Yum ... Pizza!

Another trip to our favorite pizza place... Alexa chowed down on the pizza. But Daddy is teaching her some bad manners!

Alexa's latest favorite game ... Play Cards!

Grandma Lil sent Alexa her very first set of playing cards. And they each have a photo of a DOG on them! Needless to say, Alexa LOVES them. She will ask us over and over if she can "Play cards!" Daddy tried teaching her how to play poker, but her favorite game is 52-card-pick-up. :-)

Alexa's new potty!

Last weekend, we took Alexa to Buy Buy Baby to pick out her very own potty. I wanted it to be a special occasion and for her to be excited about her new potty. Well, it worked! She LOVES her new potty! So much so that she wants to sit on it ALL THE TIME! She still has not gone in it, but we got a big surprise when Daddy picked Alexa up from daycare today -- She peed in the potty at daycare! Her first time! Yay!

Tickle! Tickle!

Today is Aunt Jen's Birthday! So in honor of her birthday, we took another video of Alexa! Aunt Jen has been begging me to take more videos. Well, here you go! This is a clip of Alexa cracking up as I tickled her feet. She kept sticking her foot out asking me to tickle. Well, she finally had enough "teek-egle"!

Finally... Alexa's 22 Month Photos!

We tried taking these photos earlier, but Alexa declared NO PHOTO! Then it was too hot to take photos. We tried again and luckily I got these great shots in the first few seconds! Afterward, I showed the photos on the computer to Alexa and she was so excited. She wanted to look at them over and over. Our little model!

All About Alexa at 22 Months:

• Alexa's comprehension is astounding! She understands pretty much everything we say now and repeats a lot of it back. It makes for some interesting conversations! 
• She also seems to understand the concept of "Baby Brother" better now. She'll pat my tummy and say "Baby Brother." And if I tell her that something is for Baby Brother, like a blue elephant or outfit, she seems to understand that it's not for her. 
• Alexa can identify most animals by name and imitate their sounds. We're now working on colors and numbers. She pretends to count by saying number-sounding words in a cadence like she was counting. It's so funny! She can get most colors (red, yellow, blue, purple) but only about 50% of the time.
• Since we drive the same way home, Alexa notices landmarks and asks about things she's seen before, like "baby deer" or "ducks," then when we get closer to where they are, she says "coming up!" And once we turn the corner onto our street, she proclaims "Back in the neighborhood!"
• Her favorite games right now are "play blocks" and "play cards"! She also is loving her new T-ball set and Melissa & Doug color fish puzzle. Many times, she'll push her baby carriage around the house and put every toy she has into it until it's completely loaded down! She also loves all of her purses and bags, which, thanks to Grandma E, she calls "pocket books."
• After being afraid of the pool and beach at the start of the summer, Alexa now loves the pool and loves the beach! She will often ask to go to the pool and/or beach and get excited when we are on our way. In her swim class, she is learning to kick, blow bubbles, climb out of the pool and jump on the count of three. 
• Favorite food of the summer is WATERMELON! She also loves ice cream. Who doesn't?
• Alexa has some good friends who she will ask about, like Tessa, Tai-Tai, Avery, Nick and Brandon! At daycare, she and Nick hold hands while walking down the hall. She and Tessa will run down the hall giggling together, then cry when Tessa has to go to a different classroom.
• Alexa's hair is so long now that she can wear a ponytail! See photo above. She also can wear pigtails!
• When she wakes up, she'll stand in her crib and call for MOMMY or DADDY!
• She is still wearing some 12-month and 18-month items but everything we are buying her now is 24-month or 2T. And apparently her feet have been on a growth spurt... She's now a 6.5! 

Finally, here is a look at Alexa over the last year:

Alexa loves her new dragon!

If you recall, Alexa met a blue dragon last year at Papa Howard's store. So when Papa Howard needed a photo for an advertisement, he asked if Alexa would mind being one of his models! Check it out!

So imagine our surprise and delight when Papa Howard gave Alexa the same blue dragon! Every time we go into the back yard, she runs over to say hi. She has tried to sit on his head and sometimes, she waters him with water. It's so cute!

