k d L

AuNtie jojo

2012-02-16T21:29:00.000-08:00

We sure love when auntie jojo gets to spend ALL DAY with us. we had a blast. and this tired mama can barely see straight...but also can't sleep... the joys of being pregnant. thank heavens for aunties today.

A quick updAte

2012-02-07T11:26:00.000-08:00

we've been a bit slow on updates lately... let's be honest, mama doesn't leave the couch much so we spend a lot of time sitting and reading books and watching movies. but here are a few things we have had the energy to get up to. :)

glorious february beach days with dad... lazy saturday mornings...
playing with cousins at jojo's swim meet

ya... mom is lazy...

and a first popsicle. they were mom's craving for a while so we had to share...

in other updates. pregnancy sure has had a big affect on this house. we eat lots of take out and ignore lots of messes cuz mom doesn't feel good about 90% of the time. fortunately, dad forgives us and comes home ready to help in any and every way he can. we sure are lucky to have him around. but we are seeing an end in sight. every week we get closer and more excited to have a new baby in our house. lydi carries her baby around everywhere! wraps her in her blankies and shares her paci and milk with them. she is going to LOVE having a real one!

it's official!

2012-01-09T19:07:00.000-08:00

Fwd: NothiNg too excitiNg...

2011-12-27T23:46:00.000-08:00

> I just love finding this in the morning. she pulls them off the table
> through the gaps. it is especially cute when it's the Carl books. she
> tells the story herself. you may be able to hear some of it thru the
> paci...

meRRy chRistmAs

2011-12-27T23:45:00.001-08:00

>
> we hope yours wasn't too traumatic :) we are still recovering...

14 MONTHS!

2011-11-28T20:53:00.000-08:00

how on earth did that happen?!?

and while i'm thinking about it...

2011-10-28T22:08:00.001-07:00

I never posted anything about my baby's first birthday. it's not that i didn't think about writing something a million times. it's more of how do you sum up the happiest year of your life. i cannot believe how happy being a mother has made me. i love my little munchkin. she makes me laugh every single day. we both just sit at the end of the day when the stories are read and the prayers are said and are sad that the day is over and we have to put her to bed. she really is so even tempered and sweet most of the time. so... just as i'm sitting up letting my legs rest from p90x before i head to bed, i just figure i'll take a minute to list some things that i'm loving about my 1 year old. she...
LOVES books. she has favorites and when i can't find her in the house, it's usually because she has pulled books off the shelf and is sitting there reading them out loud.
knows the hand movements to "popcorn popping" and does them all at the right time...and then claps at the end
started saying "boo" and poking her head around the corner
comes running EVERY time a bathroom door opens screaming "ba" (which means bath)
loves to lay on my shoulder in the middle of the night when she wakes up to eat. she will easily go back to bed, but sometimes i like to just enjoy that moment. sometimes she will blow a raspberry on my shoulder or neck and then giggle
pushes her doll stroller wherever she goes. she yells if it doesn't fit between 2 things to come with her
ADORES babies and reaches up to tickle them whenever she sees one
smiles nonstop.
shakes her head yes and no. she's much better at no than yes, but the yes is so cute because her whole body moves with it
LOVES to dance and thinks i'm so funny when i dance and sing to her
stands by the door and waits when she hears me get my keys. today she even said bye and waved to me and then turned and faced the door...

and now my brain is getting tired... haha. you can imagine why i don't sit down and do this more often.
i don't even have a picture of her first birthday party to share yet. friends and family had their cameras and i haven't taken a minute to get them from them... but it sure was cute how she wouldn't even taste her cake... but kept pulling it apart to feed jojo. i'm so excited as i watch those moments to see the little person she is shaping up to be. i love to see bits of that person inside...

SO BEHIND!!!

2011-10-28T19:01:00.001-07:00

a few things we have been up to... in no particular order. :) enjoy!

playing outside

2011-09-15T11:17:00.001-07:00

WALKING!!!

