Baby Melancon

Cruising

2012-01-03T20:09:00.007-06:00

The day after Christmas, my Dad and Lauren took us on a week long Caribbean cruise. We went to Cozumel, Grand Cayman, and Jamaica. I thoroughly recommend this form of vacation, especially for those with young children. The cruise ship had a children's program that Margaux could go to anytime, and she often preferred to do that over hanging out with us. That meant Mike and I got to read entire books, eat adult dinners, and even occasionally lounge around with no plan at all. A good time was had by all. Here are a few pictures. Two of them are from the sea turtle farm on Cayman. The big turtle weighs a few hundred pounds, but he started out as little as the one that Margaux is holding. One other picture shows what Margaux looked like when we picked her up from the kids' club on Pirate night.

The Angel in the Christmas Pagent

2011-12-18T22:03:00.000-06:00

Go Pokes!

2011-12-03T22:45:00.000-06:00

iMargaux

2011-11-22T09:18:00.000-06:00

Precious cargo

2011-11-22T08:32:00.000-06:00

Happy to go to School

2011-11-14T10:11:00.000-06:00

On Recent Events

2011-11-08T17:34:00.001-06:00

Halloween was happy!

2011-11-01T16:16:00.000-05:00

Margaux dancing to Billie

2011-10-20T21:00:00.003-05:00

Brief clip of M dancing to a Billie Holiday record. She's really into records (i.e., the vinyl ones). The girl from two doors down came over last week and when I put on a record, she was absolutely dumbfounded. I asked her if she'd ever seen one before and she just shook her head.

Margaux, on the other hand, thinks this is the way to play music.

Check out my new boots!

2011-09-09T16:08:00.001-05:00

Simile! God loves u!

2011-08-20T08:19:00.001-05:00

Margaux and I were discussing what to have for breakfast, and I suggested pancakes. "Do you like pancakes?" I asked. "I like pancake syrup," she answered, then added, "I will be sticky like a red-eyed tree frog!"

(The title of this post refers to Cindy's misreading of a bumper sticker a few years ago.)

The Stunk, Part II

2011-08-01T13:28:00.002-05:00

It seems that skunks (or "stunks", as Margaux calls them - see her previous thoughts on the critters) are destined to be a part of our lives at the new house. Last night we let Fergus out into the back yard to do his business, while Cindy and I sat on the patio and chatted. After a few minutes, we began to notice a strong, nasty smell wafting over the patio. Then Fergus came running back towards us at top speed, headed for the patio door with a "let me in!" look on his face. His face, however, was drenched in skunk spray. Man, that's nasty. It's peculiar, though...there was a distinct undertone of garlic and onion to the skunk smell. Not sure if the skunk had been feasting on someone's garden, or if skunk smell is normally infused with herbs and spices. For a split second, the Cajun in me thought "ummm..smells sort of like gumbo." Then, of course, we began to gag. Poor Ferg...as if it wasn't bad enough to be sprayed by what I'm sure he assumed was a black and white cat with a big tail, Cindy and I immediately grabbed him and began to scrub him with a mixture of vinegar, baking soda, and soap. This mixture does very little to get rid of the skunk smell, but it does add a nice pungent vinegar odor to the mix. Fergus spent the night in the washroom, then went first thing this morning to the vet to get a special "de-skunking" bath.

Grasshopper

2011-07-27T23:05:00.002-05:00

If you know Margaux or see this blog regularly, you know that she loves all God’s creatures. There is no insect, no worm, and no slug that doesn’t deserve a little of her attention. So, imagine her delight when in Baton Rouge she discovered black and red grasshoppers that were HUGE. She just had to hold one, and we enthusiastically helped her do so. Here are the pics from her crazy grasshopper experience.

Sidenote: Turns out that the grasshopper’s dramatic coloring is supposed to warn predators that it is poisonous. Perhaps Margaux’s parents should encourage just a wee little bit of caution when exploring nature.

2011 ACK trip

2011-07-25T19:04:00.005-05:00

Just catching up with some photos from the summer. This set is from our June trip to Nantucket. We rode the ferry from Hyannis to Nantucket for the first time ever. It was a beautiful day and a great way to arrive on the island. So, here are some pictures from the ferry and then a couple of Margaux at the beach.

The Stunk

2011-07-22T10:36:00.003-05:00

Margaux just recently realized that she can get out of bed on her own. Yes, we know we are lucky that we’ve had 3+ years without worrying about her wandering around while we are asleep. Well, a few weeks ago she started coming into our room in the morning when she was ready to get up. Not a big deal because she doesn’t get up too early. But, then it progressed to where she was getting up during her nap or getting up right after we had put her down for the night. Then, it got worse. She would get up in the middle of the night and come tell us she was up and not go back to sleep for a couple of hours. We felt like we were back in newborn-land. So, I decided we had to do something, anything, to see if we could get this to stop. I bribed her. I told her that if she could stay in bed all night and not wake up Mommy and Daddy until the sun came up, she could have a reward. First, she wanted to know what exactly the reward was. I told her to pick what she wanted. She said she wanted to go get frozen yogurt with gummy bears in it. I said, “You’ve got yourself a deal, kid,” and we shook on it. Right before I put her to bed that night, just as I was about to walk out of the room, I said, “See you in the morning.” This little voice replied, “OOOOKayyyyy, but I’m a stunk.” I said, “You’re a what?” She said, “I’m a stunk. I play while others sleep.” Turns out she had heard about skunks being nocturnal, and she decided that’s what she was. She did, however, sleep through the night and earned her reward. At the risk of jinxing us, she’s slept through the night every night since. Who knew bribery could work so well?

Getting teeth cleaned

2011-06-27T11:36:00.000-05:00

First trip to the dentist!

2011-06-27T11:23:00.000-05:00

Fun at the beach

2011-06-07T10:15:00.004-05:00

I love my Toms!

2011-06-01T19:29:00.000-05:00

The many faces

2011-05-23T16:30:00.004-05:00

Margaux's been practicing her frumpy face lately. She's getting quite good at it...

For comparison, here's a happier face:

Oy!

