Go Fly A…

On the last day of his short visit, Real Uncle Jason took Olivia to the park and showed her how to fly a kite. They had beautiful weather, with just enough wind to raise the kite high up in the sky. Olivia loved watching it twist and turn all over the place.

I promise I'm actually having fun!

We Miss You Already, Real Uncle Jason!

Next time you visit, try to sleep a little less, okay?

Putting Baby in the Corner
Saturday night, the whole fam went to the wedding of one of my childhood best friends. I feel certain that the OG knows when to “turn it on” – even though she had been super crabby all day…as soon as Ah-ma held her and was showing her off to her friends, the OG was smiling and cooing and blowing kisses everywhere. At dinner, we were seated with cousin Sylvie and her whole family. It was the perfect set-up. Our table was right next to this huge, corner carpeted area (where the coffee and sweets table would eventually be set up) and the OG and Sylvie could run around in circles. I think the OG must have been getting drunk just sniffing Ah-Gohng’s double scotches because she kept running in a straight line, but then she’d veer off course and start running diagonally even though she was still facing forward. It was so funny to watch. Sylvie and the OG had a great time together. Congratulations to Jen and Mike! And, more recently, congratulations to Sylvie for becoming a big sister this month!

Watermelon Fest
Little Hands held their annual Watermelon Fest in late July… and wouldn’t you know it? Watermelon is one of the OG’s absolute favorite foods! In the summer, Ah-ma often gives her some watermelon after lunch or dinner. Over the past several months, we have been teaching Olivia to sit down when she eats. At Ah-ma’s house, that means she gets strapped into her booster chair and then her tray gets snapped into the front of the booster. We put her plate on top of the tray (duh). Most of the time, when Olivia is full, she wriggles and squirms and tries to get out of the booster chair. However, when she eats her watermelon…she not only sits there like a good little eater, but if you try to remove the tray from the booster seat, she grabs it with both of her hands and pulls back while trying to snap it back into position. That’s how she tells us that she wants M-O-R-E!!!

Next year...Taste of Lincoln!

Little Hands followed up a very successful Watermelon Fest, with an even more fabulous Corn Fest! The OG was much too busy eating TWO corn on the cobs to pause and smile for the camera. She washed the buttery corn down with a 1/2 bag of popcorn. I have never seen a baby girl love to eat so much corn! If she keeps this up, we may have to move back downstate just to keep up with her!

She's a Girly-Girl, Folks!

There are only two things that the OG loves more than watermelon and corn...

...first, she loves high heeled shoes. She literally woke up one day and became obsessed with my shoes. She tries to put them on her little feet and then clomp around the house listening to the clickety-clack that all kids seem to love. She has also taken to carrying a purse on her arm. She doesn't seem to love that quite as much as the heels, but clearly, we've got a girly-girl on our hands.

The second thing that the OG loves are mini ice-cream cones. Well, in all honesty, she probably would like them even more if they weren't "mini"...but, what she doesn't know won't hurt her! If we pull out her mini cones, she knows what is coming...she will go and sit in her seat and swing her little legs over the side, just waiting in anticipation. Quite frankly, this is the only 8 minute period throughout the day that we can count on a few minutes of rest. (Lately, it seems that we spend all of our other waking moments chasing her around the house!)

After a Hard Day At the Office

Not so Dandy-Mandy
On Sunday, we joined Huey and Dana, Bob and Heather and best of all, Keegan, at the Arlington Park Race Track. We had a fabulous time! We found a little grassy area in the shade as our home base. It was the perfect space for the OG and Keegan to chase bubbles and eat animal crackers. Just before the start of each race, we’d go up to the railing and watch while the horses raced around the track. The OG loved the horsies – she kept pointing and clapping as they came around the final turn.

Keegan shows the OG his cute, little nose.

Where are the horses?

A is for Anecdotes

Ah-ma is starting to teach the OG her alphabet. She is starting at the beginning, with the letter “A.” When Ah-ma says “A,” the OG will repeat it after her. And then when Ah-ma says “A is for Apple,” the OG will say “A” and then say “Bapple.”

Another funny story about the OG and her bapples. This morning, Olivia was playing in the kitchen while Ah-ma was preparing her breakfast. Olivia was being very quiet…so, Ah-ma looked around a little bit suspiciously. What did she find? She saw Olivia playing on the floor with a carton of apples that Ah-ma had just purchased at Costco. Upon closer inspection…Ah-ma saw that the OG had taken a bite out of each of the apples and then put them back in the container! Naughty…yet so funny!