March Madness and April Showers

March brought with us warmer weather and lots of special moments and memories.

{eating oranges on momma mac's back porch}

{special visit from our mamaw - mattie rose loved helping her sew}

{walks by the pond with our momma mac}

{always waiting on daddy to get home}

{fun times with our friends}

{lots of nick's italian ice - our favorite in-town treat}

{kristen (one of the girls in my small group) got baptized}

{post dunk}

At the end of March, we took a trip with the Siscos and both of our staffs to Atlanta for the Hinman Dental Conference. Lots of teeth for the guys. Lots of shopping for the ladies!

{dinner with the hubs}

{after dinner drinks}

{it was way past our bedtime}

{proof that we "went" to the conference}

{buddies}

The first weekend of April was a busy, but fun-filled weekend spent with ladies I love! Friday night, the women's ministry hosted a Pinterest Party for the women of the church. Several very talented women taught seminars on topics from lamp making to jewelry making and knitting to painting. Each women attended two seminars, followed by dinner and two more seminars. Saturday morning, I hosted a baby shower with several friends for my friend Lacey who is expecting sweet baby girl Greer any time in the next few weeks! Lacey is a Memphis-transplant like myself and we have become good friends as we continually try to adjust to life in this small town of Crossville.

{love serving with these women}

{cake decorating class}

{jewelry making}

{lamp making}

A few pictures from Lacey and baby Greer's shower:

{a love a reason to craft. particularly new babies.}

{yummy punch}

{invitations}

{mrs. mary has the best serving pieces}

{the spread}

{love making diaper cakes}

{can hardly tell which of us is the preggers, because lacey looks so great!}

{hostesses and mama-to-be in gray}

February

Not too much went on during the month of February because of this:

{snow. everywhere. it was a cold month.}

{mattie rose loved being outside while it snowed, but she definitely didn't like walking in it}

Daddy made sure both Mommy and Mattie Rose felt loved on Valentine's Day. We both received special flowers and chocolate and sweet words in a card that made Mommy cry. 

{"which one should i try first?"}

{pure joy}

{sweet girl even shared some with her brother}

{valentine's day at mdo. clearly she's concerned that i'm leaving.}

{brother shares her sentiments}

We headed back to Memphis again in February to celebrate Isla's (by bestie Alicia's daughter) baptism. No way I was missing that!

{smiles with my godson declan and his coco}

{aunt coco's kisses are the best}

{she did so great}

{best friends}

{she's thrilled that her aunt coco wanted to snuggle so long, ha!}

It had been so long since my 9th and 10th grade small group had gotten together outside of church functions, so we decided to hit up the Cumberland County Playhouse for a Sunday matinee of Grease. It was so much fun to share a timeless classic with this bunch!

{love these girls}

January Happenings

I figured since it was May, now would be a good time to tell you what went on in our lives in January! Ha! We have been crazy busy these past few months and blogging has taken a huge back seat...

January started off with a trip to Chattanooga with our youth group at church. We went to see the WinterJam concert, full of fun Christian artists and lots of really good music. The kids got to get into the building early, rather than waiting in long lines for hours, because we had the opportunity to volunteer with Holt International to try and find monthly sponsors for kids across the world waiting on their forever homes. It was a great teaching moment for the kids to get them thinking outside of their immediate world.

{this wasn't even all of the available children}

{learning about holt international}

{part of our youth group}

{an unexpected surprise - my childhood buddy leonard works for reach records and happened to be working at this show}

{lecrae was our favorite}

A couple weeks later, James, Mattie Rose, and I headed to Memphis! I was helping to host a baby shower for sweet baby Ella Grace and her awesome mommy and my friend, Lee. Our discipleship group hosted at Kathryn's house with a few of our other friends as well. 

{favors for guests with scripture attached to pray over ella}

{showering ella with blessings}

{the yummy spread}

{got to spend some sweet time loving on baby david}

{hostesses with the mama in the middle}

{such a special friend to me}

Sadly such a fun day came to a close with lots of sadness and scariness. My Poppy (dad's dad) had been in the hospital for a while and things weren't looking like they were getting better anytime soon. So after the shower, I headed back to mom's house, picked up the kiddos and Mom and we loaded up to head back to Crossville. We spent the night and got a good night's rest, and then we made our way (slowly, but surely) down to Ft. Lauderdale. Though the circumstances for the trip were no fun at all, it was really enjoyable for me to watch James and Mattie Rose enjoy Gigi and Poppy's condo the way my cousins and I did our entire childhood. Fortunately, Poppy has been out of the hospital for weeks now and though not back to where he was prior to admission, he's doing well. 

