Passport Punching Piercy Joye

Good Morning, Sweet Angel-girl! I cannot believe it, but on this day, one year ago, we found out about you and started loving you!  We didn't know much about you then (Were you a precious girl or a stinky ol' boy? What would you look like? When would we finally get to hear your cry?), and we're still learning more every single day (what those cries mean, how you like to have your head rubbed when you're sleepy, how silly we'll act just to get another peek at that sweet smile).  Your Daddy and I are so proud that you are ours, and we love you very much!

Is it really August 1?

I cannot believe we're staring the beginning of summer's end straight in the face today. Austin has felt August-ish since early June, and considering our record-setting number of triple digit days, I'm surprised it feels like the last two months have flown by.  This morning I woke up and ran with June Bug and Lady Bird (our sweet Blue Lacy dogs) to Shoal Creek Trail, a phenomenal route that runs past our neighborhood straight to the Trail at Lady Bird Lake.  Last year I ran this trail daily with the dogs the six weeks after we moved to Bryker Woods, and until my morning sickness became unbearable. This morning, Greg was freshly home off a long four day trip and gave me the luxury of running sans BOB, as he was really craving some one-on-one time with his daughter.  While June and Lady chased birds and squirrels and I was sweating profusely trying to keep up, I couldn't help but think of where we were last year: fresh off an emotional, early miscarriage after nine months of trying to conceive, in a new home with our little family, excited for a new beginning, and enjoying the overwhelming hope of becoming parents.  On August 1st, just two and a half weeks after we'd unloaded the moving truck, Greg and I cautiously celebrated the creation of our little baby. What a ride the last year has been!

And speaking of whirlwinds...

I feel like I'm finally recovered today.  A week ago we got home from our Montana adventure. I think we all learned a lot about traveling with a baby.  I have a list of take-home lessons from our experience, but this should be prefaced by saying that we travel standby, since my amazing husband is a Southwest Airlines pilot.  We have free hitch-hiking opportunities anywhere Southwest flies, which is a much appreciated perk of being a part of the Southwest family.  As nervous first-time travelers, we split our trip into two days.  We flew standby from Austin to Denver and stayed the night there.  Then we flew another airline from Denver to Bozeman, MT (since SWA does not fly to Montana) the following day, and....  well, it wasn't our beloved Southwest.  Anyhow, here goes - Browne family cardinal lessons of airline travel:

1). Expect to over pack on your first expedition:
"Everything but the kitchen sink" doesn't even begin to describe it. I spent an entire day planning for my packing job, and three days executing it.  While any sane person could have probably warned me that I didn't need to take two 8 lb bricks of wipes with me, I felt safe being overstocked as we traversed to Middle of Nowhere, Montana.  And, I'll never take that many wipes with me again.  Oh, by the "weigh," it might be wise to whip out the scale when your prepping your suitcases if you are not flying our beloved Southwest... Those baggage fees HURT!

2.) Piercy Joye LOVED the Denver, Colorado Aquarium:
Yes, Denver has an aquarium.  Furthermore, if you have a young child and are ever in close proximity to an aquarium, please don't miss the opportunity to expose them to this magical experience.  I've actually never been to an aquarium (that I can remember), but it was awesome watching our 3.5 month old be so stimulated by something that we were also enjoying!

Holy Sweetness! I love this picture of my two most favorite people!

Me and my girl who is preoccupied :)

Gorgeous...

Oh my Gawd, I'm dying...

3.) Attempting to stay on schedule will pay dividends:
We definitely weren't strict about this: with an hour time difference, borrowed sleeping environments, and unexpected travel delays/misconnections, there was no way we could be.  We tried to provide as much routine as possible for our schedule-loving baby girl.  We brought our own sheets from home for her to feel more comfortable, and tried our best to maintain her napping routine.  I think she appreciated it, and paid us back accordingly.

4.) Travel delays are stressful for parents, not infants:
We were severely delayed on Unmentionable Airlines out of Bozeman to Denver on our way home.  To add insult to injury, we were not updated on flight status until our resident Southwest Airlines pilot went back out through security to the ticketing desk to ask about a status. This meant that we had to spend an extra night in Denver as we missed the last flight home to Austin.  Guess who thought that was just an extra opportunity to schmooze with strangers and hang out with her grandparents? Bingo. Piercy Joye was probably trying to figure out why Mom and Dad were stressed during the most exciting adventure ever.

5.) Take lots of hand sanitizer and offer it to everyone:
"Why yes, I know she's adorable... She's almost four months old... I know, it really does go fast... Oh, and before you stroke her sweet little cheek, here's a squirt of anti-cootie gel." Really, you can't have enough of this stuff.

Being in cool Montana was a gorgeous relief from our stifling heat.  I loved catching up with my cousins and getting to meet my cousin Matt's sweet baby, Ida Jaynes, who is about six weeks younger than Piercy.  I sort of love his wife, Ingrid too, and I'm thrilled that his twin brother, Nick, married such a phenomenal girl, Keri!

Uncle Joe (my baby brother) with his niece... reading astrophysics or something equally impressive



Piercy Joye and Ida Valerie with me and Ida's mommy, Ingrid before their boat ride.



Ida's Daddy, Matt, my cousin, who escorted the three Brownes on a beautiful hike

Browne women exploring

The whole, sweet family!

Heaven? I think, yes.

At the wedding site, sweet little flower girl

Keri and Nick saying their vows, on a mountaintop, in a meadow of wildflowers. Just Perfect!

A couple of Flanagan Great Grandgirls with their mommies!

We got home on Monday afternoon and Piercy and I proceeded to make a last-minute visit to Birmingham, Alabama,  the following Thursday where Greg was overnighting.  We surprised my Uncle Tom Huddle, who was planning on spending the evening with Greg anyway.  We had a great time exploring Uncle Tom's gardens and breaking bread/drinking incredible wine.

Uncle Tommy and Aunt Tyler's lawn

Their beautiful gardens

Three generations of Huddle Blood

A great tree in Tommy's yard

Tio Tommy, GB, and the girl

Obligatory Daddy/Daughter photo-op

Ate mine in apprx. 5 minutes.  Cute.

So Sweet!!

Now that we've recovered, we're putting the finishing touches on our impending trip to New Smyrna Beach, Florida for Miss Whitney Myers' wedding (next week)! I can hardly wait to see my BFF, and can't believe her crazy self is tying the knot! We are very, very excited for the wedding and some beach fun.

When we get home, we'll be tackling month five's next challenge: Pacifier weaning! If you have any tips, they are welcome.  I didn't plan on ever starting on a pacifier, but have been reading more and more that four months is a good time to start weaning. I can already tell what kind of a struggle it will be.... God bless us.