Chris & Jessica Nichols Blog

Katherine - 8 months old

2011-08-04T09:24:00.000-05:00

This is her 8 month picture taken sometime in May (or early June!)! She is crawling all over the place, standing, eating some solid/soft food, and the happiest kid ever known. She is spoiled by her teachers at school, and they always tell me how happy she is every day. She is happiest just in her diaper, as you can see!

On the move! Laughing the entire time!

Happy Father's Day!

2011-08-04T09:21:00.000-05:00

We did manage to celebrate Father's day at home this year. We didn't get any great pictures, but below Riley is "helping" daddy open his gifts!

I don't think Riley was all that impressed with the battery pack that attaches to the camera that daddy wanted! It's not the toy she was expecting!

California

2011-08-04T09:18:00.000-05:00

I'm loosing my mind, because I just realized I have a couple of post with pictures loaded, but I never posted them, so here goes. The second week of June, Chris had a meeting in California, where his boss/VP is located, and they invited me to come out for the weekend. I flew out on a Thursday afternoon, met Chris, worked from the hotel Friday, and we played Saturday. It was a quick trip, but lots of fun. I didn't take too many pictures, but there was one event worth sharing.

Below, this is some of the coast line in Laguna Beach. We were staying in Orange County, just south of LA. They were also in the middle of "June gloom", which it's basically overcast every day until 3-5 pm, and the clouds roll back in every morning.

So the fun excursion we did on Saturday, was Captain's Dave Dolphin and Whale Safari. I found this via Trip Advisor, and it was totally worth it. Captain Dave takes you out on his boat to this huge pod of dolphins, 500-1000 of them, and they just swim right up next to the boat. It's hard to capture still pictures, because the boat is moving, along with the dolphins swimming and jumping. It was the coolest thing to see.

Along with the dolphins, there are blue whales in this area, and at the end of our excursion, we finally saw it blow through it's blow hole, and were able to take the boat out, and get a glimpse of it. It was impossible to capture via camera, but his website has some great videos. If you are ever in the Orange County area, we highly recommend this fun adventure.

Happy 6th Birthday Miss Millie

2011-07-11T16:11:00.000-05:00

Millie turned 6 years old, on May 11. We dearly love this 6.5 lb. bundle of joy, but I'm not so sure she loves us, now that we have interrupted her sleepy time, and invited small ones to pull at her tail, and eat her toys, bones, and dog food. Yes, both girls have tried all 3, multiple times!

Miss Millie has taken over the bunny chair my friend Valery gave the girls. It's her spot all day long until the girls get home. She is the queen of the house!

Miss Millie: "You woke me up. This is the best smile I'm giving."

Goodnight.

Memorial Day weekend

2011-07-11T16:07:00.000-05:00

We spent the extended Memorial Day weekend in Columbus, and from the appearance of the pictures, all we did was swim. That's not entirely true, we did grill out, attend church, play other outside games, etc, but all that was documented, was at the pool.

Riley has to show her GG exactly what she wants. She gives instructions VERY WELL!

Quick time-out to take a picture...

Katherine is not so sure about her new toy.

...back to splashing!

More splashing. Katherine loves the water. Bath or pool, it doesn't matter!

Riley playing with her KK.

Hey Renee! Smile for the camera.

Hey GG! Thanks for letting us come play!

Pops letting Katherine put her toes in the water, with clothes on. Not so sure if these stayed on, or she went swimming with them!!

Pure happiness.

1...2...3...JUMP!

Time for someone other than daddy to take pictures.

Yep, she's happy most anytime, anywhere, with anyone!

Future cheerleader in training! She's got good help! :)

Notice her sticking her tongue out again.

Katherine - 7 months old

2011-07-11T15:58:00.000-05:00

Also, during the month of April, Katherine celebrated her 7-monthday! It has gotten harder and harder to get a picture of her, because she moves so fast. Her at home measurements were 18.5 pounds and 28 inches long. She is crawling all over the place and cut her first 2 bottom teeth this month!

Last day of church school

2011-07-11T15:45:00.000-05:00

I've apparently only posted once about Riley attending the preschool at our church. It is an understatement that she loved it, even for only 2 days a week. Her friend/boy-friend/neighbor Jake was in her class, which was a blessing in so many ways. And the teachers, oh how wonderful they were. It makes me sad to think that she may not have any real memories of her preschool days, but we have pictures and adorable artwork to help.

May 12th was her last day of school, complete with a program full of singing and cookies afterwards. Here she is singing along with her class mates. She is second from left.

I'm pretty sure this was the "Dinosaur Song". Still have no clue what the words were! Luckily we also have the program on video, and it's worth a laugh.

Riley with Mrs. Marva, the assistant teacher, but Riley had her wrapped around her little finger. As a testament to how wonderful these people are, Mrs. Marva and her husband have a great Italian restaurant in Germantown, and right after I got out of the hospital from the mastitis nightmare, she had me call in whatever dinner I wanted and delivered it to my house. She had only been Riley's teacher for maybe a month at the time, but we love her.

Riley and Mrs. Denise, her teacher. Thanks ladies for teaching this little one so much, and she had a wonderful time. We will miss you all very much!

Easter 2011

2011-07-11T14:53:00.000-05:00

Rewind back to the end of April, Easter Sunday to be exact. That's where I've left off blogging, and will attempt to catch back up.

Riley insisted on Saturday, she wanted a blue dress to wear to church, so off I went shopping, and thankfully, the shopping fairy provided! Let me also add, that she is going through the "I will do nothing to cooperate and have a cute picture taken" moment. She's looking at the camera, and an exaggerated smile would be too much to request!

Katherine on the other hand is just happy with life!

Riley giving mommy some kisses.

After many, many attempts, this was the best we got. We tried for a picture of the 4 of us, using the tripod, and remote for the camera, but no, it just wasn't in the cards this particular day. I do love these two though.
**Notice Katherine barely sticking out her tongue. She's a ham!

Collection of phone pictures

2011-06-23T10:34:00.000-05:00

It's been months since I've done a blog post to post all the random phone pictures I take. I typically just post them to Facebook, but I *think* I have a few non-Facebook readers, and I like to use this blog as a scrapbook/archiving system! Most of these are actually in order, surprise surprise!

Warning, I am aware some of these are blurry. These 2 girls don't sit still long enough to capture some of these moments with perfect clarity!

Riley modeling her tutu her Aunt KK got her for Christmas. Yes, Christmas, I'm way behind!

Katherine playing in her exersaucer.

At the doctor's office with her doctor kit Nana B and Granddaddy got her for Christmas. Dr. Mitchell was impressed with her skills!

Pushing her "mow mow", a term stolen from her friend Jake!

Katherine is the happiest kid I've ever seen. She loves to laugh all the time!

Laying on the couch with doggy (I assume watching Dora the Explorer). Doggy was given to Riley from granddaddy and hasn't left her side since. He goes to preschool with her, in the car, kitchen table, etc.

Who knew toes were to tasty?!! And check out those rolls, I just love them!

Playing together in Riley's room. Riley doesn't quite understand Katherine aka "Baby" can't play with her just yet, but she can't wait for that day!

She squishes up her nose all the time. It's her favorite face and noise to make, and we laugh all the time!

Swinging at Pop's house.

It's a hard life sometimes.

Prepared for all weather, snow, sun, rain, and silly the whole time.

Walking Millie holding Jake's hand. These two are best friends and just precious together.

Perhaps a sign of some jealousy? And yes, she can still fit in this infant seat, minus her height!

Playing at Jake's house in the tent. They were "napping". Each cover the other one up, just precious. John is investigating the fun.

Easter egg hunt in our yard with Jake and John.

Someone found a big water puddle after a morning rain. She soon learned the term "soaking wet" and now says it all the time.

Learning to eat finger foods.

The girls, all 3 of them, love this bunny chair. Millie sleeps in it during the day when the girls are gone. Katherine crawls all over it, and lowers her head into it like she is wrestling, and Riley likes to sit in it to watch tv. Something on tv cought KG's attention, but she won't let go of the chair.

Mmmm, first corn on the cob. She kept reaching out for more!

Summertime, headed to the neighbor's pool.

She loves to swing, just like her big sister.

Mouth full of bubbles.

Splashing in the pool Mrs. Bobbie, our neighbor gave them.

Playing in the sprinklers at Jake's house, trying to beat the heat.

Supporting the Bulldogs.

Chris actually took this picture on his camera during a sick day home with Riley. This is her personality at her best!

Chilling in her highchair while I make dinner.

Someone wants to help me cook.

What's under here?

Walking around the table. She'll be fully walking in no time!

Playing in the living room. I would say excuse the mess, but this is the standard decor of our living room!

Playing at the doctor's office. She is truly happy most all the time.

I'm having a hard time moving pictures. This should be up at the top, but Riley loves to try and hold Katherine.

Baby food making

2011-06-10T17:32:00.000-05:00

One thing I learned with Riley was the ease of making baby food at home, and how much cheaper it is. I know not all kids are the same, but both of my girls LOVE to EAT! Aside from the cost aspect, I was able to spend a few hours on the weekend, and puree it all, start it freezing, and I had a month or more in the freezer, on hand. Riley came to prefer the homemade food over store bought! I used this site, Wholesome Baby Food, as my info guide, and Riley and KG's taste do the rest!

I typically make sweet potatoes, butternut squash, carrots, pears, peaches, bananas, and pear pineapple. I tried beans and peas, but couldn't ever get them smooth enough with the skins with Riley. Haven't attempted with Katherine.

**I started typing up this blog weeks ago. I recently did summer yellow squash, zucchini, yukon gold potatoes as well.

I was never smart enough to take pictures and blog it when I made it for Riley, but I did take some pictures a few ~~weeks ago~~ months ago when making more for Katherine.

Baby carrots, in the steamer, not hard.

I also did peaches this day. I admit, I buy can peaches, in fruit juice. Both girls ate them great, and so much cheaper than buying.

Also, I got this food processor for Christmas, and I love it!

