When September Ends

September has flown by. John is well into the meat of his courses and is beginning to outline, with the ever present thought of finals in the back of his mind. John begins every day at 6:30 by working out (lifting or a long run) with a few other friends from school. He's taken an 8-6ish approach to his work, starting early and studying between and after classes so that when he comes home we have his undivided attention.

Softball has been something he looks forward to, another distraction from studying. He is now playing on 3 different teams. (He even got me to join one...I actually hit the ball too!) As captain of his section's team, John was responsible for getting sponsors and designing their team's jerseys. John got a great local pizza place called Slice as well as a grad bar called Backyard to sponsor the team. It's sort of a tradition that the names of the sections be a little controversial. Remember that John is in section E. They came up with Ex-parte, a legal term referring to motions or hearings done on behalf of one party. Then, just to be scandalous, they added a section symbol to the front of the name. The jersey's came out great and we even did an iron-on version for Adeline and another baby in the section (I know...horrible mother).

Team mascot

The famDad running home

Addie has been changing every day. She isn't crawling yet, but is able to get pretty much anywhere she wants by rolling around. She's turning 6 months this week and we cannot believe it's already been half a year! She's been such a happy girl and greets her Daddy with a huge smile every evening when he walks in the door. She's sitting up with some help, without it she sometimes topples forward. She and I have recently joined a Baby Boot Camp workout class and she enjoys jogging around and participating in the exercises with Mom.

Fletch took some adorable shots of Adeline while visiting.

Sarah Fletcher Photography @ sarahfletcherphoto.com

Sarah Fletcher Photography @ sarahfletcherphoto.com

She has enjoyed having a few visitors here in Charlottesville (Uncle Dave, Aunt Gloria, Cousin Emma, as well as "Aunt" Fletch) and has also been able to see some extended family on a short trip back to Maryland. Our door is always open to visitors, we have a blow up mattress and some pretty comfy couches. Come visit our sweet girl!

Emma came to play

Pajama party

Goodnight story with Dad

Cute Birthday Mommas

During our quick trip to MD Addie got to watch Uncle Shayne score a touchdown, just for her!!

The girls, Addie, Mommy, Cici, and Muzzie

Love these cheeks

Big Win

First two weeks of law school are over and John wants to keep at it, so I guess that's a good sign! We are loving Charlottesville so far. We have made lots of new friends, mostly other LDS families here for school. We have been trying to get involved and go to all the social gatherings. We made red beans and rice for one potluck and jambalaya for another. We have hosted dinner for a few a John's classmates as well as bookclub for some girls in the ward.

John was elected as one of the softball captains for his section. Softball is a big UVA tradition and they sure do take it seriously. Last night there was a big event called the Dandelion Parade. Each section (there are 12) of first year law students, 1L's, was expected to plan and perform a skit/dance to represent their section in front of the older students. It was a fierce competition and the winners had to play the 3L's in the first opening softball game of the season. John's section is section E and so they did their skit and dance about the "E"arthquake. It was pretty cute and they even got their elderly professor involved, which everyone LOVED. John's section stole first place and they played in the game right after! Even though there was lots of drinking and typical college inappropriateness... it was a fun evening and we all really enjoyed it. John was pretty proud about their big win (although the softball game was another story!)

celebrating the big win

As for his actual education, he is really liking his classes, professors, and section mates. His favorite class is civil procedure, which he tried to explain to me is something about how the law works and what the rules are.

Addie has been such a happy girl lately. Everyone loves her and can't believe how well mannered she is. We have been trying to switch to a more consistent nap schedule-- set hours, less naps, longer naps-- that way Mom can get more done!! It has been a pretty smooth adjustment this week which makes everyone, including baby, very smiley! We have also begun to introduce a few solid foods. So far we have done rice cereal, sweet potatoes, and carrots. She's not a big fan of the veggies, but we want to try to get her use to those before we bring on the good stuff a.k.a. FRUIT! Here are a few shots of our doll.

she didn't like carrots much

sleepy time with Samson

our girly girl

A little behind...

