Bits + Pieces

These pictures mean so much to me, on Wednesday Chloe got to meet for the very first time her Aunt Dana and cousins Hannah and Ethan who were in town visiting from North Carolina, and if the night couldn't get any more special Mike's oldest sister Cory and her husband Jeff were also in town visiting from Seattle! Hannah and Ethan were so, so sweet with Chloe and could not wait to meet their newest little cousin, and Chloe just adored them both so much.

I am so grateful to have these pictures to look back on, with everyone living so far apart moments like these don't happen very often.

Currently

Loving: This time of year... there is something so magical about the winter months.

Watching: Right now I am loving MTV's new show Catfish, as well as the new season of SVU. Both shows are really good!

Listening to: Same as usual, Ben Howard, Lana Del Rey and the new Deftones album, which by the way is beautiful and amazing!

Thinking about: I have a lot on my mind these days, life has been filled with so many struggles and challenges.

Dreaming about: Taking a real vacation to some far away beautiful place. 

Looking forward to: Even though this time period has been pretty rough we still have so many things to look forward to, and for that I am so grateful. This evening Chloe will be meeting her cousins Hannah and Ethan for the very first time, we have our first family photoshoot with a friend photographer on Saturday, and then there's taking Chloe to see Santa, and celebrating Christmas and New Years together as a family! 

Making me happy: My sweet daughter, everyday she amazes me more and more.

Do you have a currently post? If so, leave me a link to it in the comments section, I'd love to read what you've been up too!

Thankful

Since I can remember I have always loved celebrating Thanksgiving. There is something so warm and comforting about surrounding yourself with the ones you love, laughing and reminiscing about all that you have to be grateful for. These past few years have been incredibly difficult for Mike and I and life has been far from easy but I am so grateful for where we are today. 

On this thanksgiving I am so very thankful for:

:: My sweet little family, Mike and Chloe are my soul and heart. There are not enough words in the world to describe how much I love them both and how grateful I am to have them in my life.

:: To finally be back in Chicago, for now I know that this is were I belong.

:: To be celebrating Chloe's second Thanksgiving at my Grandma's house with the rest of my family this year.

:: Friends and family both near and far. I am so grateful for all the wonderful friends and family that make up our life and even though some of them are far away I will always hold them close to my heart.

:: Mike's love and dedication to his family, everyday he works so hard to support Chloe and I and everyday he loves me for who I am and is such a loving, strong, wonderful Father to Chloe.

:: Simple pleasures, like enjoying a hot cup of coffee alone in the early morning light, kisses from my sweet Chloe, watching her blossom and grow, sleep, and cuddles, and laughter on a Saturday morning.

:: Blogging and this wonderful community of woman and Mom bloggers that I feel so honored to be a part of.

:: Creativity, inspiration and the freedom to do both.

:: God's unwavering, unconditional love for me.

:: Beauty, and art, and photography, and music, and words.

Dear Chloe: The Sweetest 17 Months

Dear Chloe,

Yesterday you turned 17 months old! 

It's so hard for me to believe that in less than a month you my dear will be 1 1/2. It's truly unreal how quickly you are growing up, one minute you we're this tiny, sleepy, newborn baby in my arms and then the next you're this beautiful, smart, adventures, wild toddler. You Daddy and I love you so much sweetheart, since the moment we found out you we're ours our life has been filled with so much love and beauty! Since I've been completely awful about keeping up with your monthly updates I just wanted to share a few fun things you've been up to these days.

:: You have become such a little helper, you'll hand me a diaper when its time to change you, you love helping me empty the dishwasher, and you'll even help me put away the laundry!

:: You love giving your Daddy and I kisses! and a kiss from you is the most sweetest thing in the world!

:: You are such a talkative little girl!

:: Your obsessed with playing with the kitchen utensils.

:: You climb on everything, chairs, tables, the piano bench.... just to name a few.

:: You still love music and now you even sing along to your favorite songs!

