Molly Frances // Two Months Old

May 8, 2013

Molly Wolly,

You are 2 months old! This is pure insanity. You are turning into a cuddly, roly poly little baby with a double chin who is starting to coo at us. It is magic.




This month, you made a big stride in the sleeping department, stretching out to a nightly 7-hour run. Hooray! You go down around 8:30 and sleep until about 3:30. After that, it's a little willy-nilly. You're also settling into good naps, taking a morning nap and a long afternoon nap (usually around 3 hours!).

The passing of your dear great-Granny took us on a whirlwind tour of Texas, and you did GREAT (you and your sissy both)! Almost 1,600 miles we went in the car, and we made it.


(picture the above, but with Mommy between you guys mostly...it was an interesting ride!)

Here you are sweetly sleeping in your pack-n-play...


I love watching you and your long eyelashes sleep:


On our Texas trip, you got to meet two of your great-grandparents!

Grandaddy in Houston:


Grandma in Dallas:



Our Memphis Grizzlies have been tearing it up in the Playoffs this month...here's our family composite, by Daddy. Your face is too precious!

Me and my little buddy:

***Your stats: at two months old, you are 12 lb 2 oz, and 24 inches long (75th and 95th percentiles, respectively). You are a tall drink of water! Look how long!

You wear size 1 diapers, and 0-3 month clothing (though I am sneaking you in a few 3-6 month things already).

You have the sweetest little disposition! If fed and dry, you are mostly just content to sit and pleasantly enjoy being with everybody. You love being held up on our shoulders, earning you the affectionate nickname of "little gargoyle."

One thing that does plague us a little bit is your spitting-up. My lands, child! It is crazy! It no longer seems to really bother you that much, but boy can you spit up! Just when we think you're done, you'll show us we were wrong! LOTS of laundry for Mommy! Because of this, you still nurse frequently during the day, in smaller amounts, so you don't get too overloaded. We'll see how this goes when you start "school."

Your trademark pouf is still going strong and very popular. No one can resist touching it if given the chance. Even this sweet teenage boy at church the other day went in for a pat.

Your sister loves you dearly already, and her "hugs" have gotten way more gentle, though she still asks you for high fives on the regular. She loves to hug you whenever she gets a chance, and loves to greet you in the mornings when she wakes up. I cannot wait to watch the adventures you two will have together!

We are just crazy about you, little precious! I will miss my sweet little sidekick when I return to work in a week and a half. I love you to the moon and back!

Granny

My sweet and precious Granny went to meet Jesus last Sunday, April 28, 2013, peacefully in her sleep. She wasn't sick, she wasn't in the hospital, there was nothing "wrong." She was 92 years old, had lived a full life, and was just ready to go meet her Lord and my grandad.

But I will definitely miss her!

(this was taken just two weeks before Molly was born, her first and only trip to Muddy's)

My mind has only really just begun to realize what a void she will leave behind. Granny moved from Waco, Texas (my dad's hometown) to Memphis in 1999, to be closer to us and my uncle's family, who also lived in Memphis. 

circa 1986, with cousin Whitney (left), sister, and me on the right

Like she always did, Granny rose to the occasion, and quickly made friends in her condo building. After growing up without any grandparents in town, it was such a treat to be able to see Granny so often, and at every birthday celebration, every holiday. We made her famous sugar cookies together one year (or she made cookies, the perfectionist she was!) for Christmas, she knitted baby blankets for many of our dear friends, she embroidered blankets. She was talented at handiwork and loved to keep busy. She loved crossword puzzles, games (especially Skip-Bo and Rummikub), and was a great bridge player (so I hear--I don't play bridge). 

 Easter 2012

Over the past 10-12 months or so, we'd been eating lunch every Tuesday. She moved into an assisted living community (thrilled to be relieved of coming up with meals for herself), and her new place was very close to my office. I was able to pick her up and take her to lunch, and we both really cherished this time together. A natural planner and perfectionist, she always wanted to know what was ahead. As soon as I'd pick her up, before we were even to the car, she'd ask me where we were going (and then if I knew how to get there!). We burned up the lunch spots around Poplar/240, and had fun doing it. 

It was fun going through this whole pregnancy eating with her every week. She was at Juliette's birthday party when we announced to the family baby #2 was coming. I sat down next to her to get her take on the whole thing after the hubbub of the announcement died down. She didn't hear very well in the last years of her life, so I didn't know if she had understood what was happening (Juliette's first gift to unwrap was a "Big Sis" shirt). I said, "Well Granny, what do you think? Did you see Juliette's shirt?"  She so sweetly said, "Well, wouldn't that be so exciting?"  She was very excited when I explained that it was actually happening. :)

My Granny Fran with Molly Frances

I am just so humbled and grateful that she was here to meet her little namesake great-granddaughter. There were so many blessings... she'd gotten to see Molly several times. Jonathan took the most precious video of her (she didn't know he was filming and was just speaking freely). AND best of all, Martha, Molly, and I had just eaten lunch with her the Thursday before she died. I am so so glad. 

