Evelyn, in words and pictures

On the Sunday before going to Arizona, Evelyn and Dad took a little trip to the Como Conservatory.  Evelyn had a really good time – it was her first time seeing fresh green plants in a while.  For that matter, it was Dad’s, too.  There were lots of cool things to see – the fern garden, a huge coconut palm, lilies, and a fig tree that was pruned all the way back to naked!  But the coolest was the spice area, where there were bananas, cinnamon, an allspice tree, and even a pineapple!  Dad had seen pineapple plantations before, but not up close – and certainly not a baby pineapple growing inside!

Evelyn was less impressed.

She was pretty thrilled when she got to see the anaconda swimming in the tropical exhibit in the zoo, but there aren’t any pictures of that – you’ll have to trust me.

Next – more Arizona fun!

Evelyn went to the Phoenix Zoo while in Arizona.  She saw giraffes, zebras, otters, and even touched a camel!  Here she is in the Monkey Village:

The zoo was pretty great!

Evelyn is in Arizona right now, visiting Grandma Joleen and Granpa Bruce.  She’s been having a great time.  The airplane ride was a lot of fun:

And she settled right in at Grandma and Grandpa’s: rocking with Grandpa Bruce and Big Bear…

hanging out with Dad on the back porch…

and exploring the playground with Fiona and Grandma Joleen:

Evelyn’s visit to Arizona has been a ton of fun so far!

Sunday had a couple more firsts for Evelyn.  It was the Current’s annual Rock the Cradle event, held at the Minneapolis Institute of Arts and the Children’s Theater Company.  There were live performances, puppet shows, an instrument petting zoo, and a kids’ disco.  This wasn’t Evie’s first time at the MIA, but it was her first time at a disco.  It was fantastic!

Evelyn also got her very first (temporary) tattoo at Rock the Cradle.  It actually made her pretty happy, but you could be forgiven for thinking she was a little surly:

Evelyn went for her very first ride in a shopping cart today.  She thought it was pretty great – a fun ride, and so much to see!  The store was pretty crowded, so there were lots of things going on and Evelyn was working hard trying to figure everything out.  Being in the cart was a whole new angle on things!

Evelyn, how did your shoulder get so wet?

Oh – that’s how.

Here you can see Evelyn’s brand new teeth!  They’re just poking through, and they’re sharp!

Evelyn has become a champion sitter-upper – and she’s pretty happy about it, too.

She went from wobbly-on-her-butt to just-set-me-upright-I-got-it in the four days after Christmas.  These pictures are from New Year’s weekend.

Beer bottle for scale.

When Evelyn started daycare back in the summer, her teachers put a sign on the door of her room to welcome her.  They gave us the sign, and it now graces the door to Evelyn’s bedroom. Lately, she has begun insisting that whenever she leaves her room, whoever is carrying her must pause so that she can admire her sign.

The sign makes Evelyn very happy.

On Christmas morning, it was snowy but fairly warm, so Evelyn and Dad went for a walk together.

Evelyn had a pretty good time on the walk, but what really got her excited was the presents.  Specifically, the ribbon!

Mom enjoyed the matching outfits.