Pretty Lights

Grammy and I decided that Eliza needed a girls only outing, so we left Dad and Grandaddy at home to watch football and we headed out to see the Lights by the Lake. Eliza seemed to enjoy all of the fabulous Christmas displays but she got really excited when she realized that there were lots of other kids running around that she could talk to.

We stopped along the way to smile for the camera.

Now it is Grammy's turn to smile.

A grand time was had by all.

Christmas Wishes and Blueberry Doughnuts

Christmas Eve

Our first Christmas with Eliza was wonderful. She had no clue what all the presents were about, but she sure had fun ripping and eating the wrapping paper. Here are a few pictures from our Christmas Eve celebration with Stephen's family.

Eliza spent the morning playing at home with mom and her doll Lola. She was all decked out in her best holiday attire and bow! Her shirt says "I love Santa"

Once she was dressed up, we wanted to get some pictures of her by the tree, but every time we sat her down she started to crawl away. The only way we could get her to stay put was to give her one of the ornaments from the tree to play with. (It was plastic of course!)

She still had that ornament in her hands when it was time to take family pictures.

Once her cousin, Jacob, got there it was time for more pictures. She looks a little wiggly. Perhaps we should have given her back the ornament!

The gift from her cousin Jacob was a HUGE hit!

Picture With Santa . . . Take Two

Eliza and I learned from our rookie mistake, and this week we arrived an hour early for our Santa picture. I was worried that she might get a little fussy while we waited,but she was a perfect angel. She spent most of her time looking around and watching all the other kids and she even made friends with a cute little boy named Tyler. I am glad that we got in line early because by the time Santa arrived, the line wrapped around Santa's village twice!

The excitement builds as we get closer to our turn with the jolly man in the pretty red suit. I am keeping my fingers crossed that our first picture with Santa will not include tears and drama.

Nothing to worry about. Eliza was all smiles.

Once she realizes that I am in front of her taking pictures - she turns back to see who exactly is holding her.

As you can probably tell from this picture, she had reached her Santa limit, but at least she allowed me to get some good pictures first.

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas Y'all

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

Disco Elves

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

Thank-you Aunt Maryellen & Uncle John

Aunt Maryellen and Uncle John's Christmas gift was definitely a hit! Eliza still hasn't exactly figured out how to be gentle, but I guess that is just how she shows her love!

P.S. - Sorry for the camera work - it is a little shaky in the beginning.

Our New Favorite Show

I have never been one of those mothers who believes that all television is evil and children should never be allowed to watch. While I certainly don't want Eliza to become a couch potato with the remote glued to her hand, I have let her watch shows that I think are educationally beneficial. Because Eliza loves music, Baby Mozart, Baby Beethoven and Baby Bach have been favorites at our house, as they fascinated her and held her interest. Recently these shows have lost their magic and sadly Eliza is no longer interested. However we have found something new . . . . The Backyardigans. One of my co-workers told me about the show and Eliza LOVES it. When I turn it on, Eliza squeals, claps, bounces up and down, and tries to sing along. Stephen does not have the same reaction. He rolls his eyes and refers to them in a very non PC way. I think the show is adorable and I highly recommend it to those who have small children.
From the Nick Jr Web Site

The Backyardigans is an animated musical-adventure series for children ages 2 to 5. In each episode, the show's five high-spirited preschool friends--Uniqua, Pablo, Tyrone, Tasha, and Austin--rely on their vivid imaginations to transform their backyard into a fantastical 3-D landscape, and together they embark on amazing epic journeys.

These lovable characters will inspire children to sing and dance along, and to stretch their imaginations as they climb up mountains, slide down glaciers, and sail across oceans. Each episode is driven by an exciting, age-appropriate story and enlivened by original music--including big band, reggae, rockabilly, bossa nova, and hip-hop--and by professionally choreographed dance numbers.

