Memorial Day Weekend

Happy Memorial Day! We had a fun relaxing weekend with Reese and our families.

Friday afternoon, I got off at Noon and ran some errands. Then Reese and I hung out at home.

Here is Reese's 3rd bunny picture at 4 months.

Bath time continues to be one our favorite activities! Reese is so cute in her hooded towel. She is about to outgrow this one!

On Saturday, Matt went to float the river with his buddies for Allen's bachelor party. We've got Allen's wedding in San Angelo in two weekends.

Grandma, Mom, Reese and me went shopping as usual and then had dinner at Mom and Sam's. Sam is doing well, just tired. His next chemo will be this coming Friday.

Reese got to take her first bath in Grandma Fredda's kitchen sink that evening. She enjoyed it!

I've never done this before!

We had fun taking silly pictures of her. This one is so cute...love those cheeks!

Look everybody, I can hold my toy!

On Sunday, we cleaned out Reese's closet and stored away a lot of her 3 month clothes. Her 3 month cotton pants are too short, so it's time to move to the next size. For most of her clothes she is wearing 3-6 months.

That evening we ran to Rice Village for some quick shopping and then headed to Mom's again for dinner. Sam grilled Salmon; it was delicious.

On Monday, we relaxed at home and then went to Pat and Joe's for a bbq and pool party. We never made it to the pool. I think Reese was too tired to have fun because she was in meltdown mode for most of the visit. We ended up leaving halfway through dinner because we couldn't calm her down. As soon as we got in the car she passed out.

Here are a few shots of her new Gymboree outfit Matt and I bought yesterday. Mr. Frugal limited our purchase to 1 outfit and 1 dress. Gotta save for Baby Reese's new house! :)

This is how she looks when she is talking to us or her toys.

I think the flash gives her the "deer in the headlights" look sometimes! Funny huh!

4 Month Appointment

Reese had her 4 month appointment today. Matt and I both went and then headed back to work afterwards.

Her stats were:

Weight 14 lbs 8 oz (75th percentile)
Length 26 inches (95th percentile)

She also got 3 vaccines; 2 shots and 1 oral. We opted to save 2 shots for next week, so Reese wouldn't have to take so many vaccines at once.

Her doctor was very happy with Reese's growth and progress, and we can start giving her cereal anytime between now and 6 months.

We have been up to A LOT lately!

A lot has happened since our last post! Reese is growing like a weed and is doing so much now. In addition, I started a new job at Hercules Offshore. It's a great opportunity and is literally 5 minutes from our house! I look forward to visiting Reese for lunch a couple times a week. We also get off at Noon on Friday, so I'll get to start my weekend early...more time with Reese!

Being back at work has taught me to cherish the time I have with her during the evenings and on weekends. It's not that I took our time together for granted when I was on leave, but now I want to hurry and get to work, so I can hurry and get home. I want to be there as much as possible.

She is such a sweet baby and we absolutely adore her. Words cannot express how much we love baby Reese. She gets lots of hugs and kisses from her Mommy and Daddy every day. I am always telling her how much I love her. She is precious!

Here is what she has been up to lately...

Reese loves to grab and hold objects now; thanks to Daddy teaching her and helping her when needed. When she wears a dress, she grabs it and puts it in her mouth.



On Friday, my college roommate, Jaime, her husband Milo and their daughters Caroline and Hayden stopped by for a visit on their way to Galveston. We tried to get the girls to stay still long enough for a quick snap shot! It was a coincidence they were all wearing pink and green.




Reese can almost sit in her bumbo by herself. We only put her in it for a minute because she could not hold her head up for long. We joke that she has her momma's big head. There are pictures of me when I was little and my head was huge! Don't worry Reese, we think it's the cutest head we have ever seen.

Saturday night, Matt and I went to celebrate Lance's graduation from Sam Houston. Maylee and I enjoyed a cocktail before dinner. Grandma watched Reese while we were out.

Reese, pretty in pink!

Out for a Sunday afternoon stroll.

Reese swinging for the first time! She really only sat in the swing, but she did great!

Grabbing more toys. Reese is also becoming more mobile. Yesterday morning, she had scooted from one side of the bed to the other during the night. Then in the afternoon, Grandma said that she was playing on her floor gym and turned sideways and to the edge of the mat by pushing off with her legs.

She is so close to rolling over too. She gets up on one side and looks around. It'll be any day now.

Believe it or not, Reese pooped in the tub, shocking I know! So we had to take the hammock out and this prompted us to try giving her a bath in her tub while she reclines. Reese was splashing and kicking her feet tonight (sounds like she found another playtime)!

Playing with her Daddy and smiling big for Mommy.