{james holding down the fort as the man of the house while poppy was away}

{mattie rose helping meme wash dishes}

{first visit to my favorite man}

{mattie rose found gigi's vanity very quickly}

{makeup and octonauts. life doesn't get much better.}

{sweet moments together}

{poppy usually takes kia for a walk, so mattie rose took it upon herself to chip in}

{first long walk around the hospital - physical therapist granddaughter had to kick some butts in gear}

Lots of miles put on the car in January, but every single one of them was worth it.

Grandpa and Bebe Come To Visit

Dad and Kim flew in on Christmas Day, and it was so nice to get to spend part of the actual holiday with them.

{mattie rose helping her bebe open gifts}

{ohhh these two}

{bebe was glad to have such big helpers to open her gifts}

{and when bebe was done, mattie rose was glad to help grandpa}

{dad's new hat from my brother}

{mattie rose and her bebe}

{again, way too busy to look at the camera}

{trying on grandpa's hats}

{silliness}

{"wait grandpa, give it back"}

{mattie rose a little unsure of it all...}

{snuggle time}

{warming up}

We spent the day after Christmas shopping for some good deals. And the following day, the weather was so nice, so we headed to the park. There is a great ADA-accessible playground in town, which I love because it's not messy sand or dirt to have to clean off the babies. 

{do they even look old enough to be grandparents?}

{just a-swingin'}

{working on her swing}

{grandpa giving her some pointers}

{then it was james' turn}

{he was so proud of himself}

{if ya wanna play, ya gotta carry your own clubs}

{buddies}

{it didn't take long for mattie rose to snuggle up with grandpa. there is just something about watching your daughter sit in your dad's lap. pulls at the heartstrings. just a bit.}

{and of course, whatever one does, the other has to do as well}

This trip was way better than all the others, because we had almost a whole week together. It wasn't rushed, and we could just spend good, quality time together. But of course the day they left came way too fast! COME BACK GRANDPA AND BEBE!!!!

Christmas Day 2013

It was so fun to wake the babies up on Christmas morning. Wait. Let's be honest. There was no waking them up. They are always awake at the crack of dawn.

We had a quick snack of a breakfast, Daddy read the Christmas story out of Luke, and then opened a few gifts.

{babes on Christmas}

{james and daddy reading}

{someone only wanted to open gifts}

{this is just funny to me}

{mattie rose digging in}

{sweet boy}

{loving her new outfits}

{i love when he sits like this. and then the physical therapist in me comes out...}

{that face}

{needed a banana break}

{james checking out daddy's new pictures for the office}

{just playing with his new cars}

{she loves to doodle these days}

{playing in our tunnels from momma mc and dayay}

{and no christmas is complete without some snuggles}

Once presents were opened and the mess was cleaned up, we had another surprise for James and Mattie Rose. Grandpa and BeBe were on their way!!!!

McShan Christmas 2013

Since the McShans typically celebrate Christmas on Christmas Eve, that's where we headed. I did a horrible job taking pictures. Rather upset about it. The kids were exhausted and delirious and getting them to even look at me with a camera in hand was not happening. 

{momma mc and her grands}

{helping james and mattie rose open their new pop-up tunnels}

{opening up some pretty shoes}

{daddy and his girl, who had her tongue out all night}

{sleepy boys}

{new day pack for hikes with my honey}

{rockin' them beats}

{new rides}

{just a boy and his bike}

{a little help from dad}

{took a break to play in his house}

Memphis Christmas 2013

We spent the weekend before Christmas in Memphis celebrating the holiday. And boy did we celebrate!

We exchanged presents with the O'Dells, babysit for a sweet new friend, opened up lots of presents with MeMe and Pop, and had brunch with Santa and Mrs. Claus. 

{silly girl in smocking}

{sweet baby harper - almost 1 year old}

{abbi is getting so big}

{mattie rose and abbi checking out the goods}

{loving our new book from japan from abbi and harper}

{just love that face}

{abbi figuring out her new toy}

{this is what 18 years of friendship turns into. couldn't have ever dreamed it.}

{my sweet goddaughter loves her auntie corky}

{so does this one...love her "cheese" face}

{this just melts my heart. abbi loving on james}

Later that night, I had the pleasure of babysitting sweet baby Barrett. He is the son of my Phi Mu lil sis, Megan. Megan's husband Brandon is from Collierville, and they happened to be in town for a wedding. Meg texted me that morning asking if I knew any good babysitters in the area (not knowing we were in town too), and I just happened to know of a very qualified and experienced "babysitter." ;)

{jolly little man}

{auntie am came by for a visit too}

{mattie rose playing mommy}

{aunt court teaches all her little ones about selfies}

{he looks content, right?}

{who's got the touch?}

{a little hokey pokey before bed}

The next morning, we celebrated by eating some breakfast and exchanging gifts. Mom had instructed us to bring Kyle's truck instead of my little car. Two little people were about to be two very spoiled little people. 

