Grace's First Parade

This morning Grace and I went to the Chuy's Children Giving to Children Christmas parade in downtown Austin. I think it'll be a new tradition! Grace seemed to enjoy her first parade, and I had a great time too. Her favorite part ~ the HUGE Hello Kitty balloon, followed closely by seeing Santa! My favorite part was seeing loads of kids so excited about giving toys to kids in need. We were standing near a little boy who asked his Mom at least a dozen times when he could "give the toys away." I'll admit I got teary when they stopped the parade, and kids flooded the street to donate toys. What a beautiful sight and a great way to teach kids about sharing their gifts with others! A built-in stewardship lesson for families in and around Austin! I love it :-) Rumor has it that they collected 30,000+ toys today...awesome!

After the parade, Grace and I paid a visit to the hospital to give our best wishes to Grace's wonderful caregiver, who had an emergency c-section on Wednesday. She gave birth to a beautiful, but tiny, little girl named Avery, who is still in the NICU. Please keep her in your prayers!

We closed out our day at home with naps, followed by football, and of course, more Thanksgiving leftovers! It was a wonderful Saturday!

Christmas Trees Galore!

This picture sums up Grace's reaction to each of the three Christmas trees I put up last night while she was spending the night with Nana and Pop-Pop in Waco. Her joy was so heart-warming. Words can't begin to describe how fun it was to watch Grace discover each tree! I've been smiling non-stop since we got home a few hours ago.

I've always loved Christmas, and this has always been my favorite time of year. This year my excitement and anticipation are at a whole new level, knowing that Grace's 2nd Christmas will bring many smiles, much laughter, and memories that will last a lifetime.

By the way, this picture is my new desktop image on my laptop. It makes my day every time I see it. Grace has that effect on me daily.

From our home to yours...

We wish you and your family a blessed Thanksgiving! Be sure to take time to reflect on all you have to be thankful for...it will do your heart good. And tell your family and friends how much they mean to you. It's the perfect day to surround yourself with the love and happiness that only family can bring!

On this day, we are particularly grateful for our wonderful family, great friends, and a life that often feels like a fairytale. We are abundantly blessed, and we are thankful today and every day.

Grace is 18 months old today!

A year and a half old already? Seriously? The last 18 months have gone by far too quickly! We cherish our beautiful daughter and all the joy she brings to us on a daily basis!

She has her 18 month check-up on Monday, so we'll fill you in how much she's grown then. For now, here's a list of some of the words and phrases Grace likes to say these days:

Mom, Mama, Dad, Dada, Nana, Pop-Pop, Uncle, Billy, Anna, Chanel (her caregiver), Kayla (Chanel's daughter), Aidan (her 2 year old pal from day care), NO (her favorite word), ball, "Ewww, poo poo," sippy, cup, sit down, come on, here you go, up, on, one, two, moon, sun, dog, puppy, woof woof, cow, moo, kitty, Santa, "Ho Ho Ho," doll, apple, potty, get down, baby, nose, shoes, socks, toes, belly

Right before our very eyes, our newborn became an infant. Then our infant grew into a toddler. Grace Calleigh, slow down and stop growing up so fast! Happy 18 Month Birthday, sweet girl :-) We love you.

Booster Seat Time!

Today Grace officially graduated from her high chair to a booster seat! This picture shows her having her first meal, Spaghetti-O's, in her new booster seat. We've also moved past the days of us feeding anything to Grace. She wants to do most things herself these days. My little girl seems to have her mother's strong desire for independence. She's in a rush to grow up just as I was...now I know how my parents felt when I tried to hurry through my childhood years. I find it fascinating how we're in such a rush to grow up; then we reach a time in life when we want to be young again. Ahh, the circle of life :-) I'm feeling very reflective these days. With the holidays on the horizon, that's no surprise.

Speaking of the holidays, today Martin and I accomplished more Christmas shopping. We're on a roll! I hope to have most of our shopping finished before December begins. I'm getting so excited for Grace's 2nd Christmas! You can be assured that the decorating will begin this Friday. After all, it's the most wonderful time of the year!

I'm finally starting to recover after being under the weather for most of last week. Whatever I had really took its toll on me. I'm glad to be back in the land of the living. Being sick and having a toddler do not go hand in hand; I'm happy Grace managed to stay healthy. Even my sweet husband, who's rarely ever sick, didn't feel well for a few days.

That's all for now. Three cheers for our big girl & her new booster seat :-)

Laundry Basket Ride -- Whee!!!

Grace loves to be a helper...one of her favorite things to help Mommy with, "folding" laundry. She spreads the clean clothes all over the house and even tries on our clothes. She's not impressed when Mommy actually gets all the clothes folded and back into the basket. She knows that then her fun is over.

Tonight we found a new use for the laundry basket, and Grace liked it even more than helping to fold clothes. Martin, Uncle Billy, and I each took turns racing Grace around the house in the basket, which brought hysterical laughter from Grace and shortness of breath for the three of us :-) Neverless, fun was had by all.

Getting so smart!

Our little girl is getting more and more clever by the day! Tonight she spent quite awhile with her Old McDonald book. In this picture, I asked her, "Where's the kitty cat?" And she pointed to the kitty cat. I then asked her to find the cow, and she did. It's thrilling to watch her learn about the world around her.

I'm sure it's not shocking to anyone that Grace is talking up a storm! I've lost count of the number of words she can say now. She's great at repeating, so we're constantly trying to teach her.

My favorite word she's repeated so far...CHAMPIONSHIP! Daddy said it, and Grace repeated it! How cool is that?

As I'm sure you can tell, we are SO proud of our sweet girl!

Hello, Anna!

Today Martin, Grace, and I visited Uncle Brian, Aunt Jen, and baby Anna at their home in La Vernia. It was so amazing holding my niece again...this time Grace let me hold her for a bit longer before having a tantrum. I savored the moment!

Anna had her eyes open a lot during our visit, and she seemed curious about her relatives who had come to see her. As she grows up, she'll come to understand how incredibly loved she is!

Grace was pretty curious about her cousin. She watched her for a bit while she had tummy time. I know Grace will shower her cousin with hugs and kisses in the years to come. It will be fun to watch them play together as they grow up!

This afternoon Grace and I went out shopping and had a good time. I couldn't believe how many people were out and about today! The holidays are coming, and folks in Austin seem to be getting prepared. Martin and I are getting really excited about Grace's second Christmas!

Tonight we're looking forward to having our friends, Keila and Brandon, over for dinner. We'll be making steak and salmon on the grill. Yummy yum yum! Can't wait!

Introducing Anna Marie Moyer!

At 12:56 pm today, my brother, Brian, and sister-in-law, Jen, welcomed their daughter, Anna Marie, into the world! She's a perfect angel, weighing in at 6 lbs, 9 oz and 19.5 inches long. We are thrilled to welcome Anna to our family!

My Mom (the proud Nana), Grace, and I went to San Antonio this afternoon to meet Anna and congratulate the new Mom and Dad. There's something magical about witnessing the first hours of a child's life. A friend of mine put it best, "A newborn child is proof of God's undying faith in us."

Grace did a lot of playing at the hospital, but she had quite the temper tantrum when I held Anna. I guess Grace isn't ready to share her Mommy just yet! She recovered awhile later and kept repeating Anna's name for us. This had us all giggling! I'm so glad Grace now has a cousin close by to grow up with...some of my best childhood memories involve hanging out with my cousins in PA.

Welcome to the world, Anna Marie, and more importantly, welcome to the family! You can be assured of our unconditional love today and always.

Ring Around the Rosie!

During a visit from Nana & Pop-Pop today, Grace learned one of Nana's favorite grandkid activities
~ RING AROUND THE ROSIE!

Grace's favorite part is when "we all fall down." It makes her laugh every time! This picture captures Daddy, Nana, and Grace having a blast doing Ring Around the Rosie together :-) Another wonderful family memory!

We have a new President!

This evening the United States of America elected a new President, Barack Obama!