2011-09-05T12:29:00.001-07:00

11 months

2011-09-05T12:02:00.001-07:00

I cannot believe this girl is 11 months old. we are counting down the days until she is one and i just wish i could freeze time! and yet, it gets more and more fun every day! she started walking this weekend and went from 2-3 steps to walking everywhere completely on her own overnight. it's like we skipped something in the middle. i couldn't believe how fast it happened. she's such a fun little monkey though. we have had SUCH a great summer! i remember thinking when she was born that it was horrible timing because she was going to be a little baby all winter... but WHAT A FUN AGE for her first summer! she loves the beach. she loves to play and laugh outside on the grass. she loves going for walks anywhere and everywhere. she LOVES to eat cheerios. she loves sea world and the wild animal park and all the animals she sees. but she especially loves being around kids. she gets so excited when she sees kids...especially kids she knows. she makes me laugh so hard. so here are some fun pictures from our summer. (can you believe it's over!?!?!) they are totally out of order, but whatever...

good morning world! I'm awake!!

2011-08-15T07:33:00.001-07:00

every morning we can be found here. we watch the goings on outside
for a good 20 minutes at least. it's one of my favorite times of the
day...

CHEERIOS!!!

2011-06-29T14:50:00.000-07:00

after playing in the splash zone at the wild animal park...don't you
love how her hand is still in the bowl?!? haha. this girl and her
cheerios...

SWINGS!!

2011-06-23T18:38:00.000-07:00

she loves them. she used to not even notice that she was anywhere
special. I love how they make her giggle...

beach hair!

2011-06-15T17:37:00.001-07:00

I LOVE sunscreened crazy beach hair!

LAteLy

2011-06-14T16:42:00.000-07:00

we've been doing a lot of this. just hanging out, cruising around, and
eating cheerios off the floor. I love days like this.
don't mind the nakedness...we were hanging out diaperless for a
minute...ya, just long enough to pee all over the floor. thank heavens
for tile!

you'd think I never feed my kid!

2011-06-10T11:08:00.000-07:00

this girl will DEVOUR cheerios no matter how full she already is. I
lov how much she loves them. she hears the bag and jumps. it's so
cute! naturally, I keep a Costco sized bag in the car...in the
stroller...at home... when all else fails, bring out the cheerios!

wouLd you beLieve...?

2011-06-06T16:20:00.001-07:00

she pooped sand for almost 2 full days after this picture...

CLAPPING!

2011-06-03T07:54:00.001-07:00

so crazy how fast she's growing up!!!

2011-05-25T21:01:00.000-07:00

these little girlies are so very lucky to have such an awesome auntie who plays with them ALL the time. it's so cute to see them play together!
and...just cuz i love these faces! lydia was feeding herself rice and ended up with this little treasure on her face. :)
and i just love how excited she is in this picty. she LOVES to stand!!! my days of getting things done during waking hours are over.

so pRoud!

2011-05-21T20:55:00.000-07:00

Lydia and I are SO proud of our man. What an accomplishment. After 2 and a half years of HARD work, IT'S OVER!!! Congrats David. What a great day we had celebrating him. We are so grateful for all the support along the way. It's been a fun adventure, but we're ready to get back to real life now.

We got home tonight and went for a walk to the park as a family. It was magical! Lydia sat and played with her dad and reveled in the moments. Then we sat and read books until bedtime. We are all just so relieved it's over and excited to be together. :)

sleep positions...

2011-05-20T14:09:00.000-07:00

Lately, we have been working on napping in the crib. usually, Lydia
prefers to nap in her car seat inside her crib. I don't really kind
except that someday she'll get too big... so whenever we are home, we
try the crib. usually she SCREAMS forever only to pass out and sleep
for only 40 minutes. today, she was really quiet. but every time I
checked, she was crawling around...like a lion pacing it's cage...
30 minutes later, I go in to find this. I think she fell asleep mid
crawl. I wonder how long it will last? but at least it was calm and
peaceful, right? haha

tuckered out

2011-05-19T14:21:00.001-07:00

we LOVE a good exhausting morning at the wild animal park!

SO BIG!

2011-05-16T09:36:00.000-07:00

doesn't she look like such a big girl in this picture! perhaps that's why i avoid jeans and shirts on my baby! it reminds me how big she's getting!

movies...

2011-05-15T17:19:00.000-07:00

I'm SO glad I worked out the solution to the movie problem months ago!
she already found the 5 I had left sitting out! haha

sometimes...

