Birthday Bash!

Kaz's 2nd bash happened this Saturday at Wilshire's... a country club just down the street from our house. All the decor and details were prepared weeks in advance, with only a few minor touches and setup the day of. Little did I know, the decorations and myself were not quite as prepared as we thought! The temps and wind were quite a bear...but with a little help, we pulled off a pretty fun party:)

Kaz invited all his besties to attend - It was one "orchestra" of a party!

I guess you could say he OD'd on the "tars"!

He got lots of great gifts and even scored an awesome Evan's Orchard season pass from his BFF Griffin! I'm sure they will soak up all sorts of fun there this summer:)

Thankful to celebrate another year of life and grateful for all of the many blessings God has given our family!

Kaz is TWO!

Yes - you read that right....my sweet little preemie baby boy turned TWO this Monday!

I can't believe the time has passed so quickly, although he has grown leaps and bounds since birth! (Currently sporting a 4T on top and 3T on bottom)

Planning Kaz's 2nd birthday was so easy this year. Even though he's not mega fluent with speech right now, I know one thing that he adores - his "TAR".

We had an early celebration this past weekend with my dad's family in Carrollton and will celebrate again in Georgetown this weekend. Kaz is very fortunate to be surrounded by so many loving family and friends!

Since his actual birthday fell on a Monday we celebrated with his favorite foods - chik-fil-a and sweet cupcakes:)

He didn't understand why Mommy wanted him to be around something that was "hot" though? He had no interest in blowing out the candles and thought it was crazy I would put that "hot" so close to him;)

Birthdays make me reflect back on the past year(s) and see all the great gifts and blessings God has given our family. No matter how insignificant Kaz's milestones may seem, each and every one is so very special to me as his mommy.

Happy Birthday Kaz Clay - Mommy and Daddy love you soooo much!

Friday Fun Day!

Since I was off this Friday and we had the entire afternoon together, we decided to make it a play-date with Daddy, Mommy, and Kazer, visiting the new and improved Evan's Orchard.

As usual lunch was delicious... I think Kaz tried a little bit of everything, between my burger, Preston's barbecue sandwich, chips, and his own grilled cheese. 

Then we decided to venture out to the play-yard. First stop - the slides. We partnered up and went down the big one. Then Kaz decided to take on a slide on his own:)

Before we left, Kaz and Daddy had to hit up the fudge bar and pet the doggies. 

Looking forward to many more days at the orchard this summer....

Rewinding: April in Pictures

April has been sooo busy! Between Cincinnati trips for casting appointments and ending my internship with work, things have been quite hectic! I wanted to do a quick update of what's been going on:)

1. Kaz finally is cast-free (other than wearing night casts). After a month of sporting every color possible, his ankles are at 90 degrees and things are looking great! Now we wait for his braces to arrive in a week or so.

2. I love planning birthday parties for my Kazer! This will be #2 :) I've been sewing streamers, scanning pinterest, and making orders... I can't wait for him to be surrounded with guitars!

3. There have been a few beautiful days in April and we have taken advantage of the weather.  Taking strolls in red car, blowing bubbles, swinging in the backyard, and drawing pictures on the picnic table are where we've spent our time...

 4. During one of my days off while Kaz had appointments in Cincinnati, we spent the other half of our day at Keeneland. We brought our friends Lori and Griffin along to spend the day in the Clubhouse:) The boys had a blast catching up and watching the horses or "cows" as Kaz says.

 5. Weekends are the best! As the weather starts getting warmer.... we have enjoyed hanging outside together, going on walks and even attempted a picnic:)

6. Finally, we ended the month celebrating the life of a true miracle:) Trust Brown turned 4 this past weekend...and we were so thankful to be a part of his big day. We all loved the pancake and pj party and Kaz made sure to shower Trust in kisses. I think I was more excited about Trust's present than he was:)

This month has flown by...I only hope the summer does not do the same! 18 days and counting:)

Casts & Easter

Prior to the Easter holiday Kaz started a series of casting. All in hopes of stretching his muscles to allow him to walk - sooner than later!

After an hour of what seemed like torture....someone had two new additional blue boots;)

On to Easter... egg hunts with friends, the all popular bunny visit, and celebrating Jesus being risen!

Happy Easter 2013 ~ The Clay's

Finally - It's all coming together:)

After over a year of only "day-dreaming" of the end result - today I am finally getting a good taste.

Mommy's Notes journal is actually becoming a reality! Being a NICU mommy myself, I felt a need to create a tool specifically for those NICU warriors out there. During Kaz's one-and-a-half month stay in the hospital, I found it not only relieving at the very moment when journaling, but also rewarding when looking back at all the amazing milestones and accomplishments that my little guy had achieved.

The purpose of Mommy's Notes is to serve as a keepsake, a memory capsule, a beacon of hope, and most importantly a place to pour out your heart as a mother of a child of God.

Another thing that sets this journal apart are the stories included within the pages, which are real-life experiences that all NICU moms can relate to, learn from, and be inspired by. 

I'm so excited to get this in the hands of future mothers! I know that this project/mission has God's name all over it - looking forward to all the lives that will be touched...

“A person standing alone can be attacked and defeated, but two can stand back-to-back and conquer. Three are even better, for a triple-braided cord is not easily broken.”

Ecclesiastes 4:12 (NLT)