Tessa Kate at 6 months

It is hard to believe that we are already at the half year mark......six months with this baby of ours, Tessa Kate.  And because we have been through this two times already, I know how fast this goes.  I am savoring every second of these baby days and am so thankful for Tessa.  She is such a sweet baby and we are all falling more in love with her everyday.  Here is what she is up to at six months.....

Playing and discovering some new toys - loves the Baby Einstein play mat.....

And was just introduced to the Jenny Jump Up......

And she loves standing up and reaching for things in the exersaucer

She has been enjoying rice cereal for a couple of months.....

But was just introduced to other baby foods, including carrots....

She loves sitting up against the Boppy and playing with toys (including this little singing puppy, who all of our girls have loved)

The big milestone of 6 months, is sitting all on her own.....

And she likes playing on her tummy.....

And is starting to look at books....

She loves splashing at bath time.......

 She thinks it is great being with her sisters.....

Observing Kyla at play.....

And watching both of her big sisters passionately singing songs from "Frozen".....

Days with a baby in the house are such sweet days and we are cherishing all the six month moments.

Snow Days

I know some may not understand, but I am a snow lover!  I am a midwestern girl through and through and that means I love what each season has to offer.  The beauty of the midwest is that there are four distinct seasons to enjoy and I love each one of them. So, when the winter comes, I say, "Bring it, snow!"  Embrace your place......if you live in the middle of Indiana, it is going to snow in the winter....embrace it, people.  (That being said, if I ever live somewhere like Florida, someone is going to have to tell me to embrace my place when October comes and the leaves aren't falling or when January comes and the snow isn't falling).

Here in Indiana, we are having quite the snowy January so far, including a pretty big snowstorm and we are embracing it.....

The day before the snow came there was a big playoff game for the Colts....and the cheerleaders in our house were ready

Turns out our cheering worked big time, because the Colts came back from losing by a lot, so the next day as the snow was falling, Troy decided to create an Andrew Luck snowman.  Please notice the #12 and bushy bread made out of evergreen branches.  We named him "Snowluck".

Hello, beautiful snow

After the snowstorm came through, some very frigid temperatures came to stay for a few days so we wore our warmest jammies.....

Kyla was in her happy place doing all sorts of reading and school type things

Our faucets were on a constant drip to try to prevent frozen pipes

We had to be creative to stay entertained so after finishing a carton of oatmeal or having a leftover paper towel roll, we figured we could use that to do something crafty

We had much rejoicing after finding out there would be another day home from school for a snow day

It was the perfect time for warm, comforting things like Cranberry Apple Crumble

 We eventually made it out of our house for a little bit

But ultimately came back inside for more warm and cozy, including cuddling up to watch Cinderella

Which, when Cinderella and and the prince dance, it makes us want to dance too....

  So, wherever you are......embrace your place.  For us that means, happy snow days.

Celebration....

I love birthdays because it takes what would be an otherwise ordinary day and turns it into something even more fun and special.  Kyla's birthday last week was one of those days for us.

Something that definitely doesn't happen on a typical school morning.....getting to lick cake batter off of the mixer

And on a typical school day, you don't get to wear a crown made just for you

And on that day at 4:44 p.m., I grabbed Kyla, hugged her tight and told her that was the moment seven years ago that I saw her for the first time.

And for Kyla the birthday fun spilled over into the next day, when all of her grandparents and her Aunt Heidi came to help her celebrate.

 
Birthdays definitely make for a special day, but when it is a birthday of a life of someone you love, it is the best celebration.