8 Months Today

I thought that with today being December 1st (yeah, only 25 days till Christmas!!) and also Daisy's 8 month birthday that it would be a great day to share her Santa picture. We got her picture taken with Santa the day after Thanksgiving at the local mall. I wasn't worried that Daisy would cry with Santa as she loves people but, I was concerned that we might not get a smile out of her because when people are wearing glasses or have this amount of facial hair, she gives them weird looks and then just tries to grab at their glasses. I tried everything to get her to smile and look at me and the camera...i was jumping up and down, acting silly and clapping my hands but, to no avail. Then she noticed Joey off to the other side and started smiling huge at him but, it was the wrong direction....somehow the one mili second that she turned towards me with half of her smile left the camera man caught it and perfect..we have a smiling picture with Santa! Also, many thanks to Elissa for Daisy's adorable outfit! :0 Happy First Christmas picture Daisy Love!!

The Latest Daisy Stuff
*She eats pretty much any and every type of jar baby food and loves it all
*I have been continually introducing her to our food but doing it slowly as it seems to make her throw up more often unfortunately. She still spits up quite a bit. Not fun.
*I am still keeping her away from sweets (sorry Daisy!). I just don't think it is necessary for her yet. There will be plenty of soda and sweets in the future. No need to rush it.
*She has outgrown her 6-9 month things but, is not quite big enough for the 12 M stuff yet.
*She is working hard on her crawl. She tries every chance she gets and usually takes about 3-4 paces and then belly flops and tries again. Very soon she will have it down!
*Every day we make a little more progress with her nighttime sleeping. She goes to bed between 7:30-8 and only wakes up a 1-3 times a night for her pacifier and goes back to sleep.
*she no longer has an early AM feeding. I don't get her out of her crib until around 6:45-7 in the morning.
*Loves feeding herself cheerios, pieces of bread and has gotten great about using her pointer finger and thumb to pick little things up. It' so cute to see her focus so hard on getting things into her mouth:)!
*Loves to play with our remotes, magazines, bowls and lids, measuring cups and spoons and our keys.
*Her hair is growing like a weed these days and it still has a slight reddish tint to it (where did that come from?)!
*I can tell she has gotten much longer! Her legs aren't as chubby as they once were. Tear:(
Loves to make a smacking noise with her mouth and for people to imitate her.
*takes 3 naps a day which are anywhere from 30-90 minutes. Very inconsistent in duration but, consistent as to when she falls asleep.
*Still loves watching the Wiggles though TV seems to have lost some of it's appeal now that she is more mobile.
*Likes to watch Wiggles while hanging out in her exersaucer though she is getting bored of both things lately.
*LOVES people and smiles and laughs with them at every chance she gets.
*I think Daddy is her favorite person...I'm not jealous...yet:-).
*Has discovered that making a ear splitting shriek is quite entertaining (to her).
*enjoys getting out and shopping with me and sitting in the cart so long as we keep our trips short and I give her something to chew on while she sits (lol).
*Must have her super soft blankie and pacifier to fall asleep. She is my little Linus.
*Has said, bye bye, mama, uh oh and dada though I don't think she knows what she is saying yet.
*She loves to give us kisses and we LOVE getting them from her!

Joey and I both agree that this recent phase has been an absolute blast with Daisy. She is so curious and interested in everything and her facial expressions and reactions crack us up. I don't think my hubs would mind if I shared that just this past week he had a revelation and said to me with the utmost sincerity, "yah know, I don't care if we have 3 girls. I just love Daisy SO much it makes no difference to me if we have a boy or not." This melted my heart because of course every Daddy hopes for a son too but, Joey has been so captivated by his daughter that he wouldn't mind having more girls. So sweet! Daisy you have your Daddy wrapped around your finger...no joke!

My pumpkin will be 1 in just four short months!!! Holy Cow!! And yes, in case you are wondering I have thought about her first birthday party quite a bit though not in depth. I've already picked the theme (I think) and now I just have to think of inexpensive ways to make it cute and special. I cannot believe I will have a one year old so soon. Where did the time go????


