You Must Have Been A Beautiful Baby

Lyrics, lyrics, lyrics...can you guess the song?

Isn't she lovely

Isn't she wonderful

Isn't she precious

Less than one minute old

Ev'ryone can see we're together

As we walk on by

(FLY!) and we fly just like birds of a feather

I won't tell no lie

(ALL!) all of the people around us they say

Can they be that close

Just let me state for the record

We're giving love in a family dose

I know somebody and they cry for you
They lie awake and dream of you
I bet you never even know they do
but somebody's crying

Tossing Your Cookies

Cookies, cookies, and more cookies. The Nazarczyks don't do anything small. There were about six dozen cookies to decorate.

Connor and Alex were intent on making great Christmas cookies. There wasn't one in the bunch worth tossing.

Gabby and Tameka showed off their best cookies.

Barb let June use one of Alex's old shirts. Decorating cookies can be very messy.

It's A Charlie Brown Christmas?

We were going to put up our four foot tree this year instead of the big one. June is into everything, so we thought it would be better. We haven't used it since Gabby was little and I forgot that it wasn't prelit. So, instead of saving the lights for the tree, I put up the only christmas lights that we had out on the front porch. Oh well, we have this cute fiber-optic tree. It works perfectly for this year. Next year we go back to the big tree.

As you can see here, June was having fun with the Christmas decorations. We didn't have to encourage her. She thought that all the pretty, shiny stuff looked like it would be fun to play with.

Gabby tried desperately to add a little Christmas cheer everywhere she could. Unfortunately this mirror wasn't going to accept the garland.

Happiness and Wisdom

My aunt knitted June this beautiful sweater. The left pocket has the symbol for happiness. The right pocket has the symbol for wisdom. None of us realized that my aunt had made it herself until we read the attached card. Gabby kept saying that she couldn't believe it. It looked like it had been bought in a store. What a wonderful gift for June to have to pass on to her children.

Let's Eat

Got Yogurt!

It's been a tough day.

Eat, play, poop, sleep.

Mom ate my cookie! Bad mommy! Bad!

Snow Day

Daisy absolutely loves the snow. She runs so fast that I can't catch her on camera, so I have to wait for her to stop.

Today was June's first experience in the snow. At first she was hesitant, then she realized how fun it was to crawl around and went for it.

After a lot of fun in the snow, Gabby, Tameka and Jaquan came inside to pose for their picture. I told them that if they made faces that their faces would freeze that way. Apparently it was cold enough for them to actually freeze.

It was a great day for a snowball fight. Gabby and Tameka did their best to make sure that the other one got as snowy as possible.

17 Months

Junie turned 17 months old today. We had her looked at by our local EI (early intervention) program. Three people came to the house and looked at her speech, large motor, and fine motor skills. June has the skill level of a 12 month old right now, so she qualified for services through the county. Because she has only been with us three months, I opted to wait six more months to see if she catches up. Most babies will catch up on their own without any services. The EI people thought that she would catch up on her own, but said that if she didn't that she could be reevaluated.

So, where is Junie now? She isn't walking, but is getting close. She is walking along furniture and taking a step or two between two people. She would rather be carried. She still doesn't like going to the child watch at the Y. She cries if we even get close to the door. So, for now it looks like I'm going to have to pay to have her watched while I work.

She's not saying any real words yet, but she does understand us. The only word that she is saying is ma, meaning more when she's eating. She only says it if we don't see her shake her head up and down and then it isn't very loud unless there is a cookie or cake involved. Then she says, "Ma, ma" quite loudly. I guess she likes her sweets.

Basketball

Gabby has officially quit gymnastics and has joined a Y basketball team. She has been all nerves about it since she doesn't know anything about basketball. So far her practices have been good, but very tiring for her. Last practice they ran well over a mile during a competition against the boys team that works out with them.

Gabby had her first game Saturday. She was a bit confused, but did a good job blocking her opponents who were very aggressive. Hopefully she'll gain some confidence after a couple more games.

Thanksgiving?

We didn't really do Thanksgiving per say with my folks this year. We got together the day after Thanksgiving and ordered take-out fish fry, had some good conversation, and played a game.

Grandpa Larry has the look of a mad scientist here while he hoisted up Junie who's wearing my mother's ear muffs.











My brother, Eric, stopped by to visit and meet his new niece. He was also able to see his other niece, Shyanne, Keith and Betsy's new baby, as she had been home from the hospital for a few days.

















Tameka joined us for dinner and games too.

Thanksgiving At The Morrison's

This was Junie's first Thanksgiving. I'm sure she was amazed at her new family members on the Morrison side. Everyone wanted to hold her. I don't think that she minded one bit. Grandpa didn't mind either.















