More on Nana Visit...

While Nana was here we were able to get out and enjoy our time together. On Thursday we spent the day shopping. We went to my favorite consignment shop and between Thursday and Friday we went to Target, Walmart, and Kohls. Thursday night.. Mom cooked us a yummy dinner and she had brought some fresh corn and tomatoes from AL that we enjoyed! (There is nothing like those AL veggies!). We had found Grace a little swim suit at Target and on Friday we took her to the Seminary pool. Adam wanted to go with us so we waited until he got off work and went after dinner. This is the first time Grace has gotten into a big pool this summer. Grace didn't really like the big pool.. she acted like she was scared in it. We ended up spending our time in the baby pool which was really nice there at the Seminary.

On Saturday, Adam and I had planned on going outside to fix the siding and to clean out the gutters. He borrowed an extension ladder from our church and I went out side with him to hold the ladder and to help hand him stuff, etc. (It was up very far so I DID NOT want him on the ladder by him self.) Adam got the siding fixed and then we all went to Huber Farms for dinner as planned, after Grace got up from her nap. It is on the other side of Indiana. It has a country cookin' restaurant there and there is a animal petting area, and some fruit patches, Farmer's Market, and gift shop, etc. It was actually an unusually cool evening for Aug. so we didn't end up walking around the Farm very much. The food was good and we brought home some fresh green beans, more fresh tomatoes, and some chocolate covered peanut butter balls from the Farmer's Market and gift shop! ;-)

On Sunday morning we all went to church and then that evening Mom decided to stay home with Grace while we went to church. Grace really wasn't at her best any ways because she is teething again but with all of Nana's attention she was JUST FINE! Adam and I was able to grab a little dinner.. just us two.. and have a nice peaceful ride to church. It was good!

Nana left on Monday morning.. but while she was here she was able to see how Grace's little personality is just developing more and more every day! She also saw how she is saying more and more words all of the time. On Saturday.. Grace said HER own name for the 1st time. She kept saying it over and over in the car and it come out like 'Gace'. ;0) She also said 'Na Na' a couple of times! She also can not get enough of ELMO these days!

This is what Adam and I was up to on Saturday morning.. Adam (not me) was on that ladder.... You see why I wanted to be with him!

This is just one area that he fixed.. there were two more areas that he fixed but I didn't think to get a picture before he fixed those.. This was all from wind damage.

And after..

I don't know why blogger makes these pics look 'blocky' when I upload them..

Headed to the pool!

Overlook me! ;-)

Big girl!

Grace and Nana

Grace 'taking in' Huber Farms!

This is a bib Nana got her.. Elmo! Elmo! Elmo!:)

Sweet girl!

Nana Is Here!

My mother (or Nana) came for a visit this past Wednesday and will be here till Monday. We have been having a lot of fun getting out and about. I will post more later on her visit...

Since her arrival, Grace has been showing Nana how she LOVES to give kisses. Immediately after we picked Nana up at the airport she was giving Nana kisses! She has also been showing off her many abilities (talking, dancing, etc.) :-)

I am posting a pic of her giving kisses to Nana right after we walked in the door when Nana got to our house!....

Silly Grace!

Grace has also been 'dancing' for Nana. I am posting a video of her 'in action'. As you can see, Grace has some new bows. Grace is getting a little better at keeping her bows in so we got her some pretty big bows. I have been wanting to get her some... We got these at a specialty consignment shop along with some other REALLY good bargains! FUN!

The Task

16 Months Old TODAY!

Our baby is now 16 months old! I was just telling Adam that it seems like yesterday that Grace was sleeping ALL of the time and we were having to take time out for her to get multiple naps during the day. It felt like every time we turned around she needed to nap!=) Now she is down to 1 or maybe 2 naps a day.... depending on the day and how late she sleeps in the morning.

