Visit from the G'Parents

This weekend we got a nice vsit from Grammy and Grampa Prince who took us out to an Easter brunch. Evvie did great, sampling eggs, blueberries, watermelon pieces, grapes, cream cheese on a bagel and lot of ice cubes. Grampa stayed busy slicing up all the fruit, then we returned home so Grammy could read her a few new books before it was naptime.

Animals in the Library!

Because it was a slow and idle Saturday, Hallie & I decided to take Evvie to the children's room at the Patten Free Library. As we neared it though, the whole area was swarming with parents and children on their way in and out of the building. We finally managed a parking spot and headed toward the door where we were face to face with a miniature horse named "Mr. D". Evvie was interested, albeit from a distance, so we gawked for awhile and headed inside where the Easter Bunny greeted us. There were several pens set up in the children's area with live bunnies, a pygmy goat, a handful of chickens and a couple of ducks. Evvie really warmed up to the animals and pet the bunnies while repeating "soft, soft." On our way out, she approached Mr. D and pet his long black mane. I made a joke about his looking a bit sad (why the long face?) which served only to amuse me. His owner did remark enthusiastically that Evvie was the smallest child to touch Mr. D. I was proud of our shy little girl for coming out of her shell.

Later at home, we ran around in the driveway and took this picture with the first spring flowers in our hair. Evvie has a few favorite games. One of them is to go to a snowbank, grab a handful of snow and throw it down dramatically while saying "POW!". Another is to kick her easter ball while running. It's incredibly fun to watch her hustle around in the fresh air.

Digging out In Springtime

This week as I brought the garbage out to the curb, I tought to myself, "Oh, look. It's the first week without the garbage can being in a snowbank." Hmmm. Wednesday it began snowing on the just-emerged lawn, and didn't stop until we had accumulated 12 inches, a power outage and a day off from school (for momma). It's supposed to be spring- the robins were out in full force last week!

Evvie got a little concerned about the snow, and tweeted her pelican to the window to look for the birds. They all stayed huddled inside until Friday when the sun came out and the birds came back!
Thursday's snow


Friday's sun


Today was also the start of the new Music Together session. There were some new faces and some old faces (by old faces, I of course mean old young faces). Evelyn is not the youngest this time around- that title has been taken by a 7 month old named Hazel and 1 year old Chase. Evvie's gonna show them a note or two.

Interestingly, Matt (our instructor) metioned that "harmony" happens only when different notes are sung. Thus, nobody should worry about singing badly. It's just deepening the harmony (garnering a sigh of relief from this off-tune crooner).

Birthday Girls!

We made it to the birthday party all a'shawl. Ava was rife with April Fools' jokes- that child was born on the right day! Grammy Prince got to read to all the girls, who were incredibly patient waiting for the presents.

Sometimes, though, the packaging is more fun than the presents!

At nearly 17 months old, Evvie finally sampled her first cake! It was carrot (mama's favorite) and the two of them had a great time snarfing it down.

When the day was done, Evvie couldn't handle a bit more excitement, and was crashed out by the end of the driveway!

Showin' off the Shawl, Y'all!

We're heading off to a double birthday party of cousins Ava and Iris. It's a special occasion warranting a party dress and shawl.

Thanks, Auntie Zoe!

Last Day for Dogs

We brought Ruby down to Popham Beach State Park on the last day dogs are allowed until November 1. The tide was super-high, but we managed to find some beach and sand to get into our clothes.
You can see, the beach has eroded over the winter too this dramatic point. (Don't worry, grandmas- she's not as close to the edge as she looks)


Evvie was pretty excited about her seashells (or "sissues" as might better phonetically represent her dialect) and driftwood. Brushing sand off the log was a ner second for exciting activity.

It's still so much fun to discover new things with her. Showing her the nuances of the world helps me to really see them, too, and that compounds the joy of having a child. Seeing her delight in the smallest things that I might otherwise overlook makes me as thankful for life in general as well as for her precious existence.

Images of a Big Messy Breakfast

Toast with almond butter, raspberries, blueberries, & yogurt.
She's not usually this messy, but we had sticky-handed game of peek-a-boo in the middle of eating.

Dog's Don't Understand "Pop Goes the Weasel"

Clearly Evelyn is the more enthusiastic of the pair about her new game. She's quite fond of climbing into the toybox recently, and now that she's discovered that she can "POP" out of it, the comedy level quadruples.

She's been doing great this week after a difficullt few weeks. At daycare on Monday Hallie got the "We need to talk..." from her provider regarding how unhappy Evvie's been there. She sobs and wants to be picked up. She does like to be picked up a lot at home, too, and we worry that we're coddling her too much. The defensive parent in me wants to shout out that she's teething, has been sick, and is 17 month old- prime for maximum separation anxiety. I think it's a combination of all these factors, and now that the illness is gone, she & I had a great day Tuesday, she had a very successful day at daycare on Wednesday, and so far she's been an independant champ today. I've been able to get some work done as she amuses herself around the living room and checks back every so often.

She also ate a farmer's breakfast this morning- a whole piece of toast with almond butter, about a1/2 cup of chopped raisins (she doesn't chew them much, and they often come out whole), 4 oz of yogurt, and dozen or so frozen blueberries. Strictly meat for lunch, though as she scarfed the curried chicken I made her. (She had been off the meat lately, but if you can somehow make food yellow, she'll try it.)

She made a few calls this morning, babbling to Grover, I think. She was probably telling him about how uninspired Ruby dog was by her new game.

Kitty Feet

Yes, Evvie only knew her Great-Grammy Kitty for a few months, but she evidently responded to her pedagogic bipedal discombobulation.

Maine Maple Sunday

Today was Maine Maple Sunday, and we thought it would be fun to get the girls together to visit a Sugar House. It had snowed overnight, so the day was pretty for late March. All the dingy snowbanks were coated with a pristine new layer and the tree branches were highlighted against the sky.

The day was a so-so success.

We visited the Norlands Living History Center with the prospect of a working sugar house, oxcart rides and a big pancake breakfast with fresh maple syrup. Unfortunately, we seemed to choose the wrong place to visit, as it was super crowded and the pancake makers were unable to keep up wth the demand. After a disappointment for breakfast, however, we did tour the barn and saw a ton of great animals.

I found out that Evvie knew the word "Ox" as she pointed to an animal that I was about to call a cow. She was right, though, and I was astounded. She clucked at the chickens, oinked at the pigs and ogled the cows. We also saw a newborn (1-day-old) lamb. Joe remarked at how it was already standing after one day. It took Evvie 10 months to do that. (But the lamb will probably NEVER say "Ox").

Somehow I missed taking any good pictures, but here's a few anyway.

Evvie was pretty much ready for a nap at this point, so we had do leave before the carriage ride or trip to the sugar house(something to shoot for next year). Ava and Iris had more energy, so hopefully they enjoyed the remainder of the day!

After napping on the ride to Grammy and Grandpa's, we had a great afternoon climbing the stairs, playing animals on the computer, playing outside on the pad, and watching the birds.All in all it was a very eventful day that wore us out.