Rollin

Hey everybody! Greetings from Maid Marian. So three day weekends totally rock and so do days when Daddy only works a half day and then comes to do stuff with me for the rest of the day. We had a great Memorial Day and I even got to travel to Mimi and Papau's house. This is where not only Daddy grew up but Mimi too!! You see, Mimi and Papau live in the same house that Mimi spent her childhood years. Not to date you Mimi, but that is a long time for one house to belong to one family! And what an awesome house with some cool animals! Uncle Ian has a doggy, Lex, and he also has an Iguana named Smokey. Smokey is one interesting looking dude. Daddy says he's kinda like a dinosaur. Then there is Bliss, Mimi's kitty cat. She is really pretty but didn't really come out that much. All-in-all, Mimi and Papau's is a fun place to go.

On Tuesday, Mimi came to watch me while Daddy went to make the Benjamins (aka he went to work) and we had a rockin' good time. We read some books and took Tuck for a walk around the neighborhood. Then later in the day it was time for me to pump-it-up on the floor and get my tummy time in. You see, it is pretty important for us babies to spend some time each day on our bellies. It's how we get stronger and then eventually we learn to crawl. Well, Mimi placed me on my little belly on my little mat and ran in the kitchen to grab something real quick. And when she came back she discovered that I had magically flipped over. Yup, you can pick your jaw up off the floor, I rolled over. Mimi and Daddy have been asking me to do it again, but you know, it kinda cheapens the moment when you do it upon request. This way, I keep them both on their toes

Today (Wednesday) was a SUPER special day. Daddy worked one of those awesome half days and then came home to take me to the groundbreaking ceremony for Mommy's and Christian's memorial garden. I got to meet a lot of Mommy's coworkers and even some of her students! Daddy has always told me how much Mommy loved working as a teacher and especially working at John G. Carlisle Elementary. Now I know why!! The teachers are awesome and the kids are really cool!! They had a great ceremony that started with a couple of speeches and then some of the students sang a really sweet song about how they missed my Mommy and their friend, Christian. The song talked about the impact that Mommy and Christian had on them and was actually a song by Hannah Montana (Christian's favorite artist). Daddy said that Hannah Montana is one of the most popular musical artists for children. In his day it was the New Kids On the Block but now it's Hannah Montana and the Jonas Brothers. But who knows who it will be when I am old enough to follow these kinds of groups. Anyway, the service was SPECTACULAR and is a beautiful start to what is going to be a gourgeous garden. I can't wait to visit with Daddy. We ended the ceremony by letting go balloons filled with seeds. Kinda like Mommy, where ever they land there will be something beautiful that grows.

Well, that's about all that is new in the lives of Daddy and me. We are just loving the great weather and getting to spend so much time together. Keep it cool and check in soon, we'll blog again in a few days.

Love You, Lily

PS Happy Birthday Mommy!! I bet God bakes a mean birthday cake. We love and miss you tremendously.

Two Bags

Happy Memorial Day weekend everybody!! I hope that you are enjoying the long weekend and are able to spend some time with those whom you love. Daddy and I are having a great weekend and I LOVE that he gets an extra day off. Awesome!

You probably read the title to this blog post and ask yourself "Two Bags? What in the world does that mean?" Well, people, I had a doctor's visit on Wednesday this week and I weighed a whopping 9 pounds 10 ounces!! Daddy calls me his little bruiser and said that by the time we got around to posting the latest update (Sunday), I probably weigh 10+lbs. Isn't that crazy?! That's the same as two five pound bags of sugar; two bags. I have quadrupled in size since I was born!! I am in the 35th percentile for weight and head curcumference but Daddy says I have to blame Mommy's side of the family for my "vertical challenges". It seems that I am only in the 5th percentile for length. But that's OK because I am short and mighty, just like my momma. Dr. Fix was super excited that I am doing so well and one of the benefits to being a rockstar, I now get to up the amount of food that I eat from 4 ounces to 5. Boy, I tell ya, after I am done with 5 ounces I am ready for a long nap.

