Cousin Ethan's 1st Birthday

Yesterday was our nephew's first birthday and it's hard to believe that a year ago Ethan entered the world. Although he did not make his debut into the world as a Lange is would be just a few short weeks later that he would become a part of our family. He is the perfect ending to Kim and Markus' journey into parenthood and the most beautiful picture of God's faithfulness and love. His laugh is contagious and you just can't help but smile when you look at him. At the end of June we were able to go home to Fredericksburg for Ethan's first birthday party. Kim (and Markus) put so much hard work into making the day perfect and all the attention to detail was just on outward sign of their love and devotion to their son. We loved every minute of being with family and enjoying this little man. Our lives are so much fuller because of him and we are so blessed to have him in our family. Happy Birthday Big Guy! Uncle Shawn, Aunt Ashley and Em love you very much!

Here are some pictures from Ethan's big day!

Our Little Foodie

As I stood in the kitchen last week making our Nugget her first batch of baby food I couldn't help but cry. Have we really reached the age of food making already? With that being said, it has been so much fun introducing Em to food. So far we have done Sweet Potatoes, Avocado and Squash and she seems to love them all. Since sweet potatoes were the first thing we tried she seemed to have a bit more trouble with the texture. We did thin the puree with breast milk and gradually over 4 days gave her a thicker version. By the time we moved to avocado and squash she was downing it. With the avocado we were able to give it to her a bit chunky and since squash is so watery anyway, all it required after cooking was a quick run in the Baby Bullet. She more or less licks the food off the spoon and it is so funny to watch her reactions. 

Here she is having her first few bites of Sweet Potato!

Daddy's Girl

I'm thankful that I have a more than amazing Dad. A Dad who loved and supported me, my brother and sister through all of life's ups and downs and still does. He taught me about life and was an example of the family man that I knew I wanted to lead my family one day. When I married Shawn I knew that he would not only make the perfect husband for me, but I knew that one day he would be the Dad that I always hoped and prayed my future children would have. A Dad, who was like mine, sensitive and loving, but strong and tough when he needed to be.

At this point, I couldn't be more proud to say that my Nugget is a Daddy's girl. From day one she has loved to be close to her Daddy and who can blame her, he is an AMAZING Dad! Sure he had his moments, like when he would tell everyone that she was sleeping great during those first few weeks, but it was really that HE was sleeping great! However, he has more than made up for his habit of heavy sleeping with the heavy amount of love he drowns our daughter in. The way she looks at him is priceless, but the way he looks at her melts my heart and I'm thankful that she will know what is like to be cherished and loved long before she's ever interested in the dreaded...boy! I fear the day she tries to tell Shawn that she has a crush. 

Shawn took on the role of being a dad with such ease and I swear he could change a diaper, make a bottle and get our girl laughing faster than I can. He loves her, sings to her and plays with her better than I ever thought possible. She has him wrapped around her little finger and the funny thing is, I don't think he would have it any other way. 

To all the Daddy's out there...Happy Father's Day! 

Our 4th Anniversary

This year, more than ever I am thankful for the man God made for me. It's hard to believe that another year has gone by, but I am blessed to be able to say that it has been a year filled with so much love and joy. Shawn and I have had to learn to juggle being married and being parents and keeping things in the right order has been what has made this year so much fun. As much as we love our daughter, and will love whatever number of children that Lord blesses us with, we have to love each other first, because when it's all said and done we don't want to loose us while raising them. I'm a daughter of the King first, a wife second and mother third and I'm thankful that my Husband lives life with the same priorities. We don't always get it right, but we strive to keep things in that order and I'm so blessed to be on this journey with my Best Friend. 

To the one that knows my stories, warms my feet, takes my side, ignores my quirks, finishes my sentences, soothes my worries. To the one that makes all my days better and makes me a better me! Happy Anniversary! I love you babe, the best is yet to come!

First Picture Together - August 2006

Engaged - 2009 

Married - 2010

Just the 2 of us - 2011

Expecting - 2013

Family of Three - 2014

Happy Half Birthday Nugget

I can not believe we already celebrating Miss Em's half birthday. Time is literally flying! One of my co-workers made the comment to me, "the days go slow (or nights), but the years fly!" This statement is proving to be very true already. 

Our sweet girl is just that, so sweet. She is coming out of her shell more and more everyday and I love when she gives me glimpses of her personality. She loves to snuggle and be close, but is Miss Independent and can lay and play alone, keeping herself entertained. She is rolling all over the place, front to back, back to front and is even starting to scoot around. We lay her down one way and she has tossed and turned a thousand different ways before finding the perfect position, which is usually on her belly. She puts herself to sleep, which is awesome, and we love listening to her talk herself into her dreams. She does "push-ups" and has pushed herself up on her knees a handful of times. It's so exciting watching her grow and I have a feeling she is going to take off before we know it! She has almost mastered sitting up and can sit unassisted for a couple minutes. She loves to laugh, give kisses, go to swim class and run/go for walks with Mommy and Daddy. 

