FAMILY DEBEAUMONT

One Amazing week

2010-08-29T19:35:00.013-05:00

Nothing like an AMAZING week to bring back my blogging spirit. After a year and half break... IT'S ABOUT TIME!!

SUNDAY began this week with evidence of one of our new adventures this fall. I made it to yoga class. It's probably been at least a year and half break from both blogging as well as yoga. Instead of renewing our cable, we decided to put that monthly money into a gym membership. I've never belonged to a gym, but I've embraced it in all its glory and its silliness.

MONDAY was monumental for our family. Both Henry and Ayla earn special recognition for their bravery as both started new schools.

Henry started his new PPCD program for his speech delay at our neighborhood AISD school, Cunningham Elementary. When the school mentioned he could ride the bus, I scoffed, "he's only 3!!".
After considering this option to be our BEST option if we could make it work, we decided to give it a try. Henry has amazed us and I couldn't be more proud of him embracing his big-boy-ness and getting himself up on that bus. His driver, Ms. Gwen and the monitor, Ms. Tracey greet him every morning with a huge warm welcome for Henry. I can count the days I've actually had to wake Henry up on one hand... and today was one of them. He was so sleepy. He was so excited as it pulled up, but when it was time for mom and dad to say goodbye, he cried and cried. We worried all morning and finally got word from his UT school that he arrived with a smile on his face and happy to see his familiar class. Everyday since he's been better and better to the point that on Friday he was up, dressed himself, had his backpack and ready to go by 5:30am (bus doesn't come until 6:40 :). He ran up to this bus and even waved goodbye to us as he found his seat. Thank you all for your thoughts and prayers for him AND for his protective parents. :) This is such a blessing.

MONDAY also brought brand new digs for Ayla... AUSTIN HIGH!! Ayla started a new school, as well as a new program. She's going to a school within the school. It's called AGS (Academy of Global Studies). I am so proud of her for making the choice to apply and even more excited when she was selected!! She had a great time at orientation meeting her teachers and seeing familiar faces from Middle School. There is only 150 students compared to over 900 in her entire freshman class. Another amazing blessing. Her schedule is much like college in that her classes are 1.5 hours and she rotates her schedule going to just 4 classes every other day.

TUES and WED were much of the same... and adjusting and tweeking the schedule... and LOTS of school supply shopping.

THURSDAY started with a very special morning celebration for our very own NINI! The Presbyterian Women honored Jan with a "Lifetime Achievement Award" and it was a COMPLETE surprise to her. It was an honor to be in the celebrating party to cheer and acknowledge what an amazing Christian woman she is. Congrats Nini!!!

Thursday evening brought a fun and rather rare date night for Jim and I. We ate Mexican tapas at Corazon then headed to laugh the night away at the Drowsy Chaparone.

FRIDAY, not only the birthday of my brother Hal, but also my first day of classes for the fall semester. I'm really excited to begin the actual masters part of my Masters in Nursing. I'm anticipating a LOT of reading and writing... not my best subjects. ;)
The evening brought a really special occasion as I, along with my cohort of Alternative Entry nursing students, were pinned. We have offically completed our required courses in order to be RN's. Although many of us still have yet to take the NCLEX (Nursing board exam). We enjoyed a really nice evening of celebrating our successful completion of 15 accelerated months of intensive course work.
Each of us chose the person to pin us and I chose Ayla. As she was the primary reason I made my exit from my previous medical/naturopath school endeavors to dedicate myself more fully to motherhood. And she also was a strong influence for me to seriously consider opening the option back up and taking the plunge to pursue it whole heartedly. As much as I struggled this past 15 months holding it together... I don't regret taking 15 years off to be a full time mom with a part time career. Thanks Ayla for being with me this whole way. You mean so much to me!!

.Deep into FRIDAY night and into SATURDAY morning... little did we know but brand new baby CHARLOTTE SUSAN SKAGGS was making her way into this world!!! At 4:36am weighing just under 7 pounds and every bit COMPLETELY GORGEOUS!!! SUCH an amazing blessing to have a new baby in our family WE LOVE YOU!!

Now back full circle to SUNDAY and to finish off this unbelievable week full of BLESSINGS... after much effort and nearly giving up hope... this evening I received a phone message that I have been selected for an interview for the RN Residency program at Dell Children's Hospital. As many of you know, this is an INCREDIBLY competitive program, but particularly the Dell Children's location is nearly impossible to get into. The message said the interview would be either Sept 7 or 8th, which couldn't be more perfect as we will be visiting family in Pennsylvania until the 6th. Although its just an interview they typically only interview 3-5 candidates for each position so I'm beaming knowing I'm actually really close to making it! DATE IS SET... SEPT 8th at 9:30 AM.

I feel a bit like I was touched by an angel this week. Thank you to everyone who loves and thinks and prays for us!!!

Losing the blogging spirit

2009-01-27T22:19:00.003-06:00

I'm sorry to report that I think the blog is officially on break. I just can't seem to get it together here. I'm sorry those of you who actually read and check in often, I don't mean to disappoint, but I'm afraid I've already done so by my lack of postings.

All is not lost, however. I seem to be able to work my Facebook page a lot easier since its a simple update and no extensive requirement of writing/explanation. Both Jim, myself and Ayla all have Facebook pages... so if you aren't already our friends, join in the FB world and look for us there.

Who knows when the blogging bug will bite me again.

Until then....
Thanks for caring so much to keep up with our crazy lives.

~ Sharon

Merry Christmas!!

2008-12-27T18:49:00.002-06:00

Can't believe Christmas has come and gone! I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday and continues to enjoy time with family and friends. Jim and I both have 2 weeks off of work and school. Exactly 2 weeks of spending time together, working on personal projects and house projects, sleeping in, reading and maybe a day trip to two around central Texas. I apologize for the spotty blogging lately.

Wishing everyone a fabulous New Year!

Are you my mother?

2008-12-01T15:34:00.002-06:00

Look what we found wandering around our neighborhood over Thanksgiving break? It took us forever to catch this cute little guy. He was so cold and scared and feisty. We posted an ad on Craigslist, made a found dog report to Town Lake Animal Shelter... but no reply yet. It's been a fun and exciting few days. Max is annoyed by it, it is scared of Henry, and Henry wants to just hug it and squeeze it and sit on it all day long. Next, I'm going to take him in to see if he's microchipped.

Help us find his family!

It's complete sillyness around here

2008-11-26T11:05:00.011-06:00

Nothing unusual... just happen to capture some of it on camera to share. The girls dressed up and had a "Honk for Peace" rally in the driveway.

Baby Henry has discovered flip flops and is in love.

They are more like skiis than shoes for him.

He shuffles along just like a cross country skier.

Then maybe a little "FE FI FO FUM" playing the giant inside the playhouse.

When one of my textbooks arrived from Amazon. It was fun adventures in packaging. A perfect hat, don't you say?

29 gifts

2008-11-24T09:01:00.001-06:00

Want to see how my current challenge of giving away 29 "things" in 29 days is going? MY 29-GIFT BLOG. Want to know more about what the 29 gift challenge is and how it all got started? READ HERE.

2008-11-03T09:17:00.009-06:00

November. Seriously? Days are FLYING by this fall.

Ayla's volleyball has wrapped up. She really enjoyed playing, but sad to see the season come and go so quickly. It's nice to sleep in a little later too. These days, we are spending a lot of time and energy on Ayla's big room re-do. Her big gift this birthday is a total room re-do. I was picturing HGTV weekend style. Just cranking it out and be done with it, but its turning into every free moment just here and there try and do something. Not as rewarding, but its just real life with a toddler, and 2 working parents. We have made some serious progress, but have a LONG way to go. Yesterday, we successfully assembled and dressed her new bed. She loves it! Hope it all goes this well.

