Johmily

Vacation in Omaha!

2009-10-01T21:49:00.006-05:00

Emily and I frequently talk about going up to visit Franklin and Tracy, my brother and sister-in-law, and their family up in Omaha. It seems that with other scheduled plans, and not wanting to go up there when then the weather could be bad, we haven't made it up there recently. In fact, the last time we were there, our nephew Fischer was about to turn one year old. We decided now that our other nephew Garrison was about to turn one, it would be a good time to visit. So, last week, we hit the road and headed North.

After an overnight stay in Tulsa, we drove to Omaha on Saturday. Needless to say, after 8 hours in the car with a two year old, we were ready to arrive! Esther actually did pretty well on the way up there, despite sleeping for only 30 minutes or so the whole trip. Franklin, Tracy, Emily, and I enjoyed an evening out while Grandma Judy and Grandpa Fred watched the kids.

Sunday began with us going to attend church at Southwest, where Franklin is the Youth Minister. After attending services, we headed for Omaha's Henry Doorly Zoo. We spent several hours at the zoo and I know all the kids enjoyed it. We were impressed that Fischer was up for walking most of the time. Esther preferred to ride (in Fischer's Sit-n-Stand), but when we got Fischer to hold her hand, she decided it was okay to walk for a little bit!

Monday, we didn't have much planned, but that worked out okay as Esther came down with a stomach bug that had gone through the rest of the Omaha bunch prior to our arrival. By Tuesday (at 3:30 in the morning) she was raring and ready to go again. Tuesday was spent with Franklin's family as well as Tracy's parents going to Vala's, which Tracy described as the "Six Flags of Pumpkin Patches" - and she wasn't kidding! We spent all day there walking around, going on rides, and taking pictures. It also just so happened to be the perfect day, weather-wise. We ended up the night by celebrating Garrison's first birthday.

We were really sad to have to go, but we felt like we got to enjoy some quality time with our family. Our ride home was pretty uneventful, as Esther decided to take three naps (and I think Emily took at least one too!). I hope everyone enjoys the pictures!

--John

Both Families on Sunday Morning:

Esther and Fischer:

The Zoo Crew:

Emily & Esther:

Anyone want to buy them?

The Girls:

Esther & John:

Trick or Treat!:

The birthday Boy:

And yes - I'm a map nerd, so this is how we got there and back!:

View Omaha - September 2009 in a larger map

House Project #8291

2009-09-07T14:00:00.005-05:00

As most of you know, we bought this house and immediately caused ourselves much anguish by tearing it apart and then putting it back together. Now, well over a year after moving in, we continue to work on projects as we can get to them.

My latest project was a little more on the fun and entertainment side, which is nice to do once in awhile. Back in June or July, we bought a new TV for our bedroom. It was a nice upgrade to move from what I believe was a 14" TV to a 26" - you can now actually tell who people are on the TV! Since then, the TV has just been sitting on the dresser, but I had had some plans to change that, and the last couple of weekends we put the plan into action.

Last weekend, Josh came over and helped me install a wall mount for the TV. I ended up using a Peerless brand mount. It was a little bit more expensive, but had very good reviews on Amazon. I didn't want to take a chance on the new TV dumping into the floor!

We still had been using plain rabbit ears antenna on this new TV until this weekend, when I completed part two of the plan. Friday night after work, Justin came over, and he and I crawled around in our attic. After what I can only describe as an acrobatic move that was probably disturbing to watch (ask Justin), I ended up over where the TV is mounted. We ran both a network cable and coax cable for antenna down to behind the TV.

For the final piece, I connected to the network cable an Xbox 360 that I just bought. I didn't buy the Xbox as a game console, but because of how it works as a Windows Media Center Extender. A few updates later, we are now able to watch live and recorded TV off of our media center computer in the living room! Anyway, like I said, this was more of a "fun" project, but I'd like to think that at least some of the networking I'm adding to the house makes it a little more "updated" in case we decide to sell it sometime in the future.

Now just a note for you crazy kids out there: I didn't go buy this stuff on a whim - we actually saved for quite awhile before buying, so yes, we are trying to stay with the Dave Ramsey principles.

--John

New Responsibilities

2009-09-02T20:58:00.002-05:00

Well, tonight was the big night! Several weeks ago Emily and I agreed to be the children's education ministry leaders at church. After several weeks of planning and learning, the new quarter started and we were "officially" on the job.

I have to admit that we didn't want the job the first time it was mentioned to us, but figured out soon that our ability to organize (to a point of it being a sickness?) may actually be useful. So far our abilities have served us pretty well, as have all of the friends at Church who have offered kind words, advice, and lots of help.

So here's to one night down, and many good ones more to go! And since we are speaking of Bible Class, here is a picture from the archives of Esther attending her first Bible Class.

- John

I'm a big girl!

2009-09-02T19:00:00.001-05:00

As usual, I am well behind on my posting. I just seem to get so busy anymore playing with all my toys and just enjoying life!

I turned two recently and I have changed in many ways! I talk a lot, I sing, I count to ten (except I leave out nine). I also find new ways to entertain Mommy and Daddy; for example, I now can reach the light switches. I also watched Mommy and figured out how to unlock the storm door!

