A Cupcake Day

When I was a kid and had a bad day my mom always made me feel better by taking me out somewhere. Usually it was Los Tios, but there was the occasional Olive Garden visit for the yummy breadsticks.

Today is rough. Emory has had a cold for a week, hasn't been sleeping well, woke up at 5:30, fell on her face and got a bloody nose at 7am. So now her nose is not only sore from tissues, but crusted with blood. She coudn't nap because of the cough, and got up from the crib sobbing and miserable. So I did what my mother would do.... bribery. I went through the list of all the things that MIGHT make her happy: Chick File, Elmo, visiting daddy, wearing boots, a cupcake??? And she bought it. A slight smile. I started to bake, but the sobbing started again so we took off for a trendy little shop nearby and hurried home to eat it since I left the oven on. I bought a $3 cupcake that tastes a little like vanilla chalk, but she's happy and it's worth it. She is presently eating it with the spoon she insisted on.

Took this over a month ago. Is there anything better than naked porch dancing?

Emory insisted on wearing goggles and keeping them on. She also likes to do that with her bike helmet.

Going to the chapel

We are in the middle of visitor season, which I love, being an E on the extrovert scale. One of our recent visitors was Caitlin, a 22-year-old adventurer, who was traveling the south by planes, trains, and automobiles. She visited the coolest spots: New Orleans, Charleston, Savannah, Wilmington, Dallas (well, one not so "cool"), and Austin. Her trip made me hunger for the old days when I did many a random road trip- eating pickled pigs feet in Virginia, rolling down grassy Tennessee hills off of the Blue Ridge Parkway, and trying to understand rural North Carolinian when I locked my keys in the car.

But for now, I'm getting a whole new adventure in Toddler Land. Caitlin is a photographer, amongst other talents, and she took some great pictures of Emory. The top three pictured are hers. Emory had a cold, was snotty, drooly, and not-so-happy, but it was a glimpse of her new sassy personality.

Grandmama and Papa Coley are here, and Emory finally got to go to the sandbox- something Mommy has been avoiding, well, since childhood. I'm not so into dirt.

Catherine may use my veil for her wedding so we had it out. Emory makes a pretty cute baby bride. She wears those beaded necklaces all the time. She's into all things that are choking hazards.

http://caitymurphy.wordpress.com/2011/10/05/baby-emory/#comment-126

Go to the above link for more of Caitlin's pictures...