Adventures with Pixie

On my way to work earlier this week, I was driving up Airline Drive (a very busy four-lane road) when suddenly the cars started swerving and everyone was breaking. When the cars parted, I saw the sweetest little face... scared and shaking in the middle of the road. I carefully merged into the center turning lane and scooped her up. Meet Pixie.


She is a Boston Terrier who had been intentionally let out of her house and her owner was frantic when I finally reached her. If it had been one of my dogs, I would hope that someone would do the same for me. So Pixie spent the day at my house until her owner could pick her up.

So before I took Pixie home, I brought her with me to pick up the kids. They ADORED her. As my mom said, she's so ugly - she's cute. Good point! I think the kids liked her because she was so much calmer than Zoe.
So Pixie went back to her owner and we went about our evening routine. Chris was out of town that day, so I sent him a picture of Pixie. His response, "Am I coming home to a new member of our family?"

Hahahaa!

20 months

Okay, don't laugh... but I had to count out how many months Brady is. With Kennedy, I think I labeled her in months until she was at least two years old. And I knew the answer the instant someone asked me how old she was. With Brady, I've been telling everyone he's a year and a half since Christmas. So technically, he's 20 months... but now I'll start telling people he'll be two in June. That's the second-child syndrome.

Anyway, while I am thinking about it - here are the words my sweet son can say... with appropriate translations.

Mommy

Daddy

Sissy (his name for Kennedy)

hi/bye bye

ni-ni (night night)

I yuh yoo (I love you - sweetest thing...)

joo (juice)

uh oh!

NO (my LEAST favorite word)

ball

baby

car

cow

tee (eat)

meena (banana)

petzul (pretzel..which sounds a lot like puzzle)

bear (but it sounds more like someone with a yankee accent - "bay-yuh" - and it could mean that he's pointing to a bear in a book... or wants a gummy bear)

Wo wee (Zoe)

Ah-dah (for Roscoe... it started as "doggie" - which he pronounced "ah-dah" - and it stuck)

chee (cheese, meaning the food OR when he's taking pictures)

Of course he is babbling up a storm and "talking" on the phone and saying things that we have no idea what they are. But these are the words we have figured out so far. I just keep wondering if he's going to be a jabber-jaw like his mom and sister or quiet like his daddy. Time will tell.......

Mamas know everything

Yes, us mamas know everything. It's true. I didn't believe it when I was little and my mom said she knew everything. But today, I believe it to be true... and I tell Kennedy that regularly. She quickly replies, "Nuh uh..." (translation - "No you don't.")

Last week when I was finishing up making dinner and she was in the kitchen singing the song she had learned at school that lists all the presidents of the United States. She was very proud of herself that she knew every one of them. So as I finished cooking, she sat down at the table with her back to me, facing the backyard. I had already given her her dinner - because she takes FOREVER to eat.. it reminds me of my sister when we were little. Anyway, I KNEW she hadn't started eating. Why? Because I'm mama. I know everything.

I couldn't see her plate, but I knew she wasn't eating. Here's how the conversation went:

Me: "Kennedy, you need to go ahead and start eating. I KNOW you're not eating yet."

Kennedy: (spins her head around quickly to face me, smiling from ear to ear) "How do YOU know?"

Me: "Because mamas know everything. I told you that before."

Kennedy: "But you don't know all the presidents like I do."

Crap.

Love again

Our dear friend Eric found love again. He married Leann McCartney this weekend in a small and sweet ceremony. They both knew it very early on after meeting each other... that they were meant to be together.
Some of us wondered how something so serious could move so fast between them, but if you spend just a few minutes with them - you know they love each other. Leann is so good for Eric. We can see it in his eyes and his attitude. He's happy... and he deserves to be happy. Leann has had a difficult road, too, and we have welcomed her into our family.

Knowing what Eric endured the past couple of years gave us all pause as we listened to the vows that they said to each other. "In sickness and in health... 'til death do us part." Wow...

As Chris and I get ready to celebrate nine years of marriage together, Eric and Leann are beginning their journey as husband and wife.

I don't often quote verses, but one that always gives me peace is the one about love. I had to look it up for the exact wording:

"Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protect, always trusts, always hopes, always preserves."

Snow in LOUISIANA? Yes!

Rarely do we see this kind of snow in Louisiana. I remember when Kennedy was a baby and we were living in Texas, we had a little snow that stuck to the ground... but not several inches like this!

It was Brady's first snow experience.... and just in typical Brady behavior, he tasted it first. I'm surprised he didn't try to shove it up his nose. He's enjoying putting food up his nose these days. Maybe he realized it would be too cold. I think I'm giving him too much credit here......

Happy Snow Day Louisiana friends!

(p.s. For those of you in Maine, feel free to make fun of us. I know you're used to this.... we get a little crazy during rare weather conditions.)

