The Adventures of Emmylou and Miller, Too!

Bus trip!

2010-01-05T19:18:00.000-08:00

Emmylou has been asking me for months (okay, maybe it's been a full year by now) to take a ride on a bus. I kept promising but it was Grammie who ended up making it really happen. She found a great destination for us-- a place where most people who are riding the bus are going, I'm sure-- The Four Seasons. Grammie and Carol found themselves there on New Year's Eve and saw that they had a fantastic village of gingerbread houses that they knew Emmylou would love.

Waiting at the bus stop...

There's our bus!

Emmylou got on and actually said, "Hmm, so this is what a bus looks like."
Then at every stop she'd ask, "Is this us?"
We drove past the Capitol
and finally reached our destination.
The gingerbread village!

After seeing the gingerbread houses we went to get some lunch at Le Cafe Crepe. It felt like we were in Paris!
An actual French woman was making crepes:
Emmylou was loving on Grammie lots.
Guess what we ate? Yep, crepes and more crepes.
Then we waited at the bus stop that was next to one of the big, painted Austin guitars that are spread around town.
Another successful adventure! Apparently when Emily and I were about Emmylou's age we also requested to take a bus ride so Carol and Grammie took us. Within the first few minutes of boarding the bus caught on fire so we were pleased to avoid a similar fate. Yay!

Christmas 2009

2010-01-04T09:16:00.000-08:00

Here are the photos from Christmas Eve and Christmas day. I think it's safe to say it was a whopping success.

On Christmas Eve, Emmylou stayed up to put out cookies and milk for Santa and carrots for Rudolph. She and I had made Christmas cookies a few days before and I let her sneak a tiara cookie cutter in with the snowflakes and candy canes. She definitely wanted Santa to have one of those.
She also had to give Birdie a kiss goodbye since his work was finished and he'd be hitching a ride back to the North Pole on Santa's sleigh.
Christmas morning: Look at all that loot!
Miller was half-asleep but liked his little car more than it appears in this picture.
Princess Emmylou was thrilled with her castle.

Grammie, Emmy and Mimi came over bright and early to watch the kids open their presents.
Yes, this is Emmylou's, but if it's got wheels, Miller wants it.

We hope your Christmas was just as fun!

Miller is 16 months old

2010-01-02T20:21:00.001-08:00

Miller, wearing Daddy's new BBQ gloves...

Dear Miller,

One word: FUN. You're there! You've reached the turning point! You laugh, you dance, you "talk," play games... you are, seriously, a great time. Yes, I believe you have a touch of your daddy's temper, but I also still think you are one of the sweetest things that ever existed. You love your Ugly Doll Jeero and you immediately cuddle with him or anything else soft you find (me, included!). You love to give kisses and hugs and you're always looking for Emmylou to play with you. You finally started saying "Dada" this month and your daddy is having a fantastic time with you as well. Today he took you to Home Depot and you got to pretend to drive the riding lawnmowers! You love anything with a wheel or anything you can throw. You seem to understand everything I say. You actually answer almost every yes/no question I ask you by nodding or shaking your head and I'd give you about a 90% reliability rating. Pretty remarkable, if you ask me. I'm amazed that when I ask you if you want to take your jacket off you nod "yes" and hand me your sleeve to help. Obviously you're not a little baby anymore. You're eager to be included in all the activities going on around our house and I couldn't be more excited to help you learn more and experience all kinds of fun, exciting things. There are so many things I can't wait to show you!

I couldn't love you more, Miller! Happy 16 months to you, Monkey.
Love,
Mama

Wanna be Grinch-a-licious? There's an app for that!

2010-01-02T19:08:00.001-08:00

If you know me pretty well, you know I LOVE How the Grinch Stole Christmas. Not the Jim Carrey trainwreck-of-a-movie version, but the old, classic, Boris Karloff-narrated cartoon by Dr. Seuss. Well, we've been calling Emmylou "Emmy-Lou-Who" for ages but now our entire family can be made into the awesome Grinch characters! Yep, there's an app for that! The other day I stumbled upon it, gasped, and downloaded it as fast as my little iPhone could. Had I found it early enough it would've been our Christmas card. At least I can post our photos here for all to behold. Enjoy... (isn't Gary's great?!)

Hours of fun, people. Hours.

Lions, Otters and Mice Kings (oh, my!)

