Our Updated Family Portrait

Early in the month of December we went to the studio for Savannah's nine month old shots as well as an updated family portrait. The hope was to get pictures early enough to send out with our Christmas cards. The results were beautiful portraits AND sadly both the cards and pictures are still sitting on the desk ready to be mailed out... Where does the time go?! So to all who were wondering if you'd hear from us during the holidays, just know that your card is coming and we wish you a wonderful new year. :)

Savannah's very Merry Christmas

Savannah was grateful to welcome her auntie, cousin, and uncles to her house for Christmas this year. It's been a good time had by all. To those who were elsewhere, we hope you had a very merry Christmas. You were missed. Love from central Texas!

Savannah and Santa

We were excited for Savannah Jo to get to meet Santa for her first time at the school last weekend. It turns out she wasn't as excited. Our poor girl has an acute case of Santa anxiety. If you ask her, there is a Santa Claus, he's real, and he's really scary. She was ok as soon as she was back in mommy's arms.

Her favorite new game: Peek-a-Boo!

At this stage of Savannahs' life she is in love with playing Peek-a-boo and can't get enough. Every morning as she is wrapped up in a towel after her bath, she throws the towel over and back from her face. She plays it at school, she plays it at home, any time she can.

Don't mind the background noises...we had our friends' whimpering dog visiting Brandy and Tootsie that morning. We love you too Mocha.

Thanksgiving Week

As much as I enjoy my job, I really appreciate three day work-weeks! Knowing that we would be closed on Thursday and Friday made the days fly by and as a result I feel that I didn't get as much accomplished as I ought to have. I had a goal of blogging every day this month. Didn't happen :-) I gave it my best but a busy life got in the way. But at least I have enjoyed the journey! :P

We made another trip this weekend. We traveled to Houston to be with the Owuors' for Thanksgiving. It was great to see the family and spend some quality time. Thanks to Alex again for hosting us all. Thanks to Kiki for the many preparations that went into a delicious feast! The turkey was great. The pie was tasty. AND the chapatis were yummy. Thanks everyone. See you next holiday.

A Quick trip to San Antonio

One of my fun responsibilities at church is working with the youth, and specifically with a group of young women. Every Sunday I and other leaders get to meet with them during the third hour of church, sometimes as their teachers but mostly to learn from them. On Wednesday nights we usually meet for some sort of activity. This past week, we didn't meet on Wednesday, but instead planned a Saturday youth temple trip to San Antonio. This presented an opportunity for Michael and I to spend a little extra time out of town. On Friday night after work, Michael loaded us up into the car along with the necessary supplies for an over-nighter. We made a quick stop for dinner at our favorite barbecue place "Rudy's" and then drove into downtown San Antonio where we checked into a hotel by the river. It was a nice hotel and we had an amazing view out of the 20th floor. Our room had a cute little balcony so we were able to take a couple of pics with the Tower of the Americas before heading to the temple on Saturday morning. The San Antonio temple is a beautiful small temple with lots of amazing and colorful stained glass. I could have stared at the windows the whole time but I was there to help out the youth so that is what I did. I couldn't help but have that wonderful feeling that meant to me that we were in a special place. Afterwards we all met up at the local church building for lunch and to share the feelings we had felt, then parted ways so that the youth could return to their homes. Michael and I continued our San Antonio adventure. My dear cousin Michelle aka Shelleigh lives in San Antonio and we were able to stop in at her work, The Cheesecake Factory, and enjoy a meal as well as a brief visit. It was nice to see her and for her to see Savannah again. She had made the trip to see us all right after Savannah was born. Somehow eight months have flown by! We enjoyed our quick trip and hope that there will be more day trips and family get-aways.

Our landscaping got a facelift

Last weekend Michael arranged to give our yard a facelift. In front of the house we went from this...

to this... AND in the back yard we went from this... ...to this. One home improvement project out of the way!

Tooth #2

Tooth number two is emerging. She's not too excited about it.

