A shower, our Anniversary, a wedding, Father's Day

I have been putting off this post because I wanted to add pictures, but that just hasn't happened so I decided just to go ahead and write! Hopefully my brillant verbage will draw just as good of a mental picture for you...ha!

Oh, where to start. I guess I will proceed in chronological order since we've had some big events at the Byce household as of late...

It all started a few weeks ago with my soon-to-be-sis-in-law's bridal shower. We always hold the Sosebee family shower at Brick St. Cafe in Greenville and it has never disappointed us. Oh me, oh my the food and atmosphere is SOOOOO....good there. As a matter of fact, with Corey and Kristen being the last to get married in the Sosebee fam, we started discussing that maybe we need to start getting together to celebrate anniversaries!! The shower was wonderful and the happy couple got lots and lots of very nice things - esp for their kitchen, which is out there somewhere, they just aren't sure where yet....meaning, they still are not sure where they are going to live. Yes folks, they are getting married in 5 weeks and still have no place of residence thanks to the current economy. BOTH are having a hard time finding jobs and they aren't even picky. They seriously will live anywhere....I mean, come on, they met overseas! Please keep this on your prayer list. I know it has to be so frustrating, but also know that these 2 will just be happy to be married, jobs or not! :)

Next was Chad and I's 4th anniversary. I can't believe it's already been that long. It was a fun day. I greeted Chad to sticky notes all over the house and in his car wishing him a happy day and telling him what a great hubs he is and he treated me to a day of shopping at the outlets in Commerce, GA! I do believe I got the better end of the deal! That night mom and dad came over to keep Caleb and we went on a date to The Galley. We had a great view of Lake Hartwell (which is FINALLY full) and many of the boats that are docked at the marina close by. We skipped dessert at dinner and headed to OUR favorite dessert place, Brusters, for some yummy ice cream. It really was a fun evening and gave us some much needed one-on-one time. Before baby, Chad and I always (the 2 whole years that was!) took an anniversary trip. Now that Caleb is around we opted for dinner out on Wednesday and a weekend trip to the giant metropolis of Aiken, SC! Acutally Chad was in a wedding so we had to leave Friday afternoon, spend the night and come home Saturday night after the wedding. It wasn't quite Florida or a Carribean cruise, but it was nice to get away for a night and get to sleep late! We didn't actually pick up Caleb from mom and dad until Sunday afternoon and on Sunday we slept until 10am!!! I can honestly say this is the first time we've done this since Caleb was born. I hate we missed church, but it was SOOOOOO...wonderful.

The Sunday we picked Caleb up was Father's Day so we spent the rest of the day celebrating the dads in our lives. We started with a cookout at Grannie and Papa's and ended with dinner with Chad's parents. Hopefully through all the celebrating with families Chad felt special too!! Caleb gave him a card and a coupon for the gift he is going to give him. He hasn't been able to get back to Greenville to pick it up yet, but this is it. We can't wait to jam the summer away!

And he's off!!!

My baby boy has offically reached that milestone that distinguishes a toddler from a baby...He's walking!! Caleb has definitely taken his own little time deciding to do this. His progression went something like this: 6 months - rolling tummy to back from one end of the room to another; 8-9 months - army crawling everywhere and pulling up on things; 11 months - crawling up on all fours and starting to cruise furniture, pushing his walking toy around like crazy; 13 months - continuing to cruise furniture and becoming more of a risk taker by attmepting to let go of things and stand on his own; 15 months - finally walking! For about the past 3-4 weeks he would stand and take about 3-4 steps and then fall into your arms, but yesterday we were at mom's house and it just all seemed to click. He and I were the only ones there because we were waiting on mom and dad to get home. He pulled up on one of the end tables and then just decided to walk from the den straight into the kitchen. It was probably about 13-14 steps. It was completely unprompted. He just decided he could do it. Now there is no stopping him! It's so cute to watch. He holds his arms out to the side (for balance) and is so proud once he reaches his destination!! Could it possibly have anything to do with the round of applause he gets everytime he does it?!?! I have to say when he first did it it made me tear up a little. I haven't been emotional about him getting bigger like some people do because I have just loved every stage, but for some reason the walking tugged a little at my heartstrings! He really is getting to be a big boy and I know this is just the start of him being a more independent little man.

