Alexa enjoys a nice stroller ride on the boardwalk!

This is one of my favorite parts of the weekend. We took Alexa out in the stroller for a nice walk down the Ocean City Boardwalk! She had a great time people watching. We used a new stroller umbrella to keep her out of the sun. We all had such a good walk!

Oh, had to add this cute picture. This is Alexa in her car seat on the ride home. Look at her hugging her leg! So cute!

Alexa's first trip to the BEACH!

Alexa enjoyed playing with the tube of sunscreen, an empty water bottle, her sippy and some plastic dolls. Note to self: Buy beach toys to keep her occupied!

Alexa liked the beach... As long as she was in our arms! She loved flying through the air and bouncing.

However, once we put her down so she could get her feet wet in the ocean... Not so much. (Is it bad that even though she is NOT happy, I still think she is so darn cute?!)

She did like playing with her friends!

Alexa's 2nd trip to the Jersey Shore!

We had a nice drive up to the shore today. And Alexa got to visit Grandpa Howard's store, Wild Garden Accents, for the first time! She loved it. So many fun colors, fish, flowers... Check out how cute she is!!!

Click to enlarge!

Later that day, Alexa got to see cousin Jessie! She loved touching Jessie's hair. She was all smiles and had a ball with her cousins!

Click to enlarge!

Alexa likes her new Sippy cup!

We've been trying to get her to use a Sippy cup and she's finally figured it out! First she sucked on the bottom of the cup... Then she tried the handle... And finally, she found the spout! Yay!

Also, Alexa has figured out how to give zerberts! Her wet, open-mouthed kisses now come with a little puff of air and a funny sound, followed by Alexa giggles! Apparently when Daddy was giving her zerberts on her belly, she was paying attention!

Pssssssst! Click on the photo collage to enlarge!

So who did Alexa vote for on American Idol?

She picked the winner! Not who I would have chosen... But Alexa has her own opinions already!

The next American Idol! (video)

In honor of American Idol's finale his week, Alexa grabbed her microphone and started practicing her new song! Oh yeah, she is that good. She screams better than Adam Lambert!

Click HERE to watch her sing!

Alexa visits the monuments!

We took Alexa and Flat Stanley to see the monuments on the National Mall today! It was a bit overcast, but nice and cool. Here we are at the Lincoln Memorial, which is Daddy's favorite monument. It's hard to believe that a little more than a year ago, Daddy and I were here watching a star-studded concert on the eve of Obama's inauguration!

Mommy and Alexa relax during a walk down the Mall to the World War II Memorial.

Daddy talks to Alexa about the memorial... But she's tired and would rather sleep. So back to the car we went!

Finally, we headed back to our old neighborhood for lunch! After a nap and a big lunch, Alexa was all smiles!

Alexa loves her Mommy and Daddy!

Look at my cute little princess! She is so cute I can't stop hugging her! I also can't decide which picture of us I like more... She's just too stinkin' cute!

In the sunroom, Alexa kept crawling over to her Da-Da. She even grabbed his hand! So cute!

As you can tell from these pictures today, Alexa is already recovered from her fever! It's been gone now for more than 48 hours and she did not take children's Tylonol all day. We still took her in to the doctor this morning to be sure and she was pronounced "on the mend." (And she weighed in at 16 lbs, 1 oz)

We decided to skip swim class so she could keep getting better and instead went for a nice walk along the Capitol Crescent Trail! We then drove out to Virginia to attend a fundraiser event for Aunt Chimmy's Walking with African's Foundation. Alexa danced to African music and charmed the crowd!

When we got home, she played in the sunroom with a new toy microphone. She's like, what on earth am I supposed to DO with this? I can't talk yet, let alone SING!

Oh, here's something I can do with it! I can eat it! Oh, yes, Alexa loves the microphone. She will be a star for sure!

Our Little Trooper

Alexa had a fever, so I stayed home with her today. Don't anyone worry, she's fine! But once she had a fever at daycare, we had to take her home and keep her home for 24 hours. She mostly slept and wanted to be held. We think she's also teething, which probably does not help! Anyway, we went to meet Daddy when he got home from work and she flashed us this adorable little smile! Awww!

