Baby Girl is 4!

It seriously seems like yesterday I found out I was going to have a baby, and when I learned it was a baby girl I was over the moon! 

Over the past four years I have loved making bows & headbands, buying cute dresses, practicing hairdos & playing kitchen.

I have learned what it means to unconditionally love someone. I never thought I'd be so excited about a person walking, talking and pooping in the toilet! Motherhood is not easy, it can be hard and sometimes  tedious-- but it's so rewarding. This baby girl has been so patient with me trying to learn how to be a mom. I know that I have been blessed with her as my first child because she is so loving and forgiving through all of my parenting fails.

Bridgette is a very kind-hearted little lady. She loves making new friends, but always keeps her oldest one (good ole DeeDee) close by. 

She loves all creatures, she was furious with me when I poured salt on a slug, killing it. She said, "he was just trying to go home to his family!" 

She loves looking after her daddy, making sure he's very comfortable and is never wanting for food (even if it is felt & plastic.) She took while to warm up to Jack, and now is the best big sister! She loves to wash his hair, put dress up clothes on him & has taught him that no white door should go uncolored. Speaking of coloring, she is so artistic & could paint on her new easel for hours if Jack didn't interrupt her. She also loves singing & making up songs. She looks forward to playing in the bounce house @ the gym & is so excited to go to preschool & take gymnastics this fall. 

Happy Birthday Baby Girl!

Snuggling 2 week old Bridgette

Tearing into a cupcake on her 1st birthday

Aquarium Trip in Denver on her 2nd Birthday

Trip to Fossil Rim in Texas on her 3rd Birthday

My sweet 4 year old!

 For her birthday Dan wanted to surprise her with a bounce house @ her party. This is because the first weekend we were in our house the house adjacent to ours was having a party & there was a bounce house in their yard. She just sat on the patio & cried saying "why can't I go play in the bounce house with those kids?" Of course this broke Dan's heart, so he was determined to have one at her party.

I decided to go with a carnival theme to go along with the bounce house. We played little classic games like "Duck Hunt," "Ring Toss" & "Fishing". I was excited to have a little dress up/ photo booth station to take silly pictures, because Bridgette loves to do this, but her little friends didn't seem too keen on this idea : (

Bridgette had so much fun playing with her friends & of course going wild in the bounce house! We were so excited they could all come celebrate her turning 4! 

(I have to be honest, it's been 3 years since I've thrown a party, so I had a lot of fun making decorations. Our house looked like a glitter bomb exploded--yay!)

My photo booth fail. They're  so cute though!

Entrance sign!

Party table, Dan totally inspired my "strongman" silhouette.

Bounce house fun

DeeDee & Daddy time

Carnival Games

Opening Gifts 

Birthday Dinner @ Cheesecake Factory

After dinner when we walked out to the car she said, "Dad we need to take a picture of our reflection" 

She followed the treasure map to find her birthday present, an easel w/ paints, paper roll, chalk & dry erase board. She loves it!

She's writing her looong name too.

Summer 2013

Summer is Dan's busy time of year, he often works until 9 or later at the beginning. This summer was different for me because I had 2 little ones to keep occupied by myself. It doesn't sound too daunting, but they get tired of mommy real quick!

We did have some big accomplishments this summer. Bridgette is FINALLY fully potty trained--day & night!  I thought she would go to college in diapers, but a few months ago her little friend (who is younger than Bridgette) came over & I praised her for going potty. Bridgette saw this & I could see the WTF look on her face. That day she changed her tune about the potty & never looked back- phew!

Also, Jack FINALLY decided to sleep in his crib through the night. His whole life it was 1. Sleep through the night in my bed, keeping me awake half the night or 2. Sleep in his crib but wake up every 2 hours also keeping me awake half the night.  I feel like a normal person now.

Jack also started walking... this was awhile ago, so I feel like it's old news. I may have even posted it already. I was at a Relief Society function and Dan was watching him & he just stood up and took about 10 steps. It was about a week after his birthday, but he had been trying for a long time! He's a determined little guy for sure!

Here in Dallas it hovers around 100 degrees, day & night, most of the summer, so we spend a lot of time indoors or in water. I'm so excited for the temperatur to cool off!

Here are some things we did to occupy our time...

Peacock @ the petting zoo, although there were only about 2 animals they actually let us pet!

Jack's not afraid of a pregnant goat!

