The Scrunchy Nose Face

So, last month it was the tongue.  This month, we are proud to introduce the "scrunchy nose face" that Ellie makes all the time.  It's accompanied by a little *snort-snort* noise, which is just hilarious.

This last one is a bit "scary movie", I think... :)

Ellie's 6 Month Photo Shoot

 I feel like we've just posted a bunch about Ellie lately, but - um - here's another post about Ellie.  A week or so ago, I took her to get some 6 month pictures and I wanted to share our favorites.  A big thank you to our friend Olivia who did the shoot and edited all of the pictures!  She is really good and we're so thankful that she could do this for us!

We love this little series in black and white that shows the many faces of Ellie.

 

So professional, Olivia!

Awesome face.

Ellie's first UT football game

Just yesterday, we went to our first UT football home game since before we were married (5 years!) and we got to take Ellie!  Unfortunately, the Longhorns played pretty terribly against a not-so-good team - penalties everywhere and just horrible on offense (bleh!).  But, we still had fun!  Ellie did pretty well, especially since she had her Nini and some crackers to keep her entertained.  Here are some pictures from our day!

The First Concert Since Ellie

This past Wednesday night, I played a concert at KE Cellars in Tyler, Texas.  This was my first concert since I was 7 months pregnant with 6 month old Ellie, which means it was my first concert in 8 months (yay for my math skills and knowledge of the gestational period... and yay for me knowing big words like "gestational").

My last concert pre-Ellie.  Look at that belly!  Gotta love the profile shot.
[Shout out to Sam Stuntz on bass]

KE Cellars is an awesome venue - it's all about wine and wine tasting there, the room is decorated with old wine barrels, and they even have wine on tap (so cool!).  I'm excited to play at this place again. 

This concert was fun for several reasons.  For one, I really loved getting to play again after my Ellie hiatus.  It felt good to be up there.  Second, it was great to have new friends from Tyler, our new home, come out in support.  It's amazing that we've only been here for a few months and yet there were lots of people there.  Third, I got to play a LOT of songs since I had a three hour set (whew!), including some old ones that I've never recorded, and some covers by Patty Griffin, Gillian Welch, Ingrid Michaelson, Bob Dylan, and others!  (By the way, love me some Patty.  Could do all Patty covers, but that would be kind of weird).

Anyway, I had a ton of fun at this concert.  So much fun that I didn't have the presence of mind to ask anyone to take pictures or video.  Luckily, Nick's Aunt Toni snapped one from her iPhone:

The only pic from the night!  Thanks Aunt Toni!

Concert in Dallas next Friday!

I'm excited to announce that I'll be playing a FREE concert in Dallas next Friday, Oct. 1 at 8 pm!  My friends Erin and Jonathan are hosting a house concert for me at their awesome home right by SMU.  I'll be playing on their big back porch, and the weather is supposed to be perfect - clear and a cool 72 degrees.  There will be coffee and feel free to BYO snacks and drinks to share.  You may also want to bring a lawn chair or a blanket!

House concerts are intimate and chill and super fun, so I hope you can make it out!  Would love to see some Dallas friends and some friends who are in town for that little rivalry college football game (go horns!).

I'm not going to list Erin and Jonathan's address here for all of the world wide web to see, BUT, please contact me at carolinecobbmusic{at}gmail and, if you're not a creeper, I'll give it to ya!   

Pic from an outdoor concert in New England.

Blue Sky Sunday in the top 5!

Check out some more cool music news on the Caroline Cobb music blog!

News: Top 5 for the band Eden's Edge

Hey again!  More cool news...

I submitted "Blue Sky Sunday" to another songwriting contest and it made it to the top 5 out of 172 submissions!  This time, the band Eden's Edge is looking for "Dixie Chicks meets Nickel Creek" songs for their new project with Big Machine records.  I hadn't heard of Eden's Edge, but checked them out and they are great!  I heard back just a few days ago that it made it to the top 5!  We'll see what happens next, and of course I'll keep you updated.

Oh to be a full-time songwriter....

Murder & Mystery?

Just wanted to post a few pictures from this past Friday night - our first ever murder mystery dinner!  Never actually thought we'd do one of these, but it was hilarious and super fun.  We met some new people and got to know some people we already knew a lot better (and on a very weirdly entertaining level).  Thanks to the Osteens for hosting!

Nick as Bob Bucks the accountant and me as Allison, the spoiled daughter.  A good night to wear the ol' 80's dress, no?

The group

The girls

The guys

Ellie is 6 Months Old!

It's so hard to believe that Ellie has been with us for half a year...  This month was a big one for Ellie (check out the video below to find out why!).  Here are some things that we love about Ellie...

1) She's super social... always twisting around to see everyone, always wanting to be held facing out, and always willing to smile... even (or especially?) at a stranger.  She always skips her nap at church but is completely happy anyway because she's surrounded by people!  But as soon as we're in the car, she is 100% sacked out.

2) She's always on the move... She is only still when she's asleep - literally!  She's a major wiggle worm.  At her 6 month check up, poor thing was in the 5th percentile for weight (25th for height).  The doctor said it was because she was a "calorie furnace"... always kicking or twisting or scooting or sitting... always burning those calories.  Need to fatten the calorie furnace up!

3) She's independent... she is usually happy to sit on the floor by herself and play.  I'm really thankful for this!  Sometimes, we solve fussiness by just putting her down :).

4) She knows us... There's not much to say to explain this, but that feeling that she recognizes you is just amazing.  Ellie's not a big sleeper (during the day), and we're still working on extending her naps, but - man - is she cute when we go to get her out of bed...especially in the morning!  That look of recognition when we come in the room brings us both a lot of joy. 

Trip to Colorado!

We just got back last night from a trip to Breckenridge, Colorado!  It was such a good time with our old friends the [tall] Smiths and the Fraziers.  Highlights were the two hikes that we took with our daughters, cooking together, watching the Horns play, and just relaxing.  The lowlight?  Probably driving 14 hours back home to Tyler with a toddler and a baby... and most definitely Ellie's poo explosion near Wichita Falls(yep).  But really, both Saylor and Ellie did a lot better than we expected them to on that long drive!  Let's just say that I'm very, very thankful for Baby Einstein.  :)

Erica, Matt, and Saylor; Erick and Brooke; and the [short] Smiths.

Matt and Nick with the girls on the porch

Brooke, me, and Erica with hiker Ellie.  Ellie did great on our hikes... just slobbered/sucked on her hands and made cute noises the whole time.

There was a wee bit of sadness on the long drive home, but not as much as we thought!