A Celebration

I have been insanely busy with work and being out of town that I haven't had a chance to upload pictures and blog about Connor's first birthday party. So...here it goes...

Keith and I decided that we would take any money that would typically go to the usual birthday party funds (you know, streamers, invitations, decor, etc, etc) and put that towards getting the yard ready for the party since it was going to be at our house.

Keith worked like a mad man getting the yard to look it's best (and it looks amazing!) and I got busy on the back deck by making pillows and getting plants arranged just where I wanted them. We also hung lights and Keith's handy torches made out of wine bottles were attached to the posts. Unfortunately, I do not have any pictures of these things. (oops!) But, I do have fun pictures of the birthday boy and all of our family and friends who came over. We definitely had a great time celebrating Connor's first year of his life as well as Mommy and Daddy's first year as parents.

Yep...He's 1

Playing cornhole

The Birthday Boy

The BBQ pit (Keith worked hard to get it ready)

Mommy and the birthday boy!

Grandma Edwards with Connor

We survived the first year!!!

We are parents to a one year old - WHAT?!

You know...just playing in the rocks

Aunt Stasi and a fussy boy. But, it's his party and he can cry if he wants to. 

Grandma Estep and the fussy birthday boy.

Singing "Happy Birthday"

This didn't go quite the way we had pictured it

Ready for a bath

Mini vaca with the Estep girls

Things have been insanely busy to say the least. A couple weeks ago, my mom and sister, Stasi, decided to take a trip to visit my aunt and uncle in ATL. We packed the car with luggage, kids, and snacks and were on our way. It was so nice to get away for a few days and have some quality time with the Estep girls.

Our itinerary was booked full of fun things and we were exhausted when we got back. My aunt and uncle were the perfect hosts! They truly are the sweetest and funniest people I know! Our weekend consisted of antique shopping (a favorite in our family), going to see the Goats on the Roof (yes, it's a real place and yes, they are on a roof), delicious food, and going to the ATL mall.

And of course, a trip with kids wouldn't be one without a little bit of drama. Let's just say that one night of dinner consisted of this mama partaking in everyone else's free wine tasting, a floor covered in cheerios and veggie straws, and two bread baskets filled to the top with vomit. Don't worry, I didn't take any pictures. But, here are a few pictures we did take!

Connor with the goats when we went to Goats on the Roof

Avery and Kaitlyn petting the goats

He loved that bear

Avery, Stasi, Kaitlyn, and me!

Me and Connor on the goofy looking goat

This is how we roll around the mall

First carousel ride on the ferocious tiger

Happy Birthday Connor!

This time last year, I was in labor and about to meet this little person who had been occupying my abdomen for the last 40 weeks. Keith and I were anxious, excited, nervous, and a bit scared. At 5:25pm, our precious baby boy made his entrance into the world and our hearts. 

The new Daddy, Mommy and cone head baby boy

The old saying is completely true, "some days seem to never end, but the years fly by." I like to equate the first year with a new child to the first year of marriage. It's challenging, rewarding, everybody is learning new things about how to relate to one another, etc, etc. This past year has encompassed all of these. It has been one of the toughest years of my life, but also the most rewarding. We definitely could not have survived without lots of prayer, guidance and wisdom from the Lord, encouraging and helpful family members and friends, and lots of prayer (Oh, did I already mention that?). 

We don't have much planned for his birthday today. However, we did manage to spend the entire morning at the doctor's office. Poor little guy has a stye :( However, he is still full of smiles, laughs and energy! I am excited about his party this weekend. We have family and a few friends coming to help us celebrate the first year we have survived as parents of our sweet little guy.

It has been so neat watching my baby grow into a little boy. He is so much fun! I look forward to this new adventure of raising a toddler. 

3 weeks old (photo by Visio Photography)

1 year old (photo by Katy Cook Photography)

Cleaning out more than just closets

A couple weeks ago I decided that it was time to start getting our "catch all" room in order and finally turned into an office so I can spread out all my work somewhere other than the dining room table.

I started by cleaning out the closet under the stairs (literally, the only storage space we have) in order to get rid of things we haven't used in the last four years in order to make room for some of our things that have just landed in the "office". This is what my downstairs looks like now and we have even thrown some things away and separated items into other rooms (don't judge me).

