I
get so discouraged sometimes by all of the ugliness in the world so when I saw
this quote this morning by Mr. Mandela, I smiled. I’m so glad that Travis and I
are raising our girls to be “colorblind” and accepting of everyone, regardless
of their race or religion. I can only pray that they will pass this on to their
children someday because an open heart has no room for intolerance.
It's officially been 10 weeks since Fin was born. I know, right?! Time flies! In that 10 weeks I've pretty much come away with one general thought....going from one kid to two kids...hard. I mean, super hard. Like, bang my head against a wall hard. Why wasn't I warned about this? Everything nearly gives me an anxiety attack because it feels like there is always so much to get done. Getting Press to and from school, getting her to cheer, bath time, getting her homework done, crying babies, getting laundry taken care of and then there's dinner, packing lunches, crying babies, dress up days at school, (did I mention the crying baby?) cleaning the house...oh.my.gosh. I nearly give myself an aneurism. On a daily basis I have to remind myself to take a deep breath and take each day one step at a time. I'm looking forward to the days when I no longer have to do this. That day will come...right?
On September 4th, Travis and I were blessed with ANOTHER beautiful, healthy baby girl! I was admitted to the hospital at 8 AM and by 12:43 PM we had a brand new member of the family!
Finley (Fin) Caroline Carter was 7 lbs 14 oz and was 21 1/4 inches long. She has a ton of dark hair and looked identical to Pressley! It was the first thing I noticed when Dr. Hayes laid her on my stomach after delivery. It was the 2nd best moment of our lives.
Pressley wanted a sister the entire time I was pregnant so when Travis went to pick her up from school the day Fin was born, she was all smiles and so happy when Travis told her it was a girl! We couldn't wait for her to get to the hospital to see her baby sister AND to pick out her name (no worries, she was given choices). She's been head over heels in love with her from the moment she saw her! She loves holding her and is such a great helper. I couldn't be prouder of her.
Don't worry, I'm the one who has them, not Pressley.
August 7th was a tough day for this mom. Pressley's first day of kindergarten. She was pumped and ready to go. I...was not. How did this happen? How did she turn into such a grown up little person? Didn't I just give birth to her two seconds ago? Oh. My. Heart.
To recap this strenuous day...TC and I walked her to class, she gave us hugs and kisses and turned and walked into her room. No. Big. Deal. As soon as we turned to walk down the hall and leave, I lost it. Like, REALLY lost it. Cried the whole way to the car...just ask my husband (I'm sure he was mortified). I spied a couple of other moms crying as we were leaving, thank goodness. I knew I was not alone in my heartache. Two days later when I started dropping her off in the "drop off line" in the morning, my heart broke just a smidge more. Watching her hop out of our car and walk into that gigantic school all by herself (totally fearless by the way) made me feel so super sad. It was official. My little baby wasn't a baby anymore.
I didn't expect this to be SO hard. I thought I would be fine, but I'm not. I find myself telling her I love her a ridiculous amount of times every day, giving her extra long hugs for no reason, always wanting her to hold my hand and even prolonging bedtime every night just so i can spend extra time with her. I feel like time just continues to fly by and I just want to stop it. Why is being a parent so rewarding yet heart-tugging sometimes?!
Yes, I'm pregnant and super hormonal so I'm secretly hoping that after the baby is born, the sadness I feel about Pressley's growing up will subside (it will, right?). I'm just so thankful that I get to enjoy these moments all over again with another child, otherwise I might lose my mind.
Most importantly, Pressley loves kindergarten. She's adapting so well and really seems to like her teacher. So I suppose as long as she's happy, I'll be happy (but will continue to cry in the car after drop off for an uncertain amount of time. Don't judge me!).
We finally decided to indulge on our first BIG family vacation this year. I called it our “Florida Adventure” because Pressley had never seen the ocean before, therefore it was sure to be an adventure for her. I’m happy to say, Florida did not disappoint this child. She is now officially Florida’s #1 fan and she can’t wait to go back next year!
Every year, Travis and I find a million reasons to NOT take a family vacation (usually because of money)., so the fact that we actually took one this year is monumental. 2013 is going to be such a big year for our family with the new baby coming, so I’m trying to make an extra effort to make our time as a family of three as special as possible. We’re all looking forward to being a family of four but our little threesome has been so fun for the past 5 ½ years that it sometimes makes me sad that it’s quickly coming to an end. I’m so glad we decided to take this trip. It was so good for my soul and my mind. Watching Pressley on her “big Florida Adventure” was worth any amount of money spent. Can’t wait to take her back!
First time at the ocean!
With her great grandma and grandpa!
Sailor Circus in Sarasota!
Pressley and her "Best Friend" from the trip, Rachel.
On the last day of our trip, Pressley met Zoe. Again, her "best friend".
Travis and I treated Pressley (and ourselves) to a Dolphin Adventure boatride in Clearwater. It was AWESOME. We saw several dolphins and they even did some tricks for us! She loved it!
A souvenir from our day spent in Clearwater Beach. A dolphin shirt...what else?!
Daddy and Punky @ Siesta Key Beach
Too cool for school
First day at grandma and grandpa's pool!
First sandcastle ever made...and five minutes later so destroyed it :(
Short little video of our Dolphin Adventure boatride
My little fish...swimming at great grandma and grandpa's pool. Her favorite part of the trip!
This past weekend Pressley participated in her 3rd Indiana Elite Dawg Show. I can hardly believe we've been doing this for three years! Where or where does the time go? I was looking at old pictures earlier this week and stumbled upon a picture of me and Punky at her first Dawg Show and I cannot get over how much she has grown! What a beautiful young lady she is turning into. Travis and I are so proud of her!
The Dawg Show marks the end of every season for the entire Indiana Elite program. All 20+ teams (and 300+ girls!) perform in front of family members and friends and all of the graduating seniors are honored for all of their years of dedication to the program. Some of the seniors have been cheering at Indiana Elite for 13+ years! It's a really neat day! Here are some pictures from the show as well as her performance on video. GO DAWGS!
For the first time in eight years, I forgot my sweet Lou's birthday. I'll blame it on the pregnancy brain. Better late than never! Happy 8th Birthday Lou Lou! We all love you!
I was able to give TC the best Christmas gift ever this year...news that he was going to be a daddy for the 2nd time! Baby C will be here in early September :)
