Dress Up

drinking milk from a "special" cup

yes, that is a margarita glass

and yes, she is wearing her fairy Halloween costume

this beautiful dress finally fits! 

direct from Aunt Paula & Hilary's trip to China a couple years ago

"oh my goodness"

Jill loves playing dress-up.

Baby Rabies, a hilarious blog I try to follow on a regular basis, mentioned The Hair Bow Company in a recent post.  I shouldn't have gone to this website.  It has the cutest wings, hair bows (obviously, by its name) and tutus.  And they're cheap!

The ribbon fell apart within 2 minutes.  That's because Jill was using it like a Swiffer. 

Maybe she's not a complete tomboy after all.  We shall see...

The Zoo

 On Sunday morning, we headed to Roger Williams Zoo in Providence.

It was my birthday and I really wanted to do something fun as a family.

First stop was to see the seals.  Seals are always a hit, especially now that Jill "swims" in the tub.  Maybe she thinks she is a seal ....?

 quick break

The giraffes and elephants were inside.  Jill looked mildly shocked by the three giraffes galloping around and acting very playful toward each other.  She wasn't as impressed with the elephants.  It's not like they can move as quickly in such a confined area!

 Can you do the penguin walk?  Jill can.

 jump chart - a spider can jump 2ft?  I was totally grossed out by this statistic.

 With Dad's assistance, Jill jumped as far as a moon bear!

 again

 and again

 Which exhibit do you think was Jill's favorite?

It surprised us, but Jill loved the very playful otter named Slip.  Jill smiled, squealed and laughed as Slip dove in and out of the water, again and again, and again.

Where else can you get this close to a bald eagle? 

Very cool.

A successful trip to the zoo.  We will definitely be back!

Potty Training, Sort Of

"Potty!," Jill yells.  Deep down I knew she is messing with me and not likely to actually go on the potty but still the excitement takes over and I rush her to the toilet.  Tonight was no exception.  No pee.  She stood behind me while the tub filled with warm water, admiring herself in the mirror.  And then she peed, all over the tile floor, right next to the potty.  Like a step away... I turned my head to laugh so that she wouldn't see me.  No need to reinforce peeing on the floor.

"Stop!," I yell as Tony opens the bathroom door.  He comes inches from stepping in the yellow puddle. 

Good thing we've molded into fairly relaxed parents and things like this just end up giving us a good laugh!  We'll talk about it again tonight before bed and it will turn into a funny story to tell in the potty training saga.  You know, like when her first date comes to the house in about 28 years.

All About Jillian

(but when is it not?)

showing me her scrapbook from school while ripping selected pictures out and throwing them on the floor

playing outside a few months back - the wild one who swung from the monkey bars

Is it just me or does this kid have HUGE hands? 

playing with Joey, enjoying some carrots, washing her hands, brushing her teeth and painting with an apple

Back to Boston

 skimming rocks at Wollaston Beach

Ok, this was funny.  I was folding laundry in the living room Monday night when Tony was like, "Meg, come here!" Jill was sitting on the kitchen floor going through my work bag.  She had put on my sunglasses and flipped her hair off her shoulder.  Future fashion diva?

My drink less strategy for the work trip to Playa del Carmen = drink red wine.  I hate it and I'll sip slowly.  Well apparently I just hadn't tried the right red yet.  I don't know which they served at the dinners but it was delicious.  As I was telling our friend, Ethan, this Saturday night at the house he seemed slightly offended.  I completely forgot that he gave us a bottle of red for our housewarming, years ago.  Well we cracked it open and it was sooooooo good!  Thank God Tony and Ethan stuck to beer so I could savor this bottle for a few more days.

The Summer is Looking Good

What are the two top ways to make friends quickly?

1) win the lottery

2) buy a power boat

so we bought a boat and will technically own it next Saturday

sleeping quarters

Jill's room

dinner (ummm cards) table

already a Captain

Nana came with us to put the deposit down last weekend.  It was the first time we (Kim, Jill and I) had seen "Sas-Sea" and it was very exciting!

The Power of Words

This short video was shown at my work meeting in Playa del Carmen.  It gave me goosebumps and still does.  It's worth the two minutes it takes to watch. No doubt about it.

http://youtu.be/Hzgzim5m7oU