Fort Wayne Zoo

Enjoying her pony ride

Lily picked out the design. This girl loves her some face painting!

Little did we know how much we were going to need that hat a little later. Let's just say that we got the real rainforest experience while we were there.

Back at Grandma and Grandpa's house wrapped up like a burrito after the torrential downpour

Nature Center in Indy

Bee-utiful!

Lily and Lainey- oh, what a look!

Lily has some looks of her own

It's always a good idea to explore dark caves in pairs

Frog and owl/skunk coexist peacefully

More "farm" pictures

Little farmer in training

A beautiful backdrop to some tractor ridin' fun

Reading with Great Grandma Deetz

Ready for the real deal!

Terra and Irie reunited

Lily lingo

Lily has developed into quite the talker. She goes on and on and just loves to tell stories, make comments, ask questions, participate in conversations (with real or imagined people), and generally likes to hear herself talk as much as possible. Here are a small sample of comments made recently:

• Lily grabs the real phone whenever it is in reach and quickly presses buttons and usually says quickly (as one of us hurries to get it away from her before she really calls anyone) "Hi, it's me. I'm doing well. Okay, bye-bye."
• While riding in the car, Lily was eating something on a little plate. Carl took the plate from her when she was finished, and she remarked, "You got a sink in the car, daddy? Nah, that would be silly." Nah is definitely a favorite "word" right now, and it's so cute every time she uses it. She also adds a little laugh at the end just so you know that she was being funny.
• She was very frustrated at a little cape that would not lay correctly on one of her play ponies and emphatically commanded, "You get over there, crazy thing!" With a desperate tone, almost verging on some real tears, she followed up with "You've snuck in my lair, and you've had all the fun." As those with young children will probably recognize, this is a quote from the book The Bear Snores On, one of the best children's books ever written, in my opinion. For some reason, she readily recites that line of the book when she is feeling frustrated/sad, just as the bear was feeling sad in that part as well. She sometimes extends it with the next line, "And me, I was sleeping, and I've had none." We know that when we hear this from her, she needs some real comfort/help.
• "You understand me?" is a favorite right now too. She does not use it in a way that you might think though. Adults often say this when emphasizing a point, usually in the midst of discipline. Lily genuinely just wants to know if you've heard her and get whats she's saying. She used it in the following context last night: I was sitting on the couch and commented to myself how I need to make a grocery list for shopping the next day. Lily remembered that we had used the last of the butter while making pierogies for dinner and said, "We need butter. You understand me, mommy? The butter is all gone. We need to get more at the grocery store."

There are countless times in a day when we look at her and think, "How old are you?...Did she really just say that?"... And I know it is only get to worse, but it truly is fun. I'm not kidding when I say that I look forward to the next day just to hear what funny, crazy things she will come up with next!

Remembering Grandpa Deetz

Carl and I returned from Indiana yesterday after attending the funeral of his Grandpa Deetz. It was very emotional and many tears were shed (especially from this Italian girl - at one point, I actually considered ceasing all liquid intake so that I would have no more tears!), but it helped tremendously to spend time with Carl's family so that we could all begin the healing process together. Part of the difficulty in dealing with this sudden loss is coping with the loss of traditions. I could not help but wonder on our way home: But who is going to make the fresh-squeezed orange juice in the morning? Who is going to pop the popcorn at night while everyone plays euchre? Who is going to plant the beautiful flowers all around the ponds?...The list goes on and on. As these thoughts poured through my head, the answer was so simple and clear. We are. All who knew him (which was many) carry the memories with him, the knowledge gained by him, and the traditions shared with him. In honor of Grandpa Deetz, I thought that I would share some of the wonderful traditions that we intend to carry on in his name.

