Unsolicited Advice...

Ahhh...unsolicited advice.  It's typically the kind of advice that you smile and nod and do your own thing anyway.  Or the kind of advice that leaves you thinking, "And who are you to think you can tell me what to do??"...  I've never been the type that's liked being told "how" or "what" to do.  When I was 5 years old I wanted to learn to tie my shoes.  I asked my mom to show me the procedure, then locked myself in my room--by myself--until I could do it on my own.  I was the only Kindergartener that could tie shoes and would help my teacher tie all the shoes before we went out to recess.  That's just me...I'm an independent spirit.  But, something stopped me in my tracks today.  FOUR people in FOUR different places gave us the same advice.  You've gotta think there is something to this!!

We had a WONDERFUL day!!  Our dear friends Kyle and Laura were suppose to be visiting us this weekend from Atlanta, but unfortunately, things didn't work out.  So, we were left with a wide open weekend...only the second one we have had since July 1st.  You forget how much you need these kind of weekends when you're in the day to day grind.  But, it was so nice to take an expected breather (even though we were sad we couldn't spend time with our friends).  Friday night we went to Sweet Adelaide's  4th Birthday party and got to meet some special people in the lives of our friends Carey and Jeff.  We had a great time and felt so blessed to be part of the celebration of Miss Addie!!  Saturday, We woke up, went to breakfast at Clary's, went to the Antique Market and bought a couple of pieces (one to refinish), went to Home Depot, ate Thai food for lunch, worked on our new furniture piece, ate dinner, put Ella to bed, worked on our furniture piece some more, watched football, and now Brent is asleep and I'm blogging.  I'd say it was a PERFECT day accented with some valuable food for thought.

So, back to this UNSOLICITED ADVICE-- wherever we went today, Ella caught everyone's attention.  To be honest, she commands attention wherever she goes.  If you aren't looking at her, she "yells" at you until you are.  Once you're looking at her, she does what we like to call, the BEAUTY PAGENT wave and gives you a huge smile.  She makes friends WHEREVER she goes.  Today we had four people say the same thing... "I remember when my baby girl was that age.  She's 22 (or 23, or 26) now.  At the time, you think they will be young forever.  Then, one day she was all grown up; it's like I blinked and she wasn't my little baby anymore.  Cherish these moments while you have them because it goes so quickly..."  WOW-- four different people... same message; maybe we should stop to listen.

I read a quote or an article, I can't remember which, before Ella was born and it gave a piece of advice that said you don't need the perfectly clean house or the most elaborate dinners...you'll have plenty of time for all that.  You have you're children for 18 years...make the most of it...you can have that perfect house when they're grown... having your babies at home will pass in the blink of an eye...enjoy the perfect moments inside the imperfection. ABSOLUTELY!!  I'm holding on to this piece of advice.  Don't worry...my house is clean enough and sanitary (yes...I'm a borderline germaphobe)...but if I have to choose between mopping or going to the park with Ella...the park is going to win out ten times out of ten.  She'll be a year in less than two months and we're going to take the time to enjoy her--every minute counts.

So, our house may not be perfect, we may eat out more than we should, but we are going to savor every minute we have with our children while we have them home with us.  Life's too short for focusing on being perfect in everyone else's eyes!  For now, we'll focus on US-- and for once, take the UNSOLICITED advice and enjoy every second we have with our Dear Ells Bells...as we affectionately call her...we think that sounds PERFECT to us!

Visit to Roswell

Two weekends ago we all headed to Roswell--in two separate cars.  Ella and I made the trip in my car and Brent came later that day in his car.  He had to work until noon and I knew I was staying until Monday, so two cars were necessary.  This was the first time I had been back to Roswell since we settled in.  To be perfectly honest with you, I was really dreading the drive alone with Ella, but was very excited to go visit.  To be even more honest, the distance from Roswell was my only reservation about moving to Savannah.  Just like most girls I know, I'd like to be near my family.  A lot of times it's really hard for me because many my friends talk about going shopping or having lunch with their moms because they live close by. In some ways I feel like I am missing out. But, this is something I am adjusting to and am working hard to accpet.  Savannah is a great and we have a wonderful opportunity here, but that doesn't make it any closer to Roswell (unfortunately).

We had a great, but busy weekend in Roswell.  Friday night we got dinner at none other than El Jinete with my mom and brother.  El Jinete is my favorite Mexican restaurant in the world...they seriously know us there!  Just be careful not to drink too many margaritas...those things can be lethal!  Saturday we woke up and my mom and I cleaned out my high school closet.  I had done this once before, but the first time I was too nostalgic to let things go...this time I decided to only save the most important things...pictures, cards, writing.. things that were important to me.  Wow!!  I have to say, I had a wonderful childhood/teenage years.  So many awesome memories and so many wonderful friends and people have impacted my life.  It's amazing how boxes full of things can take you back to another time.  It was fun!!

