||Liv Turns ONE||
Last Saturday we had Liv's first birthday party at our new house. Ever since we started house hunting back in March, I had the vision of how I wanted Liv's party and I had the perfect place in mind. It sounds crazy but every house we went in to I had that mind set of looking for an area that would be great for hosting events. Our humble abode down by the river is exactly what I was looking for. It was so stressful to plan and get together but I loved it! It turned out way better than I could have imagined. Something will always go wrong when planning an event, but for the most part it went pretty smoothly. She had so many family and friends come celebrate her. We are so thankful for all those who came out and drove the distance. You all are the reason why we survived our first year as parents. She loved opening gifts and seeing everyone. There was well over 30 people in our home and she did awesome with all the chaos. For her to only be one she was really into ripping wrapping paper and paying attention to each gift she received. Christmas is definitely going to be fun this year!
{Letters to Liv}-1 YEAR
Olivia Jade,
It's been ONE year, ONE whole year since your beautiful little soul came into this world and melted our hearts. I have cried on and off the past two weeks just thinking about how fast this past year went. It seems like yesterday I was going in for my 38 week appointment and was dilated to a four. You were ready to make your debut and I was a big ball of emotions. But so excited to meet you and see your pretty little face for the first time. When you arrived I couldn't help but cry from pure happiness and joy. You are the one thing that has ever made me feel that way. I have always wanted to be a Mama and you, my love, made me that. I might be exhausted and on edge a lot of the time, but please don't ever confuse that with whether or not I love you with ALL of my heart. This has been the best year of our lives so far and we are looking forward to see what the next year holds.
You have of course, blossomed even more this past month. You started (Pre) Pre-school this month and I have noticed a difference in you already (some good, some not so good.)You are in love with your baby dolls and books right now. Your teachers tell me all the time that if I was to walk in their room multiple times throughout the day I would find you in Reading Center, carrying around a baby doll, or playing with your good friend Lily. I won't even lie, that makes me so happy that you have taken to school like you have. Right before you started school you started to go grab your books, open them, and started pointing at the pictures and jabbering all about them. You can identify way more than you let on. Your favorite pictures to point out and label are cat and dog. You love animals right now and are becoming fond of your barn. You say "mama", "hi", "bye bye", "ball", "go", "cat", and "dog" consistently. You have imitated "dada" a few times but you are pretty stubborn when it comes to that word for some reason. You have word approximations for "baby" and "milk" and I can't get you to use any type of sign language for the life of me. That's okay though because I would prefer you talking over that anyway.
You have been walking everywhere for at least a month now, but you are starting to get more brave and are attempting to run through the house. Your play skills have skyrocketed this past month and I love watching you. You randomly started scribbling on paper one day and it's something that can keep you entertained for a long time. You are definitely a thinker and you love toys that you have to work hard at. Even though you might have a little temper tantrum if you can't get it the first time. I have no idea where you get that from? You love music and dancing. Oh my goodness, do you love to dance. We have no idea where you get your dance moves from. You will dance to the ring tone on our phones, you love dancing so much. You have discovered the TV within the past couple weeks as well. You love Mickey Mouse Clubhouse and Doc McStuffins. You are limited to it, but really don't care much about it unless those two shows are on.
You are so independent it gets you in trouble sometimes already. Everyone tells us that it's hard in the younger years raising an independent child, but it makes for great adults. You were eating your oatmeal one morning and you grabbed your spoon from me and started trying to feed yourself. You are getting better and better at it every day and more coordinated. I really wanted to skip the sippy cup phase so I took away your bottles and set a straw cup out one day and you literally figured it out yourself and now that's what you prefer. You still nurse 3 times a day and I have started sending you whole milk in your cup at school. You don't particularly like it yet, but will drink it. You love to chew on straws and wet wash rags. You are still fiercely teething and we all hate it. You love to hide in corners, especially to poop and you think it's hilarious when we can't reach you.
