Holiday Weekend

And the Jones family could not be happier! Staying in bed till 7. Home playing with our girl all day. Hot dogs, beans and roast potatoes - our own indoor picnic. Finally watching Avatar (and Sherlock Holmes is on the agenda tonight). These are a few of the things we've done this weekend. And we have another day off tomorrow!!!

Oh and Miss Cutie Patootie below is wearing a 3/6 month dress I found in the back of her closet. I didn't pack it away because it looked so big and lo and behold - it fits at 12 months. And is quite cute I might add.

A Visit From Grandma and Grandpa

My parents came up for the evening. Time with a super cute kid and a good dinner? Who could ask for more?

Celia Turns One!

We made our way to MD yesterday for Celia Bug's first birthday party. Good friends, good food, good times. Happy Birthday Sweet Celia!

The Haps

Haven't blogged much about our day-to-day schedule lately. We've had a fun week. Last Saturday we went to Greek Fest and got some amazing eats. Hard to believe when we went last year I was carrying around a 6 pound baby on the inside. This year it was an almost 18 pound baby strapped to my chest.

Sunday I taught Sunday school alone while Peter stayed home with a napping Carina. Usually it's the other way around. We're hoping to split the teaching a bit more evenly from here on out. And eventually Carina's nap time won't coincide with Sunday school. I just hate to bring her along and make her miss a nap. That's just not good for any of us.

Tuesday I had a hair cut so Peter and Carina had some quality Daddy/Daughter time. I'm Still debating whether or not to go back to my pixie cut. This "long" hair is just too much work and it doesn't even look good.

Thursday we went to a CPR class (in hopes of boosting my confidence when it comes to feeding Carina table food). It was 7-9:15 so Rebecca came over and put Carina to bed. It was the first time ever I didn't put her to bed. It went just fine! Of course I missed her but she went to bed nice and easy and stayed asleep till we got home. We may have to think about going on same dates now, haha.

Today I've had a bit of a tummy bug so Peter did the grocery shopping. We had to run my car (Moxie) to the garage for her inspection on Monday. Carina didn't nap for as long as usual so she was a bit fussy. We had a terrible time putting her to bed. She must have cried for at least half an hour but eventually she wore herself out. Now we're both ready to relax and catch up on Thursday's Community, Parks & Rec and The Office!

Oh and new tricks! Carina now shakes her hand/finger when we say "No bad cat!" and she will point to her hair, belly and toes when we ask her to. Such a smartie!

Vegetarian

Carina is typically an excellent eater. She's never refused any particular food... until tonight. I tried to feed her pureed veggies with chicken. Below are the before and after pics. May need a paternity test to confirm she's Peter's if she doesn't eat meat! Don't worry... after that last sad picture I fed her veggies and she was happy again.

Good Morning Sunshine!

Our little morning person.

Motoring Around

One of Carina's new tricks is the "motor boat". She is also balancing while sitting on her knees, pulling herself up onto anything and everything and walking while pushing the upturned laundry basket around.

Happy Mother's Day!

Started my Mother's Day weekend at the pediatrician with Carina. Diagnosis: croup. Carina didn't sleep well Friday (none of us did since we shared one bed) but we thought we were in the clear after she had a relatively good day yesterday and a good night's sleep last night. Unfortunately she was still whiney, cranky and needy today. We did share lots of snuggles and a nap so it was still a good Mother's Day. Got a beautiful card and incredibly sweet necklace from Peter with Carina's name and a pearl on it (and he did loads of housework - best husband ever!). All in all, the best Mother's Day I've ever had.

Baby Meets Cake

Inspired by my friend Linz and her darling girl Celia... I introduced Carina to cake simply for the sake of a few good pictures. Carina was napping while we ate her dedication cake so I thought it only fair to save the part with her name on it for her. The result? Cute and funny pictures, of course!

Carina's Dedication

Dear Carina,

What a JOY you are to us! From the moment we met you (and even before) we fell completely in love with you. You are such a happy and content little girl. You study everyone and everything around you so intently. We call you our little perfectionist because while you may reach milestones later than others, when you do achieve them (like crawling) you do it perfectly – as if you’ve been practicing over and over in your head.

You can be shy around new faces but once you warm up to someone you are the sweetest. Your smiles light up an entire room and your giggles and belly laughs melt our hearts. You kiss your stuffed animals and share your toys with friends and with us. We hope that your kindness and generosity continue to grow as you mature into the beautiful young lady we know you will become.

We pray that you will always be filled with love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. We pray too that you would be quick to show grace and mercy to others. We promise to do our best to teach you these fruits of the spirit by our example and when we stumble we hope you will learn forgiveness as well.

Carina your name is also the name of a constellation – a picture in the sky made of stars – of the keel of a ship. The keel is the first part of the ship to be built – the foundation or spine providing the major source of structural strength. You as our sweet and beautiful firstborn have served as the foundation of our family – providing balance and strength simply by your existence. Our prayer is that Christ would always serve as YOUR foundation and strength. Build your life on Him and His word. Delight yourself in the LORD and He will give you the desires of your heart. (Psalm 37:4)

Carina you are the desire of our hearts and we love you so very, very much – now and always.

Love,
Mommy and Daddy

Dedication Weekend

Sunday we had Carina dedicated at our church! My parents came out Saturday and spent the night. Dad picked up Gram and brought her over Sunday and Peter's parents came Sunday too. We had a nice picnic lunch and cake. Carina was SO good all weekend long and even took an amazing afternoon nap Sunday - despite the energetic and vocal company :)

Big Girl Pajamas

I love these pajamas almost as much as I love the little girl wearing them.