Photo A Day- August 29

Kenna asked to take her nap on the couch today, a little special treat we usually do on Sundays afternoons instead of having her stay in her bed. I took Finn upstairs to his room and came back about 5 minutes later to find her like this. She's not sleeping nakie, just wearing her big girl underwear (yay!!!) and has to have that pink "flower blankie" with her at all sleeping times, of course.

Photo A Day- August 28

I never thought it would be my little girl leaving little cups full of acorns and snail shells and dead bugs around the house, especially after we had a boy! But Kenna is loving all these things recently, including picking flowers and leaves. So our afternoon project today after she found a bunch of tiny acorns on our morning walk was to make them into a "fairy garden" for her little tinkerbell. Daddy added the huge (dead) dragonfly that Kenna was fascinated with all morning. Truth be told, I think she's most interested in just digging around in anything dirty!

Photo A Day- August 27

Finn really hates to sit still in his car seat, but if he's super tired it is always a great way to get him to fall asleep. It's pretty funny to watch his wiggles and squalks quiet down, and then his eyes get real heavy, and then he just kind of can't resist it anymore. Such a cutie pie!

Photo A Day- August 26

On Sundays, we usually get the special treat of having lunch with Granddaddy and Nana after church. Today we went to get soup... the super delicious crab chowder at Nantucket Grill! We always forget that Kenna loves soup, and don't order her her own, and then she ends up eating someone else's entire bowl. Thankfully Nana was willing to share! We're thankful for how frequently we get to see Granddaddy and Nana in this stage of our lives.

Photo A Day- August 25

Today we spent the afternoon at one of our favorite little traditions- walking around the Lazy Days festival in Cary, NC. We have gone every year since Kenna was born, except for the one year it was canceled due to the threat of a hurricane! Right after we ate our traditional cupcakes (from the bakery where our wedding cake was from) Daddy and Kenna saw some kids that had really cool face paint! Kenna picked this "butterfly princess" that was pink and green on the picture, but when the face paint lady offered to change it to match her shirt, Kenna was all for that. She even added some orange "lipstick." Look how much fun $10 bucks can buy!

Photo A Day- August 24

Today I gave Kenna her first little haircut! She had cut herself some bangs a few weeks ago (more about that soon) and the back was starting to get long and scraggly and weighed down to where it didn't curl anymore. So I cut two little layers in the back to make it curl up- she was so proud of herself! Love this little cutie pie.

Photo A Day- August 23

Our two precious kiddos in the bath- I took a picture because I am determined to keep up with my photo each day this month, but also because clean children are the only thing I accomplished today.

Photo A Day- August 22

Today I told Kenna I had a special treat for her. While she was eating dinner, I went down to the basement and brought up this one little Barbie that was mine when I was little and the handful of my favorite clothes. I saved this Barbie for my own little girl one day... she was always my favorite because she was a "gymnast" Barbie, and so her arms and legs bend in ways normal Barbies' don't. Kenna is thrilled with her new favorite doll, and told me that she is "not a baby doll. she is a big girl doll." Kenna loves to change her clothes over and over, and picks out her favorite dress each night for the doll to sleep in. (We have been told her name is not "Barbie" but "Doll").

Photo A Day- August 21

We've had a lot of rainy afternoons here recently, so lots of times we lay low around the house especially when the kids take long naps and wake up almost at dinnertime! This afternoon we decided to go with it- pop some popcorn to munch on and watch a favorite movie (Kenna loves Beauty and the Beast right now). It's super sweet to see them both snacking out of the same popcorn bowl, one of the times they share really well! Finn loves popcorn and movie afternoons too. He's gotten three if not four molars in the past few days, so I think he's a fan of anything crunchy- not to mention if sister is eating it, it must be good!

Photo A Day- August 20

Daddy surprised us with a special treat that Mommy and Kenna love, and Finn just didn't know yet that he loves them too- mini powdered doughnuts! This silly boy ate something like five of them- the sugar high probably explains the goofy grin. He's such a cute stinker I can hardly stand it!

Photo A Day- August 18

We ran some errands on Saturday, and while Mommy and Finn were at Target picking up a lamp shade, Kenna and Daddy took Pontouf to Petsmart to get her nails trimmed. They looked at the fish, the frogs, the birds, the hamster, and… the puppies! I thought for sure Kenna would ask to take this little guy home, but Matt said she gave him back and asked if "our puppy" was ready. Pontouf may drive us nuts sometimes, but she is our puppy!

Photo A Day- August 17

Every day after lunch, Daddy heads to work. We're so thankful that about a year ago, he was able to switch from third shift (overnight) to second shift (roughly mid-afternoon to midnight). It has made the biggest difference from barely seeing him at all on third shift, to having him here with us all morning until lunch time! It's always sad when Daddy has to leave, but especially because it usually also signals nap time. Waving Daddy bye-bye to work (with the dog's help, of course):

Photo A Day- August 17

Today our big crafty project was finishing making Kenna's 'contribution chart' where she can earn stickers towards little toys and special prizes. We tried to pick jobs that she can do well completely on her own and gets excited about (getting dressed, putting her dishes in the sink, feeding the dog), and added two more attitude-related ones (being a big helper and having a grateful heart). She's so excited to fill it up and earn her prizes!

Photo A Day- August 16

Accessorized! Kenna loves to dump out the bucket that holds all her jewelry and accessory toys in our living room. Every once in awhile she'll put everything on all at once- it's hard to see, but she also has a princess crown on. Gotta love a girly girl!

Photo A Day- August 15

Kenna's done a great job of learning her shapes. This is one of those little sorting toys where each shape fits in its little slot. I came around the corner to find her and Finn sitting together like this, and she was showing him "how the shapes fit." Super cute for big sister to be teaching little brother stuff like this already!

Photo A Day- August 14

Absolutely nothing can be done to convince Finn that he's not a big kid like his sister. Recently we've found him sitting in the little chairs of the craft table I painted for Kenna when she was about his age. They have been painted and repainted because they are used on a daily basis! Right now, they are just Finn's size, and I think he's so cute!

Photo A Day- August 13

Movie nights are becoming a staple in our house on Sunday or Monday nights... Finn goes to bed on time but Kenna gets to stay up a little late with Daddy, pick out her own movie, and make special favorite treats like popcorn and chocolate milk. Truth be told, Daddy enjoys it just as much as Kenna!

Photo A Day- August 12

Our friend Casey Chappell is a talented photographer who takes a picture of her kids sitting on her front steps every Sunday morning when they're dressed up for church. She's obviously a truly very talented one seeing as how she manages to get four kids under the age of four to sit still long enough for a decent shot! I liked our kids outfits so much today that I thought I'd try it. We never have time before church, so they were a little wiggly and pre-nap by the time we took this one. But I'm glad we have it all the same- I love these sweet silly siblings who never sit still! 

Photo A Day- August 11

Saturday mornings in our house are full of lots of wild, silly fun... mostly celebrating the fact that Daddy is home to play with us and trying to decide with what kind of fun to fill our family day together! We had to laugh at Finn trying to ride along on Kenna's tricycle and make his own little jumpseat. Little brother looks all proud of himself, and sister just looks a little annoyed.

Photo A Day- August 10

When we went to the beach back in July, one of Kenna's favorite things was finding shells. We brought a little bunch of bigger clam shells home and she  has been begging to paint them ever since- and today we did! This girl absolutely lives to paint.

(PS- this is also indirectly a photo of one of my favorite recycles- the 'paint pallet' we use for the paints is one of the little styrofoam trays that fruits and veggies come wrapped in at Aldi. They are the perfect size and shape for several paint colors at a time, and they rinse off perfectly to be used several times over. Then we don't end up throwing away a paper plate every time we paint or buying some pricey gadget. We just don't use the ones that come with raw meat, to be safe.) 

