Cottage Time!

So, I knew something was up when Mommy & Daddy began packing up all of our things in suitcases--at first I thought we might be moving again, but they didn't seem to be using any boxes, and they kept talking about a "cottage" (I had to look it up). Since we only packed up about half of the things we owned, I figured that we would just be taking a really long drive, or something. The next day, we did go for a drive with Aunt Angela, but it wasn't a very long one. We stopped at a place that looked a lot like a page right out of my Where's Waldo books...there were people everywhere! We seemed to just walk around for a really long time, until Daddy found us some seats next to a big window. I stood up on the chair to see out, and this huge thing drove by! It turned toward our window, and then I saw that it was just a really big airplane--I knew what planes were, but the only kind I had seen up until this point could fit in my hand, or at least looked like they could...I told Mommy that I thought even Daddy could fit inside one of these planes, and Mommy told me that we could all fit, and that it would take us to see the rest of the family. Holy cow!

Once we got inside and found some seats, I started checking out the accommodations: air vents were adjusted, widow shades were set to optimal positions, and my toy inventory was re-checked. When the plane started moving Mommy had me look out the window. As I did, I saw that we were going faster and faster, and then the ground started moving away(!). I didn't know what to make of that until Daddy explained the basics of aerodynamics and commercial travel to me. It made my head hurt, so I closed the window shades. I played with Mommy, Angela, and Daddy for a long time, and just about the time that the novelty of being in an airplane was wearing off, we landed. I was tired enough by this time that when I got back in my stroller, I fell asleep.

When I woke up, we were getting on another plane! After I completed my pre-flight check of all our equipment, I wanted to explore the rest of the plane, but apparently we weren't allowed to. :( I told Mommy it wasn't fair, since the snack guy got to walk around! I was so glad when we were finally able to get out of the plane--I mean, it was really cool and all, but I wanted to be able to stand up and play. When we got down the escalator to pick up our luggage, I was so glad to be able to run around, but Mommy, Daddy, and Aunt Angela didn't seem as happy as I was--apparently some of our luggage didn't come off the plane with us, including my carseat! I was not a fan of the replacement one the airport loaned us and was certainly glad when mine showed up again!

But, wait, I'm getting ahead of myself. When we finally got to go outside, I saw Grandpa Dye! I was a little confused, because I hadn't seen him on our airplane, but then I figured that he had just taken one of the other ones I had seen. We drove to a restaurant and met up with Grandma Dye, Aunt Carolyn, Uncle Scott, and someone who looked kinda like Mommy with another guy and two little girls. Despite all of the excitement of seeing family again, I was glad when we finally got to the hotel--it had been a long day with so many new and interesting sights. I couldn't wait to dream about them!

As if a four-hour plane ride wasn't enough, the next day, we did the same thing, but in a car! Whose idea was it to waste half of our vacation just getting there? I was seriously reconsidering my continued involvement, when the car stopped again. The cottage is AWESOME!! It has a beach and a lake and I got to go swimming every day. Mommy and Daddy made all these sand animals that I got to smush. We found shells and rocks! I also learned that the two little girls were my cousins and we had a lot of fun playing together even though they didn't understand me very well. Our favorite game was ladderball--it was pretty easy to learn, we just had to watch Mommy and Grandma play it once first. We got to go on all kinds of boats: paddle boat, pontoon boat, and motor boat. I didn't much like wearing my life vest, but it was cool being out on the water. One time Grandpa even let me drive the boat! It was awesome.  :)  After we were at the cottage for a day or so, another car arrived. It was Grandpa Op and Aunt Carina! I couldn't believe that they came, too! It was the first time I actually got to play with Aunt Carina. We had so much fun! She swung with me on the swing and pulled me in the tube; We played ball and in the water and sand; We ate junk food and popsicles. It was great. :)

