Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

We've had a wonder Christmas season!  We started off by taking Nicholas to Zoolight Safari at the Birmingham Zoo.  Nicholas was way more interested in the few animals they left accessible than the lights they had set up everywhere.  It was really cold when we went, but he loved petting the animals.  The zoo membership was definitely a good birthday idea on our part.

 We then celebrated the Davenport family Christmas a few weeks early.  Lots of good food and good times.  I was most proud of the gift I found for Brad.  I felt it was very appropriate and will need to purchase another one for Ryan with his three girls. 

We both took the entire week before Christmas off, so we headed down to Mobile to visit with Gigi and Pawpaw.  The entire time Nicholas was Pawpaw's shadow, but I don't think he minded at all.  A few of his favorite gifts were a Cars mat from Ryan and Nancy and the nap mat that Gigi made for him. 

We also has fun visiting with some of both the Thompson and Allenbach clans.  Nicholas enjoyed playing with second cousins Carter and Emma.  Carter and Emma did a wonderful job singing Away in a Manger for us.  We tried to get Nicholas to chime in, but he wasn't interested.

 
We got back home Christmas Eve in time to make cookies for Santa.  Nicholas helped but then didn't understand why he couldn't eat the cookies that we were TRYING to leave for Santa.

When Nicholas woke up Christmas morning, we got him and asked if he was ready to see what Santa left him.  When we got in the living room he says "Where's Santa?"  We had to explain that Santa visited last night while he was sleeping. 

Some of his favorites from Santa were his tent and play-doh sets. 

Finally the day after Christmas we celebrated with the Martin clan.  One of the highlights of the evening was the gift that we gave Uncle Robert.  He opened his gift from us to discover an empty box.  Apparently I had wrapped not only an empty box, but a box inside an empty box.  I couldn't believe it.  Thankfully Gabe ran home and grabbed his actual gift.  Ahh good times!

2 1/2 Years Old

It's hard to believe that Nicholas is 2 1/2 years old now. He definitely keeps us on our toes. Here is what he has been up to...

Some of our favorite vocabulary includes:

Do it again - do din digain
Holy Moly - moly moly
Uh oh spaghettios - uh oh spitigos
Stephanie - nephie nephie
Lightening McQueen - Lightening Aqueen
Thumper from Bambi - Sumpers
Kangaroo - Kangakoo
Tater tots - Tootie tots
Whatcha doing? - Whatcha donut?
When he's hungry he says - Something a hungry?

He is now counting correctly all the way up through twelve, but then says fourteen for thirteen, fourteen and fifteen. His alphabet tends to skip around a bit, but it's too cute.

His favorite TV show at this point is Little Einsteins (aka Little Einteins). In fact, thanks to Little Einsteins and the portable DVD player, we had a very successful trip to Mobile for Thanksgiving (and will hopefully have a good one for Christmas as well).

Whenever he sees any female whether it's just a character on a TV show or an actual female Nicholas will say "Like you mama!" He does the same for Gabe when he sees a male. On the way to church one Sunday, Nicholas was looking at his kids bible and saw a picture of Jesus and said "Like you dada!" We got a kick out of that one.

Nicholas cracks us up when he corrects us with what we are saying. We'll say "look there's a dog." To which Nicholas will reply "No, it's a dog." One day I went back and forth with him because I pointed out a frog to him in a book and he kept telling me "No, it's a froggie." Apparently my proper term of "frog" was not correct.

He is also very independent. When I offer to do something for him, often times he will say "No - my do it." In other words, "I've got it mom."

We are really trying to be patient with the whole potty training thing, but I would really love it if he was trained by his third birthday. That being said, I've been reading up on tips and techniques. I purchased a jar which I promptly labeled "Potty Treats" and filled it with M&Ms. So far he just wants the treats and not the potty. So no M&Ms for Nicholas yet. Then I read about another technique to let kids go au natural around the house - the thinking behind this being that they won't want to pee or poop just anywhere and will want to use the potty. Well lets just say this REALLY didn't work with Nicholas. I basically let him go commando for about 15 minutes and had to clean up several different spots where the floor was sufficient and he didn't feel the need to use the potty. After this experience, I will keep Nicholas in diapers at all times.

We are really looking forward to Christmas this year. It will be interesting to see how Nicholas reacts this year compared to last year.