More outfits for Baby Brother!

We swung by Target this past weekend to pick up more storage bins to pack up the office, which will be Alexa's new room. While we were there, I found this adorable Dwell Studio alphabet outfit for Baby Brother on clearance! I also found this cute onesie for him to wear on next year's July 4th holiday!

"Pop-Pop Show" with Avery!

With the forecast predicting another brutally hot day, we decided to check out the Glen Echo puppet show! It's a great option for an indoors activity. Last time we took Alexa, she was only mildly interested in it and couldn't sit still at all. This time, she was still restless but did much better! The show was called "Baby Bear's Birthday" so she LOVED singing the Happy Birthday song at the end. Meanwhile, friend Avery, who is a year older, was mesmerized. Here are Alexa and Avery after the show. They ran around together and even held hands. So cute!

After the puppet show, we headed back to Bethesda for lunch. But first, we stopped at Barnes & Noble and Alexa had a blast playing with the train set! Hmmm. Should we get her some trains for her birthday?

Teamwork!

Alexa was so excited to see her friend Brandon at swim class today. The kids even teamed up to figure out how to open this big fence. Alexa was sure that it could be opened. Brandon wasn't so sure, but he helped out anyway. Since they were working on the wrong end of the fence, we were more than happy to let them try as hard as they wanted! Soon, swim class started and the kids forgot all about the fence.

After swim class, we headed to our favorite local pizza place. Alexa loves coloring while we wait for the pizza. She often asks me to draw her a dog and then colors the dog. She also likes us to draw her a giraffe or elephant!

Alexa finally has an Elmo t-shirt!

Actually, she has about a half dozen Elmo shirts! I was trying to find ONE and finally turned to eBay. I bid the minimum on one, then saw another one I liked. Then another. I ended up getting THREE shirts (only about $5 each)! One is long-sleeves so I'll save that for the Fall. Meanwhile, my mom swung by a thrift store and found a ton of Elmo, Zoe and Minnie Mouse shirts, plus some Elmo overalls (all only about $1 each)! Here is Alexa showing off one of them:

If you haven't heard the story of why I wanted to get Alexa an Elmo shirt, let me catch you up: Turns out that Alexa is now at an age where she likes to have a say in what she wears! This can mean trouble in the morning if the only shirt she wants to wear is her "monkey shirt," which is dirty from being worn the day before. At the same time, Alexa is also really into Elmo. So it should not have surprised me that one day, she came home from daycare and proclaimed that her friend Tessa has an "Elmo shirt." She continued to tell me every day about Tessa's Elmo shirt, so I figured the only thing for a good mommy to do would be to buy Alexa an Elmo shirt too.

Well, thanks to grandma and eBay, Alexa how has way more Elmo shirts than her friend Tessa has! I do not mean for this to become the standard way that we'll deal with things in the future... Just because one of her friends has something, that does NOT mean mommy and grandma will buy her 10 of that item! But for now, an Elmo shirt is pretty harmless. And so cute. Here is the rest of her stash! Stay tuned for more pics of Alexa rocking her Elmo gear...

Happy ... to you!

That's how Alexa sings the Happy Birthday song. It's so funny! She recently discovered a singing card in my night stand. It was recorded by my parents for my birthday. And it's now Alexa's favorite toy! She opens and closes it over and over, singing along "Happy ... to you!" Check it out... And Happy Birthday, Grandma! Alexa would say it, but she's too busy dancing to the Happy Birthday song!



Meanwhile, this morning Alexa had fun playing with Anne during a quick play date. She was running all around, crawling through Anne's tunnel and playing with Anne's kitchen. Anne is just learning to walk, so she took a few unsteady steps while Alexa raced around. I'm sure that they'll be chasing each other in no time!

Pool time with Avery!

Last Sunday afternoon, after nap time, Alexa's friend Avery came over with her parents for an afternoon BBQ. The weather was perfect. We had a wonderful afternoon relaxing outside while the girls played in the kiddie pool! I took too many cute photos, I couldn't decide on my favorites! The A's are so cute!

