Ah, the stairs!

I love the stairs! In this photo, I'm sitting quietly on the bottom step, waiting to make a trip to Lowe's to help Aunt Lisa buy shelves for her work. Normally, this is the view you'll get if you let me ANYWHERE near the stairs:

THAT'S why all these little gates are up around the house, I guess!

Check out my new kicks!

Yes, indeed, that's Elmo waving at you from my shiny new shoes! I wore them to school today for the first time!

Dirty knees.

I was out playing in the yard, running up the little hill, then running down so Aunt Tricia would catch me. Then I thought it would be fun to sort of slide down the last little way, so I got ALL dirty. I need some shinguards, but I guess they don't make them small enough. Maybe for next summer!

I work hard for the money.

Here's a rare, behind-the-scenes shot of the inner workings of our blog. As usual, I'm hard at work bringing you The Alexis Update, hot off the press anywhere from two to seven days per week. You can see our crack newsroom staff in the background, combing our archives for photos so that we can continue to bring you our award-winning stories and stunning images.


See the baby in the stroller back there? She fell asleep, tired from an all-night brainstorming session we had to come up with new story ideas. That, folks, is dedication! But don't worry about us. We're just proud to have the opportunity to bring you all things Alexis, all the time.

Aunt Tricia says I sort of remind her of one of her editors from her brief tenure as a reporter--except I'm a little bit taller than he was, and I don't cuss nearly as much. (What's my secret? Lots of milk to make me tall, and judicious use of the pacifier--it really keeps the swearing to a minimum.)

Well, gotta go...deadlines, deadlines, deadlines. Thanks for stopping by to see where the magic is made!

Saturday, in the park.

Today, Alexis and I went to the park to play at the playground. We had lots of fun, and she especially liked this little thing she could bounce on. We wanted to swing, but this big herd of kids was hogging the swings and we couldn't wait around ALL day (a girl gots to eat), so we played on the jungle gym for a while and then went home. We had a big day; Aunt Lisa had a meeting at work for a couple of hours, so we did the recycling and went to the library and walked around the little shopping area near our house for a while. Later, our friend Shackney came to visit (she's on a LONG drive from Texas to Michigan to visit her family for a few weeks before she starts graduate school in Chicago). We went out to dinner with her, then to Ted Drewes for some frozen custard.


Alexis had an awesome time. She got a little antsy when the service was slow at dinner, but she had a ton of fun at the ice cream place. She sat on a bench like a big girl, eating her custard and licking people's pants. Yep, you heard me.

She licks pants. Strangely, I don't think there's a space to mark that down in her baby book.

Is this what I'm supposed to put in this little potty?

I don't think so. Maybe my Cheerios go in here or something.

Oh, well. Guess I'll figure it out eventually.

Happy Birthday, Grandma!

Today is my Grandma's Birthday! I love you , Grandma!



I also love corn. Here's a fun picture from my vacation last week!

Fabulous 15 Months!

Well, today is my 15-month birthday....yay, me! To celebrate, Aunt Tricia took me on a little shopping trip to Target. It wasn't too exciting, as the main purpose was getting diapers, but I also got two new pairs of shoes for fall, including a pair of ELMO sneakers. Yep, that's right, "Bobo" is on my new shoes. And, I got a new potty seat. Aunt Tricia says we're not going to start any potty training, but we just got it so I can get used to the idea--it's also a stepstool so I can brush my teeth easier.

I dozed off on the way to Target, and then on the way home I fell sound asleep. Whew, I'm getting OLD!

Happy Anniversary, Mommy & Daddy!

Today is my Mommy & Daddy's wedding anniversary, and it stinks that they are apart from each other and I am apart from both of them, but I'm thinking of them and can't wait until we are all together again.

I love you, Mommy & Daddy!

Love,
your baby girl, Alexis

Back to school!

Well, today was my first day back to school after vacation. I was very excited to go back and smiled so big when we pulled up at the school and I realized where I was going. All of my caregivers were excited to see me and said I looked bigger and my hair seemed really long.

Duh, I told them. It's the extensions I had put in.

