FUN being ONE!

 Seija turned ONE July 2nd so we thought we'd celebrate with a family & friend birthday party! She ended up being tired during her party and didn't seem to care much about eating her cake, in fact she spit it out and wanted me to wipe her hands.  She ended up getting a second wind though and LOVED playing with some new toys and all the other kids that came....here are some birthday pics:  

                        (again, sorry that the blog uploaded them w/out rotating them)

The Carters and Robbie came in for the week and joined us for her party! 

I was trying to get my hair outta my face, hence the sideways smile

This is Seija's friend, Adalyn who's a couple months older 

She was a bit scared when we sang happy birthday to her, the whole eyes on her was a lil frightening

She didn't grasp the concept of blowing out her candle, instead she wanted to touch the flame, so Evan had to intervene...

So fun watching all these kiddos play

Good ol' Bocce Ball

Waking up in the morning to mamaw!  Papaw, mamaw, and Robbie were all such a big help- they let me sleep in and took care of seija bear for me!  Her hair is quite the disaster in the mornings....

And she learned to walk at the end of 11 months! I love watching her waddle around, it's so cute! 

Ash & Joe were kind enough to invite us over to their pool for the 4th of July afternoon!! It took Seija a lil while to get used to the water, but she ended up loving it! 

Thanks to Shauna for her hand-me-down bathing suits from Ruby ; )

Sporting a pot-belly

Didn't care for the floaties much

A pretty rare occasion for seija to sleep on anyones chest, but she conked out on Robbie 

Shauna took these adorable 1 year pictures 

We joined Joe's family for a weekend at Bethany Beach, Deleware.  I love the beach and thoroughly enjoyed the waves and sand!  Unfortunately, it was so windy and chilly that we weren't able to get in the water. 

Jenna and  I have been watching each other's child once a week so we can work.  It's been going great and I'm excited for when these two can play more together, but they are so cute to watch.  Pierce loves watching Seija and Seija loves interacting w/ him...whether its trying to stuff the paci in his mouth or feed him his bottle...I'm trying to teach her the concept of being gentle (instead of hitting his head, patting his head)

Such a good baby and so darn cute

Evan's brother Chris, wife, and kids came through to visit on their way to Ocean City, NJ. The kids love Seija, but she would hardly crack a smile for them (other than Jake who made her laugh).  We had a lot of fun with them hanging out and going to the park. 

Ashton and Seija could pass for siblings.

They bought her a toy laptop for her birthday! She loves all the sounds it makes. 

This summer is flying by.  It's been a very hot one the past couple weeks. Praising God for air condition and pools! Cannot wait for our family vacation coming up in a week to a lake in NH! We might take a day trip to southern Maine as well if it works out...I love the Ocean and lighthouses and huge rocks. 

Seija is starting to show her stubborn, independent, and sassy side.  She is a good child, but hates being left alone to play.  Always wants to be right by my side or in the same room as me; makes it hard going upstairs even to use the bathroom.  She'll be crying for me at the bottom of the stairs gate. She loved having the Carters here for the week as she always had someone to show her attention and get her whatever she needed.  She wasn't too happy about them leaving- was clingy and needy for Evan that day while I was working.  I guess I'm glad to know she loves being around people, but sometimes it does get plain annoying. haha.  She's a lot of fun though and definitely loves adventure and thrill ; ) My kind of girl!!