The Grady Family

Mommy Turned 30!!

2011-11-19T20:09:00.001-08:00

Yes I turned 30 this year!! It was and still is a little strange but we had a good time celebrating. Daniel and Henry took me shopping and out for lunch. Then we had a dinner party with our friends. That was my one request, I wanted a friend party with no kids! :) We went to dinner and had a fun time!

Our Little Mater

2011-11-19T19:54:00.001-08:00

This year I asked Henry what he wanted to be for Halloween and he said Mater from the movie Cars. I thought great how am I going to make that!?! And I just knew if I spent a lot of time on it he would then refuse to wear it. Ask asking him several times if he really wanted to be Mater I gave in and took the risk and made the costume. It actually turned out really cute! Daniel's mom helped me and it ended up not being very hard. I use a box to make the truck part and added paper plate to make the wheels and engine block. Then used a yard stick to make the hook and attached a rope with a hook we found in the hardware section. I put the eyes on his shirt and found a really red neck hat for him to wear.

He was so cute! He kept saying "I'm driving Mater Mommy!" And even though it was rainy and yucky he had a great time and kept asking to go to more houses and get candy. After we were done we went back to Daniel's mom's house to pass out candy. Every time someone would come to the door Henry would give them candy and then take one for himself and put it in his bucket!

All in all I am really glad got the chance to make my first costume for my sweet boy and that he loved it so much!

Oh and everyone at the restaurant where Daniel is a manager had to dress up that weekend too. So he went as Billy Mays the Oxi Clean guy. :)

Henry Started School!!

2011-11-19T19:42:00.001-08:00

This fall Henry started a Preschool program at a local church 2 days a week and he loves it! We went up to the school the week before to get signed up and see his class room. He was so excited he asked to go to school to his "Bunny Class" every day until he started. It was so cute watching him on his first day. He had no problem leaving me and ran right in to play. He is still so excited every time he goes. In his class the moms help out on a rotating schedule so I have been able to see him in class and it is so fun. He is one of only 2 boys in the class so he and the other boy Nolan were fast friends! They are so cute and follow each other around the whole time. I am so glad he is getting to have this experience and give me a little time too!

Our big boy!

On the way in

Jumping right in!

Catching up Henry's Summer

2011-11-19T19:26:00.001-08:00

So what did Henry do this summer?...

Got bigger!

Learned he loves to swim...

Played with his friend Elliott or"Ewiott" as he says...

Got a big boy hair cut...

Mastered the play set at the play ground and had fun with Meggie

Played in the "splash park" mommy made...

Did I mention he got bigger... :(

Lots of trips to the museum...

Loved playing in his sand box!

We had a really fun summer and enjoyed watching our little baby boy start doing big boy things. But I have to admit it is a little sad watching him grow so fast, but he is so stinkin cute it makes it all ok!

Henry's Birthday

2011-06-02T13:43:00.000-07:00

Last month Henry turned two!! We had a great party with family and friends! He wanted a tractor party, so we had it at a local farm and it was so much fun! Every body got to go on a hay ride and a train ride, feed the animals, play on the slide, and jump in the bounce house just to name a few. It was perfect! Well almost Henry had fever the night before and was not 100%. You could really tell he wasn't feeling the best but he still played and had a great time. We found out later that he had hand foot mouth! Thankfully no body else got it! But it was still a really great day!

Getting Big!

2011-04-09T17:40:00.000-07:00

More of Our Silly Boy

2011-04-09T17:33:00.000-07:00

Henry is such a silly boy these days! Always doing something funny. Here are a few examples.

He is into taking he close off after his nap while he waits for me to come get him. But this is as far as he gets. And I have no idea what the deal is with the sock on the hand!

One of his new favorite things is to eat a snack in our bed while I get ready. He wants to lean on the pillow and be under the covers and "watchy show." It is pretty cute.

Trip to Arkansas

2011-04-09T17:21:00.000-07:00

Last month we went to visit my family in Arkansas and we had a great time!! Daniel got to come and we were gone for 7 days! It was the longest we have been away together in years. We had so much fun getting to hang out with my family and see some friends.

Henry got to be the Honorary Duck Master at the Peabody Hotel Duck March. It was so special for Daniel and I since we worked there for 2 years. He insisted on Aunt Amy helping him and would not let me do it. He had fun and kept telling us he was the "duck duster." It was so cute!

One of my parent's friends is a fire Captain and dad set up a time for to come see the trucks. Henry loved it!! He just kept saying "firetruck, firetruck!"

He event got to "drive" it!

And then he saw the tractor and had to "drive" that too! He hurt Captain Jeremy's feelings when he said he would still rather have a Truck birthday party. But he did ask to pray for Jeremy after we got home!

Later in the week we went to feed the horses at our friend Melinda's house. She brought carrots and apples for them and Henry had fun feeding them.

We had so much fun and can't wait to see them for his birthday at the end of the month!

Silly Boy

2011-01-21T20:50:00.000-08:00

Henry Has been so silly these days! I had turned the ottoman over the other day and he wanted to play on it. So I let him and then he wanted to make it a bed. Ha!

Henry's best friend Ava came over and they were being silly on the stairs

In his new rain boots and pj's

His new favorite thing to do lately is hide under things. Here is where I have found him lately.

Fun Times with Daddy

2011-01-21T20:19:00.000-08:00

Henry LOVES hanging out with Daniel. They do the funniest things. Every time I come back Henry has something funny on. See below for proof.

Christmas 2010

2011-01-21T20:04:00.000-08:00

We had a great Christmas! It was so fun since Henry was much more into it this year. He has much fun opening presents and seeing his new big boy toys! It was so fun to have Christmas at our house and start some new traditions. Christmas Eve we had a "Happy Birthday Jesus Party" and read from Henry's Jesus Story Book Bible. Christmas Day we opened presents our house then had a big Christmas lunch at Daniel's moms! Always great food!

Henry helped me make Christmas Cookies. It was so fun! He loved shaking on the sprinkles and eating the icing!

Cute Christmas jammies!

He got some great big boy toys!

