Um, hi...remember me?

Hi friends,

So you know those friends that you can go months without seeing or hearing from, and the next time you talk it's like y'all never skipped a beat? Well, can we be those kind of friends?

Pretty please:)

You probably want to know where the hell I've been and what has kept me from blogging.  Or you're that said friend that just gets it.  You're with me wondering how in the world Pumpkin Spice Lattes are back and entire summer is completely over.

We blinked, but I pray to God I didn't miss a thing.  Well maybe a few meltdowns and personal situations that I'd love to pack away with the beach towels.

Summer 2013 was a season of travel.  We traveled more than we intentionally planned, but I wouldn't have had it any other way.  We are insanely blessed with children that love to travel as much as we do, and a family that treats us to amazing vacations.

First up was the most extravagant.  Aruba.  Wow, it was unreal.   I promise to come back with a post dedicated solely to our week there.  I sure hope I can capture all of the memories that we made, not to boast or brag, but so that I can look back on this trip and remember every bit of it.  Seeing Mattie Jayne nap in tandem with her future BFF cousin and Jackson snorkeling among hundreds and hundreds of fish...my cup runneth over.

Not quite two weeks after we returned from Aruba, we packed up again and headed to Point Clear, Alabama.  While the beach was nothing compared to the crystal clear water and sugar sand of Aruba - work calls and the Grand Resort was an awesome week away.  Mr. attended a conference and I took a not yet needed vacation from my new job to be the supportive wife;) We brought the kids, and a nanny, and worked a bit and networked the week away.

I think we may have put the suitcases away when I half way jokingly told my in-laws that we'd crash their beach vacation in Pensacola...I blame the Mexican food and the Corona's! Well that half joked turned into a great weekend getaway with family we never get to travel with.  Jackson and his cousin fell as in love as two 4 & 5-year-old boys can...with mermaids.  We may have to re-think traveling with the Wilson's when these boys are 14 & 15...they are going to be trouble! All joking aside, the Holiday Inn Resort is a pretty fun place with tons of family activities...including mermaids that play with your kids for hours, and hours.

And no summer is complete without a trip back to St. Louis.  With my birthday and Ellie's just one day apart, we went up for Ellie's first birthday party and Labor Day.  We always have the best birthday weekends, especially when they're three days! In addition to driving up to St. Louis, we also made a trip over to the Lake of the Ozarks to check out my dad's new condo.  Pretty sure four kids under 4 on a boat is a guaranteed meltdown, for someone, at some point in the day.

Last, but not least, we're cramming one more weekend trip to visit our dear friends in Houston over the weekend.  Eek, I cannot wait to sip wine with one of my besties and do some serious shopping!

In other news, Jackson has made a great transition into Pre-K4.  It was a little touch and go the first couple of weeks with a new teacher and new rules.  My boy does not like change, and even more than that, he does not like his new teacher to know he poops.  I think he has his first teacher crush and we're back to reading Everybody Poops, ha.  He had his first soccer game over the weekend and needs to focus a bit more on the field and less about where his momma is...but, this boy is some kind of sweet.  He loves his baby sister and melts my heart about once an hour - all 4 1/4 years of him.

Mattie Jayne is a movin' and a shakin'! She started crawling about a week before she turned 8 months, followed by getting her first tooth.  It's kind of scary how sweet and fun she is, she seriously makes me want to have about ten more of her.  Mr. isn't sold on that idea, but he can't complain about her ease or the amount of sleep either! She eats everything we eat, just mashed up a bit.  No processed baby food for her...and just maybe she'll end of being a better eater than her brother.  One thing they certainly have the same is their contagious smile and love of nursing.  Mattie nurses like a champ and I see no soon end in sight.

Mr. and I celebrated our 6-year wedding anniversary this summer, and being together for nine.  My time flies when you're having fun...or chasing around two sweet kiddos! Oh and working a new job that is everything I ever hoped it would be.

Friends, help a sister out and keep on top of me to get back to blogging.  And tell me what fun things you did this summer! Miss y'all:)

Here's some pictures we had taken in July: Married for six years, four-year-old Jackson and six-month-old Mattie.

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Crowning the Queen

As I previously wrote about, Mr.'s step-mom is going to be Queen of her Mardi Gras krewe this year.  The fun and excitement has started off with a bang...or really fun parties:)

We were in on the surprise for her unveiling, she really had no clue that she was selected to be Queen.  It was so cute and sweet to watch the surprise unfold. Mr.'s daddy was so proud to be able to afford his wife this royalty:)

The next party we attended was her official crowning.  It was a low-key, poolside party at a beautiful home on the river.

We had a fun time sipping wine and cutting up a bit, karaoke style, at the end!

Most recently we were invited to the Rio Sambada, were the krewe selects the rest of the Mardi Gras court.  The Wilson's took a limo bus full of us out for a little pre-party and then we kind of took over the dance floor at the Sambada.  Mr. said he hadn't danced that much since our wedding.  Oh my yes, this is going to be one royally fun year!

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May Flowers

April showers brought us the most beautiful May flowers, theoretically speaking.

Life presented us with some tough choices and wonderful opportunities this spring. Opportunities that literally presented themselves in such a way that you couldn't ignore or pass up.

After we had Mattie we knew some things had to change in our lives, but we really weren't sure what needed to change.  It wasn't the actual birth of Mattie Jayne that rocked our world.  It was the realization that we only have one life to live this beautiful life that we've been blessed with.

Mr. and I were always stressed to the max and both worked jobs that required our attention or thought 24/7.  That, on top of our family, which obviously needs us 24/7+. We also need each other, but were too tired to give anymore to one another at the end of the day.