The morning we got the news, I was sitting in the nursing mothers room at church, and I had some precious alone time to cry and just thank God for her and her life. His kindnesses to me, especially lately, were just running over and over in my mind...He gave me several opportunities to be with her in her last months without me even really going out of my way.

Christmas 1984 (?)

Guessing here...summer 1985

November 12, 1991

One of my favorite photos...

Granny was buried in Waco on Thursday of this week. It was a lovely service at Waco Memorial Park on an uncharacteristically blustery day (48 degrees in Waco on May 2? Winds of 30 mph?). 

I'm glad we were able to pack up our littles and trek over to honor Granny and her wonderful long life. We took the opportunity to "tour" Texas and visit other grandparents and family while here. Let's just say, we have driven many hours (Memphis-->Waco-->Houston-->Dallas). The babies have really done great! Are we crazy? I painted my nails gold the other night to cope. 

I'll miss you, Granny! I am so thankful to have many wonderful memories.

The New One Smiles

...among other things like eating, pooping, and sleeping (doing so much better! 7 hours at a time and things!). But the smiles! Gah! Nothing like first smiles.

Life is grand with this tiny girl:

Combed-down, post-bath hair:

Sleeping beauty (I can't wait to see how that hairline grows in)...

I know, I know, it's really strange that a mommy of two girls dresses her little baby in all these blue clothes. What can I say? I don't really have a good excuse except I like blue on girls (and that we borrowed some stuff from our friend Tuck)?

And here's the other one, also known as the "big baby" or "the old one"... (maybe her pink outfit will make up for all the blue above?)

If you can't push the wheelbarrow one way...

Try from the other end:

We're gaining some rhythm to our days and maybe one day soon I will do something crazy like cook dinner!

Tomorrow the little one will be 7 weeks old. A time so long and so short, all at once! It's a special season at our house.

(Also... Go Grizz!!!!!!!!! Believe Memphis!)

Juliette's Big Girl Room

The time has come to share photos of Juliette's big girl room! I know you all were waiting on the edge of your seats, so here goes. (By the way, am I a blogging machine or what?!)

The room isn't completely finished, but I thought I'd carpe diem and share where we are now. Maybe you guys can toss your two cents in on the curtains question mark. Also, I am not nearly the photographer my husband is, but he wasn't home when this room was unoccupied and clean, so bear with me.

Entrez-vous!

This is the view standing from the stove in our kitchen, looking to your left. The room was formerly our guest room (you can see its former very sorry/very old state here), but "guest room" happened to be synonymous for "junk room" in this case. 

It took several upon lots of hours to get this room completely cleaned out and ready for Juliette's occupancy. As (I think) I mentioned previously, we wanted to move Juliette before the new baby came because the nursery is connected to our room, through our bathroom (making it easier to sneak in there during the night). 

Although it was kind of a stretch with a then-16/17-month-old, we tried to build up the whole "big girl room" thing to Juliette while we were getting it ready. I don't know if that whole thing really worked necessarily, but she does like her new room (and her new big girl bed). 

Here's what you see when you walk in the door...

Some details: 

The bed was in my in-laws' Arkansas lakehouse (and actually came with their house! So we don't know how old it is/where it's from). To make it lower, we put the box spring under the bed for now, and it's plenty comfortable for little Jules. We have retractable side rails from Babies R Us on either side of the bed. Many thanks to them for letting us use the bed! I think it's perfect here.

The quilt was made by Jonathan's grandmother, approximately 40 years ago. It is in amazing shape too! I wanted a multicolor quilt for Juliette's bed and could not believe my luck when Jonathan's mom offered this one for us to use. Total jackpot! Thank you, Nana!

The folded duvet and shams were from West Elm on clearance. The Euro shams were sewn by my sissy, from fabric I actually bought for Juliette's nursery and never used.

The heart pillow was bought for Juliette's nursery and purchased here, though it doesn't look like they have it anymore (I think it works much better in here). 

I'd love to replace the fan but we haven't gotten around to it yet ($$).

I mentioned in this post about the dresser (on the left), bought at an estate sale several years ago and in storage until now. The alabaster lamp was my mom's as a child, made over with a brand-new lampshade and finial. The giraffe was a sweet Christmas gift.

On the right is the little ikea hack side table I made a few years ago. The lamp is an estate sale find that was sitting around with no home, again made 100x better with a proper lampshade and butterfly finial. 

One of the missing pieces of the room is artwork for over the bed. I actually have something already in hand for over the bed (by one Andrea Ballenger), but am still brainstorming how to get it mounted/framed for hanging (and how to pay for it). 

Looking from the corner (where the chair is): 

See! We need curtains!

Juliette's beloved "DeeDee," the large pink mouse on the left, was a gift. We subsequently found the small mouse on the right, "Baby DeeDee," at a shop a few months ago and just had to get it! 

