Happy First Birthday!

On Saturday, October 24th, our baby boy turned one year old! We had a great time celebrating our little guy and I have several pictures to share of his special day! This first picture was taken before everyone arrived. I wanted to get a picture of this shirt that my friend Marilyn gave Will for his birthday. I LOVED his special birthday shirt....it was too cute! Thanks to Betsy at Lollidrops for the special design!

I made Will's "smash cake" to match the decorations that I bought.
The cake table! I made a carrot cake for everyone else to enjoy!
I always take a picture of the kids with the birhday flag. That way we can see how much they have grown each year!
Beckett and Helen with the birthday boy!
Me with my sweet birthday boy!
Here comes the cake!
We always wait until our kid's first birthday to give them anything sweet, so we were anticipating that Will would really dig in and go for it! We certainly did not expect the reaction that he had.....not so sure........
Get this thing away from me! He melted down!!!
We gently tried to help him taste it and see how yummy the frosting and cake could be.....but he would have NOTHING to do with it! He was quite unhappy. We didn't force the moment for long. We got him out of his seat and cleaned him up quickly! It might have had something to do with 20-something people standing there staring at him with cameras clicking away! I'm sure it was a tad bit intimidating! Poor guy!
Time for presents! Will really enjoyed this play cell phone that Beckett gave him! He is also wearing the REI vest that Aunt Susi gave him. She works for REI and keeps the kids in great gear all year long! He is also wearing his new pair of shoes that we took him to get last week. We always buy the good Stride Rite shoes for their first pair of shoes. I love these and think they are too cute. They make him look so much older! He hasn't really worn any shoes until now and he just looks so big!

Here he is pushing the walking/riding toy that Nana and Papa gave him. Nana showed him how to use it and within a few minutes he was pushing it and walking all around the room! It won't be long before he is walking on his own!

Just another pic of Will with his phone while Beckett and Helen help him with some other gifts. That is my mom and her sister (Grankaki and Auntie Mame) watching in the background!

Yes, I scheduled the party during the UT/Bama game. Not to worry, the guys were still able to watch! We sat Will right by the TV to open his presents so that everyone could watch both Will and the VOLS! It was an exciting end to the game! (although it was not the ending that the Vol fans were hoping for!) Here are Papa, Sean, Granbob and Mike watching the game!

Grankaki helping Will with one of his new toys!

It was a great day! Thanks to all of our family and friends for coming to celebrate with us! We enjoyed cooking out, sharing a meal and enjoying time spent with family! The kids had so much fun with their cousins and playing with Will! It was a wonderful celebration of our precious little boy!

We couldn't help but think about Will's birth father and siblings on this special day. We pray that they know just how much Will is loved. I'm sure that it was a hard day for them as they have been through so much in the year since Will's birth. We continue to pray for their health, peace and well being in the coming year. They are very special to us!

Will, you are a child of God, His treasured possession. He created you in His own image. He chose the day for you to be born. He has a plan and a purpose for your life. We are so honored that we get to be your parents and help you find this purpose that God has planned for you. No doubt it is going to be awesome!

Weekend Fun

Last Thursday, we took a 2 hour trip to western North Carolina to visit my aunt and uncle. We had a short but sweet visit....about 24 hours. We had not seen them since July, so we did a quick over night trip to say hi and catch up. One of these days I will get together my "penguin post"! When Beckett was little, we began taking a picture of him with the penguin on their front porch every time we visited. I have pictures of all of the kids with the penguin from the time they were each very little. One of these days I'll get around to it, but in the meantime, here are the kids with my "Auntie Mame" and her penguin!

We are getting ready for our 6 month post adoption visit from our case worker and we have to give several new pictures of Will as well as one of our family....so I had Auntie Mame take a picture of us when we went to the playground on Friday afternoon. We just don't do family pics very often...just thought I'd share!

Will enjoyed the swings at the playground! I think he would have stayed in it all afternoon and let me push him!

