Golden Valley Fire Dept Open House

Emma Claire rode in her red wagon over to the Fire Dept open house in the neighborhood tonight. Cute event. The firetrucks were out and firefighters in uniform.
The kids got red fire dept t-shirts and hats. There was a huge blow up slide and the fire hoses were out. We went on a ride in the firetruck around the neighborhood and enjoyed visiting with the neighbors. Lot of cute neighbor children. Emma Claire should have no shortage of playmates growing up!

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Transition Near Complete

Emma Claire is has been gradually transitioning from the infant room at Calvary to the toddler room. Can't believe it. The transition will be complete at the end of this week and she will officially graduate from the "Cuddly Bunnies" to the "Playful Little Pirates" as of next week. This means lots of artwork (she has come home covered in paint the past few days), walking in lines, going outside twice a day, sitting at the table to eat, sleeping on a cot...to name a few. I was convinced that there was no way she would ever nap on a cot. I can hardly get her to nap in a crib. But today was a red letter day. She did it first try. The teachers said she simply laid on the cot and fell asleep...woke up 2 hours later. Sounds easy enough. Why have I had so much trouble?

Has it Really Been a Month...

...Since I last posted? It was Mother's Day then...coming up on Father's Day now.
I am going to make an attempt to backtrack over the last month and catch up on some blogging over the next couple of days. Lots of pictures to add. Having a tough time keeping up with myself these days. As Emma Claire gets busier, so do I. Just hanging on by the seat of my pants most days. Can't complain, though. Life is good!

Rowie

We were thrilled to have Rowie with us for a week. What a fun time we had. We did a little bit of everything - walks, wagon rides, park,Little Gym, Dr. Hobbs, Wild Rumpus (to see Pimento the chicken and the cats, etc), Creative Kidstuff/Pottery Barn Kids (got a cute little white Adirondack chair with green polka dot umbrella), Sunsets with Chris and Diane, farmers market, tin fish, gardening... It was great to have her here.

Emma Claire became pretty attached to her "Ro-ro-ro-ro". Brad was on a golf trip and I worked this weekend, so they had quite a time together. She changed so even in a week. More words and is putting her world together a little more each day. Points to her diaper with a concerned face and says "ooow" when she is wet/dirty; spins in circles until she gets so dizzy that she falls down; eats ketchup straight; jumps (attempts to); loves dum-dums; points to photos in her word book when asked; picks out her outfit for the day (usually the one with tags...new outfits are always better, of course); looks for her shoes to complete the outfit (that's my girl!).

Rowie went with us to Emma Claire's 15 month visit to Dr. Hobbs. Stats: Head-18 1/2" (79%); Weight-20 lb 7 oz (14%); Height 29 3/4" (27%). Still kinda a peanut. Made it through another round of shots.

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More Words...

Addie (which she says quite frequently), beep-beep, trying to say airplane, cheese for the camera, o-pa!

Congrats Dom!

Finally...a beautiful May day! Mild and not a cloud in the blue sky. Emma Claire and I started out the day at the Farmer's Market, played in the yard (Emma Claire giggles and squeals when we throw sticks to the dogs...she thought it was funny to walk around with a stick in her mouth like Sophie)
Also went for a nice walk with Suzanne and Addie, and finished the day at the Knauffs' for Dom's graduation party. Congrats to Dom for finishing his MBA!

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Golden Valley Days

Emma Claire attended her first parade. Golden Valley Days. It was COLD, COLD, COLD...and MAY. We braved the weather to watch the little parade. I am still learning the whole "prepared parent" thing. Have not quite got it together yet. Emma Claire and I loaded up the stroller and a coat and headed out the door. The friends we met there were all stocked with folding chairs, blankets, hot chocolate in a mug, bags for candy... Do I ever have a lot to learn!

Anyway, Emma Claire enjoyed the firetrucks, bands, etc. Found a new love for dum-dums, which is the perfect distraction at Target...went right out and bought a Costco size bag of 'em.

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