The Good Life

Monday was one of those days that Moms are not proud to talk about, and often times don't. It was one of those days when I felt like I could run away and not come back for a long, long time. As much as I love my child and would do anything to care for and protect him, Monday, I could've run away. Everything that has been building up over the past few weeks finally escalated. Colton has been battling sickness for around a month. With that sickness, as all Moms know, comes grouchy, bratty, miserable, little turd buckets that you can't make happy no matter how hard you try! There have been days when he acted totally fine with the exception of a runny nose and other days he has been so lethargic. Over the past few days, I have known something just wasn't right. On Saturday, Colton was getting worse instead of better. I was so frustrated. Colton was frustrated/sick/cranky and just miserable. Matt, bless his heart, has been wonderful while dealing with two crazy people in

There is no love like a Mom's love. All you Moms out there know what I mean. It's just a feeling that you can't explain and a bond that is just so instant and strong. It's truly amazing. I feel like the retail/advertising/product world uses (or tries to use) that love against us. Especially at Christmas! Think about it. When you find out you're pregnant for the first time, you're scared. You're excited, overwhelmed, nervous and naive. You start making a baby registry and probably look up all the ratings/feedback/comments on the products. If you don't use this car seat brand, you're baby is going to die in a car crash. If you don't breastfeed, you could cause development issues. If you don't use this brand of diapers, your baby is going to get diaper rash. If you don't have a monitor with a video, how are you going to know they're breathing? You have to have this and have to have that...or you're a horrible Mom or Dad. It doesn

I know it's that time of year, but I am beginning to feel like Colton is never going to be back to "normal". We have been battling runny nose/cough/mild fever for 3 weeks now. I thought he was better and then I took him to the parade (good job Mom, right?) and the runny nose was right back the next day! Ugh...tis the season. Last weekend, Matt and I had to make a very tough parenting decision. We decided for me to keep Colton at home while Matt made the trip to Ohio to celebrate Christmas with his family. I was heartbroken because I know how far away we all live and how rare it is for us to all be together. My mother in law and sister in law were flying in from Texas, it was going to be the first time that all of the cousins were together at the same time, I was excited about watching all the kids open their gifts and looking forward to visiting with everybody. It's not fun making that kind of decision. All sorts of worries and thoughts ran through my mind. I was so

On Saturday after Thanksgiving, we took Colton to "meet Santa". I heard about Bass Pro Shops  offering a free picture with Santa, and since it doesn't take much to talk Matt into going to Bass Pro (and it takes an arm and a leg to get him to the mall), we decided this was the perfect place for Colton to meet the man in red. It was a nice drive over to Sevierville and honestly, the store wasn't as crowded as I was thinking it would be. We found Santa's Wonderland and got our "time card". We were able to line up at noon. So, while we waited Colton rode the carousel and we got to browse around the store. I knew that it was going to be hit or miss on how Colton was going to react to Santa. Since our time slot was noon, we had missed a nap and lunch. He ate part of his lunch while waiting in line but it doesn't really count for an actual "meal". He was still not feeling great (runny nose/cough), it was hot in the store, we waited for almost

My sister checks my blog almost daily and informed me that she is going to stop checking if I don't update! So...here's some news. Matt, Colton and I traveled to Indiana the weekend of November 16th. We had such a great time celebrating with his family for Thanksgiving/Christmas. It was so nice to visit with Aunts/Uncles/Cousins that we don't get to see very often. Matt's Mom was even able to fly in from Texas to join the crowd. Of course we always feel like we are limited on time and can't see everybody we would like to - but it was nice, nonetheless. I feel like I've been in survival/catch-up mode since our trip. Colton caught some nasty bug/virus while visiting Indiana and the poor little guy had a rough trip back to Tennessee. We experienced our first vomiting episode. What better way to experience that than in the truck, while going down the interstate, in the pouring rain/fog...right?!? Once we made it back home, we had a very rough night and next day.

