19 months!!!

My little Leeana,

You need to stop growing! You just learn so quickly these days and don't stop! It's fun, but makes me realize how fast you're growing! I miss the little newborn phase, yet I love how responsive you are. You always have an answer and are always trying to do exactly what we do. Here's what's changed this last month:

-you've learned to say "no" and "yeah" and answer questions pretty consistently

-you say "huh" A lot when asked questions and so I repeat, and you say "huh" again, as if you want to play this game forever. 

-when daddy or I say "cover your mouth" while you cough or sneeze, you immediately do it! So cute!!

-you know how to open up dvd cases

-you can feed yourself your own cereal {I was quite hesitant because of the milk, but you do amazing}

-you're still a really avid thumb sucker.... 😔

-you're able to show daddy and I were your nose, belly button, (sometimes) your eyes and ears are. It's so exciting to see how fast you're learning!

Cheers... to the last 2 years!!!!

Leeana,
   I say it's better late then never posting about your 2nd birthday! Sorry it's at such a delay (2 months to be exact), but it's been a busy few months with your birthday plans, and your great granddaddy's passing. Sorry babygirl! So here we go, to sum up the months leading up to your 2nd birthday with how you've grown & pics!! By the way, happy 2 years & 2 months of life! It's been quite an enjoyable ride for me thus far, and I look forward to what's next!!

19 months:

-doing forward rolls now on your own

-you're finally saying "Agua" on your own now, your first Spanish word!!!

-you say "cheese" when we take a picture

-daddy taught you how to say the word "shoe" one night when he was taking off your shoes 

-you're learning to say "hola" but you don't have it down perfect yet

-when you're done eating, you usually don't say "done" anymore but begin to do this silly thing where you close your eyes and shake your head back and forth while saying "no" in a whispered voice. It's pretty cute! 

-you're becoming a little gymnast and doing forward rolls!!!

20 months:

-you pick up shoes and try to put them on people's feet while saying "shoe"

-you know to take my thumb to try and unlock my phone 

-you bring your diapers and wipes to me when you need a diaper change now!!

-you know how to take pictures and videos of things now! 

-you've learned your 2nd Spanish word... "mas" which comes in handy when asking for more food. 

-you try to say "phone" but it comes out a little slurred at times. You know exactly what the phone is and point and refer to it when it's out or lights up. 

21 months:

-you peed on the potty for the first time!!

-you say "shhhhh" to babies who cry, or dogs who bark

-you put your socks on yourself!!

-you're obsessed with buckling things: high chair, car seat, stroller clips!

22 months:

-you say "p-mo!" Meaning preemo!

-you finally say "mommy"

-you're finally able to put your shoes back on yourself, which helps since you LOVE taking them off

-you say words like "sit, dance, snack, hands"

23 months:

-1 month before your 2nd bday, you said to daddy and I "poo-poo" and we asked if you had to go potty and you nodded yes. We asked if you had to poo-poo and you nodded no. We asked if you had to pee-pee and you nodded yes. I took you upstairs and by the time we got there, the diaper was warm. So happy that you're vocalizing your need to use the bathroom, and you understand what #1 and #2 are!! Go baby!!!

-the vocalizing of needing to go potty has only gotten more clear... You begun to potty train yourself! So proud of you for telling me when you need to pee-pee so that we can go in the potty a good portion of the time!!

-love when you walk up to me and give me a kiss and tell me that you love me by saying "love shoo!"

-you are learning to say sorry and although you don't always like it, you do a good job at it most days. 

-you really are getting more of a personality when it comes to growing up. You're sweet and funny, yet you can be stubborn when I ask you to do something. You can make a complete stranger laugh half way across the room just by a smile, yet be terrified and won't want to say hi to someone we introduce you too. It's so funny watching the little changes occur as you're growing and maturing into a little girl!

-you now will initiate prays yourself and say "let's pray" before a meal, or grab your baby dolls hand, say some babbling as if you're praying, and then shout "amen!" Too cute!

-favorite song is your abcs!!

You're 2 now, and as you say "I'm two!" and hold up the number 2! It's quite precious to see as you love telling others the exciting news! I grow more in love with you everyday my sweet girl, in watching you become such an amazing little girl, and so joyful for all to see. I truly don't understand how God was so gracious to give me such an amazing gift, YOU! I love you more than you'll ever know babygirl!

Love,
Mama

My dear granddad

My granddad was someone who meant the world to me. He gave me tons of belly laughs throughout my time with him,  and will be greatly missed. 

He passed away on June 13, 2015, and on July 25, 2015 we held his memorial service. This is what I was able to say in order to honor him:

(Please excuse any grammar that does not apply to a crowd, as it was for a large group)

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Good morning! My name is Arielle and I'm the youngest granddaughter of Howard & Edith Parlette. Yes, Howard is my grandfather, however he's also been my second dad. I grew up living with my grandparents from the young age of 6, and have had a relationship with them that was one of a kind. We’ve had tough times: we argued, we had tears, they’ve taught me so much and I’ve learned a lot of life lessons from them. We also had many fun moments, but most of all we had a lot of laughter and love.

