High Flyin'

The Tool Man had to go to Shreveport yesterday, and if he's within a 30 miles radius of a Bass Pro Shop...well, let's just say it has a magnetic effect on him. The only thing that I know of that he bought was a toy airplane for Ty. (However, being that bow season is open I'm sure he came out of there with a few more purchases ;-) Anyway, when Tim got home, he and Ty assembled the plane and out the door they went. Here are a couple of pictures Tim took of Ty flying his plane. I wish I could elaborate a little more, but I was inside with little Lucy Lee. Looks like they had fun!

Ty vs. Lucy

I've been wondering how Ty and Lucy compare with their growth and development during their first year. So I got out Ty's baby book to take a look.

At birth:

Ty - 6 lbs. 9 oz., 19 inches, Hair - Not much!

Lucy - 6 lbs. 10 oz., 19.5 inches, Hair - Thick and dark

One Week:

Ty - 6 lbs. 6 oz.

Lucy - 7 lbs.

One Month :

Ty - (@ 3 weeks) 7 lbs. 10 oz., 19.75 inches, Hair - Less than before

Lucy - 9 lbs. 8 oz., 20.75 inches, Hair - still hanging on (I was scared to death it would all fall out)

Two Months:

Ty - 12 lbs. 6 oz., 22 inches, Hair - It's fading fast!

Lucy - 11 lbs. 8 oz., 21.5 inches, Hair - Wild and crazy!

Turns Tummy to Back:

Ty - 13 weeks 3 days

Lucy - 11 weeks 1 day

First Laugh:

Ty - 8 weeks

Lucy - about 10 weeks

Sleeps through Night:

Ty - 11 weeks

Lucy - 13 weeks 5 days

First Night in Own Room:

Ty - 11 weeks

Lucy - Still waiting on that room.........

Temperament:

Ty - "When I'm mad, I want everybody to know it! To calm me down, you've got to hold me, pat me, and walk around. If that doesn't work, just get Daddy to drive me around in the car at night to get me to stop screaming and go to sleep."

Lucy - "I'm nothing like my big brother. (Daddy and Mama breathe a sigh of relief.) I only fuss when I'm hungry, and even then I'm not too loud. I like to sit in my swing if Mama has something to do, and I've got a good bedtime routine...eat around 10 o'clock and lights out by 11, no questions asked."

Ty at 4 months

Lucy at 3 months

What's For Dinner?

I recently bought a package of fresh mozzarella and was inspired to make my own pizza. Ty helped me spread the sauce on the crust and sprinkle on the sausage and peppers. Then we placed fresh slices of cheese on top. (Yummy! My favorite part.) Eight minutes later we had our hot fresh pizza. Initially Ty was disappointed that we weren't making cheese pizza. But when we started adding the peppers he said it was good for us to make a pizza with healthy stuff on it. I'm glad to know that he is thinking about things like that.

Ghosts of Halloweens Past

I've been thinking about the kids Halloween costumes this year. Ty has changed his mind so many times about what he wants to be, but I'm pretty sure he has fianally settled on Wall-E. I had intended to let Lucy wear the same pumpkin costume that Ty wore his first Halloweeen, but it is just a little bit too big for her. Guess that just gives me an excuse to make something new! I've got an idea for her costume, but I want it to be a surprise. (I did spill the beans to someone...you know who you are...so I hope that person can keep it a secret until next weekend!) Anyway, I'm going to get my supplies today, and hopefully all will turn out cute. Here are some pictures of Ty's previous trick-or-treat outings. I couldn't find a picture on my computer from last year's bat costume, but maybe that's a good thing, since the Tool Man kidded me about making a fruit bat costume rather than a vampire bat. It all had to do with the shape of the ears. I didn't know there was a difference!

I have to say this is my favorite one of Ty. Try to ignore my hairdo. It's bad...I know!

What's that smell? If I would let him, Ty would try to squeeze into this costume every year.

He loves it!

I still can't believe I stumbled across this vintage leisure suit on Antique Alley.

It was a perfect fit.