Everyone needs a helper in the kitchen!

Pour into ice cube trays, pop into freezer, store in gallon ziplock bags, and done!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Vacation - Washington DC

2011-06-10T17:22:00.000-05:00

I'm just now getting around to posting pictures of DC, and Chris took a ton of which I had to pull from. This was my first trip to DC, and I was totally impressed. Everything was much larger in scale than what I had anticipated, but very cool to experience.

Chris is a great photographer, and all of these he took. Yes, we saw a lot, and not close to half of it is included below. This is just a sample of our trip.

Jefferson Memorial at night. Our first day, we took a night tour, which was really pretty.

Lincoln Memorial at night.

This is the ceiling of the capitol. It is very ornate, and this picture doesn't quite capture just how tall it is. But the artwork is so beautiful.

Supreme Court.

That's Chris way up there in the blue shirt!

Arlington National Cemetery: Kennedy's.

Ted Kennedy

Changing of the guards

Such a great picture

Another fabulous pictures.

National Cathedral

Washington Monument

Marine One, as it flew over the Washington Monument, right before we went up for the tour.

View from Washington Monument

Vietnam Memorial

Vacation - Boston

2011-05-11T11:01:00.000-05:00

Not sure if you read the post on Chris's 30th birthday, but his big present was a trip for the two of us to Boston and Washington DC. He was very adamant he didn't want a big party, just a vacation for us, so I suggested Boston for a couple of days. The weekend I suggested just so happened to be the Red Sox vs. the Yankees, which is THE GAME to attend, and it was only a couple of weeks after his special day. After a little research, he suggested a full week and take the train to DC since I'd never been. Done and Done!

This post is just a few of the pictures that were taken. Please remember one of Chris's hobbies is photography, so I had my own paparazzi following me along every where I went! :)

Our first night, we did a Ghost and Gravestone's Tour. It was quite entertaining, and offered some interesting history on this historical city. Worth the price of admission!

Gravestone of Paul Revere.

I think this is taken from Boston Common, while on our Ghost and Gravestone's tour. Forgive me if my location is incorrect!

On Sunday, before the big game that night, we took the T, which is the subway, up to Cambridge and visited the campus of MIT and Harvard. Here is the Stata Center building right in the middle of MIT's version of our Drill Field. It was quite unique, we saw some very impressive robots from the window view.

Just 2 more stops north on the T, was Harvard. It was very impressive, and had a beautiful campus. Sadly, I never came across Matt Damon or Ben Affleck.

The Harvard Library

Now onto Fenway. Early Saturday morning, before Cambridge, we got tickets for the Fenway Park Batting Practice tour. It included a brief 20 minute tour of the stadium, history, walk on the field for pictures, and then time on the Green Monster while the Red Sox were having BP. Although we didn't come home with a ball, it was a great experience, and Chris's highlight of the trip!

His field picture. Please excuse the shaded face due to ball cap.

Just after BP, still up on the Monster.

Game time!

Plate meeting of the umpires.

One of the highlights of the game was getting to see Jonathan Paplebon come out and close the game. Being a former bulldog, it was quite exciting to cheer him on the field, and the Red Sox won!

Monday and Tuesday we spent touring more of the city, and we have tons, and TONS of pictures, but these are just some highlights.

Here is the finish line of the Boston Marathon painted on the road, just of Copley Square . They were already setting up this week, as the marathon was the following weekend.

The highlight of Boston for me was seeing Trinity Church. As some of you may or may not know, I was raised in the Episcopal Church, so being able to see this church, with it's magnificent architecture and history was so impressive.

Here is the front of the church.

A second church we visited was Old South Church, which is also in Copley Square. It's a more Roman Gothic design, but still quite magnificent.

We enjoyed lunch on Tuesday at Union Oyster House, which we had the clam chowder, and I'd take more now please! Delicious!

Boston was fantastic. Now onto DC...

Katherine - 6 months old

2011-05-09T21:22:00.000-05:00

Just like before, rewind back to March 17, which is when Katherine turned 6 months old. I must admit this picture was taken almost 3 weeks later, but I'm still happy it was taken! At her 6 month mark, she was in the 95% in height, and down to 50% in weight. She got her height from Mr. Wayne's side of the family, because none of the rest of us are tall by any means! :)

At 6 months, Katherine LOVES to laugh, and has a special love for chewing on her toes! She is almost crawling by this point, but not quite yet. She is truly a joy of a baby, always happy, and loves to EAT!

Riley's first haircut & Sesame Street Live!

2011-05-04T15:42:00.000-05:00

Somewhere towards the end of March, we took Riley to get her first haircut. Please understand, this child was bald (like her mother) at her first birthday, so it took a while until she was due for a haircut. Finally, she was telling me it was bothering her, so it was time. She did great, and was more bothered by the hair clips to hold her hair back, than the actual scissors.

Before:

During:

After!!

Dahlia (the same person I use) didn't cut much, because let's face it, she didn't have enough to loose, but she shaped it and it's so cute now. Riley's hair changes so much during the day, and it's in ringlets by the end of the day. I hope it stays this way!

That evening, she and I got to go to Sesame Street Live! at the FedEx Forum, and were in the IP box. At the time the tickets were given to me that week, our VP admin probably didn't know I'd turned in my notice that I'd be leaving IP, but oh well. Riley had a great time!

Chris's 30th birthday

2011-05-04T15:33:00.000-05:00

Since Chris was celebrating a big milestone birthday, we already had a trip planned to Boston and DC for his official present. Our trip wasn't until April, and there will be pictures posted soon, but I wanted his actual birthday to be celebrated. He was adament he didn't want a party of any sort, so I sorta obliged. He just wanted his family to come up on Sunday, have some cake, and be very low key.

His parents came up on Saturday to spend a little extra time with us and the girls, so I arranged for dinner at Firebirds, and our friends Cager, Maris, and April to join in (Matt had other commitments). I made sure to have a cake at the restaurant. Riley helped daddy with his candles!

So on Sunday, his grandparents and Karan came up to spend the day. We took the girls to the park in the morning before all going to lunch together. I think more than the little girls had fun, hehe!

I made sure to have a second cake for the Sunday celebration, and Riley assisted a second time as well! He was lucky enough to get some money towards his new iPad2, and other accessories for his soon to be toy!

Happy 30th from your wife (whose looking quite rough in the picture below!)

Zoo Trip

2011-05-04T15:12:00.000-05:00

So the Saturday of Chris's birthday, we decided to have an outing to the zoo, get a family membership, and enjoy a morning outside.

The polar bear was in full entertaining mode, making lap after lap in front of the glass. At one point, he changed directions and came right at Riley and Chris, which was both awesome, and sorta scary at the same time.

Oh, that water looks so tempting!

Katherine - 5 months old

2011-05-04T13:36:00.000-05:00

Rewind back to February 17th. That's the day Katherine turned 5 months old. Not to be confused when this picture was taken. It was probably a few weeks later, but it was within the correct month!

At 5 months old, Katherine was trying her hardest to crawl, but hadn't gotten it figured out yet. I was trying to pick out an outfit for the photoshoot, but as you can see, she's much happier sans clothes!

This kid can make some of the funniest faces I've ever seen. There will be more expressions posted soon.

Children's Museum of Memphis

2011-02-05T20:49:00.000-06:00

Since winter refuses to leave us any opportunity to escape the indoors, I decided we would check out the Children's Museum of Memphis today. Unfortunately, Chris returned from a week long trip to Tucson last night, and has been sick, running a fever all day long. So, it was a girls day outing, and we had a great time.

Riley on the firetruck.

Working on her fishing skills. I was afraid she would try and jump in because she loves water, and all things splashing!

Katherine cuddling Riley's sweater, and taking a nap. Too much stimulation!

Riley practicing her pilot skills at the FedEx display!

It was a great outing, and nice to do something new. We will be returning! Both girls were very tired.

Katherine - 4 months old

2011-02-05T20:36:00.000-06:00

Yet again, I'm late posting, but at least a full month hasn't lapsed in time! Katherine turned 4 months old January 17, and these pictures were at least taken that same week! At her 4 months checkup she weighed 14 pounds 1 oz, and was 26 inches long. That put her in the 95% in height, and somewhere in the 70-75% in weight. She's our little chunky monkey!

We are still dealing with her reflux and never ending spit up. I've been putting rice cereal in every bottle since Christmas, in hopes to train the muscle to close and quit allowing her to spit up so much. It is helping some, but it hasn't solved everything.

She has come to love her exersaucer, as pictured below. She can roll over like a champ, right or left, and front to back. She still sleeps through the night, on her stomach, which is such a blessing. Riley never slept through the night until she was over 6 or 7 months old.

She is easily entertained by almost anything, but has a short attention span. 20 minutes on any activity, and she's ready for a change, which keeps us busy constantly changing things up for her!

Weekend at Nana B's

2011-01-18T20:06:00.001-06:00

We spent the 3 day weekend in Hattiesburg, which was our first official road trip. 5 1/2 hours in the car, lots of toys and Barney!

Riley was so tired Saturday night from playing, this is how I found her when I was going to bed myself. Please note her entourage!

Katherine taking a nap in daddy's arms. So sweet.

Riley helped Nana B with dinner.

Katherine and Granddaddy spending some quality time together. Sorry for the orange tint!

KG watching the football playoffs, bottle in hand!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Let it Snow!

2011-01-12T21:28:00.001-06:00

On Sunday, when we were home waiting on the snow, Riley and I finally got around to making our ginger bread house. We had a fun time, and she points out "my house" multiple times a day now, as it sits on our bakers rack.

Chris took Riley up to the Town Square right when it started to snow, and I just love this picture!

Chris measured 4 inches of snow on our back table. It was beautiful, and probably the best snow I can remember. Riley wasn't sure what to think of it. She mostly just wanted to walk around in it.

Peek-a-boo!!! I love those blue eyes!

Katherine is trying to convince her daddy to let her play!

Our back yard is covered, and you can't even see the rocks around the flower beds.

