birthday eve

Not quite 1, but party we did

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11 months old

From this...

To this...

Who would have ever thought we would be so blessed. (I wasn't talking about the extra food people have obviously been feeding us. I was referring to the three little princesses.) Oh how life has changed since our first Thanksgiving together. We recently celebrated our ninth! And today, we celebrate the 11th month of life of our precious baby...the fighter, the one who won't give up. From the moment of birth and her situation in the NICU, until now, with her desire to get from the couch to my arms walking with a pencil in one hand and a wad of socks in the other, her determination still amazes us. She is so smart like her big sisters. Little Emory crawls faster than anyone (if walking isn't getting her there quickly enough) to get to the piano her sister is banging on. She comes screeching random shouts louder than the vaccuum when I am cleaning. She is constantly reminding us that though she is the littlest, she still has a voice and a definite opinion on how things should be done. Her favorite word is "Uh-oh," and she works so hard to say new things and never seems to give up trying with constant repetition. Her zeal for fun makes us smile, and her eyes...oh how they shine. Now, if she can just give up her one bad habit...waking her mom up multiple times per night. For all you people who think you have parenthood SOOOO figured out, have a 3rd. God bless your special day Emory. Happy Day you almost 1 year old!

Baby Mama

Tonight I committed every no-no in the book. I left my baby unattended in the floor while I checked my email. I left the bathroom door open. I didn't dispose of the water in the bathtub immediately after the bath. And, instead of fretting about it all, I got my camera and thanked God that Emory is alive. I will NOT make these mistakes again...usually I do not, but we all mess up occasionally. So, I am very pleased that all that happened was Emory took it upon herself to enjoy a few more minutes of bathtime and that I had other clean pajamas to put her in but even more pleased that an accident did not occur. Don't forget to baby proof things when you have little ones...and if you don't know how, Tina Fey's character does an incredible job in Baby Mama.

New addition to the family

No, we aren't pregnant. But, today, a baby WAS delivered to our front door. We accepted him graciously (as is the custom here where we live, when something is given to you.) He is now tied to a tree in the backyard crying for me to let him in. Apparently his previous parents allowed him in the house. Tonight I will get even less sleep...Despite the girl (that I love and adore) waking me up at least twice per night, I also have the rooster who lives in the tree outside my window (unless I knock him out of it with a 2 X 4, which I have been known to do before dawn on two occasions) and who belongs to my neighbor (with whom I have pleaded to dispose of him properly), I am quite sure I will also be awakened by Oscar--the adorable goat who won't be living with us for much longer. We found him a new home tonight...Nighty night...

Season's Greetings

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Sweet Dreams

Last night I told the girls to each choose 1 toy to take to bed with them. Trinity, very peacefully, chose Spikey the Raccoon whom she placed to sleep in a small box with a bandana on his head because he apparently had some sort of wound. Micah came banging to bed with a bucket full of items. She threw the bucket in her bed, then climbed in and began arranging toy after toy in the bucket until it could hold no more. I said, "Micah, I believe you are supposed to choose one toy." Her response? "Dis is one butet, Mommy." Translation, "This is one bucket, Mommy." She had me there...This was one bucket. So smart already. The items that she couldn't part with: a knee pad, a stuffed hippo, some ribbon, a treasure box, a wooden mallet, an extra large fake penny, an old cell phone, and a plastic eggplant...What more could a girl want?