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Thu, Jun 30, 2005 12:00 PM
We're in the midst of a linguistic crisis at the Fanelli house. However, it has nothing to do with the baby. It has to do with Gran and Grandpa--who seem to have forgotten how to say a very important two-letter word: "NO."

That's the only way to explain Gran taking Katie for not one, but two walks before 8:00 yesterday morning. Or for Grandpa taking her out in the pouring rain just because "she wanted to." (For the record, he kept Katie dry; he was the one soaked to the bone!) And, they follow Katie's demands regarding which mode of transportation to use (blue stroller or red buggy).

Before Gran and Grandpa's arrival, Katie would happily play in her giant playpen for extended periods. I've always encouraged lots of independent, self-guided play. So, imagine my surprise at finding Gran sitting INSIDE the "cage" entertaining Katie! LOL

I keep telling them that they CAN say "no" and Katie will get over it in about two minutes--tops. But they just shake their heads and say, "We're the grandparents."

All I can say is, we will have our work cut out for us once the grandparents have returned to Kentucky! :-)

P.S. All teasing aside, we're still eternally grateful for their help... and I know we'll feel even more grateful when we're lounging poolside in the Caribbean! ;-)

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Sun, Jun 26, 2005 9:00 PM
I've been a website slacker this week--and with good reason. With Gran and Grandpa in town, Steve and I have been running around more than usual. And, I must admit, I let up a little knowing that Gran will take more than enough photos of Katie! :-)

On Tuesday evening, Steve and I took Katie to the annual spring festival at MMR, a local Catholic parish. We went for the first time last year and really enjoyed it. At this year's festival, Katie experienced her first carnival rides--a carousel and kiddie train.

In other news, this weekend marked the first time that both Steve and I left Katie overnight. Early Friday morning, we dropped Danielle at the airport (she's in Tampa visiting family), and then we drove to Northern Virginia for Marianne's wedding on Saturday. Katie did great with Gran and Grandpa and showed no signs of missing us while we were gone. However, today--our first full day back--she has been just a bit ornery and fussy. Perhaps it was a delayed reaction to the separation, or maybe she was just in a good old-fashioned foul mood. Who knows...

At any rate, it was a good "dry run" for our upcoming trip to Grand Cayman Island. Steve and I will be away for six days and five nights. And I can tell you already: By the end of our trip, we will BOTH be dying to get home to her!

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Tue, Jun 21, 2005 8:00 AM
Gran and Grandpa have arrived and have begun babysitting their little pistol, I mean, granddaughter. With Katie's mobility, their bodies will get quite a workout--and with her loud mouth, so will their ears! But since she still takes a morning and an afternoon nap, at least they can enjoy some quiet rest time twice a day.

My parents arrived in a packed car--and when I say "packed," I mean PACKED! The goodies included all kinds of presents for Katie's first birthday (shh, don't tell her!), as well as several of my own toys and quite a collection of my old stuff from their basement. Thankfully, we got everything unloaded and unpacked while Steve was at work, so he couldn't actually see the massive volume of "treasures" all at one time. (Shh, don't tell him, either! ;-)

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Sun, Jun 19, 2005 10:00 PM
Father's Day is rapidly drawing to a close. This year was Steve's first as the father of not one, but TWO daughters. Add Angel the "granddog" in there and you have more than enough excitement for him! ;-)

Since we spent yesterday at the zoo, we "celebrated" by staying home and relaxing. For dinner, we had--what else?--a barbecue, which is Steve's favorite. Aside from Katie being unusually fussy (could a tooth FINALLY be on the way?), the day was great!

Late tomorrow Gran and Grandpa arrive for their lengthy visit/babysitting stint. Speaking of that, I better get upstairs and finish making room for their clothes!

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Sat, Jun 18, 2005 9:30 PM
Today Katie took her first trip to the Philadelphia Zoo. (It was my first time there, as well.) We had PERFECT weather for walking around and enjoying the exhibits. Although Katie is too young to truly appreciate the zoo, she seemed to enjoy the "eye candy" and the time with her parents and sister. (Of course, we still talked about the different animals that she's encountered in her stories and songs. For instance, we got very close to a peacock--one of the critters featured in her book, "Tails.") We'll definitely keep going back as she gets older.

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Thu, Jun 16, 2005 7:40 PM
Every night after work, Steve takes Katie upstairs with him while he changes into his comfy clothes. Before she could roll over and crawl, she'd just lie on our bed and gnaw on his belt. These days, she roams around the bedroom while he changes.

