He is

faithful.

always.

even when my simple mind wavers, and my emotions take control.

it's not me, but Him, not mine, but His.

always.

He is.

after He shows me, time and time and time again, i should always trust, always believe, but I don't.

not always.

not every time.

but no matter. 

He is.

everytime.

Trick or Treat!

Trick or treating last year was a lot fun, Grayer was just walking and was an adorable little frog, but this year, my expectations were blown! It was an absolute blast! Seriously, one of the most fun things I've done as a mom thus far! I was a little nervous earlier in the day, because when I set out Grayer's costume and we started to talk about about getting dressed up, he didn't seem very happy about the idea, and kept saying "No, no, no shark!" So we talked about his costume and trick or treating throughout the day, in hopes he would warm up to the idea.

When it was time to put on his shark costume, I won't lie, there were a couple tears, and the beginning process looked like this...

But once his outfit was on and we were out the door to meet up with his cousin, he was ready to go, running around and so excited! Our first stop was to the Stavlo's elderly neighbors who always have a little something special for the kiddos. Grayer eagerly jumped out of the wagon, ran up to the door with Elle, and when they asked him what he was, he said "Rooooar... A lion!" We got quite a kick out of this! I guess I should have consulted him this year before purchasing his costume, next year I will know better :)

We spent two full hours, going house to house, eating a little candy here and there, and just having a great time as a family. Grayer was adorable! After getting some candy, he would come running down the side walk saying "Mama, oh wooooow!" haha! And thankfully his manners were good too, always a thank you and ocassionally an  "I love you" in the mix... What can I say, my boy loves candy and anyone who will give it to him ;)

What a fun time we had! Makes me so excited for all the years and memories to come!

 

I wuv eww!

I have been waiting and waiting for this moment... And my sweet boy has finally done it... He said I Love You!!!! Ahhh!! Yesterday, we were at the park with his aunt and cousin and he was happily swinging and all of a sudden it just came out... I wuv eww... What??!!?? Did he just say what I think he said?? I looked at my sister and then back to Gray and said "What did you say sweetheart?" and again, out it came ... I wuv eww!
I'm not gonna lie, he took his sweet time, but I can assure you, it made it all that much more special! I think this is one of the top moments of love and happiness I have experienced thus far as a mommy! ;)

And tonight, just for kicks, he told his daddy too before bed. Total. Bliss.

I wuv eww too my sweet baby boy!

TWO years old!

Grayer turned TWO on Saturday, September 22nd. We celebrated his birthday on the following Saturday at the Frontiers Flight Museum. I think everyone had a GREAT time, including Grayer! It was a rainy Saturday, so the play area at the musesum was the perfect indoor distraction for all the little kiddos! Justin and I made him a cake on his actual birthday, lit candles and sang to him, and from that moment he fell in LOVE with blowing out candles. Every night after dinner for the following week, when we would ask if he wanted a little cake for dessert, he would immediately start "blowing" out his pretend candles. So what we were to do? Of course, the sight was just too precious, so for an entire week, we had cake, lit candles and sang happy birthday to Grayer every evening! He loved every last minute of it! So at his birthday party, when the time came for cake and singing, he was more than a little excited! We caputured the sweet, sweet smiles, the blowing of candles, and the antimated "YAY!!!" and clapping that ensued after he was done. It was a precious memory that will stay with me forever.

Grayer- here is what you are up to at 2 years old!

You are a social butterfly! You love to play with other kids, and always seek out someone to run around and play with at the park, library, or indoor play areas that we go to. You seem to be most interested in playing with other little boys, and love to try to imitate what the older ones are doing. You say "HI" to absolutely everyone, including the mannequins at the mall, haha! You love going to the church nursery at the Village on Sunday mornings, and the nursery on Wednesday mornings for Bible Study at Watermark. Thankfully there are never any tears at drop off and you are always playing happily when I come to get you.

You started going to MDO on Tues and Thurs in September and you enjoy it! Your teachers, Ms. Carrie and Ms. LaRae love you so much, and are always telling mommy how happy you are, how easy going you are, and how well you follow instructions. We are so proud of you!

You love playing with trucks, cars, trains, puzzles, looking at books, dancing to music, helping mommy in the kitchen, blowing bubbles and being outside. You love to imitate the sounds of all your toys, so needless to say, we hear lots of "ZOOM-ZOOM", "Choo-Choo" and siren noises. It's precious!

You love playing sports, and are really good at throwing your baseballs, basketballs and kicking your soccer ball. You got a soccer goal and t-ball set for your birthday, but we haven't gotten a chance to set them up yet, but I am betting once we do, you will be quite entranced. You love to play ball with your dad in the front yard, and have fun running around and being silly. You "golf" with your left hand, and your daddy is quite concerned about this, since the little clubs we got for you are only right handed. We will see how this pans out!

