Carpet, carpet, carpet...

So, we moved into our house in May of 2009. From the first time we first walked through the house before we bought it, we knew we would have to replace the carpet. We always said, "Oh we'll do it before we have a baby." Well, re-tiling and resurfacing the pool happened the same summer we had our baby girl, and I'm sure you can just hear the 'cha-ching' in the back of your mind. Since it didn't happen before we had a baby, we vowed it would happen before Macy was crawling, but that came and went... So Macy is walking now, but we're replacing the carpet! Here's what we've been living with the last 3 years...

Thank you, Sarah Palin, for that accurate description of how I feel about this carpet. You are all going to judge me for this comment, but this is how bad it has gotten... As you can see the seams of the carpet against the wood, tile and concrete are wildly visible, but on top of that upholstery nails that once held down the carpet are also exposed. Cliff and I have both yelled out when we have stepped barefoot onto the top of one of them, but what's worse is that Macy has learned to bear crawl over every seam, and now that she's walking she does a double take every time she comes up on a seam. Also, the carpet has been fraying. I literally get to walk around with the scissors before anyone comes over, and cut the extra strands of carpet that are sticking out. Macy walking and being a lot more curious has not helped with this. I think the straw that broke the camel's back on the carpet was that my dear sweet Macy pulled up one of the corners of carpet in between our master bedroom and bathroom and exposed the pad and subfloor (for lack of a better, more technical word). So Cliff finally said, "Yes, it's time to get new carpet." Remind me to give that girl some money, or a new toy...

So I set out to find the perfect carpet for our growing family. Luckily, my BFF, Megan suggested that we go to a Parade of Homes during one of our summer trips to Lubbock. It was there, that I met and fell in love with my new carpet. The carpet I chose was featured in one of the homes, and it was like walking on pillows. It was so fabulous, and a bazillion times better than our carpet at home. So, I walked straight up to the builder and got all the information on the carpet.

From there, I do what I always do which is went home and said, "So, I saw this thing..." According to my dear, sweet husband and BFF Megan, this is what I always say before something is either going to take a lot of help and work on their part, or a lot of $$$. Luckily, in this case it was neither! We were able to get our carpet for under our budget, from a vendor who's owner is a member of our church, and it's AWESOME!!!! After living with all the mystery stains and exposed, painful seams, we now have super fabulous and oh-so comfortable carpet. Take a look...

If you can't tell I'm just giddy and so in love with how the carpet looks and how it makes our rooms look. Yay! First step (and probably the easiest) of changes is complete!

Macy the 'ONE-derful''s First Birthday Party

First of all, you should know that I have been planning this since before Macy was born. Themes and colors changed several times, but there were some things that I knew I had to have. I wanted it to be big. I wanted lots of fun, personal details that made this party all Macy's own. And last, but certainly not least, I wanted to serve lots of good food. In the end, the vintage circus theme with bright red and turquoise colors won out against all others. 

We decided to have the party at a fabulous, local restaurant, Railway Cafe, in our city Athens, TX. Macy came to her first lunch at Railway when she was only two days old. Many times she is referred to as 'the Railway baby' and waitresses can often be seen carrying her around as they refill drinks. We literally love everything about Railway Cafe from the waitresses, to the atmosphere, to the food, to the owners. I guess the only things we could complain about is that they are only open for lunch and we can't eat there for all three meals in a day. 

Macy was so excited when her friends started coming in. She really loved getting to see all of her buddies.

Guests were asked to write a special note to Macy on red and turquoise tickets.

Since it was Macy's first birthday, we didn't plan much entertainment, but we did plan lunch! We decided to serve all of Macy's favorite things, but it seems a few of Mommy and Daddy's favorite things snuck in there too... 

The menu included: Sweet potato fries, petite grilled cheese sandwiches, yeast rolls, puffs, animal crackers, goldfish, BLT sandwiches with chips, pimento cheese sandwiches with chips, flatbread pizzas, heirloom tomato salad with goat cheese and balsamic dressing, and edamame.

But we can't forget all the sweets! We also had homemade banana nut bread, a fruit tray (to make us feel better about everything else we were eating), homemade pear and peach fruit sauces made and sold by local farmers at the Athens' Farmers Market, and family-tradition sugar cookies made using Macy's great-grandmother, Granana's recipe. 

We used popcorn buckets filled with animal crackers and anchoring balloons, as centerpieces. The kids also enjoyed eating all the red and blue candies out of the Mason jars that held the food markers. 

Oh, the wonderful high chair. The only one Macy has actually wanted to sit it. Maybe I should create decorations for her high chair at home?

Tutu That* made Macy's over-the-top birthday outfit. Everything that company makes is fabulous and Macy's outfit was no exception.

