From My Family To Yours...

Merry Christmas to all...





.. And to all a goodnight.



Xoxo Haley

Whatcha Chalkin About?

I have a minor obsession lately.. Chalk pens! @jenniferggreen posted about them on Twitter & I went out and grabbed some! She posted a picture of a 'Christmas Bucket List' and I made my Own version on our chalkboard.






Owen is only 14 months- so he is a spectator in a lot of things- the list is just for fun and mostly for mommy. :)

My mom and I visited Old Town Spring a few weeks ago & I fell in love with this little Santa Letter Chalkboard. This is also just for fun- I can't wait for when Owen is older & he can tell me what he wants for Christmas!





Hope everyone is having a great Monday morning! Owen's a little under the weather with a stuffy nose- so we're laying low.


Xoxo Haley

Owen is 14 months!

My BFF Ivy is preggers (yay) and although I was in her exact same shoes a little over 14 months ago, I find that I have forgotten most things about my pregnancy! I've heard this happens to a lot of people- but I want to start writing things down, so as not to forget the 'the little things'.






Jer and I were talking last night about what a joy Owen has been and just how much fun he is. Of course I have my days with him that I'm counting the minutes until Jer gets home from work so that I can pee in private (sorry if TMI). But lately, I find that once he goes to bed, I start to miss him. Sorry if this is coming off sappy or like I'm saying Owen is the most well behaved child, because I assure you, he isn't. But I am so in love with him. And I find myself falling more in love with him every day. He is my joy.


We had a lunch date yesterday. Just Owen and I. He loves to dip his food in 'di di' or dip dip. This day, he happened to have ketchup for his 'di di'...



He's also really into puppies. Every stuffed animal he sees is a 'puh-ay'!



Also, every single stranger he sees while we are out and about is 'dada'. Older women, teenage boys, cashier at Target, he does not discriminate. He loves his dada more than anything!
He also loves wearing Dada's shoes around the house.


He started walking at about 13 1/2 months, but started full on walking at 14 months. He's also talking all the time. It sounds like gibberish- but he says it with such purpose and determination, that I would love to know what he's saying.




Some not so nice things he's been doing are playing just a little rough, but I know that's normal for a 1-year-old boy. He pinches sometimes and hits, although most of the time it is just to get your attention. When he does it, we tell him 'no' and 'nice hands'. He knows what both of those mean and usually gets his feelings hurt and then lays his head on whatever or whoever he was pinching or 'love tapping' aka hitting. ;)

Well- we're off to celebrate a friends birthday over lunch, hope you have a nice Thursday!


Xoxo Haley

P.S.- Becky from 'Mrs to Mama' is having a great I-Like book giveaway over at her blog! Take a look! http://www.frommrstomama.com/2011/12/i-like-book-giveaway-8-win.html?m=1

Family Photos

Check out our family pictures! I am in love with each and every one of them!!

http://lindsayelizabethphotography.com/blog/

XOXO Haley

Twilight & Pajamas

Happy Hump Day! We had a great lunch today with our BFFs, but as Owen was showing off his new walking skills, he tripped & bit his lip. It swelled up & he had 'Angelina Jolie lips' for a few hours today...



He had just woken up from a nap- so he looks a little flushed.

This past Sunday, Jer & I had a little day date while my parents watched Owen. We went and saw 'Breaking Dawn' and it was disappointing. I've liked all of the other movies, but this one was slow. Anyways, it was cold that day, so I snuggled up in my cozy Old Navy poncho!




This is Owen's bathroom- in case you can't tell by the shower curtain! :)

Owen's on a pretty good schedule with sleeping these days, but I noticed he was a little fussier than normal on Monday morning. He still had a good hour before nap time, so I gave him a snack in his chair & two minutes later...




My mom said him & Pops (my dad) had played pretty hard he say before.

Just a little tip- I got some Carter's fleece jammies the other day at JCPenney for $1.07! JCPenney sends out $10 off anything in-store coupons every couple of months- so I took advantage of their $10.99 Pj sale and scored! Some people think It's an outdated store, but I find a lot of cute stuff for Owen & I there!

For my Owen 'bear' ;)





We're looking forward to Jer coming home tomorrow! Maybe once Owen sees Daddy, he'll stop calling every person that talks to him 'Dada'!


Xoxo Haley

Thanksgiving & Owen meets Santa

This Thanksgiving was a bittersweet one. The Monday before the holiday, my Granny (who lives with my parents) passed out on the kitchen floor (tile) and suffered some injuries. She's fine now, still in the hospital, but doing a lot better than she was. I can't remember a Thanksgiving without my Granny, so it was tough knowing she was in the hospital and not with us. But we visited her twice that day and are thankful she is strong and perseveres at the young age of 81.






