Birthdays, Doctors, Crawling, and School

Since my last post we have had a few things happen. First, Jason celebrated his 26^th Birthday. We went to Wings with some friends and family. We also had an amazing cake! My friend, Rebekah Hooten, makes the best cakes. She is also very talented at decorating them. If you ever need cakes, cookies, or cupcakes for a party, I can get you her number! She is great!

Also, Libby had her 6 month check-up. She is 17.1 pounds, which is in the 75^th percentile. She is 27 ¼ inches long, which is in the 95% percentile. She is a growing girl! Everything seemed good! We did start her on some allergy medicine; unfortunately she has got my allergies. She really enjoyed playing with the paper that covers the table. She also kept trying to grab the doctor’s stethoscope. When we took it from her hands she got mad and yelled and the doctor couldn’t hear her heartbeat because she was too loud. Eventually, we got it.

We called her doctor (for her foot), because she pulls up all of the time now. They told us that even though she is pulling up, she can’t be close to walking. So we have to keep her shoes on at least until we visit them again in October. I was irritated, because this whole time they have said we could take them off when she pulled up on her own. I still think she could possibly be walking before we go in October, if that is the case…..we will ditch the shoes during the day!

She has also figured out how to crawl forwards. This just happened on Thursday. It is so cute. At first she would crawl, crawl, hop. Now, she just crawls. If it something she is not suppose to have (like my shoes, cords, plants ….) she goes really fast. Today she finally had the courage to leave the living room. I was getting her bath ready and looked up and she was in the hall looking at me. Guess I have to watch her more closely now!

School has also started back. I will not be posting a lot about school. However, I will say that it is a change from the fun, Libby-filled, summer. I have to get use to only seeing her in the afternoons. It is not too fun!

What's New?

So…..this is the part I was most worried about when starting my blog…. It has been a few weeks and I don’t know what to blog about. So I am going to just talk about what has been going on, maybe it will be interesting......

School is starting this week. Teachers returned last Thursday and the students will start on Tuesday. It was really hard going back. Last time I went back, when Libby was 8 weeks old, it was easier. At that time all she did was sleep, eat, and poop. It was hard going back, but this time was so much harder. She has such a sweet personality and she is so much fun. However, I know she is in good hands.

For about two weeks now Libby has been trying to crawl. She gets on her hands and knees all of the time. She will rock back and forth. She can scoot back like a champ, but has not figured out how to go forward. Since she knows what she wants to do and can’t do it, she gets mad and starts screaming. So, there has been a lot of screaming lately. Another thing she has started doing is rocking back and forth on her shoes. For those who don’t know, Libby was born with a clubbed foot and to correct it she has special shoes. The shoes are connected by a bar. (She has to wear the shoes 23 hours a day.) So she is standing in your lap and going from one foot to the other. Rock, Rock, Rock, Rock! It is pretty cute. She really likes to do it on Sunday mornings when the praise band is practicing before church. One of the more exciting things she has started doing is pulling up. This past week she pulled up on a diaper box. It is only about a foot off of the ground, but she did it all by herself. I had put the box on the floor for her to play with. I went to the kitchen to clean bottles. I peeked in to check on her and she was kneeling next to the box and holding on. So, I went and held the box still and she pulled up. Her feet were behind her a good bit, but she was balancing pretty good. She has done it several times since. Once she masters pulling up, she will only have to wear her shoes while sleeping. So we practice all the time. I know most parents say that you don’t want your baby crawling or walking because you have to chase them. But, I would love to chase her if it meant her shoes won’t have to be on all of the time.

Well….I guess that is all. Please pray for me and Jason as we go back to work. Pray that we would have an attitude like Christ’s. Also, Pray for us to be good examples to our students.

Little River Canyon

As you may have read in the previous post, Jason and I just celebrated our 4 year anniversary. We had decided after our first anniversary that we wanted to get away every anniversary, even if it was just a night in Birmingham. We both feel it is important to make time just for each other. We were hoping for kids and knew we would have to commit to leaving once a year in order to actually do it. Sure enough we almost talked ourselves out of it this year. We had originally planned on going to Atlanta and then thought about Gatlinburg. However, we worried about finances this month. So, we decided to go to Little River Canyon. We also really wanted to just relax after working really hard on getting our house ready to sell. (Know of anyone in the Tuscaloosa area wanting a house????)

