Emerson is 4 months old!

Yep, that's right! She's 4 months old! We are so in love with her and everyday just gets better and better! Emerson is proving to be nothing like her big sister was when she was a baby. :) And I wouldn't have it any other way. I love how my two girls have such different personalities and quirks (yet they also have some striking similarities)! Em is very much a mama's girl (so was Avery)! She never lets me out of her sight and if she can't see me, she yells for me - not crying, but literally yelling at me...like how dare I leave her sight! Pretty cute! She loves to be held... ALL THE TIME! She'd rather not be left to play on the floor, or in her bouncy chair, or anything for that matter unless Avery is actively playing with her.

Emerson Paige is currently in L-O-V-E love with her piggies!! The second you lay her down, up go her feet and straight into her mouth. She is constantly grabbing her feet and trying so hard to get as much of them as she can into her mouth. So cute!!! It's funny, cause since she was a tiny baby, she's always loved having her socks taken off and her feet played with. She's in 7th heaven now cause she can play with her feet all by herself!! Em's also a lover! She loves to be kissed on and googled over! Ha ha... what girl doesn't? If you kiss her yummy cheeks, she turns her head right into you to get some more. I absolutely love that! If you put your face down by her she'll grab your head and try to eat you... I like to think she's just returning all the kisses we shower on her. I see a lot of my sister's personality coming through in Emerson. She's going to be a very confident, vocal, loving girl!

Avery is still in love with Em. I feel so blessed; we can just tell these two are already so close and love each other so much! Nothing brings me more joy than watching the two of them play together. I say play, but I guess it's more like interact. Emerson can hardly wait to go after Avery. Whenever Avery is playing and Em watches her, she kicks and squirms like crazy... boy is Avery in for it! :) Emerson is happy just to gaze at Avery all day. Avery wants to do everything for Em and she's really a good helper. Avery helps give Emerson her bottle, puts powder on her bum when we change her, puts the bink back into Em's mouth if she loses it, and loves to help bathe Em. These two girls are truly the loves of my life. We're still working out her tummy troubles (she gets that from her daddy)! Just recently we had to switch her formula again. She's taking a Hypoallergenic type and it seems to be helping her tremendously!

Happy 4 Months Emmy-Ems, we love you like crazy!!

Hustle Bustle!!

Happy Holidays! Yep, I'm still here. We've been very busy. December hits and the hustle bustle begins! This is definitely my most favorite time of year, despite the craziness!! Pictures to come soon, including Emerson's 4 month update...and there's a lot to share!

Happy Birthday Daddy!

Today is Mark's birthday! We began celebrating this wonderful day this morning by baking cupcakes for daddy which we later delivered to him at work.

My husband loves ANTHING that's cake and frosting and I knew he'd really appreciate a plate full of yummy cupcakes to munch on all day long at work. By the time Avery and I were finished with the baking and frosting, I don't know who I'd say loves cupcakes more: Daddy or Avery???

She was covered from head to toe in frosting. It was in her hair, her eyes, all over her shirt and pants and all over her blankey (which is never far from her side). Pretty darn cute! Emerson was around too, while we were baking...

...she just happened to be sleeping through the whole ordeal. She got to miss out on the clean-up! :) This day is very special to us. Mark works hard and is the best Daddy myself and these girls could ever ask for! Yes, I was crazy in love with him when we got married; floating on a cloud that day three years ago. We had a baby 10 months later and another 2 years after that. Life at our house is pretty wild, tiring, chaotic, wonderful, beautiful and all those things. Sometimes we have hard days, but at the end of the day, I'm constantly reminded why I married him three years ago, or even fell in love with him seven years ago. He is perfect. Perfect for me, that is. He is my rock. He makes my tough times better, yet he doesn't always know it. He completes me. He is my girl's Daddy and I find that so sexy! ;) He's the best Daddy. I always knew he would be good, but I never knew he'd be this good.

Happy Birthday Mark/Daddy! We love you so much!

My little girl is growing up...

