tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17320074315781877172024-03-13T18:53:53.405-05:00Life...Through My LensBrookehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03453290243201674162noreply@blogger.comBlogger355125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1732007431578187717.post-4284093544415847712016-09-14T12:01:00.000-05:002016-09-14T12:01:26.561-05:00the story of Dylan's birthMy little man is 6 months old now, so I guess it's about time I finally finished this, huh?! Dylan's birth was pretty much the complete opposite of Lilly's. I am still amazed at how fast everything happened, and am incredibly thankful that I was able to have yet another med-free natural birth, this time without an induction. Even though the birth experience with Dylan was much, MUCH shorter than with Lilly, the story is still long. So get your popcorn ready, and get comfy. :)<br />
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Tuesday, March 1st - 38 weeks</span></div>
<b id="docs-internal-guid-e0bad3ed-2990-ec4f-e08b-1bc3205b0dfb" style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I woke up at around 3:45am with some cramping pains. They were coming and going, and at first I just thought it was a stomach ache. I got up to go to the bathroom several times, and as I laid down the pains kept coming back. Just as I would start to drift back to sleep, it would hurt again. After probably 30 minutes or so, I realized these were probably contractions. (WHAT?!) They felt like they were coming somewhat regularly, and although they weren’t super painful they hurt enough to wake me up, and eventually I recognized the feeling and knew exactly what it was (although I was in total denial, and beginning to freak out just a bit). I downloaded a contraction timer app on my phone, and started timing them...sure enough they were somewhat regular, every 10 or 15 minutes. I also had to get up and go to the bathroom multiple times, and had diarrhea. I quickly remembered that this is common in early labor, and I freaked out just a little more. I desperately tried to go back to sleep, but the pain kept waking me up. Matt woke up at one point, and I told him I thought I was having contractions. I’m not sure he believed me at first, or fully realized what I said. I remember telling him that I was </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><u>definitely</u></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> having contractions, and they were the real deal. He didn’t know what to do, and neither did I, so I told him to go back to sleep and I continued to time them while trying to sleep. Lilly was in our bed, and I remember in the very early hours of the morning laying in bed, snuggling with her, wanting to savor what could be one of the last mornings waking up as a family of 3 (little did I know that would be the very last time!) </span></div>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Once morning rolled around, I got up and attempted to go about my normal routine, but I was still having contractions, and once I was out of bed and the more I moved around, the more painful they got. I could still talk through them, but they were definitely causing me to pause and breathe every time they hit. I decided to go ahead and work, but would just bring my laptop in and work from bed. I had an appointment with Dr. Carriker that afternoon, so my goal was to make it through the day and to the appointment and take it from there. I honestly hoped that if I took it easy enough and drank lots of water throughout the day, that I could get them to go away and hold labor off for a little bit longer (looking back, it’s quite humorous that I actually thought that). I emailed my team at work to let them know what was going on, and told Matt I would keep him posted as to how I was feeling throughout the day. I did manage to stay in bed for the majority of the day, trying to wrap up everything I could at work. I had several meetings and calls, and for the most part was fine through my contractions and was able to talk without issue. I tried to continue to time them, and found that they were less regular when I rested, but anytime I got up they would get more intense and closer together. About halfway through the day I decided to take a shower, and went ahead and finished packing my hospital bag “just in case” (HA!). During this time they got much more regular (every 2-3 minutes) and much more painful, causing me to stop and breathe through them. I was starting to come to terms with the fact that this was probably actual labor at this point, and focused a little more on preparing things and letting go of the denial. I remember talking to a friend on the phone, and she said “wow, you might just be having this baby tonight!” and I just laughed and thought “no way”. Little did I know!</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I made it through my work day, had my hospital bag mostly packed, fielded a steady stream of calls and texts to check on me, and then it was time for my doctor’s appointment. Matt came home early to shower, and went ahead and packed himself a hospital bag too. We brought them in the car with us just in case they sent me straight to the hospital, but I was hoping that wouldn’t be the case. My appointment was at 3:20, and I had my weekly sonogram first to monitor fluid. In the car on the way there, and in the waiting room I was having much more regular contractions, I was trying to time them still and they were around 5-6 minutes apart at this point, lasting closer to a minute. They called me in for my sonogram, and I let the tech know that I had been having contractions all day. As she went through the biophysical profile, she mentioned that she didn’t see much fluid, but otherwise baby looked great. When she was finished, she said “I don’t think I’ll be seeing you again!” (AHH! It got a little more real with that.) We went back to the waiting room, and waited FOREVER. They finally called us back, I told the nurse what was going on, and we waited FOREVER again. Finally Dr. Carriker came in, and apologized profusely for making us wait when I was most likely in labor. She did an exam and found that I was 3cm dilated, and said lucky for me I was already in labor - if I wasn’t, then they would have induced me because of the low fluid once again. She asked how quickly we could get over to the hospital - we said we still needed to go home and pack our bags (just a minor fib…) and that we wanted to go see Lilly before checking into the hospital, which she was fine with. It was around 5 by this time, so she asked us to be back at the hospital by 7. I was slightly bummed that I wasn’t going to get to go home and labor on my own, and she acknowledged that, as she knew my wishes, but she said that with such low fluid they really needed to be able to monitor the baby. We left the hospital, called our parents, and stopped at Planet Sub on the way home to get dinner. I had barely eaten all day, and I knew they wouldn’t let me eat once I checked into the hospital, so I wanted to get a good meal in to build up some energy before labor got more intense. I was very anxious, and not hungry at all, but I ate anyway because I knew I needed to. The contractions were still every 5-6 minutes, and intense enough that I had to breathe through them, but hadn’t changed much in the past couple hours.</span></div>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">After eating and packing up the last few things, we headed over to see Lilly at my parents’ house. She had no clue what was going on, so when we got there I said to her “guess what? Mommy & Daddy are going to the hospital after this, and baby brother is coming!” Her face absolutely lit up, and she said “TODAY!? REALLY!?” It was the cutest thing, and I almost burst into tears at that moment. She was so excited...I’m not sure she fully understood what was about to happen, but I was so relieved that she was excited and not sad or nervous. We told her that she was going to stay the night with Grandma & Grandpa, and we’d call them once baby brother was here so they could come visit. I gave her tons of hugs and kisses, and didn’t want to leave, but eventually we had to go so we could head to the hospital and get this party started.</span></div>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Once again, the drive to the hospital was not quite what I expected. I was actually in labor this time, but we weren’t rushing there like I always envisioned. We arrived around 7, got parked, and went to check in. Apparently there was another woman with a name very similar to mine there for an induction, and at least 2 or 3 times during the process of getting checked in they asked me if I was there to be induced. (NO! I’m already in labor!) We finally got checked in and taken back to a room….low and behold it was the exact same room that I delivered Lilly in! I couldn’t believe it. Our nurse was Reagan, and she had me change and went through the millions of questions to get me checked in. She also checked me, and I was still around 3-3.5cm dilated, so it was just a waiting game at this point, and a matter of getting through the contractions and trying to get things moving. I was having a very hard time with constantly comparing this labor to Lilly’s, which obviously was not a good idea because they were completely different, and frankly I was terrified of having another 2 day labor. Reagan assured me over and over that 2nd babies often come much quicker, and the fact that I wasn’t induced this time should also make a big difference. She had just started her shift at 7, and I remember asking her if she thought I would have my baby before she got off at 7am. She laughed, and said that although she can’t guarantee anything, she was fairly sure the baby would come before that. </span></div>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">After getting all checked in, we decided to start walking the halls to get things going. As we walked, my contractions did get stronger and more painful, but it was nowhere near as intense as I remembered them being with Lilly. Once again I was stuck playing the comparison game, and Matt actually said to me at one point “stop comparing this labor with Lilly’s! This is a completely different experience, so just focus on what is happening now.” I really needed to hear that, because I just could not get out of my head that we were in for a long haul of labor. We continued to walk, stopping back at the room for breaks every now and then, and the contractions continued to get stronger. They weren’t really getting closer together, but they were getting to the point where I had to stop and couldn’t talk through them. I remember thinking it was very strange because in between contractions I felt completely fine, even joking around with Matt as we walked, but once one hit it would stop me in my tracks. After a while, I decided I wanted to try some different positions to get through the pain, as standing wasn’t feeling good. I tried the birth ball, and leaning on Matt and the bed in a few positions but they just weren’t helping. I think it was around 9:30 or 10 by this point, and I decided I wanted to get into the tub to try and relax and see if that would help me through the pain better. Reagan checked me before getting in, and I was at a 4 (I think, maybe a 5 - I know I hadn’t made a whole lot of progress).</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The tub felt AMAZING. I was able to relax sooooo much in between contractions, to the point I was almost falling asleep. The pain was still getting more intense during each contraction, but being in the water helped me to relax and breathe through them. I would say I was in the tub for around 30 minutes, and I decided to get out, feeling like I needed to be able to move around a little more. As I was stepping out of the tub, another contraction hit that almost dropped me to the ground, if it weren’t for Matt being right there to hold me up. Looking back, we think my water may have broken either in the tub or during this contraction. After that contraction, everything got incredibly intense. I sat on the toilet after that contraction to pee, and felt a slight urge to poop, that I mostly ignored (Reagan had told me previously to tell her if I felt that urge at all, which I really should have done right away). I could barely get myself to the bed, but felt like I could do nothing but lay on my left side. The contractions were insanely intense at this point, I was screaming and moaning through them. I had started shaking, and once I finally did mention that urge to poop from earlier to Reagan she said she needed to check me right away. I was likely in transition at this point. She checked and I was at a 6 - she told Matt to call the birth photographer ASAP, and she also called the on-call doctor who had left the hospital but headed back then. I don’t remember much after this point, but I know everything moved very very fast. I continued to moan and scream through every contraction, they were so overwhelmingly painful and intense. I also continued to shake, and started to dry heave. Reagan knew the baby was coming soon, and was getting everything ready - I remember seeing her turn on the “baby warmer” and I looked at Matt and said something along the lines of Holy Crap! She’s turning on the baby warmer, he’s coming soon! A few more contractions later, and I was pushing without even trying. I yelled to Reagan that I had to push, and she calmed me down, tried to get me not to push yet (as there was no doctor!), but that was a joke. I pushed through one contraction, and his head came out, with Reagan there to hold it. The hospital staff doctor came rushing in at that point, and with the next contraction I pushed again and out he came. My sweet Dylan Matthew was born at 11:17pm. At that point, though, we had not decided on his name yet, so he was still “baby brother”. He was placed on my chest, and Matt and I were both completely overwhelmed and crying tears of joy. He was screaming and crying, and the nurses said this was a good thing, but after a few minutes they weren’t happy with how he was breathing, and wanted to take him over to check him out. The cord was cut, and they took him over to the warmer and gave him just a few seconds of oxygen, while the Doctor finally showed up to deliver my placenta. This was honestly the worst part of my whole labor, and was SO painful. It took a long time for my placenta to move down, and I had to push through a few pitocin-induced contractions to get it out. I suppose it was a good distraction from what was going on with Dylan, but my oh my was it painful. After they cleaned me up, the other nurses were happy with Dylan’s breathing and they brought him back over to me for more skin-to-skin. We started breastfeeding as well, and he latched on immediately! He was so tiny, at 6lbs 3oz, but he was perfect and amazing and I could not believe that once again I made it through a natural labor and birth with Matt by my side. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">This time, there wasn’t a whole slew of family and friends waiting in the waiting room for us, so we got to enjoy the first hours of Dylan’s life together just the 3 of us. I was really missing Lilly at that point, but she was set to come bright and early the next morning to meet him, and I couldn’t wait. We got transferred up to our room, and took turns snuggling Dylan, and I also continued to nurse with him latching on great but falling asleep within minutes every time. He was such a sleepy little guy, but we loved every second of snuggles we got with him during that time. Matt fell asleep on the couch, and I tried to sleep but it was probably 3am at this point and I was still on an adrenaline high, so I didn’t get much sleep that night. Around 7am the next morning, my parents came and brought Lilly to meet her baby brother, and it was just some of the sweetest moments of my life. She was so in love with him, and so sweet to both of us. The nurse gave her a special “big sister” hospital bracelet, and she just beamed with pride at this new role. It was completely overwhelming and amazing to see both of our children together, and to be a complete family. My recovery was so much better this time, and I felt great the day after giving birth. Overall the experience was completely different from Lilly’s birth, and was really the natural birth I had always hoped for. I am so thankful that I got to experience going into labor on my own, and feeling my body take me through the whole process. Overall, I was only in labor for around 20 hours total this time, but from the time I got to the hospital it was only a little over 4 hours until he was born. I still can’t believe how quickly everything went, but I am thankful that it wasn’t a repeat of the last labor, and I am even more thankful that I had Matt by my side once again. Between him and my fabulous nurse, I had a wonderful support team, allowing me to have an amazing, empowering birth experience, that brought my sweet little man into this world in a beautiful way.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEyZWd3rcnws0rV1KZ5Wg8cwV9x00TOA5BYVXj2tmaVtAan-tUuH3LdhXioSejs3e_N4IssKNpq0nQ0Fl_LCtt2A_3BUjRTucMuDW4sjPolMkkqOTrLbJ5yufXBPLcKga9T5Si_RFvV74/s1600/dylan-89.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEyZWd3rcnws0rV1KZ5Wg8cwV9x00TOA5BYVXj2tmaVtAan-tUuH3LdhXioSejs3e_N4IssKNpq0nQ0Fl_LCtt2A_3BUjRTucMuDW4sjPolMkkqOTrLbJ5yufXBPLcKga9T5Si_RFvV74/s640/dylan-89.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">And, your reward if you made it through all of that: this beautiful slideshow by our amazing birth photographer, Sarah Maxey. Make sure you watch allll the way to the end.</span></div>
