Fall Mish-Mash

We had a pretty eventful Fall. It all went by in a whirl - so here is the Fall Mish-Mash.

First- Halloween. Lincoln was the Cookie Monster. I think we all know what Daddy picked the costume this year. We were pretty busy on this day. We went to Grandma's House, then my SIL Connie's to see Richie and Gentry and then over to our friends house were Ninna also was (Ninna is the new name Lincoln has for my mom...we tried for Nonna and its Ninna :)

Prior to Halloween we visited the Huckleberry Railroad with Lorenzo and Great Aunt Alicia. It was a lot of fun! A bit over-priced but the boys always have a blast together.

Earlier in the fall we went to the Renaissance Festival with Ninna, Bupa and another one of Lincoln's pals- cousin Sophia!

 I love this photo of Lincoln with my mom and step-dad. Priceless.

We also visited Blake's Apple Orchard earlier in the Fall. Lincoln had his first donut!

This photo cracks me up...he's saying "Enough with the donut DADA!!!"

Also, this Fall I took some family photos for some special friends of mine. I am SO excited they are expecting a new baby girl in their family in the Spring!!! I'm going to be an Auntie!!! Whoop Whoop!

August

August is always an eventful month for us. But this year a few special things happened. First, my dear friend Courtney had her "coating" ceremony as a welcome into the new Physician Assistant program at U of D Mercy. I was incredible proud of her and I was honored to be the one there cheering her one. I know how hard she has worked to get into this program and to see them slip that white coat on her made me incredibly proud!

After Courtney's celebration we took our annual trip to Tawas to visit hubby's family. Lincoln had a blast!

I adore these last two photos. We took a day trip to Lake Huron and got our feet a little wet. Unfortunately it was unseasonably cool that weekend but at the highest temperature of the day, Fred and the boy took a little dip. I think these are two of my most favorite photos ever!

Lincoln's Birthday Party

So, I went pretty OAM on this first birthday- thats "over-achiever mom" for those that don't know ;)

I started planning Lincoln's first birthday party when he was like 8-9 months old. Of course I went to the authority on ideas of this sort....Pinterest!!! And I soon found the theme I fell in love with - the Farm!!!

I had a few friends and family who I knew could help me pull it off.

First, were the adorable farm-animal cupcakes designed and made by my Aunt Alicia. I loved the little chicks!

My Aunt also created the smash-cake below with Lincoln in his barn...I LOVED it!!!

We also went all-out on the guest list. We ended up with around 70-75 guests. Yes, seven-five...it was a bit crazy. But we are very lucky to have a lot of family and friends...and many of them helped us celebrate our baby boy's birthday!

In addition to the adorable cupcakes and custom smash-cake, my friend Courtney (who, herself, lives on a farm) loaned us some hay barrels to complete the decor....although we did have to give them back to the cows when we were finished with them.

And of course, what kids summer party would be complete without a pinata!!! I ordered a cow pinata from Oriental Trading Company and it was a hit with all of the kids...from 3 year olds to 12 year olds.

Below is one adorable guest, Cullen, taking a shot at the cow...

Lincoln was in such a good mood that day and it was just the icing on the cake!! He had all of his favorite people in one place at the same time. There was so much excitement and, of course, yummy food and cake- he had a blast!

I was told by several guests after the party that their kids had an absolute blast!  I was so happy- that is exactly what we wanted. We made sure we had plenty for kids to do- a double slip-n-slide, a kiddy pool, a baby splash pad and the pinata of course. The slip-n-slide and pinata were the big hits!!! Sure, the slip-n-slide ruined a good section of our grass, but it was worth it!

Lincoln was of course spoiled with many cool gifts- we have hardly had to buy clothes or toys for this boy yet. He is so spoiled!

Here is Lincoln with seven of the little guests on the slip-n-slide. So cute!