VICTORY!!!!!

Let me just tell you...we had a stubborn and determined little guy on our hands!! After no luck catching the little rodent the first day, we ALMOST got him after the second night. Matt (bro-in-law), who was the fearless one to drive the car with the unwanted visitor checked the second morning and the mouse had gotten stuck in the gooey stuff the night before, but managed to use all his mighty mouse might to get out!!! Left on the sticky stuff was the fur from his belly - seriously. So then we had on our hands a half-skinned mouse running around the car. On his way to work Matt would always see him run around the passagers side so after the third night and not cathing him again, he lined the sticky strips and all the traps in a straight line - the exact path the mouse been following the previous mornings. This must have been the trick because Matt saw him come out for his morning excercise (or breakfast, maybe) during his drive to work that day. The mouse made it through the TWO things of sticky stuff and then this is what happened when he hit the very first trap:

You can see that he was not very big. In this picture he is beside a regular sized mouse trap. I wish I could be nice and say we tried not to kill him, but I would be lying. He is now in mouse heaven and I promise they are happier to have him there than I was to have him in my car! Now, let's just hope he really was a HE and that there are no offpspring!!!

Rodent Update

And I say update, because HE IS STILL IN MY CAR! Apparently this little guy has made quite the cozy little home somewhere in my car. The day we discovered him we set mouse traps up all over the car. No luck. That night Chad and his brother tore the car apart and found nothing. They set up more traps that night with cheese to intice the little guy, but when we checked the next morning....No luck. Chad's brother drove the car to work yesterday and left traps set up while he was there with peanut butter on them (we read this worked better than cheese) and still NO LUCK! Oh...and I forgot to mention that he SAW him on his way to work gallavanting around the floorboard again. This little guy is tricky, but we are bound to get him eventually. We have vacuumed the whole car so there are no crumbs except what is on the traps. Last night we tried a soft cheese because, again, we read this works better because they can't just get it and run off with it. So, at this point if he wants food he's gotta go to the trap. The only downside is that (in yet another attempt to rid my car of this visitor) we called an exterminator to see what to do and he said they can live without food for up to 7 days. Just great. Thankfully my in-laws have an extra car that they have been driving so that I can drive their car. Unfortuantely, the saga still continues. I will send a final update hopefully very, very soon.

Hickory, Dickory Dock...

...the mouse ran up the clock and then apparently STRAIGHT INTO MY CAR!!!!! AGGGHHH! I am so not kidding. This morning I was driving to school on I-85 and I thought I saw something run from under the seat to the front of the car on the passenger's side. Of course I only saw this with my peripheral vision, so I wasn't quite sure. I looked as much as I could while driving but didn't see anything except my phone charger in the floor. I just chalked it up to my imagination and kept driving. But then, only a few minutes down the road I saw the exact same thing going this time from the front to the back. I didn't figure there was any way I could have imagined this twice and it freaked me out, so I pulled over on the side of the interstate. I immediately called Chad and this is how the convo went:

Me: Chad, where are you?

Chad: I am at Exit ___ (which happened to be one exit behind me)

Me: Well you have to come and get me.

Chad: What? Why?

Me: Because there is something in my car and I am standing on the side of the interstate.

Chad: (who has started laughing at me at this point) What is it? A spider?

Me: No seriously it is something big and you better come and get me because I am NOT getting back into my car.