She is really tugging at my heartstrings these days. I'm so proud of Avery, I'm crying as I type this post. She will, of course, always be by baby: my bugaboo, my luv, my sweetness. We are potty training since Thursday night and it's going great. She had zero potty accidents today. I'm so happy that she is succeeding with this and I'm thrilled that she hasn't worn a diaper since Thursday evening, but at the same time I feel like I have to let go of a part of my baby. Don't get me wrong... I love this pottying in the potty chair thing and I already love not having to change her diaper, and she is LOVING watching mommy do a 'Happy Dance' after she potties, but like I said, she'll always be my baby! Mom's do you get where I'm coming from? I look back on Avery's 2 1/2 years and I wonder where it all went. It still feels like just yesterday we were blessed with the miracle that is her. Mommy loves you, Bug! You are my sunshine!

And so are you Em!

Yes, I get all blubbery over this one too! How blessed and lucky am I to have these two girls? What did I ever do to deserve them? Today Emerson was lying in her boppy gym staring up at this big green, crinkly, squeaky dragonfly hanging down to her just begging to be grabbed. She watched it so intently, kicking her feet so hard. She reached out, grabbed it and devoured it with her sweet little mouth! Avery and I cheered for her and hugged and kissed her like we hadn't seen her for days! She must have thought we were crazy, but she liked it! She cooed and babbled at us while we gushed over her accomplishment!

Yes everyone, this is what I do all day, every day. I am a stay-at-home mom. I potty train, change diapers, do 'Happy Dances', clean up messes, make meals, color in color books, fingerpaint, kiss owies, kiss piggies (our word for feet in our household), jump in piles of leaves, and make everything alright for these two precious loves of my life. And if I had a recent picture of my husband, who makes this all possible for me, I'd put it in here, but I don't. But I am crazy about him!! I love my life. I'm the luckiest girl in the world!

Emerson Paige ~ 3 months!!

Yep, she's 3 months old as of yesterday! And boy, has she ever gone through some changes! Em's a very happy baby, pretty easy-going now that we have her poor little tummy figured out. As you can see... we did it again! She's just beautiful! She has eyelashes 10 miles long, wavy hair so think and dark that only grows more with each passing day, and creamy porcelain skin. She is constantly cooing and talking and she's smitten with her big sister!

A few of Em's accomplishments thus far:

*She sleeps in two six hour stretches at night, only eating once during the night (HEAVENLY!)

*She holds her head up completely... she's been doing this since day one!

*Em now eats soy-based formula (LONG sad story) but thriving! :):)

*She is laughing! The cutest noise ever!!

*She adoringly gazes at her sister and daddy...she would do this all day if she could

And who wouldn't love having this girl for a big sister??

Fall Leaves!

Avery and I raked up the leaves in the front yard this morning while Em was sleeping. We had a blast! It took quite a long time cause my piles kept getting jumped in over and over again... but so worth it!!!! Who wouldn't want to jump in a pile of leaves... heck, I was jumping with her! :):)

The potty may no longer elude us....

... well it seemed that way yesterday morning. Yesterday, I changed Avery out of her morning diaper and put her big girl panties on her without asking her if she'd like to wear them or not. She objected at first. Then I showed her the new Dora stool she could use to step up to the sink to wash her hands all by herself when she finished pottying and that did the trick. She sat down on that potty and peed like she'd been doing it for years. She stepped up on the stool and washed her hands... and then it all went downhill from there. For the rest of the day she refused to go to the potty and I ended up putting a diaper back on her (after two accidents on the carpet.) What do I do??? Today she is wearing a pull-up but will not sit down on the potty. Will you guys leave me some comments for what I'm supposed to do??? I don't want this to be a fight of wills.... and now I know she's more than capeable of doing this and being successful at it! What's a mommy to do??? HELP!!!!

Halloween! {& crazy times!}

I absolutely hate getting so far behind with my blog posts. But the second I try to do anything someone needs something from Mommy! :) But everything is going great... the girls are beautiful and healthy and life is good! :) Halloween was interesting. A few weeks ago Avery picked out her costume. She was going to be Thomas the Train. Never though, from the day we bought the costume to Halloween night, would she put it on. ( I should have known better!) So, after watching child after child come to our door and leave with candy she finally said, "Mommy, I go trick-or-treating." I said, "Absolutely you can go trick-or-treating," (I'd only been talking about it all day and asking her if she'd like to go...) "Do you want to wear your Thomas costume?" Avery: "No, I don't want to wear my Thomas costume, but I go trick-or-treating." I asked her if she'd like me to draw kitty whiskers and a kitty nose on her face with make-up and she all but jumped through the roof with excitement and off we went trick-or-treating down the cul-de-sac with our little kitty dressed in normal everyday clothing.

