Cameron: 2 YEARS.

Goodness, goodness... I can't believe my baby boy is TWO.

He has changed so so much in the past year. So many new words, new friends, new abilities, and even new personalities.

Cameron, this year you got to grow into a toddler. Not only that, but you also became a big brother. What a big year. We are so proud of the sweet, funny, loud BOY you have become. You are all boy. You play hard and you love hard. We are pretty sure you are partial to your sister over mommy and daddy but we don't mind. Rylin adores you and loves watching you play. So keep it up.
I absolutely cannot get over the change you have been through this year physically. You were such a little baby a year ago and you are so not anymore. Just a sweet big kid. You can catch, kick, jump, run, and climb! You are a master climber.
Mentally you have changed so much as well. You are saying just about anything you want and putting together plenty of phrases too. Sometimes I listen to you talk and am just in awe of how we can now communicate, and how we will be communicating soon. I love hearing what's on your mind. So keep that coming.

Your two year old stats are 28 pounds 3 ounces (50-75%) and 33 inches (25%). Growing like a weed.
You are a good eater and sleeper typically. We are so thankful for that. You still take one nap around 1-4 everyday.

Basically if I didn't say it clear enough.. you are a great kid that we love with all that is in us. We can't wait to see what fun this year brings!
LOVE LOVE LOVE YOU.

Favorite 10 of 2015.

Favorite 10 of 2013.

I know I say this every year I post a favorite 10... but really, what a blessed, blessed year it has been. The Lord has been good and is so faithful in all that we do and accomplish! Thankful for that!!

#10. Gatlinburg mini vacation.

We had such a blast taking our little family to Gatlinburg just for a night. We've never done anything vacation like with just our little family (and definitely not as a family of 4). So we really enjoyed this special time together even if it just involved Redneck downtown Gatlinburg, shopping, eating, and a little time by the pool! 

#9. Auburn football.

This is just always on my list. Our family loves loves all things Auburn, not just the football... so that makes it extra special when we get to head to our favorite city, with two cute babies in tow, for the weekend. There's not much better than a Saturday filled with tailgating and then a warm evening in Jordan Hare watching our Tigers!

#8. Thanksgiving on the farm.
We had the extra treat of celebrating Thanksgiving with our Watford family on the (Scott) Palmer farm. The kids loved the open spaces and animals. The hay ride was a personal fave. If it would have been a tiny bit warmer it would have been perfect.

#7. Mammaw's wedding.

Our dearest 78 year old Mammaw got married to her love, Bob Smith, mid July. We were so happy to celebrate our Mammaw being so happy! They are one of the most active 75+ couples I know. Lots of nights out for shows and dinners. We so enjoyed having all of the Thaxton fam together!

#6. New family.

This year we got to add more family! Every year it just keeps getting better and better. Sweet Sullivan James joined Blake, Katherine, & Caroline in Florida in early September! He is just the perfect addition and we loved meeting him this fall and getting to know him at Christmas. Another sweet baby, Ellie Palmer, joined Brandon, Meaghan, & Tucker in Ohio in late September. She is just the cutest and a really perfect little cousin for Cameron and Rylin. 

#5. Family moves to Nashville.
One big highlight this year, obvious since its #4 huh?!, is having family in Nashville with us! We love love having both Curtis families in town. Kendrick, Kathy, Margaret, and Madeline literally live a couple miles down the road. And Dustin, April, and Emmaline came in May (even stayed at our house for a week or two) and live fairly close in Smyrna!

#4. Cameron turned 2.
I don't know how it is possible that our first child is two. He is a joy to have around, although I see those terrible two's come out to play every once and awhile. He loves all things transportation: trains, planes, cars, and trucks! He's so silly and is typically very sweet to his little sister. We skipped out on a party this year but enjoyed spending time with family around the holidays to celebrate.

#3. Homeowners. 
We became real grown ups in February and bought our first home. To say we have enjoyed it would be an understatement. It truly has made Nashville home for us.

