Public Transportation

During our stay in Chicago, we used Katie's car and public transportation. Katie's condo is conveniently located a few blocks from the "L" (the subway). Here is a picture of us walking to the L one morning.

Here we are on the L drinking coffee and eating a bagel.

This is the bus we took from the Navy Pier. I am all wet in this picture because I had just finished playing in the fountain.

Memorial Day Picnic at Lake Michigan

Katie and Darrin had the fantastic idea to have a picnic at a park near Lake Michigan. Darrin and his friends went to the park early in the day to get a good spot and start the BBQ. We went after my nap. Unfortunately, everyone had the same idea that we did. Police officers would not let us drive into the park because it was so crowded. After aimlessly driving around looking for a spot, we illegally parked and walked to the park. Luckily, the police must have been busy because we were not ticketed or towed. We ate hamburgers, potato salad, and Katie's famous key lime pie. I also played in the sand and stuck my toes it the water. It was a great way to end our trip.

Children's Museum

"Daddy, these eggs look real. Are you sure I cannot crack them? Darn."

"What do you mean I can't fry hard-boiled eggs?"

"..and your breakfast will be $500."

"Jump, jump, jump."

I love the children's museum!

One Cool Toddler

I am a little obsessed with Mommy's sunglasses. I look like a bug in the first picture! Finally, mommy and daddy purchased a pair for me, but they are not as great as mommy's. FYI: I put those sunglasses on my head like that. I see mommy doing it all of the time and I wanted to copy her.

On another note, I started daycare one morning a week so that mommy can get some work done with the law firm that she is working for. I am not so thrilled about the daycare idea. Teacher Amy is really nice and the kids are nice, but I miss my mommy and daddy. The first time mommy dropped me off, it was not too bad. In fact, it was an interesting experience. I never suspected that I would have to go back! The last time that mommy dropped me off, I screamed and cried. I stopped crying shortly after she left and had fun playing with the other kids. Mommy came back after a little while, as promised. I think that I will get used to it and maybe even like it, but I am sure that I will scream and cry for awhile. Nobody takes care of me like my mommy and daddy.

TV Time

Even though I really like books, I would not want to give you the wrong impression. I have recently discovered the television. I posted a picture of me staring at the tv with the remote in hand. My favorite (and really only) show is Sesame Street, which I call Elmo. If I am watching Sesame Street and Elmo has not made an appearance for awhile, I start shouting "Elmo, Elmo, Elmo" until Mommy or Daddy fast-forward (with t-vo) until Elmo appears. Usually, Mommy or Daddy snuggle with me on the couch and watch Elmo, too.

Books

Reading a book with Auntie Lindsay

Reading a book at the Children's Museum

Reading a book with Daddy.

I really enjoy reading books. We always read books before nap time and bed time. I cannot wait to learn to read, too. Sometimes, I will pretend to draw the letters "A B C" on the chalkboard. They really do not look like the letters, but I say that I am drawing them anyway.

Yesterday, I learned how to pronounce my name. Up until now, I have been calling myself "See-ah." But, yesterday my friend Chloe came over, who is 3, and she was really excited to see me. She started to shout, "Sophia, Sophia, Sophia!!!!" I joined in the shouting and said, "Doh-phia, Doh-phia." Today, I am a little better at pronouncing the "S" sound. Mommy and Daddy are a little too excited about this development.

Dinosaurs

Last weekend I saw dinosaurs! We were downtown Minneapolis. Mommy and daddy had just purchased some new froggy rainboots for me that I was wearing, even though it was not raining. As we were walking, mommy tripped and in the aftermath my boots fell off! Mommy and daddy did not notice because their attention was focused on two people dressed-up like aliens handing-out advertisements for visiting New Mexico. I thought they were dinosaurs.

One of the dinosaurs came up to us. She looked really strange, but I was not scared. The dinosaur said, "You lost your boots!" Daddy said, "Thank you" and we went back and found my boots. I was totally spell-bound. I wanted the dinosaurs to eat out of my hands like the goats at the zoo, but they would not do it. We decided to go inside to Barnes and Noble. Inside the store on the second floor, I stood by the window and could see the dinosaurs. I waived to the dinosaurs, but they could not see me, which was okay because they were beginning to look a little scarey. I still cannot stop talking about the dinosaurs. Here is how I tell the story to people:

Dinosaurs. Lost boots. Thank you. Mommy fall floor. Dinosaur eat hand. Dinosaur window. Wave. Too scarey.

My First 5K Run!

I ran my first 5K! Okay....I did not actually run, but I know I could have done it. Daddy, mommy, Lindsay, Jeremy and me (in the jogging stroller) ran a 5K on Saturday. We ran through a nice part of NE Minneapolis, right outside of downtown. We ran over the Mississippi river (twice) and ran through different parts of the newly fashionable NE warehouse district. Jeremy's dad left work to cheer us on. After the run, we got to eat snacks and drink a lot of water. I am sure we will run another race soon.

Easter Picture

My mommy took me to JC Penny's for my Easter picture. I loved the fresh flowers that she gave to me to hold. I could not stop smelling and playing with the flowers.

I love to talk these days. When I see something big (like an airplane), I will say "BIG-BIG airplane." When I see something small (like an ant), I will say "Wee-wah-wah ant." I use those phrases a lot.

I am also very particular about what I want. When I want something, I will say, "Yeah-sure, yeah-sure..." over and over again until I get it. When I want more of something, I will say, "more-yeah, more-yeah..." until I get more.

Funny Hair

Need I say more?

P.S. If you haven't guessed already, Daddy was my hair stylist for the photo.

