Out and About

Yesterday we went to PJ's with Andrea and Baby Julia then to Walgreens to get some Easter goodies. Betsy kept saying "baby" the whole time we were with them. After B's nap we went to Lakeside to have B's picture taken at JCP. She was a ham as usual and the pictures came out really cute. I tried to get B to take a picture with the Easter Bunny in the mall, but she wasn't into it at all. She looked terrified and was clinging to me. B went to Marme's when we got home then Gumbo picked her up and took her to Jama, Pa, and Taddy's house for dinner.

We had a busy morning today. We met Krista, the kids, Lisa, and Miss Sandy at Starbucks then we went to Clearview Mall. B is officially a toddler--she fussed, arched her back when I tried to put her in the stroller, ran away from me, and pitched a fit most of the time we were there. Krista found a way to make her behave though--cheetos. Normally I sort of freak out when B's clothes are dirty, but I was desperate. B was covered in orange dust, but she was content. We got a lot accomplished on our trip to the mall--the girls' Easter baskets are now monogrammed and I bought a new pair of shoes for B, a DVD player for downstairs, and a bunch of bows for B.

She really likes to say "this" a lot. She says it whenever she picks something up. B is starting to say her friends' names. Yesterday in the car she kept saying "Luc', oh, Luc'." Today she called Lauren "Law Law" all day and kept saying it on the way home.

I didn't bring my camera this weekend so here are some pics from Saturday morning and Sunday brunch at Commander's.

Weekend Roundup

Betsy is all better. Last week was rough. I'm so happy to be back in our routine and out of the house. We had a great weekend and got to spend time with Scarlet. Poor Grandpa hurt his finger at our house last night and had to go to the ER--we hope he's feeling better soon!!!

On Friday we picked Scarlet up from the airport then went to have ice cream at Creole Creamery. Julie and Lucy came over to play. B hadn't been with any friends all week and was so happy to play with Lucy. Gumbo and Bee took Betsy to dinner and P and I ordered August Moon. On Saturday morning B and I met Scarlet, Julie, and Lucy at La Boulangerie. B and I split a chocolate croissant--yum! The rest of the day we watched P work on downstairs and played and napped. On Saturday night we went to Bee's house for Gumbo's 60th birthday celebration. We had a blast hanging out with everyone! On Sunday Grandpa and Peter worked on downstairs. I went to brunch with Julie and Scarlet at Commander's. It was so much fun and the food was delicious. Julie had just completed her first marathon and Scarlet completed half of the marathon. I was so proud of my girls!!! And I was so impressed that an hour after finishing they were both gorgeous and ready for brunch. Grandpa hurt his finger when they were almost done and P and Grandpa were at the ER for about 6 hours. I felt so bad for Grandpa!!! Marme came over and helped me with B and we watched the Oscars. I was fading near the end, but I managed to watch it all.

Today Adda and Kay Kay came over for breakfast--Adda brought coffee and blueberry muffins from PJ's. It's so much fun to hang out with them in the morning and it makes B so happy. We went to Music class then home for a nap. We brought Scarlet to the airport. We're going to miss her--we had so much fun with her. This afternoon we went to play at Georgia's house. B missed "Dorda"--that's what B calls her. I made spaghetti for dinner and B loves it again--she ate 2 bowls of it and she never eats that much. She smiled and said "sketty" the whole time she ate. She's in bed now and I'm going to go to bed soon. Good night.

Happy 60th Birthday, Gumbo!!!

Thank you for being such a special part of Betsy's life. We love you!!!

Puddin' Head

B and I have been stuck inside this week, because of her little cold. She's been getting up really early and today she woke up at 345. Peter got up with her and she didn't go down for a nap until 9 and then it was for only 30 minutes. I hope she sleeps tonight... Today we got out of the house and went to Winn Dixie; we both had major cabin fever. This evening I let B eat her own cup of pudding and she made a huge mess, but she was happier than she has been in days. I'm hoping that we wake up tomorrow and her nose has stopped running!

