The Apple Doesn't Fall Far

Here is the very first painting created by Maeve yesterday at Rocky Hill Day Care which is open to public viewing on our refrigerator in Seekonk. I don't know about you guys, but I'm thinking two things:

1. A natural

2. A masterpiece

Life as Maeve Knows It

As I was trying to fall asleep last night, I began to reflect on the nice day Maeve had and how much she has already learned during her short life. So, I decided, since I am horrible at keeping a baby book for her, I should give everyone, including her, the low down on her likes/dislikes, vocabulary, and overall quirkiness thus far....

The following is a list of her current (we're talking as of today's date) vocabulary:

Dada: Da-da
Momma: Mah
Nana: Nah
Gramp: Da
Grampa: Pa (sometimes Papa)
Thank you: Eh-uh
Please: Pa, pa, pa
Pasta: Pa-ha
Down: Dow-nah
All done: Ah-duh
Uh Oh: Ah-o
Banana: Na-na-na
Aunt Katie: A-ka
Elmo: Eh-mo
Vacuum: Daaaaa da da (yes, that's one long Da and two short das)
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Next we have a couple of samplings of some of her responses to certain questions or cues:

What does the snake say? sssssssss....

What does the dog/bird/fish/kitty/elepant/horse/sheep/or just about any other animal roaming the planet with the exception of the snake say? ummm-ummm (this comes out sort of like a throaty grunting sound)
_______________________________________
Favorite foods (in no particular order):

Black beans, pasta, chicken/tuna salad (usually), tofu nuggets (really!), shredded wheat cereal, pancakes, spinach/feta quiche, pineapple, blueberries (although we recently learned that she basically swallows these whole - as we watched them one by one, float to the surface of the water in her bathtub - rendering them nutrition-less), banana, raisins, most sweets
_______________________________________
These are a few of HER favorite things (again, in no special order):

Balls (bouncy or not, any size, any color)
Shoes (this inclues cowboy boots and sandals)
Hats
Binky
Blanket
_______________________________________
Favorite activities:

Reading books
Being outside (it doesn't matter what she is doing)
Watching birds with Gramp Mac
Running up and down the ramp and Nana and Gramp Mac's
Dancing to Vince Gill (hmmm...) with Grampa Moore
Getting pushed on the swing by Grampa Moore
Tuesdays with Aka Mac
Standing on both her Dad's and Grampa Moore's guitar cases
Climbing stairs
Opening Momma's jewelry drawer
Standing on the rocking chair (only after we've told her not to)
Smiling and waving at Momma/Dada in the rearview mirror
Chasing Jake around the house/yard
Throwing food on the floor when she has had enough of it
Eating her Dad's cereal

If I have left anything out, please feel free to e-mail me (you know who you are) and I will gladly add to this compilation.

We're Getting There...

We now return you to our show, already in progress....

Chris, aka Woodworker Extraordinaire, has moved on to what he considers to be a more satisfying job within the big picture of our bathroom renovations: carpentry. And I must say, he does a nice job. Here are a few shots of the construction site (our garage - does anyone see anything they might need?) and the installation of the floor to ceiling shelving and custom made medicine cabinet, sans door with mirror.

Oooh, ahhhh...

Dual Celebration

In Maeve's lifetime, there will be two reasons to celebrate the 4th of July. The first and more important (I suppose) being our nation's independence. The second? The day her little piggies met the ocean for the very first time...

Muggle Women and the Party of the Fortnight by K-Mo

At precisely 3:00 in the afternoon, three of the four Moore sisters united at The Crossings – a location neither here nor there – between towns, really. Though it was a gathering of muggle women who knew nothing of the wizarding world, there was no match for their enthusiasm, bright enough to conjure the most powerful of Patronuses…. They tried, they really tried. Bridget, Katie, and the hostess, Eileen, giddily chatted about the night’s forthcoming, wonderous events. Jennifer finally arrived, notorious for her fashionable lateness that spans all cultures and magical aptitude.



