Visit to Friends Out In New Jersey Farmland

What's a New York summer without a visit to friends out in the farmlands of Jersey? A few weeks ago we visited our friends Maxine and Zelda (and their parents) for an overnight in a cute town near Princeton.

And what better way to go get some morning bagels and coffee than in a little red wagon?

Ollie decided he liked that ride so much that it was time to go find some even better rides... so we headed off to the local fair for funnel cakes and ferris wheels.

The spinning teacups were his favorite. (Mama forgot to bring the camera, so these pictures from Papa's phone are not the best—which is a shame because we wish you could see the grin on his face.)

And what's this!!?? No, it's not a flesh-eating zombie in a flower hat... it's just Zelda after she'd eaten a whole lot of freshly picked blackberries.

The kids had a lot of fun practicing their farm and harvesting skills at a local farm where we were able to pick our own veggies.

Ollie was a little unsure at first... um, papa, i'm more of an enginerd type, don't you see my tshirt?

But pretty soon he got into it.

And picked a whole bag full of beans that he carried back himself.

After the farm, we still had to pick up a few more ingredients for our backyard bbq and pool party. So we stopped at the supermarket where Ollie had his first shopping cart ride. 

And while the adults were cooking and drinking beer, the kids posed by the pool.

Future bathing suit model?

Then it was time to dive in.

Thanks for having us out for a great visit guys!

Eeeeeeeh? Chuuuuice!!

The Lil Man is learning how to drink from a big boy cup.

Lunch with Papa

We usually try to go in once a week to have lunch with Papa.

There aren't many high chairs down in the Wall Street area, but Ollie doesn't mind. He likes getting to sit in the big people chairs.

But only for about 5 minutes. Then either Mama or Papa ends up running around with him while the other one eats lunch.

There's just too much to see to bother eating. He especially likes looking at all the construction with Papa.

After lunch we usually go home, but sometimes we'll have enough energy to find a playground and fool around for a little while.

This one was especially nice on a 97 degree day with its bonus water features. First Ollie just got his feet wet.

But it wasn't long before he decided it was hot enough to do more than that.

Another unusual part of the playground were these big foam blocks that some of the big kids had arranged into a ramp. Ollie loves watching the big kids.

And then copying whatever they do. A very successful lunch date with Papa! We love you Papa and you're awesome!

Who Is That Brave Boy?

In the past, when Ollie has been confronted with something new, he generally sits back and observes for a while before jumping in to explore. But when we took him to the petting zoo at Prospect Park a few weeks ago, it was a whole different story.

He had a quick stare down with the goat.

And then uncharacteristically and bravely stuck his hand right out to feed it.

And then he couldn't get enough. He wanted to feed every goat...

Sheep...

And llama he could find.

Our little man is full of surprises and we love it!

Who Needs Toys?

Ollie doesn't. As long as he has kitchen items and cardboard boxes to play with.

 let's see, this looks like it could be a fun thing to play with.

 hmmmm... i wonder if i could still drum if i only had one arm... sure could!

will my fingers fit in here?

even better, will my tongue fit in here?

Might as well schedule our deliveries for 6:30 am since someone makes sure we're up by then anyway.

Box head.

Does anyone feed this boy?! look at those ribs!

But clearly he's eating enough vegetables to stay strong.

Remember When He Didn't Like Sand?

Not anymore!

The other day, we met up with his friend Tuesday for some sandbox fun.

And he dug right in.

Made a new friend.

Sold some sand tacos at his taco stand, trying it out for Papa.

And decided sand is one of the more fun things in life after all.

Crackberries

Ollie discovered how much he likes blackberries today—he ate an entire pint while we were strolling down the street.

Hopefully Mama can discover how to get blackberry stains out of clothes.

Ohio Entertainment in Brooklyn

Part of Mama's gym class when she was growing up in Ohio was to go to the bowling alley every Friday. (Not kidding.) So we thought we'd get Ollie started on that vital life skill plenty early.

where's my food? if i'm going to pick up that 12lb ball, i'm going to need some strength!

chips and salsa should do it, but only if i can double dip the chips all by myself.

this one? i think the finger holes are a little big.

those gutter bumpers are for papa, just so you know.

picking up that spare ain't as easy as it looks. i think we'll have to go back for some more practice!

What Else Do You Do When It's 102 (Degrees)?

You have a pool party on the roof with your neighbors! Here are a few tips:

Always put the umbrella up for a little shade.

Make sure you bring your own hat so you don't have to fight over one.

Put the hose on mist.

Tubs of water are just a fun as pools, by the way.

And what pool party is complete without some watermelon? (or mah-meln as Ollie would say)

Summer, we love you.

Grandma Jane

You've probably figured out by now that we're generally running about two weeks behind with our blog posting. So while we spent last week relaxing and sunning ourselves at The Cottage (without internet access!), you'll have to wait a bit to hear about those adventures. Today we're going to tell you all about Grandma Jane's visit, which was, yes, about two weeks ago. We're very lucky that Grandma has the summers "off" and can come visit us so much.

Ollie's favorite thing to do with Grandma was to read books. He made her read every single book he owns. About ten times each. 

Grandma was incredibly patient and thorough with him, and all that reading sure paid off. He can now identify crucial things like mermaids and yaks in case he ever sees them in real life. He can also say important words like "strawberry" and "harmonica" (those are actually useful). It was amazing to see how much his vocabulary grew after she was here. And how much more he tries to repeat whatever you say to him.

His favorite book to read with her was this extremely funny one.

But wait, maybe it's not the book that's so funny, it's just Grandma!

They did some other things too, like build tunnels for his cars, which should obviously be pushed around with one's feet.

And he also helped Grandma style her hair.

But the highlight of Grandma's visit was our trip to the beach. 

Can you believe this kid used to hate the sand?

Now he only hates it if you bury him in it up to his waist.

Playing in the sand and the waves is a lot of work and requires lots of snacking.

And nice comfy naps.

Thanks for coming to visit again Grandma Jane! We miss you and wish it was summer all the time!