One Year Ago...

One year ago yesterday (Feb 20) we found out I was pregnant with little Taryn! It was a Saturday morning and we had to wake up early to drive to Houston to celebrate Tiffani's surprise 30th birthday. I got up while Evan was still sleeping and after seeing the positive result I hopped back in bed and shook him to wake up because he was going to bed a dad. I don't think he believed me a first but as soon as I waved the pee stick in his face he realized I wasn't joking! It's hard to describe how we felt when we first found out but for me it was a combination of excitement and fear. It's kind of like graduating college and starting a real job is a big deal. And then comes marriage, and that's and even bigger deal. But having a baby and becoming a parents kind of dwarfs all of the other big things we've gone through. Now that Taryn is 3 1/2 months old we feel like God has blessed us more than we deserve...she's happy, beautiful and most of all a HEALTHY little bundle of joy. Her smiles melt our hearts every day!! We love you Taryn Faye!

First Trip to the Movies

Today was a big day for Taryn, she got to go to her first movie at the theater! I took her to the "Cry Baby Matinee" at the Angelika to see "Up in the Air". I'd been wanting to see this movie since it has lots of American Airlines stuff in it and my department helped with some of the promotions surrounding the release of the movie. My mom usually plays bridge on Thursday afternoons but this week they happened to play on Wednesday so she was able to join us which was great. Taryn did really good in the movie but she stayed awake until the last 5 minutes when she finally crashed out (funny how it always works that way). Even though she was awake she mostly sat in her car seat while I rocked her...she must like George Clooney. She loves to kick her legs around like she's tap dancing so she kept herself entertained. I think we'll definitely try to go again before I head back to work in a few weeks!

After we got home Evan was feeling left out so we took advantage of the nice weather and went for a family walk at the park. We even found a stray little dog and called the owner to come get her. What a great day!

Baby Dedication

We had Taryn dedicated at our church on Sunday morning. It was such a special day because we had our family there with us as we dedicated Taryn to the Lord and made the commitment, as parents, to raise her in a way that honors God. She did so great in front of all the people and she got to sit on her daddy's lap and stay for the entire service. Her cute little red dress was perfect since it was also Valentine's Day. We missed having Evan's mom here to celebrate with us but she's been battling an eye infection and couldn't make the trip out.

And thanks Katie for taking such great pictures!

It's My Birthday

I haven't quite reached the end of my twenties so I'll keep count and continue to celebrate until then. Last Saturday...the big 28! After a rough night with "The Boss" I woke up to some delicious homemade crepes thanks to Evan. Since RJ and Tiffani were in town for RJ's interview we celebrated at my parents with a yummy dinner and a relaxing afternoon with the family. Tiffani's birthday is next Saturday so we shared the day. I won't say how old she is but I think she quit counting ;)

It was a great day with lots of fun and laughs!

The Birthday girls...we're only 6 years old I guess

Red Velvet cake with Raspberry filling (no, I didn't make it)

Crazy Uncle RJ

Taryn's always the center of attention so she thought it was her party too

The next Redken spokesmodel

When your hair looks this good all the time, why wouldn't Redken want you to promote their hair products???

Snow from a distance

I'm finally getting around to posting from last Thursday when Dallas got record breaking snow! It was snowing when we woke up and it didn't stop until late in the evening...crazy! I've been so anxious for winter to be over so we can spend some time outside going on walks and getting some fresh air but looks like we'll have to wait a little bit longer. Most of my mommy friends have posted cute pictures of the whole family out in the snow...not this mommy! I hate being cold so we stayed inside all day long and we improvised on pictures in the snow by just opening the front door!

Too Young to Date?

This week Taryn had a date with one of her many boyfriends, Aaron. Taryn is a little over a month older than Aaron but he's a little chunk! We had a last minute change of plans but we ended up going to the mall and lunch. But don't worry, this was a supervised date and they weren't allowed to hold hands...ha ha! It went so well that we've set up the second date for next week at the aquarium so stay tuned for those pictures!

Taryn's not so sure about this set-up

Bobble Head

We've been trying to get Taryn to strengthen her neck but since she's not a fan of tummy time we decided to find other ways. So today we pulled out her Bumbo chair for the first time. She looked so cute and tiny sitting in it. She's still a bobble head but hopefully before long she'll be able to support her big noggin!

Such a big girl

Maybe sitting up will help her hair lay down!

3 Months Old

On Tuesday Taryn turned 3 months old! We celebrated with an afternoon of shopping and dinner at Meme and Gramps' house. We also marked this milestone by deciding that Taryn had officially outgrown her newborn diapers. (I'll let you guess how we came to this conclusion but I'll give you a hint by saying that Oxy Clean does wonders are baby stains!) I attempted to weigh her on my kitchen scale but that didn't work out like I envisioned. So I'm not exactly sure how much she weighs but I would guess somewhere around 10lbs. She's still wearing a few newborn clothes since a lot of her 0-3 month clothes hang off her skinny waist. Hopefully soon she'll be able to wear her cute little blue jeans!

I keep saying this but we really can't believe how fast the time has flown. I remember the day she was born like it was yesterday. At 3 months old she is smiling so much, especially when anyone new talks to her. We love seeing that gummy smile! She still loves her pacifier but lately we'll see her sucking on her bottom lip and putting the blanket in her mouth. And don't judge me as a bad parent but I really think she likes tv! It must be all the colors and movement that keeps her attention. We don't let her sit and stare at it but this morning I did stick her bouncer in front of The Today Show while I showered. Kathy Lee and Hoda had at least one viewer! So here are a few pictures from an attempted 3 month photo shoot!

It's my party and I'll cry if I want to...

I'll do it myself

Based on this picture I can already hear her saying it now "No Mom, I'll do it myself!" Taryn doesn't get bottles too often but when she does she holds on tight. What 3 month old do you know who wants to hold her own bottle? She thinks she's helping but really those little hands just get in the way!