2011-05-10T23:03:00.001-07:00

sometimes I sit after my little monkey goes to sleep and quickly
review our day. I wonder if I read to her enough, sang to her enough,
talked to her enough...but I find myself always asking 'did I hold her
enough today?' it's so easy to just watch her play and not get too
involved, but the days when I know I did my best are the ones when I
laughed with her. when she sat on my lap while we discovered new
things she can do instead of me just observing...
I hope this little lady always knows that she is loved beyond
comprehension. isn't that the most important gift we can give them?
the knowledge that they are loved... how much greater a world could
this be if more kids knew how loved they really are?

big girl bath

2011-05-09T07:14:00.001-07:00

lydi and I stayed at my parents' last week and lydi had her first big
girl baths with Hattie. they were SO cute in there and Lydia was in
HEAVEN!

just cuz

2011-05-09T07:11:00.000-07:00

I just love her face in this picty!!!

question: how to get a thesis done with a mobile 7 month old?

2011-05-07T12:05:00.000-07:00

answer: give her all the rough drafts and let her go to town

reading

2011-05-06T17:55:00.000-07:00

I love sitting outside with a good book!

happy Easter!

2011-04-24T22:19:00.000-07:00

Easter Egg Hunt

2011-04-21T21:02:00.001-07:00

today we went to a big Easter egg hunt. lydi got one full of cheerios
:) but she loved the grass and the kids!

some AdveNtuRes...

2011-04-19T20:41:00.000-07:00

just an update on what we've been up to the past little while...
Lately, we have been spending LOTS of time with Hattie... getting ready for that new little nugget to come!!! we CAN'T WAIT to snuggle and kiss it!
last week we got a group of us together to go see the butterflies at the Wild Animal Park. A whole day built around the butterflies... and Lydi got tired in line. of course, she woke up 2 minutes after we got outside. i guess the girl loves her sleep...
yesterday, i put some cheerios on her high chair while we ate dinner. usually she just plays with them until i feed them to her... but THIS time, she grabbed a few and popped them in her mouth. it's so cute how much she loves food!!!
and just a quick one of the sink bath. she jumps and gets excited when i turn the water on. SO cute.

how awesome is this?

2011-04-14T22:36:00.000-07:00

hat? check.
leg warmers for sun protection? check.
cute butterfly dress to see the butterflies at the wild animal park?check.
make sure they all at least coordinate? ...um...they all have pink
stripes... does that count?
hahaha

seA woRLd

2011-04-11T14:48:00.000-07:00

watching her favorite aquarium...

fAmiLy pictuRes

2011-04-07T21:21:00.001-07:00

Didn't she do such an awesome job! thank you, bex, for waddling and squatting and bending to take some pictures of us. we are so grateful!

the LAst few dAys...

2011-04-06T22:26:00.001-07:00

Bex and Hattie took us to the beach yesterday because it was GORGEOUS! This mama got her first sun of the season (so very excited! and needed...I was definitely very pregnant all last summer!) Don't worry, Lydi was fully clothed. Hattie showed Lydi everything there was to know about filling buckets and "looking for crabs."
Lydi was in HEAVEN! Even after a faceplant, she wouldn't stop playing. she just kept grabbing handfuls of sand and staring at it...passing it from one hand to the other... she was COVERED before I could even get her clothes changed. and her leg warmers were FULL of sand when we left!

and this last picture is just tonight before bathtime. She was being so funny and trying so very hard to get from one place to another...but of course backing herself into corners and spinning in circles. Why is it so fun to watch?Bex was awesome enough to take some pictys of our family this weekend and I haven't really had a chance to go through them! Hopefully I'll get to them tomorrow...

AvocAdo!!! ANd A few otheR thiNgs...

2011-04-03T21:23:00.001-07:00

so here's a picture update. mostly i just love this first picty because of her green dipe, halloween onesie and unmatching legwarmers... it was just one of those nights...
discovering the grass for the very first time. i could NOT get her to look at me!
i just love her face in this one! she loves sea world!
my baby girl with her sippy cup. she took to it right away and jumps and reaches out when she sees it!
and finally... her first real food. avocado. and SHE LOVED IT! true california girl right there. :)
remember when there were pictures of things other than this girl on this blog. sorry. she is our world lately. and we love it. i can't believe she is six months old. where has the time gone! i cried when she ate rice cereal. it's so hard for this mama that she is growing up! but it is so fun too. the bittersweet life of a parent, i guess. she's such a joy to have in our home. she's always smiling and happy. she LOVES to cruise around the house and follow us in her walker. she loves books and singing. she loves her mama. she makes it worth getting up (VERY EARLY, mind you) in the morning to see what she is going to learn each day. we are so grateful for this little lady in our lives!

loving the grass!

