last weekend

I spent last Saturday with a good friend - and an amazing photographer - helping to photograph a wedding. In preparation for the day, I pumped all week long so that J would be able to feed Anna Kate. Much to our dismay, she refused to eat a single drop from a bottle for the entire day! J managed to get her to take 2 ounces from a medicine dropper, but the success was momentary and she ended up screaming for the last 5 hours of the day.

I was blissfully unaware. Spending quality time with a friend. Talking about things that matter. Eating wedding cake.

J said, and I quote, "This has been the worst day of my entire life."

Maybe a little bit dramatic. But I certainly understand how even minutes with a screaming baby can seem like years.

Pumping. Failed attempts at bottle feeding. Bottle washing. Screaming baby.

A (big) glass of red wine shared with my worn out husband.

Then, on Sunday I helped to throw a diapers and wipes baby shower for a young mom at our church. At the onset, this just felt like more work. And to be honest, I was a little worn out.

But, the shower was great, and I really felt blessed to be in a position to show Christ's love to this new mom.

Praise God for hard work, patient husbands, good friends, and opportunities to minister to His people.

Cheers Kel!

"Mmmmmmmmm!"

[http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2011/06/perfect-iced-coffee/]

Family Resemblance

Anna as a baby

Kay Lynn - Cupcake

Uncle Timmy on the left

I have had several people tell me lately that AK looks like my mother in law, Kay Lynn. I think it must be something in the eyes. I also see a little bit of my little brother Tim and my sister Anna in her.

What do you think? Any family resemblance?

Sweet Baby Girl

Buddies

Zachary is Trip's best friend (and our new neighbor, yaaay!). He is almost exactly one year older than Trip so their dynamic is very interesting to watch. Trip isn't quite the big kid that Zac is, but he likes to try! It is so much fun to watch their relationship change and grow as they become big boys. We will see what kind of trouble they will cause in the years to come!

[I love that in this last shot it looks like Trip is extending his hand to say, "good game".]

bumbo kisses

belated 3-month growth pictures

Adorable outfit courtesy of Aunt Mackenzie.

The Best One

I know I am biased, but I think J is the best dad in the world - I'm sure my kids would agree!

big ole waves & happy birthday cupcake

Three weeks ago we journeyed to Galveston to celebrate a big birthday for J's mom, Cupcake, or "Tuptate" as Trip calls her (he still cannot pronounce the hard "c" sound). This was Trip's first time to the beach, and he LOVED it! He would run straight into the "big ole waves" and one of us would run after him and swoop him up before he was covered by the water. He is still talking about going to the ocean, so I think we will be making another visit sometime soon.

Trip loves birthdays, birthday cake, and his Cupcake ... I'm sure he thought the weekend was more of a celebration for him than for anyone else :)

Happy Birthday Cupcake! We love you!

little feet

Wild Child!

Poor Anna Kate and Jack - I'm not sure either knows what do to around Trip, laugh or cry in terror!

"Here you go Jackabee." He knows Jack is not suppose to have any of the baby toys, so he dangles them in front of his face. Nice.

Big jumps!

Tyin'

Whenever I am taking pictures, Trip likes to look at the ones of himself. Yesterday, he started fake crying so that he could see pictures of himself tyin' as he calls it.

Jumping in Anna Kate's crib. I am amazed at how well cribs hold up. This one was passed down from J's cousin. All three of her kiddos slept in it, including two rough little boys.

I think I found a new use for the Bumbo. Time out chair.

third month

This is the face I get to see every time I go to get Anna Kate up from her nap. Waking her up from naps has become Trip's favorite part of the day. He constantly asks to "wate up baby sister" and finally understands that he is not suppose to wake her up unless I say it's okay. I am sure this will be a continuing battle.

5/28/11 - Started consistently sleeping 8-10 hours at night

5/29/11 - Rolled over for the first time

Looks like: A fair skinned, fair haired, skinnier, girlie version of Trip. Some say she looks like J, some say she looks like me. I have had several people say she must get her light hair from J, which is funny since he has had dark hair from birth. For once, I can say she actually takes after me in that area. I had blond hair as a baby and kiddo. My baby brother Timmy (who is really an adult now and goes by Tim, but I just can't seem to adjust to that) has blond hair and my mom is a blond.

Sleeping - If AK is tired, she is REALLY not happy. This is when she cries the loudest. She is also a light sleeper, and wakes easily if there is any noise (this is how Trip and I both are, but not J). I am thankful that she has always been a pretty good sleeper at night. She is officially sleeping through the night now!

Eating - She really doesn't eat nearly as much as Trip and rarely takes a full feeding. She is growing just fine though and really never fusses when she is hungry, so I am not worried that she isn't getting enough. It's just hard not to compare her to Trip who has always loved to eat (and had the rolls to prove it!).

Development - Rolled over. Pulls her knees up under her belly and pushes them up when she is doing tummy time. Grabs things easily. Grasps hands together. Loves to just stretch out and observe what is going on around her. Doesn't make many noises but when she does they are sweet and quiet. Is giving lots of smiles and has laughed a few times. Drools a LOT!

Loves - The fan. Her mom. Being held by her mom. She is pretty attached to me after two months of being the only one who could soothe her. Hopefully now that she is feeling good, she will warm up to everyone else.

Hates - Anna Kate has a love/hate relationship with being swaddled. She needs it, but she gets so frustrated to have her limbs held down tight. She hates being tired. Hates loud noises.

3rd month memories ... In the past month we have taken the kids on several long car rides and they have both done so well.

San Antonio to Missouri - 32 hours

San Antonio to Galveston - 10 hours

San Antonio to Houston - 7.4 hours

Almost 50 hours of driving!

I thought I'd start taking her "growth" pictures with Trip to show the difference. She looks so big in this picture. She really isn't as big as she appears here. I thought this was funny though. Trip was being a wild man! (I'll post some others of him next)

Dada's Tractor

Trip calls our riding lawn mower "Dada's Tractor" and has "helped" J mow our lawn several times. Last Saturday, J woke up early hoping to beat the heat and get the one-acre lot mowed and manicured in under 2 hours. He also wanted to get it done early so that he could spend the day playing with his family.

Trip woke up asking for his Dad (which is what he does almost every morning). I told him that he was outside mowing the lawn. Trip was glued to the window watching and every time J drove by he would wave vigorously waiting for J to see him and wave back.

feeding monkey

Almost every time Trip notices me nursing Anna Kate he asks what I am doing in the cutest, most confused way. I explain that I am feeding Anna Kate and that babies drink milk from their moms, but that big kids drink milk from a sippy cup. He follows that up by asking if he can feed her. He says, "I wanna feed her." I explain further that only mamas can feed babies like that, not daddy or big brothers.

The other day, while I was nursing AK, Trip walked up with his monkey and said, "I wanna feed monkey." Just for grins, I said, "Okay. You can feed monkey."

Trip proceeded to lift up his shirt and put his monkey's mouth to his belly button to eat.

He has repeated this several times since and I always get a pretty good laugh! What a sweet, curious, and inventive little boy!