St. Thomas

Why are these parents smiling?
Because they are sailing in the Caribbean with good friends and great "Rum Painkillers" and ...
... snorkeling and enjoying a wonderful week "sans la fille". Meanwhile ...
... back on the homefront, Rory warily scrutinized her interim caretakers.
"For example," she wondered, "would they crimp my style during music class?"
Back on St. Thomas, Rory's parents were warily scrutinizing some wild creatures of their own.
While Sarah fondled the birds, Tim got friendly with a pack of vegetarian iguanas.
"Ah, I miss my daughter," Sarah is thinking, "but a few days with the stingrays is good for the soul."
Fortunately, Pops curried Rory's favor by turning bread pans into infantry helmets...
...And Nonna showed Rory that she could excite giggles of joy just like her Mommy.
In the end, Rory had a wonderful week with Nonna and Pops, who in turn gave Tim and Sarah a truly priceless gift...
As did our friends Matt and Tonia Peake, who organized a divine vacation.
Matt and Tim were college roommates. Unfortunately, their dorm room didn't have quite the view as our Caribbean villa.
The mommy-daughter reunion was quite the sight, and Rory insisted on a "group ground giggle" to celebrate the occasion.
Rory shows off her St. Thomas t-shirt, a gift from her mommy for being such a good girl while we were away.

Passport Photo

"Hi, Rory here. My Dad wanted me to apologize on his behalf for not keeping the blog as current as he once did. He's been busy, and I've been sick, which Dad says makes me less foe-toe-jen-ick, or something like that. However, he did snap this picture of me so that he could get a passport for me. I'll be leaving the country this summer when we travel to the Exuma Islands, which are part of The Bahamas. Actually, Dad is taking Mom to St. Thomas tomorrow, which is another island in the Caribbean. My Nonna and Pops will be staying in my house to keep me company!

Hives

We knew Rory had a high pain tolerance. And we knew Rory might have been fighting a cold or something. But when Sarah took her little girl into the doctor's office to find out what was causing the strange, temporary patches of red and white blotches on Rory's face, we had no idea the doctor would tell us that Rory had (a) an ear infection, (b) walking pneumonia and/or strep throat, both of which were probably causing her to have (c) a strange case of the hives!...
What a fun way to ring in the new year! Fortunately, Rory doesn't seem to be phased, even by the hives. And it certainly hasn't slowed her down!...
On New Year's Day, we had lunch with a big swath of Tim's family, including Rory's great grandmother.
We have also been enjoying a batch of Sarah's black-eyed peas, an annual tradition that Sarah inherited from her father.
With the onset of some very cold weather last week, we sought new places in which Rory could run free...
... and mountain climb. Fortunately, we've got the Smithsonian in our backyard!

Aunt Chelle's Jewelry Shop

"Hi, it's Rory again. My Aunt Chelle has recently launched an online gallery that features her distinctive necklaces. You can check them out at http://www.lovec.etsy.com/.
Unfortunately, the necklaces are still a little too big for me. Moreover, my Dad claims that he is not going to let me wear jewelry till I'm 18. We'll see about that; I think the women in this family can outvote him."