The style started as a french inspired old Hollywood with black and white everything... it has now morphed into just clean, modern, black and white backdrop (furniture) and greens, aquas, little brown and pink color splashes. So out with the barbies, plastic jewelry, and mish mash furniture.... and in with the bedroom suite fit for a teen. Pictures to come.

Jim and I are FINALLY on the mend with this illness. We have never been sick at the SAME time. It was comical, but hard. I thank my immune system for fighting so hard. I started feeling better Thursday-ish, but Jim finally went and got antibiotics to get over the hump. He's back at work today, hope his energy lasts!

Another project I've been working hard at lately is finances. Isn't just about everyone taking a closer look? I think its a wonderful trend for our country. I cringe at the price this has taken from so many, but I think the opportunity is genuine. As much as I love the gas prices coming down, It is great to see so many investigating and investing in more fuel efficient transportation. Even both of my parents have been driving hybrids. Go team! This past year, I started a little bookkeeping work on the side, yet never got around to sharing this new knowledge with our family finances. So I'm doing the heavy work of getting us up to date. Then we can really see our budget clearly and make sure our $ is where we want it to be.

Baby Henry is amazing. Such a blast... always.

He's MASTERED the stairs. He will FLY down them on his belly (feet first) beating me to the bottom every time.

His new favorite food is the dog and cat food. It's foul and dangerous! Those little crunchy nuggets are HARD and just the right size to choke him. We have moved the pet food more times in the last few weeks, the pets can't seem to find it anymore. He seriously pitches major fits when we try and pry it out of his mouth.

The poor child had a serious run in with a pile of fire ants.
We were at the ranch for brunch while celebrating Jane-Ann's baptism. Henry was playing in the grass, I saw the mound near him, and he proceeds to sit and lay down RIGHT on it. I got to him as FAST as I could, but he was COVERED with them. Aside from a few random bites, only his left arm came out with serious bites. Amazingly, he didn't say a peep. He never cried at all! He was more bothered by me whipping his clothes off and swatting at the ants furiously than anything the ants were doing.

Now that the weather is cooling off... we've been spending a lot more time in the backyard.

We have a LONG road to get it running as we'd like (new fence, new grass, landscaping, deck, tree house, trampoline, fish pond...), so hopefully as we examine our finances we can find some $ to start getting things done. For now, we've been enjoying teaching Henry to kick the soccer ball and playing with some of his birthday gifts. His activity center complete with boats and shovels and shade umbrella is a big hit (thanks Jan and Papa!). We haven't added sand yet.. but a few inches of water is a lot of fun. And recently we hung his new swing (thanks Dody!). He's really enjoying spending time out here and having fun activities right here in our own yard!

so sick.

2008-10-29T22:03:00.000-05:00

I'm so so sorry for the lack of posts lately. I KNOW how annoying that is. I'm on the tail end of a bad cold, and last week I was flying solo with 2 exams to cram for... so soon, I promise, more fun, more pictures, more of our family will post soon.

xxoo

Ride the pony

2008-10-08T14:33:00.003-05:00

Henry and I have been playing "ride the pony" for awhile now, but Henry never seemed to be up for riding on daddy's back. I'm guessing it was just too high off the ground for him at first. This past weekend, Henry decided he was ready and had a fun time. I loved being able to watch him instead of being the pony.

13!

2008-10-04T07:53:00.002-05:00

Happy Birthday sissy!
We love you.

The nail biter games against Richardson

2008-10-03T06:43:00.002-05:00

Ayla's volleyball games last night were so exciting.

They played pretty well first game keeping things even at 14 vs 14, then (Ann) Richardson (Middle School) pulled ahead to win it. The second game Richardson pulled way ahead early on, so it was looking like they would win the 2nd and be done with it (best 2 of 3 games). Well, O'Henry came came back from over 10 points down to win the second game with an ear-splitting serving streak by player CC. The crowd was on their feet and the entire gym was filled with cheers and excitement. The 3rd game started and it was neck and neck the whole way. All the way up to 24 vs 24, then 25 vs 25! O'Henry was up to serve and Sarah, who has never played volleyball just moved from Denver, pulled out to 2 perfect serves to win by 2! The girls went CRAZY! It was so great to see. Their last game is next week, 6:30 on 9th if anyone wants to catch the last of the action.

ooops.

2008-09-24T15:02:00.002-05:00

This is what happens when you try and homemake tomato paste out of the juice leftover from the fresh tomatoes from the garden, on slow boil all morning ... while studying for 2 exams... while feeding the baby... then forgetting completely about it while you play downstairs with him in his room until your mom comes over and wonders why the entire upstairs is filled with smoke. ooops.

new skills

2008-09-15T10:18:00.003-05:00

Henry has officially learned to navigate the stairs. A few weeks ago he managed to spring loose the gate and tumbled down. Scared the BAGEEZ out of me. I think it scared him too, so much that he started trying this backward thing that we kept telling him about.

(and straight to the dog food... as usual.)

Now he's up and down all day. We only use the gate to keep him contained upstairs while I try to get a few things done.

Speaking of skills... Ayla's been honing her volleyball skills.

They won their first game! A good start to a SUPER short season. The season's almost 1/2 over already... seriously! (Second game cancelled due to Hurricane Ike)

So if you are interested in cheering the Mustangs on. Come see a game before they're gone. Thursday evenings. You can find their game schedule at teamtracker.net. If that link doesn't take you directly to the schedule. Type in O_Henry (be sure there's a space between) in the search area; and she's on 7th grade volleyball - B team.

Little ghosty ghost

2008-09-11T22:20:00.002-05:00

Henry was gearing up for Halloween as he wandered the house with a blanket over him complete with all kinds of spooky sounds. We were playing peek-a-boo under the blanket. Then, I went into the kitchen to get dinner done and he came wandering by walking full speed and howling. He must have walked into every wall or corner more than once. It was hil-ar-ious. I attempted to adjust things for better vision, but he wouldn't have it. He wanted the full cloak and was prepared for the consequences of head bumps and all. I so wish I had a video... soon I hope we can get a little kodak with videos to post. Our last one has been retired for sometime now.

School Days

2008-08-27T20:44:00.005-05:00

Jim has this adorable tune that his dad used to sing at the beginning of the school year. He now sings a few bars of it every year for us too.

"School days, school days,
Dear old golden rule days.
'Readin' and 'ritin' and 'rithmetic,
Taught to the tune of a hick'ry stick."

First day for Ayla went great. She has really taken to the life of junior high. She's liking her teachers and only got turned around once to find herself in the "8th grade wing" bumping into "huge guys that just plow down the hallway".

Yesterday and today were volleyball tryouts. Ayla has never tried out for anything really. It's always been if she wanted to play, they let anyone play. Now, she has to demonstrate some skills to get by. So, big thanks to her WAYA coaches last year, Sports Country counselors, and everyone that helped her at UT volleyball "bootcamp" this summer. SHE MADE THE TEAM! They have an A/B team and a C team. Ayla made it to the A/B team. She's so excited! (except for the fact that one of her best friends made the C team ;(

Big shout out BIRTHDAY wishes to Uncle Hal! We love you big dog!

That's MR. Henry

2008-08-15T17:42:00.003-05:00

Aunt Abbey and Uncle Edward gave Henry this handsome robe last Christmas (thank yall, he LOVES his robe). I kept meaning to snap photos of him looking all dapper and clean.

and yes... he likes getting his teeth EXTRA clean with double the toothbrush power.

New loves

2008-08-09T08:02:00.003-05:00

Henry has fallen in love... with the little tomatoes from the garden. I've never seen him so excited about a food. Any time of day just popped straight in his mouth. He lights up when he sees the bowl full of them on the counter. If you give him one, he'll carry it around like a precious jewel before finally devouring every bit of it.

