Good vs. Bad

Good vs. bad. Lets face it...if you're a mom and you say you don't question your mothering skills from time to time, I'm calling your bluff! My aunt Marcie (who I DO miss...maybe she reads the blog??) once told me 'Very rarely, do I go to bed without feeling guilt as a parent' (not verbatim but close :) ) I never really understood that until becoming a mother myself! Hello, my name is Hayley and I suffer from, what I like to call, 'working mom guilt'. But it doesn't stop there...I also suffer from 'when I'm not working and not doing something totally rad with my girls, I feel like I a SHOULD be doing something totally rad with girls guilt'. There's no turning it off! There will always be SOMETHING that I could have "done" to make me a better mom. I should have had more patience when Elly was screaming "I WANT MICKEY MOUSE!!!"...I shouldn't have raised my voice when I replied with "HOW DO YOU ASK NICELY??!!"...I should have taken the time to load up and go the park...I could go on and on. Last night I decided to put a penny in the 'good mom' bank and have some craft time with my big E! Thanks to Caroline for the craft idea :)

 For those who truly know me, I didn't even get crazy neurotic with the mess! No wet wipes in sight :)

A little appetizer...nice

Tape on paper, finger paint, remove tape and voila! This is as far as we got. Elly FREAKED out when I started to take the tape off. Insert neurotic mommy...I couldn't stand the unfinished product and took the tape off after Elly went to bed :) Which I did NOT feel guilty about when my head hit my pillow last night :)

*On a sweet little side note*

My sweet little 6 month old! LOVES sitting up and is quite a champ at it! Weighing in at juuuust under 18 lbs. Shes healthy to say the least :)

Today...

...was a good day! Yesterday ended a little shaky with a fever and a not so happy big girl. We had a rough night but Cutie woke up a brand new girl! We headed to the Dr. to make sure there wasn't an underlying issue, then spent the day enjoying each other. Elly enjoyed putting on a talent show for her sister, and Emma enjoyed all the attention she got from her big sis. Even if it did include a feather pen tickling her face! As for me, I enjoyed sitting back and watching my girls :)  

We started dance last week and ever since Elly has been insistent on wearing her full dance get-up! She makes me sit down on her rug and rattles off this..."Ladies and gentlemen! The show is about to begin!" Where she learned this? I have NO idea! After she finishes prancing around me she demands, "Mama, clap for me!" So...I clap and tell her she's the most beautiful "ballablina" I've EVER seen :)

Elly made her way through the sea of pillows to her toy basket. Half way there she cried out, "Mama! Get me outta here, I'm kinda stuck!" It didn't stop her from pulling every toy from said basket... 

The day ended with a little bit of bed jumping. Which we all know can solve all illness and worldly issues :)

*Hopefully my next blog post won't take me another month and a half! Early bedtime has trumped the blog the last month :)

One more thing...

Check out my new photography blog! It's official, I'm starting my own photography business! Don't be afraid to leave me a comment. It's good to know there are people out there reading ;)

http://www.hayleyroebuckphotography.com/

Rub a Dub Dub...

...Cutie's in the tub! Mid day bath means only one thing...someone wet the bed! Big girl insisted on wearing big girl undies during nap today :)  I couldn't resist the gorgeous light and I desperately needed some bath pictures to embarrass Elly with when she gets older :)

 Elly's favorite part about taking a bath is the "little baby bath bath" as she calls it. Not sure where this came from but she turns the water as low as it can go while still having a stream. There you have it...little baby bath bath. 

Sunday Funday

Oh how I love a good Sunday! Such a lazy, easy going day at the Roebuck household. Kris has been working quite a bit lately which, unfortunately, includes Saturdays. We cherish days like today where we get to wake up with him! Well, we didn't quite wake up with him on this particular Sunday. Thoughtful, considerate mommy let him sleep in while us girls enjoyed a little snuggle time and an early morning walk. These days, early morning is the only time you don't run the risk of walking outside and immediately bursting into flames. It's a true hazard we Texans face!

Good morning sweet baby Emma! 

Love this sweet moment between my girls :)  They truely L*O*V*E one another!

Baby P

What a precious bundle little Patrick is! I spent some quality time chatting with little P's mommy and daddy while mommy bounced, rocked and sh...sh...shooshed, trying to get those eyes to close! He just didn't want to miss out on anything ;) Not so surprisingly, it was the loud construction and concrete trucks across the street that lulled the little guy to sleep!

