Real camera pictures

This is really sad, but I am getting pictures off of my camera for the first time since before Christmas. 

Baby Bugs at six months old in October

Little puppy at Halloween

The best pic I could get of them at the same time.  My puppy and pig :)



 And this one just makes me laugh.  Poor Hadley.

At the Christmas parade

These are some pictures that my parents took for their Christmas card with the girls on their farm.  I am just now looking at them all for the first time and I loved them.

Christmas Eve

February

10 months

Back to Halloween

Preschool Thanksgiving program

Picture overload.

Pictures in this post go back to New Year's.  If you are friends with me on Facebook or follow me on Instagram, chances are you have seen all these.  Or you could be like me and are not getting on Facebook or Instagram very much any more and missed some of these.  Either way...here is a catch up of sorts in pictures.

My girls on New Years Eve at the Garren's house.

 The girls are starting to play and interact more each day.  There is an app by Fisher Price called Giggle Baby that Hadley loves and it is something that Mallory can help her with.

Kinston has a fairly new froyo place and we freaking adore it.  Mallory and I went on a Saturday after her friend Brinkley's birthday party.  It's always a nice treat to do something one on one with her once in a while.

How cute is she???!!!  She is changing so much with her looks.  Also - we finally got blinds as you can see in the background!  Merry Christmas to me :)

Our first (and probably last) trip to Chuck E Cheese.  It was for Carter's birthday party and Mallory loved it!  She had also asked me to do her hair for the first time ever so I straightened it with my flat iron.  I feel like it made her look so much older.

Can we say sassy?  She said, "Take my picture, mama."

The end of January, Buggy got very sick.  I took her to the Dr because she had a cough that would not go away and they scared me to death.  Gave her a breathing treatment, sent her to the hospital for chest x-rays and to be tested for RSV and they told me she could be hospitalized.  Luckily, all her x-rays and tests came back better than expected and she just had to be on breathing treatments and an antibiotic for ten days.  That was not fun and my poor baby HATES that breathing machine.

Feeling much, much better and waiting on her supper.  She loves to eat and Mallory doesn't care if she eats or not!

In February, Ashley, my parents and I did Cupids Crawl 5K in Greenville.  I never thought I would say this, but I love to run.  It has helped me lose all my baby weight plus 10 more pounds in ten months.  I feel better than I ever have.  Signing up for races is a great way to stay motivated.

Here is Ashley and I after finishing the race.

My little Valentine's.

Valentines Day 2013

Buggy at 10 months old.

One word - Adorbs.

Patrick and I attended a Pimp & Ho Party in February.  It was for our friends who are getting married and it was a lot of fun.  Probably one of the most fun nights out as a couple since we have had children.  I think the pimp & ho party should become an annual tradition.  Patrick had bright red shoes too.  It was hilarious.

Mallory wearing a dress that my mama smocked and sewed for her.  My mom is also working on Hadley's outfit to wear to her birthday party.  I wish I was as talented as she is.

Mallory told me she wanted to wash dishes.  Well come on girl, what are you waiting for?!  She was soaked when she finished but did a really good job.

We just got dance recital costumes last week.  I die.  She is tapping to Country Girl Shake it for Me.  I can't wait for May to get here.  This is right up Mallory's alley.

Such a happy girl all the time.  I could eat her up.  Speaking of that phrase..that is something that I tell both of the girls frequently.  Well, yesterday morning we were sitting in church and Mallory leans over and whispers in my ear, "Mama, I could eat you up."  Precious memories right there.  I could have cried, it was so sweet.

Yesterday afteroon, playing on the back porch.  Mallory was pretending that her and Hadley were puppies and their names were Sparkle n Shine and Little Sparkle.  I do not know where she comes up with this stuff.  She has an imagination!

Also, Mallory wants to wear short sleeves or sleeveless all the time.  The first thing she says when she wakes in the morning is, "Can I wear short sleeves today?"  I do not understand why but it is the reason why she is dressed like it is summertime in almost every pic.  As long as we are inside and are not going anywhere, it is a battle I choose not to fight.

Patrick and I at a wedding Saturday night and probably the best pic we have had taken of the two of us in years.  Yes, years. ha!

Beautiful wedding and a fun night!

That's the first two months of 2013 in a nutshell!

Hadley AKA Buggy, Bugs or BUSY

It makes me sad that Hadley is almost nine months old and I have barely blogged about her in her short little life.  She has changed so much and is developing the cutest little personality. 