On Saturday evening, we were invited to a pig roast and bonfire by our friends the Guldans. The Guldans and their extended family host this event each year and they pull out all of the stops! Other than it being quite cold, it was SO fun! (Especially for Beckett and Helen!) Below is a picture of a slide that the Guldans created! The kids had a BLAST on it! This first pic is of Beckett going down the slide head first.

Here are Helen and Beckett at the top of the slide as they get ready to go down!

Another picture on the top of the slide with our friend Lake!
This was our first time to be bundled up this Fall. I thought Helen looked sweet in her toboggan! She was getting ready to take her turn on the zip line! They had a kids swing attached to a zip line; they set the kids in the swing one at a time and let them fly! I didn't get any pics, but a couple of good videos!

This is pretty much what Will did all evening. Not much fun for him....or the momma who had to try to keep him bundled up. He wanted to be down on the ground (which was still a little damp) and he was not too happy to have to just sit in his stroller. In fact at one point, while I was fixing the kid's plates with some food, Will managed to squirm out of the stroller and was pretty much hanging out the bottom! Unfortunately we (Will and I) had had enough, so our family had to leave a bit early. We HEARD that we missed a lot more fun....super big bonfire and really cool hayride! We are already looking forward to next year when Will is more mobile and we can ALL enjoy the event!

A Random Afternoon at the Harper Hullabaloo

This is what a typical afternoon looks like at our house. Beckett is finishing up some Reading skills work. Will finds a left-over biscuit from breakfast.

Am I in trouble mom?
Helen is worn out after a long day at Mother's Day Out....goes to her room to play with dolls....gives up and takes a nap. (This is seriously how I found her!)
Will entertains himself by unloading silverware from the dishwasher. (All sharp objects WERE removed before he participated in this activity!)
Helen wakes up, gets a snack and decides to eat it while sitting in Will's saucer. (which he does NOT like to be in anymore!)

And just because this warms my heart....I give you a little video clip of Will "reading". He likes to sit and flip through books now. He loves to sit in my lap and listen to books, and now if I'm not with him, he will get a book and "read" it to himself. He even got tired of the one he was looking at and went for another one! Love it!

If you have an extra moment and would like to see some really cool pictures, please check out my friend Olivia's photography blog! We met her yesterday afternoon in downtown LC for a little photo shoot with the kids! She has an incredible gift and takes the most wonderful pictures! I was honored that she asked me to let her "practice" on my kiddos! She posted some of the pictures that she took on her blog! I LOVE how they turned out!

Check out BACKSEAT PHOTOS here!

Decisions! Decisions!

Helen and I went to Big Lots the other day and she found a cheerleader costume that she wanted to get for Halloween. I explained to her that she already had MANY costumes at home to choose from and there was no need to purchase one this year. We have several friends with older girls and they have spoiled us with their dress-up hand-me-downs! So, today my favorite princess and I went to her room and had a little fashion show so she could decide which costume she wanted to wear. After checking out all of the pictures, she still isn't sure which one she wants to wear. Good thing we have a few weeks to decide! But we thought it would be fun to let you, (our faithful readers!) speak up and give us your opinion. Helen said that everyone should leave a comment to tell her which costume she should wear! We know that you are out there! Don't be shy....let Helen know which costume she should wear to church for our Fall Family Frenzy at the end of October!!

Should she be Aurora???

Should she be Barbie???

Should she be Jasmine???

Should she be Cinderella??? (She wore this one last year, so probably no chance of a do-over!)

And finally....should she be Tinkerbell???

(If it's good old "Tink" we will be adding some tights and long sleeves I'm sure, given that we are already experiencing 45 degree temps at night!!) So, thanks for your comments and opinions! Helen will enjoy finding out what everyone thinks about her costume choices!

Hope you all enjoy a wonderful Fall weekend!

Wonderful Birthday!