Being cheesy in front of the Christmas Tree

Cool new toys

He got a really cool "barnen"

Mommy and daddy got him a real football

Showing Uncle "Bobum" his really cool fire truck

Another cool big boy toy, a great slide!

Our sweet big boy!

We are still here!

2010-11-30T19:32:00.000-08:00

So we are still here! I have not blogged in so long! Since I last blogged my parents have been here, I started an at home business as a Mary Kay consultant (and I love it!), Henry picked his first pumpkin and was a giraffe for Halloween. Henry is so cute these days!!

When my parents were here we went to the Durham Museum of life and Science and it was great! Henry loved it. He loved playing with Bud!

Then we went to the pumpkin patch at Hillridge Farms with Yaya and he loved picking a "bunkin" and throwing them!

Cutest giraffe! He was not so crazy about going up to the houses but he still had fun.

We went trick or treating with friends from our small group and Henry was the only boy, but he did not mind!

I love this picture because he looks like he is thinking "That is a lot of princesses!"

So Henry is grow up so fast! He is talking all of the time! He is busy busy. He copies everything we say. My favorite words he says are "buff-bu-low", alright!, firetruck (I can't type how he says it because it would be inappropriate :) we are working on that one), "mees me" (excuse me), mess, "pinano", hold you, "yaught" (yard), MOPS (he loves it!), Ava (his little girl friend), owl, high five! (but it sound a bit like butterfly), and pig sooie! He loves to put things in the trash, he never misses something on the floor and brings it to me and says "trash, trash." He says almost every thing twice, I'm not sure why.

One of his new favorite things is the carts at Kohl's. It is so funny! We have one right by our house so we go there just to get out some times. They are different than others and more like a stoller with the seat on the front facing out. When we get there he gets excited and says "ride, ride." Then I put him in and he leans back like he is ready to go on a roller coaster. When we start moving he laughs and says "yea." It makes me laugh every time. He loves music and will point and say "music" and rock back and forth. He loves to give hugs and have me rock him like a baby.

He recently got a tummy bug and it was so sad! He would wake up in the night and get sick and we would hear him crying on the monitor saying "yuck, yuck, mommy, daddy, yuck." It was so sad and a little funny.

He is definitely all boy! He loves turcks and being outside and getting into everything. He love his hammer and hammering anything we will let him. He loves football. At my parents for Thanksgiving we were watching the games and one ended. He was planning on the floor and we didn't think he was paying attention to us. But, I changed the channel and said "what do we want to watch now?" to everyone. He looked right at me and said "football!" It was so funny!

He keeps me busy these days! This last photo is what he did while I was on the phone one day. But I LOVE being his mommy and watching him grow!

Angel baby!

2010-07-24T19:13:00.000-07:00

Hillridge Farm

2010-07-24T19:09:00.000-07:00

Recently Yaya took Henry to Hillridge Farm to feed the animals and play. He had a great time!

Baa!

Goat with really funny horns!

They have a corn pit and Henry was not sure what to think of it.

Daddy him a hat :)

Happy family!

Visit to Jonesboro

2010-07-24T18:58:00.000-07:00

At the beginning of July we when to visit my family and Henry had his own seat for the first time. It was wonderful and made it so much easier traveling with him alone! He looks like such a big boy.

My mom let him have this cabinet and this time he decided to get in it and got stuck.

He LOVED playing the piano!

Swimming with Aunt Amy

We took his first trip to the zoo and he had a great time. But it was sooo hot!!

It was so cute watching his face just amazed by seeing the animals in real life.

Playing at the splash park with Bud.

He was not sure what to think about it.

Look at that belly!

He loves his Sassy!

Watching Elmo with Bud. He loved the video they got for him and wanted to watch it all of the time!

Squishing mosquitos on the porch.

How can you not fall in love with this face!

Fun Summer Days

2010-07-24T18:35:00.000-07:00

We have had some really fun days this summer. One day my friend Diana and her husband were moving to a new house so Henry's friend Ava (or VaVa as he calls her) came over to play. They had a great time!

Playing in the pool

Sweet face

Sharing a snack

Reading with Daddy. He loves to read these days! Often the same book over and over and over. So sweet.

These next 2 pictures are show what happens when you leave your little boy with your action movie loving husband while you get ready.

We have Rambo

And William Wallace

I finally let Henry start using a spoon. I know I am late but I just had to get over the mess it would make! Here is the before...

And here is the after! He has gotten a lot better!

Helping Mommy make brownies.

Yes, I let him taste a little of the batter.

Totally enthralled by chocolate! He is his mamma's boy!

Ooo!

Memorial Day (really late)

2010-07-24T18:09:00.000-07:00

So I am really really behind on blogging! I finally have time to sit down and get it all up. We have had some really fun times lately so these post will be mostly photos but I think that's what you really want anyway. :)

Henry had fun Memorial Day playing in his pool he got for his birthday. It took him a while really enjoy it but once he did he had fun.

This was his favorite thing to do, bang the water with his shovel!

He makes this face all the time and I finally got it on camera!

Running!

Daniel call this the one handed power slam.

Eating strawberry short cake!

Sweet Henry!

2010-05-28T18:04:00.000-07:00

Baby Dedication

2010-05-28T17:44:00.000-07:00

A couple of weeks ago Henry had his baby dedication at our wonderful church North Wake. It was a day I had dreamed of long before I had a child. The day that we got to present our our child before the Lord and commit to raise that child in His way and train them up to follow Christ. So when the day finally came I was so excited. The day I dreamed of was here. Well, God has a wonderful since of humor when it comes to my dreams of a perfect day. Lets just say you know how there is always one kid during the dedication that cries or fusses. Well that was our son! He was ready to get down and play and was tired of being held and fussed loudly through the second half! I just looked at Daniel and said "Well that didn't go how I always dreamed." Ha! But it was still a special day!

Henry loves his Uncle Bob! Bob is Daniel uncle and he and Henry has a lot of fun together.

I have been sick with bronchitis and Daniel took care of Henry and was so much help. I can down at one point and this is what I found. Fun times with Daddy!

Henry is One!!

