Five Question Friday with Mama M.

This is my first time participating in Five Question Friday and I'm sure it won't be my last! Hope everyone has a wonderful weekend and enjoy this beautiful weather we are having!!

Here we go:

1. Have you ever testified in court? For what?
I have not. Thank goodness!

2. Do you still have your wedding dress?

I do still have my wedding dress! It's my most favorite dress of all time ;)

3. Is there a special place you like to go when you're happy, sad, stressed, etc.?

My favorite place is pretty boring. I absolutely LOVE my living room! It's where I spend 95% of my time with my family. We make most of our memories in that very room.

4. If you have kids, do they sleep with you? If you don't have kids...will you let your kids sleep with you when/if you have them?

I have a 12 month old and she sleeps with us every night. I used to worry constantly about what every one thought about it (everyone has an opinion), but we all sleep better that way. We could pretty much put her to bed anywhere and she'd be fine, but she wakes up a couple of times to readjust. By the time we've heard her on the monitor, she's completely awake and it's harder to get her back to sleep. Not to mention, there's nothing better than snuggling with my sweet babe!

5. Do you watch late night TV?
My 'late night TV' consists of watching shows that I have dvr'd.

One Little Step at a Time...

Today my little girl woke up like she does every morning, grinning from ear to ear and talking to our cat, Josie. I had no idea that today would be the day that she would decide to take a chance that would change her little life forever. There's no turning back now! :)

After coming downstairs this morning and eating her breakfast, Paisley was sitting in her chair in our living room watching Special Agent Oso. I was folding the laundry that was left in the dryer from the night before, when I looked up to see that Paisley had stood up in front of her chair. She was just standing there and then, like she had been doing it forever, she took about seven steps toward the entertainment center. I just stood there, speechless, wondering if what I just saw really happened. She turned to look at me and just had this look of accomplishment on her face. I ran right to her, shouting every praise I could think of. Like it was nothing, she turned around and walked right back to her chair. I took a moment to gather my emotions, because I knew, this was it. My baby is turning into a little girl. For the rest of the day, she walked from place to place all throughout the house. Each time she would get to where she was wanting to be, she would look at me and smile that beautiful smile. I can't help but feel so blessed to call her mine. Paisley is such an amazing little girl and I am so proud to be her mother.

The video below was taken right after she first started walking. Her daddy was at work and I knew I had to catch her in action so that he wouldn't feel like he missed it.

Baby Needs a New Pair of Shoes....

My baby girl is officially a year old! I'm still in shock I think. It's funny, because I think she already acts different. She now tells me 'no' and tries to make her own decisions. I took her yesterday to buy her first pair of Stride Rite shoes. Her great grandmother, MeMe, was adamant that she have a pair and was sure to give Paisley money for them for her birthday. We walked into the store and after the very nice gentleman measured her little foot and showed us our choices, I began to choose which ones I liked the most. Apparently, this did not matter to Paisley. She immediately chose a sparkly, pink pair. They were not my first choice. Or my second. Or third. I would put them back and redirect her attention to the ones that I had chosen. She would push my hand away and say 'nope!' and reach back for her choice. After going through this 4 or 5 times, I realized that I wasn't going to win this battle. I know that I technically could have gotten any shoes I wanted and she probably would have never known the difference once we got home, but I would not give up the look on her sweet face when we let her put them on. She was so proud of herself and that grin just melted my heart! She wore them out of the store and she kept lifting her foot up and saying 'shoooooes'. We met a girlfriend of mine for coffee and she immediately showed off her new shoes. I was just happy that she she was happy.

My little girl is a year old...it happened so fast!

Birthdays are so much sweeter now that she is here!

How could they not be?!

There is NO other present that you could possibly want when you get to see that sweet little face everyday! We celebrated my husband, Bryan's, 26th birthday on Sunday. It began with a birthday breakfast at his mom's, then an afternoon family nap and ended with a delicious dinner at one of our favorite hibachi restaurants with my parents. Bryan and I always talk about how boring our life must have been before Paisley came into it.

Thursday Afternoon Playdate...