Lucy - 1 Month

Here's Lucy's one-month picture with her doll. Wow! I forget how much she has changed. Still just as cute as ever though, maybe even more so!

Progress

Pardon my progress. I'm "renovating" my page, and I really don't know what I'm doing. It will look better soon, I promise!

Lucy - 3 months

Lucy turned three months old this weekend. It is hard to believe how fast she is growing. Here are a few picures of her with the doll Ty gave her on her birthday. I intended to take one of these every month throughout her first year, but I seemed to have missed the second one. Oops!

Get a load of that fat face!

Mike the Tiger

We're in Baton Rouge again checking on a job in Zachary. Ty was dying to go see Mike the Tiger at LSU. Before we even left home, he was asking if we could take Mike something to eat. Eek! It turned out to be a good day for a visit. Mike was right up close to the fence pacing back and forth. Ty loved getting to be so close.

Pumpkin Picasso

I thought it would be safer (and a lot less messy) for Ty to paint a jack-o-lantern rather than carve one. We bought this pumpkin a couple of days ago, and before we had the chance to paint it, Ty was using it as bowling ball in the house. Luckily nothing (and no one) got hurt, and the pumpkin survived. So today, I put out the craft paint and brushes and let Ty go to town on the pumpkin. He decided to paint a "robber scarecrow." Translation: a jack-o-lantern that would scare away would-be robbers. It turned out to be quite a colorful creation complete with blood dripping from his face and red hair. He was very proud of his work and of his smock I had him wear to protect his clothes. It was just one of his daddy's worn out t-shirts. It came down to about Ty's ankles. I guess he thought it looked like a robe, because he kept asking me, "Mama, do you think I look like God?" The things that go through that boy's head...

Iron Chef Archibald

I mentioned earlier about the terrific pork tenderloin we had in New York at the Mesa Grill. Well, we decided to try to recreate it at home. Tim and I spent most of the day Saturday in the kitchen cooking the sauce and mixing a dry rub, and tonight we cooked the pork. The results?...Well worth the effort! Tim wanted to plate it just like Bobby Flay. Guess I will have to start calling him "Iron Chef Archibald". I made sweet potato tamales to go along with the main course. They were very good (and cute) if I do say so myself. Ty wanted to take a picture with his plate, but the parsley was just a little too much for him. As soon as we got the photo, he threw it off the plate.

Iron Chef Archibald adds a little parsley for presentation.

Just like the Mesa Grill!

Lucy, Roll Over!

I put Lucy down for some tummy time this afternoon. She looks like she could use the exercise. Tim told me to go get the camera, just in case she tried to roll over. Well, she did, and we got the picture we were hoping for. She is growing and changing so fast. We can hardly believe that she is 11 weeks old already. Seems like she was just born yesterday. Then again, we can't remember life without her.

Going...

Going...

Gone!

NYC - Take Three

Just a few more photos from our trip. Lucy was such a good baby this week. She slept a lot, and her mealtimes usually aligned with ours, so there was no need for extra stopping. I carried her in a wrap while we visited the Empire State Building, and she slept the entire time. She never even knew she was there. We went to a Yankees game on our last day in town. What's a good southern girl like me doing at Yankee Stadium? It was torture ;-) At least, for the in-laws' sake, the hometeam won and clinched their division...Boo! After the game we headed underground to ride the subway back to Manhattan. Not as bad as I had imagined. A lady who worked down there must have noticed how "out-of-our-element" we were, and she escorted us right to the front of the line. Other than being super crowded the ride went smoothly, and we emerged from the underworld less than a block from our hotel! Our final excursion of the week was a journey to the Top of the Rock (Rockefeller Center). The view was so impressive at night - lights as far as you could see. Tim and I would like to return to New York in the future. There was soooo much that we just didn't have time to see.

From the top of Empire State Building. No cell phone service up here.

On board the U.S.S. Intrepid. Tim's grandfather served on this aircraft carrier.

Two monkeys in the tub...this was their first bath together. Check out the rolls on LuLu.

Go Braves!

On Top of the Rock. Ty especially loved the motion activated light display on the top floor of the building. He even busted a few break dancing moves up there.