KAYE | NINE MONTHS

Tuesday, July 30, 2013

this little nose scrunch thing...this is new.

that's right. our miss miss is nine months today.

and allow me to put my bragging pants on.

we have the most:

• outgoing
• smart
• beautiful
• athletic
• funny
• determined
• sassy
• muscular (note the thighs)
• sweet (kind of)

little gal there ever was. THERE EVER WAS DON'T ARGUE WITH ME BECAUSE SHE'S THE BEST. understand?

glad i got that off my chest.

our little bear has been busy this july. after we all recovered from my sister's little 4th of july birthday/wedding celebration in mccall miss baby took up a few hobbies.

some of her new favorite hobbies include:

pulling my hair and whapping my face. and whapping her dad's face.

like i said...she's a real sweetie-bear.

which brings me to her likes, dislikes, and nicknames:

likes: face-hitting, hair-pulling, speed-crawling, and helping her dad build our basement bathroom

dislikes: when i walk more than 10 feet from her, shoes, hats

nicknames: sweetie-bear, miss miss, girlfriend, chica-lou, baby

other loves: blanket forts with dad, 4-wheeler rides, rodeos, chewing on any anything

chica-chica-lou-lou...you AMAZE us every day. and would you like to know why? girlfriend...you've taken your first official steps before your nine-month birthday! we actually counted six real steps. your farmer and i watch in shock and awe. shock. and. awe. 

now...i know you're not the first baby ever to walk. and i know you're not the youngest baby to walk. but to watch you build up your bravery and confidence is the best. but let's be honest here...you're certainly not a great walker and you have waaaaay more confidence than you should. this leads to you falling...a lot. i mean...if you fall one more time we're probably going to need to watch you for concussion symptoms. i'm all for you practicing your new skillz...but let's not get bigger than our britches, mmmmk?

and can we talk about you and the stair-railing? what's with that? if i catch you sucking on the post one more time i'm going to question your sanity. the first time was confusing. the second time was funny. but each subsequent time gets weirder and weirder. 

in your defense, the washer and nut holding the wires does look like a silver nipple...kind of.

and when you're not busy breast feeding off your silver nipple you're demanding grown-up food. you eat everything from scrambled eggs to zucchini lasagna. you're either the world's best eater or i'm a really good cook. 

conclusion: you're an enthusiastic lover of all food. 

another thing you're good at? kisses. you give them sparingly and open-mouthed. with quite a lot of tongue...but when you're in the mood i accept them...willingly. i just love them. 

to add to your list of accomplishments this month...you've started waving goodbye. and it's always with that sweet sweet smile.

baby...thank you so much for being such a good sleeper. those one and a half hour naps twice a day are freaking fantastic. as much as i love when you're awake...i also love when you're asleep. we worked REALLY REALLY hard on your sleeping and i'm glad we did. worth it.

baby...our farmer and i love love love you...a lot. we love you so much it hurts. sometimes i consider playing hard to get to see if that will make you love me more? i play that game for about five minutes and quickly grow tired and enthusiastically kiss your face off. i can't help it. those cheeks are so darn kissable.

this coming month you're in charge of not growing up so quickly. 

love you gal.

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sponsor - shout it out

Tuesday, July 16, 2013

peeeeeeople. did you about die like i did when this daaaaawling girl, laynah, e-mailed to be a sponsor?

you see...i kind of have people blocking up my blog with all the sponsor requests so i can be super picky about who to highlight each month.

and well...laynah just happened to luck out this fine july.

i kid.

but something i don't kid about? how much i thoroughly enjoyed reading all about the chica below. she is funny. she's a doll. and she's awkward...just like me. but like...i don't think either of us really realize we're being awkward until we reflect on the interaction or until someone points it out.

i guess that's the charm in us.

check her supah (boston accent) fun blog out, yo.

laynah's social media:

FACEBOOK
TWITTER
PINTEREST

Hey there.

