life's about to get even better...

Hey GUESS WHAT???

WHAT??!! I AM SO EXCITED, MOMMY!! WHAT??! 

Actually, probably no one else will be as excited by this as I am, but I'll share anyway. Pitch Perfect 2 comes onto Netflix tomorrow!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

(please insert seven billion more exclamation points to understand how excited I really am)

(I am like Millie-in-her-car excited. And more. Like Millie-in-a-car-with-her-tambourine-and-some-string-cheese. Like the world might explode with my enthusiasm.)

I just found out about this late-breaking news about five minutes ago and it's done wonders for my outlook on life. But not my health. I fear I might be coming down with something sudden and severe and extremely contagious...alas.

Anyway, other than that, things are just trucking right along over here. Millie is getting smarter and funnier (and cuter, if possible) by the hour. It's a lot to keep up with. This week she learned how to dance on command ("Millie, can you dance?") and it's definitely the best thing to ever happen. Ever. I have about 82 videos of it, but uploading them seems like a lot of work, so just take my word for it. She dances. With enthusiasm. 

When I'm not dancing, I'm sampling supposedly non-edible ornamental plants from the flower bed. Who makes these arbitrary rules about what you can eat, anyway? They're wrong.

We're soaking up the end of summer here (although the end of heat is nowhere in sight)...last week we even experienced a few exciting firsts!

I went fishing during a staff fun day at work and caught my first fish in about 20 years!! And then I caught two more!!! I was on fi-yah. It was very exciting, as you may have guessed by my expression.

Millie and I went up to the mountains for the day on Thursday to visit my friends James and Kristina. Millie had her first experience wearing a life jacket and swimming in a lake.

Auntie Stine, stop laughing at me!! YOU DON'T KNOW THE STRUGGLE!!!

It was...not her favorite. I can't blame her, though. That life jacket was all up in her face. I tried to make her feel better by telling her that next summer she will be big enough for puddle jumpers, but it didn't help. Oh well. 

Back home, I tried to make up for the traumatic Life Jacket Incident by letting her do all of her most favorite things. That means we take about thirty walks a day in her car(s).

Mommy, I no longer require a five-point-harness in a rear-facing car seat. Look how safe this lap belt keeps me!

Tropical Storm Erika ended up being a pretty excellent natural disaster name-twin. There were enough funny headlines and news stories to keep me laughing, and not a whole lot of destruction and bad stuff. We even got some rain and cooler weather here in the Southeast, which many people thanked me for (you're so welcome, I had a LOT to do with it), so that was nice. I wore long sleeves (rolled up, but still) on Sunday and it was delightful. Tomorrow it'll be back into the 90s, so our reprieve was short-lived, but...we'll be fine. I mean, we can just stay in and watch Pitch Perfect 2 every day, so who even cares what the weather is like?

I was trying to get her to make her fabulous smile for the camera, but she's definitely a stinker already and has figured out how to glare when she wants to.  And then she thinks she's so funny.

When she's not dancing, Millie's busy carrying our photo books all over the house. It's the most adorable thing ever. She always wants to crawl in our laps and look at all the pictures. I cry basically every time as we tell her the stories about her life so far.

I just like to look at the cute baby.

 In case you can't tell, I'm trying to make more of a point to be in pictures with Millie. Last week I noticed that although I take approximately 40 pictures of Millie every day, there weren't any pictures of me with her for almost a month. That's just sad. So tonight we took a break in the middle of our normal hectic evening- Matt and I trying to cook dinner (curry and naan) while we trip all over Millie's toys on the floor (that she quit playing with because she needed to be held so that she could watch us cook)- and took a Real Life picture. Millie looks a little dazed, and I look a little hyped up, but dang. Sometimes (okay, most of the time), I just can't believe how incredibly lucky I am.

Mainly because Pitch Perfect 2 comes to my TV tomorrow. But I guess there're some other reasons, too.

ordinary life, hurricane dreams

Well, well, well. Long time no chat. I have no exciting excuses, so we'll just move straight into the cute baby pictures and completely thrilling weekend updates, okay? 

I heard rompers were in style this fall? I approve.

 On Saturday we spent the day- wait for it- overhauling our garage!! We took everything out!! We cleaned! We vacuumed!! We organized!! We trashed and recycled and donated a crap-ton of stuff! We put it all back in, but more neatly!!

You are probably rightfully devastated that I don't have any before and after pictures. Seriously. It's basically HGTV-worthy, although we didn't really go crazy and do stuff like paint the floors or color coordinate bins and labels. Just a normal amount of awesome organization. Ooh and we mounted thingies to hold the bikes up on the walls, thus freeing up floor space for all of Millie's large outdoor toys and paraphernalia! Most importantly, we a) moved all toxic chemical products (fertilizers, insecticides, paint) up to high shelves, and b) we did not see any evidence of mama snakes or any other creepy creatures.  

Annnnd that's about all I have to say about my garage. You'll just have to take my word for it. It was pretty exciting. And insanely hot and sweaty and dirty and gross.

It was tiring, too. As tiring as this trip to Target.

When we're not busy doing mega-glamorous projects in the garage, we keep busy terrorizing playing with our animals.