2010-04-28T18:47:00.000-07:00

Henry is ONE!! I can't believe it! He is so funny these days. He loves to fake laugh and talk. He plays so hard and loves throwing balls. He is walking and trying to run. He is so much fun! Here are some photos from his party. It was really fun!

He had no interest in opening gifts so his friend Megan helped. She was great!

Happy about the cake and us singing to him.

All he eat was the icing and not a bit of the cake.

Happy family!

My sweet sweet boy!

11 Months Old!

2010-04-03T18:10:00.000-07:00

So I usually don't take his monthly photo in his jammies but they were to cute not to get a picture of. I can't believe Henry is 11 months and he will be ONE next month! He is getting so big and walking all over the place. He says dog, woof woof, ball and vroom vroom for cars. He is so busy and loves to play. He loves his books, but also his trucks. He has started giving kisses and most recently hugs. Just yesterday he signed more for the first time. Daniel and I think he is going to be musical because he loves to listen to music and he loves clapping (or banging) to the beat. He loves to play his little Leap Frog piano. He is so much fun these days and I love watching him do new things every day.

This is what I got when I first started taking his picture.

Still trying...

This photo really describes him lately. So busy.

Big Boy Clothes

2010-03-19T19:17:00.000-07:00

Henry now fits into some of his big boy clothes and he looks so cute. But it makes him look so old.

He got his first Razorback shirt.

Cool guy!

He looks ready for the golf course.

Had to throw this one in because he is just so sweet.

First Family Picnic

2010-03-19T19:04:00.000-07:00

Today we had our first family picnic. It was so much fun!! It was a beautiful day and Daniel was off in the morning so we went to the park and had a great time.

We are trying to get Henry not to stuff his mouth full when he eats. As you can see we are loosing.

He was not sure what to think of the grass. It was a little scratchy.

Finding all kinds of new things.

Visiting Sassy and Bud

2010-03-19T18:48:00.000-07:00

Recently Henry and I went to visit my parents and we had a great time. He was sick at the beginning which kept me from getting to see my girls friends from college but we after he was better we had a great time. And of course the best thing about going to the grandparents is getting to do things mom won't let you do. Below is how he entertained himself while mom and I were getting ready.

Driving to Little Rock to see Mamaw and Aunt Amy. He loved playing with my sunglasses.

Meeting Lily in person. For awhile he has been really scared of dogs other than Roux but he has seen Lily on the computer. We were so surprised that he was not scared of her and got excited to see her. She was really good with him too and loved when he tried to throw her ball.

He also got to play in Aunt Amy's big tub. It was really fun to eat the bubbles.

This is the seat we rig up for him to eat dinner at Mamaw's. It worked pretty well.

He had a great time with his Bud. He liked watching him grill. They had a ton of fun playing and even danced to Boom Boom Pow by the Black Eyed Peas.

Exploring Sassy's kitchen.

Ten Months!

2010-03-19T18:19:00.000-07:00

I can't believe Henry is ten months old! (well now he is almost 11 mo I am a little behind on blogging) I know I say that every month but it is so true. I can't believe we are making preparations for his first birthday. He is getting so big and doing so many things. We have had many firsts this month. He is starting to walk and is talking and singing all of the time. He identified us as Mama and Dada and is trying to copy words we say. He tries to say dog and woof woof when we say it. It is so cute.

He is eating all kinds of new things. This was his first experience with red sauce. He loved eating it but I really regretted giving it to him later when we saw it again at 11:30 that night. Let just say we are going to wait a while before giving him that again. But he sure had fun eating it.

We also took him off of a bottle and are exclusively using a cup. He is such a big boy and is looking so old.

But he still loves his momma!

9 Months old!

2010-02-06T13:34:00.000-08:00

I can't believe Henry is 9 months old! He will be one year in just 3 months! That is so exciting and sad at the same time. He is very busy these days cruising around the furniture, standing on his own and talking all of the time. He finally started saying ma ma ma and da da da this month. He is getting to big and is still so cute!

This is one of his favorite things lately. He thinks it is really funny.

He loves to eat!! He has not rejected anything we have given him. This day he was eating squash and got it all in his hair. You can also see that Roux is waiting by his chair for pieces that may fall (or be thrown) on the floor.

He and I have both had a cold this week. This is the carnage of my cleaning some of his toys. Daniel thought it was really funny and said it looked like a taxidermy shop. Ha Ha!

Christmas Round Two

2010-01-09T19:51:00.000-08:00

The Monday after Christmas we when to my parents to have Christmas with them. We had a great time and Henry and I got to be there for a week.

He loved taking the ornaments of the tree

Our friend Suzanne got Dad and Henry these shirts. They are so funny. We loved them. It has Bud and Henry on the back and Big Guy and Little Guy on the front.

Playing with his new bath toys in the tub

Playing peak-a-boo with Sassy

He loved playing with bud and bud loved playing with him

He was not crazy about the Moose that moved toward him. It was really funny.

Christmas First Round

2010-01-09T19:31:00.000-08:00

We had so much fun this year with Henry's first Christmas. Of course he had no clue what was going on but he did like his presents. We started some traditions like reading the Christmas story together on Christmas eve and having Christmas morning just the 3 of us. It was great we had pancakes and opened presents.

Daniel got a batter bottle that lets you right things with the batter. This was his first time using it but they came out pretty good for the first time.

He got this Saints Santa hat from his mom. He was very excited about it. He wore it to work!

Henry opening his first present

Then we went to Daniel's parents house and had Christmas with them and eat way to much great food. Henry loved all of the paper and gifts.

One of his favorite gifts. He love to bang things!

So excited!

Being silly with Yaya and Grandpa

He likes eating the presents more that opening them

His sweet out fit his Yaya made

The boys by looking out at the rainy Christmas day

8 Months

2010-01-09T08:32:00.000-08:00

Henry is getting so big! I can't believe he is less than four months away from turning one! It makes me so sad. But it is fun watching him become a little boy. He is changing so much and doing new things all the time. I watch him play now and it is like watching a little boy not a baby. He is into everything and crawling all over the place. He loves pulling up on everything. We started letting him feed himself this month and he is now only having baby food at breakfast. He loves eating and has not turned anything down. The biggest change this month is that we weened him to formula. I was just not able to keep up with him and he was not getting enough milk. It was a hard decision but I am so glad we did it. He is so much more satisfied. The other big event was that he spent the night with his Yaya and Grandpa. He loved it, they loved it and Daniel and I really enjoyed the time together. I am so glad to have family close so we can do things like that. We are having so much fun with him and love watching him grow.

