Ready to EAT!

Well, you have already seen our adventures with rice cereal, but our hungry boy is ready to move on to more tasty treats! Poised in his booster seat (a FAB gift from the Harrelson fam--thanks Anna, Sam, and Mary Hudson!), he opens his mouth wide every time a spoon approaches!
5 months old TODAY, we are jumping on the baby food train. Our pantry is stocked with every Stage 1 organic flavor we could find...so what will it be? Sweet potatoes? Squash? Banans? Pears?Stay tuned to find out...we'll post pictures tomorrow!

Visit with "Aunt Gina"

With Baby Perry ready to make his/her debut, JR and I took a trip to Fletcher, NC on Saturday to see my best friend and college roomate, Gina!

Not only is Gina about to POP with child, but she is also incredibly beautiful and very prepared! JR and I were very impressed with Baby Perry's nursery....now all Gina and Tim need is a precious, healthy baby to arrive!

G had some great one on one time with JR! And we took some great shots to remember our fun visit!

To keep tabs on the Perry clan, check out their newly created blog (see our favorite links) at http://teepsandgeeps.blogspot.com/ ! Yay!

TGIF!

Happy Friday, Yall!

No whammies....

JR is in training for Press Your Luck....remember that game show? No whammies, no whammies....STOP! He has a great time in his exer-saucer type seat...with gadgets to pull and buttons to press. It even has a dragon puppet that JR pounces on every time he spins back around to the puppet. We posted a great video of the dragon attack on YouTube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GdJrBZZKu-Y

Saturday mornings

Why are Saturday mornings so darn great? Is it the cartoons? Is it the lounging around in pajamas until 10am? Eating cereal in a big bowl with cold, fresh milk?

Maybe it is all of the above, plus seeing your human kid play next to your doggie kid...

It's a hard-knock life

What kid wouldn't love to fall asleep while eating, only to awake in Toys R Us?

Is it a dream, you ask? No! This is lovely little life that JR is leading!

Last night he wore himself out eating rice cereal. Remsen and I decided to run some errands, including a trip to Toys R Us to find some age-appropriate toys (for JR, not us!). Sure enough, JR woke up just in time and had lots of fun investigating all of the bright, noisy infant toys.

Another shout out for Sandbox Threads

So I have to promote the fabulous Sandbox Threads one more time...JR is now featured on the home page of the website, in the changing pictures (he is on the left, in the 3rd set that rotates through). Check it out: http://www.sandboxthreads.com/

JR in another Sandbox Threads t-shirt!

Too cool for the pool...

The Parrish fam is high class now...we have our very own pool! Yes, yes, it might be a blow up variety from Target, but it is ever so nice!

This weeked we inflated it, filled it up, and let the kiddies (JR and puppies, too) have at it! Polk and Sadie enjoyed having an enormous water bowl outside (mmm...tastes like baby!).

For my baby daddy...

There are lots of reasons why Mr. Remsen Parrish deserves the MVP of our little family on this, his first Father's Day. I started compiling a list last week of all of the wonderful things he has done, both before JR arrived and afterward. Even as I type this post, he is busy entertaining our sweet sickly child (still recovering from vaccines from Friday).


So, without further ado....why Remsen rocks as a dad:
During a bout with morning sickness, Remsen made me oatmeal chocolate chip cookies from scratch at 9pm at night...and wore my grandmother's apron just to make me smile and feel better

He put all of the nursery furniture together by himself

He read the What to Expect book month by month

He gave up his favorite adult beverages during my pregnancy (even during football season!)

He stayed in the hospital all three nights when JR was born, sleeping on that horribly uncomfortable and cold window seat at Spartanburg Regional

He went to JR's first day of "school"

And still now...


He attends every doctor's appointment and is the strong parent that helps while JR gets shots

He plays the guitar for his family

He celebrates tooties as if JR scored a last second touchdown

He makes funny faces and sounds just to put a smile on JR's face

He has great moves to get a sleepy kid to actually fall asleep (these should be patented)
He is teaching JR that "if mama ain't happy, ain't nobody happy"!

