Nine Months Old!!!!

Okay, so I am a little behind in updating the blog... I am pulling the "I-work-full-time-and-get-no-sleep" card! Emily has been nine months old for a couple of weeks and I am just now getting to her nine month check-in... we went to the doctor and she weighs right at 19 pounds which puts her between the 25th and 50th percentile for her weight. She is hitting all of the developmental milestones appropriately (and I can't help but brag by saying that the doctor said she is actually hitting all of the 12 month milestones, as well). She is an advanced little thing! Yay, Emily! She has begun to take her first steps and is standing independently, but she still very much prefers to crawl. She's an expert crawler and when she decides to go after something she takes a couple of steps and then gets impatient and drops to a crawl... it's quicker and more efficient! She is babbling and likes to say da-da-da-da-da-da repeatedly. She loves to play with my iPhone, my keys, and puts any and everything she can get her hands on into her mouth. Crazy girl!! Love her. She has two teeth and I think she is about to cut some more very soon. She is waving hello, goodbye, claps, loves to play hide and seek, and it's darn near impossible to put a diaper on her. Caroline is her favorite toy!!!

"Angels whisper to a man when he goes for a walk."

~ Raymond Inmon

Happy Halloween!!

It seems Halloween is a bad word these days. Gone are the carefree days of Charlie Brown and the Great Pumpkin and replacing them are paranoia and shame at the celebration of a great American tradition. Well, I am not going to stand by and witness the death of Halloween! So my family did it right! We dressed up in our costumes and went trick or treating... on Halloween evening itself and AFTER dark! We had a blast! Caroline has been enamored of Gone With the Wind lately (more on that later) and dressed as Katie Scarlett O'Hara Hamilton Kennedy Butler herself. There was never a more proud mother than me. That is definitely a chip off the old block right there!!! We were excited that Bean Bean was able to come with us... dressed as Jean-Pierre. Emily was supposed to be an adorable little pumpkin, but she was a little less enthused than the rest of us and was content, as usual, to be an observant bystander to all of the hoopla!

"Another dance and my reputation will be lost forever." 

~ Scarlett O'Hara

My Little Starlet

A quick post... and a sweet memory. Caroline's school hosted a Fall Feast fundraising event last week and we went to support Caroline's class as they sang as part of the evening's festivities. So, we are all sitting there listening to this little group of four year old children sing their hearts out and one voice soars over all the rest. It's Caroline! She is positioned right at the microphone and is hitting every word, every note perfectly! Methinks it is no coincidence that the teacher positioned her there.

"I sing like I feel." 

~ Ella Fitzgerald

School Days

Caroline has really taken to big-girl school. Mama not so much - it's hard keeping up with all of her activities and assignments! I don't remember being so scheduled as a four year old. Times have definitely changed, but we are all keeping up as best as we can. I was able to take a half-day off work so I could accompany Caroline and her class on a field trip to Southern Belle Farm last week. The weather was perfect and the children had a great time. They got to go on a hay ride, play in the pumpkin patch, and feed horses, goats, and chickens. There was also a cow milking demonstration (and that was an education for me!). At the end we got to watch a pig race. Those little porkers can scoot, buddy!!! I was grateful for the opportunity to be able to spend some time with my sweet girl. She is growing up so fast!

"Delicious autumn! My very soul is wedded to it, 

and if I were a bird I would fly about the earth 

seeking the successive autumns."
  ~ George Eliot

Autumn Leaves

Caroline and Josie Brown were born only eleven weeks apart. Jennifer and I were both really excited to have had girls at the same time and it's been so much fun to watch them grow up and become close friends - Josie calls Caroline "cousin Caroline." They don't see each other extremely often, but when they do get together it's as if they have not skipped a beat (hmmm... must be genetic! Jennifer and I have the same quality in our own friendship!). They played and played today. Around the end of the afternoon they decided to play in the leaves. I was able to get some really cute shots of them. I particularly love the one of Caroline raking leaves - princesses always wear their gowns... even when performing such menial tasks as yard work.

"Since you went away the days grow long
And soon I'll hear old winter's song
But I miss you most of all my darling
When autumn leaves start to fall."

~ Johnny Mercer

UGA Homecoming 2010

We went to Athens today to celebrate Homecoming - Emily was able to spend the day at Grandma's house, so Caroline had Mama and Daddy all to herself. We met up with the Browns and went to campus to watch the Dawg Walk, meet up with the Varnells, and enjoy campus for awhile. We didn't even try to get tickets to the game, since Caroline still, at this point, has more fun playing around during the game than actually paying attention, so we all headed back to Jennifer and Gardner's and grilled out and watched the game from there.

We got to the Dawg Walk early enough to grab a spot right at the fence and Caroline was able to watch the cheerleaders, Hairy Dawg, and entire football team up close. She had a blast! Since it was Homecoming, there were lots of alumni around to celebrate, and so we were able to make friends with the Class of '61 Cheerleading Squad and posed for some pictures with them. The weather was perfect and the Dawgs notched a huge victory over Vandy, beating them soundly 42-0.

"Some people think football is a matter of life and death. 

I assure you, it's much more serious than that."

~ Bill Shankly

Countdown to Baby Ella Ruth

Our dear friends, the Stanfords, are anxiously awaiting the arrival of their second daughter, Ella Ruth, in about a month. Last Sunday, we took Becky out for a little girl time. We had lunch at Italian Oven and then went for manicures and pedicures. It was nice to have a timeout from being a Mommy! I got to meet two of Becky's best friends, Heather and Jessica, and Leigh Ann Bain also was able to come. We are ready to meet Miss Ella Ruth any day now! Emily is ready for her BFF to arrive!

"My friends are my estate."

~ Emily Dickinson