2010-01-02T18:34:00.001-08:00

In the days leading up to Christmas, Emmylou kept busy by going to lots of theatrical events. First, Grammie, Emily and Lizzie took her to Ballet Austin's Nutcracker performance where she talked for days about "all those kids who kept coming out of that lady's skirt." She was also really into the Mouse King, having watched the episode where the Wonder Pets save the nutcracker from the crazy mouse king... oh, about a thousand times. Also, she's recently just decided that she wants to ditch swimming lessons this semester in favor of starting a ballet class so I think this made quite an impression on her.

Next up was a showing of one of Emily's and my childhood faves, Emmet Otter's Jugband Christmas at the Alamo Drafthouse. Emily, Tripp and his mom joined us and we all thoroughly enjoyed the jug band that played some songs from the movie beforehand. Emmylou's favorite part was when they handed out free candy. Emily and I could hardly contain ourselves and kept squealing over the cuteness of all those varmints who've fallen on hard times in the holler.

The next day we were treated to an amazing performance of The Lion King by Pawpaw and Nana in San Antonio. I've wanted to see the musical since its inception and even after years of hearing how incredible it is, it still surpassed my expectations. Emmylou was captivated by it all, and she still talks about the elephants that walked right past us down the aisle and up onto the stage. Wow. Just wow.

And fun!! Thanks, everyone, for Emmylou's crash course in theater arts! She just might thank you one day when she wins an Academy Award.

Wondering where our Christmas card is?

2009-12-24T14:38:00.000-08:00

If you typically receive a Christmas card from us, don't worry, we haven't decided we don't like you! I'm just a little behind, but I promise they're in the works and will get to you in the next week.

In the meantime, know that we all wish you a very Merry Christmas!!

xoxo, Becca, Gary, Emmylou + Miller

Longhorn on wheels

2009-12-21T09:32:00.000-08:00

Birdie's return

2009-12-07T14:14:00.000-08:00

As I'm always on the hunt for new ways to bribe Emmylou into behaving, it's nice that with the joyous Christmas season comes the return of Birdie, our Elf on the Shelf. If you don't know, Birdie works for Santa and is specifically assigned to watch Emmylou and Miller each day. He reports on their naughty-or-nice-ness each night when he flies back to the North Pole and then returns to hide in a new spot in our house each morning. Emmylou absolutely loves looking for him when she wakes up (he's the first thing she asks about) and it's pretty easy to get her to do/stop doing something if I threaten to tell Birdie about it. He even takes cell phone calls from HEB, if you can believe it.

Although she's asking a lot of logistical questions this year such as, "Mommy, how does Birdie fly all the way to the North Pole every night?" and, "How does Birdie talk to tell Santa I've been good?" (yes, she's realized he's clearly an inanimate object) she seems mildly satisfied when I answer by saying "it's magic!" (I try to put lots of enthusiasm behind it so it's more convincing.)

The other day she decided to draw Birdie a picture, which sounds really sweet but I think it was really an attempt to make up for some earlier misbehaving. Birdie happened to be watching her and Miller from the Christmas tree that day and when I came into the room later I saw that she had rolled up her picture and put it right next to him so he could take it back with him to the North Pole that night.

Last day

2009-12-07T13:47:00.000-08:00

Hello, out there!

Due to technical difficulties (those being that we've broken every picture-taking device in our house except for my iPhone), I haven't had much to post lately. But, that doesn't mean we don't have big news! In case you haven't heard, Gary has started his new job with a certain large software company which, 48 hours into, he absolutely loves. Yes, it's early, but I'm hoping that continues. :)

So while they're rolling out the red carpet for him in San Francisco this week, I'm trying not to lose my mind having the kids on my own for 6 days. Emmylou must be at the apex (it couldn't possibly get any worse) of boundary-testing and trying out new ways of expressing her anger. Fun stuff. I'm also on-guard every second she and Miller are near each other because I'm seriously afraid for his life. I love her but I'm pretty sure that kid is 98% responsible for the stress that led to me getting shingles. *repeating mantra "it's only a phase... it's only a phase...*

Anyway... here's a photo (of awful quality) of G and E on his last day after 11 years at Dell!

If you bleed burnt orange, look away...

