King Cake

We received a special delivery from FedEx during the girls' nap time today. Mr. Frank & Miss Louise sent us an authentic King Cake straight from the heart of New Orleans. I tried to explain the significance of the King Cake, Mardi Gras, Ash Wednesday, Lent, Easter, etc to Peyton but I could not quite get my explanation simple enough for her developing mind to comprehend. All she truly heard from my babbling was CAKE. As we sat down for dinner she was still talking about the King CAKE so I promised her she could apply the frosting and the colored sugar once she finished her meal. Needless to say it was so inspiring that she finished her meal before Taylor (a first).

Taylor devoured her portion, too:

Here is a clip of Daddy applying the colored sugar:


Thank you once again Miss Louise & Mr. Frank!

CooperElla with Kappa Moms

This morning we met up with a newly formed Kappa Moms playgroup at CooperElla. Peyton and Taylor absolutely loved the place. From lots of great toys to plenty of other kids their age...not to mention delicious food and drinks.

Peyton looked a bit over sized for some of the ride-on toys:

Taylor enjoyed a strawberry banana smoothie during her lunch break:

Peyton admired Taylor's Disney Princess wheels:

The "princess" escaped from the castle:

From 73 degrees to freezing in 2 hours

Can we get odder weather? This morning the girls were on the deck sunbathing. Right now (naptime) I am looking out the window seeing snow falling and sticking to the pavement. WILD!



Peyton is so eager for her birthday to be celebrated that anytime she hears the word birthday she smiles and exclaims "it is my birthday". . . one of these days she will understand the concept of "once a year" but until then she keeps helping others blow out candles on their cakes. Sunday she helped "Grandpa Wu" with his candles.


Danielle was Peyton's "favorite cousin" of the day:

Loren Elizabeth (our new niece)

Another girl . . .we were thrilled to learn that Loren Elizabeth arrived this morning at 3:08a.m. (that would be 4:08a.m.ET) a darling addition to the family tree.

Proud Daddy (a.k.a. Uncle Tony):

TGIF

Here are a couple recent photos of Sandy, taken two days ago. She tips the scales at 7 pounds 9 ounces. I shall cross my fingers that she maxes out at 40 pounds 8 ounces.


Taylor was overjoyed by the news of our new puppy:

Sandy

It is with great joy that we announce the adoption of our new puppy, Sandy (named by Peyton in honor of the mutt in her favorite musical "Annie"). Sandy is a labradoodle, born December 8, 2007. Here are some pics taken of her at 5 weeks old:

Playtime

Brendan was Peyton's "cousin of the day" because during his visit they each got a lollipop:


Colleen loves our Winnie the Pooh scooter and Taylor loves pushing the scooter:

MLK Day

Not only are Banks closed on MLK Day, Goose was out of school so we stole him for a fun day out. The day began with a photo shoot at Picture People:

After playing on the indoor playground we had a Cinnabun snack:

I felt like the Paparazzi taking this photo of the cousins coming down the escalator:

We ended up clear across town at Chuck E. Cheese. You could certainly tell it was a national holiday in CEC....wall to wall kids!

Peyton rode a roller coaster and was all smiles:

Dinner at Auntie Al's

Prior to dinner, Taylor gave Auntie Al the "once over" as she stirred the Marsala sauce. . .



Colleen and Taylor really enjoy each other's company. It is a miracle they stayed still long enough for me to get this picture!

Potsou and Auntie Al built a barricade (I felt like I was on the set for a modern version of Les Miserables). Colleen squirmed right through the barricade and laughed when she saw that she was busted by her big brother:


Peyton had her "prince" pose with her Daddy for this photo:

Brendan shared popcorn with Patrick:

Teacup Ride

We did not return to Walt Disney World for a "teacup ride"...we simply headed over to the mall and rode the carousel. Peyton loves going fast. Daddy rode in the teacup with her and a little 8 year old boy. During the ride, the carousel operator asked me if she should turn off the teacup in order to slow it down. I saw that Peyton was still smiling so I said "Daddy will slow it down if needed." Once the ride was over Peyton was fine but Daddy said "Wow, I didn't think that little boy could get the teacup going THAT fast...." Taylor and I were right behind the teacup. She was on a brown horse and I was her spotter just in case she got bucked off :-)

Bitter Cold

Try posing a 1 and a 2.5 year old for a photo. Just try. It is especially difficult when the small one never stops trying to run away from big sister and/or constantly wants to grab the camera string. Hey, give me credit for trying:


It was cold enough tonight that we looked out the window at Culver's and saw snowflakes blowing in the wind. Culver's, home of the famous Butterburgers and delicious frozen custard. Taylor earned her dessert in a hurry, downing part of a hamburger, a couple green beans, some fries and a few pieces of Peyton's extra chicken tender.


