Four Sharps in a bathroom...

Hello, Friday! We welcomed the weekend - and celebrated Susannah's half birthday - with a gluten-free pizza dinner, then hit the streets for a family bike ride. In between the two, all four of us crammed into the upstairs bathroom to brush our teeth (can't ride a bike with pizza breath, now can we?).

And the minute I saw us in the mirror, my mind went straight to this photo, taken just about a year ago:

My, what a difference a year makes. 

Where did my babies go? 

Sigh.

I think this vintage photo means I'm genetically flawed... (iNSD 2011blog train, too!)

Hello, friends! Mostly this little blog of mine is about family stuff, but every now and then, I get to share part of my other life as a creative team member for ScrapMatters. Today is you're lucky day, gentle reader, as I have both something family AND something digi scrapping related. Are you excited??? I'm guessing about three of you might be - and the rest have absolutely no idea what digi scrapping is. Read on...

Here's the family stuff: in honor of Mother's Day, I dug out this vintage photo for your viewing pleasure. Please try not to giggle too loudly...

Fun, right? You know what I notice first about this photo? Our super-spiffy matching outfits. It's clear that coordinating family duds for photos is something I'm genetically predisposed to. Case in point? My family's recent matching Easter outfits. My mother taught me well.

Now for the digi scrapping hoopla (and welcome to all you ScrapMatters blog train riders!) Today is (inter)National Scrapbooking Day! In honor of the celebration, let me show you a little something the ScrapMatters Design Team whipped up:

There's a huge party happening over at ScrapMatters today with challenges, chat, games and prizes (not to mention a monster of a sale.)  With any $20 purchase in the store during their sale (May 6-12), you'll get the collab for FREE. 

I used the kit to make this little card...

...and now you can, too. Here's a free printable version. Sorry, this download link has expired.

To visit the next stop on the blog train, head over to Cara's blog.

Lost? Don't fret! The ScrapMatters blog will help you find your way.

Oh, the shame!

Do you see my head hanging in shame over not blogging for an ungodly amount of time? Trust me, it is. It's not that stuff isn't happening around here, it's just that... well, stuff is happening around here.

We've been enjoying the longer daylight hours and being able to open the windows and doors to get some fresh air. The winter was long, and we're embracing spring wholeheartedly. A few days ago, the sun was shining through the front door in just the perfect way, so I grabbed my camera and snapped a few of the kids.

(you can't really see it too well, but she has a HUGE bruise and scab on the right side of her head from taking a nasty tumble on the neighbor's deck. That's what happens, I guess, when you're outside enjoying so much fresh air.)

And then, of course, because he's becoming a photo geek like his mom, Aaron had to have his turn behind the lens. Most of them looked like this, and were fired off at about 142 frames per second...

But every now and then he captures something really wonderful, and it makes me so proud.

The boy loves his camera, and it's fun to see what the world looks like through his three-year-old eyes. Of course, we had to do a self portrait, too.

And there you have it. A blog post from me! Nothing earth-shattering to report from our little corner of the world (except maybe that my hair is really starting to go gray - do you see it in that last photo? Oy!), but sure glad I popped in to say "hi!"

Hope you have a great weekend!

Happy Birthday, Susannah!

To my Gorgeous Girl, on her first birthday-

I CANNOT believe how quickly this year has gone! It’s been a wonderful adventure, Susannah, and I’m so thankful for the 365 days we’ve had together. You have been such a gift to our family - in more ways than you can imagine.

You are a gift in and of yourself. Your sweet disposition, laid-back attitude, and unique sense of humor have added light and life to our family. Everything is more fun because you are here. You’ve made Aaron a big brother (and continue to teach him some important lessons about sharing and being kind). You’ve given dad a little girl to spoil endlessly (he’s been wrapped around your little finger from those first moments).

You’ve been an extra special gift to me, dear daughter, and one I didn’t expect. As I awaited your arrival last year, and even in the first few months of your being, I felt a lot of apprehension about having a daughter. After all, my experiences in the mother-daughter relationship have been rocky at best. I feared I might be doomed to repeat the mistakes of the past, or that I would be inadequate to be your guide into womanhood, but this year has put my mind at ease. Your birth was the most empowering experience of my life, and it birthed in me a new kind of faith in myself. In becoming your mother, I have become more confident, more assured of myself, more attuned to the still, small voice within me, and more certain that, with God’s help, I can be the mom that you deserve. It has been profoundly healing to be part of such a positive mother-daughter duo.

There has been precious little time that you and I have been apart during this year. “I love it,” said one man at our church, “that wherever you go, that kid is right there with you!” It’s true. You’ve been in my arms or riding in a sling in almost every place imaginable, from singing in the church choir to swimming in the pool and everything in between. We might get some funny looks as I walk the aisles of the grocery store wearing you on my back, but I love every minute of having you close, knowing you’re safe and comfortable.

