Ella, Evie and the Exersaucer

We visited Lillian, Sharon and Ella Reese. Ella Reese has grown so much in one month! She teaches Evie how to do many things.

Ella Reese shows Evie how she helps her mommy in the kitchen.

Everyone look this way for a picture!

"Evie, this is how you play with the Exersaucer." Ella Reese is such a good older cousin, teaching Evie how to use toys that are certainly going to progress her developmental growth into a future intellectual giant (or so they say at Babies'R'Us).

Evie seems to get the hang of the Exersaucer.

She likes it, she likes it!

A quick look at her ever-expanding hair loss.

Evie is very busy, working hard with the Exersaucer.

"Mommy and Daddy, I need an Exersaucer. Can I have an Exersaucer? Pleaaassseeee???" Dear Jesus, give us the strength to say "no" when we look at that adorable face. Except for this one time, because we think she really should get an Exersaucer. So please help us find one for a very low price on Craigslist. Amen.

First Father's Day

We just got back from our Tennessee vacation ... with lots of pictures to document our good times! We arrived in TN just in time to celebrate Tim's first Father's Day.

We had a First Father's Day ceremony to commerate this important day in Tim's journey as a father. Tim's parents shared some good words of wisdom, I told him how he is such a great father, and Evie cooed at him to express how much she loves him. He then opened his presents!

Evie waits to see what she made for her daddy.

What a wonderful First Father's Day book! Evie helps her daddy hold the book up for the picture.




"Daddy, I love you! You are a wonderful father!"

Her Favorite Toy

Evie's favorite toy right now is a little activity "gym" that our friend Sheila loaned to us (we get a lot of toys and baby stuff from Sheila and her little boy Emmanuel--thanks Sheila and Emmanuel!!). She never, ever tires from playing with it. When she first got under it, she just liked to bat at the different toys. Now, she is actively pulling on the toys and rings, putting her toes in the rings, and even unhooking the little animals from the rings and tossing them across the room. She spends lots of time talking to the animals, squealing and laughing at them. I think they must be her best friends because she has long conversations with them.

Meeting Helen and New Skills

This is a catch-up post, overdue by at least 3 weeks. Evie and I have been super busy, going to Washington D.C. by train to deliver grant applications (and even sitting in the Department of Labor waiting for the grant app to be picked up), going to the church leadership team retreat out in Amish country, and attending Annual Conference with mommy and hundreds of clergy and church folk. She happens to be a very good meeting attender. And is very good at flashing smiles and squeals at people who come to coo at her; she's a hit! As a result of our many travels, I am usually too wiped to do anything at night but eat and sleep. But tonight, I have time and energy, so here are some pictures from 3 weeks ago.

Helen, my very good friend and also the Maid of Honor at my wedding. She loves Evie, and tries to squeeze out as much quality time with her whenever we get a chance to drop by the Seminary.


This is when Evie first started being able to sit up by herself, with some back support, but she isn't falling forward or to the side. This is after a diaper change at the office (where she is also very popular, seems to be a trend wherever she goes).


These are pictures of Evie in the Johnny Jump-up that our friend Sheila loaned to us. It is hanging in the doorway between the kitchen and the dining room. She hasn't started jumping yet, but she loves to practice her standing skills, instead of lying around all the time on her back.


She also likes to turn to see what is going on in the dining room. You can see the bright pink and orange band-aids on her legs from her 4 month pediatrician visit. She had more shots and screamed all the way through. The minute I picked her up, she almost immediately fell fast asleep on my chest--worn out from all the screaming. Her 4 month report: Her head is in the 75th percentile--she has a big head, what a melon! Her height is in the 50th percentile, at 24 inches. Her weight is in the 25th percentile, at 12.5 lbs. I am SURE she weighs more than that now, the girl is growing so fast!


Evie in action!

Baby Friends!

Evie and Harmony, Jennette's daughter, are the official church babies. If we were selling products, their pictures would be on the labels. Every Sunday they attract a flock of admirers before service, during service (people like to sneak in goo-goos during the Fellowship Time), and of course after service. They were born two weeks apart (Evie is older) and have already had quite a few "play dates"--mommies played, babies just laid on their backs.

They just started looking at each other and smiling, cooing, holding hands. Sometimes they even coo and talk at the same time; a baby concert! They are TOO CUTE!

These pics were taken at church, after service a few weeks ago. Robert (Harmony's uncle) and Kim (Harmony's Grandpop) are holding the babies. Mariah is a little girl from church who loves the babies and the camera.





Holding hands?! They ARE baby best friends!

Generations of generations

Here's a happy holler to living lineages and daring descendents desisting death. (Allliteration, allelujah!) We took some pictures of generations of Daltons and Kungs.

The Daltons: Evie with her daddy Tim, her grandpa Ray, and Mema (Great-grandma). In Mema's yard in East Tennessee, where Ray grew up and Tim spent summers and where one day very soon, Evie will soon be running around terrorizing squirrels. Mema is all for terrorizing squirrels. "Go Evie, chase the squirrels, save the birds!"

"I love you Daddy!" says the little baby girl who looks just like her father.


The Kungs: Evie, with her mommy Doris, her cousin Andrea, her GungGung Peter (grandpa), her TaiTai Laura (Great-Grandma) and Great-Grandpa Wilson. I forgot to ask what the Chinese is for Great-grandpa. After suffering three debilitating strokes, his health has deteroriated greatly and is now cared for day and night by a home health worker and my grandmother. The most beautiful thing about my grandmother is that she loves her husband so much, she does more than she is able to feed my grandfather at every meal. He receives his food through a tube, and she holds the tube upright, waiting for the liquid to drain down. Grandmother doesn't have the strength to hold the tube upright the entire time so the home health worker supports her hand; she never puts the tube down or takes a break from feeding him. A very beautiful expression of enduring love--sometimes even the smallest thing is all it takes.

Evangeline, may you know Love that endures through generations and continues to give even when our strength begins to fail us.