The Wiles Family

1st School Program

2012-01-03T09:19:00.001-05:00

Gray had his 1st ever school Christmas program and yes, by school I mean daycare. But like I've said before I think of it as school because he has learned and is learning so much everyday. I can't believe in a few short years he will be in REAL school. Crazy!

The program consisted of K2 - K4 and each class came out individually. The K-2 program was so precious and not just because Grayson was it. All the kids had little reindeer antlers on, a reindeer tail, hoofs, and a pink little nose.

Here's what it looks like and of course he had to be standing by his girlfriend, Addison.

* I faded out the other little girl because I don't know if her mom would appreciate it being on here without her permission even though some of the kids show in the videos below *

The children were supposed to say a little poem but I think more than half the class either a) didn't know it or b)where wondering why so many people were staring at them on stage and got a little nervous! What surprised me the most though was that not one of the kids cried up there! I figured there would be at least one breakdown but nope.... well, not in this class at least.

Here's a little snippet (and I mean snippet) of them walking in and the start of the poem. I ran out of room on my camera (which I could still kick my butt over) but at least I got a little bit taped. Watch Gray!

A few weeks before the the Christmas program Gray started singing "Jingle Bells" so I assumed that was the song they were practicing for the program but I was sadly mistakin'......

Instead they sang "Reindeer Pokie" (which was tooo cute) and was the reason why they wore the accessories.

This was cutest program and I can't wait till his spring program at school because I know it will be just as cute! This whole program was well put together and I applaud all the directors, teachers, and parents for making it happen.

Afterwards, they had a reception for everybody to attend and mingle with all the parents. In the following pictures please ignore the orange around Gray's mouth as he was going-to-town on some cheese puffs.

On a side note, I was really happy to see that the older class sang "Happy Birthday to Jesus" It warms my heart to know that there are people/places that are not taking Jesus out of everything. He is the reason for the season. This is the reason why we are looking into Northside Christian Academy for school for Gray.

Family Christmas Pictures

2012-01-02T17:23:00.001-05:00

We finally had family pictures taken a month or so ago for Christmas! This is bad to say but I don't remember the last time we had family pictures taken....with the whole family!

Alisha Rudd Photography was running a special; therefore, we made an appointment to have family pictures taken at the State House.....where the Occupy Columbia protesters where. We were keeping our fingers crossed, all the way up to our session date, that the occupiers would go home but to no avail. Luckily, they were not in our way like I thought they would be. They did; however, trash the state house grounds. Tents, garbage, food, blankets, etc. were scattered in front of the State House. In my opinion, it looked horrible and I would hate for visitors to see it like that. But I think everything has settled down a bit since then.

I wasn't sure how the pictures were going to turn out because none of the kids were cooperating. Abby decided she wanted to roll down a hill before the pictures and had a grass stain on her knee, Blain was swinging Grayson around and when she would have us in position to take a picture it seemed like all the kids would have "ants in their pants." I'm still not sure what was going on..........but the pictures turned out GREAT!! We took some serious ones and some funny ones and made some great memories.

See for yourself.....leave a comment if you would like. ;)

and there were many more.......

Like I said Alisha Rudd did an amazing job at capturing these memories and I will be forever grateful.

Giving Thanks

2011-12-01T14:47:00.001-05:00

for everything God has given me. I am so blessed beyond my wildest dreams. I have family and friends who are alway there for me, a husband who loves me unconditionally and who would do anything for me....who gets me more than anyone, stepchildren who were brought into my life for me to grow and for me to show them guidance and wisdom, and a son who is the most perfect little boy and the most undeserving gift from God. And let's not forget God himself as none of this would have been possible without him. I'll be honest, there are days where I think to myself "I'm going crazy!" or "I just need a little break from all the chaos" but I wouldn't change anything about my life (well besides some mistakes that were made but everyone makes mistakes and we have to move on from them). I've noticed though some people only give thanks on Thankgiving when we should be giving thanks everyday! You never know when your life will be cut short so we should all live our life like there is no tomorrow.

While this post was started around Thanksgiving and was supposed to be about our Thanksgiving (it is now January 2, 2012), I would like to post this link that breaks my heart and is something that will show people that tomorrow is not a promise. This horrible, unthinkable accident happened yesterday, on New Years Day. This particular family was on their way to church, the church my family attends when their life was forever changed. When you read this please pray for this family as they are mourning the loss of their 6 year old daughter and it is said that 3 of their other children are in ICU. Pray that God will give them the strength and courage to get thru this and for them to remember that God is wrapping his loving arms around them. Think about your family as this could have happened to anyone. Pray that people who decide to drink will remember this before deciding to get behind the wheel and drive. Pray for the guy, who is 26 years old, and is now being charged with felony DUI and will probably spend his life in prison. Your life can change in an instant so we need to be thankful every single day, not just on Thanksgiving.

With that in mind, I'll jump back to our Thanksgiving and say thanks for all the pictures Aunt Renee takes of Brandon and I's children. :)

We had another random photo shoot on Thanksgiving. Brandon's Aunt Renee is a photographer and owns Life is a Journey Photography, and very talented I may add. We know when we go to Elloree we will be taking pictures! You can never have too many pictures of your children! :)

He looks sweet and innocent doesn't he?!

I will be forever thankful of the gift God gave me of becoming a Mom....no matter how crazy he can drive me sometimes.

The Cowardly Lion

2011-11-02T13:16:00.002-04:00

.....well not so cowardly but everyone thought that he looked like the lion off the Wizard of Oz. What do you think?

Gray is the most outgoing, loving, talkative and lets not forget...rambunctious 2 year old; thereforeq... Halloween was rip-ROARing-fun! In my opinion, the perfect age for trick or treating is 2 1/2 (well, at least for now). Gray had so much fun...OK, OK...Mommy and Daddy had fun too! I just loved watching him become so inquisitive about everything. This was the first year in which Gray was really able to notice everything around him. He would point and say "look at dat cowns (clowns) butt!" or "he was scary." He would go right up to the houses and say "trick or treat!" And trust me it was said just like that...plain as day. He is just so smart and can say just about anything (I know I may be a little biased) but every where we go people will comment about how well he talks to be only 2 years old. And, as I've said before, he will probably get in trouble at school for talking so much but until then....talk on. He is definitely a miniture Brandon with not only his loquaciousness but also with his looks and being a very outgoing child.

We decided that we were going to go trick-or-treating with our friends Lacey and Ronnie and their little girl Mallory along with McKenzie and Jerry and their little ones, Lil Jerry and Bailey in their neighborhood, which was amazing. There was houses giving out cotton candy and snow cones...

Along with corn dogs....yes, you read right...corn dogs! I have never in my life heard of everyone giving out fried corn dogs but this one house did. Gray didn't get a corn dog because I just didn't know how I felt about that but apparently they were individually wrapped and he had the grease ready. Therefore, when a child wanted one he would unwrap it and fry it and ta da.....a child had his/her supper and could now munch on candy for the rest of the night. Very smart if you ask me! :)

I hope everyone had a wonderful Halloween and I can't wait till next year .... maybe Gray will be the Tin Man!

Only in South Carolina....

2011-10-17T13:00:00.001-04:00

would you be able to take a dip in Lake Murray....in mid October!

Gray had a birthday party to go to at Pine Island ....little Miss Mallory turned 2 (see Mallory Shannon Crapps). It feels like yesterday when Gray and Mallory were wee little ones and now they are both two years old.

Days before the birthday party it must have rained everyday and the weather was a little on the cooler side. The day of the party the weather was perfect....if I remember correctly it was in the 80's. Even though it was in the 80's, I would have never thought 3 little munchkins would go swimming in the lake (and I guess I should say I never would have thought 3 Mamas would let it happen....but we did). Why not right? The weather was right for it and the kids had a blast! Unfortunately because of the spur of the moment swimming I was not prepared. Gray had on a diaper which of course blew up like a balloon and probably weighed 20 lbs, none of us brought towels, bathing suits etc; therefore, they all went swimming in their clothes!

The three amigos, from left to right: Avery, Cooper and Gray

These are the moments that I will look back on and smile and probably think "what was I thinking?"

Earthquake/Tremors 2011

2011-08-24T12:59:00.001-04:00

August 23rd: So this may be one of those boring posts but I had to mention it for the sake of documentation for Gray when he gets older. You guys may think that he may never read this blog but I beg to differ. I'm in the process of having this blog printed using Blog2Print. When I found this website I thought it was the coolest thing and it is one way for Gray to read stories about him when he was younger (because I know I won't remember everything in the years to come, even though I would like to think so).

As we all know, there was a earthquake yesterday in Virginia which sent tremors all the way South to South Carolina and all the North to Canada. I was sitting in my office, typing away, when shortly before 2:00 p.m., my chair started rocking back and forth. If anyone else was in my office with me they probably would have thought I was shaking my leg or something but I wasn't. I stopped typing and thought to myself "Am I losing my mind?" but when it kept doing it I thought "This must be a dizzy spell or something?" Finally about 10-15 seconds later it stopped and then I definitely thought I was going crazy especially after talking to one of my co-workers and she said she didn't feel anything. Apparently though, everyone else in my office felt it.... along with many people up and down the East Coast (thanks to my Facebook feed I was able to find this out fairly quickly). Then about 5 minutes later, Fox News published the story about the 5.8 Earthquake that hit Virginia. It is crazy to me that we felt the tremors of the earthquake here in Lexington/Columbia when it happened so many miles away on the outskirts of Richmond, Virginia.

I just wanted to document this event because Gray isn't old enough to remember this day on his own. Now he will know that when he was 2 1/2 years old he experienced his 1st earthquake/tremor.

Cell Phone Picture Dump

2011-08-05T18:51:00.025-04:00

Today I decided that I would dump all my pictures from my phone to my computer. Who knew that a phone could hold so many many pictures! 810 to be exact! Only 2 years worth! I couldn't believe it. And then looking thru them brought back so many memories!

He was 5 days old in this picture and we were heading off to go to the Doctor. We had to check his jaundice...a couple of times to be exact. I can't believe he was ever that small.

My water monkey! This is what happens when you leave him with your mother & sis-in-law.

Gosh, I wish I could remember how old he was in this picture. But I love this picture...it was the first time that he really wanted to wear a hat. And I just think he is so precious! Well, ok, I think he is precious in all his pictures.

This was his 1st really bad allergic reaction....and we never figured out what it was from. However, he never had another one like this. He does have really bad eczema still but we are finally learning how to control the flare-ups.

Yep, you guessed it, this is a Kohl's buggy! Hey, he wanted to ride in the "bag" part and I wasn't going to argue. :) Now Mr. I-can-do-it-myself-lil-man, doesn't like to be in a buggy....unless, he is standing up in a grocery story buggy.

Big 'ole belly after eating Sweatman's BBQ in Elloree, South Carolina. Gray kept eating and eating and eating and this was the end result.

I would like to see him sleeping like this now!

Gray and his girlfriend, Addison Lauren Silver, cruisin' around the classroom at school.

My niece Lexington Ryan Cooper! Now she is a year old with lots of brown curly hair. She is too precious!

Loved his goofy grin! Now he doesn't do it that often. Glad I his school teachers were able to get a picture of it before he grew out of it.

This is how he used to sleep! Now he sleeps on top of his pillow.....yep, his whole body on TOP of the pillow.

Does this chair make my butt look big?

Oh my, there are so many pictures I would love to post on here! Maybe I'll do another post soon with some more random pictures! :)

Sand between the toes...

2011-08-04T19:01:00.000-04:00

Gray is now 2-years-old and he just experienced his first beach trip at the beginning of July. Is that sad?! I felt bad for the longest time thinking that he should have been to the beach by now but we never really had time for a vacation. He's been to the lake and the river though! :) We had originally planned to take him to Myrtle Beach for a long July 4th weekend, that way he could play in the water/sand and see the firework show. But those plans changed. Jaime ("Maynay" as Gray calls her) invited us to go with her, Bobby and all four of their children to Edisto Beach. We thought this would be better not only for us to spend time with them but also because we knew MB was going to be utterly ridiculous. So we took off work Friday and headed down to Edisto Thursday after work.

We were planning to be there around 8:30 p.m. and we were making good time until we stopped at the gas station. Leaving the gas station Brandon decided we were going to turn RIGHT instead of LEFT. I kept telling him we were going the wrong way and he kept saying he knew were he was going. So I just sat back and said "ok" (knowing good and well we were going the wrong way). Needless to say, 15 minutes later, he looked at me and said "I think we need to turn around." I just started laughing and he just gave me a look like "don't even say it." Men and their directions.

We had a wonderful time at the beach. I absolutely love watching Gray and the excitement on his face when he gets so excited and sees something new for the first time.

This is when we first got to the beach. He didn't even give us time to set up the chairs, towels nor put down the coolers and bags. Luckily we all thought ahead and put sunscreen on before we left the room.

All the kids walking to the beach. Thought it was cute how Gray grabbed Jaimson's hand a pulled him along!

Tropper or "Troopis" as Gray calls him, took him into the water while I took pictures. He didn't go far so I felt comfortable with him doing that but I guess I should have used more precaution. A big wave came and knocked them both down. Of course I freaked but it didn't seem to phase him too much.... UNTIL we all wanted to get in the water and he wanted nothing to do with it!

As you can see he was getting the heck out of dodge!

After a little while, he was able to get back in the water with me and and his Daddy and we "jumped" the waves. He really enjoyed that. I'm going to miss these times, when he enjoys playing with his Mom and Dad. But these are some wonderful memories that we will forever cherish. God has truly blessed us with the most undeserved gift....our little Grayman!

(So much for Gray looking at the camera....)

I'm so happy that he was able to "experience" the beach before he turned into a teenager. Which, with the way he is growing up, seems right around the corner. I wish time would slow down just a tad.

