6 months (and a week)

First, let's review...

Happy Half Birthday, baby girl!!!

It goes without saying that you are a different baby than the one we brought home half a year ago, but it's also true that you're a different baby than the one we knew a month ago! You are learning so much these days. You will be crawling at any moment. You have figured out how to move your knees back and forth and you have figured out how to move your hands, now we are just waiting for you to figure out how to do both at the same time. This month you mastered sitting up and then not a day or two later you learned how to sit yourself up from laying down. I love seeing you sit up and play. You are starting to get into things...I think it's the cutest thing ever, but know I may not always feel this way!

Of course, you had many firsts this month. It is so exciting to experience all of these things with you, whether big things like eating your first bites of cereal, or little things like...

...playing in the laundry basket,

...riding in the grocery cart,

...or your first trip to the zoo with your friend, Cali.

Your eyes are still blue, but when looking closely, I can see some light brown streaks.

I ADORE your gummy, toothless grin.

In fact, I adore every... 

...little thing   ...about you.

It's not a stretch to say that at all times, there is most likely someone in our house with a smile as big as yours and your daddy's in this pic, which could be my fave from the past month...

I know I've never been happier. Happy 6 months, Mer Mer. Can't wait to start planning your first birthday party...

Much Love, 

your mama

simon and garfunkel always say it best

Slow down, you move too fast.

You got to make the morning last.
Just kicking down the cobble stones.
Looking for fun and feelin' groovy.

Hello lamp post,
What cha knowing?
I've come to watch your flowers growing.
Ain't cha got no rhymes for me?
Doot-in' doo-doo,
Feelin' groovy.

Got no deeds to do,

No promises to keep.
I'm dappled and drowsy and ready to sleep.
Let the morning time drop all its petals on me.

Life, I love you.
All is groovy. 

~Simon and Garfunkel, "The 59th Street Bridge Song"

figures...

Mmm, a chocolate-dipped cone.

When one such thought creeps into my mind, I can't let it go until I go and get the ice cream cone. I'll think about it well into the night and will talk of nothing else until the cone is safe in my belly. So, about an hour ago, I strapped Merit in the car and off we went to get my dipped cone from McDonald's. I am familiar with this trip. I know the route well. I know the shortcuts that put my delicious cone in my hands about a minute or two sooner. I made the left turn down my shortcut street, and all I saw was a long line of red brake lights. What? This street is never backed up like this. Cars are turning around in driveways, so I followed the crowd and did the same. As I turned down another street, determined to get to my cone somehow, I noticed that the gas station on the upcoming street corner was packed. Cars were blocking traffic waiting to even turn in. I remembered that my shortcut street also has a gas station on the corner. The regular unleaded price was covered with a brown cardboard sign that read "OUT". Oh. Good thing I still have half a tank, I thought as I waited at the light. Finally, I arrived at my beloved seller of dipped cones, waited in a bit of a line in the drive-thru, and then pulled up to give my order.

Hi, welcome to McDonald's, may I take your order? the woman asked sounding annoyed.

Yes, I would like a dipped cone, please. I gave my order with excitement.

Oh, we're out of ice cream, she said quickly.

Shock and depression set in as I drove away.

No gas AND no ice cream? What is the world coming to?

mail call

Merit and I have been loving the mail lately. She recently received her first book from Dolly Parton's Imagination Library. They send your baby a free, age-appropriate book EVERY month until the age of five, with the last book received being Look Out Kindergarten, Here I Come. I was so excited to see that the first book was the original version of The Little Engine That Could. As soon as I opened it to read to Merit and saw the illustrations, memories came flooding back of reading this when I was little.  The teacher in me thinks it is so wonderful that Dolly is doing what she can to make reading an important and accessible part of every young child's life. 

Thanks, Dolly!

The same day, Merit also received her "Born to be a Wildcat" onesie from ACU. I had sent info to the ACU Today announcing Merit's birth, and I had no idea that they sent the onesie to you as a free gift. Well, I am sure that was factored into my tuition at some point. Oh, well.

Thanks anyway, ACU! 

And today, we received a huge envelope full of new clothes for Merit from her Aunt Erin! When I opened it, I just kept pulling cute things out...it was like a bottomless pit of baby clothes! That was sooooo very nice and is just as appreciated. Merit loves all of it (she is wearing one of the outfits in these pics), and I will love playing dress-up with my doll, I mean, baby.

