When I first made plans to fly to Houston for my grandfather’s funeral, I had no intentions of bringing a camera. When my brother made plans to fly himself, my sister-in-law and my niece to Houston, I packed up my cameras, both digital and film.
As I previously wrote, exploring our childhood home through the eyes of my niece, then almost 20 months, was a lot of fun. Without further ado, I present pictures of the world’s most important toddler:
© 2014. A particularly grueling customs process at IAH put Matt in the depths of despair, but gave Layla some time for a nap.
© 2014. Wide awake, Layla explores one of her favorite things — the stairs — under the watchful eye of my mother. To the right are baby portraits of my younger brother and me. Matt’s baby portrait is out of frame.
© 2014. Mother and child.
© 2014.
© 2014. Jet-lagged.
© 2014. You’d be pretty self-satisfied too, if you’d navigated going down the stairs by yourself not long after waking up.
© 2014. Toothbrush time.
© 2014. My mom taught Layla how to water the plants. This became Layla’s favorite morning activity.
© 2014. Like I said: Her new favorite morning activity.
© 2014. Chinese spoon for Chinese noodles.
© 2014. Layla and the ducks (and the pig).
© 2014. Everybody’s dressed and ready for Grandpa’s visitation, except for Matt, who had just ripped his new Armani pants while squatting to pick up Layla.
© 2014. Layla, needing little more than furniture (and purses) to entertain her, was a champ at her great-grandpa’s visitation.
© 2014. The next morning, the daughter greets her father upon his return from a neighborhood jog.
© 2014. Maestro.
© 2014. My younger brother Geoff, right, sees Layla for the first time since last spring. My brothers are clearly brothers.
© 2014. Matt scrambled to find bubble bath and water toys for Layla’s bath. It wasn’t easy, since we’d all outgrown bubbles and bath toys two decades ago.
© 2014. Post-bath.
© 2014.
© 2014.
© 2014. Dinnertime with Emily’s mother.
© 2014. Almost-nude ascending a staircase.
© 2014. My last morning in Houston. Snuggle time with Matt.
I’ll have film pictures to share at some point. But in the meantime, if you haven’t had enough of my niece, click here for more pictures.
Words and Light 
[…] I went to Houston in May for my grandfather’s funeral, I brought not just my digital camera, but also my […]