2011-05-04T16:57:00.001-05:00

I took Margaux to her 3-year old check-up last week. When the doctor asked her to count, she said, “I don’t know how to count.” When the doctor asked her to name some colors, she said, “No.” When the doctor left the room, I said, “Margaux, how high can you count?” She counted to 21. When I asked why she didn’t say her colors for Dr. Webb, she said, “I only know my shades of pink and purple.” I said, “ Couldn’t you have just said the word shade for Dr. Webb?” A few minutes later, Dr. Webb returned to the room and talked to us about the fact that Margaux is 25^th percentile for height and 25^th percentile for weight. She said, “Margaux, keep eating all those fruits and vegetables.” Margaux said, “What are fruits and vegetables? I want a donut.” I wanted to crawl under the examining table and hide. Seriously, Margaux gets donuts a few times a year and eats blueberries and carrots like other kids eat M&M’s. This three-year old thing is going to be an interesting ride. I can see that.

When I grow up...

2011-04-29T08:43:00.001-05:00

Margaux informed me that "when I get big I will have sunglasses, coffee, and big bubble gum.". Good to have goals.

Late Night Conversation

2011-04-26T11:00:00.003-05:00

Last night, when Margaux had been in bed for nearly 2 hours and was still not asleep, I went in to see if I could help. In a voice that was bright and vibrant (as if it were 10:00 AM instead of 10:00 PM), she began the following conversation.

Margaux: Oh! Hi, Mommy!

Me: Hi, sweetie. It’s time to sleep.

Margaux: What’s that in your hand?

Me: A baby monitor.

Margaux: What baby are you monitoring?

Me: You!

Margaux: I am not a baby.

And, she’s right. She’s not quite a baby anymore. She does still need quite a lot of monitoring, however. I’m pretty sure that’s going to be the case for many years to come.

Goofy girl

2011-03-06T13:12:00.000-06:00

Pigtails

2011-03-06T13:05:00.000-06:00

The Parents are One Step Behind

2011-02-26T16:55:00.005-06:00

From Mike:

Thursday morning at school drop-off, I was suiting Margaux up in her

raincoat in the door of the minivan. (It was pouring this AM.) And

she has a matching umbrella that she loves, too. When I gave her the

umbrella and got my umbrella, she said, "Put it over your head, like a

shell, Daddy!" I asked, "What animal has a shell?" thinking she'd of

course say turtle. She answered: "Limpet." So I said, "Well, turtles

have shells." She looked at me and said: "snails." So, yeah,

obviously her dad has no idea what animals have shells.

I didn't even remember that there *was* something called a limpet.

But according to Wikipedia it's "a common name for numerous different

kinds of saltwater and freshwater snails."

(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Limpet)

From Cindy:

Last night Margaux kept pulling the covers off her bed as fast as I put them on. It was late, and I wasn't amused. I finally said, "Margaux, don't do that again!" She burst into tears and started sobbing. When she finally calmed down a bit, I said, "Margaux, when Mommy says no, you don't have to get so upset. Just stop whatever it is you are doing." She took a few seconds and looked at me with her big, wet, brown eyes and said, "But, it would be so much more fun if you would just say Yes."

Blizzard v2.0 - Part I

2011-02-09T13:27:00.008-06:00

Sheesh...enough already. We got a load of snow dumped on us again Tuesday night. I'm guessing around 6-8". Two college kids rang the doorbell Thursday around noon, offering to shovel the driveway for $20. I instinctively said no (I sort of knee-jerk say no to anyone who comes to the door), then about half an hour later realized what I had done and ran outside to find them. Alas, they were long gone, and I had to shovel the *&%*!* myself. Stupid stupid stupid.

[UPDATE - Thurs, 10-Feb-2011: The temp plunged to well below zero here last night. Poor Cindy had to haul herself up to school to educate the ignorant in weather that was -15 degrees...yes, that's NEGATIVE FIFTEEN! It had warmed up some by the time I got out (around 1:00pm); it was up to 20 above.]

This is what the front yard looks like (you can see the outline of the sidewalk).

I had to get out with the shovel to clear a path so Ferg could go do his business ("In the land where the Schnauzer's go / Don't you eat that yellow snow")

Cindy sat inside to read the paper while Margaux watched Curious George.

Blizzard of '11, part II

2011-02-04T10:09:00.006-06:00

While mommy supervised from the porch, Margaux worked hard on her excavation project.

She was going to build an igloo. More of a conceptual igloo than an actual one. She piled up some snow and said "look, an igloo!"

Then she made some snow angels.

Dad helped out.

After a long day of making snow angels, there's nothing better than sitting down to rest...

...and having a snow snack.

Sometimes, snow just makes you thoughtful.

Blizzard of '11

2011-02-01T19:11:00.004-06:00

Well, it's astonishingly cold today here in Stillwater. Currently 15 degrees, dropping to *negative* 2 tonight. Egads! It snowed from late Monday night until early Tuesday afternoon. We've been huddled inside, because it was too windy and cold to let Margaux play outside. Maybe tomorrow. Margaux didn't seem to mind staying inside too much. In fact, while outside it looked like this:

...she decided to not only snuggle up *on* the couch; she actually snuggled up *inside* the couch, and spent quite a bit of time playing and watching Seasame Street on the DVR.

This is a before and after pic of the back yard. The top of the picture was taken around 9:00pm Monday. The bottom one was about 12 hours later.

Singin' the blues

2011-01-14T19:15:00.004-06:00

This is a short video of Margaux and her harmonica doin' her thang. American Idol here we come!

I heard her in the living room singing and playing harmonica, ran and got the Flip Vid, but by the time I got there she had stopped. So, I asked her for an encore performance, which she happily agreed to.

A Louisiana Christmas

2010-12-30T21:58:00.002-06:00

We just returned from spending Christmas with Mike's family in Baton Rouge. Please don't tell CPS, but we forgot our camera, so we are grateful for the pictures we got from family members. Hopefully, I will get some from our time in Fort Worth also, but for the moment, here's Margaux's Christmas week in Baton Rouge. First up, she loved playing in the sandbox Grandpa built for her. Then, Grandma, Grandpa, and Aunt Tammy kept Margaux while Mike and I went to New Orleans for the night (a complete blast for us, of course). While we were away, they took Margaux to pick out a Christmas tree. She loved that experience. Then, the last pics are of her on Christmas morning. Remember digging deep in your stocking to see if you missed anything? Remember, the crash after all the excitement and candy wore off? Ahhh, the joy of childhood.

Snow Day!

