Could it really be Fall?

We decided to take advantage of the cooler weather by spending the afternoon at the playground.

Road Trip

Last weekend, we headed up to Branson to do some shopping. This was Hailey's first big road trip; she's never been past Fayetteville. I was really looking forward to our little family outing, but a little nervous too. I really thought we end up with a cranky little girl, a stressed momma, and a mad daddy by the end of the day, but it was quite the opposite.

We headed out armed with a cooler full of juice, a bag full of snacks, and of course Ming Ming from the Wonder Pets. Here we are cheesin it up for the camera. (This is not the best pic of me, but looking back I realize that I do not take or post many pics of us together. I want her to look back and know that Momma was there enjoying these fun times).



This little girl was asleep by the time we hit Van Buren, but only for a quick cat nap. Then she was wide awake and jabbering the whole way! We listened to part of the Razorback game and had fun teaching Hailey to call the Hogs.

We arrived in Branson at lunchtime, so we stopped at Wendy's for a quick lunch before hitting the outlet mall. This girl loves her french fries!





Hailey was a great shopping buddy! Of course she wanted out of the stroller most of the time, but she walked like a big girl. It was so cute to watch her look at stuff and pretend to read the price tags. She was so good all day, unfortunately she conked out right before we reached the Disney store. She would have had so much fun in there.


For dinner we headed down to Branson Landing. The weather that evening was awesome! It was about 75 degrees and the breeze coming off the water was great. We ate and walked around for a bit.

Coloring at Shorty Small's




She really liked the cheese dip



Then it was time for the water show. Hailey was so excited before the big show started. She was swaying to the music and clapping at the lights, but it was a different story as soon as the first big fireball went up. The girl was terrified! So we quickly made our exit and headed home. Hailey was asleep before we ever got out of Branson and slept the whole way home. We finally made it home around 1am. It was a long day, but great day! Hailey was such a sweetheart! No meltdowns, no cranky baby, and a very happy Momma and Daddy! I'm already looking forward to more family adventures in the near future.

Haileybug Hideout

Hailey's new favorite place to relax is in her closet! She loves to huddle in the corner with a book. The cutest part is that she wants Mommy and Daddy to sit with her. It's a tight squeeze, but it sure is fun.



This little monkey has also discovered that she can climb into her toy box!

What we've been up to

It's been awhile since our last post, but its been quite busy around here! A few week ago, Kevin and I took a vacation (without Hailey). This was our first time to be away from her for more than 24 hours so we were a little nervous about going off very far. We had planned to go to the beach, but then the oil spill hit and quickly changed our plans. It was probably all for the better anyways, cause as much as I love the beach I wasn't too wild about the thought of being halfway across the country from my baby girl!

We decided to go to St Louis and had a great time. Our hotel was in the downtown area and we had a great view of the Mississippi River and the arch from our window. We went to a Cardinals game (they ended up losing that night), Six Flags, Hurricane Harbor, the zoo, the arch, and the Budweiser Brewery. Unfortunately, it was extremely hot the days we were there. The weather man said St. Louis hadn't had a day over 100 degrees in 3 years, but of course the week we were there it was 100 - 102 every day! We did a lot of walking and a lot of sweating, but it was worth it. There were so many things we didn't even have time for, I look forward to going back in a few years with Hailey.








While we were gone, Hailey spent several nights at Nana and Gramps' house. She had a lot of fun. Here's a couple of the pics they sent us.

She looks like such a big girl in this one! I can't tell you how many pics my mom has taken over the years of me and my brother sitting in the same spot on the fireplace.



I just had to throw this one in! She had a great time making pig noses at Gramps and smudging up their shower doors.


It was nice getting away for a while, but we missed our girl. I can't wait until it gets a little cooler so we can take some family trips to the park and pumpkin patch.

Dancing in the Rain

We got a nice summer rain shower Saturday evening. While we were eating dinner, we kept hearing thunder. I thought it was strange, as the sun was shining brightly and there didn't seem to be a rain cloud in sight. Then the sprinkles began...and I knew that meant a rainbow had to be somewhere!

So we ran outside to go on a rainbow hunt. (this goes back to when I was a little girl, my Nana would always call when she saw a rainbow and tell me to go look outside. To this day I still love to go outside and look if I know there is a possibility of one being around.) I was a little disappointed that this one was so faint, but it still made me smile.



Hailey enjoyed playing in the raindrops, but I knew she wouldn't stay on the porch for long...


