EVERLY 2 YEARS

December 8, 2016 •

Age: 2 years old (or as she sometimes likes to answer, "two in August")
Stats: 29.6 lbs (81st percentile) 34.75 inches tall (74th percentile).  These were based on her 2 year check-up in August.
Clothes: She is in an awkward middle ground between 2T and 3T.  2T fits juuuuuuust right, maybe even a tad small depending on the brand and style.  But once you wash and dry anything, it's more than likely on the smaller side.  However 3T clothes are definitely too long for her in the arms.  When I buy new pieces for her these days I choose to go up a size to 3T so it will last through the winter.

She continues to be pretty agreeable with whatever outfit I pick out for her in the mornings.  In fact most of the time she's excited about anything I choose, especially if it's a new outfit.  She doesn't have a favorite outfit or piece of clothing, yet.  If she has a preference for anything it's definitely shoes.  Sometimes it's a small fight when she tries to wear her "blip-blops" out.  She will go into her closet some mornings and pick out her own shoes.  If they are season appropriate I usually agree.  Although the hot pink sandals this morning took some bribing to get her out of.  I really need to clean out her closet!

She also loves to wear bows and is obsessed with getting her hair fixed, and fixing other people's hair.  I especially love it when she "baids" Chad's hair.  Every morning she has a special request for how she wants her hair done.  Although every morning she ends up with a ponytail regardless.  Momma needs to learn more hairstyles.
Favorite Foods: Fruit is still a favorite.  She used to be obsessed with strawberries.  But lately I've noticed she leans more towards grapes and bananas.  We went to Cracker Barrel a couple weekends ago and she killed some blackberries, which was random and unexpected.  Yogurt, jello, fruit snacks and crackers are her go-to snacks.  And she ALWAYS requests pizza rolls when we go to Nana's house.  She usually eats spaghetti pretty well at dinner.  I pray she eats a vegetable at daycare, any vegetable, because we can't get her to touch them anymore at home.  Except corn, she loves corn.  

Favorite Words: I mean this kids has full on conversations with us now.  So I think this category is irrelevant these days.  She is becoming quite the funny little girl.  Some of the things that come out of her mouth make us crack up.  But I will say she has recently started singing songs off the radio (not just the typical nursery rhymes) and it is probably the cutest thing ever.  She loves Bruno Mars 24k Magic, Justin Timberlake Can't Stop The Feeling, Fifth Harmony Work from Home, and her most requested song is Flo Rida's My House.  When she hears a familiar song on the radio she'll say "I can't hear it," which is her nice way of requesting that the music be turned up, please.  

I guess this is also an appropriate place to document she has learned her first curse word... from none other than..... NANA! Of all people?! In a single moment of frustration Nana cursed "dammit."  And Everly immediately picked it up.  Thanks Nana.  She repeats it every now and then when she's talking to herself or playing.  We tried to leave it alone at first in hopes that she would forget it.  But it seems to have stuck with her.  So we emphasize the use of darn it or dang it and explain that it's a bad word.  It's a work in progress.  

To make things worse, we were at Nana's helping her put up Christmas decorations last weekend and AGAIN in a moment of frustration Nana shouted "shit!" Sure enough Everly hollered it right back.  Picture me now giving Nana the evil eye.  *Knock on wood* Everly has yet to say "shit" again after that.  Let's hope that one has been forgotten.  I'm just waiting for the day I get a report from daycare.

Favorite Activities: Coloring, reading books, and playing with (or disciplining) her babies are more than likely what you'll find her doing on a Friday night.  She loves her tumble class every Thursday and is actually getting really good at it! She always works out with me when I do my at-home workouts in front of the TV.  Watching her do a push-up is pretty hilarious.  She LOVES to be outside, and is pretty good about playing by herself too (sometimes).  Nana recently got her a seek and find book and Everly is obsessed with it.  We've "read" it so many times she has all the pages memorized.  She's a great helper (most of the time) and always asks to help me do laundry, dishes or vacuum.  Picking up her own toys is a struggle though.  But overall she really is an easy kid to please. 
Favorite Things: Her blankets.  She has to have one of her blankets when she goes to bed.  She's so territorial over them I just realized we should probably invest in a whole new collection just for the baby.  I'm positive there's no way Everly will share those with baby.  Nana introduced her to gum recently.  And Everly will secretly pull her purse off the counter to pull the gum out.  Try explaining to a two year old how you "just chew it, don't swallow it."  It really doesn't make any sense when you think about it.  Skittles! We went to a basketball game one night and I got her her first bag of Skittles.  She's requested Skittles literally every night since.  She still loves to sit with me and do her make-up while I'm doing mine.  Santa has fake make-up coming her way this Christmas.  Fingers crossed she falls for it and doesn't realize she can't make a mess of it.  She loves to watch me cook.  And when it's time to eat she will pull a chair inches away from her body and ask Daddy to "sit by me."  It is the sweetest thing.  She also enjoyed going to Courtney's soccer games this fall.  
Signature Moves: FaceTiming all the women in the family and immediately requesting to see their husband/boyfriend.  She has recently become obsessed with changing diapers- her babies' diapers, Daddy's diaper (that's the best).  Constantly telling us "don't say that word!" Thanks again, Nana.

