Zoo Trip

A couple weeks back we had planned on being able to take a vacation down to Southern California to visit family and friends however a few things happened that made that not possible for us, but with Mike already having days taken off, we took advantage of visiting some of my family in the Sacramento area. And with Mike and I being the animal lovers we are, and with kids of any age and size, you can never go wrong with the zoo. It was fun to think the last time we were there Paytin was in my tummy!!

God is SO creative and makes the most marvelous and stunning creatures!

Paytin LOVED the flamingoes. It was actually quite darling how fascinated and captured she was by them. They were only an arms distance away, squawking up a storm, and so brightly colored its no wonder she took a liking to them. We ended up going back for her to see them again

The one and only "cute" spider I've ever seen

I'm not always the best at requesting Mike to take pictures of me with the kids, but when I do, and I see one that I like, it makes me go all mushy inside. Pictures with each of my kiddos make me mushy for different reasons, but this one of me and Paytin just made me kind of sit back and think, that's my daughter, my girl, and take a moment to think about all the fun things I will get to do with her like nail painting, hairstyles, shopping, coffee dates, etc. etc. The list is endless and I'm just so thankful God graced us with her!

Our kids are always out to really show and demonstrate to Mike and I that it's important and easy to find joy in the SMALLest things!

Drool...sigh....melt into every bit of mommy butter that I am. Does it get more beautiful than this face?

And the only thing sexier than my man, is my man looking even more manly with his tiny dainty baby girl. The love and father/daughter relationship they have, well, just more mommy butter

I am grateful that Mike held Paytin and the camera and still managed to snap this shot. I love having a boy, and I love this stage of being able to encourage being outgoing and bold and full of life. I loved Brayden's excitement during this and being able to share it with him!

Kiddos

Just a few minutes to post a few tidbits:

• seems like its been crazy busy with no time for "regular" blogging lately. I really need to get back to taking more pictures and doing more regular posts so I dont forget the everyday special things I want to record for later!
• we're in the mix for planning Paytin's FIRST birthday party that will happen in just a couple more weeks. Not sure I am ready to have a full blown toddler and be out of the baby months already! Paytin is having a sweet and simple cupcake themed party this year and I am looking forward to the summer, intimate family party we are having!
• Paytin seems to be down with a bout of allergies/teething the last few days. She's been inconsolable in the afternoons to the point of literally wanting NOTHING and just crying. This afternoon was better then yesterday. VERY hard to see her like this since Paytin is NOT a fussy baby at all. Now that she is standing up, she will stand in her crib and scream and cry when she is supposed to go down for a nap (not usually, just when she hasn't been feeling good).
• Now that she can stand up in her crib, I fear her long naps and lengthy morning sleep in's are a thing of the past. She's ready to rock and roll as soon as she wakes up!
• She took a BIG fall yesterday into the corner of Brayden's bed post. I was hanging on of his shirts up in his closet, and she was on her knees holding the post, and she just let go and whack, hit her forehead right on the post. She's got a good bruise but thankfully the goose egg is gone. I can't tell if it still bothers her or not because she's just been more fussy in general lately.
• But, Brayden came running when he heard her start crying yesterday morning and smothered her in kisses and hugs. He really really doesn't like to see her get hurt at all and it was the sweetest thing to see him try so hard to get her to cheer up.
• We went and took Brayden to see the Avenger's movie last week, Brayden LOVED it. It was one of the sweetest moments we've had in his little life when as the credits started rolling, Mike leaned over to him and said, "I think YOU are going to be a super hero one day." Brayden's eyes got big and he got a big smile on his face and said, "You really think so?!" all excitedly to Mike, and Mike said, "Yes, I know it!" It was THE sweetest father/son moment to see Brayden so caught up in Mike's encouragement and praise and to see the effect it had on Mike too. His eyes got all misty and I couldn't help but shed a couple tears because it really was THAT sweet. He talked about it the entire way back to the house and hasn't stopped since :-).
• I'm about to start working Brayden more on the concept of time, not really reading the clock or anything just yet, but the basic concepts of today, tomorrow, weeks, months. I'll see what he understand, but he gets frustrated when he is trying to say when something happened and can't get it right, and when he's trying to understand when something is going to happen and doesn't have the concept of waiting down just yet.
• Both kids have been LOVING being able to be outside and enjoying the sunshine. They love to go on walks, bike rides, etc. Brayden is still very much in the stage of wanting to be played with. He doesnt like riding his bike, or playing on his playground in the back without someone, like one of us, playing with him. Both he and Paytin have really been enjoying sprinkler time when we get the small lawn sprinkler out. It's fun to see Brayden more willing to get cold and wet and actually really liking it, and Paytin is a little water bug and LOVES getting sprayed.
• We're really excited to be going up to Oregon for Auntie Sarah's baby shower this weekend even though we will really miss Daddy. Hopefully the kids will be good and do good in the car for the long drive!

Pictures soon!

