Sugar and Spice

and Everything Nice...

That's What Little Girls are Made of!

This baby girl sure is full of sugar...and she's getting more and more spice!  She's certainly complete with everything nice!  Just what little girls are made of!  Millie Janalee is a sweet, prissy little girl who sure is sweet in pink!

The only thing sweeter with pink are her precious baby blues!  Those eyes are the most beautiful things ever!  We stare at each other all day...unless she's asleep!  And those baby blues never get old!  We love this sweet girl and all her cute looks and adorable smiles!

Thank you, God, for little girls!

Thank You for sweet pinks and baby blues!

As for Me and My House...

"As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord." Joshua 24:15

I like to go to church!

I like to go to church! 

I like the pretty songs we sing!

I like to go to church!

That's the song my mom used to sing as she woke us up on Sunday mornings.  In fact, she still sings it if we aren't up and at 'em by the time she leaves the house for Sunday school.  This Sunday was Millie Janalee's first time to go to church!  Which means it was the first time our new family attended church together! 

Millie Janalee donned her finest church clothes and accessories.  She made sure to look like a proper Southern lady attending a church service.  That's how we know she's a Southern lady...she can go from hard core Bulldog fan to prissy church clothes with no problem!  Ha!

Russ and I dropped her off in the church nursery, and everyone welcomed her with smiles and open arms.  They were all so excited to keep her.  As Russ and I sat in church listening to the choir, singing praise hymns, and listening to the sermon...I couldn't help but let my mind wander to how thankful I am for this day.  How many Sundays have I sat in church longing for a child to drop off in the nursery?  How many Sundays have I sang the choruses praying for God to make us parents?  How many Sundays have I daydreamed about what it would be like to come to church as a family of 3?  This Sunday was THE SUNDAY.  It was the day we brought our daughter to church for the first time.  And we are so thankful!

I think back to my church family growing up, and I am so glad that my church family served as an extension of my family.  I pray that Millie Janalee grow up in a church that is her family.  I pray that Russ and I serve as examples for Millie Janalee of what a Christian walk should look like.  I pray that this sweet girl learn to pray, love, and praise her Creator.  For He has made her so "fearfully and wonderfully!"  I pray that Millie Janalee will accept Jesus as her Savior at an early age.  And I pray that she grow to be like Him.

I can't wait for to watch Millie Janalee grow into the beautiful woman God has made her to be!  Well..I CAN wait.  But it will be my greatest joy and honor to watch her!

"Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised." Proverbs 31:30

"You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might.  And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart.  You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise."  Deuteronomy 6:5-7

Praying daily that God gives us wisdom and guidance as we parent this sweet girl...His precious child. 

MSU vs. USA

Saturday was game day!  It wasn't a big game day, but I've learned that any game could end up being a big game...or bad game.  Thankfully, it was a win in the end...but, once again, it wasn't a pretty one.  We started our day setting up tents and food for a yummy and relaxing lunch in the beautiful weather!  Millie Janalee made it to this one too.

Mama and Millie Janalee

Daddy's girl

Party of Three!

We could just eat her up!

Daddy couldn't leave town until later in the afternoon, so the guys set up the tents while the girls set out the food and chairs.  I'm thinking Daddy may try to find something to do every game day just so he won't have to help set up!  Ha!  Once everything was in place, we enjoyed tailgating on a beautiful game day!

Sheila and Kristin

Russ, Mama, and Lee

Everyone was dressed and ready to WHITE OUT the stadium!  I did my best finding white MSU attire for babies so Millie Janalee could join us.  She was so excited about it!  Can't you tell...

We can't believe how chilled out Millie Janalee is!  She just hangs out in her pack 'n' play and plays by herself or naps or lets anyone hold her who wants to.  She's definitely a game day baby!  And she loves her Dawgs!

Millie Janalee and Mama

Millie Janalee and Auntie Kristin

Uncie Lee loves to sneak over and play with Millie Janalee!

One of the great things about tailgating on game days is the fun surprise visitors we always have!  We have tailgated in the same spot for years, and everyone knows where to find us.  We all have great friends who take time and effort for a visit.  And we LOVE IT!  Now that Millie Janalee joins us, there is a little extra motivation to come visit I think.  Ha!

Matt and Ella Kate looking at Millie Janalee

Russ, me, Millie Janalee, Kendall, Ella Kate, and Matt

Lots of Dustin and Kristin's friends

Dustin had to be in Jackson for a conference, so Sheila joined our crazy clan on her own!  She fits right in!  Plus, the family is tired of making fun of Russ and Lee...we needed a new face (also known as the target of a few jokes).  You gotta be tough to hang with us!  It took Russ years to adjust to the sarcasm and constant state of laughter and volume.  Haha!  Millie Janalee loves her "Aunt Sheila!"  And so do we!

