Hello NC!

Amazingly, it is starting to feel like Fall here in the Upstate.  I'm keeping my fingers crossed that the lovely weather is here to stay.  Since it was a gorgeous day, we decided to go hiking with Cat and her boys.  But first, we had to wrestle 3 car seats in the back seat.

We headed north on 276 and crossed the stateline to DuPont State Park.  It was Lucy's first time outside of SC and we had an ambitious hike planned.  From Corn Mill Shoals, we turned onto Big Rock Trail, climbed to the top of Cedar Mountain, down to Little River and back up.

Ronan hiked most of it with his spiffy new backpack 

First signs of Fall...

We enjoyed a yummy snack of snap peas, cheddar, goldfish crackers, bunny grahams and Hawaiian sweet bread.

Ronan found a geocache box while exploring!  It had a number of neat items inside, including a journal.

The hike was very steep but it was a walk in the park for Supermom Cat!  :o)



Snake at the Mall!!!

We went to the mall today for the first time.  As I was about to put Lucy in the shopping cart, this thing caught my eye:

Holy slithery snake!  Even I shrieked, and I am not scared of snakes!

Guess we're never going back there...

P.S.  We later learned it was a harmless corn snake, but still, they don't belong in a mall!

Surprise!!!

My dear family and friends threw a surprise birthday party for me yesterday.  I was told that we were going to PF Chang's for a family dinner but when we went to my sister Kristine's house to drop off her chihuahua, Jared told me to come in and bring Lucy with me.  I was perplexed to say the least.  We were already running late and so I did not want to waste more time by going inside.  I quickly found out that everyone was inside to greet me and celebrate my birthday.  Guess turning 30 ain't so bad after all!  :o)

Waggin' @ the Waterpark

Today is one of Darwin's favorite events of the year - the annual Waggin' @ the Waterpark where they let the dogs take over the pool and have some frolickin' fun.  It's Tucker's first time going and we were all very excited.

Well, as it turned out, Darwin swam the farthest and the longest he's ever gone.  Tucker, on the other hand, is a different story.  Let's just say they may never let him back at next year's event (an old lady kept smacking him with a frisbee since he won't stop mounting and nudging other dogs)...  :o)

Meeting Uncle Emman

Uncle Emman finally came to Greenville to meet little Lucy.  The introduction was long overdue which may be why they were both off to a little bit of a rough start...

But they hit it off eventually...  Love you, Uncle Emman!

Dirty Thirty

It's Momma's 30th birthday today!  Lucy started off the day by making a very special present in her diaper:

Poopie face(s)

We laid low the whole day and got some snuggles in before going on a family dinner date at Bonefish Grill.

Daddy and Lucy

Everything that Momma wanted...

The best birthday ever!

6 Weeks!

We went to see Amy today for Lucy's 6-week well check.  She now weighs 10lbs 3oz and measures 21.75in long (she grew almost 2 inches taller in 6 weeks!).  Her head measured 14.75in and her chest just a quarter of an inch smaller at 14.5in.  Amy remarked at how strong she was - she was active and kicking the whole time.  Heart rate is around 150's bpm.  Lucy proudly showed off her excellent head control and all her reflexes were spot on.  Oh, and she left the birthing center proudly sporting big girl diapers (well, size 1, so bigger than usual).

Little chunker on the way to meet Lily & Katy for yoga

Go Gamecocks!

Lucy was cheering on the Gamecocks after a TD and the point after:

Smile! :o)

I am just beside myself with baby joy whenever I look at my little chunky monkey and she's all smiles...

Of course, she still sports that trademark scowl but I'm glad I am finally able to coax smiles from her every now and then...

Storytelling Time with Daddy

It's never too early to get a child started on learning and we could not think of a better way to do this than to share with Lucy our love of books.  This is why we were so excited for her first outing to Barnes & Noble today!

Daddy Jared read a bunch of childrens' books to Lucy - it was amazing to watch as she paid attention to every word.  She really looked like she understood everything!

Storytelling Time

Oooh, I'm not so sure what I think of that dinosaur...

What's with the spikes?!?

Get that tail away from me before it smacks me!!!

AAAAAAHHHHHH!  It's gonna eat me and my blankie!!!

SAVE ME, Daddy!!!

::Lucy's so terrified of the T-Rex, she pukes::

Yay, The Lorax!  I like this book better.

Little Miss 1 Month Old

Lucy survived her first shopping trip with Aunt Kristine yesterday and she came home with a hot pink tutu.  Of course, her aunt wanted to take 1 month of photos of her in it.  Momma wanted to use some climbing gear in the photos.  In the end, we compromised.  :o)

Tutus or trad climbing?  Lucy will have to decide when she gets older!  :o)

(Manning-less) Colts Season Opener

Daddy, we can still win without Peyton, right?

Go Colts!

Wow, this game is boring

Uh-oh, I'm getting worried...

Peyton better be back after 2 games MAX! TWO!!!

Yeah, TOUCHDOWN!!!

This is what I think of them Texans!!! ::censored::

This is not going well at all...

34-7?!?

I want Manning back!