She didn't understand the concept of throwing snow, but she rubbed it on daddy's jacket.

Christmas 2010

2011-01-12T21:08:00.001-06:00

Wow, I can't believe how fast 2010 flew by, but Christmas was very busy at our house. We had 3 different celebrations, and I've got a load of pictures to share. We stayed at home enjoyed both families traveling to visit.

The mantel. Katherine's stocking from my grandmother will be ready to hang next year, but she had her Baby's First Christmas stocking this year. Next on my list is to find an iron decorative Christmas card holder I can put on the wall. Our mantel can't hold all our cards and display them properly.

Riley and I started a fun tradition of making cookies for Santa. I hope this is something we can do each Christmas Eve, because she really got into it.

Quality control, of course!

Her preschool class at church sent home "reindeer food" to scatter in the yard. I don't think she quite understood the reindeer, but she had fun putting out the food for them.

Our attempt at a family photo right before the Christmas Eve service.

Ready for bed, and Santa's milk and cookies are in place.

Christmas morning - the first thing Riley checked was to make sure Santa ate his milk and cookies, and of course he did! :) Here she is opening her presents with us, and Katherine is in her chair behind us.

Katherine and her daddy spending some quality time during all the craziness.

After we had our family Christmas, Chris's family arrived about 10 am, and we enjoyed round 2 of the Christmas celebration.

Katherine during a diaper change. Ready for more fun!

The Columbus crew just spend the day with us, and my family arrived on Sunday, and we started round 3 as soon as they got here! Riley is passing out the presents...

...and helping open.

Katherine is focused on her present in her granddaddy's lap.

Uncle David enjoying some quality time with Katherine.

Story time with Uncle David.

Time to go night night, giving out her hugs and kisses.

Katherine Grace - 3 months old

2011-01-12T20:30:00.000-06:00

Katherine turned 3 months old on December 17, and I'm almost a month late posting this picture, but I'm trying my best! These measurements were taken at home, so they could be slightly off, but it was the best I could do. We go to the pediatrician for her 4 month checkup next week, so I'll have official numbers then. At 3 months old, she was starting to smile and coo, and make the cute baby noises. She was enjoying her play mat more and more. She was already in the 3-6 months clothes. She is bigger than Riley was at this age, and therefore growing out of her clothes quicker than Riley, so that's been a challenge for me, to switch out her clothes earlier.

Big sister insisted on having her picture taken during the photo shoot. You can see Katherine's enthusiasm!

Christmas Card 2010

2011-01-04T20:55:00.000-06:00

Here is our Christmas Card we sent out this year.

Katherine - 2 months old

2011-01-04T20:40:00.000-06:00

Well, I was preparing to post a 3 month picture, and realized I'm so far behind on blogging, that I hadn't even blogged her 2 month picture, and she was 2 months on November 17th. She was 11.5 pounds and 23 inches long at her 2 month checkup, coming in somewhere in the 75 percentile. She got her shots, and while she screamed, I managed not to cry, but unlike her sister, she was very fatigued and lethargic the rest of the day. The pediatrician did increase her reflux medicine, and she had slept through the night maybe once at this point.

Play time!

2011-01-04T20:29:00.000-06:00

Here is another post of random pictures, but worth sharing.

Proof that Riley really does have hair!

Riley loves LOVES the park, and Chris has tries to take her as much as possible when the weather is nice, so she can get out and run, and have some one-on-one time. She is peeking through at daddy.

Sly grin!

Her favorite activity at the park... the swing. She will stay here for hours if we let her.

I've done dual bath time only a couple of times, but Chris captured this sweet moment. Riley still loves her baby sister, and hasn't had any major jealous moments. She is such a sweet big sister.

Katherine napping in her chair, while we were playing with Riley and raking the yard one afternoon.

My little helper.

Family Pictures

2011-01-04T20:17:00.001-06:00

Since I'm posting 2 months and more of pictures, unfortunately I'm not even sure exactly when some of these pictures were taken, but they are worth sharing.

Katherine taking a nap in her GG's arms. (GG is short for great-grandmother!)

I'm pretty sure Riley is reading the book to her KK. Riley is OBSESSED with books. The past couple of months, that's all she does. We have a living room full of toys, but she spends 95% of her time flipping through books, asking us to "read book mama", "I want dis book mama", etc. It does get old, but in reality, it's great that she's so interested. And although she may be looking away, or focused on something else while you are reading, she does hear us, and knows what we are saying. 20 minutes later, she'll talk about exactly what she "wasn't" paying attention too!

Riley is reading to her NayNay, and Katherine is having some special cuddle time. Renee was here the week before Christmas helping me out, while Chris was at a work staff meeting in California.

Sweet Millie in my lap, the afternoon of Katherine's baptism. I finally sat down, sans kid, so she took advantage of some Mama Time!

Katherine snoozing with her Uncle David.

The next 4 pictures, we took on Saturday afternoon, after we ate Thanksgiving with my family, and before Katherine's baptism on Sunday. We have a very old log cabin at the Collierville Square, and we used this as our backdrop. For 15+ years, my family has always taken our family picture mom uses for the Christmas card on Thanksgiving weekend, so this was also us getting that picture.

Uncle David and his 2 nieces. You can see Riley was enjoying smiling for the camera!

Us trying to get a picture of the 4 of us. It's become impossible almost!

Proud grandparents.

This was the picture my parents used. Chris is nice enough to setup his tripod, and he has a remote he has behind my back to take the pictures. So sneaky, yet so functional! Thanks Chris.

Katherine's Baptism 11-21-2009 and Thanksgiving

2011-01-04T10:08:00.006-06:00

We celebrated Katherine's baptism the week before Thanksgiving, but since my parents were in town, we did an early Thanksgiving with them as well. We did Thanksgiving Thursday with Chris's family, who made a return trip to Collierville for lunch.

Baptism pictures:

Pastor Angela did the service for us, and we greatly appreciate it!

Chris bought a turkey fryer for us to use at Thanksgiving, so Saturday morning, first thing, assembly was required. I was impressed directions were used!

Katherine's birth announcement

2010-11-08T13:23:00.003-06:00

Even though she was 6 weeks old when I was finally able to get these done, at least I got them done! Somehow, life is a little busier these days!

Happy Halloween!

2010-11-05T12:15:00.006-05:00

I feel like we had Halloween for an entire month. Riley had projects at both her in-home daycare as well as church preschool, along with parties, a parade, multiple trips to pumpkin patches. Needless to say, the last couple of weeks of October were busy!

This is her assistant preschool teacher, Mrs. Marva, or as Riley says "Maarrr-ffaaaa." We took them to class in costume, and right after I dropped her off, she was playing with her zipper, and zipped her skin in it, and screamed and had a meltdown. No, I didn't put a t-shirt on her (a normal mom would have) because I thought she would be too hot. Mistake for mom. Well, all classes do a parade around the gym in their costumes, which ended up being adorable.

I mentioned our meltdown. See her class parade below. That's me, in the gray shirt, behind the line of kids holding Riley, because she was having none of it that morning. Poor girl.
In Riley's in-home daycare (M-W-F), they made Halloween shirts, and Kimberley was nice enough to make one for Katherine, so they would have matching shirts. You can't see Riley's all that well, but she uses their fingers as the pumpkins, and then finishes them up with the vines and names. Too cute! Riley insisted on wearing hers multiple times throughout the week.
Renee and Wayne, better known as Naynay and Pop came up to watch her trick-or-treat. Here they are decorating cookies.

Mooing with John and Jamie. Two cute cows!

Getting ready to head out, practicing our "moo".
Naynay and Pop, and even Katherine got out a little.
Jake and Riley.
Our neighbor Bobbie, with her dog Sissy and Riley.

Sitting around

2010-11-04T12:51:00.001-05:00

Can't believe she is ready for the Bumbo seat.

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Daddy's girls

2010-11-01T20:32:00.003-05:00

First visit from Granny

2010-11-01T19:59:00.003-05:00

My grandmother, Granny Ann, was able to come visit last week and meet Katherine. We had a fun visit, and picked up the stocking she will make for Katherine. See the other's she's made for us here. Along with play time and some shopping, we had a great visit with our former chaplain, Rev. Brian Ponder, who is at a church here in Memphis. Katherine slept through the whole 3 hour lunch visit!

Random iPhone pictures

2010-10-25T03:14:00.001-05:00

Most days it's much easier to grab a picture with one of our phones, than get Chris's camera. This is just a random collection I'll share.

We were headed to dinner the night before Katherine was born, and this is my last belly picture. Thankfully, I was smaller this time than with Riley. Sorry, I can't link to Riley belly pic from the phone.

Our final picture as a family of three.

Katherine a few days old, having already come to be aware of the camera, and how much we like to use it!

Riley helping me make cookies a few months ago.

She is her mother's daughter! Love me some cookie dough. Chris doesn't share my appreciation, which just means more for me!

Posing, but not thrilled about interrupting play time.

We made it to the first game, less than two weeks before Katherine was born. My doctor thought I was nuts for wanting to go, along with the rest of our families.

Katherine's "Oooo" face. Somewhere I have this same face posted of Riley at about this same age. It's so funny how they have some of the same traits!

Riley riding Chris's tractor at GG and Johnny's. (FYI, this was sent to me, I take no photo credit.)

Riley using her camera to take Katherine's picture, complete with her telling K to "say cheese"!

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Katherine - 1 month old

2010-10-17T20:16:00.003-05:00

Katherine turned 1 month old today. We were at the doctor's office on Friday with some reflux/stomach issues, and she weighed in at 9 lbs, 8 oz. She's gained almost 3 pounds in a month! CRAZY! We measured her at home, 21.5 in, so the length could vary slightly. She was 20.5 at birth.

