Thanksgiving Day Photos

Lexi loving the broccoli, cauliflower, and turkey bits

Granny surrounded by all of her great grandkids

Granny with youngest great grandkids

Granddad, Granny Lou, Momma, Lexi & Dada

Granny & Lexi

Granny Lou's Big Family

Granny Lou sure has a big family. In this photo, we are gathered together in front of Aunt Snookie's house on Sunday. Now, we are home and wishing we were still there. More stories & photos to follow.

Just Perfect

I had an office visitor today. Can you guess who it was? Yep - Ms. Lexi Lou in her full glory.

Let me just tell you that she was well enough to be loud and playful at times and extremely cranky at others. I feel like I have been on a roller coaster (a horrible one designed by Satan himself). Being at work with a baby that has an ear ache and 2 teeth coming in could never be a picnic. Besides all of the regular struggles of trying to keep Lexi fairly quiet and get something done, she has brought this to a whole new level of torture. First off, she only slept for 1/2 an hour. What kind of break is that? Second, I had to miss the little Thanksgiving luncheon that a project site had. (Yes, they still got my Green Bean Casserole). I knew taking her would be a problem, so I volunteered to stay & man the phones. Hmm...sit in the offce & answer the crappy phones or go to a luncheon. Ok, so there were only 3 calls (I can't complain about that too much). Third, she wanted to be held a lot. I have a huge deadline coming up the beginning of December that involves design work, which is a two handed task (more so than typing).

Plus, I absolutely CAN'T forget to mention that perfect work days don't involve puke. It shouldn't be all over my pants or the carpet in my office, not to mention Lexi and her pack-n-play. Thank goodness we will be moving to a new location next year, which is a completely separate post. BTW, the puke did not come from being sick or the book. It is a result of jumping around her pack-n-play while trying to eat a gummy treat for babies. I guess I can report that her gagging reflexes are quite good.

Needless to say, the little one is going BACK to the daycare tomorrow. She might be a handful for them, but we have to pay whether she is there or not & tomorrow they'll earn their money for the week. Besides, she can't miss their Thanksgiving party and I NEED to get some things done.

Blue Eyed Cranky Pants

Lexi is feeling a bit under the weather again. Last night, she decided to be silly while sharing her frustrations. Can you say, "night, night?"

Fourth Word

Lexi finally uttered another word. She said "Oye." Steve turned to me with a confused look and repeated it. I laughed. I knew that spending all that time in around Spanish speaking teachers would influence her. When I tell you what it means, you'll understand exactly why that would be a word she would hear a lot. Oye = Listen. Unfortunately, Lexi is already good at pretending to be deaf.

Remote Control

As you can see, we have a new remote control hog. She is constantly battling her dad for the power to make changes. Can you guess what her favorite button is? No? Ok, it is mute. It is a boring grey button, but she likes it. See her left hand? Her thumb happens to be right on top of the button. She tends to push it right when some interesting words are about to be spoken. So, if a major world event happens, be sure to call us because we'll surely miss the announcement.

Because My Brother Teased Me

On the way home from work, I called my brother to nag him once again to send photos of his daughter. For heaven sakes, the girl was born 3 weeks before Lexi and I have only seen one photo of her. It was back in JANUARY when she was 3 days old that he e-mailed a picture. As the conversation progressed, I tried to convince him that he & his wife should start a blog. They don't live near any grandparents or many family members, so it is a great idea. Plus, then I could stop nagging him. One of the selling points I mentioned was that everyone could keep up on her latest news.

THAT is when he started laughing. He said everyone knows every little thing about Lexi and that I have done more than a great job at the information flow and photos. I guess we are on opposite ends of the spectrum, but I still think he should e-mail a photo at least every 2 months. Is that too much to ask? So, Mr. Never Send Photos of your Daughter, I'm posting these pictures for you. I know you were dieing to see Lexi in this cute little outfit!

I vow to continue nagging you & our other brothers who live near you until you are motivated to send a photo. Yes - simply e-mail a photo. We'll work on getting you a blog later (cowgirl themed b/c that fits).

Sunny Bunny

The weekend in which Lexi officially became a Beach Babe. Don't worry, the sun block is always caked on.

How It Works

Ok all you closet blog readers, I know who most of you are and I could list names, but I'll be nice. I am glad that you are all reading this blog, but do you know the official term for what you are doing is called lurking? While it is not a bad thing, poor little Lexi's blog appears to be very unpopular. Post after post goes with no or few comments. WizeUp, The Princess, and the Boss are probably getting tired of carrying all of you. Blogging is meant to be interactive. That is what makes it fun.

I realize that most of you are not bloggers and therefore are probably unaware of how the comments section works, so this post is dedicated to explaining it. On the bottom of each entry there is a link that says Comments. If you click on it, you can read and add comments. You can type in your name or a nickname. Then, type in some comments. It can range from one word like, "hi" or "wow" to a long paragraph. You don't have to add your e-mail, but if you choose to I will be the only one who has access to it. In order for me to access it, I have to go to a different website and log in. Most likely, I'll just leave a comment on the blog to reply to yours.

