Today was Lyla’s one year appointment with Dr. Garlove. Aside from the long wait, things went well. Lyla loved hanging out with the 18 month old boy in the waiting room and, of course, was not happy about her shots.
Here she is before we left, posing with her new “real” shoes with “real” soles. I can’t believe how much she’s looking like a little girl:
Today was officially Lyla’s birthday – it’s amazing to think that a year has passed since she entered our lives. I know it’s cliché, but I can’t imagine the world without her. She definitely makes it a brighter place. My day began with hearing her say, “Mommy” from her crib – I could hardly wait to see her!
We started the day with a Birthday Breakfast. Lyla enjoyed birthday pancakes, something she’s never had before. Her morning “Nana” (banana) was quickly pushed to the side (which is phenomenal – she LOVES bananas) in favor of her pancake with butter and syrup.
We also lit her Birthday Wreath for the first time, given to us by Martina. Lyla thought it was funny when I blew out the candle for her.
It’s been a year full of so many amazing things I can’t possibly relay them all here except to say that I have more love for our little girl than ever. She is the light of our days, and we look forward to nothing more than seeing what she’ll do next. She’s a wondrous little presence.
Our day was even more special because it was the Watts’ Family Thanksgiving in Elizabethtown at Aunt Nancy and Uncle Curtis’s house. We were so happy that Daddy was off work and got to go with us. Lyla always has a great time with all the girls – she loves spending time with them all. Here are some pics:
One of my favorites with Leah toward the end of the day – Aunt Nancy, so glad you captured this one. It’s a classic:
Our Family:
The Original Watts Girls – where would we be without them?
All in all, it was a great day .
Happy Birthday, Miss Q!!!!
Thanksgiving started a little early for us this year – we were so happy to have an overnight visit from Uncle Robbie and Auntie Shana who were on their way to Pittsburgh to spend the Holiday with Robbie’s brother and sister-in-law and their “new” baby, Logan.
We were all sad about Shana and Robbie not making it for the Watts’ Thanksgiving this year, so we felt really lucky to get to spend the night with them. Lyla was especially happy about it – we think she’s in love with Uncle Robbie. At one point, she clearly said, “Robbie..”, and at bedtime, she pushed Auntie Shana aside so that she could be carried upstairs by Uncle Robbie.
She was also saying, “Shana” by the end of the visit: "Nae-Nah”, and was whispering this as the two of them headed off early Thursday morning:
After Shana & Robbie left, our Thanksgiving Day began with a visit to the Hospital to see Grandma Hottman, who was admitted last night. It was good to see her, although we were sad she wasn’t going to be at the family gathering.
We spent Thanksgiving Day at the Hottman’s this year, and it was a lot of fun to get to see some of our baby friends. Lyla had fun running around the Hottman basement, checking out Grandpa Don’s 50s tree and eating her first Thanksgiving dinner. I think she most enjoyed the sweet potatoes – they were a lot different than the ones she regularly gets for dinner.
Lyla is also trying to say “Turkey” after discovering a crocheted turkey Carrie left for me after her visit. She also shared her toys with her cousins, who all enjoyed playing before dinner. We are amazed at how big Blaire is getting – she is officially moving around now! She’s definitely holding her own with the older girls – she’ll be crawling soon!
We left a little early so Daddy could get home to sleep before his 10 pm night shift. We felt very fortunate that we were able to spend most of the day with him. It was a rainy day, but we feel very blessed.
We love our family and were so grateful to be together.
Here are pics:
Carrie was in town this weekend for a visit, so Lyla got to spend the day with Daddy while I went shopping with the girls. It was a really nice day – we hung out on Bardstown Road and ended up greatly enjoying drinking chocolate with cayenne pepper and ice cream at Coco’s.
Carrie also stopped by to see Lyla before she left to go home, but ufortunately, Lyla wasn’t feeling very cooperative about taking a photo with us. I think she was more preoccupied with hanging out with cousin, Isa, who was over visiting. Still, we tried:
Tonight, Lyla shared some of her new birthday toys with Liam. They always have such a good time playing together – Lyla brought several of her toys to Liam so that he could check them out. We can’t believe how much they’re starting to look the same age!
After the babies went to bed, Aunt Ang and I played a friendly game of Scrabble – she killed me! I’m looking forward to a rematch.
Today was the big day – we had perfect weather and an amazing day. Lyla did a great job managing in spite of very little sleep this afternoon. She napped this morning and didn’t sleep again until she finally surrendered for the night around 6 p.m. It was a full day filled with family and friends, great cake and lots of presents. It couldn’t have been better.
First, pics of the cakes:
The Birthday Sign Martina & I made:
The favors:
And, most importantly, our Birthday Girl with her balloons:
We all had a great time at the party with family and friends. Here are a few pics:
The smash cake was definitely the hit of Lyla’s day. She was in love with her first experience with yellow cake and buttercream. It was a joy to watch:
The day was capped off with a beautiful slide show by Auntie Tevan which included all of Lyla Q’s first year highlights. We all loved it:
And, the Watts girls and family hung out all evening:
It was a perfect day for a perfect little Birthday Girl. Thanks to everyone who was able to celebrate with us, and a special thanks to Mom for documenting the day through wonderful pictures - I can’t possibly post all 300+ pictures she took.
Happy Birthday, Miss Q. We love you soooo much and are looking forward to many, many more birthdays to come!!!