So far, this first month, we are working on her sleeping. She has her days and nights figured out, but will only sleep in her car seat, her rocking chair/bouncy seat, or with us holding her. She hates being flat, which could be a product of her reflux, which we got medicine for 2 days ago, and is improving. Other than the sleeping issues, she's a very easy baby. She's not a fan of crying, just grunting, and the occasional whining, but only "screams" once a day, usually during wardrobe change. She could care less about all the noise in our house from the TV, dog, and everything 2 year old related. She is such a joy to have, and is a wonderful addition to our family.

Precious moments

2010-10-17T20:14:00.001-05:00

Fall Festival

2010-10-17T20:04:00.004-05:00

Last weekend, we went to the Agricenter, for the Fall Festival. They had lots of activities for Riley, and it was a great family outing.

She wanted to hold her sister for a picture. I just love these two girls!

They had pumpkin painting. Riley is becoming quite the artist at her daycare 3 days a week. She comes home with all sorts of artwork, so she enjoyed this activity.

She is such a ham. She won't smile, but will pretend to eat her pumpkin. Who knows where she comes up with this stuff!

They had a petting zoo with an assortment of animals. Of course she walks up to the goat and just sticks her hand at it's mouth without thinking twice.

And luckily they had a cow. She is obsessed with cows, and will be dressing up as one for halloween! I'm pretty sure if she could have hugged it, she would!

Hanging around the house

2010-10-17T19:42:00.002-05:00

So, I really do have a valid excuse for not being up to date on my blogging. After a relatively easy delivery, and escaping the stomach bug that many of the family got while visiting for Katherine's birth, I developed a very severe case of mastitis. I won't go into major details, but after about 5-6 days of severe pain, and my body not responding to 2 different antibiotics, I was admitted to the hospital for 48 hours for IV antibiotics. Katherine was 2 weeks old, and thankfully Chris's parents had taken Riley home with them the beginning of that week, because I was so sick. Luckily the IV helped, I recovered, and all is well again.

So with all the extra sickness, we've had additional help, which we couldn't have made it without. We have the best parents, who have been willing to do anything for us this past month. Chris and I have talked many times how blessed we are to have had so much help in getting over this rough patch.

Now, onto some pictures.

This first one needs no explanation. She's just a diva some days!

Nana B spending some quality cuddling time with KG.
Nana B and her 2 girls. Riley is still a big helper.
Riley has learned to "show your teeth" while taking pictures and saying "cheese". Precious! Katherine is showing off her skinny legs and feet!
Have I mentioned we have a diva? I can't say enough good things as to how Riley has adapted to "baby".

First moments for Katherine

2010-10-17T19:32:00.002-05:00

Her first bath on the Sunday, after she came home on Saturday from the hospital.

Had to capture the double chin, because she had no baby fat on her at all.

First family outing, the Monday after she was born We are all (not Millie) headed to the pediatrician's office for Katherine's first check-up, and the rest of us got our flu shots. So nice that the pediatrician's office offers parents flu shots.

Katherine was down to 6 lbs 8 oz at this check-up. She was born at 6 lbs 14 oz. No fear, she's mastered gaining weight. More on that to come.

Big sister

2010-09-25T06:52:00.002-05:00

So along with Katherine's arrival, came the big sister role for Riley. To be honest, we were more nervous about how Riley's world was about to change than bringing home a new baby. It would be an understatement to say Riley is a great big sister.

She came to visit at the hospital on Saturday morning, sporting her appropriate attire for the occasion.

Riley immediately wanted to hold "baby". Katherine is a mouthful, but we've got baby down to an art!

We were discharged Saturday afternoon (at my request I might add), and Riley greeted us at home before we could get to the front door!

Informing the family of the proper noise level suited for a new baby.

Riley, being the child of order that she is, she constantly is aware that Katherine's pacifier needs to be with her, or in her mouth at all times, the baby blanket is supposed to cover her up, not lay around. My boppy pillow belongs next to her. And she's a big help with diaper changes, etc. Riley has adjusted very well so far. I'm sure we'll have our moments, but thus far, she's done great at her new role!

Happy Birthday Katherine Grace!

2010-09-24T15:13:00.005-05:00

Katherine Grace Nichols arrived on September 17th, 1:42 pm, weighing 6 lbs 14 oz, and was 20.5 inches long. My delivery was very easy, and she's the most laid back child I've ever met.

10 year high school reunion

2010-09-24T15:08:00.002-05:00

The month of August was very busy for us. We had plans every weekend, and most all of them involved travel. I was 8+ months pregnant. Good times.

The last weekend of August was my 10 year high school reunion. It was fun getting to see my friends I grew up with, but it's funny with the world of blogging and Facebook, most of us have an idea of what everyone is up to. It's different than what our parents reunions are/were like.

I didn't take many pictures worthy of posting, but it was a good time had by all.

Baby Shower for Katherine Grace

2010-09-24T14:38:00.003-05:00

Lots has happened in our world the last few weeks, but in my true orderly fashion, I can't "skip" and not post things, so I'm making a hard effort to catch up and get current with my blogging duties.

So a few weeks ago, perhaps a month, our neighbors threw us a diaper shower for baby Katherine's upcoming arrival. We are so blessed to such great neighbors, not only next door, but around the neighborhood.

The women of our families also joined us, and we enjoyed a girls lunch together at my favorite restaurant on the square, Cafe Piazza.

These are the great neighbors I speak of. Debbie and LeAnn live next door, and Bobbie is just down the street.

Notice baby John. He is 3 months older than Katherine. They are future boyfriend/girlfriend! You'll meet Jake, John's older brother below.
The gift table. They also had a matted frame everyone signed welcoming Katherine.

Yummo cake!

Meet Jake, Riley's boyfriend. They are in the same preschool class together, and we warned the teacher that they might be hugging and kissing each other. They love to play together.

Happy 2nd Birthday Riley!

2010-09-11T22:21:00.003-05:00

We celebrated Riley's second birthday, on her special day, 8/14, in Columbus at Chris's parents house, where we were joined by my parents, brother, and grandmother. We had a fun afternoon with all the grandparents, opening presents, and then grilled out for dinner.

Riley was lucky enough to get to open a present after breakfast, to help get her day started.

Um, excuse me GG, please don't distract my present opening!

It's a new princess tent! Peek-a-boo!

Opening one of the many gifts that afternoon with the full family. It's a Barbie bike!

Checking out the new ride...

Look, I got a letter game from mom and dad!

This is the cake I made. It's one tier smaller than last years, but we sure did enjoy it.

The Family Tree

2010-08-16T21:50:00.002-05:00

Listing off the family, including pets...

Happy Birthday!

2010-08-11T10:39:00.000-05:00

Twinkle Twinkle Little Star

2010-08-09T20:21:00.000-05:00

I put Riley to bed most every night, and our routine is to rock for a few minutes, while I sing to her, then she goes to bed. So tonight, we give daddy his kisses, wave night night to Millie, and I head upstairs and sit in the rocker. I got one verse into Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, and she points, and wants in her bed. So I tuck her in, and she looks up and sings TTLS to me, as serious as she can! Melts my heart! Chris and I are enjoying the silence of the night in the living room, and she is still singing to herself.

It's the little things like these moments that make me proud to be a mom and wife!

Katherine's Nursery

2010-08-08T20:42:00.003-05:00

Now that we've introduced Katherine, here is her nursery. Our two "guest" rooms upstairs are full-on girlie! Riley's room is all pink, so I went with a purple theme for Katherine.

This is the door hanger Joy painted for us. She is very talented, and it is much appreciated.

It was my idea for the purple stripes, so we had a weekend in June where we tackled the project, and I must say, I love it! We successfully transitioned Riley out of her crib right after July 4th, and she loves her "big girl bed". Katherine now has the crib and chest of drawers ready, along with one of two closets dedicated to her.

The new bedding for the guest bed, and changing table.
The recliner in the corner is a gift from Chris's grandparents. Our old one is showing it's age, and Riley now prefers to rock before bedtime in this chair, before we go to her room to put her down.
This is the long dormer we have in both rooms, and Katherine's dormer is a storage space for all things baby gear. Swing, bouncy chair, exersaucer, jumper, and a spare chair at the end!

I'm thrilled with how the room came together, and now we are just waiting on her arrival!

It's Party Time!

2010-08-08T20:29:00.004-05:00

This weekend, we had a small birthday party with our neighbors to help celebrate Riley turning two next weekend. We are very fortunate to have such great neighbors, as I'm sure I've mentioned multiple times throughout the blog. We had a simple hot dog lunch, with some cupcakes and ice cream. Perfect for a hot Saturday lunch!

Here are some of our friends.

The birthday girl.
She was debating on blowing out the candles. She will blow on her food that is "hot", but wasn't sure what to do with candles!
Riley's friend Evelyn came to help celebrate.

Bobbi needs to make cupcakes for Tom more often, because from this face, it's been a while since he's indulged!

Thanks for coming to celebrate with us. Next weekend we are traveling to Columbus to have a family celebration.

Introducing Katherine Grace

2010-08-02T14:29:00.002-05:00

With all the pictures lately of Riley, I can't forget to post about baby Katherine who is on her way, due September 24.

The dates and her age are a little hard to read, but this was our first picture we have of her. It was taken on Feb. 5, 2010, and she's a whopping 7 weeks old. Unfortunately, this was during all my sick visits to the ER and doctors offices, but this was our verification that she was still with us.

March 22, 2010, 13 weeks, 3 days along in the incubating process. She's waving both hands above her head, and she's showing off her beautiful spine. She's also got two cute feet she's stretching out.

May 10, 2010, 20 weeks, 3 days. IT'S A GIRL! And Chris's first response was "well, we've now got 2 weddings to pay for!" We are thrilled to have 2 little girls!

May 26, 2010, 22 weeks, 5 days. Katherine is following in her sister's footsteps in uncooperative ultrasounds. We had to return 2 weeks after the above pictures were taken so they could get a good look at her heart, since she wasn't interested in rolling over during our prior visit.

As of this post, I'm 32 weeks, 3 days along. Katherine is proving to be much more active than Riley was, which I didn't think was possible. She's loves morning power yoga, followed by an intense kickboxing routine, and repeats. She spends her spare time mastering the art of punching while hiccuping and is determined to break my bottom two ribs with a swift kick, karate style.

