Father's Day

Gram and I were incredibly excited to celebrate Gavin's first Father's Day. Even though Gram was only 7 months old at the time, he admires Gav like you wouldn't believe. I've never seen anyone look at someone the way Gram looks at his daddy. The instant my husband walks in sight, Gram's face lights up and he moves his body in excitement. It could be any time of the day, bright and early in the A.M. or right before Gram goes down for the night. He knows what his father means to him. They could play all day and night, if I'd let them. They were meant for each other because they both have a crazy amount of energy all the time. I love watching my two loves laugh and play, a mother's dream. 

So. Gram decided to give Gavin a baseball with his hand print on it. Gram's hands are quite large for a little baby, so the print barely fit on there. Haha. Gavin's favorite sport to play when he was growing up was baseball. So naturally, he wants Gram to play like he did. I collected all or most of the pictures of Gram and Gavin together since Gram was born and got them printed. I also printed cute and memorable pics of Gram, too. I did a little photoshoot of Gram next to the letters D and A so they would spell Dad for Father's Day. I put all the pics in a photo album in chronological order. I had pictures professionally done of Gram and I when he was three months old and had those printed. I put those in pictures frames for Gavin to take to his new job, too. The look on Gavin's face when he opened his presents made me so happy. I could tell Gavin is so thrilled to be a daddy and he loves it so much. He thought the baseball was precious and loved looking back when Gram was such a tiny little guy. This made me smile.

I am so grateful to have a wonderful husband, who loves me more than life itself, who puts me ahead of his own needs, constantly. He has been a perfect partner in crime and someone I can really confide in. I love him unconditionally. He is the perfect dad and role model for Gram. I'm so blessed to be with him everyday and see him take care of our son. I love their special bond. I'm excited to see Gavin over the course of our life time raising our kids. They couldn't be luckier to have him for a dad.

Mr. & Mrs. Howard Thruston

Thankfully, Howard could bring his sweet wife Emily down to see us. We had been waiting such a long time to get to spend time with them. I have only met her once before, a year along, for less then 48 hours. I have texted, facebooked and spoken with her on the phone a bit, but I was thrilled to spend some actual in person time with her. They arrived in AZ on Wednesday May 23rd and stayed until Sunday morning. As soon as I heard they had made it to my Aunt Judy's house where they were staying, I packed up my family and rushed over. 

The whole weekend we tried to hang out with the newlyweds as often as we could. Gram naturally has a pretty strict sleep schedule and he won't eat anywhere but in a familiar dark room, so our time together was a little less than I'd hoped for. The life of a new mama I suppose. Thursday we hung out at Aunt Judy's to visit and swim. Friday Gram and I met up with them at Nordstrom Rack and then we went to Chandler mall. You'd be surprised how much you can learn about someone by shopping with them. After Gram was down for the night, we got to have them over Friday night for a little pizza and a movie date night. That only made me seriously wish we lived closer. I'd love to double date with them, they are so much fun! Saturday they took us out to lunch at Sweet Cakes Cafe in downtown Mesa. Later that afternoon, Tami babysat Gram for me so I could meet up with them at Scottsdale mall. We spent most of our time at H&M, Forever 21 and the Vans store. Emily is so fun to shop with since we have similar styles. Sunday morning my family went over to say goodbye to our new sister, brother, and cousin Sheri. Aunt Judy made everyone breakfast and we just chatted and played with the dogs. It was so sad to say goodbye because I haven't got to spend much time with Howard since he moved to Utah. We see him every six months or so. Now we have an other family member we love and adore who we will miss just as much! They are awesome people and a verrry cute couple. 

Mother's Day

My Very First (real) Mother's Day

Last year I felt pretty special to be caring my first born child on this wonderful holiday. This year, however, made it feel so much more real. My perfect son is now almost 7 months old. Wow, time flies. He is beautiful and awesome and I can't imagine my life without him. Everything revolves around him in a good way. This day was more of a celebration of him rather than myself. We went to church as usual and then came home to hang out with my mother-in-law and sister-in-law, who are of course, mothers. After that we went to see my mom and her step mom at the Thruston's house. Between me, my mother-in-law and my mom, we exchanged roses cards, nail polish, a shirt and more roses. The joys of being a girl. 

Being a mother reminds me of how grateful I am of my two mothers and how incredibly thoughtful they are. Tami puts every single person first, even if she had just met you. She always babysits for us, gives me advice on how to take care of Gram better, and is the perfect example of what a modern day wonder woman is. My mom is incredibly talented. She can sing, paint, cook, bake, sew, garden, reupholster, decorate and so much more. She has always show me how to develop my gifts I have been given and to always continue learning. I'm so blessed to have these incredible women in my life.

Gavin, Gram and I went on a "staycation" to celebrate Mother's Day the following weekend. It was the first time we had slept alone with our new family. We live with my in-laws so it was nice to just be quietly with each other. We stayed at the Scottsdale Resort. We went swimming, slept a lot, went to dinner there, and went out to breakfast. I love the time I get to just be with my little family.

*add iphone pics*

Jenna's Wedding Day

One of my good friends and look-a-likes, Jenna, got married to Enrique May forth. She was so sweet to ask me to do her hair along with three other members of her bridal party. We did a trial for her hair a month prior. Then, the day of I went to her hotel in Chandler at 7:00 am to get them ready. It was such a blast to be a part of such a special day for such a special friend. After everyone's hair was done, I headed back home to get myself ready for the actual ceremony. 

Jenna and Enrique are Catholic so they were married in Saint Mary's Catholic church. It was a beautiful ceremony and you could feel the spirit there. They had a full "mass" service which included the sacrament and everything. It was amazing. She was so happy and the room was filled with love. 

After the ceremony, I went with some old friends I used to work with to go hang out. After that, I met up with Gav at the cocktail hour they had before the reception and dinner. Wow. I now know why people get engaged for a year or longer. This reception was phenomenal! The venue was stunning, the food was gourmet, and the decorations were outstanding. Gavin and I felt like we were at a five start restaurant. We had such a romantic time looking around, seeing the newlywed's love, and reminiscing about our own special day. What a fun treat! We still talk about how we would like to have a "renewal of vows" ceremony and throw a big party!

[The Beautiful Bride]

(Amy, me, Jenna, Enrique, and Emily)

{A few weeks before at her Bachelorette party at Olive & Ivy}