Grown-up girl

I know this blog is totally out of context, but I wanted to post this picture for Grace's Daddy and show him what happens when he goes out of town for a week... the girls go wild! This was the first time that Grace has ever had her toenails painted, and it surprised me that she wanted it done. I think she saw me doing it, and thought, "If it is good enough for Mom, must be good for me!" I painted one nail cautiously, but she kept asking for more, so I did them all. You know my tenderhearted child, so this is really shocking. She freaks out with a stamp on her hand at story hour. Just hope she likes it tomorrow morning when the socks come off...
P.S. I thought you might find this little story funny from the past few days. It probably is funnier to hear her say it- maybe I can get her on video tomorrow. For over a month, Grace has been saying spoon as "spoon". Regularly. Consistently. On the day before we got home from vacation, she bumped her head pretty badly. Two days later, now home, she wanted a spoon. It came out like this- "shuuma". We had no idea what she was talking about until we saw her point at it. Do you think she has a concussion or just decided the latter word was a lot more fun to say?

The Gracie Times

On the Front Page:

"She speaks!" We have a working list of words that Grace has started using. She barely made the quota of 10 words by her 18 month check-up, but now she has about 20 words that she even uses on a somewhat regular basis! There are the ever popular no, mama, daddy, Dixie, outside, shoe and "nana" (both for banana and her grandma, Nana, and she knows the difference). Some less useful ones include arm, cracker, and this.

On the Sports Page:

"A Dare Devil in Kentucky" Grace went down the park slide without crying! A big slide, outdoors, from the top and wanted to go again and again! For those who find this unimpressive, consider the evidence: A couple of months ago she cried when she went down a slide two feet off the ground, indoors, on carpet. That's right. She's a bona fide wimp (my friends call her cautious and less adventurous, but honestly, lets call it like it is).

On the Local Page:

"Daddy's exam in two weeks!" Erik has been studying for his 9th actuary exam. Will these ever end, you ask? We are wondering the same thing. It has proved especially challenging this time because Grace is so tempting to play with and work has been extremely busy. We are looking forward to a family vacation to Mexico right after his exam with the Westbrook clan.

One the Life & Art Page:

"Friends and Fun" We had my Mom here for about 5 days in April. Grace learned "hold you" for when she wants to be picked up. The kids are at the age where they actually play together at playgroup, and occasionally fight over the favorite toy. Grace has also been into coloring and stickers. I can actually put her in her booster seat, slide her up to the kitchen table and she will color contently for quite a while. She also has been "helping" me make dinner. She slides the chair up to the kitchen counter and asks to get up. Erik's job after his exam is to make some sort of stool with rungs on three sides so it is safer. Don't judge me here on the safety issue- 30 minutes of getting to cook dinner without a whiny toddler hanging on my leg has got to be safer for all those involved. :)