With all the hustle and bustle of these new projects, I was feeling really proud of myself. It has been so important to me for us to have a home that we are comfortable in. I wanted Colton to have a cute room, I wanted pretty floors, I wanted to help Matt organize his garage. I was busy, busy, busy making our house comfortable that I completely forgot that what makes Colton comfortable. He doesn't care if he has a cute room or pretty floors, he just wants Mommy and Daddy. On Monday,  the day from somewhere other than heaven,  I was so frustrated. I had so much to do and Colton just kept crying and wanting me to pick him up. I literally felt like I was going to lose it. I was tired, I had so much to do. I was thinking "why can't you just play and be happy". Horrible Mom moment, but let's be honest, no Mom is perfect. So after battling with him, totally losing my patience, locking myself out of the house and crying (ladies,  you can understand that special time of

Moving into our new house has been so exciting but with all the unpacking, updating, projects and getting settled, I have to admit that I am exhausted. This past weekend, Matt and I took on our biggest project yet - we replaced the carpet in our living and dining rooms with hardwood. The hardwood that we used is not the pre-finished kind, it's straight from the mill (literally). I knew this was going to be a big challenge for us for several reasons but the biggest being that we have a 10 month old "helping". On Friday, I took on the challenge of ripping out carpet while Matt was at work . My Mom came over for about an hour to watch Colton which gave me time to get enough of the tack strip up to be able to manage the rest of that job with my little assistant. It took me most of the day but I was able to get the living room completely prepped for flooring to start. On Saturday morning, we were at Lowe's by 8am getting everything we needed for our big project! Of

I was invited to attend “Mommies Time Out” on Friday, November 1. It’s a group of Moms, who meet once a month to talk about “Mom stuff” and get away from the normal routine for a couple of hours. The meetings are at Towering Oaks Baptist Church , the church where Matt and I have been attending for the past few weeks. The church donates staff/time so that childcare is provided and I was glad that Colton was going to be in the same room that he plays in during church! I have been slow to join groups or try “new things” since Colton has been born. It’s not that I haven’t wanted to go, I’ve just let myself make excuses as to why I “can’t”. I decided that I am done making excuses, and I am going to make the effort to try some new things. I am so happy that I attended this meeting. I got to meet several new people, and not just “people” but Moms who are going through the same struggles/stress/challenges/joy that I’m going through. The meeting was from 9:30 to 11:30am. We started with so

So, when we bought our home, we knew that every room was going to need a makeover. Since we have a limited funds and a   “priority list”, my laundry room is very low (if not last) on the list! The laundry room is in the basement and it’s huge. It’s got a big folding counter and lots of cabinet space – but it’s in need of updating - BAD. When we moved in, it had a single light bulb in the ceiling with a pull string (no light switch) and was dark and very, very, VERY dirty. I dreaded starting in on it, but I knew that it had to be done - I mean, we couldn't go without clean clothes for too long. I didn’t want to invest very much (if any) money in this room since we are going to totally renovate it anyway! Where to start? I got Matt to install a new, florescent light (with a switch) to lighten things up. Once the light was installed, I was able to get down there and clean. I took the shop vac over every square inch and then went back with bleach water and wiped everything down! T

Some people were asking about Colton’s Halloween costume (because I didn’t post any pics)! Since this was Colton’s first Halloween, I struggled with the decision of whether or not to play “dress up” with him. After looking at costumes (the cost of costumes) and talking to Matt about the reasons why we would be doing it, we decided against dressing him up this year. He wasn’t old enough to pick out what he likes or enjoy candy anyway, so we stayed home and had a great time handing out goodies to all the trick-or-treaters. Since we live in a small neighborhood now, we had lots of little visitors on Halloween night. Our first spooky visitor was my Cousin Sara’s son, TJ. He was dressed up in the “Scream” mask. While I thought it was a great costume choice, Colton did not and was scared of the mask. Once TJ revealed who was under the mask, Colton was much happier! My parents, my Uncle Pat and Aunt Teri all came over (and brought pizza) to enjoy the trick-or-treaters. Over the course of the

This past Friday afternoon, Matt, Colton and I drove to Hixson, Tennessee to visit my cousin Jody and his wife, Missi. Since Matt has never eaten at a Japanese food, they treated us to Ichiban Japanese Steak House  and it was delicious! Colton even tried the rice with white sauce and loved it (who wouldn’t, right?). On Saturday, we spent the day with Missi ( Memories by Missi Photography ) shooting family pictures and Colton’s Christmas pictures. Missi does such a great job and I’m so thankful that she is our “family photographer”. I’m really looking forward to seeing the final product. This morning, we took Colton to church for the first time. We have never left him in any type of daycare, so I wasn’t sure how it was going to go (especially since Matt and I have never attended this church before and didn’t know anyone). The usher at the door was so helpful and directed us exactly where we needed to be. We got Colton “checked in” and took him to his designated room. At first, he