One morning, we got in the car and went to something called a parade. There were lots of people gathered on the sides of the road, and they were all watching other people drive extremely slowly down it...Daddy would have been mad at them. He also wouldn't have liked all of the loud noises--but for me, seeing the fire trucks outweighed the obnoxious sounds. That night (and why is "nite" a legitimate spelling?!) we had dinner (pizza!) at a place called Mackinaw. Mackinaw must be Chinese for "whole bunch of people gathered in a really small place for no discernible reason"...While we were playing on a playground with Grandma and Grandpa, I noticed that it was getting dark. Now, usually Mommy is helping get me ready for bed when it is getting dark, but we were far away from the cottage. I wondered what was going on, but Mommy got me some ice cream so I figured it must be a special night. Boy, was I right! Once it got really dark, the whole sky completely lit up with fireworks! They were a lot bigger than the ones I saw last year, and were a lot louder! I don't exactly remember how I got home, but I woke up in the right place the next day, so it's a good thing I wasn't the designated driver...

One of the scariest but most exhilarating things we did was tubing. Grandpa hooked the tubes up behind the pontoon for Brianna and me to ride. Mommy rode with me and Aunt Shannon rode with Brianna. Even though I had watched lots of people ride the tubes, I definitely did not know what to expect. We went so fast! We were skipping on top of the water just like a boat! It was crazy! I'm glad Mommy was with me because I knew she would keep me safe. One of the coolest things we got to do was paint the cottage. It took me a long time to convince Mommy that I could do just as good a job as everyone else, but eventually she let me help paint. The cottage looks so much newer now! One of the oddest things we did was go "fishing"--We got these long poles with strings on them that we had to be careful with, and then threw the strings in the water and watched them...Nothing happened. I preferred throwing rocks in the water but apparently you're not supposed to do that while you are fishing. Oh well, maybe I'll get the hang of this whole "fishing" thing when I am older. So, all in all, vacations are pretty awesome, and I can't wait to do it again!

Cottage Time!

So, I knew something was up when Mommy & Daddy began packing up all of our things in suitcases--at first I thought we might be moving again, but they didn't seem to be using any boxes, and they kept talking about a "cottage" (I had to look it up). Since we only packed up about half of the things we owned, I figured that we would just be taking a really long drive, or something. The next day, we did go for a drive with Aunt Angela, but it wasn't a very long one. We stopped at a place that looked a lot like a page right out of my Where's Waldo books...there were people everywhere! We seemed to just walk around for a really long time, until Daddy found us some seats next to a big window. I stood up on the chair to see out, and this huge thing drove by! It turned toward our window, and then I saw that it was just a really big airplane--I knew what planes were, but the only kind I had seen up until this point could fit in my hand, or at least looked like they could...I told Mommy that I thought even Daddy could fit inside one of these planes, and Mommy told me that we could all fit, and that it would take us to see the rest of the family. Holy cow!

Once we got inside and found some seats, I started checking out the accommodations: air vents were adjusted, widow shades were set to optimal positions, and my toy inventory was re-checked. When the plane started moving Mommy had me look out the window. As I did, I saw that we were going faster and faster, and then the ground started moving away(!). I didn't know what to make of that until Daddy explained the basics of aerodynamics and commercial travel to me. It made my head hurt, so I closed the window shades. I played with Mommy, Angela, and Daddy for a long time, and just about the time that the novelty of being in an airplane was wearing off, we landed. I was tired enough by this time that when I got back in my stroller, I fell asleep.

When I woke up, we were getting on another plane! After I completed my pre-flight check of all our equipment, I wanted to explore the rest of the plane, but apparently we weren't allowed to. :( I told Mommy it wasn't fair, since the snack guy got to walk around! I was so glad when we were finally able to get out of the plane--I mean, it was really cool and all, but I wanted to be able to stand up and play. When we got down the escalator to pick up our luggage, I was so glad to be able to run around, but Mommy, Daddy, and Aunt Angela didn't seem as happy as I was--apparently some of our luggage didn't come off the plane with us, including my carseat! I was not a fan of the replacement one the airport loaned us and was certainly glad when mine showed up again!

