overheard at dinner...

The scene: J is feeding M dinner. She's got a nice spread of green beans, tomatoes and pizza topped with ham & chicken arranged before her on her highchair tray.

M: budDA... budDA... budDA... budDA
J: No, you don't need butter.
M: budDA... budDA... budDA... budDA... budDA
J: Nothing you have needs butter.
M: budDA... budDA... budDA... budDA... budDA... budDA
J: (frustration mounting) Your pizza? Pizza doesn't need butter. What do you want butter on?
M: (pulling one of the toppings off her pizza and presenting it to Daddy) Ham. Budda.

sliding with Grandpa

Gpa L stopped over for breakfast before he headed off to KS. Happy Retirement to him!

We've had some chilly weather (that's in the 40's, for those of you not familiar with NC temperature threshholds), but it has not deterred M from playing in the backyard. She absolutely loves the little swing and slide set that Gma & Gpa L brought her.

history and a little lunch

Normally, we don't watch TV during Madeline's awake hours and especially not during meals. But today was definitely cause for an exception.

snow day!

For once, the weather forecasts were accurate! We woke up this morning to a lovely 2+ inches of fresh snow covering everything. Josh was able to work from home today, so all three of us got to enjoy the winter weather. We attempted a snowman, but the snow was too powdery and dry to pack well. Madeline also thought that Josh's attempt at mounding up snow for a snowman base was his attempt at building a snow tower for her to destroy. She made quick work of leveling it all. Maybe next year we'll have better snow and a better appreciation for construction. The snow keeps falling and it looks like we'll have at least 4 inches by this afternoon.

Many thanks to our Iowa cousins for the hand-me-down pink snowsuit! Glad we could put it to use. And harkening back to wonderful memories of my own childhood (Heather & Olivia do you remember this, too?), we didn't have snowboots for Madeline so we cobbled together a quick substitute. We "bagged" up each of her legs (over her shoe and all the way up to her knees, over the top of the snowsuit) with a plastic shopping bag. Then we pulled an adult-size tube/athletic sock over it all to hold it in place. The plastic barrier kept the snow from getting her shoes, socks, and pants wet and the sock held it all in place. So handy in a pinch!

Hello Interweb

As part of a resolution to actually communicate to those people that I call friends, I will be increasing my blogging contributions for 2009.

Also, look forward to some post dated holiday pictures and stories. We will be filling in the Mid-November to January gap shortly.

update

We're back home now. It's been an eventful vacation and we'll gradually fill in the details as we get a little free time.

Sadly, we extended our time away so that we could attend the funeral for Josh's grandmother. Please keep the Alford family in your prayers.

seasoned traveler

We had an unexpectedly lengthy layover in Nashville on the way back home (the plane from Houston was delayed by fog in Birmingham?), so naptime was a little unconventional.


When we finally made it across the threshhold into our own home, Madeline's eyes lit up and it was like Christams all over again. She was so excited to see Pickles and all of her familiar toys. It was a joyful reunion for us all!

quacking herself up

Madeline found the duck whistle at Gma & Gpa B's and proceeded to entertain us all for few minutes.