Do we look Mississippian yet?

Eating like a lady

Eating like a _______. Isn't that a cute smile?!!!!

It's way more comfy under the mattress

She's sooooo advanced

Can you believe that awesome moustache? One guy told him he loved his cool retro "stache"

Vico had a loch ness monster candle on his birthday cake

I wish Sarah were here to borrow this bonnet

d'Iberville

...or as Sarah lovingly calls it "Diaperville." Vico is working at the Mississippi gulf coast for a few weeks and we have the pleasure of accompanying him. It's really beautiful here. The landscape looks kinda like the pictures you see of an African safari. Minus the animals. The girls and I have been enjoying taking walks in the late afternoon. Something that we have noticed is a lot of plots where houses used to be--that were destroyed by Hurricane Katrina. When I told that to my visiting teacher she said that Biloxi (which is the city right next to where we're staying) was hit the hardest in Hurricane Katrina. It is truly disheartening to see cement walkways leading up to houses that are no more. Grass has grown up in their place. Oh the poor people! To cheer you up, here are some cute pictures of our family.

Aren't they cute?!!!

Ah, all dry!

And finally...an oldie, but a goodie!

In case you were wondering...

...this is how cute my girls are!!

I love Lucy and she loves bread

When I opened the oven to see if the bread was done baking this image reminded me of the Famous "I Love Lucy" episode where Lucy bakes a bread that is so huge.

This post could also be titled: how to bake 4 loaves of bread when your only bread pan is 11"x13"x2" :)

I love it!

I stole this picture from my sister's blog. I hadn't seen it before and it's my new favorite picture. My husband is awesome. He is just the best daddy and love that the world has ever known. He has transitioned from daddy of one to daddy of two with the grace of a savannah gazelle and I love him with all of my heart.
As you have surmised by this point, baby #2 was born. Lily Jane is our new darling sweetheart. She entered the world at 9lb 7 oz on May 6 at 5:21 pm. Having a baby that big is essentially a recipe for a horrific delivery. All I have to say is that I'm just glad to have survived it and to have her out of me. We love our little Lily and are so grateful that she is part of our family.
My sister Sarah came for a week to help us. She is my hero. She came on Monday and the baby was born on Friday. Basically there couldn't have been better timing. She did everything for me--cooked, cleaned, took me on adventures, watched Lucy, moved us to a different apartment. I love her.

Mississippi is so skippy!

We made it. We've been living in Mississippi for 3 weeks now and are all still alive. :) What I'm trying to say is we are doing something grown up and surviving it! We went to the OB doctor today. Her name is Dr. Zekam and she was friendly and nice. She said "Well, now we just wait for the baby to come!" That's what I have felt like lately--just waiting for the baby to come. This is hard to admit, but I have actually in my less than 3 weeks in this apartment, worn a patch of carpet smooth--where my feet rest where I sit in the left-hand corner of the couch. My Vico is an amazing stud. He has transitioned to a new job with such strength, optimism, and determination. He is the coolest husband and da da and best friend. The funny thing is that he's my best friend and Lucy's best friend too. Whenever she's most excited--about anything--she shouts "Da da!" I just want him forever. My biggest fear is cockroaches. I saw one yesterday on the kitchen sink, screamed, and smashed it under the Palmolive bottle. My next biggest fear is cigarette and marijuana scent entering out apartment. It freaks me out. I like the rain here. Every few days there is a thunderstorm. The funny thing is that I will text Vico that it's pouring rain and where he's working 20 minutes away the sky will be clear. We like going on drives here to see the beautiful green scenery and to explore. We have seen the Mississippi river in Vicksburg, with a huge river boat on it, have crossed the border to Louisiana, and randomly ran into a huge reservoir lake thing about 15 minutes from here. There are tons of chicken finger places. We have tried two. My favorite is called Bops in Richland. But by far the nicest touch about Mississippi is the southern hospitality. It's real. My first encounter with it was in the Atlanta airport where on two separate bathroom visits, the girl in front of me in line let me go first. Also, the other day a lady from church brought us a pie. Everywhere we go people chat with us about the baby in the nicest way, as if you'd known them for ages. And to top it off, last night after a job, the couple Vico installed an alarm for fed him turkey necks and saltines. :) I'm just so happy to be here with my sweetheart. And my Luly. Heavenly Father has given us so much joy!

California Here I Come, Right Back Where I...wait, delete California, insert Mississippi

Do you want to move here? That's where we're going. :)

Delicious Breakfast Cookies!

This morning I made breakfast cookies that were based on this recipe. they were super fast, and, as far as I can tell, not less healthy than anything else I eat for breakfast :)

Delicious Breakfast Cookies
1 c brown sugar
1 1/4 c oats
2 c whole wheat flour
1 1/2 t baking soda
1/2 t baking powder
1/2 t salt
1 t cinnamon
1/4 t nutmeg
1/8 t ginger
Combine all of these ingredients in a bowl. Then add:
1 c pumpkin puree
2 eggs
1 t vanilla
1/2 c craisins
1/4 c chocolate chips
Combine. Drop by heaping spoonfuls onto a cookie sheet sprayed with pam. I put a piece of foil on my cookie sheet, sprayed it, then dropped on the dough. This made 19 cookies for me. Bake 350 for about 12-14 min.
Yum! Lu Belle loved these.

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