Little Love

Lately Aurora has been all about love. She says the sweetest things all the time, in front of anybody and everybody. It's constant, and it's pretty obvious that she loves her mommy, daddy, and baby brother. Here are a few of her latest quotes:

"Mommy, I don't ever want to stop loving you never, not ever, NEVER!"
"Baby brother is sure going to love his big sister, just like she loves him!"
"Did it hurt when baby brother crawled into your belly? When I was a teeny tiny baby, I looked at all the mommy's and when I saw your face, I knew that I would love you and you would love me, so I crawled into your belly."

Seriously, she's always hugging and kissing me, my belly, and her daddy. I'm willing to bet I was about the same way at this age, considering my mom has always called me her Little Love!

One of my co-workers told me she thinks it's a cruel joke that I got such a sweet loving girl, and now I'll have to deal with a rambunctious boy. I expect he'll be completely different from his big sister, but I'm pretty sure we'll all love him (and he'll love us) just the same.

Doctors and Dentists

Today was another big busy day, as I had the crazy idea to schedule both Aurora's 4-year well child visit AND her first dentist appointment this afternoon back-to-back.

She's still squarely in the 25th percentile for both height (39" tall) and weight (31 lbs). She passed her hearing test, though she couldn't seem to hear the highest decibel in her left ear.

Afterwards she had to get 3 vaccinations, which was not fun. I'll tell you what was fun... getting her teeth tickled at the dentist! She seriously laughed almost the whole time.

I also got my teeth cleaned while Aurora climbed on my legs the whole time. When that was over, we had both earned ourselves some ice cream so we headed to Sonic for a treat.

The dentist said everything looked good and we could bring her back in a year, and the doctor said she won't need another shot until she's 11 years old, though we'll see her again in a year as well. Probably sooner, considering she'll be baby brother's doctor, too!

25 Weeks

This weekend we hit 25 weeks and I can finally say that most of my maternity clothes fit and I feel pregnant. I've been getting heartburn or indigestion multiple times a day, I feel all kinds of kicks and wiggles, and even strangers are starting to talk to me about being pregnant! Early on, nobody seemed to notice (or admit to it) because who knows - I could've just been gaining a little weight, right?

Wednesday I had my monthly OB appointment and instead of a sonogram, she used a doppler to hear the heartbeat and measured my belly. It's amazing to me that belly measurements could possibly match up to weeks, but I measured right at 25 cm. Yup, 25 weeks down, 15 more to go!

Tie-Dye

During Aurora's party, she tie-dyed a tank top and I asked Grandma Nancy if she'd like to dye a shirt for cousin Zeland. I think they turned out pretty cool!

This week we had our company picnic, and one of my friends brought her daughter, who just happened to be wearing her tie-dye from our party...

And today when I went to pick Aurora up from school, her friend Seth was wearing his tie-dye!

So cute. We still have a few white t-shirts and more dye, so I'm thinking one of these days when we need an activity to do, we just may make some more! I kind of like the idea of a maternity tie-dye...

Big Birthday Girl

The party may be over, but we're still celebrating our big birthday girl. Yesterday she brought the rest of the brownie cupcakes to school and her friends sang Happy Birthday to her, then today she was able to officially move into her big girl bedroom. Well, not before saying goodbye to Grandma Nancy. I think Nancy enjoyed watching cartoons with us one last time before leaving...

This afternoon we moved most of Aurora's things into her new room. We still need to clear off the walls in her old room and decorate a bit more, but wow does she love it. She told us that she's going to stay in this room "FOREVER!!!" - then amended that to say that when she's as big as me and can drive, she'll go to her own house and will have a different room.

I thought she looked so little snuggled into this big full-size bed, but she was definitely outgrowing the converted crib, and of course... we'll have a tiny new family member using that crib very soon!

peace * love * party

Well, I can't say Aurora's birthday went EXACTLY as planned. Shortly after our guests arrived for the outdoor party, the skies grew dark and it started raining. No, pouring. But we all found cover, brought a small part of the festivities indoors, and the weather cleared up in time for us to enjoy some outdoor activities as well. Luckily I had friends and family here to help clean and prep, as I was not feeling my best. But Aurora had a great time, and I think everybody else had fun, too!