For some reason, blogger isn't letting me upload pictures but here is a list of what she is up to these days:

• Eating like a champ.  She loves baby food and will eat it all.  Anything from sweet potatoes to spinach.  This is one of the many ways that she is so different from her big sister.  Mallory never liked baby food and I'm not sure she ever ate a whole container in her life.  It makes life so much simpler though that Hadley loves it and is not picky about it.  She is eating baby food or cereal/oatmeal for three meals a day and has just started a "snack" of puffs in the last two weeks or so.  She does really good at picking them up and putting them in her mouth.  She also really likes these baby rice cakes with apple or carrot flavoring and some little baby biscuits (or cookies) that I found for her.  Girlfriend loves food like her mama!  I stopped pumping in late December so she gets mostly formula now and she transitioned right into formula without missing a sip of the bottle.  My goal was to breastfeed her through 2012 so we met that goal and I am still feeding her a little at night before bed or if she wakes up in the middle of the night. 
• Sleeping is pretty good.  Some nights she sleeps through the night and some nights she will wake around midnight for a feeding.  I am so thankful that she is a good sleeper because I have never known what that was like before Hadley!  She had always gone to bed really early...about 8:00 is the latest she stays up and she wakes up usually around 7:00 am.  She sleeps in her crib and loves it.  She really will not sleep anywhere except her crib.  She lays on her little lamb cover which came off of her bouncy seat because as a newborn she always napped in a lamb rock n play or the lamb swing.  She would always turn her head to the side and hold onto the lamb's ear.  When we transitioned her to the crib, my mom had the idea to put the bouncy seat cover in her crib, as it would be familiar feeling to her and she could still hold onto the lamb ear.  Worked like a charm and she still sleeps on top of it.  She takes two naps a day.  One in the morning and one in the afternoon.   
• After being THIS close to crawling since right before Christmas, she finally started scooting around and dragging one leg a week ago.  Then two days later, on 1-13-13, she got the hang of it and is crawling away like a big girl.  Her only interest though is crawling to the nearest thing that she can pull herself up on.  She wants to be standing up all the time but just hasn't figured out how to move those little feet.  When I say little feet, I mean it.  Mallory has always had way too many shoes, so of course all those shoes have been passed down to little sister and they are ALL too big.  Even though she is almost nine months old, her feet are tiny and I am pretty sure she is still in like a size 1.  I think I will ask her pedi about that next week... So for now she just wears socks.  I will try to sit her on the floor though and those little legs go stiff.  Just let me stand up mama!  She is busy all the time, which is her newest nickname I have dubbed her with. 
• We have another very vocal little girl.  Hadley is saying Ma-ma, Da-da and we think she is saying Bye-Bye and Ba-Ba (for bottle) as well.  She has been saying ma-ma and da-da for a few weeks now.  I'm not sure which she said first because the first few times we were like, did she really she just say a word.  It's hard to tell in the beginning if they are just making noises or if it is a real word.  Of course, Patrick says Da-da was her first word, but I'm not convinced.  She loves attention and any time that anyone talks to her, she will give you a big grin showing off those two tiny teeth at the bottom.  Her first tooth popped through on 12-28-12, with the second one coming in about two weeks later. 

I think that covers all the major stuff.  She weighs 19 pounds and is pure sugar.  We can't get enough of her!

Christmas 2012

We had a sickly Christmas this year.  Mallory has been sick since late Friday afternoon. My girls are hardly ever sick, but when they do get sick it is always on a Friday afternoon.  I've just recently switched pediatricians and their new one has been closed now for the fifth day in a row.  Nice.  We aren't off to a good start...let's hope things improve. Despite Mallory being sick along with my mom, aunt and grandaddy, we still managed to have a good Christmas.  I mostly took pictures with my big camera (which will probably never make it to the blog), but here are the few I took with my phone. 

After Santa made his drop-off

It was a dog and horse Christmas for Mallory.  Who cares about princesses and baby dolls??  Not this girl.  This is her Chihuahua puppy with its REAL collar and leash from a REAL pet store.  Girlfriend is obsessed.

Sweet Hadley just took it all in and was a good girl the whole day.

By noon, both of my girls were asleep. 

 One of my favorite gifts was this pot.  It is a very rainy day today so I can't wait to go home and cook soup or a stew in it tonight to break it in.

I am back at work today and things are pretty dead.  I can't wait to get home to my girls and play with them.  We hope everyone else had a great Christmas too! 

A day in my life. (Part I)

I think I've done this once before, but not since having two kids.  It will be interesting to look back on one day to see exactly what my day was like at this point in my life. 

Here is a typical Monday for our family:

1:00 am - Hadley wakes up and is hungry.  She's been asleep since before 8 pm and about 5 hours is her max.  I get up and feed her and entertain myself on my phone with Facebook, Instagram and Twitter while she is eating.  She eats until about 1:15 or 1:20, I put her back in her crib and she goes right back to sleep.  Such a good baby!

3:30 am - Hadley is awake again.  We repeat the feeding and phone entertaining and she goes right back to sleep. 

6:30 am - I wake up for the day.  I really need to get up at 6, but I was sleeping good and just could not make myself.  I get in the shower and brush my teeth and by that time Hadley is stirring.  Patrick and Mallory are also stirring as well.  I lay on the bed for a few minutes and talk to Patrick and Mallory.  Mallory is daddy's shadow in the mornings so as soon as he gets up, she is right behind him.  I go get Hadley out of her crib.  Each morning when we walk in her room, she just grins and grins.  She wakes up such a happy baby.  I change her diaper and feed her again. 

