Goodbye May, Hello June!

We ended up May with a fun weekend full of "outdoorsy" type activities since it was such a beautiful weekend. Got to enjoy those cool mornings and evenings while we can!

We walked up to Blue Fish for sushi Friday. I'm thinking this is NOT what the doctor had in mind when he told us Lauren Margaret could start "solids"



Saturday we headed down to Farmer's Market and got some flowers. It was such a pretty morning, so we came home and got them all planted. Finally...some color out front and in back! We parked Lauren Margaret in the exersaucer in the shade and she had a lot of fun hanging outside with us. That evening, we met The Weidenbachs at Ozona for an ealier dinner. Here are Lily (almost 9 months) and Lauren Margaret. OOPS...cut off the Daddy's heads!
Sunday Brandon headed up to Lake Texoma with a friend for a few hours....I'm having to "sit out" until I pass this other kidney stone! Then, we went to The Underwood's for burgers and swimming. I just can't get enough of Lauren Margaret in her little bathing suits...gotta love it! She LOVES the water, so I think we'll be swimming a lot this summer. The Underwoods

Thelma and Louise! Doesn't it look just like them?

Memorial Day Weekend and our Little Mermaid

Friday evening we went to an old neighbor from Houston's wedding in Tyler, Texas. We had a nice time seeing old friends and the wedding was so pretty...outdoors at a neat old Victorian home. Here are some pictures from the wedding and some from Memorial Day weekend....plus some new ones of LM swimming...she loved it! We're so glad she liked the pool....now we just need to see what she'll do at the lake. Soon, very soon....
Before the wedding at our hotelGrandmommy and LM at the reception

LM, Grandmommomy, and The BrideDaddy and Lauren Margaret Memorial Day weekend

Avery Underwood and Lauren Margaret...best friends
The Little Mermaid

The girls loved this little shaded turtle float....we must get one!

Wrinkled toes after an afternoon in the pool
All that splashing and kicking wore me out!

4 Months Old!

Stats: 14.5 pounds, 25.5 inches long
Lauren Margaret is 4 months old today! She's really an active little girls these days. She is enjoying playing with all of her toys. She also is having fun blowing bubbles and sticking her tongue out and blowing...you know, making that toot sound with her tongue...gotta love it! She did it all during dinner last night at Chuy's. We got lots of laughs from it and so did the people sitting next to us :) She likes to reach out and grab toys, your face, hands, and anything else she can reach. She's starting to roll over all the time and thinks it's really funny when she rolls over then rolls back. It's become a bit of a game for her! Here are some pictures/videos of LM playing and some recent pictures from some outings this week.

Playing in her exersaucer

Hanging out
Fun day at the Arboretum
Jen and LMJust some pretty flowers and a cool water feature that we saw

Aunt Katie Graduates

Love this picture of Granddaddy and Lauren Margaret

This weekend we headed to Austin for my sister Katie's graduation celebration. We had a big dinner for Katie Saturday night at one of her favorite Austin restaurants, Z'Tejas. It was fun getting to meet some of her friends from UT. It was such a wonderful weekend....our entire family was there (my side)! It really turned into a family reunion which was very neat. We all stayed at the same hotel and all had rooms on the same floor where we could visit. Since we all had so many rooms, the hotel upgraded us to a suite (at no extra charge...see there are some nice people in the world...and well, the economy is bad, so I guess business is slow) so my immediate family all had connecting rooms that joined into a big living area. It was a lot of fun...like being at home, almost. I don't care how old you get, nice hotel rooms are always fun...I think mainly b/c you don't have to make your own bed - ha!! Here are some pictures from the weekend.
The Graduate....Hook 'em!

Lauren Margaret in all her drooling glory :) What a little party girl she was. She had so much fun this weekend and was so good! I'm really glad she is up for anything...so happy go lucky.
The entire family (KK is hidden behind me...hopefully someone else got a better pic with her in it, too. How did the shorty get on the back row?!?! )
Back row L/R: Uncle David, Abigail, Will, LM and I (KK hidden behind), Sarah, Mom, Dad, Katie
Anne and Daddy Smilie are in front of Mom, Dad, and Katie.
Front row L/R: Uncle Bill, Aunt Carol, Brandon, Amanda, Todd, Uncle Mark, and Trent

