Monday, May 25, 2009

Giraffe Pictures for Will, Lynn and Walter

Callie's cousin Will loves giraffes and he loved looking at all Callie's "guys" in her crib. At one point during his visit, he asked me if he could hold her toy giraffe. That giraffe was the very first baby present I received (from Lynn and Walter) and it was a very emotional gift for me. It made it even more real that I was finally going to have a baby. When I was sick or sore because of the pregnancy, holding this little giraffe made me feel better and reminded me of what I had to look forward to. Now I see this toy as a symbol of God's promise that he has good things in store for us, tender miracles in soft and cute forms. Here are pictures of Callie in her giraffe outfit with her special toy. Thanks again Lynn and Walter!


(notice the leaf on her bottom)






not the best expression but I love how she has her hand on his little ears!

Saturday, May 23, 2009

My Funny Daddy!

Yesterday morning, I got out of the shower and heard all kinds of silly noises coming from Matt. He and Callie were having a great time making faces and motor mouth sounds. Callie was completely absorbed and was smiling about as big as we have seen so far. She is just starting to smile as a response to something or someone. I can't wait until she is laughing. Here are some Daddy-love pictures.






Thursday, May 21, 2009

Six Weeks!!!

Yesterday marked six weeks of out of womb experiences for Callie. I can't believe it has been six weeks already. And at the same time, she looks so big to me, I feel like it has been six months. She has grown so much and she is learning many new things daily. We have weighed her on our scales (with us holding her) and she seems to be 11 lbs already. Her 0-3 clothes are fitting very well now and she fits in size 2 diapers. I hope she doesn't grow too fast because Becky, Mom and I have all bought her and Brighton lots of matching outfits for our family time in July. We didn't count on Callie being such a chunk! Besides growing, Callie spends less time sleeping now and more time flailing about discovering things with her hands. One night, she discovered her left ear and pulled it so hard that she made the most adorable face while she tried to figure out who was doing that to her and why they wouldn't stop. And I am constantly wrestling those hands away from her pacifier because she loves to grip it and fling it. Some of Callie's favorite things right now are Mommy and Daddy, ribbon, looking out bright windows, "I've Been Working on the Railroad" and "He's Got the Whole World in His Hands" and riding around on my chest in the baby Bjorn. Her dislikes include being held while someone is talking on the phone or typing on the computer (which is why I haven't blogged in a week!), getting her diaper changed, pajamas that take too long to button and the blue booger snatcher. Her sleeping habits are improving. I have seen a huge difference this week. She now goes to bed between nine and ten and sleeps through the night with only two fairly quick feedings. She sleeps until seven or eight in the morning. Hopefully this will last more than these few days because I am thoroughly enjoying the predictability and extra sleep. I have been able to paint this week and soon need to start working out and learning new routines for jazzercise. But I am trying to take it a little at a time and not stress or create unrealistic agendas. I am completely content to hold Callie and sing "Fee Fie Fiddly-I-O" as much as she wants me to. And I am trusting that God will give me the time I need to do the things I need to do to make extra money for us.

Here is a picture of Callie's first home bath when she was just three days old.


Now, here is Callie at six weeks. (Her acne is clearing up, even though it doesn't look like it in these pictures).



Her hair is not as red as it appears in these pictures, either. And here is a little of what the boys are up to--squirrel watching (when they aren't babysitting their sister, of course!)

Wednesday, May 13, 2009

Sister Reunion!


Becky, Jon, Will and Brighton arrived Sunday afternoon for a three day visit. It was the first time Becky and I had seen each other in five months and her first time to meet Callie. It was a very busy and exciting three days! Sunday was full of family and friends. Steve, Dreama and Michelle came over to eat with us and to see Becky & co. and meet Brighton. Mom and Dad were there, so I got to spend Mother's day with both my mom and mom-in-law. And later that day, Rebekah, Griff, Charlotte and Norah came over. It was rainy on Monday so we spent the day at the aquarium and then went to Abuelos for dinner. Scott and Michelle joined us there. Then, on Tuesday, we met at Panera for breakfast then drove to the ocean front to let Will play on the beach playground and to walk on the boardwalk. Everyone left Tuesday evening after eating NC-stlye BBQ (a Taylor obsession). I was very sad to see the visit end. I have been looking forward to it for so many months. But at least I know we will all be together again in July. That isn't that far away. The next four posts include some of the highlights from the last three days.

My First Mother's Day!!!

I have waited four years to celebrate Mother's Day and it was a perfect day! I got to spend it with so many of my favorite people! We ate, played with bubbles, talked a lot and then ate again. Thank you to Mom, Dreama and Michelle for helping out so much in the kitchen. And to Mom and Dad for helping us get the yard ready for company.



SHARING!




Will and his new girlfriend, Charlotte (3 yrs.)




The Park

On Sunday evening, the Taylor/Spiers/Schumacher clan all walked to our neighborhood park. I don't have pictures of Will going down the twisty slide at warp speed, flying off the end, landing in the mulch on his back, coughing out a mouthful of dirt and then running to do it over again. But here are some other pics of the kids enjoying themselves.




This is Callie's idea of a good time!




