Nene and Bampi visit

We have some great photos taken by my dad and mom of their visit last weekend.

On Friday morning, my parents joined Eliana, Lucy and me for story time at the Brooklyn Public library:





They do story time and sing some songs--that book on Baby Bear Chairs was great, maybe I'll get it some time if we ever run out of things to read. Then, they bring out boxes of toys for the toddlers to play. Although Eliana loves reading books (at home), Lucy loves running around the room during story time, and Eliana gets excited to run around the room with her. So we tried to bring them back to the story circle, but they're toddlers, and if you try to bring them back, they just scream. We got a few dirty looks from the other parents. Last time I went, the librarian made a comment like, "parents, please have your children sit down during the stories!" This librarian was a little more tolerant. Hopefully no one will put this on Eliana's report card.

We also had plenty of time to hang out at home, and Eliana got to show off her favorite toy:



Here are a few more good ones:





Bampi got to read Eliana a few bedtime stories. Note that we were joined by a few eagerly listening stuffed animals:



My parents also bundled Eliana up and took her out for a walk. Our neighbor has the "Retirement Home for Well-Loved Stuffies," we make a point of saying hello to Elmo and the bears when we walk by:



Eliana also went over and hung out with my parents at "their place" while I did some work..here's a picture they took. She looks so grown up--you can imagine what she might look like as a teenager:



On their last day, my parents went over and spent some time with Eliana, Lucy, and the rest of the gang. Here is Nene, Eliana and her friend Archie. Apparently Nene went home with Archie's cold (and still has it)...wishing both a speedy recovery!



Eliana continues to do all kinds of new stuff. We have heard her count up to 11 (why 11? Don't know.)..I forgot to report that last week. She can also identify the number "3' and sometimes the 1s as well. (Maybe 2 is harder?) She is very interested in counting and does it a lot. She likes looking at pictures of all animals, but is especially interested in cats.

One of Eliana's favorite rhymes these days is the teddy bear rhyme: teddy bear, teddy bear, touch your nose...touch your toes...turn around...touch the ground, etc. She has fun doing the motions, but really got into it when we had the teddy bear do the motions himself (okay, maybe with a little help...). That cracked her up. Toddler humor!

Thanksgiving is coming up in a few days..we feel blessed for our wonderful family, good health, and prosperity. We're enjoying watching our little girl grow and change, and try to remember to be as present as we can for each special moment with her and with each other.