The Fire-Fire Bed

The Swanky Sandbox

Man, these Georgetown kids have everything! One minute we're out shopping, the next minute we're in this cool toddler-park. No only is there a sandbox here, but there are tons of trucks to play with! I guess "heaven" is just another word for "Northwest." I need to find that mayor again and ask him why there aren't free trucks and sandboxes in Southeast....

What's in there?

A Kitty's Gotta Eat

The Re-Binkying of Ari Milo

My Turn to Drive the "Car-car"

Kitties Love Lollipops!

A Day at the Agility Trial

Waiting to Run

The Long Kiss Goodbye

I will miss you, Clara! Thank goodness you are moving to Nashville! I can still play with you whenever I'm visiting the grandparents at the Ranch. I know your Daddy is closely watching this kiss, but we're little, we can get away with it! Besides, what's a "Going Away Party" without a little action, right? You need something to remember me by. Bet those Southern boys will be too polite to lock lips like this!

Pumpkin Pickin'

Wow, these pumpkin-things must be really important this time of year. They are everywhere in my neighborhood, and now Gram is visiting and the first thing she did is take me to the "country" to find some more of them! We are at Schlagel Farms today in Waldorf, MD. The nice farmer took everyone out to the pumpkin patch on his hay wagon. He offered to let me drive the tractor with him, but it was too noisy, so I declined. Perhaps next year.

Peek-A-Boo!

Anderson and I are spending the morning checking out the cool Halloween stuff at Burke Nursery's Pumpkin Playground. We both survived the scary kitty slide, thank goodness. There are lots of fun vehicles to check out and slides to go down, and some animals in a petting zoo, except you can't pet them or they will nibble your fingers off! The turkey was particularly scary, but after all this is a Halloween fest. Guess the idea is to be a little scared at all times (as if the ride into the Virginia suburbs wasn't nerve-wracking enough). We liked the hayride through the haunted woods best of all. Anderson convinced the Mommies to take us on it twice by pitching a really impressive fit when we tried to get off. Now that was scary! Good job, buddy!

Cat Attack!

Oh no! Gotta get out fast! I thought this was just a tube and a slide, but now I can see that I've been tricked! The big kitty is going to eat me! Maybe if I move fast I can get away. Hope the cat doesn't get Anderson. He's behind me and has no idea what he's in for....

In the Wilderness

Anderson has this neat creek in the park near his house. We've been playing down here all morning. I can't decide what's more fun, throwing rocks at Mommy or watching her leap to get me whenever I try to sit down in the water! Anderson doesn't have his puddle-stompin' boots yet, so he's not allowed to splash in the deep parts, which means he didn't get all wet and muddy like I have! Hope Mommy packed extra clothes today.

3-2-1 BLAST OFF!

AHHHHHHH! Mommy says these rockets could launch any minute! Is she for real? They are much bigger than the one I have at home. They are bigger than cars, or the garbage truck, or the fire engine too. It's really hard for me to get any sense of scale between real forms of transport and my toys. Wonder if there's a Space Dog or a Moon Buggy aboard any of these things? I see some planes at the far, far end of the room. What is this place, some kind of neato building full of flying stuff? Why hasn't anyone brought me here before? This is so much better than the park....

High Five!

Wow, Greta, you not only ate your entire order of chicken sataay, but mine as well! That deserves a high five! I like a woman who can keep up with me at the dinner table, and very few can! You're an adventurous eater too. The last time we split an order of chana masala at that Indian place, remember? You kindly let me eat most of the naan bread that night, so honey, I'm lettin' you have my extra Thai food now. Let's high five again and again just because it's fun!

My Obsessive Compulsive Disorder Begins

"Traffic this morning along the Beltway's Outer Loop has slowed due to the presence of a large embroidered pillow blocking the roadway. Expect delays to last the remainder of the day and possibly into the evening unless Mommy swoops in early to clean everything up. Smaller cars may avoid tie-ups by exiting the sofa to accompany me on my afternoon park run. Larger vehicles, including lawn mowers, are just plain stuck."