• Of course, fresh-squeezed juice. I don't think that I'll be able to make it quite as often, and I'm sure not quite as good, but we are going to try to perfect the combination of orange and grapefruit juices for a great start to the morning as often as we can.
• Gladiolas always remind me of visiting Grandma & Grandpa Deetz. They have a beautiful line of them by the road that seem to welcome everyone to their home. We are going to plant a line of them next to our back patio as a reminder of Grandpa's love for the outdoors and passion for gardening.
• Popcorn and euchre will not be new to our household, but we will continue this tradition with Grandpa in mind, as always.
• Oyster stew on New Year's Eve. It is no surprise that many traditions are related to sharing good food with great company. Oyster stew is a unique meal that definitely must be carried on.

By carrying on these traditions, Grandpa will live on in each of us. And when Lily learns the virtues of integrity, honesty, fairness, and above all, kindness, she will live the legacy of Grandpa Deetz.

Goodbye Grandpa Deetz

We were heartbroken to learn on Monday that Carl's Grandpa Deetz passed away. We had just returned from a visit to Carl's Grandparents' house the day before. The news was shocking, and we are still reeling from it. Carl's Grandfather was kind and caring, and we will miss him beyond words.

Dinner at Uncle Randy and Aunt Pam's Lakehouse on Thursday

Grandpa Deetz giving Carl some lessons on the "small tractor", as Lily called it, on Sunday morning.

Grandpa Deetz shows Lily all the fun ways to use the "big tractor"

Lily getting some fishing tips from her Great Grandpa

Grandpa and Uncle Randy make fire at the Lakehouse

Playing games with her Great Grandpa - July 2007

Supervising the ice-creaming making - July 2007

July 2007

The ponds are a source of great family time year round - December 2007

My favorite Grandpa Deetz picture - December 2007

Multigenerational ice-fishing

Deetz family photo - July 2006

Visit with Great Grandma Murphy

On the carousel

When choosing out of a group of items, Lily will most often go for that which there is the least. She had three rides on the carousel, and she chose the giraffe, lion, and tiger (never a plain old horse).

I love visiting small towns. There always seems to be a source of pride in small communities. In Carl's grandmother's town of Logansport (IN), they boast this beautiful carousel in the center of town.

Enjoying some watermelon with her Great Grandma Murphy

Lily (and her duck and doll) help Great Grandma with her crossword puzzle.

Too precious

Thanks for the new trike Aunt Ingrid! I LOVE IT!!!

Strokin'

There was clearly something in the air at the St. Louis Zoo today because there was some serious animal lovin' goin' on. Warning: the video is for mature (or maybe more accurately, completely immature) audiences only - intended only to give you a taste of our experience there. I suppose there just isn't a lot of privacy when you are on display at the zoo.

More zoo fun

Future seal trainer

Ang & Lily in front of the long-awaited elephants

Party girls strike again

Lily with her Great Grandpa Pellerito

We had a very nice time at the zoo with my grandpa, my Aunt Chris, cousin Maria, my mom and sister. Outings like this are the very reason for moving back to St. Louis. Yay St. Louis!

My Lily

Dinner date rejection

We asked Lily if she would like to go out to dinner last night, and this is a snippet of the response we got. Keep in mind that at no time was ice cream and lollipops offered as dinner fare.

Story hour with Lily

This video shows Lily telling one of her stories. It's not the best example of Lily's adventures in storytelling, but it does show a classic example of her facial expressions. When someone does not understand her or misinterprets what she's saying, she gives a look that shows how she is personally affronted and lets you know that you better get on board with the conversation. It is truly wicked (and not inherited from my side!) :)

Some recent photos

Lily's new "big girl" bike

Look out - road warrior coming through!

Father's Day dessert spread

From left to right: Marbled pound cake (baked in a bundt pan), fruit kabobs, sherbet in lemon & lime cups, apple tart

Ang adds to the appeal of the occasion

Unfortunately, I was too busy socializing at our Father's Day celebrations to get any pictures of the fathers!

Ingrid, Ryan, and Irie stopped by yesterday on their way to Kansas City. Lucky Ingrid got to give a naked Lily a piggy back ride and even luckier Ryan unknowingly had his brownie frosting licked before he ate it. Ummm...

Molly and her son Jack stopped by today for a playdate and enjoyed some of their own fruit kabobs

Cuties!