We celebrated Christmas at home today with Graham. He had a few presents under the tree and enjoyed tearing up the paper and playing with his new toys. We are heading to Memphis on Tuesday to spend Christmas with our families. I love this special time with the people I love and especially celebrating the birth of our Savior who continually reminds me of His unconditional love.
Graham LOVES his new basketball goal from Mommy and Daddy.
Thanks for the fun blocks, JoJo and Clarkie!!
I took Graham to the Green Hills Mall to get his picture with Santa, and he obviously didn't care for the jolly old man too much. He was fine and liked him from afar, but as soon as I put him in his lap and walked away the screams began. I hate to laugh at my child crying, but it was pretty comical. Margie took Jake and Evie, too ... Jake LOVED Santa and Evie cried almost as hard as Graham did. Devon also took Mac, and not surprisingly he was a little angel. I'm hopefully going to keep this tradition going ... we'll see what next year holds!!
We had a fabulous Thanksgiving in Memphis this year with the Moore family!! We actually managed to get all of the kids down for a nap while we ate our yummy meal :) The week was non-stop and Graham played so much with his cousins that he dropped his morning nap. It was great last week, but we'll see how it is when we get home and it's only me to entertain him. 
Graham got lots of play time with Wils.
My PRECIOUS new nephew, Brantley ... he is such an angel
Graham got all dressed up as Elvis for Halloween. 
Trick or Treat!!!
It was Homecoming at Vandy this past weekend and we had a great time getting together with some old friends. My college roommate, Jodie, and her boyfriend, Jeff, stayed with us and we had so much fun with them. Matt and Emily Menendez joined us for dinner and we all stayed out way past my bedtime on Friday night :) 
Thanks for the hug, Wils
Katie and Wils were in town, too, and a bunch of us tailgated before the game!!
It was a very sad loss but a fun weekend, nonetheless
Margie and the kids picked us up and we drove to Smyrna, TN to a pumpkin patch. Graham had an absolute ball. There were pumpkins (or "balls" as he called them) everywhere we turned. We also saw lots of animals ... cows, pigs, goats, sheep, chickens, and he called every single one of them "dog." He loved the cow (or "dog") and even put his entire hand in its mouth :) I don't think Graham stopped moving the whole time we were there. He even ended the night with a special treat ... his first fast food :) Traffic was terrible and it was way past dinner time, so we stopped at Chic-fila and Graham ate a plain grilled chicken sandwich on a whole wheat bun ... decently healthy for his first experience!!
Checking out the pigs
Graham with Jake and Evie and Grace and JT Lane
I just couldn't stand it anymore, so I drove down to B'ham Sat. to finally meet Anna Grace Peterson. She is SO precious!!!! I loved my time with Robin and Todd and being able to just hang out with them. I forgot how much a newborn sleeps and how much you really do just sit around. Life is definitely different with a toddler :) Thanks Kevin for having a Daddy day with Graham and allowing me such sweet time with the Peterson Family!!
We survived our first and hopefully last (let's get real, we're raising a boy) trip to the ER. Graham tripped and fell onto the brick wall on our patio last night and ended up with a gash on his forehead. We were totally bummed that the Urgent Care places were closed because we were not looking forward to spending our Sunday night at the ER. But after 2 1/2 hours we were done and Graham got his gash glued and steri-stripped ... thankfully no stictches!! It was definitely a bummer being there but it gave me such perspective on Graham's health and how much God has blessed us. 
We took Graham to College Gameday on Vandy's campus this morning. It was an incredible atmosphere and luckily Graham was very entertained since it was during his naptime.
Down, Set, Hut
Jackson's family came, too.
Jake was sweet to share his snack
What a FUN morning!! And what an unbelievable night. Vandy is now 5-0 and #1 in the SEC East! Kevin is already making plans to go to our bowl game :)
Dinner at Lee and Eliot's with some of the Wilson Clan
I like your new house, Wils
At the zoo with Bet Bet
Graham and I took a trip to Memphis to visit with family and friends ... we sure did have a blast!!! We spent lots of time with Wils ... hanging out at his house, at Snacks and Bet Bet's house, and at the zoo. I must say that it sure is nice being in the same city as grandparents. I had more time to myself in the last 5 days than I probably have had in the past 5 weeks, and I didn't have to spend a dime :) But I think that since our time together is rare, that's what makes it so special. I'm sure I'd take if for granted if I had it all the time. Anyway, thanks Snacks, Bet Bet, Pops, and Gigi for a fun time!!
I know every mom says it, but you'll have to hear it from me, too ... I cannot believe that my baby boy is 1 year old. It truly has been an incredible year!! We had a birthday party for Graham at our house Saturday, and he had a blast playing outside, eating cake, and opening presents. Kevin and I really appreciate our family and friends coming to celebrate our boy's big day. Check out more pics: http://www.kodakgallery.com/Slideshow.jsp?UV=785292800647_515385159605&mode=fromsite&collid=679943604105.667886439605.1222911602753&conn_speed=1
We took Graham to the first half of the Vandy game last Saturday night. It was a bit different from last year since he was only 5 weeks old then and slept pretty much the entire time. His dinner entertained him for the first 20 min. and he liked that noise, but he was a bit wiggly. All in all, it was a fun night and Graham was a wonderful good luck charm :) I'm having to face the fact that I have a toddler now and not a baby anymore. We took Graham to the Richland pool yesterday for one last time this summer. I shot this video of him walking through the fountains. I must say, he's getting pretty good at his walking and can now even stand from the floor. He has really enjoyed the pool this summer!! I was thinking about how different it will be when we go next June ... he'll probably jump to me in the water. I'm going to have to get creative thinking of things to do now that we won't be going to the pool at least once a week anymore. I'm sure we'll think of something :)
It amazes me how fast such a little person can make such a big mess. After breakfast this morning, I was cleaning up the kitchen and decided to go ahead and cook Graham's lunch (macaroni and cheese with ground beef, spinach, and corn). I had to get some flour out of the pantry and obviously forgot to close the door. As I was stirring the cheese sauce, which probably took 2 minutes, I looked over to find Graham inside the pantry throwing everything out. His curiousity cracks me up and I absolutely love watching him learn new things everyday. He is now walking from room to room and loves to walk down to the mailbox each day ... even though it takes about 5 minutes each way because he loves to bend over and pick up EVERY leaf, stick, rock, etc. God sure has blessed us with one precious baby boy!!
I went in to check on Graham before I went to bed the other night and found him like this :)Graham has been letting go and taking steps on his own all week long. I don't know if he's trying to show me his personality or not, but he doesn't like to walk on his own if I'm holding on to him and then let go. He only seems to want to take steps when he's holding on to something ... it's like he only wants to do it on his own terms and when he's ready. Babies are so funny!! Oh, and yes, he is wearing Christmas pjs ... I desperately need to do laundry :)
Do I look like my Daddy, or what?!?!?
We had a great trip to Destin, FL this past week and had tons of fun with Kevin's parents and his sister's family. I was a bit concerned that it was going to be tough hanging out on the beach with Graham, but he LOVED it!! He barely ate any sand and loved crawling all over the beach and in and out of the water. And he really loved his shovel and pail. The weather rained quite a bit, but it cooled the temperatures, so it was very pleasant. Kevin and I also got to go out to dinner and see Mamma Mia :) Thanks Pops and Gigi for a wonderful trip!!
