3 Months

This month's photo shoot proved challenging for a number of reasons, but the one most relevant to you is that you kept trying to do sit ups and would get upset that you couldn't! We are definitely not there yet buddy :). You are truly a happy baby. Almost all who meet you comment on that exact thing almost immediately. You are such a smiley and sweet little guy and your favorite thing is just to smile and coo back and forth with people. Three days before your three-month birthday you started rolling over (tummy to back). You've never been a fan of tummy time, but on the day you rolled over you had a much different look on your face. It was as though you knew you were going to do it the whole time :). You still aren't the best sleeper, but the good news is that this isn't our first rodeo. We know that eventually you'll sleep more when you're ready. It could be better, but it could be so. much. worse. so we're not complaining :D. Three months has absolutely flown by. At the same time, I try to remember our "routine" before you blessed our family, but it all really seems like the distant past and that you have always been here with us. I cannot believe you are no longer a newborn and are on your way to ticking off all of those first year milestones. I feel like that should be for older babies!

Harris - 2 months

Oh yea. That's right. It's September 17 and I'm actually getting this blog up on his ACTUAL 2 month birthday. What do I win?

Harris, you are such a cutie pie. This month has brought with it the smiles and coos and I love getting to see little glimpses of your developing personality. You seem quite content to hang out much of the time and you love when you actually get some one on one attention from mommy or daddy. That being said, you also love to watch your sister dance around you while you are playing in your floor gym. You, like your sister, hate the car. She really hated it most when we were stopped. You, on the other hand are either great in the car or ANGRY at the car. It's starting to get a little better, but I've ordered you your own tiny noise machine to travel with you in the hopes that it will help you feel more settled. We actually left you for the first time overnight at Mimi and Poppy's house this past weekend. I won't lie, it was tough. But, we all survived :). We love you little doodle bug.

Current 2 month stats:
Weight: 10 lbs 12 oz (20th percentile)
Height: 22 3/4 inches (44th percentile)
FOC: 16 inches (93rd percentile)

Harris is 1 month

Let's just pretend it hasn't been close to a year since I last blogged and that I had documented life including my daughter's 2nd birthday, my pregnancy, our remodeling adventures, and Harris's birth, shall we? Yes? Good. Oh. And let's also pretend that this is closer to his 1 month birthday than his 2 month.

You looked so much like your sister when you were born. But there are already big differences coming through in your little personality. So far, you may be our more easy going one. We shall see how that continues to unravel, but I'm predicting that you will be a bit more low-key than your big sister! You are precious and so very loved. Your big sister absolutely adores you. She will walk up to you, boop your nose, give you a kiss, pat your head, or give you a smother hug and say, "you are so precious" or "i love you sooooo much." It is so wonderful to watch. You have a built in friend, protector, and buddy! I imagine your relationship won't always be kisses and hugs, but I am so thankful for this bond that you two will share. You seem to be most content when you get to be close to mommy and the Solly wrap has definitely become one of my best friends. People are always amazed as we walk around the grocery store, bookstores, church, etc that there is a tiny baby snuggled in there. Well, maybe not tiny. Your newborn clothes were packed up at 3 weeks! We didn't have a one month pediatrician appointment, but you had certainly already packed on some good chub in the first few weeks of your life :).

The first month truly was a blur with getting settled as a new family of four, but it already seems like you have always been here!

Mommy photo shoot fail

So many lessons to learn as a mom in general, but definitely so many to learn as a mom of two! Our first sibling shoot (July 24) was an utter fail due to my intense lack of patience and understanding with our poor Anna Kate. The results follow:

This was the best photo we got that day, but a much needed conviction on my heart was truly the best outcome.

Harris's arrival

In pictures for now, but hopefully his birth story to be added at a later date!

