Starting New

It's been quite awhile since I wrote a blog post. I have been feeling inspired to start new. While I contemplated starting completely over with a new blog I just couldn't bring myself to leave this one. This blog has been my home for my creativity and for documenting moments in my life, I feel that it only makes sense to stay here and keep moving forward with this blog and allow it continue to evolve just as I have.

When I first started blogging I was 23 years old and planning my wedding I have been married for a little over 3 years now and so much life has happened. I was pretty much all over the place with my blog from posting just about anything I felt like I wanted to share. As I have grown over the years it is interesting to go back and look at old posts and see what was going on in my life and what kind of things I wanted to share.

One thing I love to share the most on my blog is things related to my family and personal life. I want to focus my blog on this. I like to write about daily life adventures,  my daughter growing up and my passions. Things that make me feel inspired and get my creative side going.

I am a wife, a new mother, a follower of Jesus and I am me. I love capturing little and big moments and keeping them safe in photographs, writing, and videos.

I want to jump back into blogging and keep documenting memories and events in my life. I plan to start posting more frequently and get back into a good blogging schedule. It has been 8 months since I gave birth to my daughter and in the past few weeks I have been taking the time to remember the things I love to do in my spare time. Being a mommy is a full time job and I am enjoying it so much.

I want to find a good balance in feeding my creativity while still being a full time mommy and wife. Life is so precious and I thank god for this life I am given. More blog posts and photos to come. 2017 will be a great year!

Today's Letters

Dear Morning, I woke up with my family, my husband on the right side of me and my little girl on the left, I am so blessed, so grateful to have this life.

Dear Randall, seeing you play and making our little girl giggle fills my heart with pure joy, You are so good to her and she adores you dearly. I love seeing you be a father and you do so much for our family. We love you.

Dear Phoenix, you are growing so fast! How are you already 4 months old? You amaze me everyday. I love you sweetheart.

Dear Summer, as you slowly fade and start coming to an end I just have to say it has been a great summer. My first as a mother and going on walks and taking little adventures as a family have been my favorite thing to do this summer.

Dear Holidays, you are still a bit always but I can't help but start thinking about how wonderful everything will be this holiday season. I already have my eye on a few things I would like to get as gifts for my family.

Dear Fitness Journey, I have been doing so well up until the last 2 or 3 weeks and it is time to get back at it and reach my goals! I know I can do this, I have seen progress and just need to remind myself of why I am doing this and stay motivated!

Rose Garden: A Family Outing

A few weeks ago Randall and I took Phoenix to the Rose Garden. This place is so beautiful and has a lot of memories tied to it. It is where my mom and dad had their first date and as far as I can remember I think it was also the place where my dad told my mom that he was going to marry her and indeed he did!

I went to this park a few times as a kiddo and it is such a special place. Right away when you walk into the little park you can smell the sweet roses. All sorts of different types of rose bushes and we had a lot of fun walking around and showing Phoenix the beautiful flowers. We took so many photos. The weather was perfect, a nice warm summer day with a cool breeze. We went in the early evening and got to see the sun coming down. It was a perfect day and perfect little family outing.

I remember an old photo of me and my mom outside our house when I was a baby there were tall rose bushes the photo was of me and my mom. She was holding me up and we were peeking out from behind the roses. I am so glad I was able to get a photo of me and my little girl doing the same thing. I am such a nostalgic person and being at the Rose Garden brought back memories of my childhood. One day it will be nice to visit this place with my mom and listen to the stories she has of her and my dad and how they fell in love. I sure do miss my dad, I know he would just adore his granddaughter.

The roses were so beautiful and smelled so sweet it was so hard not to pick one. As I walked through the garden I thought about the people who wake up early and start their days by coming to that park and tending to the roses. I am thankful for what they do. Thankful that those people have been persevering a place that is so dear and near to my heart.

Phoenix: 3 Months

Loves:

Cuddles

Bath Time

Picture Books

Walks Outside

Hearing The guitar

Playing With Her Hands

This sweet girl turned 3 months on the 7th. She is an absolute joy. She loves to play and has the cutest smile.Those little dimples just melt my heart! She has the sweetest soft little voice when she tries to "chat" with us. She loves music and listening to her daddy play the guitar. Phoenix enjoys bath time, and loves to hear mommy reading out loud to her. She is interested in picture books and one of her favorite things is to look up at the sky, her eyes widened with amazement and curiosity. Phoenix is a feisty little gal and definitely will let us know when she needs something. Everyday her personality shines more and more. We love this little girl and love seeing her grow. 

