Some Funny and Sunny Pictures

I know that I post mainly pictures of Abby and don't have much to write about. But the truth is, Abby is pretty much my life (have I mentioned how OVERJOYED I am not to be grading research papers at the moment?!) so until something crazy-exciting happens around here that requires typing about--like I rescue someone from a burning building or a meteorite crashes on our front lawn--you'll just have to settle for more pictures of Abby. :)

I couldn't help but capture her getting toys out of the cabinet. (I finally realized that I was NOT going to win the Battle of Don't-Open-The-Cabinet-of-Important-Stuff, so I got SMART--or just caved in- and switched out videos for toys! Now it's 100% Abby's cabinet.)

I got Abby out of her clothes to try on a new dress, but she took off before I could get it on her. How cute is a baby wearing nothing but diapers and shoes?! Only a baby could pull that off, right?? She carries that darn monkey around all the time. I brought it back from Longview. Winnie's not too excited about it, as that tail's been slung in her face quite a bit recently.
The two good looking people I am lucky enough to call my family.
She LOVES that silly worm. Matt found it between the cushions, and it was a reunion of magnificent proportions!
This is the new dress we bought at Target today. I can spend WAY too much money there. Can I get an Amen?? Anyone? Anyone?
I LOVE window shots. Can you tell?

I hope your day was as blessed as mine.

My Little Refriger-RAIDER

After we got back from Kroger, Abby decided to "help"me by attempting to unload what I just placed in the fridge. Luckily, her raid didn't go as planned. The chicken was just out of reach.

Here she is caught in the act.
It seemed that around month 8, I was getting so anxious to have Abby crawl. Friends warned us "Once they start, they don't stop." How true that statement is! I swear, I turn around for one second, and it seems Abby's in another room. Twice today she endeavored to put dog food in her mouth, nearly dropped Matt's "Perfect Pushup" contraption on her foot, pulled CDs off the shelf, almost pulled down the gate on the stairs, played with a battery charger, putting the wire in her mouth, chewed part of the box of Renu eyedrops while we shopped at Kroger, played with the blinds in the front window (which made me realize they need to be cleansed of dust once I viewed her hands afterward! Oops!), you get the idea.

She is an active little girl! But I wouldn't have it any other way. Seriously. I need to be kept on my toes. I don't know how she has all the energy she does. If I had half the energy she has, my bathrooms might actually be scrubbed clean right now. Ha. Luckily, because she plays hard, she naps hard, which is why I'm able to do this.

I truly love my little Sweet Pea!

A Long Time in Longview

Abbster and I spent all of last week in Longview, while Matt stayed busy in Dallas with lots of goings on for work. We had a great time on our trip, and I know Abby will be bored now that we're back home without being surrounded by grandparents, Great-Grandma Dorothy, Uncle Chris, and the sights and sounds of the grandparents' houses. Abby got to visit Nana at ol' PTJHS, Grammie at Kilgore College, Papa at Square D, and, of course, got rocked to sleep EVERY DAY (sorry other grandparents!) by Grandpa Van. We had a wonderful time.

Here's Abby with her dada before he left to go back to Dallas and work. :(
Abby liked Great-uncle Burt's motorcycle. Here's hoping she doesn't fall for a guy in leather riding one of these things in 18 years!
Great-Grandma Dorothy kept Abby entertained daily. They have the best time together.
Mom found one of my old tutus. Abby enjoyed admiring herself in the mirror.
Ah, shoelaces. I don't think my dad's laces ever stayed tied!
After a nap. Always happy. She must get that from her father. I, on the other hand, am a tad bit crankier once I wake up. Both Matt and Kathy can vouch for that! :)
Here's a sad attempt at pigtails. The hair needs to be a little longer. Ha.
Abby and her Grammie.
Flying high.

Monthly Pictures

Abby is 11 months old today!

New Pics

Abby is 11 months old today, and it took us THREE photo sessions before Abby finally sat still enough for me to capture just the right "11 month" picture! Matt and I tried--unsuccessfully--last night, so it was a miracle I got a good pic this afternoon all by myself! Hooray! Anyway, Matt has to Photoshop the sign in (believe me, it is impossible to take--the paper is just too alluring for her, so we don't even try anymore!) So, to tide you over until I can post it tonight, here are some recent pictures.




This girl chews on anything. Her crib is starting to show the wear and tear!
My cell phone is her favorite teether. I normally don't let her chew on it, but she looked too darn cute that I let her do it just so I could take her picture!
Seriously, this is her favorite thing to do: Pull out pretty much every book in the bookshelf.

There's Nothing Betta Than Spending Time with a Cappetta!

Last night we got together for dinner and "playdate" with our pals, The Cappettas, Jordan and Eric and their daughter Ellie, who is two weeks older than Abby. Eric and Jordan teach at Pearce, where I taught, and while we knew each other over the past few years, we didn't really become friends until it was discovered that we were pregnant at the same time. How great it was to have someone know exactly what I was going through at exactly the same time! And out of Abby's and Ellie's births came the birth of our friendship with Jordan and Eric. Ellie is absolutely precious, and we always have way too much fun when we get together with them. Here are some pictures from last night.

I was so glad I captured this. Here are the Two Peas In A Pod.

