Our little 1 year old

I don't think I posted about Ansley's first year photo shoots and if I did, I think they are so cute they are worth posting again! :) Everybody who knows me knows I LOVE photography! I love taking pictures but when it comes to the kids I want to make sure we get some professional ones of the girls, not just my amature shots. When Addison was born we bought a photo package where we got pics every 3 months for her 1st year. When Ansley came along, to make things "fair", we did the same for her. We absolutely LOVE our photographer here in Jax. It is such a small world that Charles and I actually went to college with her and she knew a bunch of Charles's friends and was in my best friend's sorority! Small World!!!

OK so back to Miss Ansley. We did a cake smashing session at home and she does not have the same sweet tooth as her sister. She did not love the cake at first but once Addison came in and helped her she was more into it. Ansley is our little dare devil. She climbs on anything she can find and when it comes to bicycles or 4 wheelers, she thinks she is a 6 year old!

We did our family pictures in St. Augustine and after multiple cancels and re-scheduling we finally got the pics done!

Ansley is talking up a storm. Everyday she says a new word. Her favorite thing in the world these days is her babydoll. She holds it, hugs it, feeds it and loves on it! It is cute as can be. She also is testing her limits (not so cute). She likes to hit, wait for a reaction, then hug on whoever it was she hit. It is very frustrating and cute all at the same time! We are so grateful to have such wonderful daughters. Everyday brings something new and we love every minute.

A Little Vacay...

So I took a little time off from blogging but after so much nagging from my mother and husband I am back! We have had a busy few months. We took a road trip to TN to visit our Bond family up there. We all had a wonderful time! Pics are in the slideshow. We then headed to Vero for a long weekend to say good bye to the dirt road lined with trees. :( Addison is NOT going to be happy when we go back and the trees are all gone and the dirt road is paved but my car will! :) Dance kicked into high gear as we prepared for Addison's recital. Addison started telling everyone in the family...and strangers in Publix that she was cancelling her recital because she didn't want to do it. When I told her Bonds don't quit she looked at me and said "I am NOT quitting, I am cancelling it". What do I say to that? So I changed the name from recital to dance party and she was back on board! I was so worried about the recital not because she was cancelling it but because the girls were required to wear their hair in a tight slicked back bun. We have all seen Addison's hair and we all know she does not wear it up, she won't even let me touch it. I started thinking about how I could get this accomplished so the night before dress rehearsal I told Addison when she woke up we were going to play beauty parlor and have a mommy daughter date morning. SO we woke up at 6:30, took showers and I spoke in an English accent the whole morning (don't judge!), I painted her finger nails, did her hair while the nails dried and finished with the make-up. She looked glamorous!!! It was so fun and I got teary eyed realizing how grown up she is getting! Addison ended up loving being on stage and all the girls in her class did great! We have been going to dance once a week since August and we do a playdate after class so the girls have all gotten really close which helps with performances! We were all very proud of how great Addison and her friends did! Ansley gave us quite a scare a few weeks ago. During one of our playdates with dance Ansley disappeared while I was getting lunch ready for the girls (8 of them). I went to look for her and she was in her bathroom with the door shut. She is fascinated by closing doors. Well that is not a big deal but she managed to open all three drawers of her cabinet AND climb into the botton drawer preventing me from being able to open the door to get her out. I was most concerned of her falling out of the drawer and hitting her head on the nearby stool. I tried everything to get her out of the drawer but I could barely fit my hand through the door. I threw cheese puffs and lolipops on the floor to entice her to step out. NO luck! I went and got my fireman neighbor to save the day. His solution was to saw the door in half. I was fine with that since 40 minutes had passed and Ansley was now hysterical BUT Addison was NOT OK with it. She flipped out! Screaming, crying, hyperventilating not to saw the door...not one bit of concern for her sister. Luckily right as Chad walked in the door with the saw she fell out and thankfully did not hit her head. Needless to say that was not an ideal playdate and I passed up mother of the year award! :) Addison is in vacation bible school this week and loving it. I am loving the one on one time with Ansley! Will try to be better with updates! Enjoy!

Accomplishment

After 27 long months we are proud and excited to say Charles has graduated with his MBA from the University of Florida! We are so incredibly proud of him. We have not had the easiest 27 months with 3 moves, Addy's illness, 2 new jobs, buying a house and having a beautiful new baby BUT Charles managed to stay focused and push through with his MBA! WAY TO GO CHARLES! CHarles graduated on Ansley's 1st birthday, APril 15th. Since Ansley got the shaft on her actual birthday we had a big family bash the following weekend. We did a "Sweet as Pie" theme which turned out SUPER CUTE! I made her Sweetie Pie dress (very proud!). We had a cake shaped like a pie, mini strawberry and coconut custard pies and pizza pie! Mimi brought her a blow up pool full of balls which was a big hit! Rule of Life number 123....if we need rain or a sick child just throw a birthday party. You are sure to get one or both! It rained on Addy's birthday and Ansley's birthday. Both got sick for both parties too! Ansley has a double ear infection now. YUCK! For those of you who don't know Charlotte & I started an Etsy business embroidering. Our shop is Cotton Candy Cottage on etsy.com. It is keeping us very busy! Hope all is well! We are off to TN tomorrow for a nice vacation with the Great Grandparents and cousins!!! YAY!

What a Happy Easter!

A Fairy Good time!

We had a spectacular March. We went to Disney, MOSH (museum of science & hirstory), the zoo, a few beach trips, we had lots of visitors and had a fabulous Fairy Birthday Party.

It is hard to believe Addison is already 3 years old! How time flies. She started her big day with a trip to the nail salon with Titi & Mimi to get her nails done which included flowers on a few of them! Then she came home and ate cake, cupcakes, candy and maybe a chicken nugget or PBJ or two! She had 20 friends come over to help her celebrate her birthday. The kids got to dress up as fairies, wings and all. Then after bouncing they "made their own mud" which consisted of a clay pot filled with chocolate pudding "mud", sprinkled rocks on top (oreos) and finished off with worms! The kids took the pots home along with seeds and "Fairy dust" (soil) to plant their own gardens! The weather was not exactly what we hoped for but even with the rain it was a great day. Enjoy the pics!

In the land of fairies where pixies fly and roam, sits a little fairy friend who calls this garden home. Her birthday was here and she's thankful to say that you all shared in the magic of her very special day!!!

Our Not So Little Girl...

This week as I watched Ansley walking around the house I noticed that my little baby is not such a little baby anymore. Her infancy stage is long gone and her baby face is starting to mature into a toddler. My little girls are growing too fast and I don't like it one bit! :) But isn't she beautiful? She fills our lives with such joy & love.