Parades and Playtime. Hailey is 8 weeks old.

Dear Nathan, Hannah and Hailey,

This weekend started off with our monthly family service night at church. As a group we packed 6 shoe boxes full of gifts for kids who live in poverty. Then, your Uncle Timmy arrived to spend a couple of days with us. 

Saturday morning, we got out and hiked a section of the newly opened violet crown trail. The weather was perfect and the terrain was interesting. After walking for about 30-40 minutes, we packed into the car and headed downtown to go see the annual Chuy's Blue Santa Parade. Its a great charity event because people bring toys to donate. While Nathan pretty much understands how we help others by giving toys, Hannah kept asking, "When is Santa going to bring presents for me?" (Emphasis on "me".)

As you can see from the picture, we are all in shorts and t-shirts. It's still quite warm in Texas, with an occasional day that dips down to high 60's. 

Hailey pretty much missed the entire parade, except for the part when the marching band came through. You couldn't miss them.

 With Uncle Timmy here, we made sure we put him to good use. He helped you guys set up the LGB trains,

 And also helped with setting up the christmas lights outside

 And since Daddy just finished brewing up a batch of a dark, oatmeal stout,

 we got Uncle Timmy to help you guys put bottle caps on the bottles.

 You were both very sad when he had to leave. Nathan even commented, "He's a pretty good guy." after we dropped him off.

So Hailey, you went through a growth spurt in the last few days. Yesterday, you seemed to be insatiable, and you slept horribly. The only way I could get you to take a decent nap was to hold you in my arms. Luckily we had a frozen lasagna in the freezer, otherwise we would've been eating toast and jam with frozen peas for dinner. This morning, things seem to be a bit better, so we'll see if you make a big growth leap in the next few days.

 See this? Yeah, maybe you can try to do more of this, for longer stretches of time... OK?

I had ordered this "as seen on TV" screen door for the garage door. I'm really loving it because I can make dinner while keeping an eye on you guys while you play outside. Definitely a win purchase! 

 And before I leave, I'm just going to post this adorable picture or Hailey and her friend, Mateo.

Hailey, you still hate sitting in the car seat, although if i put you in there drowsy, you will actually sleep in it. You really love when I sing the "Ittsy bittsy spider," and you also love sitting in a arm bath. I actually clean up the kitchen while you happily sit. How's that for a mom hack?
Thanksgiving is tomorrow so I'm sure we'll have lots of things to experience and eat. Maybe I'll do a special interview post about things we are thankful for.

Until next week,
Love,
Mommy