My baby's babies

Ansley was just gifted three fabulous dolls for her birthday and she absolutely adores them...most of the time!  She rocks them, hugs them, and sometimes they get an occasional kiss.  It is so sweet to see how motherly she already is, even at the age of one!  She likes to stroll all three of them around the house, hitting every piece of furniture in her way, and losing at least one baby out of the one-passenger stroller during her walks.  It is pretty comical.  She talks to them with her precious little words (that we can't quite understand) in that oh so sweet little voice.  Absolutely precious.

And then...I heard that precious little voice (in a louder tone this time), so I got curious.  I mosied back to her bedroom, where she was playing, to find her nicely laying her babies on her chair and then one-by-one throwing them on the floor...at this point somewhat yelling!  Ok...I watch for a second to make sure I'm understanding what's happening.  And yes, she had an attitude with the babies...she was apparently disciplining them.  What?  Is this a joke?  No...actually, it wasn't a joke.  We have never had to discipline Ansley, other than say...no, no for something very minor.  But that's it.  So of course, I tell her...Ansley, we love our babies and don't want to hurt them!  After giving her this pep talk several times...she continued with the throwing.  What's a mom to do?  At this point, I'm slightly panicked...all I see is Ansley trying to throw her cousin Jansen across the room next time she's with him!  So, I called for backup.  Jason walked in and gave me the most confused look.  After observing for a second and getting the low-down from me...he made the executive decision to put the babies away for a few days.  Eek!  I thought the attitude would definitely show it's ugly head now, but she didn't miss a beat!  It was like she thought they needed to go away too! 
Has anyone ran into this situation before?  My little mother hen has started disciplining...wow, how do they learn these things?!

The day I took these she loved her babies!

        

Smiles :) ALL :) Around!

I was asked to work Sunday, which for a lot of different reasons was the pits, but this little girl made coming home so much more enjoyable!  She had such a happy day!  She is finally recovering from antibiotics and feeling back to normal...whew!  We could not believe how giggly she was!  Ok warning...you are about to see a lot of pictures of Ansley!

This is usually what she does when a camera comes out...

Then she started hamming it up!

That tongue cracks me up!

It was time to eat, but she wanted to play

How can crooked teeth look so cute?! 

This was the start of our island tag game....hey mommy!

 Peeking around for a suprise

 Tag has begun!

 It always ends in a fall, this time we were all smiles!

Love this girl...she lights up our lives!

More Fourth of July Fun...

I just went through some of our pictures from the 4th and realized I hadn't posted any from Ansley's actual birth day.  Gasp!  So, here are a few from the first half of the day that we spent with our friends, Ashlee and Joe.  They had us over to their new house in Jackson, which is gorgeous!  I wish I had taken more pictures of it, Ashlee is such a great decorator!  I did, however, take pictures of the adorable nursery for her second baby, Joseph that is expected to arrive in September.  Wait until you see how cute this room is!   But first, a picture of Ansley and her new purse she got from Ashlee and Joe.  She loves it!  She carries it from room to room and her lipstick gets lots of use ;). 

As you can see, the lipstick is in the mouth...

And now for Joseph's room!

Ashlee painted it all...freehand!

The room was tan.

How adorable is his name?!  She is so creative!

Ansley can't wait to meet little Joseph.

After Ashlee and Joe's we went to my aunt's house.  Ansley wanted to wear Jason's sunglasses, so of course, he let her (even though he loves these glasses, would die if he lost them, and can't find another pair like them unless we go to the same street vendor in Mexico)! Ha! 

But he sure didn't hesitate to let her wear them! 

And one more after all the action....a naked girl running around on the porch!  Ah!

Wow. Did That Really Just Happen?!

Today, Ansley and I got up to do our typical morning thing.  Eat some breakfast, snuggle while watching a little bit of the Dinosaur Train and Sesame Street and then off to play with all her toys. 
[However, I need to mention, recently we've had Ansley on an antibiotic for a "not-so-pleasant experience" she had recently with Keagan-the Killer Dog :) (he kind of nipped at Ansley, we just joke....he's not really a killer and she was totally fine...there was no blood and no crying).  Anyways, the antibiotic makes her stool a little loose.]
Now, that you have that information...I'll continue.

As we're playing, I realize Ansley had gone off to do her thing...you know, poop.  So I decided to wait it out a little to make sure she was done.  I made my way back to her bedroom to straighten a few things in her closet and then take care of the inevitable (which by the way, has recently been quite a deal, she now hates her diaper changed).  As I turn around to grab her and put her on the changing table, I realize the piles of POO on the floor. Yes, I said piles. 
OK...so I tried not to overreact...picked her up, hosed her off in the tub, disposed of the really full-nasty diaper, and put on a fresh one.  All the while, I'm laughing because I totally could have prevented this.  I proceed to take Ansley to her toys in the living room so she can play and I can clean.  I grab a putty knife to scrape up the mess, spot shot, and a rag (by the way, the living room thing didn't work...Ansley at this point is in the hallway crying and knocking on the door to come in).  I do my best to clean up the off-white colored carpet and finally let the teary-eyed girl in.  We sang a few songs, read a few books and I put her down for her nap (which at this point is late).  Whew.  I'm done.  I can relax for a second, wipe off the sweat and get some other things done around here.  I mosey into the kitchen and low and behold, more poop!  And we're not talking a little...everywhere Ansley had fallen (we still have some walking falls), poop must have squirted out!  My entire kitchen floor was covered in piles of squirted poop.  I was frozen, I couldn't move...it took me what felt like 5 minutes to take in the poop disaster!  However, this time I was thankful it was on the tile and not the carpet, because a quick run of the room with another rag, a mop, and some Clorox would do the trick!   
Again, laughing and before even cleaning up the mess, I picked up the phone to let Jason know how our morning had gone.  I needed someone else to laugh at the hilarity of it all.  Jason-Wow.  Did that really just happen?!  Me-Yes, I'm pretty sure it did.  And it's called the life of a mom with a toddler! 

