Trip to Rochester

Natalie and I visited my sister in Rochester, NY, last weekend.  We had so much fun!  One highlight, which was not unexpected, were these glasses with no lenses in them.

Other fun things: the toy in this photo was a childhood toy of ours, and Natalie figured out the shape patterns pretty quickly.  It was impressive.  Aunt Sarah also bought Natalie the book "Press Here," which is a cute book in which the child has to follow directions.  Natalie didn't exactly master the full nuance of the book, but she had the "press here" down: she pushed with all her might on that book!

There were some beautiful, cool days in Rochester.  Natalie loves picking up leaves, grass, and other tiny things, and [ideally] gives them to me.

Uncle John taught her how to high-five.  Here she shows him how she can make a good lip-smacking sound when she pulls her finger out of her mouth.

At Aunt Sarah's school, where she teaches Spanish!

I'm a sucker for these kinds of pictures.

One highlight our trip was a visit to the Strong Museum of Play.  This place deserves its own blog post.  Though its target demographic is probably for children a few years older than Natalie, there really is something for everyone there.  The photo below shows just how much Natalie was dying to get out of her stroller and check everything out.

Playing with the Kinect

Lots of fun moving things.

Lots of textures.

Wegmans Grocery Store is one of my sister's favorite places.  Wegmans sponsors an exhibit in which kids can shop for food, put it in a cart, check out, get a real receipt, and all kinds of fun things.  Natalie had a blast pulling things off the shelves.  None of the products were "real," but they did an incredible job making them look and feel that way.

Isn't she the cutest: this tiny person pushing the cart!

In the produce section!

Then we got to be on Sesame Street and chat with the Count.

Besides all of this, there were several extremely infant-friendly play areas: mini mazes with cushy sides, lots of things to touch and move: Natalie was in heaven.

This little exhibit displayed increasing numbers when a "coin" was put in to the slot.

This photo captures some of Natalie's exhaustion!  She was so elated when we arrived that I thought she would last an hour, tops, and then crash.  But no, after three hours of non-stop excitement, she still didn't want to leave...even though she missed her afternoon nap!  I'd say the museum was a success.

Thanks, Uncle John and Aunt Sarah!  We had a great time!