The Moss Melton Family

Mother's Day Program

2010-05-24T12:07:00.002-05:00

Ainsley's 1-year-old class got to participate in the St John's Mother's Day Program. They brought her class out to sing the last song. Ainsley had been practicing at home and had the words and the little dance moves down pat. As you can see, she made sure her first performance was a memorable one!

Here are a few pics from after the Mother's Day Program

Ainsley and Miller Calhoun having a snack

Ainsley, Charlie Kimmel and Miller playing on the bleachers

Ainsley and Mama

Salter's Baptism

2010-05-24T11:58:00.012-05:00

Salter's baptism was April 18th. My parents were able to make the trip which was fantastic. Everything went well and Ainsley made sure it was a memorable church service by screaming her head off when we walked into the sanctuary for the baptism. Moss carried her literally kicking and screaming over to my mom who took her out of the church. They got to watch the baptism through the window of the sanctuary door, though. We had lots of family come to town to celebrate such a special day and are so thankful they could be there in addition to our wonderful friends.

Our family in the sanctuary

With all the grandparents

Salter with Aunt Blewett

Salter with Floyd and Lisa

With my parents

Salter and Ainsley with Grandma and Papa

Me, Mom and Salter

Ainsley with her 1st cousin, Anne Craig, and 3rd cousin Abby Fielder

Salter and I with his Great Granddaddy and Barbara Ringsmuth who came all the way from New York City to be at the baptism. We were so happy she was there! Salter was named after her father, who was also Granddaddy's brother. I love that Salter is smiling up at his Great Granddaddy in this picture - so sweet!

Salter with his Moms and Granddaddy

Moms and Salter

Easter

2010-05-24T11:56:00.009-05:00

Easter was a lot of fun. We had a party at St. John's for Ainsley's class and two Easter Egg hunts - one at Floyd and Lisa's and one at McLeod and Allison Meek's. Ainsley loved putting the eggs in her basket and for those first few Easter Egg hunts didn't even notice that there was candy in them. She kept walking around Lisa and Floyd's yard picking up the discarded egg halves that other kids had thrown down after eating the candy out of them. Of course, by the time Easter morning rolled around she expected candy in the eggs and the Easter Bunny did not put candy in all of them after seeing how excited she was over the empty eggs. Guess the Easter bunny wanted to limit her sugar intake, but Ainsley definitely had that look of "Hey, what's going on here? Where's my candy?" The poor kid got jipped - sorry sweetheart! Salter started smiling a lot more in March and April and I was able to get some sweet pictures of him this month. Enjoy the pictures!

Church Easter Egg Hunt at Floyd and Lisa's

Playing with Miller Calhoun at the Easter Egg Hunt

Giving Miller a hug goodbye

Easter Egg Hunt at the Meek's

Playing the drums! Fun!

Salter and Floyd IV

Hunting Eggs

Ainsley with her daddy looking at "Dada's River" as she calls it

Love this picture of Salter!

Easter Sunday
I tried and tried and could not get Ainsley to hold still long enough to get a picture of them together in their matching outfits. I finally got one about a month later, though. You'll see those in my May post, whenever I get that one done!

February

2010-05-24T11:55:00.015-05:00

I can't believe it is taking me so long to update this blog! It is almost July! Here are some pics from February. Before I went back to work, we drove 16 hours with the kids to Naples, FL, to see my grandmother (my dad's mom) who lives there, and my parents who were there visiting. It was a great trip, except for the part where I got slammed with the stomach virus and ended up in bed for 24 solid hours. Not so much fun, especially when we were only there for 2.5 days! The weather was chilly so we did not spend time on the beach. I grew up going to Naples every year and have many memories of that beach, so I was sad that I didn't get to see it. Moss and my mom took Ainsley to the beach briefly to walk the pier but it was so windy and cold they did not stay long. The main reason we went was to see my grandmother and we had an absolutely wonderful time with her and my parents. She had not seen Ainsley since she was 10 months old - boy has Ainsley changed since then! She also had never met Salter. Grandma loved being able to see Ainsley in action and especially seemed to enjoy just holding sweet little Salter. We had a great trip and actually get to see Grandma again in a few weeks when we go to Ohio for my brother's wedding. I cannot wait! I have not been with all of my siblings at the same time since Christmas of 2008 - a year and a half ago! So we are all very excited to be going home and spending time together. But back to February, below are lots of pictures from all of our adventures...

Our trip to Florida

Ainsley and Salter with Grandma and Papa

Our attempt at a generation picture

Playing at a great park! Lots of fun activities for the kids!

The botanical gardens in Naples had a children's garden that was so neat. Ainsley loved watering plants, playing in the sand, running around all the water fountains and much more.

Grandma and Moss tried taking her to the beach while I was sick but it was too windy.

Grandma and Salter

Great Grandma and Salter

Papa and Salter
Papa would get Ainsley a cupcake for breakfast every morning. Here she is enjoying her treat!

Random pics from February

Trying to figure out how to dress and undress herself

One of Salter's first smiles captured on camera

Ainsley and Luke Archer hanging out during a cookout at our house.

Sweet little man

Ainsley has taken over all of her old toys now that we have gotten them out for Salter. Everything old is new again!

Our little diva

Happy Valentine's Day!

Ainsley having fun on her slide

Ainsley filing her nails and watching Disney Princess Sing-Along. Such a girlie girl!

Ainsley and her dadda

How we spent many evenings those first few months - if Salter got to sit with Mamma, Ainsley did, too!

January 2010

2010-05-24T11:53:00.009-05:00

January was pretty low-key. We went to Jeff and Elizabeth Hardin's for New Year's Eve where Ainsley hung out with Wynn Hardin and Miller Calhoun. My mom came back to help me while on maternity leave, which was GREAT! Ainsley went to Izzy Hodges' 2nd birthday party which was a Fancy Nancy Dress Up Party and was so so cute! We started getting out some of Ainsley's old toys for Salter, like the bouncer seat, the baby swing and his play gym. Of course, Ainsley wanted to play with it all herself! Tummy time has been quite a challenge because if Salter is lying down, Ainsley wants to be right there next to him, practically on top of him! But she loves her little brother and actually does share her toys with him, even if she wants them back a minute later. Anyway, here are some pics from January - enjoy!

