Harper Moments, Part 4

Mama Jane:
(April 29, 2012)
Last night, I was getting Harper ready for bed when she noticed my wax seal initial necklace (which is one of my favorite little treasures, by the way). 

I explained that the "A" was for Abby and told her that my name is Abby. Harper looked at me like I was an idiot and said, "No. Your name Mommy. Mommy Jane. Mommy Jane Adams."


Apparently Harper thinks that we share a middle name.


I wish. 


Tomorrow:
(April 29, 2012)
Harper is starting to understand time. She really likes to talk about "tomorrow" and all of the fun/awesome things she's going to do. Last night, I tucked Harper in, read her several stories, and laid with her until she was nearly asleep. As I closed her door, Harper (in a super sleepy little voice) said, "Mama, Parper watch Ariel tomorrow, okay?" 


Neighborhood Horses:
(April 30, 2012)
Harps and I went on a little walk this evening and met some of the animals (dogs, ducks, horses) that live in our neighborhood. We saw some horses and one of them walked right up to the fence. Harper was so happy to meet him and made sure to show him her new tutu ("See horsey. See Parper's new tutu?") by doing a little twirl for him. She also begged for a ride (it's definitely time to head to Utah Valley for some riding with her Uncle/Grandpa Dave). 

P.S. Matching is totally overrated when you're a Harper girl. 

Moving In

I know that I promised you that I'd cease all of the "new house" talk. I intend to keep that promise- after this post, of course. This blog wouldn't be an accurate Adams family record without proper (proper = not instagram) moving-in photos.

Harper, Hazel, and Tucker were all patient little champs during the two weeks that we were painting, packing, cleaning, and moving. The new house was a big thing in each of their lives and I made sure to snap some photos of them enjoying it amid all of the grown-up/human chaos.

I hope that you will like them as much as I did today when I uploaded them. Seeing these three so happy makes all of the effort it took to buy and ready this new house worth it. I realized this morning that Colt and I didn't really do any of it for us. We did it for them.

Happy Weekend!

This was the first day at the new house.

Harper was really excited to be outside without me helicoptering all over her.

(Having a fenced backyard is THE BEST!)

She was a little bit excited about her new bed.

Watching us work was very tiring for little Hazelnut.

Truth be told, I think Harper liked the house better when it was empty.

There was just so much room for trickiness. 

And flying... 

And daddy-wrestling.

Headed out for one last night at the townhouse.

You'll notice that the important people (Scout and Ariel) were going, too.

Harper loves the dirt. 

As much as I dislike a dirty child, I can't make myself keep her out of it.

I think playing in the dirt is necessary for a healthy childhood. Absolutely necessary.

I'm sure these aren't the last dirty feet we will see around here.

Tucker arrived in the back of my father-in-law's truck.

He was so excited to be here.

Pizza is a must on moving day (and according to Colt, so is beer).

There was a lot of nap time improvisation. 

My mother-in-law brought Harper a bird feeder.

She loved it.

We put it up and she yelled, "Come one birdies! It's dinner time!"

And no birds came (probably because they were terrified of the screaming two-year-old).

Harper is a girly girl, it's true, but she's also quite adventurous.

Her little legs took a beating during these first few days.

These two are best friends and it's adorbs. Totally adorbs.

This is what a sleepy Grinch looks like.

 Harper loves our basement because it's cool and empty.

It's empty because it's getting a complete makeover this summer.

Don't worry, though. The panelling and the wood burning stove are staying.

The old lady that lives in my soul could never let them go.

Hazelnut Valentine is pretty much queen of our backyard.

Ironically, she like to be outside and Tucker like to be inside.

Silly dogs.

Garbage Day Randomness

A new house. A new garbage day. Harper squealed with joy as the garbage truck came by this morning. Then she went back to watching a movie in her new playroom. She's on another Little Mermaid kick. She hasn't really wanted to watch it for the past couple of months. I'm pretty sure she was sick of it- three viewings a day can do that to you, you know?

Anyway, I don't have much randomness for you today since we have been living/eating/breathing new house stuff for the past couple of weeks. The good news is that we finished everything yesterday (which means you don't have to hear about it anymore!). We are completely done moving (thank heavens for that because I was honestly too tired to do anything else) and can now enjoy the new house, which for Colty means eating pizza, drinking beer, and watching sports (I never imagined the day when I'd be aware of- and sort of care about- the NFL draft).

I need a weekend of rest and then I'll be back and I promise that I'll blog about something besides moving. 

Kenzie taught Harper all about long boarding earlier this week.

When Harper came home, she wanted to try it out for herself.

Since she doesn't own a long board, she had to improvise with a sun shade.

Tucker dug a nice, big hole the first day he was here.

Harper is helping him finish it.

In her words, "Parper finding treasure."

This is a sight that I never thought I'd see.

Since we arrived at the new house, Hazel and Tucker have done really well together.

I LOVE IT.

Here's our house.

Isn't is adorable?

Oh and here is our garage.

Colt loves it.

He has some pretty big man cave plans, most of which include pizza, beer, and sports.

Done For

Friends, I'm done for. Officially done for.

