friday I’m in love {june}

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Keep Families Together

{one} Hydroflask 16 oz Wide Mouth Coffee Thermos

I think I have previously sung the praises of my Hydroflask waterbottle (with a straw lid) that I got to replace my old Camelbak ones, but I am here again to say that I am OBSESSED with my new coffee thermos. I use it every day, starting with my cold brew (though you could use it for hot coffee too), and then using it for my Bubly water for the rest of the day (which I discuss below too) which doesn’t do well in a straw cup because of the carbonation. Guys, this thing keeps ice cubes for hours, at least 6, and does hot and cold beverages equally well. Plus, it’s about $25 so if you have a Nordstrom note, it costs you just $5, AND it fits in cup holders!

{two} Bubly water

So I mentioned Bubly water above, and I definitely jumped on the bandwagon for this one. And as a former lover of La Croix water I was skeptical about a new carbonated water on the market, but I tried it when I was in the midwest a few weeks ago and haven’t looked back! The two things that I LOVE are that the flavor is better (than La Croix) and the bubbles are less intense (you have to try it and you’ll see). My very favorite is the Strawberry, but I also like the Grapefruit and Apple. And, if you drink it from the Hydroflask coffee thermos (like I do!) you can keep it cold all afternoon or however long it takes you to drink it. I have seen it at grocery stores and Target, so pick up a pack!

{three} Natives shoes

As we have nearly officially headed into summer, I have been doing tons of research and shopping for good shoes for the girls. They both have sandals, but especially for Daphne, I need something with good foot protection since she tends to fall. A lot. Plus, something that is easy to clean and easy to get on and off (because it already takes forever to get out of the house). I had been hearing about Natives for a while, but I honestly thought they were over-priced plastic shoes. And while that may be true ($35 to $40 for kids shoes is not inexpensive) they are totally worth the hype. We had a friend give us a hand-me-down pair for Eloise and it took only one wearing before I was sold. The style is like a sneaker and they are extremely easy to put on and wear for the kids, from the playground to the splash pad, but they don’t scream UGLY PLASTIC SHOE like other ones do (ahem, Crocs). Daphne is really good about sitting down when I ask her to put her shoes on and it takes me about 10 seconds to get them on her chubby little feet, and Eloise has no problems slipping them on. AND Nordstrom Rack frequently has them for about half-price.

{four} Keep Families Together

If you know me, you know that, especially recently, I don’t talk politics. In fact, following the recent election and start of the current administration, I am sad to say that I don’t watch or read the news at all. Any of it. As someone who was a bit of a current events junkie (a very informed citizen, if you may) it has been a huge change. But when I am at home every day raising my babies, I just cannot stomach the current news cycle. It’s seriously depressing and I feel so helpless. It won’t always be this way, but for now, I am best if I just don’t know.

That said, however, the horrifics of the current administration’s stance on families seeking asylum at our country’s borders is one that I cannot shake. It has gained some serious social media momentum (which is how I even know about it!) and for good reason. The acts of this country in relation to these families are deplorable. I can’t tell you how many times my stomach has turned and the tears that have streamed down my face when I think about these families being torn apart. The children that are being detained are the same age as my girls (and even younger). There is absolutely no reason that I can conceive of for these actions to be taken by a government, let alone one that is built on immigrants. We have seen atrocities like this in the past with the Holocaust and the internment of the Japanese during WWII, but yet here we are. Politics aside, this is a morality issue and one about compassion, empathy, and being a good human.

Please join the thousands of outraged citizens all over the country (and the world) as we stand up for justice and change. We deserve better than this and so do our children (and grandchildren). This article on Cup of Jo is amazing if you want some more information (without delving into all of the heartwrenching details). I have called my senators, made donations to the ACLU (of which I am a PROUD member) and RAICES, and am looking into ways I can help in my local community.

Let’s just be kind to each other.

M

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eloise {last day of preschool 2018}

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Gosh, the last day of preschool? I am not ready for this. Eloise has been at the Birch School for the past two years and is headed to a new school next year for pre-K. We have LOVED the Birch School and her three teachers, and will be so, so sad to leave this amazingly loving community. But, I know there is so much in store for Eloise at her new school and I am excited to see her thrive there too! Pre-K though, wasn’t she just born?

And here’s her first day of preschool in the fall!

Happy Summer E!

M

my weekend in pictures.

