Photo Bomb of Amelia's 2nd birthday!!!

Amy's 2nd birthday Photo Bomb!!!

Every year on our birthday we start it out with pink pancakes!

My beautiful 2 year old on her birthday!!!

My heart couldn't be fuller! 

My sweet girl!!

Birthday love

Special made birthday bow given to Amy by a friend

MMMMM.....

^^Awesome birthday friends^^

cousin learning how to walk

great concentration 

all worn out after her big day!
Amy had a blast and it was an absolutely wonderful birthday with friends and family. We are so blessed to be surrounded by so much love and friendship.  I couldn't imagine a better way to spend my birthday. I am so looking forward to another year with this wonderful little blessing.

Amelia turns 2!!! (23 and 24 month update)

Amelia, my baby girl, your two!  I cant believe it! I am still wrapping my mind around the saying of "I have a two year old".

Where do I start? We have 2 months to go through and what a busy two months it has been.

You are 30 pounds 6 ounces and 35 inches tall. That's 1 pound and 2 inches in two months. Yup you went through a growth spurt alright!

Talking: Well you my little girl are defiantly a talker and can say 102 words and 8 small sentences! I can't believe you have learned 43 new words in 2 months. I am loving it!

Your new words are: Mine, shower, cold, teeth, you, juice, glasses, on, cookie,off, there, it, see, ow, guys, pop, he, she, is, sorry, come, balloon, read,  heart, circle,book, more, car, apple, pray, arm, potty, hat, socks, goose, water, later, Amelia, sky, one, five, four, blast.

Sentences: come on, there you are, there it is, there he/she is, here you go, hi guys, more juice please, bye bye see you later.

You can count backward from 5 and forward to 3.

Shapes you know: Heart, circle, and star

Potty training: Lets just say we have our really good days and our really bad days, but hey we will get there when we get there.

Paci: You only get "sass" for night night time and are doing very well with that.

Eating: You will eat just about anything, but are weird with you veggies. Some days you can't get enough, others you refuse to eat them period. Mommy is sneaky though, she hides them in your juice, noodles, and sauces and you don't mind that at all!

Sleeping: Well you sleep great as long as you sleep with us from midnight on. We aren't complaining though. to be completely honest, mommy loves it and sleeps better!

Playing: Oh my goodness, you can play for hours, especially if it involves water. You are such a water baby and lately we are out by your baby pool every day, for at least an hour. You got a bouncy house for your birthday, which you love and a sand and water table! Lets just way we spend ALOT of time outside this summer.

You still love our mommy and me groups and now that it is summer, we have something to do almost every day!

Events:
 I took you strawberry picking! By far these were the sweetest strawberries I have ever eaten!

You spend at least a hour a day doing "school time" with mommy and daddy.

you and daddy got distracted during school time and decided to cover your selves in blue chalk instead.

You have learned to count backward from 5 and it is hilarious! You run around yell 5 4 3 2 1 blast off!

You are communicating with us more and whining less ( it helps that mommy and daddy try to crack down on whining).

You went to MMO for the first time! You have been doing so good there. So far my reports have consisted of how well you play with others, goes potty for them, does great during craft time, and overall is a good child. It is music to this mommy's ears! I am so proud of my sweet girl!

You went to see the Birmingham Zoo this month and LOVED it! You are such an animal lover. You especially loved the big cats.

Mommy and daddy took you bowling this month and you loved it for the first 3 frames and then preceded to run around playing the rest of the time :)

I am so glad that this summer has already been so eventful and you have both mommy and daddy to spend it with. We am soaking up every minute of it. Mommy and daddy are so loving watching you grow up and we can't wait to see what this next year has in store for us.  As always we love you with all our hearts Amelia, you are our greatest blessing!

Happy Birthday to Amy!!!! oh and me!!!

Two years ago I was blessed with the most wonderful birthday gift I would've ever imagined, a beautiful baby girl!!!