As you can see, this was a very groovy party! Instead of cake we had brownie cupcakes that looked like little flower pots. After lunch, we headed out to the studio garage to tie-dye shirts and play outside.

Special thanks to Chuck & Nancy and also Bailey & Laura. I couldn't have pulled this off without them, and I think these little girls had a very happy day because of their hard work...

Happy Birthday to my sweet, gorgeous, awesome BIG girl Aurora. We love you!!!

4 Year Photos

Grandma Nancy's here! This morning we went to JCPenney for our annual birthday & family photo shoot and I just love the results. I also love that they were able to post them online this quickly!

First, the family photos. We decided to add a few maternity poses, so I think we can call this Little Brother's first photo shoot too... sort of. Right?

And now for Aurora's 4 year photos. Seriously, could this girl be any cuter???

There are more, but I think this is about all I can fit on one blog post. Tomorrow's the big birthday party, which may have to be moved indoors due to weather. It'll still be great!

Wedding

Last night our good friends Amelia & Cody got married, and it was really the perfect evening - great weather, a beautiful location, heartfelt vows, lots of friends and a fun night of dancing. I got a few pictures but can't wait to see the official photos!

I think this was Aurora's first wedding, and she really enjoyed herself. She wanted to go hug Amelia during the ceremony, but we kept her in her seat and she got that hug later in the evening. She was seriously into showing off her moves on the dance floor and I must say we stayed out pretty late for her... by the time I said it was time to go home, she was ready. As we left she told my friend Sarah, "This girl needs to go to sleep."

Today when we got home from work and school, Aurora started setting up an elaborate wedding ceremony with her toys and dolls. We recited vows and ate a pretend dinner afterwards. If we didn't have to eat our real dinner, I'm fairly certain it would've turned into a dance party.

Amelia & Cody's wedding was just the beginning of many fun festivities coming up. Aurora's upcoming birthday means I might have to start blogging daily (or perhaps ever other day) for a little while... I hope you're ready!!!

Easter Weekend

Aurora's daycare was closed for Good Friday, which means I had one of those forced long weekends that I never think I have time for, but really couldn't come at a better time. I've had a sore throat all week and have had so much going on that having a bonus day off has actually been pretty great. We dyed hard boiled eggs, "hid" a fun-filled Easter basket and plastic eggs all over the house for Aurora to find, and had Bailey over to help build the much anticipated big girl bed.

Success! There's still more to be done before we make the full transition, and Aurora knows she won't be moving into her big girl room until after Grandma Nancy stays in the guest room one more time (next weekend!). Thanks to Bailey & Chuck for all their hard work - and Happy Easter & Passover to all!

Done

This weekend we got so much done. Saturday morning an electrician come out to fix some weird cords and outlets in the guest room to make sure it's safe to become a big girl bedroom, then Aurora and I headed out shopping with our friend Laura in search of party supplies and big girl bedding. We got more than we'd bargained for when we found the Easter bunny!

Chuck stayed home as we had another contractor coming out to fix the dishwasher, while Aurora and I had a playdate with her friend Alexandria. The girls (and moms) had so much fun...

Then we went to the mall, where Chuck picked up Aurora for an evening of shopping while I saw a movie with my girlfriends. He took the opportunity to buy himself an iPad, something he's wanted for quite some time. I'm not sure who was more excited about the purchase - Chuck or Aurora!

This morning I snuck off to prenatal yoga, and I'm pretty sure those two looked a lot like the photo above for most of that time. We met up for lunch, then headed to Buy Buy Baby where we started our baby registry. I know it's early, but I like to plan ahead and wanted to make sure that those of you who also plan ahead know what we do and don't need. There were a lot of things we borrowed or just never got with Aurora, but what we do have is neutral and in great condition, ready for re-use.

We spent the rest of the afternoon relaxing and playing at home, but with all we got done I have to say I am exhausted. This week is going to be exhausting as well, so... see you next weekend!