My workout partner...

Bailey and I did Tae-Bo together the other day. I think she is so cute! What great motivation....

Taylor all smiles as usual....

Kitchen Renovation

Blair and Pete worked very, very hard over Christmas vacation to complete a pretty in-depth kitchen renovation. I finished it off with new decor and we all think it turned out really well.


Painted the walls a lighter green, hung new curtains, pillows for window seat. Spray-painted chandalier silver
Sanded and painted cabinets. Installed silver hardware. New curtains/ towels.
Installed new light fixtures.

Ta-da! Several weeks of hard labor= Successful Frugal Renovation (This all totalled less then $1000). Next up: New solid-surface countertops (will have this done professionally :)).

Look at ME!

My Taylor- this is how happy she normally is!


Look at my 2 bottom teeth! It was a lot of hard work getting these......
Hi ya!
look at me....
so, so, so, so CLOSE!

Pretty Girls

My two littles, all dressed up and ready for church!

Providential Friendships...

Jeremy and Rebekah

Rebekah and I (the men declined a boys-only pic ;))

In church, we have been learning about providential friendships. These friends bring you closer to the Lord and together, you display God's love to each other in emotional, physical and spiritual ways. Blair and I had great pleasure in going out to dinner (kidless!) and starbucks with two of our favorite people. We have not lived in the same area in over 4 years, but know that they will be lifelong friends. They have a little one (Sophie) that is 1 week younger then Taylor. What a joy it will be to continue to see how God shapes our lives in the years to come.

"Walk with the wise and become wise, for a companion of fools suffers harm" Proverbrs 13:20

yep, I'm a cutie!

Taylor is getting so much personality lately. She is so sweet, patient, loving. She gets upset, but not nearly to the level that big sis did. It is so strange for me to see how different they are, but I think it is good that they will grow up with different strengths/weaknesses. Bailey can get really, really happy and really, really mad. Taylor seems to be a little more even-keeled. She loves to be held and in these pics she was not only held by Grammie, but also looking at Skittles the cat and Rocky the dog. Oh, the joy!

Faces at Grammie's

Taylor caught her a creature.....


Bailey + chocolate bag....
Pure joy...
bad doggie beging a good doggie....
contemplation.....

Gainesville fun

Bailey and Grandma drinking soy milk together- CHEERS!

Grammie with 2 of her grandbabies
making a drum

Christmas at the Cellon's

Taylor (8mo) and Alice (11mo) playing with Alice's new walker car!

The aftermath. See Bailey's Nemo pillow on the chair Grammie made? Awesome!
Alice- I could eat her up!
Uncle Johnny with his loot
Aunt Lindz and Alice recovering from a stomach bug (that they joyously passed to everyone else except my immediate family- even my Mom and Dad got it somehow!)
Grammie, Bailey (with a Nemo fishy) and Poppy
Uncle Blair and Alice(poor pitiful alice was so sick)

ring-a-round-a-rosie

ring-a-round-a-rosie. pocket-full-a-posie. ashes. ashes. we-all-fall-down!

Bailey and Taylor love dancing with Grandma! (I think Grandma likes it too!)

Haiti

Many of you may not know, but I went to Haiti on a Medical Mission Trip in 2002. It was for only a week, but what a life-changing week for me. As a young nursing student, I saw poverty like that week that I still haven't seen since (even the Tsunami hit Banda Aceh was better off then regular day Haiti). My heart has been so burdened for this country. I have been to the Port Au Prince airport. Ya'll, it is the roughest airport you would ever see.....one bathroom for the whole thing. I did not spend much time in Port Au Prince excpet to fly in/out of, but it was a very crowded, very poor place to be. My prayers are that God will bring healing to this country that has known spiritual, emotional and physical desolation for many, many years. Blair and I are hoping to adopt a child from Haiti from Compassion. So many children are hopeless and despair there....I can't even imagine how many more are now orphans. God, save them!

Taylor 8 months, Bailey 28 months

Grandma Patterson, Bailey, Grandpa Patterson, Taylor
While we were gone, Taylor turned 8 months and Bailey 28 months. Here is what they have been up to:

Taylor-
*you are a master-sitter at this point and are VERY close to crawling. You love to play with your
toys and eat paper (yuck).
*you sleep from 7:30-7:30, waking up twice to eat.
*coo and say dada indiscriminately
*were eating some baby food, but since then have turned up your nose to any food other then milk, although you love water out of your sippy
*LOVE Snickers the cat and Bailey and think both are hilarious
*takes 2 naps a day
*you are a joy to be around and overall are a very content and smiley baby.

Bailey-
*you are talking up a storm and say pretty much anything. My favorite is when we pray and you say "Amen, Amen Taylor" for your sister :)
*love the Wonderpets, Dora, Blue's Clues and anything having to do with Nemo (every fish is a Nemo fish)
*moved from a crib to toddler bed (with about a week of rough transition)
*hop or run everywhere you go.
*love to color/draw/chalk/paint
*go very easy to daycare/church. You don't even want to say good-bye!
*are the apple of your parent's and grandparent's eyes.
*love hot dogs, oatmeal, pumpkin muffins, nuggets, and all fruit.

Merry Christmas

Uncle Travis and Aunt Natalie reading some of our new books to us






Bailey's new Little People castle with all her WonderPets and Little Blue keeping guard.