3 years

Back on our 2 year anniversary there was this post, which shared my sister-in-laws brilliant idea for anniversary posts, which I decided I wanted to borrow, which brings us to our 3rd anniversary!!

Logan's 3 memories:

1. This past year it seemed like we attended a loosing streak of bad movies at the theater. Undetermined we gave it another shot on our 3 year anniversary. We got through the previews and not 5 seconds into the film we realized this was not the movie we paid for. We reviewed our stubs and ran into the correct theater #. I'm sure we were laughed at, but we ended our movie fail streak.

2.  After a long time away from Katie and Emmy, I was sad when Katie woke up sick and said she couldn't talk to me that morning.  The three hours I couldn't call her because her phone was off I should have known they were on their way flying to idaho to surprise me! I really had no idea.

3. Emmy was such a big girl proving that she could go hiking with mommy and daddy. We hiked almost a mile to our fishing hole where we sat down to have lunch. Emmy caught her first fish! I couldn't help but tell Emmy to kiss her fish and she did.


Katie's 3 memories:

1. During the first year we were married, we rented a house in downtown Idaho Falls that was kinda creepy at night because there was an alley in the back. We would always scare each other at night when we lived here because we thought it was so much fun, however, it stopped the night it backfired on Logan. We had been somewhere where we had both of our cars. When we came home, Logan parked in the front of the house and I parked in the back where the creepy alley was. Apparently he hurried in, because when I got in he was standing in the dark so I could only see his outline, just standing there. I screamed bloody murder and hurled my keys at the OBVIOUSLY intruder and they hit him, hard, in the eye. I wasn't sorry. And he never tried that again. And I still laugh every time I think about it. 

2. This past summer we were able to go to DISNEY with Emmy for the first time! I had an absolute blast watching and videoing Emmy as she jumped and danced to the music during the parade. But the best part? I caught Logan smiling the biggest smile I've ever seen while watching Emmy at Disney-on VIDEO. Proof that he knows Disney is  wayyyyyy better than Lagoon.

3. I may get crap for telling this memory, but it's another memory that I just die laughing when I think of, so I want it in writing. Logan seems to do a lot of talking in his sleep, and stealing my pillow in his sleep, and just about everything else that makes it almost impossible to sleep in the same bed as him. But it is so entertaining. One night, as I was telling him how cold I was and how I would really like it if he would turn up the heat, he yelled to me "GET ON THE BUS!" He knew he had said something weird though because he said never mind and turned up the heat. I just wish I knew what he was dreaming about!!!!!

I love him with everything. And I can't wait until we have to think up 80 memories! 

"Happiness isn't a destination...

It is a way of life." Have I ever told you guys I have an awesome sister in law? Well, I do. And shortly after moving to Idaho, surely knowing I needed an inspirational quote to live by, she picked me up a little sign that said that. So now, whenever I'm totally in the slums about my location, I think about that sign and get to movin!

Turns out, I completely love this little house. MaYbE not so much the "destination" of it, but I am doing everything I can to make this little house a home. And I have been loving on every inch of it since we got here! It is so much fun to decorate it and make it our own. My germaphobia has seemed to gotten worse though, which makes me have major anxiety and OCD, but that's ok because that means my house is super clean!

Since I wrote last we have done so much and Emmy has grown a ton. We drove across country (which Emmy was a total gem for), stopped in Missouri to see my grandparents and family, moved into our new house in Idaho, went to Island Park with Logan's family, and done a lot of playing!