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click <a href="https://vimeo.com/161325425" target="_blank">HERE</a></div>
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<span style="line-height: 22.08px;">password: dylanmatthew</span></div>
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Brookehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03453290243201674162noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1732007431578187717.post-6805830658333910972016-06-02T10:37:00.000-05:002016-06-02T10:37:40.355-05:00{three.}Dear Lilly,<br />
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You are THREE, can you believe it?! I can't even remember what life was like before you, but at the same time it seems like just yesterday we were bringing you home from the hospital (and yes, I'm probably going to say that every year! get used to it!). This has been such a big year for you, and you have changed so, so much. You are growing up right before our eyes, and we couldn't be more proud of you!<br />
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This year you went from just starting to talk and form sentences, to pretty much talking all the time. I still can't believe some of the things that come out of your mouth, but you are just so smart, and you pick up on EVERYTHING. You are such a kind soul, and you are genuinely concerned for others. If someone is hurting or sick, you always want to make sure they are ok, or lend some comfort. You are a rule follower, and you like to make sure everyone else is, too. It's adorable, and I hope you hang on to this quality as you get older!</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5FEduKk65EDKH-O_PeDbJfUr4Y_aoiqglSpW3hZtucaOI3DXHCSqd1VPNzn06svK4zQPVqyKEsIB2xlVbH5ONGE2ULHtCODSCuJZ-1F3IgFpb4Pgz9pa5VljeZFrfN-TEqdK6iWmL6iE/s1600/lilly-three-15.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5FEduKk65EDKH-O_PeDbJfUr4Y_aoiqglSpW3hZtucaOI3DXHCSqd1VPNzn06svK4zQPVqyKEsIB2xlVbH5ONGE2ULHtCODSCuJZ-1F3IgFpb4Pgz9pa5VljeZFrfN-TEqdK6iWmL6iE/s640/lilly-three-15.jpg" width="640" /></a><br />
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You changed in so many other ways this year, it was like you just grew up overnight. You gave up the binky, you started wearing big girl undies, and now sleep in a big girl bed at night. You also weaned from nursing, which was so bittersweet for mama. I love that we had that bond for almost 3 years, and was so sad when it came to an end, but I'm just thankful that I was able to allow you to wean when you were ready, when we both were ready. You did all of those things in the course of just a few weeks, which is why it felt like you grew up so quickly!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizTMfiRvz_rdEllkkbTHUuGR8T9U9irE5zOoYz6BFjV_neRqzql4zpEA5FzIAZ05f6lLS9FOi2_AYJEstC0ljL13SMyiPhvIm1fBUrFuz7ghVnimGuJ6Hb1Zt44soYwWDAojGpkYMZ8Eg/s1600/lilly-three-09.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizTMfiRvz_rdEllkkbTHUuGR8T9U9irE5zOoYz6BFjV_neRqzql4zpEA5FzIAZ05f6lLS9FOi2_AYJEstC0ljL13SMyiPhvIm1fBUrFuz7ghVnimGuJ6Hb1Zt44soYwWDAojGpkYMZ8Eg/s640/lilly-three-09.jpg" width="640" /></a><br />
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Daddy and I threw a lot of curveballs at you this year, and I can't say enough how proud of you we are for how well you've adjusted to all of the changes. We found out that you were going to be a big sister this year, and I must admit I was nervous about how that would affect you, and how you would feel about it. I should have known better, though. You were nothing but excited from the very beginning, and I know you are going to be the best big sister to your little brother, and you two will have a lifelong bond. Not only were we growing our family this year, but we decided to grow into our own home as well, which I know was another big change for you. As usual, though, you took it in stride and never skipped a beat. I'm so happy that you are in the home that you will grow up in with your little brother, and that it is OURS.<br />
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I want you to know that you will always have a special place in my heart, my baby girl. I don't think I will have any trouble multiplying my love for your little brother to share, but I will always have a special bond with you, and I'm excited to see how that grows as you get older. I love that we can have our "Mommy and Lilly days", and that you get so excited for them, even if we are just hanging out at home all day. I love the time I get to spend with you, even though it's harder to come by now with a baby in the house, but I am so grateful that you are understanding about it.<br />
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I promise that your next birthday will be special and amazing, and all about YOU. I am still overcome with mom-guilt that we spent your 3rd birthday bringing baby brother home from the hospital, and didn't get to have the fun day together that I had planned. I'm so thankful to your Grandma and Grandpa, though, for helping us to still make it a special day for you, taking you to dance class and coming over for your "pizza party" afterwards. Once again, you amazed me with your maturity and didn't even bat an eye at the situation, and I couldn't be more thankful and proud. I'll make it up to you next year, I promise!!<br />
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Like I keep saying, I just can't believe how much you've grown and changed over the past year, but I am so thankful that we get to witness it every day. This past year has been full of fun and laughs, and although everyone says three is tough, I know this year will be a blast too. Watching you grow into your role as Big Sister is going to be wonderful, and I know you will just blossom. Keep being that beautiful, smart, kind, funny girl that you are, and make sure to teach your little brother all of those great qualities.<br />
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Happy number THREE baby girl, I hope you know how much we love you, and hope this is the best year yet!!<br />
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Love,<br />
MamaBrookehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03453290243201674162noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1732007431578187717.post-1505691016005361552016-05-25T11:54:00.001-05:002016-05-25T11:54:50.905-05:00ch-ch-ch-CHANGESOh, hello there! It's been a <strike>minute</strike> year, hasn't it?! I realize that I pretty much abandoned this thing for an entire year. I didn't intend to, but, well, life happened. A lot of life. A whole new life, in fact!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMVKTOKlAk6jjLyn0jSRN8RJEYuIxzbvrL8NUVovu3dTEaXx1xPJ9_n2tevzQKHj40clbmpdohKPsB9flYSdHMW8YohLEOVFRCIYD9sN6iQ6riF1ku1Mmy9CcXB4t_HH6VcWFx0XYwySM/s1600/d-15.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMVKTOKlAk6jjLyn0jSRN8RJEYuIxzbvrL8NUVovu3dTEaXx1xPJ9_n2tevzQKHj40clbmpdohKPsB9flYSdHMW8YohLEOVFRCIYD9sN6iQ6riF1ku1Mmy9CcXB4t_HH6VcWFx0XYwySM/s640/d-15.jpg" width="640" /></a><br />
Meet Dylan. (born March 1, 2016)<br />
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To back up just a bit...right about the time I abandoned blogging, we got the surprise of our lives and found out that I was pregnant with this little guy. Don't get me wrong, it was the most welcome surprise I can think of, but it was still a big fat SURPRISE. It took us 3 years (YEARS) to get pregnant with Lilly when we were trying, so I really honestly never expected that it could happen all on its own without any intervention. Matt and I had discussed the possibility of another baby several times, but were still very much on the fence. Ok, I was on the fence. Matt has always wanted 2 kids, but I wasn't so sure. I mostly just had zero interest in going through the drama of trying to get pregnant all over again, plus I was a very happy only child, so I was content with our family of three. Welp, the universe had other plans! One day in June of last year, I thought I was coming down with the flu or something. My stomach just did not feel right, I felt sick, but hungry, but nothing sounded even remotely good to eat, and I was tired. SO TIRED. It took me all day to realize that I have felt all of this before, and oh but it wasn't the flu. The next morning I took a pregnancy test (3 actually) and sure enough...SURPRISE!<br />
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Life pretty much completely changed from that moment on, and my head has been spinning ever since. I would love to say that I am going to take the time to go back and post about all that has happened in the past year, but we all know better than that. So I'll put it in a nutshell: I was soooo sick for the first few months of pregnancy, I'm still not sure how I survived. Exhaustion, all day nausea and a toddler at home just do. not. mix. Speaking of the toddler, she had a busy summer of dance lessons (which she LOVES), many trips to the pool and the lake, and started her first "school" in the fall (a Kids Day Out program at a nearby church, one day a week). We also found out that Matt's sister was pregnant too, due 10 days before me! I somehow made it through all of the craziness while trying not to puke 10 times a day, and then we decided to buy a house! We spent most of the fall searching for the perfect home, and finally found it just before the holidays. We moved 2 weeks before Christmas (while I was once again super pregnant), and had a couple of months to settle in before Little Man made his entrance into the world, 2 weeks before his due date. He is now almost 3 months old, I'm at the end of my maternity leave, and I'm still in awe at how much things have changed but how amazing this little guy is and how perfectly he completes our family.<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">{all photos by Janean Grey Photography}</span><br />
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So, I'm going to make an attempt to revitalize the old blog. I don't know that anyone actually reads this thing anymore, but I'm ok with that as it's always been mostly for me anyway. It's just a little place to document life as it happens, and one of my favorite things to do is go back and read old posts, so I would really like to try and get back into the swing of somewhat regular updates. I would like to go back and post about Lilly turning 3 (THREE! Can you believe it!?) and Dylan's birth story, but other than that I'll just try to pop in here and there with updates on how life as a family of 4 is going. I can tell you now, it's pretty much just a whirlwind all the time, but I welcome the chaos and feel so thankful to live this life.<br />
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Well, here we go again! Welcome back? See ya soon? Something like that. :)Brookehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03453290243201674162noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1732007431578187717.post-62498964296012163912015-07-05T10:13:00.003-05:002015-07-05T10:13:46.768-05:00{365 project} ~ June<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
I have lots to blog about from May and June, but as usual I am behind. So for now, you will just have to settle for the highlights...</div>
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June:</div>
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~Old Shawnee Days (twice!)</div>
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~a brutal 2 weeks of sickness and rash for Lilly</div>
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~date night!</div>
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~the start of Dance classes!</div>
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~a trip to the lake</div>
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~the start of our Texas vacation</div>
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<br />Brookehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03453290243201674162noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1732007431578187717.post-47109102421382185052015-06-30T12:26:00.000-05:002015-06-30T12:26:29.703-05:00{365 project} ~ May<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Highlights from May:</div>
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~swimming lessons!</div>
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~Daddy's birthday</div>
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~Mother's day</div>
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~a trip to the lake</div>
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~as much time outside as possible, but a whole lotta rain</div>
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<br />Brookehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03453290243201674162noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1732007431578187717.post-76954387168232921072015-05-28T19:02:00.000-05:002015-05-28T19:02:13.818-05:00Easter {2015}This time of year seems to be when life gets crazy and I get behind on catching this blog up...so I guess there's nothing new there. At least I'm blogging about Easter before the end of the summer this year! ;)<br />
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Let me also just start this off with a warning. Right before Easter this year I finally purchased a new camera {something I've been wanting to do for a LONG time!}, and this was the first time I really used it, aside from following my kid and pets around the house. All that to say - I took a lot of pictures. :) I am trying not to post aaalllllll of them, but still. There are a lot. Sorry. (not really!)<br />
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Anyway, Easter! Lilly is at such a fun age right now, holidays are just too much fun. Easter was no different. She had the time of her life, and we loved every minute of watching her! <br />
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We started off Easter morning at home with her Easter basket. I may have gotten a little excited when shopping for Easter basket goodies. No Easter grass needed in this basket! I filled it with a few books, 2 pairs of shorts, a bathtub duck toy, bubbles, an easter egg shaped cup, some crackers, 2 pairs of flip flops, and probably other things I'm forgetting. There were also a couple things that I had to leave out because I ran out of room. Yes, I may have gone overboard. I seem to have an irrational fear of not having enough things to fill the Easter basket...<br />
