Nature Girl

You may recall a previous entry wherein we stated that one of Meredith's favorite things was the outdoor life. Today she insisted on a trip outside (in other words she was crying and couldn't be comforted). So I wrapped her in two blankets, found a hat for her and a scarf for me and we sat on the front porch, despite the cold. And as she did stop crying within 30 seconds of getting outside, I guess that was what she wanted. And who am I to question a girl's need for nature? Although I will say, it may be a very long winter...

Meredith and Her Posse

"Yes, Virginia, I know that you think Georgia is the best team in the land."

On Saturday, Meredith got to hang out with her best friends. She's known them her ENTIRE LIFE. We went on a picnic with Walt (and his parents) and watched football with Virginia (and her parents).

"Don't block my sun, Walty."

Punk Rock Girl

Meredith is our little punk rock girl. We love her all the more when her sparkly clean hair stands straight up. Don't you?

THANK YOU to Papa and Gran

After 3 weeks of invaluable help, Gran is going back to Arkansas. Papa was a big help too -- and he let us steal Gran for 3 weeks! We're on our own now, and a little nervous. After all, grandparents are a big help: they're patient and knowledgable, and they'll go to lengths that don't even occur to parents. For instance, look at Gran standing patiently in front of the pantry, simply because Meredith found it interesting! And Papa sits in front of her favorite window for as long as she wants (and trust us, it can be hours).


We're so grateful for Gran and Papa's help...and we can't wait for Meredith to meet her Lareau grandparents and her GREAT grandmothers!

The Spittin' Image

So our friends and family are starting to weigh in on the "who does she look like" question. Most folks say she looks like her Dad. We can't imagine why...

Today's adventure was dinner out at our favorite neighborhood restaurant, Los Compadres. Meredith was PERFECT (meaning she slept through yet another adventure).

New Friends and Football

SLEEP LIKE A BABYNICE TO MEETCHA, ISABELLA!

So this weekend we met some new friends and watched some football. Yes, we're well aware that Colorado got smoked, but Meredith is a TRUE fan, so she still wanted to wear her hat.

CU FAN (OBVIOUSLY NOT FAIR WEATHER)

Ladies Who Lunch...in Bunny Slippers

Today was a gorgeous fall day (okay, not so fall-like, but gorgeous) and so we decided to embark on another adventure. We also decided that bunny slippers were the appropriate attire for said adventure. Wardrobe credit goes to Aunts Amy and Robin in Texas! We did some shopping and then some al fresco dining. Our first restaurant experience may not have been a roaring success (there was roaring, but not the successful kind), but we still had a lovely time and were able to sooth the child long enough to eat and enjoy the day.

What a Baby!

Here's some random cuteness for your viewing pleasure.

PRECIOUS

STRETCH!

BATH TIME

Culture Club

So today we began Meredith's cultural education with a trip to the Memphis Brooks Museum of Art to see the Morisot exhibit. She slept through the entire thing, but we feel sure that some understanding of Impressionism soaked into her precious brain. Berthe Morisot's favorite subject was her daughter, Julie (see above). I can identify with that.
Sorry that you can really only see boring old grownups in these pics, but Meredith, though advanced for her age, can't stand in front of the museum by herself yet. Speaking of age, HAPPY 2 WEEK B-DAY to Meredith! She's in the 75th percentile for height and the 25th for weight. What's that, fly weight?

I Recall Schnucks Parking Lot in Fall...

The mums at Schnucks are so gorgeous that we had to take a photo op, regardless of the fact that we were in a parking lot. That's a Wayne Newton allusion in today's blog title, by the way.
This picture is a visual shout out to Kim and Collier -- thanks for the miracle butt pat advice that came to us via the Spicklers. We can't say it works EVERY time, but it soothes the child fairly often...and we're grateful for that!

Angel?

To quote Meredith's Gran, she's a very mercurial child.
In this series of photos, we were trying to catch an appropriately angelic smile to go along with the outfit (by the by, that's a yawn--not a scream).
What we caught instead were the faces that came between the smiles, and you'll just have to trust us on the smile part.
At any rate, we feel pretty sure that these will make YOU smile! (If you're not smiling right now, page back up and look at that first one again.)
Angelic wardrobe credit to Granny Lareau.

Soccer and Such

So on Saturday we headed over to Darren and Stacy's to watch England play Austria. If England hadn't won, they would have been out of contention for the World Cup. Lucky for them, they pulled it off. Meredith wanted to wear her USA soccer scarf, just to show that she was in the know, so we let her. She posed for pictures with England's fans, cause they're our friends even if they're not as good at football as USA. Later in the day we went to an arts and crafts show and by Sunday morning we were WORN out. Dad's getting really good at lulling Meredith to sleep -- and he usually puts himself out too.

Back to our Regularly Scheduled Program

Sorry for the interruption in programming, folks. We hit a few hitches in the baby routine, but we went to see Dr. Geiger and it's all worked out now. Actually, it was all fine all along, but the adults got a little silly. Today is going to be a REALLY fun day, so stay tuned for more news.

MEET DR. GEIGER!


AHH - SATURDAY MORNINGS!

Adventures in Infancy

Today was so much fun! We stopped to smell the roses (thanks Grandma Karen!), went on a journey in a wildly uncomfortable car seat and tried out our baby rocker for the first time. Meredith continues to amaze us (on this, her 1 week birthday) with her amazing mellowness. You need me to wait a few minutes to eat? No problem. You're going to scrunch my arm to get this car seat strap around me? Fine. It would be super convenient if I'd sleep for a few hours now? Okey-doke. What a girl...

SAFETY FIRST?
ROCKIN' BABY

The Good Life

Life is good here at home. We're working our way through the baby trifecta -- eating, sleeping, and um, digesting. It's a good routine and it's working well for us. Mom and Dad are getting a good amount of sleep, because baby genius (that's Meredith) is SO good at everything she does. Things she loves so far: being outside, looking outside, looking at the light coming through the blinds, being wrapped up tight (we call her Burrito Baby) and, conversely, sleeping spread eagle on Mom's chest.

COMFY?
GRANDMA KAREN SENT ME A BALLOON!

BEAUTIFUL BURRITO BABY