Memorial Day

On Memorial Day, we got together with some friends for brunch - and their kids!


Don't my friends have just ridiculously cute children?

As you can see, Maisie is one of the older kids in our friend group. The other toddlers are both about six months older than her. And then there are a couple of babies coming up, including Ravi, who you can see wearing a fabulous hat, and sitting up in this picture. Go Ravi with your fabulous sitting skills!

Baby Beatrix is lying on the grass, which she loves, at the bottom of this photo... but she'll be sitting up soon too!

Hanging out with family

My sister had an appointment yesterday, so Dylan came over and joined us for dinner and some fun. As you can see, he and Maisie had a good time playing "fort" together under the table!

They had a good time together all evening, until Maisie went to bed. Then Aaron, Dylan and I watched a good movie and ate some popcorn. It was lots of fun, and we always enjoy having Dylan over at our house. I am even starting to teach him to crochet. He's got a head start, so he'll probably be much better than me!

Today, my mom came over to see Maisie. After all, it's been a few days!

Maisie and my mom played a really funny game of Maisie's devising. Maisie patted the big floor pillow, showing that she wanted my mom to lie down there. Then she'd cover my mom with her blue blankie, which is a very special blankie, and pat her, putting her to "sleep." Finally, Maisie would rip it off, my mom would say "Good morning!", and Maisie would laugh and laugh. It was really, really funny.

They played that game over and over, until it was time for Maisie to actually go to bed.

Weekend update

Wow, it's been a long weekend, and I am exhausted!

Maisie's weekend actually started on Friday - daycare was closed, so she and Aaron stayed home.

It was a beautiful day, so they went to a park near our house and played for a long time. Maisie had lots of fun on the teeter-totter and the swings!
(I went to work and had a reasonably all right day. It was fine, but it was no tire swing in the sunshine. Maisie definitely has more fun than I do during her days.)

Yesterday we went to the zoo.

Maisie's Uncle Chris (who you can see in this picture, behind Aaron) was in town with his girlfriend Kim, visiting Kim's family. Hi Chris and Kim! We had fun at the zoo with you. Here, Maisie and Aaron are checking out the flamingos and some African ducks. Maisie is a big fan of birds, so this is a highlight of any zoo visit for us.

Today, we spent a LOT of time outside working in the yard. We planted a bush that my mom gave me for Mother's Day, popped a bunch of dandelions out of the lawn, mowed the grass, and cut down some scrub trees that are popping up a little too close to the house. It was a lot of work! We tried to grill, but our charcoal didn't light, so we ended up cooking brats and corn in the kitchen. It was good anyway.

Maisie ate grill food (even if it wasn't grilled) for the first time! She put away half a wild rice brat (from Chase Brook Farm, yummmmm) and as you can see here, dug into my mom's corn on the cob!

This is going to be a very fun summer!

Crafty interlude.

So as I mentioned before, I've been working on crocheting - I thought I'd share some of my creations.

I made a hat and some baby booties for baby Trixie recently!

The purple booties go with the hat; the orange booties are for someone else, actually. Both the hat and the booties were quick and easy to make - the booties more so just for their size. They are so wee!

As you can see here, they're actually a mary jane-style bootie, with a faux strap and a sewn-on button. I know buttons can be a choking hazard, and I usually don't put them on things for babies. Don't worry, I sewed the button on really tight! Plus, any babies with feet small enough for these booties won't be able to pull off the buttons.

But so it turns out, I really enjoy making toys - no pesky sizing or swatches needed, they work up quickly, and they're fun for both giver and recipient. Everybody wins!

My most recent creation is a crochet Cthulhu.

I made it using the pattern found at the Cthulhu Crochet blog. Cthulhu, if you didn't know, is a colossal ancient monster from H.P. Lovecraft's writings. I mean, though, it's obviously a horrible monster and not at all cute, right? I made him for my friend Kyle who's a huge Lovecraft fan, using yarn that Jo gave me last time we were in Iowa.

