summer fun

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!  

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.

So, let's get this recap party started!

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.

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!)

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.

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. ;)

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!

As you can see, Lilly approved the purchase. :)

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.  

Lilly is an excellent camp fire supervisor.  She will constantly remind you that the fire is hot.  Just so you don't forget.

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).

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??

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!

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!

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.  

Along with learning to drive the boat...

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.  

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.

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!

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.

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. 

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!

Not surprisingly, we brought corn on the cob for dinner. :)

Story time in the camper...heart: melted.

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!

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!

This next picture is one of my all time favorites...taken in the camper over breakfast.  My favorite part is our matching bedhead...ha!

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.

And we went on morning 4-wheeler rides.  Anything to entertain the baby at 8am when everyone else is sleeping. :)

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.

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.

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. :)

{16 + 17 + 18 months}

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. :)

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.

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!  

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.

Anyway, on to the good stuff.

Stats ~ 24 lbs 9oz (50th percentile)

             32 3/4" tall (75th percentile)

{these are from her 18 month appointment, don't have anything official from 16 & 17 months}

Size ~ 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.

Sleeping ~ 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.  :)

Eating ~  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)

Likes ~ 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 

Dislikes ~ 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.

Current Nicknames ~ boog, boogie, Lills, baby Lills 

Words ~ 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...

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... :)

5 years!

This year, on July 18th, marked 5 years since the day we said I do.

In some ways, it feels like that whirlwind of a day was just yesterday.  

In other ways, it seems like it was ages ago and we have both changed so much since then.

I kind of wish we would have written down our guesses that day, for where we'd be at in life 5 years later.  I'm not entirely sure what I would have said, but actually I think it would have been pretty accurate.  I pictured us having a baby, and living happily ever after as a little family.  I'm not sure I would have guessed the timing of everything over these 5 years, but looking back I know that it all happened just when it was supposed to.  It's difficult to see that in the moment sometimes but looking back, it always makes sense.

{wedding photos by Solar Photographers}

We did a few special things to celebrate surviving 5 years of wedded bliss.  First, we acknowledged how incredibly blessed we are to have this life we have.  Sure, we complain, and have bad days, but when it comes down to it - we have it good.  This beautiful little girl came into our lives last year, and made us complete.  I remember celebrating our anniversary when she was still in my belly, and I couldn't believe it was the last one we'd celebrate as just the two of us.  Now, a time before we were "just the three of us" doesn't even seem imaginable.

The actual day of our anniversary we went back to the park where we got engaged.  We walked around with Lilly, and just took in the beautiful day.

This picture cracks me up - she's really living up to her "Big Booty Judy" nickname...

We also stopped at the bench where Matt popped the big question, and took a family photo.  Yet another surreal moment - when I sat there being proposed to, I couldn't possibly have imagined coming back, with my own little girl, to relive that moment.

On the weekend of our anniversary, we dropped Lilly off at Grandma's and had a little adventure of our own.  We talked about several ideas for how to celebrate this anniversary - a family vacation, a weekend getaway... but in the end, we stayed close to home and had a nice little getaway together.  We spent the day wandering around the Plaza, and then stayed in the Sheraton (where we stayed on our wedding night).  It was definitely strange to not have a diaper bag, not to have to walk at the pace of a toddler, and to get to speak "adult" the whole day, but it was really nice.  We enjoyed our time together, and although we probably talked about Lilly for at least half the time, we didn't let missing her put a damper on our fun. :)

We did some shopping, went out to eat, saw a movie, all those fun "date" things we hadn't done in far too long.

I apparently did nothing but take selfies the whole time... :)

To my love:  Happy 5 Years!!  Its gone by in the blink of an eye, but it truly has been the best 5 years of my life.  Thank you for being a wonderful husband, and I love you more than you could ever know!  Here's to a lifetime of happiness together. XOXO

Grandpa + Lilly's tree

I'll start this one off with a little backstory.  When I was growing up, my dad & I planted a tree in the yard of my childhood home.  It was a teeny tiny tree when we planted it, and we watched it grow over the years.  After we moved away, we would still drive by every now and then to see how tall it was getting.  In fact, I've driven by that house recently and it is a full grown tree now.  It was just a small little thing we did together, but it was something I always remembered, and something we still talk about to this day.

So, with that in mind, we came up with a great idea for my dad's birthday gift this year.  Lilly got a tree for her Grandpa, that he can plant and they can watch grow together.

We even let her choose which tree to get, with a little help from the Grass Pad guy, of course.  We gave it to Grandpa on his 60th birthday, and he had it planted the next day.

