Annelisa is 18 Months!

My dearest Annelisa,

This month was filled with so many events. As I write this, I'm looking back on this month with a smile and a tear...it was a hard month for your mommy, Grammy, GP and aunties, too. Despite the hard things of this month, you have been a daily delight and joy! Your precious hugs, snuggles, smiles, and love for us have been a bright reminder of the life we have been given here to live to the fullest glory of God!

Your first "selfie" a worthwhile documentation of your love of technology! You think that the baby monitor is 'your iPhone'....and take my iPhone at every opportunity! It's funny because all you do is tap the screen or talk to Siri, although someday soon you'll having lots of conversations with family without my assistance! You've also grown to love Face Time with two of your aunties and Grammy and GP.

Dinner with Dada

First coloring project

Afternoon snack with Farley

We brought in your Great MeeMaw's folding table and chairs that are the perfect size for you. You have enjoyed eating some dinners and snacks at this table as well as starting some crafts like coloring. It's especially sweet that MeeMaw gave this table and chairs to us when you were just a little baby, after she got to meet you for the first time. I know that she would smile and chuckle watching you navigate getting into the chairs and coloring your first pictures here. Your Grammy has memories of using this table when she was a little girl, so it's a special piece of furniture that we'll be utilizing for years to come! 

You love the water! This picture was after bath time one evening and I love that it captures you and I together. A happy moment of going about our daily routines...speaking of routines, Annelisa you are proving to be a LOVER of routines! You like knowing what to anticipate and what is coming next. I guess it's a good thing that I love routines too, so we work well together! 

This month our routine changed BIG time! With the start of school, all Fall activities started. This is your lunch container that I got for you to use once a month for our Bible Study Fellowship Lunches. Bible Study Fellowship (BSF) started in early September and it's keeping me plenty busy! I'm excited about what God will do this year as we go on Mondays for leaders' meetings and Wednesdays for class. I'm so excited to see what you'll learn from the lessons each week, and to that end what I'll learn too! You loved the songs and your children's leaders last spring! I am very expectant of what this year will bring! We also have Bible Study at church on Tuesday mornings. These first few weeks of being busy and out the door early have made nap time very important, but I think you and I are finding our rhythm for this semester! I know that I value our slower Thursdays and Fridays a ton! Just getting to have you and me time! 

This month you discovered that sitting on the stairs was a great seat for you! One particular afternoon I caught you playing with gate and having a seat! You were quite proud of yourself, and very cute too!  

We've also seen the start to the 2013 Aggie Football Season, here you are in one of your many game day outfits...it's funny to me how last year you had one "lucky" onesie and this year you have a whole maroon section in your closet. This little jersey is just too cute! These pictures are from Labor Day weekend when we celebrated Caleb's birthday! We had a full fun Saturday of swimming and playing with the Wilkerson's! 

This month you and Daddy have spent a lot of time building Legos together after dinner and on the weekends. It's hard to say whose enjoyed the time more...we'll just say that Daddy has built you some pretty incredible things to play with during these sessions! 

As it's started to cool off ever so slightly, I've loved dressing you in leggings! You are soooo cute in them! You have become very long and lean! This outfit is in 18 month size, but you are quickly outgrowing it! You are moving right on to 2T items...you need the length! You are still in size 4 shoes, size 4 diapers, and 18 month pj's. 

Singing on the front porch with mulch in hand! 

Annelisa, this month we also faced one of the most difficult processes in this life, saying goodbye to a dear loved one. I have struggled to write this monthly update letter because I know that this is the only way you'll remember what happened during your 18th month. You are so full of life and love and I am so saddened that your Great-Grandma Clark won't get to share in it with us. I am so thankful that she got to see you and meet you three times, but on the same token am so saddened that it was only three times. I wish that we would have shared more moments just the three of us, I wish that I would have taken a picture of her holding you when she first met you when you were a little baby! Saying goodbye to her has been so hard because I have so many "I wish" statements for her! The lost relationship is so hard. The coming months will be hard as I am sure that there will be many things that remind me of her and then to remember that she's not here. 

She passed on Monday, September 16, and you attended her funeral with us on Friday, September 20. You were a great trooper! You brought many smiles to those that attended and I was so glad to have you with us! I am sure that I'll tell you about her and the many memories I have with MeeMaw as you grow! She was a very active Grandma in your Aunties and my life. God has been so good to us in this process, we had a sweet moment with MeeMaw in her hospice room to have quiet conversation and watch her light up at getting to see you again! I also had the chance to tell her how happy I am that she is one of my grandma's and how much I love her. God also blessed me with an extra measure of peace in knowing she would be spending eternity with Him. September 16 was the most exciting day in her life as she got to meet Jesus face to face! 

