Just Pictures

Cuddles


Smiles



Growing

Lessons in Parenthood

In college I took a Political Philosophy class. I've never really thought of myself as being someone interested in philosophy, but I ended up really loving the class. I was truly inspired by a quote credited to Plato and I have never forgotten it since. He said, " An unexamined life is not worth living." To me, it spoke so much about learning from your mistakes and constantly evaluating who you are and who you strive to be. 

Parenthood has been, by far, the greatest opportunity for me to evaluate myself. From small things like maturity, patience and lack of sleep, to bigger things like failing and making huge decisions that can affect your children forever, I am constantly learning. I appreciate it in the sense that I feel like I have grown so much as a human being since becoming a mother. But, at times, it can be very difficult to have to face yourself in the mirror when you realize you aren't being the best you can be.

I know this blog is about the kids, but I do have every intention of making it into a photo book/journal at some point and I want to remember the lessons and the experiences I've gone through as a mom. With that being said, here's what we've been up too. :)

Cade will not stop holding on to his feet. He grabs them every chance he has.


He is getting much closer to sitting up on his own and that is definitely his preferred position now.
 

Rylee is just as fun as ever and we are truly enjoying her expressing her own opinion and becoming a little girl!


We had a great Father's Day. Rylee loved hanging out in Papa Mike's backyard collecting rocks, playing in the water and enjoying the beautiful scenery. We went to my parent's home the next day where they set up Rylee's pool to play in. I forgot her bathing suit, but Aunt Linnie loaned us an old bikini top (which we wrapped around her a few times!) and a hat. I got a sweet picture of Cade and his Great Grandpa too!

all day, everyday

What we've been up too

Playing with friends. Cuddling. Digging. Dress up. Swinging. All while Cade sleeps :)

It takes a lot to get two babies to sit next to each other, look at the camera at the same time AND smile.

Sharing

We've been working on sharing for a while now. I'll call it a work in progress. When one of Rylee's friends would take something from her, she would just start bawling. Now, she says "No" and holds on for dear life! Not that I expect her to say "Okay sure, you can play with it for 5 minutes and I'll come back when it's my turn," even though that is what I tell her to say pretty much every time. I can already spy a little bit of rivalry between Ry & Cade. It's fun to see because it's pretty harmless so far and I know that won't last.

We bake. We cuddle. We shop. We read.