Big Boy

I've recently had a request to update the blog, since I've been slacking recently.  Well today was very momentous and definitely blog-worthy! 

To give a little background, I have read and heard from many different sources that children will potty train when they are ready and if you push the issue, it will just backfire on you.  We took this advice to heart and wasn't going to press the issue on Nicholas.  We have a potty seat, which we actually got at one of our showers - so thanks to whomever for that forward thinking!  We would occasionally put him on the toilet if he was willing.  We do keep some reading materials for Nicholas right besides daddy's reading material (Sports Illustrated) and would read to him while he sat there. 

Recently when Nicholas would have a dirty diaper, we would say that big boys go poo poo in the potty.  Not degrading him by any means, but just educating him.  Today, Nicholas was playing and he started to pull at his pants.  I asked him if he wanted to go potty and he said yes.  I fully didn't expect anything to happen and we just went about reading his books while he sat there.  After a while we finished all the books we had, so he requested some more.  I walked into the living room to grab a few more and when I got back I noticed that the front of the toilet seat and in front of the toilet was a little wet.  I could easily tell what it was and got so excited and cheered for him, etc.  We read the books I brought back and he requested some more.  I again went into the living room to grab a few more and took my time getting back to him because I could tell he was trying to go again (and with the sounds he was making I thought he was doing the other this time).  When I got back he was going again and he said "Look Mama!"  Again, I cheered him on for being a big boy.

I thought it was so funny (and rather appropriate) that we would try after I left the room.  Now, I'm not naive to think that it's all down hill from here, but was just excited to see progress being made.  I obviously would prefer him do the other so there would be no more dirty diapers to change, but I'll take what I can get when I get it.  I called up Gabe all excited and we were both hoping this was not just a one time occurrence.  Well a few hours later Nicholas made some other indication that he needed to go, so again I asked him if he wanted to go potty.  He said yes, so we did the drill over again.  Granted we had just about all of his books in the room, but I left to grab my phone and he went again!  Oh happy day!  Who knew I would ever get so excited over peeing in the toilet, but I'm ecstatic! 

To celebrate, I told Nicholas he could watch Bambi (recently his favorite movie) after his nap and that we could go to Chick-a-la (as he calls it) for dinner.  His exact reaction was "Oh Boy!" and started dancing.

It will be interesting to see where everything goes from here.  I know this can be a frustrating time for both parents and child, so I'm going to attempt to be as calm and cool about it as possible.

In related news, Nicholas is going to move up a class at Mother's Day Out.  Right now he is the oldest in his class and he will be moving to a class with kids that are closer to him in age and development (luckily with a few others going through the potty training period right now as well).  I know Nicholas will miss his teachers Mrs. Becky and Mrs. Kim and of course his buddy Colin, but he will be able to see them on the playground and during music. 

My little guy is growing up so fast!     

Toddler Vocabulary

It appears as though Nicholas has discovered how to really push his limits with Mama and Daddy (and I'm sure Mimi and his teachers at MDO too).  Some toddler phrases that he is now trying on us include:

• No mine!
• Move
• Give me that
• Why not?

I know this is a toddler rite of passage, but we are doing everything we can to remove these phrases from his vocabulary (except for "No" and "Why Not" if used appropriately).  He does have some cute words and phrases that include:

• Oh Boy!
• Goodness Gracious!
• Whatcha donut?  - AKA what are you doing?
• Opopus - AKA octopus

My favorite thing he has started recently is "talking to Gigi or PawPaw" on the phone.  He has my old cell phone and will randomly pick it up and carry on the following conversation every time...
"Hello.  Hey Gigi!  No.  Good.  Bye Bye"  It cracks me up every time I hear him do this.  I suppose he has heard mama say this a time or two.

Nicholas likes saying his ABC's but tends to skip over a few here and there (Ex:  X takes the place of S, so he says Q R X Y and Z.  He then says "now I know my A B C D..." so that he goes in a continuous loop of ABCs.  He will also sing Twinkle Twinkle Little Star.  Gabe's favorite part is when Nicholas says "how I wonder what ya high" instead of "how I wonder what you are".  My favorite is the line "like a diamond in the sky" which for Nicholas sounds more like "like e diamond in the ky". 

Gabe and I also got a kick out of him last Sunday on the way home from church.  Nicholas was talking about a show on Disney called Jake and the Neverland Pirates.  He was talking about Jake and Captain Hook.  There is also a parrot on the show and I couldn't think of his name so I asked Nicholas.  He thought for a moment and then said "Scully" which was correct.  I love seeing his little brain at work.  My little guy is growing up!   

