9 Months Today and a Full House

It feels like Louise's first 9 months have been in fast forward mode, and I wish they were in slow motion instead. I can hardly stand it. Here she is...9 months old today:

In other news, we've had our Alabama visitors with us for a whole week!


For starters, we road tripped it to Mandeville for family, swimming and lunch. 

Thanks Meme and Paw-D for the post-swim feast!

Papaw and Matt

Future heartbreaker

Then it was back to Baton Rouge. The rest of the week looked a little something like this...

The little Rodrigue, blue-handed...

...who later met his match at the Blue Dog exhibit... (Thanks, Papa!)

...followed by lunch with the ladies. 

We're eagerly awaiting the arrival of a couple more visitors this weekend, my sister, Caroline, and our buddy, Jon. It's a full house, and it'll be a lot of fun. Hope your weekend is, too!

Old Friends

I love Wofford College, largely due to the friends I made there. Most of the girls still live in South Carolina, and I made it that way last weekend for a quick visit of fun dinners and a lot of laughs. I don't know when exactly we became classified as old friends, but I'm pretty sure that's what we are now. I've known them for almost 14 years, and that's really, really hard to believe. Here we are 14 years post our freshman year of college:

Over the weekend, we had a few beers on Prentiss' new deck, went out for dinner, did a little group shopping, and went for pedicures...a pedicure different than any other I've experienced. It wasn't so much the pedicure itself that was memorable, more so the chairs in which we sat. They appeared to be typical massage chairs except for the "buttocks" button. With Beth as my witness, that button started a sequence of squeezing, pulsating and knuckle sandwiches to the derriere – the center a lot of laughter and a little yelping.


Seeing the girls brings me back to when we first met. Though it may look it, it doesn't feel like it's been 14 years since this...



I missed seeing the girls who weren't in Columbia over the weekend and can't wait until next time.

Splish Splash and Blog Love

Being mid-July in Louisiana, it's easily 100 degrees outside and humid. In an attempt to stay cool, we've been in all sorts of water with loads of sunscreen and a plethora of flotation devices. 


We can be spotted at spray parks with our buddies:

swimming with family:

Poolside snowballs with our cousin

 and enjoying our newest home addition...a backyard pool:

We're beating the heat, or at least trying to.

In other unrelated news, here are two blogs that I've been loving: Fly Through Our Window and  Urban Grace.  The authors are twin sisters Darby and Erika, and they are funny, creative, and have great ideas. Their stories give some normalcy to the feelings and experiences that go along with parenthood. Mostly, these girls make me laugh out loud like in this post about a weekend visit between sisters and this one which I can relate to, being fashionably challenged and seeking sisterly advice.

Hope you find them uplifting and entertaining, as well!

Recap of a Reunion and a Wedding

We're back from Birmingham and the Smoky Mountains. Four days later and I'm still unpacking the car.


I intended to take a few pics of the car fully packed with luggage and loaded with me, my sister, and our kids. In reality, we were a bit in survival mode on the way up, so that did not happen. Caroline and I alternated the roles of driver and passenger/snack/drink distributor. We brought a little mini-slingshot and whichever one of us was in the front passenger seat would load the slingshot with fruit snacks, goldfish, etc., and launch the snacks to Matt and Louise in the row behind us and to Ann and Margaret in the row behind them. They'd all raise their hands and catch the goods...kind of like at a Mardi Gras parade.


I kid, I kid:) But our car was well stocked with snacks and drinks, and we were handing them out on demand...key in surviving the multi-hour trip northward. Our most notable stop was in Chattanooga, Tennessee at Sugar's Ribs for lunch. There to greet us were these friendly fellas, seemingly somewhat domesticated:

Following the feeding of the goats, we went in to Sugar's Ribs for BBQ, grilled okra and a few tunes on the jukebox, setting the stage for a dance party for these two:

After lunch we reloaded the car and were off to our final destination, to meet the mountains, the rest of our family, and the bride. As my aunt Lynn says, the trip was no doubt "a memory maker," and here are some of the best memories of the week:

Caroline and Ann

Louise hanging out with the bride

The back porch view of The Smokies

The resident bear, Grrrrrrr!

Hanging out with cousins

Aunt Lynnie

Jim and Uncle Paul, with synchronized leg positions 

Papa, a winner with all the grandkids

We managed to squeeze in a morning at the local aquarium.

Before we knew it, the week was over and it was wedding day. We were ready to roll (pardon the pun)...

The ceremony and reception were mountainside and a family throw down...

Jim with his three moms sisters

The grandchildren

Erin and the F.O.B

Taking a break with our cousin, Phillip

Ann and her dance partner, Andrew.

Margaret and future F.O.B.

Sisters...

And more sisters

Mr. and Mrs. Sulc

My sweet cousins, Max and Margaret

And the finale:

Congratulations Erin and Jason!