Daddy's girl

We had brunch with Grandma E before her train on Sunday and look who was in such a good mood! Alexa was all giggles with her Daddy. So cute! (And thanks to GG for Alexa's adorable outfit!)

Still shorter than a baseball bat!

Alexa is growing so fast. Looking back at old pictures, it's amazing to see how she's sprouted, her hair has gotten longer, her language has blossomed. She's no baby, but is she a little girl yet? Either way, it's refreshing to see that despite her growing spurt, she's still shorter than something - a baseball bat!

Does this mean that Alexa needs her own T-ball set? Hmmm... Daddy thinks so! Hence, once is on its way, along with a Yankees jersey. Stay tuned to see photos of our little baseball player!

Train Park with Grandma E!

On Saturday, after Alexa's nap, we headed to a local park that has a train! We are planning to have Alexa's birthday party here, so we wanted to share it with Grandma E. Alexa was excited for the "choo choo train" and looked way cool in her sunglasses!

After the train, Alexa got a drink from the hippo water fountain, then copied the older kids by walking up this barrier wall. I was terrified, but Daddy held her hand and stayed by her side. When she made it to the end, we cheered and she had the biggest smile on her face. Go Alexa!

The playground at this park is amazing, it's more like 10 different playgrounds meshed together. Alexa had a blast! 

But her favorite playground by far was this one... I didn't think she would be able to climb up this ladder, but she insisted. And she made it! Of course, Daddy stood right behind her just in case. The slide was also to steep for my taste... But Alexa loved it!

Too Cool for the Pool

Saturday means it's time for swim class! This is Alexa's 5th class, and Grandma E got to come and watch! Alexa was excited to see her friend Brandon, so she tried to give him a hug. But poor Brandon wasn't sure about the hugging. The kiddos ran around until it was time to go in the pool!

Meanwhile, Grandma E got this great photos of us in the pool with Alexa. She practiced kicking, blowing bubbles, climbing out of the pool and jumping back in on the count of three. Her favorite part of swim class comes at the end, when everyone gets a toy to play with!

After swim class, we went out to lunch at Cafe Deluxe. We'll definitely be back. They have a wonderful feature that is great for kids -- paper tablecloths that you can color all over! Alexa had a blast making pictures with Grandma E!

Alexa's daycare boyfriend... Nick!

Apparently every morning, Alexa sees her friend Nick and they hold hands and walk to class together! So cute!

My sleeping angel...

It's fun to watch Alexa sleeping... She moves around, and sometimes she sleeps on her back. She's so cute! It's all I can do to keep from running in and picking her up!

Stickers! Stickers! Yay, stickers!

Alexa got a bunch of stickers in the goody bag she got at Brandon's birthday party. And oh boy did she have fun with them! Yay, stickers! DOG stickers!

Will Alexa take after her Aunt Jen?

Alexa's aunt was a high-level gymnast, so maybe it shouldn't have surprised us that Alexa LOVED swinging on the bars at the My Gym party! I guess it's time to sign her up for Power Tots. We hear from her teacher that she's already done a summersault!

Brandon's 2nd Birthday Party!

Hands down, one of the best kids parties we've been to! And not because it was all about us. Quite the contrary, it was all about the kids, and Alexa had a BLAST! The party was held at My Gym and the kids had an hour to run from activity to activity... They jumped on the trampoline! Swung on the bars! Played in the ball pit! Rode cars through a "car wash" with bubbles! Took turns on the slide! It was toddler heaven.

And then just when you'd think it couldn't get any better... It was time for pizza, juice and -- cupcakes! Alexa wore a birthday hat and chowed down. Yum!

And then, to work off the cupcake, she dove back into the ball pit! Here she is with her friends Avery and Ella, who she has known since she was 2 months old. Finley's in here somewhere too. They were throwing balls and playing together. It was adorable! Little girlfriends...

Click photo to enlarge

Hanging out with Aunt Elizabeth!

Alexa woke up from her nap today ready to play! She found her kukui nut necklace from Hawaii and dressed up, asking to wear "hair clips." When we went outside, she had fun playing with a big tub of water. She filled up each of her cups, watered the plants and poured the water on her feet. Then, with a straight face, she asked me for a "paper towel" to wipe up the water. Hahaha!

