44 Weeks

Merry Christmas my sweet snowflake! 

What a precious time we have had this week! You have experienced many firsts! You had your first party at school and they sent you home with many sweet gifts & crafts! We will treasure them always! Look at those little toes & long fingers!

I have a strong feeling you are going to be quite the shopper!! You really seem to enjoy it! You certainly are tolerant! We spent several hours shopping this week and as long as your feed & dry, you're happy!! Mommy/Daughter day of shopping will go on our tradition list! 

We spent some much needed quality time with our friends! I'm excited to watch you and Audrey grow up together! 

We left for Texas on Sunday afternoon and you made it TEN hours in the car! TEN! You did so well! Slept most of the way but also watched movies on your new DVD player we got you for Christmas! It's very helpful! We spent two nights at your great grandfather's house in the county! You saw a deer for the first time!! We saw lots of them actually! 

Then it was on to Dallas! We stopped & had lunch with my good friend Kathryn! We only get to see each other once a year but keep in touch frequently! We have been friends for a very long time! Friendship is something I so treasure and hope you will too!

You got to try your first taste of macaroni & cheese!! Needless to say you loved it! Mac & cheese is some good stuff! 

First Christmas Eve

Christmas Eve is always spent at Cousin Erik's house and it is always a festive wonderful time with our family! You were showered with many gifts and had a ball!! 

Playing with Gavin in the ball pit that Aunt Deen Deen got you! 

We kept you up way too late and you did not sleep well my love! Finally around 4am you came to bed with Daddy & I which meant we got to have our first family Christmas morning snuggles!!

Then it was time to see if Santa came!! And he did!! 

A hug me Elmo, a piano, some flip books and a fun musical toy!! You were very excited but also a little confused and overwhelmed. The first thing you did was head straight for the Elmo and when he reached out to hug you, you didn't know what to think! It totally scared you! So then for the next hour or so you wouldn't leave my lap! 

But then you warmed up and played with Gavin and explored all of your toys and his! 

First Christmas Day

We normally go to Auntie M's house on Christmas Day and visit with Gmomma's side of the family, Crazy Uncle Don, the Tracys & the Amicks. Everyone was so excited to see you! You were the center of attention! We ate a yummy dinner and you tried a pickle & a black olive for the first time!! 

Your second cousins; Cooper, Jackson & Savannah

We're all exhausted but so worth every minute! We are blessed beyond words and you are so very loved!

Merry Christmas Baby,

Mommy 

10 Months

Happy 10th Month in the World!

I love the way you clap

I love that you wave hello

I love your Wookie call

I love watching you crawl 

I love your hand & foot print crafts

I love your hugs

I love the way you lean your forehead in to get a kiss

I love your chubby cheeks

I love our mornings together

I love the way you get excited when I pick you up from school

I love all four of your teeth

I love watching you watch Chica

I love how your react to gifts 

I love how you eat puffs

I love the way you look for the dog when you wake up

I love your grunts 

I love how much hair you have now

I love your scrunchy nose smile

I love how proud you are when you pull yourself up on things

I love how insistent you get about things

I. LOVE. YOU.

To the Moon & Back

Mommy

43 Weeks

Reme,
This has been an interesting week. To be totally honest with you, Christmas is not my favorite time of the year. It can be so stressful and while it should be all about the birth of our savior, love, giving, time with family & friends sometimes it just gets overwhelming. The crowds, the people, the traffic, the arguments, the decisions, so much to do in such little time. It just flies by! I have found myself this week getting a little carried away by the stress. I have had to stop myself, reset and get a new perspective. YOU make that so much easier to do. Really all I have to do is take one look at you and all the stress in the world seems to disappear for a moment.

You bring such joy into our lives. You are such a blessing. I'm not gonna lie, you also can be very challenging! Your sleeping patterns are very sporadic! You haven't slept through an entire night for weeks it seems! And forget about a nap, at home that is, you nap like a champ at school but at home you won't sleep for longer than a half hour if at all! And that half hour most likely in my lap. We think teething is the main culprit but honestly we have no idea!

