Getting the sillies out at YGG Live

Despite the action that we caught on video and posted in the previous post, Yo Gabba Gabba Live was a razzle dazzle success. And trust me when I say that Maribelle's crying really only lasted for the 30 seconds that we caught on camera. Once she got over the initial shock of the noise, lights and "OMG, why isn't Muno, Toodee, Brobee, Plex and Foofa in the safety of my television like they normally are at home?!?!", she was A-OK.

 

The performance was about an hour and 15 minutes, so it was the perfect length for the demographic and also the perfect volume. And we had great seats. About 17 rows back, dead center. Before I go into a slew of photos, let me talk for a second about the people in attendance, because there was a huge range of ages there. Naturally, there were a kajillion toddlers, which was one of the best parts about the show. Seeing all of the kids dressed in various Yo Gabba Gabba gear and bee-bopping their little toddler butts off to the music was just plain ADORABLE. It really was Yo Gabba Gabba heaven for the show's biggest fans. Now, the surprising demographic in attendance? Babies. The number of actual baby-babies shocked me. There was a couple who sat behind us and brought what I guessed to be a five-month old, and hello, they didn't have any other kids. It was just them, and a snoozing five-month old. That blew me away, and they weren't the only ones with non-walking kids in tow.

And then? There were the adults. The adults who, ummmm, didn't have any kids. Yeahhhh ... there was a bit of that going on. And we stayed far, far away.

Which brings me to the following photo. This is Jeremy at our house, pre-departure for Yo Gabba Gabba. And he has a moustache ... that looks slightly child predatorish, no???

Maybe I was being uber sensitive, or maybe it was the moustache/Plex t-shirt combo that did him in (oh yeah, did I mention I made shirts for the three of us?). Whatever it was, he wasn't striking quite the right look I was going for. Basically, I was afraid he would be arrested, for just plain looking creepy. So I felt much better once it was gone. Much better.

The following photos tell the tale of our Yo Gabba Gabba experience. It was colorful, it was crazy and it was unforgettable. There were balloons, there was confetti. Perfect for Maribelle's first concert experience!

Yo!!!! Uh-oh ....

Well, this wasn't quite the reaction we were hoping for ...


Putting the Yo in Yo Gabba Gabba from Gina Moorhead on Vimeo.

She was a bit overwhelmed, to say the least.

But don't let this video fool you ... Maribelle had an amazing time, and the waterworks didn't last long. More photos and a full recap to come!

Music is AWESOME!!!

My first concert experience was pretty memorable. I was 8 or 9 years old and went to a Rod Stewart concert with my parents and two of their friends. I remember not knowing what to expect and being really nervous, even more so once I overheard my mom ask my dad if he thought there was a chance that women in the audience would bare their "ta-tas" to good old Rod. Apparently that was the thing to do during Rod's prime, and my mom did not think I was ready for that.
The whole idea of going to a concert just seemed so adult. I remember thinking that even the parking lot was intimidating, with all its rowdy tailgaters and adults everywhere I turned. (Now that I think about it, I'm pretty sure I was the only kid in attendance at that concert.) Our seats were in the pavilion, and while we sat there, my parents told me about Rod's ritual of kicking soccer balls into the crowd during his first song. Although our seats were decent, being the naive kid that I was, I firmly believed in my little mind that one of those soccer balls could possibly reach us way, way, waaayyy back in our seats. And just the thought of that made my anxiety soar. Of course I was excited, but still, the anticipation was just becoming too much for me to handle

So after what seemed like forever, the overhead lights in the venue finally went dark. The crowd became insanely loud with cheering and cat-calls, and then ...... then ..... the first gut-wrenching guitar riffs of "Hot Legs" rang out loud and clear. The noise was so powerful and loud that my little 8 or 9-year-old stomach immediately dropped under the weight of all the anticipation and excitement that had been building inside of me.

And .... it all of a sudden hit me. I had to go pee.

A really, really intense "I have to go right NOWWW!" pee.

My poor dad. He had to whisk me away during his all-time favorite song, only to hear the legendary lyrics echo through the cement walls of a bathroom stall. I was such a rookie. 

And I'm telling you all this because for Maribelle, the moment has arrived, at the tender age of 19 months. You guys?? Maribelle is getting her first concert experience this weekend at Yo Gabba Gabba Live! I know, she's going to completely freak her freak on. We ordered the tickets months ago and have been patiently waiting for this day ever since. Sure she won't remember a thing, and of course, it's mostly for me and Jeremy to relish in the pure delight that will no doubt wash over her little toddler face once she sees all her favorite friends on stage. But we promise to take lots of pictures so we can recall every glorious moment to her when she starts asking us questions about her first concert, just like I did to my dad earlier today as I was writing this blog post.

And if she's anything like her mom, seeing a dancing Brobee only a few feet away from her will surely lead to sensory overload for her baby bladder. 

