Rainwater Wedding

Yesterday we enjoyed a wonderful rehearsal dinner with the bride and groom, Sarah and John, and today was a perfect day for their beautiful wedding. John is one of my cousins, and we were so excited to be part of the festivities. Since I'm an only child my cousins are the closest thing I've got to brothers and sisters, so they hold a very special place in my heart! We are so happy to have Sarah joining our family. She is such a sweet and genuine person, and I look forward to getting to know her better and better over the years! Here's a picture of them from the rehearsal dinner and one of me and Ross at the wedding today. I'll post more in the album soon.

Waddle, Waddle, Waddle

Jackson is a penguin for Halloween this year. He has a book called Waddle that he loves. When he sees the penguin in it he says, "waddle, waddle, waddle" and rocks from side to side. He dressed up for school on Friday, and we managed to get a couple of pictures. He's learned what to do with a cell phone too...

Pumpkin Patch

Today we made what will likely be our first annual trip to the pumpkin patch with Jackson, and we took lots of pictures of Jackson exploring the rows of pumpkins...more in the album!

While He Was Gone...

While Ross was busy in Korea, Jackson and I dealt with some ups and downs, which were expected since Ross was out of town. The day Ross left was the day Jackson had a fever of 103 and was found to have an ear infection on top of the flu! With Jackson being sick that Friday and Monday being Columbus Day, we enjoyed a 4 day weekend together. Once the medicine kicked in he seemed like his usual, happy self.

We had a short work/school week because Jackson and I headed to Ruston, LA on Thursday for LA Tech's Homecoming Weekend festivities. My mom graciously volunteered to drive to Houston and make the trip with us to help entertain Jackson on the 5.5 hour drive.

Friday was a big day for me. Aside from my usual Industrial Engineering Advisory Board meetings, I was honored as Louisiana Tech University's Young Alumnus of the Year.

Since Ross was in Korea and wasn't able to join us, a lot of our family and friends came to support me. I had to give a short thank you speech in front of a crowd that we're guessing was between 200-300 people. There were 7 other people recognized as well, the Disitinguished Alumnus of the Year and an alumnus of the year from each college. It was a really nice ceremony, and I made it through my speech!

After the ceremony I was asked to speak to the engineering students, so we talked about NASA and what flight control is all about. Then we wrapped up our advisory board meeting with mock interviews for the students who wanted a little practice. When I got back to my grandparents house that evening, Jackson was sick again! This time with a stomach bug that fortunately only lasted the day.

Saturday was LA Tech's Homecoming game, which they won! My cousin, Meg, and I made it to the tailgating events along with Jackson and my parents just before the game started, so we managed to catch a few friends and check out the Eco Car our friend, Heath, has helped oversee. Jackson loved honking it's horn!

We also had a great time hanging out at my Grandparents' house. There are lots of pictures from the weekend in our album, but here are a few more to enjoy now.

IAC in Korea

As many of you know, I spent last week at the International Astronautical Congress in Daejeon, Korea. This was an amazing experience culturally and professionally. I had the opportunity to have conversations with the current NASA Administrator, Charles Bolden, two of the Associate Administrators, many astronauts, and several big wigs in large aerospace companies. I, also, saw the President of Korea speak and had dinner with the Vice Mayor of Daejeon. In addition, the organizers provided many opportunities to experience the culture of Korea. While I must admit that I wasn't crazy about all of the food, the entertainment was great! Unfortunately, I was using my point-and-shoot camera and the lighting was rarely good so I don't have much in the way of pictures. That said, here are a few pictures and a video.

A Few Firsts

This week has flown by. I've been busy keeping up with 2 jobs and will continue to do so for another week or so. One morning this week as I was loading Jackson into my car to head to daycare, Jackson discovered the moon. It was still high in the sky, and it just seemed to captivate him. Several of the books we read at night have pictures of the moon, but I think this was the first time he noticed the real thing!

The other firsts for the week weren't nearly as exciting. When Jackson got home on Thursday he had a fever of 103! He was still acting like his normal happy self and eating like a champ, so we chalked it up to the vaccines he'd gotten the week before...even verified with the doctor's office. However, Saturday morning it became clear this was more than a reaction to a vaccine. It turned out the poor little guy had an ear infection on top of the flu. Both were firsts for him. He's now taking 5 different meds, but doing great with all of them. I can only hope he will always be this good about taking medicine!

Sunday morning his fever was already gone and he was back to his usual smiling self. He especially enjoyed the fireman's hat my friend from work, Lauren, gave him this week. Jackson has also learned to say cheese when taking pictures, which is what he's doing in the first one here if you can't tell.

Celebrations

This has been a week for celebrations at our house. Monday, I found out I got the job I applied for...something I've been wanting to do for a long time, but I just became eligible to apply for this summer.

Wednesday, we got doubly good news. We found out we are having a little girl, and we also found out we're going to have a nephew! Ross' sister and brother-in-law were matched for an adoption, and the baby is due in early December. We are so excited and ask for your prayers that everything goes well throughout the rest of this process for all involved.

Then we spent the weekend in Leakey to celebrate Ross' 1st cousin once removed, Dick's, birthday. This was a bittersweet weekend because we found out the cancer has spread to his brain and he will likely have surgery this week, so more prayers are needed for this too! The birthday party was wonderful though. It was fun to see some of Ross' family on the Taylor side that we haven't seen in years, and to get to know some of Dick's friends a little better. He seemed to really enjoy the party, and Jackson did a great job of sleeping through it.

Despite the overcast and rainy weather, we enjoyed a little of the outdoors while we were there. I got a few pictures of JD playing on Leslie and Philip's swing and enjoying the pool from a different perspective...he wanted to walk right in! JD also enjoyed a fun ride around the ranch between rain showers, but I didn't remember to bring the camera for this one. Here are a few pics, but there are more in the album.

Another reality check that, yes, Jackson looks like Ross!

Playing with the "goggies".

The pool from a different view...

It's a...

Baby Taylor #2 is a GIRL! We are so very excited and can't wait to meet her! I had my 18 week ultrasound on Wednesday, and everything is looking good so far. We have put off all planning including names and decorations until getting this news, so let the planning begin! Here is a good profile pic of our sweet little girl. There are a few more in the album.