Lovable Bun

Bun makes me happy. He is so snugly, and I can squeeze him perfectly around the neck. I am so lucky to have little Bun. Lately, I have been insisting that daddy photograph Bun every time he gets out the camera. In the second picture above, I am holding Bun so that daddy can get Bun's best angle for his photo shoot. Mostly, these are some pictures of me being silly.

Mommy, Daddy and Me

It is hard to get pictures of the three of us because then who would take the picture? I have often suggested that Bun would be an excellent photographer, but Mommy and Daddy seem to disagree. Anyway, here are two pictures of me having "fun" with mommy and daddy. I put the word "fun" in quotes because that is my new favorite word. For example, I will say something like, "Grandma....Lindsay....fun." I also say my own name frequently, which I pronounce as "See-ahh."

Other than talking a lot, I have started a gymnastics class. I am learning how to do somersaults, walk on a balance beam, and hang onto uneven bars. It is really great, and I get a lot of exercise.

I am a big girl!

Mommy and daddy say that I am no longer a baby---I am a toddler. In this picture, you can see how big I am getting! In this picture, I put on my pink boots all by myself. I guess I put them on the wrong feet, though. It made it a little hard to walk.

I have been playing a fun big-kid game recently. I think it is really funny to point to an object and say "mommy" or "daddy" and then immediately shake my head and say "nooooo." I know that those things really are not mommy and daddy, that is why the game is so funny. When I want to be extra silly, I will point to mommy or daddy and call them "ham." Isn't that hilarious??? I sure think so.

The Double Whamy Blizzard of 2007

The snow banks are taller than me!

It is fun sitting in the snow.

I kicked my boots into the snow banks.

The neighborhood kids and me.

Wow! We got a lot of snow! First, we had a big snowfall last weekend. Then, this week we had a few more days of snowfall. I do not how much snow actually accumulated, but I know that there is a lot of snow outside. The schools were closed on Friday, but daddy still had to go to work. I felt sorry for him because I had so much fun playing in the snow. I have a good pair of boots and a nice bright snowsuit, so I was all set for the big blizzard of 2007.

On another note, I am feeling much better after my bout with croup. I am still coughing a little bit, but I am pretty much back to normal.

I also thought you would like to know about my continued language development. I am learning new words everyday. It is pretty exciting. Also, I have been trying out some new variations of the word "mommy." I learned how to say "dad-dee" many months ago. I never really called him "da-da." It took me a lot longer to say "mommy." I started-out saying "mum." Then I moved to "mum-may," then "mom-may" and then "mom-mee." I am calling her "mama" these days. I am not sure why I call her so many different names, but she does not seem to mind.

My First Visit To The ER

I have croup. For those of you who do not know what that is, it is a common virus that is characterized by a cough that sounds like "a barking seal" and a fever. I do not feel the best, but it could be worse. I got sick on Valentine's Day. That night I had a coughing fit and afterward was having a little bit of trouble breathing. Mommy and daddy took me to the emergency room at Children's Hospital at 11:30 pm. I got to stay up until 2:30 am!

The hospital was super boring. We had to wait a long time. I hope I do not have to do that again! The nurses and doctors poked and prodded me. A nurse had to do an uncomfortable procedure on me and he said, "Sophia, can you be brave?" I had a quivering lip and tears in my eyes and said, "brave...brave...brave...brave..." until it was over. I did not even cry! I really am brave! The doctor gave me a yummy liquid steroid to ease the inflammation in my throat. It made me feel a little better. I will keep you posted on my progress, but I should be better in a few days. Mommy and daddy have been really nice to me and are letting me watch lots of Sesame Street.

Here are a few pictures of me in the last few days. I look pretty good for a sickey!

Happy 32nd Birthday Mommy!

You are the best Mommy ever!

Happy 34th Birthday Daddy!

I love you soooo much!

Did I mention that I like to eat?

I have to get that last little bit of yogurt out.

I guess I spilled a little.

Oh well. It was definetly worth it!

I am very adept at using my utensils. Occasionally, I just choose not to use them. On this particular day I was really hungry and wanted to eat the yogurt as quickly as I could. There was that last little bit left that I really wanted to have, so I decided to drink my yogurt.

On another note, I am having a pretty exciting life these days. I am continuing to learn new words and phrases everyday, like: smile, more, try, sit down, chair, walk, draw, do that, nighty-night, bear, star, and help me.

I also know two colors: brown and blue. I can pick out those two colors correctly (almost) all of the time. I also think that I am understanding the concept of "two." We have two red kid's chairs, two heaters in my room, and there are two birds in my Frosty the Snow Man book. When I see two of the same thing I will say "two." I do not totally understand what that means, but I know I will soon.

My favorite things

One of my favorite things to do is to draw. I may look like my mommy, but I have the artistic talent of my daddy. I use crayons, chalk and markers. Surprisingly, they all taste pretty good, too. I have a large variety of designs that I draw---spirals, lines, and star-like shapes. Often, daddy will turn on some good dancing music, and he and I will dance and draw for a long time. It is easiest to draw with some good tunes on. You can see some of my latest masterpieces in the pictures.

More pictures of Mommy

Mommy

Mommy

Mommy

Me enjoying some of mommy and daddy's birthday cake

So many people told me how much I look I like my mommy when she was little. I feel so lucky because I think that my mommy is so pretty. I thought I would share with you a few more pictures of mommy when she was about my age.

Christmas 2006

Presenting: "the Baby Jesus."

The Mulloys & Heffelbowers dressed up for Christmas

I am so happy hanging-out with my Grandpa

Are all of these presents for me??

I love my new baby dollie.

As you can see from the pictures, I had a great Christmas. First, we celebrated Christmas in Green Bay with the Mulloys and then we celebrated Christmas with the Heffelbowers in White Bear Lake later in the week. I had so much fun.