Tuesday – October 22, 2013 This morning, Paula (my mother-in-law), Dani, Hunter and Grandma Swim all left for Texas. It was so nice having them visit with us for a few days – our house is going to feel so empty now! Colton had a check-up with Dr. Woods today. He is still in the 98 th percentile for height and 86 th for weight. While asking the normal questions regarding his development, I feel like he was showing off for Dr. Woods today. He showed her how he picks up a “puff” with 2 fingers, feeds himself, holds his sippy cup and drinks out of it with ease, how he crawls, walks (with help) and he also showed her how to clap his hands (the very first time he has ever clapped his hands together on his own)! Since birth, Colton has had a “rattle” when he breathes. It’s not as noticeable to others unless he cries, plays really hard or laughs a lot but I have noticed it every day. It’s something that Dr. Woods has been keeping an eye on. His lungs are (and always have been) cle

Monday – October 14, 2013 So, a LOT has happened since my last post. On Friday, October 11, we closed on our new home! We are officially home owners in Greeneville, Tennessee (insert big sigh of relief). Since closing, we have been busy, busy, busy getting moved in and settled – which is a big part of why I am so behind on my updates! After closing at 3pm on Friday, we pulled one of (the many) loaded trailers over and started the move-in   process. We did not get our bed moved over on Friday so we didn’t spend Friday night at our new house. All day Saturday, we had loads and loads of “stuff” coming in to the house. Since we had so many things in storage over the past year and half, it was like Christmas every time I opened a new box. I had no idea we had so much crap. There is no way we could’ve gotten moved over the weekend without the help of my amazing family!!! We love our house and we’ve already started taking steps toward making it our home. The house needs so many update

Right now, my life is busy - and my life is GOOD! I'm trying to enjoy all the moments as well as share them, but I'm doing a poor job of keeping up here on "The Good Life". I'll try to play catch up... Last week, we spent our week on the beach. It was our first family vacation since Colton arrived and I have to say that it was pretty amazing to get away and just simply enjoy some time soaking up the sun! My Mom, Dad, Mamaw and Papaw Bishop, my sister and her significant other, Josh, Matt, Colton and I rented a townhouse on Tybee Island in Georgia. We were there from Sunday to Sunday and we had such a great time. Monday was the "coldest" day of the week. By cold, I mean slightly cloudy and windy but temps still in the 70s. The rest of the week, we had nothing but blue skies and perfect temperature! On Thursday, Colton turned 9 months old and we spent the day in Savannah! We booked a 90-minute trolley tour with Oglethorpe Tours  and got to see the down

Why is that when you're waiting on something that you really want, time just stops? Every other week that Colton has been born has just flown by and this week is taking forever!!! This week has been full of some wonderful things/news...but it's just seems to be passing by very slowly. On Tuesday, we did get a visit from my cousin, Susan and her 3-month old baby Logan. They drove over from Nashville on Monday and stopped by the house for the afternoon. I haven't seen Susan in about a year and it was my first time meeting baby Logan. What a doll baby. While holding Logan, I kept thinking "was Colton ever this still? Was Colton really this small? Where did the time go?". I can't believe how much Colton has grown - he looked like such a little boy next to Logan! Since he hasn't been around a baby younger than him, Colton was totally amazed with everything that Logan did. It's so much fun getting to know all of our newest family members! The visit on Tues

My sweet baby has added a lot to my life, but he has also taken a little bit away. I’m sure that is natural with any Mom or Dad. Being a parent has changed my life and taught me so much about myself that I didn’t even realize I needed to learn. Some days, I feel like I’m “just” a stay at home Mom and kinda miss my away from home job. I miss the structure, the schedule, the interaction with other adults and honestly, some days, I just miss getting “dressed up”.   But then I stop and think about what I would be missing out on here at home and I know that I would miss that WAY MORE than structure, schedule, other adults or any dress up day. Being a Mom has its challenges, but I have to believe that being a 24/7 Mom is a bigger challenge. Colton is getting to the stage where he takes everything out on Mommy. I read an article that said babies tend to be more fussy with Mommy because Mommy is the “comfort zone” and they know that no matter how they act, Mommy is still going to care for t

Now that the news is "out" about the house - I feel like I can get back to sharing about my every-day events without fear of mentioning something I'm "not supposed to"! :-) I hope to keep a journal of our journey on finding/closing on/moving into/growing in our new home! After our offer was accepted on the house, we shared the news with our immediate family members (they have been as anxious as we have and so supportive through this process). Of course I have been looking for any excuse(s) to drive by the house, so anybody that has wanted to see it has seen it. I had a feeling that the lady next door (our future neighbor) thought I was stalking their neighborhood because I was out there 5 out of 7 days last week - and she was outside every single time. I actually started looking away so she couldn't see my face as I drove by. Like she isn't going to know it's me as soon as she sees my car in the driveway - but I guess it made me feel better at the

