Then and Now

May 1st 2008: Mara and Oliver meet for the first time. Picasso runs upstairs and hides if Mara so much as sighs, but Oliver sniffs her and is intrigued. Mara is asleep. Oliver decides he will enjoy sleeping near her whenever he can get away with it while she's an infant. Also, her crib is a fun spot for a nap when he can sneak into it without Mom and Dad noticing.

September 29th 2009: Oliver and Mara hang out on the couch together. He loves her, and she loves him. Despite a period of tail-pulling, he always enjoys being around her and she loves to 'pet' him (sometimes not so gently) and give him kisses. Now if only Picasso would get close enough to her, to see that she's not as scary as he thinks....

Early August 2008: One of Mara's first times sitting in the bumbo chair. I remember this day was also the first day she made an effort to grab a toy from me. She seems to be enjoying herself, and her thighs aren't too difficult to squeeze in and out of the chair (that would change over the next several months).

Late September 2009: Mara finds her Bumbo chair tucked away behind some furniture. She drags it out and decides this is a great place to sit to read her books (she is more excited than her expression shows!) Remarkably, it's not as tight a squeeze as it used to be. Guess she has slimmed down a bit in the thigh area!