Highlights from our trip home.

As the babe sleeps I finally have a moment to ignore my cleaning and write about our Iowa vacation. I won't bore you with every little detail, okay I will:

Aunt B came over and taught Froggy how to walk while holding onto a laundry basket. She pushed it around the living room and was very proud of herself.

Froggyaunt and Froggyuncle drove down from Wisconsin and we had dinner at my favorite Italian restaurant. Froggy was wild with sleep deprivation, so we spent most of the time on the floor entertaining her, but it was great to see them.

Cousin E-boy (a.k.a. Dangerboy) loved his little Froggy and read her stories, chased her around the house (her very favorite activity), and made sure all of his toys with small pieces were put away. When I was rocking Froggy to sleep, E-boy would pop his head in the doorway and say, "Is she okay?" He will make a great daddy someday.

Cousin Dramaqueenie also entertained Froggy in the way only a child can. The baby was mesmerized by Dramaqueenie's silly expressions and laughter. On our last night in town, Dramaqueenie had an opportunity to see a highschool production of "Grease". Her mom said it was a tough call, and DQ called us at the restaurant to say she wished she could have been there. And then in typical DQ fashion said, "You know how it is Lisi, I just HAVE to see my theatre!" I understand.

My sis (Auntarctica) and I shopped at the Megamall, had two wine and cheese miniparties, and took her new pup Ruby to the dogpark. Froggy LOVES, LOVES, LOVES her cousin Ruby. The pup is hyper so everytime she would approach, Froggy would bat her eyes to avoid a tail in the face. It became a Pavlov's dog scenerio, where everytime she saw Ruby, she would start blinking wildly. Even if the pup was clear across the room, she would blink, blink, blink. This is the beginning of a beautiful friendship.

It was wonderful to just relax (as much as you can with a one-year-old) at my parents' house. It's cozy and familiar and I love the sounds of the wind blowing through the corn, songbirds, coyotes, and leaves crunching underfoot.

Froggygrandma let me sleep in and fed Froggy breakfast. It was heaven! It reminded me of a quote from Paula Poundstone, "I just can't imagine any activity I enjoy more than sleep!" Amen to that sister.

Froggygrandpa was a huge hit and laughed at everything the babe did. I could hear them giggling together all week. They played "hiss at the cat," "peekaboo" and Froggy entertained him with her musical Kazoo talent. It brought back memories of dad entertaining my sister and I while mom made dinner - the great games, funny faces and stories. Some people are able to hold onto childhood, carry it with them into the adult world and then pass it onto a child they love. And that's Froggygrandpa.

My mom cooked all week and even baked an apple pie. Sleep and food, does it get any better? Why did I ever leave home?

FroggyuncleJiffypop (aka JeffyGecko) was also a huge hit. He was a great daddy replacement, tall, silly, and wrapped around her little finger.

We also spent three days visiting Great-grandma Gus and Jack. Froggy enjoyed showing off her yoga poses (downward dog) and got into everything in the apt. I wish the babe had let Grandmagus hold her, but she was too busy, crawling from one outlet to the next. :)

We also spent a day with Greataunt Dort, and she took us to a great lunch that Froggy slept through. We looked through old black and white photos of my Grandma Betty and it made me sad that Froggy will never know her warmth.

It seems like Froggy changed so much over the last few weeks. Here are a few new things she has mastered:

She picks up the phone, or anything resembling a phone and says, "huh?" "huh?"

She's discovered the joy of giving and hands over her most prized possessions, (her rubber ducky, lambie blanky, and kitty book). She quickly takes it back, but it's the thought that counts.

She hisses at the cat.

She can dance, put on my sunglasses, and crawl faster than any baby I've ever seen.

It was a great vacation. Thank you everyone who took off work, drove six hours, baked, babysat, bought dinner and gave of yourself! We appreciated every minute.