Tristan's first church service

This Sunday was Tristan's first church experience. He was almost five weeks old, the age at which Maura went to church for the first time. We decided to brave the germs and get him out of the house for a church service. I wasn't sure how well we'd be able to get ourselves ready and out of the house in order to get there on time, but things went well. We actually left the house five minutes early, which NEVER happens! Tristan and I made it through the first five minutes or so of service before he started fussing and we retreated to the nursery to nurse. I did bring him back afterwards, though, and he slept like an angel through the rest of service and Sunday School. It was so much fun introducing him to everyone. So many people have been looking forward to his arrival, and it's always fun to meet a new baby. I wore his little train bubble on him, the same one he wore home from the hospital. Amazingly, I didn't get any up close pictures of him. By the time we got home, he was screaming to eat and I just forgot! Oh, well, it's not like there aren't any pictures of the child on other days!


The Allen family all enjoying church together. Southside Church of Christ, June 2008.

We're so proud of our little boy and loved introducing him to our church family.

Next Sunday is promotion Sunday and Maura and all her friends will be moving up to the two-year-old class. It'll be a big change for them because it'll be more class and less play. I snuck into the classroom during Sunday School to get one last picture of them all in Toddler Class. From left to right; Maura, Luke, Reagan, Addia and Milbrey Ann. There are generally about ten in the class, but a lot of people must be gone on vacations and such.

I'm going to love having these pictures of them all when they graduate from High School!


Marilyn and Maura. Marilyn is a young girl who LOVES little kids. She's only eleven, but she's been helping to care for younger children for most of her life because she really likes it. She's taken a special interest in Maura because they live in Georgetown too, and I've had her come over a few times to be a mother's helper for me. She's practically begging her mother to let her come over and play with Maura this summer while she's off school. I'm really going to take advantage of the offer and have her come over as much as she likes. I could really use the help. Tristan has been much more awake over the past few days and it's much more difficult to juggle both kids. I'd better learn quickly, though. I'm going to be on my own before too long. From what we know of what Brent's job will be like in Georgia, it sounds like he's going to be spending a lot of time in the field. Looks like I'm going to get to experience single parenthood firsthand. I know that God is going to bless our time down there, though, and we'll be a stronger family in the end. Still...

Maura's first (real) haircut

My girl got her first real haircut on Friday! Obviously, by age two she's already had a few trims, which I accomplished at home to the tune of lots of crying and many tears. I had always trimmed up her bangs and a few wild hairs in the back, but we were entering new territory with her hair. For the past two months, I've been letting her bangs grow, hoping that we could start doing ponytails and other hairstyles before too long. This week, though, it finally drove me crazy! She won't always leave a hair bow or barrette in place, so she's been brushing the hair from out of her eyes. I just couldn't stand to see her looking through those long bangs, so I decided it was time to brave the hair salon. I needed professional help to decide where her bangs should stop and the rest of her hair to leave long. I took her to Kiddie Kutters, a kids hair salon in Lexington. I thought if was going to be a traumatic experience, but she did really well. They let the kids pick out a video that they watch at their own personal television set while they're having their hair cut. They can also choose what to sit on--Maura chose a pink Jeep!

She thought she was big stuff sitting in her Jeep! This is her before picture. All smiles!

She got a little tense as the stylist started, but she was much too engrossed in her video to protest too much. Given the choice of pretty much any movie or cartoon you can imagine, my child chose Teletubbies. Don't ask me why!

Look how long those bangs are!

We had a brief moment of panic as she started on the bangs, but we were able to talk her out of it. She didn't even shed any tears.

Almost done and still glued to Teletubbies.

Putting on the finishing touches. I chose the "First Haircut" package, which means they save her hair in a little pouch and take her picture at the end and even give her a certificate!

The After picture. Doesn't she look cute?? She looks like such a big girl. The stylist went a little short on the bangs, but they'll grow back quickly.

At the end, Maura got a lollipop and I took her to Target to buy a treat as promised. She picked out two boats to float in her swimming pool.

One last slide down the slide--this hair salon had everything! After such a non-traumatic experience I'm not sure why I waited so long. I fully expected tears and the gnashing of teeth, but I was pleasantly surprised. My girl looks so pretty and I'm glad we've had our first pleasant haircut experience.

