My Memaw's Ring

This is a very sweet story that I had to write before I forgot one detail of it. And in order for this to make sense I have to tell 2 back stories to lead up to what happened today.

Let's take the beginning of this story back about 20 years to when I was a little girl...

Whenever we'd go visit my Memaw (my dad's mom) in White Hall, I'd sneak into her guest room where she kept all of her jewelry and sit at her vanity and play dress up. She'd let me put on every piece of jewelry she owned and although I loved them all, there was this one ring that was always so special to me. I just loved the way it looked. 

I had no idea at the time, but this ring was actually my Memaw's engagement ring. It was antique, simple, and so beautiful. She'd always tell me that one day when I grew up, she would give it to me. 

Time went on and I eventually out grew playing in her jewelry and had almost forgotten about her promise to me. My senior year of high school, we were at her house, and I can't remember if it was for Christmas or graduation, but she handed me a small gift box and inside was the ring! I immediately had a flood of memories rush through my head and I was so touched that she remembered her promise to me even though I had forgotten. 

I've worn it on my right ring finger ever since. My sweet Memaw passed away about 6 months before Drew and I got married and I love getting to carry around a piece of her every day. Every time I look down at that ring it makes me think of her and I smile. 

Now for the next part of the story... It's going to seem like these two stories have nothing to do with each other but bare with me! I promise it will all come together. 

So let's fast forward to year 2006 to hear about our engagement story...

It was 2 days before my 19th birthday and we were at the beach. I thought we were there to babysit for some family friends but really Drew had arranged the whole thing. 

He took me out to eat on August 11th at a restaurant called Gulf Island Grill. After dinner we came back to the hotel and took a moonlit walk on the beach. We were holding hands walking along the water when we saw a shooting star. I asked if he made a wish and he said "I'm about to make my wish come true." Then he got down on one knee, pulled out a ring, and asked me to marry him. It was so incredibly sweet in spite of my "are you serious?!?" response. 

That proposal has always been so precious to us. I mean, who proposes via shooting star on a moonlit beach?? He may not be the most romantic guy but he comes through when it counts. 

This brings us to this week... 

We are on vacation with my family at Fort Morgan beach, just a quick drive down the road from where we got engaged. It's been 10 years this month since Drew {finally} asked me to marry him so we've had fun reminiscing about all the details of that trip. 

We were getting ready to head down to the beach for the day and Drew asked if I was going to wear my rings down there. (They've gotten really loose since I've lost some weight). I said I would thinking I probably wouldn't even get to swim since I'd be taking care of Sadie. 

I was able to get her down for a nap and left her in the house with some family while Drew and I headed down to the beach to play with Olivia and Charlotte. We played in the sand for a long time and then I went out in the water and tossed the football around with Drew and my brother in law. 

I was about knee deep in the water when I caught the ball and as soon as it hit my hand I saw my Memaw's ring fly off and land in the water right in front of me. I immediately hollered at Drew and dropped to my knees to find it. My heart sank. The waves kept coming one after another and I could not find it. My whole family was in the water searching for it. Even the people next to us came over to help and lent us their goggles. 

I prayed the whole time. "God, I know this may seem silly but please help me find my ring. It's so special to me! You've helped me find it once before when I lost it, please help me again." We searched for probably 45 minutes with no luck. Sadie woke up and I had to go inside. I was crushed. I cried. It was irreplaceable and I had lost it. 

Everyone kept looking but it was no use. It was like trying to find a needle in a haystack, but much worse. I thanked everyone for their help but I didn't want to waste their time. It was gone. I cried and prayed again, "God, thanks for letting me look. It just wasn't meant for me to find it. I don't know why but there must be a reason."

Drew knew how bad I felt and was trying his best to help. He kept searching for it. He even Googled metal detector searchers he could hire. 