But, wait, I'm getting ahead of myself. When we finally got to go outside, I saw Grandpa Dye! I was a little confused, because I hadn't seen him on our airplane, but then I figured that he had just taken one of the other ones I had seen. We drove to a restaurant and met up with Grandma Dye, Aunt Carolyn, Uncle Scott, and someone who looked kinda like Mommy with another guy and two little girls. Despite all of the excitement of seeing family again, I was glad when we finally got to the hotel--it had been a long day with so many new and interesting sights. I couldn't wait to dream about them!

As if a four-hour plane ride wasn't enough, the next day, we did the same thing, but in a car! Whose idea was it to waste half of our vacation just getting there? I was seriously reconsidering my continued involvement, when the car stopped again. The cottage is AWESOME!! It has a beach and a lake and I got to go swimming every day. Mommy and Daddy made all these sand animals that I got to smush. We found shells and rocks! I also learned that the two little girls were my cousins and we had a lot of fun playing together even though they didn't understand me very well. Our favorite game was ladderball--it was pretty easy to learn, we just had to watch Mommy and Grandma play it once first. We got to go on all kinds of boats: paddle boat, pontoon boat, and motor boat. I didn't much like wearing my life vest, but it was cool being out on the water. One time Grandpa even let me drive the boat! It was awesome.  :)  After we were at the cottage for a day or so, another car arrived. It was Grandpa Op and Aunt Carina! I couldn't believe that they came, too! It was the first time I actually got to play with Aunt Carina. We had so much fun! She swung with me on the swing and pulled me in the tube; We played ball and in the water and sand; We ate junk food and popsicles. It was great. :)

One morning, we got in the car and went to something called a parade. There were lots of people gathered on the sides of the road, and they were all watching other people drive extremely slowly down it...Daddy would have been mad at them. He also wouldn't have liked all of the loud noises--but for me, seeing the fire trucks outweighed the obnoxious sounds. That night (and why is "nite" a legitimate spelling?!) we had dinner (pizza!) at a place called Mackinaw. Mackinaw must be Chinese for "whole bunch of people gathered in a really small place for no discernible reason"...While we were playing on a playground with Grandma and Grandpa, I noticed that it was getting dark. Now, usually Mommy is helping get me ready for bed when it is getting dark, but we were far away from the cottage. I wondered what was going on, but Mommy got me some ice cream so I figured it must be a special night. Boy, was I right! Once it got really dark, the whole sky completely lit up with fireworks! They were a lot bigger than the ones I saw last year, and were a lot louder! I don't exactly remember how I got home, but I woke up in the right place the next day, so it's a good thing I wasn't the designated driver...

One of the scariest but most exhilarating things we did was tubing. Grandpa hooked the tubes up behind the pontoon for Brianna and me to ride. Mommy rode with me and Aunt Shannon rode with Brianna. Even though I had watched lots of people ride the tubes, I definitely did not know what to expect. We went so fast! We were skipping on top of the water just like a boat! It was crazy! I'm glad Mommy was with me because I knew she would keep me safe. One of the coolest things we got to do was paint the cottage. It took me a long time to convince Mommy that I could do just as good a job as everyone else, but eventually she let me help paint. The cottage looks so much newer now! One of the oddest things we did was go "fishing"--We got these long poles with strings on them that we had to be careful with, and then threw the strings in the water and watched them...Nothing happened. I preferred throwing rocks in the water but apparently you're not supposed to do that while you are fishing. Oh well, maybe I'll get the hang of this whole "fishing" thing when I am older. So, all in all, vacations are pretty awesome, and I can't wait to do it again!

Birthday Fun

Normally, every morning when I wake up, I call to Mommy and she comes to feed me breakfast and get me ready for the day. But a couple days ago, when I called for Mom, both Mommy & Daddy came in... and they were singing?! Weird.

Then, instead of just having some Cheerios for breakfast, Daddy made 'pancakes'. That was awesome!

After breakfast, I got to play frisbee with Daddy on our new Wii--which is unusually trendy for us but Daddy figured that it was the only way he could get Mommy to play video games with us. ;) Even though Mommy didn't play that day, she plays with me a lot so I am glad that Daddy gave in to this trend.

