The Girl From Argentina

My dear friend Victoria is in town for her first Jazz Fest experience and to spend time with La Luz. Toita planned on visiting immediately after La Luz was born but Katrina made that impossible so we have been waiting for the past year and a half for her trip to New Orleans. We all prepared Toita for her first meeting with La Luz. We warned her that La Luz is, at times, stand-offish and is, always, protective of her things. We let her know that she shouldn't take offense if La Luz refused to allowed her near her toys and insisted over and over that I was her mom, Loki was her dog, and that the potty in the bathroom was, in fact, her toilet. We shouldn't have bothered. La Luz was all over Toita from the moment she arrived - climbing on her, talking to her, sharing things with her - it was all very weird and wonderful.

Toita and I spent yesterday at Jazz Fest. We opted not to take La Luz along with us because we knew it would be a long, hot day. The weather was perfect. It was hot but there was a decent breeze and enough space to actually feel it. I introduced Toita to crawfish bread and straberry lemonade and spontaneous second lines and beaded indians. We battled lines and lounged in the sun and listened to some excellent music. All in all it was an excellent day.

Today La Luz, Christian, and I went to the French Quarter with Toita and mom-mom. The quarter was crowded, which was nice to see. We even had to wait in a line at Cafe Du Monde - it was worth it. La Luz loved the beignets and powdered sugar. She also loved the fountain in the back of Cafe Du Monde - particularly because Christian let her play in it. I couldn't stop thinking about how filthy the water must have been.




Over the past few weeks I have felt the return of my obsessive-compulsive cleaning and organizing problem. I haven't experienced the urge to clean and organize since the day before La Luz's birth. I can tell that it is making Christian nervous but I can't stop myself. I guess maybe it is related to work, or maybe it has to do with the fact that my 18 month old, very curious, nephew is coming in town next weekend. Maybe it is that my house really does need some help - no telling. Regardless, things are starting to look pretty good around here. I got almost three baskets of clothes put away earlier this afternoon. Very impressive.