A Little Madness in the Spring...

I've been remiss in not posting more often, but something about the rising humidity has made me hesitant to strap on the Nikon and catch the adorable temper tantrums and fist fights that have been our lot of late.

I'm exaggerating a bit. It hasn't been that humid.

Yup, our Meredith J. is really feeling her oats lately, and thinks nothing of making her wishes--or just her presence--known. Adults enjoying conversations that don't center on her will be reminded of their priorities either by a gentle request to "please stop talking," a subtle change in topic, "let's talk about monsters," or my favorite, a high pitched squeal that lasts until your attention focuses on the noisemaker. Also fun to observe is the developing relationship between Walt and Mer, which is currently causing the parents to wonder, "is this much time together actually a good idea if they begin to fight like siblings?" Jury is still out on that; we'll keep you posted.

During the lapse in my blogging, I took time to enjoy the wall of roses in the backyard, the probable end of a beautiful spring, the best meal I've ever had at the BBQ fest (thanks, Brady!), the fabulous downtown farmers market, an afternoon of good crawfish and great friends (thanks, Amy!), and several not so shabby meals on our own deck. Almost summertime...and the livin' is easy.


Walt, hold my bow and I'll show you something cool.


See, you can wash your hair in the Riverwalk.


Good times.

Technical Difficulties

The Lareaus are without internet access. Luckily, we're living unusually parallel lives with Los Spicklers this week, so just go to www.spickler.blogs.com and read the last two posts to see a few pictures of Meredith in action and see what we've been doing.

Another First Baptist Production

We know you eagerly anticipate the First Baptist musical productions that we're able to bring you a couple times a year. This year, the kids did rousing renditions of "Praise Him," "Love One Another," and that timeless classic, "Mr.Golden Sun." To see part of the show, check out Josh's new movie-making abilities over at www.spickler.blogs.com.



Meredith felt a little strange being separated from her band-mate Walt, so she felt compelled to periodically to check on him.


Here, Walt (back row) wonders if we really can sway Mr. Sun's decisions about whether or not to shine. Holden (front row) shows us the abs he's been working on this spring.


Can you tell that Mer is enjoying herself? Just a little?


Our stars.

Marme Visits Memphis

Chris' mom (otherwise known as Marme) came to visit for Mother's Day weekend and we had a pretty much perfect time. There was one day that involved the zoo, a carriage ride, AND ice cream, so that let's you know that we took our recreational planning seriously.

The weekend was a complete miss as far as photography went, so just take these for their sentimental value.


The Lareau women (and another very nice family) take on the zoo.


We watched this monkey family forever; it was one of the coolest things we'd ever seen at a zoo. The baby kept making a break for it (see him crawling under the log), and mom kept dragging it back to where she and dad were trying to relax. I identified.


Meridy and Beth on the carousel. I told you we didn't pull any punches with the good times.


This is Mer just as the carriage ride began. This is her "oh my goodness, this is really cool and I must absorb it all" face.


This is all of us (not that you can tell) in front of the fountain. The water looks pretty, at least...

We love your visits, Marme. Now if we can just get Aunt Carol out to the land of Elvis...

Parenting the Surreal

So Walt and Meredith have been engaged in the Battle Royale this morning, and I'm almost powerless to stop the carnage. Here's what's going on. Walt is sitting on the (completely stationary) bouncy zebra toy. He is narrating a story to Meredith about what the zebra is doing as it races through the bedroom. For example "Now I'm racing over your blocks." Meredith is hysterical, because she doesn't want the zebra to "crash into her blocks."

Walt knows the zebra isn't moving. Meredith knows the zebra isn't moving. Walt knows he's making Meredith insane. Meredith knows that no one is actually crashing the blocks.

I'm at a loss. Thanks for letting me share. I've got an email out to Dali to see if he's got any parenting advice.

Mixed Bag

Got up around the crack of dawn on Saturday to volunteer at the farmers market. Here are some pics of that and some other weekend goings on.


My booth neighbor at the market.


Glowing (and out of focus...argh) strawberries.


Whitton Farms from Arkansas. They have great heirloom tomato plants, beautiful flowers, all kinds of great stuff.



Mer is a speed demon on the trike, of late.


She gets on and off the trike to intermittently love and torture Maggie.


Walt and Mer got the whole box of Cheezits this weekend when the parents needed a few more moments of relaxation. Walt was making "go away, paparazzi" noises at me.


One of my favorites of Mer's faces. Usually accompanied by suggestions about how things should "actually" be done.

Wee Bit o Progress

If any of you participated in letter-writing or phone-calling regarding the Cumberland Pres building, thanks. It seems to have made an impact, and there's a little sign of hope. Just wanted to share: read here.

Everybody's Workin' for the Weekend

Need some rock 'n roll to start your weekend? You've come, perhaps unwittingly, to the right place.

We'll start you out with the really rockin' stuff, and round things out with an acoustic set. On the second one, notice how Mer handles a drumming injury to her thumb. Happy Friday, yall.

PERFORMING DAN ZANES: "Catch that Train"


PERFORMING THEIR OWN COVER: "Twinkle Little Star"