Sunday, February 17, 2013
Emily's First Birthday
We took both of the girls down to the Aquarium on Emily's actual birthday. We got up and ate pancakes and let Emily open her present and headed out into the cold. Emily started WALKING the day before her birthday so I made the brilliant decision to put some shoes on her. I probably put those shoes back on her feet at least 25 times while we were at the aquarium but both girls loved walking around and seeing all the fish. Emily's birthday was on a Thursday, so we pretty much had the whole place to ourselves.
I found myself constantly looking at the clock thinking "Ok, one year ago we just got to the hospital. Now, I was getting my epidural. In three minutes Emily was born!". I simply cannot believe the year flew by. Emily has added so much to our family. She is so sweet, so smart, so beautiful. We all love her so much. Happy birthday baby girl
Monday, February 4, 2013
Emily's First Birthday Party
We decided to do Emily's party the weekend before her birthday because Bryce's birthday is the weekend after. My Mom bought Emily her own personalized chair from Pottery Barn and Emily was super excited (especially after coveting Charlotte's ever since she was mobile):
Pinterest has so many wonderful ideas that I usually have to bring myself back to reality before things get out of hand (ok, I usually just run out of time). I wanted Emily to have something special to remember the people who came to her first party so I ordered her some Mad Libs off of Etsy. They ended up being one of my favorite things. Some of the answers were so sweet they made me cry!
I MADE EMILY'S WREATH. I made her high chair tutu too, but I am SO proud of that wreath. It was time consuming, but it turned out even better than I thought it would. I almost wanted to put a sign on it saying "Made by Beckie!"
Finding a purple, long sleeve dress is no easy task but once I did it was the perfect color for her. She looked adorable.
Grandma Monica made Emily's cakes. They were beautiful, and delicious, and Emily LOVED it.
And then comes the Happy Birthday Song. It gets me every time (Ok, only twice, but still). Everyone surrounds your beautiful child with so much love and this fast forward of memories from the last twelve months just flood your mind. All of a sudden you realize it's gone, it's over. She's not a baby any more. How is it possible that ONE WHOLE YEAR has passed since we welcomed her into our arms?
We are so thankful to all the friends and family that came to help celebrate Emily's first birthday. I could literally feel the love in the room. It was a beautiful day.
And here we are. Eight years after we said I do, we have our two perfect girls, our complete little family, and so many blessings to say thank you for every single day.
Sunday, February 3, 2013
Ode to 2012
Good-bye 2012. You were one of the most challenging, yet most rewarding years of my life. Isn't that the way the old sayings go? That you have to go through the challenges to find out how strong you really are? We entered 2012 anxious to meet our precious baby girl and anticipating what life would be like as a family of four. Emily came and I will never forget Charlotte's sweet, sweet smile the first time she saw her. It brings tears to my eyes just thinking of it now. We brought Emily home and adjusted to a newborn schedule all over again....except this time we had a toddler that demanded attention while the baby slept. That old advice "sleep when the baby sleeps" doesn't exist when there is a toddler in the house. After weeks of struggling through feedings I finally broke down and called a lactation consultant who was in my house less than five minutes before telling me that Emily was tongue tied. We saw a pediatric ENT who confirmed the diagnosis and clipped her frenulum....the very next feeding was immediate relief and things just got better from there. As soon as we had a handle on a schedule and feedings down pat Charlotte got sick. Sicker than I've ever seen her. So sick that we were sleeping less than two hours a night. So sick that it turned out to be Salmonella Poisoning. That was the worst week of my life. Stress doesn't even describe it. Broken is the only word I can think of. Time passed as time tends to do and we had two healthy, striving girls again. I returned back to work for the last month of the school year and learned once again how much guilt and pressure face each working Mom. The summer months were a much needed reprieve. We managed to break Emily of her nap nanny/swaddle/night feedings during one tough weekend where I cried more than she did. I learned one thing about Emily in those three awful nights-she knows what she wants and she won't forget it! Bryce returned back to work and I got a taste of what single Moms go through. Wrapping my head around just getting two kids out of the car at the grocery store was tough enough-do you get the baby out first and leave the stroller by the back door of the car to get the big kid out? Do you get the big kid out first and threaten her with everything you have not to take her hand off the door while you get the baby out? It's a rough life with only two hands to take care of two kids! I returned to school and Charlotte started pre, pre-k. She missed the pre-k cut off by 14 days, which upset me at first but now I can say it was probably for the best. She had a really hard transition going from 6 kids at Mrs. D's house to 14+ kids at daycare. Those were some more sleepless nights. Emily began her stay with Mrs. D during the day and took it in stride. We somehow managed to get into a rythym, though even just typing it here I cannot believe I've kept up with it so long. I'm up at 4:40, baby fed, kids dressed and all of us out the door by 6:15. Daddy drops off and I rush to work, class starts at 7:08. Teach a full day, drive 24 miles to pick up Emily. 7 more miles to get Charlotte, then head home. Dogs out, nurse the baby, make dinner. Clean dishes, pack bottles, pack lunch. Bath. Go to bed and start again the next day. I think Thanksgiving was a turning point of some kind. I finally accepted that I just plain have to go to bed earlier. And I figured out how to pack/make as much as possible on Sunday. It's been challenging. But oh so rewarding. These girls make every single minute worth it. Charlotte has turned into a little girl in the last year. She's learned to ask questions about things that matter. She's learned to have her own opinion-and that having your own opinion is OK. She learning to be truthful (which means she also learned how to lie). She's learned to tell jokes.....and laugh out loud.....and say just the right thing to make my heart squeeze tight. Every single time she says "Momma, I really love you" I think "Oh, I am SO glad you do!". In the last year, Emily has learned to roll over, and sit up, and crawl. She's learned to eat solid foods and drink from a sippy cup. She's learned to smile, and laugh, and give kisses. She's learned that there is really nothing better than a good snuggle. Every single time she gives me that big toothy grin I feel that heart squeeze tight in my chest again.
So, good-bye 2012. And I thank God for all to come in 2013.
So, good-bye 2012. And I thank God for all to come in 2013.
December Wrap Up
I had in my head that I was going to catch up on the blog over Christmas Break and then Charlotte got sick and life became a game of catch up. So much happened in December that I'm just going to do one big end of the year wrap up:
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