Eleanor, Gee I Think You're Swell...

My first Major League Eating contest!

2009-09-17T09:05:00.013-05:00

Last weekend Mom and Dad took me to my first Major League Eating event - the La Costena "Feel the Heat" jalapeno eating contest. I got to meet all of the starts of competitive eating including the great Patrick Bertoletti - the #2 ranked competitive eater in the world and one of the most exciting athletes in all of sports. I got so nervous for our photo, that I started to cry...

Later, I settled down. Here I am going over some last minute strategy with Patrick...

I also got the meet the legendary Sonya "The Black Widow" Thomas. She is the greatest female eater of all time and currently ranked #6 in the world.Here's Dad and I with George Shea, the founder of the International Federation of Competitive Eating. He was busy setting up, but stopped to spend a moment with one of the MLE's youngest fans. He even went and grabbed his trademark hat for our photo!
Our new family portrait! The LeMaistre family posing in front of the stage right before the action started...
What?!?! Here I am reacting to the news that there was a tie in regulation and we would be witnessing a 1 minute overtime eat-off!

At the end of it all, Sonya Thomas upset our hometown hero Patrick Bertoletti. Still, it was an exciting afternoon and one I won't soon forget.

My first haircut!

2009-07-28T16:17:00.009-05:00

I had my very first haircut on Sunday...not scary at all!

I sat very still and I didn't cry once.
I got to drive this fancy red car while Miss Anastasia cut my hair.

Carlos got to drive a car too. His was a police car, so we called him Officer Carlos!

I was so good, that I got to have my very first lollipop too! Delicious.

Carlos the Bunny meets Bun E. Carlos

2009-06-20T21:32:00.003-05:00

As many of you may know, I have a stuffed bunny that I sleep with. His name is Carlos. My Dad named him after Bun E. Carlos, the legendary drummer in Cheap Trick. Today we went to the Taste of Randolph Street Festival and I got to meet Bun E. Carlos! Here we all are...from right to left...Me, Carlos the Bunny, Dad and Bun E. Carlos.

I also got to see The Posies perform their album "Frosting on the Beater" in it's entirety and a little bit of Urge Overkill. It was quite the power-pop day for me!

First Santa Claus, Then The Easter Bunny, Now Chris Mills

2009-06-18T23:06:00.005-05:00

I went to Schubas last week with Mom, Dad and Uncle Jay to see Chris Mills. Chris is one of our very favorite songwriters. His songs "I Wish I Was A Bomb" and "Chris Mills Is Living The Dream" are two of my favorite lullabies that Dad sings for me. The show was too late for me, but Chris was nice enough to invite me to soundcheck. Here, Chris plays guitar while I do some dancing...

We had a great time, until it was time for me to get my picture taken with Chris...

It was Santa Claus and The Easter Bunny all over again. Chris was a really great sport about it and really, he's in some pretty great company now.

Where did it all go wrong? Later, when the cameras were put away, I did some more dancing and even got to play Chris' guitar with him.

Happy Easter!

2009-04-12T09:43:00.004-05:00

Happy Easter everybody! I went to visit the Easter Bunny yesterday. I liked him a little better than Santa, but I still didn't want to get too close. Mommy agreed to sit with us for the picture and I was okay with that.We had our own "photo shoot" at home and Mom and Dad tried to dress ME as the Easter Bunny! This photo was taken a second before I ripped off those silly ears for the hundredth time.

Buy Me Some Peanuts and Cracker Jacks...

2009-04-06T23:18:00.003-05:00

Last night we had a snow storm, and today it's baseball season. Luckily, the Cubs were on the road in Houston. Dad and I suited up in our Cubbie blue to take in the game. Cubs win! Cubs 4, Astros 2 - I know it's only one game, but I think this could be our year!

A Taste Of Chaos

2009-03-15T21:14:00.006-05:00

Our friend Jen was in town last week. She's the tour accountant for something called "A Taste Of Chaos", though it didn't really seem that chaotic to me. Here I am taking a call on the radio. "Go for Eleanor."

Mostly, we hung out on the tour bus (much quieter there). Here, Jen is showing me her bunk.

Here I am hanging with Mom and discovering that there are mirrors on the ceiling.

And here, Dad gives me a closer look.

Happy Birthday To Me!

