Halloween 2012

Two posts in one day?! Crazy for me! But I had a few minutes and just had to document our super-fun Halloween this year. I'm really big on firsts and I was so excited that not only was this Graham's first Halloween, but that this would be Amelia and Graham's first Halloween together. Can you say themed costumes? Ha! I have been thinking about this for, no lie, a year now. I found out last October that G was going to be a boy and I immediately started thinking about what he and sister could be for Halloween this year. I know I am a huge nerd, but whatever.

I ran across this fabulous costume and knew that it was perfect for my girl. But if you know me at all, you know that I'm much too thrifty to pay such a hefty pricetag for a dang Halloween costume. As if! So I set out to make my own knock-off, and here you have it:

I was pretty pleased that I created a pretty good knock-off for around 25 bucks total. I love good deals! And what's a good Bo Peep without her sheep? We found this guy roaming around.

I know that I will treasure this photo forever! I thought they looked so precious in these costumes, and leave it to our Graham to just sit there and smile in his costume. No way would our firstborn have tolerated that for one minute, let alone smile the whole time wearing it. That's just how G rolls.

(Thanks to Katie for snapping these photos!)

On Halloween morning, the kids got to trick-or-treat around campus, and Cliff and I were able to join them. Here's Graham and one of his school buddies, Eden. Isn't she a precious poodle?

 And here's Mimi and her BFF, Joy. They had a ball together and held hands everywhere they went. So sweet.

 Brother didn't last very long in his snuggly costume in the stroller.

After school,we went to a pre-trick-or-treating party at some friends' house, and then we made a few stops to see some more friends and Cliff's dad and grandparents. Amelia got WAY too much candy that she is still asking to eat everyday. Come this weekend, it's going to mysteriously disappear.

It was a memorable year for our kiddos first Halloween together, and I'm already looking forward to next year. I don't know how long I will be able to swing themed costumes, but I have ideas for about 10 more years! I'll do it as long as they will let me!

Graham at seven months

Graham will be eight months old in a a few days, so I wanted to highlight some things from his seventh month. Not much has changed from six months, but I still wanted to update for my memories. At seven months Graham:

• hasn't grown much from last month according to his clothes. He is still wearing 9 and 12 months clothes, size two shoe and a size three diaper. I think he's gotten longer this month. PJs are getting hard to snap in the middle and his one-piece outfits are getting snug. I like him better in jeans or khakis and shirts or polos these days. I'm sad to see those Polo rompers go away! He was so precious in those all summer.
• has started babbling this month. No real words, but he does say "da da da" a lot. Just waiting for a "ma-ma" any day.
• has started noticing our dog, Cash more this month. Usually nothing will distract him from his food in the highchair, but he is fascinated with watching Cash out the window.
• has slacked off on his bottles. He usually only has 2-3 6-ounce bottles a day now, but hasn't really embraced the sippy cup yet. He mostly just plays with it. He eats cereal in the mornings and two meals of two jars of baby food a day.
• has started self-feeding with some puffs and yogurt melts. He caught on really quickly and loves to help himself to some little snacks.
• STILL doesn't have any teeth, but I think I finally see one popping through on the bottom this week. He has been uncharacteristically fussy the past few days, so I'm hoping it's the teeth.
• has developed an obsession with cell phones and remotes, like all babies do at some point. He dives for a phone or remote and gets them to his mouth every chance he gets. I think we all know what Santa needs to bring for G! Does anyone have an old cell phone or remote he can have? Babies never seem to like the toy ones as much as the real ones.
• rode in the sitting up portion of the buggy for the first time this month and LOVED it!

And now for some pics. We had a photo shoot with Aunt Katie a couple of weeks ago. Here are a few a bunch of the fabulous photos she took:





My favorite! Does it get any cuter than that drool?






I love that this shows how little he is. Sweet boy.












Of course sister had to jump in for a couple.



And then we got a couple of family shots at the end.

I am in love with all of these pics! I can't wait to get some printed and framed for the house and my office.

