Big Girl

Someone out there may be judging me for this picture, sorry if it offends...but I just wouldn't be a true mommy blogger if I didn't say something about how much I hate potty training.  Was it hard? No.  Was it child led?  Yes.  Were there meltdowns? No. Could have it been way worse? Yes.

But I got peed on!

So glad that's over.

Now on to a developmental step I loved.  A big girl's bed!

We made the change into her bed the day we moved and she did and has done great.  She seems to sleep actually better (except she did fall out once!)  And she looks super sweet.   Now I think I need to go kiss her before I go to bed.

Home Sweet Home

We finally moved into our new house! 

The rest of this post is tons of before and after pictures (and we still have tons more to do!), so if you don't like that sort of thing feel free to stop reading now.

This is our house before we moved in, totally bare. It's three bedrooms, two baths, some other things that are probably important and if you're are interested ask Stu, and my favorite feature is the screen porch in the back <3

Our cute little house

I just really love that I have a whole room for laundry!

We have two cute little duck ponds on our block

Stuart got to make it home for 4 days so we packed like crazy, moved like crazy, and then unpacked like crazy.  Then I had lots of projects I wanted him to do!  He got everything for Chiara's room done, the rest of the house is a work in progress, but the only room completely under construction is the baby's room. 

Chiara's Room:

(this room is even 100 times cuter in real life, Stuart is a creative genius)

Our Room (Still needs tons of work, why do I always leave my own bedroom for last?)

We got this (and almost all our furniture, excluding our bed) for free or dirt cheap secondhand.  So be on the look out for us to get real DIY on you :)

The rest of the house (needs some work, but livable for now):

 

 This will be the baby's room at some point in the near future.  And I'm really excited to show off how cute it is especially after seeing it like this:

 I'm amazed by how much Stuart pretty much single-handedly got done in only four days!  Chiara and I are loving our new space. I can't wait to show off the other great things we have planned here!

Why...

don't kids come out this age?

Desi's 20

Poor Desi...such an awkward age..Have a great year anyway!!! We kicked it off great with a traditional Ryan's visit.

The Old Ball Game

For my Dad's birthday we headed out to the River Dog's (Charleston's minor league baseball team).

My girl and I had fun in our seats right behind home plate. 

Despite the uncertainty on her face, Chiara loved the "puppy"...and the food!  We made sure to enjoy peanuts, a hot dog, and Cracker Jacks, all the essentials of a baseball game!

One of the best parts was the first time a foul ball came over the fence I was taking this picture of Chiara and my Dad.  He had to protect her rather than catch it!  But don't worry..he still got three.  We kept one and gave the other two to kids around our seats.

With her obsession with balls, cars, trains, and planes, Chiara is turning into a regular tomboy! We had so much fun despite the heat. Happy Birthday Papa!

Cincinnati XOXO!!!

It had been over 10 years since I visited my cousin Erin (well actually my mom's cousin, but she is one of my only relatives my age so I claim her!) So I was really excited when she suggested that Chiara and I come spend some much needed vaca time with her and Aunt Shelly.  We had an awesome trip just relaxing.  And they kept Kiki so entertained that she cried when we left!  Pretty surprising from our little shy girl, she doesn't usually get attached very quick or easy!  They were the kind of hosts I dream of being, they had everything on hand that I could think of and kept the perfect amount of relaxing and entertaining in mind.  My only complaint is that Chiara woke up at 6 am on the dot everyday (She needs to learn the joy of sleeping in!).

Some fun at the park:

Drum lessons! 

More music!

Too much fun :)