Darlin' and Granddaddy

Despite Anneke's double ear infection and both grandparents coming down with the stomach bug that apparently swept the nation, everyone was able to get in some quality time.

The big, wonderful back yard

Anneke loved naptime with Darlin'...

...and apparently has decided Granddaddy's not so bad, after all.

No matter how much her ears hurt Anneke was always up for a wagon ride.

Mamo

I'll have to do a few posts about our trip to Arkansas. I found a cheap fare and decided two weeks ahead to come down for my mom's spring break. I didn't make it to LR to see any of my friends, but saw a lot of family.

Here's Juju getting her hair did, supervised by Mamo. Mamo has had her own beauty shop for...well, only her hairdresser knows for sure. She cut Dave's hair over Christmas, and I was very impressed with how it turned out. My dad said she has cut the hair of most of the ministers at First Presbyterian.

Here we are having lunch at Mamo's. She cooked two meals for us while we were there. Nothing fancy. You know, just pot roast, corn bread, purple-hull peas, iced tea, probably a whole bunch of other stuff. With a broken wrist. So essentially with one hand tied behind her back. The above tableau is as familiar to me as anything can be. There are countless snapshots like this in our albums--same photo, different generation.

Mamo and I went for a walk my last day in Camden, and I had to work to keep up with her. Granted, I had the stroller, but she has a few more years on me. I guess that's what happens when you work on your feet your whole life.

Mamo wrote an essay about her childhood in Jacinto, Arkansas. She wrote about growing up in the Depression, and said that this was a time when "we all learned to share." I think about that every day during these hard times. I'm so glad Anneke has her in her life.

Cousin

This is Anneke's cousin, Miss S. I promised I would blog about her. Isn't she a cutie? She's also a sweetie, and such a fun cousin to have.

Audobon Society

Three cheers for the Audobon Society! A couple of weeks ago we wanted to get out for a Portland Hill Walk, but Anneke woke up too late from her nap. So we drove over to the Wildlife Care Center and got to meet Julio the Great Horned Owl as well as a turkey vulture and other raptors. Anneke was so excited to meet these "cats." (Everything is a cat these days.) Then we went for a nice walk along the surrounding trails. Tallgirl, let's definitely pay this place a visit when you're in town!

Who's your daddy?

I was getting ready to put up some Arkansas photos when I found this recent photo of Anneke...

...and realized I had the exact same photo of her dad. That's cousin/niece Sidney doing his hair.

Baby brain map

Prepare for a blogging explosion as soon as I can upload my photos from our visit to see our Arkansas family. But in the meantime, check out the baby brain map. So fascinating! Lately I've been taken off guard by how much Anneke needs me--I learned all about separation anxiety in Developmental Psychology, but wasn't prepared for the wailing and gnashing of teeth that happens when I walk into or out of the room! Reading this reminded me that this is an important stage in her development and won't last forever--indeed, as my sister pointed out, soon enough she'll be saying "go away, mom." It's hard to find that balance between giving her a chance to settle herself down and swooping her up when she reaches for me.
Ah, and now I feel like I'm wading into the dark waters of Different Parenting Philosphies. Waaay more fraught with controversy than discussing religion or politics if you ask me...oops, now Anneke is waking up. Saved by the bell!

Milemaven

I just found out about milemaven.com. You can search it to find the latest frequent flier promotions, like the one on Northwest where you read about how their mileage plan works and earn 100 pts each for taking five little quizzes. Then you can earn 500 more pts for linking your account to your Delta miles account. Then you have 1000 miles! Which your husband points out = $10. But with grandparents two time zones away, every mile counts!