She's 7

Well Rhaegan is 7 years old and I still can't wrap my head around it. It feels like just yesterday she was this adorable little two month old bundle of joy. Now she's all grown up, reading chapter books, writing stories and texting on my phone. Where has the time gone?

Rhaegan at 2 month

 I decided to throw a surprise birthday party for her and was so happy with how it turned out. I was a little nervous at first because Rhaegan gets really nervous when she's the center of attention but I thought what the heck...I'll give it a try. She was definitely surprised and a little shy but very excited to see her friends and cousins.

 She requested doughnuts for her birthday breakfast

 The theme of her party was "Princess and the Popstar" so I made microphone cupcakes and had a nail painting station.

Rhaegan and her bff Penelope 

It was a great day for everyone. Rhaegan is still saying thank you and is already planning her next party. Thank you everyone who came and helped my pull this off. It was so much fun!

Sisters

These are just a few random shots I captured of my sweet little girls. Marlee and Rhaegan love having their picture taken with Harper. She is getting so big (well not really because she is still super petite) and I feel like I'm missing some great moments in her life so I started snapping some pictures.

 I am not a big fan of kids kissing my baby because I don't want her to get sick, but moments like this make

me happy! 

Marlee decided to lay under Harper's toy with her one morning. Harper didn't seem to mind too much.

Just for you, Mom

This is for you, Mom. I know how much you miss snow now that you live in NC so I thought I would give you a little taste of true winter weather. We woke up Saturday morning to over a foot of snow outside. Living so high up on the mountain really makes a difference in the amount of snow. The girls were so excited!!!

Poor little Silver was not as excited. She has tried to sneak into the house about 10 times hoping to get out of the cold, snowy weather. It breaks my heart not being able to have her inside with us. Sunday morning there was another 4 inches which had fallen that night. It is definitely a winter wonderland here.

Silver

This is Silver. She is one of about 15 stray cats that have taken up residency here at the house. They were all teeny tiny kittens when we first arrived in August. There are probably 3 cats left hanging around the house and Silver has become Marlee's best friend. Marlee is the only person who can actually touch her. She is often spotted carrying Silver around the yard like her little baby. Silver continues to wait by the door each morning for Marlee to come out and play. 

At first the girls had to just sit by the door watching Silver

But now Marlee and Silver are the best of friends (Yes she is being choked just a little bit in this picture. Don't worry we taught Marlee how to properly hold her).

Halloween 2012

Halloween was filled with tons of candy, beautiful weather and awesome costumes. Rhaegan's costumes came together thanks to her friend. It was Monday and we still didn't know what she was going to be. I told her I was going to buy a costume this year so we were going to have to be creative. Her sweet friend Sienna told her to come on over and choose a costume from her "closet of costumes". There were so many to choose from but she decided on the witch because I told her I would put makeup on her. That was the selling point for her. Marlee's costume was recycled from three years ago (Rhaegan wore it when she was 3). 

 We spent the evening with our great friends Chad and Gwen and their four kids.

It was a lot of fun! 

Happy Halloween!

3 months

Harper is already 3 months old! I can't believe how fast she's growing. Well, growing is an over-statement. She is still our petite little munchkin but she is growing a big personality. She definitely has her likes and dislikes now and is by far the most smiley child ever. You just look at her and a huge grin appears across her face. Some of her likes include:

Dad

Being swaddled 

Taking a bath

Watching her sisters run around

Eating

When Rhaegan holds her

 She does have a few dislikes as well:

When her arm gets free from her swaddled position

Loud noises

Car seat

Getting out of the bath

Kids holding her

Having a messy diaper

All in all she is the sweetest little lady ever. We love her so much and seriously can't get enough of her. She's a great sleeper, a good eater and melts your heart with smiles.

Love you, Harps!

11 weeks

Little miss Harper is 11 weeks tomorrow. I can't believe how fast these last 11 weeks have gone. Harper is an absolute joy to have in our family. She is such a wonderful baby and her smiles and coos truly melt your heart.

 At her 2 month appointment she weighed 9 lbs 11 oz and was 22.5 inches long. I was so excited when they told me her weight because I felt like she wasn't growing at all. However, her weight is only in the 6 percentile (I never really listen to the percentile garbage), so she is just a petite thing. They weren't worried at all about her being so small so I won't worry either. 