So, my knight came to my rescue. We opened the car and he was immediately able to find little "droppings" under the seat. UUGHHHHH!!! Chad and I traded cars and I headed on to school. About 2 minutes after we parted ways Chad called me and told me he'd seen it scurrying around. It even freaked him out and he said he just prayed all the way home that he would get there fast! Anyway, my car is now sitting at my in-laws with mouse traps and this sticky stuff in it to capture this critter. I must say that if I was going to have this happen I am glad it happened the way it did because if I had seen it and recognized what it was while I was driving, I can ASSURE you I would have wrecked my car! My dad always told me that if there was a bee in my car just to pull over (cause I HATE bees)....I guess the same rule applies to rodents!

I'll keep ya updated on how it all goes down!

DISCLAIMER: WE DO NOT KEEP A NASTY CAR . THIS COULD HAPPEN TO ANY OF YOU!

Packing, packing, packing...

No, we are not moving again, but by the looks of all the stuff I am having to gather to go on our short family vacay to the beach, you would think we are! I thought I took a lot when it was just Chad and I, but throw a child in the picture and I feel like I practically have to load up one entire room from our house. We just take the usual - clothes, shoes, toiletries, etc. But for sweet, little, 1 year old Caleb we have to take it all - pack 'n play to sleep in, pack 'n play mattress, cover for mattress so it will be more comfy, sheet for mattress and cover, clothes and lots of them just in case he messes something up or it's cooler one day, stroller, travel highchair, toys to occupy him while we are in a foreign house, sippy cups, the baby monitor, diapers for a long weekend along with the wipes, butt paste and fresh smelling bags for the "shoo shoo" ones. The list goes on and on and this doesn't include the emergency items (thermometer, tylenol, etc). Oh, and since are headed to the beach, did I mention we are throwing in the wagon too?!?! Ok...off to get it all in the car.

Happy Memorial Day Weekend!

Be safe and remember to give thanks for those who have fought for our country and for those who still are. A big shout out to my cuz, Jason, who will be leaving (AGAIN!) very soon to go do just that. I LOVE YA, CUZ AND WILL BE PRAYING FOR YOU!

My little mocking bird...

As soon as Caleb turned 1 it was like he decided it was time to start picking up words. As of yesterday he could say mama, da-da, juice, Daisy, uh -oh (but he leaves off the oh and just says "up"), Papa, and quack quack. Well today he added a new word to his reportoire. Here's how the story goes. I had him on the kitchen counter putting his shoes on. As he was sitting there he picked up an apple. I said, "APPLE". He tries to repeat my word and does a pretty good job. Then I suppose he decides this apple is very ball-like and tosses it to the ground. As he does this I say to him, "OHHHHH.....NOOOO" in which he repeats back to me as clear as can be and as if he's said it 100 times "OHHHHHH....NO!" Of course I die laughing and then get him to repeat it 10 more times just to make sure he was really saying it, and sure enough he was. He is just getting to be so funny, but I guess we really must start watching the things we say around him. No more of the "s words"...you know shut up, stupid, etc. - that's about as bad as it gets at our house!

Fhoto Friday

A moment with Ella Claire

WHOA!!! It's electric! :)

Enjoying his most recent favorite activity - wagon rides!

Caught!!!

When I walked into Caleb's room today this is what I found. I ran to get my camera. I have many, many hopes and dreams for my little guy and one of them is that he enjoy reading. Hopefully we are getting off to a good start!!!

Happy Friday to everyone!

Oh so random...

1. I have been a super slack blogger lately!!

2. Going back to work part time has been wonderful!! I am working at my old school, still in first grade, but only as a teacher's assistant. I am there 8-12 and it's the perfect amount of time. Then, I'm off to pick up Caleb by 12:30 and we have the rest of the day together. The adult interaction and getting to work with the kids again has been wonderful. And I might add it's the perfect job...walk in the door at 8, out at 12, take nothing home, and plan nothing in between!! Ahhhhhh.....