One of his new favorite things, playing on the dish washer while I put things in.

Eating his big boy food

Climbing on his great grandmothers table. He LOVES to climb.

Help!

2009-12-04T12:20:00.001-08:00

So we are trying to get Henry to eat some finger foods. It is not going well. I have been feeding him chunky food from a spoon for a while so I know the problem is not that he can't eat it, he just doesn't want to. He loves food so I don't know what the problem is. When I put things down on his tray he just moves them around and looks at me like what is this. I know he can pick it up because he picks up the smallest things he finds on the floor and puts them in his mouth! So far I have tried cottage cheese, puffs, and Cherrios. Any advice on getting him to eat finger food?!?

Thanksgiving

2009-12-04T11:48:00.001-08:00

Henry's first Thanksgiving! We had a great time here with Daniel's family. Great food, football, naps what more could you ask for!

Henry always has fun playing at the grandparents' house.

One of his favorite toys. Yaya's metal bowls. They are loud and really fun!

Being silly with grandpa

7 Months

2009-12-03T09:09:00.000-08:00

I can't believe Henry is 7 months. He is getting so big! We have had a lot of first this month...

Started pulling up on the side of the bed so we had to lower the crib mattress.

We had our first cool weather walk so he needed his hat and sun glasses. :)

He has also started crawling on his hands and knees, picking up a cup and drinking from it by himself, he started making consonant sounds like na, ma, da but he is not connecting them together yet. His favorite things to do these days are climb anything and put things in his month. A you can see daddy makes a really good climbing toy! :)

6 Months!

2009-11-19T07:45:00.000-08:00

Here Henry's six month picture. I have been putting him in the chair with his bear each month but this month he discovered the bear and immediately started trying to eat it. So this is what I got. He is also where the awesome new Saint jersey that Daniel's Aunt Pattey got for him. He looks so cute!!

What have we been up to?

2009-11-06T07:48:00.000-08:00

So while I was gone from blogging a lot has happened. Henry is growing like crazy and doing so many different things. Here are some of the things he has been doing since the last time I posted.

-He is eating lots of different foods and loves them all. So far he has had banana, sweet potato, avocado, yogurt, peas, apple
-He is trying really hard to crawl and has mastered the army crawl. He is all over the place and is into everything! He loves finding the dogs toys and anything that is not a toy. Who needs a treadmill I just chase my 6 month old all day. :)
-He is so loud and loves talking and yelling. It is so funny to hear all of the different noises he makes.
-We had some sleep issues, but have finally got him sleeping through the night again. He is growing so fast and moving all of the time that he was hungry constantly. So after starting formula at night before bed we are back on track. I forgot how much better I feel when I get 6 or 7 hours of sleep at one time without interruption.

We are having so much fun with him and just can't believe he is growing so fast! Here are his 5 month photos. Six month shot to come.

We dropped off the face of the earth!

2009-09-01T16:53:00.001-07:00

Ok So I am way behind on keeping up with our blog! So to catch up I am doing to post several groups of pictures because we all know that's what you really want to see. :)

Four Months!

2009-09-01T16:22:00.000-07:00

So I am behind again on updating our blog. Things have been really busy around here but one thing is for sure, Henry is growing like crazy! We went for his four month check up and he weighs 16 lbs 3oz and is 26 and 1/4 inches long. We are having so much fun with him. So many people told me that they loved each stage more that the one before and it is so true. Here are a few of the things he is doing right now.

-Grabbing at anything with color, including clothes, the remote or cell phones
-Laughing more and more everyday. He gets so tickled when we play with him.
-Talking and squealing. I have started calling him a little piglet because of the way he squeals when he plays and laughs it is so funny.
-Rolling all over the place. He will go from one end of a blanket to the other and back again.
-We are working on sitting alone but he is so interested in reaching for everything that he won't stay still long enough to really work on it.

We are just having so much fun watching him grow!!

My version of a 3 month photo shoot

2009-07-24T15:30:00.000-07:00

3 Months Old!!

2009-07-24T15:10:00.001-07:00

Henry is three months old today! I can't believe how fast he is growing. He changes everyday and is learning new things all the time. He is starting to roll from his tummy to his back more consistently and is really working on going from his back to tummy. His new thing is blowing spit bubbles. He does it all of the time! He loves making gurgling, spitting noises too. He is all boy!

This week Daniel's aunt came to visit and we had a great time with her. She, Daniel's mom, Henry and I went shopping everyday! It was so fun but really tiring. Henry was spoiled by them and got some great clothes and a new big toy from his Yaya. Here are some pics of him playing in it for the first time.

Girl Friends and Babies!

2009-07-07T19:57:00.000-07:00

On the way back from the wedding I was able to get together with my girl friends from college. It was so fun! There are 7 of us that became best friends our freshman year and stayed together all four years. We are now all married have four kids between us and two on the way! It really is amazing how much things change in just 5 years. Everyone was able to come except Katie and we missed her! The kids had so much fun playing together and it was so crazy to watch all that was happening and think these are our kids! It was so great to catch up and meet the babies for the first time. We will have to do it again soon!

(Barri I borrowed some of the photos from your blog. Hope you don't mind. :) )

Rachel, Baby Cobb, and Amanda's little girl Mallie. Isn't Mallie adorable! Rachel is due very soon and we can't wait to find out what the baby will be.

Mary with her little one Lottie. She was so cute, squealing with delight at Carter.

Barri, baby Truett in her belly, Henry and me. Barri was my roommate for years. We had so much fun together. She is due in October.

Carter and Mallie. Carter is the oldest of the bunch. He is 3 and was so sweet to share his toys with the babies.

