Look, Mom, No Burrito!

This weekend, we tackled lots of firsts…a night without the burrito, HG’s first mass, and her first Sunday lunch at Bubba’s.

So we have always put HG in a onesie or a gown for bedtime, especially since she’s been hooked up to the monitor, and mostly due to her mama’s laziness in the middle of the night to deal with pjs with legs. But I have been worried that we are getting too attached to our beloved pink burrito and wanted to try a night without it. I dressed her in footed pjs to keep her warm, and she looked like such a big girl! We have been putting her to sleep on her wedge since her head cold is still lingering, and she woke me up at least three times during the night because she scooted all the way down to the corner of the crib and knocked over her monitor! Tonight I took her wedge out of the bed but let her get back into her burrito. We’ll wait until a non-work night to try that again! And p.s., we have way exceeded the length of time that the doctor recommended wearing the monitor, and since we have had no alarms, I am going to call the doc tomorrow to see if we can stop using it. I am half excited and relieved and half scared to death…

I have been absolutely terrified to take Helen Grace to mass. I hate to admit it, but in the past, I have been one of those people that glare at parents that have screaming children in church. I just can’t stand it when the kid is going nuts, and the parents make no effort to take them outside so that the rest of the congregation can enjoy the service. When we got to church this morning, we headed straight to the cry room where I had planned on hiding out for the service so that we could all enjoy ourselves BUT the cry room was CLOSED!! Who closes a cry room?! The guy that worked at the church told us that children’s voices were sounds of joy and ushered us into the sanctuary, while I stood dumbfounded with my mouth hanging open. I couldn’t believe my ears! Luckily, HG slept for the first half of mass, and we were able to keep her entertained for the second half. I was exhausted afterward from being so nervous that she was going to squall. At least we have one mass behind us now with no catastrophes!

After mass, we went to Bubba’s for Helen Grace’s first Sunday lunch. I am thankful that she isn’t old enough to eat solid food yet so that all the deviled eggs were mine!! Can you tell the grandparents and great grandmother are absolutely nuts over our little girl??

Helen Grace and I were pooped this afternoon and got in bed to cuddle and nap. What precious time with my baby girl! I wouldn’t trade anything in the world for those smiles, laughs, and coos we shared.

We are so excited about Helen Grace’s first Ole Miss football game (on tv) and Auntie Em’s visit this weekend! Hotty Toddy!

On a side note, I have been inspired to finally do something that I have always thought about for years…I have signed up for smocking classes! Bubba is so proud! The classes are on a Monday and Tuesday night in late September, and I can’t wait to get started with my new addiction!

And finally, we need your opinion…what should Helen Grace be for her first Halloween? We have it narrowed down to a lion, bumble bee, or a butterfly. Let us know what you think!

Fire Engine Red

So if you’ve been wondering what color Helen Grace’s hair is these days, this picture will clear things up. Can you say fire engine red?!HG and I really enjoyed our day together, and my arms are sore from carrying her around all day. I’m not sure which one of us was more clingy. :)At our First Time Mom’s group today, I worked on getting her to hang on to her rattle, and she actually grasped it for a few minutes. She’s been holding onto things much better, especially my hair! We went on a walk this afternoon, and HG was stylin’ in her shades!HG helped me cook dinner. This is really the closest Rebel has gotten to her without being spooked. He is very intrigued by the Bumbo chair. He and Mocha are dying to get in it. AWWHHH, our baby is three months old! We waited until right before bedtime to take these pics, so she was a little sleepy. :)Obviously, our cats are ravenous for attention. We couldn’t even take these pics without Rebel jumping into the picture, trying to get some loving. Poor kitty!This week has brought us one of HG’s most entertaining talents…she is cooing- and loudly! And best of all, she’ll echo you when you coo to her! She sounds like she’s howling a little bit. I have a great video of it, but John thinks I will be extremely embarrassed because I sound like a babbling fool so he didn’t advise posting it. :) It brings us hours of entertainment, and she just smiles and laughs and coos even more. We are really enjoying this phase!

Lucky Charm

Baby Girl and I cheered on Daddy last night at his soccer game, and HG was his lucky charm- John scored two goals! Yay! The weather was absolutely perfect, and the light was beautiful. I just kept snapping pics as she laughed and got some great ones of her baby blues!

