Sunday, March 8, 2015

22 + 23 + 24 months

Well, here we are, at the last of the monthly updates.  I'm pretty impressed with myself that I actually managed to take a picture of Lilly every month, for 2 years.  I know I started slacking on the updates by year 2, but I'm still glad I have done as much as I have.  


The past 3 months have gone by so incredibly fast.  Really, the past 2 years have gone by incredibly fast. I wish I could slow time down, but since I can't I just try to hang on to every little memory I possibly can.  22 Months was full of memories, with the holiday season!  I posted all about it already, but the holidays were really so much fun this year.  And I know it will only get better as she grows!


23 Months was equally fun, and we saw a real language explosion this month!  She had been saying words, and lots of them, for quite a while, but around 23 months she started putting words together more frequently, and just talking a ton.  One of my absolute favorite things is when she tells us a "story" - I can usually only get about half of the words figured out, but she is just so serious and into whatever it is she is talking about.  This girl's facial expressions are killer.


And then all the sudden I had a 2 year old!!  I can't believe she is a full fledged TODDLER now.  This age is really so much fun, and I love every minute of it, but I also can't help but feel like it was just yesterday she was a tiny little blob coming home from the hospital.  Seeing how much she has grown and changed in just her 2 years of life, though, is remarkable.  She has such a personality now, but is still the happy kid she's been all along. She can make anyone smile, and frankly she is the best cure for a bad day.  She has developed such an imagination, and pretend play is where it's at right now.  I love watching her play "mama" to her dolls, and cook us endless meals in her play kitchen.  Right around her 2nd birthday she started talking even more, now putting 3 and 4 words together.  I can pretty much have a conversation with her now, which blows my mind.  It certainly makes you feel more sane when you're at the store with a kid that can actually talk back to you and doesn't just look at you funny when you talk or ask her questions. :)  Also this month mama & daddy went on a trip (311 cruise part 2 - more to come on that!) where we left her for an entire week with Grandma (and a night at Aunt Sarah's).  It was so incredibly hard on me, and I missed her SO MUCH, but she had a blast.  And although I missed her terribly, we really did have a blast and an adult vacation was quite nice!

Alright, on to the last monthly(ish) update!  I will probably do a yearly update going forward...that seems doable. :)


Stats ~ nothing official still - due to issues with my company changing insurance, then me changing jobs, and after a lot of appointment scheduling, canceling and re-scheduling, her 2 year appointment isn't until the end of April. Thankfully after all of it, she gets to stay with the same pediatrician she's been seeing since she was born, and I'm very happy about that! 

Size ~ a few 18 month or 18-24 month things still fit, but she is mostly in 24 month and 2T clothes now.  2T pants can be a little big around the waist (but she needs the length! long legs on my girl!), but that's nothing a fluffy cloth diaper can't fix.  She's still in 18 month jammies, but those are finally starting to get small.  24 month and 2T jammies look HUGE to me, but I'm sure they'll fit fine once I put them on her...I'm still in denial that she is out of the "month" sizes.  Sigh.

Sleeping ~ not much of a change here, she goes to bed around 8 still, wakes up sometime during the night (sometimes pretty early - 2 or 3am, sometimes not until 5 or 6) and comes into our bed.  She is usually up for the day around 7... lately she's been an amazing snuggle buddy in the mornings.  In fact, I may or may not have been late to work a couple days recently because I just couldn't talk myself into getting out of bed.  You get up when an adorable 2 year old is laying next to you, with her arms around your neck, snuggling you - it's impossible!  Naps are still kind of all over the place...while she does still take one every day, it ranges from 45 minutes to 2 1/2 hours.  She naps much better for Grandma...on the weekends I'm lucky to get her down for 45 minutes it seems like.

Eating ~
  I am so happy to report that we are still going strong at 2 years of breastfeeding.  I never in a million years thought we would make it this far, but I am so thankful that we have!  I know that she has already reaped so many benefits from nursing, and I absolutely love the bond it has given us.  She currently nurses before bed and when she wakes during the night, and my plan is to let her wean on her own when she is ready (which I still don't see happening too soon!).  Other than that, she is a great eater still - she loves a variety of foods, and surprises us regularly with how much she eats at a meal!  She loves mac & cheese (really anything with cheese), strawberries, avocados, "bobo" bars, raisins, bread, and about a million other things.  She tries just about anything, and there isn't much she doesn't like!  I still think that Baby Led Weaning was a huge help in making her the great eater she is today.  We have also started having smoothies each morning (made with fruit, spinach, greek yogurt & almond milk) and that has become a quick favorite of hers as well.

