Happy 4th birthday to my Ivy Girl!

It is hard to believe that 4 years ago I was waiting, losing my patience, for my sweet girl to arrive. I couldn't wait to lay my eyes on her. I couldn't wait to put a face with the name I had been calling her for the longest time. I couldn't wait to wrap my arms around her and call myself "Mommy" for the first time ever.... a title I had been imagining since my own childhood. The day was here- it was Ivy's birthday!

Dear Ivy,
This 4 years has gone by so quickly and I still can't believe you have miraculously changed from the little baby with duck fuzz hair, to the very decisive toddler, into the girly princess who is now a big 4 year old! 4 seems so much bigger than 3. All of your baby traits are gone and you have become quite the little girl- or "wo-man" that you tend to call yourself.

We have big plans for your 4th year of life! You are going to start Montessori preschool in just 10 days. We went to visit and you were so excited to find your name on a hook to hang your backpack. You love to know what is going on BEFOREHAND so you can be prepared. So we went to your school to look around, we looked on line at pictures of your teachers and the different learning stations, and the first question you asked is "When I get to school, what do I do first?" The teacher grinned and was happy to tell you the routine of the morning! You will have so much fun at school. You love to learn and you love to play and I am already eager to hear the stories you will tell about your day!

At 4 we are also going to go on your first trip to Disney World! My are you excited! I can't wait to see your face as you take in the princesses and the castle. I am anxious to see you looking glamorous after your trip to the Bippity Boppity Boutique. This trip is all for you and we cannot wait to make these memories at such an impressionable time. The magic will be there!

You love hard, Ivy~ and I think this is a good thing! You love your friends, you love your life, you love your family, and you love "doing" but loving hard also means sometimes you are rocked to the core with disappointment. Oh, it breaks my heart to see you sad when things don't go as planned and I am already praying for your protection from heart break as you get older- I dread those days! But Mommy will be here and oh how I will understand. I will try to never downplay your very real feelings. Loving hard will be a good thing when you can be passionate about everything you do in life! I am so excited to see what God has in store for you, little princess!

Cheers to another year! We love you more today than yesterday!

Happy 4th birthday, Ivy Girl!
Love, Mommy & Daddy

For Ivy's 4th birthday I got some inspiration from a bloggy friend, Danielle, and the cute interview she conducted with her 4 year old Colin! Thank you for the wonderful idea and I think Ivy had more fun than I did!

Ivy is quite the talker- or dramatic talker, I should say. So these are HER words exactly, no prompting or probing to change any answers! Enjoy getting to know Ivy as a big 4 year old!

Mommy wants to ask you questions to put on my blog, so that all my blog friends can read about you as a 4 year old. So, we will start with the basics:
What time do you wake up? 8:00
What time do you go to bed? Let's see here, probably 11 o'clock
Where do you live? In Tucky, Nicholasville.... she went on to tell her whole address and phone number!
* Friends, only 1 of these first three answers is a true statement!!! We are starting off getting to know the REAL Ivy for sure! :) *
Favorite meal: Lunch
Hahaha.... okay, favorite food: Macaroni and cheese, spaghetti, and pizza
Favorite dessert: Strawberry cake
Favorite book: D.W.
Who is D.W.? She is Arthur's sister.... or brother.... is she a sister or brother?
Favorite movie: Rapunzel
Favorite way to play: Babydolls
Favorite princess: All of them, but mostly Ariel and Snow White
Favorite color: Pink and red and purple and turquoise and yellow and ......
Well, are there any colors that aren't your favorite? Orange. I don't like orange.
Favorite restaurant: Razoli's
What do you want to be when you grow up? A mommy- that's a good answer- right?
What will life be like as a 4 year old? Dressing up, high heels, and weddings!!!
*I didn't tell Ivy, but that sounds like life as a 20 something.... not a 4 year old!

Happy 4th Birthday, Ivy! Thank you for lots of "just right" answers!

Fence Friends

We moved into our house two summers ago... when Ivy was just approaching her 2nd birthday. I had dreams of neighbors to chat with, playmates for my children, and late night hang outs in people's backyards (or on the curb if you are like my parents)! That is the way I grew up- we knew our neighbors and enjoyed their company. :)

On Lefty Loop, the little dead end on your right (humorous, I know!), that isn't what we found in neighbors. They are nice (very nice!) but they just aren't in our life stage. They don't have small children and they are checking the mail for retirement checks rather than children's magazines. You get the picture! So our first year here we loved on the oldies but we always noticed other tricycles and strollers on the surrounding streets but never got to actually meet any of these families.

Fast forward to last summer, Ivy often could hear another little person playing in the backyard right behind us. So she began talking to her through the crack of the fence- naming her "My Fence Friend." She would go straight to the fence to look for her and run and report everything that they talked about. It was last year when I realized that Ivy and Kennedy shared summer birthdays (she a year older) and they both love princesses! Then this spring when they ran to the fence to meet again the girls discovered that since their last conversations they both had become big sisters!

There friendship formed fast and they always were sure to stop their playing and chat with each other at the fence. Ivy would climb to the top of the swing set for Kennedy to show her things in her backyard. They were always ready to play but the time wasn't right.