This was our attempt to get a picture of all of the kids together. This was the best one I got. It was so funny watching them.

Amanda making Lottie laugh.

Natalie, Mallie, Henry and me. Natalie was married the day after Henry was born. I was so sad to miss the wedding but I was a little busy!

Mallie giving Henry kisses. She really liked him.

Growing So Fast

2009-07-07T18:45:00.000-07:00

Henry is growing so fast, but he is more and more fun everyday. He is holding his head up really well and talks all the time. It is so cute to listen to his sweet voice. He is laughing more and smiles all the time. It was so fun to see him playing with my dad when we were in AR. I am so glad to be staying at home and love watching him change and grow everyday.

We had Small Group at our house and Megan loves putting people's shoes on. She found Henry's and kept trying to put them on him. It was really cute.

Henry and My Dad playing hard

Henry discovered the TV recently and watches so intently.

Henry has also started putting his hands in his mouth all the time. I know we are days away from him putting everything in his mouth!

Sweet face!

Recently Henry has started grabbing his hair at night while he is falling asleep. He pulls it out sometimes and we are trying to get him to stop. Last night I gave him this little blanket to hold and it really helped. I think he liked it.

The other day after work Daniel put his tie on him. Isn't he cute!

Amy's Wonderful Wedding

2009-07-07T17:33:00.001-07:00

This is going to be a long post but at least there are a lot of pictures. :) My little sister, Amy, got married on July 4th and it was the most wonderful wedding! The whole weekend was so much fun. I so enjoyed getting to see my family and old friends. Henry and I flew in on Monday and stayed the whole week. Daniel met us in Fayetteville where the wedding was. Henry did so well being out late, traveling, staying with baby-sitters and being passed around a lot! The wedding was at a place called the Stone Chapel at Matt Lane Farm and it was so sweet and beautiful. Amy looked gorgeous and her husband Matt is so sweet. The reception was so fun with a great pop jazz type band and a real fireworks show. It was the most fun wedding I have ever been to but I may be biased. :) I didn't get as many pictures as I would have liked and most of them are of Henry. Having a baby to take care of made it hard to snap shots. But it really was a wonderful wedding!

Daniel and I at the rehearsal

Really good food at the Rehearsal Dinner

Amy and I at the Bridesmaid Brunch

Before the wedding. Amy looked so beautiful!

Henry and Amy playing before the wedding. This was when he laughed out loud for the first time. It was so sweet!

My Mom and I

Henry in his precious out fit Daniel's mom made. He looked so cute.

Henry with Emmy, a precious family friend. We had so much fun seeing old friends Emily and her family are practically family.

Amy and Henry dancing at the reception. It was so sweet.

Meeting Henry

2009-07-07T17:11:00.000-07:00

Last week we traveled to Arkansas for my sister's wedding. It was the first time she and my grandmother met Henry and the first time my mom had seen him (in person, not via skype) since the week he was born. It was so fun. He loved them and smiled and played. He had some many first like laughing out loud and reaching for something off the table. He did so great on the plane and on a long car ride. He was the other talk of the wedding (other than Amy), everyone was so excited to see him. It was hard to leave but we had a great time and will be back soon.

The first meeting

He LOVED Amy. It was so cute to watch them together

Dad had to show him some of his favorite shows. They watched Operation Repo and Field of Dreams. It was so funny.

2 Months Old

2009-06-24T20:47:00.000-07:00

Henry is 2 months old today and I can't believe it. He is growing so fast. He rolled from his belly to his back for the first time yesterday and he has started bringing things to his mouth, which I am sure I am going to get less excited about soon :). He weighs almost 13 lbs and is 24 in long. We think he is a going to be a talk lanky boy because he has gained weight and gotten taller but he waist is the same size. It is so fun watching him grow and learn and I can't wait to see him do even more!

Father's Day

2009-06-24T07:12:00.000-07:00

We had a great Father's Day. It was exciting for Daniel on his first Father's Day. We went to church and Henry went to the nursery for the service and sunday school. He did great. We went to lunch with Daniel's parents and walked around in the beautiful weather.

Father and son

Three generations

Family photo

Too cool

6 Week Update (a bit late)

2009-06-15T18:07:00.000-07:00

Henry has been growing like crazy. We had his 6 week check up and he weighed 12 lbs and was 24 in long! I can't believe how fast he is growing. He is becoming so much more interactive. He studies things all the time and bats at his toys and our faces every once and a while. He loves to try to talk to you. It is so sweet, it is like he is trying so hard to tell you something. He pushes up on his hands and loves to stand and sit like a big boy. The best thing is that for the past week he has consistently slept at least 8 hours at night! We can't believe it. Someone asked us what our secret was and we told them we have no idea he just did it on his own. Here are some recent photos.

Henry before church making a funny face. He stayed in the nursery for the first time.

Playing on the floor. Roux has to stay close when he is on the floor.

After just waking up. Gotta love the bed head.

Sweet eyes looking over his grandpa's shoulder.

This is how he fell asleep on Daniel the other night. I don't think he liked the lights.

Five Year Anniversary!!

2009-06-01T18:35:00.000-07:00

Out on our first date after becoming parents! (Oh and I got my hair chopped off :) )

At our fabulous dinner

Last Friday was Daniel and I's 5 year anniversary. It is so crazy that we have been married for 5 year and a couple for about 12. We had a great time going out to PF Chang's while Henry stayed with his Yaya (Daniel's mom). It was a great dinner and so nice to have some time together.

I can truly say that I love Daniel more today than the day we married and can't believe how wonderful our life is. We have been through a lot in these 5 years, living in the oldest apartment building in Arkadelphia (it had a the original metal flower drawer. My mom had to tell me what it was.), moving to New Orleans for seminary and learning to love the city, leaving and losing our life we loved in New Orleans, spending a year and a half in Little Rock taking time away from school and working at the Peabody Hotel (by far the best jobs we have had to date), moving far away from home to go back to school in North Carolina, and having our sweet little boy. We have lived in 6 different apartments/homes and 3 different states, but they have all been home. God has been so good to us in our life together. He has provided for us in ways we never could have imagined in times when we couldn't see how it would all be ok. He has given us such wonderful gifts of amazing friends and wonderful churches in each place that we have lived. He gave us wonderful schools to attend. And he has given us the best gift yet of our precious son.

