A few FIRSTS!

This post is a little behind and I have no real excuse for that, so just deal with it!! The Monday after we came back from Vidalia for Thanksgiving, Lily decided that she would start rolling over. That morning, I found her in her crib on her tummy when I had placed her on her back the night before. Later that evening, she was lying on the floor playing with her toys and decided that she would roll from her tummy to her back. So, she learned to roll both directions in one day. Or maybe she was just saving up that trick to spring them both on me at the same time.

The next picture is of Lily and her "first boyfriend". Just kidding. This is a boy in her class, Micah. They are JUST friends, she tells me.

This is a picture of Miss Lily trying something other than milk and cereal for the first time. She likes squash. We have since found out that she isn't a big fan of carrots. Enjoy the pics and we'll post more after Christmas. Everyone take care and try not to eat too much yumminess! Merry Christmas!

Snow Day!

Ok, so I was about to leave for work this morning and I had no clue that it was snowing. Josh and I didn't know until his brother called and told us. We went outside and lo and behold it was pouring down from the heavens. I along with most south Louisianians have never seen snow of this magnitude in our own back yards. What a special treat. I only wish that I had children old enough to play in it. Hopefully one day it will snow again so Lily and I can play in it together. By the way, sorry I've been neglecting my blog......it's either neglect the blog or neglect the baby. Did I make the right choice?? ha ha Enjoy the pictures!

Here are some pictures of our Lily baby smiling. She's usually a happy girl. It's so nice to see those smiles now and know when she's happy. The outfit in the second picture was the first 3-6 month outfit I put on her. I've been putting off switching her to that size because I just thought they looked so big, but she was really outgrowing her 0-3 month ones, so it was time. I was a bit surprised and saddened when the "big" clothes fit her just fine. I can't imagine how I'll feel when she reaches some actually milestone when a new clothing size made me feel like she's growing too fast.

Jamie tagged me to post the fourth picture from the fourth folder on my computer, so here it is.

This is Josh at some apartment industry conference before we ever even met. It was taken when he lived in Houston, hence the Texans jersey.

Cute Fall Pics

Sorry, I don't have time at the moment to do an actual post. We just got back from Ferriday this afternoon and we took a few cute pics of little miss Lily so I thought I'd post them. She obviously wasn't too happy about being put on the ground with the pumpkins. Enjoy!

I've been tagged

I am: really tired....just finished a full day of work with a three hour class afterward.
I think: i have the best husband in the world...he takes care of Lily so I can go to class every week (he even bathes her by himself!)
I want: to sleep for a million hours.
I miss: my college years, many friends, and lazy Saturdays before Lily came along.
I fear: I won't be the kind of wife and mom that my family deserves
I feel: congested *sniff sniff*
I hear: the TV in the next room.
I smell: nothing because of the congestion.
I crave: Raising Cane's
I cry: when I feel helpless, over whelmed, or just sad.
I usually: sit quietly in the corner at gatherings
I search: for my shoes every morning.
I wonder: if Lily will sleep well tonight.
I regret: not keeping in touch with my friends better.
I wish: I didn't have to worry about money.
I love: my awesome family.
I care: about what others think of me.
I always: tell my husband I love him before going to sleep, leaving the house and getting off the phone.
I worry: less about work stuuf than I did before Lily.
I am not: good at small talk
I remember: the good times
I believe: in doing unto others as you would have them do unto you.
I don't always: do what I know should be done.
I argue: rarely
I write: in print usually because I teach pre-K and have to model correct form for my kids.
I win: games against preschoolers (unfair advantage???)
I lose: poorly
I listen: to silly made-up stories everyday.
I don't understand: why some parents don't give their kids the time of day.
I can usually be found: at work or at home with my family.
I need: constant reassurance.
.I forget: plenty
I am happy:I found such a great man and God gave us a beautiful baby.

First Pigtails

Well, I'm at home with a sick little baby girl, so I've had time to catch up on some blog reading. Since Lily is nowhere near the point of having her first pigtails, and I didn't want to be outdone by Jezebel's adorable pigtails courtesy of Momma Clare, I decided to post a picture of my nephew Lyndon's first pigtails. Back in June when we were all in Shreveport for Connor's birth, Lyndon's hair was getting pretty long in the back because Gabby was waiting on his Daddy to go get it cut. I decided that since his Dad wasn't around, now would be the perfect time to "play with his hair". You can't see them too well in the picture, but they were some cute pigtails. He was surprisingly cooperative and didn't even try to pull them down. I think he just liked all the attention he was getting from his Mom, Aunt Erika, and Nonna for having such a cute new do. Anyway, enjoy the pics and don't tell his dad. I'm sure he'd kill us!!

