Silly Reed!

After resting last night, Reed decided that he was going to need a little more rest for the energetic day that he was planning on having.



Reed, thankfully happy, was quite the little ball of energy today. He took about an hours nap today, but that has seemed to carry him very far. As it is 9:50 currently and he is still RUNNING AROUND THE family room like crazy!



When I got home, Reed was ready to play! He loves to be chased.



Abbey made pizza for supper. While we were eating, Abbey asked if Reed could say pizza, and all of a sudden he said it!



We went to Lowe's and then thought Reed might be ready to go to sleep. I laid down with him for almost an hour. He didn't fight sleeping, but he would not go to sleep.



Now we're watching the Olympics and I have a few comments: big surprise I know!



First of all, I am really not happy with the way China has blocked some American athletes from attending the Olympics because of their advocacy for the people of Darfur.



Next, the fact that they would not recognize Taiwan as a country makes me really angry. Of course, we are really partial to Taiwan, so I think they should be nice to them. Taiwan deserves recognition as they fought for their freedom!



I hope that the USA does wonderfully at the Olympics. My favorite part of the Olympics is watching a USA athlete get the Gold medal and hear the national anthem.



Now, I am going to post something that we hope you will find amusing. Even if you disagree with Reed's stance on the presidential elections, I hope that you will find him cute in the following video. Update: Email us if you want to see.

Say Cheese!

Reed had a very "spunky" day! He was certainly full of himself and he really enjoyed being silly.



I think that he really wore Abbey out today, because when I got home, she didn't even put up a fuss when I suggested that Reed and I go to CVS for a quick shopping trip.

CVS didn't have any of the items that I had planned to purchase. Reed and I left and went to vote. I have this thing about not voting at every opportunity, even though there were hardly any people on the ballot.



I mowed our yard when I got home, and then we went to meet Britton and family at Chick-fil-a. We had to go to g'ville to get a bedrail for Reed's big boy bed.



Our little guy is so happy most of the time. It was so neat to see him smile!



Reed wanted Mr. Brandon to hold him when he saw Britton being held.

Has anyone had the chance to see the special on Good Morning America about the Chapman's? It is so touching! We also watched them on Larry King Live tonight. It was a really good interview. Their faith is so encouraging and uplifting.

Over the Highway and through the state, to Great-Granny's House we Go!

Okay, okay! I'm sorry that I didn't blog last night. I know that there are a lot of people read our blog, but I certainly heard it from several coworkers today about not blogging!


Abbey and Reed were out of town last night, which I will explain later in the post.


Of course, I bought Abbey a noise-making anniversary card for Reed to play with. So, he enjoyed pulling it out.



Abbey made my card the other night while she was at stamping. Reed thought it was pretty neat.



Reed and Abbey went to West Tennessee to Abbey's great-grandmother's house. Since we cleaned out our closet and garage we had TONS of stuff to take to the mission. We always take our donations to the mission, because they send us an itemized list of everything we donate and they give great values.

Reed liked Granny's MEAN OLD cat Charlie, but thankfully, we think Reed is allergic to cats! Thankfully, yes, because that means we won't have to get one!!!



Since Abbey and Reed were going to be at Granny's, Lola decided to come and spend the night too!



Reed is learning how to open the door by turning the doorknobs! That's a little scary, isn't it??



Reed and Abbey got home this afternoon and we went to church tonight. I had a meeting after church, so Abbey got to put Reed to bed. That made me sad, because I didn't get to put him to bed last night either. I think I might sneak in there in a few minutes!

Anniversary Post

First of all, I'm sorry that last night's title was never explained. Reed has decided that he is no longer interested in sleeping in his baby bed, so last night we tried letting him sleep in the twin bed that was in his room.



Reed went to sleep pretty easily in his new bed and only woke up once. The only thing that we don't like about this is that the door is closed. Although tonight, we bought a baby gate for his room.



Miss Candace was gracious enough to come and keep Reed tonight while we went on an anniversary date.



Nana and Putty gave us a Macaroni Grill giftcard a while back, so we were able to dine for free! Woo-hoo!



After supper, we went to Gymboree and then we went to Target. I know, we're so exciting!