 

We had her 6 month doctor's appointment today, so here are the stats:

Weight: 16 pounds 5 ounces

Height: 27 5/8 inches

Diapers: 3's

Clothes: 3-6 (some), 6 months, 6-9 months and 9 months

Tonight is the night that we try big girl food! We have been just having Mommy's Milk up until now and I am so excited that we have made it 6 months EBF! (Exclusively Breast Fed) Nursing has been such a special time for me and the Nugget and I hope that things continue to go smoothly in that department! I'll post an update on the food situation next week!

Hope you all have a WONDERFUL Wednesday!

My First Mommy's Day

I had the privilege of celebrating my first Mother's Day this past weekend. Although I was pregnant last year, and in my eyes a Mother at that time, this year I was celebrating motherhood with my bundle of joy actually in my arms versus being snuggled in my belly!

Mother's day has always been important to me, because fortunately I have a mother that is worth celebrating, not just on a particular day in May, but every day of the year. She has shown me time and time again what unconditional love looks like; embracing me and my siblings and loving us even in are weakest moments. She has shown me how a godly woman should love her husband, with gentleness, kindness and respect. She has taught me how to love and serve others and how to be selfless even when she has every right to be selfish. She is a woman that I love and respect and I hope that one day my Little Lady will be able to say the same about me. 

So thank you Mom. Thank you for being the most perfect Mom for me and an even more perfect Granny for my girl. We love you.

Sunday was also important because we had Em's Baby Dedication at our church. It was such a beautiful time to come before our family and church family and commit to raising Emerson as the Lord would have us. To loving her and showing her the love of God. Our prayer is that one day she will make the decision to follow Christ and we are so thankful for the loved ones that we have in our life to help guide her in that direction. We are blessed beyond measure and are so thankful for our girl. 

5 Must Haves for Living with OUR 5 Month Old

Since tomorrow is the big day, you know...MOTHER'S DAY...I thought I'd share our Nugget's update tonight. So here goes, our top 5 baby items that have helped us along our parenting journey so far.

In no particular order:

1. The Moby Wrap
Let me just say, I love baby wearing and Shawn does too! The first time I got it out I have to admit, it was a little intimidating. There is just so much fabric or at least it seemed that way. After a few trial runs, we got it together and Em has loved being snuggled next to Mommy or Daddy and being carried a long for the ride. We use it around the house, on walks and I love having it for when I'm out about on solo shopping runs. I was nervous that using it too often would create a habit of our sweet girl always wanting to be held, not that that would be a bad thing, but she seems to be well adjusted and for the most part can entertain herself when needed. We also have an Ergo and I love, love this too. We haven't used it as much, but I see it getting a lot more use now that our girl is holding up her head and taking in the sites of her world.

2. The Wub-a-nub (aka Ellie)
To us this has become the ultimate pacifier. It really helped in the beginning when she was constantly trying to spit her pacifier on the floor and now has become a comfort for her at naps and bedtime. Even if she doesn't have it in her mouth, she holds it in her hand or sucks on the stuffed animal's foot. We love it so much, we got a spare for the diaper bag, so we don't have to loose Ellie while we are out and about.

3. Bouncy Seat or Play-mat
Like I said before, Em is pretty good at entertaining herself, which comes in handy when I have things to get done around the house. However, the bouncy seat served as a pretty good napping spot for Em when she was first at home.

4. Noise Machine
We have a giraffe that hangs on the side of her bed. Now that she is getting more mobile she is starting to reach out and hold onto it in her sleep. It's the cutest.

5. Swaddle/Sleep Sack
Our sweet girl loved being swaddled. We have stopped swaddling her arms to her side, sweet girl is starting to roll onto her belly in the middle of the night, but we still you the sleep sack on cooler nights. These things came in so handy and made her sleeping experience so much more enjoyable!

I'm so honored to be Emerson's Mommy. She brings so much joy to my life and I love all the little moments we get to spend together. This month Emerson has been a busy lady. We've made trips home, met knew family members, had our first visit to the zoo and even ran our first race together! She is a pretty go with the flow type of baby, so it makes all our adventures that much more enjoyable. She has been giving us a run for our money in terms of her sleeping routine, but we are hoping that we are nearing the end to our struggles in that department. She is rolling over more consistently and we are finding her on her belly during naps and at nighttime. We have been flipping her back onto her back, but I think we are loosing the battle. In terms of her size, I'm thinking she is 15 1/2ish pounds. She is wearing 3-6 month, 6 month and 6-9 month clothing...she is growing like a weed...and we are still in size 2 diapers. She loves her teddy bear and her goofy, to read books with Mommy and Daddy, swim class and family signing and dancing parties! She is still only having Mommy's milk, but we plan to introduce first foods at her 6 month birthday.

Here are some pictures from this months adventures:

First trip to the Zoo!

Meeting cousin Mackenzie!

 

Swim Class

Our first Race!

 Hope you all are having a great weekend!

Happy Mother's Day to all you Mommies!