baby on board

We are still trying to recuperate from our whirlwind family vacation. We spent last week traveling with my parents to Phoenix and San Antonio to visit family. Dane is an all-star flyer- handling each of the three flights we took with the poise of a big boy! 

I wish I could say he handled the time change that well. Moving ahead two hours proved tough on the little guy. We had it all figured out by the end, but, boy, were we all glad to be back at home in our own beds. Here are a few photos from our big adventure. 

Dane is named after my great grandpa Perry Lou Crawley. He went to be with Jesus on June 6, 2004. His bride, my great grandma Johnie, just oozes adoration for my sweet boy who not only shares her love's name but also his birthdate. 

We lived in a total of four houses in Phoenix. Hey, I told you we moved a lot, right? This was our favorite by far. We were trying to remind Chase of all the cool things he was far too little to recall. It's fun walking down memory lane, but I'm so glad we didn't stay in that precious house. If we had, I wouldn't have my amazing husband and sweet boy.

Speaking of memory lane, I called up an old friend and we got to spend some time together while I was in town. I love that now that I'm a mommy I find myself reaching out to the girls I haven't seen since we left Arizona over ten years ago. Whenever I have a question about cloth diapering, breast feeding, baby food making, etc, it's my Arizona friends I seek counsel from. I guess you can take the girl out of Arizona but you can't take the Arizona out of the girl. :)

Brianne has such a sweet spirit and her baby girl Kaelyn is precious! They were so sweet to let us come play at their house. I have never seen two babies act like ours did together! Dane was soooooooo excited. He wanted to hug Kaelyn, pinch her, pull her hairbow. Maybe it was love at first sight! ;) Hey, with godly loving parents like she has, I wouldn't object. Maybe there is something to arranged marriages....

 Dane has rapidly developed over the last few weeks. His personality is really shining through. He is very easily excitable and full of it facial expressions. The bigger reaction he gets from his audience, the more faces he'll make. I think he has a future on the stage...

 One big development is figuring out to move. He isn't crawling yet but if the way he's getting up on his knees is any indication, it won't be long!

 My aunt and uncle and their two amazing kids live in San Antonio. They volunteer with a production company that brings CCM bands to the area. While we were in town, the Casting Crowns "Come to the Well" tour was in Austin. They got us hooked up as volunteers. It was such a cool night. Did you know that the whole tour meets before the show for a devotional? They pray together and then everyone spreads out through the venue to pray over each and every seat. It was so cool to be a part of that and to see that these artists really view what they do as a ministry.

 Casting Crowns is cool and all....but I totally went to see Matthew West. My Pandora is set to Matthew West Radio and I can't tell you how his album "Something to Say" has ministered to me. After the show he was kind enough to let us take a quick picture. His is humble and kind-- and, man, can he sing! My favorite thing though? He carries his own sharpies. He didn't admit to being a germophobe, but as a germophobe myself, I'm pretty sure it's because he doesn't want to be touching other peoples' germy pens. And that makes me love him even more.

Right now

This is what I'm doing right now. Holding a sweet sleeping boy. It's lunch time and Tevie will be home soon. I should be making lunch... Except that I can't bring myself to put down this precious bundle of chubby cheeks and curly hair. My heart is often overwhelmed by the amount love I carry for him. He's just too precious for his own good.

spring

I am so grateful we didn't have a typical wet, cold winter. Even still, it was wet and cold enough to keep me and Dane cooped up in the house for too long! We've been enjoying the spring weather. He loves to play outside in the grass and take walks around the neighborhood in his stroller. 

swinging at the park for the first time!

don't you wish you could strip down to a diaper when you got hot? :)

visiting daddy at work. The campus has the prettiest flowers and blooming trees in the spring!

Papa J and Granna sent Little Man a walker... he hasn't quite figured it out yet. He's getting better though. He can back himself into a corner but still doesn't understand the whole idea of the thing is to move forward.

Bathtime is our favorite time of day. Dane will splash for hours on end. He's going to be so much fun in the pool this summer!

It turns out feeding yourself is pretty hard work. He is getting better every day. Here he is eating a snack in the car.

 This was taken immediately after he pulled himself up for the first time. Apparently he was as shocked as we were that he could do it!

My birthday was Saturday. Tevie took me to Lexington for lunch at PF Chang's (our favorite!) and a little shopping. I got this dress but it turns out it is not AT ALL nursing friendly. So I returned it and got this one. Can't wait for the first opportunity to wear it! Dane and I spend our days in comfy stuff so we, okay I, love the chance to put on something other than yoga pants. After lunch and the mall we went shopping at a REAL grocery. You know, the kind that sells beer and fancy cheese! My love for cooking and my small town grocery don't mix, so I relish the opportunity to meander through a grocery in a big city. 

In case you're wondering, we got out of LEX before game time and the couch burning in the streets that followed. In fact, my entire birthday celebration was planned around being home in time for tipoff of the UK/UofL Final Four game. Tevie celebrated pre-game and post game. :)

In other news, my sweet boy has a very Lyle Lovitt-esque pompadour workin' on his noggin. Good thing he's cute! When we're out we usually hear "He is so beautiful!" first followed by "Look at that hair!"