We contemplated me not working.
We inquired about me dropping a few hours, working a bit less.
We prayed.
We felt change was upon us, just not sure when it would present itself.

And then one night, on our way to Friday Family Date Night, I got a text that was the change we were waiting for.  An invitation to join a dream team.  An invitation so sincere and real that I was re-charged. Re-charged in myself more than I've ever been before.

43 applicants, 2-rounds of interviews, countless hours of prayer for guidance, and one offer that I couldn't pass up.

I am not the most religious person.  We don't go to church.  I've yet to have my children baptized.  But, I believe.  And I pray and worship with myself often. I know in my heart of hearts with all my faith, that this was the answer I had been looking for...quite possibly longer than I'm even aware of.

So after almost nine years in the advertising agency world, I am now the Marketing Specialist for a local hospital.

From day-one, I knew that this was the perfect job for me.  I'm doing something that I love, for an industry that's second nature to me.  I have the flexibility and support that our family needs.  And my family has me, and it feels good.

May flowers didn't just bloom for me though.

Mattie finally got an open position at Jackson's school.  She'd been on the waiting list since conception, seriously.  She had a rough first few days, but she's finding her routine too.  We absolutely love the school and couldn't be happier knowing that our children are in such a loving and educational place.  Talk about making going to work so much easier...especially since our nanny literally no-showed her last two weeks with us and I don't even want to think about how she may have treated our princess.

First day of Pre-K4 & Daycare. May 27, 2013

5-months and a few days

Two weeks shy of his 4th birthday

Jackson started Pre-k4 the same day that Mattie started at his school...which also happened to be the same day I moved in to my new office.  We decided to cram as much change into one day as possible:)

So that pretty much sums up the changes that transpired into our May flowers that are in full bloom now!

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Roar Jackson's 4!

It's hard to believe my first born is already four years old.  Where has the time gone? I vividly remember driving to my daily doctor's appointments waiting to be told today is the day! 

Jackson has taught me so much about life and continues to be my pride and joy every day.  He is such a sweet, tender-hearted, little boy.  He's full of life and character that is out of this world.  We nicknamed him the negotiator because he is just that.  "No" is never an answer for him, he always has another option, "how 'bout...".

I love celebrating birthdays.  Since Jackson is old enough to really have friends this year, we decided to host a real birthday party for him.  We haven't had a big party since his first, we've celebrated his others with just family and a few close friends.

If you know Jackson, then you know that this kids absolutely loves dinosaurs.  He knows them all by name, but his favorite is the T-Rex.  Of course, when we asked Jackson what kind of party he wanted it was dinos all the way!

I found some cute invites and decoration from Oriental Trading and Party City.  I may have gone a little over board, but Jackson loved it all.  He was a little upset that his T-Rex pinata would have to be broken to get the candy out..let's just say it's a good thing he likes candy:)

We hosted the party at my mom's house.  They have a big backyard and a pool, so the set up works well! We had a DINO-mite party with swimming and a dinosaur fun jump.  The party was in the afternoon so the food was pretty simple.  We had little snacks and sandwiches, and beverages of course.

Even though Jackson's birthday isn't until June 9th, we always celebrate over Memorial Day weekend. It has worked out well since it's a long weekend so my dad and sister can make the trip down.  May is also a big birthday month for the family, so we have a lot of people to celebrate.  Not including Jackson, we have my sister and brother-in-law, my sister-in-law, my brother, the Brummett twins, my grandma, and maybe even more that I'm leaving off here! Stephanie and the girls were supposed to come as well, but a terrible virus kept them home for the weekend:( 

A large time was had by all little ones that made the party, and some of the adults too! It rained at the very end of the party, but Jackson certainly didn't let that ruin his fun.

Happy birthday my sweet boy, happy birthday!

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Daddy & Jackson

Now that Jackson is a little older, um 4-years to be exact, he's able to do "big boy" things with his Daddy.

They have their Saturday (and sometime Sunday too) tradition of going to get donuts.

They do laps around the neighborhood pond to pick up trash.  Jackson loves to "walk the pond"

They fish.

And they've made a few trips to Baton Rouge to watch some LSU Tiger baseball.

I feel like a lifetime has flashed before my eyes and I see many boys weekends of fishing, hunting and Tiger's in our future.  I guess that's why God blessed me with a little girl to stay home and shop with:)

Boys will be boys, and man do I love mine!

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Diamonds are a girls best friend

A fews days before Mattie turned 5-months-old, we decided to have her ear's pierced.  I had been contemplating it for a while, thinking about the pro's and con's, and ultimately decided on a whim that it was time:)

My sister and I both had our ear's pierced as babies and have known no different. Megan wait until Amelia was a little older to have hers pierced and she is constantly pulling them out.  She pierced Ellie's when she was about 7-months and she's done great with them.  I would have done Mattie's at the same time we pierced Ellie's, but her ears were still too small.

I knew that I wanted to pierce Mattie's around 6-months, and before our trip to Aruba so that we'd be home if she had any problems or infections.  So one evening Mr. and I dropped Jackson at my parents to swim while we ran some errands...and we ended up at the Mall getting our princess some diamond studs and piercing her ears! Mr. was so sweet and wanted Mattie's earrings to match mine, he loves his girls:)

Poor Mattie had no idea what she was in for, but lucky (for me) she tolerated the actual piercing much better than the markings.  Holding her head so still was nerve-wracking and I envisioned her ending up with a nose ring when she jerked away!

All said and done, they are just precious and haven't bothered Mattie yet.  I just love her little ear bling and our princess girl:)

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