Beep Beep in the Jeep...

Grace Anne loves Brewski... she loves him about as much as he hates her grabbing him! Actually, he is a really good sport! She also loves the camera, phone, or basically anything with a light... hence her infatuation with grabbing it to put in her mouth!

Doctor's Report:
She's perfect!
(and of course... we agree!)

Where to begin? How about with the fact that the "Jeep" was a bad purchase? Okay, I don't truly feel like it was a bad purchase, but according to my latest handout (from the pediatrician's office) on how to raise my child... walkers are a bad idea and shouldn't be purchased! The handout claims that they are not only a danger, they may also slow the child's development. I don't think that I've hit on my "walker" research, but I went back in forth with the whole walker idea.. and I ran across the study that claimed baby walkers could in fact slow the child's development as it would give children the opportunity to rely on support to walk and it would slow their ability to walk independently. Now, this may be the case... or it may not be.. BUT, ultimately the joy Grace Anne has gotten from the Jeep in the last week will make up for any developmental lack. And, honestly I don't buy into this nonsense. Yes, if a baby is left in the walker all the time then he or she isn't going to have the upper body strength or ability to hold him/herself up. Futuremore, the claim that walkers can be fatal may be true, but no child should be left unattended so is the walker the only thing to blame? NO! hello people. (Ps. The doctor didn't think the walker was a problem at all-- and by the way, we love the new pediatrician!)
Okay, off the soapbox! Grace Anne is growing like a weed! She is up to 14 and half pounds which puts her in like the 22nd percentile... but her length is up to 25 1/8 inches making her jump to the 53rd percentile. Our little runt is long and lean! For her sake, I hope that continues!
She did have shots so today has been rough.. she has slept a lot but when she is awake she is cranky! (A cranky camel is what we call her because of the Zoo book we have..just an FYI)

We are up-ing the fruits and veggie intake to twice a day! She isn't supposed to eat ANYthing during the night and it is time to work on getting Grace Anne to sleep consistently, in her crib... through the night! Whoa! Lots to do.

Finally, Daddy didn't get the job he really wanted in Nashville. Due to the fact that he is still searching for a job and that we have started paying student loans and all that nonsense.. looks like no beach trip with the Kepley side of the family this weekend. Daddy can't get off work and really we can't afford for him to miss work. We will miss the fun times and hope to get Grace Anne to the beach this summer... fingers crossed another opportunity comes along very soon! We are all bummed out about the current situation.

Oh and apparently there was a recall on infant tylenol so tell your mom friends! http://www.tylenol.com/page2.jhtml?id=tylenol/news/subp_tylenol_recall_1.inc

Half a year old...

6 months...

yes, that time has come...

I really can't believe it and I'm pretty much still in denial.. but its true. Grace Anne is officially 6 months old! Wow, where has the time gone? what happened the 2nd or the 3rd month? how is it May already? I have a distinct feeling I'll continue to ask myself where time has gone over the next several years and I am so glad I am staying home with her now... (even if we are POOR!)

So, anyone who knows me that my birthday is a week long event-I'd celebrate all month if I could get away with it). I love my birthday! I always dreamed of celebrating my half birthday but never could convince my mom I deserves presents and cake at the 6 month mark... Grace Anne didn't quite get a birthday party, but she did get a present. She had played in a Jeep walker at Babies R Us last week and loved it. When I went to get it I found an adoreable pink car walker. It was more expensive, of course, but it was so cute.. and so girly and I opted last minute for the pink. We got home, assembled the walker and began to play. The store didn't have this particular walker on display so we hadn't "tested it." Plus, since it was an impulse purchase, I had not done my research!! (I always research these days)
Anyways, we get home and she is in the adorable pink car, cruising along much slower than she had in the Jeep. I looked down and her heels were rubbing the back bar on the walker! I am fully aware that there is a point in every girl's life where style will surpass comfort and the pain for beauty adage will ring true... but at 6 months old this is not a lesson to be learned. I'd much rather her heels be blistered from the must have, stylish shoes that SHE picks out one day than the half birthday present from Mommy and Daddy. So, we traded in the pink car.. returned it and got the Jeep. She loves the Jeep and its a much better fit.
On Friday, we had pictures taken. We really wanted to have family pictures, but we got some really cute pictures of Grace Anne as well. I can't wait to have the actual pictures! But here are a few of the proofs!
PS... she is trying so so hard to crawl! She can't stand it! She gets up and loses her balance and rolls over... so she will roll back to her tummy and try again. So funny!!

Elvis... Beale Street...
the Peabody... Rendezvous...
yes, you guessed it... MEMPHIS!

We had a great weekend with friends in Memphis. Kris' college suite mate, Brent, got married in Memphis this past weekend. We had a blast spending time with his friends, taking Grace Anne to see the ducks at the Peabody Hotel, and trying to eat a 12 lb. burger (with about 10 people we succeed!). We decided to leave on Thursday night after Daddy got off work, we didn't have a hotel for Thursday and ended up in a "below Mommy standard" hotel.. actually it was miserable because it was so stinkin' hot... and since there was no hairdryer, Mommy's hair looked lovely on Friday!
Grace Anne loved the ducks in the Peabody lobby! She watched them swim around and around in the fountain. As soon as she couldn't see the one she was following with her eyes, she'd start following the next one. It was so cute... Mommy and Daddy bought her a ducky rattle in the gift shop.. she loves it too!

