Life in the Fast Lane

7 Months Old

2012-01-25T14:53:00.001-05:00

Happy New Year, everyone! I hope this will be a great year for each and everyone of us. Mine started out just right...James is saying, "Mama" now! He said it on New Year's Eve for the first time! He still hasn't said "Dada", but we're working on it. He's clicking his tongue and trying to say so much. He's gotten a lot better at eating solids. Now he's had green beans, carrots, sweet potatoes, bananas, lima beans, and apples (introduced in that order too). At first he only liked sweet potatoes, bananas, and apples, but now he's eating whatever you put in front of him. James is trying to scoot/army crawl, so I'm sure true crawling is around the corner. Now that we're on solids, his schedule has changed and I like it so much better. I think he does too. He eats at 8, 12, 4, and 8 and naps from 10-12 and 2-4 (sometimes a little cat nap around 6). He's ready for bed around 8 or 8:30. This was the same schedule we had Adelyn on. I love him going to bed a little earlier....it gives Seth and I a little time together. Just this past week, James has started a little separation/stranger anxiety. He screamed at the gym nursery last week and at my Birds on a Wire group (he goes to nursery there) today. I mean SCREAMED. I could hear him in my Body Pump class (music blasting). Any suggestions??? I swear, I don't sit around and hold him all day. Adelyn was like this too (even worse)...what am I doing???

We went on the annual trip to Kolomoki, a plantation in south Georgia. Seth's dad, brother in law, Seth, and one of his dad's friends go quail hunting while the girls and kids ride in the bird buggy or ride a horse. It's always a fun weekend and it's nice to go somewhere that's a bit warmer. Adelyn thoroughly enjoyed riding a horse with Seth and me. The horse's name was Earl, but she called him "Oil" the whole time. We also went for a quick overnight trip to my friend Amy's house in Birmingham. She has a 9 week old that I hadn't had time to go meet yet. It was fun to let the girls play and finally hold sweet little Lea. The girls and boys are both 5 months apart- friends for life! :) This past weekned, we went to Hickory to celebrate my grandmother's 97th birthday! All my cousins and their kids were there, so it was fun to see them all interact and visit everyone (my brother couldn't come though). I think it's amazing that my grandmother is 97. She's something else! Unfortunately, I didn't really get any pictures while there.

Here's a sweet video of James and Adelyn playing together- LOVE that they make each other laugh.

http://youtu.be/Qzs-TB5kiPA

Grandma, grandkids, Duke, Sly, and Sam at Kolomoki

Melissa, Seth, me, Bert, and kids at Kolomoki

James can ride bareback at just 6 months old

CeCe and Adelyn out to lunch in Birmingham

James and Lea

Christmas 2011

2011-12-29T12:41:00.001-05:00

Christmas in Hickory (McComb)

Christmas in Hickory- Santa stopped by!!

Adelyn giving Santa a kiss

Christmas Eve at our house

Christmas Eve lunch- James ate rice cereal for the first time!!

Christmas Eve (after candlelight service at CFUMC)

James and Adelyn

Dinner- Cornish hen, wild rice, whipped sweet potatoes, and green beans

Christmas Morning at our house

I refinished my grandmother's vanity, painted it, switched out the knobs, and recovered the bench. Santa stuffed it with goodies! (Now it's in her room for dress up fun)

Adelyn added a castle to her wish list

Light Saber!!

The best way to see what's in the stocking is to dump it!

Yummy dump truck!

Riley checking out his stocking

Loving the castle! She put all of her toys in there!

Happy birthday, Jesus! Blowing out the candles on the annual Christmas morning waffles

Grandma stopped by to see what Santa brought

Grandpa helping Adelyn open her ginormous card

Christmas Night at Seth's grandfather's (Pugh Family)

The boys all got marshmallow shooting guns

marshmallows were flying everywhere!!

Adelyn grabbed as many marshmallows as she could! She was scrambling to pick them up

Mart Mart and James

Christmas Brunch at Seth's Parents on the 26th (Thomas)

Santa brought a bag to Grandma and Grandpa's!

Star Wars!

Binoculars!

Look, I made it into a picture!

Louise (Rotary foreign exchange student from Denmark)

Adelyn's dress up clothes + Emily's karaoke machine = a blast for two girls!

Christmas Dinner (evening of the 26th) with my parents (Turner)

Christmas dinner with my parents (steak, sweet potatoes, salad)

We opened gifts the next morning and Adelyn got a scooter!

Big boy rocking chair

Earrings! (my grandmother's old clip ons)

6 month check up

2011-12-28T07:00:00.003-05:00

I took James for his 6 month check up yesterday. Dr. Khan said he's perfect! :) He weighs 16 pounds 10.5 ounces (30th percentile), is 28 inches long (90th percentile), and his head circumference is 17.5 inches (67th percentile). I was kind of surprised that he was so low in the weight because I think he's a little chunky. He's definitely got some Pugh (Seth's maternal side)- long and lean! Dr. Khan also said his top teeth and the two teeth beside his bottom ones are coming through. Poor little guy- 6 teeth at once??? I can't believe he hasn't been more fussy!!

6 months old! Where did half of a year go??

2011-11-27T23:58:00.001-05:00

12.22.11 Well, James is six months old....he survived half a year with us! I've seen the most changes this month. He's now rolling from front to back and back to front all the time and sitting up unassisted (and he's pretty good!!). It's a whole new world for him! Additionally, he's got his bottom middle teeth popping through and possibly a top one. This has all been in the course of one week. He has been a little fussy and taken shorter naps for a couple of days, but he smiled all the way through it. I swear, this is the happiest kid ever. He babbles all the time (most times it's a loud "Aaaaaah! Aaaaah! Aaaaaah!"). He's a little ham too- if you make eye contact with him, he flashes his cute smile, sticks his tongue out, and/or spits repeatedly. I'm excited that I can have dairy again! (James was having some projectile vomiting spells and it stopped when I cut it out). The pediatrician told me that babies often are able to tolerate lactose once their 6 months old. I was able to have dairy just in time for Thanksgiving and all the holiday eating festivities (probably not so good for the figure)! He is still a spit-upper so he lives in a bib. James is a great sleeper- he takes 3 naps (2 long and one short) and sleeps from 9:30-6 or 7 a.m.

We had a great Thanksgiving! This was the first year we haven't eaten lunch with my family in Hickory, NC and dinner with Seth's family in Dawsonville, GA (4 hours away). This year, we just ate in Hickory. It was neat having all of my cousins there with their kids (usually someone can't make it). I think that really made my 96 year-old grandmother very happy!

After Thanksgiving, we were immediately thrown right into Christmas! We've decorated the house, seen Santa several times (and Adelyn is not boo-hooing this year!), gone to Christmas parties, attended school and church performances, and the list goes on. I have enjoyed watching this wonderful season through Adelyn's eyes. There is nothing better than that first year that they start to "get it". She knows the Christmas story and the Santa traditions. We try to make Santa fun, but not more important than Jesus's birth. We did introduce Elf on the Shelf. Adelyn named it Roseanne. It's fun to hide Roseanne each morning! My mom came in town one weekend and we baked TONS of Christmas cookies. We are going to make this an annual event! I loved her school Christmas performance and party! Her class wore gold garland on their heads and shook bells as they sang a couple songs. It was so sweet! At church she dressed up as an animal from the nativity. The ladies in charge of these performances do an outstanding job and I am so thankful that Adelyn is learning the true reason for Christmas. Adelyn's current obsession is Star Wars (or "Star Horse" as she calls it). Seth is a big Star Wars fan as well so this belongs to them. I have never seen any of the movies. They often watch bits and pieces of it or look through Star Wars books. She knows most of the characters and loves to pretend to be Princess Leia or Darth Vader ("Dark Bader"). She lives her life in fantasy- constantly pretending!! Her imagination is pretty wild! I guess that's good?????
On a sad note, we had to put our sweet dog, Peri, to sleep. She was almost 12 years old. We have two Shelties. Riley and Peri are from the same litter and Seth has had them both since they were puppies. It's been hard on everyone! Peri let Adelyn do anything to her. She would try and ride her, pull her hair (petting her), and chase her around and Peri tolerated it all. She will be greatly missed. :( It was a rough week, as Seth also tore his meniscus playing basketball. He was on crutches and in a lot of pain. He ended up having to have surgery on his knee. He is doing therapy and doing much better!

We hope everyone has a very Merry Christmas! It's hard to believe we're wrapping up another year- happy New Year!

"Great Mommy" as Adelyn calls her

All the great grandkids (plus Bryna)

James playing in the floor

He loves grabbing his feet (and they make a delicious snack too)

Adelyn playing with her Little People Nativity Scene- best toy ever!

Jumparoo really wears a little boy out!

Visiting Santa- Adelyn told him she wants a bouncy ball and James wants the biggest TV you've ever seen

James sacked out at Adelyn's school Christmas party

Grandma and Adelyn at her Christmas party

Adelyn had NO CLUE she had all of this icing on her face. Several adults were giggling at her. The little girl sitting next to her noticed and she rubbed her icing on her face too.

I gave Adelyn her first bubble bath and put in WAAAAAAY too many bubbles. Adelyn had a ball!

My mom came in town and we baked cookies for two days!

Sugar cookies

Decorating is so fun!

Pounding candy canes

Stone Mountain train ride- they played Christmas music and we saw lots of lights!

I'm feeling like a big boy!

The Billy Graham Library (Charlotte) at Christmas is beautiful!

They had a live nativity with sheep, a donkey, a camel, a llama, goats, and a Scottish cow (Ever seen one? They have long hair!)

5 months

2011-11-27T23:27:00.001-05:00

I can't believe James is 5 months old now (11/22)! He is changing daily. He is finally rolling over (front to back)...BUT he ONLY does it when we're not looking. I think he knew I wanted him to do it, so he only does it privately. He went through a spell for about a week where he'd roll every night around 3:30/4 a.m. I still have not seen him actually do it. Seth or I will walk away and come back and he's on his back. Sneaky little guy. He's also starting to use his hands! He realized that his arms and hands are his and he can hold things! He always wants to grab my nose or have me "eat" his hands. It's so cute to watch him smile with delight as we play! I know every baby has a cute grin, but James's grin is just the absolute sweetest. He's trying to sit up (early tripod) and always wants to stand with support. The other "fun and new" thing he's doing is motorboat (you know, making the pppbbbtttt sound?). Seth and I do it to him all the time. I know in a few months we'll be telling him, "NO!" when he does it, but for now it's communication! :) James seems to be pretty laid back, although here lately he hasn't wanted other people give him a bottle (sitter, grandparents). Hopefully that will pass!

Halloween was great for Adelyn this year. She was a pumpkin fairy and James was a pumpkin. Seth's cousin made Adelyn's outfit and did an incredible job (check out her store- http://www.facebook.com/pages/Mallard-Cove-Customs/165288410199609 ). She had her parade at school with a feast in her classroom afterwards. A few days later, we went to Trunk or Treat at our church. We actually didn't do anything on the actual Halloween Day. James, Adelyn, and I went to Highlands to help Seth's mom get ready for the upcoming wedding. Seth's cousin, Blake, got married the following weekend. Adelyn and Emily were flower girls. The rehearsal was Saturday and Adelyn would not do anything without me by her side (side note, she still says "Mama, hold you" and I think it's adorable). We had lots of pep talks on Sunday and we put fruit chews in the girls' basket beneath the petals. On the wedding day, Adelyn walked down the aisle and stood at the front the entire time! The fruit chews were perfect- they stood there quietly and ate their "prizes". Adelyn did turn around to the maid of honor and said "I'm a flower girl!" pretty loudly. Adelyn, Emily, and Thomas spent the ENTIRE reception dancing their tails off. They were hilarious! Adelyn barely ate dinner and I literally had to drag her off the dance floor to use the bathroom. She loved twirling in her flower girl dress! Adelyn has started gymnastics. This is no longer Mom and Tot. Now I sit on the bench and watch. I about cried the first session because she looked so big out there following directions in her leotard without a diaper. She is getting too big too fast.

Life is good in the Thomas household. We are loving watching our children grow.....just wish they'd slow down a bit!

In Birmingham for Amy's baby sprinkle (Lea V was born November 14)

Adelyn and James with the carved pumpkin

Adelyn holding Mrs. Cindy's hand at her school parade

Class party....Adelyn really enjoyed the Rice Krispie treats!

Adelyn and James at Trunk or Treat

Cousins

I wish I could eat more than just my right hand!

Ricky and Lynn have AWESOME Halloween decorations....this is Lynn's bubble fog machine. Adelyn used her wand to pop the bubbles

Flower girls and ring bearer (Blake's wedding at The Farmhouse in Highlands, NC)

Dancing Machines tearing up the floor

Adelyn's class dressed as turkeys at the CFUMC Preschool Thanksgiving program

Thanksgiving lunch at school

Love how babies sleep anywhere and any how

James LOVES his thumb! I put socks up to his elbows at night so he won't suck on it!