I cut his hair today and he always looks so old afterwards!  I was prepared this time with Teddy Grahams and Bambi dvd and had no crying or screaming at all.  Woohoo!  Mama was excited about that.

Sorry guys!

Most people that read this blog have already heard this story, but I need to blog about it so I won't forget later on.  On Wednesday, Nicholas and I went to "Chick-a-la" as Nicholas calls it for lunch.  We met up with my friend Amanda and her little boy Colin - who is also in his mother's day out class.  Nicholas absolutely loves playing in their playground area and I even found him sliding head first down the slide (luckily he doesn't even come close to the bottom of the slide when he goes down).  Amanda and Colin left but Nicholas wanted to keep playing, so we stayed a bit longer. 

There were three other boys also in the play area that were probably 4 years old.  They all were pretend shooting each other.  At some point they all decided that they were going to go after Nicholas and pretend shoot him.  Nicholas was apprehensive about this and I told him to shoot back, but he didn't quite understand.  The boys go off playing and Nicholas was fine just playing by himself and sliding.  Well the boys decided to go after Nicholas again while they were all at the top of the play area.  So they are up in his face "shooting" at Nicholas and I hear Nicholas say "Sorry guys."  It was the sweetest thing!  He thought he had done something wrong.  After that I told the little boys to back off because Nicholas didn't understand the game they were playing.  We left not long after that.  It is always interesting to see how kids play together.  To me this just shows what a sweet heart Nicholas has.  I am looking forward to fall when it is cool enough to go to the park and kids aren't so confined to small indoor play areas.    

Teething Again

After almost a year of not dealing with the teething issue, Nicholas is once again cutting teeth.  He felt warm last night and we were hoping that it wasn't going to be another round of fever virus like he had recently.  Then today he has hardly eaten a thing (except for freezer pops that feel so good on those gums) and he didn't nap well at all and is having a hard time sleeping tonight.  Of course he is drooling like crazy too.  My wish is that this time will be similar to the others and he can knock out multiple teeth at once.  We aren't sure which ones or how many he is working on, but just pray that it goes by quickly. 

It's weird to experience this again after such a long period of time (in baby world).  I almost went searching for teething rings, but since it has been so long I honestly don't know where they are.  It breaks my heart to see a genuinely happy toddler be miserable all day long (for the most part).  Our efforts to keep him happy included watching Toy Story 2 and 3 and old videos of himself (which he got a real kick out of).         

My cup runneth over

I fall more in love with my son every day.  Nicholas just cracks me up in so many ways and has such a sweet spirit about him.  Like tonight - I was giving him a bath as usual and out of nowhere he stood up, put his hands on my cheeks and kissed me.  He has never done this before and it was the sweetest thing ever!  And luckily we were able to get him to reenact it for the camera...

Then he wanted to give daddy a kiss too.

He is such a sweetie pie and always thanks Gabe and myself for getting him things.  He will hug his stuffed animals that he loves to play with and then slam them together or sit on them.  A sweetheart and yet still a boy at heart.  Some of Nicholas' recent phrases that I love are:

• "Oh boy"
• "Goodness gracious"
• "Moly Moly" - I said Holy Moly the other night for some reason and he thought it was hilarious, so he had Gabe and I repeat it over and over and his version of Holy Moly is "Moly Moly"
• "I fine" - this starts off with him wanting me to check on him.  He will say "Ok?"  and I respond "Are you ok?" and then the standard response is then "I fine"
• Singing Twinkle Twinkle Little Star - the cutest thing.  I heard him singing that to himself the other night after we put him down.  Although he is not a fan of others trying to sing it with him.  I guess he wants to have a solo act.    

As cheesy as this sounds, I feel like (and would venture to say Gabe would agree) Nicholas has made our lives complete and my cup has definitely runneth over... 

P.S. Happy Birthday PawPaw!  Hope you had a wonderful birthday!  We love you!

Baby Shower Gift

I told my mom that I would post pictures of the baby shower gift I made recently.  I found the carrier tote idea on my new favorite website Pinterest - very addicting!!  Granted my version isn't nearly as fancy, but I thought it turned out cute.  I basically covered a beverage carrier with scrapbook paper, ribbon and stickers with each name.  The baby side included soap, lotion and Boudreaux's Butt Paste.    

