Bye Bye Bili Blanket

Abby had another Pediatrician appointment today. Her bilirubin levels measured 15, which is low enough to take her out of the Bili Blanket. If you think about it, Abby had that blanket on for over half her life!

We are very relieved that the Jaundice is going away. It is nice to be free and take Abby to any room of our house. The Bili Blanket had previously confined Abby to her room.

Thank you for your thoughts and prayers. Praise God!

Abby is Jaundiced

Ever since we have come home from the hospital Abby has been somewhat Jaundice. Her levels weren't high enough to keep her in the hospital, but our Pediatrician wanted us to make a Monday appointment instead of the normal 1 week appointment.

Her levels were high enough on Monday that our Doctor wanted Abby to wear a Bili Blanket for several days. We went to the Doctor's office on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday to get Abby's levels checked. Her levels are still borderline, so she is supposed to continue to wear the Bili Blanket until at least Friday when we have our next appointment. Wearing the Bili Blanket is not only uncomfortable for Abby, but it is restrictive to our mobility and also emotionally taxing on us.

Please keep us in your thoughts and prayers during this time.

Last Day at Acxiom

Today is my last day of work at Acxiom. I turned in my letter of resignation two weeks ago. I have been offered a Software Developer position with Perks.

I have enjoyed working with Acxiom for the past 3 years. I've developed a lot of great relationships and I will miss many of the people there.

I think this new opportunity at Perks will re-enable me to develop using ASP.NET ( which I really enjoy ) and will also provide me with ample opportunities to lead.

As you might have noticed with my last blog entry, I am in the middle of two extreme life changes ( having a baby and staring a new job ).

These big changes remind me of the time when I graduated Harding University, got married to Andrea at Harpeth Hills Church of Christ, and started working for ALLTEL all within a one month's period.

In light of these changes, please keep our family in your prayers. Thanks.

Abby's Birth

Today is the day we have been waiting for. Abigail Marie Manor has arrived.

Minutes after midnight Andrea's water broke while we were asleep in bed. We headed to Saint Vincent Doctor's hospital around 1:00 AM and eventually at 4:17 PM Andrea delivered our first child. Abby was born at 6 pounds 11 ounces and 19 1/4 inches long.

As you might expect, we are very excited and tired! We appreciate all of the visits, e-mails, and calls that you all have made. Please excuse us if we don't get to answer every one of them immediately.

At this point, I'm sure you are wanting to see some pictures of Abby.

For more pictures visit my Abby's Birth Yahoo! Photo Album

CrossWalk Baby Shower

Our church, CrossWalk Family of God, had a baby shower for us at the Caldwell's house. Lisa Caldwell and several other hostesses ( Hannah Siegel, Kerri Dutile, and Kim Williams ) put together this grand event.

We are very thankful for all of their hard work and for all the people that attended the shower. Andrea and I are extremely grateful for CrossWalk and the ties that we have made in our Church family.

For more pictures visit my CrossWalk Baby Shower Yahoo! Photo Album

Andrea's Family Visits

Andrea's parents and oldest sister, Alissa ( along with her two boys ), drove to Little Rock this past weekend for our Baby Shower.

While they were in town we got a lot accomplished. We had a Krispe Kreme outing ( see above picture ), we made and installed new curtains in Abby's room ( this was a family project ), Freda trimmed the trees and bushes, and the boys and I played in the backyard sprinker.

It is always a joy to have the Hall family over at our house. They are sweet, very helpful, and fun to be around. I am thankful to have such great In-Laws.

For more pictures visit my Andrea's Family Visits Yahoo! Photo Album

Kidsource Baby Shower

Andrea's work, Kidsource, Inc., gave her a baby shower during their monthly business meeting.

I want to thank everybody who made the shower possible. We were overloaded with gifts. Some things were made and some things were bought. All of the gifts were very wonderful and thoughtful.

For more pictures visit my Kidsource Baby Shower Yahoo! Photo Album

Nieces' Birthdays

My sister and her two daughters flew into Little Rock last Tuesday, July 26th, and will be in Arkansas until August 2nd.

Andrea and I went to my parent's house in Searcy, AR to celebrate my nieces' ( MacKenzie and Kylie ) birthdays. MacKenzie turned 4 years old and Kylie turned 2 years old. They are soo adorable and well behaved.

We had a great time celebrating with our family. It has been a while since I've seen Cyndi and my nieces. The girls have grown soo much! Cyndi and Casey are expecting another baby ( a boy this time ) in November. We are very excited for them.

For more pictures visit my Nieces' Birthdays Yahoo! Photo Album

Tel-Beth Shemesh

My Dad is currently serving as field director on an archeology excavation in Tel-Beth Shemesh

In my Dad's words... "One aspect of our project is the uncovering of the Middle Bronze Age gate ( ca. time of Abraham ) which had been excavated in 1912. It is fascinating to see it uncovered again. We are otherwise continuing our study of the transition from the Canaanite occupation to that of the Israelites."

My Dad has been going to Israel on excavations most every summer since he started teaching Bible and Archeology at Harding University. He is the closet person to Indian Jones that I know. His work office is full of an assortment of artifacts, books, posters, and reproductions.

In addition to teaching at Harding University, he often presents archaeological seminars at Churches across the United States. Seeing how archaeological discoveries reveal locations and/or events from the Bible encourages many believers and strengthens their faith. I am very proud of my Dad. He is a very hard worker and his life has touched many lives... especially mine.

