2 Year Check Up

That's right, Ashtyn had her 2 YEAR check up on Monday! Wow! Dr. Greyson said she is doing Perfect and looks great for a two-year old. Ashtyn is 35 inches tall and weighs 27 pounds - her height is in the 89% and her weight is in the 9% - TALL and SKINNY, who would of thought! The doctor cleared her for all food now - so maybe we can start enjoying peanut butter! The doctor did however say the pacifier has TO GO! Which I agree - so, starting this weekend the "pas" will be lost forever! Pray for us, it could be a LONG weekend, but it has to be done. Ashtyn, you are growing into such a beautiful little girl - Mommy and Daddy love you so much!

Classic Ashtyn...

This is how much my baby girl LOVES to be outside...

She fell asleep while I was swinging her this morning! She tried very hard to keep her eyes open knowing I would take her in once she fell asleep - I probably could have left her out there for her nap and she would have been just fine...she is just so precious!

Big Girl Room

For the past month we have been switching Ashtyn over to her big girl room and out of the nursery. This weekend we finally got the room put together - Although it is still a work in progress. Bye, Bye Nursery...

Hello BIG girl bed!

Ashtyn took to the new bed very well. She loves all the pillows and I put a down comforter, so she is very comfy in the new bed - so she just snuggles right in! We made sure to put bed rails on the side so she wouldn't roll out - but some how she still managed to roll off the foot of the bed - Whoops! It was pretty funny though - Matt heard her fall and ran into her room to find her standing at the foot of the bed just saying "UP!" - it must not have hurt or scared her too bad because she just wanted to get back into bed! I was a little worried she would just get out of the bed whenever she wanted and roam the house - but thankfully she is still too scared to get down by herself so she just yells for us and then will wait till we get her out - we will see how long that lasts...It was sad to see her crib go, but it is has been fun transforming her room into the next stage making it all girly for her to enjoy!

Look Who's Turning Two...

The Celebration continues...

On Saturday we hosted Ashtyn's 2nd Birthday Party at our house and invited over all of the family and some friends - it was a great time! I was really hoping for good weather so Ashtyn and her little friends could play on the swing set - it was a bit chilly and windy, but the kids still enjoyed - I don't think kids care what the weather does as long as they can be free to run around!

Ashtyn had tons of fun running around, swinging and eating Cheetos! She was a little shy when it came to opening presents and blowing out candles, so Carson did a good job of helping her. She got tons of great gifts- backyard grill, bike, barbie stuff, tons of clothes, games and more. I think her favorite so far is the pink truck Adam gave her - she is for some reason obsessed with trucks and so that was just the perfect present.

We had strawberry shortcake for dessert and of course ice cream to go along! Everyone had a great time and I just thank our family and friends for loving Ashtyn so much! She is so lucky to be surrounded by such a loving family and supportive friends. Happy Birthday Ashtyn!

Happy Birthday Ashtyn!

Ashtyn turned 2 years old on Wednesday and we spent the whole day celebrating. First, we met Auntie Ariana for breakfast at Mimi's and then headed over to Monkey Business to run around since it was so cold outside and the park was out of the question. This was our first time visiting Monkey Business and it was so much FUN! They had a huge art room, which Ashtyn LOVED, jumpy castles, slides, and all other types of structures to run and jump on. Ariana was the best Aunt ever running around, playing with Ashtyn - while I snuggled with Robbie!

After Monkey Business, Ashtyn was worn out so we went home for her birthday nap - we had a huge evening planned and I didn't want a crabby Birthday Girl. When Ashtyn woke up we met Nana, Papa, Uncle Kev, Grandma, Butch and Auntie Em at Chuckie Cheese for dinner. Again, Ashtyn went crazy running from one thing to another - SO MUCH FUN! She ate all her pizza which was impressive and then was off to play more games. She looked so cute carrying around her cup of tokens - she reminded me of my Grandma Digiacomo playing the slot machines!

Ashtyn opened some presents from us and Nana and Papa at Chuckie Cheese. She got a cute dress and pair of shoes from Nana and Papa. From us she got some new Crocs, a Pink soccer ball and a grocery cart! The soccer ball was of course her favorite and started kicking it around the place!

After we finished opening presents and all the Tokens were spent we headed over to Dairy Queen for dessert - Ice Cream, another one of Ashtyn's favorites. We sang "Happy Birthday" to her and then she blew out her candle and ate her yummy ice cream!

