Impressionable Youth

It’s fair to say that Olivia made quite an impression at the Children’s Discovery Museum – she repeatedly left her mark in the 3D Pinscreen.

In a (Toe) Jam

You’ve got to hand (foot?) it to her – she does make good use of the time she spends in the car. The casting away of socks and shoes while riding in her car seat is Olivia’s latest and greatest feat (feet?).

Doubling Her Pleasure

Our cookie monster bookended her day with these sweet treats – the top two pictures are from the “Festival of Trees” event we attended in the morning, the bottom one from the pre-Thanksgiving farmers’ market we got out to in the evening.

Adorable Adornment

Olivia made like a nutcracker and became part of the giant Christmas tree’s ornamentation.

Elastigirl

Olivia demonstrates an incredible act of flexibility, perhaps not so incredible for the toddler set, but certainly so for her unbending parents.

Wipes On, Wipes Off

Our karate kid decided to add a splash of training wipes to the walls of our front room. When we asked her what she was doing, Olivia shot back, “Homework!”

Brownie Mix, You’re Doing a Heckuva Job

Olivia discovered chocolate nirvana in the form of brownie mix from a wooden spoon. She kept hounding us for, what she called, “a little tastee.”

Chicken Little

I was attempting to fold some laundry this evening when Hurricane Olivia tore through my work, making the task of matching up socks more difficult than it already is. In a brief moment of calm, my perfect storm grabbed one of her shirts, peered through its neckhole, and declared herself a chicken.

Sweet Potato Eye

Sweet Potato Eye – a one-act, one-scene drama/comedy

Time: Seven-thirty in the morning
Place: The mattress in Olivia’s room
Principal characters: Olivia and Mommy
Setting: The messy set suggests an active toddler’s room on the second floor of an older home. Pink with flowers is the main color and theme. The room contains an unused toddler bed and rocking chair off to the side. Much of the floor is taken up by a futon mattress, which is where the child sleeps and where the opening (and only) scene unfolds. Toys, books, and clothes are scattered throughout the room.

Act One – Scene One

(Sunlight shines through the window shades. Olivia, a dreaming child, stirs herself awake. She sports some sleeper pajamas. Looking over, she sees Mommy lying beside her on the mattress. Mommy has not gotten much sleep because Olivia tossed and turned throughout the night. Olivia lets out a yawn. She turns to face Mommy.)

Olivia (prying open Mommy’s eyelids): "Mommy, you have a sweet potato in your eye."

Mommy (chuckling and needing clarification as to what she has just heard): "What did you say, sweetie?"

Olivia (deadpanned): "You have a sweet potato in your eye."

Starry-Eyed

Beni and I can’t see the end of our noses without implements of corrective vision, and so every morning begins with the where-are-those-darn-glasses game. Olivia has picked up on this ritual because she’s realized that locating eyewear is a precursor to her morning sippycup of chocolate soy milk or episode of Elmo’s World. Recently she’s mimicked her myopic parents by keeping her glasses (seen above) pillowside and scrambling for them upon rousing from sleep.

Exit Polls

Olivia exited the polling place in a secretive mood. She didn’t want to reveal the candidates for whom she voted.

At one point, while Olivia and I were waiting outside for her mother to fulfill a fundamental duty of our democracy, an elderly woman approached us and playfully asked Olivia if she had voted. Olivia indicated that she hadn’t but explained that her “Mommy went to go on a boat.”

Grin and Wear It

As if she doesn't already have me wrapped around her little finger.