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After digging through all the goodies in her basket, we had a small egg hunt for Lilly in the living room. She did a great job of finding eggs, and got so excited at each one. I attempted to take a video on the new camera (HD video! woohoo!) but I had no idea what I was doing and didn't realize that my photo settings also carried over to the video. So I got a mostly blurry video. But hey, it's something! </div>
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Once Lilly found all her eggs, she went through and opened them with Daddy (and Daisy felt the need to help too apparently)</div>
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My newest tradition is holiday pancakes. I always want to make some sort of fun breakfast for holiday mornings, and then never have time and we end up eating cinnamon rolls from a can. So I've decided pancakes is easy and quick enough but can still be a fun tradition, so that's what I'm going with. I even made Easter bunny pancakes...sort of. </div>
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We did the obligatory back yard photoshoot as well, once she was changed into her Easter dress. (side note: I think I purchased 3...maybe 4, potential Easter dresses this year. All came from consignment sales and were less than $10, but clearly I was having a hard time making a decision. Not sure when she's going to wear the other dresses that didn't make the cut, but oh well. I finally settled on this one, which I think looked super cute on her!)<br />
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This kid has become such a ham. She seriously has the most expressions and they are so funny. Easter egg hunting was quite the production, and that's part of the reason I have so many photos - she was just making some of the funniest expressions! Case in point:</div>
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After the fun at home, we headed to Grandma & Grandpa's for brunch. Lilly opened 2 more Easter baskets, one from Grandma & Grandpa, and one from Great Grandma.</div>
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She also clocked some quality time with Great Grandma, which just warmed my heart. They were so cute together!</div>
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After all of that fun, we headed back home to get ready for the other side of the family to come over and continue the celebration. Lilly took a short nap, and I got a few things cooking in the kitchen. Once everyone arrived, Lilly and her cousin Lexi opened their Easter baskets (so. many. baskets. this year)</div>
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And then it was time for the big egg hunt. We hid a ton of eggs for both girls all around our backyard, and I got such a kick out of watching Lilly hunt. Like I mentioned: ham. This girl just cracks me up!</div>
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(maybe it runs in the family...)</div>
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I told you. The excitement was endless. And I could have included probably twice that many pictures! Love my animated girl. :)</div>
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The girls came inside and opened up all of their treasures - and our collection of little crap multiplied by about a million I think. Between 5 Easter baskets and 2 egg hunts, we have more than our share of little toys and trinkets around here!</div>
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Before they insisted on changing out of their Easter dresses, we got the girls to sit down for a couple pictures. Things started off very classy...</div>
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And then they got cute. Super cute.<br />
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After the cousin bonding time, we ate a delicious meal, and all sat around watching the girls run around together the rest of the evening. I'm telling you, kids are the best source of free entertainment around. :)</div>
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And...that's a wrap, folks! We had a wonderful Easter this year, and I had even more fun playing with my new camera. I pretty much haven't put it down since, so be warned that there are plenty more picture-filled posts on the horizon. :)</div>
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Brookehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03453290243201674162noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1732007431578187717.post-57286654332680948722015-05-27T09:37:00.000-05:002015-05-27T09:37:00.881-05:00{365 project} ~ April<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Just a little late posting this, but better late than never...right?? April flew by in the blink of an eye. But we are happy for the start of Spring and (somewhat) nicer weather around here!</div>
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Highlights from April:</div>
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~celebrating Uncle Zach's birthday (and Uncle Zach just happens to be one of Lilly's favorite people these days)</div>
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~Easter celebrations</div>
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~lots of outside play time with warmer weather</div>
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~a date night and a concert for us</div>
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~2 1/2 year checkup for Lilly</div>
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<br />Brookehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03453290243201674162noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1732007431578187717.post-80400226609344276092015-04-08T17:03:00.004-05:002015-04-08T17:03:54.355-05:00311 cruise {round 2}<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
As I'm sure you have gathered by now, at the end of February we went on a 311 cruise. Yes, another one. I realize that some people may think it's a little crazy the number of vacations we go on that revolve around this band. It probably is a little crazy. But this band encourages such a positive vibe that all of these trips and vacations end up being with such an amazing group of people, it just makes it that much better of an experience. Hearing their music, being with like-minded people, and going on an awesome vacation - you just can't beat it. So, call me crazy if you want, but I plan to keep attending 311 events as long as they keep putting them on. :)</div>
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So this was the 2nd 311 cruise that Matt and I have been on. It is the 4th cruise they have put on (see! we don't go to ALL of their events!) - the first one was just not a good time financially for us so we couldn't swing it, and the 3rd one set sail the day before my due date with Lilly. So there was that. :) We made it on the 2nd cruise (as you may remember) and then once again for #4. This one was a 4 day trip, and we went to Jamaica. It. Was. Awesome. Our friends and fellow 311 lovers Ash & Zach joined us as well, which made the trip that much more fun.</div>
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We spent the first day of our trip doing nothing but traveling. We flew from KC to West Palm Beach (not the typical destination for a cruise that leaves from Miami, but we had the HARDEST time finding flights. This was the cheapest and best option based on flight times as well.). We then took the Tri-Rail from West Palm Beach allll the way to Miami. It took us about 2 hours. Although it was a long ride,it only cost us like $7 a person. Waaaay cheaper than a cab. Once we got to Miami we took a cab to our hotel for the night. We ordered some pizza, drank a few beers, and got to bed early knowing that our vacation was starting for real bright and early the next day!</div>
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On Wednesday morning, we caught a shuttle from the hotel to the Port of Miami. We went through all of the fun registration, waited around in a giant room for a while, and then finally made our way onto the ship! It was huge, and so nice.</div>
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We had a few hours to kill before we were allowed to get into our rooms, so we just explored the ship and got lost for the first of many, many times. We found the buffet and got some lunch, and what else but a Margarita! Walk by me with a margarita in a 311 souvenir cup, and you bet I'm buying one. :)</div>
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After getting to our room and getting our bags, we found our way to the pool deck where 311 was playing their first show of the trip, as we sailed away. Such a great way to kick off vacation, I must say. :)</div>
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All of us were pretty darn excited! We soaked up the afternoon sun, drank some beers, and waited for the show to start.</div>
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Then the staff came around and gave everyone a free shot of tequila to enjoy as we sailed away. Sold!</div>
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The view as we sailed away was breathtaking!<br />
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The view once Nick Hexum and 311 came onstage was equally beautiful. :)</div>
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And as you can see, about 3,000 other cruisers also enjoyed the show with us. The energy was unreal, and we loved every minute of it!!</div>
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We spent the rest of the evening checking some of the various other shows on board (being a music cruise, there is pretty much a concert happening at all times. it's awesome!). Eventually we called it a night...after far too many buckets of beer. :)</div>
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The next morning we woke up slowly...and eventually made our way out of the room. Everyone was feeling a little rough, but when you're on a cruise ship in the middle of the ocean there's no time to be hungover! So we sucked it up and enjoyed our day.</div>
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Ash & I started the day off with some yoga - this was such a fun little activity. I wish they had it every day! Bonesaw from the band Full Service led our yoga class, and it was such a lovely way to start the day (and cure a hangover!). Yoga is already relaxing and peaceful, but doing it with nothing but the ocean and sunshine in your view takes it to a whole new level.</div>
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Later that afternoon was one of the highlights of the trip. Our photo with the band! Now, you may remember how this experience went for me last time. And if you don't, I'll remind you: I HAD MY EYES CLOSED. I may be a little bitter about it still. This time however, I made darn sure to keep my eyes open and we ended up with a much better result!</div>
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Totally printing and framing this picture in my house....</div>
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Just like on the last cruise, I was pretty much all smiles the rest of the day after getting to meet the guys and take this photo. All of us were pretty darn excited. We spent the afternoon watching more concerts, and again discovered some awesome bands. Full Service, Pepper & The Green are some of the bands that we fell in love with. Really, all the bands on the ship were great, there was always good music around!</div>
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We watched The Dirty Heads (who Matt & I discovered and fell in love with after the last cruise) that evening, with a pretty awesome view of the ship, the crowd, and the sunset. </div>
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That night, the girls threw in the towel early while the boys continued the fun. I'm glad I decided to go to bed, but the boys kept telling us how much fun they had that night so apparently we missed out. :)</div>
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Friday morning, we once again got up slowly (can you see a recurring theme here?), but we didn't have too much time to poke around as we had arrived in Jamaica and we had a full day of fun ahead of us! We grabbed mimosas and bloody marys and enjoyed the view from the front of the boat before heading down to get off and start our day.</div>
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<b><span style="color: red;"><pic boat="" from="" jamaica="" of=""></pic></span></b></div>
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Once we did make our way off the ship, we got on a bus to go to our excursion in Jamaica. </div>
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The excursion was a 2 part adventure, where we could go to the beach or the river. We started at the beach.</div>
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It. Was. Beautiful. </div>
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We found ourselves a spot in the sand, laid out in the sun, enjoyed some fruity drinks, and just relaxed. It was so nice! Full Service showed up right where we were sitting for a little impromptu beach show, which was even more awesome. <br />
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We were also treated to a Jamaican lunch, which was quite tasty! After getting our fill of the beach, we hopped back on the bus and went over to the river. The drive through Jamaica to the river was quite interesting as well. Definitely a different culture! The river was completely different from the beach atmosphere, but it was equally beautiful there!</div>
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The tent you see in the photo below housed a local Jamaican Reggae band that was playing when we arrived. (This was called the Irie River by the way...) We got in the water to enjoy the music for a bit, and then explored the rest of the river and surrounding jungle. It was just beautiful all the way around, and there was always something to see. </div>
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We were wishing we had more time, because we felt like we had to leave so soon after getting there! I think we easily could have spent 2 days there (if not more) just enjoying the atmosphere and all there was to see. But, we had to be back on the ship by 5, with a full night of activities ahead, so off we went. On the way back, there were tons of little shops set up where you could buy souvineers. Unfortunately, though, the line to get back on the ship was SO long that we had to get in line right away, and it ended up moving so fast that we barely had time to look or shop. I managed to buy a little dress to bring back for Lilly, but that was pretty much the only souvenir I was able to bring back from Jamaica.<br />
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Here's a view of the ship as we were walking back from Jamaica. Told you it was huge!<br />
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As tired as we were from a full day of fun in the sun, we had a night of activities ahead of us that we had to get ready for. It started with another 311 show, where they played their Soundsystem album from front to back. Such an amazing show!</div>
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Another Dirty Heads show followed, and then there was the costume contest. Don't ask me how I stayed awake and alive through all of this, but somehow I did (the contest STARTED at midnight...)! We reused our Halloween costumes, and dressed up as the Wizard of Oz group. We actually put our costumes on before the Dirty Heads show, and unfortunately our scarecrow bowed out during that time (and by bowed out I mean stumbled back to the room and passed out. Lightweight. ;) ). So, I never managed to get a picture of all of us together...but I did at least get one of our sleepy scarecrow before we lost him!<br />