Connor has also been a huge help by either throwing papers and pictures around the room that I have neatly placed in the trash pile or entertaining himself by climbing into Norah's crate.

Speaking of papers and pictures to be thrown away. Keith and I both came across these items that contain our past friendships, memories with family, and relationships. I'm not sure why we kept these things for so long, but I'm guessing we just didn't realize we still had them. However, it was now time to clean out more than just our closet under the stairs. It was time to clean out items from our past that aren't needed anymore. We recognize these past relationships and friendships were all part of making us who we are today, and we appreciate that. However, we don't need their faces in packed away boxes in order to remind us of this. As we uncovered these artifacts, Keith found a gold mine. Yep, you guessed it, old love notes from middle school! I must say, these were hilarious!!! We both sat there and took turns reading a few out loud to one another using voice inflection, fluttery eyes and lots of emotion. And then, we would laugh hysterically.

Now, I'm not against keeping some pictures from past experiences with someone of the opposite gender such as prom pictures such as this one

Yes, this is my husband before going to the 8th grade dance. He wanted to throw this amazing jewel away! I told him that we must keep it! It will be great to pull out one day to show our kids what a goofball handsome guy their dad was in middle school :)


Have you done any spring/summer cleaning lately? Any organization tips you can share?

We Love to Dance!

It is no secret that I love to dance! Am I very technical? Not at all. But, I have fun tossing my arms in the air and shaking my body all of the place. Not only is it a great workout, but Connor loves to watch me make a fool of myself every day. Yes, I dance every day.

Sometimes, Connor will join in with his crazy mama by holding onto his crib and shaking his head around while bouncing up and down. He even has some sweet arm movements that he throws out there to spice things up a bit.

My favorite dances, though, consist of holding Connor in my arms while we dance around the living room. It doesn't matter what song is on or if it is a tune that came to my head. He and I both just smile and enjoy the moment. The sweetest moment we have had while dancing happened this week (and this mama needed it since I've been dealing with a cranky teething baby boy). While dancing around the dining room to a sweet slow song coming from a Pandora station, we danced hand in hand and cheek to cheek. All of a sudden, he took his face away from mine and when I went to look at him, he planted a big wet kiss on my lips! My heart melted and all the whining and crying immediately seemed worth it.

Insanity update

I am now officially halfway through the Insanity program. This is bittersweet for me. I am excited that I am so close to tackling this insane (pun intended) workout. But, I am also sad because I won't know what to do next. I guess I'll just have to start over!

Well, the first month started out tough, but gradually got easier as my body adapted to the workouts of max cardio and interval training. I love pushing my body as far as it can go!

This week has started month two of the workouts. They have proven to push me even further than I ever thought I could go. They are super tough! And, they have increased to one hour workouts, which means I have a short window in my day that I can get this workout done.

Here are my stats at the halfway mark.

Pounds lost: 5
inches lost: 1" (waist), 1.5" (hips), 3/4" (right leg), 1/2" (left leg)

So far I am really happy with how I feel and look. I am learning more about healthy eating and hope to start posting some of the recipes that we enjoy every day. So, be on the lookout!

What is your favorite workout? Favorite healthy recipe? 

Independence Day

Happy (day late) Independence Day!! I hope your day was filled with lots of fun, friends, family, and freedom :)

Keith had the "day off" yesterday and spent his entire day out in the heat working on the yard. This man is filled with hard work and determination. He goes to work every day and comes home to work hard in the yard to get it looking beautiful! I don't give him enough praise for all the hard work he does for our family, but especially out in the yard. I despise yard work. So, I am beyond thankful for the work he puts into our yard to make it look the way it does. I will post some before and after pics in a later blog post.

Back to our holiday events.

Connor and I spent the afternoon shopping. Now, you know this is not an item on my hobby list. I am just not a fan of spending hours going from store to store only to find over-priced items that I refuse to buy regardless of how amazing it would look in my house. I stand there contemplating if I could make it myself, but then I'm brought back to reality when my child begins standing up in the cart (where he was safely buckled in just moments before) and reaching for items outside of the cart. Who am I kidding?! I don't have time to make anything. I then proceed to put it back on the shelf and put my child safely back in his buckled seat.