Noggin Safety

We don't have alot of space at our house, so every toy needs to do double-duty whenever possible. This is my ball bucket/helmet. See how versatile it is? If I take one of the balls out of it and throw it up in the air, it can't hurt me if it lands on my head! Clever, huh? I can also run into furniture and walls with this thing on with no consequences!

Elvis Lips

I thought Mommy said we were going to "Blue's Clues!" There is no cartoon doggy here, or funny little man who counts really slow and makes weird expressions! I have been tricked. This is blues music. Yucky! My life is fabulous, so why should I waste my time listening to these losers pine about how no one loves them and how they lost all their money? Go ahead, people, wallow in your pain! Since the Blue's Clues guy isn't here to make funny faces, I will: Here's my impersonation of Elvis (before he got too fat to sneer meaningfully at anybody). Take that back to Memphis with you, little band!

Giddy Up, Little Doggy!

Ooooh, I'm only inches away from a promising bareback ride on Grits! He has no idea I am here! This is going to be great! Everyone else at the park is riding a stroller or scooter. I'll be the only one riding on my dog! I can't believe no one else has thought of this yet.

Stompapalooza

Hey, where did the sun go? I've been waiting all day for the rain to let up long enough to go puddle-stomping in my new froggy boots, and now I can't see a thing! Gram got me these neat boots! Thanks Gram! And Heidi got me this tiger hat! I like it so much that I sometimes wear it in place of the outback hat Gram and Pop got me at the zoo. I'm very particular about what goes on my head and my feet, but I don't care much about the middle.

Butterflies are not free (to do as they please)

What is this place and what exactly am I supposed to do here? Mommy calls it "play school" and says I'm in a group called "Butterflies". There are also Doodlebugs, Junebugs, Caterpillars, and Honeybees here, but they are in different classrooms. There are 11 of us butterflies. I like the train table, and snack time was pretty rockin', especially since Jack let me eat his portion of goldfish crackers, but I'm not real sure what I'm supposed to be doing. Some lady came into our room and sang to us in Spanish, and we made a "craft" with stickers. Mommy keeps popping in and out too, what's up with that? And why has Maya been wailing her head off for close to three hours. Very strange place, I'll reserve judgement for now.

Truck Touch

Oooh, oooh, oooh, I wanna touch it, I wanna touch it! I wanna touch the fire truck! No, the police car! Oooh, ooh, there's a GARBAGE TRUCK over there, that one's my favorite. It's next to, oh my, a helicopter! And a crane! Hurry, hurry parents! You are too slow. The District sponsors this Truck Touch event only once a year, and there's a ton of things for me to get my paws on. I've got to get to the vehicles before the other little boys. Hurry, hurry! I think I see motorcycles....

Where are we going?

When I gestured for you to carry me, this is NOT what I meant. I meant HOLD ME while you walk, NOT sling me in back where I can't see anything! This day started out great. I liked the slow sauntering through the woods, and throwing rocks at the doggy as he ran past, but now that we're on the move I can't tell what's coming up next. Plus, all the swaying is making me sleepy. When is naptime anyway? Is it soon? I'm getting kinda drowsy. If I snuggle my head into Daddy's back, will I lose my hat? This is worrisome. I love this hat (thanks Gram and Pop!) and wouldn't want to leave it behind. And how about a snack? I'm kinda hungry too. Tired and hungry. Can anyone see me back here? I have needs to attend to, you know!

Surveying my inheritance

I think I'll move to the ranch permanently. Not only am I spoiled rotten here, I would get to live in this big park the grandparents call home. It's at least ten times the size of the park near my house that I play at every day, and it has a stream, barns, horses, and lots of tractors to ride on. Gram and Pop are so cool! I like Uncle Cody too, but he's kind of loud and crazy. Not that I can't be loud and crazy on occasion, but come on, give it a rest during naptime, you yappy little doggy!

They're Following Me.....

Watch this: All I have to do is wander up to something to check it out, and the grandparents pounce on it! They follow me through every gift shop, buying me all kinds of cool stuff. Do I want this frog? Hmmm, I don't know yet. They bought me a bunch of plastic animals at the zoo, shoes at Target, a tractor t-shirt at Cracker Barrel, my beloved Sparkle at the Aquarium, and now we're seeing what the Rainforest Cafe has to offer. How fun! If only Mommy and Daddy could be trained to do this...