After the closet cleaning, Brent, Jason, Ella and I went to my Aunt and Uncle's house in Marietta to visit my Dad and my Granny.  Granny has lived in Memphis since I was born, but recently, my grandfather who was her caretaker fell off his scooter and shattered his hip.  He had surgery and shortly thereafter went into cardiac arrest.  They were able to revive him, but he has been on a ventilator and dialysis ever since and remains unresponsive.  The prognosis isn't good for Pappy, but we continue to pray for his recovery.  We were suppose to go see him this fall.  This is where things get complicated...I feel like a terrible granddaughter just writing these words-- I had not seen Granny and Pappy in 6 years.  They had not met Brent, they had not met Ella.  Things just got so complex--my dad decided he didn't want to be married to my mom anymore, I got married, moved to Augusta, then Dallas, etc..and I just never made it to Memphis.  But, here's the bottom line...I should have made time to go.  I regret not doing it.  I talked to Pappy on his birthday in January and he was so excited that we were going to come see him when we moved back--he was going to see me and meet Brent and Ella.  I write all this in hopes that if there is someone in your life you haven't seen lately, DO IT...you just never know what might happen.  So Pappy is still in Memphis and Granny is in GA now.  Granny has alzheimers and had trouble remembering us...BUT, she really enjoyed our visit!!  We brought her flowers--she always had the most AMAZING garden.  She got to meet Brent, who she said was SO HANDSOME (I agree) and Ella who she kept saying..."She's so pretty.  Bring me that baby."  Granny has always LOVED babies.  She had trouble connecting the dots that Jason and I were all grown up and that we were in fact her grand babies.    Once again, I felt the regret for waiting so long to see her.  She is old and frail and on hospice, but she still had that same sense of humor she always had.  She told me I was beautiful and Jason was handsome and I told her she was beautiful too.  She smiled and said, "I'm just old, really old."  It was wonderful to see her.  Here are some things you should know about Granny--she loves  Jesus soooo much and was the most amazing southern food cook ever, made the world's best chocolate cake,  loved the ocean, jewelry, getting a tan, her garden, playing the organ and piano beautifully, and talking.  She's forgotten a lot of this now, but smiled when I reminded her of the things and memories I loved about her.  It was bittersweet.  I'm so grateful we all got to see her.  I'm heading back to Roswell at the end of October and plan to go spend more time with her.  I'm going to bring her a framed picture of the ocean, so she can imagine herself in her favorite place.  I will post a picture of us with her.  She is teeny tiny and so old now, but she's still our Granny.  Ella enjoyed visiting Granny and her Grandpa too.  My dad thought she had grown so much!  She really has-- she will be a year in two months!!

The four of us headed back to my mom's house and headed to Your Pie to eat pizza and watch the UGA game!  Your Pie is AWESOMELY delicious and you should really check it out!!  And we beat Tennessee!!  During half time we headed home where I got to make my first diaper cake for my dear friend Laura's baby shower.  It was really fun to make and I'll post a picture of the final product below.  It wasn't bad for my first try!

Sunday, I helped hostess Laura's baby shower in Buckhead and Brent headed back to Savannah. The shower went great and Laura got some beautiful gifts.  She has the nicest high school friends who are always so sweet to  include me in celebrations for Laura.  I am blessed to have Laura as a friend and cannot wait to meet her and Kyle's baby in December!!!!!  While I was at the shower, Nana got to spend the day with Ella.  Ella loves spending time with Nana.  They do all kinds of things like rock, say nursery rhymes, learn new words, play with toys, and have lots of visitors.  Ella enjoys all the special attention she gets at Nana's!  One thing that is an awesome break for me is that my mom loves to give Ella a bath, get her ready for bed, and rock her to sleep.  Getting Ella to sleep isn't the easiest task, so it's so nice when Brent and I can have a little vacation from it.  My mom seems so much better at getting her to sleep than we are!!

I ended up staying in Roswell longer than I anticipated--until Thursday.  We spent the week trying to go through things to keep and things my mom no longer needed at her house.  She is planning to sell her house eventually and downsize.  It's amazing how much you accumulate after living in a house for over 20 years...so many memories and keepsakes...it's crazy how much life happens in the blink of an eye.  Ella and I got to spend time with my mom and my brother which was wonderful.  Jason is looking for a job right now and is living at home.  I hadn't gotten to spend that much quality time with him since before he went to college.  We had a lot of fun.  He's so awesome with Ella and her face lights up when she sees him.  I think he will make a wonderful daddy someday :) The week was both productive and special.  It was so nice to spend time with Nana and Uncle Jason and to help out too!  Ella was SPOILED with attention and loves going to visit.  She is so loved by so many people and is such a lucky little girl.  My mom says Ella is so cute that she can barely stand it--I think it's her larger than life personality!! We are all so blessed to have Ella in our lives!