New Year's Eve

Wynn (left), Ainsley and Miller (right)

Miller came over to play and LOVED Ainsley's pink stroller!

Moss found the biggest Tickle Me Elmo I have ever seen over at Floyd and Lisa's. He vibrates when he laughs and Ainsley likes to hold onto him when he does that.

Grandma's visit

Ainsley sharing her books with Salter

Playing Outside

Ainsley and Salter

Playing with Salter

Salter 3 Weeks Old

Izzy Hodges' Fancy Nancy 2nd Birthday Party

Group Picture

Ainsley's first taste of Cotton Candy

Ainsley and Kylee Nix

The St. John's Girls (all in the same class at daycare) - Kylee, Ainsley and Izzy the Birthday Girl!

All Dressed Up!

Christmas 2009 - so far behind!!

2010-05-24T10:31:00.014-05:00

I am trying to get caught up on posting the major events since Salter's birth, so here are pics from Christmas! That was so long ago but oh well! These next several posts will mainly be just pictures.

Christmas with my parents before they left to go back to Ohio

Grandma and Papa with Ainsley in the chair they got her, and Ainsley with the giraffe they got Salter

Papa and Salter

Grandma and Salter

The Grandmothers with Salter

Attempt at a pic with both kids

Salter 3 days old

Salter (1 week old) and Aunt Blewett
Christmas Eve at Lisa and Floyd's

Moss and Ainsley with Jon and Margaret Barnwell

Christmas Morning

Moms and Granddaddy with Ainsley and the dollhouse bookcase they got her

Granddaddy teaching Ainsley how to ride her 4wheeler

Salter 10 days old

Our Princess on her 4-wheeler

It didn't take her long to get the hang of it - feet up on the handlebars!

Christmas lunch at Floyd and Elizabeth's

Ainsley pushing the stroller from Floyd, Lisa, Floyd IV and Anne Craig

Ainsley and Anne Craig laughing on the stairs

Floyd IV, Lisa and Salter

The Melton Family

Salter Bradley Melton

2010-04-16T19:00:00.011-05:00

Well it has only taken me 4 months to post about Salter's birth! Life sure is different with two kids! Definitely not much time to even turn on the computer, much less write on our blog. But I am going to try to be better. Salter was born December 15, 2009 at 11:37am and weighed 6 pounds 14 ounces. He was 19.5 inches long. The labor and delivery was incredibly easy. The entire time I was pregnant I was very nervous about going into labor in Greenwood and having to drive 2 hours to Jackson. I was carrying him so low that I felt there was a decent chance I wouldn't make it to the hospital. Well, I made it to my induction date after 3 weeks of bed rest and after being induced it only took a few hours before Salter arrived. If we had had to drive to Jackson there is a really good chance I actually wouldn't have made it to the hospital and Moss would have been delivering Salter on the side of the road! Anyway, our experience at the hospital was wonderful. I'll never forget watching Moss hold his son for the first time. They handed him to Moss and he just held him and rocked him back and forth and kept saying "Hey buddy" with a big smile on his face. He was such a proud father, it brought tears to my eyes and still does when I think about it. Salter was very alert for a long time after he came out. His eyes were wide open and he was not crying, just staring at everything. He has since proved to be a very observant child. He just sits back and watches, which I guess is what we should expect when he has an older sister like Ainsley around to entertain him! Floyd and Elizabeth were on their way to Jackson that morning and happened to call right after Salter was born to see how I was doing and were shocked to hear I had already delivered him. So they headed straight to the hospital and got to see him in the delivery room. My parents drove down with Ainsley later that day and we had several other visitors that first day, too. Lisa, Floyd, Floyd IV and Anne Craig, our minister Rusty Douglas, Moss' aunt and uncle Ben and Randy Rogers and his cousin BC and his now wife Kim. We had a packed house in that hospital room! Ainsley was really quiet and serious when Moss met her and my parents at the elevator to our floor. She didn't smile much and just kept looking around. I guess a hospital is kind of an intimidating place. She was very happy to see her mama and crawled in bed with me and kept giving me hugs and kisses. It took awhile for the nurses to bring Salter to the room because they had to observe him in the nursery for several hours after he was born, which is normal procedure. When they finally brought him Ainsley was sweet with him but was more interested in playing with her cousins and opening the presents. He got lots of love that first day from all of our family! He came out looking pretty different from Ainsley. He had blonde eyebrows and eyelashes but had dark hair on his head. I felt like he looked more like Moss. Ainsley came out looking exactly like I did as a baby. But as Salter's gotten older, his eyebrows and eyelashes have darkened and he is looking more like Ainsley. I think they'll both be brunettes with brown eyes. He's not as content in baby swings or bouncer seats as Ainsley was. He's definitely my cuddly little baby and loves to be held and, if you're not holding him, wants you to be right there in front of him talking to him. He has the sweetest little smile, different from Ainsley's. Ainsley's smile was always a huge, full open mouth smile. He has more of a sweet grin. Someday I'll get around to posting more recent pictures of him! But for now, here are some pictures from the very special day Salter was born.

A few minutes old getting cleaned up

Getting weighed

All clean!

Salter and Mama

Salter, Mama and Dada

Salter and Dada

Our little man

The big sister

Our first family picture

Me, Salter and my doctor, Meredith Travelstead - she's great!

Floyd and Elizabeth, proud Moms and Granddaddy
Grandma and Papa with Salter
Floyd and Lisa with Salter

Anne Craig checking out her new little cousin
Moss and our minister, Rusty Douglas, at the hospital

Ben, Randy, BC and Kim Rogers and Anne Craig visiting us at the hospital

Sweet little Salter

Floyd opening their gift to Salter

Moss, Ainsley, Anne Craig and Floyd at the hospital

Our cousin Ali Dinkins and her daughter Mary Weathersby stopped for a visit

Mama and Salter

Our little man

Marcus Thompson visiting us a few hours before we were discharged

Getting ready to head home!

