Myrtle Beach 2011

We had such a wonderful time at the beach with our cousins and grandad! Amelia loved playing in the sand and "swimmin" in the pool. It was a great opportunity for the girls to play together and Michelle, Danielle, and I even got away for breakfast and a walk one morning. The weather was absolutely perfect. Not too hot, and great for playing in the sand all morning.

Amelia is at an age where she is not at all interested in sitting still for a picture so most are action shots! We managed to get this one family photo.

Taking pictures of the girls on the beach was quite an adventure. We did get some good ones though!

Amelia is still talking about the beach, sand, and ocean and cannot wait to go back next year!

2 years old

Dear Amelia,

Mommy cannot believe that you are 2 years old! Your second year has just flown by. Daddy and I  love to see the little girl you are becoming. I really enjoy this stage of life even though it does have it's fair share of tantrums and fits. I am amazed every day at all the new things you are learning and the way your vocabulary is developing. You are quite a talker and we love to hear all your new words! Some of my favorite phrases are "I love you mommy"  "I hold you" and "bye, I see you later". You also think thank you and your welcome are all one phrase and will say "thank you your welcome mommy" Every morning when I get you out of bed you go through a run down of the family "Daddy work. Aunt Chelle work. Mommy home. Mimi home." You love to do things on your own and a phrase we here very often is "Mimi do it!" You love music and anytime you hear it you like to dance. Which pretty much consits of spinning in circles. Two of your favorite songs to sing are your ABC's and Jesus Loves Me. You also love to "color pictures" and ask to do this at least once a day. You also love to identify your colors- like "purple cup" or "pink pants". We love to play outside and your favorite things to do are run and climb. Anytime I ask if you want to go play on the playground you say "I run" and "I climb". You love all your friends and talk about them everyday. Alot of times during "naptime" I hear you in there  naming all of your friends and cousins. You still love to eat and ask for snacks all day long! I guess you got your love for food from mommy and daddy. Your have recently developed a love for Winnie the Pooh and I could not be more thrilled! You love all your "pooh babies" and carry them around all day. You also constantly want to watch a Pooh movie. You also still love to watch Dora. In the mornings we always read our "bibles" together. I love this time and pray that God will give you a heart for Him. Anytime you see a bible you say "Jesus!" We also pray together which always end with a very loud "AMEN!"

For your birthday we were at the beach with your cousins and grandad and you had such a good time. You were so excited about the beach, sand, and ocean and talked about it for weeks before our trip. You loved playing in the sand and "swimmin" and even warmed up to the ocean on our last night. You adore your cousins Telepy and Piper and still ask for them every day. You say "Telepy and Piper home" since that is where I told you they are.

You really do amaze me everday . The things you understand and remember just astonish me. God is teaching me so much through your little life and Daddy and I are so very thankful for you!

I love you,

Mommy

Easter 2011 (whirlwind GA trip)

We had a jam packed Easter weekend. We got to see lots of family and a few friends, meet Piper and Eli, participate in 2 Easter Egg hunts and go to church with Jared, Hope and Crosby. It was a busy, but fun visit!

Catching up

Once again I am catching up-this seems to be a pattern! I am happy to report that the ear tubes were a success and we have slept through the night more in the last month and a half than we had in the previous 18 months! YAY!






Spring has come to Virgina and we are so thankful to see the trees blooming and leaves turning green. Amelia loves to be outside! We like to take walks and go see the ducks at the pond. She also enjoys climbing to the highest part of the playground and giving mommy a heart attack. I cannot believe how well she gets around now! Running, climbing, up and down stairs. She seems to be an adventurous little girl-I am afraid she may be like her mommy.





