The Ball Pit

There was a more creative title in there I think...but I just don't have the energy to find it.
Anyway...
In preparation for Kaylee's first birthday on Saturday we blew up the ball pit we purchased at a garage sale for $5...with at least 150-200 plastic balls that I individually bleach-cleaned (phew.)
We tossed Kaylee in, to see how she'd like it. She examined her new toys carefully."I declare this toy good," she proclaims happily!I shimmied into the adjacent tunnel to take some pics from another angle.
"Welcome to my Ball Pit Mommy" exclaims Kaylee.
After a little while of frolicking in all those new disinfected balls, Kaylee decided she wanted to save some of the fun for her party guests.
Woo-hoo...caught up on posts again! I rule!

Visiting the "Greats"

On Monday, after lunch we packed Kaylee and the dogs up and headed to CT to visit Ba (Daddy's Grandfather). Kaylee sported her red-sox gear seeing that Ba is such a great fan and there was a game that night vs the BlueJays (we trounced them thank you very much.)

Ba was gracious enough to host our entire clan and Kaylee in turn showed Ba how her new toy works. We even had time for a little walk around Ba's condo association and the surrounding neighborhood before it was time for dinner, bath and bed.
The next morning--we got up, had some breakfast and took another little walk in the other direction. Then Ba went out to do his weekly 'meals-on wheels' duties and we headed down to NJ to visit another great-grandparent.
That's right, Great-Grandma Mitzi (this time is my grandparent). We arrived at her nursing village just after lunch and went for a small walk outside. There was a nice little dog park where the dogs could exercise a bit and we took the opportunity for some photos.

Kaylee is getting a bit too big to be held easily these days...that and she was super squirmy for freedom after being cooped up in the car so long...so I stepped in to try and keep her on Great-Grandma's lap just a few more moments. But alas, even I am not too much help. It was a bit warm out so we headed back inside to continue our visit.

But the photos didn't stop there...Great-Grandma managed to hang onto Kaylee one more time, even though it wasn't on her lap...too bad she wasn't looking at the camera!Kaylee showed Great-Grandma Mitzi that she knew how to use a walker too.Great-Grandma had a lot of fun showing the staff and some of her resident friends the newest addition to the family...I hope she enjoyed the visit as much as we did.Then it was back in the car and back to CT to re-visit Ba for dinner. We picked up some pizza on the way in and Kaylee played with Ba after dinner while we packed up the car again. (We had originally intended on leaving Wednesday morning...but after several day time 3 hour trips with Kaylee being bored and frustrated and wanting nothing more than to move around...we decided that for our sanity a night time trip home was in order so we could be assured that Kaylee would be asleep {and quiet} for the ride.)Ba was a wonderful host and Kaylee had a lot of fun showing him her toys (and taking them away from him if he dared get too close.) Thanks for everything, we were glad to get some nice quality time in with 2 of Kaylee's Great Grandparents!

Hopkinton State Fair, September 2nd

On Sunday morning, we packed Kaylee up after breakfast and headed over to the Hopkinton State Fair. It was a beautiful day...and Kaylee seemed to be enjoying the sunshine.

What is that has captured Kaylee and Daddy's attention?Why its the miniature horse show...Kaylee was mesmerized as they trotted in the ring past her.
Why who is this that just happened to stop by? Its our friends Phil, Jackie and Emily (Jackie not pictured, she was right beside me taking pictures herself.)

Next up...the llamas! Kaylee and Emily were entranced by these guys.

Kaylee even ventured a closer look, in the safety of Daddy's arms of course.

Can't be too careful you know...we learned that llama's ears go back when they're thinking about spitting...and this guy's ears were back a lot!

And what have we moved onto now that has Kaylee's attention?

The cows of course.

Or is it the sheep?

Or even this cute little goat?

Yup, Kaylee liked the goats well enough. But they were nothing...compared to the ducks!

"Ducks are pretty cool," Kaylee says while munching on her lunch of chicken...almost sacrilege I think!
And she seemed to like the big horsies almost as well as the miniature ones.
Well Kaylee...if you like horses, have we got a surprise for you!

"A surprise Mommy?" Kaylee asks with glee, "What is it?"
Its time for Kaylee's first Carousel Ride!

We sat her on her horse and she seemed to like it right away.

"High-ho Silver," Kaylee seems to say, urging her horse to get moving. As we started to move, Kaylee held on with both hands like a good little horse rider.
And as we gained speed, she wasn't sure about things for a moment.
But by the end, she was an expert; riding side-saddle and all smiles again!
We asked Kaylee what she thought of the experience...I think her answer is pretty obvious!
"Now its Emily's turn to ride the carousel with her family," Kaylee says all with just a point of a finger.

So shall Kaylee say, so shall it be done! Emily seemed to really like the ride as well!

"So girls...what did you think of the fair?" Again, I think that answer is fairly obvious!
Woo-hoo, I am caught up on posts!

August Wrap-up

Just to quickly wrap-up the last few pictures I took in August...
Since Daddy and I have been feeding Kaylee for so long...she's decided to return the favor.
"There, Daddy, doesn't that taste yummy?" Kaylee smiles.
Of course, Kaylee always smiles when she's eating...its one of her favorite activities.
I mean really, who doesn't like italian seasoned chicken anyway?
And on August, 30th, we packed Kaylee and Emily into Emily's new mini-van and hit the shopping circuit in Kittery, ME. The girls had a blast...they were gossiping as much in the midseat as the Mommies were in the front!
And that's the rest of August for ya.

a visit to NY

This past weekend, we drove 4+ hours to Chuck and Buddy's house in the "country" also known as mid-state NY. While we love visiting them at their NYC place, the atmosphere and peace of their country home is always welcome. Here's a little view from their screened-in room. Petra and Loofy got to catch up with their cousin Lola; Petra was aloof as usual, but Loofy loved showing off that he could get to the ball faster than poor Lola who even if she could have raced Loofy would have politely stepped aside for the comfort of her guest.
They loved the yard and all the time they got to spend outside. I wrangled them onto the stone patio for a quick picture, but as usual couldn't get them both to look at the camera at the same time.
Kaylee really liked the amenities as well. On Saturday morning, it was already getting pretty hot, so she took a dip in the pool with Mommy and her new water toy, a birthday present from her uncles.She loved swimming around with Mommy and Daddy in the refreshing water.She even went on a little floaty boat ride all around the pool...which is Olympic length so quite a journey!

Later that afternoon, we went to a friend of Chuck and Buddy's house with lots of kids, another pool and lots of pool toys! Check out the giant water see-saw.Kaylee took it all in stride...look at my water diva!Playing it cool, she went around the pool with Daddy a few times, took in the sites. She borrowed another floatie toy, just to see if she liked it any better. She does love doggies after all.Mostly she just liked relaxing in the water with her family.Doesn't she look relaxed, even with the giant two-headed lizard looming in the back!On Sunday morning, Kaylee played with her toys while waiting for her uncles to wake up.We told her we would have to leave in a while... I don't think she wanted to leave...
But we promised her we would take lots of pictures...and so we did, starting with a cute one of Kaylee and Daddy. And she posed with her uncle Buddy!

Look a smile!And with both of her uncles at once.Here's a family portrait, Kaylee, Daddy and Daddy's uncle!She even demanded to have a photo-shoot with Uncle Chuck!Kaylee shows uncle Chuck that anything he can do she can do better...
Finally it was time to leave...the dogs were exhausted. This was taken from the front seat. We even found proof that not all New Yorkers are under the influence of the evil empire! Go Sox!