Hello, Pushkin

Mae is smiling. Alert the world!! Her daddy noticed it first - when he made a popping noise with his mouth mid-diaper change - and it's been coming and going for days, but now the smiling is for sure here to stay. And it's not even just smiling. Sometimes it's high-pitched squealing, too, like the world is just so hillarious she can't contain her joy.

We have favourite games now that make her smile. We invented them ourselves. The first one is called Kissy Lips are Coming. You play it like this:


KISSY LIPS ARE COMING:

Step 1: Stand very far away (but close enough that Mae can still see you), make a kissy noise and say "Kissy lips are coming."

Step 2: Get closer. Repeat kissy noise and say "Kiisssssy lips are coming."

Step 3: Get even closer. Repeat kissy noise and say "Kiiiiiiiiiisssy lips are coming."

Step 4: Sneak right up. Repeat kissy noise and exclaim "KISSY LIPS ARE HERE" then kiss Mae all over her tummy until she smiles and/or shrieks.


IS YOUR NAME...?
The second game is called "Is Your Name?" and you play it like this.

Step 1: Say "Is your name Leonardo DaVinci?" Pause, as if waiting for Mae to answer and then shake your head, saying "Noooooo."

Step 2: Say "Is your name Daddy?" Pause, shake head, say "Noooooo."

Steps 3 - 10: Repeat steps one and two, using various names that aren't Mae. For example, you might say:

"Is your name Aunt Jemima?" "Nooooo"
"Is your name Ogopogo?" "Noooooo"
"Is your name George W. Bush?" "Oh, no. Noooooo. Thank goodness."
"Is your name MooMoo Bunnylips?" "Nooooo."
"Is your name StinkyPants McGee?" "Well, sometimes"
"Is your name Tina Turner?" (Pause, as if giving the matter serious thought.) "Nooooo"

Step 11: Say "Is your name Mae?" Then cheer like crazy until Mae smiles and/or shrieks and say "Yes!! Your name is Mae."

Honestly, I could play either of those games all day long. This is the best fun I've had in ages.