First girls trip - Memphis, Tn - April 2011

In April El and I hopped a plane to the city we used to call home.  We enjoyed a jam packed week visiting friends and family.  I definitely DID NOT take enough pictures!

She was very interested in the safety brochure and spent a good deal of the flight looking it over.

 In Atlanta, while waiting on our connecting flight, she made a few calls to all the buddies she left in Baltimore and all the friends we were on our way to see.

We stayed the first half of the week at my sister Lo's house where on top of getting to play with her 2 cousins Ninja and Godzilla, she also got to play with their 2 tiny puppies and their GIANT lab Thor.

On Sunday we arranged a play date with my good friend Anna and her girls who are 3 years old and 7 months. 

  

 And just like their mama's, these little ladies LOVE to talk with their hands.

Monday we met up with El's Uncle Tim and Aunt Jennifer and her other cousin Trenton who is older than her by 6 months, for dinner at a hibachi restaurant. It was El's first venture into the world of hibachi, and to be honest I was worried she;d be a little frightened by the fire and tossing of food, but I was thrilled to discover that she wasn't phased one bit and a great time was had by all.  A BIG thank you to my sister-in-law, Jennifer for scoring AWESOME 50% off coupons for everyone!

Tuesday .  That afternoon we had another play date with my dear friend Cozy and her 3 kids.  Then we headed off to my old bible study group.  Somehow I managed to take ZERO pictures on Tuesday except this one of my first haircut in over a year from DAVID!!!  I MISS him!!!

The second half of the week we were thrilled to get to spend a good deal of time with the Monkey's God Parents Eddie and Marilyn who are two of the most special people on Earth. But before we headed over to their house on Wednesday evening we went downtown to my old work and met up for lunch with good friends Crystal and Theresa.  I unfortunately didn't take any pictures.  Later that day we got to hang out with my dear friend Caroline and her sweet little boy, who is only a few months older than El.

Thursday we spent the day playing with Eddie. We went down to Mud Island and had reubens at Mrs Cordellia's. We also got to meet up with one of my best friends Amanda who scooted over from work to visit with us.

That night Eddie cooked a wonderful dinner and, as always when we get together, El's god mother, Marilyn, El, and I ate like kings and queens.

We finished up the night with a video chat with Daddy.

On Friday we were so excited to get to hang out with one of my best friends from high school, Nikki and her 2 youngest girls.  She is one of my oldest friends and it was so cool to finally get to see how much fun our girls had playing together.

We also got to spend some time with El's Paw Paw who drove in from middle Tennessee to see his middle daughter and his youngest grand daughter... Again, no photos! UGH!!!

We had such a wonderful time with family and friends! However I can't help but say how excited we were to head home to Baltimore and to the Hub.  I can't tell you how thrilled we were to see him waiting for us at the airport.  That really has always been one of the best parts about going away, having someone you love to greet you at the airport with a warm embrace.

We're not sure when we'll get to go back to Memphis, but in goes without saying that it can't be too soon!

Till next time,

Bon Voyage!

People Mover - Baltimore, MD - April 2011

The Hub has again brought me blog material and for that, and many other reasons, I continue to believe

we are the perfect match.

Ever been on one of these...?

A People mover. Easy to operate, simple to understand, endless fun for children weather or not they are used in the proper direction. (You know you've done it!)

Well upon retrieving The Monkey and I from the airport, The Hub said that as he was crossing the sky bridge from the parking garage to the terminal he watched a gentleman place his suitcases on the "people mover" then walk alongside them toward the opposite end of the conveyor belt. The Hub boarded the people mover and continued walking, (he likes to do this because it more than doubles his speed of movement) and eventually had to step around this man's bags.

He passed him at the end of the belt and the man smiled at him and informed him that he'd never been in an airport. It was his first time flying and he thought the conveyor belts were designed to move bags, but moving bags and people makes a lot more since. Too cute!

So the next time your in route to your gate, go all out! Get crazy and jump on the "people mover" bags and all!

Till next time,

Bon Voyage!

We're Comin' Home! - Memphis, TN - April 2011

After a week away from home, the Monkey and I are headed home!

Stories from our trip are coming soon. For now, Jrod, We only have eyes for you! See you soon!

Till next time,
Bon Voyage!

(PS - Is anyone else having CRAZY formatting issues with Blogger? SO FRUSTRATING!!! Makes me not want to fool with posting as it has taken me an hour to post this TINY post! UGH!!! Blogger, please get yourself together!)

10 Months, That was Quick - Baltimore, MD - March 2011

Okay, so maybe it's that February was so short, but it feels like there has been no time since this month and last, but alas, our baby girl is already 10 months.