Yesterday was my birthday and it was a great day! It began with Beckett and Helen getting up early and heading out to the school room to create birthday cards for me before they ate breakfast or did anything else. It was so sweet! Beckett had enrichment class yesterday, so Helen, Will and I met our friend Julie R. for lunch. (Shout out to Jujy...we KNOW she checks the blog!) :) It was great to catch up with her! We picked up Beckett and ran a few errands before I took the kids to Nana and Papa's house. Sean had made reservations for dinner at our favorite restaurant and there isn't anything on the menu that our kiddos would eat! It was an absolutely fabulous meal and Sean and I enjoyed having some "couple time" to celebrate my birthday. We went to pick up the kids and they gave me my gift which was a gift certificate to a day spa. Woo-Hoo!

I really meant to have someone take a few pics of me with Sean and the kids on my birthday, but I never did. So instead, I'll post a couple of pics of Foothills Milling Company where Sean and I ate dinner! LOVE IT! We don't get to go very often, but it is always a meal to remember! Last night we split the Vidalia Onion Goat Cheest Tart for an appetizer and then I had the Low Country Shrimp and Grits for my entree! Take a look at their menu and if you live in the area, you must give Foothills Milling Company a try! Best. Food. Ever! (Can you tell I love this place?)

We ate at the table for two on the wall next to where the people are in this picture! (Like anyone really cares! I'm laughing at myself for posting pics of a restaurant instead of my family!) Oh well! It was a special evening that I want to remember! :)
It was a great day! I am a blessed woman! I love my family! I love being a wife and mommy! Lord, may my attitude be a reflection of the great blessings of life you have given to me. Help me always to keep Your joy in my heart!

Day Trippin'

We have been so tired of all of the rain and it was going to be a beautiful day, so yesterday we took school "on the road" and made a road trip to Cleveland to meet Kathy, Ty and Marley. It was about a 45 min. drive for both of us to meet half-way and it was a beautiful day to meet at the park to let the kids play! I also had a huge delivery of hand-me-down clothes for Ty and Marley to give Kathy! We have been SO blessed with hand-me-downs for our children. Sean's sister Jill has a son (Connor) who is older than Beckett and a daughter (Lillie) who is older than Helen...so they give us their out-grown clothes and then when we are finished with them, we send them to Sean's brother Josh and his wife, Kathy for their kiddos. Kathy is now giving the boy clothes BACK to me for Will! Needless to say, after they have been worn by three boys, some of them are a tad bit worn, but we are still getting lots of use out of them! It is great! Anyway, we needed to deliver the winter installment of clothes, so we took the opportunity to visit, play and EAT! I forgot my camera so I borrowed all of these pics from Kathy! Here are all of the cousins in a huge wooden car!

Beckett was giving Ty and Helen a crazy ride on the tire swing!
I love this picture that Kathy took of the kids all in the playhouse!

Beck pushing Ty and Helen pushing Will!

We all loaded up in my van and went to Chic-fil-a where we ate lunch and played a bunch more in the play area there!

It was a great day! Beckett loved taking his school work on the road! The clip-board for his work was a BIG hit! He worked very hard and everything was finished by the end of the trip back home. He even taught Helen some basic addition! Thanks, Kathy, for bringing the kids to play with us, for the Chic-fil-a coupons and for letting me borrow these great pictures for my blog! It was a beautiful, bright sun-shining day!

Will Update!

Thanks for your thoughts and prayers yesterday for Will's procedure! He did very well! We arrived at the surgery center at 6:45 am and we were pulling out of the parking lot to go home at 9:00 am! It went so quickly! He did well with the anesthesia but coming out of it was a little difficult. He was very unhappy and confused, but once it wore off, he was right back to normal! He actually slept for 9 straight hours last night....so maybe he finally had some relief from the pain in his ears and was able to sleep better! I hope this keeps up! Just wanted to let you all know how he did! Thanks again for lifting him up!