We started the day with some fun present-unwrapping:

Then Dad went to work, and Mom and Pru had a fun day at home.  When Dad was done at the office, we went to Alexi’s Diner, a local place that Pru likes and where the staff likes Pru.  Dinner was nice, and when they found out that it was Pru’s birthday they gave her a little jello with a candle in it (and us a free slice of cake and coffee) and sang “Happy Birthday” (the copyrighted version, no less!) for her.  Then we came home and gave the baby a small slice of the ice cream cake we’d been planning on giving her, which lead to the usual first birthday mess.  Pictures will follow, probably tomorrow.

There was a street fair on Water Street from Broad Street (where we live, -ish) to the South Street Seaport.  It had more of a Latin flavor (and not the ille, illa, illud kind) than most NYC street fairs, presumably because the guys who are usually hawking funnel-cake and giant mounds of curly fries were home celebrating the Fourth.  Still, lack of giant mounds notwithstanding, we had a fairly good time.  We shared a pretty tasty tamale and an “authentic” Venezuelan arepa (we passed on the “authentic” Columbian arepa, which is out of whack with our geopolitical views but was in keeping with the order in which we passed by the stands).

Of course, we also sampled delicious treats from the more northerly reaches of the former empire of Phillip II (unless you credit silly rumors that they were invented at the Minnesota State Fair):

That last one’s a fried oreo – probably also introduced at the Texas State Fair.  (Phillip II for President!)

Last but not least, July 4 is the day on which we observe the birthday of our most dear friend, Calvin Coolidge, the Cat.  His being a former stray, we don’t know his actual diem natalem, but since Independence Day was the real Calvin Coolidge’s birthday (happy 136th, big guy!) it seemed like the right day to go with.  So yesterday we got him as a treat, some good tasting wet food (Fancy Feast) which he tore through in about a minute:

R

George H. W. Bush was named after his maternal grandfather, George Herbert Walker.

William Jefferson Clinton was named after his birth father, William Jefferson Blythe, Jr.

George W. Bush, though not a junior, was clearly named after his father, George H. W. Bush.

(Reagan is also the last president whose father doesn’t have his own Wikipedia page.  Coincidence?)

Interestingly, this trend will almost certainly continue through 2008, since both major-party candidates (Barack Hussein Obama, Jr. and John Sidney McCain III) and the leading minor-party candidate (Robert Laurence Barr, Jr.) are all named after their fathers.  If you’re interested in breaking the trend, note that neither Ralph Nader or Constitution Party candidate Chuck Baldwin are juniors.  (I wasn’t able to determine whether they’re named after their respective grandfathers.)

Since all you really come here for are cute baby pix, I have included a picture of Pru decked out in her Flag Day best after the break.

Selected to show the new haircut promised here.

Pru wants to thank the Texas and New York Easter Bunnies for her Easter basket. Unfortunately for her, the recommended age for chocolate introduction is after 12 months. It’s OK, though, because Mom and Dad have her back.

More pictures from this morning after the break and at the Flikr site.

You’ll see more of this hat/dress combo on April 20 since that’s what Pru is going to wear to the Papal Mass! You can rest assured there will be pictures.

Even Petey is getting in on the St. Patrick’s Day action:

Enjoying the smell of the “Cupid Burger”, the Valentine’s Day special at the neighborhood Burger-Burger.