22 months!!!

Hey there! Nope, I haven't forgotten about my little ole blog here, but man, oh man have I been busy with life. I also can't deny that I have been a little uninspired lately....or lazy maybe? Gabe has been traveling a lot, which means I have been with our sweet little one round the clock! Her nap time lengths have been extremely unpredictable. I have taken any quiet moment to really just relax and rest up for the next half of my day with her. She is a girl on the go these days!!

This brings me to a 22 month update.....

 "Lap", "love you", "mommy", "oh no", "banana", "sadie" are some of the CUTEST words that come out of Amara's mouth right now. She definitely knows how to cut her eyes at me, but she responds "well" to spankings ;). We are teaching her to say " I am sorry". She mimics even the little things that she sees people do or say!

 She is extremely aware of crying babies, as she points them out always! She has a very loud voice..... it's just loud. She loves to dance so much, and I enjoy watching. She capitalizes on EVERY opportunity to crawl/climb up onto things. She took her first major "Do I need to take her to the ER?" fall in Target, which equalled my scariest mommy moment so far. I love just randomly locking eyes with her and sharing big smiles together. She gives amazing cuddles and kisses right now, and for the most part, seems happy to do so. She enjoys "talking" on the phone. Her world just stops when I tell her that we are going to call daddy.....its pretty much the best. thing. ever. 

Favorites:

foods: ice cream, peaches, greek yogurt, m&ms, rice

tv: Goofy movie, Curious George, Mickey Mouse Clubhouse

toy: Ipad... Mommi Lite App and any video of Gabe singing

clothing: LOVES trying on shoes 

activity: pool time/splash pad....anything involving water outside

She is just as much fun as she is challenging some days, but I am loving it. She can drive me up the wall, but I miss her like CRAZY when I have to be away from her. I think that is the way it is supposed to be. I am looking forward to 3 weeks of Gabe being home and us enjoying some family time. Thank goodness for technology that allows me to keep Gabe up to date on all the new fun things that Amara is up to these days. 

Praying baby

 I know as parents, we all brag on our children every chance we get. Just to be clear, this is not that moment that I am taking to do so. I have been told time and time again how much Amara will start to pick up from Gabe and I as she is inching closer to 2 years old. We all want our children to pick up our good habits, right? I watch her put on make-up with me while I get ready ( will that make her vain or insecure?) She repeats words that just come flying out of our mouths like "shoot" (will other mom's judge me or think its cute?) I watch her throw tantrums or whine ( is that just part of being a kid, or do I play into that when I do the same thing at 27?) 

All I am saying here is that you are always waiting for those little glimpses of sunshine in the midst of all of your cloudiness. I caught my glimpse the other day when I was unloading the dishwasher. Amara was just wandering around while watching tv, and she made her way to the dining room table and crawled up onto the bench ( quietly) and I look up and see her just sitting at the table. Her little feet were swinging, her hands were lightly drumming on the table top, and she had the biggest smile on her face! She was so extremely proud of herself for getting up on the bench. I think I said something like "Boots! You got up there all by yourself?!? Look at you, big girl!!" Then, I noticed she crossed her little hands together ( which we never do when we pray - we hold hands), and she began to bow her head and pray. Tears welled up in my eyes, and all I could do was take in the moment. I didn't care about grabbing a camera or making sure I got the perfect photo. I just wanted to sit there and watch my sweet little baby have a conversation with the Lord. She was just talking away!! I DID hear the words "pad pad" ( Ipad) and "Mimmie" ( Mickey). She is clearly thankful for those two things. Then, she raises her head and spreads her arms out as wide as they will go and shouts "Amen". 

BEST. MOMENT. EVER!

Gabe was gone, and I obviously wanted it on video eventually, so I kind of "encouraged" a reenactment and this is what we got!

Amara Praying from Jenni Patillo on Vimeo.

Sure, Gabe and I make an effort to pray before meals with her and every night before bed. It doesn't make us completely responsible for this. I ask the Lord every night to pursue Amara's heart and let it be open to what He has for her.....despite us. It was just a great moment for me to take time to say "thank you" to God for allowing her actions to play out what may be stirring in her heart at this young age.

