Summer Picnic

One of our go-to date nights used to be going to the park for a picnic. It's a simple way to get out of the house and spend time together. I don't know why it hadn't occurred to us that taking Hadley on a picnic would be the perfect family "date". 

Hadley had her first sandwich. She looked so grown up eating it- and apparently she loved it because it was gone in a minute or two. 

"More, more, more!" 

She's already and outdoorsy sort of girl. She was so happy to be outside! She started running laps around the picnic blanket. 

Happy Hadley = Cuddly Hadley 

Hadley, 15 Months Old

I thought I was done with these updates, and I was definitely relieved to be done with these bear photos, since they became more WWF smack-down than sweet photo shoot. But this week I was looking through her first birthday photos, and I couldn't believe how much she has changed in just a few months. She has definitely lost that baby look. On the bright side, she sat in front of her bear for a good thirty seconds this time. 

Weighs 20 pounds and is 30.5 inches tall

         Went from walking to running in about a month!

Loves spinning around in circles

      Says a new word about every day. Her latest: boom and tree

Gives hugs and kisses

                Successfully gave up the paci!

                         Her favorite toy is Dady (Hadley for Baby). She also loves her lovey blankets!

Father's Day

Pinterest has no shortage of adorable picture ideas for Father's Day.  I decided on Friday during nap time that I should do something like that for Nate. It wasn't difficult trying to convince Hadley to wear Dad's shirt for a last minute Father's Day photo shoot.  She loved running around in it and even took it outside to give it more character. Later, I realized that this is the same shirt that Nate wore in the maternity photos we took about 16 months ago :) How she has grown!!

If I had thought of this sooner, I would have printed off these pictures and given them to him.  But a Facebook message was the best I could do :)  This was Nate's second Father's day, and it was pretty low key.  We took Hadley to the park, and grabbed a quick dinner at Panera because Hadley wasn't feeling well and was fussy.  We're going out to a real dinner tonight- Hadley is sleeping right now to rest up for it. 

              

              

             

                  A little Father's Day horse race.  Hadley won by a nose.

Hadley, 12 Months Old

12 Months!

Took two steps on March 1st, and 5 steps on March 13th, but would rather crawl than walk.

          Weighs 19 pounds, 7 ounces and is 29 1/4 inches tall.

Does the "downward dog" crawl.

Signs "all done", "milk', and "eat".

                   Favorite foods:  yogurt, soup, and fruit.

                              Brings books to Mom and Dad so they'll read them to her.

Stands up without holding on to anything. 

The Birthday Girl took a trip to the park. 

The last of the monthly pictures. 

One Year Ago Today

It was a "no tech Tuesday".  Nate walked to the library with the dog, while I rested at home.  I was exhausted- I had done curb walking and pineapple eating and all of the tricks that are supposed to make stubborn babies be born.

He had been gone for just a few minutes when my water broke. I panicked. I rushed around, making sure I had everything I needed in my hospital bag. I tried to call Nate, and heard the phone ringing in the kitchen. Of course he left his phone.  It was no tech Tuesday.

I called my mom. I felt perfectly fine, but I knew this baby was coming. It felt like Nate was gone for hours, but in reality, it was only 25 minutes.  I told him my news and he panicked. He rushed around. We left a couple of hours later only to be told we could not go to the hospital we had been counting on. I thought it was the end of the world.  But eight hours later, we had our beautiful girl, who didn't notice that she wasn't born at the right hospital.

This year has sped by, as everyone said it would. We've had some panic and some rush, but mostly we've been trying to enjoy each smile and coo and milestone. Some people consider 1 year olds to be toddlers, but it doesn't matter to me what this stage of life is called. I don't want to be sad that "babyhood" is over- I am just thankful that she is in our lives.

Hadley, 11 Months Old

11 Months 

Can climb a whole flight of stairs!

      Says "dog" and "dada" like she means it :) 


Stands on her own for a few seconds.


                    Wears 6-12 months and 12 months clothes, and weighs about 19.5 pounds.


Waves at everyone- and even the phone when Mom is talking to Dad!

Hadley, 10 Months Old

Hadley, 10 Months Old


Sleeps through the night, and finally takes naps! 



          Points at everything- Mom, Dad, and Kiowa especially!


Wears sizes 6-9 months, 6-12 months, and 9-12 months. 

       

                           Loves eating puffs and yogurt.


Plays with her activity table non-stop!

My Happy Little Turkey

    Now that I have some time off of work, I can get caught up on blog posts!  Our little turkey had a happy first Thanksgiving in California. Grandma Cathy kept us busy busy busy seeing friends, and going out to eat; and Mom and Dad even got to sneak away to see Catching Fire.

