trip to the children's museum.

For our last weekend of the summer before Jason went back to work, we did all kinds of fun things (Ollie's for custard and the zoo kicked things off -- see our previous posts!). On a rainy Sunday afternoon, we all headed out to the children's museum in Naperville for some educational adventures.

Lorelei is going to really love going there once she's a little older -- for now, she was fascinated by the hall of mirrors (so many Loreleis!), a moving light display, and a little kid play area where she put a bunch of mini wiffle balls into a Connect Four-like device and stared at herself in another mirror for a long time.

Afterwards, we headed to Two Brothers for some delicious food + a brew or two to end our weekend of fun right. Lorelei had most of the restaurant to herself and got a lot of great walking practice in!

mommy's taking us to the zoo tomorrow...

We sang that Raffi song lots of times on the way to and from the Brookfield Zoo!

The petting zoo was a big hit -- Lorelei was pretty fascinated by the goats and spent a lot of time honking at the geese, too. (Jason was very worried that she was stepping in poop -- hence that last picture)

Lorelei pointed out all of the animals with antlers, like this reindeer.

We ducked into a "feathers and scales" building to beat the heat -- Lorelei makes a great snake sound.

We watched the giraffe for a long time -- he looks so funny when trying to take a drink!

15 months old!

I am fifteen months old. Here's what you need to know all about me this month:

I like to try to say "doctor" but I actually do not like going to see him very much. He lets me play with the stethoscope but I still cry -- and those shots are the worst!

I am a big girl -- 75th percentile (though I've still got that pea head). People comment on how tall I am all the time!

Right on my 15 month birthday I decided that walking is better than crawling. I think I was inspired by a cute little girl named Azaria who I met at the library -- she kept running away from me and laughing. We had so much fun!

I have given up on avocados as my favorite food now that I discovered ICE CREAM! It is the best. My parents took me to Ollie's for frozen custard on my 15 month birthday -- most of these pictures are from there.

I have mastered a toy that I've had for a long time now with little colored sticks that fit into holes and jump if you push them. (Thanks, Stephanie and Juliette!) I'll show you if you come over to play.

The elephant slide in the backyard is the best thing ever. I ask to go out there a lot and cry if we don't get to. I also love the park and enjoy climbing on a lot more of the equipment than Mom approves of.

I nod my head to say "yes" and shake it to say "no." But right now I mostly say "yes" to everything because I love doing new things!

Jumping on the bed is so fun. I don't know why adults don't do it all the time.

Mom put all of my toys and books into bins on a new bookshelf in my room so things will be more tidy. Guess what I really love to do?

I like to climb up on the furniture whenever I have a chance. Mom and Dad do not seem to be big fans of this for some reason.

I don't say very much but I've learned lots of new words lately, like mountains and Obama and head rub and knees. I do like to say "dip dip dip" when I get to dunk my food into ketchup -- yum! And I like to point out the birds I know in books: crows, herons, and cardinals.

One of my very favorite books to read right now is a book with pictures of me from the day I was born. I am pretty sure I was the cutest baby ever.

Can't wait to see what I'll be doing next month! I'll be sure to tell you all about it.

finger painting.

More like "everything but my fingers" painting.

Colorado: play time

Even though Jason was at the conference a lot, we managed to get a lot of time together as a family, even when it was just grabbing lunch in between his conference sessions.

Isn't it cute how Jason and Lorelei make the same facial expressions? Gotta love the dimples.

Also, thanks to Hannah (see our previous post!), Lorelei and I found a fantastic little playground at the 29th Street Mall. No rocks/sand/woodchips to bother her, toddler-sized equipment shaped like trees and animals, and right next to Starbucks. She cried when we left!

Colorado: friends

We were very lucky to have some time with friends while we were in Boulder:

Lorelei and I spent the afternoon with Jill, a math teacher from P2P, and her daughter Sadie, who just turned one. Don't they look like they could be related?

We got to see a bunch of teachers up at school on Friday, and then were lucky enough to have brunch with Kristie, Kurt, and Carla on Saturday morning at a great place in the Ideal Market area.

On Sunday afternoon, Lorelei got to meet Mary's sons Cooper and Brady (and their dog Wendy!) and play to her heart's content in their sandbox.

Colorado: hiking

We took two hikes as a family while we were in Colorado -- the first up on Shanahan Ridge, near where we used to live, and the second in Chautauqua. Lorelei loves riding in the Ergo as a back carrier and would put her hands up in the air like she was on a rollercoaster. We couldn't have asked for more perfect weather!