Grady is SIX!

I cannot believe my infant son is turned SIX yesterday! In a lot of ways the time flew by but I do remember very vividly the hard days in the beginning. He was always sick! But he now he's a big dude in Kindergarten and living the dream. Here are some fun things about Grady:

1. He's a big boy! 60 pounds of love and 50" tall! He wears size 7 clothes and size 1 shoes. 

2. Never met a food he wouldn't at least try! Big fan of avocados, pizza, chick fil a, Cheetos and breakfast in general. He eats so.much.breakfast. It's wild!

3. He's into all of the sports. Football, soccer and baseball are his favs. He's a great basketball dribbler too so we will see if he gets into that. His swimming has come a long way. Backstroke is his stroke!

4. He wants to be outside 24/7. Doing things inside other than playing Mario on the switch is kinda out of his norm. Let the boy be a boy outside and he's happy! His bike is his main jam outside these days. Hasn't been scooting as much lately. 

5. Always up for an errand with me. I can always count on him joining me and I love it!

6. He's a good boy at school from what I hear from his teacher. She told me last week that he's kind, he listens well and is a nice friend. Whew! He's also reading nicely and doing a great job in math. I'm proud of his progress in kindergarten with kids a whole year older than him. He's doing amazing. 

7. Still goes to bed at 7pm and wakes up at 6:16am for school via Alexa. Sleeps in on the weekends but not too much past 7am. It'll be interesting to see how he does this summer when he doesn't have to get up early. His sleep patterns will change like last year. 

8. He and Molly Anne are TIGHT. They're best buddies. I don't know what else to say other than they are very good friends and I hope it always stays that way! Yes they pick at each other like normal siblings but he is so, so good to her even when she isn't to him. Sorry Molly Anne but you know it's true!

9. He's a lovable little boy. Always loving on Mills, us, and loves little children that are younger than he is. He has a special heart for babies! It's kinda cute!

10. Any special adventure - he's in. A trip, going on a boat ride, going to a new playground, beach time all of it - he's in and there. Not shy. Full force in it! 

We love our Grady and can't wait to see him keep flourishing! He is AWESOME and I'm so glad he's mine! 

Oh, we gave him a basketball hoop for his big day!! So fun!! Excited about the family memories to come with this!

Grady's Birthday Party at Mission Grit

Grady had his party at Mission Grit on Sunday afternoon. It was an awesome party venue. Super clean, super organized and the boys ( + Molly Anne) had a blast. It's a bunch of obstacle courses that the owner Paul leads them through. I will say, it was an easy place to have a party!

A good ole sheet cake from Publix - chocolate on chocolate football field! He picked it out from the website. Simplicity!

I got the football plates and napkins but didn't need to. Mission Grit provides all of that. Grady just wanted football themed. 

He got to cut the cake with a sword!












It was a wonderful birthday party day for our Grady! He turns 6 on Thursday!

Crazy Weekend

Friday night we went over to the club for dinner. Matchy matchy!

Saturday and Sunday were circuses. Full of fun though! Celebrated Thomas' birthday at Urban Air! 

Went to a neighborhood derby party!






Redheads unite! 


Sunday the kids sang in their big concert of the year. 




And they both wore jeans for the first time in their lives. Well Molly Anne had leggings that look like jeans. She wore white jeans when she was 2 years old. But none since! My poor sheltered children!

Sunday afternoon was Grady’s birthday party at Mission Grit (more to come) then we had a cinco de mayo dinner with Kevin's parents and brother to celebrate Grady's birthday! 

Happy Monday!

Five on Friday

This week was honestly insane. I just keep getting roped into stuff and I cannot do it anymore. Anyway it'll be fine. I think I have a high capacity of stuff I can do but my calendar is off the rocker. 

Monday I was in Winston Salem, NC for a work meeting then we all went to dinner at a local steakhouse Ryan's. It was delicious. Got back home super late but it was a good day with a great client. 

1. Last Saturday night Kevin and I decided last minute to go over to our club for dinner at their new restaurant then watched a guy perform some country music. It was a good time. Probably too good of a time. We saw a bunch of friends we know. 

2. Greer turned 8! What's better than a slime and glow 80's party?!! Atomz Lab did a great job with the girls doing experiments and making slime!


3. Church cuteness. The pastor did a Q&A on Sunday and he is just incredibly intelligent. I like the way he thinks and how he rolls. He's an attorney by trade so it isn't his first rodeo at being sharp!


4. Attended a funeral for one of Kevin's oldest friend's dads this week. He was in the Air Force. The police escort and military service were incredibly moving. This is Providence Road at one of the busiest times of day in Charlotte. 

