Garden beauties...

Rough

I find the transition from sweet, innocent, can do no wrong, melt your heart adorable to {fairly} well behaved child...unbearable. That rough patch where your youngster finds there Will. Their Voice, their Independence {which is great, just hard to manage}. Where everything turns into a fight, a battle of wills, a big dramatic show. I could sooooooo do with out the drama! I'm finding it even more heart breaking this time around and I'm trying not to take it personal. It's so hard for me to keep my patience through this stage and it seems to be starting so EARLY with this one! It's been extreme for the past week or so, she got sick as well which made it even worse. But now she appears to be feeling better and is still unbearable. Screaming and crying for me to pick her up. All. Day. Long. Flailing around during diaper changes. Waking up all night wanting to nurse and then throwing these intense middle of the night fits. {We are in the process of night time weening, and she is freaking out!} Throwing horrible fits. Horrible. She's just grumpy and miserable and acting like she's teething, but I don't see any teeth coming in. I know a lot of this is tied into the night time weaning thing, she is pretty angry that I would dare deny her one of her most favorite things...nursing. But she is plenty old enough to go with out at night now, so we are going to have to come to terms on that eventually. I don't think I'm going to survive, this last one is going to be the end of me. I've even called off the potty training for now because it was taking a bad turn...Bubu and Spike were almost all the way potty trained by fifteen months, and she's fourteen months and we are not even close! {Still refusing to walk too...shesh!} I feel like I'm doing it all wrong this time around, like I've forgotten what works from the boys to her. Nothing seems the same. Girls are harder I do believe. The last few days have been so miserable it's hard to remember how cute she can be. I think I will spend some time watching her videos, looking at her cute pictures and reading through my journal for her because I need a reminder...I need some feel good feelings.

Please come back to me my sweet adorable little girl...I'm not ready for this yet.

Taking it to a whole new level.

My babies have always loved playing in the kitchen while I work. I've always had a drawer or two that they can get into. One of them took that literally. He's a very literal boy.(This is baby Bubu, wasn't he a doll!)

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None of them has ever done what Strawberry did last night though. She decided to not only pull things out of the drawer...but to pull out the drawer too! She pulled that heavy drawer out all by herself. She is one tough cookie! She's also decided that the 'you can only play in this drawer' rule doesn't apply to her. She gets into EVERYTHING! She especially likes to get her mitts on those breakable bowl you see in the picture, the child lock on the cabinet door is not working right now, much to her wonder and delight.

( This is Strawberry giving me her best 'but I'm super cute' look.)
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This girl is one strong determined child. She's got spunk and I love it... Remind me that I said that about a year from now. ;)

This girl

This girl likes to chew on her momma.This girl has big smiles.
This girl likes to get the nose.
This girl is juicy.

This girl is ticklish under her chin.This girl gives sweet and slobbery kisses.

This girl is very enthusiastic about her love.

This girl can't ever get enough kisses.

This girl loves her momma.

...And this momma is madly in love with her...

Daddy's little girl

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Certain is it that there is no kind of affection so purely angelic as of a father to a daughter. In love to our wives there is desire; to our sons, ambition; but to our daughters there is something which there are no words to express. ~Joseph Addison

A juicy Strawberry

Oh my!~
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Adorable.

This Momma says~

If you don't have anything nice to say...

Post Pictures.

Powerful

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Just because it was about time for some cute baby girl pics.
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She is growing so fast! Already a chatter box, she will get into these long serious rambling conversations with you that go on and on. Then she will start making raspberry sounds and blowing bubbles. Which makes her smile. Really she entertains herself...so nice! She is starting to grab at stuff, and often gets things into her mouth now. Which within moments seems to tick her off and then she is ready to eat. I guess she figures everything she puts in her mouth should be feeding her and when that doesn't happen, watch out world! She loves to smile, these big beautiful grins, and when she aims one of those at her daddy or her brothers...they melt. Every where we go she captures peoples attention, they seem smitten by her. When we were at the hospital anytime we were on the elevator with other people she would start making the most adorable sounds and whoever was on the elevator couldn't help but laugh. I'm sort of a shy person so when everyone keep turning and staring at the baby on my back and laughing it was a bit embarrassing, but funny too. She thought it was awesome that she could grab everyones attention and then she would flash a giant smile and they all melted also. It's her super power. Don't even get me started on her pouty face, even I fall for that one, the whole house goes into a tizzy when baby pulls out the pouty face. That might be her super-duper power. The girl is powerful.

Yet another...

Happy Monday to you.

~Can you believe the rolls on this girl?

I'm in awe!

(And jealous that they look good on her but not me ha, ha!)~

precious

~Your welcome~

Daughter

ILove
You
More

Today

Then

Yesterday

My

Beautiful Daughter.

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(...and less then tomorrow.)

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Every day you amaze me more. You complete us, and I don't know how I made it through life before, missing you. I stare at you and try to memorize your sweet baby self, knowing (as much as a person can know about the future) that you are our last. I try to capture your sweet self, but even a picture doesn't compare to you in real life. I can't capture how absolutely precious you are no matter how hard I try. I know to well how fast this time flies and how memories fade and it brings me to tears. I smell your baby sent and feel your oh so soft skin and I tell myself, keep this dear, appreciate this moment in time because it will be gone in the blink of an eye. Life flies by like always, faster and faster each year. I feel as if I am frantically trying to slow things down but it's like a wagon speeding down a hill out of control the scenery zooming past in a blur. I am left grasping at the air trying to slow the pace. So I go to you and hold you and gazing into you deep blue eyes and let the moment wash over me, willing time to slow down by sheer determination. You and I memorizing each other.