Freeze

Tonight we went to dinner with Mimi at a quaint Italian restaurant in the neighborhood.  They had live music and the singer played "Just the Way you Look Tonight".  At that very moment, Lizzy was quietly playing Peek a Boo with us using the tablecloth to hide her face.  One of us would ask "where's Lizzy??" and she'd pull back the tablecloth to reveal her face with the most gigantic smile you've ever seen.  I thought to myself, "freeze". 

I wanted to freeze that moment in time and remember, just as the song that was playing says, "just the way you look tonight".  That precious smile that lights up her face.  She sheer delight at a simple game of Peek a Boo.  The pride on her daddy's face.  The adoration on her Mimi's.  It wasn't any kind of big to do or grand celebration, just a casual dinner but one that ended with a moment that will forever be a snapshot in my mind. 

"Freeze"- I don't want her to grow up.  Don't want to face the inevitable milestones to come that mean she's growing up- sending her off to preschool, Kindergarten, facing friendship issues and catty girl problems.  I want her to forever stay that joyful little girl with soft curls and hairbows that delights herself in a game with a tablecloth. 

Outlet Trip

Today we headed to the outlet malls to meet up with my aunt/uncle and three cousins that were in town from Dallas.  We hadn't seen them in a while and Lizzy absolutely loved all of the attention!  She is a girl after her Mama's own heart- she loves nothing more than a day with the girls out shopping and having lunch.  Apples don't fall far from the tree! 

Unlike her Mommy, Lizzy has developed quite a sense of style for herself.  The crazier and more dramatic the better!  Why wear only one bow when you could fit several on your head?  One outfit on at a time is just boring.  Don't get me wrong, I'm all for the layered look in cool weather but wearing PJs over your shorts/tshirt in 102* weather is just not gonna work!  Today in one of the stores, Lizzy was walking around and looking as she was carefully selecting every crazy colored piece of clothing in the store!  She would bring it up to me and hold it close to her chest and hug it as if to say, "Oh Mommy, I just HAVE to have this one, I love it SO much".  She can't even talk in phrases but thus it begins.....

Productive Day

Well it definitely helps to blog about your goals and then hit "publish" to the Internet!  I was held accountable and accomplished a LOT on my clean out project today.  Many thanks to my sweet mom for entertaining my "assistant" while I worked fast and furious!  I still have two closets to go but have already finished 3.  Over half way!  Woohoo!  I'll be ready for a garage sale when the cooler weather finally arrives.

Tonight I got out of the house for a little bit and went to Bible study.  I was SO looking forward to it all day.  It always refreshes me and as much as I love my precious family, I enjoy the hour and a half of "me time" where I can learn more about God's word without distractions. 

Tonight's lesson was on Quiet Times.  I have recently been committed to my quiet time and was so glad to get new ideas to incorporate.  I find that first thing in the morning is the best time for me to do this.  It's amazing how God has been continually waking me up at 6:30 so I can spend the time with Him before everyone else stirs.  It amazes me that the Lord gives me the energy throughout the day to keep getting up earlier.  I LOVE to sleep and it's hard for me to pull myself out of bed.  But, I am such a better wife and mommy when I do.  Having those moments with God first thing sets my attitude in the right direction- I can't promise I stay there all day (or even for 5 minutes some days) but it's the best chance I've got.  I've seen Him answer my prayers too many times not to think this worthwhile. 

Summer Vacation

IS ALMOST OVER and I have not come anywhere near finishing my house clean out project!  In fact, it really just started TODAY- what have I been doing ALL SUMMER?  In my defense, we started off the summer with our house for sale.  Now that's off the market and we've decided to stay here I am looking at it with new purpose- CLEAN OUT CLOSETS and make better use of the space we have.  We have more than enough space for our small family.  So, I'm throwing down the gauntlet with myself- I will not rest until the job is complete.  I made good progress today thanks to my sweet mom.  Everything WILL have a place and it will stay in it's place.  I'm sure that no one cares to read about this but I have to publish my mission to the Internet and then it's "real".  There's no turning back now.