Happy Birthday my sweet angel! Mommy and daddy are so proud of you and the person you already are!
We love you with all our hearts!!!!!

Soulful Sunday! One Proud Mommy!

Why am I proud? Because Amy has started to have an interest in praying with me and my husband! This is a major milestone for us. Amy is being brought up in the christian faith and to see her embracing it for the first time, brings such happy tears to my eyes. Yes it is important to help her learn all the teaching of shapes, colors, and numbers, but to teach her about God is number 1 on our list. We have prayed over her since I was pregnant and now she has started to want to pray with us. She first showed this interest to her daddy. She walked up to him. clapped her hands together and said "pray?". He of course prayed with her an immediately called me up to tell me about it (i was in my cna class). Oh you could just hear how proud he was, in his voice. Since then we have made a point to pray before every meal and before bedtime. It is amazing to see that seed we planted starting to grow. I pray that Amy will continue to learn about God through us and our church. That she will embrace him and love him, because he is an awesome God!

Hi ho hi ho...it is off to school/work I go!

Why, when,where? Well...

Let's start with why: because of my family's financial  situation. I can no longer sit by and watch us struggle. I have to admit giving up the whole stay at mom gig is going to be hard but I feel I am doing what is right. I feel that it is my responsibility to help our family get on our feet. My husband is working very hard in school and at work to get us stable. I can't thank him enough for all he does for us. Especially since he completely supported me staying at home with our daughter for almost 2 years!. I also can't thank him enough for supporting me going back to school and encouraging me so much. He is my rock! 

When and where?: I started back to school 2 weeks ago. I am currently going back for a little over a month to get my CNA. I go three days a week for eight hours a day. I am taking my class at the Red Cross. So far it is going good. I have learned a lot and still have a lot to learn. Most of all I have learned that this is the right path for me. I know it sounds a little crazy when you think about it, "she is excited about bathing and feeding and taking care of the elderly"?! But it is true. I really think that other than being a wife and mother, that this is what God is calling me to do. I actually feel the calling, and i got to tell you, it is a good feeling. 

How is my little family adjusting?: Well so far they are doing great (knock on wood)! I kept thinking it was going to be horrible. That I would cry and Amy would cry and it would be one big mess. Well I was wrong! From day 1 she has done great! Most mornings we get up together, eat our cereal, then I get her and I ready for the day. After all that is said and done, Jake takes over and we say goodbye to each other. No crying! Jake is out on summer break so our roles in the household have completely switched. During most of the week he is the stay at home dad and I am the mom in school. Then we switch back when he works on the weekends. I am so happy at he and Amy are getting to spend so much time together. This has really been good for both of them. They are now as close as ever and it warms my heart.  

When will I go back to work?: I finish school the first of June. Then if I got hired right away, I have 120 days to get my certification. Which I am scheduled to take mid-June. That  being said, I am most likely not going to look for work until the first of July. All three of my little family's birthdays are in the month of June within two weeks of each other! I really want to take the month of June and spend it with my family. I can't wait to celebrate Amy's 2nd birthday and don't want to even take a chance of missing it. 

My feelings: Oh wow are there a lot of mixed feeling! 

First is sad: I am a little sad that I won't be with my daughter 24/7/365. I hope she will look back at this and be proud of her mother. I hope she will see that I am not only doing this for me and her father, but most of all for her. Most of all I hope she won't feel pushed to the side. I hope that I can balance all this enough for her to also know how much I truly love her.

Grateful: I am so grateful for my dad for helping me do this. For my in laws helping to watch Amy when me and jake can't. For my amazing husband and him supporting me to follow my dreams as well. For all my friends and family and their encouragement through all of this. 

Excited and nervous: Going back to work after two years and starting a new line of work. Yup I am a little nervous and very excited!

Hopes:

I hope I can balance the work and home

I hope I can work my schedule where I only have to work 3 days out of the seven. 

I hope to either work with the elderly or with children.

So there it is...BTW if any of you have any advice on balancing work and home, I would really appreciate it. Thanks for reading!