Alexa had so much fun with Aunt Elizabeth... Check out this sequence. First, she admired the glass of wine. Then she reached for it. And, finally, she agreed to toast Aunt Elizabeth with her bubble bottle!

Alexa's 2nd Joke

Alexa told her 2nd joke the other day, proving to her daddy that she's not only Jewish, but she's his daughter. Here's how it went:

Alexa: MOVE, Mommy!

Daddy: Say please, Alexa

Alexa (deadpans): Please, Alexa!

(Pop Quiz: Do you remember Alexa's 1st joke? Hint: It has to do with what animals say!)

My little bookworm!

Alexa felt like reading books tonight. ALL of her books! She has so many books that we now keep them in the oven and dishwasher of her play kitchen. When she came home from daycare tonight, she emptied her kitchen shelves of ALL her books, going from one book to another, reading them all! Or, at least looking at the pictures and turning the pages while Mommy leaned over and read them to her.

Hanging with her older cousin Samantha!

Ever since cousin Samantha came to visit us over Memorial Day weekend, Alexa has been asking "Where Mantha?" She was so excited to see her cousin in Ocean City this weekend. She reached for her and ran to her over and over. It was a nice break for me. Usually, she wants her mommy to pick her up. Well, who wants mommy when her fun, big cousin Samantha is in town?! Awesome.

Alexa chows down on Brown's doughnuts!

Yum... Doughnuts! When we got to the beach, we were greeted with a box of hot, yummy Brown's doughnuts from Aunt Jeanie. I picked out one and had planned to share it with Alexa. She had another plan: She wanted her own doughnut! And she ate the whole thing! Then she got busy digging in the sand. Finally, cousins Jessy and Seth came over to play and had fun burying Alexa's feet in the sand!

July 4th Bike Parade and Party!

What a great Fourth of July! We set off early for a Bike Parade with Alexa's cousins. We didn't have room in the car for Alexa's trike, so we decorated her red stroller instead. Check it out! Alexa wore her sunglasses and loved playing with the free stickers. But it was a VERY hot and humid day, so we cut the parade short and headed home.

Also this weekend, we joined Alexa's friends Catherine and Charlie for a July 4th Party! Alexa loved eating chips, opening the cooler, and dancing and giggling with Catherine. They kept running down the hall to Catherine's room and laughing. It was so cute!

More beach, this time with Alexa's big cousins!

The day started off rainy and overcast, but once the rain stopped we made a break for the beach. The good thing about the rain is that the beach was almost empty! Almost immediately, Alexa started grabbing handfuls of sand and throwing them on daddy's beach chair. She thought it was the funniest thing!

Alexa continued to stay busy... She used her watering can, put sand in her bucket, played some football and enjoyed more water ice! Meanwhile, I had a good time relaxing in a beach chair while Alexa's cousins chased after her and kept her busy!

Beach! Finally, we're back at the beach!

Alexa has been excited all week for the beach! We were talking about it in the car ride home Friday and when we pulled up at home (and not the beach), Alexa broke in to tears crying "Beach! Beach!" So she doesn't understand the concept of "tomorrow" or something that we're going to do in the future yet. On Saturday, we told her beach and we delivered! She was in heaven playing in the sand and even made a little friend who shared his hole. Good times.

After the beach, Alexa took a nice loooooong nap. Then we headed to Aunt Heather's for a family cook-out. Alexa had fun swimming in the pool with her cousins. She also had fun playing peek-a-boo with the door to their little play house. And riding on their sea-saw. And looking at the fish! And eating watermelon! Yum!

Big boy outfits for Daddy's mini-me

OKOKOK, I have to stop buying baby boy clothes! I totally admit that boy clothes are not nearly as cute as little girl clothes. But there are still some gems out there! Remember how I got obsessed with Tea Collection stuff for Alexa? Well. It turns out that they have some pretty cool stuff for little boys too! Check out this selection of Tea Collection outfits that I got for 1/2 off, plus some clearance Carters stuff. Totally leaning toward navy blue and darker colors... More boyish than pastels and sail boats!