It's a....

GIRL!!!!

Surprise! We went to the doctor yesterday for a regular ten minute, pee in cup, weight, listen to heart beat, and then leave appointment.... BUT we were the last appointment of the day so the doctor decided, WHY NOT? She brought in the ultrasound machine and asked if we wanted to see the baby and find out what it is. We were so shocked and excited... we didn't expect to find out for another month. SHE was soo active in my belly. It looked like she was dancing and doing jumps while walking on the treadmill. We are so excited to have another little girl!

We don't have a name picked out yet because we weren't prepared for that yet, but we are in the process. Unfortunately for y'all, you won't know until she is born. We decided to keep it a secret... something needs to be a surprise.

Playing on the Porch

Daddy is sooo funny! Miriam was laughing hysterically.

Precious moment with Daddy

She figured out how to blow air out of her mouth (which also includes a good bit of spit) and she now does this sometimes to blow kisses.

Visiting in Newberry

We were showered with love in Newberry Halloween weekend. Here are a few pics. Thanks Nana and GranBubba!

Sorry Kelton! I just realized that I didn't get one picture of you and Miriam.... next time!

Lucas Chadwick Banks

We are thrilled to announce that we are officially Aunt Catherine and Uncle Shay. Lucas Chadwick Banks was born on Monday night at 9:07 weighing 7lbs 15oz and measuring 19 inches long. Both mom and baby are doing great and will be coming home today! Congratulations Cayci and Charlie! Y'all did awesome and he is gorgeous!

Halloween

I have never been one for Halloween, BUT Miriam did look super cute in her Newberry Cheerleader costume and we had a great time Trick-or-Treating at Mr. and Mrs. Stokes', Jessamie and Jason's, and Charlie and Cayci's. She even got teddy grahams and a juice box!

It was a lot warmer than we thought it was going to be so Miriam was ready to take off her costume, and watch the Georgia vs. Florida football game with Aslan and Nana. She is so animated when she watches football on tv!

Cute Picture

I just love this picture so it had to go up on the blog!

Around the House

Miriam loves walking with her stroller. She has learned how to pick the whole stroller up when she runs into a wall or gets stuck. Here she is using all her might to pick the it up and move it where she wants to go.

Yummy! A cinnamon flavored pinecone.

With the new camera, Shay has actually been enjoying taking pictures ... which is a first. So I got out from behind and camera and got a precious picture taken with my little girl.

Bubbles with Daddy are always the best. He makes them as big as my head!

Playing in the Hammock

Miriam is now 10 months old and loves to explore the big world around her. She is always watching, observing, listening, and touching. With my new camera that takes pictures a lot quicker, I am able to capture these moments even better. I put her in our hammock and watched her in action. Some of her faces are hysterical!

A few updates:
- She took her first two steps last Tuesday. Hasn't tried again, but I was one proud mama!
- She is really learning her sign language fast using more, all done, dog, and tries to do book and bath.
- Check the blog next week because this weekend she is going to be a Newberry College Cheerleader for Halloween.
- She got her 6th tooth this past week. So now she has 4 on the top and 2 on the bottom. What a big girl!

Miriam's "sniffy" face.

What are all those little animals running up the trees?

Trying to figure out what the leaf is all about.

Doesn't she look like one of the little rascals in this pic?

Off to the Grocery Store

Vroom, Vroom! Zoom Zoom! Riding her rocket cart through Publix.

Photo Shoot

Greg Preston and Shannon Payne got married this past weekend (can you believe that Greg got married :) ) Anyway, Miriam looked so beautiful in her dress that before we left, I had to take some pictures. She is such a wiggle worm, so I didn't get many good shots, but here are a few that I thought turned out pretty cute.

Also, not sure why all these pics look blurry on the blog, but I am getting a new camera soon so hopefully that will help!

Enjoy the sweet faces of Miriam King.

A Month of Moments

Here are a month's worth of precious moments with our Miriam. A lot has happened this month, so here is a quick update... I am now treating this blog as sort of a baby book since I am also not very good at keeping up with that. I want to save all my memories and Miriam's progress somewhere and cherish them forever!