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We entered the costume contest not realizing what we were in for...we ended up having to wait for what felt like hours (no idea how long it actually was) to then go out on the pool deck and be "judged". I'm not really sure how it all worked, but we stuck in it, and got nothing in the end. Ha. We got an official photo taken, so I guess that is something? It was insanely windy on the pool deck that night, so that made it especially fun for me...in a dress... :)</div>
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I once again called it a night early (well, it was after 1am which I do NOT consider early by any means, but Matt & Ash were still up so I guess it was early compared to those party animals). They wandered the ship for a few more hours, saw a few more shows, and who knows what else. I was happily snoozing. :)</div>
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We woke up the next morning for one more day of this adventure. We took it easy that morning and day...I think everyone was getting pretty worn out by that point. We spent most of the day hanging by the pool, which turned out to be pretty awesome as we had a great view of the stage for the shows that were going on. It was wonderful and relaxing, and a really nice way to spend our last day on the ship.<br />
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We decided to be proactive and get most of our packing done later that afternoon so we could enjoy the rest of the night and not have to worry about it in the morning, knowing they would probably be scooting us off the ship bright and early.</div>
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We had a nice dinner out on the deck on the back of the ship, and took a lovely little group photo in front of the sunset (sort of. the sun is over to the right, but there were a bunch of people in the background over there so this just had to do).</div>
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That night we had one last 311 show to watch, and it was possibly the best one of the trip. We ended up getting a great spot, pretty close to the stage, and it was just a really fun show! </div>
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Afterwards, we watched a comedy show in the theater, followed by one last Dirty Heads show, which was a close second for one of the best shows of the whole trip. I can't even explain it, but the energy inside the theater, along with the music, was just electric. Not to mention the wind and the ocean was rocking, making the boat do some serious swaying. Watching a whole crowd of people sway back and forth together with the boat was crazy.</div>
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I tried to talk everyone into calling it a night after the shows, but I was overruled. I wanted to be responsible and get to bed knowing that we had to get up early the next day, but everyone else wanted to make the most of our last night and go to Headphone Disco. I reluctantly joined, but am so glad I did!</div>
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I don't think I can properly explain headphone disco to you, it's one of those things you just have to experience. I'll try though. :) Basically it's like a dance club, except everyone is wearing headphones. There are 2 separate DJs, playing completely different music, and your headphones can switch back and forth from one DJ to the other. Sounds weird, right? I thought so too. But from the minute we walked in and put our headphones on, I was in tears I was laughing so hard. Half the room is dancing to one song, while half is dancing to the other. You can't hear anything but the music, so you can't talk to anyone (but you inevitably try, and end up just randomly yelling). It was absolutely hysterical, and so. much. fun.</div>
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I really wish I would have taken a video of that adventure (well I did, but it was really short and Ashley thought I was taking a picture the whole time, so it's funny in it's own way!) - but it was quite the way to end our trip.</div>
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We took one last walk around the deck of the ship before heading to bed, and took one last group selfie to remember our trip by.</div>
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The next morning, we were woken up bright and early, and just as I suspected, were pretty much scooted off the ship. Although, at one point, before we had made our way to the line, they came over the speakers to say that they were backed up so we needed to wait a bit...which was fine by us. We got some breakfast, and just hung out until it was finally time to go. The rest of our day was another travel marathon...taking the tri-rail back to West Palm Beach, then flying to Atlanta, and finally making it home. Of course the very last leg of our flight was delayed, just the icing on the cake. We finally made it back to KC around 11 that night, then promptly lost our car in the airport parking lot. Eventually we found it, and finally made it home. Everyone was ready to just be home at that point...it was a looong day.</div>
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All in all, it was an amazing trip! Like I said after the last one, I'm not sure that I could go on a "normal" cruise after having now been on 2 of these music cruises, I don't think anything could compare. They've already said another cruise will be happening in 2017...I'm hoping we can break the every-other-cruise streak and actually make it on that one. But a lot could happen between now and then, so we shall see. :) </div>
<br />Brookehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03453290243201674162noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1732007431578187717.post-43943141481501300512015-04-03T11:20:00.000-05:002015-04-03T11:20:20.663-05:00{365 project} March<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
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It's so hard to believe that March has already come and gone! The good news is, that means Spring is <i>finally </i>here!</div>
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Highlights from March included:</div>
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~ returning home from the 311 cruise (only a highlight because I got to see my girl again after a long week apart!)</div>
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~ Lilly's 2nd birthday!</div>
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~ and of course, the big 2nd birthday party!</div>
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~ St Patty's day</div>
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~ lots of time outdoors enjoying the sunshine</div>
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~ Easter prep fun</div>
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~ the start of swim lessons again!</div>
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<br />Brookehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03453290243201674162noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1732007431578187717.post-22045591824468134752015-04-01T16:19:00.001-05:002015-04-01T16:19:07.639-05:00second birthday party!I don't know how it happened, but somehow 2 whole years have gone by with this girl of ours in our lives. And to celebrate, of course we had a party! It seems that this time of year gets incredibly busy for us every year, making party planning a bit tricky and always down to the last minute. That doesn't seem to stop me from going a little party crazy, though! :)<div>
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This year, we did a very similar party to her first birthday ~ a celebration at our house with family and close friends. Lilly had more of an opinion on things this year, but we still haven't reached the place where she wants certain things for her party and won't have it any other way. I'm guessing that will come next year. :) I was actually having a tough time coming up with the theme this year, there just wasn't anything that stuck out to me right away. So naturally, I asked Lilly. After chatting about it a few times, we finally landed on it - Curious George. Lilly hasn't been very big into TV, and doesn't know many of the popular kids' shows or characters, but one show she does love to watch is Curious George. Thankfully, its one I don't mind her watching either. :) So I pretty much just took that theme and ran with it, and Lilly's Curious George themed 2nd birthday party was born!</div>
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Last year, I put quite a bit of effort into her outfit, and decked her out in a handmade tutu and "one" onesie, with a special hair bow and everything. This year - not so much. I looked for a couple of weeks for the perfect party outfit for her, but just couldn't come up with anything. At the last minute, I ended up ordering her a Curious George t-shirt, and was planning on her wearing it with the cute polka dot jeans she wore in her 2 year pictures. Wellll, what do I get for ordering the shirt 2 days before the party? It didn't come in time. (I ordered on Amazon with Prime, and it was scheduled to come the Friday before the party, but due to weather delays I didn't get it until Monday.) So, the morning of the party, I held out hope until the last minute that it would come, and when it didn't I improvised. I had gotten this cute yellow sundress at a consignment sale the week before, and since it matched the party colors and it was randomly warm that day, we went with it. She wore her (adorable) red shoes also from her 2nd birthday photo session, and I was able to talk her into putting a ponytail in her hair. I know I'm bias, but I must say she looked pretty stinking cute!!</div>
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Anyway, enough about her outfit, on to the actual party!</div>
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I didn't do quite as many DIY projects this year, mostly just for lack of time {if I haven't mentioned it already, we went on the 311 cruise, and got back in town the Sunday before her party - I also had to go back to work that week, so there was minimal prep time. I of course intended to get everything done before our trip but...well, yeah. that didn't happen!} but I still thought the decorations came out looking super cute. I also had the help of my wonderful friend and graphic designer, Ashley {check out her blog <a href="http://decoratingobsessed.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">here</a>} in designing both the invitations and a lot of the party decor. She made the 3 banners, the 2 signs that sat on the mantle, and the food labels. She does the party accessories as a little side business now, and I think it's just the best idea. I was still able to have the details that I love about a party, but didn't have to do all the leg work! {check out her etsy shop <a href="https://www.etsy.com/shop/ashleylind?ref=shopinfo_shophome_leftnav" target="_blank">here</a>} I really loved the color scheme though, it brightened up our house wonderfully! As you will see I used balloons as a big part of the decor as well - I ordered 18 of them, and just put them in groups all over the house. Matt thought I got "way too many" but once they were all set out he agreed they looked great. My other super simple decor included bunches of bananas. :) Being Curious George themed, it was just too easy. I just tied balloons to the bunches, and set them out on the various tables. As someone who makes smoothies every morning, we can never have too many bananas in this house!</div>
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Lilly doesn't have a ton of little friends her age yet, but we did have a few kiddos at the party so I set up a little table for them and got "Curious George Says Thank You" books to give as party favors. I also got "Curious George and the Birthday Surprise" to use as a guest book. I kind of failed at remembering to tell people to sign it, but a good chunk of people that were still around towards the end of the party did sign. I would love to keep this tradition at her parties every year, I love the idea and it's such a cute keepsake.</div>
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And of course we can't forget to discuss the food! I went super simple this year, and just did things that I could either prepare in advance, or that didn't require much prep. I knew I was short on time, and didn't want to over commit myself! The menu consisted of: pigs in a blanket, fruit cups, beer bread + ranch dip, veggies + ranch, corn cheese dip, and pull apart pizza bread. Thankfully my mom and BFF helped contribute a dish each, so it really wasn't too much work to throw the rest together. My "centerpieces" on the food table were just little glass jars I found in the dollar section at Target, with balloons tied to them and ribbons stuffed inside the jars. For as simple as it was, I thought it was super cute!</div>
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My favorite decor was probably the dessert table. It just came out looking so colorful and festive! Last fall I finally got it together and hung a gallery wall collage on our giant blank wall in the kitchen. Don't ask me why it took so long to finally do it...all but one of the frames I had on hand already, it was just a matter of laying them out and hanging them up! It makes such a difference in that room though, to actually have something to anchor that giant wall. Anyway, part of that is a chalkboard that I love to change with the seasons, and of course I gave it a Happy Birthday theme for this occasion. I also changed out the other frames to all pictures from Lilly's 2 year session, and then one Curious George print for fun. </div>
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I made the cake and cupcakes (from a box! as much as I love me a good cake from scratch, there just wasn't time for that.), and ordered decorated sugar cookies from <a href="https://www.facebook.com/icingsbyang" target="_blank">Icings by Ang</a>. My mom also made {amazingly delicious} chocolate chip banana bread which was a hit. I am disappointed though, I didn't get a very good picture of the whole tray of cookies - they were so unbelievably cute! I almost didn't want to eat any they were done so well. When I asked Lilly what she wanted on her cake, all she told me was that she wanted a red cake - well I wasn't about to attempt to make red frosting, so instead I got red sprinkles to put around the edge of the cake. For decorating it in the wee hours the night before the party, I think it turned out pretty cute! I ordered the Curious George cake topper & candles from Party City online, and funny enough that little George figurine is her new favorite thing. Like, she takes him everywhere with her. It's random, but cute! Guess that was a good purchase. :)</div>
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As you can see, Lilly was once again spoiled rotten with gifts! She was quite funny during the process of opening them, really I think just a bit overwhelmed. She got into the first few, and then just wanted me to open them all for her. And after opening each one she naturally wanted to take everything out of the boxes to play with, and could not understand why we were taking them away from her and having her open more. </div>
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Her favorite gift by far, though, was the Cozy Coupe. The second it came through the door she was in it ready to drive around the house. It took some convincing to get her to actually participate in the rest of the party and leave it in the living room. :) After everyone left for the evening we took it for a stroll around the cul-de-sac, and I'm pretty sure that was the highlight of her day. Toddlers...easy to please. :)</div>
