How Time Flies

As she lay heavy on my chest tonight, I realized-one week until 5 months...FIVE months! (It's as if I knew that would happen when I wrote 4 posts back-to-back the week before Kennedy was born.) She wiggled slightly to get comfortable and let out a faint squeak. Then, I suddenly remembered, "Oh my gosh, she used to make those adorable squeaking noises all of the time, and I had almost forgotten! Man, I should write that down!" I must admit, there are fleeting moments I feel a pang of guilt, because I didn't write something down-nervous the memory would be lost if I didn't get it down on "paper." Truth is, memories are made in the moment, and I am trying to soak up every aspect of Kennedy's infant-hood: her kissable-squeezable-delicious thighs, her bright eyes, the way she laughs from the depths of her belly when we play peek-a-boo, the pure delight she gets when she spots the men in her life.  She tried her first solids last weekend, for heaven's sake! Man, how time flies.

The girl is a saint-seriously. You'd be hard-pressed to find a moment that she isn't cooing in delight at Preston's latest antics and sticking her tongue out at Stuart. Literally the only moments she cries, and I do mean literally, are when she is hungry. Otherwise, you'll find her singing, playing with her feet, rolling over to catch a glance of herself in the mirror, stuffing her entire fist into her mouth, and most often catching herself off-guard by her excited squeals that almost always end in uncontrollable hiccups. The girl. Is. A. Saint.

Now yesterday, the day before Easter, wasn't the easiest. Preston was having one of "those" days, which leaves Stuart and I constantly on the edge. We attended the egg hunt at Lakeway Church with my parents, Chad, Kathy, & their kiddos. Don't get me wrong, there were moments of bliss-a stage full of balloons, a bouncy castle, the egg hunt-clearly. But then Preston reminds us that he's been 2 since around 18 months-oh and by the way- 3 is the new 2, so we've got a lot to look forward to! Luckily, these days are few and far between.

Did I mention the overwhelming warmth I feel when I see Stuart with Kennedy? How special their bond is already. She's got him wrapped around her tiny little finger, and he will be the first to admit it. She is daddy's girl, and I'm okay with that, because I have a mama's boy.  On that same token, Preston is just as smitten. Just the other day we had the video monitor out and Kennedy started to fuss. Preston darted to her room, and I watched in wonderment as two not-as-tiny hands grasped the crib rail, and my sweet ginger peeked over the side shushing, "It's alright honey, it's alright." Folks, it doesn't get much better than that.

Meanwhile, my son dropped the F-Bomb in class today-3 times-in context. Parent. Of. The. Year.
Mama said there'd be days like this! When there are, remember this:

Pumpkin Patch

Fall definitely tops my favorite season list. My love of anything with pumpkin flavoring, the splashes of my absolute favorite color (orange) everywhere, sleeping with the windows open at night, apple cider in the mornings, the constant scent of camp fire in the air, and the sweet opportunity to bundle up in a soft sweater and snuggle my boys are only a few of the reasons why. 

Into the maze we go!

This morning we took our first trip to a pumpkin patch since we dragged sweet 8-week-old Preston to Sweetberry Farms in Marble Falls 2 years ago. At that point, we literally had to use the pumpkins to prop him up into a sitting position-this year, he was using the pumpkins as hurdles. (Slight exaggeration) No clue why we missed the boat last year, but I was sure not going to miss this opportunity to squeeze in some more memory-making as a family of 3 before it's too late!

Oh this isn't too "scawy" after all!

We were the first arrivals, surprise surprise, but that didn't seem to bother Preston. (We are still in the "mine" phase at the moment, you see.) It was just the right size, with a hay-bale maze, and as soon as we made it past the scare crows that were "too scawy," we had some fun! Thank you to my precious husband for humoring his wife and son.

"Happy Punkin"

"Uhwuh way"

Wait up, mommy!

Oh, how I love Fall.

The 4th

A bit of transparency: Stuart and I LOVE our sleep. Thank goodness our son does, too. We were blessed with a good sleeper right out of the womb, and I'm not sure we could have survived otherwise. (Fingers crossed for Kennedy!) That being said, it's the early bird who gets the worm, right? Right.

The City of Lakeway puts on a great day of events for the families of the neighborhood every year. This year, there was a parade at 8:30...8:30??? We are still in our pajamas and rolling out of bed at that time. Now, don't get me wrong, if Preston had woken up early, I would have loved to get him dressed in his patriotic attire, head down to the main drag, and watch the decorated golf carts and musicians stroll the streets, as well as the F18's impress in a flyover. That didn't happen, but when I started seeing my neighborhood friends post about the events, I felt so guilty we hadn't done the same with Preston! Let's be honest, he is just as cranky when he can't wake up on his own terms as Stuart and I are. So, we opted for a leisurely morning. I cooked a red, white, and blue breakfast, and we took our time getting out of the house.

Red, white, and blue fruit plate

 Besides, we had the Army helicopter on display to look forward to, right? Wrong! The events noted that it would be on display until noon. We arrived at 11 (I said we were being leisurely!), and the helicopter had gone! Not to mention the host at the activity center laughing at us and saying, "You came too late, hahah!" Wow, I felt like such a dud! But I wouldn't leave until getting some sweet pictures of Preston in his flag outfit.

Checking out the Lakeway Fiddlers

After that disappointment, we headed to where else, but Home Depot. Success! Preston found the tractors and was in hog heaven. Seriously, this boy could "drive" a tractor all day long.

Then, when we got home, it was time for us to set to work making our annual Flag Cake. And by "make" I mean decorate a store-bought angel food cake with Cool Whip, strawberries, and blueberries. Messy as it was, Preston had a great time helping to decorate-sneaking a few bites along the way. ;-)

He was so proud using that spatula!

Place one, eat one, place one, eat one

The final masterpiece!

The second half of the day continued to be successful. After nap time, we went straight over to Mimi & Papa's house to "hijack" the golf cart and ride to the neighborhood pool for some swimming fun. Let me tell you, if we had our own tractor and golf cart at home, we'd never leave! I WISH I had some pictures of Preston going down the frog slide, but that doesn't happen with mom and dad are both in the pool! Lastly, we got to dance to some classic rock, and PJ was loving it. He can't help but move when he hears any kind of "tukit (music)." My personal favorite part was getting up to dance together to the tune of "Pretty Woman." Ahhh, love my boy.

I love the post-hot dog ketchup-smeared look

 To top off the evening, we walked about 50 yards where one of my long-time friends, Lee Krassner, had his food trailer-Dock & Roll Diner-set up.  Stuart and I enjoyed some delicious sliders, while Preston had fun, once again, "driving" their burnt orange truck and laughing at himself in the rearview mirror. Afterwards, we hopped back in the golf cart and headed back to pick up our car, and I don't know who was more excited to see whom-Mimi or Preston? My parents had just arrived home from an excursion to Vail, and Preston and Mimi got their fix of each other.

Hammin' it up

Literally, just laughing at himself

Thanks for the meal, Lee!

Mimi's home from Vail!

At the end of the day, we were stuffed, exhausted, and satisfied-what an amazing Independence Day!