After nap-time, Daddy took me on a ride in my stroller, up to the store, and got me a huge, shiny balloon! I have decided that I really like having 'boy time'. I never know what to expect next when I am hanging out with Dad!

When it was time for dinner, a bunch of people showed up--with presents! I knew the whole present routine from Christmas, so I was excited to see some more showing up even though there didn't seem to be a reason for it (people often come over, but not usually with presents!). But, hey, I wasn't going to complain :).

For dinner, we had my favorite--pepperoni pizza! It was shaped like a heart, for some reason, though. I ate a whole slice! Man, was I full. After dinner we played the Wii with my aunts & uncles--some of them need to practice more ;). We also, finally, got to open the presents! This time they were all for me! I got clothes, and shoes, and more clothes, then I opened some cool things like a train, some books, and a puzzle. Mommy and Daddy also got me a tool bench!

After I played with my new toys for a bit, Mommy put me back in my high chair, and everyone started singing the same song Mommy & Daddy sang to me that morning. While everyone was singing, Daddy walked in with something colorful that had a candle stuck in it. He held it right up to me, and told me to blow on it--but Mommy & Daddy had always told me that candles were hot, and to stay away from them, so I did.Then the candle went out, and Daddy ripped off a bright red piece of the colorful thing and put it on my tray. At first, I had no idea what was going on, but I figured that since I was in my chair, that it must be food, no matter how weird it looked--even if everyone in the room was watching me like they knew something I didn't. I picked it up, but it was really gooey, and it stuck to my hand! So I figured I was mistaken, and I tried to see if it was finger-paint. It smashed pretty well, but then Daddy took a piece and put it in my mouth--holy cow! I don't think I've ever had that much sugar at once before! I grabbed as much as I could from my tray and snarfed it down, then snagged another one (green, this time) for good measure. Talk about 'nummy'!

Mommy decided that I needed a bath before bed. I love bath time! When I was all cleaned up and ready for bed, everyone said the same thing again--I think I like this 'birthday' thing, and especially the colorful, sugary goodness that I have discovered is called 'cake'! I can't wait until my next birthday!

Birthday Fun

Normally, every morning when I wake up, I call to Mommy and she comes to feed me breakfast and get me ready for the day. But a couple days ago, when I called for Mom, both Mommy & Daddy came in... and they were singing?! Weird.

Then, instead of just having some Cheerios for breakfast, Daddy made 'pancakes'. That was awesome!

After breakfast, I got to play frisbee with Daddy on our new Wii--which is unusually trendy for us but Daddy figured that it was the only way he could get Mommy to play video games with us. ;) Even though Mommy didn't play that day, she plays with me a lot so I am glad that Daddy gave in to this trend.

After nap-time, Daddy took me on a ride in my stroller, up to the store, and got me a huge, shiny balloon! I have decided that I really like having 'boy time'. I never know what to expect next when I am hanging out with Dad!

When it was time for dinner, a bunch of people showed up--with presents! I knew the whole present routine from Christmas, so I was excited to see some more showing up even though there didn't seem to be a reason for it (people often come over, but not usually with presents!). But, hey, I wasn't going to complain :).

For dinner, we had my favorite--pepperoni pizza! It was shaped like a heart, for some reason, though. I ate a whole slice! Man, was I full. After dinner we played the Wii with my aunts & uncles--some of them need to practice more ;). We also, finally, got to open the presents! This time they were all for me! I got clothes, and shoes, and more clothes, then I opened some cool things like a train, some books, and a puzzle. Mommy and Daddy also got me a tool bench!

