My Top 10 Songs of 2016

I kept it to 10 this year! Aren't you proud?! Wasn't all that impressed with the music this year - goes well with the overall theme of it though. Ha! Perhaps that's why I was able to keep it at 10 this year instead of the usual 15.

Honorable mentions:

• Let Me Love You (feat. Justin Bieber) - DJ Snake
• Don't Let Me Down (feat. Daya) - The Chainsmokers
• Work from Home (feat. Ty Dolla $ign) - Fifth Harmony

10. What We Live For - American Authors

I honestly don't know how popular this was, but I heard it at work, and I really liked it. So here it is!

9. i hate u, i love u (feat. Olivia O'Brien) - Gnash

Just a disclaimer for this music video - lots of swearing! I've only ever heard it on the radio and I bought the clean version, so I honestly didn't even know. Hah!

8. Heathens - twenty one pilots

I heard the movie was terrible, but the soundtrack wasn't bad.

7. Carry Me (feat. Julia Michaels - Kygo

6. Scars to Your Beautiful - Alessia Cara

5. Sit Still, Look Pretty - Daya

4. Spirits - The Strumbellas

This song reminds me of something, but I just can't figure out what... But I like it so it must be something good!

3. Colors - Halsey

This is a weird music video, but honestly, I would expect nothing less from Halsey.

2. I Took A Pill in Ibiza - Mike Posner

So I remembered Mike Poser because of "Cooler Than Me." See I was driving home from Alabama one weekend, and I got caught in a traffic jam and listened to this song probably 40 times. Haha.

AND NUMBER ONE IS.........

1. Closer (feat. Halsey) - The Chainsmokers

I mean, was there really any doubt? This song is EVERYWHERE, has been EVERYWHERE for months and I'm still not sick of it!

To be honest, I almost forgot to do this. I assumed my last post for the year would be my last post. Whoops. Cheers, 2017!

XOXO, Ness

And A Happy New Year

So I've been thinking a lot about this past year, and overall, all I'll say is bleh. The general consensus was that it sucked the big one. I'll agree, but to be perfectly honest, this is how I've felt about the past several years, so it's weird to see everyone on my side here. Haha!

Even though this year didn't really go as planned, of course there were some good things that happened. So I've decided to try to pick my favorites to share instead of complaining about everything that went wrong. I had to dig deep because this year really was pretty crappy. Nothing new for me, but it's kinda depressing seeing everyone else on the same page...

So in chronological order, my favorite moments from 2016.

Little Eddie joined us in January! This has to be my favorite thing about 2016!

Miss Anzleigh turned one! She's almost two now. Crazy!

I got to go see my favorite band with my best friend! Again, but it never gets old! We're super bummed Parachute isn't coming to Atlanta on their next tour, so everyone cross your fingers that they decide to do a second leg and add Atl to it!

We had our annual family vacation at the beach! I am so thankful we are able to do this every year. This is typically the only time I get to see my family, so this is always my favorite week of the year.

And I got to meet this little guy! He is absolutely the happiest baby I've ever met. He would want to cry, but if you smiled at him, he couldn't help but smile back! Love him!

Alex turned three while we were at the beach this year, so I FINALLY got to be there for one of my little's birthdays! Hopefully I will be able to eventually make it up for a few visits for some other birthdays in the future!

In September, over my mom's break from school, we flew up north for a week! I hadn't been on an airplane since 2012 so that was exciting enough! But it was so nice to get a little extra family time this year!

Ella turned eight in October! Every year I can't believe how big she's gotten. It feels like just yesterday I was meeting her for the first time! And now she's in second grade. Unbelievable!

Lil Howie turned two! Hard to believe that it was two years ago that we went to the hospital to meet this little guy!

Kitzie came to town! Like I've said before, my family time is limited, so any time someone's in town for a visit, it's a big deal!

So Happy 2017 everybody! Hoping that THIS is my year and yours as well!

XOXO, Ness

We Wish You A Merry Christmas

Christmas pictures this year. We didn't get very many, but here are the ones we did get!

So taking family Christmas pictures right before dinner is probably not the best idea. Espeically a fairly invovled steak and crab leg dinner. Whoops.

But to be fair, taking photos after dinner seems like an equally bad idea. Because either we eat in our clothes and risk spilling, or get ready after which would take FOREVER. So we worked with what we had.

It's also hard when alomst no one wants or is willing to take pictures.... Oh well. We got what we got.

I thought the backdrop looked really cool at least.

So wishing you all a virtual Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

XOXO, Ness

Little Howie Turns TWO!

On Saturday, we celebrated Lil Howie's SECOND BIRTHDAY! All the littles in my life are getting so big! It's crazy how fast time goes by. I remember holding this little guy in the hospital when he wasn't even a day old, and now he's two years old! Absolutely blows my mind. Happy Birthday, little guy!

I mean... How freaking cute is he?!

Mom wanted to get a picture in front of the trains, but the way the best I could do.... 

... because clearly, he was not having it! It's my party and I'll cry if I want to!

He got SO much Thomas stuff! Quite frankly, I was shocked that he didn't get any repeat gifts!

Thomas version of pin the tail on the donkey. Pin the smoke stack on the Thomas. The older kids could see, so.... wasn't really a fair contest! Ha!

But it was really funny watching the little ones try to figure out what was going on!

They really had no idea what was happening!

She looks like such a little diva! Love it!

Lil Howie Turns Two from Vanessa Rutters on Vimeo.

XOXO, Ness

It's Beginning to Look A Lot Like Christmas

'Tis the season. We are finished decorating and now we just have to wrap all our presents and bake all our cookies and we're ready for Christmas over here!

These will always remind me of both sets of grandparents ❤️

Our army of Christmas bears!!

These are just from Walmart. My mom has been collecting them for a while now, but we haven't actually bought any for several years because we ran out of stairs.

But we decided to get this years because they were BROWN! It always looked so stupid with all white bears and one set of black bears, but they never sold any other colors! So when we saw the brown ones this year, we had to get them to diversify our bear collection! It still looks kinds sad only two that aren't white, but we are working on it! Haha!

So we have three strings of these lights and they are so pretty! One of them crapped out after those few rain days, so I'm crossing my fingers that these don't break too!

We simplified this year... AKA, we got lazy... But it still looks cute.

I froze my buns off trying to get pictures of the lights. It was supposed to rain the next night, so I knew I wanted to get out there to get the pictures, but it was so cold! 

It's Beginning to Look A Lot Like Christmas from Vanessa Rutters on Vimeo.

XOXO, Ness