11 Months

ELEVEN!!! 11 months. Holy smokes. We are in the throws of figuring out what to do for a FIRST BIRTHDAY party. How did we get here!!!!!!!???????? Everything goes faster with child #2. Oh man. 

Month ELEVEN has brought on more teeth (8 teeth total now!), more weight (21 pounds!), a little bit of hair (still mostly bald), and more smiles (always smiling). Wearing size 4 diapers, 18 months and 18-24 months clothes. Mae Caroline is the HAPPIEST girl I think I've ever met. She is so content. Hubs calls her the "gateway baby" because once you have one like her, you feel like you should have more and more. Eek. 

She is cruising all around furniture, walking while holding onto something, and standing on her own for a few seconds at a time. Babbling but no real first words yet.

She's doing much better with solids, thankfully! She's finally gotten over her texture fear and gag reflex. Three meals a day (and she likes to feed herself) and a snack. I'm trying to get her to use sippy cups but so far not much luck. Any suggestions? We've tried no spill cups, straw cups, taken the leak-proof spout out of the cups, etc and she's just not having it. 

She's started bathing without her bath seat. I finally trusted her to have the balance to hold her own against her big sister in the tub. HA. They LOVE bath time together! It's so cute watching them play.

Evans and Mae Caroline are mostly inseparable. They love time outdoors and love to swing together and stroll together. 

This month we also had a play date with Ash and her little one Emma. MC and Emma are just 3 months apart and destined to be best friends like their mamas! 

We also cheered the Falcons on all the way to the SUPER BOWL!! 

Happy 11 months, Mae Caroline! We love you!

What Do You Do?

And so, what do you do? A casual conversation starter we all receive and we receive it often. How about this weather? Where are you from? Have kids? Married?..... 

What do you do? 

For a long time I tried to separate what I "do" and who I "am". I didn't want my line of work to define me as a person. As many know, I am an attorney-turned-designer. Practicing law, I always felt the work I was doing wasn't inwardly reflective. Maybe it was the practice area, maybe it was the specific jobs, the clients, I really don't know. But what I do know is that in my gut it just wasn't right. Something wasn't clicking. I wasn't gelling, and I certainly didn't want my work to be who I was, specifically a line of work I really didn't enjoy. I always pushed that inner voice way, way down and decided no one likes their job. No one actually enjoys getting up to go to work. Everyone secretly has a dream to do something else. This is totally normal, so suck it up and carry on.

And to some extent, that's true. Adulting isn't always (ever?) fun. It's a rat race and we're all participants. But eventually I had to ask myself, at what point is it costing me more than it's providing for me? For my family? 

After three years of law school, and then three more years in practice, I had my first child. Motherhood changed me in many ways, but one I am forever grateful for is the way it changed my perspective on my career. Being a mom made me realize just how much I wanted a change, and perhaps that voice that kept pestering me wasn't as "normal" as I'd thought and shouldn't be dismissed. 

Years ago, Jeff Henderson ( via Buckhead Church ) gave a sermon on God's thumbprints on your life. What has He so uniquely equipped you with? What gifts has He given you that are clues into what He has planned for your life? (Honestly, even if you aren't a believer, this is worth a listen). 

For a long time, I mostly ignored those thumbprints. I wanted to make money. You can't make any real money in creative work, right? That's what I told myself. I wanted to be a career woman. I wanted to work at a big lofty firm with a big lofty reputation and have a big lofty job title. And those goals are TOTALLY ACCEPTABLE and most commendable. Except that those weren't my personal goals inwardly. Those were goals I had set for myself outwardly. How I wanted others to see me. How I wanted the world to view me. They weren't personal goals I strived for. They just weren't me at all, but I thought somehow if I were impressive to those around me, I'd be filled up on the inside. All the while ignoring the thumbprints God placed on me. Ignoring that voice that kept telling me this was the wrong profession, the wrong path for ME. I know now that voice wasn't just "normal". I truly believe it was God speaking to me. (actually I think He was screaming at me to wake up).

