Denham Springs Mardi Gras!

Mardi Gras season is a great time in South Louisiana (as is most times in Louisiana, but I am a little bias;)! Ever since I can remember, I have gone to Mardi Gras parades...stood on the side of the road waiting for those treasured five cent plastic beads yelling "Throw Me Something Mista!" Well, this weekend, was a first for me (as well as Andy) we were asked to ride in Big Mike's float for the restaurant. Granted it was "just" the Denham Springs parade, but it was Mardi Gras all the same...the way it should be good, clean, family fun! I have been in parades in the past as a child...with dance (yes, I was in dance- lets not talk about it), and with various ball teams, but this topped them all!!!

The float....fully equipped with a bathroom- of sorts! Line-up was at the DSHS.

The O'Neals

Me and JocelynMe and Andy- we went Desert Storm khaki. The theme this year - in case you didn't catch it- was Support Our Troops!Jamie and Chris rode on Jason Ard's float...candidate for sheriff! Go Jason!!Sandwiched between THE Dru Nettles and THE Big Mike ;)Brooklyn and AshlynWalked down to see Sap and Ashley at their float!The uh-Oh I gotta go to the bathroom face!Ready to roll!Michelle, Cooper, Ashlyn, Brooklyn, Me, Jocelyn and Shelly (Mike's sister)Andy, me and Michelle...Ben had to sit out- Kyleigh was sick.Rolling!!Cooper loving the parade!!The ride back to school...parade was a success! Now, for the after party...well else, but Big Mike's!

SO Much fun! can't wait to ride again next year! A special thanks to mom for pulling through with watching Sarah...we wouldn't have made to the parade without her! THANK YOU!!!!

11 Months

At 11 Months Sarah:

• Weighs 23 pounds...not sure on height.
• Officially off of baby food! WooHoo!
• Has taken a few steps here and there...not really sure she knows what she is doing, but she will "walk" to Andy or myself from the coffee table.
• Has started shaking her finger "No, no, no" to Fritz and to momma! As well has shaking her head No! (Not a real fan of this when its to me!)
• Will bring you things when you ask for them (Sarah, not the dog ;)
• Loves to sleep in on the weekend...like 9:30 or 10! (momma's girl!)
• Got the sippy cup down!
• Has words for her LSU Tiger and bubbles in the bath as well as a few other things...can't really spell these out but you get the point.
• Loves to turn on and off light switches
• Has really learned how to pitch a fit!! (not really a fan of this either!)
• Picks up just about every one of her toys and acts like its a phone.

Rocking!

Since Sarah was in such a need of her own spot (see earlier post with her box), we figured it was time for her to enjoy her chair that Grammy had passed down to her...She loves it!

Start Your Engines!

We headed to Jamie and Chris' house for the Daytona Shootout. Sarah got to meet Baby Jesse who is the adorable little man that belongs to our friends Rachel and Kevin. Jesse is now 6 months old!

Sarah also met Jamie's new puppy Charlie...who is also adorable!!And as a usual NASCAR race goes...we all gather to watch Jr. and he ends up watching from the sidelines! Yep, another wreck! Oh well, at least we got to hang out with some of our favorite people that we really don't get to see enough!

I'm a Barbie Girl...

This weekend was beautiful. I decided to go for a walk with Sarah around the neighborhood and we stopped by my friend Missy's house. Both of her girls love "Baby Sarah"...Katie had gone to a friend's house, but Emma was home. I captured a few pics with my phone. Santa gave the Carroll girls a beautiful new Barbie house and it caught Sarah's eye...
It was about this time that Emma informed us of what was touchable and as she put it..."Katie would kill us if we touched that!" Emma quickly saved us all from big sister's wrath and put away all of the "Do Not Touch" items.I love this pic-Emma keeping a close eye on what Sarah was touching....poor thing, I think we made her nervous!Sarah getting Barbie lessons from Emma."So what's a girl gotta do to get one of these things momma?!" Ummm maybe after you stop putting EVERYTHING in your mouth we could talk about it. Sarah will have to rely on the Carroll girls for Barbie training...I think I might have had one, or two when I was a kid! (not that I was deprived Mom, that's not what I am saying...I just wasn't interested in them- had to clear that up ;)

Caught!