3. Caleb started having super bad relux a few weeks after he turned one. He's never had it before, but it was classic symptoms - screaming and bowing his back when you tried to lay him down, not keeping down food and not sleeping at night. It was AWFUL. Honestly, we got less sleep during all this than we did when he was an infant. After about 5 days of trying things (taking him off dairy, going all soy, etc) we finally figured out it was reflux and he started Prevacid. Now, he's back to his happy, sleeping little self!!! Let's just hope we don't have to stay on the meds long because they are not cheap!!!

4. My little bro is moving back to SC next week. He's been in CA since September and is coming back this way. He is also planning a wedding and getting married in August. I am so excited about have a new sis! Oh...and the bridesmaids dresses are AWESOME!!! She found them at etsy.com and I can't wait to wear it!

5. I am loving American Idol this season. I agreed with the vote offs last night, but am going to have a hard time from here on out because everyone else is so good!!!

6. We are about to hit what seems like a second Christmas in our house. It starts this weekend with Chad's mom's b-day, then mother's day is around the corner, Chad's dad's b-day is the weekend after that, my dad's is a few days after that and then it's wedding shower time for Corey and Kristen. Guess it's time to do some holiday shopping!!!

7.I am headed to a Women's Retreat next weekend with church in Mt. Pleasant and I am so pumped. I can't wait to be refreshed and renewed and also get to spend some quality time with some great girlfriends. This will be the first time Caleb has been with Chad for the entire weekend, but I'm sure he'll do great!

8. We are planning to have a yard sale at the end of May so this means we are going to be spending our free time "cleaning out" everything. I think the decluttering will be very theraputic...at least at the end of it. Thinking about doing it actually stresses me out!!

9. I gave in and ordered The Wave . I saw the infomercial and thought it looked pretty cool. I have tried it a few times and it IS cool! You don't feel like you are really working out, but boy was I sore the days after! You totally enagage your core in all the exercises so you can really feel your abs the next day (although I am still lookin' to SEE mine!). I never buy this stuff, but I really liked this. Oh...and an added bonus is that the studio that came up with this produt is in Columbia, SC and the girl that owns the studion went to High School with me. I guess that made me feel like it was more legit than other things I've seen.

10. This is one of the scriptures that was used in our sermon this past Sunday and it's one I've been meditating on and being so thankful for this week:
"Therefore, since we have a great high preist who has gone through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. For we do not have high preist who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are - yet was without sin. Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receice mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need." Hebrews 4:14-16

OK, that's it for my randomness right now! Maybe I will get back to being a regular blogger very soon!!

Christ the Lord is Risen Today!

We had such a great Easter spending time with our church family and our immediate family. We celebrated with our family at church first thing Sunday morning and then headed to our house for a big 'ole yummy to the tummy lunch complete with turkey, mac and cheese, green bean casserole, pineapple casserole, mashed potatoes and rolls. We enjoyed watching Caleb look through his Easter basket at his goodies; although he wasn't really sure what was going on. Most of all, we loved having a day set aside to celebrate our risen Saviour. What I'm even more thankful for is that this is something we can celebrate EVERY day!

Checking out his new Baby Einstein video

The lunch centerpiece. The flowers turned the water pink, but made for a cool effect!

Me and the hubs.

This time last year...

...Chad and I were spending our last night as a family of two at GHS. It was a Sunday and as I was I was attempting to nap on the couch, God's perfect timing arrived and my water broke. Words cannot describe how I felt. I mean, I had been waiting on that moment for the longest time, but when it actually happened, I almost couldn't believe it. For 39.5 weeks I had been wondering where I would be, what I would be doing, etc when it all happened and here it was happening right before me. The anticipation you feel knowing you are about to bring a child into the world and into your lives in a matter of hours cannot be described - total excitement and total fear all wrapped up with a big bow! Chad and I got to the hospital a little before 6 pm and were sent to Triage. They checked to make sure my water truly had broken and then sent us on to Labor and Delivery. We spent a pretty sleepless night enduring my contractions and then morning came....TO BE CONTINUED!!!!