This was the first election of Grace's life, and Martin's first election living in the U.S. We watched as the results rolled in, and Grace clapped every time she saw people clapping on TV. Unfortunately, she wasn't awake by the time the new President was announced.

This picture shows Grace during President-Elect Obama's acceptance speech.

It's been a year...

It seems hard to believe that Dawn's been gone a year. Many of you will remember my blog posts last year about my friend, Dawn, who died unexpectedly at the age of 33. It was one year ago today.

I'll never forget receiving that phone call; hearing the news knocked the wind out of me. In the last year, I've struggled to accept the reality of the death of a young wife and mother. Someone like me. Someone experiencing the same joys in her life. Her daughter, Hannah, was just 15 months old when she lost her Mom. Dawn and Robert had been married for four years. It was too soon.

In the midst of my own struggle to come to terms with losing Dawn, I pray daily for Robert and Hannah, for Dawn's parents, her sister, her brothers. I ask you to pray for them today as well. And pray for Dawn as she watches over us. My friend, Kathryn, said it best, "Dawn, we hope you're making heaven laugh today."

Grace is 16 Months Old!

I'm sure it's not possible. Where has the time gone? 16 months have passed since Grace was born...I just can't believe it. Today we pause to give thanks for our daughter who has brought such abundant joy to our lives. We love you, Grace Calleigh!


This adorable picture is of Grace playing her bodhrán (Irish drum) earlier this week. She digs it!

Today is also my nephew's 6th birthday! Happy Birthday, Josh :-) We love you and hope you have an awesome birthday!

Last, but certainly not least, it's my Aunt Barbie's birthday today too. She's also my Godmother, and I love her to bits! Birthday wishes all around :-)

Ike has come and gone...

...and we were spared. Other than a bit of a breeze, we completely dodged Ike's bullet here in Austin, and we're thankful! We didn't even get any rain. I was up off and on during the night checking on the status of the storm. At 5:30 am, I brought the dogs into the garage because the wind was really picking up, but it became clear within a few hours that we weren't going to be in the danger zone.

So we're spending the day watching the coverage of the storm and the havoc it wreaked on Galveston, the Houston area, and the Gulf Coast. Please keep everyone who has been affected by the storm in your thoughts and prayers in the days to come.

Awaiting Ike...

The eyes of Texas are on Hurricane Ike, as we await landfall within the next 5-6 hours. We've been tracking the storm all week, and the path has changed significantly. There was a time when Austin was directly in the path of the storm; now we're on the fringes. They are saying we should only get 1-2 inches of rain and winds of up to 50 mph. In comparison to early projections, this is welcome news. We plan on spending the day at home, and we'll surely be paying close attention to the weather reports.

The news, on the other hand, for those along the Gulf Coast is not good. This storm could bring widespread devastation, so please take a moment to pray for all who are in the storm's path. Pray for safety and protection and that God will watch over us all.

A fun Saturday :-)

Grace and I started our day with a nice walk and a visit to the playground. Grace had a great time playing, especially picking up and throwing the wood chips that surround the swingset and jungle gym. She also liked climbing the steps of the jungle gym, although she didn't want my help walking back down the steps. She wants to be completely independent and isn't impressed when we try to help her do anything. In fact, when I try to take her hand to help her, she looks up and "yells" at me. I can only imagine how sassy she'll be when she starts to talk more!

I took Grace to get professional pictures taken in the afternoon. It's the first time she's gotten professional pics taken since she started walking. It was quite the adventure! I dressed her in her Philadelphia Eagles cheerleading uniform, and as you can see, she looked adorable! The photographer and I had a great time, as we tried to get Grace to 1) stay in one place long enough to take her picture, and 2) show her pretty smile. I'm pleased to report that we were successful! We got some wonderful pictures of our little cheerleader :-) I can't wait until they arrive in a couple weeks!

This evening Grace and I took a road trip to Bastrop to visit my friend's grave. Grace napped all the way there and back, and I used the drive as a time for reflection. I still think about my friend, Dawn, and her family everyday. In October, it'll be a year since she passed away unexpectedly. It has made me realize just how short life is and has reminded me, time and again, of the importance of living each day to its fullest. On the way home, I pulled over to snap the picture on the right. I thought Dawn was reminding me that she's watching over all of us.

Grace is 15 Months Old!

As hard as it is for us to believe, Grace is 15 months old today! Where has the time gone? It seems as though every month goes by faster than the one before. As I'm feeling that ironic combination of happiness and sadness today that only parents understand, I've been thinking about something someone said to me this summer that has stuck with me.

"You only get one chance with your kids."

That's one of the most profound things anyone has said to me in awhile. It's such a short sentence, yet it packs a punch. I've repeated those words to myself many times lately, reminding myself that each and every day of Grace's life is a precious gift, and I need to cherish each moment with her.

As I've been reflecting on what it means to only have one chance to be a good Mom, a new song came out on the Christian radio station that brought me into a deeper understanding of that powerful statement. The song is called "One Life to Love," and the chorus goes like this:

"You only get just one time around. You only get one shot at this, one chance to find out the one thing that you don't want to miss. One day when it's all said and done, I hope you see that it was enough, this one ride, one try, one life to love."

What an awesome way to restate the old cliche of living everyday to the fullest! Let's all strive to love this one life we have and to be thankful daily for all the ways we've been blessed.

Home Sweet Home!

It was with heavy hearts that we arrived in Austin this evening after our wonderful journey to Ireland. Saying goodbye is the worst part of any trip to see family, but particularly in our case. The distance between us is so great that saying goodbye hurts even more.

We flew from Shannon to Newark (7 hours), then Newark to Austin (3.5 hours). Grace slept quite a bit on both flights, but not enough to please those sitting around us. She had moments on both flights when she cried uncontrollably. We think it may have been the change in altitude affecting her ears. Regardless of what made her unhappy, the journey home was rough on all three of us. Nineteen hours of traveling with an almost 15-month old isn't easy. In fact, it's downright exhausting. Martin and I agreed, though, that it was worth it. Our time in Ireland was so special, and we wouldn't trade it for anything, not even a carefree international flight!

The two highlights of the trip home both happened in the Newark airport. First, Grace had her first Happy Meal. She enjoyed her first taste of fast food, although we warned her that we'll be keeping the Happy Meals to a minimum, even though McD's has come out with healthier options (including milk instead of soda...YAY)! The second highlight was Grace's discovery of the moving walkway. She thoroughly enjoyed it, under our very close supervision :-)

Grace's Nana and Pop-Pop picked us up at the airport, and she was thrilled to see them and her Uncle Billy! Even though she was worn out, she still had plenty of energy to play and reacquaint herself with all her toys at home. We're all winding down now and looking forward to (hopefully) a good night's sleep. But then I'm up at 4:30 AM to take Mom, Dad, and Billy to the airport for their trip to Philly. Good night, one and all!

Friday and Saturday in Ireland

Well, it's Sunday, and our trip is winding down. We've had such a nice time and aren't looking forward to saying goodbye. The week flew by, and it's hard to believe it's nearly time to return to the States. We really wish we could've stayed longer...maybe someday the U.S. will come around and give employees more time off every year. Here's to hoping!

Friday was a very chill day for us...we did a tour of the graveyards where various family members are buried and paid our respects. We had a delicious lunch with Mam and Dad while we were out and about and were so pleased to have that quality time with them. Grace is lucky to have fantastic grandparents in Ireland and in the U.S. Every child should be so lucky :-)

We returned to Caroline and Willie's for "bun burgers and homemade chips," a.k.a. hamburgers and fries. I realize that much of my blogging is about eating -- we did a lot of that on this trip, and all the food was awesome! We had an evening of family time with cider and beers. Grace was in bed by 10 PM for the first time on our trip, which gave Martin and I more time with Mam and Dad at home. The moments with the family have been the most cherished times of our trip. Everyday we've been blessed with moments to remember.

On Saturday, we went to the wedding of Martin's cousin, Sean. It was my first time to experience an Irish wedding, although I missed most of it since Grace was in no mood for sitting quietly. Luckily, there was a side chapel in the church, and we spent the majority of the ceremony in there. Martin got a lot of pics so I feel like I was there.

