A world of greats...

Parker has officially met all of his great grandma's (four to be exact) and his great grandpa. We want to share a little about our families history!

Great Grandma Nanni (Doxie Sortomme) - Grandma Suzie's Mother










Great Grams and Guy (Arlene and Wint Ratcliffe)













Great Grandma Emmy (Emilina Thornton) - Mama Vicky's Mother



Born in Panama and moved to Stockton, California in her early teens (Panamanian and German). Married Perry Foster Thornton (English)

Great Grandma Thomas (Irene Thomas) - Grandpa's Mother

Born in Wyoming - Irene Pavlison (Czhec). Married Keith Thomas (English) who worked on the railroad. The family moved throughout California and Nevada.

Strolling to feed the hungry...

What better way to start our Thanksgiving than with the Run to Feed the Hungry. The three of us joined 30,000 of our closest friends to stroll through East Sacramento to support the Sacramento Food Bank. Chris and I have been participating in the Run to Feed the Hungry for the past eleven years! It was fun to add Parker to the mix, but I will say moving through the crowd with a stroller added a new challenge!

We bundled Parker and spent the morning with friends before heading off to lunch with my family and dinner with Chris' family. We have so much to be thankful for!

Coors Light

Coors Light - or more commonly referred to as CL in our circle - holds a special place in the heart of our friends. Chris and the boys have had many good times thanks to the CL. Whether it be on the river, at the 2-Me, at Lake Tahoe or just hanging out at home, the Coors Light is a part of the stories. It holds a special place in this family.

Uncle T-ROY gave a Coors Light neon sign to my father for his outdoor room and it spent a good month or two in our kitchen. One evening, Parker was just a tad fussy (as he is most nights after 5 o'clock). Chris decided to click on the Coors Light sign. Parker was immediately taken in by the bright colors. It calmed the boy for at least five minutes (and brought great pride to daddy)!

So, the CL tradition continues...calming and hours of entertainment.

Sweet moments

Chris and I are discovering that it is often the small moments that are the sweetest - like the 4 a.m. play sessions Parker and I have on his changing table, the sweet sighs that he makes as he snuggles into our necks, or the way that he looks our direction when one of us says his name. These are the moments we soak up - these are the moments that we are learning to cherish!

Like today. Holly and Micheal visited. The boys - Michael almost six months and Parker almost 2 months - slept through their first pedicure and then chilled together in the play gym. Parker was totally unaware that his buddy was in the house, but Michael on the other hand was not quite sure what to think of Parker - especially when he cried!

Family Portrait

Chris and I have a baby. We are a family of three. Our parents are grandparents.

It is so incredibly awesome to have Parker in our lives and we wanted to capture this feeling. We went and had professional pictures taken when Parker was three weeks old. It was a good day. I fit into my pre-maternity jeans and was looking good and Parker was having a good morning.

The three of us got in the car and drove to the photographers in El Dorado Hills.

We so wanted to capture our newborn. Parker was changing so quickly and the newborn phase was so very sweet. We stripped Parker so that he was a naked baby. The photographer placed him and I in a pose and then it happened...Parker pooped all over me. Yes, that is right I had baby poop all down the front of me. Chris stood off to the side laughing at me. It was at that point that I realized that I was really a mom. I was feeling all cute that morning (walking with a little I'm cute strut) all to get pooped on by my baby. And the best part - I did not even care! Yup, definitely a mom.

The outcome from the day include amazing pictures of our family. We are truly blessed! Thank you Charm Photography for caturing exactly how we feel!

I'll take another smile please.

Parker is eight weeks old and has started smiling, cooing and talking with us. Oh, the first smile was absolutely the best thing ever! Parker enjoys having his diaper changed and some of the sweetest moments occur while he is chillin' on his changing table. We spend time making silly noises at one another and I give zerberts on his little belly...and today, Parker gave me the cutest smiles (that were not associated with gas).

Every day is something new. Parker has started staying awake for hours at a time. He enjoys being outside, staring at the light from our windows and looking intently at our faces. He is discovering his tongue, holding his head up and kicking his feet.

I can't wait to see what happens next week! Thanks Grandma Suzie for capturing his first smile on camera!