Grasshoppers Are Yummy!
You would think that Gracie does not get enough protein in her diet based on a recent report we received from one of her teachers. Grace was covertly crouching in a corner near a door in her classroom when Ms. Rose noticed that she had something in her mouth. When Ms. Rose prompted Gracie to open her mouth, a tiny grasshopper hopped out!!! Apparently, Grace did not have time to chomp down on the little critter before Ms. Rose caught her. Thank goodness! Nevertheless, we have been offering Gracie a more protein-rich menu just in case she's trying to tell us something about her nutritional needs.
Shortly after my last post, we went down to Eugene for the day to visit my sister, Noelle, and her family. Because it was a gorgeous fall day, we decided to go to a local pumpkin patch to let the kiddos pick out their own pumpkins. We had a great time riding around the big farm on a hay bale-filled, tractor-pulled cart. The kids got to pet goats, ponies, and bunnies; and we took home some delicious fresh-picked apples.
Then the very next weekend, we went to another pumpkin patch with Jill, Megan, and Benji. It was really cool because in addition to the petting zoo, hayride, and pick-your-own pumpkins, this farm had a super tall slide for kids (and their parents) to go down. Lots of kids even older than Grace came off of that slide crying because of how high and fast it was; but not GG. She was laughing and trying to get us to take her down again! She's a daredevil, that child. The best feature of that pumpkin patch, though, was the pony ride. Grace absolutely loved it! She had a smile on her face the entire time! Now I understand why parents want to give their little girls a pony.
We just got back from a short trip to Southern California to visit my dad and his wife, Barbara, as well as several other family members who had yet to meet Baby Gracie. We had a great time! Grace was a pro on the plane. She was not afraid, nor did she have any plugged-ear issues. In fact on the flight there, she had fun opening and closing the seat-back trays and flipping through the in-flight magazines. She also made friends with two small children seated in front of us (Elizabeth and Jack, who were on their way to Disneyland). She slept almost the whole way home.
GG had lots of fun with "Pee Paw" and Grandma "Bee." We visited several places my dad and I used to go to when I was a kid, such as Fashion Island and the Balboa Pier in Newport Beach. While at Fashion Island, Gracie spent time exploring the beautiful koi pond, running through the "plip plop" fountain (it's a platform with several holes through which little spurts of water pop out at irregular intervals), and riding the carousel. It was Grace's first time on a carousel, and she loved it!
Later that day, we rode the Balboa Island ferry across Newport Harbor and walked to the end of the Balboa Pier. While walking on the pier, Gracie squealed with delight about how close the seagulls hovered overhead. We even saw a fisherman catch a small leopard shark!
We spent one day at my Aunt Susan and Uncle Bobby's house and got to see lots of people we hadn't seen for a long time, including my cousin Alex, his wife Shari, and their baby boy Brian. We were so busy visiting and watching the babies play together that, regretfully, we did not get any pictures worth posting to this blog. I guess that means we need to get together again soon for new photo opps.
The next day, we visited my Grandma and Grandpa Baca for a few hours at their house. Grace spent the majority of our visit playing with a pot of pebbles in their backyard. It's funny because Grace always gravitates toward containers of rocks. We have a cedar planter on our front porch with a few polished rocks we use to fill in around the plants. Grace loves to rearrange the rocks in that thing. Then, when we got to my dad's, Grace immediately honed in on a bowl full of decorative polished rocks and played with them the whole time we were there. She liked to take them out, walk around with them, and put them back (with our urging, of course).
The day after we got back from California, Gracie had her 18 month well-baby check up. She had to see a new doctor because we couldn't get an appointment with Dr. Jan. Grace was a champ! She had to get a shot, but she barely even cried. We are so proud of what a brave girl she was. At just over 18-months old, Gracie weighs 23.5 pounds (45th percentile) and measures two feet, eight inches tall (60th percentile). Because she's eating so well and growing just right, we got the go-ahead to switch her from formula to whole milk, but Gracie isn't very happy about it. We decided to keep feeding her a bottle of formula first thing in the morning and at bedtime to make the transition a little easier, but we'll gradually replace those feedings as she gets more used to the taste of milk.
Grace is awesome. We have been taking her to a lot of new playgrounds in our area, since the weather will be changing soon and we want to take advantage of the nice weather we're having. She climbs and jumps and runs and slides and swings. She's so full of energy and life. It is incredible to watch her learn and grow and change so rapidly. Grace comes up with a new word or skill almost daily! Her latest and greatest animal sounds are "oo oo ah ah" (monkey), and "ssssss" (snake). We're working on elephant sounds, but that one's kinda hit or miss.