He came inside and asked if he could take me out to dinner to help me feel better. I said, "I would LOVE to." We left the kids with my family and had our first date night since Sadie was born. He took me to one of our favorite places to eat, The Oyster House. We walked around and did some shopping while we waited for our table, ate way too much at supper, then got some ice cream before heading back to the beach house. 

When we pulled up, Drew asked if I'd help him take the canopy down that was out by the water. We got it fixed for the night and then he said, "Let's walk out here for just a minute before going back in to the girls."

We held hands and walked for just a little ways when he stopped me and said he needed to reenact something. I thought he was just being silly and talking about our engagement night again. 

Then he got down on one knee and said, "Give me your right hand." 

I said, "What? Why?"

He said, "Just do it. Give me your hand."

I held my hand out and he slipped something on my ring finger. I said, "What is that?" Then he shined a light on my hand.

IT WAS MY RING. My Memaw's ring!!!

Tears instantly started rolling. I asked How? When?? Where??? He just smiled and hugged me while I sobbed. Like ugly crying sobbing. 

He said once we all called it quits on the search party, he decided to look one more time and there it was. Glistening in the bottom of the sandy ocean floor. Instead of giving it to me right then he wanted to make it special because he knew how much it meant to me. He combined the meaningfulness of that ring with the night he proposed and made it a night I'll never forget. 

God didn't want me to find it. He wanted my husband to find it so he could do something much more special with it. I'm going to bed with a thankful heart. My ring is back on my finger and I have a husband who would do anything just to make me smile. It has been one emotional day and I'm so incredibly thankful!

Mom Life

On Monday afternoons Charlotte, Sadie, and I usually go do the grocery shopping while Olivia is in gymnastics. Last week she finally nailed her standing backbend all by herself! I was so proud of her and she was pumped, to say the least. She came home from last week's practice and kept on practicing over and over until her arms slipped out from under her and she smacked her head on the floor. 

I knew she'd try to weasel herself out of having to practice those today so I wanted to stay for her practice and watch. That way I could force her to practice them again. I decided to do the grocery shopping early today so it'd be done before gymnastics. 

The whole time I tried to make my grocery list and get dressed, Sadie cried. Unless I held her. It was a difficult morning. I knew she was extremely tired but she would not give in to a nap so I was counting on the car ride to Walmart to do the trick. I switched out one more load of laundry while I herded the kids out the door, then I heard extra loud clopping coming from Charlotte's direction and realized she had on Rapunzel dress-up heels. I was {this} close to taking her to her room to change her shoes, but I thought Ehh, whatever. She's happy. And off to Walmart we went. 

We always get the new buggy with the infant seat for Sadie at the top but none of those were outside. So to keep from it taking 10 years for us all to walk across the parking lot, I grabbed a regular buggy to put them in until we got inside. That was not the one she wanted, so Charlotte immediately started crying, waking Sadie up who had just fallen asleep. 

When we got inside, Charlotte insisted on taking her princess heels off and riding on the end of the buggy. I actually like her riding on the end because it gives me more room for groceries. I didn't like her being barefoot but I thought as long as she stays on the buggy and doesn't get down, it's not that big of a deal. I'm trying to pick my battles here!

Our first stop was shampoo and immediately Charlotte got down and wanted to walk around. I told her she had two options:

1. Put your shoes back on and walk. 

Or

2. Get back on the buggy and ride. 

Looking back, I assume she was waiting on a third option because she didn't seem too enthralled about either. After repeating the options several times, she refused to do either so I picked her up and put her IN the buggy.

The horror. 

Blood curdling screams soon followed and suddenly we were that family. Charlotte was that kid. And I was that Mom. 

People were staring but I refused to back down. Never mind the fact that I was the one who allowed her to wear those dang princess shoes that don't even fit her... I was not giving in. And neither was she. And then I remembered what shirt I was wearing...

Yep. 

