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Hi Nama

Day 2: What I Wore

Just like most of my days today I wore jeans, a sweater and whatever else was on top of the laundry pile or at my finger tips. When I saw today’s picture was what I wore, I thought I’d dress it up a bit, but by the time I remembered to take the photo I was already dressed. Keepin’ it real for y’all. 

Yesterday we headed down to the beach to catch the sunset and watch some of the ferries come and go. I tend to forget how easy it is to access the water and what entertainment it can be down there.

We ran into other little families out to catch the last moments of the day, bundled up and pausing to point out the passing boats and trains. Every time we saw another kid, Maggie would stop, point and yell “baby” at the top of  her lungs. She thinks people are either babies or adults, she doesn’t quite grasp the idea of ‘kid’ yet.

Also, my parents got back from their vacation last night and spent the night at our house. I kid you not when I tell you that my dad strutted into the kitchen topless this morning just so we could see his tan. At first, we were all wondering where in the world his shirt was, but then after he puffed his chest a few times, we oohhed and ahhhed at how sun-kissed he was.

I am so happy they’re home. I still talked to them frequently while they were away, but it never felt natural (with the international phone charges and all) as it does when they’re home. I talk with my mom sometimes multiple times a day, so I practically felt like I was missing a limb sometimes not being able to share with her some of our shenanigans.

Maggie got more comfortable with the idea of talking on the phone while they were gone because on Sunday (the pictures of her in red) she was all a sudden talking to my mom without either Barry or I knowing it. We were both in different rooms and heard  a loud “Hi, Nama!!!” followed by a bunch of affirmative answers and stretches of silence. Sure enough, when I checked,  my mom was on the other end of the line.

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La, La, La!!

 

Before I go any further, I implore you to watch Maggie’s latest jam session on the harmonica. Last night Barry and I were sitting with her in the front room and she stood in the middle of the room just stomping her foot and playing her harmonica while we clapped along. She was rocking out and stomping her foot super hard, I had to try and record it. The video is a very toned down version of what she was doing minutes before, but the transition into the computer room meant she lost a little steam. Still funny though…at least to us.

We’ve been having so much fun here now that the snow is melted and our regular routines are back in full swing. Maggie has developed into somewhat of a boss (not sure where she gets that from…must be Barry) and is very, very specific about how we play games with her. Lately Barry has transformed back into Captain B-Nut and they rush up and down the hallway making all kinds of noise. Mags especially likes to run by the mirror to check herself out. (Side note: how cute is Barry? So cute. Best dad ever.)

Last night Barry and I sat on the kitchen floor while she ran circles around the kitchen and hallway. For the first part of the game we accommodated her bossiness and worked with her to say “excuse me” when bustling by. Once she figured out what ‘excuse me’ actually means, she kept saying it to us and the dogs, except it sounds like ‘new me,’ a perfect compliment to her version of thank-you, which is ‘nee-new.’

Eventually though we got bored with her telling US what to do (make sure our legs were stretched out, eyes closed, backs against the cabinets) so we started to throw her for a few loops by switching positions, singing and even kissing, she isn’t a fan of us kissing, but I suppose most kids don’t like to see their parents kiss, right? At first she was really sweet about us not doing it exactly how she wanted, but towards the end she really wanted to restore order to the game. Of course we appeased her.

I feel extremely  cheerful today…perhaps it is the sun peeking through the clouds or the fact that I have book group tonight and get to see some friends. Maybe I’m feeling good about finishing Maggie’s first year photo book (hallelujah!) and can move on to her next one. Yesterday in a fit of needing a change, we reorganized furniture in our house and Maggie’s room. Things here are in constant flux, but the changes feel SO good and fresh. Bring it on, Spring!!!

In these past weeks I’ve been bustin’ my tail to finish Maggie’s book, I’ve found myself looking at tons of old photos and I’m going to try hard to keep  myself from sharing a billion of them, but some are just too good to pass up. (See above image to get my drift.) Since tomorrow is February, my favorite month, I’m going to do a 30 Day Photography Challenge. Since there aren’t 30 days in February, I’ll have to swing into March, but that seems like a great transition.

Alrighty. Did you watch the video of Mags jammin’?  Hilarious stuff around here, folks.

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Quiet Time

                                                                                  ^^Perfect photo of my Grandpa and Maggie. Doesn’t it even look loud?

This past weekend after the snow started to melted away, we decided that we needed to get out of the house in a bad, bad way. So we made grand plans to hit the road and stop by and visit my grandparents and go on a walk without the dogs. (Since we have Sparky with us for a while, walking without them seems like a luxury!) When we arrived at my grandparent’s Maggie instantly checked the corner where all the noisy Christmas toys had been and discovered that they were gone. Not one to be disappointed, she headed to the back room, while dragging my grandma with her, and the two of them worked to carry some toys back out to the living room.

I love that she is familiar enough with their house to know exactly where they keep her toys. I also love that some of the toys that she plays with are the same toys that I played with as a child, I suppose that means they’re vintage. But the toys weren’t really the highlight of  the visit, it was the washcloth that came out with the toys that seemed to garner the most attention. At first she placed the washcloth on Sue’s head and they had a game together, where we discovered that Sue has the ability to talk exactly like Grover from Sesame Street.  But I digress….

Maggie proceeded to place the washcloth on everybody’s head and we all went along with it; however, when she put the washcloth on my grandpa’s head, he went wild in his typical Grandpa Elvrum fashion.  My grandma instantly tried to sush him, which I found hilarious because my grandfather doesn’t do quiet. It just isn’t in his nature and we love him all the same for it. But his reaction to this game was the same that I know he has had for all of his grandchildren, he just has such an unabashed adoration for us and now Maggie too, his first great grand child. He is a grandpa through and through.

Eventually the game ended and our conversation picked up, but a few minutes later I looked over and noticed that Grandpa and Maggie were quietly looking at the North Dakota picture book of our trip this last summer. You know what? Maybe he does do quiet after all.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                   ^^How Maggie greets Sydney every morning. Poor Syd tries to keep sleeping.