Here's a picture of me, my husband and Owen, at my parents house before dinner.

This was the first year Owen could actually eat the food (he was about 8 weeks old last Thanksgiving) and he enjoyed himself! The mashed potatoes and pumpkin pie were his favorites!


Backtracking a little, we took Owen to meet Santa the day before Thanksgiving. Jer had the day off & we thought we'd go early to try & beat the crowds!
I made special 'Christmas' cinnamon rolls that morning to celebrate Owen meeting Santa for the very first time!







We took him to Bass Pro Shop, where they have a whole Santa's Wonderland set up. You can play games before/after you meet Santa, so it was more fun than just waiting in line.









We gave him a sucker before, in case Santa scared him... If you look closely, you can see Santa holding Owen's hand out so as not to get sucker drippings on his suit.

Hope everyone's having a great Tuesday!


XOXO Haley

Gift Bag Christmas Art

Good morning! It's been a while since I've posted on my blog- but what better time that Christmas time to jump back into it? Over the weekend, I made some Christmas 'art' from a gift bag and a frame!

I saw this gift bag at Target and thought it was too cute and went perfectly with my 'rustic chic' Christmas decor.



I took the bag to Hobby Lobby (or Hob Lob) as my BFF , Taylor calls it, and picked out a frame. I couldn't find an exact fit for the bag, but I didn't want to spend extra $$ to get it custom framed. The frame is a couple inches too wide for the bag, but you can't even tell with the cardboard behind it. Plus, the frame was 50% off!

First, I removed the handles from the bag, then folded it super flat.






I guess you could cut out the front of the bag, but it fit in the frame just fine without, so why fix what ain't broke? (I know that's not proper grammar, but it gets my point across better ;))

So, put the bag in the frame, put the back on the frame and voila!


Now, if you want to hang it on the wall, attach some hanging hardware on the back...



And there you have it! A piece of Christmas 'art' that cost a total of $15!

I can change the bag or 'art' as my decor changes over the years!

Hope everyone has a great Monday! Here's a picture of my little Owen passed out in his carseat after a successful Thanksgiving dinner!




Xoxo Haley

Summer To Do List

I got this idea here.... and while I would LOVE to do this little project, I probably won't get around to it. This is easier. PSHAW. So here are some things the Sturgeon fam plans on doing Summer 2011.

• Visit a Firestation
• Celebrate Owen's friend's birthdays
• Have Owen baptized
• Celebrate Owen's first 4th of July
• Finish Owen's playroom
• Have a girl's weekend while Owen has a boy's weekend
• Go to the children's museum
• Celebrate Daddy
• Go to the park
• Have a BBQ
• Eat snow cones
• Go swimming
• Play in Nana & Pops' new sandbox
• Build a swing set in the backyard (shh.. this is a surprise for the babe's) ;)
• Make popsicles
• Eat popsicles
• Watch fireworks
• Watch movies
• Golf with Daddy
• Go fishing
• Get a tooth! (Maybe, hopefully?!)
• Celebrate Auntie Taylor's birthday!
• Go out to eat
• Go to the beach (again)
• ENJOY SUMMER

I can't wait to celebrate our first Summer as a family... what do YOU have planned?

XOXO Haley

My First Mother's Day

My first mother's day was definitely one to remember! I was so spoiled by Owen, my husband and my family! I really don't want to brag about gifts... but I found this one 'hiding' the night before in the garage, so Jer decided to give it to me early.

My husband spoiled me and got me the Louis Vuitton Neverfull.. it was also a combined 2nd anniversary present.

After breakfast in bed, we went over to my parent's for Sunday funday hanging out in their pool! Owen made my mom this...

Taking a little siesta under a palm tree.

And napping again after dinner. (This kid has a tough life) ;)

Mother's Day 2011 was so special and everyone made me feel very loved. I thank God every day for my happy and healthy little boy and am so thankful I get to be his mommy.

XOXO Haley

Five Six and Seven

Months old that is... I am combining Owen's 5 6 & 7 month milestones in to one post!

Owen turned 5 months old while we were visiting Disney World! How many spoiled babies can say that? He was almost turning over days before, but actually rolled from front to back and then back to front on his 5 month birthday! We took him to a spring training Astros game against the Yankees and we had so much fun. He was a little scared when the crowd starting cheering for A Rod, but then passed out on his daddy's shoulder soon after.

