Christmas Card Giveaway...

My friend Sharon does very cool designs and she has created some Christmas cards and will be adding to them. Follow the link on the right to browse her cards and see if there's one that might suit your family for the holidays. You can also sign up for a Christmas card giveaway! Friday's the last day though, so hurry!

A few nights ago while Summer was at our house she started playing peek-a-boo with Eydie and got the biggest smiles out of her. This first picture is one of my favorites!
We gave Eydie her first taste of solid food, but she wasn't too impressed. Can you blame her? I think she would've taken to it more if we had started her out on chocolate instead of rice cereal.




Really, this is all you've got for me? I've been watching you eat food that looks a lot better than this for months! Where're you hiding the good stuff?

Homecoming and Halloween

A couple weekends ago, I enjoyed visiting with some friends who came in for ACU Homecoming. Eydie got worn out from going to the parade and chapel and the football game and visiting with friends and family.


Eydie and Jude chatted it up a little bit. They (we) are going to have fun together at Christmas! Jude looks just like a miniature version of his dad.
We have two costumes for Eydie this Halloween. As a family, we went to our small group costume party as Hester Prynne, Arthur Dimmesdale, and Pearl. Brandon and I actually donned these costumes for a grub about 7 years ago, but we had to bring them back now that we have a real, live Pearl! And what a cute Pearl she was! But just in case Eydie ever questions why, on her first Halloween, we dressed her up as an illegitimate child, we got her a flower costume too.

Eydie with her Western cousins at Trunk or Treat

Wilting flower

She passed out on the stroller ride home.

The shamed family

Yawning Pearl

I am loving this cooler weather! I love fall for crisp mornings, spice candles, vests and jackets, soup, cool sunny days, pumpkin spice lattes, pies, and costumes!

4 Months (and a week)

I'm a little behind on blogging, so I'll divide the last month into a few different posts. Tonight I'll focus on Eydie's 4th month. It is amazing to me how much she changes from month to month, especially when I see her next to a newborn. She likes to be upright almost all of the time unless she is about to fall asleep (and if we're holding her, she usually likes to sleep on our shoulder). If we set her on the floor, she rolls over almost immediately. She usually gets over to her stomach and then starts kicking her legs and grunting until she gets frustrated that she's not going anywhere. We've started putting her in the exersaucer and she's beginning to reach out and grab the things in front of her. Lately she's been experimenting with her voice a lot. She covers a wide range of sounds and sometimes likes to sing along in church. A couple nights ago she had a long conversation with Brandon. They were talking back and forth and she was smiling the whole time. At her appointment last week, she weighed 14 lb. 10 oz. and was 25 in. long, putting her in the 75th percentile.

Last week I was at Summer's house and Pierson was "playing" with Eydie (stacking blankets, baseballs, bats, etc. on her). She was happy to have the entertainment and just cooing and kicking. Summer and I were in the other room and Pierson walked in with his head down looking hurt and said, "Mommy, baby Eydie hit me." Summer and I cracked up. We went and looked at Eydie whose little eyes were peeking out under the blanket and her arms and legs were flailing. Later Pierson got his feelings hurt again because "Eydie won't talk to me!" I'm going to have to teach that girl some manners!

Still to come...ACU Homecoming and Halloween Party pictures!

The many faces of EPS

Three Months

Eydie is 3 months old now and getting cuter and cuter. She's started to giggle which might be my favorite sound in the world. She's mastered rolling from tummy to back and has been practicing rolling from back to tummy although she usually gets stuck on her side and then gets frustrated and we have to give her a little push to get the rest of the way. In the last month she's enjoyed another trip to the lake, her cousins' birthday party, was introduced to her first West Texas Fair, survived her vaccination shots and a cold, and even went to the movies and stayed quiet from previews to credits.

Kara and Eydie (aka Salt-N-Pepa)

Cutie naked girl and daddy at her doctor's visit. At her appointment last week she weighed in at 13 lbs. 11 oz. and was 24 1/2 in. long, putting her in the 90th percentile.
Today, the first day of fall, was wonderfully cooler. It makes me excited for some cooler weather and for celebrating Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas soon!

Just rolling right along...

Eydie is almost 3 months old and today she rolled over for the first time! This morning I put her on her tummy on the floor and then went to get a glass of milk (gotta start the day off right!). When I came back, she was lying on her back looking surprised. When I said, "What did you do?!" she just grinned up at me. So I put her back on her tummy and got my camera. Within a few minutes she had done it again, this time rolling onto the other side.

Man, I'm on my belly again! Now, how did I get on my back last time?

Hmmm...I think I rocked a little.
Okay, why isn't this working? Am I moving yet?

Ahhh, there we go...success!
Now is she gonna let me lie here or make work for it AGAIN?

What a proud little girl!

Today I watched a show about the photographers of 9/11. I can't believe it's been 8 years already. It was a shock to me last year when talking with my students about it that they were just in 2nd grade when it happened. It is only a vague memory of their childhood. I remember walking through the campus center at ACU and seeing on the TV the first plane hitting the tower. I was a little late for my sign language class (as usual), so I couldn't stay and watch any more. At this point I didn't know it was a terrorist attack. By the time I got to my next class the second tower had been hit. All the classes in that building gathered in the room with a TV to watch as the towers fell. Brandon and I had gone on our first date 3 days earlier, and he happened to have a class in that building too, so we walked together to Moody for a special chapel/prayer service. I cannot imagine the trauma and devastation that those who were there and saw what happened and survived must carry with them the rest of their lives. My prayers are with them today.

Speaking of time rolling along quickly, this weekend is my 10 year high school reunion! I've seen movies where people attended their 10 year reunions and they seemed much older than I feel. I'm sad 3 of my best friends won't be here to go with me (they all live out of state), but I'm also thankful that I see and keep in touch with these girls regularly so I don't need an official reunion to be reunited with them. I'm a little embarrassed to admit that Jocelyn and I learned the dance from Romy and Michele's High School Reunion. I loved going to dances in high school, but I'm glad we won't be forced into any awkward dance moments this weekend. Without my girls, it's just not the same doing Kid 'N Play or the sprinkler.