20 Months 20 pounds

That's right..she has finally hit the big 20 (I actually love how tiny and petite she is..so girly)!

Thankfully I still put notes in her baby book because I have been TERRIBLE about updating the blog with her milestones!

This little girl is something!! I can not even count how many times a day Ej and I are both commenting on how cute she is. She has so much personality..she's spunky, feisty and sweet all at the same time! From what she has shown us so far she will have no problem standing up for herself when she gets older.


Definitely later than I would have guessed (judging by how much she liked to babble as a baby) but she is now building her vocabulary. She says mom, dada, more (mo), cheese, please (ease), yogurt (which sounds like wo-wurt) wa wa (water), bowl, me, no, yes (es), ball, doggie...I can't think of the others right now but I'm sure there are a few more. Since Gabe wasn't talking until he was much older we didn't experience this with him so it's neat going through this with her.

She is still just as clumsy as ever although I think she is starting to realize that she can't fly which means she needs to pay attention when approaching stairs/steps. I love watching her run or when she tries to imitate Gabe jumping...she looks like she is skipping.


I see such a special relationship growing already between Gabe and Hannah and it makes my heart happy!! Of course they don't always get along, but when they do it's so sweet and Gabe can be so gentle with her and truly takes on the role of big brother, he'll even let me know when she is getting into something she's not supposed to...imagine that ;-) I have always had a great relationship with my brother and I pray that will always be able to count on each other through life!


She has been dropping her nap a couple times a week, and still isn't completely sleeping through the night. A couple weeks ago for the first time she slept through the night 2 nights in a row...but has gone back to waking a couple times.

Hannah at 20 months and Gabe at 20 months seems so different to me....not sure if it's a second child thing, but Hannah still seems so little to me and Gabe seemed like such a big boy when he was her age. Regardless I'm happy I still look at her as a "baby" because they do grow up so fast so I just want to cherish all these moments!

Jacksonville Zoo

Daddy surprised us with a trip to the Jacksonville Zoo and the kids loved it (especially Gabe). He was able to feed the giraffe and we recorded it and he loves watching it, Hannah fed the birds which Gabe wanted no part in doing. It's a really nice zoo and I love that all the extra kid activities they had (train ride, carousel, playground, maze and a little water park area for the warmer months)!

Farewell 2010

Since I have not blogged in what seems like forever...I have a lot of catching up to do so I can start 2011 off right!

September:
Gabe started soccer and although he seemed to enjoy practice for the most part, the games were another story. I'm glad we did it though, if not for anything else it was good socializing!

Here we are at his last game!

His team

Sitting with Coach Mark

Hannah turned 14 months in September

October:

Fall Festival with Wildwood Preschool




EJ and I celebrated our 5th anniversary


Wonderful weekend trip to the beach


November and December were such a blur and went by so fast, I guess the holidays will do that! Unfortunately my camera broke (which has me heartbroken every time I want to take a picture of the kids...I may not post a lot of pictures but I take a TON so I feel lost without it)

We headed up to NY for Christmas this year and had a blast, the weather was good and the kids loved the snow! On our way there and back we stopped at EJ's dad's house in VA where we also had a good visit!
Despite the long drive the kids did amazing and we couldn't have asked for a better vacation

I'm back...

Hannah on Gabe's first day of school!

Our little man looking not so little!

Gabe started PK3 and he goes Tues/Thurs mornings, it's only been a few weeks but so far he seems to enjoy it. He's also in soccer now, it started up a couple weeks ago unfortunately poor little man had some nasty virus that had him down and out for almost 10 days, he's had his share of illnesses and none have affected him like this one did so I'm glad to see that it is finally out the door. We should be starting back up with his speech in the next few weeks so he will be a busy little man! We are praying that he will continue to make progress...we've noticed over the past few months that he seems to act self-conscious around other kids and we think he may realize that he's not talking as well which breaks my heart, as a mom you never want to see your child struggle with things and this has definitely been one for him. It's been weighing heavy on my heart as well....I keep wondering if I'm doing something wrong and trying to figure out ways that I can help him through this.

Hannah had croup around the same time Gabe came down with his virus so we had two little sick ones but she recovered pretty quickly. Her little personality has really started to come out especially since she has either EJ or myself all to herself while Gabe is in school Tues/Thurs. She is feisty and stubborn and loves to laugh (which quite often sounds like a cackle) She is getting 2 front molars right now which has affected her sleep but hopefully it won't be too long before she is back on schedule! Although she doesn't eat a lot she is probably one of the healthiest eaters I have ever met...her favorites right now are carrots, ALL fruit, beans, peas, zucchini, tomoatoes.

Week 2, 3 and 4

Wow since I am so far behind in my blogging I'm going to sum up the rest of our summer trip to NY in one post (mostly pictures since it's been so long I don't even remember everything)

We went blueberry picking several times which the kids thoroughly enjoyed...I had a hard time getting Hannah to eat while we were there but she never turned down a blueberry, I swear most of the time we were there her main source of nutrition was nursing and blueberries.





My mom and I did some canning which was fun, I remember my mom doing this when I was younger but I hadn't done too much of it myself. We made jam (blueberry, peach and blackberry), salsa and pickles. I have to say the salsa was by far the best salsa I have ever had, EJ loves the salsa at certain mexican restaurants and he thought it was just as good if not better! We brought back 3 jars and we already went through 2 of them.

Delicious blueberry jam!

With Uncle Eric on his birthday!!

Other things we did:

• Family reunion for my Dad's side of the family (I believe those pictures are on my brother's camera)

• Uncle Eric's Birthday

• Cousins graduation party

• Sew (more like my mom sewed and I tried to keep the kids away)

Roasting marshmallows with Mommy at his first bonfire!

Week 1

We had a busy first week in NY getting ready for Gabe and Hannah's birthday party which was on the 17th. Gabe had a lot of fun playing with his 2nd cousins, Hannah was too overwhelmed with all the people to leave Mommy's hip! The next day Uncle Eric and my soon to be sister-in-law went with myself and the kids to Sylvan Beach, my favorite maid of honor went with us and Gabe had a great time hanging out with Zach, they couldn't get enough of all the rides!

Hannah was having a hard time adjusting to say the least, she started waking up several times a night and one of those times would be for a couple hours. I honestly felt like I was getting ready to lose my mind, I was running on very little sleep and because she was not getting enough sleep she was cranky during the day and only Mommy could hold her! She's very lucky she's so darn cute!!

The pictures from the Birthday Party are on Uncle Erics camera so I don't have many from our first week

Our little baby turns 1!

To our baby girl

I can hardly believe you turn one today! And rest assured, I will be saying this for every birthday you and your brother have for the rest of your life.

You are a gift, a jewel, a precious girl. I pray you will be good and kind to others and bring joy to others. Serve HIM with all your heart and love HIM above all else. Know you can talk to me. I will listen. I will pray. There is nothing you could tell me that would change my love for you. I pray for you and your brother every day. I'm even praying for your future husband. Save yourself for him. Many boys will come along, but don't be clouded by their words...there is only one who is truly yours. Wait for him. Smile. Be Polite. Say hello. Be gracious. Be the light God created you to be. I love you and I'm so proud to be your mommy.