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After the marathon of presents, it was finally time for cake! We decided not to do a smash cake (I seriously could not decide for the life of me if that was what you do at a 2nd birthday or not. Pinterest seemed to indicate that some people do, some people don't. We opted not to, just to save the mess and to actually be able to serve the cake to everyone), but we did have her blow out candles. She was a little funny about it - super excited initially and was trying to blow them out before they were even lit. But once they were lit, and everyone was staring and singing to her, I think she got a little stage fright and Daddy had to jump in and help her.</div>
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She did get her own piece of cake, which as you can see she completely devoured and loved every second. A bit of a sugar rush did follow, but it was manageable. :)</div>
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The rest of the afternoon was spent playing and watching this cute little girl run around! I think she had a great time, and once again really impressed me with her stellar behavior. As with last year, she barely got a nap in the day of the party, and I was just sure she would be completely cranky but I was so wrong! She was her usual happy self, having the time of her life!</div>
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One lesson I learned is to take the family photo at the beginning of the party. :) She was running around outside with the other kids when I realized we hadn't taken one, so I grabbed her and brought her in and all she wanted to do was get back outside. So, this is the best we got. Matt's talking, Lilly's looking out the window, but hey at least I'm smiling! That counts for something, right??</div>
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All in all, it was a really great party! Even with taking it down to the wire and planning a lot of it at the last minute, I think everything came out great and most importantly: Lilly had a blast! She talked about her party for days afterwards, and was slightly confused when I had to tell her that she only gets one a year. Pretty sure she was expecting one every weekend. :)</div>
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<i>Happy birthday to our beautiful, BIG GIRL! We can't believe you are two, but we've loved every minute of your first two years of life, and can't wait to watch you continue to grow. Love you always and forever!! XOXO, Mama & Daddy</i></div>
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Brookehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03453290243201674162noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1732007431578187717.post-87908200924732803862015-03-08T13:34:00.000-05:002015-03-08T13:34:44.193-05:0022 + 23 + 24 months<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
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. </div>
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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!</div>
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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.</div>
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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!</div>
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Alright, on to the last monthly(ish) update! I will probably do a yearly update going forward...that seems doable. :)</div>
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<span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><b>Stats ~ </b>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! </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><b>Size ~</b> 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.<br /><br /><b>Sleeping ~ </b>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.</span></div>
<span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><b><br />Eating ~</b> 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.<br /><b><br />Likes ~</b> "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.</span><br /><div>
<span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><b><br />Dislikes ~</b> 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???<br /><b><br />Current Nicknames ~</b> boog, boogie, Lills, baby Lills </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><b>Words</b> ~ 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!</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">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!!</span></div>
<br />Brookehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03453290243201674162noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1732007431578187717.post-74778911962880173502015-03-04T21:30:00.002-06:002015-04-03T11:23:34.963-05:00{365 project} ~ February<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Hey look, I'm posting something sort of around the time it actually happened! </div>
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Here is the month of February...can't believe it has already come and gone.</div>
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Highlights of this month include:</div>
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~snow!</div>
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~aunt Ashley's crossfit competition</div>
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~valentine's day (and the associated crafts)</div>
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~2 year photo session</div>
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~more snow!</div>
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~THE 311 CRUISE. </div>
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Brookehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03453290243201674162noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1732007431578187717.post-65542801114100753172015-03-03T22:25:00.000-06:002015-03-04T22:25:30.420-06:00{two.}<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Dear Lilly,</div>
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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. :)</div>
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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.</div>
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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.</div>
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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!</div>
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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. </div>
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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!<br />
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Love you to the moon and back,<br />
mama<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">{all photos by <a href="http://www.sarahmaxeyphoto.com/" target="_blank">Sarah Maxey Photography</a>}</span></div>
<br />Brookehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03453290243201674162noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1732007431578187717.post-62246949263108091272015-03-01T14:00:00.000-06:002015-04-01T16:20:03.745-05:00Christmas recap<div class="p1">
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!</div>
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<span class="s1">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. </span></div>
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<span class="s1">As you can see, these two enjoyed themselves…</span></div>
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<span class="s1">Grandma & Grandpa did their jobs and spoiled everyone rotten! (I, however failed and didn’t get any pictures of Lilly with Grandma & Grandpa. Boo.)</span></div>
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<span class="s1">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.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">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.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">But we did talk her into actually doing so, and once again she was spoiled as can be! </span></div>
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<span class="s1">(And I, once again, failed, and took minimal pictures. sigh.)</span></div>
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<span class="s1">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. :)</span></div>
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<span class="s1">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.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">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!</span></div>
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<span class="s1">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. </span></div>
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<span class="s1">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. </span></div>
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<span class="s1">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. </span></div>
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<span class="s1">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. </span></div>
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<span class="s1">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.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">We opened more presents, ate more food, and the girls kept everyone entertained with their cute antics. :)</span></div>
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<span class="s1">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!</span></div>
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<span class="s1">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!! :)</span></div>
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Brookehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03453290243201674162noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1732007431578187717.post-16015555632768729762015-02-02T20:33:00.000-06:002015-04-01T16:21:11.581-05:00holiday traditionswell, I obviously didn't meet my goal of having all the holiday posts up before the end of January. *sigh* oh well, better late than never, right! right??<br />
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If you have been following along here for even a little while, you have probably already figured out my love for traditions. Ever since having Lilly, I have become mildly obsessed with holiday traditions (not just Christmas traditions, either! I'm a sucker for a good tradition, any time of year!) I started to write up a separate post about each holiday tradition we did this year, but it was getting a little ridiculous, so I thought I'd just group them all into one instead. This is more for me than it is for you, so next year I can look back and remember the traditions I need to make sure and continue. Oh, and for the memories! :)<br />
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<b>{25 books of Christmas} </b>this tradition lasted the whole month of December. Pretty simple concept - 25 Christmas/holiday/winter themed books, wrapped up, and each night Lilly opened one and then read it before bed. Lilly LOVES books right now, so I knew this would be something she would enjoy. And I was right - every night after her bath she would run into the kitchen and look at me, point at the tree, and say "boooook??". Too cute for words. It wasn't too difficult to execute, either, we just went to Savers and Goodwill a few times and loaded up on used 49 cent books. :) I'll definitely be replacing some of the books next year, and will get rid of a few duplicates that I didn't catch, but otherwise I think this one was a success!<br />
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I used the fact that we were sitting by the tree opening a present in jammies every night as an opportunity to take approximately 1.346 billion pictures of Lilly by the Christmas tree. Naturally. I never got the "perfect" one, but I got a lot of cute ones of her in various stages of tearing open wrapping paper, reading books, and an occasional stand-by-the tree. Good enough! I should have actually broken out the big camera, but I just used my phone. Photographer mom fail.</div>
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<b>{cookies at mama t's}</b> this tradition has been around much longer than Lilly has. But this was the first time she got to participate. :) Every year my cousins and I decorate cookies at my grandma's house. We have extended this into our adulthood (along with easter egg hunting...), but now we have a kid to play along! </div>
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She started by helping Aunt Terri make the frosting.<br />
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And then she worked very hard on eating, er decorating. It was a bit of a challenge to get her to understand that we don't have to eat alllllll the sprinkles.</div>
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Lilly's masterpieces!</div>
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All of the cousins and our cookies!</div>
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<b>{baking with mama}</b> we also did some baking of our own at home. This tradition is one I'm essentially passing along...I will always remember spending one day of my winter break every year in the kitchen with my mom, baking cookies, and watching Holiday Inn. It was our thing. So, this year Lilly and I had 2 days of baking together - I think we'll add in the movie next year. :)<br />
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YUM</div>
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Once again we had a slight problem with actually placing the sprinkles on the cookies. </div>
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But they still turned out quite nice, I must say! Lilly was very proud of her handywork. :)</div>
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And of course, once Christmas eve rolled around, we were sure to leave a plate out for Santa! I need to step up my game next year and actually have some carrots on hand for the reindeer.</div>
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<b>{visiting santa} </b>the final tradition on the list is our annual visit to Santa. we started this one <a href="http://life-throughmylens.blogspot.com/2014/01/santa.html" target="_blank">last year</a> with Lilly and her cousin Lexi, and it is definitely going to be a yearly thing. We took them to Bass Pro again to see Santa, and the girls had a blast running around together. Lilly was much more interested in all the other activities this year as well (which was a good thing because we went on a much busier night this year so had a while to wait!).<br />
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Also like last year we used our time in line as a chance to set up a couple photo ops for the girls. As you can see from the first picture, Lilly has entered that lovely toddler stage of making the weirdest face ever when a camera comes out. She is a true photographer's child, what can I say. :)</div>
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After quite a while the girls finally got their chance to sit on Santa's lap. Compared to last year, Lilly did great. The pictures tell a different story, she was pretty much just stone-faced for both of them. ha! But that's better than the look of pure terror we got last year. I'm pulling for year 3 to actually get a smile in the santa picture. :)</div>
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This last one is my favorite...I like it better than either of the ones that the photographers captured and printed. I just happened to be snapping away on my phone as they were getting settled...this one is just priceless to me. She is completely starstruck. :)</div>