It's been almost a week since my last post. I've been trying really hard to be patient and I was afraid that if I started blogging that I would "spill the beans"! Well, even if our "big news" isn't actually finalized, I just can't wait anymore! Matt and I have been on a house hunting journey for (what seems like) forever. It's either been the wrong location, the wrong neighborhood, the wrong state, the wrong price, the wrong size or the wrong timing. Since our search began for a house here in Greeneville (in May), we have looked at about (I'm guessing) 15 (or more) houses. The first potential purchase was a manufactured home. It wasn't exactly what we had in mind as a home for our (hopefully growing) family, but it was in our price range and it was in a pretty good location. It was a small house and it was going to be hard to accommodate a growing family, but since it came with a decent lot and 2 out buildings, we were willing to make

I haven't been sharing any blog posts this week because my mind is completely somewhere else. I have sat down and tried to type up some funny things that happened this week, but I would 1) get interrupted 2) get sidetracked 3) lose focus or 4) think of the other million things I need to be doing and get up and walk away. But today - here I am (let's hope I can remember anything from the week)! Monday night we had 4 new cloggers in class at LMH. I am so happy that they were able to join us and I'm looking forward to the fun we're going to have. I'm thankful that we have such a variety of ages, skill levels and personalities! Tuesday was...okay, let's just be honest, I don't even remember Tuesday! Wednesday I ran some errands in town, cashed in a gift card that I got for my birthday at Maurices (cha-ching) and did a lot of communicating back and forth with the print shop (Tennessee Thunder Cloggers are getting new T-shirts)! Yesterday, I spent most of

Saturday - September 7 Today, the Laughlin Memorial Hospital Cloggers   and Tennessee Thunder   teamed up to dance at the 2 nd annual Buggin’ For a Cure. The event is an all Volkswagen, charitable benefit held at the fairgrounds here in Greeneville and all proceeds are for the ACS, Relay for Life. We are so happy to support a great cause!   We have a small team, but though we are small, we are mighty. I'm so thankful that these dancers have so much heart, are proud of what they are doing and love clogging as much as I do. After only a couple of months of practice, our cloggers put on a 30 minute show and really entertained the crowd. We incorporated new line dances, a new precision, an audience participation hoedown and a traditional line. The 4-year old class and 7-year old, Ava performed for the first time and of course they stole the show! A big thank you to all the dancers who joined us to put on a great show!   Looking for a new type of exercise? No dancer too

Friday - September 6 31 – that’s the magic number. So many have asked, “how does it feel being OVER 30?” and my response is “I haven’t even had time to blink, much less think about it”. This past year has been full of pregnancy, baby showers, swollen feet, a long delivery, a new baby, poopy diapers, late nights, early mornings, up all-nighters, poopy diapers, being away from Matt for work out of town, making bottles, washing bottles, trips out of state, trips in state, Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, new clogging classes, laughs, poopy diapers, cries, hugs, wet baby kisses, cleaning up messes, bath times, story times, trips in the wagon, poopy diapers, washing clothes, doctor appointments, anniversary dinners, birthday celebrations, arguments, make-ups, joy, disappointment, poopy diapers, highs, lows and everything in between but most of all this year has been filled with so much love! This year, we have been blessed beyond belief. We have experienced so many disappointing moments to f

Thursday – September 5 Today, my Mom took me “birthday shopping”. I can’t remember the last time that Mom and I spent a day shopping together, and we enjoyed a really fun day. Of course it wasn’t just me and Mom…we also had Colton in tow. J Since being pregnant and having Colton, obviously, my body has changed. There are women who have babies and then step right back into their pre-pregnancy clothes the next week (and I think that’s amazing)! I’m sure if I worked a little harder and ate a little less ice cream, I would have more success on finding a “style” that fits me, but that’s a topic for another time. J I think the struggle isn’t as much with clothes that fit me physically as much as fit my current lifestyle. I have only been “clothes shopping” about 3 or 4 times since Colton was born and out of those 3 or 4 times, I’ve only gone in a dressing room to try something on once (maybe twice). I’m not a big shopper anyway, so I guess I just felt like it’s not been worth

