One assertive little lady

So, the latest thing with Miss Josephine is that she's figured out how to express herself. And I am afraid...very afraid. For example, if I have the remote control, telephone, cell phone, etc and she decides that she wants it - guess what? She reaches for it and if I don't let her have it - here comes a big screech or squeal! Seriously, I had *no* idea that an almost-8-month-old could have such strong opinions. And, if this is a glimpse into my future, then I am really in for one assertive little lady. (You go Josie.)



















Here are some photos of Josie from this week. First, you'll notice that she has officially outgrown her countertop tub (alright, she outgrew it weeks ago, but we were in denial). So, we take "big girl" baths now. It really is pretty fun, because she adores the water. With this handy seat (thanks Natalie & Dennis), you're actually able to fill up the water pretty high, so she can really splash around and play with all her tub toys (thanks Jiv). And, here's a photo of Josie having her way with her favorite new toy - her super soft kitty from Phil & Palak. When she's not cuddling it, she's practicing what she's going to do to Venus as soon as she can crawl.

And finally, here's another glimpse into our future. My parents brought down this walker that they borrowed from the Roundtrees (thanks guys) to see if Josie was ready to start running around the condo yet. And the verdict is in - it took her one afternoon to master the thing and what started as small scoots backwards was full scale walking around the house last night (and several trips to hide under the kitchen table). She really enjoys her newfound mobility, although it's very scary to us. Here's a photo of "Jungle Josie" just after she figured out that she could walk over to the plant and hang out in the leaves. This was also right before she walked herself over the to drum and performed an impromptu concert for grandma, granddaddy and I. As if we didn't know already, our condo is about as far from babyproof as you can get. But, we're still in denial that she could possibly be growing up this fast, so don't expect us to do anything to babyproof soon. (I have no doubt that we'll make a hyper-panic trip to Babies 'R Us the second she crawls, but for the meantime we want to go on living in the fantasy world where we're still have an ounce of control.)
Okay - off to Target to buy some baby gifts for some friends that are expecting beautiful baby girls at the end of the month. After a long morning of steaming, pureeing, and freezing a new batch of veggies (today it was rutabagas, beets, zucchini, and parsnips) - we've got to get out and enjoy some of this sunshine. I think spring may actually be here!