Summertime

School is out, and that means I get to see more of my niece and nephew! We kicked off Summer vacation this weekend with sprinkler fun on the trampoline; Elena was THRILLED to say the least.

She and Sam spent most of Friday afternoon and today doing this, and they never got tired of it no matter how soaked they were. It truly amazes me how kids can have fun doing the same darn thing for hours on end. I'd better enjoy this stage while I can before the "I'm bored" complaints start, haha. We all had a great time with my family this weekend. Bobby's new nights off give us the opportunity to spend the majority of the weekend with my sister & her little fam when they come into town, which makes me very happy. I got to take my sweet niece to see a movie she'd been anxiously waiting to see (since she read the book it was based on). I knew it would be a tear jerker, but I had no idea I'd enjoy it that much! It was so cute, and I highly recommend it. There are very few simple and innocent love stories like that in the theaters these days; it was refreshing to watch something that didn't have a ton of foul language and profanity.

Well, I'd better join my family in the living room and wind down for the night. Thank you, Jesus, for blessing me this much; it is a privilege to be the daughter of such a loving and almighty God, and I do not take a minute for granted. Have a wonderful night, y'all. Hug your families tight, and sleep well!

A Whole Year!

My goodness! Has it already been over a year since I've posted anything? That's cray-to-the-cray! Well, it's fitting that I stopped blogging once Elena learned to walk; that little girl constantly has me on my toes! It's a fun chaos, though. I am so blessed to be at home with my child, I get to keep her in my safe little bubble a little while longer. Let's see, let's get you up to speed on my baby. She is now a whopping 2 years old, loves to talk, super affectionate and sweet, sensitive like her mama, and a ball of hilariousness & energy like her daddy. She's also a little daredevil when it comes to heights, rides, and things her daddy and I are huge scaredy cats about. I'm not sure where she got that fearless spirit from, but thankfully she has cousins to ride all of those lovely theme park rides with in the future. She is currently her dad's number one fan, and her face lights up with the biggest smile ever when he walks into the room. People ask me if that makes me jealous, and I cannot fathom how seeing my baby love her daddy could possibly make me jealous. I get it; he's super awesome! 'Tis why I married him after all. ;) My happiest moments are when I see them together. Two of the people I love most in this world, loving each other; how incredible is that?

So, as you can see, life is pretty darn sweet. Elena and I have a lot of fun together, and it truly amazes me how fast she learns things. She is big on singing, right now. "Lord, I Need You" is her favorite song, along with "Wheels on the Bus". She also loves to count and recite the alphabet song. She's a smart cookie, but I have to give God the credit for that. He has truly blessed us with our healthy, strong, compassionate, and intelligent little baby. I wish I could keep her this tiny forever, but time keeps on tickin'. Which reminds me, I need to hop on the potty training train--eek. I've been dragging my heels with that for a few weeks now. I don't know what it is, but I am not motivated! I think it's because I know that once she's done with diapers, she's officially a big girl. That's not easy for a mama to digest. I need to get to it, though--she's already plenty old enough, and those diapers sure aren't cheap. Whenever anyone finds that pause button, though, let me know! Until next time my dear friends & fam! Hasta! :)

It's Been Awhile!