I'm so excited to teach Daisy about the meaning of Christmas!! Christ's gift of being born a man to save us all from our sin! No greater gift will ever be given to her!!
"Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel." (Isaiah 7:14)

Slow Down

I loved this picture of Daisy. She is getting so mobile and active and you can tell in this picture that she is ready to take off. I had to show off her chunky legs a little more before it's too cold to dress her in a onesie (it is now) and then before I know it the baby chunk will be gone! OH no!

kisses for Daddy

Daisy LOVES playing with her Daddy. She smiles for him bigger than for anyone else. Sometimes it seems like she can't handle how much she loves her Daddy because she burries her face in a blanket when he looks at her and giggles. It's adorable!

I am almost to the point that I have given up on buying Daisy toys. She is far more interested in our plastic bowls, measuring cups and pots! This bowl has entertained her for weeks!

this little girl loves to spit bubbles everywhere when she is having a good time. Messy but funny:0

Tis the season to be jolly right?? Or is it the season to be rushed and stressed?? I've seen the crazy videos of shoppers on Black Friday. People mobbed each other to get in the doors of Targets, ran over each other to get something first and threatened to kill each other. Cut in lines, stole parking spots and even looted gifts out of other people's cars. Oh my...human nature at it's finest huh. Each year during this time I tell myself that even if I have to park far away it's better than having parking lot rage towards a stranger. To give is better than to receive as the bible says:). Give up a spot and if someone cuts you off, take a deep breath, count to ten and move on. If someone shoves or cuts in line or treats you badly turn the other cheek by not stooping to their level. Wish them a Merry Christmas with a smile on your face and to yourself, you can just say, "I'm so thankful that I'm not shopping in that frenzied state." I've seen the glazed over look in shoppers eyes as they walk by me like zombies trying to find that perfect gift. They are so fixated on the goal that they don't know how to enjoy the ride in between. I was in line this past Friday to get a picture of Daisy with Santa. The gal behind me must have been a bit over excited or impatient because she rammed her stroller into my heel not once but, twice even after I said ouch and moved for her. lol. I wanted to say, "excuse me could you please slow down and give me a tiny bit of breathing room. I promise you will get your turn in just a minute," but instead I shook my head to myself and moved forward and then turned around and chatted with her and her little boy. It was much more rewarding and she seemed to calm down quite a bit too. I savor this time of year and make extra effort to make eye contact with the clerks at the stores, ask them how they are doing and wish them a very warm Merry Christmas. It can be hard, but it's worth it to slow down, pace yourself, smile and be patient. Tis the season to be jolly...if we choose to spread the joy! :-)

Crawling!!!!

Is this a happy face or what. She is happy because she knows that she can get into everything now....I'm happy because she is crawling but, then again...shoot, I have a lot to do tomorrow!! lol

Daisy's cousin Daniel blessed us with a visit as he was in town from Florida. It was great to see you Daniel and I bet you never thought you'd visit on the day DAisy started crawling:) Lucky guy!



Lots of love and support for Daisy today. So special!

Our little girl has officially begun the crawling journey and the day after Thanksgiving no less!! A lot of Joey's family stopped by this afternoon to visit and to bless Joey and me with some early Christmas presents which I will share about later, and I think God knew that this would be a perfect and special time to give Daisy her crawling nudge so that everyone could enjoy it together. Daisy has been trying SO hard to crawl for a good month now. She could pop her butt up and hold herself pretty steady but, she just started getting on all fours the past few days. Grandma put some keys (Daisy's favorite thing) in front of her and to all of our surprise Daisy concentrated super hard and put all her energy into getting those keys and sure enough she crawled a few paces and got the keys and then proceeded to crawl over and over again which leads me to believe that she will have crawling mastered in a week...or less. She was trying SO hard and was loving the attention, applause, cheers and smiles. She seemed a little confused why she was getting as much attention as she was but, being the ham that she is she didn't mind for long. She did spit up several times as a result of the effort she put into crawling but, in time this will of course get much easier for her. There were tears shed, laughs shared and a special memory made for all of us. What a gift!! Just a week shy of her 8 month birthday. Congrats Daisy girl!!! She also said bye again this weekend when I hung up the phone with my mom and said bye out of no where Daisy repeated me. She also raises her hands up over her head and sways them around if you say, "up so high," to her. And she gives kisses now. AMAZING season we are in with our Daisy girl.