Our life is different than we thought it would be at this time in our marriage. We thought we would be done with Daniel's masters, maybe have 2 kids and living closer to Arkansas. Instead we have at least 2 years of masters work and more study to come and one little boy (I am not disappointed about that part) and we live in NC. But, I would not trade the road we have walked. God has drawn us together like I never could have imagined and drawn us to dependance on him in the most wonderful way. We have a wonderful life! It has been a wonderful 5 Years and I cannot wait for what is to come.

Us Lately

2009-06-01T17:59:00.000-07:00

Here are some photos of Henry recently and what we have been up to. He is growing so fast and getting so big. He is starting to look so old. We are having so much fun with him, he is interacting so much more. He smiles over and over in the mornings and tries so hard to talk. It is so funny to watch him.

Laying on our bed in his cute shorts

Roux has really taken to Henry. He always has to stay close.

So it seems that our attempts to prevent thumb sucking are failing.

Watching TV in bad with Daddy while Mommy gets ready.

Henry in his first big boy outfit. He looks so tall and so old.

One Month Old!

2009-05-24T16:21:00.000-07:00

I can't believe my little boy is 1 month old. It is so strange because on one hand I can't believe it has been that long and on the other it seems like he is older. We are having so much fun with him and watching him learn every day. He is getting so much more alert and looking around at everything. He is so strong and holds his head up all of the time and stands on his legs when you are holding him. We have been playing with him by holding toys out for him to look at them and he has started batting at them or brushing them with his hands. It is so amazing to watch him work it out and try to touch the toy. Yesterday he smiled for the first time and it was so amazing! He has smiled when falling asleep or unintentionally when making different movements with his face, but yesterday he looked at me and smiled really big and then relaxed his face and did it again. It made me cry and love him even more. Since then he has done it a few more times and it is so wonderful.

Henry also had his first visit to church today and did great. He slept most of the time and everyone thought he was so cute. It was so great to be back at church and was so refreshing and encouraging. Thursday Henry and I went to Small Group for the first time and had a great time. Daniel had to work and wasn't able to go but we did pretty well just the two of us. Our leaders oldest daughter, who is 2, said she really liked him. It was so cute.

The other big event recently is that we started Henry in cloth diapers. Now I know many of you reading our blog will think I am crazy, but it is really fun. We decided, after much research, before Henry was born to use cloth and I have really been looking forward to it. Cloth has come a long way and there are lots of choices. I found a website, jilliansdrawers.com, that has a "Try Cloth" kit. They send you several different types and you can try them for 21 days, decide what you like and send back what you don't want. We have been trying them for a few days are are figuring out what we like. I am looking forward to being a cloth diapering mom full time. And he looks so cute in them!

Afternoon on the lake

2009-05-24T16:14:00.000-07:00

Saturday we went on the boat with Henry for the first time. (Since he was born) It was so nice to be out on the lake and just relax. Henry slept the whole time! We were out for about 2 hours and he didn't wake up once. I think the roar of the motor and the sound made him so relaxed. We just can't wait until he is bigger and can really enjoy playing at the lake, but that will be a while. We will just have to enjoy it for him for now.

2 Week Check Up and a Play Date

2009-05-16T19:02:00.000-07:00

So I am posting Henry's 2 week update at 3 weeks old. I am a little behind. Last Friday Daniel and I took him for his check up and he is doing great. He is off the chart for his height at 22 and 3/4 inches long and 75th percentile for his weight at 10 lbs. He is a tall, long boy and the cutest one around! He also had to get his first shot and it was so sad to watch. He got the most pitiful look on his face and cried a cry I had not heard yet. Daniel said he just it was like he was so offended and hurt that we did that to him. It was so sad. But, as he does most of the time as soon as I picked him up he was all better. He is such a sweet boy.

Yesterday Henry had his first play date and slept through the whole thing. But, it was more for the moms anyway. Lindsey used to work at the seminary too and her son Griffin was born 2 days after Henry. Griffin weighs 2 lbs less than Henry and looks so small. Lindsey and I had a great time walking and talking and I think the boys enjoyed being outside. I am sure they will have more play dates in the future.

Blessing

2009-05-11T10:58:00.000-07:00

A friend of my parents gave them a blessing plaque for Henry's room. They wrote a blessing for him and we put it behind the plaque and put the plaque on the wall. Dad read it to Henry in his room and then we put it up. It was so sweet, we all cried. And it was a great moment until our dog Roux decided to throw up in the middle of my dad's prayer. Oh well, that is how really life is. :) Here is a photo of dad reading the blessing and the blessing he wrote.

Dear Henry James Grady,

We speak the blessing of God upon you, our precious grandson:

May you grow up to keep God's word in your heart and obey it with your life.

May you be strong and courageous, not afraid or discouraged.

May your strength be equal to the challenge of your days because the Lord is with you always.

Most of all, our cherished one, may you love Jesus Christ and others with all of your heart for all of your days.

Your Grandparents, Bruce and Kathy Tippit

April 30, 2009

I DON'T KNOW IF I COULD LOVE THIS LITTLE BOY MORE!!

2009-05-03T15:59:00.000-07:00

First Bath

2009-05-03T11:09:00.000-07:00

We gave Henry his first bath. He actually liked it ok until we washed his hair.

After we dried him off we put him in this little baby robe sack my girlfriend Natalie gave him. It was so funny! He just laid there and looked at us like "what are you doing." But he got so still. I think he was really cozy. He liked it so much he slept in his swing for a long time.

Henry Coming Home

2009-05-03T10:54:00.000-07:00

Here are some pics of Henry's first days at home.

Leaving the Hospital. It felt so good to get out of there!

Daniel's Mom (Yaya) made the pillows and a blanket for his cradle. They came out beautifully.

Henry in the cradle that his daddy and Uncle Ryan used and in the gown his Yaya made that his daddy and Uncle Ryan wore.

