aspen at six months

Our baby girl is 6 months old. I can seriously not believe it. Where has the time gone? It goes so much faster with the second child, it seems. It seems like yesterday, she was this little sweet pea:

And now look at her:

It was a week ago that she passed her 1/2 year mark. I have been so busy I haven't had a chance to get some photos to truly document and mark the moment. But I did get a few. I will try for more this week. (wish me luck, please!)

A couple of things to note about Miss Aspen at 6 months:

-she is truly the sweetest and happiest baby I've ever met. I'm not just sayin' that either. She doesn't fuss. She only cries if she's starving beyond measure. All of this has been such blessing. I just love how she loves to cuddle up with me, and how she loves to watch her brother.

-she laughs in the face of "danger" aka her big bro who is always running and jumping around her (he likes that he can make her laugh - but we always hold our breath to make sure she's safe when he's trying to get her to laugh at his twirls and jumps).

-she has just started to crawl. (Too early, if you ask me, but it seems like our kids are just "early" crawlers...Sawyer crawled at the same age). Now that she is mobile, she makes her way around the room grabbing Sawyer's race cars. He's not so sure he likes that.

-she is still a night owl. Totally takes after her Mama. She still occasionally stays up well past midnight with me working on projects, and we both enjoy it. She's great company. She's also a Mama's girl. I am loving it. I never thought I'd be able to say that I enjoy shopping with my daughter (I'm not much of a shopper myself) but even at this young age, she is much more pleasant company at the Fabric store than her brother. He gets bored shopping (unless it's Target and he begs to pick out a new Race Car) while she just loves looking at things with me. We browse the designer fabrics and she wins the hearts of all the old ladies, and the young ladies. I think Sawyer's friends are already intrigued. I hope she doesn't break too many of their hearts, because we don't plan on letting her date until she's at least 25. :)

-she has a very cute giggle. And she has this cute little flirty smile where she scrunches up her nose. A-dorable!

random fact from her 6 months check up and Sawyer's 2 year check up (they had their appt together): even though she is super chunk-a-licious, Sawyer was actually almost a pound heavier and .5 inches longer at this age. They now wear the same size diaper: size 3.

She is our lovely little lady. We love her dearly, and can never get enough of her. I will attempt some pics when I ever get a chance, but in the meantime, I did snap a few the other day of her wearing the same headband from her newborn photos, with the same prop (my skirt) under her. Enjoy.

Bubble-licious!

For our family night this week, we celebrated the arrival of summer and went to the beach. We had a picnic dinner, plenty of bubbles for dessert, and LOTS of fun.

Sawyer especially loved the BUBBLES. Can you tell?

We hiked around the woodsy trails that lead down to the beach and let little sister have her first ride in the "big girl" backpack. We ended our evening playing in the sand and watching the sun sink into the Olympic Mountains. Lately we have been SO busy with various things that I find myself looking forward to our scheduled family time. I am so glad we are encouraged by our church leaders and have an excuse to drop everything for a few hours and just BE, together.

*yes, sister is wearing a winter hat even though it's summer. It was still a little breezy and chilly on the beach for a baby! I'm glad to report, however, since Monday when we went, the temperature has steadily increased and today was in the 90s. Hangin' at the beach today with friends she sported her SUN hat instead of beanie!

So, you see...our summer is off to a little bit late, but nonetheless GREAT start!

PS - Do you notice a trend in my blog posts? Our family seems to go to the beach year-round to celebrate ANY occasion! Gotta love that we live so close to awesome beaches! We're in the sand and by the water as much as we possibly can be!

Celebrations // Sawyer's Racing Party

Sawyer woke up to this (see above) on his second birthday. It was a glorious morning, warm and sunny. Perfect! We had waffles with fresh strawberries and then let him open the gifts sent from his Grandparents and Gigi before we packed up and headed to Gas Works Park for his party. He was so excited. We actually went in with my parents for the trike, since I try very hard not to give into the urge to buy everything the boy wants. But I am glad family sent a few gifts so he could have the pleasure of ripping some paper - the bike was too hard to wrap :) And his little friends also gave him some gifts - they know him well, as most every gift involved wheels of some sort. That's boys for you!

His party was a RACE theme. I got black and white racing flags to decorate the table and the cupcakes. I tried hard to keep it simple, but fun, too - because isn't the party partially for the mom to have fun putting it all together? The kids really liked the cherries on top. I love that they liked them.