Then after school I played for a long time with Aunt Lisa, then right before dinner we had a big rain, and Aunt Tricia and I sat at the front window watching all the rain pouring down in the street. Good stuff!

In the pink...

I'm back, and not in black. I noticed my Aunt Tricia pirated the blog for a while, but I've returned from Grandma's and I'm putting my foot down!

I had a great time at Grandma's, and got some very cute new clothes and awesome toys, too! Thanks, Grandma & Grandpa!

I also had a sleepover this weekend at Nana's with Aunt Mandy before returning to St. Louis. I got to see Joe tonight as soon as I got back...yay!!!

Here's a picture of me from the weekend, wearing an ice bucket in the hotel room with Grandma & Grandpa...what can I say, I'm just wild!

Pay up, grandpa!

Remember back when Alexis' Grandpa promised her a new car if she said "Grandpa"? Well, she's ready to collect on that promise:




I think the Bug is a good choice, little one, but your Grandma already has green, so maybe you should pick another color so you won't get too confused!

Alexis Loves Her Grandpa!

Alexis is having a great time on her vacation, hanging out with Grandpa and dipping her toes in the hot tub. Somone give that kid a glass of champagne!

People need to be more patient.

It's come to my attention that SOME people think we don't post often enough. (If you're a friend of Mandy's, I'm talking about YOU!)

Remember, Alexis is still very small and it's VERY tiring for her to be typing these updates. Even my laptop is, really, way too big for her! Give her a little break.

Meanwhile, satisfy yourselves with this awesome action photo of the
Toddler Queen of the World

Fun with family!

Well, Alexis is gone, and I--Aunt Tricia--have pirated the blog all for myself! Last night we drove to Nana's and then this morning we went to LaGrange, Kentucky and met up with Grandma and Aunt Becca. Alexis's Great-Auntie Carol and cousin Taylor Blake came, too! We ate at Cracker Barrel and then strapped Alexis into her Nana Joyce's Caddy for the trip north.

She's having big fun and on Saturday night she had already said "Grandpa," thereby earning herself a new car. She also said "Mama," and "Love you," making her mommy cry once again on the phone.

I hope she doesn't get TOO spoiled, ha ha!

Hi, everybody!

Hi! I'm so sorry, we've been very lazy this week! I'm doing fine, but that pesky tooth is still bugging me. I'm not even EATING as much as usual, if that tells you anything!

I did go have my picture taken on Wednesday and it turned out pretty great, I think. I'll have Aunt Tricia scan and post it soon. I'm leaving Friday evening to go to my Nana's for the night, then on Saturday morning I get to go with Aunt Becca and Grandma for vacation for a week! Yay! I'm taking way too many clothes and a few of my favoritest toys. (The Care Bears are coming to YOUR town, Grandma....Aunt Tricia says, "Ha ha ha. What goes around, comes around!")

I think Aunt Tricia will post a couple times while I'm gone to keep you up to date on my vacation fun, then I'll be right back on it when I return!

Love,
Alexis

Care for some suds?

No outside swimming today, so I did some inside swimming in the big tub. We had only a bit of suds, but then we turned on the jacuzzi jets and it got to be a whole lot of suds. It was fun, fun, fun!

We went to the mall--it was way too hot to be doing any outside stuff today--and then went to visit Lisa's mom, Becky, who's being my honorary Grandma right now because I figure, the more Grandmas, the better, right? Also, her littlest grandbaby, Eva, is far away, so this way she gets to see a little one and I get a little Grandma spoiling to keep me in practice for when I see my Grandma, and Nana, and Mamaw! (With so many grandmas, I need to stay in tip-top spoiling shape, you know.)

Yesterday, Aunt Tricia got me my very own Bobo doll! (That's Elmo, of course, to you!) I like to kiss him and hug him, and point to his eyes, ears and nose. I still don't watch very much TV at all, so I mostly just know him from books we read, but he's cuddly and swell. Today I got my very own Kansas City Chiefs jersey. The first regular season game is only about 5 weeks away, so get ready, and wait'll you get a load of me when I get dressed up for the big Sunday to kick off the season!

