Summer Fun (July Part 1)

Since it is almost the end of October I debated about going back and posting about what we did from July up until now, however I reminded myself that the main point of blogging for me is to archive photos and memories. (Along with keeping family & friends who aren't on Facebook up to date with pictures and stories). At some point I plan on printing this blog into a book for each of the girls. (They have some great websites that make doing this super easy!)

This year we spent the 4th of July with our new neighbors (as of last Nov), Melinda and Louie. We feel so fortunate to have such amazing neighbors. The house next door had stood empty for almost a year and we had grown accustomed to having no one over there. We were nervous when we found out the house had been sold, not knowing what to expect. From the minute we met them, we had an immediate connection. Hannah was especially excited to swim in their pool over the summer.We spent 4th of July day at their house barbequing, swimming, chatting and enjoying margaritas. It was a such a relaxing 4th of July. As much as we love camping and being on the lake, 4th of July, Memorial and Labor Day weekends are the 3 weekends we make a point of avoiding the lake...too much traffic, people & craziness!!  That evening we enjoyed fireworks at the annual neighborhood block party/fireworks show.

The  night before (on the 3rd of July) we headed out to Bodega Bay to enjoy some beautiful fireworks over the water. Hannah was so excited for the show (last year they made her a little nervous). We joined some good friends and had a great spot right at the edge of the dock overlooking the water. The adults enjoyed a glass of wine and the kids a hot chocolate. So much fun!

gorgeous view

all cozy with dad

family pic

Once summer started we quickly realized Hannah was going to need her first haircut. It's crazy to think that we went 3 years without getting it cut! Her hair has always been healthy, never frayed at the ends and to be honest I loved the curls at the ends and didn't want to see it go. However summer and swimming make long hair less manageable, so we decided to trim about an inch and a half off. At first Hannah seemed excited for a hair cut, but as the day approached she got very nervous and wanted to put it off to the following week. :)
 As much as we tried to explain to her that it wouldn't hurt and that we'd be going to a fun place especially for kids, she wasn't convinced she'd like it. When we got there she enjoyed checking out the toys and books, however did not want to sit up in the chair by herself. Jill the owner of Kids Cuts in Rohnert Park is awesome. She convinced a teary eyed Hannah to start by just sitting on my lap and reading a book & from there she worked her magic. Mid way through Hannah was ready to sit by herself in the chair and was all smiles at the end. Now that it's Oct. she's about ready for her next hair cut and is super excited.  :)

wanting to see what was going on

like a big girl

 

During July my friend Amy came to visit with her little one Emilyn and niece Jaiden for a girls weekend while Josh was out of town. We enjoyed hanging out at the house and playing with the girls (Emilyn is 4 weeks older than Jordyn), and of course doing a little shopping. Hannah and Jaiden enjoyed playing non-stop all weekend together. :)

Hannah and her cousin Mazzy had their first sleepover together during the month of July and they were both soooo excited. My brother-in-law dropped Mazzy off after Hannah's nap and both girls immediately started planning their afternoon. First on the agenda, play time in Hannah's room, a walk to the park, dinner, followed by playing in the bath together, and finally enjoyed popcorn and a movie before bed. Watching them on the video monitor as they attempted to go to sleep was hilarious. Hannah was SO excited to have her first sleepover in her bedroom and finally have someone sleep in the trundle bed. :)  It was too cute listening & watching on the video monitor. At one point they were both ended up in Hannah's bed snuggling and giggling together. :) Hannah can't wait for their next sleepover.

love this pic!

make a wish!

movie time

Grandma came over to babysit so that Josh and I could enjoy a night out in Santa Rosa. We had dinner at Tex Wasabi's (delicious!!), followed by drinks and shuffle board in downtown Santa Rosa. As much as we love our girls, it is so nice to have nights together without them.  Thanks Grandma for helping make it happen!!

with  my love

morning snuggles

Our big 3 month old

striking a pose for mom :)

she does so well sitting still for me to braid her hair

dad's first braid pony :)

Summer Fun (June)

Slowly but surely I'll work my way through our summer on the Blog. Things haven't slowed down much and when they do blogging still hasn't been a priority. :) During the month of June we did some traveling (camping trip to Lake Philsbury-wrote about in a previous post; trip to Fortuna; Josh-Seattle bachelor party and Me-Healdsburg bachelorette party). We also enjoyed doing some fun things locally.