He told me that tonight, when he tossed his dirty socks in her general direction, Katie started "talking"--and didn't stop for literally five minutes. He said he was in disbelief and couldn't imagine what ANYONE could say about socks for that long!

After dinner, we put her in the stroller and went for a walk around the neighborhood. Steve started asking Katie questions about her day and her weekend plans. She "answered" every one--and very spiritedly, I might add. It was all we could do to not crack up (audibly, that is).

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Wed, Jun 15, 2005 8:30 PM
Today was Katie's last day with Miss Mary and her kids. I am very, very happy that she was able to watch Katie these past eight months--and yet very sad that we're moving on the next stage already. It goes so fast! (See the June album for some great shots of Katie with Miss Mary and her three children.)

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Tue, Jun 14, 2005 7:30 AM
This afternoon Stacey and Andrew head to Ohio to visit her family. We've enjoyed their visit, and we hope they've enjoyed their time with Katie, too!

While they were here, we had some "firsts." Katie is now pulling herself up in her crib. Steve found her standing up first thing yesterday and today. She's also pulling herself up on the couch, chairs, ottoman--and even me! While I was putting in my contacts this morning, I felt a little monkey "scaling" my right leg.

Last night, she tried some foods for the first time. She had avocado, plantains, red beans, and tomatoes taken from pico de gallo. She liked it all. From what I can tell, Katie now considers pureed baby food passé. If she can't feed it to herself, she wants no part of it. Conversely, if she can pick it up herself, she'll sample just about anything.

Right now, for instance, she's eating a used tissue that she found in the garbage can. And on that note, I gotta go!

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Sun, Jun 12, 2005 6:45 PM
This weekend my college buddy and former Philly roommate, Stacey, and her husband, Andrew, are in town from San Francisco. They've been busy attending a wedding and catching up with various friends. In their free time, they've been previewing life with a baby--from the nap schedule that dampens your social life to the giggles and games that make going out seem less important.

Tomorrow they'll get a full-fledged trial run with a baby. Our sitter, Miss Mary, is attending a family picnic at her daughters' school. So, Stacey and Andrew graciously agreed to fill in--looking after Katie until around noon. I hope she behaves; I hate to think of Katie derailing their desire to join the parenthood "adventure"... ;-)

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Sat, Jun 11, 2005 10:30 PM
This evening Steve, Katie, and I went to East Brunswick, NJ, for a surprise party in honor of his friends, John and Shelly's, 25th wedding anniversary. Finally, Katie had a chance to meet their extended family and friends--all while experiencing a classic DeLasso party. (Those people know how to throw a good party; they are so much fun!)

Katie clapped while the guests of honor renewed their wedding vows. (Steve was "on stage," too, reprising his role as best man.) Later, when only a handful of young ones were on the dance floor, Steve put Katie down on it. Believe it or not, she started to dance and then zoomed on over to "greet" the big girls.

We left the party at 8:30 and, needless to say, she had passed out in her car seat before we'd pulled out of the parking lot.

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Fri, Jun 10, 2005 7:45 PM
Katie and I spent a good bit of this morning at the Toyota dealer. During the wait, she made friends with a brother and sister, ages 5 and 3, respectively. The boy used Legos to build a T-Rex, which Katie quickly grabbed and broke into two pieces. His mom said he's used to being around younger children, and I could tell. He responded to Katie's actions by saying, "Oh well, she turned it into a rocket ship!"

At first, the little girl was shy around Katie--even when Katie crawled over to her. But by the time they left to get their car, the little girl said, "Mommy, can she come over to our house?" LOL

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Thu, Jun 9, 2005 12:00 PM
This coming Monday marks the beginning of Miss Mary's last week as Katie's Monday-Tuesday-Wednesday sitter. We're sad that she won't be looking after Katie anymore, but we're very grateful that she was able to help for as long as she did! Katie ADORES Miss Mary and her three kids (more photos coming soon). It has been an excellent situation all the way around. I'm sure the kids will miss each other!

Over the summer, Gran and Grandpa and then Danielle will be watching Katie to fill in the gaps. In the fall, we plan to enroll her for part of the week at Elbow Lane Day Camp in Warrington (www.elbowlane.com). We like Elbow Lane for a number of reasons. At a tactical level, we like the location--which is a stone's throw from our house. From a more strategic, long-term perspective, we like the fact that Elbow Lane has programs right through the ninth grade. So, assuming all goes well, Katie can continue going there for quite a long time.