2010-11-30T22:52:00.004-06:00

Yesterday, Margaux took a nap in her crib for the first time in days. She's been on this no-nap kick, which is about to send me and Mike over the edge. It wouldn't be that bad if she was physically ready to give up the nap, but on days she doesn't nap, she's like a drunk monkey by 5 o'clock. So, she actually did fall asleep yesterday and wouldn't you know it, it started to snow. I could hardly wait to wake her up. I went into her room and said, "Margaux, you need to wake up so we can go play in the snow!" She said, "No, Mommy. Just a few more couple minutes of sleep." That seemed like a sign of things to come. I finally got her up, and we had a blast outside. As you'll see from the pics, it took her a minute to wake up. Then, she got into it and even tried to catch snowflakes on her tongue. A very fun day!

Hold Still a Minute

2010-11-11T23:14:00.004-06:00

So, the other morning, I thought Margaux looked like such a big girl. She was all ready for school and looked cute and happy. I had this thought, "Hey, take a quick picture for the family." Ha ha. There is no such thing as a quick picture of a two-year old. What you see below is the stream of pictures I had to take to finally get her to look at the camera and smile. As so often happens, the journey is even better than the destination.

Take a hike

2010-11-03T18:30:00.002-05:00

Our friends, Tony, Patti, and baby Cecilia came to visit us a couple of weeks ago. We had beautiful weather, so we all went hiking in the Lincoln National Forest. Margaux loved the backpack experience (Thanks, Tracy!), but baby Cecilia preferred to walk on her own. It was pretty amazing because she walked a very long ways and only occasionally agreed to be carried. She's only 15 months old, too! It was a wonderful weekend with old friends and the great outdoors.

Happy Halloween!

2010-10-31T22:54:00.001-05:00

To ACK and Back

2010-10-11T21:54:00.006-05:00

A lot has happened since our little journey to White Sands. I left Ruidoso and went to a conference in Stillwater. It was nice to be back in our little house. I went by myself because we thought it would be too confusing for Margaux to be back in her “home house” for just a couple of days before she was whisked off on yet another adventure. So, while I was at the conference Mike was on his own with Margaux for six days, and that is no easy feat (as I am about to find out for myself when he leaves for a conference next week). On day six, he and Margaux flew to Fort Worth. We met up there, stayed a couple of days, and then flew to Nantucket via Boston. The Boston to Nantucket flight was the scariest of my life, but we made it (and everyone clapped when we landed because clapping is a sign that you are not dead and we had to reassure ourselves that that was truly the case). It was all worth it because we had a fantastic time on Nantucket. The sunny days were amazingly beautiful, and Margaux couldn’t get enough of the beach. The rainy days were days on Nantucket, which are still better than most days spent anywhere else. We’re back in New Mexico now. Margaux was so cute the night we got in. It was 9:00 p.m. and we were all exhausted from a very long travel day. I was getting Margaux ready for bed, and she was playing with her toys here at the house. She looked up at me and said, “Mom, I’m so happy.” Kids are so good at being in the moment.

Margaux in her special seatbelt on the way to Fort Worth

Margaux and me on the way to Boston

Margaux in the freezing cold water

If you thought Margaux was a girly girl, you’d be wrong. The kid LOVES to get as messy as possible.

Margaux and Mike walking to the Sankaty Lighthouse on Nantucket

Up Up and Away!

2010-09-19T22:22:00.004-05:00

We had a fantastic weekend. We went to a hot air balloon invitational at White Sands National Monument. We spent the night in a nearby town because we had to be at the park by 7:00 a.m. We got up at 5:30 a.m. to pull that off. For all of you who know us well, you know what a feat that was. It was totally worth it. This was really one of the coolest things I’ve ever seen, and all three of us had a blast. It was over by 9:00 a.m. and we headed back to the hotel for a quick swim before starting back to Ruidoso.

Beauty is in the Eye...

2010-08-31T18:47:00.001-05:00

Upon holding her first earthworm, Margaux said, "He's a cute little guy."

Marshmallows

2010-08-23T10:27:00.003-05:00

My friend, Courtney, has the delightful habit of sending us (and by "us" I really mean Margaux) homemade marshmallows. Has it ever in your life occurred to you to make homemade marshmallows? Well, if you have the talent, you should cultivate it because they really may be a bite of one of heaven's clouds. The sequence below occurred when Margaux received a care package of strawberry marshmallows. Bon appetite!

New Mesko

2010-08-17T15:36:00.003-05:00

I know. I know. We haven’t posted in a long time. Well, there’s a reason for that. We’ve moved! Sort of. We have relocated to Ruidoso, New Mexico until January. I'm on a research sabbatical from OSU for the fall semester. Margaux is doing great, and we all are enjoying our time here. Here are a few pics, and we’ll add more over the coming days. First, this is our view from the back deck. Awesome! Next, this is the temperature. Double awesome! Next is Margaux in a Margaux-original outfit. Hello, Project Runway! She calls this her “New Mesko house,” and occasionally says she wants to go to her "home house." That sort of makes us sad, but this is such a great opportunity for all of us, it is very much worth it. Finally, the last one is sort of hard to see so you have to click on the picture to make it big, but a doe had her baby on our property last week. If you look closely, you can see the doe on the right side of the pic and the wobbly legged, spotted fawn coming from behind the tree.

Playing in Daddy's hat

2010-07-21T18:19:00.000-05:00

Margaux's first boat ride

2010-07-07T09:44:00.004-05:00

We spent the 4th of July weekend at the house of some friends down on Cedar Creek Lake, outside of Dallas. Margaux got to take a ride on the ski boat, which she enjoyed very much. So if anyone's wondering what to get her for Christmas, she'd like someone to get her dad a ski boat so she can go for rides...thanks!

This morning, she was a little upset at having to get dressed and put on shoes. When she kept fighting me on the shoes, I told her "Margaux, you're grumpy," to which she replied, "I NOT GRUMPY...I BEAUTIFUL!" No self-esteem problems, here.

Wagon o' babies

2010-06-24T08:36:00.000-05:00

Playing in the rain!

2010-06-16T13:01:00.001-05:00

First lollipop ever!

