Aunties and Uncle

Here are some shots from the baptism weekend of Micah, Denise, Aubrey Anne, Meg and Beth all with sweet baby boy. This past weekend we (I) enjoyed watching the Terps beat Clemson in Clemson! Sean went to his first football game, and while mom and dad were split on who to cheer for, Sean wore Clemson colors (he doesn't have any UMD gear!). Sean slept through the entire game even though we sat 2 sections away from the marching band and they fired cannons when Clemson scored...you would never know it by the way he slept. what a good boy!

All Clean!

Sean Brendan received a beautiful clean soul this weekend! We welcomed Sean into the Church family at his baptism on Sunday, and the whole event was beautiful...



Mom and baby getting ready for the big show. Sean's baptismal gown was worn by Cody and all of his siblings. It is a beautiful gift handmade by Nanna Groeber and hand embroidered by Aunt Karen with all the Groebers' bapstism dates.


Msgr. Laughlin and Fr. Wilson officiated. Msgr. is our Diocesan Administrator while we (patiently) await a new bishop. Cody and I have a great affection for Msgr. L and were so pleased to have him baptize baby. He shows great leadership as our Administrator, but for his sake, we pray for a new bishop everyday!


A beautiful moment as Sean receives his first sacrament as Godmother Denise looks on


Passing the light of faith to Godfather Micah


With Godparents Uncle Micah and Aunt Denise who we know will continue to pray for baby sean and be vigilant guardians of his faith.

Baby in a Bar?

Recent quote from one of our good friends:

"Yeah, they had the baby in a bar when he was 2 months old!"

Um, yeah, we are those people.




In town for Sean's baptism the whole fam (almost) gathered to watch the Notre Dame Fighting Irish take on the Michigan State Spartans at a local bar/restaraunt.

Above, we see Sean's arrival (yes we live walking distance to the bar) with Mom, and Aunts Meg and Denise.



Here is Dad (wow, I'm a dad) teaching Sean to pull for Notre Dame.

Although Sean is a bit young for beer, we did not want him to feel left out...so we let him hit the bottle too.




Not a win for the Irish, alas, but with good family, food, and drinks...consolation was found.




Go Irish!

New Shoes for Baby

Sean's first pair of shoes! These are Riley Roos shoes compliments of Uncle Tom and Colleen up in Baltimore, Md. THey are adorable. First of all, they are size 3-6 months, which by definition means the babe can't walk, yet they have fantastic grip/traction on the bottom. Second, they look fantastic on his long yet chubby legs. Third, they fall off when we pick him up! They are too fun!

Get Me Out of this Monkey Suit!

When Sean was born a day earlier than expected, Micah, Beth and Meg were so excited they dropped everything in Greenville and hopped in the car in a matter of hours to come meet him. But, they had to make one stop first.... the three of them stopped by Babies R Us on the way out of Greenville and each picked out one outfit for the new baby boy. Meg got him this adorable little bathrobe (pics forthcoming), Beth got him sweet jammies he wore at the cottage (see Knoll pics) and Uncle Micah picked out, well, a monkey suit.

Just for fun...

Because bathtime pictures are always great! And yes, we do have a baby bathtub, but it always just seems easier to fill the sink up at the last minute.

Easy Like Sunday Morning

Cody loves relaxing and reading the paper on weekend mornings.... Sean decided to join him last weekend. He likes the world news section.

Grateful Baby

Uncle Sean is surely smiling down on his nephew in this outfit :)

Bath time at the Knoll

Bathing at the knoll can be a little curious-- for babies and adults. When I was a kid our water there was all well water -- the worst kind of rotten-egg-smelling well water you can imagine. I usually just skipped the shower and went in the lake with a bar of soap. For drinkable water we used to have to go to the fire station in town and fill up empty milk jugs from their hose. Now we get actual lake water directed up to the cottage, but it comes through unfiltered at times, which can leave you with a tub full of sand after a shower. Dad and Bijal started bringing jugs of water from Detroit to drink. Traditionally, babies (those 3 and under) have been bathed in the kitchen sink at the knoll. Here are some shots of baby Sean's initiation to the sink-bath at the cottage...

The women bathing Sean...

The men bathing Sean...


He likes it!!

Jack

This is my grandfather, Jack Galloway, with his first great-grandson, who bears the name of his first grandson (my brother Sean). Jack turned 82 this spring and has been coming to the Knoll for summers since he graduated from Notre Dame in the summer of 1947. Jack and little Sean have a special bond.... Jack would hold Sean for an hour or more at a time, they would fall asleep together (in the chair), rock together on the porch, and just be content together in the cool Knobby Knoll air. Jack loves babies and many times last week he opened up and spoke freely about his memories of raising their seven babies! Sean would just snuggle into Jack's arm and they were both so peaceful!

Here are me, cody, Emmy and Jack enjoying a sleeping baby at Emmy's 80th Birthday celebration.

And We're Back!

Cody, Sean and I spent a wonderful week at our family's cottage in upstate N.Y. (Sackets Harbor). Sean met two first cousins-once-removed, two great aunts, two great-great aunts, one great-great uncle, two second-cousins-twice removed and two first-cousins-thrice removed! PLUS, his wonderful great grandparents, Emmy and Jack. Here are some hightlights of the trip. Hopefully I'll get some more up later.

Sorry for the Wait!

Cody, Sean and I were out of town on vacation for a week, and when we got back (ten days ago), our internet was down and has not yet returned! AT&T has promised to get it up and running soon and I will post a slew of pics including: Sean and Knobby Knoll, our first ND game as a family (from our living room) and some really cute new smiles!

Also, for anyone who would like to attend-- Sean will be baptized September 21 at 1:00 pm at the Cathedral-- 120 Broad St., Charleston.