March

Shelley returned back to work the 2nd week of March from Maternity Leave...and Dave was able to take his two weeks of Paternity Leave after that...so in total, Josie had a full 8 weeks of either Mommy or Daddy being home with her at all times.

Shelley had her final few cheer games, including the 8th grade recognition, and their cheer competition. The squad did amazing at competition. They performed the best they ever had, and they made everyone there to support them so proud! The season came to an unofficial close with an end-of-year Nacho Party and the Sports Banquet. The parents were so supportive this season (as they always are) and the girls all feel like "big sisters" to Josie! Josie was, of course, either the littlest cheerleader or the team mascot...we can't wait until next year...she'll have a matching uniform!!!

We finished off our next to last class for RPDP...the end is in sight! We have one more class in May, and we will then be finished with our 32 Hours for Computer Applications. We will then be completing our TESL (Teaching English as a Second Language) endorsement over the summer. We literally will have topped out our pay scale for teachers at that time...there will be no more classes we can take! Smarty Pants :)

Josie had all of her 6 week shots, over the course of 2 weeks however. That would have been a LOT of shots for such a little girl. She did amazing though, slept a lot afterwards...but really wasn't fussy or anything. We were so proud of her!

Shelley has joined the local athletic club (LVAC) and has been really enjoying attending classes and training sessions with her friends Rachel & Brittany. Their favorite is Aquafit. It's good for all of them to have the support system (and guilt) of each other to really motivate them!

Josie was at her first Kid-Friendly party for the retirement of Clyde Weaver (a friend from Gibson). Josie stole the spotlight from Clyde! (Not that he minded). She was a total hit at the party - so many friends were there and hogged her all afternoon! She did really well around so many people, and didn't get overwhelmed by the noise.

Josie's Grandpa Jim, Shelley's Dad, came out to visit for a short week. Josie really enjoyed hanging out with her Grandpa during the day, and doing fun and exciting activities at night! While Jim was in town, we all headed to Fremont Street where Jim & Dave did the zipline, and then we all had dinner at Hennessy's. We also took Josie to a track meet of Dave's. She of course had to wear her Pole Vaulting Onsie! Jim flew back to IL with Shelley & Josie (her 1st Plane Flight!!!) Having a child makes the airport much easier (shocking!) - they were able to go through a special "family" line at security, boarded the plane first and got plenty of attention. It was St. Patrick's Day, so Josie was obviously dressed for the occasion. Josie did INCREDIBLE on the plane. She didn't cry or squirm or do anything that was a problem. She slept for a large majority of the time, and they sat calmly the remainder of the time! As everyone was getting off the plane, they all commented on how beautiful Josie was (obviously) and how good she had been. The family in front of us seemed very put-out that a baby was going to sit behind them on the plane, and after the plan had landed and Josie had been perfect, they were all smiles and praises!

We had flown to IL for the Cerutti/Kress Baby Shower in honor of Josie. We stayed with Shelley's parents on two nights, and then in Rockford a night. Shelley's parents hosted "open houses" both nights for anyone who wanted to stop by and see Josie. The amount of people who made it either night was overwhelming! The outpouring of love was amazing. Josie met her two Great-Grandmas (Shelley's Grandma's) as well as her Great-Great Aunt Earlene, Cousin's Owen & Aubrey (Owen is only 4 months older than Josie...they're going to be good friends!), lots of "Aunties" & "Uncles" and lots of family friends. Her Uncle Brian and Uncie Ty-Ty were around as well. And, she had her own personal nursery set up at Grandma & Grandpa's complete with a crib, diaper pail, mobile and toys. As well as diapers, wipes, bottles, formula, etc. It was so much easier not having to worry about traveling with enough for an entire weekend! The baby shower, hosted by Grandma Cookie & her Aunt Tiffaney (Dave's Mom and Sister), took place at Josie's Grandpa Roger's (Dave's Dad). Before the shower even began, a few of our friends stopped by to meet Josie. Josie literally met over a hundred people over the course of the weekend!!! A massive amount of family was able to make it to the shower and meet Josie. She has a lot of cousins on this side of the family. When she gets a little older, family get-togethers will be so much fun for her! She has like 5 cousins within 2 years of her...lucky little girl!! Everyone was incredibly generous the entire weekend - at the open houses and shower. Josie is quite possibly the best dressed little girl ever. We doubt she will ever wear the same outfit twice :) After the shower ended, the family all headed over to one of the local hotels and were able to hang-out and catch up over dinner and drinks. It was wonderful. Until the night ended with a woman that rushed into the lobbey proclaiming she had just been robbed at gun point...we promptly got Josie out of there!! We flew back to Las Vegas the next day, and Josie's Grandma Debbie (Shelley's Mom) flew back with us. Grandma Debbie was going to begin "Nanny Duties," taking care of Josie while Shelley & Dave were at work.

Once we got back into Vegas and settled in, Grandma Debbie and Josie settled into the new routine perfectly. Josie obviously enjoyed having Grandma Debbie around, and Grandma Debbie liked being with Josie so much! Perfection! Grandma Cookie was also in town, for a convention, which gave us more opportunities to see her and for Josie and her to have some quality time. Grandma Cookie came over several nights for dinner and bonding :)

Shelley was able to have a brief outing with her friends Jackie, Rachel & Liz - to Gilly's at TI - while Jackie's dad was in town. He treated all of us girls, and it was a wonderful evening to spend with friends. We also attended our friend's daughter's birthday party at the park. LaLa turned 4 and was super excited that her "cousin" Josie came! She has an older brother and younger brother, and all of them refer to Josie as their cousin - adorable!!!!! Dave was also able to spend some time with friends this month! His friend Lou came into town for the Nascar Race and they met up on The Strip. It was fun for him to get out with "the guys."

The final grade for the 3rd quarter in Shelley's Reading Class was a Master of Literature Project...the students had to write and create their own Children's Book. The vast majority of the students dedicated their books to Josie and The Kress Family...and over 50% used the name Josie in their writing. Shelley is grading them as she reads them to Josie (it makes a good dent in the 10,000 books researchers say a child should be read before Kindergarten!). The students really enjoyed this project and did an amazing job!!!!