{snuggles with our pop}

{getting ready}

{bailey and me}

{mattie rose was more interested in her presents than taking a picture with mommy}

{the ladies in our matching loungewear}

{a greasy daddy and his excited little girl}

{the men, plus mattie rose}

{someone was super pumped about his "baaaa"}

{last year, the sound of tearing paper made her cry, this year, she was a pro at shredding it to pieces}

{big boy got a tool bench}

{obsessed and in awe of her doc mcstuffins doctor's kit}

{gah that face gets me every time}

{we love bailey}

{just lounging and drawing pictures on her new chalkboard}

{my buddy, though you wouldn't know it by the picture}

{meme, aka Santa, and her babes}

After presents were opened, everyone showered, and we headed to the country club for brunch with Santa. The big guy.

{high fives were as close as james was coming to sitting on santa's lap}

{these two had a death grip on mommy and daddy}

{the harder they cried, the more we laughed. awesome parents.}

{chowing down}

{feeding meme}

{missing someone}

{clinging tight to mommy's leg. adamant not to get near santa.}

{james decided santa may have been safe enough to share bumps with}

{pop and his boy}

{meme and her girl}

{sweet moments with our bay-bay}

December Fun

Leading up to Christmas, we had plenty of activities to get us in the holiday spirit. 

The church where we are members in Crossville has The Living Christmas Tree every year. It's a massive tree, that the choir stands in and sings from throughout a gospel-centered performance. We attempted to take the twins last year, but they were way too young and ready for bed before the introduction was even over. 

This year, they managed a little better. They loved the singing, and would dance throughout it, but got a little antsy when the acting portion was happening. 

{daddy and james taking it all in}

{mattie rose and her momma mc}

{uncle micah even made an appearance}

{somehow we ended up without kiddos in our laps. need to document those moments.}

The next day, we celebrated Asher-man's 2nd birthday. Kayla had his party at a local tumbling/cheerleading center. It was probably the best idea ever. In one room there was a inflatable bounce house, and in the other room there were tunnels, slides, trampolines, bars, and balance beams. The twins are so active right now that they enjoyed every bit of it!

{this kid is pumped}

{concentration requires a tongue hanging out of the mouth}

{we loved bouncing on the trampoline}

{pure joy}

{buddies}

{she had a hard time staying on her feet}

{the wonder of a balloon}

{i'm not sure when they got old enough to eat a slice of pizza and drink capri-suns}

{loves his daddy}

{best buds}

{the birthday boy}

{it's a shame we don't like cupcakes}

{savoring every bite}

{he wasn't sure what he was doing, but he loved it}

{this little girl is fearless}

{future olympian}

{bubs wasn't quite as graceful}

{having so much fun!}

{after the party, we went to the siscos to relax a little and snuggle with maeve. mattie rose loved loving on her}

The following week, we started to get our butts in gear for Christmas!

{my little elves coloring while mommy wrapped presents}

And then there was the tacky sweater party for our youth group. I have been leading a small group for the 9th and 10th grade girls this school year, and it's been so fun. They are so fun and silly and keep me laughing. 

{james getting down in his jams}

{mattie rose and her buddy xander. who isn't too concerned with her...}

{this is what mommies who are involved with youth do...strap 'em down and give 'em some food}

{my girls. though we were missing a few.}

{emma and me. she was my shopping buddy for these awesome outfits.}

18 Month Update

In the midst of the holiday madness, James and Mattie Rose had their 18 month check up. Things are looking well as usual.

Mattie Rose weighed in at 22 pounds, and Brother beat her weighing in at 23 pounds. I, for the life of me, cannot remember their length but I want to guess James was 32 3/4 inches and Mattie Rose was 31 1/4. What I do remember is that he was an inch and a half taller than she was. I'll have to double check at our next appointment. Which God-willing will not be until our two year appointment. Yes, you heard me right. TWO YEARS! I can't even let my mind or my heart go there...

