Whelp, there goes 2 months and I haven't blogged. At this rate, I'll be up to 6 posts by the end of the year. Sweet. So, in the last two months, here's what we've been up to...

In January, Gabe and I went on a much-needed vaca to the mountains of Tennessee for our 4th Anniversary. We left Peyti behind with Nana, Tanta and Gigi. We missed her but had so much relaxing time we cherished. We went hiking in the Smoky Mountains, read books all day and even visited a few winery's. It was such a blessing to be with Gabe and just enjoy time with him without any distractions.






We also enjoyed the unseasonably warm Florida temperatures and spent Saturday mornings playing at the park. Peyt just loves her daddy. He's been taking her to the park and teaching her how to hang from the monkey bars. She's pretty good at it!






I'll update on February when I get some more time. Hopefully won't be 2 more months or I'll be ridiculously behind.

So, this picture pretty much sums up our lives these days. Peyton is one hilarious little girl. In lieu of the new year, I'm back on trying to make a better commitment at doing this blog. I want it for our sake, to be able to look back at the year and see what we've done. I want to look back and see what life has brought us and how we've handled it. Here's to trying. Again.

It's mid-January (really it's only the 12th, so it's still beginning, right?) and Gabe and I have yet to discuss our New Years Resolutions. We're going to Tennessee for our Anniversary next week and we'll hopefully get some things down on paper. We did pretty good on our goals last year, but there's always a new year to get even better. In the meantime, I'll give an update on our Peyti.

1) She is a talking machine. Not that we understand what she's saying, but she sure acts like we do. I like to entertain her gibberish because I've heard it's good to act like they're saying words. Plus, it's so darn cute that I can't resist. She now lays in her crib in the morning and after she's had enough of waiting for me, she starts hollering "mooooommmmmm" over and over and over. I love it so I don't mind getting up to see that face. Plus, it's 7:00 a.m. and I should be out of bed. She also says "Kenz", our dog's name. Although, it doesn't sound like Kenz to anyone else, it does to us.

2) Her daddy's her best friend. Peyton's eyes light up when Gabe gets home from work and she immediately goes over to find a toy for him. It's usually her soccer ball and she keeps repeating "ball ball, ball ball" until he starts playing with her. He's pretty smitten for her, too, so it doesn't take much convincing on her part.

3) She is becoming quite the cuddler. We're still nursing at night (too much info, sorry!) and as soon as she's ready to get in her crib, she lays her head on my shoulder as I rock her. She cuddles her little hands under her tummy and I absolutely melt. I pray over her and thank God for the most amazing gift I could ever receive. And for making her so super sweet.

4) She loves being outdoors. This we already knew, but her obsession with going to the park, going camping, riding her tricycle, taking her wagon out with Kenzlie, is all growing. I love to watch her as she learns about her environment. Which brings me to number 5...

5) She's obsessed with airplanes. She sees one in the sky and immediately points and makes the "bbbbb" sound with her mouth.
I'm not sure how to explain it, but I think she's convinced that this is the proper name for an airplane, so we might have to unteach that some day. Even when we're in the house, she'll stop, look up to the ceiling point and make the sound. She's such a genius.

I could go on and on, but no one's probably still reading this, so I'll stop for now. Just know we're crazy for this little girl and couldn't imagine life without her. It's funny to think what Gabe and I did before she came along. We're so blessed to have her!

Peyton Turns One (and 3 weeks)!

Peyton Leigh turned 1 year and 3 weeks today. She brings more joy, excitement, laughter, and smiles into our lives than we ever could've imagined. Just today Gabe and I were playing with her and I was thinking how much better our lives have become over this last year. I can't remember life without her. We love you so much Peyti!



Here's what she's up to these days:
1) She took her first steps yesterday! She took a few more today, so I know it wasn't just a fluke. She does still prefer to crawl, or better yet, have mommy pick her up. But she's totally capable of walking. Just needs a little practice.
2) She has 4 teeth on top and 2 on bottom.
3) She loves avacados and currently is eating flax seed on everything. She needs to put on a few pounds, per the doctor's request, so we're trying to fatten her up. She also loves to drop everything off her tray she does not feel like eating. We're working on signing "all done" instead of dropping it. She prefers to drop it.
4) She is signing "eat", "drink", "milk", "blankie" and the occasional "all done."
5) She LOVES her wagon that Memaw and Papaw got for her birthday.
6) I think she's officially become a blankie girl. Thanks to her mama, I was pulling for that one. She's definitely my daughter.
7) She's really into imitating what we do. Gabe and I will whistle and she'll try so hard to do it, too. It's the cutest. thing. ever. But then again, we think everything she does is cute.
8) She loves climbing the stairs and thinks it's a game when I come to get her. It's worth getting up for just to hear her cackle.
9) She says dada over and over and over. Her daddy is her absolute best friend. I hope it stays this way forever and I'm totally fine with her one word. She knows who feeds her.

Peyti's First Boat Ride!

This weekend we went to Jacksonville to visit Gabe's family. Gabe got up early Saturday morning to go shrimping with Jeff and they caught nearly 10 pounds of shrimp. We met up with them and got to spend the afternoon on the boat. Peyton loved being on the boat, it's so fun to see her adventurous and enjoying things Gabe and I love doing. Here's a picture of the shrimp before and after. I much prefer the look of them after.

Third Time's A Charm

Well, here I am again trying to break into the blogging world. I've attempted this two times before and the excitement has fizzled out both times. I really want to keep up with it this time and share what's going on in our lives We're so busy that I forget to write down Peyton's milestones and we're up to as a family. So, here's hoping to more blogs in the upcoming year.