I suddenly felt the urge to buy a hoodie from the ladies section and pull it over my shirt. And my head. Charlotte was still screaming and I felt like there were beams of light shining off my shirt. Radiating to the world that Mom life. Is the. Best life. Don't get me wrong, I really do think it is, and I wouldn't trade it for the world, but at that particular moment?? Oh, the irony! And I'm not sporting just a regular ol statement here... It's got three periods in it! THREE! Talk about emphasis! I really should've put more thought into buying this shirt! 

Thankfully her fit didn't last much longer and I felt the light beams beginning to fade. We made it through the rest of our trip without any meltdowns and all was well. By the time we checked out, loaded all the kids in the car, unloaded all the groceries, and the kids were back at home playing happily in the living room, I propped my feet up and breathed a sigh of relief. Ahh... Mom life. Is the. Best life. 

Dear Mama

Recently I went to a wedding shower and instead of signing a guest book at the door, the hostesses had each guest write a piece of marriage advice on a slip of paper. Not knowing the bride very well, I kept it simple, but real, and scribbled down, "Seek God first in everything you do... No matter how small it may seem." I folded it up and added it to the basket.

As I sat in my chair waiting for the shower to begin, I started thinking of all the things I could've written. Drew and I have a wonderful marriage and I like to think I'm full of marital wisdom. Ha! But in all actuality, I'm not qualified to give marriage advice. I just know what works for us, and it's nothing fancy. Just love. Love with your whole heart and prove it by serving each other. Wake up every day thinking of something special you can do for your spouse. 

All of that got me to thinking about what if this had been a baby shower instead of a wedding shower? What advice would I have written down for a first time mom, or even to myself? Lord willing, if we're blessed with another baby, maybe something I could go back and reread? Or perhaps something that would just serve as a reminder when it's been a particularly difficult day? 

It would go a little something like this...
 

Olivia - 2010

  

Charlotte - 2014

 

Sadie - 2015

Don't rush to get out of the hospital. Nobody ever enjoys being in the hospital. The beds are terribly uncomfortable. The towels are entirely too small and scratchy to actually dry you off. The food is eh. You have what feels like 20 wires and doohickeys hooked up to you making it difficult to even roll over in the bed. Not to mention the lack of sleep due to the constant flow of family and friends who are dying to get their hands on your new little one. But try to enjoy it. There's such excitement in the newness of those first hours of your baby's life! Your hormones may be a little crazy, but you feel a joy like no other and everyone wants to talk about how beautiful your new bundle is. Relish in it. Enjoy letting people take care of you because as soon as you get home, it's back to reality. The dishes and laundry are no respecter of exhausted mamas. (And neither are your other children!)

Olivia

 

Hold her too much. Throw those books, documents, and extensive research articles out the window. You know, the ones about frequently laying your baby down so they won't become too attached? I say hold your baby as much as you can. She will never be as young as she is today. Tomorrow she will be a little bigger and most likely doing something new that she's never done before. The amount of time that she's a floppy little newborn is so brief. Hold her tight and take in that sweet baby smell. The one that my husband refers to as "Baby Johnson." Run your fingers across her ears and arms and feel those soft baby hairs that haven't fallen off yet. Curl up in the recliner and catch a cheesy Lifetime movie while she sleeps on your chest, and maybe even doze off to la-la-land with her. Time flies by all too quickly and babies grow entirely too fast. Enjoy every cuddle. Every snuggle. Every whimper. Every coo.

Sadie

 Take way too many pictures. My picture taking drives my husband crazy, and I keep telling him that he'll appreciate it one day. I don't think he does yet, but I'm determined to prove him wrong. It's amazing how fast your baby will change! It doesn't take long for her cheeks to start filling out, her little neck muscles get stronger and she's no longer a little bobble head, and her sleepy unintentional grins turn into big happy smiles. Cherish each stage of her life and don't be afraid to document them all! Pick a couple of your favorites to share on Facebook, and no one has to know that you secretly have hundreds of pictures exactly like them stored on your computer. Mama, if it's special to you, that's all that matters!