2009-02-22T21:42:00.006-06:00

I celebrated my very 1st birthday on February 7th. Can you believe it? 1 year old already. We had a party at our house and all my grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins came over. There were signs and balloons and even my high chair was decorated.
I got my own birthday cake - just for me! I like chocolate.
Here I am with all my cousins - Nicholas, Lauren and Zachary. Check out my pretty dress. It says "Birthday Princess".
I got presents too - lots of pretty clothes, a purse, some books and a Fancy Nancy doll!

Happy Birthday to me!

Encased Meats

2009-01-31T10:42:00.003-06:00

I recently made my first visit to Hot Doug's, "The Sausage Superstore", a Chicago institution and one of my Dad's favorite places. Aunt Angie took this shot of Dad and I standing out front. (Yes, that is a line out the door. Yes, there is always a line out the door.)

Once inside, I got to meet Hot Doug himself and Dad showed me the sign on the wall that declares "There are no two finer words in the English language than 'encased meats', my friend." (I think Dad has a t-shirt that says the same thing.)

This is no typical hot dog joint as evidenced by the long lines, the NY Times culinary section feature and a number of Food Network and Travel Channel tv appearances. Here, my big cousin Nicholas is breaking up some pieces of Doug's special "duck fat fries" for me to enjoy.

Did you notice that Nicholas, Lauren and I were all wearing our new Run-DMC t-shirts? We did that to celebrate the announcement that Run-DMC will be inducted in to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame on April 4th. Dad is threatening a road trip to Cleveland...

Baby's First Christmas

2009-01-15T17:21:00.007-06:00

Happy New Year everyone! Sorry it's been so long since my last blog. 2009 has been a very busy year, so far. Last month I celebrated my first Christmas. It was great. Here I am "decorating" the tree. Isn't my dress pretty?

The one thing I didn't love about Christmas is this Santa Claus character.
Very scary.

I got to spend a bunch of time with my family and I got lots of great presents too! Baby dolls, a tricycle, a Notre Dame cheerleaders uniform and lots more. The wrapping paper and empty boxes were really fun too!

Baby's First Thanksgiving

2008-12-12T15:28:00.007-06:00

I recently celebrated my first Thanksgiving. What a great holiday - family, eating, football, napping. I loved it! We started the day at Oma and Oda's house for breakfast. Here we are - all dressed in purple...

Next it was off to Mem and Pep's. I got a new bow for my hair from Mem...
I ate mashed potatoes and carrots & turnips. Delicious.

Later, we bundled up and headed out for the Thanksgiving parade. Here I am with Mem waiting for the parade to start.

I saw firetrucks, Benny The Bull and Gina Glocksen from American Idol. I fell asleep before Santa came by.

HOPE

2008-11-10T16:33:00.007-06:00

What a great week for America and what a great week for Chicago!

This week we elected a new president and he lives in the same city as me! Mom and Dad got up early last Tuesday to go vote and I got to go with them. I wore my Obama Baby t-shirt! Here we are on our way to the polls.
Later, we gathered with friends to anxiously await the results. Here I am with Mom and our friend Jen in their matching Blue State t-shirts!
Just a few hours later, the results were revealed...a landslide win for Obama! The champagne flowed as we watched our beautiful city become the center of the world.

ROCKtober

2008-11-05T17:44:00.010-06:00

Wow - I can't believe October has come and gone. What a blur. It was an awful month for us Cubs fans, but other than that it was pretty great. It started off with the celebration of my Aunt Beth's wedding on October 4th. Here I am with Dad getting the last minute details of my flower girl duties...

And here we are outside the church. Isn't my mommy beautiful?
We had some more excitement on October 15th when my new cousin arrived - Zachary David LeMaistre - and he's already a Bears fan!
I celebrated by first Halloween. Here I am at my Aunt Angie and Uncle David's house in a pumpkin costume...

But my real costume was a peacock!

I went trick or treating at the zoo and to a bunch of parties. Here I am with Mommy at my music class Halloween party.

On November 1st Dad and I celebrated Dios De Los Muertos. That means Day of the Dead - which is not as scary as it sounds. Here, Dad and I are modeling our matching Day of the Dead t-shirts.

The Pacific Northwest part 2

2008-10-06T16:06:00.006-05:00

From Seattle, we headed east to Walla Walla, Washington - which is really fun to say! Aunt Pam and her husband Greg have a winery there called Gramercy Cellars.

