Pretty girl

Getting bigger!

Emma Claire is growing like crazy! She used to look so TINY next to her big brother but not so much anymore. Grayson has really picked up an interest in EC recently---this day he was "sharing" his trucks with her by running them into her head. She's going to be a tough kid after Grayson gets through with her! :)

I'm home!!!

After spending the week in the hospital with something called ischemic colitis, I am so happy to be home. I'm feeling so much better and am loving being with my babies again. Emma Claire and I are trying to get back on track with nursing since she has been fed formula since my frozen milk supply ran out on Tuesday, but once we get over that hurdle then things will finally be back to normal!

Thank you to everybody for all of the thoughts and prayers---I needed them and appreciate every single one. We could not have made it without the help of our mothers (GeeGee and Nannie, to Grayson and EC), who came and took over running our house and taking care of our children at a moment's notice. THANK YOU, Mom and Nancy!!! I have no idea what we would have done without y'all! Also, a huge thank you to Carroll (Ben's dad) for driving across the state of South Carolina TWICE in just a few days and to my dad for giving up Mom (and getting her a plane ticket ASAP) after only having her back in Colorado for a short while. We thank God every day for our wonderful family.

Also, thank you to our wonderful, amazing friends---Kat, Erica, Meg, Burke, Silvia, Jen, Lindsay, Brooks, and I know I'm forgetting some---for the emergency babysitting, delicious meals, lawn-mowing, schedule-organizing, litterbox-changing, milk-buying, errand-running, and everything else you did to help out during this crazy time. Thank you to everybody else who called, visited, and sent cards and flowers---I was truly overwhelmed by the amout of support we received! Y'all know I'd do the same for you in a heartbeat! We are blessed by an awesome circle of friends! :)

I almost forgot! The biggest thank you EVER goes to Ben, who hardly left my side the entire time except to run home every once in awhile. It must have been the most boring week of his life and he never let it show---he was constantly there doing whatever I needed him to do, even if it was just listening to me complain. He definitely deserves the Husband of the Year Award. I am very lucky, indeed!!

Okay, now that I'm finished being all mushy I have some pictures to post! I took some really cute ones of Emma Claire before I got sick and never posted them, so here they come! :)

Afternoon at the beach

We took the kiddos to the beach for a little while on Sunday--it was Emma Claire's first time at the beach! Grayson had a great time playing with Daddy and chasing seagulls and Emma Claire had fun sitting in the shade and hanging out with Mommy.

Lunch request

Today, Grayson climbed into his chair at the table and told me that he wanted cake and beer for lunch. We're fresh out of cake and beer, so he had cheese instead. :)

Brother/sister photo shoot, take 2

I attemped another photo shoot of Grayson and Emma Claire this morning before we went to church. It went a little better than last time---Grayson didn't try to knock EC over or scream for milk the entire time, but he did refuse to take his paci out of his mouth. I thought they turned out cute anyway! :)

New pics of the kiddos

And now for Emma Claire!

Even though the last week has been spent focused on our two-year-old, we've still been having a blast with his baby sister. Emma Claire started rolling over from tummy to back last week---the little over-achiever did this a whole month earlier than Grayson did! She is still a happy, laid back little girl who lights up our life every day! :) Here are some pics of what Emma Claire has been up to lately...

Pirate party

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, GRAYSON!!!

"Cars" party in Laurens

with Daddy at school
lunch with Uncle Alan in Charleston

sharing a birthday cake with Nannie

We've been busy lately so I have tons of new pictures to post. First of all, our little baby Grayson isn't a baby anymore...he's TWO! The kid is spoiled rotten so he had to have not one, not two, but three birthday celebrations--not including his "Celebration of Life" ceremony at the Montessori school he attends. The first party was last weekend in Laurens with Ben's side of the family. Then on Friday (his actual birthday) we had a little cookout with Mom and Dad (in town visiting from Colorado right now), my brother Alan and sister-in-law Anna, and the O'Neal family. On Saturday we had the big pirate party with all of Grayson's friends. It was supposed to be outside with sprinklers, baby pools, and other fun water toys, but it ended up raining 6 inches (yeah, we were about to start building an arc) so the party was held indoors instead. It was a bit crowded in our little house but the kids all had a good time and there was plenty of beer so the adults enjoyed themselves, too! :) Lots and lots of pictures to follow....