Gabi's Little Sister

1. Don't miss yesterday's post, published as we were in the hospital awaiting the arrival of Gabi's little sister, Anna.

2. We are moving to a new blog to incorporate pictures of both of our beautiful little girls.

Hotlanta

The weather has gotten quite hot here in Atlanta! We wanted to share some pictures of some fun things we've done this summer to beat the heat:

The Georgia Aquarium is one of Gabi's favorite Atlanta activities. Our air condition was having a hard time keeping up with the heat, and we were appreciative of the industrial strength unit at the aquarium.


Gabi loves to try to pet the rays.


Gabi and Daddy smile with the cuttlefish.


Gabi studies the tiny jellyfish.


Gabi shows Mommy all the "Dory fish" at the tropical diver exhibit.


Gabi and Mommy looking at another tank of tropical fish.


Gabi and Daddy get ready to check out the Ocean Voyager.

One day, Daddy came home from work, and the air conditioner seemed like it had given up. Mommy had already taken a shower and walked around the house with wet hair that morning, then had taken Gabi on a field trip to the Dekalb Farmer's Market. During Gabi's quiet time, Mommy had indulged in a soak in the tub. She was going to give Gabi a bath and thought Daddy should put on his swimming trunks and have fun in the tub too. Daddy suggested we try out the bubble bath soap we found while cleaning under the sink....


Gabi laughs as she gets the bubbles Daddy scooped up for her.


Gabi loves bubbles!


Daddy was exhausted after agitating the water
to make this nice thick foam for Gabi girl.


After the bath, Gabi lets Mommy put her hair into pigtails.
Here you can see Gabi "holding still" at Mommy's request.
She always puts both hands on her chin to hold her head still.


We finished this day off by visiting Lisa and John's new baby, Wesley.
Wesley's house also has air conditioning which is functioning well.

And finally, a pair of pictures from cooler times this summer, playing at our house.


After lunch one day, Gabi decided she would try to dress herself back up.
All by herself, she put on this headband and put her arms in her shirt.


One of Gabi's favorite buddies, Joe, stopped by to have a tea party.
Gabi received this tea set shortly before we left for Texas.
Someone must have gotten the idea after reading the end of this post.

Uncle Stephen's Wedding

At Stephen and Alicia's wedding, Gabi was a flowergirl for the second time. Gramma Jane made this beautiful dress for her and hand-beaded the bodice! The skirt is silk with a chiffon skirt overlaying it. The real star of the day was Alicia (alongside Stephen), but of course this blog entry will feature our beautiful daughter. :)

Gabi talking to Alicia before the ceremony.
Mommy took that picture too fast without steadying the camera, which is a shame, because even as it is, it is better than any the official photographer caught of our two-year-old.


Cousins Katelyn and Gabi with their respective grandmothers.


Gabi playing with her flower basket before the wedding.


Gabi dancing with a flower petal from her basket.


Gabi refused to walk down the aisle during the procession,
so Daddy had to carry her to the front.


Gabi taking her shoes off on the altar.
Although this isn't "proper etiquette," she looks like such a big girl here!


Gabi spies Lolo and Lola and rushes off the altar to greet them.
Her shoes and flowerbasket remained on the altar.


Gabi back on the altar, playing with her flower basket.
I didn't realize they wanted Alicia's train off to the side instead of straight down the center of the steps. Alicia certainly looked very pretty, but the unfortunate side-effect was that there was no place for the flowergirl to stand once the bride's train was all spread out. In the picture below, the maid-of-honor had already asked Gabi to move over once, and as you can see, she needed to ask Gabi to move again in order to have room for the train. At that second request, Gabi decided to move off the altar completely, where apparently there was not room for her. So she came to sit with me -- except that keeping her sitting was difficult.

Gabi is asked to move out of the way
so the maid-of-honor can spread out Alicia's train.
Gabi was at least very quiet. She was so excited to have both sets of grandparents as well as both parents all sitting in the first two rows that she wanted to move back and forth between us all. We restricted this as much as possible without making noise (or prompting her to make noise).

During the Unity Candle song (which, as is often the case at weddings, lasted for 2 or 3 full minutes after the Unity Candle was lit), Gabi elected to dance in the aisle. As nothing else was going on (the bride and groom were having a whispered conversation up on the altar), I let her dance until the song finally ended. Once I did ask her to come sit down again, Gabi obliged by sitting down in the aisle next to me - but tried to get back at me by throwing the flower petals out of her basket onto the floor. She declared, "I'm making a mess!" Unbeknownst to her, that's exactly what we had intended for her to do in the first place... but in our instructions to her, we had neglected to include that part, because we really were just hoping that she'd walk down the aisle.

Well, she did walk down the aisle by herself during the recessional. She did a great job there. She wanted to pick up all the flower petals that she had strewn about, but I convinced her to leave them on the floor.