My name is Laynah. The blog's name is Those Creepy Crawleys. Both of those are mouthfuls, I know. I tried to change the name of my blog once, but my husband was quick to object. Surprising, since that isn't usually the kind of thing that husbands have an opinion about...I guess if he really is behind it, then I can accept the fact that the name alone probably makes me the creepiest blog in all of blogland. By the way, I don't always have a green nose. That picture was from a bubble run I did with my sister, and she failed to inform me that I looked like a happier descendant of the Grinch. Hello for real this time.

Quick story: That photobomber up there is kind of a big deal, because his name is Matthew Crawley. I guess that's also the name of a TV star of some show called Downton Abbey or something? His name is one of my most frequently asked questions, even though he mostly goes by Mattie on the blog.

One thing you'll soon learn about me is that I. am. so. awkward. People say this all the time, but I am like level 10 awkward. Apparently, its wildly entertaining to have such an awkward wife though, because I often catch my husband chuckling to himself as we're driving away from a double date, or some place where I had to interact with people. Funny for him...most likely horrifying for my future children. (Sorry guys. You get an awkward mom with a creepy blog!) Due to my record, I have a growing collection of awkward moments that I enjoy sharing on the blog. Take for instance...

... how I found out my entire family reads my blog after I posted a picture of my underwear.

... that one time a trucker proposed to me while I was making him a sandwich.

... I get farted on by my patients, pretty much on a daily basis.

... I once accidently walked into the girls locker room in high school, not realizing that the AWAY team happened to be changing in there. I met a boy. He was in his underwear. Years down the road, he saw me at the same gas station as him and tried striking up a conversation like I hadn't worked so hard to erase that from my memory.

... and a more recent one that I am not yet able to share, because it involves my privates and a BUG. Maybe that can be next, after the post traumatic stress disorder wears off. Or maybe sharing awkward things just increase the awkwardness. I don't know.

Thank you for letting me interrupt your regularly scheduled post with my nonsense! See you around sometime?

alrighty - head on over to laynah's corner and tell her how amazing she is...and tell her i sent you.

i kid.

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a little wedding reception

Friday, July 12, 2013

oooooooo! if there was something i liked more than putting together a par-tay...

i don't even know what i would do.

imagine my thrill when my sister (of golden, CO) said i could put together a little idaho reception for her and her nearest and dearest? i about lost my mind.

with just shy of a month to pull everything together...it was full speed ahead.

i commissioned melanie of my billie designs to put together the invites and other paper goodies... they turned out better than i had hoped.

invitation front -

invitation back -

she fancied up some straw flags...and what's a party with out straw flags?

you better believe that cocktail tasted amazing.

also amazing? the food: fancy dogs, sweet potato salad, pesto pasta salad, fruit salad...apparently every salad excluding a green salad.

melanie also designed cupcake toppers and they were the cutest...unfortunately this is the only pathetic picture i have.

see those boxes the peaches are sitting in? my dad built those years ago for my wedding to hold apples...and they were just as lovely at this reception holding the peaches.

melanie was a total breeze to work with. she was johnny on the spot and handled my craziness well. THANK YOU MELANIE!

i couldn't stand to bug melanie any more and so as the party drew near, and my nights on the farm got lonely (farmer was farming, baby was sleeping)...i nearly burst my brain trying to put together a few more paper decorations...borrowing from what melanie had already sent.

food signage and water bottle labels

banners

as my sister and i were working on the decor the day of the reception i looked to her and said, "kell, i'm sorry that this party started out whole-heartedly about you and rob...and turned into something i would have done for myself."

she graciously told me it was, "just fine." and thanked me over and over. but that gal knows me through and through. she knew the entire time what it would turn into. she's intuitive like that when it comes to me. either that, or i'm incredibly predictable.

either way...i'll toot my horn. i thought it was just lovely. toot toot.

and the people in attendance were even lovelier.

thank you so so...so so much to all the lovelies that spent their 4th of july with us in mccall celebrating my dear, sweet sister and her stellar husband (it was also her birthday).

i do believe the lady that snapped these shots had had one too many peachy breezies...know what i'm sayin'?

quick - make your legs look as awkward as possible. done.