And each night that has come since Halloween, when it gets dark, she asks if she can be a kitty and go trick-or-treating some more! Ha ha ha! Pretty darn cute if you ask me! So I explain that we only go trick-or-treating on Halloween night, one time only. So now, imagine how much turkey talking we do getting ready for the next holiday!! Life through the eyes of a 2 and a 1/2 year old is pretty exciting every day and I'm loving every second of it!

Here are our jack-o-lanterns and that Avery and Daddy worked hard on Halloween night! (Pics of Em coming soon...) :):)

More of Em...

...big sister is out of town right now with her Grammy and Papa. So I've tried to get some shots of Em and she decided to ham it up a little! :):)

She sticks her tongue out all the time now. I think she thinks it's funny cause she's always smiling at the same time. Pretty cute!

I just love the look in her eyes in this one. Not a perfect picture, but look at her eyes! She was actually gazing at Avery. You can just see the love pouring out of her eyes for her big sister! Such a proud mommy! It's such a blessing being a mommy to two beautiful, perfect girls!

I just can't help it....

She's just far too cute!

{Happy 2 Months, Em!}

I'm a couple days late with these, she actually turned 2 months on the 13th... but I'm doing my best! I want to take more shots of her later when Avery is napping. Here's a couple though. Enjoy!

Look at those cheeks!

I know that huge barret looks obnoxious, but its the only way I can tame her hair!! It just keeps growing...I'm so in love with her! XOXOXO

Come On Seahawks...

I even wore my pink jersey!!

I'm so behind...

I have so many pictures to post these days and can't seem to find the time to do so! Will somebody please tell me that my life will become more organized soon?? :) In the meantime, here's a few:

A sweet moment...

Happy Emerson... she is all smiles these days (just haven't caught one yet)!! I'm so crazy about her!

My big girl! I cannont believe she was hammin' it up for the camera the other day!

Emerson will be two months old tomorrow! Hopefully I'll do a little session with her tomorrow afternoon and get those posted! Enjoy these for now.... :)

{Cute pics. coming soon.....}

.... Yes, I'm still here! I'm just busy feeding, changing diapers, making couch cushion forts, building wonderful things with wooden blocks, putting together puzzles, painting, decorating for Halloween, wiping runny noses, taking trips to the library for storytime, Gymnastics.... and more while still managing to snap a few shots here and there of my precious girls. Stay tuned.... :):)

Busy Weekend!

I had the privilage of shooting two families this weekend, both with 3 week old babies. They were born one day apart from each other and they share the same last name... what a coincidence!

Sweet Baby Girl 'S'

Precious piggies, heaven sent!

This is sweet baby boy 'C'. He is just another reminder that miracles really do happen all the time! What a blessing to his family!

Thank you families for allowing me into your homes to capture the sweetness of your new little bundles! I can't wait to do it again another time!

I never thought I'd find the time...

...to make the changes I wanted to my blog! I started last night and just now finished! But hey, the girls are sleeping, I'm enjoying a glass of red wine, there's no noise whatsoever but the hum of the computer... needless to say, I'm very happy right now. (I really like my new banner!) ;) My girls and I were gone all last week to my parent's house in Eastern WA with my sister and her boyfriend who were visiting from Florida and now I'm trying to play 'catch-up'. It was well-worth the craziness I'm feeling right now though. My sister is beautiful and I savor every moment I get to spend with her when she's home. Avery warmed right up to her aunty and I took pictures all week of the two of them! Here's just a few from our week at Alta:

My sister Katie and her boyfriend, Bret. We were all on my dad's boat out on the Columbia River. It was gorgeous!

Avery eating HUGE blackberries at the fruit stand my mom works at. She couldn't get enough of these suckers! Look at that blackberry covered smoocher... I could eat her up!!

Emerson, who is one month old already (!!!) being snuggled by her Grammy. My mom and dad came to stay with us for a few days after Emerson was born. It was so sad for me when they had to go back to Alta when Emerson was 3 days old. My mom hadn't seen her since then and had tears in her eyes when I was snapping these photos. My mom and dad absolutely adore their two grand-daughters. I love how much they love them!

UNDER CONSTRUCTION!!!!

