Who Needs Toys?...(Volume 2)

I know I've used that title before...but it applies here as well! Usually, when we take Elizabeth to a restaurant, she is content to sit in the high chair and "people watch" or just gaze in wonderment at the servers as they hustle and bustle around tables.

But, last weekend, while in San Diego, we met up with Auntie Sammy and headed to Bennigan's for dinner--(and before you say it, Grandpa: Poor Elizabeth...she couldn't "Bennigan" 'cause she had never been before!)

Anyway, while we were there, she became fascinated with the little pop-up advertisement on the table. And this occupied her for a good 10-15 minutes!

Night-night, Valentine!

Well, I had good intentions today of dressing Elizabeth up in a cute little red skirt and shirt and venturing to Polliwog Park to take some adorable Valentine pictures of her feeding the duckies! In theory, it was a good idea...but here is what went wrong:

First off, the "duckies" are not the same duckies that they appear to be in the picture books. You know, those cute, cuddly, docile, fuzzy little creatures that warm your heart? Yeah...that's a complete myth. In reality, they are rather aggressive and territorial--"attack" duckies, if you will! (No really...it was kinda scary! At one point, if you can picture this...I just abandoned the rest of the piece of bread that we were feeding them, scooped up Elizabeth, and fled!)

Second, about two pictures into "capturing the magic" that turned out to be not-so-magical, the battery on my digital camera died!

So, instead of heartwarming Valentine action photos, I will share with you the next best thing... an adorable picture of a peacefully sleeping Elizabeth! This was taken yesterday as we traveled downtown with Lindsay and Beckett to get some fabric for Lindsay's quilt...which, well...ended up being out of stock! Poor Lindsay. But, it was a fun time anyway! Elizabeth and Beckett enjoyed passing toys back and forth for a while, until Elizabeth conked out about halfway there, temporarily depriving Beckett of a playmate!And here is Beckett, looking a little sad at having lost his playmate to slumber! (Haha...actually, he's a little trouper and it didn't faze him at all! He seemed quite happy and contented the whole trip...with or without her company!...I just somehow managed to catch him in a millisecond of looking forelorn. Such a little cutie!)

Hope you all had a wonderful Valentine's Day! XXOO!

Frequent Flyer

Okay...so...is it a bad sign when your baby is so familiar with traveling that she packs herself in the suitcase?!?!?
Just asking...After 9 round-trip flights in her short little 15 months (yes, I know....that's crazy!...especially to those of you who are saying things like "I haven't set foot on a plane since 9/11!"), I'm thinking it's time for us to stay home for a while!

Bathtime Peek-A-Boo!

After months of following Mommy and Daddy's lead...last night, Elizabeth initiated her own game of peek-a-boo!

After bathtime, she was lying on the changing table wrapped up in a large giraffe towel.



She pulled the side of the towel over her eyes and waited for Mommy and Daddy to say "Where's Elizabeth?"













That was all she needed before she threw the towel off her face and shrieked with delight when we laughed and responded, "THERE she is!!!!"

What fun!

Snack Time!

To Elizabeth, an open refrigerator door is synonymous with an open invitation to help herself to anything inside it!Usually, she goes straight for the bottle of Vitamin C! Must be Grammy's pro-vitamin influence...either that, or the fun sounds the bottle makes when she shakes it!

Snowy Day!

No, no...not in LA! (Puh-leazzze, people!)


This is in Boulder, Colorado! Elizabeth and I made a last-minute "rush visit" to the Alpha Phi chapter house there last week, and we both had a great time!










She was totally spoiled with attention from all the wonderful girls...and from Becky in particular, who looked after her so that Mommy could get some things done! (Thanks a million, Becky!!!)





It wasn't supposed to snow until the end of the week...but to our surprise--and Elizabeth's sheer delight--the snow arrived early! Twice!

All Bundled Up!

I thought this particular series of pictures deserved its own post! So here it is...Elizabeth dressed in Winter Wonderland attire! Dress provided by Grammy and hat and mittens provided by Grandma! Too bad it didn't snow in Texas!