Matt taught Will about honeysuckle.


Brighton + Callie = BFF's

Becky and I are determined that no matter where we live, our girls will be close friends. This will be especially important if neither of our girls get a sister. If you are fortunate enough to have a sister then you know that sisters are the ultimate best friends. But cousins can be a close second!




Meeting for the first time!



I think things will go better between them once Brighton is through teething!


The Stroller Man!

Dad always volunteers to push and guard the babies in the strollers. Men always want to be behind the wheel (or wheels). And if you visit the 9th street parking garage at the ocean front, you will notice bright yellow stroller tracks, followed by shoe prints, on the second level. I won't mention names, but SOMEBODY pushed Callie's stroller through fresh parking line paint!


Friday, May 8, 2009

Callie Mae is One Month Today!!!

Today is Callie Mae's one month birthday. I can't believe it has been a month already! She has changed so much in one month. She is a bit chunkier and she is definitely more alert. In the last few days she has taken up staring at me for long periods of time. Matt gets a little frustrated because he tries to get her to look at him instead but she only has eyes for mommy at certain times. I am fine with that! She adores Daddy too and enjoys staring at him until she hears Mommy's voice and knows the milk truck is coming! My mom has been here all week and we have had a great time doing things around the house, shopping and, of course, baby cuddling. We were out shopping for quite a while on Wednesday and Callie was a trooper. She is a born shopper like her mommy. Too bad for Daddy!



One month photo shoot! Look at that belly!



Doing a little diaper dance.


Workin' it for Nana!


I have quite a few babies to rock, sometimes all at once!

Wednesday, May 6, 2009


Pa got to see his baby again!


Callie and Great, great-aunt Margaret

Nana and Callie, ready for the tornado!

Nana and the Tornado

Sunday we went to Pa's house in Carson (near Petersburg) to visit with family. Callie got to meet her Great-Aunt Lynn, Great-Uncle Walter and Great, Great-Aunt Margaret. It was a nice visit and Callie was very good in the car, sleeping both ways. On Monday, Callie and I drove to Suffolk to meet Mom and Dad and we brought Mom back with us for the week. Becky and her family get on a plane tonight to fly to VA and spend time with Jon's family first, then drive down to my house for three days with us. We are all looking forward to it. It will be a great first Mother's Day for me. I will get to see my sister for the first time in 2009 and squeeze my niece and nephew.

We had one exciting event on Monday night. We turned on the TV for our weekly House addiction and there was a weather alert on showing a tornado warning for our neighborhood at that very moment. Matt didn't seem too worried but Mom and I went into action. I gathered all the cats and started throwing them in the bathroom and Mom grabbed Callie and got into the bathtub with her. Callie, Mommy, Nana and the three furry fat brothers all sat in the bathroom waiting to hear the telltale locomotive sound while Daddy (weirdo) wandered around outside hoping to see it. It was a false alarm and the system passed quickly so we all got out of the bathroom and went back to our show. But not before taking some pictures!

Saturday, May 2, 2009

What Callie and the boys have been up to.


This week we have been working on our daytime schedule. Everything works great until late afternoon and evening. She goes down fairly easily for her afternoon nap and then, no matter what we try, she just doesn't want to wake up until bedtime! We just hang out with her in the family room watching TV and eating dinner while she sleeps soundly. Once it is time for bed, she wakes up and gets fussy.


We have also been watching our adorable baby's face turn all bumpy with baby acne. Hopefully this will pass soon!

Not much has been said about the boys lately, but they are settling in and back to their normal antics. They really like being near her and try to share in snuggle time. They also make a b-line for us if they notice a lap is empty. Poe has enjoyed exploring the new items in the house like her toy bins in the family room.


Ollie is usually under her crib when I put her down to sleep. I have to keep a thing of cat treats in our bedroom to shake to remove him or Chester so that I can close the door. Chester is usually in her crib if the nursery door has been left open, so I sometimes have to pull two cats out of there before I can put her down.


Poe has to be a part of all baby events, like bath time! Ollie is always nearby too, but that is just to jump in the tub afterwards to beg for water.


I have to keep a pillow in the bouncy seat to keep Chester and Poe from taking naps in it. They look so cute in it but I don't want it to get all hairy!


Overall, everyone is getting along great. The boys stay by her side and are proving to be great "baby sitters".

I am loving my new job and am trying to remain joyful in the middle of the night when I am rocking the wiggly, gassy girl back to sleep. I thank God for her pretty much every hour on the hour! She is definitely a little miracle!

The next week and a half are going to be very exciting. We are driving to Carson (Petersburg) tomorrow to see Pa and to introduce Callie to Matt's aunt Lynn and uncle Walter and his Great-Aunt Margaret. Then, I am driving to Suffolk to meet Mom and Dad at a McDonald's to pick up Mom for the week. I already have quite a list of things I want to do while she is here, some fun things, some work! Dad comes back on Saturday and then on Sunday, Mother's Day, Becky, Jon and the kids arrive in Va Beach and will be visiting with us until Tuesday evening. They have not met Callie yet and Matt hasn't met Brighton. So there should be lots of cute cousin pictures posted soon!