We have about 8 more weeks until we "think" we get to meet her. Nursery pictures coming soon!!!

Photography credit

2010-07-19T09:39:00.003-05:00

Something I've failed to mention during this recent mass posting of pictures, with some text included, is that Chris is the photographer in the family. He got his first SLR camera in early 2007, and recently upgraded to this Canon 50D this March, for his birthday. It's a fun hobby for him, and he's known for getting up at sunrise on a snowy, icy morning to catch some pictures around town, and he's taken just one or two of our sweet daughter! He has captured some great photos of our travels, and although I just grab the standard images he loads on his Mac to post to this blog, he does some photo editing, and keeps a photo blog. Check some of them out here. I know he's interested in doing some photography shoots, so if your family or kids are in need of some pictures, let him know, and I'm sure he'll be more than happy to offer his services!

Happy 4th of July

2010-07-18T21:06:00.003-05:00

Growing up, my family always travelled to Gulf Shores over the 4th for a big family gathering on my dad's side of the family. So, this year, I requested we all try and get together at the beach, and we stayed at Chris's grandparents house. It was a fun, extended weekend, but we did stay clear of the water due to the oil. We had some tar balls on the beach, but did manage to try and take advantage of the sand and fresh air.

Riley making friends with her uncle David. They were best buds by the time we left.

She was so proud she found part of a sand dollar.
Tasting said sand dollar, with Nana B and Granddaddy.

Playing around with Granddaddy.

Sitting pretty on the pier.

And you think you could say "NO" to those beautiful eyes?
Aww, loving her daddy!
We had a fun trip, I celebrated another birthday milestone, but now it's back to the real world!

Happy Father's Day

2010-07-18T21:03:00.003-05:00

Due to the fishing trip, we spent Father's day in Hattiesburg. I captured this moment right before we left for church Sunday morning.

Knock knock. Who's there?

2010-07-13T09:02:00.002-05:00

I'm curious to know who all out there in internet land is reading about our little world we live in. Granted I don't post regularly at all, I'm still curious to know who finds us in this huge blog world. If you don't mind, leave a quick comment in the comments section and let me know who you are, and how you found us. You never know, it might inspire me to update a little more often if I actually have followers!

Fishing trip in southern Louisiana

2010-07-11T20:41:00.004-05:00

For the last few years, my dad has made a trip to southern Louisiana with either my brother, or uncle, to go fishing for red fish, flounder, and speckled trout. This year, Chris's schedule finally allowed him to participate, so he joined my dad and uncle for a trip down south. It happened to fall over Father's Day weekend, which was a great outing for them, and mom, Riley and I got to hang out in Hattiesburg.

From what I'm told, Chris caught the biggest and most, so he may or may not be invited back next year!

Here is Chris with one of his red fish.
The three fisherman. My dad is in the middle, and my uncle Ramon to the right.
Looks like a successful trip!

Cake decorating

2010-07-11T20:36:00.004-05:00

For Christmas this past year, I requested a gift certificate to our local Viking Cooking School. They teach a variety of classes, ranging from observation to hands on. This past June, I was finally able to attend their advanced cake decorating class, which deals with fondant, gum paste, and other decorative ingredients, along with some great hands on experience and teaching. It was a 5 hour class on a Saturday, and I felt like a kid playing in the kitchen. It was a much needed break for this mommy!

Below is my creation. We had some issues due to the serious heat wave here in Memphis with the gum paste drying, so it didn't come out quite as detailed and sharp as we had wanted, but I still loved the class, and can't wait to sign up for another.

Summer fun

2010-07-11T20:32:00.004-05:00

Beating the heat with a cool treat.
Riley is quite the helper around the house, especially outside when it involves watering the flowers. She may have gotten squirted by her parents once or twice during this watering session.
Taking the task at hand very seriously.

Ft. Morgan beach trip - Memorial Day weekend

2010-07-11T20:10:00.004-05:00

We took a road trip with Chris's family to his grandparents beach house in Fort Morgan, AL over the Memorial Day weekend. We both took the Tuesday as an extra day, so we got to spend lots of time playing in the sand with Riley, and this kid LOVES the ocean. We returned, and I immediately signed her up for swimming lessons.

Luckily, on our trip, the oil hadn't reached the beach yet, so we were free to play.

Family picture, with an ever growing belly.

Yes, she does this same activity in the bathtub and pool, always with the same expression: pure joy!

Perhaps I'm slightly partial, but she's just cute, even from behind!
Working on a serious project. One shovel in each hand.
One half of the happiest and proudest grandparents of our sweet little girl.
Yes, Chris took a belly shot, and I'm possibly regretting posting this. I would be somewhere around 21 weeks along.
Pops playing with me in the ocean.

Memphis Botanical Gardens - May 1

2010-07-10T21:47:00.003-05:00

My parents came to visit the first weekend of May, and we took a trip to the Botanical Gardens. We had never been, but it was a great place for Riley to get out and run, and the scenery was very nice.

I think Nana B is pointing out some of the fish in the pond.

Grandaddy pointing out nature.
A nice way to wrap up the afternoon visit by cooling down in the fountain!

Some very proud great-grandparents

2010-07-10T21:44:00.001-05:00

Spring pictures at mommy's work

2010-07-10T21:33:00.003-05:00

After returning from our cruise, many of the azaleas were blooming in our area, so we took Riley up to my office, which has a beautiful area between our towers full of flowers.

Someone is being silly!
Look, I found some flowers!

Southern Caribbean Cruise - April 2010

2010-07-10T20:30:00.006-05:00

I'm back to trying to catch up on blogging again. Back in April, we took a cruise with the Garner's and White's to see the southern portion of the Caribbean. Both sets of grandparents were graciously willing to keep Riley and Millie, so we jetted off and never looked back! The 6 of us flew to San Juan, Puerto Rico, and we boarded the Celebrity Summit. Our port of calls were on the islands of St. Thomas, St. Kitts, St. Croix, Antigua, St. Lucia. We had a very busy schedule, which didn't leave much time to play on the boat, but it was so much fun.

Here is the break down of our excursions or activities we did on each island:

St. Thomas - we took a private sailboat with just the 6 of us and 6 crew people and sailed and snorkled at Honeymoon Bay. Captain Mike and Josh will continue to be a memorable experience for us.

St. Kitts - We all took a train ride on the old railway used for their sugar plantations. It poured on us, but the island scenery was wonderful.

St. Croix - The Garner's took a day of rest on-board, but we agreed on a 13 mile bike ride with the White's, and although the scenery was good, we decided our rear-ends aren't meant for 13 miles on a bicycle seat!

Antigua - Our favorite location by far. We just grabbed a cab, and went to beautiful beach spot for the day. Enjoyed some fruity drinks and food with a great ocean view, and we also rented some jet ski's and rode around to check out some coast line. We've found our retirement location!

St. Lucia - We took an all day tour around the island with probably 15 stops along the way to see different parts of the island, including the famous Piton mountains.

Uh-oh!

2010-05-02T20:18:00.000-05:00

Wake up neighbors, I'm coming and making noise.

Riley tripped and got her first scraped knee; the first of many.

Developments as of late

2010-04-29T10:31:00.001-05:00

With all the pictures I’ve loaded of our cute little girl, I figured I’d take some time to blog, in text, some of her development and discoveries over the past few months. She’s currently 20 months old and growing everyday. Luckily, she’s finally growing hair, and we no longer are concerned she’ll be bald going into kindergarten. But hair bows and clips are a different story. I’ve tried a few clips in her hair, which she promptly removes. She’s a child of order, and since she isn’t used to a clip in her hair, it doesn’t belong there. Same goes if she finds a crumb on the floor, or a leaf or stick on the sidewalk, they must be removed, and she’ll let you know it.

Playtime – She LOVES her jumbo blocks, aka oversized legos. We got them for her at Christmas, and she will daily pour them all out, yet build a tower at the same time. Please don’t try and pick out a specific block for her to use, she’ll find the exact on that needs to be used, and put it in its proper place. She is also very aware of which toys go together, such as her tea set, or train set with blocks, or mailbox with letters to put in it, she knows what is paired with what, and will pull
it out when asked. Back to her “methodical” ways, if she opens her toy box, the lid can’t be just propped open; it must be at a 90 degree angle before she’ll get anything out. A little OCD!

Shoes – these are becoming my worst nightmare. She recently got a couple of new pair of summer sandals, which are adorably cute, and she can put them on herself, and get the correct feet about 90% of the time. Our issue is, we continually take them off, just to be able to put them back on again, or if we spot another pair we would prefer, whoa be it if she can’t reach them and put them on, at that very minute. We have a shoe-aholic on our hands!

Love – Although she’s been blowing us and everyone else kisses for a while, she’s recently taken on “loving” us. My favorite part of the day is when we go “night-night”, she runs to give Chris a hug, and will start on one side of the room with her arms stretched out as wide as possible, running towards him. She gives hugs and kisses (some slobbery), and is getting better at petting Millie gently. She’ll also gently pat your back as you hold her, just to let you know she’s there.
She’s never been a child that wants to be held or rocked, but is starting to take a little more time with us, which we are both enjoying.

Talking – I think we learn a new word every day, but we know our grandparents, mama, dada, a version of Millie and other family dogs, body parts (nose, eyes, toes, ears, arms, etc), clothes, night night, steps, and a host of others. We are working on our animals, but mostly she has her own version of chatter, and it’s all day long! She knows the oven and grill are “hot”, and who knows what she’s already learned today.

Doors – I spoke about her need for order above. Doors must be closed, always. She’s obsessed with going through the house and opening cabinets and closing them. Good luck getting into the house before she closes the door, and when she leaves a room, she must shut the door. When Millie needs to be let out, she's the first one at the door "helping" to take Millie out, and will shut the door when everyone is back inside.

I’m sure I’ve missed something, but this should give you an idea, and it provides a record for me, during this crazy time we call life!