Now, I'd be lying to you to say it wasn't (and sometimes remains) really (extremely) hard to tell my husband, my family, my friends - "oh hey, yeah that degree I worked tirelessly on, this profession that I've basically dedicated the last 6 YEARS of my life to? Yea, I've decided it's not going to work out. "

Ignoring God in the end has made it that much harder for me. If I had followed that voice and what He had in store for me from the beginning, I could have saved myself many difficult conversations, financial obligations, and most importantly, time. That image of myself I was trying to paint for the world to see? Yea, try explaining that you are an attorney-turned-designer without some form of confusion! God did, however, use those years in law to shape me in other ways. I developed friendships I can't ever replace. Obviously I learned things I wouldn't otherwise know. I grew up. A LOT. But mostly, I learned discpline. I got through one of the hardest experiences of my life all for a career I wasn't truly passionate about. 

So, what was the inner voice? For me, it was clear in my free-time. In law school, any "down" time I had, it was spent reading up on interior design. Home decor. Trends. Styles. Watching HGTV. Flipping through magazines. Designing rooms on paper. Drafting fake house plans. Scrolling through Zillow and flipping houses in my mind. You name it, I was doing it. It's funny, looking back now I can remember doing these things from a young age at my dad's drafting table. I can remember building and creating furniture for my Barbies. I can remember changing out my doll's bedding and using building blocks to create new houses. If that isn't thumbprints at an early age, I don't know what is. 

After law school, I started this blog. I started decorating our first house and used all of my spare time pouring my energy into it. That's when friends and family took notice and started asking me for advice on their own homes. I started designing rooms for people I knew just for the fun. The feeling of pulling together a space for someone completely overwhelmed me, in a good way. The satisfaction that came from this filled up my soul. Seriously. It did. It wasn't for three more years, however, that I finally decided it was time to listen. Time to fully embrace that path. 

And it's been difficult, to be honest. Not just financially difficult. Let's face it, I don't make the money that I did. But it's also been difficult to completely trust God. There have been bumps in the road. Some days I think I've done the exact right thing. I've got flexible hours with the kids. It's good. Other days I am wondering where my next job is coming from, and whether I am doing this right. Whether I know what I am doing AT ALL. 

But, here's the thing. In all of this, I think my experience uniquely equips me to understand the clients I'm wanting to serve. The newlyweds wanting to pull together their first home on a budget. The stay at home mom that just needs a point in the right direction. The married-with-kids that don't have a ton of money to spend on design, but know they want a home that's comfortable and beautiful. Believe me, I GET IT. I know what it is to want a "Pinterest" room on a "penny" budget. I get that! I do. I also know that it is very much possible! 

Interiors don't have to be custom, to-the-trade, or designer brand to be stunning. Yes, I said it. They DO NOT. I'm not sure I'd truly understand that had I not done it myself. I can't tell you how many spaces I've created all from HomeGoods, Overstock and Goodwill! I know we all want inspiring homes that make us say "aaaaaaah" as we walk through the doors. Some of my favorite rooms over the years have also been the most affordable. I thank those clients and friends for trusting me to pull it together. Those Penny-Pinterest rooms are some of the best.

I thank my husband who has completely trusted me to switch cities, careers, and incomes. I thank my friends and family who encourage me to continue on a creative path. And I thank God for all but hitting me over the head with truth. Grace.

The Houston House, LLC is still a baby, but I thank all of you who have helped raise her along the way. It certainly does take a village. 

So, what do I do? I help others achieve a home that makes them feel good. I help families organize the chaos. I help friends come home at the end of the day to a space that's inviting and warm. On any budget. On any scale. That's what I do.

Forever thankful,

Ashley  

  

 

Our Weekend

We drove to Blakely, GA over the weekend to visit Hubs' grandparents. It's a 5 hour drive straight through no stops from Savannah. On the way, we stopped 3 times for bottles, food, potty, food, more potty, etc. It took us 8 hours to get there on Friday and we were exhausted by the time we arrived that evening! The girls did really well though. It's hard to ask kids to stay cooped up that long. We are looking to buy a bigger car soon, so we rented one that we are considering to get in a good test drive as a family. We rented a GMC Acadia and I'm sold and so is Hubs. Now where's that money tree? Seriously though, lots of storage, big and roomy, quiet, comfortable, third row, what more could a mom need?

