Presents, Pasta, & Pandora

Happy late Valentine's Day, everyone!  I just don't have much free time these days to blog, so I'm running a little behind... having a three month old will do that to you! :o)  I hope all of you had a fabulous Valentine's Day with your sweeties!  Cody & I had the best one yet.  Having a baby just makes every holiday more special.  I had so much fun shopping for my little man.  I'm have become an avid reader with him, so I had to purchase him a new book.  We read at least one book every day, and I really wanted him to have one of those voice recordable books from Hallmark, like you see on those commercials.  Those are so special.  Manning already has the Christmas one with my mom's voice recorded, and I really want him to have the Valentine's one from me.  I went to 2 different Hallmark stores in Germantown to find one, and they're sold out everywhere! Guess I'll have to be patient until they get some more... so I had to buy a regular ol' book to make do until I can find one.  He got a cute outfit, bibs, and an "I Love You" book.  

Cody and I had a special night.  He surprised me by taking me out in Memphis.  I figured we'd just stay home with Manning, but he asked my mom to watch him, so we could have a "date."  We went the mall and shopped a bit (for Manning, of course), ate at Amerigo's (yum!), and went to the movies to see Dear John (great until the end)!  We had a wonderful time... It's hard to believe we've already been married for over 4 years.  I'm so thankful for him.  He's the BEST husband and father in the world.  I'm one blessed girl.  He gave me such a sweet present with lots of thought put into it.  I got 5 charms for my Pandora bracelet.  He gave me the little boy, the silver heart, a murano glass orange bead with hearts, the football, and the wedding cake.  When he gave them to me, he explained the meaning behind each.  So cute and sweet!  In the spirit of the holiday....xoxo!

98 and counting...

On our previous trip to Columbia, something miraculous happened... well, I like to think of it as a miracle. Manning got to meet his great-great grandfather, "Papaw Shep." The miraculous part is that he is 98 years old (I can't get over the fact that he's 98 years older than my son...WOW!). I had never met Papaw Shep, so actually getting to meet him and see him interact with Manning was such a blessing. When I heard him speak for the first time, I burst into tears (I'm emotional...I know). His voice was just so precious. You could tell what a sweet man he was by his voice. There were pictures all over his walls from his long life, and I could tell that he is a man full of wisdom and experiences. He enjoys sewing. He sews quilts, bags, clothes, you name it! He told us how he learned to sew during World War II. He worked for a sewing company that made parachutes and uniforms for the military. Because of his job, he didn't have to enlist in the war. He has given Manning several quilts, and he sent us home with a quilt for Cody and myself, as well as some hand-made bags. These quilts became instantly priceless to me after meeting him. I'm just so very thankful that he got to meet Manning, and I that I got to meet him! He's not planning on going anywhere, any time soon... he will quickly let you know that he plans on living to be 100, and I pray that he does. Such a special person....wish there were more like him in the world!

Laissez Les Bon Temps Roulez!

Over the weekend, Cody, Manning, and I loaded up (when I say loaded up, boy do I mean it... who knew that you had to pack so much for a baby!?) and made the 5 hour drive to Columbia, Mississippi, to visit Cody's family! On Friday, after we arrived, Mimi watched Manning so that Cody and I could get all dressed up (first time in months) to go to the Columbia Mardi Gras Ball. We met up with Will, Amy, Jayson, and Sandy, and rode in the provided transportation, which just so happened to be a limo. It felt like prom all over again, ha! We had a great time and danced the night away. Being from Arkansas, we never really celebrated Mardi Gras like the people close to the coast do. So, it was a lot of fun to step into their world and celebrate Louisiana/South Mississippi style! The country club was adorned in purple, gold, and green and everyone was all dressed up and wearing masks, carrying frilly umbrellas, wearing beads, etc. The band even played "When the Saints Go Marching In" in honor of the Saints playing in the Super Bowl. We loved singing along to that! :) WHO DAT!? By the way, Cody is super excited that they won. He has been on cloud 9 since Sunday. Well, after a long, fun night and many phone calls to Mimi to check on our little man, we finally called it a night and headed back home.

Walkin' in a winter wonderland...

Last Friday, it snowed BIG time! Well, I know my northern friends would laugh (go ahead Leslie), but it really snowed a lot compared to what we usually get. It snowed all day Friday and a little while Saturday. I was so excited! I've always loved the snow, but I do understand how you could get sick of it if it snowed in your city all the time. It's a beautiful thing to see, but then after a couple of days, it gets really nasty. This snow is still lingering, and the kids got out of school for several days, so I'll be paying for that in June, ugh, let's just not talk about me having to go back to work. I tear up even thinking about it...........

Ok, all depressing things aside, our snow day(s) were really fun! We just stayed bundled up, ate snow cream, watched movies, and spent quality time together. I bundled my little man up in his snow suit for a quick picture of his first big snow. He seemed to like the snow, but he didn't like his snow suit so much. lol, I can't say that I blame him. Those things do NOT look comfortable.

Now that the snow is finally starting to melt away, and we can actually get out of the house, I'm getting Spring fever... too bad the groundhog saw his shadow!