Peaches!

Noah tried peaches yesterday. He ate them all up, but his face says it all...

6 Month Stats

Noah had his 6 month checkup today. Everything went well and Noah enjoyed the doctor visit except for his 3 shots and getting his finger pricked. His favorite thing to do is to make noise with the crinkly paper sheet on the doctor's table, then tear it up in little pieces and try to eat it. Here are his stats as of today:

Weight - 20 lbs, 13 oz. (92nd percentile)
Length - 26.7 inches (56th percentile)

Driver's Ed

I now know for certain that we picked the right place to send Noah for day care. What other school offers driver's education at such a young age?



One of Noah's teachers took this video on her cell phone and text messaged it to Tyra. Pretty funny. He doesn't have a car/steering wheel toy like this at home, but I guess he's somehow been spying on us while we drive.

6 Months Old Today

It's hard for us to believe how fast these 6 months have flown. Noah is such an amazing gift from God, and he keeps finding new ways to melt our hearts every day. Seeing him grow and learn with each new day is one of the most awesome blessings we could ever imagine. This was a very fun and busy month, and Noah got to see lots of family and meet new friends. Hope you enjoy these video highlights...

Sweet Potatoes: It's a Love/Hate Relationship

Noah got his first bite of sweet potatoes on Sunday. He likes them so far and eats them up, but the faces he makes are priceless.

New Things

Noah is able to sit up by himself now. I think he started doing it consistently a few days ago, about two weeks shy of his 6-month birthday. He seems to be very proud of his new found independence on the floor.






For the past several days, Noah has also discovered that he loves sticking out his tongue and has spent a lot of time channeling his Michael Jordan-esque tongue wagging.

Catching Up

Mommy and Daddy have been slacking on the blog posts lately, so I took it upon myself to post some recent pictures...Love, Noah

Celebrating Aunt Alyssa's birthday with Mommy, Gigi, & great-Aunt Susie


I need some Jimmy Buffett music!


Playing with my new friend Jacob


great-Aunt Amy babysat me while Mom and Dad went to dinner at Fleming's. We had fun!


great-Uncle Charles teaching me "Touchdown Tennessee"

Noah's Friend Haley

There is a sweet little girl in Noah’s class that needs to be lifted up in prayer. Her name is Haley. She was born on Feb. 5 (just two days before Noah). She has Down Syndrome and had heart surgery this past Tuesday to repair a valve. Her surgery went beautifully, but she developed an infection yesterday and almost died. She is now stable, but still fighting for her life.

Noah’s lead nursery teacher visited Haley’s family after work yesterday and stayed at the hospital until 11 pm. Haley’s parents have been calling P&J all week to keep everyone updated. P&J’s director, Jenny, took a basket of goodies to the family this morning.

Since Noah is just 2 minutes from my office, I am privileged to get to spend my lunch break nursing him everyday. I’ve gotten to know Haley and she is such a remarkable baby. Please pray for Haley’s body to heal and for her parents to feel God’s arms wrapped around them and their precious little girl. Although we praise God everyday for Noah’s life, it’s times like these that take your breath away as a parent. We are so thankful for Noah’s health and hope he and Haley will get to hang out again VERY soon.

Cover Boy!

Congrats to Noah on being the cover athlete for the new NCAA Football '09 video game, which hits store shelves tomorrow. As you can see, he's intense and intimidating!

Just a good story for the day

I came across this story today and just wanted to pass it along. No matter if you're a fan of John Mayer (Tyra and I are) or his music, this is a heartwarming story about how a simple act of kindness gave this little boy, Issac, a memory he will never forget. It's just really, really cool to read stories like this!

I'll post the links in the order that I read them:

1. John Mayer's Blog ~ "Meet Issac"

2. Issac Foundation's Blog Read the stories "More Ups and Downs on Our Journey" dated July 6, 2008 (read the bottom of the post)...then read "Life Lessons from John Mayer," dated July 8, 2008.

Carry The Fight!

I think I'll start showing this video to Noah twice daily until the season opener at UCLA (Monday, Sept. 1, 8 pm EDT, ABC). This video rocks! Only 54 more days's till IT'S FOOTBALL TIME IN TENNESSEE!

5 Month Highlights

To see more pictures from this month, click.....right.....HERE!