Likes ~
  "cooking" in her kitchen, playing with her babies, bath time, eating snow (we didn't get a ton of snow this year, but the few times we did she pretty much just wanted to eat it...), playing with her big cousin Lexi (they have started playing together so well, and it's just the cutest thing!), forts, Daisy, stickers, drawing, doing things by herself.


Dislikes ~
 getting her diaper changed (for some reason she is not a fan of it recently...I think she just doesn't like being torn away from whatever it is she is doing), uhhh that's all I can think of!  Have I mentioned she is like the happiest kid???

Current Nicknames ~
 boog, boogie, Lills, baby Lills 

Words ~  like I said before she has started putting 3 and 4 words together, and speaking in sentences.  Her signature phrase right now is "four-five".  It's random, and we have no idea where she picked it up, but anytime you ask her what time it is that's her response.  Or if you ask her to do something or go somewhere, she'll often say it (as in "four or five more minutes please"...)  I will have to try and get it on video because the way she says it is just the funniest thing!

Well, there you have it folks, 2 years in the books!  I'm really glad I stuck with it and wrote these down, I already love looking back and reading what she was like at different ages.  Time flies!  The next time I blink I'm going to have a 3 year old....not possible!!

Wednesday, March 4, 2015

{365 project} ~ February

Hey look, I'm posting something sort of around the time it actually happened!  
Here is the month of February...can't believe it has already come and gone.

Highlights of this month include:
~snow!
~aunt Ashley's crossfit competition
~valentine's day (and the associated crafts)
~2 year photo session
~more snow!
~THE 311 CRUISE.  



Tuesday, March 3, 2015

{two.}

Dear Lilly,

I meant to write you a letter last year on your birthday, to start a yearly tradition.  As with a lot of things these days, I never seem to have gotten around to it.  So we'll start this year instead.  :)  I just want to give you something to look back on when you grow up, from me, each year.  I want to tell you how awesome you are at this age, and how much I love you.  I'm sure it's something I'll enjoy looking back on too...you know how I am about memories. :)

Somehow it has been two whole years since you came into our lives.  It doesn't seem possible.  While if feels like bringing you into the world was just yesterday, at the same time its as if you've been a part of our family always.  I can't even remember what life was like before you. You have always been and continue to be one of the happiest kids I've ever known.  You are so easy going, and you constantly make people smile.  I'm always watching people while we're out in public, and anyone that catches your glance instantly smiles.  You have the most positive effect on people (and that's something I couldn't be more proud of), and you have really enabled me to look at the bright side of everything.


You went from a barely walking, chubby little baby, to a walking, talking, full blown toddler in the course of a year.  It absolutely blows my mind how much you have changed in the past year, and I am amazed at how much you have grown. You are becoming such an independent little lady, and I absolutely love the conversations we have.

You love to laugh, and you make me laugh approximately 10, 542 times every single day.  When you find something that you know makes us laugh, you will make sure to repeat it as much as possible.  Case in point: "four-five".  I still can't figure out where you picked that up, but every time you say it I crack up - along with anyone else in earshot. :)  You are so proud that you are two - and you should be!  You've learned so much in your 2 years!   You pick up on things so fast, such a smart girl.  I can't wait to see what path life takes you on - the possibilities are endless!


I want you to know that you are loved beyond measure. I want nothing in the world but for you to feel happy and loved.  I love that you still love to snuggle me, and I really hope you never grow out of that - try not to, ok?  It's my favorite.  If you would only stay still, I could easily sit on the couch and snuggle with you all day long.  I've never felt a love like I feel for you, and I now know how lucky I am to have been blessed with you.  I can't wait to watch you grow up (slowly, please) and see where life takes you.  I do know this much - you are going to do great things.  


Year two has been a great one.  I didn't think it could get better after year one, but I was wrong.  I can only imagine what's in store for us next!  Thank you for being the light in my life, and keep being the beautiful, smart, funny, happy, positive little girl that you are!

