today it all changed

Today was the day. Today was the day Riley went from "trying to crawl" to CRAWLING. Granted, it's still more of a hybrid crawl. She pushes up into a plank, then lunges her knees forward and proceeds to army crawl along the floor occasionally pushing up to her knees to get a few knee crawl steps in before splatting her tummy back to the floor. But hybrid or no hybrid, she is able to get around in to time flat. Within minutes of figuring it out she was getting into things she shouldn't be in. Thank God her fingers are still intact.

Today our lives changed forever. Today Riley became a crawler.

Okay, now seriously, how do we take her batteries out?

August 27th

5 years ago today I got on a plane and flew to Atlanta to meet a boy. A boy whom I had developed a very close relationship to via email, instant messaging (yea.. remember AIM?), and phone conversations. We would talk for hours at a time and keep in almost constant contact throughout the day. Everyone thought I was nuts, including myself.

I debated getting back on a plane to Texas many times before even walking out of the Atlanta airport. And when I got in the car with him, I couldn't tell if my heart was pounding out of my chest because I was head over heels in love with him or because I had just made the dumbest mistake of my life.

2 years later, after dating long distance and making the big move to be together in New York City, he asked me to marry him.

Now, 5 years later, I am sitting here waiting for our beautiful baby to wake up with our little puppy curled up next to me, anxious to hear about the offer we put in on a house in Connecticut.

August 27th will always be a big, special day for us. And every year it doesn't disappoint.

5 years down and about 100 more to go!

Forever

There is seriously nothing better than the sleeping baby smell. It's so sweet and soft, a little tart and maybe a distant sweet potato and pea combo.  I wish I could bottle it up and keep it forever. Or keep her a sweet little baby forever. Really, I'm good with either... 

Mommy Obsession: 4Moms Mamaroo

Our family lives in a 500 sqft studio apartment and from day one we knew we would have to get creative on saving some space while providing everything our baby would need. Aside from our little closet nursery, we opted to find a product that would eliminate the need for having both a swing and a bouncer chair. So many people told us both would be necessary for our sanity in the early months, but there was no way we could fit both.

In comes the 4Moms Mamaroo.

When I discovered this chair, I thought I had died and gone to heaven. But heaven was pricey. At a cost of $240, it has 5 different motions that are naturally occuring in everyday life, with 5 varying speeds for each motion. After all, moms sway and rock, we don't vibrate (at least, no one I know!). The seat tilts allowing baby to lie flat or sit all the way up and anywhere in between.

      

Now that Riley is approaching the point of growing out of it, we are so upset. The chair has provided so much comfort for her in her short 8 month life. It has been the perfect place for her to safely sit and observe the world, discover her fingers and toes, learn to play with toys, and then zonk out into a good nap. In short, it has been our complete life saver. From day one, Riley has loved being in her chair.