Valentine Day Presents!

I love ALL occasions. I'm sure you all know this about me already. I love to celebrate for the kids, and make it fun! Fun food, decor and maybe a few presents too!! I knew I would be busy with a new baby at the beginning of February so I ordered Adalyn and Wyatt's Valentines gifts this month! (Not knowing if Wyatt was a girl or boy of course!) I ordered everything from Etsy, except the books which I got off Amazon!

Here is a look at Wyatt's Valentine's Day Gifts:

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1- I got this cute "love bug" car. I thought it was sweet. Also made in Canada which is a bonus!

2- I had to get a slouchy beanie for the new babe! I got black because it is gender neutral! Also made in Canada!

3- It was hard to find leg warmers that would work for a girl or a boy! I think these are the perfect fit though! These also came from Canada!

4- I had to get the baby a "First holiday book".  I got one for Adalyn each holiday and wrote a special message inside! Wyatt will get a book each holiday as well!

5- I also had to get this cute teether/rattle. Also made in Canada! I could have personalized it but didn't know if we were having a girl or boy so I stuck with "LOVE"

Here is what I got Adalyn:

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1- I had to get Addy Pete the Cat Valentine's Day book! She loves Pete and we have like six already!

2- I totally could have made this button snake myself but didn't think I would have the time! I love the hearts. I think Adalyn will like it too!

3- I got Addy a cute little personalized bracelet! Aren't they sweet?!

4- I also got her an "I Spy" bag. I'm not sure if she will actually look for the items yet, but we will see!

I will also get her some little treat as well...you can't NOT get chocolate on Valentine's Day!

Looking forward to showing you our decorations, crafts and baking we are planning on doing! I just love the holidays!!

Ashley

He is Here!

He has arrived! Our sweet baby Wyatt!

Born at 38 weeks, weighing 7lbs, 6 oz! Exactly what Adalyn weighed! We are so in love!!

Ashley

Dear Baby,

Dear baby,

It's your Mommy here

I can't believe today is the day we go to the hospital to meet you! I have high blood pressure again so we are meeting you a little bit early. You will be 38 weeks. You were supposed to be a February baby, but now you will be a January baby. It is for our safety though! A lot has happened since your Dad and I found out we were having you. Some good things, some bad. You were definitely the best thing out of them all!

You have a two year old sister named Adalyn. She thinks there is a baby in her belly too! 

She is excited to meet you. She tells everyone she is a big sister. I think you will like her. She is smart and very funny. She will make you laugh, like she makes us laugh! We are ready to meet you too. I can't wait to hold you and cuddle you. I also can't wait to see if you are a girl or a boy. Adalyn guesses differently every day. She said if you are a girl we should name you "Girl". If you are a boy we should name you "Baby Liam" (Just like Ben's new baby brother) We have two names picked out, we will just have to wait and see! The last ultrasound I had said you were about 6 and a half pounds. We will also have to see if that is true!

I can't believe we will be meeting you today or tomorrow! I can't believe we will now be a family of four. I am so excited!

See you soon, sweet babe.

Love, Your Mommy!

20 month Favourites

I thought I should finallllly post this because Adalyn is almost 21 months now! Always so behind!

Here is our 20 month old big girl.

She is such a joy in our lives. She makes us laugh constantly but also keeps us on our toes! She is very smart and amazes us each and every day!!

Here are some 20 month stats:

* The last time we weighed her she weighed 24.5lbs
* All of her teeth have popped through but aren't all the way down yet!
* She wears size 24 month clothes and size 6 shoes
* She has 3 bottles (homo milk) a day.
* She is talking non-stop! I can't even begin to write all of the words down that she says. She is pronouncing things a lot better as well. She was calling my Gram (her GG) Dodo...but can say GG now..and my mom was Waawaa but she can now say Gramma! She still calls socks "geeks" though!  Some newer things she is saying " I be nice", "markers", "Daddy on tractor".
* She is still loving books, blocks, lego, markers, colouring in general. Also anything to do with babies!
* On TV she likes Max and Ruby, Bubble Guppies and Emily Yeung
 *She is still a really good eater and sleeper! She eats ALL DAY LONG! Her favourite foods include: corn, rice, pickles, chicken strips and her new favourites are soup and kraft dinner. She is really good with a fork and spoon. She can eat rice no problem with a fork and yogurt/applesauce on her own as well!
* She can tell you things that are coloured blue, orange and pink (and sometimes yellow)...but can give you the correct colour marker if you ask for a certain colour.
* She can finish the sentences in the song Twinkle, twinkle little star.
* One day in the back seat when I was driving she said out of the blue "eight, nine". I said ten next so now she says "eight, nine, ten"
* She can match same objects, no problem. Also coloured marker lids to the correct marker.

