Belly Full of Laughs

Most people come away from the typical Thanksgiving feast with a belly full of turkey, dressing, cranberry sauce, green bean casserole, sweet potato casserole...any and every conceivable version of casserole, really. At least, that's what the 21 of us who gathered at my grandmother's house came away from the table with. Anna, on the other hand, apparently ingested a belly full of laughs when we weren't looking. It all spilled out when we went out back after dinner to burn off our newly accumulated calories by playing tag with the Johnston and Gray kids. We've noticed for a while how much Anna cracks up watching and interacting with other kids...this time we caught it on tape. What you can't see very well in this clip is how fast her little legs were churning as she watched her cousins dart around the yard. I'm no talent scout, but any of you track, soccer, or swimming coaches out there might want to pay attention. I, of course, will be acting as her agent...

Rollin', Rollin', Rollin'

So I'm walking home from class about a week and a half ago and check my voicemail to find a high-pitched, ecstatic message from Gina breathlessly telling me that Anna rolled over for the first time. And not only one time, but five or six times in succession. You can hear how proud her mama is in this clip, and her daddy is, too, of course. I'm still trying to teach Anna that tummy-time would be much more enjoyable if she propped herself up on her elbows and hands, but she's only slowly grasping the wisdom of her elders, still preferring more often than not to thrust her arms out like an airplane and churn her legs like she's swimming the 400m IM. When she finally figures out how to coordinate and channel her vast ambulatory energies, we're not going to be able to keep up with her. Good thing our apartment is small!

NC Trip

The second weekend in November we packed up the car for another road trip and headed to Cary, NC to visit Greg's grandmother and Anna's great-grandmother Kelley. The name should sound familiar...it's where Anna gets her middle moniker. Not surprisingly, they hit it off great. How couldn't they? Not only do they share a name but a significant dose of spirit and attitude to boot. Greg's Aunt Jacque and Uncle Boe provided the housing and the hospitality, and Greg's sister and bro-in-law made the trek to round out the family gathering. Anna demonstrated her enthusiasm for our time together by promptly peeing all over her clothes and changing pad right after we arrived on Friday night. Cool. It wasn't the only event of the weekend involving errant liquid. At Grandmother Kelley's birthday dinner on Saturday night, our waitress spilled an entire glass of red wine all over my sister. Truly spectacular in its soakage. Needless to say, we received very attentive service the rest of the night (though they failed to comp her meal - boo!). All in all a great weekend.

Back Online

I swear, good help is so hard to find these days. First, our housekeeper goes MIA (for several years now). Then, the blogmaster responsible for keeping our family and friends up to speed on Anna's adventures drops the ball for almost a month. Don't worry, he'll be getting a thorough tongue-lashing. So much has happened in the last few weeks, it's hard to know where to begin. I suppose turning 3 months old (September 30) is a good place to start...


Then learning how to sit up in her Bumbo chair...


Finding innumerable ways to look cute...


Visiting with her Nana and Papa in the ATL...


Reading with daddy...


Making an Amaretto birthday cake for mommy's 30th birthday...


Discovering that spitting is a great way to pass the time...


Turning 4 months old...


Dressing up as a scary black cat for her 1st Halloween...


Trick-or-treating with a friendly ghost and a lovely ladybug...


And scoring big candy for mommy and daddy to get fat on.


As you can see, Anna has been very busy. So have mommy and daddy. Gina went back to work the first week of October. It was a bumpy start, but she's getting back in the swing of things, working 30 hours/week. Greg is halfway through his second to last semester at CTS and adjusting to the jarring reality that graduation will be here sooner than he thinks. Mia Sharon is in town this weekend to get her Anna fix, and the three of us will be headed to North Carolina next weekend to introduce Anna to her great-grandmother Kelley and aunt Jacque. Should be great. We'll try to do better at keeping you all updated. Until next time, be well!