wordless wednesday

three amigos

Tucker (3 weeks) , Foy (4 mths) & Ada (3 mths)

three cutie kids and three silly moms

I am trying to let the pictures do the talking these days especially being a bit behind.

P.S. Adorable onesies courtesy of none other than Ivey Handcrafted

shower for mr. june

Tuesday evening was a branch shower for Crystal who is due with Daniel in June. David, the curly haired little cutie sitting on Crystal's lap is the big "brudder" to Mr. June. He is going to be an awesome role model for his little brother. There are two newborns in the picture (mine included) and three pregnant bellies (at least that is how many we are aware of at the moment).

Now you see me....

Now you don't... (Becky and I switched positions as photographers)


Congrats, Crystal! Looking forward to meeting this little guy!

3 states in 3 days at 3 months

What a wild weekend. We did over 18 hours of driving. While skeptical on how Ada would do on such a long action packed weekend she did really well. Every time we were on the road she slept like the cutest little log you have ever seen.

The weekend began by stopping by our state's capital to visit b & b and to check out their new pad. What do you think?

I am just kidding. The Montikers have a true propensity for real estate so this is some of the Nashville style RE that we previewed. I am certain that the Whitaker's will inhabit a place such as this at some point.

After our real estate tour and an hour wait (and we still had not been seated) at our beloved Bonefish the guys decided they were about to gnaw off each others arms and Ada decided it was time to go to bed. Why did we not plan on a simplistic dinner in the first place? The girls went back to the flat while the guys picked us up Schlotzsky's sandwiches and a mound of cookies. We stayed up late and deliriously spoke of times past and things to come.
Before hitting the road again we capped off our morning with some Starbuck's. Always a great start to any morning. Here, Becca is introducing Ada to her first round of Starbuck's coffee.
Next Stop Memphis. Ada meets her Great-Gran, age 92, for the first time. The day in pictures:

Four Generations

Uncle Mike, Ada, Parker (he kept Ada's attention) and Aunt Patsy

On now to Little Rock, Arkansas where Ada met her Great Grandma, age 83. Grandma did not know that we were coming it was a complete surprise and what a wonderful surprise it was.

Georgia was our third state and last stop on our 3 day trek around the southeast. At this point we dropped our male pilgrim and just the girls continued their pilgrimage down to Georgia. This time to visit sweet Nissa who is a week away from popping. Baby Henry is expected to arrive next Wednesday and Nissa still looks incredible. Never have I seen such a pure basketball belly in all the pregnancies I have ever encountered. Nissa you are adorable and can't wait to meet you Baby Henry!Mark and Nissa's dog, Murphy. Don't let him fool you. He is actually seven years old but is one of the most spry canines I have every met and so caring. Ada took a nap in Nissa's room and Murphy went back and forth across the hallway checking on his miniature human friend.

wordless wednesday

mommy's day

Mother's Day was simplistic and perfect. Ada was perfect in church though I am beginning to realize that she had always been perfect but this time her parents were not paranoid. It did help however that she fell asleep in my arms for over half of the service.

We took Ada for her first visit to the Chattanooga Market where we saw familiar faces in the vendors such as Tobi Weldon and Vincent Gregg. There were chocolate covered strawberries, fresh squeezed lemonade and Lupi's pizza. Handmade dresses, painted landscapes, and wood carvings. All set to the tone of a nice blue grass band. It was a beautiful day, but with wild winds that almost stole the stroller away from us.For lunch we went to my Aunt and Uncle's house where the entire time was consumed by Ada entertaining her 93 year old Great-Granny. The joke of the afternoon was G-Granny did a sock check and I failed. I honestly did not have a sweater on Ada at church or at the Chattanooga Market but knew I HAD to have one on her before she saw Granny Campbell. (My mom was not present but instead in Ireland with a group of her girlfriends. I am proud of her travels and we will make up the day upon her return.)

Four Generations

Ada, thank you for my first Mommy's Day. I thank God for giving you to us. You are a miracle. Borrowed heaven. We did not bring you into a perfect world but we serve a perfect god.

Echoing the chorus from one of Sunday mornings worship songs:

Turn your eyes upon Jesus,
Look full in His wonderful face,
And the things of earth will grow strangely dim,
In the light of His glory and grace.

This is my prayer for you, my child.

And as my mom always spoke to us girls from the book Love You Forever:

Love you forever
Like you for always
As long as I'm living my baby you'll be.

surprise

Jimmy is always full of surprises and this year on my first Mother's Day he decided to use that presentation method once again. My suspicions arose when last weekend he needed the car to go on an errand absent of the Moncrief females. Having complete trust in our marriage :) and knowing that there was a holiday right around the corner solidified a surprise was soon to come.

Friday night I was given my tangible Mother's Day gift. I usually get a gift early because Jimmy is typically too excited to wait (which I find absolutely adorable), but this time it was bc the gift would come in handy just a little bit early. The present was an attachment to my camera which I had been requesting (brownie points). So upon going to sleep I was told that I would be using my gift, we would be outside, that he had Saturday's day completely mapped out and we needed to leave by 11. Oh and he made sure we did a test run in the Baby Bjourn. Thousands of ideas went through my mind. I concluded we were definitely going hiking but the "appointment" threw me off. A photography class? No. We must be meeting someone. But who? In route on Saturday I guessed we were meeting Brent and Becca half way. Jimmy did not even try to cover it up. He was astonished that I blew his surprise. Hehe! I was so excited to see our best friends who had recently moved to Nashville.It was our first time through Tracy City, Tn where first impressions said alot with a barbershop named Hair We Go. Who knew such beautiful scenery was hiding in the background. Foster Falls within Cumberland State Park was a great find.

While we did not cover much mileage we took our time and really enjoyed the scenic views. The "children" did very well. Fletcher turned out to be the best trail dog ever and Ada enjoyed herself so much that she feel asleep.

I think Brent is wishing he had a Puppy Bjourn for Fletcher.

Ada snoozing away

We stumbled across a group of rock climbers. We were the perfect spectators and stood in observance for an extended time captivated by the climbers abilities.

After the hike we decided to stake out an outdoor outlet that Jimmy spotted on a billboard.

Brent, what the heck? Did you get tangled in a hang glider?

Jimmy, a parachute!?! Seriously! Come on!

While the part of the billboard that labeled the store an outlet ended up being a complete fabrication we did get a tip on a great place to eat. To Shenanigans we went.


I don't think you can tell from the picture but from up close the building looked like it was literally on its last leg. The frame was completely tilted. The floor was sanded down so the crooked front door would be able to move more freely. Despite the faulty structure which did add much interest the burgers were fabulous along with the fried zucchini and sweet tea. Yes, very southern but we were after all within a stones throw of Sewanee, The University of the South.

Montikers are never the simply good-bye type but go more for lingering conversations. This lingering conversation led to ice cream and then coffee at a quaint little place called Mountain Breeze. The little shop housed Chattanooga's Clumpie's ice cream along with dog treats from Bone Appetite. If only their had been Stone Cup Coffee to cap off the Sewanee interpretation of Frazier Ave.


Thank you hun for a most wonderful Mother's Day surprise and to B&B for driving down and spending a fun filled leisurely day with us. We had a fabulous time bc you my friends are fabulous. Maybe we should add Mother's Day to our list of odd holidays to spend together.