Dean and James

4 months old

2011-10-27T09:19:00.002-04:00

At James's 4 month check up, he weighed 14 pounds 13.6 ounces (47th percentile), was 25 3/4 inches long (76th percentile), and his head circumference was 16 1/2 inches (39th percentile). He's going to be tall and skinny like his daddy! I know I say this every post, but James is so sweet! He is a BIG talker. He coos and makes all sorts of sounds all the time. At church one Sunday, Garry (our preacher) was praying. James was looking at him the entire prayer and babbling away. When Garry was done, James stopped talking as well. It takes nothing to make him smile and he's generally not very fussy. He's still sleeping great (9:30-6/6:30) and nice long naps during the day. We will introduce cereal in the next couple of months.
Adelyn is really enjoying school and the activities that go with it. The school celebrated Grandparents' Day October 21st. Adelyn was so lucky to have both sets attend and we all went to Dairy Queen afterwards for lunch. Adelyn is doing pretty good with potty training. She wears panties at night too. She's really just had one night accident in a week and a half. Her problem area is #2 in the potty. I met my friend Staci and their daughter Hailey at the Cumming Fair a few weeks ago. Both girls had never been and they had a ball! They got on the rides with no problems. I loved watching her face light up as she went around and around! Seth had Adelyn and James for two days while I went to Birmingham to celebrate my friend Amy's baby (due very soon!) and then I helped host a wedding shower on Sunday. It was great to get away with my girlfriends and Seth did an awesome job! I guess this means I can do this a lot more! :)
We're looking forward to celebrating Halloween and then holy cow....it's November! Where does the time go??

James laughing:
http://youtu.be/0bU8Ecvghzo

My parents with kiddos at Kinsey Pumpkin Farm

Sweet Pumpkin

Dang it! I left his hat at home. I took this picture when we returned.

They look nothing alike, but here's Adelyn in the same outfit at Kinsey Farms (5 months old)

Trip out West

2011-10-19T21:08:00.001-04:00

So, we got home from the beach Sunday night and left for our next trip Thursday morning! This time we were off to Albuquerque, NM and Essex, MT. We were gone October 6-14. Everyone has been waiting for James to be old enough to travel. Now he's seen the beach and the mountains in less than a month- my favorite places!

We went with Seth's family and took a Rotary foreign exchange student (Louise from Denmark). We started off in Albuquerque for the Balloon Festival from Thursday to Saturday afternoon. It NEVER rains there, but it rained 2 out of our 3 days. Two events we were supposed to attend were cancelled. They issued us rain checks for next year....maybe we'll be lucky enough to go back (and what we were able to see makes me hopeful this will happen)! Saturday was unbelievable! The sky cleared up and almost all of the balloons were flying! We all felt like kids- so excited and jaws to the ground in awe.

We then left for Montana. I have never been in October. It's a pretty time to go because you see all the leaves changing colors. Again, the weather was more on the yucky side (lots of rain and cooler temperatures). We did a lot of sight seeing from the car, but I'll take it. Montana is gorgeous no matter how you view it. Plus, traveling with a five year old, four year old, two year old, and a three month old adds a new dimension! We drove through Glacier National Park and saw buffalo, a bear, and a moose! We always hike from the house down to the river, which takes about an hour. Adelyn hiked the whole thing by herself. This was her first time hiking and she didn't utter one complaint. I'm proud of my hiking girl! James was great throughout the trip. He slept a lot and was really only fussy a few times....such a sweet boy! Emily and Thomas are so good with him. They LOVE to sit in front of him and talk to him. James is a big chatterbox, so they got a kick out of it when he'd coo or smile. I really enjoyed having Louise along with us. I love hearing about other cultures. All in all, it was a great trip!

Just Plane Cute- you got that right, sweet boy!

Loving his first plane ride

Cousins in the balloon

James snuggled up at the evening balloon event

I don't think Adelyn knew what to think about these guys on stilts!

We saw Native American dancers

It was so cool to see them fire it up!

This was the first balloon released. The whole crowd was going nuts!

Seth's shoulders are still sore. He carried Adelyn around like this a LOT!

Brenda, Seth, and Adelyn

James snoozing away

First morning in Montana- Flathead River

Best buds

Future baby sitter

Hiking down to the river

Go, Adelyn!

The kids could have thrown rocks into the river all day long

Grandma with her grandkids

buffalo

Highline Trail

Adelyn and I at Logan Pass (it was so cold- see the snow on the mountains?)

After lunch at Norm's News in Kalispell, Grandpa bought them all a bag of candy. They were pretty much in heaven. Then Seth introduced them all to Pop Rocks- hilarious!!

This is the drive to Polebridge. There was a major fire years back.

Porch of The Mercantile in Polebridge (THE MOST RANDOM place I've ever been, by the way)

And here's what all Polebridge has to offer. I think 10 people live here and there's no electricity. But, fabulous bread and desserts!!!

Adelyn enjoying her Danish dish prepared by Louise

Louise with her delicious apple dessert

Louise, Seth, and I hiked to Stanton Lake

Stanton Lake

Isle of Palms

2011-10-19T07:43:00.000-04:00

I know everyone loves a vacation, but I was really ready! I hadn't been anywhere since a month or more before having James and any beach is truly my favorite place in the world. We went to Isle of Palms, SC (about 20 minutes from Charleston). My parents rented a 4 bedroom condo to accommodate my family, my brother and them. My dad's 60th birthday was September 26, so this week was for him! I was a little hesitant about going so late, but we were able to enjoy swimming in the ocean, laying out in the sun (without roasting and sweating), and no crowds!

We spent most of our days at the beach. We didn't get in the pool once. Adelyn LOVES the sand and water. James took two big naps everyday on the beach. He was an absolute angel. Seth and I got a date night- my parents kept both kids and we stayed at The Ansonborough Inn downtown one night. It wasn't really on purpose, but we kind of recreated our engagement night (this is where we stayed and we also ate at the restaurant). I got to see my old girlfriends and spend lots of memorable time with my family.

James's first time getting his feet in the ocean

Dinner at The Boathouse to celebrate my dad's 60th

Kate, Claire, James, and me (they are a little less than 2 months apart)

Kate, me, Heather (6 months pregnant), and Stacy met for dinner at Zia Taqueria

Adelyn in the water room at The Children's Museum

We met Cory and Lucy at the museum and then had lunch at Bubba Slye's afterwards

Date night- we had a drink the The Pavillion, a rooftop bar that overlooks the city

Date night- dinner at Cru

Our condo (bottom left)

Best invention ever- it's a sleep "tent" with a screen and a shade. That beach breeze put him to sleep instantly!

Heather and James

Heather and I at Hucks

Our last night- dinner at Morgan Creek Grill. We celebrated Seth's birthday!

James- 3 months old in his Carolina gear

Adelyn- 3 months old in her Carolina gear

Quarter of a Year Old!

2011-09-23T23:51:00.005-04:00

James is 3 months old now and growing so much. Almost everyday I pull out an outift that no longer fits. This child is so sweet- he smiles and coos all the time. He wakes between 6 and 7 and I feed him again around 10 am, 2 pm, 6 pm, and 10 pm. The spitting up/projectile vomiting has pretty much stopped. The culprit? Dairy. I've had to eliminate dairy from my diet and it's made all the difference. It's hard not eating cheese and ice cream. Hopefully he'll grow out of this! Poor little guy....he'll probably never get to be on a sleep schedule like Adelyn was. He always gets a 2-3 hour nap in the afternoon because that's when Adelyn takes her 2-3 hour nap. In the morning, he naps when he can and it's wherever we are. James still hasn't rolled over, but loves to lay on his back and bicycle kick like he's really going places. He naps on his tummy and sleeps at night swaddled on his back. He's laughed aloud a few times (zerberts on the belly or simply laughing aloud with him seem to be the trick). He acts like he's really having a conversation with you. He'll look in your eyes and "oooh" and "gaaah" over and over. His little voicec will get high pitched with excitement. So sweet! That red hair is starting to fall out! He's got a wicked widow's peak and bald spot in back. It gets thinner everyday and it's hard to tell what color the new hair will come in. I hope it stays red!
Adelyn is doing great! I really think school has been so good for her! She loves her teacher and is disappointed on non-school days. She came home on the second day and told me (and my mom) that she pushed. I emailed her teacher and sure enough, she pushed a little boy because she wanted his toy. Great start, Adelyn! At least she told me. She's also started going to church on Wednesday nights (Sunbeamers and Little Choir). She looks forward to that! Our big news is that she started potty training. I wasn't entirely sure when we'd do it, but Adelyn came down with a nasty cold and I figured since we were housebound, it's as good time as any. We're about a week and a half in and she's done awesome! The first day of school was a little rough, but now she'll use a potty anywhere. I'm so proud of her! It's funny how differently her clothes fit her without that bulky diaper!
We took James out of town or the first time (my parents' and Hickory). Taking James to meet my grandmother was very important to me and it was made even more special because all my aunts and uncles and most of my cousins also joined us for lunch. My mom came in town and we took James and Adelyn to the Atlanta Botanical Gardens. This is an awesome day trip and perfect for adults and kids. We enjoyed the cooler temps and really had a great day! Seth finished his last race of the season at Mid Ohio. We were going to all go but that's when Adelyn got sick. I was looking forward to going to a race. I'm starting to tutor again- looking forward to working with elementary kids again and bringing in some extra cash! Speaking of extra cash, I'm trying Dave Ramsey's envelope system. It's interesting to track exactly where our money is spent and it's a great way to save money. Anybody had success with this?
Next up, Turner family beach trip and Thomas family Montana trip. Can't wait to go on vacation!! :)

We took James to Hickory to meet my grandmother

Grandmommie with her grandchildren and great- grandchildren (Bryna and Rylan are missing)

96 year old Great Grandmommy (or Great-mommy as Adelyn calls her) and 9 week old James

No caption needed

Amy and I dressed CeCe and Adelyn alike for Sesame Street Live. These two are becoming Elmo groupies

Sesame Street Live at Philips Arena

Nana and Adelyn at the Botanical Gardens

James loves the baby carrier

Serious face

Two months old

2011-08-25T12:52:00.000-04:00

James is two months old! In some ways, it's gone by so fast and in other ways it's really slow. I'm ready for him to be on a regular schedule, but don't want to fast forward time to get there! For now, I'm enjoying him as a newborn. He's starting to fill out and getting a couple rolls on his thighs. He weighed 11 pounds 5.5 ounces (39th percentile), was 23.75 inches long (73rd percentile), and his head circumference was 15.75 inches (48th percentile) at his 2 month check up. His height is what really jumped! He grew over 2 inches (and gained over 2 pounds!). James gives sweet smiles when you talk to him, often just out one side of his little mouth. For the past week or so, he's been sleeping from 10:30-5:30/6:30. This is wonderful!! I love having a nice block of uninterrupted sleep! During the day, he still eats every 3 hours and is not ready to stretch that much further! He's a hungry, growing boy! He spits up (and occasionally projectile vomits), but the doctor doesn't think it's reflux. We're not on a daytime sleeping schedule yet. I do put him in the crib for naps if we're home, but most of the time he sleeps where he is (swing, papasan, play mat, or car seat) and the duration varies. I didn't take him anywhere public until he was 7 weeks old. It's so much better now that we can go places! It's nice to take Adelyn to fun things and run errands whenever I need to without finding someone to keep James. We took him to our church and introduced him to the congregation on 8/21. It was great to be back at church and James was great (even through the hour and 45 minute service)! James has not rolled over anymore....we're continuing to do tummy time.
Adelyn is funny as ever! That girl just talks and talks just to talk. We're still working on listening skills, sharing, and being nice to friends. Sometimes there's just no reasoning with a two year old! Her excuse for anything is "No, I too big" or "I can't. I too little". She's a little mommy, caring for her baby dolls and stuffed animals. The other morning, she had the boppy pillow and was nursing "Baby Bella" (my friend Randy's baby). She fed the baby from her belly button and told me she was eating bananas. Ok, so she doesn't have this entire gig figured out.
This whole summer has been itty bitty baby steps towards enjoying swimming. For most of the summer, she's just played on the steps and really didn't want to do anything else. Although swimmies don't help kids learn to use their arms, they did increase her comfort level. She realized how fun it is to leave the steps and float in the pool. She quickly ditched the swimmies and just uses the noodle. She loves it! Now, she'll also swim from the middle of the pool to the side of the pool and grab the wall (unassisted, but using the force of our push for most of the doggy paddling). She grabs the wall and "monkey walks" (that's what her swim teacher taught her) to the steps! She will also let us throw her in and she'll swim to the steps. I'm super proud of how far she's come!
Here are some swim videos:
(Adelyn's swim lessons back at the beginning of June)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?NR=1&v=VEX8fnvyJVU
(Adelyn swimming at Grandma and Grandpa's)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yv1F5DEcuUA
We took Adelyn to her first movie. Seth, James, Adelyn, and I saw Winnie the Pooh (63 minutes long). She was mesmorized with the popcorn, Icee, and movie. She did awesome, although she did feel the urge to belt out the ABCs randomly in the middle.
Adelyn starts 2 year old preschool at the beginning of September. She's going 3 days per week and I'm looking forward to it! I met her teacher and she seems fantastic! She needs the socialization and a chance to get out of the house! I'm looking forward to watching her grow. I would love to be a fly on the wall and see how she interacts. Is her behavior just normal two year old stunts or is it just her???

