PJ Time...

One of my favorite times of the day is putting yummy-smelling lotion (Calendula smells so good!) on Soph and getting her into her PJs. Then we read, rock, sing, and pray together before she goes down for the night.

She looks so cute in her cozy PJs...these were given to her by Eric's math dept head, Trish. She has been really sweet in her excitement for us and turns out to have great taste in baby clothes!

I cannot resist the sneeze shot! Makes me smile every time! :)

Goodnight everyone!

Easter Dinner

For Easter dinner, we went over to Josh & Meagan's house. They graciously invited us over for the 5th year in a row! I would say that grilled salmon dinner at Josh & Meg's on Easter has become a wonderful Greensboro tradition!

Their girls and Owen had a fun egg hunt in their backyard. Sophia watched and sat in grass for the first time! Meg took some great pictures of her! We had such a great time!

**Who can handle that bottom LIP??? Ahhhh....love her!

Easter 2011

Our Savior LIVES! And we had a wonderful time celebrating the gift of LIFE this year! I felt like I related to Mary in a new way that I had never before - as a mother. To see her first born suffer and die before her eyes must have been the epitome of sadness and pain. We all recognize what a sacrifice it was for God (not that I am diminishing that by any means!) but we rarely talk about Mary's pain at Easter. Not that Jesus was hers to control, but it could not have been easy to watch it play out the way it did. Just as her pain as a mother was piercingly deep, can you imagine the JOY she felt when she saw Him in the flesh, that He was RISEN from the dead!! I can only imagine the tears of relief and joy she wept over seeing Him conquer death! And her prayers thanking God for His faithfulness with His promises.

Eric and I also spent some time thanking the Lord for His faithfulness and for all He has done in our lives.

Sophia looked adorable for her first Easter. She is already wearing 6 month clothing...this cute dress was given to her by my sweet cousin, Julie, up in MN. Because the dress is size '6 months', I thought it would be a dress she would wear in July, not in April! :) But it turned out to be the perfect dress for the occasion! Good thing NC has some great warm spring weather to wear these cute summer dresses! Easter was 80 degrees and beautiful this year!

I just had to have her wear a big white bow to church on Easter morning....we do live in the South after all!

Being Outside

Sophia loves being outside whether it is on a walk, just taking in the fresh air, or in the jogger keeping Eric company on a run. It is so nice to be able to go to the park and for walks with a happy baby.

Here she is sitting outside with me while I hang up the diapers to dry in the sunshine.

It's so bright, Mom! I can't keep my eyes open!

Here we are headed out for a walk around the neighborhood on one of the warmer days we've had...mid-80s!

I love staring at those big beautiful pools of dark chocolate. We all knew she was destined to having brown eyes...turns out they complement her dark features perfectly. :)

My Pretty Girl

Bumbo Seat

Sophia has started using the bumbo! Crazy that our big girl is already "sitting up on her own" with support. She still has a big of the bobble-head going on but is really gaining good control of her neck!

SNEEZE!! I love it! Also, this is my husband's face when he sneezes too! She is a little mini-me of Eric! Makes me love her even more!

Well this is getting boring and I'm getting tired....WAIT....what did I just find?

OOOOooooo FAAAANNNNNN.......I love you, fan. I could stare at you all day!

Daddy's Girl...

This chica sure loves her Dad!

Stuffed Zucchini

It has been a LONG time since I've posted a recipe on here! But as I get back into meal planning and cooking, I thought I'd share a recipe that is a favorite in our house! It is easy and absolutely delicious! It's a great summer meal bc it's light and the perfect way to use abundant zucchini from the garden!

Stuffed Zucchini

1/2 cup quinoa

3-4 medium zucchini

1 15-oz can of white beans (I use Great Northern, could also use Cannellini or Navy)

1 c. grape or cherry tomatoes, quartered (I also just use reg. tomatoes chopped)

1/2 c. almonds, chopped (optional, we leave this out bc Eric doesn't love nuts)

2 cloves garlic, chopped

3/4 c. grated Parmesan

3-4 Tbsp. olive oil

Heat oven to 400 degrees F. In a saucepan, combine the quinoa and 1 c. water and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until quinoa is tender and water is absorbed, 12 to 15 min.

