Saturday Morning and a VERY Cute Baby

Banks woke up from his morning nap in the best mood! Bryan was holding him and we were talking to him and singing Patty Cake to him and he started smiling and cooing at us. It was so sweet! I grabbed the camera and snapped a few very quick shots of this cutie.

Banks is 8 weeks old!!!

Today, Banks is 8 weeks old and I can hardly believe it. It really just seems like yesterday that I was in the hospital with this tiny baby. He is really coming to life! This past week, he started smiling and cooing and tracking toys with his eyes. He loves to look at his toys and his mobile in his crib. He likes to swing, but only side to side and he still loves to ride in the car. He has started to like his bath and likes the warm water flowing over his skin and head. He still hates when we put lotion on him though. I just am really loving watching all of the new things he does. It is so much fun!

Georgia Anne's 7th Birthday Party

Today, January 9th, is Georgie's 7th birthday. Banks and I were in Tallassee this weekend while Bryan went hunting and it just so happened that I was able to go to Georgia Anne's "Barbie and Cookie Decorating" themed party. She invited 7 little girls over and they had pizza, a cookie cake, and decorated cookies. Leigh Anne, as usual, had everything looking perfect and the girls had so much fun. Georgia Anne loves to be the center of attention so she had a blast too. I got so tickled at her friends doting on her...."Happy Birthday Georgia", "Georgia, you look so pretty", "Georgia, I love your room", "Georgia Anne, I love your head band", and so on......Sweet little Georgie....ate every bit of it up. Her friends are so sweet and you can tell that they love her....how could you not? She is such a sweetie and so FUNNY and witty. I just love her to pieces and love watching her grow. Happy Birthday Georgie!

Photography by Mary Catherine

On Saturday, one of my dearest friends, Mary Catherine took some great pictures of Banks and I wanted to share them. Mary Catherine has always enjoyed photography and in the past year, she has taken her talent and hobby to the next level. She is SO talented and does a great job with families and children. Please check out her web site on my link list on the left side of my blog. I think Banks was her 2nd newborn to photo and the pictures turned out great. Even though Banks got a little upset during the photo shoot, we got some really sweet pictures. Enjoy.

The Irby/McGriff Cradle

For the past 6 weeks, Banks has been sleeping in our room in this very special family cradle/crib. It has been in Bryan's family for 130 years and dozens and dozens of Irby babies have slept in it. The cradle originally belonged to Bryan's Great-Grandmother, Ina McGriff, born October 31, 1883. She slept in it as a baby. She grew up, married, and had a son, Thomas McGriff Irby. Tom Irby and his wife, Maxine Melsheimer Irby, had 5 children, including Bryan's mother, Maxine Irby Johnston, all of whom slept in the cradle. Since then, dozens of Bryan's cousins have used it and it has been passed around the family. We have had the privilege of having this family heirloom at our home and having Banks sleep in it. It also rocks, which has come in handy many nights when Banks does his infamous "rooting". He is now transitioning over to his crib in the nursery, but the cradle still might have a few more nights of use...who knows! We will pack it up in the coming weeks and pass it on to the next baby in our family. The question is...who will it be?!!!

6 Week Stats

Banks had his check up yesterday with Dr. Dennis and it went great. We got a little off track from our one month visit since they were only doing sick visits during the Christmas Holidays. Therefore, his one month check up really was a 6 week visit. Needless to say, this little boy is GROWING! We joke that he looks so tiny, but he really isn't. He weighed 10 pounds, 4 ounces (50th percentile) and was 22 3/4 inches long (75th percentile). He got one shot and will go back tomorrow for the rest. Boo Hoo! I know they are necessary but they break my heart!