Daddy was really excited when Dr. Fix said I was doing this great. But neither of us were excited about the last part of our appointment, shots. Ouch, they smart! This poor lady, it's her job to come in and stab us innocent kids with these needles. How would you like to be the most disliked lady at the doc's office? She gave me two shots, one in each leg, and I let out a scream that Daddy is fairly convinced my Mimi Cameron could hear in Arkansas (miss you Mimi ). Daddy picked me up right after the lady gave me the shots and was able to calm me down a bit. I was a little irritable for the rest of the day and just decided to nap it away. Daddy was thankful that I am such a tough chick and didn't cry that much after my shots

There has been a lot of things going on as far as my development is concerned. The coolest of my new skills is the fact that I have found my hands. These things are incredible! Like when I don't have a Wubbanub nearby, I can just suck on my thumb. Well, I actually suck on my fist (see video below) but I am told that there is a thumb there somewhere and that once I find it I may not need my wubbanub. I don't think I will be giving up my awesome wubbanubs anytime soon but I do look forward to finding out all the things I can do with these new hands of mine. Daddy says that his favorite thing to do with his hands is to hold mine. I am betting that will be my favorite thing to do with mine too.

Other than that there is not too much to report. Daddy and I are just enjoying the long weekend with family and friends. Daddy took me to a cookout yesterday where I got to meet some of his coworkers and their families. Daddy works with some really cool people and they were all so impressed with how big I am getting. It was fun to be the center of attention and I was sure to entertain them by making funny facial expressions. It was awesome.
Tonight, Daddy and I are just gonna kick it here at home. We like layin low sometimes.
Well, have a great Memorial Day. We hope yours is great!!
Love All of You, Lily

Groovin

Hey everybody!! I know, I know, we haven't sent a new post in almost a week. But with Daddy back to work, we don't get as much time together as we would like. So we have to get some serious lovin' in when he gets home and before I have to get to bed. We're doing a pretty good job at that and as the blog title says, we're just groovin.

We have been pretty busy lately. My Florida Papau was in town for about a week and we got to hang out a little bit. We don't see him very often since he lives in Florida and it was good to hang with him for a bit. He promises to come back in September so we are excited about that. See you then Papau!!

This weekend was busy as always. Daddy had to do this thing he called "errand running" and he took me with him on the adventure!! There were four stops. Well, there were supposed to be four stops but there were actually five. First stop was the bank where Daddy used to work. Actually, Daddy says that the bank is where our story as a family begins because that is where he and Mommy met. Daddy, you aren't supposed to hit on the clientele but since it worked out so well this time (ie You and Mommy falling in love and having Me) we'll give you a pass. Daddy's old coworker, Judy, was at the bank and was soo excited to see us. I can see why Daddy loved working there. The people there are just soo nice.

After the bank Daddy and I headed to the phone store and then to the Tuxedo place so Daddy could be fitted for a -yup, you guessed it- tuxedo. Uncle Josh is getting married in September and he asked Daddy to be in the wedding. It would have been nice if Daddy remembered which tuxedo shop to go to because the first one was not it. But they were nice about it and wrote down Daddy's measurements so all we had to do was drop off the paper to the correct shop. All the people helping us were great and Daddy says it's because he had sch a beautiful sidekick. I think he's right. Our last stop was this place called Toys-R-Us. That place ROCKS!!! Man, there are all kinds of toys and gadgets there. Not to mention, they have more cute clothes than I could ever wear. But Daddy made sure to tell me that we were there to get just one thing, a mobile., and that we aren't just gonna shop to shop. And oh what a mobile we got!! This thing is seriously rad. After all this, I was exhausted. We went home and snuggled with Tucker for the rest of the afternoon.

Yesterday was pretty sweet. I hung out with Grandma and Poppy in the morning while Mimi and Daddy went to church and then hung with Daddy and Mimi when they returned. One of Mommy and Daddy's friends from church swung by to see me with her daughter, Kiera. Kiera is almost 1 year old and even though we didn't get to play on Sunday, we are gonna be great buddies. Sunday was also family dinner day at Grandma and Poppy's. I love these dinners because I get some seriously good snuggle time in. My cousin Elizabeth even got to hold me after she sanitized her hands. Man, she is a natural (see pic above).