A couple of these reminded me of a shoot we did with Lindey for Mimi at around the same age. Check out the comparison:



This is the first time I've actually thought my children have looked alike! I see the same nose and mouth, and maybe even ears too. Let's just be honest- put a tutu and flower on him and it's the same kid, ha! In color they look more different because G's eyes are bright blue and Mimi's are dark brown. I actually just took a color photo that Katie had taken and made it black and white to compare, so I'm sure the color/composition/whathaveyou is not correct.


I also thought these looked kind of similar. We really didn't even plan it. Katie just happened to have a yellow chair.

Still some similarities, but I think G's eyes just make him look so much different than his sister. Look alikes or not, I think they are the sweetest babies I've ever known and I'm so thankful for another sweet month with our Grahamy!

Four.

Dear Amelia,
Today you are four years old! How is that possible? It seems like no time ago when you were a tiny baby in my arms. You are our firstborn, and came as a ray of sunshine after a sad time for our family. You are the first grandchild on both sides of our family. Do you know how spoiled rotten that makes you? Everyone went nuts over you the day you were born and continue to do so today.

You are cute, smart, polite and funny. You are clumsy, love to make a mess with tiny objects and forget to say yes mam and no mam sometimes, but those are about the only negative things I can think of to say about you. You are really such a delightful child, and other people tell us this regularly as well and it makes us so proud. You are girly and love to dress up and pretend. We absolutely adore your imagination! You love your baby dolls, and I just know you are going to be a fabulous mama one day. You are so bright! We are amazed at how quickly you learn things, and I hope that love of learning continues as you go through school.

You grew up so much when you became a big sister, and we are so proud of how you have handled the changes in our family. You are so sweet to Graham, and he adores you! It makes my heart so happy to see you interact with each other. You love to help me around the house and with the baby. You are very obedient and love to please me and Daddy and your teachers at church and school, and we are so proud of that.

Amelia, you are such a joy to our family. You make every day more fun. Daddy and I could not be prouder of the little girl you have become, and we can't wait to see the person you grow up to be. Happy Birthday to the sweetest four-year-old I know!

Love,
Mama

Quick catch-up

As usual, October has flown by in a busy but fun blur. I just finished up my biggest event of the year at work, Homecoming, and had a few minutes to share a few of our recent photos. I have lots more fun things to share soon after I wrap up Amelia's birthday party parties this weekend. Of course, then basketball starts the next week, so the running around never really ends. Luckily, we like being busy and on-the-go most of the time and G is pretty content to just go with the flow, thank goodness.

We did a photo shoot with Katie a few weeks ago specifically for Graham, but we jumped in for a family pic at the end and I'm so glad we did.

Graham isn't wearing a shirt because we had just been photographing him in just his jeans on top of a hay bale, ha, and sister still had her braids in from earlier that day and after a nap. Sometimes the non-staged/coordinated pics turn out to be your favorites. Katie took a bunch more that I hope to share soon when she gets them ready. We are so blessed to have her in so many ways, but the great photos are a nice perk.

And can we just talk about how cute this boy is?

I know he's mine, but good gracious. He is as sweet as he is pretty! And yes, his eyes are really that blue. We took these pics in the field behind Cliff's grandparents' house, and we stopped in to see them before going out. Katie thought to grab one of Papaw's fedoras before we left and got this precious pic of G in his great-grandfather's hat. Priceless.

Sister has been in her share of photos lately too, of course. She was asked to be the flower girl in Cliff's cousin Kaitlyn's wedding, and I was so proud to hear what a good job she did. Yes, I only got to hear about it since the wedding was on Homecoming day and I couldn't make it, boo.

This was her third wedding to be the flower girl in in her almost 4 years, and after two failed tries (she was only 18 months old in Mare's so it doesn't qute count), she finally nailed it. I was proud of myself for whipping up her dress too! Tutus and tutu dresses are super easy. No way was I paying over 100 bucks for it when I knew I could do it myself.

