reunited!

back in the capable hands of Dr. Ford who "caught" Jed on his way into the world!

marmie's on the way

Guess who's coming to see you Jed?

Marmie!

Let's check her flight status.

Looks like she's over West Virginia.

dog days of spring

eating and sharing "puffs"

a very special visitor!

Teddie visited us yesterday! We had a great afternoon with her, and thanks to her, Jed has a fantastic new ball and some super-cool sunglasses that have already come in handy and will appear on the blog soon. And I have a beautiful blue planter for the porch or patio!

As much as Jed enjoyed seeing her, I was thrilled to see someone from "home" . . . or from my old home, I guess I should say. We are getting to know our new neighbors, but I miss my Chapel Hill friends so I couldn't have been happier to host her and I'm already looking forward to our next visit!

chillin

on my porch

in my chair . . . with my teeth
(those are the bottoms; we still can't get a good shot of the uppers)

and in my stroller

the good ol days

Just to refresh your memory, last year at this time Jed was making his first attempt at an early arrival so Eric and I were enjoying our first night of hospitality at Duke University Hospital. Good times.

in the sun

inside

and in the overgrown yard, where the flowers taste so good

don't worry, he didn't actually get the flower all the way in his mouth

Yesterday, Grandma and Grandpa, aka the Easter Bunnies, delivered some fantastic new toys to Jed. They were also in town to babysit so Eric and I could go to the Grateful Dead concert last night, which was their early birthday present for Eric.

We had a blast at the concert. It smelled like I was back at Guilford, and as the second or third song began, Eric said, "This was the first song I heard them play live in Chapel Hill." A true fan. We shopped the parking lot for a tie-dye for J but only found a onesie that was too small and shirts that were still way too big. We did, however, partake of kabobs prepared by some random dude and my tummy has felt a tiny bit sketchy ever since.

But speaking of being a fan, Jed loves his new toys: a spinning top kind-of thing, a moracca, a stuffed rabbit, and (drum roll, please) his very own REMOTE CONTROL! Too bad none of this eased the overnight pain of four simultaneously-arriving upper teeth. I'd love to post a picture, but he guards them very carefully. One is just about through the gum and the other three are maybe one more day behind that one.

Anyway, here are some pictures from the day.

presents taste good

a little assistance, please
and note how well Grandma and Grandpa coordinated their outfits with each other and our wall

what's this? a rabbit in a basket?

whatever. back to the remote

and from earlier in the week:
Jed, I thought I told you to clean up!

this is why we moved

Yesterday, Jed and I walked downtown to have lunch with Eric, and this morning, Eric walked to work.

some new pictures

helping unpack the living room
hanging in my new room

a little boy in a big room

complete with fireplace

clean and ready for supper

"commuting"

Eric's commute is 10 minutes. That's door-to-door and includes parking-space-hunting! He headed home later than usual today, stopped at the gas station, and still got home much earlier than usual!

But we are still adjusting . . . many to-do and to-buy lists are keeping us up at night. Thankfully, however, Jed has been sleeping well. Winston was off his game today thanks to morning thunderstorms and the return of the painters, so he engaged in the move-protest that he pulled on his first night here: he went on a hunger strike by sitting by his full food bowl for five minutes (an eternity for W) before having his supper. Poor guy. We've been trying to shower him with extra attention, and he does love his new outdoor access, but it's hard when you're old and it thunders.

moving update!

The move went smoothly on Friday, thanks to the strong backs from TROSA. When we arrived, the house was still well-coated in dust from the painters' work, so we owe a very special thank-you to Aunt Phyllis who swooped in on short notice to baby sit, mop, and dust! Mama and Daddy joined the mess by 11 and by 6 p.m. every box was off the truck, leaving us feeling overwhelmed and exhausted. But thanks to my parents, Aunt Phyllis, and our realtor's partner (and now neighbor!) who brought dinner to us, we managed to get the bed made and some sheets draped over the windows before collapsing!

Poor Jed was exhausted and screamed and screamed before falling asleep on Friday night, but otherwise, he doesn't seem any worse for the wear, despite consuming some packing paper. Winston had a long day following us nervously around the house, including up and down the stairs, but he's finally relaxed (as you'll see in the photos) enough to skip tip-toeing on his slick little nails up and down the stairs every time we go.

Yesterday, my parents helped us for most of the day so we got our bedroom and bathroom better organized and we unpacked the kitchen. Today, we've taken a bit slower pace and returned to Chapel Hill to pick up a few odds-and-ends, which gave Jed time to visit with Teddie!

So the house is really fantastic! We are so accustom to our previous, compact floor plan that we feel like we've moved into Buckingham Palace! Because all the rooms downstairs are connected by doors and by a hallway, we have at least four routes between the living room and kitchen!

Anyway, here are some pictures from the transition!

all packed up on Thursday night

one last bath at the old house
the new living room

somebody needs to hit the recycling bins

and while he might be a bit nervous about his new surroundings, W loves his leash-free options for sunbathing: brick, grass, or wood