All the cousins on the Todd side (Todd Horner, Amanda Horner, Sarah Todd Siskron, Uncle Mark Todd, Katie Todd, Abigail Horner, Lauren Margaret, and I)
The Survival Kit for Life Sarah made for Katie...such a cute idea! Some of the items and notes left us all in tears we were laughing so hard! Sarah also made a neat little box for people to write down advice for Katie. We had fun reading those as well!Lauren Margaret and her stylist, Becky. The Lee Family after the partyGranddaddy, Grandmommy, and LM. Grandmommy had a a fun gift bag for Lauren Margaret full of teething toys, new pj's, a new bathing suit, and some flip flops. It was too cute! Lauren Margaret and her favorite toy, "Mr. Moo Cow" LM and Aunt CarolAunt Sissy and LM checking out the breakfast menu at the hotelLM and HersheyUncle Mark and LM. Uncle Mark gave Lauren Margaret this sweet little dress. It matches her blue eyes! It is my new favorite dress of hers.

First Mother's Day

As I sit here typing and watching Lauren Margaret play on her play mat (actually scoot off her mat), I stop to think of just how completely awesome the last year has been and how truly blessed we are. On May 18th, we had just returned from a trip to Mexico to celebrate the marriage of two dear friends (Marcela and Dan Devlin). That evening, we learned I was expecting. Brandon started his new job the very next day. Over the next nine months, we enjoyed lots of fun...preparing for our little one. I can remember wondering what she would look like, what her little personality would be like, what it would be like to have a baby, what we would name her, etc. Then, on January 20, 2009, I was blessed with the best gift I ever received....our baby girl!! Lauren Margaret has been such a joy over the last three months. We have enjoyed watching her grow and change each day. It's hard not to get emotional just thinking about how special she is to us. I feel so blessed to be a mother...not just any mother...but Lauren Margaret's mother. Thank you to Brandon and LM for making it such a memorable weekend and for all the joy you've brought to my life this year. I love you both very much!

Tulsa Sip n See

Last weekend we headed to Tulsa for Nana's Sip n See for Lauren Margaret. It was such a fun party and it was nice seeing so many Tulsa friends...many we haven't seen since our wedding almost five years ago.

Brandon's fraternity brother, Matt Wilson, married Tara High on Saturday night. Brandon was a groomsman and enjoyed being with all his "brothers". We attended the rehearsal dinner Friday night and the wedding on Saturday night. Lauren Margaret even made an appearance at the reception so she could meet some of Brandon's college friends. We are so happy for Matt and Tara!! Matt and Tara are both surgeons in the Navy. They met during their residencies where Tara was Matt's boss...just like Grey's Anatomy...are you seeing the similarities??

Thanks to Nana and Daddy Jim for such a lovely party on Saturday morning! They really put a lot of thought into making it special for Lauren Margaret...monogrammed ribbons with Lauren Margaret's initials, 103 roses for the number of days she has been with us (so special), lots of pretty pictures framed around the house of Lauren Margaret, Brandon, and I...it was just very special! Here are some pics...


Daddy Jim, Great Grandma Betty, Great Grandmother Georgia, and Nana with Lauren Margaret in front of some of the 103 roses.
Great Aunt Gail, Great Grandma Betty, and LM
Anna Marie Baker, Lisa Teel, and LMThe beautiful bracelet The Bakers gave Lauren Margaret. So fancy :) I LOVE IT!!
Nana and Lauren Margaret Daddy Jim and Lauren Margaret...yes, the hands are constantly in the mouth...I predict a tooth is right around the corner...
Wow! Look at my feet! This is another new favorite pastime for LM.
Daddy and baby

Some of the refreshments at the Sip n See. Nana had special ribbon made with Lauren Margaret's monogram and some with her name...really cute!
Dr. Rob Cunningham, Dr. Steven Carter, Wade Kovash, Dr. Matt Wilson, Nick Anderson, Matt Allen, Brandon Lee, Mike Elder at Tara and Matt's wedding.

Lauren Margaret (3 months) and Sally Claire Downing (1 month). Sally and Lauren M are two of the nine babies that have been born this year to Brandon's pledge brothers. Sally and her parents recently moved to Tulsa from Dallas...so sad! However, we can't wait for football season...the tailgates are going to look a lot different than a year ago! So fun!! Our good friends, The Cunninghams, just bought a house in Norman so the mommies and the babies will have a place to go to watch the games while the daddy's are at the games!