2013...Here We Go

January started off with Hadley in a swimsuit.  This girl sees no need for sunshine and water to don one of her go-to outfits.  On any given day, this is what she ends up in, even if she starts in an entirely different outfit. I love it when she wears it because of her little belly and "outie" belly button.  It's a baby buns bonus when she puts the bottoms on backwards and her little cheekies show.  Love, love, love.

This was a photo op we couldn't pass up:

One of our favorite things to do is to go visit Brandon for lunch.  This particular trip involved Oreo cheesecake at the Cheesecake Factory.  YUM.

January was a fun month for Hadley at school, where she celebrated her half birthday on January 21st.  The pics aren't great, but she had a special birthday crown and the door to her classroom was decked out in her honor.  She loved it....we brought a cookie cake to share with her class and there were a couple pieces left over.  I made the decision to leave what remained of the cake at the school in the teacher's lounge, thinking it a small token of appreciation.  Hadley thought that was the worst idea EVER and declared that I had ruined her whole celebration at school.  She cried the whole way out of the school.  After thinking through it from a 3 year old perspective, I understood....and realized that the lesson on doing something nice for others doesn't go over nearly as well when it's your own birthday cake being sacrificed.  We went to Hy-Vee and she picked out a special treat to replace her cake. It took her weeks to forgive me.  Thankfully, I snagged these pictures before she realized what I had done.

During the second semester at Second Friends, it was suggested that all kids be dropped off in the car rider line rather than parents walking them in each day.  This was a tough pill to swallow for Mommy, but I followed the rules.  It was a bit easier to do when this was what I had to look at while waiting for her turn to hop out of the van...