This morning, all three of us went for a follow-up tour at the camp. First, we checked out the "Tiny Tots" room where Katie would start in the fall. Upon seeing the kids and the toys, she eagerly joined in. In fact, she was happy as a clam sitting there "talking" with the others. They were very intrigued by her, as well.

Before we moved on to the rest of the campus, I held her up to show her the little ones in the baby room. As one of the staff members said, "Katie, this would be your 'crew' in the fall!" Right before we left the room, a baby girl named Chase greeted Katie with a smile and a squawk. In response, Katie smiled back, clapped, and then "blessed" the entire room with her Pope-like wave.

I guess you could say she gave the place her seal of approval.

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Mon, Jun 6, 2005 9:30 PM
Here's one of Katie's favorite games:

While I'm working in the office, Steve puts her up on his shoulders and holds on to both of her hands. He tiptoes into the double doorway. When I turn around and face them, I express surprise, he gasps and runs dramatically to either side of the door. All the while, Katie has one of her trademark giggling fits. This cycle generally repeats four (or five or six!) times before we all tire of it.

Tonight, Katie demonstrated that she can initiate this game all by herself:

I was on the computer; Steve was sitting in the guest chair; Katie was crawling around the foyer. When I lost sight of her, I called out, "Where's Katie?"

The little bugger had positioned her body just outside the double doorway. So, when I said that, she popped her head up and out--with the biggest of grins. I did my usual "surprised" reaction, and she quickly retreated (just like her dad does). We did this little back-and-forth routine four times before she turned her attention elsewhere.

I'm interested to see if she wants to play this way again later!

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Sun, Jun 5, 2005 9:45 PM
This weekend we got our first taste of the Kids' Castle playground (more like "experience"!) in Doylestown. Katie's still too little to take full advantage of it, but she enjoyed the slide (see video clip) and swings (see photos in the June album).

Katie continues to crawl all over the place. When she's getting into something she shouldn't, we say, "No." She stops what she's doing, looks directly at us, then smiles and does her little wave. After a pause, she usually resumes her mischief, and we say "no" again. And so it goes...

In all fairness, she does listen pretty well, and she's doing lots of good stuff, too. For instance, Nay Nay said she was waving "hi" to the children pictured in one of her books. She also likes to "dance" while seated on the floor. And she still loves people.

Today while Danielle was over, the three of us did a trial run of "Happy Birthday." I've heard that some kids can become overwhelmed when sung to. Katie didn't have that reaction. Instead, she started waving her arms and shouting--as if to say "More, people, more!"

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Fri, Jun 3, 2005 7:00 PM
There's no other way to say it.

All heck is breaking loose in the Fanelli household. To wit:

*This morning while I was in the shower, Katie made her way into a vanity drawer. Her catch of the day was a sheet of Tylenol Sinus pills.

*In the last few days, her favorite hobby is opening the drawer at the bottom of her crib--and emptying the contents (bibs and hats) all over the floor. (A close second is emptying the magazine basket in our powder room.)

*Tonight while I was straightening her room, I watched her crawl from the crib to the inside of her bathroom in, oh, 30 seconds. Whoosh!

*Once inside her bathroom, she quickly used the tub to pull herself into a standing position.

For the last few weeks, I've been contemplating buying a Superyard XT for Katie. I think it's time. Besides, Steve just told me, "Order that 'cage.' Order it now!" LOL

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Thu, Jun 2, 2005 12:30 PM
My friend, Kriss, came over today to cut my hair. Our regularly scheduled appointment had been delayed for a very good reason: the birth of her baby girl, Jessica Kristine ("Jesse")! Kriss brought the baby with her today. It was astounding to see how HUGE Katie looks next to Jess, who, like Katie, was around 6.5 pounds at birth.

Katie went berserk with excitement upon seeing the guests. She gave them intense raspberries and kept trying to get ahold of the infant. She even gave Jess a little "ride" across the floor before Nay Nay (one of Katie's sitters) and I could stop her!

As Nay Nay said, Katie is definitely not an infant anymore. She's rapidly moving into the toddler phase.

Another case in point: Since she was born, Katie has hung out in the master bathroom with me while I shower. She used to sit quietly in her bouncy seat. Once she outgrew that (remember the "body slams"?!), I started putting her on the floor with toys.

Today, as usual, I sat her down with her goodies and got in the shower. I started to hear a strange shuffling noise, and then I noticed a tiny shadow of a hand tapping on the glass. Yes, she made her way over to me, knocked on the "door," and camped out until I emerged from the shower stall.

In the future, I think I'll copy my friend, Marianne's, technique and put Katie in our big tub. That'll work great--until she figures out how to turn on the faucets! :-)

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