Big Girl Room

So I came to the difficult reality lately that my precious baby girl is now a toddler and getting to be quite a big girl - yes a tear rolls down my cheek as I say this.  The past 22 months have gone by in the blink of an eye, but during that time I have been blessed to share every moment with the most beautiful, funny, sweet little girl.  As much as I loved the hours of cuddling, the nursing and the quiet sweet moments of her infancy, it has been replaced by sweet chatter, uproarious laughter, hugs, kisses, knuckles, running, dancing, walks (AKA: treasure hunts), hide n' go seek and the "come on Mama" when I am moving too slow -- all indicators that my little baby is becoming a big (little) girl. 

To celebrate the wonders of these toddler years I wanted to redo her babyish bedroom.  While we live in a relatively small house and don't have a dedicated playroom, I decided to be creative to make her room as special as I could.  With the help of my parents (THANKS NANA AND PAPA) and Keith, her baby bedroom got a big girl transformation that melts my heart.  We are loving playing in this big girl room.  :)

 

We got this beautiful mural online - I fell in love with it instantly.  It is so bright and beautiful and also came with many other flowers and critters that trail along the floor boards of her room.  So precious.  We also got this beautiful Pottery Barn table/chairs as an early birthday gift for Samantha from her Nana and Papa.  She now has a play to play, draw and color - and even an extra chair to hang out with her friends.  :)

 Enjoying her new Target bookcases and fun baskets.  Now, her animal villages are on display and she can play with them at her height.  We have baskets dedicated to dress up clothes (one of the many joys of having a little girl - love it!), animals (her beloved Schleich's esp.), and other misc. toys.  Plus, we can now house many of her beloved books.

 

Next step will be the change to toddler bed, but I am in no rush -- lots of changes already for Mama and I am okay with letting some "baby" things sticking around for awhile.  :)

Nana and Papa visit

Nana and Papa came down for a quick visit, driving all the way from NC.  We jam packed 5 days with a lot of fun, Christmas shopping (since we are spending Christmas with the Newbroughs this year) and reveling in the joys of fall.  Samantha was so excited and clung to them like glue while they were here!  Samantha woke up every morning asking where Nana and Papa were and was so excited to show them all the new words that she has learned, songs, read books with them, and show them her toys.  :)

Samantha got her first book bag and felt like such a big girl.  She still totes it around with her Schleich animals (another addiction thanks to Nana ;) ).  Now when we travel, Samantha can have her own bag of goodies to carry around.  :)

 

Here is my beautiful Samantha dressed up for church.  I love this smile/grimace she made - hysterical.  That is what you get when you ask a 22 month old to smile.  ;)

 

We went to Russell Farms together to enjoy the kid rides, pumpkin patch, corn maze, hay ride and animals.  Samantha was in hog's heaven.

 

  Nana, Papa and Samantha making a sweet picture. :)

 

Picking the perfect pumpkin.

 

Picture Perfect!

 

Making friends with a Billy Goat.  

 

Silly Moments with Nana and Papa...

 

Miniature Papa - same jokes, different age.  Samantha entertained us all during dinner with her giggles and spoon tricks.

 

Sweet giggles at one of Nana Princess stories.  Samantha loves being told a story and will ask for "more, more." 

 

Showing us she is a big girl in her big girl chair. 

 

Samantha is a talker and so animated, this is catching her mid sentence about her animals and just prior to her throwing this one away - not her favorite, I guess. 

Cuddled up warm to take our favorite daily walks.

Lots of Sweet Moments...

We all enjoyed this precious time with my parents.  Samantha is so smitten with her family and loaded them down with kisses, hugs and of course relished in their undivided attention.

Keith and Dad got in some male-bonding, Mom and I shared some much needed girl chats and our dog Sadie even enjoyed some much needed attention.  :)  Visits like this mean more than I can express, but I just wish they were longer.