{we have a new way of waiting for dr. leslie, we climb}

{trying to entertain himself}

{she's a pro at climbing}

{they never cease to crack me up}

Dr. Leslie said they are perfect little people! Little being the key word, but perfect nonetheless. I love to see how they affect other people, and they had her cracking up as well! 

A few facts about us at this present time:

-Working our way to one afternoon nap

-LOVES bananas, and any other fruit really

-Go to Mother's Day Out two times a week

-Cannot get enough play time outside

-Could climb Mt. Everest if Mommy would let us

-Love to give hugs and kisses

-High fives and bumps are a close second

-James is in 18 month clothing and Mattie Rose in 12-18 month

-Each have 12 teeth with a few poking their way through

-Are beginning to "talk" up a storm

James' words: mommy, daddy, pop, bye, ball, hot, more, all done, love you, baby, "sees (sister), 

and a variety of animal sounds, and his newest "brrr cold"

Mattie Rose's words: mommy, daddy, ball, hot, yes, more, all done, and a variety of animal sounds

I was a little concerned at the time of our appointment about their speech. But it seemed as if the minute I mentioned it, they began to enunciate more clearly and are becoming more and more expressive each week. It's really a neat thing to watch!

Stay posted to watch us grow!

Thanksgiving 2013

Our initial plans for Thanksgiving were to make the drive to Dallas to spend the holiday with my dad and Kim. They ended up moving into their new house that week, so we decided it best to wait until they were settled to visit. 

So we ended up heading to Memphis, which worked out beautifully since Kati and the girls were home from Japan while Patrick was away at a training. It was a wonderful four days there full of much quality time, though it's never enough.

{my best girl and i watching the macy's parade in our jams}

{and meme and her best boy}

{uncle kyle sharing his grapes with james}

That afternoon, we headed over to the Weymouth's for dinner. 

{my sweet little goddaughter, harper claire}

{auntie corky teaching harper how to take selfies. she's impressed. ha!}

{aunty corky and her first niece. oh sweet abbi, how i love you so.}

{kisses. we call these "lipstick."}

{besties for 18 years! hard to believe...}

{half of our offspring}

{the new kids' table}

{much needed mommies night out time at the john mayer concert}

{and just in case you were wondering where kyle was, well, he was there :) }

November Happenings

This woman is way behind on blogging... Thanksgiving has come and gone. Christmas has come and gone. And now it's a new year. But before we get any further into 2014, I need to make sure I document our holiday happenings. But before that, I don't want to forget our "everyday" occurrences either.

November seems like it was six months ago... We had some visitors, some great weather, and a few "firsts."

We spent many days at the park. James and Mattie Rose love to run at the park, swing high, and fly down the slide.

{super static for this silly girl}

{getting some education on the walking trail}

{just strolling with daddy}

We had a quick visit from our Grandpa Bill (my mom's dad). 

{two williams}

{meme and her girl}

Our big boy got his first haircut... And mommy cried. Just a little. 

{mommy, get me down...}

{sister just keepin' an eye on things}

{when mommy started to tear up}

{my buddy's not too sure about his new coiff}

Since we had such nice weather, Kyle and I took a day date to Big South Fork for a hike around Honey Creek Loop. It was beautiful and exhausting.

{my man}

{he loves to pose}

{pre-exhaustion}

{pictures don't do this trail justice}

{i wish i knew the story behind this... hard to tell but just lots of stacked stones. really neat.}

{i'm surprised i was smiling at this point. took quite a bit of time and pain to get here.}

{exiting big south fork}

{a little pit stop on the way home from hiking}

{if every hike ends here, i'll hike any day}

My cousin Rachel spent the night with us while she was on the way out for residency interviews. It was a quick trip, but I'll take it!

{our dads are twins}

{early morning breakfast at cracker barrel-my little genius}

{chowing down}

Another "first" for the twins was their Thanksgiving program at Mother's Day Out. They really only sat  in the buggy, clapped their hands, and said "yay!"

{mattie rose sitting without her bubs...}

{...because the minute he saw mommy, he cried and reached for me.}

{some of our sweet friends}

{loved putting on a show when the real show was over}

{one of my little turkeys}

{and the other little turkey}

Kyle and I also had our "first" UT game together. It was fah-reezing but so much fun. Even though the Vols lost right at the end. Such is this life for UT and State fans...

{love that little photo-bomber in the back}

{kyle and his buds}

{added layers by the end of the game}

After all of this, we were ready to get the holidays in gear!!!