Halloween 2012

Abigail isn't quite old enough for trick-or-treating and she doesn't really 'get' it yet but we still had a great time dressing up this year! I have a weakness for animal costumes so Abigail was a zebra this year - she was a lion last year. 

We celebrated last week at her preschool class party. I made these cute little treat bags for all the kids.
 

As always, we carved pumpkins and this year Abigail could help clean out the 'guts.'

I always print out several designs for us to choose from and Jan always picks the easiest! He carved the jack-o-lantern face and I carved the ghost.

We decided to stay in our neighborhood and try to stick to our 'normal' routine as best as possible since Abigail had school today. I didn't want to keep her out late, over-stimulate her and then send her to school this morning cranky and tired. 

At this point, she must have been tired of me following her around with the camera and trying to get her attention. She looks quite annoyed, ha!

We did get to visit one of the very few neighbors with small kids and this was about the best picture I could get of Abigail and Trip. They were both running wild!

 

And we made one trick-or-treat stop on the way back home. Abigail was introduced to plain M&Ms and she loved them (she must take after her Oupa who is a big M&M fan).

Grandpa and Bibi came to visit too...

 Along with Uncle Ty and Meme (but somehow I didn't get a picture of her with Meme).

Halloween 2011

We hope everyone had a great Halloween!

My Pumpkin Head at the Pumpkin Patch!

One of my favorites things about holidays is honoring traditions and creating new ones, and I remember dreaming of the days when my husband and I would create our own traditions for our own little family. 

This year we took Abigail to the local pumpkin patch for the first time - she was too young last year (only a few months old). And while she is still a little young to really embrace everything, it was a fun family outing that hopefully we will continue every year. 

She loved these pink and blue pumpkins at the entrance.

All set to ride through the field of pumpkins.

We are still at the age where EVERYTHING goes in her mouth...guess she's taste testing this little one.

 

My lil' pumpkin head isn't much of a poser, so these were the best we could get, ha!

After we picked out a few carving pumpkins, we went on a scary hay ride. 

Abigail wasn't too sure about the decorations or the rough tractor ride. 

We had a great time starting our own little family tradition.

Abigail Suzanne: 15 Months!

Abigail is 15 months old! It's hard to believe sometimes. 

She is growing up so quickly but we are loving every minute of it! 

It's hard to imagine loving your child MORE each day, but it happens. I guess much in the same sense that I love Jan more today than I did on our wedding day. We are all growing together, learning together and making memories that makes our love for one another multiply. I hope it never stops!

Abigail is SO much fun right now. She is a fast little munchkin, and never seems to stop when she's awake. She's definitely not a cuddlier and doesn't like to be held down and restrained. She is VERY independent, which she gets honestly from both Jan and I, and she never meets a stranger - she is VERY friendly. I think her personality is going to be a lot like Jan's, he is so likeable and friendly to everyone. 

Abigail is very funny and she likes to make us laugh. She thinks everything with her Daddy is a game. She will run towards the stairs if the gate is not closed and look back at him over her shoulder, daring him to stop her. When he says 'NO', she laughs and thinks he's playing - we have to work on this. She listens to me, oddly enough, and my 'NO' is much softer and nicer than his, go figure. I guess she thinks I mean business for some reason, ha! 

She LOVES Daisy - they are the best of friends. She will take Daisy all of her toys in the yard and Daisy is so gentle with her. Abigail loves to sit on Daisy, but Daisy doesn't seem to mind. Daisy always puts a smile on Abigail's face when she greets her in the morning - this is really nice if she happens to wake up grumpy!

Abigail is loving school and I think she's actually learning a lot. Not only how to wait her turn or stand in line but she's also becoming familiar with her ABCs and 123s. We sing the alphabet song several times a day and she tries to formulate the sounds. If you ask Abigail what sound the cow makes, she will MOO - a dinosaur, she will ROAR. She will repeat I. Love. You. and 1. 2. 3. She says Daddy and Daisy. And she will shake her head from left to right while saying 'No.' She will also pull up my shirt and rub my belly when we ask her about the baby or Luke. Of course, getting her to do things on command can be difficult - she does things when she wants to do things! 