We were there for the beginning of the fall harvest and Mom and I both got in on the wine making action with some good, old fashioned grape stomping. Here I am going in...
And here I am coming out!

We went out to some really nice restaurants on our trip and, even though I didn't get to eat any of the food, I was always very well behaved. Here is Aunt Pam teaching me about espresso. Everyone drinks espresso in Washington.

The Pacific Northwest part 1

2008-09-25T17:34:00.012-05:00

We went on vacation last week. My first trip to the west coast! We started in Seattle - home of indie rock heroes Death Cab For Cutie, TV's Frasier Crane & that weird space needle thing. I heard it rains all the time there, but we had nothing but sunny days. Here we are at the beach...

We visited the world famous Pike's market. Mom and I got to pick out some beautiful flowers. We also bought lots of fresh produce for a dinner party we had at Aunt Pam's later that night.
Dad and I watched the famous fish mongers throw fish around. Here's Dad pretending to throw ME onto the ice! He's always making jokes.

We spent an afternoon at the Woodland Park Zoo in Seattle. It was really nice. Here's Dad and I checking out the elephants...

I also had my first carousel ride at the zoo. Not scary at all!

We visited with lots of people while we were there. My Pep happened to be in town for business and he came to that dinner party. So did my dad's high school friend Doug, who I had never met. Coincidentally, Aunt Barbara and Uncle John happened to be in town, too. They were visiting John's daughters, who live in Seattle, so we got to spend some time with them.It wasn't all running around though. Here I am just relaxing...

From Seattle, we headed to Walla Walla, Washington. Stay tuned for the Pacific Northwest part 2 - which will include photos of me stomping grapes at a winery!

Wake Up The Echoes!

2008-09-11T12:14:00.008-05:00

My first football season is upon us. I've been hearing about this Notre Dame my entire life and I'm starting to see what all the fuss is about. Tradition, honor, yelling at the television...Here's the whole family ready for week 1 in their Fighting Irish gear - my outfit even has leprechaun booties!

"We only watch one team in this house. Isn't that right, Eleanor?" (that's a line from the movie Rudy that Dad likes to recite on game day - of course, replacing my name with Rudy's) Here we are taking in a tense moment for the Irish. They went on to a decisive 21-13 victory over "powerhouse" San Diego State University.
I turned 7 months old this week. I think I'm going to start eating these signs...

On The Move...

2008-08-22T15:11:00.007-05:00

Hey Everybody - I'm 6 months old now. Yup, another photo of me "holding" a sign.

I can crawl now! That's right, I am on the move...
I love riding around on Dad's shoulders -and pulling his hair!
I eat food now, too. Here I am enjoying some peas on a recent visit to Delavan.

Also, I've started climbing. I almost made it out of my crib! Dad has since adjusted the height to make it more challenging for me...

The Friendly Confines

2008-07-30T16:53:00.005-05:00

Last week we celebrated Mem & Pep's birthdays by taking a tour of Wrigley Field. What a place! We got to go in the clubhouses, the press box, ON THE FIELD!

"This is the most beautiful site these eyes have ever seen." Next year is now! The Cubs are in first place and the LeMaistres are on the field at Wrigley.

Happy Birthday Mem & Pep!

Pitchfork Day 2

2008-07-21T17:48:00.005-05:00

We went back to Pitchfork for a bit on Saturday afternoon. We saw a great band called Fleet Foxes. I wore a pretty yellow dress, so there wouldn't be any confusion about my gender. I figured out why Roger Miller from Mission of Burma wanted to take my picture (aside from how cute I looked). He sometimes wears headphones like mine when they play!

Public Enemy!

2008-07-19T13:28:00.005-05:00

Last night Mom and Dad took me to the first night of the annual Pitchfork Music Festival. Everyone thought I looked very cute in my AC/DC t-shirt and headphones - though many people asked "How old is he?" HE?!?! Girls can like AC/DC too! Whatever. Today I'm wearing a dress. Lots of people asked if they could take my picture, including Roger Miller from the legendary band Mission of Burma, who played earlier at the festival.

The headliner last night was Public Enemy, who performed their groundbreaking 1988 album "It Takes A Nation Of Millions To Hold Us Back". Dad declared them to be amongst the top 3 most influential groups in the history of hip-hop - or something like that. Here's Dad raising a fist at they launch in to "Bring The Noise"...as if he were 12 years old again!