This Summer seems to have gone by so fast, but I am looking forward to the Fall. I think I will enjoy the State Fair more this year and I am looking forward to visiting my Nebraska cousins, Fischer and Garrison, in a few weeks.

Sadly, due to my busy schedule, all good things must come to an end. I am going to give up the life of an author and just try to be a full-time toddler. The exciting news is that Mommy and Daddy want to write about me and several other topics as well! Maybe, just maybe, they will be able to update you more than I have. Very shortly, my website will begin forwarding to their blog, but until then, you can begin accessing it directly. They hope to have new stories posted soon and the good news is that all of my old posts will be there too! The address is http://johmily.blogspot.com . Hope to see you there!

Me and Grandpa Mike at Roaring River:

Visiting Uncle Jace and Aunt Randy in Arlington:

My birthday party with my friends:

My friends party included swimming!

Lots of presents at my family birthday party:

Summer Fun

2009-06-12T22:44:00.000-05:00

As I mentioned in my last short post, things are busy around here! Most recently I have been on a vacation to both the lake (twice) and Tulsa. Last weekend we had a visit from Uncle Jace and Aunt Randy. Uncle Jace helped Mommy paint cabinets in the kitchen while Aunt Randy kept me busy (or was it me keeping her busy?). In any case, I think I wore her out good!

I am continuing to say more and more words. I say a few phrases and like to sing songs upon request (as long as it is Mommy or Daddy doing the requesting). My favorite song to sing on my own is Twinkle,Twinkle/ABC's, which may as well be the same song since they are in the same tune, right?

In a little over two months I will turn TWO YEARS OLD! Can you believe it? I can, and if you ask my my age, I say "TWO" (and I've been saying that for several months).

Starting this week, Mommy started teaching and I started attending Mother's Day Out for the Summer. I enjoy getting to spend times with other kids and the teachers always write nice notes about me.

Well, I better go for now, I hope you enjoy these pictures and the video!

This is a nice picture, and yes, those are my shorts on my head:

Lounging at the lake with (Great) Uncle Harold:

Here is a kind of long video of me changing my baby's diaper, I hope you enjoy it!

Old Timey Again

2009-06-09T21:42:00.000-05:00

Friends,

I had this video ready long ago, but life is busy! Here it is to tide you all over until I add more updates soon - me and my friend Jordyn playing dressup:

STELLA!!!

2009-02-28T13:52:00.000-06:00

I am very excited to let all of you know that I now have my own puppy! As you can guess from the title, her name is Stella. Stella is a Beagle and we got her just before she turned 8 weeks old. She has very pretty colors and is a lot of fun to play with, even if she gets a little excited sometimes.

Stella has taken up a lot of our time the last few weeks and so I don't have a lot of extra things to talk about. Today I did go to the Doctor and checked out just fine. The Doctor said I was a short kid, but I think he was just being funny because I am in the 97% range for height. I had to get one shot, but I didn't even cry!

Within the last couple of weeks, I have started using the ending "k" sound, which has added a lot of words that I can say - fun words like YUCK and TRUCK! Sometimes I don't know a word, so I spout off 30 seconds of my own language instead. I also like to watch the trash truck and school buses go past my window each day.

Well, that is all for now, I hope you enjoy the videos and yet another presentation from "Old Timey Esther"

January Happenings

2009-01-27T21:03:00.000-06:00

I've enjoyed my year quite well so far - it all began with some friends coming over to celebrate New Years with us (ok, I'll admit, I didn't QUITE make it to midnight).

I've also enjoyed other visitors this month: My friend Jordyn has visited a couple of times, and we had a lot of fun. Grandpa Mike also visited to help us build a fence (You know what that means? A new doggie for me soon!). I tried as best as I could to help him, but mostly I ended up falling over into the mud. Last week, Uncle Jeff, Aunt Jamie, and Camryn visited me. Camryn is getting around really well now so we were able to play quite a bit!

Today it was very cold outside. Daddy got to stay home from work and this afternoon, we even got to go outside and play in the snow. I didn't stay out for very long, but I enjoyed the time I had. I thought I would share my time outside with you in a video (Daddy had a lot of fun making the video). I hope that you enjoy it and I hope all is well with everyone.

The Holidays

2009-01-27T18:24:00.000-06:00

Dear Friends,

Last I posted, it was October and since then, I have had two great holidays together with family. Just before the Holidays, I got my very first haircut!

At Thanksgiving, I spent a lot of time with Daddy's family, including Uncle Franklin, Aunt Tracy, and my cousins, Fischer and Garrison. It was great to get to see everyone. The weekend after Thanksgiving, I got to spend quite a bit of time with Mommy's family too! They came to hang at my house, so I didn't even have to get out!

Christmas was great as well. I spent several nights with Grandpa Mike and Grandma Lynn. I really enjoyed this because I also got to spend a lot of time with several dogs, which was a lot of fun. We visited all of Mommy's family in Tulsa and I enjoyed helping my cousin Camryn celebrate her first Christmas. As you can see, the Holidays have kept us very busy, but the gifts sure made it a lot of fun!

