this is how we do iiiiit

This was Henry's first camping trip. We had a blast, even if the camp ground was right next to the busy highway. It was really funny, actually. Garrison looked at like, 7 different KOA's and picked this one in Forsyth, Georgia because it was in the "middle of nowhere". We pulled up expecting acres of wooded land and instead we roasted our hotdogs under the light of a billboard advertising laser hair removal.

And yes....those are pee-pants air drying. Hella camping, baby!

On Bullying

I guess I've never been a real assertive person myself. I'm always tiptoeing around other's feelings, afraid of starting any kind of controversy. I can't even count the number of times I've left a situation thinking, "I wish I would have done this..." or "I really should have said this". Being strong and standing up for myself is something I've always struggled with.

Sometimes I watch Henry play and I imagine the type of child and adult I hope that he becomes. I want him to excel in the things I've struggled with and to avoid the things I wish I had never done.

Last week at Soft Play Henry was picked on by four kids. He's pretty tall and easy going so kids usually just leave him alone. I don't know why Friday was an exception, maybe I had dressed him in some outfit that kids found nerdy? Maybe the words on his new shirt were really baby language for, "Hey! Push my face into the slide!"? Or maybe these kids had just eaten a boatload of Chik-fil-A and they were ready. to. go. man. I don't know. Each time though these kids singled him out. From across the room they'd come running and tackle him to the ground, sitting on him and clawing his skin until he was panicked.

In each situation, Henry did nothing. He just kind of looked at the kids like, "Why are you doing this to me? What's going on? MOM?!" I know he's only 19 months, I wasn't expecting him to say anything or push the kids down. I just couldn't stop wondering if this was a reflection of his personality and it scared me. I don't want him to be okay with other kids walking all over him. I don't want him to be afraid to speak his mind. How do you teach a child to handle situations like these appropriately without being the bully themselves?

Adeline's Daddy Blog Design Giveaway Winner!

That title! Phew.

Thanks to everyone who entered this fun giveaway by Adeline's Daddy! I wish I could have picked all of you. Bummed you didn't win? Don't worry! If you want to contact Don about blog design on your own, visit his blog and you'll find more information. His prices are incredibly reasonable and as you've noticed by now he rules at making great looking blogs!

Ok, blahblahblah you want to know who won right? Here ya go:

Congratulations Marty from Small House by the Sea! I'll be contacting you to set you up with Don right away. If I do not hear from you within a week, I'll have to pick another winner.

Kamping

CAMPING FEET.

We're back and we had so much fun, I can't wait to take Henry camping again. Ok, so we weren't exactly "roughing" it, staying in a cabin at a KOA (right up against the highway!) but still. We made smores & hotdogs, we didn't shower for three days, and we slept on a sleeping bag. So, CAMPING. Henry was awesome the whole trip, if he could have it his way he'd live outside so he was happy the entire weekend (ok except for when he projectile vomited all over himself in the Macdonald's parking lot....and outside Exit 177....and in the Subway parking lot. Maybe next time we won't let him eat his weight in junk?)

Randoms

Hey, we're packing up and going camping! Garrison's been in Atlanta all week and it's really nice to have him back. See you Monday, hope you guys have an awesome weekend!

* Don't forget to enter our Adeline's Daddy Blog Design Giveaway while we're gone. It ENDS Monday and I'll be announcing the winner Tuesday, September 20th.

Sugar for the Grandparents...

The last picture stands alone because omg, how red is his face? Sometimes Henry does this thing where he clenches his teeth and fists so hard that his entire head turns a different shade. My mom told me about our family friends whose kids who would hold their breath until they freaking. passed. out. every time they got upset. Uh Henry? Don't even think about it.

Blogger Meetup: Washington!!

Whoa. So I can't believe I forgot to post pictures of our Washington blogger get together! Henry and I were home for a week in August and luckyus got to meet up with some of my favorite blog moms and their awesome kids: Jill, Rachel & Grace, and Heidi. We packed into the tiniest coffee place and after the kids destroyed everything we let them run around the park. We had a really good time, it just sucks that I met all of them after we moved clear across the freaking country!

* Minutes after I took that picture of H in the water, he was running around with wet and heavy pants and he tripped. Right as he tripped his pants fell down to his knees. Hilarious.

On Raffi

Sometimes I get so caught up in the routine of everything. I worry about getting Henry down for nap in time, or keeping him out too long, and feeding him at appropriate intervals. I forget how fast this time is flying by and just how lucky I am to be here to experience his growth. It's too easy to focus on the stressful parts of the day, to let the whining and tantrums take control of my emotions.

Every time I play Raffi for Henry it resets my mind and mood, I swear. It takes me back to when I was little, when a goodgood day was getting a chocolate chip cookie and a lot of time to play outside. Listening to this makes me stop and appreciate this babytime in Henry's life and even helps me to see the tantrums as a temporary sign of his growth. Childhood is beautifully simple, it's nice to be reminded of that sometimes.

Ice Ice BubBuh

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GIVEAWAY! Blog Design by Adeline's Daddy!

I'm really excited about this giveaway from one of my favorite bloggers, Don from Adeline's Daddy! If you haven't checked out his blog yet (he's also the brain child behind "Vloggin' Vednesdays") DO IT! His family is the sweetest and I love reading about his new adventures as a new dad and gushing over his gorgeous wife and cute little Addy! I'm not trying to gain new followers from this giveaway, just promoting Don's awesome talent for blog design so enterenterenter and let him make your blog look sharp!

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Hello, this is Don from Adeline's Daddy Blog! I've been contacted a lot recently about my blog design service and questions about the process. I know that not everyone has the cash or resources to get their blog design the way they want... So I'm offering a full blog redesign, and I'm doing it exclusively at one of my longest read, and favorite blogs, It's a Wonderful Life. Here are a couple of examples of some recently finished blog designs so you can see what's up for grabs...

(Full blog can be seen here!)

(Full blog can be seen here!)

(Full blog can be seen here!)

Just leave a comment below to be entered to win. You can enter a second time if you tweet "@addydaddyblog, I need some blog design help".

The winner will be announced Monday, September 19th! (Giveaway closes midnight of the 18th- eastern time).

Oh man, I can't wait to share this with you guys. We're super excited about this one!