Washington Corridor Bucket List

Our house is under contract! Yayayayayay! No more cleaning like a mad woman every time we leave the house, no more chasing a toddler around saying don't touch this or that. It's time to get back to living and letting others live :D! We have been in this house our entire marriage and our entire parenthood (thus far), so in a way, we will be sad to leave this place. But in so many other ways, we are ready to move on. Before we go, there are a few favorite spots we need to hit and a few spots that I've planned on hitting and never have. Let's start the list:

1. That thrift store. What's the name? Anyway...that one.
2. BRC. Been there for drinks, but never eats.
3. Westheimer antique shops. Been, but it's fun to stroll with the fam.
4. Dolce Vita - yuuuum.
5. J. Blacks
6. Memorial Park picnics
7. Bayou walks
8. Laredo Taqueria breakfast tacos

I'll update with pics when each item is crossed off the list and there very well may be more added once I consult the hubby. I know it's the season for Fall bucket lists, but there isn't time for both and we've already been to a pumpkin patch :).

Zoo with cousins!

Super fun day at the zoo with cousins:

Caterpillar "exhibit" ;)

 

She ADORES her cousins. Adores them. I can't get over how much fun she has with them and how crazy excited she gets when I mention that we get to go play with them. She had so much fun running around the zoo hand in hand with Liam. There was running, jumping, chatting. It's also pretty handy that if she won't follow me, I can always get her to come running if I ask her to go get the boys. She'll run off yelling , "boys!" Just the best. 

Colorado

Oops. I completely forgot to blog about Colorado. It was a very much needed time away and a wonderful time to explore and be together as a family. No more words. Lots of pictures.

Right now

These are right now things I want to remember about you. The way you:

• Say "I I lub you too," "I I lub mommy," and "I I lub daddy"
• Tell the whole world that mommy goes pee pee or poo poo when we're in a public restroom :)
• Hide behind the chair in your room when it's time for a diaper change or some other thing you don't want to happen
• Snuggle in bed with us in the morning. Absolute favorite part of the day
• Kiss both of my cheeks
• Wave hi to so many people whenever we're out and about
• Know and LOVE your cousins. And get so very sad whenever we have to leave them
• Tell me it's "Mommy turn" when we're at a park, coloring, dancing, and anxiously wait for me to take my turn
• Spout off letters, numbers, and colors from the back seat when we're driving
• Learn!! I love that you just tell me what you're ready to learn next. Body parts - check. Animals - check. ABC's - check. Numbers - check. Now it's time for colors! I love your curiosity and the delight you take in finding out more about the world around you. 
• Have to be completely naked to sit on the potty :D. No successful pees or poos in the potty yet, but you do insist quite often on getting naked and sitting there ;)
• Ask "why?" I thought this stage came later, but you are definitely wanting to know why a lot these days!
• Name your people. Sometimes I think you get a little tired of it just being you and mommy, so you start naming all of your people
• Love dinosaurs. Love them. And roar like them. We had to take away Dino Dan (TV show) b/c the little bugger lies to his parents, but I let you watch Dinosaur Train sometimes as a substitute and we got you some dinosaur magnets that you love
• Role play with your baby. You'll change her diaper, take her for walks, and put her down for a nap. Sometimes I catch you telling her "no no no" or "don't." Sounds like someone (points finger at self) should make sure her tone is loving during correction! 
• Squish your nose up when you say "ouch" for something that doesn't realllllly hurt, but requires a kiss to make it better
• Say "thanks" and "thank you" without being prompted when we give you a snack or your milk

Oh my goodness the list goes on and on. Even on difficult days, you always bring a smile to my face with your sweet and spunky personality!

Dreams

I have a dream of our house being a true home. A place where our kids feel like they can play, create, make mistakes, shelter. I want them to take part in the upkeep of our home, but not to make it pretty. Just to keep the dream a reality. I want a room chock full of beds to fit so many cousins and friends. I want a place in our home to continuously hang inspiring verses, words, drawings. An ever-changing wall. A wall that grows with our family and tells where we are and where we have been to friends who visit.

I know I am definitely a study in contradictions. I really do love design and have a pretty definite idea of what I like in a home, a room. But I need to remember and be reminded of my real dream. My heart's real desire. And that is a place where we can build traditions and memories. Not a place that always needs to look like a magazine page. Maybe I can visit those places and admire their work :).