Emmy is so big now. Not only is she big, she is getting so smart! Some facts about her:
-She loves her baby doll. She feeds her, brushes her teeth, rocks her, lets her go down the slide, takes her "grocery shopping", and takes her for stroller rides.
-Her favorite movie is Tangled. As soon as she hears it coming on or if I ask her if she wants to watch it she gets SO EXCITED!
-Her favorite foods are: Pizza, spaghetti, tomatoes, bananas, and anything with color. She absolutely will not eat meat. And the only way I can get her to eat potatoes are if they are cubed so she can stab them with her fork all by herself!
-Her current words: "bless" after she or someone else sneezes, "please" and "thank you" but very VERY rare, "here go" when she is handing you something, "tangled" which is hard to understand but she says it over and over trying to get it right, "juice", "no!" usually said while pointing her finger, "mom. mom. MOM.", "hug", "ice" for a piece of ice, "hot" which is said sometimes just because she doesn't want to eat something, "bunnies", "jump!" Logan is convinced she is gonna say this when she shouldn't and freak people out, "bad" which usually sounds like "Bob", "cheese" for string cheese, "up" to get on the bed or couch, "banana" which is way too hard still so she just says "beeee" over and over, and her all time favorite "baby!".
-When we go shopping she thinks she has to push the cart, and I usually let her because it keeps her happy.


Sorry this is a picture-less post. We don't have internet yet so I am bouncing off my phone's hotspot!

We are having so much fun turning our house into a home, now if only Mimi, Papaw, and Aunt Lindsey would hurry and get here!

Emmy's dada

Emmy has this dada that she absolutely adores.

I don't know if it is because they look so much alike, or because they have so many similarities in their personalities, or if it is just because he is so lovable, but she adores him.

And I realized she probably loves him more than anyone else in the whole wide world the day before this day:

The day before that day, he had just gotten home from being at work for two WHOLE MONTHS. He walked in, started talking to her, and she immediately was his little puppy. Going everywhere he did, showing him all her toys, and refusing to come when I called her to eat unless he came, too. 

That day (^) I left them to play for a while so I could run errands. I came home to screams and giggles because dada was blowing the biggest bubbles. 

Even though she doesn't get to see him every night, I know without a doubt that she loves him to pieces. How? Because just a phone call and she is talking up a storm to him, and during FaceTime she just wants to kiss the screen. 

We both love him and wish he got to spend Father's Day (he has never been home for one yet) with us. But we are so incredibly lucky because he sacrifices so much so that we are taken care of. 

Emmy loves and misses you "dada"! Happy Father's Day!

Motherhood

Before I had Emmy, I'll admit, I didn't think a whole lot about Mother's Day or even understand the great importance it has. Before having a kid yourself, you don't truly know what your mother has been through to get you there. Before even meeting the precious babe, you have to carry it in your belly for 9 very. long. months. Some have horrible morning (all day) sickness like my mom and I, some have body aches, all have a total change take over their bodies, and some end up having a major surgery in their stomach at 34 weeks and think they are going to die (ok maybe only me). As if we haven't endured enough pain, then comes birth. I had an easy delivery (FAVORITE part about the whole thing---and I didn't feel any of it!) but some have it rough, and then there is the whole healing process, which is especially traumatic in my opinion. These are all things you don't fully understand until you do them. I mean, they sure don't tell you most of it going in! Then your babe starts to grow up, starts to do things they shouldn't, and you have to reprimand but love them regardless (for example- if Emmy pulls one more thing off a table or counter top she is gonna get a little swat!). Now I love Mother's Day! And think it should be a whole month! Because hey, we put up with a lot of "crap".

I have been lucky enough to live with my mom the past year while Emmy was going through things completely new to me. I have learned many things about being a mother from her. #1- This is most definitely a 2 man job. Single moms my props go out to ya! I am scared to death about moving back out to Idaho and figuring this all out on my own, but I know that I have learned from the best, and I know she will come visit lots n lots. :)

Speaking of learning things from our moms, Emmy has learned SO MUCH from her Mimi.

1. How to wave. I will never forget the day I saw Emmy wave and I was thinking, wait a minute, how does she know that! Sure enough, Mimi had been working with her.

2. How to blow kisses. Mimi would blow her kisses before bedtime every night, and one time she figured it out!

3. To lean her head back in the bath tub so we can rinse her hair. Because of my achy breaky back and my mom's tall bath tub, I have a rough time leaning over it, so a lot of times my mom will take over bath time. One night when I was doing it, I told Emmy to lean her head back, and she DID! Once again I was in shock. I yelled for my mom who said, yep, they had been working on that!