Well it's been almost a month since we last posted. While not much happens in a month for boring old adult life, with Addie, it's a whole 'nother story!!! She is getting to be so much fun. In fact, Uncle Andrew--who is NOT a little baby person (he refers to Adeline as the worm) was overheard saying, "She is actually kind of enjoyable to be around now." Addie smiles at everyone, even admiring strangers at the grocery store. She's discovered her toys and has become somewhat good at entertaining herself.Samson's become much more careful around her when she's on the ground and the two can often be found lying close together keeping each other company. Addie is a little chatter box and loves to talk and laugh with Mom and Dad. John is already worried about the distractions she's going to cause him when he should be studying because she is just so fun to be around!

We finished our move the Charlottesville, VA and John is nervously anticipating the beginning of school! More on that to come :)

Smells so sweet

Our happy Adeline!

Playing with her new friend from Grandpa Kevin

Silly little girl

Meeting Aunt Sarah in person!

Look what I can do!

Sweet Baby Girl is learning new things everyday! She is super nosey, always looking around trying to figure out what's going on and who's talking. This week she has been getting so strong holding up her little body. She also discovered her feet! Her personality has really been shinning as she holds on to and grabs everything, smiles ALL the time, and is even starting to laugh on a daily basis. Adeline really is such a doll :)

Suppose to be napping with CiCi. Look how big she's getting!

Keeping a close eye on great-gma Muzzie

Summer Fun

The summer is flying by quickly and Addie girl changes every day. As a 3 1/2 month old she is talking, holding her head up, playing with her hands and sometimes feet, and even laughing occasionally (okay, only like 3 times). She is still a bit underweight because of her acid reflux, so this week we have begun supplementing feeding time with formula. While this tends to make her poops stinkier and her spit up stain, we want our baby girl to gain the weight necessary to keep her healthy. She also started on baby Prilosec to calm her tummy down and we have seen a happier baby already! We have all enjoyed spending time relaxing with her this summer. Adeline has so many people who love her and will miss her to pieces when we move to Virginia in just a few weeks!

Big girl holding her head up all by herself! We broke out the bumbo seat and she loves it.

Relaxing at home. Doesn't she look just like her Daddy in this one??

Hanging out at the pool with cousin Emma. This time she actually liked the water!

Fourth of July

With her older "cousins" Maren and Jon-Jon at the 4th of July picnic

Emma liked the fireworks!

Addie could care less....she slept through the entire show!

Daddy's girl

John and I cannot believe we have a 3 month old! How has it already been 1/4 of a year that we have had this sweet little addition to our family?? Wellit's probably quite obvious from my many blogs and facebook posts that I sure love this little stinker. But John's a little more reserved with expressing his feelings, so I'll do it for him.. He LOVES being a daddy!

In the mornings you can find him pressing the snooze button a few times so he can spend "just 5 more minutes" snuggling up with his baby girl. He loves the big smiles she gives him before he leaves for work each day. After he gets home from a long day he usually goes straight for Addie, even when she's crying. As they spend more time together, John figures out just what she likes and how he can make her laugh or calm her down when she's upset. He even changes poopy diapers--what a man! Adeline sure loves her Daddy!

Daddy teaching Adeline how to hold her bottle

Naptime

Daddy's father day present, locket cuff links so he can always have his loved ones with him!

School's out for the summer!

School is finally out and Addie has already gotten a head start bringing on the summer fun! She has been up to all kinds of activities like swimming, going on family walks, watching her Uncle Shayne play ball and much more! Adeline is very alert and loves interacting with others. She's awake much more often and we all enjoy her lots. Momma is so excited to spend more time with this sweet girl!!!

Her first swim with Johanna, Carson, and Savannah

She thought the water was still a little cold for her liking!

Adeline's first family crawfish boil! These guys were flown in all the way from New Orleans to celebrate Uncle Frankie's birthday!! It was John's first crawfish boil too, he ate until his lips burned. Too spicy for Addie girl, maybe next year.

Becca taught John how the real tough guys suck the heads!

Big Cousin Nick keeping an eye on Adeline

To top it all off, Addie went to her very first major league baseball game! She watched the Washington Nationals defeat the Baltimore Orioles. She was such a good girl and didn't even mind the noise and the crowds even though it was a little past her bedtime. One of the workers gave her a first game certificate and Nationals pin to save for when she gets a bit older!

We are looking forward to lots more fun in the sun this summer with our sweet angel girl!