 Here are a few of her favourite things at the moment:

 

 

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1- Pipsqueak markers. They are so cute and little. She loves colouring but colouring with markers is her favourite. She is also now not just scribbling side to side, she is making circles now! :)

2- Baby carseat. She loves her babies! She feeds them and gives them a blankie just like her. She sometimes wants to bring her baby with us, in this car seat. So cute!

3- Ice Cream Duplo set. This is a newer toy in the house. She loves it, pretends to lick them and stacks the ice cream cones really high.

4- The Ipad. She is a whiz now. She is allowed to play at least once a day, sometimes twice..for ten minutes at a time. I usually give it to her when I am making dinner. She had her own folder that she knows how to get into, she chooses her game and sits and plays the games correctly. It is crazy how good she is at working the ipad!

 

 

 

Only more more post, then I will be posting her 2 YEAR update!! What!? Where has the time gone?!

 

Ashley

18 Month Favourites!

I have a YEAR AND A HALF year old! Wow! I can't believe it has been that long since I became a mother to my sweet babe. I honestly couldn't imagine what my life would be like without her. She fills my heart with so much joy, makes me smile every day and is such a good girl! (for the most part!) Here are a few pictures!

I bought a cupcake to celebrate her half birthday and she loved it..and actually blew the candles out!

Here are some 18 month stats:

* The last time we weighed her she weighed 23.5lbs
* She has 13 teeth -her front 8 teeth and four molars (another tooth just popped through on the bottom!)
* She wears size 18-24 month clothes and size 5 shoes
* She has 3 bottles (homo milk) a day. The morning one is 4oz, the daytime one is 3oz and her night time bottle is 5oz.
* She is talking non-stop! Some new ones include : Daddy, where'd he go?, no more bus, uhoh, booboo!, booboo right there,  Reece (her friend from daycare), block, truck, car, Bean (her friend Ben), all done, pickle, up/down (She has said these randomly for a while but is starting to whine and lift her arms in the air.. I am trying to get her to say them all the time now, as well as "more" and "help")
* She is still loving books (mostly non fiction), blocks, beads and her outdoor toys
* She loves to be independent..she wants to put her boots, socks, coat and hats on all by herself and does a pretty good job at it!
*She was going through some pretty bad temper tantrums. Throwing herself on the floor, kicking, screaming...and this was anywhere...at home, at the store, outside....when she didn't get her way. I don't want to jinx it but she hasn't had one in a while...she has been pretty vocal sometimes...but not a tantrum! They are so embarrassing!
* On TV she likes Mike the Knight, Bubble Guppies and Emily Yeung
 *She is still a really good eater and sleeper! She eats ALL DAY LONG! Her favourite foods include: corn, rice, pickles, chicken strips and her new favourite is lasagna! She is really good at using a fork!

 Here are a few of her favourite things at the moment:

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1. She loves these lacing beads. She still doesn't quite understand what to do with them but she tries!!
2. She loves to paint so these water colours are fun! I bought water colour paper from Target and it makes the pictures even more beautiful! I am going to frame one of her masterpieces! They turn out so pretty!
3. The sound puzzles are fun! She loves animals and the sounds they make so this one makes her smile!
4. This Princess Aurora doll is her new favourite thing! She got this for Christmas from my cousin and her family. She didn't really play with it until about a month ago. She wants to bring it to daycare most days and carries it around the house. She calls it her baby and brings it with her when we go to town too! SO cute!!

I am the mother of a year and a half year old! It sounds so funny to say! I honestly cant believe how fast she is growing up!! I am loving absolutely every minute of it! I guess I better mark her height on the growth chart before I forget!! :)

Ashley

16 month Favourties!

