Warrior Dash!

 Earlier this year our friend Jarrod started convincing us that we needed to do the Warrior Dash.  I wasn't sure I was ready or able to do it but after Zach decided to do it and then my sis-in-law Alicia was in, I couldn't wimp out!  Not to mention I made a resolution this year to challenge myself fitness-wise and step out of my comfort zone.....

I think swimming over logs in muddy ponds, crawling under barbed wire through trenches, scaling walls with a single rope, climbing a rock wall slathered in mud, running through miles of mud, walking planks high off the ground, running through tires, maneuvering across a rope web and jumping through fire to finish all qualifies as "stepping out of my comfort zone".

Pre-race with our fans (aka the family) Although it was April 21st, it was a bitter 55ish degrees that morning.

We awoke to a cold, overcast day.  Not my ideal conditions for being soaking wet but we didn't let that stop us and at 2pm the gun fired and we were off.  The course was a 5k loaded with mud and the obstacles mentioned above. You can ask Z and A...I was so nervous leading up to the start.  I had hurt my ankle the prior week running so I was scared to death I was going to injure myself worse or even worse not be able to finish...haha.  Once the adrenaline started flowing, I was cool as a cucumber. As Alicia and I battled the course we joked that Cory would probably find the challenge easy as pie in fact it would just be another day at the office (aka Marine Corps) for him.

It was a great experience and we are already planning our next Warrior adventure.  The day was so much fun, Gary & Elaine (Alicia's parents) and the Ross Monkeys (Nathan, Nolan, Neely and Nora Kate) all came out to the battlefield to cheer us on and eat turkey legs with us.  We celebrated with the family over a fabulous Mexican dinner and yogurt of course.

I told Zach I am going to hang the official race picture in Austin's room...I'm leaping over fire with my hands straight in the air and a wild grin on my face...so when he is a teenager and thinks his mommy is so lame that picture will remind him of just how cool I am!

Before the mud (and freezing)

 Post-mud and VICTORIOUS!

Jumping the flames 

My sidekick Neely!

He's mobile....too mobile

Austin has been very reluctant to take off crawling, he would fuss every time he was on his tummy for more than a minute and only move forward or backward enough to reach what he had his eye on.  So crawling was never on the top of his list and prefers to walk around the furniture to get from A to B....that is until Wednesday.  Zach and I were playing with him on our bedroom floor after work, which is a really rare occurrence for both of us to be with him early in the evening.  There was a reason we were all there at once because all of the sudden he popped up on all 4's like usual and took off like crawling was no big thing.  We were so excited that both of us had been there to see it.

Hurry, someone call my Grandma Marilyn and let her know that Austin crawled before he walked, she was really concerned with that developmental milestone but we were convinced he just wasn't going to like crawling and opt to walk instead.  However, with this new skill came a boost of confidence which has gotten this little man in trouble.  As soon as he took off crawling he started walking more too and he forgets that he is not 100% sturdy just yet and has bonked his head a few times this weekend.  We worried he would bruise from some of these spills and it would start the rumor mill when he went to daycare today.  But his little head is pretty resilient and as soon as he busts he pops up and does it all over again.  Oh geez, looks like when we get home from the beach we will be baby proofing the house.

It seems like all of the sudden we have a little boy on our hands, mimicking the things we do, talking up a storm and being a little comedian.  He now loves "Where is Austin" and pulls a blanket over his head and then rips it off laughing.  

Enough chit chat, here are some videos of this little man in action.  

Austin gets so tickled from Emma's licks in this one he totally looses his strength and face plants.

Austin's favorite thing to do is walk behind his lion walker.  Sometimes he pushed it correctly, sometimes he gets on the front end and pushes it backwards and sometimes he pushes it sideways.  The boy likes to mix it up.

He loves walking 'round and 'round the coffee table and playing with the drawer knobs.

Austin attends his first Ole Miss Crawfish boil on the bluff with Coach Kennedy.  Coach signed his hat so hopefully his head stays this size so he can wear it when he goes to college.

