Novembre

Oh November, I'm looking back at you from January, and you feel so far away!  I'm so grateful for all we have seen&done that past two months.  The holidays always seem so full, so quick, and so sweet. It is lovely to walk back through my snapshots & realize how much we were able to do!

Of course to begin, my sweet baby David turned 9 months old!  He had his checkup & weighed in at 19 lbs 12 oz & 30 inches long!  Amazing.  This little fella brings us more joy than we could ever have guessed.

We had never gone before, but this year we made it out to Jax beach to see the air show!  It was amazing & our boys really enjoyed watching the planes do all their stunts.  The pilots are incredible, and the weather was absolutely awesome: windy & cool, but we did wear shorts!

My birthday rolls around each November, and this year I turned 33!  My amazing hubs made me breakfast in bed, & it came delivered with the 3 sweetest faces.  I am really surprised that I get to be momma to four little boys, and I am so thankful.  There is no better present than what I've been given!

Of course, I cannot lie, I do love a beautiful card & fresh flowers on my breakfast table.  The little things y'all.

My boys singing to me, even David made it in this shot!  It looks like he is trying to blow out my candles! haha.  My heart.

November brought the end of our 3rd baseball season, and Coach Daddy got to pose with these two little sluggers.  We have had a blast the past two years on the teach with the Hintons in charge.  They are the best Coach & team mom ever!  It makes all the difference.

Thank you Coach Rob!!  You are awesome!  He was giving out their trophies, and he said, "James is all over the place, and Hayden is all business!  We gotta get James to do that."  Boy, was he right.  haha, James doe a great job, but he gets so excited it distracts him from the game.  Hayden is mr. serious, and he LOVED getting people out! haha, a little too much!

David has started crawling all over the house now, and Hayden started playing 'chase me' with him.  I love their sweet bond- such a tender side of Hayden that doesn't show up with his other brothers.

The boys couldn't believe that David was standing up in his crib!  They said, "Mom, you have to take a picture!"  haha, I think they have caught my photo bug early.  James is also such a kind brother to David; he wanted to read to David and put his arm all the way around him.  Again, my heart.  He is definitely the first born, and he really takes care of his two youngest brothers.

I received my Love Not Lost swag from their fund raiser & i was so excited!  I love the t shirt, and the logo is so beautiful.  This non profit supports families who have a member with a terminal diagnosis, and my friend Ashley runs it.  She founded it after losing her daughter Skylar at 21months old.  She & I went to college together, and our first babies were 6 weeks apart.  After suffering such loss, she was moved to give to others going through was she did.  They provide a photography session free of charge as well as a photo book to keep the memories of the loved ones preserved.  Please check them out!  They need more supporters to keep their work going! LoveNotLost.org

November brought us Thanksgiving celebration at preschool & big school.  I love getting to see my boys make fun crafts, and sings, and celebrate.  It is always a special treat to be with them on those days.

Our boys had the whole week of Thanksgiving off, and we had a new niece to go see!!  So we rented a cabin in Northern Alabama, and we got to stop in Atlanta on the way to & from the cabin.  What a lovely family vacation!  We got to see my brother & his family which is always a treat for the kids.  They love playing with Corrie & Madeline so much.

Our little cabin in the woods was just perfect for us that week.  Enough space & planned our all our meals.  I got to just cook & hang out & it felt like such a treat.  I don't know why, but being able to let David nap & let the big guys play outside all day & having the quiet in between was what I call vacation.  The cooking didn't even feel like a chore because we got to enjoy the good food, and I wasn't busy with anything else.  haha, funny how that can happen?

We got to meet our first Prose niece!!  Nora Mae Prose was born Nov 11th, 2016 & she was only just shy of two weeks old when we got to meet her.  What a little doll baby!  We were so excited.

James loves babies, so of course he wanted to hold Nora.  He has a tender heart, to be sure.

I got to hold her too!  My hands are always to full of my own boys, that I don't always get to enjoy my nephews & niece as babies, but this time I did!  Precious baby girl.

Of course, my heart is super happy to have my hands full of this baby boy all day, everyday.  I have to take a selfie of us every now & then so I get in the pictures!

I caught him sleeping like this one morning for his nap.  My mom said I slept like this too, bum side up.  I had to send her a snap shot of him like this.

James found a whole set of toy soldiers & spent the week setting up battles on the playhouse porch.  haha, he is always fun to photograph because of his details to his characters.

We took the boys on a hike around the mountains where we were staying, and it was a day of wilderness paradise.

We cooked all day & ate Thanksgiving dinner out on the back porch of our cabin around 4pm when the sun was still shining & the day wasn't cool yet.  It was so nice that the Proses got to come spend the time with us!

We met John&Kelsey for dessert & second dinner later, and got to see Nora one more time.  She is such a cute little peanut, tiny & thin little legs.  Smaller than any of my babies, so such fun to see.  John&Kelsey were doing amazing, and they really seem to be enjoying all the new joys & challenges that parenting brings.

Hayden's favorite thing: hot chocolate & making the 'Snoopy mad face'! haha

The leaves were just at the end of their beauty when we were in the mountains, and the boys really loved playing in the ones already fallen.  I'm glad we don't have to rake leaves at home though!!

One afternoon, these two fell asleep on the couch together, and I couldn't help myself but take pictures of them.  The sweetest.

This was a little dance party the boys had in my room when David was getting dressed & ready.  I had to try & snap a glimpse.  I'm laughing about it all over again.

Before we piled in the car, we took one last picture of these four on the front porch.  It never gets old to me.

We drove back through Atlanta, and got to see Grammy&Papa one more time.  I loved seeing them twice that trip, and it is always fun to be taken care of by Grammy.  This little Christmas tree bib was the first little taste David had of the Christmas fun to come after Thanksgiving was over.  I wore it as a baby I'm sure!

Thank you Lord for our time with our family.  For the sports & friends & schools that we frequent.  Thank you for the impact those things have on us, but also the impact we have on them.  Thank you for the presence of family in our lives & the time we get to spend together.  Thank you for teaching me about the gift of just being present- removing the expectations from others & just giving what I have, my time & attention.  Thank you for allowing us to celebrate the blessings you have given, and thank you for the annual beckoning to be together.  We are thankful for all you give Lord.  Amen.