Here are pics from March 9, 2008...

Me and my big belly

Calling friends and family

One of our last pictures of our family of two

Snip, snip

Last Thursday (after being snowed in for our apppointment on Monday) we had a meeting with the "hemlet doctor" and YAY we are finally done with it!! Caleb's head started out with a 18mm difference and the helmet has corrected it to only a 10 mm difference. The doc was hoping to get down into the single digits with only a 8 or 9 mm difference, but his head growth has started slowing down since he's older and he said we'd have to wear it 6-8 more weeks to get that result, and he just didn't think it would be noticable enough to put him through that many more weeks. So....we are helmet free!!! However, being helmet free presented a few new problems. Not only do we no longer have built in protection for those clumsy falls babies take, but we also no longer have a device to hold Caleb's hair out of his face!!! With that said, Saturday afternoon we took a trip for Caleb's first haircut! We went to this place called Jellybeans and they charge 1 cent for your child's very first cut. He did great and acted like he'd been having his hair cut his whole life! It was amazing how much older he looked after only having a little hair cut....perfect for his first ever birthday party which was the following day (that blog to come soon!!). Enjoy the pictures!

Sleepless in Anderson

Yep, that's us. Caleb started sleeping through the night at 11 weeks. He has always done well except for occassionally when he's teething. Lately, he's started waking up super early in the morning....like 4 am!!! It's about to kill me!!! Last night he was awake from 1:30 - 3am! To all you mommies out there....how old were your kids when they dropped their morning nap? He still sleeps about 1.5 hours in the morning and then 1.5 in the afternoon. I am starting to wondering if maybe he is getting too much sleep during the day and not needing as much sleep at night 'cause when he wakes up at 4 am he is WIDE awake and wants to play!!! Any ideas from any professional mom's out there?!?!

Winter Wonderland!!!

So here we are on March 1st, 9 days before Caleb's first birthday, and we get out first snow of the winter. I was wondering if not being in school this year would cause me to be less excited about the snow since I stay home anyway, but let me tell you, that was not true. I was JUST as excited!! Here are some pics of Caleb going out in his first snow. Oh, and by the way, we only stayed out about 10 minutes. I had to preface the pics with that because he has no gloves on and we had a VERY hard time getting him to keep his hat on. Since he's had his helmet all winter we never purchased a stocking hat that ties under the chin, but we are definitely in the market for one next year! Enjoy the pics and enjoy your day at home...if, in fact, you are getting to be "snowed in" too!!

Caleb and Daisy checking out all the white stuff!

4.5 inches!! WOW!

Our backyard

Caleb wondering what this is all about.

Playing with Da-da.

They were hopping through the snow!

Family snow pic.

Our house covered in white

Our slushy street

Chocolate Mug Cake

OK...I did not come up with this recipe nor have I tried it. But it looks WAY good and I am definitely going to give it a try ASAP!! Thanks, Khristy, for sending it to me!! 5 MINUTE CHOCOLATE MUG CAKE 4 tablespoons flour 4 tablespoons sugar 2 tablespoons cocoa 1 egg 3 tablespoons milk 3 tablespoons oil 3 tablespoons chocolate chips (optional) A small splash of vanilla extract 1 large coffee mug Add dry ingredients to mug, and mix well. Add the egg and mix thoroughly. Pour in the milk and oil and mix well. Add the chocolate chips (if using) and vanilla extract, and mix again. Put your mug in the microwave and cook for 3 minutes at 1000 watts. The cake will rise over the top of the mug, but don't be alarmed! Allow to cool a little, and tip out onto a plate if desired. EAT! (this can serve 2 if you want to feel slightly more virtuous). And why is this the most dangerous cake recipe in the world ? Because now we are all only 5 minutes away from chocolate cake at any time of the day or night!

