Happy 30th Bday Daddy!

We had Jeff's birthday party at Ski Shores on September 14th-- it was so much fun!! Caroline went on her first boat ride and seemed to enjoy it! We celebrated Jeff's actual birthday at Taylor & Gayle Clark's lake house-- it was such a nice vacation for us!! Enjoy the pics :)

Caroline loves to dance

9 month check up

So we got to visit our favorite pediatrician in the world, Dr. Hargrave, last week for Caroline's 9 month check-up. Okay, so we're a few weeks late. She weighs in at a whopping 18 lbs and 13 oz, and 27 inches in length. Right at 50 percentile. She had to have a little heel prick and blood test, and one shot. Oh, these are getting harder as she's more aware of what's happening.
After her appointment, we took Casey to our friend Trent's house, then loaded up the car and headed down to our 4th Impact retreat with FEFC. I love going to retreat, but was a little skeptical at how much I would be able to participate with Caroline in tow. She did great! She actually dropped her 3rd nap this weekend, which caused her to take 2 long naps per day. My monitor reached into the main meeting room, so I could put her down for her naps and then go to the sessions-- barely missed a thing. We had a fabulous speaker-- Gideon Tsang-- who I learned so much from. We are hoping to hang out with he and his family soon, as they live in Austin and he pastors a church here.
So we're now back in Austin for a while-- I say this because we've gone on 3 trips in the last 2 weeks.... all fun stuff but it's nice to unpack our bags and the Pack'n Play for a while!!!

We always have a lot of fun with Caroline around, and it's also great to share her with others-- she has a way of brightening any room with her sweet smiles and giggles. She has become INTENT on making friends with everyone she sees, and this plays itself out the most when we are at restaurants. She will stare and smile at anyone around us until they look at her and smile back. It's really funny to watch-- it doesn't matter if it's across the room or at the table beside us. Last night Jeff and I went to Cypress Grill for dinner, and our table was clear across the restaurant from the bar. But Jeff saw Caroline smiling at someone and when he looked to see who it was, it was the bartender. The bartender even came over to our table to visit Caroline. She is definitely an extrovert at this point in her life.... hmmmm.... wonder where that comes from???
During the last week, Caroline has gotten to spend a lot of fun time with Mimi, Aunt Anne, Grammy and Ron, and Aunt Mary & Uncle Kim. Oh how she loves the "special people" in her life-- she recognizes her family and is really bonding with them. Here are a few pics from this week. Enjoy :)

Such a big girl!

We have a little crawler on our hands now. She started a few weeks ago and now is really an expert. She also has a fetish for these Fisher Price blocks (really old school ones) and likes to have one in her hand at all times. Well today one of those blocks was under our kitchen table and she navigated through chair legs and table legs to get to it. Such a good crawler :) (such a proud mom too!)
Another new thing this week-- she's pulled up to standing on her own. I went in to get her up yesterday morning and found her at eye level with me-- standing up in her crib holding the top rail. Good thing we lowered the crib last week!!!
Between crawling and finger foods, pulling up and playing peekaboo, we certainly feel like Caroline is growing and learning so fast. Where is our tiny newborn baby? Time is flying and I just want to slow things down and savor these sweet times with her.

Caroline has a knack for making friends with everybody... she will smile at you, lean her head to the side and give you sweet eyes, reach for you.... just about anything to win you over. So everyone comments on what a happy and sweet baby she is, and she is.... most of the time. But there are some things that really get her diaper in a wad...such as:
1. Riding in her carseat. Sometimes I can distract her with a new toy and she won't mind getting strapped into her seat as much, but usually after about 5 minutes in her seat, she starts screaming her head off. I think she fears that we're driving to Dallas again.. how can I help her understand that we're in the HEB parking lot 3 minutes from our house?!??!
2. Getting her diaper changed.... again, another non-optional frequent activity in her life like the aforementioned carseat. She just doesn't like it and squirms every which way in order to avoid being re-diapered. I'm getting good at putting them on backwards while she's on her tummy.
3. Getting a booger picked out of her nose.... I know, I wouldn't like that either. For this one, she doesn't scream, but rather has some sweet defense moves. It's pretty impressive!
4. Occasionally, she really gets upset when there's a loud noise. Sometimes that loud noise is me on the phone, and I'm learning to tone it down a little ;)

Busy month so far....

