Family Weekend in PA

My side of the family took a road trip to PA this past weekend to celebrate my niece's dedication on Sunday. Here are some of the many pics R took of our family weekend of fun!












Here is A at 11 1/2 months with cousin T at 10 1/2 months and cousin P at 2 days shy of 9 months. I'm not really sure what A is doing in this picture...

The hair continues to grow

A few posts back I received a comment asking if A had a hair cut. I had to laugh because for as tight as her curls can get her hair is VERY VERY long! Here are a few pictures of her hair straight. The third one down really gives an accurate look at the length. :)





And here is her hair once the curls tighten up after a bath. :)

New York Botanical Gardens

One of the great things about living so close to NYC is all the different places we can go and enjoy with A. This past weekend we went to the NY Botanical Gardens in the Bronx (although you would never know you were in the city). They had tons of beautiful flowers and a nice little outside cafe to eat lunch but the best part of the day was definitely the company!

A admiring her shadow.

Minutes before nap time.
Nap time.
There is nothing as sweet as a snuggle.





My favorite picture of the day...

Day At The Park

My First Mother's Day

R and A gave me the best first Mother's Day I could ask for. It started off with pancakes that said "I Love (well, it was a heart shaped pancake) U" and just got better from there! Here are a couple pics from our day.



Since it was Mother's Day it seemed like a perfect day to pull out a sweater that my Grandma had made that my sister passed on to A when she was born.

A Bit of Reflection and Realization

My floors are A MESS! I was sitting on the floor with A yesterday and we were goofing around laughing and I couldn't help but notice the untidy floors. Cheerios, dust bunnies, you name it, it was (well, is) on our floors. When was the last time I swept our floors??!? There was a time not too long ago that I was sweeping at least once a day if not more but lately God has been showing me a new outlook on priorities and I have to tell you it has been freeing. Ever since A was born I had this self imposed outlook that since I was no longer in corporate America the house should be sparkling clean, the dishes put away, fancy dinners on the table, ect. But when I think about it, why am at home? Among other reasons, to introduce A to the world, set an example for her, offer structure, eventually discipline, but mostly because I love her and have been blessed with the opportunity to be home with her. When I chose to be a stay at home mom it was not so I could have a beautiful kept house. As Mother's Day approaches I can look back on my childhood and remember my mom making scavenger hunts for us to find our lunches, making up dance moves with me in the living room, helping me before my spelling tests. And for as much as I am very confident she did make our dinners, do the dishes, and clean and iron our clothes those are not the memories I will look back on and cherish. I am extremely confident that R would look back on his childhood with his mom in the same way. We never felt like interruptions to our moms when I am sure they both had very long and continual to-do lists and I never want A to feel like an interruption in my day. So my floors with eventually be swept and the dishes will eventually get put away but for now I am looking forward to when A wakes up and I can sit on the floor with her snuggled in my lap reading a book or high above my head flying through the rooms like a airplane.

A special Happy Mother's Day to my mom and R's mom for all the times you chose us over your to-do lists! We love you!