21 Reasons My Daughter is Laughing

A few weeks ago I wrote out 21 reasons my daughter is crying, and since then I've experienced at least 2,000 more. Poor thing! Every cup dropped and invisible injustice sends her into a crying fit. At least, that's how it seems sometimes. However temperamental she may be, she does also share smiles and laughs throughout the day. Therefore, I decided to create a list of reasons my daughter is laughing:

She's splashing in the water.

We are talking in "whisper voices".

She is (trying) wearing my shoes.

The dog is kissing her mouth.

She is trying to fart while I change her diaper. (seriously)

I'm tickling her thighs.

She's playing in the rain. 

The people on the radio are laughing.

She's trying to feed me with the spoon.

She is running as fast as she can. 

It's time for breakfast.

Waffle ✓ Milk ✓ Today Show ✓

I'm chasing her like a monster.

She stuffed all of her crackers in her mouth at once. 

I snuck up on her while we were playing tag.

I blew the lent out from between her toes.

She's wearing her new sunglasses. 

Check out Griffin photobombing her...

She's playing peek-a-boo with someone in the table behind us at the restaurant. 

Her Grandad is blowing zurberts (raspberries) on her belly.

She and the dog are playing tug-o-war. 

I let her flip the light switch on and off...and on and off...and on and off...  

The dog is running circles in the house like it's a race track.

She is swinging at the park.

It's nice to know that for as often as I frustrate her, I also (occasionally) can get her to smile and laugh!

I Remember...{Just Barely}

Wow! Just a year ago Jennifer and I were running the Maryland Half Marathon, Cole was deployed in Afghanistan and Grace was only 6 months old. I was a new mom experiencing all the joys of a newborn in addition to celebrating my first Mother's Day. This year so much has changed, and I feel like it's getting harder for me to remember all of the big and small milestones that fly by too fast.

I remember when we thought our new little baby would never arrive... and then you showed up a month early.

I remember when I thought we would never sleep again... and then you slept through the night. 

I remember when you would spit up all the time, on everything ... and then suddenly you didn't, and I don't even remember when it stopped. 

I remember when you did nothing but lay there looking cute... and then you were rolling over, sitting up, pulling up, crawling and walking in the blink of an eye. 

 

I remember when you would cry, drool and stick everything in your mouth because of teething... and now you have 12 tiny teeth!

I remember when we thought your daddy's deployment would never end... and then he got back just in time to see you take your first steps. 

I remember when new born clothes were too big... and now you're wearing size 3T.

I remember when I would nurse you 10-12 times  a day... and then just before you went to sleep... and during the night... and when you woke up... and eventually just for 5 minutes at bedtime... and then we were done. 

I remember when I thought your hair would never come in... and now I'm struggling each morning to get it contained in pigtails and clippies. 

I remember when you couldn't even support your head... and now you do circus acrobatics off the couch. 

I remember when you turned one... and now you're less than six months away from your second birthday!

I remember when I thought you were the most beautiful, perfect little girl... and that hasn't changed.

New dresses Cole picked out for us as a surprise for Mother's Day morning!

I remember when I had no idea what a mother's love truly meant... and now I'm just starting to understand. 

Being your mom, Grace, has been nothing short of amazing. I love how it has changed me and changed our lives. It makes me realize how much I owe to my mom for everything she's taught me and continues to teach me. Our time together seems ever-fleeting, but I cherish every moment.

Happy Mother's Day, Mom!

Thank you for teaching me the important things, like how to use the toilet and drive a stick! We love you, and Jennifer and I are proud to be your daughters!

Ain't Nobody Got Time For Zombies

In the past few weeks, I've been busy running from Zombies, bumpin' it up with the Lovely Lady Bumps, cultivating my green thumb and acting like a complete DIVA.

Let me explain:

A group of my Stroller Strides mama friends and I did the Zombie Escape at Panic Point. It's a 5K mud run with 20 obstacles and "zombies" roaming the coarse trying to steal your flags (like capture the flag).  It was a dirty, disgusting mess, and it was a blast. We made matching shirts using iron-on transfer paper that said, "Zombie Bait."

Font: Gogozombie and Cracked

I designed it in Photoshop, and then flipped the image for printing. With a simple iron, I was able to transfer the image from the paper onto the shirts. Fun! 

Here are some of the other t-shirt sayings/designs we were considering:

 

This picture was after the very first obstacle- so much for white shirts! 

Finish line glory! Way to go ladies!

I've also been spending some time with my favorite pastime- volleyball! MWR hosted a women's volleyball league, and we were able to pull together a pretty darn good team of ladies. We made it to the 5th round of double elimination playoffs, and I think we finished in the top 6 out of 15 teams. So proud!

After our final lose in the playoffs. End of season lays courtesy of Amber. 

Also vying for my attention was our new front yard. We finally (I know, sorry neighbors!) got grass put down in the front yard and added some trees. I will freely admit that I have never been able to keep a plant alive, but Cole seems pretty committed to the grass' well-being. With sod, I guess you have to make sure it gets plenty of water the first month so that the roots take and all of the strips of sod grow together. This means morning and evening watering... BY HAND! I've been doing some rain dancing for the sake of our water bill.

This picture was taken a few weeks ago, and luckily we've got some rain, so it's even greener now!

Finally, the last weekend of April, was the Diva Half Marathon in North Myrtle Beach. I've been nursing a IT band injury, so I was questionable about running this race....but....I paid the nonrefundable entry fee....and booked the nonrefundable hotel room... and really wanted my finisher bling....so I ended up running anyways. 

L: At the starting line at sunrise. Top R: Pre-run smiles Bottom R: A sea of pink, and I love the "Preserve the Sexy" shirt! 

Cole, Grace and I headed to the beach for a little R&R&R (rest, relaxation and running)! The course was very flat, well marked and had tons of spectators along the way. As I ran the first mile, I passed our hotel and Cole and Grace were out on the balcony waving! It was awesome. My knee felt pretty good until about mile nine, but at that point I wasn't about to give up. I finished with a 2:05 time, but I feel pretty positive that without my knee bothering me, I could have beat 2 hours... Maybe next year! 

Here's the finisher medal that was awarded to me by a shirtless fireman. They also hand out long stem red roses and flutes of champagne at the finish line. Thank you, thank you, thank you!

I also got a teeny-tiny t-shirt and tiara and pink boa to wear as I crossed the finish line. 

So that's the scope from the last month. Now I'm trying really hard to rest my knee before I gear up training for my first marathon in October- the Marine Corps Marathon!  Rest is no fun, though. I'm thinking about signing up for the Fort Bragg Army Birthday 10 Miler and the Airborne Special Operations Museum 10K. 

Ain't nobody got time for injuries.