2010-06-05T12:03:00.000-05:00

2010-06-04T17:10:00.001-05:00

When I look back over all of the things I learned from my Mom, I start to see how much of who I am today is a direct result of the beliefs she instilled in me. My earliest memories are of Mom encouraging my independence. Don’t get me wrong, she cherished me. I know this because every day after preschool and kindergarten she would pull me into her lap and say, “How was little day?” She wanted to hear all about it. But, at the same time, it was MY day and she wanted to know what I thought about it. When I would bug her endlessly to let me have a friend come over to play or to go to someone’s house, she would say, “Cindy, if you are not comfortable spending time with yourself, no one else will want to either.” She wanted me to be comfortable in my aloneness without being lonely. Her belief in the importance of being alone from time to time coincided perfectly with another value she had- reading. After reminding me about the importance of being comfortable with myself, she’d hand me a book and say something about how many lives I could live if I were willing to become a reader. She encouraged my education, but she never nagged me about it. I don’t remember my mom ever once asking whether I had done my homework. When I asked her about this a few years ago, she said, “Well, it was YOUR homework, not mine.” And, as many of you know, I proceeded to stay in school until the age of 30 and have since managed to make a career out of research and education, so her method of instilling internal motivation was clearly effective. Mom has been gone for a year today. I saw this picture of her and my daughter this morning, and it caused me to reflect on some of the values B would want me to instill in Margaux. I’m pretty sure she would think we are off to a good start.

First Haircut

2010-05-27T14:01:00.001-05:00

Margaux got her haircut yesterday for the very first time. Not a tear
was shed, so it was a success!

Spring fun

2010-04-27T13:51:00.001-05:00

Springtime to Margaux means...

"riding wheelies on my tricycle!"

"blowing dandelions seeds all over the yard, so dad will have a use for the weed-trimmer for many weeks to come!"

"giving thanks for my chalk Easter eggs"

Rain

2010-04-17T13:40:00.004-05:00

Hello, all. Since Cin's been at a conference, M3 and I have been having a great time hanging out together. It's been raining here the last couple of days, which interfered with some of our activities, such as blowing bubbles or drawing on the driveway with chalk. But the rainy weather does afford Margaux the opportunity to knock around in her rain gear (raincoat and rubber boots). She really enjoys rain, though you might not be able to tell from the pitiful look on her face in this pic. I promise that just a second before, she was splashing in the water and singing "It's Raining, It's Pouring" at the top of her lungs.

...anyway, here's a happier picture.

Happy Birthday, Maddie

2010-04-13T10:18:00.003-05:00

Today is Margaux's cousin's b-d, so little M made a birthday message just for Maddie.

Easter pics

2010-04-07T17:59:00.005-05:00

Well, week one of the late-March New Year's resolution is a success...Witness the pics I am now posting of Margaux's trip to Fort Worth for Easter.

Margaux loves the E-bunny:

But for anyone who's seen the movie Donnie Darko, the image of a giant rabbit talking to you on the golf course should give you the willies!

We also got to do a couple of petting zoos. Showing her Okie roots, our daughter is very much into livestock, much to the chagrin of her mom, who had carefully dressed her in Easter Sunday finest.

A new year...a new plan

2010-04-01T09:14:00.006-05:00

Okay, so I'm a little late with the New Year's resolution. But I do promise that from this day forward, we will post a picture, video, or blog post at least once a week, unless we forget or get too busy. :) Things are well here in the 'water. Spring is rolling in, with 80-degree temps, and 40mph winds, the occasional snowstorm (will post pics of that soon).

Tricycle Time!

Aunt Tammy got Margaux a tricycle for her b-d. Here's a video of her riding (Margaux, not Tammy). It's a little long, so feel free to fast-forward. I didn't have time to edit it a whole lot.

Fun in the snow

2010-01-29T15:58:00.008-06:00

Stillwater has been getting slammed with a "wintery mix" (freezing rain, sleet, snow) since last night. This morning it turned to snow, so we took Margaux out in it. We could only stay for a short while because she's getting over an illness, but she thoroughly enjoyed herself. Here are a few pics and a video:

This is our yaupon holly, which looks kind of pretty with its icy branches:

And here's me and Margaux playing:

Here's a good pic Cindy took of our little snow angel:

Finally, here's a short (2 min) video of Margaux playing in the snow:

We've stocked up on firewood, food, hot chocolate, and DVDs. Hopefully we won't lose power. It's supposed to snow through tonight, and maybe again Monday. Sheesh. Hugs to all. Stay warm.

Some beach footage

2010-01-18T21:41:00.005-06:00

Hey, all. This is a short (1 min) video of Margaux running toward the surf at St. Augustine Beach. The tide's out, so she has to run a lonnnng way to get to the surf.

Cake

2010-01-14T12:55:00.004-06:00

One of the things that happened over the recent holiday season is that we celebrated Cindy's birthday on December 12. We got a most excellent chocolate cake from a friend of ours who is a caterer and shared it with Margaux. She thoroughly enjoyed cake.

Here's the before shot:

And here's the after:

Winter Break

2010-01-11T13:46:00.000-06:00

I'm posting the following for Cindy:

"We had quite a journey over the holidays. We left Stillwater on December 17th and drove Margaux to Fort Worth to stay with Dan and Tamara. Mike and I hopped a plane to NYC and celebrated our 40th birthdays with Christmas shopping in Manhattan, lots of good meals, a Broadway musical, and a good old fashioned blizzard. We returned after a long weekend and spent Christmas with our Reese family in Fort Worth. It wasn’t the same without B and there were some pretty rough moments, but I think we managed to do more than just get through it by creating some happy memories and starting what might become new traditions. Margaux and Maddie’s enthusiasm for Santa’s arrival helped keep everyone’s spirits up. A few days after Christmas we headed east once again, this time to Florida to celebrate Christmas with the Melancon family in St. Augustine. Our experience there reinforced what we already suspected, Margaux is a beach lover. When we came up over the dunes and she saw the long stretch of sand and then the ocean, she put her hands in the air and took off running saying, “Woohoo!” all the way to the water. It was good be with family. Mike and I love watching Margaux play with her cousins and the doting grandparents, aunts, and uncles give us a lot to be thankful for. After three weeks of travel, we are glad to be home and are gearing up for the new semester. Over the next several days, I’ll post pictures from the holidays. With the context of this update, you should to be able to figure out what’s what. We love to get your comments, so leave us some notes!"

Thanksgiving

2009-12-02T21:18:00.001-06:00

We had an amazing Thanksgiving break. Some friends from Fort Worth allowed us to borrow their house in Pebble Beach, California. The house was beautiful and so perfect because it already had lots of baby gear (high chairs, pack-n-play, etc.). We had a week of fun and lots of good family time. Margaux loved the beach. In fact, a couple of days after we got home, I asked Margaux what she wanted to do that day. Her response was, “Airplane. Go see sand?” Just like her B, she’s always ready to head to the airport. Here are some of the Margaux pics from the trip, and I’ll post some more in a few days. Most of these are from the Monterrey Bay Aquarium and Point Lobos State Park.

