Just thought this one was so cute, had to share!Wednesday, May 30, 2007
Communicating -- signs and words!
Our cute girl... just out of the tub!
Our little Sammie is learning and growing all the time. This past few weeks have been a bit of a breakthrough with Sam's communication skills. She's now using a few words, as well as a few signs. It's so fun to ask her questions or tell her things when she's clearly making sense of things for herself:
When she first learned this sign, she would do it five or six times a day, in hopes of being granted a nice bubble bath. She now usually only does it after she eats, as I'm washing her face and hands, cleaning her up. Because she's so consistent, she does get a bath almost every day now, whether she needs one or not!
Samantha has also learned a little sign for "more." When she wants more food or drink, she points her finger into the palm of her hand to ask. I've found she usually wants more raisins, more oranges, more granola bars. And she doesn't usually ask for more veggies. hmm...
So, these last picts are not of Sammie's signs, but instead they are some of the cute things she does these days. She has learned (presumably from Daddy) how to drink from her cereal bowl. As soon as her cereal is all done or "ahhh dahh" (which she now eats with a spoon, by herself!) she finishes it off by sipping down the last bits of milk.
She also climbs up into her chair all by herself, which is her way of telling me she would like something to eat. Yesterday and today, she seemed to be climbing up every hour... after breakfast, before lunch, after nap, before dinner... this is a girl with an appetite! I finally told her she would have to wait until dinner and I wasn't getting her any more snacks for a little while. She pulled out the tears and stood by her chair protesting for a good 2-3 minutes.
Samantha is also Mom's good helper girl with a lot of things! She has been helping me unload the dishwasher for a few months now. She pulls out plates, glasses, and pans almost faster than I can grab them from her and stack them safely on the counter to later put in the cupboards. I've been letting her help with the silverware tray recently (after I remove all sharp, dangerous utensils, of course). Here's the product of yesterday's helpful silverware unloader...
First, she helped me put them all away nicely, then she put them all back into the dishwasher tray. Then she was quite insistant that she would handle things on her own and I did not need to help her organize things! I left the end result in the drawer as a special treat for Daddy this morning. heehehe.
Our little Sammie is learning and growing all the time. This past few weeks have been a bit of a breakthrough with Sam's communication skills. She's now using a few words, as well as a few signs. It's so fun to ask her questions or tell her things when she's clearly making sense of things for herself:- She shakes her head for "no" (which I'm actually glad about... delay the 'n' word as long as we can).
- When her food is gone or we finish doing something or all her toys are put away, she say her version of "all done." It sounds more like "ahhh dahh," which is adorable.
- She also says her version of "hi" which sounds like haahhhiee. (long on the "ah" sound, and long on the "eee" sound.)
- She still says her version of Daddy -- "Dadng" -- and seems to be saying it more consistently when Brian is around, as opposed to using it for everything, everywhere.
- She does some animal noises too; the owl says "whoooh, whoooh", the duck says "awwk, aaawwk," and the bear says "grrraarr, grarrr." (I know, those are not the traditional dog, cat, cow noises that kids usually start out with. But we have a book that Sam loves, that has all those less traditional animals with their sounds. So, we're starting her out with some quirky animal sounds.)
Samantha has also learned a few little signs for things. When she wants to take a bath, she pats her belly.
When she first learned this sign, she would do it five or six times a day, in hopes of being granted a nice bubble bath. She now usually only does it after she eats, as I'm washing her face and hands, cleaning her up. Because she's so consistent, she does get a bath almost every day now, whether she needs one or not!
Samantha has also learned a little sign for "more." When she wants more food or drink, she points her finger into the palm of her hand to ask. I've found she usually wants more raisins, more oranges, more granola bars. And she doesn't usually ask for more veggies. hmm...
So, these last picts are not of Sammie's signs, but instead they are some of the cute things she does these days. She has learned (presumably from Daddy) how to drink from her cereal bowl. As soon as her cereal is all done or "ahhh dahh" (which she now eats with a spoon, by herself!) she finishes it off by sipping down the last bits of milk.
She also climbs up into her chair all by herself, which is her way of telling me she would like something to eat. Yesterday and today, she seemed to be climbing up every hour... after breakfast, before lunch, after nap, before dinner... this is a girl with an appetite! I finally told her she would have to wait until dinner and I wasn't getting her any more snacks for a little while. She pulled out the tears and stood by her chair protesting for a good 2-3 minutes.
