Young protesters

We didn't travel to DC for the big march last January, but we did make it to the Atlanta March for Social Justice and Women.

My Jennifer

Peep kiss!

Our friend Jennifer is one of Juniper's very favorite people. Whenever Jennifer comes over, Juniper wants to sit next to (or on) her, play with her, tell her stories, and generally be as close to her as possible. We know several people named Jennifer, and Juniper calls her "my Jennifer" when she needs to distinguish her from the other Jennifers.



Unfortunately, Jennifer usually sees Hazel in the evenings, shortly before bedtime, when Hazel is at her grumpiest and is least interested in hanging out with anyone other than Mom and Dad. There have been several occasions where Hazel looks suspiciously at Jennifer and then starts crying (or when Jennifer picks her up, and Hazel then looks stricken).



But last Sunday evening, Hazel and Jennifer had a delightful time together! Jennifer played the very fun game of tickling Hazel with her hair and was treated to the smiles and giggles that those of us who hang out with Hazel when she isn't tired take for granted. It's fun to watch Hazel just starting to learn who are the important people in her life.



No connection to Jennifer, but since this post has the Peeps kiss, it seems appropriate to include this shot of Juniper discovering the sugar at the bottom of the Peeps box.

Nice to meet you

Sock monkey (thanks Naomi!)

Jennifer's mom recently gave Juniper this wonderful (and generous) gift - a hand knit sock monkey. Juniper was very excited and happy to show off her new monkey friend.




Note that the little red hat comes off.




Juniper explored, played, and snuggled with the monkey for a few minutes.




Then she took the monkey back to her bedroom, settled it into the rocking chair, and began reading it a bedtime story.




As an extra bonus, Naomi also sent some knitted cookies, which are a well-loved addition to the little kitchen.

Kelly's Birthday Party

Kelly's birthday party was last weekend (and a lot of fun)!


The party wasn't a surprise, but the band was.


"Girlyman" - one of Kelly's favorites. They were fantastic!



We picked up one of their CDs, some of the first new music we've picked up in a while.