Isla's thoughts on mom...

Isla 3.5 yrs old... some of her answers are pretty spot on! Her thoughts on my favorite food is very questionable, haha.

Isla answers questions about mom...

1. What is something I always say to you? Nice things like I love your beautiful eyes and everything. 
2. What makes me happy? My smile.
3. What makes me sad? The mean face.
4. How do I make you laugh? You smile and laugh when you play like this, hahaha.
5. What was I like as a child? Me!
6. How old am I? I don't know.
7. How tall am I? Big.
8. What is my favorite thing to do? Wash the table.
9. What do I do when you're not around? Play.
10. What am I really good at? Playing games.
11. What is something I'm not good at? Killing a spider.
12. What do I do for a job? Her wash the table and everything.
13. What is my favorite food? Broccoli
14. What do you enjoy doing with me? Writing a letter to Santa.

I just love this bubbly little girl to pieces!

Feisty Laylin

Oh my sweet and oh so feisty Laylin Jane!

You have really started growing and doing lots of new things lately! You love doing everything big sissy, Isla, does and you want everything she has too! You follow her around like a little shadow. She looks out for you and mothers you now too. I've seen a shift in the way she plays with you, takes care of you and "mothers" you. She calls you her little honey and darling. You are sweet to her too. Giving her hugs and love in the morning, sharing your toys with her and playing together nicely.

You love playing with your babydoll and giving her a bottle. You like to put her in the baby swing to go night-night, but then try to open one of her eyes so she can still see you. You've started exploring everything and are into nearly everything as well. You especially love the pantry and pulling things out of organized places.

You love playing hide n' seek with me and your sister. It's so cute to hear you say, "Rarr" when you find us or when we find you!

You also love to color and do art projects. Usually lots of fun, but very messy.

Speaking of messy, your new favorite thing to do is eat with a spoon. Just like Isla of course, you love to copy cat her at the table. If she has a bowl and spoon, you want one too. Most days, the bowl ends up turned over on your plate or in the floor. Its messy, but its even more fun to watch. I've learned to embrace the mess. Our messy home now embodies our busy and active kids, and that's ok!

You still only have 4 teeth. The cutest little teeth ever...two in front on the top and bottom.
You're still a peanut at only 18lbs, but you are growing at your own pace.

You love to dance and hear music, take baths, give kisses and say BYE!

At 17 months old, you can say....
Isla
Mama
Dada
Bella
Baby
More
All done
Bye
Papa
Mamaw
Ball
Block
Book

Lots of B words, but you are starting to say many other words too! You said your name for the first time this week and it was oh so sweet to hear!

We love your gentle spirit and your sweetness. Can't wait to see what else you are doing in the next month!

The Birthday "Man"!

Isla is calling him the birthday "boy" but since he's hitting the big 3-0, I think its safe to switch over  to birthday man!

This main man of mine makes my heart skip a beat every day. From his even temper to his sarcastic remarks, I 100% believe he was designed just for me.

He keeps me grounded, encouraged, enthusiastic and most importantly he puts a smile on my face every day.

He's always slow to anger, quick to love and forgive, gentle and humble. His humbleness amazes me! I look up to him and try to be my best for him.

I'm so thankful God allowed our paths to cross 8 years ago. Happy birthday my love!

Firsts...

Isla has had a lot of firsts lately and she has been over the moon excited about all of them.

Swimming lessons - she started swimming lessons in October. She is one of two in her class. I've been so proud of her excitement, confidence and her sweetness. The other little girl she is in the class with has been terrified of the teacher and being away from her mom. Instead of Isla getting upset
about the little girl screaming, she's been trying to calm her down. She tells her its going to be okay, shares the pool toys and smiles at her. I've been so proud to see her light shining and also proud of all her new swimming skills!

Dentist - she had her first dentist appointment this week. She was not hesitant at all to climb up in the chair and when they asked her how many teeth she thought she had, she opened her mouth and counted them one by one until she got to twenty. I was amazed at how well she did! She was super excited to get to pick out a toy from the treasure box at the end too.

