9.27.2010

Fall Festival Time!!

The Grandparents were in town this weekend to enjoy some QT with EC and for Papaw’s birthday on Sunday.  We also got to see EC’s cousins Macy and Makayla and Aunt Mandy and Uncle Gary on Saturday. 

We went to the Fall Festival in Duluth on Saturday afternoon.  It was a G.R.E.A.T. festival but the fact that it was 95 degrees was not GREAT.  The girls mainly enjoyed the little carny rides and the playground.  EC rode the Merry-Go-Round with her Papaw and she couldn’t have been happier!!!

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Unfortunately, her cousins did not take to it that same way she did!

girls merry go round

But they came alive at the playground, where they all enjoyed plenty of slide time … in addition to spilling at least 3 of our adult beverages!!!

3 girls

Unfortunately, EC was a little under the weather (and continues to be a few days later) and was not the most cheerful little girl for the rest of the weekend.  We think she might be getting in her final two teeth!  Or it could just be a random virus … who knows!!  She did manage to wrap Papaw around her little finger while he was here since she immediately began calling him by name, and pretty much didn’t leave his side the whole weekend!  

For comparison’s sake, couldn’t help but post a pic from the last birthday.  What a difference a year makes!!!

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9.12.2010

Weekend at Home

We stayed around the house this weekend and Emmy Cate was more than happy to play with all of her toys and hang out.  She especially enjoyed playing with Play doh and coloring with crayons.  We also read many, many books, which has become one of her favorite activities. 

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EC playdoh 1 EC playdoh 2

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We received our CCS newsletter this weekend and both Nathan and Emmy Cate were featured.  I recently posted about our neighborhood 25th anniversary festival and Nathan winning first place in the race!  The organizers made a special T-shirt for EC so they asked for a picture of her to feature. 

ccs newsletter 

 JNC newsletter ECC newsletter

9.08.2010

Lions and Tigers and Bears Oh My!!

The weather was absolutely amazing this past weekend, and we finally did something we had wanted to do with Emmy Cate for a long time – a trip to the zoo! 

EC gorilla

Emmy Cate loved seeing all of the animals!!  There were 2 pandas – a mama (or papa) bear, and a “little” baby.  They were both really close to the windows and we had fun seeing these magnificent creatures up close and personal. 

Emmy Cate pointed out everything and said “See”.

EC panda 2

All of the monkeys were pretty cool and Emmy Cate can say “monkey” too!  After seeing orangutans, gorillas, and other monkeys, she posed with Daddy for some pics.

EC daddy with gorilla 

EC and daddy

We enjoyed the kids area complete with a petting zoo.  There were plenty of goats and sheep for EC to love on, and she was really into petting them.  She thought they were pretty neat and liked feeling the different textures of their fur.   

EC petting zoo 2

EC petting zoo 1

After hitting a couple of exhibits, Emmy Cate really got into trying to spot the animals in their habitats.  She was pretty good at pointing out things to you if she saw it first!  

EC watching monkeys EC watching orangutans 

I think her favorites were the monkeys, who were jumping around chasing each other, the pandas because they were so close to us, and the petting zoo because she got to touch!! 

naked mole ratesEC meerkat

EC flamingos 2

Emmy Cate’s grasp of new words has really exploded the past few weeks.  Even her teachers have commented on how advanced her vocabulary is compared to the other kids!  I think we stopped counting once she reached about 20, but her latest words are Mommy (yay!!), monkey, bird, bump, side (for outside), no, Elmo, Cookie (for Cookie Monster), puppy (this is a favorite), car, nite nite, more, and Minnie (for her fav stuffed animal Minnie Mouse).