Lulu is finally back to normal! I took her to the pediatrician yesterday and her Strep test was negative so we figure she just had a little virus.

After four days of sitting at home doing nothing, it felt great this morning to get out to the hike and bike trail for a walk and to feed the ducks (which didn't show up so we fed some turtles). We also did some marathon grocery shopping at HEB, hit music class, went to my friend Meghan's house for a swim and then met Em at Zocalo for dinner. Gee, I wonder how she got so worn out in the first place?

BTW, further proof that she's on the mend: I only had to watch The Wonder Pets Save the Baby Squirrel three times today. Thank God it's only a 12 minute segment.

Since I don't have any photos of Emmylou to post today and my life has been rather squirrel-centric lately, I thought I'd share this picture with you from Cute Overload a while back:



I mean, who makes sweaters for squirrels?!

I don't know, but I'd probably like them. A lot.

Emmylou's been really clingy this week but just when I was about to consult the manual on what to do for a new phase of separation anxiety, all was explained on Saturday afternoon by the onset of a pretty high fever that's still persisting. She also keeps telling me that her "mouth hurts" and pointing pretty far in there, so I'm assuming it's her throat and thinking she probably has strep throat. Of course her pediatrician is closed today since it's Memorial Day but hopefully we'll get in tomorrow and find out what's going on.

Since we haven't left the house in a couple of days, it's been a Wonder Pets marathon weekend and I think we've watched the episode where the WP's save a baby squirrel who's feet are stuck to the tracks of a roller coaster by cotton candy in Coney Island at least twelve times. And the day isn't over yet.

I've also gotten caught up on my gossip mag reading (which I'd mostly lost interest in ever since their obsession with "The Hills" stars set in), but I'm just a little annoyed with this cover photo:



Not that I would ever compare myself with Angelina Jolie in any way, but this is what she looks like pregnant with only four weeks to go with twins? Any of you who have seen my belly lately can attest to the fact that mine is already much larger with only one baby at 25 weeks. I'm just thrilled I have the rest of the summer to swell exponentially in the stifling Texas heat and humidity.

Love is all around...



I noticed this heart when I was cutting up an eggplant last night! Maybe posting it will help make up for what Gary refers to as the "creepy feet picture" I uploaded for the last post.

We spent another great weekend out at Grammie's lakehouse last week. My aunt, Jane, was in town from Tennessee, so after hanging out at the lakehouse together, she came to Austin on Monday to check out our house along with Emily's, Lizzie's and Carol's.

Here's a photo of Jane playing with Emmylou's very scary, leopard-print (caught at Mardi Gras) snake:





And with Grammie...



Grammie had an owie on her big toe and Emmylou not only put a band-aid on it, she put a sympathy band-aid on her own big toe in the exact same place...



And Carol was looking in Emmylou's mouth trying to figure out what she had to eat for lunch (Lou thought this was very funny)...

Someone has finally conquered her fear of the vacuum cleaner!



Apparently her desire to "I help" was stronger than the terror associated with the loud noise.

Happy Mother's Day! To all of the mothers and grandmothers we love out there, we hope you had a wonderful day. Mine was fantastic, although I think Emmylou was even happier than I was that we decided to ditch our usual attempt at a homemade gourmet Mother's Day brunch and opted for doughnuts instead (many thanks to my sweet husband who braved Krispy Kreme this morning on what must have been their busiest day of the year)...



Afterwards we took the Lou to Kiddie Acres again for some rides since the weather was beautiful but too cool for swimming. I'm sure you're sick of seeing photos of her there, but I thought this one was kind of funny:



And I had to get a photo of her and me... it's our last 1:1 Mother's Day!



It's hard to believe this is our third Mother's Day together. Here are photos from the first and second...

This week has continued in craziness. Emmylou has learned how to open doorknobs so her sleep schedule has been completely turned upside-down now that she thinks she has the freedom to be up at any hour, wherever she wants to be (Mommy's bed). I never went to bed last night until 4:30 a.m.! I'm exhausted but I leave in about an hour for a highly anticipated weekend trip to Port A with my book club. Maybe Emmylou has just been trying to make it easier for me to leave. If so, she's done a really good job over the past few days. I'll miss her, but not those meltdowns she's had lately. Good luck, Gary...

I'll leave you all until next week with some photos Em took of Emmylou on Tuesday. I love them and if any relatives out there would like copies (grandparents are already covered), just leave a comment or send me an email.

Today was crazy.

After a somewhat lazy morning, things really took off after storytime at 10:15 at the library. We got there right on time and Emmylou was her typical self, insisting on being in the very, very front of everything, "helping" the teacher turn the pages of story books and trying to get her mitts on all the felt pieces going on the felt board and every puppet taken out of a bag. I've been taking her for the past couple of months hoping that one day she'll be able to sit and enjoy the stories and songs without having to be told to sit down by the teacher 10 times, but no such luck yet. Mostly I'm horrified because none of the other 40 kids in there seem so impulsive or demanding of attention but I also tend towards thoughts of "can anyone really expect a just-turned two year-old to sit for half an hour without moving?" and "she's not hurting anyone, she's just enthusiastic!" Anyway, storytime is taking a month-long break and I have to admit that I'm a little relieved.

