What we've been up to....

 Oh goodness, we borrowed this great new toy from a friend and Brynn likes it more and more every day.  It is so fun to see her get excited and bounce around in that thing.  And her face lights up anytime she makes eye contact with me or Matt while she is playing.

 Matt's mom came to visit and got some good playing time in with Brynn.  My dad stops by about once a week to visit and Brynn just loves it.  She really studies their faces and observes everything they do while they are playing too.

 Brynn is a good eater!  She has now had peas, sweet potatoes, bananas, avocados and butternut squash soup will be next. She will giggle when she gets the food in her hand and plays with it, so cute.

 I made this onesie for my friend Megan's son.  I have liked getting in an art project or two here and there considering I have done much of that lately.

 I can't get enough of this girl, not only is she beautiful and sweet, she is so much fun to be around!  And she loves reading!

 This is me clipping her toe nails, we do this about every other day.  Matt is not comfortable doing this on her tiny hands and toes and I will say after 6 months of doing this I am quite the pro.

 My big girl sits up so well on her own now and she still smiles and is so proud of herself every time she stands up.

 This is her excited face, whenever she sees a new toy (in this picture she was lunging towards the camera) she will open her mouth up like that, her eyes get big and she darts towards whatever it is she wants.

Brynn doesn't mind tummy time at all now and she is scooting herself around whenever she gets determined to move towards a toy.  Can't believe I managed a post update when she is on the floor rolling around all over the place, don't worry I'm still watching her... :)

Photo update

We took our first family trip to the zoo this past Monday and it was great!  A little cold when we first got there but it warmed up and we had a blast.  Then Wednesday we joined my sister and her boys at the zoo again.  We take advantage of fresh air any day it's nice enough to get out.  Brynn is eating more food (we tried peas for the first time, that's the green stuff on her face).  And my mom finished painting an awesome mural in her guest room for the kids.  I had a few seconds to actually post a few photos so here goes... enjoy!

My birthday!

I am 29 years old, y'all.  I will never be 28 again.... I'm trying to sound dramatic but truly I couldn't care less or feel any different than I did yesterday. I think if anything 30 might be a little weird just to say the age "30" but I don't need to think about that for a whole 'nother year.
Matt was ready and waiting to hear what I wanted him to make me for my birthday dinner, but what I really wanted was a birthday breakfast.  And oh did he make me a good one.  Delicious omelet, fresh avocado, veggie sausage, crispy hash brown and turkey bacon, ohh it was gooood.  We had lots of good family time today, including some crazy laughing from Brynn which then made Matt and I laugh like crazy people followed by my face hurting and all of us craving a nap.
Matt and I went to see "The Vow" today in a 200 person movie theater that was occupied by us and 5 other people, it seemed wasteful really.  But awesome, the screen was imax level huge and no one was near us so we could shovel popcorn and reece's pieces in to our mouths like we'd never eaten before and I could ask silly questions without worrying about having to be super quiet.  It was a sweet romantic movie (with some funny parts) and really made you think about the power of the vow of marriage and the incredible strength that love can give you.  And a reminder, to me anyways that we are all really here to find love and be loved.  It's a beautiful thing.

I haven't posted in a while and I have managed to write two new posts in two days.  I think it only makes sense to end this post in a random sweet way.... I am listening to Elton John's "Your Song" and it is one of the very few songs that really sticks out to me that we played in the hospital room after Brynn was born.  And I just love hearing "... I hope you don't mind, that I put down in to words, how wonderful life is... now that your in the world".  I love it.

My little buttercup

...is just one of the dozen names I call my sweet baby girl.  My eyes are heavy even writing this as it is nearing my bedtime (yea 10 pm on a Friday, so what?!)  This little girl of ours is just "all the joy in the world" as I call her, and it's true.  Her laugh, her intense eye contact, her big cheeked smile, her tiny toes, the little dimples she has on her knuckles, how excited she gets to read books, how proud she is of herself when she is standing while holding our fingers, I could go on and on and on... but the point is, this little girl has brought more joy to our world than I ever thought possible.  We are tired, no doubt about it.  But so very happy.  And truly, the sleep deprivation is getting better as her sleeping habits improve plus I think her teeth are bothering her less. Knock on wood.

