It's Christmas-time!

Lily's first Christmas, told through pitures




Lily discovering the wonderful world of ribbon in a sea of presents.








Lily discovering the streets of downtown Knoxville on Christmas Eve eve.












All of us discovering what some people do with their spare time.....this house was one of those animated 'light shows' where you tune into a specified radio frequency to hear the music coordinated with the lights....it certainly drew a crowd, the best part was the neighbors, they definitely had the 'if you can't beat them, join them' attitude. The whole street was illuminated, with everyone getting in on the fun.







Here we are at Christmas Eve service at the Ascension. We chose the early "children's pageant" service, in hopes that if Lily decided to join in the carols, she would blend with the rest of the under one year olds. Besides getting a bit excited while talking to her toy butterfly, Lily did great throughout the service.









I think Lily was practicing the Christmas-Eve giddiness that children have the pleasure of experiencing. She got herself in the best mood once we returned from church and here is the result

Finally, Christmas morning.

Tissue paper and ribbons were the biggest hit.

Jonathan properly introduced her to her first futbol...which Gator mistakenly figured was for him....and Lily finally got her hat and matching mittens.....now socks will only be used as intended, for the feet.

Besides all this, we had some fabulous eats, including homemade eggnog (which I highly recommend, and is one thing my Dad liked to do), our traditional monkey bread on Christmas morning and as a treat Jonathan cooked his signature pecan-crusted salmon for Christmas dinner, Good Eats!

Week 24

Well you've already had a glimpse into week 24, with the post below. Lily still finds the changing table, and now her toes, the most exciting part of the day. She's working on crawling, she's trying to bring her knees up under her when she's on her belly, but unfortunately she's doing this while sucking her thumb. I've tried to tell her she has to pick one or the other, but she's not convinced.

The picture above was taken at the Apple Barn in Seveirville, http://www.applebarncidermill.com/ . I've grown up going there while traveling to or from the mountains. Originally there wasn't even a restaurant there, just the orchards and the Barn where you can buy anything apple...that includes food and crafts. Though the area around the Apple Barn is now literally unrecognizable from what it used to be, it is still very nostalgic for me. I've had many visits and meals here that included my father and grandfather. Dad always got a frozen gallon of their apple cider, so by the time we got it home (about 45 min) it had melted just enough to have an icy cold glass.......delicious.....of course, this week we did the same.

We just couldn't pass up the opportunity to get our picture taken with Santa, who is obviously looking for his John Deer tractor.

Get-togethers and more..

Last night we had a smattering of my fellow QCOMers and their significant others over for a quick holiday gathering.

Being 'out of the loop' for awhile now, it was so good to see everyone and catch up with them as they all are actively interviewing at residency programs...seems like a world away for me right now.

Lily was a peach, putting on her party face for the evening, and even becoming a bit smitten with Damon (one day we'll have to break it to her that he's taken..)

Otherwise this week, we've been having some fun....bathtime always makes a splash and the changing table never gets old. Below, Lily is exploring options to sucking her thumb....

M.oierrrry Cjhrdistmesss

Week 23: Who can find the baby?

Today was Lily's first snow (relative term for us here in East TN vs those of you in the rest of the country that have been blanketed by the real thing). Fortunately, Nana had stocked us with snowsuits, so we were totally prepared and since we never know if or when the white stuff is going to come again we thought we'd take advantage of the proper gear.

After today however, we, as parents, deserve what's coming to us in years to come. I must say I had some belly-aching laughs at my poor 5 month-old baby girl's expense....aahh, the perils of being at another's whim.

The suit Lily is fashioning to the left is reminiscent of the little brother in "The Christmas Story." The poor thing couldn't even move in the abundance of padding, rightly so considering it's made for a child 3 months her senior....at least we knew we wouldn't have to take it off if she needed to go to the bathroom!

Nothing says cute like an over-sized bucket hat.

This is Miss Lily just before taking a walk at the VA.

Week 22

Santa's little helper. I just love this picture of our little elf. Her new buddy to her right is hysterical....it's the new musical toy from Hallmark. Thanks to Gran's purchase of several Hallmark cards, we were able to get said toy. When played, he barks jingle bells (with a howl at the end) while he rocks back and forth on his sled.....this of course, is good for hours of entertainment, especially when you are 5 months old. Which by the way, can you believe Lily is 5 months old?!?! (obviously a rhetorical question to cyberspace) As I near the end of my stay-at-home mommy tenure, looking back over the months, all the days truly feel like a moment in time.

As a 5 month old, Lily is definitely deciding to be a thumb-sucker and I have to admit, it's pretty cute. It's not just the "I'm discovering my hands, and oops the thumb just happened to end up in my mouth" but more like the "Hmm, out of all these wiggly things attached to me I like the short stubby one the best..." She also said the word "Buh." Yes, I know it's not a word, per say, but there was definite formation of the sound with her lips. And finally, I apparently crawled at 5 1/2 months (please hold applause) so we'll see what develops in these next couple weeks....of course (like it or not) we'll keep you posted!

I'd like to thank Nancy Huber, for sending Lily the cute dress in the picture. We have known the Hubers for many years. Their youngest daughter, Kari, a friend of mine from years back also just had her first baby (Andrew) a few months ago. The Hubers have faced a tremendous challenge this Fall as Mr. Huber was diagnosed with AML, an aggressive form of leukemia. The good news is that after a heck of a fight, he is currently cancer free, but he is still in need of a bone marrow transplant ASAP and the search for a donor match is on. They have chronicled their experience on their blog http://www.billhuber.blogspot.com/ . They are constantly in my prayers, and though you may not know them I ask that they be in yours.

Birthday Cubed!

For the last 66 years, December 7th has marked one of the most tragic days in US History: the attack on Pearl Harbor. For the last 31 years, December 7th has marked a tragic day in the history of certain economics students at Milligan College: the birth of Dave. For the last 3 years, December 7th has marked a tragic day in the history of tennis balls residing in East Tennessee: the birth of Gator. And finally, for the last 5 months December 7th marks one of the most wonderful anniversaries ever: the birth of our daughter Lily. To the left, you can see one of the pictures taken for my birthday card...obviously one of the family members was feeling a little left out and decided to pout through the photo shoot.

Here Lily is visiting me at the office. She and Em baked me a red velvet cake (my personal favorite) and sang Happy Birthday in the Business Department! And last but certainly not least, many thanks to Mom and Dad who got me a frame for my diploma for my birthday!

It's a boy!

We just got word today, that the youngest Parisi came into the world this week.
Owen Michael Parisi was born Monday Dec 3rd. We don't have stats just yet, but
baby and mom are doing well. We look forward to getting a peek of the little tyke
soon, but until then we would like to give them a huge Congratulations and only
advise them to lay back and enjoy the ride!

Addendum!! Check out the Parisi's site listed to the right, they've posted a pic...and Owen is a total cutie (my words, not Dave's....Dave says I can't call him 'cutie' I have to call him 'handsome' because he's a boy....well I say, I'm just glad we had a girl so we don't have to argue about this)!

Week 21

To mark the beginning of our new dietary habits, as shown in the previous post, I thought it would be appropriate to add the cereal in this week's picture. We also discovered a new pasttime this week...jumping! Besides having to put the baby in the closet, Lily loves her new jumper. She quickly got the 'hang' of it too....

Sunday we had the pleasure of having the Harrelson's over for dinner...Mary Hudson and Lily are still great friends, even after the coffee spilling incident......Lily tried to show MH what she had to look forward to, by rolling clear cross the floor of the nursery....I'm not sure MH was too impressed.