You are however 97.4% of the time in the best mood! You are laid back, pretty flexible and very understanding. You also have your limits and are not afraid to let us know when you've reached them. Which is rare though, for the most part you are always happy! Plus there's not much a puff can't fix. You love your puffs!

This past weekend we went to the Opryland Hotel with Jaime, Mollie & Ed. I'll spare you the drama it took to get there! Once we were there we had a very nice time. You and Mollie were all over each other! It was so sweet! You got to meet Shrek the Ogre and the Kung Fu Panda too! You weren't real sure what to think about them and were your normal intensely observing self.

We went to your first Christmas program at our church on Sunday. I thought for sure you would be into all of the little kids singing but you weren't. I think we were too far away from the action though. I'm pretty sure you're going to love theater! (hint hint) Later on you hung out with your daddy almost all day while I went and accomplished some much needed shopping! You guys played and played and played and you did not take a nap! Not even for a half hour! I don't know how you weren't just a total bear when I got home! You were quite the opposite though and clapped and cheered when I walked in the door! Such a great sight and sound! You have the sweetest little cheer! It's a grunt really...still sweet!

We went to see Ian sing in his choir concert last night and that you did enjoy (until they clapped). Again, I think it was because we were up close to the action and you could hear their voices more clearly. So proud of our boy Ian! He even had a solo! Hot Chocolate!

Today was my last day at the office for the year!! It was also the last day that I'm going to pump breast milk during the day. I have only been producing 4oz a day and we've been supplementing with formula anyway. Plus I think you might be ready to ween yourself. I'm still going to try in the morning and evenings until you're ready to move on. We've done very well in this department my dear. I feel confident that you're healthy, happy and well fed!

Only one week from Christmas my little snowball! It's going to be the best one ever! You get so excited when you see presents!Billy & Erika got you a supersoft cute little furry pig as a gift today and you went crazy!

You have been a very good girl so I know Santa will be good to you!


I love you angel,
Mommy

42 Weeks

You met Santa this week! It was magical! 

I love you,

Mommy

41 Weeks

Réme Lynn,  

It's official! You're a crawler!! You did it for real tonight!! So grown up! I am so proud of you baby! You have been working hard to achieve that! 

We had a wonderful time in New York for Thanksgiving! We played in the snow, you loved eating turkey, you tried some of my Mimi's chocolate cream pie recipe and you & Aubrey really bonded! It was quite beautiful! 

You gals had a blast together! You had a fashion show, you read books together, you sat next to each other at the table, you took a bath next to each other and heaven forbid I try to put you to sleep before she went to sleep! You were not having it!! 

Oh how it warmed my heart to see you so happy! You bonded with your Mimi and were amused by your Grandpa! I'm so glad that you love being there as much as I do! 

Unfortunately the transition back into our school routine has been a little tough on you. You don't want to let me go in the mornings and it is so sad! The really sad part is that we only have a few weeks and then we're off to Texas for another week. So hang in there kiddo! 

I sure do love you,

Mommy

40 Weeks

Happy Thanksgiving my little turkey! 

We have had a great week! It has been mellow but very fun. You are doing all sorts of cute things lately. Clapping a lot, mastering your ninja pincher skills, pulling yourself up on things, army crawling, you hum when you eat, you are a chatterbox but don't say any real words yet, you pointed our Grandpa's nose when I asked you where it was but I'm pretty sure it was a fluke but my most favorite thing that you're doing right now is the mouth open, nose scrunched I'm so excited smile! We went to an indoor park with Jaime & Mollie this weekend and you must have thought it was the coolest thing you have ever done!! 

Look at those eyelashes! Melt me! 

We arrived in New York today to celebrate Thanksgiving and you were once again a dream on the long drive! We have already had so much fun! You have been putting on quite the show for your grandparents! We had a blast making apple turkeys too! 

Tomorrow is going to be a big day! 

I am so thankful for many things!

