Weekend Recap {Brantley & Stanton's Wedding}

This past weekend we headed to my hometown, Greenville, SC, for the wedding of Brantley and Stanton. John has known Stanton since their college days at Western Carolina. Stanton was an usher in our wedding and we were thrilled to be a part of his wedding weekend.

The rehearsal dinner was hosted at Brick Street Café on Friday night. We found out later from my sister that they are known for their desserts after raving to her about the sweet potato grooms cake. They also had a chocolate cake which I loved because it tasted like a brownie (my fave).

 

 

Attempt at Oxford dictionary's newest word "selfie"

 

 

 

The next night was the wedding at the lovely, Ryan Nicholas Inn. The ceremony was held in the Inn and the reception in the Crystal Pavilion. The Inn was fully decorated for Christmas and the coordinator said that it was their first Christmas wedding.

 

 



Lacy blogs over at www.runninglimitless.com. Be sure to follow her!

 

 

On Sunday, we went to brunch at Rick Erwin's Nantucket in downtown Greenville with the newlyweds. After two nights sans Emery, we brought her along because everyone wanted to meet her. She was definitely an attention getter. I joked with Stanton that he thought he was going to be the center of attention. He joked back that he is done with that.

There were approximately 20 people in attendance and it was nice to get a little more time with them before they left for their honeymoon this morning.

via

It was so fun to see John's college buddies, some of whom I haven't seen since we lived in Charlotte and a few that I hadn't met before. The wives were pretty great too. This past weekend made me even more excited to move to Atlanta. It will give us an opportunity to reconnect with so many friends.

Tomorrow

For the first time in a long time, I will wake up "jobless". It is an odd and very surreal feeling. I will not need to be up by 6:45 a.m. on the dot to shower and get dressed in a pencil skirt and button down shirt. There will be no need for makeup or high heels. I won't be sitting in traffic around 8 a.m. heading to a job in corporate America.

Instead, I will be waking up in the 6 a.m. hour to answer to a new boss. It will be makeup sometimes, workout clothes most days, cleaning when I can fit it in and I look forward to the possibilities of being a stay at home mom.

This doesn't mean that there will never be black dresses, cardigans or corporate America in my future. But for now, even if temporarily, I will take the time to learn a new city, spend QT with my little girl and make up for the time spent living far away with family and friends.

 

Five on Friday {We're Moving Edition}

So, it is time to let the cat out of the bag per say and announce that we are moving to Atlanta in December!   

This move is definitely bittersweet, but a little more sweet than bitter. Here are my fives for bitter and sweet:

The Bitter:

1. Friends. We have made really good, lifelong friends here that we will miss. This is the first place that we have lived were we have a lot of married couple friends (Boston and Charlotte = mostly singles), which has been perfect for our stage in life. 
2. My Job. I am leaving a job that I love. I do the type of marketing and advertising that I always hoped I would when I was in school and during my first couple of jobs out of school. Brochure, newspaper ad, digital campaign, anyone?
3. City and State. We are moving away from a city and state that we have come to enjoy. The place where we lived when we were married, a place that our daughter was born and place where we grew as a couple and family.
4. Volunteer Work. For the past few years, I have been volunteering at the Laura Dester Shelter through my placement for the Junior League of Tulsa. This, by far, has been my favorite placement for JL and I hope to find one that I love just as much when I get to Atlanta. It has been so rewarding to interact with these children, whether it is reading a book, coloring, playing Jenga or going to a TU football game. It has been a pleasure to get to make their everyday life a little brighter. The staff at Laura Dester is amazing. The children at Laura Dester are amazing. And, I will really miss them.   
5. Thunder Basketball. We will miss having season tickets to the Thunder. This one is mainly for the hubs.

The Oh So Sweet. 

1. Home Sweet Home. While we will be two hours from my hometown and three and a half hours from the hubs hometown, this feels like going home to me. Hello east coast.... 
2. Time Together with Loved Ones. We will get to attend every special event in our family and friends lives - birthdays, wedding events, festive parties, holiday get-togethers and just because we miss each other dinners. 
3. Beaches and Mountains. We will be within driving distance to some of my favorite beaches (Charleston, North Myrtle Beach, Savannah) and mountain towns (Hendersonville and Asheville). 
4. A Life House. We will be finding a house to call ours for the next 5-10 years. I can't wait to decorate this said house. 
5. Gamecock Football. We will get to go to way more football games now. We are talking about getting season tickets or the mini season for 2014. 

There are so many things that I am looking forward to with this move to Atlanta and I can't wait to see what this city has in store for us. 

Anthropologie Lovelies

I wasn't even going to post today, but that all changed when I visited Anthropologie's website during my lunch break. Here are some of my wants:

Get in my closet

Cryptogram Silk Shift via

Rubied Dusk Dress via

Savant Swing Dress via

Texture Range Dress via

The texture range dress is ah-mazing! I have so many plans for that little dress. And, the sevant swing dress is seriously calling my name. Just picture a great pair of black leather leggings with it.  

Holiday Entertaining

Awning Stripe Tablecloth via 

Hobnail Tumbler via

Limited Edition Golden Monogram Mugs via

Cheers Cocktail Napkins via

I have Christmas on my mind so I immediately gravitated towards items that could decorate my holiday table.   

