Pierced Ears!

We got Miss McKenna's ear pierced today. She did beautifully. I timed it during a nap, so she slept all there way there, in the waiting room, and even as I pulled her out of her car seat. Once they started touching her ears with cold alcohol swabs though...she was not a happy camper. The nurse marked her ear with a red marker, I checked to make sure they were even, and on came the pain! McK did not appreciate having her arms held down and having her nap interrupted with such a harsh activity. It was over before we knew it. I picked her up, she stopped crying, and she went back to sleep...how funny! Her ears look so pretty and dainty. She has little gold balls in, and you can still see the red marker underneath (it's not blood people). She'll keep her earrings in for 6 weeks and then we get to change them out. Having a little girl is so much fun!

These are McKenna's thoughts on the day...


I just woke up from my morning nap happy and ready to get my ears pierced!

I wonder what kind of pretty earrings I'll get?

This is the nap Mommy woke me up from :o/

Cheese...I'm EXTRA pretty now!

Do you like my new earrings?

My new earrings make me smile.

I'm such a big girl!

I'm thinking I will go with little diamond earrings next... :o)

First time for Everything!

Notice: This post is NOT for the weak at heart :o)

Well, we've had two firsts. One that was sweet and emotional and one...that was NOT so sweet. I'll share the sweet "first" first.

McKenna had her first day in the church nursery on Sunday. Dave was at the station so it was just us girls. We got out of the house in record time in order to figure out what we needed to do. She was dressed in a sweet outfit and her bag was packed full of everything she could possibly need :o) She was the 2nd baby in the room, so I had a few minutes to visit with the nursery workers. They made me feel real comfortable and "oooed" and "ahhhed" over McK. I signed her in, wrote down some feeding information, got my security card, and it was time for me to go to big church. I took one last peek at her, felt the lump in my throat, turned toward the door, saw my friend Lauren come in with her little one, and broke down in tears :o( I'm such a goofball...yes, I cried! I was totally embarrassed to say the least. I apologized all over the place and scooted out the door with my tail between my legs :o)

I checked on McKenna after the service, before Sunday school. She was being held and was sleeping like an angel. When I went to get her after Sunday school, an older man was holding her and rocking her. The ladies in the nursery said he would not share her...he just held her the whole time :o) She drank her whole bottle and was a good girl. I got her home and could smell the little old man's perfume on her cheek :o) I didn't worry about her (too much) and it was nice to have a "break" to listen to the sermon and teachings without constantly making sure McK wasn't distracting others. I will do much better with dropping her off this next Sunday :o)

OK...now for the NOT SO FUN first!

McKenna had her first MAJOR diaper blow out...and it was DISGUSTING!!! So let me tell you about it :o) hee, hee!

Dave picked us up and we went along with him to measure a carpet job. While we were driving to the job, I looked back to see McK's face turning red and her eyes getting watery (aka: pooping) :o) When Dave got out to go measure, I got out to check on the diaper damage. I lifted up her little leg to find that she had indeed done the deed. I laid her diaper changing mat on the back seat, lifted her out of her car seat only to realize that there was poop in her car seat :o( I started to change her diaper and then realized I needed to change her outfit too because she had pooped all up her back...YUCK! She then proceeded to scream and cry very loudly. The poop then found it's way onto the back seat of the car, her pacifier, and even in her ear :o/ I used every last wipe I had...I think it was like 15! My back was on fire for having to bend over for like 15 minutes...and finally Dave came out of the house! Help was on the way! I had McK cleaned up with a new diaper on and all he needed to do was put her clean onesie on. We got the car seat cleaned up (as much as possible before the laundry machine took care of the rest), buckled her back in, drove off, and she was out like a light...she was exhausted...so was Mommy! We got her in the tub, threw away all the dirties, and started the laundry.

Whew...what a first...I know it won't be our last :o/

Oh the joys, tears, and adventures of being a mommy...

Professional Pictures!

Last week Dave and I traveled over to Orange Park to meet with Jennifer Mosley. She had photographed several families that go to our church and does a great job! We had our photo shoot and got the proofs back! McKenna did OK. She was tired at the beginning of the session because instead of sleeping the whole way over to Jennifer's house (like Mommy had "planned") she stayed wide awake...therefore being Miss Cranky Pants! She got a cat nap through out the time we were there and turned into her sweet self by the end. The black background shots are when she was exhausted...the white background pictures are from when she was being sweet.