She loves bread

If only I had thought to video Savannah eating her first breadstick...It was hilarious. After sucking on one end and it getting super goopy, I took the breadstick away and flipped it around so that she would start working on the fresh end. In the amount of time that it took me to hand it back she had started to get upset and sqeal at me for taking her food away but quickly stopped when she had it back. The funniest thing was that when I walked up to her a short while later she growled and whimpered at me. I didn't dare touch the breadstick again until she was done with it. :)

Savannah's mad dance skillz!

Teehee! Enjoy.

Back on track

SO, I couldn't do it. I couldn't blog everyday for a whole month. I made it two weeks into November and then had to take a break this past weekend. Sorry to all of you that I've let down! But I am back on track. My blogging vacation is now over and I'm happy to report that I'm hoping to be back on track to finish the month. So now the question is, what do I blog about... Alright I'm drawing a blank. Sorry for making you waste your time to read this! Perhaps if I attach another cute video of my daughter you will all forgive me?!

Another Milestone....

One of the benefits of working in a pre-school is that I get to take my daughter to work with me every day. Savannah gets to be in the infant room right next to my office. She loves her teachers and her friends there. Because she's still nursing, I get to spend time with her several times a day. This morning after I had just nursed her and returned to the office, I was paged over the intercom to return to the infant room. When I peaked in through the window, I saw my sweet little angel walking across the room using a walker. I grabbed my camera from the office to capture this video clip of my baby meeting yet another milestone. Savannah had done her caterpillar crawl over to the walker, pulled herself up to standing position and walked with the walker across the room. She's officially growing too fast.

8 months old and all is well

Wow, where has the time gone?! My baby is now 8 months old. She is a happy, healthy, and a very sweet little girl. Everyday we savor our moments with her. Her new trick is to wave and say "Hiayyyy" with a huge smile. I'll have to attach a video this weekend when I have more time. :)

PS. Thank you Linda Guzman for these sweet angel pj's.

Too tired to laugh

The Tonight Show with Jay Leno is on our television right now. Normally I would be giggling throughout his opening standup, but I realized that I am not laughing...I am tired.

Michael and I signed up on Facebook a few nights ago and so I keep staying up much too late to figure out how it works. I must say that so far it is a pretty cool thing, I've gotten in touch with a few folks that I haven't heard from in some time. I just need to learn to balance, so that I am not soooo tired. :)

My family, like life, is beautiful

There is nothing more to say. I have a beautiful family and I am extremely lucky to get to share my days with my sweet husband and adorable baby girl. (Oh yeah, and Brandy & Tootsie!)

Time for a new bracelet

A few weeks after her birth, Savannah was was given a name and a blessing by her daddy, an ordinance we observe in our church. Because this was a special day for her, she also received a gift of a beautiful bracelet from a sweet sister in our church (thanks again Karen). From the time it was given to her I rarely took it off of her wrist other than to clean it and to size it as she has continued to grow. Well, I assumed that she would be able to wear it for a little longer but my adorable chunky babydoll has outgrown her bracelet. SO, it is time to find another...

A Beautiful Fall Day

Lately the weather has cooled off just a bit. Most days the temperature ranges from the low 60's-80's. Depending on the time of day you go outside, Savannah may need a jacket or even a hat to protect her bald head. Today was a beautiful day, so we dressed her up in a cute outfit (thanks for the clothes Auntie Randi) and had some outside time. Her favorite part - watching Brandy and Tootsie running full speed around the yard and wrestling each other.

Texas Influence

I grew up in the era of grunge and alternative music. I wore overly sized flannel shirts with little to no colors and shopped at thrift stores so that I could find the ultimate grungewear - the mechanic shirt! :) I remember that in my teen years I loathed country music. I would go to school or church dances and if a country song started playing, I would promptly exit the dance floor covering my ears and singing "LaLaLaLa." I don't know what I had against the music or who or what had influenced me to dislike it but the irony is that at about the age of 19-20 I started listening to some country artists AND now I listen to it more so than any other music genre. I attribute that to the fact that a majority of radio stations in Texas play country music. My hubby too has an affinity to country music. That being said, I wonder what influence Texas will have on my little girl in her growing up years. Hopefully she'll take to the good lessons like saying "Yes/No sir/ma'am" and being hospitable to everyone by waving and smiling, and saying "God bless you" to every sneeze overheard. And hopefully she'll grow up having a lot better fashion sense than I ever did, not that that should be too difficult! :)

