Kate is 9 Months Old!

Kate has reached the "big .75", as my friend Lisa would say. As Kate sits here on my lap, chewing on a toy, and drooling all over me, it's all I can do not to smother her with kisses. She is getting so big and it makes me thankful and sad at the same time. Her top two front teeth have come in (those were some fun nights) and she weighs 16 lbs 5 oz and is 27 inches long. She is sitting up really well, doing the army crawl with her arms, and has recently learned to clap and is very proud of that skill. She doesn't yet know how to crawl forward, but she can roll and twist around enough with her arms to get where she wants to go. You can bet that if there is a laptop, remote control, or cell phone on the floor, she's going to get it. Her favorite foods are bananas and squash. Everyday she becomes more overjoyed at seeing our dogs, Precious and Max, and last week she finally said mama, after weeks of conversations that went something like this:
Mom to Kate: "Say Mama"
Kate: "Dada"
Mom: "Say Mama"
Kate: "Dada"
Jeff was so proud.
The whole family is really excited because basketball season is finally here-as we sing "It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year" we look forward to seeing our first glimpses of Duke and UNC this week on TV. Oh yeah-the holiday season is here too! Uncle David and Gina the Great are coming next week, Thanksgiving is upon us, and cookie baking day is just around the corner-so stay tuned for more fun updates. Maybe Kate will soon learn how to actually crawl through her tunnel instead of just backing up into it!

Welcome Baby Will

Our friends, Dennis and Lisa, recently adopted a baby boy from Taiwan-Will. Jeff and I, along with other friends from college, hosted a baby shower for the new addition this weekend. It was great to see Dennis and Lisa and Will is so cute. It was also fun to see so many friends from college and catch up with everyone. We just need a karaoke machine and it would have felt like our old parties on Church Street! Unfortunately the State/Carolina game did not go so well on Saturday. Everyone, which was about 20 people, except for Jeff and Tripp Flythe were Carolina alums-so the game was a bit disappointing. However, good friends and good food made for a fun time. Kate really enjoyed playing with all the other children.

Update on Jennifer

Jennifer is doing great. Surgery went well and she is resting at home. Scarlett handled everything really well too. Jennifer still can not pick up or hold Scarlett, which is very hard for Jennifer, but hopefully she'll be able to do that next week. Thanks for all the prayers and well wishes.

Prayer Request

Thursday my sister Jennifer will have surgery to remove her gallbladder because of complications stemming from her pregnancy. Please pray for a successful procedure and a swift recovery. Also pray for sweet little Scarlett, as she will have to spend a few days eating from a bottle while her mom is recovering. Thanks everyone.

Happy Birthday Great Grannie!

This weekend we celebrated Great Grannie's 83rd Birthday. Kate tried to help her blow out her candles and had a great time with cousin Scarlett. Grandma also surprised both of them with their first Christmas dresses!

I love this picture of the girls sitting with their Grandaddy.

Our Little Bunny

Here you go Aunt Jennifer and Scarlett-pictures just for you! We hope everyone had fun night of trick or treating. The Costa family sure did. We will see you on Saturday.

Here is Kate's bunny tail-

Kate had loved having her grandparents visit. Who knew bunnies could be so much fun!

Trick or Treat!

I think Kate had the most fun opening the door and finding out who was waiting on the other side for some candy. Here is her friend Jack-cutest monkey on the block.

Pumpkin Carving

Earlier in the day, Daddy and Kate carved a pumpkin while Mom was at a meeing. They did a great job and Kate was fascinated with the process.

Pumpkin Patch Time

We went to pick out our pumpkins yesterday. As you can see-Kate was very excited. Of course, we did the obligatory "baby in sitting in the pumpkin patch" picture. Jeff hates posed pictures and for some reason especially disapproves of staged pictures with pumpkins-don't ask me why. But, alas, mom wins this parenting decision and Kate thoroughly enjoyed posing with the pumpkins. She tried to get a taste of several of them. Thank you cousin Scarlett for the "little pumpkin" shirt and the cute socks!

Here are the lucky three to come home with the Costa Family! Good job, Kate.

Happy Birthday Grandaddy!

I enjoyed celebrating with you!

Thanks for taking Mom and Dad to the football game!

Carolina Girls

Kate is 8 Months Old!

Kate turned 8 months old on Sunday. Jeff and I can't believe it. Here she is showing of her two teeth for those of you who haven't seen them! She is sitting up so well now and scoots around using her hands and arms. She only spins around going counter-clockwise, it doesn't occur to her to go to the right, but she gets where she wants to go by rolling and scooting. Daddy better baby proof the house soon! Kate also loves to wear bows in her hair. When she sees herself in the mirror with a bow, she squeals at her reflection. I think she also managed to get a piece of bannana into her mouth on her own today, although, it was probably just stuck on her hand.


Grandma and Grandaddy came for dinner yesterday to celebrate Mommy's birthday. Our power was out because of an accident at the entrance of our neighborhood, so we celebrated by candlelight. Kate enjoyed playing with her grandparents in the cool hats that Jeff bought.

Party Fun!

This past weekend Kate and I travelled to Concord, NC with Heather and her son Drew to attend Kate Burton's Cinderella themed 2nd birthday party. Heather and I were college roomates with Kate Elizabeth's mom, Kelly. There is Kate blowing out her candles on her Cinderella cake. It was so much fun and a little surreal to attend a party for our children! We have great news too. Another roomate of ours, Lisa, and her husband just adopted a little boy. He is a month older than Kate Costa. We can't wait to meet him and are so thankful that the adoption is complete! It was great to see you Kelly-I'm so glad you guys live closer! Here are a few pictures. It was a bit difficult to get the kids to all look up and smile at the same time-aren't they precious?

Kate and Scarlett

Scarlett and her parents came to visit Kate a few weekends ago. Scarlett has grown so much and is so cute! We had a nice lunch and the girls played so nicely on the floor-just out of reach from each other. Kate is now scooting around doing the "army crawl", so I think the era of peacefully playing on the floor together may have ended for a while. Look out Scarlett!