After some rocking, Mom and I disappeared backstage for some quiet time. Here I am catching a nap under the stars while Mom enjoyed a Popsicle and another parade of admirers.

Today is Pitchfork Day 2 and Dad has promised to teach me about Fleet Foxes.

USA #1!

2008-07-10T14:56:00.009-05:00

I celebrated my first 4th of July last week in Naperville. What a day! It started by watching the world famous Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest. It was very exciting, but based on the yelling, things did not go the way Dad had hoped. After that we had a big bbq outside. Uncle Jay tried to have his own hot dog eating contest (not good) and Mem dressed me up like Lady Liberty...

After the bbq, we went to the Naperville Ribfest to see one of my favorite bands, The Turtles. Unfortunately, I fell asleep before they played my blog's namesake "Eleanor, Gee I Think You're Swell". That didn't stop Dad from bringing me up front for this picture though...
I woke up later to take in my first ever fireworks show.
It was beautiful - and thanks to my fancy headset - not too loud!

On the 5th, we headed to Delavan, Wisconsin to see Oma and Oda. I wore a bikini and even went swimming in the pool with Oma.

I turned 5 months old the other day and I have found my feet. Sometimes I even put my foot in my mouth - literally.

Wicked Awesome Trip!

2008-07-03T12:07:00.009-05:00

Last week we went on this wicked awesome trip to Attleboro, MA - where my mem and pep are from! I met lots of family, had my first ride on an airplane, my first trip to the beach, heard a bunch of people talk funny...SO much fun! Our first night there, we had a big lobster dinner in Grandpa Al's garage. Thanks to Diane and Steve for bringing the lobsters in from Maine. I wasn't scared of them at all!

Here I am enjoying a quiet moment with my Dad's Memere - my great grandmother.
On Friday we went to Cape Cod to visit Dad's God Parents Janice and Paul. Here I am with Dad, Janice and my new bear - a gift from Janice.

My first trip to the beach!

We spent the day on Saturday at Dad's Uncle Bobby's house. We had a great bbq and I played with my second cousins Hannah and Haley. Here I am having a big laugh with Hannah.

Sunday was the big LeMaistre family reunion. Check out my special sign! This is me posing with Dad's Aunt Diane.

We had another really nice day. Cousin Xoe and I played a lot and she helped my Mom take care of me.

Here I am with Auntie Michelle. Isn't she cute carrying my next cousin?!?! Also, another shot of my sign - in case you missed it!

I'm A Big Cousin!

2008-06-12T16:23:00.005-05:00

I got a new baby cousin last week! Her name is Lauren. Look at how little she is. What a difference 4 months makes!

Here's my big cousin Nicholas trying to crash our girl time...

Here's a shot of me on my 4 month birthday...

Child of the Lord

2008-06-06T12:32:00.010-05:00

It's been a while since my last post, but I am happy to report that I am now a "Child of the Lord". I was baptized on May 18th at Our Lady of the Wayside in Arlington Heights. I slept through most of it, including when they poured the water on my head. I got to wear this gorgeous Christening gown that my Dad and Uncle Jay both wore. It was made from the train of my Mem's wedding dress. Check it out...

I also had a lovely Christening blanket that was hand made by my great aunt Diane. Here's a shot of that, along with Uncle Jay and Auntie Michelle...
This is my great great aunt Barbara. She's my mom's Godmother and also my namesake.

Here I am with all my aunts and uncles.

Dad made me pose with him by this stone outside of the church. It said JMJ, which he told me stood for Jam Master Jay. What a weirdo he is...

40 years!

2008-04-29T16:43:00.003-05:00

Last week we celebrated my Mem and Pep's 40th wedding anniversary! We went out for a wonderful dinner at Sullivan's in downtown Naperville. I even had a bottle at the table! I was very well behaved, but when I did fuss a little my Daddy just took me to the bar to watch baseball. On the way out, they took our picture...

Slacker

2008-04-21T14:22:00.003-05:00

Sorry again for being such a slacker when it comes to posting. Now that the weather has gotten nice, I've been very busy. I had a two month "birthday" a couple weeks ago. Mom took my picture with a sign, which you can see I was very excited about...