Headed to the car

Salter in his car seat, ready for the long ride to Greenwood

We're home!

Ainsley checking out her little brother

Getting a closer look

Our complete family!

Granddaddy and "Little Dog" Salter. Salter is named for Granddaddy's brother Salter. They were really close and used to call each other "Dog."

Hut Hut!

2009-12-07T22:40:00.003-06:00

Ainsley loves football! Here she is with Moss learning how to be a good center...

Thanksgiving and Christmas decorations

2009-11-28T13:32:00.009-06:00

Well, as most of you know I am on modified bed rest so I enjoyed Thanksgiving at home. Moss took Ainsley to Floyd and Lisa's for dinner. We had to get some pictures of her in her Thanksgiving dress - she looked so cute!

Our house has been decorated for Christmas since the second weekend in November! I owe a huge thanks to Margie Barger who decorated it for me. She is so incredibly talented! I was just too pregnant to do it myself and also didn't have time to shop for new decorations which we desperately needed. This is our first Christmas in Mississippi since getting married and my first Christmas away from my family in Ohio. With Salter coming I'm sure we'll have lots of visitors and now I don't need to stress about decorating it myself and I know it looks great! Thanks so much Margie! Here are a few pics: Here are a few pics Moss took of Ainsley the day after Thanksgiving in front of the tree.

Birthday and a new friend

2009-11-28T13:19:00.006-06:00

My birthday was November 22nd and we had a great weekend! Our good friends Chris and Colleen Haley and their sweet baby girl Liza came to visit from Jacksonville, FL! Moss and Chris went to the Ole Miss/LSU game on Saturday which was, and I quote, "The best game I have ever seen in Oxford" according to Chris. Colleen and I had a girls day with our little girls while the guys went to the game - we stayed in Greenwood and had a great time catching up and watching the girls play. Ainsley was very sweet with Liza and would talk to her and give her toys. Let's hope she's the same way with her little brother! While Liza napped Ainsley and I played outside with Scout. Floyd and Elizabeth came over for Sunday lunch on my actual birthday and Ainsley helped me blow out my candles. It was a great weekend! We hope to see the Haley's again soon! Below are some pics from our weekend.

Colleen, Liza, Ainsley and Moss

Chris, Colleen, Liza, me, Ainsley and Moss

Birthday cake!

Playing outside in our lucky Ole Miss outfit during the LSU game.

Old Pictures

2009-11-28T13:14:00.006-06:00

My mom scanned and emailed some pictures of me at Ainsley's age since I don't have any here. Ainsley is almost 17 months old. I think the consensus is that she looks a lot like her Mama!

Shannon at 18 months16 months

16 months

15 months

Fun at home

2009-11-28T12:51:00.007-06:00

Due to being so pregnant, Ainsley and I stayed home from most of the Ole Miss games in November - in fact, I think we may have missed them all! While we were home we had fun playing outside and inside and even had a fun playdate with Miller Calhoun. Enjoy the pictures!

Anne Craig came over to play for a little while. Ainsley just loves her and calls her "Keg." She cried when Anne Craig left that day.

Miller Calhoun came over to play with the hand-me-down slides that Floyd and Lisa gave us. They had so much fun! Here he is giving Ainsley hugs - so cute!

Ainsley outside in her cozy coupe.Ainsley and Miller playing with our "new" toys.

Ainsley used to love macaroni and cheese but I think she may be getting sick of it. she decided she'd rather put it on her head than eat it.

Ainsley started throwing fits when it was time to put her socks and shoes on, so I made up a little song that goes "Let's put on our sockies" which she loves to sing with me. But then she decided that putting on her socks is a game so she likes to carry them around instead of putting them on. Once they are on, she takes them off as soon as her shoes come off. Oh well, I tried! Here are a few pics of her playing with her sockies.

Don't ask me why she likes to tuck articles of clothing under her chin. As you can see, she is doing that with her socks here.

Sweet Ainsley

Happy Halloween!

2009-11-03T20:34:00.004-06:00

We had a wonderful Halloween weekend. On Friday we got a few pictures of Ainsley before taking her to school in her Halloween costume for her Halloween party. Moss left after that to go to Jacksonville, FL, for the weekend for his goddaughter's baptism, so Ainsley and I ended up having a girl's weekend. We went trick or treating with Taylor, Allison and Miller Calhoun and she did great in her costume! She never once even tried to take off her piggy hat! We had a wonderful time with the Calhouns! We went to Indywood to visit Taylor's grandmother and Lisa Melton's grandfather. The kids were a huge hit with all of the residents. Then we went to the Meltons and their neighbors Mack and Grace Bain came by. And we ended the night at Taylor's dad's house. Ainsley and Miller were the cutest piggy and duck in town!

Moss, me and Ainsley before school on Friday.

Ainsley's 1 year old class at their Halloween party - from left: Wynn Hardin, Emma, Ainsley, Charlie Kimmel, Izzy Hodges (in the same costume as Ainsley), Benz Porter, Kylee Nix

Ainsley at Indywood Miller the duck and Ainsley the pig at Indywood Miller and Ainsley at the Melton's
Granddaddy, Moms, Great Granddaddy, Ainsley and me

Ainsley eating her Halloween treat at the Meltons - yum, Gerber yogurt bites! Thanks Moms and Granddaddy!

Ainsley and Miller both eating their yogurt bites - they can't get enough! Ainsley playing at the Melton's
Ainsley at Taylor's dad's

Ainsley again at Taylor's dad's

Football Day at daycare

2009-10-28T21:48:00.004-05:00

Ainsley is having a great time at St John's Weekday Ministries. They have so many fun activities for the kids and she is learning so much! A few weeks ago on a Friday they had football day where all of the kids got to dress up in outfits for their favortie football teams. Moss was not very happy with Ole Miss at the time and the Browns had beaten Buffalo the Sunday before so he declared that Ainsley needed to wear to her Browns outfit to football day instead of any of her Ole Miss outfits. Ainsley was the only child there in Cleveland Browns apparel! Here are some pics.