Phoenix is on a pretty good schedule. She sleeps a good 12 hours at night and wakes up 2 to 3 times to nurse then goes right back to sleep. She takes a few naps during the day but has a lot of awake time to play and spend time with me and her daddy. We play music for her all the time. It is such a huge part of her daily routine. We play music for her in the mornings when she wakes up and on and off throughout the day and she gets soft lullaby music to listen to while she nurses before bed. 

This month we have been getting a lot of tummy time. She is so chatty I love hearing her voice and she loves going on walks. I carry her in my baby Ktan and Moby wrap and she just has so much fun looking around and exploring her surroundings as we walk up and down the hills in our neighborhood.

3 months has arrived so fast. She is learning and changing so much right before my eyes. It's like I blink and there is something new! I love being a mommy. She is teaching me so much about myself. The love I have for her is so special. She inspires me to be the best version of me and I want to give her the world.

First 4th Of July

This year was Phoenix's first 4th of July. We spent it with family and had a lot of fun at an annual 4th of July block party. Phoenix had the cutest outfit and she looked so adorable! I ate so much food! There were tables filled with food and treats. I had a lot of barbecue and a few slushies! We headed home fairly early to stay on track with Phoenix's bedtime routine. This year we didn't see any fireworks but we sure heard them going off all throughout the night, I cant wait to see what Phoenix's reaction to fireworks will be when she is a little older to stay up a bit. The day was a lot of fun and we were so tired by the time we were all in bed. I love celebrating holidays and this year is going to be so special with having my little girl to celebrate with.

3 Year Wedding Anniversary

My husband and I celebrated our 3 year wedding anniversary which also doubles as our 11 year anniversary being together on June 1st. So much life has happened since we have been together and I just love growing older with this man.

This year we kept things very relaxed and simple. This was our first year with a baby and since our daughter is still a newborn and not even 2 months old at the time of our anniversary we wanted to do something that she would be able to come with us.

We did what we always do, every year we go eat breakfast at IHOP and we order a big meal! It was also the first time we took Phoenix with us to a sit down restaurant and she behaved really well!

The food was delicious I ordered strawberry and banana pancakes, eggs, sausage, toast, and this delicious drink that is a combination of lemon soda and orange juice with strawberries inside. Randall got his usual his big omelette and it was so nice to sit down just the 3 of us!

The rest of the day we spent relaxing at home and enjoying our time together we watched things on Netflix and Hulu and just really kept things simple.

It was a wonderful day spent with my husband who I love so much and our daughter who has made us parents and we love her more than words could say.

Phoenix: Two Months

Loves:

Cuddling

Napping on daddy

Nursing

Playing and holding onto toys

Monkey 

Bath time

Looking up at the sky

Hearing Mommy read out loud

Listening to Daddy play the guitar

Phoenix turned 2 months on the 7th of June and she had her wellness appointment toward the end of the month on the 23rd. She is growing so much! At her appointment she weighed in at 11 pounds and is 23 inches long!

This month has been a lot of fun. She is awake a lot during the day. She takes about 3 naps and is following a schedule pretty well. She is more vocal and I just love hearing her little voice. She is always smiling and such a good baby.

She has a love hate relationship to tummy time. Sometimes she likes it and other times she just is not having it. She is a strong girl. She lifts her head up and holds it up for a long while. She is still wobbly but I am so proud of her. She is also trying to scoot when on her tummy. Maybe a sign of an early crawler?

She had her 2 month shots and she was such a trooper. She of course cried and it broke my heart to hear her cry. Once they gave her the vaccination that is a liquid taken orally, she stopped crying and seemed to enjoy it haha that silly girl! She nursed right after and that was that. The rest of the day she was pretty tired and a little fussy. The following day she was fussy and also had a little fever. By the 3rd day she was as normal as can be. 

Summer is here and I have been enjoying the warm weather with my little sweetie. She is such a joy! She loves to play with her toys and can grip toys pretty well. She also is showing some signs of getting ready to teeth. Lots of saliva and gumming toys. She has started to grow a little attachment to this monkey toy which is attached to a little blanket. She just adores it!

Time is flying by way to fast! She is my sweet little honey and I love her so much!