Busy Friday Adventures

Okay so this post is being published late because it was a long and busy Friday...what with walking three dogs (we've got an extra for a couple of days), working from 9:30am-7:00pm, organizing a build-your-own baked potato for our employees during lunch, feeding and mothering my dear baby girl (she is still nursing), being a friend and trying to devote at least 15 minutes of undivided attention to my hubby. So after getting done at the school Michael and I bundled up Savannah (the temperature had dropped to the 60's outside!) and took her to her birthplace - Round Rock Hospital. Our good friends Matt and Lynn had their sweet little baby boy on Thursday at the same hospital that we had Savannah, so we headed over to meet little Evan Saunders. He is adorable and a healthy six pounds six ounces. Congratulations to our dear friends and thank you for letting us invade your hospital stay to meet your little handsome man!

That was the best adventure of the day and we especially enjoyed it because it reminded us of our first moments with our little girl earlier this year.

Cute little devil and a question of the holidays

This is our adorable little niece Kioni in her Halloween costume. We just got this fun pic the other day and wanted to share it. Have you ever seen a cuter little devil? She is growing so fast and we don't see her as often as we would like. The holidays are coming so arrangements need to be made. Hmmm... will we be spending time in Houston or will the family be coming to central Texas? It is definitely time to start thinking about these things. So, Houston family, what is your vote?

Cutting Teeth

Savannah has been cutting her first tooth since Sunday and it is finally semi-visible enough for a picture to share. She is acting like a pro though and seems un-phased by the process. Michael and I can only pray that she will handle all future teething so well.

A Historic Moment

Wow, how cool to think that in our lifetime we are witnessing such an amazing event that someone so out of the "mold" has been elected as President of the USA. We are excited. We are hopeful. And we are praying for our nation to change for the better so that Savannah and all of our posterity will have a brighter future.

Whatever the outcome...

For those of you that haven't voted, no matter who you support, I do hope that you exercise your right to vote tomorrow. Living in a democratic country is really a blessing and to participate is an honor even if it means adding a little extra stress to your day tomorrow.

So on the eve of election day, I must say that I am sooooo very grateful that Williamson County had early voting options! We were so lucky that polls were open for ten days which included one full weekend. So instead of stressing over whether I would make it in time to participate in this important presidential election, I was able to visit a local polling center during my lunch hour last week and complete the process in less than fifteen minutes. It was convenient. It was stress-free. It was exhilerating because I believe that every time that I vote I am participating in making history and I know that every vote counts. It's true that our blog has sported pictures and a banner in support of Obama and I am hopeful for change that he can bring as president. But whatever the outcome of the elections I feel at peace in my participation.... I enjoyed voting in the Democratic primary, participating in the county Democratic convention (Savannah was 2 weeks old, so she went along too), meeting other folks in the area with similar ideals, talking to others about my support and defending my candidate, and especially electioneering by dressing Savannah in campaign gear! So whatever the outcome of tomorrow's election results, I hope you all have enjoyed this process as much as I have.

Savannah's Moves

While Daddy watched the Cowboys game tonight Savannah showed off some of her moves. We can't believe how fast she is growing up. She's amazing and such a blessing to us. We thought that we would share a few videos to make you smile as well. Here she is doing her inchworm crawl to get Tootsie.

She can stand up all by herself.

And here she is cruising along the ottoman trying to get the camera.

Still to come on another day - Savannah's dance moves. :)

National Blogging Month

Rumor has it that November is Nat'l Blogging month, so I am gonna do my best to post every day. That is the goal, we'll see how it goes. Are you up to the challenge too?

The cutest little witch ever

PS. Thank you Sister St Claire for the fun Halloween headband and treats.

