Exersaucer Partay

At 4 months, David has moved into the next phase of babyhood: the exersaucer. Teya has apparently reverted back to the exersaucer phase with her peculiar desire sit and play in it for long periods of time. No complaining here - captive children enable me to get something, anything done around the house. She also likes to sit in "David's little Bumbo chair" - her words - and his bouncy seat.

Taking turns in the exersaucer....never thought I'd need two of these enormous contraptions.As of Monday, David no longer tolerates time his back. As soon as I set him on his back, he pulls his knees up and rolls to his tummy. He's able to scoot backwards & is interested in pulling his knees underneath, so I suspect we'll have an early crawler. I suspect, too, that with another mobile little one, our life is about to change again.

Teya the artist. Much to my dismay, over the past couple days, Teya has a new favorite color: black. This picture doesn't show it, but she's been choosing to use black paint rather than the rest of the palate. Oh well. I guess I can't control everything, particularly my daughter's choice of color.

Potty Thanks

"Dear Jesus, thank you for the potty. Amen." Enough said.

Hugs for Mama

A much-deserved day off of work for my mom took us on an adventure with her to Coolidge park today, where we enjoyed a coolish, crisp couple of hours this morning.

These are days to remember. The skies are crystal clear, the sun is just warm enough & the breezes are frequent enough to dissolve any fleeting thoughts that I might begin to sweat. As David sleeps peacefully in his baby carrier, his sweet arm hanging limp out the side of the carrier, Teya chatters away about how God made the boats on the river & giggles when the grass tickles her toes. She points out, too, that the flowers on the bank of the river are zinnias. Note that every flower is a zinnia since that's all we grew in our pitiful flower garden this summer. A walk up to River Street takes us to the River Street Deli, an authentic New York deli, where I enjoy a mix of salads & Teya begs for "one more chip," while I encourage her to have one more bite of something other than chips.

We head back to the carousel for one more look at the animals before turning toward home for naps. While we teeter in the rocking chairs with the drone of circulation fans and cheesy carnival music in the backround, a drowsy baby falls asleep again on Nina, much to her delight. Who can pass up the sweet treat of a baby falling asleep in your arms, even if for a few fleeting minutes. The taste of salt & vinegar chips lingers even as I write, as do the memories of a sweet day together.

Bathing Beauty

No swimsuit, no problem! Off come the socks, shoes & shorts, only to reveal a pair of ill-fitting, hand-me-down training pants. Perfect for a dip in the cool waterways near the aquarium! You can't imagine how many snickery glances we got from passing tourists. Enjoy it while you can, Teya, and I will, too!

Mr. Intensity

I was talking to someone the other day about how different David and Teya are. If my memory serves me (and it seems to nearly 47% of the time), Teya was always very laid back as a baby, REALLY happy, but also pretty unresponsive and unmotivated. She waited until 10 months to crawl and 15 months to walk. We'd try to entice her to move (or blink) with toys with very little response. What a sweet girl she's always been.

Teya, at 3.5 months

Then there's David. David is in-tense. From the beginning, everything has been full-tilt with him. If he's crying, he's crying with great emphasis. When he babbles, he does so with great inflection and spirit. When he laughs, he laughs from the depths of his belly. When he gnaws on his hands, the volumes of spit produced could lubricate a small country. When he vomits, the "splat" is a "splat" to be heard around the world. And when this boy plays....oh, how he plays!

What'd she say?

Recently, I've been forgetting all the funny things Teya says all the time. As she grows, so does her verbage, and I realize that we're losing many of the amazingly cute things she says like.....


*She was anxious to see "Dr. Suess" during a visit to Dr. Anderson in Atlanta.


*"Fich-a-lake," or Chik-fillet (her pronounciation is better than my spelling)

* "Mommy, I like beans. God made the beans."


* morning routine: "Mama, come get Teya out of bed. Open the door, turn off the fan and get Teya out of bed!"

* Green beams

* "Mama, let's talk. How's your day?"



A Recent conversation:
P: "Teya don't get too close to the edge, or you'll be in big trouble."
M: "Maybe we should talk about how getting too close to the edge is dangerous, not how she'll get in trouble for getting too close."
T: "Daddy, I forgive you."
D: "Goooo. Gahhh."

* "What's his name. What's he doing. Where's he going?"

* "Let's see if Millie is on the 'puter" (that's computer)

* Promptly, after David wakes from a nap, T. instructs me that "Its time for him to go back to bed. He is very sleepy."

* "I love you, Daddy. I'll pray for you."



You're an amazing kid, Teya, and we all love you very much!

Last few weeks...

He DOES smile. Teya has gone from saying, "He cries a lot, a lot," to "He laughs a lot, a lot." Pheww!
Last Monday night at SV: David, the chick-magnet. Two things are certain: girls love babies, and Teya loves pizza and cookies!

The deck is coming together slowly but surely. Teya has stopped asking if the deck is done yet. I think she's given up.

Good old and young friends. A visit from Holly Brady Welch and her son, Walker, was great fun. Walker is a few days younger than Teya. We convened at the Tolsons,' and had a great time together!