Aunt Jules, Uncle Peter & Annabella Came To Visit!

A couple of weeks ago we got pretty excited about some very special visitors!

















Here's Aunt Jules & Grace...
















And here's Grace trying to get Annabella to lick her toes!

Success!
















What a special treat! Come back soon!

Grace at the Barre

There she is pointing her toes right next to Steve Nash's twins. Please ignore the dumb mommy in the mirror taking the picture...couldn't be helped.

The Making of a Ballerina

Rather than lounging around all day enjoying those lazy days of summer inside...
















Grace has an intensive summer schedule filled with playdates, swimming lessons and a 90 minute ballet, art and gym class twice a week. (Talk about overscheduling kids these days!) Anyhoo, Grace needed the proper ballet attire in order to "feel" and "dance" like the little ballerina she is, so mommy promptly got onto Danskin's website and ordered her a perfect little leotard and skirt for her ballet lessons. And then it was time to get ready for class!

First, we got into the tights....















Then the leotard...
















Then the skirt...















Then it was time to get our hair out of our face so as not to distract from learning the proper ballet positions...
















And now that we had the requisite dress code down pat, a little quiet time alone with our books to get ourselves mentally prepared to be a perfect little ballerina...















Pictures from class to come....

Go, Grace, Go!

Last weekend we decided it was high time to teach Grace how to ride her little car (or whatever you call these things). We first purchased this car in order to help Grace learn to walk. She used to lean on the handle for support and push this little car up and down the hallway. Later, we taught Grace that if you "put your feet up" Mommy and Daddy can bend over and push you around by the handle. Obviously, this killed our backs and, although, Grace loved the ride (and still does), we knew that we couldn't keep this up for much longer. Sooo...time for lessons. And who better to teach the art of driving than dear old Dad.

Here's Grace going for the car the old-fashioned way while Dad looks on...
















Getting ready to mount:
















So far so good...















That's the way, Grace. The feet look good, but staring at the sunglasses while driving is a hazard (no doubt she gets her lack of concentration while driving from Mommy):
















And back to her old ways...
















Good first lesson but lots of work ahead. Not to worry, though. It won't be long before Grace is on the sidewalk Flinstone-ing it along with the other kids.

The Zoo!!

On Saturday we got together with Grace's good buddy Jordan and his Daddy for a trip to the Bronx Zoo. We had a terrific time!! First, we got up close and personal with a goat:



Then we spent some quiet time with the ducks:


Then Jordan and his Daddy paused for some quick photo ops - what a great shirt, Jordan!:

And Grace showed the animals just how much she loves her Daddy:

Speaking of Grace & her Daddy, they decided to check out the animals from a far better & closer vantage point:

All in all, it was very successful day at the zoo. Lots of animals noises, some yummy ice cream, and some good times with good friends makin' memories.

Fun in the Sun with the Wipps & the Mynsters Continued...

These are some of the coolest girls in the land. Thanks for taking such good care of Grace (especially when Brandon and I were able to get away for a nice dinner with your parents). Brandon and I could only hope that our Grace turns out to be as lovely as the three of you!


And a special thank you to Grayson for being so gentle with Grace -- and for sharing all your toys with her...

...even as we discovered that Grace is a ball hog!

Here's Grace having the time of her life in the sprinklers!

And here's Aunt Debbie catching it all on film (digital, of course!).


We really did have a terrific time and will remember it always. We love love love you guys!

Surprise!!

When Brandon, Grace and I realized we would have Fourth of July weekend off, we thought- what better way to spend a nice 5 day weekend away than with friends. And when we realized that 8 of our very best friends were going to be vacationing on one of the most beautiful beaches in the country, we knew we needed to book our tickets, rent a car, and find a place to stay fast! But rather than let them know we were coming (always better to ask forgiveness than permission as Brandon would say) we decided to surprise them!

Here's Grace's very best "Aren't you Happy to See Me??" face:















Here's Grace showing off all that she has learned in swimming class:















Daddy thought a safety swim vest was in order, though - just in case. Doesn't Grace look like a pro??:
















Wee! Daddy works great as a boat, too:
















Daddy & Uncle Don show Grace what a "noodle" is all about:















It wasn't all fun & games, though. We did get some things we needed accomplished - like Grace's second hair cut -- thanks Aunt Debbie!















More pictures to follow, but for now - a great big THANK YOU to David, Ann, Lydia, Madeline, Grayson, Don, Debbie & Molly for sharing your vacation with the three of us. We had a fabulous time and miss all of you already! Much love!!