One Month Old!

Tristan hit two very important dates this week. He turned four weeks old, then three days later turned a month old. It's hard to believe that it's been a month since we brought our sweet boy into this world. In some ways, I can't believe he's already a month old and that he's growing up so quickly. In other ways, it seems like he's always been a part of our lives and we have a hard time remembering what life was like without him. He has brought us so much joy and we just love holding him and seeing him make all his sweet faces. We're truly in love with our little Tristan. This week, he has started to wake up more and be awake for longer periods of time. He really enjoys looking around and seeing all the things he's been missing for a month! He LOVES ceiling fans and any dark to light contrast, like window blinds. We're loving being able to see his little peepers! I took him to the doctor on Wednesday for a four week checkup and he's doing well. He's up to 10 pounds, 8 ounces, which was my exact guess for his weight. He's starting to add weight and we're seeing fat rolls once again. I'm loving seeing the dimples reappear on his elbows and knees! I can't wait to see a double chin! He's a healthy guy, and we don't need to go back for another month for his two month visit and shots. Yikes!

Tuesday, June 3rd, four weeks old. This is how Tristan looks most of the time. What a sleepy guy.

"I dream of nursing." One of my favorite faces that him makes is when he's dreaming about nursing. He just purses those little lips and sucks away!

Prior to four weeks, this is how Tristan usually looked when he was awake. He really only woke up to eat and be changed. Since he felt like he should always be nursing, he was always terribly indignant when I tried to do anything else with him, like change a diaper!

Look how red he is! It happens in about five seconds flat too! He goes from sweet sleeping Angel Baby to Red Screaming Monster in no time!

Contemplating all the deep thoughts of the universe.


"Really, Mom, how many pictures do you take?"

On Friday, June 6th, Tristan turned a month old. He loves playing on his Baby Einstein play mat. We have a ton of toys hung around it, so it's a little overstimulating, but he's really enjoying lying quietly and looking at everything. He'll lay there for about twenty minutes at a time before he's ready to be picked back up.

"Ahh, this is the life!"


"What do I look at first?"

We're really enjoying playing with him and talking to him a lot more. I can hardly wait to see that first smile and that look of recognition of his mommy in his eyes. I don't want to rush through these first months wishing for him to hit the next step, but I can hardly wait for him to become more interactive and playful. We have lots of fun times ahead of us.

Fun with Old Friends

On Sunday, June 1 we spent the day over at Mom and Dad's house. We had a lot to celebrate. First of all, my brother Jeff was home for a visit. He hasn't been home since Christmas, so it's been six months since we've all been together. We really enjoy hanging out as a family, so when we can all get together it's a big event. Jeff had flown in for the weekend to be in his best friend's wedding, so we only had Sunday to enjoy some family time. On the same weekend, some old friends came to stay with my parents for a quick visit. The Addington family was one of the first families we became close with after moving to Georgetown. They started the church that we attended for years and Louise Addington way my Sunday School teacher for many years. They moved to Minnesota over fifteen years ago and we've rarely seen each other since, but we have the kind of friendship that's easy to rekindle. Louise and her triplet boys were passing through on their way to Nashville and called to see if they could stay for the night. It was so wonderful to see them after so many years. I didn't get nearly as many pictures as I would have liked, but we really did enjoy our visit.

Three generations, Grammy, Tristan and Me. This sweet baby slept the ENTIRE day while we were enjoying our picnic. It was warm and he was being held for the entire day, so he just settled in and snoozed.

Maura with Grammy and Pappap. She was so active the whole day. There were just so many people to talk to and show off for.

Steven, Jeff and Mark. Steven and Mark are two of the triplets. When we first met the Addingtons, they were only a year old. Now, they're entering their senior year of college! It made me feel old because I used to babysit these guys! It was great to get to talk with these guys. They've grown into wonderful Christian men.

Louise holding my baby boy. It was so special to be able to introduce my babies to her. Like I said, she taught my Sunday school class when it was just me and my best friend in the class. She took a lot of time to get to know us and invited us into her home on numerous occasion for a special class and even a sleepover. She's just one of the most godly and warm individuals that I've ever met. It seems so strange to be able to introduce my two children to her--almost like I shouldn't be grown up enough to have two kiddos. The Addingtons are getting ready to be grandparents for the first time in a few months, so she had to practice up holding my little guy.