God Bless!!!!

22 Months!!!!!

Ahhhh!!! Two more months until you turn 2!!! Oh my gosh baby girl, stop growing up so fast!

You weigh 29 1/2 pounds and since we are still in limbo with your doctor, I am waiting to see how much taller you are babe.

You are a talker all right! You love to do everything from whisper secrets in to me and daddy's ears to yelling mama and dada at the top of your lungs. It is so funny to watch and so amazing to hear all the new words you learn throughout the week! Lets see... How many words do you know now? Well...

• Bless you
•  eyes
•  nose 
•  toes
•  thank-you
•  hello 
• dog
• no
• duck
• moo
•  meow
•  bye
•  mom
•  dad
•  paw paw
•  yucky
• fish
• Uh oh 
• Wow
• Stop
• go
• good
• done
• sorry
• ewew
• bite
• stuck
• baby
• up
• down
• shoes
• tickle
• hot
• nonnie
• sass (sassy)
• yaya
• tickle
• night night*
• ok*
• nee nee*
• please*
• hungry*
• kiss*
• two*
• three*
• ball*
• this *
• here*
• car*
• nee nee*
• down stairs*
• help*
• cookie*
• come*
• horse*
• mouse* 
• got it*

That's right my smart cookie! You have learned 20 new words! Which brings you up to 57 Words in all!!! Also, like it said last month, you love to babble. I swear its like you have your own language. I could and do listen to it all day long!

Mom let me tell you all about this duck right here!

So let me tell you the latest gossip on the playground.

Potty training? : Not yet. You are great at going when I set you on the potty, but you just won't tell me when you have to go. I am chalking it down to you are just not ready yet. And you know what? That is ok! We will get there when we get there.

Paci?: Same thing. You are just not ready to give it up completely. You might not be for a while. However, we don't give it to you lately unless you ask for it.

Eating: Oh you LOVE to eat! Your favorite foods: Watermelon, cookies, Apples, salad, and chicken! Your Dislikes: raw veggies, roast. I really couldn't think of anything else lol. You are just a good eater.

Sleeping: Lets just say this month hasn't been your best sleeping month. 9 times outta 10 you are in bed with us by 1am. They way I look at it, is that you won't be sleeping with up at 16, so why worry.

Playing: You have been such a goofball this month. New funny faces. Actually trying to make mommy and daddy laugh. Which I have to say you are great at! We love you blossoming personality, it is all you and so wonderful!

You have also really enjoyed mommy and me. We go to play-dates frequently and you have made alot of little friends. You
Whats New?????

You finally enjoyed swinging this month! You hate the baby swing. For some reason it scares you to death. Solution? You love the swing when you sit on mommy's and daddy's laps! It is so amazing how you light up and you giggle is to die for! We now spend at least half of our playground time at the swings!

We also went to the botanical gardens and watched the butterfly release. Lets just say you were not enthused! In your words butterfly's are "bugs" and "ewwww". Lol you may have not like them but they loved you. It is because you are so sweet!

First ride on the lawn mower!: That's right my little country girl, you finally got to ride with Paw-paw on the riding lawn mower. I don't know who laughed or smiled more, you or your Paw-paw. It was so sweet to see you both so happy. Now everyday you run to the riding lawn mower and ask for a ride.

Pony tail!!!: Yes!!! After months of waiting I can finally start putting that thick gorgeous hair in a pony tail! I really think all girl mamas dream of the day that they can do their child's hair.  I know I did. You look so much more grown up with it up. It keeps that wild hair from getting in you face and from fluffing up. I absolutely love it!

before and after...yes this is the same day :)

First renaissance fair!:Although it rained and rained and rained, it was still a big first! Especially since your mommy and daddy met in a Renn club 9 years ago. I am so happy we got to share this with you! I can't wait until our next fair, hopefully there will be less rain then lol!

Amy it has been a busy month but a great one! As always you are mommy's and daddy's biggest blessing! We love you so very much baby girl!