JoJo attended Grandpa's 65th birthday on Saturday. She also got to meet her Great-Aunt Pauline, who came all the way from New York for the party.

JoJo is a very confident walker, but she has also become more clingy lately, and she will not walk in a place with too many strangers or in a new place. At church, she refuses to be put down in the nursery, although this week she did allow it for a few seconds, until another toddler started to cry; then she was back in the arms for the rest of service. She also loves to tilt her head very far (see pic below) when someone is talking to her. At home, she'll put her head down on the ground and look backwards between her legs.

The best way to get a giggle out of her lately is to plop down on a bed or blanket - it's a game she learned down in California. Lately, it's the only way I can get a big laugh out of her.

She has been sleeping most of the night, although if she starts out in her crib, I will have to get her half-way through the night. I never thought I'd consider an uninterrupted night of sleep a luxury, but I do enjoy them when they happen.


Grandma surprised Grandpa with a big party.



JoJo grabbed a 4-square piece of my dark chocolate bar. This is the result!


With Great-Aunt Pauline. Notice the sideways head. I don't know where she learned that from.

Now that I'm back to work, JoJo spends most of her time with Sheryl. Jeanie has re-opened the daycare for the fall, but we're not using her yet.

JoJo spent another Tuesday will the cousins at Chuck E. Cheese, and this time she was willing to play on the toddler games, AND this time, the camera worked! Looks like she'll be going back to grandma's tomorrow for a few hours as well.

She did visit me at work this morning. After playing shy-girl for the first 45 minutes or so, she relaxed and walked around with daddy's pens, pulled books off the shelves, and even "talked" to some of the teachers that were walking around. Of course, I got nothing done work-wise, but it was a fun time nonetheless.

Another week has gone by... and we officially have a Walker! She has gotten more confident and more bold. She opened the cereal drawer tonight, grabbed a box (thankfully it was closed well), and walked up and down the halls shaking it proudly. It's the first time she has walked away from us - usually she only walks to get to a person. Her favorite toy is now the salad spinner, which she takes apart and pushes all over the kitchen floor. That and the fridge magnets almost allow me to make breakfast without interruption.

Other events this last week -

Thursday I took JoJo to the zoo for the first time. She nearly screamed when an otter approached her from the other side of the glass. After a while she got used to it, and at each display she wanted to kiss the glass. She liked the petting zoo, touching the sheep and goats, but she wasn't too impressed with the bears - I think they were too far away for her to care. The sea lions were fun because they kept coming up to the glass to show off, so she could anticipate them. The floor of the sea lion area was also wet, so her pants were soaked - something I noticed only after I had picked her up again!

She went with Grandma and I to see Jeanie, her daycare provider, on Friday then spent the rest of the day at Grandma's house.

On Sunday she was "promoted" from the infants room at church to the Walkers room! She still insisted on being carried by someone the entire time she was there, but I think she will stay in that room.

The pictures below are from an impromptu trip to Mt. St. Helens on Monday. We walked the trail at Silver Lake and Seaquest State Park.

Today she went to Chuck E. Cheeses and McDonalds with her nephews, grandma, and me. She did not want to sit on the kiddie toys. Instead, she ran between grandma and me, laughing and clinging to our hands and/or legs.

Today we went to the Salmon Creek trail and to the Ridgefield Preserve. At Ridgefield we saw some herons and some rabbits. JoJo is so observant - we'd stop on the trail and I'd say, "listen to the birds" (without pointing), and she'd immediately turn and point to the trees where the singing was coming from. After she grew tired of walking (the trail was too rough for the stroller), she sat down on the trail and started playing with clumps of grass, just pulling on them and laughing out loud. She also seems to know where blackberries come from because every time we passed a patch of blackberry bushes, she'd ask for some ("num, num"). I can tell she is full of berries when she starts playing with them, but then of course it's too late and her hands and clothes get all purple. Then she wants me to pick her up, so my shirt gets purple stains, too.

She also took a ride on my shoulders and seemed to like it. She leans down so she can see my face, then climbs back up.

Since I have only one week before I have to go back to work, I'm trying to spend as much time with her outside of the house as possible. It also frees Dr. Mom up to study for her exciting tests next week.

Here's another pic from the vacation. This is JoJo's cousin Kareena from North Carolina.

She's been a little cranky and clingy the last few days. I thought it was a separation anxiety or something like that. She wouldn't let me put her down and sit even two feet without crying, crawling over and clinging.

Last night we gave her some baby Tylenol, guessing that maybe her upper teeth were bothering her, as the 2nd one up there is just coming in. Within an hour, she was her old happy self again.

So was it missing Daddy, or was it her teeth? I'll let you decide; I know what I want to believe...

Below are pictures, as promised, from her California vacation, courtesy of Dr. Mom and one from Grandpa Dale. Enjoy!


She really can hold her own bottle, but she probably figures, "why?"


She's working on her poker face (and on learning how to shuffle)