Napping

Ever since I have known Tom, he has taken a daily nap. Just a short 10-30 minute type. It depends on the day. Amazingly, Kinley loves taking naps with her dad. I have quite a few pictures of the two of them dozing off. I don't know how he does it. Whenever I'm tired and want Kinley to nap, its a no-go, but he'll just put her in his lap and when I come and check on them, they are out.


Most people would agree that one of the best things in the whole world is holding a sleeping baby. I don't know if it captures the innocence and dependence on you, or just that they are finally asleep and not moving or crying or needing anything from you. Whatever it is, it is the best! Apparently Tom also feels this way. He must feed off of her comfort and also sleep; or maybe its the other way around and that makes Kinley calm and sleepy. I don't know, but these are a few of the napping pictures I have, and they are some of my favorites.
The first picture is when Kinley is just a few days old; the second I think was from last May, so about 2 months old, and the third is from last night. As you can see, Kinley has her wrist taped up. Tom was throwing earlier at practice, and now whenever he tapes his wrist, she also likes to have her little wrist taped, but she likes it so much it stays on until bath or bed whichever comes first.
Obviously I cherish the time when they are both sleeping too, but its also mesmerizing. I find myself continually watching them or making excuses to keep checking on them. They just fill my hear with joy and love like I didn't know was possible until now. Whatever the attraction, I thank God for the feeling.

Work Wanted

A few days ago Kinley got a hold of one of Tom's spike wrenches. I have changed the spikes in a couple of his shoes, but not in a while. I guess Kinley was paying more attention than we thought. She immediately went got one of his flats (remember she's only 1) and sat down and started to "change the spikes" on the bottom. We were both just floored! Now she thinks this is a blast. She tries to fix our shoes all the time. Sometimes even our socked or bare feet.
I had such high hopes for her future. I hope she's not just settling with this job. I mean, the equipment manager is extremely important, but not necessarily a career path. Hopefully this is just a first job; you know getting a little experience for the future. We'll see!

Happy Easter

Kinley and I were down in Texas for Easter this year. We were both pretty excited since Kinley had been carrying around her basket for a few days putting anything in it that would fit. We went to church and then to my mom's house for the festivities. It was unseasonably cool and wet this year, so the Easter bunny hid our eggs inside. This made for total chaos. We had 5 kids in a small area trying to find eggs and not eat each other's candy. I think it only took 5 minutes for the eggs to be found, but that was plenty for Kinley and I. She found the 6 eggs with her name on them and one glitter egg. Mostly she wanted to play in all the goodies out of the baskets. We had a great family lunch and then everyone left for nap time (yeah!). Kinley and I had a great time, but it wasn't the same without Tom. It's one of those days where you really need to be with your family, and a big part of ours was missing. Don't get too sad...He was with Kip having a great guy's weekend.

Texas Tradition

As far back as I can remember, every spring we drove around central Texas for the thickest and most blue patch of bluebonnets (state flower) to take pictures in. When Kinley and I were in Georgetown in early March, I was talking with my sister about how I wanted Kinley to have a bluebonnet picture, but I didn't know if I was ever going to get the timing right to be in town when they were blooming.
As things tend to work out, this did too. We found out Tom was going to compete at Rice Universtiy in Houston last weekend. The next day my Grandmother was put into the hospital just outside Houston, so we all made the trip down. On our way to the nursing home, we stopped at a beautiful patch of bluebonnets a couple of block from my Grandmother's house. They were very thick and fairly tall. We plopped Kinley in the middle and she just stood there smiling. She never moved or sat down, although we couldn't get her to smell them either.

Luckily, when we got to the nursing home, my Grandmother was awake, though very tired. I don't know if she recongnized me or not, but she told Kinley she was beautiful. This was the first time I has seen her in two years and the first time she got to meet Kinley.
The next day, after a rain delay, Tom competed at Rice in the discus and the 400. He did pretty well. He ended up throwing 49.00 meters in the discus and runnng 49.06 in the 400. Both marks are good for this time of year. He is actually going to start competing almost every weekend. I'll try to keep up.

As I said earlier, thing tend to work out. I got a call from my mom Monday night about my grandmother, not so good. Kinley and I flew back down to Texas and drove straight to Sweeny. We visited with my grandmother for a couple hours and went to the hotel. My mom went again to visit on Wednesday morning. We drove up to Sugarland to my aunt's house. After a little rest, my mom and her sister began driving back to Sweeny, but they didn't make it in time. My grandmother had slipped away peacefully.

I don't really know what to say about her. She was a strong Christian woman who loved family, quilting, reading, and crossword puzzles. I can't imagine the life she lived. She married a man in the army, had four children, and lost her husband almost 30 years ago.
I know we will all miss her, but I also know she is much happier now than she ever could have dreamed possible. We love you Grandmother, and always will.