March to April...Welcome to Spring

Morgan turned 7 months on March 4th. She figured out that walking is a GREAT thing! She still did not want anything to do with crawling, but as long as she was holding onto you or something else she would walk EVERYWHERE! This month was a special month for us. Shawn and I decided to dedicate her to the Lord this month at our church. My parents joined us as we celebrated this special day.

Here is a picture of Morgan and her Auntie Mel (my sis).

We went to a Spring Training game with my dad. Morgan had fun as she was watching all the people around us. She even liked playing with Zach's hat.

Our outfit picks for this month include her dress from the dedication and her Saint's Patrick's Day dress. I also put in a pair of her sandals that I just LOVE!

Six Months Old

On February 4th our little Princess turned 6 months old. We celebrated her first Valentine's Day and Morgan took her first airplane ride. My Mom, Morgan and I flew to Colorado to visit our family and attended both of my cousin's babyshowers. During Morgan's sixth month she began waving and added more sounds to her vocabulary. We introduced a sippy cup and added more veggies to her diet. On March 1st Morgan said "Ma Ma" for the first time! What a great treat that was for me! Here are some of Morgan's Valentine photos.

Our outfit picks for this month include her "Be Mine" outfit from my sister. Morgan's Pink dress with red polka dots (this dress was bought for Morgan in three different sizes, so we got to enjoy it for quite sometime), Morgan's matching shirt to my Valentine's Day shirt, a pair of fuzzy boots for our COLD trip to Colorado, and lastly her heart tights. The photo above was Shawn and Zach's gift for Valentine's Day from Morgan and I.

Show and Tell Wednesday

This week our Show and Tell is about a person who has been an important part of our life, but they cannot be in our family.

I choose Lynne Bondi.

Lynne was my cheer coach and English teacher in high school and now she is a very dear friend of mine. We have shared so many memories...happy and sad. I remember when I started cheer she had us all in her classroom that morning to celebrate. We practiced through out the summer and shared many laughs. Lynne's mother passed away the first summer of cheer and all of us cheerleaders planted a tree at the school in memory of her mom. We also got to share the fun memory of Lynne and Bill getting married. Shortly after that I was able to share the memories of Brooke and Tatum being born. While Lynne was still teaching I worked for her husband as his secretary. Then I was able to train Lynne when she finished her last year of teaching...let me tell you...we are quite silly when we work together. Wednesday's were our work for a bit, then go to the mall days. Every week we had a routine and it was so much fun. Lynne has been able to share my memories with me as well...My bachelorette party, my wedding and Morgan being born. In November of 2007 I walked the 3-day, 60 mile Breast Cancer walk in remembrance of Lynne's mom. On the third day all of my family and friends came up and Lynne was there. That is the picture above. I raised 2500.00 and I am planning on doing it again next year. Lynne and I will always stay close, as our friendship grows each year and our families share laughs and good times! Lynne you are the greatest! I love you!

Showing 1

I have been working with Morgan one her counting skills. We have mastered the number 1. You can tell in this video that I ask her all the time. She doesn't even look at me when she responds! :) Practice and Repeat...that's how they get it!

ENJOY!

January 4th - February 4th

FIVE MONTHS OLD!

Morgan started saying "Da Da", sleeping on her stomach, and holding her own bottle. Morgan started rolling over on Christmas Eve...only a couple times, then she really got it down this month! Morgan also started to sit up on her own. The Bumbo seat is amazing!

In this first picture Morgan just finished eating and was SO happy...I think she was happy because she had made such a mess!

Here is Morgan and my mom at Zach's first soccer game. It was VERY windy and cold that day!

Our outfit choices this month are Morgan's Cardinal sweatshirt from Uncle Scott, her "Little Sister" shirt from The Kings, a cute little jean dress, her Barbie bib from my mom, and a little pair of Nike's and her pink slippers.

December 4th - January 4th

This month was a month of new things! Morgan had her first taste of cereal and veggies this month. When we took her to the doctor for her 4 month check up she weighed 14lbs. 2.5oz. We took Morgan to see A LOT of Christmas lights this month as we celebrated her first Christmas. She even got to meet Santa for the first time, and did great while getting her picture taken. This first picture is of Morgan and Zach.

Daddy and Morgan opening Christmas presents.

Morgan and I at the Litchfield Park Christmas light show. We went with our friends Brent and Julie along with their kids.

We went to a Christmas Palooza event with our friends Lisa and Christie. The kids got to see Santa fly in on a helicopter. Morgan was just fascinated by all the people here.