Weekend

To say that the LaPierre weekend was busy is an understatement. But it was SO much fun... starting with Friday night... all the way to the Super Bowl game Sunday night. I'm not yawning yet, but I KNOW I will be by tomorrow because Chris is out of town, which means single-mommy-week, which means hyper-cranky-kids (which they tend to do when daddy isn't home), which means PURE exhaustion by Thursday night when Chris gets home. I vow to get to bed early each night this week. Keep your fingers crossed.

So Friday night, some girlfriends got together for the monthly gathering. We are all so busy that we wouldn't be able to see each other if we didn't plan these monthly dinner/drinks/gossip meetings. We proudly inducted a new member.... notice the bright and shiny headband that looks like a bird attacking her head. Yes, that is Jean. She didn't mind a little hazing. Oh - and the honorary member of our group is Weston, the owner of the amazing restaurant Bella Fresca on Line Avenue. If you haven't been, you must. Delish. Weston is a friend of ours from college.

Saturday morning - pancakes! LaPierre kids LOVE pancakes. Kennedy begged to help and I thought stirring the batter was a huge help. She, however, had other plans.

Yup, that's her FLIPPING the pancakes. She did such a good job and was very cognisant of the hot stove. I taught her to watch for bubbles, which meant they were ready to be flipped. Chris, meanwhile, was out with the running group. It was his turn to hit the trail on Saturday morning. When we both are training for a 1/2 marathon, we have to alternate running with our group on Saturdays. Next up ballet: Kennedy's class meets on Saturday mornings. Unfortunately it's on the opposite side of town, but she loves her dance class. Brady tags along since daddy is still running. I pray for good behavior from him. God hears my prayers.

After racing home for lunch, showers, and naps - we pack up the kids and head to Nina and Papa's house where the kids hang out while Chris and I get to go to the Krewe of Centaur parade. Since we know we'll be at the Krewe of Gemini parade this coming weekend with the kids (for a birthday party), we are blessed that my parents agree to watch the munchkins while we enjoy this parade with the adults.

We head back to my parents, pick up the kids and head north to the house. The kids pass out in the backseat before we even get out of the neighborhood.

Sunday morning, our first priority: church. We love the Simple Church. It's just... simple. Really. So we go every weekend. After church, we brave the grocery store crowd and smile at every person we see because ALL you can see is Saints gear. Yes, it was Super Bowl Sunday. The energy was electric... in church, at the store... everywhere!

While the kids played, I went to a lingerie shower for Leann (wedding THIS Friday!) and then raced home for the game. You know the outcome there. First, Super Bowl food. Yummm.

After the game, in a moment of PURE insanity - I decided to join the hundreds of people I knew would be waiting in line at Academy Sports for a Super Bowl Champions shirt. And I was right. EVERYONE was there. It was like a party in the parking lot!! Music playing, people cheering "Who Dat!"... of course, police were there. They KNOW how us Louisianans can get rowdy! So after an hour of standing in line and waiting in the cold, I walked away with my shirt.
FANTASTIC WEEKEND. Now, back to reality.

Dear Kennedy and Brady,

On Sunday, February 7, 2010 - the beloved New Orleans Saints played in their first-ever Super Bowl game. After 43 years of existence, the team had a superb year and not only made it to the END-ALL, BE-ALL game in the NFL, but they BEAT the Indianapolis Colts (your daddy's least favorite team of all time). Your daddy is not a Saints fan, and to tell you the truth - up until the past few months, I have rooted for the New England Patriots with your daddy. But I have decided that our household will just have to be a two-team house. You kids may chose whichever team to root for, however first dibs on the football snacks goes to the one who roots for the Saints.

My sweet son Brady - I'm afraid you have a dilemma. You were born in Louisiana, however your daddy proudly wears Tom Brady jerseys (as do you... you're only 19 months old and you own TWO "Brady" jerseys). Just remember where you were born, okay?

One-third of the people living in the United States (106.5 million) watched the "Saints come marchin' in" to Miami for this game, which broke the record for most watched TV show in history. THAT shows you just how highly-anticipated this game was.

So kids, don't make fun of your mama if you hear her walking around the house from time to time chanting... "Who Dat!"

Love,
Mom and Dad

Who Dat!!

Who dat talkin' 'bout 'beatin' dem Saints!?
Who dat! Who dat!

Things Chris loves

Here are 10 things Chris loves, in his words!!

1. I love the sound of my children's voices when they say "Mommy" and "Daddy."

2. I love seeing my children after I come home form a trip and they jump into my arms. They seem as excited as I am!

3. I love the feeling of just "hanging out" with my wife after the day is done ... doing nothing at all.

4. I love the feeling of accomplishment and the "high" after finishing a long run.

5. I definitely love the feeling I get from doing yard work and chores around the house each week.

6. I love sleep, even though we haven't really gotten much of it in over 5 years now.

7. I love dropping off and picking up my daughter from kindergarten - I'm proud and sad at the same time.

8. I love sports and rooting for my favorite teams (Jennifer's note: Patriots, Red Sox, Celtics, LSU).

9. I love to read books.

10. I love that my wife has started and continued to write this blog. It's definitely an impressive venture and will have an impact of the future of our family and what they remember and reminisce about.