A penny for your thoughts....

Except I am PRETTY sure you would not want the penny I gave you. Let me explain...

I go to change Caleb's diaper last week and guess what I found?!?! Yep, a penny. Right in the middle of his "shoo shoo" (as we call it). Oh yeah. Mom of the year for me. When did he eat this, you ask. I HAVE NO CLUE!! I thought back over the few days prior and the only time I could think it may have happened was about two days before. Caleb was with me in our room playing - pulling up on anything he could find, crawling all around - while I was getting dressed. Then, he started coughing. Of course, I immediately looked down at him and he spit up some (which is a little odd because he hadn't just eaten and he never spits up anymore) but he seemed to get a hold of himself and go right back to playing. He never even cried or anything. So, I finished getting ready. And then two days later...well, you read the beginning. When Chad got home, which was about 10 minutes after I discovered this, I took the diaper to him and told him I knew how we were going to strike it rich. I opened the diaper and said, "Look!!! Our child poops pennies!!!" We did have a good laugh over it, but boy did I feel like a poopy mom (literally!)

Have you ever done something that made you feel like an awful mom??? PLEASE share your story and let me know I'm not the only one!!!!

Fhoto Friday

A decade ago...

....I was turning 20. I was a sophomore at Winthrop University living in Margaret Nance with my roomie, Lindsay. Oh my how things have changed in the past 10 years, and I'm not talking about little changes, I'm talking about huge, significant changes!! Take a look down memory lane with me:

1. I met another significant person in my life, Janelle, during my sophomore year. She's a dear, dear friend to this day and someone I could not imagine life without. She's the friend you call when you want to chat or when you need the complete honest truth - because she will deliver it to you, but with love.
2. I graduated from Winthrop with a B.S. in Elementary Ed.
3. I graduated from Furman with a Masters in Reading
4. I got my first teaching job at CCES.
5. I met, planned a wedding and married my sweet hubby, Chad.
6. I moved 6 times (Winthrop to home, home to an apt, apt back home, home to Anderson, Anderson to Easley, and Easley back to Anderson!! Makes me tired just typing it!)
7. My family joined an amazing church (Simpsonville First Baptist) where I've been active ever since and have met so many of our "couple friends" there.
8. I had a baby!!!
9. I became a stay at home mom
10. I almost have a 1 year old!!!!

Isn't it amazing to take a look at the road God leads you down in hinesight?? But, although these are all great and wonderful things what matters most is that I pray I was pleasing to God in everything I did in these last 10 years. I know I blew it a WHOLE lot, which is why I am thankful for forgiveness and grace. I am also thankful for the next 10 years ahead. I can't wait to see what my list will hold then and just where God will have led us by then!! I'm going to leave you with the words on the birthday card that my wonderful friend Jennifer gave me because they really spoke volumes to me, and I hope they will to you too:

God is writing a book about you.

The pages tell of your life

and the lives you were created to touch.

No one else will take exactly the same path as you,

meet the same people,

or have a chance to show the love of God in the same way.

You are unique and so is your story...

and it's one of the Author's favorite reads.

Too easy NOT to make...

Do you ever need a quick, but yummy meal. Boy, do I have one for you. It takes about 15 minutes from scratch to table. Try it on one of your super busy evenings. It's yummy and super filling.

Broccoli and Chicken Casserole
1 can chicken
8 oz chopped broccoli (I use frozen)
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 cup grated cheddar cheese
1 cup milk
1 cup minute rice

Put broccoli and about 1 tbsp water in 1 1/2 qt. microwavable dish and microwave uncovered 2 minutes. Add all other ingerdients except 1/2 cup cheese. Mix together and microwave for 6 minutes. Sprinkle remainder of cheese on top and microwave 5 more minutes.

Enjoy!!

I usually serve this with bread and some fruit. Also, if you have leftovers, warm them the next day and put it in a wrap...delicious!!