~ Masons ~

Wednesday, June 27, 2012

"Two" Cheesy

A little while back, we finally had the chance to set up our little in-home "studio" and get some shots of our sweet girl for her 2 Year Photo Shoot. Surprisingly, she stayed somewhat still and gave us some sweet poses and even showed off some of her dance moves. Enjoy!

Tuesday, June 19, 2012

Marvelous Month of May

May had a little bit of everything- science, music, birthday excitement, fun with friends, and fun with family. As usual, it was filled with lots of trips to the playground and also included a wonderful trip to VA. Maelee continues to make us laugh and keep us on our toes. She has a new favorite book each week which we have to read both before naptime and bedtime without fail and each day she says something new that is just hysterical. Lately, everything is just "silly."

Steve- "Ow- that was daddy's toe!" after he stubbed it on the dresser.
Maelee- "Silly daddy's toe!"

Becky- "Maelee, remember, you need to be gentle with the kitty."
Maelee- "Silly kitty!"

Not always the most accurate usage of the term, but it makes us smile every time :) We feel like she's more of a little girl every day with her own decisions and preferences and she definitely makes them known. But we are thankful for the sweet, little presence she has about her and her affectionate hugs and snuggles. May was a pretty great first month of the dreaded "terrible twos" and we are very grateful for that!

Here are some pictures from the past several weeks:

Enjoying a music class with one of her best pals, Marissa

Loving daddy's dry ice experiment

Fun at a friend's birthday party (especially the chocolate cake part!)

Sweet time with special friends on Mother's Day at the Little's

More shots from May:

Enjoying the Old Town Farmer's Market

Pop-Pop's girl :)

Rockin' out in her adorable sunglasses enjoying a raspberry sorbet cone to boot!

In the lobby with best pal, Gracie

Sweet cuddle time

Some lap time with Too-dad...

with Pop-Pop...

And with Nana!

Sitting pretty after lunch

Such a fun and special day!

More special memories made with Cindy & Alli

Long distance pals :)

Mmm, mango gelato!

First "professional" hair cut!

Just trimmin' up those edges :)

Maelee LOVES seeing her Nana & Pop-Pop!

More shots from our trip to VA:

Sunday, June 3, 2012

Another year with our little ladybug...

Do we really have a two year old daughter???

Our sweet Maelee girl quickly reminds us that, yes, in fact, we do. In every sense of the term "two year old." But it is sometimes hard to believe just how fast a year can go. We could've never imagined how much joy she could bring to our lives and we are beyond thankful to God for allowing us the great honor of being her parents. It continues to be an amazing ride.

Like I mentioned in the last post, it really does seem like the 2nd year was even more eventful than the first! And I could go on and on and on reminiscing over these past 12 months, but instead, I'll just look back on some of the bigger changes with a favorite picture of ours from each month over the past year at the end.

Chatterbox- she went from having just a handful of words shortly before her 1st birthday to speaking in full sentences with hilarious expressions by her 2nd. "I like your shirt!," "That's very nice," and "We have to be patient. Wait your turn!" are just a few of our favorites. Oh, and the evolution of "I, you!" to "I love you so much!" is a real heart melter, too :) We also love how much she loves people and that she knows each and every one of our close friends' & families' names, happy to answer whose wife is whose and whose daddy is whose, asking for "more?" each time. It's one of her favorite games and it cracks us up :) Her memory really does amaze us. She definitely takes after her Uncle Dan in that area!!!

Ball of energy- she went from daintily and carefully cruising between furniture and carefully holding on to our pinky finger at 12 months old to walking & running (both on her tip toes, of course!), jumping and climbing now. She is still a bit cautious when it comes to physical feats but she has energy that does not stop! Our local playgrounds are definitely some of her favorite places to be and she will go from pushing her stroller around at full speed to sliding down the slide to chasing after balls to blowing bubbles to chatting with friends, etc. While she still loves to curl up on our laps with a good book, she rarely stays still otherwise!

Personality- we laugh when we look back on her baby phase and thought we might have a shy, little lady on our hands. Boy, were we wrong! Maelee is certainly a people person and loves to be around her family and friends. She can be quite ornery when she wants to be with mommy & daddy then quite the lovey-dovey cuddler with Nana & Pop-Pop and mommy's friends. :) There is definitely quite a feisty streak! But we can already sense such a sweetness in that heart of hers and we love watching her interact with others. She cracks us up with her silly, made-up songs (like when she belted out, "Happy Birthday, dear washcloth!" on mommy's birthday during her bath, only to explode in laughter at herself), inside jokes (banana!), and pretend play with her toys ("The doggy needs to sit in the naughty corner- he was standing on the couch..."). How we love her little mind and her precious heart!

Ok, enough talk. Onto some photos!!!