My new little loves

Caleb (left), Hudson (middle), and me (right) on Caleb & Hudson's Birth Day

Unfortunately, I have not had much time to keep up with my blog lately.  I have been too busy working hard, having fun with my family, and meeting the cutest little twins in the world.

My newest nephews Caleb and Hudson were born on October 4th, and they are simply ADORABLE.  As soon as I learned that my sister Amy was on her way to the hospital for their birth, I finished up the project I was working on, grabbed a snack, and got in the car to drive to Destin.  I was so quick, in fact, that I arrived before the twin's birth had even been announced so I killed time by shopping for a cute new outfit for each of them.

I was the first to arrive to the hospital to visit...most likely, because I arrived unannounced due to my high level of excitement.  I was so proud to get to be the one to push them in their cart from the recovery room to their sleeping room.  I was also so blessed to be able to capture beautiful moments like the ones shown in these pictures.

 

 

Austin, Felicity and I had the opportunity to go visit them together as a family a week later, and they were just as precious then.  Although both healthy weights, they felt absolutely tiny in my arms. 

 

 

We feel so blessed to have these wonderful additions to our family.  I am so thankful that Amy and her sweet babies are healthy and safe.  Thank you, God, for this wonderful miracle.

 



 

With Love,

Carolyn

It is time for Time Out!

Felicity is currently at an extremely fun age, where she is really starting to develop a strong personality and communicate her needs and opinions more clearly.  She is even establishing a sense of style and likes the opportunity to choose which shoes she wears - whether it be her sequined Hello Kitty! shoes, any of her colorful Crocs, or her new light-up purple sneakers. 

She also loves to test the limits in order to see what reactions she will get from us and what the consequences of her actions will be.  I know that is par for the course for her age, but it can still be trying for us as her parents.  I have read that it is important to respond consistently so that she can learn the black and white rules more quickly, but I am quickly learning that there are so many subtleties to life that often her actions fall into a grey area.

For example, one of Felicity's favorite tests involves hitting.  Although on the surface, it sounds like a pretty easy subject, it can be very complicated when you look at it from the eyes of a toddler.  If she hits me on the face or with anger, it is easy to respond, "No, not nice," but if she hits me on the hand, I do not know whether she is being aggressive or giving me a high-five.   (It makes me wish that I waited until she was older to introduce the concept of the high-five and fist-bump. j/k)

Recently, Felicity has become more intentionally aggressive towards us, which primarily involves scratching or hitting our faces.  Because it is important for her to learn that that type of behavior is not nice and that she should not treat her parents (or friends at school) like that, we decided that it was time to start implementing the dreaded "Time Out!"

The first true Time Out experience was this past Saturday.  We were playing and she decided that it would be fun to hit my face.  After the first time, I told her it was "not nice" and that she should not do it again.  That response caused her to laugh and immediately hit me again - this time even harder.  I then threatened the time out - "It is not nice to hit Mommy. If you do it again, we are going to put you in Time Out."  It didn't surprise me that she thought that was hilarious and interpreted it as an invitation to hit me again.  I then immediately led her to the front entry way, and sat her down on the floor in a quiet spot for a one-minute Time Out.  I got down to her eye-level and explained that it was not nice to hit Mommy and that she hurt Mommy's face and feelings.  I then told her that she would need to sit in Time Out for an entire minute.  While she did a good job staying in place and sitting where I told her to, she cried pathetically the entire minute and seemed very sorry to have gotten in trouble.  Unfortunately, the results didn't last long.  As soon as that minute was up and I told her that Time Out was over, she jumped up, gave me a big smile, and ran up to me with her hands waving franctically in the direction of my face trying to land another hit as quickly as possible.  Oh bother....

It was clear on Sunday that she had not forgotten that Time Out.  At one point in the morning, she hit me inappropriately and then before I could respond, pointed in the direction of her Time Out spot.  I asked her if she thought she needed a Time Out for hitting Mommy, and she replied sweetly, "Mmmm, hmmm."  Then, as I led her to her little spot, she started crying and cried for the first 30 seconds of her Time Out.  The next 30 seconds were filled with attempts to crawl away and calling out to "DaDa" to be saved. 

By the end of the weekend, I think she had received three legitimate Time Outs, several more threats of Time Out, and at least one self-inficted bite wound.  Although she just turned 21 months this weekend, I am already starting to wonder how we will survive the "Terrible Twos." 

Parenting is tough.  There is no getting around it.  Every day has its own set of challenges and there is no way to fully prepare for the parenting decisions that will need to be made at a second's notice.  As frustrating as it can be, however, all it takes is one sweet smile and I am quickly reminded that my sweet Felicity is a blessing and one of the greatest joys of my life.  I mean, look at this smile...doesn't your heart just melt?!?

If you're happy and you know it....

I don't know about you, but we LOVE the weekends!  The only problem with the weekends is that they are always, always too short!  