We FINALLY gave in and let Austin watch a little TV so I could get some things done.  Life doesn't get much better than this- snacks, juice, toys and Mickey Mouse club.  I had "Hot Diggity Dog" in my head the rest of the day.

Here is Mr. Trouble in action, his new favorite table to walk around side of to play with the drawer.  We will be moving this table soon, he gets too confident and bonks his head.

This is why we can't leave him sitting on his play mat.  He stands up on that end of the couch and makes his way around the couch and ottoman to his favorite end table (danger zone).  He always stands up on his tippy toes to look into the tray on the ottoman, so cute!

By the time the weekend was over, Austin had worn himself out and fell asleep with daddy on the couch.  Being mobile is hard work.

Sacrifice

Oh how I love Easter!!! It is such an important time in our Christian lives and it is a time to really think about the great sacrifice. I love standing in the sanctuary, surrounded by Easter Lilies, singing the traditional Easter hymns...letting every thought of today's world and today's to-do list slip from your mind as you remember what TODAY really means. Our church does a beautiful unveiling of the cross and the alter on Easter Sunday.

Easter has always been a special holiday for the Ross family, we make a traditional Polish breakfast. This year we didn't do the Polish breakfast for a few reasons...mainly because of poor planning on my part but also because mom is doing a 24-day challenge and almost every element of a traditional breakfast is terrible for you. The secret to those big Polish women is now revealed. But next year I plan to have the entire Ross clan (you too Cory & Ross monkeys) in my kitchen feasting and explaining the tradition to Austin {as Zach will most likely be making barf noises in the background sabotaging my efforts...he's not a fan of the meal}.

Back to the word SACRIFICE, the last few weeks I have had that word on my mind a lot. I received a photo the other day of a plywood bed with a small plywood desk in a very small room about the width of the bed. No it was not a photo of an Alcatraz cell, it was where my brother sleeps every night serving our country. Plywood, people, no mattress.....at least not yet. Maybe he will be upgraded to the presidential suite sometime soon, I will put in a request. But back to my point- I am sure we all have heard about the sacrifices that our military people make to protect us and hearing the stories will bring you to your knees in tears. So imagine living in Jesus' time and seeing what he was going through to serve and protect and ultimately making the biggest sacrifice imaginable.

So as we all start our weekend doing numerous enjoyable things, sleeping in our warm snuggly bed with all of our "things" including our family close by, just be grateful everyday because people have sacrificed everything to afford us those things.

Happy 35th Birthday...

No no, not me and not Zach.

It's little Emma's 35th birthday (in dog years of course). She is 7 in people years and we will go by people years since she is one of the family!

I got her when I lived in Birmingham living with Sally Wicker and working for Southern Progress (Southern Living). She was flown to me in a little crate, all 2lbs of her, from St. Louis and from the moment I met her at the airport I knew she was born to be my dog.

For all of you that know Emma you know she has "Lapdar", yup that's radar for any lap within a 5 room radius. If you sit down you will have a weenie dog snuggled on your legs in 2.5 seconds. She loves cheese, walks and giving baby Austin kisses. Although the horse drawn carriages and the mailman are daily occurrences at our house, she still feels the need to "protect this house" from those people. Our mailman Robert is a really good sport but I know it wouldn't hurt his feelings if she lost her voice one day.

Although I am sure Emma feels like she is second fiddle to the new addition to our house, she will always be my first baby. She was my sidekick, watch dog, sleeping buddy and source of comfort when I lived alone and now she adds so much joy to our little family...

So HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO THE SWEETEST LIL WEENIE DOG EVER! (or "Sausage dog" as our new friends from New Zealand called her)

Last weekend my insanely talented sis-in-law came to town and took us out on a beautiful day to snap some pictures of our sweet Austin. He has a calm curiosity about him and studies things very carefully, like a clover in the grass. That pictures speaks volumes to his personality, my little observer. Austin also loves woodwork, iron details, finials and scroll work on chairs and furniture. He lights up when he sees something he can study and touch and he does so in a very delicate manner. I say he's gonna be my little architect which seems to be acceptable to Zach since it is a manly twist on him being an artist as I had hoped.