Here's how you log on to view her proofs:

go to Jennifer's site: www.jmosleyphoto.com
click enter site

on the 2nd page click View Event button (top/left hand side)

Username: Burke

Password: 9759

You can order pictures right online and they are sent right to your house! Jennifer did a great job and we would recommend her to any family interested. Tell her we sent you (we'll get a free print) :o)

Psalm 8

"O Lord, our Lord, how excellent is Your name in all the earth!" —Psalm 8:1

I read Psalm 8 this morning for my quiet time through "Our Daily Bread." My house was quiet and still while McKenna was sleeping. I could hear the wind and rain whirling outside as Hurricane/Tropical Storm Fay continued to linger. I opened the blinds to see the effects of the storm in our back yard. I was just overwhelmed with a sense of God's power and strength. Psalm 8 went right along with what the Holy Spirit was speaking to me today. I wanted to share a few thoughts from my time with Jesus...

“When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, the moon and the stars, which You have ordained, what is man that You are mindful of him, and the son of man that You visit him?” (Ps. 8:3-4).

The message Bible says it like this:
(vs. 3-4) I look up at your macro-skies, dark and enormous,
your handmade sky-jewelry,
Moon and stars mounted in their settings.
Then I look at my micro-self and wonder,
Why do you bother with us?
Why take a second look our way?

Planet earth is not all about us, but by God’s design, it involves us. The psalmist marveled at the heavens, but he was more amazed that the great Creator, whose glory is above the heavens, included us in His grand plan for the ages.

To worship any part of God’s creation stops short of giving glory to the One who made it. The Bible lifts our eyes to see that all creation proclaims the glory of God, who has showered His grace and love on us through Christ.

I was then reminded of this old hymn:

Fair is the sunshine, fairer still the moonlight,
And all the twinkling starry host;
Jesus shines brighter, Jesus shines purer
Than all the angels heaven can boast. —Anon.

God’s glory shines through His creation...this includes us...what a responsibility we have!

2 Months!

(This is McKenna talking.)

It is once again time to say..."it only seems like yesterday!" Our McKenna is 2 months old. What a fun month it has been. She is still an absolute joy and continues to make our hearts swell up with love and pride.

McKenna has moved up into size one diapers!! No more teeny-tiny diapers for this big girl! We're also in 0-3 month clothes! Now her decision on what to wear will be much more difficult due to many more options to choose from :o) McKenna continues to love bath time. We had to take the little newborn net/sling off of her tub because she was getting too heavy. She has been promoted to the next phase (seat) of the tub. I need to take a picture of this...she looks so big the way she is propped up and "sitting". As you can see in an earlier post, she is also sleeping through the night! This was huge this month! Some of the sweetest moments of this month have been her smiling and cooing. She is most smiley in the mornings after her breakfast. I have yet to capture a perfect smile on camera, but it is the absolute most adorable smile ever! Her daddy still can make her smile the most...mommy gets a little jealous :o) She is loving the sound of her voice and so do we. She will talk up a storm as she swings in her swing. One of the first times she let out a squeal, she scared herself...as if she were thinking, "What was that? Who did that?" Too funny!

We went and had our 2 month shots :o( McK did wonderfully. She got 2 shots in one leg and 1 in the other. Each time she was pricked her face turned blood red, her mouth openned wide, and no sound came out at first...and then it came :o( But just as quickly as she started, she stopped. I held her little hands down and whispered in her ear. Daddy was standing by to be a helper. He admitted that it was a little more tough to watch/hear than he thought. McK weighed 10 lbs. 11 oz. and is in the 50% for her weight. She is 23 in. long and in the 75% for her height. She showed off for the doctor as she raised her head nice and high while on her tummy. She showed her strong muscles in her legs, talked to the doctor with her coo's, and grasped onto the doctor's finger :o) She didn't even poop on the nice nurse when she took McK's temperature. We got all A's :o)

McKenna will go to the nursery for the first time this Sunday. It will be nice having her in there where we know she is safe and won't disturb anyone :o) It will be nice to sit in the service and in Sunday school not worrying about when she'll make a fuss and if she's distracting others! I'm sure with her going to the nursery there will be a few other types of worries :o)

We have loved EVERY minute of the last 2 months and I know I'll turn around and be posting about her 3 months very soon. Time does fly when you're having fun. God is good...all the time!



I raise my head up real good!


I love to smile!


Mom, why did you make me get out of the tub?
I love it in there!


I'm so funny!


