Into the woods

Just like Daddy, we went hiking! Ours was a short and sweet hike with a great destination- here are the highlights along the way..Matthew and I were checking to see how far our sticks would reach.

Watch out,Mommy, I'll get you with my walking stick/fishing pole!

Here's what we got to see at the end- a beautiful waterfall!

There were lots of rocks to throw into the water..

easy paths to follow..

big rocks to climb..

balance beams to walk on..

signs to identify the nature..

and holes to put our heads through! We had a blast!

More to come about the grand finale of our road trip! Thanks for coming along!

27 months and growing...

Well, today I am 27 months old and I continue to amaze my Mommy & Daddy more and more. I speak in full sentences with comprehension, pee-pee in the potty when I sit on it & enjoy playing with my Thomas trains more than anything! Mommy & Daddy are so proud of me!!

Now, back to the updates on my vacation- After Charlottesville for a night, Mommy & I drove down to Gatlinburg, TN to meet up with Godmother Erin & Matthew plus their family for a mountain vacation! We left Daddy behind for a guy's hiking weekend with Tim & Rich. We missed him, but we had a blast! The first day together we went to the Aquarium in Gatlinburg and saw SO MANY FISH (but what do you expect?!) Matthew and I were getting a better view in this picture (or taking a nap):I was actually in a time-out here since I was a little tired and cranky.. (but aren't I cute even in a bad mood?)
While Matthew was taking a break on his Mommy's shoulder, we got to hold hands.. (my Mommy is already planning our wedding)
The most fun was things that I could touch-
But it was nice to take a break and stretch with Matthew too-
Check out the Nemo fish we got at the Aquarium:
"Look, it's Nemo on the screen too!"
"Just keep swimming, just keep swimming"
It's not a movie night without popcorn. More to come!!

Good-bye to Mikayla.. Hello Charlottesville!

It's never easy to say good-bye, especially to my wonderful cousin Mikayla. We always have a great time sharing our toys & food, reading books together, & dressing up in each other's clothes.For only one night, we had the pleasure of staying with the Little family. Thanks to Lisa, Rich, Maggie, Gracie & baby Gigi for being so accommodating to us. We enjoyed the new patio set with lazy susan, plus the fun toys you offer!

Eleanor & Mikayla in action

Now that we're older, it's more fun to take video of me and Mikayla together. Sometimes, we even talk like each other. See what you think:

Train ride to D.C.

The advantage of living in Baltimore is being only an hour train ride away from our nation's capitol. The whole family boarded the MARC train and off we went to Union Station. I had my own seat but it was more fun to share with Mikayla:

Mommy must have been telling me something very interesting

The elephant at the Smithsonian Natural History museum was a little scary..

..but these TVs with animals was much more entertaining to me

Sitting with my MaGa at lunch makes me genuinely happy

Mikayla feels the same with Aunt Jen

Mikayla and I found a cool tunnel

So many animals can make a girl, plus her Daddy, hungry & tired

Grandpa & MaGa took us girls on the carousel and we had a blast (on the non-moving parts)

I had the most fun at the National Air & Space museum, where we saw so many rockets, planes & space ships.

Mommy & I were about to go inside one of the space ships to see where the astronauts lived in space

The Wright Brothers' model planes were fascinating

I was ready to fly on it!

However, even an "ice-pop" could keep me awake after this busy day!

Days 3-8: Baltimore, MD

Upon arriving in Baltimore, we got to see Grandpa & Ma-Ga Gette, who had flown in from Texas the day before. We were all excited to be attending Mikayla's dance recital that night. Doesn't she look adorable doing the Itsy Bitsy Spider?! Aunt Jen even danced in a number, but the pictures did not turn out as well (but I hear Uncle Robert has a video of it!!)

Playing drums on chairs is always fun in an auditorium

We were so lucky to spend Father's Day with 3 great fathers- my own, my Grandpa & my Uncle Robert. They were treated like Kings on this day by all the women- taking them out to brunch & cooking a delicious dinner for them. Even doing the dishes- you are welcome, Uncle Robert :)

I could tell that Daddy needed some help opening the card

I'm starting to take my own pictures- isn't this a great one of my Grandpa?!

The first leg of our trip..

Well, I didn't fall off the face of the earth as it may have seemed. We were just too busy on vacation for Mommy to make any blog posts! So here's a catch-up session:

Thanks to our friends, Kurt, Kristin, J.D. & Lily Stemhagen for opening up your wonderful home to us for 2 nights. The food was delicious and the toys were aplenty! The playground just down from their house was BIG, so Lily and I were able to make "cupcakes".

I tested out these big wheels & I think my legs are almost long enough for it.

I was not happy to be leaving my friends! As soon as I fell asleep in the car, it was all better again because we were on our way to cousin Mikayla's house!