2011-04-01T19:40:00.001-07:00

this girl loves to be outside! her new favorite thing is scratching
and pulling the grass :)

it's time

2011-03-31T17:52:00.000-07:00

I'm trying to get a little ahead here. lydi ate cereal this last week
and LOVED it! she eats like a champ...so here comes the baby food...
how awesome are these cute little containers! freezer, dishwasher,
microwave safe! I'm so excited for her!

sink baths are the best!

2011-03-27T19:52:00.000-07:00

3 YEARS!

2011-03-22T10:33:00.001-07:00

three years ago today, I married my best friend. best decision I ever
made and I love knowing that I can be with him forever. we thank our
Heavenly Father daily for letting our paths cross at the perfect time.
I never knew I could be so happy. so even though I know he never reads
this, I gotta say here's to an awesome three years...and an eternity
more to go :) can't wait to see what other adventures come our way!

what I woke up to this morning...

2011-03-20T08:33:00.001-07:00

apparently she wiggled out of the swaddle and wanted to play? haha.

too tight!

2011-03-18T07:32:00.001-07:00

I LOVE these jammies! this morning I noticed that the hole that used
to just show her big toe has expanded. Its almost time to put them
away :(
but it does make me laugh that she finds those toes SO fast. she'll
have nothing to do with her other foot this morning. what is it about
toes that are so intriguing to babies? haha.

the best thing about pony tails...

2011-03-16T08:32:00.001-07:00

the morning after!
sorry it's blurry... but you get the point.

Sunday

2011-03-15T08:57:00.001-07:00

hatties wagon

2011-03-14T13:57:00.000-07:00

not sure what to do with these yet

2011-03-13T21:18:00.000-07:00

I said reading, but I think she heard eating...

oN the computeR AgAiN

2011-03-07T10:45:00.000-08:00

would you believe this girl used to scream in strollers. now she just laughs and watches everything. i love this picty
walking around the house. don't you just love her outfit. haha. it makes us laugh so hard because she follows us wherever we go around the house.
and sitting up all by herself. CRAZY how it happens so suddenly! the day before she was tipping over... and then this.

so big!!!!

2011-03-04T13:48:00.001-08:00

Lydi sat in a high chair at dinner last week. it was totally
unexpected. she was actually supposed to be sleeping so I saw a high
chair and thought 'let's try it...' she LOVED it. and once again, her
mom was super sad. it all just goes too fast for me! don't worry... i don't sit in sadness all day every day because of how fast she grows. i just know it will never just be us and our one little baby ever again. i wish i could slow it down. i do love how fun she is right now, though. she makes me laugh so hard every day!

clashing!!!

2011-03-04T13:44:00.001-08:00

I used to tease my sister for the clashing outfits she would dress her
kids in...but now I realize that sometimes it's kinda fun to just open
the diaper bag and put on whatever leg warmers are in there...no
matter how much they clash. yeah. this is what Lydia wore to sea
world. PLUS the jacket I brought was lime green with flowers...TACKY!
but I kinda love it...
p.s. do you just love hattie's little hand in the corner trying to steal Lydia's toy...haha

5 MONTHS!

2011-02-28T20:45:00.000-08:00

she's such a big girl that it breaks my heart! but I love how fun she
is lately. last night she started laughing when I started singing and
I couldn't stop laughing back...so she just stared at me wondering
what was so funny. which of course had me laughing harder. so fun.

my favorite toy

2011-02-25T07:23:00.001-08:00

I've had this music box for probably ten years. I bought it on a whim
in a toy store in Logan while visiting my sister. I cried when I heard
the song after my grandpa died because it reminded me of him. he was
learning to play the piano just so he could play this song. and I love
that lydi reaches for it when she sees it...makes all that time
carting it around worth it.
plus...aren't her Jammies the CUTEST things ever!

