Heading to the Mountains!

We are headed to the mountains till Wednesday! My Grandparents have a beautiful home in the Maggie Valley area. I have been going there almost every summer and sometimes in the fall since I was a child. I have so many wonderful memories of my visits to the "mountain house".

Some of my favorites are going to the Maggie Valley Country Store and buying fudge, putt putt golf, one time my Grandmother got 8 holes in one IN A ROW! Playing with my cousins, we set up a fort in the back yard and played for hours...... I don't remember what we were playing exactly. Riding down to slope in the back yard on my Grandmothers gardening seat was always a great time. Going for walks and picking daisy's and picking apples.

Eating at Butts on a Creek, Wildfire, Amman's Drive In, and that amazing breakfast place, YUM! GHOST TOWN! That was such a cool place to go. It was an amusement park set in the time of the old west and you had to ride chair lift to get to it on top of the mountain. Laying on the hammock for hours reading and enjoying the cool mountain air. HOURS of playing skip-bo, Rummikub and Racko. Grandmothers sandwiches, cakes, homegrown tomatoes and cucumbers.

I really could go on and on about the wonderful memories and why I look forward to going back every year but you get the picture. I will tell you how excited I am to take Adalie to Maggie for the first time. I hope it is a place she will grow up to love and look forward to visiting just as I did.

Pictures to Come,
Meghan

BUY THIS BOOK

If you are a parent or are about to become one this is a book you definitely need on your bookshelf, right next to "What to Expect - The First Year". More and more we are hearing about the environment being polluted, global warming, etc. This book gives practical advice on how to raise our children in a way that is thoughtful to the earth and healthy for our families.

I have been getting into organic living. Now that I have a beautiful human life to protect and nurture I see the importance of eating organic food, using non-toxic cleaning supplies, recycling, safe personal care products, avoiding chemicals and even using cloth diapers (gasp!).

I must attribute some of this organic makeover in past months to my friend Claire who inspires me to live in a healthier Eco-friendly way. If any of you have any questions on things you can do to help the environment and make your family safer please ask because I have been doing a lot of research on the subject. Here are a few websites for you Mommies to check out.

www.cosmeticdatabase.com This website gives safety ratings to personal products

www.gdiaper.com The latest in the cloth diaper world

www.drgreene.com

www.speesees.com sells organic cotton baby clothes

Adalie's First Trip to the Golf Course

Our Weekend With The Beans!

New Close Up's of Addie

Here are a few of our latest

favorites.....

An Attitude of Gratitude.

My Dad and I were talking last night about having an "attitude of gratitude" for all the things and people we have been blessed with. He spoke about making a list of blessings and then realized that this list would be infinite. We have so much to be grateful for. I thought I would make a short list of things and people I am grateful to the Lord for providing..... in no particular order.

God's unconditional love for me.

The Holy Spirit's gentle nudge, always guiding me, when I'm listening.

My amazing Husband James, kind, gentle, selfless only begin to describe him.

My sweet little Adalie, she brings so much joy to me, especially when she smiles.

My Parents who love me "fiercely" even through the teenage years.

My siblings (Clancy, Mattie and Lily) who each in their own unique way have added so much to my life.

My Christian Grandparents, both maternal and paternal, who have been actively involved in my life.

My 99 year old Great Grandma. She is prayer warrior for her family.

My Mother-in-law Dorie who is wonderful and did a fantastic job raising the best Husband and Father I could ever have hoped for. I love the things she teaches me.

My girl cousins. Michelle, Lindsey, Mallory and Shannon. I am thankful for such wonderful playmates as children and friends as adults.

My dearest friend Claire, you know how special you are to me and now you have brought Matt and soon Baby Jack into my life. I love them too.

My sweet neighbors here in Columbus, Celia and Tim. I am so blessed to have them across the street. Oh and Baby Sammy, we are thrilled he is here!

My Thursday night bible study group. These girls are so encouraging and I have loved getting to know them all.

My home. I love my house and my yard I am so blessed to not only have shelter but to have lovely shelter. I enjoy spending my time here.

The YMCA that is 5 blocks away. I am so grateful for the dollar an hour childcare!

There really is so much to be thankful for. This only scratches the surface.......


Meghan

New Editions For The Nursery

Another weekend has flown by..... time surely does march on. Is it seriously August, is Adalie really already 2 and a half months old. WOW!!

I ventured to KMART on Saturday out of sheer boredom (James was out of town for a golf outing) in hopes of finding a stimulating toy or two for Adalie. For those of you with children will understand there is not much you can do with a 2 month old, yet we (us mothers) still feel the need to educate them through sight, sound and textures. SO, I found a "play gym" that has toys on a bar for Adalie to look up at and bat with her hands and feet. You can also move the toys onto the mat for "tummy time" so she will work the muscles she needs to crawl with. Amazingly she took to this contraption right away, she loves it! She stares at the toys especially the lions face and in a very uncoordinated attempt bats at them with her tiny hands. It is adorable to watch and keeps her occupied long enough for me to get a couple things done here and there.

Another new edition to the nursery is the big rug on the floor. Isn't it adorable. It's a Pottery Barn Kids find, I waited for it to go on sale and got it for 100.00 dollars off, woo hooo!

Enjoy the pictures,

Meghan