Mom's Proudest Moment: Working out in the living room not paying attention to where my two year old was and punching her right across the head when doing jack uppercuts.  It took me about 20 minutes to be forgiven for that one.  At one point she even told me "don't look at me!" when I kept checking to make sure she wasn't close to me.  She was pissed.

Dad's Proudest Moment: Daddy took baby duty one Saturday so Momma could have a lunch date with one of her friends.  He took her to the playground at the YMCA.  If any of you know my husband, you know the length of his attention span and patience.  When Daddy was over the playground he asked Everly if she was ready to go.  When she refused he gasped and told her Batman was coming and they had to run.  Poor Everly took off straight for the door.  If you read this story then you know how terrified she is of Batman.  Parents of the year.  

Other Milestones: We decided to revisit sleeping in her own bed a couple weeks ago.  It has actually gone pretty well.  As long as we lay there with her until she falls asleep, which takes FOREVER.  But so worth it.  Typically she'll stay in there until about 3 am and then make her way into our room and lay right down in the floor next to our bed.  Her only request is to be covered up and she goes right back to sleep.  I can deal with that.  There was even one night she slept in her bed the entire night.  Chad and I actually had to go wake her up to get ready.  It was magical.  But then I was immediately a little sad about it.  I suddenly saw 16 year old Everly laying in bed refusing to wake up.  Isn't that weird? But that only lasted one night and she brought me back to reality the next day when she came into our room crying in the middle of the night because she had fallen down and hit her head.  Ahhh there's my sweet two year old who still needs her momma :) 
My sweet Everly we love you so much it hurts.  You challenge us almost daily.  But you really are a wonderful, smart, fun, beautiful little girl.  You are so sweet (most of the time) and tell us every day how much you love us.  Sometimes before we leave for work in the mornings you will wait till we get to the door then run after us and request another hug, and then "wait! wait! kiss!" I will happily be late every day to give you five thousand hugs and kisses before you let me leave.  We love you baby girl! I am so looking forward to making a few more memories and taking a few more adventures before our family dynamic changes with baby #2.  I hope you always know how loved you are.  I imagine I will love baby #2 just as much as you, but you will always be special for making me Momma first.
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LIFE LATELY

November 11, 2016 •

I have a lot of catching up to do! We have had a busy start to our fall season.  The weather has been beautiful though and we are loving life.  Let's start off with a few pictures of our trip to a park right next to our new house.
The slide was all fun and games until Aunt Coco sent her down by herself and crashed into the side...
Our new house is coming along quickly.  They have finished framing, drywall, plumbing, electrical, heat/air, and the brick layers are hard a work.  However we were sad to learn last week from our contractor that our move-in date has been pushed back a month.  We were hopeful that we would be in by Christmas.  But that doesn't seem to be the case anymore.  Since our apartment lease is up January 2nd it might mean we have to crash at Nana's for a few weeks until it is complete.  I'm sure Everly will not be upset about that.  

 We celebrated Chad's 30th birthday last week! On his birthday night I took him to dinner at a new winery in Henderson - Farmer & The Frenchman.  I always love finding new places to visit with Chad.  When you've been together for 13 years it's a must in order to keep things fun and exciting.  The farm it sits on is absolutely beautiful! And the food was amazing.  We definitely plan on going back.  

 That weekend we took a mini road trip to visit Logan and Leslie in Knoxville for an inexpensive change of scenery.  They took us to a Tennessee football game, gave us a tour of downtown, and we were going to hike.  But sadly there have been several forest fires started around the area forcing us to stay in town.  They surprised Chad with his very own birthday cake and were such welcoming hosts.  They fixed us breakfast every morning and made sure we had the perfect weekend.  We love you guys!!!
Everly had her third surgery earlier this week.  After two ear infections over the last few months and a check up still showing fluid in her ears, it meant a third round of tubes and an adenoidectomy for our little girl.  She was definitely more aware of what was going on than the first two surgeries.  Consequently it was impossible to keep her calm and patient.  I held back tears the entire morning until the nurses came to take her back.  Everly said "Mommy don't leave me" with the most fearful plea in her eyes.  I lost it.  