Birthday #2

2011-07-27T19:01:00.001-04:00

As the title has implied, Gray celebrated his 2nd birthday on February 12th 2011, yes you read that right, February....and it is now July! I'm so far behind on blogging!! But it is so hard to get anything done with a very energetic, playful, adorable (insert many adjectives here), 2-year-old! No lie, my child is always on the go! There is never a dull moment in the Wiles household. Between Gray and Brandon, I am always laughing. It is like comedy central 24/7. Most kids hate it when you laugh at them (with them, because of them, etc.) but Gray is the total opposite. He already loves to make people laugh and I honestly don't know if this is a good thing or a bad thing. I guess I should go ahead and prepare myself that he will probably be the class clown in school (which would be another characteristic he gets from his Daddy) along with being talkative. I couldn't wait for him to start talking and now he doesn't know when to stop! I asked him the other day if he would stop talking for a minute so I could tell Daddy something and he looked at me and said "No Mommy" and kept talking. And if you don't look at him while he is talking he will come and grab your face and make you! He's a trip.

Well, anyway, February 12th was his 2nd birthday and, at that time, he was all into Elmo (now its Dino Dan, Toy Story [still], Go Diego Go, etc.) So as you may have guessed, Elmo was the theme and I, of all people, decided that I was going to bake his Elmo cake! For those of you that don't know me very well ... I don't cook, I don't bake, I don't do much of anything in the kitchen except clean it. My hubby is the cooker, the baker, the griller, anything you want done to your food, he knows how. Needless to say when I told him I was going to bake Gray's cake ... he laughed. So the pressure was on! The cake took 3-4 hours (cooking, cooling, and decorating)!!!! But at the end of that, I was very proud of myself (and my sis-in-law, Rachel Wiles for helping). Now I know how cake decorators feel and I applaude them!

And now, I do believe,my husband can stop saying "She can't even boil water!"

We decided to have his party at the house this year but we were a little nervous because on his 1st birthday we received 9" of snow (see Gray's 1st Snow here) and we didn't know if it was going to happen again! This year we were able to play outside in short-sleeve shirts. I have a feeling that every birthday I'm going to be a little anxious not knowing what the weather is going to be like. I guess you never really know but there is a big difference between snow and "spring" weather.

It's been 5 months since his 2nd birthday and I still can't believe my baby boy is TWO! Time is just going by way too fast!

As a side note:

Gray loves him some Addison....

Thanksgiving anyone?

2011-07-10T09:41:00.002-04:00

Ok, ok, I apologize that this blog about Thanksgiving is months late. The holidays have flown by and now it's ~~January~~ July and time to ~~start planning Grayson's second birthday~~ take some summer vacations. As you can see I started this particular blog in January and have yet to ~~post~~ finish it. There is not enough hours in the day to get everything done and with a constantly active 2 year old, it's even harder.

Thanksgiving was wonderful. Not only did we get to spead time my family along with Brandon's but we finally got to meet my neice, Lexington "Lexi" Ryan Cooper, for the very first time (well, excluding my mom because she spent a week with her right after she was born). She was born in February 2010 but unfortunately they live in Arkansas so it's hard for them to get up here often but I was so excited they could make it! She is the most gorgeous little girl! And, by the way, she will be a big sister this year! Jason and Jaclyn are expecting another little girl! They will definitely have their hands full with two beautiful girls.

We had a house full at the Thanksgiving but those are the best times with family. Laughing and telling old stories, eating until your belly is full (okay, so it doesn't feel so good afterwards but the food is oh-so-good), playing with all the kids! Not to mention giving grace to God for being able to have this life that we live. The holidays are fun especially when all the family is here!

(Gray looks HUGE compared to Lexi!)

Lexi and her Daddy, Jason

My boys!

Tired after a long day!

Snip Snip

2011-02-27T18:52:00.000-05:00

I cannot believe it has been almost 3 months since my last post. I'll be honest, I just haven't had much time between: work, school and playing with the most beautiful, blonde-hair, blue eyed, mama's boy ever. When every told me that boys love their mamas I often thought, "I'm sure they love their Daddy's just as much." And while I know this is true, Gray definitely wants me over his Daddy whenever I'm around; therefore, I don't have much time to update his blog as often as I would like. Right now, he is currently watching Toy Story (this and The Wiggles are his two favorite movie/shows) while I draft this post.

Just as a side note before I begin to explain this post, the next couple of posts will probably be out of order.

Around Thanksgiving (yes, you read right, Thanksgiving), Gray got his first haircut! At 21 months old he was finally able to get a haircut. I never thought this day would come because, if you remember, Gray was bald for a long period of time.

As you can see, Grayson was ready for a ~~ponytail~~ haircut and needless to say, he received one the day after Thanksgiving. Getting a haircut is nerve racking for me much less an "almost" 2-year-old but I can honestly say that he did a wonderful job.

Since it was a spur-of-the-moment thing, we just went to Cost Cutters in Wal-Mart with the following family members in attendance: Mema (Brandon's grandma), Cathy (my mother-in-law), Terrell (my father-in-law), Rachel, Blain & Abby and of course myself and Gray (unfortunately Daddy had to miss it because he was helping a friend).

I can only imagine what the lady at the salon was thinking when she saw all of us walk up. Hey, it was a milestone we all wanted to see!

Terrell wanted to hold him while he got his 1st haircut and when the hairdresser first started Gray was not very happy. I believe it was more of he didn't know what was going on and was a little scared but after we gave him his paci he sat perfectly still without another peep. He was such a big boy and I was one proud Mama!

The first snip......

When she pulled out the clippers I thought it was going to be the end of the haircut and we would have to deal with a partial mullet but again, he was an angel!

Is this over yet??

Ta da........

Yes, for those that noticed, my child did fall asleep during his haircut...the proof is in the pictures...

Everyday.....

2010-11-15T19:58:00.000-05:00

Just a cute little video...

21 months!

2010-11-13T15:06:00.000-05:00

In 3 short months, Gray will be 2 years old. I honestly cannot believe how time is flying by! I guess I need to start planning his 2nd birthday party even though it makes me sad to think about. Why can't they stay babies forever?

So I know you are probably wondering what all Grayson is doing now! It's amazing to think about what all he has accomplished and how smart he is. He is just amazing....period! :)

The last time I took Gray to the Doctor he was 20 months old and he weighed 26 pounds so I'm sure he is still around that weight (give or take). I'm not sure about the height. I guess you'll just have to check back in 3 months for the rest of the stats.
He is wearing 18-24 months clothes. Most of the time it is 24 months and I just end up rolling down his pants and rolling up his shirt sleeves.
Gray is still on the paci or "pipe" as we call it. He went one day, from his afternoon nap to the next morning, without it and I was so excited thinking we kicked it for good. Unfortunately, the next morning he screamed his head off. Any suggestions on how to take it away with a tantrum please let me know.
He is a wonderful sleeper!! This I cannot complain about. Usually on the weekends he will go to bed around 8 or 8:30 p.m. and won't wake up till 9:30 or 10:00 a.m. Oh how I don't miss those early mornings. While I am sure these late mornings won't last forever, I'm taking it while I can get it. :)
He loves to be outside. It doesn't matter if it is cold, rainy, snowy, etc...he wants to be outside and he will let you know it.
He absolutely loves watching football/baseball with Daddy....in our bed! This is no lie. Brandon will ask him "You wanna go watch football with Daddy?" and he will take off to the bedroom and he will literally just lay there beside him and watch it. Ok, so every now and then he will jump on the bed or point and talk but most of time he will just lay quietly and act like he knows everything about football.
He is into this "mine" and "no" stage. You ask him to pick up his toys..."no." You ask him if he wants to get out of the bath...."no." Everything is no. Except one thing!....You ask him if he loves Mommy or Daddy...he shakes his head yes! That is about the only yes answer you will get out of him! Seriously!
Gray is still not a very good eater. He is very picky. He definitely will not touch a vegetable! Hopefully this will change later in life.
His vocabulary is wonderful! He talks ALOT! He can now say most of the names in our family..Amy = Jaime, Aminon = Jamison, Rywee...you guessed it, Rylee. He says Abby very clearly and Bubba for Blain. Of course he has been saying Mama and Daddy, Nina, MawMaw, Papa, Nana, MeMa. Some other words: airmain = airplane, can name almost all the animals and sounds, flag, everyday (video to come for proof), cocky (unforuntately his teachers at daycare taught him this), Elmo, Mickey Mouse, Big Truck, book, etc. I'm sure I've left off many words but he is just so vocal and talkative these days its hard to keep up. I seriously think he says a new word everyday!
We've been working on our numbers. He says 1,2 and 3...then he jumps to 5. I guess we need some more practice.
I think he is going to be a class clown/comedian (like his Daddy). I told Brandon he missed his calling the other day because he has me laughing all the time and so does Gray! He has this wonderful personality. He definitely does not meet a stranger! I hope it stays this way!
Gray still LOVES to dance. Anytime he hears any music he will dance away! His favorite song at the moment, "Cricket on a Line!"
We are in the process of potty training and it is not going so well. He wants nothing to do with it. He will sit on it for about 2.5 seconds and hop up like "I'm done." Not sure how I can get him to sit there longer! Need advice please!!!!

Ok, so, that is all I can think of, for right now. Hope you have enjoyed reading about my Gray!

This is Gray at 20 months! It's a picture of a picture...sorry scanner is down!

Boo at the Zoo!

2010-11-12T22:05:00.000-05:00

Our trip to Boo at the Zoo was actually before Halloween, so as you can tell, I'm a little out of order and behind on my blogging!

While Gray and I were in good company, Aunt Jenn and Addison went with us, Boo at the Zoo was chaotic! Yes, yes, I know, the zoo is always chaotic no matter when you go but this was utterly ridiculous. For those of you who didn't go or don't know much about the Riverbanks Zoo, let me explain this....

1st: On the zoo website (above) it stated "come see the animals at night" (when they were advertising for Boo at the Zoo). We all know the zoo usually closes around 5 or 6 p.m so seeing the animals at night would be something different. Well, the only animal we saw (besides the cows & chickens, which were in the barn) was the brown bear.

The other animals were obviously inside sleeping in their nice cozy quarters since it felt like it was 20 degrees outside (I'm definitely a whip when it comes to cold weather). Anyway, why give kids false hope in looking at animals if they aren't even going to be out? This just perturbed me a little. Luckily Grayson isn't old enough to be particularly disappointed by this so basically it was just me. :)

2nd: Why does the Zoo have to pack so many people in there? Why can't they just add additional weeks for Boo at the Zoo and then they wouldn't have to let so many people in at one time. Maybe it wasn't so bad for people without strollers but I personally was having a difficult time strolling when people were all around me. There was this one particular girl who came to a complete stop in front of me because she had to finish her text. Seriously?! Can't you atleast move over to the side and let others go by?!

Ok, so maybe the problem lies within me. Maybe I just can't handle large crowds anymore?! Actually, I do think this just may be the problem as I was like this when we went to the fair this year. Patience is what I need.....

Well, besides those two complaints, Gray and Addison had a good time and that is all that matter.

Getting ready to go into the zoo.....

Picture time already?? Gray and Addison are looking at each other like "GREAT! This is going to be a long night!"

I think the part that the kids enjoyed the most would have to be the chickens in the chicken house. Their two little heads peeking into the house was just absolutely precious!

After looking at the animals, we decided it would be better to go. We couldn't even let the kids get up close to the animals in the barn without other people's children cutting in line, thinking they own the place. Some parents just did not raise their children to have manners and to be respectful. Is it really that hard to wait your turn?

So, after dealing with this we headed on out and took one last picture....

Cutest Cowboy Ever!

2010-11-01T20:58:00.017-04:00

Halloween was so much fun this year! Not saying last year wasn't fun but this year Gray acted like he knew what he was doing and has been doing it for years! As many people know, Gray is not shy, he doesn't meet a stranger (which he gets from his Daddy honestly) so it didn't come as a shock when he decided that he wanted to walk up to the houses by himself (we acted like he was doing it himself but we were right behind if not beside him.

He is the most independent 1 1/2 year old that I have ever seen. He would walk up to the steps, knock on the door, and once the door opened he would say "Tick-a-Teat." It was the most precious trick or treat you ever heard (well, I know it was for me). Once they put the candy in his bucket he would say "tank tu," walk on down the steps and headed off to the next house (singing along the way). You could hear the people on the porch saying "listen to that cute little cowboy singing." Let me tell you though, I'm not sure what he was singing but he sure did. It is just crazy how much he has changed in just 1 short year, not with just his looks but with his little personality!

This little guy is my world (and Daddy's too) and we are so very blessed to have been chosen to be parents.

Anyway, we walked around the neighborhood for what seemed like an hour and 1/2 or so but as we headed back to the house we found out we had only been out for 45 minutes.

But in those 45 mintues, Grays' bucket was almost full!! We couldn't decide if we were going to let him go some more or if we should just head home. In the end, we headed home (by the way, we trick-or-treated with my sister, Bobby, and all the kiddos).

Gray put up a fight when we went to go leave. He, of course, did not want to leave and was highly and I mean HIGHLY upset but we knew he was tired (on the walk back to the house he was dragging his feet). And we were right....

Oh, just so you know, we are not one those parents who let their children go trick or treating and then eat all their candy! LOL! I will admit, unfortunately, we do eat the stuff he can't have like: snickers, peanut M&M's, anything and everything with nuts. He is highly allergic to it (has an epipen Jr. in his bag at all times because of it).

Pumpkins Galore!

2010-10-30T13:16:00.022-04:00

Last weekend we (Gray, Jennifer, Addison and I) went to the Pumpkin Patch at Harmon's Tree Farm. I couldn't believe all the cool things Gray and Addison could do and I can't wait to take them next year so they can really enjoy everything. They have a Fun Zone, a Boo House, Animals you can feed, and of course, you can walk inside the barn and buy decorations for Halloween. I'll be honest, that is the first time I've ever been to Harmon's and inside the barn and that barn is absolutely amazing. It's really spacious and it would be really good for a reception or any kind of event. Ok, enough of trying to sell their building. :)

He doesn't look to happy in this picture but trust me he had a lot of fun!

Of course I had to take a picture with him. He is looking so enthused here.

After this picture he saw all the pumpkins on the wagon and wanted to get up on them...

Isn't this picture so precious!? He was having a ball up on top of this mountain of pumpkins!

He then saw this rocking chair and decided he wanted to rock. He LOVES to rock! We used to rock every night so he would go to sleep. Now he is such a big boy we just put him in his crib and he goes to sleep by himself. Makes me a little sad because he is now becoming a little more independent everyday!

