Standing tall

Raegan pulls herself up to everything now. No sooner did the words "she's not really getting into anything yet" leave my mouth then she started on a rampage of finding all sorts of off-limits things to explore. Last Thursday we caught her shoving red hots candies into her mouth from the dish on the coffee table. (Apparently she has a taste for them like her Mommy because she had a big red grin on her face!)
I had to take these pics of her in her onesie the other night just to document that although she is more and more active, she still has yet to loose any of her fatty thighs. It will be a sad day when those start to thin down!
 

3 strikes...and we were out.

I am not posting a picture today simply because there is (literally) no photo to show! I took Raegan for her 3rd attempt (since birth) to have "professional" pictures taken. I have not had much luck in the past but I thought naively that this time would be different. She's older, she smiles more, she can pull herself up to stand next to things, etc. I had a coupon for the mall and I thought what the heck~ Grandma and Grandpa sent us a cute new outfit for Valentine's Day so I thought it would be fun to get a picture taken in it to send out to the relatives.
Well, this was not what Raegan had in mind for her day and proceeded to do her best at NOT smiling or cooperating. The photographer and I tried everything; toys, songs, lights, funny faces, clapping, jumping up and down...nothing amused Raegan and in fact our attempts seemed to make things worse. She cried, screeched, kicked, and crawled away from the camera. The only time she was happy was when she was holding the grossest, ugliest, most-chewed-on toy that they had there; one that I certainly didn't want in the picture (much less in her hands)!
So, we gave up, and I packed her back up in the stroller with a fist full of Cheerios. And wouldn't you know it...she had a huge grin on her face when we left!

Cousin-Friends

Today I'm watching my nephew and it's been fun but is also a good reminder of how "easy" I have it with just my one child! This is the first moment I've had to sit down today and I have yet to have a moment to myself. (All of you with multiple kids are laughing at me right now, I realize). Anyways, Raegan and Caden have had lots of fun together especially in the tub this morning. Of course neither of them would look at me for a picture but I thought this profile shot was kind of cute. Caden sort of has the Toddler-Billy Idol hairstyle going.... 

A proud "Auntie"

I can't believe it has taken me this long to make this announcement but I guess with all of the excitement I haven't made the time to write about it. I am SO excited to show off the new daughter to one of my dearest friends, Brenda. She and her husband Joel were chosen by a birth mom after only a few months of having their adoption profile posted (if that isn't a God-thing, I don't know what is!), and on February 13 they welcomed Emma Leigh into the world! The best part was that they were able to bring her home from the hospital the day after she was born (as per the birth mom's wishes)! Now we are just praying that all the "paperwork" is ironed out and things go smoothly in the two weeks until their official court date. As soon as it's "official" we're sending out the shower invitations! =)

Open Wide!

Raegan loves to "feed" us things now. She gets a big kick out of putting things in our mouths...be it Cheerios, blocks, remote controls...whatever she can get her hands on. In-and-out, In-and-out. She can make it at least a 10 minute game if you let her! She is really getting the hang of finger foods for herself too, which is so fun. Currently her favorites are peas and Ritz-type crackers. Her bottom teeth are just starting to poke through so when she bites down on the crackers you can hear a little crunch. I never thought I would be so in love with even the simplest of sounds. 

Daddy's Little Valentine

Brad was so sweet and came home with gifts for both of his Valentines...
However, as you can see from the picture, even with a bribe of Cheerios she has no interest in her Valentine balloon OR getting a picture taken with it with Dad. Little Stinker! 

Amazing

I felt drawn to write tonight because I am feeling so good. I just came from a great night of fellowship, conversation, and girl-time. I am sitting here with such a sense of fulfillment that I don't want it to end. It's making me nostalgic so I want to share it....
Looking back on just the past year I can hardly believe the people God has put in my life and also the things that have happened in just a short time. A year ago I was 7 months pregnant and counting down the weeks until my baby was due. I was working full-time and feeling very uncertain of what the future would be like as a stay-at-home mom. It was overwhelming and scary and exciting all at the same time and I just remember praying continuously- over and over- for direction, wisdom, comfort and support.
Now I sit here in this moment (amidst my now busy/full life) and realize (again) how truly faithful He is.
I have met and made some great new friends, grown closer to existing friends, joined a MOPS group, started a new part-time job, and just enjoyed raising a little girl for the past 10 months.....
It is truly amazing to realize what can happen in just one year, and how God answers our prayers in ways that we can't even imagine or begin to expect. I love that.

A Daddy's Girl (for the moment)

I love this picture. If you know Raegan well enough,you know that this is a close as you get to "cuddling" with her. She is also going through a somewhat long "mommy's girl" phase right now so it was so cute to see my 2 favorite people enjoying some time together.
Here they are watching her favorite "Praise Baby" DVD which we save for those rare moments when she needs a little downtime. It's one of the rare times that either of them will sit still long enough to get a picture taken!
 

a new trick

So Raegan has discovered that standing up in the tub and freaking mom out is much more fun than playing with the gazillion tub toys and bubbles that are supposed to amuse her.
How do I scold her when she looks so darn cute doing it? Not that "scolding" does any good because the more I tell her "NO, sit down please" the more she laughs at me. Now I see what I'm in for when her preteen years hit... 

a new thing

So after lots of prompting, inspiration, and hours reading other people's blogs I've decided to try out my own. This is "scary" for me as I like the idea of sharing my life, thoughts and pictures with family and friends, but also feel somewhat intimidated by the idea just the same...
I'm doing this simply to share...and I hope if you're reading this, you enjoy it; as I (and my nosy-self) do when I read other people's blogs!