Stokie & Dan

Our friends Stokie (aka Nicole) and Dan stopped by for a quick visit this weekend while they were in town for an official "meeting of the parents". Dan's parents are long time MoCo (Montgomery County, if you will) residents and Stokie's parents came down to DC for the weekend. In between the parental festivities, we got to have a quick visit with these two.

Margot did a little fancy footwork on Dan's lap. She had so much fun that 15 minutes later, she was ready for bed.

They're getting married in December in St. Kitts and we couldn't be happier for them. What an amazing spot!

French Market with Kelley

Over the weekend, my friend Kelley who lives up in Baltimore came down for a visit. Even though it had been a while since we'd seen each other, catching up was easy. That's the best part of having old friends. I've known Kelley since my days at SLU and it's pretty amazing to see how far she's come, following her dream of becoming a doctor (she's an orthopaedic surgeon at Shock Trauma - wowsa!). Kelley will be another great example of a strong Auntie who Margot can look up to!

We headed into Georgetown and checked out the annual French Market on Book Hill.

Local vendors had all there wares for sale at reduced prices on the sidewalk which made for some fun shopping! Negotiating the route with a stroller was not so easy, though.

We stumbled upon The Magic Wardrobe where Kelley found some cute clothes for Margot. Merci mille fois Auntie Kelley!

It was a fun afternoon. Next time, Margot and I will have to venture up to Baltimore for a visit!

Margot is saying "Oh, la, la, Maman!"

Union Made

With a mom who's a union member and a dad who works for a union, Margot really is Union Made. She showed off her cute "Union Made" onesie on Saturday.

Daddy's Home

I snapped this pic of Margot and Tucker just as he got home last night. Part of our daily ritual is that Tucker gives Margot a bath and puts her to bed while I get dinner ready. Work has been so busy for him lately that he hasn't been able to do this.

Last night, Tucker got home in time to give Margot a bottle and put her to sleep. She fell asleep a very, very happy baby.

Wanna Move To Boston?

My sister and her husband have put their house on the market. If you are interested in buying a house in Jamaica Plain, MA (or know someone who is) check out their place. We've had so many great memories under that roof. It's going to be hard to say goodbye!

Happy Birthday, Graeme!

Our friends Jenn and Will celebrated their sweet boy Graeme's first birthday this weekend.

Parties at Jenn and Will's always warm my heart. They include lots of family, friends, and kids everywhere. Over the years, we've celebrated holidays, weddings, babies and now baby birthdays with these two. With Warburton baby #2 on the way, we have even more celebrations to look forward to! It's going to be fun to see these kiddos grow up together.

After the birthday boy woke up from a little nap, we gathered around and sang happy birthday to him. Here he is, taking a big yawn.

Then we decided it was time to introduce Margot to her new friend.
Margot: Hey Graeme! Sweet party. Thanks for inviting me. Want to be pals?

Graeme: Hmm...where's your party hat? All the cool kids are wearing these pointy things on their head.
Margot: I can't find mine...maybe it's back here somewhere...

Graeme: Well, your pink bow is pretty cute. We can be buddies. Watch this - I get to eat this thing called CAKE!

After meeting Graeme, Margot relaxed with her Daddy in the shade.

Just before we said goodbye, I snapped this pic of Will and Margot.

Awww...

Girls' Night

Last Friday night, while Tucker and "the boys" played poker, Margot and I headed to Amy's for a small get together with some girlfriends. We picked up Holly on our way and arrived in time for Margot to hang out for a bit before she fell asleep in Amy's guest room.

Just before Margot declared bedtime for herself, she got some snuggles in on Jenny's lap.

Amy is always the best host. We sat outside on their back patio until late in the night (via candle light - oh la la) and enjoyed the cool, spring air.

Who, Me?

Milk Does A Body Good

I came across a picture of Margot taking a bath at around 6 weeks and was shocked to see how much she's grown.

Margot somewhere between 4-6 weeks. Look at those itty bitty legs!

While the doctor told us she has pretty much doubled her weight, it was hard for me to comprehend how much she's grown until I saw these pictures, side-by-side.

Margot at 4 months. Hello, baby girl!

What blows my mind the most is that I've created all the food she's ever consumed, and she's grown this much. Wow!

4 Months!

Margot turned 4 months old on Monday. She's gotten so big!

At 4 months, Margot is constantly wiggling and kicking, drooling more than ever, and putting anything she can find in her mouth. She has also discovered the game of grabbing her toes which is awfully cute. She loves to smile and laugh and is more and more alert everyday. It's so exciting to see her growing so quickly!

Here I am holding her...she's become quite an arm full!

Running

About a month ago, I joined Montgomery County Road Runners Club and started the beginning women's running program made up of about 130 women. We're broken up into pace groups and my pace group has three fearless leaders: Amy, Cheryl, and Diane (see pic below). Though I used to consider myself a "runner", it's been a while so starting from the beginning feels about right.