Well, Adalyn is 16 months old. She is getting so big and I kind of want time to slow down. It is just happening so fast and I want to slow down and remember her the way she is today! Here is my big girl:

Here are some stats:

* She weighs 22lbs. I know I said she weighed 24 the last post 2 months ago (I guessed) but I was off. She hasn't really gained weight in a while...but the doctor's aren't concerned! She is very busy and burns lots of calories! She eats like a pig as well! I think if she wasn't busy she would be a chunky monkey! :)
* She has 12 teeth (her front 8 teeth and four molars)
* She wears 18 month clothes. All pants are now 18-24 months
* She is now wearing size 5 shoes
* She has 3 bottles (homo milk) a day. The morning one is 4oz, the daytime one is 3oz and her night time bottle is 5oz.
* She is saying so much more! Some new ones include : boot, birdie (obsessed with birdies), hat, apple, bus (she calls trucks buses too). She says "bye bye Daddy/Mommy" When one of us leave. I love that! We are still working on "love you". She says "hot" if she is by the wood stove, the stove or any candles. She also says "shhh" and puts her finger to her mouth when she is watching the birds. She has also started lifting her hands palm up if you ask her where something is and she doesn't know!
* She is obsessed with birds! She loves looking out the window and always wants one of us to come with her. She says "up, birdies" and we go and watch them together. She knows to whisper or they will fly away! It is super cute!
* She loves crayons, her dolls, magnets and books right now. She now loves soft cover books and isn't ripping them anymore..just don't give her anything with flaps or pop ups!
* She is still a really good eater! We are very lucky. I think she would only eat fruit if we let her!
* She is still a really good sleeper! Usually sleeps 7:30pm to 7:00 am with an afternoon nap consisting of 2- 2.5hours! She now sleeps with a little pillow and likes a muslin blanket and a stuffy with her.

 Here are a few of her favourite things at the moment:

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1- Gem crayons. We got these from Target and she loves them. She draws and plays with them a lot!
2 - Violet, her Blabla doll. She loves it and sleeps with it every night!
3- These shades I got in the dollar bin at Target. She gets excited when I ask her if she wants to wear them
4- These cute nesting dolls, also from Target. They keep her very busy!
5- Melissa and Doug reusable stickers! You can't go wrong for the price. She loves stickers so this is a good thing for her. You can take them off and re-do the pages over and over. It is a good quiet activity if you need her to sit and be quiet for a few minutes! :)
6- Melissa and Doug magnets! Although I am not impressed with the quality (a fair number of ours are chipped/pieces of wood are gone) she loves them and loves to stick them on her magnet board!

So that's it, her 16 month update. It still sounds crazy to me that we have a 16 month old. I know I say this every time but I love this stage! I love watching her and love that she is starting to say more and  more! I love being her Mommy!

Ashley

Valentine's Day Crafts and Sensory Play!!

Here are some of the activities we have been up to around here:

Valentine's Day discovery/sensory bin. I put flower petals, foam hearts, little heart containers and bigger foam hearts in her bin. She loved it! All of these items were from the dollar store.

Adalyn made Valentines! I cut out hearts from construction paper and let her use her markers, crayons and stickers to make the most adorable Valentines!! I love how they turned out!

I used a silicone muffin tin to put her stamps, markers, and stickers in. She loved it. Every time she drew with the marker she said "ooooh" and was amazed.

We have coloured in her Valentine's Day colouring book (I told you the hat still fits!)

We made contact paper hearts

  And we have had water play!!

I froze big hearts with pink food colouring and little hearts with red food colouring. I also added the heart containers from the first activity we did! She loved this as well. Probably the most! 

I would still like to have some rice play! I am going to try to colour rice and see how it turns out! We will see! I am loving all of these holidays! I love finding and trying different activities Addy would like to do!

Ashley

A visit from Cupid...

Cupid came to our house last week to drop off a gift for Adalyn! He dropped off a bunch of Valentine's stuff she can use for the month before Valentine's Day!!