 

Instead of dwelling on the Sunday night blues, my goal for this post is to focus on what makes the weekend so special.....

 

We can eat Popsicles at 8:30 am because for us, that is a mid-morning snack.

 

We can throw spontaneous ball pit parties in our living room.

We can play with cousins....

(Sorry the photo is so blurry.)

 

(Thanks, Julie, for capturing these adorable photos of Felicity and Lily.)

And last but not least, there is so much more time to laugh and be silly!

Friday night fun

Yay, it is the....

Weekend!

Thank goodness it is Friday!!!!

Looking forward to quality time with my little love!

My Sunshine

You are my sunshine, my only sunshine.

You make me happy when skies are grey.

You'll never know, dear, how much I love you.

Please don't take my sunshine away.

May this day be filled with happiness for my little love.

A gift from God

Lily, Julie, Andrew and Laurel at Laurel's Baptism on August 25, 2013


This summer, God blessed our family with my beautiful niece Laurel Grace, and this past weekend, we celebrated that gift and God's love for our sweet Laurel Grace by having her baptized at St. Paul Catholic Church.  It was a wonderful excuse for our family to get together and smile.

The picture above is my best friend and sister Julie (also known as Mom to my nieces Lily and Laurel).  Can you believe how beautiful she and Laurel are?!?  Julie is also loving, kind and a wonderful mother to her sweet baby girls.  (Felicity is so wild that I could not imagine also taking care of a newborn right now, but Julie is handling it with grace, love and laughter.)

 

Sam, Paul and Michael

My brother Michael and sister-in-law Sam served as Godparents and they brought their handsome little man Paul, who was so good during the ceremony.   It was such a blessing to have them there with us for Laurel's big day.

 

 My grandmother and Aunt Sherree drove down from Mississippi on Saturday morning so that they could be there for the Baptism.  We had so much fun sitting around with them on Saturday afternoon, catching up and showing off Felicity's new tricks.  Felicity loves her G'Mom.

Here are some photos of our family at the Church:


 Felicity and Daddy

 

Felicity and Mommy

My Dad (Papa) and Paul



Sam, Paul, Julie, Laurel and Natasha

My aunt May May and my cousin Virginia with Kenzie and Annabelle

Lily and her Daddy

My Mom (Mimi), the back of Lily's head, me, Felicity and Felicity's pacifier

Austin and Felicity - How cute are they?!?

After the Baptism, Andrew's family hosted a reception at their house.  The set-up was adorable and the kids had a great time getting to explore their playroom and fun backyard.  Here are some photos from the party:



Felicity exploring the playroom

Laurel with her grandmother

The adorable Richardson family

 

 

I thank God every day for my wonderful family and for the time we get to spend together.  I look at these photos and I realize that I am truly, truly blessed.

Have a happy Labor Day weekend!

  

 

 

Keeping our Eyes on the Prize

 

Labor Day Weekend is on the horizon and we in the Ward family are keeping ourselves afloat admidst a very busy work week with the acronym "VOALT!"  (a.k.a. Vacation of a LifeTime).  We are desperately in need of a few days off to relax, spend time with family and just enjoy life. :)  Despite the ambitious title for the weekend, we are really just hoping to unplug and soak up some sun before summer is officially over.

 

Therefore, as we face the daily grind, we are keeping our eye on the prize by periodically texting each other "VOALT!"  Let me show you how it works....

• Stressed because you are behind on a deadline....VOALT! 
 
• Tired because your toddler was awake for 3 hours in the middle of the night causing you to spend most of the night on the floor of her room or in a chair...VOALT! 
 
• Hungry because you are too lazy to pack yourself a lunch or cook a real dinner....VOALT!
 
• In pain because you have had a splitting headache for the past two days....VOALT! (Of course, this complaint is also accompanied by a note to put down the coffee and drink some water ASAP.)

Since Felicity does not yet (i) have a cell phone, or (ii) know how to text, she has not been participating in this motivational exchange.  Of course, as it turns out, she doesn't need to chant "VOALT" to get her through the day.  Instead, she has obviously chosen this week to have the BEST WEEK EVER at school!



Felicity with Mommy (Dec. 2012) - Not relevant to this post at all but a cute photo of our matching outfits

This is the second day in a row where Felicity has not cried when we were dropping her off at school.  That is essentially unheard of in our household.  Instead, when I dropped her off this morning, she ran straight into the classroom to find her bucket and put it back on her head where it belongs.  Remember this picture from last week?  Well, it turns out that it is her new "thing."  She is now known around the school for wearing that bucket on her head all day - although in an effort to teach manners, they do make her remove her "hat" for snacktime.

Felicity moves up to the next classroom next week so it is only natural that she has become fully adjusted and happy in the one that she is in now just days before her big move.  Luckily, I know now that it is only a matter of time before she adjusts again and we have our happy, enthusiastic little buddy back!