See...it is easy! Be wild & try leaving a comment. I promise it doesn't hurt.

Veterans Day Fun

Lexi's daycare is closed for Veterans Day, so she gets to spend the day at work with me. Fortunately, she is feeling much better today. She is also getting better at entertaining herself, but it will still be difficult trying to get work done and keep her relatively quiet. The plug (pacifier) only helps so much.

Momma Bear

Yesterday, I went to a luncheon that focused on a topic that has been on my mind a lot lately. The panel discussed the importance of surrounding yourself with good people. I believe it is vital for business and life.

Looking back on my life, I realize that I have been completely fortunate to have a family that has strong values. I guess that was deeply instilled within me because all of my friends have been amazing people too. Teenagers often experiment and try to find independence through partying, but I didn't. My group of friends in Texas was so fun and about the only "wild" thing we did was stay out late. It is not like we were the nerds of the school; two of the guys were stars of the basketball team. We were always together having fun playing volleyball, watching movies, playing video games, swimming, and basically hanging out. We all just came from good families. I think that is how the teenage years should be - full of good clean fun.

With Lexi in my life, I feel an overpowering need to only surround her with positive people. I want her to have the best influences, great experiences, and fun friends. I hope Steve and I can instill only wonderful values in her so that later she makes wise decisions about friends and her life.

I believe something crazy and amazing happens to parents, but especially women when they have a baby/child. Nice girls become exactly like momma bears. They are fiercely protective of their cubs and quite weary of others. We all know how momma bears react when they are trying to protect their young. It is just part of the love that comes from being a parent.

Sharing Time

This week, Lexi has started the feeding others/sharing phase. She tries to feed me her Gerber Wagon Wheels and Cheerios. She is also showing her kindness by trying to share her pacifier. Oh, how thoughtful.

Frustrated Fans

Steve is one of those fans that want his team to completely obliterate the opponents every second of the game. His team has to execute every play perfectly or he gets frustrated. Lexi and I watched the Dolphins vs the Bears game with him on Sunday. It was a miracle that the Dolphins were actually winning, but Steve still took a moment to goof around with Lexi's teasing frustrated reaction. She does this quite often and we finally captured it on camera.

Expressions

A few weeks ago, someone I work with asked me how you can tell what your baby is feeling. I just laughed and said babies are very expressive. In fact, these photos were taken in a matter of 5 minutes. She lets me know exactly how she feels.

I haven't had time to write all the changes that have taken place in the last month. I usually try to do that on each month birthday. She turned 9 months on Oct 26th, a week ago. I guess I'll just note a few things. She started doing kisses (she photo #2), standing without holding on (lasts a few seconds), trying to stand up with out pulling herself up (sometimes makes it up for a few seconds), saying duck (a lot & for everything), and doing probably a few things I am leaving out.

I also discovered something that she does not like to eat, which is a big deal for her. Let me just say that the daycare ladies are all very impressed by her eating skills and lack of pickiness (I think she gets it from my brother/dad). Since we started grocery shopping on the Beach, I have discovered a few tropical flavored baby foods. So far, she likes mango, but guava is a definite no (despite the pink color). When I fed it to her, she kept opening her mouth, but would shudder with every spoonful. Finally, she started turning her head and would not eat another bite. It was pretty funny to see her act like that.

**Adding On** - When I took Lexi to the doctor today (ear infection), she weighed in just 2 oz shy of 20 lbs.

Halloweenie

Things are crazy around here, but I decided to post a few photos of our MetroBoo experience (Photos of us with Lexi as Aunt Angie likes). The place was packed, especially near the candy stations, but weren't interested in those anyway. We had fun looking at all the interesting costumes and seeing the animals. It was definitely a hit.

Blocks are for Banging

When I was a kid, my brothers and I would get up at the crack of dawn on Saturday mornings to watch cartoons. I guess Lexi is trying to take afer us because she wakes up at the crack of dawn every morning. Last Saturday, I fed & changed her and then let her play quietly with her toys. Quiet??? HA! Check out the video clip below. When the sun came up a little, we went on our usual weekend morning walk, which gives dad a chance to sleep a little more.

Tinker Bell

Miss Lexi is getting ready for her Halloween debut of Tinker Bell. Halloween is always an exciting time & since it is her first one, this year is even better for all of us. We all know that Miami is way too dangerous for trick-or-treating and Lexi doesn't eat candy anyway, so we have planned other exciting adventures. This weekend, we will be taking her to MetroBoo at MetroZoo. We will also probably attend the Lincoln Road Halloween Festival in Miami Beach. Hopefully, we will get plenty of great pictures of Lexi's fun times during her first Halloween.

First Sporting Event

Lexi attended her first sporting event last night. She was lucky enough to attend the only good professional team in Miami (sorry Dolphins & Marlins, but you just didn't cut it this year). She loved the lights and commotion, but nothing compared to the attention she got from everyone. Even the camera man decided to spot light us twice by making us stars of the jumbotron. The fun didn't last long though, we left at half time because little eyes were fighting tired. We all know that bedtimes must be met. Unfortunately for the Heat, their tiny fan took the luck with her. The Rockets ended up stomping them 96 to 71, but who really cares about pre-season scores?

