Tuesday, June 28, 2011

happy 3rd anniversary!

Today is our third wedding anniversary. It's kind of hard to believe that 3 years have passed. Time flies when you're having fun! We actually got pregnant around 1st wedding anniversary, had a 3 month old on our 2nd wedding anniversary, and here we are now at 3 years, trying for our next baby. We've been busy!

During the past 3 years, we have bought a home together, job changes, 2nd (and 3rd) dog, we had a beautiful baby girl, and we found our church home. So many wonderful things have happened to us. So many challenging things as well. I am beyond thankful that God gave me Josh to share this journey with. He's truly my rock, my best friend, my sweetheart, and my little girl's amazing father. 

Here's to many more years together. Through the ups and downs, you have my love and support. You always will. Happy Anniversary! 

And now a few wedding pictures for memory lane purposes... 












cousin time

Yesterday, Clara (my brother's little girl) came over to stay with Julianna and I for the day. Clara is only 3 months older than Julianna so they are very close in age and size. Clara was already here when Julianna woke up so Clara and I went to her room to greet her. Julianna got soooo excited when she saw Clara in her room! It was too cute. The girls spent the day playing, taking toys from each other napping, and not eating anything I fixed for them! It was a great day with my favorite little one year old ladies!







Sunday, June 26, 2011

300th post - dancing video!

To celebrate 300 posts on this blog... a video of Julianna dancing in the backseat yesterday!

daddy in the dunking booth


Today our church is having a charity event for the Dream Center (non-profit after school/summer ministry for children in the area). They are having a motorcycle ride, plus food and games at the church. Josh is such a good sport. He's actually in the dunking booth now... I just got these fun photos from facebook:



Saturday, June 25, 2011

funday friday

During summer vacation, everyday is funday. Julianna and I had another great day yesterday. We slept in til 8. Had breakfast together. We played outside with bubbles and then inside.





 
She loves to play with the pillows and blanket on the floor. She rolls around and hides. Next, she took a 2.5 hour nap.When Julianna naps, I can get so much done! I got all of the housework done and got dinner prepped. Even had time to sit down and relax!

After napping, we visited nana (my mom). We played with her wind chimes and looked at her roses. Then spent some quality girl time just talking and exploring her treasures inside. Finished up our outing with a trip to Walmart for groceries. Julianna was so well-behaved (which is rare in Walmart)! So many commented on her adorableness. She was rockin' that outfit + red bow yesterday! Yes, it was definitely funday Friday!



Friday, June 24, 2011

here we go...

Yesterday, I had a doctor's appointment with the baby-making doctor (aka ob/gyn). Amanda came with me to keep Julianna entertained in the waiting room. Last time I went there, Julianna was only 6 weeks old and could politely sit in the exam room with me. Not so much anymore! She's becoming such a big girl now. She did great in the waiting room. The receptionist even gave her a sticker for being good! Yay, Julianna!


Without giving all of the details of my appointment, Josh and I have decided to start trying for baby Soto #2. No hurry. No strict timeline. But we would love for Julianna to have a baby brother or sister. We have always planned for our children to be about 2 years apart and now's the time to make that happen. Please pray for us on this journey. We are so excited!

Wednesday, June 22, 2011

morning coffee

Oh how I love my morning coffee! Josh's dad bought us a Keuring coffee maker this past Christmas. It's amazing! We use the cups for it but you can also use whatever ground coffee you want.

Every morning, I drink one cup of coffee. During the school year, I used travel mugs so I could have my coffee on the go. But now, I get to enjoy my coffee from my cute coffee mugs. This morning I chose a yellow polka dot one that I found at a thrift shop forever ago. It was The bright yellow and polka dots much have appealed to her eyes too. As soon as I was done, I sat it on the side table and then she came over and snatched it before I had a chance to move it away from her.

Unfortunately, after exploring with my cup... it broke. She stood up. Dropped it. It smashed. And then she said "uh oh"... then mommy cleaned up the mess. Oh well, it was fun while it lasted! At least we both enjoyed my yellow mug on it's last day.

goodbye, birds... hello, grilled chicken

During Memorial Day weekend, we discovered a bird nest in our grill. It was a nest of baby Wren eggs. Tiny little eggs, tiny little mommy bird. She took great care of her nest and her baby birds when they hatched. We watched them as eggs, newborn birds, and much bigger baby birds this weekend. Yesterday, as we were letting the dogs in. Josh spotted one of the baby birds trying to fly under our deck. It was stubbling, unsteady, and nervous. Reminded me of little Julianna trying to walk. Not sure if the baby bird ever made it into the air last night but it was so cute watching it try to get there. Our little nest has been another reminder of God's love and another one of those reminders that He's there, smiling over us. The miracle of life from baby birds to baby boys and girls, is just amazing.


Tuesday, June 21, 2011

pool playtime

Julianna experienced her first "real" pool experience of the season. She's played in kiddie pools in the past couple of weeks but not a real pool.

Amanda and I took her to Bur Mil Aquatic Center. It was about a 35 minutes drive but so worth it! Here's what they have (via their website):
  • Zero entry - Beach-like area with a gradually sloping gradient
  • Interactive water features - Kids control water pressure and pull ropes for a splash
  • Splash pad - An area with no standing water and various play features that spray water
  • Vortex - A feature within the pool that circulates swimmers with a current
  • Family changing areas - Larger changing rooms for visitors with small children
  • Therapy bench - Take a seat and let the water jets give your back a massage
  • Tot slides - Two slides for the younger children to enjoy
  • Diving boards - Boards for the older children and adults
  • Funbrellas - Large umbrellas to protect patrons from the sun
Here's a few pictures from their website:
We got there before it opened to be sure that we would get a chair under the giant umbrellas and we successfully did. Julianna spent 2 hours happily playing! I was so worried that we'd get there and she'd have a meltdown but she did great. She got fussy around 1pm so I knew it was time to go. She was exhausted and passed out the whole way home and still went back to sleep once we got home. Fun day!

Waiting in line before they opened. It was HOT so she didn't mind her hat for once!

Julianna with her godmother, Amanda.

Ready to play in the pool!

Monday, June 20, 2011

happy father's day!

Josh celebrated his 2nd Father's Day yesterday. We had a wonderful day together as a family! We started the morning with breakfast and gifts. Josh got this cute photo mug from Julianna:




And swim trucks from me...


Then we went to church. Julianna and I napped then it was time to visit our families. First stop was to see my mom and dad so that we could give him his gift. Julianna tried on her nana's big floppy hat while we were there.


Then we crashed a cookout at Dustin and Shandi's to visit with Josh's stepdad. We had steak and potatoes and the little ones got to play in the kiddie pool. We had a great time!



We topped if off with another frozen yogurt treat and then all 3 of us crashed when we got home. What a busy but wonderful weekend!