The Kids

The kids are growing very fast. I didn't realize how fast through until we happened to take random pictures a couple of days last week. Elizabeth is doing much better standing up and balancing. She still needs a little assistance but it won't be long now before she'll be up on everything.

Owen, meanwhile, is showing her the ropes. Like how to enjoy his personal favorite past times including laundry basket riding.

Owen loves his little sister. Elizabeth is going to be well taken care of. Of course, if she's anything like her brother, she's going to be a hand full too.

The Jackson St. Paddy's Day Parade

The St. Paddy's day parade was today. Amy and I haven't been in a long time and Owen and Elizabeth had never been so we decided to pack up and head into the Jackson crowds to see what shenanigans we could get into.

We began with a stop at Keifers which, for those who don't know, is the best Greek food in town. With a great menu and outside seating it's a great place to eat great food and relax! Plus, they have this feta dressing that goes great with just about anything on their menu. Owen is a huge fan of the feta dressing.

Afterwards, we met up with my family who are pro's on the parade scene. They know where to go and where to sit for good views. They were all dressed up in green, had green hair, and were all in all very festive.

Soon enough, the parade began and the beads started flowing. It didn't take Owen long to get the hang of grabbing for beads.

(Yes, I think that is a hobo in the background.) Anyway, Owen did okay for himself even though older kids and adults around him were falling over everyone to catch the beads. A few people even gave some of their hard won beads to Owen. Before too long, Owen began to look like Mr. T.

The most prized um...prize...he got was a stuffed whale. He loves that whale and still carries it everywhere.

It was a fun day! The kids had no trouble going to sleep that night and neither did either of us.

Tunica trip

This weekend we braved two and a half hours of interstate driving to go to Tunica, MS to see Papa and Mawmaw. It's always a good time going to their house. The food is always good, excellent accommodations, and all kinds of toys for the kids to play with. Amy even got to do some shopping for the kids summer clothes at the outlet mall there. That is, until Owen had a coughing fit that caused us to flee the Gap. It's not his fault though, he was hiding from imaginary dinosaurs and it was very exciting.

The New Orleans trip: Part 3

On the final day we woke up, ate some breakfast, packed our bags and headed to the French quarter. Owen was our bellhop.

We toured the windy and cold French Quarter for awhile. Owen saw all kinds of interesting tourists and street performers around Jackson Square.

Artists, musicians, drunkards, carriage drivers, etc. We saw everything. It was a good trip. One that I can see us repeating in the near future.

New Orleans part 2: The Audubon Zoo

After the fast paced action at the aquarium, we were all going to take our time at the zoo and enjoy all the exhibits. We arrived at two o'clock only to discover that the zoo closed at four. We couldn't believe it! Closes at four? The Jackson zoo stays open longer than that on a Saturday! Oh well; with optimism and a quick step we venture into the expansive New Orleans Audubon Zoo.

We were greeted by a very large fountain as soon as we entered the park.

It was a very nice place. Everyone enjoyed all of the animal exhibits, even Elizabeth.

They had all kinds of animals but Owen's favorite at the zoo was the mice. He loved watching them run on the wheel, sniff at the glass and play around.

The other big hit was the kids play area, "Lion Rock". Lion Rock had a layout of a stack of flat rocks for the kids to step and climb up until they got to the top where a lion statue rested, overlooking the crowds.

It also had a rope bridge that led down the backside of the hill until it ended in a massive web for kids to climb and play on. I lost count of how many trips up and down Owen made on this.

After we were rushed out of the zoo at four o'clock, we took the kids back to the hotel while we tried to make a dinner decision. The kids fell asleep immediatly. After we decided where to eat, we tried to wake Owen up but he was so tired he never woke up. So, we loaded up our sleeping kids and walked a few blocks to "Mothers". It was while we were standing in line that Owen regained conciousness. He still wasn't ready to mingle with anyone though.

We eventually ate a great meal of red beans and rice and po' boys and went to bed. No one had any trouble falling asleep.

New Orleans Trip part 1: The Aquarium

We just got back from a family trip to New Orleans. The city where the Jazz is loud the liquor is stiff and the beads fly freely. Actually, we missed Mardi Gras by a week which is a really good thing otherwise we would have to explain a lot to Owen.

So, even though we missed the parties, the floats, and the um...interesting people, we did catch the great aquarium, the zoo, and some of the French quarter.

We stayed in the Hampton Inn off of Carondolet which was in the business district and two blocks from Canal. It was a great location; close to restaurants, walking distance from the aquarium but still in a pretty safe part of town.

Our first day out began with a trip to the Aquarium of the Americas.

Owen enjoyed it but he was searching for something specific. We're still not sure whether or not he knew what he was looking for but he rushed through most of the aquarium until he found it. The thing that caught his attention was an alligator; an albino alligator.

We did get him to stop by the prehistoric shark teeth long enough to get the obligatory picture.

He also enjoyed the section of the aquarium that was set up like a rain forest complete with a waterfall.

After the aquarium is was time for lunch and then off to the zoo!