Here is our pick of clothes for this month. My mom got her a Santa hat made that has her name on it and she also got her first pair of Santa boots. We celebrate Christmas Eve at church with our family and friends and Morgan wore her Christmas dress. On Christmas day Shawn, Zach, Morgan and I all had matching shirts that said Ho Ho Ho. What a great Christmas we had with our little Princess. I can't wait to celebrate this year!

Three months November 4th to December 4th

Morgan turned 3 months old in November. We started the month out with another family photo shoot. We celebrated our friend Tatum's birthday, and Morgan was able to see my cousins Michael, Michelle, and Schylar. Shawn and I took Morgan to get her ears pierced just before Thanksgiving. We celebrated Thanksgiving day up north in Happy Jack with Shawn's family and then Friday down here with my family. Morgan also, started working on rolling over this month.

Michelle, Morgan, and Schylar...baby Wesley is in the womb in this picture.

Michael and Morgan

Our outfits for this month consist of Morgan's first Thanksgiving outfit, with bib and burper. Then an outfit from Old Navy...a little pink tank with a Princess Crown on it and a little pair of jean shorts.

Month 3: October

Morgan turned two months old in October. Morgan starting sleeping through the night this month, but it was VERY short lived because she started waking back up and it took us another couple of months for it to become an every night thing. We celebrated Morgan's first Halloween with my Mom. My dad and Shawn both had to work that night and were not home in time for Trick or Treating.
We spent a lot of time with or friends. This is Belle, Alyssa, Ariana, and Morgan.

This was our first family photo shoot. Our friend and photographer took these at a golf course near Boswell Hospital.

The outfits I picked out for this month include her Halloween costume, a Halloween burper that my mom made, her little blue dress that i received from one of my baby showers, and a little onesie from my mom that says "Grandma loves (and spoils) me." Which is sooo true! My mom just loves her so much, that no matter where she is, she always finds something for Miss Morgan.

Month 2: September (Post for Saturday July 25th)

During September we did a lot of traveling back and forth from our home up north. Shawn was already working down here, so we were using our home in Happy Jack as a get-a-way. The first picture is of Morgan on her first camping trip. My parents went camping down the road from where our house was, so we stayed at the house, but came to visit my parents and all their friends. This month I was also going to start going back to work a few days a week. I was going to substitute teach for a principal that I used to work for. Two days into the job Morgan caught her first cold and I decided that I was done working for now...I needed to stay home with her. I also had to give up nursing at this time. I developed an infection and ALL my milk dried up. At Morgan's 1 month check up she weighed 10lbs. 5oz. She was definitely not starving! :)



Morgan used to ALWAYS sleep with her hands by her face...it was like she was hiding from the light!

Here are a few dresses that were our favorites. The polka dot one will be used on her quilt that my mom is making.

The first year...

Today begins our 12 day countdown until Miss Morgan turns one. Each day until her birthday I will post a few pictures and some memories that represent each month of Morgan's first year.

MONTH 1:
Morgan was born on August 4, 2008 at 3:47p.m. She weighed 8lbs. 11oz and measured 20 1/4inches. I went into the hospital to be induced on Sunday evening at 10:00p.m. My labor was quite easy, as everything was planned. My original due date was August 17th...but as you can see from her weight I needed to have her early. During the first month of Morgan's life I was able to breastfeed her. This was an amazing time for me. Morgan went to her very first football game when she was only 3 1/2 weeks old. The Denver Broncos were here and they played the Cardinals...so yes, we all HAD to go! Morgan also experienced the mall in the first month of her life and we also took a few trips up north to Happy Jack where our home, at the time, was.

Here are a few of our favorite outfits from the first month. The white outfit is what Morgan wore home from the hospital. We came home around bedtime, so I just put her in her pajamas. Then of course her Denver outfit for the game. And lastly...her little pink shorts with brown polka dots and brown tank from my cousin. I also put her very first flip flops in there.

Photo of nature

A fellow blogger asked that we show pictures of nature this week. These are a few that I chose from when we lived up north in Happy Jack, Arizona.

The first picture is a picture of my silly family in one of the many trees that was in our front yard. This picture was taken in December of 2007...it was one of the first BIG snow storms that we got that year.
This a picture of all the snow and trees that surrounded our home.

This is one of my favorite pictures...this was at the end of our property. Elk could always be found somewhere around our house. We had a HUGE tub of food that we would leave out for the elk and they would come into our yard to eat.

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Here's to happy shopping and good smelling homes!