RoLLiNg oveR

2011-02-22T19:51:00.000-08:00

today my Lydi fell asleep like this

and woke up like this...

so funny. i heard her scratching her fingers on the bed instead of crying... that's her new thing. Everywhere you lay her down, she reaches her hands out to whatever she can find and scratches to make noise.

A bLessiNg

2011-02-17T09:22:00.000-08:00

We blessed our little monkey on December 26th. We had ALMOST the whole family there. it was so great. we did get the whole family to the park afterward for lunch...but we didn't get the camera out there. :( it was such a great day and Lydia and her dad did great. It was super funny because Lydi was trying to sit up the whole time. She wore a beautiful dress that her Grandma Dana made for her. Such a wonderful day

becAuse my fRieNd is AmAziNg!

2011-02-17T09:03:00.001-08:00

so my incredible friend Susan took some incredible pictures for us when i was pregnant and when my baby was brand new. and i am in love. despite the fact that i was ever that huge! but my baby sure was cute!!! ...well, she still is. :) enjoy!
THANK YOU SUSAN!!!

little buddies

2011-02-09T09:40:00.001-08:00

mobiLe moNkey

2011-02-05T17:30:00.001-08:00

so i've been way busy lately and not so good at updating. i love that i can update from my phone but sometimes hesitate to put the picture from my phone when i have way better ones on my camera. only problem is, i never get on the computer to get pictures from my camera. i'm sure there are others out there with this same problem... and i still have yet to find the solution... except when i find a glorious moment or two without the monkey in my arms and the dishes already done and the laundry folded. oh wait, i actually just decided i didnt care about those last two and sat down anyway. :) here are some of my favorite pictures lately...
at sea world...looking so big in her stroller!

first time in the swing. i don't think she even noticed... but it was fun for me :)

with auntie jo jo. the outfit she's wearing was jordy's when she was that little. crazy how fast 12 years can go! i have so many memories of her in it!

proof that we do hang out with dad. one of my favorite days ever. dave got up for work only to come back a few minutes later and tell me that he was staying home to spend the day with us. he's usually so very busy with work and school that it was such a treat!

from her first day at the beach. i just love her eyes in this one.

from christmas time, but i just love how close in age these two monkeys are. i hope they are the best of friends! and bex new baby is gonna be right behind!

i just LOVE this face!

moments after rolling over the first time. did i mention that she rolled over this week! (hence the title of this post...) i have it on video cuz i just happened to be filming her. she was so funny. she just smiled at me afterward like "haha. here i go!"

and this picty is from the beach this morning. she just loves being at the beach. she jumps when her feets are in the sand and laughs at the waves. and plus, any time she can watch hattie run around makes her smile and smile. so fun. i just love being this little girl's mom.

her first pony

2011-01-29T19:58:00.001-08:00

favorite things

2011-01-25T09:26:00.001-08:00

so I know this picty is dark...but I love it cuz it shows my little
monkeys favorite things lately. sitting up...and playing with her toes
:)

just another Sunday

2011-01-23T20:31:00.001-08:00

the beach

2011-01-17T08:12:00.001-08:00

so auntie bex called on friday to say she was taking hattie to the
beach and invited us to join. at first, I thought it would be way too
much work for this monkey to just sleep through anyway. I'm SO glad I
changed my mind. Lydia just squealed and smiled and talked. she LOVED
it! she had been to the beach to visit before, but never stopped to
play! she loved the sand and water on her feet. she loved the birds
and the kids. she was so tired by the time we left that she was asleep
before we made it up the hill to the street.
oh yeah, and did I mention that it was 77 degrees?

a fun article

2011-01-17T07:56:00.001-08:00

this article made me smile...

http://mobile.salon.com/life/feature/2011/01/15/feminist_obsessed_with_mormon_blogs

kim[beRLy]

I think I'm gonna eat this face!

2011-01-12T20:23:00.000-08:00

thanx auntie christy for the perfect monkey outfit for our monkey :)

good morning!

2011-01-11T08:10:00.000-08:00

on a walk...

the view from the top

2011-01-06T08:12:00.000-08:00

auntie christy gave Lydia this dolly and she loves it.

makes me laugh

2011-01-06T07:21:00.000-08:00

I love how in the mornings you see this look on her face saying 'now I
know I was doing something fun with this mouth before...how did I do
that?' and then the excitement when she figures it out...

blowing raspberries

2011-01-04T18:41:00.000-08:00

excuse us laughing and talking...

ballerina princess

2010-12-27T22:21:00.001-08:00

I LOVE this outfit...
forgive the blurry arms...she rarely stops moving...

loving her Christmas present!