Our Weekend

This weekend, Lily met a new friend, Luke, at his first birthday party. It was a super fun and very cute party. Luke is so adorable! Josh used to work with Luke's dad, Javier, at the Casino. He and his wife, Katie, are super nice. Javi's family is Mexican, so Luke's grandmother got a pinata and put a few Mexican candies in it. One of them was this chile watermelon sucker. It looked like they took an innocent sucker and rolled it in all sorts of spices. I tasted one, and Josh ate almost half of one. It was definitely different. After the party, we went over to Scott and Vicky's and watched the LSU game with Vicky and the girls. We finally had a chance to get a couple of pictures of the three of us as a family. Notice the matchy clothes at the party and the LSU colors for the game? I was so surprised that Josh went along with that. He will usually change clothes if I happen to put on something that matches him.

Another big event happened this weekend! Little Connor FINALLY got to come home!! I haven't gotten to talk to Victoria much since then, but I know the are doing well. When I tried to call her, she was sleeping. I'm trying not to bother her, but I also don't want her to think that I'm not thinking of her. Anyway, we're all glad that Connor is finally home where he belongs.

skeeters

Is anyone else having a severe problem with mosquitos or is it just us out here in the boonies?? We had to cover Lily's crib with a mosquito net because the poor thing got ate up one night. Her whole little face and both hands were covered in little bites. They had a feast on my sweet little baby. I felt like such a bad mommy when we went places last weekend, because she was covered in bites. What could I have done though? I didn't know they had snuck into our house and were attacking her while we slept. At least she couldn't scratch them, so they didn't really seemm to bother her much. Lily likes to pretend that she is a missionary in Africa, sleeping under a malaria tent! Anyway, the bites are better now, but she got shots this week and just caught a nasty cold. Poor thing.

Connor Update

Well, according to Jason and Victoria's blog http://butlernewsblog.blogspot.com, Mr. Connor may be coming home as soon as this weekend! How exciting. There's still a long road ahead though. They won't be able to really take him anywhere for many more months. He can't go to church, the store, or even family functions because it'll be so easy for him to get very very sick. Be that as it may though, we're all gonna be glad to know that he's safe at home instead of in the hospital still. I know Lily and Lyndon can't wait to play with their cousin.

Four Generations

As I mentioned in the previous post, the Saturday before Gustav hit, we were in Vidalia and went to take some family portraits. Four generations of ladies. My NuNu, my Mom (Lily's Nonna), Me, and Lily. Even though Lily was getting hungry and a little fussy, I think the pics turned out pretty well.

Our Gustav "Adventure"

Connor Lee Butler
Lyndon peaking under Lily's shirt (ha ha)
Lily with her Aunt Tori
Lily with Aunt Tori and Aunt Gabby


First of all, we don't have too much to complain about after enduring the wrath of Gustav. We went to Vidalia Friday afternoon, had a lovely weekend, took some family portraits, and decided to come back to town on Sunday afternoon (against my families wishes). Josh wanted to go stay at his parents' house in Donaldsonville during the storm so that we would be closer to our house in case there was any damage and we needed to go salvage our belongings. I agreed with him and I think we both just wanted to see exactly what happened during the storm. Foolish, right? Well anyway, we stayed at his parents' house Sunday and Monday night. Of course Monday night there was no power and we were miserable. So we decided to get up early (who could sleep anyway) on Tuesday morning and go check on our house. I meanwhile decided that I was going back to Vidalia with or without my beloved husband. I didn't want Lily (or myself for that matter) to be suffering in the heat indefinitely. Thankfully Josh decided to come with me. We were very lucky and had absolutely no damage to our house. Some big limbs down in the yard like everyone else, but that was the extent. So we spent the rest of the week in Vidalia. One of the few good things that came from the whole ordeal was that my youngest sister, Gabby, and her son Lyndon were in town from Illinois so we got to spend time with them. On Thursday, Gabby, Lily, and I went to Shreveport to visit our middle sister, Victoria and her son Connor. Victoria hadn't gotten to meet little Lily yet because Connor is still in the NICU. He was born at 25 weeks back on June17. He was only 2lbs 13oz at birth but is now up to a whopping 5lbs 9oz. He should be coming home very soon and we can't wait. They are both supposed to come and visit us at the beginning of October if everything goes as planned.