Last Weekend's Swim Class!

Ooops! Look what we forgot to post. Some more photos of Alexa enjoying her swim class! These are from last Saturday, before she got dolled up to go to the two parties. Enjoy!

More cute outfits from cousin Amanda!

Just had to say again how awesome it is to have a big cousin like Amanda who gave Alexa a bag of her too-small clothes. Here are 3 outfits she wore to daycare this week, thanks to cousin Amanda!

The stinkin' cute denim leggings and adorable jeans are from Grandma E. Momma can only take credit for that cute hat and the kicks. But, hey, accessories are important, right?!

The ladies at daycare, by the way, were ga-ga over her denim leggings, heart T-shirt and hat... They were like, "Alexa is always in the cutest outfits!"

Alexa meets Flat Stanley!

Flat Stanley Lambchop is staying with us for a week, and Alexa got to meet our house guest today! She was in a really unhappy mood before she met Flat Stanley. And I mean REALLY UNHAPPY!

Is it bad that even though she is fussying, I still think she is soooo adorable?! Anyway, as soon as I pulled Flat Stanley out, she immediately started smiling and reaching for him!

Look how cute... It's Alexa and Flat Stanley! By the way, if you want to see what Flat Stanley is up to, click HERE to read his blog!

Alexa is 8 MONTHS!

OK, so we are more than a week late. But Alexa's 8-month birthday was a busy day! It was Mother's Day and we were up in New Jersey. Here is her 8-Month photo, taken when we got home from NJ. Look how cute she is! Love the hair bow from Aunt Chimmy!

And, here are some fun facts about Alexa at 8 months!

• She can CRAWL! Not just commando crawl, but REALLY crawl. On her KNEES!
• Continues to pull up -- on everything!
• Wears shoes to daycare every day, but when I put them on her feet, she'd rather put them in her mouth!
• Given the nickname "Smiley Girl" at daycare because she smiles all the time!
• Lights up with the biggest smile in the world when we pick her up at daycare or get home from work!
• Says "dada" and "mom" and "hi" ... and we suspect that she knows what they mean!
• Gives big sloppy open-mouthed kisses to mommy, daddy, grandma -- and even herself in the mirror!
• Is able to copy me when I do things like slap my hand on the floor or blow on her face!
• Can give us FIVE if we hold out our hand! (She's been doing this for a couple months...)
• Kicks her feet together and smiles when she's in a swing!
• Enjoys her weekly swim class!
• Loves to watch other kids or babies
• Reaches her arms toward us to be picked up. Awwww!
• Wears a size 2-3 in Pampers diapers and 6-9 months in clothes although a few 3-6 month outfits still fit (Her Baby Naming dress and sweater are size 3-6 months) 
• Has a Hebrew name: Zameret Aviva!
• Now has enough hair to wear cute hair clips. Yay!
• Still has NO teeth but we swear one (or several) are about to pop any day!
• Does not like to lay still during a diaper or outfit change
• Has tried many new foods -- apricots, butternut squash, corn, tomato, plums. Plus a bagel and soft serve yogurt!
• Now eats breakfast, lunch, afternoon snack and dinner, along with 3 bottles and two nursings!
• Has picked up a Puff with her thumb and pointer finger and put it in her mouth! Usually she just plays with them though
• LOVES gnawing on the Earth's Best teething crackers
• Now eats dinner in her high chair (at restaurants, sits in high chair too!)
• Now takes her bath in an inflatable tub inside the big tub
• Understands cause and affect: Bangs her cups together in the bath and hits a soft block with a rattle inside to make a noise
• Has favorite toys and can recognize and reach for them, such as her yellow duckie
• Has ridden the Metro and rode in a shopping cart!
• Continues to consistently sleep from 7:30 p.m. to 6:30 a.m. without so much as a peep!
• Has picked up excellent sleep habits. We put her down and walk out of the room and she might squawk for a second, but quickly curls up and puts herself to sleep. Also, on the monitor, we'll see her crawl around her crib, sit up, and then plop back down and go to sleep!
• Wakes up with a groggy smile. :-)

Who's cute? Who's cute? So cute!