4th of July Cookout

This 4th of July the CrossWalk YAMs ( Young Adult Marrieds ) met at the Siegel's house in Sherword, AR for a Cookout. We threw raw meat on the grill and cooked up a great feast. After some fellowship several of us played a couple rousing games of Catch Phrase ( on-line demo ).

You would think that we would have stayed around to watch the local fireworks, but I think we are all getting old or something. Everyone dispersed right before the fireworks began. Andrea and I got to catch several different official and non-official firework shows on our 30 minute drive home from Sherwood to Mabelvale.

For more pictures visit my 4th of July Yahoo! Photo Album

Baby Registry

Several of you have wanted to be notified when we have items available in a baby registry.

We just finished registering at Target and Babies R Us.

If you want to get something from the above registeries, then you can either order online ( by clicking one or both of the above links ) or you can go to a Target or Toys R Us ( Babies R Us ) store and get a print out of the registry items.

Lisa Caldwell, a member from CrossWalk Church of Christ, is hosting our Baby Shower on July 31st at 1:30 PM.

Phasing Out Change Notes

Instead of having Change Notes updating individuals of new content on my blog, I would rather send out the updates personally.

I currently have 12 ( originally 16 ) people signed up to get notified when my blog changes. If you are one of those 12 people, please follow the next several steps.

Enter your e-mail address and click the "Send" button. Change Notes will send you your password to sign into their website.

E-mail address:  

Once you get an e-mail from Change Notes...

1. Click the link in the message to log into Change Notes


2. Check my blog address ( "http://elijahmanor.blogspot.com" ) from the "Watch List"


3. Click the "Remove checked pages" button


4. E-mail me if you'd like me to notify you when my blog is updated... elijah.manor@sbcglobal.net

If you have never been notified of updates to my blog and you would like to be notified, then the instructions are much simpler... just e-mail me @ elijah.manor@sbcglobal.net

The Institutes

Last week Andrea and I attended a conference at The Institutes For The Achievement Of Human Potential located in Wyndmoor, PA.

The conference basically explained that kids have a great potential and helped to explain ways to assist them to reach their potential. A main focus was to provide the maximum amount of opportunities for stimuli, to learn, and to develop. During the conference we learned ways to become more intentional as we raise Abby, instead of being accidental.

Andrea and I are very excited about using some of the techniques we learned at "The Institutes". Not only will it be a great learning experience, but it will be very fun as well!

HFS: Pages 3 and 4

These are the third and fourth pages of the colossal Hall Family Scrapbook ( HFS ) project.

These scrapbook pages show pictures and journaling of Moni Hall's and Byron Farrar's parents, Dewitt Granville "Bob" Farrar and Inez Corinne Pierce Farrar, and their children.

Click a scrapbook page ( Page 3 or Page 4 ) on the image above to read the journaling on that page.

Abby's Room Renovation

On Memorial Day my Father came to help me renovate Abby's new baby room. We painted the room a pastel pink and installed wainscoting and trim. We rented a nail gun from Home Depot which made process much more pleasant.

For more pictures visit my Abby's Room Yahoo! Photo Album

CrossWalk YAM's Cookout

We had our first CrossWalk YAM's ( Young Adult Married's ) cookout tonight after helping the Hughes move into their new house this morning.

Despite the fact that it is Memorial Day weekend and we had several couples out of town... we still had a good turnout. The Chapin, Hayes, Siegel, Manor, and Harris families ( and children ) all came together for a fun time of fellowship and food!

For more pictures visit my YAM's Cookout Yahoo! Photo Album

Paul and Megan's Wedding

Our Cousin, Megan McDonald, was married to Paul this weekend at the Harpeth Hills Church of Christ in Nashville, TN. This happens to be the same Church where Andrea and I got married 5 years ago on May 29th, 2000.

It was a good weekend of family, food, and fun.

There was a lot of hard work put into making this wedding go smoothly. Let me tell you... all the hard work paid off. The event was beautiful and memorable.

For more pictures visit my Megan's Wedding Yahoo! Photo Album

Hall Family Scrapbook: Page 2

This is the second page of the colossal Hall Family scrapbook project.

This scrapbook page depicts pictures of Moni Hall's and Byron Farrar's Maternal Grandparents and Uncles.

Click on the above picture to read the journaling on the scrapbook page.

This page went much faster than the first and Andrea has made considerable progress with pages three and four. Her special scrapbook corner is all in order and she intends to do as much as she can before Abby comes.

Mother's Day Weekend

Andrea and I each went to visit our parents for Mother's Day weekend.

I went to Searcy, AR to visit my Mother. My Dad and I were able to lacquer Abby's baby bed that Andrea's Grandfather built us. After a long day on our feet, my Mom and I watched a movie together. On Sunday we all went to Melbourne, AR where my Dad preaches. The above picture was taken in front of my Mother's roses in their back yard.

Andrea went to Henderson, TN to visit her Mother.

They had a great girls' weekend together.

While she was there they went shopping, had a pedicure, and attended a tea party fundraiser for Freed Hardeman University.

Andrea also received a surprise pot of azalea flowers that Abby sent to honor her.

The picture to the right is from the tea party Andrea and her Mother attended.

Maui Vacation

Andrea and I just got back from our vacation to Maui celebrating our 5th year anniversary.

The picture to the left is only a small fraction of the beauty that we saw while we were there. If you are interested to see some additional photos, visit my Maui Vacation Yahoo! Photo Album.

While we were in Maui we went to a Lu'au, whale watching tour, snorkeling, swimming, took a winding trek around the Maui coast, etc...

In addition, we did a lot of relaxing... ahh that was nice.