Easter 2017

This Easter is definitely going down as the best Easter ever! Last year at this time we were still waiting on Jace to make his arrival and I have to say that having him here is way better than waiting on him to come. This was my weekend to work so I worked Saturday but one of my awesome co-workers swapped with me so I could have Easter Sunday off to spend with my boys. 

What is it about having kids that makes the love of God SO much more real? My heart was grieved on Good Friday thinking of what the Father went through letting His son die. All because He loved us, a sinful people who don't even deserve His love. Then the beauty of it is the resurrection. That Jesus conquered that sin and death and rose again victorious. How often as Christians do we get stuck on the cross and our own sin and filth without realizing that Jesus defeated that and ROSE AGAIN! What joy is found in that truth! 

Speaking of joy... this boy of ours... he is pure joy. He lights up our world and each stage gets more and more fun. He is absolutely smitten for his daddy and seeing their bond get deeper is so incredible. I can't express how your love for your husband changes when you have kids. I love Austin in such a different way than I did before. My appreciation for him has grown so deep and sharing mutual love for our little person just makes me feel that much more connected to him. And the fact that he has been dying to match Jace... I mean ALL the heart eyes for that. I felt giddy all day at church every time I would see those two cuties across the room talking to people. Jace's first word is officially "da-da" and it is just a glimpse of the bond these two already have. I pray they always have a strong bond and friendship like Austin does with his dad. My heart is full y'all! 

We had a slow morning full of muffins, scrambled eggs, and coffee then went to the later service. I love Easter service! There is always such a buzz of excitement and I imagine that celebratory feeling is what the disciples must have felt when they started to realize Jesus was risen! After church we went to 5 guys for lunch and then headed home and all took a 2 hour nap (hallelujah!)! After that we went back out for some dinner with Austin's family and maybe I am just full of sappy hormones but I sat around looking at our family just blown away by them. I pray that I would never lose that sense of thankfulness for our family. They are such amazing people and some of my favorite people in the world. 

Here are a few pictures of our Easter Sunday and I have gone back and looked at the pictures of Austin and Jace together so many times. Those two... I love them so much! Also a few pictures of Jace and his best friend, Brantley. Their little ties are just the best. I'm thinking this may need to become more of a regular thing!

Happy Easter friends! May the power of the Cross and Resurrection be real and evident in your lives today! May you know the LOVE of Jesus Christ like never before! 

XOXO,

Gemma 

Life Lately and Jace 11 Month Update

11 months! What? I'm still in shock! But yet it's also crazy to think that we haven't even had Jace for a year... feels like he has always been a part of us! I'm not sure what we did for entertainment before him. He is TONS of fun right now and that doesn't even do it justice to how much I am loving this stage. He is so funny, laughs all the time, is finding his voice and cruising all around. Still not walking on his own but loves to push other things around while he walks. He has been in a clingy phase and wants to be held a lot which is surprising to me because he is normally so independent. I am soaking up every singly time he pulls on my legs and lifts his arms up in the air to be held. Looking down at that little face looking up at me is just everything. 

He eats everything and anything he can get his hands on. Normally prefers table food but lately has been wanting pouches more than anything and I think it has something to do with teething. He is down to only nursing 2-3 times a day and as much as I miss the constant snuggle-sesh that nursing brings, I am loving the freedom. I haven't decided what we will do about weaning yet so for now we will just go with it. He takes to a bottle just fine and we've even given him whole milk a few times mixed in with some breast milk because my freezer supply is sorely lacking. Could be because I loathe pumping-- all you momma's who exclusively pump I salute you! 

He goes down around 8 at night and wakes up around 9 the next morning (hallelujah)! He takes 2 naps a day ranging from 1-2 hours each and I really think 2 naps a day is the sweet spot! 3 naps a day was so hard to maintain and I felt like I was constantly housebound. 2 naps is WAY better because he takes a great morning nap, we go out for a few hours, then back home just in time for another nap and I usually take one too. There is part of me that's excited for that 1 long nap a day so he's more on schedule with my other friend's kids. Playdates are a serious necessity in a week! Not sure how I would survive without my mom friends! 

Jace loves our dog Bailey and literally lights up when he sees her in the morning. He loves to say da-da and has figured out how to pull off all the outlet plugs. When we try to discipline him and sternly say "no no Jace" he just throws his head back and laugh so hard. Parents how do you keep a straight face when they do such hilarious things?? He has lots of little friends and really actually loves playing with other kids. As crazy as I know the transition to 2 kids will be eventually (not pregnant), I can't wait to see him with a built in best bud in a little brother or sister. We love the playground and when it's not so cold outside we usually go almost every day to swing on the swings. He also loves bath time and dunks his head all the way under water to blow bubbles. I'm thinking we need to get this kid some swimming lessons because he has no fear. 