Ole Miss Football

2009-10-28T21:16:00.010-05:00

We have taken Ainsley to two football games so far this year. The bulk of the pictures were from the Alabama game. It was muddy and cool in the Grove and we swore we wouldn't take Ainsley back to the Grove without a leash because she was everywhere!! She was definitely not content to stay in our tent and kept heading for the busy sidewalk or the muddy walkway. There were so many people in the Grove at the Alabama game - the game itself had the highest attendance of any campus college football game ever played in Mississippi - but Ainsley was not intimidated and is so small that she could squeeze through tiny spaces, making it hard to catch her! She had a good time and had some down time playing in the wagon with Miller Calhoun and Anne Craig. She also had a ball at the Arkansas game. Moss chased her around almost the entire Grove! She just wanted to go, go, go! I forgot my camera that weekend so we only got one picture of her from Moss' phone. She was running down the sidewalk and stopped when she saw two guys playing the guitar. She was completely hypnotized and then she started dancing! Everyone thought she was the cutest little thing and a guy with a large professional camera took several pictures of her that may be in a book they are doing on Ole Miss football. She also loved the open guitar case full of tips in front of the guitar guys. She first tried to climb in the guitar case, but after I put a stop to that, she decided she'd rather take the money out and open and close the lid. Needless to say we gave them a very nice tip! I can't imagine what it will be like next year with an active 2-year-old and a 9-11 month old! Below are pics from the games.

Watching the guys playing guitar at the Arkansas game.

Pics from the Alabama game

Ainsley in her wagon on her way to the Grove

Ainsley and Miller playing in the wagon

Ainsley and Anne Craig hanging out in the wagon
Me and Blewett
Me, Dea Hammett, Blewett, Elizabeth Sherman, Shannon Donald

Ainsley and her Aunt Blewett

Ainsley and Miller exhausted after a fun time in the Grove

Grandma and Grandpa visit

2009-10-28T10:50:00.009-05:00

At the end of September my parents came down from Ohio. We had a wonderful time! Ainsley loved seeing them and spending lots of quality time with them. Moss and I did, too. They brought her some presents, including her Brown's cheerleading outfit. We took Ainsley to Larry's Fish House for the first time and she did great! She ate fried catfish, french fries, even fried okra! Despite having a Yankee momma, she's definitely a southern girl! She loved showing off her dancing skills and her toys for her grandparents. She also made grandpa spend lots of time helping her walk up and down the steps by our front door. She loves being outside and had a ball playing with her water table. Moss took her for a ride on the back of his bike for the first time but she seemed pretty nervous and was anxious to get out. I'm sure she'll like it eventually, though. Here are some pics from my parents visit. We can't wait to see them again soon!

At Larry's Fish House

Outdoor fun

Playing with Grandma's cell phone

Showing off her toy for Grandma and Grandpa Ainsley and Grandma

Ainsley loves her daddy!

Summer Fun

2009-09-20T10:31:00.011-05:00

Well I am finally posting a hodge-podge of pics from the summer. It amazes me how much Ainsley has changed these last few months! We have had so much fun with her. Never did I more fully understand what people mean when they say that children are sponges. She just picks up on everything and learns so fast! Here are some of the things that she has learned and just some of the things that she most enjoys for those of you who don't get to see her very often.

1. This summer we went cold turkey off the bottle. In July she started drinking whole milk out of a sippy cup. We heard it could be a rough transition but she adapted very easily. We just felt a little bad because she had literally just started saying "Bot" for bottle and then we took it away! One thing we noticed was that after we took the bottle away she became much more attached to her pacifier and her lovey security blanket.

2. She stopped eating baby food and started only eating solid foods. At first she would only eat bananas. Nana is her word for it and it was one of the first words she learned! Then she started being better about eating more fruit and some bread but refused to eat vegetables, so we had to put her on vitamins. Now she is not as picky as before but she still only eats a few veggies -lima beans are her favorite and pretty much the only other veggie she'll eat is peas and that is only on occassion. She does not eat much meat, either. She'll eat any type of fruit and she loves grilled cheese sandwiches and macaroni and cheese. We are able to sneak lunch meat in her grilled cheese to get her to eat some meat, and sometimes she'll eat fish sticks or chicken nuggets.

3. She started walking at the end of June and now she practically runs everywhere! She took her first steps when she saw an 11x14 photo of herself that I framed large and hung over our piano. She saw it and said "Baby!" and took about 4 steps towards it! Then for a few weeks the first thing she would do every morning was go into the living room and look at herself and smile and say "Baby!"

4. Even before she learned to walk, she learned that she could push things around. She spent most of the spring and summer pushing her toys and light pieces of furniture around the house!

5. She FINALLY got over her fear of walking on surfaces that she's not familiar with. Even with shoes on she spent most of the summer crying if we tried to put her down in the grass outside. In August she finally got over that and now she wants to be outside all the time.

6. She's learned lots of words. Her first word was Mama back in April, then Dada in May. Then she started saying uh-oh, nana, bu-bye, baby...now she says all kinds of words like nite nite, pati (for pacifier), munny for Mickey Mouse, bok for block, ball, boat, and lots more. Her most southern word is dog - she really drawls it out and says "Dawwwg." It's so cute! Her most recent word is football! She started saying that pretty well this weekend, thanks to her daddy helping her.

7. Some of her latest achievements are that when I ask her where her nose is she puts her finger on her nose and says "Nose." She can stack 3 or 4 blocks before knocking them down. She has gotten much better at climbing - her latest thing is climbing in and out of her cozy coupe car. She just started giving kisses and this weekend started blowing kisses, too. She loves spinning around in circles. Back in July she discovered hide and seek and has her special hiding spot behind the door to the kitchen where she runs and hides until we say "Where's Ainsley?" She also loves being chased around the house or outside.

