we LOVE mrs. potato head!

and repurposing her parts!!!

Aventures around the apartment

Well, we're certainly adjusting to life out of suitcases and upon aerobeds. So far, no complaints (other than from Bonny who misses brother Finn dearly and wishes she had a yard to run free whenever she chooses...)! On that note, I miss being able to just open the door and let her out, as well..... strapping Emi in the baby carrier and bundling Cora up and coordinating us all to walk Bonny is already getting old.....

We're trying out the local restaurants and shops and have hopefully located a preschool for Cora. Our other free time is spent exploring the neighborhoods and house-hunting. What a process! We are confident we have a great realtor and are hopefully close to making a decision on where we will call home for the next many years (we hope...)!

Yes, that's ONE slice of pizza for Cora from a New York Pizzaria here -- it was bigger than her head and ended up being many meals. It was pretty good for being this far south!

Emi even enjoyed the crust!

Emi standing -- one of her new favorite pastimes.... crawling is almost here!

We saw/heard the ducks outside our window the other morning... it was too cute seeing Cora and Bonny share the windowsill!

We've made it to Memphis!

Well, we're going on a week being here and finally we have internet so we can start updating this blog more regularly. We ARE in search of a new blog name, any ideas?

It was a pretty difficult week getting here as Emi was diagnosed with pneumonia and we were leary of traveling, but we didn't want to delay our arrival and settling time before Greg starts work. Thankfully, Emi's oxygen saturation was such that she didn't have to be hospitalized and instead needed a trial of medication and rest. She seems to be feeling MUCH better, thank God! And Cora seems to be fine, as well.

All in all, we are so blessed with how easy-going our kids are. Definitely troopers who travel well in car with few complaints. After all, we did 2 separate 12-14 hour days in the car in 2 weeks and they were wonderful passengers. Not that anyone is looking forward to a trip like that again anytime soon...

So we've moved into an apartment complex in Germantown until we find our next home. We've been house-hunting daily and having fun seeing everything. We really like the area and we are excited to settle down somewhere soon! Sadly, Finn is too big to be allowed here in the apartment so once again Meg's folks in Michigan have come through with generous open arms to keep him until we find a house. Poor Bonny doesn't know what to do without him (she's never been without a pack and it's obvious), though we hear Finn's doing "just fine" as a solo dog up north :)

Bonny loves Cora's aerobed and Cora has no complaints

our first meal on our new card table

the best purchase so far is the portable DVD player

(this is pre-awesome furniture)!

our AWESOME living room furniture!

Cora's first work of art on her new easel -- a drawing of "mommy"

Happy 8 month birthday, Emi!

Emilia's first try at a lime... curiosity is wonderful!

and she went back for more...

a Superbowl Sunday to remember

Superbowl Sunday was a bit disappointing (since we're Pats fans...), but it was wonderful in that we were able to finally baptize Emilia! St. Paul Lutheran Church, where Meg was baptized thirty years ago, was the venue and it was really special. We are so happy to have this big event completed for our littlest :)

Emi fit into Cora's christening gown, what a special tradition!

trying to join GG and Aunt Laura's conversation

with Pastor Bush

with GG Vera

Some Superbowl shots:

yes, beer bottles are the best teething tools!

Alas, Emi and Cora were quite unimpressed with the Pats... fortunately they also have the Lions and the Falcons to cheer... two teams destined to meet up in next years NFC Championship!

Catching up...

So just in case anyone is still checking this delinquent blog, here's a quick update on what's new in the Madea family.

At the end of January, we packed up and moved out of Connecticut. Greg has finished his active duty service with the Navy and is excited to transition into the corporate world. SO we are currently in transit to our new stomping grounds... MEMPHIS TENNESSEE!

YES she climbed up all by herself...

...but Greg was supervising / enabling (and here's the proof)...

at the Navy Lodge -- Cora and her guard dogs!

Along the way we stopped in Michigan to visit family and friends after a treacherous trip across northern Pennsylvania (we are not fans of flash / lake-effect snowstorms). The drive was "fun" enough caravanning with the dogs and Greg in the truck (sharing the front/bench seat) and the girls and Meg in the Volvo, so we did not see a reason for Mother Nature to spice'n things up any further, however she obviously disagreed. Needlesstosay, we were VERY excited to arrive and are reluctant to ever drive in snow again!

An added little bonus to the trip was that for the first time in many years, Meg was able to celebrate her birthday with the family!

Even the Gilleran's were able to participate!

Colin, Cora and Luke

We were lucky to have Oba and Sofu keep ALL the kids so we could fly down to Memphis and house hunt this week. We found an apartment to rent short-term while we continue to look for our next home. We enjoyed some grown-up time and feel that we got a good feel for the area.

And while we were slaving away trying to find somewhere to settle in Memphis, we found a little time to enjoy a little of the local treats - like staying at the Peabody Hotel! There, for the past 80 years, a gaggle of ducks have "hung out" in the lobby's fountain (a tradition that began after a manager drank a little too much Jack Daniels on a hunting trip and neglected to drop his live decoys off upon returning to the city and instead "hid" them in the lobby). Greg had seen this once about 25 years ago and is now excited more than ever to share the sight with the girls. Dogs are allowed at the Peabody, but the jury is still out on whether Finn and Bonny will ever witness the tradition. It would, after all, be a little awkward if either decided to join the ducks in the fountain...

Meanwhile, "back at the ranch..."

taking some steps

chomping on her sweet potatoes and spoon

carefully carrying Oba's Matryoshka doll down the stairs

Hanging out, looking for anyone to hear her stories of woe...

pretty snow

We got around 8 inches this weekend and it was pretty, though a pain to shovel. Greg's dreaming of owning a snowblower. In the meantime, Cora proved to be a great helper (in her mind)! After 3 hours and sunset, Greg gave up and came inside, two high school boys knocked on the door and offered to shovel/blow our entire driveway and walkway --- oh the irony!

now snow up to her knees

yes, the snow all melted by this morning!