2009-11-24T19:34:00.000-08:00

Even though our friends the Rileys are die-hard Aggies, we actually like them quite a bit. So when they invited us to spend Saturday afternoon in their fancy-schmancy box suite for the A&M vs. Baylor game, we happily accepted. To show what good sports we are, we even let Emmylou get Aggie tattoos on her cheeks and wear maroon (or maybe we'll just call it 'burgundy'?).

The Rileys really know how to experience a football game. We were in a warm, enclosed room with a private bathroom, couch and 2 TV's, had a catered dinner and open bar (with a bartender-slash-babysitter) and enjoyed a perfect view of the field and those crazy yelling guys in white.

Thanks, Rileys! We had a blast and wouldn't have played along for just anybody. :)

Link to Lizzie and Khanh's photos

2009-11-23T17:38:00.000-08:00

To see some fab photos from Lizzie and Khanh's wedding, CLICK HERE (and scroll down). Their photographer was fantastic!

More Mermaid!

2009-11-23T13:04:00.000-08:00

Aunt Emmy took Emmylou on a little outing yesterday so see a play of The Little Mermaid and to go to Yogurt Planet. She had so much fun! Thanks, Aunt Emmy!!

Couple of cuties... (IMHO)

2009-11-22T11:03:00.001-08:00

Made with real princesses

2009-11-22T11:00:00.000-08:00

Campbell's couldn't resist cashing in on the princess hysteria as well.

And guess who bought it for her... Yep, Grammie. :)

Lizzie is married!

2009-11-20T14:31:00.000-08:00

Congratulations to Lizzie and Khanh! Here are a few photos from their beautiful wedding last weekend!

And here's a photo of their wedding cake I made. To say that I am breathing a huge sigh of relief now that it's done is a HUGE understatement.

Yay! What a fun night! Welcome to the family, Khanh.

Trick or treat

2009-11-03T17:11:00.000-08:00

I think most people have already seen these photos on Facebook, but just to document them here, I give you our trick-or-treating photos:

Ariel and Sebastian...

Earlier in the day we went to Lifetime (our gym) for a big Halloween party. Miller won a prize there for his crab costume which I thought was a bit ironic for several reasons:

1) The ratio of time I spent on Emmylou's costume compared to his was about 100:1.
2) The ratio of money I spent on Emmylou's costume compared to his was about 4:1.
3) His costume is actually a lobster costume.
4) His costume is actually made for a dog, not a human being.

Whatever, isn't he the cutest crustacean evers??!

We had LOTS of lazy candy-givers on our street. Come on, don't these people want to hear "fwick-uh-fweet" all night? Truth be told, (sadly) Emmylou was actually pronouncing the "t" in those words by the end of the night. *sniffle*
Here's Lou's stash which she traded (minus 10 pieces) to the Switch Witch last night for a Snow White dress-up dress.

And here's a photo of Emily and I dressed up as Little and Big Edie from Grey Gardens. We went out to a Halloween party and were happily surprised by how many people knew who we were!

Of course we highly recommend that you check out the movie that came out this past year if you haven't seen it. :)

Happy Halloween!

Miller is 14 months old

2009-11-02T20:15:00.001-08:00

Dear Miller,

Hi, remember me? It's your mommy here with a long overdue update on your life! So, let's get started...

You are so, so, SO busy these days! (Which means I'm so, so busy, too, and why you haven't received an update lately.) You hardly ever walk anymore-- you run. You get into everything. Keeping up with you is about as easy as chasing a tornado and the only thing you might like better than running around is being held, then being put down. Then being held, then being put down. Then being held...

Daddy keeps calling you a Mama's boy and I'm completely fine with that. You're definitely having some separation issues at the moment and you do break out into a full cry if I even leave the room for a second or think about stepping over the baby gate away from you and heading down the hall. Luckily you're still pretty easily distracted so leaving you at the gym or with a babysitter hasn't been a problem as long as I find you a truck or car to play with then sneak out.

You continue to absolutely torture me with your picky-ness. For God's sake, child, would you please eat something?! The only things I can guarantee you'll eat are Craisins, graham crackers and yogurt and I think you might be happy eating those three things for every meal for the rest of your life. Refried beans are the only non-sweet thing you'll even think about eating. I continue to try giving you tons of different things every day in hopes that you'll find something else you just absolutely must eat daily but I usually just end up exasperated. Surely this will improve soon, right?

