13 months

Addy is 13 months old today and wow has a lot changed just in the past month. I really feel like now she can understand some of the things that we are saying. She knows to put her nook in the bed after waking up, she knows how to give hugs, she always turns the lights on or off when asked, and she usually stops what she's doing when you tell her no. She can also climb all of the steps going up, but coming down is still a suicide mission. She also definitely knows what she wants, unfortunately there are times when Brian and I don't, but she always lets us know that she's not happy. She has perfected the "limp body move" which is when she lets her whole body go limp and completely falls to the ground, sobbing dramatically. Luckily, she usually snaps out of this fairly quickly. Addy also really likes to copy whatever sounds or movements you are doing. She'll say things so matter-of-fact that you swear they must be real words, but of course it makes no sense. And last but not least, Addy is getting even more teeth. She has molars coming in on all sides and is up to 13 teeth!

Turkey Trot

What a wonderful Thanksgiving day. I woke up early to see big fluffy white snowflakes falling everywhere. It was just beautiful. We had a nice relaxing morning and listened to lots of Christmas music. We headed up to the Bennett's in the early afternoon and had a huge Thanksgiving dinner with tons of people. I think there were about 20 adults and 8 kids. It was so much fun but the most memorable part was after dinner Addy decided to take her first real steps! She walked 5 or 6 steps several different times, all while acting like it was no big deal. Maybe it was the turkey, or the stuffing that got her going, but really I think she was just saving it up so she could do it in front of a big crowd. This girl likes to perform. Happy Thanksgiving!

Here is some video of her walking at home from the day after Thanksgiving. We are so proud of her.

Mmmmm....

The other night during dinner Brian and I were commenting on how lucky we are that Addy is such a good eater. There is nothing this child won't eat, she almost always finishes everything we give her and she doesn't usually make too big of a mess. Usually. Within minutes of us saying that Addy took her hands, which were covered in spaghetti sauce and rubbed them on her head. Then over the next few minutes she proceeded to cover almost every square inch of her face with food. We couldn't help but laugh. She certainly seemed to be enjoying it.

Snow Day. Really?

When we first switched to Addy's current daycare I remember exactly what I thought when they told me that they followed the Public School schedule when it comes to having snow days. I thought I better plan on missing a few extra days of work every winter since schools cancel at the sign of the first flake here. Sure enough, today was our first one. It was the first snowfall of the season and by 8:30 am the schools decided they would be letting out early, so of course our daycare did as well. I had to pick Addy up by 12:30.
For all of you in the Midwest, I feel like I really need to paint this picture for you. For the past week the news has only been talking about the snow that was expected to come this past weekend. Surprisingly, it did actually snow yesterday, for about 5 minutes. Nothing stuck (at least where I live) and it was fairly disappointing. It did get pretty cold last night, but when I woke up this morning and looked outside hoping to see a scattering of snow I didn't see anything except some frost on the cars, no actual snow on the ground. It did however start snowing around 7:30, but of course it was melting instantly. But since it didn't let up for the next hour, apparently that was enough. After having at most 1 inch on the ground, the schools were let out early. The roads were perfectly clear and I just couldn't help but laugh thinking about the days in Minnesota when I would wake up to 8 inches on the ground hoping for a snow day and wouldn't get anything. Here, all it takes is the chance of snow and it's canceled! Addy will never know how easy she has it!
Here are some pics of our "blizzard". Our little front yard and the park behind our house. Yes, those are kids sledding in the 1 inch of snow.

More Birthday Fun..Again

Another weekend, another birthday party! This time for Jack, who turned three. It was an awesome party at a gymnastics academy. I'm not sure who had more fun, the kids or the parents. Addy was a little young for the activities, but she still had a great time with all her friends. We were running behind all day so I didn't get the best photos and forgot to even get one of the birthday boy. Oops! Here are some shots & you can see how cool the place was.

Life is Good

I have mentioned to several people over the last few weeks that I think I am the happiest I've ever been in my life right now. I actually didn't hate high school, in fact I kind of liked it, and I really loved my college years, but honestly I don't see how it gets better than what I have right now. Being a mom is even better than I ever imagined it could be, Addy is such a joy, Brian and I are as happy as we've ever been, and we just feel incredibly lucky. I feel as my "happily ever after" is happening right before my eyes. I feel grateful every day.

Tomorrow marks 8 years since my mom passed away and although that always makes me sad thinking about how much I miss her, this year I have a different perspective on it. I realize now that what a parent wants, more than anything else, is for their child to be happy. And as I mentioned, I am as happy as I have ever known right now, so I can't help but feel that my mom is proud knowing that I feel this way. Of course it's bittersweet to be at this stage in my life and not have my mom with me, but given that I can't change what happened, I feel like the next best thing is for her to know that I truly feel happy and blessed with my life. And while it is hard for me that Brian and Adelyn will never meet my mom, we talk about her so often that I know she will always be a part of their lives. For that I am grateful.