#2. Third anniversary.
We made it to number 3. I can't even begin to describe what this marriage and this man means to me. He holds it all together for me. He handles my craziness like a pro! The first three years is just a teeny tiny glimpse of what is to come for us. We look forward in anticipation.

#1. Rylin Elaine Watford.
On May 12th our life changed for the better. Our sweet little first girl, Rylin Elaine, joined our family... making us a happy little family of four. She's just the sweetest. 

Cameron: 21 months.

Our crazy ball of energy is 21 months... somehow. I'm kinda in disbelief that my sweet boy is only 3 short months away from being 2. It's a crazy thought. 

Cameron is just the happiest, most energetic, outside loving boy. He keeps our little family entertained to say the least. He is a chatter box. As the months go by he continues to add words to his vocabulary and does such a good job of copying words we say. He's also added jibberjabbing a whole lot. He will just start talking and we have no idea what he says. It sounds like it might be annoying but it really is pretty cute. Cameron is doing a great job working on his motor skills. He will follow commands like jump, touch your toes, stomp, touch your head, run around! It's really fun and great exercise! He also has been getting some great exercise by getting out of the stroller after our run and running (with little walking) back to our house. Some nights he goes almost a whole mile. All of that reminds me that this child LOVES to be outside. He's always looking out the window, getting everyone's shoes, or trying to open the door and just get outside. (Which he sometimes just opens... we have to make sure we lock it now so he doesn't escape!) Besides being outside Cameron recently has a passion for all things transportation. He just loves cars, trucks, trains, and airplanes! He loves playing with his hot wheels (and tractors, trucks and other cars), looking and listening for airplanes and helicopters, seeing the trains at Cheekwood, and alerting us of all the trucks on the road! It's so fun and I love him having "a thing!"

Cameron currently is wearing 18-24 month clothes and is in size 4 diapers! We just moved him in size 5 shoe (5.5W keds)! He usually wakes by 7 and naps at 1. From nap he will sleep till 3 atleast and then go down for bed around 7:30! Of course Cameron is great to go with the flow if needed too! He sometimes eat so great and is hardly picky at all. And then some other times he won't eat anything we offer. Cam loves to snack and just loves eating in general. He still drinks a cup of milk with each meal and typically has a morning and afternoon snack. Of course he still love fruit the most! 

Besides being a fun, sweet boy... Cameron is a great big brother. He loves little Rylin more than I ever imagined he would. He loves to give her kisses, hold her, give her paci's, and share his toys! I love it when he lays down on her playmat with her! (Until he tries to roll on top of her! Eck!!)

We love you CamMan and we aren't sure what we would do without you. You keep us on our toes and are so much fun! You are the perfect fit for our family. Keep growing strong and sweet!

Cameron: 18 months.

I know I'm always saying this... but lets be real... I can't believe this little boy is 1 1/2 years old!!! In the past few months he has completely changed from my little baby to a big boy! Not only that but he also has become a big brother!

Stats: 26 lbs (50%) 33.25 in (75%)

Cameron really is such a sweet big brother. He loves to constantly give sweet kisses to Rylin. Although, just recently, we have been dealing with him trying to take her paci... not because he wants it but for the pure humor of it. He will learn, hopefully soon, that is NOT funny :) He's been a lot better recently with slowing down, sitting still, and saying cheese for my picture addiction! That has been oh so helpful, especially adding another little one to the pics. Cameron is talking more and more. It cracks me and Matthew up so much when he just spits out a mumbled sentence of made up words. It will be such a shock when that turns into sentences we understand! His words lately and often are mama (referring to EVERYTHING), dada, baby, bubbles, yeah, please, ball. There are several more for sure that I'm missing. We absolutely love when he says "amen" after the blessing and "all done" after eating.  He stretches out the word "all" and we pretty much think its adorable! He's also become quite the little climber. He wants to climb everything! {While nursing Rylin on the couch I look over and he climbed all the way on the dining table and was just crawling in circles around the centerpiece!} He's mastered climbing up on his highchair, the layzboy & couch, the dining chairs and in and out of the car! Cameron has slowly become a pretty good eater! My recent goal for him is for him to eat the same thing as we are eating for dinners. So far he has done fantastic and for that I'm so thankful! We think its so funny because we have learned to offer the food first whole (like a half grilled cheese sandwich), then if he won't eat that... tear it into pieces, and if he still won't eat it give him a fork and he will basically eat everything! On sleeping news... Cameron moved to a BIG BOY BED! I couldn't believe that we have already done it. He has done AMAZING! And we are so thankful for that. For the first while he didn't know he could get down, then he learned (after falling out of the foot of the bed one night)... so now he sometimes will get down and play some or sit by the door when he wakes up. It's pretty amazing that he is doing so great! Cameron still would live outside if possible. He absolutely loves being outside!! His new skill outside is that he can now ride on his toys rather than just push them around! It's been so fun!

