April 2008

Well probably the biggest, latest, greatest news is that Evelyn has intentionally pooped in the toilet for 6 out of last 7 days. That's an even higher hit percentage than Gabe. We're so proud of Evelyn.

Easter was spent visiting Stacy's family in Marshall and then Gabe's family met up with us in Dallas for a day. We really cherish being able to spend time with family.

Currently Gabe and I are sitting on the couch, writing this blog with the iPod on shuffle. The light from outside is that soft post-sunset glow. The light from the inside is earthy and goes well with the cups of decaf coffee that are almost finished. Somewhere in the distance Sting is telling us to fill each other up with love.

We finished the book Life of Pi. After reading it I feel now more prepared than ever to survive in the ocean on a life boat with a tiger. Hopefully I will never find myself in a place where that knowledge becomes "practical." Not sure what to read next. We are open to suggestions as long as they are legit.

Lately I've been doing more sewing, gardening, and getting certified in scuba. In my spare time I raise a seven month old.

That's all the Neal news for now. Be well.

Stacy and Gabe

Evelyn sporting the new wrap-dress Stacy made for her. She will be enrolling this Fall in the Intergalactic Jedi Training Center.

Belly check.

Smile check. Great-Grandma still has more teeth.

Hello new Baby Gap model.

...She's bringin' tutu back. Yep!

"I told you the tutu would work! I told you!"

March 2008

We just spent the past week in sunny Scottsdale, cold kickin' it with Gabe's best friends Tory McJ and Paul Lynchmob and their respective wives Jenny and Janne.  Gabe attended a Bioethics conference and now thinks he wants to get a masters in it.  We'll see. Stacy attended a shopping conference at multiple sites and came away with some sweet deals. While driving around Scottsdale in our Avenger (which honestly couldn't avenge itself out of a paper bag) we grooved to the latest Jars of Clay album, Good Monsters.  You should check it out.  It was a good time of rest and fun.

Turns out Evelyn is a great traveler.  No crying on any of our four flights.  We credit this to the best child rearing book we have read so far, To Train Up a Child by Michael and Debi Pearl.  This book is legit.  Speaking of books we just finished reading aloud The Count of Monte Cristo together. Again, legit.  Next up is the Life of Pi.  Sounds pretty legit.  (Legit is Gabe's word of the day...most days)

Evelyn is on the brink of a lot of milestones. She is almost sitting up but not.  She is almost rolling over but not.  She is almost reading but not.  See pictures below of all the things she enjoys doing.  

Hope you all are well. Keep in touch!

Evelyn likes to...

Play with friends,

Chew on toys,

Drink water straight from the glass,

Re-inact scenes from "Little House on the Prairie",

and simply be gorgeous.

January 2008

2008 has started well and we are back into the groove of routine here in Aggieland. The first half of January was spent just recovering from the holidays. Our Tuesday night home group has grown and we had a murder mystery dinner with a 1920's Chicago theme last weekend.

Evelyn is getting heavy in all of her 15 lbs. This is most noticed when carrying her in her car seat. We've since decided to take away all of her red painted Chinese toys. Who knew? She has learned to roll over as we discovered when she rolled right off the couch and onto the floor. No lasting damage done. Currently she enjoys eating carrots and jumping in her bouncer...not at the same time of course. What she doesn't like is going to bed.

We are looking forward Gabe's 10 year college reunion in February and Stacy's 10 year high school reunion in the Spring. We also have a trip out to Phoenix where Gabe will attend a Bioethics conference and Evelyn and I will do some shopping.

Keep in touch.

Our mafia cousins from Chicago, Della and Augustus, visited one weekend. Della is a, uh, entertainer. Augustus is a news editor, who likes to be, uh, entertained.

Yeah! Meal time! Bring on the carrots!

Is anyone else here bored?
Carrots are so blase...


Pardon me, but do you have any Grey Poupon?

The GPS says turn right but my toy insect says turn left...I'm going with the insect.

No officer, I have not been drinking and jumping. Okay, maybe a few sips from the bottle.

Is Oprah gonna give a car to everyone on the show today?! I can't stand the waiting!

Nope, a re-run. I'm taking a nap.

Ellen is a re-run too. Blast this writers strike!

Christmas 2007

We had a very busy November-December. We traveled to Tulsa to see Gabe's family for Thanksgiving then traveled to Marshall early in December for a Curry family Christmas. There were several Christmas parties in between and Stacy's family came in for Christmas. Gabe was on-call for the week of Christmas. Whew! Are we glad to get back to a more leisurely pace of life.