I love you mom.

Bye Bye Nook (Almost)

Adelyn has always been very attached to her nooks. The only thing better than her having one of them is having two of them and life doesn't get any better for her than when she is holding all three of them. On the one hand I think this is a great thing because it instantly works to soothe and calm her. It truly is a lifesaver. On the other hand, if you can't find one it can mean disaster, especially in the middle of the night. She will cry and scream until she gets it. We keep talking about trying to wean her but the time just never seems right.
I have been trying to teach Addy that the nooks are only for the crib and sleeping. So every morning after she gets up I've been showing her that the nooks live in the crib and I take it out of her mouth and then we wave bye-bye to it. The first few days she wasn't a big fan and literally tried to jump out of my arms back into the crib to get her nooks. But about a week ago she started willingly dropping her nook into the crib and waving good-bye and this morning right when I picked her up she gave me a hug and then dropped her nook and waved at it. It was pretty much the cutest thing I've ever seen. I'm so proud.

More Birthday Fun

Yesterday, we took Adelyn to a birthday party for another one year old. It was for Allia, who is also a Chef'n baby (she was the mouse at Addy's party). We had a lot of fun & ate way too much sugar (not Addy, just us...ok maybe just me). As always, Addy had fun seeing her Chef'n friends. Can't wait to do it again next weekend.

Busy Day

Today is Veteran's day which meant Addy's daycare was closed, which meant I took the day off to watch Addy. It was fabulous, we had so much fun. We went for a walk in the morning before the rain started and then I had all of the moms over from my PEPS group. Addy went down for her morning nap and when she woke up there were 5 other kids here, she was pretty shocked. A couple of them are walking already so it was fun to see that. Afterward Addy and I took a trip down to Ikea to get a bookshelf for her growing book collection. I was quite proud of myself for making it through the maze that is Ikea in less than 1 hour and with no major distractions. Addy loved it there. She was babbling the entire way through the store. It must have wiped her out though because she took a really long nap when we got home and was still asleep when Brian got home from work. I'm pretty wiped too, I feel like I could go to bed now. I really appreciate these days off though, it is so fun to spend them with Addy.

Brrrr....

We have had some beautiful, clear, sunny days this week, which has been great but has made for some really chilly mornings. Since I walk Addy to daycare each morning we've had to bundle up for the first time. I couldn't help but take a photo of Addy in her warm hat and coat. She was so happy in it and looked so cozy. Bring on the cold weather, we are ready.

Little Lady

Adelyn crosses her legs when she does just about anything. She does it while drinking her bottle, eating food, playing with her toys and sometimes even in bed. We like to joke that she is always acting like a lady and crossing her legs. Here is some evidence.

One Year Stats

Today we took Adelyn to the Dr. for her 1 year appointment. Her weight was 22 1/2 pounds (75%), length 29.5 inches (50-75%) and head size 46.3 cm (75-90%). She continues to progress at a healthy rate. It was clear that she is getting older though because during this visit she wasn't as patient while the Dr. checked her out. She wanted to grab everything or crawl away. The good news is that the Dr. didn't seem to be too concerned about the fact that Addy has had a runny nose for about 8 weeks. The bad news is that she said we shouldn't be surprised if she has one all the way through May! She said that Addy just might be more prone to viruses than other babies and will catch everything that is going around. Luckily she doesn't seem to be too effected by these colds and still has good energy and a happy demeanor. I'm just hoping we can make it through this cold season without any major infections. I feel like we've already been through enough and the season has just begun.

Parent Teacher Conference

Yesterday we had our first parent teacher conference for Addy. It's actually something that our daycare does a few times a year for every child in the program (impressive!) and so it was our first. They admitted there generally isn't too much to discuss regarding the infants but its a great chance to get the feedback and to address any concerns we had. It felt very official! They had a list of criteria that they review the children on and they gave us feedback on how Adelyn is progressing. It was very interesting and of course hard not to feel like they should know that she is advanced in everything, just like we think she is. Overall they said she is right on track with most skills and is doing great. She won't move to the next room (waddlers!) until they have an opening but that's ok with me. Things are going really well with daycare, the hardest part for me is that now Addy cries every morning when I drop her off. I give her a big kiss and hug and set her down and then she crawls after me towards the door. When I leave I can see her through the window crying and it's heartbreaking. Luckily I know it lasts for less than a minute before she moves on and finds something else to distract her.

Same Party...more photos

I got some more photos from the party that are just too cute not to share. Enjoy!