Abby’s Saturday // One Hundred Eighty-Four

Highlight of the Week

Of course, the highlight of our whole week (as well as month) has been Brealynn’s birthday!! It has been a whole week long event – with birthday cards arriving all week, party prep spread out over several days, presents when she woke up on her big day, ice cream “cake” & more presents at lunch from Grandma, birthday PJs & slippers before bed on her birthday night, and her big birthday party last night!

Someone tell me how she’s 3 years old already? I’ve been quite nostalgic over the last few days – reading her birth story, looking at newborn photos of her & all the milestone pictures I took – it just doesn’t seem possible that she’s already 3! We took some fun 3-year-old portraits on her birthday (I couldn’t resist) and wrote a big long update on what she’s up to these days – if you missed it, you can go back & read that post here!

Yes, This Happened

• SLEEP UPDATE: we’re officially on Day 19 since we began this crazy sleep journey – “Operation Get-Braelynn-To-Sleep-All-Night-In-Her-Own-Bed”. It’s been rough, but so rewarding. It’s crazy to think that the first night, we got up & put her back in her own bed 10 times! And now, the last two nights, she hasn’t woken up at ALL – she has slept from the time we put her to bed until her Okay-To-Wake Clock turned green & she woke up. I’m knocking on all the wood over here, because I’m so scared of jinxing it! But she’s doing SO good & has come SO far. I can hardly believe it!
• Strangely, at the same time as she seems to be getting better sleep – she’s also been grumpier than ever! I’m not sure if it was just a switch that automatically got turned on with her turning 3, but she’s been a little bear all week! She’s definitely becoming more & more independent, and pushing the boundaries of what she can do & get away with. Ugh, parenting is a never-ending-exhaust-fest.
• One of my dearest friends (whom I’ve known since college!) is having a little baby girl & her baby shower was last Saturday! It was literally the most darling event I have ever attending (it was so perfectly themed & orchestrated) and left me so excited to plan my sister Ellen’s upcoming baby shower!! YAY babies!
• My annual KAP Giveaway is still going on! My little competition is always fierce every year (especially as we get down to the end), but this year, it is downright intense!! I have never seen so much competition & it literally has me biting my nails as we get down to the end! It all ends Tuesday night & it is so close that I honestly cannot predict who will win!
  All the fun is going down over on my Facebook page, and if you want in on it, there is still time!! A little bit of effort goes a long way (trust me, I’ve watched people pull in over 100 ‘likes’ & win in the last few hours of the giveaway, so it’s totally possible)!

Feeling Blessed

Last night, we hosted 25 people, here, in our little house, for Braelynn’s birthday party. That number is just immediate family: my Grandparents, parents, siblings, my Aunt & Uncle, and their kids = 25 people. It was insane. It is our 3rd year hosting such a large event though, so thankfully, we’ve figured out a few things (we literally rearrange the entire house in order to make it more accommodating). It was our biggest party ever (this year’s new attendees were Jonathan (my sister Ellen’s husband) and Emilie (my cousin Zeb’s wife)) – and it’s so fun to think that next year – even if we invite the same crowd – there will be even more (Ellen & Jonathan are expecting + who knows what else could happen over the next 12 months)!

Seriously though, we have the most amazing support system & community here. It’s so overwhelming to realize that at any moment, we could call any of the people who were here last night, & they’d do just about anything to help us, if we needed it (and I don’t just make that claim – they have! just ask about the time my cousin Zeb pulled Ellen & I out of the mud). They love us and were so happy to come together to celebrate Braelynn last night. Not only did they shower her with new toys & clothes & gifts, but they all laughed & helped & made our house so much brighter (& in-all-honesty: louder) than before everyone arrived. It was literally the best & such a wonderful night – I cannot say thank you enough!