Happy Baby Climbs Stairs

"What a happy girl!" I hear this over and over from Ruby's adoring public. Whether she's riding high in the grocery cart seat, snuggled up to mama in her carrier, or sitting low in the stroller, she's equally charmed by and charming to the friends and strangers who approach. She smiles, observes, and just seems to really enjoy life. 

What she is really finding joy in lately is sneaking off to climb the stairs. Then she really gets going when someone catches on and follows her.

 

Miles is serious by comparison, though he does find joy in many things. George has been working on a project in the 3rd floor bathroom, and declared it a "Miles-free zone" until the floor is replaced. Last night he asked Miles if he wanted to help with the project, and got a very enthusiastic response. "That's a wonderful plan," Miles said, since he assumed that the zone was no longer Miles-free. Well, it wasn't exactly what he hoped for, but he did get to help Daddy and was very happy about that. 

His language skills continue to impress us and others. We were playing with the futon pillows the other day and he kept calling them "pillas." When I asked him about it he said that he learned that word from his Oma. I guess he liked it!

He's also great at expressing his creativity. Yesterday he knocked the baby monitor off the counter but didn't realize it. When I asked him how it got on the floor he said that "Ruby must have woke up and was crying so hard that the monitor shook and fell."  I don't think he was making up a story to remove himself from blame (he hasn't done this yet that I know of) but when he starts we'll be in for a treat!

Road Trip Highlights

It's been a while since I had a chance to blog--we've been out enjoying the summer! On June 1 we had a picnic lunch at Ohiopyle. Miles chased butterflies. Later we hiked by the Cucumber Falls. Very cool and lovely. 

From there we went to Nemacolin and had a picnic supper. Two picnics in one day!

We really 

enjoyed the pools at Nemacolin. The indoor kid's pool is 3 feet deep the entire length. Miles loved that! I spent most of Monday at the outdoor pool, with it's comfortable deck chairs and wait service. The kids spent the day at the daycare, which for Miles included ice cream at the ice cream parlor and shuttle riding to the gym. Ruby bonded with her daycare provider and even fell asleep while she was holding her. I had a nice day with some exercise, some reading, and breakfast and lunch with George (and colleagues).

The kids and I spent Tuesday morning at the pool and we all went miniature golfing (and shuttle-riding) after lunch. After bidding farewell to resort living, we had a family dinner in York and went to the cabin for the rest of the week.  Ruby learned to climb into the suitcase! She also got a new tooth, which was preceded by a fever, restlessness, and crankiness. She's doing better now, enjoying her air-conditioned room back at home.

too-too-Tooth!

Ruby has a tooth poking through her bottom gum! This is her first and we've been waiting for it. She doesn't seem too bothered by it. Is the pain supposed to be worst before they come through, or after? 

We were on our own today--no school, no sitter, and George was away all day. He'll be back tonight. I'm pretty tired. Enjoying the after-bedtime quiet. Man, that child can talk! So many questions. I wish I had the answers.

Miles--the Cuddler!

I saw a different side of my boy today. We had some one-on-one play time while Ruby was sleeping this afternoon. We started with play-doh, which he enjoyed for a long time, and without much interaction from me. The fact that the play-doh implements ended up being vacuum vehicles was pretty typical of his play, but the fact that he did so much by himself for so long was a change. Then we switched gears to animal rescuing, with his Diego gear (thanks Aunt Kris!). He wore his vest, carried his binoculars, and sought out animals in danger. We used his favorite blanket as a parachute so they could fall safely from whatever dangerous spot they were trapped in. Then, and this was my favorite, I became the hurt animal and he came to my rescue. This involved running into my lap (I had to catch him so he wouldn't launch himself into the coffee table) and hugging me and cuddling. He'd curl up in my lap, nurse my boo-boo with his "soft band-aid" (that trusty blanket again) and offer some reassurance that I would feel better soon. Then he'd race off to his starting line and we'd repeat with a new ailment. He is now 3 years, 6 mos, and 2 days old, so I'm guessing all this nurturing is a sign of his new level of maturity!

He also used his blanket yesterday to help Ruby learn to climb the stairs. He "escaped the baby monster" and took refuge on the stairs. She was stuck at the bottom, but with his help (he threw one end of his blanket down for her to hold on to, and pulled on the other end) and my spotting her to make sure she didn't fall, she eventually joined him on the first landing. He then returned to escape mode and scampered up the next flight. It will be interesting to see if Ruby ever decides to climb the stairs when her brother is not coaxing her along!

Girls Weekend

Ruby and I are missing George and Miles this weekend but enjoying the quiet too. I'd forgotten how simple life can be just a baby around. Here are a few things I was able to do with my leisure time yesterday:

• Sleep during the day
  
• Talk on the phone
• Hear myself think
• Read labels at the grocery store (most of the juices don't say where the fruit comes from, but Costco's apple juice is "fresh-pressed" (not from concentrate) from U.S. apples. We really like their organic peanut butter too--from US peanuts and no sugar.
• Listen to the radio
• Shop online (first for Wicked tickets, then clothing for myself [How nice that the current fashions favor empire-waisted, billowy tops, even some with ties in the back. What's up with that? I'm done with maternity wear!])
• Blog!
  

I did a few constructive things too, and we went to some yard sales, which Miles would have really enjoyed.

Notice Ruby's funny crawl...and her "mem-ing" which sometimes sounds like "mama."

Animals! Acrobats! Face Painting too!

It must be the Pittsburgh International Children's Festival! We had a big fun day on Thursday, and Miles crept out of his comfort zone, into the petting zoo! We stopped by once when we first got to the festival, and he barely touched any of the adorable baby goats or sheep. But later, when his friend Emily was along, he wanted to join in the feeding frenzy! We bought an extremely overpriced cup of food and he walked around letting various animals have a taste. He even started putting the food on his hand for them eat from. Then he branched out to feeding hay to sleeping animals. I told him they probably weren't interested in eating, but he said he wanted them to have something to munch on when they woke up!

We also took in a show, in a theater! This is another anxiety-heightening experience for Miles and when we first were allowed to enter the theater, and everyone was filing in, he didn't want to go. I persuaded him, and we found our seats. He shared my lap with Ruby and we waited for the theater to fill up and the show to start. When the lights went down and he heard the announcement about where to find the restroom if anyone needed to leave during the performance, he suddenly had the urge to  go potty. We stayed....and waited for the acrobats. They finally came out, emerging from a webbed structure on the stage. First we saw only fingers, then hands, feet, faces, and finally whole people. It was a bit too much waiting for him, and he was a bit scared still, but he finally relaxed and really did enjoy the show. They did lots of "funny tricks" like supporting each other (2 people balancing on top of one person in various arrangements), pretending to fall and then catching themselves, flips, handsprings, that kind of stuff. After the show he said he liked it and that he was "proud of the acrobats." I was proud of him too. 

Remembering Carol

Sadly, George's mom passed away on Wednesday. We will all miss her very much. She was a a fun, spirited person who enjoyed life. She even sat through baseball games in the rain to humor her family! She had a happy, cheerful attitude and ready laugh. I even heard her chuckle on our last visit to Ohio, when she was summoning her strength just to talk and visit with us.  

She saw each of her children get married, welcomed her new son and daughters into the family, and waited for grandchildren...but never suggested that we should hurry up and have babies. But how she cherished those babies when they finally arrived! She was a "hands-on" grandma who was always willing to hold, comfort, play with, read to, and feed her grandkids. She will always be in our hearts and memories.