My how you've grown

The first picture is of Lily at 7 months old. It is my favorite photo of our time together last summer. I decided to do a progression to see how different she looks each summer. This year we don't want to wear glasses so I had to get the shot of her before she ripped the glasses from her face. As you can see she wears them so often I didn't even remove the sticker :)

SUMMER FUN

Our family went to Pismo beach to enjoy our 5 year wedding anniversary. It has been five wonderful adventureous years filled with love and now family. I love my husband a little more with each year and absolutely adore seeing him with Lily. He is a wonderful father and an amazing husband. So now enough of the sap and on to our vacation. Pismo beach is normally cool and foggy this time of year, but for us the powers that be, brought the sun. We didn't even have coastal morning fog. It was wonderful! We shopped, and ate yummy food, and Lily ate some sand :) (a whole handful I might add), and we stayed at an Inn overlooking the ocean. Our back door opened up to a garden patio which was perfect for our little explorer and beyond the patio was an amazing view of the ocean and the perfect spot to watch the sun set.

Lily and I enjoying the pier.

Lily's first time in the ocean. She clung on to me for dear life but our brave little girl didn't cry and even let out a giggle when a wave went past her legs, but when I asked her if she wanted up she shook her head yes with vigor and pointed the way of the beach.
Lily sitting with Daddy right after trying a mouthful of sand. Peter got a nasty sunburn that is now blistering. someday our family will learn to wear sunblock.
Happy family getting ready to head home. A wonderful end to a fantastic vacation!
Sunset view from our patio.

5 days and counting

oooohhhhhhhhhhh! A sweet sigh of relief!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I have 5 days of work left until a long awaited summer vacation. A feeling of calm washes over me as I realize that I get to be a mommy. This is why I became a teacher. So that I could spend lazy summers with the children I knew I would one day have. So here we are. This past year has been wonderful and rosie and full of firsts, but alas a road worth traveling does not come without its bumps and there, I must say, have been bumps. I have not been stellar at sharing my daughter with others. It is hard to see your little one bonding with another. I dreamed that my mom and Lily would be close and that they would have a special kinship. I just didn't know it would leave me feeling empty and alone in my own family at times. I am so grateful and lucky to have a mom who loves and wants to spend the days with Lily and I wish that that evil little guy called jealousy would not rear his ugly head. But alas I am not perfect and I am good at hiding my emotions from everyone except my family. So hee hee sorry guys :) And then there is the fact that Lily did not come from my womb. Did not spend the first 6 months of her life smelling my scent and hearing my voice so there is always the thought that perhaps she has not bonded to me and is that an adoption issue or a kid issue. Truth be told it is probably a little of both and will always be a little of both. Hence the reason for my relief! We will work on mommy daughter bond over the summer and then ride this roller coaster of emotion again when the time comes. My mom told me parenting would be hard, the adoption agency warned me there would be work, and the reward is everyday when she puckers her little lips to give me a kiss and gives me the I love you sign. Yes dear sweet Lily mama loves you!

Stuart

Meet Stuart (aka Stuey) the newest member of our family. He is a designer dog formerly known as a mutt :) He is 1/2 Yorkshire Terrier and 1/2 Jack Russell Terrier. This is the position we most often find him in. He is a good boy and plays well with Lily most of the time. Lily's feet are often chew toys so we have to watch them closely.

What a pair. I suppose I was done with that magazine guys.