Experimenting with soft focus

Today, I decided to try shooting some pictures using soft focus. Here they are:

This last one is not part of the soft focus experiment, but I love it because she was crackin' up at her silly daddy. Also, I think I should add that this outfit is courtesy of Aunt Jennifer, and the headband is courtesy of Ashley. Thanks, girls!

Eleanor's new ride

Happy Mother's Day to me! For Mother's Day, I got this sweet, new jogging stroller. Eleanor and I have been taking a walk every morning. Parts of our route are a little bumpy, and I wasn't sure the ol' Graco Snap 'n' Go was up to the challenge. So, I mentioned to my hubbie that I was considering getting a jogging stroller. Well, in true Jared fashion, three days later this arrived at our door. It is so nice! It's like the Cadillac of strollers, which is a serious upgrade from the old stroller. I would consider the old stroller to be about a Corolla (you know, it gets the job done, but isn't luxurious by any means). Eleanor loves riding in the new stroller, and agreed to help me show it off. Okay, there's really only one picture of the stroller, but my lovely assistant is just so cute!

A playdate with Jordan

Today, Eleanor and I got together with our friends Laura and her 18-month-old cutie Jordan. We get together with them a lot- I just happened to have my camera handy today.

The girls have this adorable ritual that they do whenever they see each other. First, Jordan squeals and runs up to Eleanor. Then she kisses Eleanor on the mouth and hugs her really, really tight. (Laura and I discussed today when we should put a stop to the very slobbery, very, very personal mouth-kissing, but for now it's cute.) Jordan then turns her cheek toward Eleanor, so that Eleanor can plant a big, fat, slobbery kiss on her face. They do this at least three or four times every time we're together, but never when we ask them to (for picture-taking).

What's really cute is Jordan's reaction when Eleanor and I go up to her when she's not expecting to see us- like at the mall play area when she starts playing before we get there. She'll stop whatever she's doing to hug and kiss Eleanor. The other day, she stopped mid-slide, squealed, and climbed back up to the top of the slide to get to us. Now, if that's not true friendship...

Here are some pictures of the girls playing at our house today. I tried to get a picture of their lovefest, but only managed the one that looks like Jordan's telling Eleanor a secret. I think she was saying, "Quick, kiss me as soon as your mommy puts the camera down!" In the third one, you can see Jordan sharing a toy with Eleanor. What a sweetie!



And here's a picture of the girls when we went to the park. You can see it was a little sunny for picture-taking. Eleanor looks really mad. I think she wanted to ride up front.


We went to a new park today that was absolutely amazing! It made me wish I was a kid, so I could play on all the cool stuff! I've never seen so much equipment in one park. It's absolutely huge! They designed it so that kids with and without physical disabilities could all play together. They had about five different kinds of swings to meet any special need. Here is the website, but it looks like they haven't updated it since the park was built. I can't wait to go there again!

She really is a happy baby

Sometimes I'm embarrassed by how much of the time Eleanor gives people the serious look. Strangers come up to her, smiling and talking to her, and most of the time she just stares. They don't really know how to respond, so they just kind of shrug and walk off. I can't count the number of times people have said, "Look how she studies everything" or "She's an observer." I think those are nice ways of saying, "Boy, your kid doesn't smile very much." One lady who couldn't get a smile even said, "She looks so wise." Really?! Because she's eight months old. How wise could she possibly be? Though I must admit she is quite knowledgeable about the finer things- drinking milk, pooping, crying.

I don't know why she looks so serious when we're out. My best guess is that she's just taking in everything around her, and trying to make sense of it all. Sometimes she's really intent, and you can see the concentration on her face.

Maybe I should carry around copies of these pictures to show strangers who might think she's just a grump. Either that or I could make her smile at them by pulling up her shirt, blowing on her tummy and making silly noises. But that might be a little awkward.

Future auto mechanic?

I turned my back for one second, and when I turned back around, this is what Eleanor was doing. She was spinning the "tire" on her walker toy. I think she was checking for a flat. Jared and I started laughing, and she just stared at us like, "What's so funny?"

I know I probably shouldn't keep putting her in the boppy. She sits independently very well, but even the slightest fall causes seriously high drama. I think it's easier just to avoid the whole thing!

Waving

So, here it is...proof that Eleanor is waving. Of course, I was also waving at her from behind the camera. However, she independently waves at the cats when they walk by and at herself in the mirror. Boy, this mommy thing gets better everyday!

I'm a big kid now!

I am amazed everyday at the new tricks Eleanor has up her sleeve. This was yesterday's new trick...holding her own bottle. This morning, I fed her breakfast, then gave her a bottle, and went to make my own breakfast. What freedom! I did, however, cry about the fact that she no longer needs me to hold the bottle for her. I will still get to feed it to her at nighttime, though, because I don't think either of us is ready to give up the pre-bedtime cuddling.



Also, I somehow forgot to mention this little milestone that Eleanor achieved a few weeks ago...She can drink from a sippy cup all by herself, but she refuses to drink milk from it. I tried giving her milk at dinnertime in the cup the other day, which caused a full-blown tantrum to ensue. I mean one of those, red-faced, pounding fists on the highchair tantrums. As soon as I gave her a bottle, she stopped and calmly drank it. I can't wait to try to wean her off bottles!

And, while we're on the subject of milestones, what's with this rolling over thing?! I waited and waited and (worriedly) waited for Eleanor to roll over, and now I just wish she'd forget how! I was up and down all night long because she kept rolling herself into some sort of a jam (e.g. her leg out of the crib, her arm stuck under her body). Also, she rolls onto her tummy (which makes the super-suffocation-policewoman in me gasp in horror), so that when I try to sneak in and check on her, that little head pops up and catches me in the act. Arrrggghhh!

Being the mommy of an ever-changing infant sure keeps you on your toes!