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KAYE | EIGHT.FIVE MONTHS

Wednesday, July 10, 2013

i have my hands full.

kaye is growing up like crazy right before our eyes.

the next thing we know she'll be cursing and drinking coffee...just like her mother.

it all happened the second week of june. within a 24 hour period she was:

1. crawling

2. sitting up from tummy position, and...

3. growling "mamamama mom!" (she sounds super irritated when she says it.)

irritation in her voice and all...it melts my heart.

my little miss also came down with her first illness. she had a fever for five days and i hated every second of it. when you see your little person change from the active, crazy, noisy, funny, little self to a sad, little bear...well...it's just the worst. however, the first day of the fever she literally cuddled and slept in my arms a good majority of the day. that confirmed she wasn't feeling like herself.

as the month progressed she recovered from her fever and took up speed-crawling. she motors around our house like a champ and pulls herself up on EVERYTHING. everything.

oh miss miss. your are pure sweetness and sass all rolled into one.

you are literally getting cuter and cuter by the day.

your thighs are getting bigger and bigger by the day.

you are also getting a littler bit naughtier by the day. and by naughtier i mean you are getting into everything. we need to childproof this casa asap.

as you explore your boundaries this also means you're becoming independent. that's right...on occasion you don't think mom is very cool and you'll play by yourself for good stretches of time. one instance you played for so long by yourself i found myself missing you and tried to get you to pay me some attention. you wouldn't. you wanted nothing to do with me. i'll accept that.

some of your favorites?

1. walking with your hands being held. you practically  run.

2. pulling yourself up on the furniture. unfortunately this results in quite a bit of falling. and no matter how many blankets and pillows i put around you to cushion your fall, you still manage to fall where there is none. your head has kind of taken a bit of a beating these past few weeks, but it's nothing a few cuddles can't fix.

3. dancing with your dad. bouncing and swaying and laughing. you can't get enough of this guy.

4. food. still quite the enthusiastic eater you are.

5. watching your dad ski and wakeboard. you stand on the back of the boat and enthusiastically slap until he's finished.

6. jabbering. you're a regular, old jabber-jaws...just like your father. and your father's father. and probably your father's father's father.

7. the water. whether it's a bath, on a boat, or just dipping your toes in the lake...it never fails to plaster a turtle-smile across your face.

8. dogs. you squeal with delight.

some of your dislikes?

1. being alone. being alone above all things.

favorite toy(s): toothbrush, chewing on a book, or shaking these little, plastic balls that fit in your palm perfectly. you're very nonchalant about the whole process.

note the toothbrush in both hands.

nicknames: miss miss, baby, turtle-bear, turtle, sweety-bear, sweety-bear-turtle-bug

baby - you're loved by so many because you're the very best baby. you greet everyone with a smile and even a little shyness. but once you warm up you'll play with anyone that will walk you around.

you are also incredibly tenacious. you have a no-quit spirit that is accompanied by much grunting and a grimace of determination.

before you were born i asked your dad what quality he most hoped for you to have. he responded with "determination and curiosity." it's VERY clear to us both that you don't lack in either of those departments. well done, miss miss.

this month of life i'd loooove for you to work on a few things.

what's a girl gotta do to get you to drink water from a sippy cup so you don't spill it all over yourself? currently you prefer water bottles and it makes you a wet mess every time.

napping. you're a napping and sleeping champ once you finally go down. but you get so sad every time i put you in your crib. you fight it so hard because you don't want to miss out on any action. but remember, the sooner you fall asleep, the sooner you'll get to wake up and play...so just go to sleep.

sweety-bear, you're the best. you make everyone you meet smile and you have your dad wrapped around your finger. maybe you can teach me that trick one day.

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