Adelyn at INK (children's museum in Gainesville)

Mae brushing Adelyn's teeth in the dentist office

We have had tons of cherry tomatoes! Adelyn loves to help me pick them. Anyone have any good tomato recipes? I'm always looking for another way to use them up!

Nothing sweeter than a sleeping baby!

Thanks, Seth for letting me have a girls' night!

Adelyn in the Jump Castle at Charlie's birthday party

Have to protect those baby blues...love going on walks!

James (8 weeks) in a baby outfit of Seth's

James's first time at church (and a much needed family picture!)

Proud Grandparents

One month already?

2011-07-28T11:24:00.000-04:00

James is 5 weeks old now! I took him to his one month appointment a couple days ago. I was so excited that he'd gained almost three pounds! He weighed 9 pounds 1.2 ounces (30th percentile), was 21 1/2 inches long (43rd percentile), and his head circumference was 14 3/4 inches. James is a great baby! He's still eating every 3 hours during the day and going 4-6 hours at night. Every morning I feed him at 7 am. I have to have him fed before Adelyn gets up....it makes things much easier! I think Mr. James is holding his head up really well for his age! He's also rolled over from front to back several times (starting at 2 1/2 weeks old). When he's awake, he's very alert. We're not on any kind of nap schedule yet. Luckily, Adelyn still sleeps 2-3 hours in the afternoon, so I get a chance to get some things done (and squeeze in a nap!).

Adelyn went through a week of being such a headache! I think it was a combination of having a new brother, Seth being gone (he's had 3 races in a month), and just being a two year old. She was pitching fits and not listening. She has never been ugly to James. I felt like all I was doing was saying "no" and being so negative. I don't enjoy that. I started a behavior chart (yes, I'm a teacher!). She gets a star every time she minds. Ten stars gets her a reward (so far, it's been a trip to Dairy Queen or Cold Stone Creamery....a win-win in my book!). I think she needs to get around other kids, so I've been diligent about scheduling frequent play dates. It's also good for me....not getting out makes you climb the walls very quickly. She has been much better lately, thank goodness!

We've had some great dinners provided by friends and Junior Service League. That was much appreciated! We're grateful for all the help from Seth's parents and my parents. My mom has come 3 out of 5 weekends to help while Seth is gone and Seth's mom is always doing things for us (providing food, keeping Adelyn, etc).

Jeff and Seth holding Dean and James...they're 17 days a part. Mae and Adelyn are a month a part- I swear, this is NOT planned!

Loved seeing my favorite girls! Bella and James are 9 days a part!

More favorite girls!!

Seth and I celebrated our 6th anniversary with a gourmet delivered dinner. Adelyn stayed at Grandma and Grandpa's and James hung out in his swing on the deck for a couple hours. It was a much needed date night! :)

Mr. James is starting to smile! LOVE HIM!!!

sweet siblings in their jammies

Sweet Baby James

2011-07-02T09:34:00.000-04:00

Introducing James Mahlon Thomas! He was born Wednesday, June 22 at 9:35 a.m. He was 6 pounds 11 ounces and 20 1/4 inches long. He is a wonderful blessing and addition to our family! We are all in love!

On Tuesday evening, I started to feel contractions. They were worthy of a phone call to the doctor around 10:30. She told me to arrange for childcare and call her back when I felt I was an hour away from needing an epidural. Around 12:30 we called again and said we were on the way. Brenda stayed at the house with Adelyn. We were settled in the hospital room by 2. I had dilated a little more so they said I could stay. The midwife said she thought we'd have a baby by midmorning. I got some pain medicine around 4 am and again around 6:30. They kept telling me the doctor would come in shortly to check on me. I was in pretty bad pain, but wanted to know how far along I was (didn't want to get the epidural too early). The doctor never came. A nurse checked me around 8 and I was at 5 cm. Thirty minutes later I was at 8 cm. This baby was on its way! They said I could still get the epidural as long as I could sit still. Since this was the WORST pain I've EVER experienced, I said I could do it. In it went and soon I was feeling much better. I only had to push for about 5 minutes and he was born at 9:35! Seth and I were ecstatic that he was a healthy boy! He came very fast- because of this, he didn't get all the mucous and gunk out. Therefore, he had to go to transitional NICU for 2 hours to be monitored. Seth announced to our parents the sex and I think everyone is pretty pleased that James will carry on the Thomas last name, as Seth is the last Thomas. We named him James Mahlon after both Seth's grandfathers. James Pugh, Seth's maternal grandfather, passed away 19 days before baby James was born. He was a huge influence on Seth's life.

Holding James after he was semi cleaned up (they also put him on my chest right after he was born....that didn't happen with Adelyn)

Seth announcing the sex to family

Hooked up in the transitional NICU for 2 hours for monitoring

Loving having all that hair washed!

I could have killed them for styling his hair in a faux hawk! Come on...it's a NEWBORN. It didn't go down until I got him home and washed it.

Seth's first time holding James

My parents (Nana and Grandeddy)

Seth's parents (Grandma and Grandpa)

Aunt Melissa (thanks Melissa, for making Adelyn's cute Big Sister tee shirt and for taking all of these pictures for us!)

My parents brought Adelyn later that day to meet Baby James

Our family is complete!

James in his coming home outfit....this is also what Seth wore home when he was born!

Seth was supposed to leave for his race in Wisconsin Wednesday morning. He stayed until Thursday around lunch time and my parents filled in in his absence. I know most of you think this is crazy, but this is just our life! :) I asked if I could go home Thursday and once James and I were cleared, my wish was granted (just 27 hours after having him, I was back at my OWN house). As my dad and I pulled into the driveway, I was touched to see the gate decorated with ribbon, the driveway lined with blue pinwheels, the front door framed with a big banner (all done by Seth's mom), and beautiful roses from Seth inside. My mom was an absolute lifesaver. She basically took care of Adelyn and food while I tended to James. Seth returned Saturday around lunch and we were reunited as a sweet family of four.

James is doing great! We went to the pediatrician 6/24 and he was 6 pounds 4 ounces (and 6 pounds 9.5 ounces on 7/1) . He's in the 9th percentile for weight and 54th percentile for height. His head circumference is 13 3/4 inches (28th percentile). For the first few days, I let him eat as often as he wanted. Sometimes it was every hour! After 6 days of that, I started putting him on a loose schedule. During the day, he eats every 3 hours and at night he'll sleep 5-6 hours before a feeding (usually around 3 or 4 am). It's really not too bad. He is SO tiny to me! Adelyn was almost 2 pounds heavier at birth. He has long, skinny arms and legs and not an ounce of fat anywhere on his little body. I think he looks like an old man who is always worried. When he's awake (which isn't very much these days!) he just looks around wide eyed. He is a real cutie!!

Adelyn loves Baby James. She wants to see him right when she wakes up. At first she would talk SO loud in his face (back to the old man thing....I guess she thought he was 90 and couldn't hear!). Now she puts her baby doll to sleep and tells us to be quiet. All those discussions must have sunk in. She feeds her baby dolls, burps them, and changes their diapers. She's gotten a lot of extra attention from Grandma and her Daddy- that's helped tremendously. Brenda will stop by and give her a ride on the Gator or keep her in the morning. Seth took her to Chick-fil-A for dinner and ice cream and always plays with her on the playground after work or at lunch.

We are thankful for the prayers, visits, phone calls, and meals. Most of all, we thank God for giving us this most precious gift...our Sweet Baby James.

Nana with her grandchildren beneath the playset

First walk on Fast Lane- I'm SO glad to be able to go walking again! I had to stop months ago because my stomach would tighten and get super hard (contractions/Braxton Hicks)

James pooped and peed all over Grandma

Grandma is so sweet....she just laughed and hugged him. That's love!

Life with a two year old so far...

2011-06-18T06:30:00.000-04:00

I hope the terrible threes are easier than these terrible twos! Adelyn is in "MINE" stage. She can't share to save her life. Everything is hers. We've had lots of playdates lately and she spends the entire time taking whatever the other child is interested in. Great....just in time for the new baby! She must know that change is coming! She's also being a little defiant. Seth and I have used time out frequently here lately! Don't get me wrong...she still has her good days (um, minutes) and is a total sweetheart, but she is testing my patience!

Adelyn has been taking private swim lessons. Last summer (at 13-14 months old), she was jumping in the pool alone with NO fear. The Mom n Tot classes just didn't seem enough because all they teach is blowing bubbles and putting their heads in the water, which she already does. This instructor has taught her safety skills (rolling over, reaching for the steps or wall, kicking, etc.). It's been great! Adelyn did a week straight for 30 minutes. For the first lessons, she cried the whole time, but still did what the instructor asked of her. I think she just had to get used to her. Now she asks to go back, so we're fitting in as many as we can before this baby comes!

I took Adelyn to the Pediatric Orthopedist. They watched her walk and examined her legs. Her hips and tibia turn in, so there is nothing they can do and it will self correct by age 8 (or sooner I hope). If it had been her feet turning in, she would require therapy and/or special shoes. I'm thankful for that news! She also went to my dentist appointment with me to get her used to that office. She let the dental hygienist brush and count her teeth. I think it helps that my sister-in-law is her dentist.

As for the baby, we're 2 weeks away! I'm measuring small, so we'll see how big this one is (Adelyn was 8 pounds 9 ounces). I'm in "get it done" mode. I'm trying to get lots done around the house and all my appointments out of the way. I'm SO excited to finally meet this little one! Everyone is guessing it's a boy....we shall see very soon!! Stay tuned! I am SO ready! It's hot!

Adelyn and I at the Warbington Farms Strawberry Festival

She LOVED eating the strawberries!

Learning to "monkey walk" around the wall

At the end of the lesson, they play for 5 minutes. She is always using her imagination and turning the seahorses into people she knows. It's so cute!

Two Year Check Up Stats

2011-06-01T05:48:00.002-04:00

I took Adelyn to the doctor last week. No surprise- we still have a giant girl. She's 37 inches tall (98th percentile), 30 pounds 12 ounces (88th percentile), and her head circumference is 19 1/4 inches (83rd percentile). Everything checked out great. Ever since she started walking, I have noticed that her feet slightly turn in. I've mentioned it at each visit, and they've told me there's nothing they really do until later (why add something else when they're trying to master the task of walking and it could self correct). I brought it up again and the doctor said now that she's two and it hasn't improved that we should take her to a Pediatric Orthopedist. So....that's next on the list. Hopefully it won't be anything too crazy! I asked the doctor if she'd have a bar between her ankles and she laughed and said they don't do that anymore. Shew!

Adelyn is TWO!

2011-05-19T07:08:00.000-04:00

Adelyn had an interesting birthday! We had her birthday party the Saturday before her birthday (May 7). It was a picture perfect day and we were blessed to have this gorgeous springtime weather! The party was from 10-12 and we served brunch (pancakes, waffles, fruit, bacon, donuts). We had three wafflemakers set up and guests could make their own waffles. This was so easy! After eating, the kids all played on Adelyn's new playset (which we finished the night before!). Then we opened presents and the party was done! This was the first time Adelyn really knew what presents were and how to open them (granted, they were all in gift bags). She had a wonderful time and we loved having everyone over!