  

Olivia

Put the phone down while she nurses. This is one I have to remind myself. Sometimes I do pretty good at it but there are times I think she just uses me as a pacifier and I need some entertainment! Thankfully my body was born to be a milk cow and I've never had to struggle to feed my baby. I've always had an abundance and all three of my babies have been terrific eaters. Don't be afraid to stare at your baby while she eats. Watch her as her little nose wrinkles, lock eyes with her when she gazes up at you, touch her chubby little fingers as they grasp on to your skin. Pay attention to the little things... Those fluttering eyelashes, the way she folds her hands almost as if she's praying, and how she stretches out like a starfish when she's full and had enough. Soak it up. Breathe in those moments, for they will be over all too soon. In the beginning she'll depend on you for every meal, to survive. But before long she'll only need you before naps or bedtime, and then eventually not at all. Enjoy those sweet bonding moments that only the two of you can experience. 

 

Don't stress over your weight. I'm not saying ignore your health, just don't let your weight consume your mind. This is a daily struggle for me. And listen, I am the LAST person on this planet who feels like she has any right to even discuss health! I definitely don't always make the most health conscious decisions, but it's something I'm working on. It's the reason I get up at 4:34 every morning to go run the farm road at 5:00 with my friends. And I know 4:34 is such an odd time but I just can't bring myself to set my alarm for 4:30. I need those 4 extra minutes! I want my girls to know that I exercise and try to make health{ier} food choices, but I also want them to know its okay to indulge in pizza and ice cream sometimes too. There are so many more important things in this world than being a size 2, and your kids know this! Kids couldn't care less about what size jeans their mom can or can't get buttoned, so don't let your extra baby weight get you down. Your husband and kids love YOU, no matter what the scale says! 

Charlotte

 

Don't rush them to grow up. This happens all on its own without us speeding up the process. When I had my first daughter, I was always ready for her to do the next big thing... Sitting, walking, talking, potty training, etc. And she did do some of those things pretty early in life because I wanted her to be "advanced." By the time I had my second (and especially with my third), my thinking had drastically changed. I no longer rush them to accomplish the next feat. I just want them to be little. Be my baby a little while longer! 

We have certainly been blessed with three precious darling girls. And by no means am I a parenting expert, but I have figured out a thing or two along the way. Like which things are important and which things really don't matter at all. I try to enjoy each day with my girls. They aren't all sunshine and rainbows, believe me. But I'd say we have it pretty good around here! I'm so thankful for my family of five and look forward to a day when that number grows a little more!

 

Sadie Elise Baker

I've come to accept the fact that my days of consistent blogging are over. There's just no time for it, and that's ok because it means my time is filled up with something better. My kids. All three of them.

I wanted to share Sadie's story so I don't forget. Sometimes I like to go back and read their birth stories just to relive the excitement and newness of those days. There's nothing better than bringing a new life into this world. 

On Wednesday, September 23rd, I had my 38 week checkup with Dr. Watson. I had gotten sick that morning and mentioned it to her but she assured me it was normal (something I already knew.) She checked me but I hadn't dilated at all, no sign of thinning, and baby was still very high. I was actually relieved at all that because Drew had to be out of town that night and all the next day. 

That afternoon I picked Livy up from Annie's and we went to get pedicures. When we got home I wasn't feeling very good. I felt sick to my stomach and was having some contractions, but I knew they were only Braxton Hicks. I texted Drew all evening wishing he was home. I was just nervous about not feeling good with him being so far away. 

Thankfully we made it through the night just fine but I felt terrible on Thursday. My stomach was hard as a rock. There was hardly any relief like you get between contractions. It was rock hard all day long. I had a hard time feeling the baby move which was stressing me out. Not to mention having to take care of Livy and Charlotte (who still needs me for so much!) 

I was in tears by that afternoon. I was ready for Drew to get home from his meetings and to figure out why I felt so bad. By 4pm I had convinced myself to call Dr. Watson's nurse. I just wanted to hear her say all was normal. But by the time I called, their office was closed and they had gone home for the day. 