Approaching that big 1 year mark has my heart so full. Motherhood is an incredible gift of which I hope I never take for granted. In a world where children are looked at as a disturbance or inconvenience I pray we always see our little bud as such a joy. Yes there are hard days and frustrating moments, but I try to always keep in mind how desperately I always wanted and prayed for this and how greatly God answered. Spring is fast approaching and I think it's my new favorite time of year because it will always remind me of those first few precious weeks of being a new mom. There is something so magical about the relationship with the firstborn because everything is a first for the mom too. I feel like just as he has grown, so have I. We have figured it out together and it has been such an amazing journey. It has made Austin and I's relationship so much stronger and more dynamic too. It requires that we extend MORE grace and understanding for each other. But yet we also share this intense love for this tiny person. 

What a gift you are, our little boy Jace. 

Surprise! Aunt Stacy was in town! Jace loves Camryn!

 Finally gotten in a good workout routine and this little man uses me as a jungle gym while I workout! 

I went to the bathroom this day and left him in his highchair and when I came back I found him like this... we have a climber on our hands! 

Always hanging with our buddy Oliver!

Cuties!

Jace loves hanging with Bear and Brooks!

All smiles for a big boy carseat!

So full of JOY!

We love Brantley! 4 months apart! Best friends for life!

Around 9 months we transitioned him to only using his pacifier at nap time and night. Sometimes you just got to sneak it in a little early!

Nana! Definitely one of Jace's all time favorite people! Mine too!

Cutest visitor at work! I still struggle with being away from this guy for 12 hour days but thankful I don't work that much and Austin always brings him up on the weekends!

Another friend was born! Love my sweet friend Marlee and her perfect buddy Liam! Can't wait when him and Jace can run around and play together! 

I think my days of leisurely shopping may be numbered for the next few years because this guy does not want to sit still! Wouldn't trade it for the world! And PTL for online shopping!

Life Lately

Last weekend we sold the last few puppies of our 11 puppy litter. It was sad to see them go but such a relief to not have to clean up piles of poop several times a day! We bred our dog Bailey with Austin's parents dog Doc this past Fall and had 11 puppies born in our home December 3rd. With some of the puppy profits we did some small renovations...

I have wanted a built in bench here for a while now and LOVE the way it turned out!

It always bothered me that I couldn't see over our bar top into the living room to see Jace. It was higher than your average barstool height and we lowered it about 6 inches. it opens up the space so much and I am so happy we did it!

This is the first year the Falcons have made it to the Super Bowl in almost 20 years and Austin has been SO nervous all week. Everyone is coming here to watch the game and cheer on our Falcons to victory! RISE UP!

I went and got pedicures with Marlee (center) and Amy (right) this week to celebrate the upcoming arrival of Marlee's little boy! We got pedicures together for Amy's baby Oliver and on my due date with Jace! It is the best tradition! Love these friends so much! Amy is pregnant with a little girl so there will finally be someone to buy bows for after the long streak of boys in our friend group!

I found this mug at Marshals the other day and couldn't help snapping a picture to send to Austin because this is the recipe for our happy marriage haha! This pretty much breaks down what I need from Austin...

This is Bonnie, our last puppy to go to her new home. She was so spunky and full of energy and we loved the people that took her. It has been so fun getting pictures this week of all the puppies loving on their new owners. I was not raised with any pets so this has all been a big learning curve for me. As messy as it was, it really was fun and I think we will do it again in a year or two. 

I also decided to unplug from Facebook for a little while this week. I have absolutely zero self control in that area so a friend of mine told me she had someone else go in and change her password so she couldn't log on. I thought that was brilliant and asked Austin to do it right away! There has been so much negativity on Facebook lately and I was getting consumed by it. At one point this week I was looking down at my phone reading all of the junk and looked up to Jace just smiling and laughing at me. I realized at that moment I was missing out on him and that sweet moment for a bunch of junk. So for now, I'm taking a break and it has been amazing. My head and heart are so clear and I have way more brain space. Life lately has been good and I am so looking forward to Spring. We are starting to plan Jace's 1st birthday party and a few summer trips and I cannot wait! Happy Sunday friends!

-Gemma