Drew at Night

Some nights Drew is just pooped, and therefore ready for bed before Tommy and I are brave enough to put him down. I know that babies sleep better and longer if they go to bed early. I know all that. I'm just still worried to death about him not sleeping through the night! So some nights, it's a struggle. As seen below:

Usually it's Tommy fussing at me about letting him fall asleep. I just adore cuddling with him so much, and I know those days are numbered. This night though, it was Tommy that let him go!

Visit with Elliott, Laurie, Aiden, and Amelia

Back in July, Elliott, Laurie and their kids were able to stop by for a little visit on their way to the beach. It was so good seeing them, and it was as if we had seen them just the day before - hadn't missed a beat!

 Laurie and Drew

 Amelia and Elliott

Elliott, Aiden, and Addie Kate - these two were WILD together! They absolutely love each other!

Playtime for Baby Drew

Drew adores his playgym. It was Addie's, and she would tolerate it, but never loved it. This baby gets so excited when we put him in it! He kicks his sweet little feet, swats at the toys, and every now and then grabs one and tries to get it in his mouth! He'll talk and laugh at it, and those are some of the sweetest sounds I've ever heard.

These pictures are awful, I guess the lighting is hard to work with when he's under this netting, but I wanted to remember how sweet and cute he was in here!

 (These above pictures were at 13 weeks.)

I wish you could see the "action" in these pictures! You can tell that his sweet little feet were kicking.

(These were taken at 11 weeks.)

The End of 2K

My post title sounds sad and depressing, but honestly, that's how I feel about the end of my little girl's 2K year! It breaks my heart! It's been such a wonderful year. Full of blessings, learning, new friends, wonderful teachers, and lots of growth. This will always hold such a dear, sweet place in our hearts!

 My sweet girl on our doorstep the morning of her last day of 2K. She was able to go to school part time three days a week this summer. Tommy was working from home, so she'd needed somewhere to go for a few hours each day. Plus, I was on "maternity leave" and needed that time alone to bond with my new little man. Addie loved it, and it kind of kept all of us in a routine. I cannot believe how much she has grown and changed in a year!

Addie dearly loved her 2K experience. She really loved her teachers. They were so good with her, and with us, being the nervous, overprotective parents that we can be!

Addie Kate and Marybeth

And Addie Kate with Kristianna. (My typical, silly girl!)

She also had Mrs. Diana in the afternoons, who is just as sweet as sugar. I didn't get to get a picture of her with Diana. We still get to see her though and Addie always has a hug for her!

And for a little comparison:

We noticed around Christmas time that our toddler, had turned into a little girl. A beautiful one that's full of personality, but now a little girl. I wish I could live by the saying "Don't cry because it's over, smile because it happened," but I do get sad. I enjoy every new milestone, but I miss dearly the baby and toddler days with this little angel!

Addie Kate's Spring School Pictures

Addie  Kate's school had a photographer come out right around Easter to get school pictures of the students. I knew they'd be outside, but had no idea how cute they'd turn out! Nearing the end of my pregnancy, having just paid for an Easter session, and since all of her Easter dresses are handmade and this year's wasn't finished yet, I just threw her in a cute outfit we had in the closet and sent a note for her to be barefoot, since we hadn't yet bought sandals. (Capri pants do NOT go with tennis shoes and socks!) When I got the proofs, I was quite impressed! I thought they turned out great!

 I think sassy-pants here just didn't want her feet to get in the dirty mulch. Can't say I blame her, but every shot has her feet in the air!

 The photographer even had a bunny! Addie was in love!

 Her hair needed a trim, but I love this picture of my sweet girl regardless! (hence it's appearance on the top of my blog!)

 When I went to the photographer's website, this picture was on the front! I don't think it's "Addie's smile," but I do love it.

And they did class pictures too. Obviously, these were done on some random day and right after playing outside. All the youngin's are looking a little rough! But it was Addie's first preschool class, and therefore this picture holds a very special place in our hearts!

Addie Kate's Easter and Family/Maternity Portraits

In March, so about a month before I had baby boy, a friend of mine from high school, Kate Graham Barrett, was taking precious Easter pictures at Milliken in Spartanburg. I loved the idea that she used a baby lamb, so I jumped on it. Then, I thought maybe, since this would be my last pregnancy, we should do some pregnancy pictures. And lastly, some pictures as a family of three. I was very pleased with how they all turned out! And since this blog is our little family album, I know I needed to put them on here, even though it's six months later!

Addie loved this little bunny. She's had tons of Easter pictures done with real bunnies, but this year she really took to them. I told Tommy that I was sure she'd be asking for one, and we'd NOT be getting one!

I loved the little lamb, but Addie wasn't nearly as taken with him as she was the bunny.

And, there wouldn't be pictures of my little girl, without one of these!

I adore her sweet tootsies. Always have!

I love these pictures, but I couldn't get my big belly in anything that coordinated well with Tommy and Addie. So, when I printed most of them, they were in black and white. Problem solved.

I love these shots of her up front and Tommy and me in the background.

Even with these sassy poses. But that's her, and that's what I want in my pictures of her. Her personality.

I even like these, with my big ole tree trunk legs. I think the idea is precious! Plus, again, it shows Addie at this stage in her life - everything, every single thing, is a balance beam to my girl! Ha!

I have seen this done with many people, and never knew if I liked it. I decided we should do it anyway, and I could always decide on my own to frame it or not. Well, I do love it. Mostly because it shows how happy Addie's been about me having a baby, and the fact that she'd do this on her own anyway. We framed it and and put it in Drew's nursery, and I think it's perfect!