Can you believe it? 6 MONTHS!

That old saying "Time flies when you're having fun" sure rings true for us these days.... I am surprised at how quickly the first 6 months have flown by since our little pumpkin, our little grinch, our sunshine has joined our family.
We have been amazed watching Mailee grow (not just physically) but how much her personality has started to shine through. My heart melts every morning when I am greeted by my little sunshine. She always brightens my day with her big smile when I come into her room for the first time. I can tell she thinks the world of me, just as I do her. I love everything about her... how soft her skin feels, her smell, the way she lights up when Sahara enters the room, how she watches her in awe. I love that I can comfort her when she needs comforting and how she can comfort me too. She is silly and sometimes demanding and stubborn - but hey, she IS a mix of John and me :)
My emotions are all over the board with every milestone she hits; they go from excitement and pride to fear and sadness of my baby growing up too quickly. On one hand I can not wait to experience all the "firsts" with Mailee through the years and getting to see the world through her eyes... but I also want to hold on to the precious moments of her as a baby who wants to snuggle with me. My good friend, Meredith (who has 3 children, one of whom will be entering high school next year) warned me how quickly the years go by and sometime when I am in a hurry and need to get something done and wishing that Mailee will hurry up and finish nursing... I stop and remember Meredith's warning and advice and hold Mailee's hand and look down at her and think to myself how lucky I am to have my little girl.

Mother's Day

OK, I'm not going to lie... I was really excited for Mother's Day this year! Of course to let my own mom and MIL know how much I love them, but mostly because I had finally entered "the club" and there was finally another day in every year (besides my birthday) when I would be spoiled and pampered! One of my friends here Jen sure had a good idea: to go out for a ladies night on Saturday that way if we are tired on Sunday and need a break we wouldn't feel bad about having dad step in.
So, obviously I jumped on that. Saturday night I enjoyed an evening out for dinner and cocktails and some "adult" conversation and woke up feeling very lucky to have not only an adorable daughter on Mother's Day but an amazing husband as well.
He got up and got Mailee and we enjoyed her beaming morning personality just relaxing in bed... then he got up and made me breakfast burritos (my fav) and gave me some beautiful white roses (he claims that Mailee picked them out) and best of all the sweetest card.
That took a lot of energy for a new mom who had been out late the night before, so I spent a few hours doing absolutely nothing (who knew nothing could feel so good?)
When I finally felt up for an outing, we headed to Washington Park with Mailee and Sahara and enjoyed a little time enjoying the weather and beautiful scenery.
Of course, it wouldn't be Mother's Day without a little bit of humor: As John was snapping the picture below of me, Mailee in Sahara, Mailee decided to give me a special present - yup... some poop on my shirt and jeans. I felt special. :)
Back home for a delicious Italian dinner prepared by Chef John. Mom and Dad H joined us too. It was an awesome day - the only thing that could have made it better is if my mom could have spent it with us too. But I know that Liz took good care of her.

Our Little Grinch

One of many nicknames that Daddy and I gave Mailee is Grinch since she tends to be pretty stingy with those smiles... such the serious baby. Of course we couldn't resist this onesie when we saw it in a store during our Langley trip.

Sweet Cousin Austin

I am always amazed at how much Mailee's oldest cousin Austin looks after her. He always wants to know how Mailee is doing and wants to shower her with so much love. He really does have the biggest heart!
Here's an adorable shot of Austin and Mailee from a couple weekends ago... Austin had picked Mailee a flower and put it behind her ear... Mailee was not so sure about it though. One day she'll know just how lucky she is to have her cousins Austin, Jack and Liam. :)

Welcome Ava Hope

Angi and Justin just welcomed their baby girl, Ava Hope into their family!
She was 7 lbs 9 oz and 20.5 inches long! Congratulations!!!

Happy Birthday Annie!!

Can you believe how the years have flown by... can you believe we've been friends for nearly 20 years?? I miss you lots and cherish your friendship! Wish I could have been at your surprise bday bash.
Love You!

More Tulips

Call me crazy... but I just HAD to go back to get more pictures of the tulips...not once, but twice more :) Soooo pretty! I wish you all could be here to see this!
Who wants to plan a trip for next year???

Yummy.... Solids!

Just a few days ago, at 5 and 1/2 months Mailee had her first taste of rice cereal and seemed to like it. (Well, the little bit that she actually ate and didn't end up on her face, hands and bib). I thought my house was a mess before this... but I guess it is only going to get worse. Oh well... I wouldn't trade moments like these for a cleaner house. :)
Here are a few pics from the past few days. I'll try to load video a bit later.

