A Few Fun Times

First, Greta and Lilly have a favorite place to play.  The bathtub.  Without water in it.

Greta also played in the sink for twenty minutes on Saturday morning.  Again, no water  The game was pull the soaps into the sink, put them back on the counter.  Again and again and again.

Wednesday (Tuesday?) we went to Northland and went to the student-lead percussion group's final concert of the year.  Two of Nick's research students are in the group and our presence had been specifically requested.  The girls LOVED it.  It was perfect because it was outside, so they could move around, and what is more fun than drums?   Lilly is very excited for the next concert.

I don't remember when last week I snapped this photo but I love it:

It looks like she's walking but she's still not!
At least not more than 15 steps at a time.

Friday we wanted to go out to DaLou's, so packed the girls up in the car.  On the drive Lilly asked how much longer until we were there.  We said about five minutes, she said, "good.  I can handle 5 minutes, not 8." Once we got to Washburn we learned they were closed.  Greta was sooooooooooooo not happy to get back in her car seat but when we got to the Alley for dinner, she was content.  After the girls were in bed, I went for a run down to the ore dock and back.

Saturday Nick had to meet with an alum in the morning, so after he mowed the lawn and headed into work, Greta (who has decided she's no longer taking morning naps . . . ), Lilly, and I went to the AHS Greenhouse to buy plants, played in the giant field of dandelions at my school, and then to another greenhouse to buy a few more plants.  

Saturday afternoon was naps and then waiting and waiting and waiting for the Hofstedts and Lilly's friend Alma to come to dinner and the pool party.  It was a whirlwind adventure with them but we had a nice time.  Every toy from the sandbox ended up in the pool, the house and kitchen were a disaster, but it was clear everyone had fun.

Sunday we were only thirty minutes late getting out of the house to meet Nick's parents at the Wilderness Walk in Hayward.  That's not too bad considering Greta slept in a bit (7:15) and she pooped in the bathtub that morning. 

The Wilderness Walk is essentially a zoo. It makes me sad when we are there, most of the animals seem pretty lonely and I have very mixed feelings about animals in captivity, but there are some benefits.   The girls had a nice time and I learn some things and see creatures I didn't know existed.

The bears. At the end one was playing in the pool, then hopping out
and chasing the other one.  The dry one seemed to be saying, "stay
away, don't get me wet!"

The greedy goats

Pavlovian response

Golden pheasant, very cool looking

Teething

Sheba the Tiger

Yup, teething

The lemurs were very fun to watch

Lilly, for some reason, loved the armadillo.

Last look at the fish

 On the way out, Lilly got to pick something from the souvenir shop since Grandma didn't have time to get her a book.  Lilly picked out a fairly hideous  music box.  I told her we were going to have to write Grandma a nice thank you note but Lilly said, "Grandpa paid for it."  There were tears when the music box didn't play music the second time she opened it, but Nick saved the day when he showed her how it works.  

Originally we were going to eat at Rivers in Cable, WI on the way home, with Nick's parents.  This time we were a bit smarter and looked online to see if they were open.  They were not.  I found an Italian restaurant, Italia! online and it wasn't too terribly far from the Wilderness Walk.  It was Greta's nap time when we left the zoo and she passed out in the van in less than five minutes.  When we pulled into the parking lot, we hemmed and hawed as to what to do.  Lilly really wanted more time with Grandma, we needed to eat lunch, but Greta was asleep and you never mess with a sleeping baby.  Unless you are us and make silly choices.  Nick carefully extricated her from her seat and she stayed asleep.  We popped a pacifier in her mouth and the hostess found us a perfect corner booth where Greta could sleep.  And sleep she did, all through our incredibly delicious lunch.  She woke up, ate a bunch of Grandpa's leftover noodles, while Lilly ate some cake (with her music box at the table).

A rare sighting - a Robertson child sleeping somewhere other than a crib or bed

We said our goodbyes and headed back home.  Greta wasn't happy but she was manageable.  Lilly played with her music box and her eyelids kept trying to close but she refused to let them. She sang us songs to her music box and asked if she could go to bed early.  And then, after some rolling hills near the Bibon Swamp, Greta puked.  Luckily there was a gravel road just after the incident, so Nick pulled over, we cleaned up as best we could, walked a bit down the gravel road and back, and then drove home the remaining 25 minutes.  Luckily it was another beautiful day when we got home, so we were able to air out the van, Nick was able to wash off the car seat while Lilly, Greta, and I played together outside.