Labor Day Weekend = Rest

I'm looking forward to a long weekend, not because I have some crazy, beach-going, bar/party hopping vacation planned.  I'm looking forward to some RELAXATION and REST!  I cherish this more than the "Perfect Tan" these days. 

I'm also looking forward to spending time with my family of three.  Hopefully, I'll be posting pictures from this upcoming weekend of me sleeping! :)

Happy 6 months, Harleigh!

Today Harleigh's 6 months!  Happy 1/2 Birthday, Munchkin! (27 1/4 inches, 16 lbs 14 oz)  Yes, she still tops the chart in height!

A few accomplishments up to this point:
-Eating (she loves to eat) She'll eat everything; avocado, banana,pears, squash, sweet potato, peas.
- Rolling all over the place.  Harleigh does NOT like to sit still.  This child likes to be on the move, if you sit her down she usually will wait a minute or two and then dive forward, because there's something better she needs to be doing. (only problem is, when she dives, it's head first- no hands!)  Then she'll roll all around- she can roll in a complete 360.
-Belly laughing.  For those that have spent time with Harleigh, you know she has quite the personality.  She loves to laugh, especially if you tickle her tummy, armpits, and neck!
- Maintaining her composure in difficult situations (like SHOTS!).  She had her 6 month shots and was able to pull herself together after only a few seconds.  She's an ANGEL!
-Kisses.  If you tell Harleigh to give kisses, she will usually go in for the kill.  Daddy is working with her on keeping her mouth closed.  She's a little advanced in the kissing department!  ;)
-Talking.  Har Har loves to chat!  She gets upset if she can't get her two cents in, sound familiar?!?  She also likes to talk on the phone, which makes it super easy to carry on a conversation when someone calls!
-Blowing Raspberries/Spit.  She loves to spit on people.  I guess it's her way of showing love!
-Grabbing anything and everything.  She loves to grab items within arms length (like mommy's hair, daddy's leg hair, mommy's hair, brochures at church, mommy's hair, spoons, mommy's hair)

Some People Need to Learn the Hard Way

I love, love, love, love, love my husband.  I think he's a wonderful dad and can't imagine my life and Harleigh's life without him.  There are things Zak does (on a daily basis) that make me laugh (sometimes to the point of crying).  One time was when Harleigh was about 5 weeks old. 

Harleigh is the type of kid that will scream if she has a drop of pee in her diaper, but will sit in a "dirty" diaper all day long.  Since the poops don't smell too bad at that age, we wouldn't notice if she had one unless we took a little peek.  When she would get fussy, Zak came up with this idea to put his finger in her diaper to eliminate the cause of fussiness with a pee diaper.  Well, one day he wasn't so lucky, and stuck his finger in there and yelled for me to come in and take her so he could wash his hands.  He's since then stopped using the very effective "finger in diaper" technique.

I love you, Zak.  Thank you for bringing a smile to my face!

Sisterhood to Motherhood

One very exciting aspect of my pregnancy was that my sister, Ginger, was pregnant at the same time.  It was interesting to see some of the differences we had in our pregnancies.  I had 2-3 days of morning sickness, and never got "sick".  Ginger, was sick for a few weeks.  Our baby bumps were different too, mine was wider, hers was more of a "basketball" shape. I never slept so good in my life, and Ginger's husband, Dean, said Ginger would "wake up if an ant farted on Independence Rd"- a hwy about 10 miles from our homes). I had a C-section, hypertension, and had Harleigh 3 weeks early.  Ginger was 11 days late, and had baby boy Landon. 

Ginger and I were always close growing up, after having our babies, we've become closer than ever!  We go for weekly walks (as we live in connecting neighborhoods), talk on the phone as we were preparing bottles, grab dinner with the babies and hubbies, and go on almost daily runs to get Fro-Yo (frozen Yogurt).

It's really been a blessing to have a great friend to go through pregnancy and parenthood together.  I look forward to all the exciting and funny stories that will happen down the road.  Thanks, Ging, for being a GREAT sister and friend!  Love you!

Once a Princess...

ALWAYS A PRINCESS!

Landon can really rock the tutu and headband (he had matching flip flops but dad Dean got a hold of them and won't let him wear them.  However, L was much happier with them on!).

Harleigh likes to dress up her Fridays with the tutu onesie for school too!  This outfit is getting quite a bit of use! :)

Happy Friday to all!

5 Generations

On August 7, 2010 we took a family trip to Atlanta, GA.  When we arrived we went to my grandparents house, Bob and Bev Bradbury, to visit with my Great Grandma (Harleigh's Great Great Grandma- Hazel Saft!).  It was so great to see Great Grandma Saft, and it's crazy to think that there is 100 years difference between her and Harleigh!

It looked like she had a wonderful time meeting and playing with her great great grandbabies, Landon and Harleigh. 

First Trip to the ER

Last night, Zak and I had to take Harleigh to the ER.  She had been "out of it" all evening and we figured it was because she was tired from playing at school all day.  She didn't eat well that evening.  At 12am she woke up and was starving, at 1am she woke up again fussy and as I changed her I notice how hot, lethargic, and clammy she was.  I took her temperature, it was 100.3, I took it again and it was 102.7.  We decided it's better to be safe then sorry and took her to the Emergency Room at CMC Pineville.  As soon as we got there, she started to act happy and energetic, like herself.  She still had a mild fever so they checked her out and found an ear infection.  They said it was probably caused by her running nose and gave us a prescription.

We are so thankful that's all it was.  We can't wait for the little one to be up and running again, it's so hard to see your little child so upset and to feel so helpless.

Looking Back...

I was thinking about some of the funny stories Zak and I have had since becoming parents, and one of my favorites was when we took Harleigh to one of her first doctors appointments.  It was her 2 week old appointment, and at every appointment the nurses always weigh her to be sure she's gaining weight (probably one of the only times in her life when she'll be excited on a scale)! 

When they weigh her, in order to get an accurate weight, we have to take her diaper off.  As we took it off, there was a tiny little skid mark.  (Harleigh I'll apologize in advance for writing this and for showing it to all your boyfriends before they take you out on a date!)  Everyone that knows Zak, knows he's very thrifty and hates to spend money (in other words, EXTREMELY CHEAP).  When the nurse asked after weighing Harleigh if we wanted a new diaper, Zak looks down at the one he's holding with the little "gift" on it, wandering if we should try to salvage the diaper.  I could tell he was thinking "well, she's not upset, it's really not that much, if we throw it out that would waste $0.28".  The nurse looks at me, as she can tell Zak is having a tough time making this critical decision.  I grab the diaper out of Zak's hands, and throw and out and let her know that we are "good parents" and would like a clean diaper (one that is free anyways because they have them at the pediatrician's office).  I'm sure the nurses were talking about us when we left. 

Zak you make me laugh, and I love you for it! :)

Quick Meal Ideas

Now that I'm working full-time and commuting to and from the office, I don't have nearly as much time to make meals.  Any healthy, quick, and easy meal ideas (for Zak!!)? 

Also, I've "made" a few meals for Harleigh- banana, avocado, and sweet potato- are there other easy fixes for 5 month olds?  She eats it all!