1. I am now 13 weeks pregnant, feeling great, and my belly is growing considerably faster than last time.

2. Miriam is 10 months old and is now standing up by herself and just hanging out without holding on to anything. No forward progress yet, but I think that walking will come in the next couple of months. She is really catching on to her sign language using "all done," "milk," and "dog" and waving hello and goodbye. I think that she will be a good mix between tomboy and girlie girl. She loves dolls, pushing her stroller and playing with her singing purse, but she also loves playing with balls and horsing around. I would have to say though that her favorite activity is playing with her books. She has learned how to open them up and look at all the pictures. She is really particular about what books she wants to read. Even though she has about 100 books(thanks to all my wonderful nanny families who have given me all their old books), she only likes for us to read about 20 of them... haha!

3. Shay had his 10 year highschool reunion this month and we were so excited to have Otis, Julie, and Martha Jane stay with us that weekend. I was lazy with my camera that weekend but I did get one picture.

4. We are progressing with our journey into building a house. And what a process it has turned out to be, but I am so thankful for it all and am really excited! We haven't broken ground but our plans are complete and will be bidding it out to contractors soon.

5. We are eagerly waiting for our nephews to be born. Cayci and Charlie are due to have Lucas in just a few short weeks, and Emily and Damon are due to have Palmer in December. What fun Miriam is going to have with her new cousins!

6. Shay and I are missing our dear friends Alli and Michael Shuttleworth who are doing mission work in Romania right now. We are so proud of them and ask that you keep them in your prayers!

So this is probably the longest post I have ever written, but I felt it was necessary since I haven't posted in over a month. Below are the much needed pictures to document this month of wonderful moments.

Food

Cooking breakfast with Mommy

Stuffing Gerber cheese puffs into my mouth.

Ok.. I can get one more in there!

Play

Brushing up on Bishop England's class of '99 before the reunion weekend!


Reading books with my friends Mackenzi and Maysen.

Walking with my walker that Nana and GranBubba gave me.

Miriam has a Big Announcement!

I AM GOING TO BE A BIG SISTER!!

I don't really care if it is a girl or a boy, because either way I am going to teach it how to be as silly as I am and that you can wear goggles even when you are not swimming!

I am so excited because my little baby brother or sister will be here sometime at the end of April. Mommy and Daddy aren't sure when exactly because they don't go to the doctor until next Friday.

Please ask God to take care of my new best friend!

Loves to Read!

One of Miriam's favorite things to do... if not her very favorite... is to read books. Everyday she pulls most of her books off the shelf and she loves to be read to especially before bedtime and naptime. She is so picky with what we read though. I buy her these great books and after only one page she will leap across my lap reaching for a different book. Or she will just get tired a her favorite and pick another favorite. I just love to see her little personality and preferences develop! I am so glad that she enjoys reading and I hope that continues the rest of her life.

Don't you just want to eat 'em!

I could kiss those sweet thighs all day long!

Banks' Family Vacation

At the end of July, we got a very special treat! We got to have a Banks/Gregorie family mini vacation at Lake Lure. I was pretty picture lazy, but here are a few of the photos I did take.

We were also celebrating Kelton's graduation from Clemson and her acceptance into USC medical school. Congratulations Kelton!

Also, not sure why these pictures are a little fuzzy and the others from my camera aren't... so sorry!

Aren't Harley's ears in this pictures hilarious?!

Miriam, her Aunt Case, and little Lucas (in the belly).

Being silly with Nana!

Life as a Mom

Our good friends Julie and Otis Pickett came and stayed with us for a weekend... I think it was in July. We were all so excited because we were getting a babysitter for both girls, getting all dolled up, and going out on the town for a great dinner at Station 22 (all of our favorites) and a concert. When was the last time we had done that since we had babies!?

Well... it was bath night that night as well so as every mom has to do... I multi-tasked giving a bath in my rollers. Life as a mom is definitely a different life, but so much more fun!