The wedding started around 2 PM, and we were at the reception until 1:45 AM...just imagine the day we had with Grace! After the wedding ceremony, everyone hung out in the bar at the hotel until the meal was served at 6 PM. The band started playing around 9:00ish and that went on until around midnight. Then the disco started, and the dancing continued. I've never seen anything like it. It was unreal! Apparently, it was a typical Irish wedding. I was impressed!

I'll admit it was a very long day. Grace wasn't very cooperative, not that I blame her. After all, she's a one year old little girl who was surrounded by loads of people, loud music, and disco lights for the first time in her life. She had her shining moments though, particularly when she got out on the dance floor and showed us her moves!

My other Grace highlights for the day included her tight squeeze hugs and kisses and watching her dance with her Daddy. During the last week, Grace has started to hug you back when you're holding her, and it is the sweetest thing. The first time she did it, it brought tears to my eyes. She's such an affectionate little girl. Sometimes, she'll just walk over and give me or Martin a kiss out of the blue. I'm so proud of her I could just burst!

Today is our last day here, and it's been low-key so far. We took Grace on a walk and hung out with the family. This evening we'll be having dinner together and enjoying our last evening with the fam. So that's all for now, and my next post will be from our home base in Austin, Texas.

How Do I Love Thee?

There are moments in every marriage when you fall in love all over the again. For some couples, those moments are few and far between. I feel exceedingly lucky that I experience those moments incredibly often. Our time in Ireland has been packed with those moments. I'm certainly not eloquent enough to put into words the depths of my love for my husband. I wish I could. I really do.

One of my favorite quotes is, "Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away." Since the day I met Martin in Rosie McCaffery's Irish Pub in Phoenix, my life has been filled with moments that have taken my breath away. What a life we have built for ourselves in the last three years --- I'm in awe of what has grown since that fateful night when I spotted the love of my life for the very first time.

During this trip, it has been so special to watch Martin introduce his daughter to his relatives. It was special to watch Martin dance with his Nanny and spend time with his uncles, aunts, and cousins at the wedding. It was special to see him make his newest niece, Melissa, smile and to watch him playing with Michelle, Liam, and Conor. It was special to watch as he joked with his sisters. And twas special to see the bond that clearly exists between Martin and his parents. He's a family man who I respect and admire beyond belief.

As our trip sadly comes to an end, I pause for a moment to give thanks for my AMAZING husband, our daughter, and our incredible family here in Ireland. God has blessed us abundantly, and we are truly thankful.

Thursday in Ireland

I've said it before, and I'll say it again - it was another wonderful day in Ireland! This trip has been perfect from the moment we arrived. Our Thursday was especially spectacular :-) Martin, Grace, and I took a nice walk around Clogheen. I love hearing about memories from Martin's childhood and seeing the look on his face as he reminisces. We spent a few hours hanging out with Sharon, Tom, Michelle, and Conor. Grace is a big fan of her cousins and had a great time checking out all of their toys. Grace was particularly entertained by a megaphone toy they had. I'll post the video of her playing with it when we get home; it's hysterical :-)

We got home in time for another amazing home-cooked meal, complete with steaks, mashed potatoes, and veg! Mam and Dad are such gracious hosts, and we never go hungry when we're here. After dinner, we took a walk to a pub in Clogheen for a drink with Martin's cousin and her fiance and Caroline. Grace came along, but slept in her stroller (a.k.a. buggy) the whole time we were there.

After that, it was time for one of the things I was most excited about on this trip - seeing Michelle do her Irish dancing in the show at the community hall. The show is called Draíocht na Faille Deirge and is a show full of Irish dance and music. Words cannot even begin to describe the experience! I was blown away by the beauty of the music and talent of the dancers. It was definitely a highlight of the trip! Michelle, our niece, was the STAR of the show, and we were so proud of her! It was truly an honor to be there to see her dance. Rest assured that I'll post several videos of the show in the days to come, along with pictures of our beautiful and talented niece, Michelle!

They served scones at the show, and Grace thought the world of them. She was very entertained by the music and dancing through most of the show. I loved watching her sweet face as she looked in awe at the dancers. She literally devoured an entire scone herself, which was quite the spectacle :-) Perhaps Grace will grow up to be an Irish dancer like her cousin!

Wednesday in Ireland

Yesterday was another awesome day in Ireland! We went to Cahir, a town close to Clogheen for lunch and to do some souvenir shopping. Cahir is the home of Cahir Castle, which was constructed in the 13th Century and was used to film the movie, Excalibur. It's a spectacular castle!

The streets of Cahir were alive with activity, as a movie was being filmed at Cahir Castle and there were lots of interesting costumed characters on the streets. Also, it was the day of the "deb's ball," which is Ireland's version of Prom. We saw a bunch of teenagers all dressed up and preparing for their big night out.

We went to a pub for some soup and met up with Neil, one of Martin's buddies from his days in Oxford, and his girlfriend, Rachel. We made plans to meet up with them again in the evening and headed to the souvenir shop. They had ice cream there, and Martin shared a cone with Grace. Grace ended up with it all over her face, but she enjoyed every bite!

We headed back to Clogheen, and Grace and I had a nice nap. We awoke to the most amazing smell...Mam's famous pork dinner! We had a truly delicious meal together with Mam, Dad, Caroline, Willie, Liam, and Melissa. Martin was in heaven since his Mother's pork dinner is "his favorite meal ever." I must admit that it knocked my socks off too, and Grace was thoroughly impressed as well.

After dinner, we had a visit with Sharon, Martin's sister, her husband, Tom, and Conor and Michelle. We gave them their gifts and hung out for a bit before heading out for the night. Grace stayed home with her Aunt Caroline, cousin Liam, and grandparents and had a great evening playing with them. Meanwhile, Martin and I met up with Neil and Rachel in Cahir for beers. Later, Eamon, another of Martin's good friends, met up with us, along with his daughter, Tara, who I befriended on Facebook awhile back and finally had the pleasure of meeting. We did a pub crawl to three of Cahir's pubs, enjoying beer and cider at each. We had a really wonderful time hanging out with good friends and experiencing Ireland's nightlife.

My favorite thing about pubs in Ireland is that people can stay and drink past closing time. The pubs closed at 11 PM last night, but we were there until 1 AM. You arrive outside a pub, and it looks deserted from the outside, but once you're inside, you see that the party is still rocking on :-) No nasty bouncers throwing you out at closing time like in the States...gotta love that!

All in all, it was yet another brilliant day! That's all for the moment :-) TTFN!

We're in Ireland!

Hello to all, and greetings from Clogheen, Ireland - the home of Martin's family! Clogheen is in County Tipperary and is a lovely town. I marvel at the beauty of this country each time I visit. This is my third time here, and I am still in awe. As a matter of fact, three years ago I visited Ireland for the first time (in August 2005), met Martin's family, and said yes to his marriage proposal. I hold all of those memories so near to my heart. It's hard to believe that three years later, we're traveling here as a family with our beautiful daughter, Grace Calleigh. What a spectacular three years it has been for us!

We arrived on Sunday morning, August 17th. It was about 7:30 AM Irish time, but just 1:30 AM Texas time. Needless to say, the three of us were worn out from our journey. We flew from Austin to Newark, and Grace was great on that three and a half hour flight. She slept for about two hours and played nicely the rest of the time. The first half of our trip was great! In Newark, we had dinner and tried to wear Grace out. She ran all around the airport; she loves having big, wide open spaces to run free. When we boarded the plane bound for Shannon, Ireland, we had high hopes that Grace would sleep much of the trip. No such luck :-) We ended up sitting on the plane for an hour and a half before taking off, and Grace was really not impressed. All she wanted was to run around the plane, which of course she couldn't do. We managed to keep her somewhat tame, but then we had 6 hours of flying to get through. I'll spare you all the details, but suffice it to say that 2 nasty poops and several "baby meltdowns" later, we arrived at the Shannon airport. In spite of being worn out, we were thrilled to land on Irish soil!

