Alison's Baby Shower

A few weeks ago Nicole and I hosted a baby shower for our good friend, Alison, who is expecting her first baby this July.  We are so excited for Alison and Mark and had a blast putting this shower together.  Alison and Mark are not finding out the gender (which I love but could never do!!) so we decided to go with a mint and gold color scheme for all the party decor.

My mom generously offered to let us host the shower at her house and we took her up on that!  I also have to give her a lot of credit for the cute party decor.  She found the perfect coordinating papers at Paper Source and made the fabulous banners and fans :)

We found the invitations at Etsy which really set the tone for the shower.  The invitation was very classy and we loved the colors.  Seemed to be the perfect invite for the classy mom-to-be!

We decided to keep things easy and ordered most of the food from Hubell & Hudson.  This was seriously the best idea since the food was delicious and we didn't have to worry about any food prep.  We both had to work the day before the shower and knew it would be difficult trying to get it all together, especially since we both have little ones at home!

For dessert we ordered macaroons from Macarons by Patisse and they were absolutely delicious! They have so many good flavors and we kept with the color scheme when making our selection and they did not disappoint.  We also offered guests to take the leftover macaroons home with them as a favor.

Nicole and I - Had so much fun hosting with this crazy lady.  Enjoyed the planning, the showering, and then the after partying which included way too much prosecco ;) 

My mom and I :) 

And finally with Alison - the beautiful mom-to-be!  It was such a fun day and we loved being able to spoil her for a few hours.  We can't wait to find out if we'll be loving on a he or a she but either way, we're beyond excited and can't wait for her to join the Mommy club!

Henry at 2 1/2

Henry Ryan... you are two and a half years old!

I have a hard time wrapping my head around the fact that my baby boy is two and a half.  I know I've said this time and time again but seriously, this is the best age. You are so much fun and have the goofiest personality.  You can be shy around people you don't know but around us and family, you are hilarious :)

At two and a half, you are all boy.  You're all about cars, trucks, playing in the dirt and being sweaty.  I can't even imagine what you will be like as a teenager.  You also want to be just like your daddy.  Whenever he is mowing the grass you have to get your lawn mower out. Whenever he is blowing the dirt, you have to get your blower out.  And when he is finished doing the yard, you have to place your lawn mower and blower right next to his.  While I wish you were more of a mamma's boy, it's pretty cute watching you follow in your Daddy's shadow.

At two and a half, you have no fear when it comes to the pool.  It's completely different than last summer and you are ready to swim.  You are kicking and even jumping off the side by yourself. As a mom, this is terrifying yet so exciting all at the same time.

At two and a half, you like to eat.  A lot.  I'm pretty sure mac n'cheese is your favorite and you would eat this every night if we let you.  You're also obsessed with donut holes.  You stayed with your grandparents recently and you ate 12 donut holes... It doesn't surprise me but don't expect to get that much when you're with us!

At two and a half, you are very chatty!  It is so fun to have conversations with you and I am surprised daily with the words and phrases you have picked up and are saying.  I can't say that I understand everything you say but it is close.  Most of your conversations revolve around cars (whether they are fast, red, a police car...) trucks (firetrucks, dump trucks, trucks with big tires...) and playing in the mulch.  You also love to watch the movie Cars and Airplanes and your favorite TV shows are Mickey Mouse Clubhouse and Sheriff Callie.  You're always repeating phrases and know all the characters.

At two and a half, you are so full of life.  You have so much energy and are truly such a happy boy. Your smile is contagious as is your belly laugh.  You still do your "happy dance" whenever you are excited and it is awesome. You give the best hugs and sweet kisses.  You also love your little brother which makes me so happy.  I can't wait to see your friendship grow over the years.

Love you H Man!!

Charlie at Six Months...

Charles Davis.... you are six months old! 

This has definitely been the best month yet!  You have changed so much and we are really seeing your personality.  You are such a sweet baby and seriously have the best smile.  You weigh 16 1/2 pounds and are wearing 6-9 month clothes.  You are in size 2 diapers but as soon as we finish this box we will move you up to size 3.

We tried food again and you can't get enough of it!  I started off giving you food just at night but we've giving you food in the morning now too.  You have had sweet potatoes, butternut squash, carrots, apple sauce, bananas and pear.  You are taking 5-6 bottles a day with 5 ounces. You always drink your bottles but you definitely seem to be taking more of an interest in food lately.

And again, I just can't get enough of that sweet smile :)

I recently looked at baby pictures of your Dad and I think you two really look alike as babies. You seem to have the same body type as your dad and as I've mentioned before, you're very strong and muscular!

You love to be on your tummy and will play on our mat with toys for a long time.  You're also very interested in all the Disney shows that your big brother likes to watch :)

Our biggest challenge with you is sleeping through the night.  I have started leaving one arm out of your swaddle and that seems to be going pretty well.  You still wake up sometime between 1-3 am and one of us ends up going and putting your pacifier back in your mouth.  I have tried letting you cry it out but can't let you go more than just a few minutes.  You then usually wake up between 4-5 am and at that point you're ready for a bottle.  Once we give you a bottle though you go back to sleep for a few hours.  This works out fine on the weekends when we can sleep in but the mornings are a little rough during the week.

Naps are also not consistent.  Some days you will take several naps and some days you barely nap at all.  Most of your naps on the weekend are in your car seat and while I know we need to work on this and get you used to sleeping in your crib, it's hard because the weekend is normally when we're on the go.

You went swimming for the first time this past month and I think it was a little too cold.  You weren't very excited about getting your feet wet but I'm hoping you'll get used to the pool as the water warms up this summer :)

I think my favorite milestone this past month is that you are sitting up!  You still lose your balance every now and then so we need to make sure you're on a padded surface but I love that I can set you on the floor with a few toys are you are content.  You constantly have something in your mouth so we have to make sure you are surrounded with toys with usually isn't a problem with your big brother....

Speaking of big brother, you love Henry and he loves you!  He is always bringing you toys and constantly wants you to hold his "Leo".  You give him the biggest grins and don't even seem to mind the fact that he always wants to hold you or lay on top of you.

Brotherly love...

I know I mentioned that you liked to eat but I don't think I mentioned what a messy eater you are!! I don't remember Henry making such a big mess at this age which is a little worrisome but you are definitely pretty cute. Who cares if you have carrots all over your face, chair, wall....?!?

We celebrated Mother's Day this past month and I couldn't be more blessed to be the mother of you two boys.  Life is a little crazy and chaotic right now but I love it and wouldn't change a thing. I'm also so excited about the relationship you're going to have with your brother as you two get older.

One of your favorite things to do is play airplane.  You love when we lift you in the air and you give the best giggles :)

And lastly, I have to include an action shot.  You are ALL about the toys lately and your dad likes to call you bam bam because you're always banging your fists or toys against your body.  It's pretty cute but also can be a little dangerous if you get in your line of fire...

Charlie boy, we are so in love with you and you are such a perfect fit to our family.  Looking forward to this next month!