The morning of Colton's 8-month birthday (yesterday), the first thing he did when I picked him up out of his crib was take his two little hands on both sides of my face, look right at me and say "ma-ma". Sigh - I sure do love that kiddo. Yesterday, my sweet, funny, happy baby was back - ALL DAY! I'm hoping that since his two top teeth have finally cut through that he will not feel as miserable and that the happy Colton will stick around awhile! Yep, little booger officially has 4 teeth now...and he knows how to use them. At 8 months, little Colt is ON-THE-MOVE and into everything. I never knew little hands could move so quick. He can clear a table in one swipe if given the chance. Getting a good picture of him (one that isn't blurry from movement) is getting harder and harder but it's so much fun to see the growth and advancement each day. Little man absolutely LOVES music and I think he's finding his groove and rhythm (this makes Mommy very happy)! Talk

As fast as Colton is growing into and right back out of clothes, it's hard to keep an inventory of clothes that fit (especially sleepers). This week, I picked up 4 "sleeper sets" and one shirt for Colton. The items were on sale and still totaled over $50. Once I got the items home and out of the bag I realized 1) that I had very little product for the money I had spent and 2) that he was going to be out of these within a month (or two if I'm lucky)! I have never been one of "those Moms" who is afraid to put my kid in "hand me downs" and we have been so fortunate to have been given a lot of those from friends and family. Since we're running a little low on inventory of his current size, I decided to return the sleepers and re-think my strategy. I've had several friends and family members tell me about Once Upon A Child. Unfortunately, "our" closest store is on the west side of Knoxville - so a little over an hour drive away. Matt

This past weekend, Matt and I left Colton with my parents for the first time overnight. Of course with Matt working out of town when Colton was first born, it wasn't his first night away from him but for me, it was. I was looking forward to / dreading it all week. Colton has entered that "clingy stage" (see previous post) so I was nervous that he was going to have a total melt-down on my Mom, but I was so excited to get away with just Matt for a night. Friday night, Colton slept 12 hours (first time in the history of EVER). It was only the second night in (almost) 8 months that I have gotten at least 8 hours of sleep. It was pretty amazing to open my eyes and read 7:00am on the clock and not 2:30am! :-) Saturday morning, Colton was in a "so-so" mood. He was clinging to me as I was trying to get packed and loaded up. We finally had everything ready to go and it was time for the goodbye. I read an article about leaving a "separation anxiety kid" and it

Colton has entered what I am calling a "clingy phase". Since I'm a first-time parent and I'm at home all day with him, I sometimes feel concerned that I'm doing something "wrong" when Colton cries every time I walk into the next room (this has just started in the past 2 weeks). First, I thought he was extra fussy and clingy because he was sick, but now he is pretty much over the sickness and I'm still noticing some "separation anxiety" that wasn't there before. Colton used to warm up to anyone, but now he clings to me whenever a stranger or even some family members approach. So, the question arises in my head, "have I made him too dependent on me?". After reading some articles and books, I have learned that this is a normal phase that most babies go through toward the end of their first year. - Insert sigh of relief - Now that Colton is crawling around, he looks up every few minutes to see if I'm still there. If he can&#

Well, it's day 11 and Colton is finally feeling better! :-) HOORAY. Little guy had a good (for him) night's sleep and his little nose isn't running like a faucet. He is still battling a little bit of a cough...but I'll take it. Shew, I sure hate going through that. I'm once again reminded of how blessed we have been to just now be experiencing his first sickness!!! GOOD NEWS... Today is a big day for our family. My sister-in-law, Danielle, checked in to St. David's Georgetown Hospital  to deliver our newest nephew, Hunter. At 9:30 this morning (TN time), they broke her water and she was beginning to have stronger contractions. As of 12:45pm (TN time) she had elected for an epidural and was waiting for her Doctor to check in. :-) Shouldn't be too much longer now...we hope! I can't help but think back to January when I get her updates. It brings all those emotions flooding back. It's such a stressful, exciting, nervous, painful, joyful, amazing t

It's been over a week since my last blog post - and to those of you who might actually look forward to reading my "every day stuff", I apologize! :-) What has happened since last Monday? It feels like is went by in a "woosh"... Last week was a crazy week. Matt and I have been on a roller coaster of emotions in regards to finding a home. We thought we had found a house, we went through loads and loads of paperwork, we waited over a month and it all fell apart. SO, we are back to square one. Ugh, it's so frustrating BUT we are trying to stay positive and focus on the fact that God sees the bigger picture! So, we carry on and ask for prayers in finding the right home for our little family. On Tuesday (last week), my Mamaw and Papaw Bishop brought Colton a new Step2 Wagon . He LOVES his new wagon. I'm so thankful that he enjoys being outside and this wagon makes it easier for me to haul him around. Scout loves to follow along as I pull him around in th