He wants JR to see and experience things

He has become a morning person



He never complains...EVER

There is so much more, but hopefully you see what I do. What a great daddy!

Five years

Saturday, June 14th marked our 5th wedding anniversary. One house, two dogs, and a baby....what a wonderful life we are building together!

We can't help but be nostaglic about our wedding day and wanted to share some photos of the happy day (when we were younger and skinnier!)...

Hooray for the democratic process!

Yesterday, South Carolina held their primary elections for a number of state and local offices. JR, decked out for the patriotic process, went with me to vote. He waited with lots of polling workers (all older ladies, surely grandmas, who oogled over his cuteness) while I did my duty as a citizen and entered my votes.

I'd like to think I am already influencing my child to "rock the vote" and be interested in local, state, and national politics...

So far, so good...JR gives voting a thumbs up!

I'm in love with my kid because...

Of moments like these...

St. Paul UMC Summer Camp

JR started daycare today at St. Paul UMC! He was very happy to see Ms. Lynn and Ms. Sharon (pictured below with Ms. Lynn) this morning and was busy checking out his new surroundings! He has his very own cubby with his name on it. The windows let in lots of natural light and there are many fun toys, swings, and bouncers to keep him busy and engaged!

And for Mommy and Daddy, they have a phone in the classroom so that we can call and check in with JR whenever we want to! What a blessing to have such a wonderful school to attend!

Ghost Hunters...Spartanburg style

So, we rarely blog about our jobs; I'm not sure why this is...we both love what we do and have great work environments. I personally think I have the best job on the planet which is why I wanted to tell everyone about how The Trust has gotten involved with our very own "Ghost Hunters"....
I have to express my excitement about this upcoming event related to the Duncan-DuPre House. For those of you who don't know about this Preservation Trust project...the Duncan-DuPre House (aka William Wallace Duncan home) was built in 1886 by a Methodist Bishop who also happened to be a Civil War chaplain and a Wofford College graduate turned professor. The home originally stood at 249 North Church Street in downtown Spartanburg and was moved in 1999 a few blocks away to Howard Street (next to the Magnolia Street Cemetery).

Long story short, almost ten years later, The Trust has dedicated itself to a full restoration of the home. The project will cost approximately $1.1 M, and we have been grant writing and fundraising for about one year now (about $400,000 remains). The house has already undergone a phase of stabilization (see below) and we are now awaiting bids from contractors.

What does this have to do with hunting ghosts? Well, this week Kristi (my boss) and I were contacted by Angela Roper of Ghost Tours Spartanburg. She has always had an interest in the house and took a photograph of the home several years ago; when developed, that photograph revealed a figure in the front window of the house. Last week, Angela was contacted by a ghost hunting group out of North Carolina (PSI-Paranormal Scene Investigators) who want to do an investigation at the Duncan-DuPre house...this Saturday! According to their website, P.S.I. uses scientific and factual data in their investigation to determine if paranormal activity is present. They will set up cameras, voice recorders, digital thermometers and the like to figure out if there is any activity in the house.

Whether you believe or not, it is pretty darn exciting. I'll update you with the results!

On the move...almost

JR is trying his hardest to figure out how to launch into crawling...and he's looking darn cute trying to do it...thanks to friend Laura Ringo and her gift of the monogrammed diaper cover!

He is also loving "reading time", especially when the book is edible...

More firsts

We had a few firsts this week, including JR's first cold. Because of the pesky congestion, he did not get his shots at his month four appointment. We can report, however, that he is now in the 75th percentile for weight and height....16 pounds, 4 ounces and 26 inches, and we'll go back once he is well for the shots. JR is already busting through his 6 month pajamas.
Another first was captured this weekend....toe-grabbing! It is surprising he can reach them, big belly in the way and all.

JR also practiced his army crawl stance without protesting...he is starting to enjoy being on his belly.

Despite having a a yucky cold, JR was very good for his first non-family babysitter, Clancy, who is a former student from SDS and a wonderful sitter! She watched JR on Saturday night so we could have a date night to see a movie with friends!