Here Comes A New Shelmet

I apologize for the obscenity, but we had a remarkable breakthrough tonight. As some of you may be aware, Zoe has been using the potty very regularly, but only to go pee. When it came to pooping, she was a bit leary of the toilet and preferred her time alone in a pull-up. Well, tonight she used her green potty and actually went poop! On the potty! Of course we were all super excited. Cheryl got to wipe her and I got to dispose of the evidence. I was told that it would be in poor taste to take, and then post, any pictures, so you'll just have to use your imagination. And after mommy put a diaper on her and brought her back in to the bathroom, what did Zoe ask? "Daddy, where my poop go?" Where indeed. Here's to hoping that potty time has moved to the next level.

This weekend there was a lot more snowfall than we were anticipating. This, in turn, kept us snowbound on Saturday afternoon when we had planned to head out across the river for some photoboothing and shopping. Making sure that the weather didn't keep us trapped all day Sunday, we decided to hop on a trolley early and ride it down to 19th Street to visit the Academy of Natural Sciences. I had taken Zoe there earlier in the month and she really enjoyed the Outside In play space they have where kids can pet animals and interact with different environments. Here are a couple of pictures from that day. This time, like the last, wasn't much different. The main attraction for Zoe was Outside In, although she does enjoy seeing the butterflies and looking at all of the animals in their dioramas.I can't help but think that she finds it weird that the animals are all behind glass, she she's able to actually pet them at Mimi and Joe Pop's house. Even though she wasn...

This past week Zoe was home for a few days because she wasn't feeling well. It all started after she went to bed on Monday night. I was just tucking Cheryl in when it sounded like Zoe coughed. She coughed again and when I went in to look in on her, she had thrown up all over her bed. We took her out and I washed her up in the shower. Cheryl spent the night laying with her and I took off Tuesday to stay with her at home. She was eventually able to keep food down, which got her spirits up a bit. Even though she wasn't feeling her best, she still insisted on taking care of her babies and dressing up like a princess. Of course, all of that work can really wipe you out. That's probably why when she requested to lay on the couch and watch the Wizard of Oz, she didn't even make it to Somewhere Over the Rainbow. Before Dorothy even started singing, this is what she looked like. The next day Cheryl stayed home with her and took her to the doctor where she was diagnos...

This past Saturday we hosting a get together with a number of friends. Among them were two new babies, Karim and Luke. There is nothing that Zoe enjoys more than a baby, except for insisting on holding them and ensuring everyone that the baby likes her. Before everyone showed up I was taking a few pictures of Karim and Zoe got in on the action. Here are a couple of them. You can see all of the pictures in the Baby Karim set on Flickr. Zoe was very well mannered during the meal. At one point she played a rousing game of Barrel Pirate with Hicham. It was a pretty close game and every time the pirate jumped out, Zoe would squeal with delight. Hopefully we can get everyone together again soon.

Zoe is a nudge, a pain in the keister, a pickled peach pit. Anyone who has spent any amount of time with her knows this to be true. But, I'm not sure that most people know just how far it goes. For the past few days her and I have been playing a little game. I ask her a question, she gives me an answer that she knows I won't like, I yell, "What?" and then she laughs. She's done this for a number of different questions, but recently what I have been asking her is, "Do you love me?" When we're in the car, I'll ask, "Do you love me?" If I'm driving, I can't look back at her so she'll actually say, "No," at which point I yell, "What?!?!" and she laughs. If we're stopped and I can look at her, she'll just shake her head rather than say no, to which I respond in the same way and she laughs. Just to prove what a punk this little girl is, if Cheryl happens to be nearby when Zoe says no or shakes her h...