Well, it's been a busy month so far! We went to Galveston for vacation, then did 4 weddings in 2 weekends (June 2nd and 9th), and then today we had Caroline's baby dedication at church. Lots of excitement, and it doesn't end there :) We had visits from Mimi, Grammy, Papa, Nannie, Daniel, Matthew, Aunt Anne, Uncle Jeff, Cameron and Ashlyn today for the dedication! On Tuesday, C and I will fly to Little Rock for a couple of days, and then on Friday, my two best girl-friends from college are coming for a visit!!! YAY!!! The next weekend is our 5 year anniversary, and we're going to Dallas for a special wedding and we'll celebrate our anniversary by staying at the Melrose Hotel-- the same hotel we stayed in on our wedding night!

Caroline has started doing a few fun new things this week-- playing patty-cake, babbling up a storm (there are lots of "da-das" but no "ma-mas" yet), and playing "ride a little horsy" by bouncing up and down herself!!! It's been a fun time-- watching her personality come out more and more as she expresses herself!

Here are some recent pics to share:

Some Caroline Factoids

So I thought I should start writing in more detail the fun things that Caroline does, so I might as well write it here in my blog :) We went in for her 6 month checkup this week. She is growing so big-- 16 lbs 8 oz. I went to visit my good friend Jennifer's new baby girl this week and the difference between holding a newborn vs. Caroline is crazy. I can't believe how small she once was and how big she is getting. The Dr. was impressed that she is already sitting up by herself-- he said that she's a little early doing that-- way to go C!!!
She does so many cute things now-- today she reached for me to hold her when I came home and hadn't seen her in a few hours. It was so cute-- she has never done that before!!! She laughs easily and smiles at everyone-- she's a total joy. I'm so thankful for her sweet temperament!!!

So my friend Jan tagged me to do this quizzy thing... I guess I haven't posted in a while so this is a good place to jump-start my posting again :)


FOODOLOGY
Q: What is your salad dressing of choice?
A: I love ginger salad dressing at Japanese restaurants :)

Q: What is your favorite fast food restaurant?
A: Chick-fil-A or Thundercloud

Q: What is your favorite sit-down restaurant?
A: Shogun or Sekisui-- both Japanese restaurants (in Little Rock)where they cook in front of you :)

Q: On average, what size tip do you leave at a restaurant?
A: 20%

Q: What food could you eat every day for two weeks and not get sick off of?
A: I eat cereal every day, and usually a turkey/cheese sandwich for lunch. But I kinda get sick of them

Q: What is your favorite type of gum?
A: Extra

TECHNOLOGY
Q: What is your wallpaper on your computer?
A: Pictures from "My Pictures" folder-- most have either Caroline or a flower arrangement in them... that's the subject of all my photos lately

Q: How many televisions are in your house?
A: two

BIOLOGY
Q: What’s your best feature?
A: That's a hard one.... I'm liking my eyes more now that Caroline has the same ones

Q: Have you ever had anything removed from your body?
A: Teeth and a baby

Q: Which of your five senses do you think is keenest?
A: Taste-- I love food

Q: When was the last time you had a cavity?
A: Not sure-- a while ago

Q: What is the heaviest item you lifted last?
A: Flower arrangements-- they are so heavy but I'm a control freak so I usually carry them myself

Q: Have you ever been knocked unconscious?
A: No

YOU-OLOGY
Q: If it were possible, would you want to know the day you were going to die?
A: No.

Q: Is love for real?
A: Absolutely

Q: If you could change your first name, what would you change it to?
A: I like my name

Q: What color do you think looks best on you?
A: Not sure-- I wear a lot of light pink

Q: Have you ever swallowed a non-food item by mistake?
A: Not that I'm aware of

Q: Have you ever saved someone’s life?
A: Not that I'm aware of

Q: Has someone ever saved yours?
A: Jesus :)


DAREOLOGY
Q: Would you walk naked for a half mile down a public street for $100,000?
A: No way!!!!

Q: Would you allow one of your little fingers to be cut off for $200,000?
A: No way!!!!

Q: Would you never blog again for $50,000?
A: Sure.

Q: Would you pose nude in a magazine for $250,000?
A: No.

Q: Would you drink an entire bottle of hot sauce for $1,000?
A: Sure

Q: Would you give up watching television for a year for $25,000?
A: Sure

Q: Give up MySpace forever for $30,000?
A: In a heartbeat

DUMBOLOGY
Q: What is in your left pocket?
A: A key to my house

Q: Is Napoleon Dynamite actually a good movie?
A: I like it-- lots of '80s throwbacks like the Caboodle

Q: Do you have hardwood or carpet in your house?
A: Carpet and Tile

Q: Do you sit or stand in the shower?
A: Stand

Q: Could you live with roommates?
A: Yes.