Lilly came naked, ready to help, but then decided she didn't really like the idea of standing naked by a tree.  But it was still cute to have a photo of her and Grandpa on the day they planted their tree. {ok, Grandpa planted it, and Lilly showed up right when it was done, but still.}

A few weeks later Grandpa had some rocks laid around it, and it really fit in with the rest of the yard.  The leaves had started filling in, too, looks like it will be a good, strong little guy!

When Father's day came around, we had the perfect gift idea that tied in with the new tree.  A personalized plaque of course!

I ordered the stone from Etsy (find the shop here), and I could not be happier with how it turned out.  It is just so cute!!

So here is Grandpa & Lilly's tree, as it stands now.  I am so excited for Lilly to watch it grow and help Grandpa take care of it.  So many learning opportunities, and a great way to foster her love of nature. :)  Also, just a cool memory!  She stays at Grandma's house every day while we're at work, so she gets to see her tree on a daily basis, and will get to watch it grow for years to come.  And of course, the photographer in me is excited for the yearly photo of Grandpa & Lilly with their tree. :)

Mother's + Father's Day

Aaaand we're continuing on the journey to get this blog caught up... :)

I'm combining Mother's & Father's day into one post ~ there isn't a ton to share from either, but these two holidays have a lot more meaning to us now, so I want to remember them.  We are both so thankful that this girl of ours came into our lives and made us parents.

We didn't do anything incredibly special to celebrate either Mother's or Father's day, but we had great days together at home and with family.  I am sort of itching to start some sort of small tradition for next year...I'll be sure to report back whatever I come up with. :)

First up, Mother's Day!  All I wanted was to be able to sleep in and then spend some time relaxing at home with my girl.  My wishes were granted!

After getting to lay in bed while Daddy & Lilly made breakfast, I woke up and moseyed out to find some lovely flowers (and other gardening supplies) for me.  Lilly was on a big kick at the time with smelling flowers.  It was adorable.

We spent the afternoon outside planting flowers and just hanging out in the backyard.  Lilly sported her first swimsuit of the season, and I could not get over the cuteness.

She was such a good helper - Daddy got her a little mini garden shovel as part of my gift, so she got right on it and helped me plant my flowers.

That evening we went out to Matt's parent's house to celebrate with his family.  Once we were all showered and dressed we took the obligatory Mama + Lilly photo.

and, for another fun flashback, here we are on Mother's Day last year :)

We hung out at Matt's parent's house for the evening, and Lexi & Lilly pretty much just ran around in the backyard together the whole time.  

and of course, Grandma G got some quality time with her girls. 

Did I mention she was in a flower smelling phase?  :)

and just so you don't think we gave my mom the shaft on Mother's Day...

we actually went out to dinner to celebrate her the night before.  Lilly began her love affair with chips & salsa that night too, which is still going strong 4 months later by the way. :)  If you know my mom, you know how incredibly fitting this is...

Anyway, on to the less-important of the two, Father's Day. (just kidding!!  Lilly is a total Daddy's girl actually, so I have no room to talk here.)

as you can probably tell, this picture was actually taken on Mother's day. But it seemed better to include under Father's day, so there you go. :)

We spent Father's day at the lake, where Matt's parents are currently building a home.  At the time they had just bought the property, so we let the girls run around the open land, and they were pretty much the cutest thing ever.  We totally did not prompt this hand-holding adorableness, by the way...

I totally failed and didn't take many pictures while we were there that day.  I had maxed out the storage on my phone at the time, and didn't have my big camera with me. (FAIL)  I did manage to snap one quick photo of Daddy + Lilly before bed, though.

Another flashback:

It was a fun day overall, even if I don't have the pictures to prove it! :)

Daddy kind of bought his own gifts this year...a couple weeks earlier we ended up with 2 new vehicles in our driveway: 

The truck was a must, as his Trailblazer kicked the bucket one day leaving us in a pinch.  The camper was previously planned, and ironically we had scheduled to go look at/buy it the day we also had to buy the truck.  Maybe not the most economical decision, but we just went with it, and, well, I'm expecting equally nice presents for Mother's day next year! (kidding....sort of.)

Anyway, like I said before, we are just thankful that now we also get to be celebrated on these 2 great holidays, along with our wonderful parents. Being a mama is the best job I've ever had, and I know Matt would say the same about being a Dad.  Love every minute of it, and I thank my lucky stars every day that we were blessed with such a wonderful daughter to call our own.