Happy Halloween!

Happy Halloween friends! I can't believe it's the last day of October! I love this time of year so much, but it always flies by! We have lots of fun planned for today. Starting off with a cute little halloween parade at Jacks school and then we are having some friends over for dinner and trick or treating! Should be a fun day!

I thought it would be fun to show what the boys have been for Halloween in years past! I always love looking at how much they have grown over the years..

2014 | Jack was just about to turn 1 and he was a Chick Magnet 

2015 | Graham was born 4 days earlier and was still in the hospital so we spent Halloween with Graham and Jack went trick or treating with my In-laws, he was Mickey Mouse! (Graham may be wearing this same costume tomorrow!)

 The sweet NICU nurses bought all the babies these cute little onesies, its hard to believe this was a NB and huge on him.

2015 | My Fireman and his dalmatian...I loved these costumes! The boys still play with this fireman costume to this day, in fact Jack claims it's what he wants to wear tomorrow night to trick or treat...whatever works, right?

And there you have it, my sweet littles all dressed up! Can't wait to take more pictures and see what they go as tonight...I'm certain it won't be what they have been saying they wanted to be for a month (eye roll)

*linking up with Beth

Graham is TWO!

I hope ya'll had a great weekend! We had such a fun one. We celebrated our sweet Grahammy turning TWO! We also had the boys joint birthday party yesterday, needless to say it was a weekend full of cake! I plan on recapping their party once I get pictures back my babysitter took for me. 

Today's post is dedicated to my sweet baby boy! If you want to go back and read his birth story check out part 1 and part 2...It explains all about his stay in the NICU and his rough little first week of life. And to see his First Birthday check out here.

Grahammy, 

I cannot believe that you are TWO! How in the world did that happen? You are the sweetest little boy ever. You officially have turned into a toddler. How you aren't a baby anymore is beyond me. I still think of you as the little 6 lb 13oz baby boy that you were. Your sweet disposition brings a smile to everyones face. You light up a room with your "hey!" and a wave to whoever you meet. You've never met a stranger, just the other day you were with me in Harris Teeter just talking away and waving to anyone that passed us. 

Graham you light up our life. You adore your big brother. The friendship ya'll have developed is so special. Ya'll love to play with each other and if you aren't running around chasing after one another you are usually sitting right next to each other. The random hugs you will give Jack are the sweetest. You have a new found attachment to your daddy but you will forever want your mama more than anyone. Unless I am not home you only want me to put you to bed. And I adore our nightly rocking and singing to each other. You wake up with a smile every morning. You are taking one 3 hour nap a day and sleeping at least 12 hours at night. A total rockstar sleeper and I am so thankful for that! 

Sweet Grahammy I just can't believe you are two. We are so thankful that God chose us to be your parents. We couldn't imagine life without you! Your curly red hair and big blue eyes melt my heart every single day. I cannot wait to watch you grow over this next year. You are really starting to become independent, wanting to do everything Jack does and constantly saying "I do!" You and your brother make every day worth getting up for, even during the times when you are whining and driving me crazy I am still so thankful to be your mommy! 

I love you so much sweet boy!! 

*linking up with Biana

5 Thing That Bring Me Joy

Happy Friday ladies! Today I am guest co-hosting the Five Things That Brings Me Joy link-up. I always love participating in this, its a fun take on five on Friday.  Be sure to link up below with what is bringing you joy this month!

O N E | Blog friends turned real friends... Earlier this week I got to meet sweet Owen and her precious Vivi for lunch! Owen has quickly become one of my besties. She is the sweetest friend and was really there for me when things were happening with my MIL. I'm so thankful she only lives 35 minutes from me and hope to get together again soon!

T W O | Seeing my boys becoming best friends...Jack and Graham have really blossomed in their friendship lately. They love playing together and I will randomly find them hugging each other just because. They are finally able to stand still and somewhat pose for a photo, (A bloggers dream, ha!)

T H R E E | Going to church with my family...Up until recently Church has not been something that we have gone to very often. Not because we didn't want to but with two young boys it was often hard to get there. Naps, stranger danger, it just wasn't something that we made a priority. However, Jack and I got into a routine of going over the summer and finally this fall we have gotten into the four of us going. We even went to my FIL church on Sunday and sat with him. I loved that we were all there together and seeing Graham go into the nursery without crying warmed my heart! I don't hate the cute church clothes the boys get to wear either!

F O U R | Watching my boys interact with their grandaddy... The boys have always had such a special bond with my FIL but since the passing of my MIL in August I think their bond has grown even more. It's the sweetest thing to see them run up to him and give him hugs and kisses. I know that it has helped mend all our hearts to watch them together!

F I V E | A diet coke from Chick Fil A or McDonalds... This is the silliest thing but man I love a fountain Diet Coke. A simple thing but one that makes me so happy.

The Hosts: Hall Around Texas / Our Pretty Little Girls / Wife Mommy Me

Meet our October guest hosts:
Emily from Three Boys and a Girl & Johannah from The Sirois Family

Be sure to check out their blogs to learn more about them.

Toddler Talk: Meal Time

Hey ya'll! Happy Tuesday, yesterday was the Monday-est Monday ever. We all are fighting some sort of crud, I woke up with no voice and my head progressively started pounding more and more. Hoping that we all wake up feeling better! 

