First Teddy Bear

I don't know about you but ever since I was a little girl I have loved stuffed animals. There was one in particular that stole my heart immediately and that was my teddy.  My Uncle Mike gave me Teddy the day I was born.  He has always been my favorite and has probably been around much longer than he should have, if you know what I mean!  Teddy has been to every spend the night party, college adventures, and traveled the world. He was always my comfort and companion when I needed one most. Even to this day, my arms still fold as if teddy was snuggled inside of them.

This past Christmas I had a few gifts to open for Westley and one of them was a big box from my uncle Mike.  As soon as I opened the top of the box my eyes filled up with tears because I knew exactly what it was.  He had searched high and low for the perfect first teddy bear for West.   It was such a precious gift and meant more to me than I think he will ever know.

When West gets up from his nap we have started playing with his teddy bear and it has been so cute to watch him discovery how soft he is and see if he can get him in his mouth!

 

I'm excited to follow the future adventures that Westley and his "Teddy" will have!  I'll keep you posted!

Westley's Room

Well our little nugget is 6 1/2 months old and we just put the finishing touches on his room.  I would blame it on the fact that he was 2 weeks early, but we did have 9 months to get ready and still didn't get it all done.  But now that it's complete, it's exactly what I envisioned and I'm loving it.

From the very beginning I knew I didn't want anything very "baby."  I wasn't really into all the animals, trains, bugs, or anything like that. Once we knew his middle name would be London, Bradley really wanted to do a travel or European theme, I wasn't completely sold on the idea but was willing to play with it.  But I did know, I wanted simple.

The whole room started with a swatch of green material with creme polka dots that I fell in love with.  Once we saw how cute an animal print looked with it, the room quickly started to come together.  So then, I decided to bring in some inspiration from Africa and London to equal the perfect combination of our favorite cities.

So here's what we ended up with:

 His bed, dresser, and mobile came from Storkland in Birmingham, Alabama where one of our dear college friends, Adam treated us like royalty and we were so appreciative for all he did for us.

My fabulous friend, JoAnne, put together this super cute bedding. She helped set the whole tone for the room when she found this giraffe print.  It was absolutely perfect.

 

When we first started planning West's room I was obsessed with owls.  So my sweet friend Heather painted some owls to be displayed in the room and did a great job incorporating our two favorite cities in such a cute way.

 Brad had a part in helping decorate the room. He found this super cute decal with some of London's most famous spots that was able to be customized to fit anywhere in our nugget's room.  It was the perfect way to represent London.  (since it was a loved city and his middle name)

 One of my favorite pieces in his room is the changing table.  It was mine when I was a baby and it has been a really special thing to have in the room for West to use.

 The picture hanging over the changing table was a thoughtful gift from our friends Justin and Kara and the sign on the door was lovingly hand-made by Marta.  Both gifts helped put the perfect finishing touch on the London theme in the room.

 The pictures over the dresser were the final touch that took us 6 1/2 months to hang.  Our friends at Bledsoe Photography and JonSpot Photography helped provide some fabulous shots of Westley during his first few weeks.  The pictures have been in the frames for months.  We have just put it off and he's in his room so much sleeping we had to get him out of the house for a couple of hours so that we could do it.  (thanks mom and dad)

So, there you have it.  A sneak peek into Westley's room, where he sleeps so good and we are so thankful!

Hot Fun in the Summertime

All summer I was so excited to be able to take Westley to the pool.  I think deep down I just really missed the beach and was ready to get out in the sun a little bit. But I really did want to see what West would think about the water.

We tried several times all summer but every time we ventured out it would rain. So about a week ago we got to go two times within just a few days. First, we went with some girlfriends for our play date and I think this picture about sums up how he felt about the whole experience.

 

He is just like his daddy, not a big fan of the sun and the pool.

So the second time we got to go, we were hanging out with Brad's friends from high school.  In the 13 years that I have known Brad I have probably only see him in a swimming pool once and that was our honeymoon. He has never been a big fan of the sun so I have always had to enjoy the beach and pool by myself throughout our whole marriage.  So West had no idea how special he was that his daddy got out into the sun and swam with him.

Our friends had a float for us to try out for Westley and he kind of liked it.  At least Bradley got a couple of smiles out of him for the first few minutes.   

 

But then the fun didn't last too long before West was done.  Those hands were so much more mesmerizing than the water. 

 

 Brad also tried a little freestyle swimming but by that point, he was done.

I am not going to give up going to the pool and maybe by next year there will be a little more interest.  But based on some of the reaction that I got these first few times I just keep thinking "like father, like son."  Hanging out at the pool just might be my time to myself over the next few years, which I'm completely okay with.