Grace got to use her Irish passport for the first time, and she and Martin sped through the EU line, while I waited in the long American line. Grace had fallen asleep toward the end of our journey (FINALLY) and slept through our arrival, getting our bags, and walking through the doors to her anxiously waiting grandparents! She finally woke when I changed her diaper in the airport and gave lots of cuddles to her Nana as we walked to the car. We drove back to Clogheen and had an awesome Irish breakfast waiting for us. It hit the spot! We met up with Martin's sister, Sharon, and her two kids, Michelle and Conor, plus Martin's nephew and Godson, Liam. It was a great way to start the day!

After breakfast, we headed to Martin's parents house to get ourselves showered and dressed for Melissa's Baptism. The Baptism was beautiful, definitely the most unique one I've ever witnessed. It concluded with the priest singing to Melissa, who smiled away at him. After the Baptism, the party got rolling at Martin's sister and brother-in-law's house (Caroline and Willie). The party raged on all day long and was fabulous. Loads of family and friends came to celebrate Melissa's Baptism and Liam's 8th birthday. The day was complete with typical Irish weather...in other words, it rained all day long! That didn't stop Liam and all his friends from playing on the bouncy castle though :-)

When we finally got to bed at midnight, all three of us were exhausted! But guess what? We slept in until Noon the next day and felt a world better! Monday was a day of relaxation and hanging out with the fam. Grace got comfortable in her new surroundings and had a blast playing with her cousin, Liam. I got my long-overdue cuddle time with my new niece, Melissa, and fell in love with her! Grace was really sweet to her and gave her lots of kisses!

Tuesday was the long-awaited trip to the Cliffs of Moher! I've wanted to go there ever since seeing my brother, Billy's amazing pictures from his trip a couple years ago. Martin has never been there either, which still blows my mind. The Cliffs are about 100 miles from Clogheen, and we all set off for the journey. We arrived JUST IN TIME to see the Cliffs...as we were snapping our photos, we watched a huge cloud roll in from over the Atlantic and sure enough, it started to dump rain on us about 20 minutes after we arrived. NOTE: This pic is not from our visit to the Cliffs...I'll post ours later, but the backdrop wasn't nearly so clear. Alas, such is life! It was quite the adventure, as we tried to keep Melissa and Grace dry and warm. It was certainly worth the trip because the Cliffs are absolutely breathtaking and the scenery on the drive was equally as magnificent! I saw my fair share of "fields of green and fences made of stone."

We made it back to Clogeen around 8 PM and got Chinese food for dinner. We just chilled out, ate dinner, and relaxed after our long day. It was another great day in Ireland! That's all for now; keep checking back for more about our time here! Love to all back home :-)

Ireland, Here We Come!

Tomorrow morning the Fogarty family will set off for our journey to Ireland! It will be Grace's first trip to her Daddy's home, and we couldn't be more excited! We've been counting the days for months, and the time has nearly come. We can't wait for Grace to meet her Irish family, especially her new cousin, Melissa, who was born in May :-) It's going to be such a special time for all of us. Rest assured that we'll take hundreds of pictures to commemorate the experience, and I'll blog all about it.

I believe Garth Brooks says it best:

"Ireland, I am coming home. I can see the rolling fields of green and fences made of stone. I am reaching out; won't you take my hand? I am coming home, Ireland!"

Home Sweet Home!

After three very long weeks in Minnesota, I am home at last! I listened to the Daughtry song "Home" a lot while I was away..."I'm goin' home to the place where I belong, where your love has always been enough for me." It is so good to be home. Truly, this is the place where I belong. Martin and I have spent much more time away from each other than we would have liked during the early days of our relationship - that's what happens when you fall in love with someone who lives in another country. We endured a lot back then, and those times were tough, but not nearly as tough as the last three weeks. We are a family, and it pained us to be apart. It especially pained me to miss out on three weeks of Grace's life, although I saw her almost every day on web cam.

When I saw her today, I couldn't believe how much she changed while I was gone. She's grown up so much! She has four teeth on the top now that are almost fully in...when I left, there were three just coming through! She is starting to talk a lot more, and Daddy taught her lots of new words while I was gone. The cutest one is "cheese," which is her favorite thing to eat :-)

Now tomorrow it's back to work for two weeks before we head to Ireland. We are SO excited about Grace's first trip there! Introducing her to the rest of the fam is going to be a blast and seeing her play with her cousins, aunts, uncles, and grandparents will be the BEST!

In countdown mode...

I've been in Winona, MN for 13 days now, but guess what? Only one week to go! I'm getting myself into countdown mode. I'm so anxious to get home to Martin and Grace. Being away has been even harder than I expected.

My grad school experience has been really positive though. I've been learning a lot and have met some wonderful people, in addition to the awesome group I already knew in this program. It's just the homesickness that has made it a rough few weeks.

I've watched Grace on the web cam quite a bit, and that's been so great! She is learning all kinds of new things. She showed me her belly button the other day, and that cracked me up. I'm so proud of her and how clever she is :-) When they say absence makes the heart grow fonder, they aren't kidding. I love and appreciate my family even more after this time away. I feel like the luckiest girl in the world to get to share my life with Martin and Grace.

Now I need these next 7 days to fly by so I can get home...because that's where my heart is!

p.s. Happy 2nd Birthday to my niece, Madison :-) We love you and wish we were there to celebrate with you!

Saying goodbye stinks...

I am sitting in the Chicago-O'Hare airport, still teary from saying goodbye to Martin and Grace a few hours ago at the Austin airport. I am off for 3 weeks of grad school in Winona, Minnesota. That's right, 3 weeks away from my sweet husband and precious little girl! I'm not sure how I'm going to cope, especially since I've never been away from Grace for more than three nights!

Hopefully, the time will go by fast so I can get home to the 2 most important people in my life. Thank God for phones and web cams! I'm sure we will make good use of them over the next 3 weeks!

The Gigglebox Top 10 List

Grace has become quite the gigglebox lately. (Side note: I love the word gigglebox. I remember my Mom calling me that when I was a little girl, and it always made me giggle even more.) I've been keeping a mental list of all the things that have made Grace giggle this week. Here's the top 10 and a few Honorable Mentions:

1) Seeing me for the first time when I arrived to pick her up
2) Seeing Daddy when he arrived home from work
3) Seeing Uncle Billy when he arrived at our house on Thursday evening
4) Seeing Nana and Pop-Pop when they got here to look after her on Friday evening (so I could take Martin on a birthday date)
5) Every time I asked her if she wanted "CHEESE PLEASE"
6) Hearing the opening music of "Around the Horn" on ESPN, which Martin watches every night
7) Watching the hound dogs through the window and knocking on the window to try to get their attention
8) Playing the "uh oh game" where she throws a toy out of her crib and I hand it back to her
9) The hundreds of bubbles coming out the bubble machine
10) Singing "Happy Birthday" to her Daddy (every time she hears that song, she thinks it's for her)

Honorable Mention:
- Every time anyone sneezed in her presence (sneezes are hilarious to her)
- When I handed her a cup filled with ice (this is one of her new favorite toys -- playing with ice entertains her for longer than most other things right now)
- When her piano toy played music and the monkey on top danced in circles
- When she turned off the light about 10 times in a row while I was trying to comb her hair and brush her teeth
- Each time she ate a grape (those are funny too!)
- Splashing Daddy during bath time

Happy Birthday, Daddy!