Lola, I will read you this story about some ladybugs. THEY ALL FLY AWAY.

Aidan. Stop staring. Like you've never seen a topless lady in your yard before. Sheesh.

No, Mommy, I will not pose nicely in my adorable outfit for you. I MUST PET MY LOLA!!!!

In other news, did you hear that the next hurricane will be named Erika? It's like a dream come true. My hurricane will probably be forming in the next week or so, so I'll be watching with bated breath to see how I turn out. I'm pulling for something initially scary and intimidating that gets folks out of school and work, but then turning sharply out to sea and weakening before hitting any land, thereby avoiding any actual destruction. That way people will all be like thanks for the free day off, Erika! Wooo! and it will be really fun. These are the kinds of things I daydream about now, so yeah. It's pretty exciting to be me. (Also, please note that if Hurricane Erika ends up being remotely terrible, I will come back and delete all of this and act horrified at the idea of ever wanting to identify with a natural disaster. What kinda psycho would think that, anyway?)

So...like I said at the beginning, nothing much exciting is going on. Just normal, happy life. It's enough.

things that are awesome

In no particular order, a few things/discoveries/people that have been particularly awesome this last week.

1. These Sweet Potato Tacos with Lime Crema.

I know, you thought I would pick something to do with Millie first, didn'tcha? I'm going for the element of surprise here. TACOS! SURPRISE!

Anyway, no joke, these tacos are unbelievable. It's basically the lime crema that puts them over the top, so don't think you're going to get lazy and just use plain old sour cream. Go the extra step. Your taste buds will do an exuberant dance of thanks. Bonus points for the recipe being easy, fast, cheap, and reasonably healthy. Please don't ask how many times we've made them in the last two weeks. My capacity to eat and love Mexican food is endless and borderline embarrassing. 

2. The Gilmore Guys podcast. I heard about this a few months ago and forgot about it until yesterday. BUT NOW I AM OBSESSED. Forget Serial- a podcast featuring two really funny dudes thoroughly dissecting every single episode of my favorite show (with awesome guests, including some cast members!!!!, on most episodes) is what's up. Trust me on this one. If you're a fan of the show, you should check out this podcast. And if you're not a fan of the show, I don't even know if we can be friends. (Just kidding. One of my best friends has always hated the show and mocked me for liking it (as in, since we were watching the show live a decade ago) and I'm still friends with her. But I pray for her mortal soul...)

3. Okay, fine. MILLIE.

She's always awesome, but watching her open presents on her birthday (no party, just her favorite food, cupcakes, and presents with us and her grandparents) was extra awesome. She really started to get the whole opening presents thing. And then she got super excited about each new toy. And it was good. Very, very good.

Oh hey, what's in this cool bag?

INSTRUMENTS!!! I'm going to start a band! 

OH MY GOSH IT'S THE BEST DAY EVERRRR!!

She got lots of fun new toys, but we've all had the most fun with her new outside toys. She basically has a heart attack every time she sees them in the garage. Her pointing and squealing and frantic reaching towards her car is quite possibly the cutest thing ever (and a real bummer when we're in a rush to get in the (real) car to go somewhere).

This toy has been a win for me, too, because now we go on even MORE walks than normal, so I'm getting my daily steps in without nearly as much struggling!

4. Fall.

I mean, I know it isn't fall yet. But Millie already has her Basic White Girl uniform ready to go, so I'm getting pretty pumped.

I heard blankie scarves are going to be in again this season.

She loves carrying her blankies around everywhere, but they drag on the ground and trip her. It doesn't bother her, but it kinda grosses me out when we're at, say, the doctor's office (as pictured). So today Matt just looped and wrapped it all around her (basically exactly like I do with my blanket scarf in the winter, ha) and it cracked me up. But it was effective!! No tripping and she was perfectly happy. So there ya have it. Blanket scarves for one-year-olds. You saw it first here, folks.

But in all seriousness, fall does sound great right about now. Mainly because I just bought Millie a new chambray shirt tonight...

And that's all we have time for. Four awesome things. My podcast is calling, so goodnight!

twelve months!

Well, the day has finally come. Our twelve month update. This little nugget is an entire year old (and a few days, but who's counting?).

A whole YEAR, Mommy??! I am GROWN!!!!

That means this was our very last photo shoot with stickers and forcing her to pose on the precariously rocking chair. She will probably be sadder about that than I will.

It's like a rollercoaster!!!

 So grab a hanky, cause it's our last trip through these particular questions. Well, maybe I'll do it again at 18 months, just for fun. Or like, age 13 years and 2 months. Just because.

Aliases: Nothing's changed here. Millie, Mills, Millsie, Millsie Lou, Nuggie, Nugs, Snugs, Snuggles, Little Bit.

Stats: Since she just so happened to be sick on her birthday (how convenient!), we got a free weigh-in. 24 pounds and 4 ounces to close out year #1. She hasn't had her twelve-month checkup yet, so I'm not sure how tall she is, but she's still going strong in 12-month and 12-18 month clothes. Her disposable dipes are size 4. Now that she walks, she needs to wear shoes...she's about a size 3 in baby/toddler shoes, but since all of the "real" shoes seemed to rub/scratch her feet in various places, I ordered a few more pair of trusty moccasins and called it a day. They're her trademark, really.