Samantha is also Mom's good helper girl with a lot of things! She has been helping me unload the dishwasher for a few months now. She pulls out plates, glasses, and pans almost faster than I can grab them from her and stack them safely on the counter to later put in the cupboards. I've been letting her help with the silverware tray recently (after I remove all sharp, dangerous utensils, of course). Here's the product of yesterday's helpful silverware unloader...
First, she helped me put them all away nicely, then she put them all back into the dishwasher tray. Then she was quite insistant that she would handle things on her own and I did not need to help her organize things! I left the end result in the drawer as a special treat for Daddy this morning. heehehe.
Friday, May 25, 2007
A good day for Samantha
If Samantha could remember today, I think she'd probably count it as a good, fun-filled day. Since she most likely won't remember it, I'm writing a bit for her. This morning, our good friend Ana offered to take Sammie for a few hours to play at the park and have lunch. What a nice idea! (I especially loved the few hours' free time, and chose to meet Brian for lunch at his work.)
Ana came at a little after 10 and the two of them headed to Swiss Cottage to the park. This evening, Ana emailed me the fun pictures they took together....
Ana is from Brazil. She speaks Portuguese, English, Italian and Spanish! Very talanted and beautiful Latina woman. She goes to our church and is always sooo good with the children. Obviously, Sam thoroughly enjoyed herself.
Sam is a big girl and LOVES going down the slide ALL BY HERSELF! Only, I have to say that the last time I let her go down this particular slide in the picture, she got going a bit too fast and triple-rolled off the end when she got to the bottom. She's been going more s-l-o-w-l-y down slides since then, catching herself if she gets up too much momentum.
After the park, Samantha came home and had a VERY long nap until about 5 pm. Then she played with toys for awhile until it was apparent her Dad would not be home for dinner. I thought it would be fun to get out of the house and go see Brian at work, so Samantha and I got dressed and went for a fun ride on the Tube down to Daddy's work...
Sammie LOVED seeing her daddy's fun office. She helped him keep track of his cell phone (or you might say she refused to let go of it), and she helped him tidy up some of his folders and binder clips, too. In this shot below, she was just getting ready to dive across the desk and reach her dad's Blackberry (the little calculator-looking thing on the right).
Samantha also really enjoyed running through the halls at her dad's work. She wandered into an empty conference room at one point, and was thrilled to find a big table, lots of chairs, and cupboards across one whole wall. She promptly closed the door to the conference room and LOCKED the deadbolt!! Here she is, playing with me through the frosted glass next to the door...
Apparently, she thought it was a pretty good game for awhile. She ran around the room, pushing the chairs around, opening drawers, and climbing into cupboards. In the meantime, we were trying to locate a security guard to come open the door for us. It took about 15 minutes before we were able to get her out, crazy girl! I promise, she only cried for the very last minute, and even then it was half-hearted. :)
Well, so dinner at Brian's work was a lot of fun for Sam. She ran around the empty cafeteria while we ate delicious food. She came by occasionally to get a drink of smoothie or a bite of tomatoes. When it was over, Brian kissed us goodbye and Sam and I headed home for the night. She ended up going to bed a couple hours later than usual, but I don't think she minded too much. What a fun day, huh Samantha??!
Ana came at a little after 10 and the two of them headed to Swiss Cottage to the park. This evening, Ana emailed me the fun pictures they took together....
Ana is from Brazil. She speaks Portuguese, English, Italian and Spanish! Very talanted and beautiful Latina woman. She goes to our church and is always sooo good with the children. Obviously, Sam thoroughly enjoyed herself.
Sam is a big girl and LOVES going down the slide ALL BY HERSELF! Only, I have to say that the last time I let her go down this particular slide in the picture, she got going a bit too fast and triple-rolled off the end when she got to the bottom. She's been going more s-l-o-w-l-y down slides since then, catching herself if she gets up too much momentum.
After the park, Samantha came home and had a VERY long nap until about 5 pm. Then she played with toys for awhile until it was apparent her Dad would not be home for dinner. I thought it would be fun to get out of the house and go see Brian at work, so Samantha and I got dressed and went for a fun ride on the Tube down to Daddy's work...