He's also quite fond of the garden grown watermelon we have been snacking on for a week. It's was terribly delicious.

His other new love (and trick) is to sneak into the bottom drawer of the frig, where all the fruit is kept, quicker than lightning before you can shut the door. He's usually sinking his teeth into a giant apple, peach or plum before you even notice he was there. He fondles the grapefruits, but I haven't witnessed him trying to bite one yet. I can't wait for the sour face. I know, evil mom.

Ayla has been consumed lately with "Oh my gosh,I'm going to middle school" thoughts for weeks now. Only 2 more weeks until all these thoughts will be reality. She's beside herself with excitement and apprehension. Her good friend Faith is coming for a visit today and will be staying until the weekend before school ... a good distraction indeed.

I'm so sorry for such a long drawn out pause here in blog-world. I keep thinking I can at LEAST sneak in a short post with a few pictures... but I realized I haven't been taking any pictures the last 5 weeks, so there was nothing to post. My class is over on Tuesday, so our family blog should resume a more regular posting once again. Thanks for your patience... check back in a week.

Yummy veggies!

2008-07-22T20:22:00.000-05:00

Fresh from the garden...

2008-07-12T23:28:00.002-05:00

I'm feeling we're all over the place during the summer. With me back on school schedule, Ayla is bopping between sleepovers and camps, Jim's working and playing hard and Henry is doing his fair share of visiting all kinds of friends and family as well.
I treasure this photo of seeing us all together in one place.

2008-07-08T21:44:00.005-05:00

It's been just busy busy crazy around here. As many of you requested...here are some fun photos from our trip to Pennsylvania visiting our deBeaumont family. I baked a scrumptious homemade carrot cake from the same cookbook I made Ayla's first birthday cake from. Henry loved it!
Grandmom and Henry.
First jello.
the big guy.
Grampop and Jim.
One of Henry's birthday presents from Grandmom was this adorable froggie pool complete with sprinkler spray. Henry totally dug it!
Grampop and almost all 11 grandkids (missing Michelle, recent high school graduate, way to go Michelle! and Davey, recent hip injury from dirt bike accident survivor)

Henry turned one!

2008-06-26T17:07:00.002-05:00

I seriously can't believe that our little baby has turned a year old! He is such a fun loving little boy. Happy Birthday Henry!

... and now they are 7th graders

2008-06-05T22:13:00.006-05:00

Sixth grade has been a mixed bag for Ayla. She was incredibly excited about it until she started bringing home obscene amounts of homework, projects and strict tasks of responsibility. They held the students hard to their rules in efforts to "season" them for the riggers of middle school. She stayed the course and came out with flying colors.

Here are a few pictures from their 2 1/2 month project called The Living Museum. They selected, researched, wrote papers, and summarized their knowledge into a 5 minute animated speech they gave to the younger grades. Ayla was Joy Adamson. Faith was Princess Diana. (Complete with one of Dody's vintage formals and pearls!)

So on June 3rd we celebrated with a very uplifting and sweet 6th grade graduation ceremony. Complete with 2 choir performances (only the 2nd time I've been able to see Ayla perform with her choir!), speeches and awards. Ayla was honored with numerous achievement awards and pins; including 2 year service with Safety Patrol, the ONLY one in her homeroom that maintained TOP Honor Roll all year, and one of the recipients of the Presidential Education Award in recognition of Outstanding Academic Excellence (signed by the President himself, the Secretary of Education and their principal). Following the ceremony was their school dance. Parents gathered across the street for food and drinks. The girls just could not stop gushing that it was the BEST NIGHT EVER!

The next day, also being the last day of school, was a field trip to Barton Springs. We joined up with their group after Henry's nap. It was Henry's first visit. I felt like I was baptizing him in the holy waters of Austin. We are so incredibly lucky to have such a beautiful and natural place in the heart of our city. It is THE most refreshing place in this world.

It wouldn't be Austin without some serious "Keep Austin Weird"-O's... like this sweet girl and her mermaid tail. Just be glad I spared you a photo of "the naked guy" sunbathing not far from us. ;)

2008-06-01T21:43:00.001-05:00

Henry's favorite new game is throw and chase the ball.

Thanks cousin Stacy for the great pics!

Happy Mother's Day all you mamas!

2008-05-20T21:52:00.007-05:00

I'm at least a week (and some...) late in wishing all the mamas HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!
Picture of me and my 2 beautiful babies!
Tickle time with little brother.

My amazing mother and her babies (and new niece, Jane)

My mother and all her grandbabies.

Lots of love to all my mamas and all my mamas mamas mamas mamas....

Baby steps!!

2008-05-12T17:01:00.001-05:00

Happy Birthday Daddy!

2008-05-10T14:50:00.005-05:00

Today is a special day. Happy BIG Birthday wishes Daddy Jim! Here's a couple of cute shots of the boys on the couch this morning just relaxin'.

I like to swing!

2008-05-10T14:41:00.003-05:00

I can't believe Henry has never been in a swing until now. Last weekend, we went out to tend the garden and afterward some playing in the new playground. Check out this amazing setup!

And finally a trip down the slide with daddy.

New visitors

2008-05-10T08:29:00.002-05:00

We installed our new (2nd Anniversary,Thanks Dody!) bird feeder last weekend and have enjoyed spotting a few new visitors! Our pets, Max and Elvis, seem the most impressed with the new activity. I thought maybe just maybe we might have a spot that the squirrels couldn't get to... but yes, they have joined in the fun too. I wouldn't mind them visiting except for the fact that they have no self control. They don't leave any for the birdies!

Gardens, Gardens, Gardens!

2008-05-07T09:45:00.005-05:00

We have been so very busy this last month or two diggin' in the dirt. Jim and I put in gardens here in front of the house. Jim did an amazing job creating a xeriscaped natural area and we also put in a small herb garden for me!

LOTS of hard labor of digging up sod.

Early days, right after we finished putting everything in.

Our Anniversary plant. Thanks Granma and Grandpop de Beaumont!

If that wasn't enough.... we decided to join in the "small truck farm" out at the ranch. Here's Jim planting our tomato plants.

We put in 4 different heirloom tomatoes, tomatillos, red bell peppers, banana peppers, green beans and cucumbers.

"I do it myself!"

2008-04-15T13:47:00.003-05:00

He's mastered eating finger foods.
So, Henry is now making great attempts at feeding himself with the spoon!

Bathtime in the sink

2008-04-10T19:06:00.006-05:00

First time for bathtime in the sink!

See the mangoes.

Must have the mangoes.

I LOVE MANGOES!

Homemade popsicles

2008-04-08T12:11:00.002-05:00

Something they didn't have when Ayla was a baby was these little "mesh pops". THEY ARE AWESOME! You can open them and insert whatever kind of food or fruit. Then baby can chow away on his own eliminating any kind of choking hazard. Henry adores his "popsicles". I pack it full of frozen fruit and he'll go through 3 or 4 rounds before he's had enough. His favorite right now is frozen banana and pineapple... Pina Colada!

Guess who's got a new baby cousin?!!

2008-04-06T11:50:00.005-05:00

JANE ANN SKAGGS was born Saturday, April 5, 2008 around 4:45am weighing 7 lbs. 9 oz. (same as AYLA!) and 19 inches long. She is absolutely beautiful. Amy looks amazing doesn't she?! Here's the whole family! Amy, Samuel, Jane and Jack Skaggs. Brother Samuel entertaining himself...
If you'd like to see... a few other pictures are on their blog.

WELCOME TO THE WORLD JANE!

Big boy eating

2008-04-03T21:14:00.003-05:00

It didn't take but a few times for Henry to get the handle of finger foods and he never looked back. He will occasionally let us feed him with a spoon, but pretty much he's moved on to "I can do it" phase. I just love his new found independence, but I'm challenged to find a good mix of foods that he can feed himself since they still need to turn to mush. I was on a roll with homemaking all his purees and then *poof* we're done with that... gotta move on. Isn't he such a big boy!