 Fortunately the surgery went well and was only about 35 minutes long.  Within the hour Everly was back in our arms, but very unhappy.  She was mad at the world and HAD to get out of there.  The IV in her hand made it even worse.  But the second we grabbed our things to leave she immediately perked up.  The rest of the day you wouldn't even know she had surgery.  She hasn't skipped a beat since.
 Before surgery she refused to put down any of her belongings.  In the picture below she has her jacket, shirt, stuffed animal, and both shoes in her arms.
We had an ultrasound of baby #2 this week.  I am almost 24 weeks along and (s)he is growing like crazy.  Everything appears to be absolutely perfect.  However, this baby is in a breach position, which has been a new experience.  Everly stayed head down the entire time and beat the crap out of my right ribs.  Every time this baby moves it feels like they are kicking out my vagina.  Doctor says it's common for babies to be breach this early though and there is still plenty of time for him/her to flip.  She even said the baby could flip back and forth multiple times.  It doesn't become a concern until 35/36 weeks.  So fingers crossed (s)he gets into position when it's time!

 That's about all that's new with us this month.  We are excited to get the holiday season started and plan for our trip to Florida coming up in December.  Let the festivities begin and Christmas trees go up!
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HAPPY HALLOWEEN 2016

November 2, 2016 • ,

We had a quiet Halloween around the Hart House this year.  We took Everly to a trunk-or-treat at the front of our apartment complex on Thursday to dip our toes in the trick-or-treating thing to see if Everly would even be interested.  The very first trunk had a couple with Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump masks on.  It absolutely terrified Everly.  I don't think I've ever seen Everly so scared.  Her eyes got so big as she turned around desperately running for Chad to pick her up.  Needless to say, the trunk-or-treating was over as soon as it started.

We tried our best to get Everly's spirits back up and visit only the normal dressed trunkers, but no such luck.  She refused to let Chad put her down and kept her head buried in his shoulder almost the entire time.  To make matters worse a little boy tried stealing her pumpkin bucket right out of her hand.  The tears were never-ending.  To get back to our car we had to walk past a man dressed as batman, and apparently he was the most traumatizing.  She hasn't stopped talking about how much she doesn't like Batman since.  She even woke up in the middle of the night a couple nights ago to get up and shut our bedroom door.  When Chad asked her what she was doing she explained that she didn't want Batman to get her.  It was a disaster.  

So when Monday came we put her costume on for her party at daycare and called it a Halloween.  No trick-or-treating for us this year.  And we were perfectly happy with it.  We went to dinner with Mimi, Pappaw, and Uncle Brock and that was the extent of our Halloween celebration.

I did manage to get some pictures before we started the trunk-or-treat.  And I have to say, she was the cutest Little Red Riding Hood I have ever seen.
When we got many many yards away from the trunk-or-treating we ran into one of Everly's favorite friends of the family and neighbor, and she perked right up.  It was then she realized the awesome goodies she was carrying around in her bucket and finally began to enjoy the fruits of her Mommy and Daddy's labor.
 And just to make myself cry, I put this timeline together.  I can't believe this was Everly's third Halloween.  I hadn't realized how much she has grown until I saw this comparison.  She truly doesn't look like a baby anymore.
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EVERLY'S 2 YEAR PICTURES... AND AN ANNOUNCEMENT!

August 28, 2016 •

We took a little road trip to a beautiful peach farm tucked away in the country of Bowling Green to meet up with Katie Meek of Paige Logan Photography for Everly's 2 year pictures.  It is so fun to look back at all the pictures we have done with Paige and see how fast Everly has grown.  The pictures Paige has captured for us are some of our favorites we have of her.

This was our first time working with Katie and we absolutely loved her.  The heat was miserable, but we all pushed through and had so much fun.  Katie was able to capture a TON of beautiful photos.  I had such a hard time narrowing down my favorites to feature here.  Everly had a blast playing with the peaches and flowers.  Her personality and happiness really shines through in these pictures.
And finally, we are so excited to announce Everly is going to be a big sister next year!!!
  Thank you so much Katie Meek with Paige Logan Photography for these beautiful pictures! You captured our little girl and her personality so perfectly.  We will cherish these forever.
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EVERLY'S BIG GIRL BED TRANSITION

August 25, 2016 •

I had zero intentions of transitioning Everly to a toddler/twin bed this year.  Ever since she was a baby she has been a dream when it came to sleeping at night.  All I would have to do is help her put on pajamas, brush her teeth, read a book, kiss goodnight and I could lay her down wide awake.  She would put herself right to sleep.  Our family was shocked we had such an easy little girl.  And she would stay that way all night until about 7:30 the next morning and wake up in the best mood.  There were even some mornings I would have to wake her up to avoid being late for work.  The crib was working perfectly, why mess with her routine?

