Emmylou had a big weekend! First, she got a new carseat since she's such a big girl now. She even gets to face forward! Here she is testing it's snooze-worthiness:

Emmylou [settling into left side of seat]: "Ahhh, uh-hmm... yes.... I do believe this, uh, seat here is just ri.....zzzz....zzzz"



Then, Friday evening, Pawpaw and Nana came over for dinner and to celebrate her birthday. Here's Emmylou with them and a delicious cake they brought for her:



Starting in on it...



Nearing the end...



And so unhappy when we finally took it away!



Pawpaw and Nana gave Emmylou some great presents, including her first cowgirl hat and the cute western dress I had wanted for her a while ago (see July '06 archives)!




So cute! Had we known what we were in for last night, she could've worn both! We went to the Brentwood Tavern for dinner and some live music that ended up being all covers of Johnny Cash, Townes Van Zandt and the like. Here's Emmylou dancing with her daddy-- two-stepping already, when she's just learned to walk!



Today Grammie came in for lunch and some afternoon shopping where Emmylou got a new pair of sandals! The man at the store measured Emmylou's feet and called them (and I quote) "tiny princess feet." Um, excuse me?! He said that most one-year-olds have size 5 or 6 feet while Emmylou only wears a 3! Could this really be my flesh and blood? Given that I have the most gi-normous size 11 feet, for the first time, I'm suspecting they switched babies on me at the hospital. Here's a pic of her new sandals (that Aunt Emmy bought for her as a birthday gift!) that she'll get to wear with lots of cute springtime outfits.

Can you hardly contain yourself? Two posts in one day! But I had to share this photo-- Emmylou climbed into Lola's bed with her. Doesn't Lola look a little worried?

I never thought I'd have to tell someone this, but today I told Emmylou, "Please don't put that cookie in your ear." Here she is with cookie everywhere else on her face...

After many attempts to capture Emmylou walking on camera, we finally caught a couple of steps last night. She's very cautious but seems to be getting more and more excited about what she's able to do. You'll have to turn your head sideways for the second part- I accidentally filmed it vertically (again) with my camera. Ooops.

We spent the weekend painting Gary's office and then tonight Emmylou got to meet Ashley and Keith's new baby!

Gary says he should be the official picture-taker from now on, because he took these two photos that he thinks are sooo cute.





I kind of have to agree.

Also, remember that post a couple of weeks ago about how Emmylou makes her "cute" face on demand? It's gotten even worse and meal times pretty much look like this:



Sitting between these two grinning maniacs feels a little ridiculous at times, but of course I can't help but love 'em.

I have to show y'all what Emily got for Lulu out of the Grammy gift bag!







I knew the Baby Beatles CD existed because my friend Yvonne had it in Baltimore, but Baby Coldplay and Baby U2?! It's children's music I can actually tolerate for more than 5 playings! And actually, these are just a few that we have-- Em got the whole set that also includes Baby Metallica, No Doubt, Pink Floyd and The Ramones! Thanks, Em!

Emmylou was all about the Oscars last night. Here she is reading my Oscar fashion book and checking out the celebs on the red carpet...

I tried to post again in New Orleans but it wouldn't work, so here are more pics from Mardi Gras. Emmylou took her first steps on Fat Tuesday! I tried over and over to get a video of it but to no avail. Hopefully I'll be able to capture it this weekend for y'all!

With her loot on the ladder during a parade...



In her new Metro Three t-shirt...


Gettting passed around the backyard among all the crazies...


Tony Soprano was king of Bacchus...


At R & O's for lunch with everyone...


Emmylou stayed home while the big kids went to see my cousin Chris' band play on Lundi Gras (Chris is on the right playing mandolin)...


Out for Zulu and Rex in her goldfish costume Mardi Gras day...


Throw us something, Mister!


With Grammie, Lizzie and Tessa...


Getting cozy among all the stuffed animals and beads she caught (I swear she caught more during her first parade than I've caught in the last five years)...


And although it was so much fun celebrating Mardi Gras, we should all still remember that 99% of New Orleans continues to be completely debilitated from Katrina. Here are some photos I took from around the city. It's hard to believe it's been 18 months since the storm and it still looks like this.

We are at Mardi Gras! I don't have much time to post, but here are some photos so far...









