The Stair Master

When Olivia started crawling, we quickly realized you can't completely baby-proof a house. It's just impossible. The stairs have been a major source of concern. We have a gate, but it's not a permanent gate. Just one we can move between the stairs and the entrance to the living room (which is now the play room). Mainly, because we go up and down the stairs so many times. On any given day, we have this conversation:

Becky: "Can you see her?"
Michael: "No, can you?"
Becky: "No, is the gate up?"
Michael: "I don't know..." pause... "Olivia! What are you doing on the stairs?!"

And so it went for many weeks. We were terrified of all the horror stories we've heard about babies falling down the stairs.
Today, we were playing upstairs and she was DETERMINED to go down the stairs. Every time I redirected her, she screamed. And went right back to the top of the stairs. Finally, I stood a few stairs down and watched to see what she would do. To my utter amazement, this is what happened: (OK, this is the second time. I was trying to pick my jaw up off the floor the first time).



See Mom? I know what I'm doing...



This little landing won't stop me! (Note the tongue)



I just swing one leg around...



Get my booty over the edge...



Now both feet on the step...



I bet these bars will help...



See??? Piece of cake!



What a stinker. I have no idea how she figured that out, aside from the fact that she's brilliant.

Her new favorite toy:



She loves walking behind this thing! The only problem is she doesn't know what to do when she runs into something, which happens every 5 feet or so. We're constantly moving it away from the wall, the stairs, the dogs, etc. She's doing pretty well with it, though!



She is growing so fast! She's saying "Uh-oh" now, usually appropriately. Or whenever she hears anyone else say it. She's also turning the pages in books when we read at night and will actually sit down and look at a book by herself. It's bittersweet! Our little 4 pound baby is long gone!

Playing Peek- A- Boo with Daddy and Pooh:



That chair is another Craigslist find! It's a Pottery Barn anywhere chair and I got it for $15. That's about 10% of what one costs new. I washed the cover and it's good as new! I love a bargain.