You are FINALLY sleeping in your crib all night. Woohoo!! We started you out a little at a time and within two weeks you were sleeping at least 10 hours and you actually want your bed now. We have let you sleep with us twice since you started sleeping in your crib and you don't like it anymore. You don't rest well and toss and turn all night. I definitely think starting school and you being so worn out from it has contributed to a fairly easy transition.
I am so proud of you baby girl. You have developed so well and you work hard at things until you figure it out. You are so determined. We are so grateful to God for blessing us with an amazing blessing that is you. We love being your parents and getting to experience you. Happy First Birthday, baby girl. We love you so much!
Love,
Mama
It's been ONE year, ONE whole year since your beautiful little soul came into this world and melted our hearts. I have cried on and off the past two weeks just thinking about how fast this past year went. It seems like yesterday I was going in for my 38 week appointment and was dilated to a four. You were ready to make your debut and I was a big ball of emotions. But so excited to meet you and see your pretty little face for the first time. When you arrived I couldn't help but cry from pure happiness and joy. You are the one thing that has ever made me feel that way. I have always wanted to be a Mama and you, my love, made me that. I might be exhausted and on edge a lot of the time, but please don't ever confuse that with whether or not I love you with ALL of my heart. This has been the best year of our lives so far and we are looking forward to see what the next year holds.
You have of course, blossomed even more this past month. You started (Pre) Pre-school this month and I have noticed a difference in you already (some good, some not so good.)You are in love with your baby dolls and books right now. Your teachers tell me all the time that if I was to walk in their room multiple times throughout the day I would find you in Reading Center, carrying around a baby doll, or playing with your good friend Lily. I won't even lie, that makes me so happy that you have taken to school like you have. Right before you started school you started to go grab your books, open them, and started pointing at the pictures and jabbering all about them. You can identify way more than you let on. Your favorite pictures to point out and label are cat and dog. You love animals right now and are becoming fond of your barn. You say "mama", "hi", "bye bye", "ball", "go", "cat", and "dog" consistently. You have imitated "dada" a few times but you are pretty stubborn when it comes to that word for some reason. You have word approximations for "baby" and "milk" and I can't get you to use any type of sign language for the life of me. That's okay though because I would prefer you talking over that anyway.
You have been walking everywhere for at least a month now, but you are starting to get more brave and are attempting to run through the house. Your play skills have skyrocketed this past month and I love watching you. You randomly started scribbling on paper one day and it's something that can keep you entertained for a long time. You are definitely a thinker and you love toys that you have to work hard at. Even though you might have a little temper tantrum if you can't get it the first time. I have no idea where you get that from? You love music and dancing. Oh my goodness, do you love to dance. We have no idea where you get your dance moves from. You will dance to the ring tone on our phones, you love dancing so much. You have discovered the TV within the past couple weeks as well. You love Mickey Mouse Clubhouse and Doc McStuffins. You are limited to it, but really don't care much about it unless those two shows are on.
You are so independent it gets you in trouble sometimes already. Everyone tells us that it's hard in the younger years raising an independent child, but it makes for great adults. You were eating your oatmeal one morning and you grabbed your spoon from me and started trying to feed yourself. You are getting better and better at it every day and more coordinated. I really wanted to skip the sippy cup phase so I took away your bottles and set a straw cup out one day and you literally figured it out yourself and now that's what you prefer. You still nurse 3 times a day and I have started sending you whole milk in your cup at school. You don't particularly like it yet, but will drink it. You love to chew on straws and wet wash rags. You are still fiercely teething and we all hate it. You love to hide in corners, especially to poop and you think it's hilarious when we can't reach you.
You are FINALLY sleeping in your crib all night. Woohoo!! We started you out a little at a time and within two weeks you were sleeping at least 10 hours and you actually want your bed now. We have let you sleep with us twice since you started sleeping in your crib and you don't like it anymore. You don't rest well and toss and turn all night. I definitely think starting school and you being so worn out from it has contributed to a fairly easy transition.
I am so proud of you baby girl. You have developed so well and you work hard at things until you figure it out. You are so determined. We are so grateful to God for blessing us with an amazing blessing that is you. We love being your parents and getting to experience you. Happy First Birthday, baby girl. We love you so much!