 

It is getting easier and easier getting her things because she is not much of a baby anymore! I put a balloon, place mat, sippy cup, bowls, plate, Valentines ducks, a book, stickers, and a bunch of other little stuff she can play with!

 The balloon was the first thing she grabbed! she put it right in the air and said "balloon" and started twirling in circles! It was super cute to watch!

She also loved the cup!There were more age appropriate ones but she has been obsessed with my big cup like that. She always wants to drink out of it..so I thought why not!! It isn't leak proof though...

After she went through everything, she wanted to test it out! (of course) She she had a little snack!

I am excited to show you some of the stuff we have been up to around here for the upcoming holiday! We have been having lots of fun!!

Ashley

14 Months Favourites!

Adalyn is now 14 months old! I can't believe it has been two months since her birthday post! Time sure does fly by!! Here are a few pictures of my girl:

Here are some stats:

* She weighs approx 24 lbs (I am guessing, I haven't weighed her in a while)
* She has 8 teeth and three molars coming in (the first ones)
* She wears 12-18 month clothes. All pants are now 18 months
* She is still wearing size 4 shoes
* She has four bottles (homo milk) a day. Three are four ounces and her bedtime bottle is five.
* She is saying so much more and understanding so much more! She now points to her eyes, nose, mouth, teeth, ears, tongue, hair, head, hand, belly and foot when you ask her where it is! Her new favourite word is "happy" she can say it perfectly! She says "belly" a lot and lifts every one's shirts up! She shakes her head no when you ask her anything, even if it is something she wants. She likes the song "If you're happy and you know it..." She likes us to play puppets with her in the tub and use silly voices!
* She still loves to dance. She is not doing as much squatting anymore. She is now screaming with her hands in the air and running around the house when she likes a song on the radio!
* She is still climbing everything! The newest thing is climbing on the kitchen chairs, standing on them then getting onto the table! She grabbed my video camera off the table and dropped it on the floor!
* She only really eats in the highchair for dinner now, she eats at her little table the rest of the time.
* She loves dolls, blocks, books and play jewelry right now.
* She is a really good eater! She pretty much eats everything you give her! (and eats all day long!)
* She is still a really good sleeper! Usually sleeps 7:30pm to 7:00 am with 1-2 naps in the day!

Here are a few of her favourite things at the moment:

1: Yogurt covered raisins! I picked these up by accident, thinking they were the regular boxes and she loves them! We don't give them to her all the time but the odd time for dessert or a special treat!

2: This $5 baby I picked up at Walmart. She likes it much better than her baby we got her for Christmas. I picked this one up for her to take to daycare!

3: This felt mail set I got off Etsy! She lovvvvvvves to take the stamps off and on! She sits there for a while with this activity! I try to keep her in one area when she has it though, she tends to walk off with things and we never see them again! haha I really want to keep all the pieces together!

4: This set of wood blocks. This was supposed to be an Easter gift! I picked them up around Christmas for super cheap and was saving them...but she found them and opened them! Isn't she cute?! lol She loves them and plays with them for a long time too..but they also end up all over the place! lol

She is getting so big and I just love to sit and watch her. She is quite independent..she will go off on her own and play a lot of the time. If she is quiet she is usually in her playroom reading all by herself! I love this stage even more than the last and am looking forward to the next one! Each stage seems to get better and better!!

Ashley

The Cutest Cousins!

Adalyn and Zachary are second cousins! Chrissy(Zachary's mom and my husband's cousin) and I became friends when we were pregnant and have become really good friends since. We try to get the babies together as much as possible! It has been a bit more difficult since I have been back to work..and will become even trickier when Chrissy goes back to work at the end of the month but I am sure we will work something out! We both had a free day over the holidays and planned a quiet craft day at home. We went to Chrissy's house!

I brought my cotton ball sensory tub! I went to the dollar store to get some spoons, bowls and measuring cups! The spoons were a big hit!

We also made the cutest snowmen!

I used the contact paper I have fallen in love with and cut an outline of a snowman out of construction paper. I stuck the construction paper on the contact paper and let the kids stick pieces of white paper on it! (I taped it to the floor)

I stuck another piece of paper on the back of it and we added the nose, eyes, mouth, buttons and arms on with tape. Note: It is a much better idea to stick the eyes, nose, mouth and buttons down first! This was the first time I have done this activity..I would stick everything down first next time!