Reese is talking (well, ooing and aaing) and making lots of noise too. We'll make sounds by rolling our tongue and she'll mimic us. I've tried to capture it on video, but she is camera shy or just distracted by the recording light. Every time I get the camera out she gets quiet and just stares at it. I'll keep trying!

Last update...Reese has also laughed/giggled a few times. It's always so random and not when we are talking directly to her. The first time it happened, I was carrying her in the sling and looking in the mirror. She saw herself and giggled. I can't wait until she starts giving us big belly laughs!

Evening walks...

We have started taking Reese on evening walks around the neighborhood. I'll carry her in the sling or Matt will put her in the bjorn.

She is fascinated with the outdoors. Last night she was looking up at the beautiful trees.

When we got back, Matt put his Astros cap on her.

Monday I came home for lunch to meet Meghan, Sam & Maggie. It was their first time to meet Reese!

BTW, Meghan turned 30 on Sunday!!! I'll join her in August!

On Sunday afternoon, Matt got Reese to hold her teething ring. She is not quite able to put it in her mouth although she would probably like to, because she gnaws on her own fists or my thumb when she gets the chance.

My 1st Mother's Day!

I had a fabulous Mother's Day and the greatest gift was knowing that I am Reese's Mom.

We all went to Joe and Pat's for brunch and enjoyed a yummy casserole, blueberry muffins, mimosa's and fruit.

It was a gorgeous day in Houston!

My favorite, with bow!


Matt's favorite, without bow!



The Mom's and Reese

Pat and her handsome boys

Reese with her Grandpa Joe

Reese played while we ate

Reese and her Grandma Pat. Reese was getting tired and hungry.

In loving memory...

This past Sunday, my dear friend Terra's mom, Debbie Gates, passed away after fighting a heroic battle with ovarian cancer since August 2005.



Terra's closet friends were there to support and comfort her. I am thankful for the lifelong friendships we have.

Our prayers continue to be with Terra and her family.

Rice v. UH Baseball

Reese went to her first baseball game last night. Rice and UH were playing at Reckling Field. We met Scott, Lauren, Andy and Angela there. Reese did great and seemed to enjoy the atmosphere. She was a good little baby as usual. After the game we went to dinner in Rice Village and met up with Matt's other brother, Chris.

Prayers for Grandpa Sam & Grandpa Joe

Last week we learned that Sam, my step dad and Reese's grandpa, has lung cancer. I didn't want to post anything until I knew more details, and we found out the severity of his condition yesterday. Let me start by telling you how it began, and I will try to keep the details straight. Sam was having pain in this upper arm and back, so he went to the doctor and had chest x-rays taken. From these, the doctor could tell Sam had something in his lungs, most likely cancer. Over the next few days, they did a biopsy to confirm it was cancer and a PET scan to see if and where it had spread. The biopsy confirmed it was cancer and we knew Sam would be starting chemo ASAP. Yesterday, he had a procedure to implant the port line where the chemo will be administered into his body. He also met with the doctor to discover the cancer is stage 4 and is in some of his bones and lymph nodes. Thankfully, it has not moved to any other organs yet.

As you can imagine this is a great shock to us all. Sam and my mom quit smoking over 8 years ago, but Sam had been a smoker since Vietnam.

Thankfully, Sam has a great attitude and is willing to do any and all treatments necessary to fight the cancer. His first round of chemo starts today as I write this post. Sam will be taking two forms of chemo to treat the lung cancer and shrink and stop the cancer from moving into his bones.

As many of you know, Matt's dad Joe, also has lung cancer (a different type called renal cell carcinoma which metastasized from his kidney) and is taking sutent to shrink and prevent the cancer from growing. The sutent is working as his latest report shows the cancer has shrunk and is only noticeable on the x-rays because they are looking for it. As Joe only has one kidney, he cannot do chemo and he is also on dialysis twice a week. Joe continues to have a positive attitude!

I ask that your prayers be with Sam and Joe as they battle this disease and the side affects of their therapy and with our mothers, Fredda and Pat, who put on a strong face for us everyday.

Sunday afternoon at the Park

Reese is 15 weeks old today, Monday.

We spent Sunday afternoon at the new park downtown called "Discovery Green Park". It is located between Minute Maid Park and the Toyota Center in front of the George R. Brown convention center.


Reese slept for the first part of the outing and then woke up and enjoyed the scenery and her bottle . It was the perfect day in Houston; no humidity with a cool breeze.

Matt is a great photographer...he got some neat shots of Reese and me.

Looking like her Daddy.

The first time Reese put her toes in the grass. What a nice cool feeling!

This one is funny!




Afterwards we went to Amy's ice cream. When we got home, Reese and Daddy played while I cooked dinner. Reese is holding a toy for the first time!