Without much further hesitation, the witches snacked as if entranced by the Imperius Curse. Bridget conjured some fantastic potato skins. Whilst this occurred, Katie sorted each student of the Arts into their respective houses (or foreign-exchange school in Jen’s case.) Katie was placed in Ravenclaw because, well, she’s bloody clever. Eileen, brave for hosting this questionable affair, was swiftly placed in Gryffindor House; Jennifer was recognized as the ambassador from Beauxbatons School; and with a darkly uttered “Slytherin,” Bridget became one with the House known for its frequent turnout of dark wizards. Why? Her child, Maeve Malfoy McNamara, can speak Parseltongue: “Sssss…” Chris had better watch out.

All sisters donned their magical regalia and watched the most recent two movies about their favorite wizard-classmate, Harry Potter. Every once in awhile, one could hear a gentle flop as a wizard-hat tipped and fell off a head that was, unsurprisingly, intently and steadily watching the film. One could see that they were amateurs, but amateurs with such passion inside.

Then, they ate an energizing meal of Cho Chang’s Tearful Teriyaki Chicken…



…and practiced…




Confundio! Stupefy! Expelliarmus! Wingardium Leviosa!

Try as they might to master the magical arts in a mere seven hours, the Moore sisters dabbled in a magic stronger than any spell can conjure: that of sisterly bonding by means of a nerdy interest. No one dares to mess with these madams (or whatever the plural is; Jennifer would know.)



Finally, they just couldn’t stand their mediocrity and fatigue any longer, and the night’s ceremonies drew to a close. Bridget left to tend to her gifted child and courageous husband, Chris Harry Potter McNamara, and Katie and Jen followed her out the door soon after. Eileen was left to prod away the mess they all had made with her chopstick-wand….

As Jen and Katie crossed the street to their cars, daringly sporting their wizarding costume, they walked past a troop of four strangers. Goodness knows they laughed. But Jennifer, turning back towards the road with a look of mixed disgust and triumph, thought, Who are the muggles now?” And she clomped away in her wedged high-heels, smiling in a satisfied sort of way.

The next morning...

Sakonnet Saunter

Let's just say I had been looking forward to June 24th for about two months and Chris, for about 1 week. As a Father's Day gift to Chris, I purchased two tickets to the "Great Food, Wines and Beers of Rhode Island" festival at Sakonnet Vineyards in Little Compton, RI. A portion of the proceeds helped benefit the Rhode Island Community Food Bank so I felt like it was a somewhat noble thing to do, even though in reality, my taste buds were the driving force behind the purchase! The weather was perfect and Maeve wasn't anywhere in sight (insert a very small "yipee" here). We sampled beers from local breweries (my favorite being from the Coddington Brewery out of Portsmouth, RI) and foods from close to 25 different restaurants around the Ocean State. Our samplings were accompaned by live music and we worked at a comfortable pace as we navigated our way around the huge tent. We left with full, happy bellies and the promise of returning in 2008!

Aquarium Adventure

We decided to say goodbye to June and usher in July with a trip to the New England Aquarium. A Beantown fixture that I haven't visited in a solid 15-20 years. Thanks to Scott's Aunt Marge all six adults (Mom, Dad, Eileen, Scott, Chris and myself) had free admission and of course, you-know-who is under age 3 so she was free. The Aquarium was pretty much how I remember it to be and fortunately for it (we had heard it was having some financial difficulties), there were plenty of people who had the same idea that we did that day. Maeve was pretty much wowed by everything she saw including the little "petting" tank which was packed with kids. Here are some shots from our visit:














Then came the burning question: Where should we grab lunch? The answer was pretty easy considering we had all parked in the same pay garage right next to the aquarium. So we headed across the street to Legal Sea Foods and enjoyed lots of fresh sea food and some spirits. Dad and I got kind of fancy and ordered a couple of Mojitos which we enjoyed. And you'll see below, that someone else found satisfaction in the decorative stick of sugar cane from Dad's drink:





A shot of the budding marine biologist before we even hit Route 93 South...