Year One

First year down and we are still kickin it. 

Aaron and I are still married, 

and Ruby is alive.  

How did we get from this...   

  

to this

in just one short year!?  

We grew a lot, we learned a lot and we loved each other...a whole lot.

 We are a family of three. 

Actually, make that four...

we couldn't have done it with out you too Lily!

Somehow, 

we managed to pull off a very fun 

First Birthday/St. Patty's day party 

for littlemiss Ruby James

Here's how we did it...

I am now a strong believer, that no kids party should occur without a bounce house.  

A bounce house is cheap 

it keeps kids entertained for hours, 

it also allows the "big kids" to enjoy the party too. 

That's a keg of Stella Artois below (thank you Bill)

we floated it in less than 2 hours.

I was so proud. 

Reminds me of this one time, in college...

Oh wait, sorry, back to the details...

I had a St. Patty's Day Hat Pinata custom made and stuffed it full of candy

(oh, and please excuse Aaron's target practice in the background, that definitely was NOT part of the party!)

As for food, 

we had a lot. 

This bad mama-jamma was gone fast

Pistachio covered cheese log 

                    

I also made tons of corned beef, cabbage, carrots and baby potatoes, 

it was a big hit 

and a great way to feed a crowd 

we had 80+ adults and kids...

did I mention it helps to have a parking lot across the street from your house?

Also, who throws a party in 2012 

without stealing a few ideas from Pinterest?  

Enter, rainbow cupcakes (thank you momma!) 

and fruit skewers.

Decorations were mostly

shamrocks 

and 

rainbows

(I have to credit my BF Marissa for creating this amazing chain-link rainbow centerpiece!)

 lots of cute banners on clearance at Target 

It really was a 

perfect day

Oh, and did I mention that one of my dearest friends is a professional photographer?  

This day would have been a serious blurrrrrr 

if it weren't for Krista Sparkman Photography

Needless to say, 

we couldn't have celebrated in such an awesome way, 

if we didn't have so many 

lovely, 

talented, 

loving 

friends and family.

Oh, 

and for the record

Ruby was definitely 

not 

spoiled 

on her birthday...

Did I hear a niner in there?

My sweet baby
who this time last year was in my belly
is now 9 months old and counting

Time is speeding up
life is moving faster than ever...

legit crawling
cruising
clapping
sippy cups and real food

it'sall so. cute.

I am constantly in a state of surprise though
like I didn't get the memo
like I don't get a "your baby will be doing this" email
every day from babycenter.com

boom
change
daily.

Also,
I am turning into a nerd
I actually found myself saying to Aaron tonight
"it really is amazing, you know,
the miracle of life"

what has happened to me?

It's real people,
being a parent is one big emotional ship
and that ship has set sail in our house.
Aaron is on board too though, so I'm not that crazy

Oh, and I just realized that we were in serious
denial about the amount of toys that would eventually
consume
our living room house.

I like order, neatness
and swore that I would not succumb to the toy craze

but we are
knee deep
literally.
I almost killed myself the other night when I stepped on a
small plastic block
cliche?
yes,
and I know everyone can relate.

Anyways, it really is funny how being a parent changes you.
for the better.
kids are awesome.
(so are really cute dads)

So, here's to nine months of sweetness.

Two years

So much has changed in our life over the past 2 years...

Married

New house

New baby

I am 30

We are actually settled in to life (I think) 

Not sure which "new thing" contributed to this new found satisfaction, but I would like to think everything culminated this feeling. 

For those that know me, know that I always say "these are the times of our life". The pictures and memories we take and make now will be the ones we hold so dear as we grow old.  

Ruby will look back at these days and say "wow, my parents were normal people...they were young once too." 

But she won't really understand until she gets to that stage of her own life.   

Funny thing about life, everything you hear over and over again from more "experienced" folks is true.  Time flies, especially the older you get, your kids magically become the light of your life, etc. 

So here we are, time is flying and these are the days I want to hold on to.  

Happy 2 year Anniversary Aaron baby, I love you.