Happy 1st Birthday Carys!

Happy Birthday to our beautiful baby girl!! I can't believe you are 1 year old today!

Carys got her very first car today :)

Carys is walking all over the place now... and i'm sure you know what that means... i can't keep her contained anymore. well not for long anyway. she is not content in her gated off play area. she whines and shakes at the gate, so most of the time she is roaming around the living/dining room and kitchen exploring and getting into everything.

she loves chasing the cat around...however the cat is not especially fond of Carys' grabbing and pulling of the fur... i couldn't even get a picture of the two of them b/c Sage really doesn't want to be anywhere near Carys lol

one of the best parts about Carys becoming a toddler is that she can entertain herself for longer periods of time... it's amusing to sit back and watch her toddle around and play

she is also learning to share. she'll open up your hand and give you whatever she is holding. she has even learned how to share her chewed up food, yum! she'll take food out of her mouth and try to shove it in your mouth. or if she doesn't like something she'll spit it out and hand it to me... but i'm always very polite and say "thank you!" ;)

she really into imitating now... so if you cough, laugh, blow kisses, throw your hands in the air, etc. she'll do the same

she likes to help me do the dishes by stealing the silverware basket and running away with it

she's a little stubborn thing... if she doesn't get her way she gets very upset

"puuuuuhlease can i have your camera!!!"

she still loves her pal Violet

I made Carys a (mostly) organic birthday cake. It's a pumpkin-apple-pecan cake. I've never made it before so I didn't know how it would turn out, and I figured she wouldn't like it b/c she has become a picky eater.

But she dove right in and she loved it! It was actually really good, I was impressed with my baking skills!

Happy Birthday Carys Willow!

Well, I made it through her first year! At times I thought I wouldn't, lol. There have been lots of ups and downs. So many tears shed. So many nights I wanted to pull my hair out b/c of sleep deprivation. So many days of utter frustration and tested patience. I found myself worrying about everything little thing and always questioned whether I was doing the right thing for my baby. I have to admit that it has been much harder than I anticipated it would be. But I wouldn't give it up for anything! It's been the most amazing and joyful experience raising Carys and watching her grow from a tiny 6 lb 8oz baby to an almost 19 lb toddler. I did my fair share of complaining along the way and have had many bad days, but I think I'm finally settling into motherhood. It'll never be easy, in fact, I'm sure it'll only get more challenging as she gets older... but it really is all worth it. Seeing Carys smile and watching her master new skills and reach new milestones makes it all worth it. And having an understanding, loving boyfriend, who is also an awesome dad, helps ;)

Thank you to everyone who has helped us this first year of Carys' life, we couldn't have done it without all of our amazing friends and family!

I was only going to do this blog for her first year, but I think I'm going to keep it going so you can continue watching Carys grow! I can't wait to see what the next year has in store for us!

Peanut Butter!

Carys tried peanut butter for the first time recently... as you can see she was more interested in using it as a face and hair mask

Too Cool!

First Steps!

Carys had taken a few steps here and there but, nothing i would consider walking. Saturday we had company over for a little BBQ. and I guess she wanted to show off her skills for everyone b/c she took some REAL steps, like pretty much walking! she was doing it on and off all day, so finally i took out the flip cam and got it on video.

Wax Lips!

Carys wanted to try out my wax lips... I thought they looked especially cute on her ;)

Beach Trip & Meeting Family

We went to Myrtle Beach two weekends ago for Chris' grandfather's (his mom's dad) 80th birthday. We only planned on staying the weekend but we were having such a great time that we ended up staying a few extra days. This was the first time Carys was meeting her great-grandparents, as well as many other family members on Chris' side.

*i have a lot of pictures, and i'm including them all! so get ready for the picture bomb!

Carys' great grandma and grandpa. can you believe her great-grandpa is 80?! He looks great!

here is a picture with grandpa, Chris' dad

Carys and aunt Soni (sorry grandpa, couldn't crop you out of the background!)

the weather was nice while we were there, it was a bit chilly but warmer than back home. one day it was even warm enough to let Carys enjoy the beach (for the first time!)... she really liked feeling the sand and playing in it, until she ate a whole handful of it... then she was done with the beach!

we had such a great time, and it was really nice meeting and getting to know more of Chris' family!

fun at the grocery store!

okay i'll tell you about our actual trip(with lots of pictures included) in the next post... i just wanted to post these pictures really quick

 

we went to a grocery store while we were in Myrtle Beach and they had these shopping baskets with wheels!

chris and i thought, wow this was made just for Carys! so we sat her in there and rolled her around the grocery store while we shopped

and she LOVED it! she sat in there and had a ball while we pulled her along

i can't tell you how many people came up to us and told us how cute she was and what a great idea it was, and other funny little comments (all very nice and sweet). one lady even took a picture of Carys in her little basket, after our permission of course. 

we've never gotten so much attention at a grocery store! thankfully it was all positive!

the grocery stores in our area need to get on it and get some baskets with wheels!