Life As We Know It

What's in a Name?

This week on Kelly's Korner "Show Us Your Life" Friday, the question of the week is about how you chose your children's names. Since I have not shared on the blog how we came up with our names, here ya go.

Brooke Reagan - David and I always just loved the name Brooke, from when we first talked about names. It was really easy naming Brooke because we felt like it was just a great fit. Reagan is a family name; Reagan is my dad's middle name and also my sister Kelly's middle name. Dad's middle name was given to him in honor of a family friend. Of course we wanted to honor Dad and Kelly. Only later did we find out the family friend was actually named Brooks Reagan. Weird!

Claire Meagan - I can't really tell Claire's name story without Keely's name story. I will say that we were totally shocked to find out we were expecting two more girls! We had a hard time agreeing on two first and middle names we both loved. The girls almost didn't have names at all, we were so undecided. In the end, after much prayer, we narrowed it down to two first names that we could agree on. We picked Claire because it means "bright" and it goes with Keely's name in a very special way. Also it was to honor a very sweet lady that took care of David growing up, Ms. Clara. Meagan was chosen because it rhymes with Brooke's middle name Reagan, and we wanted all three girls' names to be connected somehow.

Keely Brynn - Keely is a really unique name. I have only heard it one other time, a sweet little girl I used to babysit. I liked it then and then it took on even more meaning because it is just one letter off from my sister Kelly's name. Then what sealed the deal is the meaning of the Irish name Keely: "beautiful". Remember the hymn "All Things Bright and Beautiful"? Well Claire is the Bright and Keely is the Beautiful (although they are both both of those things). Brynn is Keely's connection to Brooke since they are pretty similar names.

So there you have it! By the way, Mom and Dad almost named me Vanessa! I just cannot picture myself as a Vanessa!

Murray & Francine

Brooke amazes us every day with just how much she knows! I am sure every mom thinks their kid is a genius, but really--mine is! ;)

Brooke can identify most letters of the alphabet, and she can spell her name. She really loves music. She can pick up a song after hearing it just a time or two. She has an amazing memory, and she memorizes everything so fast. David and I have to be careful what we say around her. (The other day at the park she was playing with a little boy and said, "Oh, shoot!")

The latest funny thing she's been up to is inventing imaginary friends. The two living with us now are Murray and Francine. I really don't know where Francine comes from, but Murray is a puppet on Sesame Street.

Murray and Francine ride in the car with us, have favorite meals, and take naps in various places in the house.

I just love every day with our sweet and sassy girl. She keeps us laughing, that's for sure.

Stay My Babies

Despite my efforts to keep them my tiny little babies, Claire and Keely are growing up! In just a week we will celebrate their first birthday.

These beautiful rays of sunshine have brought so much joy into our lives. We thank God every day for blessing us with our wonderful girls. My prayer is that David and I can raise them to love the Lord with all their hearts. We look forward to all He has planned for their lives.

My cuddlebug Claire

Claire is such a happy little girl. Smiles from the moment she wakes up to the time we lay her down in her crib. She really is a sweet cuddly bear. Right now she loves to stand holding on to anything. She is standing unassisted more and more. I would not be surprised if Claire took her first steps any day now.

She loves trying new table foods. Right now her favorite foods are string cheese, strawberries, and waffles.

She loves to sleep with her Baba blanket and her dalmation dog. She says "Daddy" a lot, along with lots of other baby babble (and screeching).

Claire gives the best slobbery kisses, and she is not picky about who she smooches. Usually anyone who holds her gets at least one big smackaroo!

She likes to wave bye-bye (sometimes after the person is completely out of sight), and she likes to clap. She has a great belly laugh.

Little Lady Keely

Keely is also a really joyful baby. She likes to chat with her Sissy first thing in the morning until I get her out of her crib.
She can stand unassisted, but she prefers to hold on to something. She is pretty fond of crawling. This walking thing does not seem all that great in her eyes.

Keely is very attached to Mommy. She can say "Mama", but she usually only says it when I'm leaving the room. It works every time! She also talks about Daddy all day long.
Keely likes to give kisses, but only when the mood strikes her. She is a bit shy with strangers.
She likes to sleep with her giraffe and her brown doggie. When I go to check on her at night she is usually snuggled up with one of them, sucking her thumb.

Keely likes to eat as well: waffles, fresh fruit, granola bars are among her favorites.

She has a great sense of humor, and she is really ticklish.

She can wave bye-bye and clap, and she loves it when we sing to her.

Both Claire and Keely adore their big sister. Brooke really hung the moon! If either girl is sad, Brooke can have them smiling in no time. It really warms my heart to see the girls' love for each other.

The girls, up to no good: getting into the wipes. What's a mommy to do? Good thing we buy baby wipes in bulk!

This is just the beginning of what I'm sure will be a month long birthday blog tribute to my three May babies. I am working on birthday videos for the girls, then we have actual birthday days, the big party, and who knows what else.

Baseball Game

Please pardon the changes to my blog. I am not quite finished with it; the girls are keeping me busy. On to the latest news...

For weeks now, Brooke has been telling anyone who will listen, "My Daddy's gonna take me to a baseball game!" It all came about when David went with some other guys to a Rangers game. They got free front row tickets, and from home Brooke and I saw Daddy on TV!

Thursday, Brooke finally got to go to her baseball game with Daddy. From what I can tell, both Brooke and Daddy had a blast!