Uncle JF

We are all so proud of Uncle JF - he ran (YES RAN) a 10 K (6.3 miles) and finished in 63 minutes!! Here he is just about to cross the finish line!
















BIG FINISH! JF ran the entire race - no walking or stopping!!














Mom, Dad, Kevin, Josie and I were all waiting at the finish line! What a huge accomplishment for JF - what an emotional moment for all of us! He is an inspiration to us all!

Love Is In the Air

FINALLY! Josie and Andrew Messick meet! We had a play day with Andrew (and Janay and Patrick)! I am not sure who enjoyed it more - the adults or the kids - but I am so glad we where able to get together. Andrew kept holding Josie's hand (ok so it was more like licking) and Josie was talking him to death! It was so much fun! Can't wait to do it again!

Trick and Treat!

Josie's 1st Halloween was a success! I think I had more fun than she did!


Here she is with "Uncle" Ronnie and Brandon Wells! I told Brandon that he is going to be responsible for making sure Josie doesn't date until she is 30 - and he told me that he would take her hunting instead of dating!

We ate dinner at Grandma Gill's - it was Aunt Nancy's last night in Va!

We got to see other trick-or-treater's when we went to Granny and Granddad Walker's house! And had enough time to clean and dry her outfit since Josie drooled and spit all over it during the ride over!








Granddad and Josie spent a little time laughing at each other!














GrandCheryl was all dressed up for Miss Josie when we arrived! They look so cute together don't they! GrandCheryl and GrRandy got to see the sweet side of Josie - she smiled the entire time she was there (except for that brief moment she spit all over herself). And the moment I took this picture - she has the "deer in the headlight" look!

Happy Halloween!

Where's Josie?!?! She's hanging in her crib with a few friends! Tonight she will be out and about visiting her Grandparents.
NOTE: The outfit is a hand-me-down from Randy and Ina Gill - THANKS!

Together At Last!

The Gill Baby Boom got together at Uncle Herman's house for dinner and "baby swapping." They are a cute bunch! From left to right, Miss Josie, Hayden, Parker, Landon

What is not pictured are Parker and Landon's siblings - who are just as cute - I can't believe I missed that picture. So we had a quiet evening with these four and three other small children - FUN!


This is what happens when you take away the big guys!





What do you think they are thinking??? Been farming long?!?!

Working Hard

Just another day at the office! That's what I call multitasking! Just before Amanda took the picture, I was on the phone too!
It's so much fun to bring her to work!








She doesn't get spoiled a bit!!! Josie loves Amanda and I think Amanda might have a weak spot for Josie too!











After a hard few hours at the office - it's nice to take a little nap!

Strawberry Shortcake!

Is this not the cuties outfit ever? Lella (a work associate and friend of Kevin's from Italy) gave her this outfit. Lella is wonderful - she has been a huge help to Kevin - she has assisted in the selection of almost all of Kevin's gifts to me - from my diamond to our wedding rings - the most recent is my "baby gift"- a beautiful blood ruby and diamond necklace! I love Lella!
Josie will love too!
Kevin was driving out of our driveway when I put this outfit on her - I called him and he turned around just to see her in it! She's worth it!

Stop and Smell the Roses

Grandma Gill gave Josie her first rose the other day....and yes, she did pick it from her own garden!

Simply Beautiful!