4. How to blow her nose, and like it. Emmy had a pretty nasty cold recently and needed her nose wiped a lot. Well, Mimi taught her to "blow". Whether she is blowing out or sucking in I'm not sure, but it's a noise, and she lets us wipe her nose, or even sometimes finds a tissue and does it herself, which is nice.

5. To love lip gloss. I imagine Mimi is pretty proud of herself for this one because she has been working on me ever since I can remember, I'm just not one for anything other than chapstick on my lips. But Emmy! Oh she loves it, and Mimi just had to get that started! So now Emmy will rummage through my makeup bag (AKA throw every thing out) and find lipgloss to put on. And if she sees you with something for her lips? You better let her have some.

6. To be a southern girl. Mimi gave her her first fried okra. And she loved them!


While my mom is teaching my high strung, solid little girl how to be a dainty southern girlie girl, she has taught me how to be a mom. I could not have done the past year without her. Without her holding Emmy all night long when she was just a newborn and was fussy. Without her waking up all hours of the night because Emmy was sick and I didn't know what to do. Without her watching her in the evenings so I could do school work (and got my associates a year ago woohoo!). Without her playing with her for a little because I just needed a moment to myself. Without her love, support, and guidance through this new chapter in my life. I am truly grateful for my mom.

Mother's Day 2013

A day in the life...

Mine and Emmy's days are fairly ordinary, and usually pretty much the same. It feels monotonous, but I know I'm going to look back one day and say, man, those were the good ol' days. So easy. And since I'm lucky enough (which I definitely realized after listening in on some of the ladies at the salon's conversations) to be a stay at home mom and not worry about the bills and if they will be taken care of, I'm going to try harder to fully appreciate the little blessings that come with spending every waking moment with my sweet baby girl, while she is still my baby (unless you know the book that says "you'll always be my baby"--in that case you know that at this moment I can't imagine not snuggling her constantly). Anyways, that was a total soap box. Now onto recording the little things that our days consist of before they become different in a new home, with new things to do.

MORNING- Emmy wakes up and stands in her crib, staring at me until I see her, then starts giggling. Have I mentioned I can't wait til we sleep in different rooms? But still just across the hall because I could never be too far. She gets so excited for breakfast, but she can't get out of her bed unless the person about to get her out has her blankie and she has her paci in her mouth. Unless you are Papaw, then she will hand you every last blanket and stuffed animal in her bed, and still not leave bed. She's a goof.

AFTERNOON- This changes sometimes. Sometimes we are home and eat lunch and play outside. Sometimes we go to story time. Sometimes we go to lunch with Mimi. Sometimes daddy is home and we get to do lots of fun stuff, like go to the park and feed duckies. And last week we got to go play at a fun all padded play place for little ones. Emmy was in HEAVEN. Oh and I was too. Soooo much energy was released there. Emmy even found herself a few boyfriends. In case you didn't know, she is completely obsessed with boys. She would rather play with boys than girls for sure. She even shows preference on the phone. Daddy? She wants to talk. Papaw? She wants to talk. Aunt Lindsey? Shocked face. Phone on floor. Not a boy. Anyways, one boy at the play area ran up and gave her the biggest hug ever. I think her and I were both shocked. She gave the dirtiest look then kept playing. Then another little boy started following her around. He would put his hand on her back and walk and talk with her, wait for her at the bottom of the slide, try to hold her hand (she was NOT having that though!!) and I even caught him kiss her on the cheek! Had he been older than 3 I would have been worried haha.

NAP TIME- This is my favorite part of the day I think. And no, it isn't because I'm a super mom and get things done during this time, because I get NOTHING (house work related) done at this time. You know what I do get done at this time? Special snuggle bonding. She has a baba and I hold her like she is still 6 lbs. Why? Because she is only going to be smaller than me for a short time (I think we all know this is the truth). Then she falls asleep on me. And I soak it all in. Yes, this has caused some issues with her not being able to take long naps without me, but I don't think of that as a problem, because I want her to still need me!

EMMY'S FAVORITE TIME- Mimi comes home in the evenings. And she gets SO happy! She totally forgets I exist and wants to follow Mimi around and do whatever she is doing and eat whatever she is eating. Emmy loves dinner time. She only likes things with color though, which I shouldn't complain about considering she loves broccoli.

