SPRING AT THE CABIN

it was opening weekend at the cabin in vallecito for the family and my parents. we close it down for the winter, and keep it open for spring through mid fall. i spent my weekends, 6 months out of the year, every year at this cabin growing up as a kid, and i am blessed enough now to be able to do the same with my family. we can't wait for the rest of the season, and all the adventures that are coming next for us!

TINY ASPEN WINTER ONEDERLAND

 my little, my tiny, my aspie, is one. what. what. whaaaaat. i was a little unsure of how i was going to pull off a winter birthday and spoil her rotten with a big party like i have done every year for averee. i made her a little homemade cake and we did a cake smash session the week before her actual birthday, right after the new year. you guys, she had interest for about 1 whole minute, got up, and went back for the carrot she was eating before i made her sit down for cake. this kid is crazy! sister had no problem getting in there and finishing the job for her. the following week, we threw her a winter onederland party at our home with all of our closest friends and family. thank you to everyone who came out and braved the cold to spoil and celebrate my sweet little girl. 

ASPEN BLAKE: 6 MONTHS

QUICK STATS:
weight: 12 pounds 5 ounces 
height: 22 in
clothing size: 9 months
diaper size: 3
shoe size: 6-9 month

SLEEP:

5-7 hours a night before waking up. i'm so stoked that i got the awful sleeping over with averee

FIRSTS: 

rolling around, sitting up, trying to crawl, dada' (why do they always say it first?! i feed you child lol),
and top two teeth about to pop through!

PERSONALITY: 

the happiest most smiley baby ever, ask anyone! she is always smiling. but again, when she does get upset, everyone in the neighborhood knows it. she has a very chill personality so far 

MUST HAVES: 

i honestly could not live without our owlet baby monitor. if i could afford to get every mom one of these as the ultimate baby shower gift from now until forever, i so would. once we brought aspen home and while getting settled in, i had severe anxiety over sids. i never really felt that way with averee, but wasn't getting a second of sleep with aspen because i was too busy making sure she was always breathing. if you're a mom you know what i'm talking about. those moments you stare at their little body waiting to see it move up and down countless times in the night. after getting this when she was a little over a week old, i feel so much more comfortable sleeping knowing it will alarm us if something goes wrong. it really came in handy when she came down with rsv at only 5 weeks old. we were able to monitor her from home instead of the hospital because we could track her heart rate and oxygen levels through the monitor directly to my phone at all times. aspen also will not sleep in anything but this rocker that our friends lent to us when she wasn't sleeping well in her moses basket. once we got her into it and started swaddling her tight, she has slept like a champ. 

muslin swaddle blankets are another must have. aden and anais are the best, but my current favorite one is the one in the pictures from little unicorn! it is huge, which makes for a tight swaddle at bedtime, and is so adorable. win win

Averee's enchanted fairy birthday

this year was the first year that ave actually had an opinion about what kind of birthday party she wanted. her request was, "mermaids, pj mask, memo, sheriff callie, fairy, swimming party please." she has a really great imagination. we went with just fairies this go round. we haven't had a party at our little fixer upper we call home yet, so we figured this was the best time to go for it. i wanted it to feel enchanted, so we did it in the evening so her fairy lights would definitely be showing. i am so happy with the way everything turned out, and averee had the time of her life in her fairy dress and wings, painting rocks and wands (sticks) with all of her greatest friends.  we are so so thankful for the blessing of all of our family and friends that took the time to celebrate our sweet girls 3rd birthday!