I hope that all of you had good holidays as well and I wish you a happy new year!

Vacation Time!

2008-10-13T21:11:00.000-05:00

Hello Dear Friends,

I am sure you are surprised to see me back again so soon! Well I had to tell you about the fabulous vacation I had this past weekend. On Thursday morning, I took off for who knows where with Mommy and Daddy. We stopped after a little while and who did we see but Uncle Jeff, Aunt Jamie, and Cousin Camryn! I was so excited. We soon got back in the car and traveled for what seemed like forever. Finally we got to where we were going - Uncle Jace and Aunt Randy's house in Arlington, TX.

We had a very enjoyable weekend. I got to spend quite a bit of time playing with Camryn. I also spent a lot of time trying to get Aunt Randy to take me to see the "woof-woof" (dog), Tom!

On Saturday, we got to spend some time taking pictures at the pumpkin patch. After we finished, we went to the Ft. Worth Stockyards and got to see some REALLY big cattle and some horses (one of them even smiled at me). I really enjoyed my weekend, and I hope you will enjoy the pictures of our time there.

p.s. - Thanks to Aunt Randy for the last two pictures!

Camryn and me in our Halloween costumes:

Aunt Randy and Uncle Jace holding us:

Uncle Jace helping me on the ride (he almost broke it getting on):

Daddy helping me pet the horse:

A New Cousin!

2008-10-10T18:00:00.000-05:00

Well, I have some exciting news for you! Last week, I got a brand new cousin! His name is Garrison Steven Samuel Wood - that's quite a mouthful, but he's a pretty big boy!

He had a few problems with his lungs after he was born, so he is still in the hospital, but I think he will go home soon. I hope that I will get to meet him in person in a few months!

Baby Garrison:

Catching up! - September

2008-10-09T18:00:00.000-05:00

Well, like all of the past months, September was busy too! Early on in the month, I decided that eating with my fingers wasn't always the best way, so I tried using a spoon! I am not very good at it yet, but I will definitely keep working on it!

This year was the first year that I was able to go to the State Fair! Last year I was too little, so I didn't get to go. It was pretty exciting! There were all kinds of interesting sights and smells and I got to learn what a "mullet" was!

The week after the fair was exciting too! I got to go and spend not one, but two nights with my cousin Camryn. She is six months old, and even though she is younger, she is still pretty cool to hang out with. That weekend, I also got to go and visit Uncle Jeff at work, which was really fun because he works at a firehouse, so I got to see the big red truck!

I am still trying to get this walking thing down, but I am soooo close! I still like to hold on to things for extra security.

I'm saying quite a few things at this point - my favorites seem to be "b" words - Bible, bubble, baby, bye-bye...I also know that the dog says "woof woof". My two favorite words, though, are still Mama and Dada.

Catching up! - Year in Review

2008-10-08T18:00:00.000-05:00

Well, remember all those lovely pictures of me with my friend Tessa the Turtle? Well, apparently Mommy and Daddy took those on purpose to show how I grew each month in my first year. Here's all of them as one GIANT picture. I hope you enjoy them!

Catching up! - My Birthday!!

2008-10-07T18:00:00.000-05:00

Well, after 12 anxious months, the moment we had all waited for arrived! I turned one year old! Looking back, I certainly feel more mature than all those infants under one, and I am sure you will notice changes in me now as well....

But enough about that - lets talk about the party! The big day went off pretty much as planned. I had a LOT of guests! We had beautiful weather and cooked out on the grill. I had a hard time keeping track of everyone that was there, but they all seemed to enjoy themselves while I tore into my gifts. It's so great to know that so many people love and support me and my family.

Catching up! - August

2008-10-03T23:07:00.000-05:00

Well this post will be a little short because it is going to only lead up to the most important day of the year, my birthday, which of course deserves its own post! August was a crazy month! Mommy and Daddy were stressed out trying to get our house ready to have people over for my party! I was a little worried at first that it wasn't going to work out, then one day I came home and all of a sudden, our house had undergone a transformation! Instead of all the concrete floors and pokey tack strips, we had nice new carpet! I LOVED it! Within days, I decided that it was not only fun to play on, but also for working on my new art of scooting (who needs crawling anyway?). I even decided that the carpet was soft enough for a nap every now and then. I hope you enjoy the pictures of the new house before and after the carpet.

In August, I also started figuring out how to sit up in my crib...you know what that means? Instead of laying on my back crying, I was able to sit up so that Mommy or Daddy could hear me even better! I added my 12th tooth in August as well - make sure you keep your fingers away!

Before:

After:

Before:

After:

Carpet makes me sleepy:

Catching up! - July

2008-10-03T22:58:00.000-05:00

I know, I know, I'm terribly behind on this blogging thing, but I think as you will understand, I have a very busy life (can you imagine what it will be like once I am in school?!). I am going to try to recap everything in several posts. Hold ON!!

This post is for the Month of July.

I began the month by experiencing my first Fourth of July holiday. I got to spend time with lots of family members, got to watch a parade and really enjoyed fireworks.

We continued work on our house, but it was still kind of a mess! I tried to help Grandpa Mike as much as I could while he worked on the house.

