Food & Emotions

Very exciting news and developments! First off, our girl Veronica has finally come to her senses, to the point of being able to express a new emotion: disgust. The beneficiary of this reaction? Rodney, of course! (He's earned it over time... See: posing her with hair weave, cigarette, etc). The results:



Part two in the world of thrilling updates? The girl is now rocking some solid food! As previously mentioned (I think I previously mentioned it, anyway), she had her a bit of mushed, organic banana right after her 6 mos. mark... and has now moved onto sweet potatoes. The train goes choo choo choo down the tracks into the tunnel...



... she tastes, she gums, she mashes. But does she like?



She likes! She likes! A bit of a sweet tooth... a girl after my own heart. Saving the best update for last, I must say. What can be better than registering disgust or packing away some sweet potatoes, you ask?



This past Sunday... Veronica said "mama"! Thrilling applause all around, we couldn't be more pleased, and now Amanda has heard her new name from her little girl. Too cute.

Drea

March Madness

I won't say it was intentional, but the results of a long departure from Veronica blogging mean that there is a wealth of photo images documenting her fun last month! I start you with this little beauty, whom Amanda described as "the little girl who lives in the hood".



Not only do I want to visit The Hood now, so I can find this baby and steal her for my own, I also want to point out that it is Veronica who is rocking the gangster bandana.



More tactile by the day, our girl V now handles cups with ease!



This next one kills me because it's a) so cute and b) so killing Amanda to be carrying a PARASOL about town.



Um, Merchant Ivory much? I feel like Helena Bonham Carter should appear behind them and ask if they want to hop in her carriage. (But the corsetted HBC, not the crazy-haired one... who also wears corsets. Damn. I digress.)



These pics are from when the girls visited Amanda's friend Sara Tunes... this gorgeous little red-haired moppet is her son Kaden.



And the teeny tiny baby in the pic (Veronica is no longer smallest!) is Sara's little girl Zoe. Seriously, Veronica is no longer smallest?!



The budding Hollywood mover-and-shaker that she is, Veronica was adamant that she get to visit the DH set again. Being a compliant mama, Amanda agreed... here she is with friend Tara Nicole.



And here she is with Bobbie! I really wonder what it's going to be like when Veronica isn't so easily held and passed around... or maybe she'll just be suffering through her high school graduation, with all of us insisting she sit on our laps and try and make her laugh.



Some of us (ahem, me) like to stay on top of the game in regards to trying to make V laugh... and take long lunch breaks to head over to Willoughby Manner to do so!



Now, there was some worry that Auntie Amber's blog ban was still in effect but it's April and I've slipped them in before, and plus she is so cute! And strong! What a pusher that girl is. The good kind, of course.



Oh, and you did see that correctly: Veronica is fully wearing her some sunglasses. It's the craziest thing, I don't know any other babies (or toddlers... or grumpy adults) that don't tear them off their face, but she must just know how great she looks in them.



Yeah! This is a Drea Special picture, as two of my greatest gamma friends - Roberta and Emily - came to visit and Kathleen let us invade her day and take over in baby-drooling duties. (I mean, we were cleaning up the drool, not that we were drooling on the baby. Although we kind of were. Again, I digress.)



Baby Eaten by Blanket! Film at 11...



Then again, can you blame the blanket?! Who doesn't want to nibble on the cuteness! Seriously, pictures like this make me wonder if we shouldn't just be dressing her up like flowers and selling calendars. Then again, it might sully her amateur status when we start getting into pageants.



Baby Gets Payback from Blanket Scandal by Eating Grandmother! Film at 11...



Nom nom nom munchmunch urrm gravity nosekiss...



If you're catching a gnawing theme, you're right on. However, all of Veronica's gummy struggles have finally been rewarded - she got her first tooth! It's a lower one, but it's perfect. We're having it certified, even.



I don't have to tell you what date this was from - that's right, Veronica's first St. Patrick's Day! Complete, of course, with the perfect outfit...



... and the perfect accessory! In your face, liquor laws!



And the world's happiest baby is: Veronica! Seriously, have you ever exuded this much happiness? Don't you wish you could?



Maybe you would be that happy if you had a stuffed animal to chase around the house! And yes, she is practically crawling, crazy right??



How great is that fort?! How much do you want a fort?!