One of my favorite parts of the afternoon was seeing Austin light up while Zach was playing the guitar. Zach played a lot while I was pregnant and that is how we would get the baby moving and then he plays regularly around the house and Austin literally stops everything and goes into a trance. It is really sweet. So maybe he will be a musician too, who knows.

I feel like Becky captured his sweet, calm spirit. These are the type of pictures I see myself digging through when he 18 and leaving for college or on the eve of his wedding day, likely tears streaming down my face while I am thinking...it feels like this was just yesterday. I will treasure these pictures always. I can't explain the feeling of sitting in the grass looking at my sweet husband as he laughs with our son. Randa always told me there is nothing like the feeling when you get with your first born, she said you'll love all of your children but there is something about your first born that ignites very unique and special memories and feelings. Sometimes I think my heart might burst, I just feel so blessed with these two boys.

You have to take a minute to view Becky's lovely work: SLIDESHOW

Sick baby is breaking my heart!

Well this has been a doozie of a week. It started pretty normal, I was traveling to Jackson at the beginning of the weekend and then returned home Tuesday night. Wednesday is when it all went downhill. We had lunch at mammies and Austin was happy and chatting away in his highchair when all of the sudden it was a puking rally. Dad walked around with him while Zach and I finished eating and within a few minutes it hit again. We took him home, bathed him and got him comfy. Over the next few hours it was bad news from both ends and the doctor said he had the stomach virus...

HUGE BUMMER!

Poor little man was so pitiful and he lost all the life in his eyes. He just sat there in-between episodes whimpering and wanting to be held and comforted. He has been sleeping a lot and we are just trying to keep fluids in him as much as possible. Mom has been great and I am SO thankful she is a few blocks away so she can be here with him while I am working.

Here he is this morning. We had a rough time from 4-5am but then he slept and I was able to sneak away for my workout class and get home before he woke up. I thought we were on the mend this morning because he was actually interested in taking his bottle and was laughing and smiling while we ate breakfast but around 7:15 he was back at it, bathtime for the both of us.

Prayers welcome for our little man who is fighting hard to shake this bug. He was particularly bummed today because he missed school pictures at daycare.

Let's just hope the rest of the weekend is better and that nobody else gets sick.

Happy Friday everyone!

Growing up SO fast

Everyone always told me, "Don't blink, they will be all grown up before you know it". Well I guess I blinked because Austin is such a sweet little dude now. No longer our little bitty coo-ing baby but a laughing, talking little boy! He is a complete joy and I know God has blessed us beyond words with a son like him. He has a very calm and go-with-the-flow personality.

Here are some pictures from the past week as we stay outside as much as possible in this beautiful spring weather! Steve and Sue came in town and we had a picnic with Austin in the park. We grilled burgers, watched Austin swing and enjoyed seeing Austin love on Grandpa and

Yeah-Yeah, and vice versa.

Here he is wearing his "Lil' Reb" hat (thanks Clinton and Glenn)

He laughs and smiles constantly. If you even look his direction he lights up and makes some adorable noise. Usually he says da-da, ba-ba, etc. He also mimics your infection. It's hilarious because after I say something he will say something with the same rise and falls of my tone. Here he is with his girl friends, Molly Mac. He is quite the gentleman letting her have her way and just playing along, I knew we raised him well.

I lay him down in his nursery the other evening during his usual 5:30pm "power nap" and I hear him cracking up. I walk back in and he is standing in his crib laughing. Then I put him down on his bottom and he quickly returned to his feel cracking up. Zach caught it on video:

VIDEO

See how quickly he grew up, you must have blinked!

Just kidding, although this looks like a glimpse into the future with Austin and Zach sitting on our porch this is really our friend Amanda's sweet little boy Liam! They came to play last week and Liam and Zach had fun chatting on the swing.

Here is another flash forward to what he might look like in a few months. is he Zach's mini-me or what? This is Zach at 12(is) months.