Happy 3rd, Miss Q!

Today was the day that our Lyla turned 3, officially. I never ceased to be amazed when someone asks her how old she is, and she twists her little hand to hold up 3 fingers…where did the time go? How is it that our little baby is able to tell anyone who asks that she is 3 years old?

In many ways, it feels like the blink of an eye, but in many others, it seems like such a long time ago. Regardless, our lives are fuller than they have every been. She is a living miracle, and I love her more than I can possibly express in words.

I’m glad that Lance was home with us today – we had a full day celebrating one of the 2 most amazing days of my life.

First, we had birthday pancakes and opened a few presents:

The Birthday Wreath:

 

A happy girl with her new dollhouse from Mommy & Daddy. We heard the words, “Would you like to play with me?” about 100 times throughout the course of the day. She loved it the moment Lance carried it out to her, and her favorite family member of her doll family is, of course, the baby. She named it “Cade”.

We spent most of the morning at home. We spent some time at Barnes & Noble later, where Lyla read some books with Daddy. After a quick dinner, we went to the bakery to pick out cupcakes. Lyla then celebrated again with her beloved cousin, Isabella. She was so happy to see her, and I really don’t think her day would have been complete without her.

Cade seemed kind of satisfied with his eggless cupcake and icing – it’s not the same as the girls’ treats, but he was willing to make it work:

 

All in all, it was a great day of looking backward and forward. Watching Lyla grow up is a bittersweet experience, but mostly sweet. This time 3 years ago she was a tiny, helpless baby and I was a scared, overwhelmed Mommy. I’m still a little overwhelmed, but three years has given me a different outlook…on everything. I love hearing her laugh, talk and share her thoughts. These are the sweet parts…and in many, many ways, I am wise enough now to realize that these are the sweetest of days.

I love you, Lyla.

Happy 3rd Birthday – I am looking forward to many, many more.

Happy Thanksgiving 2012!!!

Thanksgiving was held at John & Jennifer’s this year – we were all excited to celebrate our many blessings. First and foremost, we’re happy that John & Jennifer will be welcoming a new baby to the family next year – it’s looking like Cade might have a male comrade in the Spring, although we’re waiting for the official word next Wednesday. Today, Blaire was excited to celebrate Thanksgiving with Lyla – they had a great day playing, screaming and running through the house.

Cade had a great day too – here he is with Uncle Damon:

  

He had a great day today – he was such a happy boy. He was so glad to be with his cousins, and of course, following their every move, especially Lyla’s. Whatever she’s doing, he wants to do too:

We were also really happy to see “baby” Emory, who really isn’t a baby anymore. Just 4 months older than Cade, they’re really starting to seem more on the same page developmentally. It was fun to watch them together today. Here she is with Aunt Carole:

The girls today:

I know it’s a little cliche, but I really felt like counting my blessings today. Our family is so full of miraculous children, and I’m overwhelmed with gratitude at the amazing life our little family has with each other.

The ride home was a long one for Miss Q., who has been refusing naps for the last 2-3 weeks. She still needs them, but won’t give in these days…the festivities really wore on her today:

However, she was quickly revived when we got home and discovered that a special visitor had finally arrived:

That’s right! It’s Elfie!! He’s back from the North Pole!!! Lyla was so excited to see him and had a lot to tell him about how grown up she is now:

Elfie also brought Lyla & Cade Christmas pajamas, which he placed in their stockings. Of course, they wore them to bed tonight:

   

December is going to be a fun month – we’re all so excited about the Holidays! Lyla was so excited about Elfie that she had to go back to say goodnight to him several times.

Cade also enjoyed a good game of getting chased to the trash tonight – he loves to get into the trash and pull out one treasure or another. Tonight he made a game of running to the trash can and trying to get caught. It was great fun until he was carted away from the trash, in which case, he became very grumpy.

Here’s he’s formulating a plan to run back to the trash:

 

In action:

  

Getting caught by Mommy:

Not happy:

And, one last photo that Lyla took of Daddy tonight. She loves taking pictures:

All in all, a busy, full day at the Hottman’s . We all feel so incredibly blessed by each other. I love taking at least a few moments on this day to really think about the things in my life that are important. I sure do love these 3, more than I can even put into words. They are undoubtedly the most amazing people on the Planet to me.

Happy Thanksgiving.

Last Day of 2's...

Today is Lyla's last day of 2's at preschool. She turns 3 in just 7 days...and she's now a big potty trained girl (during the day, that is).

She took presents to thank her very first teachers, Miss Statia and Miss Lindsey.

A very special day. We're all very excited about officially starting the 3's with Miss Polly on Monday!



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Our Little Madman

One of our favorite nicknames for Cade these days is "Wild Man". However, lately his mood has qualified him for the name "Mad Man". That sweet boy is so moody on the hormone he's been taking since the egg incident. He gets so mad if denied anything he wants, and he definitely lets you know about it.

Here, he was hell bent on finding Daddy, who was at work. He went to the door and just stood there, angrily grunting when no one answered:


And, he's starving! The medicine makes him so hungry! Today, he downed a bunch of Greek yogurt, and was very intense throughout the process:





Frankly, I'll be glad to put the Egg Incident in our rear view mirror. :)

What an experience!

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Thanksgiving at Preschool

Today, Lyla and I attended her Thanksgiving lunch at preschool – we had a great time visiting with several of her preschool friends and meeting her soon-to-be teacher, Polly. She’ll be moving up to part-time preschool 3’s after Thanksgiving as she is now such a big, potty trained girl!

She dressed up in her pilgrim outfit for the occasion:

Love these sweet days.

Last night was a bit of harrowing experience – Baby Bro officially has an egg allergy. He vomited twice after eating scrambled eggs and broke out into hives. We were very scared, but Daddy ultimately made everything ok. Cade got the medicine he needed and was soon back to normal, begging for his favorite cheese puffs.

We’ll be taking him to an allergist in December. Scary stuff. I just hate it for him – we have a lot of work in front of us.

A Cold Fall Afternoon

It was a cold day today – very rainy all morning long. Daddy was working the day shift, so we decided to go outside for a few minutes this afternoon and wait for him to come home. It was a great hat day – we spent just the perfect amount of time in the fresh air before coming inside to a warm home.

Cade is everywhere outside, just like inside. He’s better with sticking EVERYTHING in his mouth, which makes it a little easier to trust him around acorns.

He still loves his car. He points at it the moment we go outside, wants to ride in it but gets a little more frustrated a little more quickly – we have to call it quits when he starts trying to climb out of the windows.

So far, Lyla & Cade are the quintessential little brother/big sis duo. He adores her every move and she vacillates between nurturing and antagonizing him. Here, she’s considering doing something naughty with her muddy hands…

Cade just sits back and waits for it…

She knows that wasn’t a good idea, but I don’t think she really regrets it.

He just wants to be everywhere she is.

There is nothing sweeter than watching the two of them become friends. Nothing.

Lyla is going to be on a “Big Kid” bike before you know it.

Here, Lyla is posing next to the bed we built in the woods for the goblins out of the summer’s leftover fern leaves:

Lyla insisted on taking a couple of photos:

 

Here’s when Cade saw Daddy get home (love this):

The infamous Lyla “naughty face”:

A perfect afternoon with our babies. Today, life is warm and sweet.

12 Months of Cade

Here are the pictures I’ve taken of Cade each month throughout his first year of life.

It’s amazing how much change takes place in the first 365 days of life. Absolutely Amazing.

Day 1

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Month 1

Month 2

Month 3

Month 4

Month 5

Month 6

Month 7

Month 8

Month 9

Month 10

Month 11

Happy One Year to our baby!