Amelia is talking so much now. I am amazed at all she picks up! For example, one day while we were walking a school bus drove by and I told her it was a bus several days later we passed one while driving and she said "bus"! I could not believe she remembered that. She knows alot of her colors and can say some of her ABC's. She will also count to ten with me. She loves to say all of her friends names Libby, Jacob, Toto, Crosby, Penelope, Aunt Chelle. She asks for food by name and lets me know if she does not want something! In fact, her favorite word is NO! She says it so cute that we have a hard time not laughing. She has even started saying "no mam" when she does not like something. I think she has heard me say that a time or two!
Another funny thing we have noticed is how much Amelia likes order and routine. Alot of times when playing she will pick out all the same color of something (blocks, balls)and only play with one color at a time. She also likes to identify who things belong to like if she sees Micah's shoes she will say "dada dada". It also important to her that we all sit at the same place at the table for dinner. She does like for us to switch things up. It is also very important to Amelia that we stick with routines. I am afraid she may have gotten that from me too!



I love this age! I think the more we can communicate the more fun it is. Looking forward to the days ahead!

Sickness, Ear tubes and 18 months

Wow, I really cannot believe it is March. January and February are just a blur of cold gray days and sickness! Poor Amelia just did not get a break. After 3 or 4 ear infections back to back we were finally sent to an ENT to set up getting ear tubes. We were very relieved, but then about a week before the surgery Amelia got the croup so it was postponed 2 weeks! We were so disappointed! Thankfully she was well enough at the end of the two weeks to go ahead with the procedure and it went very smoothly. We are very excited to see if this brings the relief we have been told it will! There is a hint of spring in the air and hopefully we can leave the sickness behind us.
Amelia will be 18 months tomorrow and I am already loving this age! We are seeing some glimpse's of some 2 year old behavior, but even with that she is just so fun! She is really active these days. I love seeing the world through her eyes. When the weather is nice we go for walks around our neighborhood and she just gets so excited over every bird, leaf, pine cone, and even cars! She loves to walk and I think she would keep going forever if I did not stop her. Bringing her inside after a walk is always cause for a major meltdown! She really does not want to be contained in anyway. It can be challenging because not every environment is appropriate for an 18 month old to be walking around in! When we are inside she likes to play with her babies and push them around in their stroller. She loves all her babies and is especially attached to her "bed babies" (the ones she sleeps with). She loves to carry them all around with her.



She has developed a love for shoes and wants to put them on first thing in the morning with her pajamas. She likes mine and Micah's shoes and brings them to us numerous times a day.



She is talking and communicating more and more every day it seems. We have been working with her to say the names of our family and friends and it is so cute. Her favorite one is our little neighbor Libby- "Bibby". Sometimes when we are in the car she will just say mama daddy bibby over and over again! At dinner time Micah, Amelia and I always sit at the table and hold hands to pray. She now holds out her hands as soon as we sit down and then says "MAYMEN!" when we finish. So precious!
We are so thankful to have such a sweet girl and are loving these days with her!

Christmas 2010

We had a wonderful Christmas this year. Amelia was able to enjoy the holiday much more than last year and so did mommy and daddy! We started by celebrating in Virginia the weekend before Christmas and then headed to Georgia for 6 days where we managed to squeeze in visits with lots of family and friends plus Penelope's 1st birthday party! It was a whirlwind trip, but well worth it and as a bonus it snowed on Christmas for the first time in over 100 years!

Amelia at 16 months

I just read through my 14 month Amelia post and cannot belive how much she has changed in such a short time! For one, the crawling days are long behind us. She does not walk, but runs most places she wants to go! She is also verbalizing more and more. She can say mommy, daddy, apple, bath, bottle, cherrios, uh oh among other things. Those are by far the words we hear the most! ;) I am still amazed at her level of comprehension. I can communicate with her a good deal by asking questions and her responding with ah (yes) and a shake of the head. I love that I can ask her to go get her baby or another toy and she will do it. She still just loves her daddy and they have the best time playing ever evening and then during bath time. I love hearing them play as I clean up the kitchen each night. Nap time has really improved recently. After lunch I tell Amelia it is nap time and take her to her room where she will lay her head on my shoulder for a few minutes while I sing her a song and then lay her in her crib. She still cries some days, but most days she goes right to sleep or plays a little first.



Amelia has really made some progress with food as well. Some of her favorites are waffles, apples, carrots, vegetable soup and soy cheese. She does love to eat! I really enjoy this stage as she is so much more of a little person. I enjoy that we are able to communicate and play together.
These are fun days with my little girl!