Pool fun in Annapolis

We enjoyed a wonderful day at our friend's home in Annapolis today. Alexa was so excited to see her friend Kaitlyn that she nearly bounded out of my arms to run over to her. We had a little trouble getting Alexa in the pool at first, but when she saw the other kids sitting in their floaties and enjoying the water, she started having fun too! Outside of the pool, she loved Kaitlyn's toys, especially her lawn mower!

In the afternoon, Alexa's older friends Julia and Sara arrived as Alexa ran around in her adorable Kumquat outfit. The outfit was a gift from Grandma's friend Lucille. I'm glad it still fits her, it's a 12-month size!

Strawberry picking!

We had a great day today at a Maryland farm picking tons of bright, red, juicy strawberries! The weather was perfect, not too hot. We met up with some friends of ours and their two daughters. Alexa had so much fun running around with Avery, who she knows from daycare. She also was a great helper and picked quite a few strawberries herself! We took home three buckets of strawberries for smoothies!

Fun at another Bethesda festival!

One thing that's great about our new hometown is that they have tons of festivals for kids. We love to walk from home with Alexa in the stroller, especially when the weather is so nice. This festival is called Imagination Bethesda and it featured shows and booths with games and art projects for kids. Alexa is still a little young for most of the activities, but she enjoyed the show and seeing all the other kids!

After Alexa's non-nap, we went for a walk and she had fun picking dandelions and flowers! Ever since I showed her how to blow dandelions, she LOVES to pick them and carry them around. It's so cute!

Train! Fun! Water play!

Alexa had an action-packed Memorial Day holiday. Since it was forecast to be HOT, we headed to the Choo Choo Train early, hoping to get in a ride before the heat set in. Apparently everyone else had the same idea. It was packed! Luckily, we got seats and Alexa enjoyed the ride!

Back home, Alexa played with cousin Samantha, Grandma E and Pop before they left to catch their train home. She was pushing her shopping cart around and cracking up!

The day DID turn out to be super hot, so we decided to use the heat to our advantage. We took Alexa on a walk around the block in her trike, hoping the heat would wear her out and help us put her down for a nap. It worked! She slept 2+ hours!

When she woke up, we had a last-minute play date with Eli from down the street. We broke out the kiddie pool and stacks of cups and the kids dove in. They were dumping water and laughing so hard it was hilarious! At least we all cooled off!

Zoo! And then a BBQ!

We had a busy but fun day today! It started with a trip to the National Zoo. Silly me, I thought everyone left Washington, D.C., during holiday weekends. I was wrong. The Zoo was a zoo! It was also HOT! Still, we enjoyed walking around and seeing the animals. Alexa got to see elephants, pandas, lions, monkeys and donkeys. What could be better? She kept saying "Anna-molls"!

After the zoo, Daddy's friends from his hometown in NJ came over with their kids for a cook out. Alexa had a blast playing with all the older girls! They played bubbles with her and played catch with her soccer ball. And, of course, it all ended with ice cream! Alexa loved the ice cream part.

Strut Your Mutt Parade

Downtown Bethesda has festivals for just about everyone, and today it was the Strut Your Mutt Parade! Naturally, I figured this would be a good event to take Alexa to since she LOVES dogs. And, naturally, I was right. She loved it! We met Alexa's friend Brandon and strolled around looking at dogs and trying to find the booth giving out firemen hats. When we finally scored the coveted hats, Alexa only wore it for a second before moving on to something else. Oh well, look how cute she is!

Moanalua Gardens and dinner at Buzz's

Another great day in paradise! Today, we met up with my friend Renee and her son Ashton at Moanalua Gardens Park. I had actually never been to this park before, but when I looked up the directions it was described as an off-the-beaten-path spot in Hawaii with beautiful large canopy trees. It was stunning!

Alexa and Ashton had fun playing. And check this out... Alexa got her first kiss! They were so cute. Alexa took Ashton's hand. Then Ashton kissed her on the cheek. And then they hugged. So cute!

After the park, Alexa took a long nap. And then we headed to check out grandma and grandpa's condo. Alexa had fun watching the ducks in the pond right outside the balcony!

Finally, we ended the day with dinner at our favorite local spot: Buzz's Steakhouse. Yum!

Alexa's 2nd Passover Seder

We weren't able to go up to New Jersey to spend Passover with Daddy's family this year. But thankfully, some friends of ours from Alexa's daycare invited us over for 2nd Night Passover. Alexa was pretty squirmy and very loud. She banged her plate, was only mildly interested in the Haggadah, refused to eat her charoset or matzah ball soup, and only munched on a few pieces of matzah. Oy vey!

At least she had a good time playing with her friend Avery! My favorite part was when the two girls were rocking on Avery's glider. Alexa was cracking up! I suggested that she give Avery a hug and she did. It was the. cutest. thing. ever. Adorable!

