Guys.

Guys. 

No seriously, guys. 

Let me tell you something awesome. You know how Lily has been back in the brace at night for the last week? And you know how I made those "jokes" about making sure we have coffee around? Well, silly me. The last week has provided the best nights of sleep in Lily's life! Seriously! 

I know! I can't believe it either!! But I am so thankful. I forgot what 5 hours of consecutive sleep feels like.

AND Lily has taken some hour long naps!! You aren't impressed? Her normal nap length on a good day is 32 minutes. Now you should be impressed. 

Feel free to do a dance, maybe break out in song...this is definitely worth a celebration. We are so thankful!! But I guess this means people will expect me to be productive with all this extra time? Hmmm...on second thought, let's just keep this exciting news between us.  

Hip Doctor Visit #497-ish

We went to the hip doctor for a check up today and we came home with two things...cheesecake (happy face!!!) and another brace (sad face).

The doc said even though Lily's hips have improved since her last visit, they are still underdeveloped and wearing the brace could stimulate growth. Could is the key word because it doesn't guarantee the hips will catch up which is a bummer but the doc suggested we give it a shot. The brace is a bigger version of the last one and Lily will only have to wear it at night. Hopefully it doesn't take too many nights for her to adjust but if it does, at least we have coffee. 

Our next appointment is in 6 months which means there is lots of time for improvement but it also means our next cheesecake is 6 months away. I guess it gives me lots of time to decide which kind I want.

The news wasn't exactly what we were hoping for but, in honor of President's day, Abe Lincoln once said, "We can complain because rose bushes have thorns or we can rejoice because thorn bushes have roses." In other words, it's all about perspective. 

It's Official

Well, the festivities are over (even though there are still dishes to do) and we officially have a 1 year old. I feel like I'm about two seconds from breaking down and being sappy and our Kleenex supply is running low so I'll just post some cute pictures instead.

 

I kinda cheated...these smash cake photos were from a couple days ago. It meant I had to make two smash cakes but the cuteness of these photos was totally worth it!!

If there has ever been a more beautiful photo taken ever in the history of time, I've never seen it. I mean, seriously. Tell me I'm wrong. I dare you. 

There are about 9,000 more but I'll wait until you come to my house and I'll show you all 9,000 of them with commentary. 

Honestly this year has flown by. Sometimes it has been really hard. Sometimes it has been really smelly. But most of the time it has been really fun. And we are so thankful. 

Every. Single. Minute.

This is happening...whether I'm ready or not. 

I'm allowing myself 30 minutes of nostalgia and then I'm going to shake it off and move on. If I don't set a time limit, who knows how long I will wallow. 

I have taken a picture of Lily Girl every day of her life, which I have to admit is pretty impressive considering the fact that I sometimes forget to brush my teeth. I was going to post them all in an attempt to create the world's longest blog post but I only have 30 minutes of wallow time so I have to use it wisely. 

Before Tiny was born I downloaded an app called BabyConnect. I have logged everything...hours spent eating, dirty diapers, etc. It was especially helpful during the first few months. Time went quickly slowly. No, you read that right. Quickly and slowly. It's hard to explain but sometimes I couldn't remember if the last diaper change was 5 minutes or 5 hours ago. Anyway the app has tracked all the stats. Drumroll please...

2000 diapers. And each one of those poopy ones should equal two because, man, it's not cute. And let's talk about sleep for a second. 4845 hours. Divided by 24 hours in a day, that's the equivalent of 201 days. Then why in the world am I always so tired? Oh, maybe because I've spent 610 hours nursing. Yeah. That's the equivalent of 25 days. 

The stats are impressive but this is even more mind blowing. 

One year ago Lilian Faith was a tiny, helpless squeaker. Now, only one year later...

The diapers (even the poopy ones) and the hours spent nursing and rocking, it was all worth it. Every. Single. Minute. 

Exercise

If you are like 66% of Americans, you might have made some sort of fitness goal for the new year. Exercising can get a little old so here are some ideas of ways to keep your exercise routine fresh.

Take time to do some yoga and stretching.

Climbing stairs is a good way to burn some calories. 

You can go for a walk (but make sure you have appropriate footwear). I'm not ashamed to say we join the mall-walking crowd when we get tired of being stuck inside. Actually, I am a little ashamed of that. 

Get outside and enjoy the sun when it decides to peak through the clouds. 

And don't underestimate the power of rest. That's my favorite part. 

Now stop reading this blog and go get your exercise on!! 

Sick

So as if parenting isn't hard enough, kids have to go off and get sick. Don't worry...Little Bear isn't super sick. She just picked up a little something the other day, probably from doing something weird like licking a restaurant table or touching everything in the grocery store checkout line.

I've never been much of a germ freak. I wash my hands, I cover my mouth when I sneeze and I try to avoid people who cough in my face. But having a kid is making me seriously reconsider my approach. I've always lived my life thinking that a hug from germ covered arms was building my immune system and if I use a paper towel to open a public restroom door, I'd probably live to see another day. But now I am a carrier. The germs don't stop on me. I'm just a detour. The main course has red hair and a tendency to chew on anything that isn't moving very fast. And this makes me want to disinfect everything everyday. Or wash my hands every 12 minutes. 

I know Tiny is going to get sick. She's a kid which means she and her baby friends are cute little petri dishes of germ cocktails. But I don't like it. It makes me want to be one of those weirdos who makes everyone wear rubber gloves and masks when they interact with my child. But, really, that's too much work. I guess instead I'll keep some hand sanitizer in my pocket and I'll stock up on Clorox wipes because I have a feeling this battle has only just begun. 

24 Days

Guess who is turning one year old in 24 days??

Guess who is not ready for that day??

It's been a little hard to take pictures of Little Miss recently. Actually, it's not hard to take pictures but it's rare that I get one without a blur of a redhead zooming across the frame. 

She's not walking yet but I take full responsibility. I know, I know...walking is a great developmental milestone. But if she starts walking, that means I don't have a baby anymore. Walking means toddlerhood. Wow. Even the word is exhausting. 

She's on the verge of figuring it out so I'm just slightly delaying the inevitable. I guess I'm not totally ready for the labyrinth of baby gates that will be our house once she figures out this walking thing. Sounds like I should get a new pair of Nikes for her birthday.