2 years!

2008-04-01T17:08:00.002-05:00

NO foolin'... hard to believe its been 2 years already! I absolutely love thinking about our fantastic weekend getaway at the beach with all of you beautiful family and friends at our side. Thanks so much for all your continued support for Jim and I.

9 months old!

2008-03-18T10:13:00.004-05:00

Well Happy ST. Patty's day to yah! Henry turned 9 months yesterday. Can you believe it... NINE MONTHS! He had his 9 month check up yesterday as well. Here's his stats:

Weight: 17.5 lbs. (dropped to 10th%)
Height: 28.5 inches (holding at 50th%)
Head: 45 cm

Here's Henry on the first morning checking out the ocean from our deck:

Will post more vacation pictures when I get organized.

Good things

2008-02-26T07:27:00.004-06:00

Henry continues to delight and impress us with his funny ways.
Jim has schooled him in raspberry blowing and he's now quite the expert. He gets in these raspberry conversations with himself. He must love the way it feels.
Then he'll switch to his "talking"... open vowel sound babbles... he's not big on any consonants yet but this boy loves his vowel sounds.

He loves to crawl and pull up and we've even caught him standing without any help a few times. Walking will be here before you know it! We're still lagging in the child proof department. We've got our gate for the stairs and have emptied the floor of hazards, but the cabinets still need their locks... someday we'll get organized.

He reaches up and plays piano a lot. He'll "sing" along with his music too. His little hand just romping around the keys. It's so so precious.

We are cruising with solids. I have figured out how to make just about everything I want and not be too overwhelmed with it. I will steam one veggie or fruit first thing in the morning, puree it, and spoon it into ice cube trays to freeze. Then later that day pop them out and they are ready for weeks of meals. He's enjoying just about everything I make which is always a chef's dream. He's up to 3 meals a day plus formula AND still nursing whenever I can! He's a eater!

His favorites right now are mangoes and yogurt, brown rice and veggies (we're trying asparagus today), carrots and apples, bananas and avocado.

I'll try and get some little videos of him soon... we've been having battery issues.
We're still searching for a new car and have to turn in the rental next Tuesday, so finding a car trumps all right now.

Finally out of rough waters

2008-02-22T13:52:00.004-06:00

Gosh its been a hard month so far. But I'm hopeful we are on the up side now. Sleeping was our main issue. Henry has always been a good sleeper, so when it had been over a month it seemed since he had slept well, I was beginning to think it wasn't just teething. We tried all kinds of tricks with little or no change. Then, this week, the skies just cleared and he is sleeping again. Either something we did is working or his teeth finally gave him the rest he so deserved. I'm just so happy to be sleeping again.

I was inspired by the post nap pictures of Buddy Max (HI MAX!), so I took a few of Henry today when he woke up. Here they are:

little hands and feet

2008-02-10T11:34:00.000-06:00

I've been wanting to do this impression kit since Henry was born. 7 1/2 months later... I finally did it. I will post when the project is completely assembled.. but here's a little peek at the first part.

He did it!

2008-02-07T19:53:00.000-06:00

As you can see this week has progressed to the point that he figured out how to get in. The learning curve has surpassed our get things done curve. So guess what tomorrow will be? Find cabinet locks.

Oh those darn teeth

2008-02-06T23:15:00.001-06:00

The teeth are still making way and making "waves" in our daily lives. I read somewhere that you can expect 3 days of pre-teething, 3 days of actual cutting and 3 days of post-soreness. With the 4 coming in on the top all at once... I don't know when the 9 days is starting or stopping! Poor little guy.

Figuring it all out

2008-01-31T08:32:00.000-06:00

Henry is making big moves now. He can go from crawling to sitting and back to crawling. He can pull up and ease his way back down (not always a smooth one). And as you can see he's figured out opening the cabinets. Luckily its just a "whap-whap-whap" of the door, but soon enough he'll figure out how to move out of the way and actually OPEN the door. We gotta get busy here with babyproofing! We DID get a gate (thanks Aunt Ann and Uncle Johnny for the gift card!) but we haven't made it to the cabinets and drawers.

Cruisin'

2008-01-29T17:52:00.000-06:00

It wasn't until Henry started teething that he decided he likes pacifiers. Well, I think he always liked them but now he'll actually hold on to them. So if he's not suckin' on his 2 middle fingers, he's got his pacifier.

Which is a really good thing, I think, until you lose them. So the last week we've been on the hunt and can't seem to find them. We tried a new brand, but he likes the first ones much better. I eventually was reduced to buying a few on Amazon after checking the manufacturing website and finding even they were out of stock. The description said they were red and blue, yet the picture shows pink and purple. This could be interesting.

Here's another shot of his new bottom teeth.
The top ones are impossible to catch on film without his help, but they are not far behind looking the same as his bottom ones.

BIG smile

2008-01-25T09:27:00.000-06:00

This kid has got an incredible smile. It'll melt away the worst that any day can dish at you. With the rate his teeth are coming in... enjoy this shot of his BIG toothless smile while it lasts.

New things

2008-01-22T20:06:00.000-06:00

Henry is doing so great. He's such a happy and healthy little guy. His first tooth has made its way and is pretty visible and just this morning the one next door FINALLY broke through. He has been working on that one for over a week now! In the midst of all this it looks like he is also cutting 2 on the top. YIKES! Interestingly, its the front and front/left that are coming in versus the 2 front ones. Poor little thing has been just miserable at times. We've had a few rough nights, but otherwise he stays happy.

Lately we have been noticing him do the funniest thing. He crinkles his nose up and then stretches it out. Hard to tell if he's got a tickle or just experimenting or what... but it is HILARIOUS. We find ourselves cracking up everytime. Tonight, we tried to capture the whole thing on video, but it was needing battery charging, so we caught a few with pictures. Let the giggles begin.

Check out my new toof!

2008-01-17T20:56:00.000-06:00

Henry is 7 months old today!
This baby is all over the place!
Everyday he's getting more and more adventurous and better and better at traversing his surroundings. He's crawling like crazy, a real pro. He's pulling up and "cruising" from surface to surface of what he can reach. He's still working out the kinks, so we've officially entered the dreaded bumps and bruises "fun".

Pictures of his new tooth are hard to capture... mainly cuz its still so small. A sliver of white has just emerged through his drooly gums. The second one is working hard to breakthrough too, but still hasn't as of today.

We got new digs!

2008-01-10T12:49:00.000-06:00

Grandma Dody blessed us with a most wonderful gift.
.... a PIANO!
It was amazing to watch these 2 guys moving it in.
See for yourself!

Happy New Year!

2008-01-07T22:45:00.001-06:00

Check out his yoga moves:

yum

2007-12-27T09:31:00.000-06:00

Henry is crawling!!

2007-12-26T19:13:00.000-06:00

One last chance to say Merry Christmas!!

2007-12-26T15:01:00.000-06:00

I want to brag a bit about Jim's handcrafted mantel.
Jim took a fallen Juniper tree from our family's ranch and took it from a raw piece of forest to a gorgeous and refined piece of furniture! I just love it!

O Christmas Tree! (I'm sorry, I still don't know how to flip vertical pictures!)

Here is a Christmas tree complete with our new Pennsylvania Flyer train set that Grampop deBeaumont sent for Jimmy and Henry. I'm sure it will be a Christmas tradition for years to come.

Here is Henry as baby Jesus during Christmas Eve service at Dody's church!

and us...

This baby is MOVING!
He's all over the place.