Chivalry...and Sharing

Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know a damsel in distress when I see one! You say you don't need my help, little missy, but I can tell your car won't go. Let me give you a real ride, Olivia! Mommy wants me to act like a true Southern gentleman on my playdates, so since she's watching, I will help you and not pull you out of the car as I would like to do. I'm a car fanatic, don't you know? Just check out the cool Lighting McQueen shoes that Gram bought me! I plan on wearing them everyday, which is perfect because bright red goes with everything!

I love Sparkle!

It seems you've caught me during a private moment, loving on my new friend Sparkle. Isn't he wonderful? He is orange, and, so so...sparkly! I just can't get enough of him. We met only a few moments ago. It was the strangest thing, really. I'm visiting the grandparents this week, and they took me out to eat at this crazy restaurant with big fish tanks everywhere. I was so mesmerized by the sharks, the big turtle, and the diver that I could hardly eat my pizza. After supper we went into this room full of plushy fish, and there in a basket was Sparkle and others like him. At least they looked like him, but he radiated a certain pizzaz that none of the other glittery orange fish could touch! I love him so! I will take him everywhere. Can't wait to introduce him to Tiggy.....

Dirtface

Daddy took me to the park today! Can you tell? Yes, it's true that I fell down and landed on my face, but that's what we boys do when we go to the park, we eat dirt! It was so much fun. Whew, I'm tired! Must work hard now that I'm home to avoid a "Mommy wet wipe attack."

The Giant Lotus

Oh, Giant Lotus Flower, symbol of peaceful Buddhist-type thoughts, do you smell? It's so hot out here, all I can smell is the suntan lotion Mommy has lathered all over me. Supposed to be 100 degrees today. Smart parents decided to take me outdoors to run around. What are they thinking? This flower is at Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens, and there is some sort of Asian festival going on here today, but it is so hot I am thinking of blowing off the puppet show they want me to see in favor of going home to nap in my cool room. As soon as I'm done smelling the beautiful lotus, I think I'll pitch a fit and ditch this place.....

Colanders make great helmets!

"Brrrrrrrrrbrrrrrrrrrrr, pilot to Rescue 9, prepare for emergency water landing! Plastic toys animals down, REPEAT, plastic toy animals are down. Watch out for giant yellow enemy float, DO YOU COPY, beware of floaty! Keep helmets on at all times, team, this will a dangerous rescue! OVER AND OUT!"

I've Been a VERY Good Boy

Whoo-hooo! Jackpot! Come on, you KNEW they'd take me to FAO Schwarz for a little treat! I've been such a good traveller, acting nice on the train, sleeping well in the hotel, and eating pretty much anything they put in front of me. How could they not reward me at the most famous toy store in the world??? The irony, though, is that my "purchase" was a small British-made recycling truck called Flip 'N Tip Fred, but the store was out of little bags, so Mommy had to schlep this giant bag through the city! Bet everyone thought I was some sort of spoiled only child or something!

Central Park (East!)

"Wow, I'm turnin' inta a reel New Yorkur! Play'n in thuh watuh spiggots, cruisin' thuh taxi thru thuh paark and everythin'."

Seriously, guys, this place is so much fun! I ate the best pizza in the City with my cousins Abby and Kirby, checked out the penguins and polar bears at the zoo, and rode the Subway. This place is alot like home, except busier, with bigger buildings and more people. And I think this park might be larger than the one near my house. No one has tried to mug me yet, Gram!

Aunt Kate and Uncle Al are here too, and we have breakfast together and go for a walk every morning. Hope Daddy has a lot more work to do, because I'm having a blast!

Just One More...

Now this is what I call a block tower! It's starting to look like the Empire State Building, don't you think? I'm hanging out in the Big Apple this week while Daddy hobnobs with players at the All Star Game. Mommy and I are checking out the Children's Musueum of Manhattan, which has all sorts of fun toddler play stations. I had no idea blocks could be so big. I guess everything is bigger in New York....