Bumper Car Mania

Blockbuster Employee Nightmare

As I was putting the videos & dvds on the bookshelf, I just knew that Lexi would be playing with them soon. It started that day & this is what she has done everyday since. Here she is in action:

Daughter Dolph-Fan

When Lexi was born, Grandma Margie (my mom), made a little Dolphin dress for her. She made it the right size for a 9 month old, so that Lexi would be able to wear it during football season. Yesterday, we took her to get photos with the BIG Dolph-Fan in her life, aka Dadda. We admit that they are having a horrible season, but the fanship is still there. So Go Dolphins!

Land Mines

Now that Lexi has started eating Cheerios, we are finding them EVERYWHERE! When I pick her up from her high chair or walker, they go flying. I even find them inside her shirts. I try to clean up all of them, but every once in a while Steve will step on one and say, "Good thing that wasn't a land mine or we would all be dead." :)

Wordless Wednesday

Another Word

I have been wondering what Lexi's next word would be. My brother's daughter, Eden, says key, key (for kitty, kitty). Steve's cousin's daughter, Camille, says duck. I figured it might be some kind of animal since that seems to be the trend. Since our last visit to Granddad George 's house for Labor day, Lexi has been fascinated by dogs. We see lots of them during our walks on South Beach. She also has 2 stuffed puppies. I thought she might say dog, but I was wrong.

Sunday, Steve was playing with Lexi and he picked up a little row of stuffed ducks. He held it out to her and said duck, which is probably the first time she ever heard that word and guess what...she followed in Camille's foot steps. The funny thing is that Steve had no idea that Camille was saying that. Duck has now become her third favorite word, right after a million mamas and several daddas. I tried to catch it on video here:

As a girl who NEVER likes to do anything on queue, this is when I finally captured it:

Sunday Sunrise on SOBE

It's Friday the 13th

It is Friday the 13th & so far things are going well. I don't want to jinx us though, so I'll just post pictures today.

Master of Peek-A-Boo

Last week, Lexi became a full blown professional peek-a-boo player when she took control of the blanket. Of course, she doesn't hold it up for very long. She flips it up and flips it right back down and spends most of the time laughing at the attention she gets. We went to an Italian restaurant last night (Fratelli la Bufala) that had several tables with men but no women. The table next to us had a group right out of the Godfather. I was a little worried that they would be bothered by a baby, but she used the cloth napkin to play peek-a-boo with them and they were hooked. One of the guys told me that she was cute, but that I shouldn't let her look at one of the other guys because she would surely start crying from his ugly face (pretty funny). Good thing, this little social butterfly doesn't mind as long as there is a smile directed at her.

New Tooth on South Beach

Lexi marked her first morning on South Beach (Sunday) with another new tooth. The top left tooth decided to make a grand entrance. Lexi didn't sleep well our first night there and I wasn't sure if it was because the a/c vent was blowing right on her pack-n'-play or because she was in an unfamiliar place, or what. The first time she woke up screaming, I wrapped her in the blanket and put her back down. The second time, I carried her over to our bed. She was there about 4 hours. She slept fairly well but I didn't despite the very quiet neighborhood. In the morning, I fed her and discovered the new tooth.

Moving was an ordeal (as all moves are), but Lexi faired well. Saturday, I took her over to a friend's house (Sonja) where she was provided undivided attention all day long. She loved every minute of it and got some of the best naps ever. It was much better than packing and moving things to the new place.

Sunday she got to participate in the moving fun. I dragged her to the house and she tried to play with everything while I was trying to pack. Her dad and Uncle Jeff took things to storage and then we all loaded up and went back to SOBE. That evening, Jeff headed back to PSL and we went for a walk. Lexi fell asleep on the way home and had a great night.

Another Doctor Appt

Lexi had to get her last hepatitis shot today. She is now 18 lbs & 12 oz. Last week, when she saw the doctor for her cold, she weighed 18 lbs. I knew she had gotten bigger quickly, but that was quite a jump.

At the end of her visit, while we were waiting to schedule the next appointment, Lexi enjoyed trying to grab their Halloween decorations. They had them hanging from the ceiling, so wherever I stood she was grabbing. Then, the nurse came out and put an "I was brave sticker" on her. She also handed Lexi 4 other stickers. Why did she do that? Doesn't she know at Lexi's age she only sees them as something to put in her mouth? When waitresses & waiters give her crayons, I figure that they just don't know anything about babies, but the nurse?

Moving to South Beach

Starting this weekend, Lexi is going to be a South Beach baby. We found out yesterday that the buyer for our house has secured financing. Yippee!! This weekend is going to be very hectic. One of my friends agreed to come over on Saturday to hold and play with Lexi while we pack and move. I think she will be the biggest life saver (even more than the guys helping with the move).

Little Pumpkin

October is here and Lexi is getting ready for Halloween. We already have a cute costume for her. In fact, I need to make an appointment to get pictures taken of her in it. We just have to figure out what we are going to do to celebrate.