At her 15 month wellness visit, Abigail weighed 27 pounds and was 32.5 inches long (90th percentile for weight, 95th percentile for height). She is still wearing a size 4 diaper and size 18-24 clothes (some 2Ts). Her foot is about a size 5.5 wide. She a fairly big girl for her age, but she's extremely healthy. 

We look forward to introducing Abigail to Luke soon. I think she is going to be so loving and gentle with him (or at least I hope). I know she is going to be a great big sister!

Beach Trip - Summer 2012

Earlier this month, our little family took a quick trip down to the beach. We had originally planned to spend an entire week at the beach but with Jan starting a new job, buying a house and moving, Abigail's birthday party and this pregnancy, we only managed to squeeze in 1/2 week.

We arrived on Wednesday and after unloading in the condo, we spent a little time at the kiddie pool. Abigail loved it but didn't really want to stay in her float. We spent most of the time chasing after her as she walked everywhere and explored her new surroundings.

After our swim, we made our way to Pier Park for dinner and ice cream. We decided to try out Dick's Last Resort (Jan had been to the one in Boston). If you're not familiar with Dick's, they pride themselves on service with sarcasm. I think this may have been fun for us a few years ago (or maybe if we had been drinking), but it's not really our scene now - my, how things have changed. We probably won't be going back but my food was pretty good. 

They make these large white hats for the guests and then write funny/dirty/crazy things on them. Abigail didn't want to wear hers. 

The next morning on the beach was a bit of a disaster. Remember, I'm still a new parent, thus I'm still learning. I coated Abigail in sunscreen before hitting the beach, as any good parent does, BUT she/me/someone managed to get it in her eyes - and sunscreen in NOT like the baby shampoo/body wash - it DOES sting. Needless to say, the first hour Abigail was super fussy because her eyes were on FIRE! Talk about a total mom fail - I felt terrible!

We eventually recovered some, but then Abigail wasn't crazy about the sand. She was very comfortable sitting on my lap and playing but she would NOT sit on the sand.

Lucky for me, a friend just went to the beach and had the same sand issue and blogged about her solution, so after a good nap and a quick run to the local Target, we hit the beach again - for a much more successful time.

tiny blow-up pool = happy sand free kid = very happy mommy

Thanks, Jessica, for the tip!

After an hour or so, Abigail was brave enough to venture out into the sand. The blow-up pool/sand combo worked well for us the rest of the week.

We ended the day much better than it began with a nice dinner at Captain Anderson's and then a round of putt-putt and go-karts. 

Before dinner

Cheering for daddy as he races go-karts

Abigail's first golf lesson

 Friday and Saturday were definitely more successful days at the beach. We went to a great restaurant Friday night called Firefly - I highly recommend it. Saturday afternoon we went to Destin for a little outlet shopping. We bought Abigail some school clothes and shoes and found a few cute things for Luke too. 

When we woke up Sunday, it was raining, so we decided to slowly make our way home. All-in-all, it was a great trip. Jan and I enjoyed getting away, taking some time off from work and spending several days with our angel.

We did learn a few things though.

1. We will not be eating out much any more. We hardly ever eat out at home but love to find nice restaurants when on vacation. Not any more - it is too stressful! Every night, I had a fabulous dinner (lobster, filet, crab cakes, etc) but didn't get to truly enjoy or savor it because I was preoccupied with Abigail's sippy cup or crackers or toys. Jan and I agree it will be easier to eat-in for the next few years (unless we have a sitter).

2. When applying sunscreen to a toddler, be sure to avoid their hands and eyes. Obviously, I didn't apply it directly over Abigail's eyes, but I DID apply it to her hands which go directly to rubbing her eyes. Maybe this is a stupid mistake to some people, but my preggo brain didn't even consider the consequence. If someone knows of a sunscreen that won't burn the eyes, PLEASE let me in on the secret.

3. Take a blow-up kiddie pool to the beach. They are inexpensive and so nice to have when playing in the sand. Even when Abigail was comfortable sitting directly on the sand, the pool of water was nice to have nearby to quickly rinse hands for snacks, drinks, to rub eyes, etc.

And like I said earlier, we are still learning.