I was inspired by Julie to make a list of a bunch of things that B is doing right now. She is really talking up a storm. When she wakes up in the morning she says Mama and Dada then 'nana--bananas are her favorite food on the planet. When she wakes up from her nap she begins to rattle off a list of names--Dada, Gumbo, Marme (it sounds like "maw maw"), Kay Kay, Adda, Bobo, Peta, Bee, etc. When she drops (or throws) things she says "uh oh." Since she's been sick she wants to sit on my lap and she'll say "lap, lap" or sometimes "sit, sit." If I'm eating something and she looks interested I'll say, "would you like a taste?" I guess I've offered her a taste of pudding so often that she calls pudding "taste." When I change her diaper she looks at her light that has moons and stars around it and says "light, moon, star" then she says "cull cull" and moves her hands (it means twinkle and she does the hand movements from our music class). She has started saying "diaper" when I put on her diaper and "cream" for diaper cream and she names her clothes as I put them on "pants, socks, shoes." She has been sleeping with a teddy bear and baby doll for the last few months and Peter gives them to her every night when she goes to sleep. Now she likes to take them out of bed with her after she naps. When I take her out of her crib she says "baby" and I'll stretch and contort my body (it's hard to reach into her crib with this belly) and get the doll, then she says "bear" and I'll reach in again. B has started to call Cheerios "toodl-os" and she calls milk "mongo" when she's sleepy and "milk" when she's more awake. The other day B referred to Elmo as Elmo rather than "La, la." She likes to make her dolls and stuffed animals kiss each other and she makes a kissing sound when she does it. She requests crackers all day long--these days a cracker is a Triscuit--it used to be a graham cracker. And she still whispers some of her words, like cracker, Peter (Peta), please, ta-ta. Tonight I asked B to go get her balloon and show it to Peter. She walked into the living room, got the balloon, then proudly showed it to her Daddy. I still get freaked out when she follows commands--she's becoming a little girl and less and less of a baby every day.


Here are the pudding pics! Needless to say, I put her straight in the tub afterwards.

Pics

Weekend Roundup

I am so tired and I promise to post pics tomorrow. B woke up with a cold on Friday and she slept fine until she woke up this morning at 5. I guess she didn't realize that today was Aunt Attie's baby shower and that I needed my sleep! We hung out at home all weekend because B wasn't feeling well. Today she was feeling better and tonight she was back to normal. I hope her cold is gone! Yesterday B had lots of visitors--Attie, Gumbo, Bee, Katie, and Peter. Peter bought our new tv for downstairs and it's pretty awesome. P also put the wheels on our double stroller--I love it! Today Grandpa and Momma Lady came in town and B had so much fun playing with them. Attie's shower was so much fun and she got tons of great presents. I'm going to bed!

Pics

I took out the camera yesterday and B immediately posed:


B in the car with all of her puppies:


Reed, Lauren, Ryan, and B:


The shelves for B's toys. Next to the shelves is a little media closet we need to finish:

Happy <3 Day!

B just went down for a nap. I'm baking cupcakes for our playgroup V-Day party. I know I said I'd post pics on Monday, but I haven't had a chance--I promise to do so today.

On Tuesday we met Evelyn/Georgia and Jane/Josie at the Parenting Center. The weather was really scary and we were stuck there for a while. B is trying so hard to say Georgia, but it usually comes out "Dorda." On Tuesday evening I went to visit baby Julia--so cute. Gumbo brought B to have dinner with Jama, Pa, and Taddy. B had a great time! On Wednesday we went to Krista's house to play. B and Lauren chased each other and giggled and played in her kitchen.

This morning B was thrilled to wake up and receive a pink teddy bear, a Demma coloring book, Demma Valentine's Day cards, and an Elmo mini lunchbox. I was thrilled to receive lots of goodies from Peter that will really come in handy when baby Sadie comes. We stopped at Marme's and B received another V-Day bear. She has been really excited about her presents all morning. She fell asleep after only a couple of minutes of fussing, rather than 10-15 minutes of fussing.

Pictures later--I have to tend to the cupcakes.

Happy Birthday!

Happy Birthday to Bee (on Saturday) and to our new nephew, Patrick, who was born yesterday.

On Thursday we went to playgroup at Jane's. Her new house is gorgeous and the kids loved her playroom. In the evening we went to a surprise party for Bee at OE. She was definitely surprised. B was so good--she did not fuss one bit even though she had to be held the entire time--the party was in the antique Asian art section of OE so she could've done some serious damage.