 Even though you can't see what's in the mama side, I included Bath and Body Works body wash/foam bath aromatherapy for Sleep, Energy and Stress Relief (every new mom could definitely use a little of each).

We can't wait to meet Lexy in a few months!

Miraculous Recovery

The most bizarre thing happened tonight.  Let me explain...

Tuesday evening Nicholas started to get a fever and wouldn't sleep.  I got up with him a few times and then Gabe did.  At one point, I went in to get him and discovered he had thrown up in his crib.  We gave him some Tylenol and to let Gabe get some sleep, I ended up sleeping with Nicholas in the bed that is in his bedroom.  On Wednesday, Nicholas seemed ok in the morning, but had a fever of 102.8.  As the day progressed, he got worse and just didn't want to eat or play.  That evening Gabe and I switched places so I could catch up on sleep and he stayed with Nicholas in his room.  Then today, Nicholas was extremely lethargic and so pitiful for the majority of the day.  He basically stayed with me in the LazyBoy all day and slept a LOT.  He again hardly drank or ate a thing, didn't talk at all (which is highly unusual for him) .  I had decided that I would get Nicholas in to the pediatrician tomorrow.  Luckily, Beth recommended Motrin and Pedialite, so I promptly hit up Walmart.  We basically had to force the Motrin in him, he drank a little Pedialite and he still wouldn't eat anything. 

We decided to give him a bath and go ahead to put him down for the night knowing that it probably wouldn't last if it was anything like the past two nights.  Nicholas cried throughout the quick bath and fussed a little in the crib after we put him down.  We were going to leave him for a bit to see if he would sleep when all of a sudden he started talking.  Thanks to the technology of the video monitor, we saw Nicholas sitting up and "bonking" his stuffed animals together.  Very odd since he basically hasn't moved in the past few days.  He started fussing again and Gabe decided he would try to lay down with Nicholas in the bed.  About five minutes after laying in the bed Nicholas started asking for his toys - Mickey, Pluto, etc.  Gabe got those and all of a sudden Nicholas was up and playing like he hadn't been sick at all. 

It was THE craziest thing we had ever seen!!  It was like all of a sudden something just clicked in his system and he went from being lethargic and tired to energetic and wide awake.  We just couldn't believe our eyes and yet were so excited to see our little guy come back to life again.  I just hope that he doesn't relapse because it is NOT fun to have a sick child.    

Cars 2

So we decided to take Nicholas to the movie theatre for the first time to see Cars 2.  Beth, Brad and the girls gave him the first Cars movie for his birthday and a free movie ticket came with the movie, so we said "why not?"  Well, we can say that the first 20 minutes of the movie are pretty good...  We came armed with juice and raisins, but that did not keep Nicholas from wanting to "get down?"  He was ok through the previews, but after each one was done, he would say "get down?"  I figured once the movie came on that he would be ok because it would be continuous action.  I was WRONG!  Maybe if the movie was another Toy Story (which is his love right now) he might have made it through, but we have quickly decided that it will be awhile before we try the movie going experience again.  Maybe the drive-in would work better.  Live and learn, but at least with our free ticket we only paid $1.50 out of pocket (Nicholas was free and we think the guy working the counter just discounted the max of the free ticket towards both of ours - hey we'll take it). 

July 4th Weekend and Status Update

We visited Gigi and Pawpaw in Mobile for the July 4th weekend.  We headed down Saturday morning and the trip overall wasn't bad (except a stint of about 45 minutes when we were either stopped or just creeping along I-65).  It was really smooth sailing once we passed all the beach exits.  Nicholas did really well thanks to several movies keeping him preoccupied. 

Over the weekend, we ate like kings in Mobile with steaks on Saturday, a shrimp boil on Sunday (thanks to Brian and Cindy for that one) and then pork tenderloin on Monday.  Gabe and I were even able to get away for about half a day and let Gigi and Pawpaw dote on Nicholas a bit.  We headed over to Biloxi Sunday afternoon.  This time I remembered my license and yet did not get carded even once.  Oh well.  We first visited the Beau Rivage, which was extremely busy and wasn't that kind to us monetarily, so we took Cindy's recommendation of the Palace Casino.  This one was much nicer to us (we actually came home with a little more money than we brought - thanks in part to Gabe's work at a blackjack table and me mistakenly hitting the max bet button on a slot, which worked out in my favor) and with a smoke free environment it was much cleaner as well.  We had a good time just getting away for a bit.

