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She Writes the Songs That Make Her Whole Foot Sing

One of the unbelievable joys of being a parent is coming up with novel ways to entertain your kid.  Carrie and I both revel in the challenge, but have drastically different styles.  I tend to be more physical, playing games that get Grace moving around.  Contrastingly, as befitting an English teacher my wife tries to engage our daughter's mind with stories and songs.  Her latest single is one of Grace's favorites, and definitely the one I like the most.  So, without further ado, I give you the world premiere of the sure to be smash hit "Singin' Toes".  Enjoy!

I think we can get this played in regular rotation on Sesame Street, give that the corresponding puppet show is already worked out.

She Got Game

Despite being three years older than my sister Amy, she's been taller than me for as long as I can remember.  She sprouted past me sometime around kindergarten and never looked back.  At 6'1", she's got an inch that she'll lord over me at least until we get old and start shrinking.

Amy was always the tallest girl in her class, so naturally she found basketball - or basketball found her - at a really young age.  Now that she has a niece, and a tall one at that, basketball is one of the first things Aunt Amy has tried to pass on.  Amy gave Grace her first basketball and a hoop as a gift, which Grace absolutely adores.

I'm Sure Beetles are a Delicacy Somewhere

We've done our best to make sure Grace is eating right, following our doctor's every guideline and varying her foods to give her the things she likes most often.  Turns out though, our menu was a bit more diverse than we thought.  Yep, the thing Grace eats most often and likes the best is bug milk.

Similac Advance in delicious beetle flavor.

Since we're first time parents, you may expect Carrie and I to be in a panic about feeding Grace recalled formula, but that's not the case.  Even though she's eaten the bug infested gruel every day for the last few months, she's shown no ill effects and it doesn't lead to any serious health risks. So honestly the Similac recall gets a great big "whatever" from us.  If the urban legend is to be believed, we've all eaten a few whole spiders in our sleep, so what's the big deal about a little bit of ground bug powder?

Meeting the Mouse

My mother is a pretty big fan of all things Disney.  More than pretty big, actually.  Obsessive.  Well, maybe a step down from obsessive.  Lets go with dedicated lifelong fanatic.  Anyway, I bring this up because I was going through Grace's closet the other day and came across a Mickey Mouse doll that was buried under an avalanche of clothes and toys.  Given my mom's appreciation for the Mouse, I thought it'd be nice to record Grace and Mickey's first meeting for posterity.  Of course, I thought this after their first meeting had already occurred, so this is their second encounter.  It went pretty much the same as the first though.

Mickey was of course enamored by Grace, while, as she does most things, my daughter found Mickey to be delicious.  Grace didn't really notice my spot on Mickey Mouse voice over, but who can blame her, she had feet to eat.

Things They Don't Tell New Parents #164

Every once in a while, a baby will throw up directly on your face when you're burping her. 

I need a shower and something to wipe this experience from my mind.

Guess We Have to Stock Up on Baby Toothpaste

For the past three months, Carrie and I attributed all of Grace's otherwise unexplained bad moods and sleepless nights to the start of teething.  And, for three months we've been wrong.  That all changed about a week ago, when not one but two teeth cut their way through her bottom gums.

Yeah it's blurry.  You try taking a picture of a wiggling baby.

I'll Teach You to Leave Without Me

Grace's grandparents all love hosting sleepovers for the baby, and once every month or so Carrie and I are more than happy to oblige.  As parents, it's good to get away for a bit to blow off some steam and not be on infant alert at every moment, so it's an incredible blessing that our parents live so close and are so excited to spend time with Grace.

Last weekend was such an opportunity, as we dropped off Grace with my in-laws and headed upstate for a night with some friends.  The Saturday night party was a lot of fun and everything seemed to go off without a hitch, at least until went to pick up our daughter Sunday afternoon.  Grace was furious at us for leaving her behind and spent the rest of the day letting us know all about it.

PPPLLLLLFFFFFFFPPPPTTTTTTTTT!!!!!!

Grace, Carrie and I are all huge fans of funny noises and funny faces.  Mommy and daddy will do just about anything to for a laugh, and baby is always more than happy to oblige

As Grace gets older though, our comic mannerisms are starting to have a side effect.  Namely, mimicry, which our little lady is quickly mastering.  If we stick our tongues out, she sticks her tongue out.  If we make a silly noise, she parrots it back as best she can.  The pinnacle of Grace's pantomiming happened today, right while I was trying to feed her lunch.

Ten minutes of Grace teaching herself how to spit just like mom and pop brought a sudden end to mealtime, leaving daddy covered in peaches and baby thoroughly amused.  It was as scary as it was funny however, as Grace was turning purple from the effort.  No worries though, we're going to spend the rest of the day teaching her how to stop and take a breath.

Next Stop Sea World

Carrie and I taught Grace how to play catch today.  We were at grandma and grandpa's house where there was a beachball lying around.  Since it's colorful and a thing, Grace was immediately fascinated by it, so we let her handle it for a bit.  After a minute or so, she dropped it and we handed it back.  Another minute, another drop and so on for a while.

Eventually Carrie decided to try tossing the ball to Grace instead of handing it to her, and she snatched out of the air on her first try, a pure natural.  Amazed and excited, we kept playing for an hour, taking the ball directly from Grace's hands instead of waiting for her to drop it most of the time.

Toward the end of our catch session, Grace decided to unveil a second skill, not satisfied by just learning how to catch.  We tossed her the ball, which she trapped against the side of her body.  Then, she pushed the ball up over her shoulders and balanced perfectly on the top of her head.  Just like a trained seal.

She stalled it long enough for me to take
out my cell phone and take this picture