Things I love....

Not only is the purpose of this blog to document events and memories for my family to read many years down the road, but it's also a way for my kids to know a little about me (and their daddy).

So, I decided to put together a list of 10 things I love... besides the people in my life because there would be WAY more than 10 because I love A LOT of people. Here we go:

1. I love organization. Like.... neatly stacked books on a bookshelf or baskets of stuff, any kind of stuff... or a coffee cup with pens and pencils neatly contained... Sometimes when I'm feeling a little overly organized, I place the items in my grocery cart buggy just right so they don't tip over, all the cold on one side, cans together, boxes together. You get the point.

2. I LOVE "school supplies." When Kennedy got her list of school supplies for kindergarten - I was GIDDY. Seriously. Picking out a fresh package of pens or pencils, notebooks, binders made me so happy. I'm so in love with school supplies that I have my own secret stash of office supplies in my desk at work.

3. I love getting a piece of mail that is NOT a bill. People just don't do that anymore. E-mail is much faster, but it's just not as personal. I have a basket of cards (yes, remember organization as #1!) because I like sending cards, too.

4. I love the smell of my kids' skin at their temples. I know this sounds weird, but it is the perfect place to plant lots of kisses. It is soft and rarely dirty from food, snot or other yuckies.

5. I love it when Chris makes me laugh. He's not a jokester, but every once in a while - he says something completely random that makes me giggle. When he does that, it's hard to stop smiling at him.

6. I love having dance parties in the living room with the kids. Kennedy LOVES to dance. Brady just bounces. Chris, well.... if he's home, he sits on the couch and watches.

7. The first sip of Diet Coke in the morning... W.O.W. Sweet nectar from the gods.

8. I love that I live in Louisiana again. I missed this place. There is so much goodness here. The people are amazingly friendly; the crawfish is to die for; my family is close; it has that everyone-knows-your-name feel. I do miss my LaPierre family in Maine, my friends in Texas, and my sister in Arkansas - but if they could just all move here!!

9. I love to read. I don't get to read as much as Chris because I can barely hold my eyelids open at 10 o'clock at night, but I do love it. I'm thinking that I'll get to read fun books again after graduate school and when our kids start becoming a little more independent. Until then, it's magazine articles and researching for school.

10. I must save room for one cheesy "love" - snuggling on the couch with Chris. It's a nightly tradition after the kids go to bed... time for winding down and decompressing.

Next up - Chris will share his Things I Love! Believe it or not, I asked him to make a list and he did!!

Beauty

My daughter is absolutely beautiful. She has the most gorgeous blue eyes, beautiful thick hair, and a smile that will melt your heart. This photo was taken by our friend DeAnn, who was starting her photography business right before Brady was born (June 2008). Being photogenic certainly further proves my point.

Of course her bubbly personality doesn't hurt, either. She walks into a room and I swear, it just lights up. She is always happy, always singing, joking around, giving hugs.... Kennedy absolutely loves life. And I love that about her.

But at five years old, she is already very focused on beauty... external beauty. She always asks me if she looks beautiful. She wants to know if I like the dress she is wearing... if her hair looks good. She asked her Nina to pick out the dress that would make her look the prettiest. She poses a lot (and kind of prissy-like) when we take her picture. I try to take pictures of us making silly faces just to keep it from being pageant-like ALL the time!! Now some of that could just be that she's a little girl who likes to play dress up and be a princess. But just how far can that go?

So I am actively focused on making sure that Kennedy knows there are more important things than being pretty. Something my friend Karen told me a couple of years ago has stuck with me and I repeat it to Kennedy every time she asks is she's pretty. Let me set the stage....

Kennedy and I had gone to Dallas to meet with Karen, my real estate agent who was selling our Texas house, to sign paperwork and check on the house. Karen told Kennedy that she was the exact same age as her son, P.J. Kennedy asked to see a picture and commented how cute P.J. was. Karen's response was genius.

Karen: "Yes, he is very cute, Kennedy. But do you know what's more important than being cute?"

Kennedy: "No..." (In her mind, there's nothing more important.)

Karen: "We think it's more important to be smart, funny, and kind."

Kennedy: "Hmmmph."

I have been repeating that to Kennedy ever since I heard it from Karen. I love that philosophy. We, as adults, know that it's more important to be smart, funny, and kind. But kids don't know that unless you teach them! It doesn't make it any easier on me to focus her attention to other personality traits when complete strangers call her "cutie pie" and "beautiful girl." I probably haven't helped the situation by telling her (on a very regular basis) over the years how pretty she is.

It's HARD being a girl. I remember being in school and wanting to have the latest brand of jeans, the best looking hair, the biggest hairbow, the newest shoes. I could go on and on and on. And I can see Kennedy heading in that direction. I'm slowly chipping away at her since she asked me last week if I thought she was funny.... NOT PRETTY. We'll get there!