Squawkes

Katie, Abby, and I drove to California to visit relatives. Ben and Jessica, on summer break from Medical School, were visiting CA, so we decided to join them! (As an aside, Ben got *almost* straight A’s his first year - yay Ben!!) Besides Ben and Jess, we were able to visit several aunts and uncles, and Grandma, of course (we stayed at her house). She loved being the center of attention everywhere we went.

We also visited the beach. Last time we went, Abby was not interested in touching the sand or the water. This trip, she really enjoyed playing in the sand - though you can see she’s a bit worried about where her feet went when Ben buried them. She wanted nothing to do with the ocean, however. I carried her down to the water to see if she’d like to dip her toes in, but she clung to me more tightly with each consecutive wave. She’d yell “sand! sand!” and point toward our umbrella. Funny girl!

Jess taught Abby to give “thumbs up!” Too cute! Thanks, Jess! 

She very much enjoyed playing with Katie’s hair on the drive home. Thanks, Kate, for being such a good sport!

Anya (and her parents, of course!) came to visit from Texas. She and Abby enjoyed an afternoon together. As you can tell, they love each other. =)

Pics 1 - 3: Abby and Anya together.

Pic 4: One of Abby’s latest tricks - balancing on the crib rail. 

Pic 5: Abby is very good at sharing. The dogs enjoy this characteristic, especially when food is involved.

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I know I’ve been a blog slacker this month. Hopefully you will forgive me when you see these cute pictures of Abby, and her relations. =)

We spent a delightful week-and-a-half with my family in Utah at the beginning of June. It was so green and beautiful! Abby loved taking walks and pointing out the different colors of flowers.

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We went to the youth museum last week with a few friends and had a great time! 

Pic 1: Abby enjoyed running up and down the ramp more than she enjoyed going down the slide (which was at the end of the ramp). The other kids tried it out, too, because she was having so much fun.

Pic 2: These little egg-shaped chairs swiveled, and the kids loved them.

Pic 3: Abby’s first experience with markers. She scribbled this, then said “Mommy, ‘O’!”

Pic 4: The little ones colored happily all together at this table, but just for a minute.

Pic 5: Anytime we go out lately, Abby insists on putting on her shoes, hat, and coat before we head out toe door. It’s May. We live in Arizona.

Pic 6: Checking out the prairie dogs at the zoo. Look at all those beautiful, red curls!!

Abby doesn’t like raw carrots, but she just devoured a yellow crayon. I don’t get it.

We spent last week in Greer at the Fagan family cabin. It was wonderful, except for our annoying cat, who couldn’t decide if he wanted to be inside or outside. Well, I guess he could decide - as soon as he went out, he wanted to come back in; and as soon as he came in, he wanted to go back out. Anyone want a mildly annoying, skittish black cat? (I’m serious!)

Abby had a GREAT time. In case you don’t believe me, here are some pictures to prove it:

Pic 1: Making faces is one of her favorite experiments.

Pic 2: After seeing me make hot chocolate (”coco”), Abby insisted - emphatically I might add - on having a spoon to stir her milk. She sipped a whole glass of milk off her spoon, imitating the way Mommy tested the temperature of the cocoa. For the rest of the day, anything she drank - milk, water, juice - was “coco.”

Pic 4: She LOVED playing in the dirt. There’s something special about the dirt in Greer. It smells better than most dirt, and it is very hard to remove from clothing.

Pic 5: In this picture, she looks just like her daddy did at this age.

Pic 6: Getting a “pony ride.”

Pic 7: I asked her to go stand by the little trees, so she went over and stood there looking at them, with her back to me. Tee, hee.

Pic 8: Abby became fascinated with logs. She learned that logs are trees that have gone “boom.” This is one of the “logs” she found. =)

Pic 9: This outfit is one my mom saved from my childhood. I am so glad she saved some of the things I wore as a kid! Jake called her “jumpsuit” all day. 

Pic 10: Abby and Spot, during one of his braver moments, taking a walk in the woods.

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Pic 1: Abby is a very active little person, and I’ve been reading books and searching the internet to compile a variety of things to keep her busy and learning each day. I have discovered some neat, inexpensive activities that Abby has really enjoyed. Here’s one example: Using a marker, draw a picture on a paper towel or coffee filter. Then, dip a paintbrush in water and paint the picture. It blurs the marker lines for a nice effect. As a bonus, it is much easier and cleaner than using paints. Abby had a great time painting, and she looked darling in her artist’s smock!

PIc 2: Every couple of days, Abby will ask me to put a bow in her hair (she says “boat” and points at her hair). Usually, it’s when she’s wearing a dress or skirt. Sometimes, instead of asking for a bow, she will ask me to put in a clip (or two) and a “pony.” If she asks for the bow/clip/pony, she will leave it in for hours. If I put it in without her asking, she takes it out within minutes. *sigh*

Pic 3: You have to agree, this face is irresistible!!

These two are best buddies. It’s so fun to watch them grow and interact more. They have always liked each other, but now they are starting to play together, to share things (toys, snacks, hats, moms, etc), and to give each other hugs and kisses. The other day, Sammy and Abby were playing in the other room, and there was a loud crash, followed by loud sobs. We went in to rescue our little ones, and Abby kept saying, between sobs, “hugs…boom…hugs…boom.” Apparently, they were hugging and fell over. I love that she can tell me things like that now!! I told her “sometimes love hurts” (tee, hee). 

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We realized the other day that Abby is not a baby anymore. She told us herself, she is a “kid.” 

Pic 1: This is the pose she hits when she’s either in a really good mood or a really bad mood. If she’s happy and being silly, she will plop herself down on the ground and laugh heartily. If she’s grumpy, she will slowly get down on her hands and knees, and say “ow!” and fuss and cry and squawk - a true toddler tantrum. These never last very long, and are more amusing (to her parents) than frustrating. It’s especially funny because she does it at both ends of the mood spectrum.

Pic 2: Abby and Kiki enjoying some cousin playtime. He’s 3 months younger, but look how much bigger he is than she! I think little boys are made of heartier stuff.

Pic 3: Abby with her “Omi” (OngNoi = grandpa in Vietnamese)

For family night on Monday, we went to Desert Breeze park to play, then to Cold Stone for ice cream. Abby enjoyed looking at the ducks, sliding, and running on the grass. But, the activity she enjoyed most was swinging on the bicycle rack. She swings like this on anything she can - a trick she discovered while waiting in line for the safari train at the Wild Animal Park.