I hope to be back soon with posts about other fall fun like our trip to the fair, as well as a post about Graham at 7 months, and sister's 4th birthday. Wow! So many fun things to talk about, so little time. The Furr family is blessed, indeed.

Graham at 6 months

I can't believe it has been almost a month since I last blogged. Tis the season for busy. Anyway, before he turns 7 months old, let me record G's stats. At 6 months Graham:

• weighs 18 pounds, 1 ounce, and is 28 inches long. He is a pound heavier and an inch longer than sister was at this age. He grew four pounds and four inches since his four month appointment. Good gracious! He is wearing 9 months clothes, size 3 diaper and a size 2 shoe.
• LOVES to eat! (see previous point). Graham's favorite foods are...well, everything. He eats any fruit or veggie or mixture of the two that I put in front of him and ALWAYS cries when it's all gone. I haven't been able to fill this boy up yet!
• still loves his bottle and takes 6 ounces about 4 times a day. He gets so excited and kicks his feet and squeals when he sees his bottle. It's so precious.
• is sitting up really well on his own, and loves to sit in the floor and play with his toys. He was a good baby before ,but he's even easier to deal with now that he is able to entertain himself with his toys for a while.
• is starting to babble a good bit, but hasn't really said any definite word sounds yet. Amelia was waving bye-bye and saying a couple of words at this age, but I'm not worried about brother. She was ahead of the game a little, and I know he'll do things in his own time.
• FINALLY rolled over for the first time, but has only done it a few times since. (See previous point on doing things in his own time, ha) He prefers to be sitting up now, so he doesn't have a lot of opportunity to roll over. He does tolerate tummy time a little better now and is starting to push up with his arms and attempt to scoot.
• is getting a lot better with his reflux, but is still a pukey little boy. Obviously he's keeping enough down to grow!
• ADORES his big sister more and more every day. He grins all the time anyway, but he is absolutely infatuated with Amelia. He smiles every time she looks at him or talks to him, and he looks bummed out if he's in his carseat and looks over and she's not in hers. He is sitting up by himself in the bathtub now, and he really loves taking a bath with her.
• is still a super happy, friendly baby. Everyone we come in contact with comments on how sweet and happy he is. We are so thankful for his sweet personality.
• is rarely fussy, but when he is, it is usually because his gums are bothering him. Poor thing still doesn't have any teeth, but he has been drooling and chewing (and whining) a lot lately, so I expect one or more to push through any day.
• got his first little cold this month, and did not feel good at all. He had a runny nose and a cough and for the first time, wouldn't smile at me when he woke up in the morning. Luckily, he got over and it was back to his happy self in a couple of days, but not before sharing it with Mama, the little stinker.



First time in the swings at the park. Not surprisingly, he loved it!



Another park day. Sister was making a goofy face, but since this post is about G, his smiley shot made the blog.



Going for a drive in the church nursery



First time sitting up in the tub!

Comparison shot of sister at the same age. I still don't think they look anything alike.

At his dedication service at church this month

I adore how Amelia was holding his hand and he was smiling at her.

Typical shot of our G!

Graham has just stolen our hearts more than we ever could have imagined. He is such a laid-back, happy and sweet baby that you just can't help but love him and to smile and be happy when you are around him. We often say that Amelia was a tough act to follow. She was the first grandchild on both sides, and everyone was just nuts about her (still are). But little brother's sweet little personality shines through to everyone who spends time with him, and it's so easy to be nuts over him, too. We can barely remember what life was like without him, and I'm so sad that he's already half a year old. However, I am excited to watch him grow see the little person he is turning out to be.

Little Wolves

We had our annual "Meet the Wolves" event last night, and of course my little Wolves came out to support Daddy and the basketball team. Amelia was so excited to perform with the little Wolfpups, and for the first time in almost 4 years, she is not afraid of the wolf mascot anymore! This is huge, y'all. She has been asking to go to Disney World (my worst nightmare, but that's a whole other post, ha), but since she has always been so afraid of the wolf and any other character, I told her there's no way we're paying to go see Mickey until she can give the wolf a high five. Well, she finally is not scared of him anymore, and had a lot of fun cheering and dancing with her friends. I took a few pics, but they were too far away and turned out too blurry.

