Savoring the Day ~ Arabella Visits

Sunday afternoon I kept my grandniece for a couple hours, and we made every minute count. Here are a few pictures of our day.

She had just got up from a nap when she arrived, so she was quiet for a while. I took advantage of her stillness and snapped my first picture. Isn't she adorable? ☺

She loves this little pull dog, and before long, she had spotted it in the scattering of toys I had ready for her.

She can't walk and pull the dog yet, but she will soon enough.

What a precious smile on that little face! 

At one point, I sat her at the little table where my beloved granddaughter and I have shared many treasured moments. I could tell she really liked the chair, and when the color box was opened, she let out a little chuckle.

I didn't know if she had been introduced to colors (since she's really too young to hold a color and actually color), but I took my chances. (What happens at Aunt Gayle's stays at Aunt Gayle's.) The only coloring she did was one tiny little purple line on Aunt Gayle's wall. If you look closely, you can see it in the picture below. I might leave it there forever.

She was intrigued with this block puzzle. I loved watching her little hands and mind at work.

Here she is studying the zebra. (Be still my heart.)

Later, we walked over to the dining room windows, and she spotted cousin Audrey's carseat sitting nearby. I had purposefully avoided it on prior visits, for my own reasons, but she saw it, and without any prompting, she plopped down in it and stayed for a spell.

Of course, we had to make a trek upstairs to Audrey's room. Arabella seems to love everything about it.

Check out the cupcake shoes! (I bet her Memaw bought those.)

As the day wore on, she insisted on getting in this chair. I helped with her ascent and remembered my other grandniece loving this chair and loved me catching her as she slid out of it, too. ☺ I wondered what Arabella was thinking as she sat there, so solemn and quiet.

Much too soon, she was headed back home, and I was sad to see her go.

There's an old Chinese proverb that says "A child's life is like a piece of paper on which every person leaves a mark." I hope to leave a beautiful mark on sweet Arabella's life as the years go by—one she'll always look at fondly. Although she's only a year old, she's already leaving a mark on mine, and how beautiful it is. ♦