Today is Martin's 29th birthday :-) Grace and I would like to say Happy Birthday to the number one man in our lives! Here's a little top ten list about my wonderful husband and the father of my beautiful child:

1) He's always there for us and is, hands down, the best husband and father in the world!
2) He's completely a family man and his prioirities are always in the right place.
3) He knows how to comfort Grace and me when we cry.
4) He's always the life of the party.
5) Next year he'll be "tirty." And in four years, he'll be "tirty-tree."
6) He keeps us laughing all the time with his antics.
7) He rocks at Sports Bets on Facebook.
8) He's adamant about not liking lettuce, yet he loves lettuce wraps at PF Chang's (where we're going for his birthday lunch today).
9) He loves "mug of scald" (a.k.a. hot tea) and drinks at least one mug every day.
10) He believed in a girl he met at an Irish pub in Phoenix, in spite of a mountain of obstacles, married her, and made her the happiest woman in the world :-)

Here's to Martin...Happy Birthday, My Dear :-)

13 Months and Counting...

Today Grace is 13 months old! The days keep flying by, and our little girl gets less little everyday. Grace is becoming quite the character. I can see her testing the limits and seeing what she can and can't get away with. I wonder if she'll ever take us seriously when we discipline her. Right now when we tell her "No," she just laughs. Apparently, we're hilarious :-)

I'm glad the weekend is approaching. I have less than three weeks 'til I head to grad school in Minnesota, and I'm trying to finish up all of my assignments. With that, work, a handful of a 13-month old, and taking care of stuff at home, I've got my hands full.

It's been a HOT month in Texas! I think we officially passed the record for the hottest June ever. It's hit 100 degrees or higher 19 days this month! HOT HOT HOT! Needless to say, we're not hanging out outside very much! I dread our electric bill this month, but thank God for air conditioning!

Grace & Her New Tricks

Grace has completely mastered walking, and it is so much fun watching her walk all over the house! She cracks us up all the time with her antics. She's learned so many new things lately:

- She nows waves "Bye Bye."
- She gives big hugs and kisses when you ask (most of the time).
- She blows kisses.
- She's learned how to turn the TV on and off, which she thinks is absolutely hilarious!
- Grace turns the pages in books and acts like she's reading.
- She loves getting her teeth brushed.
- She talks A LOT! Words in her vocabulary include: Dada (all the time and way more than any other words), Mom or Mama, Baby, Ba (for ball), Bi (for Uncle Billy), and Oh. There are lots of other things she says that sound like jibberish, but will soon make sense :-)

In other news, Grace has a new tooth coming in on the top! Teething has made her particularly moody, but we're rolling with it. All in all, she's a good girl, and we love her to bits!

Happy Father's Day!!!

Today is all about honoring Fathers :-) It was a good weekend in our house. Yesterday we had a Father's Day lunch at our house to honor my dear Dad and my husband, the two AWESOME fathers in my life :-) As always, it was special time together.

Today we started the day with Mass. Grace is getting to be more a handful at church now that she can walk. She's not at all interested in being held these days; she just wants to explore her surroundings. She was quite entertaining at church today, as she befriended all of the people sitting around us with her sweet smile and non-stop giggling. She had her little rubber ducky with her and kept offering it to her new friends. Our girl is such a sweetheart!

We got breakfast tacos for a Father's Day treat. Martin has come to love one of the great things Texas has to offer! We had a nice quiet day at home, enjoying each other's company and watching Grace trot around the house. Now's the weekend is coming to an end, and I'm thankful for another fantastic weekend :-)

p.s. I took this adorable picture of Grace this morning before we left for church! Isn't she precious?

Blogging on the road...

Three cheers for technology...I am blogging on my Blackberry while riding down I-35 on the way to Dallas for work.We are down-wind from a truck full of cows. Gotta love Texas road trips!

I wanted to share a cute story from last night. When I got home from work, Martin and Grace were already home. They were playing on the floor, having a good time. Martin was laying down on the floor, and I came to sit next to him. Grace noticed that Martin was dozing off, so she crawled over and gave him a kiss! It was one of the sweetest things I've ever seen.

We taught Grace to give kisses awhile back. Up until last night, she only gave kisses, usually with her mouth slightly open, when we asked for a kiss.

Later in the evening, when Martin was laying on the couch, Grace crawled over, pulled herself up, and planted another kiss on his lips. That's my sweet girl!

Grace Takes Her First Steps!!!

Last night our sweet little girl took her very first steps! Just one week after her first birthday, Grace took two tentative steps from her Mommy to her Daddy.

Martin and I have known for awhile now that the first steps would happen any day. Grace has been cruising around the house like a pro and had worked up the courage to let go and stand on her own. More and more often over the last couple of weeks, she would stand proudly by herself, almost always with a huge smile on her face.

Last night we were trying to encourage her to take that first step. For the last few days, she's been lifting her foot and then going to the floor. I can only imagine what she must be thinking as she learns this new skill! But last night she went for it! Our house lit up with pride, lots of smiles, and even a tear or two. We are SO proud of daughter :-) What an unforgettable moment!

HAPPY 1ST BIRTHDAY, GRACE CALLEIGH!!!

As hard as it is for us to believe, today our baby girl is one year old! It truly seems like yesterday that we welcomed her into the world. Our lives have been abundantly blessed since that wonderful day a year ago! We are incredibly thankful for our beautiful daughter :-)

Grace's First Haircut

Today Grace got her first haircut! She was not impressed. Here she is before the scissors even appeared:

She started crying the minute I put her in the car and cried through the entire experience. We even had to take a break so I could hold her for awhile. Then the woman who was cutting her hair finished the haircut with me holding her. Overall, Grace was not too impressed with this milestone, but she sure looks cute, and I bet she'll appreciate not having her hair in her eyes all the time.

We're wrapping up a nice weekend. We had a wonderful visit with our friends, Holly and Trent, on Friday. Grace liked them a lot. She was in such a trance watching Trent that she stood for about two minutes on her own, without realizing she wasn't holding on to me anymore. We were all so excited!

They spent the night here on Friday, along with our buddy, Matt, and we managed to stay up until 2 AM. We played a great game called "Pass the Pigs." I highly recommend it. It was good fun, and it was awesome catching up with our friends from my days in Phoenix.

On Saturday, I went to the ordination of five guys who became transitional deacons. They will become priests after a year of ministry as deacons. It was neat since I've never attended an ordination. In the afternoon, the three of us went to a friend's baby shower. Grace only lasted about 45 minutes there before she was grumpy and in desparate need of a nap. We headed home, and she got some zzzzzz's. We had a quiet evening at home, complete with playing, playing, and more playing. I even managed to get some reading done for grad school. I have a TON of work to do before heading to Minnesota for three weeks in mid-July.

Today has been a good day...the haircut was an adventure, and Grace entertained us with her antics as usual. Grace and I went to the mall together this afternoon, and she was such a good girl. Now she's in bed, and I'm ready for some sleep as well. Good night, sleep tight, and don't let the bed bugs bite.

The Tale of the Tiny Diaper

It was a normal night in the Fogarty home. We fed Grace, ate dinner, and enjoyed each other's company. Grace was busy crawling and cruising (using the furniture to help her walk around the living room) and even testing out her ability to stand on her own. She tentatively let go of the couch and stood all by herself, then slowly sat down as if the standing had worn her out. Martin and I were engaging in our usual, "look at her" and "check out what she's doing now," as we do every evening. We are constantly in awe, as Grace learns new things, tests her limits, and explores the world around her.

In the midst of all this, we were also trying to clean the house since we have friends staying with us tomorrow night. As I was cleaning the dining room, I found Grace's travel diaper changer, which I keep in the basket under the jogging stroller. I haven't used it in ages and thought I should get it out for our trip to Philly next week. When I opened it, I got all teary when I found two newborn diapers inside. When I showed them to Martin, we both got pretty emotional as we remembered when Grace was small enough to fit into them.

In that moment, a flood of memories came back to me, and I remembered how big the newborn diapers were on Grace at the beginning. We actually had to get her premie diapers for the first few weeks! Now here we are...less than two weeks away from her first birthday, and she's wearing size 4 diapers, pulling up, and learning to stand on her own. This time is precious, and it is flying by right before our very eyes.

Our Little Irish Girl

Grace's Irish passport arrived today! We were SO excited to get it :-)

Our little Irish girl is the BEST!!!

I’m glad you were born!

Today I celebrate my own birthday! I’ve always loved having a May birthday, especially on a day that always falls on or close to Mother’s Day. Now that I’m a Mom myself, my own birthday is even more special. I’ve never been a huge birthday person, except when I was a kid and had awesome slumber parties with my best girl friends! For the last ten years or so, I’ve been rather anti-birthday. But this year my birthday has taken on a whole new meaning.