WHEW! It was a very busy day celebrating her birthday, but she deserves every single bit of it. I just can't believe she is already 2! The time went so fast and I miss my baby. But watching her grow up and seeing her experience all these firsts the past year has been so amazing and I can't wait for the next year - maybe?

Ashtyn, you have totally blessed our lives in so many ways and we love every minute of watching you experience life - you make it so much fun! We love you baby girl - Happy Birthday!

Payton Audrey Harms

On Tuesday afternoon Shannon and Kole had their baby girl, Payton Audrey Harms. Payton was 7lbs 6 oz, 20 inches long and ABSOLUTELY beautiful! Matt, Ashtyn and I went to visit them in the hospital on Wednesday and we just fell in love with this baby girl! Shannon had just fed her when we got there and she had the cutest facial expressions on her face which were making us laugh - so animated for a newborn!

I am just so happy and excited for Shannon and Kole - I met Shannon in Kindergarten when we were 5 years old and we have been friends ever since, so seeing her holding her first baby was so special for me! I can't wait for all the fun times ahead of us raising our kids together and making memories with our families - it's still hard to believe that we are old enough to be doing all this - I remember when cabbage patch kids were our lives! I am even more excited she had a girl and she was born the day before Ashtyn's birthday - that makes for some GREAT birthday, "girl only" trips! Shannon and Kole are going to make awesome parents, and I am just so happy Shannon is finally a mom - something she was born to do! Congratulations Shannon and Kole - we love you so much - and Miss Payton, I can't wait to watch you grow up and maybe just maybe you will marry my little boy so Shannon and I can finally be "somewhat" related - Welcome to the world baby girl!

"The BIG Reveal"

With the snow coming on Wednesday which was Ashtyn's actually Birthday we decided to reveal her birthday present on Tuesday night, so Matt could be there and she could enjoy her new present before the snow started flying! Of course Grandma, Butch and Emily had to join us for the "Big Reveal"! Ashtyn LOVED her present to say the very least - the look on her face was priceless - She was smiling so big, clapped her hands and ran over to the slide right away! It was so cold so we could only play for a bit, but she enjoyed every minute of her new present. She loves the slide because it is a "bumpy" slide and loves to climb up the ladder! I am so happy that we were able to give her a "park" for her birthday - ENJOY my baby girl, We LOVE you!

Easter Sunday

Easter Sunday was a day filled with egg hunting, family and food! We started the day at home waking up to find an Easter Basket filled with goodies for Ashtyn from the Easter Bunny and then got to hunt for the eggs he left behind. Ashtyn did very well finding all her eggs and loved what she found inside them - M&M's!

After getting all dressed we went over to Mimi's house for breakfast and our Traditional Easter Egg hunt with all the cousins. Breakfast was wonderful as usual, Ashtyn especially enjoyed the powder sugar donuts. After breakfast we hunted for eggs - this year Mimi hid them in the house since it was still a bit chilly outside which makes for another chaotic event - but Ashtyn definitely had an advantage because being the oldest Grandchild I know where most of the indoor hiding spots are - Although, Allie, who actually hid them for Mimi, found some new, tough spots this year! Ashtyn really got into it and was running around like crazy, but when she would find one that made noise she would have to sit down and open it to see what was inside, so we would loose a little bit of momentum!

Next, we were off to Miner's Field for another Easter Egg hunt - wasn't sure how well this was going to go since it was already 12:30, way past Ashtyn's nap time! Well, I was right Ashtyn wanted nothing to do with this event, so it was really just Matt and I racing around with a bunch of two year old picking up as many chocolate filled eggs as we could - I think we definitely got more then the others given our situation, but Matt has enjoyed the treats...

We finally got Ashtyn to her bed for nap after that event and she was able to catch up on her sleep at home! After she woke up we went to have dinner at Pam's house with the family. Uncle Steve had another Easter egg hunt ready to go in their backyard when we got there. Well at this point Ashtyn was over "hunting" for eggs and instead just ran around the backyard, played with the rock piles, and then when she found a big pile of sand, she was in heaven, and there she stayed and played!

The food was GREAT as usual and I of course ate too much - but how can you possibly not scarf down homemade Raviolis and Ham! Our Easter Sunday was very busy, but it wouldn't feel like Easter if it was any different. I wouldn't trade the family and traditions I have with them for anything and I am so thankful Ashtyn gets to experience this all just like I did - Happy Easter!