Home with mommy - This is our first week of being home more. We've cut her preschool hours to just three mornings a week versus all week and she is doing school with me at home on Mondays and Fridays. Our first Monday was awesome! I had to be a little more flexible than I had planned, but overall it went well, she was excited to learn and we had fun together. This is a great trial for us to continue to explore homeschooling for the years to come.

She's growing up so fast that it often makes my chest ache. She no longer likes kisses on the mouth, she tells me - "on the cheek mom."
She calls me mom most days and if I'm super lucky, I get a mama, but hardly ever does she call me mommy.
She wants to do it all herself these days. She used to like for me to show her the way first, but now, she wants to do the first try herself too.

All these things are great and I love to see her growing smarter, stronger and more confident every day... but some days I just want time to stand still. I want to take a mental snapshot and remember her and Laylin in their thermal pajamas smiling at me before bedtime. I want to remember her silky skin and how she asks for tickles on her back over and over again. I want to remember how brushing her hair is a fight, but she jumps at the opportunity to brush mine. I want to remember her eyes lighting up when I tell her I'm going to put her to bed tonight, or snuggle with her for a little while.

I hope I remember all these things and more forever.

She can...

Laylin has really started showing more signs of being a true toddler. Recently, she has started signing more than just, more. All the work and videos have started to pay off because she is communicating with us through sign language!

She can now sign:

• More
• Eat
• All done
• Milk
• Drink
• Dog
• Sleep
• Diaper

Isla has gotten into signing again too. Signing is helping her communicate with us and reducing some frustrations, but I've also noticed that it is encouraging her to talk to us. She's starting to say more words now too. 

She can say:

• Bye bye
• All done
• Mama
• Dada
• Isla
• Bella
• Night-night

She's also taken a new interest in reading...and it's literally all she wants to do during playtime!

She brings me a book, sits down on my lap and listens to the whole story without moving... except to point at the pictures. Once the book is done, if I put it down, she will pick it up and hand it to me again. It's so cute how she has favorite books that she wants to read over and over again. Her favorite little story is about making toast with jelly. For some reason she LOVES this one. She will want to read it 10 times before she moves on to the next book. 

She's growing and changing everyday and becoming the sweetest little girl. Can't wait to see what she can do next. 

Laylin Milestones

Wow, Laylin has hit a lot of milestones since my last post and these milestones have been keeping me busy!

• For starters, she turned ONE!
• She hit her biggest milestone - WALKING! She is now up to 15 steps. She's getting more and more confident every day. She took her first steps on September 21st! 
• Now, she's not only a walker, but also a dancer! She loves banging her head to the beat of...well, anything. The TV tunes, music, sounds from a toy... it really doesn't matter. This girl just loves to dance! 
• She's still holding strong at just 4 teeth, but she's a great eater. 
• Still weighing in at a whooping 17lbs, but healthy. 
• Her personality has really started to shine recently. She's giggly, goofy, playful and feisty! 

We love our little Lay-LION!

A note to my girls...

Isla,

You're three years old and SO.MUCH.FUN! I love everything about you... you are strong willed, full of personality, incredibly sweet and sympathetic. Every day, you wake up bursting with energy, ready to take on the day! You are adventurous, brave and determined. You love to read, learn new things and do it yourself. You're so sweet and such a great big sister. I love to see your love for your sister growing and your special bond with her growing. Laylin lights up when she sees you and I can tell the two of you will have a lasting bond. 

Laylin,

My sweet one year old baby... you are oh so cute, and oh so feisty! I love how observant you are. You carefully study and watch everyone you encounter... taking it all in before you flash your toothy smile. You are playful and vibrant. I can see your curiosity increasing as you are eager to get into everything and explore. You are getting more confident with standing and I think those first little steps will happen any day now. I love how loving you are. You are such a cuddle bug. 

My heart grows bigger every day I spend with you girls. I'm amazed with how much love and joy you two have brought to my life.