After I played with my new toys for a bit, Mommy put me back in my high chair, and everyone started singing the same song Mommy & Daddy sang to me that morning. While everyone was singing, Daddy walked in with something colorful that had a candle stuck in it. He held it right up to me, and told me to blow on it--but Mommy & Daddy had always told me that candles were hot, and to stay away from them, so I did.Then the candle went out, and Daddy ripped off a bright red piece of the colorful thing and put it on my tray. At first, I had no idea what was going on, but I figured that since I was in my chair, that it must be food, no matter how weird it looked--even if everyone in the room was watching me like they knew something I didn't. I picked it up, but it was really gooey, and it stuck to my hand! So I figured I was mistaken, and I tried to see if it was finger-paint. It smashed pretty well, but then Daddy took a piece and put it in my mouth--holy cow! I don't think I've ever had that much sugar at once before! I grabbed as much as I could from my tray and snarfed it down, then snagged another one (green, this time) for good measure. Talk about 'nummy'!

Mommy decided that I needed a bath before bed. I love bath time! When I was all cleaned up and ready for bed, everyone said the same thing again--I think I like this 'birthday' thing, and especially the colorful, sugary goodness that I have discovered is called 'cake'! I can't wait until my next birthday!

Winter Wonders

OK, so I think I've figured out this whole "winter" thing. Once it gets cold outside and we have to stay inside all the time, people start having celebrations to help pass the time. I mean, I may only be 11 months old, but I have never seen so much partying as I have in the last little bit. It all started after I woke up one day and Mommy held me up to the window and everything was WHITE! Everything looked soo different. But then she started bundling us both up in layers and layers of clothes--I was really hot and uncomfortable...until we went outside. I'm sure you guys know this already, but snow is weird--it's soft, but it's cold, it smushes when you step on it, and it's really sparkly. I helped Mommy make "snow angels", and we even got to play in the playground and on the big curly slide! Needless to say, the next time Mom started dressing me in my entire closet, I was too excited to worry about being too hot.

But, back to what I was saying...after that day, the parties started. First off, Mommy got dressed in her pjs(?!), and then drove us to the school she used to work at. Before she let us go inside she put me inside this blue and purple outfit she called a "dinosaur costume". As we walked inside, I couldn't believe how sparkly, weird, scary, and gross all of the other kids looked. I was confused and a bit nervous until I started recognizing some of the faces behind all the weirdness. After we marched around the school, everyone started laughing and playing and I decided that this "Halloween" thing wasn't so bad. Later that night we got dressed up again, even Dad this time. We only drove to our church before we stopped. Mommy took me all around the parking lot, and all sorts of monsters and people put things into the bag I had Mommy hold for me. When we got back to our car, she let me dump the bag out to see what I had gotten. I was soo excited to see a whole pile of candy!

Things were back to normal for a little bit, but a few weeks after Halloween, it was apparently time for another celebration. This time Daddy and Mommy packed up our car and we drove, like, FOREVER! When we finally got out of the car, it was pretty much bedtime, so I wondered what was going on. When I found out that we were going to be staying the night, I was kinda excited. I hadn't ever slept over at someone else's house! And I got to sleep in the same room as Dad and Mom! I'm glad they don't snore...But the best part was the next day. Everyone was working hard in the kitchen on something called "Thanksgiving dinner". All I can say is "Wow". When we finally sat down at the table there was more food than I had ever seen. But the best part was that Mommy and Daddy shared with me! I got to try turkey, rolls, mashed potatoes, yams, stuffing, and (my personal favorite) pumpkin pie! I LOVE Thanksgiving!

No more than a week after we got home, I got up from my nap and noticed that there were lots of colorful decorations all around the house. Mommy set me next to a little pine tree. When she flipped a switch it started to sparkle! It was so cool. Not long later, Aunt Carolyn came to stay at our house and play with me. Then Grandpa and Grandma Dye showed up with Uncle Scott and Aunt Angela. We all went and stayed overnight at Grandma & Grandpa's house--I really like sleepovers! That next morning, instead of having breakfast, we all piled into the living room and started pulling toys and candies out of HUGE socks with our names on them! My favorite find was a race car that zooms across the floor when you rev up the engine. Then Grandpa started handing everyone colorfully wrapped presents. Opening presents made me tired so imagine my excitement when I found a stuffed Pooh Bear! I just wanted to cuddle him and go take a nap. I liked Christmas because everyone was so happy and there were so many new things to investigate. But the best thing about this celebration was that Daddy was home a lot more so we got to spend so much time as one huge family. I loved having everyone around because there was always someone to play with :) It was sad when everyone went home, but they said they would visit again so I am very excited for our next family holiday!

