Schmem Leaves KY

So Friday was pretty bittersweet. My dear friend Emily that you have read about in blogs in getting married in 2 weeks to a guy in Georgia which means that she is moving away from me. :( However, I could not be more happy for her and Jeremiah!

I got a little teary eyed, shocker, thinking about her leaving then quickly remembered that I will see her in two weeks for her wedding. It is going to be a great time. She will be a gorgeous bride and the day will be filled with special details. I helped with a few and have seen and heard about several others and it will no doubt be a day to remember.

Below are just a few shots of our last day together as Kentucky residents.

Kristin's Birthday

Yesterday was my friend Kristin's birthday. She said that birthdays were not that big of a deal in her family, but they were in mine so I asked if she would like to go out for dinner. We ended up with a party of 19 (including kids)! We went to Copper River Grill in Nicholasville. It was a ton of fun! We split up into a boys and girls table. It was precious because we had the "big" girls; Kristin, Emily Ellsworth (shout out to a loyal reader), Kelli, Maggie, Jen and myself, but sandwiched in the middle of the table were the little girls; Ellie, Molly, Lucy and Kristin's little girl Laney. There were lots of laughs and tons of smiles so I will just highlight a few.



Laney prayed for the meal and it was beyond precious. She thanked God for her mommy and prayed that her mommy would know that she is such a good mommy. All the mommy's were teary eyed when she said amen. Again we laughed all night, but the "icing on the cake" (get it birthday lingo) was when they brought Kristin her free ice cream dessert the server also brought a BIG brownie with ice cream, caramel, and chocolate sauce as well as a HUGE bowl of banana pudding covered in whip cream. It was comical because when he sat that down one of the ladies said, "Is that a bowl of whip cream?". It was just funny because that is what it really looked like.

We were all caught a little off guard because none of us had ordered dessert until the server said they were "from the men the next table over with a wink". I was very cute and made me feel like I was dating again when I looked over at my sweet husband and he just smiled and gave me a little wink of his own.



What a fun evening to show Kristin how special she is to us all.

Vernon Family Vacation!

This past week was a great week! My little family went to Pigeon Forge, TN for our first family vacation with our little boy. It was such a great trip. We had a great cabin on the edge of Pigeon Forge so we weren't in the mess of all the tourist stuff. It was a perfect location next to a rolling river. It was three master suites with king sized beds and a huge wrap around porch with a porch swing. On a side note, it also had Bravo which meant I got to catch up on my Real Housewives of New York!

Mom and I went down a day after the boys because I had a bachelorette party for one of my best friends Emily and mom kept Eli so I could just enjoy my time with the girls.




We got an early start at 5:00 AM Sunday so we would beat all the traffic into Pigeon Forge and so we could get there before the boys even woke up. It was a great drive and Eli was an absolute champ.

Our first day there was very lazy. We took naps, sat on the porch and read, watched tv, and played games. That night I had everyone say two things that they would have to do to make this trip the best vacation ever. The combined list included shopping (me and mom), putt-putt (everyone), hiking in the Smoky Mountains (most of us), reading, games, and eating.

Monday opened with a bang when mom and I hit the outlets hard and got tons of great deals! We picked up a little volleyball outfit for Eli and some super cute little sunglasses to complete the look. We then had lunch at the Old Mill and walked around the candy shop and the pottery store. They were both very neat places. Don't worry folks, we didn't walk away empty handed. We got a pound and a half of salt water taffy. Yum! We then spent the evening playing Settler's of Cattan. I won!

Tuesday was another fairly quiet day. We went putt-putting, to a mirror maze and some lazer things too. It was a very fun time. That night at dinner mom asked us all what our favorite part of the day was. My answer, "When Aaron came back to get me in the mirror maze when I was lost and couldn't get to them." It was so true. I was getting a little nervous because the only person I could see was a very large man. It just made me feel claustrophobic to know I couldn't get to Aaron and my family without getting closer to this stranger. So...Aaron saved the day.

Wednesday was our day of adventure. We left at 8:00 AM which is super early for Alex and drove into the Smoky Mountains. It was gorgeous! We walked a mile into a waterfall, played and explored for awhile and then hiked back out to have a picnic by the river. It was truly gorgeous and so quiet. We had the place all to ourselves. It was certainly a challenge to carry Eli, but what a fun day to share with our little family. We finished the day with an amazing dinner at the cabin. We had crab legs and ribs. Yum!

My very handsome and single younger brother. Just sayin' ladies.

Aaron living the dream, hiking with his little boy.

Aaron in the palm of my hand. Haha, yeah right.

My Beautiful Mom!

Putting Eli's feet in the river

Alex blends in with the trees behind him.

Thursday was our last full day and we took it pretty easy again. In the morning mom, dad, Eli and I went to an Indian village in NC. Sadly it was not worth the price so we just looked around town a bit and then came home. We went shopping after lunch, played more games and had a great fried chicken dinner in our cabin.

It was just a wonderful time with family. I miss my family now that they are in Indiana so the time with them was very special to me. Also, it being our first family vacation with Eli made it doubly special.

This is just a few more shots from our trip.

Eli wanted to play but daddy just couldn't wake-up.

Super baby and Super uncle.

Eli - 7 months old!

This post is a little late because of being in Indiana for Grandma's funeral, but accurate none the less.