Wellllll then we got the bright idea to go on vacation in July.  We didn't bring her pack and play with us since she had out grown it.  The condo had two bedrooms.  So we thought she could just sleep in the second bedroom and build a pillow fort around her so she wouldn't fall.  We had been on vacation several times with her before.  She was easily adaptable.  And she slept in her own bedroom at home.  This would work, right? She slept in the full size bed like a champ all week.  No harm done.

Until we got back to Kentucky... Night one at home we laid her in bed and she immediately started crying.  Which wasn't unusual.  About once every other week we've had to let Everly cry it out before.  But about 20 minutes later we hear a loud thump.  Chad and I look at each other and suddenly we hear little footsteps and her cry getting louder coming around the corner.  Into the living room walks our 23 month old.  First time she had ever crawled out of her crib.  After giggling about it I let her stay on the couch with us and fall asleep watching TV.  I put my sleeping toddler to bed and forget it ever happened.  Until she woke up crying again at 6 am the next morning.  When I went into her bedroom she was half way over the rail trying to climb out again.

Same thing happened the next night.  Tried letting her cry it out.  A few minutes later she climbed out of her crib and came walking into the living room.  She woke up crying again in the middle of the night, out of her crib and into our bedroom.  Chad finally took a blanket and just slept in the floor of her room that night to keep her happy and keep her still.

After three nights of this nonsense Chad and I thought maybe the bed in Florida is what she was missing.  Maybe she was ready for a big girl bed? So I go online and order her very own twin size bed in her favorite color - pink.  A couple weeks later it finally came in.  She helped us put it together.  Asked us fifty times "that my bed?" "Yes! This is your new big girl bed! Do you like it?" Her response was yes every time.  We took her to pick out sheets.  We jumped on the bed.  Read books in the bed.  Got her SO excited about her new bed.  She took a nap that afternoon.  We thought we had this alllll figured out.
Then night time came.  We kept her bedtime routine the exact same.  When it was time to lay down- meltdown.  "I don't like that bed." "I don't like that bed."  She cried every single time I laid her down.  But I was determined to make her stay in her room.  It took me 30 minutes of constant back and forth until she finally gave up.  I was sweating and my hamstrings were cramping from leaning over the bed to lay down my 30 lb toddler seventy-five times.  About five hours later in the middle of the night our crying toddler comes into our bedroom wanting to get into our bed.  I refuse to let that happen.  So I lay her back in bed and lay down on the floor next to her bed until she falls asleep.  

The next day I tell Chad it's his turn to fight the fight.  He goes back and forth a few times trying to get her to put herself to sleep.  But then decides it's easier to lay down with her until she falls asleep.  Middle of the night comes and she's up again.  Crying.  Wanting to get in our bed.  (I hope my husband isn't the only dad with zero patience in the middle of the night.)  He shouts "Everly! If you don't want your bed then lay down on the floor!" The crying instantly stops.  She drops to the floor and immediately goes back to sleep.  I am in shock.

When I wake up the next morning there she is, still asleep, next to our bed on the floor.  No pillow.  No blanket.  She looked like a pitiful orphan.  
The next night I guess it's my turn.  I lay her down in her bed and it's instant meltdown mode.  She requests to sleep in our bed.  I let her know that she can't do that.  She has to sleep in her room.  Meltdown times ten.  So I ask her if she wants to sleep in her bed or on the floor.  She immediately requests the floor.  Oooookay... She has a soft little fur rug in her room that I've actually laid on several times during difficult nights.  So I lay her pillow on that.  Let her curl up into a little ball and tuck her in with a blanket.  She goes right to sleep.
And every single night since it's the same thing.  She sleeps on the floor.  Usually she'll make her way into our bedroom during the night.  But she'll lay right down on our floor and go back to sleep.
Some mornings it's a treat to figure out where she ended up that night.  In the picture above she is actually under our bed.

So, this is how our big girl bed transition is going.  She wakes us up once or twice during the night usually to ask us a random question or go potty.  So there is no more sleeping through the night for any of us.  But it's usually pretty easy to get her to lay back down and go to sleep... as long as it's on the floor.  Once in a blue moon she'll sleep through the night in her own room.  But I guess as long as she's happy and not in our bed, I don't mind where she sleeps.  Of course I would prefer she sleep in her own bed.  So I am open to suggestions if any of you experienced moms have any!
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