5/22/16
Maia is in perhaps the most adorable phase ever. She's giving out dozens of kisses a day. And every time she kisses someone (with a big MWA!) she says "Happy DZ!!!!" Or Serenity, or Mama, or Daddy, depending on who got the kiss. She says a few more things now, sometimes "Lucky Serenity!" and "Kiss Again!" It is so enthusiastic and adorable. =)
Her favorite books at the moment are Click Clack HO Ho HO, which she often recites verbatim, Click Clack Peep, Pete the Cat White Shoes and Buttons (I hid Pete the Cat Christmas for a little while =) We also read all the Boynton books, including Horns to Toes, every night, and Barnyard Dance, which she participates in now =)
Donovan has taught her a new favorite game: Pillow tower. Nearly every day she drags every single pillow and piece of bedding off my bed and piles them up with the couch cushions. She has recently started piling them on top of me when I'm in the rocking chair too, and then she climbs in and we read books in a huge mound of pillows and blankets. She is very determined too, it's not easy dragging those heavy covers, but she persists.
Ann and John came to see us for TEN days! I am SO happy John retired! We have had so much fun. =) Maia in particular loved playing "Circle Track" with John. We hadn't gotten out the train tracks in a long time because she was still in destructive toddler phase. She actually played with the trains he built, instead of just taking them right back down. And a few times she even built her own circles! She begged him to build with her and he usually went right along with her requests =) She loved swimming at Miller, and would swim back and forth from Ann to me. Ann has played puzzles with her and read her lots of books, two of her favorite activities. And Ann cooked dinner for us several times, and now we know Maia loves pork and corn on the cob, Yay! More healthy foods to feed the kids =) And it is so cute how she kisses and cuddles and says "Lucky Far Far! Happy Vana Ema!" She is not going to know what to do when they leave.
Maia loved hiking on Turkey Mountain. She walked almost the entire time during the first hike. She got carried a bit more on the second, but anytime there was rock climbing she was right there trying to keep up with the big kids.