Yes, she had her first trip to Bourbon Street yesterday! For all of our guy readers out there, you may be impressed that we walked behind Archie and Payton Manning in the quarter for a while!

Dear Emmylou,

Today you turned eleven months old. Already! How did that happen? It has gone by in the blink of an eye. Daddy and I were talking today about how you change daily, learning all kinds of new things. Lately you've been really into talking and I think you're close to getting "dada" and "mama" down. You can stand on your own for just a second before losing your balance and you're trying to figure out how to pick up toys and stand up at the same time. I think it'll take a little longer for you to get that mastered.

In the past 4 days you've cut 3 new teeth! You have one more that's also getting close, and it's the second top middle tooth, so soon we won't be able to call you "Fang," your latest temporary nickname. It doesn't seem to bother you much as you've still been in a pretty good mood and laughing all the time. It's been fun watching your sense of humor develop and I can almost always guess when something is going to strike you as hilarious. Right now you think that a couple of pig puppets going down a slide into a puddle of mud on one of your Baby Einstein DVDs is hiLARious. Just wait until you can read David Sedaris stories or The Onion!

I'm sure we'll share many a laugh until then and you'll continue to bring out emotions in me that I never knew I would feel. Today, appropriately, is Valentine's Day, and I have never felt so full of love! Having you has felt so right and I am grateful for every day that I get to spend with you.

All my love,
Mama

Yesterday we stopped at Grammie's house in San Antonio on our way back to Austin (after Granny's 85th birthday party- Happy Birthday, Granny!) to help her put some furniture in her car that she needs to take to New Orleans on Wednesday. As we pulled things out of the garage, I was so excited to find this:



According to my mom, it's the corral I used along with Emily, Lizzie and the neighborhood kids so the parents could relax (and, most likely, grab a much-needed drink). Since Emmylou has had me constantly chasing her out of the fireplace and other dangerous areas in our house, I thought it'd be perfect to set up in the living room. Turns out Emmylou didn't like it at all and once I realized those openings are roughly the size of an 11 month old's head, I decided to put it away.

I know it's been almost another week since my last post, but I have a simple explanation: she's mobile now! Somehow it's gotten a little bit harder finding the time to blog simply because I'm chasing Emmylou around all the time. Oh-- but it could also be due to the fact that I actually have a life here in Austin compared to my relatively lonely existence in Baltimore! Either way, I'll try to do a better job of getting things posted here a little more frequently. Of course, my plan all along has been to continue this blog until Emmylou turns one and then transition to a general Stephens Family blog where I can post special events, vacation photos, etc.; not exactly a play-by-play commentary as this blog has been. Anyway, here are some photos from this past week...


Emmylou has invented her "cute face"- she gives a big smile and scrunches her nose up like she's saying, "Aren't I the cutest kid, like evers?"




Lizzie and Khanh hosted a crawfish boil at our house today. Most of his family came in from Dallas for it and a friend of his brought these two little chihuahua puppies with her. Thank God Emily was already on her way to LA for the Grammys and missed the party so she couldn't try to adopt them.



Here is Emmylou in training for Mardi Gras. We go to New Orleans on Thursday!



Daddy was playing with Emmylou through the window this afternoon. I swear she wouldn't recognize him if he ever looked at her without making some crazily-contorted face!





And here is Lulu with me in front of a nice warm fire...

Let me get y'all caught up on Emmylou's adventures since it's been a while since my last post. After spending all last week still sniffling and coughing, I took Emmylou to the pediatrician again on Wednesday. He assured me that Emmylou is fine and just catching the colds she needs to build up her immune system (surprisingly, no diagnosis of walking pneumonia nor chest x-rays nor breathing treatments needed as I had convinced myself). We stayed inside for the rest of the week as best we could so she could get better and then headed out to Horseshoe Bay to spend the weekend with Lizzie (to celebrate her birthday!) and hang out with Grammie and Emily. Although it was too cold to do much outside, we had fun cooking, chatting, reading and doing whatever else qualifies as a mindless yet relaxing activity. Here are some photos from the last few days:

Playing the coy babushka at the dinner table...


Singing Happy Birthday to Lizzie...


Watching the Superbowl with Daddy...


And playing lots of peekaboo...