Spring Fashion Show

My brother and sister-in-law are addicted to Gymboree. Yes, addicted. In case you haven't shopped at Gymboree, it's a clothing store with the cutest little kid gear *ever*. And the best part is, since they turn over their various product lines so quickly, they typically have very good sales on last month's styles. Call me backward, but I can usually wait a month to pay half-price for that must-have toddler sweater. (Although I admit to splurging a few times on full-price outfits around the holidays...)

So get this: brother and sis-in-law (Jim and Jen), the aforementioned Gymboree addicts, stumbled across a Gymboree outlet while spending the weekend in Maine. It is not good for Gymboree addicts to be left alone in a Gymboree outlet, unsupervised. The result of this unsupervised shopping frenzy was shipped to Rachael in a large box...so we've been playing 'fashion show' with her new spring and summer fashions. :) Jim and Jen are excellent shoppers and picked out adorable things! Featured in this post is Rachael's new Honey Bee outfit (she only agreed to model if I gave her some Cheerios. Fair deal.)

Rachael says, "THANK YOU, Aunt Jen and Uncle Jim, for the cool new clothes! Now we just need it to warm up around here so I can start wearing short sleeves! Love you and can't wait to see you in May!"

Swimming!

Last week, my aunt asked me, "is Rachael afraid of ANYTHING?" I shrugged, unable to think of an answer quickly. Rach doesn't like the vacuum, but she certainly isn't afraid of it. Ditto on thunder, strangers, dogs, and the crazy-loud motorcycle noise from the people across the street. I suspect daycare has made her brave. :)

In any case, you'll probably be shocked to know that Rachael is not afraid of water. She's tentative at first, takes her time, but ultimately, she digs it.

Here are some fun swimming pics.

New Car

Rachael received several new cars for Christmas, but this one (from mom and dad) had to sit in the basement until spring. We finally had a blistering 65 degree day on Monday so we pulled the Toddler Coupe out of the basement and put her together. While Dave was assembling Rach's new ride, he discovered that we were missing the Coupe's hubcaps. So Rachael's car has an "urban" flare to it, as you can see. ;-)

Rachael loved exploring her car! She kept getting in and out, experimenting with the doors, twisting the steering wheel. She quickly discovered the horn, much to our, uh, delight...
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Here are a few more pics of her fresh new wheels:
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Riding along with the windows down....

Backing in (with some help from Daddy)