Justin and Kristin

Out of the Terrible Two's?

I finally got around to taking Sage's 3 year old pictures. As you can see, she is easily bribed now to pose "correctly" for a photo shoot, or maybe we're just on our way out of the terrible two's.

Here's our little Sage......

 

But not really......THIS is more like "our Sage."  Though Sage has such a sweet, loving, sensitive, and caring side....I think the first words that actually best describe her are "gregarious," "energetic," "sassy," and "fun." You could say she is a lot like her....father.....ok just kidding...... she's just like her mother! :) And she's just what we wanted her to be like! We love her to death!

Oh and a side note: Her hair is au naturale. We gave her a bath, she took her nap later, and she woke up looking like this! Not fair. We haven't even trimmed it since she was born, and I'm just too scared that if I take a pair of scissors to it then all that lovely curl will vanish! Sometimes I look at her and think she is just too gorgeous to actually be my daughter! How did we create something so beautiful (sorry, I really don't think I need to be humble here)? Well, hopefully she out grows it before her teens!

 

Sage's Birthday List

 

Sage wanted a few specific things for her birthday this year:

1. A birthday cake
2. A candle
3. Balloons
4. A "party hat" (not a birthday hat but a "PARTY hat")

We knew this birthday would be one of the less exciting ones since we had just moved to Boston and didn't know anyone. No friends or family to share in the festivities with us.

I don't think Sage cared....but I did. 

Also one of the biggest bummers for me was the day after our moving truck left Utah I realized all of my cake making stuff was packed and will be in the storage warehouse for a month! Stuck in this corporate apartment with no cooking accessories, I had no means to make one of my traditional "cool" cakes. We had to settle with a store bought one.

I don't think Sage cared.....but I did :(

We couldn't find any cool "party hats" so had to settle with an ugly Target one.

Once again, I don't think Sage cared...but....I guess you get the picture.

I think Sage had a good birthday. I hope to make her 4th bigger and better.

Buddies

So back in the busy month of July we had a great treat. Our very special (and by special I mean short bus) friends from NC came out to Utah. Since we have left NC we have missed them so much (and when I say "missed them" I mean missed the free homemade pizza they made us). We were lucky to have these great friends while in NC who lived just down the hall (a.k.a free babysitting) and they had a fun playmate for Sage (to steal all his toys and piss him off on a regular basis). No but really, ever since we moved back to Utah we were looking forward to their visit. They are one of the few things we actually miss about NC. We didn't get to spend nearly enough time with them while they were here, but it was great to see the Hemmerts again. Sage was so glad to be reunited with her little buddy!

2 1/2 and then some

I've been meaning to do this for a month or so. Sage turned 2 1/2 just before Cadence's birthday so I put off taking some 2 1/2 year pictures for a bit. Here are a few. It's a miracle we got any, as she is always on the move and truly seems to love ignoring me while I'm trying to capture her in photo.

A few updates on Sage.

• She still loves dogs ("secret plan" we WILL get a dog someday is well under way).
• Her favorite color is brown. Weird I know, but it's usually all she wants to color with.
• She loves to "cook," play outside, take baths, and steal toys from anyone who will let her.
• In everything she does, she tries to act older than she is....I know I know...the teens are going to be killer! 
• She is a sweet big sister and loves Cadence a lot!
• She actually likes vegetables, even broccoli!
• She goes to bed between 6 and 7pm and usually sleeps until 7 or 8am (I seriously swear by that Baby Wise and Healthy Sleep Habits stuff)!
• She is a ball of energy and I mean a huge, enormous ball (maybe we should try sleep deprivation and that would take care of the energy).
• She still is a daddy's girl but we have our mother daughter moments as well.
• Her favorite books to read are Brown Bear, Put Me in the Zoo and Il Faut Pas Confondre (though I know she doesn't understand any of the latter). 
• She is sweet and loving, forgiving, friendly, and absolutely entertaining all day long! 

Oh and did I mention complete MODEL material?!?  

Spice or Wisdom?

So the other day I was discussing our children's names with a friend. While discussing Sage's she commented: "So were you going for 'wise' or a 'spice?' " 

I had to laugh. I responded, "I'd never quite thought of it that way before. We were hoping for 'Wise,' but I think we got SPICE!!"

Sage is certainly is a handful of spice in our life!

Sugar and Spice and....a whole lot of SAGE!!!

"Big Girl Bed" Success

We've been meaning to do this for awhile now, but were worried Sage wouldn't sleep at all, but just play and/or escape to play in her room. We finally got the courage to give it a try.

Attempt one and two were successful for a whole 30 seconds before she tried to stand up and play and escaped from the bed. So back to the crib she went.

Attempt three was a success and she took a 2 1/2 hour nap. When it was over she didn't even try to escape she just sat up and started saying with such pride "My bed...my bed!"  Yep it's your bed alright! You're such a big girl! We'll see how tonight goes.

Model Shot

Look at this add Sage is in for Baby Gap

Ok I'm lying, but it could be couldn't it? She's so cute I just don't think there's any way to ever be humble about it! :)

Pooh

Since I can remember, and probably even before then, I have had one special buddy in my life. Winney the Pooh. He went absolutely everywhere with me, for probably way too many years.

