Scrunchy Nose

Makenzie makes the greatest scrunchy-nosed smile all the time and every time I try to take a picture of it, it turns out blurry. This is one of my more in-focus pictures of her. I love this face so much and she does it for me all the time! How I love this baby!

Birthday #3

Really though, this was her first birthday celebration :) Shane's family all came over to celebrate with us. We had originally planned to do it next weekend when my family could be here too, but schedules conflicted and it just didn't work out. We still had a very fun fun and memorable birthday for Kenzie.

Grandma and Kenzie playing with the zoo Lego's she got for her birthday

Auntie Ally playing zoo with Makenzie

Grandma and Grandpa got this great alphabet toy that has lots of buttons. Makezie loves buttons and naturally loves this toy.

Opening Jay and Allyson's present. Isn't that the cutest wrapping paper?!

I was so thrilled when Makenzie opened this. All of the pieces are magnetic and Makenzie LOVES magnets. She will  connect them and pull them apart over and over... and then will put them in her mouth. Now she has these great magnet toys that she can't swallow. They are great!

Blowing out her first candle. Daddy did most over the blowing.
Happy Birthday Makenzie!!!

Birthday #2

We got a package in the mail a few days ago from Makenzie's Aunt Carolyn and we couldn't wait till her birthday to open it :)

The first thing Makezie did was climb right into that box

One of my vary favorite children s books, "The Very Hungry Caterpillar"

Makenize got two great books, two beautiful dresses, a super cute frilly onsie, and a really cool book /music toy (she is sitting on top of it). Thank you, Auntie Carolyn!!!!

One Year Old

One year ago, my life was blessed in the most wonderful way of all: I became a mother. Never have I known such love and such joy as that which this precious baby girl has brought to my life. This last year has definitely been the best year of my entire life. And I know it will only get better from here.

   Makenzie is the sweetest little girl I could hope for. She loves to rest her head on Shane and me. If I am lying down she'll crawl to me and lay her sweet little head right on top of mine or she'll lay it on my tummy. Whenever I bring Makenzie to our bed in the morning, she goes right for Shane as soon as she is done nursing. She crawls up to him and lays her head on top of his, sits up and smiles, then does it again. She also loves to lay her head on anything that looks soft: blankets, pillows, the couch, the ottoman, laundry:)   She and I were in the mothers room at church a few weeks ago and I put her on the floor with a couple other babies. One of the babies was lying on her stomach and Kenzie crawled to her and lay her head right on top of that baby's back. Makenzie had a huge smile on her face and was completely content there, even when the baby started kicking and crying. 

Makenzie is also a very sharing girl. She loves to share her food and toys with Daddy and me and always has a big grin on her face as she offers us her half-eaten goldfish. 

She loves to dance. Every time she hears music she will rock back and forth looking at me and Shane then back to wherever the music is coming from with a huge smile or her face which seems to say "Do you hear this beautiful sound that I'm hearing right now?!" Sometimes she will wave her hand or both hands to the melody as if she is conducting the music.

I love it when Makenzie plays with my hair and her own hair when she nurses. She is (almost) always so sweet and soft as she fingers pieces of my hair.

Makenzie knows how to be nice. Whenever she starts getting a little too rough with one of us we'll say "Makenzie, be nice," and automatically she will so softly and kindly pet whoever's face she had offended. And then, almost every time, will grab that persons nose really hard. I'm not sure how to get her to stop doing that yet...

Kenzie loves to open and close doors, but she especially loves to close them...which often results in her locking herself in my room or in the bathroom.

She also gives "loves bonks" which involves her lovingly (and sometimes not so lovingly) bumping her head to yours. And she gives to cutest wide-open-mouth kisses too. 

Oh how I love this little Angel!!!

Happy Birthday, my most precious baby girl! How you are loved!

Memorial Day Weekend

Shane, Makenzie and I went to Jay and Allyson's for the entire Memorial Day weekend. They were so nice to share their home with us and we had such a wonderful time with them. On Saturday, we went to the beach. It was a gorgeous day! Later that day Steve and Carole come over for a fantasy football drafting party.

In case you can't tell, there is a little baby underneath that wave in Allyson's lap. Ally was slowly getting Kenzie used to the water when a big wave came crashing on them. I am only too happy that I got a picture of it :)

My sad, sandy baby! She got over it pretty quickly though :)

Such a little angel face!

The boys played football almost the entire time. They had lots of fun.

Kenzie with Uncle Jay

On Monday, we went to a park that was nearby and had a picnic. It was another beautiful day!

Then we played Bocce ball! It was so fun!

Shane is an artist when it comes to throwing that ball :)

Funny Girl

Here are some funny pictures of Kenzie taken in the last few months

 

I woke up in the morning to the sound of Makenzie whimpering. When I went to get her out of bed, this is how I found her. She just sat there patiently with the blanket over her cute little body.

Shane put Kenzie in the couch like this and she was completely content folded in half this way.

I love it when she falls to sleep like this :) Oh, and do you see her playing with her hair? I am so in love!

Makenzie LOVES these little puppets that Aunt Carolyn gave to her. She usually has one in each hand and one in her mouth while she crawls around the apartment. It is so cute.

Throwing movies out of the drawer is exhausting!

Making messes is Kenzie's favorite pastime. This picture reminds me of the cover of one of my very favorite books "Love you forever" If you haven't read it, you need to!
 I cry ever time.

 

Makenzie loves crawling up on this little contraption. She will just hang out there for minutes at a time.

She gets into my kitchen drawers every day and pulls EVERYTHING out. I still can't help but think it is so cute, as much as I hate refolding all of the rags multiple times a day.

Look at those tippy toes!!!

My little Hindu baby. I'm not sure how she got those mashed peas perfectly in between her eyes.