8. She absolutely loves books and wants us to read to her all the time, which of course we love to do! She loves to put her smaller toys inside of bigger toys and then dump them out and do it again. She also loves music. I sing to her a lot and many times she tries to sing along with me. And she loves dancing. There is one spot in our kitchen that she loves to go to and dance for some reason.

9. At daycare, she has moved up to the one year old class and is in there with 10 other 1 year olds. She gets to go outside a lot more, which I know she loves. They had an Open House at the school this week where we got to talk to the teachers and they said that she is prissy and doesn't like to get stuff on her hands. They gave us a piece of her artwork where they glued cotton balls to a picture and they said she did not like getting the glue on her fingers. They also said she is bossy and "Has to get what she wants," even if that means taking toys from the other kids! Uh oh! But I asked if that was normal and they said yes, that all the kids are like that at this age. So that made me feel better. Guess she might be a little spoiled - oops!

10. She has learned how to say "No" and she also knows how to use it! She says it so funny that we can't help but laugh. She says it very prissy-like. I'm sure we will not be laughing about it for long, though. She says no when she doesn't want to eat or drink or do something. She has also started ignoring us sometimes when we tell her No, like it's a game! That or she will just blatantly do what we don't want her to do because she thinks it's funny. The best example is throwing her cup off of her tray at meals. She will grab the handle of her sippy cup and literally dangle it over the edge of her high chair tray. I will give her a stern "No, do not drop it on the floor, put it on your tray. No Ainsley, no." And she will look me right in the eye, give me a little half-grin and then let go and drop the cup!

Aside from all of her physical and mental changes, she really is just the sweetest little girl. I truly had no idea that I could love anything or anyone this much. It brings tears to my eyes sometimes. I just feel so blessed to have found such a wonderful husband and to have a family with him. Ainsley is such a joy. She is happy most of the time and loves to laugh and play. She has the sweetest smile and the best laugh. And at bedtime or naptime when she sits in my lap and lays her head on my chest while I sing to her or read her a book I feel like life just cannot get any better.

Well here are some pictures!

Taken in June, this was our first attempt at pigtails!

Playing with her ride-on toy car in June.

Playing with her ball-popper that Miller Calhoun gave her for her birthday. Taken in June.

Taking a ride in her wagon, which she also got for her birthday. She loves her wagon!

Sitting on the window sill of our big bay window in the front of our house. She went through a phase where this was her favorite little spot. She would try to sit on it by backing up and plopping down, often landing on the floor, until she got to the window sill to sit. Taken in July.

We got to go to the nearby park several times this summer. Ainsley loves to swing! Taken in August.

We went to Moon Lake for family lake weekend with Moss' family and Ainsley decided she would climb into daddy's suitcase. She also loves climbing into laundry baskets and has recently tried climbing into her toy chest/ottoman and tried climbing in the big cooler that was full of ice and drinks last night. Obviously we did not let her climb into the toy chest or the cooler.

But she sure enjoyed daddy's suitcase!

We also spent lots of time in her kiddy pool this summer. Below was at Moon Lake in August and is one of the few pictures I have of her with her sunglasses on.

As I said before, Ainsley loves to swing, so her Aunt Blewett got her a swing for her birthday. Moss hung it from the tree in our front yard and we have spent lots of time there this summer. For awhile we could not enter our house through the front door, we had to go in through the garage, or she would have a complete screaming fit because she would see her swing and want in it.

Taken in August, Ainsley finally likes being outside and walking around in the grass!

Just enjoying being outside.

Ainsley loves Scout. Here she is playing with her and daddy in the backyard.

We had fun with bubbles outside this summer, too. These pics were also taken in August.

Ainsley discovered Cheez-Its this summer. Here she is wolfing some down in the kitchen. Taken at the end of August.

Yum, Cheez-Its!

Ainsley in her dancing spot in the kitchen just having a good time! Take in September.

Riding around in her cozy coupe. She's finally big enough to use her feet to move it around the house. She hasn't mastered going forward, though, and can only go backwards! She also likes to get out of the car and push it around the house. I think we're going to need to re-paint before we ever sell our house because she always ends up hittting the walls. Oh well!

Thanks for checking in with us!

Look what I can do!

2009-09-13T20:41:00.003-05:00

This morning Ainsley discovered that she can climb onto the ottoman that goes with Moss' chair and then climb from the ottoman into the chair. She was very proud of herself and was not happy when I had to take her out of the chair to change her diaper. Here are some pics of her great achievement!

Ainsley's 1st Birthday

2009-08-30T16:05:00.005-05:00

We celebrated Ainsley's 1st birthday on June 27th. We were so excited that my parents and my sister Tara, her husband Ben and my nephew Maddox were all able to make it! We had a wonderful time together. This visit was when we realized Ainsley might have a little trouble adjusting to her baby brother, Salter, who is due to arrive December 27th. As you can see from one of the pictures below, she wasn't too crazy about me holding Maddox unless I was also holding her. Floyd and Lisa got her a baby doll for her birthday and she does the same thing with the doll. She gets excited when she sees it and immediately wants me to hold it. She does not want to hold it or play by herself. She just wants me to have it, but only if she can crawl in my lap, and if I hug the doll she leans in to get a hug, too. The first time I tried to teach her how to take care of her baby doll, I rocked it in my arms and started singing to it and she started bawling crying. Not an angry cry, but the most pitiful heartbroken little cry, like "Mama, how could you sing to another baby!" She wouldn't stop until I hid the baby doll and held her for awhile! So I have a feeling we are in for it when we bring her baby brother home!