Livy had dance at 5:30, so I loaded the kids up and we headed to dance. We actually passed Drew on the way and he offered to turn around but I assured him I'd be fine. We were out of milk so I was just going to run in Walgreens while she was at ballet, pick her up, then we'd be home for the evening. 

I had a lot of contractions while we were out and I even texted Drew about it. I think my exact words were I've had about 48,000 contractions since we left home. Ha!

By the time we got home I could tell the contractions were becoming a little more intense. I started timing them out of curiosity... I wasn't sure if they were still Braxton Hicks or if they were the real thing. They were between 5-7 minutes apart. So I started thinking this might be real.

I decided to go take a bath to see if that would change anything. Nope. They were now 5 minutes apart. I got out and told Drew these might actually be real contractions. An hour or so went by and when I went to the bathroom I noticed there was some pink on the toilet paper. I decided to call Labor & Delivery in El Dorado to get their opinion on if/when I should come over. 

I explained everything and the nurse said it was completely up to me. I hated to drive over there just to be sent back home so I decided to wait it out a little longer. We decided it might be a good idea to get some bags packed so I tried to pack the baby's bag and just couldn't. I was having too many contractions. So I laid on the bed while I told Drew what to pack. 

He put the girls in bed and I was still having contractions. I told him I had half a mind to go on over there just so they could check me out and see if I was actually in labor. 

About 5 minutes later, I felt something pop and it hurt! Drew knew immediately something was different by my reaction. He asked if my water broke and I said "I don't think so. Nothing came out?" I got up to go to the bathroom and when I sat down it all came out. I said "Drew, that's not pee. We better go to the hospital." Then I looked in the toilet and realized it was filled with bright red blood. I knew something wasn't right. 

I got dressed while Drew called for his parents to come stay with the girls. I called the nurse back and she said we needed to come right then. 

We had just turned off our road when she called me back and said we better just go to Magnolia hospital just to be safe. I called Magnolia's hospital to fill them in and let them know we were on our way. By the time I got up to a room, the contractions were steadily becoming more intense and closer together. The nurse checked me once I got settled in bed, and I was 2-3cm. I told her how fast I tend to labor so she'd be prepared.

Before I went into labor, I had pretty much convinced myself that I did not want any pain medication. The recovery with Charlotte was so easy and I was determined to do it naturally again. But after a few more contractions, I looked at Drew and said, "I want that epidural." He said, "Are you sure? Think about that easy recovery..." I cut him off. I said, "You think about recovery. I'm getting an epidural!!!" The nurse said that they actually do spinals, where you go completely numb from the waist down. That sounded wonderful!

I was beginning to feel a lot of pressure during the contractions and I told the nurse she better check me again. Now I was 4-5cm, and thankfully the lady with the goods was on her way! When she walked in I asked, "Are you my angel?" Ha! The nurse checked me one more time and I was 7cm. As soon as I got the spinal, I laid down and my feet started to tingle. I had one more contraction that I could feel, but it didn't hurt. After that, I seriously could not feel a thing!

Maybe 10-15 minutes later, the nurse checked me one more time and said I was fully dilated and it was time to push! While they were scurrying around preparing for the baby, Drew was holding my hand and I asked, "Is this real? I mean, I'm not dreaming am I??" It was all happening so fast!

The doctor told me when it was time to push, and to be honest, I couldn't tell if I was pushing or not! I felt absolutely no pain! I pushed about 3 times, and she was out!

But as soon as she came out, there was blood everywhere. I could tell by the doctors' and nurses' reactions that something wasn't right. I looked down at Sadie who was covered in blood. She had a healthy cry, but I could tell she was gurgling in between cries. The nurses immediately took her and started syphoning blood out of her by a tube down her nose. I heard the doctor say that he thought it was a placental abruption.

