Four Generations

Last weekend my Grandmother, Aunt Susan, her son Jon, and his wife Laura came to Dallas to visit my family and meet baby Allison for the first time. Allison was given her middle name (Joy) in honor of my Grandmother, so I was really excited to introduce them. My Grandmother is the type of woman that I hope Allison will become. She's the sweetest and one of the most godly women I've ever known. Her devotion to her faith, her church, and her family and friends defines who she is.
A lot of my memories of childhood come from her home. I remember playing dress-up in the back room of her house using old dresses that she kept in a brown paper bag. I remember loving a doll that we named "oh-baby". I remember her letting us eat the ice cubes that she put in the jello mixture to cool it down, and I remember exploring all around her backyard and dancing on Granddaddy's feet. I always felt at home there. I really hope that Allison gets a chance to know her great-grandmother and make some memories of her own.

Here are some more pictures from the weekend.

Aunt Susan with Allison


My cousin Jon and his wife Laura


I cant explain this. Amy and Eric are strange. :)




And of course some sweet pictures of my baby girl having fun with her toys! I love her smile and the little double chin!

Who do I look like?

I took some more cute pictures of Allison today that I wanted to share. She was in a great mood when she woke up from her nap this afternoon, so I ran for the camera. Who do you think she looks like? We really cant decide.

Aim Low

For some reason, in the last few years I have become a "list person". I absolutely love lists. There is something about putting a check next to an accomplishment (no matter how small) that makes me feel like I've done something good. When all of the items on the list have a check next to them, all is right with the world. My mom got me some cute custom paper for one of my showers that says "Kristin's List" at the top. It's a long narrow pad of paper, and I have no problem coming up with enough tasks every day to fill a sheet. Every day I set my sights on chores, errands, and random tasks that I have assigned to myself. I'm so sad to say that not a single day has passed where I was able to complete everything (or in some cases anything). It goes without saying that blogging has been on my list for over a week now. Unfortunately, though, it quickly gets moved to the end of the list (and then to the next day perpetually) when I find myself trying to decide if it's ok to skip breakfast AND lunch just so I can get a nap. I've had to learn to tame my schedule down quite a bit, which kills me.

Taking care of Allison has been wonderful - she's the best part of my day - but I've never been more tired in my life. I manage to get about 6-8 hours of sleep every day, but its scattered over a 24 hour period and never more than 2.5 hours at a time. I also find that I only really allow myself to fall into a deep sleep when someone else is home with me during the day, and I know that they will take care of her if she needs any attention.

Anyway, somewhere in the midst of my exhaustion I've managed to snap a few more pictures of my baby girl that I think everyone will enjoy (and I think is the only reason most people check my blog these days). Most of the pics are from July 4th where she is wearing the adorable red, white, and blue outfit that Marcus and Tricia got for her. It had a red headband to match, but as I mentioned before, she has a small head so it kept falling into her eyes. Frank says that her small head only means that her brain is more efficient. :)

So here is my contribution to this day - a blog. Maybe I can aim a little higher after another nap and try to do some laundry. If not, then this day will prove to be like the rest - unpredictable and blessed.






Papa Mickey holding baby Allison.