Her actual birthday(May 11) was a different story! The day started out normal- gymnastics, play on her playground, eat lunch...after lunch I noticed she felt a little warm. I didn't give her Tylenol or even take her temperature because she didn't feel THAT warm. Seth came home for lunch and also commented that she felt a little warm. Shortly after, I was sitting on a barstool and Adelyn tried to climb up. She missed the step and fell back, hitting her head on the kitchen tile. She was crying, so I scooped her up and tried to soothe her. Seth did the same. When he got her, he said "She's really warm". I took her temperature and it was 100.8. Right after that, Adelyn's whole demeanor changed and something was NOT right. Her face was a strange bluish-red color, she was hunched over and almost frozen, her eyes were glazed over, she was drooling and shaking, and she was totally unresponsive. I called 911 and they sent an ambulance. At first we thought she was choking. Seth had to pry her jaws open and then could barely get his finger back out. By the time the ambulance came (which was within 5 minutes), she was starting to come to (but slurring her words and still a little out of it). They took her to Children's Healthcare of Atlanta (Scottish Rite). I rode in the ambulance with Adelyn and Seth followed behind. We were seen pretty quickly by a doctor. I thought we were there for her hitting her head. The doctor determined that she had a febrile seizure (a harmless seizure brought on by a rapid increase in temperature). We were at the hospital for about 3 hours. CHOA is amazing, and I'm SO glad that they're starting a branch in Forsyth County. I can't say enough good things about the care we received. When they found out it was her birthday, they sent in a clown (complete with a ukulele and bubbles) and gave her stickers, a teddy bear, and a pillow. She also got a teddy bear in the ambulance (which she still talks about- and how neat it was to ride in the back in her carseat). The doctor tested her for strep and ear infection and she had neither. Her temperature at the hospital was 100.2. We think it was just a little cold virus and her temperature rose higher when she got upset from the fall. Our instructions basically included giving her Tylenol and Ibuprofen. She could have another febrile seizure, but they typically don't happen after she turns 5 or 6. These occur in 1 out of 25 children. I actually had one when before I turned one (and only one). It does run in families. We still went through with our travel plans the next day. The doctor said it was okay to still go to Virginia for Seth's race at VIR, and she was just fine. This seizure was honestly the scariest moment of my life. No one wants to see their beloved child in that state. We felt very helpless. I'm so thankful that it was nothing more serious (and that Seth was home when it occurred!).

On another note, we started Adelyn sleeping upstairs in her big girl bed (queen sized). She took two naps up there and then begged to sleep up there at night. It's now been 2 flawless nights. That was a pretty easy transition! I feel like she's far away (the stairs are on the other side of the house), but she has a gate at her bedroom door and another one at the top of the stairs, so I do feel that she's safe. She is so proud of herself! She even told the cashier at Kroger that she "went night night in her big girl bed upstairs". :)

Adelyn's playset (slide, ladder, playhouse, rock wall, and bridge)

Nana and Grandeddy with Adelyn

Grandpa and Grandma with Adelyn

Pancakes and Waffles (3 waffle makers and guests poured the batter) with all the fixings

fruit salad, bacon, blueberry muffins, donut holes

kids eating pancakes

opening presents

Adelyn at CHOA (sporting her Happy Birthday bow)

Of course, this happened during her nap time- sweet, sleepy girl

Easter

2011-05-15T06:54:00.000-04:00

We had a busy, but fun Easter this year. We went to my parents' house. Their church had an Easter Egg hunt on Saturday morning. The Easter bunny was there and they had kids' activities (arts and crafts, the Easter story, dancing, and food). I about died when Adelyn ran up and hugged the Easter Bunny TWICE! Santa, there's hope for you yet! After an Easter Egg hunt at my parents' Sunday morning, we went to Hickory to see my mom's family at my grandmother's nursing home. My aunt had an Easter Egg hunt planned. I think the little cousin's enjoyed that (there's not that much to do at a nursing home!). From there, we drove to Dawsonville for Easter at Seth's Papa's house. We had another Easter Egg hunt followed by dinner. As you can see, Adelyn got a lot of egg hunting experience (plus she had one at school AND our church was was the following weekend)! :)

Another thing we added to this jam packed weekend was loading up my old bedroom furniture and hauling it to our house. We're getting Adelyn's big girl room ready. The nursery is on the main level (right down the hall from us) and Adelyn's room will be upstairs. I'm not looking forward to moving her so far away! Now that her room is set up, she keeps talking about her big girl bed and loves to go in there and play.

Easter Bunny hug!

What did the Easter bunny bring?

Finding eggs at my parents'

Four Generations (Grandmommie is 96 and Adelyn is 23 months)

Easter Egg Hunt at Papa's

Oak Grove Easter Egg Hunt

Friends and Babies

2011-04-25T07:18:00.000-04:00

Here lately, I've had some fun visits that involve celebrating friends' babies!

First, my friend Melissa visited from Norfolk, VA with her 10 week old, Sophia. We met at her brother's house in Decatur, had lunch, and played on the Square.

Adelyn (23 months), Sophia (10 weeks), and CeCe (18 months)

Adelyn and CeCe had a BALL on the rocking horses

Ok....I can't wait for my little one to come! Holding new babies is the best!

These playhouses were set up in the Square and are being auctioned off to raise money for Habitat for Humanity

Melissa, Amy, and me (college friends) with our girls

Next, we hosted a baby shower for Randy at Elizabeth's house on April 16th

Amy, Laura, Randy, Elizabeth, and me

The food spread

Awesome diaper cake made by Jane (these are Randy's nursery colors plus it's personalized with paint, paint brushes, sunglasses, and bows- perfect for Randy!)

Onesies on a clotheline (made by Amy)

Randy (33 weeks) and Resa (29 weeks)

Since several were in town, my friends threw me a surprise "Sprinkle". I had no idea- I thought the four of us were just going to dinner, but when I arrived at Pastis (in Historic Roswell), there was a group of friends there waiting! I got some much needed baby items. :)

Total shock

Awesome friends!

23 months old!

2011-04-14T20:14:00.003-04:00

I can't believe she'll be in TWO in a month. Geez. Thank goodness there's another one on the way, because I'm going to miss this stage!! She's getting so big! Here are a few things she's been up to:

Playing 20 questions 24/7: "Where is _____ (insert WHOEVER is not in there at that moment)?", "Where are we?", "What are you doing?". She always has a question....and then 3 minutes later she'll ask the same question. I think she has amnesia.
She can distinguish between a Jeep, BMW, Ferrari, school bus, truck, and Porsche. BUT, she still does not know her colors. (the response is red followed by guesses of other colors)
"I wanna hold you"= pick me up
"toot toot"= passed gas
She says "mogurk" for yogurt, "Ta-Us" for Thomas, Bandpa/Bandma for grandma and grandpa, "bi-see-ki-cal" for bicycle, and "cir-sal" for circle. The teacher in me says "Look at momma's mouth....Yo-GurT (with emphasis on the correct pronunciation) for fear she'll be in speech! But I know it'll self correct (and if she has to go to speech when she's older it won't be the end of the world)
She can say her full name ("A-e-un Gace Ta-Us") and consistently spells her name correctly
Everyone is having a baby (Mama has a baby in her belly, Daddy has a baby in his belly, Adelyn has a baby in her belly, and the list goes on!). She totally does not get it.
She's a singing fool! We must sing the ABCs, Wheels on the Bus, Itsy Bitsy Spider, and Twinkle Twinkle 95 times a day. :) Love her sweet little voice!
She can gallop!
Seth and Adelyn have the best time together. He rides her on the tractor, the forklift at his work, and sits her in the race car when at the track. Here's a video of her LOVING the engine rev!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3mSzL2tTi14

We started gymnastics back up a couple of months ago! We had taken a little break. She's loved it since she started, but she follows directions better and applies what she learns at home!

Cartwheel!

Adelyn, me, Lilly, and Julia. Julia and I went to high school together and I met her for lunch in Seneca on the way to my parents' house. It's always great to catch up with old friends!

Plaza Fiesta (Fort Mill)- my mom and I took Adelyn here to play on a rainy afternoon

Nana taking Adelyn down the slides for the billionth time

Pretty spring day after church

Barber (Birmingham)- getting in Daddy's race car is always a treat!

How do you entertain a 22 month old at the track during a 2 1/2 hour race? They paint....

and take a snoozer on a blanket (after a back scratching)

Adelyn and me

Daddy and Adelyn after the race (Seth and James finished 15th)

Seth with Adelyn and his parents after the race

We stayed at my friend Amy's house in Birmingham. CeCe is 18 months old. She and Adelyn had SO much fun together

Amy got us a sitter the night of Seth's race, so we all went out for sushi (with the husbands). I hope CeCe and Adelyn will be as good of friends as we are!

Mae enjoying a push pop at her 2nd Birthday Party

Yum! Cookie cake and ice cream!

Charlie and Adelyn sliding at Mae's birthday party

6 months along

2011-03-15T12:46:00.003-04:00

25 weeks

My friend Randy and I (she's due June 8 and I'm due June 30- can't wait to get these babies together and I hope they grow up to be as good of friends as we've been!)

Adelyn and I at Northpoint Mall's Merry Go Round (which she absolutely loved and pitched a fit when it was time to get off)

And I have to vent about Adelyn right now. She is driving me nuts with her picky eating! She used to eat everything! Now it changes everyday. One night, she'll only eat peas, so I give them to her again the next day and she hates them. This morning, she only wanted blueberries for breakfast (and cried saying it over and over). For the most part, she'll eat a great breakfast (with the exception of this morning's blueberry episode), an ok lunch, and dinner is where the battle is. She definitely doesn't like meat. If I serve spaghetti, she'll eat the noodles and not the ground beef (and that's pretty hard to do!). I'm not fixing her something different than what I made, so she's sometimes going to bed having hardly eaten anything. It's so frustrating to me! It's not like we eat bizarre food. I try and offer her things I think she'd eat. My mom bought me Jessica Seinfeld's cookbook (she sneaks in veggies to dishes) and that's helped a little. I'm just OVER the fit pitching she exhibited last night and this morning. It's not pleasant dining!

Montana Winter Trip

2011-03-11T21:26:00.001-05:00

But first, I have to brag on Adelyn. She is doing so well with counting, singing her ABCs (and starting to recognize letters), and singing songs! She has been counting for awhile, but now she will count to about 14 and point to objects as she counts (one-to-one correspondence!). She loves singing the ABCs and can just about sing the whole song. The other day I had my niece Emily in the car and she and Adelyn were singing their hearts out. Adelyn did a decent job keeping up with her almost 5 year old cousin (granted, Emily was singing a little slower than normal). She can sing Itsy Bitsy Spider, Wheels on the Bus, Twinkle Twinkle Little Star (Tinkle, Tinkle), and enjoys reciting 5 Little Monkeys. I love her learning! Here's a (terrible) video of her counting my fingers. When I start to record her, she usually stops and comes around to the screen side to see what's going on. You can't really see her because I was trying to be discreet. Also, take note of her crazy hair! She's gotta wear those headbands!! Now if we could only get her to learn her colors....if you ask her what color something is, it's ALWAYS red.
Adelyn Counting

Now for Montana!
The first part of the week was cold, but tolerable. The latter part was freezing (-15 in the mornings and a high of 5 during the day). Adeyn got sick in the middle of the week (she had a fever and horrible cough). I couldn't ski 5 months pregnant. So.....we spent a lot of time in the house. I'm not complaining- it was extremely relaxing! We did get in a visit to Whitefish Mountain Ski Resort to watch Emily and Thomas ski, a sleigh ride, a girls' shopping trip, and snowshoed down to the river.

Adelyn and Thomas at Whitefish Mountain

Nap time is great in Grandma's lap!

Adelyn tried Thomas's skis! She can't wait to take lessons next year!

Seth carried Adelyn on his back down to the river

Snow shoed down to the river

See all the snow??

This is when Adelyn didn't feel well. She watched a LOT of Elmo on the iPad or travel DVD player in bed

Family pic on the sleigh ride

It started snowing so hard (and of course stopped when we got off). Here's Adelyn eating snow!

Quick picture with the horses and then inside for hot chocolate and cookies

Adelyn got a dollhouse to play with out there- her favorite toy!!

Emily reading to Adelyn

I promise to post a belly shot soon! I'm 6 months now and definitely showing.

21 months

2011-02-16T08:57:00.002-05:00

We're just a few days into the 21st month, but I thought I'd go ahead and update since already a lot has happened (and some was really in month 20).

