Such a good influence

We strive on a daily basis to raise Charlotte to be the quintessential little lady with all the poise and grace expected of a Southern Belle. And then her Auntie Erin comes to visit and teaches her stuff like this:

Just reviewing a survey

Piggle and I visited Corey at his office today after lunch with the Vandy Aunties. Corey was struggling with his work, so Piggle helped him out by reviewing a survey for him. Her little eagle eyes spotted some unacceptable encroachments. Good thing we stopped by!

Accessorizing

Little Charlie Jo is tired of having no hairstyle, so she has requested some accessories for her mohawk. In Arizona, Grandma Jo and I bought her some little barrettes. They didn't work so well though. Here's a shot of the only time we really got one to work:

Alicia then gave Lil' CJ some special barrettes for the "hair impaired". They have sort of a rubbery foam on one side of the clip and it really grips those fine baby hairs. Even CJ was surprised it stayed in so well!

Unfortunately, Corey then decided I needed to wear one as well.

Go West, young Charlotte

Charlie Jo slept super late this morning, so I had time to upload some photos. Here's a picture share of Charlie Jo's adventures in the California part of our trip!

Little Miss Sunshine

Charlotte's Great Granny T sent the coolest bib. It buttons up into the kind that has the pocket to catch all of the dribbles, but then it unbuttons to make it way easier to clean. It's absolutely awesome. We tested it out this morning, and it caught all sorts of things. It's also great because it has a very wide neck part. When Charlie gets oatmeal all over her face and then turns to watch the dogs (who circle like sharks while she eats), she usually gets oatmeal all over her shoulder. Not with this new bib! Thanks Granny!

Great Aunt Sibyl

Our trip to California was tacked on to our Arizona trip at the last minute, so we were thrilled Corey's Aunt Sibyl, who lives very close to my parents, was available for lunch to meet her grand niece with almost no advance notice. Charlie warmed up to her great aunt immediately and Sibyl was terrific with her. We'll be back in California for Christmas and hopefully will be able to spend a little more time with Sibyl then.

Back in action

Miss Charlie Jo and I flew home from California yesterday and are back in the swing of things. Our flight home was great, but the end was the best. When we were on our initial descent, two goofy guys sitting in the row behind us made puppets out of their barf bags and put on a little puppet show for Charlie! It was absolutely hilarious, and I'm kicking myself for having packed my camera in checked luggage and failing to get a picture of it. The nice lady sitting next to me figured out that the guys were in a band, and she asked them about it. They were members of the band Storyside:B, which is a Christian rock band. If you click on the link, you get to their homepage. It was the two guys on the left who took it upon themselves to entertain Charlie. Such a crackup.

I'll post some of my favorite California pictures later, but here's one I took this afternoon of Charlie in an outfit given to her by family friends Greg & Susan Lowe. That smile kills me.

Beach bum

Since today was our last full day in California, Grandma Jo, Grandpa Spike and I decided we needed to take little Piggle to see the Pacific Ocean. We basically did an extended photo shoot at Zuma Beach in Malibu, then stopped to have lunch in Oxnard with Piggle's Great Aunt Sibyl, and then finished up by taking a few more pictures at a beach across from Sycamore Canyon in Ventura County. Did our little beach bum like the ocean? Watch the "movie" Grandma Jo made of the photos set to music and decide for yourself!

Sun Devil baby with her monkey

Here are two videos of Charlie in California, playing with the monkey her Auntie Ernie gave her that afternoon. Charlie is also wearing her new Arizona State University Sun Devils dress that Grandpa Spike bought her in Tempe a few days earlier. She is so good at sitting up now that she can even get rowdy and stay upright without help!

Picture share from Arizona part of the trip

Click here to see a fairly long picture share from the Arizona part of our trip!

California dreamin'

Charlie Jo and I are in California now after a long weekend that included Corey in Arizona. We are having a blast, but we are sad Corey had to return to Tennessee to work. Highlights of the trip so far have included Charlotte meeting two sets of her great grandparents, visiting a brand-new second cousin, and shopping with Grandma Jo and Auntie Ernie.

I'm uploading photos for a picture share and will write an entry to that link once that site finishes its "temporary maintenance" and allows me to complete writing captions. In the meantime, here is a goofy little video of Charlotte playing with her favorite toy on the airplane on the flight from Nashville to Phoenix.

Piggle at the polls

Charlie Jo and I had a great morning. First, we practiced playing while sitting up. She is really improving her balance! Next, we got dressed and went to coffee with a group of moms and babies from my moms' group. Charlie charmed everyone with her smiles and her amazing sitting-up ability. And her spitting-up ability. But I digress.

On our way home, we swung by the gargantuan church that serves as our area's polling station to vote in the local election and state primary election. We were very excited to vote for a Bob Tuke to be the party's nominee for US senator, because I got to know him pretty well through my work with Vanderbilt Law alumni. Charlotte was pronounced the cutest voter of the day by the poll workers, and a sweet old man put an "I voted!" sticker on Charlie's infant carrier. I have one question though -- is it bad that I wrote in Charlotte JoAnn Stringer as a write-in-candidate for an uncontested election?

Now we're packing for our big trip to Arizona and California. Corey informed me that it is going to be too hot for clothing and says he plans to be nude most of the time. Well, I guess that leaves more room in the suitcase for Charlie and me.