Major Tude

Believe it or not, our girl has got some MAJOR attitude! She is becoming quite the diva! You would think that a diva would love to be in front of the camera. Not so much for this little one, on this particular day. I believe her words were something along the lines of "Mama...NO MORE PICTURES!" coupled with the most pathetic frown you've ever seen! Unless of course I'm trying to snap a shot of baby Emma...then she's all up in our business, craving the spotlight ;)

This was right after I noticed my flower pot and that she plucked every last flower off it's lonely little stem. At least she took the time to smell the roses (or whatever the flower is) :)

Sweet Caroline

I'll just start by saying, it's a good thing I'm still suffering slightly from lack of sleep. If not, I'm sure I'd have a case of baby fever! Caroline was about a week old when we did her newborn session. She is not just tiny, but teeny tiny! Pretty sure she's the smallest little one I've ever held :) Congratulations Amy, Nick and big brother Harrison...Thanks for letting me capture the sweetness of your new one :)

Welcome Charlie!

Over the past few months I've been contemplating a new venture. In the past year I've developed a new love of photography. We bought our Canon DSLR right around Elly's first birthday. Since then, I have played with it and, for the most part, self taught myself the ropes. The workshop I took (by the oh so talented Heather Essian) gave me the motivation to learn my camera a little bit more. I've loved the switch to shooting manual. It makes a huge difference when you understand the relationship between your light and your settings. I feel like I have a lot of fine tuning to do, but am up for the challenge! Practice makes perfect, right?! I decided to step out of my comfort zone and offer myself up to a couple of friends ;) Today I headed to the Bass house for my first ever newborn shoot!  Back in the day, Kristy and I went to high school together. Thanks to Facebook, I have been able to keep up with her and her precious boys! Charlie is two weeks old and just about as cute as they come. I got all giddy inside when I walked up to big brother Connor's room and saw his argyle wall. I knew it would make for great pictures of their new little one...who, might I add, was WIDE awake for most of the session! When we made our way to Charlie's room, I got giddy again when I saw his big ole monogram on the navy wall. We all know I'm a sucker for a monogram :) Kristy, thanks for letting me invade your home and sneak in a little cuddle with your new one :)  

Sweet brothers :)

If you have any thoughts let me know! If you think I'm a horrible photographer and have no chance, please tell me! I surely don't want to be like the American Idol contestants whose mothers have always told them how fabulous their voices are and that they can do anything they put their minds to and are then shocked when they wind up on the outtakes ;)

3 Months...

...and one day. Because that's what I do. Forget my baby girl's three month birthday. Geesh! I can't believe how fast the time is FLYING! I feel like just yesterday we were bringing Emma home from the hospital and introducing her to her BFF, aka her sis! They better be best friends or they will have to answer to ME! Baby E is just about the sweetest little soul I've ever known. Sis has an equally sweet, yet half sassy soul ;) She lets us know when she's up in the morning by talking and cooing just loud enough to let you know she's up, but not loud enough to cause a fuss. When you peek your head into the crib, you're greeted with the biggest, gummiest, heart warming grin you've ever seen! I love it. It's my favorite part of the day with my little one. The only thing that makes it better is when Elly beats me to the door. First thing she asks for in the morning is her baby Emma. It's like clockwork. She'll climb up on the edge of the crib, peek through the slats and in the sweetest voice, "Hi baby Emma! Momma pick her up! Momma pick her up!" Pan over to the momma, whose heart is now constantly a big pile of mush! Love my girls :)

Bright eyed after a FULL nights sleep! That's right...girlie is sleeping through the night!

Are those not the most perfect lips? So kissable :)

Elly is all about the "I do it" these days. Little Miss Independent! 

Sweet girl...she'll always be the one who made me a mommy :)

*Such an emotional post for me tonight! I feel like I don't slow down and enjoy the little moments near enough. 

Happy 4th!

Once again, the July 4th weekend did not disappoint! It was jam packed with fun and festivities. Monday the 4th started off with the annual Ryan Place parade. Elly was very excited about the parade. When we finally made our way outside, she was running around yelling "The parade is coming! The parade is coming!"  It took a while for the parade to get to our street, so we "enjoyed" the heat while we waited.

As of late, it's almost impossible to get a picture of Emma without her fist in her mouth! I even caught her sucking on her first two fingers the other day...just like her big sis!

Waiting for the parade, Elly made the amazing discovery of a feather! She has officially reached the "what's that?" stage. Over and over and over. I'll reverse it on her..."You tell me! What is it?!" She loves this game! She likes to let you know what EVERYTHING is. She's got the memory of an elephant. Tell her once and she'll never forget!

Here it comes!!!

Does your neighborhood have it's own band?! Watch out...they can get crazy ;)

Elly loved the fire truck! She didn't so much love when it honked the horn. I've never seen the girl jump so high!

We hope everyone had a great holiday weekend. Happy Birthday America! (I know, a little cheesy but I had to throw it in there ;) )