Thanks, Erin!

thinking out loud (sorry Merit fans...this is mostly about little old me)

I guess I have mentioned that I am not teaching this year. Kev works really hard so that I can stay home and teach my own baby. It is more fun than I could have imagined, and we're happier than we've ever been. I'm still on the lookout, though, for something I can do from home to contribute a little bit financially. I've had oh, so many ideas and grand plans. Nothing has really panned out yet, but I am adding one more thing to the list of "hey-that's-something-I-love-to-do-why-not-do-it-for-money" ideas. I have always loved designing scrapbook pages, cards, etc. the old-fashioned way, with paper and glue. Recently I have discovered that I also love to do the same digitally. I think (I know, actually) I would really enjoy designing anything from stationary, birth announcements, or invitations to photo collages, scrapbook pages, and blog design. I did my blog header (and will probably change it often as I am learning and experimenting...), and Erin so graciously let me practice on hers, too. Let me know if you'd like me to do one for you. Leave a comment, or you can email me at sharonalbright@gmail.com. I would love to get more practice before I even think about charging any type of money for it. I realize that some people may think it's crazy to pay someone to make you a blog header, but I think there is a market for it. I have recently made a new friend here in Nashville named Heather. She and her husband are so great, and they even have a little baby girl who is about one month older than Merit. Heather is going to teach me about Photoshop and Illustrator, and I am going to (try) to teach her a little bit about sewing. Anyway, all that to say... I think this is something I could actually do with a baby at home. I'll keep you updated if you'll keep me accountable to giving this my best effort. And, if you'd like, a prayer or two wouldn't hurt. 

merit's birth announcement

erin's header in blue (i made it green for her blog)

09.13.00

Eight years ago today, by the lake at Nelson Park in Abilene, 

Kevan and I decided we were "official". 

We had gone on our first date about a month before, and spent every moment we could with each other from then on. We were serious about each other, but situations caused us to be hesitant to call each other girlfriend or boyfriend. Situations like...Kev being a junior in high school and me being a freshman at ACU. 

 We were so very happy. But I had received comments and advice from several telling me to "enjoy my freshman year" and " make the most of Welcome Week" and "don't date high school boys". Kevan also did not want me to miss out on anything, so we both decided in August that we wouldn't jump into anything just yet. But as much as we wanted to believe that was best, we both just wanted to be together. I tried to make the most of Welcome Week, but ended up, well, hating it. I was even asked out a couple of times, but I turned them down because I already felt a commitment to Kev.  I couldn't explain it to anyone...especially those urging me to stick to college and, you know, college boys. 

So, on September 13th, a good 3 weeks into "making the most" of my freshman experience, I decided that being with Kevan was what I wanted to do, and I told him that night by the lake. I was essentially following the advice I had been given...having Kevan in my life made my freshman year enjoyable, memorable, and fulfilling. I couldn't pass on the opportunity to date him. We both sensed even then that we were going to get married, so a relationship that seemed unconventional to some, made perfect sense to us.

Kev, I'm so glad we followed our hearts eight years ago and went for it. I can't imagine going through college, marriage, parenthood, or any other step in my life without you. You are my rock and have been since the beginning. I've loved having you by my side for the past almost decade of my life. And I love you. A lot. Like, a lot.

on your mark, get set...

..and that is usually as far as Merit gets. She hasn't quite figured out the "go" part yet, but she sure is trying hard and we appreciate her efforts. 

And she is getting better at sitting up. 

AND she had her first bites of cereal this week. After a few weeks of her staring us down while we eat, I gave in and finally decided it was time to give the girl some food. She was a bit confused, but I think she likes it.

AND I discovered a new website that is tons of fun, and some of my fellow blogging friends may like it, too. ScrapBlog! It's fun, it's free, it's what I used to make my new header.

THE END.

hey there

This morning Kevan brought it to my attention that I hadn't blogged in a while. I'm not sure why. We certainly have a blog-worthy subject living in our house, and I've watched enough CNN the past week or so to ramble on and on about opinions regarding this and that. I never blogged about our Texas trip (mom, I need your pictures!), or how it felt for the first time in twenty Augusts to not have a first day of school. I guess I could have blogged about Merit's second round of shots last week or about how she's in the 97th percentile for her weight (!). At the moment, though, nothing really whips me into a blogging frenzy. So, Kev (and Nina and Grammie), for today, you'll have to settle for some pictures I took this afternoon. Remember the blog-worthy subject I mentioned earlier? Yeah, this is her.