They said Sadie had swallowed a lot of blood, but other than that she was completely healthy. It took a while for them to get all the blood out of her and to get me all fixed up. But after about 45 minutes or so, I finally got to hold my sweet Sadie. My third little girl. Drew had the biggest smile on his face, and I had tears in my eyes. I laid there and thanked God repeatedly for this healthy baby. I knew things could've gone so wrong with this delivery, but He protected us.

Sadie weighed 8 pounds, 1 ounce, and was 20.5 inches long. She was stunningly beautiful!

Two days after we brought her home, she had a doctor visit to follow up on her jaundice. Long story short, she was extremely jaundiced so we had to spend 2 more nights in the hospital. That was tough. I just wanted to be at home and enjoy being a family of five but instead Sadie and I had to stay in the hospital while Drew and the girls were at home. I had to feed Sadie every 2 hours day and night to help the jaundice go down. It was very tiring, physically and emotionally! But after 3 days we finally got to come home! 

A Third Blessing

I wrote this almost a year ago. It was about a week after we found out we were pregnant with Sadie and for some reason I just never posted it. So here it is now...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I cannot even begin to describe the excitement and joy that has filled my heart.

I used to dream about a day when we might be "surprised" by a positive pregnancy test but in the back of my mind I never thought it would be possible. I had to use Clomid to get pregnant with Olivia, then I went through 23 months of infertility struggles to get pregnant with Charlotte. Those 23 months were filled with multiple doctors, medications, shots (some were even self-given), a miscarriage, and 2 IUI attempts. It was so heartbreaking. I've written about it before so I won't go back through all the details, but it was tough. But finally, on Mother's Day 2013, we got pregnant with Charlotte!

I say all of this to support my thinking that I really never thought we'd be able to have a baby on our own. And I was ok with that. In fact, Drew and I had already started weighing our options about baby #3. I was due for an annual check-up in March so I was planning on asking my doctor then what she would suggest we do. Maybe start off with Clomid again? Or just cut to the chase and head straight to the infertility doctor in Shreveport where we had our IUIs done?

After having Charlotte, we were open to having another baby. Of course we wanted one... not too soon, but if the Lord blessed us with another baby we would've been thrilled, no matter the timing! And then nothing happened, which wasn't surprising given my history, and I was also still breastfeeding which tends to lessen your chances of getting pregnant. I would sporadically take pregnancy tests just to "make sure" I wasn't pregnant and after several negative tests, I just stopped taking them. It brought back lots of memories of one negative test after another when trying after Olivia and I was determined not to beat myself up with grief like I did back then.

I had one cycle in December and that was it. Nothing since then, which also wasn't surprising. That's very normal for me so I never gave it a second thought.

Last Sunday we ate lunch with some friends at a Mexican restaurant after church and then came home to get ready for the annual Youth Bake Sale that night. The entire time I was baking my cake I was having horrible chest pains. It hurt all throughout my chest and even spread to my shoulders and down my arms a little... it was actually sort of scary. It would not go away! I finally went and laid down in bed to get some relief and I told Drew about it. He said,

"It's probably just heartburn from lunch."
"No, it can't be heartburn. I only get that when I'm pregnant."

Then said, "Alright!!" And tried to fist bump me.
"Listen, I would love to fist bump you over that, but I can tell you right now that's not possible!"

A little while later Drew left for church and I was in the kitchen finishing up my cake. I kept thinking about what he said. Heartburn. Honestly, I've never had it when I wasn't pregnant, and I just couldn't shake the thought. I knew I had a couple of tests still in the bathroom drawer and I thought what the heck!? I'll take one just to clear the air and get it off my mind. It'll be negative like it usually is and I'll go about my business. No big deal.

As soon as those 3 little drops hit the test and the results started to creep up the strip, I immediately saw a dark red line. And then another red line. 2 lines? What in the world? Like an idiot, I checked the box again to make sure I was reading this thing right! It was positive. My brain automatically started thinking of reasons why this had to be a false positive. I think I was just too scared to get excited! I had one more test left in the drawer so I quickly tore it open and tested it too, just to make sure the first wasn't a fluke. Same thing... 2 dark red lines!

