Precious Moments

Taylor and I have are so lucky to have my parents and grandparents live near by that we can visit often.  We had the nicest visit last Sunday.  It was nice to have no plans for the day and just relax on The Farm.  We visited on my grandparent’s porch during the afternoon downpour.  We were stuck there as the thunder and lightning seemed to be directly above us.  I got some great cuddles from Tay as she was a little nervous from the thunder being so close.

While we visited, I captured some of the precious moments from the day…

 

Taylor and her great grandma, Mimi, looked at old family photos together. 

“Old Papa”, as we fondly call him, is 90 years older than Taylor, but you’d never know it.  He gets down on the ground and crawls after Taylor just like a kid!  They stacked Legos together that were taller than Taylor. 

When we leave Mimi and Papa’s porch, Taylor literally goes back and gives them 2 or 3 more hugs and kisses goodbye.  It is just the sweetest thing!  I am so grateful that they have the opportunity to really know Taylor.  What a joy that is!

 

Once the rain let up enough, we took the long golf cart home to my parent’s house.  Taylor and Papa got some cuddle time in and watched a little Doc McStuffins.  Taylor insists on taking her “Baby Reese” and “Baby Lady” with her everywhere!  She’s a little Mommy.

Grgr treated Taylor to her first ice cream cone, which she absolutely loved!  She was even a good girl and shared!

Having a baby makes all the little things much more important.  I am soaking it all up and enjoying my time with my girl!  Like they always say – it just keeps getting better and better! :)

 

Mommy / Baby Birthday Weekend!

Two years ago, Taylor was my unexpected birthday present!  Forever and ever, we will get to celebrate our birthdays together!  This year was no different.  We spent a fun filled weekend at DISNEY WORLD!!!  I haven’t been to Disney with Taylor yet, so it was really special for us! 

She is such a fun age.  Still a little too young to really “get” Disney and to enjoy it all, but it was still so much fun seeing the excitement in her eyes.  Our good friends, Marc and Haden came along with us too.  They were good sports putting up with some of the “baby” stuff Tay and I wanted to do :)

 

Taylor appeared to be tall enough for the Goofy rollercoaster, but she apparently shrunk an inch after waiting in line, because when we got up there, they said she wasn’t quite tall enough to ride.  BOOO!  It was going to be scary for me to take her on it anyway – it’s kind of a big deal for a little kid rollercoaster!  Next time, Tay!

The kids at least kept us entertained in line…

It is an absolute must at Disney to eat your own Mickey Ice Cream, so I let Taylor just go to town on it.  As Taylor would say, she was a “MESS!”!  Chocolate was EVERWHERE!  That Minney dress was pretty much a total loss afterwards.

 

Should this not be the face for a Disney commercial?!  I know, as her mother I am biased, but I love the joy and excitement that I see in her face here…

and here… :)

  

Taylor met one of her favorites too – Daisy Duck!!  She even gave Daisy a kiss on the beak. That was quite a treat for her :)

We are just so thankful and blessed to have the opportunity to go to Disney.  It was a fun time and great memories were made!  Any day; happy or sad, rested or sleep deprived, bored or busy - is a day that I am thankful to be with my Tay Tay.  Believe it or not, I even thanked God for her as she was throwing a two-year-old fit and melted down from lack of sleep in the middle of the Magic Kingdom.  Good times! :)

What Makes You Beautiful

Baby you light up my world like nobody else

The way that you flip your hair gets me overwhelmed

But when you smile at the ground it aint hard to tell

You don't know
Oh Oh

You don't know you're beautiful!

 

(Lyrics from One Direction – What Makes You Beautiful)

ONE!!!

It’s off with the monthly stickers,

because this baby girl is ONE!

Yippee!!

Taylor and I had a BLAST celebrating her this past weekend.  My buddy, Cass of Artful Life Photography, was there and she took some amazing pictures.  Here is a little teaser for now.  Many, many more pictures and details about Tay’s party to come!  THANK YOU to all our loved ones who came and who made it a day to remember forever!

12 Month Well Check Stats:

Head Circumference: 90th percentile (18.5 inches)

Height: 47th percentile (29 inches)

Weight: 85th percentile (23.5 pounds) Chuba-bubba! 