All in all, I've decided that, although we're stuck inside, winter isn't so bad. I'm glad that people decided to have celebrations to help pass the time. They are definitely worth it!

Winter Wonders

OK, so I think I've figured out this whole "winter" thing. Once it gets cold outside and we have to stay inside all the time, people start having celebrations to help pass the time. I mean, I may only be 11 months old, but I have never seen so much partying as I have in the last little bit. It all started after I woke up one day and Mommy held me up to the window and everything was WHITE! Everything looked soo different. But then she started bundling us both up in layers and layers of clothes--I was really hot and uncomfortable...until we went outside. I'm sure you guys know this already, but snow is weird--it's soft, but it's cold, it smushes when you step on it, and it's really sparkly. I helped Mommy make "snow angels", and we even got to play in the playground and on the big curly slide! Needless to say, the next time Mom started dressing me in my entire closet, I was too excited to worry about being too hot.

But, back to what I was saying...after that day, the parties started. First off, Mommy got dressed in her pjs(?!), and then drove us to the school she used to work at. Before she let us go inside she put me inside this blue and purple outfit she called a "dinosaur costume". As we walked inside, I couldn't believe how sparkly, weird, scary, and gross all of the other kids looked. I was confused and a bit nervous until I started recognizing some of the faces behind all the weirdness. After we marched around the school, everyone started laughing and playing and I decided that this "Halloween" thing wasn't so bad. Later that night we got dressed up again, even Dad this time. We only drove to our church before we stopped. Mommy took me all around the parking lot, and all sorts of monsters and people put things into the bag I had Mommy hold for me. When we got back to our car, she let me dump the bag out to see what I had gotten. I was soo excited to see a whole pile of candy!

Things were back to normal for a little bit, but a few weeks after Halloween, it was apparently time for another celebration. This time Daddy and Mommy packed up our car and we drove, like, FOREVER! When we finally got out of the car, it was pretty much bedtime, so I wondered what was going on. When I found out that we were going to be staying the night, I was kinda excited. I hadn't ever slept over at someone else's house! And I got to sleep in the same room as Dad and Mom! I'm glad they don't snore...But the best part was the next day. Everyone was working hard in the kitchen on something called "Thanksgiving dinner". All I can say is "Wow". When we finally sat down at the table there was more food than I had ever seen. But the best part was that Mommy and Daddy shared with me! I got to try turkey, rolls, mashed potatoes, yams, stuffing, and (my personal favorite) pumpkin pie! I LOVE Thanksgiving!

No more than a week after we got home, I got up from my nap and noticed that there were lots of colorful decorations all around the house. Mommy set me next to a little pine tree. When she flipped a switch it started to sparkle! It was so cool. Not long later, Aunt Carolyn came to stay at our house and play with me. Then Grandpa and Grandma Dye showed up with Uncle Scott and Aunt Angela. We all went and stayed overnight at Grandma & Grandpa's house--I really like sleepovers! That next morning, instead of having breakfast, we all piled into the living room and started pulling toys and candies out of HUGE socks with our names on them! My favorite find was a race car that zooms across the floor when you rev up the engine. Then Grandpa started handing everyone colorfully wrapped presents. Opening presents made me tired so imagine my excitement when I found a stuffed Pooh Bear! I just wanted to cuddle him and go take a nap. I liked Christmas because everyone was so happy and there were so many new things to investigate. But the best thing about this celebration was that Daddy was home a lot more so we got to spend so much time as one huge family. I loved having everyone around because there was always someone to play with :) It was sad when everyone went home, but they said they would visit again so I am very excited for our next family holiday!

All in all, I've decided that, although we're stuck inside, winter isn't so bad. I'm glad that people decided to have celebrations to help pass the time. They are definitely worth it!