Who Loves the Park?

Aurora is just about to tip over here in this shot Gary got on Saturday.

Don't fall down, little baby.

Her hand-me-down Ecco shoes carry her over hill and dale, through the house and up and down the stairs (with help, of course).

She is especially helpful in the kitchen, rearranging the drawers and cupboards. She has watched a little too much Hell's Kitchen since, though, and is very yelly when we're cooking. What a perfectionist! We can never juilliene the carrots at the right angle and she always has to remind us to cover the pots when we're boiling water.

Poor Smacky. A baby's work is never done.

Walk, Walk, Walk

Gary took Aurora to the clackamas library this weekend.

She's unstoppable now that she's such a good walker.

Plus, she makes friends everywhere!

What a clever baby.

Merry-Go-Round

Aurora and I awoke early on Saturday and I decided to get out of the house for a bit to let Gary sleep in.

Last weekend, Aurora and I went to coffee and then shopped at the dollar tree, but this weekend we went to the park after stopping for coffee.

Oh, the delights of the park! There was only one other baby there, and no dangerously oblivious big kids, so Aurora went down the slide several times (by herself, even!), she had a nice swing on the baby swing, we chatted with Marcus (the other baby) and his dad, and we went on the merry-go-round. Here she is, standing on the stopped merry-go-round. She almost fell off it when we first started, and she did bonk her head on the rail, but she had a very nice time and if Mommy hadn't started getting dizzy, would have loved to spend more than 2 minutes spinning.

Need... More.... Sleep

Sometimes Aurora stays asleep after I get up in the morning, and sometimes she wakes up and bounds around the bed like a small dog. Those times are also the times when she hits me to wake me up. It's delightful.

The morning that I took this shot, I was trying to get a few more minutes of rest while Aurora amused herself, quietly and in a self-contained manner.

She looks slightly scared, as if there was a UFO hovering above her rather than just my hand, holding the phone.

Silly baby.

Smackyderm

Arlo, Aurora and I went to the zoo on Sunday so Gary could have some quiet time at home and take a much-needed nap (he got up with Aurora on Saturday AND Sunday- wow!).

It was Samudra's first birthday so there were elephant-themed festivities- a cake for the baby, a swim for the baby, elephant ears (both the fried treat and paper decorations) and more. Arlo jumped around in a giant blown-up alligator (crocodile?) jumping thing, while I snapped this photo of Aurora with her new headgear.

(Hopefully the sight of her gobbling her crackers doesn't detract from the cuteness of her oversized ears. I personally think she is cute even when she's gobbling, but I am biased.)

H20

Smacky knows how important it is to stay hydrated in the summer months.

She is determined to drink this whole cup of ice water.

See her frown of concentration?

Actually, she bet Gary that she couldn't do it, and she doesn't want to lose her $5.

Drink, baby, drink!

Newest Member of the Pit Crew

Aurora and my mom and I went to the Gravity Games at Mt Tabor yesterday, formerly known as the Go-Cart Races.

It's huge now, with hundreds of people descending on the park, filling up the surrounding neighborhood with their cars and hauling picnic gear, beer, kids, dogs, and, of course, go-carts.

I had forgotten that it's mostly a lot of waiting around with a few seconds of excitement thrown in- not the most interesting for a baby.

Last year Aurora was just a year old, content to hang around in her bjorn. This year, as you know, she's walking, interacting with strangers, and quite excited about the world around her.

And she loves trying new things! Here she is standing in some tires, getting dirty and exploring something new.