Sammie LOVED seeing her daddy's fun office. She helped him keep track of his cell phone (or you might say she refused to let go of it), and she helped him tidy up some of his folders and binder clips, too. In this shot below, she was just getting ready to dive across the desk and reach her dad's Blackberry (the little calculator-looking thing on the right).
Samantha also really enjoyed running through the halls at her dad's work. She wandered into an empty conference room at one point, and was thrilled to find a big table, lots of chairs, and cupboards across one whole wall. She promptly closed the door to the conference room and LOCKED the deadbolt!! Here she is, playing with me through the frosted glass next to the door...
Apparently, she thought it was a pretty good game for awhile. She ran around the room, pushing the chairs around, opening drawers, and climbing into cupboards. In the meantime, we were trying to locate a security guard to come open the door for us. It took about 15 minutes before we were able to get her out, crazy girl! I promise, she only cried for the very last minute, and even then it was half-hearted. :)
Well, so dinner at Brian's work was a lot of fun for Sam. She ran around the empty cafeteria while we ate delicious food. She came by occasionally to get a drink of smoothie or a bite of tomatoes. When it was over, Brian kissed us goodbye and Sam and I headed home for the night. She ended up going to bed a couple hours later than usual, but I don't think she minded too much. What a fun day, huh Samantha??!
Sam & Household Appliances, etc.
A little more than three weeks ago, our washer started making a funny noise. Actually, it wasn't very funny, and it was VERY loud. It kind of sounded like a rocket getting ready to launch, every time the washer went into its spin cycle. I got alarmed and called a repairman to come have a look. (Aside - getting a repairman to come to the house is a process in an of itself, which I will not discuss so my blood pressure stays level.) Bad bearings. Or barings. Or baerrings.?? Take your pick! Anyway, he basically said our washing machine was shot. So, we contacted our landlord and got a new one.... THREE .... WEEKS.... LATER! yes, that's another story I won't go into. Things just take long over here. We missed our first delivery time (Sunday a.m. right during church, go figure) and that set us back another half a week for delivery. Anyway, it arrived on Wednesday and let me tell you, I am SOOOOOO grateful for washing machines. Funny how going without makes me so very grateful for what I have. I've done 15 or so loads of wash in the past three days, and still have another few to go before we're back to zero.Sam's been loving living in Appliance Land. Our washer opens in the front, and the dryer sits on top of it... kind of a different set up, I know. But with the washer broken, we took the dryer off and it's been sitting on the floor in our office for a week. Sam is THRILLED that she can fit inside. See below...
She's also been stashing things in the dryer... a butter knife? Some lotion, a few toys, one of her favorite blankets. It's been pretty cute to watch, but at the same time, I'll be happy when our dryer is safely on top of the washer once again!
I also wanted to report that Samantha has been working to conquer her fear of the vacuum. It used to be that every time I got out the vacuum, she would scream and cry and baul the entire time it was out and in use. Well, just this week she's started dealing more rationally with her fear; when I open the closet and pull out the vacuum, Sam makes a b-line for her bedroom, closes the door, and plays inside her bedroom while I do the dirty work. When I'm done, I open the door and she comes out to investigate. If the vacuum is still on the premises, she gets the cord and helps me wind it up to put it away. What a good little helper!
Rats, I had more to write, and more pictures to post, but no time. Will have to wait for another day or something. Hope everyone has a lovely Memorial Day weekend!
Tuesday, May 22, 2007
Back Yard Art
It's been a long time since I've tried to do much with my photography hobby. Sure, I take lots of pictures so I have something to show on my blog. But I haven't actually tried to be creative with my photos since... well, since a long time. :) Today, I actually spent a half hour being "artsy" with the camera in our back garden. I don't pretend to have a fabulous eye for photos, but I enjoy looking for a fun shot or a unique angle. The lighting wasn't terrible today; it wasn't great either. That said, I thought I'd give a sampling of my work.
I started off with Samantha, though I can't say any of my work with her was exceptional... she's too wiggly these days, but still cute, of course. This first one is actually cropped a bit (her belly was hanging out down below), but I love it.
Another cute one here below (I think). Sam always sticks her tongue out like that when she's concentrating on something. Right then, she was about to slide down the slide, which takes much concentration, of course.
Sam smelling the flowers... she generally tries to lick rather than smell.