I've tried smearing lotion in it after the bath to tame it... it doesn't work. Those crazy curls have a mind of their own. He is so precious! For his birthday present to me he decided to ROLL OVER! FOR THE FIRST TIME!!! Tevie and I squealed with excitement. And just in case that wasn't enough, he also decided to stand on his own for a few seconds- no leg to grip, to ottoman to lean on- just his two legs! Tevie asked if he was ready to mow the yard next! 

Next week we head out to Arizona and Texas to visit family. I can't wait to take pictures on the new DSLR my parents got me for my birthday! It's going to be a fun trip. Dane will get to see his great and great-great grandmas and some special aunts, uncles and cousins. We leave Easter Sunday. This year, just like last year, we are "Forgetting the Frock" and rockin' our t-shirts to support Orphan Care. Hop on over to my sweet, sweet friend Emily's blog to learn more about it. 

Oh, gotta run. Sounds like naptime is over!

--Allysa

Lately

We have a lot fun with this silly boy!

8 months

Our sweet boy turns 8 months old on Friday! I can hardly believe how quickly time is passing. 

Perry Dane-

This month you have grown faster than all the months combined! You proudly wear size 12-18 month clothes (!) and I think those cheeks and thighs get a little fluffier every day. :) You LOVE to eat, especially yummy things like sweet potatoes, squash, and mommy's favorite, bread (of any kind!). You're eating more and more big boy food and less and less of that pureed stuff. Probably because you want to put that one little tooth into action and chew things up!

This week you have mastered pulling yourself up on things. You can also use one arm as a kickstand so you can lean waaaaaaay over to grab a toy that's out of reach. However, you will.NOT.roll.over! Daddy and I know you're strong enough, we think you just hate being on your belly sooooo much that you refuse to roll over. I think you'll learn to crawl very soon though! 

You babble and squeal all the time. You love your Granna and Gran and are growing pretty fond of your Papa J and Pappy T. For some reason you've been a little timid of them from time to time... we think it's the facial hair. :) This month, you got to spend a weekend in a cabin in Gatlinburg and enjoyed your first trip around the neighborhood in nothing but a diaper. (Hey, it was a hot day, okay?!) 

Now that you can sit and stand, you want to sit up and splash in the bathtub or stand and hold the side of the tub. I wish I would have treasured that last time you laid down during your bath. I also wish I would have treasured your last night in your bassinet. You now sleep (on average) twelve hours at night in YOUR CRIB! Mommy and Daddy love the sleep we're getting and you are such a happy boy when you wake up well rested. You DO NOT sleep AT ALL when we travel, but we travel so much you're just going to have to get used it. I think my nosy boy is afraid of missing the fun when we're with family. :)

Your precious personality is really coming through. You love to flash your sweet smile at strangers and everyone comments on just how cute you are! You're going to be a heart breaker on of these days! You already know how to melt people with your smile.There are no words to describe just how much your daddy and I love you. You're the best little blessing we've ever received and we often find ourselves saying, "He's our baby." I think we're still in shock that we could create something as perfect as you!


Please feel free to sloooooow doooooown in the growing this month! It's going by too fast! 
We love you to the moon--and back!
Mommy and Daddy

Letting mommy pose me for pictures!

 Bathtime fun!

 precious boy!

 Daddy feeling my one, scraggly tooth. How long do those things take to pop all the way through?!

 I looove my daddy...

 and my mommy too!

photos galore

working on my father-in-law's computer today and came across some never-before-seen Dane pics. :)

In the hospital.

melts.my.heart.

2 weeks old. Celebrating daddy's birthday.

lunch with Dane's great-grandparents when he was 5weeks old.

bath time! 6months

learning a song or two from pappy. :)

keep holding on

The windows are open and a sweet spring breeze is making the curtains dance across the living room floor. The puppies have spread their furry bodies as flat as they can against the hardwood to enjoy the coolness and lunch is on the stove in the kitchen. Dane is sitting in his high chair making a mess of the snack I've given him while I finish chopping vegetables to put in the pasta salad. We are singing along to Matthew West Radio on Pandora and soaking up the warm temperatures because, knowing Kentucky weather, they will leave us before too long. 

Two years ago I was eagerly counting down the days to my birthday at the end of this month. Not because 24 is a big milestone, but because we had agreed it would be the day we officially started "trying". That word. I didn't realize then how "trying" it would be attempting to conceive our first baby. It tried our patience. Tried my emotions. Tried my body. That word really fits that season of one's life better than any other.

After eight months, a dozen of wasted pregnancy tests, and coming to the end of my rope, I began singing a song over and over again. It become my mantra of sorts. "Everything Falls" by Fee was a song God used to speak into my situation. After losing my parents' home to a fire, the words of that song were a perfect prayer I would pray for them over and and over again as they began rebuilding and when all of the loose ends seemed as though they might begin to unravel. "When my strength is gone, I find YOU mighty and strong. You keep holding, you keep holding on." I needed that reminder-- that He hadn't let go and left us to our own devices. He was holding us tighter in the midst of the chaos, uncertainty, and hormones. Oh, the hormones.

Today, as grilled cheese sandwiches sizzle on the stove, the birds tweet their happiness that spring has returned, and my sweet baby bangs measuring cups against his high chair, the words of that song drift from the stereo in the living room into the kitchen. They are comforting words to me again as we encounter more uncertainty. A reminder that He most definitely keeps holding on and that He makes sense of all the mess.

The many faces of snack time

pretty baby