Friday, December 31, 2010

Reliving Twenty Ten

As I reflect back on 2010, I am almost in disbelief that an entire year has gone by. Yet, once I start thinking about everything that happened in the past year, well, it is hard to believe it was only a year! For memory's sake, I decided to compile a list of the major events that happened over the past year. Yes, I am crazy like that.


In February we moved from my parents house and our apartment (after surviving the flood of '09) into our first home.



 In March we announced that we were expecting a baby.



We also took you on the "before" tour of our house.

  

 In May we showed you the "after" of our living room.






We even showed you my cheesy invite.



In July we continued working on Eden's room and celebrated Bella's THIRD birthday.



August brought my first baby shower.



September was busy...we had our maternity shoot...



And then revealed Eden's room.



We showed you how a nursery can be done on a budget.



Then, most importantly, we welcomed this girl into the world.



In October we celebrated Eden's first Halloween and went to the pumpkin patch.  




Then we gave you a full rundown on Eden's birth (part 1 & part 2).



November brought Eden's first Thanksgiving.



And the announcement that I would be starting a "new job" in January.


We ended the year of 2010 with Eden's first Christmas.



WOW. That is the only word that I use to describe this past year. Honestly, at the start of the year I had NEVER in my wildest dreams thought that this is how I would be ending the year. I can say, without a doubt, that 2010 was the best year ever for both Josh and I. It has been a fun ride and we can't wait to see what 2011 brings. I can say we are hoping to create many more fun memories with Eden, soak up every moment of getting to work from home, and pushing forward on some renovations in the ole house of ours.

We hope you all have a wonderful New Years Eve, and wish you the best in 2011!


Traditionally Untraditional

I thought I would squeeze in a bit about Christmas before the end of the year...yeah, I'm cutting it just a bit close. This post is going to be all about the photos. I always gravitate towards the illustrations in books, so why should the blog be any different? Besides, it's my blog and I'll do what I want.

Since this was Eden's first Christmas, we wanted to start to implement some traditions that we can carry on throughout her life. We knew she wouldn't remember this Christmas, but we both agreed that it was important to start them right away and it is definitely fun to have photos to document the traditions. So, here is how we spent Eden's first Christmas.


Eden made her first DIY ornament



We decorated the tree



Our stockings were hung by the chimney with care

  
Our first annual house lighting



Went to work parties



Visited Santa @ Gatti Law Office (best Santa in Salem, hands down.)

 *The outfit she is wearing is the same one I wore my first Christmas*

 Eden with Lola and Grandpa Phillips


Ate Quiche for Christmas Eve breakfast
 
(Eden's first time in a highchair - she loved it!)


We celebrated Jesus @ Morningstar's Christmas Eve Service with my parents and grandma



We ate clam chowder for Christmas Eve dinner



We watched Polar Express and drank hot chocolate


Sat by the fire and read The Night Before Christmas and Luke 2



Before bedtime we set out gingerbread cookies and milk water for Santa



On Christmas morning we opened stockings



Ripped open presents



Ate Christmas breakfast with the Phillips' side at grandma's house



Christmas dinner and presents at my parents

Eden's Blabla doll she got for Christmas from Lola and grandpa (doll's name happens to be Lola the Rocker)


Celebrated aunt Stephanie's birthday



And said goodnight to Lola and Grandpa



This really was the best Christmas EVER. We had so much fun getting to celebrate with our little girl. I can only imagine how much fun next Christmas will be as she becomes more aware of what is going on. 
Come back soon for our recap on 2010. We can't believe just how busy our past year was...



Thursday, December 30, 2010

Howdy, Hello There, and Welcome

Today I participated in my first every Linky party! I am usually not this "social" but it is one of my favorite blogs that I have been following for quite some time, and when I found out it was a party for your favorite room re-do, I instantly knew what room I would choose. Are you curious as to what room that was?


Eden's room of course!




So, if you are looking for some eye candy, or inspiration, head on over to The Lettered Cottage and get your click on.