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{I caught an early flight out of Seattle on Thursday morning and headed to OC (Huntington Beach, Costa Mesa, Newport Beach) to meet up with my family for my sister Anya’s college graduation. I was up at 4 am, in an Uber by 5 am, at the airport by 6 am, but I was flying solo & got to drink my latte hot so it was pretty amazing!}

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{Meanwhile, Daphne and Aaron hung out at U Village while Eloise was at school. Apparently she was listening to some beats while also drinking a hot coffee.}

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{Packing light! Such a dream for airplane travel.}

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{And the girls went on a bike ride in the afternoon. Eloise’s face in this picture kills me.}

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{We spent most of Thursday afternoon walking around campus and getting some pictures of the soon-to-be grad!}

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{I definitely teared up when I heard “Pomp and Circumstance” though I felt really old when I thought about how long ago my college graduation was. Spoiler alert: it was 11 years ago!}

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{We found Daphne’s California Greek restaurant and lunch was a must!}

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{My absolute favorite interior designer, Shea McGee of Studio McGee, just opened a shop in Costa Mesa and I knew the stars were aligning for me to go there. So my mom and I popped down there on Friday afternoon and the store was as perfect and charming as I expected. Plus, Shea was doing a meet & greet at the same time we were at the store (which I didn’t realize until after-the-fact) and she was the sweetest person!}

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{A celebratory dinner for Anya on a beautifully warm evening out on the patio.}

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{We FaceTimed a lot this weekend and it was always SO good to see all of my favorite faces. Except when Daphne started to cry during the end of this call and I lost it too.}

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{The BEACH! It was a little cold and overcast but that didn’t stop us from heading down Beach Street to the PCH – Pacific Coast Highway – to get our toes into the sand.}

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{And I got to spend the long weekend with this lovely lady who just also happens to be my oldest sister Keri (or Dollie as we lovingly refer to her).}

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{To Eloise, Love Grammie.}

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{And a play date with the neighbors on Saturday morning.}

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{I headed home on Saturday evening and enjoyed watching the sun setting over the mountains while I read my book. It was slightly magical.}

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{Opening gifts and cards for Papa’s Day this morning. Eloise has been asking all week if Aaron would open her presents she made for him at school.}

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{I wish I loved yogurt this much!}

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{She knows the keys go in the door but she’s not quite tall enough.}

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{Aaron wanted to go on a family hike for Father’s Day so I thought it would be fun to head over to Magnolia to the Discovery Park Loop. Amazingly in all of the years we have lived here, neither of us had ever been out there! And this picture may be my new favorite one. Eloise’s smile is everything.}

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{The morning was just beautiful. Look at that water and the mountains!}

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{These girlies. I missed them.}

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{We jumped on the chance to get a family picture since the park was buzzing with people.}

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{By the time we got here Eloise was getting tired and we headed back to the car, but next time we are making it down to explore the beach!}

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{I got my workout in on the way back out of the park!}

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{And we discovered the playground!}

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{Eloise’s interview about her Papa. It is pretty accurate, minus the age!}

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{Daphne LOVES hats!}

It was CRAZY to be away from Aaron and the girls this weekend but we all did well. It was the first time I have ever been away more than 4 hours from Daphne and two years since I have been away from Eloise overnight, so it was much needed! Plus, I got to hang out with (most of) my family which was also really fun.

We are gearing up for the last week of preschool and counting down the days until summer. Eek!

Happy Father’s Day to all of the Papas, Grandpas, Papaws, and Pagas out there! We love you more than you will ever know.

How was your weekend>

M

my weekend in pictures.

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{We headed to music class on Friday morning as a make-up for one that we missed on our usual Tuesday, and Eloise got to join us! Of course, post-class we had to have a snack before heading home to have lunch. #toddlers And I couldn’t get both of the girls to smile in the same picture, hence two of them!}

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{As we are approaching the end of Eloise’s school year (2 more weeks!) I thought I probably needed to get some thank you notes written for her teachers. She has the BEST teachers and we will miss them terribly next year.}

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{Eloise has been loving her Magnaformers recently and made this house (her “creation”). She was so proud!}

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{Daphne is in that fun toddler phase where she cries when you tell her she can’t do something. In this case I told her that she couldn’t tip her cup over and spill water all over the carpet… #toddlers But look at those molars!}

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{This morning we headed to a PEPS play date and once Aaron got Daphne dressed, Eloise decided she wanted to wear the exact same thing. And then Aaron wanted them to have matching pigtails, so Daphne got her first piggies! Also, there’s a sneak peek of the entryway bench Aaron built. I will share once we finish it up!}