I guess, that's why it warms my heart when the first thing Sage wants in the morning is "Poooowha." We have two Winney the Pooh video's that she wants to watch over and over. Hmmmm....Maybe she'll take after me after all!

Some Gorgeous Two Year Old

.....ok, she's mine!

So here is a taste of some of the two-year pictures I did of Sage. Photographing a 2-year old is hard enough, let alone when they're yours and they're sick of the camera always being in their face. I'm sure she's thinking, "Oh not this again." How come other kids cooperate better being photographed than my own? None the less. On our third photoshoot attempt, we finally got some!! 

"Twhooo"

The answer given when Sage is asked, "How old are you?" We've been practicing for months now. We also practiced blowing out candles yesterday in preparation for todays events! As you can see from the photo she's got it down. In fact she blew it out so fast I missed the picture so we had to light it again. 

So,

 HAPPY 2nd BIRTHDAY SAGE!

We can't believe you are 2 already! How fast time has gone and what an adorable little kid your becoming! You're sweet and loving, hyper and energetic, smart and teachable, strong-willed and independent, bubbly and silly, caring and soft, fun and boisterous, cuddly and ticklish, coy and flirtatious, oh and did I mention, drop dead gorgeous....and we love every bit of you!

(Another fondant cake creation. Do I really have to keep this tradition? It's so much work! And this one was relatively "simple." Maybe making my own fondant didn't help any, but the marshmallow kind does taste WAY better. Maybe it will get easier as I get better at it)

(author's pretext/apology: I had grand plans for adorable pictures but the tropical storm "Hannah" made sure that I wasn't outside for the party as planned, and therefore, had no decent lighting or background. Oh and did I mention that we were in the lobby with no air-conditioning? So muggy/sweaty! I promise I'll take some cute 2 year old pics.)

Whatever Works

I know lots of little girls like pretending to talk on the phone, but Sage is taking it to a whole new level. These are just a few of the things she has used as a phone this week......

Whatever works!! Oh, and yes, that is a piece of bread with peanut-butter on it. That was fun to clean up! :)

Cotton Candy on Ice?

 

This was Sage's first experience with the true sweetness of summer....snow cones. This has to be the BEST snow cone I've ever had! It was cotton candy flavored and I kid you not, it tasted EXACTLY like cotton candy! It was like someone had frozen a cotton candy ball and served it! DELICIOUS! As you can see, Sage loved it too!

She's a tiny gal....

"She's a tiny gal, but she's HUGE!" I thought Brooke White's quote from American Idol (re: Dolly Parton) was appropriate for what I've been feeling towards Sage this past week. 10 days ago my little baby Sage vanished. I thought Sage was so tiny, just a little baby girl (she's only in the 10th percentile for her age after all); but since Cadence was born my little baby is gone! She seems so big now. I swear she's gained like 10 pounds in the last week (I don't remember her being so heavy), her feet are huge-growing out of shoes "left and right", and even though she's still wearing some 9 month old clothes, they came out of the wash yesterday looking 3 sizes bigger. She is a toddler now, not a baby! Comparing her to Cadence now I can't believe she was ever so small. Now she is like a grown up smashed into a toddler body. Just look at these pictures. The middle one just cracks me up! So much attitude as she leans back on her arm! I can see the teenager in her awaiting just around the corner for us! OH NO!!! It is exciting but also a little sad. My baby Sage is growing up.

Where does the time go?

It seems like just yesterday I was taking her one-year pictures and now she's already one and a half! I really hope I can keep up on these types of things when the next one comes along!!

Happy Valentines Day!

A Happy Valentines Day wish to all of you!

Translation

I thought it would be helpful to offer my translation skills to the things that Sage is saying now.

Dah-hee = Doggy
Dada = Dad
Yess = Yes
Yeah = Yeah
Anks = Thanks
Eye = Eye
Eye = Hi
Cahkair = Cracker
Cahkair = Any other food that she wants because you're eating it.
Cahkair = I'm hungry
Gkkkkkkk = The sound a lion makes
Gkkkkkkk = The sound a tiger makes
Gkkkkkkk = The sound a bear makes
AHHHHHHH = No!!!
AHHHHHHH = I am not happy right now and I want EVERYONE to know it!
Baba = Binki
Baba = Blanket
Baba = I want to go.
Baba = Somethings wrong, come here and check on me.
Mama = Mom
Mama = More
Mama = I want that!!
Mama= I'm tired.
Mama = Help me.
Mama = Somethings wrong, come here and check on me.
Mama= I'm not happy and I don't know how to tell you why.

I hope that clears us any possible confusion!?

Guess Who's Coming to Town?

Needless to say....Sage did NOT like Santa. But then again who does she like, besides her daddy, and oh, her daddy!?

Chitty-Chatty

Double-Click to play me.
What other one year old will hold the phone and walk around like she's actually having a full on comprehensible conversation with you? How cute is this!!!! I'm sure our phone bill is going to be in trouble as the teen years come upon us. She's definitely getting her practice now!

In a Year

Sage is one! Can you believe how much actually changes in a child's first year! To think that this little girl was a brand-new baby one year ago and now she is walking, exploring, and causing all kinds of trouble! What a miracle life is!

East Coast

Before school started up for Justin we made sure to take a trip to the coast. We really enjoyed ourselves. Mostly just watching Sage take in all the new information. Sand was a new concept. She quite enjoyed the taste! YUCK!