Monkey Snuggle Business

Grace spent the day with Carolina - they went to the park, played with her toys and read books. There was very little napping so she went down easily tonight. Here is a shot right before bed. Every night I drape her monkey lovey on my shoulder and wait for her to snuggle up to me, rest her head down and relax. It's so sweet. That's how I know she's ready for her crib.

40 Weeks

Grace is 40 weeks today. She's been alive as long as a typical pregnancy! Pretty wild. Aunt Meredith came over to spend the day, and Gracie had fun eating, reading, walking and playing with her. Grandma and Uncle Zachary came over, too. Week 40 Album.

Danger is Her New Middle Name

My parents used to tell my sister and me that they spent the first few years of our lives making sure we didn't kill ourselves. And they were not kidding! Grace is seriously dangerous now. What's slightly funny about today's injury is that Grace literally had her nose in a book and scratched herself turning a page/diving into it. Besides the book incident, Gracie took a middle of the day nap, ran a few errands in the rain and went to her first Fall semester Rockin with Andy. Here are a few videos: one is of Grace and her new snack trap, the other is of Grace making controlled noise.

Gracie's First Kitchen

This morning I put together Gracie's kitchen/living room toy, and she loves it. She now has her own frig to open and close. Today we tried a Gymboree music class, went out to lunch at Vynl, hit John Jay park and then went to Good-byes, where we ran into Grace's friends Zoe, Jackson and Morgan. When we got home, Charlie came over to play.

First Fall Day

Despite having lots of toys to play with, Gracie loves to crawl to touch the yucky wheels of her stroller. Carolina took Grace to Gymboree, and they had a lot of fun together. This afternoon Daddy came home and we fed Gracie dinner together. She cracked herself up...closing her eyes for picture after picture. We shoot her so much, she's learned when the flash is going to go off. In developmental news, Grace officially gets her ring puzzle; every time she puts a ring on the post, she looks up at us for applause.

Dinner & A Play Date

Gracie had a great day - she enjoyed fresh avocado, carrots and plum for lunch and went to a Gymboree class. After a nice afternoon nap, Max came over. The babies had fun playing and dining together.

9 Months Old

How is Grace 9 months old already? We can't believe it. This morning I took her to Central Park, and this afternoon we met up with Gracie's friends and their mommies for our first "Three Martini Play Date" at Olivia's (in the yellow dress). On the way home, Gracie practiced a little baby yoga in her stroller. The pose in this picture is "Uncle Teddy Asana" aka "Nibbling the Piggies Asana."

Sunday Kickoff

Gracie woke up nice and early today to hang out with Mom-mom and Grandpa. She enjoyed reading books with Grandpa, playing with Mom-mom and strolling the street fair on Third Avenue. Grandpa even bought Gracie an Elmo balloon. After a nap, we met up with Daddy, Dan, Andrew and Mark for football at Ship of Fools. Go Bills!

Birthday Fun

This morning Grace went to Zachary Manheimer's 1st bday at Appleseeds and had a blast - from the gym time to the Little Maestros concerts to the pizza lunch. After the party, she recharged with a nap before going to Penelope Halpern's 1st bday. Tonight Mom-mom and Grandpa came in to visit and babysit. For more pics of today and the week, here is the Week 39 Album.

Frig Friday

Grace continues to love the kitchen. She is starting to develop a routine: she crawls in, pulls down a few magnets, unloads the recycling bin and waits for us to open the frig. Tonight Gracie had a veggie burger for dinner and loved it!

Baby In There

Today Grace demonstrated amazing confidence. Almost every time I helped her up to stand, she'd pull away her hands as if to say, "Mom, leave me alone. I can do it myself." She can stand alone, a little wobbly, if she's holding on to something. Speaking of which, Grace kept crawling to the refrigerator all day. She is absolutely fascinated and loves to stand up, look around and pull down yogurts, tomatoes and whatever she can get her paws on. She reminded me of one of my favorite childhood poems about a polar bear in the frigidaire: Bear In There by Shel Silverstein.

Cheerios for the Birds

Today Carolina took Grace to the park, where she reportedly attracted a lot of attention from kids and nannies. Gracie loves animals, apparently pigeons included. Carolina feed Grace some Cheerios and dropped a few down for the birds. Grace found it amusing to see them eat - Carolina said that Grace broke out in hysterical laughter and kept going and going. This afternoon we went over to Max's apartment to play.

* * *

A funny thing happened tonight when I went to give Grace her bottle and put her to bed: I experienced a flashback to when I used to put her to bed as an infant. It took me a second, but I figured out that that reason was because it was dark outside. I can't believe it's time for another season change.

Day at the Park

Grace and I went to the park midday to play and dine al fresco. Grace had a blast sorting toys, petting doggies and driving her new car toy. Aunt Meredith came over tonight to visit.

Friends, Family & Doggies

After a morning nap and a sudden outburst (she's definitely cutting a tooth, poor thing), we left the Immerman's place for a quick visit to the Cowan's. Grace was so happy to see Cousin Greer - who was at camp all summer - Aunt Enid, Uncle Keith, Roni, Cody and Howard. She was also happy to see the dogs, Scooby and Casey. Highlights of the day included: Aunt Enid as a human high chair, swimming in the pool with the family and teething on a large slice of delicious, juicy turkey...and then gently offering her leftovers to Casey, who sat at Grace's feet. HILARIOUS. Gracie loves to offer us things from her mouth to ours, but this was just too funny.

A Very Daddy Day

Today was beautiful, and the kids had a lot of fun playing, strolling and swimming together with their daddies. Gracie can't stop calling for her Dadadadada. Grace is going to miss waking up and immediately playing with the boys. She's also going to miss Janelle BIG TIME. Janelle and Andrew were amazing with all the babies; however, Grace took a particular liking to Janelle and would smile the instant she saw her. What's also funny is that when we asked her Where is Janelle?, she scanned the room for her and knew exactly who she was. When the babies went down tonight, we headed to the Sundheims for dinner.

Fun in the Late Afternoon Sun

Not only was Grace happy to wake up in the Hamptons (despite the rain), she was excited that her friends Sam & Henry Schiffman (6 months) arrived! She welcomed them with lots and lots of kisses and nose grabs. In the afternoon, Max (2 years) and Ryan (3 months) Dashevsky came to play, and all the kids hung out. It was great planning by the Immermans to get everyone together. Week 38 Album.