Other pictures from the weekend

Due to formatting issues, I can't type the info beside the picutre, so I will have to explain them here, and then have you scroll down to see the pictures...

1. First Plane ride! Anna Kate did SO GOOD!!! Not a peep! She got fussy towards the end of the flight, only because she needed a new diaper :). She is a terrific traveler!

2. Anna Kate meets her Grandpa Sonny, Mike's dad for the first time.

3. & 4. We saw Memaw, Mike's grandmother, while we were so close to Memphis. Memaw had all grandsons, and now all of her grandchildren have been girls!

5, 6, & 7. UncleRyan, Suzanna's brother, tries his hand at feeding Anna Kate. So far she likes it :).

Picture 8: Aunt Maureen sneeks Anna Kate away for a photo shoot in the swing.

Child of God

Pictures of Anna Kate's Baptism. Sweet Day. Wonderful to be surrounded by family members....

A special note about Anna Kate's baptism: Her momma Suzanna was baptized on the same day some thirty-something years ago. Daniel is holding the candle that was used at my baptism..and it was lit again for Anna Kate. We did start a new tradition, with Anna Kate being the first grandchild on the maternal side. A new christening gown and baptismal shell were introduced into the family. Recently, after almost 100 years and too many people to count, the Suzanna's paternal christening gown was retired, so we had to find a special dress to start this new tradition. Suzanna's mom found just the perfect beautiful handmade dress and bonnet for the occasion. This is the first of many christenings in this dress!

Fr. Mike, Anna Kate and her parents and Godparents. Fr. Mike married Mike & Suzanna 10 years ago this year, as well as her sister Maureen and her husband. Fr. Mike is a very special part of the family....


Anna Kate, her parents & Godparents Maureen (Suzanna's sister) and Daniel (Mike's brother)

What a handsome crew! Almost 30 family members joined us for this special occasion. Anna Kate's grandparents, aunts, uncles, and extended family came to share in her special day!

Baptism Pictures

Pictures from Lunch

Daniel welcoming everybody to lunch :).....

Anna Kate's beautiful cake. It was so good nothing was left after lunch was over with!

Ellie, my cousin's 4 year old daughter. She is so cute! Her brother Ben celebrated his second birthday later that afternoon with a Superman theme. It was a big day for this lil guy.....

Anna Kate and her Grandpa Sonny and Lori, Mike's dad and stepmom

Mike's brother Daniel and his sweet bride Tori. They got married last July.

Happy Baptism Day, Anna Kate!

It was an absolutely beautiful day today for Anna Kate's baptism! We flew back to Mississippi to have her baptized by Fr. Mike. We wanted the day to be about family (Isn't that what baptism is all about? Being welcomed in the the Family of God!), so we decided to have it in Mississippi, so as many family members could come would be able to attend. Otherwise it would be Mike, Anna Kate, her Godparents and me. That is not nearly as exciting as 30 family members celebrating! Shown are pictures of from the weekend.

Following the ceremony, lunch was served at my parents' home. It was so pretty, most of us had lunch outside on the porch. More pictures will follow...I can only post so many pictures in one blog :).


Getting ready...Aunt Tori was so kind to help us out....
Momma, Anna Kate and her Godmother (and my sister!) Aunt Maureen

Anna Kate looked SO BEAUTIFUL in her white christening gown. There was a matching bonnet with the dress. She was so sweet....

Happy 3rd Birthday Larrison!

Anna Kate wants to wish her cousin Larrison a happy 3rd birthday! We hope you have a wonderful day!

So many things, so little time

I was hoping to post 2-3 times a week, but not quite living up to my self imposed goal. The past few weeks have blown by so quickly. I'll fill ya in where we are:

• At 5.5 weeks, Anna Kate had 7 hours in between the late night feeding and the early morning one. But she wasn't necessarily sleeping through the night. Now....we are now on Day 6 of ALL NIGHT SLEEPING!! Woo hoo!! She goes down after her 10pm feeding and sleeps until 5.30-6am.
• Anna Kate would wake around 2-3am, and go right back to sleep as long as she had her paci. So how did she overcome this to sleep all night? She found her thumb! Yes, Anna Kate is a thumbsucker. She looks so cute munching on her hand. She only sucks her thumb at night, while sleeping or falling asleep. I have to post a picture...
• Last Wednesday was our first Gymboree play class. A new location opened near by and we had a ball! It's a developmental class for infants and toddlers, based on their age, so Anna Kate's class is full of newborns to six months and their mamas. Ironically, all the mamas are first timers, so it's been fun for both me as well. I'll make sure I have a camera next time we go!
• She loves to blow bubbles. When we can't get a smile to show, we can definitely get some bubbles! Along with bubbles comes the drool. OMG! I am glad we have plenty of bibs!
• She is officially into Size 2 diapers...like you really wanted to know that! She's 13 plus pounds now.