3 Months Old

Hard to believe she is 3 months old today! Weighing in at 14 pounds and 11 ounces she has gained all of her weight back plus a few since the hospital! A very long 25 and one quarter inches long she is already wearing 6 month clothes. Those melt-your-momma blues eyes light up now when she sees us. Josie is smiling and "talking to herself" a lot - and she will carry on a conversation with you if you speak her language which mostly consists of "grrrrrr." She is drinking 6 ounces every three hours and we have started adding a little cereal to each bottle since the six ounces just don't seem to satisfy her. Most days she is a very happy little girl who smiles and talks to me when I go to get her out of crib in the morning. Still not sleeping through the night - but mighty close. She LOVES bath time (and so do I) and usually is sound asleep by 7 or 8 each night and up around 3 for a little snack and right back to sleep. Most of the time she doesn't even open her eyes - even when I change her diaper! Another snack at 6 or 7 and then a nap until 9. My favorite time with her is first thing in the morning - that little happy noise she makes when she wakes up and the huge smile on her face every morning when I walk in her room makes my day! I love our little routine - I walk down the hall to her room and say "Where's Josie - where is she?" and when I walk through the door she is looking all around for me and as soon as she sees me she makes this noise that melts me - it's the happiest little sound and she has the biggest smile on her face! She gets so excited she closes her eyes and throws her arms around! Then I spend about 5 minutes telling her "Good Morning!" and asking her did she sleep well and telling her what we are going to do today while she kicks and wiggles and smiles. She tries so hard to talk back! It's the best! Everyone tells me to savor these moments because they go by so fast - so I do - I will stand at her crib for as long as she will let me!
She is trying to sit up now - and she puts everything in her mouth - especially her fist - her entire fist! She loves to jump in her jumperoo and if you hold her hands she will stand up. She FIGHTS taking a nap but once she is gives in you can move her anywhere or make as much noise as you want - she is out! In my unbiased opinion, she's perfect! The last three months have been the best of my life!

Pittcher and Me!

Josie had a dinner guest! Pitt Neukirchner joined us for dinner and was a huge help with Miss Josie. Kevin was sick so Pitt stepped in a fed and played with Josie while I cooked dinner. He has a lot of practice with his little girl, Amy.
Josie seemed to understand Pitt when he spoke to her in German - I think she picked up a few words! We joked about how a few years ago we would have been out all night at a bar - and now we were standing around Josie swapping stories about our kids. My how things change!

Christening

Great Aunt Betty and Great Uncle Charles looking mighty good!



Great Uncle Gary Walker came too - but he was out the door before I could get a picture!






Aunt Lissa, Uncle Scott and future-hubby Logan made it! He's a cutie too!

Christening

Oh Happy Day! Miss Josie was Christened on October 15th! Isn't she so cute! She is wearing the same dress and shoes I wore when I was Christened, the hat and blanket were gifts from Kevin's Uncle Gary and Aunt Shelby, the little shall was made for me by my Granny Gill! What a special, special day! After the service Grandma Gill hosted a brunch - so fun to have everyone together!





Her Great Aunts Janice and Nancy were both able to share in the service.














We clean up pretty good....

















Vivian Bracey attended both J.F's and my Christening and came to Josie's!












Isn't she the cutest thing you have ever seen! I just love that hat!

Brunch at Grandma's!

Eliza, our niece, loves holding Josie - and Josie LOVES to be held!














Pops (at least that's what I want her to call him) is wrapped around her finger! It is so much fun to watch him "play" with her and to see those little blue eyes light up when he talks to her.










Hannah, our niece, is so good with Josie. Being the oldest of three she has had a lot of practice (and sometimes I think she knows more than me!).
















Guess what I said right before I took this photo.....if you guessed "be sure to hold her head up" you are right!
How much fun are they going to have growing up together?!?!
John, our nephew, was really hoping Josie was a boy - so much so that when she was born her told us "we needed to try again - and this time - have a boy!"

Family Fun!

Aunt GiGi sure knows how to love on little Josie! They were both full of smiles and giggles.













A little tick time with Pops - looks like one of them is playing 'possum.













Grandma and Josie get to spend a lot of time together.....they are both spoiled!

One Ounce Too Many

She's even happy when she spits!

No Place Like Home

This is the view of the sunrise from the porch on top of Cranberry Mt where we were suppose to spend 6 days of quality, stress-free family time - instead we spent 5 scary day in the local hospital. Six hours away from home, 12-hours after arriving, Josie had a very high fever and diarrhea - so we took her to the ER (thinking she might get a shot and be released). To make a very long and painful story short - she was admitted and after 48-hours of pure hell, diagnosed with samonella. The staff and hospital were phenomenal - they were extremely compassionate and professional. Josie was a very, very sick little girl but proved to be a fighter and recovered very quickly once the correct medicines were administered. I am still amazed that such a small child could go through so much. By the grace of God she is healthy again. To get her out of that cold metal cage and watch her sleep peacefully in her own crib... with her little arms free if needles and stretched high above her head is a feeling words cannot express. I will never take her smile for granted - ever- and I thank God for every single one.