Raspberries, Shelves, and La Fonda

Last week Norah reached a fun new developmental benchmark. She's discovered how to blow raspberries! We're pretty sure it's her favorite new sound because once she gets started it's hard to get her to stop. Jason and I can't decide which is funnier...the raspberry sound, or the fact that Norah showers everything around her in baby slobber.

Jason's been hard at work over the past few days organizing the garage. He's built some awesome shelves that can hold ANYTHING!! (Seriously--so far he's stowed away our card table chairs, all of his big power tools, Norah's giant stroller, the turkey fryer...and there is still lots more room!) By the end of the month, I may actually be able to park in the garage! (Jason's decided to forego parking on his side of the garage in exchange for a workbench/woodshop area)

In other home improvement news, we're getting all set to paint our master bedroom. The three of us took a trip to Lowe's tonight to check out color samples. We've about narrowed the choice down to "La Fonda Wild West Green". I'm pretty sure Jason agreed to it mostly because he thought it was funny that "La Fonda" was part of the name. (And NO, that will not be in the running for name selections for our next child) We'll be sure to post pictures of our progress. (And don't worry, we've already arranged for Norah to visit Grandma and Grandmother during the process so she wont be exposed to secondhand paint) More updates coming soon!

It's In the Bag

As I look at today's photos of Norah, I couldn't help but be reminded of some timeless lyrics from my fifth grade musical, "It's in the bag, tootsie toots, it's in the bag!" Go ahead and laugh, but while these words may hold no meaning to you, they commemorate years of torment and ridicule from my immediate family, who still threaten to pull out that incredibly embaressing video tape, and occassionally sing the songs now and then. (Which they must admit were catchy, as they've certainly stood the test of time!)


As you can probably tell from the photo, Norah loves her baby bag. Her favorite game to play is "Where's Norah?" I load her in the bag and then sneak into the bathroom, where I pose the question, "Where's Norah?" (in a very sing-song voice), then I open the bag so that she can see her reflexion, which is always met with squeals of glee. (Oh, how I long for the day when looking at myself in the mirror brought that cheerful a reaction!) She also loves to play this game with bystanders in the house. "Where's Daddy?" is another favorite variation, and no, we dont put Jason in the bag, he just stands and waits while Norah hides in the bag and peeks out at him. I'm telling you, this girl loves to hide!

The bag (a priceless gift from Aunt Paige and Uncle Grant) has been such a help. Norah has loved it from the time she was a newborn. It was the only way I managed to get my grocery shopping done in the beginning, and it was always a lot of fun seeing people's reactions when they realized "You have a baby in there!?" Even now, nothing calms her crying faster than strapping her into the bag, and swaying back and forth. I guess the close confines must remind her of being back in the womb, because it calms her even more than just holding her does. It is made of a thin, breathable fabric, and has a soft matress cushion for her back, so it keeps her pretty comfy.

Now for an update on my knitting efforts...I'm really loving it! So far, I've made two little bears, like the one pictured to the left, one and a half washrags, and I'm in also in the middle of my first blanket. I'm a part of a new knitting group at our church called "Threads of Love". Each week, we get together and have a Bible study while we knit items to be donated to different ministries, such as blankets for the local Hope Pregnancy Center, and bears, blankets, and scarves for a children's home in Romania. I have met so many amazing women through this group--there are probably close to 90 women total (between three groups that meet on different nights). It has been a great means of fellowship for women of different ages--there are girls age 13 all the way up to women in their 60's knitting together. The bear in the photo is actually one I made for Norah...she was pretty sad when I gave away the first one I was working on, but she loves this one even more. (She likes to sit and hold the yarn for me while I work, which is fine with me, as long as she doesn't try to make a snack of it!) The blanket I'm in the middle of is for the Hope Pregnancy Center...I might post a photo of it when I finish it, if it isn't too terrible looking!

Well, Norah is waking up from her morning nap, and making her presence known, so I'd better go check on her. Have a happy Thursday! (And Gilmores, you can thank me later for getting that marvelous tune stuck in your head!)

Happy Father's Day

Norah lended her artisic creativity to help me make a special first Father's Day gift for Jason. We inked up her feet and left her footprints on a pink tie, along with the message, "Norah Loves Daddy" (Which you can't see in the picture, but I assure you, its there, just above the feet). Jason's not much of a tie guy...but he proudly wore his pink tie to church and even left it on at the restaurant for the duration of lunch, without so much as one complaint. (Which is a big feat for a guy who usually has his shirt untucked before we get out to the church parking lot!) Be still, my beating heart...I've always been a sucker for a man secure enough to wear pink...especially when he's holding a sweet baby girl! I told Jason I think he should save the tie and wear it to Norah's rehearsal dinner someday, to which he replied, "I like that idea." Then changed his mind and said, "No! I dont want to even think about that!" In retrospect, I guess I share the sentiment. I think we'd like to keep her a little longer before we get her married off.

