Breaking news!

This happened last week:

This girl wore a bow without a headband for the first time! It was also the first time I'd ever tried it. It's the cutest thing!

Also, she discovered her diaper this week, too. A toy that comes everywhere with her! Now, please don't discover the Velcro straps!

She ate nearly an entire banana & loved every bite!

after her first long sliver that she swallowed completely whole...I cut them into smaller chunks. She didn't take the time to chew quite like I thought she would. 

Also, Ivy will gag down anything I give her whether she likes it or not! Such a sweet baby!

And this pic just because I love her big noggin!

Also, she really adores her uncle Chase!

And people watching...

And chewing on my hand!

And her stuffed bunny.

And reading with Daddy!

And baths in the sink!

And sleeping on her side! (That is the only way she sleeps...)

And playing in her crib!

I adore my sweet baby!

Florida Vacation

This was our trip to Florida!

Ivy is a complete water baby!

We had so much fun at Disney World & Ivy was a total trooper!

She got her very first pair of Minnie Ears! With her name embroidered & everything!
It was raining the entire night after we bought them, so they were only worn for a little bit & now are saved for her toy box!

It was an awesome trip & I had so much fun with my family (my little one & my bigger one!).

Life is good!

I promise I'm still living!

Life has been exciting and OH SO BUSY!

My brother got home from his mission in Mexico.

My entire family was together & we are now +2 members from the last 2.5 yrs ago that we were all together!

My sister & brother-in-law are having a baby & I am over the moon excited!

Ivy turned 7 months old.

We went to Disney World where my dad's work conference was this year (How awesome is he & my mom for inviting & bringing the entire family (minus sister & bro-in-law)?)

My amazing Aunt Julie & cousin Dallin came for a visit. Oh my goodness, it was too short. I love spending time with them. All holidays and breaks from school were spent with them throughout my whole life. I adore that family. (My cousin Kristin, who's my bff is due to have a baby the same day as my sister. How fun is that?)

My mom & brother took off to drive cross-country to get him out to Utah for school at BYU & working.

My dad is with them.

I threw a baby shower for my BFF since childhood.

Basically, it's been a whirlwind MONTH. I'm not kidding, my brother has been home from his mission for a MONTH.

I have been so tired with all of it going on, it was a fun & busy month & oh my goodness I enjoyed (almost) every second of it!  Where did June go?

Also, my birthday week has begun. Hallelujah! I love birthday time!  Something just about holidays that make everything seem so much more exciting. Plus, now I get to dress up a baby holiday themed...that's really fun, too.

Also, just to tell you how checked out I've been that the fourth of July is THIS FRIDAY.

I could not figure out why so many men were wearing patriotic ties today. I honestly could not figure it out. Then I realized the fourth of July is before next Sunday. And then I got a little sad that I hadn't thought about that. Then I got over it & had chocolate chip pancakes created by the master (my 17 year old brother) & then Weston, Ivy & I all took a fantastic nap.

SO that was my May 29-June 29.

Now, I want another nap.

BUT, my dear husband and brother are dissembling and reassembling beds for me right now. We don't normally do this because on Sundays we rest. We respect the Sabbath day by resting from work and worries.

We are living with my parents & I've been using one of their beds, but my back has been getting aches & pains, so, before Chase & Weston were gone all week I asked if they could just switch it out with our bed, real quick. HAH. Who knew it would take nearly th

e entire day. I felt so bad.  But that's tonight & they'll both sleep well tomorrow, right? I had no idea my parents' bed (that my dad built more than 25 yrs ago) was so intricate. Whew!

This is the amazing Rifle Paper Company customizable sign my mom has.
It is so pretty.

I put out envelopes for everyone to write on.

I saw this at a shower & absolutely loved the idea.

One of the most tedious parts of having a shower thrown for you is hunting down everyone's addresses together! So they're already addressed & ready to go.

I made this garland.

My mom bought these spoons on Amazon & I stamped on them & added the little twine bows. They are probably my favorite detail of the shower!

This is the only game we played at the shower & it is always an easy crowd pleaser. Unless the pregnant lady looks like I did at 9 months. It might hurt their feelings.

I made these little cup labels, too.

My mom got the stuff to make these adorable little party favors & her, my grandmother, & my aunt cranked them out sweat-shop style.

Me, Jenna (Baby Mama) & Tonya, an awesome high school friend!
This was the only picture I took at the shower. Whoops.