I’ve been thinking about how special birthdays are for parents. The day your child is born remains forever imprinted on your mind and in your heart. Grace’s birthday was the best day of my life, followed closely by the day I met my husband. So today I’m not as indifferent about getting a year older. I realize what a miracle every life is, and I’m thankful that my parents loved each other enough to bring me into the world.

I’m the big 2-9 now…I embark on my final year of my twenties! It’s been one heckofa decade. I marvel at all that’s happened in my life during these years. The last three years have been the most wonderful…from meeting Martin on that fateful day, June 3, 2005, to now. When I take time to slow down and look back, all I can say is, “WOW!” I’ve found a level of happiness I never knew existed. I’m living my own fairytale.

During my time in Phoenix, I met one of the coolest chicks I know. Now when my birthday rolls around, I know I’ll hear from her, and she’ll say one of my favorite things. Today around lunchtime I got that call and heard, “I’m glad you were born.” And she followed it up with, “and I bet Martin and Grace are glad you were born too.” Today I rejoice because I was born. I AM glad I was born, and I’m glad my husband and beautiful daughter were born too. Happy Birthday to Me!!!

What a Day!

I'm wrapping up Mother's Day 2008 with a huge smile on my face! What a perfect day!

Martin and I began our day with Mass, complete with a special Mother's Day blessing. We then came home to have some serious playtime with Grace and make some family phone calls. Today is also Martin's Dad's birthday -- Happy Birthday, Dad! Wish we were there to celebrate with you, but we're there in spirit!

My one Mother's Day request was to have a picnic. I absolutely LOVE picnics, which I picked up from own Mom who has taken us on many a picnic over the years! So Martin, Grace, and I had a fantastic picnic in front of the Main Building at St. Ed's. You can see the Austin skyline perfectly from there, and the grass is nice and soft. Grace has never crawled in the grass before so it was fun watching her check it out. She even tasted some :-)

The weather was absolutely perfect and so was our picnic! What a gift it is to be a Mother! Happy Mother's Day to all the Mom's out there :-) May God bless you on your special day!

Happy Mother's Day to My Mom!

Happy Mother's Day to Moms everywhere! What an awesome day to honor the women who gave us life and then proceed to give so much of themselves for their families!

To honor my own Mom, who is the most amazing woman I know, here's a top ten list of my favorite Mom moments:

1. The day she met Grace. I will never forget that first moment, sharing my own beautiful daughter with my Mom.

2. The first few weeks Mom spent with us after Grace was born. As a first time Mom, I was so thankful to have a pro with me during those early weeks of Grace's life. She took exceptional care of me when I had some post C-section sickness, all the while loving on her new grandbaby and making us both feel like the world revolved around us. Mom has a way of making everyone feel that way. It's a gift.

3. The sweet signs and cards she's made for Grace during the last year. She's not only the perfect Mom, she's also the perfect Nana. From the "Happy Birthday" signs for each month to the cards for every first holiday, Mom thinks of everything.

4. The notes Mom used to put in my lunch everyday. Mom was always famous among my friends for the wonderful lunches she always made for me. Her sandwiches are the BEST, and I got lots of trade offers, but never would give up Mom's yummy food! To add a special touch to every lunch, she always put a note in my lunchbox with her trademark smiley face :-) Those notes made my day, even during those brutal teenage years, when I caused my parents so many headaches!

5. When Mom helped me put on my pantyhose for Prom. I got my nails done for the first time, and being the tomboy that I was, I was helpless with those stupid nails. Mom helped me put on my pantyhose so I wouldn't tear them and only teased me a little bit about it later ;-)

6. Writing essays when my behavior warranted such a punishment. I know it's shocking, but I wasn't the easiest kid to raise, especially during my teenage years. But Mom loved me through it all and used her favorite punishment often. I wrote quite a few essays about lessons I learned the hard way. At the time, I hated writing those essays, but I realize now that those essays forced me to really think about what I'd done wrong, which is something I doubt I would have done with just traditional punishment like getting grounded.

7. Speaking of getting grounded...no wait, that's not on my top ten list of favorite Mom moments. That's a different list ;-) Seriously, #7 is those early years when Mom served as my Girl Scout Troop leader. We had a lot of good times, selling cookies, working toward badges, and singing silly songs! Mom was the best troop leader, and all the girls agreed!

8. When Mom would say she felt sorry for the other team after a big softball win for my team! I got my competitive nature from my Dad, but Mom taught me compassion and humility in victory. Back then I used to laugh at those statements, but I came to understand her point of view in times of defeat.

9. Sharing my birthday with Mom during many Mother's Day/Birthday weekend celebrations. I was born the day before Mother's Day, so Mom and I always share our special weekend. This year it means even more, as I celebrate Mother's Day with a daughter of my own.

10. The many life lessons Mom has taught me during the last (almost) 29 years. I learned more than my share of lessons the hard way, but Mom was always there to help me pick up the pieces and learn valuable lessons. I know that I'm able to be the Mother I am today because I've had the most fantastic example of motherhood from my own Mom. Not everyone is so lucky, and I realize how incredibly blessed I am. Of all the lessons I've learned from Mom, I know the most important is to be a woman of faith. Our faith has helped us both to weather many storms and to be thankful for all the good things in our lives. Life is good, and Mom has taught me to approach everyday with faith, hope, love, and a hearty sense of humor!

Here's to you, Mom! Thanks for everything :-) I love you so much!

Will the real Grace Calleigh please stand up?

It seems like every chance she gets, Grace is pulling herself up. She digs standing! She's testing her chubby little legs more and more everyday. I'm amazed at how brave she's getting, and I try to stay calm as she wobbles with the tile floor looming below her.

This morning as I was cleaning up the kitchen before leaving for the day, I cracked up when Grace crawled into the kitchen, pulled herself up, and began banging on the door of the refrigerator. It was like she was begging for some breakfast! She is certainly learning how to tell us what she wants, even without being able to talk.

Speaking of being able to talk, today Grace was all DADADADA! I took a few videos of her cute chit chat, which you can find on our YouTube channel: http://www.youtube.com/amberfogarty2005. I've been trying to teach her some other words, but she just looks at me, smiles, and continues on with DADADADA!

It's been a long week! I'm glad tomorrow is Friday. I had to work Monday and Tuesday nights, which I always find tough. I hate missing out on my evenings with Grace. That is sacred time!

We're looking forward to heading to Waco tomorrow evening after work to celebrate Mother's Day with my Mom. Grace loves sleepovers at Nana and Pop-Pop's house! Only a little over an hour until I can truly say TGIF! I'll be asleep before then though...night night!!

Uncle Billy Graduated!!!

You know you're getting old when your baby brother graduates from college! Billy is seven years younger than me, and I'm feeling pretty nostalgic about his graduation. It's just hard to believe that he's all grown up.

It's been an awesome weekend! On Friday night, there was a Baccalaureate Mass for the St. Edward's Class of 2008. It was a beautiful Mass with a homily that I thought was incredible. We had a nice family evening at our house afterwards, complete with pizza and lots of laughs.

Yesterday morning was the graduation ceremony. I was pretty teary through a lot of it, especially when Billy walked across the stage to get his diploma. I'm so proud of him! You can see videos from the graduation ceremony on our YouTube channel: http://www.youtube.com/amberfogarty2005. The ceremony lasted two and a half hours, and Grace was such a good girl through the whole thing. After graduation, we took a ton of pictures (as always, available online at http://picasaweb.google.com/amberfogarty), then headed home for a day of partying!

The party, in honor of Billy and his best friend, Shane, was a blast! It started around 2 and lasted until almost 10 PM. Everyone seemed to enjoy themselves, with great food, a drink or two, and the sharing of many memories that brought both smiles and tears. Billy and I made a slideshow that turned out AWESOME! It showed Billy and Shane through the years, including some great shots of them in gradeschool and high school. Their friendship has stood the test of time, and Shane has become part of our family over the years and Billy a part of Shane's family.

