- Festivities on the Fourth -

Here we go again with Scarlett's accelerated artwork: 

^^ I noticed the tips of her toenails on the left foot were a little blue a few days before I saw the bulletin board debut, so I'm thiiiiiinking she contributed to the firework on the far left or the far right; ohhhh daycare, I'm catchin' on to you!  But cheers to one of our favorite holidays.....and more cheers for teachin' 'em young how to properly celebrate the FOURTH OF JULYYYYY!!! 

America!

America!

Ahhhh-merrrr-ica! 

And I juuuust have to sprint down memory lane for a hot second and say one sentimental thang: last year at this time, we were announcing Baby F. numero dos to the world [!!!]. And this year, that feisty little fetus-turned-firecracker was able to take part in the festivities with the big kids! Zomgggg, I love these two little people more than words can say!!!

[^^ Sister skirts compliments of Grammy Resa!]

Of course, we didn't just don matching outfits for nothing; the 4th of July isn't at all a 4th of July without Brian's parents' annual backyard barbecue and firework show!

The kids played while the adults ate...and all the while, Brian was shut off in the shed loading his firework boards onto a trailer and programming the remotes to make sure the show would go off without a hitch...

 ...and it did! There were glow sticks everywhere, then the fireworks started and it was awesome! Harper is her daddy's daughter fo' sho': a mini-pyro in the making! :/

We spent the night at Grammy and Papa's and woke up to another day full of holiday fun...

 ...including a pool day at Bill and Suzanne's!

"There she isssss, MISS AMERICA!" ...We're in biiiig, big trouble with this one! BIG trouble.

We caught our community fireworks on the way home that evening and found Harper the perfect seat while Scarlett snoozed in the [running] car...

^^ ...there was only a brief meltdown when the fireworks were over and Harper realized we couldn't go inside Kohl's for a 9:50pm shopping spree.   

Then lastly [but most awesomely!], the weekend rolled around and we hit up Fair St. Louis for some music and fireworks.

Scarlett fell asleep on her milk source riiiight before the fireworks started and caught some zzz's through the whole show! Harper watched most of the show through my phone screen because she was dead set on "takin' some pit-churs of 'da boo-tiful fireworks!" [and actually, she isn't too bad in the photography department]!

Happy 4th of July, everyone! Happy birthday, America!!! Cheers to freedom and this beautiful life we live! :) 

- Reunioning with a FAMILY -

Not mad I married into this awesome family!  ...The best moments of Brian's family reunion and homecoming parade: 2018 edition!

Catch all y'all Croatians next year! 

- Five months young! -

Oh hello, pretty girl...

Rahhhhhhhh rawr! You're gonna be SIX MONTHS tomorrow, so I'm typing with fast and furious fingers before the clock strikes me out.  But this month! Month five: you're sooooo full of smiles [and even those big belly laughs when someone kisses your tummy!], BUT! no one would ever know it by your sober ole' monthly chalkboard photos!  You were smiling and babbling on and on for at least an hour before I staged this photo; after seeing that, I was so sure we would get a good grin today, but nope nope nope! Not a one.

[Finally, after an exhausting effort on behalf of Grammy and Harper, you did crack a few.]  You don't particularly like to lay down anymore and are always craning your neck up if you're left in a supine position. You can almost sit up all by yourself [though we usually leave a little pillow behind your back juuuuust as a little pad for error!], and a little mound of toys between your chubby legs will keep you occupied for hours several minutes. I think I've been saying this for the past couple posts, but EVERYTHING goes straight to your mouth and you chew.chew.chew.chew.chewwww on anything you can get your little gums on. I had to dig some bibs out of the basement [Harper never wore bibs?!] because you are a drooling machine! 3.28 minutes with no bib = a soaked outfit from neck to nipple-line. Big, sloppy, droooooooly kisses are your specialty, and you'll plant one on the cheek of anyone who comes within arm's reach. You found your feet and -- not a shocker -- spend a good chunk of the day chewing on 'dem lil' tootsies. You have the sweetest little demeanor and only show your squeals if you're left in a room by yourself.  Harper calls you "stinker butt" ...not sure where she heard that one?! ;)

Lastly and most importantly, you had two memorable milestones this month!  First swim and FIRST FOOD! ...Momma got a new phone a couple weeks ago [party emojiiiii] and I haven't uploaded any new pics off yet, so stay tuned for some adorable poses of the pea-faced princess! 

Ahhhhh! Signing off now to enjoy the last day of life with a fabulous five-month-old!

- Christmas 2.0 :) -

Ahhh...a short reminiscence of Mother's Day twentah-eighteen that came and went without sight of a single scribbled on card or solitary homemade toddler gift [#notbitter ... #justamused] ...But love makes the world go 'round, and the love was abounding on May 13, 2018, and so! I rest my case forever and ever amen.