:: If you hear everyone laughing you always make sure to laugh along too, it's so funny.

You run and jump and kick and throw and dance and are just such a delight to be around. You can light up a room with your beautiful smile and sweet laugh.

We love you so much Chloe, always and forever

Mommy and Daddy

Toddler Activities: Hot & Cold

A few day's ago while reading some of my favorite blogs I found this great Montessori activity on Randalin's blog Harvesting Kale that I knew Chloe would just love. Lately we have been working a lot with Chloe on  learning about hot and cold, hot has been very easy for Chloe to understand, she'll say the word hot when she sees something she knows is hot and she'll also blow on it to cool it down. Learning about things that are cold though have been a little more of a challenge, so when I read about this toddler learning activity I knew it would be a great way to teach Chloe about the differences between hot and cold, plus she loves to play in water!

What you need:

:: One bowl of warm water

 :: One bowl of cold water

:: And any other objects you'd like to add that are hot & cold, like ice for example.

Such a simple activity and I loved watching Chloe learn and explore the differences between temperatures. We will definitely be doing this activity again and as Chloe gets older I plan to make it a little more complicated and suitable for her age.

Currently

One of Chloe's favorite things to do, sit in Ozzy's toy basket!

Loving: Watching my sweet girl grow and learn, she amazes me every single day. I cant believe she's going to be 1 1/2 soon!

Watching: I just started watching a new show on mtv called Catfish which so far is really, really good! And as usual I'm still watching SVU, Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives, and America's Next Top Model.

Listening to: I just recently discovered Lana Del Rey and am so completely in love with her music. Her songs and voice are very dark and complicated and romantic and nothing like I've ever really heard before.

Thinking about: To many things honestly, life has been full of challenges lately.

Dreaming about: Taking a trip to Seattle to visit some dear friends and family I've been missing a lot lately.

Looking forward to: Thanksgiving and once again watching the seasons change. I cant wait for the first real snow fall, to watch Chloe's eyes light up with excitement and wonder as we take her outside to play in the snow for the first time.

Making me happy: Last Saturday my family got together to celebrate my cousin Brooke getting bat mitzvahed. It was so great to see everyone together, laughing and having fun and the best part of it all was that my cousin Marc and his wife and daughter were there too! I wasn't expecting to see them so when I walked up the stairs to the synagogue and saw my cousin Marc standing there talking to my Mom and Grandma I was in complete shock. It was amazing to finally be able to spend some much needed time with them, it had been much to long since I've seen them.

The Simple Things

It's the simple things in life that make everyday so beautiful, like watching my sweet daughter play and splash and float around on her belly in the bath tub happy as can be.

Currently

Loving: Simple things.... like kisses from Chloe, a hot cup of coffee on a cold fall morning, the sound of my husband singing and playing guitar from the basement every evening after dinner. 

Watching: Same as usual, SVU (which by the way I'm really loving the new season so far!) Dr. Phill, a few episodes of Seinfeld and The king of queens and yesterday evening I caught part of the show Mike & Molly and thought it was pretty funny!

Listening to: I'm still absolutely loving Ben Howard, his music just fits my life so well right now.

Thinking about: The election, money, jobs, babies and our future. 

Haha nothing to big right?

Dreaming about: Getting a "real" camera someday. Unfortunately that's last on the list of things my family needs right now.

Looking forward to: My cousin's bat mitzvah this Saturday, winter, and celebrating Chloe's second Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years. Having a child has brought so much more meaning to the holidays, I find myself looking forward to them more then ever now.

Firsts: Trick or Treating

Yesterday evening the three of us ventured out into the cold to take Chloe trick or treating for the very first time. We had such a great time walking around our neighborhood collecting candy and seeing all the children dressed up in their costumes. Everyone thought Chloe looked so adorable and after a few houses she really got the hang of trick or treating. I cant wait to do this with Chloe every year on Halloween!