hello monday.

[to see other {hello monday's}, visit lisa leaonard on her lovely blog]


hello time in the bumbo and learning to sit up like a big boy!


hello running in the arkansas woods during deer season with the hubby.
hello necessary hunter orange vests and hats.

hello father/son football watching/napping.


hello berkeley in your thanksgiving onesie!


hello playing with the puppy.





hello cuddly baby. you are my favorite.

hello routine that i love so much.
i like holidays, but i love getting back home.

hello monday dentist appointment.

hello very chilly weather.

hello cozy nights with the family.

hello hot chocolate with marshmallows.

hello decorating for christmas.

hello buying new boots on cyber monday.

hello learning to release things into God's hands.

hello monday!

must-haves

like i said in the last post, we are going to visit derek's parents for the thanksgiving holiday. i like it there. it's cozy and relaxing. BUT, there are a few things that i feel like i CANNOT DO WITHOUT while i'm there, not even for just four days. it's all food related, of course.

nutella and apples-i've been eating this little snack after almost every meal since berkeley was born. it's SEMI-healthy. i get my chocolate fix, but hey, i'm eating an apple. it's a win-win.

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chocolate cheerios mixed with bran buds-you've got your good 'ole sugary breakfast cereal AND all the fiber you need in one day! you can't go wrong! i've even gotten derek hooked on this delicious breakfast!

source

COFFEEEEEE! derek's family are not coffee drinkers....i know, how did i marry him, right? so i've left a coffee pot at their house and will be bringing some holiday creamer(peppermint mocha) to add to it!

spinach, frozen strawberries and bananas-for spinach smoothies! i drink one pretty much every day. it makes me feel better about life, knowing all those vitamins and nutrients are flowing through my body.

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and they usually have diet coke, so we're good there :)

so i'll be packing up some things and stopping at the grocery store when we get there.

tomorrow morning you'll find me cuddled on the couch watching the MACY'S THANKSGIVING DAY PARADE next to my husband and baby boy with my cereal, smoothie, and about 74 cups of coffee! (don't worry, some of it will be decaf for berkeley's sake since i'm still his source of food!)

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happy thanksgiving eve :)
and for all you arkansans, happy arkansas vs. lsu eve eve!

hello monday.

[to see other {hello monday's}, visit lisa leaonard on her lovely blog]

hello afternoon run while the husband watches the baby.


hello sock feet and chubby legs. i love you.


hello starting to embarrass your son as early as three months old.


hello christmas shopping with the new ergo baby carrier. thank you hubbins!


hello being invited to be a bridesmaid in my lovely friend, callie's, wedding. i said yes! duh.


hello night walks around our alma mater while the baby stays with his nana and papa.


hello seeing our puppy's name, roger, displayed for all to see at kroger.


hello little boy with milk all over his face after eating. i can't even deal!


hello razorback football games.


hello fall foliage pictures of mommy and daddy.


hello little bear.


hello mommy lovin' and getting ready for bathtime.


hello again to my ergo. i'm obsessed.

and HELLO to thanksgiving weekend! we're off to derek's parents in de queen, arkansas to relax and revel in all things holidays!

what i've been pondering this week: something new

i've been praying some pretty serious prayers since this summer. and just this week, i believe i'm starting to see some answers. what's interesting is that all the prayers i've been praying seemed to be for changes in OTHERS. but really, I was the one who needed the changing. it's painful, but good. FREEING.

then, i read this this morning:
“Forget about what’s happened; don’t keep going over old history. Be alert, be present. I’m about to do something brand-new. It’s bursting out! Don’t you see it? There it is! I’m making a road through the desert, rivers in the badlands.” Isaiah 43:18 – 19

mmmm, music to my ears!

AND a little "pinspiration", as i like to call it!!

Source: graceserenity.tumblr.com via CarrieBeth on Pinterest

teacher

i might have mentioned before that i've come to be a little embarrassed about the number of times i've changed what i want to do with my life. it has ranged from nurse to spanish interpreter, to counselor, to teacher, to personal trainer. and round and round it goes until i wonder if i'm supposed to do anything but be the mama of little ones.

last year, i applied for the master of arts in teaching....and then decided not to do it because i found out i was pregnant with berkeley, and didn't know if it was the best plan at the moment.

then i attended a semester of grad school for counseling. it was online, and as convenient as that was, it's just not my thing.

i'm alive when i'm on a college campus. i love classes and homework and listening to lectures.

this fall, my friend brooke got her first job as an elementary school teacher, and i couldn't help but be almost jealous.

on the first day of school this year, i was about a week away from giving birth to berkeley. my mom and i went on our daily 6 am walk that morning, and watched as all the children boarded the school bus. i took pictures on my of all the eager kids, the hope of the year tucked away in their jacket pockets and backpacks.

and i just. can't. give. it. up.

i want to teach. i want to be a part of a community of other teachers. and i truly 100% believe that this is my final decision.

i took the gre on friday. i got the [unofficial] passing scores i neededed :) i applied for the 4th-8th grad language arts/social studies track, and now i'm just waiting.

you know? another main reason i want to be a teacher so bad? because derek thinks i'd be great one. and that means so much to me. his opinion makes a difference. i trust his opinion. he's around me more than anyone. so if he thinks i'll be a mighty fine teacher, then i think i will be!

so here's to pencils and backpacks and notebook paper and binders.

celebrating fall

i could list a thousand reasons why i'm glad to have a new baby boy, but one of them is that i get to spend more time with my mamaw, my cousin, and her twin boys.
for years, my cousin and her boys have gone to visit my mamaw on fridays. now that i have berkeley and am not working on fridays, we join them each week for lunch and some play time.
a couple weeks ago, we ventured out to the local pumpkin patch and ended the day with a cozy lunch at cracker barrell. i'm hoping this is now a tradition.
i carried berkeley in the sling all day, and on the way home, one of the twins sighed and said, "i wish i was berkeley". when my cousin asked him why, he said, "so i could lay in that little blue hammock all day long."
so, so, so sweet!!!
so happy to have a son now, and can't wait for him to be saying hilarious things too!!

hello monday (on a tuesday)

i was on a roll of blogging when i first started this new blog, and now...well, i've become lazy. if you consider holding your baby and staring at him for hours at a time when you should be doing other things lazy, then yes, that's me.

i've found quite a few new blogs recently. on lisa leonard's blog, she does a [hello monday] linkup. i've been dying to link up and follow along, but yesterday was monday, and i missed it! so here it is....on a tuesday.

hello charlie brown costume that is way too big.

hello morningtime in jammies while husbands brew your coffee.

hello naptime with our lovey.

hello daddy time.

hello walks with the baby in the sling.