In July, I added 3 teeth - numbers nine, ten, and eleven! I also enjoyed a sleepover at our house by cousins Hannah, Hunter, Haylie, and Natalie.

It Never Ends!!

2008-06-22T21:56:00.000-05:00

Dear Friends,

I'm sorry I have not kept you as up-to-date as I'd like; however, it seems that this moving and remodeling business takes FOREVER! Besides that, I've kept busy going to Super Summer two days a week while Mommy teaches older kids. I have enjoyed it very much and my teachers always send a note home saying how good I've been (did you expect any less?).

We are getting so close to being done repainting my new bedroom that I can almost taste it! Hopefully soon I will be able to invite you all over to check it out.

Speaking of taste, I've been trying all kinds of new foods lately. Besides baby foods, Mommy has been giving me small pieces of whatever she is eating. I like most of it quite a bit. Tonight, I tried ice cream for the first time. It was really cold, but after I got used to it, I didn't want to stop!

I'm still not crawling, but I like to stand up when I have something to hold on to, and I have gotten to where I roll around a lot, even in my sleep! Mommy and Daddy are expecting me to take off crawling as soon as I have some carpet to work with here at the new house.

Well, once again it is time to go, but please make sure to check out the pictures below, as well as all of the new ones on the family photo page link.

My Friend Pete

2008-05-13T22:54:00.000-05:00

Hello everyone!

I wanted to take a few moments out of my busy schedule to tell you about my friend Pete. Pete has been my Daddy's dog for a LONG TIME (since 1995!). He was the first dog that I ever got to meet. I wasn't very impressed the first time I met him, but that changed quickly. Recently, I would get very excited every time I saw him and enjoyed watching him run around the yard. Today is a sad day for me, though, because we had to say goodbye to Pete. I wish I had gotten to spend a little more time with him, but I know he is in a better place now. Pete was 13 years old (that's 91 in dog years).

Goodbye Pete!

I'm Sooooo Sorry!

2008-05-05T21:12:00.000-05:00

Hello to all my loyal readers out there! I MUST apologize for my lack of posting. It would seem that moving to a new house requires more of my time than I thought it would.

Let me try to recap the past month for you:

First of all, I am VERY excited that I have a brand new cousin. Camryn Jade was born on April 5th, and I got to go see her the very next day! We haven't gotten to spend much time together, but I am sure we will be good friends.

Second of all, we closed on our new house on April 11th. Since then, it seems that we do a lot of traveling back and forth to the new house since it isn't quite ready to move into. Most of the time, I spend my days trying to keep occupied while Mommy works, but sometimes I get to spend the days with Grandma Judy. We are going to move to our house in a couple of weeks, whether its ready or not! Hopefully we will at least get rid of all the pesky dust by then!

I turned EIGHT months old on April 20th. Can you believe it? I don't do any crawling yet, but I do sit up a lot and I like to stand up (especially when someone is there to catch me). Mommy thinks that I am not crawling yet because I am content just the way things are for now.

I started getting my seventh tooth a couple of weeks ago. Its a good thing I am getting that tooth, because I am really starting to use them. I eat a lot of baby food, and sometimes really want some of the food that Mommy and Daddy are eating, but I haven't really gotten a chance to taste that yet. I did get a chance to taste something called a Lemon recently. I wasn't very impressed, but Grandpa Mike thought that it was really funny for some reason!

Well, hopefully I've covered everything that has happened recently. I hope I can post again soon, but I can't make any promises since we are still so busy with the house. Once we get moved in, I will have to show you pictures of my new room!

Til then,

Busy Girl

2008-04-05T18:14:00.000-05:00

I am learning so much that Daddy and Mommy can hardly keep up! I have gotten really good at imitating others. :) I can wave now and sometimes I play Patty Cake. I can also say several things now, including, Mamamama, Dadadada, yayayaya ...and sometimes I combine things and say Hi Dada and My Mama. I'm getting pretty good, huh?

I got my fifth and sixth teeth this past week (yes, it hurts, but MY fingers feel good on my gums these days). These would be my two front teeth (yea!). Guess I don't have to ask for those for Christmas this year... Oh, yeah, and I'm also fighting a cold.

I've been in and out of town visiting my family. I even got to see my Uncle Franklin, Aunt Tracy, and Cousin Fischer last weekend. I also got to spend time with Grandma Judy, Grandma Lynn, and Grandpa Mike!

I also recently celebrated my seven month birthday! I hope you enjoy the pictures that I have to share with you.

Well, I am expecting word any second now about my new cousin, "baby Y" being born, so I better go!

Moving!

2008-03-19T21:00:00.000-05:00

Guess What!!

I'm MOVING! Yep, my Daddy and Mommy bid on a house last weekend and they won the bid! I'm so excited. Well, I'm sad to leave my tree we planted in our front yard, but Daddy said maybe we could plant another one at the new house. We think we will get to move around the end of April. My new house will have 3 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms and Mommy said she was really excited about having something called a dishwasher? Anyway, we can't wait!

Also, I got my 4th tooth! It's my other fang tooth...not my eye tooth. I now have two on top and two on bottom...I'm stylin'!

