Wordless Wednesday!!

A GREAT 1st Mother's Day!!

I thoroughly enjoyed my 1st Mother's Day!! We hosted brunch for my parents and KK's momma... which I cooked... and everything turned out yummy(phew!). We had sausage souffle; potatoes O'Brien; huckleberry muffins; orange rolls; coffee and orange juice! I also made each Grandma a stepping stone with Ali's feet stamped in them- which of course where a big hit! My momma gave me a hanging pot, plus brought over some cards I had made her when I was little for Mother's Day- sooo cute and funny to look at! My mother-in-law gave me a bunch of pepper plants and heirloom tomato plants for my garden- so fun! KK bought me a new ottoman for our living room to replace our coffee table (it totally does not match our furniture, plus it has sharp edges to bump Ali's head- noo good!) I'm so excited for it to be delivered!! I love that it has storage and it will accent our furniture beautifully!!!

And my dad brought over a reading program he bought off TV to start Ali on word recognition right away - I'm so excited to start it with her... I LOVED to read when I was a little girl ( I might have been a little obsessed, actually) and my dad claims it was because of his diligence of showing me flashcards and reading tons to me when I was a baby.. I'm hoping to encourage Ali in the same direction!

After brunch we spent the rest of the beautiful, sunshiney day working in the yard- planting our garden and flower pots... while Ali played on her blankie in the shade :)

Needless to say we had a wonderful day on Sunday. My heart was full this Mother's Day- my sweet baby is so worth it and all the gift I need.

Happy Mother's Day!!!

To all the wonderful Mommas I have met in bloggy land... THANK YOU for all you do- for the great advice you give- and for the great mommy's that you are! HAVE A WONDERFUL WEEKEND!

Real Mothers know that a child's growth is not measured by height or years or grade... It is marked by the progression of Mommy to Mom to Mother...
4 YEARS OF AGE - My Mommy can do anything!
8 YEARS OF AGE - My Mom knows a lot! A whole lot!
12 YEARS OF AGE - My Mother doesn't really know quite everything.
14 YEARS OF AGE - Naturally, Mother doesn't know that, either.
16 YEARS OF AGE - Mother? She's hopelessly old fashioned.
18 YEARS OF AGE - That old woman? She's way out of date!
25 YEARS OF AGE - Well, she might know a little bit about it.
35 YEARS OF AGE - Before we decide, let's get Mom's opinion.
45 YEARS OF AGE - Wonder what Mom would have thought about it?
65 YEARS OF AGE - Wish I could talk it over with Mom.
The beauty of a woman is not in the clothes she wears, the figure that she carries, or the way she combs her hair. The beauty of a woman must be seen from in her eyes, because that is the doorway to her heart, the place where love resides.
The beauty of a woman is not in a facial mole, but true beauty in a woman is reflected in her soul. It is the caring that she lovingly gives, the passion that she shows, and the beauty of a woman with passing years only grows!

ON to STATE!

My softball team's going to the State Championship! Woot Woot!

(this is a picture of our senior pitcher and catcher)

... and even though this sport takes so much of my time- I STILL LOVE IT WHEN WE WIN!!!

And now she's...

Standing up by herself!

(pardon the grainy photo- it was taken on my cell phone)

Yep, that's right, big girl Ali has found a new passion- holding onto whatever is in sight and balancing on those chunky monkey legs! She now refuses to be sat down... when we try to put her on the floor to play, she puts those legs stick straight underneath her and will (very loudly) persist if you do not get her something to grab on to. Granted, she has yet to pull herself from the sitting to standing position.. but it is another move to independence!

She still has not shown any desire towards crawling or creeping, but she does somewhat scoot on her bummy and will walk a little bit holding onto our fingers... and although I am anxious for her to become more mobile, I know I should be thanking my lucky stars she is delaying the process for a bit.

... and just a quick update: We LOVE LOVE LOVE her new daycare! She is so happy there- she is thriving with the new toys and kiddos to dote and play with her all day. Debbie is like another grandma for Ali. The minute we walk into the door, she's already forgotten about me and is looking around for the other kids (she's the first one there) and looking for all the fun toys to play with. She's napping so much better now and just so happy in the afternoons- it's awesome! What a blessing!

And one more awesome tid bit! In August I'm planning a trip to Texas to visit my bestest friend Rose for her baby shower (we find out next week what's she having- whoo whoo I'm sooo excited). I'm getting really excited for the trip because I get to meet two of my best bloggy friends, Andrea and Lindsay!!!! I'm hoping that Ali will be a princess and that I'm brave enough so she can meet B and Miss Priss- but either way I'm getting so excited to see the gals and hang out!!!!

Manic Monday

We ended up taking Ali to an in-home daycare run by the mother of the gal I coach softball with. I AM SO THANKFUL AND HAPPY about this situation. I just was not completely sold on the daycare we were taking her too. First of all, it was outrageously expensive and I could not rationalize paying an over-absorbent amount of money to have my baby sharing 2 girls with 6 other babies. I also did not feel good about my 8 month old taking time away from newborn babies that needed to be held.. which would mean she would not be held.. anyway- I think that option will be better for Ali when she is more mobile and able to play by herself a little bit more- right now with her not crawling yet I want her to be somewhere with someone I know that is loving on her when I can't be!
...and when I took her there this morning for her first day, I walked away with a happy feeling. Debbie had tons of toys out that were perfect for Ali- it was immaculately clean, and the other kiddos are all kids of parents I know and like. So we're happy! And I'm hoping she'll take her again next year- keep your piggies crossed!

On another note- this weekend KK tilled up my little garden plot in the yard.. it's waiting for me to fertilize and prep it after practice for seeds next weekend! I'm planting tomatoes, Italian green beans, onions, carrots, cilantro, basil, and oregano! This is the first time I've had my own veggie garden: I usually do random veggies in pots around the yard- I'm so excited to see how it works out! Oh! I'm also going to plant squash and a pumpkin plant on the side of the house, just for an experiment... So fun!

AND today begins the 2 week countdown to the end of the softball season!!! I CANNOT WAIT to get my life back! I can't wait to spend afternoons taking Ali for walks and hanging in the backyard.. You just don't know how much I want these two weeks to fly! Coaching has been fun this season, don't get me wrong, but it's so different when you're a momma. I miss my baby girl, and I can't help but think of what fun things I would rather be doing with her then spending time with my team. It's time for me to hang up my coaching shoes for awhile... I can't miss this stuff for anything!

Fun Fotos for Friday!

Ali loooooooves that baby in the mirror!

Happy Friday, everyone!!