She was so busy running around and playing that she didn't want to stop and smile for me, but she was happy to do it when I asked her to pose with her friend Aubree. How cute are these girls together?

 This guy is never too busy to smile for Mama. I know he's mine, but isn't he precious? #sweetestbabyever

This was my failed attempt at a photo of my children together. Sister wanted to get back up and play and it was brother's first time to sit in the grass and he was fascinated. You can tell she's saying "cheese" but was not into it.

Again, Amelia was too busy playing for more photos, but I did get this cute one of Daddy and G.

We love our jobs at Co-Lin, and we're proud to be members of the Wolfpack! I'm excited to bring Graham along to our events this year. I hope he grows up to love Co-Lin as much as his parents and sister.

New Videos

I uploaded a couple of recent videos of Mimi and G. These pretty much sum them up right now. He laughs and smiles, and she is constantly needing some attention performing.


Graham laughing from Angela Furr on Vimeo.



"Mista" Alligator from Angela Furr on Vimeo.

"Mista" Alligator is a song she learned at school recently and we can't get enough of her singing it! She had already done it for us a couple of times, so you can tell her throat was getting dry, poor thing. I have no idea where "Mista" came from. (Her teacher is Caucasian, but most of the student helpers are not. Maybe that's it?) Either way, we adore it!

Graham at 5 months

Our sweet boy is growing so fast! At five months Graham:

• is wearing size 6 months clothes, size two diaper, and size one shoe
• is becoming a chunky monkey now that he is eating solids. I'm guessing he's probably around 15 pounds
• LOVES his baby food! He eats cereal with fruit for breakfast, a veggie and fruit at lunch and a veggie and fruit for supper, with 3 bottles in between. He loves to eat! (wonder where he gets that, oops!)
• still smiles, laughs and coos all the time
• is able to sit up on his own for a little while, but is still wobbly
• STILL has not rolled over. What in the world?
• still loves his bath and has started kicking and splashing in the water more
• adores his big sister! He has really started noticing Amelia and he grins and laughs at everything he says. It is the sweetest thing!
• loves playing in his exersaucer, and just tried out a jumper in the church nursery and really liked it. Who remembers how much big sister hated those contraptions? He could not be more opposite than her as a baby!
• can hold his own bottle and does, but still likes mama and daddy (or sometimes sister) to do it for him sometimes
• is trying his hardest to cut some teeth. I feel a little something coming through on top and bottom but nothing yet. He drools and chews constantly.
• is doing so good at daycare and loves his teacher, Miss Margaret
• is getting better about not waking up in the night, but prefers to sleep with mama and daddy. How did we get here again? Ha ha. He starts off in his crib or bassinet, but ends up with us before the night is over. I am not nearly as stressed about getting him to sleep in his bed as I was with Amelia. To be honest, I enjoy the snuggling, and lately I've just done what I had to do to get some sleep! I know that this time passes so quickly and while I do want to keep trying to get him to sleep in his own bed, I'm not going to be upset if he ends up with us sometimes.

Here's some pics of our sweet man from this month:



Loving his carrots! Sidenote: I would have never allowed Amelia to wear this bib. Hers had to be cute and monogrammed. But this is one we were given for G, and that's all we have, so Donald Duck it is, ha!

Photo bomber!

 

Best big sister. Check out G's thighs!





Shout out to the makers of the exersaucer for allowing me to cook supper!



Does this look familiar? Yes, G loves a lovie just like big sister did. Here he's snuggling with one just like sister's, but he actually prefers a smaller monster lovie most of the time.

Although his reflux has gotten much better, this is still a pretty good depiction of Graham. He is still quite the little puker!

 

Back to school

My kiddos started school last week. Graham started going to daycare at Co-Lin, and sister moved up to the big pre-school class. She has been so excited about it all summer. She already knew and liked her teacher, Miss Melissa, and she has been PUMPED about getting to play on the big kid playground. There were no first-day tears for any of us, and I'm so thankful! We are so blessed to have an amazing daycare and pre-school right on campus where we work. It's so comforting to know my whole family is near each other all day.

