I Haven't Forgotten!

I promise, I have a TON of pictures to share with you all . . . the delay is due to losing my USB device for downloading the pics to my computer. I just haven't had a chance to go buy a new one, and as a result, I have three caneras FULL of images that have yet to be downloaded. Aiyi! In the meantime, we are doing great. . . getting ready for our trip to Hawaii on the 20th, and watching for Abby's first crawl -- she is soooooooooooo close.

Stay tuned for pictures of her first solid food (messy!), tummy time acrobatics, and baby dedication. We've been a busy little family!

Much love to you all,
Jim, Bethany, and Abigail

Very First Photo Shoot (Part Deux)

For those of you who haven't yet met Abigail, these pictures completely reflect our little Abby's precious personality. As pretty as the pictures are below, the color and the sunflowers in these ones showcase how fun-loving and vibrant she is already proving to be. She would have to be with all that RED hair!!! :)

Very First Photo Shoot

Jim and I FINALLY took Abigail to get her pictures taken last weekend. Yes, I know. They are absolutely adorable!!!! :) Granted, they are not nearly as artistic as the ones our dear friend Jessica and her Auntie Desiree will eventually take of her (once they get their little booties out here!!!), but they filled the need for now.

We had no idea, by the way, that our little Abby was such a model . . . she LOVED having her picture taken and didn't stop smiling the entire time. It was hilarious. She is such a delight!

New gDiapers & Baby Seat :)

Soooooo, I was extremely excited about a week ago when Abby's gDiapers FINALLY arrived. What are gDiapers??? They are the coolest solution for people who want to decrease diaper pollution but don't want to have to wash yucky cloth diapers. They are the hybrid of the diaper world. . . . . they are a cloth diaper with a disposable liner. And the liner is made from wood pulp, so you can actually flush it down the toilet, or if you want to throw it away, it will biodegrade in 2 months (instead of 200 years!!!!!). And even better -- they are CUTE! (See orange diapers above.) :) Yes, that's my brief commercial. Trust me, the diapers are really cool.

All that to say, it's been very exciting around our house, lately. Abby now refuses to recline and is absolutely determined to sit up and see the world. In fact, she is so determined to sit up now that we had to get rid of the bouncie seat. The last time she sat in the bouncie, I looked awy for 1 second and she pulled herself completely upright and fell forward. By the time i looked back at her, she was still in the bouncie -- but only hanging by the safety belt. Yikes! So we went out that day and bought her a fancy infant seat. She LOVES it!!! She grins as soon as we put her in it. She likes to hang out with Daddy on the porch while he BBQs. So cute!

The only time Abby doesn't complain about laying down now is in the tub. As soon as she hears the water running those little legs start kicking and she even lunges toward the water . . . don't let her petite frame fool you -- she is one strong baby!!!

Fair-Skinned Sun Baby

Here are a few snapshots of Abby's first day at the pool. We went up to Dana Point to celebrate Jimmy (my brother's) engagement to Nicole, and used the pool party as an excuse to FINALLY get our baby into the water. She loves her baths so much that I was sure she would dig the pool . . . .and she did! But not the sun too much :( As soon as we go outside, she always slams her eyes shut . . . definitely my tendency as well, so I tried to protect those blue eyes with a BIG floppy hat. Anyway, I still managed to at least dip her in for a second. She LOVED it, was totally relaxed, but then got too cold. So, our little adventure was cut short -- but it was fun while it lasted!!!

Ewwwwwwwwwwww!

I know it's uber gross, lol, but this was what greeted me the other day when I took Abby out of her baby seat. Ewwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww! I was wondering why she had been so darn content and quiet for the last 15 minutes while I was cleaning, so decided she needed some love. What a treasure she had left me!!!! But boy oh boy, did I have a happy baby afterwards. :)

George Kastanza

Oh my goodness! Do you guys remember that old poster of George from Seinfeld???? The funny one where he's posing in his underwear with his socks on . . . anyway, it's hilarious . . . and these pics totally remind me of that picture. And being the Seinfeld fans that we are, these pictures are even more hilarious. :) If you don't have any idea what I'm talking about, it's all good . . . cuz they're stinkin cute either way!!!

This was taken during our nightly bathtime ritual, which we affectionately call the "Baby Spa." It's part of Abby's new daily schedule (sooooooo excited that -- our days are finally a bit predictable), and involves bathtime at 7ish, followed by baby massage, lotion, and all-around baby pampering. Then bedtime at 8! (Yes!) She loves her baby massages, and it's actually the one time of day she doesn't fuss during tummy time. I also have to brag . . . Abby started sleeping through the night the week before I started back to work, and has been sleeping through the night since then!!!! I pray that this continues smoothly, though I of course expect some hiccups. In the meantime, I am reveling in her 8pm-6am sleeping pattern. Thank you, Lord!!!!!!!!!!! That was a HUGE answer to prayer!!!

Baby Legs!!!

Ok, so I am totally in to baby legs. They are the cutest baby leg warmers . . . if it weren't so dang hot, the poor child would be in them every second! Of course, maybe that's a good thing, lol.

On a separate note, can you believe our little red-head???? It's amazing. And it seems to be getting even redder! Too fun!

Baby Stars and Stripes

Okay, these are too cute!!!! Our tiny bundle of stars and stripes! (Yes, it is the cutest 4th of July outfit EVER.)

Uncle Brian, Aunt Desiree, and Cousin Dianna -- and Guitar Hero!

Jim and I decided to take Abby for her first road trip over 4th of July weekend -- yikes! I was a bit nervous about it . . . I mean, she did great on the plane ride to Seattle, but she obviously didn't have to be strapped into a carseat for the entire time. Anyway, we were anxious to introduce our little Abigail to Jim's brother, Brian, and his wife Desiree and daughter Dianna ("D"), and therefore, packed our little family up for the six hour drive to Phoenix. (Of course, this normally would take 4.5 hours without a three-and-a-half month old baby.) Abby was once again a total champ on the trip. She slept for awhile, and was overall a perfect baby on the trip. The child doesn't cease to amaze me!!!!
We had a great time with the family. We spent the majority of the weekend playing Guitar Hero on Wii, as well as bowling, baseball, boxing, etc, etc. It was a great way to pass the time indoors since it was 115 outside! We had such a great time, Jim and I went out and bought ourselves a Wii yesterday. Yes, we are totally addicted!!!!
In conclusion, I have to say, it is definitely a blessing when people love your baby . . . and Uncle Brian, Aunt Desiree, and D obviously loved Abby to pieces. She had so much fun with them, and as you can see, she loved them right back. It was great to watch them all together . . . and to see Abby's reaction to their three wiener dogs. Abby thinks dogs are much more interesting than our boring cats!