Other than that, it's just a lazy afternoon, well, for me anyway. Mommy is busy cleaning to put our house on the market next week. Guess I better get off the computer so she can keep working. :)

Six Months Old

2008-02-23T20:19:00.000-06:00

Fear not, my loyal fans, I have returned! It has been a very busy week, so I am ready to tell you all about it. Obviously the biggest news of all - I am now six months old! Wednesday was the big day, but we didn't have a big celebration, we just went to Bible Class like we usually do, but that was enough for me! Besides that, I've actually been feeling a little icky this week. Mommy and Daddy thought I might be getting another cold. I felt bad for a couple of days and must admit that I was a little grumpy at times. Thursday night, Daddy decided to check the situation out, and sure enough, I was starting to get another tooth!! My brand new tooth is on the top, but it isn't in the front, its right next to where the front teeth will go. This makes three teeth for me now!

Friday I visited the doctor for my six month checkup. He seemed to think that I am doing great! I got three shots and a funny tasting drink while I was there. My measurements are as follows: 16.9 pounds (60th percentile), 26 1/4" long (70th percentile), and 17 1/2" head circumference (94th percentile). Even though I had to go to the doctor, I really enjoyed Friday because Grandma Lynn and Great Grandma Sue came to visit me.

Saturday was a lot of fun! Mommy and Daddy took me to a studio and several people made faces at me to try to make me smile for the camera. I even got to take pictures with Mommy and Daddy. After we got our pictures, we spent the rest of the day running errands.

Saturday night, Mommy decided it was time for me to try something new. I had rice cereal for the first time. I'm not really sure if I like it or not, but I enjoyed trying it. I hope you enjoy the video of me making a mess with the cereal.

Well, it is past my bedtime, but I hope you all have enjoyed getting caught up on what is going on in my life. Love you all,

My new friend Derek

2008-02-16T19:12:00.000-06:00

I couldn't wait any longer to tell you about my day yesterday! I went to Tulsa, just me and Mommy--we had a girls trip! We made a special trip to go see my Mommy's cousin's baby (my second cousin). He was born February 13th and we wanted to visit him in the hospital. It was lots of fun. I know we are going to be friends! He is kinda small right now, but soon he will be big enough to play with me!

The last part of my day was spent back at home with Grandma Judy and Grandpa Fred. Mommy and Daddy went out on a date and Grandma and Grandpa came over to play with me. I enjoyed my bedtime routine with them, including playing in my ducky bath tub and reading books with Grandma and Grandpa. This was my first time to go to sleep without Mommy and Daddy and I think I did a pretty good job!

I have been practicing sitting up by myself. Usually I do pretty well, but sometimes i start to fall over and Mommy has to catch me. This afternoon I played for awhile all by myself with my toys and I didn't fall over a single time!

Well, its almost bath time, so I will talk to you all later!

Raspberries and Peekaboo

2008-02-09T20:27:00.000-06:00

I wanted to tell you about my new games! Yes, I'm old enough to play games with Mommy and Daddy and we have so much fun! I have learned how to spit with my tongue out (raspberries). I have also learned how to play peekaboo by holding the burp rag over my eyes and letting Mommy say, "Where's Esther???" then I yank it down real fast and smile real big as she says,"There she is!!!" It's sooo fun. Maybe I can play with each of you some day, too!

Mommy and Daddy now have me on a good schedule. I start getting ready for bed at 7:45 or so and I am usually in bed by 8:30. After getting over my last cold, I am now once again sleeping all the way through the night. I usually wake up in time to see Daddy before he leaves for work in the morning.

One last piece of information - I am now the proud owner of TWO teeth! Thats right, I now have another tooth parked right next to the first one, so watch out when you stick those fingers near my mouth!

Well, it is PAST my bedtime, so I will have to go for now.

Until then,

Wow! Five Months old!

2008-01-21T21:10:00.000-06:00

Sunday I turned five months old. I was very excited because I got to spend the weekend with Grandma Lynn and I also got some quality time with Grandma Sue, Uncle Jeff, Aunt Jamie, and I even got to hug my cousin who isn't even born yet!

Since last Wednesday, I have had a cold. This is the second cold I have had, and I have decided that I do not like them! I hope you enjoy the pictures and please excuse the runny nose!

One more quick update!!

2008-01-11T21:56:00.000-06:00

My goodness, I'm not sure how I forgot this, but I also wanted to let everyone know that just before Christmas, I successfully participated in my first Bible class! I was a little unsure of what to do at first, but I learned quickly to play with the toys that I was given.

My classmates were Addison, Sierra, Cohen, Teegin, and Gavin. My teacher was Brenda and Josh helped out too! Mommy and Daddy stayed around to make sure that I did alright. Since then, I have gone to several more classes and I enjoy them each time. I hope you enjoy the pictures!

End of the Year Report

2008-01-11T20:06:00.000-06:00

I couldn't let any more time pass without writing to you about my first Christmas! It was so great. I got lots of special gifts and made lots of special memories. Santa brought me a Baby Beach Band. I made the rounds by visiting my Mommy's family in Tulsa and then coming back to Edmond to see my Daddy's family. My family got me lots of toys and clothes that will get me through the next few months as I grow so quickly. I fit into my 3-6 months clothes well (Mommy says a little too well!).