Monkey Brand New

Monkey 1 Month

Monkey 2 Months

Monkey 3 Months

Monkey 4 Months

Monkey 5 Months

***6 month picture MIA***

Monkey 7 Months

Monkey 8 Months

Monkey 9 Months

Monkey 10 Months

Here are her new stats:

Weight: 16 lbs (5th %)

Length: 26 1/2 inches (25th %)

Head Circumference: 42 centimeters (5th %)

She has 6 Teeth and the whole house is feeling it! We've taken a step back in the sleeping department. She is much more aware of the world around her these days, and we think that that combined with significant developmental milestones are the contributing factors to the fact that our sweet little girl has stopped sleeping through the night. We thought a couple of nights ago that we were on the road to recovery, but after last night, I'm not so sure.

She is pretty much moble through a combination of rolling, butt scooting, backwards crawling, and laying on her back and scooting which is her preferred method as it's the fastest, but it's my least favorite because she's now bald again on the back of her head... So SAD! She pulls up to standing and thinks she's big stuff when she does it. She growls and grunts with excitement and of course we cheer like she's won a 5K or something which only makes her more excited. She's also at a point where she enjoys playing for long stretches on her own which is nice for me with respect to keeping the house clean and laundry folded.

Swim class is going really well and we've signed up for the next session which will carry us pretty much all the way to when our pool opens for the summer. She loves to watch other kids and lately she's been a lot more interactive with them. Splashing in the pool with other babies, as well as sharing toys at play group.

Eating has gotten to be a lot more pleasant of a time at our house. Her diet is expanding and her apatite is getting bigger. She still has her favorites like yogurt and fruits, but with the addition of cheerios she's become much more open to eating a bite of something she's not too crazy about if there's a Cheerio close behind it. Also she's starting to partake in our big Sunday morning breakfast. She LOVES French toast and pancakes!

She is a joy to be around and her little personality is growing by leaps and bounds. It's amazing to me that in less than 2 months she will be a year old. I'm not sure I'm ready for that. but ready or not, here it comes!

Till next time,

Bon Voyage!

Swimming - Baltimore, MD - March 2011

The Monkey's swim classes are going great but much to my disappointment, I hadn't been able to capture it via camera to share it because aside from hiring a full time photographer to follow us, which believe me has crossed my mind because she's so stinking cute and does the cutest stinking stuff ALL THE TIME! I couldn't figure out how I could wield a camera and also participate in the class.

This week, our sweet friend Katie came to snap a few pics of El and I during the class. I knew she was a talented photographer, but I continue to be impressed with her madd picture taking skills.

Although they were all SO good, here are a few of my favorites...

Thanks Katie! Hope I get to return the favor someday!

Till next time,

Bon Voyage!

9 Months - Baltimore, MD - February 2011

NOTE TO READER: It is getting more and more difficult to take this little lady's monthly picture!

"Mom stop taking my picture!"

"No for real, I'm not looking at the camera anymore!"

"If I could just crawl..."

"I'm out of here!"

"...oooh this blanket is soft..."

"Wait... What was I doing?"

I can't believe our little girl is already 9 months old.

Monkey Brand New

Monkey 1 Month

Monkey 2 Months

Monkey 3 Months

Monkey 4 Months

Monkey 5 Months

***6 month picture MIA***

Monkey 7 Months

Monkey 8 Months

Monkey 9 Months

Here are her new stats:

Weight: 15lbs 3 ozs (3rd %)

Length: 26 1/2 inches (23rd %)

Head Circumference: 42 centimeters (2nd %)

Her advances this month are more mental rather than motor skills although she's becoming increasingly more confident in her strength with regard to standing and moving around on her belly. Still not crawling, but she is doing this really funny butt scooting that makes us think that she just might skip crawling all together. She has 5 teeth and it looks like the next one or two are going to arrive any day now.

She's starting to develop a bit of stranger anxiety when we go places like play group, but once we've been there a little while she warms up and is a little more social. She has also started crying when you leave her room at night. She only cries for a little while before she falls asleep, but it still breaks my heart.

She's starting to grasp object permanence and cause and effect which is really fun. If she drops a cherio rather than just picking up the next one on her tray, she actually looks for the one she dropped. She also has figured out that she can use objects as tools. For example if she can't reach something she'll pick up a book or toy in order to move what she wants within reach. She's a pretty smart cookie!

She is truly a gift from God and we continue to me amazed at how our love for her grows each day.

Till next time,

Bon Voyage!