In the midst of all of these things, Grammy, GP, and your aunties were here a couple of times and stayed with us! I think you enjoyed all the extra cuddles, stories, and playmates! You also got to meet your Great Aunt and Uncle again and see your Great Grandpa Clark, too. 

All in all, your 18th month was one that won't be quickly forgotten. It has left me with a multitude of sweet memories! Annelisa, you are such a sweet blessing in my life and I am beyond grateful to God for giving you to us as our daughter! I'm so glad to celebrate your half birthday and all that you are! 

I love you to the moon and back again! 

Mama 

VEGAN BAKING! Oh My!

I've been learning some new tricks in the kitchen the last week or so...I've finally decided to try my hand at some vegan recipes to begin to expose Annelisa to the glories of baking!

Vegan as defined by Merriam Webster: a strict vegetarian who consumes no animal or dairy products.

Although we do not abide by this definition in our household for most of our food consumption; for baking, vegan recipes are winners! NO EGGS!! I'm truly terrified of what eggs may hold for Annelisa at her next exposure, so I have decided that I'm not buying them anymore. Why have a food in the house that only I can eat?

I've taken a pretty significant vacation from baking this summer, partly because it's summer! It's easily 90 + degrees each day here in North Texas; wait, who am I kidding...it's closer to 100 + each day! I really don't have much need to make the house any hotter than necessary! But this whole egg avoidance issue has really gotten to this mama. Thanks to Pinterest and my friend, Google, I am slowly overcoming my fear and diving back into baking...but for all of us! If we can't all eat it, than I won't be making it!

Since last weekend, I've made three "breakfast" breads. Each has been enjoyed more than the last. AND each has been feed to my little lady!

First up!

{Photo credit to the blogger at Prevention RD}

Zucchini Muffins found at this link. These were a great way to use up my lone zucchini from the farmers market. I cut the recipe in half as I only had one cup of shredded zucchini. I then chose to bake them in my mini muffin tin. I also only used unbleached all purpose flour as I don't tend to keep any whole wheat pastry flour on hand. On the whole, these were thoroughly enjoyed! Gone in about three breakfast. You really wouldn't have known that they were egg free! :) Next time I need to use up a zucchini, I'll be headed back to this recipe to make more of these!

Next....

{Photo credit to the blogger at Charlotte's Kitchen Diary}

Cranberry, Chocolate Chip Banana Bread found at this link. This was delicious! I think I enjoyed it more than Annelisa! I opted to add gooey chocolate chips and the sweet tang of Craisins, yum-yum! This recipe required some additional math for me as it has the temperature in degrees Celsius...the conversion chart I used recommended 320 degrees Fahrenheit, I opted for 325 as it seemed more "normal"  with my baking experiences. The bread turned out beautifully! This loaf lasted about three breakfasts (and snacks) as well. I didn't make it truly vegan as I used whole milk, however one can easily switch to a soy, rice, or almond milk if desired. It was a really tasty recipe!! I highly recommend it!

The last bread was Pumpkin Bread! I married into a family with a wonderful pumpkin bread recipe. I really struggled with replacing the recipe with one that just wouldn't hold up to a pretty tough critic, my husband! I turned to other recipes for egg-less inspiration, I Googled away to find egg replacers and decided to use ground flax seed and water to make a gel like slurry that can replace an egg. The two worries I had in doing this were: 1) that my ground flax seed slurry would change the flavor of the bread due to the flax seed oils going rancid in the freezer, 2) that replacing all three eggs in the recipe the bread wouldn't turn out as well as the past. So with many a prayer I followed the tried and true recipe: 

Pumpkin Bread 

Mix: 

1 cup vegetable oil (I used a blend of Canola, Sunflower, and Soybean Oils from Crisco) 

3 cups sugar 

3 tablespoons ground flax seed (mixed with 9 tablespoons water, let sit for two minutes before using in recipe) {Or 3 eggs} 

2 teaspoons vanilla

1 15 oz can pure pumpkin

Add the following to the wet ingredients:

3 cups all purpose flour

2 teaspoons cinnamon

1 teaspoon allspice

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

(I sift all of these together before mixing with the wet ingredients.)   