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Aaaaaaaaaand, there you have it! This year's holiday traditions in a nutshell. A very long, wordy, nutshell full of pictures. :) I haven't included anything relating to the actual holiday days, because those will come in a post of their own with the Christmas recap. I swear I'll edit those pictures and get that posted...eventually. :)Brookehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03453290243201674162noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1732007431578187717.post-7175005508344076012015-02-01T15:07:00.000-06:002015-04-03T11:27:08.082-05:00{365 project} ~ January<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Last year, I downloaded a "photo 365" app and took a picture every day of the year, which was then saved in a calendar on my phone each month. I loved the concept, and it is so fun to go back and look through each month's worth of photos. I posted each month's calendar on Instagram last year, but this year I think I will post here. On Instagram they were just such tiny pictures, and here at least they will be a little more visible (although still pretty small, sorry!) </div>
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The app I'm using this year says it will make a photo book for me at the end of the year, which also sounds pretty fantastic to me! So anyway, I am hoping to actually stay on top of posting this monthly, and creating a fun little series of posts full of memories to look back on. So let's kick this off - here's January!</div>
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<br />Brookehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03453290243201674162noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1732007431578187717.post-57029400462178144432015-01-20T20:57:00.002-06:002015-04-01T16:20:19.946-05:00christmas tree farmlet's see if I can get all of the holiday posts up before the end of January... that may be wishful thinking :)<br />
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To kick off the holiday season this year, we took a trip out to Louisburg to the Christmas tree farm, to pick out our tree! This is yet another tradition I am super excited to start with Lilly. We also went last year, but she didn't really know what was going on. This year, however, she was all about it.<br />
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This face. This face is so her right now. </div>
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We walked around for what seemed like forever (it was a chilly day!) looking for the perfect tree. I guess we're just a little picky...it took a while to find the right one. </div>
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But we finally found it!! Matt did the honors and chopped it down for us so we could wrap it up and take it home.</div>
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Part of the tradition now includes a family selfie with our freshly cut tree. :)</div>
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And here it is all decorated and lit up in the house!</div>
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I love, love, LOVE having a real tree in our house. I also set up our artificial smaller one... another thing I love, love, love is having 2 Christmas trees. Lilly couldn't agree more. :)</div>
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<br />Brookehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03453290243201674162noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1732007431578187717.post-91113444096119432542015-01-04T15:53:00.000-06:002015-01-04T15:53:58.895-06:00{19 + 20 + 21 months}Well, here we are, another 3-months-at-a-time update. And, actually, at the time I'm writing and posting this, Lilly is actually already 22 months. So, yeah, I'm just generally behind, if that wasn't obvious. :)<br />
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As I've continued to say, with every age we come to, I find myself thinking it's my favorite one so far. And the past 3 months have been no different! Lilly's personality is really starting to come out, and she is constantly learning and blowing me away with her development. She is talking up a storm...usually one word at a time, and she pretty much just says one syllable of each word, but she can really communicate with us now and it's amazing. She has a stellar memory too, and is often trying to tell us "stories", which is again just mind blowing to see her little mind at work.</div>
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We enjoyed all of the Halloween festivities this month, which I already posted about, but it's safe to say she had a blast. :) I also celebrated my 30th birthday shortly after that, which I won't lie I was not the most excited about. However, I'm happy to report that I survived it, and it wasn't nearly as bad as I thought it would be. When I take a step back, I'm really happy with where I'm at in life at age 30. I don't think I would have guessed that this would be where I'm at, but that's not saying much, considering that I thought 30 was OLD throughout most of my teenage years and early 20s. :) So when I looked at it that way, I felt much better about turning 30, and was happy to have my little sidekick with me through it all.</div>
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Throughout the month of November, Lilly took a parent/kid swim lesson class at our local community center. I meant to put her in lessons over the summer, but never quite got around to it, and then decided starting in the Fall would be a good idea so that we kept up her exposure to water even in the colder months. It turned out to be a GREAT idea, because she absolutely loved swimming!! She did great in the lessons, and it was so cute to see how excited she got before every class. It was a beginner level class, so we didn't do much beyond practicing kicking, moving arms in the water, and going under a couple of times, but she mastered all of those skills and had a great time doing it! We'll be doing level 2 in the spring, and I'm sure she'll be super excited all over again.<br />
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Like I said, (and keep saying every month...) Lilly continues to grow and change and develop right before our eyes each month, and it's just crazy. She now has a full mouth of teeth, that she brushes with Daddy every night, and with Mommy every morning, she is thinking about potty training (and by that I mean she's interested in the concept, we've bought her a potty, but that's about as far as we've made it, and that's ok. I know this is something that comes with time and can't be rushed.), and she certainly has her own opinion about almost everything. I love seeing the person she's becoming!<br />
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Ok, enough blabbing, on to the update...<br />
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<span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><b>Stats ~ </b>nothing official...we don't go back to the doctor until her 2nd birthday.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><b>Size ~</b> tall and skinny is definitely the theme for my girl. She is wearing 18 month tops, and some 18-24 month pants but getting into 24 month/2T very quickly. And that just blows my mind. I think we're about reaching the end of the onesie era, which makes me want to cry uncontrollably. I love a good onesie! Seeing her in little jeans and regular shirts, not to mention 2 piece jammies, makes her look so GROWN UP! I can't take it. But it's adorable.<br /><br /><b>Sleeping ~ </b>bedtime is around 8 still, and she's still waking up in the mornings somewhere between 4-6am to come into our room and sleeps for a few more hours after nursing. She's usually up for the day around 7:30, and takes one nap that varies in length - sometimes 45 minutes, sometimes 2 1/2 hours. You really never know what you're going to get. :)</span></div>
<span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><b style="color: #333333;"><br />Eating ~</b><span style="color: #333333;"> she is still nursing before bed and first thing in the morning, but otherwise she eats 3 meals and several snacks each day. She's a great eater, and will try just about anything. She's a big fan of dips, and still loves any dish involving cheese. Oh and bread. She is clearly my child.</span><br /><b style="color: #333333;"><br />Likes ~</b><span style="color: #333333;"> playing with Daisy, bath time with Daddy, playing with dolls ("Amy" is her current baby, and she is really getting into pretend play with her), puzzles, tea parties, swim lessons, really - life in general. She is still one happy kid!</span></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><b><br />Dislikes ~</b> the first owl costume I bought her for Halloween..., sharing (we're working on this concept...)<br /><b><br />Current Nicknames ~</b> boog, boogie, Lills, baby Lills </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><b>Words</b> ~ she has a ton of them, I stopped counting. Like I said, she is getting better at using words to explain things to us or tell "stories", even though she usually just says one word at a time, and one syllable of most words. Her language has definitely exploded over the past 3 months!</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">And there we have it, another three months gone in the blink of an eye! I am still keeping up with taking these pictures monthly, but chances are the next update will be right around her birthday. I'm just being realistic here. :)</span></div>
Brookehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03453290243201674162noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1732007431578187717.post-40086056707418111062015-01-03T20:15:00.001-06:002015-01-03T20:15:38.009-06:00thanksgiving<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Moving right along with this catch-up-the-blog adventure... Thanksgiving!</div>
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We kicked off the holiday with a little craft. Let me just say that I am so. excited. that Lilly is old enough to do crafts now. Seriously. So for Thanksgiving we made (yet another Pinterest idea) handprint turkeys! It was a lot of fun, and as you can see Lilly sure enjoyed it!</div>
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We turned the final result into cards for both sets of grandparents and aunt Sarah's family. And I kept one for myself too, naturally. ;)</div>
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On turkey day itself, we once again enjoyed a meal with my family and then hosted Matt's family at our house. As you can imagine, Lilly loved it, and the two giant meals that went along with it. </div>
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Really love this picture of Lilly with my dad and her Great Gram. :)</div>
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Once we got back home, I of course had to take pictures of Lilly on the table again. I think I accidentally made that a tradition. ha!</div>
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{last year's picture just for kicks - I can't get over how much bigger she is!!}</div>
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Aunt Sarah brought a fruit turkey that was so darn cute I just had to take a picture of it!</div>
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Being our second year hosting Thanksgiving dinner, I think it came out a little better than the first. We had waaaayy too much food, but I think that's a sign that it went well. :) I made mac and cheese from scratch and an old fashioned green bean casserole recipe that both came out quite delicious if I may say so myself. The turkey was delicious too, and I once again had help from my mother in law and sister in law, which made things much easier!!</div>
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We had a kids table. Cutest thing ever.</div>
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It was another day of quality cousin time for Lilly and Lexi. I say it all the time, but I just can't get over how cute these two are becoming together, and I'm just loving watching them grow closer as they get older.</div>
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As I'm sure you have gathered, we had a wonderful, albeit busy Thanksgiving this year. Some say it's a pain to have to travel around to see different family on holidays, but I look at it as a blessing that we have this much family to spend this time with. I'm so thankful for my own little family, but also for my extended family and getting to share these memories with them as Lilly grows up. Brookehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03453290243201674162noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1732007431578187717.post-6158825533516987482015-01-02T09:00:00.000-06:002015-01-02T09:00:03.881-06:00halloween!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Halloween this year was quite different from Lilly's first Halloween last year. (I think that's the theme of this year...how much different each holiday/experience was from last year...it's just so amazing how much kids change and grow in just one year! Especially the first year.)</div>
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First off, I thought I'd share our pumpkin carving adventures. The pumpkin we got at the Louisburg patch became Lilly's, and I got 2 others at Wal Mart for Matt and I to carve. Wal Mart's prices are much more my style. :) I also got a foam sticker kit for Lilly (from Target I think?) to decorate her pumpkin. I knew she was just a little young for carving, and thought about doing paint, but saw this and thought it was perfect. Stickers are her JAM right now.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTjB2t3Pp2BPYooPg2TFOWaGvgOVo4jf16FxSJCWj4_-y4WHes5X92SCjrJ7WHrS3VtL5apCASpgNvcpQYiWg8QD_blGUciirJ0uSawEo_kHebPuih-cxh_RlPJW5j2ifuJsE818PsI3s/s1600/IMG_6917.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTjB2t3Pp2BPYooPg2TFOWaGvgOVo4jf16FxSJCWj4_-y4WHes5X92SCjrJ7WHrS3VtL5apCASpgNvcpQYiWg8QD_blGUciirJ0uSawEo_kHebPuih-cxh_RlPJW5j2ifuJsE818PsI3s/s1600/IMG_6917.jpg" height="640" width="480" /></a></div>
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I was so impressed with her skills. I gave her slight direction on the placement of her stickers, just a general idea of where eyes, nose, mouth, etc should go, but she really did the work all herself. Which made the end result SO CUTE!</div>
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And as you can see, she was quite proud of it!</div>
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She also "helped" with the carving efforts once we moved on to the big pumpkins. And by "helped" I mean she played in the guts and scooped them from one bucket to another. :) She loved every second of it.</div>
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Here is the final result of all 3 pumpkins - Matt's on top, mine in the middle, and Lilly's on the bottom.</div>
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And the lit up versions of the carved ones:</div>
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Now onto the fun part - Halloween costumes! I'll start with the grown up costumes - yes, we dressed up. We did a group costume with our friends Ash & Zach, and I think it came out pretty darn cute if I may say so myself.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPPwcj9A6UPchhxwBS3qCj76VPYRP0IIMr4Gab-1hFa5nj1_dW9V_uzarvlBfHwGlo7re-SA6L7kEx5jT1SOkjhhhWrEt8MnWcGw_8d9oz2Io2HA135ViJbVL4UmqtLqatJ-w5JSSawXY/s1600/IMG_6809.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPPwcj9A6UPchhxwBS3qCj76VPYRP0IIMr4Gab-1hFa5nj1_dW9V_uzarvlBfHwGlo7re-SA6L7kEx5jT1SOkjhhhWrEt8MnWcGw_8d9oz2Io2HA135ViJbVL4UmqtLqatJ-w5JSSawXY/s1600/IMG_6809.JPG" height="480" width="640" /></a></div>
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We're going on a cruise together in February, and there is a costume theme night. We thought we'd represent good ol' KS with our Wizard of Oz theme. We have a little perfecting to do on our costumes before wearing them again, but I'm just excited we're going to get 2 uses out of them!</div>