     It is so sweet to see the cousins interacting now that they are getting a little older.  Gigi wanted someone to read her a book, so she crawled up next to Hadley on Nate's lap, and they both looked at each other the whole time instead of the book. Nola loved trying to hold Hadley, who was beside herself to be so close to such big-kid coolness.

     Thanksgiving is always going to be a tough holiday without my dad: he would have loved seeing the cousins playing together. But it seems like these happy new additions to the family add joy in the sadness.

Hadley and Grandma

Hadley and cousin Nola

Everyone loves Grandma's piano!  I play only slightly better than Hadley :)

Hadley, 9 Months Old

9 Months

Started crawling on December 1st.  When she saw that we were clapping for her, she stopped, sat up, and clapped for the first time, too!

     Is 18 pounds, 6 ounces and 28 inches tall

                  Wears 6-9 months and 6-12 month clothes

Communicates through pointing, shaking her head, and "talking"

                   Pulls up on everything! 

Favorite food:  pureed mangoes, peaches, and carrots

Distracted by the shoes.

First Thanksgiving, in California

Hadley got to put the star on the tree! 

Hadley, 8 Months Old

8 Months 

   Likes eating sweet potatoes, mango, bananas, green beans, and more. 

Shakes her head for "no". 

             Rocks back and forth on her hands and knees...but doesn't crawl yet!

Moves from her tummy to sitting position. It scared me the first time she did this in her crib! I couldn't figure out why I didn't see her stretched out in her crib! 

            Sleeps in 7-9 hour stretches, but sometimes wakes at night just to hang out with Mom and Dad. 


Loves to talk!  Her newest sound is "Blah blah!" 

         

She has never paid attention to her bear until now!

Fall with a Baby

I think this fall has been the most exciting time of the year that I've experienced with Hadley.  I've always loved pumpkin patches, dressing up in costumes, and looking at the colorful leaves, but now those things are more meaningful with a little girl who is seeing these things for the first time.

We took Hadley to a farm and pumpkin patch, and let her explore the animals, pumpkins, and people there.  She loved looking at the other children!

Today, we went "trick-or-treating" on Main Street in our town.  She didn't get any candy, but we really just wanted an excuse to put her in her strawberry costume!  She liked looking at the sparkly, feathery, and colorful costumes that we saw.

Hadley, 7 Months

7 Months Old!

Reaches out for people to hold her

             Loves feeding Kiowa her food

Plays on her Kick 'n Play Piano sitting up 

                    Is a mellow girl who loves people-watching.  She does great at restaurants and events!

           

                   

Hadley, 6 Months Old

6 Months

Sits up on her own

     Wears size 6-9 months clothes (just moved up...sniff sniff ) 

Has forgotten her good sleeping habits

               Wants to crawl but can't figure it out yet!

Has tried sweet potatoes, cereal, apples, bananas, squash, peas, and more...but really loves Mum Mums!

        Laughs when Dad kisses her face

Weighs 16 lbs, 5 oz and is 27" tall! 

Loves her doggy, Kiowa

Is this how I crawl, Mom? 

Sitting up! 

Mum mum mum!

The Cake That Changed My Life

There is a loaf of banana bread in the oven for our Bible study tomorrow night.  I have been relying on our nice friends to bring us treats so I didn't have to bake since Hadley was "baking". But, every once in awhile, I get the energy and motivation to make something special for us to enjoy.

And that burst of energy is what motivated me, at 8 months pregnant, to make the s'mores bundt cake that changed me life. 

I was in the grocery store on a Wednesday, buying cocoa and marshmallows for my cake, when I ran into a former student's dad.  He raved about his daughter's new school, and slipped in a promo:  "If you're ever looking for a job, you should apply to this school." It turns out that this dad hadn't been to this grocery store in at least two years. I had just updated my resume that week and was ready to start applying.

My new school has restored my love of teaching and has deepened my faith in God.  I come home happier, less stressed, and am learning about being a better parent to Hadley.  This is more than a cake can do. I am thankful that God brought me to where I am now. It makes me wonder where else a little motivation can take me.

Saying Goodbye

Hadley went on her third plane flight a couple of weeks ago when we flew to California for my grandpa's memorial service. Her first flight was about a month and a half earlier, when she went to meet her great grandpa for the first time.  As we were leaving his retirement home, I wondered if I'd ever see him again.  I didn't think we'd be back just a few weeks later.

My grandpa, at 93, had a great life up until the last couple of weeks.  He was still sharp and witty, and befriended almost everyone he met with his probing questions and big smile. He could remember so much from his long life, and when Hadley was born, he told me details about my dad's birth 67 years ago (my grandma was in the hospital for ten days after birth, which was standard!)