First he was just doing pushups and figuring out how to turn in a circle.
Just in the last week, he has figured out how to pick his hands up.
He's even pulled himself up a few times... like here on Christmas day at Papa & Ninis'...up on those tiptoes!

Go Susquehannock Warriors!

2007-12-22T22:13:00.001-06:00

6 month checkups

2007-12-19T15:53:00.000-06:00

Well. He's a healthy growing boy! 6 months on the 17th.

Height: 25 inches
Weight: 15 lbs. 6 oz
Head: 43 cm

All in line with his earlier growth in 50th/75th percentiles.

It's beginning to feel like Christmas

2007-12-09T23:04:00.000-06:00

Hey Mikey, he likes it.

2007-12-06T23:29:00.000-06:00

Looks like he's ready for something serious to really sink his chompers into. hee hee

The eating frenzy begins!

2007-11-28T15:28:00.000-06:00

I think I know why the boy has stayed so lean. Now that he's moved into solid food, he just can't get enough. It's like his appetite went soaring into hyperdrive. They recommend starting slowly with one meal a day for awhile, but he just isn't satisfied with that. So we bumped it to 2 yesterday and might need even more. Sweet Potatoes have been a big hit. Now we've moved into Pears. He likes them, but does seem to make a lot more faces and gags. Maybe its a texture thing. You gotta see his faces. We'll try and get a video soon.

So much to be Thankful for

2007-11-26T07:16:00.000-06:00

We enjoyed an absolutely splendid Thanksgiving together here at our new house. Our first Thanksgiving. Jim did an unbelievable job on our Pitman farms turkey complete with a sage rub and plenty of basting. It was truly the highlight for me. Coming in a very close second was Ayla's delicious pumpkin pie. Everything turned out just beautifully and tasted just as well.

We have been truly blessed and it felt amazing to take the day to reflect on it all. We are so thankful for our new home, for its warm fire, and endless local wood supply from my dad, for our beautiful and healthy baby Henry, for the health of our families, for 2 cars, for grandma babysitters and aunts and uncles to spoil him with love, for our pets, for salmon fishing and deer hunting, for big sisters, for work and its continuous supply of income, for Southwest Airlines direct flights to Baltimore, and for art and music and good good food. For all of this and much much more we are so thankful.

We celebrated the moment by giving Henry his first solid food ... the inside little speck of a sweet potato. He gummed it down like a champ. So... we have now graduated into the world of solid foods and not looking back.

Happy Veterans Day, Daddy!

2007-11-13T17:19:00.000-06:00

New office updates

2007-10-24T17:17:00.000-05:00

I didn't end up finishing in that one weekend I was shooting for...but here's the latest.
Phase 1:
We were able to paint the walls and we bought the new desk (wood door and cabinets).

Phase 2:
This past weekend Jim installed the shelves (Thanks so much, Jimmy!!)... don't they look great! And I've officially clearing out the brown desk, to which we are selling (anyone interested? $100 and its yours!). I've been pecking away at clearing off the computer so I can give it back (it's a loaner). It's painfully slow... I download onto a 2 GB thumb drive, then transfer to the PC and burn it to a disc and back to the MAC for more ... any ideas how to do this faster/easier??

I've got most of my books for teaching up on the shelves and out of their boxes... such an amazing feeling to get organized after months of being here and a month of teaching.

I also brought my herbs in. I like them here in the sunny window and they are close to the kitchen for easy access.

Phase 3:
Finish the transfer of files and give back MAC and sell brown desk.

Phase 4:
Install some kind of homemade bench/couch/reading/napping nook where brown desk currently is.

Catching up

2007-10-24T16:51:00.000-05:00

Hard to believe its been over a week since our last entry. A busy week indeed. Last week, Henry went in for his 4 month checkups. He's just a picture of good health. Length: 24 1/4 inches.(@ 2 months = 23 inches)
Weight: 14 lb. 10 oz. (@ 2 months = 12 lb.4oz)
Head: 41cm (@ 2 months = 39 1/2 cm)
Doctor said he's staying in the same percentiles... 50% for height/75th for weight. But it looks to me that he's leveling out a bit.

The doctor encouraged us to start him on solids within the next month. I've been reading up (Thanks Wendy for the GREAT book!) and getting schooled on how you do this properly. Visions of me feeding Ayla a baked sweet potato for the first time are haunting me ... she loved it, so I kept feeding it to her and KEPT feeding... I figured she'd stop when she was full ... she ended up eating the WHOLE thing and then her right eye swelled up and started oozing and her face, chest and knees broke out in a rash. Not to mention the sweet potato bombs in her diaper the next few days. So, at least I know how NOT to do it. ;)

This is Henry's newest thing. When you pick him up, he leans back a bit and holds his arms open wide. So symbolic of his approach to the world. He's just wide open... taking it all in. I have to watch it cuz we've knocked things over not realizing how far out he's reaching!

Also last week was the finale to Ayla's fall volleyball season. It was a nailbiting clincher to the very end. Her team was matched up with the #1 team and really played well against them. They lost the 1st game. And were ahead most of the 2nd game until point 20. Then it was neck and neck points until Ayla's team scored 25 and they thought they had won it... but realized they needed to win by 2 points. All of the parents and team members were on the edge of their seat! So it was Ayla's serve (can you believe it!!) and she served beautifully, but her team didn't get it over giving the other team the advantage and eventually the win. Ayla played amazingly well and was having a lot of fun. She said their final game was the most exciting game she'd ever played. Go girl!!

It's time for more birthday wishes!

2007-10-16T09:38:00.000-05:00

Henry would like to wish both his grammy's... Janni and Granma Joan... a very Happy Birthday to you both! With today being the 15th... Jan's birthday was 2 days ago... and Joan's birthday is in 2 days. So... HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY BIRTHDAY WISHES!!!! love, Henry.

Little precious

2007-10-11T11:31:00.000-05:00

We've had a bit of a rough week. Mama's been working a lot, which makes me tired and extra emotional. Yesterday it all came to a head after dropping Ayla off at volleyball, after hearing him cry the entire 45 minutes of us fighting traffic back to our house, and my supervisor calling to see why I wasn't at work already. I lost it. And in my time of desperation and need, Jim couldn't have been sweeter and more helpful. I am so blessed to have such an amazing husband.

The deal is... I am so hypersensitive to having to wake sweet Henry up from his restful naps to go barrelling down the highway. I'm stuck in that "life's just not fair" feelings. I think the fact that I'm not happy about being in the car all day might be the true culprit.

We also tried to transition Henry to his crib which went fairly well, aside from the multiple trips up and down the stairs for mama. I've decided its just not worth it at this point. I'm just not willing to give up sleeping with Jim or my own bed yet to sleep downstairs on the extra bed in Henry's room.

Some great news is Henry has been rolling over for the last few weeks. We still haven't captured it on video to share, but will do when we get the chance. He's such a strong and happy baby. Henry and I have started a "Mommy and me" class on Friday mornings. I love the group of moms. They are all around my age. Just what I needed... a support group for both me and Henry. 2 good things.

Amongst all the chaos and emotional breakdowns.... there's always this little precious face that just melts my heart. Enjoy the pix.

So cool

2007-10-09T22:38:00.001-05:00

Oprah did a show on this new cookbook by Jessica Seinfeld called Deceptively Delicious. I'm sure my mom has been doing this for decades, cuz it just makes perfect sense. She purees vegetables and "sneaks" them into familiar kids (and adults!) recipes. I'm always talking to Ayla about getting her 5 fruits and veggies a day... sometimes its really hard. But with recipes like chicken nuggets and mac 'n cheese that have veggie purees hidden in them is so smart. Such a cool idea, I just love it!

I admit, I tried this idea once a year or so ago... I pureed kale and put it in spaghetti sauce. It didn't fool Ayla one bit. I'm sure the fact that the sauce was a black/brown color didn't help. ha ha.

