Oh The Places She Went...

A post I've been wanting to do actually revolves around the theme that was planned for Sawyer's nursery: travel. One of the things that comforted me a lot in the first week was thinking of all the life she did get to live.
7.5 months. 32.5.. That's how much time Sawyer was alive and on this Earth. During that time I did a lot, and guess who was right there doing all of it with me? She did more than some people do in a lifetime. So this post is all about the life that Sawyer lived and all of the things she experienced, could hear and feel, and got to do.. all while I held her inside of my belly.
In April, Sawyer got to go to a Jana Kramer concert before I even knew she existed! She also got to go to opening week of KC Royals baseball! Total, Sawyer went to 7 Royals baseball games this summer and attended the Royal's World Series parade in Kansas City. She also went to an Eric Church concert, for Devin's birthday his sister got us tickets to go with her and her boyfriend. In July, we went to Niagara Falls on our roadtrip to Boston to meet Devin's new niece Mia. First trimester exhaustion and a 21 hour drive straight through (okay, we stopped for a 2 hour nap...) was not the smartest choice, but I loved every second of our 5 day trip! We toured Boston on a duckboat, toured Fenway Park, and made our first purchase as parents: a "Future Harvard Freshman" onesie. Then a couple weeks later, right before finding out Sawyer was a girl and finally announcing her arrival, me and 2 of my best friends went on a roadtrip to camp on the beach in North Carolina. It was amazing.

Sawyer got to be in the ocean, and went to the beach both trips. That's more than some people go to the beach in their 90 year lives. The beach is my favorite place and my dream is to live in North Carolina someday, so having these memories during my time with Sawyer mean so much. Knowing what I know now I wouldn't take back a second I had with her, and that's what I'd tell anyone worrying during their pregnancy. I had no idea, and nothing I did would make a difference, so now I have memories with her I wouldn't have had if I laid in a bed worrying my entire pregnancy.
I've had a lot of amazing summers, and done some crazy things, but nothing will ever compare to the summer I spent with my daughter. No birthday will compare to waking up at my moms and turning 23, spending the day excited about her Peyton Manning jersey coming in the mail and going to eat with all of my close friends and eating enough for the both of us. I just keep thinking of the adventures we got to go on, and if her life had to be as short as it was, I'm glad we spent it together. I'm glad she experienced all she could and that I wasn't afraid to live life to the fullest for the both of us. I'm always going to remember the songs that were new on the radio, the cravings I had (eating a jar of mini dill pickles in the car and ice cream everywhere we went), and the craziest road trips I'll probably ever experience as the time I got to spend making memories with my daughter. I just wish I knew then that it was all we would get.