suprise!

Orum turned 30 on Saturday, and I actually pulled off a surprise party! It was supposed to be "top secret" but I allowed a certain 5 year old to overhear me inviting people! I stressed to her the importance of keeping the secret--she had to keep it for 5 days!

Within the first 10 seconds of seeing Renee, after she heard of the party Orum told Renee that he could tell she was keeping a secret! Luckily, she didn't tell, and I somehow convinced him that it was about his present.

The plan was for him to go sailing in the morning {sailing lessons were his present} and then come home to a party. Well, the lesson got cut short so there was a lot of deception involved to pull it off, but it worked-thanks to Lora who helped me work frantically on the banner, kept my kids, and washed my dishes! He was definitely surprised! Now I just need to stay away from the cupcakes! Amanda really should have taken them home with her...I didn't realize that homemade cupcakes were SOO good!

snaggle tooth....

After months of claiming to have a wiggly tooth...last night she had a tooth that was literally about to fall out! Orum offered to pull it and she was SOOO excited to let him do it. Several little girls lost teeth at school last year, I think she secretly wanted to loose one at school because you get a sticker. Sorry, Renee you lost yours at home.

So they wiggled, pulled, swished, and admired the tooth. I didn't get too many pictures because Orum felt the need to have it all videoed. We now have a documentary on pulling teeth! I'm just glad that he was here to do it, because the sound of the roots popping and breaking GROSSES me out! I think I put on a good act though because Renee never picked up on it.

I heard the tooth fairy was paying lots of money these days, but she brought Renee a half dollar, a quarter, a dime, a nickel, and a penny. She could care less about bills, so I guess maybe the tooth fairy knew that. She has been carrying her coins and little tooth pillow around all morning!

like twins...

yesterday was fun. it was like i had twins! looks can be deceiving...they are actually only 11 days apart! when hazel woke up from her nap, she was greeted by Parker. he started showing off by doing some push-ups. {seriously, it's SOO cute! he does them all the time!}i suppose he thought the push-ups would win her over, and went in for a kiss. she denied him...and he decided to just pose for the camera instead.
next up...FOOD! these 2 LOOOOVE to eat, and why not start with feet?! seriously, these 2 are going to be fun to watch for the next year! {parker's daddy will be a real doctor next year and will move away to idaho. sad for hazel.}

still waiting...

oh so patiently...for his pirate room!

maybe tomorrow. for now it's nice. hazel still hasn't decided to go back to sleeping through the night, and he's totally immune to her crying. I have a feeling that it won't be the same with Renée!

room to roll!

We set Hazel's crib up this morning and she LOVES it! She is currently taking her second nap in it. Since she practically rolled the entire Moses basket over last night, I guess it's about time! it was on the floor, so noone was hurt but it was quite funny.Now, I just have to switch the other kids' beds around. They are trading because Elijah's room is larger. He is excited because he's getting a "pirate" room--I'm not sure how piratey it will actually be, but I will try. Renee has requested a "baby mermaid princess" room. I am currently trying to convince her that she loves her pink and white floral stuff...we did just buy Hazel's stuff to match!and in other news...i just opened an etsy shop!!! bayoumoon.etsy.com

somebody had a 1/2 birthday!

i know i say this every month, but i can't believe she's SOOO old and why does the first year fly by while the "terrible 2s and 3s" seem to last forever!? well, she did a lot of sleeping today--she has her first little cold!but to celebrate, we bought this....the bed skirt was Renée's and I bought the matching duvet cover to Renée's current bedding long ago when it was on clearance, but she still needed a bumper. She loves to sleep right against the side of the bed, so it was a necessity! I got a stripe/polka dot one at target last weekend, but it didn't quite match. Isaw this one on clearance at pbkids online this morning, called the local store and they had it...talk about instant gratification! Perhaps tomorrow, we will actually set the crib up for her!

they love their daddy!

Happy father's day Orum!
We drove back to New Orleans to celebrate. I was exhausted and endured a carsick little girl, a hyper little boy, and lots of interrupted baby naps, but they wanted to see their daddy! And see their daddy is what the got...we love you!

cade's shower

I've been in Monroe the past few days...I'm exhausted, but I LOVE the way everything turned out! My sister was helping host a baby shower for a friend, and I just couldn't resist getting in on it! Although I vow to start earlier next time around to avoid going to bed at 6:30 am--I think that's an all-time record!

product testers...

of course, an older sibling must try out the baby's car seat...




















Renée also thought it necessary to try out Elijah's bassinet...

and a few outfits... {she's 2. the gown is 0-3 months, and the romper is 12 months}




















For some reason, I NEVER expected to see Elijah trying on Hazel's clothes, but then again it does have pockets. He LOVES pockets! This little boy never ceases to surprise me! {he'e 3 and the bubble is 6-12 months}

why bother?

i went to sleep with a clean kitchen, and woke up to this...
2 sneaky little children were in the kitchen drawing away! i guess, i secretly enjoy that they love it SOOO much, but i do wish that they would clean up the mess.

cuteset $0.98 onsie ever...

and "rocket man"
and baby for that matter...

and we saved the best for last...

As we headed down to Jackson square, Hazel kept her party hat on for a good while! I thought it was cute and good training for her to keep things on her head:) They were part of the "insectarium's ant-iversay" celebration.
anyway, first up..."the statue and elijah." the statue wanted to take a picture with elijah, but he didn't really want to participate. Renee wouldn't even get out of the stroller.
until...they heard the word balloon! Elijah thinks he must have a balloon sword everytime we are there. I guess because he got one the very first time he was there and he just assumes that's what happens. So far, we have been successful on the trips that he really wants one!
But this time he not only got a sword, but also a sheath! He thought he was SO awesome!the statue told him to put his arms up, and he was happy to oblige.
and renee got a flower!
I mean seriously, do knights get any cuter or sweeter!?
We watched the Dragon Masters Showcase perform, and then headed to Café du Monde. A trip downtown is not complete without beignets--or so Renée thinks! Again, probably because she had them the first time she was there, but they were both SOOO happy because they got to do/get exactly what they wanted! They are definetly "living the dream!"
do you know how one would get so messy eating a beignet?
because he does this...
after he eats the beignets, he eats the "snowballs." He is definetly his mother's child, well actually both of them! They LOVE sugar. It may have something to do with the fact that I ate rainbow chip icing right out of the can while I was pregnant, but who could really know!?

butterflies!

Renée's favorite part was the butterfly exhibit. There were caterpillars and pupas that you could touch and a wall of cocoons. We watched a few hatch and others try to fly. she was thrilled when we went into the butterfly garden! Orum managed to get one in his hand right away...then we saw the sign that said do not hold or touch the butterflies. {opps!}
They were everywhere. This one decided to take a rest right in the middle of the path. In fact, I almost ran over it with the stroller, but someone was looking out for it!
She decided that since she couldn't catch one, that she would hold a dead one. She held it the entire time we were in the garden!
I have to say that these butterflies eat very well! There were several of these trays filled with fruit.
They certainly were not intimidated either! The kids try to chase them at the park, but have NEVER seen any this close. These butterflies just did their thing whether you were there or not...and oh, these kids were right there!
Of course, Orum asked the worker a million questions, but he did find out some interesting information. The butterflies only live about 2 weeks, and they order 500 butterflies every week! These blue ones were Renée's favorites!
but, of course, the pink ones were her favorites too! yea for the insectarium!! these two have been asking to go for months, and the day finally came. I'm just glad it was everything and more than they had expected! I for one did not have high exceptations, but I have to say that it was actually really fun!