The Lettered Cottage


Also, if you are visiting from The Lettered Cottage, welcome! We are glad you are here. It won't take you too long to realize just how crazy we Crain's are, so enjoy a few chuckles on our behalf, we don't mind. Thanks for stopping by :)

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There is a new addition to our blog that we wanted to make you all aware of. If you check out our sidebar, you will notice that we have added Eden's Flickr page. Most of the photos are posted on the blog, but there will also be some that you don't see on here. I am in the process of updating the photos (I fell a bit behind with my return to work) and there should be a whole new set of them from the past month. As if you don't get enough exposure to our baby as it is, now you have more...





I have two posts in the works, so check back later for some more craziness. Until later...

Monday, December 27, 2010

3 Months


Last week our "baby" turned 3 months. Honestly, I use the term baby lightly because this girl seems so grown up. In the beginning I was having a hard time with the reality that she would never be that little newborn I brought home from the hospital. It's funny now that I actually look forward to the next day to see what new tricks she has up her sleeves. We cannot believe all of the new things this girl is doing. Her personality is only growing stronger and it is fun to speculate as to what kind of girl she will be as she grows.

This month marked the return to work for me which also meant not being home during the day to snap a million photos and obsess over this little one. It caused me a large amount of guilt in the beginning, but now with the end very much in sight I am realizing that this month was an important time for me to grow as a person, and most importantly as a mom. This was also a great chance for Josh to really grow as a dad. Now that he is taking care of Eden almost full-time we have  dubbed him the "mommydaddy." I must admit, he is doing a pretty great job (despite multiple days of all day pajama wearing and sockless feet). I love watching Josh bond with his baby girl. Well, on to the facts...

3 Month Stats

Length: 24 inches
Weight: 11 lbs. 2 oz.
*Weight taken last week using the "mom hold baby on a scale and then subtract the weight" method




Eden, here is what you have been up to lately:

You  LOVE to stand (with mommy and daddy's assistance of course)
You insist that anyone who holds you must be standing up at all times
You usually laugh uncontrollably at least once a day
You think everything is funny...literally
You fall asleep at 10 p.m. and wake up at 6 or 7 a.m. (night owl!)
You went to the church nursery for the first time (and did great!)
You like to hold onto rattles and bring them up to your face
You started wearing cloth diapers
You have become obsessed with sucking your thumb
You are extremely observant

We can't believe all the fun changes Eden has gone through over the past month. I cannot wait to spend more time with her as she enters her fourth month. It is so weird to think that we weren't even expecting a baby at this time last year. It's amazing how things can change so much in one year.




If you are so inclined, here are her past "birthdays"
0 Months, 1 Month, 2 Months

Saturday, December 25, 2010

Merry Christmas To All!




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On Christmas day a wonderful woman of God, someone I have known for 14 years, went to meet Jesus in Heaven. Beth, I love you so much and I cannot wait until the day that I can tell you just how much your servant heart truly impacted me. Your smile and laugh will be missed here on Earth, but I am so thankful to know you are in a place where there is no more suffering. I am so glad I can say I will see you again with full confidence. So, see you later alligator.

Wednesday, December 22, 2010

Thanksgiving Twenty Ten

Christmas is only three days away and I am just now posting about Thanksgiving. Yep, I have completely fallen behind. Maybe I should have titled this post, "Better Late Than Never."

There will be few words to this post...just some pictures of what happened over the five days that we spent in Washington with Josh's family. I hope you enjoy this opportunity to not hear me speak for a few minutes...it is rather rare.



See the gorgeous girl there on the left? That's Erin. She was Eden's first babysitter. Thankfully she was very patient with me as I detailed our baby's entire life history before leaving her to care for my precious girl.




All the ladies (minus my mother-in-law...Cherri where are you?!) 
From left to right: Danae, Peyton, Great Great Grandma Braley, Great Grandma "Gigi", Eden, and me




Josh's cousin, Alyssa, picked out matching outfits for all of the little cousins to wear. I was loving them! Okay, it might have something to do with the fact that they are my favorite colors, but just look at the cuteness. Oh and did you notice how funny the photos are? I could fill an entire post with outtakes. Honestly, getting two toddlers and two babies to be happy all at once is a far more difficult task than I think we realized. Lesson learned. 

Well, I would love to spend more time posting photos and discussing the five fun filled days in Washington, but this lady needs some sleep. That seems to be a reoccuring theme these days, and yet I never do anything about it. Good thing I have a jam packed four day weekend where sleep will be nonexistent (dripping with sarcasm).