On Friday morning Aunt Attie came over and brought breakfast. B and I did some errands--bought a couple of gifts and bought B's and Sadie's Easter baskets. Attie ended up coming back over in the afternoon and we went to Lebanon for lunch--yum. B is getting to be quite a handful in restaurants and lets us know she's "all done" within minutes of sitting in the highchair. B took a good nap then Gumbo picked her up and brought her to the Park then to dinner with Bee and some friends. Gumbo brought B a baguette from La Boulangerie--her fave. She opened the bag, took out the baguette, and started eating it. Gumbo and Bee said that Betsy was very good at dinner; I guess she saves the all done stuff for Peter and me.

On Saturday morning we went to Walmart. We spent the rest of the day at home--P worked downstairs and B and I played. Yesterday we went to breakfast at the Audubon Golf Club for Bee's bday with Gumbo, Lizzie, Katy, and Eric. It was so nice outside so we sat on the porch. We had a great time. After breakfast we headed to Baton Rouge to meet Patrick. He is so precious. He and his mommy are doing very well. Betsy kept saying 'baby' and pointing at him. We went to lunch at DeAngelo's--it was one of my fave restaurants while I lived in BR. It was good even though my favorite calzone is no longer on the menu. Peter put up all of the shelves with B's toy bins on them. They look great. I'll take a pic later today. I'll also post some other pics.

The Chatterbox

Betsy went down for a nap this morning at 1130 then woke up at 130. She stayed in her bed until I went in there and got her after 2. She was talking to her baby doll and her bear. I peeked in and saw her kissing them and rocking them and singing her favorite part of her favorite lullaby ("nanooooooooooo"). I wanted to let her stay in there and play, but she really needed to eat lunch.

B is in her bed right now chattering away. She is talking all the time to every person and every thing she sees.

Happy Mardi Gras!

We had a wonderful Mardi Gras weekend. We braved the cold on Friday night and caught two of the four parades. I was disappointed that we missed Muses, but it was getting late and B was tired. Betsy sat with Lucy in Lucy's ladder. I thought B would be terrified, but she loved every minute of it. Julie took some pics, but I didn't bring my camera to the night parades, because we had a lot of other stuff to bring. Betsy clapped for the bands and dancers and waved and said, "hey!" when the floats rolled by.

On Saturday P and I took B to Tucks. It was great because it wasn't very crowded since most folks were in mid-city waiting for Endymion--we just couldn't do it. Calvert and Neila stayed with us, because they went to the Endymion Ball. They were our first guests in our new (and almost finished...) guest room. On Saturday night we went to Attie and Beau's house to help them get ready for their Thoth party. The Thoth party was awesome--just like it was last year. Attie and Beau had awesome food and the best location to watch the parade. Betsy caught tons of stuffed animals and beads and cups at the parade. She watched it from her wagon and from the arms of her Daddy, Gumbo, Marme, Attie, and Katie. After Thoth we went home for a quick nap then we met up with the Vaicius clan for Bacchus. B was so excited to get back in the ladder. Peter A was in Bacchus and threw B lots of cool toys.

Yesterday I went to visit baby Julia Mahfouz--she is beautiful! She was born early Sunday morning and Andrea was a super champ (no epidural, because there wasn't time) and Mark was a very proud poppa. Peter got home from work early and while I was at the hospital he rested while B took a long nap. Attie, Beau, Katie, and Peter came over and we met up with the Vaiciuses again for Proteus and Orpheus. After the parade the sisters and boys came over and ate a late supper. B didn't make it through dinner--she drank some mongo then went to sleep.

Today we didn't make it to parades. We were wiped out after four days of parading it up. We played downstairs and gathered all of B's Mardi Gras beads and stuffed animals. Momma Lady and Grandpa stopped by for a quick visit and B did some good tricks.

When I ask B what is in my belly she says, "baby." I'm trying to get her to say Sadie, but it comes out as lady. Betsy calls alligators "algaloos." B is really into "If You're Happy and You Know It..." again and during the "then your face will really show it" part she puts her fingers on her cheeks.