Lessons from Mom

I can’t wait until Tate starts talking so I can share all of the little silly conversations we have. Until then, there’s my Mom…


Me: We keep forgetting there is a Fireside Pies restaurant in Grapevine. We need to go back there.

Mom: (wrinkles her nose)

Me: What’s wrong with Fireside Pies?

Mom: They’re just so LIBERAL.

Me: Huh? What makes a restaurant “liberal?” (I’m imagining posters of Democratic presidents... A wall of books...Intellectual games to play while you wait for a table...)

Mom: Oh, you know, they use SUN-DRIED TOMATOES. You know what I always say, the more sun-dried tomatoes a place serves, the more liberal the place is.


So there you have it folks. Just in case you were wondering.

Tate Words

All of our recent pictures of Tate have him looking very pensive and thoughtful. And so our newest Tate word (for which I had to look up the definition because I didn't trust Rob) is...

COGITATE

Getting our money's worth out of daycare

Life is good for a toddler in daycare. There's naptime and snacktime and playtime and...massage time!?!????

"Ah...just a little lower, that's it...right there...."

You might be a redneck, if...

You might be a redneck if your husband opens a bottle of beer, drinks about half of it and then leaves it overnight in the cupholder on the recliner in your gameroom. 

(You might be a redneck if you actually HAVE a recliner in your gameroom.)

You also might be a redneck if you don't realize your husband did this and then let your 19-month old play in the gameroom the next morning while you get ready for work and come back five minutes later and notice the overwhelming smell of a bar and then see a toddler holding an upside down beer bottle, with the contents pouring down the front of his shorts.  

And you might be a redneck if you holler a string of profanities so your husband, who is leisurely taking a shower, can hear, not thinking that the neighbors can also probably hear. 

And you are DEFINITELY a redneck if you blog about all of it. 

 

Wedding in Shreveport

Last weekend we went to Shreveport for cousin Catherine's wedding. I am learning that now that Tate is mobile (and rapidly so), we don't get to take as many pictures...but here are a few from the fun weekend with Dodsons from all over the U.S.  

This is  how much of the weekend was spent...chasing Tate. For example, as he runs in front of a friend of the groom giving a thoughtful toast at the rehearsal dinner....

(the rehearsal dinner was a crawfish boil, which explains Tate's shirt.)

At the church awaiting family pictures...

Playing peek-a-boo with the wait staff at the reception. 

My Dad's brothers and sister are scattered around the country and rarely have the opportunity to get together. Here they all are catching up (minus Frank, the father of the bride.) 

Brooke and Portland cousins Stephens and Tanner. 

Playing at Frank and Cathie's house at brunch on Sunday.

It was a fun weekend. Congrats to Cat and Dary!

18 months

Tate is 18 months old and getting more and more personality every day. For my own records/posterity, his stats are: 

Weight: 26.6 pounds (60%)

Height: 32 inches (50%)

Head circumference: 19.5 inches (90%) 

At his 18-month appointment, his doctor asked me if I had any concerns and I said "Well, he doesn't say words on his own. He only says things if I prompt him." At that exact moment, Tate picked up his toy cell phone and said "Hello!!!" and then he shut it and said "Bye Bye!!" I just looked at Dr. Beth and said "Um...nevermind...." in a small little voice.  

In other milestones, Tate is turning into a little goofball. He knows how to make us laugh and he knows how to work a crowd. For example....watch as he takes a lemon and makes lemonade...or at least makes us laugh....

Separated at Birth?

A video installment of Separated at Birth...

The relevant part of this clip is from :28 to :38.:

Poppy, Linda and Easter

After returning from San Francisco, we had a visit from Poppy and Linda! We got some Texas bbq, did some shopping at the flagship Neiman's, ran around on a playground, and Linda got us started on painting a new step-stool for Tate's bathroom. It was a really nice visit. 

Here they are, with one of Linda's paintings over each shoulder! 

Poppy and Tate are looking for the Easter bunny. 

Tate liked bouncing on Poppy's knee. 

Tate may look all sweet and innocent in his little Easter suit....

But he's still a boy who likes to throw eggs and has a skinned up knee! 

San Francisco

We headed out to San Francisco to see the newest Robertson cousin, Cecilia, and visit with Rob's two brothers and their families.  The city suits Tate well because the child rarely napped and just kept going full-speed late into the night, every night, without fussing. It was great. I have tons of pictures, so bear with me as I post a bunch....

On the ferry from Sausalito to the city

Visiting AT&T Ballpark. This picture makes me think of "Hear No Evil, See No Evil, Speak No Evil." We're just missing the "Hear No Evil." 

Tate loved chasing his DC cousins Beck and Caroline around the Botanical Garden!

Nice form and follow through, huh? Can you say "scholarship?" 

Walking not-so softly and carrying a not-so big stick. 

Chris and Sarah have a great professional photographer friend who came out to snap some shots of the family and the cousins. For some reason, we chose this moment to let Tate taste an apple for the first time. He liked it so much that he refused to give it up for the pictures. There is no telling how the pics are gonna turn out. Can you say "PhotoShop?" 

San Francisco has the best playgrounds around. Tate took a spin in this contraption at Golden Gate Park. 

We visited the Exploratorium, a fantastic hands-on children's science museum. Tate played in the toddler area and had a ball. I can't wait until he's old enough to try everything else. 

Back at Chris and Sarah's fabulous house in Sausalito, Sarah created a fun Easter Egg hunt for the kids. Although there were gifts hidden throughout the house, Tate was content to play with the plastic eggs. 

Sitting around, opening gifts. It was like a mini-Christmas. 

Tate wasn't sure what to make of tiny Cecilia. 

Love the cheeks! 

Cecilia had the best seat in the house. This window and patio beside her look out over the Bay. What a life! 

Tate met a little girl at the airport who was literally 'chasing some tail.' She really liked Tate. He wasn't so sure what to think. 

In a tight spot

I have lots of pictures to come from our adventures West this week. In the meantime, enjoy seeing Tate get himself into some jams...I have no idea why he likes to do this, but I frequently find him cramming himself into small places....

I was only a few seconds too late to get a shot of him crammed inside this little cabinet in his closet...this is him unfolding himself out of it...note the blankets on the floor that he pulled out of the cabinet in order to climb into it:

And my personal favorite...