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1 in the 7 Days of Abbey!

Her Love. I could be really cheesy and say, "It's her love, it just does something to me, sends a shock right through me, I can't get enough." but that would be copying the words from a country song and you know I don't really care for country. Abbey is an amazing wife, I think I've established that, but I am amazed at the way she loves me. I mean, I am quirky, have weird habits, etc. but she still loves me. She even loved me when I looked like I had worms 7 years ago when we got married and I only weighed 115 pounds! Now, she loves me even though I've pack on about 75 pounds since we've been married. You all have seen how good she cooks! I am so thankful for my wife and I can't believe that we have been married for 7 years! We're looked forward to another 70!

Big Boy Bed?

Reed had a busy day! He woke up and went to church.



Then, after church, we went to eat lunch with Britton and family at the Catfish House.



Reed ate some lunch and then was a little fussy, so I decided to hold him on my knee. Gigi came to see Reed and was looking at him a little funny.



Apparently, while I was bouncing him on my knee Reed fell asleep!



So, we finished up lunch while Reed slept on my lap. Then, we came home and Reed and I took our Sunday afternoon nap.



After naptime, Reed and I went to CVS, but you can read more about that in a minute. We went to church tonight for a miniconcert. Reed enjoyed the first few songs.



But, then he began to get a little wild! So, we left after about an hour. It was a bluegrass style concert and that is certainly not our thing.



Reed loved clapping. Apparently the camera was too slow to catch Reed clapping after an especially lively number.



This is when Reed was starting to get a little restless.


______________ CVS for today



This was not a great ECB week, but I did end up with some good deals:

3 Tubes of Crest
2 Tubes of Colgate
1 Bottle of Dawn
1 Pack of "Energy Shots"

I had coupons for everything except the "Energy Shots" but they were free after ECBs.

So, I used coupons, $10.00 in ECBs, and $1.73 OOP.

BUT, I left with $13.50 in ECBs, so I had a net gain of $1.77 after OOP is taken into consideration. Any time that you make money while shopping is a good day, right?

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As for Design Star, we were very excited that Jennifer won! She completely deserved it. Does anyone know where Mikey V was?

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Number 2 in the 7 Days of Abbey:

Her Spirit (Soul). Abbey is an amazing Christian. One of things I desired most in a spouse was someone who complemented me, spiritually. Abbey is an excellent answer to my prayers. She has wonderful spiritual wisdom that has helped me so many times in the years we've been together. It's wonderful to have a spouse who you know prays for you. Abbey is a Sunday School teacher and her kids love her. She also is a published writer of children's curriculum. She has written for Bible Teaching for Kids, Worship KidStyle, and Vacation Bible School. She does an excellent job!

The Garage Is Done!

First of all, this is the only picture of his highness for today, so just look at it a lot. We were really busy today and forgot to take more pictures of him. We worked on the garage today and before Miss Candace (Thank Goodness for Friends!) got there we had to put Reed in the pack-n-play. That was okay with him because we gave him sand!

BEFORE:





DURING:





AFTER:





Thanks to Uncle Bill, we were able to get the garage done in a very neat and quick way! He was a huge help! Don't you wish you had an Uncle Bill?

It was HOT!!! All three of us were soaking wet with sweat, but we are really pleased with the end product.

The only let down was that we were really hoping to be able to both park in the garage. While our garage is a good size, it was obviously not meant for a minivan and an SUV. I got both Abbey's van and my Jeep in the garage, but it was tight, so unless the forecast is calling for ice or something, I doubt I will be parking in the garage.

Now, I want to talk about something a little different tonight than just an update of our day.

You know those times when your little one is completely attached to you? Well, for the past couple of days, that has been Reed with me. Now, there have certainly been times when Reed really wanted to be with Abbey, but today it was all me. Now, that can be both really neat and really annoying. But, I began to think about how awesome it was that Reed wanted me! How many times in your life are you the exact person that can "fix" any hurt, soothe any tear, or be the best friend? Not very often. I try not to get preachy on the blog, but I think that's the way God wants to be for us.

