celebrating birthdays on the other side of the pond

as part of the nice visit we're having with Nana (my mom) this weekend, we headed over to Long Island on the ferry yesterday to visit my grandparents, Arwyn's (great-)Grandma Anna and Poppy Gio. while it was a shorter day than we would have all liked, we had a great time celebrating Poppy's 81st birthday.

i present below for your viewing pleasure, two videos from our trip. the first is a funny clip, showing the outcome of a recent example of Arwyn's endless pursuit of lemons. given that her taste buds are now a bit more developed, she may want to rethink the wisdom of this quest...

the second video is a short montage that i put together from several different clips. Arwyn had a good time running around on the lawn, especially once she noticed the different types of windchimes hanging from a tree. particularly touching is the footage at the end of the clip of Arwyn being held by her great grandfather.

in all, it was a great visit, and a trip we need to make again soon.

PS - as evidenced by the lemon clip, Arwyn has become quite verbal. in addition to the many words she knows well and uses without prompting, Arwyn is getting very adept at hearing words once and repeating (and of course, storing) them. why, just today i taught Arwyn her name (score one point for dear ol' dad!) i guess mom and i need to think a bit more carefully about what comes out of our own mouths, eh? ;) more to come on this breaking news story...