Summer Daze

This is a delayed post, but hope you guys will enjoy catching up with me!

With the end of summer closing in on us, I wanted to share some sunlight with you all. In the southern heat, it is hard to go and stay outdoors for very long, but I like giving Benjamin some time outside whenever I can. At the beginning of this month, we explored the area we've recently moved to, and found a cute little beach nearby. We weren't expecting Benjamin to enjoy the water very much (since he didn't enjoy bath-time until right around this time) but once we dipped him the water he wanted more! He LOVED being out in the water and getting to swim around. He definitely had more space to explore than he would in the bath. It made our experience that much more enjoyable that Benjamin was having such a great time.

Also around this time, we were planning a trip that fell through, meaning my mother wasn't going to get Benjamin for the weekend like we had planned. So instead she came to us to visit! It was so nice to get some time with my mom, and to see her play with Benjamin. Although it was a short visit, it was much needed, and gave us enough time to catch up a little, show her around our new home, and even get some adult time between me, my mother, and Tommy after Benjamin had gone down to sleep. My mother is one of the very best parts of me, so the morning she left I felt torn, but I know I will see her again soon for the holidays. And what a special time that will be <3

Here are some pictures from the first half of this month raising Benjamin:

First Birthday with Benjamin

This past weekend was my 23rd birthday and it was such a special time for me because it was my first birthday as a mother. Last year on my birthday I was pregnant with Benjamin and I was an emotional rollercoaster (not to mention exhausted!!) Turning 22 in itself was eye opening because you're past the stages of excitement from turning 18 and 21, and if you're anything like me, you truly began to realize you're actually an adult now.. Time keeps going past your youth and you don't know what to do or feel. Feeling all of this while also being pregnant was havoc for me. All I wanted to do was go out and drink and eat sushi and drink some more. Instead I went to my big girl job, Tommy took me to a fancy dinner and dealt with my hormonal crying like the great man that he is, and brought my candle lit birthday cake to me in bed at the end of the night. Looking back at this time now, it was probably the best birthday a pregnant girl could ever wish for.




This year it was my goal to complete those dreams of sushi and alcohol to satisfy previous pregnant me's wishes from last year. I thought for sure this year I'd want to go out all night being wild and crazy but to my surprise all I wanted was a nice weekend with my family, and that's exactly what I got. Around 2 am on my birthday, a wild Hannah appeared on top of me in bed waking me up to wish me a happy birthday! Hannah and Jo are two of my best friends that live where we recently had to move away from, so I was very happy that they were here to visit. After we all got some rest and (sadly) Tommy left for work, Hannah, Jo, Benjamin, and I went out for brunch, some exploring, and then tattoos! Afterwards we came home to relax while we waited for Tommy to come home from work, then we went out to dinner for you guessed it, sushi and some drinks! I had such a great time with them and I got to have Benjamin with me for my entire day, I couldn't have had a better birthday. We even got to video chat Ryan into the shenanigans at the end of the night, which made me happy because I really wanted him there with us.

The next night was the first game of the season for Tommy's favorite football team (Rolltide!) so like we did every game last year, we got some food together and just hungout. But once again, Benjamin being a part of the experience made it ten times better. I was so happy in those moments because with everything going on with us, we've been so busy and stressed trying to get our lives back on track and we kind of lost ourselves in the chaos. But that night it felt like we were back to where we needed to be. I finally felt my little family coming back together and it meant so much to me. Who knew so many feelings could arise from watching a football game?


Here are some pictures and clips from my special weekend, I hope the rest of this year will be just as wonderful!

                                               

                                       

Our First Weekend Apart

                            

This past weekend was our first weekend away from Benjamin and it was extremely hard, I'm not even going to try and play it off like it wasn't. Tommy and I both work for Imagine Festival so we went to Atlanta for the weekend to work and get some play time. Festivals are where we both feel most at home so this year we were very divided on feeling at home at Imagine but knowing our true home is now with Benjamin.

I knew I would have a hard time leaving Benjamin because the first time we had my sister babysit him for a few hours I had to literally be pushed out the door. But if there was ever a weekend out of the entire year that we would take a break from being parents, it would be the weekend of Imagine Festival.

                                                       

I was so thankful that Tommy's mother was the one who was watching him this past weekend because I wasn't worried about him for a second. I trust her with my life, and she constantly sent us pictures and posted about him on Facebook and that was honestly what got me through it. I only called her once and I was so proud of myself! I know they had a blast together and when we picked him up I almost felt bad taking my own child back from her. I love having family closeby that wants to be a part of his life and wants to help with him especially when Mom and Dad need time away. We really are so lucky and I love that there are so many people that love Benjamin (almost!) as much as I do!

                                   

Here are some memories from our first weekend away:

      

Meet the Mother

                                                                          

Hey all! My name is Nicole and I am 23 years old. Benjamin is 6 months old and my first and only child, but eventually I am hoping to have more. I am a stay at home mother, but I work for IRIS Presents and Imagine Music Festival in Atlanta. I also am working on a bunch of different projects including custom drawings, collaging, writing, and creating my own line of baby clothes.

I am very easy going, an introvert, and an extreme empath. I love music and I love creating. I am making this blog as a way to commemorate this time of being a new mother and to remember the moments of Benjamin's life. This page is mostly Benjamin based, with updates on his milestones, adventures, and just a more detailed experience for the friends and family that are not closeby but want to constantly know what we're up to. But this page will also be updates on our family as a whole, and my experiences as a mother and challenges that I may be facing. This will be a place for me to express these experiences from my point of view and hopefully continue throughout Benj's life and be able to share this with him when he is older.

I want to share this with you all, no, not only to overflow your brains with pictures/videos/stories of the cutest baby ever but to also share the naked truth of parenthood, in all of its forms. I hope that I may help parents or soon to be parents in feeling less alone, or to see that it is okay when things are not perfect and that in itself is what makes parenthood perfect <3

Becoming a mother has changed my life in all of the best ways, and I don't want to forget a single moment. So here is to being a parent, and to the light of my life Benjamin. I hope you all enjoy.