Rain, Rain GO AWAY!!

Hey, Dougie, DeeDee and Pappa Mike are spending Memorial Day weekend down in LA (Lower Alabama). We usually have lots of fun riding bikes and kayaking while we are here. Unfortunately, it has rained and rained ever since we arrived so we have not gotten to do the things we like to do. Pappa Mike did get a fairly long bike ride the other day, but when he went out today, he only got as far as the entrance to the subdivision before a big shower hit.

Tonight, after dinner, we were finally able to walk down to the bay and take some pictures. Both Pappa Mike and I brought our cameras and we were hoping for some good sunset pictures since there was a small break in the clouds right at the horizon. Hopefully, Pappa Mike got better sunset pictures than I did!!

Pappa Mike taking pictures at the bay

We love to watch the birds here, too. Pappa Mike saw a Sparrow Hawk on our way into town the other day. He had never seen one before and he couldn't believe how small it was. While we were eating dinner tonight on the restaurant patio the Laughing Gulls were making a huge racket...some little kids had given them a bit of their leftover dinner, and the gulls had called all of their friends over to join in the feast. Unfortunately for the gulls, it wasn't a very big feast so they got a little irritated and let those kids know that they wanted more. 

I can't wait until you are old enough to come down to LA with DeeDee and Pappa Mike. I know that you will LOVE doing all of the fun things we do here. 

Busy Sunday

Hey, Dougie. DeeDee and Pappa Mike were so happy to see you last Sunday. Great Grandma Dugie came with us to your house and she loved seeing you, too.

It was a very busy day, so we did not get a very long visit. DeeDee had to sing in a concert at 3 o'clock, all the way on the other side of town. It was a very rainy day, too, and traffic was heavy. It is really a mess to drive in that kind of weather.

Great Grandma Dugie, Pappa Mike and DeeDee took turns holding you. At first you weren't sure about all of the new people in your house, but after your daddy held you a minute and told you that it was OK, you decided that we were OK!!

Pappa Mike and DeeDee are going down to LA (Lower Alabama) this weekend so we won't get to see you. Hopefully, you will be able to come down there with us later this summer. The work on the house should be done sometime in June and then we will be ready for a little guy to visit!!

Love ya, Dougie. See you next week.

What a Big Boy!!

Hey, Dougie. DeeDee surely enjoyed spending time with you in the ELC today. It was so much fun seeing you do all kinds of new things. You fell asleep in my arms shortly after I arrived at the ELC and I put you down in the crib and you slept for 45 whole minutes. You are certainly getting good at sleeping in your crib...your mommy told me that you slept for 8 hours straight last night. That is really a milestone!!

After you got up, you spent about 20 minutes in the bumbo chair. You looked like such a big guy, sitting up all by yourself. You watched all of the other kids playing and I could tell that you can't wait to be big enough to play with them.  While you were in the bumbo, you were playing with a ball...you swatted it to me a couple of times, but you really wanted to hold onto it.

You have also started using a new kind of pacifier. It's called a Nuk, and it is the same kind that your mommy used when she was your age. The Nuk is so much easier to keep in your mouth and you really seem to like it. 

I'll bet with all of the activity you had today, you will sleep well again tonight!! 

Love you, Dougie. See you soon.

The Camel Chair

Hey, Dougie. Pappa Mike and DeeDee went to Florida to visit his mother on Mother's Day weekend. We had a very good time. We did not do a whole lot, but we did get to visit with your Great Grandma and Pappa Mike's sister Judy and her husband Garry. We got to see your cousin Hailey, too. She is getting so old. She is 16 and has started driving. It seems like just a while ago she was as little as you are now.

Your Great Grandma gave us the Camel Chair to bring to our house for you. Several generations of Pappa Mike's family has "ridden" the Camel Chair when they were little. They liked to pretend that the Camel Chair was a horsey. Your daddy will be interested to know that your great grandparents bought the Camel Chair when they were living in France. The chair is almost as old as your Pappa Mike. You will have lots of fun "riding" the Camel Chair when you get a little bit bigger.

Pappa Mike and DeeDee missed seeing you on Mother's Day. Luckily, DeeDee will get to spend some time with you this week at the ELC after she proctors AP exams.

Three Month's Old!!

Hey, Dougie. Today you are three months old. DeeDee was able to spend several hours with you today in the ELC. It was such a treat and you gave me the most special Mother's Day gift...you grinned at DeeDee and I was (finally!) able to catch that beautiful smile on camera!!

I loved being with you today. You are three months old and I got to sing "Happy Birthday to You"!! We had some really active tummy play time. You were holding your entire upper body off of the carpet and you were trying to scoot around. It won't be long before you will be moving all over the ELC with your friends. After playing so hard, you got very sleepy and you fell asleep in my arms. You slept for over an hour and you did not even wake up when your mommy came in to feed you. But when you did wake up, you were a very hungry boy and you let everyone know it!

Miss JoAnn brought me a bottle to give you and you polished it off in no time. When it was gone, you were mad...you cried louder than I have ever heard you cry. Miss JoAnn wasted no time filling your bottle again so that you could have more milk. When the second bottle was gone, you still were not satisfied, so DeeDee gave you MORE milk.

After three bottles, you finally seemed full and satisfied. I'll bet you are going through a growth spurt!! Your mommy said that you are going to the doctor's tomorrow and I'm sure you have grown a bunch in the last month. DeeDee can't wait to hear how much you weigh and how tall you are. I know that you are going to get some shots tomorrow, and DeeDee hopes that they don't make you too cranky.

Have a good weekend with your mommy and daddy. Make your mommy's first Mother's Day very special!! I know that you made her a present at the ELC. I'm sure that she will really like your gift. Be a good boy and smile a lot for her on her very special day. DeeDee and Pappa Mike are going down to see Pappa Mike's mother in Jacksonville for Mother's Day, so we will not get to see you this weekend. DeeDee will be back at your mommy's school on Monday, so I will visit you in the ELC then.

Love ya, Dougie!!

Super Busy Days

Hey, Dougie. I can't believe that its been so long since I posted a message on our blog. DeeDee has been super busy in May. School will be out in just a couple of weeks and lots of teachers need substitutes. Most days between now and the end of school, DeeDee could work two or three jobs if she could figure out how to be in more than one place at a time!!

DeeDee and Pappa Mike have managed to spend some time with you even though life has been busy. We saw you at Lucy's First Communion party last Saturday. As usual, you were very curious about what was going on and you were wide awake during the entire party. You got to meet your Aunt Mary and cousin Garrett from Wisconsin and lots of people in Amy's family. Of course, everyone thought that you were a really handsome guy...and DeeDee has to agree!!

I worked at your mommy's school on Monday and got to see you again. You were eating when I arrived at the ELC, but once you were done, DeeDee held you for about 20 minutes before she had to leave. You grinned at me a couple of times, which was really special, since you are usually a very serious guy.

I also got to observe one of your first attempts at making choices. You are really growing up. While DeeDee was holding you, you were not totally happy with something (I'm not sure what it was) and you really thought about crying, but decided not to. I saw you stick out that bottom lip, and your chin started to quiver, and it looked like you were going to really crank up, but you didn't. It was just like you thought about it and decided that you didn't really need to cry after all. What a big boy!! It was really cool watching your baby thought processes at work.

DeeDee will be at Mommy's school again on Thursday. I can't wait to see you then.