Abbie: 4.5
Motherhood

Abbie: 4.5

Four and a half. We don’t typically celebrate half birthdays around here, though I always notice them. When Abbie turned 4.5 back on June 21, I made a mental note of it, but that was about it. No big celebration, no cake – I didn’t even mention it to her, actually. I didn’t even think of 4.5 being that much different than 4. But it is. It is so different. I feel like Abbie is a completely different kid at 4.5 than she was at 4. She’s clearly been growing and changing all this time, but I feel like I…

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Switching to Preschool
Abbie

Switching to Preschool

I mentioned in my catch up post last week that we were switching Abbie to a more structured daycare setting, and today’s the day. Today is the day I bring Abbie to a different daycare for the first time in four years. Abbie has been in the same home daycare since the day I went back to work – April 5, 2013. I will never forget the emotions of that first day. Wondering if I had left enough for milk and formula for her to drink. Praying that trusting my gut in picking our daycare was the right decision. So…

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The Adjustment to Being a Big Sister
Motherhood

The Adjustment to Being a Big Sister

I’ve now gotten to the point in life as a mom of two that it’s hard to remember life with just one. Ella has seamlessly blended into our family, and I’m so grateful the transition has been smooth. A lot of that smooth transition is due to just how well Abbie has adjusted to being a big sister. I have to admit, before Ella was born I was a little bit nervous about how Abbie would do. At nearly four, she had definite personality (and sass for days) and ideas on what she did and didn’t like. She was used to…

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Abbie: FOUR
Abbie

Abbie: FOUR

Today my Abbie turns four. Four. It seems so big to me, and yet suits her perfectly. In fact, for months now I’ve almost been referring to her as four, telling people, “She’ll be four in December.” Now we’re here, and she really is four. People say the time goes so fast, but to me it isn’t true. Sure, looking back it seems like it went quickly, but I have felt every day of her four years, in all the highs and lows they contained. I have spent those four years getting to know my daughter, learning her personality and…

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What’s in a Name?
Motherhood

What’s in a Name?

I feel like I need to blow cobwebs off this space or something. I’m still here, just slowly adjusting to life with a newborn and our new normal as a family of four. I have had a few people ask the inspiration behind Ella’s name, so I thought I’d start back into regular blogging with that. Choosing a name is a huge responsibility. After all, this is the name your child will have their entire life, and it’s got to fit them, your family, and be a name you enjoy saying (because let’s face it, with kids you say their names…

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To My Daughter, Before You Become a Big Sister
Motherhood

To My Daughter, Before You Become a Big Sister

Well, any day now, it’s happening. With an induction date on the calendar, bags packed, and a nursery ready to go, it’s more evident than ever that our days as a family of three are numbered. Every night when we put Abbie to bed, I find myself wondering if this time is the last time we put her to bed as an only child. Is this the last time she’ll have all our attention and not have to share? I usually tell her I’ll see her in the morning, but I’ve stopped lately. Because the truth is, if I go…

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Becoming A Big Sister – A Bucket List
Motherhood

Becoming A Big Sister – A Bucket List

Now that we’re less than three months away from my due date with baby number two, our time with Abbie as an only child is quickly drawing to a close. While I think she’s going to take to being a big sister pretty well (but I could totally be wrong), I know she’s going to miss the one-on-one attention she currently enjoys. Since my sisters are significantly younger than me (the first was born when I was nine), I vividly remember the transition from only child to big sister, and I want to make it as smooth as possible for Abbie.…

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My Pizza Chef
Motherhood

My Pizza Chef

One of the things I always knew I wanted to do with my kids was cook. I grew up cooking with my mom and Nana, and I think it’s one of the reasons I still enjoy cooking now. When I was little, it was all easy family meals in large portions – one of the first family meals I ever learned was Baked Ziti. Now that I’m older and more health conscious, we keep things a little simpler, but I still want Abbie to learn just the way I did – by helping out in the kitchen from an early…

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Planning Abbie’s Big Girl Room
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Planning Abbie’s Big Girl Room

Now that baby girl number two is well on her way, we’ve started preparing for Abbie’s big girl room. I have to admit – I’m more excited for this than I was for her nursery. This is the room she’ll have when she starts school, that she may have her very first sleepovers in, that she’ll remember as her childhood bedroom. Our house has three bedrooms, so to make things easier, we’re moving Abbie into what is now the guest room (and, to be honest, the catch-all room – anyone else do that to their guest room?) and giving the…

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My Three-Year-Old vs. The Potty
Abbie

My Three-Year-Old vs. The Potty

For the past two weeks, we’ve been dealing with what I consider my most difficult parenting task so far – potty training. At nearly 3 ½, Abbie still doesn’t have any desire to be one of the big kids and go on the potty. Seriously, potty training is not for the faint of heart. As most of you know, we are a cloth diapering family, but when Abbie grew out of her cloth diapers, we knew it was time to really put the push on potty training and picked up a few packages of Pull-Ups. I was cautiously optimistic. I…

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