Whew!  Glad that's over.  Well...maybe over, I've still got my eye out for more poop piles!

Sorry, I know you probably didn't want to hear about our poop story, I just had to share!   
               

Ansley Harper: 1 YEAR!

You've heard it all many times before from me...I can't believe how big she is, how time flies, it feels like it was just yesterday, and so on.  Well, in this case there are no other words for how quickly this last year has gone.  Our little girl is one.   As I think of the year in review, all I can do is cry.  After going through every test under the sun, infertility treatments, traveling to dr.'s appts., months and months and months of praying and crying out to God for a baby.  We had finally given it all up to the Lord, stopped all the medications and decided to wait on Him.  He had changed us to rely solely on Him...looking to Him for our guidance.  That's when His perfect plan was revealed and the timing was right in His eyes.  A year ago- on July 4, 2009 at 7:32 a.m.-Praise God, we got our baby!  Since that day our lives have been changed for the better and the extent of our joy is immeasurable.

She is every bit of perfect.

The apple of her daddy's eye.

Momma's little girl.

A good laugh after a hard day.

She warms our hearts completely.

A reason to celebrate God and His love.

She is an amazing little girl!

I wish they weren't so cliche, but they are all so true!

This final month before turning one she has changed daily right before our eyes!  This is what Ansley has been up to lately.

*You are talking more and more...these days you've been in squealy kind of mood.  I love to hear you talk when you're playing!

*You love your new baby dolls (all 3 of them).  You got them all at your birthday party, along with a stroller that you love to put all 3 babies in (hysterical).  They get lots of love and you usually talk their ear off!  You rock them, pat their backs, give them binkies...you're a good little momma.

*Your walking is getting steadier and steadier.  However, we still have our bumps and bruises.  We had one big fall at Pamaw and Pappaw's house that resulted in a bloody mouth (I was slightly freaked out by this, even working in the ER), but you recovered well!  Also, the day of the party you attempted a somersault on our basement floor...you were bruised in every birthday party pic, of course!  We've definitely learned how tough you are!

*When we ask you how old you are, you hold up your adorable little pointer finger with your thumb sticking out.  Ugh...so sweet!

*You love to lean your head back just so we tickle your neck.  We love to see your mouthful of teeth when you do this!

*You like humming and acting out itsy, bitsy spider and then clapping when we're done.

*You are 20 lbs. 12 oz (you weighed 20 lbs. at your 9 month appt.).  You wear 6-12 month clothes and size 4 shoe.  You are pretty average for your age :).

*We celebrated Aunt Whitney and Aunt Laura's birthdays (June 13th) this month.  You love both your sweet aunts!

*We celebrated Father's day with your daddy.  Before having you, I always knew what an amazing father he would be.  And he has definitely surpassed any expectations I had...we are extremely blessed to have him in our lives!  It is obvious that you are absolutely in love with him, as he is always able to put a smile on your sweet little face!

*When you want something you hold out your hand and say..."ugh?"

*You love to be chased!  We have to play this game at least once a day...you squeal with excitement.

*It is most precious sight when you suck your thumb and hold Dawson or Beatrice's ear.

*You are still sleeping around 12 hours a night, waking around 8:30.  Thank you, Ansley!

*We savor the moments when you snuggle or give us kisses.


Ansley, thank you for being the joy that you are!  We are so blessed to be able to care and love for you...you make it so easy!  We love everything about you...from your sweet curls and chubby cheeks to your short little legs and your long toes.  You are the best thing that has ever happened to us!  

Party Time!!

Well, as for Ansley's 1st birthday party...it was a hit!  She had such a great day!  We celebrated with our friends and family and had such a wonderful time!  It was so adorable to watch Ansley take in all the action.  I will never forget it...she was perfect.  This was the scene.

The treat/cake table

The Birthday Girl

Ansley and BB

First up: Cake (she wasn't quite sure) 

 Her first taste of sweetness

 She kinda wanted to play

And give me some... 

 The playroom that was hoppin' with little ones :)

My family

Excuse the blue feathers

Ansley joined the playroom party

A new little friend, Evy Kate :)

Trying to open her gifts

Daddy's job all evening

Who knew we only needed batteries to keep this girl happy?! 

 Aunt Whit helping Ansley with her new babies

 

Her new cowgirl hat

 The end to a wonderful and memorable day

Happy 1st birthday, my sweet girl!  We love you!

Pre-Party Chaos!

This was me at 10 p.m. Friday night frantically decorating Ansley's birthday cake and smash cake for the party. Jason is not pictured, but he helped a lot! See those tiny red, white, and blue fondant balls to the left of the picture...yes, he rolled each and every one of them (I think he really enjoyed working with the adult playdoh-like substance)! How's that for a good hubby! These pics were taken by my mom and dad, who looked at me like I was crazy for attempting this task without any cake decorating classes, but in the end I think they were pretty surprised. My little cakes turned out delicious (even if it does look like Dr. Suess made them)!

This was the finished product without the big A that went on top.

 Don't look too close!