Let me set the stage for you, my grandparents were newly retired and truly enjoying themselves, doing things that normal newly retired people do.  Then all the sudden, they went backwards in time and began to help raise 3 little kids all over again, me being one of them. This definitely wasn't what they had anticipated with retirement, but I have to say I'm so thankful for those 15 years of watching them and learning from them, and as my grandma has reassured me that they were some of the best years.

My grandfather has taught me many life lessons, but these are some of them. I desire to have a long lasting marriage because of the dedication my grandparents have had to one another over 62 years of marriage. He also showed me what it should look like in a marriage to spend time together with God daily. I remember seeing my granddad turn off the tv, and let grandma know that it was their bible reading time. It was a beautiful site seeing a married couple doing this together. My granddad also gave me my first job; I would earn $1 by being the batgirl at his softball games. He never tolerated laziness, but pushed me to appreciate things and to be thankful for all that I had been given, and to work hard for the things that I wanted. He surely passed on a good appetite to me and the rest of our family as well. He used to pile plates almost 2 inches high with food, and we weren’t allowed to get up from the table until our plate was cleaned off. He never wanted to waste a bit of food, but he loved to cook, so there were never many leftovers. My granddad gave me a desire to always be punctual. I remember him saying how if you’re early, then you’re on time, but if you’re on time that you’re late. He was NEVER late to anything! As a kid, I remember the many years when my grandparents would attend this church, Hope Christian Church, when we were located at High Point High School. I remember the years of sitting next to my grandparents at church while they would usher, and then following them to where they would sit around the table, count the offering from the collection, and of course granddad would always make everyone laugh by cracking jokes. My granddad was always very careful with his money, always saving his money, yet always very generous in taking care of others.

My grandma said to me the other week “he was the one with all the personality and charm”, which of course he thankfully passed onto her! If you had the privilege to know my granddad, you know he had quite the sense of humor. We always said he had the corniest jokes, but really he was one of the quickest guys I've ever met, and could think of a comeback in a split second. There was never a moment without laughter when you were with granddad. He used to pick me on me as a kid because I was the baby, but I’m truly thankful for it because, I’ve learned to be tough, stand up for myself, and I’ve been able to have his same sense of humor. I remember when I began dating my now-husband, Carlos. Granddad used to ask Carlos, "so how much do I have to pay you to take her off my hands?" Of course I would gasp, then we would all laugh, knowing that one day he would truly miss me when I moved out of his home to get married. Whenever I gave my granddad a compliment or told him how much I loved him, his response would always be "how much do I owe you this time?”

By now, throughout my speaking, my grandfather would've interrupted me to crack a joke saying "pass the offering plate down, so we can end this sermon!" He wasn't into things being sad and sappy, but making people laugh and seeing smiles on everyone's faces. As much as this is a sad time, we must rejoice knowing he's with Jesus and finally pain free. If you're here today, and don't know the Lord, I urge you to please repent of your sins and place your faith in Jesus. He kept the law perfectly on behalf of his people, he was the substitution for sinners, who died on the cross to receive the punishment that we justly deserve. So please, repent of your sins and turn to Christ for the forgiveness of sins. I'm thankful to know that one day I look forward to seeing my grandfather again.

One of the last times I prayed with him, granddad said “what you want to do with me Lord, I’m ready for whatever you want, anytime.” Our life is but a vapor, and quickly fading, so I want to ask you these questions: what legacy will you leave behind once you pass away? My grandfathers legacy is extraordinary! Is how you live your life now, the way you want people to remember you? Make sure that you live an incredible life, pleasing to the Lord and that others are blown away at the legacy you left behind, just like my granddad, Howard Parlette. 

18 months!

Lee Lee,

I've officially succeeded as a mom this past month! You've become obsessed with LIPCHAP! You'll be hearing that word quite often. Not only did you start picking it up when you were only a few months old, but now you come up to me when I put it on, so you can have some too! Officially I should be "mom of the year!" Only kidding about that! But that's huge since your aunt Lauren, Grammy and I are absolutely obsessed with lipchap! 

You're learning things so quickly and it's impressing me with how smart you're becoming. You're beginning to REALLY understand when daddy or I ask you think in spanish, and you're even beginning to be taught some words in spanish. It's so exciting to watch as you change and learn so many things! I love getting to see the little changes that you're making more and more often! 

Here's the list of things I could put down of what you've done this month...

-you're learning to shake hands when someone puts a hand out to say "nice to meet you" and of course you do It with a huge smile!

-you know how to clean up your toys!!! 

