preparation for the 4th of July

Alice has been working on her cute looks in anticipation of the 4th of July.

Here are some pictures taken by a friend of ours that we thought you might enjoy.

Five months old

Happy, cute, & feeling patriotic in that dress that Mommy made!

We think it's fun to click on the "Monthly Progress" label and get all these pictures in a row - we forget how small she used to be! She's now really developing a personality.

She's also just started sucking her thumb (vigorously!!) now that she's 5 months old... I'll see if I can catch a picture/video of that sometime soon.

First meal

We introduced Alice to (semi-)solid food for the first time Sunday. As naive new parents, we were a little dismayed by the messy results. As Sarah said, "Alice is certainly interested in food ... she just doesn't seem interested in eating it."

Vacation

Kirke, Sarah, & Alice have been on vacation this week. We spent some time in the far northern reaches of Minnesota, where Alice enjoyed the crisp air, fields of lupine, and going on long hikes with Alice's great- Aunt & Uncle.

Alice sometimes feels a little neglected on those days when Kirke is post-call from having been up all night; while he's able to stay home and babysit, Sarah doesn't think he necessarily always does a good job of this.

Musical prodigy

Little Twinkle-Fingers Alice shares her soulful stylings at the piano with Auntie GinGin.

Training Kirke in object recognition

Daddy can be a slow learner sometimes, but if Baby Alice is persistent, she can usually get him to understand what it is that she wants.

In the beginning...

Alice plays with her Grandma Ann & Great-Aunt Frances.  I think she looks a little like Michaelangelo's "Adam" from the creation scene in the Sistene Chapel.  Grandma Ann just looks pretty excited about that edible chocolate /strawberry bouquet.

High maintenance baby

Alice likes to be courted with roses.  And not ones with prickly stems that are hard to grab and rip off.

Hair ball

Izzy and Alice were re-introduced over Memorial Day weekend.  Izzy thought Alice smelled interesting, and Alice thought Izzy's fur felt interesting.