Learning Takes Off

In April, Phoebe has become a learning machine. She can tell you what a doggie says (woof woof), mimic a meow sound, find her tennis shoes, point out (or should we say grab?) Daddy’s nose, and go down stairs. It seems like she’s learning something new every day. We’re just sitting back and going along for the ride!

In early April, we all flew to Chicago together. I had a conference, and Dave and Phoebe came along to enjoy the city and meet up with Jennifer, Lee, and Alexander. We had a really nice trip, although Phoebe had a minor ear infection and had to go to the urgent care one afternoon. Dave and I particularly enjoyed the Cultural Center. Here’s a photo of Phoebe at Midway Airport, where they had little kid chairs after the security lines. A very good idea, because Phoebe enjoyed sitting on her own little chair while we put on our shoes and reorganized our bags.

On April 9, we had an exciting day at church. The new pastor who was being recommended by the call committee, Pastor Sara, was coming with her husband and twin 5-year-olds to meet the congregation. That morning, Phoebe played in her jammies while we got ready to go over to church.

We started the morning with a cleanup day. Dave got a lot of yardwork done while I reorganized the altar care cupboard and looked after Phoebe. Somebody spent some time cleaning all the brass, including the offering plates. Phoebe spent some time gunking them up with her dirty little fingers.

Here are a few photos and videos from one of our breaks outside. One of the new things Phoebe likes to do is sit on a step (or on a booster chair on the floor) and then stand up and walk forward.

That afternoon, Pastor Sara got to meet many congregational members, and the next morning, we voted to call her as our new pastor. Hooray! After church, we went to the coffee shop and ate a muffin outside with our coffee while Phoebe walked around.

Phoebe, being a one-year-old, always takes off her sunglasses. This is the first time we’ve ever seen her use them to play the washboard!

When we got home from church, Phoebe made an utter disaster of the tupperware cupboard. Then she got into all sorts of mischief!

For her birthday, Phoebe got a fridge farm. You can match the animals or make silly unmatched pairs (like a sheep duck [baa quack] or a pig cow [oink moo]). She LOVES it. She carries the animal parts all over the downstairs. Here she makes a bit of mischief with the farm.

If you let her into the bathroom on her own, you run the risk of having to re-roll all the toilet paper.

On April 11, Phoebe moved from the infant room at daycare to the toddler room. Her new space has a ball pit, a slide, and new routines. She drinks milk out of a sippy cup and takes only one nap a day (from 12:30 to 3:00 p.m.). Sounds lovely, doesn’t it? The older kids challenge her to follow them around the room, playing with toys and (gently) poking each other. Phoebe has already learned from the other kids to say “uh oh!” when something falls. She just loves the new room—lots of space to roam.

On April 17, we played some basketball in the afternoon and Phoebe wound up so dirty she absolutely had to have a bath.

You have to see this video to believe it. I just tried this on a lark, not expecting she’d be able to answer my questions!

Finally, this is Phoebe messing around before our second-to-last kickball game. (Dave’s work sponsored a team. We came in second to last after 8 weeks, but we had a fun time! Our friend Elijah came by a number of times to hang out with Phoebe while Dave and I were in the field.)

Now we’re looking forward to Easter this Sunday! Stay tuned.