Here are a few things that are “so Susannah,” and make you our one-of-a-kind girl:

• Your “scrunchie face” - you wrinkle your nose and breathe in and out loudly. This face means your happy or feeling humorous. It always get a laugh!
• Trucks and cars are your favorite toys. You’ll zoom them along the top of the train table and make a little motor sound. Only a girl with a big brother would master this kind of play.
• When you sleep, you need it to be really, really, really dark. You’re so used to sleeping in my closet that you have a hard time in a new setting.
• Your ivory blanket with satin edging is a must when it’s time for bed. I’ll lay it over my shoulder, and you reflexively lay your head down and start sucking your thumb. This is one of my favorite times of the day, when it’s quiet and just the two of us.
• You can sign “more” and “all done” at the dinner table. You certainly aren’t shy at telling us either of those things!
• Though you know how to crawl on all fours, you still prefer your crazy belly scoot to get somewhere really fast.
• You’re a mama’s girl through and through. When you’re fussy and sqirmy, one hug from mama usually settles you down. I love that!

Thank you, Susannah, for all the ways you’ve blessed our family this year. We’re so thankful that God made you a part of our family, and we’re looking forward to all the adventures ahead of us.

Lots of love,
Mama

Here's a look back at Susannah's one wonderful year:

Better Late Than Never!

I finally got my act together last week and snapped a few frames of our girl before the big birthday. I know we're way closer to the 12-month mark than 11, but better late than never, right?

She's now a crawling and cruising machine and, as usual, had no interest in sitting still for my camera.

(made with Be Inspired: Heidi v2 by WM[squared] and All Fall Down and Early Bird by Erica Zane)

What a gift this precious girl is to our family. It's shaping up to be a wonderful week of celebrating Susannah and all the ways she's blessed our lives.

Happy Digital Scrapbooking Day!

Hello, friends! Some of you regular readers know I'm a little bit of a scrapbooking nut. And today there are lots of you visiting here for the first time (you're my fellow scrapbooking nuts!!) as you ride the ScrapMatters blog train. Welcome, all!

The month of November and the Thanksgiving holiday took on a new meaning for me last year. On November 20th, our family welcomed our daughter, Susannah. That meant I ate last year's turkey dinner with a teeny little babe in my lap. Here's a page I created about that day:

I'm so thankful for the gift this girl has been to our family - and totally shocked at how quickly her first year has gone by. In just a few days, we'll be having her first birthday party. Oh, my!!! Here's a look at my big girl and me as we trick-or-treated last weekend. Isn't she the cutest little cow ever?

Why all the talk about Thanksgiving and being thankful? Because of this kit!

The ScrapMatters Design Team whipped this up to celebrate today's holiday, and you can get it free with a $20 purchase in the store. There's a huge party happening today with challenges, chat, games and prizes (not to mention a monster of a sale.) To keep the festivities rockin', I made you a little something...

Sorry, bottle of wine not included. ;-) Download link is no longer valid.

Your next stop on the blog train is Becky (Hoo-Rah). Are you lost? Don't worry, the ScrapMatters blog will help you find your way.

Happy Scrapping!

SHE'S CRAWLING!!!

If there was any shred of doubt that our commitment to family chiropractic care was paying off, this morning's appointment erased all doubt.

I'd been feeling concerned that Susannah wasn't sitting up independently or crawling, so we started seeing Dr. Tony once or twice a week to go after the problem. There had been good progress before today: Zannah was pulling herself into a sitting position and - as our last update told you- pulling up on the furniture. But the crawling wasn't happening yet.

Dr. T put our baby girl on the table, wiggled here her and pushed on her there. "Hmmm, that's interesting," he mumbled under his breath. One more small adjustment. Then he put on on the floor and...

SHE CRAWLED AWAY.

The entire office heard me squeal with delight.

Here's a quick sample of her new mobility:

Did I say she wasn't standing yet?

I had just posted the last entry when I looked over and saw this. I think she's trying to make a liar out of me.

Her smile in that second photo is so undeniably Susannah. More of a smirk, really. You can just tell how pleased she is with herself. I love this girl!

The birthday countdown begins!

It's totally impossible that we're just a month away from the big birthday. I still think of her as a little baby, but she's clearly speeding towards toddlerhood. Check out the new skill she learned today:

She's climbing up on everything now - the couch, the train table, the dishwasher... She doesn't pull up onto her feet yet, but as long as she can reach whatever object she's after, she's a happy camper. Poor Aaron is having to find a new spot for his treasures. He used to be able to put things on the train table a know they were safe from Susannah's reach, but that's no longer the case. I think we're in for some lessons on sharing. :-)

And just for my own memory, we weighed her at Dr. Tony's this morning: 17 pounds, 10 ounces. For being such a chub in her first few months, she's really turning into a skinny-mini! By comparison, Aaron weighed 19lbs on his 1st bithday. Tony commented this morning that he thinks she'll be tall, too. Her legs are getting loooong. We've made quite a few trips to his office in the last two weeks, trying to get her left hip working well. She's still not crawling on hands and knees, and I was beginning to worry. But she's making good progress, and will now sit up to play with a toy as well as bend her left leg more while she scoots across the floor. Won't be long now and she'll take off!