Adam and I have started to try to teach her to color (or I should say scribble) in the past week. We finally got her some jumbo crayons and she will do a little bit but is really more interested in sticking the crayons in her mouth or to play with the papers and the crayon box, etc. =) The other day while I was at work Adam got the idea to start trying to teach her to associate some very important things. He said he was thinking that since she can associate who Elmo is and the dogs, shoes, body parts, and other things.. that we could teach her who Jesus is, what the Bible is, a cross, etc. I thought that this is VERY TRUE! I am posting some pics of what Grace and her Daddy was doing the other day while I was at work!

We also cut Grace's hair a little in the back and above her ears the other day for the first time. This was VERY interesting! I have been told be a few people that this would also help her hair grow faster and she had some stray hairs in these areas also!:)

Grace is really a girly girl too! She will walk around all day with the play rings on her arms as bracelets and she has one plastic bangle bracelet that she puts on all of the time too. She also walks around with a 'purse' on her arm all of the time too!

Grace 'scribbling'

This is 'Daddy's artwork and he was teaching her what each of them were.. =)

Grace's hair before (above) and then after (below). We actually ended up cutting the back a little more the next day to even it out.

This is Grace's 'Home Alone' face that we taught her. She even does the sound effects.. she hollers or screams when she does it!=)

You can see Grace is wearing her bangle bracelet in this picture! 'That's my girl!=)'

Smart Little Girl!

A few pics first....

This first one is from the other day.. This is just to show you how expressive she is and she likes to go 'check herself' out in the mirror when we get her dressed!:) LOL

Silly girl.. she was wanting to play with my sunglasses in the pool today!

Sweet girl!

Grace was in rare form for videos today. She was showing off some of her 'abilities' today! It was a nice day for the pool. I am posting 2 videos. You will see in the second video that just with the mention of 'daddy' she got a little upset. She wanted her Daddy! 'Awww'!!! (As Grace would say...) He has been working today!

(I don't know why these videos have flashes of light lines going through them.. I don't know if it was the sun affecting the camera??...)

15 mo. Checkup

Grace went for her 15 mo. check up on Monday. ( I know... she is getting closer now to 16 mo. but it took a while to get an appointment. ) The doctor was pleased with her and she weighed 24 1lbs. 14 oz. (75th percentile) and 30 1/2 inches for height, and I can't remember the head circ. right this minute but she was in the 5oth percentile for both of those. She showed off real good for the doctor and showed her some of her abilities of knowing body parts, etc, 'talking', and just being active in the room. She had to get 2 shots which of course, she didn't like but overall.. all good!:)

Uncle Greg and Kelly Visit

My brother Greg and his fiance Kelly came for the visit last Thursday and left on Monday. We had a lot of fun together. They were very happy to see Grace and by the time they got here on Thursday Grace was asleep so by Friday morning when Grace woke up Uncle Greg was anxiously walking in to Grace's room to greet her at her crib and to hold her. She quickly warmed up to them both and we had a lot of fun times and Grace showed off her 'silliness' to them and they taught her a few things while they were here. She learned where her or our nose and eyes are. She also learned the word 'boo!'

On Friday, Adam had to work a few hours in the afternoon so the rest of us went to Brown Park to walk around, feed the ducks, and to let Grace (and Greg) play on the playground. Uncle Greg was having fun taking Grace down the BIG slides and it was quiet amusing to watch. We then went to the mall and walked around and then came back home for Grace to get a nap. We later went and ate Mexican and went to Walmart and uncle Greg bought her a Elmo doll that talks and blows kisses! She LOVES this and gets very excited when she sees it and carried it around with her just about the rest of the weekend. Then the adults watched the movie 'Bedtime Stories' after Grace went to sleep. It was really good too! On Saturday, we went to The Louisville Slugger Museum as planned and this was a lot of fun and very interesting. This is the first time we have went and it was neat getting to see all of that. We left there and went to Kingfish on the Ohio River. We didn't get to sit outside because they were having a family reunion outside but we had a very nice window seat with a distant view of the river. They also have a playground for the kids and Putt Putt which is really neat. After dinner, we walked down to the river and Grace played on the playground a little bit.

