Project photo

I have finally tackled a project that's been pushed aside for a long time...our photo collection. I have now backed up all of our digital photos on a portable hard drive and organized them into folders by year. I am in the process of organizing all of our prints that were shoved into overflowing boxes. I purchased neat little plastic compartments that I'm going to categorize and label. Then, I want to make a photo book for each year of our digital photos. I think this will be an ongoing project since I'm behind a few years. I am thrilled to actually be getting this done and have stolen ideas from this blog.

While organizing, I couldn't help stopping to look at several old pictures and am amazed at how fast Emma has grown up. She has gone from baby to little girl too quickly!

Sleeping with Daddy



One month old

 

Love the arm rolls

Bumbo time

"Hi Daddy."
 

Everyone loves Oreos

My pink elephant

Enough hair for pigtails

Her love for princesses begins



Looking cute at another wedding



Just last week...pretending she's Captain Hook

 

Ten Signs I'm a Mom

10> Naptime is my favorite time of day.

9> A good lunch is anything but mac & cheese and a lunch which I can actually sit down to eat.

8> A trip to Target is now considered shopping. No more all day mall excursions.

7> Pushing a stroller and carrying a baby up and down the stairs is my new workout.

6>  My fashion sense is slipping. I no longer have the time or motivation.

5> Most recent book I've read is Goodnight Baby Bear.

4> My car is littered with Polly Pockets, stickers, candy wrappers, lost fries, sippy cups and who knows what else.

3> A full night of sleep is now considered a luxury. So is a shower without spectators.

2> Dinner and a movie equals pizza and a Redbox.

1> My perspective on life has changed, two little people have made everything else fade in comparison.

Happenings

February is passing quickly! We've been keeping busy lately. Here's a quick list of what's been happening with us:

1> We went to meet our new nephew/cousin Caleb Timothy Crim. Boy number three for Bret and Amy and he is a cutie with lots of dark hair. Emma is thrilled that she now has three cousins!

2> Emma spent the weekend at G&G's with Isaac and Eli. She had a blast and always wants to stay longer.

3> We enjoyed another Super Bowl party at the Messerlys. Good food and fun like always. I was happy to get my hair cut and highlighted while the game was going on. Much more exciting for me than the Packers or Steelers. Thanks Lindsey!

4> I am off to our annual Ladies Retreat tomorrow night and Saturday. Looking forward to some girl time and our study of Hebrews 11. Noah is tagging along with me while Emma stays with Daddy.

5> We've been doing some fun playdates. Emma enjoyed doing gymnastics last week and we are doing storytime with a craft this week. It's been great to get out!

6> Our furnace quit working this morning and I am so thankful that the guy was able to get it running in an hour since the temperature was dropping rapidly. I thought we might need a new one since ours is ancient but it just needed a new part- praise the Lord!

7> Noah is the biggest mommy's boy! I must be in his sight at all times. Ethan has to walk him around the house and prove to him that I'm not here when I leave him. He will then settle down and suck his thumb when he realizes I'm nowhere to be found. It is somewhat annoying now but I know there will be a day when he will no longer want me to hold him.

8> We wrote out Valentines today for all of Emma's friends. She wants to make one for everyone (silly mommy forgot the "storytime lady") and put candy with them all. We're working on writing her name so it was good practice for her. She also enjoyed crossing off the names on her list (hmmmm...wonder where that comes from...)

Emma as the "storytime lady"

Not so sure about this

Okay...he's had enough

Jumping on the trampoline at "nastics"

Noah in the ball pit. He loved it but I kept thinking GERMS.

Starting her climb

Cabin fever

We have been staying home in all of this cold, snowy weather. Emma and I built a snowman over the weekend which she thought was great fun. Today we made homemade play dough and she was occupied for quite awhile. Here's the recipe if anyone else is looking for fun things to avoid cabin fever:

Favorite Play Dough Recipe
2 ½ cups flour

½ cup salt

1 tablespoon alum

2 packages of Kool-Aid (unsweetened)

3 tablespoons cooking oil

2 cups boiling water

Mix dry ingredients together.

Then mix oil and water together.

Combine both dry and liquid ingredients.

Knead until smooth and cool.

Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

(a Ziploc bag works just fine!)

Emma has been wanting to listen to her Hide Em in Your Heart CD every time we are in the car. I've been amazed at how quicky she has memorized the verses put to music. However, she's come up with her own interpretations though. Here's a few :

"I have hidden your Word in my heart that I might not swim against You."


"You knit me together in my mother's room...


"There is a friend who stinks closer than a brother."

Her first snowman

A bit upset that we didn't have a carrot, had to use sidewalk chalk for his nose.



Mr. Snowman who now is checked on daily from the window



Noah's first sippy cup

He always wants big sister's but now he has his own

Our homemade purple play dough