Hey there everyone,
Since having Emerson, I haven't been able to properly update my blog. I've got so much to post and a lot of changes to make... so just hang in there with me!!!

First try at a Storyboard

I've been wanting to learn how to make a storyboard FOREVER and I finally found a resource to help me do so. I still think there's got to be an easier way to do this though. As you can see, it's far from perfect... Theres a black line showing in the middle picture on the far left. I couldn't get it covered with my picture completely. I would love to make these for friends and family members and print some for the girl's rooms but I need more help with them!! If anyone has any pointers or suggestions I would really appreciate it!!!! Until then... I'll keep playing!

Sisters

I'm trying...

...to get more pictures posted these days. I'm just not getting the computer time I was used to getting before someone came along!! ;) That little someone is 2 weeks old now!! Can you believe it?? Where does the time go? I'm having fun photographing Emerson now... at first I was aprehensive... didn't want to break her, upset her, wake her... and so on. Now, not so much. :) Here's an official 2 week picture:

She is so beautiful. Her full head of dark hair blows my mind... I'm so in love with this little girl!

I'm also in love with this little girl:

I never thought I'd see the day where she'd actually eat a sandwich!! (I've been trying for so long to get her to eat a sandwich~now she can't get enough of them!)

And a tribute to Uncle Rob before I sign off:

This year, Avery's Uncle Rob played in the U.S. Open (this is a BIG accomplishment!!) and her Daddy caddied for him. Uncle Rob signed a pink hat for Avery which Mark brought home for her and although she refused to wear a hat, she adores this hat... sleeps with it most of the time. Well today, Em was napping on Avery's bed while Avery and I were cleaning and organizing her bedroom and Avery thought Emerson should get to wear it too! Super cute!!

I love my girls!!!

8 Days Old

And I can't post without a picture of her... Could she be any more beautiful?

Their daddy is going to be in a lot of trouble one day!!

Introducing Emerson Paige!!

She is finally here! Emerson Paige was born on August 13th, 2008 at 1:58am weighing 8 pounds 6 ounces and measuring 20 inches long! We are so excited to have her home. Big sister Avery is loving "Baby Emmy" so much. I couldn't have had things go any better! Here are some much anticipated photos of Emerson and big sister Avery! Enjoy!!

Sisters

Holding "Baby Emmy" at the hospital for the first time

with help from Grammy and Papa. She's a very proud big sister!

I've been slow...

...Literally! I'm waddling around like a fat goose these days and feeling like there's no end in sight!!! I technically have 3 more weeks to go. I need to get past Sunday and then I'll be doing whatever I can to get this precious little one OUT OF ME!! Ha ha ha!! Anyways, Avery's getting awfully bored with mommy these days. I've been instructed to stay pretty close to home so that doesn't leave us many options for activities. Daddy takes her to the park and museum when he has a day off, which she really enjoys, but being home with mommy all day I get a lot of this to deal with:

and how can I blame her? Her facial expression here is probably how I look all day too! Ha ha!! But we'll continue to hang in there! Think "contracting" thoughts for us!!

It's Been Awhile...

...since I've posted and a lot has happened! While we're anxiously awaiting our "Baby Sissy", she's seemed a little anxious to make her appearance lately! But all is well and we're doing great! Just taking things easy for sure! Here's a few cute shots of Avery playing at the beach and the park last week (while I was still able to take her to do fun things....) :):)

All Boy!

Look at this little guy! This is Avery's cousin Camden who's 3 months older than she is. Gotta love his shirt!

His shirt (and pizza face) does the talking!!

Avery is 2!!

One year ago... ...and over the weekend!

Everyone told us, and still does, that the time flies when you have a little one. And boy does it! It's such an understatement. I can't believe Avery is two years old. She continues to amaze me everyday whether it be with her vocabulary (which is probably larger than mine) and the way she puts sentences together, her compassion for people she cares about, her constant wonder about the world around her, and lately, her manners! She can be a very polite little girl and I swear sometimes it's a switch that she just flips on on a whim. But her manners and sweetness are so precious to us, when they show themselves (which is quite often lately!!). Avery had her birthday party on Saturday and had a blast! She got so many cute outfits and fun toys. It was a wonderful day. We had family and friends, and pizza and cupcakes! What could be better than that? I've still got a lot of shots to go over from the party and from Eastern WA the week before... so more photos to come!