Lunar Landing

Hey, Wallace and Grommit were wrong, the moon isn't made of Wensleydale cheese! All this exploring has made me hungry too! Thank goodness I brought Cheerios. So far I find them mysteriously unaffected by the lack of gravity....

I Can't See A Thing!

My girlfriend Greta invited me swimming this afternoon. It's awfully bright out here, so I stole Mommy's sunglasses, but I swear now that I have them on I can't see a thing! I DO NOT LIKE THEM one bit. Somebody get these off of me!

The Fourth of July Parade

Evil Mommy won't let me stay up to watch the fireworks tonight, but at least she took me to our neighborhood parade. I was kind of dubious at first, but as soon as the firetrucks came through, and the candy and beads started flying, I got into the holiday spirit. Some crazy person gave me a miniature copy of the Declaration of Independence! Come on people, I'm tall, but do I look like I can read that yet? (Photo by "Aunt Lori")

James Emmett and the Temple of Bhutan

The parents have whisked me away to an exotic land--no, it's not really Bhutan (after all, I don't have my passport yet) but the Smithsonian Folklife Festival. The temple behind me is a replica. Inside are altars of flowers and a bunch of orange monks who insist on tying strings on your wrist for some unknown reason. We spent most of the afternoon catching up on all the new Bhutanese folk dances. Mommy and I shared a mango lassi, and I made a prayer wheel in the kids' craft booth. Ah, the life of a city baby....

Playdate with my my posse

Too hot today to hit the playground, so I invited the Eaters and Sleepers over to play on my sand and water table. We all got wet (and somewhat sandy), checked out the backyard flowers, and ate our first popsicles. From left to right are Miles, Bey, Chloe, me, and Roya taking a rest on the swing.

Round and round we go....

When does this thing stop? I liked it at first, but then I got scared. The leopard I was riding started going really far up in the air, and I kinda freaked out. Much better to ride with Mommy, even if it does mean going backwards.

Hangin' at Anderson's Club

Wow, my buddy Anderson gets cooler everyday! Now he has a pool membership. This pool even comes with its own plastic toy cars and boats. What a great way to cool off on a hot summer day! Not that the sun can touch me beneath all these special SPF 50+ swim clothes that Mommy makes me wear.....

Pitching at the Picnic

I knew the MOTH Picnic was going to be a blast, but I didn't know there would be baseballs there! I really like these things. They are so much fun to throw, and Daddy goes nuts when I hurl them really hard! They are so cool, in fact, that I don't want to do any of the other activities at this picnic. I could throw these things all day!

Watch Out, Jackson Pollock!

It's 102 degrees here for the third day in a row, so I'm stuck inside. I've decided to color. I like the blue, yellow, and green crayons best. I call this one "Green Poles." Now if only I had some paint......

Goodnight Moon

Here I am with Gram and Pop at the play "Goodnight Moon," which is based on my favorite bedtime story. The set looks exactly like the little bunny's bedroom in the book! And our seats are on the front row, so I'll be close to the action.

Goodnight nifty Atlas Theater! Goodnight puppet-actors! Goodnight Cheerios that I snuck during the performance! Goodnight nasty Ticketmaster fees! Goodnight fabulous grandparents! I love you!

Aqua Man

Today the grandparents are taking me to tour the Baltimore Aquarium. Most of the exhibits are up high, so Pop has to hold me up to see. This is the deadly lionfish exhibit. If Pop were to toss me into the tank, the scary lionfish would get me! He won't do that though, because Mommy would be mad. Actually I think he's much more likely to toss me into the giftshop!

Panda-monium!

Ahhhyeeeeeahhhhh! The grandparents have come at last for a visit and have taken me to the zoo! A big storm blew up right as we got here, and now we're trapped in the panda house. That's Tai Shan, the famous baby panda, behind me. I like watching him eat his bamboo, but it's even more fun to make the grandparents chase me up and down the length of the panda exhibit. They move so slow! And they really freak out whenever I get near the doors! This is so much fun!