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{I couldn’t get a good picture of Daphne, but we memorialized these piggies at least!}

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{These girls are so sweet and are pretty good at playing together. Sometimes.}

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{Rather than my usual Pure Barre class this afternoon, I opted for a long(ish) solo walk down to Greenlake and around the neighborhood to catch up on a podcast (my current fav is More Perfect by Radiolab). And I happened to catch a break in the weather since we had a lot of clouds and rain this weekend, and Greenlake was SO beautiful! I was feeling very lucky that we call this place home!}

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{Sisters. Love them.}

We originally had a crazy-packed weekend which suddenly became much less packed with just one cancelled event. At first I was sad, but it was actually really nice to have some time to get some work done around the house, including yard work and lots of painting by yours truly (that entryway bench is nearly complete).

We are gearing up for the week and I am looking forward to a short solo vacation away at the end of the week!

How was your weekend?

M

P.S. I updated Daphne’s 15 month stats, but if you don’t want to go re-read that post, here you go!

Updated: Daphne had a great wellness check-up with her doctor and she is growing into a happy and healthy little toddler! Also, when her doctor came in, Daphne walked over and gave him a big hug. She’s the sweetest!

Weight: 27 lbs, 3 oz (98%)

Length: 30.75 inches (50%)

Head circumference: 47.5 cm (75%)

 

my {long} weekend in pictures.

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As I mentioned in Daphne’s 15 month update, she and I headed out on Friday morning (at o’dark thirty, seriously a 5:30 AM flight!) for the midwest. Specifically Champaign, IL for a family wedding. Okay, not technically family, but one of my family’s closest family friends. We grew up together in Boise and it felt like a family reunion!

I hardly took any pictures because I was trying to unplug this weekend and really be in the moment. Plus, any time I took out my phone, Daphne was there to grab it and would then throw a fit when I tried to take it away… but it was a fun weekend nonetheless!

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{We had to wake Daphne up around 3:30 AM to get to the airport to make our flight, so I was hoping she would be super sleepy on the first leg to Dallas. She slept for 40 minutes… and then ran around the Dallas airport during our layover.}

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{Daphne LOVED the guitarist at the wedding ceremony and danced to the music. Seriously the cutest thing ever. Not so cute was when she tried to make a run for the alter…}

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{Celebrating LOVE with a really beautiful ceremony.}

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{Grammie reading to Daphne at the church. This lasted for about a hot second before she wanted to be up and down on the pew, and headed out the back doors. She and I spent the second half of the ceremony walking laps just outside in the common area.}

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{Wedding selfie.}

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{And eating dinner at the reception. Yep, that is two spoons that she is holding.}

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{The bride and groom. I grew up with Kyle and he feels like a brother to me since he and his sister moved across the street from us when I was five. And there were so much crying every time I saw him!}

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{A family picture. This was the best we got!}

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{I wish you could see this as a live picture because you would see her dancing and it is the cutest thing ever. Pretty much every guest at the reception wanted to dance with Daphne!}

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{Playing with Grammie on Sunday morning.}

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{We headed back to our Airbnb house on Sunday afternoon for Daphne’s naptime and I got to catch up on the royal family while I ate lunch. Not too shabby.}

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{And we all FaceTimed with Aaron and Eloise all weekend long.}

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{Waiting at the Champaign airport for our super short flight to Chicago. Daphne was trying to get her paci in her mouth sideways. Oh geez.}

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{And taking off from Chicago! Daphne loved watching all of the activity outside the plane and kept waving to the baggage handlers and ground crew.}

This wasn’t the first airplane trip for Daphne and she actually did really well considering, but this is the first time I had flown by myself with a toddler. And oh my gosh, I probably won’t sign up for it again until she can sit still for some time and do an activity. It was up and down and up and down, and basically no sleeping. She slept for 40 minutes from Seattle to Dallas. And on the way home she slept for 20 minutes as we were approaching Chicago (it was a 45 minute flight). On our last flight into Seattle, which was 4 hours, she didn’t sleep at all! And we had finally transitioned to Central Time after having stayed on Pacific Time nearly the entire weekend (which worked perfectly for the wedding!) so by the time we landed in Seattle at almost 9 PM, she was running on pure adrenaline. Luckily the woman sitting next to us was SO sweet and let Daphne sit in her lap and play, so I got a little bit of a break (though then it was back and forth and back and forth between the seats). Aaron and Eloise parked and surprised us at baggage claim with a flower bouquet (!) which was amazing since I was completely exhausted by then. And Daphne was asleep as soon as she was in her car seat and slept thru the transition from the car to a diaper change to her crib.

