Sweet Baby Boy

It's been rainy these last few days, so I figured pictures of an ADORABLE baby boy would brighten things up!

Happy Birthday, Baby! Part Two

I want to begin by thanking all of you who made kind comments about Part One of these posts. I truly appreciate your love and support!
Now, on to celebrating Liam's first birthday (although as I write this, he is already 13 months old...when the heck did that happen?!).

Liam loves pancakes, so of course he had to have special birthday pancakes!

We were lucky enough to celebrate Liam with two different birthday parties, and both were decked out with Sesame Street! And please, don't ask me to do my Elmo impression. I'm worried I've already scarred Liam for life with my attempts.

SO excited about his birthday!!!

My amazing friend made this Grover cake! Is this not the most incredible cake you've ever seen? She seriously needs to go on one of those reality cake shows because she'd take everyone to school!

This was while we were singing "Happy Birthday"...apparently we were off-key!

Happy Birthday my sweet, sweet Liam! You amaze me every day and I love you more than words could ever say!

A Blonde, a Brunette, and a (Former) Redhead

Ok, so I know the title of the post implies that I have some hilarious joke to share with you. Gotcha! But what I do have to share are three incredibly beautiful women who are even more beautiful on the inside. Cheezy, but true!

Edna, Jenny, and Susan--three generations together!

You all are gorgeous!

I was lucky enough to hear stories about Jenny's childhood! I wasn't surprised one bit that Jenny wouldn't settle for a regular shoe box to collect her Valentine's Day cards in elementary school...she had to have a CASTLE! And of course the cards were stored in the castle's moat!

Edna, Susan, and Jenny, thank you all for allowing me to document your laughter and hear your stories! You all are blessed to have each other!

Happy Birthday, Baby! Part 1

I have been putting off writing this blog post for a while now because, well, talking openly about Liam’s first year of life is such a mix of emotions. I realize that every parent’s experience is different, but I feel it’s important to share mine.

When Liam’s first birthday was approaching, Mike and I were talking with some friends and we said we were honestly proud of ourselves for keeping him alive for a whole year!  Our friends laughed because they assumed we were joking, but we were serious! This parenting stuff is HARD!

I was very naïve when it came to caring for a newborn. I have eight nieces and nephews so I thought I was a pro. I could not have been more wrong. You see, in my head, my selfishness would be birthed at the same time as Liam. The nurses would put it in a container, carry it away, and dispose of it appropriately. I then would stare adoringly at my sleeping son with tears of joy coming down my face but not messing up my mascara or mussing up my pearls.

Ok, so maybe I wasn’t quite THAT naïve, but I had no idea that once the tears of joy were over with, they’d turn into tears of exhaustion. And frustration. And delirium. And what felt like at the time hopelessness. The first night we brought Liam home from the hospital I sat on our bed at some awful time in the morning holding a very wide awake newborn that was competing with me for who could cry the most tears. Through my sobs I managed to say to Mike, “We had such a nice life before this. What have we DONE?” I could not live like this. It just was not an option. I hate to admit it, but I’m actually tearing up now just remembering that night.

Before Liam was born I thought that my great love for him would cover over all of the tough stuff. I thought it wouldn’t matter that I was up in the middle of the night because I loved him. I thought it wouldn’t matter that my house would be a mess because I loved him. I thought it wouldn’t matter that I got no sleep because I loved him. But for me, even though I loved him so much I felt like my heart would explode, it didn’t make any of the other things ok.  I think the worst part of it all was the overwhelming guilt and insecurity that I allowed to consume me because my great love wasn’t great enough. Because of this guilt, I didn’t have the courage to voice my struggles. I was afraid it would make me look like a terrible mother-- a terrible mother who just wanted to sit down and watch an episode of Lost without Liam screaming. My love wasn’t great enough to not get frustrated because I couldn’t hear what Sawyer was saying to Kate.

It took about four months for me to feel like I was keeping my head above water. Around 5 months I felt like I was doing a graceful doggie paddle (if such a thing exists). Once I finally found the nerve to open up a little about what I was feeling, I heard from a few other mothers that they experienced similar situations.  Some are blessed enough to get the hang of it right away (though I’m convinced this has a direct correlation to how much the baby is sleeping during the night!). I was not one of those mothers. What I needed most during that time (besides lots and lots of prayer) was validation of my feelings. It helped hearing encouraging words from others, but I had to believe that I was a good mother.

I’ve learned to love watching t.v. with the closed captioning on. I’ve learned to cherish consecutive hours of sleep. I’m thankful for a healthy child and an incredibly supportive husband. Every day isn’t easy. But every day I know that Liam will make me laugh so hard my sides hurt. I know that every day my love for him will increase. And most importantly, I know that every day he will teach me something deeper about God’s character just by being the amazing little person that he is.

Lastly, to prove to you just how hilarious this child is, enjoy what I like to call "Liam vs. The Lemon"

Danny and Brittany

Danny and Brittany are both go-getters. They met in the most unlikely of places...a routine ride on the campus shuttle bus. Even though they had a mutual friend on the shuttle, I have a feeling they didn't need any help sparking each other's interest! Danny wasted no time in chatting Brittany up during the ride. Brittany without hesitation described seeing Danny as love at first sight and told me afterward she added him as a friend on Facebook and gave him her number whether he wanted it or not!

After hearing their incredible story, I said, "Imagine if you hadn't taken the shuttle that day!"

Without missing a beat Danny replied, "Nah, I would've found her!" Siiiiiiigh. These two could not be any sweeter!

For me, it was love at first laugh with Danny and Brittany! I honestly don't think a minute went by without them genuinely laughing with each other. You can tell they truly enjoy one another and I was honored to photograph their joy!

Brittany told me the story of when she kissed Danny goodbye as he was leaving for work, even though his truck is HUGE and she could barely reach him. Nothing is going to get in Brittany's way of her man!

Can you blame Brittany for love at first sight?

And they even had coordinating TOMS shoes!

Danny has converted Brittany into a Texas fan! Since I too have been converted for love, I have to add a Roll Tide! It's all about Alabama in this household!

Danny and Brittany, thank you for being amazing! Your smiles, laughter, and warmth made for an incredible day!