Mr. Big!

Oh my goodness! I got this photo of Baby Alex yesterday and almost passed out. He has gotten SO big! I did hear later that he didn't pull himself up (I hear that is a big distinction. It meant NOT A THING to ol' inexperienced Aunt Ninny here), but was standing there on his own. I will also note that I have sent Kylie multiple Boppy covers (one of my former clients invented them!) yet the one in his playpen (is that what that thing is called?) is naked. I'm only mildly annoyed by that fact. :) In other news, Alex began daycare this week- he had a nanny previously- and is getting along famously. YAY! I cannot wait to see him again sometime in the near-ish future.

Side note: I know that my grammar in this post (and likely all posts) is not up to par and I'm fine with that. I mean my blog to be more conversational. I have to write professionally all day and night at the office so give me a break. :)

Wurdle

I think I have posted before about our love for the iPod/iPhone game Wurdle. My mom occasionally texts me to update me on her highest score. She was way behind Jackson originally (I don't really have time to play anymore- boo!), but sent a text this morning saying that she just scored 316o. That beat Jackson's high score at that time. He was determined to beat her and within an hour posted a 4360. Her reign was short, but sweet. Keep trying, Mom. Susie plays, too, but we haven't heard a score from her recently. She must not be in competition. ;)

Doug

We stopped in at our local Petsmart to get MacKenzie's medical transcripts today (she gets to go back to her old vet in Fishers- we loved them- yay!) and decided to get her a new toy. She was quite pleased to have someone new to pick on. She has already beat "Doug" to a pulp. Classic. :)

GOING HOME!

I will post more details soon, but I wanted to make the quick announcement that Jackson and I will again be residents of INDIANA in a few short weeks! I took a job in downtown Indianapolis and Jackson is interviewing with a firm there, too. WOO HOO!!! :)

Let's go play in the snow!

MacKenzie and Jackson walked with me to work today. (Yes, it is Saturday. Yes, I did go to work. Yes, you did read that correctly. Yes, my status on Facebook about 75+ hour weeks until May 15th was spot on. Yes, that does make me sad and tired.) They stayed behind at the park and I continued to the office. MacKenzie got in a solid game of ball even in the snow. Snow in no way fazes this little dog.

I wasn't there so I cannot say why she's on a picnic table-? She looks cold.

Jackson sent me this photo while I was at work with a caption reading, "I do what I want!"

After a long game of ball, MacKenzie went to rest on the bed sans bed clothes (it is Saturday sheet cleaning day after all) and somehow got herself under a mound of blankets. She's something else.

We're keeping busy since we returned from vacation. I have worked. A lot. Jackson took a half day on Friday to take MacKenzie to get a haircut. She didn't really have to go, but they were testing the fire alarms in our building again so we decided she should be out of the house. I thought it was nice of him to sacrifice some exhilarating times at the office to take care of MacK. ;) He has stepped up and done the grocery shopping, cooking, a lot of the dishes and assisted with laundry since I've basically taken up residence at the PwC Boston office and I appreciate him so very much. Here is hoping that the next 16 weeks seemingly fly by for us! :) (Quick note because I know people will ask: exempt organizations tend to run on fiscal year so their tax returns are generally due on May 15th-- not April 15th like individuals.)

Back to WPB

We came back to West Palm Beach this morning. The drive is a gorgeous one. We were quite happy to be back in our comfort zone of WPB.

We spent the afternoon at the beach on Palm Beach. That is Jackson out in the cold(er) water playing in the waves.
He is like a little kid when we get to the beach. You cannot keep him from playing. He was good today and didn't get any of the lifeguard's angry whistles. That might be a first.
I stayed on the beach and read a book. It was lovely. I think we both got some sun. We needed it. We looked like ghosts from all of our indoor time in Boston.

We watched a little football this afternoon then headed out to dinner on Clematis Street. We ate at a trendy Mexican restaurant- outside at 7:00 pm on January 2nd. Yep. We love Florida. We took a long (4+ miles) walk this evening around the island and tried to forget that we have to return to reality tomorrow. Sigh. It has been a fabulous vacation and we wish it didn't have to end.

We do, however, miss MacKenzie. We checked on her this afternoon- she's with Jackson's boss- and she's doing really well. We are excited to have her back, but we're glad that she is getting along so well with her substitute family.

The Keys

We decided to go back to Key West to do some more exploring on the special day that was 1/1/11. I never got to write down the date that day so I decided to do it here- fun! We had lunch across the street from where Ernest Hemingway used to hang out. The people watching in K.W. was incredible. We loved it. Our favorite was a group of college kids who were still obviously hung-over/ drunk from their NYE festivities singing "HAPPY BIRTHDAY, NEW YEAR! HAPPY BIRTHDAY, NEW YEAR! HAPPY BIRTHDAY, DEAR NEW YEAR, HAPPY BIRTHDAY, 2011!" They were REALLY singing. They were so proud of themselves.
We did a little shopping. Jackson almost died when the ladies at Coach brought out this HUGE shopping bag for my purchase (a new carry-on duffel bag). He held it up next to this kid to show that he could fit in it. Classic. :)
We didn't go into the Butterfly & Nature Conservatory, but Jackson sure does look cute posing in front of it.
This is where the drag queen drops inside the shoe at the stroke of midnight on New Year's Eve. Key West is full of surprises like that. ;) I had always wanted to see the Southernmost Point marker. As you can see to the right of the pole, there was a LINE to take a photo with it. I don't do lines.
I was able to get a photo of it QUICKLY before additional tourists made their way up from the front of the line!
At the very end of the island there was a military base. I thought it would be a nice place to be stationed if you were enlisted.
Roosters and chickens roamed the island like little citizens. It was really odd to see them just hanging out around the island.

We spent a little time at the beach on the island. It was so nice and warm. We really enjoyed seeing Key West and the rest of the Keys. I am definitely a fan of the warmer weather for our holiday vacation. :)