Anyway, back to her birthday. Karen Burriss made Ainsley's cake and it was delicious and adorable - it even matched her dress! We had immediate family and just a few close friends over to celebrate. Ainsley loved seeing her cousins Floyd and Anne Craig, as well as Floyd and Lisa, and her friends Miller Calhoun and Camryn Joiner. And of course her first birthday party wouldn't be complete without Moss' parents and his grandfather. She has loved playing with the toys she received. Thank you all so much! We had such a wonderful day! Below are some pictures:

Tara and her family and my parents got here a few days before Ainsley's birthday and my mom stayed a few extra days, which was wonderful. Maddox is the cutest little boy! It is still amazing that he blonde with blue eyes when my sister is so dark - black hair and dark brown eyes! Maddox's dad Ben is in the Army and he and some of his buddies decided to try putting Maddox's hair in a mohawk one day. It worked, so we asked Tara to put it in a mohawk for us when we went to the Meltons for dinner. She even did Floyd IV's hair in a mohawk before the Stars and Stripes festival - wish I had a picture of that! Anyway, we had so much fun together and loved seeing Ainsley and Maddox play together as well. It was only the second time we have been together since Maddox was born in November - Christmas was the first time we saw Maddox and he was only a month old, so he had REALLY changed since then! Hopefully we can all get together more often!

Here are just a few pics from their visit:

Sweet Maddox and his mohawk.

My sister Tara with Ainsley in her pigtails and Maddox in his mohawk

Maddox and Ainsley playing in the pool

So much fun!

Ainsley crawling in my lap while I'm holding Maddox.

Beach Trips

2009-08-22T14:33:00.007-05:00

Okay, first I need to apologize for taking FOREVER to update this blog. We have been having major computer issues when it comes to uploading photos this summer and I just haven't had a chance to really sit down and figure out the problem until this weekend. I hope to do better. So this is the first of a few posts to update everyone on what we did all summer!

We were fortunate enough to make it to the beach twice this summer. Our first trip was with Taylor, Allison and Miller Calhoun in mid-June. We went to Seagrove Beach and it was my first time to the Florida panhandle. It was beautiful and we had a fantastic time! We stayed at One Seagrove Place and really enjoyed being right on the water with gorgeous views and easy, quick access to the beach and pool. With two 1-year-olds we could not have chosen a more perfect location. Ainsley and Miller had lots of fun experiencing the beach and a big swimming pool for the first time. We found out that Ainsley is definitely a water baby. She LOVED the swimming pool and also loved going out into the Gulf of Mexico. Her first time in the pool she kept putting her face in the water and kicking like a little frog. It's amazing that she just instinctively seemed to know what to do. We need to get her in swimming lessons! She did not like the sand, though, and we were lucky to get a few pictures of her with her feet in the sand before she started screaming. We quickly found out that the best way to keep kids this age happy on the beach is with food. We made sure to have plenty of snacks! Moss and Taylor were chefs for the week and made most of the meals. We ate a lot of delicious fresh seafood and even had a shrimp boil! Thanks guys! We went to Seaside for our one night out and ate at Bud and Ally's. I fell in love with Seaside! It is such a pretty town and is so family friendly! They have a large amphitheater surrounded by cute little shops and when we left the restaurant a great band was playing and the grass was filled with families. Ainsley loved listening to the music and watching all the kids dance and blow bubbles and run around. Our 7 days of vacation flew by with perfect weather (although it was record heat by the end of the week). We had a wonderful trip and can't wait to go back!

Our second trip to the beach was in July over Ainsley's birthday. Floyd and Lisa were so sweet to invite all of the Meltons to Lisa's grandfather's condo in Perdido. We had a wonderful long weekend with family and had a small birthday celebration with the family and good friends the Pedigo's. We also got to see Lisa's brother McLean and his family who live in Fairhope. We all enjoyed some beach time together and went to see The Hangover which was hysterical! Unfortunately Ainsley started running a fever on our second day in Perdido so she didn't feel well most of the trip. We didn't get very many pictures because of that. But we still got in lots of good family time, even with her feeling under the weather and refusing to eat normally. She loved being with her cousins Anne Craig and Floyd, as well her Moms and Granddaddy, Uncle Floyd, Aunt Lisa and Aunt Blewett. Thanks so much for a great family trip Floyd and Lisa!

Ainsley on her real birthday, July 9th, in her birthday outfit.

Floyd, Anne Craig, Elizabeth and Walker Pedigo singing Happy Birthday to Ainsley.

Ainsley in her birthday hat which did not last long before she took it off.
Talking to Grandma and Grandpa in Ohio who called to wish Ainsley a Happy Birthday!

Family beach time

Ainsley and Mama (notice the snacks again)

Moss and Ainsley with Floyd IV, Mary McLean, Anne Craig and Patten

Floyd and Anne Craig with Ainsley on the beach.

Floyd with Ainsley at the condo.

Ainsley's new friend

2009-06-08T19:55:00.004-05:00

Sorry for not posting sooner. I have actually tried to post a few times but for some reason my computer wouldn't let me upload any pictures. Anyway, we have been busy since our trip to Ohio. Ainsley met a new friend in May - Garrick Pittman, Richard and Caroline's son. Doesn't he have the cutest smile?! They had fun playing together at his grandparents' house (John and Katheryn) when they came to Greenwood for a visit. We hope they come back soon!

Ainsley and I on Mother's Day with my Mother's Day bouquet.

Ainsley's Trip to Ohio

2009-05-18T11:51:00.008-05:00

The first weekend of May I flew to Ohio with Ainsley for my cousin's wedding. We found a fun surprise as we were putting her in her car seat for the ride to the airport. Ainsley got her first two teeth!

Flying with a 10 month old by myself was quite interesting, especially in a small plane. She was quite active on the flight and managed to get teething biscuit all over the lady's arm next to us. Once we got to Ohio we loved seeing lots of family. It was so great being with everyone again. We just missed my sister who wasn't able to make it because of work. But my grandmother came from Florida and saw Ainsley for the first time since Ainsley was 2 months old, and my brother Todd and his girlfriend Natsuka flew in from Chicago. Ainsley went to her first wedding and did great! She was quiet during the ceremony and loved the reception for awhile at least. She sat in her high chair eating cheerios and dancing to the music. It was so funny, I wish I had had a video camera! It was a wonderful trip and we really miss everybody already.

