Hank's 1st Birthday!

Wow, it's been a crazy week!! Birthdays, sickness, car being towed, husband starting new job… I'm finally able to post about our sweet boy's 1st birthday party last Saturday! When you're named Hank, obviously everything has to be cowboy themed, so we did it up cowboy style for Hank's 1st birthday! You won't notice many smiles in these pictures, though, because we later found out that our little cowboy was sick with an upper respiratory infection and the Roseola virus! Poor guy. :( We still had a great time, though, and are so thankful for our friends and family who joined us to celebrate!


I have to start with this cake. I mean, come on now. Is this not the cutest cake you've ever seen!? The baker came highly recommended from the wife of one of Jacob's professors, and I literally cried when she brought it in the door. (I was emotional the whole weekend anyway, but this cake was so beautiful! Haha. And side note: those boots are made out of Rice Krispies Treats!)

Here is our tablescape! I wish I had gotten some better photos, but I was so stressed about the weather forecast that I was running around like a crazy person! Ha!

Here was our menu…. :)

Menu

"Cow Patties" - Chocolate peanut butter oatmeal no-bake cookies

"Haystacks" - Butterscotch haystack cookies

"Cowboy Caviar" - a homemade salsa-type dip, served with tortilla chips! Here is the recipe I used.

"Cowboy chow" - a chili-type dish, made with stuff like beans, corn, smoked sausage, BBQ sauce… sounds weird but it's delish! I'll post the recipe sometime! 

"Cow Tails" - Cow Tales candy

We also had a "Waterin' Hole" (sweet tea and lemonade), served food with "pitchforks" (forks), and of course had birthday cake, which was DELICIOUS!

We had red and cow print balloons, and I tied them with long strings of twine for a backdrop! (You can't see it here because it's so bright!)

My mother-in-law found me a vintage Jenny Lind highchair, and I made a highchair banner and birthday hat for Hank to go with it! My MIL also made the super cute bunting that we hung on the fence outside! 

I was praying all morning that it wouldn't rain! 1) Because there was no way that everyone we invited would fit in the house. Lol! And 2) Because I worked really hard on these yard games! In case you didn't know, corn hole boards are VERY expensive… so I decided to do some handmade entertainment!  We had a farm animal Bean Bag Toss, Lasso the Pony, "There's a Snake In My Boot," and a head-in-the-hole sign! Hank also got a slide from his grandparents, so that brought lots of entertainment, too!

Hank with 3 of his cousins who came all the way from Wisconsin and Virginia to celebrate with us! 

(Hank would normally be smiling with the rest of them! Ha!)

Our sweet cowboy!

A Recap of September 15, 2014

One year ago today, our lives were about to change completely and drastically. My heart is racing now and I'm getting a little bit of anxiety just thinking about it! I don't remember anything in particular about the day time, except that I got a call from my OB-GYN saying that I hadn't passed my first glucose test. It was so high that they wanted to do the second test immediately, so they scheduled me to come back in at 8:00 the very next morning. I remember feeling very sad about failing the test and not looking forward to doing a 3 hour fasting test. 

Jacob came home after work, and he realized he had forgotten a notebook he needed at the store. We decided to go back together after dinner to Valley Station to get it, then came back home to watch our Downton Abbey DVDs and eat burnt popcorn. :) Not long into that, I started to feel very strange. I thought I was having "stomach pains," and they HURT. We decided to go to bed early to see if that would help. NOPE. It didn't at all. It got worse, and I tried anything and everything to get relief, all while just trying to hang on until my 8:00 appointment, where I could ask my doctor what was wrong with me. But at 3:00 in the morning, after no sleep, I could no longer bear it. I finally called the on-call doctor and told her my symptoms.  She told me to get to the hospital immediately and she would meet us there...because it sounded like I was having contractions. "Contractions" was not even a word in my vocabulary yet because I wasn't even in my third trimester. I was 26 weeks and 5 days. I'm not really sure what I was thinking at that point, but we left the apartment in our pajamas (and left all of our necessities at home) and headed to the hospital. I called my parents on the way and left a message to let them know what was going on. They called back and expected that everything was fine and maybe I was just exaggerating. :)

When we got to the hospital, we walked in from the parking garage with another couple that was pregnant. They had bags with them and looked excited, so I asked them if they were about to have a baby. They replied, "We hope so!" with an excited laugh. They asked if we were. I said "I hope not!" with an anxious one. It seemed like it took forever to get signed in, but finally the doctor came to see me. She talked to me for a few minutes and then checked to see what was going on. Her face dropped and she looked very concerned. I knew it wasn't good news. She then said, "You are 6 centimeters dilated. I'm so sorry. There's nothing we can do now." Reality hadn't really hit me yet, and I asked if we would be able to go home and get some things. She said something like, "Oh, you're not leaving the hospital. Whether he comes in an hour or waits until full-term, this is your new home." At that moment, I really struggled to figure out what emotion I was feeling. I was absolutely TERRIFIED, but I couldn't help but be excited that we were soon going to meet our son, all while being completely flabbergasted that I was stupid enough to have labored up to 6cm without knowing what was happening. I had only really known one person who had had a preemie, so I texted my friend Hillary and asked her to please be praying. I had seen her son Tobin come home successfully, and thank God for that and for me being naive, or I would have had a breakdown over what was about to happen. 

