The Millers "deaux" Mardi Gras

We have successfully weathered our first Mardi Gras season and wanted to share some of the highlights. We went to only two parades and had a great time at both of them. We first went to the parade in a little town called "Youngsville" the Saturday before Fat Tuesday. It was really fun and the kids got A LOT of "trash"! We went home with a shopping bag literally full of beads and plastic coings and little cups. We went to the King's Parade that came through Lafayette on Fat Tuesday and it was a blast! The floats and costumes were amazing and kids got a lot of beads again! To give you idea of how big a deal this parade was, the King had to pay $50,000.00 to be in it. Hmmm, two new, nice cars or three hours of royalty? We only went to the one parade on Tuesday, but there were parades going on all day long. It was a great time!

Maya, Foster, and a friend waiting for the parade to come.

Throw me somethin' Mister!

Jon and Ella all pimped out.

Yum!

Ella is signing!

Ella started signing a couple weeks ago and here is the proof! I worked with her on it, literally, only once. She has been, by far, the easiest of my babies to teach. She thinks it is really funny and giggles while she does it. She currently has "All done" and "More" in her repertoire but we are working on "Please." What a big girl!

Ella signing "All Done."

Me showing her the sign for "More."

Her signing "More."

Flat Stanley geaux's Cajun!

Foster got Flat Stanley in the mail from his cousin Hunter. We decided to take Stanley out for crawfish and Cajun dancin'!

Foster, Stanley, and Maya posing by the very fierce looking alligator outside of the restaurant. Maya is trying to mimic the fierceness.

Foster loves crawfish! This was his second time eating the little "mud bugs", as they are called here. I think he thinks it is fun to dismember his dinner before eating it. Should I be worried about this? This looks like a lot of food, but it is very deceptive. It is a lot of work to peal one and you only get about half a bite.

Flat Stanley being attacked by a mutant crawfish.

Foster, Maya, Ella, and me waiting to take a turn on the dance floor. At a lot of the Cajun restaurants here, they have live music and dancing. Especially right now, as it is Mardi Gras time and also crawfish season.

Foster and Flat Stanley posing with the band. Pretty exciting stuff. I think that Flat Stanley will have quite the story to tell when we get him back to Hunter. Also, as a bonus, he will go back smelling of dead fish.

Coming soon: Flat Stanley goes to a Mardi Gras parade! We'll be sure to have a talk with him about approriate behavior at the parade. No flashing allowed. With any luck, he will get enough beads to take back to the class.

We are enjoying being here and learning about this crazy Cajun culture! It has been very interesting!

Life Lessons

Since moving from Lynden, I have learned many truths. I like to call these truths "life lessons." This posting is my attempt at sharing these "life lessons" with you in hopes that you will b able to learn from my vast experience and, thus, have your life improved.

Life Lesson #1: Babies aren't very good at disguising themselves.

LIfe Lessson #2: All small children, and even some adults, love large, dead, stuffed animals.

Life Lesson #3: Never, never, never tell children that they may turn on the jets in Grandma Foster's tub and then blow dry your hair and put on your makeup and neglect to glance over at said "children." This never turns out well.

Life Lesson #4: Do not trust bored husband with camera. He will not take the world's next "best photo," but will use the camera as his vehicle to rekindle his love of making silly faces when told to "say cheese."

Lfe Lesson #5: Never allow sweet-looking, freshly fed baby to give you a kiss on your forehead. You will not like the results. (Why couldn't she have done it on herself? I was at least showered and dressed for the day while she, obviously, was not.)

The Bouncer

Here is Ella looking sweet and cute.

And here is Ella looking sweet, and cute, and happy...And why is Ella looking happy?...

She's in her bouncer! Ella lovesto be in her bouncer and she loves to work those leg muscles. (She loves her giant flower-hat too, don't you think?)

A Day At the Park

I was going through some old pictures and found these. As my camera is broken and I am unable to post new pictures, I decided to post these. They were taken at Boulevard Park in Bellingham, WA. It is a great park right on the waterfront where we liked to go and play on the toys and roll down the hill and bike the trail and watch the sailboats go by. We really miss it!

Jon and Foster were having a "rolling down the hill the fastest" contest. I don't remember who won.

While it may look like Foster and Jon are enjoying the view, they are actually debating over who won the contest. Give it up Jon. He was two and a half.

Foster, Jon, and Maya watching the sunset on an obliging log.

What can I say? It's only funny because you know you've done it. These pictures were taken about the time that we started to potty-train Maya, before the time when underwear were merely stretchy-cottony things that you used to cover up your privvies. They were magical-morphing hats that could make you more than just a toddler, frustrated to be walking around in your own poo, they could make you be anything you wanted to be. So, I thought, why not? Hence the center picture. Unfortunately, the magic only works if you are under the age of three.