We moved/cleaned/organized all weekend and today, I'm completely exhausted (I can't believe I even turned the computer on). I plan on spending the day playing/reading/snacking/NOT unpacking with Harper and her little daycare friends (I need a little break because I have to spend tonight cleaning the townhouse). I took about a million photos over the weekend but am honestly too tired to sort through them today. I'll get to them tomorrow.

Until then, a few instagrams...

Harper is crazy about the new yard and I'm quite certain that she'll never be fully clean again.

She had dirty fingernails/hair/cheeks/toes all weekend.

She also took a little fall. :(

These bookends are my new favorite treasure.

They are a hand-me-down from Colt's grandma.

The old lady that lives in my soul would do pretty much 

anything for an afternoon of exploration down there.

Yesterday we took a little slushy break.

Isn't Harper beyond adorbs is that little dress? Seriously.

She's too cute for words. 

I went for small town big hair all weekend and loved it.

(I am a former Miss Payson- I know how to put my teasing brush to work.)

Harper is fascinated by our new washer and dryer (so is her mommy).

And this, my dears, is pretty much how I feel today.

Why these two are so exhausted, I'll never know.

I didn't think sleeping/eating/playing all day long was that tiring.

P.S. If you follow me on instagram, I'm sorry for the overload of pics over the weekend. Friends/family were asking for house/moving pics and I used ig to share. I'll return to a normal amount of posting now, I promise. Much love! 

Moving On

While I am so so so happy to be moving to our new house, I'm a bit sad to leave this townhouse behind us. This is where Colt and I were newlyweds. It's where we brought Tucker home when he was a tiny (and quite annoying) puppy. This is where Harper was a baby. She took her first steps here (at only 9 months, mind you, which almost killed me). As long as I live, I will never forget how adorable she was when she walked for the first time. When I think of it now, I see that those little steps were just the beginning of Harper's determination.

Harper and I have made countless precious memories together in this townhouse and I'm feeling sort of sappy about moving on. We set Harper's new bed up at the new house last night (of course it's totally cute). She loved it and when she climbed onto it for the first time, she grew up just a little bit more and I stood there in her mostly empty room and cried because once again, I was totally unprepared. I wasn't ready for her to leave her crib behind and I'm certainly not ready for her to be done with her toddler bed. Still, she is. Harper, it seems, is determined to be several steps ahead of me at all times. She is living life on her own time and in her own way and I'm proud of her for it, despite the fact that it often breaks my sensitive mommy heart.

(Harper christened her new room by watching The Little Mermaid.

It's not home without Ariel, you know.)

I'm so excited to make new memories with Harper at the new house. I'm excited to see her play outside and eat popsicles with neighborhood friends. I'm excited to see her go from toddler to girl in the new house, which I love more than I ever thought I would. The more time I spend there, the more I realize that it is the place for us. Already, it's home (I've been sad to come back to the townhouse every night this week). Colt and I are both crazy about it and I know that we are going to be really happy there. It's a good house on a good street. We've met our neighbors and they are wonderful (they love Harper, Hazel, and Tucker already).

Together, Colt, Harper, and I will learn/grow/celebrate/love/live in this new house and I know, without doubt, that it's going to be wonderful.

The part that knocks my socks off is knowing that we will be sending our little Harper to kindergarten from this new house (God help me on that day because I will nearly die, I'm sure of it). We may even welcome another little miracle into our lives in this house. Really, we have no idea what is in store for us with this new step and that, in and of itself, is a most exciting thought.

I didn't intend to ramble on this afternoon but that's just what happens when I'm feeling emotional about something. I just felt like I needed a minute to express my gratitude for this townhouse and for the happy times that have happened here. There have been snuggles and good food and wonderful friends and learning experiences and looking back, I can see that it's all been good. Harper wasn't the only person who grew here. Colt and I have both come a long way in the past two years and we are, I believe, better people/parents/spouses because of it.

Anyway, as a way of saying goodbye to our little home, Harper and I had one last dance party in my bedroom this afternoon and, like the countless others that we have had there, it was awesome. Totally awesome.

Happy weekend, my friends.

Do something awesome.

A Little Color

Harper decided to help us out last night by adding a little color to our freshly painting living room wall. 

Hi There!

Our weekend, which was exhausting and rewarding at the same time, was devoted to the new house. On Friday, we moved a bit and ordered all of the new appliances. Saturday was spent cleaning and yesterday, we painted (all. day. long.). We are tired but happy.

I might not be blogging much, if at all, this week. We have to finish some tasks at the house this week in preparation for the big weekend move. I'll be checking in elsewhere, though (facebook, pinterest, or instagram- username: joyfullyabby).

Much love and best wishes for a most lovely week.

Leaving RC Willey.

A big girl and some noms.

It's taken four years and four moves to get Hazelnut a fenced yard.

She was in heaven all day Saturday.

So was I.

I love seeing my little Grinch all happy-like.

That lavender room is going away today.

Tucker loved the backyard and stayed busy by digging a huge hole.

Sustenance, Abby style.

A walkway out back and Harper's doggies visiting the new house.