first comes crawling, then comes standing...

Natalie started army crawling when we were in Janesville for Thanksgiving...

Once she had the whole crawling thing down, she started pulling herself up to stand...

There are going to be some bumps & bruises along the way, as she figures this whole mobility thing out...

I have a feeling it won't be long until she's trying to walk... yikes!!

our little fish

Natalie recently started infant swim lessons, and she absolutely loves it!  She's a big fan of the water; her favorite time of the day is bath time, and we go to family swim at the YMCA whenever we can.  Here are a few photos & videos I grabbed at our first family swim a few weeks ago.  The water is a little colder than we expected, but she warmed up quickly and enjoyed cruising around in the pool with her daddy :)

I love cruising around the pool with dad!

and I also love watching the other kids

I'm outta here...

that was fun!

Happy Birthday to My Mom!

Oh boy, I have SO MUCH catching up to do!  It's so overwhelming, so instead of doing a big recap, I'm just going to take a minute to wish my mom a very happy birthday!  We are so lucky to have you as our mom/mom-in-law/grandma.

We love you so much.  Happy Birthday!

Christmas 2011

Christmas in Buffalo was a blur, as usual!  Unfortunately, Natalie was sick for her first Christmas :(  She came down with her first cold on the last day of our Thanksgiving vacation in Janesville, and was sick the whole month of December.  Her cold (along with teething and starting to crawl) turned into Croup the week before Christmas.  She had a horrible cough, wasn't sleeping much at night, and was pretty cranky - but that didn't stop her from having a great first Christmas!

hanging with some of the Rahill cousins

an attempt at a family photo

meeting her 2nd cousin Andy Reid

being silly with her Great-Aunt Pat Rahill

she loves her Great-Uncle Jim!

big girl!

dancing with Great Uncle Jim

with her Great Aunt Pat and Great Uncle Jim Rahill

opening gifts on Christmas morning!

Grandma Kathy spoiled her rotten :)

opening gifts with Grandma on Christmas morning!

stealing Finn's obnoxious squeaky ball

I'm so mad at myself for not taking more photos and videos.  I was too busy trying to enjoy being in the moment - and keeping our sick little girl happy & on schedule!  Hopefully other family members & friends grabbed some shots that I can steal!
We are so blessed to have such amazing family and friends in Buffalo, and look forward to next Christmas, when Natalie will be healthy and old enough to kind of know what's going on :)

A week with my mom

It's been a crazy month or so since I last posted to this blog, and I have a lot of updates to catch up on.  But for now, I wanted to post a quick note about the last 5 days, which I spent at home in Michigan, with my mom visiting while Marty was in Phoenix for work meetings.  Words cannot describe how much I needed this visit with my mom.  Natalie and I had both been sick since Thanksgiving (Natalie's first cold was brutal).  On top of being sick, she's also getting her two upper front teeth, and then she had her 6 month shots.  She hadn't been sleeping - which means neither had I.  And I was long over-due for some serious one-on-one time with my mom.  This visit was just what the doctor ordered.

We did a lot of relaxing, which was a first for us, because usually when she visits we work our butts off on major home improvement or landscaping projects.  We went out for lunch, spent a lot of time playing with Natalie, and Marty and I even got to enjoy a date night out when he got home from Phoenix.  And it wouldn't be a visit with my mom without a few home improvement projects, which included cleaning out the garage & painting/redecorating my family room.

Overall, it was one of the best weeks ever.  I can't even begin to explain what this week meant to me - or what my mom means to me.  She is amazing.  She is my inspiration for how to be a loving, supportive, patient, successful wife and mother.  She has set the bar so high, and I turn to her for advice and support on almost a daily basis.  She is a voice of reason and reassurance when I'm frustrated, uncertain and just plain exhausted.  I would be so lost without her.  I am so lucky to call her my mom and my best friend.  And this morning I am missing her terribly :(  Saying goodbye and watching her drive away yesterday sucked.  And now I'm counting down until Natalie and I get to see her (and Heather!) again in January.

Poppy gave me the antique buggy that I used to play with at his house

Santa Baby!

we attempted Christmas card photos

"gimme"

grandma Kristie got Natalie some boots w/ bling :)

new outfit from Grandma Kristie

Santa Baby

Murphy doing some reflecting during our family room makeover project

her first attempt at climbing the step! 

getting ready to go for a walk with Grandma

best buddies

gooooood morning!

nom nom nom

opening her first Christmas gift of the season (from Greg, Sue Dylan & Jason)

date night!

Thanksgiving 2011

We spent the holiday in Janesville, with lots of family & friends.  Natalie got to spend lots of quality time with Aunt Heather, Uncle "Mo", Grandpa Jeff, Grandma Kristie, and Great-Grandma Connie.

I also got to catch-up with friends at my 10 year high school reunion.  As usual, it was a blast and my face hurt the next day from laughing so hard :)