Tonight

The scene: bedtime at The 147; approximately 7:30.

I put Lydia down at 7:00 and proceeded to help EB with her teeth and read books. Around 7:30 we assumed it was safe to go into the room and for EB to get into bed. As soon as we entered, Lydia's head popped up. Uh oh. I tried to remain unseen with no luck.

Lydia: dada dada daaaaaaada
Me: (to EB in a whisper) shhhhhh. Maybe if we're really still she'll go back down.
EB: (to me in a whisper) ok
Lydia: daaaaaaada daaaaaaada daaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa

So I went over to Lydia's crib and gave her a hug then sat down beside it so she would calm down. The next thing I knew EB was out of bed singing a lullaby.

After it was over EB asked, "did it work?"

So sweet!

(And yes it worked; Lydia closed her eyes just like the song says)

our Christmas cards

Are the cutest ever! The paci in Lydia's mouth and the extra one just below her feet is so her these days.

Eden Brooks decided to write a few notes on some of our special cards ... She has been writing lately, and we have been encouraging her to just write it as it sounds, which she has really gotten into.

This one was for Mama II (on top: From Eden; then a picture of Mama II; on bottom "Mama II")

This is Aunt Sarah's card - a picture of Eden Brooks and Sarah and lots of hearts to signal how much she loves her.

For Aunt Whitney, Winters, and Uncle Bebop

I really wanted all red dresses for the girls this year, and I was so excited when I found these red corduroy dresses a few months ago from Old Navy, just exactly what I had in mind. So crazy to see this photo that CC emailed ...

that's CC holding her babydoll with her older sister, all three in red Christmas dresses that my Mama Sally made for them. So comforting and heartwarming to see that Mama Sally picked out nearly the same dresses that I did. And look at Lydia and CC's shoes! So cute.

Love having these keepsakes every year.

- ashley

19 months

Climbing her way to two years old ...

She literally loves to climb. When the attic ladder isn't down, she climbs on chairs, sofas, tables, beds, step stools, and anything else she can. This new skill is impressive, but more so is her ever expanding vocabulary -- she can now say apple, oatmeal, grape, milk, CoCo, Bebop, BoBo, CC, Nona, Big Daddy and two word phrases like Mama wa-wa (for Mama's water).

Her back molar popped through this week, and it seems she is getting a new tooth a day (other molars coming in, ouch).

She also loves to try to give kisses with her tongue fully out - and loves it even more when we tell her not to do that. She also recently started taking naps with books in her crib -

and took her first ride in the big part of the grocery cart.

She LOVES playing with her sister - and doing the same things.

At some point she got a bad cold and did not want to have milk before bed - so we stopped bottles, and now she drinks just a little bit of milk from a sippy cup before bed.

She is still attached to her pacis and likes to hold one in each hand (on her finger) while one is in her mouth. That's a habit that will be hard to break.

She loves to draw (especially when her sister is doing it), and we think she is a southpaw (she changes the crayon from her right to her left, and she holds her utensils with her left hand, too).

She likes to build things with legos - and only likes the square ones and to stack them really high (and show it to us with a huge smile)

'Look what I made!'

Our big girl ... likes to eat at the kids table - eating her cereal for breakfast like a big girl!!

She recently went down the big slide at Chick-Fil-A with her sister ... here's a picture of her climbing up it (see a trend?) ...

It's been a fun 19 month ride, and we're looking forward to her turning 2 and the many adventures she'll take us on ...

the Nutcracker

A few weeks ago, Eden Brooks and I made a quick trip up to CC and Granddaddy's to go to her first performance of The Nutcracker. Aunt Janet had invited us earlier in the year (actually, she's been talking about it for a number of years) since her office with the Jackson Arts Council is so closely connected to the ballet.

When we made it to CC and Granddaddy's, we of course had to go next door to see the neighbors' new puppies. EB was enthralled ...



... and the puppies loved her ...

It was so nice to be able to help decorate the tree. I think E's favorite part was getting to dress up in one of Aunt Whitney's old dresses as well as one of my old dresses that Mama Sally made me. We definitely have a little actress on our hands.

 After church and lunch on Sunday, we made our way to Thalia Mara Hall for The Nutcracker. We were all full of excitement. We had watched a full ballet production on video a number of times last year, so she knew the storyline and was really excited to see everything in person.

 When the lights started to go down and the music came on, she was just beside herself ...

 My favorite moment of the day came just before the intermission. EB was sitting in my lap, leaned back, and whispered in my ear, "I had tears in my eyes. I am just so happy that I had to cry." I mean, seriously, it just about melted my heart.

During intermission, we met up with our good friends Josie and her mom Jennifer. The girls enjoyed a few minutes of playtime and a photo with one of Josie's classmates.

It really was such a special afternoon!

This past Saturday, Graham took E to the Baton Rouge Ballet's performance of The Nutcracker. It was especially important since E's adored friend Grace from church was performing that day. E requested a ballet bun and took care of all her accessories, including the fairy necklace that Grace gave her at her last birthday.

Here is perhaps the cutest couple ever on their way to the ballet ...

... and here is the pose that Miss EB wanted to do ...

As a special touch, Graham and E picked up flowers for Grace on their way to the performance. Here is E mesmerized with the bubbles representing snow that floated over the audience during the performance.

When she came home, she went through a full comparison of the two performances and where they differed. So fun to hear her comment on the differences (the main performers wearing gold in Jackson and white with blue shoes in Baton Rouge). If you see her over the holidays, you may be lucky enough to see her doll performance which she learned in Silly Goose class at school.

I am so thankful for my little ballerina.

- ashley

life, lately

EB is now addicted to performing songs that she has memorized by 

listening to them on repeat (hundreds of times!) on her CD player.

 Miss L was laughing and so happy because she was looking 

at herself on the camera while I snapped the photo

 My poor babies both had a 24-hour stomach bug with throwing-up 
over the past few weeks, 

hence the towel in front of EB ... just in case

 She wanted all the lights out and the curtains drawn 
to watch TV when she wasn't feeling well

 They are addicted to the iphone and looking at pics and videos. Seriously, they love it. 

Too bad I only let them look at it for a few minutes each day.

I left the room for about 5 seconds while Graham was out of town
and I came back to this  ...

 We bought new Sharpie paint pens. When she realized a puddle of "ink" was created by holding the tip down, she decided she needed to get her pheasant feather and start writing by dipping into the "ink." Where does she get this stuff??!

 waiting on dinner

 playdate with her friend Landry

 working on Christmas cards

 a real tea party, only one cup was broken

While Graham was out of town, EB rested in the big bed in L's room each night when I sang lullabies to L. Each night, she was asleep by the time I got L into her bed. The second night, EB was in a swimsuit over leggings and a skirt when she crashed. Moved her to her own bed, and she never woke up. Nice.

That's life, lately,

- ashley