After rocking got old (which was about 2 minutes after sitting on the chair) we decided to take them down to see all the animals. We got down to the first fence and there he was....a cowhorn buck! When Gray saw him he said "Dee-a." I absolutely love to see the excitement on his face!! I hope that never goes away.

After checking out all the animals, we handed inside the barn to cool off as it was in the 80's (in October). We couldn't believe how hot it was. If I remember correctly the days before it was in the low 70's.

We got inside and Addison and Gray decided they wanted to play the piano....

And of course, I had to try to get a picture of him and I and of course, he didn't want to cooperate!

Potty Time

2010-10-30T12:46:00.006-04:00

So, we have just started to work on potty training Grayson and though it has just been 1/2 a week, the process is slow (which I knew it would be). He sits on the potty but definitely does not do anything. I know it takes time but I am anxious to see how he reacts when the potty starts talking! :) Yes, we got him the talking potty seat. It is supposed to say "Great job" and some other sayings to get him to understand that he did a good thing!

The other day Brandon sat him on the potty for around 10-15 minutes and of course Gray didn't do anything. Gray then gets up, goes to the living room, and pees on the floor. So he had to use the bathroom, he just didn't want to use it in the potty. I am staying optimistic and hoping that Gray gets a handle on this soon! To much to ask? Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Here is a picture of the very first time he sat on the potty, right before getting in the bath tub...

Weekly Occurrence

2010-10-13T09:02:00.005-04:00

So I am assumming that you are wondering what this weekly occurrence is. Whether it is a good or bad thing, whether it makes Mommy & Daddy happy or sad... well, the time has come to tell you that this "weekly occurrence" is not good and I wish we could atleast go 2 weeks without it occuring. What I am speaking of is ....illnesses and/or Doctor's appointments. My poor little man just can't catch a break! Two weeks ago it was a virus which lasted a couple of days but overall he was in a splendid mood, last week (Mommy assummed) it was a cold and this week.....strep throat. Not only strep throat though, he is back on a steriod and breathing treatments for a week for his breathing. If you would have asked Daddy or I about his breathing at 4 a.m. Saturday morning (which is when I had to get up and give him a treatment) we would have told you that it was an asthma attack. Poor thing could not catch his breath! Of course I tried to keep calm but deep down I was frantic and fortunately the treatment helped. I am hoping that it is the change in the weather and not his asthma starting to flare up again. We haven't had a problem with his breathing since he was 12 months old (he is now 20 months, as of yesterday --- different post). We thought we were getting lucky and he didn't have asthma after all but apparantly he does and like all asthma sufferers know, it can flare up at any moment and not just when they are around allergic triggers. I know that all these illnesses will eventually build his immunity and most likely he will hardly ever be sick when he gets older but I would love to go atleast a whole week without my poor baby being sick. He is so pitiful and it absolutely breaks my heart. But until the day where him being sick is far and few between, I will take each day a step and at a time and help him get over his current ailment.

Toddlers and Accidents

2010-09-16T12:00:00.009-04:00

As many people know, even individuals without children, there are going to be accidents when there is a toddler walking around. They are constantly getting into everything and making messes. Many toddlers (atleast mine) love to play with the pots/pan in the kitchen cabinets, loves to put their little fingers in our drinking cups and knocking it over, and loves pulling out all the toys (after you've just cleaned them up). I always knew that the "terrible two's" would require a bit more discipline and alot more watching! But accidents can happen in a blink of an eye.

It was a normal Thursday morning (September 9, 2010) when I woke Gray up and got him ready for school. Yes, I call daycare school because he has learned so much while he's been there, even "Go Cocks" (and we are Clemson fans, but that is a different story). Anyway, I drop him off like normal and I head to work. I am only at work for 2 hours before I get a call from his daycare stating that there had been an accident. Like any mother I am sure, I started panicking. Finally they told me that his finger was caught in the door while they were outside. I know of the multiple times I've slammed my finger in the door it hurt like heck but eventually it goes away and all is good. This was not one of them cases. The assistant director told me over the phone that he probably needed to be seen by a medical professional and that they could not get the bleeding to stop. I get off the phone with her and I am out of the office door within 2 minutes. After a horrendous 30 minute drive (felt much longer) I get to the daycare to find that the bleeding had stopped but this is what his finger looked like....

When I saw this I immediately started crying. I called Daddy (his daddy) as soon as I got in the car and he couldn't understand a word I was saying because I was crying so hard. Needless to say, I took him to the Urgent Care in Lexington because his Doctor's office was booked solid and they were going to make me go all the way Downtown to be seen at the other office. We get to the Urgent Care around 10:45 and it take 2 HOURS to be seen by a Doctor and then another 2 HOURS to get out of there!! They really need to learn how to be more efficient there! After he was finally seen the Doctor tells us that the nail bed was ripped from the matrix (which helps grow your nail) but luckily the matrix was still intact. He pushes the back part of the nail back under the skin and puts 2 stitches at the nail bed and 1 stitch on each side of the finger. They did take some X-rays and luckily the finger was not broken. :) The Doctor did advice us that he will need to wear a splint for 12 days.

We ended up redoing the splint when we got home to make it a little more sturdy. It has now been a week and Gray has done so well with the stitches and the splint. He has an appointment with his pediatrician on Tuesday to get the stitches out and that is when we will know a little more about what to expect regarding the growth of his nail.

But as you can see accidents can happen....and they can happen anywhere! And for those who are wondering....yes, he is back at the same daycare. I'm getting asked that alot! Accidents happen and not only do we love the teachers, Gray is very happy there. And that is what you look for when choosing a center. :)

Where has the time gone?

2010-08-18T12:57:00.006-04:00

I do apologize for not updating Gray's blog in a timely manner. It has been so busy these last few months that I don't have the time. By the time I get home from work all I want to do is relax which is virtuely impossible with Gray, so we play and play and play until it is time for him to go to bed around 7:30 - 8:00 p.m. Then after that it is my time to relax unless of course I have homework to do. Yes, I'm back in school. I'm working towards my Bachelor's in Health Administration so along with working full-time as a foreclosure paralegal, taking care of Gray, and going to school, I just don't have much time to update this blog. I am going to try and work on getting a little better at it.

As of right now, Gray has been unable to get the tubes for his ears. We have been fighting with the insurance company (BCBS) because they are stating that all his ear infections were pre-existing and therefore are not covered. I am in the process of filing a complaint with the Department of Insurance so they can look into and handle this matter. I actually spoke to one of the representatives and he said I had a good case so we will see how things turn out. It seems like everything has hit at one time and we are slowly trying to climb the hill. Gray can't get tubes right now, he had to go to the urologist (luckily that turned out well) and now I have to have surgery because of a 12 centimeter ventral hernia in my abdomen. My stomach has been bothering me since Gray was 6 weeks old. Dr. Hutch (my OB Dr) just figured it was everything going back to "normal" and basically left it at that. I thought the same thing so I didn't do anything about it until Gray was around 5 months old. I then went to my family Dr. who thought that I had a duodenum ulcer and put me on ulcer medication needless to say the medication did not work and I was left disappointed. I literally thought I was going to have to live with this the rest of my life. I finally decided to give my family Dr. one last try and I was finally diagnosed with a ventral hernia. Finally!! Now I know why I've been in pain but I really wish they would have done more test earlier so that the hernia wouldn't have got so large...12 cm!! What?!?! I guess if I was a more persistant patient things would have been different. I always believe Doctor's know everything....so naive huh? Oh, well, atleast I found out before something really severe happened.

Well besides all the health issues, Gray just turned 18 months! Can you believe it? He is now, I can honestly say, in the terrible two's! I really believe my hair gets more gray everyday! Though I wouldn't change a thing!! I love my little man and I feel so blessed to be his mommy!

Currently his stats stand at:
24 lbs (25%)
31" (21%)
'
I am really hoping his hits a growth spurt and be tall like his Daddy (6'1"). If not then he will just be short like his mommy. As long as he is healthy I don't care. :)

Party Party Party

2010-07-20T12:26:00.013-04:00

Sorry about not updating this blog but things have been a little chaotic around the house. For the last 2 months Gray has been back and forth to the Doctor's office (atleast every other week if not 2 times a week because the antibiotic didn't work) because of his ears. He has now had 8 ear infections and has finally been referred to the ENT (Ear, Nose and Throat Doctor). I'll be honest, I am a little nervous about him getting tubes because I don't like to be under anesthesia much less my 17 month old son BUT I know he needs this and it will help him in the long run. His Doctor is supposed to call me by Friday and let me know the appointment time. She stated that she was probably going to send him to Centa Medical Group in Columbia so if anyone knows anything about this company, feel free to let me know! :)

Well, even having ear issues, Gray was able to enjoy his girlfriend's 1st ever birthday party. Addison turned 1 on the 16th of July. Both her and Gray (along with all her other friends and family) had a blast playing in the water outside, eating hot dogs and hamburgers and digging into the cake and presents (and boy did she get a lot of presents). She is one loved girl!!

15 Months Old

2010-05-14T11:42:00.004-04:00

Gray is now 15 months old. I seriously cannot believe how fast time is going.

Well, I know it has been awhile since I've last updated (we have been packing and moving) so let me tell you what Gray is doing now.

Walking (of course)....or should I say running. The child is fast as lightning. One minute he is in the same room as us playing and then we will turn around he is....gone! I swear my hair goes grayer everyday! :) But honestly, I wouldn't have it any other way. He is just an amazing little boy and I am one proud mama!
He knows what a dog says now. Everytime he sees a dog he will say "woof woof". But then you ask him what any other animal says and he says "woof woof." I guess we need to practice some more. lol
He says Dada, Mama, Uh-oh, cat, yes and no. He understands what we tell him to do....like, "Go get your blankie" or "Where's your paci, cup?" etc.
He is still a little baldy. He doesn't have much hair.....but what he does have is BLONDE! Man, I hope it stays that way. I had blonde hair when I was younger but unfortunately it turned brown.
He weighs 22 lbs (26%) and is 30 inches (21%). His Dr. said that usually with boys you can add 5 inches to the moms height and that we will be his. I really hope she is wrong. lol. But we will see.
He is cutting his 2-year molars (already!) No wonder he has been fussy lately.
He has finally been referred to an allergist. The poor baby broke out in hives last weekend (on Mother's Day) when we went over to my Nana's to go swimming. Hopefully the allergist will be able to help us out with this issue. He is always scratching and nothing seems to help. Anyone have any advice? We use the Cetaphil lotion, Aveeno bath wash, everything is fragrance free.....something has got to give.
Gray hates it when I wash dishes. LOL...I think he knows I do to but he will push me away from the sink and if I walk away he is fine. I guess he thinks the sink is hurting me....not really sure.
He LOVES being outside. It doesn't matter if it is hot as heck out there, he wants to be outside but this is when he starts breaking out and wheezing. So I definitely know he is allergic to something!

I'll post some pics when I get home so check back! :)

Movin' and a Groovin'

2010-03-19T11:46:00.003-04:00

This is what Gray does EVERYTIME he hears any type of music....

My Baby Boy is 1

2010-02-16T21:05:00.030-05:00

After all the snow that fell the day before (on his actual birthday), we were up in the air about whether we would be able to still have his birthday party...at Chuck E Cheese. I started calling them at 9:30 a.m. to see if they were even going to be open...no answer. Tried again at 10:00 a.m., no answer and again at 10:30 a.m., no answer. Man, was I getting very discouraged. I was getting upset because I wanted my boy to have his 1st ever birthday party and because of the snow (that I was so excited came on his birthday) we weren't sure if the party was possible. Finally, at 10:45 a.m. I got a hold of someone at Chuck-E-Cheese and they confirmed that the party was still on. I went into overdrive! I was so excited. I couldn't wait to see how he liked it. Needless to say, he loved it but the adults didn't...especially me! It was nothing but rush, rush, rush! Poor baby didn't even get to open his presents. Mama will have to do better next time. No more birthday parties at Chuck-E-Cheese.

Here is the invitation that Jessica Ryan made for his 1st birthday.

Isn't it cute? A very memorable keepsake! Thanks Jess...again!

Here is Gray's first birthday cake! And let me tell you we had a problem with Publix on this cake. The name of this cake is caterpillar so when I went to go pick it up I said, I'm here to pick up the Caterpillar cake for Wiles. So the lady walks off and brings back....caterpillar TRACTORS! What??! I said, "No, it's supposed to be caterpillar as in Baby Einstein." She then apologized and said to give her 15 minutes. 15 mintues?? That's it?! And they make you order your cake a week or so in advance. But needless to say, we got it squared away and he got the birthday cake he was supposed to have along with his "smash cake."

Daddy and Gray....it's kind of scary how much they look alike!

My family!

Gray's girlfriend, Addison. They love each other....see her shirt....it says "I love Grayson." So sweet!

Riding with Chucky...he wasn't too sure about it.

Liking it a little more now...

Watching Chucky and his gang sing....he loved it!

Daddy and Gray riding the "multi-colored truck" Gray didn't want to get on by himself so Daddy rode it with him. Too funny!

Diggin' into his cake! Poor thing must have been allergic to the dye because he started breaking out afterwards. Luckily the Wal-Mart was around the corner so Nina ran in and got him some benadryl. My boy and his allergies! Can't wait till he turns 18 months so he can get his allergy test done.

But HE LOVED IT!!

I still can't believe my baby is 1. This has been the most amazing year!

Gray's 1st Snow

2010-02-16T20:54:00.020-05:00

What a marvelous birthday Gray had! Not only did he turn "The Big 1" BUT it snowed on his birthday! I still can't believe how much snow we received. First it went from a "dusting" then it went to "1-3 inches" then to "3-6 inches" and none of that was right....we got almost 9 inches at our house. When the snow first started coming down, we were on our way home from Publix (had to pick up his birthday cake...you will see it in the next post) and he just stared and pointed out the window like, "what is that stuff?" I figured him being so interested in it he would definitely love playing in it...boy, was I more wrong. He absolutely hated it blowing in his face and he definitely did not like sitting in it. If he was a little older he may have enjoyed it but until then, I can say..."son, it snowed on your 1st birthday and I have pictures to prove it." lol

This is when it first started snowing...

