St. Charles Famous Streetcar
The morning streetcar on a quiet Sunday morning… on Will’s first birthday!
Birthday Boy!
Will trying on Grandma Wisneskey’s shades on his FIRST BIRTHDAY!
Will’s First Birthday!
We just got back from a wonderful walk on a goregous morning in our beautiful city!
After a quick stop at CC’s for famous iced coffee and bagels, we walked up to St. Charles Street and then back down through our lovely neighborhood to home. What a great day to be in New Orleans and what a great day to be ONE YEAR OLD!
Riverwalk
A rainy day kept us inside today!
Paul and Dad Wisneskey installed speakers into the kitchen ceiling first thing this morning. Then we enjoyed brunch at Bluebird Cafe (a yummy veggie-friendly eatery on Prytania Street!) The drizzle (and lack of convenient outdoor partking) kept us inside for the short tour of the Garden District and French Quarter. We ended up parking on the 8th (!) floor at the Wyndam Hotel across from the pier and walking over the Riverwalk, the mall that extends from the Aquarium to the Convention Center. We window shopped, enjoyed some beignets and chickory coffee at Cafe du Monde, and watched the ships in the Mississippi.
I fell in love with a local jewelry shop featuring work exclusively from New Orleans artists… wow!
Will at Dinner, Nov. 18
Wild Man!
Will at Breakfast, Nov. 19
Will gleefully throwing Cheerios!
Visit from Grandparents!
Last night, Paul’s parents flew in from North Carolina. They are spending the weekend here to celebrate Will’s birthday.
Will has been a delight. He is working on saying words (“Ma-Ma” is still his best, and he definitely seems to associate it with me). Other words he seems to be trying to say are “Gato” (“cat” in spanish… one of our babysitters only speaks spanish) and “Thank You.” “Uh-oh” is another bit in his vocabulary — and he correcty says it when he does things like drop his sippy cup on the floor.
They are so enthralled with him and entertained by his little faces, laughter, and constant curiousity.
The five of us (mom and dad, Paul, Will, and I) all went on a long walk through Aubudon Park this morning. I took lots of pictures with our new SLR digital camera (wow — what an amazing camera!!!) and Will enjoyed being carried a good bit of the way by Grandpap George and riding the stroller the rest of the time. It was a beautiful morning and has been a beautiful New Orleans day — low humidity, warm, some sun. A great November day!
Will in the Duck, Audubon Park, Nov. 19
A friendly duck in Audubon Park — Will did his best to “quack” with him.
Muppet Radio!
I admit I was skeptical about the internet radio. But Muppet Radio has changed my mind! All muppets (including Sesame Street and Fraggle Rock) all the time!! Some of our most recent favorites:
– John Denver on the Muppet Show singing “Grandma’s featherbed” to all the muppet animals
– The Count and Cookie Monster “If I Knew You Were Coming, I’d have Baked a Cake”
– Billy Joel singing “Just the Way You Are” to Oscar the Grouch (…”ew, yuck! Grouch’s hate to be told that!!”)
Will is still a bit too young to appreciate it. But Mom and Dad LOVE it.
Checking in with Will
Will is going to be ONE YEAR old on Sunday. It is all very overwhelming.
He has recently hit a much-anticipated growth spurt. It is amazing how much bigger he looks and feels. It is so hard to see him grow — you want it to happen, but it still hurts all the same. It is exciting to buy new clothes in the next size, but bittersweet to put away the ones that are too small.
He is waving so sweetly now. And saying “Mama”. And lots of other sounds. He does seem to copy our sounds — the new exciting one is “Ga” for “Gato”. He has four teeth on top and 2 on bottom… with one more on the bottom right coming through. (With all the teeth up top, he’s like a little vampire!!) He is getting closer and closer to walking each day, but still wants to be held and “toted” everywhere.
He is so much fun. There is just so much to love about him. I understand so much in the world better now — having a child, raising a child, loving a child — these are life changing and incredibly maturing events. Nothing can prepare you for it, nothing compares to it. It adds a richness and dimension that is so unexpected that you can’t anticipate or predict it. I think it is like discovering another way that your heart and soul can love — it’s falling in love but in surprising, heart-won ways.
I make this blog to help document Will’s early days. I hope someday he can look back on it and realize how much time and thought his mom (and really, his whole family) put into everything about his life. How much we treasure every moment and work through the tough spots together.
