Long Time No Blog...

WOW! It's been a while! A lot has been going on!! As most of you know, since I last posted, our new little guy arrived! Ryan Hays Nix joined the world April 12...three months ago, today!! "Ryan" is after Michael's brother and also after dear family friends of my mother and grandmother. "Hays" is from my grandmother's (Mawmaw) side of the family. Her sister, Pollye, whom she adored and helped to raise her, married last name was Hays. We went back and forth on the "order" of the names since we knew we were going to call him Hays...Michael goes by his middle name and said it's not that big of a deal........I can't tell you how many people have congratulated us on the birth of Ryan. :) I promise to be better about posting! Lots to catch y'all up on!!

Happy Easter!

Henry just wanted to tell everyone HAPPY EASTER!!!! He obviously LOVED the Easter Bunny...just had to share this picture! I don't know how to work the scanner so excuse the quality of the photograph...it's a picture of the picture. No matter the quality, I think y'all get the idea!

Cozy Coupe!

Michael's parents gave Henry a Cozy Coupe for his birthday...yes, in December and yes it just got put together...don't judge! He loves it!! Here are a few pictures of Henry and his favorite new toy!! Please note the fact the H still has on his jammies...Michael and his dad decided to put the stinkin' car together at 8am...INSIDE!!!! Hello...I was hoping to sleep in since the inlaws were intown!! Oh well...

First Haircut

Henry is looking a little less "Florabama-ish" these days...while he still has NO teeth he did have the mullet cut off today! He did great while Alyssa cut his hair! He probably did so well because he was half asleep...I (literally) snatched him out of his crib, threw him in the car and arrived (only five minutes late) at Hair Expressions! I took him by myself so pictures are few and not so great...I really wanted an "action shot" of Alyssa actually snipping off his little locks of hair! Oh well...





Here's a before shot...check out that mullet in the mirror!!

Freshly trimmed hair by Mrs. Alyssa! She's great!

Snow!!

Well, it looks like the weather forecasters really did get it right this time! The snow started falling yesterday around one and kept going all day! It really is beautiful! After looking for Henry's warmest clothing options (sorry Shirley, his smocked snowflake bubble didn't make the cut) and dressing him in about three layers we went out for a few pictures. Have I mentioned that it took me about 20 minutes to dress him and we were outside for all of eight minutes!!?? Please note the fact that I had to take off my sweater, hat, scarf and shoes while I was dressing him because I was in a complete sweat! Anyway, after finally getting Ralphie, I mean Henry all bundled up we headed out and this is what he thought...

Christmas...a little late!

Christmas has always been one of my favorite times of the year...it's even more fun with Henry!! Michael and I kept laughing about how last year, everyone kept saying "things sure will be different next year"! (meaning, you'll have a baby at Christmas). Little did we all know that our sweet Henry would make an early appearance and we DID have a baby at Christmas! Of course, this year he was a "little" more, shall we say, busy! Just like many of you, we made the rounds to all the sides of the family...can you say EXHAUSTING?!?! Since this post is l-a-t-e, I'll just show off a few pics of my sweet little boy instead of boring you with the ins and outs of our Christmas travels! By the way, next Christmas sure will be different!!! We still can't believe we'll be ordering another stocking!! God is so good (and full of surprises)!

Checking out what Santa brought!

Every boy should get a BB gun!! Just kidding...this was really for our nephew!

It is WAY more fun to clap puzzle pieces together than to figure out where they go!

A few more birthday party pictures...

Thirsty Henry with some party pals!

More party pals

Little Baby Mary Ellen

Opening gifts...great practice for Christmas :) Sweet Aaron taking a turn on Rody Pony!

Henry and the Faber Girls!

Baby Payne

Henry showing off his favorite toy, an empty wrapping paper roll to The Lavenders

HAPPY FIRST BIRTHDAY!!

I can not believe that my precious baby is now a one-year-old!! This past year has been the absolute best year of our lives! Michael and I have had more fun watching our sweet baby boy grow and learn! We were talking earlier and decided that we can't believe Henry's already a year old because the time has flown by but also don't remember life without him. He's such a fun little guy and he makes me smile every time I think about him! I never thought I could love someone so very much. We are so thankful every day that we were chosen to be Henry's momma and daddy. God is so good!

Henry (12/12/08) 5 pounds 4 ounces, 18 inches long...so much love, laughter, growing and learning this year!!

Here are a few pictures from Henry's birthday party...

Our sweet one year old is now babbling/talking up a storm! His "recognizable" words are Momma, Dada, thank you, uh-oh and bwuddabwuddabwudda (brother brother brother)! He (finally) loves table food and so far has eaten anything I've put in front of him. He loves fruit, cheese, avocados, potatoes, carrots, green beans, cheerios and graham crackers. Henry isn't walking, yet...but he cruises all around the furniture and can play a mean game of peepie! He loves to be tickled and snuggled and still loves Weez (his blue bunny) the most in the world! Happy Birthday, Sweet Henry!! We love you!