Yesterday, however, was a different experience. I thoroughly enjoyed my shopping experience. Only because I found some great deals! My mission for the day: patio cushions and pillows.

Connor and I began our journey at TJMaxx/Home Goods. I found an extended hose attachment for about $2 (clearance item) and one of those pretty side tables/garden stool for $40 (they retail for $80+). It is similar to the one below. I have had my eye on one of these tables for quite some time so you can imagine my excitement when I found for such a great price! I was beginning to feel hopeful about my shopping adventure.

Stop number two (and was initially going to be our last) was Lowe's. They had a few pillows, but none that I felt were worth the money were on sale. Feeling a bit defeated, we decided to make a trip to Target. I hit the jackpot!!

I went immediately to the back corner where I knew they had the outdoor items and clearance items. (Yes, I am that person that walks straight to the back of the store while diverting my eyes from all the retail items at the front). These are the items I found:

outdoor patio coffee table - retails for $114 and I got it on clearance for $34

Christmas lights - 6 boxes on clearance for $2.50/ea

2 large pillows for the back deck - $8/ea

And of course a few items from the dollar bins. I mean...who can really resist the dollar bins?! I managed to get out of there with all of this for $77!!! That is a steal for Target when I normally can't leave without spending more than $100! 

I was feeling lucky and decided to make one more stop at Walmart. We made our way straight to the garden department without even entering the  front doors where all the fun, tempting toys are for little boys (and girls). An extremely helpful employee greeted me while I was looking at cushions and did some price checking for me. All the cushions are 20% off! This is a great thing for me since I have a built in bench on my back deck that is 120" long; therefore, making it nearly impossible to find cushions that fit. After searching for a while and not finding anything that would work and then pricing out all the materials for me to make one (yeah right..remember the child in the cart scenario?), I had given up on a seat cushion and opted for just putting pillows on it to make it a little prettier. But, I found a couple cushions at Walmart that would fit almost perfectly and couldn't pass it up since they were 20% off. I also got a few cans of Cutter Bee and Wasp Spray that I only had to pay tax on. (Price - $1 with coupon on back of can for $1 off = pay tax only!). I got three seat cushions and three cans of the spray for $113! 

Once I got home and shared all the great things I found with Keith, I realized that it was the first 4th of July that we weren't with family or friends doing all the festive things you normally do (lake, cook out, play games, etc). I was a little sad at this thought. We decided we would do our own thing and begin some new traditions for our little family. 

We went downtown to watch the fireworks and fight the crowds. Connor loved watching all the fireworks and pretty lights :) I will leave you with a few pictures of our evening. 

I was excited about eating a hot dog since our Insanity diet won't allow any of that delicious fair food

Connor was moving all the rocks onto our blanket. He must have been watching his daddy do this out in the yard.

Family photo (these self-photos never turn out good)

Disclaimer: These next photos were taken by Keith and he was playing with the settings on the camera. This is why the color looks funny.

Connor sharing his veggie straws with Mommy 

Pulling EVERYTHING out of the stroller and throwing it onto the ground. We haven't quite learned how to put things back yet. We'll get there...I hope. 

Connor and Daddy watching the fireworks

What did you do to celebrate America's birthday? Have you found any good deals at the store lately? I'd love to know!

Camping

Am I the only one who has to be reminded that it truly is summer? Yes, I know the weather has foretelling for the past couple of months. But, even though it's blazing hot outside by mid-morning, I can't seem to wrap my mind around the fact that this year is half over. I blame this on two things: 1) I took a year off from teaching (trust me, you ALWAYS know when summer is here if you're a teacher - it's the highlight of your entire year!) and 2) I've been raising a small baby into an energetic little boy for the past (almost) 12 months. Reason number two is enough reason to forget that months have gone by and it truly is time to bust out the tank tops, chacos, shorts, and bathing suits. And that is exactly what we did last weekend.

My mother-in-law is definitely the glue that holds the Edwards family together. Without her love for family and time spent planning amazing and fun adventures, we wouldn't see each other nearly as often as we do. With that being said, thank you, mother Teresa! (No, really...her name is Teresa...and she's a mom... She also has a heart of gold; so the name fits.)

She planned a weekend camping trip with the family and it was a lot of fun! It was Connor's first camping trip and he was a champ! We rented a pontoon boat, found cliffs to jump off (Keith's favorite thing to do - not me...I'm a pansy), ate delicious food, and watched fireworks on the dock.

