I feel terrible that I have not posted an update in a LONG time! So much has been happening this summer. I'm having to split our summer up into several blogs b/c no one wants to read a ridiculously long post, lol. So... here we go!
Afton will be 20 months old tomorrow!!! I cannot believe it. She is SOOOO fun! I truly believe she is the coolest tiny person! Here is a little bit about Afton right now.
Loves: apples, bananas, mac and cheese, hot dogs, nuggets, cantaloupe, milk, caf free diet coke, pb&j.
Hates: green beans, juice, ketchup... ok... most foods in general
She loves to jump and spin in a circle until she falls over. She climbs on EVERYTHING, she loves to facetime with my mom, sister and niece, she has found a love for the words "mom, momma, mommy", she loves bath time, she sleeps about 12 hours a night, her hair is still incredibly curly and i love love love it! She has started nursery at church. She loves being in the pool. She is not a fan of being confined to a stroller. She finds it funny when she screams at the top of her lungs while I am on the phone in the car. She is NOT a morning person. She sings all the time. Every time she sees police lights she thinks it's daddy, lol. Every morning she gets out of her crib and immediately finds Harley to give him a hug and a kiss.
This little girl is crazy fast and all I can do is laugh when she takes off running and her curls are bouncing behind her!
July 9th was Paul and my 6th wedding anniversary. Its crazy to think we have been married for 6 years already. This past year has been an interesting year for us. We spent the majority of the past year living with Paul's parents. During that time we did a lot of soul searching as to where we wanted to raise our family and to finally call home. Paul interviewed with our "dream department" this past February in Idaho and it was a total bust. The interview went really well and they really liked him... but for whatever reason, they did not feel like Paul would be happy spending the rest of his career with their department. There are so many things Paul would have to give up to go to another department. 2 of the biggest changes would be that he would have to come off of the motor and start from square one with seniority. He would also have to give up teaching. He loves teaching at the academy and this department would not offer him the chance to continue teaching. I remember when Paul called me after that interview. I felt like I had been hit by a semi. For years, we have both felt that we were to relocate our family out West. We have prayed about it and taken it to the Temple and BOTH felt the confirmation that we were making the right decision. For whatever reason, Heavenly Father has plans for us in VA. It may simply be that we live in a time when Police are being targeted and we have agreed that we feel fairly safe in his current PD. Over the past few years, we have traveled for several job interviews and each time we feel the same way... "this is not the place" but this last interview was different. We felt great about it but we were told in other ways that "this is not the place". It was a heart breaking moment for both of us. It left us feeling very confused and I felt very abandoned by our Heavenly Father. We came home to VA with the feeling of "what next???". Well, we have decided that our job search is over and that the time has come to plant some roots here in VA. Albemarle County is incredibly expensive, so we have decided to look at houses in Augusta County this upcoming winter/spring. The lease on our apartment is up the end of April and we would really like to start putting money into a home instead of rent. We miss owning our own home and our goal is to have a home paid off by the time Paul retires.
This past year has given Paul and I a chance to grow closer together as a couple and I look forward to the next year of our marriage.
Afton is growing and changing every single day. She is constantly learning something new and it amazes me how quickly she picks up on my day to day tasks. Something she really enjoys doing is dusting. I told my mom the other night that I fear Afton is going to be a little OCD. She is going to have a post it note addiction just like my dad and she is going to be a clean freak! I wont lie, I will never deter my child from dusting. She can dust all day long if that's what makes her happy! The other day we were in a department store and she was begging for a baby wipe. Paul finally gave her one and she walked around wiping down the tiles on the floor, ha ha. What a nut! A little over a week ago she decided she would unplug our freezer.... as you can see in the picture above, everything in the freezer thawed and had to be throw out! Sigh. You live and you learn! Thank goodness Sams is not too far away!
Afton finds it funny that she can "sneak" snacks into our shopping cart by putting them on the bottom shelf of the cart. She wanted all of the cookies from Target, lol.
Recently she has loved the smell of Paul's shirts. She will find one in the laundry or pull one out of his drawer and walk around smelling it. If I try to take it from her, she fusses until I give it back. I remember being really little and sleeping in my dad's t shirts when he would go out of town on business. I hope Afton finds the same sense of comfort sleeping in Paul's t shirts as she gets older.
Dad gave me a new fitbit for my birthday this year! I lost mine while we were moving in April and I needed a kick in the pants to start walking again. Dad thought this would do the trick! Thanks Dad!!!! You are the BEST!
Afton has figured out the art of dressing herself. It may not make sense to me, but she things she is pretty fancy! She loves to find her swimming suits and put them on like a cape and walk around. Silly girl...
No matter what we told her, we could not convince her that she was too little to go to the Police Academy. She put on her daddy's boots and tried to tell us that she was big and ready to go! She could not be any sweeter.
I took her to a splash pad a couple weeks ago and she had a great time! I'm thankful our community is so child friendly. Especially on extremely hot days!!!!!
Afton and I went to Utah a few weeks ago and spent 1 week of our vacation in California with the other Stone girls. I snapped this picture of Afton holding my fingers.... I am so lucky to have the love of such an amazing little girl. She trusts me with her life and I would give mine for her. I look at her and still cannot believe she is mine. I remember before I got pregnant.... I told Heavenly Father all the time "If you give me just 1 baby, I will feel complete". That is exactly how I feel. Paul and I would love 1 more baby now that Afton is a little older... but... if we are never blessed with a 2nd, I truly feel 100% complete. A 2nd baby would be an incredible bonus to an already perfect little family!
OH MY GOSH I LOVE THIS MAN! I do not know how I got so lucky to be his wife. Paul is honestly one of the kindest men I have ever known. He would do anything for me and he would do anything for Afton. He loves spending time with us and he is so happy when he comes home from work and watches Afton run to him when she sees him. I love being married to this handsome fella!!!!
I swear I could take pictures of this little girl all day long. She is so fun and I adore catching the different parts of her personality. I cannot believe she will be 20 months old tomorrow. She will be 2 before I know it. I need to go ahead and stock up on the klenex b/c I know that will be a day full of smiles and tears!
I hope everyone is having a fantastic summer! It's been so hot in VA and I'm sure it's the same all over the country.
EQ
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