Easter

2010-04-28T20:24:00.003-05:00

We visited the Collierville Square before church on Easter Sunday for our family pictures.

March 2010 - Happy Birthday to Chris!

2010-04-28T20:05:00.003-05:00

We celebrated March with a trip to Columbus for Chris's birthday. Other than that, and a surprise birthday party for our friend Cager, March was spent at home with me enjoying the final stages of the first trimester. Chris purchased a new camera with his birthday money, so here are a few pictures from the month.

February 2010 - Big changes

2010-04-28T19:38:00.003-05:00

So unless you also follow me on Facebook, you might have missed some big news in our little world. We are expecting baby number 2 at the end of September! Unfortunately, we didn't get to share the news as we would have liked.

I got sick the very end of January, with what I thought was the flu, which the test came back negative, and then more sickness seemed to come each day. Nausea, nausea, more nausea, stomach cramping, more cramping, things just weren't right. One doctor said I had a bladder/UTI, and the other's disagreed. We knew at this point that I was pregnant, but hadn't spread the news, since I was only about 5 weeks along. We ended up making 3 ER trips over the course of a 2 week span, and they ultimately hospitalized me and finally figured out since I hadn't miscarried in those 2 weeks it was something else, which ended up being severe bladder spasms. This misery finally ended around the 15th of February, but needless to say, we didn't get to spread the news like we may have wanted to. And for anyone out there who has ever had to endure bladder spasms, you have my utmost and deepest sympathies, because I wouldn't wish that on my worst enemy.

Luckily the baby has been healthy, and made it through all of that fun with flying colors. We also had lots of help during that whole nightmare, including my mom coming to help twice, and Chris's family kidnapping Riley so Chris could get some relief. Neighbors and friends also pitched in, and to everyone, we greatly appreciate all your support.

I still hate the first trimester of pregnancy, and hold a grudge against Adam and Eve and that whole apple incident.

So, all that being said, now it's April the 28th, I'm in my 18th week, and we find out if it's a little brother or sister for Riley on May 10th. Or as my brother says, "shotguns or hairbows!"

So, back to February. We managed to get outside on a pretty weekend with our little girls.

January 2010 - Gatlinburg, TN

2010-04-28T19:10:00.005-05:00

Better late than never, right??? After a continual reminder from both sides of the family, I'm finally getting around to updating this blog. And yes, I'm aware of the title, let's take a walk down memory lane, shall we?

So, remember back in January when it snowed, and snowed, and then a blizzard hit Tennessee? Yep, it was the first week or so of the new year, and we packed the new Honda Pilot (yes, it didn't get an honorable mention on the blog) and headed east to Gatlinburg. Chris's family had rented a cabin for a winter vacation, and we experienced Old Man Winter himself.

The cabin was great, with plenty of room for the 7 adults to spread out, along with Riley, and the 8 dogs. We played pool, played with Riley and all her toys, did some shopping around town, and enjoyed some quality family time.

Here are just a few pictures of our fun times, in no particular order.

The 3 amigos - Sharpie, Millie, and Cobol.

We took a trip out to the Apple Barn, had a great lunch, and Riley enjoyed getting to run around outside some. Due to the snow and ice, she was limited in her outside running around, but luckily managed to sit still long enough for this picture.

We took a trip one afternoon through the Smokies as far as we could with the icy roads.

Riley discovering "snow". She wasn't sure, but investigated it closely.
Beautiful waterfalls along the way.

Another activity we all enjoyed together was a trip to the aquarium. I had been about 10 years ago, but it's more fun sharing it with your own child for the first time. She was mesmerized by all of it, so I know this will be an activity for us to do again. The rest of the family enjoyed it as well.

I've said it before on here, but she LOVES Sharpie. They are best of friends as you can see.
The happiest great-grandparents! They love us and our little girl so much, and we love being able to spend time with them.

t-shirt quilt

2010-01-18T14:56:00.003-06:00

So, I've never been a scrapbook person, never kept a ton of pictures throughout the years, but one thing I do keep is t-shirts from camp, school, work, etc. So I've had a box of t-shirts move with me from apartment to apartment, into this house, and Chris was pressing me to "do something" with them. So I asked his grandmother, who has been quilting for years, to make a quilt from them. I probably gave her the box over a year ago, and sorta forgot about it. Little did I know, she was able to use EVERY PIECE out of the box. Back design, pocket designs, etc. And here is the final product:

I LOVE IT! Yep, I even cried when I opened it. It's a story of my childhood, band events, homecoming, church camp, Lion's Band, Bulldog Deli days, etc. And it's two sided! I love it!

Thanks GG, KK, and NayNay for all your work on this. I love it and couldn't have asked for anything better!

Christmas 2009

2010-01-18T13:29:00.008-06:00

I'm still obviously catching up, and I have a ton of Christmas pictures, which are in no particular order, because I'm just doing good to get these posted. Please forgive me and allow me to catch up! A brief recap of our holiday season - we opened our presents here at our house, packed up a day or two later and went to Columbus, then south to Hattiesburg on Christmas morning, and Riley and I stayed for the following week, while Chris had to return for a few days of work prior to New Years. Luckily, he returned to Hattiesburg and picked us up, but we all had a fun Christmas vacation, and loved spending time with family!

Our mantle at home. My grandmother (Granny Ann) made our 3 stockings. I've had mine for year, since she's done many for our side of the family, but shortly after Riley was born, she came to visit here in Memphis and we found a needle-point store, and picked out these, and she finished them this year, and they are beautiful, and a great addition!

Our tree here at home.

Here is Riley playing her her tunnel in Hattiesburg.

Riding her princess car from her Aunt KK.

In Hattiesburg - I love this grin and that smirk!
Mom was welcomed home with immediate help from an afternoon of running errands and working.
Grandaddy, I found your turkey decoy! Please note the use of the paci in many of these pictures. Riley is late, just like her mom, with cutting some teeth. She was just starting to cut a tooth, and couldn't put it down.
After opening her princess car from her KK!
Unwrapping a gift at her Pop's and NayNay's.
Patiently waiting to open her gifts here at our house.

Someone found Snoopy.
Here is the picture we used on our Christmas card this year. I'm partial, but somedays she is just too cute for words!

Someone is trying to figure out what is below the wrapping paper! Following in her mother's footsteps being nosey at Christmas!
Pointing with her Pops!

Breakfast with Santa at our church.

Playing catch up - Thanksgiving

2010-01-10T18:49:00.005-06:00

So, it's January 2010, and I'm a few months behind on blogging - so the family has reminded me! I wish I had some cool reason why I've fallen behind, but life just got hectic with football season and the holidays, and he we are months later with just a few pictures to share.

This past fall, we managed to make quite a few MSU football games, travelled to Columbus and Starkville for the Thanksgiving festivities, and Chris and I attended the Egg Bowl, which was a great win. The grandparents haven't said no yet to a babysitting opportunity, which allows us to enjoy a game. We did take Riley to her first game this fall, Florida, but she's not quite ready to be contained in a stadium seat. She would rather be on the field running along with the players!

Here she is running free in Granny Ann's yard on Egg Bowl game day!

The yearly Callahan family picture which was distributed by mom with her yearly Christmas card mail-out in December. It has been a family tradition to have our picture made on Thanksgiving weekend.
Riley is enjoying her first true Thanksgiving meal at her GG's (last year doesn't count, as she was just beginning baby food!) I'm not sure about other parents out there, but my kid eats A LOT! She polished off a plate that most adults would eat, and never missed a beat. We are so lucky that she isn't a picky eater, but we haven't figured out where she's putting it!
Riley has no fears. Heights, pets, people, noises, nothing bothers her, except the possible risk of missing a meal. But she is best friends with Sharpie, Chris' parents black lab, and he loves her equally. When we arrive, he greets her at the car door, walks us to the front door, and would sleep at the floor of her crib if he was allowed. But his new found love is to have Riley play with his mouth and teeth, and she just giggles to get to tickle his tongue! They were loving the pretty weather and playing outside together at Thanksgiving.
Pretty wildflowers!

Dressed and ready for church!

The weekend after Thanksgiving, Disney Playhouse Live! came to Memphis, which meant Mickey Mouse made an appearance. Riley LOVED it, and was so excited to do her Hotdog Dance at the end!

Happy Halloween

2009-11-01T12:58:00.004-06:00

We spent Halloween playing outside, enjoying the pretty weather. We took Riley up to the Collierville Square to get some pictures, and let her run around, and see some new scenery.

Here she is inspecting her pumpkin bucket, wondering where her "treats" are.

I realize her eyes are closed, but this just makes me laugh!
Look mom, flowers!
Our friends, Valery and Kyle came over for dinner, and to see Riley in her costume. "Yo dad, get my pumpkin bucket, I've got candy to find!"
Our little duck, trick-or-treating for the first time. She's just too cute some days!

Oh, the places you'll go...

2009-11-01T12:50:00.006-06:00

I've neglected this blog for 2 months, which seems crazy, but life has been sorta crazy lately. Somehow we returned from our relaxing vacation, and football season hit, work got crazy, and now it's been 2 months since I've posted. My apologies, I'll try and improve.

Here is my sweet little girl before church (probably 2 months ago!).

Her signature point. I don't know where she picked this up from, but she can use that finger and we all just laugh at her.
Our favorite game is to "s-h-i-t d-o-w" aka, sit down. Riley has no fears, and routinely stands on anything she's supposed to "sit" on. Also, our "s" sound is always accompanied with the "sh", hence our pronunciation. We've spent hours laughing at this phrase!
Ready for another Sunday at church.
About 3 weeks ago, we went to the zoo, with Valery and Kyle. Our main goal was to see the new Teton Trek exhibit, and the grizzly bears, but after 4 attempts to see the bears, they were never out. Non the less, we had a fun day, and it was nice to get out and enjoy the weather.

I couldn't resist this photo shoot at the zoo.

I wonder if he/she would play well with Millie?