We went to Kolomoki (a plantation in Blakeley, GA) so the guys could go quail hunting. Adelyn got her first horse ride and we all had a great time!
The big change around here is Adelyn's BIG GIRL bed! We put her in the toddler bed after being out of town all weekend. Adelyn had a short nap that Suday afternoon and went to bed later than normal. I thought that since she was so tired, it'd be a good night to start. I was WRONG! She went to sleep just fine, but woke up a few hours later screaming her head off! After several attempts to calm her, we just put her back in her crib. The next day, we tried again at nap time and there have been zero problems ever since! It's been well over a week now. Brenda put up her toddler bed and she's napped fine over there as well (she naps there 2-3 times a week when I tutor). She cracks me up because when she wakes up, she knocks on her door. She can open every door in the house, yet doesn't venture out. She will crack it open and say, "Mama, Daddy??". I know she'll start roaming the house soon, but for now.....Yay, Adelyn!
I turned 33 on February 10th. I had my 20 week ultrasound on this day. Those of you that know me, know that my birthday isn't my favorite day of the year. Since I was little, bad luck has always fallen on this day. I was reluctant to have this important ultrasound on this day, but it's how it worked out. Maybe the tides are changing! Seth and I watched out little baby move all over the place (the u/s technician said the baby was running from her!). The baby is healthy and all of the measurements were on target. I am so excited for the end of June to meet this sweet baby! We did not find out the sex. That night, Seth brought home Kern's Fine Food for dinner and an ice cream cake from Cold Stone Creamery for dessert. He also got Adelyn to say "Happy to you, Momma!" and this continued on Valentine's Day with "Happy to you, Daddy/Bam-pa/Bam-ma/etc.". My mom came in town that weekend and we took Adelyn to the Aquarium and the Kani House (Japanese hibachi)
Some cute things Adelyn says/does these days:

"I wuv you, Momma/Dada"- my FAVORITE...there is nothing sweeter!
spinning in circles until she's so dizzy she falls and then proceeds to crack up with fits of giggles
giving her babies milk
saying "Bum" (come) and grabs your hand leading you where she wants to sit (she is ALWAYS planning where everyone should sit)
she really into wearing headbands, necklaces, and bracelets. She puts on my headbands (that I wear to the gym or use when washing my face)- some are necklaces and others are "helmets" as she calls them. It's hilarious! We have been going to story time at the library each week and once she wore all her accessories. I went with two girlfriends that have boys and I'm not sure they knew what to think!

Adelyn's first night in the toddler bed

Adelyn and Seth riding Earl

The Durands

Gorgeous nightly sunset

The bird buggy pulled by the mules, Kate and Ruby

Seth, Adelyn, and the gun. Nice.

The kids rocking away

Three generations

She LOVES to be tossed up (and Seth obviously loves to throw her pretty high)

Adelyn with Duke and Sly

I can't believe they all looked at the camera on two separate occasions!

nap time on Sunday's hunt

Pregnant lady on a horse!

Grandpa giving Adelyn her first Coke (She asked everyone for a "bite". We had to teach her SIP)

My mom, Adelyn, and Seth at the Aquarium

We crawled though 30 feet of tunnel and could pop up into these viewing areas to get a close up view of the penguins!

Touching stingrays!

This slide looked like a whale's mouth. It was probably 10 feet high/long. Notice how I went down WITH Adelyn....

When Seth went with her, he sent her down alone! I wish you could see the look on her face! She was shocked (and so were my mom and I).

Family pic with Atlanta skyline

Nana, Adelyn, and me

Chopsticks at Kani House! It was Valentine's Day weekend and P-A-C-K-E-D. Dinner took 2 hours. She spent most of dinner eating rice in Seth's lap. She enjoyed the show and wasn't freaked out by the grill's blaze!

Heather joined us

Valentine's Day...twirling in her outfit

20 months

2011-02-01T10:57:00.000-05:00

It's almost February, and Adelyn is 20 months old. She's her own little person, and she's so much fun! She repeats everything you say, so we better watch out for that! Recently she started calling Seth his first name. She'll say anything you tell her to! So far, she has only climbed out of her crib one time (which resulted in a bloody lip, but no tears). We were already planning on transitioning her to a toddler bed sometime in February (and then upstairs to her "big girl" bedroom sometime in April to get ready for the new baby). I guess that's our next steps. I am NOT looking forward to that. 1. It means she's growing up 2. I like her being confined to the crib! Adelyn is still into everything, as all toddlers are. I got to make my first Poison Control phone call last week. I gave Peri her medicine. I swear she swallowed it- I even gave her a treat afterwards, which she also swallowed. Adelyn came up to me a minute later with blue chalky stuff covering her tongue and a look and sound of disgust. I quickly rinsed her mouth out and made the call. They said since it was just an antibiotic, the worst that could happen would be an allergic reaction. Luckily, that didn't even happen. The scary thing was, I was there the entire time! You can never be too careful with these kiddos!

My best friend, Heather, recently moved from Raleigh and she lived with us for three weeks while she was looking for a new place. The day after she came, we had another big snow (almost 6"- big snow for GA). This was not the fun kind of snow. At first it was too dry to stick together and then it turned to ice, so we never made a snow man. Adelyn was a much better sport this time. She wore her boots, hat, and gloves without a fuss. We tied up the sled to the back of the gator and Seth, Heather, and I pulled each other up and down Fast Lane. Adelyn was just happy to ride in the gator (she loves that thing!). Other than that, we were trapped inside for several days. I was so glad Heather was off of work too. I'm ready for summer!!

As usual, we have been on a few trips. We went to my parents' house MLK weekend. We celebrated my grandmother's 96th birthday in Hickory. The next day, we celebrated Christmas (just a tad late) with my dad's side of the family. Both events were really fun! I love getting together with family, especially as our families continue to grow. It's so neat to watch the youngest generation interact. This past weekend, we went to Seth's first race in Daytona. This year, Seth is still with Grand Am Continental Tire, but he is in the GS (faster) class, rather than the ST class. Last season, Bimmerworld had two cars in ST. This season, they have added two more cars to GS (a total of four!). Seth and James (the team owner) are teammates. They finished 16th. I think Seth was a little disappointed, but I'm sure the next races will only get better! Emily and Thomas also came to this race, so Adelyn had some playmates. She LOVES cheering for her daddy! She pumps her little fist in the air and says, "Go Daddy, go!!!". She got to sit in the new car and when Seth turned on the engine and revved it up, she grinned ear to ear. She's definitely her father's child.

We had a New Year's Eve Party. We told guests they could bring their children...we ended up having 13 kids over! It was really fun! Laura and Amy spent then night and here are the kids on New Years Day!

Amy and I took CeCe and Adelyn to Sesame Street Live in Chattanooga! The girls LOVED it!

Snow day!

We took turns driving the gator and pulling the sled up and down Fast Lane. Adelyn loves to go for a ride (in the tractor, as she calls it)

getting pulled down Fast Lane on the gator

Riley enjoying the snow

Heather getting pulled

Adelyn enjoying her first cup of hot chocolate (notice that about half of it ended up on her shirt!)

Rylan and Adelyn playing the piano (Hickory)

My grandmother at her 96th birthday party

The Turner's (you can see my little baby bump...I'm 16 or 17 weeks here)

Adelyn taking a nap during Seth's race. It was pretty hot in the cab, so I stripped her down the her dipaer.

Thomas and Emily playing during the race. Adelyn is asleep in the truck in the background. When she woke up, she pulled back the curtain where the driver sleeps, climbed into the driver's seat, and waved. It was so funny- Adelyn in her diaper looking out the window like, "Where am I??"

Adelyn sitting in Daddy's NEW race car!

Christmas 2010-recap in pictures

2011-01-12T07:26:00.000-05:00

I had so much fun baking with Adelyn! One day, we made 6 1/2 dozen cookies for family and friends (and of course for us too)! I love that she wanted to be involved! This learning tower is the best purchase! She got it for her birthday and it's a MAJOR help in the kitchen!

There were definitely perks in helping make cookies!

Christmas Eve- Seth and I made cookies with her for Santa. She loved putting the sprinkles on!

Hickory Christmas- all the great grandkids...this was a difficult picture to take! As you can see, Adelyn (especially) and Harris were not very excited about this!

My brother couldn't make it, but here are all the grandkids!

My grandmother (who will be 96 in a few days!) and her children

The whole gang with the kids!

Christmas Eve at Seth's parents' house- Adelyn loved wearing my new scarf and hat. She also carried around a new beaded purple purse. She looked like a little old lady! It was hysterical! She would get upset if it came off! I guess she likes accessories!

The Thomas Grandkids

Family picture in front of Seth's parents' tree

Christmas morning: We thought we'd open presents and THEN eat breakfast- BAD IDEA!! She was so grouchy!! She had no interest in presents, so we stopped, made waffles (in Seth's new waffle maker- fabulous!), and then went back to the gifts. After breakfast, she was back to her pleasant self! I can relate! Don't mess with me when I'm hungry! :)

Santa left Seth a note in his stocking saying he hid his gift in the dining room. It was the XBox Kinect! (which is so fun, by the way!)

What's in this stocking?

Christmas Night at Seth's Papa's house- Papa gives Adelyn pieces to her own nativity set each year. She got the 3 kings. He also gave her an awesome tricycle!

Sweet Papa

It snowed all day Christmas day! Here we are on the 26th playing in the snow. Unfortunately, Adelyn did not enjoy it! I think it all started with putting boots and a hat on her. From that point on, she was upset. This does not bode well for our upcoming trip to Montana in February!

Our house in the snow

I tried to get her to eat snow....that was a no-go

My parents came on the 26th to celebrate Christmas. Seth's parents got her this dollhouse and my parents got her all the furniture. She loves it! The dollhouse is double sided, so one side will be for books/storage and the other for her dolls.

Adelyn painting on her new art easel from Santa. She got a lot of art supplies (finger paints, paints, paint brushes, crayons, paper) to keep her occupied indoors)

Adelyn is going to be a big sister!

2010-12-22T22:03:00.001-05:00

We're having another one! Baby Thomas #2 is due at the end of June and we couldn't be happier! I have been feeling fine. With Adelyn, my only major symptom was fatigue. With this one, I have experienced occasional times when I'm not feeling so hot. Other than that, I've just been super tired. Adelyn doesn't really get it (and we haven't made a big deal about it). She does love baby dolls though...so hopefully that will carry over to her real baby sibling!

Like with Adelyn, we will not be finding out the sex. I'll be happy with either gender, but one person in this house has a vote for a particular gender. :)

We went to the 12 week ultrasound. I was actually only 11 weeks, but this was when the office scheduled me. The ultrasound technician has a very dry personality (I actually remember her from doing Adelyn's). When we walked in, she said, "I don't know why you're here. You should really be 12 to 13 weeks along for me to see what I need to see. We'll just have to see what we can get.". I was thinking I'd be back later for another ultrasound. This is the one where they rule out chromosomal disorders by measuring fluid in the back of the baby's neck. As soon as she put the transducer on my belly, she saw the baby. She said this was a textbook picture and that the baby was doing exactly what she needed him/her to do! Her entire demeanor changed and she was now the most excited woman in the world! The baby was sticking its tongue out and put its hand on its head. She even said she was having so much fun and knew she needed to be doing other people's ultrasounds. She printed out several cute shots of our little baby! So far, everything is looking good (normal!).

Please keep us in your prayers during this exciting time in our lives! Merry Christmas!!

Adelyn wore this shirt (designed and made by my sister-in-law Melissa) to Seth's grandfather's house and my family Christmas in Hickory to share the news

Stats from the 18 month check up

2010-12-16T13:15:00.000-05:00

I took Adelyn for her 18 month check up today. The doctor and nurse both commented on how tall she is. She is 35 1/2 inches (off the charts....above the 99th percentile). She weighed 26 pounds and 5 ounces (78th percentile) and her head circumference was 19 1/4 inches (95th percentile). She got three shots and I opted not to get the flu shot. She shouldn't have to get another shot until her 4 year old appointment. Yay!!

One and half! What????

2010-12-15T07:07:00.001-05:00

I can NOT believe she's 18 months! I love this age (most days, haha!) because I am learning more about who she is....and I love who she is becoming! She's talking more and more and is able to better verbalize what she wants. She is stringing together words. She still loves her books. Now, she says "Hand", grabs your hand, and drags you to what she wants to do. This is usually to the book basket. She then commands you to sit, chooses a book, and plops down in your lap. Another cute thing she does it she'll hide something (in an extremely obvious place) and hold her hands out as if she's asking a question and says, "Where is it??". The way she holds her hands out is awkward and adorable...her elbows are practically touching. She's into EVERYTHING!! You can't turn your eyes for a second! We are really working on cleaning up after making messes. I'm already ready for summer and it's not even officially winter yet. She loved playing outside and we are running out of things to do inside. Hopefully, Santa will bring her some indoor activities. :) Seth and I will put in a request. She certainly would have none of that! We took her to see Santa at the outlet mall a few weeks ago. I had a feeling she was going to cry, and she did (see pictures below). When we left, she was blowing him kisses and saying "Bye, bye!". She saw him again at a family reunion and wouldn't go near him.

Seth and I went on a once in a lifetime trip! It wasn't really planned, but we had to jump on this opportunity. Every year, BMW selects the top 25 drivers in the WORLD and invites them to an awards ceremony. At their headquarters. In Munich, Germany. Seth and his teammate were selected! This is a dream come true for Seth and I am SO proud of him! His dad, Seth, and I went December 1-8. We spent half of the time in Munich and the other half in Salzburg, Austria. I was not ready to leave Adelyn for a week, but she had a great time staying with Seth's mom and my parents. It was uber (like my German?) cold, but we bundled up and explored! The ceremony was really nice and I am thrilled that I got to see him accept his award!

I hope everyone is enjoying the start of Christmas! I am excited to see Adelyn's reaction this year since she was just 7 months old last year.

Below are a ton of pictures!

