Under Construction

So as you can see, I am making some changes to my blog. It's been a long time coming, and sadly, it'll probably take a while before I have it the way I want it. You see, I have a very specific idea for my blog, and after searching high and low for the design I want, it became way too overwhelming. Seriously...when you have someone design your blog...I just don't know how the heck you pick what you want! There are so many 'kits' and whatnot out there, I could spend days just looking at them all. And even with all of them to choose from, nothing looks remotely like what I have in my head. So I may just have to figure out how to create a template myself, which could of course...take years. So in the meantime, I have settled on this premade design to satisfy my "need to change my blog right this very second" moment that I was/am having.

Anyhow...we had a busy weekend. Brian has been at work since Friday morning. Ugh. I had a wine tasting Friday night, which went really well. Yesterday the girls and I met my Dad and Barbara at Huntington Gardens, and sadly, this is the only picture I was able to get of both girls.



Lilly has decided today that her new favorite sound to make is "da da da". She has been having so much fun with it. And she also decided today that it was time to start trying to pull herself up to a standing position and hang out. She can't really pull herself up yet (as hard as she tries), but if you prop her hands up on a chair or something, she will totally support herself. Seriously...this girl is growing up WAY too fast.

Anyhow, back to the Gardens yesterday, Lilly had fun with her Grandpa



While Abby and Barbara enjoyed the Chinese Garden



It was a really nice day but we are looking forward to Daddy being home tomorrow. Speaking of tomorrow...I will be spending the day cleaning and packing because Tuesday morning I am off to NYC with my sister for a little R&R. And while I am there, I will continue to pray for this family. They have weighed so heavily on my mind, having been through something so similar with my family. I hope you will keep them in your thoughts as well.

More Bits and Pieces

So you're up to speed (sort of) on Abby, so how about a little bit of Lilly now? Well, she just turned 8 months (6 months adjusted), which is almost impossible for me to believe. It really seems like just yesterday that she made her dramatic entrance into this world. And she's doing pretty darn good...considering where she started. She's tipping the scale at 20 pounds. She's quite the chunk! She is super tall too and is in the 90th percentile for both height and weight... unadjusted, thankyouverymuch. Her hair is getting thick and is really starting to look as red as Abbys. She has completely mastered sitting on her own and she's up on all fours and rocking, so I'd bet she'll be crawling in a matter of days. She makes her way around the room though usually on her knees and belly, and usually backwards, but whatever, she gets where she wants to go. Her eyes have turned to a light brownish-greenish color. I am not really sure exactly what to call it. She's wearing mostly 12 month size clothes. I still put her in some 9 month stuff, but honestly, it's getting pretty snug. She's eating stage 2 foods, but we haven't started meat yet...still just veggies and fruits. She's recovering from a nasty cough and spent the last 10 days taking an antibiotic so it didn't turn into something worse. She hasn't slept through the night in a couple of months now, and I am looking forward to when we get back on track with that. But she's cute as a button...loves her big sis...loves being outside and could spend all day in the Bjorn if Mommy's back could hold up that long. I haven't been very good at taking pictures this summer...but here's one from Abby's birthday...

Bits and Pieces

Wow, it's been a long time, huh? It makes me sad that I have taken such a long break from blogging...both reading others' blogs, and writing my own, and I've thought long and hard about what my first post would be about once I committed to getting back into it. And the fact is...there is so much to talk about that I don't even know where to start! Hence...the bits and pieces title.

I think I'll start with yesterday, and work backwards from there. Yesterday was a big day. It was August 24th. It was Abby's 2nd birthday. I can't believe how much has happened in the last 2 years, and it is overwhelming, emotionally, to think about all of it. But here was my girl 2 years ago...



...tiny, tiny, tiny. Weighing only 2 pounds 4 ounces...sick as could be...and who would have ever thought that in these 2 years, she has gone from that to this...

A big girls who loves her baby,



and her Mommy,



and her Daddy too...



Abby is doing so well! She was discharged from developmental clinic last month and now that she's 2, we won't adjust her age anymore. She loves the beach and really, anything that has water in it, on it, near it, whatever. The girl just loves water. She's in size 4 diapers and is just about ready for potty training. Ok, well...she is ready for potty training, I'm just not sure that I am yet. She's wearing mostly 3T now and is still giving us a hard time about brushing her teeth. I mean, the way she throws such a fit, you would think we were actually pulling those teeth out! Her hair is still red, although being out in the sun this summer has given her some pretty blonde highlights. She is an awesome big sister and loves Lilly. She has been known on occasion to be found sitting on her baby sister. And I mean on her, as in trying to ride her like a horse. This behavior, along with a handful of other bad habits, has caused her to spend some time in time out. Every once in a while, she'll even put herself in time out. That always cracks me up.

I suppose I could go on and on about how amazing she is...our first born daughter. But I suppose I probably shouldn't...I mean...it's 10:30pm for goodness sake. All I know is that after 2 years, our Abigail never ceases to amaze us. And I have a feeling that is never going to change.