In the meantime, I am resolved not to worry about the stresses and trials that next week will bring and just focus on.... VOALT.  If the weekend can bring just a few smiles like the one below, it will certainly live up to its name! :)

 



There is always enough time to be SILLY!

One of the unspoken rules at our house (especially after work in the evening) is that it is important to make time to enjoy each other and be silly.  Until FJ goes to bed at night, we really try our best to be engaged and in the moment, which usually requires us to hide our phones and avoid e-mails. 

 

I really want Felicity to know that she is my number one priority.  I also want to show her by example how to live life with joy.  Our time is spent together reading books, dancing around the kitchen with daddy, playing chase in the yard, blowing bubbles, and playing hide & seek. 

 

For some reason, Felicity's favorite spot to play hide & seek is in the downstairs half-bathroom.  She will make either Austin or me huddle up in that tiny bathroom with her and our dogs, Maggie and Jackson.  Poor Maggie, a big black lab, can barely fit in that tiny half-bath, but she will squeeze in and sit there patiently while Felicity giggles in anticipation of being found.  If you are looking for a reason to smile, then I recommend that you watch this video and experience first-hand how fun it is to play hide and seek with my little buddy. 

 

 

Another game that Felicity likes to play is "dress up."  However, rather than dress up like a princess or her standard favorite (Minnie Mouse), lately her version of dress-up has involved getting out her old baby accessories and wearing them in new, creative ways, such as turning her newborn socks into mittens! Once the "mittens" are on her hands, she will smile and clap in front of the mirror.  When she does so, I am quickly reminded how every game and activity at this age is teaching her something new - like the sound differences between clapping with and without "mittens."  Occassionally, she will insist that she continue to wear those mittens when she goes to school.  We tend to get a lot of sympathetic looks and questions about what happened to her hands, so maybe next time I should put a sticker on her that says, "I am just being silly!" :)  

Felicity is starting to open up and be more silly at school, too.  Yesterday afternoon, Austin arrived to pick her up and found her in circle time, sitting next to her friends, reading books and wearing a bucket as a hat on her head!  It turns out that she had been wearing that bucket for hours, and had been disappointed when her friends didn't want to wear their "hats," as she called them. 

 

 

From the moment she was born, she has just had such a delightful, expressive, and (let's be honest) dramatic personality that we like to joke that her personality matches her hair.

 

Oh, by the way, it is FRIDAY!  That is definitely something to clap about....



 



All About FJ

The theme this week in FJ's classroom is "All About Me."  In order to teach the one year olds all about themselves, the teachers have asked the parents to bring in a family photo, fill out a short survey about their child's current interests, and bring in one "Show and Tell" item that the child will recognize.

Earlier this week, Austin and I spent some time filling out FJ's survey and we enjoyed discussing her favorite things at this stage of her life.  Included below is a sample of the questions we were asked and how we answered them:

My best friends: My cousins Lily and Christian

(Although Felicity loves all of her cousins, she gets to play with Lily and Christian on a weekly basis.  When you see the joy in her eyes when she first catches sight of either Lily or Christian, it is clear that they hold a special place in her heart as her "besties.")

Felicity with Lily (Chik-Fil-A Play Date)

Felicity with Christian (Halloween 2012)

My favorite foods:  Hummus and Ice Cream

Austin and I like to joke that Felicity is going through a stage right now where her main sources of protein are hummus, greek yogurt and boogers.  Oh, the life of a toddler!

In all seriousness, though, she eats through an entire container of hummus every week, and LOVES doing so!

My favorite color: Pink

My favorite song:  Row, Row, Row Your Boat (*The Crocodile Version)

I wanted to find a picture of her doing the "Ahhh!" face at the end of the song.  It is truly precious, but alas, I have not yet photographed the moment!  I better add that to my to-do list!

My favorite sport:  Climbing

Austin and I really struggled to choose her favorite sport because she is so active.  Her hobbies include:

Collecting Grass....

Running....

And running really, really fast!

 

My favorite subject:  Physical Education (*See Comments to Sports Question Above)

Each night after dinner, we go outside as a family, eat our ice cream cones or popsicles and then enjoy some fun play time!  One of Felicity's favorite words right now is 'Side (which is short for "Outside" if you don't speak Toddler).  Tonight, our play time consisted of a condensed P.E. class - toddler-style.  The class involved a dance lesson from Mommy:

A golf lesson from Daddy:

 

And finished up with a tennis lesson:

 

Side Note:  The survey failed to ask about Felicity's favorite character (A: Minnie Mouse) or her favorite toy (A: Cell Phones - fake or real), but I wanted to note them here so we do not forget.

Felicity is growing up so quickly and has become such a unique, fun, outgoing little person.  I am glad that her school has provided us with this opportunity to think about who she is and what she enjoys at this moment in time because I know that as soon as I blink my eyes, she is going to have moved on to an entirely different stage and I do not want to forget one moment of her precious childhood.