I'm going to get real with you for a minute, here is a mom confession I have. I am terrible when it comes to mealtimes. Giving advice on getting a baby to nap, I got. Helping you through cry it out, I can do it all day every day. But get my child to eat a bite of rice and all hell breaks loose! 

Jack was an amazing eater up until about 18 months. When he realized that he could say no and push things off his plate is when it took a turn for the worse. Pretty much since then he has survived on few things. Yogurt, Cheese, Peanut Butter, waffles, mac n cheese, pancakes, and of course junk food (gummies etc.) However as of late, literally he wants to eat nothing but a waffle taco (PB on a waffle folded in half), or a PB sandwich. He literally will eat this 3 times a day if I let him. The only meat I can get him to eat is Mcdonalds nuggets, he used to love CFA but I can't even get him to eat that now. It's beyond frustrating!! 

Thank goodness for Graham, who will eat anything. He eats what we eat for supper 99% of the time. Last night we had a knock down drag out over a bite of rice. And that is when I realized we have a major issue on our hands. All we wanted him to do was to take one small bite of rice, and then he could have whatever else he wanted for supper. He. Would. Not. Do. It. He sat in the chair at the table for 45 minutes screaming his head off because he refused to do it.  We have told him that when he turns 4 (Nov 5th) that he is going to be eating what we eat for dinner. 

So I'm coming to you asking for help! Did any of your kids go through this? What tips and tricks do you have for me? He literally didn't eat dinner last night because of this. He is already so skinny that I hate for him to miss a meal but it's getting totally out of hand and it needs to be nipped and quickly! 

If you are going through this same thing with your toddlers right now, bless you. I feel your pain!! 

*linking up with Beth

Friday Favorites

Happy Fri-YAY!! Ya'll, its finally feeling like FALL!! I am so happy. gone are the high humidity temps. Bring on all the fall weather fashion...and with that I bring you my favorite fall staples right now, plus a great discount code for you boy mamas!

O N E | I recently got this sweater and I am in love with it. So much so that I ordered it in another color. It's light weight, so it's perfect for this time of year. The back is a big longer so it can be worn with leggings too!

T W O | I also got this sweater and am equally as obsessed. It's SO soft! Longer in the back so can be worn with leggings (duh, my only requirement with a top). Both sweaters are looser fitting which is my jam! Also, I just discovered when writing this post that it can be worn as off the shoulder, mind blown!

T H R E E | These booties. I love a tan colored bootie. These are so comfy! I like that they don't come up too high on my ankle and they have the cute cutouts on the side. I got them during the anniversary sale but they are currently on sale for 10% off!

F O U R | Since cooler mornings are upon us it's time to break out my slippers. I hate walking on cold floors. I posted about these slippers last year and I still wear them just as much! I think the gold is so fun and gaudy and since i'm just wearing them around the house they are perfect!

And for a totally not fashion related fifth favorite!

F I V E | I have been searching for some artwork to finish off Jacks room. I have not done a tour of his room because he has one major wall that is empty. It's no secret that the boy loves anything with wheels! So of course I did an ETSY search and found this darling company, Little Grippers! Sweet Julia contacted me and wanted to offer my readers a discount code. At checkout use EmilysBlog for 20% off! I love so many of them that it's hard to pick a favorite. This is just a small selection of her choices, Jack loves the firetrucks, construction trucks, and police cars.

*Linking up with Andrea, April, and Katie

What's Happening Wednesday- Trip To The Mountains

Hey Ya'll! Sorry for the radio silence over here the past several days! On Saturday I loaded up the boys and we headed west towards the NC Mountains! This was my first solo road trip with the boys and I was super nervous. I'm happy to report that they were both so good both there and back. I do think Graham said "mama' 567069546 times just on the way there, but at least he wasn't crying!

I think the hardest part about traveling with two small kids is the whole stopping for the bathroom thing. Luckily on our way there we stopped for lunch at Steak n Shake and we did the bathroom there and then didn't have to stop again.

We were going just north of Boone, I went to college at Appalachian State so I was so excited to be back in that area. I loved my time at App. The drive up was gorgeous, the leaves were changing and you just felt fall all around! We arrived mid-afternoon and just let the kids run around and play. We were visiting my best friend Lesley. We have been friends for 12 years. We met one summer working at Camp Hollymont and became instantly attached. She was going to school at App and I ended up transferring there from Alabama the winter after that summer we met. I wanted to get certified to teach in NC and App has an amazing teaching program. Lesley and I were roomies for the remainder of our time at App. We were in each others weddings and now we both have 2 kids. They are all stair steppers. But funny enough her 2 are almost exactly the same distance apart as my two (as in, they are both just days shy of being 2 years apart). She has two girls who are precious. Lily has red hair and we laughed the whole time thinking that all of our kids could be related just by their hair color!

The whole trip was so relaxing. We basically just hung out at her house the entire time with the exception of going to church (her husband is a minister) and going to the most picturesque pumpkin patch ever! The weather turned super chilly Monday and we didn't venture out that day except to run to the grocery store.

The boys and I headed home yesterday and they were absolutely perfect the entire ride! We had the best time visiting them and I love that now our kids are going to be life long friends!

Now for picture overload!

*Linking up with Jenn