We really enjoyed our trip. It was so relaxing. On the way to our cabin we stopped in Scottsboro at the Unclaimed Baggage Store. It was fun! The store buys unclaimed luggage from the Airport. We asked the cashier about it and he said that about 1/3 of the stuff they get is just trash, 1/3 they donate, and 1/3 they keep and sale. It was well organized and full of all kinds of stuff. There was a huge diamond ring that they were asking $17,000 for. Who knows how much it is actually worth. And poor women that lost that! They had Kindles, cameras, dvds, cds, jewelry, books, purses, a ton of clothes, plus a lot more stuff. It was so fun to look around. We left with a portable dvd player and convertible Britax car seat for Libby, a couple of t-shirts for Jason, and a pair of pants for me. I wanted a lot of the jewelry, but didn’t want to pay for it. Some prices were great some still a little expensive. It left me wondering how they priced things. But, it was fun! And worth the trip!

We ended up finding a cute cabin in Dogtown. Dogtown consists of a four way stop. It did have a good pizza/sub place to eat. We really enjoyed their Chicken, Bacon, Ranch pizza. We also met a local who came in with her twin 4 months olds, Sarah Elizabeth and Hugh. They made us miss our Libby! The closest city to Dogtown was Fort Payne. Sorry if you are from Fort Payne, but……it is nothing to write home about. It was a little……dumpy. It had some chain restraints and stores, but it had so much potential. It had an old, downtown area that was sitting there with empty buildings. It could be so cute! We had a brochure in our cabin for an antique mall that had a deli in it. So we set out to Fort Payne to go explore. Well, there was an antique mall but it was not nearly as big as it said it would be. Also…. No deli around. But it was fine. We enjoyed walking through.

We really had a great time riding around the canyon and getting out and looking at the waterfall and canyon below. It was so pretty. I was thankful we were expected to drive around it because I am out of shape and it was so hot.

The night before we came home we drove to Mentone. Mentone is another small town on Look Out Mountain. It is where we had considered staying before finding the cabin we stayed in. We ate at the Wildflower Café. (I was really excited because I have read a series of books by Robin Gunn and the final book is about a café called the Wildflower Café. This café made me feel like I was in that book.) The owner/chef came out and spoke to each customer. They were really friendly and the food was good too!

It was such a great trip and so relaxing. It was just what we needed. We would love to return and probably will! We were anxious to get home to see Libby. By the way, she is now eating her feet (when her shoes are off) and trying to eat her shoes when they are on. I have to keep stopping her when her shoes are on! She is also starting to get up on her hands and knees like she wants to crawl. Once she does this, however, she gets really mad because she can’t figure out what she is suppose to do next. She just sits there and screams. I think she will get it soon!

Happy Anniversary!

I can't believe that Jason and I just celebrated 4 years of marriage. Yesterday was our anniversary and we had a great day! Last night we went to Hokkaido (my favorite!), we went to see Eclipse, and we finished up the night with the best dessert of all time- The Chocolate Stampede. This dessert is at Longhorns. It is amazing. Most of the time they will split the dessert for you. It is so big, Jason and I share half of it. (It is also half the price which means it is a steal!)

Jason has been one of the best decisions I have ever made (next to the decision of Salvation.) He is the most amazing, loving, selfless men I know. I wrote on my Facebook status the other day that men should take classes from him on how to show their wives they love them everyday of the year. And I really mean it. Sometimes when girls get together they list all the negatives about their husbands or complain that they always keep the toilet seat up, don't put their dishes up, or whatever. One night recently I got pulled into one of those discussions. And I was like yeah Jason too... Yeah.... Then I quickly realized... .No. He doesn't. He is such a servant and everything he does, he does for me and Libby. We are so blessed. The next time I saw that group of girls I quickly told them I was wrong. And I told them how wonderful he is. (They too admitted their men weren't so bad either!) I think all wives could benefit from thinking about all the wonderful things their men do for them instead of any negatives. Because, in my case, the positives way out number the negatives!)

Anyhow... I wanted to do a little history of mine and Jason's relationship..... so once upon a time....

Our first time together as a couple was to our Senior year Homecoming dance. Shortly after we went on our first date. We went to Colt's house to watch the Alabama/ Auburn game. Then we went to Ruby Tuesdays. My parents just happened to be eating their too. We didn't realize it till my dad approached the table. I didn't see him coming, but Jason's eyes got bigger and bigger! It ended up being a good thing, because my dad paid for the meal!

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Throughout our relationship, one of our favorite things to do together is to go on mission trips. We have been to Norway, Brazil, and Mexico. We also traveled to Paris to see my brother last summer.

