This past month has been a versy busy one. The biggest thing, of course, was the move from Atlanta to Fort Myers, FL. It was a decision we made in a weekend and implemented a little less than a mont later. There are a few things I'll miss- our church family, Lily's room that I put so much effort into (especially her chandelier, tear), and what else? Her pediatrician! Is that odd? He has been seeing her since birth and we absolutely love him, and I am so sad that she won't be going to see him when she turns a year old.
But, we are here and thriving.
What else will be different? The list of invitees for her birthday has dropped from about 30 to exactly 5, including herself. As we know no one yet, it will be only herself, me, Clay, Nana, and Papa. Not quite the bash I had planned in my head, but those are the most important people, right? It's a good thing I hadn't finalized the cake order in Atlanta yet, because I had to end up canceling it. But, I found a great place here. I have never ordered a professional cake before, so I am super excited to see the final product of our collaboration. Honestly, I have daydreamed about the day I pick it up from the shop :)
Lily is doing fantastically in Florida. At this point she could star in a coppertone commercial - her tan is better than mine. She has charmed all of the teachers at her new preschool. There she gets to play in a 2 level indoor playground that reminds me of the Swiss Family Robinson tree house. I really want to sneak in there and play in it myself. They have a Bible lesson every day, do art work, take buggy rides, and she has learned to sleep on a nap mat instead of in a crib.
She is now a professional walker. My favorite part about that is when she runs to me for a hug. It is one of the most heartwarming things. She also likes to chase and be chased. She has been off bottles for a week now and only on sippy cups. It is so much less work to clean a cup and a lid instead of a bottle that has 6 individual pieces. This next month we tackle pacifiers, and this will probably be a bit more difficult.
She also got her first real sickness this month. It started with symptoms that made us all think she was teething. But last Saturday night she was up for hours crying. I have never seen her so hysterical. She made some of the most heart breaking sounds and was grabbing at her mouth and the sides of her face. Nothing I gave her helped. After a couple hours she must have worn herself out and finally fell asleep. But even when she wasn't making a fuss, it was just as heartbreaking. Monday night her fever was over 102 and she just laid in someone's arms all evening (mostly mine, as I thought that naturally I was the one who should get to do all the mothering). But she had no energy, and would just lie there holding her buffalo and staring. Her little body was so hot, but I kept trying to get liquids into her. I woke up at 2:30 am to give her the next round of motrin, and the next morning she was doing so much better. She goes back to preschool tomorrow! The good news in all this is that we do like the new pediatrician, so that was a big relief.
PICS FROM BEFORE THE MOVE:
This cart is not as much fun when riding the safe way:
Let me see if I can do exactly what this sign says not to:
What's that, Mommy, this isn't allowed?
Who's that I see in the yard?
Is that Daddy mowing the lawn?
Yes it is!!!
Aunt Emily visits before we move too far away for a weekend visit:
Meeting Mommy for lunch during her last week of work in Midtown:
Epic bacon pic:
Daddy gave me the full family sized portion of spaghetti, but I sure had fun with it:
Papa arrives to drive with us to Florida:
DRIVING TO FLORIDA:
PICS FROM AFTER THE MOVE:
She was always snuggling with one of her 2 favorite stuffed animals with feeling sick - the buffalo or the llama:
She is doing much better today, and should be completely back to normal tomorrow. She was playing a lot last night and pushing her little grocery cart all around the living room.
Now we have exactly one month before my little girl is a year old. It's really hard to believe how fast this time with her has gone by, but I will wait until next month to get too emotional about that!
