Curious about George

I bet you know who this is....But did you know that the Curious George history dates back to 1940 when the authors Hans Augusto and Margaret Rey fled Germany with the manuscript in their luggage? They published the first book in the series in 1941 and it has blossomed from there to include dozens of books published in many languages around the world, movies, a PBS television series, and even a ride a Universal Studios.I was never a big Curious George fan as a kid, but I have become one since Grace has gotten interested in him. When we went to see a live performance of the Curious George musical yesterday, we were lucky enough to get to meet George up close and personal. Grace was shy at first, but warmed up enough to give George a high-five and to take a few photos.

(Thanks, Kellie, for the great photography!)

The show itself was a lot of fun singing and dancing with a good message about doing everything with love! How can you go wrong with that?

Little lady

It cracks me up how Grace crossed her leg to read her book in this photo. Now where could she possibly have learned that!

Some bunny loves you

I think Grace had a really nice Easter. She woke up to this "basket" from the Easter Bunny (it is a suitcase from the Disney/Pixar Cars movie because Grace is a big fan!)which she found by following a trail of eggs that went down the stairs, through the dining room and the kitchen, and ended up by the windows looking out onto the lake.

Later in the day, we went to Kyle's sister's house where she participated in her third egg hunt of the week! (I didn't plan it when I dressed her this afternoon, but now that I look at the photos the circles on her dress kind of remind me of eggs.)By now Grace is an expert at finding eggs! She knows to look high an low and doesn't mind if she has to squeeze behind a tree to reach one tucked far back!Grace is also great at opening her eggs to see what treasures are hidden inside.She has no trouble convincing Kyle that she needs another piece of chocolate. But, I can't blame him.... How can anyone resist that smile? BUT.....I am hiding the rest of the candy until next week!

Egg-stravaganza

I am one tired kid. I think my mom is pretty tired today, too, because in a moment of weakness, she fell asleep on the couch which gave me some time to work on her 'puter. Why am I so tired? Well, this is our week "off" from work and school but we have been going non-stop since last Saturday. Just check out mom's blog entries and you will see SOME of the things we have been doing. Then, if you add potty training to the mix, you can get an idea of why I am tired and a little cranky. Potty training is stressful, you know. I have to concentrate so I don't have an accident and mom is always asking me or telling me I have to go use the toilet. I wonder how she knows I have to go and sometimes I really don't have to but when I protest she gets upset and then I get upset....you get the picture. But, if you don't, here is one to show you what happens when mom and I butt heads. I never end up winning.

This was a good day, though. I took mom to my friend Dawson's house so I could play with Dawson and Mayna. We had a really good time on the swingset. Ahhh....I could swing all day if someone would push me. Luckily, Tommy and Andy were happy to help out with that.Tommy told Mayna and me to try touching our feet together when we were swinging. It was fun and we giggled a lot. I think mom was enjoying something called a mimosa while I was doing all this work on the swing...

I wore my new sandals to play. Don't you love them? The best thing about them is that I can put them on all by myself. Sometimes they are not on the correct feet, though! But at least they are on and that makes me really proud. I took them off to cool my sweaty, stinky feet in this pitcher of water just like Dawson. In fact, all day I took my shoes on and off about 10 times...just because I could!Dawson, Mayna, and I hid a bunch of Easter eggs outside for the grownups to find. But they were taking too long talking, so we just rushed out to gather them all up. It was an egg-stravaganza with big eggs, small eggs, shiny eggs, and eggs that were funny shapes and didn't look like eggs at all!We all found lots of eggs and put them in our baskets. I tried to grab some of Dawson's when she wasn't looking. Mom was not happy about that!But egg hunting is hard work and I figured why look for them when I can get some that had already been "found". I guess I wasn't supposed to do that!Then, we sat down to see what goodies were inside. I got a bracelet, some squishy bugs, Chapstick, money, candy, a ball, a book, and more treasures I can't even remember right now.We played for a long time today and every time Dawson, Mayna, and I get together we become better friends. Our moms say it is fun to watch us interact, but I'm not really sure what they mean by that.We're not doing anything special...we are just being kids!

Build a Bunny

The first thing we did in New York on March 27th was go to the on 5th Avenue to make this bunny for Grace.
I love this kid! She has her mind set on what she wants, doesn't ask for too much, and when you tell her it is time to put something back on the shelf, she does! Love it!

Looking for the perfect one...

Grace was a little tired from getting up at 5 AM, flying to NY, and riding in a taxi and a bus. And, the stroller didn't help. We hardly ever use it at home, but with the busy NYC streets and crowds I felt better knowing she was strapped in where I could protect her. The problem is, she was passive and the riding was more conducive to sleep than it was to being a bubbly, almost-3-year old! But, true to form, Grace perked up as soon as it was time to stuff her bunny.

A giggle sound would be cool, Nana.

The man who stuffed her bunny told Grace to press the pedal as she watched her bunny fluff up. (Notice her feet on the pedal!)I love how Grace chose a heart, kissed it, and then put it inside her bunny. It is now named "Rainbow"!

Who's afraid of the big GOOD(!) wolf?

Last Monday (March 29th) morning, we got on the bus (one of Grace's favorite things about New York) and...
...went to see Three, a puppet show at the Swedish Cottage Marionette Theater in Central Park. The show was a mixed-up version of the the classic fairy tales “The Three Little Pigs,” “Three Billy Goats Gruff,” and “The Three Bears".

In this story, the central character, the “Big Bad Wolf,” is given a mission by the “Three Blind Fairy God Mice” to travel into these stories to go from the big bad villain to the “Big Good Wolf.” In his first go-around at redemption the Big Bad Wolf fails miserably, however, with guidance from the Fairy God Mice and the audience, the Big Bad Wolf finally redeems himself and is granted permission to rejoin the beloved fables as the Big Good Wolf.

It was a perfect way to spend a rainy morning. After initially being a little nervous (I have no idea why...the child has been to about a dozen performances in theaters!) she warmed up enough to huff and puff with the wolf and to get up in the aisle to dance and try out some wolf karate!

Cousins

Grace loved spending time with her cousins, Connor (10+) and Ryan (6+). The boys were so sweet and patient with her the entire afternoon. She doesn't get to see them too often but she always points out their photos on our refrigerator and when she saw them last Sunday it was like they had been together playing last week!Nana and Ba seemed to love having their three grandchildren together in one place and watching them interact.

Ryan shared his iPod music with Grace, putting the earbud in her ear.
They sat together on the chair like this for a long time.