Wednesday, April 22, 2009

A Peabody-Perfect Day

Today we went with the Days to see the Marching of the Ducks at the Peabody Hotel, but our morning turned out to be much more special then we had bargained for. ABOVE: Checking out the ducks in their house outside the hotel before their march.
Patiently waiting for the ducks to make their appearance.
And here they are........... and while Somer and I were waiting for the ducks we had a conversation about where to eat lunch. I believe I said to Somer, "I wonder what the hubbies would say if we just treated ourselves to Capriccio for lunch?" "HaHa" we thought and then had a brief discussion about whether it would be the usual Chick-Fil-A and, if so, mall or free-standing, or try somewhere downtown. Well, little did we know, a very kind Mr. Gregg Herning, the General Manager of the Peabody Little Rock, was standing right behind us and overheard our conversation. He suddenly says, "I would love to have you ladies and your 4 beautiful children as our guest in the restaraunt today." Somer and I are thinking, "No you don't. Are you sure? REALLY? 4 preschoolers in a 4 star fine-dining establishment!!" He insists. He even takes us down to the gift shop and lets each of the kids pick out 2 Peabody rubber duckies to take home (which also gave them something to keep them occupied during lunch. smart man!)

Trip put his crisply starched napkin in his lap like a proper gentleman.


Our waiter was kind enough to take a group picture.
After our delish lunch of cheese pizza for the kids, Tuscan chicken salad for me, and mushroom ravioli for Somer, our waiter brought out this super-impressive dessert. They were apple cinnamon, strawberry, tiramisu, lemon, and chocolate.
Yummmm....
mmmmmm.....
mmmmmmmyyyyyy!!

Then everyone got one last look at the ducks before we called it a day.
Thank you sooooo much, Mr. Herning! It truly was lovely...... and, by the way, during the duck march today they were filming for some kind of USA Today contest for best travel experiences which will be on YouTube and possibly national television. Maybe that's the catch with the free lunch- he knows that they caught something horribly embarrassing of one of us on video. Let's hope not!
We were about to get in the van, which was parked in front of The Old State House , Arkansas' 1st capitol building, when the kids spotted the fountain. We went and walked around the grounds of the now museum and, since it has free admission, went inside for a little while.


Trip wanted to go check out the "grapes."
They "danced" in the old ballroom.

Ruby enjoyed seeing all of the 1st ladies' Inaugural Ball gowns. ........What a great day!!

Tuesday, April 21, 2009

Easter, finally

On Sat. before Easter, the kids and I went to Memphis sans Rex. He had an awful stomach bug and, though I hated to leave him alone, I hated even more the thought of a 2 or 3 yr. old with a stomach virus............ Ruby chose spinach, strawberries, blueberries, and Coke for the Easter Bunny's snack (Trip was at meltdown stage at this point of the evening).
Enjoying some Easter appropriate books with YaYa.

Ruby trying on her new Barbie sunglasses from the Easter Bunny. Ruby said, "These will be perfect for when we go to the beach." Yes, Ruby. What an insightful Easter Bunny. =)
Enjoying YaYa & D-Daddy's swing before Easter lunch.

The kids & Uncle Jer helped D-Daddy put out corn and apples for the deer.

Ruby was thrilled that it was ok to pick these "flowers."

Trip was really into his car this weekend.
Aaawww.... the brother/sister photo opp.



YaYa pulled out all the stops this year and we ate on fine china and sterling in the dining room.
I had to take a picture of my view of Ruby during lunch. There was something humorous about seeing her through sterling candlesticks- just not a combination I see too often.
And we finished the lovely weekend with an egg hunt in the front yard just in the nick of time before the downpour of rain began.
YaYa had filled the eggs with jelly beans, money, and stickers. Fun!
If Rexy could have been there, the weekend would have been perfect. Thank you YaYa, D-Daddy, & Jer!

Friday, April 10, 2009

The end of yet another era

With Trip turning 2 it seems like we've been saying "farewell" to many baby things lately- the crib, the pacie, and now the highchair. Trip has really been objecting to the highchair lately and wanting a "big boy" seat like Ruby. I found these cute Keekaroo seats on Ebay and they came in today. I was originally just looking for a seat for Trip and then realized that mealtimes with Ruby would be SO much easier with a booster with a strap(you can't tell in this pic but the seat is strapped to the chair and she is strapped in- unlike our previous one that just sat on the seat and had no straps for Ruby). She was happy to trade the black booster for the pinky-purple one. Anyone need a booster seat? I'll be putting that skull cracker on Ebay. =) ........... Hopefully, it won't be too much longer until we're saying "farewell & good riddins" to diapers!

The Hunt

Today was Easter Egg Hunt day at MDO. The kids were so excited and looked so stinkin' cute that I had to take some pics.

And what do ya know, I actually got some decent pics of them together! Miracles do happen!

Rexy Turns 30!

On April 8th, Rex turned the big 3-0! Unfortunately, his b'day fell during his super busy time of the month at work so we didn't get to do any celebrating. I did have this cookie cake for him when he got home sometime after 11 p.m.

We've never had a good grill- just a tiny Smoky Joe, so I thought turning 30 would be a good excuse to finally buy Rex a grill. Trip had to help Dad with the manly stuff and get the grill out to the porch.
I can't believe we're no longer twenty-something. Ugh! .......Happy Birthday to my amazing hubby, Rexy! I love you so much!

Wednesday, April 1, 2009

Hello Dentist, Bye-Bye Pacie

Trip has never been a big fan of having his teeth brushed. So, yesterday I had the dentist take a look at Trip's teeth while we were there for Ruby's cleaning (which, by the way, he was sooo good and sat perfectly still). No cavities but he did remind me that it was time to get rid of the pacie. As soon as we got in the car I explained to Trip that he was now 2 and a big boy so he didn't need a pacie anymore- pacies are for babies. At nap time he said, "no pacie. I big boy now" and that was pretty much it. I couldn't believe that he went to sleep with no fuss at all. He was a little whinier than usual this morning but overall this no-pacie transition has been a breeze. Way to go, Trippy! You really are a big boy!............ I hope potty-training will be this easy.

MARCH 30, 2009

Happy 2nd birthday, our precious little Trip....... August 2007
October 2007
December 2007
March 2008
October 2008......... You have become such a big boy so quickly! You are our joy and laughter and we love you soooo much! Happy Birthday!