Henry's Birth Story

2009-05-02T12:07:00.001-07:00

We are finally at home and I am finally have a minute to sit down and write out Henry's birth story so you all get the scoop.

It all started the weekend before his due date. I was having lots of cramping and some contractions around the clock. When the time came for my appointment on Thursday I was having contractions 10 min apart. When the doctor checked me I was 4 cm and 90% effaced at 2:30 in the afternoon. The doctor told us to go walk around and call him when the contractions were 5 min apart. So Daniel and I went to this pretty outdoor shopping center near the hospital and he had lunch and I had a snack expecting not to get to eat for a while after that. We called our parents to tell them this was it and they were so excited. My parents found a flight and were so excited that they locked themselves out of the house! Thankfully they had already gotten all of their things in the car and just asked someone who had a spare key to their house to leave it at the church for them when they got back.

Daniel and I sat outside at the shopping area as long as we could and called the doctor at 6:00 when the contractions were 4 min apart. He told us to go to the hospital and he would be right behind us. He got to the hospital at about 6:30 and broke my water. Not long after that the contractions started coming about 1 min apart and they were strong! He was so long that the contractions were keeping me from being able to breath in. I had all I could take and asked for an epidural. It was very painful (he had to do it twice) but well worth it. There is no way I could have done it without it. My advice to any pregnant moms, relax as much as you can while getting the epidural and it will be much less painful. I tensed up and caused the catheter not to go in. I wouldn't recommend it. But, after the epidural, oh my gosh, it was amazing! I could barely feeling the contractions. It was great.

At that point we just waited and at 2:00 am I started pushing. I pushed for about 45 min and then he was here! We could not believe how big he was. We had no idea. Everyone kept asking if I had a C-Section and could not believe it when I said no. But, I have to say it really wasn't that bad and my recovery has been really quick. I am sure the fact that a lot of his weight is length really helped.

Things went really well after that until Henry got jaundice. His bilirubin level was really high at 16 (single digits is normal). So they asked us to start supplementing him with formula and pumping after he ate. Basically giving him as much food as we could. He also had to wear a photo blanket that made him look like a glow worm. This was really hard for me. We were so ready to go home and I really didn't want to supplement but it was the fastest way to get his level down. After feeding over night and laying on the blanket his level had not gone down enough so he had to be put under special lights and lay on a light too. He was admitted to the pediatric unit, but thankfully we were able to stay with him. It was so hard to only be able to hold him when he was feeding. Finally his level came down and we were able to take him home on Monday.

It has been so surreal to have him home. Some times I just look at him and think "I can't believe I am your mom". In so many ways it still doesn't seem real. We are having so much fun and I can't believe how good of a baby he is. He is so sweet and sleeps and eats so well.

We love him so much and can't wait to see his little personality come out. We are just praising the Lord for our precious little boy!

We have our little boy!

2009-04-24T19:33:00.000-07:00

Introducing Henry James Grady!

9 lbs 12 oz 23 inches long!

More details to come. We are so excited to have him with us!

4 Days Until Our Due Date!

2009-04-20T11:56:00.000-07:00

Well here I am 4 days before our due date! I am so ready for him to arrive. I have enjoyed being pregnant but I am really ready to be carrying him in my arms and not my belly! I have been feeling pretty good just ready to see him. He has tricked us several times this last week. I have had contractions for a while and then they will stop and nothing more happens. We have our next appointment tomorrow so we will see if we have made more progress. I have been dilated and effaced for a few weeks. But hopefully our next post will be announcing his birth!

Henry's First Boat Ride

2009-04-20T11:35:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago we went out on the boat with Daniel's parents and had a great time. It was Henry's first time on the boat but he didn't know it of course. We are so looking forward to the first time he gets to ride on the boat after he arrives.

Roux love being on the boat but does not love swimming

And of course he has to have his life jacket

And grandpa Rick loves the boat too

Henry's Room is Ready (almost)!

2009-03-04T15:19:00.000-08:00

This weekend Daniel and I finished hanging everything in Henry's room. I am so excited. It feels good to have it done and know that if he come early we are ready for him. We would have to change him on the floor (we haven't gotten a changing pad yet) but he wouldn't care. :) Here are some photos of the room.

His friends waiting for him to arrive

Great chest Mom and I found

His name on the wall

That our little boy's name!

Snow Day

2009-03-02T10:54:00.000-08:00

This post is long over due. But the snow we got again today reminded me that I never posted these from our last snow day a few weeks ago. It was so pretty and we got some funny photos of Roux.

Roux and Daniel playing

This what Roux's feet looked like after playing in the snow with Daniel. He didn't seem like he liked it very much and after we got home we figured out why. :)

It's Raining Gifts

2009-02-28T15:29:00.000-08:00

Last weekend the church were Daniel and I grew up and where my dad still pastors threw us a wonderful shower. I went down on Friday afternoon and got to spend the whole weekend. We had so much fun and got more that we could have ever asked for. This church has always out done themselves taking care of us and they did it again. My sister and grandmother got to come, so as my dad says all of his girls were together. Two of my girls from college were able to come and it was so good to see them. And we just found out it will not be too long before we are planning a baby shower for one of them. Barri is due in October! To make it even more fun two girls I grew up with and had not seen in years were able to come. They both live in Memphis now and were able to drive over for the day! We had such a wonderful time catching up and talking together. I look forward to getting to see them more when I come to visit with Henry.

It is getting so close to his coming and I am getting more and more excited (and a little nervous) everyday! His room is almost ready. I will post updated photos of the completed room this week. We are determined to finish it this weekend. Only 8 more weeks to go!

This was the cake. It was soo cute and so good! It even matches Henry's bedding.

This one is a bit blurry, but it was so sweet I wanted to show it. The hostess and ladies at the shower wrote advice about being a mom on these cards and then hung them on the tree. They had really great things to say.

All my dad's girls

My girls from OBU

These are the two girls from Ft. Smith and I got to visit with, Leslie and Emily. It was so fun to catch up.

