birthday girl

Our little Eva James...1 year old. 

I thought I'd put up a few pics of Eva from her actual birthday.  Most of the day was spent getting ready for her party the following day, but we still had a great time celebrating our little girl.  My Mom came over in the morning to help me with the kids/cleaning (thank you, Mom!!)...that sure helped the kids have more fun than they normally do when Mommy cleans. :) And then Tyler's Mom and sister and her kids came over late in the afternoon.  We went to Cilantro's for dinner (a favorite of ours!).

Poor thing did NOT like the birthday sombrero.

She did, however, thoroughly enjoy the black beans!

Cuties!

Cousins!

Yes, this happened.  She fell on her face while we were taking a picture.  World's best parents right here.

And here's my last monthly update for Eva...at 12 months...

• Your hair is growing so fast!  And it is getting so curly!  I love it.
• You can throw quite the tantrum.  Wow.
• Your laugh is contagious.  We love making you laugh.
• You are turning into quite the little ham.  You make some funny faces...and I think  you make them just to make us laugh.
• You like to show us all 4 of your teeth!
• You are learning how to walk!  You can take up to around 10 steps at a time.  You fall a lot, but you get up and keep on trying.
• You still love that thumb.
• You are so easy to lay down for naps/bed.  You pop that thumb in your mouth and don't make a sound.
• We've slowed down on nursing, but are going to keep it up for a few months yet. 
• Your little personality is starting to show through...and I wonder if you're going to be more like your Dad than I thought.  :)
• You can out-eat your brother any day of the week.          

 

eva turns 1.

This is a month overdue. :)

My little Eva's birthday was on March 15th.  We had a big ole birthday party with family on the 16th!  It was so much fun to plan her first birthday party.  We did a "sugar and spice" theme with cupcakes.  It was simple and sweet.  A lot of family came for the party, including 9 family members from McCook!  Such a special time together...

Her birthday morning. :)

Kinsey, Lily, and Cruz eating breakfast

Eating her birthday dinner with Grama close by:)

Coconut-Lime Cupcakes and Strawberry Cupcakes

Waiting for her cake!

She didn't get too messy with the cake...Daddy smooshed her hand in it so that it broke open.  She was pretty dainty with it...just kept picking at the frosting. :)

She loves to make goofy faces now...she just started this.  Such a little ham. :)

My sweet little girl,

I can't believe you just turned one.  It seems as though just yesterday you were placed in my arms for the very first time, and tears of happiness rolled down my cheeks.  You sure have brought us a lot of joy this past year!  I can't imagine life without you now.  Your smile melts my heart every single day.  Your laughter makes everyone around you laugh.  Your sweet "loves" make me realize I have the best job on earth.

I can't help but be a little sad that your first year of life is over.  It's a little emotional for me.  The days of you being so itty bitty are gone.  But I will treasure them in my heart forever.  And I think I have enough photos to remember your baby days. :)  However, even though I am a little sad, I am even more excited to see you grow over these next few years.  I can't wait to see what God has in store for you.  You have lots of adventures ahead of you!  I am so thankful and blessed that God gave me the privilege of being your mommy.  It is such an honor and such a joy.

I love you so very much baby girl!  You are the sweetest little thing.  I can't help but smile when I'm around you.  Thanks for a wonderful first year.

I love you!

Mommy

11 months.

Oh Eva, you are now 11 months old.  Only one month to go until the big birthday.  I know I always say this, but time sure has flown with you.  It seems like just yesterday you were placed in my arms at the hospital, and I saw your sweet face for the very first time.  We are so in love with you.  You are such a little ray of sunshine and are constantly making us smile.  We love you to pieces.

At 11 months...