Photo A Day- August 8

I think I underestimated how fun having a little girlie girl would be. We picked out this pink outfit today and then she added the icing on the cake with those little pink rainboots.

Photo A Day- August 7

Kenna has a fascination with bugs right now. She always wants to stop and "say hi" to them, but is not too normally interested in touching them. Today with Matt, she met a new little friend while leaving the summer free kids movie they went to at the movie theater (Alvin and the Chipmunks):

Matt said this unfortunate friend immediately after was squished.

Photo A Day- August 6

Recently, Finn has been waking up earlier from his nap than Kenna does- partly because he goes down earlier, and partly because he only needs a 2 hour or so nap whereas Kenna will take more like a 3 hour one if I let her. (She is like her Momma and needs an irrational amount of sleep to function well.)

So today Finn was downstairs playing when Kenna woke up. He heard the first little peep she made, got a big smile on his face and went tearing upstairs to her room. I came up right behind him to see him trying to open the gate on her door to go get her. So sweet!

Photo A Day- August 5

"Daddy will save me from bedtime, right?"
Everybody loves the weekends when Daddy is here for bedtime!

Photo A Day- August 4

We spent a really fun Saturday afternoon at the flea market today! Matt loves checking out the blasts from his past at the booths that sell toys- we're officially old because the toys from our childhood are now "vintage" and "collectible." Of course, I missed the super cute picture of both kids sitting on his lap after an awesome barbeque dinner after the flea market, but hey. This is our daily photo! I see lots of very manly action figures in Finn's future thanks to his Daddy.

Photo A Day- August 3

Finn's favorite thing right now is to wear one little shoe around. He brings it to us with a high pitched little "eee eee eee!" and holds up one foot. So funny.

Photo A Day- August 2

When they're cranky and fussy, and not sharing toys, and cries come from the other room because someone has hit/pushed/bit/stolen a toy, I do try to remember these moments too:

When they sit in the back seat holding hands, for no other reason than that they are brother and sister and love each other so. I about put my back out trying to take a picture of it. (Thankfully, we were parked.)

Photo A Day- August

I've been trying to think of a practical way to get back into blogging. I'm not sure when or why, but somewhere in the past 6 months at least, I've fallen out of love with documenting our days here on this little space (I'm sure it has nothing to do with going from mommy to one busy little person to two...)

What appeals to me most about websites like twitter, facebook, etc. is the ease with which you can share a quick thought and photo. So I've decided for a little while at least, one whole month, I'm going to take a picture and be sure to blog a little something about our day, every day. Even when in the moment it seems like something truly ordinary or even mundane, I know I'll look back someday on these days and wish I remembered more, wish I had documented more, wish I had savored more. Even if most of the photos are blurry cell phone shots, maybe this is a way I can do that.

Here is our day one:

In the midst of a rainy evening, I (attempted) took Kenna and Finn to Chick-Fil-A to support their "Appreciation Day." I say attempted because we never actually made it- the line was backed up about a mile away to even turn into the shopping center! In the process of turning around, we stopped at a red light and I noticed the biggest rainbow I've seen in a long time! I pointed it out to Kenna and it took her a few minutes to see it- she loves rainbows (particularly because of her favorite show right now, My Little Pony, and the character called Rainbow Dash) and was so thrilled to see one!

I look forward to teaching her someday soon about the real meaning behind rainbows from Genesis 9 and the promise from God that they represent:

 12 And God said, “This is the sign of the covenant I am making between me and you and every living creature with you, a covenant for all generations to come: 

¹³ I have set my rainbow in the clouds, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and the earth. 

¹⁴ Whenever I bring clouds over the earth and the rainbow appears in the clouds, 

¹⁵ I will remember my covenant between me and you and all living creatures of every kind. Never again will the waters become a flood to destroy all life. 

¹⁶ Whenever the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and all living creatures of every kind on the earth.”