The first year of being a mommy...

The first year of my mommyhood is coming to a close...but the rest has yet to open. Even though I was considered a mom before I had Morgan, to my step-son Zach...it just isn't the same. I did not get to experience this part of life with Zach. So being a mommy has been ABSOLUTELY WONDERFUL this past year. It all began when we found out I was pregnant on December 6th, 2007. Even though the morning sickness was HORRIBLE and lasted ALL DAY, I still LOVED every minute of being pregnant. Shawn took monthly photos of my belly for my "Belly Book". We were able to have 5 ultrasounds done and 4 out of the 5 were 4-D. I was able to share my happy moments with my first grade students each day, who by the way just LOVED having a pregnant teacher. They were ALL such BIG helpers everyday. I had 2 AMAZING baby showers that were given by friends and my mom and sister. At the end of my pregnancy I was REALLY READY for Morgan to be here. My feet became REALLY swollen from the HOT Arizona heat and I was just really uncomfortable. The day she was born was BEAUTIFUL. She had perfect color, A LOT of hair, and the chunkiest little face ever. I was surrounded by family and friends that day. I began nursing Morgan right away, but only 2 months into I developed Mastitis and was no longer able to continue nursing. My plan was to substitute teach the first year...after my 12 weeks were up...Shawn and I decided that staying home was the best thing to do. So, I did. I watched a little boy 3 days out of the week and stayed home with Morgan. Towards the end of the school year I was asked to do a 5 week long sub job...I discussed it with Shawn and we decided together that I would take it. It was a LONG 5 weeks. I was so happy when school was over. This summer we have stayed busy with playdates, traveling, and just plain ole hangin' out at home. Being a mom has so many new adventures everyday. I am sad that she is growing up so fast, but I thank God for allowing me to be able to stay home with her everyday and teach her all the fun things she is learning. My mom LOVES making Morgan all sorts of things. She made us burpers when she was born, she has made Morgan a few books, and she also made her a dress. The 2 things that are in the process of making are Morgan's little mermaid outfit for her birthday and her quilt. My mom is using 1 outfit from all 12 months of Morgan's first year and sewing them onto quilt squares. I cannot wait to share the photos of the finished quilt. It is going to be one of Morgan's Christmas presents...so we will have to wait till then! This first year of mommyhood has been a TRUE BLESSING! I cannot wait for every year to come. My kids are my world. I LOVE you both soo MUCH!

Side note: Show us a room Monday will be back next week...waiting on the hubby to finish his room or "man cave" as he calls it. :)

Well, we are officially ready for Morgan's first Birthday party. I made the invitations for her party. Our theme is "Under the Sea". My mom is working on Morgan's Mermaid outfit, and I am finalizing the food list. Here is a picture of the invites I sent out. (I blocked out all of our info for safety reasons). :)

Morgan and I went to lunch at Ajo Als with my mom, aunt and friend.

This is one of the many cactus displays they have at this restaurant. They are all glass cacti...I just LOVED it .

On Saturday morning we had our women's breakfast at church. Morgan went with my mom and I today...she was VERY interested in her new sippy cup instead of the breakfast.

Christie, Lisa, and Julie were all at the breakfast as well. It is great to know that we get to spend every third Saturday morning together. Today at the breakfast we discussed how we could serve where we are needed. The table my mom and I were at today decided we would put together a care package for our military friends that are away now. My cousin's husband and his friends were just deployed in May for a year. My cousin and her husband just had a baby in May, and now he is away for the first year of her life.

Zach is FINALLY home now for the rest of the summer...well he only has 2 weeks left now before he starts school. He asked to watch T.V. tonight and I told him that reading a book would be better, because school is starting soon and he hasn't gotten a lot of reading in this summer...he said okay...but I think he thought a nap was the VERY BEST idea! Caught on camera! (At least the book is in his lap...right??)

Now for a restfull Sunday. Starting the day at church then home to relax with the family. My sister invited me over to make Captain Crunch Treats... I guess they are like Rice Krispy Treats...wish us LUCK!

Blog Game

Blog Game!
I was tagged by a friend to do this!

Instructions:
"With as much creativity as you can muster, show your heart in: a picture, a poem, a song (or piece of music), a phrase (or quote), an item of clothing, a place, and (just for fun) a Disney princess. If you want to join in, tag 6 more blogs.

