A Date With Norah

Since Norah is getting older, I have been thinking a lot about doing more for her. Don't get me wrong, everything I do is for her, but I still feel like she deserves to have more fun, explore the world more and learn (she is a little sponge) and I'm the one responsible for giving her opportunities for those things. I am so glad I am able to and that I don't have to rely on a day care center or another mother to do those things. Anyway, the point I'm getting at is that I've started to have date days with Norah. I haven't decided how often they will happen yet, but I want to dedicate a day to Norah where I'm not running around doing my own errands or chores. I want it to be about her. Today was our first. Here's what we did:

We found this cute park called Frying Pan Park just a few miles away from where we're living. It's a park (so it's free), but it used to be a farm so there are animals there. Norah was so excited to see the cows, the sheep (poor things had to be dying in the 85 degree heat), horses, goats, etc.
I love this one. It's like she's saying "Quick Mom take the picture, I'm touching its ear!!"
As we were making our way from the animals to the slides and swings, Norah stopped dead in her tracks. No amount of coaxing could get her to keep walking. Want to know what she was so intrigued by?
This is what she looked like when I finally ditched the slides and brought her closer to said object.
Here she is explaining to me what she sees. Did you guess it?

Probably not. Yep, that's right folks, a John Deere.

Moving on.

We did a little shopping at Trader Joe's. Don't you worry, she wiped down that cart with an antibacterial wipey and subsequently tossed it into the cart.

A little Toasted O's never hurt.

Then it was off to the Frozen Custard Shop.

My goodness, you would never know that this little chica was tongue-tied at birth.

Then we sat on a bench and had a little chat. She sat there for a good ten minutes after which she proclaimed "all done" and hopped off.
But not before waving bye to her shadow.

It was a fun day, but the absolute best part was the "Thank you Momma" with a hug at the end of the day.

I. Just. Melt.

18 Months, 27 Weeks, Easter and The Move

Hold on. Rewind to exactly a month ago and you'd find this:

I think she was saying "Oiii."

This past month has flown by. Norah and I spent a good three weeks with my Mom and Grandma in New Jersey. We had this trip planned months ago, although it happened to fall at the exact time we would move to Virginia. That means that my amazing husband put his excellent packing skills to good work and did the whole thing without us! He had a lot of help though and I need to give a BIG thanks to those that did help him. After driving the 36+ hours from Utah to Virginia, unpacking and getting to work the next day, he then drove the 4 hours to my parents house to spend Easter with us. It was a great reunion of sorts and Norah was thrilled to see him, of course. So over the course of the last few weeks, Norah has turned 18 months and is a little ball of love. She has turned into a little parrot and will repeat pretty much anything you say to her. Her first sentence was "Here you go Momma" when she hands me something and "Thank you Momma" when I hand her something. She is so fun!

I passed the 27 week mark in this pregnancy and am in the "good" phase of pregnancy where I am (finally) past being sick, yet not uncomfortable quite yet. The little man is growing like a weed though and I can start to feel and distinguish his little feet from his bum, etc. I'm starting to get a little - OK, a lot - anxious about having two kids. Not so much the amount of work it's going to be, because I'm already preparing myself for that, but I'm trying to comprehend how I'm possibly going to love two kids the way I love Norah. I know I will love "the boy," but how will I keep on loving Norah the way I do? It's hard to explain and it makes me sad to think about. I read a blog recently (can't remember where) where a mother had similar feelings. Her conclusion was to "love the lamb you're with." That's what I'm going to do - and it will all work out in the end.

So here we are - a new place, new people, a new adjustment. We like it (Joe, actually has said he "could live the rest of his life here") so far and we are excited to see what the future brings. Here are some pictures taken on Easter..

Norah and Nay Nay (my Mom)

Norah and GG (my Grandma)