Let the spelling begin!

Some would argue that we should be surprised by this, but Lindsey is a smarter girl than we realize sometimes.

Wayne and I were talking a few nights ago at the dinner table about a co-worker of his who had bought a “damn nice Lexus.” Next thing you know, we hear from the living room, “a damn nice Lexus??” And we didn’t even know she was listening!

She now thinks “damnniceLexus” is one word and is a kind of car. And as far as we know, she's never repeated it. So now we know we need to start spelling words out.

Yep, she can surprise us sometimes with how smart she is. On the other hand, she insisted on eating spaghetti with meat sauce with her hands the other night.

"Labor" Day

Labor Day was anything but Labor -- we took the kids to a local playground (one they hadn't visited a couple of hundred times) and they had fun on the new equipment. Marissa's favorite part, of course, was sampling the tasty pebbles. Though she did enjoy trying to climb up the tube slide, as you can see.

What is it about her that is so much more exploratory than Lindsey was? She likes to splash in the toilet water, eat the dog's kibble, splash in HIS drinking water, and otherwise get into things she's not supposed to get into. We've found more than one toy dropped into a vase by our fireplace.

We've had to babyproof in ways we never knew existed. Lindsey was never this adventuresome -- that COULD explain Lindsey's clinging to my leg during a neighborhood get together this evening. I think she's intimidated by all the other kids, most of whom are older than her, running around and being so familiar with each other. That's the drawback of daycare and two working parents -- she doesn't get to know the neighborhood kids very well.




We stopped by this evening and visited a neighbor of ours who just had Baby #2 -- a girl. She was 9 lbs 8 oz at birth (C-section, in case you're wondering) and in general is a big baby. But in comparison to Marissa and to their eldest who is one of Lindsey's best playmates, she is so tiny and so helpless. I had forgotten how little they are and how sweet they smell. Every time we go to their house I hold her as much as possible. I know we're done having children(just look at the bags under my eyes to understand how very "done" we are!) but I just love holding those little tiny babies! It goes so fast!


Okay, last thing, completely unrelated. My cousin in Atlanta sent me this link to a homemade video on YouTube.com from a group from the UK called "OK Go." It's about the most entertaining thing I've seen lately -- whoever came up with the idea of this as a video clip was a genius -- they are making big waves, breaking into the US market, based on this viral video clip alone. Check it out, you'll be amazed:

I haven't quite figured out how to put links in, so cut and paste this into your browser:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=92IWqopETfI&mode=related&search=

She's Walking!

Marissa is finally officially walking. She will take 3 or 4 steps on her own now, and stands relatively well balanced.

I've heard walking described as the process of "falling and catching yourself." If you ever see a new baby toddling around, that is exactly the picture you get! Their steps are so jilted, so awkward, they are truly "falling" and catching themselves with their feet, and sometimes barely in time!

Marissa continues to be our "busy" baby, moreso than Lindsey ever was. She goes for the dog water, she goes for the dog food; she bypasses the toys to do these things. Our end table in our living room will often have the following items: a box of Kleenex, a coaster, a board book, a baby toy, and one of Lindsey's toys on it. She will attempt to pick them up in this order: the coaster (which is taken away), the Kleenex box, one Kleenex at a time (also taken away), Lindsey's toy (which are abruptly ripped from her hands by Lindsey), and then FINALLY the toy or book meant for her, which she is promptly bored with and goes off to the next adventure, usually involving the poor dog.

Cinderella has entered our lives

Lindsey discovered the story of Cinderella the other day.

She's had a puzzle of Cinderella for some time, and it's been her favorite puzzle to put together. So a couple of nights ago, while she was doing the puzzle, I told her the story of Cinderella. It's interesting telling a story without actually "reading" it from a book -- try it some time, then tell it again and again, and see how frequently the story is exactly the same. Then have a three-year-old point out to you all the indiscrepancies. "Mommy, what happened to her mice?" "Mommy, what about her glass slipper?"

Ah yes, the glass slipper. That has become the highlight of the story, the piece de resistance that cannot be forgotten.

Today we decided to buy the Disney "Cinderella" movie, since Lindsey was so fascinated. She loved it, of course, and watched it three times in a row. And Wayne and I sat down and watched it with her, it was a real trip down memory lane.


There's a point in the story (I had forgotten this scene) when she's ready to go to the ball with the pink and white dress that the mice and birds had made for her. When the stepsisters saw the dress, they tore it apart, tearing off all the little pieces that had been stolen from their rooms. By the time they were done Cinderella was in rags again and in no condition to be presented at a ball. I looked over at Lindsey and her lower lip was out and she had tears in her eyes. She felt so badly for Cinderella!

Of course, a few times we had to correct her that Cinderella was going to a ball and not a ballgame. Slight difference.