Hadley Catches a Wave

Last weekend we did our usual Saturday of going to the beach. Hadley is such a water baby.When she's not in the water, she's chasing birds and making friends with dogs and kids. It's exhausting to keep up with her all day! Mommy and Daddy take turns chasing after Hadley and occasionally convince her to rest and have a snack.

Last week Daddy brought his childhood boogie board to the beach, and Hadley hopped right on! Look at that face! I think we might have a surfer girl on our hands in a few years.

She also wiped out a few times, but took it like a champ!

She finished off the afternoon with a nice nap in her stroller...twitching and smiling as she probably dreamed about swimming, sand castles, and living the "salt life!"

Finishing Up the Dog Days of Summer

As summer winds down, we are getting ready for all of the fun things to come this fall. Hadley is starting preschool next week. She will go two days a week for about 3 hours. That same week, Mommy will be starting a part-time job at our church. It's a flexible position, so while Hadley is having fun at preschool, mommy will be arranging the Baptisms, weddings, and doing some networking for the church. A lot of changes are coming, so I wanted to reflect on the last few weeks, and all of the fun things we've been doing!

In early August, Hadley had her first swim lessons. She was admitted to the 2-3 year old class, and she held her own! Moms and babies got in the water and practiced being submerged, floating on their backs, and life jacket safety. Hadley loved her lessons each morning...but the rain and 8am swim class made for some COLD water. Mommy was so glad to get out of the water after each lesson!

Hadley's swim lessons have really helped with her baths. She's much more tolerant of having her hair washed. And Bode, who is OBSESSED with having cold, fresh water now spends each day waiting at the bathtub for a cool sip of water.

Another thing we've done this summer is knock out some mommy-daughter dates. One day we got frozen yogurt. 

We also went on a lunch date to Panera...

We've been using the baby pool on extra hot days. Bode always invites himself in the pool to play and drink the cold water.

This weekend our neighbors set up a "Redneck Riviera" in their front yard with a baby pool, slip 'n' slide, and water toys. Hadley most enjoyed sitting in a bucket of water.

She found the boys' helmet and Jeep and got on board.

Here she is running along the Slip 'n' slide in the helmet....

And last but not least, trying on mommy's shoes and bra, and sporting her sunhat. She was not pleased with Mommy for taking this picture!

This crazy girl is ready to finish up summer and start her education! I'm so sad to see her grow up, but so excited for her to begin school!

Hadley is 18 Months Old!

We just got back from Hadley's 18 month check up, and we're thankful to report that she's healthy and growing like a weed. She is SO tall and is as physically-driven as ever. Today she took off running and did a leap off of a step, and somehow landed on her feet and kept running. She loves to climb on everything: tables, chairs, the pantry shelves...you name it, she will find a way to climb it. We have our heaviest pieces of furniture anchored down with earthquake straps. If you think that sounds excessive, I encourage you to stop by our house for a few hours and watch this girl in action!

Hadley is still silly and mischievous, and I don't think that side of her personality is going away anytime soon. She's outgoing and social like mommy, and smart and inquisitive like her Daddy. People are always remarking that they've never met a child so fearless. It amazes and scares me how she will go into new situations such as running into the ocean without a second thought. She is a wild child for sure!

Hadley's 18 Month Stats:

Hair: Curly and getting blonder every day, especially after a day at the beach. She had her first haircut done by MomMom this past weekend when she and BobBob visited.
Height: 31.75"...in the 81%
Weight: 22 pounds, 5 oz....in the 22%

New Words/Phrases: "No, mine!!" "Go Bode!" "Where's Daddy?" "Where are you going?"

New Skills: Colors, throws balls and toys to the dogs, dribbles a soccer ball, takes pretend "selfies" with her plastic phone saying "CHEESE!"

Favorite Foods: She'll eat pretty much anything...lately she's been enjoying goat cheese, strawberries, vegetable purees, Greek yogurt, string cheese, and salt & vinegar almonds (mommy's favorite)

Nicknames: Hads, Peanut, Mad Hadder, Bear Cub, and of course Hurricane Hadley

Likes:
birds
dogs
cats
going to the beach
stroller rides
reading
baby dolls
bubbles
snacks "kacky"


Dislikes:
Daddy's remote control helicopter
Going to childcare at the gym
Getting her face wet
When Mommy holds another baby
When the dogs sit on mommy's lap

Yesterday we had some trees removed from our backyard. Hadley grabbed a snack and watched the whole thing like she was at a movie theater.

Here's a picture of that long hair right before her first haircut:

Her favorite thing to do: eat while carrying her baby doll around. This means the baby doll goes through the washing machine once a week to remove all of the stains.

Hadley insists on putting her sippy cup down on a coaster. Once she got so frustrated when there wasn't a coaster nearby that she slammed her cup on the ground and spilled milk everywhere. I'm not sure if she was trying to be ironic, but it was a funny moment.

Here she is munching on a chicken wing and rocking one of cousin Avery's adorable hand-me-downs:

She loves to color, especially if she can use markers. 

Hadley loves the beach. She'll play in the water until she starts turning purple, then we wrap her in a towel to warm up.

Here she is reading to Bode and nudging him whenever he stopped paying attention:

"Reading" the Declaration of Independence while sitting on the dining room floor:

Drinking a spinach-banana smoothie. Mommy thought she was ready to drink it from a cup. Thankfully Bode was there to clean up the spilled drops.

And, as always, loving gymnastics....

Happy  18 months, Hadley! Here you are one year ago, and today!

    

4th of July Festivities

It's no secret that in our house we LOVE holidays! One of our favorites is the 4th of July. We kicked off the holiday weekend going to the beach with friends. Hadley is a water baby, and will stay in the ocean as long as we let her. At this beach, dogs are allowed, so she made lots of canine friends as well as baby friends!

The next day, we woke up and had a special breakfast of patriotic pancakes. 

We put on our red, white, and blue, and headed outdoors to celebrate with friends. 

We also celebrated our neighbor's second birthday with a Thomas the Train themed party. 

Daddy played quoits...

And Hadley scoped out where the cool older girls were eating their watermelon and joined them...

On Sunday we went to a friend's house to grill out and watch the kids enjoy some outdoor toys. Hadley loved the baby pools, but as usual, could not get enough of the swings.

Hadley also loved the water slide! She has no fear.

The big group of babies ate snacks and played cornhole. For some reason Hadley tried to pull down her friend Fisher's swim diaper. 

It was a great weekend full of family, friends, and fun! Happy Independence Day!