Well, after that crazy weekend Daddy and I came home and crashed hard. I woke up at 10pm just to eat and then slept until 4am and then slept again until 7am. Daddy was ecstatic! This sleeping thing is helping me grow tons and the hair continues to come in. Daddy thinks I am gonna be a brunette just like Mommy. We shall see.

I have a doctor appointment Wednesday and will find out how big I am getting. I am really looking forward to seeing how much I weigh. Daddy is thinking that I weigh somewhere in the neighborhood of 9lbs 4oz. I am not so sure. One stinky thing, I have to get shots on Wednesday. I don't look forward to that so please say a little prayer that they don't hurt so bad.

Well, that's about it. We'll blog to you soon and until then, keep on rockin'!

Love you guys, Lily

P.S. Tucker and I make a great pair, don't you think?!

Oh My Goodness

Hey everybody!! I hope this blog finds you well and enjoying all the warmth and freshness that Spring brings. Before I tell you all the incredible story of the picture above, I wanted to mention something really special that we did on Mother's Day. I must have been super tired from the busy day and just plum forgot to blog about it. I can't believe I did that. Sorry.

So, you already know that Aunt Jocelyn brought over her crazy bunch for our Mother's Day cookout. Well, my Aunt Pitter was also here and she brought with her a whole bunch of lillies to plant in the yard. So, before we had our cookout the whole team prepared a special corner in the yard to place our new beautiful flowers. Paige helped cut the ivy. Hunter, Mimi and Tucker (our dog) were in charge of pulling the ivy out. Tyler was in charge of aircaring helpless worms and bugs out of harm's way while Daddy and Pitter dug holes in the ground for the plants. And me, you might ask. Well, I was in charge of looking cute and overseeing the job. Daddy says I did great. And the garden, boy-oh-boy, it looks fantastic!! Big thanks to Aunt Pitter.

OK, so you probably opened up the blog page and said "Hey, did I miss something or is it already Christmas?!?!" Not to worry, you didn't miss anything and Christmas is still a ways off. Daddy just happens to work with some of the most AMAZING people on the planet and they are raising some of the COOLEST kids EVER!! Daddy went to his office the other day and when he got there he found three big boxes full of stuff. Baby stuff!! For me!!

You see, Daddy works with this really nice lady, Jillian. She lives and works in Virginia but with modern technology (ie computers like the one I blog on) it's possible for her and Daddy to work together. Anyway, back to this cool story. Jillian's daughter, Lindy, recently had a birthday party and instead of gifts for herself, she had their friends and family bring stuff for Daddy and me. CAN YOU BELIEVE IT!?!?! Lindy and crew, you all get the Rockstars of the Year Award, hands down.

They sent all kinds of amazing stuff. I received a few really cool books like "Fancy Nancy" "Brown Bear, Brown Bear What Do You See" and even two that play music while you read. I have already had Daddy read a few of them to me. Love 'em! I was also given a few CDs that Daddy and I can rock out to at home and in the car. Daddy may not have the best singing voice but we are gonna have some serious fun with these. And if that weren't enough, the boxes had all kinds of diapers and gift cards in them. Crazy!! Lindy, you have some seriously amazing friends in the Perschetz, the Porratas, Sherlock, Robertson, Schmincke, and Snyder families. I wanted to send a special shout out to Annabel (who is only 1 week older than me and shares the same appreciation for "boob juice"), thanks for the sweet letter. And if you were at the party and Daddy couldn't make out your name on the card, know that you too are totally rad in my humble albeit biased opinion.

So, that's the story behind that ginormous pile of great stuff. Lindy, my Daddy and I are amazed at your generosity. It takes a special person to say "Hey, I know it's my birthday but I don't want you to bring me gifts. Bring gifts for this girl that I have never met." Daddy says that everybody could take a lesson from you and that your parents should be proud. People like you and your parents make this world a beatiful place. I hope that our paths cross in the future and that we get to meet sometime. I am one super lucky girl to have friends all over the country!! Thanks y'all.