This is just a couple of hours later. Yes, our poor cat is outside. She can't come in because we think Gray is allergic to cats (he would get that from his Aunt Jaime..hehe). Usually Kitty (yes that is her name) is in the shed but I guess she decided she wanted to see what the white stuff was all about too.

Us in the snow...

Went inside...wanted to be outside...went outside...wanted to be inside. And they say women are wishy-washy?!? LOL

Snowing at night...it was so beautiful

Abby and Gray after playing in the snow.

What it looked like in the morning!

What our roads looked like in the morning. I really thought they were going to be worst then what they were.

My baby boy and I the next morning. Check out his mittens! He definitely did not like them! Santa actually put them in his stocking at Christmas thinking that he would use them in NC but who knew he would actually use them here in SC first!

He did not enjoy sitting in the snow!

The snowman that my brother-in-law, Jeff, made!

Letter from Mama and Daddy

2010-02-12T19:15:00.013-05:00

Dear Son:

When I found out I was pregnant with you, Daddy and I went through so many emotions. We were excited, we were scared, we were overwhelmed. And basically we were at a loss of words. We couldn't believe that this finally happened to us. And I say that because Mama didn't think she was able to get pregnant. Things just weren't working out and when I saw those two lines on that pregnancy test, my heart skipped a beat. I was already so in love.

This day, last year, Daddy and I were anxiously awaiting your arrival and all the while, you decided to take your sweet time. At 10:19 p.m you made your grande appearance and our world changed. You were so adorable and my heart just melted. I was able to hold you for a short time before they took you to the nursery to be cleaned up and I thought my heart was going to break. I didn't want to be away from you for even a short amount of time. We brought you home from the hospital on Valentines Day and I can go ahead and tell you that nothing will ever top that Valentine's Day. You are the most amazing little boy. You have accomplished so much in such a short time. My heart melted when you gave us that 1st smile and that 1st laugh. I've watched you roll over and start army crawling to "regular" crawling and now you are walking like a big boy. I've watched you only take 3 ounces of formula, to taking 7 ounces and now you are not on formula or a bottle anymore (well, you do have a bottle at night). I've watched you eat only a 2 ounce jar of food to 4 ounces now you wont even touch it...you love your "adult" food. We listened to you baby babble and now you are talking up a storm...from Dada, to Mama, to Uh-oh, to Bye-Bye. Yes, we have had some not so great times too...1st hospital stay at 7 weeks old, eczema and allergies (that we are still fighting), teething (WOW), using the bathroom in the bathtub (No Fun!), but even through those times, we love you even more! I have loved watching you grow into the little boy you have become. And I know it will only get better! You are the joy of Mama and Daddy's life and we so very blessed! Mama and Daddy love you very much! Happy 1st Birthday Sweetheart!

No-No

2010-01-25T20:32:00.004-05:00

Gray now tells us "no" when he doesn't want something. He doesn't verbally say it but he shows it....take a look!

** May want to turn the volume down a little bit because when I talk it is kind of loud because I'm holding the camera and trying to feed him ** Sorry!

Laptops!

2010-01-25T20:15:00.007-05:00

Just a quick little story:

Grayson loves computers especially Mama and Daddy's laptop. I'm not sure what it is about the laptop but he knows when you are about to get on the computer. It doesn't matter if he is down the hall in his room, if he sees you open the computer....he is on his way. He will crawl as fast as he can to your lap. So, everyone knows that you sit with the laptop facing you, well, Gray wants the laptop facing him. So he will push the computer until he can see what is on the screen. He is VERY happy when it is a picture of him on the screen. And trust me he knows if it is him or not! :) Then there are times when he doesn't want you playing on the computer and he will try to knock it off your lap. That is when you know you better give it up and put the computer down until he goes to bed. Well, the point of the story is .... he got his own "toy" laptop for Christmas!

11 months old

2010-01-12T17:57:00.028-05:00

Well, my little man is now 11 months old and in one short month he will be a year old. This year has flown by! We have planned Gray's birthday party but you will have to check back in February for the details and pictures. I will tell you that Jessica Ryan did he invitations and she is one talented lady. Just check out her company, SugarLumpStationary at www.SugerLumpStationary.blogspot.com.

She does invitations from birthday parties, to baby showers, to birth announcements. Just check it out....

Here are the stats for Gray at 11 months:

He is still wearing size 3 diapers.

He can still wear some 6-9 months clothes but most of the time he wears 12 month clothes. They are still a little big but he will grow into them.

Still weighs 20 lbs. I'm guessing he is not gaining weight right now because he is so active. He is NEVER still! And the fact that he is getting taller.

He has 8 teeth now! Four on the top and 4 on the bottom.

For some reason, he loves ..... eating paper! LOL Some how he will alway find a piece of paper and tries eating it. And man he gets so mad when I take it away.

He is still not walking but I really don't think it will be too much longer! He is letting go and standing by himself more often now so I think he sees that he can do this. Is Mama ready?? No, not really! :(

He doesn't like Stage 3 jars but will eat the Lil Entrees Gerber Graduate dinners. Though right now he is being a little picky. He used to eat so well and now he keeps telling me ">

We don't know for sure yet, but we believe he may be allergic to cats and dogs. He will start breaking out if he interacts with them (hugging, petting, etc.). His Dr. will not test him for allergies until he is 18 months old because she said that is when all allergies are usually apparent.

He can now wave bye-bye and we are practicing saying "bye-bye" but he hasn't mastered it yet.

He can say "PaPa" :)

He sleeping so good now. He usually goes to bed around 8 p.m. and during the week I have to wake him up at 7 a.m. but on the weekend he will usually sleep until 8:30 - 8:45 a.m. and the main thing is....he's sleeping IN HIS OWN ROOM AND OWN BED. Mama never thought that would happen. It took me and Daddy a very long time (obviously, he is 11 months now) to put him in his own room. Just didn't want to be that far away from him. I still end up getting up about 2-3 times to check on him. Maybe I should have got the video monitor?!? lol

11 Month pictures below:

See Mama...I told you my pipe was in the dryer...lol

Excuse the nasty nose....but I still think this pic is precious!

Trying to blow Daddy's goose call....on the wrong end. : )

2010

2010-01-04T13:18:00.014-05:00

For New Year's Eve we decided to go over to the Crapps' house and celebrate the New Year with some of our dear friends. Unfortunately, Lacie Crapps' (Mallory's mom and one of my good friends...Mallory was mentoned in this post...Gray's New Friend Mallory Shannon Crapps) husband had to go out of town on December 19th due to the snow storm in West Virginia and he was still not back yet. I know she wanted her husband there more than anything but I think she had a little fun with us and her in-laws. :)

Grayson and lil Jerry (MacKenzie and Jerry Conyers little boy) had so much fun playing in the playroom. And they play so well together. Next time we go over there I will definitely take some pictures/video of them. They are like two peas in a pod. They tore that playroom up. LOL

Well, around 8 p.m. or so, we decided to shoot fireworks for the little ones. Needless to say, Gray did NOT like them. He didn't mind the little ones that weren't loud but then a loud one went off and he jumped so high and hung onto my neck so hard, I had to take him in. And then he decided he didn't want to go to sleep. Man, this little boy is fighting his sleep so bad now. He didn't go to bed till 11:15 p.m. and then he woke up around 11:55 p.m. I guess he wanted to bring in the New Year with his Mama and Daddy. Eventually he went back off to sleep and the adults shot some more fireworks. :) Yes, we were like little children outside but every once in awhile it's fun to act like kids. HAHA!

By the way, I can't believe it is already 2010!!! Crazy!

Here we are outside watching the fireworks....this was before his waterworks began.

Grayson's 1st Christmas

2009-12-26T10:38:00.025-05:00

I cannot believe Gray just celebrated his 1st Christmas! But you know what? The little stinker didn't want to wake up Christmas morning. Usually he is up around 7 a.m. but no, 7:15 rolls around and he is sound asleep in OUR bed. Yes, I know....bad Mama. But sometimes he will wake up around 5 and this Mama is definitely not a morning person; therefore, I just take him to our bed and he falls right back to sleep. I think he knows Mama will be a grouch if she gets up at 5 a.m.

Here he is sleeping away....

Well, we end up waking him up around 7:30 a.m. so we could feed him breakfast before Blain and Abby got here to open presents. But before we put him in his little booster seat to eat, we showed him all the presents Santa brought and he knew he hit the jackpot!

In this picture he had already pulled a couple of things off the couch and was trying to play with them in the box.

After all the kids looked at everything Santa brought it was time to open the presents. I seriously thought Gray was going to try to eat all the wrapping or tissue paper but he didn't. He tried to open the presents but afterwhile he was like, "man, this is harder than it looks." So, I unwrapped and he pulled the gifts out.

He loved looking at his new book....

Here he is getting a little tired of opening presents...lol

So he fell asleep. While he was sleeping everyone else opened their presents because as soon as Gray woke up he had more presents to open.

Let me just tell you he loved this elephant puppet. We would put it on our hand and all we would have to say is "Hey Grayson" and he would just giggle. He is so cute!

Well, eventually we were done opening presents .... at our house and we had to get ready and go to Maw-Maw's house (my mom). We had a fun-filled Christmas Day celebrating the birth of Christ. I can't wait till Gray knows the true meaning of Christmas!

Meeting Santa

2009-12-26T10:34:00.009-05:00

Grayson met Santa for the 1st time the week before Christmas. I wasn't sure how it was going to go because he wasn't feeling very well (come to find out his bronchitis turned into pneumonia...he was put on an antibotic, a steriod and 3 breathing treatments a day) BUT even with him not feeling well he still went to Santa. He held his arms out like he has known Santa his whole life.

10 Months Old

2009-12-12T20:04:00.028-05:00

My baby is 10 months old today! In 2 short months he will be 1 years old and I have no clue what I'm going to do for his birthday party....any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. I would have loved to have it outside but since it will be in February it will still be cool out. Hopefully we will think of something soon but in the meantime, here is what he is doing now:

Still wears size 3 diapers

Still can wear 6-9 months clothes but is making his way to 12 months now

I have no clue what he weighs but I would have to guess over 20 lbs. My little chunky monkey!

Can stand by himself for a short period and by that I mean, maybe 5 seconds. Then he realizes he's not holding on to anything and falls. I'm sure he will get the hang of it soon.

Now has 3 words in his vocabulary: Dada, Mama, and Uh-oh!

He says the above words alot but he also talks his "baby talk" and that is ALL the time.

He has very bad eczema. I don't know if I've ever mentioned this in a post but here I go. Because of the cold weather, it seems to be flaring up alot. I feel so bad for him. He is on steriods (the cream kind) for it but Vaseline seems to work a lot better. His Dr. says that it shouldn't itch like the ecezma adults have but I would beg to differ. He scratches all the time. She also said that he should out grow most of it. I hope that one is true!

He now has 5 teeth: 2 bottom teeth, 1 front tooth, and 2 fangs...lol

His favorite "people" food would have to be: cinnamon rolls, tomato soup and grilled cheese, and pimento cheese (who would have thought, right?)

Loves 1 particular pipe (this is our word for paci). We actually lost it the other day and tried to give him a different one and he wanted nothing to do with that. You would not believe where we found it.....in my shoe! The little booger put it in my boot. Too bad he couldn't tell us where it was.

He can't sit still ... ever...; therefore, taking picures are becoming very HARD! Any suggestions? Or is it just going to get worse?

Loves to play Patty-Cake and Riding on a Donkey! He just laughs and laughs and laughs!

10 Month pictures below:

Gray and Daddy! I think this picture is so cute!

Gray's 1st present from Santa!

1st Thanksgiving

2009-11-26T10:10:00.032-05:00

Today, was Gray's 1st Thanksgiving and a busy one at that. We went to Maw-Maw's house (my mom) and stayed there for a couple hours with my side of the family. Gray had so much fun playing with Jimbo.

He even gave him a kiss....

Jimbo's look is priceless! :)

After we left Maw-Maw's we went down to Starr and Randy's in Eastover and let Abby and Blain see them. Starr and Randy are Blain and Abby's grandparents.

He loved to sit in the swing by himself. I guess he thought he was a big boy.

After staying there for a few short hours, we made our way down to Elloree to see Brandon's side of the family for the rest of the weekend.

Gray and Papa T (B's Dad) with toothpicks. We have pictures of all 3 of the kids with toothpicks like this looking straight at Papa T. I'll definitely have to post the picture of Blain because this picture and the one of Blain look IDENTICAL!! It's scary identical.

Here he playing with his Aunt Ray-Ray. He was so happy to see her!!

Then it was bath time and that is always a joy! I mean that in a serious way...he is hilarious! Yes, I admit, he is a handful to bathe but he loves his bath and he will just talk and talk and SCREAM and talk....needless to say I laugh so hard my stomach hurts.

This is his "Don't even think about getting me out" look! :)

Monkey Joes

2009-11-22T19:09:00.030-05:00

My nephew, Jamison, turned 11 on the 18th of this month and today was his birthday party at Monkey Joe's in Lexington. We were finally able to have the Monkey Joe's experience. Gray was very curious and was crawling around everywhere but I believe he was getting a little perturbed with me because I would only let him crawl so far before I scooped him up (there were some other children there that obviously were not raised to have manners).

Gray had a blast though! He sat in the big "birthday" boy chair.

He looks like a little person in this big ole chair! :)

He then had some of Jamison's cupcakes and absolutely LOVED them. He will definitely dig into his 1st birthday cake.

He looks like he has a milk mustache

After having some good dessert (by the way, he ate some pizza too) he got to personally see Monkey Joe. I thought he would be scared of him but he proved me wrong...again! He kept looking up at him like "Why do you look so different than us" lol...it was precious!

He didn't cry one time being held by Monkey Joe

Below are some additional pictures:

Weeeee....Down we go!

Me and my baby boy and yes, he loves his paci (and he looks like his Daddy in this picture)

I love profile pictures!

