aplin's newborn pictures + me + mclain

I've been meaning to post these for awhile now.  These photos were taken when Aplin was 7 weeks old. Our dear friend Taryn, who is amazingly talented, took these photos. She's got a great camera and a great eye. In the past, she's been so gracious to capture and share pictures of my pregnancy with mclain here as well as his newborn pictures here. She's an absolute gem, we love our 'Nonny' dearly.  

Matt was there somewhere. But if you know Matt, he prefers the photo bomb instead of the serious family picture.

Thank you, Taryn for capturing these and so many other sweet moments. We love you!

hugs and kisses~m, s, mc, a, t, b, b, m, m, b, bc and m 

goodbye 2013, hello 2014!

goodbye, 2013

here's a little video from flipagram...some of my favorite insta-pics from 2013.

hello, 2014!

i'm not really a resolutions person...but i find myself making a lot of them this year. 

just to name a few: 

*use our 'great moments of 2014' jar

*organize/print all my pictures since 2008

*go to story time at the library

*make more crafts with mclain and aplin

*watch less tv and read more books

*more date nights

*try new recipes

*learn how to use my dslr in manual mode

*spend less time on my phone

*wake up and get ready before the little ones

*grow a better garden

*and my favorite: focus on the 'full life'.

"I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full." John 10:10

hugs and kisses and a happy new year~m, s, mc, a, t, m, b, b, b, m, bc and m

SantaLand 2013

Trying to make all the memories we can, even if that means waiting in line for an hour to meet Santa. 

After patiently waiting in line for 30 minutes, McLain started to melt. No wonder kids are in hysterics by the time they reach Santa's lap, all they can think is when they're going to eat next and which direction they can run that will lead to freedom--waiting in line for any length of time is frustrating for me--i can't imagine a toddler who's use to running in all directions, all the time.  side note: i just had a mental picture of grown ups running in all directions, all the time and made myself giggle :) okay, side note over. Towards the end of the line, doing our best to distract McLain, we talked about what he would ask Santa for Christmas....the Moon and a windmill--obviously. Hey may have to settle for some matchbox cars and a puzzle. 

Point of the story: Despite the looooong wait, McLain nailed it...Aplin not so much. She was a model baby the entire wait but once we got to the end, she was ready to eat and sleep.

Hope you're soaking in every moment of this most wonderful time of the year....because in 5 short days it'll just be a memory. 

Here's to making memories.

mery merry christmas~m, s, mc, a, b, b, t, m, m, b, bc, and m

baby girl is 4 months + a few days

our sweet girl just turned 4 months old. i cannot imagine life without her. she is the absolute sweetest. she's a great sleeper. and great cuddler. and loves to be moving all the time. she rolled from her back to her tummy at 4 months and 4 days old. she loves to watch football. and she sleeps 12+ hours a night. basically she's a rockstar-- i taught her everything she knows ;) i love her smile and her very subtle giggles, she makes us work very hard for them :) she loves her brother. she loves his full body hugs, she loves when he shares his toys and then immediately takes them away (babysteps, people), she loves when he tries to make her happy by bringing her books and opening them to the last page when she's fussing and she loves how he says her name, 'appa'. 

we went to the doctor yesterday. and just when i think taking 2 kids under the age of 2 anywhere is challenging, i remind myself it's only going to get more challenging with the more babies we have. one day i'll look back on these easy 2 children trips--it's all about perspective, right?

baby girl is growing strong, y'all!

height:  26" -- 97%

weight:  16lbs 7oz -- 95%

head circumference:  16" -- 50%

hugs and kisses~m, s, mc, a, b, b, t, m, m, b, bc and m

p.s. thank you kayla for her sweet blanket!

and nonny for her fabulous headbands!

and brooke for the dozens of cute outfits you so generously passed down!

p.p.s. because i love a good outtake :)