Memorial Day at the #FanningFunhouse

If you follow me on Instagram you have seen me post about the #FanningFunhouse. My parents own a beautiful lakehouse just an hour from Austin on Lake LBJ and it is pure paradise. We hadn't been since right around Christmas and Jon and I packed basically everything but the kitchen sink and headed up there last weekend for Memorial Day. And if you watched any sort of national news you'd know that Central Texas suffered severe flooding and tornado damage over the holiday weekend... boo. We are all safe and without any damage but many have lost homes, cars, etc. We went into the weekend knowing the weather would be a bummer but it was so nice to get away and out of our everyday norm. My sister and her family came and other friends/babies joined us for the day. We ate (a LOT), wrangled babies, sat on the sand, and managed to take a fun boat ride on my dad's new pontoon boat when the sun came out for a few hours. Ford had a blast in the sand (shocking because he hates to get dirty) and I gladly accepted lots of offers for baby holding. Memorial Day is not about weekend getaways and BBQs but about the selfless men and women who have fought for my family's freedom and lost their lives. How can we ever thank you enough? I am honored to know service men and women and celebrate them not only on special holidays, but all the time.

Now for some lakehouse pics.

Finding treasures

Lucy and I lounged under the boat dock on papa's pontoon

Snoozing on the sand

Girly cousins in matching strawberry outfits

Jacob planted a bunch of seeds the week Ford was born and we have a little tree in our backyard growing! He planted one at the lake this weekend so it will be fun to watch it grow there. 

Embry was so helpful and loving baby "Wucy"

Best of friends... and worst of enemies!

Helping papa on the dock

Ford kept saying "Oh wow!" on the boat ride

Ford NEVER falls asleep anywhere but his crib so we were shocked he snoozed on the boat in Mimi's arms. When he woke up he said "all done". Haha.

And to leave you with a little laugh, check out this video of Mr. Twinkle Toes. My sister added music but the funny thing is there was NO music when he was doing this. What a silly kid,  I love him so!

Lucy's Birth Announcement

It was so hard to choose pictures from Lucy's newborn photos for her announcement. I would have sent out a photo album with 100 pictures if I could but I figured people may not be as obsessed with my kids as I am! I knew I wanted a photo card with lots of pictures and something feminine and Kaylee from Dusty Prints, Etc. absolutely knocked it out of the park with the final product! Kaylee and I go way back, and I mean waaaay back. Kindergarten Girl Scout Troop 906 and we've been close ever since. Kaylee visited us in the hospital when Lucy was just 1 day old and shared the news that she was expecting her first baby in November! I love supporting my creative and super talented friends, especially when they are mamas who work so hard to provide for their families. Dusty Prints Etc. specializes in fully custom invitations, announcements, and prints. I mean how much more custom can you get than completely matching Lucy's bedding!? She worked SO fast and wasn't annoyed with my teeny little changes. I've hung up 3 different announcements around our house, I couldn't love them more. I am so happy to be showing off our little lady to our friends and family with these sweet cards!

And just to show you how perfectly the announcement matches her room, here is a picture of her bedding. Bedding was designed by Lou Lou Made (another awesome mama!). 

I should also mention that Kaylee recently started her own wedding and event coordinating business Wagner Wed. This girl has talent! Search #wagnerwed on Instagram to check out her beautiful work.

Find Dusty Prints Etc. 

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Lucy 1 month old

Our sweet Lucy Joy is one month old today! Time flies, I already know that because it feels like just yesterday Ford was a cuddly little newborn and now he has a little sister! Lucy wasn't too into her 1 month photos but hey, her life revolves around eating and pooping these days. Little sis is fitting perfectly into our family, it's hard to imagine life without her these days. To think I only met her a month ago blows my mind. I feel like the second time around I am savoring more of these newborn days, even though they are so so hard, because I know how fast they go. Lucy is proving to be more and more like her big brother and let's us know what she wants and when she wants it (or maybe more like her mama!). We love this beautiful, sassy, perfect little princess. 