Norah behaved herself quite well during the inking escapade. I was a little worried she'd try to suck her toes before I got all the ink off, (for this reason, I purchased "Child-Safe, Non-Toxic, Washable Ink...just in case) but thankfully, she used a little self-control and I was able to get all ten piggies spotless before she stuck her foot in her mouth.

We had a nice Father's Day. All three of the "Gilmore kids" (along with Jason and Norah, of course), sat with Mom and Dad Gilmore at church, then we all went to Abuelo's for lunch. Each dad got a free, black Abuelo's baseball cap, which despite their being free, were pretty nice. And much to Jason's delight, they were made in Bagladesh (he's been saying for years that all of his best-fitting caps were manufactured in Bangladesh...who else, but my husband checks the tag on the inside of the ball cap the second he picks it up, to find out where it was made? I can guarantee I do if I'm hat shopping for him!) It was nice to have all the "kids" together for a meal with Mom and Dad...and Norah enjoyed her time with Grammy, Grandpa, Uncle Johnny, AA and Trae (Amanda's boyfriend).

Sittin' Pretty

A whole week has passed in Robinson County since my last post. I can't even claim that my failure to blog is due to an over-full schedule, because this week has been pretty relaxed. I'll just call it writer's block. What's pathetic is that, in the same breath that I am cursing (not literally) my fellow bloggers for not updating their blogs with any new, interesting morsels to while away my hours reading, I figuratively shrug my shoulders and refuse to update my own blog. So, here's to all of those who have checked my blog in the last week and sighed, wishing I'd get on the ball and put some new pictures up.

As you can see in the photo above, Norah is working hard at sitting up. She is to the point that she can sit up on her own...as long as she can put her arms down in front of her to help her stay balanced. Sometimes she winds up laying her head down in front of her feet when she runs out of energy, which is pretty cute, too. After she's "rested" for a little while, she'll sit back up until she wears out again.

Memaw has been moved from the hospital to the rehab center, and is doing considerably better...except for her leg, which is still pretty infected. Thanks for all the prayers, and please continue to remember her.

Its been a rainy couple of days here, but thankfully, Norah is as hard a sleeper as her daddy. (A couple of times I was certain the thunder would wake her up in the night, but she slept right through it all!) Despite the fact that the rain kept me awake, and knocked out our home telephone for a couple of days, we are so thankful for it! It has been dry as a bone for a while now, so we're looking forward to a little green surge on the front lawn. (Sprinkle as we may, nothing turns the grass green quite like God's showers)

That's about all I've got time for now...but I'll try to give a "First Father's Day" update as soon as I get a chance to upload some photos. Have a good one!!

Water Baby

This weekend marked a couple of momentous occassions. In addition to Jason and I celebrating six years of marital bliss, Norah took her first dip in the swimming pool! (I only wish I looked as good in my swim suit as she does in hers!) From the moment she donned her ruffled-trimed one-piece and her floppy beach hat (courtesy, once again, of Jenny!), Norah began squealing in eager anticipatory delight. It was as if she knew something exciting, new, and fun awaited her. (That, or she could tell by Jason's and my countenance that she was the cat's meow, so she was strutting her stuff) We intentionally waited until close to sun-down to go to Gramps and Grandad's pool, in hopes of safeguarding Norah's fair skin . (I can't imagine where she got her skin tone--Jason and I are both so tan!) Daddy carefully lowered Norah into the pool, while Mommy stood by to capture Norah's latest "first" on camera.

Initially, Norah didn't react at all. The water temperature was so close to the temperature outside, I dont think she realized she was wet, at first. But once she noticed Daddy could splash and float her around the pool, she loved it! We weren't too surprised--Norah has always loved the bathtub, so I'm sure the swimming pool was just a really big bath to her (and yes, we did give her a real bath afterward--with soap and everything!)

The swimming pool excursion also marked the first time that Norah's little fingers and toes have wrinkled up like teeny prunes. (We never keep her in the tub long enough for that to happen) Thankfully, they returned to their usual state by the time she was ready for bed.

For those who have been praying for Memaw, thank you. She is back in the hospital (for the third time in the last month), this time with fluid in her lungs and a bad staph infection in her leg. At last check, the doctors thought that something may have "come loose" after her triple bypass, which would explain why she's had so much trouble breathing, and just doesn't seem to be healing. Please continue to pray for her, as well as for our family, and the doctors who are caring for her.