Road Trip Warrior

We have now conquered the road trip obstacle and loved spending Saturday with my mom’s family in Jackson, MS. We have a great little road tripper on our hands! GG was so excited to get to meet Helen Grace and kept saying, “She’s beautiful!” Even though Worth is now VASTLY outnumbered by his girl cousins, he was a good sport and enjoyed playing with Grace Ann and Helen Grace. I’m sure he and John will have her playing sports as soon as she can walk!

My cousin Suzanne’s babies, Worth and Grace Ann…HG laughed and laughed at Worth. I think it was the redhead connection. :) Grace Ann loved rocking her to sleep. Thanks, Gracie! All the Graces…My mama’s mama, Granny Grace “GG,” Grace Ann, Helen Grace, and Grace DeSha Meeting GG, HG’s great grandmotherCuddling with Aunt Glo, her godmother Passed out Suzy Q ;)Four Generations We were so lucky- she slept the whole way down to Jackson and back. Whew!

Adickes’ Pony Party

Helen Grace had a blast at Adickes’ 3rd birthday party this weekend! It was wonderful to see old friends and to get all of our girls together for the first time since HG was born. Since the pony party was in Jackson, we decided to combine the trip with an opportunity for HG to meet my grandmother, GG, so my parents came along for the day trip as well. (More pics of GG to come in the next post.) Helen Grace actually did great on the 3-hour drive and slept all the way coming and going, despite fighting a cold that her mean mama passed along to her. Poor baby!

Two Generations of BFFS:  Whitney and Haney Harris, Rebecca and Adickes Thomas, Me and HG, Leighton Thomas, and Emily NailA sweet hug from our original baby girl, Adickes- the firstborn of our babies and the guest of honor for the pony partyKisses for Helen Grace- Adickes is a great big sister Auntie Em   Proud Mama Obviously HG was enjoying the beautiful day! We all passed her around as she napped. I could just kiss those cheeks all day long! Actually, I would bet that’s how she got the cold from me… :( Reba, Em, Me Whit, Me, Em So we couldn’t pass up the opportunity at a pony party for Helen Grace to have her first pony ride…”Ummm, not sure what I think about this…” “Ok, Mama, do you have enough pictures now?”

Back to Reality

It has been a busy week with my return to work, but we are slowly finding the balance between baby world and grown-up world. I’ve only gone through one box of Kleenex, much less than I expected. ;)  I think I can see a light at the end of the tunnel.  Here’s our week in pictures…

In her gator outfit for her friend Jackson’s birthday party while paying homage to Spiffer’s Greenbrook Gators!

We have conquered our first day of my going back to work with only Mama having a minor breakdown on Monday morning…Baby Girl was happy as a lark with her Grandma Jeanne and Geggy. John and HG bought me a very sweet “back-to-work” gift, a beautiful DY bracelet, although John gives HG all the credit for picking it out. ;)  On Tuesday, I asked John to drop her off for me at his mom’s so that I didn’t have to be responsible for the physical hand-over, and that arrangement worked MUCH better. On Thursday, I didn’t even cry as I said goodbye to her at home…maybe because I had all of Wednesday to cuddle with her and get my “fix.”  Here are some pics from Monday after we picked up HG. I literally didn’t put her down that night until I laid her in her crib for bedtime! Pathetic!

Doty invited us to come to a First Time Moms group, and we had a great time getting to visit with other moms and babies born in 2009. Caroline and Helen Grace got to capture their first picture together. The first time they met Caroline was asleep and HG was pitching a fit, but they were much more cooperative at this meeting! It was neat to look around the room and watch a 4-month old and 6-month old and get excited about all the new things to come- sitting up, attempting to talk, etc.  As much as I can’t wait for those fun stages, I have to admit that I loved sitting there, rocking and cuddling my baby who was content to be held. I think I will be a little sad when she’s ready to get out of my lap and run away from me to go play! :)

All tuckered out!

Helen Grace has become extremely alert and loves to smile and laugh. She’s trying out her voice a lot more now, and I love it when she surprises herself with the noise! She’s close to being able to hold a rattle. She will reach for it but hasn’t gotten the grasp part down yet. She weighs almost 12 pounds!

We are making our first day trip to Jackson, MS, on Saturday to introduce Helen Grace to my grandmama, GG, and to celebrate Adickes Thomas’ 3rd birthday (wow, she’s grown up fast!). Please pray that HG will sleep the whole way and be content. She can’t wait to see her aunties and visit with family!