All Dressed Up

Eliza and I had big plans yesterday; we were going to go get her picture taken with Santa. I knew that Sunday would probably be a very popular day for picture taking, so I looked up Santa's hours online and we even got there early. Unfortunately we were not there early enough because by the time we got there the line wrapped around Santa's village twice! I decided that I just couldn't handle standing in line for two hours surrounded by screaming kids - so we left and went to the grocery store. While we were there three different women commented on how cute she looked in her red Christmas dress. We will try again later in the week to get her picture taken with Santa, but I thought everyone might enjoy seeing her all decked out in her fancy dress.

Winter Has Arrived

Believe it or not, last week we had snow flurries around town. We didn't get anything substantial at our house, but other parts of the city got a fair amount. Even though the snow was sparse, Eliza was prepared with all of the necessary accouterments. She didn't seem to mind the hat and coat, but she was bound and determined to get those blasted mittens off.

What's so Funny?

One of the things that I love the most about hearing Eliza laugh is that I know without a doubt that it is pure and genuine. She is not laughing to be polite or politically correct. She laughs simply because she is happy (or because her Dad is making goofy noises in the background.)

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas

Eliza and her doll, Lola, took some time to sit and enjoy our Christmas tree.

J-E-L-L-O

In an effort to help Eliza get over her stomach flu and stay hydrated, our doctor suggested jello. She really didn't care for the taste of it, but as you can see, she had a great time making it wiggle and jiggle.

A First Time for Everything

Milestones are important, and new parents always seem eager to share with everyone the latest and greatest achievements of their children. This week, Stephen and I both experienced a new parent milestone . . . the first time your child pukes on you. We are not talking about a little bit of baby spit up, but rather full throttle vomiting. Unfortunately, Eliza picked up a stomach bug from one of her buddies at day care, so it has been a rough week for all of us. The worst part for Stephen and me was not being puked on, but rather knowing that our child felt miserable and there was only so much we could do to make her feel better.

** For obvious reasons - no pics for this post!**

C is for Cookie

Grammy thought that Eliza needed Thanksgiving cookies for her dessert after her first turkey dinner. They were adorable and delicious, and since there were left overs Eliza got to bring some home to Houston to share with her cousin Jacob. I hope Jacob enjoyed the turkey cookie as much as Eliza liked her pumpkin cookie.


Yummy . . . . cookie

Thanksgiving Aftermath

A girl can only handle so much excitment until she just has to nap!

So Much to be Thankful For

Thanksgiving has always been my favorite holiday and I am so grateful that Eliza was able to spend her first Thanksgiving with both sides of her family. She was surrounded by aunts, uncles, cousins and grandparents, and she loved every minute of it. She is a very lucky little girl to be loved by so many wonderful people, and we are so blessed to have her in our lives. Grammy feeds Eliza her first Thanksgiving meal. She ate everything we gave her, but her hands down favorite were the yummy sweet potatoes.

Eliza and her Great Aunt Jeane looked very chic in their black and white outfits.

Eliza is always excited to spend time with her Great Grandma Ola. They had a wonderful time playing Peek-a-boo.

Road Trip

Long gone are the days of just throwing some clothes, a hair brush, tooth brush and deodorant into a bag and hitting the road. Before going over the river and through the woods to Grammy's house for Thanksgiving, we had to make sure that we had all of our necessary supplies. Here is a glimpse of what Eliza needs when we leave the homestead.

• clothes - this includes socks, shoes and bows
• diapers
• wipes
• bottles
• sippy cup
• formula
• Gerber jar food and puffs
• bibs
• burp rags
• blankets
• baby spoons
• portable high chair
• pack and play
• floppy seat
• Baby Bjorn
• monitor
• medication
• toys and books
• kitchen sink

Gobble Gobble

Gobble . . . .gobble is what Miss Eliza did on her very first turkey day. She sampled some turkey, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, rolls, dressing and pie. She loved it all!