Lunch date with Avery on a beautiful day!

Today was a beautiful day. It was even better because we had lunch plans with my friend Blythe and her daughter Avery! We tried to push the high chairs together for a photo, but Alexa protested! I tried so hard to get photos of them together, but to no avail! This is the best I could get. Next time!

After lunch, Alexa took a nap in her stroller so Daddy and I took a long walk. Alexa insisted on walking most of the way home! She enjoyed looking at the pretty flowers and sitting in the back yard with Daddy. It was a beautiful day and we all stayed outside as long as possible. We can't wait for Hawaii!

Play date with Kaitlyn on a rainy day!

What a perfect day for a play date! It rained and stormed all day. Luckily, Alexa's friend Kaitlyn came over to play! At this age, it's normal for kids to do what's called "parallel playing," where they do their own thing and only interact occasionally or when they want the toy the other is playing with. Alexa was better than expected at sharing, I was very proud of her!

The girls also interacted a bit, which was hilarious! My favorite was when Kaitlyn tickled Alexa's feet. At first, Alexa was like, "What are you doing?" Then she started giggling! It was so cute. The two were also adorable trying to sit in the same chair together. Then they would look at each other and crack up. What a fun day. Alexa and I can't wait for our next play date!

And now, some rainy day photos for you to enjoy... Alexa loved looking out the front door at the rain falling. She also had fun playing peek-a-boo with the front door! Finally, what better to do on a rainy day than color with crayons! Thank goodness they are washable. :-)

Alexa gets a visit from her friend Anne!

Alexa's little friend Anne came over on Sunday afternoon to play. Alexa had a hard time sharing her toys, but she adjusted pretty well. She said "hi" to Anne and called her a "happy baby." After the girls had lunch, we took them outside for photos. Obviously, we started with our fabulous Adirondack chairs!

We also tried taking photos of me and Libby holding our girls... But we couldn't get both babies to look at the camera at the same time!

Finally, Alexa sat down on the stone stairs and we tried more photos of the girls together. Alexa was amused by Anne. Anne was amused by Alexa's jacket. What a pair of cutie pies!

Fun at the big kid park with Michaela!

Alexa and I met my friend Julia and her daughter Michaela for lunch, then we all went to a new park to play. The park was very nice, but it was PACKED with lots of big kids running around, so I had to follow Alexa around very carefully and watch her like a hawk! I did get to take a couple pictures when she and Michaela were playing in a little truck. Alexa was cracking up! Every time we put our head through one of the windows, she'd laugh and laugh and laugh. It was so cute!

Nothing like a PB&J sandwich!

Especially since it's not a PB&J sandwich. We still haven't given Alexa peanut butter. So here she is enjoying her almond butter sandwich. Yum! Handmade by Daddy the way Daddy likes his peanut butter sandwiches. All nut butter, no jelly. And not toasted either! The horror! At least it's on wheat bread, cuz that's what Momma buys!

After Alexa finished her sandwich, she got to run around at the playground. What fun! Look how cute! She was cracking up at me pushing her in her swing. It was so funny!

After all the fun at the park, we went over to Daddy's friend's home for some Irish food. They have two boys, who have lots of cool toys. Alexa had fun riding a little ride-along toy and playing with the basketball and plastic baseballs. But she got a little confused about which ball goes through the hoop...

Another play date at the National Building Museum!

Today was a rainy day, so it was CROWDED at the National Building Museum! We met two moms from my mom's group and their girls. They were already in LINE when we arrived. And the museum hadn't even opened yet! Holy crazy! Once it did open, we rushed down the hallway to the Kid's Zone and got in. But there was such a long line that we only had about 30-40 minutes to play. Still, the girls had fun! Here are Alexa, Avery and Ella checking out the eco-doll house!

After the doll house, the girls wanted to play in the REAL house. But they all wanted to sit in the chairs! Except Alexa was a bit obsessed with her favorite puzzle toy. She has found and played with this SAME buckle puzzle EVERY time we've been here. Uh oh, does that mean we need to get her one?

Finally, here are more pictures of Alexa playing... Again with the puzzle! She also enjoyed playing with the trucks and the train. If you ask Alexa, "What does a train say?" she'll smile real big and say "chooo! chooo!"

After all the fun in the Kid's Zone, Tricia and I took Ella and Alexa out to lunch. Look how cute the girls were! They shared Kix and laughed when they reached out and held hands. So cute!

Play date with Evie and May!

Today was a very important day for Daddy. It was time to draw numbers and find out the order of his annual fantasy baseball draft! Evie and May came over with their parents to help draw numbers and play with Alexa. We tried to let Alexa draw a number but she wasn't interested. That's OK, Daddy still made out with a good number - 4!

