the next generation of 172

I feel so fortunate to be surrounded by loving, caring friends.  Some of these amazing friends of mine have little ones of their own.  It's so special to be going through the stages of parenthood with some of my besties, and hopefully our kids will grow up to be besties as well. 

When I was in my first year of university, I ended up sharing a dorm with the most amazing person ever - and now we both have little girls who are 7 weeks apart!  The two of them came up for the weekend (along with two of our other roomies) and all the girls (young and old), had a blast!

All caught up

During my pregnancy, I was diligent to record all of the new things happening during my pregnancy in a special "pregnancy calendar".  I wrote down everything from the first kick to doctors appointments - even my weight gain.  I have enjoyed going back and reflecting on all the amazing things that happened during those nine months.

Before Kennedy was born, I purchased a really cute baby book, and started it off by inputting information about how Evan and I met, who our family members were, how we prepared for her birth etc.  I leave her baby book out in the dining room so that I remember to add all of the important milestones in it.  So far, I think that I've done a fantastic job.  However, I was missing one crucial part to the book - and that was photos.  So the other day I took the time to go through all the pictures I've taken of K so far, and had a slew of them printed off.  Today, during morning nap, I cut and pasted them all into the book.  So we now have pictures of her first tooth, her first time eating food, her first bath, her first Christmas... and the list goes on.

I know that this will be something that I will treasure for years to come, so I am so happy that I have invested the time in it now :)  A great accomplishment for the morning!

Has she learned her third word?

Has she learnt her third word?

For a little while now Kennedy has been saying "Mum" and "da".  It took us awhile to actually admit that she was able to connect the word she was saying to the actual person, but I think we can finally confirm that she has said these two words. 

The past week or so, another word has been introduced into her vocabulary and that word is "ya".  I truly believe that she has no idea what she is saying, but she obviously knows we think it's hilarious as we praise her every time she says it with smiles, laughs, and clapping hands.   We (the bad parents that we are), ask her all kinds of ridiculous questions that elicit the desired response of "ya".  We ask her things like "do you love mommy the most in the whole entire world" and she says YA.  We ask her if she wants to live with mommy and daddy forever and never ever move away and she says YA.  We ask her if she is the cutest person on earth and she answers YA. 

We love it.  And we dread the day when she learns the word "no"

Everyone is asking...

It seems like everyday, everyone is asking me the same question:  "Are you ready to go back to work".  It's almost like the more they ask me, the sooner it will come.  To each person my answer is plain and simple; no, I'm not.  
Don't get me wrong, I love my job. I enjoy being around passionate teachers and spending hours a day with children (who at times can be challenging) who are sponges - soaking in the knowledge that we share with them, creating their own path in life. I enjoy all of the fun school activities that help children create memories of their school years and I absolutely love the learning atmosphere within the school.

I have enjoyed the past ten and a half months more than I ever thought possible.  Each and everyday home with my little girl is a gift and I am trying to cherish the precious moments.  I'm amazed at how everyday gets better and better as Kennedy develops more of a personality and is able to interact more with Evan and I.  I feel so fortunate to have spent the beginning part of her life being with her on a daily basis, watching her change and grow.  I think back to those first few, exhausting weeks of sleepless nights and can hardly believe that we are now watching our daughter stand on her own (without holding onto anything) for a few seconds at time.  The changes that have happened amazes me. 

With only a month left of maternity leave, I feel fortunate to have found childcare so close to home, and with a care provider who I not only trust, but have been friends with since childhood.  It takes a load off my shoulders (and the hubby's) to know that she is in good hands and will be cared for by such a wonderful woman.  It's also comforting knowing that I'm only going back to work 80% so I will have that little bit of extra time.  Some of this time will be picking up the little lady early for daycare, while other days I may stay at work to get things done so I don't have to do all that teacher stuff in the evenings and on weekends. Also, the fact that my hubby works shift work is also a blessing in disguise.  Although the twelve hour shifts can be long and draining - especially switching back and forth from nights to days - it allows us to have Kennedy at home for at least one or two daddy-daughter days a week.  I think that this will be a wonderful time for the two of them to hang out and continue to strengthen their bond together. 

So am I looking forward to going back to work?  Not really.  But I think that we will adjust, and it will all be okay. 

V-day

Hope you all had a great LOVE day yesterday (and everyday of the year). 

Whispies in the way

We have always had comments about how much hair the little lady has. 

As each week passes, it gets a little longer, a little thicker (and possibly a little darker). We're now at the point where her bangs are little whispies in her eyes so it is either time for a trim or daily hair accessories. This mama, is all for the latter. It's hair clips and headbands for us. We have quite a collection now and Kennedy doesn't mind to wear them.  Last night, after bath time, we tried our first ponytail.  It looked like a little sprout shooting out from the top of her head.  We surprised daddy with our new "do" when he came home from work.  Gotta love having little girls!

The girls will play

Daddy is away this weekend ice fishing, so we decided that when daddy is away, the girls will play!  Off we went to the big city for the night to do some serious shopping.  With mommy going back to work soon, and a trip to the sunny south planned, both of us needed some new clothes.  Kennedy absolutely loved shopping!  She is a big people watcher, so our trip was successful on many counts - happy baby and lots of purchases!

 We went with friends and a shared our stroller.  Many strangers stopped to admire our beautiful babies and ask if they were twins... :)  A fun weekend away!