8.19.2010

Loulie on the Move


On August 16th, Loulie took her official first steps. She's taken one or two here and there but Monday was the day. We were at the Children's Museum with her friends Wesley and Thomas and I guess she couldn't take being left behind any longer. She stood up in the middle of the floor and without any prompting took a good six steps. Since then, she has practiced whenever she could and my life has gotten a lot more hectic. ( Not like I am getting more accomplished, just sitting down even less than I was:))
Yesterday I turned around to find her on top of the end table--that's right, the one by the sofa. It happened like this, I turned around, she went from the floor to the sofa to the end table. It doesn't help that she thinks my "angry voice" is hilarious. It is like a whole new world has opened up for Miss Loulie and it has been fun watching her figure her way around.

I've I had to get a little creative in capturing shots of Miss Mischief or she heads straight for the lens and falls, leaving me with no photo of Loulie actually walking. This is how I got her earlier today.

And she's off...
OKAAAYY....
DETERMINATION
One more time
"Like this, Mom?"
YAAAAY!!!
"You going to join me or just stay behind that camera all day?"

8.12.2010

10 Month Old Pics

I never got around to doing the formal 10 month old pictures with bullet points on her latest achievements. But I did get a lot of candid shots last month of her just being her sweet, active self. I love this batch below. It was right after a nap and just some sweet moments with Ollie (her fav toy) and of course Bridget Bojangles. Enjoy!








8.09.2010

Motivational Monday

My Loulie Bug is 11 months old today--I can't believe it. She is becoming a more independent, sweet little girl every day. While wanting to celebrate this time and enjoy this last month of babyhood, it also brings some ultimatums for mom here. I now have one month to get my house in order and (dum da dum) lose those last 3 pounds of baby weight that just keep hanging on. It is said that if a woman does not lose her baby weight by the time the child is a year, then it is there forever. Yikes--pressure is on.
A lot of people think of January 1 as a new start but I also like to the start of a new school year (Sept 1st) as a step off point. Fall is my favorite season, so I would love to begin it lighter, more organized and ready to take on the care of a t-t-t-t-toddler. (I can hardly say it. Oh, my baby is growing too fast.)
I 've asked Bert to help keep me accountable on the house. We are going to have a major purge, possibly a garage sale and some fierce closet organization to get our house sale ready and finally be able to host friends. We never have anyone over and would like to start. Anyhow, enough on that--I have to go get the guest room clean--it is on my agenda for today.
I'll post LB's 11 month (and 10, oops) pictures later today.

8.03.2010

Qui Qui

I absolutely love historical fiction novels. I just love how they take you to a completely different time and place, yet you feel like the story actually happened because of the events around it. I just finished on of my new favorites...

The story revolves around a girl struggling to support her family through the one thing she loves--dance. You know it got me hooked there. I just love the insight the author gives to the times, the way of life for these dancers and the story behind what might have shaped Degas's vision for his pastels. I have been to the MET several times and each visit spent a significant amount of time standing in front of these works of art, one of my favorites being the bronze statue of the dancer. This book just brought them to life. I loved falling into a background story of romance, struggle, heartbreak and my favorite--love of art.
Anyone that knows me knows that when I read something, I almost fall into the pages for the duration of the book and a few days after. Which explains why I am utterly obsessed with Paris right now, would get on a plane if I could and keep having my thoughts with a Parisian accent. (Does anyone else do that?--Think in the accent of the book they are reading at the time. Made life really interesting when I was reading The Help and answered Bert "Yessa Mista Dasher" a time or two.) Anyhow, this new obsession with Paris brings me to my next new find...
This is the new patisserie downtown located next door to Rue de Jean (our favorite restaurant). It is beautiful and quaint and smells divine. Loulie and I went in there on Saturday and you are just blown over by the scent of fresh baked pastries and brioche and croissants. We did not taste anything but just took in the smell, which was enough. A tiny woman with a lovely French accent runs it--she embodies everything French. She is tiny and quirky and describes her creations with such gusto you feel like you were in the kitchen making it with her.
Bottom line, I want to go to Paris and until I can, I will be stopping by to see mademoiselle after each trip to the children's museum.