 

One Year Ago…

One year ago, this precious baby girl was born and life would never be the same. 

This year has been full of it’s ups and downs, but Taylor has been my constant.  Every minute with her is such a blessing!  A day doesn’t go by that I don’t thank God for her.  She is my proof of God’s faithfulness! I’m not too sad to see it go, because watching her grow up and develop is such a joy!  I feel that I did the best job I could to savor every moment. 

Life is no where the same as it was the night she was born.  It’s all so very different and I could of never predicted it, but I wouldn’t change a thing.  Life continues to evolve and we adapt and I trust in the Lord’s path for us.  At the end of the day, we are family, we are loved, we are healthy, and she is my everything. 

Preparations are underway for Taylor’s Birthday Extravaganza this weekend and I cannot wait to celebrate her with all my loved ones!

Easter Blessings

 

This Easter was such a blessing to have this sweet little girl in my arms!  I was so pregnant last year at Easter and I wanted her to be here already!  Little did I know, she’d be here just one short week later.  Flash forward to this year, and she’s here with me and absolutely perfect!  I couldn’t be happier. 

I caught her just as she was waking up on Easter morning so that we could go through her Easter basket.  She got a bunch of little trinkets, princess Band-Aids, a princess crown, the bunny she’s sitting next to (above), and more!  She’s one lucky girl!

This year, my family and I went to church and then spent the rest of the day at the pool enjoying the perfect weather!  It’s not too hot… yet.

 

 

 

You may recognize the dress I am wearing from my ‘I Want’ post a few weeks ago.  Yep, I got it and love it!  So comfy and cute!

 

Isn’t my family a beautiful bunch of people?!

Later on, Taylor got dressed up in my old baby dress that my Grandma Hoffmann made for me over 30 years ago!  Isn’t that special?  She was just a doll baby in it!

I’ll leave you with some of the many faces of Taylor…  She cracks me up with her multitude of expressions!

“Good” Friday

 

This Good Friday started very early for me… and my sweet little alarm clock Taylor decided to get up two hours early!  Up and at ‘em!  We got bottles ready for the day, made some coffee, and turned on the tv while we enjoyed our beverages.  I was up and feeling spunky, so I put on a pot of carrots to boil since Taylor was getting low on her veggies.  Since Tay woke up so darn early, she napped at 7:30 and I got to do some work.  We are going to play hooky today, but since she’s going to nap for awhile, its the perfect time for me to knock out a bunch of emails and such. 

Aren’t sleeping babies the absolute cutest?!

The neighbor’s horses came by for a visit this morning, so we fed them some apples and carrots.  It’s so peaceful waking up to the sight of beautiful horses among the misty fog outside.

 

Today is all about prepping for the fun Easter weekend.  I’ve got Taylor’s outfit all laid out and ready for church!  I looked all over for the perfect outfit for her – Baby Gap, Carters, etc… and ended up finding this at Tar-jay!  Gotta love Target! 

And of course, what Easter outfit wouldn’t be complete without her white patent leather mary janes (I hope they still fit her fat feet) and a bow!

Half the time I don’t even know what I am going to wear anymore since I am more concerned with prepping for Taylor all the time.  I better give it some thought….

Speaking of prepping for Taylor; her Easter basket it all ready too!  I can’t wait to see her dig into it. 

  

Taylor had a lunch/play date today with her girlfriend, Sophie.  After her nap, she was well rested and ready to play!  Sophie is 4 months old now, and it’s so cute watching the two of them play and interact.  Taylor is so into babies these days.  She wants to touch them and kiss them right in the face!

Later in the day, Taylor’s Great Aunt and Uncle came to visit for the weekend.  Taylor received her first birthday present – a baiting suit and cover up!  We love it, but it’s a tad too small.  Someone need 18-24 month clothes already!  At least she’ll get use out of the bow for now :)

After a delicious Corn Beef dinner at Mimi’s, we came home for bath time, PJs, and to dye Easter eggs!

What a good great day it was!  I’m exhausted!  Happy Easter, All!!