We had a nice day relaxing and doing errands. Then we went to a BBQ at a nearby temple that we wanted to learn more about. Here we are back at home with our cutie pie. She was all smiles and kisses! And very talkative! Sooooo cute!

And here is Daddy with Alexa, who has gone from dadadadadadadadadada to definitely saying "dada" and we think she knows who that is! She also at times says "ma" or "mama." And once we swear she said "hi." Are these first words? Not sure... But, maybe!

Alexa gets dolled up to party!

We had a busy day! First, we headed to swim class. Next, we drove to a Stella & Dot jewelry show at our friend's house. Here is Alexa and I with friends Kristin and Katilyn!

Outside, the girls played on blankets. And after Alexa saw Kaitlyn's cute hair clip, she wanted one too!

Our final stop was a co-worker's bbq back in Bethesda. Alexa charmed everyone. Seriously, my co-workers couldn't stop gushing about how cute she is! I couldn't agree more.

Alexa tries out her NEW bath!

Alexa is getting a little big for her infant tub... And she keeps trying to stand up in it! Doh! So we got a Snug Tub for her to use in the big tub. We tried it for the first time tonight and she seemed to like it, but it was a chore trying to hold on to her! We'll see... I still like how easy the infant tub is to use.

Thanks cousin Amanda for this cute outfit!

Alexa got a huge bag of 6-month and 12-month outfits from her big cousin Amanda this past weekend! What a thoughtful gift! She wore one outfit yesterday... And here she is this morning wearing another one! So cute, they fit perfectly! Thank you, Amanda!

Animals at daycare

Another mom took these pictures of the babies at daycare today... Apparently the parent's group paid for some farm animals to come visit the kids! Alexa looks tired. Wish I had been there!

Alexa's 1st ride in the supermarket cart!

Look how cute! Today my conference ended early, so I picked up Alexa and we headed to the supermarket. Had to buy more baby food! Check out Alexa in her new Buggy Bag cart cover. It was very easy to use and looked so comfy! Alexa played with her toys and was a good girl the whole shopping trip!

Alexa was a little hungry when we got home, so she had a small bottle. Look at her drinking her own bottle! She was like, go away, Ma, I know what I'm doing! Apparently she feeds herself at daycare sometimes. How cute is that?!

Alexa's 1st ride on the Metro!

Mommy needed the car to drive to a conference today, so Daddy took Alexa home from daycare on the Metro! By all accounts (well, just Daddy's version), the ride was uneventful and Alexa slept the whole way. I imagine everyone who saw her was struck by how cute she is and probably any other mommas on the train were secretly jealous.

Lots to Celebrate: Alexa is 8 months! My first Mother's Day! Yay! (video)

We got an early start on the day and headed out to watch cousin Jason's baseball game. Alexa was bundled up and totally adorable (duh!) in her Aunt Missy's arms. She also hung out with cousin Samantha!

Later, we went inside the gymnasium so she could crawl around. She was fast! Click HERE to watch a video of our little athlete sprint crawling across the floor!

After some naps and relaxation, we headed to Aunt Missy's for a Mother's Day BBQ. Check out this adorable pink crochet hat Alexa got from Aunt Missy! So pretty! Alexa was stunning in her cute bubble dress. Such a cutie pie!

When we got ready to drive home to DC, we fed Alexa dinner, then dressed her in her sleep clothes. She was tired and as a result slept the whole way home. Yeah!

Mother's Day art projects!

Check out my Mother's Day gift from Alexa! She made it in daycare. Daddy included it in his gift to me... A bag filled with goodies, including a gift certificate to a spa day!

Alexa also made gifts for her grandmas and great-grandmas... Butterfly cards made with her footprints! Check it out!

Here are a few behind-the-scenes photos of how the cards were made. Hope you all like them!