And then, it was just a waiting game…..

Friday Favorites - IT'S SEPTEMBER!!!

It's time for….. 

As usual, I'm linking up with Mix & Match Family for Fridayyyyy Favorites!

YALL IT'S SEPTEMBER. That is the unofficial start of Fall in my book, which is my ABSOLUTE FAVORITE season. There are so many wonderful things about Fall! Now if the Louisville weather would get out of the 90's, that would be fabulous. 

I'll get us started with one of my Fall favorites! :)

One. 

MUMS!!! I got rid of my dead porch plants this morning and planted some bright yellow mums! Hopefully I'll eventually add some hay and pumpkins, but for now I will love seeing these fall favorites when I pull in the driveway. :)

They have some blooming left to do, so hopefully they'll last longer! 

Two.

FOOTBALL!!! We are ready to cheer on our FAVORITE football team tomorrow -- Alabama!!! (Is this not the cutest Alabama fan you've ever seen?? We are working on making "Roll Tide!" his first sentence. ;)) 

Three. 

My new $300 $6 Ralph Lauren lamp! I'm part of a Facebook yard sale page called Mama Swap, and yesterday someone was advertising this little baby for $6!!! I LOVE blue and white porcelain, and I thought it would look great in our living room with some of our other blue and white pieces! It looked like a really nice lamp, so I did some googling and found out that the average resale price right now for this exact same lamp is about $250-$300. SIX DOLLARS, people!! I bought this for $6!!! I call that a steal. ;)

Right now it's right beside our floor lamp (ha ha) but one day I'll do some rearranging. 

Four. 

The best roast you will ever put in your mouth. I'm saving the pictures for when I post the recipe (which will hopefully be soon!), but yall have got to try this. It's literally the easiest thing on the planet to make, and I'm making it this weekend for my parents who are coming into town! Recipe coming soon! 

Five.

Lastly, I cannot believe that this little boy is turning one in less than two weeks!!! We sure had a rough start with him coming 3 months early, but he is reaching milestones like a super hero! He has recently learned how to crawl "for real," and the other day he decided he was ready to walk. Ha! He hasn't actually walked yet, but I did look over the other day and he had pulled up on Jacob's desk and was just standing up hanging out! This has to be my *favorite* milestone so far. 

Have a great weekend, friends!!!

Jaime

What's Up Wednesday! - August

*Linking up with Mix & Match Family for this episode of What's Up Wednesday!

What We're Eating This Week…

We have a sweet man at church that has a massive garden that I'm SO jealous of! (Next year… next year…) He's been bringing in some delicious yellow squash, so I made some this week. There are so many ways you can make squash, and they're all so good! Fried, stir-fried, casserole… but you can't beat just some chopped squash cooked on the stove with onion, salt, pepper, and butter! That's how my mom always made it. :) I also FINALLY found some fresh okra in this town and our new neighborhood Kroger!!! Hallelujah! And I made some Cheesy Baked Chicken that I found on Pinterest -- I've made it several times now (without the sauce) and it's pretty yummy. :)

What I'm Reminiscing About…

I love my Timehop app this time of year because I always love seeing pictures from my freshman year of college at William Carey. I think it was definitely my favorite year of college, and I have such great memories with great people! 

Delta Omicron Rush Week -- School Spirit Day

Delta Omicron Rush Week -- 50's Day

Sweet friends Courtney and Ashley

What I'm Loving…

Hank's learned some new babble language recently! I'm not sure what Ba-Ba means, but it's the cutest thing ever! 

What We've Been Up To…

This week we found our neighborhood park!! It's literally just around the corner, and I know there will be MANY days spent here! Especially when the weather gets a little cooler. I just love our little neighborhood!

What I'm Dreading…

Cleaning out the fridge! Haha!

What I'm Working On…

Hank's birthday party! Menu, decor, games, etc.!

What I'm Excited About…

My Seminary Wives Institute (SWI) classes start back up this week, and my Bible Study Fellowship (BSF) starts September 4th! This semester at SWI I'm taking Biblical Interpretation and Biblical Parenting. I'm very excited about those! And this will be my first year doing BSF, and Hank gets to go to his own class, too! I think it's going to be an amazing thing for both of us. :)

What I'm Watching/Reading…

Jacob and I have a new TV obsession -- Call the Midwife! I've heard great things about the show, but I recently saw that Miranda Hart stars in it, so I was sold! (She's an English comedian that I LOVE!) We're almost finished with Season 2 on Netflix, and I can't get enough!

