Flagstaff

To end my maternity leave, Austin, Lily and I went to Flagstaff for a long weekend with my parents. It was so nice to get out of the heat and enjoy the outdoors with Lily. Since she was born in late April it has been too hot for her to spend anytime outside so it was really nice to play outside with her. We spent most of our time on the deck, taking walks, and just relaxing. Lily loved being outside in the breeze and taking walks in the Moby wrap. She also loved playing with her Grandparents!

Here are some pictures from the weekend…

Lily is 3 months old!

It’s hard to believe our little lady is already 3 months old! Everyone keeps telling us to enjoy every moment because it goes by so fast and I guess they are right because these past 3 months have been the fastest and best of my life! Life as a first time parent is incredibly challenging, overwhelming, exhausting and absolutely amazing. Every day Lily amazes us and captures even more of our heart than the day before which is hard to imagine.

At 3 months old here is a list of Lily’s favorite things and new discoveries:

Lily has discovered her voice and absolutely loves to “talk” to anyone or anything that will listen. She talks to Austin and I, she talks to her grandparents, and she especially loves to talk to her mobile. Her favorite time to tell you all about her day is on the changing table once her dirty diaper has been removed and she feels clean and free.

Lily loves her bumble bee mobile. As soon as you lay her in her crib and turn on the music to her mobile, even if she is fussy, she will start to smile and coo at the bumble bees dancing around above her.

Lily has very strong legs and loves to stand up and “walk” along our lap or whatever we have her on at the moment. She gets so excited that she kind of shakes a bit. It’s really cute!

Lily’s arms are not so strong. She hates tummy time! Every time we put her on her tummy she can’t figure out how to hold herself up on her arms and she cries. We keep trying but something tells me she is going to walk before she crawls.

Lily loves to put her hands together like she is praying. She always has them nicely folded together up by her chest and now she likes putting them in her mouth too.

Lily has the best smile! She is a very happy baby and no one can make her smile quite like her daddy can! As soon as she sees him, she starts to smile and coo. She’s already a daddy’s girl which Austin loves.

Her latest trick is trying to grab at her toys or her friends on her mobile. She will bat at them with her hands and a few times she has actually grabbed onto her rattle and held it. It won’t be long before she is grabbing and holding onto all her toys.

Lily is starting to sit up too. Anytime we have her propped up on our legs she will start to grunt with effort trying to sit up. If you give her your hands she will pull herself up into the sitting position. It takes a lot out of her and she will usually give you a good sigh afterwards almost like she just had a tough workout.

One of my most favorite things is when Lily is really tired she will shake her head and nuzzle into my shoulder. I always know when she does this that she is ready to cuddle for a bit and then go down for a nap. Cuddling with Lily has to be one of the best things ever!

Just three short months ago all Lily could do was sleep, eat and poop. Now she is discovering so much and is changing every day. Austin and I are so blessed to be her parents and we can’t wait to see what the next 3 months has to offer.

Here are some pictures of the last 3 months…

We're Blogging!

So, after much debate, we have decided to start a blog. With more family living out of Phoenix these days we want to be able to share photos and little happenings in our life with our family and friends. We hope to make this blog something that we can look back on to remember our life as first time parents and chronicle Lily during her first years as she discovers her world and changes ours. We hope you enjoy!