Blessed

We are very excited to announce that Henry is going to be a BIG brother! We feel extremely blessed and a little caught off guard, that's for sure! This sweet little baby is a boy and we could not be more excited! He's due mid April so these little boys will be sixteen months apart! We are taking name suggestions since we don't have a clue what to call this little guy! Obviously, Henry has no idea what is about to happen to his world and quite frankly Michael and I don't either! We are just thanking God for this wonderful gift and holding on tight for the ride! Henry has been more fun and filled us with more love than we ever thought possible! I can't even imagine how wonderful our lives will be with another baby boy!

Happy Thanksgiving!

So I am a little late in wishing everyone a Happy Thanksgiving...what's new! Y'all all know I'm never on time with anything!!! :) I hope everyone had a happy day and enjoyed yummy food and fun times with friends and family! Henry's first Turkey Day Weekend was fun. We went home to Alabama and were able to visit with my family and Michael's family! We started off Thanksgiving morning watching (what else) The Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade!! I must admit that I look forward to this all year!

Henry was also lovingly "attacked" by Yaya (my mom) and "forced" to wear the turkey headdress...

While we all had a fun time and Henry was a sweet little guy...he turned into a bit of a turkey regarding his nap/bedtime schedule due to the traveling...oh well, I guess that's the beauty of traveling with a baby...here we come Christmas!! :)

Happy Halloween!!

Henry's First Halloween was a success! He left his costume on, smiled at people, filled up his candy bucket, went to sleep and let Momma and Daddy eat all of his candy!! :) Michael and I had a great time parading our little Henry-Duck around the neighborhood with friends!

We trick-or-treated with a Daisy Bug (Maggie), a vet (Ally) and Bat Girl (Sarah Kate) and with the grown ups...Aunt Ro, Aunt Ellie (and Baby A) and Uncle T! It was so much fun! I told Michael that now I really feel like a grown up...taking my own child, not baby sitting kids around to trick-or-treat!! So surreal!!

Blog Vacay...

I just realized I've taken a blog vacation...not really on purpose, just out of forgetfulness/busyness! :) Sadly, I realized I'd not been keeping up because I was complaining to a friend that a few blogs that I stalk, I mean follow, have not been updated lately...and she so kindly pointed out that I'd let mine fall by the way side! So anyway, I'm uploading pictures even as I type to show the fun we've been having! There's lots to tell...a trip to the beach, my brother's wedding in North Carolina, and just some everyday fun. I will post stories and pictures soon!!

Eight Months, Already??

Today is the day...Henry has now been here the same amount of time that I was pregnant with him! Time has absolutely FLOWN by!!!!! I can not believe that this time eight short months ago, I was just about to meet the love of my life. It seems like it was just yesterday, yet, I really don't remember life without him. At eight months old, Henry is rolling all over the place, hasn't shown any interest in crawling (which is fine by me...I want him to stay a BABY!!!), loves green beans and peas the most, thinks hearing a fake sneeze is the funniest thing in the whole world, smiles all the time, loves to play with Momma's Blackberry (and gets a little mad when it is taken away), thinks Millie is pretty fun to watch and loves to play with Momma and Daddy. We love you so much, Sweet Henry Bug!!! Happy Eight Month Birthday!!!!

Time Flies!!

Hi! We're still around, we've just been having a fun summer and forgot to post! I promise I'll get back to it soon!!! For now, here's one of my new favorite pictures of Henry!

Do you hear that?

It's the sound of wedding bells!!!!! My (Leslie) brother, Paul is getting married to the best girl in the world, Katie!!!! We are all so excited and can't wait for the big day! And we won't have to wait long, they will be married in North Carolina on September 26 (and per Katie's declaration, "No, I am not pregnant, I'm just ready to marry Paul"). Truthfully, Katie's grandfather, whom she was very close to, recently passed away but his wedding anniversary was September 26, so it will be a very sentimental day. Henry is super excited for Uncle Paul and Aunt Katie!!!!!!

Henry's Baby Dedication

Last Sunday, Henry was dedicated in Michael's family church. It was such a sweet day for all of us. The family church is in the small town where Michael's dad, Clyde, grew up and was (literally) hand built and founded by his father. Uncle Gene, Michael's uncle, is now the pastor of the church. He did a beautiful job of dedicating Henry to the Lord. (By the way, Uncle Gene also married us). I know I've seen a number of baby dedications, baptisms, christenings and while I always think they are sweet, I guess I'd really never thought about the absolute meaning...until it was my son. It was the most wonderful feeling of awe to have my child dedicated to his Father. It was truly a beautiful time as a parent.

Of course, with my mother-in-law and ALL of Michael's aunts around...there is always a celebration with more food than anyone knows what to do with! We were so happy to have so many of our close friends and family to share in the special day with us! THANK YOU!! Here are a few pictures from the special day!

Auntie Diane helping to put on Henry's gown

Uncle Gene, Momma, snoozing Henry and Daddy

Thanks, y'all, for sharing this day with us and blessing our sweet baby boy!