I also thought I would let you know how my 4 month checkup went. I now weigh 15 lbs. (80 percentile) and am 26 3/8in. long (98 percentile). I am proudly taking after my parents in length! The doctor told my mommy to enjoy the next two months because it will be the best that parenting will ever get! He said it's a great couple of months because I am not mobile yet and because I will be generally happy all the time as my parents play with me, feed me, and enjoy helping me learn. I found out that I will probably not be getting any solid foods until I am six months old, but that's okay, I stay pretty content with my milk--especially now that I have the faster flowing bottles!

Daddy and Mommy are working on getting me on a better sleeping schedule now. I used to stay up kinda late, but now I'm getting pretty good at going to bed around 8:30. I am enjoying it because we have also started a bedtime routine which includes things like lotion, books, and brushing my tooth!

Well, I better go since it is almost my bedtime, but as a bonus, recently Mommy and Daddy decided to see what I would look like if I had Mommy's long hair. Check out the picture below to see the results!

Til next time,

Yay! Four Months old!

2007-12-20T21:39:00.000-06:00

Hello everyone!

I just wanted to drop a quick note. Today, I turned four months old! To celebrate this special occasion, Mommy had a big photoshoot with me. I had a lot of fun taking pictures. Make sure you check out our family photos link if you want to see all of them.

Tonight I also had a special time because we took a drive around town to look at Christmas lights. I slept through most of the drive, but I still had a lot of fun. When we got back from looking at lights, we had our first family Christmas gift opening! I was so excited and got some new fun toys! Tomorrow we are going to Tulsa for the weekend to celebrate Christmas with Mommy's family. Hopefully I will come back with lots of stories!

Until then,

Bad Blogger!

2007-12-17T22:02:00.000-06:00

Dear Friends & Family,

I am SO sorry about my lack of blogging. I am sure you all understand what the Holidays can do to my already busy schedule. I hope to get caught up with this post, so please bear with me as it will be a little lengthy.

Thanksgiving

Well, this is where I left off. I thoroughly enjoyed my very first Thanksgiving by spending it with family in Tulsa. We left home Wednesday night and stayed with Grandpa Mike and Grandma Lynn until Sunday. When we came back, we also got to spend some time with Daddy's family. While we were in Tulsa, I got to spend lots of time with my Aunts and Uncles as well as Great Grandma's and Grandpa. I had a great time! Check out a couple of pictures we took while we were there and read what happened to me next after the pictures.

The Tooth!

Yes, thats right, at age 3 1/2 months, I decided to cut my very first tooth! Mommy and Daddy thought something was a little strange when I started acting a little fussier than usual (Mommy tells everyone that I'm a good baby). Well, to top it all off, I also got my first cold soon after I began cutting my tooth. Even with all of that, I tried to be as good as possible and I think you will be happy to know that the tooth is not bothering me much anymore. I am now attempting to test my tooth on as many things as possible (including my own fingers as well as Mommy and Daddy's fingers).

Ice Storm

Just after I began cutting my tooth and right in the middle of my cold, the weather decided to turn bad. On Sunday, we had freezing rain all day and we all stayed inside and tried to keep warm. Very early on Monday morning, Mommy woke me up. Our power had gone out and the house was starting to get cold! We packed up as much as we could and drove over to Grandpa Fred and Grandma Judy's house where there was still electricity. They were waiting for us to arrive and Grandma Judy had even made some breakfast for us! Just after we started to get settled in at their house, something bad happened - you guessed it, their power went out too! Luckily, they had a fireplace at their house and so we spent the next 11 hours in front of the fire trying to keep warm. We ended up staying with Grandma and Grandpa for three days. In the end, we were able to return home on Wednesday. It was a tough few days but everyone survived it including Pete the dog and several fish from our aquarium that lived in grandma Judy's tank for a few days. Well, I guess I will go for now - I really hope I can blog again very soon. Stay tuned for more exciting news and I hope you enjoy these pictures and this video.

Vacation!

2007-11-18T21:42:00.000-06:00

Hello everyone, fear not, I have returned. You may recall that in the last episode of "Days of Esther's life", I was telling you that I was expecting another exciting week. Well, last week was very exciting! In fact, I have now been to two states besides my home state of Oklahoma (which celebrated its centennial last week - Happy Birthday Oklahoma!). We took a five day vacation in which we drove almost 700 miles. We spent the first day drive to Arkansas, and then we drove on the beautiful Talimena drive! Unfortunately, I have to take Mom & Dad's word for it being beautiful, as I decided to sleep during the entire drive - but they did take pictures!

After we took the drive, we went to Robber's Cave. I didn't see any robbers, but I did get kind of upset from being carried up and down a mountain! I was then lucky enough to go visit Lake Eufaula for the first time. From the way that mom and dad talked, I think I will be going back there a lot! Finally, we went to Tulsa and spent time with family there. Grandpa Gene and Grandma Al both fed me a bottle when I visited them, it was so nice!