Meanwhile in Seattle, Eloise and Aaron had some adventures too!

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{On Friday afternoon, Eloise hung out with Uncle Ben and they headed to Gasworks Park!}

{Eloise is super into gibberish recently. It’s cute, but when will she be done with this phase??}

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{And there were s’mores at a friends’ house too. Eloise explained to me how to make s’mores when we FaceTimed. Maybe she thought I didn’t know how to make them since she’s never had them before? Haha.}

It felt a little overwhelming to hit the ground running today and realize that somehow my Monday was already gone and that it was Tuesday! Thank goodness for preschool this morning so that I could run to the store and get most of the laundry done. I think by tomorrow I will feel back on track for the (short) week! How was your weekend?

M

daphne {fifteen months}

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{alligator: Jelly Cat // dress: June & January// leggings: Target (old)}

{month fifteen} In re-reading Eloise’s fifteen month update (linked below) I found myself nodding thru the entire thing since pretty much everything that was happening at that time with Eloise is now happening with Daphne girl.

Having a tiny toddler is rough guys. Daphne is way more mobile and curious than is good for her and it means she falls and bumps a lot. Like TWO urgent care visits in THREE WEEKS! The first one was a doozy in comparison to the second one. I shared a bit on Instagram Stories, but at the beginning of May Daphne was walking into the kitchen and fell. But as she was falling, she hit her eyebrow on the corner of Eloise’s wooden stool. Yep, she wasn’t even trying to climb it, she was just walking. (facepalm) Aaron was cooking dinner and I was in the living room, and as soon as I rushed into the kitchen and saw her, I knew it would be a hospital visit. Daphne’s eyebrow, as you can imagine, was bleeding profusely, and when I could get it to stop, she would start to cry and it would start up again. The cut was pretty wide and pretty deep and very prominently on her forehead so we figured stitches to try to keep the scar as small as possible. Luckily it was Saturday, but it was evening and urgent care would close soon. We dropped Eloise off at a friend’s house and headed to Children’s Hospital since it is so close and has both urgent care and an ER. Plus, it’s the best pediatric care in the area so I never hesitate to take my kids here. Guys, we waited FOREVER. (Spoiler alert: it was three and a half HOURS.) Of course, Daphne hadn’t had dinner yet (none of us had) and we opted to try not to feed her because it would increase the risks of putting her under general anesthesia if she did in fact need stitches (something we learned when Eloise was at urgent care). So once we got the go-ahead that no stitches, but glue was the recommended procedure (since stitches required a transfer to the ER and at least another THREE HOURS of waiting…) we stuffed Daphne full of the Lara bars and strawberries I grabbed on our way out the door! Daphne didn’t like being bundled up like a burrito and having her owie cleaned and glued, but she did so well. We didn’t end up needing any bandages on her head since she wasn’t bothering the glue, and it all healed up within about 5 days when the glue just peeled right off. Now we are hyper-vigilant about (zinc) sunscreen on her forehead (and rest of her face) whenever we are going outside (even when it’s cloudy guys) because the first year is the most important for scarring and the sun is something that can make scars way worse. There is a small little pink scar on the end of her right eyebrow, but you probably wouldn’t notice it if you didn’t know to look for it. I am hoping it won’t be really obvious as she grows up!

Alright. That was a long-winded paragraph. But while we were at urgent care, we confirmed our suspicions that Daphne was teething and that those teeth were molars. When she was getting her wound cleaned out, her mouth was open as wide as I have ever seen it, and sure enough there were already two top molars completely cut. And then over the next three weeks, she got her bottom two molars. Daphne was a little sick about two weekends ago (slight fever, super runny nose, lethargic, vomited once) and since it was just about 12 hours, I think it was those bottom molars. And now the molars are all in and she is much more happy!

On the eating front, we have started offering Daphne her meals on a small plate (and then on her tray). She really wants to grab food off of her plate anyways (which was always just on the table so we could re-load her tray with food thru-out the meal) so giving her the entire thing just makes sense. And, like with Eloise, we have skipped all of the plastic plates and toddler dishware and opt to just give both girls their meals on our small, salad plate dishes. I am really weird about plastic in the dishwasher so anything that is plastic gets hand-washed, so I just don’t have time to deal with extra dishes; plus, we don’t have to give up the cabinet space in our kitchen or buy new plates or worry if we go elsewhere, like a restaurant or a friends’ house. Luckily, Daphne doesn’t throw the plate off of her tray and using a plate actually prevents her from wiping food off of her tray and onto the floor. Next up is transitioning Daphne from her sippy cup to a glass (we use tempered glass ones).

