Storyland, Day 1

You are now entering Storyland...


Ready to go!


There was an old woman who lived in a shoe, she had so many children, she gave them all a Storyland sticker.


Nellie and Cinderella:


Sadie and Cinderella:


Sadie and Isaac in the pumpkin coach:


Mommy and Sadie in jail:


Daddy in jail:


Cuckoo Clockenshpeil...there are trolls inside the clock!


The Whirling Whales, driven by Sadie:

Not much of a view...

Family and not much view
Originally uploaded by Dan and Ann

It was pretty cloudy on our drive, so we couldn't see much at this scenic vista. It would have been a nice family picture, except Ann's eyes are closed.

First Stop: Polly's Pancake Parlor

Our first stop on our Storyland vacation was lunch at Polly's Pancake Parlor. It was very yummy!



We all loved the pancakes and the kids had fun riding on Trot-Trot.

Photographs by Sadie

Some pictures taken by Sadie today as we walked through the Hop.

Ceiling:


Nellie:


Art installation (fake ice cream, strange hair, etc.):


Courtyard and Warner Bentley:


Mommy and Nell:

It's The Map

20090713 132
Originally uploaded by a_ager

If there's a place you got to go
I'm the one you need to know
I'm the Map
I'm the Map
I'm the Map
If there's a place you got to get
I can get you there I bet
I'm the Map
-Dora the Explorer "Map Song"

Sadie and Isaac consult the map while walking the Prouty. As you can see behind Sadie's shoulder, there were plenty of signs directing the walk, so we didn't really need the map, but they enjoyed checking it out.

Prouty 2009

20090713 130
Originally uploaded by a_ager

On Saturday, we walked the Prouty with Laura, Andy, Isaac and Naomi. We chose the wooded walk because we thought the kids would prefer it over the residential walk, and it was really fun. Sadie walked the entire 5k (3.2 miles), minus two mud puddles that she needed to be carried over. She was amazing!

Thank you so much to all who supported us. We raised $560 for cancer research and general support of the Norris Cotton Cancer Center at DHMC.

Norwich Fair

We love the Norwich Fair because it's so small. Within a very happy hour, Sadie can ride all the rides that she is tall enough for and win a prize at a carnival game. Very fun, very manageable!

Nellie's first ride (she didn't really like it):


Sadie won this purple inflated cat:


Big slide with Daddy:


Having fun just watching:


Sadie drives:

Two good pictures

I managed to get a decent picture of each of the girls today...it's a miracle! I almost never get a good one of Sadie and a good one of Nellie on the same day.

At the Ray School playground, or, as Sadie calls it, "Bee Sting Playground" because Dan was once stung by a bee there:

Woods

Woods
Originally uploaded by Dan and Ann

Sadie and her friends come running out of the woods, back to the backyard fun at Nell's birthday party on Sunday. She was showing her friends the various rocks she has named.

Quotable Sadie

"I just thought of something! Mary Poppins is about a babysitter, and so is Sound of Music! And both babysitters like to sing. And Mary kind of sounds like Maria. And both movies are the olden days. It's a coincidence!"

(They are also both Julie Andrews, a fact Sadie does not recognize and I am not going to explain to her.)

Friends

Friends
Originally uploaded by Dan and Ann

Nellie and her friend Naomi enjoyed a wagon ride at the birthday party this weekend. Actually, this picture captures the only moment when they were both sitting in the wagon. Nellie was mostly trying to climb out.

It's so cute to see the little girls together. Hopefully, they will be good friends like Sadie and Isaac!

Happy Birthday, Helena!

Our darling Nellie is one today!

Just born:


Two months old:


Four months old:


Six months old:


Eight months old:


Ten months old:


One year old:

4th of July

Winner!
Originally uploaded by Dan and Ann

"I want to jump in a bag and win a medal!"

And she did! Sadie won a medal for participating in the potato sack race at the Hanover "Old Fashioned 4th of July" events. She was thrilled! She remembered these races from last year and was very excited to take part again.

We had a fun weekend with the 4th of July, fireworks, grandparents and Nellie's first birthday party. It even stopped raining. Lots more pictures to come!