Q: How many pairs of flip-flops do you own?
A: More than 10

Q: Last time you had a run-in with the cops?
A: It's been too long to remember, thankfully!

Q: What do you want to be when you grow up?
A: Not sure yet :)

LASTOLOGY
Q: Friend you talked to?
A: Jeff
Q: Last person you called?
A: Mom

RANDOMOLOGY
Q: First place you went this morning?
A: I haven't been anywhere yet today, but we go to the pediatrician in 30 minutes for Caroline's 6 month appt.

Q: What can you not wait to do?
A: Honestly, I have 2 weddings (floral design) this weekend and I'll be glad when they're behind me.

Q: What’s the last movie you saw?
A: Elizabeth-- it wasn't good

Q: Are you a friendly person?
A: Yeah!

Picture People

So, I have really been aching to get Caroline's picture taken at a portrait studio. I know that these places are BIG on the hard sell, and most of my friends walk out of the studio $300 lighter.... I was determined not to go overboard. We went to Picture People in the mall on Friday and what fun! Jeff and I pulled out all of our "make Caroline smile" tricks-- and they worked! We got some amazing shots... hopefully I can share them digitally once we've made our purchases today :)
Speaking of pictures-- no one told me that "photo & video management" goes right alongside diapering, feeding, dressing, playing, and cleaning up after a baby. I absolutely LOVE taking pictures of Caroline and this crazy guilt comes over me whenever we have a sweet moment or cute outfit on that isn't chronicled yet in the digital realm. For instance, her cry has changed.... from the newborn cry (always the same pitch and duration) to more "grown-up" protest cries (varying in duration and pitch). So now I have a little worry that I didn't ever capture her newborn cry on video.... I'll have to let it go. These days are all about living in the present... she is ever-changing and I am just trying to take as much time as possible to stop and smell the roses, or the lavendar baby wash....

Blessing

I feel like shouting to everyone “I’m the MOST blessed person in the whole world.” But I won’t, because when someone is extremely blessed, it reminds most others of their trials and the reasons that they don’t feel blessed. We’ve had our share of trials, no doubt, and during the trials, it was hard to imagine any time of blessing. But the most difficult trial of my life is the reason that I now recognize my blessedness—the arrival of our precious daughter, Caroline, six days ago, is the inspiration for my joy. I could never have imagined or prepared myself for the heavenliness of her arrival. She is so perfect—I love the way her mouth moves when you stroke her cheek, and I love the way her eyes look when they are wide open and the way her face changes shape depending on whether she’s asleep or awake (chubby when asleep, slender when awake, by the way). I love the way we can soothe her when she is so troubled with gas or some other “baby trauma.” She makes me want to be a better person in all ways, most importantly in the way that I follow Christ and live out His will for my life. I feel undeserving of this amount of joy. My heart overflows with love for her and for my family and friends. My eyes overflow with tears (I know there are hormones involved, but….) at my blessing.

Labor

How to know if you’re in labor…… no wonder there are a million lists in every book and on all the pregnancy websites… it’s kinda tricky to know if it’s really “time.” So, it’s 1:08 am on December 6th and I’ve been timing contractions since about 9:30. I’ve been having them all day, but now they’re getting closer together and a little trickier to ignore. We’ve been praying that Caroline would show up without having to be induced—I think this is our answered prayer! We are so excited to meet her—that is an understatement. After 2.5 years of infertility and two miscarriages, we sometimes were scared to think that this day might never come. Praise the Lord for His mighty plans—our faith has grown throughout this journey and as difficult as the trial was for us, we know He used it to shape us and draw us closer to Him and each other.
Jeff and I have enjoyed our six years together as “just the two of us” so much. We are absolutely best friends and really can’t imagine life with kiddos. But I know that in just a few weeks or months, we’ll have a hard time picturing what life was like before Caroline came. Thankfully we have been able to travel together, enjoy movies and cooking at home, and dote on our precious dog to our heart’s content these past few years and we have lived the “before kids” part of our marriage to its fullest. Now we start the next chapter that will last the rest of our lives, Lord willing. We can’t wait to be parents and get to know our kiddos and watch them grow. We pray that their ministry greatly surpasses any ministry we have – that would be our greatest joy.
Just wanted to journal a few of these random thoughts as I sit here at my computer waiting to make a call to the doctor to go to the hospital. How surreal to think that my next night that I am home, we will have a precious daughter at home with us. Another contraction… 1:17 am. Seven minutes from the last one… it won’t be long now.