Julia's Baptism

Now that Julia's adoption was final, we were
able to get her baptized into the Catholic Church. It was a great weekend and we were happy that so many of our family and friends
could make it (and a special thanks to Laura, Julia's godmother!). Julia was her charming self most of the day, although the baptism itself was during her naptime so she was a bit
restless through the ceremony ( =

Poor baby just wanted to sleep and instead she was stripped, covered in oil, dipped into freezing cold water, and held up in the air for all to see...
it'd be a rough day for anyone.

Afterwards, we had a little picnic and
celebration at the splashpad...Julia preferred the water at the splashpad
to the water in the baptismal and had a great time. To top off a great day for her, she got her first taste of a cupcake and made the most of her experience ( =

Julia's 8 month pictures

Since we both loved Julia's baptismal gown (and since we hadn't had professional pictures done since her 3 month pics) we took her for a "photo shoot"...and she really did great!

Swing low...

Our friends Hanson and Elizabeth gave us a swing for Julia, which she LOVES. I put it up yesterday and as soon as I sat her in it, it started to thunderstorm, so today was really the first day she got to try it out.

Papa Bear's Chair...

is just right, according to Julia. She looks so teeny tiny when she falls asleep in David's recliner and we couldn't resist taking a quick picture...

Julia's First Tooth...

On Saturday, July 12, 2008, Julia's first tooth finally popped through (we had to delay posting until she'd let us get a picture of it). The funny thing is as soon as I took this photo, I stuck my finger in her mouth to feel her gums and her second tooth is now through as well! Her new teeth already make her look like such a big girl to me...and she's already angling for a cheeseburger now that she has some teeth (hmm...maybe next month...).

It's official!!

Even though we've been a forever family since the day Julia was put into our arms, today the State of Tennessee agreed to recognize it as well...so on July 17, 2008, Julia is officially Julia Noelle Wright and we are officially her parents. It feels so wonderful to have everything finalized and legal and to know that there is now no way the unthinkable could possible happen. After court we went to TGI Fridays for a celebratory lunch and then went back by the court to pick up our copy of the Final Decree. David took the day off so we came back home, snuggled, watched a bad movie, let Julia swim in her baby pool, and just enjoyed being together as a family. Ahhh...we can all breathe...

Julia and Andrew...

Julia loves my parent big pool but mom thought it would be cute to fill up this boat for a pool so the kids could splash in the carport for awhile without getting fried in the sun...Julia thought it was great and Andrew humored us long enough for a few pictures (Olivia was napping but I'm sure she'll be glad to join her brother and cousin in a few months...).

That's my boat...

Last weekend we went to my parents house in Springfield and my sister drove up with her two kids as well. I couldn't believe that Julia was already big enough to play in this yellow boat that Andrew loves...and she felt like such a big girl sitting in it. I actually had a better video of her sitting in the boat, but I figured I should put this one in to prove that we actually do dress our child on occasion...

Hot-lanta...

So in June we met up with our friends Josh and Tonya from Starr, Mississippi...they were vacationing with their two kids in Atlanta so we drove down to meet them for a quick overnight trip. Tonya, Cara and I got pedicures (while Julia apparently threw a rare but rather unholy fit in a Ruby Tuesdays while with Daddy, Josh and Eli) and then we all went out to dinner...where all of the kids behaved pretty well and we had a good time. We then retired to our hotel room where we all sipped a $12 drink from the hotel bar and went to bed early (our weekend junkets are a little different now with an infant). It was great to see them and we always enjoy watching Julia experience new things...even if she'll forget them by the next day ( =

So we put in a pool...

and even though David and I can't swim laps in it, Julia was thrilled. Actually, her Grandma Roof bought her this little pool after seeing what a water baby she is and this was her first dip. She was fascinated by all of the animals on the pool and spent as much time trying to touch them as she did splashing.

Julia at the splashpad

This morning I had to do a lot of paperwork and then Julia and I had to drive to Lenoir City to get a Judge to sign an Order. She was so good all day that after her dinner I took her over to Carl Cowan park for a walk in her stroller. Once we got there and did a loop around the trail, the water at the splashpad looked so good...so I put a swim diaper on Julia and took her in ( = Our little water baby LOVED the splash pad and really enjoyed both the water and watching all of the "big" kids play. I figured out that I could take a few pictures of her in the splashpad if I went back to the car for her little umbrella stroller...and Julia thought it was great fun to sit in her stroller and play in the water. I think we'll be making many, many trips there this summer ( =

I can sit all by myself...

Shortly after we got back from Pittsburgh, Julia starting sitting on her own for a few seconds at a time...until May 28th when she was steady enough to stay up long enough to reach for a toy and grab it. By the next day, she was happily playing with her toys on the floor for up to thirty minutes at a time. It's so strange how quickly they catch on!

Julia has a new cousin!

On Wednesday, May 21, 2008, Julia's aunt Tracy and Uncle Darrell had a beautiful baby girl named Olivia Carolyn May Land. She was 6 lbs 14 oz and 19 1/2 inches long. Mom and Grandma Roof rode down to meet her while Julia stayed with her daddy. After her long trip to Pittsburgh, Julia was happy to be home and to see her daddy again.

Olivia is doing great and her brother Andrew is adjusting to sharing his mom and dad's attention. Grandma Roof is staying with them for a week to help out and I'm sure they'll appreciate the extra pair of hands. We're all looking forward to future family vacations since all of the kids will be so close together in age...Andrew is 20 months old, Julia is 6 months old on the 30th and Olivia is brand new ( =

Julia in her jumparoo...

A sad goodbye...

Sadly, my Aunt Maryellen passed away suddenly on Saturday, May 17, 2008. I was torn because I wanted to be in Georgia when my new baby niece was born (Tracy said I could be in the room and watch!) but it was important to be with the family at the funeral, especially to be there for my mother. So Julia and I headed up to Pittsburgh and Julia was an angel baby in the car. We left at 6:00 a.m. and made it all the way to Pittsburgh with just one stop for breakfast. Julia wolfed down her cereal and (almost) an entire banana and was content for the rest of the trip.

We found out when we got there that the viewing would be Thursday and the funeral would be Friday, so we would be in PA for almost a whole week. Although the circumstances were sad, it was nice to see all of the relatives and for all of them to see our baby girl. Julia did great and was her chatty, smiley self all week. She really seemed to enjoy meeting all of her great aunts and uncles and cousins...especially since I don't think she was put down for longer than two minutes all week.

Mom rode back to Tennessee with Julia and me so that we could drop her off with David while we made our way down to Georgia for the happy part of our trip--to see baby Olivia Carolyn May Land, born on May 21, 2008 ( =

Julia eating bananas...

Julia's first "solid" food was mashed bananas...this is a video of her second time eating them. She really seemed to like them and it's fun watching her reaction when she tries something new.