But it's totally cool. Huggies has it all covered.

Showering the girls

Hey y'all ... we're gonna be an aunt and uncle! Of a Texas Baby Moorhead, that is, and we couldn't be more excited. We celebrated the mama-to-be and baby girl this past weekend at Grandpa and Grandma M's house. Baby Gracelynn Elizabeth is due in early December, and we just can't wait to welcome another girl to the family. Congrats Josh and Misty!

And how adorable is Gianna, the newest addition to the Moorhead family?!? One look at her would give anyone baby fever. So squishy and yummy and sweet!

And in hair news, Maribelle wore piggytails for the first time. Our very own Cindy Lou Who! It's a major hair milestone in this neck of the woods. Too bad I'm basically hair handicapped and can't pull together pigtails if my life depended on it. It was Grandma A's expert hand in girl hairstyles that pulled this look together. With four girls, she's had plenty of practice.

Vacay Nugget #4: Virginia Legends

We introduced Maribelle to two legends while we were on vacation. Two "Virginia Legends," to be exact -- none other than Miss Ella Fitzgerald and Miss Patsy Cline. How is that possible, you ask?! (Because unlike one of my sisters, who is old enough to know better, you realize that both women in fact died years ago and do not perform on the streets of Virginia Beach in their spare time.) Lucky for us, two impersonators performed nightly across the street from our condo, and we took Maribelle to enjoy their musical throwbacks during a few of the performances. We captured a mini dance performance on behalf of the Little Miss, who was enjoying the scat singing of Ella Fitzgerald.


Untitled from Gina Moorhead on Vimeo.

Yes, these vacay nuggets have been taking way longer to report than the vacation itself. I think there is only one more to post, so hang in there and we'll return to blogging about things that didn't happen three weeks ago!

Vacay Nugget #3: I want to ride my bicycle

We experienced quite the range of weather while we were on vacation. We arrived to Virginia Beach in the midst of a 100+ degree heat wave with temps reaching 105 and 109, and ended the week with a windy, breezy day that had us wearing sweatshirts by night fall. We also experienced one of the scariest tornado warnings I've ever been through, complete with a mad dash from our 10th floor condo to the 1st-floor stairwell, where we were joined by numerous other families who had small children in their party. Luckily a tornado never touched down, but it was bad enough that my stomach was nauseous with anxiety the rest of the night (bad enough to forgo ice cream for the night? Pssshhh! As if!).

On a particularly cloudy afternoon, a group of us took what ended up being a 20-mile bike ride to explore First Landing State Park. (I say that as if 20-mile bike rides are the norm around here, but for real, it's the most exercise I've had in months). The path itself was uneventful until we reached a swamp area that I believe is the nesting ground for Baby Swamp Things. I swear. We heard them croaking under the thick, murky waters.

Vacay Nugget #2: Water, water everywhere

Last summer Maribelle spent all of 15 minutes at the beach during our vacation, but seemed to love the clear blue chlorinated waters of the pool, thanks to her nifty inflatable flotation device.

This year? Not so much. In fact, I'm not sure she's quite made up her mind about whether she prefers the pool or the ocean best. We spent most of our time shuffling back and forth between the two until she would say "Done!" about five minutes after we got to our destination. She lasted maybe 20 minutes in the pool if I was holding her and literally doing water aerobics around and around in circles to keep her moving. This girl does NOT like to be restrained in the least and therefore hated that she was held captive in the water (control issues? possibly). However she fared a little better at the beach and enjoyed "drawing" in the sand (always demanding "Brobee?! Brobee?!") and letting the water rush over her feet and ankles. She was definitely not a fan of sandy feet and would exclaim "Dirty!" whenever she felt the sand on her toes. Which is too bad, because I'm pretty sure that sandy baby toes are my absolute favorite part of going to the beach.

Vacay Nugget #1: Hail to the (Dairy) Queen

I had all these grande visions of posting daily blog entries while we were on our little week's vacay to Virginia Beach. But when it came down to it, the last thing I wanted to do was crack open my laptop and stare at a computer screen. So instead, I present to you our vacation, in bite-size nuggets.

This summer my parents once again treated us to a getaway in Virginia Beach (thank you, thank you, thank you!), except this time we were able to stay the full week and get our fill of all that the area has to offer. We've stayed at the same condo complex for the past three years, and the feature that is my personal favorite is the fact that it's only two blocks away from a Dairy Queen. For weeks leading up to our trip, I had drool-worthy dreams of Blizzards, Mr. Misty Floats (now called something else, but still equally as delicious) and Peanut Buster Parfaits. Where we live in Maryland, DQs are hard to come by, so I have about seven years of lost time to make up for, which means I ate ice cream every single night while we were in Virginia Beach. And you know who reaped the rewards? Little Miss Belle herself. Ice cream quickly became the theme of the week, and with Daddy Warbucks Amero supporting the cause, Maribelle got her fill, and then some.