Stats:

26 lbs (50%)

33.25 in (75%)

Cameron you have been such a joy to have around as our little boy! You are sweet and wonderful! We are so thankful for your silliness! Keep growing into a crazy little boy! Can't believe it's already your half birthday! It's been amazing watching you grow and learn... keep it up :)

Gatlinburg, TN.

 Saturday morning we woke up super early and loaded up the car and the kids to head to Gatlinburg for a super short vacation.

Seems kinda silly to drive 4 hours with two kids under two for just a one night vacay. Yeah, it kinda is... but we really wanted to do it. We had a free place to stay, SO we had to take advantage of the chance to have our own family of four vacation. Ya know, since we have never done it before :) It was a whirlwind, but it was totally worth it!

Our little troopers did a pretty amazing job in the car. Cameron was such a big boy and ate Chickfila for breakfast in his carseat all by himself and watched two movies (on and off). Rylin slept hard and was her normal chill self! 

When we finally got there, after only one pit/feeding stop, there was some traffic going through Pigeon Forge and through Gatlinburg. We weren't sure what we were going to do so we decided to head to Pancake Pantry and enjoy some yummy breakfast for lunch! Cameron thoroughly enjoyed his chocolate chip pancakes! Daddy didn't feel well so we ate quick and decided to head to our condo. (We decided it wasn't really our scene. Seemed way too crowded with rednecks and hillbillies!) 

We made it to our condo (thanks Grandaddy and Grandmother!!) and settled in. Of course with two little kiddos you get lots of down time... nap time! Me and Matthew are very low key people so we don't mind just vacationing by relaxing on a couch! 

The kiddos slept through a little thurderstorm and we enjoyed watching some of the World Cup (Matthew is obsessed!). When the kiddos woke up we got ready to head to the pool. It was great because it wasn't crazy crowded due to the storm! They had a baby pool, which was awesome! Cameron got used to it and enjoyed it. We are still working on getting this boy water happy!

{He still loves elevators!}

We kinda like to spoil the boy while on vacay so he enjoyed some sweet treats... like his first ice cream sandwich!

Sunday morning we got up and headed to the outlets. I'm pretty sure the Under Armour outlet is the only thing to get Matthew excited about shopping! But it all worked out, each of us got something! After shopping we headed to Joe's Crab Shack. It was delish, as always!

We headed back after lunch for the kids to nap. Matthew and I enjoyed a leisurely movie and just chilling! After a bit Gigi and Pappy and Elizabeth got there! The boys watched the US World Cup game while the girls played with the babies! We all had pizza together and then our fam headed out for the babies to sleep on our journey home. 

We so enjoyed our first ever little family vacay. Can't wait for another one... maybe a little longer next time :)

Rylin's birth story.

May 12, 2014... the day we went from a family of three to a family of four. 

After going through finding out Rylin was breech at 37 weeks and then having her flip by 38 weeks, we were all for being induced in hopes of getting her out before she decided to move again! So once again, we were up early after a sleepless night getting ready to make the drive to Centennial Women's and Children's hospital- where we would welcome our first baby girl into our family.

We loaded up the car and left Cameron in his bed with Pops, Cece, Aunt Mere & MayMay to take care of him! Our adventure started with some really bad traffic and our gps advising us to take a different route than expected to the hospital. We thought we knew better than that so we headed in our regular path... only to turn around and basically arrive at the hospital 10 minutes late- I hate being late. {haha} So we went in and were admitted and sent to our room around 7am.

