.thankful.

Now that I'm no longer on Facebook, I find myself with a lot of time while Nyah is sleeping to catch up on reading. My latest obsession is reading blogs. Especially blogs written by women. I find it so inspiring to read about other women's journeys thru life finding a balance between being you, a mom, a wife, a good friend etc... This posts idea comes from one of those blogs and if my blog was a fancy as some of the ones I'm following I would link up their blogs on here... but I'm not techy enough to do that yet.

Thankful Thursday (pretty self explanatory... I think)

 I'm thankful for.....

The exaggerated MUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUAH sound Nyah makes when she leans in for a kiss.

.... that she loves to kiss the neighbors cat and even the goat at the berry farm.

Strawberries and all their sweet goodness.

Good friends... like the kind that love you and make you want to a kinder, better friend.

.... for a husband who while being off sick for the last 3 days has endured some pretty deep, life planning conversations from a wife who has said the following words that she thought might scare the shit out of him... family, calling, greater purpose.

 The way Nyah shimmies back and forth in her chair while dancing at the dinner table.

One word... Menchies.

.... The lady at the park, reading to out loud to the lady in the wheelchair bed. You will never know how much you made my heart smile.  I needed that.

And for everyday that I get to spend with my girl, enjoying life... memorizing every moment.

.daddy day.

 

Confession... I'm chronologically challenged! Clearly father's day was a LONG time ago and I've been meaning to post this forever! This year father's day was such a special day. Nyah and I got to spoil her daddy rotten! Thanks to pinterest, we came across a "daddy's stache" jar and knew this would be the perfect gift for our sweets loving guy. We filled it right to the top full of daddy's favourite candies and chocolates. Jay had been wanting an ipad mini for a while. Nyah and I were SO excited that we could buy him one for his special day. We wrapped it up in the most beautiful wrapping paper and we couldn't wait to give it to him! I'm pretty sure I told him on 2 separate occasions that he could open a gift early cause I was so excited but he was a good daddy and waited!

 

After opening our gifts we headed off to one of my most favorite local farms... Krause Berry Farms. I love everything about this place... the general store FULL of lots of yummy goodies and berries, the u-pick flower garden, the patio concession, the playground, the petting farm and of course the fields and fields of delicious berries!  I have such good memories at this farm. The very first time I ever visited this farm was with Rylynn when she was living with us and now to return with my own daughter makes it even more special.

 

The strawberries were so GOOD!

 

Cover them in chocolate and they are to die for!!

This story is too fun not to share.... sorry babe! When Nyah saw this cute little piggy she smiled a huge smile, pointed and said DADA! You could tell everyone around was trying not to laugh. Poor Jay! I'm sure she meant to say Tucker!

 

 

I can't wait till Nyah is a little older and we can do this together. I love fresh flowers!

 

 

Daddy and his little lady... who was NOT loving the camera that day!

(It's become sort of a tradition that I write a letter to Nyah on Mother's Day and since Jay is not into the whole blogging thing I thought maybe I would write her one on Father's Day too.... here goes....)

Dear Nyah,


I knew the first moment I saw him lay eyes on you that there would never be a day that he wouldn't love you. When it comes to dad's, you are one lucky girl! I married your Dad because I knew he would love you more than life itself. I knew he would not only show up, he would be truly present at every milestone of your life. I knew that he would make you feel loved, and he would never be afraid to say those three magic words: I love you. I knew he would be the kind of Dad that every kid deserves. Even now, when he looks at you it's like that very first day all over again... his heart so full of love it beams out his eyes. I know that right now you are sort of a mommy's girl but its only a matter of time until you truly see and understand what I have always seen and in that moment I know you will forever be a daddy's girl.

love,
Momma

.bath time.

This girl LOVES the bath. She will try and get in while the water is still running and her clothes are still on. Silly girl! Tonight I got a cute photo on my phone that I thought I'd share. 

She has a million bath toys but it should come as no surprise that she is playing with the cup I use to rinse her hair! Haha! And she is always good for a laugh when it's time to get out and dry off cause I'll stand her on the counter and she will smile and giggle at herself in the mirror. It's priceless!

.20 months.

In the blink of an eye she turned 20 months old. She is now in that "get into everything" toddler stage! She's so curious but very independent. If she has her mind set on doing it herself good luck trying to stop her. Be prepared for a full on screaming fit. Sometimes she is so dramatic that I can't help but laugh and then want to give her a high five. I read somewhere that 2 and 14 are the most challenging years because they are so emotional and don't know how to communicate their feelings and I think to myself... God, please let me still smile and want to high five her when she is 14 years old throwing a fit because I looked at her the wrong way!

It's easy to forget the tough moments because there are so many amazing ones... like when you reach your arms out and she comes in running for a hug. Or when she makes this cute humming sound and leans in for a kiss. I feel like I really lucked out because she is so sweet and so cuddly. I love that she is not only this way with Jay and I but she is so affectionate with her little friends too. She sometimes throws her arms open in hopes of getting a hug or she'll try and sneak in for a kiss even if they don't want it! I love that she is so kind and loving. 

She is also starting to become quite the little chatter box. A lot of the time I have no idea what she is saying but sometimes I manage to catch a few words... Elmo, apple, kitty, tucker, dada, mama, up, bath, cup and my favorite... poop. I'm pretty sure that she just says poop because it's fun and doesn't know what it means. It's pretty cute.

Last week we went to Jay's parents house for dinner. Grandpa Ron let Nyah play his keyboard and she had a GREAT time! Anything that has a cause and effect is always a hit. I loved watching her make music for her first time! I'm really hoping that with a love for music on both sides of her family that maybe one day she will find a love for it too. Maybe the next Alicia Keys or Lady Gaga? Ok... maybe not Gaga... she's a little too crazy! Haha! 

Here are some photos that Ron got during Nyah's 1st piano practice. 

.waterpark fun.

The first time we took Nyah to the waterpark we went to the one at Cloverdale athletic park. To say she HATED it would be an understatement. She cried her eyes out and wouldn't even let Jay put her down. When I tried to hold her hand and walk her to the edge of the spray part, she would just freak out. When Kym was here we spent a few minutes visiting her mom's memorial bench which is located in the Steveston waterpark, Nyah was much more brave and curious. I knew after that short visit that we would definitely have to come back better prepared with bathing suits, friends and a boat load of snacks so we could spend the day playing and splashing.

So on Wednesday, we spent the day with two of our favorite girls, Tricia and Emlyn, at the Steveston water park. The girls LOVED it. It was Emlyn's first time and she was fearless. Nyah was so much more confident with Em there as her sidekick. I swear the girls would have played there all day if we would have let them. It's a good thing we brought snacks cause the girls checked in multiple times to refuel! Nyah had a 2 pretty bad spills! I think she had trouble running in her water shoes. Both knee's were scratched up and bleeding but all she needed was a few mommy cuddles and she was back out there! 

After the park, we took a little stroll in search of lunch. We ended up on the pier at Pajos were we enjoyed some deep fried goodness (for the record... we both went home afterwards and did a Jillian Michaels workout video to help burn some of those delicious calories!).

All in all, it was a great day! The girls had a great time and we really enjoyed our time spent with friends. Watching these two little girls interact, play, babble and giggle to each other makes my heart smile. They have such a true genuine friendship that is so amazing to watch grow.