June

I can't believe June is already almost over!  Where did it go?  We've been so busy, summer is just passing us by.  Lizzy and I have set a goal that we (and I mean, me) will accomplish one house project every day.  Some days we do small projects like changing out all of the burned out ceiling lightbulbs and somedays we clean out Daddy's toolshed (now THAT was an act of love).  Having a project every day helps me to work through my To-Do list because I could very easily sit down and play and read with Lizzy all day and not accomplish one thing! 

We've been doing some swimming trying to beat this outrageous heat.  Our sweet friends have been so nice to let us come over and let Lizzy swim in their pool.  Lizzy loves swimming but she is really excited about the Goldfish snack that this special friend leaves out for her.  Here's a picture of Lizzy wanting to help water the flowers at our friends house:

In other not so worthy news, tomorrow is my 30th birthday.  I can remember thinking that 30 sounded so OLD.  Now that I'm actually here, I don't think there's anything old about 30.  In fact, I think this will be my best decade yet.  God has blessed me with so much.  I have a wonderful husband and a precious child- what more could I want?  

Summer

Summer is finally here and ohhhh how great it is!  I am LOVING every minute of my full day with precious Lizzy.  This time with her is such a blessing.  She is such a little person now and is fun to be around! 

Lizzy is 16 months old today and is 100% all girl.  She's very in to hair bows and shoes right now.  She spends her day wanting to switch bows, add another on the other side, or change shoes.  It is very disappointing to her that she can only wear two shoes at a time!  It is very scary for her Daddy to see her already this in to accessories! 

This was really our first true week of vacation.  We've been going on a daily hour long walk with Mimi every morning to get in some exercise to start our day.  Then Lizzy and I have been doing at least one house project every day.  We are working on cleaning out, straightening up, etc.  Lizzy can be an excellent helper but is most helpful when she takes a long afternoon nap so Mommy can work a little faster! 

We are looking forward to more summer fun to come!  Tomorrow we are going to work on a Father's Day project for Daddy!

Lizzy enjoying her lazy boy chair Daddy gave her!

15 Months

Our sweet Lizzy is fifteen months old today!  She had a great checkup with Dr Fitch and took her three shots like a champ- she cried for about 20 seconds, shot the nurse a dirty look, and then she was over it!  She weighs 21 lbs and 13 ounces (30th %) and is 30 and 3/4 inches long (70th %). 

For the past few nights Lizzy has had a really hard time going to bed- imagine 1.5+ hours of screaming- NON STOP!  Each night I've waited it out for the first 35-45 minutes then gone in to try soothing her.  It's ultimately ended each night with my driving her around in the car until she fell asleep.  I could tell her molars coming in were really bothering her (she was pulling on her ears, grabbing her cheeks, running low fever, not eating much, etc).  But, the bedtime situation was quickly escalating out of control.  Gas prices are just too high to drive around that long!  So, when we saw Dr Fitch today and she had a clean bill of health- no ear infections, sore throat, etc, he suggested Lizzy might be enjoying her nightly car ride touring the neighborhood a little too much. 

I felt the best solution was a change in the routine- someone else needed to put her to bed- someone she knows means business.  So, when Rob got home I explained his assignment for the night and he went straight to work "creating the scene" for the "perfect bedtime" routine.  His routine did take a little longer than I thought was a good idea but, who am I to judge- my routine was clearly not working!  When Rob left her room, there was screaming (LOUD SCREAMING) for a total of 12 minutes.  TWELVE MINUTES compared to my NINETY!  So, Rob, who now prefers to go by the Baby Whisperer" is planning to author a book on raising children.  We can all look forward to that one! 

On a different note, we had a great family weekend together and loved celebrating our Mimi and Honey yesterday!  What a blessing our moms are to us and how honored I am that God chose me to be Lizzy's mommy.  It's changed my life in a way I never could have imagined. 

On that happy note- tonight at Bible study one of our good friends announced she's pregnant!!!!!  We'd prayed so hard for a baby for them and she is now 3.5 months along!!!  What a blessing and true testimony to God's abounding love for us!  "Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart" Psalm 37:4

Love,
Katherine

Ps- one more pic from this weekend- we had my cousin Elizabeth in town and she came to ride the train with us!!