5 Months Old Today!

Noah turned 5 months old today. It's so hard to believe how fast the time has flown. He has changed so much over the course of this month that looking back on pictures and videos from earlier in the month, it makes me wonder, "was that really THIS month?"
Noah is learning new things everyday and it's such a gift and blessing to see his curiosity grow more and more. Here are a few fun-facts about Noah's 5th month:

- He started sleeping primarily on his stomach at bedtime. This started when he had a stuffy nose and he just naturally started rolling over during the night. Most of the time, now, he'll roll right over when we put him down for bed and sleep all night like that. He never stays in one place though and he often does doughnuts in his crib...we never know which end of the bed he'll wake up on! Also, for any of you with young babies, Tyra and I highly recommend this and this for colds and stuffy noses!! Works like a charm and smells good too!

- He now eats rice cereal twice a day (morning and afternoon) and seems to really like it. It gets a little messy, but who cares. His, poops, have become...shall we say...a little stinkier! Whoa!!!!!

- He is fascinated with Gabi and enjoys watching her walk around, play with her toys, and wag her tail.

- He plays peek-a-boo with himself and us. He likes using his burp-cloth to "hide," then pull it down so we can see him.

- He laughs a lot at our silly songs and faces.

- He wakes up almost every morning at about 6:30 talking to himself in his crib, then gives us a huge smile when he sees us...one of the best moments in life!

- He has started to hold his own bottle, though he still needs a little help to tilt it up all the way.

-Has patented what his teachers at PJCA call his "old man face." Some examples--->



- Noah loves being around other kids. He cracks up when they act silly around him.

- As you'll see in his 5 month video, he is trying really hard to crawl, but he's not quite there yet.

- Favorite toys this month: Octi the purple octypus, black and white "crunchy-sounding ball, monkey rattle, blue dog that plays music.

Fouth of July Weekend

We had a fun and relaxing Fourth of July weekend. It spoils us to get an extra weekend day with Noah, and makes heading back to the office on Monday even tougher. Here are some pictures from the weekend, as well as a few others we've taken over the past few weeks.

Chillin out in my swimming pool


They made these t-shirts at school for the kids...we love all the crafts they make!


Happy Birthday Grand-Don!


Noah and JenMommy at Pancake Pantry in Nashville


Noah playing with cousins Leah and Benjamin

The Forrest Spence Fund

Our good friends, Brittany and David Spence have created the Forrest Spence Fund in memory of their son Forrest, who passed away on November 4, 2007.

The first annual Forrest Spence 5K race is being held in Memphis on Saturday, September 6, four days before what would have been Forrest's first birthday. There is an opportunity for people who cannot make it to Memphis for the race to be a "GHOST RUNNER" in the race to show your support for the Forrest Spence Fund, which benefits the Le Bonheur Children's Medical Center in Memphis. I hope you will all consider joining Tyra, Noah, and I on being "GHOST RUNNERS" in the race.

Here is some more information on the Forrest Spence Fund, and please visit the website for more stories, photos, and information on the race.

Goals of the Forrest Spence Fund

The Fund supplies a convenience basket for families with babies in the PICU who are facing an extended stay. Comfort items in the baskets include the following:

A handmade blanket
A roll of quarters for vending machines
Magazines
Lotion
Hand sanitizer
A stuffed animal
Children's books
A journal
The book "Praying the Scriptures for Your Child"
Chapstick
Baby socks
Baby hat
Notecards
A card to decorate for the baby's bed
Snacks and water

The Fund also provides for stocking the PICU wish list with items such as:

Crib mobiles
CD players
CDs
Books
Blankets
Socks
Hats
Teethers
Crib mirrors
Sound machines
Night lights
Bubbles
Stuffed animals
Goodies and treats for the PICU staff

Last year, more than 1600 children and their families were cared for in the pediatric intensive care unit (PICU) at Le Bonheur Children's Medical Center. With each child, there came a story. It is these stories - stories of courage, love, fear, uncertainty, healing, joy and sadness - that explain the impact that Le Bonheur and its staff can have on a child, a family, even a community and a kingdom.

Eatin' From a Spoon

On Saturday, we let Noah try his first few bites of rice cereal. Not surprisingly, he LOVED it! He got the hang of eating from a spoon almost instantly, and didn't even make much of a mess and he slurped the cereal from the spoon. It was fun to watch!