I can't wait to try these out.

Happy Birthday Sissy Ayla!

2007-10-05T15:19:00.000-05:00

Big sister Ayla turned 12 on Wednesday. We had a great day celebrating her. WE LOVE YOU AYLA! When I was 11 or 12 I got my own checking account complete with an official DMV ID card. With checkbooks taking the backseat these days... we opened Ayla her own checking account complete with debit card. Happy Birthday big girl!

Tomorrow we are heading out to the ranch for a campout party and sleepover in a huge tent. Should be a really fun time. Let's hope the rain stays away!

More like mom or more like dad?

2007-10-03T12:53:00.001-05:00

You decide...

Remember little buddy Jude?

2007-10-02T12:01:00.000-05:00

Well... little Jude aint' so little anymore. He's pretty much neck'n'neck with Henry around 14-15 pounds. He's a shooter! 6 weeks younger and catchin' up fast. They are so cute together and are always finding each others hands. Don't they almost look like brothers?

Happy Birthdays!

2007-09-28T17:35:00.000-05:00

Yesterday was both Henry's Aunt Susu and Aunt Cindy's birthday! It was such a hectic day here we didn't get the chance to tell everyone how much we love them and wish them the best day!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY DEAR SUSU AND CINDY....
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!

We need more pictures of you, Cindy! Sorry...
(Cindy is standing behind Aunt Linda in red.)

A day off

2007-09-28T12:05:00.000-05:00

3 weeks ago today I started back to work... and I haven't had a day off since. If I wasn't working on-site somewhere I was cramming my curriculums together for teaching. I won't teach again until NEXT Thursday night, so I have a whole week to recoup. So far, I've celebrated with a well earned nap and tummy playtime with Henry. Oh the joy of actually being able to focus and play with him again without the dreaded list of to-do's squeezing the fun out of it.

With my new found freedom... I'm going to tackle the office and its new look. I'm going to prep tonight and actually paint tomorrow and HOPEFULLY assemble on Sunday for a total makeover weekend. We'll see how much I can actually get done during Henry naps.

Just so we can marvel in its transformation... here's some before shots of the office:

Teething time

2007-09-23T19:57:00.000-05:00

The pediatrition said we shouldn't be worrying about teething until 6 to 8 months, but I'm convinced that Henry is going to be sprouting his teeth earlier. He's drooling like crazy, constantly putting his fists and fingers in his mouth, upset at "nothing" and wanting to nurse a lot but not really eating when he gets there. The funny thing is when he chomps down on things... he wants them in the back, near the molars. I'm guessing its just because of the pressure. It's tempting to want an xray to see just what's going on in there.

Jack, Amy, Samuel and "kernel" have made it back safely from their trip to Colorado. We've missed seeing the whole family at Sunday night dinners, so it was great to have them back!

I had another CRAZY week last week. I taught 3 new curriculums. I was super busy trying to get them together in time. This week is just 2 nights and one is a review night, thank goodness. Also this week,I officially begin my training and work with Margaret and her Quickbooks business... I'm SO looking forward to this new job and working with her. I'm also looking forward to getting my office setup. I've been trying hard to gather all the pieces, now its time to assemble. We are going to paint, install shelves and a new desk, and simplify down to one computer. I canNOT wait to get everything together and FINALLY unpack all the office boxes that I've been wrestling with for weeks now trying to find all my teaching materials.

Today is Uncle Eddie K's birthday... HAPPY BIRTHDAY NEWLYWED ED!

What a full week

2007-09-16T21:30:00.000-05:00

* I worked nearly every day in some way. Yay!

* Jim finally put in a normal work week after MANY overtime weeks in a row.

* Ayla had her second volleyball game and has been challenged to get organized with her heavy 6th grade homework load.

* Dody watched the kiddos while Jim and I had a datenight on Thursday. It's amazing how a few hours alone can feel like an entire vacation together. Thanks Dody!

* We had a beautiful time this weekend celebrating my little brother Edward at his wedding to sweet Abbey. Friday night was the rehearsal dinner out at the Salt Lick. So yummy and a beautiful evening. Saturday was the wedding.... Abbey was so gracious and gorgeous. Such a treat to be a part of their weekend. We love you both so much and wish you a lifetime of happiness.

* Saturday was also our sweet dog Max's birthday, so today, Ayla insisted we take him out for some celebrating. There's no place on earth Max would rather be than at the Ranch... so we packed up a picnic and let Max have a birthday romp. He swam, and ran, and rolled in everything he could find. He LOVED it. Jim caught a few fish and tested out his waiters he bought for his salmon fishing trip next month. Henry had a great time hanging outside in the buff. (After a big poop, I realized I didn't pack any extra diapers... oops!) Dad and Jan saved the day with a spare at their house. HAPPY 7th BIRTHDAY MAX!

I am exhausted with such a full week and weekend, but grinning from ear to ear all the while. This week is a little more low key during the days... but I'm teaching 2 nights and all day Saturday, so I've got a lot of work to get that info together.
Yall have a good week! ~ Mama s

Go Horns!

2007-09-16T21:25:00.001-05:00

HOOK 'EM, BABY!

Mama's back to work

2007-09-10T15:12:00.000-05:00

Well... the job-job didn't work out. The good news is Henry is not in daycare and I'm the luckiest mama in the world to get to spend most days with him. After the job-job fell through, it was back to the drawing board and just make the work happen.

So spontaneously on Friday, I set up at both Dody and Jim's work to go and do chair massages while each of them watched Henry. It was a great experience for everyone and think worth repeating most Fridays. Thanks Dody and Jim for helping me!!

Saturday, I spent 14 hours putting together my curriculum for my first day back teaching massage. I'm back to teaching a few weeknights and one weekend day here and there. It was so hard having everyone home but not able to play and rest with them.

And Sunday, from 8-4, I taught. And I have to say was pretty exhausted by this point and missing Henry like crazy. The massage school is close enough to our house that I can come home during lunch to feed Henry... which is great since for some reason he wasn't taking a bottle of breastmilk. Anyone have experience/suggestions about this?

After a great nights rest... Today, I spent the day with the twins, Lola and Auggie. Baby Henry and I had a great time. We are helping them out during the 2 weeks around ACL. I'm hoping we can work out something long term, so we'll see.

Henry is so ready to turn over... check him out! Not even 3 months and ready to flip from back to front. Check out his form! Little yoga master.

We love big sissy

2007-09-06T21:12:00.000-05:00

Big sissy Ayla is the BEST at making Henry smile. Her newest trick is blowing raspberries in his face... he loves it! Aren't his double chins good enough to eat.

The Wig

2007-09-04T11:18:00.000-05:00

Wig portraits of each of us... from Jack-jack's birthday.
Rockstar Henry J on drums....
Daddy Jim on crazy bass...

Mama S on keyboards...

And on Lead vocals, lady Ayla...

Jack-Jack's b-day

2007-09-03T15:26:00.001-05:00

September 4th, 2006, our good friends Doug and Angi Mudd birthed a happy and handsome little boy named Jack Douglas Mudd. We spent Saturday night with them and a huge handful of their friends and family to celebrate Jack-Jack turning one year old.

Little Jack-jack holding the lavender filled ball I made for him... He loved it!

Playing washers
The everlasting bouncy house! The guy who rented this house to them had tickets to the UT game and said he'd be back at 9 pm to pick it up... he didn't show up until almost 10 am the next day!

Thanks so much Mudd's for such an amazing night of fun!

Dody's Birthday

2007-08-30T21:12:00.000-05:00

We had the pleasure of having Dody over for her birthday dinner. Salmon and salad... yum! Then she opened her gift that all of her children and grandchildren gave to her. See for yourself:

We found them both in Ruidoso while we were on vacation there earlier this month. Beautiful huh?!

