August Update for Rachel

Anything YOU can do, I can do better....

Yes, it's true that Rachel is tall for her age, but a careful observer will note that the taller pirate has 3 knees...

In the last month, Rachel has been on all of the same trips as Daniel has, and she's been a great traveller. She had fun playing with Sean, Grandma Babe and the cousins, and has warmed up significantly to Grandpa and Farmor during their visit.

Her vocabulary has just exploded since last time - particularly her ability to string together multiple words - "eat cereal" for example. If you're forced to guess what she wants, she'll shake her head "no" when you get it wrong, and respond with a violent "yes" nod when you figure out what it was she wanted. Most of the time, though - it's clear as day - this is a girl who knows what she wants.

Favorite new words are "Wa-wa" (Water) and "Da-pa" (Diaper). Rachel will now tell us when she has a dirty diaper, and shows interest in sitting on the potty, which offers some hope that we'll be a diaper-free household sooner rather than later.

Rachel has ALWAYS loved the swing more than Daniel did, and there's no adult that can keep up with her demands for "Mo!" (more) pushing. She's also started to demand that she get to "Wok" (walk) rather than ride in the stroller.

All insects are "bee!", all farm animals start off as "cow!" until proven otherwise. She'll now recognize horses/ponies/donkeys as "ho-see!". When reading her favorite books, she will now complete out the sentences or correct you if you read it wrong. Books about Maisy the mouse are particularly popular.

Up in Vail, Rachel got to ride the Pony on a few occasions and thought that was just the best fun, once she got used to it. Lot's of "Mo!" and "Mo Ho-see!" to be had. Daniel also got to ride, even though we didn't include photos of that on his blog.













The pictures above show us at Piney River Ranch (looks fake, doesn't it? It's not), Rachel riding on Pebbles the Pony at Piney, the gang outside the condo in Vail and well - farmor doing what she does best.

Rachel carried this book over to Grandpa, snuggled in, pulled his right arm over her like a seatbelt and demanded "Book-ee". Grandpa thought that was OK....

There's been some teething pains, runny noses and the likes, but other than small things, August was a great month for Rachel.

Hopefully before October....

A.D.R.E