Williamsburg in Summer

Williamsburg in Summer

Monday, May 26, 2008

Happy Memorial Day

Well, finally summer has arrived. The weather has been cold and wet and dreary for months now. I was thrilled when the sun came out for the weekend. Although I know the awful D.C. humidity is quickly approaching, this weekend was beautiful with some gentle breezes and warm air. We had a series of cookouts to go to on Sunday and Monday, but we ended the holiday at Papa and Gigi Gallagher's pool. Brenden and Kate splashed in the water, while Collin slept in the shade off to the side. Kate had a blast. She is all giggles these days. Her enthusiasm for life is contagious.




P.S. Kate is sitting up all by herself now!

Friday, May 23, 2008

What are you feeding that boy??

Well, we always knew Kate was a bit on the petite side, but next to her one month old cousin, Collin - she really looks tiny. Kate just had her 9 month check-up where she measured 26.5 inches and weighed in at 16 lbs. 15 oz...she just missed 17 lbs. by one ounce!! Yet, her "little" cousin weighed in at his 1 month check-up at 12 lbs. 10 oz. and is already 22.5 inches long! That is not even a five pound difference!

Anyone want to take bets on how long it will be before Collin surpasses Kate's weight??

Sunday, May 11, 2008

Mother's Day

Yesterday was my first Mother's Day. And to Josh's credit - he did a wonderful job of making me feel special. Thank you, my love! The day started with a yummy breakfast in bed made by my husband and cleaned up by my husband too. (If you saw the kitchen after he was done, you'd understand why this too was a blessing.) Josh gave me a beautiful card with some money in it to spend on myself as I wished (thank you!). Then I got to go back to bed and snuggle with Josh while Kate took her morning nap. We were all dressed and ready for church but Little Miss Kate did not want to wake up from her blissful sleep - and my rule is NEVER WAKE A SLEEPING BABY! Actually she had not slept well on Saturday night and knowing we had a full afternoon of family events, I decided to let her continue her nap. So we did miss church which saddened me, but once she woke up, Josh took me out to run some errands I needed to do. (Yeah for Target!) I always enjoy running errands with Josh or a friend, so it was special that he gave up time to do some mundane things with me. Then we drove around for a little while looking at some lots of land (we're always looking for that perfect lot to build on someday), and ended our drive at my favorite nursery where I got to pick up my annual herbs for my hanging baskets in the backyard, my tomato plant (are you ready for the competition this year, Dad?) as well as a few flowers for the gardens. I enjoyed every minute of it! We spent a raining afternoon at home while Kate took nap number two. And our day ended with a delicious steak dinner cooked by my dad as we celebrated Mother's Day with my mom, grandmother, and sister-in-law. It was one of those days that was pleasant from start to finish. So thank you, Josh, for all your effort to spend time with me today and make my 1st Mother's Day special. I love you!

A friend sent me this poem that's been circulating on the Internet. So in honor of the day I thought I'd share it with you all. The author is unknown:

Before I was a Mom, I never tripped over toys
or forgot words to a lullaby.
I didn't worry whether or not my plants were poisonous.
I never thought about immunizations.

Before I was a Mom,
I had never been puked on.
Pooped on. Chewed on. Peed on.
I had complete control of my mind
and my thoughts.I slept all night.

Before I was a Mom, I never held down a screaming child
so doctors could do tests. Or give shots.
I never looked into teary eyes and cried.
I never got gloriously happy over a simple grin.
I never sat up late hours at night
watching a baby sleep.

Before I was a Mom,I never held a sleeping baby
just because I didn't want to put her down.
I never felt my heart break into a million pieces
when I couldn't stop the hurt.
I never knew that something so small could affect my life so much.
I never knew that I could love someone so much.
I never knew I would love being a Mom.

Before I was a Mom,I didn't know the feeling of
having my heart outside my body.
I didn't know how special it could feel
to feed a hungry baby.
I didn't know that bond
between a mother and her child.
I didn't know that something so small
could make me feel so important and happy.

Before I was a Mom,
I had never gotten up in the middle of the night
every 10 minutes to make sure all was okay.
I had never known the warmth,
the joy,
the love,
the heartache, the wonderment
or the satisfaction of being a Mom.
I didn't know I was capable of feeling so much,
before I was a Mom.
Happy Mother's Day!

Thursday, May 8, 2008

Dinner and Music

She's a cutie even if she is covered in peas!
I'll let the video tell the story...
When Kate is not elbow deep in green veggies, she can usually be found at the piano at some point after dinner. Since Kate has been born, Josh has been wonderful about making music a part of Kate's world. Kate loves the piano; currenlty, she is working on a percussion style of playing.

Florida...the rest of the story


Well, I started out really well blogging every day. But before I knew it it was time to go, and I had not updated the blog in a few days. So here's the quick rundown and some final photos. We had a wonderful vacation.


Josh arrived on Wednesday and Kate was overjoyed to see him again! The weather had taken a turn and cold winds moved in the for the rest of the week. We managed to get Kate into the pool one more time while Josh was here. She enjoyed it, but she wasn't nearly as animated as she was earlier in the week. She's a natural in the water though, kicking away!

Tradition annually brings us back the fabulous, luxurious Breaker's Hotel in West Palm Beach. We can't afford to stay there, but they have a wonderful family oriented restaurant on site that we look forward to going to each year. This year we enjoyed a stroll along the water and through the gardens. It was a beautiful (but windy) evening.


Here's a cute video of Kate's hair blowing the wind. She just woke up from a nap, so she's a little more serious than usual.

Josh, Kate and I departed Florida on Saturday and headed off to chilly Massachusetts. Kate met her great grandfather, great aunts and uncles, and little cousins, Tommy and Joey, for the first time. Kate loves kids; it's like she knows there is a connection to other little people. She played for hours with Tommy. We also stayed with my childhood friend Michelle. Her little girl, Jillian, had fun pushing Kate around the kitchen in a doll stroller-- Kate had fun too. It was great to see family and friends again. I wish we could visit more often.