In early June, I had the crazy idea to fly with Blair by myself to Pennsylvania, where we would spend a week visiting with MeeMaw, Poppie, all the great grandparents, and attend a massive playdate with some of mommy's internet friends. *Warning: PHOTO OVERLOAD*
It was my first time flying solo with Blair since she was itty bitty - we had only braved the airport alone one other time, back in May 2013, to surprise my grandmother at her big birthday dinner. You can imagine that flying with an infant is relatively easy compared to a mobile, stubborn, toddler that operates on one speed - MAD. FRANTIC. DASH. But, we actually did really well and the trip was totally worth it.
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She's a seasoned pro by now, this was her 5th round trip!
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| Playing Legos in the Nashville Airport to kill time |
We arrived at my mom's house on a Wednesday and stayed until Saturday morning. Blair had a pool party playdate with her friend Delaney, who is a few months older than her (she attended my baby shower as tiny baby!) and the two little ladies had so much fun splashing together. They even gave hugs and kisses before Delaney left! *melt*
Friday the great-grandparents came to Mom's house for lunch and it was so funny to see B interact with them. The last time she saw them all together was in October, so she had quite a few new tricks to show them! She had a blast tossing beach balls, eating black & white cookies and teaching the old folks how to work their iPad haha
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| Bouncing beach balls with Great Grandpa |
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| Enjoying her first black & white |
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| Giving Gigi and MeeMaw iPad lessons |
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| June 2015 |
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| October 2014 |
Blair especially enjoyed tearing up MeeMaw's landscaping and taking a walk through the neighborhood. I am so thankful that my mom is able to see Blair so often because of her job - I think there has only been one or two months of Blair's entire life that my mom hasn't at least seen her once and their bond is just the sweetest thing.
On Saturday, Blair and I packed up our car and drove to my friend's house up near Scranton, where (stay with me on this one) we met up with about 100 people in what may have been the largest playdate ever. I've mentioned "internet mommy friends" a few times, but here's the real backstory: When I first found out I was pregnant I began doing lots of research about topics ranging from morning sickness to maternity clothes and birth plans to OMG HOW BIG IS 10 CENTIMETERS, REALLY. One resource I found was a website that had an online forum for moms due in January 2014.
I introduced myself early on and found it, at first, to be a great place to read about similar symptoms, share hormonal frustrations and nursery ideas. Over the course of our pregnancies and births, a group of us decided to move off the site to Facebook. These women, and their families, have become an important sounding board in my life and while it may be strange to think our friendships originated on the internet, we have provided each other with unimaginable support, coming together to celebrate new pregnancies, life's little victories, and even holding up one of our own as she said goodbye to the sweetest, most incredible son, who had "grown up" with our littles.
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| Meet the infamous "J14" |
An even smaller group of us have pretty much become extended family - my five bonus sisters. We've even gone on vacation together, watching our kids play with and love on each other, establishing wonderful memories and relationships that will continue for many years to come. I know it sounds crazy, but I have become a better person, wife and mother with the support of these ladies and I thank my lucky stars for them every single day.
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| #chattycathysforlyfe |
After a busy day of playing with old and new friends, Blair was wiped.out. and we made our way to Dad's house for the next several days. There aren't many words I can use to describe the amount of fun Blair, Poppie and Great Granma (and me!) had in those few days - the joy in Blair's face in these pictures just says it all. Whether she was helping him clean out Fishy's tank (which is how she learned the word "peesh!"), running in the yard, dancing in the rain or visiting the neighbor's doggies, Blair and Poppie spent most of the weekend laughing at each other.
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| Taking Poppie and Great Granma on a tour of the backyard |
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| It was so sweet to watch her playing in the yard I grew up playing in! |
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| Stomping in puddles |
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| "I'm gonna get you!" *SQUEAL!* |
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| Running to see the neighbor's "dahg!" |
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| Best. Friends. |
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| She absolutely loved the neighbors dogs |
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| Helping with the laundry! |
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| Beach ball soccer with Great Granma |
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| Showing Great Granma where her nose is! |
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| Wheelbarrow rides! |
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| Jumping in the rain! |
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| Chasing the soccer ball like a good little (half) Murphy! |
It was hard to pack up and return to Tennessee after so much fun, but we have more adventures waiting for us this summer, including a surprise trip for Mike's birthday and a week in Colorado on Murphlanaroux family vacation!
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