More Snow

Snow fell most of the day. We love it! So does Grace. She even tried to catch a few snowflakes on her tongue during a walk - courtesy of Grandpa showing her how. Speaking of which...today Mom-mom and Grandpa visited, and Grace was thrilled. She impressed her grandparents with her knowledge of animal sounds, select letters of the alphabet (I need to get video of this) and lots and lots of kisses. She kept puckering up for them and bringing them toys and items from our kitchen cabinets; it was too cute. So was her new outfit from the Meyers. Later today Uncle Teddy came by - only 2 more months until Baby G-Wiz arrives.

Snowy Sunday

Alex, Grace and I went to brunch with Jessie, Dan and Alex T and then walked through Central Park to check out the beautiful snow. If only I had brought the camera! In the afternoon, Alex T came over to watch football. Here is a shot of him and Grace sharing a snack during the game. The other shot is a picture of Grace finding a bag of cough drops in Daddy's bag...right before she decided to shake them all over the floor and then clean up by placing each one in her wagon. She's a funny kid.

Hut Hut Hike

Above is Grace either getting ready for Eagles' big game tomorrow or practicing her downward dog. Either way, she's been testing this new move out today. Although it might look like Grace is preparing to stand up, Alex and I think she's too happy crawling and cruising to decide to walk solo. Today we went to brunch with Neil and Erin and hung out with Charlie, Liz and Rocky in the late afternoon. Uncle Z-man came by tonight around dinner. Grace enjoyed taunting him with some vegetables. Week 58 Album.

Arctic Baby

It's been arctic cold here in NYC, and what's really interesting is that Grace loves it. She's never been so well behaved in her stroller before. Ever. Almost every day in the summer, I'd dread taking her for a walk. Despite the beautiful weather, she'd complain and cry without fail. Now that it's frigid, she's happy to take long walks. Today I had Grace bundled up to her eyeballs, and she didn't mind one bit.

Grape Rampage

Grace is a very determined little girl. When she decides she wants something, it's impossible to distract her. Believe me, we try. Today Grace decided that she wanted to eat more after dinner (a very big dinner - it's impossible she was still hungry). Despite having Ethan and George at the apartment...ready and willing to play with her...she crawled into the kitchen, opened the frig, climbed in, reached up to the top shelf and plucked herself a few grapes off the vine. I couldn't believe it. When I closed the door and tried to remove her from the kitchen, she threw a fit, went back to the refrigerator, reopened the door and took some more. First of all, I can't believe she can pry open the door. Second of all, is it possible for a 13 month old to be a terrible two already? She is trying so hard to be in control.

Baby Bachelorette

Grace had a blast with Sam and Henry this morning. Bachelor #1, Henry, pushed Grace on her princess-mobile. Bachelor #2, Sam, charmed Grace at lunch by sharing smiles and her enthusiasm for food.

This afternoon Grace strolled through Central Park and then had a date with Bachelor #3, Andrew, who dazzled (more like crashed into) her on a romantic stroll up and down our hall with walkers. Between the "hunk," the "bachelor" and the "star," who will Gracie choose? Tune in next week. Or maybe more like 25 years.

Hanging with Charlie

Hanging Out

Daddy left for SF this morning, and Grace and I went out to listen to some music at Cafe Notte before coming back for lunch. This afternoon, Noah came by to play. Something new to share: in the past few days, Grace has been playing and reading a lot by herself for extended periods of time - it's awesome!

Saturday Snow

Grace, Daddy and I went to brunch at EJs, and she was so good. As long as we keep the food paced well (well enough to last the duration of the meal) and coming, she's happy. Added bonus: going to a restaurant that has ceiling fans. Grace loves ceiling fans and twirls her finger - thanks to Mom-mom, who taught her how - to show us that the fan goes round and round. In the late afternoon, the snow was coming down and it was freezing cold. We decided to take Grace out for a quick adventure and trip to the pet store; she didn't seem to mind the inclement weather one bit! Week 57 Album.

Safari Style

This afternoon Grace went to Rockin with Andy on the West Side and had a blast riding in Sam & Henry's wagon. Here is a shot Abby took with her phone.

13 Months

Grace loves Ariel on her princess-mobile and often puts her hands on her face to imitate The Little Mermaid's expression. Here she is offering Ariel some milk. Gracie loves to offer food and drinks to her toys or to pictures of babies, people or animals. This morning she and I ran some errands, and this afternoon we hung out with cousin JoJo, Chrissie and Max.

New Developments

In the past week, Grace has developed a ton of new knowledge and facial expressions; she's also proven that she understands almost everything we say. Grace knows how to say a ton of words - this, that, dog, cat, bird, clock, ball, teddy bear, doll, off, up, down, turn, teeth, eat, berry, blueberry, cheese, fruit, pancake, waffle, bread, river and yo-yo. As you can see, the majority of her vocabulary consists of commands and names of food.

Grace also knows a lot of animals and can identify them when we ask her where is the giraffe, tiger, teddy bear, bird, cat, dog, etc? Did I mention that she has mastered the snort of a pig in addition to the woof of a dog and the caw of a vulture (or any bird). Every time we see one of these animals, she makes the sound...and we see a lot of dogs of the streets of NYC!

Got Milk?

Grace cracks us up. In general she loves putting lids on things - jars, tupperware, anything. Today she spent some time removing and replacing the top from an empty milk jug. She also tried to drink from it. After having spent enough time with the jug over the course of the day, Grace rewarded it with a trip on what we call her "princess-mobile." She placed it on the seat, stood up and rolled it from the living room to the office. Hilarious.

Grace was a busy little bee today and looked very cute buzzing around in her abeille shirt from Henley, who brought it back from France.

Friends & Family

Today Grace hung out with cousin Brett, who was in for a final job interview. We went to lunch at EJs and played in the living room. She absolutely adores him. This afternoon we went to play with her buddies at Ethan's house for a little bit before coming home to see Brett and Aunt Katie, who indulged Grace with books, walking, playing and feeding her a delicious dinner. Best bud Charlie Winter came by to play and dine with Grace, too. I know it's early to say, but they make quite a cute couple...

Sunday Fun

Today was Daddy's last day of vacation (sniffle, sniffle). What are we going to do when he goes back to work?! Grace and I have absolutely loved having him around. Here are a few shots of Grace standing and playing in her crib - she's in her BlaBla sweater from the Immermans.

After a happy, tantrum-free morning, we went to EJ's for brunch. This afternoon when Daddy went to watch football, Grace and I visited Aunt Dina, her new apartment and her kitties. Grace chased Matcha, Sunny and Gus around and was being very sweet and gentle. Meow.

Children's Museum & More

We've been taking advantage of what NYC has to offer children, and today we headed to the West Side to the Children's Museum. We met up with the Schiffman family, and Gracie had a lot of fun with her buddies Sam and Henry. Afterwards we went to lunch at Artie's and then came back for what turned out to be a very, very, very short nap. Once she calmed down after waking up in a panic, Gracie hung out with Mom-mom and Grandpa. Week 56 Album.

Manning/Gleser Gathering

This afternoon we went to Aunt Enid's to play and hang out with the family. Grace had a blast with everyone and even got to see cousin Greer beat up Uncle Z-man. What fun!

Happy New Year!

When Grace got up this morning, she was in a terrific mood. She loved Daddy in his 2009 glasses and gave him lots of smiles and kisses. This afternoon Mom-mom and Grandpa came over with Great Aunt Myra and Great Uncle Aaron while we went over to the Tisches for an impromptu brunch with the Silvermans and Winters. Grace had a great time with her grandparents and was saying Mom-mom and "Pa" by the time they left.