That's about it for right now. Mike took some pictures, but need to have them downloaded. We might be slow, but we will eventually post them!

Happy Easter! Happy Spring!

The Easter Bunny found his way to our house last night. Actually I think I heard him this morning after Mike left for early mass. Our day wasn't as we planned, as it's is down right FRIGID here in Central Florida! We'd planned to go to 8am mass, then head to Disney for lunch and pictures. Mother Nature had something else it mind. It was just too cold to get Anna Kate outside, so we adjusted our plans. Mike ended up going to the early mass, then I went to 10:30 mass. It's not what you really want to do--go to church separately especially on Easter--but it's not worth the risk of taking her out and getting sick. So you do what you have to do.

We also decided to have lunch here at the house, instead of Disney. Mike promised to take me on Mother's Day next month up there for lunch, so I don't mind the wait. Guess you could say we are having an non-traditional Easter lunch: Steak. No arguments from the peanut gallery! Mike fired up the grill and threw 'em on! Can you smell them? It goes along with our non-traditional Christmas dinner we had back in December. Since it's just the two of us eating, it's hard to do a big meal with all the trimmings and all the left overs. When Anna Kate is older, we'll definitely do the 'traditional' meal thing. Until then, Mike and I will enjoy a good steak.

The day has finally warmed up to a decent temperature, so we might take a Sunday drive around town a bit later. We have all enjoyed the quietness and relaxation the day has offered.

As I mentioned the Easter Bunny found our home and dropped off a few goodies. Anna Kate's basket came from Old Tyme Commissary, the same place where my mom got my easter basket many years ago. The baskets have changed a bit, but still every bit as cute and colorful. Anna Kate got some Easter books, the DVD Happy Feet and a a few goodies from her maternal grandparents. Mike got a Scout book he'd be asking for. As far as mama, a few sweet goodies and new outfit for Easter. By the time pictures were taken, the outfit had already been worn and in the hamper to be cleaned. Do you really want to see a wadded up blouse and skirt?

Anna Kate is looking forward to her first big trip--on an airplane--in 11 days. We all are excited about our trip to Jackson for her baptism. I sure hope it's warmer in Jackson in 1.5 weeks than it is right now!!

Happy Two Months Old!

Hard to believe that my lil Anna Kate is two months old already! She's so long--She's grown 4 inches in only 2 months! Good grief! She's cooing and gurgles regularly and recently found out how to make bubbles. Her eyelashes are also becoming more noticable...beautiful blue eyes and dark lashes! What a cutie!

My Lil Chunky Monkey...

Well, the shots were not the fun part of today, but at least we are down the first series. She had a total of eight immunizations given in three shots and one oral solution. NOT FUN. She gave me this look like "what the heck was that" then the most blood curling scream I have *ever* heard from this child when she got poked. OMG! Her sweet lil face turned blood red really fast.

I can honestly say that they are not worried that Anna Kate isn't growing. She still is in the 97% of all infants her age for both height and weight. She earned that rank when she was born and has maintained since then. My lil chunky monkey is a whooping 12 lbs 14 oz and almost 25 inches long! Yes, you read that correctly! They said she is the size of an average 4 month old. I could have told you that there is NOTHING average about MY baby!!

Obviously she has taken a liking to Daddy's side of the family and growin' like a weed (Actually, I asked today if her growth is a sign of things to come, and the doctor said no...darn!) Nonetheless, my (not so) lil Anna Kate has officially graduated from the 3 months clothes to the 6 months. This is her last batch of Size 1 Pampers...Anna Kate will move up to Size 2 next time!

At least we have a two month vacation from the doctor. We go back the first of June for Round 2 shots!

In the eyes of a child....

I don't recall who sent this to me, but I thought it was so sweet.

No April Foolin' Here!

This afternoon we got the great news that Grandpa Sonny and Lori (Mike's parents) are coming to see Anna Kate and Disney World either at the end of May or first of June. We are SO EXCITED to have them come see us here in Florida! Although we will see them in 2 weeks for Anna Kate's baptism, we are *very much* looking forward to having some family come see us! They are finalizing their travel plans and should know in the next lil bit when they are coming. It will be a very special time ~ Anna Kate's first visit to Disney will be with her grandparents :). That will definitely be a Kodak moment!