Josh had an awesome time while we were in Vidalia because he got to play with Lyndon almost the whole time. I think they are each other's favorite playmates.


Anyway, when our neighbor called us on Thursday and said our power was back on, we decided to head on back this way.

Family Ties

Well, we're off to Vidalia for the weekend. We had planned this trip in advance, but now I'm glad we're going to be well out of the way of Gustav should he decide to come this way. Our house is all boarded up and I'm loading up the car. But our trip up there has me thinking about family and how change is inevitable whether is positive or negative. And sometimes even though it may seem negative at the time, everything turns out better in the end. I've also been thinking about the little family that Josh and I are creating together. We made Lily with half of my genes and half of his, but somehow, I have yet to see any of Josh in her. I'm sure it'll come out sooner or later. I'm sure she'll have his devilish sense of humor or his kind and generous nature. Check out these pictures though and see which one of us she resembles the most. (top to bottom: Me, Josh, Lily). Now that I look at all of the pictures together, I don't know anymore. Maybe she is OURS and not just mine. Or maybe Josh and I just looked very much alike as babies. Who knows. Anyway, I hope everyone stays safe and good luck weathering out this storm!

Fur Baby

This post is dedicated to our "first born". Our little fur baby, Buck. We've had him for about two years now. He just had a birthday last month and he's three-years-old. While I was pregnant, we really worried about how Buck was going to handle having to share his Mommy and Daddy with this new little stranger. I'm happy to report that he seems to be handling it pretty well so far. He does get a little jealous when his Daddy isn't paying him attention or when we have company over and they don't notice him, but other than that he is adjusting surprisingly well.

Although he can be a little wild at times, he's such a sweet doggie and we can't imagine our lives without him. As evidenced by the pics, he even puts up with the silly things I do to him. Thanks for being such a good boy, Buck!!

Everybody Loves Lily!

Lily attended her first birthday party this weekend! Her cousin Alexis had a party on Sunday afternoon, despite the dreary weather (thanks to Tropical Storm Faye). It's nice to let other people get to hold her and love on her for a little while. We had a great time and the kids seemed to have fun too. Lily even got to sport her outfit that her Daddy bought for her. She looked like a big girl in her denim shorts and cute little yellow top.

The first picture is of Lily with her cousins Ashlyn and Alexis, then there's Lily with her MawMaw and PawPaw. The last two aren't from the birthday party. They are from when my Aunt and my cousins came to visit a couple of weeks ago. There's Taylor holding Lily and Cameron and Callie with Lily. (All other family members who've come to visit, don't worry, I have more pictures coming, these are just the only one's I have on the computer right now)

And for those of you who have asked, things are going much better with Lily and I at home. We've finally settled into a nice little schedule, just in time for me to go back to work in a couple of weeks. But at least I can really enjoy this last little bit of uninterrupted time we have together.

Why is it so hard??

Why didn't anyone tell me that breastfeeding was so difficult. I know it's going to get better, but it can be so frustrating at times. All those pregnancy books make it sound so easy. I mean, I know my situation could be a lot worse. She latches on well, I'm not sore anymore, and she usually eats well. But I never know if she is eating enough. Then sometimes she eats too much or too fast and throws up all over both of us. I don't mean spit-up, she projectile vomits the entire contents of her stomach onto both of us. Then I get to start feeding her all over again because her little stomach is now empty and she's still hungry. Sometimes I think I've fed her enough and I can't get her to wake up enough to eat anymore, so I put her to bed. Only to be awakened twenty minutes later because she's still hungry. Somebody please tell me it will get better......SOON!

Welcome to the World Lily Michelle!!

Well, after about 18 hours of labor, our little Lily is finally here. She was born on Monday, July 28 at 12:06 pm. She weighed 8 lbs and 8.8 oz. and was 21" long.

Maiden Voyage

Hi Everyone!

Well, I'm going to see how this whole blogging thing goes. We're currently counting down the days until my due date (Aug. 3) even though I'm afraid little Lily isn't going to come by then. Nothing much to do besides that right now. Hopefully when I go to the doctor on Thursday she will have some encouraging news about our progress, but who knows, right? The two pictures below are of Lily's room and some good ultrasound shots of her cute little face. Josh and I pretty much did all of the room ourselves although Mr. Donald, Josh's dad, did help alot with the construction aspect of putting the room back together after Josh did the demolition. We just can't wait to actually have a little person sleeping in that room across the hall.