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Now on to the one you really want to see...</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXI6hV3BYluyVTWjcTDlBxSRRBwM6yQf6vQuBJlbkoLjmf4YnmFAAeRylo-_33uuk4UYx0L-91-viBpmW5ZVylwCi7DOIfz8OCG1WVClBGG7ced-P0QINID_kSXGtuK6JcT0XNwP1P9t4/s1600/IMG_7012.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXI6hV3BYluyVTWjcTDlBxSRRBwM6yQf6vQuBJlbkoLjmf4YnmFAAeRylo-_33uuk4UYx0L-91-viBpmW5ZVylwCi7DOIfz8OCG1WVClBGG7ced-P0QINID_kSXGtuK6JcT0XNwP1P9t4/s1600/IMG_7012.JPG" height="640" width="640" /></a></div>
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(I know, not her Halloween costume, but still a cute picture. I love that she insisted her doll and teddy bear - Amy & Teddy - sit with her for the picture)</div>
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Now, let me tell you a little story about Lilly's actual Halloween costume. </div>
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One day we were casually strolling through Target, and saw this costume hanging on the rack:</div>
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Lilly spotted it herself, and loved it. I asked her if she wanted to wear it for Halloween, and she excitedly said YES! She carried it around the store, and seemed to really like it. I was so excited...this was several weeks before Halloween, so I thought I was mom of the year and had her costume squared away well in advance of the actual holiday. Plus, it was only 20 bucks! It felt like a win win. Until we got home and I asked her if she wanted to try it on. I got a big fat NO. So I let it go, and tried again another day. NO again. I thought maybe she was just unsure of it, so I tried putting it on her, not exactly forcefully but against a bit of resistance - BAD idea. She screamed bloody murder and ran around the house trying to get it off. Since this was still a few weeks before Halloween, I thought maybe giving it a rest for a while and revisiting the idea later would work - you know, maybe she'd forget about the previous traumatization the costume caused her... Yeah, wrong again. She got to the point where the word costume being said resulted in "No! No! No!" coming out of her mouth. Every time. </div>
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So I decided to cut my losses and returned the dang thing while I still could. I debated on what to do for a plan B, and ended up going the DIY route, making her costume myself. The plan was to make it out of just a regular zip up jacket, so that it wasn't <i>technically</i> a costume...no, just a jacket! I found the idea on Pinterest (shocker) and made the whole thing with a few pieces of felt, some leftover fabric, and a hot glue gun. It was rather tedious, but came out really cute. I didn't even show it to her until about 5 minutes before I was going to put it on, and I just told her we were going outside so she needed to wear her jacket. SUCCESS! She put it on, along with the owl hat I found (I planned on making this out of felt too but there was a perfect hat at wal mart for $5 so obviously I went that route instead!), and didn't even flinch. I'm actually not sure that we ever showed her herself in the mirror that night, but she eventually did see in pictures. We had a few friends and family over for pizza and to go trick-or-treating, and everyone told her what a cute owl she was - which I won't lie made me a little nervous at first (I thought for sure she'd have flashbacks and start freaking out), but she just went with it and was happy as a clam all night! So, I guess the moral of the story is you never know what crazy thing is going to freak your kid out. But just roll with it and hope for the best - it worked for us...this time. :)</div>
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Here's my cute little owl showing off her costume (I mean, jacket...)</div>
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And yes, I took a million pictures. I felt the need to document this costume, given the HOURS it took me to make. Plus, at this point I still wasn't 100% confident that she'd actually wear it all night, so I wanted to get pictures while I could. :)<br />
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And here she is with her cousin Lexi (who was the Snow Queen from Narnia) - if you can't tell, she totally looks up to this girl. Melts my heart!!</div>
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I really didn't expect her to get into the trick-or-treating all that much. I figured she was still a little too young (not to mention she doesn't regularly eat candy, so I figured she may not even get the appeal). But once again, I was so wrong! She absolutely LOVED every second of trick-or-treating, and was literally running through the streets of our neighborhood with Lexi for hours. It was so stinking cute! </div>
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See what I mean? I can't get over the cuteness. </div>
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She came home with a pretty good haul of candy (most of which Daddy ate...) and passed out pretty quickly after we got back and everyone left. We did give her some M&Ms that night, and of course she gobbled them right up. </div>
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But overall, it was a really fun Halloween. And much more so than I expected! I knew Lilly would be more into it than last year (obviously. last year she slept through trick-or-treating...), but I didn't expect her to be SO into it. And I loved watching it! Hopefully next year we can go without the costume fiasco, but I'm just happy it all worked out in the end. And I must say, I do like my homemade owl costume better than Target's version anyway. So there.</div>
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<span id="goog_39129920"></span><span id="goog_39129921"></span><br />Brookehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03453290243201674162noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1732007431578187717.post-68223348962989732622015-01-01T20:07:00.000-06:002015-01-01T20:07:04.855-06:00Happy 2015!I can hardly believe it's actually the start of 2015. The past year has gone by SO fast! 2014 was a wonderful year for us, though, and it was such a joy watching Lilly grow and change. It may have gone by in the blink of an eye, but it was truly a great year and full of great memories.<br />
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My goal for 2015 is to actually get this blog caught up - and stay on top of it!! I love having this to look back on as a family diary of sorts, but it would be much more beneficial if I was posting things a little closer to when they actually happened... so hopefully over the next couple of days before I go back to work, I can get caught back up, and maybe just maybe I'll actually keep it caught up this year.<br />
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Other than that, my goal is to just live in the moment! Having a child has made me realize how quickly life goes by, and I just want to soak in every minute I have with my family while I can. We have such jam packed lives, and although I know that won't change, I just want to make a better effort at stopping and taking in the moment around me, whatever that may be. I love creating memories as a family, and I just want to take more time to live those memories as they are happening. <br />
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I could probably list out 100 other goals/resolutions for 2015, but I'll leave it at that. I'll also leave you with a picture I took today of my loves - these guys are most important in my life, and I want to spend 2015 remembering that, and clocking lots of quality time with them.<br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><i>HAPPY NEW YEAR!! Best wishes for a happy, healthy 2015!!</i></span></div>
Brookehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03453290243201674162noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1732007431578187717.post-17575423454581186092014-12-30T18:43:00.000-06:002014-12-30T18:43:20.510-06:00pumpkin patch - times two!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
So, we left off at the end of summer. I guess that brings us to the beginning of fall! </div>
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Our favorite fall tradition is a trip to the pumpkin patch. Sadly, the Gardner patch that we went to for the first time last year, was closed for remodeling this year. So we had to break tradition just a bit and visit another pumpkin patch instead. We were feeling extra ambitious and ended up visiting 2 different places on 2 different weekends. It was definitely a different experience than last year, since Lilly was actually able to participate and enjoy everything this time. (last year, we could barely keep her awake long enough to pick out a pumpkin...)</div>
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The first pumpkin patch we visited this year was at the Louisburg Cider Mill. We visited this one by ourselves, on a gloomy Sunday morning. Surprisingly it was still packed with people, despite the weather.</div>
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Lilly didn't waste any time, and immediately climbed a stack of hay bales.</div>
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She didn't want to stand by herself for a picture, so we got to document how tall both she and daddy were this fall. :)</div>
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One of her favorite parts was the corn maze. I don't think I needed to say that though, the photos speak for themselves!</div>
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Her absolute favorite activity there was the giant slide. Matt took her down with him a couple of times, and then she wanted to go herself. And then she wanted to go again. And again. And again. We had to drag her away from that thing!</div>
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After all of that, we finally made it out to the pumpkin patch.</div>
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We only ended up leaving with one small pumpkin - they are a little pricey for my taste! </div>
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Once we got in the car to head home, Lilly promptly fell asleep. That, to me, is a sign of a good day. :)</div>
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A couple weeks later, we tried out a new patch in Spring Hill called Hickory Creek Ranch. It was small, but not very crowded and had a lot of fun activities for the kids. It was an unseasonably warm day - like shorts and t-shirt weather. So funny to compare the pictures, with coats and hats in our first trip, and shorts and sunglasses the next time.</div>
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I didn't realize how hot it truly was that day either, and dressed Lilly in long sleeves. Oops. I really just wanted her to wear this shirt to the pumpkin patch...so what if I ended up having to roll her sleeves up! :)</div>
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This pumpkin patch also had a corn maze - which was actually a lot bigger than we realized! We walked in, and thought it would just be a quick trip through, until we found ourselves lost in the middle with no idea how to get out. Ha! We did eventually find our way to the end.</div>
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We started a tradition last year of going to the pumpkin patch with Lilly's cousin Lexi and her family. Although we weren't able to go to the same place, we still were able to go with them, and get lots of pictures of the girls.</div>
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We put the girls together on this little tractor ride thing, not really knowing what to expect. The tractor started up, and promptly drove our children right out of our sight. And then didn't come back for what felt like an hour. We were all hoping that Lexi and Lilly were both on the ride when it came back...we're talking a 4 year old and 1 1/2 year old here, you never really know what is going to happen! But they both came big with big smiles on their faces, so it worked out just fine in the end.</div>
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They also had a cool jumping pad, which the dads and kids really enjoyed.</div>
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Obligatory cousins in the pumpkin patch photo!</div>
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{last year's picture of the girls just for fun - my how they have both grown!!!!}</div>
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This one was just for fun. The girls were clearly not as entertained by it as the parents were. :)<br />
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And I'll end with a little family photo. We were all hot and sweaty by this point (not usually what happens at the pumpkin patch!), but it's an improvement over last year's family shot where Lilly is completely passed out. :) This is also right after I randomly decided to die my hair...not a blonde for the first time in my life! It looks way darker in this photo than it does now, but I think it's a nice change. :)</div>
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Next year we'll probably go back to our trusted KC Pumpkin Patch, assuming they're open for business! I love our little family traditions like these, and can't wait to continue them as Lilly and Lexi grow up!</div>
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<br />Brookehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03453290243201674162noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1732007431578187717.post-627468623407873292014-12-25T13:36:00.000-06:002014-12-26T13:36:24.273-06:00{merry christmas!}I know, according to my blog it's still the end of summer. I'm working on that. In the meantime though, I wanted to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas! From our family to yours.<br />
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<br />Brookehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03453290243201674162noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1732007431578187717.post-47666557389760357172014-11-10T14:34:00.000-06:002014-11-10T14:34:59.160-06:00summer fun<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
First of all, can I just start this off by saying IS SUMMER REALLY OVER?!?! I am in serious denial. It feels like just yesterday we were basking in the sunshine and putting the snow flurries behind us. I can't believe it's already over! </div>
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Anyway, this summer had to be one of the best I've had in a long time. I'm sure this is entirely due to the fact that I got to spend it soaking up the warm days with my favorite girl. We really jam packed a lot of fun into this summer. The thing we did most though, I have to say, was head to the lake. We've always been "lake people" - ever since Matt and I first started dating we've spent many a summer weekend at the lake. I never experienced all of these outdoor adventures growing up, but for the past 8 summers I've learned the ropes and consider myself a seasoned pro at this point. :) Now that Lilly is old enough to really enjoy all that going to the lake has to offer, we really made it a point to head out every weekend we could this summer. I have so many fun memories to share from our various trips, but we all know how perpetually behind I am in blogging, so I thought it would be more fitting to just do a little summer recap, with pictures from all of our different lake and camping trips. I'll warn you now, there are like 40 pictures in this post! And they are actually all iPhone photos - I bring the big camera to the lake every now and then, but it's much easier to tote my phone around so that's where I end up taking the most pictures.</div>
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So, let's get this recap party started!</div>
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Our first trip this year was Memorial Day weekend, to the Moss family cabin in Warsaw. This is where we go most often when we head to the lake, and where Lilly gets to clock a lot of quality time with her big cousin.</div>