For the 4th, mom and dad mentioned going over to Brian and Cindy's house (my aunt and uncle) to watch fireworks.  They apparently have a neighbor that puts on an amazing fireworks show.  We said sure why not, since we weren't about to trek downtown to watch the city version.  Needless to say the show we saw was probably 10 times better than what Mobile put on.  No joke...  The fireworks started around 8:45 and last a FULL HOUR!!  They looked professionally done and were as big as city shows.  The nicest part about it was we watched the whole thing from their screened-in porch.  Can't beat that.  I was surprised by Nicholas' reaction to the fireworks (or lack thereof I should say).  He watched a little bit, but wasn't all that interested.  Luckily he wasn't bothered by the noise at all.  Nicholas did really well sleeping in the pack n' play even though he just about had to sleep diagonally just to fit in it, which brings me to the latest stats update for him.

I took Nicholas to the doctor this morning for a belated 2 year well visit.  According to the pediatrician, he is 36 1/2 inches long (90%) and 28 lbs (50%).  The doctor said he is doing really well.  Nicholas did have one shot he had to get today, but recovered quickly.  His next check-up will be at 3 years old.  I can't thank God enough for how healthy Nicholas has been since he was born.  Hopefully that trend will continue...   

I was bad about taking pictures this past weekend, but here is one Gabe got of Nicholas "swimming" in Gigi and Pawpaw's backyard.  He loved playing in water and with their tennis balls most of the weekend.  I hope everyone had a safe holiday weekend! 

    

June Update

Two weeks ago, Nicholas started a Mother's Day Out program.  He goes two days a week for four hours.  The first week was great, but last Tuesday I went to pick him up and found him boo hooing.  I got there 5 minutes before it was over and I guess Nicholas was one of the last left and wondering where mom was.  Sort of odd since I was five minutes early, but I told him from now on I will be there early to get him so he doesn't have to be the last one there.  Broke my heart!  And to be expected Nicholas came home Thursday with a runny nose.  Luckily it hasn't developed into anything else, but knew this would happen with Nicholas finally exposed to other toddlers.  Today I dropped him off and he was extremely hesitant (there were other kids crying, which I think triggered him).  He was clutching on to my leg.  That was rather hard to do leaving him.  Hopefully this won't be a regular occurrence. 

Just recently Nicholas has started to say his name.  In the past when we tried to get him to say Nicholas it would come out Nikus.  I received copies of his 2 year pics in the mail and was showing them to him and every picture he would say Nicholas.  It was slow and methodical, but he got out all three syllables correctly.  Yea!  Now on to his three syllable last name...

Ever since the tornadoes hit in April (and actually before that) Gabe wanted to visit T-town.  We finally went down a few weekends ago and it just blew us away at what we saw (or I should say didn't see).  The intersection of McFarland and 15th was completely cleared.  We couldn't even remember what stores or restaurants were there.  In fact there was a small lake right off 15th that I had no clue was there and Gabe said it was because buildings and trees always blocked the view of it - now you can see it clear as day.  As we kept driving, there were signs on most businesses in the area saying Yes they were open again or that they would be reopening again.  Very humbling to see.  We also checked out the quad and the new Nick Saban statue.  I wasn't very impressed with it, but they didn't ask my opinion.  Nicholas enjoyed running all around the quad and chasing after squirrels.      

I thought I would share my first attempt at a diaper cake. It boggles my mind how much these go for online - sometimes costing $70 or more.  I've done a few diaper wreaths before, but this was my first cake.  This past weekend, I helped co-host a baby shower for my friend Janna and it was a nautical theme. The shower turned out great!  We can't wait to meet Andrew in a few months!

