Busy Summer

We have had such a fun and busy summer!

Here is Abby at a local splash pad on Fourth of July weekend!
We went to a fireworks show on the Fourth of July and she really liked the fireworks!
We had some friends over on the forth for a little party.
Abby (and her best friend Ivy) are now completely potty trained!!!!
Nana (Jennifer’s Mom) came for a visit and brought Abby’s cousin, Aria, for a visit.
Her cousin Aria is 5 years old but her and Abby wear the same size clothes. Here they are in their matching robes with their bunnies.
They got to play with some real bunnies that we are raising on our farm.
We took Aria and Nana with us to the zoo. Abby loves the hippo!
Abby now dresses herself and usually looks so cool!
Sometimes her choices are a little creative.
At the beginning of August, our whole family had COVID at the same time but we all have recovered now.
After we got better we went on a family vacation to the beach.
It was Abby’s first time on a plane and she did great!
We played in the sand and built a sandcastle.
Abby was afraid of the ocean so we only went in once.
We also went to a wildlife center while there and saw some local animals.
Did some shopping.
Took a city tour.
And swam in our hotel’s pool. she liked the pool a lot more than the ocean.
Abby’s favorite part was the water fountain and elevator in our hotel.
Just this week, Abby climbed out her crib so she graduated to a toddler bed. She was scared at first but after the first night she stayed and slept in her new big girl bed.

Happy Mother’s/Father’s Day!

I didn’t realize how long it has been since the last update! May is a really busy month for our family.

Abby has help celebrate several birthdays for both friends and family. Here she is at her friend, Tenley’s fairy party.
Here she is with her best friend, Ivy, at the party.
Abby came to graduation at the university where Jennifer teaches. Everyone thought she was so cute. Of course, Jennifer manages to work Abby into almost every lecture that she gives so the students were excited to finally meet her!
We went to the zoo with some friends. This is Abby with her friend Sloane.
Abby went to her first pool party!
It was a birthday party for her cousin, Kennen.
Here she is with her other cousin, Aria.
We went on a trip to Nashville to celebrate Mother’s Day.
And just had a lazy day at home for Father’s Day!
We also celebrated Shawn’s birthday last week.

Happy Easter!

We have had a busy and fun Spring so far!

We made cookies.
And decorated them.
We went to a friend’s birthday party and got to paint with water colors.
Abby loves flowers!
We hosted an Easter egg hunt at our house.
Abby loved it!
After the egg hunt we decorated cookies with our friends and had hamburgers and hot dogs for dinner.
Abby enjoyed opening her Easter basket in her bunny PJs on Easter Morning.
On Easter Morning we went to church. Abby loves Sunday school and can’t wait to go each Sunday.
Abby also had fun coloring Easter eggs for the first time this year.

We hope everyone had a Happy Easter! Thank you to David and Lisa for Abby’s Easter box.

Happy St. Patrick’s Day!!!

This was taken at her grandparents’ (Shawn’s Parents) house. She loves to walk on the stones that surround their garden!
We have had some crazy weather here. One day is is sunny and she is pushing her bubble lawnmower.
The next we are playing in the snow.
Abby got a sandbox and plays in it everyday no matter the weather!

Abby is getting so big and is now tall enough to turn on and off the lights without a step stool!

She has also started singing songs. A favorite is “Row, Row, Row your boat” which she sings this way: Row, Row, Row Boat. Mary Mary Mary Cheese. 😂

She still loves books and has memorized several of them so it seems like she is reading (but she just knows what to say for each page—she doesn’t know all of her letters yet).

Another Abby-ism is that she calls her elbow, her elbone. She keeps mommy and daddy smiling all day with her sweet personality!

Happy Valentine’s Day!