Adelyn feeding a pony at the Chestatee Wildlife Preserve

Adelyn and her little friend, Amelie had to hold hands while walking through the zoo

What we really came to see: the Zedonks

Adelyn "blowing" a dandelion (she blew her nose on it)

Thanksgiving trip home (in Hickory, visiting my grandmother). My grandmother said Adelyn was "a mess". :)

Nana and Adelyn on Thanksgiving morning in their semi-matching shirts

Grandmommie with the great grandkids

Visiting Santa

Not so excited about sitting in his lap. I thought MAYBE giving her some goldfish would calm her down, but that did not work.

All smiles in mommy's lap

One more try....this child is not a fan of Santa this year. We'll try again next year!

Our first night in Munich enjoying authentic German food- yum!

I had pork medallions in mushroom sauce with spaetzle

Glockenspiel at Marienplatz

We toured Dachau (concentration camp outside of Munich)

Christmas Market

Bill and Seth enjoying a brat (which Germans eat all day long...even for breakfast!)

Seth and I shopping in the cold

BMW Headquarters and Museum- we got a really cool tour of the museum

Seth and I at the Awards Banquet

Seth and Bill accepting their awards- they were 22 and 23!

The presentation was really cool. The screen was set up like an advent calendar. All 25 drivers were standing on a staircase off to the side (and had no clue where they were in the ranking). They would reveal the drivers behind each "door".

Charles Espenlaub and Charlie Putman accepting their awards. They won the GrandAm GS and were either 9 and 10 or 10 and 11 (I can't remember). It was great to see a few familiar faces!

All the BMW drivers- there were something like 22 nationalities represented from 4 continents

Bill and Seth with their awards. The trophy is awesome!

Salzburg- not sure what this instrument is called, but it was neat to hear!

The fortress from below

Seth and I at the fortress

View of Salzburg from the very top of the fortress (you climbed a spiral staircase to get to a viewing tower)

Apple strudel in vanilla sauce....for lunch.

At the Residenz Museum (as the guard quickly told us no pictures!)

Seth and Bobby at the Red Bull Racing Museum (at the Salzburg Airport in a hangar...it was really cool!)

17 months old

2010-10-29T15:44:00.000-04:00

I wish I could say that 17 months old has been all fun and games! I hate to start out with the negative, but this is a very trying age! I feel like we're going through the terrible twos. Adelyn wants to do everything on her own. That coupled with the fact that she can't say everything she wants and needs to is NOT GOOD on some days! She will throw some temper tantrums!! We've had one that lasted 45 minutes a few weeks back. Most of the time, they don't last long. Seth and I totally ignore her. I walk away (praying she won't hit her head too hard as she flails on the ground). They're not daily and they're getting shorter, so that's good. We're also transitioning from two naps to one nap. Half the time she only needs the one afternoon nap.

She is doing a lot of really great things! She's talking a lot. She surprises me with all of her vocabulary. She's trying to jump. She'll say "bump, bump!". Her feet don't leave the ground, but she doesn't know that. She loves to twirl in circles and get dizzy. Adelyn does not want us to feed her. This can be messy, but it's not too bad. She is also trying to dress herself. Miss Independent! :)

Adelyn is on a baby doll kick. She has an American Girl Itty Bitty doll that comes everywhere with us. She gives her a bottle, burps her, and hugs her tight all day long. If it's not the doll, it's a request for Elmo.

As far as traveling, Seth and I went on a cruise with Mel, Laura, Ryan, and Jennifer. It was a 5 night cruise that left from Miami and went to Grand Turk, Half Moon Cay (Carnival's island), and Nassau. Seth's parents kept Adelyn for half of the week and my mom and her friend kept her the last half. I think Adelyn had fun! She loves being at Seth's parents house and playing with Emily and Thomas. My mom took her to the zoo. She loved seeing the animals. We had a blast! It was wonderful to get a way and not have to cook or clean! We basically dined and layed out! We didn't get to go to Half Moon Cay due to rough waters, but it really didn't impact the fun we had! After the cruise, we flew from Miami to Charlotte for Seth's year end ceremony (Grand Am). It was held at the Nascar Hall of Fame. It was awesome to see Seth and his teammate recognized for finishing 2nd. I was SO ready to come home. We were gone for an entire week! We sure did miss Adelyn!

Dinner

Gorgeous sunset from our balcony....we loved our room!

Seth and I at Grand Turk. This was a perfect day! The water and sky were the pretties blues!

Adelyn "painting" with pudding. She didn't once try to eat it! She had a ball!

Gymastics- all the kids wore their costumes. They're playing Limbo!

Kinsey Family Farm

Adelyn and Amelie

Carving our pumpkin- first thing she wanted to do was eat it!

No fear in putting in her hand into the goop!

First hair cut!! I took her to Sweet and Sassy Oct. 6. Bye, bye mullet! (and pigtails until it grows back out)

New do

Trunk or Treat at Oak Grove (Emily, Thomas, and Adelyn)

Thomas and Adelyn getting treats from Pastor Garry

Checking out her loot

First CapriSun!

Adventures in parenting....

2010-10-21T14:27:00.004-04:00

I have to share a funny/scary story. Today, I took Adelyn to the gym with me and then stopped by the outlet mall to run two quick errands. I was returning something and Adelyn was all over the place. She's pulling shoes off the display, running away from me (saying "slide!" because there is a slide a few stores down), etc.- basically doing anything but standing by my side patiently. I gave her my car keys, and that entertained her for the remainder of the transaction. We walked out to the car and she's still playing with my keys. I unlock the back door and put her in the car seat. She's still playing with my keys. I gave her another toy and tossed my keys over the headrest and into the front seat. As soon as I closed her door, I noticed that the doors are locked. All of them. I peer into the window and there in the driver's seat is my purse, cell phone, and keys. Adelyn is in her car seat smiling away. I'm not sure when she pushed the lock button, but it happened! Yes, I am THAT mom now! I ran into the Timberland store and asked if I could use their phone (I'm sure I looked like a maniac!). I called Seth, asked him to run by our house to get the spare key, and come unlock the car. He rescued us in about 20 minutes! I'm so glad this turned out as good as it did. Note to self: NEVER give your child your keys! Too bad OnStar is not available for my car... I seriously think I would have been their next commercial.

Things I'm thankful for:

1. It's not July

2. Seth works nearby and can leave on a whim

3. Seth is understanding

4. We actually had a spare key and were quickly able to locate it

5. Adelyn didn't have a clue what happened

16 months old

2010-09-22T15:55:00.009-04:00

Happy Fall, y'all! Adelyn is, of course, growing up too fast. She's talking a lot and follows simple directions. She loves to do "grown up" things like push her baby in the stroller and feed her, sweep, give Riley and Peri food/treats, and try to take her own clothes off and on. Adelyn has started going to playschool once aweek. It's from 9-1, so she eats lunch there. Sometimes she takes a nap there and sometimes she does not. I guess she likes it! I'd love to be a fly on the wall and observe how she acts around the other toddlers. She also started going to Mom/Pop n Tot gymnastics. It's 30 minutes once a week. She absolutely LOVES that! She is wired afterwards. At home, all she wants to do is read books! I love it! She's very into Elmo! I'm not quite sure how this happened, seeing as she has rarely watched Sesame Street. She does have several Elmo books and loves to read them (over and over and over and over). I met a friend and her little boy at Learning Express to see Elmo. She was so excited when she spotted him. She immediately started saying "Elmo!" and waving, but as soon as she got close she'd run back to me! She didn'tcry, but certainly did not want to be super close to him! We'll see how visits with Santa go at Christmas!

We have been on a couple of trips. We went to Tega Cay and Hickory to visit my family and Seth and I went to Salt Lake City for his last race of the season. My parents kept Adelyn at my house. Seth was leading the points for the championship (a 19 point lead). It's a long series of events that can be referred to as "The Perfect Storm" and I won't go into all of the details. The short version is the car's differential broke at the beginning of the race. It took 30 minutes to get the car back out on the track (which is amazing to get done that quickly!). At the end of the race they were tied in points with the #74 Honda. Officials had to go to the 3rd tiebreaker to determine the champion. Seth and Bill ended the season finishing 2nd in points. This is still an awesome feat considering this was Bimmerworld's first season in this series and Bill's rookie year (and he got Rookie of the Year!).

Pigtails!

Coloring with her new crayons

Our little gymnast

Sweeping the front porch

Seth was washing cars. Adelyn loved being outside with him and learning how to drink from the hose!

Playing in the rain (or "wain", as she says)

Play at the Park (Central Park)- the petting zoo

Trois-Rivieres and Montana

2010-08-26T07:31:00.012-04:00

Seth, Adelyn, and I went to Quebec (Adelyn's first stamp on her passport!) for his race at Trois-Rivieres. We went with his parents, sister, her two kids (Emily 4 and Thomas 2), and his aunt Martha ("Mart Mart"). It was quite interesting being in a French speaking region. Seth finished 4th! He's still in the lead for the championship (by 19 points!). There's just one more race- Salt Lake City (Sept. 11). Here are some pictures from the race (there are pictures of the kids at the bottom):

http://bimmerworldracing.com/view_gallery.php?id=72157624612393339

After the race, we went to Montana. Kern and Denise (friends in Cumming) and a baby-sitter (Big Emily) joined us. We hiked, ate (Kern is a phenomenal chef), and relaxed. Kern, Denise, Seth, and I went on a 16.54 mile hike! We hiked Swiftcurrent Pass to Granite Park Chalet and then to Logan Pass. We started at 4,800 feet and reached 7,200 feet. It was the best hike I've ever done. We also did some shorter hikes with Adelyn. She loved going to the river and playing in the water. It was very cold, but that didn't seem to phase her! The kids loved throwing rocks into the Flathead. There is not enough time to do everything you want to do in Montana! I loved watching Adelyn experience these new sights!

Side note: Adelyn went in for her 15 month check up. She weighs 25.35 pounds (80th percentile), is 32 inches long (86th percentile), and her head circumference is 18.75 inches (89th percentile).

Seth and Adelyn down by the river

This moose was right near the playset beside the house! I was pushing Adelyn on the swing, and Seth spotted it licking the salt block. Adelyn saw it and started waving! She was also making her clucking noises (that she does for a horse galloping). Meanwhile, I was wondering if we should run for our lives or stay calm! The moose looked right at us and went right back to licking! Thank goodness!

Stanton Lake (we hiked here with Brenda, Kern, Denise, and Big Emily). We had a picnic lunch looking at this beautiful scenery.

Adelyn can drink out of a camelback!

Many shots from our Swiftcurrent Pass hike

Halfway through: Granite Park Chalet

We took the kids to the Izaac Walton to see the train pass beneath the bridge. Adelyn was fascinated with looking down at the ground through the holes!

Grandma with her grandkids

Grandpa reading to Adelyn

Adelyn, Emily, and Thomas

Folly Beach, SC

2010-08-08T06:30:00.022-04:00

Adelyn will be 15 months old in just a few days! Seth just said the other day that he wishes he could freeze her at this stage. She is so much fun! I think the neatest thing to watch is her vocabulary grow. She wants to know what everything is and attempts to repeat it. Sometimes it's pretty close! And sometimes she remembers it and few days later she'll say it again! It's awesome! My ABSOLUTE favorite thing she does is gets a book and walks backward until she can plop down in my lap. I will drop anything to read a book to that girl.

We went to Folly Beach (about 30 minutes away from downtown Charleston) for a week with my parents and brother. This was the first vacation we have been on with my parents. We had such a good time! We rented a 4 bedroom beachfront condo. Adelyn loved the ocean and sand! She ran right to it from day one. The sand did not bother her one bit. She loved putting seashells in her bucket. Seth dug her a hole and she would sit in it for an hour! There was a pool at the condo, but I think she preferred the ocean. I got to see lots of old friends. It was nice to have the time to get some good visits in with my friends that live there. Two of my friends just happened to be visiting Charleston at the same time. Of course, I got some downtown Charleston shopping in! My mom and I spent an afternoon doing the King Street Crawl and Seth and I went shopping for art (we're looking for something to hang above our mantle, but didn't find "IT"). I got some nice morning walks in and Seth and I did an 8 mile bike ride. All in all, everyone had fun...but no one enjoyed it as much as Ms. Adelyn!

Adelyn is getting her molars in. Boy has that been a doozy! There have been a few nights/eeeeaaaarly mornings where she's up crying. Bless her heart. They must be killers! I will be so ready for them to finish popping through!

Laura and Janie came in town for a couple nights. It was great to watch Janie and Adelyn together (they're about 2 weeks apart). They don't really play together, but they do interact some. We went to the pool, the mall playground, and ate out.

Coming up next....Quebec (Seth's next to last race at Trois-Rivieres) and Montana with Seth's family!! We leave in a few days! Seth is leading the points for the championship, so we are keeping our fingers crossed for an awesome finish. And when we return, Adelyn will start Mother's Morning Out! Woo-hoo!!