Ainsley playing with Uncle Al

My family at the wedding

Ainsley with Grandma and Grandpa

Ainsley and Grandpa dancing at the reception

Ainsley and Grandma at the reception

Ainsley playing with Tupperware

Grandma pushing Ainsley on the swing

Ainsley loves to swing

Double Decker

2009-04-26T13:54:00.007-05:00

We went to Double Decker this weekend with Taylor and Allison Calhoun and their son Miller. We had a great time! Moss made Lusco's shrimp for dinner on Friday - yum! And Saturday the weather was gorgeous - a perfect day for walking around the square with the kids. They even got their picture with Colonel Reb - although they didn't realize it because they were asleep. I'm sure if they had been awake they would have been super excited and given him a Hotty Toddy. We got to meet one of Ainsley's newest Grove buddies, Caldwell Embry. They will have lots of fun together during football season next year. And to cap off a great day, Moss and Taylor got to go to the baseball game where Ole Miss beat #1 ranked Georgia. What a weekend!

Ainsley and Miller with Colonel Reb

Ainsley and Miller asleep on the square

Moss, Ainsley, Shannon, Allison, Taylor and Miller

The Meltons

Ainsley and her new friend Caldwell Embry

Ainsley and Miller playing

Ainsley

Ainsley and her Great Aunt Ann Butler who came to Oxford from Kansas City

Easter

2009-04-13T21:56:00.004-05:00

We had a very nice Easter. We woke up with Ainsley early Sunday and she crawled from her room over to her Easter Basket in the living room. She loved the eggs and toys and the giraffe that Grandma and Grandpa gave her. She was not a big fan of the sunglasses, though. They didn't last very long. Afterwards we got dressed and went to church, then to Floyd and Lisa's for a beautiful Easter lunch with Moss' family.

Easter Egg Hunt

2009-04-13T21:40:00.003-05:00

We had a great Easter full of fun festivities. Friday we went to Lisa and Floyd's for the church Easter Egg Hunt. Ainsley got one egg and as you can see, she thoroughly enjoyed it!

Laughing and babbling

2009-03-28T09:51:00.004-05:00

This is a video of Ainsley babbling recently. Right now she is able to make one consonant sound, as you can hear in the video. She is getting tubes and her adenoids out on Wednesday of this week so it will be interesting to see if she starts to make even more sounds after that. Please keep her in your thoughts and prayers. I know it is a very common, standard procedure and that she'll be fine. I just hate the thought of her going under anesthesia. But I've been told she will be an even happier child afterwards (hard to believe because she's already so happy!) Hopefully it will keep her from getting as many ear infections. Our biggest battles are over antibiotics. It seems like we only go a week or two after finishing one antibiotic before we find out she has another ear infection and then we start all over again. Anyway, enjoy the video!

Just a quick sidenote - I showed Ainsley this video of herself after I posted it and she got a big smile on her face and laughed and laughed at herself...too funny!

Ainsley's trip to the park

2009-03-16T22:10:00.007-05:00

When my parents were here, we took Ainsley to park for the first time. She wasn't a big fan of the slide but she loved the swing! She has always been a swing baby - she loved her rainforest swings as an infant. She also had a big time on the merry go round. Poor daddy got dizzy and tried to stop spinning but Ainsley started crying! Anyway, we are ready for the nice warm weather to come back so we can have some more fun at the park!

Check out the BIRTHDAYS post below the post about my parents visiting. It is a newer post than the Grandparents one but posted below it.

Grandma and Grandpa visit

2009-03-14T12:31:00.004-05:00

My parents came down the first week of March to spend some time with us. It was so great having them here. They had not seen Ainsley since Christmas and had a ball taking care of her all week. Ainsley had lots of exciting changes during that time, too. She started pulling up and standing and she learned her first consonant sound. Now when she talks to us she goes bah bah bah bah...It is so cute! Here are some pics of Ainsley with her Grandma and Grandpa. We just can't stand that they live so far away. We really miss them already and hope to see them again soon!

BIRTHDAYS!

2009-03-14T12:26:00.019-05:00

I am so behind! We have had lots going on so watch for several posts....

Well, this post is going to be similar to the one on Lisa's blog but the pics are too cute not to post. February is the birthday month for the Meltons. Elizabeth, Moss and Floyd IV all have birthdays in February, so needless to say we have lots of get-togethers! The first group of pics is from the birthday dinner at the Meltons on Moss' birthday. I was decorating for Cotton Ball and couldn't be there but fortunately they got some good pics.

Anne Craig, Floyd IV, Moss, Ainsley and Moms

Anne Craig, Floyd IV and Ainsley with Mac and Grace

Moss getting his waders and Ainsley enjoying the wrapping paper.

Moms getting her new Viking pot

This pic is from our little birthday party for Moss at our house. Ainsley was so excited about the gift she got her daddy - the One Heartbeat DVD of the Ole Miss 2008 football season! She was her daddy's good luck charm and cheered the Rebels to victory with him in front of the TV for several big games, including the huge Florida upset. So now she and daddy can relive those moments over and over and over...(and believe me, they will)....

Lastly, Floyd and Lisa threw the party of the year for Little Floyd. It was a football theme and of course it rained, which made it fun for the kids who enjoyed getting all muddy. Ainsley had a ball with her cousins, as you can see!

Ainsley excited to go to her cousin's birthday party

Grandaddy and Ainsley watching the fun from inside during the rain.

Ainsley, Mommy and Daddy

Ainsley and Uncle Floyd

Ainsley and the birthday boy!

Ainsley and Anne Craig

Ainsley started crawling!

2009-02-20T20:50:00.001-06:00

It's happened! Ainsley crawled for the first time tonight! We were playing on the floor and she kept going from her hands and knees to her hands and tip toes with her little booty in the air. I moved one of her toys far away from her and she all of a sudden dropped back down to her knees and took four steady moves towards the toy! We screamed and cheered and then we got out the video camera. We got her crawling but she never took as many "steps" as she did that first time. It is so funny that she crawled today because when I picked her up from daycare today they made comments about how she really gets around when she's on the floor. I asked if she had crawled yet and they said no, that she gets on her hands and knees and rocks and then she rolls, which is what she's always done at home. I had been sadly preparing myself to miss the first time she crawled because of work, so I am SO HAPPY that she waited until she was at home with us to crawl for the first time!

