Lewis Lane: 2013

* Disclaimer: I started this post almost 3 months ago...and just now getting around to finishing it! Needless to say, we've been BUSY!!!

March was a busy month for the Lewis family. Pops Lewis came for an extended visit the beginning of the month and all four of us (Gesabelle included) really enjoyed having him here! Him and Nelson visited the Texas coast for two days while Lorraine and I stayed behind. We'll go next time when the weather is a little bit warmer. But before they left for their road trip, we took Lorraine to Austin's annual kite festival, what a site. I've never seen so many kites flying at once, and some really big ones too!

Nelson and I decided next year we'll bring our own...I'll leave the flying up to him :)

Lorraine loves her Papa Lew :)

Cousin Leigh came to visit us as well, and we sure did have a fun time!!! Of course her visit coincided with SXSW...the best time of year here in Austin ;) I managed to scoot away from work for a couple of days so we could enjoy sometime downtown, take in all the city had to offer and see lots of up and coming bands/artists. It's absolutely amazing the crowd SXSW brings, so much innovation, style and just plain uniqueness. People from all walks of life, near and far, travel to the "live music capital of the world" to embrace all things encompassing art, culture and music. It is an experience I think everyone should have at some point, words alone cannot describe it!

I think this picture was taken just minutes before we were slammed in the back of our pedi-cab by a fourrunner...CRAZINESS!!

Love her :)

beggin' Lee Lee for some of her pasta!

having some drinks at a nook and crannie bar Nelson found ;)

My best friend Lauren got married as well, Nelson and I are so thankful we were able to celebrate with her and Shane. It was such a fun weekend!!!! The golf cottages at Oldfield Plantation were amazing, the scenery was breathtaking and the weather held up considerable well. All in all it was simply perfect!

Lorraine & Auntie Lauren in Charleston

The venue was absolutely breathtaking!

my best friend was a stunning bride!

My girls :)

The Clevenger's est. 03/23/2013

While Nelson and I enjoyed all the wedding festivities, Lorraine enjoyed some quality time with her Grandma Jo, Pops Lewis, Auntie Erin and Uncle Redmond. Lorraine and I surprised Grandma Jo a day early at work, took her to lunch (Lorraine behaved surprisingly well), and she was able to show off her granddaughter to all her co-workers :)

Of course Lorraine has a tight grip on Grandma's necklace, haha!

kisses for Uncle Redmond :)

Auntie Erin showing Lorraine her daddy, haha!

Loves her some Auntie Erin!

Papa Lew and Grandma Jo (and Uncle Redmond trying to sneak in)

We finally got to meet baby Charlie! He is the sweetest little munchkin!!! He will just cozy up into your arms and snuggle...my kind of baby! Josh and Crystal are so lucky, we are so happy for them. :) I cannot wait to hold him again, and I just might not let go!!

And I got to snuggle up on my favorite set of sisters in Bluffton, Ella Rae and Caroline Jane. These two cuties are such dolls! It was so fun having all three of them together again, I wish this was a regular occurrence :/

My bestie Leslie and her beautiful girls, love them!!!

Ella Rae is a super sweet big sister!

Lo and Caroline :)

Of course as we predicted, Lorraine started walking the beginning of April...and now she runs! Her little buns fly all over the house, she is a handful :)

Speaking of house, Nelson and I just recently became homeowners!!! I never knew buying a home could be so stressful, but we are so glad there were no 'bumps' in the road and we're in our own home :) We are so thankful for all of my parents generosity, just pure unconditional love. My mom helped us clean the entire home, paint several rooms, and decorate Lorraine's room. There is no possible way we would have managed without their help, they are nothing short of just plain amazing :)

There are still so many boxes in the house and we are literally just taking it day by day. But words truly cannot describe how fortunate we feel to have been able to purchase a home. We really are living the American Dream :) I will post pictures as we set up room by room...we're in no rush, we're not planning on going anywhere anytime soon!

05/22/2013: Closing day :)

Lorraine found my old girl scout vest my mom had kept while we were moving...this picture cracks me up!!!!

part of the backyard...YES, we managed to find a home in the city limits with live oak trees AND a steady flowing creek (hard to see right now) on it, both a rarity in central Texas! (backyard is being cleared all the way down to the creek tomorrow, FINALLY!)

it is such a tranquil view from the dinner table...looking out to one of our two porches and just seeing trees :)

And we did manage to move into the house just in time to celebrate Lorraine's 1st birthday!! I made her a yellow cake ( Better Homes & Garden cookbook), cream cheese icing (Martha Stewart) from scratch and it was DELICIOUS, my Grandma Smith would be so proud!!

had to top with some fresh purple daisy flowers for our princess :)

For some reason I can't rotate this picture, sorry :/

And between moving and Lorraine's birthday, we were still able to meet up with my parents, sisters and all the grandchildren in Houston for the Memorial Day weekend. It was so fun and such a treat to be with my family for a few days! And Lorraine had a blast with all her cousins :)

Jalena and Lo

Lekari and Lo

all the grandkids :)

And, Nelson and I are so excited have another nephew as of 02/24/2013!! Baby Joey decided to come a little early (just like his big brother Jeffrey) and he is Lorraine's 4th boy cousin :)

We hope they'll be able to visit us early next year, because I just want to hold and squeeze this little cutie pie for days!!!