Being back in Roswell was nice.  No matter how old you are it feels good to go to your childhood home.  Ella and I missed Brent terribly and wish he could have stayed the week with us too.  Everyone missed him...he always makes everyone laugh.  When we got home on Thursday, Ella was really excited (so was I).  She smiled and screamed with joy.  Revisiting your past is wonderful, but savoring every moment in the present is truly a treasure.  I realized going through all our memories and visiting Granny that time really does fly.  In the blink of an eye the years passed.  Someday Ella being a baby will be a distant, dear memory.  My time in Roswell reminded me to cherish every moment, enjoy the now, try to be the person you know you should be, and do things when you have the chance so you won't have regrets.  So many lessons piled into one week!

On our way to see Granny...Ella refused to pose for this one!

Jason, Me, Brent :)

Granny!!  Look at Ella's big smile!!

The Diaper Cake

Sweet

Nana and Ella!

Eating

Finally Fall!!

It's finally fall!!  Fall is my absolute favorite season. It comes just in the nick of time when you don't think you can handle the summer heat anymore.  It just shows up one morning like a long lost friend you've been waiting to see for what seems like forever!  I think God makes us Southerners wait for fall a little longer than everyone else...just so we'll appreciate it more!  Between the leaves changing, pumpkins, Halloween, Thanksgving, college football, the crisp smell in the air, and everything else-- it just puts a smile on your face!

We are enjoying the onset of fall around here.  Even Savannah has cooled down significantly.  We spent last weekend in Dublin with Brent's parents (Mimi and Papa) and had a wonderful time.  Ella enjoyed hanging out with them and we did too.  We spent the weekend relaxing, watching football, and eating wonderful food.  I think I always leave Dublin 5 pounds heavier because Julie is such a good cook...and she sends leftovers home with us too!!  Ella is quite the star when she visits and enjoys laughing and smiling with Mimi and Papa.  She showed off her crawling and pulling up skills all weekend and got to enjoy swinging on the swing with them in this gorgeous weather.  She also got to eat a bowl of vanilla ice cream-- a special dessert from Mimi and Papa.  Boy was that a treat!!  She ate it right up-- I think she's been wondering why her other food doesn't taste as good ever since.  It was a lovely weekend and we had a great time.  It was nice to spend a weekend with Brent's parents.  Brent and I got a little break (even a nap) and Ella got to spend time with her grandparents!  Quite a win-win situation.  :)  Unfortunately, I forgot my camera, so I don't have any pictures to post.

Let's see what else...Ella spends her days now pulling up on the furniture and walking around it.  She loves to crawl but thinks standing and "walking" is way cooler.  She likes to feed herself now and shakes her head no when I try to feed her.  Yes, I would say it's pretty diva-ish behavior.  She'll still let Brent feed her, but not me. I have to lay all her food out and sit down at the table next to her and act like I'm not going to feed her to get her to eat.  It's almost like she wants her privacy or something.  Isn't she a little young to be acting like this?? She's graduated into table food mixed in with some baby food.  She's added unique foods to her list--fried rice, edamame, guacamole, chicken fingers (not too unique, but new), ice cream, and gelato.  She's adventurous!  Ella loves to go on walks and we walk for an hour everyday (hoping this benefits me too and I lose some weight)!!  We walk through Ardsley Park which is a historical neighborhood in Savannah that is absolutely gorgeous.  No two houses are the same and an hour walk flies by.  I feel so fortunate that I am able to stay home with her so we can spend this valuable time together.  She's growing so fast so I'm trying to make every second count.

We are enjoying getting to know our new stomping grounds and are trying out lots of new restaurants.  Ella has a good friend Hudson who is 9 days older than her that she sees at least once a week.  He has red hair too.  They are so cute when we go out to eat with Hudson and his parents.  They sit next to each other in their high chairs and eat their food.  They always want what the other has and sometimes even try to share.  It's precious!  She's enjoying having a friend her age-- I need to get a picture of them together so you can see it.

This morning Ella got her 9 month pictures taken by my high school friend, Lauren Bavaro.  She does amazing work and I just can't wait to see them.  The photo shoot was very "fall" theme and she looked like the poster child of fall with her red hair.  It was so cute.  I'll post as soon as the pics are up.  Check out Lauren's work at http://www.laurennicolestudios.com --she is very talented!!

All and all, we're happy it's fall!  Hope you're having a great fall too!! :) Until next time...here's some recent pictures!  Have a great day!