He would've brought the bunny home with us if they'd let him

This was Jack's expression almost the whole trip-- he LOVES all animals. 

All animals except donkeys... He probably doesn't appreciate the nickname they have.

Double goat.

Little Elm Lake beach trip. Bridgette liked the sand & Jack liked the water.   The beach is definitely a two parent activity @ this age.

First trip to the dentist. She did really good, but couldn't get out of that chair fast enough when it was over!

Loving our yard. She also refuses to ride her trike without a helmet. Safety first, silly girl!

Nothing makes the outdoors better than finding a good stick!

Bubble time by the (wading) pool

Soccer Tots, we'll probably hold off on soccer for a couple more years.

Favorite time of day, after dinner snuggle time in Daddy's fluffy chair.

Jack Jack is 1

I can't believe it's been a whole year! Life is a lot crazier with two little chillren, but it's pretty awesome too...

It's so amazing how two babies from the same parents can be so different! They both have wonderful yet distinct personalities. I think with every one's first baby we tend to get caught up with comparisons; who walks or talks first, who is more even tempered, who is cuter... When the second baby comes, that all goes out the window! For me it is constantly a reminder that we all are born with these amazing personalities, gifts & challenges and they're all going to be different than someone else.

Let me just make some of those comparisons for you:

Bridgette:

Was a difficult sleeper until about 5 months, then slept like a charm

Would eat anything I put in her face

Loved to Snuggle

Got her first 4 teeth by 7 months

hated diaper changes

screamed in the car seat/ stroller/ anytime we were shopping

met her "lovey" (Fred/ Dede if you haven't met him) and hasn't let go of him since

loves accessories of any kind, specifically hair accessories

was a chatterbox

Jack:

Slept well as an infant. But now he may take a catnap, but basically is a night owl

He tastes most things, but actually eats very little

He is in to everything, there is too much to do & see to snuggle!

His teeth just barely sprouted  (and is now a biter : (      )

As long as he has some snacks or a ball to hold he'll chill in the car/ stroller for hours

Hates having a "stinky" & will come and get me if he's poopy (hopefully that means he'll be easy to potty train)

He isn't so much into most toys but LOVES balls, he says "ball" more than "mama"

Hates accessories and long sleeved clothes (hmmm, did he inherit this from his Dad?)

He's too busy inspecting things to chat, he loves to tinker with things & see how they work.

These two are so different, but they're so sweet, friendly and so darn cute (I'm partial)! I'm so happy and blessed to have the opportunity to be a mother, specifically to these sweethearts.

Well, back to Jack's 1st birthday...

Jack has brought so much happiness and fun to our lives. He is such an easy-going, happy little guy.
I felt a little bad that we couldn't have all his cousins & family to celebrate like we were able to with Bridgy, but Texas is quite a drive for them. We just moved into a house, it was full of craziness and boxes, so basically we had a little "staycation" and spent time together as a family on his birthday. It was really low-key, but hey, he's only 1, so he wasn't complaining.

For his big 0-1 he got a little sit on turtle that bounces & rocks and plays songs when you bounce. Bridgette got him a big bead maze and a little wooden tiger on wheels. Needless to say he was most excited about the wrapping paper.

The day after his big day he was brought back down to Earth by the dreaded well-baby visit. He didn't grow much from his 9 month visit, so hopefully a growth spurt is in our near future. He's about 29 inches tall, but a sturdy 25lbs. Basically, if he were an adult, he'd resemble Danny DeVito. The visit was topped off by a round of shots, luckily the 10-ply fat rolls on his legs cushioned the blow & he was back to his happy self in literally 30 seconds.

Hmmm, what else can I say about this little guy (that many of you haven't spent much/ any time with)...

He LOVES Bridgette, much to her dismay. He follows where ever she goes & does whatever she does. She's starting to warm up to him too.

He likes to slap my face when he nurses ( TMI?)

Up until recently he would only take naps in a rock-n-play sleeper, "Recently" because he climbed out of it the other day & now I won't let him sleep in it at all.

He loves tools, for the past week if there wasn't a ball in hand, it was a mini wrench.

He's just starting to throw fits & sounds like a pterodactyl, or what I'd imagine one to sound like.

He loves other babies and gets excited to have them around.

Well, I could go on and on, but I'll just get to the photos.

Happy #1 Jack Jack, we LOVE you!