Gabi dancing on the altar after the ceremony.


Flowergirl Gabi and Ring-bearer Jonathan
So, that is the story of Gabi's second flowergirl experience. As she refused to process down the aisle, didn't want to stand on the altar the whole time, and wasn't cooperative for the professional pictures beforehand or afterwards, she wasn't much of a flowergirl... but she was cute. As her mother, I wished it could have gone better, but the mother-of-the-bride pointed out to me that her actions didn't bother anyone except me (everyone else understands that she's two years old). So, with the compliments (at the reception) of the groom and the mother-of-the-bride and two aunts of the bride and many people I know and a couple people I don't know... I shall consider this flowergirl adventure to be a success.


Gabi dancing at the reception.


Lola and Lolo dancing with Gabi.


Grampa giving a toast at the reception.
Uncle Scott was the best man!


Wedding bubbles!


Gabi putting her shoe back on.
Unfortunately, she sat down right in the middle of
where Stephen and Alicia were about to exit.


Gabi buckling her shoe before we say goodnight.
I was impressed that she was able to thread the strap through the buckle.

Texas in August

Well, we made it to Texas and back without any emergent trips to a hospital for pre-term labor! We arrived Friday evening and, after eating Gramma Jane's yummy dinner, we left her to run Gabi's bedtime routine while we headed up to Cheddar's with Grampa to eat dessert on Stephen and Alicia's last night of working there. The next day, we drove to Grapevine for Megan and David's wedding.


A family portrait at Megan and David's wedding.


Gabi dancing with Daddy during the father-daughter dance.


The whole family at Megan's wedding reception.


Gabi showing a flower petal to cousins Bryn and Heidi.
We spent nine days at Gramma Jane and Grampa's house. Gabi had a lot of fun, although she was sleep-deprived from the first night and never did catch up. She also caught a little cold, which didn't help her sleep at night (especially on nights we forgot her Benadryl!). The spoiling from all angles (grandparents and uncles alike) taught Gabi that she can demand what she wants and get it -- even if she wants to eat so much fruit that she gives herself diarrhea. Mommy and Daddy didn't appreciate the emergence of the word "No!" so prominently in her speech, as we watched our agreeable little girl learn to behave like a typical two-year-old. But it was a fun week.


Gabi the Grouch hiding in a giant tin can.


George drove through town on the way back from Tom's wedding.
(One of our ND friends got married in Oklahoma that weekend.)


Gabi trying on the flowergirl dress that Gramma Jane made her.


Gabi holding Uncle Stephen's puppy while
Gramma Jane pins the hem on her dress.
Gabi carried this puppy around almost incessantly that week.


Gabi, Daddy, and Katie


Melissa, Gabi, and Sydney


Gabi helping Gramma Jane put up wallpaper in the dining room.


First, Gabi painted on the glue.


Then she brushed the wallpaper to make sure it was flat.


We went swimming with cousins Eric and Lauren,
except Gabi refused to get in the pool. She took a bath instead.
(One of her many typically-two disagreeable acts of the week.)


Gabi requested that someone dance with her,
and Gramma Jane obliged.


Grampa and Michael soundly beat
Stephen and Scott at this hand in Spades.


Stephen's bachelor party looked a lot like this,
except the guys played Poker instead of Spades.
Friday night brought the wedding rehearsal and dinner, after which the guys went out for Stephen's bachelor party. (For some reason, Scott's girlfriend Amy stood in for the bride during the rehearsal.)

At the wedding rehearsal, the minister warned us that
there is no such thing as a perfect wedding.


Gabi decided she'd rather take a nap in the aisle than stand on the altar.


Last-minute wedding preparations -- tying ribbons on the programs.
I'll save the pictures from Uncle Stephen's wedding for a separate post. We hoped that Gabi would behave better at the actual ceremony than she did at the rehearsal... and she did, but not by much. Oh, well.


Gramma Jane chatting with her sisters before Stephen's wedding.
On Sunday, Gramma Jane's family came over for brunch before we all left town.

Aunt Rita gave Gabi a present: two little house-shaped boxes.
Gabi picked one to be for Anna and one for herself.


Gabi talking to her cousin Joseph.


This weekend, we met Leah's fiance, Patrick,
as well as Joseph (Ashley and the other Patrick's baby).


Scott resting in Amy's lap.


Ashley, Brooke (Darren's wife), Liz (Mark's wife), and Melissa.
Ashley's baby is now almost six months old!
Brooke and Melissa are both due in September.