You have a very tender heart, and don't like to see others upset. You like to try and console those who are sad or crying. You still do really well with sharing with your cousin and friends, but ocassionally get your feelings hurt if someone takes something from you. You have the funniest little pout/frown face that comes out multiple times a day. Even though you've done this for months, your daddy and I still get a kick out of it!

 You are very affetionate. You love to give hugs and kisses to anyone who asks, and are always up for a quick "snuggle" with mommy. Your open mouth kisses finally subsided into puckered lip kisses, which I was secretly sad to see go, even though I don't miss being slobbered on, it was a kiss very unique to you alone :)

You like playing hide-and seek and are funny when you find daddy and I, as you get a little scared sometimes, hehe! You love pretending that your sock monkey's are jumping on the bed and say "no, no, no, no monkey" while waving your little finger. You also like the book "The wheels on the bus" and do the motions of the wheels turning. You like to dance to any and all music, and have the cutest little dance moves! You like to play with your dr. kit and give everyone shots. You listen to our hearts and say "boom, boom", but your favorite patient is Hogan :)

You are talking up a storm! Your vocabulary has really increased in the last couple of months, and you are constantly talking about something. You still ask "what is that?" about EVERYTHING, but have also hit the 2 year old "why" stage, and always want to know the reasons behind something. You love your daddy so much, and any time you see a car that looks like his white tahoe, you start asking "where is daddy?" or "where did daddy go?", which usually leads into you asking about your papa/poppa (you have 2- Papa Glenn and Poppa Dan) and we talk about all the things they are doing at work. One of your favorite things to say is "I did it!" after you do something you think is praise worthy :) You also like to ask "where's the ball" or "where did it go" while scrunching your hands up by your face, so cute! When we go outside you like looking for bugs, and say "it's a bug... yuck!!" I wonder how long you will think bugs are gross? You also like when your daddy throws you in the air, and you will say "I go higher" until he is too tired to throw you anymore.

Your eating is so-so these days... there used to be a handful of things that you would eat any time, any place such as cheese, chicken nuggets, bananas, strawberries, beans etc, and now, even these items can be hit or miss, as with most other foods. We are working on finding some new favorites.
You are still sleeping good, and usually don't wake up in the night, although there are still a few occurrances of this. You are down to one nap, and usually go down around noon and sleep 1.5-3 hours. You sleep really well at MDO too, which I am so thankful for!

Any time you hear a siren, you shout "FIRE!!" I always ask you if you think it's a police car, an ambulence or a fire truck, and you are always certain it's a fire truck. I think the idea that a siren doesn't always mean fire is still beyond you :) If your love of fire trucks sticks around, I definitely want to do your 3 year old party at a fire station!

I think I could write about you for hours and hours and hours and never get tired...

You are a pure JOY to your daddy and me! We love you so, so much little boo-buns!

 

 

ps- If you can't tell from these pics- you LOVE to be naked ;)

 

xoxo

MDO

Grayer had his first day of Mother's Day Out today and it went perfectly! He seems to be a social butterfly at the age of 23 months, and the crying we experienced during drop off's at a younger age is a distant memory. He was so excited to go to school and walked right into class and started playing with all the new toys. I wondered how pick up would go, but thankfully it went just as smoothly. He was so sweet saying bye to one of the little girls in his class... He's a little charmer :) His teachers, Ms. Carrie & Ms. LaRea said he was happy and is very obedient (yay, Gray!). His report card mentioned that he was happy most of the time, but got sad during some of the transitions, which I take to mean he was probably sad to have to leave the playground... He's still obsessed with the slides! It's always a little sad to see your sweet baby growing up and experiencing independence, but we are so excited that he loves his new school, and are looking forward to all the new things he will learn.

SAHM

The Davis family has news!

As of the end of August, I will be staying home full time with Grayer, yay! Although the initial news of this was somewhat unexpected, we are taking it all in stride, knowing full well that the Lord will provide. While this means we will have to tighten our belts and watch our expenses, Justin and I both know that what we are gaining far outweighs what we are giving up. While I have been longing for this day since I saw those adorably chubby cheeks for the first time, and can’t wait to spend every waking moment with my sweet little, I would be lying if I said there wasn’t a small part of me that has some anxiety about my new role and what it will look like. While a lot of people think being a SAHM (apparently there is “lingo” that I was completely unaware of until my sister informed me this is the abbreviation for stay at home mom, ha!) is all rainbows and butterflies, I know from being at home “part time” and from lengthy discussions with many friends that stay at home that it can be very, very, challenging and is completely life changing. While there was always immense sadness when we had to decline a play date, or other fun mommy-and-me activities with friends because it was taking place on a Monday-Wednesday and I had to work, there is a certain level of freedom that comes from being able to go to work and allow someone else to wrestle with the two year old tantrums that go along with having a toddler. With that said, I am so ready and feel so, so blessed to be able to take on this new role, exploring all the in’s and out’s of being a full time mommy to my Gray. I am excited to be the one who wipes every tear, hears every laugh, and even changes every diaper :) I can’t wait to see what the future holds for our family!