These days Daphne is all about accessories with bags, hats, and sunglasses being her favorite. She usually needs help with sunglasses, and with other accessories, she likes to put them on and then take them off, rinse and repeat. It’s fun for like a minute when she is posing with her sunglasses on, but then after the 15th time she wants you to put sunglasses on her after watching her immediately take them off, you are wishing she would get distracted by something else!

There is so much babbling these days. Really, any time Daphne is awake, she is babbling. To herself, to me, to Eloise, to anyone who is around. And she is repeating sounds and words that she hears: mama, papa (baba), Sadie (good girl), baby, bee (her favorite sound for everything), poop (p), up (softer “p”), Roomba (oomba).

Daphne’s hair is getting so long these days and we are definitely in the fun mullet phase. I remember this with Eloise and as much as you want to trim it, you just have to get thru it and wait for it to grow out so it isn’t a mullet anymore! Also, Daphne has the slightest bit of wave/curl at the ends of her hair near her neck which she must get from Aaron’s side because my hair is stick straight!

And because Daphne and I are in the midwest for a wedding this weekend, her 15th month check-up is next week, so I will be sure to update with all of her stats then.

Updated: Daphne had a great wellness check-up with her doctor and she is growing into a happy and healthy little toddler! Also, when her doctor came in, Daphne walked over and gave him a big hug. She’s the sweetest!

Weight: 27 lbs, 3 oz (98%)

Length: 30.75 inches (50%)

Head circumference: 47.5 cm (75%)

{weight} 26 pounds.
{hair} blackish brown.
{teeth} four bottom teeth, top four teeth, four molars.
{eyes} dark grey/brown.
{clothes} some 12 months, 12 to 18 months, some 2T.
{diapers} size 5 {from the honest company}.
{feeding} 2 to 4 oz sippy cups of milk at breakfast, lunchtime, after nap time, and at dinner, and water when she asks for it.

{likes} watching and chasing the Roomba, picking her nose, eating, bath time with Eloise, watching big kids or babies, crawling, pulling up to her knees or feet, spinning on her back and belly, teething rings, chewing on anything, sitting in her highchair, banging on her tray, staring at her quilt (from Amanda), rattles, nursing, riding in the car (usually), her big sister Eloise, Sadie, singing, lights, paci, being bounced, being tickled, talking, her Lovie.
{dislikes} having a hat on in the car seat, seeing some type of food on a plate that she doesn’t have on her tray, having gas, lying down flat, being hungry or tired, not having a bottle immediately after seeing it, having her face or nose wiped off.

{nicknames} Daph, Daph Daph, Daphers, Bug, Snorty, Baby D, Daphne Doo, Daph-a-doo, Love, Lovebug.

And here’s Eloise’s fifteen month update.

Happy Fifteen Months Daphne!

M

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my {long} weekend in pictures.

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{Couch repair on Friday morning. And now it’s almost as good as new! Thank goodness because we LOVE this couch.}

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{We celebrated Aaron’s birthday on Thursday (his real birthday) and Friday with a blueberry pie, made with lots of love by Eloise and me.}

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{I worked on the entryway bench this weekend with wood filler and primer. So excited to be closer to finishing.}

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{We went to our friends’ house on Saturday for a BBQ and this beagle was Daphne’s best friend. It reminded me of the beagles I grew up with.}

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{And Eloise had so much fun playing with all of the kids (the other 7 not pictured)!}

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{YES, a family picture!}

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{Sunday was pretty much spent outside all day and Aaron and Eloise worked in the yard.}

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{Planting the new raised bed. And look at that freshly mowed and edged lawn!}

{Daphne’s new word is WHOA!}

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{There was so much water table time this weekend.}

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{Eloise wanted to help me with laundry and folded her own. Guys. And then she organized her drawers.}

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{We headed to our local playground this afternoon and Daphne LOVED the slide!}

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{And Eloise was so proud that she could climb this wall all by herself.}

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{Our family walk this evening turned into Aaron carrying both of the girls home after we visited with neighbors!}

We had such a fun long weekend celebrating, what feels like, the beginning of summer! Lots of time spent out on our bigger deck (we will share soon) and out in the yard. We are gearing up for a busy week!

How was your long weekend?

M