We didn't remember to take a variety of pictures, but I will share with you a few that we did manage to take.

 Morning! (Literally when the sun came up, so did Connor)

Napping with Aunt Darcy

Sweet boy

Yes, he climbed this from the water. 

Splashing in the lake with Papa Edwards

More climbing

Captain Keith and his first mate

Check out this video of Keith doing a back layout off the cliffs. Makes me super proud! I'm always impressed by his many talents. Keep your eyes peeled in the London 2012 Olympic diving competition.  :)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RnvH3ymIIeM&feature=g-upl

Walking and busted lips

My sweet BABY boy is 11 months old today!! It really is strange to think that in 4.5 short weeks, my baby will no longer be just that - a baby. Nope, this sweet, blonde hair, blue eyed, all smiles little person will be a TODDLER! And I must say, I am really looking forward to this new year to come. He is at such a fun age. He's learning so many new things....like walking.

Yes, my son is walking. He took his first steps over Easter; but, he also learned how to crawl over Easter and decided that was the most efficient mode of transportation around the house and quickly forgot what it meant to move while standing on his two feet.

This past week, I was sitting at the dining room table while Keith was in the living room. Connor was standing next to me and then just took off walking into the living room to see what his daddy was up to. I immediately told Keith to turn around and we were beaming with pride for our little boy.

He loves to walk. It doesn't matter where we are - the grocery store, Keith's soccer games, volleyball games, outside to get the mail, literally anywhere - this baby boy wants to get out of his mommy's arms and walk. This, however, leads to the next thing that has come with walking - falling down.

Yes, most of the time he just shrugs it off and either starts crawling or pushes off something to stand up and try it again. Such a determined and strong willed little boy. However, there have been a couple times that he has some battle wounds. I don't mean scraped knees or torn hands. Nope, I'm talking fat, busted, bloody lips. Yep...my baby boy has busted both his top lip and his bottom lip since figuring out his land legs.

Don't worry though, Mama Liz came to his rescue! Nothing a little lovin' from his favorite woman can't fix. Oh - and some cold ice packs :)

Sickness, Insanity, and Connor

I just finished my insanely intense workout for the day, so my creative juices are pretty much depleted right now, ergo the title of this post. Regardless, this is my only down time to write anything so I'm going to tackle this post head-on and address each of the title-mentioned subjects in respective order.

Sickness. I have been sick for a week and a half. It started with a sore throat and achy muscles and turned into a terrible cough, voice loss, and pink eye. Thankfully, through time, great advice from my sister, no help from the doctor, and lots of prayer, I am starting to get better. There is a light at the end of this dark tunnel.

Insanity. Yes, even through this illness that has plagued me, we have continued on our insane journey of intense workouts and a complete nutrition overhaul. We have cut out all sugar and caffeine from our diets. If you know me, you know this is really hard for me. I have a HUGE sweet tooth! But, it's been worth it. In one and a half weeks, I've lost 2 pounds and Keith has lost 4! Even better, I can see my abs again! Here's the run down of how it has been so far:

First couple workouts - felt like I wanted to throw up...and quite possibly did (just a little).

Meals - healthy, yet surprisingly delicious. Eating 5 times a day. This, in turn, requires 2 hours of my time (while Keith is working hard in the yard) in the evenings to prepare his meals for the next day.

What I miss the most - morning coffee, chocolate, ice cream, anything sweet and delicious.

Last, but certainly number one in my world, my sweet precious baby boy. The last few weeks I have been taking every advantage to call him "baby" as much as possible. Why? Well, he's almost one and after that, no longer a baby. This is exciting, but sad at the same time. He's growing so fast!

As his first birthday quickly approaches, people continue to ask me what we're doing for such an event. The question is completely understandable since the people asking me know how I feel about birthdays. I think they are a HUGE deal! And, since I am an event planner, I LOVE to plan these things! Although, now as a mom, I'm starting to think that we should celebrate our mothers on our day of birth. If you've never given birth, then you wouldn't understand.

Although Connor's first birthday is a great milestone, I don't see the point in spending a lot of money for a person who will NEVER remember such an event. We are opting for an intimate family affair. Yes, there will be cake for the little guy and we will make a HUGE deal about him, but we are not going all out with decorations, gifts, invitations, etc. I'm sure as he gets older the parties will get more elaborate.