We got engaged the begining of our Senior year of college. We were at the Good Will Gala (where you buy clothes from Good Will and the proceeds went to a charity). Jason asked me in front of everyone. It was magical!

We got married July 8, 2006. It was a wonderful day filled with family and friends. A girl always dreams of her perfect wedding. And our day was perfect.

Now our life is even more full of love with the addition of our sweet Libby this past February. God has blessed us so much. We have a wonderful marriage and a wonderful family! Happy Anniversary Jason! Thank you for making my life so wonderful! I love you!

Libby's First Fourth

Ladder Ball

Jason's Ribs




We started our celebration of the Fourth on Friday. We traveled to Marvin Chapel so Libby could meet her Aunt, Uncle, and cousins from Kentucky. We enjoyed a great meal and time with the fam. The next morning Jason got up real early to start working on his masterpiece. I don't eat ribs all that often...but they were good. We ate them at my parent's house. My mom, grandparents, Jason's parents and brother, my Aunt Emily, Uncle Buddy, and our friends from church, Patrick, Rebekah, and Delilah all enjoyed some good food. (My dad was not there because he is visiting Parker. They are on a trip of a lifetime in Israel.) By the way, Rebekah is the most amazing Cake decorator and cook. She made the cutest star jello mold thingys. They were so cute and so good. I wish I would have taken a picture. If you ever need someone to do an adorable, tasty cake.....let me know and I'll get you her info! We also spent part of the afternoon swimming.

Then on the fourth, after church we headed back out to Marvin Chapel. Once again we had some great food. But probably the most interesting part of the day was our exciting tournament of Ladder Ball, also known as Hillbilly Golf or Crazy Golf. Jason was my partner and we lost our first game, won the second, and then lost the third. So.....we didn't do so hot. I think we are going to make our own game so we can practice at home!

I think Libby really enjoyed herself. She loved being around all of her family. I stole the watermelon picture idea from a friend from college! I hope you all had a great 4th and had the opportunity to spend it with family and friends!

Here we go.....

So I was talking to my friend, Rebekah, the other day about blogging. We both challenged each other to start a blog. So here we go......... (I must warn you, I am a MATH teacher. I cannot spell very good and my grammar skills are not too wonderful either!)

I actually wish I would have started this last June when I found out I was pregnant. I have been doing an awful job keeping up with all of Libby's milestones. So I thought this might be a good way to do that. The day we found out we were having a girl, we also found out that our little girl had a clubbed foot. It was a day of mixed emotions. Soon after, we went to UAB to have a better ultrasound done to confirm that Libby's foot was clubbed. At the time, I thought it was the worst possible thing that could happen to us. I know people were praying for us to have peace, because it didn't take long for me to chill out and realize that we were so blessed. Of all the things that could be wrong with our baby, this was something we could fix.

About a week and a half after Libby was born she got her first cast. It went from her toes all the way up to her diaper line. We had to replace the cast every week for about 7 weeks. There are so many things you don't think about. Like, getting poop on the cast and not being able to give her a bath in her tub. After the 7 weeks, she had a minor surgery to clip her achilies tendon. They did have to put her to sleep because she wiggled too much. After the surgery she had one more cast. This time she wore it for 2 1/2 weeks. After the cast she was given special shoes. They have a bar between them to keep her foot turned out. I really hate these shoes. It is so hard to cuddle up with her. However, again.... it could be so much worse. She wears these shoes 23 hours a day. Once she starts to pull up she will only have to wear the shoes to sleep in until she is 2 or 3. Needless to say, we practice standing all of the time!

Now, Libby is almost 5 months old! Time has flown! In the past couple of weeks she has really started grabbing for things. Right now we all think it is so cute..... I am sure in another few weeks we will be saying NO! Stop! She has also started laughing out loud more. She has been smiling and laughing for a while now. However, these past couple of weeks have been so fun! She is laughing loudly and for a long period of time! We are really enjoying being home with her this summer!

I know this was a long post and I promise they won't all be that long. But I want to encourage anyone who finds out their child might have a clubbed foot. It is really not that bad. It is fixable! I promise it will be harder on you then your baby! Libby doesn't even realize she has shoes on! If you know someone going through something like this, please give them my name and contact info! I'd love to talk to them! Well.... hopefully I will be good at keeping this blog up... I guess we will see....

OH! And Rebekah....Tag! You're it! Your turn!