San Francisco Vacation - Part 4

2009-09-14T21:14:00.008-05:00

This was our final day in the Bay area. This was the Saturday of our trip, and we were headed out of the city, headed north to tour Miur Woods an tour wine country. Before we left the city, we drove down this one block on Lombard Street, which is a popular tourist spot. The block has 8 switchback turns, which was built to keep the horses and buggies back in the day from falling and injuring themselves.

So we made it to Muir Woods, which is home to native Redwoods, and they were beautiful. The trip up the mountain getting to the park was a little rough on the stomach, but we made it in one piece.

This is a slice of one of the trees, and it is labeled with historic moments in time. I believe the tree this was from was roughly 300 years old, if not more.
Check out this cute couple!
If only I was wearing a blue shirt, and white shorts, I would look like a smurf!
This was the view right when we left the park, headed back down the mountain. Absolutely breathtaking, yet frightening since there are no guard rails along the road!

These next 2 have a small story. One of my stipulations of our anniversary trip was that it was not allowed to incorporate a NASCAR event. Chris had just gotten back from the Bristol race the weekend before, and while I don't mind his interest in NASCAR, I have no desire to partake. Anyway, as we were on our way to the Sonoma Valley, our GPS route he had mapped out just so happened to take us right by the entrance of Infineon Raceway. Me being the lovely wife I am agreed to enter and see the track for a few minutes.

This track is one of the few that requires both right and left turns! It is a road course, but Chris enjoyed seeing another track.

Beautiful entrance to the Sterling Vineyard. This Vineyard had a gondola ride to the winery at the top of the mountain, which overlooked their fields.

Sterling vineyards.

Here we are after our tour and final tasting at Sterling.

This is one of the Berringer buildings on their property. We skipped the tour and tasting here, but their facilities were beautiful.

Our final tour we did was at Robert Mondavi Winery, and we learned a lot, and had a small tasting. I think we both enjoyed going out into the fields and seeing the grapes, which were 2 weeks away from harvest.

Overall we had a wonderful trip. Riley enjoyed her week with both sets of grandparents. I promise my next post will have pictures of her!

San Francisco Vacation - Part 3

2009-09-11T21:36:00.007-05:00

Yes, we took lots of pictures on our trip, hence the multiple postings. I promise, there is only one more post after this one, and it should be shorter than the rest.

Anyway, after spending 3 days in the city, we picked up a rental car that morning, a sporty PT Cruiser I might add, and headed south. Our travel plans included us driving Highway 1, to Monterey, stopping at the Aquarium, and completing our travels on the 17 mile drive which is around the Pebble Beach area.

We loved the drive along Highway 1. I must admit, the "beaches" aren't all that pretty, meaning they don't have the white sand we have on the gulf coast, but if you look past the sand, the water, rocks, and cliffs are beautiful.

We found this lighthouse stop along out way. It was right along the highway, and also served as a hostel to other travellers, mostly people on mountain bikes travelling the area. You have to be a pretty serious and dedicated bike rider to endure some of the steep hills/mountains! We stuck to our automobile!

About 2 - 3 hours south, and we made multiple stops along the way, was the city of Monterey. It was a relatively small town, but had a very cute downtown area. We made a visit to the Aquarium, and followed up with another great meal on the water. One thing I've failed to mention is that we ate some delicious food on our trip. We really enjoyed the fresh seafood and delicious restaurants we visited throughout our entire trip.

These were some massive jelly fish species, and Chris took some great pictures.
This is the downtown shopping area of Monterey. Such a cute area.
Here is Chris at one of the many stops along the 17 mile drive. It is a loop through the area which surrounds many golf courses, particularly Pebble Beach. I was informed along the way, that Chris was very familiar with these courses, as he played them as a kid on his PlayStation, or some other gaming station. I must admit, driving along this section of the trip was a big highlight, but the best is yet to come...

One of the greens at the course.

This picture is for my dad. We managed to find wildlife on our trip.

This is the Lone Cypress, which is a trademark to the Pebble Beach Golf Course. This cypress tree is growing out on this cliff, but I'm assuming the golf course, or some other group built the stone wall you see. The tree is also wrapped in a cable or two, to help keep it's shape. Please don't quote me on the reasons. These are my best guesses, but feel free to do a little research if you choose!

This is The Lodge at Pebble Beach. It is open to the public, so we helped ourselves to a view!

The beautiful 18th green at Pebble Beach. Yes, that is the Pacific ocean that it boarders.
Here is the back of The Lodge. We did enjoy a little time up on the balcony, watching the tournament that was going on.

So this picture captures my favorite story of the trip. We finished our touring for the day, and were headed back on the main highway, rather than the coast line. We missed one of our exits, which wasn't the first time that day I had navigated us in the wrong place, but non the less, we were still headed north, back to SF. Here is my version of the conversation that followed:

Me: We are coming upon Cupertino, and we can get back on our route there.

Chris: You know what's in Cupertino, right?

Me: Yep, it's the headquarters of Apple.

Chris: Try plugging in "1 Infinite Loop", and see if the GPS finds it.

Me: (after typing it in my trusty iPhone, and it dropping a pin) You've got to be kidding me, you know the address of Apple Headquarters off the top of your head?

Yes, my husband knew off hand the address of his favorite manufacturer. He is a faithful shopper of Apple products, and we proudly support them with multiple products in our home. So, I couldn't take his dream away from him, so we made our way through Silicon Valley, which was surprisingly small, but since we are both in IT, it was pretty cool to see many of the companies we are familiar with. We drove through the Apple campus, and Chris has marked this landmark off his list of places to see!

We loved our drive south, but the next post will be our trek north. Stay tuned...

San Francisco Vacation - Part 2

2009-09-11T21:03:00.003-05:00

Our third day, that Thursday, we toured the city one final time, and did some shopping in the Union Square area, where our hotel was.

Here I am sitting on the main square in the middle of Union Square, with the big Tiffany Company building behind me. Yes, Chris even let me do some shopping, and maybe I'll have a little blue box under the Christmas tree! haha :)
This is the San Francisco City Hall, complete with actual gold trim on the dome. It was beautiful.
Another picture of Coit Tower.
Here is a picture taken from inside the top of Coit Tower of the city skyline, including the Transamerica Pyramid.
Another view from Coit Tower of the city.

San Francisco Vacation - Part 1

2009-09-09T20:18:00.005-05:00

Since mid spring, Chris has been planning our trip to San Francisco. It was initially a surprise trip for months, but he caved and told me during the summer. I left all the planning, organizing, reservations up to him, and he did a WONDERFUL job with it. We departed on Tuesday, Sept. 1, and returned Sunday, Sept. 6. We also celebrated our third year anniversary, which was the purpose of the trip, that Wednesday.

We have LOTS of pictures, so I'll be doing multiple postings, although not tonight, of our trip. Below are our first 2 days touring the city.

This picture was taken from the front of the cable car. I was unaware as to how hilly the city was, but it provided many opportunities for a great view. The tower in the back of the city is Coit Tower, and yes we went up in it, and we were both light headed during our short tour of the tower.

Chris took this great picture of the Golden Gate bridge. We took a bus tour through the city on day 2 and 3, and got to see lots of interesting places.

We are standing outside the Palace of Fine Arts which was built for the World's Fair, which contained the Liberty Bell, when it made it's last trip to be on display.

Another picture of the architecture of the Palace.

Of course we visited Pier 39. It is knows for being a big tourist attraction, and the shops, restaurants, and pier are much nicer than the other piers, but our favorite spot was sitting and watching the hundreds of seals battle for a spot on the floating docks. They would push each other off, and just roll on top of the others as they moved about, not to mention all the barking noise they made. It was like being front row to the Discovery Channel.

We visited Ghirardelli Square, which was a great spot.

This was our dessert at Ghirardelli's after our dinner the first night. YUMMO! **And yes, we ate the whole thing!

This picture is for my mom, and all the other people who read Danielle Steel romance novels. Here is her house! It's is blocked from street view by about 10 feet worth of hedges, but that is the upper level peaking from the top.

We loved the Victorian houses throughout the city.

This is Sausalito, which is the city across the Golden Gate Bridge. It is a beautiful little city, of course built into a mountain, and it has a beautiful harbor looking onto the bay.
Here is Chris, at the harbor in Sausalito, with the skyline of SF in the background.
Alcatraz. We visited on Wednesday, our anniversary! Weird, but it was a neat tour. We had actually just watched 2 documentaries the weeks prior to our trip on the closed prison, so we already had a good idea of what we were visiting. Also while we were there, a former prisoner who was featured on both documentaries was in the gift shop promoting his book about his time spent in prison. I find it odd that a former prisoner returns daily to a place such as Alcatraz.
We enjoyed our tour of the city, but we were ready for a little time away from the city. Next post will be our first road trip. Stay tuned...

Hot wheels

2009-08-17T21:24:00.000-05:00

Daddy, can I go with you this weekend to Bristol for the NASCAR race?

-- Post From My iPhone

Happy First Birthday Riley!!!

2009-08-16T21:17:00.004-05:00

We have had a very exciting weekend. Riley turned one year old on Friday. She had a small party at Kim's house with her other friends she's with while we are working. I'm told they had a blast. We hosted a party on Saturday for the big celebration, and had a big turnout of family, grandparents, friends, and neighbors.

Since we have just a few pictures of our sweet girl, Chris put together a DVD movie of pictures and video from the past year. We gave copies to the parents and grandparents, and they were very excited. We took the picture below earlier this week to finish off the year for the movie. We go tomorrow for our 1 year checkup, so we'll get the official stats then. I must note that we are walking with about 95% confidence, and she'd rather do it herself, than have you hold her hands, go figure.

Who else but the restaurant owner, my dad, to man the grill. Thanks dad for taking on this task!

Wesley, Evelyn and Jake came to help with the celebration. Riley, Evelyn and Jake are just a few months apart, so we are excited Riley has friends her age just next door!

Here is Riley's birthday cake I made for her. I'm still new to working with fondant, but I loved making it, and I think it turned out pretty cute.