I also wanted to let you know that I now own a small piece of the internet. Thats right, I now have my own domain name! From now on, if you want to read my blog, all you need to do is go to http://www.esthersue.net and you will be right back here at my blog!

Well, I better go for now, I have another exciting week coming up - Tuesday I turn 3 months old and Thursday is my very first Thanksgiving! Have a good week!

Doctor Visit and Halloween

2007-11-02T19:26:00.000-05:00

Hello Everybody!

This has been a big week for me. On Tuesday, I went to see my doctor. He checked me out and called me a "big kid". The nurse measured me and found that I was 12 lbs 8 oz (90 percentile), 24 1/4" long (97 percentile), and my head was 16 1/2" (98 percentile). Mommy and Daddy say that my head is so big to hold my over-sized brain. After the doctor checked me out, he left us and we waiting in the exam room for a few minutes. I was wondering what the deal was because Mommy still had me wearing only a diaper. A few minutes later, the nurse came in, and that is when everything went downhill! First of all, the nurse gave me something to drink that didn't taste anything like milk. I was trying to recover from drinking that stuff when she poked three LONG sharp things into my leg! It was then that I found out what shots were, and that I don't like them! I only cried for a few seconds, but those shots made me feel a little icky for the rest of the day. It is good to have that doctor's visit behind me; I don't have to go again for two more months - whew!

On Wednesday, I got a surprise visit - Grandpa Mike and Grandma Lyn came to see me! I got to spend all afternoon and evening with them. Wednesday night, Mommy and Daddy dressed me up for my first Halloween as a penguin. I really liked my costume - it was both cute and very warm! We went to Edmond to see Grandpa Fred and Grandma Judy, then we went to go see some of my friends at church.

It has been a very memorable week for me; actually, I hear that next week may be very special, too! Stay tuned...

2 Months!

2007-10-20T23:54:00.000-05:00

Today I am two months old. Its hard to believe that only two months ago, I made my entrance into the world. I am celebrating my birthday with my first major trip out of town. This weekend, I have gone with Mommy and Grandma Lyn to Abilene to see Uncle Jace & Aunt Randy! It is so nice to see my family!

On Thursday, Mommy & Daddy took me to a pumpkin patch to take pictures! It was fun, but the wind was kind of cold! Luckily, everyone was happy to hold me so that I wouldn't get too cold.

I continue to get bigger all the time. In a little over a week, I am going to go to the doctor so that we can see exactly how big I have gotten. I am also going to get shots - I'm not sure what that means, but I'm sure that I'll enjoy them...right? Well, I better go for now. I am going to leave you with a few pictures, including one that was taken two months ago, so you can see how big I have gotten.

Love,

New Family

2007-10-11T21:35:00.000-05:00

Hello Everybody!

It has been a busy time since I last blogged. First of all, I visited Mommy and Daddy's Tae Kwon Do class with them. Their friends at class were very glad to see me. Also, last week, Mommy was very curious about how much I weighed, so she took me to the doctor's office. The last time I was weighed, I was 7 pounds 14 ounces (on August 30th); this time, I was 10 pounds 15 ounces! I have been gaining almost an ounce a day since I was born.

I have also begun to watch my toys when they are hanging in front of me, or when someone moves them in front of me. I love all my toys and all of the people who were so nice to give them to me!

The biggest news of all this week is that I learned that I will be getting a cousin in a few months that is a girl, just like me! I also learned that my Mommy's cousin is going to have a baby that is a boy! I am going to have so much fun when they get here - there are so many responsibilities in being the "oldest cousin".

Well, I am going to go for now, but hopefully I will have some new pictures for you next time.

Until then,

Happy Birthday Grandma!

2007-10-02T20:53:00.000-05:00

I want to apologize to all my faithful readers for not keeping my blog up-to-date! I haven't just been laying around though (ok, well, I have been laying around, but what do you expect a six week old baby to do?). A couple of weekends ago, I took my first long trip in the car. We went to Tulsa for Uncle Jeff's birthday! I also got to meet several more people from my family that day for the first time. I enjoyed my time there very much, especially since so many people want to hold me.

Last week, I went with Mommy to visit the place she used to work. It was a really special day - Mommy put shoes on me for the first time and I didn't fuss one bit! After visiting Mommy's friends, we went to go visit Daddy at work.

Mommy and Daddy seem impressed that I do something new almost every day. I am still sleeping five hours in a row at night. I also like to smile more and more everyday. Sometimes, when Mommy puts me in my swing, I like to lay there and make noises, just to hear myself!

Well, I better go for now, but I wanted to be sure and wish my Grandma Lyn a happy birthday! I will leave you with a picture that we took in Tulsa of me, Mommy, Grandma Lyn, and Grandma Sue, along with a few other recent pictures.

Until next time,

One Month Old!

2007-09-20T21:55:00.000-05:00

Well, it hardly seems like its been that long, but today I turned one month old! Recently, I have begun smiling a lot more (Mom thinks she saw me smile at her) and I have started making several new noises. This week, I started sleeping in my crib and I even let Mom get five hours of sleep in a row on two different nights!

