Daddy's Boy

Grayson has become a complete Daddy's boy as of late. He becomes very jealous when Gordo sits with Jason. Grayster loves to jump and wrestle with Jason any chance he can get... and, if I really need Grayson to eat his dinner, I bring in Daddy to get the job done. :)

YAY! Gamecocks!

Yay!! Our Gamecocks won the National Championship in Baseball AGAIN!! We've had a blast watching them play these past few weeks and are so proud to say that this team represents our Alma Mater.

Brady Thomas, Michael Roth (world's coolest college pitcher), and Scott Wingo (the cutest MVP ever)

Here is a good tear-jerker story about our Omaha Bat Boy: Charlie, Gamecocks Lift Each Other Up

AND... the song de jour:

Kelsey and Carolina Crown

Kelsey is on the road again for her 3rd (and final) season of Carolina Crown. We're very proud of her and hope she is having a great time. We can't wait to see her in August for finals! Go Crown!! 

Kelsey (center) 

Tonight my sister is performing in Ft. Edward/Glens Falls, NY!

This show will look completely different in August... but here is a preview from someone's phone. This is from sometime last week in Texas. 

Currently the corps is ranked 4th. We're hoping that this might be the year that they win it all! 

Two Sweet Boys

Today was "Happy Birthday USA" day at the library. Grayson and I met Henry and Kaci for baby story time. Here is the thing about baby story time: Grayson needs to learn to sit down and listen... right now he is just not there. Is that normal?? Should I be worried that my child is doomed because his attention span while we're at the library doesn't last the length of a child's storybook? What do I need to do to get him to sit?

Seriously. I need answers. :)

However, I do know this: Henry and Grayster are some cute boys!!

This little guy is going to be SEVEN months old in a few days!! 

Flag waving was Grayson's favorite part. 

I love these peeps!

Grayson with his cookie.

Cookies taste better when they are all over your mouth!

Grayson's art project. 

Wedding Photography

This weekend I had the awesome opportunity to be a second shooter for a wedding that Shannon Norris (see post below) was photographing. I was so excited about the wedding all week long... but I was nervous, too!!

I told Shannon that I am definitely still learning but she graciously agreed to work with me. So... how did it go??

Well, first of all... Wedding photography is TOUGH!! It is easier to get good pictures in my backyard when Grayster is my only subject. Reasons why:

1) Grayson will stay outside for hours... this makes it easier to use trial and error. :)

2) There is LOTS of available light during the hours we are usually outside. Light = good pictures.

3) If I take bad shots one day, you can guarantee that I just won't show them. If I take bad shots of the cake cutting... well, you get the point. Wedding photographers have to be on their game at all times.

Some of my photos were good. Shannon showed me how to use a reflector to get some extra sunlight in my subjects' faces. She encouraged me all day long, and really let me do a lot. She told me to shoot in Av mode so that I had one less thing to think about.

However, some of my pictures were like this one:

Okay, this is NOT a picture I shot. I just wanted to scare you. A LOT.

I'm proud of many of my shots and I learned so much. We had fun going back to the studio and looking through the photos. We laughed and laughed and laughed.

Will I quit my day job? Haha... um, no. I still have a LOT to learn, and I'm quite happy with my current career and future career goals. The idea of possibly being an Assistant Principal/ Photographer seems kind of cool though... we'll see what happens. :) 

Grayson's Father's Day Gift

This post is a week late, but better late than never!

For Father's Day this year, Grayson and I decided to sign up for the Just Like Daddy photos that Shannon Norris Photography was offering.  Yall... she is so talented and easy to work with. She really let us do what we wanted to do during our session and she took her time. There was a LOT of Grayson screaming in between these cute photos... haha!

We made two sets of photos... one with Grayster and the drum (kind of a tribute to Grayson's band director Papa), and another with Grayson in Jason's police shirt (for Jason and Grayson's PawPaw).

I think they turned out super cute, and I can't thank Shannon enough for these!

Freezer Meals

Today I decided to fill my freezer.

I became interested in the idea when I was reading Money Saving Mom's Blog. She makes lots of freezer meals so that she always has something available for dinner. She says they save her time and money. I'm in.

Like probably all of you, there are times in my life that are so hectic I can hardly think about dinner. One of two things usually happens on those evenings:

1) We pick up Pete's.
2) We order pizza.

Both of these options are unhealthy and usually more expensive than what I can make at home.

SO... today I made freezer meals.

After scouring the internet for recipes, I found this website:  http://www.30mealsinoneday.com/. I tried one recipe a couple of weeks ago. It was good. I decided to purchase the book, and began reading it Sunday evening.

