First Halloween

Our sweet girl was a ladybug tonight. Between ladybug shoes and the ladybug outfit she was decked out. However, since we're in Maine where it didn't get above 50degrees in the heat of the day today, she was wrapped in a blanket while we walked around with my manager and her kids, so no one really got to see her cuteness! But as you'll see in the pictures, even though we loved her outfit she wasn't so fond of the hat! But alas, here are some pics with the ladybug outfit and her Halloween pajamas. Hope y'all enjoyed your evening!

Crawling

Pulling Up, Army Crawling and Running

Ok, so Mary-Michael hasn't reached the running milestone yet, but this past week she did indeed master pulling herself up to standing position and army crawling. Gone are the days when I could leave her in the middle of the floor with a few toys and walk away. This girl is on a mission and she does not sit still! I have found her this week standing in her crib bouncing up and down and have learned that babies will put anything in their mouths, including dog toys and dog hair. It's so fun to see her discover new things (ok, maybe not all new things, but most).

This past weekend we enjoyed a trip to Northern VA - had lunch with Ash, visited with Grandma, Papa George, Uncle Kam and Aunt Keesha, and I ran in the Army 10-miler (hence the running part of the title). M&M had lots of fun playing with all the toys Grandma has and spending time with our NoVA family. Despite her yucky cold she came out to cheer Momma on while she ran, too. I didn't win a prize, but I did finish and ran the entire time - it felt really good to run in a race again, too!



Playing with my Aunt Keesha.


Daddy, a tired M&M and Momma after the race.


The running group.


Practicing my sippy-cup skills with Papa George.


Tasting an orange for the first time with Aunt Keesha.

My Favorite Kind of Weekend

Have I mentioned that I love fall? Apples, pumpkins, cool weather, leaves changing - it's the best! This weekend we enjoyed a full day in Charlottesville with friends. After a trip to Carter Mountain to pick apples (16 lbs!) and pumpkins, we grabbed lunch at a college favorite sandwich shop and temporarily moved in (a baby requires a lot of bags) to Christian and Mike's so that Mary-Michael could take a nap. We had to wake M&M up from her slumber to make it over to the tailgate in time - see M&M below with her Auntie Boo. The game started at 6pm, so I knew it would start to get interesting as we approached M&M's bedtime, and as expected, she had some fussy moments and didn't love all the loud noises, but since the Cavaliers really started to fall apart early on in the game the cheers weren't long-lived. Overall, baby girl, you did pretty good.



And after church on Sunday, Geoff headed up to DC for the Skins/Colts game with some friends, while we spent the afternoon with Mimi and Poppy at a benefit for a friend of theirs with cancer. M&M even had a little dance with Poppy.

Just Because

On of M&M's favorite new things.


Spending time with Daddy.


Grandad and all the grandkids. (Sorry Texas family for all the Redskins gear!)

The First Professional Photo Session

So, I went in planning to only buy the $9.95 package, but of course, it seemed ALL the pictures were cute, so I came out with much more than I'd planned and spent way more than I'd planned. But I think the final results were totally worth it...










(these are the original photos before we cropped out the hands out to catch her and other random stuff!)

7 Months

My sweet girl,

You are beautiful. You are treasured. You are sacred. You are His. I heard these lyrics today in a Mercy Me song and prayed that you would grow up believing this. You are truly sacred and so special, Mary-Michael, and I hope that you grow up secure in your identity as a beautiful child and woman of God.

You are up to all kinds of things these days. Most people describe you as happy, full of energy (aka you never stop moving) and beautiful. Your daddy and I second that. Here are a few highlights of late:

-You are sitting up all on your own, and it's a whole new world for you.
-You are ready to crawl - you get up on your hands and knees and rock but aren't quite sure what to do next.
-You love to stand and can stand up while holding on to something for balance. Grandma discovered this last week while taking care of you when Momma was in Vegas for work.
-You LOVE animals - whenever I need to distract you or stop the tears I call for Radar or Carla, and in an instant, you're better.
-You are making all kinds of squeals and noises and babbling all the time.
-You are now sent to the church nursery, as we can no longer contain you and your noises in church. You have done pretty well despite some recent signs of separation anxiety.
-You chew on anything you can get your hands on - we're just waiting for a tooth to show itself.
-You are wearing 3-6 months and 6 month clothes. At your 6 month check up you were 25.5 inches long (62%) and 15lbs, 12.5 ounces (32%).

I cannot believe how quickly you are growing and changing. I'm not harping on the fact that you're not just a wee baby anymore because each day you are discovering something new and giving us so much to laugh and smile about. We are so blessed.

Remember, sweet girl, you are treasured. We love you dearly.

Momma

Bald Head Island

No cars. No commercialism. No stress. Lots of books. Lots of beach. Lots of food. Lots of family.

This pretty much sums up our fabulous vacation in Bald Head Island where we truly unplugged. Mary-Michael became a super sleeper (even more than she already is) and when she was awake she loved the water and practicing her new skill of sitting up all on her own. I read 2 books and took naps, while Geoff was able to watch all the ESPN, football and Orange County Chopper shows he wanted. Yes, it was heaven.


Loving the beach.


All this beach wears a baby girl out.


Yes, the only pictures my husband managed to capture were of my backside, but alas, I wanted a memory of my and my girl.