Two Years Old

Since Nicholas hasn't been to the doctor since last September, I don't have any legit height or weight stats.  I do believe that Mimi was right in saying that Nicholas was going through a growth spurt about a month ago.  His naps went from the normal 2 hours to 3 1/2 - 4 hours.  Now Nicholas can easily get off the beds in our house without having to hop down or anything.  Just recently Gabe weighed Nicholas and we think he is right at 30 pounds.  He wears 24 month - 2T clothes and size 6-7 shoes.  I was a bit late in scheduling his 2 year well visit check-up so we actually won't know how he ranks until July.  I'm just happy that he has been healthy and we haven't had to visit the pediatrician.  Here is the latest on what Nicholas is up to:

Sleep: Nicholas goes down for naps and at night really well.  It will be interesting to see if and how that changes when he eventually moves to a big boy bed.  He never makes a peep and is usually fast asleep.  At this time he usually naps for 2-3 hours in the afternoon with his bedtime being between 8 and 8:30.  He normally sleeps until 7am or so. Nicholas is starting a mother's day out program soon, so he will have to get used to starting his nap a bit later than normal.  Recently Nicholas woke up from a nap and (with his crib right by the door to his room) started knocking on the door and said "Hello" - like "don't forget I'm in here mama!" 

Nutrition: Nicholas is big on eating things with his hands (even though he is fully capable of using a fork).  Therefore if there is a food that he doesn't like touching (pasta, most veggies, etc) he pretty much won't eat it.  His favorites are hot dogs, chicken nuggets, pb&j sandwiches, grapes, yogurt, raisins (or as he calls them raines) and any kind of bread or cracker.  Nicholas loves dipping food in whatever kind of dip we give him - either ketchup, ranch, honey mustard, etc. 

Play:  Nicholas loves playing "ouside", but unfortunately he has been eaten alive recently by mosquitoes or other bugs.  Some even make him extremely swollen where he was bit, so I haven't been too enthusiastic about letting him play outside.  When he does play outside, he loves playing with berries, sticks or whatever he can get his hands on, his bubble machine, or  in his pool.  Inside he loves chasing Bama with his lawn mower (which Bama is deathly afraid of). 

Cute quirks: He will rub his belly and say "mmmm yummy". He throws anything that he gets his hands on. Very cute when he has toy balls, but not so good when he is holding sippy cups, cell phones or remotes.  He still LOVES his blankie and will suck on his fingers while holding blankie (mainly when he is tired).  Nicholas is very friendly to others, especially when we are at the store, saying hello to those we pass.  However, if someone comes up to him and speaks, he is extremely shy.  I suppose it has to be on his terms.   

Talk:  Nicholas vocabulary has exploded.  He will basically repeat anything we say.  The most recent words and phrases are:

• What's that?
• I love (insert word here)!   It's usually blankie, Mickey, etc.  But recently told Mimi that he loves TV!
• I don't know - so cute because he turns his hands up while saying this
• No I fine or No thanks 
• I did it!  or We did it!
• More please - sounds more like "mo pease"
• Yea - he has finally stopped saying "Set" for Yes 
• Look! 
• Come on Dada or Mama!

We celebrated his 2nd birthday the exact same way as last year, except this year was a Mickey theme.  Here are a few pictures from yesterday...

Mimi's beautiful Mickey cake

Nicholas and Anna playing with some ping pong balls

Birthday lunch consisted of Chick-fil-A chicken, homemade potato salad and baked beans

Nicholas rubbing his ranch dip all over his arm

Opening the Moseleys gift since Meagan and Abby had to leave early for their recital

Nicholas wasn't quite sure why everyone was singing to him

but he did try the cake this year...

Nicholas received about four Mickey birthday cards that sang the Mickey Mouse Clubhouse theme song.  Every time he heard it, he would cover his face.  It was too funny!

Reading some books that we bought him

Riding his tricycle that NiNi and Hollie gave him and also listening to one of his cards again

Happy Birthday Nicholas!  We love you little man!

Gotta Love Free Stuff

Over the past year, Gabe and I have become much more coupon/deal crazy.  We both follow several blogs/websites that list daily coupon deals, drug store deals and freebie deals.  And it shows - we spent about $75 less each month on groceries last year than we did in 2008 (and that was also prior to Nicholas, so that's even with one more head to feed).  Usually several days out of the week our mailbox contains either free samples or great coupons for products. 
Well, Gabe and I recently hit the mother load of all freebies.  Over the past 4 years, the Birmingham office of MMP (my employer) has gone from 8 employees to one (yep I would be the last one).  Therefore they have finally decided to shut down our office, which I didn't really use all that much since Nicholas was born (yes I'm one of the lucky ones that gets to work from home).  It's sort of sad to see everything being boxed up and moved, but life goes on - and so does the furniture.  I was luckily able to score an executive desk, computer desk, computer chair, file cabinet and refrigerator (full size I might add) for FREE!!  I really was not planning on the refrigerator, but I guess corporate just wanted to get rid of it rather than haul it somewhere.  The beauty of this is we now have an ice maker!  Ah - it's so nice to have an ice maker again. 