Christmas Catch-Up Mega-Post!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! Wow! It's been almost a MONTH since I entered anything on this blog...so I have A LOT of catching up to do! We spent a lovely 10 days in Texas for the holidays and had a great time with our families. We took a TON of pictures while we were there...so here is the Christmas Mega-Post!
Elizabeth's first taste of Christmas...and she's not quite sure what to make of it. She gets some fun bath toys from Heather and a little dolly from Grandmommy Jones.




Elizabeth sleeps with Mo (in her mouth) on the road from Houston to Austin!












Elizabeth with her Grandpa, Grams, and cousins Matt and Erin.







Elizabeth with Mommy, Grams, Aunt Jennifer, and Grandma.








Elizabeth looks down from the balcony and wonders when it was that Daddy and Uncle Mike became ROCK STARS!

Elizabeth always on the move at Grammy and Pop-Pop's. (Mommy and Daddy soon learned a lesson about walking around with sippy cup straws! Later that morning, Elizabeth tripped and cut her lip on it! Awww!)

Elizabeth realizes that she is the present!

Mistletoe and Meltdowns

Lest any of you think that Elizabeth is all smiles 100% of the time (alright...it's more like 98%)...we wanted to share with you this moment in time when posing for the camera became too much for her to bear! Awwww!

Here we were, trying (in vain) to capture an adorable shot of her in her Christmas dress sitting in front of a beautiful poinsettia. (You have to agree that would make a nice Christmas card, right?)

Anyway, she was all too happy to crawl around it... or walk away from it...

but as far as sitting still in front of it--that was just too much to ask, and she finally just let loose and wailed! Ah well...we love her little crying face to pieces!!!

Our Favorite Cupcake!

So...it turns out that Elizabeth and I each have a favorite cupcake! Hers is the festive pink-frosted ornament from Dina and Phil that adorns our lovely Christmas tree. And mine...is her!

"Dog-dog-dog..."

Last Saturday, we ventured down to San Diego to visit Auntie Sammy and her cool apartment near USD...and we all took a little trip to the World Famous San Diego Zoo!

Elizabeth showed lots of interest in all the animals, and--not surprisingly--referred to each one as a DOG!

Oh--except for the ducks in the pond with the flamingos--which, of course, are DOKs!

(A subtle difference that probably only Mommy and Daddy can distinguish!)

Posing for the Paparazzi!

Oh dear...it seems Elizabeth can't go anywhere these days without some crazed paparazzo (er...Mommy?) trying to snap a picture of her!

Here she is jumping into her sports car in front of the Ivy!
(Uh...I mean, Daddy's bookcase)!

Someone needs to tell that girl that it's safer to drive facing forward!

YIKES! Here she is attempting to drive with her
BABY IN HER LAP!!!

Now that's just wrong, y'all!

Even with those cool shades, you can't escape the madness!
We still recognize you, EK...and this Elizabeth-obsessed photog has no plans of going away!

FFO

Here we are on a Fun Family Outing to Costco! Actually, I'm not really sure that it can be considered a real FFO since it didn't end in ice cream...(judges ruling, Jules?) Anyway, Elizabeth loves the people watching that is part of the Costco experience!

Note: Handy keep-the-grody-shopping-cart-germs-off-my-baby "Floppy Seat" provided by cousin Heather! This thing is AWESOME!

Little Giggle Box

Every once in a while, something strikes Elizabeth as ding-dang funny...and she can't stop giggling. Here, she was just lounging on the sofa as Mommy took some pictures.














Then, all of a sudden, something I said (I think it was something witty and clever like "Hey! Smile!") set her off!









And then she just laughed her fool head off!

Family of Elves

Well...no picture to post today, but if you follow this link it will be worth MORE than 1,000 pictures! I promise, it will make you laugh! Happy Holidays!

http://www.elfyourself.com/?id=1158057719