While the quinoa is cooking, cut the zucchini in half, lengthwise and scoop out the seeds. Arrange in a large baking dish (I use 9x13), cut side up.

Fluff the quinoa and fold in the bean, tomatoes, almonds (if using), garlic, 1/2 c. of Parmesan, and 2 Tbsp. oil.

Spoon the mixture into the zucchini. Drizzle with the remaining 2 Tbsp. oil and 1/4 c. Parmesan. Cover with foil and bake until the zucchini is tender, 25-30 min. Remove the foil and bake until golden, 8-10 min.

ENJOY!! YUMMMMY

New Videos of Sophia

Tummy time (near the end, she wasn't so happy about it) HERE

Cooing at me on the changing table HERE

Enjoy! :)

Growing Girl...

Sophia is getting so long, she is growing right out of her outfits! She seems lean (other than in the cheeks, there is nothing lean about those rolls!) :) bc there is still room around the middle, but her legs are shooting out the bottom! I'm glad I have such cute clothes in the bigger sizes waiting for her or I would be really sad to "retire" some of my favorites so far! (I'm still sad, but this is what I am telling myself so I'm not TOO sad about how fast she's growing up already)

--insert Eric's eyes rolling when I start talking about how grown up she is already--

Ugh, Mom? Hello? Does this look like it's comfortable? What look are you trying to go for here...?
It's ok though, I'm still as happy as can be, even with my pants being too short! :)

Two Months!

Time is flying and her two month birthday has already come and gone!

*Sophia is SMILING! a LOT! We love it! She lights up a whole room with her beautiful smile!

*She is also started to COO...so precious! She spends a lot of time "talking" to me while she is on the changing table...ahhh, oohhh? *gurgle* ahhh

I am trying (unsuccessfully) to get that sweet little voice on video to share!

*Sophia loves to stare at ceiling fans, lights, mobiles..she only has a mobile for her swing, not her crib, SO I am tackling a craft project (new for me!) to make her one! I'll post pics once it comes together

*She doesn't acknowledge the cats at all...they come up and sniff her, she could care less (and I think the cats feel the same way about her!) :) Someday they will be tempting, fluffy soft things to chase around, but right now, she is oblivious

*At two months is sleeping up to 8 hrs in one stretch at night! Usually goes to bed between 7-9 pm, wakes up once around 4 am, then gets up for the day around 6:30-7:30 am

*Her wake time after eating is still only about 45-50 min before she shows signs of sleepiness. For naps she gets swaddled, rocked, then laid in bed awake. For bedtime, she gets pjs, swaddled, rocked, sung to, prayed over, then laid in bed awake but hopefully very drowsy.

*Still liking the bath! Enjoys lotion massage afterwards when she isn't feeling cold! Throwing a blanket in the dryer to wrap her in after always makes her happy!

*Getting better in the car! Still not a huge fan of the car seat, but she is starting to fall asleep in it which makes it SO much easier for me to do errands/grocery shop

*She is very tolerant and loves to be held by others! She will happily be passed person to person and just stare up at new faces, taking it all in! Usually makes for a good nap afterwards :)

We love you, sweet girl!

THRUSH!

Well I think Sophia and I are FINALLY saying goodbye to all our thrush/yeast infection problems! (hopefully forever!)

I started seeing symptoms and realizing what they meant and now, FIVE WEEKS LATER, after multiple types of treatment, oral meds, probiotics, creams, drops, pills, diet changes, many MANY loads of laundry in hot water to kill the yeast, we are both finally showing signs of improvement! We are taming the beast back! So so so so so happy for both of us!

Mama & Sophia

I feel like the luckiest Mama in the world spending my days with my sweet baby girl. She loves the Moby Wrap, being all tucked in and held close. It is hard to get pictures with us together...didn't think I would continue the mirror shots like I used in pregnancy, but its the only way to take them so we are both in it!

And here is an adorable after bath time shot! I love Sophia in this cute bunny towel!

Sophia smiles & coos

We finally captured a smile of the many that we have been delighting in both in the pic above and video link HERE ! :) She is a sweetheart and such a happy baby!