And what first birthday can come to a close without the smash cake. Lincoln loved diving into the cake, although he was a bit daintier then I expected. Never-the-less he enjoyed eating the cake and was clearly very pleased with himself.

As the big bash came to a close he took a dip with some friends in the kiddie pool.

So in retrospect all of the planning and money was worth it for Lincoln, and most of our guests, to have a blast. Sure, I could have certainly scaled back on some of the food (mainly munchy-food we put on the tables) - it was hardly eaten. And we probably could have had a few less dishes of food. Its so hard to know, especially with so many guests, how much food to have.

And its hard to believe the morning of the party we thought it would be a bust. At midnight we lost power. We had $400 worth of food in our fridge and freezer. Luckily we awoke right when the power went off and had a generator in the garage. We only lost a few items of food. However, cooking for the party in a house with no air conditioning in July was...interesting. Our smoke alarms were going off, the house filled with smoke as the mac-n-cheese started to burn....we were running around shutting off alarms...all while my mother tried to put Lincoln down for his first nap so he wasn't cranky for the party.

But, like a wish come true, right as the party was starting the power came back on.

It was destined to be a great day.

And it was.

Lincoln One Year!!!

Lincoln Andreas- what a blessing you have been this past year! It seems like just yesterday  I was counting the days until I could take a pregnancy test to find out if I was pregnant. We wanted you so badly and after two failed pregnancies we feared we would never have you. But, life had something more magical in store then we ever could have imagined. One year ago, after over 1300 lovenox injections, 22 months of waiting, 36 hours of labor and an emergency c-section- there you were!!!

You were born skinny, white and screaming with your fist held high in the air. Your daddy got to hold you first and brought you near my head; I spoke and you turned and looked directly into my eyes. That moment bonded us beyond measure and I have never known or felt such love.

Since that moment we have certainly had our ups and downs. You spent the first four days of your life in the special care nursery. We got to hold you very little and were fearful you would not gain weight. But, despite our fears you grew stronger every day and at the end of your 4th day of life you were able to come home with us.

We settled in and you were sleeping wonderfully at first- 5 hours in a stretch. But, then you starting experiencing reflux and I fought my milk supply and we had a rough couple of months.

But, as quickly as the troubles came they seemed to pass and before we knew it you were three months old, holding your head up and smiling constantly.

Before too long it was Christmas and you stared wide-eyed at the beautiful lights of the season. Then you were six months and sitting on your own. Life became easier now that you could sit and we started to take you to more places. You were, and are, fascinated by other people and you'll spend a good 20 minutes staring at them when we are out and about.

You also started rolling over and life was both easier and harder now that you were mobile. The days of being able to effectively work from home were certainly over. You suffered two ear infections and had difficulty napping (and still do). And we experienced the dreaded sleep regression that lasted an exhausting 7 weeks during your eighth and ninth month- that was aweful!

Soon, you were pulling up on everything and we knew walking was not long off. Your vocabulary grew and grew and you can now  say 6 words. You took to the sippy cup easily and do not seem to  be a picky eater. You were a late teether- with only 4 teeth by one year old.

By 11 months you were walking and we were chasing. You are silly, stubborn, sassy and affectionate. You love applesauce, yogurt, graham crackers, blueberries and tuna fish (yes, tuna fish!). You prefer water in your sippy to about anything else and you love, love, love to test your boundaries with climbing.

In a year you've grown from a scrawny newborn into a young toddler. You are beautiful - with long dark lashes, pouty pink lips and sandy wild hair. Its amazing to look at you and see so many members of our family. My eyes, Daddy's body and hands, Nonna's chin, Grandma's toes and Grandpa's ears. When I was pregnant I used to daydream about what my son would look like. I never could have dreamed you would be as beautiful as you are.

Thank you for blessing us Lincoln. Thank you for being you and giving our lives meaning beyond measure and joy beyond words. And as we venture into toddler-hood I ask you to be gentle on us :)

Happy Birthday my sweet, angel-faced boy. I love you to the moon and back.