I also think about how some people refer to Reed as my adopted son. Now, I have many soapboxes, but I think this is going to be one of my new ones. Reed is not my adopted son. Reed is my son, who happens to be adopted. I cannot tell you how much Reed feels like he is a part of us. In the past 10 months that Reed has been in our lives, he has become an extension of us. Truly, he was planned by God to be our son.

I wondered how our families would react to our son who was not a biological extension but an extension through the miracle of adoption. I got to experience this first-hand last week as I saw Reed run with open arms to his Lola (Mrs. Linda when she came home from work). I saw it when I saw my mom beam with excitement about getting to take her grandson to Wal-Mart and pick him out some balloons. I saw it in my Daddy giving Reed a bath and how Reed wanted to be under his feet while he cooked breakfast. It was in my father-in-law's face as he beamingly introduced Reed to everyone in his office. It was in my big brother's voice as he asked "Where's Reed?" It was in my little brother's early arrival on Monday morning ready to spend the day with Reed. It was in Aunt Ava's glow as she drove through traffic just to meet us at Sonic for a few minutes to see her "blood" nephew. It was in my grandfather's reaction to seeing us by saying, "Hey Reed" even though sometimes he can be a little confused. Reed is us. He is our family. We are so blessed.

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Now for number 3 in the 7 days of Abbey.

Her Heart. I had planned on this being on day 1, but I chose to change it due to the information I posted above. It was Abbey's heart that I fell in love with on our first date. Her practical, yet optimistic outlook on life. Her openness, yet reserved wisdom. She's an amazing, amazing woman. Most people don't know that on the day we found out we were infertile, Abbey didn't cry as we left the doctor's office. I did. All of my hopes for a baby seemed dash. Abbey said, "We'll just adopt." God had opened Abbey's heart to adoption long before we even went to the fertility clinic, yet it was mine that had been closed. I was not against adoption, but I wanted "one of my own" first. I firmly believe that it was Abbey's gentle spirit, her fervent prayer, and wise counseling that lead me to adoption openness. So, where does that leave me? You read the above post, do you realize what Reed means to us? To Abbey? To me? He is our gift, he is God's plan for us in live motion. Abbey's heart extends in so many ways. It's so beautiful, I hope you've had a chance to see it or experience it. As for me, I wake up amazed each day that I can experience her amazing love and her amazing heart. Can you believe we're only on day three? There are still more things to love about this woman!

Detox Update!

So, last night wasn't so bad. Reed actually went to bed after only a little crying and then he woke up briefly in the middle of the night. He slept until about 7:40 this morning.

After breakfast, we started cleaning out the closet. While cleaning we found this t-shirt that we bought for Reed while in Taiwan (Formosa). It has all of the native tribes of Taiwan. Reed is from the Amis tribe which is the one on the bottom middle.



We cleaned the closet and then Uncle Bubba came over after he got off work. We're going to clean out our garage tomorrow, so Bill is going to spend the night.



The closet was quite a monster. Our closet is one of the selling points to our house. It's huge. So huge, in fact, that Abbey suggested that we put a desk in it to make it her office for writing. I thought it sounded like a good idea, so we immediately went to work organizing the closet (NOTE: we've been meaning to do this since we bought the house back in November.).



I was able to get rid of enough clothes that I we were able to but the desk up to my side of the closet.



Abbey also got rid of a bunch of clothes, so now, we have a desk in our closet. Well, actually, it is her Mimi's old kitchen table, but it will really be a great thing for Abbey since she can leave her stuff from her writing out and she can also work down in our bedroom when I go to sleep.



Reed actually handled all of the work really well. He was very much a Daddy's boy today, so I had to take several breaks to help him do some of the things his grandparents taught him how to do last week.



We went to see GG and B's new house after supper and Reed had fun running around on their land.



When we got hom, Reed had some "nekkid" time and he was being really silly.



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4th Edition of the 7 Days of Abbey

4. Her work ethic. Abbey works so hard at everything she does. Whether she is doing something as a volunteer like teaching Sunday School or waiting tables at the catfish house, she does everything 100%! She keeps our house very clean (the way I like it!) and she also cooks supper and is an excellent mother. Somehow, she finds time to take care of her friends and also do her writing. It's amazing. She is such a hard worker and dedicated to everything she does.