) helped Hadley with a couple of extra-long sparklers.  As hot and sweaty as we all were, we had a wonderful time being with one another and celebrating our nation's birthday.  Hadley loves to sing Happy Birthday to anyone she can think of so we talked about it being America's birthday.  She sang "Happy Birthday, America" to everyone multiple times throughout the afternoon and evening.  It was adorable.

The Sunday after the 4th, brought us to my home church, in Auburn, for yet another 4th celebration.  I just love a good church social, especially during the summer months. 

I love getting to see the church family who played a part in raising me, spiritually, as well as my dozens of "actual" family members who attend New Friendship Baptist Church.  We started the evening with a prayer for the food and for rain, which was actually being forecasted!  At New Friendship, meals are held in the Fellowship Hall, which is where mine and Justin's wedding reception was held.  At one point, Hadley climbed up on the stage to play with some other kids.  It was neat to think that was where Justin and I had cut our cake and shared punch with one another just 6 1/2 years ago.  Now our little girl was playing on that stage. 

Sweets for my sweet!  Briley took good care of Hadley, as she always does when we get to see her.  I tell her she should be a teacher when she grows up, but she wants to be a fashion designer.  I say she should compromise and design children's clothes ;)

 

After the delicious potluck meal, most of the kiddos headed outside to the inflatables.  Briley took good care of Hadley during this time, jumping and sliding with her.

Hadley is trying so hard to smile for the photo op, but really just wants to get back on the inflatables.

My hubby and I.

After the fierce rain (Praise the Lord!) brought us indoors, Hadley landed in the nursery to play with the toys.  We had a wonderful night getting to fellowship with friends and family, thanking God for the freedoms in our great country.  Happy Birthday, America!!