Boy, then I really started having chest pains! Ha! It was such a mixture of emotions. Total shock, joy, happiness, and a little disbelief. I think my brain freaked out for a little while. I knew I had to tell Drew. I couldn't just call him and it was way too important to text, and I couldn't wait one more minute!! So I just loaded Charlotte up in the car (Livy was at Pappy and Annie's), grabbed the positive tests, and drove straight to the church to find Drew.

The whole way I prayed,

"Lord... thank you! Thank you, thank you, thank you! Wait. Is this real? Lord, if this is real, thank you! If this isn't real... no, it's real. Thank you, thank you, thank you!"

Drew met me at the car and I said,

"So I figured out why my chest was hurting so bad..." and I held out the tests in my hand.
"What is that??"
"What does it look like?"
I could see his wheels turning verrrrry slowly and then he got it. "Really?"
"Yep!!!"
"Really??"
"Yes!!!"
"Seriously???"
"YES!!!!!"
"Man, that's awesome!!"

Then we sat there in the parking lot giggling and searching for words... with our 12 month old in the back seat! Who will now be a big sister?!

I tell ya... I am SO EXCITED! I really feel like we've defied all odds here. We got pregnant on the very first try while I'm still breastfeeding. I really can't grasp how it happened so so easily this time around. Thanks be to God, that's for sure!

I feel a little like the father from the book of Mark. The father asked Jesus if He could heal his demon possessed son...
23Jesus said unto him, If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth.
24And straightway the father of the child cried out, and said with tears, Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief.

How many times have I thought that exact same thing? I believe, but help my unbelief. Lord, I know You can, I'm just not sure if You will. In this instance, He can and He did. I don't feel worthy of being blessed this much but I am ever so grateful and thankful!

Charlotte's 1st Steps!

I actually wrote this a month ago and apparently just forgot to post it! Oops!

....


Yesterday morning, we were in Charlotte's room taking pictures for her birthday invitations. I set up a little backdrop with wrapping paper and had gotten a few shots of her sitting in front of it.

She can stand up by herself if she's leaning against something so I propped her up against the backdrop to get some pictures of her standing up. She was standing there smiling and out of nowhere she just started walking to me! She took about 3 or 4 steps and made it all the way to me!!! I was screaming, Livy was screaming, and Charlotte was just a squealing and laughing. 

Somehow I managed to take this picture of her in the midst of the excitement. I was so shocked! I couldn't believe it! 

When Livy was her age all she wanted to do was hold someone's hands and walk around but Charlotte has taken absolutely no interest in walking at all. As soon as I try to walk with her he just sits down. So when she just took off walking towards me it was such a surprise! 

She's taken a couple steps here and there since then but nothing like that one time. 

 

Be My Baby

Somehow I'm constantly amazed at the things Charlotte does... like I haven't raised a little girl before? With Olivia, I remember I was always getting her to try new stuff and pushing her to do the next thing... crawling, walking, talking, etc. But with Charlotte, I've found myself just wanting her to "be my baby."

 

Sometimes I start to feel bad about it - like I'm somehow giving her the short end of the stick. But then I snap back to reality and realize she is doing just fine!

 

Today I left her playing in the living room while I went to the bedroom to start sorting out the laundry. When I came back in the room I found her sitting in the Minnie Mouse chair, with a bracelet on, and playing with her baby doll. It was like I was looking at a toddler. I couldn't believe my eyes!

 



She is really growing up too fast! I miss her being my newborn, but at the same time it is so nice now that she's getting older. Just this past week, she's really started playing with Livy. She follows her everywhere and wants to do everything Livy does. And thankfully, Livy is usually very good at obliging. It definitely makes my life a little easier. I'm able to get things done, like laundry, dishes, and just general cleaning. They'll play in the playroom together for a really long time!

I'm so thankful for my girls, and looking forward to Charlotte's big birthday party in a couple weeks!