You are starting to communicate more but unlike your sister you aren't too interested in using much sign language. You still point at things constantly and wave 'hi' and 'bye' but you don't really use 'more' unless I ask you to. Mostly you communicate by saying 'uh-oh' a million times per day, especially when you throw anything and everything on the floor (repeatedly). You're also using this new screech/scream you like to make when things don't quite go your way. Yes, the full-blown tantrums are on the horizon- I see them coming.

In happier news, when she's not nearly suffocating you or trying to pick you up and relocate you out of her way, your sister is really enjoying playing with you. You guys laugh and laugh and have some real back-and-forth games you like to play. Y'all still love flopping around on the bed and you can't get enough of her or anyone else chasing you. You also love it when Daddy throws you around and tickles you, of course, because he's really good at that. Your favorite toys are bristle blocks, cars and trucks, balls and puzzles. You also LOVE books.

As for your soft side, you still love to give hugs and will come up and hug everyone's legs, especially mine. Anything soft and squishy you find you immediately put on the floor and then lay your little head down on it to test it out. Really, it is so sweet. Whenever you go to sleep we put your Ugly Doll Jeero in bed with you and you've started holding its little arm as you drink your milk and go to sleep. We'll have to see if it receives Babo-like status from you soon.

You are a sweet, sweet boy, Miller. You just might have a hint of Daddy's temper too, but it's exciting watching you grow and seeing you have your own ideas and expectations. I just wish those ideas included eating more than dairy products and cookies.

Love you, Little Man!
Mommy

Emmylou's costume revealed!

2009-10-27T20:16:00.000-07:00

I've been swearing to Gary that I'd update the blog but I've been a little preoccupied the last few nights finishing Emmylou's costume. It had to be finished by last night because her class had their costume parade this morning. So, here she is before we left the house (ta-da!):

Then, at school her class paraded into the chapel for their little performance:

I really like how her teacher is carrying her wig in their drink caddy.

All was well until Emmylou saw her friend Annie's bride costume. When we got home this afternoon she informed me that she was going to be a bride for Halloween. I said "Oh, really? Next year?" And she said, "no, in four days."

Right....

Pumpkins, Part 2

2009-10-27T20:03:00.001-07:00

We met up with the Rileys, of course :)
Miller definitely thought the best part was pretending to drive the church's golf cart that had a bunch of stinky bags of trash in it.

Pumpkin time again...

2009-10-27T19:40:00.000-07:00

We've been pretty busy lately getting ready for Halloween, Daddy's 40th birthday and Lizzie's wedding but we've still had a little time to stop and smell the pumpkins.

We went out to Sweet Berry Farm again a couple of weeks ago with Grammie.

Check out this FAIL we saw!

More pumpkins to come...

New vocabulary

2009-10-06T13:04:00.001-07:00

Emmylou's been picking up a few phrases from Gary lately. The other day she grabbed the gate that keeps Miller out of the hallway and told me "let's put this bad boy up." Then last night at Guero's Gary gave her some hot sauce and she told me he really hooked her up. Geesh!

Personal training

2009-10-05T19:41:00.000-07:00

When push-ups aren't hard enough by themselves, just ask a 35 pound toddler to lay on your back to take it up a notch.

And don't forget the jumping jacks...

Bruiser

2009-10-05T19:35:00.000-07:00

Here's what happens when you squat in the driveway, lose your balance and end up doing a somersault on the concrete:

And here's Miller looking a bit happier and more carefree recently:

He loves to put on hats and he spends most of his days walking around with a golf club in his hand. I seriously could eat him up.

Couple of firsts...

2009-09-10T18:45:00.000-07:00

Miller finally gets to ride in the car facing forward...

and Emmylou had her first full day of preschool in the 3's class!

Here's her photo from last year's first day of school:

They've both gotten so big! *sniffle*

Alright, alright...

2009-09-02T17:14:00.001-07:00

We took Miller to Top Notch tonight for his birthday dinner. It's one of Gary's favorite spots since parts of Dazed and Confused were filmed there. Miller chowed down on his cheeseburger and fries and also enjoyed his cupcake from Hey Cupcake!, but his favorite thing was... (please don't call CPS) Diet Coke. I guess that's not so surprising because I just looked back at Emmylou's first birthday and her favorite thing was also the drink.

Thanks, Em, for shooting most of the photos!!