A Future Photographer?

My niece Morgan may have found her calling! Or, like most kids these days, she can't get enough of her parents smart phones. Morgan is 3 1/2 and has already learned how to take photos with her Mom's iPhone 3GS. Then I showed up with my iPhone 4. To give you a little background, Morgan has always been a little confused that she is supposed to sit still while you take her picture or keep on doing her thing while you're shooting a video. She is so fascinated by seeing herself that she sometimes leaves the picture, runs over and asks to "See Morgan!" Her parents have tried to explain to her and Piper that if they leave the picture, the screen will be empty, no Morgan or Piper.

Anyway, Meg, Morgan and I were upstairs in the guest room one day and Morgan wanted to take photos with my phone. I handed it to her and let her click away. Then I remembered that with the iPhone 4, she can take photos of herself by touching the button that flips the camera to the inside lens. Whoa, this was a revelation for Morgan! Meg and I looked at each other and said, "Uh oh. Maybe I shouldn't have shown her that feature." Oh well, the cat was out of the bag. Morgan ended up just cracking us up with her antics, taking photos of just about everyone and herself! Here are some samples.

Piper's cute diaper butt and curly hair.

Most of Dad David.

A happy photo of Mommy Meg. She told Morgan she needed

to get her eyes, nose, and mouth in the picture. Much better!

A sweet Morgan face.

OK, not quite.

There she is!

Aunt Ali's feet and Morgan's dress.

Yeah Morgan!

Wordless Wednesday: Bubble Girl

Wordless Wednesday: Fridge Art From Morgan

Strawberries in the Garden

Morgan and I went strawberry picking in the backyard!

Easter Brunch - Morgan & Chocolate Fondue

A Few Words From Morgan

My sister Meg purchased an iPhone over the weekend and was so excited! She admits to spending any free time getting her new phone set up and looking into cool apps. I've had an iPhone for about 1.5 years and my 2-year old niece Morgan likes to play with it when I visit. It does have a pink case after all! Apparently, Morgan saw Meg's new phone and said, "Phone... ä-lee." That's me, Ali. Isn't that cute? She remembers me (and my phone)!

Nap Time for Morgan

Morgan is not ready for her nap... silly girl. : )

A Weekend with Morgan

I just got home from a long weekend up in Spokane, Washington with my sister, brother-in-law and 17-month-old niece Morgan. Due to my knee surgery, I hadn't seen Morgan since her first birthday. Wow, she has grown! Morgan is walking, starting to become more vocal, and looks more and more like a little girl. Such a cutie. 

Meg and I had a girl's night out on Friday. We indulged in some delicious appetizers at Twigs, a restaurant downtown, then saw a movie. We finished the evening with mini desserts at The Davenport Hotel Safari Room. On Saturday night, I got special Auntie Ali and Morgan time when her Mommy and Daddy went to the Shock game. They are the local arena football team. I insisted Meg and David have a date night so I got some quality Morgan time. : ) I read Morgan lots of books (she's so cute when she hands you a book, then turns around and waits for you to pick her up and put her on your lap), fed her dinner, gave her a bath (I didn't keep Morgan's diaper on until just before I put her in the tub. She peed on the big yellow ducky next to the tub... Oops! Mental note for next time...), read her a few more books and put her to bed. After one lovey and blanket rescue from the floor outside her crib, Morgan went to sleep. Here are some photos from the weekend.

Morgan and Barker at Old Navy

Good Doggy

I don't have enough toys... I think I'll play with this plastic bowl.

Tickle Mommy! 

Dessert at The Davenport Hotel Safari Room, Friday Night. Yum! 

Peek-A-Boo with Lovey

A new slide from Grandpa & Grandpa B.

Go Shock! 

Morgan found her belly button! All smiles. : )

Shhh... Don't Tell Morgan!

I bought my 15-month old niece Morgan a cute Easter Basket. It's a "duh" (duck) as Morgan says. It won't fit much candy, but it's so cute! 

My Niece Morgan's First Birthday

Happy Birthday sweet girl! Your Aunt Ali loves you!

Wash up after cake @ Sears Portrait Studio. Morgan loved the automatic/sensor faucet!

Who's coming to my party?

Morgan practiced blowing out her birthday candle before the big day, but it's stressful when everyone is staring! Mommy and Daddy took care of it. : ) 

Grandma Bottomley's Strawberry Cake. Yum!