Katie and Scott. Scott has logged at lot of Bridge family time lately. We really enjoy hanging out with him.

Bridge family portrait. This is as good as it gets, folks. Maura was melting down because she was WAY late to go down for a nap, so she cried the whole time. I just went ahead and left her glasses on her--no sense showing her crying face. This will undoubtedly be the Christmas card photograph this year. I can't wait to see how many people call or email Mom to see when Lorie had a baby!

Bridge family plus the two boyfriends. This family just keeps growing and growing.

Lorie enjoying some Tristan and Jeff time. We hated that Jeff had to leave, but we're really hoping to see him in a few weeks at my grandparent's 60th Wedding Anniversary.

Snoozing away with Aunt Lorie. We can't wait for her to have one of her own someday so my kids have some cousins to play with!

Speaking of snoozing, Brent catches lots of ZZZZZ's these days with Tristan on his chest. I think it's one of his favorite things about having a newborn. Too bad we're not all catching more ZZZZ's all together at nighttime. Tristan is still a little mixed up--he didn't fall asleep for the night until after 2:00 am this morning. Yawn.

Worms In Dirt

My girl is obsessed with worms. This obsession began this spring when the weather got nice enough that we could get outside for walks. Maura began noticing the dead, dried up worms all over the sidewalk, and she was intensely interested in them. She was even more interested whenever we would come upon a live worm still wiggling upon the pavement. We always have to "save" them and put them back into the grass so they can go back to their mommies. Maura talks about worms all the time and for some reason, the other day, started talking about eating worms. I decided that this was the time to introduce the concept of actual edible worms(gummy) and a fabulous little dessert called "Worms In Dirt." On Saturday, Maura and I embarked upon a culinary adventure together and made Worms in Dirt. Following is a photo documentary of our journey together.

Watch out Rachel Ray! This little chef is learning the culinary ropes and cooking up a storm. Maura loves to cook with me and takes every opportunity to pull a chair up to the counter and participate in whatever I'm cooking. I love it! I had Maura put on her chefs hat and apron for the occasion.

Pouring in the pudding. Maura has become much more accurate lately with ingredient addition.

Adding the milk. Pouring liquids is still a bit dicey. What you don't see in this shot is my hand holding the measuring cup too.

Of course every great chef must taste their work to make sure it's perfect.

Crushing up the cookies. She was particularly good at this step.

Almost ready, Mom.

Next, Maura had to add the cookie crumbs to the cups. She tried every way she could think of to add the crumbs without actually touching them. This girl does not like to get her hands dirty.

She was very deliberate, making sure that she put an equal amount in each cup.

"Who me? Umm, no, I haven't been eating anything. Why do you ask, Mom?"

"See, nothing in the mouth. Absolutely nothing."

Next, Maura added the Cool Whip. Maura calls it "creamy" which is also the word that she uses to talk about diaper ointment. We hope that this doesn't lead to any unfortunate events in the future.

She was super good at the Cool Whip adding and stirring. I was so proud of her!

Maura and Mommy cooking together. Brent had come home at this point and was treated to a play by play about the Worms in Dirt by Maura. She was most excited about the fact that we would be eating the worms. What I think is so funny is that up until this point, she has not seen gummy worms. She doesn't know they exist. She obviously believes that we will truly be partaking of some tasty, slimy worms!

Maura graciously allowed me to do the filling of the cups.

She finally got to see the "worms." She really studied them, remarking about the eyes and about how they were squirmy. And, of course we had to eat a few before we could add them to the recipe.

Very carefully placing the worms on the top. Maura's worms were all lined up straight.
Studying the worm and considering the best placement for it.
Yes, a masterpiece!

The finished product. Just as we finished placing the last worm, Maura sneezed upon the desserts. Yum. I just tried to put it out of my mind. I guess it's one of the occupational hazards of cooking with a two-year old. We had so much fun cooking together and I'm going to have to come up with a bunch more simple recipes that she can help me with. I'll make a chef out of this girl yet!