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This trip is where we discovered Lilly's love for the golf cart. I mean, look at that face. Pure joy right there. :) (also, look at that bald head and those tiny little teeth! I can't believe how much she changed over the course of the summer!)</div>
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I was a bit worried about how she would handle the life jacket this year, but she actually did really well. It wasn't exactly her favorite part of the trips, but she didn't complain and usually just fell asleep on the boat rides.</div>
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After Memorial Day weekend, we decided to get serious about this lake and camping business, so we bought a camper! We found this beauty on Craigslist for a steal. She was born in 1984, just like me - although I like to think I've aged just a little better. ;)</div>
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That photo was from the day we got it (just in time for Matt for Father's Day...) so it's been cleaned up quite a bit since then. And it's made several lake trips now!</div>
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As you can see, Lilly approved the purchase. :)</div>
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Aside from our usual trips to Warsaw, we also made it out to Truman Lake a couple of times to hang with some of our favorite people - my friend Ashley and her family. </div>
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Lilly is an excellent camp fire supervisor. She will constantly remind you that the fire is hot. Just so you don't forget.</div>
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For the 4th of July, since we were actually in town this year we spent the weekend at the cabin in Warsaw (the past couple years we've gone to Texas as you might remember. This year, though, that family came to us for the week before the 4th, so we got the best of both worlds and got to see them and then head out to the lake for the holiday).</div>
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You may have noticed Lilly's extensive swimsuit wardrobe (and you've actually only seen 3 of 5 so far....). I might have a slight problem. But, come on, how can you resist? Do you see how cute baby swimsuits are?!? I only actually purchased one new suit, the rest were either gifts or bought at consignment sales. So, that makes it perfectly reasonable, right?? Right??</div>
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And of course, we were back on the golf cart not long after arrival. We managed to get the whole family on for one ride, Daisy included!</div>
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Despite the looks on their faces in this next picture, both girls had a blast running around together. They just didn't care to stop for us to take their picture!</div>
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We are usually up much earlier than everyone else thanks to miss 7am (but now that we have the camper it's not a problem!), so we spend a lot of those mornings taking family walks, or sitting on the dock drinking our coffee/milk. </div>
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Along with learning to drive the boat...</div>
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We were feeling extra adventurous this year, so the moms all took a tube ride. Somehow I was nominated to also take one with the teenage girls before this. Both equally entertaining, but completely different adventures. The first time, I thought I was going to fly out at any moment, and screamed my heart out. Then with the mamas, I just died of laughter. </div>
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This summer we also discovered Lilly's love of 4-wheelers. And by love, I mean OBSESSION. She would ride on one of these things all day long if we let her.</div>
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We thought it would be easier to just teach her how to drive it so we didn't have to take her for rides all the time..... ha. If only!</div>
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Besides our 2 usual lake stops, we added a 3rd this year. Matt's parents are building a home in a lake community, so we also spent some time there camping and watching the progress of their house going up! They have pools so we got even more water time in, which as you can see Lilly was not complaining about.</div>
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Her love of corn on the cob was yet another thing we discovered this summer at the lake. She had it for the first time on this trip, and we never looked back. I already knew she loved corn, but giving it to her on the cob? Best. Thing. Ever. </div>
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To add yet another destination to our lake passports for this year, we took a trip just the 3 of us (well, 4 if you count Daisy!) to lake Miola, just 30 minutes or so South of us, and camped for a weekend there. It was really our first little family vacation, and we had a blast. I think we'll add several of these little trips in next year, it's a great weekend getaway!</div>
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Not surprisingly, we brought corn on the cob for dinner. :)</div>
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Story time in the camper...heart: melted.</div>
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This lake had a swim beach that we spent a lot of time at, since we didn't have a boat to ride around on. Lilly loved playing in the sand!</div>
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They also had a great playground. With baby swings! I swear I had the hardest time finding these swings anywhere. Am I crazy? Do they just not put these in playgrounds anymore?? Sort of a moot point now, because she does just fine in the big swings. But still. Drove me crazy this summer!</div>
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This next picture is one of my all time favorites...taken in the camper over breakfast. My favorite part is our matching bedhead...ha!</div>
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As summer started to wind down, we made sure to get back to the cabin once more, for Labor Day weekend. Lilly practiced her campfire supervisor skills yet again.</div>
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And we went on morning 4-wheeler rides. Anything to entertain the baby at 8am when everyone else is sleeping. :)</div>
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Our last trip of the year was on one of the last really nice weekends in September, and we headed back to Truman. Lilly had an absolute blast, and was cracking everyone up the whole time.</div>
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Apparently I was too busy laughing at her to take many pictures, though. I did get this one of her giving Teddy a ride on the little power wheels 4 wheeler she inherited from Lexi. Man does she love that thing.</div>
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Well, there you have it! That's our summer in a nutshell. We had plenty of other weekends full of fun, but it seems like we spent more time at the lake than anywhere else. And I wouldn't have it any other way! I actually got a decent tan this year, and Lilly discovered her love for several new things - the water, motorized vehicles of all kinds, corn on the cob...to name a few. I am already looking forward to next summer when she'll enjoy all of these things even more, and hopefully be able to enjoy swimming even more! Just to hang on to summer a little longer, I enrolled her in fall swim lessons at our community center. We've had 2 so far, and she loves every minute of it. I'm planning to enroll her in the next level for spring, and by summer time she should be ready to do some serious swimming! I'm so happy she is turning out to be my little water baby. Especially given my addiction to child size swimsuits. :)</div>
Brookehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03453290243201674162noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1732007431578187717.post-84468039916336251772014-09-17T20:11:00.000-05:002014-09-17T20:11:00.679-05:00{16 + 17 + 18 months}<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Just for the record, I fully intended on keeping to doing these every month. But somehow another 3 months have gotten away from me, and here I am playing catchup again. At least I have managed to take her picture each month, but I can't seem to get much farther than that except on a quarterly basis. :)</div>
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These 3 months pretty much cover summer as a whole, which can I just say has been so. much. fun. It went by in the blink of an eye, but I have just had a blast watching this girl experiencing all of the wonderful things that make up summer, and seeing how much she's loved it all.</div>
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I can't even begin to wrap my head around the fact that she is now 18 months old. A YEAR AND A HALF. Where has the time gone? I will never again judge a parent for constantly saying how fast time goes with kids, and how quickly they grow up...it is so true. And I know I am equally annoying by always bringing it up, but I just can't believe it! Just yesterday she was my tiny, squishy newborn, and now look at her! </div>
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She has really become a toddler over these past couple months. She went from barely walking, to running, to now wanting to climb EVERYTHING. We are planning some trips to Monkey Bizness soon, because this girl just wants to climb all the time. She is also looking more like a toddler, with 8 more teeth coming in (yes you read that right, EIGHT. It started with her 4 molars, and then before those could even fully come in her canines started poking through.) For a kid who was so late to the teething game, she sure is catching up quickly! She is also talking up a storm. I can't even believe how many words she has now...I started a list. (does that make me a mom-nerd? probably) It was over 30 the last time I counted, which is just crazy to me, when just a couple months ago it was maybe 5. That mind of hers is constantly at work, and we continue to be amazed at how much she listens and understands. She's becoming an independent little person! I don't know whether to jump for joy or curl up in the corner and cry. I am so happy to see this little person we created growing up, and becoming such a smart little girl, but at the same time I am so sad to see my teeny tiny little baby disappearing right before my eyes. Mom problems.</div>
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Anyway, on to the good stuff.</div>
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<span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><b>Stats ~ </b>24 lbs 9</span><span style="font-family: Arial;">oz (50th percentile)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial;"> 32 3/4" tall (75th percentile)</span></div>
{these are from her 18 month appointment, don't have anything official from 16 & 17 months}</div>
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<span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><b>Size ~</b> I feel like she has grown SO MUCH over this summer. It doesn't seem to be that drastic when you look at the stats, but her clothes tell a different story. At the beginning of the summer she was still fitting into 9-12 and 12 month clothes just fine, with a few 12-18 month things here and there, and shoes were a size 3 which was even a little big. As of 18 months, that has all changed. She can still wear 12 month shirts and onesies, but all of her 12 month (and even 12-18 month!) sized pants are too short. I just put a pair of 18 month pants on her yesterday, and while they fit for now, I am a little nervous that come winter she will be out of them, so I think I'll stock up on some 24 month size pants too. As for shoes, she now wears a size 5! In just a couple short months she's gone up 2 sizes. I guess that's pretty common, but it blows my mind. She is definitely not the chunky baby she used to be, and is really becoming a tall and slim toddler. Sigh.<br />
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<b>Sleeping ~ </b>she is still going to bed around 8 (although summertime inevitably means more late-nights, which she has handled SO much better than I anticipated. as long as they are relatively few and far between, it doesn't even seem to phase her), and wakes up somewhere between 4-6 to nurse and then goes back to sleep in our bed until around 7. She is down to 1 nap a day for the most part, and it's usually somewhere between 1-2 hours. It all depends on where she's napping, and if she gets a snuggle buddy. :)</span></div>
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Eating ~</b><span style="color: #333333;"> she is officially off bottles, but still nurses when she's with me. I can honestly say, never did I imagine I would be breastfeeding my baby for 18 months - but I am so so happy that we have been blessed with the opportunity! I have no plans to wean her until she is ready, which as I keep saying does not appear to be any time soon. She just nurses in the morning and before bed usually now, and I still treasure the snuggles I get out of it. As for solid foods, she eats pretty much anything and everything. Her current favorites are tomatoes (only homegrown though), cottage cheese (ok, any kind of cheese really) and corn on the cob. (There is nothing cuter than watching a baby eat corn on the cob, by the way)</span><br />
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Likes ~</b><span style="color: #333333;"> any outdoor activity, swimming at the pool or in the lake, 4 wheelers (oh man, she is addicted to going on rides on the 4 wheeler when we are at the lake!), throwing the ball &/or frisbee for Daisy, bubbles, books, dancing </span></span><br />
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Dislikes ~</b> We still get those "mini-tantrums" every now and then, but she's still overall quite the happy kid. There aren't many things that she straight up dislikes. If she's teething, or sick, of course she dislikes just about anything - but who can blame her.<br />
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Current Nicknames ~</b> boog, boogie, Lills, baby Lills </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><b>Words</b> ~ if I were actually doing these every month like I planned, this category would have had a point. You would have been able to see how many words she learned in the course of a month. BUT, since it's been 3 months, her list of words went from 5-ish to over 30. I can't even keep up with adding words to the list as she says them, at this point she's saying a new word almost every day. It is so so cute to hear how she pronounces various things, and I'm enjoying learning to speak "Lilly". She works very hard to communicate with us, and it really is amazing how much we can understand from her now! After we went to the lake a few weekends ago, she was at Grandma's the following Monday and was telling her a "story". I got a call describing a few words/actions, and actually I was able to tell her exactly what Lilly was trying to explain from our weekend at the lake, and it all made sense! Just a month ago there is no way that "conversation" would have happened. Of course she now also repeats EVERYTHING she hears, and we are quickly becoming very cautious of how we speak around her. It's harder than you think! I never realized how much of a potty mouth I had...</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Well, another 3 months are in the books. I still can't quite wrap my head around the fact that I have an EIGHTEEN MONTH OLD. I'll try to post another update before she's 21 months but I can't make any promises... :)</span><br />
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Brookehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03453290243201674162noreply@blogger.com0