Hollis' Big Girl Bed!

On November 28th (H was 18 months) Hollis took her last nap in her crib! We decided to make the switch to a big girl bed so her little brother could use her crib. A month or so before the switch, MiMi bought Hollis some big girl sheets for her bed. I put those in her room and we would talk about them and ask her where he big girl sheets were and she would always point to them with excitement. A week before the switch, we brought the big girl bed into the house and would let Hollis look at it and tell her that was her bed. I think letting her see these things before making the change really helped her; she knew what expect.

After her nap in the crib on the 28th, Ryan disassembled her crib and brought in her bed. We let Hollis be apart of this process and she loved it! She was climbing on the crib and helping Daddy with the tools. Once we brought her bed in and I put the sheets on, we let her play in her bed. She was so excited and was smiling so big! We talked about how we only sit or lay down in our bed and that we stay in bed until Mommy or Daddy come in.

That night, we did her normal bedtime routine and she went to bed without any problems. The next morning we made a huge deal about her staying in bed and following directions. To this day we have had zero issues! We are so proud of our big girl!

McIver Family Beach Trip September 2014

Every year we head to Cape San Blas, Florida with Ryan's family. It is a trip that we look forward to and always have so much fun! This year, in addition to Ryan's immediate family going, some of his Aunt's, Uncle's, and cousins came too! We had 3 houses on the beach with a shared pool. It could not have been a more perfect setup...big thanks to Mama Jules for planning and organizing everything!

A few of my favorite highlights of the trip...
-Dance parties with the entire family. I think we wore out the song "all about that bass"
-Family dinners. Each house took turns cooking and then we gathered at that house to eat.
-Sibling date night. We had an adventure full of belly laughs trying to find the restaurant we originally planned to go to. A night out without the kids and just the siblings was just what we all needed!
-PIRATE NIGHT! I loved getting dressed up!
-Naked babies on the beach! Julianne and Hollis were rolling in the sand (and eating it), so Katie and i decided to just let then go naked. It was hilarious! They both were running around like crazy and doing rolls and dives in the sand!
-Watching Ryan play with Hollis on the beach. Melt my heart!
-Ryan feeling baby boy kick for the first time. It was our last day on the beach and he was moving all around and Ryan got to feel that first kick! I was 17 weeks pregnant.

Here are a few of my brother in law's pictures...