The bookshelf:

I'm not the most confident bookshelf arranger, but this is my current crack at it. Uncle Scooter is Jules' Jellycat collection patron.

My stationery and some other paper goods are stored in the bins on the top shelf (the bins have interior dividers!), and my envelope stash/other paper supplies are stored in the cabinets. 

Here's the chair corner (and location of the cockroach incident!). I would love to have this chair recovered sooner rather than later. It was purchased at an antique mall for $70, and we had it sitting in our living room...placing it in this corner was a last-minute decision. Work with what you have, right? I think it works (especially since the majority of our reading now takes place on the bed).

The blanket was knitted by Jules' Grammy (my mom) after she was born, while she sat up in the night with me while I nursed.  :)  The little lace pillows were pilfered from my Granny's condo before she moved, and I got the knitted Mickey at Disneyland this past August when Marth and I visited our bro.

The amazing J table was made by Juliette's "Uncle" Grant, and stained by Daddy.

The "For Like Ever" poster (here)... I know, I know, it is all over blogland ever since the Domino cover. I just loved it and thought it would be really cute and punchy in here. 

The rug is from Urban Outfitters and a really amazing price for an 8x10. Since we got such a good price on the rug (and it's of corresponding quality), I sprung for an extra thick & extra awesome rug pad from our local rug store (Kiser's). I don't think it'd stay in place very well with a thinner or smaller rug pad.

Here are Juliette's play kitchen and toys! 

I'd love to get a little bench or something for this wall, but it definitely works for now.

This wall-hanging configuration is not at all my finest, but I guess it's ok for now. I definitely wanted to hang Jonny's mandolin (this past year's Christmas gift from me! I'm proud of that one) on this wall, and the other three pieces were moved over from the nursery (Juliette's name in Scrabble letters, the Romeo & Juliet quote by Andrea Ballenger, and the baby fox print). The platter I had in my serving pieces stash. I have a mirror that I need to hang up too. 

Here's another piece from the nursery, also by Andrea Ballenger. It looks so sweet against these pink walls. (A closer look at it is here...Juliette's name is on the bunting.) The closet door also needs one of those little things in the handle, what are they called?

We used this paint color in the nursery, on the dresser, so I knew I liked it already... White Beet from Sherwin Williams. I didn't know how well it would work on these walls, but it's absolutely perfect. You can see from the photos how it looks really really light in some light, and more pink in others. It's not too pink for me.

So the glaring missing piece in the room is CURTAINS! I found what I thought was the perfect fabric at Jo-Ann, but proceeded to have a nightmarish experience trying to acquire it, and had to abort the mission. Back to square one. Haven't seen anything yet that I like nearly as much as that other fabric. Originally, I thought maybe a red ticking stripe would work, but it was way too light-colored when I held up the sample. Anyone have any ideas? 

I am extremely indebted to my talented sister-in-law, the beautiful Amanda Jerkins, for helping so much with the room! She provided invaluable suggestions, advice, and endured a million annoying texts from me while we were working on it. Thank you, Amanda!!!

Thank you to my friend Laura for coming to help me clean out the parts of the room that were making me stuck and frozen (see: bookshelves, closet). You are a master! Also thank you to our good pals Burkes and Redings for taking Juliette to the zoo one Saturday afternoon so we could paint, undistracted... :)  Much appreciated. And to my darling mommy for coming to the rescue on my laundry room, and other stuff we cleaned out of here. I love you.

I love spending time in the room (roach notwithstanding!), but of course, I am just mostly thrilled how much Juliette likes it! She is always proud to show visitors her big girl bed, and luckily, took very quickly to this being her room. We're very lucky that she didn't have any problems taking so well to her new space. 

Whew! (I forgot how long these posts take!)

********

Believe it or not, I actually took photos of Molly's updated nursery while taking taking these, so I'll be back to share those soon!

7 years, Not Itchy

I love this man!  (Even if he does look really confused in this photo? Why? Wish I remembered...)

4-22-06, one of the best days ever.

In 7 years, we've ...

• Lived in 2 houses, in 1 city
• Had 3 cars
• Worked in 5 combined jobs
• Attended two schools (JRJ)
• Had 1 cat, 1 fish (RIP)
• Given birth to 2 children
• Established our family

(A lot of that list actually isn't that crazy for 7 whole years? Are we homebodies? We're homebodies, Jonny)

6th anniversary // 5 year post // 4 year post // 3 year (none, whoops) // 2 year post // 1 year post

********

p.s. THANK YOU for the comments on the no-shoes post. After re-reading the post, I realized that I didn't make the connection between my first point, which was how much I hate going barefoot, and the concept of a no-shoe house. The point is-- I've realized, when barefoot, how much I hate stepping in miscellaneous dirts/crumbs that are trekked into my house. The other point being I fear visiting a friend's house and being asked to go barefoot on their mysterious floors (yipes!). So yes, maybe we'll do no shoes for us, but not ask it of guests (unless they want to).