July 31st

These are soft animals like I describe, more soothing than in your face. These are the sweet things I bought from
 Dawn Price Baby in Reston Town Center.

The first cloth dipes to our stash. They accidentally sent us a Bum Genius One Size 4.0, and it seems like the coolest diaper on the planet. This will be a lot of work but they seem so comfy for a baby's bottom.

These are a couple of the baby's first outfits. The ducky outfit is from my friend, Johanna, and the elephant onesie is from my friend, Erin. 

The crib all boxed up in the nursery. Soon I'll find a picture of this baby to share. It's my all time favorite crib out there!

Now, I put a few pictures of baby things on here since this blog only loosely relates to the baby today.

Today, July 31st, is a very special day to me.

First and foremost, it is Winnie's FOURTH birthday. Winnie is the sweetest dogter in the world. I'm not sure if she's going to love sharing the attention with a baby but I have a feeling she's going to be a great big sister.

For people who say pets are not people's children, shame on them. Brian and I got Winnie exactly 3 weeks after we got married. We'd had enough of married life as just the two of us and wanted a fur baby. We got her when she was 8 weeks old and not even weighing in at 3 pounds yet. She was sweet and playful but helpless as puppy's are.

I felt guilty that we'd snatched this tiny thing away from her siblings and her mama. So I decided to be the best dog mom I could be. It's much like having a baby, you watch their pee and poop patterns, make sure they don't put weird stuff in their mouth, and try desperately to let them know how loved they are. When she's sad, my heart breaks a little. And when she's happy, I'm happy. I know a baby will be harder because they have more immediate and constant needs than a dog but if I feel all the love for the baby that I do for my dog, I know I will rock motherhood.

Can't believe my baby is 4!! Happy 4th Birthday, Winnie Bear!

Today is also special because it marks the 1 year anniversary of us living in our home.

It's so hard to believe that a little over a year ago, we walked through here for the first time. While the place wasn't exactly a dump, it wasn't much to look at. But Brian and I both knew it was exactly right for us. It was a big, fat diamond in the rough. (My dad knew it to - based on the amazing location and his incredible handyman ability.)

We also new it would be the PERFECT place to start a family. The walking/jogging trails, the playgrounds, the pools, the sports fields, and the large number of small children = the perfect place for a kid. Reston Town Center does concerts and food festivals, and there's all these little kiddos just living it up.

And even though we've only been here a year, one of the most amazing days of my life took place in this house. I peed on the pregnancy test in the guest bathroom and watched that pink line appear. Brian parked his car in his spot and ran up our walkway to see the test. And in our remodeled kitchen, we clung to each other crying happy tears, both knowing that our lives had just completely changed. And I know the day we move from here, they'll be prying me out of that kitchen with the jaws of life because that's a place that will be so hard to leave behind.