Amelia will have two years in this pre-school class before starting kindergarten. With an October birthday, she will be one of the oldest in her class, which for the most part will be an advantage, I think. I'm thankful we have a little time left to decide where we're going to send Amelia for kindergarten. We have a few options, and we are still thinking and praying about what will be best for our family.

Little brother has been doing great in Miss Margaret's class too, just like I knew he would. Amelia loved Miss Margaret when she was a baby, and I knew that Graham would too. She is a grandmother and I just love how she treats my babies like they are her own grandbabies and loves on them all day.

Back to school has meant a new routine for me in the mornings, and so far/so good. Adjusting to getting two ready and out the door has been a challenge, but we are surviving. Basketball season is right around the corner and that will be the true test on if I can survive with two kids on my own most of the time. I'm thankful Graham is an easy baby and Amelia is a great helper. There's no way I could handle it if he was as high-maintenance as she was.

Hoping for a great school year for all of us!

Graham at 4 months

I'm going to get on track with Graham's monthly posts soon. He is actually 5 months old today, and I had written his 4 month post earlier, but couldn't remember his stats so I've been waiting until I could record those accurately to post. He did great at his check-up, and he is right on track in growth.

At four months, Graham:

• weighs 14 pounds, 2ounces and is 24 and 1/4inches long
• wears 3-6 months clothes, has moved up to a size 2 diaper, and wears a size 1 shoes when he wears them. Amelia never left the house, even as a newborn, without a matching bow and shoes. Graham usually only wears shoes to church on Sundays, ha. Difference in a boy and a girl, I suppose. And I guess him being little in the summer makes a difference too.
• has regressed on his good sleeping this month, ugh! He is in a horrible habit of waking up at least twice in the night. I have been nursing him and he goes right back to sleep, but I really don't think he's hungry. I'm not really a "cry it out" mama, but I've got to do something different soon. Mama needs her rest! I also think it's time to move him to his crib in his room, so I might as well just suck it up and do it. It's so hard not getting enough sleep and having to get up for work at 6 :(. We need to establish some new, good sleep habits, STAT.
• is teething something fierce (this could be a reason for his waking up in the night). He drools and chews constantly, but no sign of a tooth yet.
• started eating rice cereal around July 25th. He wasn't a fan at first, but he's doing better every time. He started eating baby food the week of July 30th and really started liking it just before turning 5 months old.
• has started reaching for his toys on his carseat and playmat, and loves to chew on them. That's his first big milestone, I guess, and it's so precious to watch him figure out that he can now grasp things and get them in his mouth.
• still loves his paci and lovie for sleep time.
• is not really a fan of the swing anymore, but still likes the bouncer, and has started spending some time in the Bumbo and exersaucer.
• still smiles ALL THE TIME, and is giggling more frequently too. Last night I had him going with my rendition of the theme song from "The Fresh Prince of Bel Air." Whatever it takes, y'all.  
• STILL hasn't started rolling over, and doesn't even seem to want to. I'm OK with that. When he does try, he can get almost over, but not quite. I have a feeling he will do it as soon as he starts daycare. That's what happened with Mimi, but she was only 12 weeks old.




Trying some cereal at Mrs. Shannon's house





Below are pics of both of my babies' first time to try green beans. I think these pics sum up both of their personalities at this age, ha ha.

 Here is sister at around the same age in the high chair. I still don't think they look anything alike. 



Graham is so laid back and happy, whereas his sister was a little high maintenance. Now she's pretty laid back and aggreable, so I'm not sure what that means about how G will be when he gets older. His personality is showing more each month, and he brings so much joy to our family. Amelia has become very protective of her brother and gets very concerned if someone she isn't comfortable with is holding him. She won't take her eyes off of him for a second. I'm very thankful for my special helper, even if she wants to help a little too much sometimes! These months are just flying by. Five month post coming soon!