Morgan's New Ride from Grandma & Grandpa Allendorf

Wow, all these toys are overwhelming

Beddy Bye

Wordless Wednesday: What are you doing Aunt Ali?

Morgan's Visit to Lafayette

I wanted to post a few more photos from my niece Morgan's visit. I cannot imagine Morgan could wish for more wonderful parents and doting Grandparents!

Flying with Daddy

Playing with Grandma B. What a sweet face!

With Mommy

Walking with Grandpa B.

Naptime - Morgan and her Mommy

Wordless Wednesday: Morgan reads her book from Auntie Ali

Dreaming Start to Finish

While I was in Spokane, Friday night I had a very vivid running dream. I started and finished an entire 5K race! As dreams go, it was not your typical race. For one thing, it was indoors. The very few people that were running the race seemed to be inside of a very large gymnasium. The race was an obstacle race of sorts. I remember running around tight turns and bounding over the top of things, trying to stay within a type of marked route. I can't explain it much better than that, other than the floor was very clearly a hardwood floor with the characteristic varnished shine. I think it was the type of gymnasium that was also a multi-purpose room with a performance stage on one end. It wasn't much different than the "small gym" (as we called it) at my high school, but this gym was not one I had ever been in before.

During the race I remember feeling good and I was so excited to start and finish the whole race feeling healthy even if it was a short one. It's rare that I feel so accomplished when I wake up from a dream, but that morning I sure did. I sat up in bed and smiled. Good feeling. I took it as a sign that I am on the right track to my recovery.

I did get out for a walk/run with my niece Morgan while I was up North. Morgan enjoyed the scenery of the trail near Meg and David's house for about a half an hour, then she fell asleep with her green frog WubbaNub (a pacifier attached to a small stuffed animal). Morgan needed her nap so I extended our walk time thinking she might sleep longer while she was riding in her stroller. After napping for about 35 minutes, Morgan woke up and started to cry. I realized it was about time for her to eat and we were still walking on the trail. It was so hard to hear her cry and see her little tears. I was afraid her Mom and Dad would be angry that I didn't get her home earlier. I walked as quickly as I could back to their house. Morgan calmed as we got into her neighborhood, but she was super happy to see her bottle. Here's a photo of us during our walk.

The Cutest Girl in the World

I'll include more on my weekend in Spokane, WA in a post later in the week, but I wanted to show you a few new photos of my niece Morgan. She really is the sweetest, cutest girl in the world! She was so adorable as she was sleeping before I left this morning. Meg offered to wake her up to say goodbye, but I didn't want to disturb her. Morgan was a little fussy around 5:00 AM so I went in her room, leaned over her crib, and rubbed her tummy. She opened her big eyes and blinked up at me, then went back to sleep. I miss her already.

Pretty baby.

I think I'll eat my pillow.

Happy Easter Everyone!

I'm finally back in San Francisco from a 10-day trip. It feels a little strange to be home. First, it was off to St. Petersburg, Florida for a special window display installation in our new concept store at Tyrone Square Mall, March 13-14. One of my colleagues was very generous to invite me to stay in St. Pete for the weekend. Her brother and sister-in-law rent a place there February through mid-April. We had a nice time. I even managed to get a Florida sunburn!

Then I was off to the Windy City where it was cold... around freezing with some sleet. Even enduring the cold, I have to say Chicago is a great town! I had only been to Chicago briefly once before, but this trip I saw it in a whole new light. I loved it. The conference I attended was good, the hotel was lovely (W Hotel - Lakeshore), but by the time it was over, I was ready to fly to Spokane, WA for the long weekend to see Meg, David, and Morgan for Easter weekend. Meg had a terrible cold, but we all ended up having a good time. I got to spend lots of time with Morgan and let her Mommy get some rest. Here are some photos from my visit:

Is Morgan ready for Guitar Hero yet? I hear she listens to U2 lullabyes.

Super Bunny Morgan and Aunt Ali. Whee!

I love my Mommy. : )

Family photo, The Allendorfs after Easter services.

The girls - Ali, Morgan, and Meg.

"Do you like my new outfit? Aunt Ali bought it for me at Old Navy. They have the cutest stuff. Grandma is gonna be mad though, she thinks I have enough clothes." ; ) Love, Morgan

The Many Faces of Morgan Ann-Marie

Meg sent me the cutest photos of Morgan yesterday! Check these out...

Grr...








Surprise!








All Smiles

Wordless Weekend: Christmas 2007 Family Photo