TODDLER_TOUR_2010_LEG_9-CONNECTICUT PART 1!

Today was a big day....not only did I get to see Gramma Debbie, Grandpa, Uncle Steve, Aunt Amy, Auntie Steph AND my cousin Braelynn...but I got to meet my new baby cousin Nicholas for the first time!

We also got to have a huge Italian-style dinner together. It was so much fun! And by huge, I mean REALLY huge....the portions were comically large, but that meant that everyone got to share their food, which was all delicious. I sampled a few different things which was a lot of fun.

Everyone came over, and there were so many people to see, and so much to do!

I got to see my cousin Braelynn again. She's gotten so much bigger, it's crazy. It seems like just yesterday I was holding this teeny baby, and now you can tell she wants to crawl like crazy! They grow up so fast! But they never get too big for hugs!

I even got to try out my sharing skills, which haven't QUITE gotten fully developed yet. I was a little frustrated watching Braelynn play with toys that I was used to having all to myself, but I discovered that if I found something else to play with, things seemed to be OK.

She really liked the ones that lit up and made noise. (This posed a bit of a problem, as those were also my favorites...but we worked it out....luckily, I can work it a bit better, so as I would set it up to spin and make noise, she'd watch and have just as much fun as she would playing with it herself. Win win, folks.)

Then of course there was the newest addition to the family...my new cousin Baby Nicholas. This kid was also pretty cute. (Seems to run in the family!)

Mostly he slept, but once he woke up, I decided that the best way to introduce myself was to give him a big old kiss!

He seemed a little annoyed that I woke him up in this fashion, but really...I can think of much worse ways to wake up. :-)

Later, I accidentally used his head as a support when I was trying to get up on the couch. He had just fallen asleep in my Mom's arms, and I wasn't thinking when I hoisted myself up. Sorry about that, Nicholas.

Later on, after dinner, I got to sit down with Grandpa and he read me a story that's supposed to help with potty training. Instead, I saw it as simply an entertaining tale that really showcased the difficulties and strife a young bear goes through. It just happened to have the potty training as a story element. It was a fun read, though...

Mom and I packed up to head over to Gramma Mindy's, and Dad hopped a train back home. Whew....certainly a busy weekend!