It was a huge success! The food was a yogurt bar & my grandmother brought TONS of strawberries. Seriously, gues enough for an army. Jenna's mom also brought pound cake, whipped cream, & blueberries. I got both vanilla regular yogurt & greek yogurt! Both were great!
It was so much fun & Jenna is such a good friend & actually was in town from Houston where her & her hubby live! I'll write more about my June later!
Enjoy your summer!

This is how we Disney! (WIth a 6 month old.)

Okay, Disney World with a 6 month old.

Think we're crazy?

Maybe we are.

We are die hard Disney-ers around here, though.

I was a little nervous...but

it was AWESOME.

We prepared a lot for it & I did everything I could think of before we left on our trip to prep & plan out everything for us to tote in our backpack.

Also, somehow, I was given a pretty chill baby, so I'm definitely not taking all credit for our really smooth day.

Day 1 my uncle got us in & we went to Hollywood Studios.

We packed the stroller & pretty much every "just in case" item you can think of.

Day 2 we perfected our strategy.

We went to the Magic Kingdom & we did not bring the stroller. We only brought our Ergobaby Performance Carrier.

Have I told you that is my top favorite thing of all time?

The stroller was a nuisance on day 1, so we left it & a few items off of our Day 2 trip.

Most of our time was spent waiting in line & unless you have a special needs child, no strollers are allowed in ANY line. So we pretty much spent an unnecessary amount of time finding a place to park our stroller and then hunting it down before & after every ride. & we rarely used it. & it's hard to maneuver a stroller through the thick crowds of people.

NUISANCE.

Luckily, my baby is at the carrying age & size, still. So, it wasn't too bad toting her around most the day.

I did most of the baby carrying & Weston was a winner & carried our backpack & anything I randomly handed him a lot of the day.  While waiting in those crazy long lines, if she wasn't napping, we'd take her out of the carrier & everyone would get their turn playing with her.

She was renamed "Disney Baby." She didn't shed a single tear, seriously guys, she's the real deal.

 Disney baby made the experience so much better. Oh, & my family is all really obsessed with her & so there were a gazillion hands willing to help us if we needed any extra hands, that is a huge plus.

What I packed into the park:

1 burp cloth

1 bib

A few jars of baby food (all the eateries have plastic spoons)

A lot of bottles with dry formula in them (I'm pro nursing, but long story short, it didn't work out with us, and so there's the perk of non-breastfeeding right there)

Water Bottles

Wipes

Diapers

Changing pad

Pacifier & pacifier clip

Sun hat for baby

That's all we brought & we didn't need a thing more than that. I had been toting around a lot of extra stuff on Day 1 that I'm so happy I didn't bring the second day. I realized that she was so excited about everything around us, she didn't need toys.  I never pulled out the bib or burp cloth, but those could be handy. My Grandmother had also gotten us a clip on stroller fan that would have been fantastic, but I forgot to pack it on the trip!

When it got really hot we tried to go on the air conditioned rides, we also gave her water & put cool wet paper towels on her forehead & neck to help her cool down. She came home from the trip pretty chunky per her norm, but it's because I probably fed her too many bottles, because she didn't nap much while we were out. She was so happy the whole time, though.  She slept on my chest through parts of the day & got home really late, but she was a complete trooper. I needed to write this stuff down so I remember for future big trips like this that when I'm going into the park, the basics is all that we really need!

We had such a good time!

I'll write about our awesome trip later!

Why is this baby so happy?

Because she is all packed up and ready for Florida!!

Random Pictures

I will be writing about my brother's return very soon!

I love hanging with my girl.

This was proof that she cuddled with me for 5 seconds.

This girl is so busy & her head is never laid against anything to rest.

I sat her in my lap & she did this for a few seconds & I snatched a picture right when I could.

She is definitely a big fan of her dad and so am I! We are both so lucky to have Weston! The most loyal and loving husband to me and I can't say enough good things about him!

Ivy also loves my mom's dog!

Bella isn't such a fan of Ivy, but we're working on petting "softly."

Ah. When did she get so big? Time is flying. Honestly, it's sad to look back on when she was smaller, but I love every new stage and am having so much fun watching Ivy discover and enjoy things. 

Ivy and I waited in the car while Gramps ran into Costco and she was squealing with joy over the new scenery of the parking lot. Also, I'm celebrating another layer of hair! It's getting longer and thicker!

Sweet little chubalub playing in her high chair!

I have so many pics that look like this from her grabbing the phone and proceeding to eat it. Ah. Melts my heart.

Did I tell you she started sitting 100% on her own at about 5 months. Life is so fun. And it's fun that she can entertain herself and keep herself upright.

Happy girl

Those two teeth kill me!