It must have been a very interesting conversation for both Grandma and June to be interested.












Elise and Gabby just hanging out.



















Aunt Gail and June are having a great time with a cup. It was just all too overwhelming for Sean.

















She's not a guitar Uncle Joe.













I have no clue what Peter and Brian are doing here. I think Pete is using his super human arm speed to stab Brian?












Hey, Uncle Jerry, got your nose.

Swim Time

June and I are doing swimming lessons. The class is actually an organized play time for June. We sing songs and play with toys in the water. It is meant to get the kids used to the water.

June loves it. As soon as we get there, she kicks her feet and waves her arms. She just can't wait to get in the pool. She's definitely a water baby.

Action Poses

John loves it when Junie takes a nap with him. Today Scooter jumped up to join in.

Crazy hair day

Gabby was feeling like doing some hair today, so she tried it out on Junie. First June showed me her tongue.

Then she offered me a kiss.

Do You Like My Hat

Sometimes I don't know what the clothing manufacturers are thinking with the clothes. Junie does not have a particularly big head, but some of the shirts that she has won't come off without a fight. It does make for a good picture though.

Hi Ho, Hi Ho, It's Off To School We Go

Every morning I take two of my friends' kids to school. This morning I just couldn't resist taking their picture. Emma had snuggled in next to Jaquan to watch Spongebob. Daisy wanted to be part of the group too. What fun!

It's Cool To Be Square

Whose Eyelashes Are Longer

June has the most beautiful, long eyelashes. Charlie doesn't have eyelashes, but his whiskers are pretty long.

Let Her Eat Cake

June has dicovered the joy of sugar. She likes all things sweet. Actually, she likes most food. She'll eat almost anything that you give her. One thing that we have to watch out for is that she likes to chipmunk her food (fill both cheeks and continue to add more). Pretty soon she can't open her mouth without food falling out. Sometimes she will only open her mouth a very little bit so that what she has in there won't fall out.

On the day I took this picture, June had her first cupcake. It was hard for her to cram the whole thing in there because the cupcake crumbled when she grabbed it. She did give it a good try though.

It's A Beautiful Baby Girl

Keith and Betsy, my brother and sister-in-law, had their baby. She was a bit early at only 31 weeks, but is doing fine. The baby's name is Shyanne. She was 16 inches long and 4 lbs. 2.8 oz. That is huge for 31 weeks. Gabby was only a pound heavier at 36 weeks.

Shyanne is only about a week and a half old, but is already breathing and eating on her own. The doctors think that she will only have to stay in the hospital for a couple more weeks. What a wonderful Christmas it is going to be for Keith and Betsy. Congratulations!

Gabby Time

Gabby is so happy to be back from China. She is happy to be back home with her pets, her friends, and her own bed. She was a little worried about catching up in school, but has done great. At her parent teacher conference her teachers said that she is all caught up and is a wonderful student.

Gabby is not sure if she is going to continue with gymnastics. She has been unsure for awhile, but continued last year so that she could spend time with her gymnastics friends and still keep her skills current. This year however, there is the extra pressure of middle school and having a little sister. So, she's seriously considering giving gymnastics up and trying some other sports that are less time consuming. Beginning this week, Gabby's going to give YMCA basketball a try. It is only two hours a week, so it won't put much pressure on her time.

What A Difference A Month Makes

Things have been hectic since we've returned from China. We've finally gotten back to normal enough that I can continue our posts.

Junie is doing great. Her progress is amazing. We've only been home five weeks and she is copying everything we do. She seems to understand much of what we're saying and can point to her tongue, teeth, nose, and ears when you ask. When we met her, she wasn't crawling and was eating only by bottle. Now, June is pulling herself to standing, walking in a walker and eating solid, but not crunchy food. She only has four teeth.

June's personality is easy going. She almost never cries. Naps are nonexistant, but June sleeps about twelve hours a night, so I'm not complaining. She doesn't seem to care about the pets. She'll pet the cats or dog if they are sitting with me, but does not try to get them if she's on the floor. It seems that the pets feel the same way about her although Daisy has learned that where there is a high chair, there is food.

Gabby is having a ball with Junie. She plays with her, dances with her, and talks to her all the time. Gabby has also been a great help to me.

Going back to coach gymnastics was a little challenging. I did a couple of practice days and June did fine in the child care at the Y, but the first real day back, June cried so the child care people brought her out to me. I ended up holding her or have the gymnasts watch her while I coached the other gymnasts. It wasn't working for me, so I hired one of Gabby's friends to watch June in the gym while I coach. We've only done it one day so far, but it worked out great.