Then on Sunday, we had a great day at church. We all went to Sunday School (or Adult Bible Fellowship) and to the service and just had a great service. There was no church on Sunday night so we spent the evening at home and I cooked dinner and us Adults played Outburst while Grace napped and then again after Grace went to bed. We spent a lot of time just playing with Grace this day and the weather was BEAUTIFUL the whole weekend and we spent a lot of time outside also. They temps were milder. We all took a walk Sunday evening too around our neighborhood.

Posting pics.....

Quality time...

No slowing down on this slide!:) (At Kingfish)

A view of the outside of Kingfish Restaurant and then the River below the Putt Putt course

Fun times! The upper pic is from Brown Park and the lower from Kingfish playground

Grace checking out the Baseball players signature wall!

Being silly at the Slugger Museum

Our Family:)

More fun at Brown Park!

Grace Being Little Mommy

I'm adding another quick video of Grace being little Miss Mommy. Uncle Greg and Kelly brought her a stroller for her 'babies' and a little 'baby' bottle and 'baby' sippy cup and keys set. She also got a Elmo shirt from them and she LOVES Elmo! Now she says " Ehmmmm" for Elmo! We kept asking her where Elmo was and she would point to her shirt. Later into the weekend Uncle Greg wanted to buy Grace something and he got her a Elmo doll and she LOVES it! She gets so excited for Elmo!

More to come...

Grace's Indian Sound

My brother Greg and his Fiance Kelly just left this morning to go back to GA. They came in for a visit on Thursday and we have done a lot of fun things while they were here. While they were here we were having fun with Grace with different sounds, etc.

We are about to leave for her checkup today for her 15 mo. I will blog more later on the visit!

More Firsts and Fun with Our 'Buds'

A couple of weeks ago I bought Grace some sidewalk chalk because I thought it would be fun to see what she does with it and if she would really use it. She used it a little bit but really wanted to 'eat' it more than write with it! :) I kept having to pull the chalk away from her mouth! As Adam has said she is also saying more and more words! What sounds like-- "Elmo, Allie, Bud, Bye, Bye, Ball, Hey, Momma or Mom, Da Da, etc. etc." I am sure a lot more that we just don't understand!:)

Yesterday, Grace and I met our friends Rachel and Averi at Brown Park. We had fun with them and it was very good seeing them. Grace hasn't seen little Averi in a while since we moved churches. Her and Averi are the same age. Our baby girls got to get out of the stroller and see the ducks and then have soom time on the playground just playing... while us Moms got to talk. Averi is a little playground monkey. She amazed me how she climbs so well up the steps and goes down the slide and every thing.. like a pro! Grace needed some help! Grace has never really tried to climb much yet. Grace just enjoyed walking free around the area and picking up TRASH under the pavilion! Fun times though!

More Random Pictures

More Pictures!!!

Pictures!!!

Update

Well, we aren't going anywhere for a little vacation after all. We decided last night to not because I (Adam) would have to take off work which we can't afford, and because we just have too many other things going on. Plus Cheryl wouldn't get to spend much time with Grace if we were driving all weekend. So, anyway we are good. Grace is talking more and more. She began saying her version of Elmo today which sounded more like eelma. She is picking up on everything, I am learning you don't have to force things on her too much because she naturally picks up on them. She is a smart one! She must get that from her Momma, LOL. I just finished a summer term class and have a new semester in a couple of weeks. The best thing is I GRADUATE IN THE SPRING, can I get a WHOOP WHOOP. I've been working on this really since 2005 when we moved to Memphis and I am ready to get to seminary. God is good. Things are tight around here a lot but God always sees us through. I will be seeking some type of full time employment when I graduate and hopefully something will open up so I can make some more dough for us. We also have Holly's brother Greg and his fiance Kelly coming up next weekend. We are looking forward to them here! They will have a blast with Grace and we can't wait to see them ourselves, it has been a while. Maybe one day we can all live closer together! We'll get some more pictures up soon. See Y'all Later, Roll Tide!!!!

A Little Vacation Afterall!