It's been a while since I gave you an update on how I was doing, medically. Well, I am doing pretty good and Daddy says I am growing like a weed. If he were to guess, he would say that I weigh somewhere in the neighborhood of 8lbs 12oz to 9lbs and my length is around 20inches long. Not too shabby for a preemie! And as for the tummy stuff, I still get gassy from time to time but Daddy says that this is just normal baby stuff. I certainly don't seem to have a problem filling my diapers (if you know what I mean). The other day I was laying on Daddy's lap and had to go real bad. Daddy says that it reminded him from a scene out of an old movie called, Dumb and Dumber. I guess I'll have to watch it when I get older to see what he is talking about but he said you would know what he is referring to. All I know is that my tummy is feeling much better and I am loving being at home.

This week is the first week when Daddy has gone back to work. He is only going in for half days right now and I get to hang with my awesome caregivers in the afternoon. Monday, I was with Mimi McHugh. Yesterday, I was with Alison and her daughter, Gwyn. You know we had a great time. Today, I'll be kickin it with Poppy and Aunt Katie and the rest of the week will be spent with Mimi McHugh, Aunt Cyndi and Aunt Juli. Daddy says he was suprised at how hard it is to be at work and away from me. Duh! I could have told him it was gonna be tough. I mean, what would you rather do? Deal with pharmacy contract stuff? Zzzzzz..... OR Hang with your daughter? That's what I thought. But, Daddy has to work so that we have the things we need. We just make the most of the time we have together. So, I am gonna get to doing that. I'll blog again soon. You all rock my world!!

Love, Lily

Happy Mother's Day

Hey everybody and Happy Mother's Day to all you Mamas out there! Big ups to you for all the sacrifices you make so that your children are taken care of. You totally deserve a day that's all about you!! Lets be honest after all, the other 364 days (365 for a leap year) are ALL about us.

Busy, busy weekend for us. Poppy and Grandma watched me all morning on Saturday while Mimi and Daddy went to Big E's graduation. Big E is my uncle Ian and he is ginormous. I thought Daddy was tall but Big E like scrapes his head on the ceiling. I think I am the size of his foot. Anyway, he graduated college this weekend and Daddy says it's time for him to come home and join the real world. I am excited that he is coming home because it means that I will be able to hang with him all the time because he and Daddy are super close. So, welcome home Big E and congratulations on your accomplishment.

My Florida Papaw came by in the afternoon Saturday and stayed until late in the night. He hasn't seen me since Mommy made her trip to heaven and he was blown away at what a big girl that I have become. We got to snuggle for what seemed like hours while he and Daddy caught up. Daddy even took a cheap shot and teased Papaw about me already having more hair then him. Maybe Papaw needs to borrow some of my protein stuff. That seems to be doing the trick for me. Anyway, it was awesome getting to see him and I look forward to hanging with him some more before he heads back to Florida.

Daddy and I had a really busy day today. After Daddy and Mimi got home from church this morning, Daddy and I made a trip to go sit at Mommy's gravesite. This was the first time that Daddy and I went there together and the cemetery was very old and pretty with all the leaves on the trees. He said that we are going to visit Mommy pretty regularly and especially on days like today. Daddy said it's nice to have a place to just go sit and talk to God or Mommy about the stuff that is going on with me and just how he is doing in general. We even brought Mommy lillies because that is the kind of flower Daddy always gets her. Hey, bet you can't guess where I got my name. Anyway, we sat with Mommy for a little bit until Daddy said his bottom was wet from the ground. He called it "swamp-butt" and said that I could probably relate. Not sure what that means. As you know, I have got the best Mommy in the whole wide world and if you are reading this, Mommy, I love and miss you very much and hope you had a great Mother's Day up there in Heaven. I'll see you in my dreams.

This afternoon I got to meet my cousins Tyler, Paige and Hunter. Man, they are awesome! A little crazy, but really cool at the same time. I can tell that we are gonna have some awesome good times together as I get bigger. Daddy says that when I get older that Tyler and Hunter can take me adventuring for bugs and stuff in the woods behind our house and that Paige is gonna be the bestest dress-up partner ever. She is sooo pretty and her hair is really long just like a princess. And guess what, Tyler even read to me. I was passed out in my swing but he is a really good story reader. He read me "The Little Engine That Could" What a great book! Totally relaxed me to the max.

