Summer

We kicked off the summer with my sister Allison's wedding. It was beautiful and we enjoyed every minute. It was so fun to have family and friends come in town to celebrate Allison and Dan's special day! Everything was perfect and Allison looked beautiful.

The family June 3rd 2011

 The Sunday after Allison and Dan's wedding, Lyla was baptized at our church. It was so special and a moment I will always remember. I cannot wait for her to understand how special it is and what it means to be a child of the Covenant.

Our family June 5th 2011. Lyla wearing the Christening gown that we all wore when we were baptized. It has been in our family for many years.

So special, my dad baptized Lyla. A dear friend of ours assisted.

Lyla has found a new joy in life, the POOL! She loves it. While she likes floating around in her float, she prefers to be held while playing in the pool. We will be spending a lot of time at the pool this summer, so I am so glad she enjoys it.

We have quickly moved from being frustrating because we can't get where we want to go, to freedom! (For Lyla that is!) I don't know that I am ready for her to be growing up this fast, but it is so exciting to watch her learn and be SO excited about the fact that she can get around on her own. I love watching her discover and move around.

Crawling all over the place. I can put her down and she will just follow me all over the house.

She is also pulling up on everything! She is trying to figure out how those little legs really work. I would not be surprised if she is walking in the next few months.

Caught in the act....of pulling out more toys.

Lyla's first tooth poked through last Tuesday June 7th. I was kinda shocked with the way it made me feel. She had no issues and was not fussy at all. But I felt like, wow, she really is growing up and will never again have a completely "gummy" smile. It is just going to fast. She is so proud of her tooth and it really is so cute!

More fun on the floor, now that I can go places.

Last time in her "baby bath". We got her a bath ring, and she now sits up in it while playing in the bath. I need to take a picture of it.

 So as I am writing this, we are enjoying our first family vacation. Just the three of us. It is wonderful. Very different, with a baby, but so wonderful. I am excited for many more family vacations. This was Lyla's first time to experience the beach. She was a little unsure about being in the ocean and really did not understand why the water kept coming and going, but she did seem to like to watch the waves from the safety of our arms. We so value and treasure our family time. We know we have limited time with Lyla at this stage and are soaking it all up. I will post more picture once we get back of the whole vacation, but here are a few.

With dad, the first day at the beach.

Feeling the sand between her toes and the ocean water for the first time.

Not so sure.

Preferring to watch instead of experience.

 Adam's brother lives in Savannah, so we took a day trip over there, since we are in Hilton Head, to visit him. Lyla had not seen her Uncle David since the beginning of the year.

More pool time in Hilton Head.

Swimming with daddy in Hilton Head.

Playing in the condo.

Being silly

Climbing on the box.

6 Month Stats

I CANNOT believe Lyla is 6 months old! Time is flying by and we are enjoying every minute of it. I am constantly reminding myself to soak in each second and not to sweat the small things because I know I am going to turn around and she will be all grown up.

She checked out great at the ped yesterday. She weighs 13 pounds 14 ounces and is 25 inches long. That puts her in the 10-25% for weight!! and 25th % for height. She once again got three shots and had an eye test. She did wonderful. I cannot believe how much she has grown and how she is changing into her own little person. She has such a personality. She is so sweet and talkative and smiley. She definitely has an attitude and lets Adam and I know when she does or doesn't like something. She is a very determined little girl. She has sat up by herself a few times now, but prefers to scoot around on her tummy. She gets frustrated though that she still cannot get her legs to do what she wants them to do. She is close to taking off though....which will bring us to a new chapter in our lives :) I am feeling like she is really not a little baby anymore, but I am finding that I am enjoying each stage. It is so neat to see everything through her eyes.

This weekend we had family time with just the 3 of us which was so nice. We also went to a fundraiser for a good friend of ours. John is leading a team to Kenya and we went out to support his auction. It was fun to see him and catch up on what he is doing. We took Melanie along with us which was great to spend some time with her!

We are fighting the germs at our house. Poor Lyla. Her allergies are making her miserable and Adam came home with something yesterday. He of course went to work today, still feeling bad. I guess that is how germs continue to spread :) I hope everyone feels better quickly!

LOVES her monkey blanket

Soccer player?

Meeting Uncle John for the first time

So tired after enjoying the beautiful day outside

Mommy and Lyla

Love my family

Easter 2011

Getting ready for the Easter bunny with her feet in her mouth (she loves her feet!)

