Autumn

I have never seen colors like I have this fall. The pictures I have taken don't portray the vibrancy of the golds, oranges and reds of the leaves.
Yesterday was the picture of autumn-the contrast of the fall colors of the leaves against the crystal clear blue skies. The warmth of the sun complimenting the chill in the air so that laying a blanket in the sunshine feels like heaven! We all took a walk after Matt got home from work and took in all the beauty, from the smells to the colors. Since we moved here it could be my favorite day in Cleveland.
Madison's favorite climbing tree has begun to change color and I couldn't resist snapping some photos of her surrounded by golden light.

Cheeri-O!

Harper enjoyed her first experience with cheerios today.

She started out using her two fingers to pick one up at a time, check it out, suck on it and then make it super mushy.

But by the end....handfuls, stuffing like there was no tomorrow!

Costumes!

The girls had a pretrial run of their Halloween getups at a party this past Friday. Madison dressed as a gal from the 50's and Harper was an octopus. I have some sewing adjustments to make to both costumes I made...thank goodness we have a little more time. Enjoy!

Harper's New Digs

I have been on a home improvement kick lately, unfortunately for my hubby this has not included obsessively cleaning the house! Instead I have been focusing on more cosmetic issues. One of the rooms on the "to do" list was Harper Belle's room/workout dojo (yeah, don't ask.)
Harper has recently begun sleeping in her own bed in order to sleep more than two hours at a time since she liked to just make sure we were still right in the bed next to her. Thankfully it worked! I thought that we should reward this new blissful sleeping behavior with a proper room. We had to get pretty creative in order to stay in our tiny budget, but Madison and I were definitely up for the challenge. Our results are documented below....

Before...

And...

TA DAAAA!

Madison and I made the mobile using sticks, paper, ribbon and beads

I love my new bed!! The banner my mom made describes my personality to a "t"

Harper in front of the toy chest we decorated with paper and paint

A huge thanks to all who contributed to making Harper's (all home made) room feel a bit more comfortable...
*Grandma Vicki for making the baby bedding blanket and hanging accessories holder that makes my mom think of her every time she sees it!
*Libby Latta for making the bedding bumper and pillow and for providing the color/fabric inspiration!
*Aunt Dana for passing on the toy chest and the many memories it holds!
Love you all and thank you for helping make this such a special place to be.

Introducing...

My niece, Lucy Jane Blair! 6 lbs. and 12 oz. 19 inches long. Blonde hair. Beautiful!
We are so happy she is here and can't wait to meet her and hold her and kiss her. I will post pictures soon...

For Papa

All cozied up!

Rainy Day Project

This week it has been rainy and cold and so I have had to come up with an activity during Harper Belle's nap to keep me from going stir crazy.
I decided to spice up the dining room.
Obviously, I have included before and after photos for you to enjoy.
Matt found the painting in the trash in Austin and it is the inspiration for the room. I painted the frame black to give it some pop.
Running up the doorway is one of my favorite parts of the room. I found some old photos of Matt, Madison and I eating when we were babies and I had them reprinted in black and white to go along with the new one of Harper. Now we can all not only enjoy dinner, but have hope that eventually Harper will improve her eating technique and stop grossing us out with pea/banana smear.
The color in person is a little deeper than the flash is allowing it to be in the picture and I look forward to you all coming to visit and seeing it in person.