5. Hilary recommended this old school Chicken Rice and Broccoli Casserole recipe that she ate growing up. It was so good. I used a bunch of extra fresh broccoli and doubled the rice. I loved how it was one dish and had protein, starch and vegetable in one. I made it at 6:30am while my kids ate breakfast then popped it in the oven while I was doing swim drop off and pick up! (I cook it then turn the oven off while I go pick her up then turn it back on to finish cooking when I get home. Time saver during a busy time of day)

Happy Cinco de Mayo on Sunday!! 

Cute Finds

ONE - well this bathing suit is flattering!

TWO - loving this shirt which comes in four colors. This is one of those shirts I can wear for work and fun so big win in my book. 

THREE - I snagged these slides at the end of the summer last year and they are SO comfortable. Good for around the house or out and about. Great gift too. 


FOUR - this outfit caught my eye. Simple and classic. Top // Skirt


FIVE - a staple dress for your closet. 

Grady's Sayings Part Two

I haven't posted a rendition of "Grady sayings" since November 2022 so I figure it is time for some more. I simply write things in a Note on my phone when he says something hilarious or sweet or something like that. Not every time but sometimes! 

02/14/23 - Grady had lasagna at school and Fran and Peggy were talking about how he stayed so clean and Grady said, “it’s one of Jesus’ miracles!”

02/15/23 - the director at Calvary asked Grady how he was doing and he said “GREAT, my family loves me so much!"

03/15/23 - “Can you rub his ears when he gets his treatment?” - Grady to technician at doc office for mills

04/24/23 - "if you give me a big hug then I’ll give you a bigger hug back and that means I love you the most."

04/29/23 - "all animals are God's creatures. So Grady I shouldn’t say that geese are gross? You know god hears dat mama!”

05/17/23 - "God wants everyone to be nice to each other and so the youngest in the family gets to pick what we are having for dinner. And I don’t want leftovers."

05/31/23 - "I’m gonna have a boy name oil and a girl name chew chew when you’re a grandmotha."

09/12/23 - started Kindergaren 6 days ago and he ended up at the nurse. Nurse Julie called me and I said oh boy which child? She said Grady fell on the playground on the mulch. He doesn't have any marks on his back and he is ok. She offered him an ice pack and he said he didn't need it because "my mama will make me feel betta when I get home!" When I saw him I asked him all about it. He said Mrs Boler made him go see the nurse. And his friend had gotten hurt too so they both went. Then he told me "we went back to da playground all by ourselves and I leaded da way!"

10/22/23 - fixing breakfast in the kitchen at the beach "mama I love you so much. You are da best!"

04/10/24 - "What does Santa do if your house doesn't have a chimney?" I told him he has a special key to use!

Friendship

Recently, I was doing ordinary things one night. I think I was cleaning up my makeup area. And I started thinking about how touched I am by my friends. 

Friends are so important. All different groups of friends. I have old friends and new friends. 

I still talk to one of my elementary school friends often. College friends. First out of college, moved to Charlotte friends. Friends from our old condo building. Old work friends. Old and new neighborhood friends. Daycare school friends. My kid's elementary school friends Moms. Friends I play tennis with and against. Church friends. Club friends. Blog friends. Work friends. 

Remember the ole Girl Scout song?

Make new friends, but keep the old.
One is silver, the other is gold.

I am incredibly thankful for my friends. I truly do think I have amazing girlfriends. That is a treasure and I do realize it. I'm just so grateful for all of their friendships....old and new.

Go be a nice friend to a friend today! 

Who you surround yourself with help makes you who you are!

Girls on the Run

Since February I've been helping coach the team at Molly Anne's school for girls on the run! It was a fun time getting to know many new friends from school. On Saturday was the final race that the girls had worked toward for months. Molly Anne ran 99% of the entire race. I was super impressed! I loved getting to run with her.

Five on Friday

ONE - we took the kids to see the Harlem Globetrotters on Sunday afternoon. We knew they'd LOVE it and they did. Of course they had to get a ball too! 

TWO - my favorite iced coffee combo. Better than anything you can get at Starbucks in my humble little opinion. 

THREE - rough work week. I went to bed at 7:30 last night and was asleep before 8. A dream and much needed. 

FOUR - Molly Anne "graduated" from Charlotte Aquatics this week. It was kind of just set up. She prob graduated a year or two ago but she was back to do private lessons there with Devyn. She LOVED getting a trophy!

FIVE - loved getting this picture from Molly Anne's teacher! They like going to each others classrooms in the mornings before the bell rings. 

Happy weekend!

Thursday Looks

ONE - super gorgeous dress under $200

TWO - such a fun summer dress!

THREE - loving this top

FOUR - cane acrylic clutch - yes!


FIVE - so many occasions for this dress!