2010-12-26T20:22:00.001-08:00

I can't believe how big she looks in it... :(

happy Christmas!

2010-12-25T07:00:00.001-08:00

at the mall

2010-12-21T19:59:00.001-08:00

seriously don't know what it is about the mall with this girl! lately
shes been sleeping no more than 30 minute naps in the daytime and
making her mom crazy! but today at the mall...2.5 hrs straight. then,
just watched the goings on from her stroller. of course, she would NOT
look at her mama. so very much else to see...!

I think we have a thumb sucker...

2010-12-18T21:10:00.001-08:00

something about it...

2010-12-13T21:20:00.000-08:00

something about dressing my baby girl in her auntie JoJo's old clothes makes me tear up every time! it feels like yesterday that jordy was wearing them and shes such a big girl now! ,makes me sad cuz i miss that baby, happy cuz my Lydia has her for an auntie and example, sad cuz Lydia grows too fast... the list just goes on...

i have so many memories of jordy in this dress...

plus, that was baby jordy's bouncy seat... its sure held a lot of precious babies since then!

i wish i had known...

2010-12-13T21:18:00.001-08:00

i wouldnt have bought all those presents! haha. too late. Lydia has the best aunties... :)

good morning!

2010-12-13T07:05:00.000-08:00

2010-12-12T10:51:00.000-08:00

just another Sunday at church :)

after a walk

2010-12-11T17:42:00.000-08:00

the mall

2010-12-06T11:51:00.000-08:00

Lydia and I had a quick trip to the mall today. I DREAD these because
this girl doesn't like her carseat and doesn't love strollers...so
usually my stroller becomes a shopping cart while I hold her. but
today, she spent half the time sleeping and the other half she spent
smiling. what a relief to this mama. crazy how much she is changing
and growing! or maybe she just loves the mall...? uh oh...

auntie christy

2010-11-28T20:04:00.001-08:00

so glad the Sugus surprised us for thanksgiving. even if she screamed
a LOT from all the chaos, Lydia LOVED meeting her cousins...and
especially her auntie :) come back soon!

first thanksgiving

2010-11-28T20:00:00.000-08:00

this is how our Lydia spent her first thanksgiving meal...and I, of
course, ate standing up. this girl will NEVER let me put her down!

bath time

2010-11-21T22:16:00.001-08:00

Lydia just LOVES the bath!!! she did this for almost 45 minutes
straight. it makes me laugh so hard! I kept waiting for her to want
out...but nope. mom had to call it quits when I got tired...

2010-11-21T15:24:00.000-08:00

talking talking talking...

2010-11-19T15:29:00.000-08:00

this one's for the girls...

2010-11-17T09:05:00.000-08:00

when i first got pregnant, i was terrified it was going to be a boy. don't get me wrong... there is nothing wrong with boys. i love boys. i love little crazy boys. i love the wild stories and the messes. i just don't envy the mothers of little boys! they climb and punch and my brain just doesn't understand the way they think. i envy the mothers of big boys because there is something special about the way boys love their moms. but i'm terrified of raising boys! i like dolls. i like to paint nails and bake. i like pink and dresses and sparkly shoes. i think boys will be a challenge for me...although i am sure i will fall in love with my boys if the time ever comes that we have one. but as i thought more and more about what it would be like to have a kid, i was just really really hoping for our first baby to be a girl. and i couldn't exactly figure out why!? then, one day i realized what it was. not only do i love girly things like tea parties and pretty pretty princess parties, but i love the whole experience of life as a girl. i love the incredible bond that girls can have with each other. i have been so blessed all my life with incredible girl friends. they have helped shape me and strengthen me in ways i never knew i could grow. i come from a great family of all sisters and i love the relationships i have with them. they are the greatest examples and friends to me. and i think of the way that i feel about my mom and it amazes me that someday someone could love me and look up to me that much. i hope that i'm a great mom to my Lydia the way my mom was and is to me. (Totally not to discredit the men in my family... i will always be grateful for my dad too. i have so much love and respect for him. and Dave is my strength. my best friend and the love of my life... that's just thoughts for another post...) There is just something about the connection that girls can have that makes me so grateful for my little Lydia.