Will you please stop taking my picture :o)

The Happy Couple

If you want to see some engagement pictures of Keith and Hannah, feel free to check out this website. They are great pics...the wedding will be here before we know it (Sept. 6th)!

http://www.new.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2021478&l=633b6&id=177500424

Bragging Rights!

I think when a woman becomes a mom, she automatically retains the right to brag on her baby! So forgive me as I embrace that right and use this post to brag on our little girl :o)

McKenna slept 10 hours through the night last night!!!!!!!! When fed her at her normal 10:00pm feeding and she did not wake up until 7:45am!!!!!! Of course my body still wakes up and is NOT sleeping 10 hours through the night...but hopefully I will follow McK's example and get it in gear!

McKenna had been doing such a good job of extending her sleeping from 6-7 hours one week and then 8 hours a couple of nights...and then BAM....10 hours last night! Yahoo! We are some happy parents...she's doing such a good job of growing :o)

We also took our first road trip with her and she did beautifully. We left after her first morning feeding on Wednesday to go to Atlanta. She slept in the car and woke up to eat when she was asked to :o) She did even better coming home on Thursday (yes it was a quick trip). She's such a trooper and we're so thankful for her sweetness and flexibility. Traveling was VERY different this time. We knew it would be but we didn't understand the difference fully! Pulling over every 3-3.5 hours to nurse (which takes a good 30-45 mins) really makes the 6 hour trip to Atlanta longer!!! It was worth the time though. We were able to see Dave's folks and his sister's new home in Georgia. They hadn't seen McK since she was just home from the hospital, so it was good to see her with them :o)

Anyhoo...we go to the doctor's this week for our 2 month appt and shots :o( Pray for us as we go...pray for the tears that will occur from both Mommy and McKenna I'm sure! I will post about our appt. and have some new 2 month, big girl pictures up soon!

Aloha!

Our Sunday school class had a Hawaiian luau. It was a huge success. We had a huge group come and enjoy the festivities. There was a roasted pig, hula dancing, decorations, games, and much more! I had to share Miss McKenna's fun outfit. My Mom got it for her and she sported it with style. I thought it was much better than a grass skirt and coconut bra :o)


The girls hula dancing!


We played "horseshoes" with hula hoops around beach objects.


Me being bossy...explaining the games and what not!



This was the "tacky tourist relay race." It was hysterical. One team member would race down to grab a beach item (goggles, hat, bucket, towel, etc) and have to race it back to the next teammate. They would then have to put on the item and go and grab the next item. The last person had to come back with 7 items, including a beach chair...to funny!

GOOD Night!

No, it's not time to go to sleep...I just wanted to share about McKenna's GOOD night last night!

We fed McK at her normal time at 10:00pm. She normally wakes up anywhere between 3:00-4:15am for another feeding, but I woke up around 4:45am in a small panic because I hadn't heard from her! I laid in bed wondering if I should get up and check on her and then I had a thought...what if she is sleeping through the night???!!! I got all excited at this thought, but I was still kind of concerned that she hadn't made a peep. Just as I started to pray about my "mommy-worry-wort syndrome" my little girl started to cry for me to come and feed her at 5:00am!!! I exhaled a sigh of relief, quickly thanked Jesus, and ran to McK's room! She went right back to sleep after eating and we started our day at normal time with Mommy going to wake up baby for breakfast!

I still can't believe it :o) All of our hard work with the "Babywise" sleep training is paying off! I do know that this will most likely NOT be a consistent event for a while, but this glimpse of what is to come was SUPER fun :o) Way to go McKenna...Mommy and Daddy are way proud of your good sleeping (keep it up)!

All Smiles

McKenna is really starting to be expressive. She is starting to smile and coo a lot more! Dave can get her to smile the best :o) I keep trying to capture it on camera, but I just can't do her sweetness justice! It's only a matter of time for her to be all smiles and giggles! She's the greatest!

My daddy is so funny!

Hi Daddy, you're hilarious!

Go Jags!

Dave and I took McK to her first Jaguar football game. It was actually a preseason scrimmage, but we went with a group from our Sunday School class. Joe Zelenka is the long snapper for the team and he is in our class, so a group of us went to go cheer him on! McKenna dressed the part and was a good girl. The weather was perfect! It had rained all day so it had cooled off. There was a nice breeze blowing and it was an enjoyable evening. Go Jags!

Daddy and McKenna

Go Jags!

She's a big fan!

The fam ready for football season!

She had so much fun it wore her plum out! :o)