We seriously won big time in the dad department in our house. Kyle was made to be a girl daddy.
Our daddy: fixes hair and dresses up baby dolls. He reads stories and sings Twinkle Twinkle at night. He pulls his girls in wagons, and gives them horse back rides through the entire house. He dangles them upside down by their feet and throws them high in the air. He hides behind couches and jumps out to scare them. He cuddles them tight and holds their tiny little hands. He teaches them to be strong, to laugh at themselves and that if they ever need him, daddy is there.
In the short two and half years my girls have been here I have experienced so many wonderful moments with them. Moments that reaffirm my purpose in life is to be their mom. Moments I want to bottle up and hold on to forever. Moments that make me look forward to what is yet to come and long for what has passed.
A few of my favorite mom moments with my girls so far are:
When Bliss first wakes up and lays on me. Only looking up to smile at me through her binky, pull it out, give me a kiss and lay back down.
When Dallas wants more of something and will put her tiny pointer finger up to her face and very seriously say "One more okayyy? One more"
When Bliss gets that mischievous look in her eye and bolts to climb up onto whatever she isn't supposed to and squeals with excitement when she succeeds.
When it's time for Bliss to go to bed and I make the rounds telling everyone to give "Bliss's kisses" and she leans her entire body back in my arms so she can get low enough for Dallas to kiss her head.
When sleepy-eyed girls first see each other in the morning, break into huge smiles, and start giving their morning hugs and kisses.
When Bliss lays her head on Dallas's stomach and Dallas strokes her hair without even thinking twice about it.
Unsolicited hugs, kisses and I love you's
When Dallas puts her hands on my face, pulls it close to hers and says in the sweetest, softest voice, always with a tone of determination "Momma, I take care of you okayyyy" then puts her hand on my stomach and says to her little sister "I take care of you"
I cried in bed the other night after the girls had gone to sleep. Thinking about how unbelievably blessed I am to have them as my children. How God has given me these little girls that I don't deserve but just how grateful I am that He did. How I want them to know that they are my greatest gifts in life. How being their mom brings me such joy. True, pure joy, well it feels pretty amazing.
17 years ago my soul mate walked into my life. 16 years ago he asked me to be his girlfriend. 9 years ago he got down on one knee and asked me to say yes. 8 years ago I became his wife. 2 beautiful little girls have come. 1 more will join us soon. Countless is how long I plan to love him.
Bliss is wild. She is a girl constantly on the go and looking to break the rules at every chance she gets. She is a food stealer, an arm pincher and a high pitched screamer. She is also a great sharer, nurturer, comedian and hugger. She loves to watch Shrek and make her sister laugh. She is so fun to be around and keeps us on our toes!
It's hard to believe that Ryan is graduating from high school. In my mind he is still the little boy, on stage at his pre-school Thanksgiving program, singing his heart out. Words cannot express how proud we are of Ryan and all that he has accomplished. Marrying my high school sweetheart has had many benefits for me, but one of the absolute biggest and one that I hold most dear is gaining Ryan as a little brother. I met Ryan when he was just 3 years old, so I have had the privilege of watching him grow into a young man.
From a very early age it was clear that Ryan was a special person. One nickname his mom gave him was "The Senator" because Ryan would go up to anyone and strike up a conversation. To this day, Ryan has never met a stranger. He is truly one of the most caring, thoughtful and genuine people I have ever met in my life.
To know Ryan is to love Ryan. He is the little boy, who walks through the stands at the high school football game, shaking hands and showing everyone how fast he can run and how many push ups he can do. He is the little boy, that at just 4 years old, jumped into the middle of the pep rally and started break dancing while the crowd went wild. He is the little boy, who in little league was the hardest hitter on his team. He is the little boy that after every tackle, he always went over to his opponent, helped him up, patted him on the back and said "you did a great job". He is the little boy, who stood up at our rehearsal dinner and with tears in his eyes said "I have been waiting for this moment my entire life". He is the young man, that has a great sense of humor... when Ryan is around you find yourself smiling more, laughing more. He is the young man that you never have to ask to help, because he already is. He is the young man, that his nieces adore. He is the young man, that his brother adores. He is the young man, that you sit back and watch, knowing he is going to do great things in his life. He is the young man, you thank God for simply allowing you to be a apart of his life.
Ryan has always been such a big part of our lives. In fact, he was a major determining factor in moving back to Dallas from New York. We didn't want to miss out on him growing up and being able to take part in that. Ryan was there, in the waiting room when Dallas was born, and drove after school to see Bliss as soon as he could, telling me when he arrived that nothing was stopping him from meeting his niece. It meant the world to me. During the remodel of our first home, Ryan spent almost the entire summer at our house. Working tirelessly, all day and night alongside his brother who enjoyed every second being around him. Kyle would come up with projects just so he could see more of Ryan. After school started back up Ryan was at our house every weekend helping out. Dallas would look out the window for him on Saturday mornings, so excited that her Uncle Ry Ry was coming. The extra time we were able to spend with Ryan, we will always cherish.
Now he is off on his next adventure, college. I have no doubt that he will continue on to great things.
So to Ryan we want to say, we are so proud of you, we love you so very much and we can't wait to see what the future has in store for you. The sky's is the limit!
For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. Jeremiah 29:11-13
Two and a half years old. What an AWESOME age. Everyone warns you about the terrible two's and while yes, there are a few tantrums, two has been SO much fun in this house. This girl is funny. This girl is wild. This girl is free. This girl loves so hard. This girl plays so hard. This girl is the boss. This girl is tender at heart.
Last week, out of nowhere she realized that she could pick out her own clothes. And so far the outfits have been nothing short of amazing. She always has an accessory on now. From wristbands, to hats, to lace leggings. You can often hear her now clanking down the hallway in a pair of mommies high heels. You can often see her putting on her rain boots no matter what the outfit is.
She talks all of the time. She constantly tells everyone in the family she loves them. She constantly puts mom in time out because "you not listening". She constantly has at least one baby in her arms and calls them "brothersister". She constantly says "just two more seconds" when its time to stop whatever activity she is doing. She says things that her momma and daddy say all of the time like "trust me, truuussstt me" or "oh (long pause), my (long pause), goodness". When you ask her to do something and she doesn't want "um, no... cause my busy" or if she wants to "yes, of course... course"
This girl is filled with joy and fills all around her with joy.