Looking pretty

We had a great weekend celebrating Easter with our families. We were blessed to be able to have both sets of grandparents with us this weekend, along with Aunt Allison, Dan and Nana. We were sad Aunt Sarah wasn't able to be there, but she will be home in ONE week for the summer. We are so excited for her to be home!

It was especially special celebrating the resurrection of Christ with Lyla for the first time. Adam and I have such a huge responsibility that we have been blessed with in raising Lyla. We desire for her to know the Love of her Father and Creator. While I cannot wait for her to be able to run around and hunt easter eggs and see the excitement of finding what is hidden inside of them, I am even more excited to see her grow as a daughter of the most High. I cannot wait until she can understand how important Easter is and what it means to us. LIFE! While we love her more than anything, and would do anything for her, her heavenly Father already did everything for her. I am so glad He entrusted Adam and I to teach her.

So, until next Easter when she will most definitely be running around looking for those colorful eggs, I can enjoy teaching her about Jesus and what He did for us on the Cross.

With her first easter basket

She loved it

Family photo

With Honey and Pawpaw (Adam's parents)

Everyone

With my family

New Things

First time at the aquarium

Lyla loved looking and learning about the fish.

We got a "Jenny Jump Up"

She likes thinking she is standing by herself.

Likes a sippy cup with water.

Loves to be outside.

Our Easter Bunny

New to us highchair (Thanks Ballard Family!)

She looks so tiny in it right now!

Loves to eat! Food tried to date: peaches, pears, apples, bananas, peas, greenbeans, sweet potatoes, yellow squash, butternut squash, avocado, carrots, yogurt, applesauce, chicken, turkey. Still nurses 4-5 times a day. and she sleeps 11-12hrs at night. Takes two naps during the day. She sleeps with her monkey blanket and likes to hold it with her left hand.

EVERYTHING goes in her mouth these days. Trying to sit up by herself  and scooting herself around on her tummy. 

Our new jogging stroller. Nobody is jogging, but it is so nice for our walks.

Spring Blessings

Lyla and I have been so enjoying the beautiful weather. As I write this, it is yucky and gross outside, but none the less all the other days we have taken advantage of the beautiful sunshine. We brave the pollen and soak up the rays. She loves going for walks in her stroller. If her mom would push her around outside all day long in her stroller she would be the happiest girl. Unfortunately, I am not that in shape, so we walk up to the park that is near our house, watch the big kids play on the playground, ride their bikes and kick the soccer ball. Lyla cannot figure out why I won't let her join in. Again, she doesn't realize that she is just shy of 5 months and is not physically able to join in. It will be too soon for me when she actually is and it is not soon enough for her.

She loves tummy time now and rolling from her tummy to her back. She has not mastered her back to her tummy. She is now learning to scoot herself around on her tummy (just in a circle, her legs aren't quite involved yet) to reach the toys she wants. She can be entertained with a toy for a few minutes, until she sees another one she wants and then moves on. It is fun watching her actually enjoy toys and really want to play with them. She loves having books read to her as well. EVERYTHING goes in her mouth these days. She is getting better with the hand to mouth coordination and anything she can bring to her mouth, goes in her mouth. She is making new sounds everyday and she finds certain ones make us laugh harder and tends to make those sounds the most. She loves sitting up and really wants to do it by herself. She really loves to stand up. She is blowing bubbles and eating food. To date she has tried yellow squash, sweet potatoes, carrots, bananas, and peaches along with rice cereal and oatmeal. She is not the biggest fan on the oatmeal. For a girl who loved fruit when she was inside of me, this girl LOVES the veggies. She actually prefers them to the fruits. Go figure.

She does not go anywhere without her Sophie giraffe and a burp cloth. She loves to hold on to both. The drool is out of control, but no teeth yet.

She grows and changes so much everyday. This, along with the passing of my Granddaddy makes me realize how precious each moment is. We are not promised tomorrow and so I am really learning to live in the moment. A lot of time that is so hard to do. I want my moments to have eternal value and I want my daughter to learn how important eternal value is. I want her to know the Love of her Savior. I do not want to take this time for granted, but I think so often I do. I am learning to not stress the small things and fill my time with the things that matter. I have so much to be thankful for and I think a lot of the time I find myself thinking about what I don't have. I want to fill my heart and mind with the blessings that I have been entrusted with and not dwell on the other things. I mean after all I have a lot to be thankful for!