We meet Tuesday nights at the track and Saturday mornings at various trails across Montgomery County. This past Saturday, we ran the Capital Crescent Trail and started in Bethesda. We met at Lululemon at 7:30am where they opened their doors early for us and did a quick presentation on all the wonders of Lululemon sportswear. It was pure agony:)

Getting back into shape has meant more than ever since little M's arrival. I think it goes without saying that I have a whole new appreciation for what my body can do. At the same time, it's been great to be able to share this experience with other women and share our stories of life in the trenches of parenthood. Thankfully, I'm mostly on the receiving end of great advice:)

We're training for the Run for Roses 5k on June 16th. Wish us luck!

Azalea City

Takoma Park likes to consider itself "Azalea City". We are in that brief two week period where the azaleas are in full bloom, adding lots of color to the neighborhood.

When I was out on a walk with Margot over the weekend, I couldn't help but snap a few pics. It was hard to find a yard that didn't have an azalea bush or three.

I suppose Takoma Park really has earned its name:)

Happy Friday

Blue Bonnet Boy

It's blue bonnet season in Texas and our nephew Chance had a photo shoot with his mama last week. How cute is this little guy?!

You'd think he was a model for fabric softener or something in these pics...he's just so happy and cute!! Katrina has quite an eye for photography, too.

One Year Ago Today

One year ago today was a very important day.

My sister Sarah and me, 04.10.11

If you haven't been able to tell, I'm a pretty nostalgic person and am often sentimental. I like to reminisce and have vivid memories of events in my life. I believe there are auspicious times in each of our lives and that there's no coincidence in how we all seem to be interconnected with one another through experiences, emotions, and thoughts. So here I am again, waxing nostalgic about what happened in my life one year ago today...

One year ago today, we learned I was pregnant. My sister and her kids were visiting and we'd gone to the White House Garden Tour. It was a fun day filled with so much excitement, hope, and little clues into what lay ahead for Tucker and me.

At 5:00am that morning, after groggily following the directions for the test and waiting the specified time, we were disappointed by a "not pregnant" result. We went back to bed and woke up a few hours later to find that the test had changed its mind. A second pink line had appeared and Margot (though we didn't know it yet) was on her way!

The months previous had been tough ones for us, with some unexpected events in the path to parenthood. It wasn't at all what we thought it would be. Yet last April, as the season of new beginnings emerged with the cherry blossoms, we were given a huge burst of hope. Having my sister visiting, someone whose own path to parenthood hasn't been conventional, made the news and the adventure ahead feel that much more special.

Happy Easter

After arriving home late on Saturday night from Texas, we got ourselves up and out on Sunday morning to celebrate Margot's first Easter at St. Mark's. Margot wore a beautiful dress (thank you Sassy!) and the weather was perfect. Our friends Blake and Erika joined us for the service and snapped this pic in the courtyard afterwards. We spent the afternoon with Ty, Emma, Liz, and Liz's family for a relaxed Easter meal. It was a beautiful day!

Texas Homecoming

This past week was my spring break from school so we decided to seize the opportunity and introduce Margot to Tucker's hometown of Lubbock. It was her first time on a plane and she did great, sleeping and eating her way to West Texas.

Just as Margot's first visit to upstate New York meant a lot to me, this trip held a lot of meaning for Tucker. When we walked through the front door of Tucker's mom's house, we saw photographs of 7 generations of women from Tucker's family on display. It was pretty humbling to see Margot's picture next to these strong, independent, and interesting women. I was so proud! (Note to self: great idea for a future blog post.)

Every time we come to Lubbock, there is some sort of celebration we get to take part in. This time, Margot was the star of the show at a "Sip and See" at Judy's house on Wednesday night.

Judy and Margot and I made a trip to the nursey together for some flowers, and later picked up some wine on the way home. The planning and orchestration of a party with Judy is fun. I'm always taking notes!

About 50 people came over for drinks, a light dinner, and to meet our sweet girl. In her new dress from Holly Hocks, Margot was ready to sip and be seen!

With Rachael

With Eva Mae

With Clara and Katelyn

With Daddy

Tucker, Zach, Dustin, Riverson, and Margot

On Thursday, we drove out to Old Glory, TX where Tucker's mom grew up and where Tucker spent many visits with his grandmother who he called Nanny. We visited family and friends in Aspermont and Haskell and ended the day at a cousin's house for dinner. They live on a ranch (or a cattle farm...not quite sure of the right term) where they raise cattle and grow wheat. There are 4 houses adjacent to the farm, each owned by members of the family. Tucker's mom still owns the house she grew up in and it's a place I hope Margot gets to know well.

Krista, Todd, Judy, Kenny, Tucker, and Margot

We got to meet a newborn colt who at only 2 weeks old must have been about 40 lbs. They called him Wonder Boy which I thought was cute!

On Friday, Judy and I baked an angel food cake using a recipe from Old Glory.

(This stubborn image won't rotate properly!)

We had a great time pulling it together and even though we made a mistake or two as we made it, everything seemed to come out great. Yum!

We flew home on Saturday, and were sad to go. Margot brought home a new friend with her (thank you Judy Mayfield!), a French bunny named Philou, who she seems to love. This little stuffed animal may end up being an unlikely reminder of such a memorable trip!