Neither Here Nor There

Yes I just ripped the title of this post from one of my favorite authors Bill Bryson, but it definitely describes my life right now.  The past 2 and 1/2 weeks have  been all over the place.  I very much feel homeless.....which is odd because my wallet tells me that I am still paying way to much to rent a dumpy little house in Charleston. 

Currently I am at my parents new house (which is absolutely amazing) in Greenville.  However, the adventure began a little over two weeks ago when Garrett left to go to Atlanta for three weeks.  Emerson, myself, and our dog, Stabler, all started out at the condo my parents were renting while their house was being built.  Then we went from there to their new house....that we helped them move into.  Mostly I helped while Emerson hung out in her swing.  The majority of my responsibility during the move was to babysit Emerson and my 93 year old Nanna (i must say keeping up with Emerson is easier than keeping up with Nanna).  Half way into week one, my sister was gracious enough to take Stabler off my hands.  Which is a way bigger deal than it may seem because we just had to put him on Prozac due to his increasingly neurotic behavior as well as a large amount of other medication due to some weird skin allergy he has developed. THANK YOU AMANDA!!!!  

After week 1, Emerson and I headed to Charleston with my friend Kristin and her 4 and 1/2 month old, Bryson.  Kristin and I must either be delusional or extraordinarily naive because we actually believed that we were going to have a relaxing vacation....with 2 babies. On day one of "vacation" Emerson received her first round of immunizations which subsequently caused her to projectile vomit and scream a lot. Day 2 of "vacation" actually wasn't too bad...we went to Murrells Inlet to have lunch with Mandy and her little one, Harrison.  All 3 children were surprisingly well behaved.... and it was so fun to spend time with the Mandy and Harrison.  Day 3 was plagued by Emerson refusing to take a nap for about 12 hours straight and Bryson being insanely constipated.  I won't give more details than that....just believe me when I say it was bad.  

The day after getting back to Greenville, Emerson had yet another marathon of no napping combined with lots of crying..... we had two great days that have been followed by today....no napping and lots of crying. I just told Nanna that I thought I was going to lose my mind and she offered me some of her medication for her "nerves."  I thought that was sweet and generous but I declined. 

All that to say, I am ready for Garrett and I to be together under one roof again....I need some help and I am sick of traveling with a baby.   I miss my husband and my house, but am thankful for the time I have had with family and friends.  

Here are a few pictures from my recent adventures.  Please pray that I don't have to join the Prozac club with our dog (worst case scenario I guess I could take Nanna up on her pills).  :)

Our trip also included a trip to visit the Demooney's and their new little one Tatum. Super dad Clayton, carried Emerson and Bryson to the car...at the same time.

Emerson, Bryson, and Tatum lounging on the couch.

Sweet little Bryson...words do not express how much I love this kid.

Harrison laying a super smooch on Em....we turned our heads a few seconds and he had a death grip on her face (it was super sweet and a little scary all at the same time).

Harrison, Bryson, and Emerson (you think we have a thing for names that end in "son"???)

Casey and Laura meeting Emerson for the first time...so fun!!!

Emerson meeting her Aunt Courtney for the first time. Court got Em the cute outfit she is sporting.  We love and miss Courtney so much!!! (i have no clue why this is underlined in blue)

The 4th!

July 4th of Years Past

The picture above is the one I posted of us last year on the 4th of July. Last year, as a family of two, we dressed alike in red, white, and blue (yes we know how cool we are) and went to see the Greenville Symphony Orchestra play in accompaniment to an awesome fireworks display. Things have definitely changed since then.  This year, we went to visit Garrett's family at their beach house on Fripp Island.  We were so excited to spend time with family, eat good food, play cards, and watch fireworks.  To our surprise, we weren't able to do several of these things because we learned quickly that overnight trips with a 7 week old aren't as easy as we previously thought! 

It was not the travel part that was so difficult....it was being in a new house with lots of new people that proved to be the biggest challenge for little Emerson.  At home Emerson will sleep for 1 and 1/2 hours every 3 hours, our first day at Fripp, she stayed awake for 12 hours straight!!!! Talk about a cranky baby.  She was so interested in her new surroundings that she would not take a nap.  So, instead of watching an awesome live fireworks display with our wonderful family, G and I watched some awesome fireworks on TV while trying to get our little one to go to bed. Everyday we experience the reality that what we want to do and what is best for Emerson are often conflicting.  However, to say that we are in love with Emerson would be an understatement, so we don't seem to mind missing out on things like fireworks.  Plus, Em may be old enough to enjoy the 4th next year (or she may scream b/c of the fireworks, we will see).

Regardless, Emerson got to spend some invaluable time with Garrett's family.  Her grandparents, great grandparents, aunt, and cousin were thrilled to get to snuggle our little lady.....I'm sure they were glad to see us too.  It seems that G and I were so preoccupied with Emerson's difficulty adjusting to her surroundings that we only took 5 pictures.....maybe next time Emerson has a first 4th of July we'll remember the pictures.

Emerson's Great Grandmom feeding her lunch!

(I know, she looks way to young to be a GREAT Grandmom)

Garrett singing a little Meatloaf to Emerson...

it really has a calming effect :)

Me, Emerson, and Aunt Susan on the beach!

(this is right before the live firework show that we had to skip)

Emerson Smiles...just not on command.

