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  • meredith at 15 Months

    I am just loving the beginning of toddlerhood. Of course there is the random screaming in public places and the tantrums when she doesn’t get her way, but much more of it is adorable actions and silliness and fascinating new developments all the time.

    This is what I want to remember about Meredith at 15 months old:

    >She weighs 24 1/2 pounds (75th percentile) and is 30.25 inches long (50th percentile). Basically she is still a little chub.

    >She is obsessed with her belly button. She pulls up her shirt constantly to point it out, and if you ask her where it is she will show you. She also knows where to find other people’s belly buttons.

    >How she likes to hold our hands to walk, but only for a little bit. She wanders, but always makes sure we’re close by.

    >The way she tips her head back over and over for us to tickle her neck when she’s feeling silly.

    >Her “words” are: baby, no, mama, dada, hold it, & what’s this (the last two might be a stretch). She understands so much more, though.

    >She’s full time in the toddler room at daycare now, and is completely off bottles. I quit pumping at work a few weeks ago, so during the day she just has water and regular milk. We’re still going strong nursing at home, though.

    >The way she loves to feed us her food, especially out of her own mouth.

    >One of the best things ever is that she totally dances. At first it was just to music every once in awhile but now all you need to do is ask her to dance and she starts bouncing, shaking her little booty, and waving her hands in the air.

    http://youtu.be/DAv058NAjQo

    >She knows how to take a disposable diaper off, so if we’re ever using those (like we did on vacation) we have to put pants on her right away.

    >How she still loves playing peekaboo or “where’s Meredith” and thinks we can’t see her if she just covers one eye. She’s an expert climber and faller, and constantly has some sort of bump, bruise, or scratch on her. Other favorite things are her little car, riding in the shopping cart, and turning pages of books.

    >The way she prefers to eat a banana like an adult and not cut up.

    >That when she wants to nurse she gets very serious looking and fake coughs over and over. And grabs at my shirt.

    >Seeing her “kiss” the dogs by delicately touching them with her forehead, and the happiness I feel when she “kisses” me and David too.

    >How she reaches for me now, and when she’s not feeling well all she wants is for me to carry her. We are starting to see more and more how she recognizes us and mommy and daddy, and it’s the best feeling in the world.

    In reality, as much as I try to describe her at this age there are no words or even pictures to capture her soft squishy body, her delicious smell, how it feels to see her smile and hear her laugh, what it’s like to watch her discover or learn something for the first time, and her abundance of life. I wish I could bottle it up and save it forever.

  • project life 2012 : weeks 33 – 34

    I’m currently home from work with Meredith due to a sudden attack of a stomach bug last night that hit us both hard. It was pretty miserable but we are on the mend and trying to take it easy today.

    In the meantime, more Project Life catch-up! This was from September 9-22.

    I love the look of this spread; it’s clear and simple like I’m going for. I had limited photos from these weeks but I made it work.

    I had a day off all to myself, so I made a list of all the things I wanted to do that day, then cut it down and included it. I bought some house plants (yay) and Meredith discovered her belly button – cutest thing ever. I designed and printed the “currents” card myself.

    The September calendar is cut out of my PaperSource wall calendar, and the “do more of what makes you happy” print was included in my order from Prompt Shop, which is also where the “here & now” stamp is from.

    Like I said, I had a hard time filling the pockets for these weeks because I got SO bad at taking pictures. I need to get in gear because I’ve missed a lot of great photo opportunities. No worries, though – onward!

  • Back to Blogging

    It’s been a couple of months since I’ve been blogging regularly, and it was a much needed break for me, but I’m ready to jump back into it. For better or for worse, blogging is a part of me and I have a connection to this space and to many of you that will stay with me forever.

    The break served its purpose though – I fulfilled all of the goals I set out to accomplish with it. Yay! I also caught up on some crafting, read many books, started precepting a new hire at work, got a lot of sleep, spent some extra time with my family, and went on vacation for a week to visit some of my best friends.

    If you haven’t checked out my new design yet, I’d love it if you click through and look around. My goal with this redesign was to above all keep things simple and clean, navigable, and suited to my taste. I rewrote my “about” page, placed links to some of my most common categories in the sidebar, and included a page on motherhood with drop-down sub-categories on the top menu.

    This will always be a personal blog, therefore what you can expect from it is stories and updates from my life (and motherhood is a big part of that), but also things that interest me. I intend to begin incorporating more craft & style posts, continue with periodic book reviews, and with the new year I want to get back into the habit of making monthly goals and start some personal challenges.

    At the beginning of November I’m excited to kick off a monthly post series that combines paper crafting with list making, and I’m happy that a few blogging friends are going to join me. It will be something that anyone can join, but if it sounds fun and you want to get in on it at the beginning, send me an email and I’ll give you the details. Full explanation to come in two weeks though.

    It’s good to be back friends. I’ve been kind of MIA on social media as a whole, so I’m looking forward to getting caught up with you all. If I missed anything big in your life, please let me know. :)

    Talk soon!

  • on the road

    20121015-172836.jpg
    Right now we are nine hours into what should normally be a ten hour road trip, but we are turning it into something like twelve or thirteen. All of my strategies for driving this far with a 15-month-old toddler only get me so far as she has decided not to nap any more than usual. It will be good to arrive.

    We’re spending the week with some of my best friends, meeting babies & showing ours off, visiting my alma mater, and just generally enjoying fall in the Midwest. I am so excited. And so grateful to David for bearing with me.

    When I come back to real life next Monday the blog will be in full swing again. Thanks for hanging around as I got my bearings; I feel refreshed and excited about what’s in store for this space.

  • project life 2012 : weeks 31 – 32

    I wanted to post this now before I get too far behind! I’m playing a lot of catch up here, as this was back from August 26 to September 8.

    Life is such a blur and I can hardly remember these weeks anymore, but then I look at this and it all comes back. I love how this project forces me to think about the events, little and big, that happen and place them in my memory.

    I got a new tool! It’s the SMASH label maker. It’s actually not that easy to learn to use, and it’s even harder to master, but it was cheap and I like the look of the labels. You’ll also notice that we got a new car. It’s the Mazda5 minivan, although it is smaller than most minivans and almost looks like a wagon or crossover at times. We are very happy with it.

    This was my favorite pocket. David and I went on a movie date and I took this perfect Instax photo in front of the theater.

    I did an insert this week for the long Labor Day weekend. I made it really simple with Instagram photos, washi tape, and a small amount of journaling on white cardstock. I love this simple style for inserts and I’ll be using it over and over.

    The only new thing on this side is that I got some new stamps from Prompt Shop. They come unmounted which makes them cheap but they’re still great quality – just put them on some acrylic blocks and they’re super easy to use.

    After all this time I am STILL discovering my style and what works for me with this project. My favorite pages are the ones that are the simplest. I love the look of bright patterned paper when I see it, but whenever I use it (like on the date pocket of this spread) I feel like it’s too busy. I like the basics and I like neutrals with a little embellishment here and there. I’m going to try and keep that in mind for the future so I don’t get distracted in the craft store. :)