It's getting late and Monday morning comes really quickly, so I better wrap things up. I posted a few new photos to chronicle our California trip and the past several weeks since my last post. Enjoy!
Shortly after my last post, we went down to Eugene for the day to visit my sister, Noelle, and her family. Because it was a gorgeous fall day, we decided to go to a local pumpkin patch to let the kiddos pick out their own pumpkins. We had a great time riding around the big farm on a hay bale-filled, tractor-pulled cart. The kids got to pet goats, ponies, and bunnies; and we took home some delicious fresh-picked apples.
Then the very next weekend, we went to another pumpkin patch with Jill, Megan, and Benji. It was really cool because in addition to the petting zoo, hayride, and pick-your-own pumpkins, this farm had a super tall slide for kids (and their parents) to go down. Lots of kids even older than Grace came off of that slide crying because of how high and fast it was; but not GG. She was laughing and trying to get us to take her down again! She's a daredevil, that child. The best feature of that pumpkin patch, though, was the pony ride. Grace absolutely loved it! She had a smile on her face the entire time! Now I understand why parents want to give their little girls a pony.
We just got back from a short trip to Southern California to visit my dad and his wife, Barbara, as well as several other family members who had yet to meet Baby Gracie. We had a great time! Grace was a pro on the plane. She was not afraid, nor did she have any plugged-ear issues. In fact on the flight there, she had fun opening and closing the seat-back trays and flipping through the in-flight magazines. She also made friends with two small children seated in front of us (Elizabeth and Jack, who were on their way to Disneyland). She slept almost the whole way home.
GG had lots of fun with "Pee Paw" and Grandma "Bee." We visited several places my dad and I used to go to when I was a kid, such as Fashion Island and the Balboa Pier in Newport Beach. While at Fashion Island, Gracie spent time exploring the beautiful koi pond, running through the "plip plop" fountain (it's a platform with several holes through which little spurts of water pop out at irregular intervals), and riding the carousel. It was Grace's first time on a carousel, and she loved it!
Later that day, we rode the Balboa Island ferry across Newport Harbor and walked to the end of the Balboa Pier. While walking on the pier, Gracie squealed with delight about how close the seagulls hovered overhead. We even saw a fisherman catch a small leopard shark!
We spent one day at my Aunt Susan and Uncle Bobby's house and got to see lots of people we hadn't seen for a long time, including my cousin Alex, his wife Shari, and their baby boy Brian. We were so busy visiting and watching the babies play together that, regretfully, we did not get any pictures worth posting to this blog. I guess that means we need to get together again soon for new photo opps.
The next day, we visited my Grandma and Grandpa Baca for a few hours at their house. Grace spent the majority of our visit playing with a pot of pebbles in their backyard. It's funny because Grace always gravitates toward containers of rocks. We have a cedar planter on our front porch with a few polished rocks we use to fill in around the plants. Grace loves to rearrange the rocks in that thing. Then, when we got to my dad's, Grace immediately honed in on a bowl full of decorative polished rocks and played with them the whole time we were there. She liked to take them out, walk around with them, and put them back (with our urging, of course).
The day after we got back from California, Gracie had her 18 month well-baby check up. She had to see a new doctor because we couldn't get an appointment with Dr. Jan. Grace was a champ! She had to get a shot, but she barely even cried. We are so proud of what a brave girl she was. At just over 18-months old, Gracie weighs 23.5 pounds (45th percentile) and measures two feet, eight inches tall (60th percentile). Because she's eating so well and growing just right, we got the go-ahead to switch her from formula to whole milk, but Gracie isn't very happy about it. We decided to keep feeding her a bottle of formula first thing in the morning and at bedtime to make the transition a little easier, but we'll gradually replace those feedings as she gets more used to the taste of milk.
Grace is awesome. We have been taking her to a lot of new playgrounds in our area, since the weather will be changing soon and we want to take advantage of the nice weather we're having. She climbs and jumps and runs and slides and swings. She's so full of energy and life. It is incredible to watch her learn and grow and change so rapidly. Grace comes up with a new word or skill almost daily! Her latest and greatest animal sounds are "oo oo ah ah" (monkey), and "ssssss" (snake). We're working on elephant sounds, but that one's kinda hit or miss.
It's getting late and Monday morning comes really quickly, so I better wrap things up. I posted a few new photos to chronicle our California trip and the past several weeks since my last post. Enjoy!