We had a little celebration for Owen's 1/2 birthday! He turned 6 months old on April 6th. I made some 'half decorated' cupcakes and invited our best friends over for some lunch and play time! We had hot dogs, mac & cheese, and red velvet cupcakes. We played outside with bubbles because it was such a nice day. Owen is modeling his robot PJs in his picture.. thanks Jamie for the fabulous find! :)

Owen just turned 7 months old on the 6th! We didn't really do anything special, just loved on him like always! ;) I'm not sure if it's just me, but I see a huge difference from 6 to 7 months old. He has really come alive and his personality is awesome. He is so outgoing and loves when strangers come up and talk to him. His hair is also growing so quickly! He is definitely a strawberry blond and I love it. I say this all the time, but this is definitely my favorite age so far. He is sleeping through the night, can sit up on his own and is soaking things up like a sponge. It only took me a day to teach him to clap his hands when we say 'Yay' or sing Patty Cake! I love it. I am obsessed with him. Obsessed.

XOXO Haley

Saturday Things

I still need to post about Owen turning 5 months, 6 months, Disney World & a special post about our friends, HOPEFULLY I will get to that soon. This is just going to be a wee-bit random...

• Owen is sleeping through the night from 8pm-7am, some mornings a little earlier.
• Somehow, the monitor got turned off last night & when I realized & turned it back on this morning, Owen was awake. I felt HORRIBLE. I must've done it in my sleep. Has anyone ever done this?
• Jer & I have been watching a lot of movies lately bc a lot of the shows we watch in the evenings have been repeats. Here are the ones we enjoyed:

The Fighter

You Again (I enjoyed this one, Jer, not so much)

Love & Other Drugs

Morning Glory

Life As We Know It

Other Guys

• Now, the movie that we didn't enjoy... The Tourist. OMG it was horrible. Angelina's awful British accent, the fact that Johnny Depp's character made him so not sexy and plain. And the whole plot in general. The scenery was about the only good part.
• I am making Owen's Easter basket (with help from my Granny) and am so excited about it. I can't wait to see how it turns out.
• We were supposed to go to Dallas this weekend to celebrate my sister's 30th Birthday, but we all got a virus this week. It lasted about two days for each of us, me starting Tuesday, Jer & Owen starting Wednesday. It was a stomach virus & it was no bueno. I can deal with myself being sick, but having to see your child sick is probably the worst thing ever. My heart goes out to all those parents and children who have to suffer through serious illness, I can't even imagine.
• I talked a little about it on Twitter, but about a month ago, a young family friend of my husband's family died in a car accident. It was honestly the first tragedy that Jer and I had been apart of in our entire 25 (almost 26) years of life. The boy was younger than us and his life was taken in an instant. It's still hard to grasp the concept of a mother & father burying their child and it scared me. I couldn't be by myself at all for a few weeks. I still think about it. I know his family had (and still have) it way worse, and I pray for them daily.
• On to lighter things... our front load washer had started to smell mildewy, especially after I washed all of our sheets in hot water. So I poured about a cup of bleach into where the detergent goes, washed it on the sanitary cycle, and it has smelled clean & fresh ever since.
• We're planning seeing Scream 4 this afternoon & I am so excited. I love scary movies that aren't really scary.. if that makes sense. My parents also get Owen to themselves for an afternoon!
• Alright, that's about enough randomness for one morning. I'll leave you with a picture of Owen & his bff's at a Strawberry Picking playdate we had earlier this week with The Tichenor's, The Glover's & Scarlett & Jacci!

Hope you're having a happy weekend!

XOXO Haley

I'm Talking To The Man In The Mirror

One of Owen's favorite things to do is look at himself in a mirror.. While shopping yesterday with my mom, that's just what he did!


Xoxo Haley

4 Months & Valentine's Day

OK, this is technically 1.5 months behind.. but who's counting?! ;)

Owen turned 4 months old on February 6th. At his 4 month check up, he weighed 17 pounds! He is in the 90th percentile for the his height and weight.. I love my big, healthy boy. Here he is on Valentine's Day in a shirt my Granny (his great granny) made for him!

We had a playdate with friends in the afternoon and later that evening, we had a date with Taylor & Gracie... we joked that Taylor & I are 'sister wives' when her hubby is out of town, because we have babies around the same age, matching diaper bags, and we are always switching babies back and forth between the three of us. I love my 'sister wife'! ha!

Owen & Gracie's first kiss after their first date

Love these girls so much!! (Grayson was on a date with his Mimi)

Daddy and Owen at dinner

Happy First Valentine's Day to the sweetest little boy I know...

I hope everyone got to spend Valentine's Day with someone they love. :)

XOXO Haley