9 Months Old

2009-11-21T09:37:00.031-05:00

Gray is now 9 months old....well, on the 12th he was 9 months...now he is a little over 9 months :) What is he doing now, you ask? Well,

He is still in size 3 diapers
He weighs 19 lbs 13 oz (as of 11/23/09)...50 %
He is 28 inches long...50%
His head is a whopping 46 cm...75 %
I believe he has tried all the baby food from the 1 ingredient foods to the 2 and 3 ingredient foods. And for you expected or new moms out there, I really like the Beech Nut baby food. They have all different kinds like: Turkey Tetrazzi and Hearty Vegetable Stew and Cinnamin Raisin Granola. Gerber food is good but they do not have the selection like Beech Nut. Just in case you wanted my opinion :)
Now that he is mobile, he is getting into everything and I mean everything. His favorite thing to play with is cords. Why? I'm not really sure. It is funny how they love to play with things that they shouldn't.
He is pulling up on everything. He enjoys walking down the length of the furniture and he is pretty quick at it.
He has let go of the furniture a couple of times now and stood by himself...wow! I couldn't believe it! I'm sure he will be walking soon.
He is now saying "Dada" and "Mama" Yay!! I wonder what word will be next...probably "no no" since we seem to be saying that a lot lately.
He has "feeding himself" down! He is very good at it. His favorite would be the Gerber Graduates Lil Crunchies (all the flavors)... I mentioned these in this blog 8 Months Old
He is getting a little personality too! He is so funny and so smart for only being 9 months old but I'm sure all Moms say that. :)

Below are some 9 month old pictures....

He is always smiling! He is a very happy baby!

I love sleeping pictures. Children just look so peaceful when they sleep.

I just love everything about this little boy! I'm so thankful God granted me the gift of being a Mommy!

1st Halloween

2009-11-12T18:02:00.000-05:00

I'm sorry I'm so late in posting Gray's Halloween pictures. It has been kind of crazy around. Grayson is cutting some more teeth; therefore, I haven't had any free time lately. What is funny is that he has fangs....literally! His 2 front top teeth have not come through yet but his fangs (obviously I'm talking about his teeth beside his 2 top teeth) are in.

Grayson had a blast on his first Halloween. We went over to Aunt Maggie's (Meagan) and Uncle Ryan's house to cook out and take some pictures and let the boys spend their first Halloween together. Grayson was a lobster and Avery was a tiger, but unfortunately, they couldn't wear their costumes for too long because it was so hot. We really couldn't believe it was in the mid 70's at the end of October and that we were strolling our boys around the neighborhood in onesies. Now that was crazy! And if you wondering if Gray actually went "trick or treating" the answer is....no. We just walked/strolled around and let my neice and nephew (Rylee and Jaimson) do the trick or treating. I think the adults had more fun then the children. I really can't wait till next year when Gray will be walking and talking...I can just picture him saying "Trick or Treat"...hehe

He has this look only when Daddy holds him ...lol...it's his "Oh no" look.

My lil' lobster! He is probably going to hate me on day for this costume.

He doesn't look too excited about this costume. And if you are wondering...yes, the arms were a little to short. We are having that problem lately. Hopefully this means that he will be tall like his Daddy and not short like his Mommy!

Best buddies!

Gray's 1st word

2009-10-21T18:49:00.000-04:00

Gray said his first word a couple of days ago....and can you believe it was da-da??? After all the time we practiced ma-ma, he comes out with da-da! I'm just kidding everyone. Words cannot explain how excited we were when he started this! At first we thought that maybe he was just saying it by accident but when we say it, he mocks us and most of the time he looks at Daddy......or the camera! :)

Gray's New Friend Mallory Shannon Crapps

2009-10-21T18:08:00.000-04:00

Gray's new friend, Mallory, was born on October 13, 2009. Gray and Mallory are almost exactly 8 months apart. Gray first saw her at the hospital but I don't think he realized that we were there to see her. He kept looking at his Aunt Lacey like, "why aren't you holding me?" :) He loves his Aunt Lacey and Uncle Ronnie.

Lacey, Ronnie and Mallory came over and Gray finally noticed Mallory.

Daddy had to hold his shirt because he wanted to touch her and we didn't want that.

I promise he wasn't trying to hit her. lol...he just wanted to love on her.

Isn't she sweet and beautiful? And she is so tiny! I just don't remember Gray ever being that tiny but he was at one point! Its amazing!

So precious....makes you wanna have another one....right?! :)

Influenza

2009-10-17T14:40:00.001-04:00

The dang flu....that is what Gray has! Gray's daycare called me Thursday stating that he had 103.0 temp and that I needed to pick him up. 103.0 temp??? I was freaking out! This was like the time when he was put in the hospital at 7 weeks because his temp was 100.8..heres the post about that...Grays 1st Sickness. But since then he has only had 2 ear infections and thrush one time and he never ran fever with any of those. Well, I picked him up from school and took him straight to Urgent Care in Lexington (Grays Dr. didn't have any openings available since it was almost 4:30 p.m.). So when we got to Urgent Care they took his temp and it was 101.6....after 1 1/2 hours of waiting we were finally seen by an Dr. with the conclusion of the flu! Before we could leave, the Dr. had to take his temp again it was up to 103.4...I about had a heartattack. I was so afraid they were going to put him in the hospital. But the Dr. just gave him Tylenol and put him on tamiflu and an antibiotic (just in case there was a underlying secondary infection because he's had a cough and congestion for 2 weeks now that just wouldn't go away) and said to alternate between Tylenol and Motrin every 3 hours.

I tried everything his Dr. said to do regarding the cough and congestion: elevate the bed, suction his nose, running the cool mist humidifer....nothing worked. Needless to say, his pediatrician stated it was just a cold and they couldn't do anything about it because he was under 2 years old. They don't like to give cold/cough medicine to infants.

Friday night, was probably the worst night. We had been giving him pedialyte instead of his formula but of course he wanted his milk before going to bed. He didn't want anything else. Well, stupid me said "ok, if that's what you want" and needless to say, that was the wrong decision. He threw the bottle up....right down my shirt, in my bra and down my pants. I felt so helpless but he must have felt awhole lot better because he started smiling while Daddy was about to throw up.

As of today, he seems to be doing a little better. Still has a fever but I believe it is slowing going down. He's very clingy and very fussy (not like him AT ALL) so I haven't been able to get much done this weekend but that's ok. I want him to know that I'll ALWAYS be there for him even through all the throw up, fussiness, restlessness, getting up at 3:00 a.m. and then 5:00 and then 7:00 a.m., etc...he is my heart and I would do anything to make him feel better.

Daddy decided to take a picture of us while we were taking a nap on the couch this morning. We were both exhausted!

8 Months Old

2009-10-16T09:17:00.000-04:00

On Monday, Gray turned 8 months. This is the time of year that seems to go by sooo fast and that means my boy is going to grow up faster than ever. It will be Halloween, then Thanksgiving, and then Christmas....and then the New Year with Gray's 1st birthday a month away! It's exciting and sad at the same time.

Gray has accomplished and likes so much in 8 short months. He is way too smart for his britches!

He is now pulling up. There is the link to the post that has the video of him pulling up, check it out Pulling Up
Army crawls. He tries to "regular crawl" but he hasn't mastered that. But thats ok...hes gets around pretty fast with the army crawl. Daddy seems to think he will walk before he crawls.
He loves to be on the floor and to get into things that he's not supposed to get in.
He now weighs 19 lbs. As you can tell he really enjoys eating. He takes cereal and a jar of 2nd stage fruit in the morning and a jar of vegetables and a jar of fruit at night and of course he gets bottles in between (7 oz).
Holds his own bottle during the day but at night he gets a little lazy. I don't mind though...thats my time to snuggle and bond with him.
Gray has tried some of "our" food and really enjoys that too. He can pick up the bigger pieces of food and put it in his mouth but hasn't accomplished the smaller food items (like the Gerber Graduate Puffs) but he can handle the Gerber Graduates Lil Crunchies (these are like our Cheetios)
He now sits in his booster seat to eat. He is such a big boy.
He has 2 teeth (on the bottom)
He loves to talk....all the time! He has figured out how to do this high pitched squeal. Once I'm able to get it on video, I'll post it.
He will now reach for you if he wants to be picked up. It is so sweet!
He enjoys to be sung to. Somehow I always end up singing 'Old McDonald' after he gets out the bath and he loves it. He especially loves the part "With a Moo Moo here and a Moo Moo there" He will just laugh and laugh. I know I don't have the best singing voice but he doesn't seem to mind right now. I'm sure he will tell me to hush later.

I'm sure there is more but for some reason my mind has drawn a blank. I may update it later if I think of things. :) Below are some 8 month old pictures.

Grayson playing in the laundry basket. I would act like it is tipping over and he would laugh. This boy is not afraid of anything.

See what I mean...we "trapped" him under the basket and he was laughing. Don't call DSS! lol

Gray and his Daddy. Isn't this picture sweet? When Gray gets tired he wraps his arm around your neck and it just melts your heart.

Heres Gray playing in his booster seat box.

My happy baby! Check out his teeth!

Gettin' into mischief...

2009-10-11T15:30:00.001-04:00

Today, I decided to clean out Grays' room.....I bagged the clothes that don't fit anymore (0-6 months), cleaned out his closet and I also lowered his crib (which seemed to take the longest out of everything). It was a very productive day. While I was doing this, Gray was playing on the floor in his room and we were listening to Dora the Explorer Dance Fiesta! Of course, Gray was talking and laughing the whole time. I think that's the first time, in a long time, I had FUN cleaning. Well, the phone rang so I went to grab the phone and while I did that I decided to go ahead and put Gray's clothes in the washer. So I get off the phone and I'm loading the clothes in the washer and I don't hear Gray anymore. I just had a feeling he was doing something that he shouldn't be doing....so I sneak around the corner (with my camera...just in case) and ta da....

I caught him in action. He was pulling all the disposable changing pads (that I use when we are out and about) out of the wrapper and LAUGHING about it. I walked in the room and said "what are you doing?" and he looked up with this big ole grin and starting laughing! Which of course made me laugh. But he knew he was doing something that he shouldn't be doing. He is so smart.

Jabber Jaws

2009-10-07T20:39:00.000-04:00

Here is a video of Gray "jibber jabbering". Brandon was trying to make him laugh but Gray kept looking at him like he was crazy.

Pulling up

2009-10-07T18:56:00.000-04:00

Grayson accomplished another milestone the other day!! As you may have guessed from the title of this post....it was pulling up. I cannot believe how big he is getting. It just feels like yesterday that I was in the hospital having him and now look...he is almost 8 months old.

The video of him pulling up is posted below...

Jumping beans....

2009-10-07T18:27:00.000-04:00

When Gray was younger he loved his excersaucer. He would sit in it for atleast 45 minutes (if not longer) and be just as content as can be (see previous post Grays New Toy) Well, now that he is older, he still likes it but he just doesn't sit in it that long anymore since he is very.....mobile. He loves to be on the floor crawling but he does get in the "saucer" every once in awhile. The little video below is from the other day when he was jumping. I'm just going to go ahead an apologize for how much the camera shakes...I was laughing and I couldn't stop.

Gray and Addisons 1st Trip to the Zoo

2009-10-04T09:21:00.000-04:00

Yesterday (October 3, 2009), Gray, Addison, Aunt Jenn, and me (Mommy) went to the Riverbanks Zoo. We all met at Groucho's, which of course was delicious. Grayson wasn't too fond of the cheese but he sure did like the pickle. Which makes absolutely no sense but we all have our favorite foods...haha. After eating, we made our way to the zoo. Of course, they both fell asleep before we got there.

But once we got there, they woke up and had a blast.

Both of them looking at the bear....

Both Gray and Addison loved to look at the animals...their favorite was the fish! Gray also liked the penguins.

Above: Here they are looking at the fish....

Below: Gray looking at the cute pengiuns

Gray was amazed at the pengiuns! He was also pretty amazed by the big ole gorilla....who, by the way, came and sat right in front of us.

"Mommy, what is that big thing?"

Here is the whole crew: Aunt Jenn and Addison and Me and Gray

Mommys love!!

They had a wonderful time at the zoo!! :)

Mommys New Tattoo

2009-09-29T14:31:00.000-04:00

Mommy got a new tattoo this past weekend and I love it! Here is a picture of it right after he finished!

Eating "real" food

2009-09-29T14:22:00.001-04:00

The Sunday after Aunt Stacy's wedding, Gray, Maw-Maw, Uncle Jared, Papa Kurt and me (Mommy) went to Ryan's Steakhouse after church and man....Gray loved it!!! I let him have some mashed potatoes and gravy, green beans, lima beans, macaroni and cheese, rolls, and banana pudding. But you will never guess what his 2 favorite things were out of everything....the rolls and the banana pudding.

Here he is eating some banana pudding sitting in the highchair. He is such a big boy!

Here he is stuffing his face with a roll. I had to take it away when it became too soggy and boy did he get mad! I had to give him another one. He loves their rolls.

Gray and Addison

2009-09-23T18:08:00.001-04:00

As stated in the previous post, Gray got to spend some time with his girl (lol), Addison, this past weekend. We had a bridal luncheon on Friday for Stacy's wedding so they spent time together then and then on Saturday for Stacy's wedding. They love each other! :)

Isn't she precious! Gray is a very lucky dude!

Addison and her mom, Jennifer (Grays Godmother)

Gray and Grandma Susan

Gray chewing on the Tylenol bottle....I guess it felt good on his gums.

This is Gray trying to share his Tylenol....so sweet

Giving Addison some kisses!

Aunt Stacy's Wedding

2009-09-20T20:33:00.000-04:00

On 9/19/09, Gray's Aunt Stacy married her best friend, Chris Vanover. The wedding was absolutely beautiful and Stacy made one beautiful bride. The wedding was held at Spinners Resport and Marina on Lake Murray and everything turned out spectacular... especially how the rain held off!!