• You stand up like a pro!  You will stand up in the middle of the room without holding onto anything...and you keep your balance...but you are not interested in taking a single step by yourself!  We always cheer you on and are so proud of you when you stand up though.  You're such a big girl.
• You just started wearing some 12 month clothes, but still wear a lot of 9 month stuff (and some 6 month onesies!)
• You love to eat!  Oh you just won't stop.  I am trying to teach you the signs for "more" and "all done"...but you haven't really caught on yet. :)
• You are still nursing about five times a day, but are seeming less and less interested.  I don't know if I'm ready to give that up, baby girl.
• Your face lights up when your brother walks in the room.
• You take two naps a day.
• You go to bed between 7:30 and 8 each night and have been waking up around 6 for a little milk, and then you go back down for a couple hours.
• You are getting such a little personality!  We love talking with you and hearing you "talk" back.
• You are always holding things up with your hand and "talking" about them...it's the cutest thing.  You want to tell us all about it.
• You LOVE your thumb.  It seems like you've gotten more hooked on it lately.  You love to lay your head on my shoulder, put one thumb in your mouth, and put the other one around my neck and grab a handful of my hair.  I absolutely love this.  You are a snuggler.
• You play so well with all your toys.  We recently got you a little stroller and a little doll and you go crazy over them. (When we talked down the doll aisle in Target the other day you got sooo excited!  You tried to stand up in your seat and started reaching for all the dolls, jabbering all the while).
• The girls in the nursery at church say you are so serious when you are in there.  And you are only happy if you are being held.  We think this is so funny because you are always so full of smiles when you're with us.  (You're sort of a mommy's girl). :)

 I didn't get any pictures taken on the 15th, so I figured the 14th's pics would work. :)

10 months.

 (Eva turned 10 months on January 15th...so this is just a wee bit late:))

10 months.  Oh how I love this age!  She is so much fun these days.  I love seeing her little personality starting to show.  

- You got your first doll on Christmas...and you love it!  You lean in to give her kisses all the time.

- You are all smiles around Mommy, but apparently are pretty sober around other people.

- You are starting to dance to the music quite a bit.  Your new favorite: "Ain't Got No Home"....by Clarence "Frogman" Henry.  You have your PaPa Dave to thank for that one. :)

- You can stand up for a little bit by yourself.

- You are eating all finger foods by now (you sure love those bananas!)

- You play so well and are really such a good baby.  Thank you baby girl!

- You love to give me big open-mouthed kisses right on the lips.  They're a bit slobbery but I love them oh so much!

- You like to stand up on your tippy-toes when you are holding onto furniture....like a little dancer.

- You seriously melt our hearts.  We are so thankful for our little Eva girl. 

This picture makes me laugh!

my little 9 month old.

 

•  You are a busy little girl...always exploring!
•  You got your first tooth while Mommy and Daddy were gone in Mexico (December 6th) and then got your second one about a week later.  
•  We think you are going to start crawling really soon...you pull yourself up with ease and can balance yourself for a little bit.
•  You pull your headbands out now. :(
•  You bonded with your Daddy the week of Thanksgiving...you two have lots of fun together.
•  You are eating lots of finger foods now and are trying new ones everyday.
•  You are so easy to lay down...you roll over and suck your thumb until you go to sleep.
•  Your giggle is infectious.  I can't get enough of it.
•  You love to pull people's hair...you have a tight grip! 
•  You sleep about 12 hours a night and take two naps...you love your little routine!

8 months.

 So this is terribly late, but I figured I better get it up before she turns 9 months old in a few days.  This is mostly just for my personal records!  :)

- You are crawling everywhere.  And you are a fast little thing!

- You are pulling yourself up on things now.  The little activity table is your favorite toy right now.

- You grab my hair by the handfuls and just grin with sheer delight!

- You suck your thumb all the time.  You grab your hair with one hand and stick your other thumb in your mouth when you're tired. :)

- Your eyes light up when you see your brother!

- You are a great eater...you like pretty much everything you've tried so far!

- You are in size 9 month clothes.

- You are a drooling machine...but no teeth yet!

- You don't sit still for long anymore...as evidenced by these pics.  You would NOT sit still. :)

eva- 4 months

Whoops!  I meant to do this post right away...late again.

4 months.  You are getting so big already!  I can't believe how big you are getting.

You love to stand up and use those legs.

You smile at about anybody...but we don't tell everybody that, so each person feels extra special when you smile at them. :)

You are still coughing a lot, but they aren't nearly as scary as they were.

You just started rolling over, back to front.

You are starting to really grab onto your mommy's hair. :)

You love your bouncy seat.  Boy do you love it.

You eat, play, sleep, repeat.  All day long.

You are always getting kisses.  Your cheeks are irresistable.

You probably weighed somewhere around 14 1/2 pounds on your 4 month birthday.

You still eat every 2 1/2 -3 hours during the day.

You watch your brother constantly...and you seem to really adore him.  You are always smiling at him. :)

Your stats as of 7.24.12...
      - Weight: 15.6 lbs (78%)
      - Height: 26" (93%)