Go Speed Racer

I Love a Parade

Living in the big city definitely has it perks - phenomenal restaurants, a plethora of sporting cultural, artistic and musical events. There is always something new and exciting to go and do. However, there is something to be said about small town charm. This weekend Eliza experienced that charm firsthand. We took her to Stephen's hometown of for the annual Holiday Parade. This local traditon really ran the gamet when it came to parade participants. There were various high school bands, Girl Scouts wearing angel wings and reindeer antlers, Clogging Elves, Shephards on Steele (a Christian motorcycle group) and (my personal favorite)Ronald McDonald singing the Hokey Pokey from his motorized shoe. Eliza seemed to enjoy all of it, but I know her favorite part was when people approached her and her Grandpa to comment on how adorable she looked in her cool pink shades and hat.

What's in a Name?

People seem to be intrigued and curious about Eliza's name and often ask what led us to pick it. We had a tough time choosing and didn't officially decide on her name until about 2 weeks before she was born. We wanted a name that was unique but not weird. We wanted a name that was easy to spell and pronounce. Most importantly we wanted a name that didn't remind me of any of my former students, especially the trouble makers.

We had a short list of names (Kaylee, Peyton and Ellie) but no one name had emerged as a front runner. At one point I suggested Audrey, even though Stephen vetoed the name, Audrey is what eventually led us to Eliza. When Stephen asked why I had suggested Audrey, I explained that as a little girl, one of my favorite movies was My Fair Lady with Audrey Hepburn. He immediately responded with, "How about Eliza?" And thus the rest is history.

Eliza's middle name is Mackenzie and there is really no story behind how we picked it. I had always liked that name, I thought it went well with Eliza and when I suggested it to Stephen, he liked it too.

If Eliza had been a boy her name would have been Charles Anthony (which is still our boy name just in case Eliza gets a little brother). We decided on this name so quickly and easily. Charles is Stephen's middle name as well as his father's name and Anthony was my father's first name.

If ever have another girl, I think we might have a hard time coming up with another name that we both like.

How Our Family Makes a Fussy Baby Happy

Three words for you . . . . Splash. . . . Baby . . . Splash!

Go Chargers Go!

A few weeks ago, Eliza and I went to cheer on some of my students at a cross country meet held at my school. While enjoying our lovely Saturday in the sunshine, we met up with our school mascot, Charlie Charger. As you can see, Eliza had a grand time with Charlie; she was not spooked or frightened by the costume at all. I can only hope that this easy going attitude will carry over to our up coming visit to Santa's village!

The Smiley Baby

Today when I dropped Eliza off at school, one of her classmate’s mother said, "Look, it's the happy baby that is always smiling!" She then told me that she was jealous of how much Eliza smiles because her daughter isn't really smiling yet (her daughter, Gabrielle, is the youngest in Eliza's class). It is true that we are blessed with a very good-natured and happy baby and every time she smiles, my heart just melts. However, I too have been bitten by the jealousy bug, I wish she had as much hair as Gabrielle does!

Beam Me Up

One of Eliza's favorite places to be these days is in her excer - saucer. It is one of our favorite places as well, considering that it keeps her entertained for a good 20 - 30 minutes. We refer to it as her "Command Center" because she whirls around in it like Capt. Kirk on the bridge of the Enterprise. Her favorite part . . . . . the mirror of course!

Happy Halloween

Here is a picture of our "Super Girl" and her first Halloween experience. She had a marvelous time being strolled around the neighborhood by her Grandpa. I think her favorite part may have been when her Dad gave her a tiny bite of an M&M. . . . um . . . . yummy!

Family Tradition

One of the most exciting things for me, as a mom, is the oppor - tunity to pass along traditions from my childhood down to Eliza and I was just chomping at the bit to carve our first pumpkin together. I knew that she wouldn't be able to help carve our pumpkin this year, but I thought she might enjoy sitting on the kitchen floor watching me do all the work. Not a chance. She could have cared less about the pumpkin, however she was quite fascinated by the newspaper I had laid down to keep the floor clean. None the less, our pumpkin turned out great and I am sure she will be anxious to help next year!