Maternity Photo Shoot

2009-01-27T09:44:00.000-08:00

Sunday Daniel and I had some Maternity photos taken. It was so much fun and our photographer, Amber Bowen, was amazing! She did a fantastic job! We have so many great photos to chose from I don't know what to pick to frame. Here are some of my favorites. Ok so a lot of my favorites. :) I just couldn't help it. She just did such a good job. I with I could post them all but there are hundreds and that would be a little much.

So much to say...

2008-12-30T13:18:00.001-08:00

Wow! It has been a long time since I have posted an up date. We have been so busy the last month and a lot has happened. We went to Arkansas for Thanksgiving and had a great time with my family. We got to meet my sister, Amy's, boyfriend for the first time and it was really great. Daniel is always a hard sell when it comes to who Amy dates. (Since we don't have an older brother he has taken over the role) But, he really liked him and they had fun teasing us girls. :)

The time between Thanksgiving and Christmas went fast! We stayed here and had a great relaxing Christmas with Daniel's parents. We have been looking for a new place to live with more space for Daniel to study and for Henry when he gets here. A few weeks ago God gave us a woderful place to live and we could not be more excited. God has always been good to us and taken care of our every need, but lately He has blown our minds with the ways He has provided. We moved in the Tuesday before Christmas and are loving it. We are now just waiting for Him to bring Daniel a full-time job and we know we will be amazed by what he does. Here are some photos of the new house. It is a duplex and we have 3 bedrooms and 2 1/2 baths. We just don't know what to do with all of the space after living in a 1 bedroom for so long.

Also, we have started on Henry's room and are so excited for our little boy to have his own space. I am hoping to paint the room green when my mom comes later this month. We still need more a dresser and a glider but we have plenty of time and Craig List has been a great resource. Here are some photos of the room so far and his bedding.

Now for the belly update. Man is he growing. I feel like I get bigger every day. He is moving all over the place and can hear sounds. I experienced this first hand a couple of weeks ago at church. One of the songs started pretty loud and he jumped. It was so funny and amazing. Daniel and I have decided that all of the new babies at our church sleep through the service at church so well because they got used to the lound music in the womb. :) Here is the belly at 24 weeks. It is going by so fast!

IT'S A ...

2008-11-21T16:35:00.000-08:00

BOY!!

Henry Grady

We had our 18 week ultrasound today and found out we are having a boy! We are so excited and surprised. Everyone, including us, thought it would be a girl. So when the tech said "Well I am just batting all boys today" Daniel and I both said "Are you serious?!?" and laughed. But, she was right!

We are so excited to be welcoming Henry into the world in April and can't to see him. I am so excited to start getting ready. I have been so ready to start buying things and to register. Thanksgiving with my family is going to be really fun! Here are some pictures from the ultrasound.

The baby belly

2008-10-08T16:53:00.000-07:00

So we have started the belly photos! My mom came this weekend and she took this photo for me. I am still not sure that it looks this big in person. I am feeling pretty good these days. Definitely have more energy and have not been sick nearly as much. We are looking forward to our next appointment in 2 weeks. It was so good to have my mom here. I really needed the quality time and the shopping help! :o) Well here is the baby bump at 11 weeks!

New baby picture!

2008-09-25T09:38:00.000-07:00

We just went for our 9 week ultrasound and check up and it was great! So much better than the last one. You could see the little and hand moving and everything. And hearing the heartbeat was amazing! It made everything seem real. Now I really feel pregnant and am getting more and more excited. I am also starting to feel a lot better. The last couple of weeks were really hard, I was feeling sick all of the time. Now I am starting to get my energy back, don't have to be as picky about what I eat and have less nausea. Now I am starting to enjoy being pregnant. :o) Here is our ultrasound picture. You can see some much more this time!

Telling the Family

2008-09-06T15:29:00.000-07:00

We had fun telling our parents that they were going to have there first grandchild. Daniel's parents live here in Wake Forest so we were able to tell them in person. We eat lunch with them most Sundays after church, so on our way over that day Daniel sent his dad a photo message with a picture of the pregnancy test. When we got to their house he asked his dad if he got a message from him. He went over to check it and just started saying "No? No? No?" and smiling. Daniel's mom ran over asking what he was talking about and looked at the picture, put her hand over her mouth, gasped and then said "Where are you going to put it?" (We have a one bedroom apartment right now and are looking for a bigger place) We all laughed and said we are working on that but have some time. They were really excited but shocked. Now they are already talking about babysitting for us.

My parents are in Arkansas so we had to tell them over the phone because we won't see them for a while. Daniel called them just as they had sat down to eat lunch at a restaurant. He got my dad and said "Are there any future grandparents there other than you?" It was silent. We thought he didn't here him so I said "Dad, put it on speaker phone so mom can hear too." He said "Um...I am just a little speechless...right now." He got my mom and they went outside. He put the phone on speaker and asked Daniel to ask that question again. Daniel did and my mom just started laughing and crying and said "I am coming soon!" They are so excited and already planning where to put a crib at their house for when we visit.

My sister Amy was really excited and said she can't believe its true and can't wait to see it. My grandmother was so sweet. As soon as I told her she said "When I heard you voice I knew that was what you are going to say! Well you have waited long enough, it's time." She is so happy for us and we are trying to find a way to get her to come out here to visit. It has been so fun sharing this news with everyone. We feel like it has been a long time coming and are so looking forward to seeing our child.

Introducing Baby Grady!!

2008-09-02T15:32:00.000-07:00

We are so excited to announce that we are pregnant!! We are 6 weeks along and everything looks great! We could not be happier but still can't believe that it is true. God is so good and has perfect timing and He is showering us with His blessings. Here is the baby's first picture. Daniel has been calling it our raisin, because that is its size right now. He comes up with the goofiest stuff! :o) We are just praising God and praying that everything continues to go well. We will go back to the doctor in 3 weeks so we will have an updated photo then of the baby "flipping and flopping" as our doctor said. I will have more to come like the story of how we found out and what the reactions have been (some have been pretty funny) but for now I wanted to get this photo of our little raisin up for all of you to see! We would covet your prayers and as we journey through this amazing new world!