The groom wanted his friends to get together and try to eat a 12lb. burger at Kooky Canuck (Daddy isn't the only one that loves Man Vs. Food on the Travel Channel)

On Friday night we went to the cocktail party hosted by the bride and groom (pictures of Daddy-o's college buddies below). Daddy was going to go out with the boys after walking us girls back to our hotel. Since it was nearly midnight, we weren't allowed to cross Beale St. A police escort would have been nice, instead they sent us about 6 blocks out of the way and by the time we got back to the hotel Daddy decided he was hungry and wanted to stay with us (which was good since the groom skipped out early anyways!)... so we ordered pizza and hung out to the wee hours.. which was fun for Mommy and Daddy while Grace Anne slept! (picture below is Beale St. earlier in the night.. before the craziness began)

Saturday we made another trip to the Peabody to watch the ducks march and then on to Rendezvous for a fabulous rib and brisket lunch. I started thinking of all these questions about the BBQ pit and kitchen, even though I'd been there before and seen the Man vs. Food episode. Well, I started chatting with the kitchen manager and before I knew it I was in the kitchen checking out the BBQ pits. I was my mothers daughter in every way at the moment in time!

Saturday night we attended the wedding. We rode the trolley down Main St. and had no idea where we were going (we relied on Kris' friend Red's wife to know since she had gone to the rehersal dinner)... Katie didn't know and was no help! After talking to the police office, security gaurd, and groom himself we found ourselves at the church -- we were there in plenty of time and still got seated on the back row. Apparently the bride requested the ushers seat us in the back in case the baby cried. The baby didn't make a peep the whole wedding and we really wished we'd packed our binoculars. We were stunned by the fact she had made such a request to the ushers and they adamantly admitted it was her request. Which, is fine... but the 10 empty rows in front of us seemed to really make us stand out! Oh well, her day... her way... I suppose.

The reception was at the train station and the entertainment was dueling pianos. It was a lot of fun! Grace Anne was a hit and everyone wanted her picture. Of course we were all coordinated and matched up as a family. Daddy even had a couple dances with the little one.. (and Mommy)!
We are so thankful Grace Anne is a great traveler and that she was a perfect angel at the wedding and reception. We are so blessed!

Let me end by saying, I am so glad we got married the way we did-- After watching the festivities of the weekend, I am sooo happy the day was about Kris and I and no stress or distractions were involved! I am glad to have such a wonderful, supportive husband and Grace Anne is lucky to have the best Daddy there is!

On the go... go... go!

This week has been busy getting ready for our journey across the beloved Volunteer state. We are so excited to go to Memphis for Brent and Amy's wedding. Its obvious that we have truly fallen ill with the travel bug, no one gets this excited about Memphis!

Yesterday, Grace Anne and Mommy went to Babies R Us to get a sheet for Grace Anne's pack n' play. I have always wondered if she would like a walker... after all, she LOVES her jumparoo. So, I put her in three walkers... she absolutely loved the little jeep. Of course, I didn't buy the walker-- but I wanted too! haha I found one on Walmart.com that is less expensive... so tempting!

More Pictures to come...

Let me begin by saying that we were not affected by rain. We are in the East and the rain really hit hard in Nashville... 17 inches this weekend. But, if you heard Tennessee got rain, that is true! We are thinking about those Nashville folks though!

This weekend was busy as Mommy participated in graduation ceremonies for her Masters of Education. We made a trip to the ever exciting Harrogate, Tennessee. I really wish my Mom could have been there and I know you are thinking 'well she was there in spirit and she is proud of you'-- thanks for thinking that but there are times when I'm very selfish and the thought of her spirit being there isn't enough, her spirit lives within me and I miss her every day! I wanted her in person... I wanted to look up in the stands and see her sitting beside my supportive husband, beautiful daughter, and amazing aunt. I am very lucky to have all three of them to count on! I'm also thankful for all the cards and congrats.
Okay, so now on to the main focus of our lives.. Miss Grace Anne Kepley...
The little one is growing! I can't believe how much hair she has and how long she looks. I also can't believe that next week she will be 6 months old. She is the highlight of our lives. She is constantly smiling and laughing! And now that she is rolling over both directions and trying very hard to crawl we know she will soon be on the move! Once she gets coordinated enough to pull and push simultaneously-- watch out!!



Grace Anne has discovered her toes, her sloppery mouth, and her ability to scream happy squeals!! She has also decided the Soothie pacifiers aren't pacifying, and she loves MAM pacis... so looks like we are buying a bunch of MAM pacis... figures huh?

(a Wal-Mart receipt is very entertaining until you lick it so much it begins to disintegrate and your mean Mommy takes it away)

6++++++++++++++++++++++.

time out....
busy lives in process!

So some days nothing really happens that is blog worthy and I don't blog. (Of course that is all my judgment call and some of my dedicated blog subscribers might differ.) This week that has not been the case what so ever. A lot is going on at the ol' Kepley Casa, and I've just been busy to be quite honest. Not to mention the computer went into permanent hibernation and it took a while- a couple days in fact- to figure out what was going on.

Grace Anne has reached a milestone.. she can roll over from back to tummy. She is really good grabbing her toys and basically getting her hands on what she wants, she just rolls right over!

Daddy went to an interview, well actually more like three interviews, in St. Louis and we are hoping to hear good news soon.

Mommy and Grace Anne have had an interesting day!!! The dogs played in a mud puddle and tracked in mud all over the freshly mopped floor! After mopping it a second time, I found out that the washer is clearly leaking more than it had been... the laundry room and kitchen floors had standing water.. finally got that soaked up with towels and I had wet dirty towels that I was scared to wash because I didn't want to recreate the same problem!!(notice mop in picture)