Matt took Monday off for my birthday surprise!  He told me tonight and I am thrilled!  We are going on a lunch date tomorrow and to see a movie as my mom will watch our girl.  Lots of good food, movies, and family time and a few naps here and there and we have one heck of a weekend planned.  Oh yeah, I might make some mashed up peas for Brynn to try for the first time.  Crazy exciting, right?!

65 and sunny

Hey ya'll. Brynn and I spontaneously went to the zoo this morning with my sister and her boys.  And we met up with a friend and her two boys there for lunch too.  It was so fun!  It was Brynn's first trip to the zoo and so fun watching her see a new place for the first time.  There were not a ton of animals out, but the weather was great and it was just nice to walk and be outside.  We took the little train ride which was great and thankfully everyone got off except us before the big tunnel (it's dark and a lot of kids yell and I thought it might scare Brynn) but it was great.  Brynn took two naps while there, ate lunch and just had a great time.

Then we got home just in time to play for an hour before joining my mom for a walk.  The sun came out even more (it was kind of cloudy at the zoo) and we walked fast for over an hour.  Good talking and another good workout.  I bet we will sleep well tonight!

6 months!

It's time for an update, ya'll.  Who knew this parenting thing would be so, time consuming and tiring?! Probably every other parent out there, huh?  Truly, it is the very best thing in the world and I just love being Brynn's mom and a parent with Matthew.  And it is (at certain moments) the most tiring thing and the most rewarding (every minute of every day) thing ever.

Brynn is hitting new milestones every few days it seems.  Friday night we spent about an hour laughing and hearing her "talk" as she tried with all of her might to imitate the sounds we were making.  Today she rolled from her back to her tummy, it's real hard figuring out where the legs and both arms go, I mean seriously. Classic annoying question to get from someone who doesn't have a kid:  "Is she sleeping through the night yet?"  Ya know what, no.  She isn't.  This whole teething thing kind of threw us for a loop, made the first few months seem even more of a breeze than they already were.  She does however have the very sweetest and most fun personality.  I LOVE the new faces and noises she makes every day.  I love when she gets so excited to see a toy she hasn't played with for a few days, or any time I get a book out ready to read.  It's incredible watching her grow and learn and figure things out.  She is scooting around on her tummy now and is so proud of herself when she stands firmly on the ground holding our fingers for support. 

It's wild that in just a few short weeks Brynn will be 6 months old!  24 weeks ago right now we were in the thick of labor and things were starting to get more intense.  Our midwife thought Brynn wouldn't make her arrival until later in the morning and definitely sometime tomorrow.  Hearing those words I felt a little panic for the first and only time during our labor (thankfully).  I wasn't sure if I could keep doing what I was doing for another 12 hours.  Fortunately, Brynn was just as excited to meet us as we were to meet her and she greeted us just after midnight at 1:07 a.m.  Oh, I could write forever about the bliss that followed but I will just say this, I think about those moments every Monday now and it puts a smile on my face every week.

I have the best daily reminder to be present and enjoy each day.  I feel better sleep is in our near future and am so very thankful for our daughter.

Horses horses horses....

Do you know that part in Sleepless in Seattle when Meg Ryan is singing along to the christmas song on the radio? Well, either way she just repeats the song as it echos 'horses horses horses....'.  Moving on, life continues to be great and I will forever be grateful.  Our daughter (still fun saying that) is incredible and she is growing so much!  She is full of smiles, seriously all the time, even when she gets upset you can guarantee that a few seconds later she will shoot you a quick smile (it helps especially if you are feeling tired). 
We have our fresh real tree up in the living room, lights and ornaments will go up tonight.  The house smells like pine and the Carpenters and Amy Grant christmas cds have already been played a time or two.  I am only on the computer for a few minutes a day (if that) these days so I have not been writing on this thing much.
I plan to update with holiday photos soon, but until then.. hope everyone is having a great start to the winter and getting a chance to spend some quality time with your loved ones!