Grandma Buzz Visit

End of January meant a much needed visit from Grandma!  Calvin is growing so fast and Sean and I were due for a date night out from the best newborn babysitter.  It's always nice when Grandma's come into town and happily offer up their free and expert babysitting services.

Emmy showed Grandma the ropes at the indoor playground at the Galleria Mall.  She showed off her sliding skills, mountain climbing skills and running and jumping skills. 

Sean and I took a much needed date night out.  He took me down to the Bishop Arts District for some yummy hipster pie.  We aren't hipster, but we do enjoy over priced pie!

I think part of it being expensive is that they wrap it up really cute so that you will then take a picture and post it on your social media and tag them in the photo for all of your friends to see which is then free advertising for them.  So tricky!!

Needless to say I got the coconut cream. It was delicious.  The hot chocolate however...not so much.  Is anyone else annoyed with all hot chocolate, from places that also serve coffee, always tasting like coffee.  It seems to happen to us all the time. 

Sean waiting for our pie.  The store was so tiny with limited seating and the line was out the door and down the sidewalk.  Luckily we had each other to snuggle while waiting.  So glad we are going on 5  years married.  First dates waiting in long lines in the cold are so awkward. 

I also got the special treat of doing a temple session with my mom.  It has been a long time since I have gone with her and also a long time since I have been able to do a session, what with the baby growing and birthing and all.  The Dallas temple closed for a whole month at the beginning of October and that was the last time I was able to go.  We of course grabbed a selfie on the way out.  Which was surprisingly difficult since we wanted to get the angel Moroni in with us.  We were finally able to get all three of us together.

We concluded the visit with an afternoon at the playground.  A top choice for our Emmy.  She is an animal on the slides and has no fear.

Or course having Daddy by her side makes it all the more fun.  This huge slide is one of her favorites and she completed it multiple time with and without Daddy.  She is always all smiles and skipping each time she gets to the bottom.

Pretty girls on the water.

Emmy's super fine baby hair was no match for static electricity, I thought it was a good look though.

Grandma made many comments about how long Calvin's lashes were.  Which I hadn't really noticed.  I snapped this pic of them at the park and realized that they are acutally quite long.  I now have lash envy for my 2 1/2 mos. old son.

Another Day at the Zoo

We have been really loving having a zoo membership and we also have been loving the mild winter here in Dallas.  We took the opportunity to have a family outing to the Zoo for the weekend.   Emmy is always up for a trip to see the animals and was very disappointed when Aunt Sarah and Uncle Darron weren't there to show her all the snakes in the reptile house.

Hydration is key for a successful day at the zoo!

Sean always looks like the best Dad around and he wins the award for pushing the babies in the stroller through the ups and downs of Gorilla Trail.

Emmy trying to get a better look at the Cheetah show. 

We experienced one of the shows during this visit and it definitely did not disappoint.  This bald eagle made an appearance at the end and really put the show over the top.  Did you know that Bald Eagles are no longer on the endangered species list?  Conservation for the win!

This is an actual picture Sean got of the Beaver in the show.  They let some of the animals wander around the stage area for pictures afterward and this guy was very photogenic for us.

The show was mostly awesome because they have a crane and owl that come out and fly over the audience.  No joke the crane flew right over our heads with it's claws almost grazing us as he flew past.  It was so crazy.  Definitely a family favorite that we will go back to many times!

Me and Emmy checking out the Koalas. 

Emmy really loved the penguins and being able to watch them swim.  The exhibit had an under water viewing area that is kid height, which was perfect for Emmy.  She was taller than all the penguins, too.

One of my favorite exhibits is the Giraffes because they have them down in an area where you are actually eye level with them when you walk up.  We weren't lucky to have a giraffe come right up to us this time.

We were lucky enough though to be face to face (through 3 panes of glass) with this huge guy!  Needless to say Emmy was way too scared to stand near hi for a picture, which I don't blame her.  The guy is so massive and he was just staring at all of us...death stare.  Lot's of people were kneeling down right by the glass for a pic, but even I was a little too nervous for that.  I'm pretty sure Sean would just sit and watch the gorillas all day if we let him, but we had a great time!

Visit from Brett, Holly & Duke

One of the reasons I was excited to move to Dallas was that I would be closer to some of my old roommates and best buds.  Brett and his family are about 6 hours away in Del Rio, Texas.  He is a flight instructor in the Air Force at the base down there.  Brett, Holly, and baby Duke decided to come up for a weekend stay with us.  It was awesome to see them and hang out.  Duke is about 2 months older than Calvin, so hopefully they will be best buds just like their daddies.  Here they are playing footsies.

I think Cory and I just produce giant children, because it seemed like Calvin was already as big as Duke...

We hung out at home, played games, reminisced, ate good food, and watched the babies play together for the whole weekend.  It was nice to just relax and enjoy the company rather than fill the day with a busy itinerary.

Emmy had to get in there and pat Duke on the head.  For weeks after this visit she asked about "Baby Duke."

We took them to Lonestar donuts, one of our favorite places because of how cheap everything is.  We are glad we got to spend some time with good friends, and hope it isn't too long before we see each other again!

Rose Bowl 2017

For a few days after Calvin's baby blessing, my parents stayed in town to spend some time with us.  They generously offered to watch the babies one night so Cory and I could have a date night.  We headed up to Grapevine and drove through historic downtown.  They still had it all decked out for Christmas, so we got one last fix in.  It was freezing outside, though, and I was ready to get inside and snuggle up with Cory.

Calvin also came at the perfect time to become indoctrinated in USC Football fandom!  This year the Trojans played in the Rose Bowl, and three generations of Gilmore men were wearing our team garb for the big game.  Dad and I went to the season opener here in Dallas where USC got humiliated by Alabama, so we were hoping for a better showing in the Rose Bowl against Penn State.  The Trojans were down by 14 going into the 4th quarter and things weren't looking good.  Calvin never lost faith, though, and USC scored 17 unanswered points to win 52-49!  It was a great game!

Fight On!

Calvin's Baby Blessing

Happy New Year's Day and Happy Baby Blessing to our sweet Calvin Walker.

We had all of Cory's family and Sean's parents in town for the blessing of our little angel baby Calvin Walker.  It was a special day for him and we are so grateful that everyone came out to share it with him.  Sean gave such a special blessing and I can already see some of the things he said being true about our little Calvin.  We had a great group of priesthood holders there to support and share their love and it was such a blessing to have them there to help bless this boy and welcome him into the world.

Sean wanted to share a little back story of how we chose the middle name Walker for Calvin:

Calvin's middle name, Walker, is my mother's maiden name and a tribute to her family. We didn't plan for him to be born on November 11th, but that date just so happens to be my Grandma and Grandpa Walker's wedding anniversary. It is also Veteran's Day, and my Grandpa Arthur Walker served in the Navy during WWII, stationed in the Pacific Theater.  It is special to me that Cal shares a name with these people who are dear to my heart.

The Priesthood Circle: (left to right) Dave Milich, Jake Tarabilda, Sean Gilmore, Mike Gilmore, Justin Hamilton (Bishopric 1st counselor)

The whole gang!  What a good looking bunch of people.  So glad to call all these people family.  Calvin already has so many people who love him.  Especially his big sister Emmy.

Sweet Cohen took some special time to welcome his newest cousin into the family.  We are so glad to have such a fun little guy for Calvin to get to grow up with.

It was an all around wonderful day.  We had everyone over to our place for lunch and dessert. It was crowded in our little apartment, but with family it is always nice to be close!