Valentine’s Day was on a Monday so Abby went to play with her friend, Ivy, while Mommy and Daddy went to work. Ivy’s Mom made them heart shaped sandwiches for lunch.
Ivy is Abby’s best friend!
On Sunday, Abby and Mommy made Valentines to give to some of our elderly neighbors. We delivered them with some cookies.
On Tuesday, we went to story time at the library as a family and then had Chinese food for lunch.
Abby loves Noodles!!!
Abby’s new favorite activities is “washing dishes.”

We hope everyone had a fun Valentine’s Day! Thank you to Lisa and David for sending her a Valentine’s Day box. She especially liked the potty time paw patrol book. We will be really focusing on potty training in March (during Mommy’s Spring break) so that book will be very helpful!

Merry Christmas!

We had a wonderful Christmas and we hope everyone else did too! Abby has a cold so we decided to love our neighbors by skipping the Christmas Eve church service (and not giving all the other two year olds a cold) this year, but she was able to enjoy all the other magical moments of the Christmas Season. She was still the same happy and funny girl she always is even though her nose kept being “sticky.”

Just after Thanksgiving, we went to visit Santa and Abby was not a fan! She dropped to her knees and crawled away from him yelling “Help! Help!” Santa hid behind his chair so we could get a picture!
She had fun decorating what she calls, “Daddy’s Tree.” Every morning she comes out of her room and says, “Daddy tree still here? Daddy Mess.”
We decorated Christmas Cookies! She either took a bite out of or licked all but three of them. 🤦🏻‍♀️
She loves the song “Jingle Bells” especially that part when you say, “Hey!”
We left milk and cookies out for Santa and he left some goodies for Abby!
She was scared to go to the presents at first, but Mommy showed her it was ok and she soon dug right in. She is a very cautious child and takes a minute to warm up to new things.
Her favorite gift by far was her new bike! Thank you to Lisa and David for sending it! We just put the gifts you sent along with what we had gotten her out and made it all from “Santa.”
She has been riding it all around the house with her bunny in the compartment in that back!
On Christmas afternoon we went to Shawn’s Parent’s house for Christmas part two. As you can probably guess, at least half these presents are for Abby!
We had dinner, opened presents, and then had dessert afterward.
She was one worn out little girl! I will put her back in her dress and get a better picture to post in a few days. Thank you to everyone who sent gifts. She enjoyed everything (even though she doesn’t really understand why we did all of this)!
Here is a video of her playing with some of her new toys while Mommy did the dishes.
Abby says, “My mom made me wear this again”
Every year I take a picture of her next to her stocking.

Thanksgiving

Sorry that I am so late getting these pictures posted.

Jennifer’s parents (Nana and Papa) came to stay with our family for Thanksgiving.
Abby and Nana watched the parade while Mommy started cooking.
Abby and Mommy wore matching shirts!
Abby liked the pie the best!
Abby made her first gingerbread house!
She is a happy and silly child!

Happy Halloween

For Halloween this year, our family went as the Bubble Guppies. Abby is Bubble Puppy, Jennifer is Molly, and Shawn is Gil.

She really liked trick or treating!
She was not a fan of pumpkin carving. She said “yucky” and then screamed when she saw the inside.
She was pretty unimpressed with the finished product as well. 🤷🏻‍♀️ Maybe next year.
We went to the pumpkin patch. (Yes, she is 36.5 inches tall and weighs 31 lbs at her 2 year old check up)
She loved the hay ride!
Look at that cute country girl!
No pumpkin patch visit would be complete without apple cider and apple cinder donuts!

Abby is 23 months old

She loves to eat! Favorite foods are pizza, sausage, blue berries, any kind of noodle, string cheese, and yogurt.
Her favorite show is bubble guppies, but she also likes Peppa Pig, Bluey, and Paw patrol (she calls it Doggie Show).
We have started trying to potty train. She mostly likes to carry her potty around the house.
We have been going to the zoo a lot this summer. Her favorite part is the carousel!
She is getting so big! She talks well. She can’t say many sentences, but there is nothing she can’t communicate!
She climbs on everything.
She is so funny!