 Monthly stickers via Baby Bump Bundle/Lucy Darling

• 9lbs 6oz (taken on home scale) so exactly 2lbs up from her birth weight. I decided not to try to measure her since she is so wiggly! We go in month for a 2 month well check. 
• She has big blue eyes and lots of dark hair. People constantly comment on her skin tone which I am jealous of!
• Phasing out of newborn diapers. I am finishing the package I have opened then will move her up to size 1
• Still wearing newborn clothes in most things but can also wear 0-3m, a little big but I love getting to plan her outfits now that she isn't only wearing sleepers during the day. My favorite brand on her lately is Kissy Kissy... so soft and sweet.
• Her belly button fell off last week but we haven't done a submersion bath just yet. We have this yellow bath sponge and she's been getting a bath about twice a week. 
• Lucy is a champ at nursing. We aren't really on a nursing schedule during the day but she goes anywhere from 2-4 hours during the day and 3-4 at night. She is quick at emptying my breast and sometimes just wants to eat on one side. 
• She takes a 4oz bottle (oink oink) between 7-8pm and then goes to bed around 9/930p. She does pretty good at night, has only ever woken up twice and normally goes right back to sleep for a total of 15-20min of me being awake. We have had a few nights in the past week where she is wide eyed for 1-2 hours in the middle of the night and those are rough. She sleeps in our room in her bassinet. She actually hated being swaddled from the beginning so right now she sleeps in a nightgown and we use the SwaddlePod on her legs. This should make the transition to the crib pretty easy! We plan on keeping her in our room until she's down to 1 feeding a night since her room is upstairs.
• She loves her playmat and looking at anything patterned. Ford lays under it with her and shows her all of the animals and toys. I am so glad we have a built in entertainer for her, I know it is just a matter of time before he gets her laughing and cooing. She is very wide eyed during her awake time and has given us a few little smiles here and there (probably gas). She doesn't like the Mammaroo but loves the big Graco swing we have upstairs and its vibrating function. 
• Lucy has started having a witching hour the past 2 weeks. Around 6/7pm she is super cranky so I end up putting her in the Solly and she calms down. Ford did the exact same thing for a few weeks so it's not shocking. 
• This week I am feeling about 90% back to normal! Still some occassional tenderness around my incision, mostly when I sneeze or cough but other than that I feel really good. I do have lots of tenderness around my hernia repair but that is getting better everyday. I think I am on the end of my postpartum bleeding and around 3.5 weeks the disgusting night sweats stopped ha! Emotionally I feel great. Tired of course but my body rallies and my heart is full. I've cried only twice and had just a handful of moments where I feel too overwhelmed. I am so lucky to have family and friends helping me out and most of all my awesome husband. Jon is so hands on and helpful with both of the babies and I have loved watching him with a newborn again! I plan on starting to slowly add exercise back into my life over the next few weeks starting with walks. I'm not sure I will go back to the gym considering it is 20 minutes away and takes a good chunk of my time so I think I'll do at home workouts for now and then look into stroller strides in my neighborhood. 
• I had my first overnight with both babies last week and it went really well. It was a little hectic from 6-8pm doing dinner, bath, bottle, bed, pump, etc. on my own but it was a lot better than I expected! Jon is back to traveling about 2-3 days a week and we are managing!
• Lucy had her first mini vacation last weekend when we went to my parent's lakehouse for Memorial Day. The weather was mostly crappy (huge floods and tornadoes) but we got one day of sun and took a boat ride on Papa's new pontoon! Lucy did great away from home and I loved getting out of our normal day to day. 
• Ford is such a great big brother and I have loved watching him love on Lucy this past month! He now calls her "baby girl" and is actually really helpful for a 21 month old, ha! I can't wait to watch their relationship evolve and grow, I think they will be BFFs. 
• We are looking forward to going to the pool this month and 

We made it to Friday

Well folks, we made it to Friday. This is extra monumental because this week I survived my first overnight, sans Jon, with both babies. Jon was gone for almost 48 hours on business and I felt ready to do it on my own. I was offered lots of help and friends and family checked in on me but I made it and it wasn't bad at all. I think the anticipation of doing it all on my own is worse than it actually happening. I remember that with Ford. I psyched myself out before Jon had his first business trip and then when it happened I thought, "Wow, this isn't bad". This time was a tad different... two kids is 10 times more work than an easy newborn but honestly things were pretty seamless. We went out and about, saw friends, and were all bathed, fed, and safe. Jon got home late last night and I told him I was sore, simply from motherhood. I am feeling so much better physically this week. I had my postpartum appointment Monday (C section moms have it 3 weeks PP) and everything checked out great. I am still having tenderness around my hernia repair and occassionaly around my incision but I feel SO much better than I did even last week. I walked with the babies in the double stroller and felt semi back to my old self. I know each day brings a little more healing so I imagine I will be feeling awesome here in a few weeks. One thing that is comical is the logistics of getting out of the house with two after a C section (well just in general). I have a post coming up next week on what has been working for us to make things easier.

This afternoon we are heading to my parents lakehouse for the holiday weekend and although my packing list is a mile long and the thought of all of our stuff fitting in my car is comical, I cannot wait! It's actually supposed to rain all weekend but we will be away and with family and friends (which equals lots of extra hands to love on babies!). Cori and Embry came in town last night and Embry is so in love with her baby cousin Lucy! And Ford and her play so well together, it should be a fun weekend! Note.... I hope it doesn't rain because Ford and Lucy both have new swimsuits I want to put them in! Now a few pictures from this week.

Out in the hood in our double stroller (we have this one and love it, everyone with 2 kids should have it!). And carseat canopy from here.

So many kisses for baby Lucy! He is such a sweet and loving big brother

Lounging lady (in her Little Elle Boutique headband)

These two girls will be sticking together when baby boy Higgins comes this fall!

Background on this video. A few weeks ago Lucy accidentally swatted Ford in the eye with her foot or hand and now he loves recreating it. Goofball with such a good memory! And I got him saying "Haboo" on camera. This is how my family says I love you, you can read the back story here.

I hope you all have a wonderful 3 day weekend! Thank you to the brave men and women who have selflessly fought and lost their lives serving our country. 

Oh and I have 2 giveaways live right now!

Little Elle Boutique

Baby More Co Baby Wrap

Lucy's Newborn Photos

At just 6 days old, we had Lucy's newborn photos taken in our home. Once again, Mallorie Owens blew our socks off with capturing these sweet (and fleeting!) moments between our family. Ford was snotty and being pretty cranky but I could not love these photos any more! Even 2 weeks later, Lucy is already changing so much. She's more awake and alert during the days and a lot fiestier! I think all newborn parents at times spend the long nights wishing for their babies to get older (as much as I am trying not to with my 2nd, I do), and these pictures are the perfect reminder of the sweet and innocent phase that flies by in the blink of an eye. Mallorie came to show us our photos when they were done and I was sad because this whole process is over. She photographed my big ole' belly back in March, was there to capture Ford meeting Lucy for the first time, and our newborn photos. If you are looking for someone to capture your maternity, birth, or newborn stories, I can't recommend Mallorie Owens enough. Now for the picture overload.