Daddy needs to train Peyton on how to at least look at the camera while being photographed. . .


Was that fat-free?

Taco Night

Thursday night was taco night at our place. Even Taylor tried to gum some authentic Mexican cuisine :-)

Peyton in the sand

Just in case the Miss Elaine video had you thinking Peyton is MUTE, think again:

Miss Elaine

A couple weeks ago Peyton received a special package in the mail which contained her Deedee Doodle costume. Ever since then, everyday when the mailtruck is heard coming up the street Peyton exclaims "Oh, it's Miss Elaine. Maybe she haDaddy's costume!" Peyton wants to dress Daddy up as "Busdriver Bob" for Halloween. Reality is there is no Busdriver Bob costume (Daddy sizes) sold in stores. Perhaps Auntie Nana can sew one for Daddy. . .

GO MITT GO

I was thrilled with the outcome of the Michigan primary. There is something about Mitt that makes me feel he deserves a 4 year internship in Washington. All of the candidates are crooks but I am sMITTen!

January 14th

We are still alive around here but poor Miss Peyton has been fighting a nasty virus with nightly high fevers and mild sweating. Enough details? Somehow (knock on wood) little Taylor is strong and healthy.

Miss Holly was kind enough to deliver us dinner from Rich & Charlie's tonight. Thanks again, Miss Holly! While we were anxiously awaiting the arrival of our dinner delivery the girls posed on my lap. Taylor sits still very well however Peyton is a squirmy little thing:

$10 says Miss Moshi just noticed some body art on Peyton's left hand. Rest assured it came off easily during tonight's bathtime. The temporary tattoo application was one of several new activities Mommy introduced while dealing with our "lock down" mode :-)

Ozzie the Octopus

Ozzie the Octopus is the newest addition around our home. It is an octopus attachment placed over the faucet. You simply insert a color tablet into Ozzie's mouth while the water is running and it colors the water. Tonight we used one blue tablet and then later added a yellow tablet so the girls could watch the water turn to green.

Daddy helped Peyton "tune" her Doodlebops guitar just before bedtime:

Check out those dimples:


Taylor loves to ride on the "Charlie Caterpillar" that Grandma Hun gave Peyton at Mommy's baby shower almost 3 years ago (oh how time flies). . .


Either Peyton is on her toes or Taylor is slouching because I measured them tonight. Peyton is 38.5 inches and Taylor is 31.5 inches. Maybe it is the just the odd angle from which I took this shot:

Our very own Doodlebop!

Peyton's Deedee Doodle costume arrived today. . .

New Hampshire goes to McCain & Clinton

The girls got to eat dinner in their feeding chairs while watching the New Hampshire primary returns on the Fox News Channel. Taylor likes Romney but Peyton is a Huckabee fan. Daddy is under the weather and joined us mid meal for some hot soup. In order to keep the girls interested in watching the returns, I gave them each an ice cream cone. Taylor eats the cone EXACTLY the same way Peyton did as a one year old....she eats the cone first. Odd but true- and quite messy, too!



Taylor loves to cruise on her Winnie The Pooh car:

New Shoes for Taylor

After a six week absence due to the Disney Trip, a brief virus, and Christmas break, Peyton returned to school today. Training pull-ups and all! For the first time she got to use the "little potty" at school. Needless to say, her potty training is coming right along.

While Peyton was in school Taylor got to enjoy the mild weather while swinging in our backyard. At 10a.m. Mommy did a conference call during her naptime. As soon as she woke up we went to Laurie's at the Mall and bought her some new shoes. She is in a 6M and is very proud of her new white tennis shoes. Check out these struts: (oh and I promise Kia will fix the fact that these are sideways...as I am computer-challenged)

In case you got a headache looking sideways, here is a still shot of the gal in her new shoes:

Peyton feels like a woman of the world now that she is back in school. Tonight she insisted on helping me prepare some side dishes: