Spring has sprung!

Louis may have thought that we took him from Hunan Province, which hasn't seen snow in 15 years, to a faraway land where blizzards are constantly keep people shut in for weeks at a time. If he was especially relieved to learn this week that we don't always live in winter coats, he didn't say so, but he loves being outside, and he was thrilled when we took him to the playground this morning. I have a feeling we will be spending a lot of time at playgrounds over the next six months!

Here is Louis going down a slide. This morning he started saying"slide."

He walked across this bridge with Baba a few times before he decided he wanted to do it himself. He is very independent and we notice that he is saying "no" more and more often--although sometimes he seems to say it just to say it. He is 2, after all!


He loved having Baba push him in the swing!


His interest in trains has not faded, although he is curious about everything and is especially excited about the alphabet right now. His favorite letters seem to be W, O, and I, but he knows several letters, and he points them out on license plates and signs.

Here he is "reading" one of his father's train books.

And here he is laughing with his dog, whose name (as given by Louis) sounds like "Ruff-Ruff."

Here Louis is wearing one of his Baba's hats while eating his mandarin oranges, still very much a favorite food, especially when we make faces on his plate.

In honor of St. Patrick's Day we had Shamrock Shakes, and Louis loved his. He drank more than half of the cup. We may even have met his dairy quota that day! He wasn't as enthusiastic about the corned beef, but there's always next year.Here Louis is trying his cousin's Lily chair at her christening party. (His Grandma made him the shamrock sweater.)

The biggest change for our family this week was that Mama returned to work and Louis started spending his days at Grandma's house. It has been a difficult transition, but Louis has adapted beautifully. He picks out toys and books to bring with him from home each morning. He always brings his stuffed singing dog, and he also brought his Cat in the Hat (he calls him "Hat") a few times. Grandma's house is a wonderland of beloved toys, and Grandma has less trouble putting Louis down for a nap than his parents do! As a mother of six and grandmother of nine, she has some experience.

Here he is walking into Grandma's house one morning.


Here he is sitting on Grandma's rocking recliner, his favorite seat in the house (except for his feeding seat, of course, and maybe the piano stool).

When Louis found two 2x4s in the backyard, he asked Grandpa (using gestures and words) to set them up like train tracks. This has made for hours of fun.

We were especially lucky that two cousins--including one who is just six weeks younger than Louis--happened to be visiting at the beginning of the week, making the transition to time without Mama much easier. The first day he waved bye-bye happily and went back to playing. (The next day wasn't quite as easy.)


And here he is playing outside. Grandma is teaching him to kick balls around the yard. He likes to say "up" and "down" as he goes up and down the little hill in his grandparents' yard.