The Manley/Coleman Family

Just to get Reeve used to the idea of potty training, we bought him his potty. After much research of online reviews, and knowing how much he likes frogs and other animals, this frog-shaped potty was the winner. It’s easy to assemble, has a high splash guard (key for boys!), has handles and is just cute. Even Mojito had to give it a closer look.

Here is a video I’ve been meaning to upload for a while of Reeve with his Yoder cousins at Christmas 2009.

Reeve is obsessed with the lion statue in our neighbor’s yard. He growls like a lion every time he sees it, and naturally we have to go over and pet him.

He also loves riding the parrot at the playground:

We took advantage of a free class at Gymboree. Reeve had a blast bouncing and jumping on all those colorful obstacles with the other kids.

Reeve is obsessed with this Curious George book. He must read it six times daily.

We’ve been slacking on posting new items for Reeve’s blog. Sorry! To make it up to you, here are a bunch a cute videos taken in the last several weeks. Enjoy!

After Philly, we all took the train down to Baltimore to see the Coleman side of the family. There Reeve was even busier, as he got to play with his two cousins Charlotte and Susan. Three kids under the age of six equal a whole lot of energy! So here’s the recap:

First Reeve had to inspect the tree and gifts:

Next, Reeve discovered that twirling on a musical Elmo mat was a thrill.

Charlotte decided to join the fun:

Soon the kids were digging into the gifts:

Reeve decided he didn’t care for Charlotte’s recorder skills:

Next there was a rare opportunity for a group shot of Rob and his sister Karen with the kids:

After all that excitement and no nap that day, Reeve passed out during dinner:

The play kept on each day, especially when Reeve got a look at Charlotte and Susan’s play room:

Charlotte showed Reeve how to drive a car:

And Reeve thought that Lucille, Coleman family friend, was the most hilarious person he’d met in a long time:

Embarking on our Annual East Coast Holiday Tour, we went to Philadelphia for four days to spend Christmas with the Manley grandparents. Reeve was very busy the whole time, and engaged in many activities, including playing piano:

. . . climbing stairs . . .

. . . conquering chairs . . .

. . . meeting dogs . . .

. . . climbing stairs at other people’s houses . . .

. . . listening to Kathleen Battle’s christmas cd . . .

. . . opening gifts . . .

. . . eating his favorite snack of blueberries and raspberries . . .

. . . and learning how toy trains work.

In Quebec City, we stayed in the famous and glorious Chateau Frontenac. Perfect timing as well: inbetween the high tourist seasons, so it was fairly uninhabited, but also wonderfully decked out for the holidays.

The view from our room:

We walked down Rue Saint Louis to the famous Citidel.

For dinner that night, we went to a creperie. Reeve wouldn’t eat anything. Just one refusal after the next. But we had mentioned to the waiter that Reeve adores blueberries. So the waiter took some “bluets” out of the freezer and presented them to Reeve, who then instantaneously decided that he was hungry again. It was disastrously messy, but fun. And the waiter got a big tip for his fast thinking!

The next day we wandered down the narrowest street in North America: Rue du Petite Champlain. Perfectly decorated for the holidays. We saw some murals, lots of historical sights, and a museum that day.

One more family portrait in front of our hotel, the Chateau Frontenac.

The pool was so successful in Montreal, we had to try the one in Quebec City:

A shop owner gave Reeve a balloon to play with.

Reeve found the train ride back to Montreal exhausting, so he took a good long nap before we left for the airport.

And daddy knows how to burn off Reeve’s energy before having to sit on a plane for several hours: he found a cart that Reeve could push around. And around. And around.