And now that Staind song is in my head. "It's been awhile..." :) Ok, but seriously, it has been far too long since I've posted! So, most importantly, let me update y'all on my sweet girl. She is now WALKING! She took more than two steps on March 5th when she turned 11 months old. She had been taking one step forward here and there, but nothing more until that day. Then you could not stop that child! Today she is walking fast and so well. I cannot believe how big she is, and how toddler-like she is! She also talks a lot. Nothing you could understand, but she says what sounds like, "Hey!" when Bobby comes home from work (with a huge smile on her face), and says Dada at the top of her lungs all day long. She's hilarious. I absolutely LOVE that little voice of hers. She is the cutest little girl in the entire world. I'm so glad that she's walking so well because Easter is coming up in one week and I can't wait to watch her hunt for those eggs! Many, many pictures will be taken. :) She is also still drinking a bottle, and I cannot see myself letting that go anytime soon lol. She still relies on it for bedtime and naps. Although lately it requires a lot of rocking and bouncing to get her to sleep. She definitely keeps us constantly on our toes. We'll be saying bye to formula in a couple weeks when she officially turns a year old. :( I cannot believe it has been a year. Time flies by so fast and it's making me very emotional. Be prepared for a sappy post on or after her birthday. You've been warned! Even though she still takes a bottle, she loves her big girl food. She loves oatmeal with fruit and cinnamon, eggs, potatoes, mini pancakes, fruit (everything except mandarin oranges) and cold cut meat. She's just recently stopped wanting the pureed baby food; yet another thing that's making me sad. But in so many ways she is still my tiny baby. Mama is still number one in her eyes. :) In other news, I haven't been doing so well with Weight Watchers. So, my doctor's appointment came and I had lost 11 lbs, which I was so proud of, and then since I've gained 4 back! Well, as of today, I've lost 2 of those. Nothing to be proud of. February 1st, however, my blood sugar looked good and healthy, and she just instructed me to keep up the good work. I need to get serious again. Oh! I almost forgot! We're under contract for a house! :) It's a beautiful one story in Kyle; 1680 square feet, study coming off of the master, stainless steel appliaces, huge backyard, his and hers separate vanities in the master bath, separate shower/garden tub, great closet (which will mostly be mine since Bobby will put most clothes in his dresser and the study closet), and plenty of room for my baby girl. It's also fairly new; only 5 years old. It looks hardly lived in at all. I cannot wait to close on May 1st!!!! And I think I have updated y'all pretty well with all of that said. :) I promise to visit more regularly. God bless!

Oh these times are hard.

This song always reminds me of me and my Bobby. I feel like now that we have our little Elena, she has taken our focus away from each other, and that's why when we get the opportunity to reconnect on date days (like tomorrow--yay!) we fully take advantage of it, and like the song says, it's like we're meeting for the first time. We get to be ourselves for those few hours, not Mommy and Daddy. I cannot stress how important it is to have that time together when you're parents. It is so easy to just put your relationship with one another on the back burner when you're so busy caring for your child, and too exhausted at the end of the day to hang out and all you want to do is sleep. I have found myself doing this, and in turn I've been neglecting my husband. I love my baby girl more than anything in this world, but I have to remember my best friend and to also show him attention and love. These date days rejuvenate us and bring us back to earth. We get to talk and be the way we were before we became parents. One day my baby(s) will move out and move on with her(their) life(lives), and it will just be the two of us again; it's important to keep our relationship strong and the way it was before babies came into our lives. We are the foundation of this family. I have been blessed beyond words with Bobby, and I need to make it a point to show him how much I appreciate him. I can't just assume he knows. So, tomorrow I am so looking forward to some quality time with my better half. "Smiling but we're close to tears, even after all these years we just now got the feeling that we're meeting for the first time."

The Best Job I've Ever Had.

I love my job. I am a full time stay at home mommy and it's absolutely wonderful. I don't want this job to end. I've been delaying the inevitable, knowing full well that one day I'd have to head back out there and help support my family. Thankfully I've been able to buy another few months. I was going to substitute teach one day a week, but now that Elena has been regularly waking up at 5am, I feel bad having Bobby watch her on his day off and not be able to sleep in. He rarely sleeps well since he works nights. Plus, I want to soak in this time with her while I still have so much of it. But I know I need to detach and trust him to watch her. It's just so hard for me to trust anyone else to watch her all day. My goal to finish the alternative teacher's certification process by March is still my focus, but I'm not excited about it. I'm trying to be positive and think that by Fall of next year Elena will be a little more independent and won't need me as much, but I sure will need her. I can't imagine leaving my angel 5 days a week. It's going to be the hardest thing I've ever had to do, but at least I have several months to get used to the idea and prepare myself. I just have to thank God that I have my mother here to watch her, and what a blessing that is! I don't have to worry about her being cared for by strangers in daycare, I know she'll be with someone who loves her so much and will give her all the attention and care she needs. That makes me feel a lot better. I just don't want her to miss me, and wonder why I'm not there. My sweet baby girl--I wish she knew how much I love her. I wish she knew how her face brightens my world, and warms my heart. She is all that's good; I see Jesus' love for me in her sweet eyes. She touches my face with her soft little hands, and I just know she loves me. She's my everything. God has blessed me beyond words. We have such a good little girl. She rarely cries, if ever. God took all the good from me and Bobby and created this perfect person. She amazes me every day with how well behaved and full of life she is. She smiles and laughs all the time, and that lets me know that we must be doing something right. Being a mother is so much more than I could have ever imagined. It's a mixture of intense and beautiful emotions and moments that you wish you could freeze. I feel like my baby is growing at a rapid rate. I hardly remember her as a newborn anymore. I just know that back then we never imagined being at this point and actually feeling like we know what we're doing. She's just such a good baby, she makes it easy. Seeing her with Bobby has been one of my favorite parts of this whole journey. They already have a special bond that no one can break or replace. Her daddy can get her to laugh like no one else can. She lights up when she sees him walk through the door, and gets so excited when he says hi. He is the man in her life, and so special to her. They are so special to each other. His love for our daughter makes me love him even more. It's amazing how seeing your husband so madly in love with your child can make you fall in love with him all over again. I've discovered new depths of love for him seeing him as a devoted father. Just knowing that he loves her as much as I do, and that she is the product of our love for one another, just amazes me. It's such a beautiful thing. God is amazing. I know this is probably a cheesy post, but these emotions are just flooding me right now. I just felt compelled to spill my heart out and let it be known how blessed I am. I love my family, and I thank God for giving me the opportunity to be a mother and a wife. I look forward to seeing what the future holds for us, and what God has planned for us. It's going to be fun, and I can't wait!