I have never really been a big fan of newborns. I am always wanting my kids to grow out of that phase. But with Harper, she could stay 2 months forever and I would be happy. She is sleeping 6-8 hours straight at night and taking pretty naps during the day. She loves her daddy and smiles the minute she hears his voice. Her sisters are obsessed with her and are always wanting to play with her. One day she'll appreciate that. However, right now she definitely prefers adults to hold her. We love this little lady so much.

Photo Book

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Ballet

Marlee started ballet last week and I have to say she's a natural. With Rhaegan at school all day this year Marlee needed something that she could do too.

 

 She is a great listener during class apparently and comes home with new moves to show me.

My adorable little dancer!!!

Harper 1 Month

Harper is 6 weeks old tomorrow!! 

 Rhaegan has really taken on the big sister role and has become the biggest helper ever.

 My adorable little ladies!

 Daddy-Daughter moments are my favorite. Shae is definitely meant to be a dad of girls.

My blue-eyed baby! Love you Harper!

Summer Vacation 2012

This summer went by in a flash because of the new addition to our family. We were suppose to have a family reunion in Ohio in June but of course couldn't because I was way too pregnant to fly. So instead we decided to make the Ohio trip in August. Of course King's Island Amusement park was where we spent the majority of our time thanks to the season passes our parents bought us. It was a fun summer trip. Here are some highlights from it.

 

 This ride at King's Island is one of my girls favorite rides. Marlee wasn't too sure about it at first but after her first ride she was hooked.

 Quick family picture (minus Harper)

 The kids section of King's Island is called Planet Snoopy and all the characters from the Charlie Brown show visit throughout the day. Rhaegan and Marlee were so excited when Snoopy came out to play.

 Thanks to some great tennis shoes, Rhaegan was tall enough to ride most of the roller coasters in the park. You have to be 48'' or taller to ride them and Rhaegan just barely made the cut. This ride, The Racer, was her favorite. I personally think it's awful but that's just my age shining through.

 I nice teenage boy saw Marlee sitting in her stroller watching Rhaegan ride a ride which Marlee wasn't tall enough to ride and decided to give her the stuffed animal he'd won. I'm so glad to know that nice young men still exist.

 This dinosaur park was new this year and it was a hit. These life size creatures were amazing.

Marlee was scared of the dinosaurs but I was able to get this one picture.

This vacation was a great one and we are so sad to not be there anymore. My parents are moving to North Carolina so our trips to King's Island might not be happening quite as often but we will definitely be back some day.

New Sister!

Harper Raleigh Taylor

Weighing 6lbs 10oz and measuring 20.5 inches long and as you can see she has a full head of hair. 

Naturally, this is what I was watching as I was pushing her out.  

Sorry for the gross picture. I have to add it for journaling reasons. She didn't cry very much when she came out. It was more of just a whimper.   

My first moments with my little lady. I couldn't believe how much I loved her right from the start. We are so glad you are finally here, Harper! Welcome to the family!

Summer Fun

Being pregnant in the summer really zaps pretty much any energy I once had to do the little things like take pictures of my girls or update my blog. The other day I was watching the girls ride their bikes and decided I better take a few pictures so I at least had proof that we did have and enjoy the summer of 2012.

 Grandma was pruning the roses and the girls each got to get one to carry around with them as they rode.

 This one was my favorite

 Of course riding bikes and scooters is the only thing we do at Grandma and Grandpa's farm; we have six year olds mow the pasture. Rhaegan, and her two cousins each had their own lawn mower and their own pasture to mow. There was of course constant adult supervision but Rhaegan definitely felt like a "big girl"

 Marlee got to take a little ride after Rhaegan finished her pasture.

I will be so glad with this little bundle of joy decides to come out and I will then have more energy to enjoy these summer months as well. Staying inside the air conditioned house is my idea of a good time right now. 

My Little Ladies

This mother of two girls is going to be a mother of three in several weeks and I have to say I've been having some mixed feelings about it. These two little ladies bring me so much joy and happiness it's hard to imagine spreading that happiness with one more. Of course I know the minute I lay eyes on my new little lady I'll forget all these crazy feelings. But until then I am going to cherish every moment I can with Marlee and Rhaegan. I love you girls!!!