12 Months

It came and went just like that.

All the hype of turning a year old and we hardly even documented the day! I suppose that's what being a second child is all about? I wouldn't know, I was an only child then a firstborn. I kinda feel it was all a bit anticlimactic. Perhaps I built up this day in my head to be SUCH.A.BIG.DEAL. when really it was just another day?! I wish I would have taken a gazillion more pictures and I wish I could have spent the day with her but I had to work (oh did I mention I went back to work part time?). It's kind of sad really but we did document what we could and she did get to spend the day with daddy and great grandma!

 breakfast shenanigans

 

 sneaking food to Bruno

"happy birthday" with donut holes

 not sure how she feels about those donuts

Her most recent stats puts her at 21 lbs (72nd percentile!!) and 29 in (69th percentile). Her most recent pictures all show you exactly why that is! :) She's wearing mostly 9-12 month clothes with a few 18mo pieces thrown in for the extra length. I even managed to squeeze her in to her 0-3mo shorts for her party! Haha. It's funny because she only weighs 2 lbs more than A did at her age but she's much taller which I guess makes her seem SO much bigger by comparison.

 Samara Jade, you truly are a gem! You are so full of joy that it overflows from you on to anyone you meet! It makes me so delighted to see you interact with anyone and everyone who stops and comments on what a happy baby you are. Even when you're not feeling well or cranky from being tired you still mange to smile through it. I remember (while I was still pregnant with you) all the concerns I had about the unknown. About how you would fit into our family and how I would be able to give you enough love and attention etc etc. But you, my sweet girl, have filled a spot in my heart that I didn't know was there. I love you more than I could ever have imagined and more than I thought possible. You are a treasure, a gift to us that we don't deserve. I pray that you would continue to be full of joy and laughter and radiate happiness everywhere you go. I also pray that the Lord would just pour His blessings on your life and surround you with His favor. Thank you for being such a sweet girl. I look forward to all the adventures that are in store. 

 We love you, sissy.

Happy Anniversary/Birthday!

This year we combined our April celebrations since they're so close together plus the whole "having a new baby and can't go out for more than a couple hours plus we're too tired anyway" situation.

Our anniversary was on the 5th...5 years this year. Again with the time flying analogy. I know, I know. I need new material. Anyway, Brian ended up having to go back to work that Friday so it was kind of a bittersweet day. I ended up taking my first solo trip with the girls and met up with Mandy and Jack at Chuck E Cheese's. It was actually quite a successful trip as Samara slept the entire time in the carrier so I just had to chase after Anayah. She and Jack kept each other company though so really I just walked around and carried tokens and tickets.

The drive home however was a different story! We stayed longer than I had intended due to said great behavior. The problem with that was it was too close to A's nap time and it was past S's feeding time. That pretty much equaled chaos in the car on the way home. Both of them screaming crying the whole way. I thought I might get lucky and they'd sleep but they had other plans in mind. Rookie mistake. Overall it was a good day, just not how I thought I'd be spending my 5th anniversary :) 

Five days later we "celebrated" my birthday. We didn't do much...just lunch out together as a family. Anayah loved the birthday sundae I got for free and Samara just hung out and was her usual happy self. Perhaps next year will be a bigger celebration since we won't just have had a baby. Or maybe I'll just start planning now for my 40th! Hehe.

*All these pictures are from my phone so don't mind the quality. Carrying a big 'ol camera in addition to all of this is sometimes too much! :) 

Happy 2nd Birthday!

It's crazy to keep saying this, but I can't believe how quickly time has passed! It's hard to believe our little girl is already 2! I haven't been keeping up with the blog posts so I know you all haven't been able to watch her grow up as much this year (compared to her first year) but just trust me when I say she's grown. Physically, she looks more "little girl" than "baby girl" and if that's not enough of a reminder, carrying on a complete conversation with her sure will. She is wickedly smart and still so funny, but she can also be sassy and stubborn at times. Life has been, without a doubt, much more rewarding and fulfilling all because we were blessed with such a beautiful gift. 

 Here are a few pictures from the very small, last minute "party" we had for her:

 (who needs toys when she can play in the rocks with her buddy Jack?!)

 (Two candles to blow out!)

 (mmm, delicious)

 (What a look!)

 (happy with her present box I guess)

Happy Birthday baby girl. We love you so much and are so excited to see what this next year has in store for you. We pray that the Lord continues to watch over you and bless you and that you will always be in His favor.

Happy (Belated) Birthday!

Yes, I'm a week late. I'm sorry. There is no excuse other than I didn't feel like blogging. But he deserves more than that lame excuse so I'm putting my laziness aside today.

(do they look alike or what?)

Happy Birthday, Bri! You made it another year...now you're old like me hehe. Thank you for being an amazing father and husband. You work so hard to provide for us and I can't tell you enough how much that means to me. You are the calm to my chaos and the peanut butter to my jelly. I'm so happy that we can celebrate YOU today because you definitely deserve it! Hope your birthday is full of happiness and excitement and that the Lord continues to bless you today and in the years to come.

Happy Birthday! We love you.

Twelve Months!

The day has finally come...

Baby, girl, you are officially a year old! Mommy got a bit emotional thinking back on this year and how much of a joy and blessing you have been to us. You are by far the best thing daddy and I have done and we are so thankful and proud to be your parents. We are STILL in disbelief that this year has gone by so quickly and that you are no longer our baby. Of course you will always be our "baby" but you are most definitely more a little girl these days. You are very independent and strong-willed opinionated about everything...not quite sure where you get that (haha). You are still so curious about everything and love to sit and watch what people are doing then try it yourself. You are extremely smart and it's crazy the things that you are able to understand and communicate to us. In the last month you started walking and now you are off and going! You've started "filling out" (or getting fat like grandpa says) but you are still our tiny girl. It's only appropriate that your first birthday party will be a Tiny Party and will be the event of the year!

 

You spent your birthday with just mommy and daddy doing lots of fun (and new) things:

pancakes with butter and a teeny bit of syrup for breakfast

(want some?)

messing up exploring daddy's man cave

(no daddy, it wasn't me)

opening birthday cards
 (let's look inside...)

(aw, man, no money in this one)

helping daddy wash the cars

(this is fun, mommy!)

devouring sharing your first berry sundae

(I'm not sure what this is, but I LIKE it!)

& playing outside

(higher, daddy, higher!)

Hope you had a fun day!

Anayah, our prayer is that the Lord continues to have His hand on your life today and always. That you will grow up in His favor and His blessings will be showered on you daily. That your heart will be full of His love and your actions and character will show the joy He has given you. May you always know that we love you and are so proud to call you our daughter.

Happy Birthday our sweet baby girl!