Rough and Tumble

We recently started a new Mommy and Me class at Nova University called Baby Rocks. It's held in a room that's more a baby-sized gym and is full of awesome toys. There's still singing, though the songs are more rock n' roll (think We Will Rock You by Queen), great for inspiring baby's first head-bang and mosh pit. We really enjoy this class and all the new, fun activities. There are a couple families that we end up being in the same classes with each session, and it's even more fun to see Brianne's little friends growing up right along with her.

The center where these classes are held have a couple cool indoor playgrounds right outside the classrooms. Here we are playing with a little scooter waiting for our class to start. We actually got Brianne a little scooter for Christmas, so it looks like we will need to break it out! P.s. This head band lasted on her head for about as long as it took me to take this picture.


They have this little swing in the classroom. I'm not sure Brianne knew what to make of it.


Here is Brianne with her buddy Preston. Preston is one of the babies who's been in almost all of Brianne's classes with her.


Here is Brianne in a super cool ball pit. They sit with the balls in the main part of the pit, then you put the balls in the top, and they come down this nifty tube thing (at right).

One of Brianne's favorite activities is Parachute!

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Brianne celebrated her first St. Patrick's Day by scouting for leprechauns and chasing rainbows in search of that pot o' gold. And by leprechauns and rainbows, I mean scouting the floor for pieces of lint to eat and chasing Cooper. While it's a bit early for St. Paddy's Day partying, we still had fun wearing green and dancing Irish jigs.

Here is Brianne in her St. Paddy's Day best - we had to make sure she wore green so she didn't get pinched (though Aunt Joan is more into hugging than pinching).

Brianne doing her Irish jig from a seated position.

Digital Daddy

With Marty being gone in Tallahassee until May, we started video chatting with Windows Live Messenger so Brianne could still her daddy even when he was far away. I gave Marty a camera for his laptop this past Christmas, and we have had a lot of fun talking over the computer. Brianne doesn't quite get that Marty isn't there, so she tries to rescue him from the little box he is trapped in by banging on the keyboard. Video chatting is fun, but it's no substitute for having Marty with us, and we are looking forward to having him back full time when session is over!

Brianne and Grandma Mimi video chatting with Marty.

Carnival Ride (The 100th Blog Post!)

Twice a year, St. David's Catholic Church hosts a family carnival. So we decided to share the wonders of ferris wheels and elephant ears with Brianne. She was amazed at all the rides, colors, and happy people. She was especially delighted with the people singing karaoke. We had to strap her down in her stroller to keep her from jumping on the roller coasters or trying to win one of those little goldfish. On a side note, a few years ago, Marty and I went to the St. David's carnival and we won a goldfish, who we named Quirky. We loved Quirky though he only lived for about a week. I still have the little bowl...

p.s. This is the 100th blog post! Unbelievable! Since they change by the minute, babies give you lots of material to write about!

Brianne and Grandma Mimi hanging out while I finished lunch. Yum, carnival food is delicious.



Here we are on Baby's first carousel ride. Technically, we didn't actually ride, but I couldn't resist getting a picture!


Brianne had a great time!

We gave Brianne a sip of our frozen lemonade. Her reaction to the cold and sourness was hysterical!

Happy Birthday Bradley!

Our buddy Bradley DiPaolo celebrated his first birthday on the weekend of March 13. Bradley's parents hosted the party at their neighborhood park, and were lucky that it turned out to be a beautiful day of weather. We had a great time visiting with friends, singing happy birthday, and eating lots of cake! It gave me a lot of great ideas for Brianne's birthday, only a few short months away!

The only thing that dampened the day slightly was that someone burglarized several cars, including my friend Tiffany's. The nerve of some people!

Here with are with the birthday boy, Bradley, his mom Alona, and our new friend, Zaylee.

Brianne had a great time making silly faces at our friend Paul. Paul actually just proposed to his now-fiance Lisa on Valentine's Day. How romantic!

We tried to sit all the kids down to take take a group shot. All the other younger babies started crying when they were sat down, except for Brianne. She loved sitting with the big girls, and had a blast smiling and getting her picture taken. Pictured with Brianne below is Abby and Zaylee.

Baby Needs a New Pair of Shoes

Brianne is lucky to have a Grandma Mimi that spoils the dickens out of her. Normally, Mimi buys clothes, so I mentioned one day that it would be nice to have a pair of shoes. Mimi came back with 10 new pairs of shoes. Brianne is going to have to sleep in shoes so she gets to wear them all before her feet get too big!

Here is Brianne admiring all her new shoes.

Fighting the Crowds for a Little Jazz

The first Sunday of the month found as back at Riverfront for Jazz Brunch. With the weather being so nice, it was positively jam packed. We go to the same spot each time we go, but there were so many people that our normal spot was taken. Even our back up spot was taken. And we had gotten there an hour earlier than usual! My dad lives right next door to the area, so we are enlisting him to be the first wave for next Sunday Jazz Brunch and get there at 7:00am to stake out our spot.

Brianne enjoyed some yogurt for brunch.

Our new spot wasn't as shady as our normal spot, so Brianne had to break out the shades.

Park N Ride

Last weekend (March 4), we decided to take a mini-adventure to the playground in our neighborhood. We've walked by it I don't know how many times, but have never checked it out. Brianne had to try the swing first, and had a blast flying through the air with the greatest of ease - flying might be too strong of a word, gentle swaying is more like it. Marty wanted to join in and rode the big kid swing, but I guess he swung a little too high and got himself motion sick. That's what he gets for trying to show off!

After the swings, we did a little sliding. Marty again tried to show off by zipping down the biggest slide, and got a huge static shock at the bottom. Poor Marty, he had a hard day at the playground. Brianne and I had a great time, though it might take some convincing to get Marty back on that playground any time soon.

Here's Brianne enjoying her first swing ride.

Getting a push from Dad.

Exploring the tubes on the playground.

Check Please!

Since Marty is up in Tallahassee this week (week of March 1), we decided to have a girl's night out to dinner with Grandma Mimi and Mi Ma Debbie. We went to the Grand Luxe Cafe at Sawgrass Mills. Instead of shlepping in a stroller and car seat, we decided to try sitting Brianne in a high chair. She did very well, and sat politely in her seat while we ate. Though she insisted on having a spoon of her own, so she could pretend eat.

At home, Brianne has been getting a lot of practice with her own spoon. Now when she eats, she has to have her own spoon to hold onto, so I need to get a second spoon to actually feed her with. She holds her own spoon, puts its in her mouth like she's taking a bite, the takes the spoon out and claps her hands. A couple of times, she took her spoon and banged on the bowl, then put the spoon in her mouth, then clapped. It seems that she is learning the process of eating - scoop food onto the utensil, then into the mouth. Amazing! It's incredible how much babies soak up by watching, just like a little sponge.

Mi Ma Debbie, Brianne and Grandma Mimi settling into our booth at the restaurant.

Here is Brianne in her high chair. We had one of those of shopping cart seat covers, so we put it on so she had something to keep herself entertained.