Halloween

2009-11-17T22:58:00.000-06:00

This is a little late, but I wanted to share a couple of pictures of Margaux from Halloween. Dan and Tamara bought her a super cute Halloween dress and bow. I did my best to get a lot of wear out of it by taking her to a different church every week in the time leading up to Halloween. Good thing we didn't visit one of those churches that doesn't like to acknowledge Halloween, or if we did, they didn't have the nerve to share their disapproval with me.
In addition to the dress, Margaux got into the holiday spirit in her pink poodle costume, which she called her "dogfit" - a combination of "dog" and "outfit." I had been procrastinating on buying Margaux a costume because I couldn't decide what I wanted her to dress as. One day I thought to myself, "Well, you better make up your mind or your kid is going to be the only one not in costume at the preschool costume parade. It's not like someone is going to knock on your door and hand you a costume." You know what happened? That very afternoon our neighbor, Mrs. Park, rang our doorbell and handed us a costume. She said she found it at a local shop and thought it might be Margaux's size. And, it WAS her size, which is amazing because Margaux is petite and hard to fit. All in all, Margaux loved Halloween. She doesn't quite understand why she can't wear her dogfit to school these days, and who knows, I might just let her. If you can't dress up as a pink poodle just for the fun of it when you are a toddler, when can you?

Agritourism

2009-10-19T21:51:00.000-05:00

Mike, Margaux, and I had our first experience with agritourism this weekend. Agritourism is a way farmers and ranchers can make extra money by opening their land to tourists. We drove about 30 minutes to a farm between Stillwater and Ada, OK. We got to go through corn mazes, hay bale mazes, a pumpkin patch, dig for bones in a giant sand pit, and pet donkeys, horses, and miniature cows in a petting zoo. The bone dig and the petting zoo were not my favorites. My urban upbringing did not prepare me for the ick-factor. Margaux loved it all, though. We went with our friends, Tracy and Claire. Claire is in the pictures with Margaux. She’s Margaux’s age but is a lot taller. They are best buddies and are really cute together.
P.S. I don't know what is up with the underlining above, but I can't get it to go away.

Just playing on the couch

2009-10-09T14:11:00.000-05:00

Hey, all. Things are well here in Stillwater, though it's cold and rainy today. Because of the weather, and b/c Margaux is a little under the weather (nothing serious, just a vaccination hangover) we're playing inside today. Here's a short video of Margaux, who is 19 months old now.

Our best to all...

budding Georgia O'Keefe?

2009-09-09T14:11:00.000-05:00

This is an early sketch Margaux made. She calls this one "cudders." (as in, she used several cudders to make the picture: red, green, etc.)

First Day of School

2009-08-27T20:21:00.000-05:00

Today was the first day of what I hope will be a very long and erudite academic career for Margaux. I am the one to take her to school, and as you can imagine I was a little apprehensive about how it was all going to go down. School starts at 9:00, and I teach several blocks away at 10:30. I had visions of a shrieking child whom a teacher would have to physically pry off my body so I could tearfully make my way to the car. I even left off the mascara this morning in preparation. Here’s what happened.
As we pulled up to her school, dozens of parents and children were gathered outside the building because no one (and they are serious about this) is admitted before 9:00. I carried her into the crowd thinking she would be uncertain of all the new people in this strange new place. She wanted “DOWN” immediately, and when I complied, she started going around saying hi to everyone and everything (including the flowers and rocks, so people probably think she's a little off in the head). When we went inside, she just headed for the toys and never looked back. Other children where crying, but she just looked at them like, “Can’t you see all this cool stuff to play with?” I suppose I'm a little offended, but oh well, I'll get over it.

Someone show this to Faye!

2009-08-20T14:19:00.000-05:00

My mom and I have discussed recently how Margaux has not come up with a name for Grandma Faye. Margaux calls her grandfather Mike "Pop" and grandfather Lolan "Kaw-paw," and called her late grandmother Betty "B." But grandma Faye remained nameless. But no more! As you can see, Margaux has finally settled on what to call grandma Faye.

Priorities

2009-08-12T11:50:00.001-05:00

Last week, Margaux and I went to Braum's (regional ice-cream/burger place) to have a malt. While there, I got a gallon of milk. At the checkout line, Margaux surprised the cashier by snatching my wallet from me, pulling out a $20 and saying "money!" As we walked out, I had Margaux (still clutching a dollar bill) in one arm, the milk in the other. Transcript of our conversation follows:

Margaux (looking at gallon of milk): "Milk!"
Dad: "That's right."
Margaux (looking at dollar bill): "Money!"
Dad: "That's right. Which do you like better, milk or money?"
Margaux (long pause): "Money!"

This is her, digging through my wallet:

some vacation pics/movies...

2009-07-13T22:28:00.001-05:00

When you fly with children, you have to make sure they will fit in either the overhead bins, or under the seat. The airport has helpful diagrams to assist you with this...

In other news, Margaux's aunt got her a new pair of Squeaker Sneakers. If you watch the vid, it becomes quickly apparent why they're called squeakers...

Pics from Fort Worth

2009-06-29T13:15:00.000-05:00

I can't believe how long it's been since we posted! I'm trying to catch up, now. To start out with, here's some pictures from our stay in Fort Worth. I'm sorry for the delay, and promise to be more vigilant in posting.

Here's Cindy and nephew Keller playing with little M in her pool we set up in the back yard of her grandparents' house.

Splashing is always fun!

Here's a closeup of our little minnow...

And here's a couple of pics of Margaux and her friend Claire (thanks to Tracy for the great pics!).

Aunt Tammy and Uncle Calvin come to visit

2009-05-21T12:23:00.000-05:00

Wednesday afternoon Aunt Tammy and Uncle Calvin flew in from Baton Rouge to visit for a week. Margaux just loves Aunt T and Uncle C!

They took her to lunch at Crepe Myrtle:

...and Aunt Tammy bought her her first pool! Margaux is now a big fan of the swimming pool. She just looks at it and says "water" with a sort of awed tone in her voice, as in "that's a lot of water!"

She likes to sit and splash both herself and everyone around her.

And this pic is actually from the previous week when we were in Fort Worth. Neiman-Marcus has a small children's section with (what else) a toy Ferrari. Margaux just hopped right in like she belonged there.

And here is a pic of Tammy reviewing parts of the foot (metatarsals, proximal and digital phalanxes, etc.) with Margaux.