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Our Family Photos

Our end of 2010 Family Pictures and I couldn't be happier with how they turned out. A big thanks to Joey's sister Jess, who was kind enough to take time out of her day to take our pictures and let me boss her around and tell her what kind of shot I was hoping for. We had planned to use a tripod and do this ourselves but, Daisy wouldn't look at the camera and we could only get a basic horizontal shot so I really do feel lucky to have someone in the family who can capture what I see in my head without charging me for it:) and then I got to edit the pics to my liking and whalah, memories are made. Our first year with Miss Daisy, Our first holiday season with a child and as parents, me transitioning from the outside job field for the first time since I've been old enough to work legally, a year of a lot of firsts and I couldn't be more Thankful.

I'm so thankful for my husband who is funny, helpful, hard working, passionate, a servant and a best friend to me. I'm so thankful for our daughter Daisy. She has blossomed into the most joyful, smiley, happy, bundle of love that we ever could have imagined. It's incredible that love can continue to grow even when it already feels like it might burst inside of you! I'm thankful for Jesus and for the guidance, grace, mercy and love he has showered on me all the days of my life. I don't know where I'd be if I hadn't met him in a personal way! I'm thankful for all of our family and friends who have filled our lives with so much love and laughter. We are blessed to have such wonderful people in our lives to celebrate holidays and the simple day to day joys. I am thankful for electricity, gas, hot showers, a warm fire, clothes, my house, yummy food and the comfort that I am not starving, the freedom to worship as I please, shopping nearby, things that simplify life (...no more hunting, skinning and churning butter thank you Jesus), I am thankful for health, Starbucks (sorry, couldn't help myself), laughter (the most amazing thing ever!), internet to better stay in touch with people and....I could go on far too long. I am thankful for a holiday that reminds me how much of a blessing it is to focus on thanks and not on the wants or the gimmes. What are you feeling most thankful for today?

a headband is kind of Daisy's trademark but, she is growing hair and it is at an awkward phase where it shoots up everywhere...I'm bummed but, this is the only shot we got with the headband in working order:). She is adorable regardless of course..I mean c'mon just look at her. lol:-)










nothing like family pictures to remind a mom that she needs to dye her hair....ignorance is bliss:-)









love this one below: Our little gal is such a ham and is always wanting to talk to us, smile at us or play. This moment captured her perfectly;0.


the official christmas card picture below:





This last picture cracks me up. You can sort of tell that Daisy was over it right? She was WAY over it. It was an hour past her nap time and out of like 30 pictures against this wall this was the only one that she was semi tolerant to the camera. We should have all frowned and it could have been an old fashioned picture;). I'm so proud of my boo boo for hanging in there even when she was out of it. What a champ you are Daisy bean!


I'm always so impressed by how well families dress when they get their professional pictures taken and I kid you not...I really have wondered how the heck they do it for years? They have the right color scheme, pattern mixture and look and no matter how hard I try I never quite can seem tom figure out how to get that "look," for our pictures if you at all know what I mean. Now that I am a photographer officially by trade, I really enjoy studying photography poses, how families dress and the simple details that make a photo pop. I was determined to try and get some sort of matching and yet spunky thing going on for us this year. hahaha. You have no idea how hard this was for me...HARD. lol. I actually had 4 shirts for myself picked out before finally settling on this one....two sweaters for Joey and three outfits for Daisy...trial and error got us here. Oh my. What fun (sarcasm). The experts (not me for the record) say to pick 2 or 3 colors and have everyone's outfit revolve around those colors, patterns, textures, layers and mixing it up are encouraged. There you now have....your tips for next years family picture:). hahaha

Very Good Day

Is there anything more peaceful than watching a baby sleeping soundly?

I met up with my good friend Lindsay and her little Lila who is only 3 weeks older than Daisy and we grubbed together and did some Christmas shopping. The girls looked so cute next to each other and now they can both sit up in high chairs it's just awesome!! Lila is the sweetest little peach on the planet and is so mellow. Daisy was all over the place. It is a crack up! I look forward to these little ones growing up together;).