Well, I am super tired from all the craziness and need to get my sleep. I hope that all you mom's out there had a great day and that your kids let you know how much they love you. Keep on checkin' in and we'll blog again real soon. Love you tons, Lily

HOLY MOSES!!

Hey everybody, how's it shakin'? This week is just flying by for me and Daddy. It's soo exciting because I get to do something new almost everyday. Like on Monday, Daddy carried me in the Baby Bjorn and we went on a walk with Mimi and Tucker. At first the Bjorn looks like some sort of baby torture device but once Daddy put me in it and started walking around, I fell in love that thing. It's soo comfortable that I slept for most of the walk. Daddy said he took a note of that for future reference...whatever that means.

Then, yesterday Mommy's bestest friend in the whole wide world, Alison, came over and watched me for half a day while Daddy went into his office to do some work. I can totally see why mommy loves her soo much, she is crazy cool. We spent the whole afternoon together getting to know eachother and even got to go on a walk, read some books and napped. She made me feel soo safe and comfortable and I am soo super duper stoked that we're gonna be kickin' it together for a long time to come. Oh, and it helps that her daughter, Gwynn, is totally cool and fun and just a little older than me. We are gonna have some serious goodtimes together.

Then today we had our follow-up doctor appointment with my awesome pediatrician. And guess WHAT!?!?! I tipped the scales today and 8lbs 8ounces. Daddy calls me his little bruiser and says that he kinda expected me to have gained weight. He says that when he comes and gets me out of bed in the morning it is almost like he is picking up a different baby. I guess I must be doing my best growing at night when I am asleep. I guess I am gonna be doing some serious growing now because the doctor gave Daddy the green light to let me sleep as long as I want at night so he no longer has to set his alarm to feed me. He can just wait until I wake him up and say it's time to eat. Awesome!

So, you know how when I came home that I was sleeping in the basonette in Daddy's room. Well, I decided that I am a big girl and that if I am gonna have my own room that I better get to using it. So I have been sleeping in my own room for a few nights now and am doing fantastic. It's a really cool nursery and I get to sleep with Ribbit (Mommy's teddy). One thing that does drive Daddy and Mimi crazy is how much I scoot in bed. It seems that they bought me this special positioning pad but I wiggle my way right out of it. So, it got canned. Hey, I can't help it; I must be having great dreams.

This evening was pretty eventful too with Grandma and Poppy coming to see me. And then, after they left Daddy was feeding me and I experienced what he calls a "blow-out". You should have seen Daddy's face when it happened; his jaw dropped to the floor and his nose scrunched up when the bouquet hit him. Heehee! It made such a mess that it required that Mimi give me a bath to get all cleaned up. Mimi wrapped me in a warm blanket and Daddy held me while she got my tub ready. One problem, she forgot to put me in a diaper and I guess I wasn't done going. I totally peeed all over Daddy. Haha, it looked like he wet himself. I guess he should make a note of that too for future reference, dontcha think?

To top off the night, we made the news again. Daddy says he continues to be floored by the impact Mommy had on the lives of others. Daddy told me that an awesome lady with whom Mommy grew up now lives in the neighborhood where Mommy worked and her children went to school there. Well, what happened to Mommy wasn't the only tragedy to hit the school this year. A little bit after Mommy went to heaven, one of her students joined her unexpectantly. You can see the news story here: http://www.wcpo.com/news/local/story/Students-Create-Memorial-Garden-For-Teacher/c-KJwvabXk68-JVg7ePDjQ.cspx . Daddy says he just knows that Mommy was the first one at Heaven's gate waiting to show her student around. That's just who Mommy was. So, back to the story. Mommy's friend has this great vision of creating a memorial garden in memory of Mommy and Christian. Problem is, we need to get some help funding it and building it. We want to make this something that continues for years to come. Check out the story and if you feel led to pitch in, we hope you do.

Well, I better go get some sleep. We have three back-to-back-to-back doctors' appointments at Children's Hospital tomorrow. Nothing to worry about, they are just follow-up meetings. I can't wait to stop by the RCNIC to see all my friends!! Blog at you soon.