Picture it...Andy and I in the kitchen making plates for dinner, Sarah playing on the other side of the breakfast bar- laughing, babbling, maybe a sort of singing- then silence. I notice the silence, peep around the corner and find this...
Sarah has managed to get in her diaper bag and pull out her puffs and help herself! If only she could talk I would imagine something like "Fritz was hungry" coming out of her sweet little mouth.
It was then basically a race to see who could eat the most between Sarah and Fritz! They both shared very well I might add...Sarah would even hand Fritz a few.

I have to admit at this point, Andy and I were cracking up at the events. Both of them were so in to what they were doing that they really didn't even care that we had "caught" them!

Sorry baby girl...they are all gone! Needless to say, Sarah didn't eat much dinner!

Super Bowl XVL

Sarah's first Super Bowl! Green Bay Packers v Pittsburgh Steelers (As I my brother pointed out...she still has a few "firsts" left in her) We went to my mom's house to watch the first half of the game. The weather was amazing 65 and sunny...a very welcomed change! So we sat outside for a little bit and watched Jeff grill up some sausage and burgers...

Jeff grilling it up!Watching the puppies every move!Daddy's girl!Grandma time!We had made another cake from the batter left over from Sarah's trial b-day cake...as you can see, the cake decorating hasn't gotten any better- but at least it looks like a cake ;)...guess it takes longer than five minutes to really put out a decent product!Sarah loves playing with the magnets on Grandma's fridgeDad and Uncle Jeff in charge of Sarah while Mom and Grandma clean the kitchen...can you tell?Final Score: Packers 31 Steelers 25

**Side note: I really think I am spoiled from last year's Super Bowl when our beloved Saints were in the game...I found the whole thing a rather boring.

To Bake or To Buy?

Today Andy and I decided to get out of the house and just run the roads with Sarah. We stopped at The Party Store to get some ideas for Sarah's 1st birthday...which is fast approaching. We picked up a cake mold of a 1 and I gave it a half-hearted attempt to decorate it. My mom insists I have to make her first cake! HUH??? Ummm Hellloooo...Do you know me at all??? Weren't you the one who taught me the art of "preparing"?? And by the way, aren't there people who are really talented at this kind of stuff I could just pay to make the cake??? Anyway, I gave it a try...

Andy said it looked more like a penis than a 1! I sent the pic to a few people on my phone...hoping they would all say "Yeah Julie, you need to go buy a cake!" Instead, they were all real sweet and encouraging...some friends they are! My only hope is that my really creative sister-in-law and mother-in-law will be in town for the birthday party and maybe Sarah will end up with a 1 for her birthday cake instead of a male organ!

"Potential for Icing Day"

So while the rest of the country is being pounded by snow, we here in south Louisiana were dealing with the "Potential for icing and a wintry mix" the weather words of the week...as a result TWO days off of school!! I like to call it "It's too damn cold to go to work days!" But lets face it, us southerners hear the phrase "icy roads" and we start serving all over the place...so it's best we just stay home!

What did we do you ask? Build a Snowman? (Oh wait that requires snow!) Pick icicles off of our tress? (Oh wait, that requires ice!) We did something much better...stayed in our PJs and let Sarah entertain us while she played in a box!

Sarah has had the best time with this box! She puts her toys in it and pushes them around...she gets in it and just sits and then grabs toys to play with while she is in it...it hilarious! (I wonder if she is trying to tell us she needs some space!) She has played with this box for two days now! I really like that is amuses her, but I am really tired of hearing Andy sing "It's my KID in a box!" (old SNL skit;)