Love,
Mama
ONE YEAR STATS:
Height: 31.5 inches
Weight: 22 lbs.
Teeth: 4
I say: Mama, ball, hi, bye-bye, go
I love to eat: spaghetti, pancakes, fruit, applesauce, yogurt, and biscuits & gravy.
I can: wave hi and bye, clap, walk, feed my babies, and identify cat, dog, and ball.
I love: music, dancing, reading books, my baby doll, and Nova girl.
{1 Year Photoshoot}
A week before Liv turned one I called up our good friend Jason to come take some photos of a smash cake session. I planned her photo shoot and party for months and it was so exciting to see it all unfold the way I had planned. They turned out beautifully. She figured out real quick that she was getting her picture taken and she started modeling. Jason captured all of her little expressions and mannerisms perfectly.
||3 YEARS||
August 3rd marked 3 years of marriage to my absolute best friend. We've been together 8 years, but married for 3 and it's so crazy to think about. We were just young, little college kids when we first met and now we have created a beautifully imperfect life together. I couldn't imagine my life with anyone else and I feel so blessed to be able to call Bradley my husband. Our relationship is not perfect, it's a marriage. I don't know whose is. It's so easy for me to get caught up in reading other girls' blogs who are stay at home mama's and they are so good at portraying a perfect life through their writing. I have learned recently that everyone struggles in a marriage. There are definite ups and downs and neither one of us are perfect. Have you ever heard the phrase "Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus", I feel like that's pretty spot on. Men and women are so different and I am understanding more and more why God created woman for man. We do not have a perfect life, but we are perfect for each other. I am convinced of that. There is no one else that balances me out as much as B. I am so thankful Harding and basketball brought us together those 8 years ago. Even though our relationship is considered a minority, a sin and disgusting to some; we love each other and we firmly believe that God brought us together for a reason. He was the one thing that I felt like I had been missing in my life. We made a beautiful baby girl and I can't wait to grow our little family some more one day. Happy 3 years, babe! I love you!!
{Letters to Liv}-11 Months
My sweet girl,
I can't believe we've known each other for almost a whole year. You have taught me so much about myself that I never knew was there. You have changed me completely in the best way. I thank God every day for giving you to us. For entrusting us with someone so precious to Him. You are growing up in front of our eyes. You do something new every single day and we love it. You have definitely established your likes and dislikes this past month. You turn your head away if you don't like something and you are starting to get more picky with the things you eat. Things you used to love, you just don't care for anymore. You can definitely entertain yourself now and you are WALKING everywhere. It definitely didn't take you long to start walking independently. Once you figured out how your little giraffe walker worked, you went every where and that made you really brave.
I feel like I've said this the past two months, but you keep coming out of your shell. You have developed so much in the past two months it's crazy. You babble ALL the time now. I was so worried about you not talking and once you started you definitely don't want to stop. And we are perfectly fine with that (especially me). You can say "baba" and "mama" and produce consonants /g, w, p, n, k/. You haven't said "dada" yet or anything close to it. You definitely have your favorite sounds. You started variegated babbling right before you turned 11 months. You also have 3 teeth now and are working on cutting your fourth. The only time we ever know your mouth hurts is during the night. I always know when a tooth is about to pop through because you are fussy, restless, and constantly want to nurse during the night. You absolutely love to be imitated, when we make you laugh and when you are laughed at, playing peek-a-boo, and being chased around the house.
I don't even know why we buy you toys because your favorite things to play with are definitely not toys. You love remotes, cell phones, chargers, tupper ware, tearing up paper and trying to eat it, you love to see and talk to yourself in the mirror, and you recently started symbolic play. You will use anything to make a phone and pretend to talk on it. You also have a little sassy attitude as well. When we first started telling you "no" you weren't real sure about it. Then you began to HATE it and would tell us "nuh uh" when you got in trouble. You are so strong willed and that will be good when you're older, but it's driving your daddy and I crazy right now, in a good way. You love to show us your toys and things you find. You will extend and raise your little eyebrows like look what I found. You have started playing with your little hands and clapping to make yourself fall asleep and it's just the cutest thing ever.