-you've begun pulling our hands to lead us around and take us places. It's so sweet!

-you figured out how to open preemos crate and let him out once we get home 

-you LOVE climbing into your stroller to sit there and play

-you know how to stick your tongue out when asked, which was taught by daddy when he brushes your teeth/tongue at night 

-when I ask you to blow a kiss, you officially make the sound of a kiss (without the hand motion of actually releasing it)

-when I ask you to give me a kiss, you're not making the sound of a kiss when doing it!! 😍

-you LOVE to spin in circles! 

-when you see me put lipchap on, you begin to say "emmm" to tell me that you want md to put lipchap on you too!! If I don't, you definitely begin to cry over it. You're officially OBSESSED! 

Having Reuben over for a play date

Walking the mall with daddy & I

Hanging out at your Uncle Wills house

A fun playdate with your buddy Caleb

Getting a beautiful rose from daddy

Fun time with Reuben & Seth at Chick-fil-a

Hugs with your best buddy Griffin

Getting to hang with the girls, and meet Ms Hannah for the first time!

Our fun to the dentist office!

Hanging out at Mr. Tire

Practicing for a future sibling!

I love you sweet girl! Can't wait to see what this next month brings! MWAH!

Mama

Baby girl, please slow down!

Wow, today was a crazy day for me as a mom!!!! Nonstop busyness all day long: helping my husband get out the door with getting his breakfast and lunch, breakfast for leeana and I, taking the dog out and feeding him, vacuuming the living room with my little helper, then bath time for leeana and her lunch, then getting her down for a nap (took more time today than usual), giving preemo a bath along with nail cutting, brushing his teeth, cleaning his ears, and of course followed by cleaning the bathtub out and then getting a bath myself. Well, I'm not done there... 3 loads of laundry, with finally eating lunch around 3pm, paying a doctors bill and calling another company about wrong charges, taking out the trash, and working on a huge project that I have for later this week. Haha, and people say that being a stay at home mom is boring!!! Far from it! 

This post is not to complain at all, rather realize that sometimes we have to sit back and enjoy the precious moments we have. This morning before all the chaos began for my day, when going to pick leeana out of her crib, her leg was somehow able to reach the top of her crib. I stood there for a second and just had to look at her and realize she's not a little tiny baby anymore but constantly growing. Her foot reached over the crib!!!!!! This is too much! It made me realize that by having to lower her crib for the LAST time now (only 3 levels and now we're on level 3) that she's becoming a big girl. She's active all the time and so full of life! It made me thankful that before nonstop work at home started, that I needed to take that moment with her to just remember how much she's grown and how over the last 15 months it's been the greatest experience watching her change. 

The only thing I ask baby girl, is to please stop growing up so fast! I love you so much! 

Love,

Mommy 😘

17 months of life with Leeana Eva!!!

Leeana, 

I have no idea where the time has gone! You continue to change, and I thought that things would slow down, but truly it hasn't. You've become so much more affectionate this last month, and grow to be so much more of your own self. I can tell that you watch everything that daddy & I do, because you copy EVERYTHING! It's really cute, but shows how smart you are and quick! I love every moment that we have together, and truly you bring so much joy to our home, as you have since the day had you. Let's recap the last month...

-you laugh so much just for the fun of it... but now you know you can do it to get attention

-you'll pick up headphones and try to put them in your ears. 

-you make a noise like "ehh" for things you point at, want us to do, or want to give us. This is showing us how much you're learning to communicate with us.

-you love to put things between your knees and squeeze them together to hold stuff. You've done it with your crayons and remote. 

-you love putting your sippy cup inside of shoes because you're used to seeing me put it in the hole in your diaper bag 

-to love walking on your tippy toes at home when you don't have shoes on, it's quite cute! 

-you love wearing glasses!!! You get sad if I take them off your face and just love walking around wearing them! 

-know how to blow your nose... With or without help! So cute!

-you run to the oven when food is done and point to where the beeping comes from 

-you smile when we ask you too and shrug your shoulders too! it's super cute! 

-you carry the phone around and have conversations on it for about 15 mins at a time, while you do other stuff... Preparing to be a good multitasker already! 
-your shoe obsession has become OUT OF CONTROL! you're always picking up a pair of shoes (not just a random shoe, but you love a pair) and then you carry them around or walk around with them on, and it's super cute!
-you're loving climbing onto the couch to making yourself comfortable with pillows and a blanket, it's quite cute!

the smile you give me when I ask you to smile for me

you love to be so caring for little ones

before New Years!

Christmas Eve & Christmas day outfits

Visiting Auntie Rachel!

Such a little model

You LOVE the couch

The shoe obsession

Fun with Selah

Redskins love

Fun time with family

Family fun

Staying up late to DANCE!

I love you baby girl! You've been amazing!

Love, 

Mommy