Makayla's First Steps

The past few weeks Makayla has been standing all by herself and wanting to take that first step but just could not work up the courage. This morning Barry was holding both of her hands and letting her walk to me...then she let go of one of his hands..and then the next and took a few steps. It was so sweet and I can't believe that we were both home to see it.

Makayla's 1st Christmas and Birthday are in just a few weeks. It is going to be so much fun to see her eat her cake and dive into wrapping paper. I have really enjoyed loving this sweet girl rotten.

The last month she had been really busy. We called her our little Bee when she was in my belly and now we call her Busy Little Bee. It fits perfectly. She loves to take anything out of baskets or drawers and enjoys trying to talk and dance. My mom and dad have really loved spending so much time with her and she has picked up a few things from them....like my dad teaching her how to growl, how to bang on the glass windows to call the birds, and how to dance and move those little hips. It is too funny!!!

I can't believe that after these next three weeks pass I will not be saying this is her "first time" much anymore. Most people will start calling her a toddler but I think in my mind she will always be my first baby girl.

I thank God for blessing me His Child and my sweet baby. I love this time of year and am so thankful for the Advent Season.

Love,

Jody

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Long Weekends are the BEST!

I know we all love long weekends...they are wonderful. I love that Barry and I both have the same holidays because that way we are all off together.



We got off half day Thursday and were off until Tuesday....so nice. We had an eventful weekend. We went with my parents to Iuka, MS to see some land and enjoy a nice day on the boat. Makayla had a blast on the boat. I brought a blanket for her to sit on and lots of toys to play with and she got to touch the water....all of that are some of her favorite things!! So far there really is not anything that we have done with her that she has not just loved. It is wonderful having her with us to share in all of our family events. Once we left the lake we went and stayed at the Marriott Shoals and Spa in Florence. It was so relaxing and she loved the pool and slept great in her pack-n-play. I have a really funny story that I will tell another time about that trip.



On Saturday we came home and had a low key night grilling out and running a few errands. Makayla started to get a little fussy that afternoon and seems to be teething. No fun! I know that must not feel good. I am glad we get our first teeth when we are too little to remember. :)



Sunday was filled with a great day at church, cookout for lunch and dinner, and some shopping. On days that I am off I think I work harder cooking, cleaning, getting all of my errands ran than I do when I am at work. Ha ha! The Byrd's came up though and got to spend some really great time with Makayla. She fell asleep on Mimi and it was the sweetest time for her to have holding her close. Now that she can crawl and walk (with help) she really does not cuddle a lot...she is a busy little bee.



I am so glad this week is going to be a short week. I love my weekends with my family.


Hope everyone has a blessed week.
I will post pictures of our boat trip soon!!!

Makayla

Makayla is almost 9 months old....

She is growing so much and doing something new almost everyday!! It is so much fun to see her pulling up on everything now, trying to stand by herself, copying everything we do, and smiling a lot. I love that smile.

Here a few pictures of the last few months.

I just love that sweet face.

My favorite part of the weekend is when she wakes up in the morning and Barry and I run in her room to see that first smile. She gives the biggest smile and it is priceless. I love to see the things she is starting to do that reminds me of Barry and I....it is really funny!

Five Year Anniversary

Today is our five year anniversary. We got married when we were 22 years old so we went straight from college to Brazil to being married. It is unreal to think that we have been married for five years. I love to think about how we have grown in our marriage, friendship, hobbies and activities that we love to do together, and now raising a sweet baby girl.

The first day I met Barry was in September of 2002. It was the week of Fraternity Recruitment at UNA and I was on the ATO Sweetheart court....so of course I was at ATO house. I really do remember thinking "He is so handsome"....the terrible part was I dating another ATO brother at the time. (Needless to say we broke up a few weeks later due to major issues in our relationship!!)

Back to Barry and I...within the few weeks after my breakup we were hanging out everyday! We literally became instant best friends and did this for over a year. We were each other's dates to all of our fraternity and sorority functions, UNA banquets, and anything else we attended!! It was so much fun! I can honestly say after trying to go to different colleges thinking that was what I wanted.....God sent me to UNA on a Soccer/Leadership scholarship....to meet my future husband and I will be blessed the rest of my life because of it.