Happy Birthday Jen!!

Today I wish I were back in Virginia to be with Jen as she turns 29 to celebrate! :)
Jen, you are one of my closest and dearest friends and I miss you all the time!
Mailee is lucky to have you as a godmother and I am lucky to have you as my friend.
We are thinking of you and can't wait to see you sometime this summer when you visit. Happy Birthday Beautiful!

Tulips, Tulips Everywhere

The weather here in Washington can be tough to take in the winter... but Mother Nature sure has a way making it all worth it come Spring time.
Only a few miles from Anacortes, there are fields and fields of tulips and daffodils... they blanket the landscape and delight all that get the chance to see the blooms! John and I are amazed how bright they are... just breathtaking!
The Skagit Valley Tulip festival draws visitors the whole month of April to our area to take pictures of the fields as well as enjoy several other activities planned in celebration of Spring. We had taken Grandma and Grandpa to one of the gardens when they were visiting, but the fields hadn't bloomed yet... what a difference a couple of weeks can make! We took some shots of Mailee yesterday... I hope to go back this week to take a few more to hopefully get a perfect picture of her and the blooms. But in case that doesn't happen here are a few:

A belated Birthday trip to Leavenworth

John had planned to take me to Leavenworth for my bithday (and no, not the federal penitentiary, but a cute little Bavarian town in Eastern Washington surronded by the Cascades. We had to cancel our plans since the Navy had other plans for John on April 9th, but we postponed the trip and went last weekend.
What a cool place... it really did make me feel like I was back in Germany with the storefronts with items like coocoo clocks inside, the smell of brats and the german beers on tap. And the mountains... it was like a scene from the Sound of Music (OK, not really that beautiful, but still :)
Anyway we lucked out...it was a beautiful weekend and we enjoyed strolling through the town, sampling the food and on Sunday we took Mailee down to to the river and parks and relaxed surrouned by the simple beauty of the place.
Oh Liz, there were kinder eggs there... but I didn't feel up to waiting in line behind 20 kids at the candy store to get them. :(
Dad - there is dog sledding there in the winter... we must go back with you.
Here are some pics

Grandma and Grandpa R visit

Mailee is sad that Grandma and Grandpa had to go back to Virginia. She enjoyed every minute of her week with them. The time went by too quickly, but we enjoyed seeing the beautiful blooms at the Skagit Valley Tulip festival, visiting Fairhaven, enjoying the views along Chuckanut Drive, going to a winery and strolling around Pikes Place Market. Most of all though Mailee enjoyed being loved, cuddled and kissed so much.

Easter

Mailee's first Easter was a very special day because she got to spend it with ALMOST her whole family!
We headed to Seattle to enjoy the day with Uncle Jay, Aunt D, Cousins Austin and Jack, Mimi and Papa, Louise, Debbie and Ben... THEN we headed to the airport to pick up Grandma and Grandpa R!!!!
The only person missing was Daddy... we sure did miss him!
oh and of course we missed Aunt Liz, Uncle Fred, and Cousin Liam too! They were having fun together in Virginia and getting ready to go celebrate Ellen and Fred's 40th Anniversary. Here are some pictures for them.

Another Play Date

Mailee got together again with her friends Georgia and Audriana this week while mommy got to catch up with Jen and Sopanha - and we even had wine...what a treat! :)
Here are some cute pictures of the girls. As you can see, Mailee was worn out when we got home from all the excitement!

A "girly" john

So everybody always says that Mailee looks just like her daddy... well, John is good-looking and all, but do we really want our precious daughter looking like a boy??? NO!! A friend of mine told me about these baby bows that stay put on practically bald heads.. I couldn't resist! John is not thrilled about this...but oh well! ;)

Trip to Langley

It finally felt like Spring this weekend... the sun was actually shining! John and I decided Saturday would be a perfect day to go explore a small town called Langley that we have been wanting to visit.
We enjoyed the day strolling in and out of the shops, enjoying the views of the Cascades and lunching at a wonderful bistro. Mailee really wanted to try her daddy's beer... but we told her she was going to have to wait another 20 years and 7 months :)

Sitting Up!

Another milestone was hit last night at 4 months and 3 weeks old...Mailee sat up! She may have been able to do it sooner, but I hadn't tried to see if she could until yesterday and was really surprised when she did. After waking up this morning we gave it another try and she did it more! I guess crawling will be next...not sure we are quite ready for her to be so mobile. :)
Grandma and Grandpa R will be here in another week and half... we can't wait!!!!
I had to post a few other pictures too... of her smiling in the morning and getting love from Sahara.