Gray was an absolute angel at the rehearsal and the wedding, all while cutting two teeth, which came through today (but thats a different post...coming soon). Gray got to hang out with Addison during the rehearsal and he hung out with Daddy all day Saturday while the bride and bridesmaids got ready for the big day. He had a blast. After the wedding, he didn't even want to come to me. :( I think he was mad at me or maybe he didn't recognize me since I was all made up. LOL. After the wedding, he went home with his MawMaw (my Mom) and I balled like a baby. I'm still having a hard time letting him go spend the night at places, without me. Hopefully this will get easier. For all you parents out there, any advise on this will be appreciated!! :)

7 Months Old

2009-09-12T22:43:00.000-04:00

Gray turned 7 months old today. I know I say this all the time but time sure is flying by. My lil boy is growing up so fast. I'll be planning his 1st birthday before too long! I can't believe it.

I bought him those little "stack um" rings today and he absolutely loves them. I wish I had a picture of his face when I was opening the box. He knew Mama had bought him a gift. He took them off the stand one by one and then tried to put all of them in his mouth at one time. Precious!

Yummy! lol

Gray listening to his big sister read him a book. He loves to be read to.

We also tried some meat today.....some of the 2nd stage chicken. Lets just say all he took was about 3 bites and then gagged. Then he wouldn't even take his juice afterwards because I guess he didn't trust me anymore. :(

Here is his face afterwards....saying "I hate this crap!"

Army Crawl

2009-09-12T22:37:00.001-04:00

Here is a video of Gray and his army crawl. Brandon and I actually got in an argument the other day because he said Gray wasn't crawling and I begged to differ. Army crawling is just another style of crawling! Am I right, or what? lol. He gets to where he wants to be and by that I mean....CRAWLING! :) Ok, ok, so it's not the "regular" crawling but he's almost there with that too. Take a look....

2nd Clemson game at the Coyle's

2009-09-12T22:06:00.001-04:00

For Clemsons 2nd game we went to Ryan and Megan Coyle's and let the boys play while we watched the game. The boys had a blast playing and we enjoyed watching them play more than that awful game. Well, it started out awful but I have to give it to our Tigers....they never gave up!! :)

Ok, so they both looked a little confused at first. Oh, and no, that is not a Carolina shirt Gray has on...it's just red and says "Little Slugger." His Daddy thought it was a Gamecock shirt at first glance.

Avery wanted to give Grayson a hug and a kiss. Yeah, it looks like he was trying to poke him in the eye but he really wasn't. haha.

Both of them playing with their feet.

My cute lil boy .... that looks like his Daddy!

Go Tigers...

2009-09-07T21:28:00.000-04:00

Though we didn't go to the Clemson game nor were we able to watch it on TV, we still had to dress in our Clemson garb....and yes, that includes Grayson. Always have to show our support for our Tigers!

GOOO TIGERS!

Sorry my arm is in the way but he has a big tiger on his outfit. I need to go out and get him some long sleeve Clemson shirts now. It will be cold before too long! :)

Gray eating....

2009-08-30T08:45:00.000-04:00

Here are a couple videos of Gray eating a frozen banana out of the mesh 'toy' I bought from Wal-Mart. Sorry about the different videos...I kept hitting the stop button by accident. I had 3 but one wouldn't upload correctly on YouTube. I'll have to try again later.

6 Month Pictures

2009-08-18T18:46:00.000-04:00

Here are some pictures taken this past weekend by Aunt Renee (Brandons Aunt). Aren't they good?! He is 6 months old in these pictures!

6 Month Dr. Appointment (sorry, no pics)

2009-08-14T19:20:00.000-04:00

My baby is no longer.....underweight! :) He now weighs 17 lbs 8 oz, 26 1/2 inches (an inch a month...he initially measured 20 1/2 when he was born) and his head is measuring 17 1/4. Every single measurement was in the 50 % and the Doctor said he was looking good. All his development is right on time too. I'm such a proud Mom!! He received 2 shots today. The 1st shot didn't even phase him but then came the 2nd shot. He cried for maybe 2 seconds. He is such a big boy.

I did end up talking to Dr. Smith about why he is waking up in the middle of the night and she said that he knows that I'm in the room; therefore, we aren't to start worrying until he is in his room and he still wakes up. I am, unfortunately, not ready to put in his room. When he is in there, I'm up and down, up and down, because I get so worried about him and his blanket. He loves to be covered up and he moves around so much that I just get worried that its going to be over his face or wrapped around his neck. I know the Drs. say not to put a blanket in their crib but, like I said before, he loves his blanket and his bear "blankie".

We can now try any food. So we are going to start the fruit tomorrow morning and once we try all the 1 ingredient foods we can go to the 2nd stage jar with the mixed ingredients. Now thats going to be fun!! I can't wait to find out what he really enjoys. My bet, he's going to enjoy everything! We can also give him 4 oz of juice a day now. I'm going to start giving him that in his sippy cup. Probably alternate between juice and water. I don't want him to start wanting juice all the time.

6 Months Old Today

2009-08-12T07:40:00.000-04:00

I can't believe my baby is 1/2 a year today! Before we know it, he will be walking and talking. Well, he talks all the time now but we have to guess what he is saying. I've made a list below of all the things he has accomplished to date and the things he loves:

- Holds his head up
- Rolls over from back to stomach and vice versa
- Smiles all the time
- Graps at everything
- Puts his own pacifier in his mouth
- Sits up
- Can stand up (with some help)
- Holds his own bottle (consistantly now)
- Drinks water out of a sippy cup
- Laughs but usually its only when you tickle him
- Has had all the 1st stage vegetables (I believe he is ready for the fruit)
- When he's upset, all we have to do is pop in the movie Happy Feet and he is content for atleast an hour.
- Loves to play in his excersauser
- Has started this fake cough to get people's attention. Its too funny!
- He starts crying/yelling when Daddy kisses me.

He hasn't started crawling yet but he is trying. I don't think its going to be much longer. He is growing up too fast!

Here is a picture of him I took yesterday. Daddy put the sunglasses on him.

Playing with Daddy! Check on his lil pot belly

My 2 favorite men!

What a Monday...

2009-08-10T18:42:00.000-04:00

This post isn't about Gray (well, I guess some of it is) but mostly its about what happened today.

To start off, I have to say this had to be the most aweful, horrible, aggravating, depressing etc. etc. Monday I believe I've ever had. Last night, Gray decided that he did not want to sleep. I'm not sure if his teeth were bothering him or what. I know in the book What to Expect the First Year it says that sometimes they don't sleep after tackling a milestone (because they want to practice it...sounds funny, I know, but thats what it said), so maybe that was it. I'm not really sure but he woke up at 12:30 a.m., 1:45 a.m., 4:00 a.m., and then 6:30 a.m. I haven't had to do that since he was a "newborn" so I was really tired this morning. I honestly was thinking about going into work late just so I could get a extra few minutes of sleep (bad, I know, but I just wanted to be functional at work). Well, after feeding Gray his bottle and watching the News, I was a little more motivated so I just jumped in the shower and got ready for work. I even left my house a little earlier than usual. So, I dropped Gray off at school and was making my way to work when I got in an accident. I was stopped at a stop light in Lexington waiting for the light to turn green when finally it did so. The car in front of me was taking off when the car in front of him decided to slam on brakes so he slammed on brakes and needless to say, I didn't. My car was hooked to his hitch (it was a truck). It broke my front bumper, air conditioning condensor, radiator, and who knows what else. As of right now, we are waiting on John Harris Body Shop to give me a call back regarding the estimate to fix everything (if its even worth fixing). The bad thing is, I only owe $5,000 before the car would be paid off so if it cost more than that, then I'm not sure what we are going to do. I KNEW I should have stayed home this morning....so much for leaving my house a little early.

The other bad thing is my FULL COVERAGE insurance doesn't cover rental cars so I'm out of a car. I'm having to use my vacation days from work to stay at home this week. The only good thing is spending time with Gray the whole week! Love that part!!! The other good thing is that the truck had absolutely NO damage whatsoever and the Cop didn't give me a ticket. So I guess things could've been worse.

Everybody says, "Things happen for a reason!" maybe the reason for this is because I've been wanting and needing a bigger car. LOL!!

Using a Sippy Cup

2009-08-09T08:21:00.000-04:00

Yesterday, was just the day for milestones. I was reading "What to Expect the First Year" and I came across them saying that by "5 or 6 months we should start trying the sippy cup." I know you don't have to go by what the book says and you should really do it when you and the baby feel comfortable but I figured that now would be a good time as any to introduce the sippy cup. We were about to leave to go to the Belles and Beaus so I put water in the cup and decided just to pack it. For those of you that don't know what Bells and Beaus is, it's a consignment sale here in Lexington for gently used kids clothes. Here is the website Belles and Beaus. They hold the sale twice a year and they have everything you could ever imagine. Anyway, Meagan and I decided to go eat at Groucho's afterwards (with the boys, she has a little boy also who is 2 months younger than Gray) so this was when I introduced the sippy cup and Gray took to it like he's been drinking out of it for awhile. No lie! This boy never ceases to amaze me!

By the way, he is now holding his own bottle and you can see that he wanted to hold his own cup. Though sometimes he does get lazy! But that's ok because honestly I would still like to hold it. He is growing up too fast!

Sitting up

2009-08-08T20:08:00.001-04:00

I know I said I probably wouldn't be posting again until next week (talking about him turning 6 months and his 6th month Doctor appointment) BUT Gray met a milestone today and I just had to let everyone know. He decided that today would be the day that he would sit up by himself. I couldn't believe it. Yesterday, I was trying to get him to sit up and he would just fall over but today I let go and he just sat up and starting playing with his toys. He is such a big boy. He did fall over one time and hit his head on the floor ( I couldn't get there in time because I was trying to take a picture...I know, I know, bad Mom) but trust me, the look he gave me said it all. Basically saying, "Thanks Mom for letting me hit my head on the floor, I can't believe you did that!"

Sorry about the quality of the picture. I had to take it with my cell phone because Daddy decided to take the camera with him today (he has a bowfishing tournament). I knew when I needed to get something on camera, it wouldn't be here. I could get the other video camera out but I don't really like that one. I would like a DVD camera. Hopefully Santa will bring me one for Christmas this year. :)

5 Month Old Pictures

2009-08-06T09:11:00.000-04:00

Here are two pictures of Gray at 5 1/2 months. Shortly after I had these pictures done he developed thrush so I had to take him to the Dr. and of course, they took his weight. You will not believe how much he weighs....17 lbs! WOW!! My next update will probably be sometime next week about him turning 6 months and his 6th month Dr. appointment. I can't believe how big he is getting! My love!

I know this one is blurry but I had to take a picture of a picture because my scanner is hooked up to the big computer and I didn't feel like turning that computer on since all we use is the laptop now.

Gray's New Toy

2009-07-29T17:34:00.000-04:00

I believe the best investment we have EVER made would have to be the excersaucer we bought for Gray this past weekend...and it wasn't even that expensive! He absolutely loves it! He will swivel in the chair and play with every single one of the toys, not to mention they all go in his mouth. Not only that, but he loves to stand. I think it makes him feel like a big boy. If we would let him, he would probably sit in it for 2 hours. I seriously have been blessed with a wonderful baby!

Video at the bottom! Yeah, I know....I take video of EVERYTHING!!!

Grayson's Arranged Marriage

2009-07-26T17:52:00.000-04:00

Grayson finally got to meet his future wife, Addison Lauren Silver. She was born on 7-16-09 so she is a week old in these picutures while Grayson is 5 months old (that's why my child looks like a GIANT and she is sooo tiny)

The first meeting was....fun, exciting, memorable! :) I don't think Addison wanted anything to do with Gray.

See! And Gray has this look in eye like...."where do you think your going?" Maybe she was acting that way because when Jennifer (Addison's Mom and Gray's Godmother/Aunt") and I put them down on the mat together, Gray decided he wanted to put his feet on her....

OR, maybe it was because Gray tried to pinch her....

I guess I need to go ahead and teach him about manners!? I think Addison about had enough of his antics because she decided to put her hand in his face....and look at that look on her face! Priceless!

But other than that, I think they are going to be good friends!

To bad I just noticed where his hand is....wow, I really do need to teach him manners. lol! But I know that Gray thinks Addison is the prettiest girl he has ever seen and I think he is going to be very protective over her.

Here are some more pictures of her and one of Gray.....

Isn't she beautiful?!?

Me and Addison

My baby boy!! My love!

All the Different Foods Gray has tried

2009-07-21T15:24:00.000-04:00

I can tell my child is going to love everything about food....Hes already had: sweet potatoes, squash (unfortunately he is allergic to this. We tried the 2nd time, and he still broke out so no more squash for awhile), peas and now we are on carrots and he has loved every single one! He did make a face 1 time with the peas but that was it. Tonight, we are going to try green beans. After this, Im not sure what we are going to try (vegetable wise). I cannot believe he has taken to vegetables so well. I want to see how he does with spinach. Now, if he likes that then we will definitely know that he will like EVERYTHING!

I have a little story to share:

So, last night I gave him carrots (to finish off the 3rd day of trying it) and he acted like he was still starving. I got up to throw the jar away and he started crying....well, I wouldn't say crying, he was "wimpering" and so I grabbed a jar of sweet potatoes, just to see if he would eat it and he ate the WHOLE thing! I do believe his favorite vegetable right now is sweet potatoes. He would open his mouth so wide. I'll have to get a picture of it and post it on here! He is my little chunky monkey!

I'll let y'all know how he does with green beans!

Uh oh!

2009-07-10T20:33:00.000-04:00

Grayson tried squash tonight and he may be allergic to it. He was going to town....ate it all...and then 30 minutes later starting breaking out in a rash all over his body! I had to give him a bath and then give him some Benadryl. The only good thing about giving him Benadryl is that he is teething too so the Doctor said that will help with that too. I just hate that stuff. I know how it makes me feel so just imagine a little baby! Anyway, we can't give him squash again until Sunday, just to make sure his rash is completely gone before we try it again. If he breaks out again then no more squash for awhile. Sometimes they grow out of their allergies. But like I said in a previous post....I hope he's not going to be allergic to everything. My poor baby!

A Letter from a Soldier

2009-07-09T12:56:00.000-04:00

The following isn't about Grayson specifically but I thought it was worth posting and to let all the soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan know that I appreciate everything they have done and will do!!