Paytin at 11 Months

My baby is just a few weeks shy of turning one and she is growing up be fore my very eyes. While my usual "I can't believe how fast time goes" spiel is still true, the other truth is that Paytin is growing up before my very eyes. I'll have to look back at my monthly posts to see if I am a broken record, but I feel like this past month has been the biggest month of growth for Paytin. Both our kids take their time in their skills and it seems like this month Paytin really exceeded what I thought she was going to accomplish. She did it all on her own, without prompting, and it just left me in wonder and amazement at what tiny accomplished little people we have on our hands. This might not be making a lot of sense, but what I'm trying to get out, is that Paytin is just becoming her own little person with her own little personality to boot and it makes my heart swell to see her fun and energetic personality come to life!

Here's some of my girl's stats for this 11 month go round:

• Paytin is still wearing size 3 diapers, 6-12, and 12-18 month old clothing.
• She still nurses about 3-4 times a day, and takes 3-4 bottles of formula a day depending on the day (no she doesnt eat 8 times a day, lol).
• She loves to snack and particularly still loves her baby cheese puffs the most.
• She still eats baby good when I can get her too, but prefers bottles or finger foods.
• On average she sleeps around 10 hours a night waking up once in the early morning (5:30ish) and going back to sleep. She usually naps twice a day, but somtimes only once.
• She pulls anything off of her that she can, so socks, shoes, and hairclips are all a lost cause on most days.
• She has her signature scrunchie face smile, and makes scrunchie faces whenver she is happy or excited about something.
• She lets me know she is getting tired by starting to suck her thumb and in most situations she goes down without any fuss.
• She still does her own funky crawl, but throws in a regular crawl every now and then, she can pull to the kneeling position on toys now and can stand (while being watched closely) and hold onto furniture.
• The funnest developments this month are Paytin's signs and words. Paytin started things off by learning how to wave "Hi" and "Bye" at the beginning of this month. She does it a TON, but wont do it if its a new person, or if she's tired or grumpy. She claps now, and can sign "more" if she wants too. She says Mama, and has started to say Ba for Brayden and tries to say Ball too. She imitates us ALL the time, so I know more words are on the horizon. It's been fun seeing her beginning to communicate!
• She still gets bored very easily and constantly has to be entertained, and redirected! I've heard from lots of friends that it's a girl thing!
• She is still in love with her big brother and is always trying to wrestle with him, tackle him, grab his hair or his ears, bite him, take his toys, etc. It's hilarious and most of the time it's Brayden that ends up needing the protection ;-).
• She still has NO teeth. No one can believe it, but Brayden didn't at this point either. Brayden has super healthy teeth and I've been told the babies that get their teeth later seem to have healthier ones, so hopefully that stays the case!
• She loves to take a bath and LOVES to play with water.
• She isn't a fan of the grass, which Brayden wasn't either at this point, and does so so with the sun, even though she rips her hats and sunglasses off.
• Daddy is still the apple of her eye and he gets the most waves, most smiles, and best undivided attention from her. She is relentless in getting to him and getting his attention when he gets home from work! It's SO sweet!
• She still doesnt really have separation problems from me at all and seems to love everyone around her. It's a huge blessingand I love her outgoing personality.
• She still doesnt love the car or her carseat either.

Ok thats all I can think of for now! Now it's time to start planning her FIRST birthday party! AHH!

Paytin Lily 11 Month Pictures

They say a picture says a thousand words, and this one above would be one of the ones that speaks a thoasand words straight from my heart. Captured the day before Mother's Day 2012 and totally captures my unconditional and indescribable love for these two little ones. I know this is Paytin's 11 month old post, but I had to just throw it out there that these kids have taught me SO much in my almost 4 years as a mom and I am so blessed to call them mine!

This one melts my heart too :)

My Scrunchie Faced Sunshine :-). Inside or Out, Paytin's known for her scrunchey expressions!

This picture strikes me as everything "girl"ish, and I love it. I also love that she didn't rip the bow out for five minutes while I snapped pictures (even though she wouldn't sit still to save her life!)

The Princess Herself

And the monthly chubby leg picture, oh how I will miss those rolls!

Ok, so grass isn't her thing so much ;-) See photo below

Yuck! No thank you!

My heart on a hammock!

Seriously, what's up with the expressions!

And the photos end with what else? A Paytin assault!

May Catchup

Here are some pictures to catch up from May:

These first three pictures are my beautiful Rio Zamba rose trees that Mike got me for my birthday. I just LOVE the color and the beauty they bring to my dining room table :)

Here's a shot of my gerbera daisies that are thankfully flourshing! I had no idea how much I would enjoy planting and caring for all the flowers I got for my birthday. It's a present that definitely keeps on giving.

A frog we caught just yesterday in our backyard

Paytin in the past 2 weeks has learned how to pull herself up on things, but only to her knees so far! She's up on EVERYthing including chairs, the couch, the fireplace, and most recently, today, her crib. I just went ahead and took the initiative to lower her crib two knotches lower since Mike has been at work all day. I almost got teary eyed watching the transition from the high baby crib with the dust ruffle to the lower more big girl crib with no ruffle and added the bumpers!

She LOVES being a "big" girl!

Can you see Joe Joe the Frog? (Bray named him)

Brayden and his buddy

and one more of Paytin, because seriously, who can resist that sweet face?