YAY Nana!

Sorry I haven't posted for a while.  It's been busy around Matthew's house.  His Nana came to visit and we had a great time.  Here's a picture of me and an "M" pancake she made for Matthew.

And check out the syrup!  Cole's mommy sent that - it's homemade maple syrup and Matthew and his family said it was SO GOOD!! 

 

And here's a random picture of me with Matthew. :) 

 

I visited Matthew at school a couple of times, but Matthew's Mommy isn't sure whether they took any pictures of me.  She's trying to figure out what happened (Matthew and I aren't really reliable sources).  Either way I'll tell you what - it was GREAT fun!

Gardening with Matthew

Matthew's Daddy is very into gardening.  I hear he normally has flowers all over the place, although this year their family has been busy and hasn't been able to plant as many summer flowers (which is probably not such a bad thing, because my goodness - it's hot here!)  But they showed me pictures of their spring flowers and they really were beautiful.

BUT, Matthew's Daddy is growing a bunch of tomatoes this year, which has been lots of fun and tasty too.  Here's a picture of me and Matthew and some of their crop. 

That little guy is growing on me. :)

Matthew loves gardening with his dad, and checks on the tomatoes twice a day - before and after school. He also planted a holly bush with some help from his Daddy, and Matthew is in charge of watering it and keeping it healthy.  He's done a great job because as you can see, it's a very healthy plant.  Matthew's Daddy told Matthew how important it is to give your plants plenty of water, and to talk to them.  I know it seems weird to talk to plants, but apparently plants like that!  So Matthew checks on his holly every day per his Daddy's advice. 

Matthew and his holly (I'm using it as a recliner):

It is SO HOT here, and tomorrow is going to be the hottest day of the year!  I hope this heat breaks soon, because we've been stuck inside a lot.  But I hear this weekend we may hit the pool, and we're all very excited because Matthew's Nana is visiting this weekend!  Fun!  :)

That's all for now!

CFA!

Tuesday nights at Chick Fil A are a family tradition here with Matthew's family.  Matthew seemed especially excited to share this with me. On the way to CFA (as it is affectionately known), they explained that on Tuesdays they have free kids' meals and a craft table. Apparently this is very exciting. If I had a digestive system, perhaps I'd have a better appreciation of why this is so special. But alas, I can only smile and nod- er, well, I can just sit here and listen and- ummm... hmmm.. yeah, no.  [Awkward silence.]  You know, being inanimate kind of bites.

Anyway, here I am with Matthew and Andy as they enjoy their chicken nuggets and fruit!

My day with Dr. Panda

Today I got to hang out with Matthew's Mommy, otherwise known as Dr. Panda. She just finished school and now she's something called a "postdoctoral fellow."  I don't know what that is exactly, but it sounds cool.  Here I am outside her office building:

And here I am helping her write a report:

They drink a lot of coffee here. I asked one of the graduate students if he'd help me get some coffee...

...but then I changed my mind and decided to have a cup of tea.

That same graduate student later reminisced about a toy monkey he had as a kid that he said looked a lot like me. He said he used to turn that monkey into a football.  Matthew's Mommy asked if she could see what that looked like.

(I was not amused.)

Matthew's Mommy needed to get some work done.  Here I am waiting patiently outside her office door.

Overall, I'd say my day was pretty interesting, but I hope I get permission to spend a day with Matthew at school because honestly, other than the monkey-as-football episode, that sounds like it would be a lot more fun. 

Hello Southwestern Ohio!

After my long journey from Canada, I arrived at my Junie friend Matthew's house this evening! I'm very happy to be out of that mailing box, as it was a bit uncomfortable and I spent much of the day upside-down in what I think was a mail truck. Matthew was very excited to see me, and we became fast friends. I was also excited to meet Matthew's little brother, Andy.

Matthew and Andy, along with their Mommy and Daddy, thought it would be fun to go to a farm near their house.  They like to go there to look at the animals and buy fresh veggies.  Unfortunately, the farm was closed, so we had to settle for... ice cream!  Yummy! 

I'm told the best ice cream in the world is in Cincinnati, and it's at a place called Graeter's. But tonight we decided to try our luck with UDF (United Dairly Farmers), another local brand. Cincinnatians, I've quickly discovered, are very into their city, and very into local restaurants, businesses, and regional chains. And UDF was having a sale on soft serve.  Ummm.. hello!  Everyone knows that monkeys love soft serve!

 

(I quickly discovered that Matthew and Andy are messy eaters. But their Mommy wiped the ice cream drips off my head, and she got almost all of them off.  Phew!)

Next we thought it would be fun to walk over to the amphitheatre in their little town.  It was really nice, although I must admit that I was a little bummed because there wasn't a concert going on.  However, since the theatre was empty, Matthew and I got to go up on stage and rock out!  Woo hoo!

After my award-worthy performance, Matthew decided to to play catch-the-monkey. Or maybe it's called throw-the-monkey?  Beat-up-the-monkey? 

Here's a photo Matthew's Daddy affectionately called, "The Crime Scene."  Thanks, Tom.  (Can I call you Tom?)

(Between you and me, the next kid will be lucky if I arrive with all of my limbs still attached.)

But seriously, I'm really looking forward to my time in Cincinnati. Assuming I manage to survive the dynamic duo that is Matthew and Andy, it's sure to be an adventure!  And who could possibly not enjoy the company of these little dudes?? :)

G'night! :)