You still hate your crib and we don't have a clue how to transition you out of our bed. We have tried during the day to put you in it and we even let you play for hours in your room, but you just want us right there with you when you sleep. I've read about some babies just being afraid to sleep alone and I think that's what the problem is. You get scared and you feel confined in your crib. You have never liked feeling like that even as a newborn. You didn't even like to be swaddled after the first week of your little life. You are learning to like a sippy cup. You have figured out how to hold them now but the ones that look like an open cup are a little hard for you right now. We'll keep trying though. You still don't like to get your diaper changed. Especially now that you never sit still. You wiggle all over the place when we change you.
I can't even fathom the fact that you will be starting preschool on the 15th. I have had so much anxiety over it and I honestly think I am more worried than you are. You have become so social these past couple of weeks. When you see other babies you can't get to them fast enough and you just want to hug and kiss all over them. You aren't sure how to be easy right now though. You just try to be sweet but it comes off as rough and sometimes they cry. I know you are ready to be around other babies and I think you will do just fine. At least we are blessed to be able to be in the same place while you are at school. It's getting so close. Your birthday party planning has been in full force and I can't wait to see you smash your cake.
Love,
Mama
I can't believe we've known each other for almost a whole year. You have taught me so much about myself that I never knew was there. You have changed me completely in the best way. I thank God every day for giving you to us. For entrusting us with someone so precious to Him. You are growing up in front of our eyes. You do something new every single day and we love it. You have definitely established your likes and dislikes this past month. You turn your head away if you don't like something and you are starting to get more picky with the things you eat. Things you used to love, you just don't care for anymore. You can definitely entertain yourself now and you are WALKING everywhere. It definitely didn't take you long to start walking independently. Once you figured out how your little giraffe walker worked, you went every where and that made you really brave.
I feel like I've said this the past two months, but you keep coming out of your shell. You have developed so much in the past two months it's crazy. You babble ALL the time now. I was so worried about you not talking and once you started you definitely don't want to stop. And we are perfectly fine with that (especially me). You can say "baba" and "mama" and produce consonants /g, w, p, n, k/. You haven't said "dada" yet or anything close to it. You definitely have your favorite sounds. You started variegated babbling right before you turned 11 months. You also have 3 teeth now and are working on cutting your fourth. The only time we ever know your mouth hurts is during the night. I always know when a tooth is about to pop through because you are fussy, restless, and constantly want to nurse during the night. You absolutely love to be imitated, when we make you laugh and when you are laughed at, playing peek-a-boo, and being chased around the house.
I don't even know why we buy you toys because your favorite things to play with are definitely not toys. You love remotes, cell phones, chargers, tupper ware, tearing up paper and trying to eat it, you love to see and talk to yourself in the mirror, and you recently started symbolic play. You will use anything to make a phone and pretend to talk on it. You also have a little sassy attitude as well. When we first started telling you "no" you weren't real sure about it. Then you began to HATE it and would tell us "nuh uh" when you got in trouble. You are so strong willed and that will be good when you're older, but it's driving your daddy and I crazy right now, in a good way. You love to show us your toys and things you find. You will extend and raise your little eyebrows like look what I found. You have started playing with your little hands and clapping to make yourself fall asleep and it's just the cutest thing ever.
You still hate your crib and we don't have a clue how to transition you out of our bed. We have tried during the day to put you in it and we even let you play for hours in your room, but you just want us right there with you when you sleep. I've read about some babies just being afraid to sleep alone and I think that's what the problem is. You get scared and you feel confined in your crib. You have never liked feeling like that even as a newborn. You didn't even like to be swaddled after the first week of your little life. You are learning to like a sippy cup. You have figured out how to hold them now but the ones that look like an open cup are a little hard for you right now. We'll keep trying though. You still don't like to get your diaper changed. Especially now that you never sit still. You wiggle all over the place when we change you.
