Block Party

Here we are over at Aiden and AlleyRose's house.  They were having a block party, which is actually only 3 blocks from our house so we headed over to play.  Met a lot of neighbors and had a fun time jumping and playing.  Samantha came too as she lives only 2 blocks away and is in our neighborhood too. It was a nice afternoon.  We walked over had some snacks, played, even had some dress-up.  it is always a fun time with Aiden and AlleyRose.

Head Over Heels

Here we are at Head over Heels, a Gymnastic Studio.Holly and a few of her friends signed up for a free trial class which was a lot of fun.It was a little structured for the girls and they wanted to do there own thing and explore the gymnasium.Here is Mira doing the doggie crawl, one of the warm up activities. Holly can do it, but refused to on command.Here is Sarah doing some of the leg stretches, which also would have been great PT for Holly.But she refused to sit with the group and follow along. She was very distracted by kids from a older class.Here the girls are walking on the Balance beam, one of the stages of an obstacle course. When I held her tight around the waist she would do it, but if I only held her hands she wasn't able to.Another step of the obstacle course was running down this trick trampoline, she had fun with that.But she was much more excited about jumping on the big trampoline, on her own over on the other side.Or running around the mat and climbing and checking out what the older girls were doing.It wasn't atypical behavior, Sarah wanted to do her own thing also and had fun climbing up these stairs.On this particular visit Kat jumped into the foam pit with Holly, but neither was a big fan.She did do several parts of the obstacle when coxed and prompted and had fun, but didn't want to follow the group.There were three or four other more advanced classes going on and those were very distracting.She had a great time when we did the parachute spinning, but it is a game she is very familiar with.While we enjoyed the free class, none of the girls were really ready for the structure involved.I really wanted to sign Holly up, but I think it will be a while before she is ready. in the mean time we hope to attend open gym.

Lincoln Park in Alameda

This is a fun and shady park in Alameda. Kristen our PT recommended it, she particularly likes the three bridges on the play structure.Holly likes the one that is made out of a canvas material, she would run back and forth and jump up and down on it.Mostly she liked the swinging, but she did go down the tube slide, and do a lot of climbing also. It was nice to be in the shade, there was even a cool breeze.After playing in the park we headed over to a Thai Restaurant in Alameda called Toomies that has wonderful Black Pepper and garlic Chicken which I simply adore.

Michelle and Maddy

Isn't she beautiful! This is my friend from High School's daughter Maddy. Michelle and I were in Drama together and the best of friends, but drifted apart after graduation. it was amazing to see her again during my visit to Florida.Michelle has an older Son, Cole whom I was not able to meet, he was in school, and if I recall correctly he is 12. Maddy, is just about 2 months older then Holly and turned Two in January.We were able to head over to there house in Tampa one morning while my mom and sister were running errands, we got to talk and play for a few hours, until the girls were tuckered out and ready for a nap.We started off getting settled in and having a snack. Maddy was watching her morning Sesame Street, which was fun for Holly to see a new show. Holly was rearing to go and explore all of Maddy's stuff.She was super excited about this play kitchen and quickly emptied out every single drawer she could pull on. At least I was able to keep her away from pulling any books off the shelves.She was also a big fan of the riding car. She likes to climb up onto it and then off again, but doesn't quite yet push herself back or forth on it.Here Maddy is curious about Holly's snacks, and since I always prepare such a variety, there were plenty for her to share.I just love Maddy's hair, it is so long and very thick. It is amazing how much she looks like Michelle. She is really sweet and very friendly. She gives great hugs.Then Holly discovered her all time favorite toy of the day. Maddy's Wagon. First she climbed in and then she climbed out. Over and over again.Before long she decided to fill it with all of the toys she liked, Balls, a telephone, it was so full, that I hardly thought there would be room for her to climb back in.But she found a way. For the most part, the girls played in parallel, but not really together, but it was there first time meeting each other and Holly's first time in a new space.We had a wonderful lunch of Grilled Cheese Sandwiches, and then took a walk in the wagon, which Holly loved. She had so much fun. We planned on getting together again before I left, but didn't get the opportunity. We promised to stay in touch, and next time I am in Florida we will certainly get together again.