4th of July!!!

The 4th of July might just be my FAVORITE holiday! so many good memories as a kid: walking through "the numbered streets" to the parade, sitting in the hot sun waiting to catch as much candy as we could, waving the little flag they hand out throughout the rest of the day, the BBQ, standing on top of our picnic table with my older sister Hannah singing "If tomorrow all the things were gone, I'd worked for all my life..." at the top of our lungs to a crowd of adoring lilac blossoms, to waiting for hours on end at the green belt in the perfect spot for THE BEST FIREWORK SHOW THIS SIDE OF THE MISSISSIPPI! We would roller blade around the greenbelt hoping to see friends we hadn't seen since the end of the school year, and sitting with tears coming to my eyes as the fireworks took my breath away! I was so excited to share all of these things with My Little Girl! I think that she loves it all just as much a I do!

We bundles her up tight with the pacifier wedged in her mouth and my hands over her ears to muffle the amazing sounds soon to come, ready for the most amazing thing that she has probably witnessed in her short life! She sat a stared not moving a muscle as the lights blazed and the fireworks exploded with a "BOOM", and we listened to "And I'm proud to be an American, Where at least I know I'm Free..." on the radio. That same song I sang as a child and this time tears were in my eyes once again as the words "If I had to start again with just my CHILDREN and my wife..." rang a little more true to me this year. Every once in a while with the really loud BANG her little legs would kick a few times but then she would settle right back to watching with wide eyes.

At the Parade with Grandpa!

He may have given her a few licks of his chocolate cream cycle! What an awesome little extra to an awesome Day!

Happy 4th of July Lilly Bug. This is your first of many to come! I hope that you love and appreciate this great country as much as I do!

Picnic With Grandma

While my sister Hannah was in Hawaii and my mom was watching them for the week we all decided to go to the park for a picnic. One of my favorite summer activities and I think that Lilly loves it too. She was so good! She doesn't like to sit on the grass so much but put her on a blanket and she is as happy as can be! She is sitting up on her own now! What a big girl!

Lilly in her sweet watermelon sun hat! What a doll! You can see Hannah's kids in the background too!

Baby got her first tooth! It was kind of a hard few days (and nights) leading up to it but we had a "breakthrough". She gets kind of confused at times about what it is her mouth and we find her sometimes running her tongue across it with a puckered up mouth and a very confused look on her face. It is just the first of many My Dear!!!

My Little Swimmer

We went to my niece Emma's birthday party at the hotel swimming pool. It was so much fun! Lilly loved the water! Happy Birthday Emma!

Little Zipper Eater

Lilly has developed quite the odd obsession. She loves to chew on the zipper of my jackets. As soon as I pick her up and happen to have a jacket on with a zipper, she zeros in on it and gabs it, leans over, and it is in her mouth before I even know that she is up to. I can't imagine that it tastes that great but who knows. It seems to relax her too because she seems to take these times to do her "business" also:) She loves to chew on anything that hangs. If you have on a sweatshirt that has hoodie strings you better believe that they will be in her mouth. She also has this knack of finding the tags on any stuffed animal and once again they find a way to her mouth!

First Cereal Experience!

LillyBug tried cereal for the first time! She did so well with it and seemed to love every bite. Paige my sister-in-law,who watched Lilly when I go to work two days a week, informed me that after every bite Lilly takes she makes a slight "yummm" sound. I think that she got it from me since after every bite I feed her I might make that sound as well. It is the cutest thing!