Celebrating 8 Years

Its a month late, but Scott and I were finally able to celebrate our 8th anniversary together! And actually, this was also our first REAL night out since Lydia was born. I know it sounds crazy. Lydia is 14 months old for cryin' out loud, but she just started sleeping through the night in the last couple of weeks. While she certainly has four grandparents who would have gladly toughed out an evening of her bedtime mayhem, I knew I couldn't enjoy an evening out knowing my baby was hysterical at home. And I'm not being dramatic when I say hysterical. Up until recently, when Lydia woke after being put to bed, she typically screamed until Mommy, and only Mommy, tended to her. I can't tell you how many times Scott tried to settle her, or we let her cry it out, that just ended in disaster. It has been a long, rough road. I can't even describe how amazing its been to get significant consecutive hours of sleep after going 14 months without! We are all very happy about this!

I should add that she's cut 8 teeth between her birthday and the last couple of weeks. I really think teething has been at the root of her sleep problems. We are so glad that she now has all her teeth, except for her two year molars. Maybe we'll get some good months of sleep before those bad boys make their way in! But anyway, back to our date...

We enjoyed a delicious seafood buffet at the Grove Park Inn's Blue Ridge Dining Room, thanks to a Christmas gift from Scott's parents! We've eaten at this restaurant a few times in the past, and it is such a treat.

Meme stayed with the kids and everyone was doing great, so after dinner we enjoyed a drink by the huge stone fireplace in the Grove Park lobby. It was so nice to be able to focus on each other instead of chasing after our kids!

We looked through some of our honeymoon pictures and had a few good laughs. I've included a few for your viewing pleasure! We were so skinny and well-rested back then! :)

Speaking of laughs, I had a good one this morning. In the chaotic rush to get out the door and to church on time this morning, I didn't notice Daddy's fashion foul! Scott was in charge of dressing Lydia and loading her up while I took care of Jacob. We arrived at church without a minute to spare, but as I unbuckled Lydia, I noticed her dress was on backwards! I couldn't stop laughing at Scott! He claims Lydia turned the light off while he was dressing her and that's why he didn't notice.

Jacob wanted to wear a tie today. So cute! He told me he wanted me to take a picture of him in his tie and text it to Meme, Ms. Toni, his cousins, and all the little children in North Carolina!

In addition to Lydia's sleeping through the night milestone, she's also had some more firsts!  Today she reached for Scott while I was holding her. This might not sound like a big deal, but she's never done that before! Up until now, if I'm holding her, she doesn't want to go to anybody else. Even as a newborn, if I handed her off to Scott she would immediately start crying. Its nothing Scott did, and she absolutely adores her Daddy, but she's just always been a Mommy's girl. (My mom says I was the same way!) But during church this morning she reached over to Daddy. Scott and I both looked at each other with wide eyes!

Also, while I was rocking her tonight, she asked for Daddy! When he came in to kiss her goodnight, she chose to go from me to him and he put her to bed! Again, this might seem silly to document, but it's huge for us! I know it made Scott feel all warm and fuzzy, and it was really sweet for me to watch. Maybe she'll end up being a Daddy's girl after all!

As sweet as those new developments are, we've also noticed that Lydia has started throwing temper tantrums when things don't go her way. I'm hoping our good-natured girl doesn't disappear!  It mostly happens when she's tired or frustrated with us for not understanding her. She has lots of words, a few signs, and great comprehension, but she just can't fully explain her wants or needs yet. And it can be so frustrating for all involved. In a few extreme instances, she's even bitten me (and Jacob). Yikes! Jacob was never a biter, but probably because he had a paci in his mouth 24/7 until he was almost 3! I don't even really know what to do with a biter...guess I better put that on my research reading list!

And lastly, she's started requesting to have her picture made! How different can two siblings be? If I take a picture of Jacob, or of her, or of anything, she'll say/demand "muh" (more), as well as sign "more." Then she does her big, cheesy smile while I take her picture. The pictures below are the result of one of our photo shoots!