I was just watching the news, and I caught part of a reporton Michael Jackson . As we all know, Jackson died the otherday. He was an entertainer who performed for decades. He made millions, he spent millions, and he did a lot of things that make him a villain to many people. I understand that his death would affect a lot of people, and I respect those people who mourn his death, but that isn't the point of my rant.

Why is it that when ONE man dies, the whole of America loses theirminds with grief. When a man dies whose only contribution to thecountry was to ENTERTAIN people, the American people findthe need to flock to a memorial in Hollywood , and even Congress sees the need to hold a "moment of silence" for his passing?

Am I missing something here? ONE man dies, and all ofa sudden he's a freaking martyr because he entertained us for a few decades? What about all those SOLDIERS who have died to give us freedom? All those Soldiers who, knowing that they would be asked to fight in a war, still raised their hands and swore to defend the Constitution and the United States of America .

Where is there moment of silence? Where are the people flocking to their graves or memorials and mourning overthem because they made the ultimate sacrifice? Why is it when a Soldier dies, there are more people saying "goodridence," and "Thank God for IEDs?" When did this country become so calloused to the sacrifice of GOOD MEN and WOMEN, that they can arbitrarily blow off their deaths, and instead, throw themselves into mourning for a "Pop Icon?"

I think that if they are going to hold a moment of silence IN CONGRESS for Michael Jackson, they need to hold a moment of silence for every service member killed in Iraq and Afghanistan.

They need to PUBLICLY recognize every life that has been lost so that the American people can live their callous little lives in the luxury and freedom that WE, those that are living and those that have gone on, have provided for them.

But, wait, that would take too much time, because there havebeen so many willing to make that sacrifice. After all, we will nevermake millions of dollars. We will never star in movies, or write hitsongs that the world will listen too. We only shed our blood, sweatand tears so that people can enjoy what they have.

Sorry if I have offended, but I needed to say it. Feel free to pass this along if you want.Remember these five words the next time you think of someone who is serving in the military; "So that others may live..."

- Isaac

Only two people have ever effectively given their lives for you.

Jesus Christ and The American G.I.

One died for your sins, the other died to give you freedom.

Yummy....New Food

2009-07-08T13:25:00.000-04:00

Grayson had his first taste of sweet potatoes on Monday and I have to say that he loved them. I mixed a half jar of sweet potatoes with some of his rice cereal and 2 oz of formula and I think he thought he hit the jackpot. He kept sticking his fingers in his mouth after every bite (I guess it made it taste better). I think at this point he is going to like anything that is different from formula. I just hope he's not allergic to anything. He has eczema and when he was born we had to change his formula 3 times (due to rash and then to spitting up), luckily we finally found the right one....Enfamil Gentlease. And just like the name implies, its gentle on the stomach. It has partially broken down proteins and it only has 1/4 the lactose as regular formula. We had to change his shampoo, baby wash, and baby lotion to nothing but Aveeno Baby. It is fragrance free and it has oatmeal in it, so it really helps control his eczema. He was also put on a prescription for the "flare ups." And now with us going to the lake almost every weekend, we have realized that he may be allergic to his sunscreen. He will break out in little rashes all over. I don't think it bothers him but it looks awful. We use Water Babies but I guess its too harsh for him. I know they make Aveeno Baby Sunscreen but I can't seem to find it anywhere....if anyone knows where to find it please let me know. :) So, somehow I got off topic. This post was supposed to be about him eating baby food. I'm going to try the sweet potatoes for a week and then we are going to try squash. I wonder what he will think about that? I still can't believe he is already old enough to be eating baby food. Before we know it he's going to be grown!

Well, the video below is of him eating. He is naked because he usually makes a mess with just his plain cereal so I figured he would make a mess with the sweet potatoes but he proved me wrong. Also, he started off on my lap because he was "starving" and the only way to get him to eat the baby food is to start off in my lap......he rules the roost!

Watch how he tried to grab the spoon! :) He's so smart! He also tries to hold his bottle now too!

Grayson..........

2009-06-22T20:35:00.000-04:00

ROLLED OVER!!

I can't believe he did it!

I have video proof.....

Wasn't that sooo cute!!?!?

Swimming at Nana and Papas

2009-06-21T07:44:00.000-04:00

We went swimming at Nana and Papas yesterday and had a blast. We got there about 10 a.m. and didn't get home till 8:30 p.m. and my lil man was sooo tired. I know that Nana and Papa really enjoyed our company too. They love seeing their grandbabies.

Grayson was able to try out his new crab floaty and of course....he loved it. I'm telling you, my son loves everything. I have been really blessed with a laid back baby.

Playing on the floor before swimming....he actually fell asleep for 2 1/2 hours. So I was able to lay out first. :)

Grayson giving away his sweet sugars!

Gray swimming in his crab! Isn't it cute?

Told you he always has his fist/fingers in his mouth (that was said in another post). He has figured out where his thumb is and likes to suck that also! Yikes!

Playing with Mawmaw in the pool!

We had to switch his position because he was getting tired of holding his head up.

"Man, this is the life"

Now he is swimming with Nana!

Lakin'

2009-06-18T18:24:00.000-04:00

I believe I have the most laid-back baby in the world. We decided to take him to the lake on Sat (May 30). I didn't know if we were going to be able to at first because we haven't ordered his life jacket yet (Base Pro Shop have the cutest infant life jackets) so I decided to call Wal-Mart because everybody knows that Wal-Mart has EVERYTHING. Well the Wal-Mart by my house didn't have any and I was starting to get a little discouraged...... but the Wal-Mart in Lexington did. So we were just about to go buy it and head to the lake when Brandon looked in the shed and tada......an infant life jacket! We forgot that we had one for Abby when she was little so we didn't have to go to Wal-Mart after all. So we headed out to the lake with Daddy, Aunt Jaime and his cousin Rylee. And to the laid-back baby part....he didn't make a PEEP with the life jacket on. He was just looking around and smiling. I honestly think that he is the most perfect baby.....but I know all moms probably say that! :) Once we got to Little Sandy Beach, he was perfect. He didn't cry one time. He took a nap in his playpen and played in his bouncy seat (we can't go anywhere without it). He just loves it, whether its vibrating or not. He was fine with all that....so, I figured, I'm going to put him in the water and he is going to scream. He has just been so good so far...I figured he couldn't "like" everything. But again, he proved me wrong. He loved the water! He just layed back on me like, "wow, this has to be the best thing ever!"

Well, I just had to brag a little about my wonderful son!

Some of these pictures are from our June 13th excursion to the lake

Me and Gray in the water! Loved it!

Gray and his Daddy. Yes, he always...ALWAYS...has his fist in his mouth!

Me and my favorite boy in the world!!

Gray playin' in his playpen at the lake.

Gray and his Aunt Jaime

4 months old

2009-06-17T18:57:00.001-04:00

On June 12, Grayson turned 4 months old. I can't believe how quickly time has passed.

He had his 4 month shots on Friday and the Doctor said he looked perfect....which of course, I agreed! :) But she said that he was a little underweight. By looking at the pictures and holding him, you wouldn't think so, but he is only in the 25% for his weight. He weighs 14.7 now. He is almost 25" in length and that was in the 50%. So he is right on target for length. His Dr. said that he is just gaining length instead of weight so hopefully he will be tall like his Dad. She did say that she wasn't going to worry to much about his weight right now but told me to go ahead and start cereal and once he got used to the spoon then to start baby food once a day. Watch....at his 6 month appointment he's going to be overweight. lol.

Uncle Jason & Aunt Jaclyn

2009-06-05T18:27:00.001-04:00

Grayson finally got to meet his Uncle Jason (my brother) and Aunt Jaclyn (the weekend of May 30th). My brother is in the Air Force and they live in Florida so this was the first time they were able to come up and finally meet their nephew.

Look at Gray looking at his Uncle Jason! So precious!

Loves his Aunt Jaclyn

Gray and Nana

Gray and Papa

Talkin' fool

2009-06-03T14:06:00.000-04:00

Here is video of Gray doing some talking. This is a little clip of what he does ALLL the time. I was taking him to school the other morning and he was just a talking and talking and talking. He wasn't the "jabber jaws" he normally is in this video.

Enjoy! :)

Jewels birthday party

2009-06-02T18:40:00.000-04:00

Grayson had his first invite to a birthday party. Jewel and Jagger Stockman turned 1 and it was the cutest thing ever. Heather had one of those water slides (for the older children) and a little "pool" for the little ones. It was so cute. Unfortunately, Gray didn't get in the pool but he did get spoiled by multiple people. He just loves all the attention! And I can't help but constantly talk to him and love on him and his teachers at the daycare have even noticed. They said to me the other day, "man, he sure loves to be talked to." Oops, my fault. :) But hopefully he will have a wide range vocabulary and start talking early.

Below are some of the pictures from the party.

Grayson and his "Aunt Lacey" :) He loves her and her "Baby Girl Willamina" Haha....and no, shes not really naming her baby girl that name. Her and her husband Ronnie can't decide on a name.

This is the big kid slide. And sliding down is Jewel and her Daddy, Brandon.

At the end of the slide.

Jewel and her Mama, Heather. Isn't she so cute?!

Jewel opening her presents. And man, she had a bunch!

We all wrote on balloons in memory of Jagger Stockman. He is truely missed and loved but we know that he is smiling down on his family and friends.

Then we let the balloons go!

This is my happy baby!

Lil' Jerry sleeping away! He was pooped....he played in the little pool for a long time.

Me and Gray (15 weeks) and Meagan and her son, Avery (5 weeks)

Mothers Day

2009-05-12T13:27:00.001-04:00

First I want to say, Happy Mother's Day to all you wonderful Moms out there!! And that goes for Adoptive Moms, Stepmoms, Foster Moms etc. etc. It takes a really special and wonderful person to be Mom.

This was my first Mother's Day and I can honestly say I really enjoyed it. We didn't do anything special but I wouldn't have it any other way. My idea of fun now is hanging out with my family. It is still surreal that I am a Mom. I am going to raise Gray to the best of my ability. And I hope he knows that I will always be there for him.

We took Gray swimming at his Aunt Jaimes house and boy he didn't like it at first (though I think he may have been just hungry) because after we fed him he stayed in the pool for 30-45 mins. He looked so cute in his little bathing suit. I just love watching him do his "1st". I guess his next one will be cereal and baby food. I can't believe how fast he is growing. After swimming, Brandon cooked all us Moms (me, my sister and my mom) a steak dinner. How did I get so lucky to find a man that knows how to cook? If it was up to me, we would be having grilled cheese sandwiches for dinner...EVERYDAY. lol. Brandon says I don't even know how to boil water. But why learn how to cook when I have him?!

Below is the video of Gray swimming. And a couple of pictures.

This was when we first put on his bathing suit and the sunscreen....he doesn't look very enthused. :)

Gray and his Daddy....still doesn't look excited.

Family picture...in the kiddy pool! :)

Now is he enjoying the pool

Swimming wore him out.

Jared's Baseball Game

2009-05-06T21:49:00.000-04:00

This past weekend we went to Jared's (Uncle Jared to Gray) baseball game. He plays first base or pitcher. And let me tell you, he is VERY good and I'm not just saying that because I'm his sister. I had a wonderful time watching him. Gray on the other hand....fell asleep...imagine that! But he loves being outside so I'm sure he had fun too! The weekend before that we had Blain and Abby over and we all played in the sprinkler. That was a sight to see. Wish I could've taken pictures BUT I was also playing in the sprinkler. Brandon said "Jodi, you are supposed to be getting older, not regressing!" haha! Brandon held Gray and let his legs get sprayed and he didn't care one bit. Next time I'll take some pictures!

It was so hot so we put him in his carseat to sleep to get the sun off of him.

This one wasn't at the baseball game but I thought it was pretty good of me and Gray. He is so dang cute!

Gibson Pond Park

2009-04-29T12:58:00.001-04:00

Gray got his pictures made this past weekend at Gibson Pond Park in Lexington. My friend, Heather Stockman, is wonderful with the camera and I was so excited that I was able to get her to take some pictures. She does want to start her own photography business, so anyone that needs pictures done, contact me.

Grayson is 10 weeks old in these pictures.

Playin' with Nina

2009-04-20T22:16:00.000-04:00

First Easter

2009-04-20T20:13:00.000-04:00

We spent Gray's first Easter in North Carolina visiting Brandon's parents, Cathy and Terrell and his sister, Rachel. We had a blast even though it rained everyday except Easter Sunday. Gray got really spoiled but he loved all the attention from his Nina and Granddaddy!

The Easter bunny gave him a basket full of toys. After looking through the Easter baskets we all (Brandon, me, Gray, Cathy, Blain and Abby) went on a nature walk on this trail located behind Cathy's house. When we reached the end (well, almost the end) of the trail, we sat down on this big rock and had a Bible Study while looking at the gorgeous views. Gray stayed awake all the way to the Rock but then he fell asleep. Once we got back to the house, Blain and Abby had an Easter egg hunt. Next year Gray will be able to join in on the action.

Before we left for NC, Gray had his 2 month Dr. appt. He now weighs 11 lbs 9 oz (50 %) and he is 23" (50%). He is my lil chunk muffin. And soo soo sweet. He is smiling all the time and cooing. He can always make me smile and laugh. He brings so much joy to our family.

Grays' big 'ole smile. And sticking his tongue out at me.

My beautiful baby boy.

Gray's Easter outfit. Check out the bunny shoes. Aren't they cute?

Isn't he precious?!

The whole family: Brandon, me, Abby, Gray and Blain sitting on "the rock"

Gray and his Daddy. He looks just like Brandon.

View from the Rock.

