Smiley Day

Today Grace had a lot of fun playing with daddy and smiling all the while. It was a great afternoon.

Moment I want to remember...

Scott dancing with Baby Grace in his arms singing to her "Ain't no sunshine when she's gone."

Visit from James and Valerie!

James and Valerie and family came to Nauvoo for a Krumperman family reunion and made the two hour drive to visit us. It was so great to share lunch with them and a very HOT afternoon at the local park. Luckily, the park had a wading pool that they had just filled with cool water to play in. Thanks for coming!!

Only one more day!

This little face is ready to smile for Daddy

This little hand is ready to hold Daddy's finger

This little tummy is ready to be tickled

Only one more day!

They say...

...that babies can sleep in any position

Sleeping with one arm raised is not uncommon for Gracie.

Relatives are GREAT

Great Grandpa Steve meets Great Grand-daughter Grace.

(Grace is this grandpa's 25th great grandchild)

Naked Babe per Scott's request

Here is our much more proportionate baby. No more watermelon belly with toothpick limbs!

My hand for scale reference... she's growing! You asked specifically about baby chub wrinkles in arms and legs-

There they are!

A day at the park

Grace and I went for a walk at the park today.

We stopped at the playground so Grace could get some of her wiggles out.

Then we tried our hand at baseball. Here's Grace making the dash for homeplate.

I don't think she likes baseball. So I thought she might like soccer. The sky was too bright to take a good picture on the soccer field. The jury is still out on whether Grace liked it or not.

Of course, I had to give Grace a chance at basketball.

I think she liked it! Here's the close-up.

The blessing of Grace

We didn't actually take any pictures of Grace on the day she was blessed because we were pretty rushed, so I put her back in her dress today and took some pictures.

Some of the details of her outfit were adorable. It was basically a white, tank top onesie with an eyelet lace skirt sewn on it and a little butterfly button on the chest. Over the onesie was a butterfly knit cardigan and a beautiful ribbon for her head.

I couldn't resist this photo. I've been trying to get a good shot of her smiling but it's tricky. I'll keep trying for you, Scott.

Side note:

Today was Grace's first diaper blowout! Typical that it would be at church, one of the few times we're out of the house, and in a pretty white dress...

To Scott, From Wifey

Hi Scott, I wanted to drop you a note and say hi, I love you and miss you. We've known each other for 10 years now... remember this?

Fun times. I know our 6 year anniversary passed with little attention this year because we were slightly preoccupied with little Queen Tootenbottom, but I wanted you to know that you are still my favorite person in the whole world. I feel so blessed to be your wifey.

You are so amazing. You constantly shower me with compassion and support. On top of that, you are SO handsome! Here is one of your suave James Dean poses.

I'm so proud of all the hard work you are putting into medical school. You are such a dedicated student, but have such a calm disposition all the time, even when I know you are feeling stressed. You're also amazingly good at keeping school balanced with Britta time, helping at home and church responsibilities.

You are so talented. Sometimes I feel like together we can take on the world because you can succeed at anything, and with you, I feel like I can succeed at anything too. One of your talents that I love to admire is listening to you play your guitar.

I'm extra lucky because you spoil me. Whenever we have a holiday or a special occasion, you never fail to shower me with some sweet, thoughtful treat or flowers. You spoil me by showering me with attention and cuddling on the couch. You spoil me by letting me indulge in random silly whims. Remember how many times we tried to get a shot of us eating the cherry? It never worked quite right, but thanks for letting me try (over and over and over...)

Most recently, I am so impressed at how easily and well you have fallen into fatherhood. You are a fantastic dad. You give this little girl so much love and attention. She is one lucky lady, just like me.

I love you so much! We both miss you, too. Only one more week and we'll all be together again!

To Daddy, from Baby Grace

I'm 6 weeks old today!

Gracie Gracie

Grace likes gazing out the window and is starting to see and recognize things. Very exciting!

Look how long this baby is!

What to do on the first day of summer break?

I think this was an afternoon well spent. I had originally planned to do this project during spring break, but just didn't get to it. Now, it has become the first project completed over the summer. Next? . . . Who knows?