Yall know that I'm a couponer, but I haven't been feeling it this summer. I just want a break from the scissors and the newspaper. Today I went to the grocery store with NO coupons. I got EVERYTHING that I needed to make and assemble 10 meals. My cost was right under $100. I think that is pretty good for 10 meals with no coupons.

I didn't want to do 30 meals in one day because that sounded very overwhelming. I picked 10. You don't actually make 10 different recipes. You make five and then split them into two meals each.

You choose them from different categories (slow cooker, oven, stovetop, assemble) so that you can make several at one time.

I chose:

Cream Cheese Chicken- slow cooker
Chicken Cordon Bleu- oven
Jack Soup- stovetop
Italian Shells- assemble
Chicken and Dressing- assemble

Anyway... the cool thing was that I did it during the time period of one Grayson nap. Two and a half hours and my freezer is full with 10 (actually nine... we had one tonight) meals that I can serve over the next two weeks.

I really think that this could work for me in the fall. :)

Summer Magnolias

Mom and I are working on a project. My parents just updated their guest bedroom (my old room), and she wants a great picture of a magnolia. She could purchase one, but they have the most beautiful magnolia trees right on their property! We decided to see what we could do ourselves today.

I'm not sure any of these are *the one* but, we'll probably try again in a few days after the trees recover from last week's hailstorm.

Grayson's First Haircut

There is a little boy in our life who got his very first haircut today!!

I have been debating on a haircut for a few weeks now... his hair was really long in spots, but not so long in other places. He was bald baby for so long that he still doesn't have a ton of hair. BUT, it was looking scraggly in several places and I just decided to do it!

We went to Snip-Its! and had a GREAT experience!

See? Cute, but a little long in spots. 

Grayson appreciated the fun things to play with while we waited for our turn. 

His hairdresser knew just what he needed... a lollipop, tv show, and a seatbelt. 

I really expected screaming... but he sat still! 

Maybe because Mommy never gives him lollipops at home! 

Cute boy!!

 Then the lady had to finish up with the razor... he HATED that part. It scared him and I had to hold on to him and keep saying, "It's okay". He was very brave.

When the hairdresser finally told him that he was done and unbuckled him he said,

"I DID IT!!"

He was so proud of himself!

Leaving the shop... new blue sucker in one hand, new ball (his prize for being good) in the other! 

I could tell he had fun, because as soon as we got in the car he said, "Good Day!"

Such a big boy!!

The  End!

Good Blackmail Material

A few minutes ago, I got some really good blackmail material. I'm titling this post as such so that I can easily find it when I need it a few years from now. Anyway, enjoy!

See what I mean?? Good stuff here!

This Sounds Like Gordo's Issue

Dachshund Degenerative Disc Remedy | eHow.com

Toddlers or Jerks?

Make sure you keep scrolling, because I've posted several things today. However... OMG, I just ran across the funniest blog post EVER.

Toddlers or Jerks?? You decide.

Homemade Play Dough

Grayson and I made some blue (Grayson's request) play dough this afternoon. We just used this super simple no-bake play dough recipe. Eventually, I want to use this recipe, because it seems to be a little better.

Cute pictures??? Yes!

Our Gordo is Sick

On Monday, I decided to put some flea and tick medicine on his neck. He tensed up the muscles in his neck, and hours later, he began to act like his neck was bothering him. I was a little concerned, but I thought he would sleep it off.

Tuesday, he acted like he felt a little better. In fact, this picture of Gordo was taken Tuesday afternoon:

Isn't he cute!?!

Tuesday evening, we went to bed. Gordo is like our baby, he sleeps between us with his head on the pillow. I know, I know... You must remember that Gordo has been my dog since my senior year of college and he has been spoiled his entire life. 

Anyway, around 1:00 a.m. I accidentally moved the pillow that his head was on in my sleep. Gordo yelped. Then he continued to cry for about 5 minutes straight. I took him downstairs. He wouldn't eat or drink, and he refused to move his head. I thought about taking him to the emergency vet, but I decided that we would wait it out until the morning. 

When we were finally seen at the veterinarian's office, we decided that Gordo has a pinched nerve. He has THREE bottles of medicine:

We're hoping that everything will correct itself in 10 days or so. If not, we're in for another trip to the vet, and the next one comes with x-rays to make sure it isn't a disc problem. So far, Gordo seems to be improving slightly. 

We could use your kind thoughts and prayers for our puppy. 

Grayson's New Favorite Song

We love this Sesame Street song at our house!