Savannah's Halloween Fun

Well we always enjoy dressing up our little bundle of joy any chance that we get. But Halloween is especially fun because we got to put Savannah in a cute costume and parade her around literally. At the Primrose School we had a Costume Parade in the afternoon, which the kids and staff participated in. There were so many cute Tinkerbells, Transformers, Princesses, Cowboys, etc. And then the last group to join the parade were the adorable babies dressed up and wheeled around in a mobile crib. It seems that the smaller the child, the cuter the costume... so the babies and toddlers always steal the show.

As you can see we dressed Savannah as a Lovebug/Ladybug this year. Thanks Grandma D for getting this cute costume for our little one. We're glad that you got to be a part of this fun memory too!

So we also want to thank the Gillooly family for hosting us on Halloween night. It was so cute to see Savannah and her friend Becca dressed up and excited to see each other. Us girls did a modified trick-or-treat. Considering that the babies can't ask for candy OR eat it, we decided to visit with some neighbors and to enjoy the beautiful night with a stroll while the guys handed out candy and harassed trick-or-treaters. It was a good time had by all!

Savannah's first Portland Trip

Well, our trip to Portland was such a nice one. We really enjoyed sharing time with family and friends. Savannah travelled like a pro, she didn't seem to mind flying at all. In fact she really liked having her own seat during one of the flights because that seatbelt was better than any toy that Mom had packed for her. :)

One of the highlights to our trip was seeing how excited Savannah was to spend time with her cousins Ethan and Gage.

AND to see the excitement on others faces as she shared a smile or a kiss with those that she came into contact with.

She enjoyed meeting her many aunties,uncles, cousins, grandparents, and even another Savannah. We hope that our Savannah grows up to be as good-natured and beautiful as Miss Jameson. :)

Thank you everyone for welcoming us with smiles and open arms. We had a great time in Portland and we look forward to returning sometime soon.

Pumpkin Carving from Start to Finish

Considering that the DeRoest family was all together for the wedding of our brother Rodney and it is the month of October, the idea of a family trip to the Roloff Farm Pumpkin Patch arose from master-minds Brent and Randi. For those of you who watch TLC you are probably aware of the Roloff Farm due to the show Little People, Big World. If you haven't ever watched the program, I recommend that you check it out because it is a sweet reality program about this family in Oregon. Incidentally, the season premiere is Monday night (13th) on TLC. Anyways, our trip to the farm on Friday morning was a fun adventure. We all picked out the best pumpkins AND we made sure to take lots of cute fall pictures with the babies. Brent and Randi even went on the farm tour where they got to see some of the Roloff's in person. On Sunday night we enjoyed carving up our pumpkins, roasting the seeds, and chatting about everything except politics (that was the rule). We did silently make our political views known though with the Obama sunrise carved into our pumpkin. Michael did a great job! :)

Happy Wedding Day Rodney & Lauren!

Congrats to Rodney and Lauren! You two were radiant. Thanks for sharing your special day with us. We really enjoyed being here and Savannah loved the excuse to dress up in a pretty new dress. Enjoy your honeymoon and all of your time together. We love you!

Happy Birthday to my sweet Hubby!

There are no bells and whistles. I offer only my love forever. Happy birthday sweetheart.

Sweet moments to share

Kisses and Wagging Tails

Kisses for Tootsie

Splashing in the Tub

Where does the time go?

It's strange to reflect back and realize that Michael and I have been married for seven years now. I don't know where the time has gone. It seems like just yesterday that we shared our first ackward hug at the airport in Salt Lake City. And it seems like it was just moments ago that he proposed and soon after we were married...

For all of the years that we have been together our motto has been "the best is yet to come." It started with an uplifting story that I shared with Michael while I was serving as a missionary in his congregation. From it we learned to keep an eternal perspective. These past seven years we have experienced both ups and downs and because of the strong foundation that we began with and because we keep our focus on living for eternity, all of our challenges have become blessings. We are truly blessed. I am so grateful for this wonderful adventure of marriage that we embarked on so many years ago and I am so glad to have Michael as my eternal companion. Michael, thank you for keeping the faith in us and our family. I love you always and forever.