It all turned out great!

 I received the meat pie recipe from Carol Mahar a while back and finally decided to try it, since our freezer is now full of ground pork and that's what it calls for. I followed the recipe, cooked the meat for 3 hours and made the pie crust and it all turned out perfectly! I was so happy with the way it looked and was even more please with how it tasted! I guess I'll be making this more often!

We also enjoyed pumpkin soup (a recipe from my brother),

 broccoli salad (recipe from Aunt Angie)

 and sliced apples (from the fridge). 

It was very pleasing to my eye and my tummy.

(But, I will admit, some of the kids didn't like it.)

Love nursing my baby!

 Sweet happy little girl!

4 weeks old!

This is the onesie that Grandma Graham gave to her!

Smart and Strong Like my Mom

It's that time... tummy time!

She finally went to sleep but wouldn't stay asleep if I laid her down. So I tried the tummy arrangement and she was out for the night! Warm and snuggly and happy and sleeping! That's the way she likes it and we especially like the sleeping part! Sweet baby!

And this is how she was today....

RoseMarie wanted to be held today but I had lots of things to do so this is what had to happen today. I'm not sure why but it was a solution that helped me keep her happy and get dinner made. I remember having to do this with Xiomara, when she was this little, because the three older siblings were all in her space and she just needed a break. At least that was my interpretation. Anyway, all's well that ends well.

Oh what a blessed day!

And here is her dress! It was very challenging because of the type of fabric, and my machine kept acting up, but they were determined and persevered! She was so excited to wear it to church!

It was also a special day because we blessed RoseMarie. I arrived a little later than I should have so I was changing her clothes during the opening song and had just finished when Kevin announced that we would bless her. He came and got her and gave a very nice blessing to RoseMarie Genevive. She handled it very well and was ready to eat when they were done. We had a small circle of friends this time around (so getting their pictures was much easier).

Brother Eric Conley

Brother Roger Payne (Gaffa)

Brother Kevin Roy (Dad)

Brother John Lowry

Brother Neil Stokes

RoseMarie Genevive

3 1/2 weeks old

We love to hug!

At the end of our nightly routine, 

 after singing lots of songs,

Kevin said we needed to sing a couple more.

He started us off on "When Grandpa Comes" and

"Grandmother" so the kids had a great time with those!

Lots of hugs for everyone!

Yes, Grammy and Gaffa did survive and no one was hurt during this activity!

It was a good way to end their visit, since they are leaving in the morning.

Sewing and Painting Activities

Kemiah received fabric for her birthday 

(which was at the beginning of the month)

so Grammy helped her make a skirt. 

(Not pictured yet.)

Emily also received fabric for her birthday 

(which was at the end of August)

and so she decided to have Grammy help her make a dress!

Fortunately, I had a pattern that she liked and they had a good time working together.

Well, the fabric was a bit difficult and the machine didn't always cooperate,

so it was actually very challenging but they kept at it and made a dress.

Emily had to go to bed and Grammy finished it up.

Grammy brought paint and rocks for us to paint into Kindness Rocks.

The kids had a wonderful time being very creative!

I didn't get any pictures during the project - what is happening to me?!?!

But here are their finished rocks.

The day after recovery

We spent the next day chilling.

RoseMarie fell asleep on the couch and it was my bed time.

I decided to just leave her there and see how she did.

I had the monitor and didn't hear her until 2 a.m.

I fed her and changed her diaper, and fed her again. 

When she was asleep, I put her back on the couch and went back to bed.

It was a very nice night sleep!

Good baby!

Happy Thanksgiving to you and all yours!

We had a wonderful day!

Reading..

playing games...

playing with Legos...

eating...

holding the baby...

(we thought it was so strange that 

she would sleep in such a strange position)

precious time with Gaffa...

and eating some more!

Rolls, ham, cornish hens...

stuffing, sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes, fruit/marshmallow salad

with pumpkin (from frozen pumpkin from Ben's garden), 

cherry (from a can) and apple (from fresh apples) pies for dessert!

Thanks to the help of my mother, all the food came out perfectly and the timing was spot on! We made the pies first to get them out of the way and allow them to cool before eating. My dad made the sweet potatoes the day before, and my mom and Xiomara made the salad the day before so those were taken care of! The rest just went together and everything turned out great!

I am sad that I didn't take a group picture, or at least get a picture of the baby for her first Thanksgiving - and her 3 week birthday! Bummer! But we were all there and we all ate as much as we wanted because there was plenty - I love these leftovers!

Another Wonderful Day!

Here she is on her last day being 2 weeks old.

After dinner we played our new game, Carcassonne.

Just sleeping in her favorite spot.

Enjoying some time with Grammy.

It was a great day!

Happy Birthday to Gaffa!

We were also able to celebrate a special occasion - my dad (Gaffa) turned 80! We celebrated like we usually do - with streamers in the dining room and pancakes for breakfast!

Gaffa had special pancakes because he has celiac disease,

so I bought a gluten free pancake mix!

He really enjoyed them because he doesn't have them very often.

And we had ice cream, of course!

What a treat for a special birthday!

He enjoyed telling stories.

We call them doedoes - 

and he makes them up on the spot

and never repeats them

and they are always special!

Grammy and Xiomara made his special cupcakes!

They also made two types of frosting - 

german chocolate and chocolate cream cheese!

Kemiah crocheted him an alien!

Emily and Marissa made him a felt alien!

What a fun day we had with Gaffa! So glad we could have him here for his birthday. He is 80. My oldest sister is now 50, and my youngest sister is 40! So crazy that time just keeps marching on. They were together 10 years ago to celebrate together and it seems like that just happened a couple years ago. Wow! Pay attention or time just passes without noticing!