What I'm Listening To…

Nothing new lately

What I'm Wearing…

Lots of Alabama gear as we prepare for football season, which starts NEXT Saturday!!! AND we have cable this year!! :)

What I'm Doing This Weekend…

We are going to the 1st birthday party of one of Hank's fellow preemie friends, Dallas! :)

What I'm Looking Forward To Next Month…

My baby is turning ONE!!! I get emotional every time I think about it! He turns one on the 17th, and we're having a cowboy birthday party for him on the 19th. I've been obsessively planning it for a while now, and I can't wait to see how everything comes together! We're also doing his one-year photoshoot with his Jenny Lind highchair, birthday gear, and smash cake, and I'm so excited to see how that goes! :D

What Else Is New…

My family is coming to visit Labor Day weekend and I can't wait!! 

Home Tour -- Living & Dining Room

Today we have officially lived in our home for 3 weeks! It has been so refreshing to have this space for our little family, and we count it a blessing for sure. I offered to host a brunch here 6 days after we moved in, so that gave some incentive to get everything in order! *Almost* everything is complete now, so have a look around our living and dining room! :)

This near-100-year-old farmhouse table was built by someone in the Hatcher family. The last home it resided in was Jacob's Nana's, who passed last fall. His Papa refinished the chairs, which belonged to their dining room table. It will be an honor to dine here. (The frame has since been swapped around and now my DIY Hymn Wreath hangs there! I love it!)

Not the best photo ever, but I made this wreath from hydrangeas from our wedding! 

I loved refinishing the matching end tables and the desk. But the matching frames above the end tables are super special -- I gave them to Jacob as a wedding gift! We were married in the same church his grandparents were married in 60 years ago. One frame has a photo of us walking down the aisle, and the other frame has a photo of them walking down the same aisle. :) 

Sweet little rocker given by my grandparents for my 2nd Christmas. Hank's 6 month photos were made in this as well!

My great-grandma's mirror. I miss her dearly! She was a wonderful woman.

Big Ben lamp that I got when I returned from England, refinished table, and the rocker that Jacob's mother used to rock him in when he was a baby. :)

Some favorite frames, a refinished shelf from my in-laws, some trinkets that were part of our wedding, and a Beatrix Potter collection of books from when I was a girl. :)

That's all for now but I will have more up later! Thanks for stopping by the Hatcher Homestead! <3

DIY Hymn Wreath

Because of our recent move, I've been doing a lot of crafting lately, and I'm LOVING it! Things are slowly but surely coming together and feeling like a home. I'm one of the weirdos that loves change, so all of these new life happenings are so exciting to me! 

Yesterday I worked on a project that I've been wanting to do for a while now. You may remember my post about the DIY Book Wreath. I made this out a the book Little Women for my friend Anna Catherine's literary-themed baby shower. Since then I've been wanting to make one for myself out of a hymnal! Anyone who knows me well knows that I adore the old hymns. They are so rich in theology, truth, and poetry. I jumped at the opportunity when our church was cleaning out their library and asked people to take books home with them -- including some amazing hymnals. I grabbed a Baptist Hymnal that has a copyright date of 1954. (Interestingly enough, our house was built in 1954! :D) I picked up a styrofoam wreath form, got out my hot glue gun, and went to town! I did some rearranging in the living room to make this work, and I'm loving how it turned out! I also love that we have a constant reminder of these beautiful words that have been sung for years in our sweet church. <3

"The LORD is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer, my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold." Psalm 18:2

I will sing to the Lord as long as I live;
    I will sing praise to my God while I have being.


 May my meditation be pleasing to him,
    for I rejoice in the Lord.

Psalm 104:33-34

DIY Jewelry Holder

Hey friends! Sorry for the silence recently! Last Saturday we moved to our new house, and we still don't have internet until tomorrow! I got a notification yesterday saying that we've already used 75% of our data for the month. Whoooops! 

I finished a project today though, and I thought I'd share! If you're a woman who loves jewelry, kudos to you if you've found a way to keep your necklaces untangled! It's been YEARS and I still didn't have the proper storage...which resulted in jewelry that was tangled and knotted and ruined. I looked for jewelry holders, but I never found exactly what I was looking for. So I decided to make my own! I've had this vision in my head for a while now, and I finally found the perfect piece I had pictured up in my head. At Hobby Lobby of course! ;) This whole project was less than $20.

I got this wooden shelf on sale for 50% off at Hobby Lobby and the cup hooks at Home Depot (they were $4.21 for 100 but I only used 25). 

All you need to do is mark where you want the hooks to be, drill some pilot holes (holes a little smaller than the hook), and screw in the cup hooks! 

Voila! Now you have a very pretty and tangle-free jewelry holder! 😄🎉