We have some changes coming to our lives in the next few months. One of which is selling our current home, our first home as a family, and embarking on finding that true home where we grow, love, live. If all goes according to plan (and I think God's timing is perfect and working for our good in a lot of different situations right now), we'll stay in my old townhouse for a few months while we find that new place. It will be a nice few months of living more simply.

Just a little inspiration pic:

via Coastal Living Ultimate Beach House / Urban Grace Interiors 

I will hold on hope

I hesitate to even write this post. It's done. It's over. It's in the past. But then why did I tear up when I went back to the gym for the first time since it happened today? Why do I get mad each and every time a person I know with a kiddo around Anna Kate's age announces that they are pregnant on Facebook?

We started trying to get pregnant in May. We got pregnant in May and found out on June 1. I was shocked. Kind of didn't really believe it was real. But then we went to the dr. and saw a heartbeat. The baby was measuring a week behind what we thought, but I wasn't that concerned. Anna Kate measured small my entire pregnancy. But my symptoms were never as strong as they had been with Anna Kate. And I just didn't think things were right. We went back to the dr. two weeks later and our suspicions were confirmed. No heartbeat, no growth since 6 wks.

I wish it was something I did. Because I could control that. I could not do that thing the next time around. The thing that caused my baby to die. Was it because I had two half-caff cups of coffee/day? Did I run too much? Was it that stupid mercury lightbulb I dropped? Well I just won't do those things next time around.

But in my heart I know it wasn't something I did. I know it just wasn't in God's plan for us to meet this baby here on earth. And that sucks.

Now let me at the truth
Which will refresh my broken mind

We will be disappointed in this life, but Lord...please don't let me become discouraged. Please let me hold on hope.

19 months

Wow. I know that at each stage, I am going to be in wonder of so many different things, but this is just such a fun and amazing age! You are learning so many new things each day and trying out new ways to communicate and play. Each day brings a handful of new words, new dances, new pretend play, new discoveries. You've really taken to playing with dolls in the past few weeks. Putting them in strollers, feeding them, trying to get clothes on and off, dancing with them, patting their backs, rocking them. It's neat to watch you figure out your own world through pretend play with dolls. I imagine it must be pretty tough to have someone (your mommy or daddy) dictating pretty much most of what you do, eat, wear. It's probably a pretty nice change to be able to be in charge of your dolls :).

You've started saying "Mommy" and "Daddy" now instead of "Mama" and "Dada." I'm not gonna lie, it kind of melts our hearts :). After dinner, you'll often run to the stairs and say "bath." And when it's time for night night, you point to your teeth, say "brush teeth," and run to the gate to go upstairs. You seem to like your routine :).

One day recently, you hit your foot on something and started whining a little bit. I asked you if you wanted me to kiss your foot to make it better and you ran over and lifted your foot. Often when you hurt yourself a little (even if it's not your foot), you come running over and lift your foot for me to kiss. It cracks me up and I love the little smile you have on your face when I'm covering your foot in kisses. You've started to tickle us back and tickle your dolls too. Your little fingers strum lightly over our backs, tummies, feet, and we giggle much more at the sweetness that is you than actually being tickled!

You still love your books, especially if you get to roar like a lion or meow like a kitty. ABC's are becoming a favorite of yours too. If you see a letter, you'll usually say "A" "P" or "R" (we have a few monogrammed "R" things around the house). Those appear to be your favorite letters so far. Last night after dinner, you repeated all of the letters up to "R" after your Daddy. I think you were tired after all the effort and just couldn't bring yourself to finish! Often times, we'll get a request for "AB?" or "up above?" and we'll start singing your two seemingly favorite songs.

A few recent pictures (taken at 18 months...and of course I kept meaning to write this update to coincide with the pictures!)

Starting to get into dressing up. And saying "peek boo" while lifting the sunglasses up and down :). 

JUMP!

We've been trying to get this on video for weeks. It's the best we could do given the fact that most times I whip out the camera and she comes running around to my side to see what's happening on the screen :). 

Anna Kate is a jumping foooool. I love how she lifts both arms in the air to really get the momentum for the big jump going :D. 