Today has been a day of R&R! We've been resting and relaxing with the best of 'em ;-)

Congratulations, Billy! Martin, Grace, and I love you and are VERY proud of you! We're so anxious to see what God has in store for you in the years to come.

Mommy's Little Helper!!

The last few weekends Grace has decided to be my laundry helper! Just like my nephew, Josh, she has a fascination with the socks! Once again today she had a ball for nearly an hour throwing the socks up in the air and squealing with delight! It was hilarious :-) It took much longer to get the clothes folded, but was well worth it. We did lots of giggling!

Grace and I also had a very fun game of peek-a-boo this afternoon! She's been in a fantastic mood all day, and once again she was a very good girl at Mass. The older she gets, the more I worry about loud outbursts at inopportune times. But so far, we've been in the clear. Today she used her sweet innocent voice at a few of the most quiet moments, but her "dadadada" just made everyone around us smile. And Martin and I spent the entire Mass smiling. Our girl seems to have that effect on us!

11 Months Old!

Happy 11 Month Birthday, Grace! I can't believe we're closing in on the one-year mark. It truly seems like yesterday that we brought our little miracle home from the hospital.

For the last few months, I've been slacking on the blog, but I've at least kept up with taking and uploading hundreds of pictures to capture nearly every moment of Grace's first 11 months. I've also started uploading videos to our very own YouTube channel (http://www.youtube.com/user/amberfogarty2005), which has added another level of fun for our friends and family, both near and far!

I've been quite reflective the last few weeks about Grace's upcoming first birthday. The time has flown by. There's a relatively new country song I just heard on the radio the other day that rings true as I think about the past year. It's called "You're Gonna Miss This." Google it and read the lyrics, or better yet, download it! It's a great song. The chorus goes like this:

You're gonna miss this
You're gonna want this back
You're gonna wish these days
Hadn't gone by so fast.
These are some good times
So take a good look around
You may not know it now
But you're gonna miss this

Here's the thing...I know I'm gonna miss this. The last 11 months have been an incredibly special time in my life. Martin and I have embarked on this journey of parenthood together. We had no idea what we were getting ourselves into, and we certainly had no clue what we were doing. But each and every day, we walk together and do our best to raise our daughter. By far, it's been the most amazing experience of my life. I've learned a ton in the process and have felt emotions at depths I never had before. It's been one heck of a ride. And the best thing about it is that it just keeps getting better everyday!

So, yes, today marks 11 wonderful months since Grace's birth! And oh how she's changed! I still remember holding her in my arms for the first time, marveling at the beauty Martin and I created! I still marvel at her on a daily basis. She's at such a fun age, and each day brings a new adventure.

Grace has entered super-speed-crawling mode, and she literally disappears in a matter of seconds. I spend my time chasing her around, which has become a fun game that brings about lots of giggles :-) She's also pulling herself up at every opportunity and testing her legs. You can tell she's giving some thought to the idea of taking a few steps, but I think that'll be a few months away. Right now, she stands up and every so often gets the courage to let go of whatever she's holding on to. She usually falls down right away with a thud, then proceeds to pull herself back up.

I love watching her personality grow and change. I constantly see glimmers of myself in her...her sassiness, her determination, her excited gestures, her enthusiasm about life. And I see Martin in her SO much, as does the rest of the world. Virtually everytime we're out, someone comments on how much "she looks like her Daddy."

On that note, Grace is totally into her Daddy. She is definitely Daddy's little girl. In fact, she digs all boys. I think we have a handful on our hands, especially when she reaches her teenage years... Grace is especially fond of Uncle Billy. When he walks into a room, her face absolutely lights up. Even at her grumpiest moments, Uncle Billy can always bring a smile to her face!

In other recent developments, Grace now has two teeth and is trying many new foods. She LOVES cheese! When I say, "cheese please," Grace does her excited hands and often lets out a squeal to let me know she's ready for some cheese. We're also experimenting with her feeding herself, which is interesting to say the least. The other day I gave her a spoon and a bowl of applesauce. She gave the spoon a try, but decided quickly that using the spoon was way too much work. So she put the spoon down and proceeded to pick the applesauce up with her hands and put it in her mouth. I have a great video of that on YouTube. It was one of those classic moments!

We are also seeing Grace push the limits to see what she can get away with. She already seems to know when she's doing something bad or getting into something she shouldn't. In these moments, she always looks to see if we're watching. If she catches our eyes, she'll usually flash us a devilish grin before diving into whatever she knows she shouldn't do. Like I said, she's a handful already...and she's not walking yet. I can only imagine what's in store in the months to come :-)

Martin and I have both been super busy lately, and we play the dual-working parents ever present juggling game, trying our best to keep our priorities straight. We know that we will miss these days, and we need to cherish this time in our lives! That's easier said than done sometimes, but we just keep on trying.

When Daddy Feeds Grace...

...this is what she looks like:

Grace had one of her little "temper moments" while Martin was feeding her tonight. She threw her head forward right into the spoon of sweet potatoes. She's Miss Potato Head, an appropriate name for our little Irish gal :-)

An Awesome Weekend

Sunday night is always my least favorite time of the week. I don't enjoy saying goodbye to the weekend, knowing that I have to go to work all week and spend time away from Grace and Martin. This weekend I want to end even less than usual. It was one of the best weekends we've had in awhile. Our time with Brendan, Shital, and Roisin was absolutely the best! I've been racking my brain all night trying to figure out how to get them to move here. That would make us SO happy!!

Grace and Roisin had a blast together! They're like sisters :-) Watching them play was really amazing! It brought back a flood of memories from my own childhood. I remember many special times with my cousins. I hope Grace has the same opportunities for closeness with her own cousins, although it'll be tough since three (soon four) live in Ireland and two live in PA. But in November Grace will have a cousin closeby when Uncle Brian and Aunt Jen welcome their new little one to the family! We're all super excited about that!

Anyway, the weekend was packed with activities, so we're worn out. Check out the photo site for a play-by-play: http://picasaweb.google.com/amberfogarty/BrendanShitalRoisinSVisitToTexas. One of the highlights was taking Roisin and Grace to JC Penney to get photos taken of them together. Shital and I had to work hard to get our two active little girls to sit still long enough for the photographer to snap their picture! That was a challenge! But somehow we did it, and the pictures turned out amazing!

We also had a fun time at the State Capitol. The weather was perfect, and we enjoyed showing off our hometown. Martin and I truly love Austin...we're hoping Brendan and Shital loved it enough to think about moving here. Fingers crossed!


That's all for now, folks! I'm off to bed!

Mommy's Turn for Pink Eye

I woke up today with my own case of pink eye. A big thanks to Grace for that gift! I was especially bummed about catching pink eye because tonight Martin's uncle, aunt, and cousin arrive to visit us from Phoenix. So I got up, went to the office and got all the work I needed to do today, then went to the doctor to confirm the diagnosis and get my prescription eye drops, then picked up said eye drops, then came home to work the day away.

I was shocked to realize how much pink eye hurts. It made me even more sad that Grace had it too! Although, she's already gotten over it. I hope I'm as resilient as her :-)

Now we just play the waiting game until Brendan, Shital, and Roisin arrive. Their flight arrives around 11 PM, so just a few hours to go. We couldn't be more excited about their visit, especially seeing Grace and Roisin (who is 14 months old) play together! It's gonna be a great few days :-)

Boo for pink eye!

Grace woke up today with a nasty case of pink eye. Her little eye was swollen shut! She couldn't get it open this morning. It made me so sad! She looked like she had been in a boxing match. Poor little Rocky!

Thankfully, her pink eye didn't affect her mood too much. She was in a good mood most of the day in spite of her pink eye. She even allowed me to work throughout the day, as she played independently. She's the BEST!

Swing time didn't go over well...

Today we took a nice family walk. We took a pit stop at the park to re-introduce Grace to the swing. The first few times she was unsure about the swing set, but she didn't hate it. Today was a whole different story. She really hated it!

She turned white as a ghost and literally started shaking. Then she burst into tears! We felt so bad! We took her out of the swing and cuddled her until she got over it. As kids do, she bounced back in a matter of minutes and forgave us for the nightmare of the swing. I guess we'll wait awhile before we try the swing again!