A Sleepy Little Stalactite

Norah took a great 2-hour nap yesterday, snuggled up to a very special dolly, chosen especially for her by one of her "California Cousins". I think it may have been the best daytime nap she's ever taken, so thank you, sweet Tes! I chose to start today's blog off with a sweet, photo of a slumbering Norah, to insure that everyone knows that although she has plenty of energy and excitement throughout her days, Norah does slow down for some peaceful rest every now and then. (In actuality, she takes, on average, 3 naps a day, and sleeps 10 hours every night. So even though she's a firecracker when she's awake, at least we get a good bit of "quiet time" too)

Now, for my report of Norah's latest wild and crazy antics. Apparently our little cupcake been spending so much time in "the cave" that she's begun struggling with a mistaken identity--as a stalactite...or maybe a bat. Daddy put her in the bouncer chair while mommy was cooking dinner and he made a quick trip to Walmart. I peeked in on her to see how she was doing, and found her bailed out of the side, still strapped in at the waist, cooing, and giggling to herself. Since she didn't seemto be too distressed by her inverted orientation, I snapped a quick picture before liberating her from her seatbelt straps of bondage and giving her some free-roll time.

In other news, Norah, Aunt Paige, and I went clothes shopping for a couple of hours today. We had a great time, though I must say Norah slowed us down, considerably. She was flirting with everyone! It was pretty adorable, and I was glad to know that she was having a good time shopping with us. Norah is definately enjoying her umbrella stroller. (After seeing how much she enjoyed Grammy's, Jason and I decided to swap our big stroller out for the much easier to tote umbrella stroller. As a result, the Civic's trunk has tripled in size!)

I've begun a knitting project for the "Threads of Love" Bible study at our church. We meet each Wednesday night from 7-8pm for a Bible study, where we all work on our projects. (There are also 2 other Threads of Love groups at church--one meets on Tuesday mornings, and the other on Thursday nights, so you can imagine, we have a lot of productivity going on!) Currently we're knitting baby blankets to be donated to the local Hope Pregnancy Center. Norah has been helping me knit. She loves sitting in my lap and holding on to the ring between my circular needles as I work. She seems to be completly enthralled by my colored yarn, but I like to think of it as her giving me support and encouragement as I go along. I must say, I'm really enjoying knitting, and knowing that I can use my new skills (if you can call them that at this early stage!) to bless someone else makes me enjoy it even more.

Toe Jam, Spelunking, and Giraffopottamus

I stand corrected. In a previous entry titled "Cutie Booties", I posed the premise that my daughter was obsessed with her footwear...but low and behold, it was not her footwear she was trying to get a closer gander at, but her little piggies! That's right folks, we have a bonified toe-sucker on our hands! Jason shot this picture tonight at Wings-N-More. Looks like we're gonna have to work on our restaurant manners. (And for those of you who are thinking we're rotten parents for letting her go barefooted in public--shame on you! She had socks on when we entered the restaurant, but managed to work them off in time for a little toe jam appetizer. And we re-shod her feet as soon as we snapped the picture)

Norah hasn't lost her affinity for spelunking under our household furniture. The latest site for exploration: her crib! As you can see in the picture, she has even begun packing for her long journeys into "the cave". This time she tried to bring her favorite cloth book, "Snail", and her beloved passy along for the trip. (And no, I didn't plant those there for the picture, she was actually trying to drag them under the bed with her, but dropped everything to mug for the camera--what a ham!)

Finally, the last photo is one of Norah nestled into Grammy's umbrella stroller. She loves dangling her feet! The little guy to her right (your left) is one of her favorite toys. Jason has affectionately dubbed him "Giraffopottamos" (it has the face and body of a hippo, but little antennae like a giraffe, not to mention flower-shaped wings on its back, and a little butterfly on its chest). We aren't really sure what it is supposed to be, but it's feet make marvelous crinkly noises, and Norah seems to think it tastes fantastic, so we thinks its a keeper. She's also facinated with "Blelephant", her blue elephant, as well as a little stuffed lady bug for whom we've yet to develop a clever name. Feel free to post your suggestions and we'll let you know if we come up with something.

We've enjoyed a nice week here in Robinson County. Jason's been off yesterday and today, so we've been enjoying some quality family time. We tried a new (to B/CS) restaurant called Abuelos. It was good eatin' and we recommend it. The atmosphere was fun too! We did a little tooling around at Lowe's (shopping for a birthday present for Uncle Grant, and of course, visiting Jason's favorite lawn mower) and picked up some "baby necessities" from Target. It was a fun family outting, and a good day for all of us.