30 days to go! I'd better start planning a party.

Chef Aaron

Aaron's third birthday has come and gone, and he was gifted with some REALLY wonderful presents. One of my favorites was an apron and chef hat made by Auntie Rebo. I just LOVE the fabrics she chose. Isn't it cute?

I emailed this photo to her so she could see her handiwork in action, and, of course, she made a scrapbook page about it. Wanna see it? And wanna see the one I made? Head over to Rebo's blog today to see what happens when two scrappers use the same photo and the same supplies to make two very different (cute!) pages.

Susannah's official ten-month portraits

Happy 3rd Birthday, Aaron!

Dear Aaron,

When Dad and I welcomed you into our family three years ago, we had absolutely no idea what we were in for. No idea that the sweet little baby face we stared into that night would grow into a bouncing ball of energy that could not be contained. No idea that you would so quickly learn the art of temper tantrums and parental manipulation. No clue that it would be such a battle to train you to listen and obey what we asked of you. We also had no idea how wonderful it would be to hear you call us Mama and Daddy, and to watch you grow into such a  spectacular little boy.

I asked you a few questions after dinner last night in an attempt to capture Aaron at three. Here's what you said:

• My best friend is: James and Eli and Jakey and Tyler and Myles and Molly and Sam...
• My favorite food is: Mastacolli and mapyle syrup and pancakes.
• My favorite color is: blue
• For fun, I like to: cook and play guitar
• My favorite song is: Get Back Up (by Toby Mac)

And as I though more about the things that make you you, here's the list I made:

• You love diggers and dump trucks and anything else that's big and has wheels.
• Your sense of humor is second to none. Your giggle alone can make me laugh, but when you're doing silly dances or making up your own funny words, you can get the whole room rolling with laughter. 
• Spicey Cat is your sleepy time friend, and you're still "borrowing" your sister's pink blanket, plus a white one of your own.
• You're a super fast runner, and athletics, like most everything else, seems to come easily to you.
• You have more energy than we know what to do with.
• You love his sister like crazy. It's been a big transition for you this year, going from only to oldest, but you have surprised us all with your genuine affection for Susannah and the way you care for her. You're an AWESOME big brother!

There are so many special things about your three-year-old self that I would like to bottle up and keep forever, but I know that I can't simply describe you with a laundry list of your likes and habits. You have a spark, Aaron, and I see it every time you smile and your eyes light up. There is something deep inside you that's just beginning to take shape, and I'm so very excited to have a front row seat to watch you grow.

You are loved, little Bear, more that you can ever imagine. Being a super sentimental mom, I know I'd better stop now before I get all weepy over this birthday. I am so thankful for the privilege of being your mama, and excited to see the adventures that await us in the year ahead. Happy Birthday, Aaron!!!

Susannah update: ten months

You'll have to forgive my "just-the-facts" post here. I'm trying to get some of this down before I forget, but there's no time today to be witty. If you can hang with my stream-of-consciousness, I'll reward you with a cute photo of the sweet girl. :-)

It's been a big month for our Princess Peach. She cut her first tooth on Labor Day, and a second quickly followed. She's getting up on her hands and knees, and I know any day now I'll look down and watch her crawl away. Her vocabulary is now up to two words: mama and baby (what a wonderful pair to start with!!) And it became painfully obvious she'd outgrown her co-sleeper last week when she climbed right out of it. She's now graduated to a bigger bed, but still sleeps in my closet. We're joking that we've turned our 3 bedroom into a 4. Ha!

I weighed her yesterday and found she's still trimming down: 17 pounds on the nose (down about 1/2 a pound from last month). This is no cause for concern, as she came into the world with some - ahem - extra, shall we say? As she gets more mobile and is better able to regulate her body systems, she's shedding the superfluous poundage. The upside is that she isn't flying through clothing sizes quite as quickly. It's been nice to have her wear some outfits more than twice before outgrowing them!

"She's just a beacon," our friend Dr. Tony said when he saw her earlier this week, and that's a perfect way to describe our gorgeous girl. She has a sparkle all her own, and it's a lot of fun to see her personality unfold. She's playful and opinionated and so easy going. She's a lovely girl, inside and out.

She's playing with her baby and I'm playing with mine!

Daddy sure loves his girl. She's soooo kissable.

Today was...

A boat ride in a box...

A family dance party with our little rock star...

Some scooting around on the floor...

A run through the sprinkler...

And a snack on the deck...

Finished off with a bonfire and s'mores with the neighbors.

In other words, a wonderfully ordinary day. Hope you're having a great weekend, too!

He said something funny, and I remembered it long enough to write it down!

credits:

Say No To Piracy by Pretty in Green, MandyMade, and Wyld Web Designs

"I'm a pirate cooker!" you loudly proclaimed, pulling a chair up to the stove to help me stir the morning oatmeal. I love your imagination, Aaron!