She seemed so happy and carefree running around out there, so I decided to join her and we danced in the rain.


Then, the monsoon hit! As Forrest Gump said: there was sideways rain, big ol fat rain.... It was wild, but Hailey was squealing and having a blast!


I'll admit, it was pretty refreshing. I haven't played out in the rain like that in many, many years.


After all that playing, it was time for a nice hot bubble bath in the big tub! Hailey loves her bubbles.

Something about seeing the joy the simple things in life bring to a child makes me realize how caught up I get in the craziness of the day. So what if the housework doesn't get done, warm rain showers only come once in a while.

18months and 5 days Update

That's right - our little girl is one and a half years old! She's growing so quickly. No longer is she a baby, she is a little girl. While we're excited to see her learn and grow, it really makes us sad too. We went for her 18 month checkup this morning.

At 18 months and 5 days, Hailey is:

33 1/4 inches tall (she is taller than 90% of kids her age)

24lbs 14 oz (which is right about average for her age)

Dr. Chris said she looks good and seems to be right on track for growth and development. On the downside- Hailey has had a bit of a cold since last weekend, she now has fluid behind both ears. Again!! Looks like we caught it just in time. Poor girl got her momma's ear troubles. Every time she gets a bad cold, you can almost guarantee the ears are next.

Here's some things that our girl is up to these days:

Jabbers ALOT! Some days she talks morning to night. She has a pretty big vocabulary and is beginning to put words together. Her favorites are what's that?? and where it go??

Can use a fork and spoon. She's still a little messy, but is doing a really good job.

She still eats just about anything we put in front of her. She really likes bananas, applesauce, peas, green beans, and yogurt. She also likes salsa! We were recently at a mexican restaurant and gave her a few chips with salsa on them. Next thing we knew she had her spoon and was eating it by the spoonful!

She loves to brush her teeth! She often disappears into the bathroom to tell us it's time to brush.

Elmo - she loves anything with Elmo. She will watch the same movie over and over again if we would let her, but after 2 times in a row I'm about to pull my hair out! She has also recently taken a liking to Blues Clues (which she pronounces as boooze cooz).

She is a little copycat. She will try to repeat anything we say. Guess I really need to start watching my mouth - don't want to be getting a phone call from daycare.

Wow, I'm sure there are so many other things I haven't mentioned. Hailey is growing and changing so fast. We have so much fun just watching her figure things out. She really does learn something new everyday. Can't wait to see what she does next!

Sweet Little Curl

Hailey's hair is finally starting to grow. Unless I brush it just right, it hangs on her ears and starts to curl up. When she had little curls on both sides of her head when she got out of bed this morning, I just couldn't bring myself to brush them away.

Memorial Day Weekend

We stayed pretty busy over the long weekend. On Saturday we tried to do a little shopping, but Hailey wouldn't have any part of it. She screamed wanting out of her stroller - so I gave in and let her out, then she wanted to run around everywhere. When we tried to keep her under control, the screaming began - I'm talking top of her lungs, red face, alligator tears rolling fit. I remember saying to Kevin at one point, "Oh my God, we've become THOSE parents with the screaming kid that everyone else wishes would shut up!" We were pretty embarrassed and quickly made the long trek from the back of Target to the exit. As soon as we got to the car, Hailey was fine of course, but my nerves were shot! On the way home we stopped at Sonic for some happy juice and Hailey got her first taste of heaven in a cup - orange cream slush. Every time I gave her a sip (more like guzzle) she would get this great big smile and beg for more.





Saturday evening it was time for Hailey to test out her new pool. I think she spent more time climbing in and out of the thing than actually swimming, but we had a good time.


On Sunday we traveled to Spur Lake for a family reunion of all my mom's dad's side of the family. Many of these relatives, I had not seen since our wedding nearly 5 years ago. This was also Hailey's first time to meet them. I was a little worried how she would be out in the heat all day with nearly 100 new people around her, but she was great! (guess she got all her fussies out in Target the day before -hehe). We had a lot of great food and enjoyed visiting and being outside.

Just because...

There is nothing sweeter than a sleeping baby.

Springtime Fun

Hailey has been a busy little bee. Now that the weather is warming up, this girl wants to be OUTSIDE! I really think she would stay out all day if we would let her. When she stands by the door and asks outside??? in that sweet little voice, it's really hard to say no.

She loves her wagon

And Oliver does too!





Bubbles!

Peek A Boo...

I Love You!