Over the last month I've been visiting my grandparents a lot. I've started going out to eat at restaurants and have become a regular at our local Starbucks. Mom and I took a class on baby massage (lucky me!) and we've started attending a new mommies group at the hospital. Yesterday we went to an Earth Day concert at the Lincoln Park Zoo and I met Chicago Bear's quarterback Kyle Orton.

Let's Get Ready To Rhumba!

2008-03-24T14:31:00.003-05:00

I celebrated my first Easter yesterday. I got all dressed up for the occasion. Here I am getting ready - in just my "rhumba tights". Aren't they funny?Here I am in my whole outfit (except my hat, which I did not love wearing). It was my first time wearing a dress. Pretty cute, huh?
I was very well behaved all day, except for the two minutes I was wearing my hat. Here I am with my two grandmothers. What a lucky little girl!

Rub-A-Dub-Dub

2008-03-20T12:23:00.004-05:00

I've graduated to taking my baths in the actual bathtub. It beats the hell out of the kitchen counter, that's for sure. Dad and I posed for a photo on the way in to the bathroom...

Don't I look comfortable and relaxed? No screaming, like when I was on the counter!

It was SO relaxing, that Dad and I went right to sleep after!

Top O' The Mornin' To Ya!

2008-03-19T10:51:00.005-05:00

Hi Everybody! Sorry I haven't written in a while. I was out of town last week. My Daddy went to Austin, Texas for a music conference, so Mommy and I stayed in Arlington Heights with Oma and Oda. It was great. I got to go on a couple of walks and Mommy had lots of help. Look at how big I'm getting...

On Monday, I celebrated my first St. Patrick's Day. Here I am with our friend Katherine O'Hyla. Check out my leprechaun booties! They're part of a Notre Dame outfit that doesn't quite fit me yet, but Dad says I will be ready for it by football season!

America's Next Top Model

2008-03-06T20:36:00.005-06:00

A couple of weeks ago I had my first professional photo shoot. It was really fun. Kerry Bolger, the photographer who shot my Mom and Dad's wedding, took the photos. Here's one of my favorites.

You can check out the entire shoot here...
http://www.collages.net/store/guest_login.asp?username=LeMaistre&password=5137

Lazy Sunday...

2008-03-04T11:48:00.008-06:00

I made my first trip to the western suburbs on Sunday. First stop - Mem & Pep's house in Naperville, where there was this great sign to welcome me.

I got to see my Uncle Jay and Auntie Michelle. Here I am with Mem & Pep.Then it was off to Plainfield to celebrate my Uncle David's birthday. My cousin Nicholas really loves me! He gives me lots of hugs and kisses my head. What a sweet boy he is!

My Aunt Angie made everyone a delicious dinner. Oma and Oda were there too.
What a fun day I had! It's just nice to get out of the city sometimes, you know? I really like riding in the car with Mom and Dad. I don't always love getting put in to my car seat, but once I'm in there and we start moving - lights out!

Baby's First Bar!

2008-02-29T11:51:00.004-06:00

Mom and Dad took me out to my first bar the other night - "The Store". They had a toast in my honor and I got to meet lots more new friends. Special thanks to Uncle Kev for getting me in and for the champagne and cigars! (note to Grandmothers: no cigars were smoked in my presence) The LeMaistre Family takes over the jukebox! Lots of Beatles, Beastie Boys and some band called Umphrey's McGee. (someone even told me that Mom & Dad fell in love in front of that jukebox on the night they met - I'll have to ask them about that sometime)

I'm Ready For My Close Up!

2008-02-28T22:10:00.000-06:00

Check this out: Mom and I made this video when I was just 5 days old!

Visitors

2008-02-28T12:01:00.000-06:00

I've had lots of visitors since I've been home - Grandparents, Aunts & Uncles and lots of new friends. Here I am hanging out with my cousin Nicholas.

Home Sweet Home!

2008-02-28T00:15:00.000-06:00

Mom and Dad brought me home on Feb. 9th. Check out my room - I even have my own chandelier! I think I'm going to like it here...

There was a cake with my picture on it to welcome me! They tell me it was delicious.

I'm here!

2008-02-27T15:49:00.002-06:00

Hi Everybody! Eleanor Barbara LeMaistre here. I was born on Feb. 7th at 6 pm. Here I am with my mom and Dr. Bicalho, who delivered me.

I weighed 6 lb. 12.5 oz. and was 20 3/4 inches long when I was born.

I'm very lucky to have two wonderful (and very excited!) grandmothers.