Millie Janalee and Aunt Sheila

Finally, it was GAME TIME!  Millie Janalee attended her very first game in Davis Wade Stadium!  I was so excited!  And I'm pretty sure I'm the ONLY one who thought she would make it through the game...and enjoy it. 

Millie Janalee and Mama with our tickets

Millie Janalee is tiny next to that Jumbotron!

Millie Janalee's first of many pictures with Bully!

We got to our seats in time for the pre-game show.  The band was playing and cowbells were ringing!  It was game day at Davis Wade Stadium.  We were so excited to attend our first Mississippi State football game as a family of THREE!  So happy to share one of our favorite family activities with our daughter!

Millie Janalee?  Oh...she slept through the entire pre-game show, cowbells, cheers, and "Who Let the Dawgs Out?"  In fact, she slept through the entire first half...and most of the halftime show!  Never even flinched with the ring of a cowbell...or thousands of cowbells.

Sweet girl asleep in my arms!

My view for most of the game

During halftime, it was time for supper.  We pulled out Millie Janalee's bottle and she continued to eat peacefully through the cheers, intercom, cowbells, and band.  This girl was born TRUE MAROON!  Have I mentioned that yet?  Ha!  The game wasn't all that interesting (except for the few big exciting plays), so I decided I'd play with my baby bulldog.

We stretched...

We played dress up by putting our hairbow in new places...

And we laughed at each other!

We ended up beating the University of South Alabama 30-10, leaving us 4-0 so far this season.  We inched up a little in the polls to #21 in the AP poll and #19 in USA Today poll.  We shall see how it changes with our upcoming SEC opponents.  Thankfully, we have a week to prepare.  Our next home game is against Tennessee.  I can't wait for you to see what Millie Janalee has for that game!

PawPaw and Susu leaving Davis Wade Stadium with Millie Janalee

It was a great day!  And it's always better to leave with a WIN...no matter how we played.  GO DAWGS!

Ten Weeks

Yes, today marks ten sweet weeks since Millie Janalee entered this world!  We are in the double digits!  Wow!  We had a leisurely day today trying to recover from our big weekend.  Millie Janalee and I pretty much spent the day snuggling and playing.  It was so nice!

Millie Janalee really is growing up a little too fast for my taste.  We are having fun, but I sure do miss that itty bitty 6 pound girl.  Millie Janalee has always been a good sleeper, but this week we have slept extremely well.  We feed her around 6:00 at night and play for a while.  She falls asleep pretty soon after that and naps until we feed her around 10:00 or 11:00.  Millie Janalee falls asleep immediately after that feeding and has slept until 8:00 each morning. And when she wakes up, she's not crying for food.  She is a happy, playful little thing!  So fun!  I love just rolling over and watching her play with her hands in her bassinet.  Nothing sweeter than a happy baby in the morning!

Once I decide it's time for us to move into the living room, I do a quick diaper change and get all the feeding accessories together.  That includes her bottle, a burp cloth, my Diet Coke, and my breakfast bar.  We snuggle for a bit before we both eat breakfast watching the morning news. 

Our sweet girl may look prissy, but she sure can spit up.  Like projectile!  She has done this since the day she was born.  The bigger she gets, the larger quantity that comes out...like the whole bottle.  Ha!  It has never bothered her, and I have asked the doctor about it 3-4 times.  He says Millie Janalee is growing at a great rate, so the spitting up is no problem.  It is just inconvenient for whoever feeds her because they end up wiping down with a wet rag, changing clothes, or pulling out the carpet or furniture cleaner.  I've gotten pretty good at anticipating and catching it all.  But this week, we are trying something new.  Enfamil A.R.  This formula makes everything gel together in the baby's little tummy, hopefully helping keep it down.  Although it doesn't keep it all down...it has helped tremendously!  Much easier to clean up and she spits up less often.  So, I think we'll stick with this for a while.

I absolutely love staying home with Millie Janalee!  We have so much fun during the day.  I took a little photo documentation of our day today for you to see.  We played in the mirror, went through our jungle flash cards, read a book, learned the hand jive, and played on our playmat.  We also took a little stroll to the mailboxes late this afternoon.  The rest of the time?  We snuggled in the chair.  She napped while I watched her...or caught up on my recorded shows.  (namely Dancing with the Stars, Parenthood, and Private Practice)

Millie Janalee,

These ten weeks have gone by faster than any ten weeks I've ever experienced.  It scares me a little, because I realize how fast the rest of your days will pass...and I don't want to miss anything!  I'm trying my best to soak it all in, hold you as much as you want, and love on you all the time!  You are so easy to love.  I am so thankful for you!  I am so proud to be your Mama!  And I'm thankful you allow me to take so many pictures and dress you up like my personal baby doll!  You are such an angel, and everyone knows it.  I'm sure I wear people out with all my pictures, tweets, and blog posts.  But, that's okay!  Hopefully you won't be too embarrassed when you grow up.  Ha!

Happy Ten Weeks, Millie Janalee!  I love you!