When we were walking into the chapel for his memorial, the foyer was lined with photos of him at different stages of life.  I overheard two ladies, close to my grandpa's age, talking. One said, "He sure was a handsome young man!"  Her friend caught my eye and said with a smirk, "Well, he was a handsome old man, too!" I can hear Grandpa's low, rumbling laugh now.

Hadley with her great grandpa in July. 

Hadley, 5 Months Old

I was doing so well getting Hadley's monthly photos up on time, but these past three weeks have been hard- a week long trip away from my precious girl, a sad event in California, and the first week of school at a new school. So here it is, eight days late.  

 

 

Hadley, 5 Months Old

 

 

Discovered her toes!

 

 

     Sleep regression has improved- but she had nights where she woke up every hour!

 

 

Laughs when Kiowa licks her toes

 

 

                             Rolls to her side and *thinks* about rolling to her tummy

 

 

              "Talks" in her crib when she wakes up for the day, but still doesn't like to be put down in her crib for naps

 

 

Gets angry when we eat in front of her!  She grabbed Nathan's spoon the other day and put it in her mouth.

 

 

 

 

Our trip to Iowa (a little over 4 months old).  Hadley explored her great grandparents' farm.

Hadley's First Swim

Hadley's first swim warranted its very own blog post.  It's not hard to figure out why: I love Hadley. I love swimming.  There's a lot to write about.

When we were at my mom's house in California, we spent the day at our friends, the Anderson's, in their beautiful backyard pool. Nathan and I both wanted to be there with Hadley for her first swim, but it was even more special that her grandma, Aunt Rachel, and almost-Aunt Katrina could be there. Her cousins Nola and Drake even swam with her.

I was excited that we got her in the water before the newborn kicking instinct wore off.  She kicked her feet and even paddled her arms when we held her horizontal to the water.  She didn't want to get out- so we took a couple of dips before throwing in the towel.

Mom, Dad, and "Aunt" Katrina swimming with Hadley.  Hadley is pretty lucky that her first swim lesson was with Katrina, who is such an amazing swimmer and teacher! 

We will let Hadley choose to do whichever sports or activities she wants when she is older, but I have a feeling that she'll choose swimming (wishful thinking?) 

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Hadley, 4 Months Old

Hadley, 4 Months

Wears 3-6 months clothes

        Sleeps 8-11 hours each night (thank you, Sleep Regression!)

Rolls from tummy to back

                    Is a wiggle worm!

         Loves to play with toys! She cried when we picked her up from the church nursery on Sunday!

Weighs 14 lbs 12 oz, and is 25 1/4 inches tall

These pictures are getting difficult to take!  She wiggled onto the floor every time we tried to snap a good one!

This happened before Mom joined the photo shoot.  I will not encourage early walking! 

Summer Vacay

We took our first vacation as a family of three last week.  We visited my family in California and spent a lot of time in the car on our tour.  She did really well in the car and on the flight there, but the flight home with just Mom wasn't the same story!

Hadley got to meet uncles, cousins, Aunt Sarah, second cousins, her great Aunt and Uncle, and her Great Grandpa Schultz.  I really wanted her to meet him as he is 93 and she will never get to meet her Pop Pop Schultz. 

We drove down to Santa Barbara (it took 6 hours with a baby!), picked up my grandpa, and then headed to my aunt and uncle's house for a beautiful, Pinterest-inspired patio dinner! Hadley wore the outfit that her Great Aunt Nancy gave her, and her second cousin Justin, daddy-to-be, got to practice his baby holding skills :)

4th of July celebration at the Andersons! 

 This girl loved the lake in Twain Harte.  I hadn't been to my parents' house there for probably 5 years!  Nathan had never seen it, so we wanted to get up there and explore the town. Hadley discovered her love for swimming on this trip (more on that later!) so the lake intrigued her! We also went on hikes, watched an outdoor concert, and enjoyed the break from the 100 degree Livermore weather. .

Cousin Nola loved Hadley. She wanted to hold her- pretty funny since our big baby is probably already half the size of her cousin! 

I am going to write about Hadley's first swim later- but of course, I have a lot to say about it and a lot more pictures to add :) 

Hadley, Three Months Old

Three Months

Likes playing with her toys, especially the Kick n Play piano

                          Sleeps through the night in 8-11 hour stretches

Has decided napping isn't her thing, but marathon sleep days make up for it

                           Coos and "talks" to us 

                                           Wears size 3-6 months clothes

Loves splashing in the bathtub

Hadley at 3 days old, 1 month, 2 months, and 3 months! 

                         

The Kick n Play piano is Mom and Dad's favorite toy, too!