Always Dreamin of the Beach: January 2015

Friday, January 30, 2015

#FlashbackFriday: Happy 1st Birthday, Laiken!

We had Laiken's 1st birthday pictures taken on the beach when we were in Sanibel. I hope this girl know how's spoiled she is already!

We decorated and wrapped a few gifts for her actual birthday on April 9th.

My parents came over for a quick birthday celebration that night since we were having her party the following weekend. She LOVED her cake!

My brother came over to help put together the new pirate ship playhouse! Scott loves when I buy things with a bunch of parts. ;)

The girls just played in the box!

We threw a party on April 12th with our closest friends and family to celebrate!

I made this banner with each of Laiken's monthly pictures during her first year.

A little decor before guests arrived...

I think this was the first time in my life that I was ready for a party and not throwing things together as guests arrived.

Food and dessert table on the patio

I ordered this custom birthday sign from Etsy. It was cute party decor and I love that I can keep it for her 1st year stats!

Her outfit was another Etsy purchase - I loved all the bows & feathers and Scott thought she belonged it Vegas...dads just don't get it! ; )

Cheeeesee ... serious.

Laiken wasn't walking yet but she took her first steps days after her 1st birthday. She thought she was pretty big stuff walking with daddy!

Kinley swinging - <3 those pigtails!

Hadley & Presley playing in the pirate ship - Laiken's big present from us.

Kylie helping Laikers walk again..

Laiken proving that she's a big kid, too!

Sweet baby Everett!

Present time!

Laiken wasn't very into opening presents so Kinley and I helped.

Laiken was spoiled rotten of course...swimsuits, a roller coaster ride, books, toys, toys, toys!

Ready for summer with her sunnies!

Buffett had to get in on the action and get a little attention, too.

Aunt Christie, Uncle Chris, & our favorite "baby Kaelyn!"

The big kids testing out the new roller coaster!

Time for cupcakes!

Hhmmm...what song are you singing...

Nom, nom, nom..

This one loves her food!

How old is Laiken?!? "So big" she says! haha

Big sis loves her cuppycakes, too!

Notice the difference between Kinley and Laiken's eating styles. I love that they are totally different!

Laiken -

You are such a funny baby and always keep us on our toes. If we turn our back for more than a minute, I can guaruntee that you've found something to get into whether it be Kinley's toys, a random cabinet or even dog food! You are such a ham and always keep us laughing with your funny faces which I refer to as "the many faces of Laiken." You definitely favor your daddy (look-wise) and have his outgoing personality.

1 year stats:

23 pounds & 29 inches tall

You have 8 teeth

You love most foods especially bananas, strawberries, mac n cheese, ham, and anything sweet

You adore your big sis and are very interested in your puppies

You love playing peek-a-boo, your Sophie giraffe, playing instruments, and looking at books

You took swim lessons this year and loved the pool in Sanibel

You are a pretty easy going baby but when you get mad, watch out!

You wave bye-bye and blow kisses

Your big smile and scrunched up nose can light up a room!

Happy Birthday, Laiken Lou! We love you SO much!

Monday, January 19, 2015

Ann's 70th Birthday Party

We celebrated Ann's 70th birthday party on January 3rd with a nice dinner with family. Our girls are SO lucky to have such awesome cousins!

I had good intentions of getting family pictures of everyone but that didn't happen...

Never a dull moment with this crew!

Grandkids gathering to give grandma her present...

Never a shortage of helping hands...

Happy Birthday, Grandma Weezie!

Friday, January 16, 2015

#FlashBackFriday - Sanibel 2014

We loaded up the truck and set out for our annual trip to Sanibel on Thursday around noon. Our goal was to entertain the girls for the 1st half of the trip when we had all of our energy and then prayed that they would sleep all night and we would happily arrive in Sanibel the next morning. Which kind of happened..

The girls were ready with their toys and books

The trip down actually didn't go too terrible except for the fact that I started driving before Atlanta around 11pm when I was starting to get tired and my contacts started bothering me. I'm pretty sure I had a mini anxiety attack and made Scott drive again. Our precious cargo but too much pressure on me! So Scott ended up driving most of the way and we were both delirious when we arrived the next morning. We met the Tuckers for breakfast at the hotel and headed over to Sanibel for a little day trip before we checked into our condo on Saturday.

Delaney and Kinley all ready for the beach!

Laiken immediately loved the beach! She played in the sand and crawled everywhere!

Kinley, on the other hand, took a little longer to warm up and did NOT want to touch the sand at first. She quickly got over it and was in heaven!

Daddy and his girl

Laikey and her buddy Brayden

We celebrated St. Patrick's Day and I tried to have a mini photoshoot with the girls by the fountain at Perwinkle Place. Kinley, always being the helper, was trying to get Laiken to look up and smile. :)

Kinley quickly became a little fish and loved her barbie!

My best investment of the trip was definitely the double beach stroller that we rented. It was dropped off at our condo and picked up at the end of our trip. We took lots of walks and the girls took a few good naps there so we could still lay by the pool. Win win!

I was all about the photoshoots and tried to get a few pictures after dinner one night. I loved these nautical outfits from Gymboree!

I love waking up to this view in the morning! Sweet sleepy faces and the beach!

Just another day at the beach. We packed the double stroller to the brim and hauled all our beach stuff every day along with our beach chairs. We set up quite a camp site but there's no more traveling light for us.