Baby yoga

2009-05-14T15:42:00.001-05:00

Learning to walk entails learning to stand, and Margaux's efforts have been great fun to watch. She frequently manages to get her rear end up while the hands stay on the floor and ends up doing a perfect "downward dog" pose. Here are a couple of pics (taken from my Blackberry, so pic quality isn't great.)

I'm a walkin'

2009-05-10T16:24:00.001-05:00

Greetings from Fort Worth, where Margaux gave her mom the Mother's Day gift of taking real and unassisted steps a couple of hours ago. I, of course, forgot the video camera so I won't have footage up until we get back to the Still. Maybe Cin can shoot video w/her iPhone. It certainly costs as much as a video camera. Margaux sends kisses to all.

2009-05-08T10:15:00.000-05:00

Hello, everyone. We hope your weekend is going well. Here are a few pics we thought were sort of funny.

I call this one "Angry Baby." Little M was peeved with me one morning b/c I took the remote control away from her. She's performing a ancient Cajun gesture with her left hand which translates, roughly, into "You have made me angry so I flare my nostrils at you!!!"

...by the time breakfast was served, however, she had decided to forgive me.

This was from later in the day (dinnertime, I think). Sometimes, dinner makes her downright giddy.

Here's a pic of M3 relaxing in her toddler-sized easy chair. That's one of her babies with her. She says "baby" very slowly and deliberately--"bay-BEE"

A Day in the Life

2009-04-16T22:48:00.000-05:00

Feeding herself while wearing spinach war paint.

Checking email on Daddy's crackberry.

Using her walking toy as a scooter. I guess a skateboard will be on her Christmas list.

Chilling out in the chair she got for her birthday. She loves this thing.

Rocking in the chair made by Grandpa Melancon.

Getting a pacifier out of her diaper bag.

Sitting in her walking toy with her purse and baby doll.

eye of the tiger, redux

2009-03-31T13:12:00.000-05:00

You may remember a few weeks ago when Aunt Megan sent us a tiger that dances and sings "Eye of the Tiger" (we put up a video of it). Well, now Margaux has figured out how to work the on/off button and enjoys turning the tiger on and off and on and off and on and off...

(In other news, we changed the blog settings to allow comments from anyone. Previously, you had to had to have a blogger or google account to post comments.)

What's been happening...M's BD, words, and snow

2009-03-28T15:09:00.000-05:00

Well, we haven't been terribly good about updating the blog lately, but we've been a tad busy. Two weeks ago, we celebrated Margaux's birthday (real b-d is on 3/12, but her mom teaches on Thursday nights, so we had a party 3/14). Margaux had a great time and enjoyed getting presents. At this stage, I believes she likes ripping up wrapping paper more than she likes playing with the enclosed toys. Here's a few b-d pics. (Thanks, Aunt Tamara for the pictures!)

First we have the birthday girl:

Then, we have the birthday cake:

She tried the cake, but didn't really eat much of it.

But overall, she had a great time at her party.

Today we're all sitting around inside because it's snowing here in Stillwater. Over breakfast this morning, I recorded Margaux and Cindy having a discussion. Pretty amusing. Also I've included a brief clip of the snow falling and M's reaction to it.

For those Down Under

2009-02-14T18:49:00.000-06:00

As many of you know, Margaux's B and Pop are traveling in New Zealand and Australia. They are missing Margaux, and it just so happens that my friend, Courtney, who is visiting this weekend brought her camera. So, for you, Mom and Dad, here are some pictures of your granddaughter from this morning. Love to you both, Cindy, Mike and Margaux

Tornadoes and Tigers

2009-02-13T16:20:00.000-06:00

Lots of twisters a couple of days ago (Tuesday). I was about to give M3 a bottle and put her down for a nap when the warning sirens went off. You'd be surprised how quickly you can get a baby, diaper bag, flashlight, and weather radio down into a storm shelter if you're properly motivated. All was fine in Stillwater (some light hail damage) but other communities in OK weren't so lucky.

On a happier note, Aunt Megan sent Margaux a stuffed tiger that sings "Eye of the Tiger," the hit song from the 80s. The tiger plays the song over and over and over and over again. We love to hear it! (Not!)

But here's a fun video of M3 and her new toy. If you watch closely, at around 1:33 into the video you see a subtle hint that Margaux has had enough of the song.

Dancing to the purple dinousaur

2009-01-28T11:15:00.001-06:00

Hello, all. We're digging out from under the ice that got dropped on Stillwater over the last couple of days. Our Honda has been parked up the street the whole time because it was impossible to get down the icy hill without sliding into the creek. Our neighbor tried to move his Corvette (I guess he was going to put it in the garage) and ended up spinning around in the ice and parking it on top of *his* neighbor's terraced flowerbed, where it sat for 2 days because the tow truck couldn't get down the street. Yeesh.

Here's a short vid Cindy shot. When Barney came on, Margaux dropped what she was doing so she could crawl over and dance to the Barney songs.

Margaux eats cheese

2009-01-23T16:36:00.001-06:00

This video shows the first time Margaux tried cheese, and as you can see, she's not keen on cheese. We'll keep trying to get it down her, though, because a world without cheese is sort of sad.

Short movie

2009-01-10T16:25:00.000-06:00

Cindy got me a FlipVideo camera for Christmas, and I've been having fun filming stuff. It's very easy to make quick little movies, like this one...

Patrick the Puppy

2008-12-15T22:42:00.000-06:00

Cindy got online a week or two back and decided to get Margaux her first Christmas present. She hit FAO Shwartz (haven't seen the bill yet and I'm very afraid...) and got Patrick the Puppy, a giant (4') stuffed dog that is very smushy and soft. We gave it to Margaux yesterday, and she has really grown to love Patrick. She climbs all over him. It's very funny to see a wee little 9-month-old climbing a stuffed animal like it's a mountain--she goes up one side, and down the other.

Here's Patrick...tomorrow when the baby's awake, I'm going to put Fergus (the real dog) in there next to Patrick and take a pic to show the scale (real dog much smaller). Note the alien in the background. We picked it up in Roswell NM a few years ago. Margaux was kind of attached to it, but Cindy was afraid she would grow up and have dreams that she was abducted by aliens as an infant. (The UFO-ers will recognize the alien, which is often draped with Mardi Gras beads and sporting an LSU shirt.)

Margaux was a little standoffish at first...