Notice Abby has the phone in her hand, and Ellie's got the ball. Also notice how Abby's eyeing that ball, and Ellie is eyeing Abby. I'm pretty sure they switched toys after this picture was taken. It's funny how babies don't want a certain toy until another baby is playing with it!
I love how they're sitting. So cute!

We took a stroll to a park in their neighborhood. Here's Jordan and Ellie sliding down the slide. Ellie loved it!
How predictable: Yet ANOTHER picture of Abby swinging. :) Ellie wasn't too fond of the swing, so that's why I don't have a picture of her swinging!
What's a trip to the park without a beautiful, well-trained Lab and some nice cold beer? That's how Matt and Eric roll!

Abby with her daddy. I need to start having Matt take my picture sometimes, huh?
Here's "The Look." I am scared to see how this develops over the next 18 years!
There's nothing like friends.
It was a beautiful, great Sunday! I hope you all had a wonderful weekend as well.

Mirror, Mirror

Here's Abbster chatting with the baby in the mirror.

Ethics 101

Today I encountered one of those darn ethical dilemmas that presents itself every once in a while. Abbster and I went to Target earlier this afternoon, and aside from spending way more than I should have (Jodi Picoult's new book was just released and they had a sale on shoes, so I had excuses!) and the checkout girl referring to Abby as a "he" (in her defense, Abby was dressed in orange and for some reason we registered for a navy blue cart cover), we had a pleasant outing. I love Target. I think we were there over an hour.

Anyhoo, we checked out, I signed away a couple of hours' worth of Matt's pay (ha), and we proceeded to our car. You moms know what it's like shopping with a baby. You have to load bags, put the baby in the car seat, get them secure, lock the doors, return the cart, dodge oncoming soccer moms in minivians...it is a calcluated event. Well, as I unloaded my last bag, I noticed the box of Mylicon I had put in the cart earlier. It was stuffed in the back corner. I thought that it must have fallen out of one of the bags, but something told me that that wasn't the case. So, I returned my cart, got in the car, cranked on the A/C and scoured the receipt. Wipes. Diced peaches. Eye Makeup Remover. But no Mylicon. I suddenly realized that I had, mistakenly, shoplifted! Truth be told, I contemplated what I should do. A huge part of me thought that mistakes happen. After all, I hadn't purposely forgotten to put the Mylicon on the conveyer belt. And it was only $6.49. Would Target really miss that? I mean, come on. Plus, I had already gotten Abby in her car seat, and going back in would require me to get her back out, go back in, and wait in line. I was already too hot, ready to get home, and she was already content in her seat. I asked myself was it really worth it?

And then I came to the answer. I have values. Morals. Ethics. It would have been very easy to just drive off and not think about it ever again. But the truth is, if I did that, every time I would put drops of Mylicon in Abby's bottle, I would feel so guilty. Seriously. I would. That's just how I'm programmed. I know a lot of people don't really get that, but that's just how my mind works. It wasn't worth saving $6.49 in order to have a guilty conscience for the rest of my life.

So, after contemplating the dilemma for a couple of minutes, I hightailed it to a closer parking space, unloaded Abby, Mylicon in hand, went back in, and waited in line again. The checkout lady was much appreciative of my action. And I have to admit that I felt better about myself too. Those few minutes it took for me to go in and pay my $6.71 were worth it to me. I drove home with a clear conscience and a happy baby in the backseat. I mean, that's what life is all about, right?

So, kudos to you, Mom and Dad! Your parenting really paid off. :) However, the next time I'm at McDonald's and they accidentally give me a large fry instead of a medium, I'm not saying a word. That would be like a little gift from heaven. That's what is referred to as Divine Intervention. And there's no reason to question that, right?? :)

Where's Winnie?

Here's a funny video of Abby playing Peek-A-Boo with Winnie tonight. My favorite part of the video is at the end when Abby can't find Winnie--notice the puzzled look on her face, and then the sudden excitement of spotting her away from the blanket! Oh, by the way, please excuse Abby's outfit, as today was laundry day! :)

Just Some Pictures

There's no news to report, just that Abby's new antibiotic quickly took effect, so she is 100% back to being healthy and happy and active. And boy is the girl on the go. Constantly. She never stops. One second she's here. The next second, she's there. She talks to anything, anybody. On a stroll around the neighborhood, she talks to the trees, people we pass, a parked car. At Hobby Lobby today, she talked to the floral arrangements, the wicker furniture, the seasonal decor. My mom assured me that this is strictly genetic, as she and I both talked non-stop as children. My great uncle even called me "Magpie." Well, just as I am Bettye Jr., Abby is definitely Cathy Jr. She is my little ball of energy. I just feel bad for Matt. One Cathy was enough to handle, but two?? Poor guy! :) One thing is for sure: Our house will never be silent with me and this little Sweet Pea around. :)
Uncle Chris came into town for a visit this past weekend, and with the weather as beautiful as it was, we took Abby to the park up the street. Here she is swinging.

And here she is eating the grass.
I think Uncle Chris loves Abby! :)
Abby's new favorite thing to get into is the keyboard at the desk. It is simply imperative that she punch as many keys as possible as many times a day as possible!
Smiley baby