Sam was trying to grab the camera in the one below. All you can see is her eyes, which, aside from being a bit blurry, looks kinda artsy to me. But the camera grabbing became her only object after this one; she lost all pose-ability. So, I decided to let her play while I took some other pictures of the fence and gate.
I started off with Samantha, though I can't say any of my work with her was exceptional... she's too wiggly these days, but still cute, of course. This first one is actually cropped a bit (her belly was hanging out down below), but I love it.
Another cute one here below (I think). Sam always sticks her tongue out like that when she's concentrating on something. Right then, she was about to slide down the slide, which takes much concentration, of course.
Sam smelling the flowers... she generally tries to lick rather than smell.
Sam was trying to grab the camera in the one below. All you can see is her eyes, which, aside from being a bit blurry, looks kinda artsy to me. But the camera grabbing became her only object after this one; she lost all pose-ability. So, I decided to let her play while I took some other pictures of the fence and gate.
Lucky us, we have a very cool fence and gate in our back yard, and our neighbor's rose bush is growing gorgeous white roses right over the top and down into our yard. How very kind! It made a nice subject for my photo-practice. If you don't like picts with nobody in them, this post probably is not for you. For those who want to critique/admire/browse, feel free. No more comments, just pictures. I'll label them with numbers, just in case anyone wants to comment about a specific picture. The number refers to the picture just beneath it. Enjoy!
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7. (cropped slightly)
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7. (cropped slightly)
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Scotland pictures
Okay, so I'm finally going to post some of the pictures from our lovely trip to Scotland with Alicia and Scott. We had such a nice, relaxing time. Alicia's blog is much more descriptive and entertaining. She tells all about the village of Stevenston, where Scott's dad is originally from. And she has some great pictures. I highly recommend visiting her site (see our sidebar) for more details. Here we are on the beach in Stevenston...
Sam LOVED the water and wanted to dive right in. I had such a hard time keeping hold of her, I lost my glasses in the ocean. Sad day.
Below, Sam does a Laura Ingall's little-house-on-the-prairie run from Daddy toward the water.
Scott, Alicia and Brielle on the beach where Scott's dad and his family were baptized as members of our church, way back in the 1940s.
I know I said Samantha LOVED the beach and water. But let me repeat... Sam LOVED the beach and WATER!! Oh, and the sand... except she didn't want to touch it with her hands. When she fell over, she kind of army crawled along to avoid touching it with the palms of her hands. Funny.
So, the picture below is not just an empty beach shot. If you get out your zoom lense, you'll see the tiny pink spot in the middle; that's Samantha. I have no idea how we took this picture and still retrieved her before she dove in.
We literally dragged Samantha away from the beach and water. (And no, I'm not pregnant... not sure what is going on with my sweater there, but I don't normally look so belly-full!)
Below, a group shot on Stevenston beach. It really was such a lovely little town! And way to go Brian, using the self-timer on our new camera to take this nice pictures of us all.
Cuties in Stevenston...
Brian took about 20 pictures of this gorgeous old church in Stevenston, trying out different settings on our camera. I liked this one the best. The church was beautiful, and one of Scott's ancestors was buried in the cemetary behind.
I already included a shot of the Brig'a'doon in earlier post. Next, is the very beautiful, peaceful view from the top. While we were there, they were having some kind of wedding party at the posh b&b place on the right. The gazebo thing in the background is a monument to Robert Burns. If you haven't heard of him, shame on you and go read up on your Scottish poetry! (O my luv's like a red, red rose, That's newly sprung in June...)
We didn't go in the Burns cottage, is that cheating? Well, we probably would have, but is was closed, it was sprinkling, and the girls were asleep in the cars. All very good excuses, no?
After Stevenston and the western coast, we drove over to Edinburgh to spend our last day. (By the way, that coastal drive on the way over was spectacular, too bad we didn't stop for some scenic pictures, but I bet you can imagine?) We stayed in a really nice Marriott country club that looked like a castle. There was a gorgeous golf coarse out back, which we didn't use, as none of the Hone brothers were along for this trip. 
There were rabbits out front... Brie loved them. Sam was too interested in sprinting across the parking lot to stop and see the rabbits. 
Samantha's main interest in the hotel was the very cool phone. We unplugged it, and she talked on it almost nonstop until bedtime.
