Let it snow .. except when I have to go somewhere

It snowed all day yesterday. It must have snowed all night, as well. When we woke up this morning, there was SO MUCH SNOW (even in non-British terms)!!!

(This is just because Edith is so supremely cute!)

It's still snowing. I thought that it had stopped, but was sadly mistaken. Anyway, after breakfast, I thought that it would be fun to take Edith out for her first (real .. since last year could hardly count; she was way too young to even be aware) snow. It lasted less than 5 minutes. I put her wellies on .. which are a size too big, 2 sweaters, mittens, a scarf, her hat, and a wool coat (yes, she's a red coat) and out we went.

She's not really standing in the snow. It was way too deep for her little legs.

Like I said, the wellies are too big. This is where we went inside.

And just as a side note, Edith loves socks.

Hey look! an update!!

I needed a bit of practice, so Ash went outside with Edith and we shot a few photos. I was really happy with the way that they turned out. Here are two of my favorites.

Ash is doing "round and round the garden" with Edith in this picture. She loves it!

I realized that there are loads of pictures of Edith with her daddy, but very few with mummy. Ash has been really working on taking some of the two of us since we made the discovery. This is one of my favorites.

These little beauties were for the ward's munch and mingle on Halloween. I thought that they were so funny (and creepy, as Martha Steward promised). They were malt cupcakes with a green (obviously) chocolate malt icing. I loved them, but oddly enough, they didn't go down as well as expected with the kiddies.

Photography

I've finally got my website up and running, though it is currently being tweaked. Still! For the first web page I've ever made, I am feeling pretty good about myself!! Woo Hoo!!

www.amberdevinephotography.co.uk

Because I can

I finally got Edith's hair in quazi pigtails!! Woo hoo!! Obviously, it was a very momentous occasion for me. Unfortunately, it is not frequently repeated. Edith likes to play with her hair .. especially when she has food in her hand.

One afternoon in Clumber Park ...

ONE

Our beautiful baby has turned 1. I can hardly believe it!!!

We really had a great day with Conference and visitors. She didn't really have much of a clue what was going on, but she got sweet things. That said, she didn't really know what to do with the cake and a good majority of it ended up on the floor. Cake isn't fruit, after all, and Edith loves her fruit!

Ash and I woke got her up pretty quickly after she made noise. Probably pretty mean, since she was basically woken up by the parental paparazzi.

Camping!!

We just had our first camping adventure as a family. Friday morning, Ash decided that we were going to leave as soon as he got off of work and go camping for the night. It was my first British camping adventure and I really feel like I got the whole effect. It poured all night long. There were sheep just over a stone fence less than 100 feet away. We had somewhat yappy neighbors in the morning. All that was missing was drunken campers, really. We got very little sleep trying to keep Edith on her mattress; she is a mover! Also, we were on a slight decline and kept sliding down the tent. That said, we had a really lovely time and are super excited to try it again. Of course, we need to recover. This WAS only one night, after all.

The (awesomely sized) car was all packed, back seat included. Poor Edith didn't have much leg room.

Ash is getting Edith ready to go see the sheep before bed. It wasn't nearly as dark as the flash makes it seem.

Edith wasn't nearly as bothered about the sheep as we'd hoped, but she did say a very knowing "oh!" when she saw them.

Edith spent the majority of the night scooting over to the edge of her mattress to wedge herself between it and the air mattress. I kept trying to move her so she could breathe, but she'd just move right back. I don't get it. If she'd not been bundled up so tight, I'm sure that she would have been facing the other direction or at the other end of the tent (or on Ash's face). The funny thing is that we'd been wondering how much she moves at night. We just happened to get a first hand view of it. (And yes, that is a book. She woke up at 6 and started playing with my journal, so I gave her one of her books. She played with it, then wedged herself between the matresses and went back to sleep.)

It was pretty cold in the morning, so I bundled Edith up. She looked so cute! The next step was taking the hat off.

Right, so behind me are 2 cars with their tents. Across are 4 cars and 4 tents, I think (definitely 4 tents). Behind our car was a car and a tent. Farther behind us was a van (used as a caravan). Around the corner were 2 big tents and 2 cars. That is really not that busy. The wall behind the tree (and cars and tents) is the wall that separated the humans from the sheep. I really enjoyed being able to hear them bleat all night and in the morning. I felt bad for them when it was pouring, but it was nice in the morning.

This was the view just a few feet down the road from the camp site. We were in the Peak District, just an hour from where we live. That may not seem far, but considering that we live 2 hours from London, 4 hours from the bottom of the island, 4 hours from Edinburgh, and 2 hours from Wales (and that coast line), it seems a lot farther. It was beautiful!!

Next, we went to Buxton to find somewhere to eat. We ended up at a fish and chips place, which wasn't too exciting. Across from the restaurant is this bookshop that is like something from Harry Potter. There were books everywhere! The ground floor level was all ridiculously old books, then upstairs, it was an absolute maze of books! It was crazy!

French Toast Cutouts

Edith's breakfast tends to be pretty boring. So, I decided to try something new.

Due to ant killer on the floor ...

This is where Edith played for 10 days.

Father's Day Present

For Father's Day, Edith and I went to the park to take a few pictures. The "park" actually was a pretty scabby playground, but Edith absolutely loves being outside! Apparently, there is a park much closer to home. Anyway, these are a few of photos:

I back up all of her photos every other month. It averages out that I take at least 15 photos of her per day! I probably should add a few pictures of Ash and I. We have a bit of an event planned, so we'll have a few pictures of us on here, as well.

In honor of Father's Day, I MUST mention what an amazing Daddy Ashley is. He cares so much about his baby. He always wants to have Daddy-daughter time. She absolutely adores her Dad. Every time that he comes into the room, her face lights up in the biggest smile possible. She really only giggles for him, which makes me jealous, but I think that it's sweet. They have a very special and tender relationship. I love my wonderful husband and SUPER energetic (and happily so) baby girl!

I've discovered that I do THE most embarrassing things as a baby-entertainer/feeder. Ash doesn't have enough patience (or raw entertaining talent) to feed Edith. Honestly. If any other adult were present when I tried to feed her, she wouldn't be so well fed, I think. No one will ever know. I will keep feeding her when no one is around to watch me act like a monkey or an airplane. Those little delights will stay with me alone. (Believe it or not, Edith absolutely LOVES pineapple. She ate 2 or so big pieces at her grandparent's house on Sunday.)

Oh! And we are now at 4 teeth with 2 on the way. Poor girl!

Rufford Park and a few pics around town

The weather had been so nice that we decided to go out and take some pictures (with my new, beautiful camera!). I love this head band that Edith is wearing. It'll look even cuter when she has more hair.

We went to Belton House with Ash's family on the Friday before Easter. They had a playground and I really had to contain myself. I love playgrounds!! I wanted to slide on the slides with the kids. Instead, I went for the swings. I love swings!! Edith really didn't seem bothered. I'm sure that she will be one day. (Note the incredibly cute shoes and skinny jeans -- on my baby. My footwear is all about practicality. That said, after this, I bought the family wellies.)

Edith loves her door bouncer. I think that it is so funny to put her tutu - thanks Erin - on over the bouncer and watch her bounce all over the place. She looks so cute! Then, she discovers her fun tutu and sticks it in her mouth. Who would have thought that tulle could get so wet?!?