April brought Elise's First Birthday!! So many people made it out and it was a lot of fun.She does a practice slide on her hand-me-down play scape (thanks to Keith and Angie) before she gets dressed.Jaimee brings out the birthday girl ready to party!

Jody demonstrates the sidewalk chalk.

Samantha writes Elise's name.

Grandma and SamanthaLillyBrookeBreana and MelanieJody and Chris playing Washers.Elise, Papa, Emma and Cody The food was supposed to be minimal. Yeah, right. There are a lot of good cooks in the family.

She LOVED the cupcake. Her first time to eat sugar. She ate the whole thing.

Happy Birthday, my love. This has been the BEST year of our lives.

We Rocked It!

This winter made the front entrance to our house even sadder than it was last summer, so we decided to do something about it at the end of March in time for Elise's 1st birthday. We turned it into a little rock bed. It will continue to be a work in progress, but we think it's an improvement.
It was a very difficult process digging up the ivy and laying the rock. We couldn't have done it without Glenda and her pretty truck that hauled more than a ton of rock. She also helped with seeding our lawn and we're now growing actual grass! Jody also pressure-washed the brick, both porches, sidewalk, driveway, trampoline.....
We stressed ourselves out with the deadline, but it was totally worth it.

Family Cuteness

In the spirit of still trying to catch up, here is some fun with the family at the end of February.

Elise got to ride Pumba with Grandma's help outside of HEB. Wearing Grandma's glasses.
Wanting to play with Bruenn.
I actually captured Bruenn rolling over for the VERY FIRST TIME at Grandma's house!!

1st Play-Date

A couple of months ago Elise had her first play-date with Tommy and Andrew, Melanie and Jason's two boys. She had a blast.

"Is this what it's like having a big brother?"
Back at home, still happy from the day.

Standing and Crawling

February also brought strides in crawling, standing and walking along the furniture.

Bathtub Fun

She loves her baths. Especially when I lay her down in the water.

Funny Face and Bed Head in February

Just a couple of the ways she makes us laugh.

New Discovery

She discovers her bottom lip in January. Nothing cuter.

January 2010

Some random January events.

Elise's first solid food. A Cheerio! Her first time in a restaurant highchair. Pay no attention to the restaurant name. Her first attempts at crawling.

My Last Days at BBB

The last days at Bailey Banks and Biddle were hard, sad and fun. The company had such a rich history and I am very thankful to be a part of it. I took many pieces of it with me. Literal and emotional. While working here I met Jody, married him and had Elise. This was a big era in my life.Everything had to balance to get our bonus and we did it!

My make-shift desk on the last days.
Mauricio and I turning in our keys to the front door for the last time.I worked with Mo for all five years. One of the greatest guys. Always the jokester.Elise got to come to work the last day.
Mo at the front door.

The final crew. Bye Bailey's.

E at Piano

This was a long time coming (it's from December.) Thanks to Melissa, I'm not giving up on blogging......yet.