For Starters: A big birthday shout out to MY MAMA!!!!! It's her birthday today. I love her so much. She is my best friend, my encourager, my counselor, my wing woman, my cheerleader, my faith mentor and my mama. I LOVE HER!!! HAPPY HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!


Today was a special day in my book. The hubs was home ALL day which is very rare and though he was working for some of the day we still were able to carve out some special family moments. Daisy gets up at around 6:45 every morning and I have to tell you that this is still hard on me after all these months. I have never been a morning person and even after being up all night throughout my entire pregnancy it is still tough to wake up each day so early because I know that I cannot sleep in anymore even if I wanted to:). lol. To try and make this adjustment easier on myself I have been waking up, opening the shades to let sunshine flood through the house, lighting an apple spice candle, playing instruments only worship music on CD and sometimes flipping the switch (how crazy that all I have to do is flip a switch now!) and letting the fireplace run for a bit to burn off the morning chill. I also made some biscuits this morning and everyone woke up happy and smiling. It was wonderful! We played with Daisy and shared so many belly laughs.

I had a photo session with two sisters today. They wanted to get some pictures taken to give their parents for Christmas. I had a blast and Joey was able to watch Daisy for me so I could focus and enjoy myself. Fun!!

Later in the evening after Joey had finished his work we went to Toys R Us with Daisy!! I have not been to this store since I was a kid and have never really wanted to until having a child of my own. We had a $20 gift card and planned to pick something out for Daisy for Christmas. Isn't it awesome how having a child can bring out the kid in us again! Toys in general had lost all wonder and excitement for me and now that I have a little girl I felt myself grow giddy with anticipation as we picked out a couple little things for Daisy to tear open on her first Christmas this year. Walking through the toy store was a blast for us, picking out her gift together was special and hearing the squeals of joy and seeing the looks of elation on Daisy's face as we walked through kiddie Heaven was priceless!

A very, very Good Day. Thank you Jesus!

Brown Shoes??

I remember a time not long ago when there were tons of cute shoes, sneakers, tennis or whatever you like to call them. Now all I can find anywhere are boots, converse and a wide plethora of ballet flats! It's cold here and yes, boots are very cute but, I don't want to wear them every day and I don't want to wear ballet flats when it is 35 degrees outside. I'm cold and I like thick socks and shoes! I do have a brown pair of dressy boots and a brown pair of uggs...which I have had for the past 3 years since this seems to be the only fashionable route to go that will also allow me to wear socks and keep my tootsies warm. Sigh. I have searched online and visited every shoe shop I can when I am out and about and have yet to find a cute, hip brown style shoe that is comfortable and will allow for socks. What the heck?? Yes, I like converse but, there has got to be something else??? Any thoughts or suggestions? Have you run into this dilemma or are you content to wear boots all winter long?



photo credit to Anthony Gattine:

photo credit to Christie Jane:


I'm not done searching. I'm on a quest to find some awesome brown or light beige and yet also fashionable (which is all relative I realize...so I should say, fashionable to me), shoes:). So far MacBeth shoes are peaking my interest....stay tuned!

First Words Perhaps

The funny thing about Daisy is that once she does something once, she seldom does it again for quite a while and the same is true for her saying the word bye. She said it a kajillion times before this video and even said bye bye a handful of times and then when I finally got smart and grabbed my camera she was pretty much over it and I apologize but, I say bye bye way to many times at the end of this video in attempt to get her to repeat me...just be thankful you didn't hear how many times I said it before I started filming! haha. I would like to think that Daisy is mimicking what she is hearing me say here and I think in time she will of course get better at this. No, she doesn't know what bye means yet but before this video she would stare at my mouth with deep concentration as I said the words bye bye and really try hard to repeat my words. It was absolutely amazing to watch her focus and then try so hard to pronounce her own bye bye. What a treasure that God has allowed me to experience so many precious moments so soon into my journey as a stay at home mom. I really am having a blast with Daisy. Truth be told, though she has always been a happy, smiley baby, she seems much happier than usual now and she laughs more! We went to the post office and to Marshalls today and she had every woman gushing over her and talking to her. Daisy is chatting a lot with everyone now too. It's amazing!!! I can't help it. I'm so in love and so is Daddy. This little one is too incredible for words!