now that i'm an adult, i realize that my best friends really are my family. and i'm so grateful for them. I want Lydia to have the great experiences i had. I want her to be close to her grandmas and to be able to know all about their lives and loves the way I do about mine. I want her to have opportunities to be close to her cousins and siblings the way I am with mine. I want her to love her family and want to be with them. I am excited for the adventures of being a mom to a little girl. I am terrified for the teenage years when she yells and doesn't tell me every day that she loves me and i wonder constantly if i'm doing the right thing. but i'm SO excited for the times when she realizes how much i love her and that i would do anything for her. for the phone calls home from college when she realizes how much she really does need me. i'm just excited for the end when she is my friend.

so now that i have my girl, i'll take whatever comes next (no...not anytime soon... i'm just sayin in the long run...)

2010-11-16T15:40:00.000-08:00

squishy face!

2010-11-16T11:21:00.000-08:00

more and more

2010-11-09T10:21:00.001-08:00

and I thought I didn't get anything done before...now all I want to do is sit and make her smile...

getting better...

2010-11-07T06:33:00.001-08:00

so very smiley. mom just struggles to catch it on camera cuz she wants to just stare at it!

hAppy biRthdAy gRANdmA!

2010-11-05T08:24:00.000-07:00

Today is my grandma's birthday. I sure wish I could call her to tell her I'm thinking of her. I miss her every day, but sometimes I just cry thinking about how much I learned from her. I was so blessed to have her in my life. I sure wish she could have met and held my baby Lydia...so grateful to know that someday she can. she sure was a cute kid, huh?

a little lioness

2010-11-02T15:59:00.000-07:00

since I was a bad first time mommy and didn't take pics of lydia's first Halloween...here's a picture of her costume from her grandma's phone

the happiest baby on the block

2010-11-01T18:13:00.001-07:00

if you have a newborn and haven't watched it, rent it ASAP. changed our life! our Lydia was already the perfect baby and she just got better because of that video!

Happy Halloween Week

2010-10-27T17:20:00.001-07:00

it starts

2010-10-27T17:18:00.001-07:00

the tail end of a smile at her mom. 4 weeks old!!!

wow

2010-10-24T19:59:00.000-07:00

from screaming to this in a matter of seconds! this girl LOVES the water. I now know why she was slow to come out! :)

just chatting...

2010-10-24T16:17:00.001-07:00

hahahaha

2010-10-23T17:31:00.001-07:00

struggling!!

2010-10-23T17:28:00.000-07:00

she's not quite sure if she wants to wake up...

sleep feels so good!

2010-10-21T11:22:00.000-07:00

so last night, i fed Lydia at 10:15 and put her down for the night. she took a minute to go to sleep, which is kinda unusual...and i got scared. i thought "uh oh. it's gonna be a rough night." so when i heard her fuss a little bit at 3:30, i was super excited that she had made it that long. but she didn't cry, so i waited...and apparently fell asleep! because the next time i heard her, i thought it was a few minutes later only to open my eyes and it was 6:15 in the morning! i couldn't believe it!!! a whole 7 hours of sleep for me! it was fantastic! granted, she usually gives me that long in 2 stretches, but how fantastic does it feel to sleep that much at one time.
i am well aware that this is not always going to be the case, but it is just a huge testimony to me that the sleep habits we are working on building are working! When Lydia was about a week old, i read the book "on becoming Babywise" and decided to jump right in. it makes me sad to wake her once in a while during the day to feed her, but these incredible nights of sleep with a 3 week old baby make it ALL worth it! I'm so not to the point where i could let her cry herself to sleep or put herself down yet. i just love holding her and snuggling her to sleep and will continue to do so until she is ready to do it herself. but it is so cool to see how secure she is in her simple schedule. she eats, then she is awake and alert for a while, and then she starts to close her eyes and falls asleep on me. i just love it!
i just had to document this day so that i can remember it someday when she is wide awake all night and makes me crazy. she's such an angel and as much as i HATE her getting bigger and learning new things, i love to see that i can do things to help her learn the right things since she's gonna do it anyway. :)

loving auntie jojo

2010-10-21T11:19:00.001-07:00