Pink Crocs

It has been raining for days here! This morning it was cloudy but no rain. We headed for "The Race for a Cure" on the National Mall. Allison loved the big crowds and the pink stuff. But most of all, she loved the mud puddles.... It was the perfect occasion to brake in her new pink Crocs! They were made for splashing in puddles. And that's just what she did!

Most people walking by thought it was cute she was playing in the puddles. I personally thought it was long over due! Growing up in Arkansas we were always outside. After (or during) a good rain we would make mud pies and splash in puddles. However, good mud puddles are hard to find in the city!! But the gravel path on the mall has the perfect ratio of water, rocks and sand/dirt for a good time!

I was pretty happy that I put the brown pants on her today! It would have been challenging to get this much "fun" out of pink pants!

Here are some videos of her in action!

Here is Allison telling Aunt Tomi about more doggies. Allison really likes to talk on the phone. Girls will be girls!

Doggy, Doggy Doggy......

We took Allison to the National Zoo http://nationalzoo.si.edu/default.cfm last Tuesday evening. The zoo stays open until 8pm in the summer. So, we loaded up the stroller and hopped on the metro to the Zoo. The weather was wonderful. We barely broke a sweat, even though we walked a couple of miles round trip. We managed to keep Allison in her stroller until we were inside the zoo. We had to release her immediately upon entry!! She loves to walk and now run, as well. Here she is pointing out birds to her Dad. She can say/sign bird. So, we hear a lot about birds from Allison!! More birds.....

Here she is looking at one of the MANY doggies in the zoo. Allison can say/sign doggy, bird and squirrel (she says/signs other words but these are her animal words). So, most animals fall into one of these categories. The National Zoo is mostly filled with doggies and birds. Allison shouted doggy at most of the animals we saw-elephants, hippo, horses, gorilla, wild pigs, etc! It was pretty amusing.

On the look out for more doggies and birds.

She found the prairie dogs and their lair!

Allison had tons for fun crawling around in the kid size "hamster tubes". She has no fear! She crawled in and made her way through the tunnels! She finally came out and we were off to see more of the zoo!

We stopped for some posing and rest on a large rock. But not for long!

Next, we stopped at the huge foam pizza! This thing is really cool! I had to go in the pizza and rescue some little boy's trucks from Allison. She just walked over to him and gently took his toys away. He didn't seem to upset but Allison wasn't going to give them back on her own.

The kids can play on the pizza, jump around, fall down and no one gets hurt. Allison took a few good tumbles but didn't miss a beat!

Finally, we were all tired and hungry. We loaded up and headed back to the metro for home. I know it looks a little crazy to wear her and push the stroller. But when we head out into the city for a few hours. It's the only way to take everything we need and keep her happy for an extended outing. When she is tired and doesn't want to get back in the stroller. The ergo carrier works great. Also, when we stop to talk to people. She is at eye level with them and I think she likes that, too! (plus, it's great for the calf muscles-i.e. burning off ice cream/brownie calories!!)

I'm sure we'll have lots of post about zoo visits this summer. We didn't get to see all the "doggies" on this trip. We'll have to come back soon. Maybe during the morning, when they are all out and about!

Silly Girl!!

Here are some pictures of Allison, being Allison!! Like most toddlers, she is busy, busy ,busy!! She keeps me laughing each and every day! I never know what funny thing she will be doing or wearing when I turn around.... First we have "lobster hands" She often does funny things while I'm washing dishes and my back is turned. She ransacked the oven mitt drawer and was prepared to remove hot dishes from the oven. Unfortunately, we weren't baking anything at the time. Sailing camp at Washington Marina http://www.washingtonsailingmarina.com/index.html I think it will be another year or two before Allison is ready to set sail. But she enjoyed seeing the boats, birds and airplanes. The airport is just across the water, on the other side of the marina. Many families come to watch the boats and planes come in and out. The kids seem to really like all the activity going on in the area.

Allison off on an adventure to where ever she can travel by the U.S. postal service. I don't think they give out drinks or snacks on their flights! I should throw some munchies in with her.

Sad looking, no hair Mohawk. We'll get there someday. Her hair is getting thicker but not much longer.

Please notice the rings around her ankles. They are the stacking rings that go on the post. You know, the stacking toy that every child has in their toy box. Well, Allison wore them as bracelets for several weeks. Then one morning, she decided they should be worn as ankle bracelets. They slide on very easily when she is wearing the footie PJ's.

Sorry for all the side view pictures but she moves to quickly for me to get many pictures of her looking at the camera. Hope you find a few of these as funny as I did!!