Here is the video. This is all happenening way too fast! One thing is for sure, our lives are about to get a lot busier chasing her around the house! Time to baby proof!

Ainsley is 7 months old!

2009-02-15T20:49:00.000-06:00

Ainsley turned 7 months on Monday, February 9th. It is so hard to believe that she is 7 months old already! It has gone by so fast. I look back at pictures of her from those first few weeks after we brought her home and can't believe how much she's changed. And I know in another few months I'll look back at her 7 month pictures and say the same thing! Being parents is by far the most amazing thing either of us has ever experienced. Words just can't describe how much we love our little girl and what we would do to keep her healthy, happy and safe. She is truly a gift from God and we feel so blessed to have Ainsley in our lives. She is the sweetest, happiest little baby. She even smiles when she's sick! Just seeing her smile or hearing her laugh makes my heart leap. And seeing Moss with her makes my heart completely melt. She is definitely a daddy's girl and Moss is amazing with her. On one hand I am sad that she is growing up so fast but on the other, I am excited to experience all of her firsts as she continues to grow.

Here are a few pics from the last month...

Ainsley and Daddy...

Ainsley and her Valentine gorilla

Ainsley and Mommy with Mommy's Valentine gift - the DVD of this year's Cotton Bowl (whoopee...)

Ainsley with Mommy and her surprise Valentine's tulips -thanks Daddy and Ainsley!

Daddy and Ainsley with her Valentine bear

Ainsley playing with toys

Ainsley in her exersaucer

Sweet Ainsley....gotta love that face!

Ainsley's Valentine

2009-02-14T11:20:00.000-06:00

I just couldn't resist putting a little collage together of Ainsley and her boyfriend, Miller. He is her first Valentine (besides her daddy, of course)! Happy Valentine's Day everyone!

Super Bowl fun....

2009-02-04T22:31:00.000-06:00

We watched the Super Bowl at Taylor and Allison Calhoun's house on Sunday. As you can see, Ainsley and Miller were intently watching the game, hoping to curse the Steelers with Ainsley Bear in her Cleveland Browns uniform. Sadly, Ainsley Bear wasn't enough to stop Pittsburgh from winning. But we had lots of fun watching the kids play. Here are a few more pics...

Go Cardinals!!

2009-01-31T08:28:00.000-06:00

Well tomorrow is the Super Bowl. Ainsley will be watching it with her boyfriend Miller and I am sure we will get some great pics. Thinking about the Steelers in another Super Bowl is depressing. Cleveland Browns fans HATE the Pittsburgh Steelers! They are the number one rival of our poor Browns who will one day go on to win the Super Bowl. So GO CARDINALS!!!!

I had to post pictures from the Cleveland Browns game Moss went to the Sunday before Christmas. For those of you who have never been to northeast Ohio in the dead of winter, you can see it is mighty cold! The temperature with wind chill was below zero at the game. So cold that the beer turned to slush a few minutes after it was poured. Moss said that when that wind would whip off the lake and blow the foam off the beer, the foam would turn to ice particles. Before we went to the Browns/Steelers game back in 2005 I had told Moss it would be cold unlike anything he had ever felt before - that game ended up being 65 degrees! He has never let me or my family forget that so we were all thrilled he finally got to experience one of the coldest games in recent Browns history.

Here are some pics of the "beer margaritas."

My brother Todd, Moss, brother-in-law Ben and my brother Alex freezing at the game - they left at halftime to watch from the warmth of a local bar. They didn't miss much since the Browns didn't even score that whole game!

Ainsley's laugh

2009-01-30T22:44:00.000-06:00

Ainsley has a great laugh! She used to just giggle but now she has that fun laugh where she cackles and shrieks. It is the sweetest sound in the world! I just wish I could capture it on video. She becomes so enthralled with the camera that she won't laugh! Here is a cute picture of her on the changing table which is her favorite place to laugh and talk to us.

Family far away...

2009-01-30T21:05:00.000-06:00

I just wanted to share a few family pics we took while in Ohio at Christmas. It was the first time since March that my whole family was together - and we had two very special new additions! Ainsley and her new little cousin Maddox! Maddox Bradley Reed was born on my birthday, November 22nd. He and Ainsley are 4 months apart. My sister Tara and I are so excited that they are so close in age. Now if only we lived closer so they could see each other more often! Tara, Ben and Maddox are in Missouri where Ben is in the Army. They will be moving sometime next year but they don't know where yet. It all depends on where Ben is stationed, which could be anywhere from Alaska to Europe to somewhere else in the continental US. My brother Todd lives in Chicago and my brother Alex lives in Ohio and works for my dad. I miss them all every day. I feel so blessed that I have such a close relationship with my family. It's a comfort when I get homesick and start to think about how far away we all live. Hopefully we'll figure out a way to see each other more than once or twice a year.

Ainsley is mobile!

2009-01-19T21:44:00.000-06:00

Ainsley is growing so fast! She has learned how to scoot backwards. Before we know it she'll be crawling all over the place! Check out this video we took of her making her way across the floor.

Click on the picture and it will take you to the video...

Daddy's Little Rebel

2009-01-19T21:10:00.000-06:00

Ainsley and Moss watched the Cotton Bowl together on January 2nd. Moss' lucky charm was so excited that he just had to take some cute pics of her. Even Scout got in on the action. Needless to say we are all pumped up for next season already! Moss is counting down the days until kickoff.

Time to blog!

2009-01-19T14:35:00.000-06:00

Well, we have decided to start a blog. Hopefully this will be an easy and fun way to keep everybody updated on what's new with us as a family. It will also give our family and friends who don't live nearby a chance to see Ainsley grow and change. Thanks for checking in with us! I'll do my best to update often!