Well, the free stuff has continued because I found out just several days ago that I won a $50 gift card (with free shipping) to Shutterfly!  How perfect is that since I've just had these wonderful pictures of Nicholas taken and now I can order as many as I want for free!  I actually won the card off another blog that I follow and love called Centsational Girl.  I've also become infatuated with decorating and DIY blogs that have cute ideas for cheap (I'm getting all my ideas for when we build our home).  Many of these have giveaways pretty frequently and for various items.  I'm obsessed!  Some people do facebook/twitter, some watch reality shows, I follow blogs.  For those interested here are some of the blogs I follow in my Google Reader:

Decorating:
Centsational Girl
Sawdust and Paper Scraps
Simple Organized Living
Frugal with a Flourish   
Thrifty Decor Chick

Money Saving/Coupons:
Krazy Coupon Lady
Money Saving Mom
My Frugal Adventures

Happy Mother's Day...

To Me!  I am so super excited about my mother's day gift that I just have to share it with everyone.  I knew with Nicholas' second birthday coming up at the end of the month that I wanted to get pictures taken.  However, I know how a two year old doesn't exactly sit still and pose, so I opted to have a professional photographer take his pictures.  My original intent was to do them at Grandmother and Granddaddy's house, but the tornadoes messed up my plan.  So instead, we hit up the big bustling downtown of Leeds.

Nicholas was not exactly in the mood to take pictures because mama woke him up from his nap and he had a death grip on some animal crackers and his juice cup.  We walked all around downtown and Erin did an AMAZING job!!  She was so good singing to him, chasing after him and taking some awesome pictures of a smiling toddler!  I can't thank her enough for these wonderful memories and highly recommend her - Lens Envy Photography.

And here are a few more of my favorites...

I hope all of our friends and family had a wonderful mother's day weekend.

Next 30 Years

Thanks so much to everyone for my birthday facebook wishes, emails and cards!  I had a really nice birthday.  Gabe and I decided to take the day off, and here is what my day consisted of...

The Birmingham Zoo
I have been meaning to take Nicholas here forever and we finally got him there.  We bought the family membership pass (really an early birthday gift for him) and headed down there this morning.  Nicholas enjoyed seeing the animals, but still seems to watch other people than anything else.  I must be sheltering this little boy too much...

My little monkey checking out some other monkeys

Sometimes I think Nicholas enjoyed the fake elephant more than the real ones.

He loved the giraffes, just like his cousin Meagan

For all the animals he said "HELLO"

Nicholas was just under the age cutoff to ride the camels, but I doubt he would be interested anyways.

Finally the real "elpant"

Our family package to the zoo includes a guest pass, so if anyone wants to join us either on a Wednesday or Friday (my days off) you would get in free.

Chickfila
Nicholas loves playing in the play area at Chickfila and today when we went there were two sweet girls (probably around 10 or so) and they just loved Nicholas to death.  They played with him and encouraged him to climb and slide down the slide.  It was all we could do to get him out of there to eat.  Whenever Gabe or I attempted to get him out, the girls would just say "He is the cutest thing!"  No argument from us...

Shops at Grand River
I am loving having the new outlet mall less than 5 minutes from our house.  While Nicholas napped I hit up a few stores and was able to get some desperately needed updates to my wardrobe (thanks to my b'day gift from Grandmother and Granddaddy - Thank You!)

STIX
Gabe asked me about going out to eat somewhere and it has been forever since we've been to a Japanese restaurant.  So we decided to go to Kobe off 280.  Well that place was completely boarded up (and didn't even say so on their website - thank you very much).  So we headed to Stix over by the Galleria.  Even though it took quite awhile to get served, I always enjoy how entertaining the chefs are.  Our chef tonight particularly wanted to pick on me, so we had a good time and good food - minus Nicholas (I think he would have had a meltdown when they light the grill on fire).  Afterwards my birthday dessert consisted of a stop by the Krispy Kreme for a chocolate covered crueller (is there really anything better than KK's?!?)    

All in all, I had a great 30th birthday and will leave everyone with my song of the day that is so appropriate...