In Edinburgh, we toured Edinburgh Castle (Alicia's site has lots more picts of it and descriptions about how cool all the rooms were.)
We also walked the Royal Mile -- the famous High Street of Edinburgh where all the little kilt and cardigan shops are.
We went in one of those really old cathedrals with amazing stained glass windows. I thought this was a nice shot Brian took of the window...
Here's Alicia and me on the Royal Mile. (p.s. No , I did not wear the same clothes every day, but that red sweater was the only warm item I brought, and it turned out to be cold enough that the sweater is in every picture of me.)
The girls did great in Edinburgh, even though it was a long, cold day in their strollers. Just before we left, the rain poured down on us. Both girls hunkered down in their strollers and crashed out. We missed that cute photo op of the sleeping girls, but Brian stole this cute one of Brie sharing a breadstick with Samantha. 
It really was a lovely trip, and so wonderful to share with best friends! That's all for now, folks!
Sam LOVED the water and wanted to dive right in. I had such a hard time keeping hold of her, I lost my glasses in the ocean. Sad day.
Below, Sam does a Laura Ingall's little-house-on-the-prairie run from Daddy toward the water.
Scott, Alicia and Brielle on the beach where Scott's dad and his family were baptized as members of our church, way back in the 1940s.
I know I said Samantha LOVED the beach and water. But let me repeat... Sam LOVED the beach and WATER!! Oh, and the sand... except she didn't want to touch it with her hands. When she fell over, she kind of army crawled along to avoid touching it with the palms of her hands. Funny.
So, the picture below is not just an empty beach shot. If you get out your zoom lense, you'll see the tiny pink spot in the middle; that's Samantha. I have no idea how we took this picture and still retrieved her before she dove in.
We literally dragged Samantha away from the beach and water. (And no, I'm not pregnant... not sure what is going on with my sweater there, but I don't normally look so belly-full!)
Below, a group shot on Stevenston beach. It really was such a lovely little town! And way to go Brian, using the self-timer on our new camera to take this nice pictures of us all.
Cuties in Stevenston...
Brian took about 20 pictures of this gorgeous old church in Stevenston, trying out different settings on our camera. I liked this one the best. The church was beautiful, and one of Scott's ancestors was buried in the cemetary behind.
I already included a shot of the Brig'a'doon in earlier post. Next, is the very beautiful, peaceful view from the top. While we were there, they were having some kind of wedding party at the posh b&b place on the right. The gazebo thing in the background is a monument to Robert Burns. If you haven't heard of him, shame on you and go read up on your Scottish poetry! (O my luv's like a red, red rose, That's newly sprung in June...)
We didn't go in the Burns cottage, is that cheating? Well, we probably would have, but is was closed, it was sprinkling, and the girls were asleep in the cars. All very good excuses, no?
After Stevenston and the western coast, we drove over to Edinburgh to spend our last day. (By the way, that coastal drive on the way over was spectacular, too bad we didn't stop for some scenic pictures, but I bet you can imagine?) We stayed in a really nice Marriott country club that looked like a castle. There was a gorgeous golf coarse out back, which we didn't use, as none of the Hone brothers were along for this trip. 
There were rabbits out front... Brie loved them. Sam was too interested in sprinting across the parking lot to stop and see the rabbits. 
Samantha's main interest in the hotel was the very cool phone. We unplugged it, and she talked on it almost nonstop until bedtime.
In Edinburgh, we toured Edinburgh Castle (Alicia's site has lots more picts of it and descriptions about how cool all the rooms were.)
We also walked the Royal Mile -- the famous High Street of Edinburgh where all the little kilt and cardigan shops are.
We went in one of those really old cathedrals with amazing stained glass windows. I thought this was a nice shot Brian took of the window...
Here's Alicia and me on the Royal Mile. (p.s. No , I did not wear the same clothes every day, but that red sweater was the only warm item I brought, and it turned out to be cold enough that the sweater is in every picture of me.)
The girls did great in Edinburgh, even though it was a long, cold day in their strollers. Just before we left, the rain poured down on us. Both girls hunkered down in their strollers and crashed out. We missed that cute photo op of the sleeping girls, but Brian stole this cute one of Brie sharing a breadstick with Samantha. 
It really was a lovely trip, and so wonderful to share with best friends! That's all for now, folks!
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