Got to talk to Daddy this morning for a minute, which rocked. Hi, Pops! I'm so worn out from the fun that I'm probably taking Monday off to hang out...catch you Tuesday!

Summertime...

...and the living is easy.

On a hot Saturday afternoon, after we've run some errands and had a swim in the little pool, Alexis and Aunt Lisa just want to relax by laying on the couch, reading a book. (Alexis had been lying down, too, but sat up as SOON as she saw the camera. Just like Daddy.)

Poor Alexis is having lots of gum-aches, waiting for that tooth to come in. She's also getting longer hair, but no haircuts this time. It's a very cute length, with little curls, so I think we're just going to trim the very few hairs that are extra long in the front and don't match up with the others, and she's starting to wear barrettes sometimes but she pulls them out pretty soon after she gets them in. She's learned to say "hi" and wave when we see people, instead of just saying "bye" to everyone, and at the mall she ran around yelling at the top of her lungs with joy. We stopped in at Kohl's to look at shoes, and she just kept trying to run away from us, squealing and clapping when we'd chase her and catch her.

It's getting harder to keep up with her, and I cannot figure out how I've gained weight lately instead of losing it, but if she keeps getting faster I think she'll be the best weight-loss plan ever. Have a good week, everybody!

-Tricia

No new tale to tell.

It's Friday, and there's not much going on. Everyone's very tired from a long week of work and school, and my mouth is really hurting me, but still no teeth poking through. What the heck is taking so long?

Baby Orajel is my very best friend. Oh, and I called Elmo "Melmo" tonight, instead of "Bobo" or "Belbo" or "Bebbo." But only a couple of times. Then it was right back to "Bobo."

More new words!

I've been asking to have lots of books read to me, and one of my favorites is "How Big is Baby Elmo?" I like to say Elmo (it sounds like "Bebbo") and when Elmo says "Mama" and "Dada" in the book, I say it with him. He also plays peek-a-boo, which I can do, but I started out by using my right hand to slap myself on the right cheek and yell "boo." Now I cover my eye with my hand (still just one hand, though) and say something that sounds a bit more like peek-a-boo. Fun, huh?

Mommy called tonight and I told her about Elmo and said "Mama." I love you Mommy! (I love you too, Daddy!) Mommy will be home in just about 2 months and 2 weeks....

Getting ready for vacation...

Guess what? Less than 10 days til I get to go visit my grandma and grandpa in Ohio...I'm excited. Grandpa says if I can say "Grandpa" during my visit, he'll buy me a car! Aunt Tricia's helping me practice, so watch out, Grandpa. I'll get to see my Great Nana and Aunt Becca and I know it will be lots of fun!

At daycare today I said "yellow" and stole the pecan spinwheel off of another kid's breakfast plate. I just LOVE those little things! Aunt Tricia says my first full sentence will probably be, "Hey, are you going to finish that?"

Girls on film.

Hey, in an exciting new development, Shutterfly has rigged up an awesome thing where my pictures can be online, without you having to click from each post. So, if you wanted to see an oldie but a goodie, you could do that any old time!

Some of the photos are too small to print; Aunt Tricia did that so they'd load fast. If ever there's one that you want but it's too small, let us know...we'll upload a larger version for you! You can get there by clicking here, or by saving this on your little web browser:

http://alexisupdate.shutterfly.com

This is by no means all of the photos, but we'll add more slowly but surely. And, to avoid all my stalkers, I made Aunt Tricia put a password on my collection. It's just my last name, so if you don't know it just e-mail Aunt T. and she'll hook you up. Provided you're in my inner circle, of course!

Later, 'gators.

Chocolate? What chocolate?

Uh, I'm really not sure what chocolate you're talking about. No, I didn't see it, must've been someone else!



Just kidding! Aunt Tricia made cupcakes for the kids at work, and I had to....uh, HELP her. Yeah, that's it, help her clean out the bowl. Luckily, I went to the tub to do my part of the job. Mmmm...she should make those kids cupcakes EVERY day.