Fall and Thanksgiving!

We have had a great fall! We've had some days of really cold weather, and then days of sun and warm weather; regardless, as long as it's warm "enough", Hudson and I will go outside in the afternoons for a few minutes to play. He has enjoyed playing in the leaves and collecting them.

For Thanksgiving we went to Charleston for a few days to spend some quality time with my family. We were all there, which was wonderful. Now that the kids are getting bigger, it's so much fun to watch them play together! Henry is 3, Hudson is 15 months and Eliza is 13 months - and they had a ball together! It was great!

Hudson got to ride in a bike for the first time - and LOVED it! My Dad found this awesome seat on Amazon, and it has been a huge hit! Even though it was cold out, and the wind was in his face, Hudson did not want to get off. 

 He actually wanted to keep the helmet on after his ride!

Enjoying a snack with sweet Eliza. These two were so funny to watch together. She's small, but fierce, and wouldn't let the boys get in her way at all!

 Tire swing with Gigi at the park.

 And Eliza.

 Swinging with Papa.

My Mom cooked an amazing dinner, too! And my Dad smoked one of the turkeys on his Big Green Egg, which I heard was pretty much amazing! Everything was great, and we enjoyed Thanksgiving leftover sandwiches and pizza in meals to follow! :)

We had a great time, and it's so much fun with the little kids now! Yes, things are way different than they were in years past, but it's definitely a good different! Next we will be together for Christmas, and I can't wait to see what God has for us then! 

Happy Halloween!

Happy Halloween, and FALL!

We are enjoying the cooler weather and warm hot chocolate! We even had a fire this morning in the fire place!

Hudson still loves being outside! At school, one of his teachers tells me almost every day that as soon as she says "Line up, it's time to go outside", Hudson drops whatever he's playing with and gets in line with the other kids at the door! And then when they say it's time to go back inside, he "runs" the opposite direction back to the playground! He just loves being outside! Which I love, too!

He takes his mowing very seriously. 

We went back to the pumpkin patch this year. He definitely enjoyed it more this year since he could walk around and play in the little play yard they had set up! The horse tire swing was a favorite.

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Our pumpkin he helped pick out. He wanted so badly to be able to pick it up! 

 My two handsome guys! I'm so blessed. 

We went to Nashville to celebrate my Dad's birthday and my niece's first birthday. It was a great weekend with family, and Hudson's first visit to Nashville. I just wish we all lived closer! Hudson had a great time playing with Eliza and Henry!

Halloween was good. Hudson was a scarecrow. We took him around to a couple of the houses on our street, but he's still too young to really walk around or even to eat candy, so we didn't do much. 

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God Bless

Catching up

It's been over a month - my apologies! We've been quite busy around here. The week after Hudson's birthday, school started, and we've been running full speed ever since!

My little kiddos at school keep me running ALL day long (we got 19 5 year olds!), but this year is going well so far. I have my own classroom this year (as opposed to being an assistant as I had been the past two years). While enjoy this position, and having my own room, it's a lot more work and stress. I try to do as much as I can at school and not bring anything home, and 9 out of 10 times, I can. When I'm at school I'm Mrs. Reid. But as soon as I leave the building, I'm mommy again, and I want all of my attention to be about taking care of my sweet boy (who I miss desperately throughout the day) and my husband (who I also miss!). It's not easy, but I just keep telling myself it's a season of life that God has given me, and I will rejoice with each new day no matter what.

Here's a little from the past 7 weeks!

Hudson started his second year of school. It's crazy that he can walk into school all by him self this year!

 He loves his toy lawn mower and he wants to push it all over the yard, driveway, sidewalk, wherever he can!

 This kid seriously loves yogurt and cottage cheese! And he's feeding himself (with a little help)! Yah!

 Instilling a love for books and reading early on is key for reading success! (also, just pulling them off the shelf is really fun, too)

 Clemson football started, and we have enjoyed watching the games and cheering on our Tigers! Hudson went to his first tail-gate this year, and had a blast playing! And Paul and I got to go in and watch - it was my first game in over a year! It was fun to be back! 

 We spend probably 20-30 minutes every afternoon outside. He loves being outside! We collect acorns, leaves, pine straw, anything and everything! 

 Cutest kid on the block, hands down!

 Did I mention he loves cottage cheese but also likes to share?! 

 Due to some scary spray, blue, foam soap, baths in the bathtub are negotiable. Sometimes, we do what we have to do - if that means bath in the kitchen sink, then bath time in the kitchen sink it is! (Don't worry, we clean it before and after!)

 Mommy teaches reading, Daddy teaches the molecular properties of water. I think we're going to have a genius here, folks! 

He's just a happy little boy, who loves to play, laugh, and have fun! Each new stage is exciting with him, and he brings so much joy to everyone who knows him, especially me and his Daddy.

God Bless.

Hudson is 1!!

Our little guy is ONE!

He is such a sweet boy - and growing so much!
He's walking ALL over the place!
He's "talking" more - and saying "mama", "dada", and "uh-oh".
He still loves playing with his truck, trains, and cars.
He is very smart and will mimic things that we do - like drinking from a cup, stacking blocks, and hiding toys.
He likes playing Hide and Seek!
He's eating a lot more foods - I'm still trying to make as much as I can, but with school starting, we'll just have to take each day and week one at a time. He really likes blueberry muffins, cottage cheese pancakes, veggie nuggets, banana bread, spinach and fruit smoothies, hummus, cheese, bread, and fresh fruits.
He can clap! It was fun watching him figure it out!
He's still napping well, but with school about to start, that will probably change since he doesn't usually sleep well there.
He is developing quite a sense of humor, and loves making people laugh! And his laugh is the sweetest sound I've ever heard! It is just precious!
He loves being outside! Now that he's walking, he just likes walking around the yard or the driveway, looking at everything, picking up everything, exploring it all with the ease of mobility.
He loves climbing on and over things!! Stairs, pillows, quilt racks, boxes, anything he can get over!

We took Hudson to our friend's farm and took some One Year Old pictures! He did great! How can you not LOVE this face!  

 We celebrated his first birthday on his birthday, which was fun! It was "If you give a baby a first birthday" themed - based on the book series by Laura Numeroff (If you give a mouse a cookie). I had a lot of fun planning, baking, preparing, and celebrating with family and friends!

 He wasn't so sure about the smash cake! He tried a little bit of it, but got caught up when his hands got dirty and he didn't know what to do!

 My grandfather celebrated his 85th birthday on the same day! These are the two birthday boys sharing birthday secrets!

Thank you to everyone who has prayed for this little boy, supported and encouraged us through all the joys and concerns, and who have loved him every day! He is truly blessed!

God Bless