 But, for now, we like to keep things simple.

This is INSANE!

What's new at the Edwards' household? Insanity. Pure insanity. Quite literally.

Keith bought us the Insanity workout DVD and nutrition guide. He surprised me one day last week by bringing this home. If you know me, you know that I was absolutely ecstatic!! I have been wanting this for quite some time.

Today is our first day of the program and I am pumped! We weighed in this morning and are going to begin the insane workouts this afternoon.

Although the number on the scale looks good to me (I actually weigh less than when I got pregnant), the figure I see in the mirror isn't quite what I would like to see. I need to tone these muscles and get this post-baby body back in tip top shape! The best part of it all...we have accountability with each other. Who doesn't love someone who can make them workout and eat right when you just don't feel like it?!

I am excited to be going through this life change (time to get healthy!) with my husband! I'm sure we'll post pictures of before and after once we finish the 60-day plan.

Time to get my workout on!

Will I sacrifice daily?

Nobody prepares you for having children.

Sure, they tell you that the birthing process will be painful and that your life will change after your new bambino comes into the world. However, this whole storytelling process is a lot like collegiate classes for future educators (I'm sure other majors have the same ones, but I can only relate to education). You know the kind - they tell you how how to teach a class (rarely, if ever, tell you how to manage a class), how to have good record keeping, etc, but it isn't until that final semester (yes, only three short months of actual classroom involvement) that you get a taste of what teaching will be like. My theory is that they do this at the end of your senior year of college because they know that if you don't like it, you'll push on and continue through to graduation because you've already spent 3.5 years and lots of money to just change majors. I digress...

Back to child-rearing.

It isn't until you are home alone with your child day in and day out (weeks and months after family and friends have left with all the yummy pre-made food) that you begin to realize how exhausting it is to be a mom.

There are times when you feel like you have zero personal time. I know what all of you non-moms are saying, "what about when the baby sleeps?" That's a great idea...in theory. If I want a clean house and food to eat, that is when I usually get those things done - when baby is sleeping. Raising a child is mentally, emotionally, and physically exhausting.

I don't say these things to discourage any of my friends who do not have kids, yet (Laura - I'm still waiting for you to get pregnant next!). I say these things to let all of my mom friends out there know that you're not alone in these feelings. I was beginning to feel guilty for feeling a bit selfish at times. But, after reading this blog post, I felt very encouraged in knowing I wasn't alone in my thoughts and feelings. I was also encouraged to serve the Lord by serving my child every moment of every day.

After you read the post, ask yourself the same question I am - are you willing to sacrifice every day? Even when its hard? Even when you feel as though you're alone in this process?

My First Love

I grew up the youngest of three girls. I never had the pleasure of living with my oldest sister, Julie, as she was on her own and starting a family by the time I came along. I did, however, share a bedroom with my older sister, Stasi.

Stasi, now this girl is 100% a "grandpa's girl." Me, although I love my grandpa, I am 100%, without-a-doubt, no questions asked a "daddy's girl."

My dad was my first love. I remember falling head over heels for him as we danced together in the kitchen while I stood on his feet and he led me through the two-step. This love only grew through the years as he taught me about value, character, sports, fishing, the Bible, relationships, hard-work, acceptance, and love.

I have many, many memories about my dad and memories with him. When asked what my favorite memories were growing up I, without hesitation, talk about fishing with my dad, him coaching me in sports, and the random and surprise trips to a favorite local pizzeria in Ohio to get a pretzel, yoohoo, and play Mrs. Pacman.

I have always admired the man I called "dad."

The Saturday morning before Easter I received a phone call from my mother that no child ever wants to answer. I knew as soon as I saw my mom's name appear on my caller I.D. what she was going to say. In fact, I feel as though God had been preparing me for that moment for the past year. That, however, still didn't make the phone call and the news she had to share any easier to hear. The words echo in my head, "Shan. It's your dad. He had a heart attack and passed away."