With this shift, comes another change as well…Grayer will no longer get to see his sweet Granna every Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, and I know that he will greatly miss this special time with her. I am so very thankful for my amazing MIL who over the past year and half has loved Grayer with a tender heart, passionately taught him about the world around him, and prayerfully lifted him up. THANK YOU from the very bottom of my heart for loving my baby like no other.

The beach and a toddler

Grayer turned 21 months while we were on our trip to Destin, FL this year. Technically, this was our family’s third year to spend a week at the Sandestin Golf and Beach Resort, since I was 27 weeks pregnant with Grayer on our first trip in 2010 (our babymoon!). We have absolutely fallen in love with this place, and hope to go back for many, many more years. The resort is the perfect balance of kid friendly and adult, and it fits us to a “t”. They have a fun, beach type entrance pool that Grayer loved. He did really well swimming with his puddle jumper on, and got pretty good at paddling around towards the end of our trip. Now that we are home, he lays on his tummy, kicks his legs, and “swims” in the bath tub, ha! He wasn’t a huge fan of the sand in-between his toes on the first day at the beach, but he warmed up to it, and loved going into the ocean with his daddy. We had such a great time, and even after a full week away, weren’t ready to come home. Already looking forward to another trip!

Here are a few pictures!

Gray, here is what you are up to at 21 months!

You are obsessed with cars, trucks, airplanes, fire trucks, school buses, motorcycles, and really, anything that makes a lot of noise! You get so excited to see any of those things, and the delight in your eyes is priceless. You saw LOTS of airplanes while we were at the beach, and you would stop what you were doing every time and shout at them, hopeful they would notice you. So cute!

Your love for stairs is still unwavering. You want to go up and down over and over, and now that you are a little taller, if there is a rail, you can go up and down all on your own. This makes you feel very proud, and it’s not uncommon to see you give a clap or two when you make it to the top or bottom :)

You are becoming much more independent and are very comfortable around almost anyone. When I take you to the play ground (mostly the indoor ones now that it’s 200 degrees outside) you socialize well with the other kids, and try to mimic what the big kids are doing. You haven’t been crying at all when we drop you off at Sunday School or other activities, and always seem to be having a great time when we come to pick you up. When we ask the teachers how you did, they always seem to have sometime funny to tell us, like you were trying to eat all the bubbles, or you wanted to give everyone in your class hugs.



Puzzles, books and cars are your favorite toys at the moment. You got a new “vehicles” puzzle in Florida, and love to put all the pieces in the right spots and make all the noises of the cars and buses. You love to “read” and usually when you’re in your room being quiet and I wonder why the house is silent, I find you sitting in your little red chair looking at books. You are also getting really good at matching the colors and shapes in your shape sorter.

You are still a fantastic sleeper! You are down to one nap in the afternoon now (our plan before our Florida trip) and usually go down between 12-1, but are very flexible with the timing. You sleep anywhere from 2-3.5 hours, and always go down easily and almost always wake up happy. You are staying up a little bit later and on some nights don’t go down until close to 8:30.



We got you a potty seat a few weeks ago, and you love to sit on it and have books read to you. You went pee-pee on your potty seat for the first time at 20 months (see pic below!), but I think it was kind of a fluke. You had just gotten out of the bath and were running around naked before getting your lotion on. You were jumping on your chair, and I looked over and you were peeing!! I took you immediately to the potty, and we read a book and you let out the rest of your pee-pee. You haven’t gone on your chair potty again, but we will keep trying. As a boy, I think you’ve got nothing but time, but it doesn’t hurt to introduce you to the potty early :)

You love to dance, and any time you hear music, you’ve got to get up and bust a move. You jump around and wave your arms all around. Precious! You also love to give high-fives, and “knuckles” to anyone who asks.



You are getting better at sitting through a meal at a restaurant, and did GREAT at all the places we went in Destin. We were thrilled with how well you sat and how well you ate new foods that you’d never tried before. We very much enjoy dining out, so here’s to hoping this just gets better and better!



You have such a sweet personality, and are very gentle and kind to others. You share very well for an almost 2 year old, and almost never take something away from another kiddo. You love animals, and are very sweet with them most of the time. You are a happy toddler, and love to give hugs and kisses to anyone and everyone. It has been so exciting and such a blessing to see your personality expand and become so unique to you alone. You make your daddy and I so very happy, and we are thankful each moment we get to be your parents. We love you sweet-tart!