Here Comes Trouble

My sweet angel has a personality that is always evolving. She has a gift for squeezing into small spaces and finding any nearby cord to pull on. The only cord that is still accessible to her is the phone cord. Whenever she has the opportunity Grace will crawl under the end table and search for the last cord standing. When I snapped this photo she was about to dive under the table.

In other news...Ellie's food and water bowls have been relocated. Grace loved playing in the water bowl. It was just a matter of time before she sampled the food. What will she get into next??

A Visit to See Dr. Amy

Grace had a well baby check-up yesterday. She is a very, very healthy girl. At 10 months old she weighs almost 21 pounds and is 29 1/2 inches long. Do you think I have a Yao on my hands? She just keeps getting taller. She still wears 6-12 months clothes (as long as they aren't pants)and they are big in the waist. All her growth has been in her height.

The highlight of her visit to see Dr. Amy was sitting on the exam table. She was a maniac for the paper on the table. At home she is always diving for a newspaper, then getting it taken away. She'll grab tissue paper and then I will take that away before she eats it. The exam table paper was fun and I didn't take it away from her. She was twisting all around on the table. I had to hold onto her so she didn't fly off the table.

Afterwards we went to Sam's to stock up on diapers and other supplies. She looked like such a big girl sitting in the cart I had to snap her picture.

Unbeknown to me, while I was at Dr. Amy's with Grace my best friend Karen was having a baby down the street at the hospital. I didn't find out until I got home last night. We spent the entire day just shopping and stuff. I wish I had of known and could have been with her. Reilly was born one month early. She is in NICU and working had to get stronger. Keep Karen and Reilly in your prayers. They want to be home together.

Personality Plus

Grace's personality is certainly evolving. I will probably regret this later...but I love that she is stubborn and inquisitive. She really studies people and things. Here are some more photos. A couple are from her photo session. The last is Grace being Grace.

My Favorite Face

As you are reading this I hope that you will take a moment right now and say a prayer for a very dear friend of mine. She is facing some possible health concerns. She is a great wife, mom and friend. She was one of the first people I told about my decision to adopt and she has always been so supportive. I love her very much.

This is my favorite face. This is also my favorite expression on that face. Some in my family call it the "Elvis Face" while others call it "The Bad One Eye." Whatever they call it, I call it beautiful. This is Grace's signature look. I will ask her a question or say something to her and she gives me the look. I crack up every time.

My friend Amee took some photos of Grace about six weeks ago. She is an extraordinary photographer who always manages to capture a child's personality. We got some of the usual photos. But what I treasure are the ones that capture Grace's personality. Below are two more of my favorites. The first one...she was still getting used to her two bottom teeth and she was constantly running her toungue over them. I got the sweet pink dress in Vietnam. The second depicts the true love she has for her feet.

I am so thankful that Amee captured this face and these expressions so I can always remember. My baby is growing up. Grace is ten months old today!!

My First Mother's Day

I got the greatest Mother's Day gift - Gracie finalllllly said Mama on
Saturday! Grace looking in my eyes and saying Mama, that is the best. My mom also got me some lovely spring flowers for my front porch. The card was signed by Grace, Mother helped Grace sign the card with her handprint and footprint! What a treasure.

I must mention a couple of great gifts that two of my friends received. Susan is home from Vietnam with Lily Ana! And Jo finally got to see the beautiful face of Miss Cami Anh and she is precious! I'll be praying for quick travel approval so they can be together soon.

Mother's Day has always been a big deal in my family. We always went to my grandmother's outside of Memphis, that is where my mother grew up. Everyone was at Memaw's for Mother's Day. It was the one time that you saw all the cousins, aunts and uncles, family friends, etc. When my Memaw passed away the tradition continued at my Aunt Florence's house. She is my mother's only sister and they are extremely close, they were born only 10 1/2 months apart!

Last Mother's Day I remember being at Aunt Florence's and praying that I would have my daughter with me on Mother's Day 2007. Well this year Grace was the belle of the ball!

Her is Grace with her Aunt Florence. Grace really checked her out. I think it is because she and my mother look so much alike.


This is Grace getting some loving from Aunt Dee.

I am not making this up.

This morning Grace was playing in her room while I was getting ready for work in bathroom that is between our bedrooms. I walked into her room to check on her and deja vu - she was underneath the chest of drawers.

This is a recurring thing for her. She got stuck underneath a chair a few weeks ago, she has been backing up under the sofa and now under the chest of drawers. I am trying to stay on my toes so she doesn't pull something over on top of her head.

Last night Grace started something new...instead of pulling up into the walking position, she tries to stand right up. She will be on her hands and knees then she will put her left foot on the floor and she just can't understand why she can't just stand up. The lazy days are over, it is a job keeping up with Grace!

You just gotta laugh.

This morining I was running around the house getting ready for work and Grace was playing in the living room floor. As I was in the next room getting dressed, I heard Gracie's cell phone ring. Gracie has the Baby Einstein calling plan. Her cell phone says hello in English and Spanish and makes these other musical sounds when opened or moved. However I knew that the cell phone was not one of the toys I put in the floor for her to play with. I went to investigate.

I find Grace up under the couch with her head peeking out. She just looked up at me with those big eyes. The phone was under the sofa and her foot was causing it to make noise. I just had to look at her and laugh. She was so adorable and innocent looking I picked her up and kissed her over and over.