This detail was the crowning jewel for me. Railway Cafe is already a very picturesque setting with the exposed ceilings and brick walls, but I wanted a very eye-catching element right in the middle. I asked for a chandelier of some sorts, with lots of color and pop, and they delivered!

Macy Water! Macy loved these little bottles, and she carried one around with her most of the party.

Adorable and very yummy red velvet cake balls, with a tutu cake stand? How could a girl refuse?

After a little help from Mommy, Macy was able to dig in to her cake ball. 

Macy seemed more interested in feeding Mommy pieces of cake ball, but I couldn't refuse. They were delicious! Then somehow whipped cream got involved... 

There's a good Daddy who stares lovingly at such a mess!

A little washing up before returning to the party.

Guests took home bubbles, with a precious tag that said, "Thank you for making me feel ONE-derful on my special day!"

After all was said and done, we hole-punched all the tickets and birthday cards and put them on a ring with the oh-so fabulous invitation.

This is one of my favorites, written by my 13-year old brother, Noah.

Sadly, these were the only things left. NOT! We made it home with so many fabulous treats and eats to last us until dinner, which was also catered by Railway Cafe but served in our home 

(see Macy's Birthday Phase Two).

Overall, it was exactly what I had always hoped for our little daughter. The party was so fun and beautiful, and we were surrounded by those we love as we celebrated a full year with our precious blessing.

 Credits:

Tutu That*: Birthday Girl's Outfit and Headpiece

Amylu Photography: Invitation and Photography

Railway Cafe: Party Planning Help, Chandelier Construction, Food and Service

BushelandPeckPaper: Water Bottle Labels

Mary Had a Little Party: Door Signs, Food Markers, Gift Bag Tags, Toothpicks

DKDeleKtables: Straws

Treehouse Cupcakes: Cake Balls

Macy's Birthday Phase Two

So, I knew what I wanted when it came to Macy's Birthday weekend. I knew that we would be leaving the next day for another camp, I knew that I would have lots of out-of-town guests, and I knew we would be hungry! I knew that Cliff and I wouldn't be able to really hang out with our friends, or actually sit down and enjoy food at Macy's actual birthday party, so I planned phase 2, dinner at our house for family, out-of-town guests, and close Athens friends. It was catered by the fabulous Railway Cafe, and they brought it to our house in disposable trays to cut down on dishes (God bless them). The food was so fabulous and I had some fun creating all the decor that we used. 

We had a fabulous meal, mixed green salad, homemade meatloaf and chicken pot pie, homemade mashed potatoes and macaroni and cheese, with some leftover yumminess from the afternoon party. Overall, it was exactly what I wanted. I literally wore my swimsuit and coverup, because I had been laying out by our pool with my best friend all afternoon. It was totally chill, full of great friends and family, and just so much fun! 

Hope you enjoy the photos! EM

P.S.: I just got the pictures from Macy's afternoon party, and am starting to work on blogging those now!

Hiatus... Over

So as you can tell, I took quite a long hiatus for the past several months. There have been so many changes here in the McGraw house. I changed jobs to work at our local country club planning member events, basically party planning. It's pretty much the dream job. Then to add more 'dream' to the dream job, it's still just part time so I can be home with my precious, now 1-year old daughter. We had a big 1st birthday, more on that in later posts, but I wanted this post to be all about catching up from the past few months. Here are a few of my favorite pictures from the past few months...

And a sneak peek of the next post, BIRTHDAY! What a difference just one year can make...

Again, I am so sorry for the hiatus. Thank you so much to all of you who have loved and supported us throughout this last year. We are in a state of bliss that we never knew possible as we experience life as three, rather than two. Love you all, EM

Week of firsts...

Good evening everyone!

This was a week of firsts for the McGraw family. Monday, August 22nd, Emily started her third year of teaching at Athens Christian Prep. Tuesday, August 23rd, Macy got her first set of shots. She was such a trooper, and it was honestly harder on Emily than Macy. Macy really took it like a champ, but Tuesday night was a little more difficult than normal probably because she just couldn't get comfortable (Bless her heart!). This is definitely one of my favorite pictures of Macy so far...

Wednesday, August 24th, Macy had her first day of Angel Keepers. She did really well and Mommy and Daddy did alright too, probably because we were all in the same building. She looked so cute her first morning, but Mommy was surprised when she picked Macy up in totally different clothes. Apparently, Macy had spit up all over her original outfit and the extra outfit Mommy had packed. So for tomorrow's day of Angel Keepers, Mommy packed four extra outfits...
The very best thing that has happened this week is that Macy has now started responding with a smile while you are smiling at her! She has been smiling and laughing all the time! Overall, it has been such a wonderful week for us, McGraws. It has been so nice to get into a routine, but also nice that Macy and Mommy still have Tuesdays and Thursdays together. All day today we just cuddled under the covers, slept late and smiled and laughed a lot! Such a wonderful day!

Hope your week was this good! So much love!