Just dove right in, this wasn't his first rodeo

Cupcake faces, nothing that a whole bar of soap, 30 min soak and some peroxide can't take care of

Sharing

This pink frosting was really gross, but Bridgette liked the main ingredient (sugar)

'Later Birthday Boy

 

Upload

It's always fun to upload photos from my camera. I usually use my iPhone, but sometimes I bust out the old boy & take some shots. Now, only if I could figure out Photoshop, I'm sure the combo might make some pretty great photos...

Some of these are from Christmas, so there may be some repeats. Let's be honest though, I'm adding this as an online journal, so it's nice for me to have :  )

Bridgette Playing Sardines with Papa Joe

Jack enjoying the Christmas Tree

Bridgette had an ear infection (this was back in Feb.)

First Kite, she was a pro at flying it

Daddy Love

Easter 2013, Chunky's first Easter

With their Easter Babies

It's Been Awhile

Wow! The last time I posted was Bridgette's 3rd birthday!

We have done a thing or two since then, but I don't think I'll bore you with too many details... Well, maybe I'll bore you with some details, but you don't have to read them if you don't want to.

Let me just breeze through last fall.

September: I had a birthday. I'm gettin' old, I can feel it in my bones, except in my mind I'm still 25. Dan's work slowed just a bit.

October: It cooled down to the 80's- yeah! At the end of the month we flew to Utah for Dan's work retreat/ a visit to the family. It was Jack's first time flying. He did great, Bridgette had a hard time though. She & Dan sat together & when the Flight Attendant told Dan she HAD to be buckled in so we could land I chuckled to myself... Dan's response was, "But she doesn't want to."  Of course that didn't fly, so he had to hold her down and buckle her in while she threw the biggest fit of 2012. It was great to see Dan try & manage that  : )

The trip was so great! It had been too long since we'd seen our family. They got to meet Jack and Bridgette got to play with cousins. She had so much fun!

November: We flew home the beginning of November.
For Thanksgiving we just went out to dinner. It sounds very un-festive, and it is, but when it's just the four of us, it's nice.

December: We finally got a bigger car-yeah! It's a Honda Pilot, it's so nice to have the extra space!
We celebrated our 6th anniversary. Wow- lucky Dan!
The new (to us) car came in handy when we drove to Colorado for Christmas. We spent the first half of our trip in Frisco, Co in a cozy condo near the ski resort.

The last half was spent @ the Williamson's home. It was so nice to spend time with them & Dan's two younger brothers, Stew & David. Bridgette still talks about them & riding around on Papa Joe's bike. Papa broke his leg in November & used a special scooter to more easily maneuver.  Bridge thought it was super cool when Uncles would push her around the house on it.

Below are a ton of photos of the last 5 months!

The Fall

Bridgette is finally taking her role as big sister seriously. She enjoys pushing "Chunky Buddy" around in the stroller.

Super er- Owl? 

Butterfly Flutterby in Grapevine. Tons of little girls (and people's dogs) dressed up as butterflies parading down Main St. At the end we got butterflies to release. Dan felt like he was marching in the Gay Pride Parade. Maybe next year I'll trick him into actually marching in one... That would be awesome.

Chunk Chunk is now on solids. He prefers to feed himself. I have to spread his baby food on toast or veggie slices & he gums on it. He's very independent.

His first swing ride. I think it hurt his boy bits...

Playing at the great park of Coppell. They rebuilt it, if you live in North Dallas, check it out.

On our Utah visit. Bridgette got to see the Temple (aka the Castle) that Mom & Dad got married in.

Fell while Twirling in her tights @ Uncle Scott & Aunt "Kaween's" house. She still talks about how she fell & busted her lip.

Shopping with Cousins in Salt Lake's new City Creek Shopping center. It was a nice shopping center, looks a lot different than when I lived there.

Snow! Bridgette found a little mound of snow in some bushes & had to jump in it.

Cornbelly's @ Thanksgiving Point. We met up with the Williamson Cousins. It was a good time!

Cousin Picture, Bridgette making a run for it. She got her fill of photographs on this trip. 

(Sidenote: Dede is in the Temple picture because Bridgette didn't want any more photos taken of herself, so she wanted Dede used as her stand-in.)

Trick-or-Treating with cousins, Kaia & Cruz. Jack's 1st Halloween, he was a penguin.

Our Thanksgiving. Watching "Wreck it Ralph" and going out to eat.