It looks like we will have a little vacation this year. I (Holly) have decided that I can work an extra 12 hour shift or so to pay for us to have a little 'getaway'. Mom is coming up to Louisville in August on the 19th and we decided yesterday.. to all go to Gatlinburg, TN while she is here visiting. I looked online the other day and Gatlinburg is only 4 1/2 hours from here so we are going to leave on Aug. 20th and come back on Aug 23rd and then Mom will fly back home on Aug 24th. We are going super cheap. We decided to get a hotel room that has a balcony and it is right on the Parkway in Gatlinburg. We figure that Grace can sleep in the pack-n-play and we can go out on the balcony while she is napping or when she goes to sleep.. if we aren't ready to go to sleep. We will also be able to walk to the shops, dining, etc. so this is VERY convenient.. esp. with Grace. It is an older hotel/ lodge but it has an outdoor and indoor pool and other things which is nice. Mom has actually stayed at this place before. Over all.. we are really looking forward to this! It will be nice and fun! I am very thankful for this.

Not this next weekend but next, my brother and his fiance is coming from GA for a visit for a long weekend with us! We are really looking forward to that too! We plan on going to the Slugger Museum with them and maybe some other things while they are here. They have been to Louisville once and so it is always nice going around town and they are looking forward to spending time with Grace!

More Fun

Today Grace and I went to the zoo with 3 other Mom's and our children (ladies from Highview at Valley Station). I didn't feel like pulling out the camera so I didn't get any pics.. we just enjoyed our time with out the camera. It was a bit humid though... but a great time! Grace was very excited to be surrounded by all the children again!

Grace has been doing different little dances when music comes on. She first started 'bopping' her head to the music and now she waves her arms up and down and kind of bounces or twirls around. It is SOO hard though.. to get it on video. When I pull the camera out she stops! Go figure!:)

I am posting another video from the other day and for some reason it is blurry after uploading to you tube but I guess you can still see it. She is keeping us busy these days! In to EVERYTHING!:)

Yesterday we had our (almost) daily play time on the deck! She LOVES going out back and playing on the deck! Her pool is back on the deck and yesterday evening she kept wanting to play in the water. She puts water in her little pale and turns it up like it is a cup to drink the water and OF COURSE she gets WAY too much water in her mouth so she will start coughing. I have to stop her from doing this because she will keep on doing it! She was also slinging water out of the pool with a plastic shovel and then she got the idea that she could dip her head into the pool and get water. On 3.. she would put her head up and down and the third time she would go low enough for her head to dip into the water! She thought this was HILARIOUS! She kept doing it and I was afraid she was going to get water up her nose and stuff so I kept pulling her back but I couldn't help but laugh at our silly girl! I wish I had a video of that! Needless to say, by the time we came inside she was all wet so I took her out of her clothes and it was close to bath time so I got the idea to put her in one of MY 'smaller' shirts instead of dirtying any of her clothes. It was SO cute. It was a little gown on her. She liked it though!:) Kind of like playing dress up with momma's clothes!

Grace LOVES to wear buckets on her head.. don't ask me why?? But bows.. FORGET IT! She takes them out as soon as I put them in! :) I know it is probably just a phase!

Enjoying Summer Days

Grace LOVES to be outside. As a matter of fact, when I get her to bring her in she will sometimes get upset when it is time to go in the house. She wants to walk in the front of the house but I am always afraid she is going to fall and hurt herself on the pavement/ concrete because of our sloped driveway. Today, we took her down to the end of the road to walk around and she was exploring her surroundings! We also made and enjoyed homemade chocolate ice cream for the first time today. Grace was 'helping' Daddy make it!

Grace's 'not sure' expression!:)

Update on ? Move

We are not moving! We got word today that the couple decided to make an offer on the other house that they liked. The realtor said she would keep us in mind though when she has a client that is looking for a house in our price range. The realtor was very nice and I know she will remember us. As for us, we have to say we were a little bummed today but we also knew that it is NOT God's plan for us if it didn't happen. So.. we will see what he has in store for us next??!! We will probably not try to sale again until Spring of next year.