Now to how he proposed.....
On April 28, 2005, Barry sent me on a video scavenger hunt (with the help of Emry) that started at UNA's campus, went to McFarland Park, then Spring Park, and finally Highland Baptist Church (these were all special places to us). The funny part about this was that I thought he was doing this scavenger hunt as a Graduation present (since I graduated May 14th). At each spot a set of our friends were there to show me a video from him and give me a gift. The girlfriend at each location got in the car with Emry and I to go to the next spot. When Emry walked me up to the steps of the church, the final scavenger hunt location, I had no idea.....that he was about to ask me to be his wife. Emry gave me a really big hug and told me to walk-in. Only the stage in the large sanctuary was lit and the screen told me to sit in the middle front row. After he proposed by singing "Marry Me".....he had a Surprise Engagement Party planned back at my apartment. A lot of our friends and family were there to celebrate with us. He had the cake (shown below) made for the party....so cute!


I can remember that day and my wedding day like they just happened.


I am blessed beyond measure.

Wonderful Weekend....

We had such a busy weekend...

So because I am off every Friday my weekend technically begins on Thursday night. I love it. This past Thursday my mom had some wonderful couples over for dinner. They are some great friends from church. It was so nice. I told my mom that I would bring a dessert and I sort of cheated because I went by Apple Lane Farms and got a chocolate pie. Yum!! We all laughed so hard our stomachs hurt by the end of the night.

On Friday, I went to get a haircut and highlights at deLoain in Decatur. This was way over due. Sonja is the hair stylist that I prefer and she is so sweet and her assistant is the best hair washer EVER. Once I got back home mom and I spent the rest of the afternoon getting ready for my sister's surpise "Salsa" birthday party. We had so much fun getting ready for it. We had a margarita table, a candy and dessert table, and the bar was full of lots of Em's favorite appetizers. I had been emailing and calling friends of hers for about three weeks to make sure that we would have enough people to eat all the food we were making. Needless to say we did not have enough people.....we had made way too much food. The party was so much fun... a great friend Leslie told me about a Salsa instructor names Carlos (well really he teaches all kinds of dances) but since it was a Salsa party he stuck to teaching us Salsa. It was a blast. I hope Emry knows how very much I love her....I am so thankful to have such a wonderful sister. Here are a few pictures from the party!

Emry's cake from Peggy Ann Bakery. My favorite bakery in town.
Candy bucket that my mom came up with full of Emry's favorite sweets.

The margarita station.

Makayla at the party! Granddaddy bought this outfit for her...so cute. She is 6.5 months old.

On Saturday, Barry had his 10 year reunion from Deshler High School. So, the first part of the day was spent at Spring Park in Tuscumbia. They had rented a pavilion and we spent the time catching up with some of his friends from high school and eating lunch. Makayla was so good. When we left the park we went to Barry's parents house to spend some time with them and his grandparents. Makayla was a little fussy because we woke her up so they could hold her for a little while.

Then today we went to church, had lunch at Mellow Mushroom, helped my parents take down some of their patio since they are having Durable Designs come and redo it, and last worked on our Corporate Finance presentation for tomorrow nights class. While we were working on school work Makayla was really trying to crawl, sit up, reach for her toys on her tummy mat, and talk. I love this age. It is amazing to see how she learns something new almost everyday. :)

Hope everyone had a wonderful weekend.

Jody

First Time from the Nest

So after wanting to do this for some time now I am finally starting a blog. I wanted to begin blogging when I was pregnant with Makayla but now it has come to fruition. I am so excited to be sharing our favorite moments from "The Byrd's Nest".

I will be adding lots of moments from the past year to catch you up on all of our many blessings. Barry and I truly are blessed beyond measure.

The first moment I want to add is from our wedding day. We are going to have our 5 year anniversary this October 1st.

Jody