...but then she did the canine 'nose sniff' ritual...

...and then decided that she LOVES Patrick the Puppy. Whenever she's near Patrick, she goes up to him and lies down on top of him. Even softer and squishier than Dad's belly!

bye-bye gramma & grampa

2008-12-11T22:25:00.000-06:00

Well, Lolan and Faye packed up the RV and hit the road, after spending all autumn here in Stillwater. We were very sorry to see them go, but we're so grateful they hung out for these last several months. Nothing better than having grandparents around! Margaux spent lots of time with Gramma and Grampa, walking, playing, shopping, etc. Now that it's just Cindy and I here, I think Margaux's getting a little bored with us. Here are a few pics of M and her grandparents:

Here's little M rolling around on the floor with Faye. Margaux went from rolling to crawling to pulling up on stuff in the months L & F were here.

Grandpa spent hours playing with Margaux, telling her stories, and showing her stuff. He says he can't wait until she's old enough for him to teach her to throw rocks.

Here are the 3 of them. It looks like they're explaining something to her: "Well, honey, I know you want to go with us in the RV, but your mom and dad would miss you if you left..."

Play date

2008-11-26T10:16:00.001-06:00

Margaux and I went to Claire and Tracy's house to play on Sunday. The girls are about 2 weeks apart in age. Both are only children, so sharing may not be a strength. As you see here, Margaux found one of Claire's toys she liked, and Claire quickly reappropriated it.

Hope everyone has a happy Thanksgiving. We're in Texas where Margaux's B is preparing a feast for the grown-ups and even has Thanksgiving babyfood for Margaux!

Baby legs

2008-11-16T18:33:00.000-06:00

Hey Everyone, Here are two pics from this weekend. One of them shows Margaux in her "baby legs," which are legwarmers for babies. Diaper changes are a lot easier with baby legs than with tights. Plus, with Margaux being constantly on the move, the baby legs keep her legs from getting bruises. Too bad they don't make something similar for foreheads. Hope you all had a good weekend!

Ordinary days

2008-11-08T11:55:00.000-06:00

Hi Everyone, Just thought I'd post some pics from yesterday and today. Hope you all have a good weekend.

The two pics above show Margaux with her favorite things- her dad and her thumb.

I love this kind of shot because it is about the only way we can get a good pic without redeye. You can't really tell it on the blog, but Margaux's eyes are gray, and they really pick up the light.

This is the look we get when we try to give her her medicine (she's had an ear infection). She must think that we will be fooled into thinking that she has no lips and therefore cannot possibly ingest amoxicillan.

Happy Halloween!

2008-10-31T10:20:00.001-05:00

I know there are princesses and witches in our future, but for this first Halloween, we are enjoying our little pumpkin. Here are a few pics of Margaux from this morning. She likes hats, so she really seemed to enjoy her costume. Hope you have a fun and scary day!
P.S. I'll get Mike to put some more up later. The others need some work to remove red eye, and that's not my specialty.

Crawlin'!

2008-10-22T08:36:00.001-05:00

Well, little M is scurrying around the floors now like she owns them. We've had several surprise moments putting her down in one place, turning away to get something, then turning back around to find her headed for the door.

"Outta the way, Dad! I'm going shopping!"

"Oh, just go have some coffee. I won't crawl very far...I promise..."

After a hard crawl, when you need a little sustenance, there's nothing like some tasty horse hoof.

Updates coming

2008-10-19T23:20:00.000-05:00

Hey, everyone. Sorry for the paucity of posts lately. We've been a little busy...but I promise that tomorrow (Mon.) we'll put up some pics. The latest developments: Margaux is now crawling; we went to Chi-town and left baby with grandparents Melancon last weekend; we were in Fort Worth with the Reeses this past weekend. So we have lots of pics to put up, and hopefully some video, too. I can't do the pics right now because the camera is in M3's room, and I don't want to wake her up rumaging around for the digital camera. Margaux had a full-blown giggle fit tonight on the way home from Texas. I said something that made Cindy laugh, which made Margaux laugh, which made all 3 of us laugh, which sent Margaux into howling laughter. If there's anything funnier than cackling babies, I don't know what it is. Peace, y'all.

The good, the bad, and the cute

2008-10-05T13:59:00.000-05:00

Here are some pictures of Margaux from this past week. Two exciting events happened this week, one good and one bad. On the good side, Margaux learned to sit up on her own this week. This means she can go from laying down to upright all on her own. We are all very happy about this. It's so cute to go in in the morning and see her sitting up in her crib waiting for us. On the bad side, Margaux face-planted this morning and hurt her mouth. It was the inside of her upper lip that was hurt- we think from the pacifier that was in her mouth when she fell over. She doesn't have any teeth, so it wasn't from biting her lip or tongue. She was bleeding and crying like crazy. After about 30 minutes the bleeding stopped and she calmed down. Prior to today, I had considered that Margaux might not have very good pain receptors because she doesn't cry when she does things that look like they would hurt. Today, we learned that her pain receptors are perfectly normal. She's fully recovered now and back to sticking everything she can find in her mouth, so no worries. I'm sure this is the first of many misadventures we will experience with our very active daughter. Hope you all are doing well!

Lazy Thursday

2008-10-02T14:00:00.000-05:00

Hello, everyone. I'm blogging while Margaux sleeps. But I just heard her roll over in her crib, which means she's starting the process of waking up. It's a lovely day here in StillH2O, cool and sunny. M3 and I have already been for a walk today, and may do some grocery shopping when she wakes up.

I'm posting a couple of pictures. First, is a shot of Lolan (grandfather Melancon) feeding the baby. For grandparent reference, the Reese grandparents go by B and Pop, the Melancons by Grandpa/Grandma.

As you might have gathered from the above photo, we've begun feeding little M solid food. So far, she loves vegetables (peas, carrots, sweet potatoes) but doesn't care much for fruit (apples, pears). She makes a very funny dramatic gagging sound when we feed her pears. However, we've had some luck with mixing pears and oatmeal...she's okay with that.

Here's a funny shot of her pre-dinner:

Baby noises more insistent, now, so I probably have to run. But first, stop at the espresso maker to get some magical energy elixir! Ummm, caffeine...

Daddy's girl

2008-09-17T18:04:00.000-05:00

For me, one of the best parts of this parenting gig so far has been to see Mike and Margaux together. Oh, how she loves her daddy! And, oh how I love him for being such a great father. Here's a series of pics of the two of them and then one at the end of just Margaux that was taken this morning.

