Greece

I have been meaning to blog about the trip for a few days but I have been tring to catch up with other things, and now that I try to blog, I have run into a couple of problems, namely my dog and my baby. Tonight I sat down and as I started to look through the pictures, my daughter demanded to see them so I put her on my lap and we went throught the slide show. Then I tried to distract her with the helium balloon that Marie got me for my birthday. Of course once our self appointed canine security chief saw the balloon move, the room exploded into a frienzy of jumping and barking. I have to give Sophia credit though, climbing to the top of the couch to leap off and try to get the balloon off of the ceiling shows real dedication.

Anyhow things I learned about traveling with a baby in Europe (some of which I already knew):

Its best if they already are eating normal food.

Bring baby tylenol etc, for teething.

Babies can't keep up with our usual backpacking, different-city-every-night schedual.

Even at 9 months, there are strong oppinions-its all about animals, bright colors, and fluffy things, not old stones and ruins.

It would be eisier to have a babysitter or something for those long "boring" times like museums.

The Greeks were reasonably good about us traveling with the baby.

The French were not.

2 Trips to Boston.

So in late September I went to Boston for a conference. I am holding up baby girl here in front of the window to the vendor exhibition.

The next weekend Marie's parents were out here and we all went to Cape Cod.

Aquarium

My sister came out to visit two weeks ago. We forgot our camera for the beach and most other things but while I was at work they went to the Norwalk aquarium. It sounds like it was really family oriented. Alyssa liked the sharks and the sting rays.

Movie star

So our girl's work at Yale has got her filmed by a group working on a project about how the mind develops and how children learn. Since we don't have the film (yet) here is one we took of her crawling and sticking her tongue out.

Now when I am trying to work at home, I hear "DaDaDaDaDa" and see her crawling toward me, wherever I am .

Connecticut, etc,

Ok, I am trying (hard) not to get too serious or political here. After several amusing things at the olympics including the 12 year old "womens" gymnastics team, the singer replaced by cute politbureau lipsinc girl, and the less amusing forced labor "re-education" camps for elderly women who applied for permits to protest in the designated (empty) protest areas, and then horrific Russian invasion of Georgia (and continuing looting), I should focus on something positive. So here it is: Connecticut has a lot to do in the summer. The first three pictures were from a walk around down town Milford and the last is the llama pen at bishop's Orchard where we go speacialty stuff and farm produce. This was Alyssa's first encounter with the wonderous beasts but unfortunately she was groggy.