Your daddy

Our family

Our friends

Our doggie

Our home

Our health

Our love 

Our life

And most of all you!! 

I love you so much, 

Mommy

39 Weeks or 9 Months

Reme Lynn,
Happy 9th month in this world my love! Also 39 weeks so you have officially been out as long as you were in! I hope you have enjoyed it as much as I have! You have grown so quickly! You are pulling yourself up in your crib now so we dropped the mattress down a little. You love to be on your feet although your main mode of transportation is rolling! You started the "older babies" classroom at school and you love it. They have a table that have little seats and you kick your legs and get excited to see all of your friends sitting there having some snacks. I sat you next to Joshua on Monday and you gave him a pat to say hello and then proceeded to try to take his bib off. I'm so pleased to see you adjust so quickly. Nadia still gets to come visit you too. You love to chew and love almost every type of food we've given you. You have now added corn, string cheese and a variety of little snacks from our trip to Christmas Village to your menu! We had so much fun at Christmas Village! It was the first time I had ever been there and there is a lot to see! We went with Brooke & Cheryl (your TN Grand). The rest of "the girls" were supposed to meet us too but there was a terrible car accident and the traffic was too bad! You were great! You just hung out in your baby carrier and smiled and smiled at all of the people. I may have indulged in some new hats and hair flare for you but I couldn't help it!

 

Don't be mad but your daddy and I went to a football game without this week. It was at night and way too cold anyway! You stayed with the Kellys and had so much fun with them. I was a little worried when we dropped you off because you were sleeping and I didn't want you to be confused and scared when you woke up but Brooke sent me videos and pictures to show me that you were having a great time!

We had a play date with Averie on Saturday and you are enamored with her. I think it's the sound of her voice. You would watch her and study her. We took a trip to the grocery store too and you guys were so cute sitting in the cart together. It gave us a tiny glimpse into what life would be like if we had two kids. I think we both liked it too!

This had been a crazy week at work and I was only able to see you for an hour in the morning yesterday! Oh how I don't like that! I missed you so much! You had a blast with your daddy though. He also sent me videos and pictures of you two having some good daddy/daughter time. I'm glad that you two are bonding more! I love how you love your daddy and how he loves you! It's so precious to see you look at him from across a room and light up! You usually smile your big grin, bat your eyes and blow raspberries! I'm pretty sure that's how you guys communicate with each other when I'm not there. The farting noise certainly speaks your daddy's language!

Tonight was our night together though and we spent it making applesauce, peas and carrots! You ate apples, practiced using your sippy cup and kept me entertained while I peeled and sliced apples. Another thing you do to make you seem so grown up already!

  

And yes that is our Christmas tree! I went to Target after church on Sunday and they had all of their Christmas decorations out so I grabbed us some stocking holders and stockings and the spirit hit me! Which is so unlike me! Normally I would never start before Thanksgiving but I made an exception this year because it's your first one and I want it to last as long as it can! I'm so excited about establishing holiday traditions for our family! Maybe decorating the week before Thanksgiving will be one of them! 

I love you 9 month old!

Mommy 

38 Weeks

Reme Lynn,

Today just happens to be my birthday! What a wonderful day it has been! Your daddy somehow managed to take a special photo of you and present it to me today! I was totally surprised and it just made my day! You also got me a card and sent me flowers (again-you sent me flowers last year too! So very special my sweet daughter!) (Psst...by the way your daddy amazing! Not sure if I've ever mentioned that to you or not!)

We spent a nice special evening home together tonight and it was just delightful! I look forward to spending many more birthday evenings with you!

You have grown very fond of a couple of toys lately. One being the "Chica"! Your daddy bought it for you and when he gave it to you the first time you would have thought he presented a movie star to you! You squealed and totally freaked out when you say your "Chica" (Chica is a character on the Sunny Side Up Show on Sprout that you love to watch.) You love that little chick and you rarely want to put her down! it is so precious! Unfortunately Chica met her demise today by Stella! It's the first toy she has ever torn up of yours! Your daddy immediately ordered you a new one!

