Pretty Paper Things

I've long had a love for pretty paper goods and recently I discovered a new monthly subscription box that fits me perfectly - it's for paper lovers and is called Olive Box. I currently subscribe to two baby/child-related subscription boxes that lean toward eco-friendly and I love them - Citrus Lane and A Little Bundle. This one, however, is all for me - I subscribed right away after I read about it and checked out the site and have received three boxes so far. What a fun idea and one of those things that I say - why didn't I think of that?! It would be so much fun to go through the process of deciding what goes into these boxes each month...I wonder if they're hiring ;) Each box so far has included a couple of greeting cards and then a few other items - I've already used a couple of the cards, but I collected all of the items I still have intact for a little group shot. While the Paper To Petal book may not get much use from me, I am sure to find someone in my life who is a little more crafty and will appreciate it.  I actually can appreciate it for it's beauty alone, so it may just turn into a coffee table book if I keep it. And then I am the queen of making lists and love keeping hand-written journals (I have a few for Conley and then some from past trips as well), so I was pretty excited about the pretty weekly planner and the travel-inspired mini journals. All in all, I'm pretty happy with my first three boxes and am already eagerly anticipating number four!

Month Two as a Family of Four

Or make that a family of six - can't leave our furry children out from the family count! Another month has passed and it has gone by so fast - I can't believe how much baby Kate is growing everyday... and quite literally too. At her 2 month check-up, she weighed in at 11 pounds 6 ounces. I went back to Conley's baby book and he only weighed 9 pounds at the 2 month mark. What a difference an easy start to breastfeeding can make! She is such a happy girl - smiling, cooing and looking all around at the world around her - and doing lots of eating. Big brother Conley is such a good helper too and is always worried when she cries or asks where she is when he doesn't see her.

Conley went to his first week of camp this month as well - a yoga camp down the street, and he loves it! It is so cute to see him demonstrate all the poses he learned - one afternoon I got him to pull out his whole repertoire and luckily caught most of it on camera. I'm so happy that he enjoyed it and expanded his book of poses beyond downward dog!

One night we were driving home and I sat in the back between the two of them and it hit me how lucky I was as I sat there holding their hands. At one point Conley looked over at me and smiled and then went back to resting his head on the seat. I love quiet little moments like that one and hope to remember it forever - along with all the not-so-quiet ones too!

Both sides of the family were away on trips for our anniversary, so we decided to spend it as a family by taking a quick one night get-away to the resort where my sister got married, Horseshoe Bay. It was a nice little trip for Kate's first vacation and Conley especially enjoyed all of the pool and "beach" time. Not a typical way to celebrate your anniversary, but we had a great time with our two little people!

Love little baby hands

On our way to the first day of yoga camp!

My smiley little squirrel wearing my favorite onesie of Conley's

One of many ice cream dates after a day of camp at Conley's new school

Posing under his old mobile in sister's crib

One of my favorite onesies from Australian line Sapling Child

And especially love little baby feet

Discovering her little car seat buddy for the first time

Conley trying to comfort his sister while holding her hand and telling her "it's ok sister"

Kate's first visit to the pool

And she seemed to like it! Unfortunately, I failed to coordinate her hat and onesie, but
this is another favorite of mine from Sapling Child and Rickshaw Design hat.

Celebrated our 11th year with Conley and Kate!

The penguin bathing suit from last summer still fits - barely!

Baby Kate is here!

Just over 2 months belated in this post, but nonetheless she has arrived! Born on June 6 at 8:41 am, Kate Sutton made a speedy entry into this world (just over 3 hours from the first major contraction that woke me from my sleep to her being in my arms). She weighed 7 pounds 12 ounces and measured 19 inches and is such a sweet little girl! We are so lucky to finally have her with us and big brother Conley is equally enamored (most of the time) with his new little "seester/baby Kate" as he alternates in calling her.

It's amazing how much they change in such a short time - and I can't help but already be nostalgic about Kate growing up so fast! There are so many sweet moments I already want to remember forever, but I especially enjoyed our first few weeks together when we were able to just sit in her nursery for hours on end and nurse, sleep, listen to the sweet little lullaby on her Serenity Star and read. I actually finished two books in that first month, which is a record for me in the past few years (more on those later.)

I'm not sure if we're more seasoned parents this time around or if she's just a very laid back baby, but it seems easier on the baby front this time around - it's just that now we have two little people to wrangle, so that can be quite a challenge at times! I imagine it is a mix of many factors and all babies being different - and nursing was a hundred times easier this time around, so I know that has made a huge difference as well. And Kate has already given us a nice stretch of sleep at night, usually about 5-6 hours before she wakes for a little snack - that has been a very welcome bonus!

Although I sadly (but expectantly) have significantly less pictures this time around, I think it would still be overload to include Kate's entire first two months in one post. So I'll stick to the first month this time around and save the rest for a future post. The past nine weeks have certainly flown by - Kate has filled out nicely and our multiple daily smile sessions warm my heart every time. I can't wait to see what the next nine weeks have in store for us!

Our first family of four photo!

Conley was so amazed by his baby sister and couldn't wait to hold her!

One of many shared crib experiences, usually at Conley's request!

Kate partaking in one of her  favorite activities

Kate reminds us so much of Conley as a newborn, especially when she's sleeping

Brotherly love

An unsuccessful attempt at recreating my birthday picture from last year - none of us looked our best!

Pizza and cupcakes at home for my birthday - 1 week after Kate's!

Dads and Dogs lunch at Conley's school - he was absolutely thrilled to have his dad there!

I catch her clasping her hands together a lot, as Conley also does - and
just like my dad used to!

Conley's "dinner date" at epicerie - he loved the special time just with us!

One of Kate's early sleeping smiles

Celebrating dad's "happy day" as Conley calls it!

I love her fuzzy after-bath hair!

Big brother holds Kate's hand and tells her "it's ok" when she crys

1 month old - with a little help from Conley!

And a (sort-of) solo shot

Conley at 1 month