Sit-ups

2008-09-11T19:47:00.000-05:00

Margaux's newest trick is sitting up. She can sit up for minutes at a time. She cannot get herself into a sitting position, but if you sit her up she can stay that way for a good long while. Here's a sequence that starts with her upright and finishes with a position we see a lot- Margaux laying on her back with her legs crossed at the ankles. She always looks so laid back like that.

Margaux's First Solid Food

2008-09-05T23:27:00.000-05:00

Hi, everyone. We fed M3 her first solid food this afternoon and recorded the precious moment on video. It was very entertaining. Margaux likes organic rice cereal, but hasn't decided whether she likes to actually EAT it, or just smear it on her face. Bon appetit!

Our love & support goes to our friends and family down in the hurricane zone. Gustav is off of CNN now, but many of our people are still cleaning up and are without power, a/c, etc.

Here's the video of baby Margaux:

Playtime

2008-08-18T10:12:00.000-05:00

Here are some pics of Margaux from yesterday morning. She was rolling around on the floor, checking out Brother Fergus, and seeing if her feet still taste good. The funny thing is, we had just been reading Dr. Suess's "The Foot Book." I think this inspired her.

Summer is ending

2008-08-15T14:42:00.000-05:00

School starts Monday for both me and Mike, so the pace around here should be picking up quite a bit. Mike's parents arrive Saturday to take care of Margaux for us for the semester. Yes, you read that right... the semester! How wonderful is that? I'm sure there will be lots of upcoming shots of Margaux and her Melancon grandparents, but in the mean time, here are some of her and her Reese grandparents. These are from this past weekend. Must run. Baby crying. Love to all.

We're back!

2008-07-29T21:08:00.000-05:00

Hi Everyone, We've been on the road a lot this summer. Covered lots of territory and had wonderful times with family and friends. After many nights away, we're glad to be back in Stillwater (not sure I ever thought I would say that) enjoying family life. Margaux is doing great. Her new accomplishments include rolling over (mostly from back to tummy), chewing on everything she can get to her mouth, grasping for toys, pulling mommy's hair really hard, pulling Daddy's chest hair really hard, and making progress towards sitting up. She is also very accomplished at snuggling. She is definitely a cuddle bug, and Mike and I enjoy every minute we spend holding her. You know, it's funny. Everywhere we go, people with older children say to us, "Enjoy her. It goes by so fast." I agree that it sure does go fast. She's 4.5 months now, and it seems like yesterday that we were coming home from the hospital. We really do try to focus on enjoying her and really being in the moment. It's been years since I have spent so much time laying on the floor playing. I highly recommend it. It changes your perspective on your day. Here are some Margaux pics from the past week. Despite the fact that she looks gi-normous in the one where she has the tutu on, these were all taken on consecutive days. She is growing like crazy, though. Love to all of you!

You don't say!

I can beat you in a staring contest.

Not so tiny dancer

Margaux in her favorite spot (swing) and her must have items: pacifier, lovey, and "blah blah" doll. This combination usually results in a great deal of cooing followed by a bliss-filled nap.

This is what she looks like every night after her bath. Content to chill.

She makes funny noises

2008-06-25T15:42:00.000-05:00

Here's a clip (2 min or so) of Margaux taking her first stabs at speech. Mostly cooing and warbling. Very, very cute.

Regard My Feet

2008-06-20T13:36:00.000-05:00

Here is a short (1:30) video we shot of Margaux and her newest toys...her feet. She is over her illness and much happier now, as you might gather from the video. It's hot here in Stillwater, but we thankfully haven't gotten any of the bad Midwest storms assailing Iowa and Illinois.

Baby Drama

2008-06-12T16:53:00.000-05:00

We're still on Nantucket, and I wanted to post some pics I took the other day when Margaux was rolling around on the floor. Unfortunately, things haven't been so simple and happy since. We've been dealing with Margaux's first illness. It isn't serious, but it has been stressful because there is not a single pediatrician on Nantucket and no other doctors would see us. We ended up having to go to the ER (three times) where the doctors weren't very experienced with young babies. Thank goodness Mike's cousin, Liz, is a pediatrician and has been helping us interpret what the ER doctors are telling us and generally offering great advice and comfort to me and Mike. So, here's a series of happy Margaux pics and then one of her from the ER where she was happy because she didn't know what was about to be done to her. We'll be back in Stillwater next week and will post more then. Best to all of you and thanks for the comments! We love those.

Pics from Nantucket

2008-06-10T21:19:00.000-05:00

Hello, all. We've spent the last week in Nantucket MA with Mike, Betty, Dan, Tamara, Keller and Connor. Cindy and I have pretty much ignored the island so we could take cute pics of Margaux, such as these:

Because we want to keep our little vampire out of the sun, we got Margaux her first pair of sunglasses. So here's Princess Cool.

...and here is her new sun hat. As you can see, she really likes it!

Here's me (Mike) feeding lil bit out on the porch of our condo. It's very cool in Nantucket, so it felt great to sit outside in 60-70 degree air, as opposed to Stillwater's 100-150 degree air.

Okay, that's all for tonight. Cindy is going to post some more tomorrow. And one of these days I'll do some more videos. I just need some time (hah!) to edit the video. Peace and hugs to all!

Long time no blog

2008-05-19T18:43:00.000-05:00

I know. I know. It's been forever since I've posted anything. We had a great 17 days in Fort Worth visiting B and Pop. All the siblings and cousins were together for Mother's Day, and a good time was had by all. The latest baby news is that nighttime sleep has basically worked itself out. Margaux sleeps about 8 or 9 hours a night with an occasional nighttime feeding thrown in for good measure. Sometimes she sleeps the whole night, though and those are wonderful nights. Everyone wakes up with smiles when that happens. Here are some pics. You can see how much Margaux has grown and also witness our favorite addition to her behavioral repertoire- the full out SMILE!

Helping Dad Work

2008-05-08T10:11:00.001-05:00

Hello, all, I'm sorry we haven't posted in a while. Cindy's been in the Fort visiting family, and I've been getting my classwork wrapped up for the semester. All done now, so we'll post some pics and commentary. I also am working on some new video. Margaux is growing nicely. She's become a lot more aware of, and interested in, things going on around her. Here is a picture of her sitting in my lap while I work on the laptop. She likes the computer, although she says MS-Windows is bloated and insecure. Our best to all, and we'll post more ASAP.

hugs,
Mike