Love, Lily

Crazy Busy

Happy Sunday everybody!! Man, I have been crazy busy the last few days and haven't had any time to blog. The weekend went by soo fast that I don't even know where to start. Oh I know, I can talk about how the weather man has absolutely nooo idea what he is talking about. It was supposed to rain all weekend and instead we got mild and often sunny weather. Daddy says that if I want job security, you can't go wrong with being a meteorologist. All I have to do is be partly right, half of the time. Anyway, since the weather people were so wrong, we took a walk around our neighborhood and I got to meet my cousin, Elizabeth, because they live in our neighborhood. It was awesome to get to see them and I look forward to walking by there house to say "hi" over the summer.

Friday was incredible!! First, my Aunt Katie and Aunt Cyndi came to kick it with me in the late morning/early afternoon. We did the usual. You know....cuddled. Daddy says for being someone who sleeps most of the time that I have visitors, that I do a great job entertaining my guests. Daddy says that it is a good thing that I get my naps in because they are helping me grow big and strong.

My afternoon on Friday was aaawwweessooommee! Two of my nurses from Good Sam came over for lunch and to hang out with me and to see Daddy too. Daddy and I were super excited to see both Brooke and Melanie and they were crazy excited to see me and how big I have gotten. Man, once they got here Daddy took a back seat and didn't have to worry about a thing. They fed me, changed my diaper, played with me and best of all, we got to love on eachother. I really miss them and hope that we stay in touch. I bet not too many kids are as lucky as me and have nurses that keep in touch much less bring them presents. Yea, not only did they come to hang but they also brought me a pretty pink blanket with my name embroidered on it. Gosh, when I am like the luckiest kid ever! Thanks ladies, you really rock.

Yesterday (Saturday), Daddy invited over all the people who will be babysitting me when he has to go back to work. It really stinks that he has to go back but my babysitters are like the coolest and sweetest bunch of people, EVER!! So, since I can't go to work with Daddy at least I am gonna be home having an awesome time with my new friends. Daddy said that he wanted to have them over so they could meet me and we could get to know one another. That was a great idea and I got to snuggle with a few of them. It's super-duper cool because Daddy is making sure that the people taking care of me are either family or really good family friends. Gosh, I think that is gonna be awesome because I am gonna get super close with these individuals. I love them soo much.

Pretty busy weekend, right? Well today was super busy too. Daddy and Mimi McHugh went to church in the morning so Poppy and Mamaw came to watch me. I really like hanging with them. Daddy says that Mommy had a great relationship with her Poppy and Grandma too and that he knows that I am gonna have a super strong bond with mine too. Daddy says that I never got to meet my Great Poppy but that he was a great man and that he, my great grandma and Mommy are up in heaven having a great time together. He says that if there is a country club in heaven, Mommy, Great Poppy and Grandma are probably sitting down for dinner together. Mommy eating some sort of healthy food, Poppy ordering the hottest coffee available and Great Grandma eating her chicken fingers. Sounds like a great place to me.

Daddy and I had another lunch date. This time Daddy's swimming buddy came over with his girlfriend. Either I am just the best napper and snuggler on the planet or Daddy's friends have all taken lessons on how to cuddle. I haven't met a single one who doesn't take naturally to holding me.

To top off the weekend, we had dinner with the whole family at Uncle Grady and Aunt Cyndi's house. I am soo excited because I finally got to meet my Uncle Ben and his girlfriend, Angela (who I really got along with), Aunt Judy and Uncle Matt and then best of all I got to meet my cousins, Ella and Conner! They are only a little bit older than me and we are gonna be super close as the years go by. Daddy says that there are quite a few more people to meet on that side of the family. I can't wait.

As for how the adjustment to being home has gone, Daddy and Mimi say that I am doing great. I sleep for 4 hours between feeds at night and my belly has been doing good (knock on wood). I also finally got to meet Tucker. Man, he is ginormous!! But he is like the sweetest teddy bear ever. He likes to cuddle with Daddy just like I do and we get some great cuddling time together. Daddy says that Tuck is going to be a great protector and an even better playmate for me. Cool!

Well, that's about it. Pheww, I am exhausted!! I've gotta get to bed. I will blog with you soon. Have a great week!!

Love You, Lily