Grannie's Birthday

We celebrated Grannie Woodruff's 70th birthday on Easter Sunday with the whole family, though the actual birthday date is today. Grannie, Jillian and Rielee got to wear crowns for the party. As always, Jillian loved to hear the happy birthday song and help blow out the candles.

ABCs

Every time Jillian comes she bugs Papa to play ABCs (that's what she calls it) on Starfall on the computer. It's a great site that my sister Dianne recommended. It has helped Jillian learn the alphabet and the sounds for the letters in a fun way, as it's always children doing the talking. After each letter there's a game to play with that letter and that's what Jillian is doing in the picture, pointing out the correct answer. It's great as she always asks for Papa to do it for her and I can get something else done.

Easter II

With Ava and Harper (Charbo's twins), Jillian is not the youngest cousin now. With this bunch it can get pretty wild during the Easter egg hunt but we did put a special spot for Jillian and Rielee to hunt eggs so they didn't get run over. Next year the twins will be right there joining Jillian.

Easter Sunday

Now that Jillian is 2, she's a lot more into Easter. We've been reading lots of Easter books to her, and talking about looking for eggs and such, so she's been ready.

Easter Sunday started out early, with all of us going to church in the morning. Jillian wore her pretty new pink dress with white stockings, white shoes and white sweater. We were joined at Grace Lutheran by Grandpa Peterson, Auntie Greta, Cousins Meagan & Adam, Aunties Sheryl and De, and Cousin Andy. All of the kids did good throughout the service, playing and visiting quietly. After church, we all headed to the Monticello Hotel for Easter brunch for a huge buffet, where we met up with Dad T. Jillian ate lots and lots of breakfast food.

Our next stop was Castle Rock, where the Piercy family was having Easter at Grannie and Papa Woodruff's house. As soon as we got there, it was time for the egg roll, since it wasn't raining yet. Jillian tossed the egg overhand about half-way to the line, so unfortunately, she was out in the first round. After the raw egg toss (in which Mommy and Daddy took 2nd place to Cale and Will), it was time for the egg hunt. When it was time to go hunting, Jillian immediately ran to the fountain to splash in the water. Mommy had to re-direct her, and finally got her to start looking for and picking up eggs. After several eggs, Jillian was much more into it. She ended up finding about a half dozen. She also received several Easter baskets filled with fun things, including a new pair of Dora Crocs.

We headed home with a very tired (and cranky) Sweetie-Pie, after a very full day with no nap. But, Jillian had a lot of fun running around with family the whole day!

Zoo Trip

Jillian went to the zoo with the Johnson clan yesterday as part of her birthday present. We caught a break and it didn't rain the whole time, though it was pretty cold. The trip started off with a walk on a long trail where we saw birds, wolves, and cows (at the zoo?). Jillian had a lot of energy and alternated between the stroller and walking, or should I say running! Ty and Brock were designated "chasers" when she would take off to see something.

After the trail, we started seeing some of the bigger animals such as the polar bears, elephants, cheetahs, and lions. Jillian was more in awe of these animals and would just stare at them for several moments before getting back in the stroller. We also saw monkeys that were sleeping and snakes that Jiliian said "SSSS" (and Aunt Julie stayed away from). We also stopped at the big field for a few minutes and she ran back and forth several times. Next we made a quick bee line through the hippos, zebras, and giraffes because everybody was hungry and we wanted to get to the crocodile "rainforest" ( a building that is very warm!).

Eating our packed lunch in the crocodile rainforest is a tradition of the Johnson boys who used to visit the zoo often when they were little. Jillian did not seem fazed by the big teeth of the crocs and just ate her peanut butter sandwich right by them (with glass in between, of course). After lunch, we could tell that she was getting tired, so we put her in the stroller and hurriedly saw the bats, tigers, and sea otters. Jillian yelled for the tiger to "wake up!" but it didn't work. Lastly, Jillian went to the gift shop and picked out a stuffed baby lion that she called her "puppy." All in all, we had a great time and Jillian fell right to sleep as we left for home.

New Stuff XXIV

Here it is ... the latest of compilation of Jill-stuff. It continues to be funny:

1. Packing : When we get ready to go somewhere, Jillian immediately starts looking for something to take with her. It could be a baby, or a toy, or as many things as she can carry in her arms. We've managed to get rid of a lot of stuff, because Jillian often returns home empty-handed.

2. More Singing : Jillian continues to enjoy singing. She let loose with a couple new ones recently, including "Itsy Bitsy Spider" and "Ring Around the Rosy".

3. The Barney Song : When we went to the beach last weekend, it was non-stop Barney theme song. If you haven't heard it, she sings it like this: "I love you, you love me, we're a happy family, with a great big hug, and a kiss from me to you (muh), hope you say you love me too".

4. "Muh" : This is what Jillian says when she gives a kiss, either to people or her babies or when singing the Barney theme song (see above).

5. Bear, Bottle & Little Chicken : For a couple days, Jillian couldn't part with these 3 little things, carrying them around with her everywhere, and even taking them to bed. Just so you know, they were a little stuffed bear, a little toy baby bottle, and a Pez dispenser with a chicken on top.

6. Counting 2 Things : Jillian can actually count things, up to 2. She'll point at 2 things and say "1, 2".

7. "Don't Worry (Mommy / Daddy)" : This is similar to the "What's wrong?" that she had been saying earlier. There's no particular reason why she says it, though.

8. "Waaaahhhhh" : Jillian likes to pretend cry by saying "waaaahhhh", and has gotten pretty convincing in how she does it. But, she gives it away after she says "I cry like a baby."

9. "Hola" : It's evidence of the Dora influence on her; when we went to Wal-Mart the other day, Jillian was saying "hola" to people she'd meet.

10. "I don't like that" : This has become a common phrase lately. It's often followed by Jillian throwing that thing down.

More Princess Dress-up

Here's another video of Jillian in her princess dress, princess top and princess shoes. She was definitely in a princess mood tonight.