 

You also love to play with the singing remote control that you got from your Mimi & Grandpa and the puzzle that Gmomma gave you! I love to watch you explore these new things and fall in love with them! It is so fascinating! 

We had a delightful weekend! We went to the Owl Appreciation Day at Owl Hill's Nature Sanctuary.  It was very neat, not too terribly exciting but it was cool to learn about owls and play in the leaves! It was a beautfiul day!

Then on Sunday we had a girls day and went to get our nails down with Brooke & Averie! We also took some pictures for our Christmas card! You will soon learn how excited I get when it comes to coming up with cool ideas for our cards every year! It's kind of a big deal!

It has been another wonderful week! Thank you my love!

Love you so much,
Mommy

37 Weeks

Hello my Sweet Little Doll,

And when I say doll I mean the cutest, most adorable, squeezable, kissable, hug-able, loveable, little Cabbage Patch Doll!! Which is what you were for Halloween this year...

It was a little yucky outside and the forecast was predicting a terrible rain storm so most of our original plans were cancelled but we decided to go to the mall. You (of course) were a HUGE hit! We could not get two feet without someone stopping us to take pictures of you. Some people even thought you were a real doll! I'm already trying to come up with a good idea for us next year! We had so much fun.

Saturday was El Dia de los Muertos! The Day of the Dead, it is a beautiful Mexican tradition honoring those that have passed away. The day started off beautiful but as we were headed to Cheekwood for a festival, the clouds started to show up. We decided to brave the weather and take a short hike and look at the sculpture trail. 

About five minutes into the walk, it started to sprinkle a little bit but we didn't think much of it and kept walking, well we shouldn't have done that you see because not a few moments later it was a down pour! We ran as fast as we could to some cover! Despite the cold wetness we were all in very good spirits. Maybe it was because the spirits of our loved ones were with us! Not too long after that the clouds broke and the sun began to shine! We walked around the arts and crafts area and we stopped and put a memory note on the ancestor tree. We told Uncle Chuck that we missed him! 

 

You also experienced your first tortilla at mommy's favorite Mexican restaurant Chuy's!You loved it!

You have not been sleeping through the night for about 3 months now. To be honest it's partly our fault. You'll get up through the night off and on every few hours or so but once the clock strikes 5am, I bring you to bed with us. There we are all happy and sleeping and most mornings you would sleep like that until 9am or 10am if I let you or if we could! So I think you started to get accustomed to that and was part of the reason you would get up was to probably see if it is finally time to go snuggle! As much as I truly enjoy the snuggle time, it's just not a healthy way for us all to sleep. So after much discussion, your daddy and I decided to try a few things. We made your bed cushier. We added some fluffy blankets under the sheet so it's softer, we put you in a nice warm sleep sack and we gave you teething tablets. The first night you only got up once and went right back to sleep and slept until 7am! Then last you you slept ALL THE WAY THROUGH! Oh how we needed that! So maybe you were just uncomfortable?! If you were I'm sorry baby for not fixing that sooner! I hope you can sleep more soundly now for your sake and ours. 

You have now tried asparagus, acorn squash, yellow squash and cottage cheese! The first time we gave you asparagus was hilarious! You love to eat and you were just chowing away when along came that first bite of green deliciousness and it stopped you in your tracks! We have to mix it with something to get you to swallow it now! You love all kinds of squash and you're skeptical about the cottage cheese but tolerate it! 

You also clapped!! I picked you up from school yesterday and they tried to get you to do it for me but you wouldn't then once we got home I tried and tried and tried to no avail. BUT Daddy had the magic touch and sent me a video! You are so very proud of yourself and you should be!

Thank you for being such a joy! Just you and I went shopping on Sunday and you were about as cool as they come! You hung out and played quietly while I tried on about 10 different outfits! Just all smiles and that was followed by grocery shopping which you gracefully hung out, smiled and snacked on puffs! Just as happy as can be! It so warms my heart and I so enjoy our special mommy daughter time!

I love you to the moon and back,

Mommy