Brace yourself- July was a doozy! Once again, there were lots of mixed emotions, lots of highs and lows, lots of fun with some sadness mingled in, and lots of pictures to show for it... Including a slew of sweet pics of our little baby's "photo shoots" over the last couple of months!
The month included special time with dear friends, lots of enjoyment being closer to Nana & Pop-Pop, and even the extra special treat of seeing Steve's sister, "Aunt Kim," for a few days! And again, this was all in addition to the mundane days of more unpacking/getting settled, missing NYC-living and especially the people that made NYC life worth living, plus the frequent craziness of raising two little ladies who keep us on our toes.
But, to keep this post at a decent length, I will let the pictures tell more of the story of our July happenings.
Independence Day began with a yummy breakfast at our local diner,
then we headed to Nana & Pop-Pop's to drop Lilee off so we could have some special time with Maelee at the National Harbor.
She still LOVES carousel rides!
And especially loves playtime with daddy :)
(Even on a giant foot...)
Our sweet little patriotic lady :)
Time for dessert on the roof!
YUM!!!
Had to include all three :)
Staying up late to watch fireworks!
We had a super fun 4th and Maelee LOVED "the concert" that she watched of DC's Capitol 4th. It is hilarious that she knows all the singer's names and songs- from Phillip Phillips to Fankie Valli!
A big development for Lilee in the month of July was the start of solids!!!
She didn't seem to have the biggest appetite, but took to it pretty well!
With Maelee's "Buddy" the bunny :)
The second weekend in July, we got to see Aunt Kim!!! We borrowed "Emma" (my folk's SUV) for a road trip down to the adorable little town of Charlottesville, VA, to watch our favorite Hard Knox derby gal in a roller derby bout, before heading back up for a sweet 2-day visit.
These little cheerleaders enjoyed the game and loved supporting their aunt!
Love the matching poses b/t Maelee & Kim!
And the smiles on all three are the best :)
Special bonding time by our building's pool
River cruise over to the Harbor!
Lilee's first boat ride!
More carousel fun for Maelee! Even better riding with Aunt Kim!
Such a trouper during the hot day!
It was so great to spend time with Kim and both girls loved it.
Other fun developments with this sweet little girl were the start of some belly scootching, and our favorite- growling. Yep, that adorable face growls, and it's hysterical!!! And not even when she's expressing anger or frustration, it's just part of her babble. Fun times!
Also discovered this cool playground just up the street
Where Lilee had her first ride in the swings!
Not so sure at first... :)
The July weekend fun continued towards the end of the month with a super fun visit with one of my best pals, Cindy, and her awesome kiddos, TJ & Alli
We met at the gorgeous Centennial Park in Ellicott City, MD and Steve played Super Dad taking these three kiddos out on the paddle boat. After being scared a wee bit into holding on for dear life (!), they all relaxed and enjoyed the ride:)
It was so great to see these special friends and we're so excited to get to see them more frequently now that we're only about 1 hour apart vs 4 hours apart!
Another nearby playground where Lilee enjoyed her first trip down the slide!
Back to the "sprayground" playground with our dearest friends from NYC, Desiree with her boys, James & Ethan, who got to have a quick stop-in visit on their way down to Lynchburg.
Oh, how we miss those boys!!!
And how I especially miss their mama!!!
The visit was too short, but still super sweet.
Missing our NYC friends was definitely cause for tears this month despite lots of joy and laughter. There is a lot that we are grateful for here and we know it was the right move to relocate, but much of our hearts still remain in the city and it has definitely been tough at times transitioning out of that lifestyle. Our quick visit back up to NY at the end of July for a friend's wedding didn't really help as it was a bittersweet reminder of what and who we left behind... We were thankful for the time away- the girls certainly enjoyed their special time with Nana & Pop-Pop and it we loved seeing some sweet friends, but it was almost too soon to go back. Pics from that trip will be in our special NYC post that will hopefully soon follow.
For now, we are anxious to get plugged into a church home and get back into a routine. And we are loving being closer to family which has put a lot of smiles into the hard transition of a move.
And speaking of smiles, what better way to end this post looking back on July, than with our sweet Lilee's 6 month "photo shoots!" Starts with a few from the 5 month mark, then some sweet 6 month shots we took at home, ending with some outdoor shots from our visit to Centennial Park.
Our little "butterfly" at 5 months old
And 6 months!
Happy half-birthday, sweet girl! You are sooo loved.
More pics of Lilee:
And a final slideshow of more July pics:
