Wednesday, April 30, 2008

11 weeks - and counting!

This is just an image I found on Google, but I love seeing this little person and thinking that baby Rife closely resembles this baby right now. Little tooth buds form under the gums and fingernails appear this week. Whew...growing life is exhausting stuff.

We heard the heartbeat for the first time on Monday. Thank you God for this healthy baby!

Wednesday, April 23, 2008

Lazy B Ranch


On Saturday, we were invited for a cookout at my previous boss's house. He and his family live on a farm in Statham, GA, which is near Athens...and a world away from the busyness and pace of Atlanta. Dave, Cyndi and their six kids have a "homestead" lifestyle. They raise chickens for their eggs, goats for milk, cows for beef, sheep for wool, and grow almost all the fruits and vegetables they need in their beautiful garden.

The Lazy B Ranch was certainly the highlight of Holly's week. She got to ride (sit on) a pony, play with baby goats, see chickens in their coup, and roast marshmallows in a fire pit (with a little help from Mom and Dad). Not to mention all the love and attention Dave's kids showered on her...

To top it all off, as we were saying our goodbyes and getting in the car, Matt and I saw a shooting star. It was a perfect half-day retreat from our normal day-to-day, and who knows...maybe I'll even plant a garden...








Sunday, April 20, 2008

Off with the Side Mullets

If you've seen Holly recently, you're familiar with the long hairs in the back of her head that look like 2 horns pointing downward. They're on either side of her head and really do resemble mini-mullets. Saturday I convinced Matt that it was time to cut them. It was a little sad for him, because this is Holly's baby hair - the only hair that didn't fall out when she was around a month old (which explains why it's so much longer than the rest of her hair). But we did it, and captured it for your viewing enjoyment.

Notice the kitchen shears I'm using...

Wednesday, April 16, 2008

My Little Mozart

These videos do a poor job of capturing Holly's true musical talent. Every time I turn the camera on her, she gets distracted and more interested in the camera. But it's cute nonetheless, and I can't wait to get her in piano lessons!

(When you see her point, she's telling me to "Sit down!" She's getting a little bossy these days).

Tuesday, April 15, 2008

Coming this November...

Holly's been dying to show off her new shirt.

Tuesday, April 8, 2008

Too Bad Tigers

Talk about disappointing. The road to the championship game looked paved in roses (pun intended) for the Memphis Tigers. With point-guard Derrick Rose in their court and a 38-1 season, not to mention 3 seconds to go until a national title, it seemed like a sure thing. And then Kansas' Chalmers sank that 3 pointer.


This season I was that fair-weather Memphis fan - the one who normally doesn't follow their basketball (or football), but when things are looking up, I'm back on board. I feel really bad for the Tigers because I have a feeling they were fighting so hard this year to win back people like me. They seemed to be on a mission, and I imagine that the 38 games they won this season don't mean much of anything right now.


But perhaps my heart goes out to Dori the most... had the Tigers won, she would have received a full refund on her new couch. For what it's worth, it's a REALLY cute couch and worth every penny.


Better luck next year, Tigers.

Monday, April 7, 2008

Chasing bubbles



Holly's latest obsession...

Friday, April 4, 2008

Closer to home



My parents just moved home to Nashville, and among the many benefits, they're now two hours closer to Atlanta. Last weekend they came to Atlanta for the first of what I'm sure will be many short weekends. Holly had a blast showing off for Nana and Papa, getting lots of hugs and kisses (like she doesn't get them normally), and playing with her new Elmo doll. It was especially sweet to watch Holly call them by name. Even though they don't get to see each other often, she knows exactly who they are.
Since they left, Holly's been "calling" Nana on her play cell phone. She'll pick it up and say "Nana?" And yesterday, when I walked in her room to get her up in the morning, she looked toward the door and said "Nana?" And if she sees a picture of my dad, she says "Papa!" So cute. It will be great having them closer!