Just to Explain- Move??

A week from yesterday, I went out to get the mail with Grace and there was a flyer in the paper box from a Realtor saying that she had a couple that wants to buy in our subdivision and wanted to know if any of us would be willing to sell our house. As soon as a got it I thought... hmmm.. that is interesting.. Adam and I have been wanting to sell our house and praying about the whole situation for probably a year or longer but we knew it was probably impossible. You see.. after having Grace I went part-time and of course, that has greatly affected our finances. We were willing to sell our house and move into something cheaper to help our finances but the market kind of crashed and we were afraid we wouldn't be able to sell and considering we just bought in 2007 we were afraid that the housing value has either stayed the same or dropped. So we couldn't afford a big loss on selling the house. So we looked into some other things but just figured we needed to give it more time. Well, with Spring and Summer coming, it appears people really are buying around here and with the opportunity that was presented to us.. the Real Estate company would only make 3% commission off of us instead of 6 or 7% since we didn't list our house. This is a really good deal because of course that is thousands of dollars. ....

Needless to say.. I called the agent that night to let her tell me about the situation. She said it is a couple that is having a baby (I believe in August) and they want to be in a house by then. They also wanted to buy in our subdivision. There is multiple houses for sale but what is left.. apparently they didn't like. She did say they had put an offer in on a house before and someone else got the house before them. So I worked last weekend.. so we agreed to let them come on Monday to see the house. They came back for a 2nd look on Wednesday and he brought his parents to look also. We know that they are deciding between our house and 1 other house and they have looked at both houses twice. The guy (buyer) worked till 11pm yesterday so nothing was accomplished yesterday. We had given them our asking price yesterday because they requested it. The realtor says she hopes to hear something this evening.

In all, this came out of nowhere and we know that it is totally God. No matter what happens we know it will be the Lord's will and it will help us either way around. It has been hard just waiting to hear the news. But we are trying to be patient... :)

For us, this would mean that we would try to find a house for RENT that is cheaper!!!!! This is what we would like to do since we don't know how much longer we will be here and to save us the stress of worrying about trying to sell and not lose money again after possibly being here only short term. We'll see.. we've done a little internet search but just waiting on the word first!:)

Grace "Taking Everything In"

Grace is quiet the worker these days. She is really 'working hard' at stacking books up and picking up her toys and handing them all to us one by one or putting them in a pile or bucket (or whatever) one by one! We are putting that to good use and teaching her to pick up her toys and put them in a bucket for her toy box! She really enjoys doing these things and is 'figuring' out her surrounding more and more. As I am typing, she is bringing our shoes from the kitchen and putting them on top of each other beside my chair!:) She also like trying to match the shapes on her toys and knows how to hit buttons that make music play on her toys, etc. She can also show us where her belly button is (see video) and she is AMAZED by this new found 'thing' on her belly! She will just look at it and smile and laugh!:) She is trying to say more words these day too! She has said 'dog', what sounded like "Allie", and probably more! I don't remember if I said before but she has been OFF the bottle for a few weeks now or so, and we officially FINALLY pulled the bumper pads out of the crib a week ago. We had not taken them out because Grace liked to 'snuggle' into them and she liked them. She also has never attempted to climb in the crib so we weren't really worried about that but the more she started walking around, etc. I decided we weren't going to risk her safety any more and we removed them! She didn't know what to think at first and she would cry at first when we put her down to sleep because it was 'different' but she has quickly adjusted!

She also acts like she is talking on the phone and holds her phone up to her head but she puts it past her ear. It looks so funny!

She is getting very carried away with her walking. She will start walking really fast to a run almost and she is not quiet ready for this yet!:) We have to tell her to slow down because we are afraid she will fall and hurt her self. She has also learned how to 'reverse' or walk backwards in the last couple of days.:)

She has started this new thing with Allie (our Pomeranian) where she is wanting to chase her and pull on her... we have to stop her from getting Allie! Now she is attempting to climb the stairs. You might have seen.. the baby gates are all in place now!.... What can I say... she is a 'mess'!