It's been one of those weeks where I feel like we haven't stopped once except to lay our little heads down at night! I'm surprised I even have time to write this blog ;)

Last Thursday, Paisley and I met a girlfriend of mine and her little girl at the park to let them play while we chased them around and caught up on what has been going on in our 'toddler world' :) Paisley wanted nothing more than to do everything Miss 'G' wanted to do! I SO want to call her Baby 'G', but that just isn't the case! She's quickly becoming quite the little lady! 'G' ran from one end of the playground to the other before Paisley had a chance to change her crawling direction :) There may be some distance in their ages, but I see a lasting friendship in the making!

Unexpected Kisses

They are the best, aren't they? They make you feel like you're doing something right. Tonight, while we were watching TV, Paisley sidestepped her little self over to the couch from the end-table and reached out for me to pick her up. I thought she just wanted to snuggle, so I propped her up in my lap and continued to watch the show. Then, she leaned forward to get my attention, grabbed my face, opened her little mouth and leaned in for a big smack on the lips! As "juicy" as it was, it was worth it! :) She then proceeded to climb off the couch and go back to playing with her toys. I turned off the TV and got down in the floor with her. It's the little things that make you realize just how lucky you are!

(I wasn't able to catch our little moment tonight on camera, so I provided a recent picture of 'snuggle time' with Daddy!)

It's almost here...

Paisley's first birthday, that is!!

I have had an absolutely blast planning Paisley's party! It's been overwhelming at times, but it helps to know that I'm doing it all for my sweet little girl! It's a princess theme (would you expect anything else?!), so there is pink from wall to wall! I've told the mommies of all of Paisley's 'princess' friends that they may all wear their princess gear. I'm hoping that everyone will have as much fun at the party as I have had planning it!

Here's a sneak peak of Miss Paisley's princess tutu!

In My Daughter's Eyes...

In my daughter's eyes
I can see the future
A reflection of who I am
And what will be
And though she'll grow
And someday leave
Maybe raise a family
When I'm gone I hope you see
How happy she made me
For I'll be there
In my daughter's eyes

Dawg-gone Cute!

The other night after a quick dinner of cheese pizza, we were relaxing in the living room and watching Paisley play in the floor. Her favorite word is 'dog' and she says it repeatedly. If she sees a dog, hears a dog, or even thinks about a dog, she says it. I think it's quite cute. Especially since she says it with such a southern draw. It comes out more like 'dawg'. :) She would pick up her stuffed animal dog, Violet, and hug her tightly. With the biggest grin on her face, she would then look at Violet with such admiration and say 'dawg' and pull her close again. Watching her love something, makes my heart smile :)

Two Dilemas...

We decided it was finally time for Paisley to start sleeping in her own bed. I know, she's ten months old. This should have happened a LONG time ago. We put her in her own bed at six months and it worked out great for about a month. But then she and I both got sick and needed to use our ONLY humidifier. So, back in the bed with us she went. It had been that way ever since. After the new year began, we decided to try it again. For almost two weeks now she has been in her own crib, however, she wakes up around 4am and we go ahead and put her in the bed with us. Is this really as bad of a habit as 'they' say it is?

I keep hearing about these babies that can put themselves to sleep in their own bed without being rocked or held. My child is not one of these (rare) babies. We absolutely HAVE to rock her to sleep before we lay her down. I've tried the 'crying it out' method, but the child is relentless! I truly dwon't mind rocking her every night. Don't get me wrong, this is something that I love being able to do while I still can (or she still lets me). The problem is, this has become practically the only way she will go to sleep. Is there another way that will help her 'self soothe'?

"You're not going to leave me in here...are you?!"

"NOOOO! You're not!!"

Happy New Year!!!

As I look back on 2010, I realize just what an amazing year it truly was! 2010 made me a mommy to a beautiful, healthy baby girl. It's a year that I will never forget.

Paisley decided that she needed to see the ball drop along with her mommy and daddy. As soon as it was officially January 1st, she was out like a light. As I watched her sleep, I started thinking about how it was no longer the year she was born and from now I on I would say that my baby was born last year. This made my heart hurt. Don't get me wrong, I love watching her grow and learn, but as I've said in posts before, it only reminds me that she's not going to be a baby forever. I'm looking forward to what 2011 has to offer, but it has a lot to live up to :)

(Paisley & her Great Beth on New Year's Eve)