Well, Lorraine is up which mean it's time for the pool. It's one of the few outdoor things you can do during the day/eveing to combat this Texas heat. Until next time...wishing you all continued happiness and prosperity, and remember to always 'look for the good' in life!

XoXo,

The Lewis's

Whoa, how is it already Feburary?! I've been thinking about blogging almost every day for the past month...but by the time my day winds down, all I want and need is sleep!!!!

We are so thankful for all the blessings God continues to bestow upon us, and all the beautiful people in our lives. We have been blessed to see another year, and hope it brings all of us continued happiness and prosperity. So here it is, a quick synopsis of what has been going on with the Lewis's :)

My dear friend Annie and her beautiful daughter Brooke came to visit us in December. I hadn't seen her in four years, and yet still it was like we hadn't missed a beat!

sooooo crazy to see them together...love it!

Gessie is always looking for a snuggle buddie!

We had too much to catch up on this visit alone, but we are both looking forward to seeing each other again in the fall!

This Christmas holiday was especially special because of our little chicken. We decided to take her to see Santa, and luckily a baby store less than 3 minutes from the house had one there. Lorraine did great, she didn't shed a single tear!

thumbs up, haha!

And she picked out her very first Christmas tree...

I did most of the decorating but Lorraine was memorized by all the lights and ornaments!

Austin has a "Trail of Lights" at Zilker Park that is hosted by several different vendors every year, and lasts for a couple of weeks. Of course, us being the procrastinators we are, we waited until the last night. But it worked out perfectly because it ended up being one of the warmest nights of the month :) And to our surprise, Lorraine loved all the displays and lights.

I tried to get a panoramic picture of the trail. It is approx. 3 miles long

The Christmas tree was beautiful!

Lorraine weathered her first road trip to Dallas, and she was finally able to meet all her 'girl' cousins!

Lorraine and Kari

Vanessa and Lorraine (exactly 14 yrs apart!)

Auntie Gena, Jelena, Kari and their cousin "chicken"

I am so ever amazed how quickly Lorraine is developing. It seems like ever week she is working towards another milestone, and it's obvious she wants more independence. According to all her growth charts she's exactly where she should be both physically and developmentally. She's said her first word...DaDa. I will never forget the smile on Nelson's face at that moment either :) And the very tip of her first two teeth are showing! Nelson and I both agree, our daughter will be walking before she turns one, she's already working to master the pulling up part!!! And talk about a little personality...she just cracks me up everyday.

Here's a video Lorraine's babysitter made of her crawling. Not sure if it will play on here, I've tried my best to figure out how to upload videos to this blog. It's not playing for me now, so hopefully it will for you!

If it still isn't working, next time i'll just post a link instead. Sorry in advance :(

daddy brushing Lorraine's hair

hey hey!

I've made all of Lorraine's solid foods (minus yogurt), and I am so glad I choose that route. Despite the many disadvantages many may say about it, I find it mighty rewarding! Yes, at times it may seem 'time consuming' but in all actuality it just requires a little extra planning, and a really good food processor. I'll make enough food to feed her during the week in just an hour (really just 20-30 min prep time). And I have the comfort of knowing exactly what she is eating! We have several indoor farmer market grocery stores where you can purchase organic fruits and vegetables for little to nothing! So far, Lorraine LOVES bananas, apples, peas, sweet potatoes and yogurt. She doesn't particularly care for butternut squash or carrots but she'll eat just about anything if you mix it in with bananas or apples. :) She's slowly warming up to chicken, I think the texture of pureed chicken is throwing her off.

Lorraine is as much Gesabelle's baby is she is ours!

morning snuggle session :)

We took Lorraine to the Lady Bird Johnson wildflower center on a beautiful Saturday afternoon. I was surprised how much was in bloom despite the winter season. There are so many indigenous plants that bloom year round, we got some great ideas for when we buy our home :)

My mom has been here now for three weeks, and we are thrilled! It is so nice having her around, and Lorraine loves her Gma :) Both Nelson and I feel like Lorraine has just grown so much in the last couple of weeks! I see so much of both of us in her, it is so fun watching her grow! We love our little chicken so so much, it's hard to believe she's already 8 months old.