Seasons

Have you ever had that feeling when you walked outside one morning, or perhaps on your way to the office, that it was the first day you could smell the new season? Am I the only one? It's that slight change in the air that hits your olfactory receptors and says, "Fall is just around the corner."

I think I caught a whiff of it the other day. I know, I know, all my fellow Floridians are at this moment insisting that I have certifiably lost my mind. Let me clarify. It's not that we aren't still consumed in a stagnant, oppressive, tangible sauna of heat, but I think maybe, just maybe, I smelled that smell that tells you things are changing. A new season is on its way.

Then again, maybe it was all just in my mind because school started back this week for the fall semester and with that comes the whole back-to-school buzz about campus.

Whatever the case, in the more metaphorical sense, I think I've been able to sense that same pending change in the life of the Neely family most recently. There's a lot on the horizon that remains uncertain, and we've been managing that uncertainty for a while now, but something seems different.

Changes are happening fast for our family. Kendall and I talk daily about life plans, job prospects, relocation preferences, etc. Through it all, we know that God has a plan and He is control. And while it is a daily challenge to put that head knowledge into heart knowledge, there is something very exciting about knowing that a new season is around the corner.

Still, the place I can see beauty of a new season the most is in the life of our daughter. She has really started expressing her personality. It's as if she opened a door and found a new piece of who she is.

Even in the last few days, I have seen how much she is starting to enjoy life. A couple of days ago she started to clap her hands, she has discovered the glorious fun of rolling about on the floor, she's babbling and laughing a lot (especially when she gets excited to go after a toy, the dog, or the laptop), and she continues to let us know in no uncertain terms when she disapproves of the dinner menu.

When I drop Eden off at daycare, sometimes I linger as I leave to watch her through the window in the door. There is something very rewarding about seeing her crawling around, playing with her little baby friends and finding her toys of preference.

Jesus said to come to Him we must be as little children. I believe when we look at kids we see the reflection of Him, and as we love and care for our children we express love toward Him. There is something pure, something essential about a child.

And so, as I look at our daughter and the changes she is going through, I am reminded that just as we delight in her growing into each new stage, God delights in bringing us through each season in our life and the growth that comes with it.

That's the news for now. We'll keep you posted.

Sugar, Spice, and Spunk!

Today Eden turned 7 months old. Seven months... I can't believe it. I know this feeling will only get more pronounced as she gets older, but I just feel like it was just yesterday when we brought her home from the hospital.

Now, she's pulling up on everything in sight, crawling anywhere she wants to go, eating all sorts of foods, making it clear which ones she likes and which ones she doesn't, and working on four teeth coming in!

She's also really started to express her personality-- and she is spunky. I believe she's going to be a climber. She seems to be a pretty tough little girl too. She doesn't seem too fazed by the bumps, bangs, and bonks that accompany a crawler exploring her world. And speaking of banging, she beats on everything she gets her hands on-- and hard! I mean, she really gives her toys and our table tops the what for!

But when she's sleepy, she wants her Mommy, or sometimes she'll agree to snuggle with Daddy while she sucks her fingers. Actually, last night at the dinner table all it took was a good filling of cereal and fruit mix and she fell asleep right in her high chair.

Things are otherwise plugging along in the Neely household. That's the news for now. We'll keep you posted.

Pretty as a Picture

Here are some pictures from Eden's first professional photo shoot at six months old. She did pretty well considering three wardrobe changes!

Leaps & Bounds

It has been a week of milestones and setbacks. This past weekend we traveled to Tampa to visit family for the Fourth of July. While we were there, Eden decided she would show off and pull herself up to standing for the very first time. And this after just last week when she decided to sit up and start crawling. I'm telling you, this little girl is ready to go, go, go!

When we got home, we noticed that her first tooth is also starting to come in. T-bone steaks, here we come! For the time being, I've posted a short video clip below of Eden getting her first taste of bananas. Kendall fed them to her while we were down this weekend.

Ok, so that's the good news. The bad news is that the amoxicillin that Eden was taking to fight off the ear infections in both ears gave her a delayed allergic reaction. When I went to pick her up from daycare yesterday, our fair-skinned little girl had turned into a red bumpy baby covered head to toe with a rash.

I took her to the pediatrician this morning and they said it is not a terribly uncommon reaction to the amoxicillin. Since her ear infections haven't cleared up yet, they put her on Cefprozil, another antibiotic that is another variation of a penicillin derivative. They also gave her some probiotics to clear up some of the other less mentionable digestive side effects of the antibiotics.

All in all, things are good in the Neely household. I've been trying to beef up my Web presence in preparation for the job search this year. I updated some stuff on LinkedIn and Twitter (ufjeff) and am trying to generally get a little more e-socially connected.

In that vein, I thought I'd also shamelessly self-promote my Web page in case any of you want to check it out. It's www.jeffreyneely.com. It's still in progress. I need to update and change a few things, but it's off to a decent start.

Kendall is doing well. She also continues to fight off the lingering crud of back-to-back colds. She seems to be on the mend now, so that's good.

That's the news for now. We'll keep you posted.

Busy summer

Things have been happening very fast here recently. Yesterday was a big day for Eden. It was the first time that we saw her "officially" crawl (i.e. arms and legs moving together in synchronized motion), and she sat herself up all on her own. I guess she just decided that there is a bunch of stuff out there that she needs to check out, so she might as well be on her way. Ah, how it pains a father's heart to think soon she'll have her knapsack packed and be hoppin' some northbound freight train to see what adventure lies before her. Ok, ok... so I'm a sucker for hyperbole.

And you know, judging by her chipper smile and sparkly-eyed coos, you'd never know that she had an ear infection in both ears. Yes, we took her to the doctor on Tuesday because she's had a lingering cough ever since her bout with a virus about a month ago. Like I say, she's been acting so cheery and eating well and playing happily, so I was surprised when Dr. Benton said her ears were infected. She's been on Amoxicillin for the last couple of days, and it seems to be working already, as her congestion seems to be clearing.

Things are extremely busy for Kendall at work right now. They're working with a skeleton crew, as about a third of her staff is out for one reason or another. Hopefully things will get back to normal when they're fully staffed again in August.

I am working on transcribing interviews for my dissertation. Data collection is done, so now it's a matter of analyzing it and getting it written up. I'll also be heading to Denver in August for the AEJMC conference, where I'll be presenting a paper and participating in the job placement "speed dating" meet-and-greet.

I'm also going to start trying to be a little more frequent with posting on this blog. Have I said that before? Well, I'm not making any promises, but I'm going to try.

Anyway, that's the news for now. We'll keep you posted. Here's a few recent pics.

Inchworm

So, as you can see from the video, Eden is definitely getting where she wants to go now. I don't know if it technically qualifies as crawling yet, but I think it may be hair-splitting at this point. She's sure keeping Henry on his toes, and Mommy and Daddy too! She has discovered that innate infant interest in anything that belongs to the family dog - food and water bowls, his dog-slobbery toys, and, of course, Henry himself. Watch out world, she's on the move!

Daddy Days...

Happy Father's Day to all the dads out there!