Thanksgiving Weekend

We had our annual trip to the farm this year for Thanksgiving....one of my favorites! However, the weather changed drastically during the day from the 80's to the 50's so we didn't get to spend as much time outdoors as I would have liked. But, it was still SO fun seeing all the family and enjoying a lot of good food!

I didn't capture as many pictures as I would have liked, but here's a few!

Allan and Holly

He was so quiet with her while she slept~definitely a Kodak moment! ;)

My Aunt Bette, my cousin Susan's son, Jack and Holly

Jack was the BIGGEST helper with Holly~SO sweet!

My Aunt Bette and Holly

Holly lit up with Bette!

Shelby (my cousin Susan's daughter) and Holly

They are the only 2 girls out of 9 boy cousins...they are going to have to team up!

We left the farm in Hempstead and went to Houston to spend the weekend with grandpa and great friends....

Nicole & Issaac, Me & Holly, and Ang, Elizabeth & Samuel

Angela and me and our sweet baby girls!

Nicole, Me and a tired Holly!

Holly loved snuggling with Nicole

Nicole's husband Brian and Holly~Brian had "the touch!"

Grandpa and Holly

....precious times!

What a great weekend with family and friends!

Austin/Georgetown for UT game/family & friends

Holly in Thomas' favorite outfit....I have to admit, it may be one of mine, too! :)

If any of you know Thomas, he is quite the UT fan and hadn't gone to a game this year. So, we made another trip to Georgetown and enjoyed introducing Holly to more friends! I didn't get a picture with one of my old school friends, Kim Flack Carr and her precious daughter, Caroline but Holly slept the entire time to Austin and back as well as our time there....she had quite a nap! And then Holly got to meet one of my friends, Jennifer Jones, whom I've known since I was 3 years old....SO fun!

Jen, Holly (bundled up in the sling) and I enjoying the fire and smores! YUM!!

How about some burnt orange!! Goodness! ;)

My mom and Holly in my mom's "backyard"...you can imagine why I love going there!

Family friend, Bette and Holly

A perfect weekend with family & friends....looking forward to many more!

Happy Halloween from Glen Rose!

My sweet little pumpkin!

This is the best we could get~Sleepy Head!

Gilda Mattoso (the mother of a dear friend of mine, Angela) made this pumpkin hat for Holly! SO SO sweet! We love you Gilda! Thank you!

And my friend, Kara made the skirt that you can barely see for her little girl last year and let us borrow it! Loving all the LOVE in this outfit!

I can't believe it's been so long since I've posted!! Miss Holly keeps my hands quite full....in a good way!! :) Between feeding, play time, me doing my Activities of Daily Living (my OT friends will appreciate that!), walks with friends, running errands, play dates (more for me than her!), traveling to Glen Rose and Georgetown, house hunting, etc...we've been quite busy! Time is flying and she's getting so big, I can't get over it!

Here's a current pic of our sweet Holly!

We made a trip to Glen Rose for Halloween to see Thomas's family and had such a great time! I always LOVE our trips there, it's nice to get away from the big city!

On our way down we stopped in Cleburne and saw our dear friends Matt and Mauri and their adorable newborn, Micah, who was born on my birthday! :) Such a cutie!

Holly and Micah~we can't wait for many play dates! :)

Matt and Thomas have known eachother since 1st grade!

Holly's twin cousins, Daja and Delaney

Holly is going to have tons of fun with these two!

Holly's other cousin, Maxx with the girls!

Holly's one and only Great Grandmother Gwen~We love you SO much!

Holly's Aunt Audra and her ADORABLE little monkey, Jack!

Daja couldn't wait to push Holly in the stroller~TOO sweet!

We all went on a walk in the neighborhood with the dogs and all!

Such good memories....

Looking forward to many more!

Trip to Georgetown!

We could not wait to make a trip to Georgetown to see Mimi and Poppi as well as other family! It was a quick trip, just one night, but we enjoyed every minute! We got there late and had a delicious dinner with my mom and Allan along with the most amazing banana pie for Thomas's birthday! The next morning, Thomas and Allan went and played golf while my mom and I slept in! :) My mom made another wonderful meal for lunch while Holly and I enjoyed the view from their deck...it's literally heaven on earth (you can get a little glimpse in the pictures below). Here are a few pics from our trip!

Holly taking over my bed in the morning!

A favorite time with my sweet little girl...1st thing in the morning!

Five generations of family have slept in this bed~Holly's great-great grandmother ("Mommie" Gillette), great grandmother ("Mimi" Gillete), grandmother (my mom, "Mimi" Baker-Lambert), me and now Holly~very special!

Mimi and Holly

I can't get enough of her!

Holly in one of her favorite places....her sling!

My Aunt Ellen and Holly

Poppi and Holly-she's cracking up...too cute!!

We had such a wonderful time and look forward to making many more memories!!!

Holly's Favorite Positions to Sleep

So, I got to taking quite a few pictures of our sweet Holly sleeping because I always thought she looked so precious and then when looking at all of them, I realized the trend....she always either has a hand somewhere on her face or both arms raised up over her head. Here are some pictures I captured!

I swear I didn't position her in this one!

Our First Walk and Mom & Holly's Complications

The weather has been absolutely perfect and we couldn't wait to get outside for a walk! It's great exercise for my leg as well. For those of you that don't know, four hours of labor left me with two complications....one being a weak right leg due to femoral nerve compression damage. I basically couldn't extend me knee and had a weak quadricep. I'm a ways from running and stairs are still a challenge but it will heal...they say it can take up to 10 weeks.

So, here's a pic of us getting ready for our first walk!

My other complication was having to come home with a foley catheter due to excessive swelling from long labor. Five days after the delivery day, we had to go in for Holly's first pediatric appointment and I had the lovely foley bag with me. It was also the day I was to remove it and attempt to get by without it which was, thankfully, a success!

I had some cargo pants on and clipped it to one of the side pockets....Thomas had to take a picture saying...."only you could wear a foley bag in style!" Kinda silly, but here's the pic with it attached to my right leg....

So, Miss Holly had a minor complication from labor. She got a little scab on the back of her head that we couldn't believe turned into a little heart!

Thankfully, for the most part, Holly entered this world so perfectly and without any issues! She has slept and fed well from the beginning and 1 month later, she continues to thrive!

Newborn Pictures!

Ten days after Holly's birth day, my dear friend, Jenifer McNeil Baker took these amazing photos! Holly slept through the entire shoot....such a trooper! Here's a few of our favorites! Thanks so much, Jen!! You captured the perfect pics! I just love them all!

If you would like to view them all or want to order any, you can go to this link:

http://jenifermcneilbaker.exposuremanager.com/g/holly_newborn.

Holly Anne Halka

10 days old

You are such a beautiful blessing, Holly! We love you to pieces and are enjoying every second with you....even those middle of the night feedings! You are one hungry girl!! ;)