...But I was juuuuuust reminiscing/comparing for a hot second, because for literally three weeks before Father's Day, the girls and I spent our days hand-picking special cards ...and taking and printing pictures to glue in said cards ...and cutting vinyl with the Cricut ...and painting with brushes and our hands ...and HOLY crafting basicallllly 24/7 all for the dads/papas in our lives!  Every single day, Harper said, "Mommmmmy, is it Fah'ver's Day yet?!" with her head cocked to the side and eyebrows raised and lips pursed.  She always had the most anticipatory look on her sweet little face, which is when I decided to officially deem Father's Day as "Christmas 2.0."  [Admit it, it's appropriate.]  The second Brian walked in the door in the evenings, she would run to me and say, "Mommy! Where did you put 'dat ting we made today wif our hands on it so I can show Daddy?" Yessssss. Definitely Christmas 2.0.

She was also dead set on buying Brian a hot and steamy [sort of inappropriate, too] wife-to-husband card, but alas I coaxed her into the daughters-to-daddy section and she found a cute one with two baby bears wearing princess crowns that she liked almost as well. Phew.

All [bitter] joking aside, I am truly in awe of the love and patience that Brian has for these girls, and I was almostttt as excited as Harper was for Father's Day to arrive and for him to open his gifts!  It takes a real man to live with three attention-seeking women ;) :), but Brian does that perfectly and flawlessly day in and day out!

[^^ Swooning over these beautiful pieces of artwork that came home from the daycare... I cherish these little handmade things sooooo much -- probably more than Brian does hah! -- and literally almost cried when I saw the gifts in their daycare bags.  Harper was so proud of the things she made and again could hardly wait for Fah-ver's Day to arrive!]

Annnnnnd drumroll... Harper popped out of bed at 6:48am on the holiday of all holidays to give her daddy a hug and then begin the large task of transporting all her homemade gifts for him to open in bed!

Happy Father's Day, babe! We are blessed by you and hope you enjoyed your special day! :-* :-*

- A Mother's Love -

[Two months behind the times, buuuuut better late than never!]

I've always loved this quote: 

"To love and to be loved is to feel the sun from both sides." 

And while it probably wasn't originally penned specifically for all the momma's out there, after growing and raising and bonding with/falling head-over-heels in love with a pair of tiny humans, I totally believe that the quote is perfectly embodied and lived out through the amazing relationship between a momma and her child[ren]!  I've been feelin' the sun from both sides for a few years now, and there truly is nothing like it!!! *swoon*

We celebrated Mother's Day this year with a little sunrise breakfast before Mass...

...then on to brunch/lunch in 'da city [Grammy Resa's dream for the last decade]!

The dessert table/crepe bar was a hit for sure!

Rounded out the evening with dinner/BBQ for Grammy Ann!

Innnnnn a nutshell, I just want to send so many claps and cheers to all the moms out there: moms with babies on earth and moms with babies in heaven ...grandmas and great-grandmas ...moms-to-be and those who long to be moms ...mothers-in-law and stepmoms ...ALL THE MOMS!  We women are a unique and special mix of gentleness and sensitivity and nurturance and selflessness; we radiate a love that is like no other! 

So keep on keepin' on, mommas... You are cherished and celebrated today and every day! :-* :-*

- Spring... -

...is springing...

...sprang...

...has sprung! 

Take 'dis grammar goddess back to conjugation classsssss, 'cuz holy whoa: spring was up and spring is DOWN!  I bumped into this bulletin board at the daycare a few weeks ago and was so amazed at Scarlett's my child prodigy's painting/cutting/gluing skillz that I had to snap a pic to save forever: 

And so! In the spirit of spring [but without dwelling on allllllll the nitty gritty details of the last few months], let me just photo-highlight some of this season's funs and faves:

-- Picnics packed by Harper...

[^^ Complete with a bag of chocolate Teddy Grahams in a Tupperware.]

 [^^ Scarlett really enjoyed her view of the beautiful park!]

-- ...and ice cream socials in the park!

-- Sleeping...

-- ...and grocery shopping...

-- ...and Snapchatting! 

-- Exploring the Science Center with some dear friends...

-- and strawberry picking with Grammy! 

-- Teaching/learning...

-- ...feeding/growing [always a hit]...

-- ...cleaning up one mess just to make another...

-- ...taking time to soak in the sunshine...

-- ...and trying to keep our heads above water while Daddy's away on work trips! :/

-- Visiting those we love...

-- and loving when visitors come our way [and make forts and do what we say]!

-- And last but certainly not least, celebrating Scarlett's FIRST SWIM [!!!] and Harper's increased bravery in the pool!

[^^ Does this swimsuit -- AKA my Mommy's 1989 vintage garb -- make me look chubby?]

Cheeeeeeeers to this spring!  It's so absolutely totally true what they say: the days are long, but the years are short! Trying so incredibly hard not to ever EVER blink, because the love I have for these sweet souls is exponential and I want to soak in every single second of these super fun months!!!

Alas, spring has kinda sprung'ed and sooooo... Let's keep this ball-a-rollin' and SPRANG RIGHT INTO SUMMA! :) #bring #it #on