As unexpected as it may have seemed, I knew it was coming sooner rather than later (although you never truly know what "sooner" really means until your face to face with it). Unless you were close to the family, you would have never known the amount of pain my dad was in. (He never wanted to make a big deal about his situation).  I recently asked him what part of his body hurts. His answer astounded me - "everything from my knee up is in constant pain." Those words tore at my heart. As a child, you think your parents are indestructible. To think that my dad was hurting all of the time, broke my heart.

After I got off the phone with my mom that morning, all I could do was cry in Keith's arms as he held me and we prayed. We lifted praises to our heavenly Father that my earthly Father was no longer in pain and he was now hanging out with Jesus! We prayed comfort over our family, for we knew that the coming days, weeks, months, and years were going to be challenging and emotional.

I miss my dad every day and often have to stop myself from dialing his cell phone number to talk about the latest sports gossip or share in the joy of something new that Connor has done. But, my faith in the Lord brings me through those tough times. I can do nothing but praise my Savior - for allowing me to have my father here on earth as long as I did (he was able to walk me down the aisle and see my first born child), for allowing my mother to have her best friend by her side for the past 32 years, for all the many blessings I experienced with my dad, for my dad not being in pain anymore, and most importantly that I will get to see him again one day!

My dad. My hero. My first love.

New things in the world of Connor

Wow! So much has happened these past couple of weeks with my little guy that it seems as though he's growing up way too fast!

He just started army crawling around the floor. He usually sits on his bottom and scoots across the floor, but now when he is on his belly he will crawl. He's also learning to sit up from laying down. This morning, about 5am, I heard him whining in his bedroom. Normally, I just ignore him and he eventually gives up and goes back to sleep. However, this morning I felt as though something was different. When I walked into his room, he was STANDING up in his crib just looking at me. He's pulled himself up before from a sitting position, but never from a laying down position. So, today, we move his crib mattress down :) He loves to walk! He will hold onto your hands all day long and just walk throughout the entire house stopping at every little thing to check it out. It's fun to see things through his eyes for the first time.

More and more of his personality is coming through and I love it! The one trait I am not fond of is when he whines because he's not getting what he wants (he gets this from his mama...not proud to say). He threw his first little fit out in public this past weekend because we took a drink coaster away from him at the restaurant because he was sucking and chewing on it. And, when your husband works at a paper mill supplying chemicals that go into the paper that makes these products, you would take it away too :) He's also discovered clicking his tongue and does it all day long. It's hilarious! He also LOVES people. We could be walking through the store, down the street, or at church and he smiles at everybody we pass by. His favorite - the ladies! Yes, my son is a huge flirt!

I am cherishing every second with this little guy because I know he won't stay little forever.

Connor's first hike

I am somewhat ashamed to say that we are just now taking Connor on his first hike. We have taken this kid out of the country, on rock climbing adventures, and a trip to Florida. You would think that since we live in the mountains that we would have taken him hiking by now, but alas, we have not. When Keith's friend from college, Ben, said he would be in the neighborhood and wanted to go hiking we immediately said yes!

Keith and I woke early Sunday morning and packed the car with all of our gear, water, and some snacks. We put the kids (Connor and sweet Norah) in the car and took off down I-40 to the Great Smoky Mountains. First stop - Pancake Pantry for a delicious breakfast with friends. If you have never been, I highly recommend it. Next stop - Chimney Top Trailhead.

Keith and I had hiked this trail before and were excited to get to the top to check out the amazing view. However, I like to think of this particular trail is very similar to childbirth - it is painful, long, and laboring; but when it's all over, you forget how much torture you went through. We were quickly reminded of this as we began our ascent. As Keith carried Connor on his back almost the entire way (our sweet friend, Nick, carried Connor part of the way), we finally made it to the top!

Connor and Norah loved every minute of it! I'm sure Keith would have rather chosen an easier climb for the first time taking Connor :)

This is what most of the climb is like - straight uphill and full of rocks

Our sweet friends, Lauren and Ben 

Just along for the ride :)

Norah needed a break so we all decided to stop too

A little tired from carrying all that extra weight

Me and my sweet boy on the rock face at the top

Finally out of the backpack and enjoying the view!

Family photo

On our way back down

  

I love this man!

It's tiring doing all that hiking 

The guys - Ben, Nick, Keith, and Connor

The ladies - me, Lauren, Jennifer, and Norah

This sign says "no dogs allowed"....oops...

Connor is ready to go home!