Yes, I have finally updated the blog!

The picture was taken in early December when Evan spent a weekend with Aunt Fave and Aunt Tootie. I think she looks so sweet and calm. I must miss it. It is not like that anymore! I am so sorry it has taken so long to update my little girl's blog. Life has been hectic, but that is really just a lame excuse. So, let's get to it. Evan is now eight months old. She weighed 22.4 pounds at her last check-up and was over 28 inches tall. She is a big girl! It seems to have leveled off lately, as she is crawling and pulling up. She stands now and walks with assistance. Her favorite thing to do is to crawl around in her crib and turn on her mobile and cause havoc! It is exhausting but really fun to see her becoming more and more able to do things on her own. She is eating some grown-up food like carrots and apples, green beans, etc. We have done as much organic as we can but it is time consuming and expensive! She is still at Jennifer's and doing well. Lynn should be back sometime in April and we will go back when she returns. We are now looking forward to Spring Break. Geebaw, Josi and Hannah will be here for a few days, so that will be fun! We did post pictures in the column on the left, so check those out. I will try to be better about updating. Evan has another check-up on April 1st, so I will make that my goal to get back on here. Thanks for you patience. We are falling more in love with our little girl and watching her grow and change every day!

All that has happened...

Okay, I will not try to be clever or amusing, I will just let you know what has been happening in the last several weeks.

To preface, Evan is doing really well and is changing every day. She is now sitting up, and has discovered she can grab anything she can reach and is starting to try to roll over. We are also pretty sure she is teething, as the drool and need to chomp on things increases every day.

Since we found our new in-home daycare, we have settled into a comfortable routine. Lance and Evan head out each morning at 6:25 a.m. and I pick her up each afternoon. She is happy, healthy and beginning to show signs of her independence and feisty spirit! Meaning she knows what she wants and goes after it, whether that be holding her own bottle or practically shouting "No!" at her father when offered a pacifier late one evening. We have no idea where this stubborn streak comes from!

Since I last updated the blog, we have taken our first road-trip! Evan did really well on the road although her presence did increase the length of the trip by about 2hours. Oh well, a girl has to eat! We traveled to Hereford, TX, where I grew up and where Geebaw lives. It was a fantastic weekend full of wonderful food and great friends! Geebaw graciously offered to keep Evan at her house and we had two nights of real sleep in the hotel. Thank you Geebaw! Evan also received her halloween costume courtesy of her Geebaw. We had to post that picture!

Speaking of Halloween...Evan did don the ladybug costume and we walked through Aunt Tootie and Aunt Fave's neighborhood and then went back to their house so Lance could prepare to be the dead guy in the haunted garage. Amber and Amanda created a haunted house with their neighbors for the kids. They had a great time while Evan and went back to the house and watched The Backyardigans. Evan LOVES The Backyardigans! She watches intently and laughs all the way through each episode. Her favorite character seems to be Uniqua (the pink creature). Her level of excitement increases dramatically each time she is on screen. So for now, The Backyardigans is recorded each day for her enjoyment.

Evan had her 4 month check-up last Monday and things are good. She currently weighs 19.5 pounds and is 26.5 inches long. I know, she is a chunk, but a healthy one. Her doctor was happy with her development and commented on her superior muscle tone. Who knew? Those numbers put her in the 98th percentile and the size of her head (whatever that is, I cannot remember), but she is in the 75th percentile, so all is good.

She has a bit of a cold or perhaps some allergies and we are dealing with that. On Tuesday, amidst the celebration of the election of President-Elect Obama, we found out that Lynn will be closing her in-home daycare for the next few months. She has to go to be with family in Iowa. So I had 8 days to find a new in-home daycare for our little girl.

After several phone calls, tears and searches on Craig's List, we now have a new in-home daycare! Next week, we will say goodbye to Lynn on Tuesday and Aunt Sally is coming for the rest of the week. Thank you Aunt Sally!

Evan will start attending Miss Jennifer's on Monday, November 17th. It is a bit more expensive, but she provides the formula and only keeps the children of teachers, so we have the summers off. If and when Lynn returns, we will decide what is the best option for Evan. For now, we have a place we feel good about! "Few! That was a close one!"

Again, I will try to be better about updating this blog, but I make no promises. I start my master's work tomorrow, we have a show opening on Thursday and I leave for the Madonna concert in Houston on Saturday (thanks Lance!).

So until next time...

Sara

Perspective

Evan is three months old today! As the special day approached, I began to fully realize just how much has changed for us and how my perspective on almost every aspect of my life is radically different.

When I wake up in the morning I cannot wait to see her.

When I leave work in the afternoon I cannot wait to see her.

When Lance comes home from work I cannot wait to watch him see her.

When she giggles I cannot wait to hear it again.

When she goes to sleep at night I cannot wait to see her totally at peace.

I am totally in love with my little girl. There is nothing I would not do to ensure she is safe, happy and well. Nothing. My heart aches when she hurts and soars when she smiles.

My wonderful husband and amazing little girl fill me with the desire to be better, to do more and to love completely.

Evan began a new in-home daycare on Monday. She is now in town where we have a support system and I can be with her as soon as my work day ends each afternoon and...

I cannot wait.

--Sara

My Baby is in Therapy!

As you all know, Evan spends at least one day a week with her Aunt Tootie and Aunt Fave. What you may not know is that Aunt Tootie is an occupational therapist and Aunt Fave is a physical therapist. So, at least once a week, my baby is in therapy!

They turn her, twist her and stretch her into various positions to increase flexibility, control and muscle stamina. I am convinced this is why Evan has incredible head control and is doing more each day. We know we are fortunate to have such an amazing framily---but this makes it even sweeter.

Thanks Tootie and Fave!

--Sara

Ah, Motherhood!

Since Monday was Labor Day and we were taking Tuesday off to take Evan to her two-month check-up, it was supposed to be an easy week. HA!

Still fighting her cold, Evan was no longer sleeping through the night. She woke up needing the nose-sucker every 4 hours. Although not her fault, it is really painful to only sleep for a few hours at a time.

We woke up early on Tuesday morning and bathed our little girl in preparation for our visit to Dr. Shori. The visit went well. She weighed 9 pounds, 15 ounces (which put her in the 25th percentile). Does that mean she is too big or too little? It must be the former. Lance and I cannot fathom that our offspring might be thin for her age...it seems unnatural. Her head size is in the 70th percentile and her length of 23 and 1/4 inches is in the 80th percentile. We are a bit confused by all of this information, but happy to discover she is healthy.

Then it was Wednesday. Lance awoke in the middle of the night with a sour stomach and Evan needed her nose-sucker more than once. I sent them off to Decatur and hoped the day would improve. I called to check in with Lance to ensure they arrived at daycare safely. This has become the routine. I suppose I need to know they were not carjacked and taken from me each day. This phone call was not the routine I expected.

Lance had to pull over suddenly during the drive to Decatur when he became violently ill. He survived the incident, dropped Evan off at daycare to discover he had forgotten her formula, and headed to work. He still felt poorly, but felt it could make it through the day. I checked in with him about every hour to see how he was feeling so I could obsess on how to keep the stomach bug from attacking my daughter (and me...I would rather lose a limb than throw-up). He was not feeling better. I talked him into getting Evan home and I met them there to care for them both.

By the time they arrived home, they were both running a fever. Lance went straight to bed and I fed Evan and put her down for a nap. The rest of the evening was filled with seeing to their needs and worrying that they both were not well. I finally felt like a Mom. I did everything that needed to be done and found I was quite capable. It quickly became obvious that I have been spoiled with a very helpful husband and an amazing support system, but I did it. ALL of it. Yay me!

We all stayed home on Thursday. Lance was on the mend and except for the perpetually stuffy nose, Evan was happy! Things improved enough for me to attend auditions at school in the afternoon and we all prepared for Friday at school. Until....I started to feel really poorly. I was pretty sure I was coming down with the bug too, and by late evening Evan was running a fever. This time it was Lance's turn to be Mr. Mom. He sent me to bed and took care of our fussy fever-laden little girl.

At 5:30 a.m. on Friday we made the decision that Lance would stay home with Evan since she was still running a fever. Thanks to some real rest, I felt better and went to work. By the time I arrived home at 5:00 p.m., Lance was ready to get out of the house. He went to see a show with friends and I stayed in with Evan. Luckily, she felt better and we spent the evening laughing with Aunt Tootie and Aunt Fave.

Saturday was even better for all of us. Evan played and napped when it was actually convenient for us and we were able to spend the day with Amber and Amanda playing bridge...don't judge us until you have attempted the game. It is really challenging and I feel smarter just knowing Bill Gates and Warren Buffet also play for fun.

Sunday has been really good so far thanks to Evan's Geebaw! We received a big box from her on Saturday and actully sat down and went through all the wonderful things she sent this morning. It was amazing! She sent several beautiful new pages for Evan's scrapbook and the cutest pair of shiny, pink Olivia shoes. Best of all, the box was practically stuffed with some of the best books I have ever read. We read them all and, like Geebaw, cannot wait to share them all with Evan! I know if my Mom were here to spoil our little girl, books would be at the top of her list, and to me that makes it even better! Thank you Geebaw!

I suddenly was overwhemed with emotion as I read each post-it Pam loving placed on each book describing why she chose it, or who loved it, or why we would like it as well. I realized once again how fortunate we are to have Geebaw in our lives. This is what Geebaws do and we are so grateful Evan has one! Hopefully our special morning is a sign of a better week to come!

--Sara

HOPE

What a week!

Evan began going to daycare in Decatur on Tuesday which was much more difficult for me than anyone else. I cried quietly after she and her Daddy left early that morning and found myself looking at the clock every few minutes all day long. I could not wait until they arrived home to ensure she was still the same baby. She was. I do not care for the smell of her hair when she returns, but no one will ever care for her the way we do....so I will just have to deal with it.


Lance and I watched the Democratic National Convention each evening and were really affected by what we saw and most importantly by what we heard. I am so proud that the year our child was born, an African-American man is the presidential candidate for a major political party after narrowly beating a highly qualified woman for the nomination. I hope that these political and social happenings are signs of the direction in which our daughter's society is headed. I do believe things can change and I dearly HOPE they will. We are steadfast Obama supporters and are proud to be a part of such a history-making event.

Evan is now fighting a cold brought on by her first week at daycare with all of those other tiny germ-filled creatures. She is handling it well and Lance and I are hoping to get some sleep soon! She has her two month check-up tomorrow and we are anxious to find out exactly how much our beautifully chubby baby weighs and ask even more questions of our patient pediatrician. No worries, I will post all the details soon!


--Sara