BED TIME for Emmy- Bath. Baba. Story. Brush teeth (by herself because apparently she is WAY too old for me to help her with such things). Lay in crib. Out like a light (another of the many things she inherited from her daddy).

BED TIME for mommy- I say this is my favorite time, until of course Emmy is actually asleep in her own bed and I decide I would much rather her be in my bed snuggling me.

In case you didn't catch on, I don't want this baby to grow up. I need her to stop right where she is and always want to snuggle me forever. As that wise book says, "I'll love you forever, I'll like you for always, As long as I'm living, My baby you'll be." (Robert N. Munsch)

Easter 2013

I know Emmy is getting older when holidays start to get more fun because of her. Last Easter Emmy was a new born and honestly I don't remember if we did anything besides go to church. Unfortunately Logan missed this one too, which makes for not being home for the 3 Easters we have been married, but one day he WILL be there! :)

A couple days before  Easter Sunday, Emmy, my mom, my sister, and I went to the mall so Emmy could see the Easter Bunny. I actually hadn't planned on doing this, but a few weeks before when Emmy saw the Easter Bunny she was in love. There were no kids there so she got him all to himself to play with, so we decided we would come back a different day to let her get her picture with him. She kept trying to go up to him before it was her turn, and then did not want to leave him when it was someone else's turn. Needless to say, I can't wait to see her reaction to all of the Disney characters this summer!

Emmy was pretty lucky this Easter. Not only did she get things from the Easter Bunny, but also from Mimi. When we brought her down the stairs she spotted her basket almost immediately. She knew it was for her. The whole day she would bring a new treat from her basket for me to open and let her have. Since I'm kinda controlling when it comes to Emmy's food, her basket didn't include candy. But it was packed full of all natural fruit snacks (which she eats like candy) and graham crackers. I also used this as an excuse to get her another Disney movie to add to our collection. Logan is gonna love Disney by the time I'm done with him.

It was a pretty fun Easter, but next year we want daddy to be home.

Our big 1 year old

Emmy is getting so big. And she knows it! She is full blown toddler. In total destruct mode. Running and dancing all over the place.

We just went to her one year appointment a few days ago. She is 22 lbs. (76%) and 30 1/2 inches long (82%)--so a fairly big girl. Now here is the funny part. Her head is in the 96th percentile. DO YOU KNOW WHAT THAT MEANS?! She has a big ol' noggin just like her daddy. Every time the doctor gives us this number she laughs and says "But she is sure cute!" Well thanks. I guess. haha. Good news is that she seems to be growing into it since last time it was in the 98th percentile. The nurses and doctor also mentioned a few different times during this appointment that she is really strong for her age, even compared to the boys. I knew she was a strong little girl, it was just interesting that they felt she was "the strongest they can remember". However, she also really hates the doctors office, so I imagine she was using all her strength to keep them away. While there the doctor told me she wants Emmy off the baba THIS MONTH. I had no idea we were even close to that point. I really don't know if I am ready to dive into this whole toddler thing just yet! It seems like the only time she sits still is if I am bribing her with a bottle! So we will see. Maybe just another month??

Some random facts about Emmy at 1:

- She loves people (unless you are a doctor). Mostly she loves kids her size. At the mall a few days ago she kept walking up to kids and trying to hold their hand.

- She loves to dance. Her newest dance moves are stomping and spinning. She is currently diggin Hunter Hayes and his song "Wanted".

Dress from Grandpa Kevin from Mexico

- She is always trying to turn the music on on my phone, but will stop at Hunter Hayes. But every time the screen goes black she pushes the button. She must be in love.

-She doesn't just slowly walk. She pretty much runs.

-She loves to take the puppy outside. She will go and get his collar and run to the door if she thinks it is time to take him out. If he is barking she will pet him and hug on him. She is OBSESSED with him.

-She will eat almost anything still. She just started trying to use a spoon. She will put her veggies on the spoon then eat them. Usually all with her left hand. But uses her right occasionally, too. I'm thinking she will be able to use both equally.