Lyla with her Sophie.

4 Month Update

I can't believe Lyla is just over 4 months old now. Since her birth, I feel like I have grown so much as a person. I have learned so much about myself. Being a mom has been the greatest responsibility, honor and joy of my life. I feel so blessed that God entrusted Adam and I to be the parents of this little girl. I thank Him everyday for her and strive to raise her in the way He calls me to. Even though it is full of fun and laughter, it is not always easy. He never promised it would be, but it has only made me rely on Him that much more. I cannot say enough how much I am loving life right now.

We had Lyla's 4 month check up last week and everything went well. She is a smart girl and knew exactly what was coming as soon as she saw Dr. Knox's face :) He is so sweet, but she did not care for him or the shots that came afterwards. She was a trooper though and was fine by the time we were walking out of the office. Now for the important information....Lyla weighed in at 11 pounds 4 ounces. She is 24 inches tall. This makes her 5-10% in weight and 25-50% in height. Still our petite little one, and yet she still has no idea she is little.

This month has had a lot of firsts for our little Lyla. Right before she turned 4 months she finally started laughing. It is like music to my ears and melts my heart every time I hear it. It will never get old. She is full of personality and definitely has an attitude.

Lyla all ready to fly on the plane with her Sophie.

Lyla went on her first airplane this last week. It was not for the most happy reason, but it was still exciting to experience her first plane ride with her. We flew to Texas with Aunt Allison and Mimi. My Granddaddy (my mom's dad) was diagnosed with Pancreatic Cancer and we knew it was bad. He had never met Lyla, he was going to meet her for the first time at Allison's wedding in June. But once we got the news, we knew he had to meet Lyla right away so we could get some pictures and he could love on her. And boy did he LOVE her. He did not care about anything else going on in his hospital room when she was there. He noticed everyday that she had a different bow in her hair and he always wanted to make sure she was taken care of before his own needs. (I know all my nursing friends are thinking, ewww gross you took your little baby into a germy hospital. You better believe there was lots of handwashing and disinfectant wipes. A week later we are all still healthy :) Knock on wood). I am so thankful we had the opportunity because 10 days after his diagnosis, he went to meet his Savior. He was surrounded by family, the people who loved him. He went to be with his Heavenly Father whom he loved through his final breath. I know he is with Him singing praises to our Lord and we will see him again. I am so thankful Lyla got to meet him, even though she won't remember, we will be able to tell her all about her sweet great-Granddaddy who loved her so much and how she got to meet him. Lyla was his first great-grandchild and he was so excited about her from the moment we called to tell him we were pregnant. Even in his last moments here on earth, he spoke of her. I have pictures with my great-Papa and I cherish those pictures. She also got to meet her great Aunt Pauline, Uncle Kent, my cousins William and Emily and great Aunt Joanna and Uncle Fred. My mom's brother and sisters.

Aunt Allison and Lyla waiting to board the plane.

Mommy and Lyla waiting to board the plane.

Meeting great-Granddaddy for the first time

Lyla and great-Grandaddy

Next day.

Once we got home, she was more than ready to start solid foods. She took to it right away and now will not miss a meal. She wants to eat solids three times a day. To date, she has tried rice cereal, oatmeal and yellow squash. She is loving eating big girl food. She is always ready for her next meal. So now we are trying to figure out her new schedule. So fun trying new things!

First night eating rice cereal and loving it!

 This past week she also found her toes. She loves playing with them, especially during diaper changes. Anytime she can get a hold of them she is excited.

 While we were in Texas, we had the opportunity to go see where Aunt Sarah lives at TCU. Lyla wore her purple bow and bib in support of the Rose Bowl Champs!

Outside of Sherley where Aunt Sarah lives. Lyla loves her Aunt Sarah.

In Aunt Sarah's dorm room. Lyla loving the lifestyle of the cool college girls.

And lastly, and maybe most importantly (for me) while in Texas, Lyla started sleeping through the night. We were almost there before we left, but now she consistently sleeps from 8:30pm-6am. It is wonderful!

We are heading back to Texas tomorrow for Granddaddy's funeral, this time with Adam. While it is sad for us left here on Earth, we want to celebrate his life, not only the one he lived here, but his eternal one with his loving Savior. We will miss him and think of him often and look forward to seeing him again. We love you Granddaddy!!