I also recently made Maisie a dinosaur.

I got this pattern from Jo last time we were visiting. She is clearly my crafty inspiration. Thanks Jo! It was fun to make, although the pattern is kind of weird and I think I have figured out how I will be modifying it next time I go to make a dinosaur. I think it looks very happy, although sometimes Maisie uses it to attack my feet while she says "RAHR!" Super cute.

I'll end with another monkey.

I think he looks like a Chicago Bears fan, don't you?

Happy mother's day!

This is my second mother's day with Maisie! We had a really nice day. But first I have to tell you about yesterday, because there's a great picture from yesterday that I want to share.

We went over to Bethany's (and baby Trixie's) house yesterday to visit and to look through some books and DVDs that Bethany was getting rid of. On the way back, we stopped by the co-op to pick up some groceries. While we were there we got a big chocolate chip cookie that the three of us shared.

You wouldn't think that someone could get covered in chocolate from a chocolate chip cookie, but Maisie managed! When Aaron took this picture, she had finished her portion and was asking for (verbally and signing) "more." It looks like you've actually had enough, Maisie!

Today was lovely, as I said. Maisie and I went to the zoo with my mom, and we had a really nice time.

Maisie especially enjoyed the birds and the fish at the zoo. Then when we got home, we spent some time outside, popping dandelions out of the yard and kicking a ball around and generally having fun.

All in all, I can't imagine a better mother's day!

Happy mother's day to all the mamas out there!

Bath time!

If you remember, Maisie's bath time used to be not so much fun when she was really little. It kind of stressed her out, and she cried a lot.

Fortunately, things have changed!

Maisie really enjoys bath time now, which is fortunate given her fondness of playing in the mud! She loves her little duckies, and is a champion splasher. The only thing she doesn't enjoy is getting water on her face when we rinse out her hair.

Well, she also doesn't care for getting out of the tub - there are usually some tears then, too.

18 months

Can you believe Maisie is 18 months old already? Our baby isn't a baby any longer! She can kick a ball, talk in three-word phrases, dress and undress herself... and even walk in her mommy's shoes.

The milestones are passing so quickly now! She is becoming a sweet, affectionate kid, although a very strong-willed one. She won't hesitate to let you know if she's unhappy!

This weekend we did lots of fun things, aside from walking around in my shoes and chasing the cat around.

Maisie discovered that she can actually see through one of the hats that Grandma Jo made her, and hijinks ensued. She pulled it down over her face and ran around, chasing me and Aaron and the cats and laughing like a loon. It was so funny!

On Sunday, we went to check out the May Day celebration at Powderhorn Park. Maisie napped right through the parade, but we took a look at the floats parked in the park.

Her favorite was the Hare Krishna float, because of the balloons. But right as I was going to take her picture, she got distracted by the butterfly person walking by in the background.

Today was also my and Aaron's 8-year date-a-versary. Or, as Aaron said, it's our eight-a-versary! We hired a babysitter and went out to dinner. It was a lovely evening.

So, I'll leave you with a good picture of Maisie, since the above are all somewhat covered up of her! This is Maisie reading one of her favorite books, "Brown Bear Brown Bear," to Spiderman. This was on Saturday, shortly after the chasing-in-hat incident.

Maybe she was trying to make it up to him.

Other people's kids

Maisie is going through a real independent phase lately. She wants to do everything herself - or as she says, "MY! MY DO IT!" This includes putting on her clothes, opening the fridge, opening doors... you get the picture. So yesterday evening I took a little break from the constant struggle for independence, and hung out with a little girl who was happy to let me do everything for her.

That's right, it's little miss Beatrix! We spent a few hours together yesterday so that her parents could get out together on a well-deserved date night. She is such a sweetie!

Also: big fat welcome to our new friend Howie, who was born on Tuesday!! We can't wait to meet you, little guy.