What I'm Loving Wednesday!

I'm linking up with Jamie for What I'm Loving Wednesday.

This week I am LOVING...

I am loving that our dog Joey's amputation surgery went well.  The vet said there were some complications, but he is eating and drinking just fine.  He thinks that Joey will be able to return tomorrow.

I am loving being home!  We cancelled all of our other summer trips due to Joey's surgery and although I will miss seeing friends and family, it's nice to just be home.

I am loving that we have access to lake visits so close to our house!  We discovered a little beach on a lake just 40 minutes from our door and Evan had a blast.

I am loving my sweet friend Amanda.  She has been so supportive this past week and a half with the whole Joey situation.  She even sent us an edible arrangements during Joey's surgery!

I am loving my little family of three.  Matt has been such a great rock for our family and he impresses me every day!

May Recap

It's official.  I am a bad, bad blogger.  Something happened after Evan's birthday.  I just didn't feel like blogging.  I am thoroughly happy to be jumping back into it though.  

When I started looking back through our pictures, I realized that we had a month filled with very special, close friends.

We enjoyed play dates with Sarah and Blair.

my handsome little boy

sitting, even if it was for just a second

"Mom, come check this out!"

I always love it when these two play together.  It's crazy to know that they will grow up to be in the same grade.

Adam and Emily drove up to stay with us for a weekend.  I always have a blast when they come because we can focus on friendship and babies!  We took Evan on his first trip to the Zoo and he had a blast!

A well deserved cracker break

Later in the month one of my best friends Amanda and her boyfriend Holland came to visit as well.  The thing I love about these two...they make me laugh.  I have never laughed harder than when I am around Amanda and I LOVE it!

Love this girl

Amand and Holland

Enjoying Top Golf

We took Amanda and Holland to Top Golf, In & Out Burger, and downtown McKinney.  It was their first time as guests in our current house and we cannot wait for them to come back and visit again.

The rest of our month consisted of my birthday and Mother's day.  Unfortunately I don't have any pictures of those celebrations.  Instead, I'll end this post with our little artist...

Birthday Happenings

I am way overdue when it comes to recapping Evan's first birthday party.  All in all, it was a success even though he was not interested whatsoever in his smash cake!  His birthday was baseball themed since it was so close to Opening Day. 

The Decorations

All the guests signed a baseball bat for Evan

"Welcome to Baggerly Ballpark"

Evan's monthly photos

A quick picture before a lot of the guests arrived

Concessions

Evan's smash cake

I made nearly all of the decorations myself. My favorite was his birthday banner, of course, but I enjoyed creating it all!  My mom made the delicious cookies, cupcakes, and smash cake.

Here are some images from the party.  Evan was exhausted by the time his cake was served, so he mostly cried and then sat happily in my lap while we opened gifts.  Thankfully he went down very easily for a nap soon after!

On his actual birthday, we enjoyed a ride in his brand new swing, and a cupcake for dessert.  

We appreciate all of our friends and family who came out to celebrate Evan's big day with us.  We wish we had more pictures of his guests, but we tried our best to put our cameras aside and live in the moment with our baby boy.  We cannot wait to see what this next year holds for our family of three!

Wagons, Crawfish, and Easter Eggs

 I ended my four mile run with an exhilaration that doesn't come often.  It wasn't quite like a runner's high (I'm guessing because I don't experience these too often)...it was what I can only imagine is even better.  I was so happy to find myself in one of the greatest places from my childhood: Grandma's House.  Some might pass right through Crowley, Louisiana and think nothing of it, but this is where my childhood memories thrive.  

My cousin Claire captured the essence of this place beautifully in her blog post and it is true..."My cousins, siblings, and I all agree that our grandparent's house is a place of solace for us.  Maybe it's because we spent weeks during the summer staying up late playing on the computer while my grandmother did crossword puzzles on the sofa in her robe.  Or breezy walks to the park a few blocks away over cracked sidewalks.  Or perhaps it's the secret hiding spots beneath the bushes where we used to escape the afternoon sun.  Whatever it is, I associate their house with a peacefulness I don't often feel."

It is very important to me that Evan experiences the magic of Grandma's house.  I want him to run down the stairs after a night's rest and find doughnuts sitting on the the kitchen table.  I want him to learn the proper way to crack open a crawfish and dip it in butter.  Matt knows just how important this is to me.  We plan to make the 7 hour trek once or twice a year. Despite the fact that Evan acts like he is being tortured in his carseat, the trip is worth it.  A million times over.

Evan's first Easter Egg hunt

Happy Easter Baby

Every Easter our family enjoys a large crawfish boil.  Thank goodness Evan likes crawfish.  He is a picky boy.  But he has some Winston blood in him.  The Winstons love crawfish.  Thank goodness Evan fits right into our family.  I didn't want to have to ask him to leave.

Precious Cate with my cousin Anne

He studied the crawfish and then ate 6 tails!

One of the best parts of this particular trip was seeing my brother and amazing SIL, Kathryn.  We don't see them often enough and Evan misses his Tio and Tia!

In the afternoon we took a walk to the park.  We loaded the babies up into a wagon.  I am now trying to convince Matt that I need this wagon.  I don't care if it costs $145.  Our family outings depend on this wagon.  How lame is it to ask for a wagon for my own birthday?

We had the opportunity to take some family pictures on Easter Sunday.

Matt and I braved the drive home with a cranky baby and a bad rainstorm.  We were blessed with a 40 minute nap from Evan.  Will we make this drive again?  Absolutely.  Until we can all get together again, I can look back on this memory and smile.

The Grandkids and spouses minus Nanny's children