Grace and Fred

During Grace's first week of crawling, she has already found her favorite place in the house. We start out in the living room, and Grace inevitably ends up in the kitchen, sitting at the back door watching our two hound dogs. She is so intrigued by them!

Tonight we gave them a chance to say hello, and Fred was very sweet! I guess he's forgiven her for stealing all of our attention ;-)

Fred and Phoebe are certainly ready to have a new playmate, so it's great that Grace loves them so much!

We have a crawler!

Grace has been working to conquer the feat of crawling for quite some time now. First, she learned the butt scoot. Then, she moved on to the backwards crawl. On Friday afternoon, she finally made some forward progress. I was on the phone with Billy, when Grace crawled forward a few feet! I was ecstatic! I was the only one home, so I've been waiting for her to do it again.

Yesterday, we spent the day in Waco, and Grace had ample opporunity to show off her new skill for Nana, Pop-Pop, Uncle Brian, Aunt Jen, and Uncle Billy all at once. But I guess she decided she wanted more of a private moment because today she started crawling all over the place! It's so cool to watch her. She gets this super serious look on her face and off she goes!!!

Daddy is in awe and is all smiles while he watches her. I, on the other hand, keep tearing up, as I realize that my little baby girl is becoming a toddler before my very eyes.

What an Easter Sunday! Alleluia :-)

Check out Grace's 1st Tooth!

After many unsuccessful attempts, I was finally able to snap a picture where you can see Grace's very first tooth. Check it out! Isn't it the cutest?

Happy Easter!

Easter has always been one of my favorite holidays! It's such a special day for so many reasons. From a religious standpoint, it's the day when the Alleluia returns! After the journey of Lent and the darkness of Good Friday, today we rejoice for Christ is risen! Alleluia!

In an email a few days ago, a very wise friend of mine wrote, "For some time now, I've seen Easter as the marking of our victory, as people, as sons and daughters of God, brothers and sister of Christ. We win." His quote has been going through my head all day. I love thinking of this feast as a victory. We do win! Jesus is risen, and thus we have the opportunity for eternal life. I also love Easter because it's a day to renew your Baptismal promises. Since this is Grace's first Easter, I got choked up as Martin and I renewed our own Baptismal promises and Grace's too. What a wonderful day!

We started our morning with Grace playing in between us in bed. I love weekend mornings. Having time to enjoy the morning as a family is the best! Grace was her usual cheerful self this morning, complete with lots of her signature happy screams. We're watching my parents cat for the week, and Grace gets seriously excited every time she sees the kitty. This morning was no exception.

We got Grace dressed in her beautiful Easter dress, and she looks like a little angel! I've already posted lots of pictures from today. Be sure to check out our photo site. Before we left for Mass, Grace scoped out what the Easter Bunny brought to our house! The Easter Bunny put her basket with all of the other Easter presents she's gotten from family and friends. It was quite a spread!

Grace was a good girl at Mass once again. She even worked on her singing during a few of the songs. She likes making noise when everyone sings. Adorable!

After Mass, Martin, Billy, Grace and I went for lunch at Plucker's. Billy gave up Pluckers for Lent, and Martin and I gave up going out to eat, so it was a fun lunchtime place for all of us, especially with March Madness in full swing.

On the way home, a song came on the radio that made me all teary. Ever since Grace's first tooth came through, I've been feeling very emotional about how quickly she's growing up. I know this is a normal Mom reaction; it's just crazy how fast time is flying! The country song called "Stealing Cinderella" is about a little girl growing up and finding the man of her dreams. The young man realizes he's "stealing Cinderella" and that in the eyes of the girl's Dad, she will always be his little girl. It's a great song, and I imagine I'm not the only one who's gotten a bit teary listening to it.

Now we're back home, and Grace is playing. We'll be having a nice family dinner later. I'm looking forward to the rest of the day with my incredible family! Happy Easter one and all!

Grace's Happy Scream

Oh my goodness, Grace is in such a fun phase right now! We seem to be laughing non-stop at her antics! The last few days she has started this happy scream, and she's doing it A LOT! I managed to capture it on video tonight...enjoy!

It's a Good Friday...

...literally! The Catholic service on Good Friday is, in my opinion, one of the most moving of the year. There is no Mass on Good Friday; the service consists of Liturgy of the Word, Veneration of the Cross, and Holy Communion. Grace and I went together to the Noon service, and it was amazing. Grace was a very good girl, although she let out a few high-pitched, happy squeals at super quiet moments. With an almost ten-month old baby, that's to be expected!

Grace and I ran errands after church, then took care of things around the house until Martin got home from work. I finished my bunny cake, which I'm SO proud of, and got us all packed for our overnight trip to Waco. We got on the road around 7:30 and had a nice quiet drive while Grace took her usual road-trip nap.

Martin and Billy went out for the evening, and Grace and I had a fun night with Nana, Pop-Pop and Uncle Brian. Grace kept us all entertained with her loud screams and giggles! She played with her Easter eggs, and Grace helped Nana by "folding" the socks while Nana folded the rest of the laundry.

Oh, that reminds me of a cute moment earlier...when I was getting ready this morning, Grace was playing in my bedroom. She made her way over to the laundry basket that was full of clean (and folded) clothes. She proceeded to pull all the clothes out of the basket and throw them on the floor. She's already a troublemaker, but she seriously cracks me up!

Let's hope we'll be getting to bed soon. Grace still seems to have lots of energy, but I'm starting to fade.

Happy St. Patrick's Day...

...from our home to yours! St. Patrick's Day is an important day in the Fogarty's world. They say that everyone is Irish on St. Patrick's Day, but since Martin is 100% Irish all year round, it's a particularly special day for him. Unfortunately, it fell on a Monday this year, which seriously hampered Martin's drinking plans.

I picked Martin up from work and dropped him off at our favorite bar. I then spent the evening hanging out with Grace at home. Grace looked so cute today in her shamrock outfit! She's one cute kid :-)

Grace and I met up with Martin, Billy, and a few of our friends at the bar later in the evening when I went to provide chauffeur service. Grace wasn't so sure what she thought of the band and all the people. We made it home a little after 10, and everyone's in bed but me. I'm heading that way soon. Nighty night!

Grace's First Tooth!

It's official...after months of incessant drooling, serious fussiness, and a bunch of Baby Oragel, Grace's first tooth has made its appearance! It sure is cute :) Her first tooth to come through is the bottom right tooth. I'll get a picture up as soon as she lets me snap one. Grace is totally not into showing off her tooth. In fact, when I try to check it out, she clamps her mouth shut!

Grace pulled herself up!

Another milestone for Grace Calleigh...today she pulled herself up into a standing position for the first time. It was awesome! She used my legs as a booster and managed to get herself up.

Grace is still working on mastering crawling, but she has been way more into standing for awhile now. She has mastered the "butt scoot" and gets around the room to pretty much whatever she wants to reach. She's also gotten the hang of the backwards crawl, but still hasn't figured out how to crawl forward yet. She'll get the hang of it one of these days!

A New Car!

Today started out like most other Saturdays. I was up even before Grace. I just can't seem to sleep past 7:00 AM these days. While I waited for Grace to wake up, I did some research on cars. Martin and I have been talking about getting a new car for awhile. One of our cars has been going downhill, and we wanted to trade it in while it still had some value. We had already decided that we wanted a Mazda CX-7, so I did some browsing to see what I could learn about it. I happened to find a great deal online on a pre-owned 2007 with very low mileage. As I crunched the numbers, I thought we could make it work.

So once Martin and Grace woke up, we decided to go run errands, including going to the dealership to check out the car. We agreed that we wouldn't buy today; we'd just test drive it and make sure it's what we want. Low and behold, we left the dealership several hours later as the proud owners of a 2007 Mazda CX-7! We got an even better deal than we hoped for, so we bought it. We're really excited about our new wheels.

Grace was with us at the dealership the whole time and was such a good girl. She digs the new wheels too!