Blend until just mixed, pour into prepared (greased and sugared) loaf pans (use powdered sugar instead of flour)

Two bread sized pans bake at 275 degrees Fahrenheit for 2 hours 15 minutes, begin checking at 1 hour 45 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean. 

or 5 inch loaf pans, makes nine (great for gifts!) bake at 275 degrees Fahrenheit for 1 hour 30 minutes, begin checking at 1 hour, until toothpick comes out clean.

Let cool in pan for twenty minutes, then cool completely on wire racks. Store well covered and refrigerated. 

Great toasted and served with butter or cream cheese. 

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It turned out perfect!! You couldn't even tell a difference between the egg version and the egg-less...granted we operated on memory, but you get the idea! This was by far Annelisa's favorite of all the breads I've made this past week! 

Now, I need to start thinking about how I'll manage to do my Christmas cookie making this year...there are a lot of recipes to evaluate! Yum....just starting to think about all the "research" I might need to do! :) 

Annelisa is 17 Months!

My dearest Annelisa Grace.

Your 17th month has been such a BIG month!! You walked! Yes, you finally walked! We have been anticipating this moment for quite a while and it has been such a JOY to have you toddle around with us! Your first official walking moment happened at Grammy and GP's house in Houston on Saturday, July 27, 2013. You were playing with a make-up bag that belongs to Auntie Erin and you couldn't crawl and hang on to it, so instead you stayed up on your two little feet and walked between the chair and the coffee table. I wasn't even sure what to say; I was afraid to praise you for fear of scaring you or startling you, so I just watched with my mouth agape! You then promptly realized what you had done and sat down and crawled back to me. A little while later Auntie Lauren, Grammy, and I were able to coax you to walk around between us! IT WAS SO MUCH FUN!! You were sooo proud of yourself and we were so proud of you! You proved to yourself that you could do it and you haven't looked back! Now that you are officially a toddler you have been loving wearing shoes! You will bring them to me to put on your feet and you love to play with them when they are off. One of your favorite activities in your car seat is to undo the Velcro on them while we drive to our destination. Your feet also grew during this month, I believe as a by product of time and the daily usage of you walking on them...you are now in a size 4 shoe! Your have two pairs of shoes that fit: purple sparkly TOMS and your Stride-Rite tennis shoes. I had bought you some turquoise sparkly TOMS but you quickly outgrew them, I think you only wore them 4 or 5 times, but they were really cute while they lasted!

I mentioned earlier that you and I had gone to Houston to visit Grammy, GP, Auntie Erin, and Auntie Lauren for the weekend of July 26-28, 2013. It was a fun weekend away so Dada could work on his module and study. While we were in Houston, Mama and the rest of your relatives went to the Houston A&M Club's Coach's Night. We all got dressed in our maroon and white for the occasion, even though you stayed back with a babysitter. 

We had the chance to spend some time with Miss Reveille before the dinner and program started. It was quite the Aggie extravaganza! Complete with Yell Leaders, Coach Sumlin, President Lofton, and over a thousand of our closest Aggie friends. Needless to say, we are all very excited about the upcoming Fighten' Texas Aggie Football season!  

The next day you and I spent some time on the patio investigating Grammy's pineapple plant. This was the first time I realized that you love playing in the dirt! You moved several handfuls of dirt out of the pineapple plants pot! After our investigation was complete, we all went swimming at the neighborhood pool before lunch. You loved getting to swim, go down the slide, and float in your raft! That afternoon is when you walked for the first time! It was such a fun day! That night at dinner we all taught you the freshman wildcat to formally begin your Aggie Yell instruction. No whooping until you reach upper classman status! 

I hate that this picture is blurry, because it shows the joy you feel walking around and discovering new things! I had bought you some alphabet magnets that you have absolutely loved playing with on the refrigerator!  I love that you find such joy and amusement in the simple things like a $4 set of magnets! 

Your favorite book, "The Wheels on the Bus," from last month was beginning to fall apart! I decided to have it reinforced...to put it mildly! I took it to an office supply store to have it laminated and bound. It was a simple paperback book with two staples holding all the pages together...and it just wasn't going to hold up well to even the gentlest of toddlers reading it each day. This solution will ensure that it is apart of our family library for years to come. It's practically indestructible! And I dare say you've enjoyed it more...when we allow it back into the book rotation.(...did I mention it was a favorite of yours last month!) 

After Mama's hair cut before Annelisa's turn.

