"I Think That This is the Start of a Beautiful Friendship..."

Just for the record, this isn't usually allowed, but it was too cute to not film! :) Mimi has really begun to LOVE the kitties. They can make her smile and talk almost more than anyone. Which helps, because since we brought her home from the hospital my affections for our furry ones have waned...(to say the least!) I like that she is already learning how to be gentle with them and they are very patient. I'm sure that the trails of rice cereal that she leaves behind really sweetens the deal!

The Story of A Frog

When do children become attached to that special toy that they go to bed with every night? I would love to say that Mimi chose this little thing by herself, but she was pressured into it.

Almost 2 years before Mimi came along, we took a trip with our friends Jeff and Ash to Boston and NYC. During our stop into the giant FAO Schwartz, I became attached to a sweet little stuffed frog from the "Bunnies By the Bay" line. She was so precious looking and soft and had just the right amount of stuffing so that she would drape in your arms.

Penny from The Rescuers came to mind:

(If at this point you are wondering how a grown woman could describe a stuffed animal with such affection, you're not alone...My husband was thinking the same thing as I then proceeded to BEG him to buy this stupid frog! When the time came to leave I was like a child...I just couldn't bare the thought of leaving her there. I really can't even believe I'm admitting to this, but it helps to show how much history this little frog has)

I guess the back story is that I had been wanting to have a baby for so many years and I could just see a little girl holding that frog by one hand, cuddling it while she slept. You could say that my affections for this little froggy were misplaced maternal feelings. Somehow I felt like if I bought that stuffed animal it was a tangible way of reminding me and my longing heart that someday I would have a baby to give it to. Another twist is that I was pregnant when we took that visit and I didn't know it yet. We never got to meet that baby though because we miscarried a month later. I think that all of my "mommy-ness" was just bubbling to the surface.

So...all of that being shared, I eventually did bring that little frog "Lily Mae Leap" home as a souvenir from our trip. I sat it in a closet hoping that one day I would have a little girl to give it to. And, now 2 years later, Mimi has found that she likes to hold it while she's going to bed. It's the perfect "sleeping stuffed animal" because it's not too plushy so I don't have anxieties about leaving something with her in her crib. Seeing her with this little frog is just another reminder to me of God's gifts and faithfulness in my life. I just wanted to share and show you what I get to see everyday now in these sweet pictures.






(and this picture is in there just because it's cute :)

I Love Valentine's Day!

Mimi's Valentine to Dad

her new bath toys

Thanks Ash! (and yes, I really LOVED your wrapping job! The red ribbon was such a nice touch! :)

And it's still just morning! :) More fun to come...

Granby

Last weekend we were spending some fun family time in Granby and Uncle Fred and Andy's BEAUTIFUL mountain home. The weekend consisted of sleeping in a luxurious bed, catching up on some reading, two brisk mountain runs, yummy food, a night out, skiing (Ben, not me of course!) and massages for the girls. It was wonderful. Thanks Fred and Andy!

Just a few on the pictures I took of Fred and Andy's home. It couldn't be decorated any cuter or be any more cozy! It's perfect.

Mimi was reunited with a first love on this trip...CEILING FANS! We don't have any in our house, but whenever we're on vacation it is good for endless entertainment. Ah, the simple things in life... :)

Uncle Reid came into town too! It was fun to see him! We missed Lawren though!

Aunt Kate taught Mimi a fun new game: "Bouncing Baby" Hopefully there will be videos to follow...

The boys

Here sits the lucky girls who got massages at Devil's Thumb Ranch...AMAZING! Grandpa B.T. shared his gift certificates with us! (What a smart man...isn't the saying, "if the women aren't happy, no one is happy"?! :) I was SOO sad to not have my camera to document how cute the place was. The best part was when we walked in there were little cubbies with chalkboard above them, with our names written out to tell which cubby was ours...(in cute handwriting too!)

(Can you tell that Mimi was held a lot? She experienced serious letdowns when she got home...seriously, one day she looked around while she was eating her cereal, wondering where her adoring audience was...uh oh.)

Mimi took a bath in the "big girl" tub...she looked like such a peanut in there! We have now done away with our little infant tub because she's too big! Bath time has now officially become more about splashing than getting clean. A new era has begun.

*Also, Ben and I celebrate our FIFTH wedding anniversary today! We have a lot to celebrate this year. Happy Valentine's Day xoxo *

A Big Day in the Park

Yesterday we spent a sunny day in old town Littleton with Ashley Carlucci. We have TWO "aunty Ashs" in our life (Ashley Carlucci and Ashlie Swanson), so Ben suggested that this Aunty Ash be called Aunty Fashion or Aunty Fashion Show ("Aunty Fash" for short) in honor of her penchant for great fashion. She has approved!

It was such a fun day and Mimi sat up all by herself! Check it out on Ash's blog: http://carluccicourier.blogspot.com

A MARATHON photo shoot ensued during our picnic lunch. I'm sure I will post more of those sometime soon, (after I get to editing the 250 pictures that we took... Thank goodness for digital photography and a friend who loves taking pictures as much as I do. It was so fun to get to have pictures of Mimi and me since I'm always behind the camera. Thanks Ash!)

Also, we came home to find something poking out of Mimi's bottom gumline! That's right, A TOOTH SIGHTING! What a big day!

Our Weekend...

This was the scene that we woke up to on Saturday morning, after a sleepless night (okay, even more sleepless than usual) of trying to teach Mims to sleep through the night: an empty coffee pot, parent books strewn around our living room (that were fervently read and reread at 2 am) and three tired, grumpy people. We're making progress though! It is definitely time.

Later we spent some time outside in the beautiful sun


Super Bowl Sunday

Mimi and her friends at the Super Bowl parties we visited.
(p.s. how cute is it that Mimi has her arm around Olyvia? :)

It was definitely a day of connecting with her cute, adoring girl pals. How sweet are these pictures?