Month: August 2021

Early Start

Bienvenidos a Miami!

No childcare plus a mandatory two-week vacation equals a spontaneous trip to the beach! Miami is a happy place for us for so many reasons. We are so grateful to be here!

She has been flying since she was tiny and I do not recall her walking onto the plane. Usually it’s a stroller or in our arms… not anymore!
You know you’re at Soho Beach House when you see the cookie tin!
Educating me on Soho House rules and scolding me for my behavior.

Big Baby Welch

She’s always been a one-baby kind of girl, and Big Baby Welch has always been “the one.” Thanks to the ‘baby seat’ feature on her big girl bike, she can bring BBW along pretty much anywhere.

During lunch, Dave and I were taking, and I looked over to find Gigi loving on Big Baby. She’s the sweetest mama in the world.

Hurricane Henri, Paw Patrol, & Modeling

After living through the Hurricane Sandy aftermath in 2012 (we’d just returned from our honeymoon in Hawaii – we spent a week without power or running water and it was unseasonably cold), we didn’t mess around when we heard about Hurricane Henri. We filled our bathtubs and water bottles and crossed our fingers and toes. Thankfully, the only nuisance we experienced was a bunch of rain, and we were able to take Gigi to a screening of the new Paw Patrol movie! She loved every second of it, and we had a blast watching her enjoy it.

PS – Just as we were about to leave, I walked into the living room and caught her “modeling.” WTF?!?!! Where did she learn this stuff?

5th Birthday Magic

It was her second “pandemic birthday,” so knew we had to get creative to make it special. Having a party with friends indoors was not an option, having a party with friends outdoors would’ve been difficult given the weather. So, we kept our guest list VIP-only (read: just our family of three) and brought the birthday magic! We started the day with our special family tradition: a homemade birthday cake for breakfast! Gigi loved the princess-themes decorations and was excited to open a present before gymnastics camp… it was a new scooter! 

After camp, Dave picked up Gigi and they met me at a surprise location… Soho House! We had a special family staycation and it couldn’t have been more perfect.

We opened and played with her presents, had a fun dinner, and then snuggled in bed to watch Cinderella and eat dessert. The next morning, we hung out at the pool.

FIVE!

Cake for breakfast!

Our sweet angel baby, Ushie, Geegers, George, Georgia Porgia, little love, sweetie girl, Gigi Weegie, boo-boo-boo-boo, kitten, bunny rabbit is FIVE YEARS OLD! We are so proud of our big girl. She is our best buddy and has so much love in her heart. She is kind and brave and smart and thoughtful, and most important of all, happy! She loves gymnastics and dancing and squeezes in a twirl whenever possible. She’s not much for hurrying and takes her time getting things just right. She loves princesses and can snap into a make-believe scenario in an instant. She loves paying games — Go Fish, Guess Who, Candy Land, Pretty Pretty Princesses, and Spot It — and dress-up continues to be a favorite, too. Lately, she’s been exploring her favorite princesses’ more casual sides, and asking us to turn on either songs or scenes from movies depending on the princess and outfit.

When asked about what she wants to be when she grows up, her first answer is a strong “vet and sandwich maker,” but then she’ll add that she wants to be other things too (a banker, like mommy) and she just doesn’t know yet. We remind her that she has her whole life to explore the things that interest her and that she can be a great many things. Her favorite foods involve carbohydrates and chocolate, with her all-time favorite remaining unchanged for several years running: pain au chocolat. She now adds a second favorite color when asked (blue AND pink). Her dislikes are few but strong: having her nails clipped, bandaids without characters on them, and waking up early.

She’s such a city girl. Her table manners are unreal (before plunging into her pasta at dinner last night, she literally asked me which fork was a salad fork and which was a dinner fork) and she scoots along the city streets to get to her favorite parks (formerly Washington Market and currently Pier 25).

Gigi adores her family, and her mama and her dada are her people. She starts a lot of sentences with, “Hey guys…” — we are her crew. Her extended family means a lot to her, too. She talks about all of her grandparents, uncles, aunts, and cousins with frequency, and is just thrilled when we let her know a visit is on the horizon.

You are such an incredible human, my sweet Georgia Grace. I am so honored to be your mama. Happy, Happy Birthday, my girl!