Evelyn has grown a lot. She is smiling more, getting more interested in toys, and sitting-up almost unsupported. Her greatest joy remains nursing. Although Stacy and I are way too practical to be buying her presents, her grandparents on both sides made sure she had plenty under the Christmas tree.

We miss all our friends we haven't seen in a while: friends from China, Spokane, and Tulsa. We hope to travel more in the coming year(s). Be well and Happy New Year.

Love,
Stacy, Gabe, and Evelyn


Family Christmas Photo

At the Park

Mother-Daughter Moment

Sunny Days

Evelyn is so sad it's not Christmas yet.

First bites. "Mmm, love those carrots!"

Not really sure what she is doing here...

"I like Christmas tags. The things attached to them are OK too."

More tags?! Yeah!

Carolyn keeps pushing her happy button.

Evelyn likes large bugs. As long as they are made of brightly colored cloth and make noise when you shake them.

8 Weeks

8 Weeks

Evelyn is really growing. It's hard to tell sometimes when we see her everyday, all day, but as we look back at early photos it's obvious. Also our arms grow tired quicker. We took a trip out to the home of our friends, Tryon and Erin Wickersham, who live in the country. We took a bunch of family photos for our Christmas card. Soon well have to buy an extra hard drive to store all the pictures we have accumulated.

Parenthood tests the limits of your patience, and stretches them. Taking crying. I can stand about 20 seconds of Evelyn crying (and I mean crying) and I'm willing to beg, steal or even change a diaper to make her stop. Stacy on the other hand tolerates it much better. She's willing to wait until I crack, so I can do the above mentioned duties. Actually Stacy is pretty good about anticipating Evelyn needs before the crying starts, for which I, Mr. Clueless, am grateful.

We're looking forward to the Holidays for the opportunity to see family and friends in Tulsa and Marshall. We trust you all are well.

"You can tell the sun, in his jealous sky, that she lies in fields of gold..."

Here we are visiting our friends, the Wickershams, at their home in the country.


Also at the Wickersham's

Dang I've got a big noggin!

The Chubster


"I'm flying, I'm flying!"

Famous for my dance moves.

"Apparently you're not aware that I'm famous. Now I said my milk needed to be warm. You call this warm?"

In the Pumpkin Patch

5 weeks in. Evelyn has gained a bit of weight and is beginning to sleep through the night. We could not be happier. The initial fatigue of every 2 hour feeds is fading and Stacy and I are finding time to have dates. We are settling in to family life well. People ask me if my life has changed, and the answer is "yes", but frankly having a baby hasn't been "life-changing" the way you typically think of it. Having Evelyn seems really natural, really...right. She should be here now. So I feel more like myself, more like the Gabe who is a dad, and since I was ready, it seems, well, pretty normal. We trust all is well.

Oh look, we found a cute little pumpkin!

Show me angry, baby!

Show me crying, baby...yeah!

Be the pumpkin...be the pumpkin..nahnahnahnah....nahnahnah....


No pictures, no more posing, only milk and mommy's cozy.

Parenting Thoughts 3 Weeks In.

3 Weeks In

3 weeks into this parenting gig and we're a bit tired. In spite of all the amazing support we get from friends and family (we could not ask for more) we find our energy levels low. Evelyn however is becoming more and more energetic by the day and spending more time awake each day. She still sleeps a lot though. Nights are getting a little better. She is nursing every 4-6 hours now at night, instead of the usual every 2-3 hours.

We see lots of situations where we know what is good for Evelyn, like a clean diaper, bath, or food and yet she cries through it only to realize that at the end, what we wanted for her is nice and stops crying. Smacks of the way God must see us a lot. We ask God to help us, to make us more like Him and then He starts to make us holy, and we start crying.

Evelyn has two modes:
1. "Everything is the way I want it and life is good."
and
2. "Something is not quite the way I want it, and bam, I'm upset."
Describes my 2 modes of prayer almost perfectly.

So we find lots of analogies in Evelyn to our life and relationship to God, as our Father. Quite literally. Maybe some day we can be teenagers in God's eyes and not just babies. I'm sure He's looking forward to that.

"I can see your lips moving, but I can't hear a word you're sayin."


Ninja on the left...


Ninja on the Right...Wha-Cha!

Leopard print is in! Check out my sweet diaper covers! Huggies got nothin' on this.

In case you were doubting I'm the sweetest thing on earth, I present exhibit A above.