I took the girls to the Sonoma State Univ. Duck pond to meet my friend Tracy and her girls one afternoon. We enjoyed lunch and feeding the ducks. Hannah loved it as long as the ducks didn't get too close. :)

 After our trip to Lake Philsbury (2nd week in June) we had a day and a half to unpack from camping and repack for Fortuna. Josh flew to Seattle with guys that Thursday and after dropping him off at the Santa Rosa airport, the girls and I hit the road to Fortuna. They both did awesome....Jordyn slept the entire way, while Hannah read books, played with her doll, ate lunch and then took a nap as well.

Sleeping girls upon arriving to my parent's house

 It was so fun to see Jordyn and Lilly together once again. It had been a month since our last visit (Mother's Day weekend) and both girls had grown and changed so much. As you can see in the picture below Jordyn is slowly but surely catching up to her cousin in size and weight. :)  During this trip Jordyn turned 8 weeks old and Lilly 13 weeks. Jordyn was still in the stage where she slept a lot, however Lilly was much more alert and chatty. I enjoyed 5 days in Fortuna relaxing with my family, celebrating my mom's birthday and celebrating Father's Day with my dad. Josh flew in to Santa Rosa Monday morning and we were there to pick him up. Hannah was soooo excited to see him and proudly held up a sign that said, "We missed you Daddy!" We celebrated a late Father's Day with Josh and enjoyed family time together.

with my sweet Lilly

Picture we texted to Josh on Father's Day

Daddy at home with his girls after Seattle

 During the month of June we enrolled Hannah in her second session of swim lessons for the year. (Her first were during winter). During her first class she refused to get in the pool with her instructor (we later found out she was leery because her instructor was wearing a wet suit...she had never seen anyone wear one before). After having a long chat with her that afternoon Tuesday's swim lesson went much better and by Wednesday she was having a great time. Hannah is such a cautious little girl and it typically takes quite awhile for her to warm up to new situations.  Usually I like this quality about her because I know it'll help keep her safe in many ways, however there are times when it can be a little frustrating...for example not getting wet on the first day of swim class!  :)  Needless to say by the end of the session we were very proud of the growth she made and look forward to enrolling both her and her sister in lessons again either this fall or winter.

 In June we also made a day trip over (along with Josh's brother and family) to Rancho Cordova to visit his dad, step mom, step sis & brother-in-law and niece. We weren't able to see Larry on his 60th birthday (the week before), so we celebrated together that weekend. Jordyn enjoyed sleeping in her Nana and Papa Heald's arms, while Hannah and her cousins Camryn & Mazzy had a blast playing together. They put on a puppet show for us (hilarious!) and giggled while dancing with their Papa in the living room. As always we had a wonderful visit!!

Papa Heald and Jordyn

Papa dancing with his grand daughters

 During the last weekend of June I left both girls for the first time to go to one of my best friend Mandy's bachelorette parties. This was my first time leaving Jordyn overnight and of course Josh did an amazing job with both girls. I planned this trip not too far from home partly because I love wine tasting in the Healdsburg/Dry Creek area and also due to the fact that I didn't want to be too far from home in case I was needed by my 2 month old. I was the matron of honor in my friend Mandy's wedding, so along with the help of her sister I planned a weekend getaway to a house we rented on the Russian River. Friday afternoon we arrived at the house, unpacked and enjoyed some snacks and cocktails before getting ready and heading to Healdsburg for dinner at Willis Seafood and Wine Bar (highly recommend!!) We enjoyed some amazing cocktails and delicious food! After dinner we headed back to the house (Mandy's youngest sister wasn't 21), for more cocktails, dancing and fun! The following morning after breakfast we headed out for a day full of wine tasting. One of our favorite stops was VML Winery where we enjoyed a private tasting and lunch on their beautiful outdoor patio area. After arriving back at the house later that afternoon we enjoyed margaritas, and tacos and then walked to a nearby bar and danced the night away. All and all it was a great weekend!! I missed my girls like crazy, but enjoyed some much needed time with the my girl friends.

dinner at Willis

with the bride to be

At VML

 During the month of June we managed to squeeze in some productive time around the house as well. I cleaned out and organized both girls' bedrooms, Josh worked on organizing the garage, I got caught up on the girls' baby books, Josh installed a new sprinkler system in the outer front yard. We also enjoyed some local fun and took the girls to the Petaluma Fair (they have a great kids ride area)...Hannah had a blast! We also spent a day at the Discovery Museum in Sausalito.