It was such a great trip with wonderful memories made. I am so glad we were finally able to take the time to get over there and visit with them. This was the first time they had met Mae Caroline! They couldn't believe what a sweet baby she is. I am not kidding when I say she is the most content child I've ever met. It's crazy. Evans is my wild child, and I wouldn't change a thing about that! :)

Evans is named after Hubs' grandmother. Evans has of course met her before, but she really took to her this trip. It was soooooo sweet and my heart explodes thinking about it.

We ate a lot of food (which is the norm in Blakely, good food can't go uneaten!) and just enjoyed the slow pace of a small town and good company. The trip back home was MUCH faster. We made it all the way to Waycross before stopping for food and potty breaks. The kids did AWESOME and even napped some.

I'm still unpacking and trying to sort through the laundry. All worth it in the end. Such a great weekend!

Christmas 2016

Catching up on Christmas week! 

While we were at my parents over Thanksgiving weekend, we helped my mom set up her trees and get out all of her Santas... which Evans quickly took over as her "kids" in her "class". 

Evans is a pretty good little helper if you give her a clear job to do, and of course supervise. When we got back home, she helped me set up our tree and had so much fun doing so. 

She also decorated her own little tree for her room. It took everything in my OCD being to not move the ornaments around, ha. 

Her tree is filled with ornaments that she has made.

We also put our smaller tree on the porch this year, I kind of already miss the Christmas decor, but I'm ready for it to go by the time New Year's Eve hits. 

Our house all merry, merry 

Evans and I put together a gingerbread house this year, she put so much candy on the roof that it fell down. She didn't care, it was a fun project to do together. She ate most of the construction. 

She loves to bake, so when she was home from school we did lots of it. She helped make Christmas sugar cookies!

No booboos, the kid just thinks bandaids are an accessory. 

My sweet girls 

The Sunday before Christmas, my Aunt Judy held her Christmas party. The cousins play games and open gifts together. Evans got a puzzle and Mae Caroline got some stacking rings. The adults also had to play a game where you draw a picture on a piece of paper placed on top of your head without looking. It had to be a tree with ornaments, a star, fireplace, stockings, etc. and you got points for different things. I won! Ha.  

Ready for Santa!

Our cards this year

Setting out cookies and milk 

The girls' big gift this year was a playset. Mark and my cousin Sean worked on this thing on day, and Mark was still working on it that night. It was finally finished at 11:15 pm. Woo. 

Santa loot 

I got Mark a painting of our house

Miss priss opening gifts 

Mae Caroline likes her toys 

Christmas day we went to Beaufort to visit Mark's side of the family 

Evans got an art easel from Emily Ruth, Addison and Houston and she loooooves it. 

MC being cute

Emily Ruth and Evans (and Boofie)

MC getting into everything 

Girls playing in Emily Ruth's room 

The next day it was on to Columbia. More baking...

They made No Bake Cookies. So yummy!

Me and my girls

I can't believe they were both sticking out their tongues, ha! I guess they were over picture time.

Three generations!

Evans loves some Rush's (who doesn't?)

Mae Caroline playing at the girls' new kitchen. Papa and Dma got a big play kitchen to stay at their house for the girls to play with when in town. Spoiled rotten.

Not so patiently waiting to see what's behind the Frozen towel... 

opening Mae Caroline's presents for her (aka "helping")

She also got bracelets... which she hasn't wanted to take off since that day. Bracelets 24/7. She sleeps in them (which is funny because I hear jingle jingle jingle all night, HA!)

I think the biggest hit has been the playset at our house. We have been out here sun up to sun down almost every day. Good thing the weather has been so nice!!

Hope everyone had a great Christmas and a great New Year's Eve celebration. We stayed home this year and I actually stayed awake for midnight! Unbelievable!

Happy New Year!