family photos 2015

I've been wanting to get some family photos done lately but I knew it was going to be impossible to get Harper to actually sit still and I really didn't want to try and force her to be still and pose because that's just not where she's at right now. She's little and she's meant to be running around and being crazy and playing so I really loved the idea of doing a lifestyle shoot and Alyssa Holiday captured it so perfectly. These photos were actually taken in mine and Preston's bedroom. So if you're a creeper and ever wondered what our room looks like....now you know! haha I kid of course! I really do love our "master bedroom." It sounds funny calling it that because it's actually pretty small but it really is my favorite room in our place. I love how intimate the shoot was and that it was taken in our home. We've spent a lot of time in that room since Harper has been born. We snuggle and play and read and watch shows together in there and I love those memories. Alyssa let us pretty much just do whatever we wanted. Like I already said Harper LOVES to read books so we do a lot of that and she loves to be tickled and tackled on our bed so there was a lot of that happening too. I really loved that Alyssa was so, so great with my little Harper. Anytime Harper would get whiny or shy Alyssa would let her run around for a bit or play with her camera all she wanted to make her more comfortable and that was really great. I figure we will have more traditional family photos done as Harper gets older but this really was the perfect photo shoot for where Harper is at right now.

Our lives lately

Hello!
Oh man our lives have been so crazy lately but really great! 

This summer we took our first family vacation with the 3 of us. We went to a family reunion on Preston's side to a lake house in North Carolina. We flew a red eye to Virginia to meet up with Preston's family first and then we drove to North Carolina and we were at the lake house for a week and then went back down to Midlothian VA to hang out for a few more days. If you're wondering a red eye with a 16 month old was a DISASTER. Now we just laugh at the experience and are so glad that it's over but HOLY CRAP it was insane. Harper is a great, great little sleeper but that girl was over tired and over stimulated and our hopes and dreams of her sleeping for the flights in hindsight were a complete joke. The girl went full on crazy, screaming bloody murder, hitting us, bending backwards like one only does when they've been possessed by a demon spirit. It was ridiculous but then she was mostly an angel lady once we got settled and she LOVED the lake as you'll see below. We had a lot of fun and made a bunch of great memories while we were there. Traveling with a tiny toddler is no joke but luckily we have a little while before we plan our next big trip with little lady.

I'm still at home with Harper each and every day and I love it...for the most part ;) I love that I don't miss a thing when it comes to Harper. I'm there for every big moment or new discovery and it's awesome. I'm so blessed to be able to stay home with her and it's definitely not lost on me. Even on the crazy days where she is being a sassy, exhausting little girl I always find myself scrolling through photos of her and missing her once she's in bed and all is calm again and I always try to convince Preston to let me go sneak in her room and wake her up to play but he's usually not into that idea and he's usually right that it's a horrible idea to wake the beast haha. 

Preston just got a new position at his company a few weeks ago and the guy is LOVING IT! I'm so happy that he's happy and loving what he's doing. It's a great new challenge for him and the boy is doing great. It all happened so fast and fell together so perfectly and it had us shaking our heads at how things all work out and we know it was for sure a huge blessing from above and it just makes us smile. 

This summer has been a lot of fun. It's been pretty hot here so Harper and I are really loving going to the pool with our buddies Alyssa and Maverick who also happen to be our next door neighbors. It's awesome to say the least...we love hanging out with them and it makes the summer a lot more fun that Harper has a little friend to run around and be crazy with and I love that his mom and I can relate to each other so well because we are pretty much living the same life haha. Her husband works at the same company Preston does and we have babies a month apart from each other and we live on the exact same street! 

Preston and I have started to be able to go on a lot of date nights again which is heaven. I don't know if brand new mom me would have believed that this day would come a year ago when Harper was a tiny nursing, highly attached to me, always hungry, savage, no sleeping lady baby. But alas this time did come and I'm loving this season of life. I love spending time with Preston just the two of us each week and it really gives us the chance to be early 20 somethings. Don't get me wrong we LOVE the child so much and we love hanging around just the three of us but man its no joke when people say how important the time is with just the two of you and I'm so lucky to have him as it is but also get those special date nights with just us is great. We've been to movies, had game nights with friends, gone to a concert, baseball games, and shopping this summer and it's a lot of fun and it's been so, so fun. (also side note thanks for anyone and everyone who has babysat Harper for us...you have NO idea how much it means to us and how thankful we are for each of you)

Just a little update on what Harper is up to lately:

-The girl is starting to talk a lot...like real words! it's so fun and so cute and I seriously LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE (get the point) how her little voice sounds 

-Walks and runs and NEVER EVER sits still but I love it. Play on little lady

-Just loves to eat. We are convinced it doesn't register with her that she's full. She'll eat her dinner and then be completely convinced that she needs to eat all of ours too and then needs a snack 20 minutes later? how the girl only weighs 20 pounds is beyond me

-She really loves anyone that makes her laugh. I like to think she gets that from me. If you make us laugh we love you for life and you will for sure become Harper's best friend for as long as you let her bug you

-She loves books. In the sweetest way possible. No joke she literally kisses the pages as we read stories, we're talking major heart eyes people.

-She's getting very sassy these days. To the point that I'm almost convinced her "terrible two's" are happening early. She has a lot of opinions and if you do/say something she's not fond of she'll let you know with the most annoying little dinosaur screech. It's ridiculous haha but we are working on it. 

-Harper gives the best little hugs, I might be a little biased but they are pretty great. I love her little squeezes and that she grunts a little when she hugs you tight. 

-Loves the bath and going outside. So much that we can't say those words in our house until it's a done deal and we are almost headed out the door or the bath has already been poured. 

So that's just some fun facts about what she's up to lately. She's going on 18 months in September. How she's almost a year and a half already I'm really not sure but she is just the best and keeps us highly entertained on the daily. 

SO anyway that's our lives lately.

XOXO

ONE year old Harper

My sweet girl turned 1 today! I'm still trying to wrap my brain around it but here's some photos I captured of my cute, silly big one year old lady. I'll post some sappy notes about our last year together and some photos of her birthday celebrations after her party this weekend!