They turned out super cute!

I love how they look on the window too! This has been my favourite activity so far!

 I brought another activity to do but we didn't get around to it! Hopefully one day Adalyn and I can do it here!

We also finally got a picture of them in their matching holiday sweaters! Can you say cute or what?!!

I will have to start my list of Valentine's Day crafts for next month's get together! I hope we can make it happen! February is a pretty busy month! We will have to see!!

Ashley

Top 10 FAVOURITE projects/activities of 2013!

I can't believe another year has come and gone. It is scary how fast everything goes! You really have to sit back and take a look at everything around you! This year has been special for me because Adalyn started sitting up, crawling, walking and talking. It has been amazing watching her grow into her own little person. I love her more then anything else on this planet! This year hasn't been all positive though. There was some family challenges that we had to deal with. I am hoping 2014 will be a better year in that aspect!

It was really hard to pick only ten of my favourite projects/activities this year! It is funny how they are all related in some way to babies!! It is funny how things change!! Anyway, here they are...

10. I did love the hoop update, even though I have already changed them! Lol

9. Love how the winter snowflakes turned out!!

8. The felt Pumpkin I made for the playroom was a big hit

 7. Loved the painted gold onesie!

  6. Our first sensory activity: SAND!

 

  5. The foam Christmas tree I made for the bath

 4. The Valentine's Day Onesies my friend and I painted for the babes!

 3. The bow tie onesie we made for Zachary!

2. Adalyn's first birthday decor: pink and gold cupcake theme!!

And my most favourite project of 2013?

1. Her new white nursery!! I love how it turned out!! I love the cheap triangle wall most of all!!

I can't wait to see what 2014 has in store for us over here. I have a feeling it will be another really special year for us!

Ashley

Happy Holidays!

 

Happy Holidays to you and your families!

Ashley

Christmas Fun!

I am officially on Christmas break! I have been looking forward to this from the first day I started back at work in November! I must admit it has been much harder going back to work then I thought. In every aspect. (spending time with my babe, cleaning the house, getting everything I want to do done, blogging etc.) For example, I had a ton of ideas for gifts...for friends and colleagues. They were off pinterest of course. Time got away from me and people ended up with chocolates or soap. Oh well, it's the thought that counts, right!? Ok, I will stop complaining now. I thought I would show you what Adalyn has been up to!

The first thing I got and she loves is the felt tree in the playroom. I got this at Target for $10! It did come with a  lot of small pieces but I glued them all on the ornaments so we didn't lose them! I think it is the cutest thing! She is pretty good at sticking the ornaments on!

Speaking of trees, I made a tree for the bathtub! I used foam I got at the dollar store and made ornaments to go with it. She actually plays with it in the bath. It is so cute. Water is all you need to have fun with this!

Another favourite activity she has enjoyed has been the Melissa and Doug snowman stacker! She hasn't got sick of this yet and is really good at it! I was pretty impressed seeing as the hole is rather small. It is not the rainbow stacker with a big hole. This is super cute!

I ordered this Santa Cottage off the Fisher Price website and we just got it last week. It comes with Santa (which she says "hohoho" constantly) and there are kitties and a puppy in there too. She loves the animals the best! If you push the kitties they sing "Jingle Bells" using only the words "meow"...."meowmeowmeow, meowmeowmeow"...etc.

She has enjoyed the Baby Einstein Christmas CD

As well as the Christmas bath squirters and books! I took everything out of the tub that wasn't Christmas themed or coloured! :)

We have had yummy Christmas breakfasts:

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Have played in the snow ice:


And have had little photo shoots!

I am loving every minute I get to play with, and watch Adalyn play! She is so smart! She has a new little laugh that is hilarious! And is chatting away! She has said: ball, hat, eye, baby, boot for the first time this week alone! She has a good number of words and animal sounds! I'm not sure how many they should have by 13 months, but I am not worried at all!

I am hoping to do a couple more crafts with Addy before Christmas! It might be a little easier now that I am off! (until the new year!!!) I am so excited about this!!!

Ashley