First ER Trip and Hospital Stay

2009-04-09T13:15:00.001-04:00

Grayson had his first trip to the Emergency Room on Sunday, April 5. He started running a little fever Sunday afternoon, it was varying between 99.9 and 100.2. Well, I called his Dr. and with it being a weekend, the hotline took a message and said the Nurse would call me back. When she did she stated that if his temp. went over 100.4 degrees rectally than we needed to take him to Richland Childrens Hospital ER. Around 8:00 p.m. that night his temp. went to 100.8. So I threw on some clothes and went straight to the hospital and arrived there around 9:00 p.m. I waited in the waiting room for about 15 min. (I couldn't believe it) and was finally seen by the nurse. When she took his temp. it was 101.1 and she told me that the Drs. would probably want to do a full work-up (meaning blood, urine, and every other test you could imagine). And that is exactly what they did. Poor thing was stuck with needles everywhere. First, he had a chest X-ray done to make sure he didn't have pneumonia and his lungs and heart were working properly (thank Goodness he didn't and they were). Then, they drew blood in his right hand and after that they kept the tube there just in case he needed IV fluids. After drawing the blood they had to get a urine sample so they stuck a catheter up his wee-wee :(. Luckily, his blood and urine came back normal! So, since they were normal they wanted to do a spinal tap to check for bacterial meningitis. I couldn't stay in the room when they did this because they had to have a sterile environment so I was asked to wait in the waiting room. That was the longest wait EVER! I hated that I couldn't be in there with him but when they finally came and got me, he was already falling back to sleep. I couldn't believe it.

Because his temp. was so high for a 7 week old baby, they had to admit him into the hospital. And because of them checking for bacterial meningitis, we were in "confinement." They put a blue bag on your door to let the Drs. and Nurses know that there might be a communicable disease and they have to scrub down everytime they come in (this was before they found out he was negative for bacterial meningitis). Well, after all these tests and all negative results they tested for RSV (which is Respiratory Syncytial Virus). If it came back negative then they would test for the flu....well, needless to say, his RSV test was positive. So my poor baby has RSV. And you want to know how they test for that?! By sticking a long tube up his nose and sucking a boogie out...NO NEEDLES!! He went through all those needle pricks! I was crying through this whole ordeal because I just feel like its my fault that my baby is sick. If I didn't have to work, he wouldn't have to go to daycare and he would not have got sick (Dr. did confirm that she thought it was from the daycare). BUT she did say that this illness is really going to build his immune system.

So it has been a couple of days and he still has a cough and very bad congestion but gradually he is getting better. Hopefully the next cold won't be as bad at this!!

Heres my little man with the IV in his arm. Hes so sweet!

Daycare

2009-04-08T13:05:00.000-04:00

My little man started daycare last week and it was probably the hardest week of my life. I cried everytime I dropped him off. And I would call the daycare 2-3 times a day to check on him.

Then on Friday, April 3, 2009, I pulled him from his 1st daycare. I'm not going to say the name because I'm not sure if some people that read this blog go there but needless to say, Gray was not going back. Everytime I went to pick him up he was in his crib (which I can't stand because I want him to know thats where he sleeps, not plays) and then one time I went and he was in his car seat in his crib. When I asked the teacher why, she stated, "He doesn't get much floor time because we have crawlers and walkers in here." Sorry, but that's just not going to cut it. Then, on top of that, the very next day I had to drop him off in the Toddler Room with 4 Toddlers and 3 Infants and only 1 teacher....well, that was the final straw. I withdrew him that day. Many of you are probably wondering where he goes now and he goes to Calvary Christian Day Care which is down from Ben Satcher in Lexington. While he has only been there for 2 days, I can honestly say I've had no complaints. The teachers there are wonderful and really nice. And the first time I dropped him I felt at peace (granted I still cried but that was because I just hate being away from him) :) Then when I went and picked him up, he was on the floor playing with 2 friends and just a smiling. That's when you know that he is very content and that is what a Mama wants (to know her child is happy and well taken care of). So, if any of y'all are looking for a daycare, I would suggest Calvary Christian!

St. Patricks Day

2009-03-19T16:17:00.000-04:00

This was Grayson's first St. Patty's Day. Though we didn't have anywhere to go, I still put on his shirt and bib and took some pictures. He is 4 weeks old in these pictures.

I love this picture. Hes my angel!

Gray also had a Dr. appt on the 18th. You will not believe how much he weighs now.

10 lbs 12 ounces....can you believe it?? And he is almost 22 inches long. He's getting so big! Dr. Smith (his Dr.) said his weight and length are perfect! Just like him....:) Can you tell I'm a proud mom!

Growing and Growing

2009-03-12T16:56:00.001-04:00

Grayson is 1 month old today! I can't believe how much he has grown. Its true what they say "they grow up so fast!" In 2 weeks I will have to go back to work and he will go to daycare. I get so nervous thinking about that and to be honest I'm not looking forward to it. But then again, how many moms are?

Below are some 1 month old pictures. Look how much he has changed. But he hasn't just changed in looks, he is getting a little personality on him. :) He makes all kinds of faces now, he'll smile every once in awhile (not just when he is sleeping...though I still can't seem to get him to smile when I have the camera on) and he is getting so SPOILED. He loves to be rocked and he loves to listen to kids music. I'll turn on the T.V. to the 'kidz' (thats how it's spelled) music channel and he will just sit and listen. And another thing....he looks more and more like his Daddy everyday!

My sleeping angel!

Click Here for more 1 month picutures of our Gray-Man.

Grays' New Dance Moves

2009-02-27T21:18:00.001-05:00

Just wanted to post a video of Grays' new dance moves. He's a pretty good dancer at only 2 weeks old.

Our little man

2009-02-23T19:06:00.000-05:00

I can't believe our little man is almost 2 weeks old. Time is really flying by. Before Brandon and I know it, he'll be crawling and walking. Right now though, he's sleeping alot and eating even more. :) He's getting up every 3-4 hours to eat. He's not strickly on breastmilk anymore. I cried to my husband about this just the other day because I wanted to breastfeed as long as possible but it just wasn't keeping my little chunky butt happy. I just felt like a bad mom because I wasn't giving him just breastmilk (since its supposed to be better for the baby). But like Brandon said, "formula these days are alot like breastmilk." So I guess its not so bad. Formula does seem to hold him a little longer.

Well, my hormones seem to be going back to "normal." Man, that first week I would just spontaneously cry. I wouldn't even have a reason to be crying but that wouldn't stop Brandon from comforting me (which is what you need). I guess it just takes awhile to get in the swing of things. Your whole life changes when you have baby....but I wouldn't change a thing! Gray is our little man!

Sucking on Papa T's (Brandons' Dad) finger. 1 week old

Gray loves his Daddy!

Brandon, Me, Gray, Rachel (Brandons' sister) and Jeff (Rachels' fiance)

Grayson's Arrival

2009-02-14T07:30:00.000-05:00

On February 12, 2009, I was induced at Palmetto Health Baptist. I arrived at the hospital at 6:15 a.m. being 1-2 cm dialated, 80% effaced, and having Braxton Hicks contractions every 2 minutes. At 7:30 a.m. they started the pitocin drip to start the real contractions and broke my water. I really didn't get a chance to feel the "real" contractions because Dr. Hutch decided to go ahead and give me an epidural along with a spinal block, so he could finally take out the cerclage. After that, I did not progress nearly as fast enough for Dr. Hutch. At 1 p.m., I was 5 cm dialated and I stayed that way until 5:30 p.m. This was when Dr. Hutch and I had to discuss possibly having a C-section. Well, Dr. Hutch had to go to a meeting at 6:30 and he said he would be back around 8:00 p.m. to see where we stood. Needless to say, when he returned, I was at 9 cm and 100% effaced and having so much pressure. At 9:00 p.m. I started pushing and Grayson arrived at 10:19 p.m. on February 12, 2009 and weighing in at 7 pounds 14 ounces. Labor is an experience you will never forget but every minute is worth it when you see your baby for the first time. Gray did not come out screaming like most babies and I was "freaking" out. The nurses told me he was fine he was just.....sleeping. Can you believe that? During all the commotion, Gray was sleeping. :) So the nurses had to flick his feet to get him to wake up and wail and of course once he started that, Brandon and I started crying. Thursday was a long day but the best day ever. Our life has changed completely but definitely for the better. Gray is loved by so many people. He is going to be so spoiled.

His first bath. He wasn't too happy.

Now he decided to like his bath. He's so precious.

So tired after a long day.

Loves his paci already!

West Columbia Riverwalk

2009-02-09T19:09:00.000-05:00

I was having some pressure this morning so Brandon and I decided to stay home and see if we could get labor started. So we decided to go to West Columbia and walk the Riverwalk. Needless to say, it didn't work. But I would recommend this walk to everyone, pregnant or not. :) The scenery is beautiful and you can pick so many different trails to walk. They also have picnic tables everywhere so it would also be a wonderful place to have a picnic and fish or read a book.

Well, we started off at the Blossom Street entrance and walked and walked....and before we knew it, we walked 4 miles (all together). Can you believe it?? And still no labor. Gray just doesn't want to come out. Well, he won't have a choice soon. :) Tomorrow we will schedule an induction date. I can't believe in a couple of days we will be holding our baby boy.

Can you say HUGE?? :) But it has been worth it! (38 weeks 4 days pregnant)

Brandon likes this picture, but I look like a cow. lol

My handsome husband! Hopefully Gray will get his looks!

We saw a lot of turtles sunbathing since it was such a beautiful day!

I had to try out the video portion of my new digital camera so heres a video of Brandon skipping rocks. He tried to teach me out to skip rocks but it didn't look so pretty. He kept making fun of me.

Cerclage Removal

2009-02-03T20:45:00.001-05:00

I had the cerclage "removed" today (37 weeks 5 days pregnant). The process was a little painful like the Dr. had mentioned last time. First off, Gray is so low in my pelvic area it took awhile for Dr. Hutch to even find the stitch because my cervix is thinning. Well, he finally found it but he could only cut one side of the stitch. He tried to pull it out but it was getting a little unbearable and it started bleeding so he just decided to leave it. He said once I go into labor he will pull it out while I'm under the epidural. But since it is cut my cervix is free to dilate without tearing. Now we are just waiting on Gray to decide when he wants to make his appearance. His dad and I had a talk with him this morning but it seems that he is already ignoring us. :) The good thing is, if for some reason labor doesn't start by the end of next week then I will be induced. So technically I only have a maximum of a week and half left, so that's not too bad...I don't guess. We are just ready to meet our little man!

Stats as of today: 1 cm dilated, 70 - 80% effaced, heartbeat of 157 bpm, uterus measuring 38 weeks (so right on target)

Gray's Crib

2009-01-26T17:41:00.001-05:00

Good news: Grays' replacement part for his crib came in and Brandon has already put the crib together. Below are pictures of the crib with the bedding. Aunt Stacy gave him his bedding. Isn't it gorgeous!? And its microsuede, so its really soft. I love it.

The only thing we still haven't done is put up the wall hangings above the crib because I've decided to get his initials monogrammed on them. So I have to go drop them off. But trust me, I'll post some more pictures later.

36 weeks & 4 days pregnant

2009-01-26T17:03:00.000-05:00

I had a Doctors appt. today and everything is still the same as last time. I'm 70% effaced and Gray is still at the 0 station. Gray's heartbeat was 155 bpm and he seems to be moving more than ever. Everyone says that the moving/kicking slows down around 32 weeks but I believe that Gray's movements have been more. lol. But I guess I can't complain. I would rather him move, than not move and me stay worried all the time. He only moves during the day though. He hardly moves at night when I'm trying to sleep. I wonder if that will stay the same when he decides to arrive? :)

Dr. Hutch has decided to take the stitches out Feb. 3rd (next Tuesday). He did warn me that it would be kind of painful so please pray that it won't take too long. He said the worst part was not the cutting but the pulling of the stitches out. After that, he wants Brandon and I to go walk around, get lunch and then go back to the office a couple of hours later to see if my cervix started dilating yet. If it has, then to the hospital we go. If it hasn't, than "I'll be just like any normal pregnant woman...waiting on labor to start" (exact words from Dr. Hutch). And if for some reason labor never really starts and my cervix doesn't start dilating, he will induce at 39 weeks (Feb. 12th). Therefore, we only have a maximum of 2 weeks left before we meet our baby boy. I'm so excited. I never thought this day would come.

Below is a picture of my belly at 36 weeks. I'm going to warn you, its HUGE, but I seem to be all belly. Dr. Hutch estimated that Gray weighs around 5 pounds (well, at the last Dr. appt.) So, I'm guessing that he weighs 5.5 - 6 pounds now since they are supposed to gain 1/2 pound a week.

Belly Paintings

2009-01-20T11:25:00.001-05:00

Just wanted to post some pictures of Brandons' artwork on my belly.

Halloween '08 -- Brandon's first painting on my belly

Abby decided she wanted to get in on the picture. She loves taking pictures. And she is going to be a wonderful big sister.

Thanksgiving '08 -- I'm starting to look huge. Or maybe because Brandon was so close to my belly with the camera. :)

35 weeks pregnant

2009-01-14T19:11:00.000-05:00

This will be all about Grayson "Gray" when he is born, but until then I'll let you know how he is doing inside the womb.

As of today, 1/14/09, Gray is already in position. He is head down at the 0 station. Meaning, he's already in my pelvic area. And I'm already 75 - 80 % effaced (thinned). Dr. Hutchinson "Hutch" said I've been having so much pressure because he is so low. I'm very grateful for the cerclage procedure I had done when I was 15 weeks pregnant. For those of you that aren't familiar with that procedure it's when they stitch your cervix closed. My cervix was getting shorter and shorter around 15 weeks due to previous surgeries and to prevent premature labor Dr. Hutch stitched my cervix shut. I will get the stitches out in 2 weeks (February 2, 2009) and therefore Gray could make his debut in 2 weeks. I can't believe I will finally be able to meet my little man who has been kicking me in my ribs for the past 3 months.

At this point we are pretty much ready for his arrival. We are still waiting on a replacement part for the crib though. The crib was shipped to my mother-in-laws' house (since it was a baby shower gift) and when she brought it down around Christmas, my husband, Brandon, went to go put it together and the side part was BROKEN. So we called Babies-R-Us and they said it would take a couple of weeks before they would be able to send us the replacement part, so we are still waiting. But other than that, we are ready. Clothes are washed, bags are packed, pediatrician is confirmed, etc. Just waiting patiently...well, as patiently as possible.

I'll post some pregnancy pictures as soon as possible but below are pictures of his room. Its a little messy because we just got finished painting and had to throw everything back in the room. This is before we've put up the wall hangings....we want to wait until the crib is in place. :)