I mean, my moccs are functional AND fashionable- what more could a girl want?

She closed out her first year with approximately 7.5 teeth. Four up top, three downstairs, and another bottom guy jussssst starting to poke through. She is every apple's worst nightmare. CHOMP!

Habits: 

• Eating: She all but lost interest in her bottles during month twelve. We still offered them to her 4-5 times a day, but she drank maybe 12-15 ounces total per day. She got much more excited about drinking water out of her sippy cup this month, and she continued being an excellent Real Food eater. She eats three normal meals each day with us/with her classmates, plus two snacks. At school, she doesn't even use a high chair for her meals! She sits at a (tiny) table in her own chair and apparently stays there long enough to feed herself! She still does not use utensils, but she's amazingly adept at self-feeding. Now that her "weaning" is complete, I must give a huge final shout-out to Baby-led Weaning. It was the easiest, cheapest, and most fun ever, and our girl is a fantastic eater. And I never once had to buy or make baby food. WE ALL WIN.
• Sleeping is about the same as it's been for the last few months. She goes to bed around 8:30 p.m. and wakes up between 6:30-7:30 a.m. She was transitioning to the one-year-old classroom at her school, and the nap situation there is totally different (and apparently WAY BETTER for her) than it is in the infant room, so I have to break her nap details into two parts. When she was still in the infant room, she napped whenever she felt like it, which usually meant 2-3 really short (15-30 minute) naps per day. In the one-year-old room, they all nap (on little cots!!) at once, and only once per day. Since she's moved there, she's napped for 2.25 hours per day, plus another short nap when we come home in the evening. I guess they really wear her out in there!

Likes: Playing with her "sister" Lola and giving her toys/blankets/books/food/anything.

LOLA!!! Here is your toy!! I will hit your face with it until you take it!!

She loves going outside, playing with anything (doesn't matter if it's actually a toy...used tissues from the trash can are totally fair game and SUPER FUN, evidently), reading stories, splashing in Lola's water bowl, swimming, cuddling with her blankies, drinking out of grown-up cups, eating, and playing with/watching other babies and kids.

I'm so tired I can't even sit up and pull everything off the shelf.

Dislikes: Well, anesthesia, for one. WORST THING EVER. The word "no" is also pretty terrible. 

A Nuggie's gotta do what a Nuggie's gotta do, Mom. Don't try to change me.

Diaper changes and nose wiping are of the devil. She doesn't even fall for the ol' "I'm gonna steal your boogies!!!" game. Having her hands and faced wiped after a meal is similarly terrible.

There's not much else that she doesn't like, but I gotta hand it to her- she takes her short list of dislikes and REALLY COMMITS. She knows how to bring the dramatics when she is faced with something she deems awful.

Well, obviously you should just keep doing the things I like. Then I'll never have to get upset. Silly Mommy...one day you'll learn!

 Special Skills: She took her first step the day after she turned eleven months old and was a full-time walker by about a week later. She didn't waste any time. She still wobbles and falls down a lot, but she hops right back up without missing a beat. Her new skills have led her to lots of bumps and bruises over the last month, as she crashes into (and gets into) pretty much everything...hence the fabulous little bruise next to her mouth that is evident in all of her pictures from the last week. Wah. Although she is perfectly capable of walking, she still prefers for Mama and Daddy to carry her around in public, which is fine by me. I have enough trouble keeping up with her in our 1300 square foot house. I don't want to imagine how it would go at Target.

She doesn't say any meaningful words yet (except possibly Mama and Dada), but she's gotten pretty good at pointing emphatically (and making sound effects that convey how urgent the need is) at what she wants. A few times I've felt like we're REALLY winning at mother/daughterhood because she will be crying and clearly needing something that I can't discern, and I've asked her to point at what she wants (and I demonstrate pointing at a few things)...and she will!! And then I can get it (it's usually something super important, like a random shoe on a shelf. Or a piece of junk mail on the counter.) and she looks amazed when I hand it to her and then she's happy again. COMMUNICATION!! It's brilliant!!

My mommy understands me! For my next trick, I will learn to talk to dolphins.

 A year has come and gone more quickly than I'd ever imagined. I couldn't be prouder of this sweet little thing, and motherhood is every bit as amazing as I'd dreamed it would be. The nugget-shaped hole in my heart has been filled and I simply lack the words to describe what a blessing this child has been.

Happy first birthday, Camilla. I have no idea if you will ever read this, but I hope that if you do, the love and gratitude I have for you will come as no surprise. I hope that my words and my actions speak even louder and more convincingly than these words on a screen ever will.

Your life has only just begun, and I consider myself the luckiest person on earth that I get to experience it as your mama. You are a gift, a treasure, a tangible expression of God's love and redemption. You are loved more than you will ever know.

 Eleven Months

Ten Months

Nine Months
Eight Months

Seven Months

Six Months

Five Months

Four Months

Three Months

Two Months

One Month