Happy Birthday Dody! We love you!

First day of school

2007-08-28T12:32:00.000-05:00

First day of school went great for Ayla. She really likes her teacher, Mr. Nelson. This is her first year of having a male teacher, which is a great new experience. Their homework was to create a time capsule that they will seal up and open again at the end of the year. I'm looking forward to back to school night to hear all about the exciting things that Brykerwoods does with their 6th graders. Ayla signed up to do safety patrol again this year. As well as having the choice between band, orchestra and choir. She chose choir and said enthusiastically that they might have the chance to sing at the Trail of Lights this year!

Last week of summer

2007-08-21T16:47:00.000-05:00

We are busy getting all the last minute moments we can fit in this summer. It is so hard to believe once again that we've made it through the last 3 months...

having a baby,
sleeping in (some),
playdates,
serious amounts of sleepovers,
Sports Country summer camp,
visit from grandparents,
2 weeks for Ayla in Vermont,
last book of Harry Potter,
swimming and a little sunburn,
New Mexico with the family,
delicious meals and visits with friends,
a bridal and a baby shower,
birthday parties,
and now its time for me to get back to work and Ayla to return to Brykerwoods for her final year for 6th grade.

Henry has been attempting to hold his head up since he was only a day old... you can see how good he's getting at it:

Isn't he looking just like Jim??!!

2 month stats and videos

2007-08-17T12:04:00.000-05:00

"BOBBLEHEAD VIDEO"

Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Share Photos - Free Video Hosting
We just got back from Henry's 2 month doctor visit.

Weight: 12 lb. 14 oz. (75th %)
Height: 23 inches (50th %)
Head: 39 1/2 cm (50th %)

Today we should have started his immunizations, but I haven't settled that monkey as of yet.

I am currently interviewing for a real job-job. A full time day job with benefits and everything. Something I have never had before. I have worked full time for myself for years, but benefits are a whole new treat. I'm excited about the possibilities of what this will feel and be like for myself and our family. The hardest test of faith has been being willing to put little sweet cheeks, Henry, in full time care. We found a school that is opening this month right next to the hospital that I've applied to. A wonderful opportunity for us to be right next to each other. However, they don't currently have any infant openings... and it would be Spring/Summer before they could get him in. With that, would come the dreaded immunizations.

Because the job is still up in the air, so am I about immunizations. The pediatrician graciously talked with me for almost an hour (unheard of!) about his thoughts and experience. I respect him and feel much better about the whole thing, but still opted to NOT immunize until I had heard from the job for sure and had resolved my own hesitations.

Will keep you posted how this issue, and the job, unfolds.

Hope you enjoy our first attempts at posting video. True examples of how fun this little guy is to have around. We love him so much!

"MORNING KICKS"

Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Share Photos - Free Video Hosting

hospital picture

2007-08-17T08:08:00.000-05:00

I found the information for Henry's hospital picture and realized I never shared it will you all. Anyone can order prints ... I just don't know how long they keep it available. If you go to the website you can see all 3 pictures they took.

Go to: www.growingfamily.com , click on Visit WebNursery, enter June 17, 2007 and other info.... Password is: deBeaumont
or call 1-800-620-8474.

Sunday visits

2007-08-12T20:25:00.000-05:00

This morning we had a visitor come into town from Vermont, our old friend Arthur. It's been 5 years at least since we've seen each other... since we moved in summer of '02. He is in town for a wedding with his fiance, Emily. Emily headed back to VT today to get back to medical studies and Arthur has stayed a few days to see the sights.

Our second round of visitors was Jan and Papa. We haven't seen them in weeks it feels. It was so great to catch up and for them to see Henry.

And finally, we headed to Dody's for dinner, with Arthur in tow. At Ayla's 4th birthday, Arthur donned Dody, "Betty" from Paul Simon's "You can call me Al"... so to Betty's we went. Got in a visit with her and Susu.

A little Sunday evening game of catch.... can't believe its just 2 weeks until school starts!

a pool playdate

2007-08-10T17:38:00.000-05:00

We met my dear friend Mari and her son, Elijah, at Little Stacy Pool today.

What a great find! The pool is perfect for little ones... shady and simple and even lifeguards on duty! The only downside seemed to be there isn't a no splash zone from the rowdy little tykes.

Thanks Mari for a fun playdate!

Am I cruel for taking pictures of him fussing? He's just so expressive and rarely out of sorts... I just can't resist.

Sweet Jude

2007-08-08T10:08:00.000-05:00

Henry met his new buddy Jude Frost on Tuesday. We returned the yummy favor of taking them chicken enchiladas and had a little visit. Mama Jenny is simply my hero. This baby is less than 5 days old and mom is showered, dressed and out and about looking radiant and gorgeous.
Here's the boys side by side... can you believe they are only 6 weeks apart! A clear display of size 0-3 months (Jude on left) and 3-6 months (Henry on right).

And a sweet shot of them holding hands. Best friends already!

Welcome to the world, we love you Jude!

A little adventure to the mountains

2007-08-08T09:21:00.000-05:00

This past Christmas, my brothers and sister decided to give our mom a trip to Ruidoso, New Mexico. She vacationed there as a child and has fun memories from there. We left August 1 and returned on the 5th. It was simply a great great trip. Aside from the very disappointing fact that daddy Jim wasn't able to come. There was a new major project at work and he bit the hard bullet and gave up the 5 days of relaxing to stay and work.... with more integrity than I will ever have. Here are a few snapshots:

Mama's 6 week check up... can I vent here?

2007-07-31T18:03:00.000-05:00

Today has been an unusually busy Tuesday.

We started the day with my 6 week post-partum check up at the OBGYN's. They adored Henry of course... and I loved every minute of it. Sadly, after I checked in I found out I wasn't meeting with my doctor but with one of her many nurse assistents. They are lovely people, but second string is never as satisfying as the star of the show. I'm fine with one of the nurses doing my exams and taking the stats.... but I was really REALLY sad to not get to say thank you, say goodbye, and be able to talk and hear about my birth story from my doctor. When I asked the nurse if it was possible to talk to my doctor... she just looked at me with this blank stare, "well, what ever for?". I said I wanted to talk with her about my story and hear it from her perspective. She matter of factly replied it was unlikely that she would remember the details from everyone's birth since she does so many. "Was there something specific you wanted to know?". My emotions (hormones) were surging at this point. I understand what she was saying, but I have been so disappointed with this whole cookie cutter-30 second appointments-experience with the OBGYN.

Believe me, I prepared myself for this experience to be different from the midwife experience, but I guess I am just so surprised to find the parts that I thought were fundamental to anyone going through this .... to be missing. I felt left at the alter. I felt that my experience didn't matter to her... its just mine to share with myself. Like a girl that just lost her virginity and wants to cuddle and talk about it... but instead her prince charming has fallen asleep. UGH. Then, the nurse gives me a complex for asking. Maybe I'm asking too much... its possible... but I'm a sensitive girl that appreciates her intimate moments... and the birth of your child is defintely one of the most intimate life offers.

Thanks for listening.

We leave for N.M. tomorrow so stay tuned for vacation pictures when we return.

I'm 12.5 pounds!

2007-07-30T14:31:00.000-05:00

The unofficial current weight is 12.5 pounds. Since birth... I have lost 4 pounds and he's gained just about that... hope this pattern keeps up.. I've got about 20 more to go! (Photo courtesy of sissy Ayla... playing in the back seat with Henry on our way back from Sunday dinner.)

Something sad and something happy

2007-07-29T21:58:00.001-05:00

Two weeks ago today, we said goodbye unexpectedly to our sweet GOODBOY. We found him lying in the fresh cut grass in the sun... a complete mystery as to what brought on his untimely death.

Ayla and I had the great privilege of witnessing him being born into this world on October 6th 2003 in our home on King Street.