Picture: This is a family photo of us getting ready for a Cardinals game when they were in the playoffs. We are ALWAYS trying to find fun things to do together as a family!
Poem:
A Ring
© Heather Twining
It's a symbol of everlasting love
A symbol of forces bigger than us from up above.
Ones undying commitment & trust in another
A special bond that never gives up hope or faith in the other
We wear it show our loyalty and to let others know we are taken.
This little band with a huge message that's never meant to be forsaken.
Its a kiss or a hug at the end of a long day
Its a sympathetic heart when there is no longer anything to say.
Its a standard that has come unglued in the previous years,
A word taken to loosely- a huge commitment taken so lightly it now appears
But for the lucky few, we take this commitment very serious
We know everything about our partner-nothing is held in or mysterious.
We care for our "better half" in ways we never thought we could
Dream big things together-things we never thought we would
We are in fact better with our other half
They are what make life worth it-the things that make us smile & laugh.
In a cold world, its nice to be able to look down and remember that special day in your tux or wedding gown.
Its amazing what a gold band on your left index finger can mean
Its not really about the beginning or end-its about all the memories in between.
One life shared together

Song:
At our wedding we danced to "Better Together" by Jack Johnson. I remember when Shawn and I were first dating we were driving from Strawberry, AZ to Phoenix and Shawn said..."I want you to listen to this song...This is my song to you". Ever since then it has been our song. Here are some of the lyrics.

There's no combination of words I could put on the back of a postcard No song I could sing But I can try for your heartOur dreams, and they are made out of real thingsLike a, shoebox of photographsWith sepiatone lovingLove is the answer,At least for most of the questions in my heartLike why are we here? and where do we go?And how come it's so hard?It's not always easy andSometimes life can be deceivingI'll tell you one thing its always better when we're together[Chorus:]MMM its always better when we're togetherLook at the stars when we're togetherIts always better when we're togetherYeah, its always better when we're together.

Phrase:
Formula For Life
This life is yours, take the power to choose what you want to do and do it well. Take the power to make your life better!

Item of Clothing:
Tank tops. I love the sun...not the heat. You can almost always find me in a cute tank top and of course a pair pf flip flops.

Place:
Colorado! This is where I was born. I have ALWAYS wanted to move back there, but my life has taken me down a different path and I have not quite made it back there to live yet. Maybe one day. This is a picture of Pikes Peak. From almost any home in Colorado Springs you can see this from your back deck. It is a beautiful site! The red rock in front are part of Garden of the Gods. This is a beautiful hike through read rocks and trees.

Disney Princess:

Well I know she is not one of the typical Disney Princesses, but Ariel is my FAVORITE! I remember when my Grandma first gave me the movie...she opened it and watched it first, then VERY carefully put the sticker back on and gave it to me. We laugh about that all the time now. Stay tuned for pictures of Mermaid Morgan's Under the Sea First Birthday Party as well!

Now that I have shared a little about me with you...these are the people I tag to do this too:

Jen Morgan

Paige

Catina

Amanda

Jen Chang

Brenda Lee

Private Blog...

Hello all!
After talking to a friend to confirm stories that I had heard, I have decided to make our blog private. There are WAY too many crazy peeps in this world for me to have it open to the world. So, please email me at chrissyls1006@yahoo.com with your email address if you would like to be added to our blog followers list. I know this will be more of a pain...but it is A LOT safer for me and my family! Thank you for understanding. I will keep it open until Saturday and then we will officially be PRIVATE!
Love,
Chrissy

Show us a room Monday...Today's pick is Zach's room and bathroom

Today I am showing you Zach's room and bathroom. It used to be a battle between him and I on how his room was organized and cleaned. Now that he is ten, he wants his own space, how he wants it and that's....that. So this is Zach's room and the things that he LOVES. First he likes to skateboard, so we took some skateboards and made shelves out of them.


This is the headboard to his bed. Shawn, Zach's dad, made him this bed for his birthday this past April. Zach LOVED it.

Zach LOVES to play air hockey, so for Christmas Santa brought him his very own air hockey table. On top of the table is a piece of deer or elk antlers that Zach and his Papa found when we lived up north. Zach LOVES to play outside. Above the bulletin board is a Kasey Kane flag. My parents and Shawn's parents are all Nascar fans, so of course Zach is too. His favorite driver is #9...Kasey Kane.

For Christmas Zach also got a mini drum set. He LOVES to bang on it...me not so much! :)

A few more mementos of Zachs.

Zach absolutely LOVES monkeys. His bathroom is in just that. The furry monkey on the shelf was given to him for his birthday a few years age and it acts very life like....kinda scary at first. My goal is to start painting a monkey on the wall and a palm tree or two.