-She loves to go bye bye. If you are putting your shoes on she thinks she is going with you. She can blow kisses now.

- Her favorite word is "wow". Her Mimi taught her that one and she says it whenever she sees something pretty or cool. Or just because sometimes.

saying WOW

- She loves plants, even fake ones. My mom has a fake tree in the house that has fake mulch and Emmy will take her kitchen toy that kind of looks like a gardening tool and dig in the fake mulch.

- She gives lots of hugs and is always hugging arms. Sometimes if you are special enough you will get a kiss.

- She likes to help pull laundry out of the dryer and get dishes out of the dishwasher.

- If you can't find something, she probably hid it, or ate it.

- She has 6 teeth still. 4 on the top and 2 on the bottom.

- She can give pretty mean looks.

- She does a lot of hunching her shoulders over when she is acting exhausted. And will arch her back and poke her belly out.

- She loves to go shopping.

- Did I mention she loves to be outside? We got to take her to the park the other week and she loved every bit of it. Her daddy witnessed her fighting the car seat for the first time after the park. 

Who enjoyed the slide more?

Officially Homeowners

March was a big month for us. The beginning of February, when I went to see Logan in Idaho Falls, we went house hunting and found the PERFECT home. And if you know me, you know that this was going to be quite the task. I didn't want a house and was sure I was going to hate every house we walked into for one reason or another. I also really hate being pushed into doing things, so luckily for Logan, he found an awesome realtor that was zero pushy! :) First house was a NO. It had all wood floors and I just do not like wood floors. Weird I know. I think it's because I know how much my mom has to work to keep hers looking good. The second house was also a NO. It was just strange looking. The third house was a maybe. It needed more work than I wanted to do to it and it was on the outside of a neighborhood so the neighbors were kinda eh. Then we got to the fourth house. We walked in and I wanted to cry. It was brand-spankin-new. Which means clean carpet. And never been used bath tubs. And I won't have to paint. But for Logan's need of fixin something up- the yard is not down and the basement is not finished. So it worked for BOTH of us! After I had fully fallen in love, we looked at one more home, and it was nice, but it was a split level and I didn't feel like it would easily baby proof. We made an offer and it was accepted. We were to close a month from that day. A MONTH. We said ok, not realizing it would be so difficult. We almost gave up a few times. But because of the feeling I had when we looked at that house, and the feeling I looked at it the times after that first time, I couldn't let it go. We were going to get it. After going back and forth with the bank, I booked my flight for the 24 hours to be there to close. 24 hours because there was NO WAY I was going to fly with Emmy. She couldn't, and still can't, sit still to save her life. I forgot how relaxing traveling can be. I thoroughly enjoyed my flights. I actually got to read my book, watch a movie, and get an iced coke without Emmy's sneaky little fingers grabbing it and tipping it over! Finally, the long awaited home---

My beauty of a kitchen!

Dining area. the door on the left goes to the laundry room then out to the garage, which I love because it means Logan can drop his dirty work clothes without walking through the house!

Living room, coat closet, stairs to basement, and hallway to bedrooms

Master bed, that has a walk-in closet bigger than the bathroom of our one bedroom apartment. 

Master bath- still fairly small, but with a 3 bed 2 bath house this is as good as it gets it seems.

But it won me anyways because the tub is JETTED! Woohoo!

 I love it and can't wait to get our new furniture in it, and our king size bed that after years of begging Logan we finally are getting! (You may wonder why I wanted a king size- well- Logan tosses in his sleep. a. lot. and snores SO loud. So the extra space will help me sleep I think. YAY!

Emmy Had a Birthday!

Emmy had her (2nd) 1st birthday party the Sunday before her birthday. Which means that she got sung to a few more times after that, once at Longhorn where she was SO excited when everyone surrounded her and clapped and bounced around. She loved ALL of the attention. My grandparents on my mom's side were able to come down from Missouri to celebrate with us and Logan also ended up being home. It was a good time.

Opening her presents

Clapping while everyone sang

playing with JJ

Great grandpa JJ and Great grandma DeeDee

I think she liked the taste of this cake a lot more than the first.