I eventually got all hooked up to the IV and saw my doctor. Surprisingly she didn't even check me and just said she would be back later to break my water etc. etc. At some point the anesthesiologist came in and went through the rundown about my past and the epidural. She asked about my last one and I told her it was amazing and I hoped she could do the same. She asked how long my labor was and we told her and she said, "Oh, 1:47 am..." and we said, "No, pm!" She was very impressed and mentioned she thought this one would be fairly quick as well. At 8:40 am they finally started the pitocin and we got the ball rolling. Here's my "Ahhh, I'm having a contraction face!"

 Sometime around 12 I asked for my epidural and started feeling much better. I think the contractions got to be pretty similar to what I got to last go 'round with Cameron. We found out sometime around then that I was only at 4 cm. I was pretty bummed and figured I was in for a long day of laboring! One plus of this hospital compared to last time was that I was allowed to have water, sprite and popsicles during labor! Last time they only gave me ice chips! It was so great!! 

Sometime within the next hour, so I would think just before 1 pm, Dr. Samples came and broke my water. By that point I was at 5 cm and both she and my nurse were very impressed/shocked that it happened so quickly! I was happy for some positive news. My family came to say hey for a bit around this time. By this point, I felt awesome- could hardly feel any contractions and no pressure yet either. Basically just hanging out with numb legs. 

While everyone was in the room visiting the nurse hurriedly came in and said she need to check me. I didn't really think anything of it, but now looking back she was kind of frantic acting. Everyone left the room and she checked me. I asked how far we were now and she said, "Oh, we're at 10cm!" I was shocked, in just about an hour since breaking my water I went from 5cm to 10! I was super pumped. But then I figured out that she was frantic because she was struggling with finding/keeping the heartbeat because Rylin had dropped so quickly. (I also had to use the oxygen mask again for babies sake!) The nurse called for Dr. Samples to come and also for another nurse to come help. We were getting ready to have this baby! Shortly after Dr. Samples made it and it was time to push. Pushing through two contractions and sweet baby Rylin arrived at 2:31 pm! We are so thankful for our quick, "easy" deliveries... it is a big dramatic though when with both deliveries my doctors seem to be barely making it in the room to catch these babies! 

So here she is... our precious baby girl Rylin Elaine Watford. She weighed 7 lb. 8 oz. and was 20 1/2 inches long. 

We think she's pretty special and cute too!
Meeting my sweet girl:

And Cameron meeting baby sister Rylin. I really really couldn't believe I was now a mother of two. This is just about the only time I shed a tear!

We were so happy to have Tatum there... not only to meet Rylin but to play with Cameron! They were so sweet to each other!

It's always so special when the family gets to meet our baby! We were happy that they got to come and meet Rylin a lot quicker than they did with Cameron! 

Tatum was very interested in baby Rylin!

After staying in the delivery room for a while to recover we were moved downstairs to the postpartum floor! After the nurses took Rylin to the nursery for a bath and took some measurements and etc. they finally brought her to our room so we could continue to get to know our girl!

Our sweet girl... I was SO happy that we got the adorable newborn hat with the bow!

The Watford's know me well... brought me a sweet candy bouquet and some flowers :)

And of course we had sweet treats for everyone who came to visit Rylin! Pink gumballs!

The rest of our hospital stay was pretty uneventful. It was very different than last time with Cameron. He was a crying machine and we had no idea of what we were doing. We also felt like we needed to keep him in our room rather than sending him to the nursery... This time Rylin was an angel. She slept and ate great! We sent her to the nursery during some parts of the nights since we knew it was most important to get our rest! The difference to me for first and second child has been incredible. There is just something to say about having expectations in your head and knowing what to expect!

 It's truly been such a joy to be Rylin's mommy! I feel like she is just my little doll to play with and dress up! Matthew is adjusting to having another girl in the house and Cameron loves to give his new baby sister sweet kisses!