Emerson has started smiling!!!! And not just in her sleep, but on purpose and in response to things. It is so cute and to be honest it makes my heart melt. This morning I was sitting with her in my lap and Garrett walked up and kissed her on the head (he was leaving to go to work), and she looked up at him with this huge grin....I loved every second of it! I am realizing what people mean when they say that having kids gets more and more fun every day. I LOVE every second Garrett and I get to spend with her...even when she is screaming (which she does fairly often). We are learning that Emerson is pretty spicy. I have no idea where she got her stubborn, persistent flare from????

Here is a little video of her being cute. She loves to smile, just not when I ask her too. The video is a little dark but you'll get the idea.

Garrett and I are headed to Fripp Island to Spend the 4th with his family, and then we are going to visit my family in Greenville next weekend. I am so excited for Emerson to get to spend time with everyone. She is at such a fun age and I am sad that our family doesn't get to see her more often. So, we will do our best to cherish every second we get to spend with them.

Garrett is leaving Em and I on July 12th to go to Atlanta for 3 weeks (I will be spending most of that time with my family in Greenville) !!!!! While we are sad for him to go, we are so proud of him! He got accepted into a really competitive program with his company and therefore has to attend a 3 week training session. After that, we will start to move a lot, as he will have short work assignments potentially all over the country. So, we could be moving as early as August 1st and could go just about anywhere. We will keep you posted!

We Have Some Seriously Talented Friends!

Garrett and I have been blessed with some amazing friends!  Not only are they great friends, but they are so talented!  

Many of you may have received Emerson's birth announcement this week.  One of my favorite people, Shilo Holder, made them!  Shilo and I were roommates when I lived in Clemson, and I love her so much.  She and her husband Matt live in Atlanta and have a little boy, Cade, who was born in January.  Shilo is definitely one of the craftier people I know.   She makes beautiful announcements, invitations, and greeting cards and her prices are unbeatable. Check out her website shilodawnhandprints.blogspot.com.  Here is Emerson's announcement in case you haven't seen it.  We love it and will cherish it forever....thanks so much Shilo!

On Thursday, our great friends, Matt and Jenna Daniel, came over to take newborn pictures of Emerson.  Jenna and I grew up together, and she, Matt, and Garrett, all went to Clemson together.  The Daniels have started their own photography business, and their work is UNBELIEVABLE!!!!  I feel so blessed to have had Emerson photographed by such a talented photographer.  Garrett and I are so thankful for these pictures.  Here are a few of the pictures...I am going to pick up the CD sometime this week....so be looking for more pictures.  You can check out Matt's work at www.mattdanielphotography.com and at mdpblog.com.   We will definitely have Matt photograph our family for years to come.  

Finally, our friend Margaret, one of my closest friends from college, just got accepted to the art education program at the Savannah College of Art and Design!  We are so proud of her.  She is so talented and has a tremendous passion for art and children.  She graciously took pictures of Emerson in her first few days of life (see earlier post), and created a beautiful piece of artwork for our nursery.  We love you Margaret and we are proud of you.

We are so thankful that our friends have chosen to bless us with their talents!!!!

Harrison and Emerson...Together at Last!

The Brantley Family is back in South Carolina!!!!!! Our best friends Adam and Mandy and their little boy Harrison just moved back to South Carolina from Denver and we could not be happier. We all got together for dinner tonight and it was Harrison and Emerson's first official date. It was amazing really.....as soon as Harrison saw Emerson he said, "Please," like he wanted to see her....it was so cute! He then proceeded to touch her gently, give her a few kisses, and rock her car seat. All in all I'll say the date was a success. I used my phone to capture a few moments from the date......sorry the quality of the photos isn't the greatest.

Also, Emerson is 4 weeks old today (she will be one month on Friday)! I can't believe it...I realize 4 weeks is a little young to be dating but it was supervised.

Emerson at 4 weeks!

Harrison's greeting to Emerson the day she was born!

(he is so cute I can't stand it)

Harrison checking Emerson out....so sweet.

I couldn't take the picture fast enough but Mandy's expression is a result of Harrison giving Emerson a smooch!

Emerson hanging out with her future hubby and in-laws!

Bryson comes to visit!

This weekend we were so blessed to have our great friends Marshall, Kristin, and little Bryson McCall come visit. Kristin and I have been friends since middle school and we lived together all 4 years of college. She and her husband Marshall are definitely like family to us. Their little boy, Bryson, is 10 weeks older than Emerson, and we just knew they would be fast friends. Shockingly the two of them didn't really seem to notice each other very much. In fact, Emerson slept through their second play date. Regardless, we got some really cute pictures of them. I can't imagine Emerson ever being as big as Bryson, but I know she will be soon!

We are so thankful for every second we had with the McCall's...we love and miss them so much!

Garrett, Emerson, and the Baby Bjorn

So, my best friend Mandy graciously allowed us to borrow her Baby Bjorn. For those of you who have no clue what a Baby Bjorn is, it is a little carrier thing that you can put your child in so you can carry your little one and have your hands free. Well during Garrett's attempt to figure out how to use it, he tortured Emerson and then he got thrown up on....it was awesome. And the best part, I got pictures of the whole thing. The good news is, he now knows how to use it.

I also must take a moment to note that GiGi (my mom) does in fact know how to check the blog.....I stand corrected. She does not however know how to post a comment!

Enjoy the pictures....