Alexa had fun playing with her friends... But she had a hard time sharing! Check it out: She has TWO guitars, but she wanted to play with BOTH of them at the SAME TIME! Luckily, Evie and May were very understanding and had fun playing with Alexa anyway.

Of course, no play date with Alexa would be complete without BOOKS! Again, luckily, Evie is a very good reader and was more than willing to read several books to Alexa! So cute!

Flash from the Past: Here is Alexa meeting Evie for the first time! She was only 1 month old. And here she is playing with Evie and May when she was 10 months old. She also played with the girls at her birthday party! So much fun. We can't wait for our next play date with Evie and May!

Alexa goes shopping with her girlfriends!

My friend Marcie invited Alexa and I to join her and her daughter Cella Marie for an in-home shopping trip! We got to check out tons of Kelly's Kid's dresses, swimsuits and outfits. So cute! Reba and tiny baby Rigby (the youngest) also came shopping, as did Kristin and Kaitlyn! Yay! Here are the girls on their 1st (of what will be many) shopping trips! (And in case you are wondering... This is what I bought Alexa! Yes, of course I got it with a hot pink "A" on the front!)

Play date at the Natural History Museum

Another great play date idea from our friends! Sure, it was a pain to drive downtown and find parking, but Alexa slept most of the way. And once we got there, the museums are FREE! So off we went to the Natural History Museum. Alexa LOVED it! First, she ran round and round a giant elephant. (Ran around, literally, screaming!) Then she explored the stuffed mammals exhibit and saw giraffes. Then it was off to see the dinosaures! And, finally, an orchid exhibit. (Alexa, honey, don't pick the orchids!)

Alexa had a ball with her friend Avery! (Don't be confused, she has two friends named Avery. This is the older one who is 2 1/2! The other one was born on her same birthdate.) Anyway, here are Alexa and Avery cracking each other up. We were in a movie theater exhibit and the girls had fun climbing the stairs and giggling. So cute!

After the museum, we took a walk to see the sculpture garden and Capitol. And before we knew it, Alexa dozed off. So we walked around a little and ended up at the Building Museum where we sat and had some hot cocoa while Alexa napped.

When she woke up, Alexa was very excited to check out the wide open spaces of the Building Museum. Fun! She ran around like a crazy girl, screaming and exploring the whole room. Then she lay down and started giggling. Such a funny girl!

Finally, we got to play for about 20 minutes in the museum's Building Zone, which is the kids play area that is free but first come first serve, so it fills up fast. Alexa enjoyed it, but she liked running around the museum more! All in all, a great day. We had a blast at the museums and Alexa got to burn a lot of energy!

Play date with Eli at Great Kids Village

Another winter weekend and we needed a way to blow off steam. Thankfully, our neighbor friend Eli and his mom invited us to join them at Great Kids Village. This is an open play kids gym near our house that our neighbor was looking at for a possible birthday party site. It certainly had lots of kids! It seemed pretty overrun with older kids, however. And it was crowded with several parties going on at the same time. Not sure I'd go back, but it was fun to play with Eli. And certainly fun to get out of the house!

Alexa enjoyed the climbing castle and slide. But her FAVORITE toy by far was this plastic car! She had a hard time sharing it with other kids. She loved it so much!

There was also an arts and crafts station and Alexa surprised me by grabbing the crayons and coloring! Wow, time to get her some crayons... She liked all the colors and scribbled on anything I put in front of her! What a fun day... Thanks, Eli, for the fun play date!

By the way, isn't this a cute outfit? Perfect for Valentine's Day! Thanks for the stylish outfit, Grandma E!

Sunday = Steelers!

Here we go Steelers, here we go! And here's Alexa all dolled up to watch the Steelers playoff game at a friend's house. We tried three ponytails to get her hair out of her face. Look how cute!

Over at our friend's house, Alexa loved playing with the other kids! She especially loved getting to know her friend Julia, who is two years older. Alexa went to Julia and Sara's 2nd birthday party when she was in my tummy and to their 3rd birthday party when she was almost one. She also enjoyed watching "fa-ball" on the TV and eating lots of junk food like chips and chocolate cookies! Pizza? Not so much.

Anne's Baptism & Aliyah's Open House

Alexa had a fun day with all her friends! First, we went to Anne's baptism. Alexa didn't pay attention to the details. All she wanted to do was run laps around the Catholic Church! At least she had a good time! Afterward, we went to brunch with Ellie and her parents.

After brunch, we headed to my friend Jen's open house to meet her new baby Aliyah! She is a little doll! Alexa had fun playing with the other kids and watching all the dogs. Here we are with my friend Kim and her daughter Ellie, and my friend Jen and her daughter Aliyah. Alexa did NOT want to be held! (Thanks to Jen's husband for the great shots he got of Alexa when she WAS smiling!)