sunny saturday

Part of me would like to make this post all about what terrible nights of sleep Natalie has been putting us through over the past 72 hours, but it's probably not fair to get into that kind of smack talk behind her back. She can't defend herself or tell her side of the story, after all.

Instead I'll focus on the positives of our weekend, which included a sunny cookout on our new deck with Natalie's Nana and Poppy. The budgie looked awfully cute in her little blue sundress and matching floppy hat:

Here she is greeting her grandparents with one of her typical "Do I laugh or cry?" faces:


It felt great to be outside in the sun, especially since we were able to do it from our very own deck! We cooked up some shrimp and beef kabobs on the grill, and took turns entertaining Natalie while we ate. My mom even managed to snap a picture of our 3-person nuclear family, only the second picture of the three of us since Natalie was born!

I also have to share a picture of the delicious rhubarb crisp dessert that my mom made, served up warm with vanilla ice cream and fresh sliced strawberries...yummm!!

Here are Nana and Poppy, flashing some happy smiles during our visit:

And here is Natalie, refusing (as usual) to show a smile for the camera:

In all, it was a great day that felt like the perfect way to kick off our summer! As Natalie is becoming more alert and responsive it is so much fun to have her visit with our friends and family--she is so entertaining now! She loves to kick and punch at all of her toys; she is starting to show a real interest in mirrors, and spends time every day gazing at her reflection in the mirror on her playmat; she is able to reach for and grab things with some accuracy, including toys, fingers, my hair, and especially my shirt when she's snuggled up feeding; and her smiles are becoming more frequent and much more spontaneous. Mike and I even both heard the start of a giggle this weekend on a couple of occasions--I think before long she'll be laughing and squealing during our playtime, which will be so much fun. It kind of makes us ache a bit to think of her growing and changing so much already, but she is definitely becoming a more participatory little person in our family, which is awfully fun and rewarding.

I hope you all had a wonderful weekend in the sunshine as well (hopefully with more sleep than we did!)!