Smiling About Crayons

I guess all it took was a jumbo crayon to capture Lucy's winning smile on (digital) film. Hooray!

Thanks to Eema for the photo

(Almost) Using a Spoon, plus Easter

Lucy loves feeding herself these days. For the most part, we're trying to give her as much finger food as possible, but one cannot live on finger food alone. So, Lucy has been learning how to use a spoon (our efforts to spoon-feed her are met with vigorous head shaking and a grabby hand). I think this photo nicely demonstrates the size of the challenge at hand. Yes, that's a dot of cottage cheese in her hair.


Here, also, are some belated Easter photos. The first is of Lucy with her second cousins, Lilly and Henry after their Easter Egg Hunt. The second gives the impression that Lucy was a knowing participant in said hunt. In fact, she had no idea what was going on, but really likes putting objects into containers, so once we located the eggs for her, she was a superstar.

Farm Animals are Terrifying

We took Lucy to see some baby animals at Hancock Shaker Village in the Berkshires yesterday. It was a beautiful day, a gorgeous setting, and the animals were adorable. At least, most of us thought they were. Lucy thought they were terrifying. We spent some time acclimating to the sheep to see if she could overcome her fears, but then one baaed loudly and Lucy erupted into tears again. Here she is in the interlude between tears, looking quite dubious:
We moved on to a room full of cows and piglets, which was even more horrifying. Cows are loud! The chicken coop? Also pretty scary, even when we discovered an egg that a chicken had laid.

Finally, we found a small building with an enclosed box of chicks. Chicks are quiet and Lucy thought they were somewhat interesting. Until she didn't. But we escaped tear-free.

She's a walking powerhouse

Our little lady has been walking tall for over a week, now. Perhaps "walking" is too generous - it is a bit more of a waddle. Regardless, she's able to get herself up to standing and is awfully proud. (we are too!)

Here's a video my mother shot today of Lucy's graceful falls upright walking.

Lucy Goes to the Playground and Other Stuff

Lots of catching up to do...

First, Lucy's hair is getting long! It's at its most comical when wet:


To be fair, we've still got a ways to go before people stop mistaking her for a boy when she's not wearing pink, but we're getting closer and she's definitely not bald anymore!

In other news, the weather is getting nicer, so Lucy, Eema, and I ventured out to the playground today to take advantage of the swings, slide, and sandbox. Lucy met a nice two-year-old who offered to share his shovel, but she thought sitting and staring was more appropriate.


It's been hard for us to catch Lucy smiling on camera - timing is everything. But she's been enjoying life (except for waking up in the mornings) a great deal. So, here's a shot of her on the changing table, pulling her socks off and finding the whole experience hilarious.


Finally, her walking continues to improve in leaps and bounds (not literally) and she will now walk across a room to one of us, collapsing in our arms with a huge grin and a hug. It's WONDERFUL!

Lucy Folds the Laundry

Lucy has taken to "helping" fold the laundry lately. It's lots of fun, though a little less efficient than when I fold it on my own. Here she is taking a break:


And then getting back to the task at hand....


Lucy decided that all of our clothes were best stored in the windowseat in Elliot's and my room. Not surprisingly, Elliot and I did not end up agreeing with her.

In other news, Lucy is starting to walk in earnest. She's still gaining confidence in her skills, but when she does succeed, she's very proud of herself and usually thinks it's all very funny.

Lucy's First Birthday

Yesterday was Lucy's first birthday! So, we had some of our friends and some of her friends over to celebrate. Here she is standing (with the chair for support) with the O'Donnell girls...


And eating cake with me....
And hanging out with Elliot...

What a great birthday!