Today, Grandma Judy came to babysit me while Mom went out on some errands. After that, Mom and Dad did a special photoshoot with me. I hope you enjoy my one month pictures!

Love,

Rock & Roll!

2007-09-15T11:18:00.000-05:00

Yesterday, Grandma Lyn, Grandpa Mike, Grandma Al, and Grandpa Gene came to visit me. I also got to meet Uncle Jace and Aunt Randy for the very first time. As you can see in the video below, I also got to learn about something called Rock & Roll while Uncle Jace held me. I got so excited that I didn't sleep very well last night - I hope you enjoy! (Don't forget to click on the video and go to youtube to rate my video and leave comments!)

Babysitter

2007-09-11T22:21:00.000-05:00

I wanted to let you all know that this past week I had my first "official" babysitter - it was Grandpa Mike! He watched me while Mom and Grandma Lyn went out shopping on Saturday. I'm excited because on Thursday, Grandma Lyn and Grandpa Mike are going to babysit me again while Mom and Dad go to the fair.

On Saturday, Mom and Dad got me all dressed up to cheer on the cowboys! I was really excited that Dad got to go to the game and watch them win, even though I was fast asleep by the time he got home.

Well, its time for me to go again, but I wanted to remind everyone that they can always see more pictures of me by clicking on the link on the right side that says "Our Family's Photos".

Goodnight everybody!

Good Times

2007-09-06T22:29:00.000-05:00

Wow, I've had lots of excitement in the last few days! Where do I begin... Well, I've been looking forward to telling you about what Daddy has been doing for me this week. He planted a tree in the front yard for me!! We went last Saturday to the nursery and picked out an Oklahoma Redbud to put in the front yard. Mommy and Daddy said they wanted to plant a tree at the time of my birth. I look forward to watching it grow, knowing it was planted in celebration of me. It will always be special, especially when we can drive by this house years from now and know my Daddy planted the tree just for me.

The other thing Daddy did this week was feed me my first bottle! It was so great. He and I have been looking forward to this time because I'm finally old enough to try the bottle. I liked the bottle a lot! He put it in my mouth and said I did a great job drinking it. I drank it really fast! He got to burp me and everything. It will be a fun memory for me and him.

I also wanted to mention that I met my cousin Fischer this week! I like him a lot, and I think he likes me even more! He wanted to hold me and he wanted to help do things for me. I think he's a good helper and he is good at being gentle with me, too. He came with my Uncle Franklin and Aunt Tracy. We did a lot of fun things with them, including visiting the new place called Pops on Route 66. I am enjoying getting to know all of my family members and I am glad to have such a wonderful, loving family.

First Doctor's Visit

2007-08-30T09:43:00.000-05:00

I just got home from seeing my doctor. I wish I could say it was all fun, but I can't...I'll just say it went pretty well. :) The best part was when he would give me back to Mommy so she could hold my bare body close and warm me back up! My doctor is very nice and my parents like him a lot. He checked me all over and, without too many tears, I got a good report. Yea!!! He said it is very good that I have already gained back my birth weight. I am now 7lbs. 14oz. I'm considering a diet, but that milk is so good...

While I'm here I wanted to mention a couple of firsts I've had since I last wrote. I got in my crib for a nap a couple of days ago and loved it! I slept sooo good! It is very spacious as you can see in the picture. :) I also tried out my swing. Is so soothing to me, especially when Daddy plays my Jack Johnson music for me to listen to. I fall asleep in it easily, but I don't mind. I fall asleep easily just about everywhere. I'll take that as a good sign that I am staying very comfortable and I love being with my parents!

One Week Old!

2007-08-27T13:40:00.000-05:00

Today, I turned one week old. I celebrated by eating and sleeping (surprise!). Since I was born, Miss Colorado was crowned as Miss Teen USA 2007, most Oklahoma children have returned to school, and Jen was FINALLY kicked off of big brother. WOW, what a busy week!

Today, Grandma Al and Connecticut cousins Natalie and Haylie are coming to visit me - I can't wait! Well, its time for, you guessed it, yet another nap, so I'll talk to you later!

I'm finally here!

2007-08-26T20:36:00.000-05:00

My name is Esther Sue and I arrived on Monday, August 20th, at 3:35 am! I am really healthy and pretty much everyone seems to think that I am cute too! Mommy and Daddy brought me home 2 days after I was born and since then things have been going great. Since we arrived home, I have enjoyed sleeping in my bassinet (thanks Grandma Al!), eating whenever I can, and being held by whoever wants to hold me (I've had lots of visitors).

Today was my first time to leave the house since arriving. It was a special day because today I went to Church for the first time. I got to go up in front of all the people and I even got my own Bible! After Church, I went with my parents, Uncle Jeff, Aunt Jamie, and all four of my grandparents to some place called Cracker Barrel. It was really loud, but I managed to tune it all out and go to sleep. After we left Cracker Barrel, I went back home for some quality time with the fam.

I've used seven diapers today, which really seems to impress my Mommy for some reason - I bet she can't wait until I do ten or twelve in a day! It's been a really busy day, but I need to go for now because it's time for my bath. I hope to everyone updated because I know you love to hear what's going on with me.

Until next time,