Happy Easter

Hope everyone had a blessed Easter Sunday! I wish I posted yesterday but it was a busy day and by the time I found some free time I was so tired all I wanted to do was nap. It was such a great day though.

Peyton got a little stuffed bunny from the Easter bunny which she thought was pretty cool and tasty....

We started the morning off with a great Sunday service about the hope that the we have in our LIVING Lord. It was nice and even nicer was sitting beside my sisters and my mom for the first time in about four years or so (maybe even five). How more great it would have been if my dad was here and not working overseas...maybe next year. We managed to get home from church not too soaked from the rainstorm and started our Easter festivities.

Peyton was adorable in her Easter dress and loved all of the attention of both of her Aunts, her Granny and Auntie Ashley's boyfriend.

We went over to Granny's and Peyton had her own Easter basket waiting for her and then she had her own Easter egg hunt with little eggs that Papa had left for her. They were shaped like animals and she thought they were pretty interesting.

We then had a grown up Easter egg hunt which had a nice twist this year leaving me with $20 for my egg hunting efforts (I spent that this morning on a cute sundress I have been wanting at Target).

Peyton talked to Papa on the phone and she was smiling and really listening to him talk to her and even talked back. It was adorable! She has always loved to hear him talk!

After the hunt we had a wonderful lunch as a family. It was delicious and Peyton even had her own seat complete with fine china and crystal toasting glass perfect for her size. She of course knew exactly what to do and drank out of it like a big girl.

Ashley and I were responsible for dessert this year so she brought a yummy trifle and I made a cake called a Strawberry Freeze which was so yummy. It was really easy to make so I will have to make it again and take a picture of it next time so I can blog about the recipe! Great use for our fresh strawberries from Frobergs.

It was a busy day but such a beautiful day celebrating the hope we have in the resurrection of Jesus!
I will leave you with Peyton's bible verse from Pee Wee Ville for the month....

"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life." John 3:16

Beach Time

Because having your first Easter Egg Hunt wasn't enough excitement for the day (see previous post)...Peyton also went to the beach for the first time.

Some of my mom's friends and their daughter drove from West Houston to spend the day with my mom and they all decided to go to Galveston so we all headed down there. The original plan was to spend the afternoon with my mom, Auntie Shannon, Auntie Ashley, and my mom's friends and their daughter. Well, shortly after arriving Shannon slipped on a rock and sliced her foot open. Not cool! They wrapped it up in a towel and my mom, Shannon and Ashley made a trip to UTMB. She didn't need stitches and she is in pain but doing OK and should be fine but we could have done without all of that. So, while they were off visiting Galveston's ER...John, Peyton and I enjoyed the company of my mom's guests! We had a blast hanging out with them and it was a good afternoon.

Now about Peyton and what she thought about this beach adventure...she LOVED it! She is such and outdoors girl. She loves being outside and is so happy. As soon as we got out of the car she was looking around and watching the waves. When we got settled on our blanket she was watching everything and eating the sandcastle toys that I bought for her. When we made it down to the water she was full of giggles! She loved feeling the sand and then when the water touched her feet she was even happier. It was so much fun and we love seeing her experience new things. Trips to the beach will be more and more frequent especially since it so close and free!

We are all pretty tired from our busy day and Peyton is out for the night although she was surprisingly happy for such a busy day...maybe my easy going baby is making a comeback...I sure hope so!

What a wonderful Good Friday!

Side note.....John and I realized today while we were at the beach that on August 9, 2003 we were there on a date and we made a sandcastle and then that night we went to Kemah for dinner and John asked me to be his girlfriend. Here is a picture of us from 6 years ago to go along with this trip down memory lane....

Yes..mommy had a nose ring! Doesn't help me much with the, "you shouldn't pierce your body talk," in about 12 years or so.

Almost 6 years later and here we are with our precious little girl. I would have never thought that was possible 6 years ago!

First Easter Egg Hunt

Today the mom's group that I am a part of had their annual Easter Egg Hunt! Peyton is a little too young to actually hunt any eggs but either way it is always fun to be outside, have a picnic and Peyton LOVES watching the big kids. She managed to find three eggs and put them in her mouth. The best part was that since it was daddy's Friday off he was able to join us....overall, it was a great morning out as a family!

Texas Blue Bonnets

It is pretty much a Texas tradition to find a patch of Blue Bonnets and stick your kids in them for pictures. Well, we did that for the first time last week but it was the middle of the day and all of my pictures were very washed out which was a bummer. So, we went out last night around 6:00 PM and took some new pictures. Peyton loved the flowers both times we went and was very content to just sit there, look around and have her picture taken. She was actually crying the way there and the Blue Bonnets were just the thing to make her happy. There are a couple more here as well.

My Little Easter Bunny

Froberg Farm

The other day I heard about a place that you can go and pick fresh strawberries. So, I scheduled a family outing for today to Froberg Farm in Alvin. Granny and Auntie Ashley joined us and it was so much fun. Perfect weather and a great time. You can check out more pictures from our adventure here.

Peyton made sure to wear an appropriate sundress and matching hat for the event and looked adorable. I actually found this Baby GAP dress at a consignment shop for about $6-9 with the tags still on! I like deals like that.

After making sure we had everything and everyone had sunscreen on we were heading out. Peyton made sure to let us know that we apparently forgot to buckle her up (we didn't really forget but this picture was too funny of her).

We got to the farm which is in Alvin about 30 minutes away and it was busy. It was such a beautiful day that it was perfect for picking strawberries. We go our buckets and were on our way.