Yeah, she's all chill in her fort, sipping on some water. That's right: sipping!



Sipping... and bouncing on Nigel. Bouncing! Man, she's an active little thing. There's no slowing her down...



Unless she's with her mama...



... Or her grandmother. Knocked out little bean!



She's growing up fast, but she still is a sweet little baby.



Will leave you with this one because she is sleeping AND she is punk rock... like mother, like daughter!

Drea

Bathing Beauty

Although I keep hearing from my friends and family at home in Minnesota that it's still wintery cold... I cannot believe it. Because it's warm! And sunny! And feels like summer! Agreeing with me is Ms. V.



What? That picture is a tasty bite of summery goodness but you want an even closer peek? I'm nothing but an enabler of cute, so here you go.



I wish that sweet girl a lifetime of that kind of loungey comfort in a swimsuit, I tell you. How gorgeous is she?! Don't you just want to pick her up and nibble on her underarm?



And here is her favorite Auntie Amber... post underarm nibble. Yum yum!



I love that no matter when or where the picture is taken, it's always one of us getting as close to V as possible to cuddle or tickle or squeeze. She is kryptonite! Or catnip. Shoot, which is more positive??



Case in point, Uncle Chet just chillin' with Veronica and resting his arm on... what is that?



Ahhh, Chester. Like so many of us, Cheddar will take the lovin' however he can get it.



I leave you with this so you can squeal your way through the rest of your day!

Drea

Teething Time

Grandma Kathleen has been truly investing in Tummy Time since she's been taking care of Veronica and I can vouch - it's paying off in spades! Seriously, it's crazy how much she grows each week, turning herself over and being able to reach with her hands and hold eye contact. You're a star, grandma! Also a star? Godfather Nigel, who spent an hour assembling a Rainforest Junglegym for our girl V.



She loves it! Look at all the colors and toys... I won't lie, I would totally rock that thing myself.



Happy girl! Happy girl! Since Veronica is totally on the bottle more these days, she is welcoming different cradling arms to see her through. First on that list: Sarah B!



And to show her appreciation, and because she's teething and needs to work her gums over something all the time - and apparently what works best is a) a plastic French giraffe or b) a jaw bone, Sarah got some extra loving.



How jealous are you?? I know I am - good work, Sarah!

Drea

Wonderful, Magical, Posh-Sounding Godfathers

A couple weekends ago (I've really lost the ability to be timely, haven't I?!), Veronica's beloved godfathers, Ben and Nigel, hosted a little afternoon gathering at their place. Never one to turn down an opportunity to cuddle on V (or a good bowl of Irish stew), we turned out in force.



Look at that sweet sweetness! I don't know any little girl that's more loved, which is a wonderful thing to be able to admit.



Of course, she totally deserves it. Look how she sits! And beams! And is adorable! I also love that Amanda "Punk Rock" Gore has no shame about outfitting that little trinket in the most frilly, pink dresses known to man.



Smirk on, mama! You know you do it! AMANDA LOVES PINK.



Zia Hannah and Auntie Amber share in my mockery... although we'd dress her in pink ourselves in a heartbeat. And what's a "Zia" you ask? Oh, Hannah and I are Zias, thank you very much! Zia is Italian for "Aunt" and since we want to claim as much face time as possible with little V for the next 20-30 years (and we're not girls to deny our love of pasta), we figured we should title ourselves.



Of course, any outing with Veronica turns into a pass-the-mic scenario. But instead of being MC's, we're gooing admirers. And instead of being a mic, she's... well, she's a baby. Check out Stacie Phelps, rockin' the baby!



And I would not kid to you about the Irish stew, I'm still dreaming of it... how delicious does this spread look? Yummm. Maybe I shouldn't blog so close to lunch time.



Veronica wanted to try the stew thiiiiiis much, but Hannah told her to forget it. It's milk for you, baby! Talk to us when you have some teeth. (Incidentally, she's working round the clock on growing said teeth...)



See! This is where she's going to put the teeth when she gets them!



I love this picture, they're both so delighted to be there! Nigel and Ben are going to be such tremendous godfathers to Veronica, just seeing how they look at her (and look after her) shows me how protected she'll be.



Everyone say "stew!". Thanks again for having us over, I know we all had a great time (especially Laszlo, who made official his love of shoveling dirt).

Drea