Have a GREAT weekend everyone! I am so grateful for all of you! Love you ..... mean it!

xoxo jenni

Summer Nights at the Vineyard

Some people have a beach nearby, a farm or even a lake to retreat to during the summers. While all of those things aren't all that far from us, Arrington Vineyard is super duper close to us. I have a feeling that is where we will be spending a lot of our summer evenings. Gabe was out of town this past weekend, so I called up my spontaneous bestie and we decided that a picnic filled with Mexican food, leftover birthday cake and wine would bring us much happiness! Simultaneously taking in a beautiful view didn't hurt either.

Off we went! I love how many families had the same idea that night. I enjoy crowds of people ( for the most part). I watched Amara run up and down a hill repeatedly, which brought her a lot of entertainment. I was able to relax on a blanket and eat in peace. Did I mention, we will be spending a lot of summer nights here?

 ^^^ Left over birthday cake with some raspberry dessert wine that the vineyard makes. ^^^

(They have a blackberry that I am dying to try)

^^^ Little hands can't resist cake......who can blame her? ^^^

 ^^^ A little blurry, but I love this picture. ^^^

Happy Father's Day!

Happy Father's Day to all you dad's! I know we all say this, but I am truly the luckiest girl in the world.

I could not strive to be an amazing mother without my amazing husband! You are my other half...there is no Jenni without Gabe. I am so proud of our family, and how you provide and CARE for us. You stop our little world to shower us with kisses and hugs daily. Amara is so blessed to call you daddy, and raising a child with you has been better than I could have ever dreamt. Thank you for that! I love you so much, and I look forward to celebrating the amazing person that you are today! You deserve it!!

Love you baby!!!

Water baby

We spent some time outside this last weekend....southern style! We have no pool, so we put Amara's splash pad out in the yard and let her play to her little heart's content. She seriously LOVES the water. I am so grateful. She is absolutely fearless in the pool and has loved to splash since her first bath! It is just a nice way to cool off without lugging everything to a pool. It was such a nice weekend to just stay around the house, eat sandwiches for lunch and just be together. Hope everyone had a great weekend!!

Flying a kite with daddy

Yesterday, we enjoyed a nice, relaxing afternoon at home. I got a lot of deep cleaning done in my kitchen while my two loves napped. It was pretty awesome to have silence in the house while I just cleaned....and thought. Amara is in this extremely fun ( and sometimes scary) phase of mimicking EVERYTHING that Gabe and I do. It is so cute most of the time, but I definitely don't like the word "shoot" coming out of her little 1.5 year old mouth just yet. 

Anyway, while I was looking out at them from the kitchen window, I noticed Amara putting the kite handle in her mouth ( as she had just watched Gabe do while he was getting the kite ready), and I knew I had to snap some pictures. I bought a little kite from the dollar section in Target. Who knew it would have a.) lasted more than 30 seconds b.) provided so much entertainment for Amara. 

I am just so grateful for the days and nights that we have daddy home. I am soaking it in the best that I can!

 

^^^ Getting a little help untangling herself ^^^

^^^ Oh, how she loves "Seeey" ( Sadie)! ^^^

Pinspiration! What I am pinning these days.....

I have been loving Pinterest a lot more than usual lately. It kind of makes me feel like I am shopping, but money isn't necessarily coming out of my wallet at that moment. We are currently in the very slow process of redoing our master bedroom ( new carpet and all), so every decision is "life or death" here, right?! ;)

Sometimes, it is just nice to get out of my head and just look for looking's sake. Then, sometimes.... constantly finding new ideas makes me want to change things CONSTANTLY! I like change...what can I say?

Here are some random pins that I have enjoyed looking at. They can also be found on my Pinterest boards HERE!

^^ Been lusting after a mint tassel key fob for a while now. ^^

^^ If I had these, they would have to sit out on my counter somewhere. Too perfect! ^^

^^ Really wanting to dip dye one of my white T-shirts. ^^

^^ I mean....this is just purty! ^^

^^ I neeeeeed this! Perfect one piece for toting my little one to the pool! ^^

^^ I have been wrestling with what color palette to go with for our bedroom. When I saw this, I knew I landed on what I wanted! ^^

^^ Just waiting for this little number to go on sale :) ^^

^^ Dying over this front door color! ^^