We had great time finding the right strawberries and filling up our buckets. It was amazing how great they looked and how many there were to pick. Peyton loved reaching for the plants and seeing the bright red strawberries. She quickly realized that she could reach into our buckets and pull them out and of course into her mouth. It was lots of fun and something we will definitely do again next year!

It was a great family outing and we scored an insane amount of strawberries! We will be having strawberry desserts for awhile and will be freezing some. Froberg Farm also has a market with fresh fruit and veggies so we will be making trips back throughout the year!

7 Months

Peyton is 7 months old today!

Time has flown by and we are amazed how old she is and how much she has grown. She has developed such a personality and most of the time is enjoyable to be around :)

Peyton is pretty confident and secure when she sits up now and will even reach for things bending over like a pretzel and then pull herself back up to a sitting position. She has seen a couple of babies crawl and is very interested in the idea of moving. I am not really ready for that milestone because I know she will be everywhere and tough to keep up with. At least now I know that she won't move much.

She must have anything and everything in her mouth. She loves to lick, chew, suck and drool on everything around her. And she will reach, grab and find things around her to put into her mouth. She loves to grab at your drinking and try to get that in her mouth or her other favorite is the remote controls for the TV. She will spend hours if she could sucking on those!

She has really started to understand cause and effect. She has some toys that she knows that if she hits them the music will start and even better last night when we were out for dinner she was playing with Auntie Ashley and trying to get the menu into her mouth. Ashley would push it down and after a little bit Peyton would anticipate Ashley pushing down the menu. Pretty cool!

She laughs all the time now and is still full of smiles. I love that it is easier to make her laugh and love finding new ways to hear her giggle. Granny has found two tickle spots and she is the pro at getting her to laugh.

Update on solids...she has yet to figure this one out. She still takes very little and when she does she starts gagging. So, mommy has been more frustrated on this than she should be and we are going to take a step back to just rice cereal and mommy is going to take a dose of patience until we figure this swallowing business down. The cup however is a very popular item. She loves to drink out of her cup and is getting pretty good at getting more in her mouth than her shirt. I am really impressed with her! I have to hid the cup from her until after she has attempted solids or else there is nothing I can do to divert her attention from that cup. Also, regarding eating...she is consistently going 4 hours between feedings which is awesome for mommy!

She is still spoiled and still has a temper at times but has done SO MUCH better this past week. For more on that issue you can check out this post.

Finally, I think teeth are coming soon. She has been showing teething signs so it is just a matter of waiting and seeing when it will appear.

She is so much fun and such a blessing. We are so grateful that we have a healthy little girl that is growing bigger and stronger everyday.

Bows

If you remember my post about starting to make Peyton some bows...well, I have tackled it and am starting to really enjoy it. I found the BEST website to help that gives you step by step instructions and pictures for all kinds of bows...check it out here. I have made several bows so far and it is getting easier and easier. They are in no way professional looking but they are good enough to help compliment outfits and a whole lot cheaper! I will still probably buy some bows for special outfits and occasions but these work great for every day wear. I even got some elastic lace to make some additional bow bands.

Here is what I have made so far...

Back Breaking Backyard

We love to do projects around our house and seriously need to slow down. Which I think after this latest one we are done for awhile!

A couple of weeks ago we decided that we were sick and tired of not being able to have a place to go outside and relax. Ever since we moved into the house we always talked of grand ideas for the backyard but never really had the confidence to go ahead and tackle it. So, one afternoon after looking at our yard like this....

We decided to go ahead and tackle it. Here is how it pretty much went....

Thursday we spray painted the flower bed layout with the help of my mom's design skills

Friday my mom went with us to Houston Garden Center to pick out plants since we are landscaping challenged. We managed to get all of the plants and a tree into her Durango and the trusty Civic. Then that afternoon we went and picked up a Crape Myrtle at another nursery. The rest of the day was spent pulling up more grass, planting (even during a heavy rain storm), putting down dirt and mulch and working until 10 PM!

Saturday was spent finishing up the flashing along the fence, mulching a little more and then planning the deck project.

Sunday and Monday was deck building and it was finally done Tuesday night!

Wednesday and Thursday was spent finishing up spray painting the patio set my parents gave us when they moved into their house and realized that they had no room for it. I spray painted it black instead of the forest green.

Here is what we have accomplished so far....

All that we have is a bed to go along the deck and house (like an L shape) which we have the plants for. We will probably finish that this weekend!

Lots of work but so nice and we have already had a family dinner outside and are excited about enjoying it more and more this Spring and Summer!

I am so thankful for my wonderful husband who worked hard out there and my parents for their help in designing the flower beds and helping design the deck.

Cute Hats

I love little girls! So much fun to dress up!

I was looking online for some more bows and I reembered that a blog that I follow, Kelly's Korner, always has adorable bows for her little girl so I went to see if there was a link to where she gets her bows from....I found that link.... but think that I can find them from people I know who make bows and some stores around here BUT then I found a link to a lady who makes handmade crochet hats with flowers on them. Check out her blog/site Hooked on You. They are adorable and I want to buy tons for Peyton. You can choose your colors, get them with the flower attached or removable and they are so cute! It is getting too hot now to wear it but maybe next year? How I wish I found this in December....

Definitely on the to buy when I have some extra cash list...

Are these not adorable? Make sure to check out Hooked on You to order yours...and order me one while you are there...just kidding!