Laissez Les Bon Temps Rouler, Ma Petite!

Folks, please do not adjust your computer screen. Crimmins McTot did not morph into a French blog overnight. I just thought the title would be fitting since yesterday was Fat Tuesday. Plus, Conor and I just arrived back from another boisterous and wonderful President's Day weekend with my graduate school friends.

And, yes, the good times do indeed always roll with that crew.

It's a tradition, you see. For the last few years, Conor and I have spent every President's Day weekend with my friends from UVA and their growing families. It goes something like this: We rent a huge house somewhere within driving distance of the DC area, Portsmouth, and Charlottesville, load up on lots of food and adult beverages, and hunker down for a long (and usually cold) weekend.




When we first started out several years ago, we had 2 small babies by the names of Caroline and Amelia crawling around on the floor between us as we talked and drank (with moderation and maturity, of course). That's a grown-up 4-year-old Amelia in the right-hand picture, by the way. She's "making snow" in case you couldn't tell.

Well, flash forward a few years to this year's weekend in Elkton, Virginia. We now have a total of 5 adorable, precocious children in our midst, including sweet Abby Bruskin who Conor is holding in the left-hand picture. What's more, to our delight, Caroline and Amelia are now grown-up enough to put on mini plays for our viewing pleasure. Granted, the plot is a bit lacking, but the performances are simply stellar. Our Masterpiece Theater production for last weekend was entitled "Two Princesses Dancing." It involved (you got it) two eerily familiar "princesses" by the names of Caroline and Amelia, dancing with each other for about 3 minutes as we sat on the floor, clapped, and took gads of pictures.

Apart from the theatrical stylings of Amelia and Caroline, this year was also exciting because there are two new babies on the way in our group. Obviously, yours truly (aka Baby C) is one of the them. The other baby belongs to my dear friend, Sarah, who is due just a few weeks before me. As a result, during our P-Day weekend celebration, the other UVA girls were kind enough to throw a little shower for Sarah and myself.


It was complete with a heap of adorable gifts (including Baby C's first University of Virginia t-shirt) and also included the traditional practice (among our group, that is) of decorating onesies for the wee babes. The shower was such a special and unexpected treat, and Conor and I were so appreciative.

And the onesies...well, I'll let the pictures speak for themselves. Conor and I simply can't wait to introduce Baby C to this group of special friends on P-Day Weekend 2011! The only question is: Which onesie should he wear?