Madeleine is 2!

Birthdays only come around once a year, so Madeleine has to celebrate in style! Mama made a pan each of manicotti and lasagna, and Joddie and her boyfriend Evan came for dinner with Lucky Dog in tow. There was much reading of books, opening of presents, eating, and of course playing with new toys. Little Monster thoroughly enjoyed her yellow cake with chocolate icing, and even managed to clean up some pasta.

Grandma B.J. and Grandpa Roger sent a Little Tikes car for our little Flintstone girl, who will move her feet in the car, but only if Mama or Daddy obligingly pushes. There was also a Little Mermaid ride-on/push toy that makes lots of wonderful noises, a bucket of sidewalk chalk, a princess dress from Grandma Raye that Munchkin is particularly fond of ("pretty dress" as she calls it), and some graphic design puzzles for age 3 and up that she mastered within minutes of unwrapping. PoppaDen made a good call on those.
A weekend in Georgia is never complete without some outside time, and this past weekend was no exception. After a morning of errand-running, Mama and Sweet Goblin donned swim suits and hung out in the backyard. Mama hoped to convince Madeleine to play in the hose, but we apparently need to buy an actual sprinkler before she will deign to run through the water. We'll try again this weekend.

Madeleine and Mama took some cupcakes to Miss Megan's house to celebrate her birthday with the "kids" that she plays with on days that Mama has to work. Mama especially enjoyed spending a few hours watching Madeleine play with the kids, climbing up the slide and going down by herself, then letting Ruff Ruff take a turn, and in general wreaking havoc on Miss Megan's patio. Madeleine took home some balloons and got to wear a "Birthday Queen" crown for the occasion.

Miss Priss shows off her cheesy smile for the camera. This is in our backyard, with her brand new car in the background. Word has it that Aunt Joddie was responsible for coaxing this grin out.Aunt Joddie also managed to capture a few family shots, which are rare. We're actually quite fond of this one.

Impending Party!

Tickle Bug turns two this Thursday, but the best time for a party is on the weekend before, so you can dance and sing and run around and yell as much as you want at your birthday party. That's just a few hours away today. Madeleine expects her friend Oliver to join us today, along with his parents, and there's also a planned visit from Joddie who will be bringing Madeleine's favorite houseguest, Lucky Dog. Mama is making lasagna, manicotti, and cupcakes to help celebrate the event, and Daddy was up until midnight last night putting together one of Sweet Girl's gifts.

Yesterday also saw a little bit of pre-party, as Little Monster had patio lunch with her parents after going to Toys 'R' Us to "suggest" a few birthday gifts. After Sweet Goblin's lunch came a delicious sundae, which she wasted no time in demolishing. She also got right into the spirit of a Mexican restaurant patio by chowing down on chips and salsa (necessitating much drinking of juice to assuage the heat — but then she dove right back in) as well as no small amount of guacamole. Who is this omnivorous Little Werewolf?

A Passel of Pictures

With all of Mama and Daddy's travel, it's been a while since our last update. Suffice to say, it's been busy catching up, but Tickle Bug has been enjoying all of the attention from both her parents and her grandparents on Mama's side. Without further ado, then, here are several of the pictures from the past few weeks of jet-setting.