I can't even fathom the fact that you will be starting preschool on the 15th. I have had so much anxiety over it and I honestly think I am more worried than you are. You have become so social these past couple of weeks. When you see other babies you can't get to them fast enough and you just want to hug and kiss all over them. You aren't sure how to be easy right now though. You just try to be sweet but it comes off as rough and sometimes they cry. I know you are ready to be around other babies and I think you will do just fine. At least we are blessed to be able to be in the same place while you are at school. It's getting so close. Your birthday party planning has been in full force and I can't wait to see you smash your cake.
Love,
Mama
-A Broken Creation-
Our world is broken. The world that God created is broken and it scares me to death. As Christians we are told to fear God. Proverbs 14:26 states "In the fear of the LORD [is] strong confidence: and his children shall have a place of refuge. That should make me feel safe and secure, but the reality of it is I am not perfect. I sin every single day and even though I ask for forgiveness, I always have that fear that I'm just not doing enough. I'm repenting enough, I'm not trying hard enough, I'm not learning enough, etc. The way the world is and has been for the past few years really scares me about Jesus coming back. I want to know that I am living and doing absolutely everything I can to the best of my ability in case that happens. It continues to get worse over things that were supposed to get better as time went on. Racism. Have you ever looked up the definition? Racism: prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism directed against someone
of a different race based on the belief that one's own race is superior. How awful. I'll never understand why people are like that. My husband is black and my uncle is a State Trooper. While I can completely understand both sides to the situation, I'll never understand why there will always be the white vs. black dynamic. In my own personal opinion, there are terrible white people and black people in the world. There are always those particular people in each race that ruin it for their entire race in general. God created all of us in His image. We don't know exactly what Jesus' color of his skin was, but we know that His Father created all of us like Him. Why is it so hard to love one another? I will be honest, I never knew situations like this even existed anymore until I met my husband. I was that little naive, completely oblivious small town, white girl who didn't know anything about racism or discrimination because my parents didn't raise my brother and I like that. I never saw racist acts even growing up where I did. But once I met Bradley and people knew we were dating I saw a totally different side of people. I couldn't believe the things people said to me or how people treated me. He told me when we first started talking that we would deal with heartbreaking situations simply because he was black. I was floored when he started to explain exactly what he meant by that. I had no idea racist, prejudice people still existed. I mean come on we're in the 21st century. Over the years I have become more aware and definitely angry about it. I do not hate anyone of any race, gender, or sexual orientation. I might not agree or support some decisions but I definitely do not hate anyone for their choices. It is not our job to judge others in any way. I know people judge me because I chose to marry a black guy. I know people judge him for marrying a white girl. I know people are going to judge our daughter because she is mixed. I hate it, but that's the world we live in. People don't take the time to get to know someone, they automatically judge based on appearance. Which is what seems to be happening in these tragic events. My only question is; if a cop walked up to a vehicle, saw a white man in a sketchy car, in a bad neighborhood, would he/she automatically think they needed to protect themselves? It would depend on the cop, just like it would depend on the person getting pulled over. I hate that I have to worry about my husband every time he leaves our house because of people like this. I don't want to have to worry about my daughter when she starts school, or sports, or when she starts competing in events. I pray that we never have to explain to her that she didn't win a competition because she is half black. I hate hate hate even thinking about that. I hate that we have to raise her and our future children in a society and in a world like that. I chose my husband because I firmly believe he was created for me, and me for him. We work in strange ways that never would've worked with anyone else. I pray that my daughter never has to question her worth because of the color of her skin and I pray that my husband can live in a world where he doesn't feel judged. Our generation has to change the mindset of the population. As we raise our children we have to ingrain in them equality and love for everyone. It is our job now.
-Independence Day 2016-
Last 4th of July I was 31 weeks pregnant and we were getting ready to meet our precious little girl. This year, she was here and got to experience her very first Independence Day. Let's just say all the different types of food she got to experience for the first time was a hit. The fireworks on the other hand, not so much. When she heard the first boom she literally climbed up my grandpa's chest. She got to swim in a pool for the first time and eat watermelon. We had a fun filled 4th and it was so nice to spend time with family. I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday. I definitely didn't want to go back to work after the long weekend.
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