The beginning! Yep, you got to hold a comb! :) 

Near the end! 

This month you also had your first hair cut on Tuesday, August 6. You came with me for my hair cut and finally got to meet Miss Nora who has cut my hair for a several years now. She was so excited to meet you and give you your first hair cut. She didn't cut that much off as much as give your curly blond locks some shape! I'd say that it was pretty cute to watch you sit in the chair and watch her cut your hair! You were a really good trooper about it all, you especially liked watching in the mirror. You didn't really fuss or cry! Your hair has really grown in well after the cut too!

Annelisa at 17 months you have a love of accessories! I already mentioned that you love shoes, but you have loved playing with some of my necklaces. It didn't help that I had them out for a week hanging on my dresser knobs while cleaning out my closet and finding a better organizational solution for them. You were so happy toddling around playing in and with them! But then again, you are happy most of the time! 

August 15, 2013

17 month birthday, August 22, 2013

We had two play dates with friends from church this month at the Fountains at Fairview. Both times we ventured into the playground that's in the Beach at Fairview! You enjoyed the sand a lot, especially moving it around in your bucket and watering can. You even went down the big slide all by yourself with help from another mommy to catch you! After playing in the sand, we would walk over to the fountains and both times you were happy to play on the steps or on the sidewalk rather than in the water. I think the fountains being somewhat unpredictable has kept your from trusting them. 

This month we also celebrated Daddy's 31st birthday with cousin C's and Uncle Stuart's! It was quite the family party! You enjoyed all the attention you received from all of your cousins, Aunties, Uncles, Mimi and Pops! Annelisa, you also spent a good bit of time carrying your "purse" around the house! Happy Birthday, to all of our August studs! :) 

First time to REALLY eat cake! 

In honor of your 17th month coming to a close, I decided to venture into the bakery at Whole Foods to see if they had any egg-less options for you! Not that you really need to eat cake...but life tastes a whole lot better with a little sugar in it! I was so happy to buy a piece of their vegan (dairy and egg free) Cookies 'N Cream cake. You enjoyed it at lunch that day very much!

Reading in your chair at the end of your 17th month pictures. 

I love this face!! So much thinking going on! 

This month your favorite book was Dr. Suess's "Oh, The Places You'll Go". It's fun to watch you "read" it! You still love books! Your daddy and I love reading to you especially at nap time and bed time each day! You love getting to pick which books we'll read, too!

At 17 months, you have a love of walking, wearing shoes, going "outside", Farley, "daddy", and me. You have about ten words: dada (which you call anything you don't know the name of), Daddy, outside, all done, uh oh, ooh, cheese, thank you, hot, Farfar, hi (with a wave), "all done" (with a wave bye bye) and "a" which is one of your many attention getting sounds. You understand so much of what I ask you and follow one step directions pretty consistently. You can use sign language to tell me that you'd like milk or a drink. You also can shake your head no. You love to give hugs and cuddle with me. You love to attempt to love on Farley. He's still getting used to you walking around! You are wearing 18 month size onesies, shirts, and dresses and your 12 month size shorts still fit perfectly!

Well, Annelisa Grace that was your 17th month! It was busy with so many new milestones for you! You are learning at lighting speed! I am so proud of you! I love you more than you know, and nothing, nothing can ever take that away! We pray that God will continue to grow you into a woman after His own heart and that you will realize your need for a savior and trust Jesus in your own heart! I am SO thankful that God chose me to be your mommy!

With all my love,

Mama

Annelisa is 16 Months!

My dearest Annelisa Grace,

Oh how you make my heart smile with gladness! I am absolutely LOVING this stage of development! Not that I didn't LOVE the previous stages we've already been through, but this stage is especially fun and joyful for me. I love your smile, giggle, communication style, personality, silliness, grumpiness, and frustration! I have tried to stop and sit with you more each day and watch you play, which is your number one job! I love how you will crawl or cruise to me and beg me to lift you up! I love walking with you holding on to your little hands. You never cease to surprise me and amaze me! I marvel at how you are apart of our little family, at how God chose us to parent you.

Each week you and I go shopping at Target to get groceries and other items we need at home. On one particular week, I had bought a coffee at the Starbucks inside. You wanted to play with my cup so badly! So when I had finished, every last drop, I passed you my empty cup. Well, you are quite the silly little girl sometimes, and you insisted on holding the cup by the bottom rim  in your teeth. You giggled and giggled and I laughed right alongside you! I'm learning that if I respond with a smile or laugh you then decide that you should keep doing whatever it is that got that reaction from me...so off and on you did this with this coffee cup throughout the store! It made this mundane chore so much more exciting! 