Eli you are now 7 months old! I took you to the doctor for a cold so I happen to know your weight. If it were not for that I would have to guess. Grandma Janelle has told me that I would grow in spurts, out then up. I am thinking that you are doing the same.

Weight: 14 lbs. 13 oz. (almost 15 lbs.!!!!!)
Length: around 24 to 25 inches.

You are still very average, but it is funny when we are in public everyone has an opinion and I mean everyone! Some think you are big, others think you are small, but dad and I know you are just perfect!

• You love to laugh. You think it is so funny when you get startled or people get really close to your face.
  
• Mommy is great at tickling you.
  
• You are ticklish under your armpits and in your thighs.
• Your tickle laugh and your "that's funny" laugh are very different.
• You are still sleeping through the night wonderfully. Even when we went to California!
• You are a slobber monster. You have not cut any teeth yet, but you are for sure beginning the process because there is a lot of slobber.
• You love to chew on fabric. Really anything you can get into your mouth you like. You haven't quit figured out that your hands can bring stuff to your mouth, but you know every once in awhile.
  
• You are in a size 2 diaper. I still like to put you in Huggies snugglers.
• You wear 3-6 month clothing, but you can wear some 6-9 months.
• You went swimming for the first time in Gigi and Pa's pool in Florida and you thought it was pretty fun.
• You can rollover from your belly to your back and you are trying so hard to roll from your back to your stomach. Daddy and I know you will do it before your next month rolls around.
• You love to stand-up, but we can't let you do it as much as you would like because the doctor's want you to sit.
  
• You are close to sitting up on your own. You love to sit on my lap and hold my hands to keep your balance.
  
• You got a big boy car seat. It is a convertible car seat. A Britax Marathon. You rode in Gigi's while we were in Florida and you loved it. We got you one before we went to Indiana for Grandma Emily's funeral.
• You have started reaching for things in front of you and grabbing onto things and holding on.
• You are spitting up much less often and you eat really well.
  
• You eat five ounces five times a day.
• You love your swing. Sometimes I let you take a nap in it per Hannah's suggestion.
  
• You sit in your Bumbo while I make your bottles and you think you are something else helping me.

All that to say, Mommy and Daddy are very proud of you. We talk about you all the time and we are constantly watching you in awe of how much we love you. We hope to give you every opportunity in this world so that you can be anything you want to be.

I started your pictures this month with a pillow behind you because that is what I have done in all the previous months. I then remembered you can sit up with a little support on the sides. I took the pillow away and it made me a little sad because even little things like that make you more of a big boy.

Grandma Emily

On June 28^th at 8:10 PM I lost a very special person in my life and also in the life of many. My grandma Emily died after a long fight with many health issues. For about the last ten years she had had problem after problem. She had her nerve endings severed in her back to reduce pain and still she suffered. She never complained about a thing. She was always so positive! I have always admired what a classy and gracious woman she was.

Back in November (Thanksgiving) she told me that she wouldn't make it to meet Eli and that she wanted to be sure he knew how much his Grandma Emily loved him. Little did we know he would enter the world one week later. We made a trip home to Indiana at the very end of February/beginning of March because grandma was diagnosed with Esophageal cancer. It was that weekend that she met Eli. He would have only been two weeks old if he had come on his original due date. It was a very special weekend.

My diamond from Grandma...so special.

Pictures from our wedding day.

I think she cried all day she was so happy. She loves Aaron and is so happy for us both.

First time meeting Eli.

We got to see grandma one more time in May when I went to Indiana for a former student's (Tristan and Katie) wedding. I surprised her and took Eli. She held him for about 30 minutes. It touched my heart to see grandma holding Eli in the midst of a lot of pain. I kept asking her is she was ok and of course she said yes but I knew better. She was stubborn as well get out. (I get that from her).

I still have lots of tears when I think of her not being here on earth anymore, but I am so glad she is no longer in pain. She joined her family and her best friend Ann Neff in Heaven and I am sure they are having the most amazing time together worshiping our Creator.

When I was little I would always cry when I left Grandma. She would too. It was so silly because we would do it even when we would see one another within an hour. I guess we just liked being together. When I went to see her in November and to say what I thought would be my last goodbye I told her that this goodbye would be like all the others. I would cry when she left, but I would see her again soon. It could not be more true. I am looking forward to a long life with my family, but I will love the day that she greets me at the pearly gates and gives a hug welcoming me home.

We were a lot alike. She was very stubborn, loved clothes, shoes, and hats, was energetic, loved a party, and loved being with people. In honor of her I wore one of her hats to her funeral. She was known for her hats. I had about 25 people approach me at the funeral and tell me that they loved her hat and that they should have worn one as well. It was a hard weekend with LOTS of emotions, but at the end of it all it was all about celebrating a wonderful woman. There is another angel in heaven and she is watching us all and making sure we are taken care of.

They decorated the viewing with all her hats.



Very somber in moments, but lots of laughs and again a celebration of her life.

Being silly with hats.
Getting flowers from her graveside arrangement.
Cousins. Johnathan, Me and Justin.
Plus spouses...we are still waiting on Justin's special someone.


Lots of time with Family
Justin in Grandma's wig and Jenn giving us a smile.
Uncle Chon and Aunt Sharon lovin on Eli.
My dad's wife Kathleen holding Eli for the first time.