Pictures are below from our beach trip. Here's the link to many more on Kodakgallery.
http://www.kodakgallery.com/gallery/creativeapps/photoPicker/albums.jsp

Compare....

Adelyn (3 months old in Kiawah) Adelyn (14 months old at Folly Beach)

Video of Adelyn on the first day:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YcEAoIh3Bm4

An early morning walk on the beach

I AM READY to hit the beach!

Joy

She did not mind getting sand on her. She constantly had handfuls of sand or seashells!

My parents before their date night

Chilling in the beach chair

Seth and I before our date night. We went to Cru Cafe (which is where we ate the night we were engaged and where I celebrated my 30th birthday)

Pool girl!

Joseph relaxing with a book

Carolina Girl

She loves her Daddy!

D-Day (departure day...saying good bye to the ocean)

Adelyn "reads" a book

2010-07-19T08:06:00.003-04:00

Here is a video of Adelyn jabbering away with a book. She does this all the time!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Hz-OclbY7o

Time is flying!

2010-07-13T21:19:00.010-04:00

Adelyn is 14 months old now! I don't even know where to begin with all that she's doing. I guess the biggest thing is she is walking everywhere!! She's been walking well for about a month now. Before that she'd take 4-6 steps and fall. Now, she just about runs!! I rarely see her crawl anymore. I'm most excited about her language development. She's really trying to imitate words. She will look at you and jabber away. We know she's saying something! She'll even repeat the exact same gibberish....it has a purpose! Some words she definitely says are: car, cow, shoe, book, boom boom (she learned this from Grandma and does it when she falls), uh oh, whoa!, Go Daddy Go!! (with her fist pumping....she learned this at the track from Grandma), please ("pees"), and of course her animal noises. She does a pretty good variety of animals. Adelyn finally got some more teeth! It had been months! Now she has 2 more bottom teeth (for a grand total of 8). Another milestone we've reached is getting rid of the paci. She was only getting it during naps and nighttime, but we've stopped using it! She would sleep with one clutched tightly in her hand and one in her mouth. We started a few days ago, but so far so good! She is still a huge eater. She always signs for more....the girl is never finished. She'll eat just about anything put in front of her. I think homemade ice cream at Papa's is her favorite.
We've been having so much fun with her this summer! We have a fearless water baby! She puts her own head in the water and tries to blow bubbles. We've always said, "feet first" (when getting down from the couch), and she does that going into the pool....whether there's a step there or not. We thought she'd be scared if she fell in (while we're standing right there...nothing dangerous!), but it does NOT phase her. She just laughs when she comes up. I think Seth has just as much fun as she does. He is all about tossing her up in the air and splashing around with her. She LOVES the pool!! Adelyn is a busy little thing. She loves to open the drawers in the kitchen and play with tupperware containers. I am finding lids everywhere! She is into carrying anything with a handle. She'll tote a Robeez shoebox with her all over. I think that's her favorite toy (once, she even took a nap with this shoebox). She loves to carry Seth's shoes too. I found his flip flops in the washing machine yesterday.
Seth is doing awesome with his racing! They won their race at Mid Ohio! Adelyn and I went...and we were so glad to be there to cheer him on! He and his teammate, Bill, are now leading the points! It's by just one point, so we're hoping the margin will get a little wider at the next race in NJ!
I went away with 4 college girlfriends to Highlands, NC. Seth kept Adelyn. It was so nice to get away and know that I didn't have to worry about her. I came back so refreshed from having some much needed girl time! My mom came in town for several days after that, and it was great to have her here. We visited friends and family, shopped, and played!

Want to see her in action? Below are some videos for your viewing pleasure:

Adelyn walking (I love how she books it when I ask her to come here)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o5h6OBgRCBY
Adelyn feeding herself yogurt
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0YAHUm23ko0
Adelyn using sign language to get pudding
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ohTXCq5iaw

Seth and I got the new iPhones, so I'm addicted to taking videos of her. She really enjoys when I play them back for her. I don't know if she knows that it's her, but she sure does think that baby is funny!!

Next post: Beach trip!! I hope each of you are enjoying your summer!

ONE year old!!

2010-05-21T08:08:00.015-04:00

We had Adelyn's first birthday party on May 15th. We had mainly family and a few friends come. It was a cupcake theme. The party was fun! Only at our party would go carts be involved. We're storing a friend's go carts, and Seth got them out after most everyone had left. Adelyn really enjoyed riding up and down Fast Lane with her Daddy. We had a photographer take pictures. She did a fantastic job!I never would have gotten it captured. Here's a link to view a slideshow of photos:

href="http://camilledeannphotography.com/viewing/?slideshowID=43010">http://camilledeannphotography.com/viewing/?slideshowID=43010

Oops....slideshow expired....here's a link to the photographer's blog that shows some pictures:
http://www.camilledeann.com/home/2010/6/5/adelyns-1st-birthday-party-atlanta-childrens-photographer.html

As usual, we have done a little bit of traveling. Seth had a race at Limerock (CT). He and his teammate WON the race!! Yay! Adelyn and I weren't there to see it and of course, this race won't be televised :(. We went to my parents' house. It was a busy visit (seeing my brother lots, a block party, Memorial Day cookout and a trip to Hickory to see my grandmother). Seth had another race the following weekend at Watkins Glen (NY). We went to this one and had a great time! They finished 6th in this race.

At Adelyn's one year check up, she weighed 22 pounds and 1 ounce (63rd percentile), was 31 3/4 inches long (98th percentile), and her head circumference was 18 1/2 inches (91st percentile). Everything went great at her check up! She is doing much better with the sippy cup. The whole milk does not agree with her system! I gradually transitioned her to whole milk (mixed breast milk with it less and less). When she was drinking pure whole milk, we had some messy, messy blowouts. Disgusting. The nurse said to switch to 2%, and that is a lot better on her tummy. Her appetite is out of control! Sometimes I think she eats more than me! The signs for "more' are never-ending. That girl LOVES food. Adelyn is so funny! She's making all kinds of noises (the newest one is "Vroom, Vroom") and jabbers nonstop. She's still not officially walking (she's taken a couple steps in order to get somewhere....i.e from the ottoman to the coffee table). She also has not gotten anymore teeth. It's been a while since a new one has come in!

It's hard to comprehend that a year has gone by. We survived it! ;) I can't imagine my life without her in it. Everyone says to treasure these moments because it's gone before you know it. I really feel like I try and take the time to soak it up, and it still zooms by. Happy first birthday, sweet Adelyn!

Adelyn's birthday party invitation....I took her picture on the 11th of each month next to the same bunny rabbit to show her growth. It's neat to see how much she changed!

May 11th: Adelyn on her birthday

Adelyn after the cake (she liked it just ok....she was more interested in feeding it to us)

Hickory (visiting my 95 year old grandmother)

Adelyn in Seth's car at Watkins Glen

11 months old

2010-04-20T07:15:00.019-04:00

Adelyn is really starting to make changes in her communication skills! She "talks" all the time. I feel like I better know what she's saying based on her facial expressions. She is saying more words. (such as "hey", "bye bye", "cow", and her animal noises....snake, cow, dog, monkey). I swear she said, "Hey, CeCe" to my friend Amy's baby several times! I've been so excited that she finally has started doing the sign language we've been teaching her. She'll sign for more and point to what she wants. Speaking of pointing, she points to EVERYTHING. I think I walk around labeling things all day long. She is also imitating what we do. She will pick up her hairbrush and "brush" her hair. She will also try and throw the ball to Riley. She drops the ball at her shoulder but continues to follow through with the hand motion of the throw. Basically, the ball drops at her hip and Riley gets it. He usually brings it back to Seth or me for a better throw! She is also trying to put on her hats. She's a little sponge and trying to do things herself!

Adelyn is still not walking. She will walk with a walker and doesn't need more than a fingertip to balance herself standing. Occasionally, she will stand alone for several seconds. I think it will come soon! Speaking of events coming soon....Adelyn will be making the switch to whole milk in the next week or so. I am a little sad (and a little glad) to stop breastfeeding. As for the transition to the sippy cup....that's been difficult! She has been a pretty easy baby, so if this is our biggest hurdle, I think we're ok. BUT, she sure does NOT like that cup! I've gotten advice from everyone and have invested a small fortune in various brands/styles. I guess it just takes time!

We've been on several small trips this month. We went to two of Seth's races. One was at Barber (Birmingham, AL). This was fun because Melissa, Emily, and Thomas got to come. Thomas and Adelyn had SO much fun playing on the grassy hill. The other race was VIR (Danville, VA). My parents and my dear friend Heather that I've known since middle school came. We (Randy, Amy, CeCe, Adelyn, and myself) also went to Spartanburg to celebrate Janie's first birthday and Laura's birthday. That was really fun because I got to see my closest girlfriends!

It's hard to believe that the next post will be Adelyn's FIRST BIRTHDAY! This year has flown by an has been an absolute blessing. I can't wait to see what this precious child has in store for us next year! :)

Grandma and Adelyn at Seth's race at Barber (Birmingham, AL)

Mae's First Birthday Party (Mae, Charlie, and Adelyn)

Papa giving Adelyn homemade ice cream

Grandpa and Adelyn at VIR

My mom and Adelyn (check out her shirt). Seth finished 2nd at VIR, so she was showing her support! ;)

Janie's First Birthday

We love to feed the cows fresh cut grass in the evenings. This picture was taken after swinging in her new swing and playing with the cows (lots of excitement around here!)

10 months

2010-03-30T20:41:00.016-04:00

Happy Spring, everyone! We are so glad that warmer weather is here! Adelyn loves being outside. We are enjoying going on walks, blowing bubbles outside, swinging at the park, and riding in the wagon!

Adelyn is still pretty much on the same schedule. She wakes up around 8, naps from 10-12 and 2-4, and goes to bed around 8:30. She's dropped a nap and is staying awake for longer durations without being cranky. She's really into eating the solid foods! She loves cheese, turkey, chicken, bananas, green beans, and egg whites (had those for the first time Easter morning). It's nice that she can pretty much eat whatever is off of our plates (just cut into tiny bites). This girl will try anything and for the most part, like it! She likes to eat...just like her mom! It will soon be time to start weaning from breastmilk to whole milk. I'm kind of sad about that process. Adelyn is not walking yet, although she has stood alone for a few seconds here lately. She cruises and always wants to stand. We'll have a walker before we know it!

Her first Easter was a lot of fun! I tell you, holidays have always been wonderful, but I enjoy them even more with a child. We went to my parents' house for the weekend. On Saturday, we took Adelyn to an Easter Egg Hunt at my parents' church. The darn thing started at 2 and the hunt really didn't get going until 3:15. Adelyn just couldn't make it through the whole event. She's gotta have that afternoon nap! Mom and I went to Sunrise Service on Lake Wylie Sunday morning. It was beautifull! When we came home, we "hid" (placed 4 eggs together in the grass) eggs for Adelyn to find. She loved her basket of goodies and as soon as she got hold of the eggs, they went straight to her mouth. We must have not used the right kind of dye, because it died her lips and hands. It was hilarious- it looked like lipstick! We went to Hickory for Easter lunch at my aunt Betty's. It was great to see my grandmother. We then drove to Dawsonville for supper with Seth's family. They were also hunting eggs, so she got to put another one in her mouth.

My mom, Adelyn, and I went to Highlands for a couple of days. We had great weather and enjoyed shopping and eating! Great girls trip! My mom is tickled because Adelyn can say "Nana". It's probably because of bananas, but it thrills her nonetheless. She says she's going to start wearing bananas around her neck so Adelyn will always point to her and say it.

Adelyn loves Riley and Peri. Peri will let her do anything, but Riley runs when Adelyn comes near. He won't tolerate the hair pulling and paw tugging.

Adelyn in her car

This sweet man at our church had 8 bunnies. Melissa and I took Emily, Thomas, and Adelyn to see them. Emily held and pet 4 bunnies in her lap the entire time. Thomas was kind of scared of them, but then warmed up to them. Adelyn didn't know what to think! She pet them a few times and played peek-a-boo with her dress (not very ladylike!). She was grouchy, so we didn't get a cute picture of all 3 cousins. :(

Adelyn, Nana, and Grandeddy at Steele Creek Presbyterian

Look what the Easter Bunny left! Books!

Easter Eggs!

In Hickory with my grandmother

Emily and Adelyn at Papa's

Adelyn playing the piano at Papa's

She loves to play with kitchens. I always find her playing the ones in the church nursery or gym daycare. Here she is in Highlands.