He was incredibly sweet and LOVED his soft white belly to be rubbed.... but he also was big for adventure.

He rarely came in the house; he prefered the fresh air. He adored MAX and would try and play with him often, but MAX would usually get confused by his affections and go hide under the bed. We miss you so much GOODBOY!!

Loss is never easy... maybe its just post pregnancy hormones... but I get weepy all the time thinking of GOODBOY and how much I miss him and how sad I am that little Henry will never get to meet our beautiful cat.

The little something that is happy ... is walking out onto our porch and finding this incredibly gorgeous blossom to start my day. Hibiscus are so vibrant and welcoming. Reminds me of sweet sunshine.

A celebration cake and one cute baby

2007-07-28T18:48:00.000-05:00

This week we celebrated a huge milestone for Ayla. She lost her last baby tooth... her 20th tooth came out on Tuesday while at a sleepover. Dr. Scull's staff really wanted to pull it on Monday when she was in for a visit, but she stood strong to endure whatever it took for it to come out on its own (just a LITTLE stubborn like me... yeps). At her 10th tooth, the tooth fairy started leaving her candles much to her confusion... all was revealed when we all 20 candles for all her baby teeth showed up on a glorious homemade cake with homemade icing and homemade ice cream on the side... YUMMO! Not sure what message this tooth fairy is sending by celebrating with sugar filled treats... go figure.

Henry is so animated and adorable. Every picture he seems to get cuter and cuter and more fun...

Growing like a weed

2007-07-26T11:21:00.000-05:00

I think all this rain is not only making our lawn grow like crazy, but Henry too.

We graduated from the newborn diapers when he was only 2 weeks old. (By the way... We are so loving our diaper service. Clean, soft, fluffy diapers on our doorstep every Monday. Another thanks to all of you who gifted us certificates for our diaper service... WE LOVE IT! THANK YOU!)
At 5 1/2 weeks old, he's officially grown out of 0-3 month clothes and on to 3-6 month. Instead of a pile of onesies, we have graduated to some really cute stuff... here he is in a baseball outfit. Play ball, yall!

2007-07-24T10:31:00.000-05:00

A Saturday for all things British

2007-07-23T09:14:00.000-05:00

Saturday, we went for a double shot of Harry Potter. I'm starting to figure out this pumping mama's milk thing... so Dody had some fun Henry time while the rest of us went to the 5th Harry Potter movie. As much as I appreciate time to do other things outside of Henry... my emotions are still quite attached.
Moments before we left for the movie, the mail came and with it came the 7th and final book of the Harry Potter series.
Jim was racing out the door with one pant leg on in great anticipation. And he spent the rest of Saturday reading his little heart out.
Finally after I got Henry to sleep... I flipped on to see David Beckham's American debue playing with the LA Galaxy... ended up watching the whole game. Something like 16 of their 17 games will be televised this season. Love it.

Henry's Blue Steel

2007-07-18T18:24:00.001-05:00

Zoolander... eat your heart out!

Super Tuesday!

2007-07-17T22:05:00.000-05:00

Henry is one month old!! It's been a remarkable first month.
~ Henry born on Father's Day (Did yall know Jim was born on Mother's Day?)
~ Born a whopping 8 lb 15 oz.
~ At 2 weeks old weighed in at 9 lb 15 oz.
~ His belly button is so cute!
~ He's such a wide eyed little one... awake and aware of people and his environment
~ He's pretty much settled into a sunrise and sunset schedule.
~ He is incredibly strong. He's holding his head a lot of the time and his little hands are like little vice grips. Now I remember why mom's cut their long hair off with young babies. Ouch!
~ He's really starting to coo and talk more... there's simply nothing more precious than the sounds from an infant.

The second thing that makes this such a super Tuesday... is that sissy Ayla is home!!! We picked her up from the airport tonight and celebrated with yummy chinese food. Thanks so much Jilly Bobo for having her... but we are SO happy to have her home!

Granma Joan and Grandpop John head home

2007-07-16T16:01:00.001-05:00

Friday the 13th, our visit with the grandparents came to an end. It was such a treat to have Jim's parents here for 2 whole weeks.

The time flew by as we all fell easily into the baby time warp.

I am so incredibly happy they were able to come and be witness to Henry during the precious newborn days. Thanks so much Joan and John for everything. We miss you so much!

A big Tuesday

2007-07-11T11:42:00.000-05:00

Two big outings for Henry on Tuesday. First Grampop John, Henry and I went to Daddy's work, while grandmoms Joan and Jan went for tea at the new Steeping Room.

We had take out Wendy's for lunch and then Henry met "all the people in the neighborhood". He was an absolute angel. Asleep during lunch, then awake just long enough for the rounds, ate a snack and went back to sleep on the way out. We went home and both Henry and I had a nice long nap. I really need to do that more often. I almost felt rested. :) For dinner, we all went out to Papa and Jan's for an incredibly delicious filet dinner and really good visit. We learned a lot about both John and Papa's experiences through the years and how the technology of their careers changed so dramatically over the years. It was so interesting. I hope they both write down their memoirs to share with their families. Henry almost slept entirely through dinner, but he joined in for some visiting. Thanks so much Papa and Jan for such a yummy yummy dinner!! We had a great time.

Uncle Jack's birthday and the Maryland style Crab Feast!

2007-07-09T09:44:00.000-05:00

Saturday, we picked up the crabs and Grampop John and Daddy Jim went to work on steaming the feast for Sunday.

Here's Jim trying to revive some of the not-so-lively crabs... there's always a few that don't make the journey alive, but this batch had an unfortunate 13 that were unsalvagable.
Here's Henry and Grandma Joan relaxing in the afternoon breezes.

Sunday, we all joined up at Dody's to feast and celebrate Jack's and Henry's birth!

His beautiful smile

2007-07-07T21:01:00.000-05:00

Attempts at catching a newborn's smile is impossible at best. You basically have to camp out with the camera attached to your eye ... praying one crosses his face. What makes a newborn smile anyhoo? Then, after all the waiting, actually capturing it on camera is equally challenging. I couldn't believe my luck today... must be that 7/7/07 thing. Hope it makes you smile right back. ;)

Guesses on eye color

2007-07-06T14:01:00.001-05:00

So, what do yall think Henry's eye color will be?

4th of july

2007-07-06T10:13:00.000-05:00

No matter how much sleep I actually am getting, I have yet to wake up in the morning feeling refreshed and ready to get up. I'm beginning to believe that someone is coming in our room at night and casting lead weight eyelid spells on me. We alternate between a couple good nights and one or two rough ones. But I have little to complain... even the rough ones aren't filled with endless cries and screams, but rather just restless squeeking and endless diaper changes and burping.

I wish I had as much fun activity as cousin Samuel to report from the 4th. Our 4th was pretty much like any other Wednesday during the day. If we are all showered, dressed and fed by mid afternoon ... we're doing good. But by the evening, we were up for an adventure. We headed over to Dody's for burgers and red white and blue jello! After dinner we taught Grampop and Grandma deBeaumont how to play Farkle. Grampop was the Farkle Champion! Then we walked down the street and found our perfect spot to see the Zilker Park fireworks. You could even hear the music! We stayed up late that night and didn't even leave Dody's until 10:45!

Grandma deBeaumont and I went for a speedy Target trip between feedings and got Henry some new pj's! Check our his new digs:

Goodbye to sissy

2007-07-02T21:18:00.000-05:00

Today was our last day with sissy Ayla. She leaves earrrrrly tomorrow morning for Vermont for 2 weeks! We will miss her so much. Today, she helped give Henry his bath. I love how his hair looks like soft peach fuzz when it dries.

Another exciting event was Jim and Grampop John went out and picked up Jim's deerhead. Aren't they handsome?