Well, this summer that changed! Early in June, I met Kennedy's mommy and they came over one evening and the girls hit it off. They traded flip flops within minutes of meeting and their imaginations ran wild with princesses, tea parties, and our backyard became a castle! The play dates have been great and this weekend we are going to have our first cookout with Kennedy's family! Tula and Baby Grant will be fence friends before we know it! I am so excited to have "new to us" neighbors to make family memories with :)

The girls arranged an inside play date at the fence the other day! It has been great to have a little friend to keep Ivy company who lives so close. I hope we can keep things going once school starts! Yay for the blessing of good neighbors :)

Poor Jack

Thankfully, Jack is pretty tolerant of all the little fingers constantly going after him! Tula cannot get enough of our little Kitty Boy. She squeals with delight every time he walks by and she throws a huge fit when he walks out of her reach. We are teaching her to have gentle hands and before long I am sure he will appreciate Tula's little pats the same way he loves when Ivy cuddles him.

On other Tula news, if she cannot stand up with your support she has no use for you! She wants to stand along the couch, chair, and everything that is the perfect pulling up size. She will maneuver herself right to your lap just so she can grab your hands and hoist herself to walking position. The girl has the want to move but is lacking a little bit of skill. Nonetheless, you can imagine her surprise when she rolled her way to the cat house and pulled up only to find her furry little friend!

Poor Jack, there is no rest for him.... Tula is on the chase!

Ice Cream Day

Happy National Ice Cream Day!!


Enjoy ice cream with someone you love :)

Even Tula enjoyed (and LOVED) her first ice cream cone this summer!

Tula's Vacation Day

Tula experienced vacation life in Seaside, Florida very differently this year! Last year, I could keep her with me every step of the way as she was growing each day inside my round belly. But this year she was here with us- experiencing more than just the blurred sounds and movements of vacation but actually taking in the sights and feelings around her. She was a great travel baby (no surprise to us!!) and because she is super flexible the vacation schedule had nothing on her. However, she was super excited to be back in her own bed on Saturday night... and she celebrated by sleeping until after 10 AM on Sunday morning! Here is a glimpse into a typical vacation day for our sweet Tula :)

Daddy showing her the ocean for the first time.... so big!

Tula was toted through town in the baby carrier. LOVE my ERGO carrier... if you are looking for something that will not hurt your back, is super duper easy to put the baby in and go, and will grow through the stages (Tula started at 1 week with the infant insert, now in regular front facing, and Ivy can be toted if she is riding piggy back style)!

Loving a ride with sister :)

Taking afternoon floats in the pool- look at that signature Tula smile!

Daddy taking her into the calm, clear water :)

Enjoying people watching on the lawn with Unc and Daddy.

Tula tends to be a camera hog with her BIG grin.... EVERY TIME!

Morning naps on the beach- more beach time for Mommy, Daddy, and Ivy!

Digging in the sand and having a bite from time to time~ ewww!

Chilling with a little drink to cool down!

Sometimes we caged our girl up in the beach wagon to keep her from eating the sand and seaweed!

Overall, Tula had a fabulous first time on vacation and she is on board with her big sister- they are both ready to move to the coast! We definitely have some beach babies :)

Ivy's Vacation Day

Ivy LOVED vacation.... everything about it! Going back to the same place- same house, same week, same people- was fun for her. She could remember so much about our time last year so the car ride was a breeze- and if know Ivy that in itself deserves its own party! The whole way there we played "remember this...." and "remember when...." and we arrived to Hickory Street in Seaside, Florida ready to make new "remembers."

Here is Ivy's typical vacation day.... captured in photos!

Testing out the new sand toys on our first evening there.

Having a snack in her home-made beach chair :)

On our way to the early morning 4th of July parade- by the end she had two pairs of sunglasses, about 20 beaded necklaces, and a whole sack of candy!

Building in the sand with her HOTTY daddy!

Sand bathing diva :)

LOVING the ocean.... this was a huge change from last year!

Hop scotch in the sand.

Wave jumping!

~Little Miss Dancing Queen~

Jumping off the side of the pool- look at that splash!

Ivy definitely created so many more "remembers" this year. She is already excited to go back to the beach and asking if we will stay in the house with the pink windows.... can you tell she is a creature of habit??!! On the way home she was negotiating (I am in trouble, I know!) how we could stay at the beach- here was her plan since work and our house were two BIG reasons we had to come home-

A house.... no big deal!

Ivy: "Well, Mommy, we could just live in any of those houses that we walked past, like, everyday!"
Mommy: "Ivy, do you have a few million dollars?"
Ivy: "Well...... maybe. I can count!"

A job.... find one!

Ivy: "Don't kids go to school at the beach?"
Mommy: "Well, yeah, I guess they do."
Ivy: "Well, then you can teach them. And Daddy, I am sure you can find a job coloring somewhere at the beach."

For the record, Daddy is not a "colorer" but instead a landscape architect for an architecture firm. Ivy loves the pretty things he designs/colors! :)

Needless to say, Ivy is ready to be back on vacation... and Daddy and I are daydreaming about moving there!

Missing vacation....

We have returned


from a fabulous vacation


with the most wonderful family.


Memories made....


Lots of laughter....


But now we are missing the beach!