What a face...

This is our friend's daughter, Emme. I was thinking I would write something about Emme's personality here, but I think the pictures say it all. She has always had this look about her - even when she was bald and first born. The curls and the small gap between her front teeth have just been the icing on the cake. Hope you enjoy these pictures of her as much as I enjoyed taking them.

Heading into the traveling green bean caserole era...

Today Greg and I rearranged and cleaned out our kitchen cabinets as our little one has found her feet and her curiosity. We moved all dangerous objects to unreachable cabinets and tupperware and junk drawer playables to reachable areas. All other cabinets were given a safety lock. The title of this blog comes from a comment Greg made that made me laugh out loud. We were deciding about what we needed to get rid of from our pots and pans cabinet. Somewhere from the back he pulled out one of those traveling warmers for a 9x13 pan. I could see him contemplating whether this was a keeper or a goodwill item when he says "We'll need this since we are heading into the traveling green bean caserole era."

When people say that children change your life forever, you always imagine it as a sleepless, but full of love sort of change. But I've realized that isn't what they mean at all. It means that everything that used to be simple in your life has now become complicated. Every decision you make, every item that you set down, every minute that you spend for yourself... all of that is tied to this little person. Two weekends ago we put up gates that now have to be opened and closed every time we walk up the stairs. Today we put plastic tabs on the cabinets and we will never open a cabinet the same again. Every time a waitress sets something down at our table I wonder how hot it is and make sure it's out of reach. Every time I walk out the door I ask myself... diaper? wipes? bottle? snack? sippy cup? toy? Last Saturday morning I got my daughter dressed, loaded her up, and went to the grocery store in my pajamas... didn't even brush my hair. I made myself coffee, but I didn't brush my hair. Coffee is way more important! Children really do change EVERYTHING! I hope this doesn't sound like complaining because I truly do love every bit of her and tomorrow when she is unloading her new tupperware cabinet I will laugh out loud watching her enjoy a simple piece of plastic.

Ava's solution...

Here was Ava's solution to the crawling in a dress problem - hike those knees up girl!

Happy Easter!

Here is Ava in her Easter dress from Grammy. Why do we feel the need to torture our children? As much as I love this dress, Ava hated it! Can you tell? This is something I wish someone would have shared with me before I bought her all kinds of dresses... baby girl's can't crawl in a dress that is longer than their knees. Their knees get caught and they end up face planting every time they try. She has piles of dresses she's never worn because if I put them on her I have to listen to her scream all day. They shouldn't even sell dresses like this until they are walking age! It's depressing to pack up a pile full of skirts and dresses with the tags still attached. So, to you mother's shopping for cute spring dresses for your crawling baby - put them back - wait until next year!

Emme and Ava sharing some peach puffs.

The toad in our pond.

Emme and the toad... give him a kiss!

Playing on the porch... who needs toys when there are holes in the wood!

ahhhhhhhh springtime!

How can this little teeny tiny person bring so much big huge joy to our lives? I know all of these pictures are of her smiling, but she really is that happy... which can only rub off on the people around her. The warm weather has also put a smile on everyone's face these days. The flowers are all blooming, Greg mowed the lawn for the first time today and I washed all the winter dirt off the windows. Emme (almost 3) came over and her and Ava were introduced to their first toad... two of them in fact... who had made a new home of the water that had filled up our pond from the rain the day before. (I'll blog those pics in a second) Ava also got her first experience with bubbles... I was unable to capture any pictures as I was the bubble blower, but she was in heaven. I decided that bubbles were sort of a mean trick to play on a little one as I watched Ava concentrate to try and pick them off the carpet. She would concentrate harder and harder with each one hoping that she could pick up just one and hold it in her hand. No luck... they just kept popping. She did however like it when they would come at her face and pop on her nose and cheeks, so we tried to stick with that game. There is something about a baby that makes you discover the world for the first time. I've seen kids play with bubbles over and over again throughout my life, but watching my own see them for the very first time made me enjoy them even more than I ever have before. I don't remember the first time I experienced bubbles or grass or a toad, but I feel like it was today. It's springtime, take a little time to discover something all over again for the first time!