A great weekend

Thanks to everyone for that "Happy Daddy's Day" wishes. We had a great weekend, and it was so much fun to celebrate my 1st Father's Day as a Dad. We just hung out at home and relaxed most of the weekend, and watched a lot of golf on TV! It was always great to remember my Dad so fondly on Father's Day, and I think all dads have a special and unique connection with their sons or duaghters. Different than Moms, but special and unique in its own way. I now know what it means to look at my son and see myself and Tyra in him, and laugh at his personality and little quirks and feel so proud that he's our son.

I was really touched this weekend with all of the outpouring or love, stories, respect, and sadness for the passing of Tim Russert. Friends and colleagues commented almost in unison of his strong work ethic, preparation, and passion he had for life, but that what he loved most in his life was his wife and son, Luke. You could just feel the genuine sadness of the loss, but yet, the stories they shared of his life were so happy and touching. How neat that he made such a mark on so many people's lives, simply by being a good, caring, diligent, fair, and loving person---traits that were instilled in him by his dad, Big Russ! If you haven't already, take time to read Big Russ and Me and Wisdom of our Fathers, two great books that really express how much impact fathers have on the lives of their sons and daughters. This impact is immediate, tangible, and real.

The connection that I had with my dad is something that I will try to emulate every day between Noah, me, and our future children. How blessed we all are to trust in a God who loves us more than we can ever fathom----and it's because of His love for us, that we are able to love others. He is the source of all things pure, lovely, and holy---and fatherhood stems from these good things. I hope one day Noah can say the same things about me that I can say proudly of my dad, that Luke Russert can say of his dad, Tim, and that countless other sons/daughters can say of their dads!

Several of my closest and best friends have become dads this past year, and it's been such a blessing to share stories with each of them how life changes instantly, for the better. So, here's a toast to us Dads...let there never be a day when our sons and duaghters don't know how much we love them, their Moms, or our Heavenly Father through our thoughts, words, and actions.

Happy 1st Father's Day Eric!

It has been such a blessing to watch Eric grow into fatherhood over the past four months. I always knew that he would be the most amazing dad to our children, but now I actually get to see him in action.

Noah adores his daddy. Noah’s face lights up whenever Eric starts making goofy faces, singing silly songs or showing off some interesting dance moves. Eric has shared in every aspect of this incredible journey—from pregnancy to birth and all the uncertainty, anxiety and excitement that bringing a child into this world entails.

This slideshow is just a glimpse of sweet moments Eric and Noah have shared over the past 18 weeks. I look forward to the future knowing that Noah has such a wonderful role model in his father. Happy 1st Father’s Day Eric!

Happy Father's Day from Noah!

Happy Father's Day Grand Don

Remembering my Granddad on Father's Day


Daddy learning how to be a good dad! With Uncle Drew, Uncle Brent and Granddad

4 Month Doctor Visit

This morning was Noah's 4 month doctor check-up. Everything went great and Noah really seems to enjoy the doctor visits. He laughed, babbled (a lot), and enjoyed looking at all the pictures on the wall. Of course, he wailed for a minute or two when he got his shots, but then calmed back down and was fine. We got the "go-ahead" to start introducing small amounts of rice cereal twice per day, so that hopefully by 6 months old, he'll have the whole eating from a spoon thing down pat.

The past few weeks have been a lot of fun to watch, as Noah is now constantly rolling over from tummy to back and back to tummy with ease. He seems to now prefer being on his tummy so he can lift up with his arms and look at us. Of course, we applaud him and he enjoys being the constant center of attention and grins ear to ear after doing one of his rolls. Twice this week he's been on his belly when we get him out of bed. It's funny to see him on his belly, because he'll try so hard to move forward. He'll lift his legs up in the air (almost like he's skydiving) and rock back and forth but can't go anywhere. He's good at turning around in circles though.

We've also been moving his bedtime up earlier and he's sleeping about 9 1/2 hours a night now, which is nice. We were a little worried how he'd take to the earlier bedtimes, but he's really done well and still wakes up at about the same time. He's actually starting to wake up LATER in the morning now that his bedtime is earlier, even sleeping 10 hours twice this week.

We're so thankful that God has blessed us with a happy, healthy, and growing baby. Every day with him is a tremendous blessing! Here are his 4 month stats. He is well on pace to get some playing time on the defensive line for the VOLS this season!

Weight - 18 lbs. exactly (95th percentile)
Length - 25 1/2 inches (72nd percentile)

Here are some pictures and video from today's doctor visit that I took with my phone:

Ready to see the doctor

Playing on the table...as you can see, he ripped the paper sheet on the table to shreds!