The Mean Girl

That was me. I was the mean girl. And now, watching my nephews grow up, and watching my baby get closer and closer to little girl-hood, it breaks...no it shatters...my  heart. I bullied. I kept people out of my "club." I kicked. I made people feel small. Just so that for maybe a moment, a tiny moment, I could feel big.

We were recently at a family party with wonderful people. Anna Kate was playing in the girls' room. She had never seen such bounty of pink, doll, sparkle, and shine! She was sitting in the corner, playing with a barbie doll (she only owns 1 doll and had never seen such a thing!). It was a naked barbie doll. But she didn't care! She was playing with it, patting its head and enjoying a new discovery. The older girls across the room looked over, pointed, laughed, and said, "Look!! She's playing with a naked barbie!" Anna Kate obviously had no idea what had just happened. She looked back at the girls, smiled brightly, and continued playing with the doll. But it was my first glimpse into something that could hurt her in the future. She was excited and enjoying playing with a doll. Had no reason to think there was anything wrong with what she was doing. And these girls are NOT mean. That is not my point here. I just saw how a simple comment like that from the "older" girls (insert cool, prettier, etc) could in the future make Anna Kate put aside something she thought was fun just to please other people. And as much as I know it happens, it truly hurts my heart to know that her innocence, her joy, her exuberance for life will change as these experiences occur in her life.

Oh Lord, help me know how to help my daughter handle the mean girls and the hurts (big and tiny) that are inevitably going to be a part of her life. Give me the wisdom, the grace, the love, and the strength to know when to help her stand up, to know when to give grace, and to know when to walk away. Help me to know when to step in and help me to know when I need to stand close by and let her walk through these trials.

17 months

It's official. Anna Kate is no longer a baby. Technically, she's been a toddler now for a few months, but it really seems as of late that she is just such a little girl! The past few weeks have been so much fun watching her grow, learn, and engage more and more. She is repeating so many words now and it seems daily she adds something new to her repertoire. We also very well may be entering the world of "I do it myself." Almost every trip up and down the stairs takes 30% longer with her wanting to climb up and down herself. I just have to remind myself to slow down and let her learn/explore/do! Our "safe spots" on tops of side tables and shelves are starting to be in her reach and with her climbing couches, not much is out of her abilities!

One of my absolute favorite things is to stand from another room and watch her play. She will flip through books (stopping to study each page), sing/dance with Violet, hug her dolls and say "awww," and show off her vacuuming skills by maneuvering her toy vacuum through the house. I would love to know what she is thinking in those moments! Soon enough, I know :D.

The weather has been quickly heating up, so we've been spending as much time as possible playing outside before the crazy Houston summer gets too extreme! She loves climbing all over the playscapes and will grab our hands for us to walk/climb around with her. It seems to depend on her mood, but she has gone down the big slides quite a few times by herself. She'll start out with a smile, turn a bit apprehensive, and then another big smile at the bottom. I think we may have a dare-devil on our hands!

A few weeks ago was my nephew, Colson's, Spring Program at his pre-school. Anna Kate absolutely loved watching the kiddos sing and dance and was getting her bouncy/jumpy/dancing groove on in Mimi's lap most of the show!

Jamming with Mimi at cousin Colson's Spring Program

Rockport

We are so incredibly blessed to have such sweet and giving friends! Our friends, Tom and Kim, generously offered to let us use their beautiful house in Rockport for a few days. We took them up on it a few weeks ago and it was such a nice getaway for our family. This was actually the first time we have gotten away as just a family of three! Our trip also marked Anna Kate's first "real" trip to the beach! We took her last year, but it was soooooo hot that we just snapped some pictures and left quickly thereafter. AK had such a fun time shoveling sand, chasing seagulls, and wading in the water with Daddy. Although...the seagulls soon became her nemesis. They were BOLD. I brought out some crackers for AK (yes, NOW I know not to do that in the future!) and they would not stay away. One even flew by and snatched one out of my hand! She climbed in my lap, hugging me tight and yelled "NO!" while shaking her finger at the seagulls. It was a pretty funny scene :).

awwww

Miss Independent

Blue Steel

Hiding in Mom's arms from the seagulls

Easter

Just a few pictures from our Easter weekend!