I haven't blogged in quite some time. Well, an almost embarrassing amount of time, really. Let's see...where did I leave off?

[x] Little Flower is officially ONE. Are you freaking kidding me?! Wasn't she just a tiny four month old? Wasn't she just nuzzling up for late night feedings, listening to my endless crooning (soft crooning, but still crooning nonetheless) of Jim Croce's "Operator" deep into the evening? Now, my cuddle bug is all for independence. Don't snuggle me! she seems to say. I am not offended (okay, well...maybe a little ;) but she is on the go and likes it that way: crawling, scooting, rolling, rocking. I ask again...when did she get so big? And how did this happen right before my very eyes?

More to say on her birthday, but let's back it all up just a bit...

[x] K.'s firefighter visit went beautifully. The kids were SO excited and SO proud to have daddy read a book to the class and talk about his work as a firefighter/paramedic. OF COURSE my camera battery was almost empty so I managed a few pics before he left the house, but...nothing after that. Dislike! Ugh. :p But the kids were thrilled and that's all that matters, so...yeah. <3

[x] On LF's actual birthday, we had a wonderful day! We woke up and played and cuddled and she had her favorite breakfast (it's an oatmeal mix with apples and bananas). The older kids went to school and the three of us just hung around the house and enjoyed the day. After everyone had lunch, we headed off to our favorite pumpkin patch. It was no less than 8,419 degrees out there, but everyone had a great time. LF picked out her very own pumpkin--the first one she touched from the massive pile was the chosen one. And it wasn't the one right in front of her! It was actually the one right behind the one in front of her (whoa, wordiness). Anyway, it's the most perfect pumpkin I've ever seen--a long stem, perfectly round in shape and a beautiful, uniform shade of pumpkin orange. I think she's got a knack for pumpkin picking. :) She also got to pet a goat and feed it a piece of straw. Cutest ever, I swear it. We rounded off the late afternoon with an early dinner stop on our way home. Once we settled in, we had a "mini-party" (the first of about a hundred, seriously!) and LF had a wonderful time, I think. She didn't really smash the smash cake--in part because it was probably a creepy texture and also because she was so tired (my poor baby!). But overall, I think her birthday was a wonderful one. After a bath, she went straight to bed and slept a record number of hours.

One already. Unreal, I tell you. Love my LF SO much!

[x] This past weekend, we got to celebrate LF again with her first mom and her first mom's mom and dad. It was awesome! We are very lucky to consider them a part of our family. It is always so wonderful to see them and LF loves the visits SO much. We all do, really. But nothing warms my heart more than the time LF is able to spend with her first mom. I so wish Beauty had the opportunity to know her first mom/first family as well. <3 <3 <3

[x] The rest of this month is insanity. Namely good insanity, but some less-than-desirable insanity. It seems like every week is chock-full of appointments, events, etc. The kids are going on their first field trip to the pumpkin patch soon, and we all have a smattering of doctor's appointments, evals, PPV's, and the like. Tomorrow night, I finally get to see my girl Jay for some serious root help (a fire engine redhead with uber-dark roots? Not so attractive, let me tell you!) and it is not a moment too soon. I'm looking forward to it--both so I can feel a bit less...root-y and to visit with Jay (who'll be a mother of two in no time at all! <3). Tomorrow itself is just overall a busy day. But there's nothing wrong with that.

I thought I had more to say, but the kids are finishing up lunch and LF is still snoozin' so I'm going to take this time to start our "baking" project. I have NO idea what it will be (Bear's request this time, so probably something with a mass of sprinkles) but I'd better get to work so my hands are free when my BIG one year old wakes up from her nap!

More to come soon--or as I think of it. Whichever comes first, really. :)

<3