Emery's Birth Announcement

Awhile back, I purchased a Living Social deal for Paper Culture after checking out their selection of invitations and stationery. I just knew that I would eventually be able to use it for a baby shower, bridal shower, birth announcement or holiday cards. Once Emery was born, I looked them over again and decided to use it for her birth announcement. I spent hours browsing and creating mockups of different options and finally landed on the Simple Nounced one.

Oh My Goodness. I know she is mine and I am totally biased (I admit it), but look at that sweet face. How fast the time goes. I will have to post more of her newborn pictures at some point.

If you live in the Tulsa area, I loved working with Sherri Comeau of Comeau Photography. She is amazing with newborns (and older children too, I am sure).   

November 9 {A Birthday Wish}

Happy birthday to my baby sister and lifelong bestie, Kristin, who turns 29 today! I know this year will be the best yet as you have a lot to celebrate in just a few short months.  

Here are some of my favorite things about you:

 

Our Friendship.

It's true, this is my number one favorite thing about you. We are lucky enough to be sisters who are also best friends. There are so many ways that we are similar, but the differences are what make it special. 

Sense of Humor.

You have the best sense of humor of anyone that I know. You giggle at just about everything (a joke, the quote cards, a picture and stories about your students.) Once something really gets you going, it is hard for you to stop laughing.

Sensitive Heart.

You have a sensitive heart for others.

Fun. (And, Happy Go Lucky)

You are so much fun to be around. You enjoy life to the fullest and always live in the moment.

Style.

You. Have. The. Best. Clothes. Hands. Down.

 

Best Aunt.

You love me, John and the mini unconditionally. Seriously, what more could I ask for?

Obviously, there is so much more that I love about you and this list could go on forever. But, with a hungry, crying baby, this is as much as I have time for.

Happy birthday! I love you, sissy!

Five Months

Sweet Emery, 

The past five months have been the best of my life. You are my greatest blessing and the sweetest gift from God (and I know your daddy feels the same way). The love that I feel for you is beyond explanation. I could never be able to tell you or even show you the depths of that love. When you were first born, I would burst into tears because I was just so happy to be your mom. 

You are an easy baby, who is always happy and content. Our newborn photographer said that you were the most smiley baby that she had ever photographed. Happy right from the beginning! You hardly ever get fussy; so when you do, we get a little panicked. You are a good sleeper and for that I am thankful. You are also a curious little thing and we like to joke that you are nosy. When we are out, your eyes will track everyone that walks by. You always want to be a part of whatever is happening around us or at the table next to us. I think you will be a people person. I mean, you are your daddy's daughter.

Speaking of your daddy, you are his #1 fan. You find him extremely funny and I hope you always do. No one can make you laugh quite like him. And, those little laughs are the best. 

I love every moment with you and cherish the time that I get you to myself for some snuggle time. Every day you amaze me with your new noises and things you have learned.    

Love, 

Mommy

Eat & Sleep

Not much has changed here during the last month. She eats 6-7 times a day. I am trying to bump the amount up to 5 oz from 4 oz. Sometimes she will drink it, sometimes she won't.

We purchased rice cereal because she is definitely showing interest in food. She mimics chewing while I am eating my breakfast/dinner. The doctor said that we could let her try it. We have yet to do so, but maybe during this upcoming month she will get her first taste of solid food.

Emery is a great sleeper as I mentioned above. She is a full-time stomach sleeper. This fact use to keep me up at night and cause me lots of stress since she started doing it at 2.5 months (as soon as soon learned to flip over). Bedtime is between 7 pm-7:30 pm every night, depending on her naps for the day. Luckily, it is super obvious when it is time for bed. She will wake up once during the night, typically around 3 am to eat and then it is straight back to bed. This is typical, but doesn't mean we don't have our fair share of twice a night too.

We are on the two naps a day schedule - one around 10 am and the other around 2 pm. The naps typically last anywhere from 30 minutes to 1.5 hours (with a few 2 hour ones).

What's new?

She is slowly becoming a sitting pro. She can sit up unassisted for up to one minute or until something really gets her excited and then she tumbles over.

She started this trying to crawl business. It is the cutest thing to see her get up into the "crawl" position and just sit there not quite knowing what to do next. She does what I call the inch worm to move forward - up in crawl position and down stretched out and repeat - slowing propelling herself forward. Usually, I need to hold a necklace or any shiny jewelry in front of her to tempt her into moving forward. Also, she is a belly scooting (and rolling over and over) machine. I can put her down and she will end up clear across the room. I know that I don't have much longer before I will need eyes in the back of my head. Gone are the days of sitting still and cuddling. She is on the constant move, even when sitting in my lap.

Drool, oh lots and lots of drool. No signs of any teeth making their appearance just yet, but lots of slobber on her shirts hinting towards some soon.

She is a nonstop talker. I mean, really nonstop babble and I love our little conversations. A good book (Harry the Dirty Dog - a current fave), a remote/cellphone, her jumperoo, feedings and touching faces really get her mouth a moving. Sometimes, I really think she is trying to be louder than I am (especially when reading a book), but I am not sure she can quite compete.

{Five Months}

{Four Months}

Stats at Checkup: Weight - 13.7 pounds (43%), Height - 26 inches (95%), Head - 16 inches (38%)

{Three Months}

{Two Months}

Stats at Checkup: Weight - 11 pounds (42%), Height - 23.5 inches (78%), Head - 15.25 inches (37%)

{One Month}

I prayed for this child, and the Lord has granted me what I asked of him.  - 1 Samuel 1:27