Gena's fourth Mother's Day

It's hard to believe this is Gena's fourth Mother's Day! I know Cora's not yet 3, but I believe women become mothers long before their baby is born. I don't think I was a Dad until Coco actually entered the world, but I know Gena was there long before.

Over the last year, Gena has completely redefined her role as "Mom", and I could not be more grateful for, impressed with, and proud of all she has done! Our baby girl is smarter than either of us already, absolutely LOVES to read, regularly states that she "loves science and music", has a penchant for composing beautiful music and lyrics at the drop of a hat, and occasionally amazes us with the love she has for her brother. Rhys is a crawling fool, pulls up on everything, has started "walking" along the edge of the couch or with the walker toy Cora lets him use from time to time, and will most likely be walking before Father's Day. Thank you, Gena, for being such an amazing Mother to our children. Here is Cora and Rhys's Mother's Day song for your listening pleasure.

Before I leave you with the apparently traditional Mama Collage, I want to wish a very happy Mother's Day to all the other Mothers in our lives: Mom, Leta, Stephanie, Alison, Janna, and anyone else reading this post!

Christmas with the Nichols

We spent this Christmas in Denver with my (Geoff) family this year. Flying with a 17 month old is interesting. She's still free to fly, but that means she still has to sit on our laps. Anticipating a long afternoon, we ran her around the New Orleans airport as much as we could, hoping she'd fall asleep in the plane. Rounding a corner in the terminal we came across someone I expect she will be very familiar with in future Christmases, but with whom she has no love for as of yet. You guessed it, Santa Claus! Southwest Airlines was doing free photo shoots for kids in the airport, and I decided to take advantage. Cora wasn't sure about Santa, but he did give her a candy cane, so he can't be that bad, right? Wrong. I'm not complaining; I think this picture is perfect!

Maybe she'll like him a little more next year.

Second Halloween

Halloween was a blast this year. Cora decided she wanted to go as a cowgirl—by decided, I mean she got to wear the one costume we owned that was passed down from Weston, Ella and Libby—and boy was she cute!

Catching up

It's been a while!  This has been a whirlwind of a summer for the three of us, I'll try to fill you in on the high points.

First and foremost, our beautiful baby girl is now a one-year-old!  July 26 marked her first birthday...coincidentally, it also marked the day Gena and I realized time is moving a little bit faster than we ever thought possible.  This first year has been much more than an eye opening experience.  We've gone from a tiny, helpless (and let's be honest, mostly useless) baby, to a walking, "talking", hugging, kissing, playful, loving child.

Alright, the summer began with a weekend trip to Denver, which is now home to about half of my immediate family.  It was great having (almost) everybody in the same place, and even better seeing everyone dote on Coco.  We were there for my first Father's Day, so I was given a t-shirt for Coco to celebrate the occasion.  We also played a little tennis, which as soon as she can hold racket, Coco will be playing too!  She might need to work on her balance though...

Happy Mother's Day!

Seeing as this is Gena's first Mother's Day, and she is currently in Milan, Italy, I felt this post was necessary.  Happy Mother's Day to all the mothers, grandmothers, mothers-to-be, mothers-in-law, honorary mothers, step-mothers, and anyone else I forgot out there, I hope today is worthy of you.  

Gena, wherever you are right now (hopefully still Milan), and whatever you're doing (probably listening to someone talk about an infectious disease of some sort), Cora and I want you to know that you are very, very special.  You make the hard times not quite so hard, and you make the good times even gooder.  You have somehow managed to turn me into a responsible adult (please excuse my last interjection for a shout out to my Mom who also played a part in that role...I love you Mom!) just in time try to raise a human being from the parasite you so lovingly carried for those long months.  Just when I think I'm about to snap, you swoop in and make things alright.  You have a way with Cora like only a mother could, and I love you all the more for it.  Cora absolutely adores you, and I can already see her wanting to follow in your every footstep.  You must also have had one heck of a mom to somehow know how to be everything Cora needs without even trying (ok, I lied, here's my last interjection...I love you too Leta!).  This year I'm making my very first Mother's Day Resolution.  I resolve to show you every day just how much I love you, and how much we appreciate your amazing Momness.  You truly are our wonderful.  Happy Mother's Day.

This is begging to be clicked on!

Mardi Gras in Texas

This year, for Mardi Gras, we decided to head down to New Orleans...to catch a flight to Dallas. There was no way we'd take Cora to an actual Mardi Gras celebration!  We might try to catch a parade or two next year, but for now, visiting the Jesters was a great way to celebrate.  The airport was packed on our way out of town, but most of the travelers were on there way in. It did seem like a good number of locals had the same idea as us though! Southwest had lavishly decorated their gates and check-in counters, both in NOLA, and in Dallas.