Dates and Dads.

So, yesterday we had a little day date while Bobby's mom watched Elena for a few hours. We went to Texas Roadhouse where I got a huge patron margarita (so good) and saw Taken 2. The movie was alright, but not as good as the first. This one was more of a 'feel good' popcorn movie. I was happy that it wasn't as dramatic as the first one because otherwise it would've made me too anxious thinking about my Elena. From a movie critic's perspective, though, they could've done more with it. All in all, I liked it, and I love Liam. He's a great actor and always plays the dad role well. He reminds me of my dad. :) There were parts in the movie where he had sweet moments with his daughter, and Bobby and I would look at each other with smiles. It's so funny how we view things differently now that we have her. A silly movie gets us all emotional. We noticed in the movie that Liam's character took his daughter on a date, and I loved that. Bobby said he can't wait to have dates with his little Elena. I think that's so important because girls should know how priceless and precious they are, and how to be treated like a lady from their dads. I thought it was sweet that Bobby anxiously waits for that day. Even though his work schedule is draining and time consuming, he savors the moments with his daughter. She giggles when she sees him walk through the door, and you can tell that she loves her daddy so much. There is nothing like the bond between a daughter and her father. He will always be her hero, and he will always be the strongest man alive no matter how old he gets. That's how I view my dad; he can defeat anyone and anything in my eyes. As strong as I believe my dad to be, our spiritual Father is 100,000 times stronger and completely invincible! He gives my daddy strength. He truly can defeat anything, and all I have to do is trust Him and pray, and He'll always watch over and protect me and my loved ones. So, if I took anything from that movie, it was the important role of a father in a child's life. My sister and I are so blessed to have our dad. He has always worked so hard to give us everything, and has always been there for us to give advice, guidance, and whatever we may need. Most importantly, he's shown us what true love is by loving our mother. I thank God for blessing me so much with my parents. If I am ever told I'm a good mother, it's because of the wonderful example they've set. And I plan to teach my baby what they've taught me; compassion, understanding, endless love, faith, wisdom, and so many other things. I can't wait to help God mold my beautiful daughter into a Christian woman, but for now I'm going to enjoy these baby moments while I can. I hope everyone has a great Sunday! God bless!

Love Letter.

This morning as I checked my emails, I got so excited to see that my hubby had sent me a love letter while he had some down time at work. It brought forth so many emotions and made me feel so good inside to know that he loves me that much. I read every word anxiously awaiting the next, and loving every single thing he said. I couldn't get enough. Then, after I reread it again, I went to my daily devotionals with today's scripture and it dawned on me that I don't get as giddy or anxious to read the Word of God. I don't feel special, and I don't have those emotions. I read scripture like it's a chore. I read it to say that I did it for the day, and fulfilled a duty. That's terrible, isn't it? Just then, I felt like God was telling me, "Read my words as though I'm talking to ONLY you." I need to approach His words with that excitement and make it personal. He IS talking to me, and He (like Bobby) wants me to know how endless His love is for ME. I can't look at His promises so coldly. He wants His words to penetrate my heart and give me that same feeling I have when reading a love letter from my husband. He is my everything, so His love letters (the Bible) should make me feel all warm and fuzzy inside. His love far exceeds the love between my husband and I. So, my goal is to make it personal and read those words like they're specifically meant for ME, because I AM special to Jesus. He died for me, and His love is amazing.