We miss you daddy!

Well we have had a pretty eventful last couple weeks and I'm sorry I haven't posted in a while.  Most of you know that there was a B-52 plane crash abut 2 weeks and they were some men that work closely with Warren.  They were stationed in Guam at Anderson Air Force Base and their plane crashed into the ocean without any survivors.  It was the same plane that Warren flies and he also left for Guam last week, exactly 7 days after the crash.  He will be there for several months and we miss him so much.  I'm adjusting to life as a "single" working mom, which definitely has its high's and low's.  We have some wonderful friends here who have been amazing in helping us out so much and I can't thank everyone enough for their support.  Before Warren left we were taking a whole bunch of pictures and I hope you enjoy them.  We also have had several friends and their families come through Louisiana to visit us and here are some pictures.

We went to the farmers market one weekend and made it a point to find a watermelon bigger then Baxter!!

At church last week Warren dressed himself and Baxter the same.  Aren't they so cute?!

Here's Baxter first try at solid foods!! We think he really liked the rice cereal although he wore more than he ate.  We wanted to feed him from the spoon before Warren left so that he could be there and I think Warren and I enjoyed it more than Baxter!

Our friends the Yengos came to visit last week on their way from Oklahoma to South Carolina.  We're so glad they stopped through (from left to right: Alyssa, Amelia, Baxter, Warren, Caitlyn, Lily, and Chris)

Later on the same day our friends the Stiles stopped through on their way from Texas to Florida.  (from left to right: Warre, Baxter (head only!) Brian, Alli, Sherri, and Lyla)  I had to work this day so unfortunately I didn't get to see everybody but I know Warren and Baxter had a great time.

This is our friend Dale helping Baxter enjoy his johnny jumper.  Dale and his wife Holly have been a huge help in taking care of Baxter whenever I need help and I really appreciate it.

This is Jeff and Warren on Jeff's way from California to Florida.  We have loved getting to see all of our friends this summer as they criss-cross their way across the country and we would love to have anyone else that wants to stop in!!!

More Pictures!!

We hope you enjoy all of the pictures, so it took so long to get them loaded.

Baxter's dedication at Broadmoor Baptist Church, We are so proud!

Our friends the Quinlans and the Gaspards came to church with us

Baxter's best buds!! (Easton, Jake and Baxter-right in the middle of naptime)

Baxter wearing the 4th of July outfit I made for him

Warren, Baxter and me at the Firecracker 5K road race

Baxter loves his doorway jumper, even though he's still a little too small to jump a lot

Our friend Tommy (Warren's college roommate) stopped by on his way through town

Baxter (12 weeks old) and his new friend Brooks Carothers (5 weeks old)

Go Daddy!!!

I just had to post this picture that was in our local newspaper's sports section. That's Warren in the blue shorts looking at his watch at the starting line of the Firecracker 5K. I'm not sure about the old guy running next to him-yikes. Warren and I had a great time running on July 4th with the other 4000 participants even if it was super hot! I was so excited that of all the people they took pictures of they put Warren in the paper! We both achieved our goal of running fast enough to win a glass mug (even though my time (Abbey) was not very good). Oh well there's always next year! There were these people tearing up the course with their baby joggers, maybe Baxter can do the race with us next year- he's still a little too young right now. It was a great race and a lot of fun. If I ever take the time to download some pictures off the camera I will post some more from July 4th weekend.

Baxter's Dedication

Today Baxter was dedicated at our church here in Shreveport - Broadmoor Baptist Church.  He was a perfect angel through the whole dedication and the rest of the service.  We had some friends, Mackey, Mickey, Riley, Toye and Sutton, come to share in this wonderful day.  We know God is blessing our family and we will continue to teach and raise Baxter to know and love Him.

More Smiles!

We've been capturing more smiles on camera and our little guy is becoming quite sociable. Baxter went this past week and stayed a day with the lady who is going to be keeping when I go back to work next week. He enjoyed himself and it was great knowing he has such a wonderful place to stay. We hope everyone is doing well and that you enjoy these pictures.

The occasional frown- he has quite a pouting face when he wants

Trip to Kentucky

A lot has been going on since we last posted. Unfortunately Abbey's grandmother who lived in Kentucky was diagnosed with lung cancer about 2 and 1/2 weeks ago and passed away about 1 week ago. Abbey's mom flew in from Russia along with Nelson and Sarah, who were there visiting during their summer vacation. Alice, Matt and Emma Kate came in from Arizona and we all met up in London, KY for the funeral. We were able to visit with almost all of our extended family and we enjoyed seeing everyone even if it was difficult circumstances. Unfortunately work kept Warren in Louisiana but we were glad to get home and celebrate Warren's first father's day on our return. We got a few pictures of Baxter's first plane ride and then several of the whole family. There were a lot of young kids there as it seems as if all of my cousins are new moms and dads. I have 20 aunts and uncles, 23 first cousins and it only grows from there. I want to thank everyone for their prayers and support for me and my family. There are also some great pictures of Baxter and his new smiles - they truly are blessings every day!

Here's Abbey and Baxter practicing to carry all the bags for the flight (I carried on all the luggage (the backpack), the diaper bag, the carseat and the baby). I felt like a pack mule!

Baxter on his first flight and with his in-flight snack!

Baxter with his aunt Rachel (Abbey's cousin)

Baxter with his GiGi and GiGi's twin sister, Aunt Brenda.  We love you!

Baxter with his godparents- Alice and Matt

Baxter with Abbey's aunt Sue

Abbey and Baxter on the left with all of her first cousins and their spouses and children- Wow, Big Family!!!

Aunt Sarah with Baxter

GiGi (on the far right) with her brothers and sisters

GiGi saying goodbye at the airport- We miss you and love you!

Baxter made Daddy a Father's Day card!  We're so proud of our little prodigy.

Baxter with one of his stellar smiles!

Baxter's getting so big

Baxter and I are really loving our time at home together and although I miss my work I'm still not quite ready to leave my little guy. I have a few more weeks and trying to make the most of it. He really started smiling at us these last few days and each one makes all the sleepless nights just fade away.   I always get such a burst of energy when I see those little smiles. He's getting so strong, holding his head up and hanging onto his toys. Here's some pictures of our past week.

We met Warren at work one day and had a picnic lunch, Baxter really enjoyed it as you can see!

Baxter loves playing with his stuffed animals and learning all their names.

He's getting so big and in this picture looks like he's thinking "help mom, I don't know how to let go!!!"

One of our friends Easton came over and spent the day with Baxter and me - you can sort of see that Baxter is laughing.  We really had a good time but I'm glad I have only one child right now, thats about all I can handle.