All the cousins.
back row: Liz & Mark, Michael, Ashley & Patrick and baby Joseph,
Brian, Darren, and Leah's Patrick
front row: Amy, Melissa and Gabi girl, Scott, Brooke, and Leah


Patrick and Ashley are going to be Annabelle's godparents!
After such a long time out of her regular routine, in an unfamiliar environment, and surrounded by people Gabi doesn't know, it's nice to be back home in Atlanta. We've spent the week re-establishing all the rules that we couldn't enforce while at Gramma Jane's house. Returning to a better sleep schedule has also helped a great deal. I guess it's not a bad thing for our child to learn to act her age, even if that age is two years old, but we are happy to see her return to more of her normal, agreeable self.

Lullwater

We took Gabi for a picnic at Lullwater Park last month. The park contains a lake and waterfalls, in addition to Lullwater House, where the President of Emory University lives. The park is open to the public during the day, and a favorite place for Emory students and faculty to relax.


Gabi and Daddy enjoy a picnic lunch together


Gabi says that she's sharing "cheese" with Mommy


Our stroller continues to serve us well, even when we go "offroad"


We brought some extra bread to share with the ducks and geese.


Gabi and Daddy are suddenly popular with the local waterfowl.


The geese beg Gabi for more bread.


Gabi bends down to say hello to the geese in the water.


Gabi and Mommy try to throw bread to the shy ducks,
but it gets gobbled up by those greedy geese first.


Gabi isn't sure what to make of her newfound celebrity.


Gabi, Mommy, and Daddy pose by the lake.


Gabi smiles with Mommy on the walk...


...and later gets a big hug by the waterfall.


Gabi and Daddy explore the beach by the waterfall.


Gabi and Mommy venture out on a log bridge over the stream.


A tired Gabi snuggles with her Mommy.


One more hug before nap time.


Time to head home! We're so exhausted.
But Gabi says, "We had fun on our picnic!"

Little Socialite

Our Gabi girl loves to have playmates. Perhaps it is because we get together with the playgroup so often, but the kids all play together so well. I expected just to see parallel play in two-year-olds, but as Gabi's second birthday rolled around, I observed basic turn-taking behavior in these toddlers, such as when working together to build a tower or put a puzzle together. The kids love to hold hands, and they generally share well. Gabi is fairly shy, though, so she prefers smaller groups (two or three kids).

Gabi with her playgroup buddies.
The kids enjoy comforting each other when they notice one is sad, too. (You may recall Gabi kissing Martin to make him feel better last November.) Gabi is very affectionate, always wanting to give us hugs and kisses. Of course, when trying to cheer up a friend, they tend to offer their own favorite toy, rather than realizing that someone else might prefer something different. Still, I am impressed by the generosity, and it's fun to watch all her friends interact.


Grayson and Gabi dragged these chairs to face each other.


Jackson and Gabi rock baby Ben in his swing.


Gabi helps to keep baby Ben happy.
Gabi is going to be such a great big sister!


Gabi at John Howell Park, watching her friends drive the fire truck.


Carter, Gabi, and Drew playing piano.


Gabi was too scared to ride the swing, but
she was glad to push Mommy in a swing at McKoy Park.
When Gabi doesn't have a friend to keep her company (and she can't convince a parent to join her in floortime play), her dolls and stuffed animals (along with her incredible imagination) suffice.

Gabi helps her doll Ella sit in a chair at Grady hospital.


Gabi playing with her new Disney toys.
In these pictures, Gabi is sharing a tea party with her baby doll "Asha" and her favorite animal friend "Blue" (from Blues Clues). Gabi usually serves both sweet tea and chocolate milk at her tea parties. As we haven't yet gotten Gabi a proper tea set, she makes do with what she has. At times like this, it would be useful to have audio to accompany these pictures, since they make a bit more sense with Gabi's constant narration.

"I'm having a tea party with Asha and Blue!"
Gabi pours tea for Asha from her toy corn-on-the-cob
into a plastic star shape while Blue drinks from a pot.


"Want to drink some chocolate milk?"
Mommy took pity on our poor little girl and found
some plastic cups for her to use in her tea party.
(Yes, she is pretending that chocolate milk comes out of the faucet.)

Swimming with Mommy and Daddy

July brings extra time with Daddy owing to his suddenly lighter workload. Mommy had the forethought to get season passes to the pool, so Gabi has discovered a new fun activity. She's gone swimming several times this summer (this swimming party, for example) and is getting very comfortable in the water. Bathtime seems to take three times as long, now that Gabi has rediscovered her hydrophilia. On to the pictures:

Gabi laughs and runs away from Daddy in the "little pool"


Gabi and Daddy practice swimming on our tummies...


...and then on our backs!


Gabi makes use of her new bucket from the Decatur Beach Party;
in this picture, she reloads before splashing Daddy on the head again.


The bucket made a very funny hat as well.
Gabi also shows us how a duck walks.


After playing with Daddy in the "little pool,"
Gabi ventures into the "big pool" with Mommy


Big girl Gabi practices swimming on her tummy and kicking


Gabi also liked splashing through the big pool's sprinklers