Love you to the moon and back,
mama

{all photos by Sarah Maxey Photography}

Sunday, March 1, 2015

Christmas recap

welp.  here we are into March and I'm still working on getting Christmas posted.  yikes.  But this is the last of it!  I'm not living up to my goal of keeping this blog actually updated so far this year am I.  sigh.  Anyway, here comes a big long recap of all our Christmas festivities!


so, I’ll start things off with Christmas eve.  That’s when the celebrations begin for us.  We kicked things off with a visit to Grandma & Grandpa Henry’s for the first round of presents.   



As you can see, these two enjoyed themselves…




Grandma & Grandpa did their jobs and spoiled everyone rotten!  (I, however failed and didn’t get any pictures of Lilly with Grandma & Grandpa.  Boo.)

After we dug out of the wrapping paper and played with all of our new toys, we made our way over to Mama T’s for our annual celebration there.



Lilly helped aunt Terri play Santa, and boy did she get a kick out of that!  She probably could have just passed out presents all night, without even bothering to open them.

But we did talk her into actually doing so, and once again she was spoiled as can be!  



(And I, once again, failed, and took minimal pictures.  sigh.)

We got some good quality family time in, before heading home to get jammies on and get our cookies ready for Santa!  I’m not entirely sure Lilly grasped the concept of Santa fully this year, but she definitely got the idea.  I think next year will be pure magic. :)




After finally getting her tucked into bed (not without reading The Night Before Christmas of course), Matt and I found our way into Santa’s workshop.  I think I mentioned it last year, but another one of the traditions I hope to keep is a handmade gift for Lilly each year.  Last year we made a growth chart (that we kind of suck at actually using and documenting her height…really gotta get better at that!), and this year we settled on a play kitchen.  Definitely a more involved endeavor.  But I knew my handy husband could make it happen.  And boy did he!  My original idea (and by my I mean Pinterest) was to take an entertainment center and turn it into a play kitchen.  We even bought an entertainment center off of Craigslist for $20.  But, my perfectionist of a husband did not feel it was sturdy enough, so decided to build the kitchen from scratch instead.  Gotta love him.  Anyway, we burned the midnight oil (and the 1am oil, and the 2am oil I think…), but ended up with the absolute cutest final product.



Once Lilly woke up on Christmas morning we walked her out in the living room to see what Santa brought her. (after a horrible night of sleep!  seriously, it was awful.  literally minutes after we had brought the kitchen up to the living room and I started to accessorize it, she woke up crying. and would not go back to sleep.  I eventually just had to take her to bed with us, and it still took her a good while to fall asleep.  Needless to say we were all a little bleary eyed when Christmas morning did roll around)  I took a video on my phone, expecting a great YouTube-worthy reaction, but it wasn’t exactly that.  I think she started out confused, and then just wasn’t entirely sure this was for her.  But once we convinced her it was, she immediately dove in and excitedly played with it all morning.  We had to pull her away practically to open her other gifts and her stocking!






eventually we did tear her away, and she gave me that reaction I was looking for over another (not nearly as exciting) gift.  I think it was an outfit.  yeah, weird but it was cute nonetheless. 



Matt and I just got each other stockings this year, so we opened those and let Lilly open hers, and then moved on to Christmas breakfast.  I keep saying i’m going to start cooking something special for Christmas morning, but it was just canned cinnamon rolls again.  At least I put them in the shape of a christmas tree! sort of.  Next year I’m doing pancakes. Maybe. 



Anyway, after our brief morning at home, we all got dressed and headed back over to Grandma & Grandpa Henry’s to hang out with the other side of the family.  




Lilly got more presents, we ate a delicious meal, and it was an all around good time!  Unfortunately Lilly needed a nap and missed an hour or so of the fun, but luckily she did sleep a bit because I was worried it could be a rough evening otherwise.  


After we were good and full (and one of us was nice and rested!) we headed down to Grandma & Grandpa German’s for the evening.   We did another round of presents - Lilly and Lexi shared Santa duties and had a ball together.




We opened more presents, ate more food, and the girls kept everyone entertained with their cute antics. :)





seriously though, cousins, in jammies together?  does it get any cuter??  they had such a fun time together  I’ll never get over how cute they are!


This Christmas, although it went by in the blink of an eye, really was wonderful!  Seeing the holidays through a child’s eyes just can’t be beat.  It warms my heart to remember how much fun we had over the few months of the holiday season this year, and I absolutely cannot wait to do it again next year!  More than anything, I can’t wait to keep all of these new traditions going for years to come!! :)