7:00 am - I am in a whirlwind trying to dry my hair, get dressed and put my makeup on in thirty minutes.  Hadley plays in her exersaucer and Mallory is still clinging to Patrick like it's her job.  Patrick leaves for work, Mallory watches one of her shows. 

7:30 am - Mom arrives to take care of the girls for the day.  I fill her in on anything she needs to know and vice versa.  I grab my pumping stuff, my lunch (it is VERY rare that I bring my lunch to work, but did today), my iced coffee and my phone and head out the door at 7:40.  I am ten minutes late leaving the house and that is pretty much the every day norm, sadly.  I am surprised I still have a job. 

8:10 am - Arrive at work and begin my usual Monday workload.  I'm swamped at work and the morning flies by.

10:00 am - Take a break to pump for Hadley and countdown the months until I can stop pumping. 

12:15 pm - Take my lunch break in the kitchen at work.  Mom made homemade creamy potato soup and it was delish!  I sit in the kitchen with a few other co-workers and we watch Who Wants to be a Millionaire.  So fun.  Not.  Mom sends me a picture of Mallory playing at Chick-Fil-A and I wish I was with them instead of sitting in our stuffy office kitchen, but it makes me happy that she is having a good time.  I also remember while eating my lunch that I forgot to turn in the order form and money for Mallory's preschool shirt and today was the deadline.  UGH. 

1:15 pm - Back to work for the afternoon and hoping the afternoon passes as quickly as the morning did. 

The rest of the day will be continued tomorrow or Wednesday...

Thirty-two.

Today is my birthday so I thought I would do a post on me.  Exciting, right?! 

-I am 32 today...and I find that a little hard to swallow.  I remember when my mom was 32 and I also remember thinking that was pretty old.  I am thankful for being here another year and for my health and all that, but at the same time it is just another day.  I am not one who likes to make a big deal out of my birthday ever since becoming a mom.  What I do like to do is make a big deal out of my kids birthdays now.  Their birthdays are much more exciting and fun than my own.

-I had a CAbi party a few weeks ago.  It was a great group of girls who attended and we had a fun afternoon.  I LOVE clothes and so I was in my element and enjoyed every minute of it.  As a hostess I qualified for eight items at half price, so that was my birthday present from Patrick and they arrived yesterday just in time for my birthday. 

-Last fall a few of my friends, along with my mom and I signed up to do a 5K for the first time.  I was pregnant with Hadley, so mom and I walked it while everyone else ran.  I set a goal for myself that I would run it the next year.  It is next month, but we ended up entering another one that was last Saturday.  I started running around the end of June/beginning of July, just trying to push myself and go a little farther each time.  I do not have a lot of time to run and usually only end up going once or twice a week.  Three times a week is what I shoot for, but it is rare that I do it that often.  The most I had ran continously without walking prior to the 5K last Saturday was 28 minutes so I didn't really know if I would be able to complete the race without walking or not.  I just decided to give it my best.  I finished in 36:40, which isn't great but I was proud of myself for running the entire time except for maybe a brief 2-3 minute walk during the last mile.   

Julie, Ashley & myself before the race

Julie and Ashley both had great results with under a ten minute mile.  My average mile was 11:48 so I definitely need to work on my speed. 

After the race

I ran on my lunch hour yesterday and went three miles with no walking.  I upped my pace and had my fastest mile yet.  I can't tell you how good this makes me feel!

-I am one pound away from my pre-pregnancy weight.  A friend of mine who runs regularly had told me that if I could get myself into running and get where I would enjoy it, then I would want to change my eating habits and I have just got to that point now.  I am setting a goal of 33 minutes for the 5K next month. 

And, just because I can't leave my girls out...

See that little hiney in the air?  I could eat it up.  Along with the little girl who is crazy about Snoopy now.

-I just ordered the girl's Halloween costumes yesterday.  I'm going to have a pig and a puppy - Mallory being the puppy and Hadley the pig.  I can't think of more perfect costumes for them ;)

Strong willed child

There is no doubt that my first born has always been what I refer to as 'high maintenance'.  Lately though, she has taken high maintenance to a new level - strong willed.  My mom actually bought the book, The Strong Willed Child, and Mallory fits the description pretty darn good. 

I do not know if it is her age...everyone says three is much worse than two and then it gets better at four.  Everything is a battle.  Getting dressed in the morning, eating breakfast, brushing teeth, getting in the car, everything.  Although high maintenance, she has always been a generally sweet child until lately.  The attitude has come out.  There is lots and lots of whining.  I think a lot of it has to do with lack of sleep.  She goes to bed between 9 and 10 and is usually up before 7 with no nap.  It is not because we do not try to get her to sleep more, it is because she refuses. 

One theory is this might be a delayed reaction to Hadley being born.  There was no change in Mallory immediately after Hadley's birth, so possibly she is acting out now.  I am hoping that this is a phase that shall pass very soon.  If this does have to do with Hadley's arrival, I feel like there is a fine line between disciplining and showing her that she is still just as important and loved as she ever was. 

No one said parenting was easy.  I do not know how many times I've heard the phrase, 'being a parent is the hardest and most rewarding job you will ever do'.  No truer words have ever been spoken.