Riley wasn't sure about everyone singing happy birthday to her.

I made the top tier just for her. She wasn't sure about digging into the cake. Riley has never been one to try and eat her food with both hands, but she was interested in the touch and feel of the fondant.

Opening all the great presents. I'm stashing many of them away, so we can open something new every few weeks, and won't get bored with anything.
Look, the first of many toys that makes noise!

Thanks to everyone to came to help us celebrate this milestone. Chris and I have said this whole weekend how wonderful it is to have such great families, friends and neighbors who love us and our sweet girl. We look forward to many more wonderful years to celebrate.

Busy, busy, busy

2009-08-16T21:01:00.003-05:00

We are very busy these days. Riley is walking and always on the go. Here are a few cute pictures from the past week.

Okay dad, I just took a cute picture - see above - now I'm ready for you to put the camera down!
Hmm, I wonder what's in this barn?

Meet Jake. He lives up the street, and we had our first date last weekend by the pool. Mom and dad have already been discussing this close proximity might end up being a problem in the future. Riley - no sneaking out of the house!!!

Baby Fawn

2009-08-04T07:47:00.001-05:00

We went to the park last night for a picnic and to walk. Maris had already told us of the fawn, but as we passed by on the boardwalk, I had my ever-trusty iPhone and snapped these pictures.

-- Post From My iPhone

Do you have a spare Ark we can use???

2009-07-30T21:12:00.004-05:00

We had major storms in the Memphis area this afternoon, which caused some serious flash flooding in Collierville. Chris was home with Riley during the activities while I was stuck at work, watching the news on my laptop, and waiting for the tornadoes to pass. The last time I heard, we had 3 tornadoes confirmed in the area, but don't quote me on that. Luckily, we didn't have any reported in Collierville, but we had a lot of rain, and I had to make multiple detours in Collierville just to find streets that weren't flooded. I saw many homes that had water flowing backwards, out of the street into the garages, and I'm sure those homes had flooding inside.

Chris had been taking pictures of the weather, since it is a common practice for the creek below to flood some. This creek runs through the east side of Collierville, and into the Wolf River, further north of our neighborhood.

This picture is actually after it was all over, but it gives you a reference point of where the creek is in relation to our house and other land marks. We have been waiting for 2 weeks to get a fence up...note the post already in place. Also note the bird feeder hanging from the little shepard's crook.

This was the worst of it, and this is what I saw when I arrived home. Our neighbor's fence is 4 feet tall, and you can see the little black speck on the right side of this picture which is that bird feeder from the picture above. My flower beds are under this with our beautiful daylilies. :(
This is our other neighbor's fence...

...which didn't make it. It's hard to tell, but there are at least 3 fences in a row that lost this section due to all the rushing water.

This is our front yard. Due to our neighbor's fence, it pushed the water into the street. This was also one of the first things I saw as I pulled in.

Here is the water mark on our house. Luckily, our house is built up, unlike many houses on our street.

Chris also put together a short video of clips of the water and damage, which was just impressive.

Happy Birthday Dad!

2009-07-30T20:56:00.002-05:00

Today happens to be my dad's birthday. I just so happen to have pictures to post of him with Riley from my last trip to Hattiesburg, two weeks ago! My parents have a neighborhood pool and clubhouse, so we enjoyed a quick play time at the pool.

I was brave enough to take Riley by myself on the 5 hour trip to Hattiesburg by myself. We did splurge on a DVD player for the car, one that straps onto the back of the headrest, and it was a HUGE help. She did great on the trip, and we had fun with the short weekend visiting her Granddaddy and Nana B.

She found this hatbox/gift box in my room, and proceeded to enjoy playing with it. Notice in the back ground the watering pitcher and multiple decorative tins on the floor. If Riley can reach it, it is fair game to be played with!

11 months old

2009-07-16T22:05:00.003-05:00

I say it every month, but I can't believe she will be a year old next month! I'm going to have to figure out a different photo shoot method, because she's over the bed pictures. It takes a lot of work to get her to sit still long enough to capture a good picture. I don't know that much has changed this month, except that she has gained a little more weight, and finally grew taller. We still don't have our front 2 teeth yet, and can walk, but just choose to bear crawl everywhere. My hope is that she will be walking by her first birthday, but I'm making no guarantees. She has found the enjoyment of opening the kitchen cabinets and drawers, and removing items to play with. She is also showing signs of attachment, either wanting to be around me all the time, or not wanting to leave Kim's house when Chris picks her up. That part is sad, but I am glad that she enjoys it enough to want to stay and play.

Riley's point of view

2009-07-16T21:59:00.006-05:00

Look mom, I discovered the kleenex box. Maybe If I pull them all out, you will quit attacking my nose!

Umm, I'm trying not to let my toes touch the grass. It tickles my feet! But I still look cute sitting here.

Yes, I know you have me standing next to a pretty flower, and it would be a great picture for my party invitation, but I'm not into this photo shoot right now?

When do I get paid for my modeling sessions. You would think after the thousands of pictures you have taken of me, you would give up and use something on file.

I give up. See, I'm cute here. Use this one for my party invitation. ***we did!

Reunion, grandparents, and a birthday party

2009-07-16T21:56:00.006-05:00

The weekend prior to the 4th of July, we took off to Columbus for Chris's 10 year reunion. I knew no-one, but had fun meeting some of his old classmates, and putting a face with names and stories I had heard about. We had fun, and I think Chris enjoyed it more than he expected. It took a little arm twisting to get him to go, but I think it was worth it.

I was also able to take Riley to Columbus that Saturday morning to visit with my grandmother, Granny Ann. We had a great lunch together, did a little shopping, and Riley put on here usual show for her Granny!

We did a first this particular weekend. We left Riley at Chris's parents to spend the week (until Thursday when we returned) with her grandparents, and great grandparents. They graciously :) volunteered to keep her, while we accomplished a laundry list of around the house chores, which were much easier to do without having to chase a little one around. She put on a full show each day, ate them out of house and home, but had a wonderful time.

Cobol, the dog, had to learn he was no longer number one with Pop's. After about day 2, he finally gave us, and allowed Riley to take over his domain of the living room.

Below is Sharpie, the black lab. He's obsessed with Riley, even though we haven't let him be around her so much, because even at over 100 pounds, he thinks he's a lap dog sometimes, and doesn't realize his size. He greets us at the car whenever we arrive with her, and is constantly trying to get to her. He was so happy that they let him "play" with Riley. He just wants to love on her all the time.

As you can see, Sharpie even helped bath Riley in the evenings. He just couldn't let her out of his sight! Too cute!

I'm not always a fan of the 2 piece bathing suits for kids these days, but her GG had to get this, even if it was a little snug. Everyone needs a Tini-weeny, yellow polka-dot bikini!

We returned on Thursday, since we were off that Friday for the 4th of July. The 4th also happens to be my birthday, and Chris's family loves birthdays, or any celebration. So Mrs. Renee went all out with the balloons, decorations, cake and homemade ice cream. It was a fun day and weekend had by all.

Pardon me for bragging...

2009-07-02T21:29:00.001-05:00

But it's my blog, and I'd like to! Just a couple of months after we were married, our good friends Cager and Maris suggested for us to read up on Dave Ramsey regarding our financial management. They lent us two books they had, and we each read one within that first week. You see, we purchased our house 4 months before we married and got stuck having to pay for a new roof out of pocket within a few months, which we got a HELOC for because we had all but emptied our savings on the house. We also had a small amount of student loans from my last year in college. The November after we were married (only 2 months after) we killed the engine of my car on the Interstate in Jackson, whick Cager graciously rescued us from. So I got a new car a week later.

Now, onto the title of this blog. In just under our 3 year wedding anniversary, we are now debt free, other than our mortgage, which we even refinanced earlier this year. We followed Dave's principles of the Debt Snowball, and managed to pay off everything including some credit card debt, the roof, student loans, and as of yesterday my car. We even have our vacation in September already paid for.

I know a lot of people already use Dave's principles, but we have found them to be very rewarding and a major help in our marriage! We recommend him to anyone looking for financial peace.

-- Post From My iPhone

Happy Father's Day

2009-06-22T22:06:00.001-05:00

Better late than never! Here is what Riley gave her daddy for his first Father's Day.

-- Post From My iPhone

10 months old

2009-06-22T21:37:00.003-05:00

Last Sunday, a week ago, Riley turned 10 months old. It is becoming harder and harder for us to get these monthly pictures of her, mostly because she chases the camera, and never sits still. Her biggest milestone this month were her 2 bottom teeth coming in. She is crawling at faster that I can run it seems, and is into everything! She has figured out how to pull open drawers, open cabinets, climb stairs, and has tried to crawl up on the fireplace. She's very determined, but loves to be moving around.

Nothing says plop her on the pillows and back up like this picture below!
Millie even tried to help us with the photo opportunity!

Party time

2009-06-21T19:49:00.005-05:00

This past Saturday, Riley attended her first birthday party. Our neighbor's daughter, Evelyn, celebrated her first birthday with a grand party. Riley got to play with lots of kids her age, and had a great time. Below, you can see Riley in the pink dress, in the middle of standing up. Evelyn is enjoying the tasty orange ball, so cute!!

The birthday girl needed a little assistance in blowing out the candle!

This past week, mom has been here keeping Riley, while Kim, Riley's sitter, was on vacation with her family. It was evident that Riley played hard and wore Nana B out, since she needed an extra nap Saturday morning prior to hitting the road back to Hattiesburg. Mom was a huge help during her week long stay. We managed to do a good bit of cooking, so my freezer is now re-stocked with dinners for Chris and myself.

Don't call Child Protective Services on us. We found her on about step 3, and just got behind her to see how much she would climb. Needless to say, the top of the picture is the top of the stair case, so the baby gate at the bottom is staying up no matter what. Please practice your hurdle abilities before visiting!!
It would be an understatement to say she is into everything. I'm sure her favorite toy is at the bottom of the toy box.
Who me?? Surely I didn't do something I wasn't supposed to do.