Annelisa, it is quite appropriate for me to document your cute face covered in various foods! You are becoming a great eater! You have definite favorites these days, oatmeal and mashed, roasted sweet potato to name two! You've been teething a lot this month...working out those bottom molars! All the better once they are in to help you eat the elusive meat...that you never seem to really want to eat. 

Mommy and Ms. Aly have continued to run some during this month. We've definitely slowed down and even took long break, but before our break we were blessed with some FABULOUS summer temperatures for our morning runs! You've eaten plenty a breakfast snack in the jogger! On this particular day, it was a cool 65 degrees! Almost unheard of for July in North Texas! 

You are still loving your elephant pool! However, it's been empty more than it's been full, so in typical Annelisa fashion you've enjoyed it anyways! Here you are eating your morning snack and enjoying a recline on the slide. 

Your 16th month included the 4th of July! Our celebration was simple this year, we went to lunch at Petra. It's funny to me, in hindsight, that we ate Mexican food on our Nation's birthday! Then for dinner we had your Aunt Nancy, Uncle Jeff and cousins over for all-American fare of cheese burgers, hot dogs, and brats! It was a fun night with lots of laughter and playing! We didn't go see any fireworks, though...for one, it's WAY past your bedtime and two, you've shown us signs of being afraid of LOUD noises like the vacuum. So, in the future we will resume firework watching as a family! Which I'm looking forward to! 

The weekend after the fourth of July, Grammy and GP came to visit! It was a fun weekend of simply being together! We went to the pool, went out to dinner at Fireside Pies, and made homemade ice cream on the patio. You were enthralled with the process of ice cream making! You also LOVED the results! You make the funniest little face when you first taste something cold, you scrunch up your nose and curl your lips. Then once you really taste it, you beg for more! 

We also have gone to the pool quite a few times! We found a great City of McKinney Pool at Old Settler's Park, close to the square in downtown. It has a zero entry, fountains, sprayers, and a big water slide. You've absolutely fallen in love with the water! You have even outgrown your first swimsuit this summer and I had to get you the 18 month size! You love to splash and play then get out and have a snack, and then return to the water for another round of splashing and playing! 

Mommy and Daddy celebrated 7 years of marriage on July 15. So the weekend of July 13th, you had quite the treat while we went on an overnight date! Auntie Erin came to visit and spoiled you with Chick-Fil-A, a long game of hide and seek, and plenty of other fun auntie and niece activities! It was quite the treat for Mommy and Daddy too! We stayed at the W Hotel close to Victory Park, we went to dinner at The Iron Cactus, and breakfast at Oddfellows on Sunday morning. It was a fun way for us to celebrate everything God has done in our lives since meeting, falling in love, getting married, and having you! 

I love this picture of you from this month! It encapsulates so much of your growth...see you've become quite fascinated with how we wear various items of clothing. You LOVE shoes and will play with anyone's any chance you get. You especially love to drag out various pairs that belong to your daddy. You've also recently enjoyed playing with baseball caps, especially when we see your oldest cousin, Byron. He seems to almost always be wearing a hat and you love to get him to play with you with his hat. So...after seeing him a few days earlier, you discovered this "little" Rangers cap in your toy basket. Daddy had brought it back for you from a Rangers game he attended earlier this summer. You brought the hat to me and wanted help wearing it on your head. So again and again, I helped you "put" it on your little head. It's especially funny now to see this because you've moved on from hats to wanting to see my tummy under my shirt! You are so curious to learn about how this world works! 

I love your sweet smile and the glimmer in your eyes! Annelisa you are such a blessing to me! I marvel that I get the privilege of being your mommy! 

"The Wheels on the Bus" is your absolute favorite book and song! You love reading this book before every nap and every night before bed! We've started to sing the book in various ways which makes it all the more entertaining for all of us! Your favorite pages are pictured, the very first page of the story..."the wheels on the bus" and near the end of the book, "the bush babies on the bus go snore, snore, snore..." Some day all too soon, you will become bored with this book and song. So for now, I'll happily read it to over and over and over again. 

Happy 16 months my little lady! Mommy and Daddy love you very much! We thank God for the blessing that you are to us every time we think of you! 

Love always and forever,

Mama