Hannah helping dad with yard work

Hannah, Jacob and Caleb on rides at the Petaluma Fair.

playing at the Discovery Museum

Enjoying a picnic lunch after a morning at the Discovery Museum

Jordyn Elizabeth ~ 3 months

8 weeks old

I can't believe our baby girl is already 15 weeks old and I haven' t done any updates since she was 5 weeks old. We have had so much fun watching Jordyn grow and change over the past three months. Her little personality has started to develop and she brings us so much joy. She continues to deal with reflux issues (she's a major spitter upper!), however now that she's been on Prilosec (since about 6 weeks old) she hasn't had the discomfort from the acid. The rough part is having to give her medication first thing before she eats every morning. It has to be refrigerated so it's cold and to make matters worse it tastes like salt water. Needless to say giving it to her is the least favorite part of my day. :(  Because she spits up so much during every feeding she always wears a bib while eating, (& at other times as well). We've found that receiving blankets make much better burp cloths.  :) Keeping a pacifier in her mouth while burping helps her keep her food down and the burp cloth drier. :)  At around 6 weeks she started experiencing some periods of colic in the evenings. Anywhere between 9pm and 12 am, she'd have about 45 min-1 hr. of inconsolable crying. This was new to us. Hannah rarely cried for more than a few min at a time. These episodes didn't occur every night, however we never knew when to expect them. Fortunately these fussy periods are few and far between now! At two months she smiled (while awake) for the first time and the smiles have been constant ever since. 

7 weeks old with her cousin Lilly (12 weeks old)

Posing with her Jordyn doll from Lisa, Matt and Henry Page

waiting for Dr. Silver

At her 2 month appointment she weighed in at 12 lbs. 9.8 oz and was 23 inches long. 85th percentile for weight, 67th percentile for length and 86th percentile for head circumference.  As you can see by the pictures she's an excellent eater. :) Hannah was so excited for Jordyn's 2 month check up. She got to help Dr. Silver perform the check up and loved every minute of it.

still asleep while being weighed

reading books to Jordyn while waiting for her shots

Along with being a good eater, Jordyn is an excellent sleeper. Sometimes I forget that she is so little because Hannah didn't have long sleeping stretches during the night until she was a little older. At 7 weeks old she began (to our surprise) consistently sleeping through the night. She averages 8-9 hour stretches and sometimes goes as long as 10 or 11 and once even shocked us with 12. She wakes up around 8-9 am (which has been awesome for summer because that's when Hannah gets up too). I can't tell you how great it's been to have our entire family sleep in all summer. After eating she'll have a period of awake time, chattyness, play time and then go down for a 3- 5 hr. nap. After eating and playtime, she'll take a second 3-5 hr nap. In the evening after dinner she'll take a short nap before eating and going to sleep for the night. I've started to take her sleep schedule for granted and have to remind myself that it could change at any time.  I'm expecting some changes now that we'll be starting back to work in a couple weeks. We'll also be transitioning her to her crib next week after we get home from our camping trip. Currently she's been sleeping in our room in a slight upright position next to my side of the bed to help eliminate her choking on her spit up during her sleep. We had a couple nerve racking moments which have made us a little leery to not have her within arms reach during the night.  Hannah went to her own room at 7 weeks old, however with Jordyn we've been more apprehensive. Keeping our fingers crossed the transition to her bedroom goes smoothly!!  Jordyn absolutely loves watching her big sis. She now watches Hannah's every move and is so entertained by her. :)  Hannah can get the biggest smiles out of Jordyn, it melts my heart every time.

play time

so captivated by her big sis

smiley girl

checking herself out

hanging out with her friend Emilyn who came down to visit for the weekend

sitting at the breakfast table

happy little butter ball

3 months old