Game Day

Before getting to this post, please check out our Halloween post.

Last Saturday Daddy took his little girl down to Charlottesville to see our beloved Wahoos from the University of Virginia take on the Miami Hurricanes. The Hoos ended up on the short end of things, 24-17 in overtime, but it was a great day for Daddy and his little girl. No traffic heading down in the morning for the noon kickoff, which included 1+ hour nap for E. Got to the game after kickoff, but we weren't in a big hurry. It was sunny and warm -- an absolutely gorgeous Fall day in Central Virginia.

E was spectacular. She really behaved well. It was surprisingly sunny, and Daddy forgot the sunscreen, so she spent a good part of the time with her head on my lap and Daddy's hat covering her face. I thought she might nod off, but when there was something exciting going on in the game, she would ask to stand up or be picked up so she could see what was happening on the field. Daddy was bursting with pride.

Before we get to the pictures, a little story. A few weeks earlier in Oct, we spent Sat & Sun with some old college friends of mine and their kids. 5 boys between the ages of 4 1/2 and 9 yrs. And E was the only girl. UVa had a good day scoring 5 touchdowns. After each touchdown the Virginia faithful engage in a tradition known as singing the "Good Ole' Song." This is a song to the tune of Auld Lang Syne where people put their arms around one another and sway back and forth while singing. This really intrigued Elizabeth and asked several times in subsequent weeks for Mommy or Daddy to sing the Go Hoos Go song.

Fast forward to this past weekend. So UVa scores a touchdown and we sing the Good Ole Song. E listens intently. A little while later, UVa scores again.

Daddy: "Ok, baby girl, time to sing!"
Sweetpea: (* incredulously *) "Again?!?!?!"

And now for the pictures:



Getting a hand from a fan at the end of the 1st Qtr

Heading down to the picnic area at the half.

Making friends.

Sweetpea and her biggest fan

Sun 'n fun in the stands.

Hitting the road.

Quick stop at Horton Vineyards winery. (No, Daddy didn't do any tasting.) How about that scenery?

A tired little girl getting some sleep on the ride home.
Thank you for a wonderful day, Baby Girl.

- Rich

Dipsy doodle

I don't know why it's called a dipsy doodle, it just is. And she loves it.

yes we can

I'm hijacking the blog. Sorry Rich. I just want to be able to remember this. Fireworks are going off in the neighborhood. Gee just called in tears of happiness.



I was undecided early in the year. As a woman's college graduate, I felt I should be supporting Hilary. But yet. And then I saw this video. Yes we can. Not because Wil.I.Am or John Legend or Kate Walsh say so, but because of Barack Obama's words in a concession speech.

My favorite link of today - I Didn't Vote for Obama Today.

And, just a challenge - do you know all the past presidents of the United States in order? I sure don't.

McCain is giving a very nice concession speech. And reminds me of the McCain I might have voted for. Not the McCain that's been campaigning these past months.

Hopefully not TMI

But the blog is the perfect place for baby update, right? Well, 37 week appointment today. Baby is still measuring big, cervix is tightly closed, and he's riding high with no signs of dropping. Exactly the same as with Elizabeth. Doctor looked me in the eye and said, ok, so you know this baby is not coming through this pelvis, right?

I've had that feeling all along. 20 days.

nice football players?

Somehow with NaBloPoMo, recent posts have been more about me than the Sweetpea. So just a short blurb today.

Between Halloween, a football trip to Charlottesville, and daylight savings, we had quite the interrupted weekend of sleep. Saturday night, Rich and I were, what else, watching a college football game when she popped awake - wide awake - at 10 pm. She wanted a drink, so for the first time ever we let her come downstairs and sit with us for 30 minutes or so to let her finish some milk and get a little drowsier before putting her back down.

So she cuddled between us, chatty and happy, and watched some football. Mommy, did that man get hurt? And indeed, there was an injury on a play. I explained that, and she asked if tackling hurt players, so I tried to explain they wore pads and big uniforms and to watch, when they were tackled they got right back up. And then I started some play-by-play with her - see, the man is about to get the ball, now he's going to throw it, and that man will get tackled.....

The whistle blew, and players stepped out of formation. She said, what happened?

I explained they called a time out.

Oh, she said. Were they not being very nice?

The Return

We had a whole list of possibilities lined up for today's post - Halloween, football, a few funny sayings - but a string of coincidences led to joyous news for us today.

In May, we were devastated when our favorite restaurant, Louisiana Express, closed. I'd been going since I moved here in 1993, and had introduced Rich to the delights of this semi-dive hole in the wall place. I used to live pretty close, and there was a period of time when we went almost weekly - the first and only place we've ever been regulars. It might have helped we always got the same thing - me, crawfish etouffee and a Crimson Voodoo and Rich, blackened london broil and Blackened Voodoo. And no green onions sprinkled on for garnish. The brunches were awesome (me - poached eggs Sardou, Rich, Po'Mans breakfast), and our annual Mardi Gras party was not finished until the big gathering the next morning rehashing all the gory details from the party. We knew the place was in trouble last winter when they lost their liquor license, but we, and they, held on until May.

We'd heard on various blogs that our favorite waiter Carlos and the chef were trying to re-open and were scouting locations, but hadn't heard anything in months, and I was constantly moaning about missing the place. We've tried to curtail dining out recently and yet Louisiana Express's reasonable prices would have still fit in our budget - not weekly, but still regularly.

So, the coincidences:
- Last week we got an e-mail from Hard Times with a deal this week on 4.99 chili. Awesome, we thought, we'll get takeout chili on Friday.
- Called Friday, special was just on eat in. So we decided ok, we'll go out Sunday night.
- Hard Times has a variety of locations, and it's a toss up if we go to Arlington or Bethesda. We decided Bethesda.
- We can never remember the right street in Bethesda, so we turned down one street, nope, not right, turned the corner on another, hmm, not right either.
- On my side, I notice a sign - grand opening, Louisiana Kitchen. Hmmm. There is something familiar about the font......
- I crane my head and body all the way around (not an easy feat at 37 weeks) and Rich drives past - Hey, I think that's Carlos in the window!
- Rich lets me out to investigate. I look at the menu posted outside. OMG, it's identical to Louisiana Express's. I rush in. There behind the bar - Carlos! Who greets me like an old friend, asks about Elizabeth, notices the pregnancy, we chat about them opening. I say, you have no idea how excited I am! Couple at the bar laughs and says them too. Carlos gives me a takeout menu, and I say we'll be back!
- I walk out arms raised in victory. Climb in car, and Rich says, we don't have to go to Hard Times, you know.
- D'oh. We don't. We HAVE to go to Louisiana Kitchen.

Yes. We had our usuals. Sadly there's no more Blackened Voodoo to be had (ever since Katrina - though Crimson has been hard to find for a long time). But Rich had an Abita TurboDog, so he was happy.

Louisiana Kitchen. Yum.

We'll be back.

NaBloPoMo

Happy National Blog Posting Month!

30 posts, 30 days. Made a little bit difficult by a big life change due near the end of the month, but between Rich and me, we should be able to do it. And maybe I can configure my iphone to be able to post from the hospital? (hospital food = still bad). I think one of the tricks of NaBloPoMo is not to be boring. Along those lines, my mom's group friends (see blogroll on the right) have decided to include a little friendly competition.

I would post some Halloween pics, but R and E are off to UVA today for the Miami game, while I get the day to myself. My goal - to have a little fun, declutter a little, and just relax. Halloween was a wee bit exhausting for this 8.5 month pregnant 40-year old.