A bunch of boys, and their bikes. What could be better? The weather was absolutely gorgeous, the sun glistening on Union Bay as sailboats and motor boats zoomed by the party. Mostly, we just let the boys play and ride their bikes. But we did have one game: Stop and Go (think Red Light, Green Light). Imagine a bunch of boys ranging in age from 2-4 and you can imagine that not everyone understood when to stop or go - it made it so funny to watch. They just loved it because it was a "race".

Everyone was a winner!

I didn't get as many pictures as I would've liked - we also had "wheelie sandwiches" which were pb&j made with circular bread, and "traffic light fruit kabobs" made of red, yellow, and green (strawberries, pineapple, and kiwi). But my favorite was the custom water bottles Jacob designed for all of our thirsty little bikers. It's a definite bonus to have a husband who is an amazing graphic designer to help with party stuff!

Overall, it was just FUN. And that's what we hoped for. Plain. Good. Ole. FUN with Friends. The best kind of celebration! Thanks to everyone who came for adding to the good time and for celebrating with us as Sawyer turned TWO.

Sawyer turns two

Dear Sawyer,

I just want you to know that I think the world of you.

You are the coolest little guy I know. Not to mention the sweetest. You're pretty darn handsome, too. But the most important part is that you are sensitive to those around you and have a heart and personality that care for others and bring a sense of fun and adventure to each day. You easily win people over. 

You've won me over, that's for sure!

I love you to pieces! Happy Birthday!

XOXO,

Mommy

He's 2. I can hardly believe it. I have a TWO-year-old! He's starting to crack me up with the faces he's pulling these days. Must be a "two" thing. I took him to the beach/park on his birthday eve., BOB our stroller, baby sister, and HUGE #2 balloon in tow. I was not going to lose this one (remember last year? I got two photos before he let go of the balloon and I almost broke my camera trying to save it...so disappointing! not this year!) People kinda gave us the stare down (CRAZY Momma!) as we walked around the park. Or should I say, as I followed my son around for a good 20 minutes, trying to get some "two year old pics" to remember him by. I kid you not that 2/3 of what I got was the back of his head in some form or another. Here are the winners.

A few quirky things about Sawyer, turning two:

-He speaks in full sentences and wows people with his vocabulary. Right now we think this is adorable but I'm sure shortly we will be wondering how we can ever shut the boy up :)

-LOVES the outdoors. The beach is one of his favorite places (especially if there are train tracks close by).

-Loves to jump and bounce, "like Tigger"

-Does a perfect somersault - can even nail it when he comes at it with a run.

-Is the only toddler we know who requests to read the Encyclopedia as bedtime stories.

-Gets a kick out of riding his bike, FAST, around our little "driveway" and announces when we are "goin' uphill", "goin' downhill" or need to stop "red is for stop!" or go "green is for go!".

-He has learned to count without us even trying to teach him. Must be all the reading of the encyclopedias or something.

-He is OBSESSED with anything with wheels. Cars, trucks, trains, motorcycles. And he does a pretty awesome "Va Vroooom!" He also stole a line from a movie our neighbor let us borrow which brings sly gazes to outbursts of laughter when people hear him declare: "Crazy Woman Driver!" (anyone guess the movie? Hint: the woman he is talking about loves furs)

-He still believes his parents are the best thing in the world.

********************************************

(party pics soon to follow)

Farewell...

Don't be dismayed at goodbyes. A farewell is necessary before you can meet again.

~Richard Bach~

It was a beautiful service. There were smiles and laughs amidst the tears. And there was plenty of entertainment if you let your eyes wander (as in a just-turned-two-year-old-boy running around the cemetery with his parents chasing after him. Grassy, wide-open spaces mean 'run and play' in a toddlers mind...not sit quietly. But that's okay. Grandma would've wanted him there, running around and all).

Appropriately, there were Iris flowers in the flower arrangements. Purple was her favorite color. She never really liked her name all that much, but how can you not be beautiful and breathtaking when you are called "Iris"?

Farewell, Grandma, for now. You are loved by many and will be greatly missed.

*If any of my family or family friends would like me to send them these photos, just ask. You can "steal" these from my blog - you have my permission, but just so you know they are low-resolution.