Nana, Adelyn, and me in Highlands

9 months old

2010-02-22T11:04:00.011-05:00

Adelyn went for her 9 month check up and she weighed 20 pounds 14.5 ounces (79th percentile), is 31 inches long (100th percentile -woah, she's long!!), and her head circumference is 17.5 inches (60th percentile). Right when she turned 9 months old, she started crawling on all fours like a champ. She's saying "mama", "dada", "bye", and "hey". Often, she'll say "mama" in her growling voice. We're working on animal sounds. She can moo like a cow, growl like a lion, hiss like a snake, and owwwww like a wolf. This is not always on command though....still working on that part! :) I still firmly believe she's going to be a silly girl! She waves at everything- people, animals, trees, or nothing at all. Her wave is very dainty (lots of wrist movement). She's also into pointing at everything. She has gotten 2 more teeth for a total of 5 (new ones are on either side of her top middle teeth). Adelyn likes to clear things....she'll take every book off the shelf, every toy out of a basket, or every object off the coffee table.

Seth had race #2 of the Grand Am season in Miami (Homestead). Bobby, Brenda, Seth, Adelyn, and I all went down for 2 nights. Adelyn was a real trooper! She was way off her nap schedule for basically 3 days, but was such a good girl. I was really proud of her. I have to say, I'd NEVER go on that trip without help! Brenda was with me all the time helping. Bobby and Brenda even had Adelyn sleep in their hotel room the night before Seth's race so that Seth could get uninterrupted sleep. She slept through the night, but the coughs and various noises she makes wakes you up from time to time. We'll keep learning the tricks of "how to take an infant to the race track". Seth finished 4th! They started from the back, so that was quite an accomplishment! We had a great time!

Valentine's Day- Bobby and Brenda kept Adelyn overnight and Seth and I spent the night in Buckhead. We stayed at the St. Regis and had dinner at Chop's. It was a wonderful night out!

Our house in the snow

Adelyn climbed the stairs for the first time (2/19)

My parents came in town. We went to the World of Coca Cola. It was the first pretty day we'd had in quite some time!

Adelyn with the Coca Cola Polar Bear

Adelyn and Seth at the track (her onesie says Future Grand Am Racer- thanks Amber and Shaun!!)

Seth, Adelyn, and Brenda right before the race

8 months old

2010-02-06T07:25:00.016-05:00

What happened to my little baby?? She's a toddler! Adelyn is ALL over the place! She is crawling- been doing the army crawl for over a month now. I don't know if she'll ever get on all fours! She can go from sitting to crawling and from crawling to sitting. She is also pulling up on everything! All she wants to do is stand up! This has kind of created some issues for nap time! She wakes up and sees the rail. It's too tempting. She immediately stands up and then won't go back down. Her naps are getting shorter because it's too much fun to stand and play instead! Adelyn is such a good eater! She'll eat anything I put in front of her. She really likes avocado, bananas, and yogurt. It's fun to experiment with new foods! She's getting her two top teeth in. One is halfway out and the other one is well on its way. Adelyn claps her hands now. Finally, all the patty cake has paid off! I am keeping Charlie (she's 6 months old) two days a week. Adelyn and Charlie are beginning to somewhat play together (i.e grab each other's toys or pat each other). It's so cute! I also got another tutoring student. Now I'm up to 4 kids per week! Yay for extra income! I am lucky to have Brenda keep her twice a week for me. I miss teaching, and this gives me a little taste of it. The kids are really sweet.

We went with Seth's family to Montana January 15-23. Emily and Thomas had a stomach bug the day before we left. By the end of the trip, Brenda, Melissa, and Bert also got it. Additionally, Martha (Seth's aunt) had a severe case of strep throat. Seth, Adelyn, and I slept in the basement and took day trips away. Luckily, we never got it! It was a great trip- Adelyn's first trip to Montana in the snow. Bert, Melissa, Seth and I went snowmobiling. It was a fun little adventure away from the kiddos! Here is the link to view the pictures: http://www.kodakgallery.com/gallery/creativeapps/slideShow/Main.jsp?token=329391871506%3A67706500

Adelyn and I went to Tega Cay to see my family while Seth was in Daytona. We got a lot of snow, so we pretty much just stayed at the house. We did venture up to Hickory to see my grandmother. She just celebrated her 95th birthday!! Seth had his first Continental Tire race with Bimmerworld. He and his teammate came in 2nd!! Woo-hoo! Additionally, Seth got the opportunity to race in the 24 Hours at Daytona! He raced with 3 other guys and they finished 15th. I really wish I could have been at those races, but I don't think Adelyn would have enjoyed it so much. Next time, when it's shorter racing, we'll be there to cheer him on in person! Here's Seth's blog: http://seththomasmotorsports.wordpress.com/

Adelyn will be 9 months tomorrow (Feb. 11) and I turned 32 today. I seriously don't know where the time is going. I'm loving every fast minute though!

Here's a link to a video of Adelyn splashing in the tub:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K6BqHlKGWmE

The three of us in Montana

Adelyn in her snowsuit

Yes!! My girl likes to shop! (day trip to Bigfork, MT)

Snow in Tega Cay

Uncle Joseph (who got a job by the way- congratulations!)

4 generations

7 months

2009-12-17T15:16:00.016-05:00

Happy New Year!!!

I don't know where to even begin updating! Adelyn is really becoming quite the character! I think she's going to be a little shy and a very silly- she's definitely a mix of Seth and me! The biggest thing she's been doing this month is crawling!! She was just scootching, but now she's so close to truly crawling! I have moved most of the toys upstairs to the playroom so she has plenty of room. She still only has her two bottom teeth, but I believe I feel a top one trying to come in. Her little cheeks and nose are always red and she's so clingy some days!! Adelyn is also making some new....um, interesting noises. She growls. Like a dog. It's a deep growl that hurts my throat when I try to imitate it. It's hilarious! (see video below) I'm sure the precious "mama" and "dada" will come one of these days. For now, she growls and giggles. Seth has been making this one face at her since day one. He squints his eyes, opens his mouth, and nods his head up and down real fast. It's kind of like a silent laughing face. Adelyn imitates him. It is hilarious! The more you laugh, the more she does it. She is too funny!

December was a busy month and we enjoyed experiencing Christmas with her (and she really enjoyed eating bows and paper). We went to my parents' house the weekend before Christmas and did Christmas with my mom's family on Saturday (Hickory, NC) and Christmas with my dad's family (Kernersville, NC) on Sunday. Both places had 6-8" of snow!! We spent Christmas in Cumming. This was the FIRST Christmas in my entire LIFE when I did not have to travel, and I must say it was pretty nice! We went to a candlelight service with Seth's mom on Christmas Eve and had dinner at his parents' house. On Christmas morning, it was just Seth, Adelyn, and myself...our little family! Seth's parents and Papa came by to see us too! We did Christmas night at Seth's grandfather's, and did Christmas with his parents the next morning. Then, my parents and brother came in town for 2 nights. I loved spreading it out and celebrating Christmas so many times with so many special people!

I hope everyone has had a great start to 2010!! Racing season is about to begin....check out Seth's blog to see what exciting things are in store!! http://seththomasmotorsports.wordpress.com. I posted several pictures below and the link to a gazillion more on kodakgallery http://www.kodakgallery.com/gallery/creativeapps/slideShow/Main.jsp?token=293278801506%3A356289453

Randy moved to Spain, but was home for almost a month! I got to see lots of her! :)

Randy, Adelyn, Laura, and I went to Birmingham to meet CeCe (Amy's precious baby)

Christmas card picture- this is so us! Adelyn looks at the dogs, the dogs look at Adelyn....

Pugh reunion- Mae and Adelyn playing

Santa at the Pugh Reunion

Adelyn with the Outlet Mall Santa (and he was great!!)

Hickory- Adelyn's first time in the snow!

The McComb cousins- Riley, Harris, Noah, and Adelyn (Bryna and Carson couldn't make it, so we're missing Ms. Rylan)

The Turner (all girl!) cousins (Emma, Ellie, Adelyn, Anna, and Madeline)

Christmas morning- Adelyn rides her new rocking horse!

Christmas night at Papa's

Christmas at Seth's parents' house (Adelyn loves her new transportation from Grandma and Grandpa!)

Grandma and Adelyn

I walked home from his parents' house so she could go for a test drive

Nana and Grandeddy gave her a rocking chair

Dinner with my family

A day in the life.....

Half a year old!!

2009-11-30T22:57:00.005-05:00

Adelyn just keeps changing! This month is flying by and I can't get over all the changes she goes through! I can't imagine being a baby and experiencing so much. She is sitting up like a champ. She rolls all the time to get to whatever she needs or wants. She is even starting to get up on her elbows and knees. She hasn't really started the scootching too much...yet! Adelyn will try to wave now. It's so cute! She has even given us kisses. They are super slobbery (which means they'll last longer, right?).

She's made improvements on the eating! She will open her mouth like a little bird waiting for the next bite! She spits it back out sometimes, but for the most part gets it down. Why do babies learn to make the "pbbbbbbttttt" sound at the SAME time that they learn to eat?? So far, she's had peas, apples, sweet potatoes, pears, squash (the least favorite), and bananas. I have this appliance (Beaba- check it out http://www.beabausa.com/) that steams and blends food. It's SO easy! I love knowing exactly what's going in her food. Plus, it saves money!

Adelyn is getting two teeth (her middle bottom ones). It hasn't affected her sleeping (I always heard stories of people up all night with their teething babies). She just acts extra clingy and a little fussy. I guess that's how I'd act too if I didn't really know how to deal with the pain. They're sharp little suckers!

Thanksgiving was great! Adelyn and I went to Tega Cay for almost a week. Seth met us in Hickory. It was a pretty cool day because four of my cousins have had a baby since January and this was the first time we've all gotten together. Riley (10 months), Adelyn (6 months), Harris (4 months), and Rylan (3 months) were all so well behaved (plus Noah- 4 years old). My grandmother was pleased to no end having them all there. She's 94! Adelyn was a bit under the weather (bad cold), so we left shortly after we ate. Unfortunately, we didn't get a picture of all the kids together. :( Maybe at Christmas!!

At Adelyn's 6 month check up, she weighed 17 pounds 13.5 ounces (82nd percentile....she's gone down in the percentile department....I guess from moving around a little more!). She's 28 1/2 inches (still 99th percentile). Her head circumference was 17 inches (70th percentile).

I've started keeping another baby two days a week. It's been so much fun! I think it's good for them to be around each other. Charlie is 3 months old and just precious. I am also tutoring two kids each week. Seth is done with racing (but starts back up in January) so we've been able to have our weekends together. It's been nice! We went to Highlands, NC and Charleston, SC. We're looking forward to Christmas. I've had fun decorating our new house! This will be a special Christmas for our little family! I certainly feel thankful for all we've been blessed with.

Dry Falls hike in Highlands

Highlands- Janie and Adelyn playing together

Seth and I got a night out in Charleston. My parents kept Adelyn while we went to my friend Heather's wedding celebrations

Adelyn playing at the Cistern (College of Charleston)

Adelyn and Seth in Hickory over Thanksgiving. You can tell she doesn't feel well. :(

5 months old!

2009-10-30T11:56:00.013-04:00

I can't believe Adelyn will soon be 6 months old! It kind of makes me sad....I love her being a little baby! She is changing all the time...every day her world gets a little bigger! She is sitting up and improves daily. She can sit up good for about 30 seconds and sometimes can sit up and look around the room without toppling over. When she falls, she's totally unphased. It's so funny that she doesn't cry. She'll land crooked on her tummy, straighten out her legs, and play with whatever is in front of her. Speaking of, she always wants whatever is in front of her, whether it's hers or mine. She loves to have something in those hands! She's so curious!

We have started feeding her rice cereal. We tried it for the first time Oct. 24. She didn't do so hot the first time, but is getting MUCH better! I give it to her after the noon feeding. I mix the cereal with breastmilk and she seems to like it. I plan on making my own baby food, so it will soon be time to start making fruit and veggies for her!

She doesn't feed herself....she's just playing with the spoon!

Seth and I took our first trip (just the two of us) without Adelyn at the beginning of October. We went to his last race and year end ceremony in Monterey, CA and then spent a couple days in Sonoma. I missed Adelyn tremendously. However, we still had a wonderful time and it was good for Seth and me. It was also good for her. I truly believe a happy home is a happy mom and dad...not just happy baby! She can be a bit of a momma's girl. I'm with her all the time and I'm her food source. I'm happy that she loves me so much, but she needs to be able to stay with others. She was with my mom, brother, Martha, and Seth's parents. From what I hear, she did great! That pleased me to no end. We were grateful for all their help an knowing that she was in good hands. Here are pictures from our trip:

http://www.kodakgallery.com/gallery/creativeapps/photoPicker/albums.jsp

Seth and I took Adelyn to the pumpkin patch (Kinsey Farms). Here are pictures:

http://www.kodakgallery.com/gallery/creativeapps/photoPicker/albums.jsp