Right after storytime we usually go over to the children's book section and Emmylou plays on the cushy chairs and picks out a book or two to check out. Today was no different, except that when I started to read the book she chose (it was a book about jelly beans-- I'm not kidding) she started re-situating herself on a little wooden chair but somehow slipped and caught her entire body weight by her nose as it smashed into the table in front of us. Her first bloody nose. Got it in a library.

Where did we go from there? Well, after a moderate bout of crying and rushing out to the car, through her tears she told me that she wanted a "buh-guh from Phil's." Is this my kid or what? I said okay, but told her that first we had to go to the bank and then go to her school for next year to drop off a deposit check and her registration packet. Here's a photo of Emmylou in what will be her "purple" classroom next year. She seemed to really like it.



Then we went to Phil's. Yummy and uneventful, thank God. Then we went to my friend's house to drop off some information I've been working on for a charity auction in a couple of weeks. Then we went home for her nap but she fell asleep on the way there and woke up bright-eyed and bushy-tailed just as I was trying to place her gingerly into her bed for more napping. Thus, more entertainment needed for Emmylou by Mommy. At 3:30 we went to music class and straight from there we went to the farmer's market to meet her friend Leo. Here are some photos of Lou playing in the fountains, before she decided to take her diaper off and run around naked. We've been going to the farmer's market for months now and she's been dying to play in those fountains but it was always too cold. Today she didn't hesitate to take part; she was soaked within seconds...





Once I dried her off and put her clothes back on, she ran straight back into the fountains and soaked herself again.

We finally made it home and Emmylou ate dinner, had a bath, read some stories, brushed her teeth and headed to bed.

I'm amazed I can type at this point. However, I did catch myself whispering "I had fun with you today" as I put her down in her bed to sleep.

This happened tonight...

Me: "Emmylou, please go tell your daddy that dinner is ready."

Emmylou: [Running down hallway] "Honey! Dinner is ready!"

You'd think we live on a farm with the number of interactions Emmylou has had with livestock lately. Here she is feeding some goats this past weekend:



Going toe-to-toe with one...



And chasing a poor chicken...



We spent the weekend at Grammie's lakehouse on Lake LBJ and made a trip over to Sweet Berry Farm to pick strawberries (and to see goats and chickens, natch).

Picking with Grammie...



Picking by "I-self" (showing us the rare berry that didn't have a bite taken out of it before getting tossed into the basket)...



Riding with her stash in the wagon...



And enjoying the strawberry ice cream they sell out there...



We went to this farm almost exactly a year ago. To see how different Lulu looked then, check out the post here. She has so much more hair!

Dear Emmylou,

So I almost let April slide without an update for you, but I just couldn't do it because you're doing such hilarious stuff these days! Let me fill you in...

About a month ago you went from saying one or two things at a time to using (mostly) complete sentences. One I hear a lot is "I want watch Elmo Potty Time." Yes, Elmo's Potty Time is your favorite "movie" of the moment and you are so interested in potty training that I think you're getting close to training yourself. I say that you're training yourself because I'm not really sure I'm ready for you to try it for real. I know you're close but I'm afraid that if we start now you may regress when the new baby comes so I'm thinking it might just be better to wait another six months. Who knows if we can make it that long, though, because this weekend you pooped in the potty three separate times! Of course that brought a new little song you keep singing, which is "I poop potty," which you sang me over the phone many, many times.



Something else I hear all the time: "I-self" or "I do self." Self-explanatory.

Another: "I help." Yes, you like to help with everything. Mostly, you can't stand my doing anything in the kitchen without helping. Whether it's baking cookies or making soup or just a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, if you see me head in there, you drag your chair from the table and are up in the midst of everything in 10.2 seconds flat. If we're putting ingredients in a bowl, you absolutely insist on tasting everything and remarking "mmmm, that's good!" to whatever it might be: flour, baking soda, chopped raw onions.

You are definitely exploring emotions. Even though you are the happiest child I have ever seen, sometimes out of the blue, you'll say "I sad." When I ask if you need a hug, you take it willingly and then tell me, "Thanks, much better [nodding and squinting slightly, very seriously]." You also like to say "I happy" at various times and we talk about what makes us feel different ways. One way you like to mark a happy, festive occasion is by clinking glasses or spoons or popsicles in a toast-like fashion when we're eating.

People these days are calling you a "social butterfly" and always remark about how outgoing, confident and independent you are. They can also tell how sweet you are. Lately you have to tuck in your stuffed animals next to you before you can lay down and go to sleep yourself, and whenever you hear a baby crying, you immediately say "I help" and "get baby bottle." I know you're going to be a sweet big sister because you like to talk to your brother through my belly button and softly rub my belly and give it kisses.

I couldn't possibly love you more,
Mommy

P.S. Here you are playing on the bed at Grammie's house...

Just got Lou's birthday pics from Em!

The set-up at the park...



I made Wonder Pets cupcakes...



Emmylou played with her friends and Daddy...



Some of the kids played music with the instruments we brought...




When it was time for a cupcake, she chose Linny and not Ming-Ming!















All the kids loved the pinata...















And Emmylou opened some presents...





Did you notice how most of the other kids were wearing their Wonder Pets capes Lizzie made? Emmylou wouldn't wear one!!!

Thanks, Em, the photos really captured the fun we had that day!